#I’ve seen a cool Sara idea where she gets him to do this cause she also wants the cycle to continue due to not being able to move on

[genoc1d3r]

my turn to cry - thoughts on 3-1b

ok this has actually gotta be my favorite chapter cause holy shit so much stuff happened.

I played the Alice/kanna route and afterwards I watched a vod with the reko/shin route in which ranmaru and naomichi died before the banquet, so BIG SPOILER WARNING FOR BOTH ROUTES

Mafia Princess Sara??: Ok so first off, back in the beginning of 2020, I had a theory that Sara was a mafia heiress and that the death game was supposed to be something to “prepare” her. And that her memories were wiped or she was initially supposed to be kept blind to this whole thing (In 3-1a when everybody saw the consent form for the very first time everybody felt a sense of deja vu, except for Sara. Because why would they need her consent when she is the sole focus of the game and it’s all for her) This theory was mainly supplied by my confusion surrounding the hiring of Kai, cause why would mr Chidouin hire a former assassin to protect her?? How did he even know Kai??? But yeah, the whole thing with Shinobu Gokujo and deciding a new don through a death game just adds a lil more validity to this theory.

Sara’s real father: I also had a mini theory that Gashu Satou was her real father, but that was mostly cause of their hair color and how it would def make Sara’s hair color make more sense genetics-wise (but kai has black hair, so its most likely that his mother had black hair, which would also disprove this mini-theory but yk im not here to prove it just talk about it). And that Gashu knew of Mr. Chidouin and gave Sara to him, and it would also explain why mr Chidouin chose Kai of all people to look after her and why Kai could only watch her from a distance, in case she realized the truth that he was her brother/half-brother or something. 

GREENBLINGS CANON AAAAAAAA: I love this, I love this so much oh my god. Now I can replay and cry after 2-2 cause nankidai hates us :’). I dont have an issue with this specifically, I’m just a bit bothered by how the whole thing went. There was some buildup yea, and the cg with kanna, kugie, and shin was amazing. And that lil bit about nice hallucinations made me tear up a bit. But, then everybody kinda just moved on? and idk this whole chapter was a fuckign roller coaster I could barely keep up.

Autistic Gin <3: I’m autistic myself and I have seen many characters who are autistic-coded or exhibit many signs of autism but have never been straight up confirmed (Ex: Vera Misham from Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney). And even then, these characters usually share similar personality traits like being aloof and reserved. So it’s nice to see that Gin is representing autism in a relatively realistic manner with his hyperfixations, vocal tics, and issues with socializing. Even after nearly dying like 17 times he’s still doing well and I genuinely wish for his survival and happiness.

Ranmaru’s death: Both of Ranmaru’s deaths, (if you or if you don’t fail the electricity absorption minigame) the death feels so... off? I was really attached to him as a character, yet his death didn’t impact as much as Joe’s or Nao’s did. During his Banquet death, one second he had his really cute smiling sprite but then whoops oh no guys weird drill screw thing kills him (again). I still can barely comprehend it because it all just happened so fast. Like no cg or anything. I was honestly kinda disappointed. The “delayed” one does a better job at his death scene, but again, it was wayyy too quick and completely dismissed as everybody just moves on to defeat Maple 2.0. I at least would’ve appreciated a better transition than Midori just saying “well anyways–”

 Ranmaru’s extremely quick descent into madness in the shin route: I actually liked this idea of Ranmaru willing to go to such extremes for Sara. However, theres barely time for any of this to develop? Like again, everything just happens so fast??? I would've definitely liked if there were little hints around before the body discovery that ranmaru was gonna do something like this, just a little time for development would really be cool.

Mr. Policeman/Mr. Tazuna???: After I finished, I actually looked on the wiki to see if it said anything about his son that he mentioned and I found this: 

But yeah thats cool

The thing about Q-taro: I’m gonna say it now, I’ve liked Q-taro ever since the aftermath of 1-2, and Q-taro haters have added absolutely nothing to this fandom. Everybody saw him as a child-hater, I see him as a guy who’ll do anything to survive and succeed. I mean that wish is kinda what got him into the death game. And yeah he did try to leave that one time, but that’s what getting thrown into traumatic killing games does for you, most people don’t want to die, they want to live, no matter what it takes. We can’t all be the main character and choose to cooperate with everybody and be the “good” person in that situation. Even Sara has those extremely selfish moments and those intrusive thoughts of winning and leaving. 

This whole thing should also be applied to Ranmaru. Ranmaru has gone through so much shit in such a brief amount of time, to the point where he was considering to/actually kill people to escape with the one person he trusted in this hellhole. In that situation, Sara’s kinda at fault here, cause without Joe she’s lost her sense of morality which resulted in her becoming selfish and well... honestly kinda toxic. This emotional manipulation is really what set Ranmaru off, however it was 100% his decision to fucking kill somebody and murder’s bad. Still love him though.

But back to Qtaro, I really enjoyed the extra substance given to him in this chapter, it’s nice to see the development from being selfish to feeling deep remorse to protecting the dolls of the first trial victims, most notably Mai. As he completely forgives her for stabbing him. The chapter did a great job at fueling my already intense love for Q-taro (and it actually convinced my best friend who claims to hate Q-taro with every bone of her body to like him too!) I also love the father-son dynamic between him and Gin. I find this relationship to be really important cause Gin’s father is an abusive alcoholic and Q-taro’s an orphan who’s never had a proper role-model in his life. So it’s beautiful that despite not having anybody there for him when he was younger he can still be a good figure for another child.

Predictions/hopes for the next part: 

I just want to see whether Shin already knew about Kanna being his sister, and if he doesn’t I want a reveal. Right. Now.

A Ranmaru/Joe/Q-taro/Kai/ “Hinako” revival, p l e a se  they died so soon

More info about the people involved in the Hades Incident/Shinobu Gokujo

More info regarding Meister

Sara going on Maury

Who tf is “Hinako”????

I really hope that there isn't any specific good/bad ending. Like I want every ending to be equally bad and good yk? like equal consequences and good stuff.

Yo wtf happened to Sara’s mom?? Is she gonna come back and play a more important role in the story?? Are her parents gonna come back as floor masters???

I want things to actually change  depending on whether you picked Alice or reko, cause so far they’ve played extremely minor roles.

[imagines4thefandoms]

Oliver Queen X Wife! Reader

requested: @purpledragon04​

Sorry this took to long i just couldn't think of anything good enough. hope you like it.

Can you do a Oliver queen x reader? where they’re having a gender reveal party

Word count:2456

Warnings: NONE....slight fluff

“What time is it,” William asked shoving a big bite of pancake in his mouth.

“Son, its only 8am,” Oliver laughed at his son’s excitement.

You walked in the kitchen and sat down next to William. Oliver slide over a plate of pancakes and a cup of coffee. After taking a sip you looked at your husband.

“What time is it,” you asked excitedly and nervously.

Oliver and William laughed as your husband walked over to you and places a kiss on your temple while placing his had on your ever growing belly. Today was the gender reveal party that Thea and Facility planned. You and William were excited to find out what the gender of the baby was, while Ollie was just excited to be having a baby with the love of his life. After all the bad in his life he was happy to have this good thing/things.

“Its just another party,” Oliver said taking a sip of his coffee.

“Ollie, your not looking forward to finding out the gender of our baby,” you asked tearing up.

“Sweetheart, I don’t care if we are having a boy or girl. I just want to have a happy healthy baby with the love of my life,” Oliver replied rubbing your back.

Oliver was right, it doesn’t matter if you were having a boy or girl. Honestly, your would have rather stayed home with the two men in your life but if you did Thea would drag you kicking and screaming.

After Oliver calmed you down from your crazy hormonal episode, the three of you finished breakfast. The party wasn’t until noon so there were four hours to kill.  William went back to his room to play some video game while you took an shower and Oliver clean the kitchen.

“(Y/n) you ok,” Oliver asked after you had been in the shower for an hour.

He walked into the bathroom and found you sitting on the floor of the shower crying. He climbed in and pulled you into his arms letting his t-shirt and sweatpants get soaked. Oliver and you just sat there for a couple minutes.

(N/n) what’s wrong,” he asked.

“What if i’m a bad mom,” you asked Ollie looking over your shoulder.

“Impossible, i’ve seen the way you care about William. I know that you will be a great mom,” he responded laughing.

You gave him a small smile and laughed when you noticed that he was soaking wet. Oliver helped you up and out the shower while he got out of his soaking pjs and took a shower himself.  After getting dressed in maternity leggings and a (f/c) T-shirt dress you laid in bed and continued reading the book on your nightstand.

When ollie was done, he got dressed is just jeans and a t-shirt and went to his office t work on some mayoral things. The three of you were doing your separate things til William ran into your room excitingly.

“Its 11:30 come on lets go,” William said basically bouncing off the walls.

When you found out your were pregnant you were worried not about what Ollie thought but about what William thought. You were scared he would think that this baby would be more important to him but when you and Oliver told him he was excited to be a big brother.

After you got out of bed you and William ran, well William ran you wattled, to Oliver’s office. Oliver laughed at the sight of his pregnant wife and son jumping with excitement and telling him to hurry up. He finished looking over the budget for the police (idk what mayors do) and closed his computer.

The car ride there consisted of William going back and forth over either wanting to have a baby brother or sister, and you staring into space imagining your life with a baby boy then again with a baby girl. Spoiler alert both were full of sleepless nights and tears from you. Oliver held your hand and shot down williams dream to play some video game with a little brother.

“William, you won’t be able to play Modern Warfare with a newborn,” he laughed.

When we pulled up to Oliver’s childhood home, Thea, Felicity and Dig came outside and greeted us. Thea walked past her brother and gave you a big hug. Oliver faked a hurt look while Thea ignored him and then went to hug her nephew.

“OMG you’re glowing,” Felicity stated pulling you into a hug.

“I think the term you are looking for is gigantic,” you said returning the hug.

“She’s right (y/n) you look amazing,” Oliver said placing a kiss on your temple.

“You have to say that cause you are coming home with me.”

“No it the truth. You are the most beautiful person in the multiverse.”

“Wow you’re cheesy Mr. Queen. Now lets find out if we are having a little girl or another boy. “

The two of you walked into the Queen Mansion. Moira was standing in the parlor by a table with little paper pins of the supergirl symbol and flash symbols. With a sign that read “will baby Queen be Supergirl or flash?”

“Omg this is too cute,” you said picking up each symbol.

Oliver looked over at his sister and Felicity. Dig laughed at Ollie’s reaction an pined a flash symbol to his shirt. William grabbed a flash symbol then went to hug Moira.

“Whose idea was this,” Oliver asked when you put on a supergirl symbol.

“Ours,” Kara and Berry said walking out of the living room.

“Kara, you’re here,” you exclaimed running or more likely waddling towards your best friend.

“I would never miss the baby shower,” she responded hugging you.

After you grabbed a supergirl symbol which matched the one Kara was wearing and she pulled you into the living room which was decked out in supergirl and flash decorations also pink and blue balloons. There was the famous first picture of Kara flying and a picture of the Flash above the fireplace. All of our superhero friends were here including our DEO friends from Earth-19.  It  was nice seeing everyone when it didn’t involve a worlds ending crisis.

Oliver walked over to you to take in the decorations and the fact that he has to look at a dozen pictures of Barry and Kara. You looked over at your husband and saw that he was wearing a supergirl and flash symbol on his shirt. Before you could comment on the buttons Sara walked into the mansion with the legends.

“Sara, how can someone with a time machine always be late,” you joked hugging her.

“Mick,” Sara replied as an excuse and with that one word you completely understood.

After ten minutes of catching up with Alex, Kara, and Brainy, it was time to play some games. Thea grabbed you and Oliver and brought you two to the front of room. The first game was guess the baby food. Kara and Felicity walked around the room with a plater of baby food jars with no labels and tiny plastic spoons.

After playing guess the baby food, baby bingo, baby birthday pool, and having everyone write wishes for baby queen, and scarfing down three sandwiches, two cake pops and some fruit it was time for the big reveal. Thea directed everyone out to the backyard while Dig and Barry brought out a wooden target with the words ‘Supergirl or The Flash’ in red and blue. There were three black balloons pinned to the plywood. Felicity stood infant of the target and explained that the colors in the balloons will match the superhero costumes so red is for the flash and blue is for supergirl. Thea brought Oliver a bow and three arrows.

“Really speedy,” Oliver asked smiling.

“Its cute ollie,” Thea replied patting his back.

You laughed at how the green arrow is gonna fire an arrow to find out if the baby is “supergirl” or the “Flash”. Oliver wouldn’t admit it cause he is a stubborn bastard but he thought the idea was cute. You went up behind Oliver and wrapped your arms around him and placed a kiss between his shoulder blades.

“Don’t miss,” you teased him.

“You think your cute,” he retorted as you let him go and stood behind him.

“I know I am.”

Oliver shook his head and let out a small laugh as he grabbed an arrow and pulled the drawstring back. Everyone beside William and I were standing three feet behind Oliver watching to see what color explodes from the balloons. Oliver let the arrow fly and it hit the black ballon on the right and white paint exploded. Oliver reloaded the bow and took aim. William and you were anxiously waiting to see if the next shoot would be red or blue. Oliver released the arrow and shot the balloon on the left. The balloon released white paint again. In that moment you mentally cursed Felicity, Thea, and Kara for setting up the reveal like this. The suspense was killing you.

“Babe come here,” Oliver called to you.

You walked over and Oliver handed you the bow. “Sweetheart, you know I cant shoot a bow like you can,” you explained trying to give the bow back.

“I will help you,” he said pulling you back towards him.

Oliver grabbed the last arrow and placed it on the string. He placed his hand over your on the bow and guided your other hand to the string. The two of you pulled the sting back and Oliver helped you relax your shoulders.

“Take a deep breath and focus on the target.”

“You sure you don’t want to do this yourself.”

“Be quiet and focus.”

Oliver helped you correct your position and placed his hands back over yours. You and Oliver took a deep breath and he whispered “Let go” in your ear. The arrow flew across the yard and landed center of the last balloon. Blue paint exploded from the balloon. A girl. You and Oliver were having a girl. You dropped the bow and turned around and wrapped your arms around your husband. William ran over and hugged the both of you.

“Congratulations,” everyone yelled.

Moira and Thea came over to y’all and pulled you and Oliver into a hug. It didn’t matter what color came out of the balloon because you knew no matter what this baby would be loved and protected. I mean her god mother was freaking supergirl.

“You happy,” you asked your husband.

“Yes, now I don’t have to watch you dress my baby in flash onesies,” he said placing a kiss on your temple.

“I can still do that just to annoy you.”

“I guess it will be cool to have a little sister,” William said. You laughed at his reaction and pulled him into a hug.

After a couple minutes, everyone went back inside to finish the party. The party lasted another hour and Moira left to finish some business for Queen Consolidated and the rest of our non-super friends left. Team supergirl, team flash, the rest of team arrow, the legends, and Kate Kane stayed. Since we didn’t have to keep any secrets now we decided to open some presents.

Kara gave us a cute supergirl onesie with a little cape and a bib that read ‘stronger than supergirl’. “Kara this is too cute,” you hugged your best friend again. “Please this is nothing. Im going to spoil her so much.”

Alex gave us a cute teddy bear. “Thanks Alex,” you said giving it a tight squeeze. “Its just like the one my dad gave me when I was younger.”

Jon gave us some martian baby toy. It looked like a block of bedrock. “Its an old martian toy. It can shift to what every toy she thinks about.” “That is really cool Jon, thanks.”

Brainy gave us a cd with classical music to play during bedtime because it has been proven to increase intelligence. “Thank you Brainy.” “It has my favorites. Playing it every night will increase the baby’s intelligence by 45%.”

Kate got us a lot of diapers and pacifiers. “I didn’t know what to get so,” “No Kate this is great thanks.”

The Legends gave us a bunch of baby toys the stole from time. Some from the past and some from the future. “These are really cool.” “This one was from Queen Victoria’s nursery,” Nate explained. “Having these won’t mess up the time line will they?” Oliver asked. “Probably,” Mick said.  “I don’t know,” Nate said.  “No,”Sara said. “We will find out,” ray commented.

Caitlyn gave us a little baby booties/socks that monitor the baby’s vitals when she is sleeping. “Caitlyn this is awesome. Thank you,” “your welcome.”

Cisco build a little mobile with all the our symbols and it played “twinkle twinkle little star” “This is pretty cool Cisco,” Oliver stated spinning it around. “It also can create a protective force field around the crib at the push of this button,” he said handing you a small black remote. “Ok, that’s great. Hopefully we never need it,” you said looking closely at the mobile.

Iris and Barry gave us of course two flash onesies and a little green arrow one too. “Wow thanks Barry,” Oliver said in a monotone. “Come one ollie, these are really cute,” you pleaded holding up one of the flash ones.

Ralph gave us a cute little dinosaur plushie. “Thank you Ralph. This little guy is really cute.”

Thea and roy got us a little pink blanket. “Speedy is that,” Oliver asked.

“Yea mom helped me find it.” “Ollie what is it,” you asked taking the blanket from him. “This is her old blanket. Thea would never go anywhere without it.” “Thea this is so sweet.”

Dig and Lila got us a bunch of baby thing that they said saved their lives with baby Sara. “Trust us you will need these,” Lila explained. “Thanks you guys.”

Felicity got us a bunch of little books. “These are perfect Felicity,” you thanked her.

After presents, Oliver, dig, Barry, and William loaded the car up with all the stuff and the three of you left to head home. The car ride home was quiet; William was playing his video games and you and Oliver just held hands in silence. It was perfect. The silence only broke one time when William commented, “Just so you know I'm not playing dress up or attending a tea party.” You laughed and looked at your husband. The two of you just knew that William will end up doing anything for his little sister.

[keyofjetwolf]

What was your first?

So a horse walks into a rehab and says “ouch”. And not a lot. Then a great deal. While also saying nothing. It’s BoJack, in rehab, and going about as well as you might think!

“The Stopped Show” may not have been much about BoJack, but “A Horse Walks Into A Rehab” makes up for it by being 99.9% BoJack, setting aside the brief appearance of the other characters to set their stages for when we get back to them. Diane’s in a shitty motel, Todd’s in a seedy alleyway, Princess Caroline has her porcupine baby, and Mr. Peanutbutter continues to deliver cheer while everything around him burns AND drowns. I’ve now touched base with them about as much as the season premier, and we’ll get busy ignoring them.

As I said, BoJack is the star today, and we continue his quest for ... what, exactly?

Trying to pin it down, that “what is BoJack looking for” question, it’s a lot harder to answer than I expected, which marks another instance of me fucking myself, GOOD JOB ME.

I initially said “punishment”, but that isn’t true, or a least, is too easy. BoJack wants accountability for his actions -- which is a very different thing than punishment -- but he wants it in a way that also absolves him from having to do any work to rise above it. So you’d think he’d love this, the constant claim in rehab that he’s powerless. It seems like the answer to everything, a blanket pass to excuse his behaviour because he’s powerless. Why doesn’t he? I’m not sure I’m entirely clicking with the heart of that, so come with me as I have a poke at it.

For one, I doubt very much rehab would begin and end with “you’re powerless, oh well”. Addiction is some nasty business, but in and of itself, it’s a symptom, not the problem. That in mind, we swing back then to BoJack having to put in the work, only now it’s with the removal of his favourite coping mechanisms.

I think what he was hoping to get out of rehab was more along the lines of “Vodka is a naughty irresistible siren who topples even the most noble of men, but if you cross your eyes and click your heels, you’ll be free from her spell forevermore.” And yeah, no.

I think we get some of that in how, for a while, rehab seems to suit BoJack.

To the point I very specifically said to Doc as I was watching this, “Oh shit, did BoJack just become even MORE insufferable?” He’s okay so long as he has the comfort of the scripts and the regimented plant therapy and the same hike every day. When he starts to get fucked is when he has push further, when he has to work harder, when the treatment demands MORE.

“I notice you tend to deflect when I ask you about the source of your addiction,” his therapist says, causing BoJack to immediately deflect, first with a joke and then, when that doesn’t work, attacking the entire system. Getting to the root of his problem is the last thing BoJack wants, to the point where the entire episode ITSELF is one giant deflection. I made a joke in passing up there about our passing moments with each of the other main characters, but that’s actually it, that’s the heart of this episode.

Each of these are efforts by the episode to deflect what’s going on NOW, tempting us with something shiny and interesting, if only we’d take the bait. I ONLY JUST MADE THIS CONNECTION WELL FUCKING DONE SHOW

And of course, there’s Jameson’s story, which is part deflection, part contrast. She’s intended to appear at first like someone BoJack can relate to, a Sara Lynn Pt. 2 that he wants to save and in whom he sees so much of himself. In equal parts, he’s the adult trying to guide her and the force enabling her, and I’d have to do a bit more thinking on whether I thought his success with her was about him walking both sides of that line, or Jameson just, at the end of the day, being lucky. Either way, it’s also not really about her, so much as BoJack talking a really good game at her, while giving her all the tools to make the worst choices.

Which is, I think, where the episode finally settles. BoJack’s choices have been his own, but they aren’t made in isolation. Throughout this episode, we get moments, presented in reverse chronological order, that could on their own answer that key question: When was the first time you drank?

To settle your nerves to get through a scene everyone was counting on you to nail?

To fit in with the cool kids at high school?

To win your father’s approval?

What’s brilliant to me about each of these flashbacks is that the further into the past we go, the more willing we are to absolve BoJack. In the first, he’s a professional actor required to kiss an attractive and consenting fellow professional in the course of a performance. Nervous? Makes total sense. Getting plastered to do it? LESS SENSE.

The high school one is the most damning, which I adore. BoJack’s the butt of some light bullying by the jock, and I don’t mean to completely dismiss that it sucks, but the remainder of events before he starts in on the beers shows he’s hardly an absolute social pariah. And even if he were, once he begins to drink, BoJack doesn’t just become the life of the party, he becomes cruel (demonstrating quite well that jokes aren’t his only tool of deflection). Worse, that he KNOWS he’s doing it, but cares more about his positive attention than their negative. Still, BoJack’s a kid and peer pressure is a hell of a thing. This isn’t a good look, but it’s also not damning, if he’d come to learn from it. 

Now we jump the line to, I’d guess, ten or eleven year old BoJack, who walks in on his father having an affair with his secretary, but too young to recognize what he’s seen. Butterscotch can’t take the risk though, so he effortlessly manipulates little BoJack into getting drunk and passing out, then uses BoJack’s shame about it to keep him quiet on the whole evening. UNDER THE GUISE OF BEING HIS FRIEND AND DOING HIM A FAVOUR BY THE WAY. No question, Butterscotch is a son of a bitch, and the only thing BoJack did wrong here was crave his parent’s love.

Even with the high school one being a little more grey, they’re all pretty cut and dry. Remember that we’re following the thread of “When was the first time you drank?” and to land on the answer “When my unrepentantly dickish father lied to me to save his own ass” puts a pretty solid punctuation mark on the whole affair. Addiction may not be at fault, but Butterscotch Horseman is. Case closed, we can go home.

BUT WAIT WHAT’S THIS

Right at the end, when you think we’re done, there’s one more flashback. A party of some sort, possibly New Year’s. The house sounds empty, there’s only the looping of the record player, stuck repeating the same five seconds again and again and again. Butterscotch and Beatrice are passed out drunk, judging from the empty bottles around them. Was it a good party? A bad one? She has her back to him and they’re about as far apart as they could get while still remaining in the room, but also, nothing’s broken? It’s impossible to know.

What we do know is that BoJack, aged about where we saw him in the “Free Churro” flashback so maybe seven or so? Very young, at any rate, and he’s alone. There doesn’t appear to be anything in the room for a child, so it’s probably fair to say he wasn’t included in the festivities. Did he have something to do instead? His own party maybe? Friends to play with, someone to watch him? Did he even get dinner? From what we’ve seen, “no” is a much more likely answer to any or all of these.

AND NOW THE FIRST TO PUNCH YOU IN THE HEART

Tiny BoJack knocks back several gulps of vodka (like a fucking pro, may I add), then crawls onto the couch next to his unconscious mother, pretending for just a few minutes that she’s cuddling him until he, too, will fall into a drunken slumber.

RIGHT SO WHAT THE FUCK DO WE DO WITH THIS JESUS WEPT

Had you told me “Just wait, seven year old flashback BoJack is going to muddy the hell out of this” I wouldn’t have ... okay, well, I know the show, so I probably would’ve believed you, but I would’ve been preemptively grumpy.

This isn’t his fault! But it is! This isn’t his parent’s fault, but it super super is! Nobody MADE BoJack drink the vodka, as the scene goes to great lengths to show. There is nobody to tell him to do anything at all. Beatrice is three fucking sheets to the wind, she has no idea he’s there and he could have pretend cuddled all night AND stayed sober. Did baby BoJack, like adult BoJack, take the drink to calm his nerves for an expression of physical intimacy? Would baby BoJack have even known that was an option? Remember, this is framed as the answer to the question “When was the first time you drank?” Not “took a drink”, but “you DRANK”, the phrasing of which I think is important. It’s all about the root of the problem. What I get out of that question is then is “the first time you drank to numb yourself”.

Baby BoJack is looking at this disaster, this mess that is his every day no matter how many party hats and streamers you stick on it, and he wants anything else at all. So he turns to the easiest thing he knows will take it away the fastest. The situation isn’t his fault. The opportunity isn’t his fault. But the response IS, in a way that EVEN AS I SAY IT, makes me feel shitty.

CONGRATS BOJACK HORSEMAN FOR MAKING ME SEE A LITERAL CHILD SLAMMING BACK VODKA STRAIGHT FROM THE BOTTLE AND MAKING ME GO “okay, but”.

SEASON SIX SHOULD BE A WALK IN THE PARK

[toothpastecanyon]

Noie's Friends, Chapter 3

A collection of oneshots about Noie's years at college.

See most updated version on Archive of Our Own.

_____________________________________________________________

“Hmm… what should I have today? What, should, I, have?”

Tapping on the counter. Noie stretched her shoulders a bit, and tapped the register to stop it going to sleep.

“Huh. You know, I just don’t know any of these teas.” The man scratched his stubble. “You guys sell an awful lot of them, don’t you?”

“Yes. We’re a tea shop, sir.”

“Oooh, sir. I don’t get sir’ed very often…” he peered at her name tag. “Naomi. Oh, that’s a pretty name. Where’s it from?”

She shrugged.

“You don’t know? Oh, I know where my name comes from, John’s a good English name, you know? There was a King John once. In fact, how’s about I write it down on this napkin…”

Noie found herself glancing over his shoulder. If only she could tell him there was a line.

“You can call me up anytime, little lady.” He passed it to her with a wink. “Anyway, where was I… Oh, do you guys have Dr Salt? I think I’ll take that over your weird teas.”

“Okay, we’ve got them in the back.” Noie stepped away. “They’re kind of expensive here, though.”

“Aw, I’m sure it’ll be fine. Hey, don’t forget my napkin!”

Noie headed to the back, which was a small tiled room with an asphyxiatingly-strong stench of various spices. Even after a week she still hadn’t gotten used to it; her eyes watered a tiny bit as she headed to the tiny soda fridge in the corner of the room.

“Somebody wants another soda?” A voice - Sara stepped out from behind a column of spices. “They know there’s a restaurant right next to us, right?”

“Yeah, I don’t think he’s here for a drink.” She tossed the napkin at her. “Check out what he passed me.”

Noie opened the fridge and picked a soda out. She heard a sniggering from behind her.

“Why did he…” Sara snorted. “Why did he write ‘King John winky face’ on it?”

“Oh my god, did he? I didn’t even look at it.”

“Yeah, look at it there. He sounds like a real catch.” She shook her head. “You want me to go out there? I can always chase off a creepy guy.”

“Nah, it’s fine. Thanks, though.” Noie heard the front door jingle. “Oh, sweet, new people!”

“Now you can tell him there’s a line.”

“Hah! Did you read my mind?” She winked at Sara as she opened the door. “Seeya.”

“Silver!”

Noie recognised the group strolling into the shop - and especially the woman in pyjamas making hre way to the counter. “Bea! Isn’t it Magic 101 for Gus and Mina right now? I thought you guys were coming after that.”

“Hey,” The man glanced between them. “About my order-”

“What, you dreading us?” Bea winked at her. “Nah, there was - heh - a little accident in the labs.”

“Is everyone okay?”

“Yeah, yeah.” She stabbed a thumb back at Gus, who seemed to be missing his eyebrows. “You should get the story from ol’ fire fingers over there. I hear primary sources make the most engaging narratives.”

The man cleared his throat. “Excuse me-”

“Oh, I’ll ring your soda up for you, it’s five dollars.” Noie grinned at Bea. “Did he blow himself-”

“Five dollars?!”

“-up?”

“I’m not saying nothing! You’ll have to-”

“Excuse me kid, I’m still ordering!” The man shoved Bea a little back. “Hey, what’s the big idea? I could go down to the gas station and get this for a fifth of what I’m paying here! What kind of stupid fucking-”

Bea tapped his shoulder, and he stopped midsentence with a choking gasp. He grabbed his throat gasping for air, eyes bugging out, and started coughing up leaves and loose soil. She pushed him aside, and leaned an elbow on the counter.

“Okay, so what’ll we have today?” Bea slid the soda away. “Obviously not that - jeez, five dollars? Does anyone actually buy those?” A pause. “What?”

Noie was leaning over the counter with wide eyes. The man was on his hands and knees, making shallow gagging sounds. “Uh, Bea? Is he gonna be alright?!”

“Hmm? Oh, sorry about the mess. Shouldn’t have done that spell indoors.” She snapped her fingers, and everything dissolved into air. The man gave a gasp of relief, and curled up into a shuddering foetal position. “Now I’m the bad customer, right? There you go.”

“But is he gonna be okay?”

“Oh, yeah, it’s an old elven children’s prank. I don’t know why he’s being such a baby about it.” She nudged his leg. “Come on, man. I’ve seen elflings half your age take this better than you. Stop crying.”

As Noie watched, Sara came out of the back. She saw her peeking around the corner- as soon as she caught sight of Bea and the others, she came wandering out.

“Oh, hey guys! Hi Bea!”

“How’s it hanging.”

“You’re here early, right? Why do I feel like- oh my stars, Gus, your eyebrows! Your hair!”

Laughter erupted across the table, and Gus went red. Bea chuckled.

“Yeah, tell her the whole thing, dude!” Bea turned back to Noie. “Eh, I think we’ll all just have our usual. You know what that is, right?”

“Yeah, yeah, I got it.” Noie turned towards the brewing machines. “Alright, gimme a second…”

She got out a pot, and from behind her she heard the ongoing conversation.

“So what happened, dude? Did you blow yourself up?”

“I didn’t blow myself up-“

“Yeah, cause it was a candle spell.” There was a chuckle from Bea. “First time I’ve ever heard of a human hurting themselves on one of those.”

“No, no, okay, so I had my hands like this, okay! I was rubbing my forehead from all the Latin, and then suddenly my head feels really warm and Mina starts screaming that my hair’s on fire.”

“Your hair was on fire, dude. It looked like a campfire up there for a second.”

“Yeah, and then Mr Jasko grabbed me and basically threw me into the lab shower. How often does that water get cleaned, do you think? It smelled really bad.”

Noie poured the tea, and turned around as it brewed. She saw Gus rubbing at his eyebrows; Jess was patting his shoulder.

“Ughhhh… I look like a damn thumb.”

“No you don’t, dude. You still have… some of your hair.”

“Oh yeah, that’s great, that’s great. Some of my hair.” He ran a hand through it. “Shit, and I have a date this Friday! Do you think it’ll grow back by then?”

“I can grow things.” Bea gave a smile. “Hair is kinda like moss, right?”

“Oh no, you are not touching my hair, Bea. I know you too well.”

“Yeah, you do. But really, that sucks, man. I’m sorry for you.”

“Maybe I’ll just wear a hat,” Noie heard as she placed all the mugs onto a tray. “Hats are cool right? He’ll think it’s cool, right?”

Noie walked over. “I’m sure it’ll go fine, dude.” She carefully placed the tea right next to Gus’ book. “At least you gotta get a good grade on the fire spell thing, right?”

“Well, I didn’t exactly light a candle, did I.” He flipped his textbook to a certain page, and picked up his tea. “The lab’s probably gonna be redone anyway. I gotta study up for it.”

“Heh, don’t go saying it out loud again-”

“No. No, I won’t, Mina.”

Noie started going around the table, but Sara suddenly noticed her and jumped up. “Oh my gosh! Noie, I should’ve been helping! Let me do that!”

“Oh, it’s fine-”

She took the tray. “No, no, you made it, I’ll do the rest. Bea, were you paying?”

“Yeah, it’s my turn.” Bea turned around, digging in her pockets. There seemed to be a lull in conversation as everyone set up their books and magi-orbs; Noie found herself standing awkwardly behind Gus, looking down at his textbook.

Huh. She’d never actually looked inside a magic textbook before; it looked a lot like any other, with dense pages of information cut up by a few diagrams and headings - here, the headings seemed to be the spell incantations themselves, judging by the fact that they were in latin. There was one incantation next to a drawing of someone lighting a candle with their finger; that was probably the one Gus messed up on.

She frowned. How do you even pronounce Latin? She tried sounding it out in her head, flam-mul-a ex stud-

There was a shout. The next thing Noie knew she was on the floor, her hands twisted behind her back. She opened her mouth, but-

“D’arvit!” Bea’s voice was right next to her ear, louder and sterner than she’d ever heard. “The hell are you playing at, Naomi!”

“Wh-what-”

“Don’t let me ever see you trying that shit again! You know better!”

Noie blinked; she could hardly form words. “I-I don’t know what you’re talking about! What did I do?”

“You don’t know?!” A pause. “You don’t know?”

“No!” Noie tried to move her arm, but it wouldn’t budge. “Agh, ugh, I think you’re twisting my wrist!”

There was a moment of silence, and then Bea let go of her completely. She pulled Noie up, and there was something strange in her eyes as she patted her down. She felt along Noie’s wrist, and Noie couldn’t help but notice the whole table had turned around to stare at them.

Noie shivered at that… shivered. She felt strangely cold, strangely drained. She opened her mouth, but nothing really came out.

Mina was the first one to speak. “Uh, Bea,” she started. “What was that about? What happened?”

Bea’s eyes flitted up to her, and then traced across the whole group. She let go of Noie’s arm, and after a moment, Noie could see her stretch a big smile across her face.

“What was that?” Bea asked, and then gave Noie a light shove. “Pranked! It was a prank! You should’ve seen your face, Silver!”

She gave a great laugh, but Noie could still see that glint in her eyes. She didn’t laugh back; no one did.

“Eh? Prank? Nobody up for some good ol’ horsing around?”

“Seriously? That, uh, wasn’t very funny, Bea.” Sara walked over to Noie. “I think you really freaked her out. You freaked me out.”

“Yeah, me too.” Gus frowned at her. “You really shouldn’t tackle someone like that. That hurts.”

“I see your point, I see your point.” Bea raised her hands. “Guess I don’t know my own strength. I won’t do it again… unless, like, hypothetically, you were standing next to some kind of bomb and I had to tackle you to save your life-”

“Dude. Just apologise.”

“Alright, I was getting to it!” She looked at Noie, and held out her hand. “Hey. I’m sorry I freaked you out.”

Noie glanced down at her hand. She gingerly took it. “Uh, no problem, Bea-”

We need to talk.

She froze at a clear voice in her head - Bea’s voice. Still smiling, the elf nodded once, and let go.

“Alright, glad we reached an understanding.” She dusted her hands off. “Now, what was I doing? Oh right, paying for junk! Sara, get over here!”

Sara put a hand on Noie’s shoulder - it was strangely warm, or maybe Noie was strangely cold. “Are you gonna be okay?” She asked. “You’re shivering.”

“Me? Um,” Noie gulped. “Y-yeah, I’ll be, I’ll be fine. Don’t worry about me.”

“You should go stand out in the sun for a bit. I’ll cover for you.”

“Yeah, that… that sounds good. Thanks.”

Sara gave her a quick smile, a squeeze, and then headed off. Noie watched her go, then looked towards the front doors. She stumbled as she made her way over, and struggled a little to open them.

She stepped out into the sun, into the harsh rays beating down on her face, her shirt, her soul…

And still she shivered a little.

She needed… she needed to sit down. Wow.

_____________________________________________________________

The little study session ended much sooner than usual - only a little after the end of Noie’s shift. It was a bit awkward the whole time, with Gus touching his hair and Sara shooting daggers into the back of Bea’s head. For Noie it still felt like an eternity; she’d managed to warm up, but there was still a strange weakness in her knees, a sluggishness in her mind that was hard to shake.

It was strange. The looks Bea kept shooting her didn’t help either. What was going on?

“I think I’ll be heading out,” Gus said, closing his textbook. “Gonna go hat shopping.”

“Oh, if you’re heading out, I might too.”

“Yeah, it’s getting late.”

As everyone started packing up, Noie felt a hand on her shoulder.

“Hey,” Sara spoke quietly. “You, uh, want a ride home?”

Noie glanced over at Bea, who was ostensibly cleaning her magi-orb; somehow Noie still felt watched.

“Uh,” she started. “That’s okay, thank you. I think I’m gonna walk home - uh, with Bea.”

Sara frowned. “You sure?”

“Don’t worry,” Bea spoke without looking up. “I won’t tackle her again, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

Noie gave a nervous laugh. “Yeah, it’s fine. It’s fine, Sara. Thanks.”

Sara didn’t look entirely convinced, but she hugged her goodbye and left the shop. The rest of the group filtered out shortly after, leaving only the two of them, sitting across from each other.

Bea didn’t immediately talk. Noie tapped her fingers a little on the desk; she made a face, and then opened her mouth.

“Bea-“

Bea stood up. “Walk with me, will you?”

“What?”

“Just follow me.” She reached out an arm. “Take my hand.”

“Why?”

“I wanna show you something.” She flashed a smile. “You’ll like it, I promise. Trust me on this, Silver.”

Noie hesitated… but after a moment, she did take her hand. Bea gently pulled her upright, and led her out the door. Immediately they turned into a back alley, and Noie frowned.

“Uh, where are we going?”

“You’ll see.”

“Why are you being so weird about this?” She stumbled as they made their way down the edge of a parking lot. “What happened back there? And, uh, not to be rude, but did you do something to me? I feel kinda weird after you tackled me back there.”

“Hmm?” Bea suddenly turned and lead them through a dead bush. “Oh, yeah, sorry about that. It’ll go back to normal in the next few days.”

A twig slapped her in the face. “What? What’ll go back to normal?”

“Your, uh, magic.”

“Magic? What?” Noie could hardly see her through the greenery now. “Okay, where are we going, seriously? There’s got to be an easier way to-“

She stumbled out of the bushes, and blinked hard. Her eyes went wide.

“To…”

They were inside the biggest forest Noie had ever seen in her life. Old growth trees with trunks wider than a car towered way overhead, up into a canopy of leaves that caught all but little flickers of sunlight. Beneath her feet was suddenly ferns and mulch, and all around her were animal sounds - caws, chirps, cheeps, foliage cracking, woodpeckers hammering. This was… Noie looked to Bea, and found her grinning back.

“This…” she managed. “This isn’t Arizona.”

“Sure it is! Also it isn’t. Don’t worry about it.”

“Did you teleport us?”

“No, no.” Bea let go of her hand. “This is, uh… well, there isn’t really an English word for it - let’s call it the Elfscape!” She snorted. “Stars, the Elders can never catch me calling it that.”

“Elfscape? Like the Mindscape-”

“It’s complicated, it’s, uh… well, kinda, but it’s more physical than the Mindscape. Or maybe it’s the Earth’s Mindscape?” She shrugged. “Look, it’s complicated even for elves, I wouldn’t worry about it.”

“Oh, okay?”

“Also, uh, if you see anything between the trees, try not to stare at them.”

“What?” Noie followed her gaze, and saw a shadowy figure far in the distance. There was something eerily… angry, there - she could feel it like a pit in her stomach. She looked back at Bea. “Uh, what’s that?”

“Another elf. They’re probably fine - they just get a bit touchy about outsiders coming here.” Bea gave a laugh. “I’m gonna get an earful about it when I next visit for sure.”

Noie frowned. “Then, uh, why’d you bring me here?”

“Because you are gonna test something for me real quick.”

“Test something?”

“Yeah!” Bea touched her hand, and gently lifted it up. “Alright, that goes - yeah, there. And point for me; any finger’s fine. Yeah, that looks good!”

Noie found herself pointing straight forwards. She raised an eyebrow at Bea. “Uh, okay?”

“Now, I want you to say flammula ex studio.” A small flame appeared on Bea’s thumb; she winked when Noie’s eyes went wide. “Can you do that?”

“Are you trying to get me to do magic? I don’t think I can do that kinda stuff; don’t you have to really practice for it? And-“

“Just! Just indulge me for a second, Silver.” Bea stepped back. “Try it. Please?”

Noie made a face at her, then turned to look forwards again. She felt a little ridiculous standing here like this, but Bea shot her another smile and she sighed.

“Okay… fine. Fine. What do I have to say again?”

“Flammula ex studio. Whenever you’re ready.”

Noie grimaced. “Okay, here goes nothing. Flammula ex studio.”

She’d hardly finished the incantation when she felt a rush of heat. One moment she was standing there, the next all she could see was a great ball of fire coming out of her fingertip.

“Wha- oh, shit!” Noie jumped back and instinctively tried to shake it off. “Bea! Bea! Help, I’m on fire! I’m on-”

With a chuckle, Bea walked over and put a hand over the flames. They seemed to extinguish it, and Noie was left standing there, eyes wide, heart thudding in her chest. Distantly she could hear Bea laughing.

“Now that is what you call no flow control!” Bea patted her shoulder. “You really haven’t done magic before, huh? Wow!”

Noie gulped, and tried to steady her breathing. She forced herself to meet Bea’s eyes, and opened her mouth. “W-w-what was that? Why did th-that happen?”

“Why’d you think? Magic!”

“Magic?”

“You better believe it! Seems like you’ve got a bit more juice in your tank than the average human! A lot more juice, but of course,” Bea winked at her. “I already knew that.”

Noie blinked. “You did?”

“Course I did! Magic’s not subtle, Silver. It’s written all over you!” She patted her shoulder. “Honestly, the only thing I’m surprised by is that you didn’t know. Don’t human schools have those little magic exams in elementary school these days?”

“Magic exams?” Noie frowned. “I don’t remember those… but I was exempt from magic stuff as a kid. Dipper has magic sensitivity, so he-” She glanced at Bea. “Oh. That was, uh, his cover when we were growing up.”

“Huh, not a bad cover.” She rubbed her chin. “Well, that definitely clears it up, but that’s still nuts to me that you didn’t know. I guess that’s just me talking, though; I dunno what I’d do without magic.”

Noie laughed a bit at that, but the sound faded away quickly. She found herself looking down at her hands, rubbing her fingers. They still felt warm, and she frowned.

“Bea?”

“Yeah?”

“You said…” Noie clasped her hands against her chest. “You said I had more magic than most humans.”

“I did.” She chuckled. “Gus’d have a way worse day if he could do what you can.”

“But - how? Is it just… random chance? Do you know?”

“Do you know?”

Bea had that strange shine in her eyes again. Noie hesitated as she stepped a little closer.

“I’m asking you seriously.” Bea was studying her face; after a moment, she looked away. “You know, it’s a common joke that humans suck at magic, but you know why they do?”

“Why?”

“Cause of the Transcendence. Or at least, all that time leading up to the Transcendence, living in a world without magic. Y’know, elves were in their forests, mermaids were in the seas, all your city preters kept themselves under wraps.” Bea touched a budding leaf, and watched it open. “Magic follows magic, and for thousands of years, you guys just weren’t having much sent your way. Now you’re playing catch up.”

She looked at Noie with a knowing smile.

“So that leaves us two possibilities,” she said, and pushed off the tree. “Either you’re just a real lucky human - and that happens! - oooor, someone in your family was a little more in touch with their magic, if you know what I mean.”

“More in touch-” Noie started, and then she stopped dead. Oh.

Oh, she knew exactly where she got this from.

“Anyway, you don’t have to say anything. Just telling you what might be going on” She passed by Noie. “You wanna head home? I’m thinking I should probably take you back to your brother before he thinks I trapped you in an alternate dimension or something.”

“But- what do I do?”

Bea raised her eyebrows. “Do about what?”

“I-I nearly burned everyone back at the tea shop without even realising!” Noie stammered over her words. “What if that happens again? I was lucky you were there - I don’t know how to control that on my own!”

“Hey, don’t panic. Panic makes magic explode, I’ve heard.”

“Wh- that’s not funny, Bea!”

“I know, I know.” She chuckled to herself. “Couldn’t help myself, but, uh, if you’re asking for serious advice, I guess you could just make sure you never read anything that sounds like a spell again. Oh, also, since you don’t have to speak it out loud, try not to think too hard about that spell I taught you, flammula ex studio.” She gave a sly grin. “Yeah, don’t even think about flammula ex studio, don’t even think the words flammula ex studio, don’t-”

“Please stop.”

“Okay, or what you could do - and I think this is better - you could maybe learn some basic flow control so you stop going full blast on every random spell you see. It’s not hard to learn, I bet I could give you a handle on it in a couple hours.”

Noie just stared at her. Stared, as she reached out a hand.

“C’mon, Silver. Let’s get you home.”

After a moment, Noie took a deep breath, in, and out. She swallowed, and then she took Bea’s hand. Bea smiled, and then took them through a bush; they made their way through the greenery, through cool leaves brushing past her face, and then came out in the garden bordering Noie’s dorm. She looked behind her, and saw not a forest but a shrub and the corner of a building. There was a chuckle from Bea.

“Yeah, don’t tell the others about that little trick. They’ll be asking me for shortcuts until the end of time.”

“Hah, yeah-”

“Wait.” Bea held up a hand. “Do you hear that?”

“You!”

A shout. Someone was stomping over to them - someone with a suit, glowing eyes, and a shadow that sported wings. Noie blinked.

“Dipper?”

“You’re okay!” Dipper hugged her tight, then turned to Bea. “Okay, where’d you take her?”

“Back to her dorm, of course.”

“Don’t play games with me, mortal.” He stabbed a finger at her. “I just spent the past hour tearing through pocket dimensions to see where the hell my sister went. Where’d you take her?”

Noie patted his shoulder. “Dipper…”

“Nah, it’s okay, it’s a fair question.” Bea brushed his finger away. “It’s just a little hangout place for elves, it was totally fine.” She chuckled. “I’m glad that’s the part you noticed - you know, not the part where I totally broke her arm a tiny bit. I thought I was a dead girl walking there.”

“You did what?!”

“You broke my arm?”

“See? She didn’t even notice before I healed it, it was fine.”

Noie watched Dipper make several attempts to speak. He clenched his clawed fists - and then, with some effort, unclenched them, and pinched his forehead.

“You… make it very hard for me to like you, you know?”

“Aww, I try.” Bea winked at Noie. “Anyway, I oughtta be heating out.” She took a step away, and then clicked her fingers. “Oh, you know who else could totally help you with magic? Demon boy over here’s pretty good at it, I’ve heard.”

“Magic?” Dipper looked over at her. “You want to learn that? I could definitely help.”

Noie stared back.

“What?”

“You knew I could do magic too?”

“Yeah?” Dipper frowned at her. “I could always tell, why?”

There came a chuckle from Bea as she walked away. “Yeah, you two have fun now! Bye!”

_____________________________________________________________

“So, you had a bit of a day.”

“Tell me about it.” Noie unlocked her dorm’s door and collapsed into bed. “I can’t believe you knew this whole time. You didn’t think to mention it?”

“I mean, no!” Dipper closed the door; immediately he shed his human form, and floated close to her. “I’m sorry, I just - I didn’t think you were that into magic!”

“Yeah, and why wasn’t I into magic when I was a kid again?” She huffed as his face dropped. “No, that’s not a- you don’t have to feel bad about it, but that’s just the truth. I didn’t know about this because of your magic sensitivity.”

“Yeah…” Dipper looked down. “No, you’re right, you’re right.”

Silence hung there for a second. Noie rolled her eyes, and pulled him into bed.

“Hey!”

“Hey yourself.” She hugged him close. “Stop looking so sad; seriously, it’s fine.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah. I’m not really ‘into’ magic anyway; I was only annoyed because I’m not ‘into’ accidentally blowing myself up if I read some Latin.”

Dipper snorted at that, and she smiled. Stared up at the ceiling.

“Yeah…” she said. “It’s not important to me, you know? It’s not something I grew up with, or even knew that much about. Even if I had found out earlier… how much would it really matter, you know?”

“What do you mean?”

“Well…” Noie looked at him. “I know where it came from, you know?”

“From where?”

“You don’t know?”

Dipper stared blankly.

“From Pinni, of course.” Noie made a face. “From… my mother.”

“Your mother?” He sat up. “Oh, right, I remember now! She was a selkie, right?”

“Apparently.”

“Yeah, yeah, I see that now. I totally forgot you’re a half-selkie-”

“I’m not a half-selkie, you can’t be half selkie.” Noie cut in, and then stopped herself. “Sorry, it’s just- it's a hereditary enchantment, not a separate species. And I'm long past the age when they were supposed to do the skin thing and everything, so I'm not a selkie, I'm fully human."

Dipper was looking at her askance; suddenly Noie heard how that came off. Her cheeks flushed.

"Not that it'd be bad if I was! I'm not, like, ashamed of it or anything, but it doesn't affect me all that much!” She gave a shrug. “Seriously, I live in a desert. I've never been to the ocean in my life - heck, I don't even know how to swim. Why would I go around telling people 'ooh, did you know I'm half selkie?' That'd be so obnoxious."

Dipper didn’t say anything to that. She rose to her feet.

“It’s just - what do I know about any of this, right? What do I know about magic, about selkies - fuck, what do I even know about my own mom?” She gestured at him. “At least Leon left videos, right! At least you and David met him, right! But who the fuck is Pinni? All I ever got was, I dunno, she’s nice? She’s shy?” An angry shrug. “Apparently she came from the ocean, whatever the fuck that means, so it sounds like I’d have a hell of a time tracking down any family on that side!”

“Noie?”

“It’s just - I’m fine that I never met these people, okay? They’re literally strangers to me, I don’t know why people expect me to feel devastated about them or something.” She stared at her hands. “I guess I just… that everything could’ve been so different, you know?”

A pause. Dipper said nothing, and she sighed.

“I could’ve known about magic. I could’ve actually met my parents. I could’ve been a fucking selkie - how weird is that?”

She chuckled, but then she looked back at Dipper. He had tears in his eyes, and she watched him hang his head.

“You could’ve,” he said, softly. “I’m sorry, Noie. If it weren’t for me, you could’ve had so, so much better-”

“No!”

Dipper glanced up sharply. She ran back to his side.

“Dipper, that’s - that’s not what I mean!” She put a hand on his shoulder. “You know, I think about how stuff could’ve been, a-and it scares me! I don’t want that!”

“What do you mean? You deserved so much better, you deserved to know your parents-”

“And if I had them, I would never have had you!” Noie snapped. She put her arms around him. “I don’t care if it would’ve been better. I don’t want to imagine myself in a timeline where you aren’t my brother, okay?”

Dipper hugged her back - lightly for a moment, but then he squeezed.

“And there’s… it feels like if just one thing had changed, I would never have known you at all, and I hate that… you know?”

There was a thick chuckle. “Oh, you might have known me. You’re still a Mizar, after all.”

“But you wouldn’t have been my brother.” Noie hugged him tighter. “And I’m so glad you are. I’m so glad. I love you, Dipper.”

She heard him say something like “I love you too”, but it was too shakey to make out, and when he buried his face in her shoulder, she felt wet tears on her shirt. She smiled at that, at his wings enveloping her, and just held him for a long, long time.

It was a warm kind of quiet. Neither of them quite let go, but eventually Noie shifted her leg, and Dipper pulled back a little to wipe his eyes. They looked at each other, and laughed a little.

“We’re a pair, aren’t we?” She said, and Dipper gave a chuckle.

“We are, we are…” He cleared his throat. “So, uh, I take it you aren’t up for magic lessons?”

“Huh? Oh, no…. Bea was right, I probably should learn the basics.” She brushed some hair out of her eyes. “You know, just so I don’t go blowing myself up accidentally.”

“Yeah.”

“After that… I dunno, maybe it’ll be fun? We’ll see how it goes.”

“I liked learning magic.” Dipper said. “Of course, my magic’s kind of… different from yours, but I think you’ll like it.”

“What, I won’t be making demon deals? Darn.”

“Oh, very funny.”

“I’m hilarious,” Noie said, and lay back down in her bed. Looked out her window, at the setting sun. After a moment, Dipper laid down next to her, and that warm silence descended on both of them again.

Words were needed no more. They held each other like that as Noie’s eyes drooped, as she drifted peacefully to sleep in her brother’s arms.

[365days365movies]

March 16, 2021: Legend (1985) (Part One)

Hi, Tim Curry. How are you doing today?

Yeah, that tracks. Been a while, always good to see you. Man, actually, when is the last time I saw you? Clone Wars? I think so, although I don’t know if that really counts. I think, in person, it was...oof, Criminal Minds in 2012?

Yeah, dude, you were FUCKING TERRIFYING, HOLY SHIT. I feel like people don’t talk about that performance as much, but you were goddamn amazing, buddy. Sorry I didn’t open with this, but...you were my childhood, Ti. Like, from Clue to The Wild Thornberrys to Muppet Treasure Goddamn Island GOD I LOVE YOU IN THAT MOVIE TOO

Amazing. And let’s not forget Ferngully, of course. Look...I love you, OK? You’re beautiful. And I know that recently, you’ve been through a lot of health struggles, and I wish you the absolute best, I sincerely do. You’re the best, man. Hang in there. 

Actually, while I have you...settle a bet for me, I’ve got it with myself. Have I...have I already seen this movie? Because I feel like I might have, but I don’t think so. It’s like the Mandela effect, y’know? I mean, if I’d seen it before...would I not remember you in this get-up?

I mean...come ON, RIGHT? I know FOR A FACT that I’ve attempted to watch this movie with friends before, and that didn’t happen. Then, I tried to watch it on my own, and that didn’t pan out because I’m pretty sure I fell asleep after 15 minutes. It had been a long day, I’m sorry. But...I don’t get it, Tim Curry? What the hell happened?

Well...whatever. I guess we’re going to take care of this ONCE AND FOR ALL. Now, who directed this movie?

Oh shit, REALLY? RIDLEY SCOTT! Kick-ass, he did Alien, and this - 

And then this - 

OOH, and this!

Oh, and we can’t forget this!

And also this!

And...and this...

...And this...

Oh. Fuck, and this.

...

OH GOD STOP I FORGOT ABOUT 1492

...OK, this could either be a very good movie, or a very VERY bad one. I mean...it’s got Tim Curry in it, so it can’t be that bad? And hey, Scott was on a hotstreak at the time, right? What could go wrong? Let’s do this!

SPOILERS AHEADOH FUCK IS THAT TOM CRUISE

Recap (1/2)

...Ahem. Um. OK. Maybe I imagined that image, or it’s from a different movie. Cool. Let’s keep going, nothing to see here.

The opening text scroll tells us that once, long ago, before time was even a concept, the world was shrouded in darkness. But Darkness hid from the light, which brought to the world laughter, love, and...unicorns. Yeah, really. Unicorns harbor the Light in their souls, as the most mytsical of all creatures. They’re safe from Darkness, and can only be found by a pure-hearted mortal, like Jack, a denizen of the forest. He is loved by Lily, and both believe only in goodness. But not for long, as a struggle for the balance between Darkness and Light is about to commence, and in that struggle will be born...Legend (1985), dir. Ridley Scott.

As the opening credits roll and confirm that Tom Cruise is in fact in this movie, I take a brief moment to vomit lightly.

At night, walking through the forest, there is a creature with some...bad-ass makeup and costume design GODDAMN. Like, yeah, that category’s already looking good. Anyway, the creature goes through the forest, and finds a den of fire and torture, all lorded over by a horned man, who speaks Mother Night, asking for her protection.

This is Darkness (Tim Curry), and...fuck me, holy shit, I GET it. Like, this dude began an entire movement and aethestic, and it makes a fuckton of sense. THis dude must have given birth to, like 10,000 goth children, goddamn. Anyway, he commands his goblin henchman Blix (Alice Playten) to find a unicorn and kill it, and to bring its horn back to him. Blix, the rhyming cretin, asks how to find them. And Darkness answers with the perfect lure: innocence.

That innocence is symbolized by Princess Lily (Mia Sara), a maiden cavorting happily about the wood, without a care in the goddamn world. She visits her friend Nell (Tina Martin), and briefly has a vision of winter in the cottage. Nell notes that it’s time for her to grow up a bit, but Lily’s only concerned with finding her sweetheart, Jack.

And Jack is...well, Jack o’ the Green (Tom Cruise) is a young man who lives in the forest, with his animal friends. An innocent himself, he’s basically Peter Pan, with Lily playing his Wendy. Except, well, they’re not THAT innocent, because they, like, IMMEDIATELY make out on the forest floor. Which has to be uncomfortable, real goddamn talk.

Jack teaches Lily to speak with the birds, then takes her to see something wonderful and rare. All the while, they’re being followed by Blix, who believes that their innocence will attract the mystical unicorns. And, uh, yeah, Blix is entirely correct about that, because here they come! And they’re making whale noises?

Apparently, as long as unicorns roam the Earth, evil can never harm the pure of heart. They express only love and laughter, and dark thoughts are unknown to them. Which Lily takes as an opportunity to go hang out with them, despite Jack’s urgings.

But the unicorns seem receptive to her, to Jack’s...frustration? He just kinda leaves her behind for some reason. And Blix takes the opportunity to hit one of the unicorns with a poison dart, causing them to be startled and storm off. Lily flees into the forest, and is immediately scolded by Jack, saying that what she did is forbidden by magic forest law. OK. She’s as confused about that as I am, but she still apologizes to him.

The two kiss, and Lily makes a promise to him and the universe, I guess, and says that whomever finds her ring will have the right to marry her. She throws it, and Jack IMMEDIATELY JUMPS OFF A CLIFF AFTER IT GODDAMN MY MAN! Lily screams hysterically after him for...some reason?

However, this isn’t great timing, because Blix and the goblins have caught up to the poisoned unicorn, and they cut off its horn, immediately plunging the forest into a fierce winter, similar to what Lily saw in her vision. Jack, in the river looking for the ring, is trapped underwater, beneath ice. By the time he breaks out, Lily’s already run away, to Nell’s place. Nell is frozen solid for some reason, and the goblins are also coming off after Lily for...some reason.

Lily hides, as Blix and his two companions Pox (Peter O’Farrell) and Blunder (Kiran Shah) exposit the whole thing so that Lily’s caught up on her fault in all of this, and once they leave, she promises to make it right. No idea how she’s gonna do that, but sure.

Jack, meanwhile has collapsed in the woods and snow. He’s woken up by a spirit of the forest named Honeythorn Gump (David Bennent), who is...interesting. He asks Jack what in the FUCK happened, and Jack admits that Lily, a mortal, touched a unicorn, which is apparently the ultimate no-no. Gump’s pissed, but the ACTUAL SECOND that Jack says that it was for love, Gump’s just...totally cool with it? They have a drink with Brown Tom (Cork Hubbert), and agree to help him find Lily...like, immediately.

They quickly find the dead unicorn, and yeah, the unicorn is FUCKING DEAD after losing its horn, and its mate shows up to mourn. Jack and Gump mourn with the magical creature, which looks REALLY BIG for a horse, Jesus. She stays with her fallen mate, and Jack goes back to the group, delivering the news that they’re cursed? No idea where that came from. 

To lift the curse and get the horn back, they must find a champion bold in heart and spirit. Gump IMMEDIATELY nominates Jack, and takes him to some cave where he can find weapons and armor. He’s guided by Oona (Annabelle Lanyon), a fairy who is LITERALLY NAVI FROM ZELDA, I CANNOT STRESS THAT ENOUGH

Oona reveals her true form to him secretly, then notes that she could be anything he wants her to be, even his heart’s desire. COMIN’ ON A LITTLE STRONG THERE OONA. Anyway, in the vault of golden weapons and armor and...gold, Jack grabs a sword.

Meanwhile, Lily follows Blix and his group, where Blix uses the magic of the Unicorn Horn (or the Alicorn) to demonstrate his newly found prowess. But as he’s claiming to take over Darkness’ kingdom. Just then, Darkness shows up and claims the Horn for himself, and kills Blunder when he talks back. Darkness asks whether or not the Unicorns are both dead, and reveals that his power will not be complete until the female Unicorn is also dead.

Lily runs off and makes her way back to the Unicorn and Brown Tom, and warns them of the Goblin’s approach to kill the Mare. Brown Tom, who I think is either a leprechaun or a brownie, fends the Goblins off, while Lily and the Mare...DON’T RUN? FUCKING RUN YOU ASSHOLES!

Tom gets shot by an arrow...in the hat. He immediately falls dead, despite being totally fine, the dick. And Lily and the mare are captured, BECAUSE THEY DIDN’T FUCKING RUN WHEN THEY SHOULD’VE. Jack, Gump, and the leprechaun/gnome/brownie/halfling Screwball (Billy Barty) come to “rescue” him. He tells them that Lily’s alive, and Gump takes Jack to the Great Tree for the next step, accompanied by Screwball and Tom. There, they find...

WOW. THAT SHIT IS COOL. This is Meg Mucklebone *Robert Picardo), and this thing is absolutely my favorite thing in the movie so far...AND THEN JACK KILLS HER IMMEDIATELY. JAAAAAAACK, WHAT THE HELL, she was really cool. Goddamn it.

The group gets to the great tree, then falls into an underground prison, where Blunder is also held. The group is NOT where they want to be, right in Darkness’ lair. Nice job, Gump. In the prison, the guys, now joined by fellow brownie/dwarf/gnome thing Blunder, hide from one of Darkness’ men, as he takes Blunder away to the torture table.

Stuck in the cell, Jack suggests that Oona go and get the keys. However, her ability to transform into a humanoid form was a secret between her and Jack, and she’s upset by him revealing it. Gump’s also upset by the secret in and of itself, but she defends that her secrets are hers to keep. You tell him, Oona!

She then says that she’ll only do what Jack wants if he kisses her, GODDAMN IT OONA. NOW IS NOT THE TIE TO GO ALL TINKERBELL IN HOOK! He gives her a little peck, but she transforms into Lily to make him give her a real kiss, dear lord that is CREEPY, OONA! Jack almost kisses her, but refuses at the last second. He notes that human hearts can’t be won over that way, which greatly upsets Oona. Still, she ends up getting the keys for them regardless, and sets them free.

And at this point, we are halfway through, so FUCK IT. PART TWO! See you there.

[surveys-at-your-service]

Survey #455

“but you didn’t have to cut me off  /  make it like it never happened and that we were nothing”

Are you and the last person you kissed in a relationship or just friends? We're besties! :') Has anyone ever pointed out that your laugh was unusual? No. Would you get a lip piercing? I already have a vertical labret. I've considered getting spiked snakebites (they might be called devil bites?) too, though. With a vertical labret, it looks sick as FUCK. It might be a bit much too close together for me, though, idk. Nose piercing? I want my right nostril re-pierced. What are you currently waiting for? Girt to message me back. I've decided what I want out of our relationship and just want to see him. Do you have feelings for anyone? Hit me pretty hard through a lot of examination of my feelings that yeah, I do. Have you ever run over an animal? Oh my god no, I would be DESTROYED. Have you chewed gum after someone else already has? bro what the fuck When people sneeze do you say ‘bless you’? I do only out of expectation. I don't want someone to think I'm an ass or something for not saying it. When was the last time you were on a bouncy castle? A few years ago for my niece's birthday. She was scared of how loud it was and was very reluctant to get near it, so my fat ass got in there with everyone else to show her it was fine lol. I can't remember if she eventually got in. She loves them now, though. :') Have you ever went on a bouncy castle whilst drunk? No, but thanks for the idea, ha ha. Have you ever entered an art competition? Yes. What is one thing you will never do? Try hardcore drugs. What is one food that you detest? Asparagus. Did you have a rebellious phase growing up? Not really. What religion were you brought up with? Roman Catholic. Are you still that religion? GOD NO. Do you often find yourself questioning your future? That's my full-time job. How many friends do you have on Facebook? 124. What sort of music did you listen to when you were in high school? The same I listen to now. What pet names do you use with your significant other? I'm single rn, but usually, I go for "sweetie/sweetheart," "hunny," "love," "dear," stuff like that. What’s the name of the store you usually get your groceries? Wal-Mart. Have you ever seen a theatre show? Yes. What’s your favourite vegetable? Broccoli. Have you ever missed a flight? Yes. I was SO fuckin upset because it was on Sara's birthday and planned in secret, and I was supposed to wake her up. It still wound up being a big surprise to her when she walked into her room and I was chillin' at her desk, ha ha, but I still wish it coulda gone as originally planned. Do your neighbours have any pets? Have you ever met them? Yes; they have a yappy-ass dog that doesn't shut up. I haven't met them. What color is your bedroom door? White. If you were ever to become famous, would you grow annoyed at fans? This may sound very ungrateful, but I have heard A LOT of celebrities say it: it would get old, being stopped constantly in public for signatures, pictures, etc. Like yes, I still WOULD be grateful, but I'd miss just being off the radar and able to go outside carrying out chores and stuff like a normal person. Have you ever met your favourite band/singer? No. :( Are you embarrassed by any of the songs/singers/bands you like? Nah, not nowadays. Have you ever written a story? Yes, a kinda short one when I was little. Think of the last poem you wrote: What inspired you to write it? The breakup with Jason and the fact we're just strangers again. It was really short, but I like it a lot, honestly. Do you have a chance with the person you like right now? I think so. What’s the weirdest thing you were scared of as a child? A skeleton in my closet, lol. Literally. Are there any embarrassing stories your family tells about you? alkdsjflakjwle yes In your opinion, what is the funniest TV show? That '70s Show. 3rd Rock From the Sun is high up there, too. What is the maximum number of children you’d ever have? HYPOTHETICALLY, two, but I'm pretty damn serious about having none. I just always feel kinda bad for children without a sibling, but three would make me pull my hair out. Have you ever been concerned you had a serious illness? Yes. I overreact to even minor symptoms to ANYTHING. Are you comfortable with who you are? No. Pretty much everything about myself embarrasses me, even if it shouldn't. Would you date someone even if you knew you’d get made fun of for it? Yes? Others' opinions don't affect how I feel about someone. Does popularity matter to you at all? No, outside of trying to be a successful photographer. Would you ever consider homeschooling your children? If they really wanted that and it would benefit them, yes. Who told you about the band/singer you are currently listening to? I discovered them myself. Do you ever read fanfiction? Nah. Would you rather die in a plane crash, ship wreck or fire? Jesus. A plane crash, I guess, because in a lot of cases, it would be an immediate death. What are your top five favourite TV shows? Meerkat Manor, Fullmetal Alchemist (and Brotherhood; shut up, they go together), That '70s Show, Ginga Densetsu Weed, and Deadman Wonderland. What is your favorite superhero movie? Logan. If you died next week, what would be the cause of death? Uhhhh idk... I guess maybe a heart attack? Judging by doctor appointments, my heart is just fine, but the fact still remains that I'm technically obese, so that's always a risk. Have you ever taken a break from Facebook or other social media? Why? Facebook, yes. It was just depressing me. I was playing the comparison game REAL hard. Who is the most talented person you know? I dunno. I know many people talented in a lot of areas. Are you currently platonic friends with anyone you’ve had sex with? No. Where did you and your current interest go on your first date? Bowling. Have you ever experienced two people fighting over you (physically or mentally)? What happened? Jason and Juan pursued me at the same time. They'd known each other in the past, and Juan hated him for "winning" his ex-girlfriend. Then when Jason and I got together, Juan wasn't the happiest for sure. Have your parents ever thought you were gay? What happened? Before I actually came out as bisexual, I don't think so? Are your parents more liberal or conservative? Conservative. Mom is more open, but still conservative. I think. What year are you going into at the beginning of the next academic year? I'm not in school. How far away does your closest family member live? I live with Mom. If you’ve seen both, did you prefer the Disney version or the Tim Burton version of Alice in Wonderland? I actually strongly prefer Tim Burton's. Would you have sex before marriage? Why or why not? Yeah. I just want to be in a long-term, serious, healthy relationship to reach that point and be as safe as possible about it. Are you more liberal or conservative? Liberal, but I do have some conservative beliefs, too. Who is your favorite Harry Potter character? I don't have one, given I never got into that franchise. What’s the worst that could come out of letting gays marry? Not a goddamn thing. What’s the most sexual thing you’ve done? Done "the thing." Name something that you are against. I'll go with an unconventional one that's a problem as of the late: making owning reptiles illegal. Why are you against it? Because reptiles are perfectly capable of being brilliant pets and, most importantly, can tame people's fears of them. I think that it's very important to see the worth and beauty in all animals, and reptiles are one of the most unappreciated families out there. :/ Have you ever played the Tomb Raider games? I played some of either the first or second one. I could never beat it. Old games are hard, man. Do you like it or hate it when your partner is clingy? I absolutely believe that it can get to an extreme that I don't like, but for the most part, I don't mind a clingy partner because hey, I am too. Beatles or Rolling Stones? Stonessss. When was the last time you changed your opinion on somebody? It'd been on my mind for a while, but I *officially* realized that I really do like-like Girt a couple days ago. And since then it's gotten a bit hardcore and all I wanna do is talk to him bc fuck me and how attached to people I get. What was the last thing that made you feel proud and why? Every single time I go to the gym, I feel proud of myself because it REALLY takes a lot out of me. Do you feel uncomfortable when people you hardly know confide in you? Nope. I'm willing to be a shoulder to cry on for like... anyone. If you're hurting, talk to someone. I'll be there as an easy option. What was the last thing to fascinate you? It was... INCREDIBLY disturbing and almost nauseating even for me, but I saw a video of a dead whale explode. It was GRUESOME. Guts just kept coming and coming and coming and :x Is there a certain noise/sound which scares you? Hmmm... I'm sure there is, but what, it's not coming to me. Sudden, loud noises are an obvious answer. Do you have a favourite microorganism? ... No, I can't say I do. Out of the people you know, whose birthday is next? Girt's, actually. It's in October. If you have pet fish do you bother to name them? I did when I actually had them as a kid. Do you keep your eggs in the fridge? Ye. Have you ever owned chickens? No, but that'd be cool. Fresh eggs from a properly cared for chicken taste SO much better. When did you last listen to music? Currently. NOW I'm obsessed with Melodicka Bros & Violet Orlandi's cover of "Somebody That I Used to Know." It's done in a gothic metal style and is amaaaazing.

[punkrockmads]

I Need You Now

Unspoken Words part 2

It's been a week since Sarah left her room. A week since anybody but Ellie has heard a word from her. They've tried. Jesse tried, Dina, Joel, Tommy... Hell, even Maria tried. But nothing can convince the girl to speak to them or leave her room to do anything other than use the bathroom or shower. After many failed attempts, Joel decided it was best to give her space.

So, she hides in her room, wondering what she did wrong. Wondering why Joel didn't want to be her dad. If only she'd given him a chance to explain himself. She's angry, but beyond that, she's hurt. The only person she talks to is Ellie. Ellie's the only one who doesn't try to force her to talk or leave her bedroom. She simply sits with her, makes sure she's feeling okay and that she's eating, and does everything she can to keep her from shutting down completely. If she's lucky, Sarah will comment on the stories about patrol or Boston that Ellie tells her. Usually, she just stays quiet, cracking a small smile at the funny things Ellie says to try and get her to laugh. It hurts Ellie to see Sarah so distant, but she knows the girl just needs time. She understands how it feels to realize someone lied to you about something important for years.

Today is no different. Ellie enters Sarah's room with two small bowls of soup. Sarah's asleep at her desk, right cheek smushed against the wood, a pen and a notebook beside her. Ellie sets the bowls on the desk, nudging Sarah lightly to wake her up. Sarah's eyes flicker as she allows herself to be pulled away from sleep. She sits up, rubbing at her eyes to hide any obvious signs of crying that Ellie has already seen.

"Hey." Ellie says, offering Sarah a small smile. She leans against the desk. "I, uh... thought I'd eat with you today. Keep you company."

"Okay." Sarah responds, the tiniest hint of a smile on her face. Ellie nods, grabbing the bowls once more and moving to sit by the window. Sarah watches, only moving when Ellie waves her over. She takes a seat in front of Ellie, taking the soup she's handed.

"Maria asked about you today." Ellie eats a bit of her soup, glancing at Sarah. "Wanted to know how you were doing."

"Oh." Sara says, quietly.

"Yeah. She wanted me to ask if you were wanting to go on patrols again. Get out of the house for a bit." Ellie continues. Sarah thinks it over. "She can assign you with Jesse."

"Why would that matter?" Sarah asks. Ellie finds a bit of comfort in the fact that she's talking more.

"Cause everyone knows you two like each other." Ellie says, a teasing smile on her face as she shoves Sarah with her foot.

Sarah shoves her back, rolling her eyes. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Yeah, sure." Ellie says sarcastically. "But seriously, it'd be good for you to get back out there. That way you're not cooped up in here all day."

Sarah bites her lip, contemplating what Ellie said. "I think that's a good idea." She concludes. "Just... I don't think I'm ready to speak to Joel yet."

"Did he tell you why he lied?" Ellie asks. Sarah shakes her head. "When he lost your mom, he didn't wanna get close to you and possibly lose you, too. He knew he wouldn't be able to handle it. When he told me he wanted to tell you, I said it was a good idea."

"Still wish he wouldn't have lied." Sarah mumbles. "Or screamed at me when I called him dad."

"Yeah, that was kinda dumb." Ellie admits. "He's crushed, y'know? He really didn't wanna hurt you, he just couldn't hide it anymore." She puts a hand on Sarah's knee. "He loves you, Sarah. He kinda sucks at showing it, but it's true. Every day, he asks me how you're doing, if you're eating... he worries about you."

"Yeah." Sarah says. "I know."

A month passes and Sarah still hasn't spoken a word to Joel. He leaves notes on her bedroom door or the kitchen table for her to read before patrol. Simple notes that say things like 'Made you breakfast' or 'won't be back till late tonight'. He's even been watching over Gus after he was accidentally left on the couch. Sarah's spent as much time as she can going on patrol and picking up extra chores; anything to stay away from the house for as long as possible. Maria's put limits on how much she can do, though. She's afraid Sarah will overwork herself. Usually, the patrols are simple but today's would prove to be a bit more eventful.

Sarah's in her head, not really focusing on searching for infected as she rides behind Jesse to the next patrol sign in. Jesse's talking but, for some reason, Sarah can't pay attention. She keeps remembering what happened at St. Mary's two years ago. She isn't happy with how they saved Ellie but she's happy they did save her. Ellie is like a sister to her. But that's not what she's thinking about. She's thinking about being shot. The feeling of the bullet going into her torso as they were running. She didn't say a word, didn't even flinch, she just kept going. But what if she hadn't been able to? What if she had fallen and was too weak to run? Would Joel have helped her? No, there'd be no way for him to save her. He had Ellie and she clearly couldn't run. He would've left her there... right? He would've abandoned her...

"Earth to Sarah!" Jesse snaps her out of her thoughts. She looks up to see him staring back at her. "You good back there?"

"Yeah, sorry." Sarah replies quickly, tightening her grip on Ponyo's reins. Jesse looks forward again.

"What are you thinking about?" He asks, stopping in front of the next sign in; an old bar Tommy had said was shut down way before the apocalypse.

"Just... I was thinking about Joel." Sarah says, deciding not to tell him everything going on in her head.

"You still mad at him?" Jesse asks as they tie up their horses to a pipe outside the back of the building.

"A bit." Sarah admits, walking in front of Jesse into the bar through a hole in the wall that's hidden by vines. "But, I think I understand why he did it now. Why he lied, I mean." The bar smells like damp soil and rotting wood. Thankfully, the broken glass that once littered the floors has been cleaned to make it safer to walk around. That doesn't mean they don't have to watch where they walk, though. In certain areas, the wooden floor is rotten enough to break underneath them if they step on it.

"Maybe you should talk to him." Jesse says, signing the two in as Sarah peeks through the windows. "He feels really bad. I don't think I've seen him this upset since that fight he had with Ellie. Even then, it only took them a couple weeks to make up."

"Joel doesn't like fighting." Sarah says, simply. It's easier to say that than 'He lied to Ellie because he didn't want her to sacrifice herself for a possible cure for humanity.' "I was thinking about talking to him tonight, actually."

"That's good." Jesse says, a hopeful smile on his face. "I'm sure he'll be really happy about that."

"Yeah." Sarah says, looking around at all the abandoned booths and barstools. "I kinda feel like a dick for shutting him out, y'know?"

"He understands why you did it." Jesse assures Sarah, moving to stand in front of her.

"Yeah, but I... I shouldn't have done that to him. Or you and Dina. You didn't deserve that."

"Hey." Jesse puts a hand on her head. "Don't worry about it." He gives her a warm smile. "I've got something to show you. C'mon, shorty."

"I may be short but I'll kick your ass." Sarah warns, teasingly.

"I don't doubt it." Jesse chuckles, leading her through a door to the Employees Only room. Sarah follows, confused. There was never any reason to go back here.

"Where are we going?" She asks. Jesse stays quiet, moving a heavy metal filing cabinet out of the corner and revealing a hole in the wall. "Jesse?"

"Just c'mon. You're gonna like this." He says, crawling through the hole. Sarah groans, looking behind her before crawling in after Jesse. Jesse helps her stand up and she looks around. They're in a very small, very cramped bathroom.

"Wow." She laughs, tone full of sarcasm. "I love this bathroom."

"Well, then you're gonna love what's outside of this bathroom even more." Jesse grins, pulling a set of keys out of his back pocket.

"Shouldn't it lock from the inside?" Sarah asks, watching Jesse unlock the door.

"Yeah, but I switched the handle around so nobody could get in here." Jesse explains, opening the door. "You coming?" He asks, holding the door open. Sarah walks into the medium sized room. It's empty other than a few boxes, a door that's boarded up, and a desk in the far right corner with a wooden chair.

"What is this?" Sarah looks around. The room is lit only by a window on the right wall that lets in sunlight.

"It's an Employees Only room. You know that hair salon next door?" Sarah nods. "It's connected to that."

"Does anyone else know this is here?"

"If I wanted other people to know it was here, do you think I'd keep it locked up?" Jesse asks, rhetorically.

"Okay, I see your point." Sarah chuckles.

"Now, I know it's not much but I was thinking we could fix it up a bit, make it look cool, and turn it into our own private hangout. Just you and me. Whaddya say?" Jesse gives her a hopeful look, silently pleading for her to say yes.

"I think I can get behind that." Sarah decides, smiling at him.

"Yes!" Jesse yells, raising a fist in the air. "Oh... Hey, Sarah?"

"Yeah?"

"Look up." Sarah does so, eyes going wide and smile growing bigger.

"Stars?" She chuckles in disbelief. The ceiling had been painted to look like the night sky. Blends of dark blues and blacks, tiny white dots to look like twinkling stars.

"You like it?" Jesse asks, hands on his hips. Sarah turns to look at him.

"Did you...?" She can't seem to form a sentence, completely in awe. Jesse just nods, his heart fluttering at her reaction. "How did you paint this?"

"My mom found a bunch of old paints in storage and gave them to me." Jesse explains. "I wasn't sure what to do with them at first but, when I saw this place... it just clicked." Sarah lunges at him, making him take a step back at the force as she hugs him.

"Thank you, Jesse." Sarah mumbles into his shirt. "This is amazing."

"Aww, you're welcome, shorty." Jesse says, hugging her. Sarah pinches his side and he flinches. "Ow! Okay, I guess I deserved that."

"You did." Sarah chuckles, pulling away. She looks around the room, noticing the boarded up door. "Think we can get this open?" She points to the door.

"Actually..." Jesse walks over to the wooden desk, opening one of the drawers. "I know we can." He takes out a hammer, grinning.

"You just conveniently have a hammer laying around?" Sarah asks.

"I meant to take these boards off last time I was here. So, yes. I conveniently have a hammer laying around." With some effort and assistance from Sarah, Jesse manages to pry the boards off the wall. He turns the handle of the door, walking into the salon.

"Well, this place is a wreck." Sarah comments, looking around at all of the misplaced items. Spray bottles, hair dryers, shampoo... there were even a few cracked mirrors.

"Front door's boarded up." Jesse says, walking to the middle of the room. The floor creaks loudly underneath him and, before either of them can react, it collapses and he falls through onto the cement floor of the basement with a loud crash.

"Jesse!" Sarah yells, running towards the hole.

"Fuck! I- I'm fine! I'm okay!" Jesse calls, slowly trying to stand up. "Just fell onto a pile of glass..." He pushes himself up, looking at a panicked Sarah.

"You scared the shit out of me!" Sarah exclaims. She's about to yell more but notices blood soaking through Jesse's jeans. "Jesse... your leg." Jesse looks down at his right thigh. "You got cut."

"That's a lot of blood." Jesse mumbles. He looks around. "Okay, there's a staircase over here. I think I can get upstairs."

"Just be careful." Sarah says. "Toss me your keys. I'll open the door." Jesse throws his keys to Sarah and hobbles in the direction of the staircase. Sarah goes to the basement door, fumbling with the set of keys to see which one fits. Finally, she finds the right key, opening the door to find Jesse leaning against the wall. "Jesus." She whispers, seeing the blood dripping down his leg.

"It's just a cut." Jesse assures. "I'll be fine."

"At least let me wrap it." Sarah insists.

"Alright." Jesse says. "Guess I don't wanna bleed out before we get home. Let's get back to that Employee room."

Jesse sits in the chair as Sarah pulls a roll of bandages out of her backpack. She wraps the bandages around the gash tightly, trying to be as gentle as possible. When she's finished, she leans and places a small kiss on the bandaged wound before standing and holding out her hand for Jesse to take. He takes it, letting her help him stand.

"Man, these stitches are gonna hurt like a bitch." Jesse groans, following Sarah out to the horses.

"Probably. Hey, you gonna be able to ride?" Sarah asks, flashing him a concerned look.

"Yeah, I..." Jesse wants to say yes but he knows he's losing a lot of blood and the bandages can only do so much. He's already a bit dizzy. "Maybe not."

Sarah thinks for a moment before coming up with an idea. "Okay, you're gonna ride with me. I'll tie Cobalt up inside and get our secret spot locked up. You stay here."

"Yes, ma'am." Jesse says, mocking her bossiness as he leans against the building. Sarah takes Cobalt inside. She's only gone for a few minutes, returning to Jesse who greets her with a smile.

"Here, let me help you up." Sarah guides Jesse onto Ponyo, making sure he isn't going to fall off before getting on in front of him. Jesse's arms wrap around her waist securely. She can't help but feel better with him close to her. She can't deny, it makes her feel safer. As they ride, Jesse leans forward, resting his forehead on Sarah's left shoulder. "You alright?"

"Yeah." Jesse mumbles. "Think I hit my head when I fell."

"We're almost home." Sarah says, silently hoping they'll make it back without any issues. "Just hang on a bit longer."

When the two make it back, it's around 4:00pm. Sarah dismounts Ponyo, handing the reins to a stable worker so she can help Jesse down.

"He's got a cut on his right leg and he might've hit his head. He fell pretty far. Cobalt is tied up in the bar." Sarah explains to a few people who agree to take Jesse to the infirmary. She stops them, putting a hand on Jesse's chest. "You want me to come with you?"

"I'll be fine." Jesse assures. "Go talk to Joel. I'll come find you after I get patched up." Hesitantly, Sarah nods, going home. When she gets there, Joel isn't back, yet. She sighs, setting her bag down and searching for one of Joel's usual notes that would explain where he went. She finds it on the kitchen counter by the coffee pot.

'Girls, Tommy and I are headed out

to clear out a group of infected.

Won't be back 'till later tonight.'

"Great." Sarah sighs. "There goes that plan." She decides to see what Ellie and Dina are up to. She heads out to the garage, knocking on the door. Ellie opens it, smiling when she sees Sarah.

"Hey! Come on in!" Ellie says, holding the door for Sarah. Sarah walks in, seeing Dina on the couch searching through DVDs.

"Hey, Sarah." Dina greets with a grin. "We're gonna watch a horror movie. You in?" Sarah completely forgot tonight's movie night.

"Definitely." Sarah says, unzipping her jacket and tossing it on Ellie's desk before sitting on the floor in front of Dina.

"Where's Jesse?" Ellie asks. She picks up a DVD and puts it into the player, starting the movie.

"He's at the infirmary. He fell on some glass but he's okay." Sarah explains. "I wanted to go with him."

"He's a big boy." Ellie says, sitting beside her girlfriend. "He can take care of himself."

"I know." Sarah shrugs, watching the beginning of the movie. "Is this Carrie?"

"Yep." Dina confirms, smiling.

"How? The DVD got destroyed when Tommy borrowed it."

"We found a DVD rental place on our last supply run." Ellie answers. We also found a movie called "Blue is the Warmest Colour."

"Oh, I think I saw that one with Evelyn." Sarah recalls.

"You mean back when you had a huge crush on her?" Ellie teases.

"Oh my God." Sarah rolls her eyes. "She was cute but she turned out to be such a bitch! All I did was reccomend the movie! I still can't believe she punched me in the face."

"Yeah, after she called you a faggot." Dina reminds her. "She was an asshole. I'm glad you came to your senses, though. Finally gave in to your crush of two years. Now, one of you just has to make the first move."

"What are you talking about?" Sarah asks, feigning confusion.

"Uh, you and Jesse. Duh!" Dina grins. "You two are so fucking in love-"

"Okay, no more talking during the movie." Sarah cuts her off, quickly.

"...You never denied it." Ellie says after a few minutes.

"Shut up." Sarah snorts, making the couple laugh.

Twenty minutes into the movie, there's a knock on the garage door. Ellie stands up, opening the door.

"Hey, Jesse." She says, inviting him in. Sarah smiles, glad to see him patched up. "Sarah told us you got hurt." Jesse chuckles, smiling down at Sarah.

"Ah, just a few stitches in my thigh." Jesse explains. "Be good as new in no time. Anyways, what are we watchin'?"

"Carrie." Sarah responds as Jesse tosses his jacket and backpack to the side and sits beside her on the floor. "Careful of your stitches." She warns.

"I'm fine." Jesse assures. "Doesn't even hurt that much." He stretches his legs out to make his point. Ellie flops back down on the couch, her head laying on Dina's shoulder as the four of them watch the movie. Sarah lays down on her side, resting her head in Jesse's lap. About halfway into Carrie, she manages to fall asleep, unknowingly clinging to Jesse's pant leg as she drifts off, completely forgetting about her plan to speak with Joel.

Jesse doesn't notice Sarah's fallen asleep until he looks down and finds her laying there, curled up, lips slightly parted, and fist holding onto his jeans with all of her sleepy strength. He chuckles quietly, brushing hair out of her face and smiling at her with adoration.

"What is it?" Dina asks, both her and Ellie growing curious as to why Jesse is laughing during a horror movie. Jesse turns back to look at them, a wide smile on his face.

"She's asleep." Jesse explains, nodding towards Sarah. The two girls lean over to see her, confirming what Jesse said.

"That's fucking adorable." Ellie chuckles. "She must be exhausted. All that extra work she's been picking up..." Ellie sighs, kind of glad to see Sarah finally resting and not working her ass off.

"I'm gonna take her to bed." Jesse says, standing and lifting Sarah up bridal style. Sarah hums i9n her sleep, shifting a bit before settling again. "Jesus, she needs to eat more." He points out, feeling how light she is.

"You okay carrying her with your leg?" Ellie asks. "She's not gonna be happy if you tear your stitches."

"I got it." Jesse nods. "I'll be back in a few minutes." He carefully opens the door, carrying Sarah out to the house. When he gets inside, Joel is in the living room. He looks over when he hears the back door open, offering Jesse a tired smile.

"Hey." Joel says, voice gruff. "Patrol go okay?"

"Yeah. No infected." Jesse says. "How about you? Heard you and Tommy were sent to clear out a group of infected."

"Whoever said it was a herd overreacted." Joel laughs a bit. "It was maybe four or five hiding out in an old motel. But, I guess it was worth it. Found some good supplies." He looks down at Sarah. "Alright. You should go put her in bed."

Jesse nods, walking up the stairs. He stops at the fourth step. "Hey, Joel?" Joel turns around, looking at Jesse. "It may not seem like it, but... I'm pretty sure she forgives you." At that, Joel lights up, turning and walking away with a smile. Jesse carries Sarah to her bedroom, laying her down on the bed gently and pulling the blankets up to her chin. He places a kiss to her forehead and lets out a small sigh before turning and heading back to the garage. As Sarah lays there in the dark, she begins to shift, mumbling incoherently. Her sleep will prove to be anything but peaceful.

St. Mary's Hospital. A place that would remind Joel, Ellie, and Sarah of the Fireflies and the lie Joel told Ellie to protect her. For Sarah, it's also a reminder of the time she was shot during the escape. What if she had been too weak to keep going? All she could rely on was her own strength and the hope that she'd be able to keep running. What if she hadn't?

She's back in the hospital, running beside Joel who's carrying an unconscious Ellie. The adrenaline, the rapid heartbeat, the fear, all of it returns. The same feeling of dread mixed with determination floods through Sarah. The three round a corner and that's when Sarah's shot, the familiar sensation of the bullet piercing through her skin and spilling her blood. But, this time, the pain is too much and she falls to the ground with a cry. No... She fights to get up; to keep going. But the fight is useless. She can't move.

"Joel!!" Sarah screams, reaching out for him. He's only a few feet ahead of her. He stops dead in his tracks, turning around slowly. She calls for him again and he only smiles. He stares at her, watching her bleed out and scream for him, laying there, helplessly waiting for something to happen. Sarah feels sick to her stomach at the way he grins. Joel turns away from her again, walking off with Ellie.

"Joel!! Dad, please!!" Sarah sobs, trying to stand only to fall back again. "Dad!! Help!!" Her cries are ineffective, her father walking out of sight... leaving her behind... "Dad!!"

In Joel's bedroom, he's sitting in bed reading a crappy novel he found in the motel earlier that day. He hears Sarah's desperate screaming and wastes no time throwing the book to the side and rushing out of the room. He practically trips over his own feet running into Sarah's bedroom to find her laying stiff in her bed, sobbing and screaming for her father... for Joel. He sits next to her, grabbing her shoulders and shaking her lightly.

"Sarah...Sarah!" Joel calls her name, trying to pull her out of her dream. "Sarah, wake up!" She jolts awake, sitting up so quickly she almost smacks her forehead against Joel's. She sobs, rapidly searching the room, trying to remember where she is. "It's okay. It was only a dream." Joel says, rubbing her arms. Sarah looks at Joel and sobs louder.

At first, Joel thinks she's mad at him for being there but she scrambles into his arms, clinging to the back of his shirt. "Dad..." Sarah cries. "Please don't leave me..."

"Shh, I've got you, baby girl." Joel coos, holding Sarah tight against him as her tears create a damp spot on his shirt. "I'm not going anywhere. I'll never leave you." He's extremely happy to finally hear Sarah call him dad but hides his excitement so he can focus on comforting her. His daughter needs him. "You're okay." Joel rocks her side to side, patiently waiting for her to calm down. "You're okay." When Sarah's nearly asleep, he lays her back down, moving to cover her up.

"Dad?" She mumbles, eyes half open.

"Yeah?" Joel responds, feeling another spark of joy at the title. Sarah reaches for his forearm, tugging at it.

"Stay with me?" Sarah asks, almost pleading.

Joel finally lets himself smile, overjoyed with Sarah's forgiveness. "Okay."

[danganronpa-tng]

Chapter 5 - The Trial Of Kamron Naegi

*Trigger Warning; brief mention of hanging later in the trial. Read at your own discretion*

- - -

Kamron was found collapsed out in the hallway of the dormitory corridor. He had a couple of bruises on barely visible areas, such ad his stomach or legs. His sunglasses were missing. Due to the fact four people encountered the body at the same time, one out of the four could still be a suspect, hkwever this is not certain.

Cause of death was blood loss. He was found with his right hand severed, laying several feet away from him. The weapon used to sever the hand is unknown, but the cut makes it look like a sharp blade. There were clear signs of a struggle, including blood splatters in the middle of the hallway. It seems he was propped up against the wall rather than collapsing against it.

The victim was killed at approximately 1PM. He was discovered at approximately 9AM that day.

- - -

“So, he died at 1AM?”

“Yep... anything on your mind, Sara?”

“Huh? Oh, nothing really. I just find it odd he was still fully clothed at 1AM, that’s all. Well, bar his sunglasses, but you know.”

“That’s true, actually... thanks, Sara!”

“Anytime! Good luck.”

- - -

“I-I can’t believe this... Kamron... as s-soon as I learn we’re related...”

“Hey, hey Kass... it’s gonna be OK. We’re gonna find his killer, no matter what! Ok?”

“Yeah... yeah, I know you can. We all can. I just can’t let this slide. Someone’s- someone’s gonna pay!”

“Right.”

- - -

“Greetings, Hayden.”

“Oh, Katelyn! You ok? You look panicked.”

She’s smoothing out her clothes and panting.

“No, not panicked per say... more so, kind of nervous. I was chatting to Aspen last night, and we talked about how we were sure nobody else would be killed from now on... I suppose we were wrong.”

“Oh...”

“Anyways, I did my usual check to the weapons room, as I tend to do.”

“And?”

“I, surprisingly didn't see anything out of place. Nobody had moved anything since the masquerade.”

“Really? That’s odd... anyways, thanks Katelyn.”

“Anytime. Now, if you’ll excuse me.”

- - -

“M-morning, Aeja...”

“Hello, Hayden. Apologies for my message earlier, please disregard it.”

“Huh? I mean, we can still talk if you want-”

“No, it’s quite alright. Now, what did you come over here for?”

“Ah, well, I just wanted to see what evidence you had.”

“Is that it? Hm. Well then, all I’ve found so far isn’t properly solid evidence, but I noticed that almost everyone came out of their room in their pyjamas, as you can see. However, three people didn’t. Aspen, Katelyn and Estrella. Not proper evidence.”

“Well, it’s still worth noting! Thanks, Aeja.”

“You’re welcome. Now, please leave me be. I’m thinking.”

“Ah. Ok.”

- - -

“Estrella-?”

“Hm? Hmm? Is that a voice? No, must have been the wind.”

“Estrella-”

“Oh, there it is again! It sure is drafty in here.”

“Estrella please, I just wanna talk about evi-”

“Ugh, a leader as supreme as me shouldn't be putting up with a cold room. I’ll be taking my leave now.”

“Wait-! Aaaaaaaand she’s gone.”

- - -

“Hm? Vera? Oh, you can write it down. Cool.”

Yes. Well, I was just wondering, has anyone checked the kitchen to see if all the knives are still there? It might be a worthy idea.

“Oh, no actually! I didn’t even think of that. Thanks, Vera!”

- - -

The Trial

- - -

“So, does anyone have a solid alibi?”

“For 1AM?”

“Ah... fair point. So let me rephrase that; was anybody in someone else’s dorm last night? As in, sleeping over?”

Yes, I was staying in Sara’s room last night.

“Ah, ok! So, we can pretty safely assume those two are clear then.”

“Nice! Thanks, Vera!”

“Was anyone else with another person? For any amount of time?”

I looked over at Estrella and Aeja. They were looking anywhere but at each other, avoiding eye contact like it was the Black Plague. I pitied the two. I debated whether or not I should admit I saw them. But before I could, the conversation topic changed.

- - -

“So, I don’t suppose anyone checked the weaponry room, did they?”

“Yes, I did, in fact.”

“Oh! See anything, Katelyn?”

“No, actually. Nothing was out of place, so it seems nothing has moved since our last investigation.”

“Oh, that’s odd...”

“...hey, Vera? Didn't you say you thought about checking the kitchen?”

She nods.

“Did you get a chance to?”

She nodded again, starting to write. I suppose writing is easier then having everything translated.

Yes. One knife was in the rack still, but bloodied, so we can assume a kitchen knife is what severed his hand. And I also noticed a glass while I was there, one that still had ice in it. Which means...

“Someone only put it back this morning?”

She nods.

- - -

“Estrella, you’ve been pretty quiet.”

“Hm? Oh, sorry. I just didn’t feel like wasting my breath on you.”

“Wow, rude.”

“Really? Quite honestly Sara, I hadn’t cared to notice.”

“What’s up with you? You’ve been in a pretty good mood since the whole-”

“Yeah, well, things change, People change. Or rather, they don’t. See, I was trying to be a but nicer, but after a certain incident I realised that- well, who am I kidding? I’ve built this role for myself, and I’m never gonna be able to shake it off, so might as well live up to it.”

She folds her arms.

“I’m the evil leader that’s only here to confuse and irritate people. I’m the walking embodiment of a bad joke! So, if you plan on figuring out who stabbed Spy Kid over there, I suggest you shut the fuck up and keep going with the trial.”

Sara just looked away, slightly disheartened.

“I thought we’d become friends now... Aren’t we friends?”

“Do you really want to be friends with someone like me?”

- - -

“Well, let’s get back to alibis, since we don’t have much to go off. Where was everyone? Alone, or with someone else?”

“I- like I said earlier, I was with Vera.”

“Right. Karma?”

“I was alone. I stayed up a bit late though, so I only woke up when the body announcement went off.”

“Ok. Kassidy?”

“I-I said goodbye to Kamron and then went back to my room... I went asleep pretty quickly.”

“Alright. Katelyn?”

“Unlike almost everyone here, I have an alibi. I stayed in Aspen’s room last night, then went back to mine and got changed. I was up before the announcement, so-”

“Wait a sec.”

“Hm? Something wrong, Aspen?”

“Katelyn... you never came to my room last night.”

- - -

“Katelyn..? Care to defend yourself?”

“Wh- oh, shut up, copycat. Have you not even considered your dear girlfriend over there? You should have seen her face when we saw the body! She didn’t even look surprised, she looked like she already knew! She-”

“That’s because I did.”

“...what?”

“Estrella, what do you mean by-?”

“Isn't it obvious, Mr No Talent? I saw the murder happen. I was on my way back to my room when I heard a fight, so I went to check it out, and... well, I simply decided to not give him a hand, haha!”

“Really?! You're serious?”

“Most likely.”

“Well, who did it?”

“I thought that was obvious, too. I decided not to tell you because I’m pissed off! I’m a petty bitch, as you know, and as such I decided to let this play out.”

“Estrella, stop being childish-”

“DON’T talk to me about childish, Aeja! I’m not the one who tried to hang them self when they got scared!”

The room fell horribly silent. Aeja looked away, and Estrella reached up to her own cheek, where her cut was. Something started to click into place.

“Wait, Aeja tried to-”

“Fine then, Estrella. If you're going to be like that, shut up and dont disrupt this trial. This isn't about our business, it’s about finding Kamron’s killer. So, now that we’re back on topic and abandoning that last conversation... Katelyn? Aspen?”

Aspen looked at Katelyn, who didn’t meet his eyes.

“K-Katelyn? Kate? Please, please tell me you just got mixed up. You got mixed up, right? Yeah. Yeah!”

“...Aspen.”

“...no. No, no, no, please don’t say it.”

- - -

“Why? Why did you do it, Katelyn?”

“I- Hayden. You have to understand, I hold my parents in... very high regard. He was insulting them, insulting me! I-I couldn’t just let that stand. I got mad, so I- I got a knife from the kitchen and went back, just to threaten him! I never planned on actually hurting him... but I guess he panicked, and he lunged at me. So I panicked, and- I accidentally-”

“...chopped his hand off.”

“...If I could go back in time, I would change what I did. But, it’s in the past now. I... this shouldn't have happened, I know.”

“...you can’t be serious, right Katelyn? Right?! It was Estrella. Yeah, it was! You’re just covering for her because- because- you don't wanna watch the same execution again!”

“...no.”

“...this doesn’t compute. There’s something wrong here, right? RIGHT?!”

- - -

“Well, Hayden, I do not wish to put up a fight. Care to unravel this case?”

That quickly? Hm...

“Ok. This- *sigh*.”

This all starts... Last night, I believe. The killer was out in the corridor with Kamron, with whom they hadn't interacted, until the killer made some off-handed comment about their parents, which caught Kamron’s attention. He started talking about the parents of the other participants, including the killer’s. They seemed to have a particular distaste for their parents, particularly their deceased father, for reasons unknown, as they started to slander them, insulting them and the killer. The killer, enraged by this, leaves Kamron there and goes to the kitchen. They grab a knife, which they must have thought was blunt, to threaten him. However, when they got there, Kamron saw the weapon in their hand and panicked. They tried to lunge for the killer, but was swiftly cut off- literally- as the killer also panics and swings the knife with unusual force. This blow, to their dismay, manages to cut off Kamron’s hand. He stumbles backwards and collapsed, bleeding out. The killer, panicking, returns to their room. They stash the weapon and go straight to bed, trying to act natural. 

They wake up slightly earlier than everyone else to hide the evidence. They wake up a bit too late though, and don't have as much time as they thought to clean the weapon. They simply slip it back into the knife rack and grab a quick drink, before heading back to their room. Five minutes later, they hear me scream and run outside, ‘finding’ the body along with me and two others.

That’s what happened, and our killer is...

Katelyn Momota, the Ultimate Psychiatrist!

“...it sounds so horrible when it’s repeated back to me. But, I must face the facts. I’m-”

- - -

*mumbling*

“Aspen? Did you say somethi-”

“WHAT DID YOU DO?!”

“ ! ”

“I told you not to get mad! I told you not to hurt anyone, and look what you did! You’ve... you’ve gone and killed someone, and now I’m going to lose you. I’m gonna lose you, Katelyn!”

“Aspen... Aspen, no. You can’t be upset over me, ok? I’m a killer now. I’m a bad person here.”

“No you’re not! I don’t care what you’ve done, you’re still special to me! I-I can’t lose you! Please don’t go... please...”

Aspen was doubled over on himself, and... I think he was crying oil? 

“I didn’t know the robot could cry-”

“Shut up, Estrella.”

Katelyn looked genuinely confused and concerned. She shook her head.

“No, you... you’re not supposed to be upset over me. You... you shouldn’t be upset over me. You can’t.”

Aspen and Katelyn finally locked eyes. Neither said anything for a moment. Eventually, Katelyn sighed.

“I... I know there is no escaping my fate. But... I wish to do one more thing before I am killed. Monokuma, may I? I will make no attempt to escape.”

Monokuma shrugged.

“Sure, knock yourself out. ...wait, what are you doing?”

And suddenly, Katelyn was running. Not to the exit, not to Aspen, but to...

“...Eh-?! GAH-!”

Katelyn was on her knees either side of a now toppled over Estrella, with her hands around Estrella’s neck. Estrella was grabbing at Katelyn’s Arms, trying to free herself. She was being strangled.

“You BITCH! I should have wasted my damn murder on you!”

“KATELYN!”

“ESTRELLA!”

Two people ran over; Aspen and Aeja. Aeja reached them first, full on jumping at Katelyn and pushing her off Estrella. Aspen helped Estrella sit up, the girl in question being purple in the face and gasping for air. Aeja had Katelyn pinned by her wrists.

“Hah... hah...” 

Estrella looked over at the girls, panting. She looked between them, and I couldn't tell which person confused her more. She nodded at Aspen, trying to stand herself up.

“Katelyn... the fuck?!”

“You... you know what you did to me, you bitch!”

After a moment, Estrella took a deep breath and grinned, placing her arms behind her head.

“Of course I do! And I don’t regret it either, you know. I’m glad I did!”

Katelyn literally growled, and suddenly she shoved Aeja off her, standing up. Estrella jumped a bit, backing up. Aeja looked at Monokuma.

“Monokuma- MONOKUMA!”

Even Monokuma looked surprised at the whole outburst, but he quickly resumed normal behaviour.

“I have a very special punishment for Katelyn Momota, Ultimate Psychiatr- SHIT-!”

With Katelyn quickly approaching Aspen, Monokuma slammed his hammer down on his button.

“Wait- Katelyn!”

[singledarkshade]

Burning

Part Four – And The Past Arrives The playing card flew in a smooth arc into the bowl sitting on the bench. The next one missed completely landing on the floor.

“You’re getting better,” Rip noted.

“Where did you learn to do this?” Alex demanded as the next card she threw went flying off at an angle into the wall.

Rip gave a slight shrug, “An acquaintance taught me one night, and I honed my skills whilst being…” he hesitated for a second before finishing, “Detained by the Time Bureau.”

“Oh,” Alex winced, she looked at him thoughtfully for a moment, “Do you ever think about them?”

Rip flicked another card into the bowl, “I try not to.”

She reached out and squeezed his arm quickly before she threw another card. They were waiting for Gideon and Winn to finish their system tests, so they could go to lunch. Alex had seen Rip throwing cards like this in the past so had pestered him into showing her how to do it while they waited.

“I suck at this,” Alex cried as the card veered off almost hitting one of the technicians.

Rip chuckled, “It took me some time to master. Keep practicing.”

Before she could retort an alarm sounded just as a breach appeared in the centre of the room. Alex and Rip jumped up catching the guns they were tossed ready to defend the DEO from whoever was coming.

Four people suddenly appeared through the breach, the first Cisco Ramon who held up his hands at the guns that were pointed at him.

“We come in peace,” Cisco stated quickly before anyone could say anything, “They’re looking for someone we think might have come here. I’m just playing taxi driver.”

An unknown man came next dressed in the blue suit of the Time Bureau, followed by Sara Lance and Ava Sharpe. Rip froze as there was no way for him to get out of the room without being seen, it looked like he was no longer hidden.

 Sara’s eyes locked on him first and she stared but it was Ava who spoke.

“Rip?”

The unknown man suddenly drew his gun, “Rip Hunter,” he aimed at Rip, “You’re under arrest by the authority of the Time Bureau.”

“No!!!”

Rip frowned, catching Alex’s eye as they realised Gideon was coming towards them. Her arms were outstretched, and a flicker of flame appeared from her fingers. Alex ran grabbing Ava pulling her down to safety, Rip tackled Sara to the ground, Winn yanked the unknown agent down while Cisco’s highly tuned sense of self-preservation meant he dived to ground just as fire exploded above them. Rip let go of the stunned Sara rolling to his feet, moving to Gideon catching her as the fire faded and she began to droop.

“I’ve got you,” Rip soothed, his arms tightening around her holding her close, “It’s okay, Gideon. I’ve got you.”

“I won’t let them take you,” she whispered, exhaustion from the use of her abilities clear in her voice.

Holding her tightly he breathed, “No one is taking me anywhere. You know the others wouldn’t let that happen.”

Rip could feel the eyes of their guests on them, especially Sara as he held Gideon close. The rest of the DEO were used to this by now, so everyone went back to work as J’onn marched over.

“I suggest we head to a more private room to speak,” J’onn stated coldly, obviously not happy with their intruders, “Assuming you don’t want to try and arrest any more of my people.”

“I apologise,” Ava said instantly, “Agent Lowell has been ordered that Mr Hunter is arrested on sight. He was merely following his orders.”

“Your agents obviously haven’t been trained that well if they can’t read a room,” Alex noted, she nodded to Hannah Matthews who took the weapon from Agent Lowell before marching him out of the room.

Rip watched Sara and Ava follow Alex, he caught Sara’s surprised look when she recognised Gideon. The stunned look becoming even more pronounced when she saw the bump of Gideon’s pregnancy. Cisco, looking a little uncomfortable, stood folding his arms trying to work out what he should do.

Turning his attention back to Gideon, Rip could see she was still tired, “I should go and join in the conversation with Sara and Ava. You need to eat something and get your strength back. Go with Winn and get some lunch, Kara should be here soon too.”

Gideon nodded, “Of course. Promise me you will do your best to keep your temper when talking to them.”

Rip pressed a quick kiss to her temple, “I promise.”

“Cisco, right?” Winn offered his hand to the meta-human, “Nice to finally meet you. Want to join us for lunch?”

“Sounds great.”

Before he let her go with Winn, Rip placed a soft kiss on Gideon’s lips. She squeezed his hand before taking Winn’s arm walking out with him and Cisco. Rip waited until they were gone before he took several deep breaths steeling himself to face his past.

  Alex motioned their guests to take a seat, turning to J’onn who was clearly not happy with their sudden appearance. She was also concerned about Rip. Despite how much of a front he would put on, Alex knew the arrival of these two women had opened old wounds.

Finally she noticed him slowly coming up the stairs, he was pushing himself into his Time Master persona stoic and cold. When he reached the door, he gave her a quick nod before sliding into the seat across from Sara. Alex took the one on his side facing the other woman while J’onn sat at the head of the table.

“Sara,” Alex took over the meeting, “Why don’t you tell us why you’re here?”

“Firstly I should introduce you to Director Ava Sharpe of the Time Bureau,” Sara said, her eyes never wavering from Rip.

Alex felt the temperature in the room drop even more with the announcement, but Rip remained silent.

“Why are you here?” Alex asked.

“There is a man, Artemis Simpkins, who has been causing chaos through the timestream,” Ava explained, “We managed to corner him but he had the ability to open a dimensional breach. Mr Ramon tracked him to this Earth.”

“As I knew Alex and Kara from the West-Allen Wedding,” Sara noted, “I volunteered to come and introduce everyone. Agent Lowell has been tracking Simpkins and Ava came as, unlike previous Directors, she cares about what happens to her people.”

At the deliberate dig Rip leaned forward, “I have one question for you,” he stated coldly, “Mallus?”

“We stopped him,” Ava replied evenly.

Rip shook his head, “So, in other words I was right.”

Alex could see the annoyance in Ava and Sara’s eyes as they both nodded.

“Then I’m done with the Time Bureau,” he stood and turned to J’onn, “I need to check on Gideon, then I have work to do.”

J’onn gave him a quick nod of agreement and Alex watched him leave.

“Agent Danvers will be your liaison while you’re here,” J’onn told them, “She will be able to assist you in anything you require.”

Without another word he left as well.

Alex stood, “I’m assuming you have some idea how to track this man?”

Ava nodded, “We do. Agent Lowell has the information on him.”

“Then we’ll go get it,” Alex replied and motioned them to follow her.

  “Alex,” Sara said softly as they reached the office Lowell was being held in, “I hope that we parted as friends.”

Alex nodded, “We did.”

“Then as your friend,” Sara said softly, “I feel I should warn you. About Rip.”

Alex frowned, especially when she spotted the man himself standing in the alcove near them, he moved further back so he wasn’t seen.

“What about him?” she asked.

Sara shared a quick glance with Ava before sighing, “You can’t trust him. Look,” she stopped Alex saying anything, “I know Rip can be persuasive, but he only ever cares about his agenda no matter who he hurts.”

“Really?”

Sara nodded.

“Thank you for your concern, Sara,” Alex said softly, “We may have slept together but that doesn’t give you the right to disparage one of my people.”

“You may think he’s working for the DEO, Alex,” Sara sighed, “But he’ll be working on something for him only and I don’t want you to get hurt.”

Alex shook her head, “You really don’t know him. Rip is a good man who only wants the people he loves to be safe. The difference between us, Sara is that we listen to him when he warns us of danger.”

Alex opened the door to the room, “Agent Matthews will be here until I return. Ask her if you need anything.”

Without another word Alex left them in the room and shut the door. She spotted Rip slip out of the alcove he had been standing in and walk away.

“Hey,” she called, stopping him in the corridor outside, “Are you okay?”

Rip nodded, “I heard what you said. Thank you.”

Alex stared at him for a moment before shaking her head in annoyance, “You thought I was going to agree with her, didn’t you?”

“Most people tend to,” Rip replied softly, wincing when Alex punched his arm, “Ow, what was that for?”

“You are an utter idiot,” Alex told him, “I thought you knew me better than that.”

He dropped his head avoiding her eyes, Alex sighed and hugged him tightly. After a moment he hugged her back something even a few months before he wouldn’t have done.

“We are your family,” Alex reminded him vehemently, “Me, Kara, Winn, James and J’onn are your and Gideon’s family. And I don’t care who they were to you in the past, they don’t get a say in our family. Got it?”

A warm smile covered his face, “Got it.”

“Now go check on Gideon while I deal with our dimension hopping time traveller,” Alex ordered.

  Gideon smiled as she listened to Winn and Cisco bond, the two men were so similar in some ways and it was warming to listen to them talk.

“So,” Cisco said, “You’re Gideon. The same Gideon from the Waverider.”

She nodded, “Yes, Mr Ramon and the same Gideon you along with Mr Allen are currently coding.”

Cisco looked at Winn who nodded before he grinned, “That is so cool.”

Gideon laughed, she took a drink frowning suddenly.

“Are you okay?” Winn asked concerned.

She nodded softly, “I’ll be back in a few minutes. Please excuse me.”

The two men gave her a quick nod before they started talking again as she slipped away. Gideon headed along the corridor to Rip’s lab, entering she found him sitting staring into space. Without a word she moved to his side and wrapped him in her arms.

“It’s alright, Captain,” Gideon murmured softly as she stroked his hair, as his head rested against her breast, “I’m here.”

Rip’s arms wrapped around her waist and he stayed in her embrace for several minutes, finally he pulled back and looked into her eyes.

“I guess this being connected to each other is helpful at times like this,” he said softly.

Gideon nodded, “It is. So, why are they here?”

“A dimension hopping time travelling fugitive,” Rip shrugged, “And they can have all the fun they want with it.”

“Rip…”

He kissed her quickly, “Unless it has something to do with the DEO then I don’t care.”

“Rip?”

At her stern voice he looked into her eyes, “I can’t lie to you, remember?”

Gideon nodded, “Do you think I should speak with Miss Lance?”

“It’s your choice,” Rip told her.

“You know what I mean,” she frowned at him.

Rip shrugged again, “Just keep your temper, we don’t need any fire damage.”

[booksbeyondimagining]

Hey everyone!

Sorry I’ve not been very active on here lately (glances at personal goals for the year guiltily), but I spent the last couple of months working on shows and prepping for BookCon.  This year was a success, I think, in terms of achieving my goal to meet as many of my favorite authors – and potential favorites – as possible.

Saturday I started the day trying to get a ticket for a Leigh Bardugo signing at the TopatoCo booth, however their organization skills were downright awful and the line quickly became a messy blob and so of course this shorty in the back didn’t get one.  I told myself to get over it (and for the most part I did.  I was bitter still, but I was over it.  Gotta focus on the authors I did get to meet right?  The only annoyance was having to carry around my hardcover of SoC all day cause it costs $ to get back into coat check (wtf)).

So after that disaster I went to the signing for Brigid Kemmerer, who was lovely to talk to, followed by Susan Dennard (who got so excited about the poster I brought of the cover for The Executioner’s Three, her story on Wattpad).  I then went to the Jordandene booth to get an As Travars shirt – sadly they were out, but I got a Geekerella one instead – and while I was there I turned around and effing V. E. Schwab was right behind me.  This was the second time in 2 years that I’ve seen her on the floor, and this time I finally got a picture with her, lol.  I swear she is my lucky charm there – I wasn’t even actively seeking her out this year since I’ve already met her twice and yet there she was anyway.

I then went a stood for two hours(!) in a line for the Coco Ma/Jill Criswell signing for their ARCs of Shadow Frost/Beasts of the Frozen Sun (respectively).  I went to the booth to ask when the line was going to start forming and the guy was like “this is the line” indicating the one I thought was for the event prior to theirs.  So yeah, got to wait for a while there.  The line moved slowly because they were both talking with people, which was nice, but I was also mildly panicking because Amanda Foody had a signing I wanted to get to as well.  But I had a nice conversation with both (Coco was wearing Gryffindor robes so we had a fun HP conversation) and I got to the HarperCollins booth just in time to see Amanda and have her sign my copy of Ace of Shades.  

I think after that I wandered the floor for a bit, before making my way over to the Eoin Colfer signing.  I loved the Artemis Fowl series growing up, so I was ecstatic when I got the ticket to his signing.  The best part was we ended up talking theatre while he signed my books because he asked me what I did and I told him I do lighting design for theatre and he started talking about preferring the backstage atmosphere whenever someone puts on a play he’s written (I had no idea he wrote plays omg I’m such a fake fan lol).  And like the idiot I was I forgot to give him my business card.

After that I kinda stalked Katy Rose Pool.  She’s the author of There Will Come a Darkness which comes out in the fall and which I am currently reading (thank you Edelweiss).  It’s.  So.  Good.  And my friend had already met her during the day and told her about me and she remembered and was so nice and sweet and signed a blank bookmark I brought.  I also saw Amanda Foody there (I love how they have this group of writer friends it’s the cutest thing ever) and got the picture with her that I forgot to get earlier lol.  I then did some more shopping (got a Stardust candle that smells like stormy woods and blackberry and had little stars on top) and walked the floor until it closed.

And omg I went to the FierceReads booth to ask about the TWCAD ARC giveaway they were doing on Sunday (because yeah okay I am reading the egalley but I want it physically too of course) and while they were explaining it KATY ROSE POOL showed up again and I got so worried she thought I was an asshole for wanting the physical ARC as well instead of letting someone else get a chance to read it.  I’M SORRY I JUST WANTED ALL THE VERSIONS.  (Actually I’m over it now.  I got the ticket for the ARC game on Sunday and it was a chance-to-win game.  Basically you had your Tarot Cards read (the tarot cards are based on the characters in TWCAD) in a past-present-future spread and the present card determined which ARC you got.  I ended up getting The Last Word by Samantha Hastings oh well, but man the girl who did my reading was really good and it was scarily accurate.  But hey that gives me hope for my future cause it sounded just like what I needed.  Anyway, while I was there I watched two people who I knew had been first in both the ticket drop and the actual event line get the TWCAD ARC and I got really happy for them cause damn they deserved that.  PLUS I ended up getting an ARC of The Tenth Girl by Sara Faring for being tenth in line how cool was that!!)

Anyway, that was Saturday.

On Sunday, after getting the tickets at FierceReads (you got two for their giveaways, and beside the Tarot Card game I got a Grisha passport one which I gave to my friend cause I wasn’t interested in it), I wandered the floor for a bit before heading over to QuirkBooks to get ready for the Ashley Poston signing.  We were told we could buy the books before the signing even started so we did, and then they had a game where you turn one of those candy/prize machines you see outside of supermarkets and you got a piece of paper that indicated a prize.  My friend got a Charmed pin which she gave to me since I love the show, and I got a coupon for a free book so I got to return the copy of The Princess and the Fangirl I had just bought there and get it for free instead.  How cool is that?  And while we were in line for the game my friend saw Ashley Poston and she came over and talked with us and again while we were waiting for the signing to start.  She was so sweet and nice to talk with.

I then made the stupid attempt to try to get a ticket for the Melissa de la Cruz signing but since Penguin refuses to start lines before a certain time and just lets people stand in a blob, I again didn’t get one.  I wasn’t too angry though because I haven’t actually read any of her books, but the one she was signing for – The Queen’s Assassin – sounded interesting.  I was just more annoyed that all my other just-in-case-I-don’t-get-that-one events were already capped as well so I wandered the floor.  I finally found an event at the FaeCrate line for a die toss game but only got a chapstick lol.  Then I went to Simon & Schuster for their lollipop wall and ended up with a contemporary YA called She’s the Worst by Lauren Spieller.

I then went to the Meg Cabot signing where she signed my copy of Shadowland, because I love love love The Mediator series by her.  After that was the Tarot Card game as described above, and then the signing for Holly Black.  She seemed really nice from the line, but sadly by the time I got to her it was 4:30 and the publishers were making her speed things up to move the line along so I only got a candid picture and didn’t get much time to talk to her.  Oh well.

After that I went and got a shirt at Out of Print because they were putting them on sale by then – I got an Elephant & Piggie shirt and I LOVE it.  And then Hoopla was doing a wheel spin still but the woman said it was closed.  I waited around though because they had sunglasses and from what I could see, plenty of them (I don’t know what it is about my sunglasses but they will last like a year and then will just randomly break when I like take them off or something.  I don’t get it.)  They reopened it and when I spun and got a popsocket I asked and they just switched it for the sunglasses.  Lol score.

And that was the end of BookCon 2019!!

Here are all the books I received/bought/brought to get signed:

And here is all the swag I got (well the Susan Dennard poster I brought with me for her to sign, and the V. E. Schwab poster my friend actually got for me lol)

Also my friend and I stayed in this hotel that looked so old fashioned we kept calling it the Tower of Terror and saying we were gonna get visited by a ghost or something.  It was awesome.

Overall I was happy because I got to most of what I wanted, saw most of the authors I wanted to see, and bought some really fun merch too.  Can’t wait for next year and to see who I might get to meet then!

BookCon 2019 |A Review Hey everyone! Sorry I've not been very active on here lately (glances at personal goals for the year guiltily), but I spent the last couple of months working on shows and prepping for BookCon. 

[stillthewordgirl]

LOT/CC fic: Somewhere on Your Road Tonight (ch. 7)

Sara and Leonard made a life for themselves, together in 1958, after the Waverider left them, Ray and Kendra behind. But now they're back on the ship, Mick has been twisted into Chronos, Kendra is pregnant, and Savage is still out there. They'll deal--together. (Sequel to "Chances Are.")

Another chapter set during "Last Refuge" in this 'verse. Many thanks to LarielRomeniel for the beta! Can also be read here at AO3 or here at FF.net.

The jump to Dec. 25, 1986, is first, and Rip brings the Waverider in through a gentle snowfall as he gets as close to the Starling City Hospital as possible. He dispatches Mick and Ray to go kidnap little Sara before asking the older version to go check on the boys in the brig—a way, Leonard recognizes, to distract her from the mission that’s taking place.

Leonard falls into step with her (a touch hastily, he’ll admit, after he hears Kendra’s voice rise from the crew quarters, where young Mick had apparently gotten quite sick after their jump). If Sara realizes that, though, she shows no sign.

“So, I stopped by the brig after the medbay before. Young Ray had succeeded in getting young you to play video games with him,” she says after a moment or two, squeezing his hand before letting go.

Leonard snorts, grateful for the distraction himself. “I bet that went well.”

“It did, actually.” She laughs a little. “Apparently, he lost steadily for the first few games, then started figuring things out and has been kicking little Ray’s ass ever since.”

Is it weird, that he feels a rush of pride at that? “Ah,” he drawls. “Baby Palmer complaining to you about it?”

Sara’s lips twitch. “Actually, he was thrilled. Thinks his new buddy is awesome.” She glances over at him. “He was chattering up a storm, and young Leonard was watching him with a mix of...I think it was disbelief, horror and amusement, all wrapped up in one expression. Pretty sure I’ve seen that same expression on your face.”

"Sounds about right.” Two lonely kids far more intelligent than most of their peers, Sara’s voice says in his memory. He shakes his head.

“Mr. Snart? I...have an inquiry.”

They both glance upward at that as they slow, nearing the brig. “Yes, Gideon?” Leonard drawls, wondering. That sort of reticence isn’t like the AI.

There’s a pause. “It would not affect the timeline whatsoever if I give young Mr. Snart some vitamin supplements and…and get that sprained wrist healing a bit better,” the AI says quietly. “Would that be acceptable to you?”

Leonard stops despite himself. Even Gideon’s noticed both his younger self’s malnourishment and the injured wrist caused by a particularly rough jerk by Lewis, he thinks, wondering why the idea bothers him so much.

“I...yeah, that’d be fine,” he says after a moment. He can feel Sara’s eyes on him.

“Please bring him to medbay, then. I will compile the supplements.” Gideon’s tone is now businesslike, brisk. “It would be helpful if you would do so. I would like a blood sample.”

For an AI, Leonard thinks sometimes, she gets people more than, well, some people.

Young Leonard had still been regarding young Ray with the same bemused expression when they arrived, although the latter had pretty much bounded to his feet to greet them and the former had tensed, moving slightly away. For a moment, Sara had worried that the boy was going to panic when they asked that he go with Leonard, but when the older man makes no threatening moves—and, in fact, displays little interest in him—he warily agrees. They leave her behind with young Ray, who’s turned his attention back to the wonders of Xbox.

Or at least, he pretends to be until they depart.

“Ma’am?”

Sara reflects that this is where her life is right now. Being called “ma’am” by 12-year-old Ray Palmer. She turns with a sigh. “Don’t call…”

But the boy is standing there, looking at her with big, worried eyes, and whatever he’s concerned about, Sara caves. “What is it?”

Young Ray glances around, as if making sure no one will overhear him, but since young Leonard is headed to medbay with his older self, Sara isn’t even sure why. Then he takes another step closer and lowers his voice.

“That boy,” he says, nearly in a whisper. “Lenny?”

Please don’t tell me he stole something. “Yes?”

“I think…” Ray gulps. “I think someone’s been hurting him.”

Sara blinks. He’s so earnest and so worried, and for a moment, she’s just not sure what to say. Giving herself time to think, she pauses in front of him. “Yeah? Tell me.”

Encouraged, Ray continues. “He’s got lots of bruises. And his arm hurts him.” He nods at Sara’s expression. “He eats like he’s been starving, too, and I saw him tucking some bread away. Like to save it for later? He doesn’t get enough food, I think.”

Not for the first time, Sara thinks it’s lucky for Lewis Snart that he’s already dead. She tries to keep her more violent thoughts from her face, though. “That’s pretty perceptive,” she says.

Young Ray shrugs. “I saw an afterschool special on it once,” he tells her seriously, and Sara has to hide a smile. “You said you were protecting us. Can you help him?”

Oh, that hurts. Both the knowledge that they can’t, that they’ll have to put young Leonard back where they found him—and the fact that she has to lie to young Ray now, or destroy all that youthful trust and optimism. (Which is probably just a little off anyway, considering that they’re effectively his kidnappers.) Sara tries to make her expression reassuring, but she’s not sure how well she manages.

“We’ll do everything we can,” she tells mini Ray. “OK?”

The boy studies her, then nods.

“He wouldn’t say where he’s from,” he says with a sigh. “I wish it was Ivy Town. I don’t have anyone to play video games with. An’ he’s real smart. Most of...most of the kids I know, they think it’s not cool to be smart.”

He smiles suddenly, then.  "I bet my parents would help. If I told them he needed a place to stay. You know?”

For a few seconds, Sara stares into space, imagining what that would do to the timeline. Then she gives young Ray Palmer a wistful smile, because he’s just so...Ray...and the world needs more of that.

“Yeah,” she tells him, unable to resist ruffling his dark hair. “I know.”

Baby Sara safely onboard, they jump again, to Ivy Town in March 1950, while both Leonards are still in the medbay. The older version watches as the younger weathers the jump with merely an annoyed headshake and goes back to drinking the vitamin-laced hot cocoa that Gideon had whipped up. (It’s a little frightening just how well she knows their predilections by now. There are even mini marshmallows.)

Leonard sighs, then takes a sip of his own cocoa. The boy wouldn’t touch the drink unless he did, too. Understandable, really. He’s also pretty sure his younger self has something—a table knife?--up his sleeve as well.

Young Leonard had been quite dubious about the medbay sleeve Gideon had requested he put his arm in, but he’d eventually complied, and now the AI tells him he can remove it. While she doesn’t say so, older Leonard knows that this means the damaged ligaments and blood vessels have been healed, good as new.

Pity that it’ll just happen again after he gets home. Sooner or later, it will happen again.

The boy sits up on the chair, then glances at the man, curiosity and caution warring on his face. And before he even thinks about what he’s going to do, Leonard’s speaking to him, saying the words that have been rattling around in his head.

“It’s not your fault.”

The words come out in a monotone. Young Leonard starts at them, although he tries to conceal it. His eyes narrow, and he watches the older man intently, still holding himself like he’s ready to lash out or try to escape at any moment.

It hurts to watch him. But Leonard can’t help himself. He needs to do this.

“Lewis beating on you,” he tells the boy quietly. “The names, the curses, the...the abuse. Your mom leaving. Not your fault. Any of it.”

Unsurprisingly, younger Leonard draws back even more, and his expression hardens. His older self sees him teeter between alarm and anger for a moment and then go with the latter.

“How do you know?” he spits out.

Leonard studies the kid long enough for the anger to fade and trepidation to appear on the young face. Talking back to Lewis, after all, had been a guaranteed way to get a new bruise or three. Then he merely shakes his head.

“I know,” he says. “Trust me, kid. I know. And I can’t tell you how, and I don’t know if you’ll even remember any of this, but it’s not your fault.” He gets up from his seat from the bed. “And I just needed to tell you that.”

Young Leonard is still watching him stiffly, but after a moment, he gets up too, although he keeps his distance. With a sigh, his older self turns away, heading for the door. Then he pauses.

He’d been telling the truth when he said he was a late bloomer. Blame all that malnourishment and the distraction of keeping himself and Lisa alive. But eventually he’d started noticing some of the other people around him in a different way, even though he still preferred to keep his distance. (Hell, for the most part, he still does.)

When young Leonard had first showed signs of having a crush on a neighborhood girl, Lewis had actually clapped him on the back, making a suggestive comment or two that had made Leonard feel ill. But when it’d been a boy (the handsome son of one of Lewis’ “associates”) next, and Lewis had gotten an inkling...well.

His father had hated him before that. But it’d gotten a lot worse then.

Leonard abruptly turns back to the boy, who freezes in his tracks.

“Other things aren’t your fault either—who you like, what you feel,” he says, looking the kid in the eye. “And they’re not faults, no matter what Lewis says. They’re just you.”

And then he heads back toward the brig. After a moment, young Leonard follows.

Rip and Mick retrieve little Martin Stein from his birthplace by the side of an Ivy Town road, and then they all head to Central City in 1993, to the very hospital where Leonard was born—21 years earlier, which Jax gives him no end of teasing about.

It won’t be until later that Sara and Leonard will learn about what happens to Jax himself there. They have their hands full with other things at the moment.

Rip, whom Sara suspects of getting payback of sorts for Kendra (and Ray) having the temerity to get pregnant, has promptly turned both baby Sara and baby Stein over to the newlywed parents-to-be. Which means that, to get the proper amount of attention necessary for a toddler on a time ship, the other younger charge on the Waverider needs to go elsewhere.

As older Mick says, the brig seems appropriate.

Mini Mick stands in the middle of the converted brig, looking as surly and uncommunicative as the older version—but with both arms wound around the neck of a fluffy brown teddy bear nearly as big as he is. He’s directing the scowl, at the moment, at young Ray Palmer, who’s grinning at him with the nervous energy of someone who’s never spent much time around a younger child but is beyond excited to do so.

“Awww,” he says, kneeling on the floor. “You gotta teddy beaaar! What’s his name?”

Little Mick stares at him, then looks up at the adult Leonard and Sara with the clear WTF look only babies and toddlers manage quite so well. Sara bites back a smile and shrugs. Leonard rolls his eyes and gives the kid a smirk. Mick looks back at Raymond, nonplussed.

Approaching, young Leonard rolls his eyes in a gesture that looks so much like the older version that it’s downright uncanny, then sighs theatrically (also uncanny).

“You don’t need to talk to him like that, Raymond,” he says, the first time Sara’s heard him speak. “He’s 3. He understands you.”

Young Ray gives him a doubtful look. “I’m just trying…”

“You’re very trying,” young Leonard tells him drily, a comeback that has Sara turning away and closing her eyes to try to hold back a laugh. “Hey, kid. Michael?” He glances at his older counterpart. “That’s his name?”

This is just plain weird.

Leonard pummels his memory to recall if Mick’s ever mentioned any childhood nicknames. “Or Mick.”

“Mick.” Young Leonard nods. “OK. Hey, Mick?” The toddler eyes him skeptically. “You hungry?”

Jackpot. The boy’s eyes brighten.

“Cookie?” he asks hopefully.

But young Leonard shakes his head. “Something else first. Apple slices? Or carrot sticks?”

Young Mick visibly sighs. But he slings one arm around his bear’s neck and nods, dutifully following young Len over to the snacks Gideon had provided them with earlier.

Older Leonard, watching, is forcibly reminded of how many times he’s had to remind older Mick that beer is not a food group. A smile touches his lips as he takes a step back, fairly confident that young Mick is in good hands.

“Raymond?” he says, jerking his chin at the bear.

“Yeah.” Sara darts him a smile. “His heart’s in the right place.”

“That’ll make it easier to remove,” Leonard mutters, but he sends her a smile in return. “OK. Well…”

And Mick—older Mick—comes in behind them.

Leonard turns, as does Sara, but Mick lays eyes on the youngest boy in the brig and grunts.

Then he presses the heel of his right hand to his forehead. “What the hell….”

Leonard, who suddenly remembers that moment in Orange City when he’d acquired a set of new memories, stops. “You OK?”

Mick nods, but he keeps his hand pressed to his forehead a long moment before he sighs and frowns, glancing up.

“I remember that bear,” he rumbles. “I remember it.” He closes his eyes. “It burned. In the fire.”

Leonard pauses, then claps him on the back, exchanging a glance with Sara. “C’mon, partner,” he says. “Gotta beer with your name on it.”

They don’t know where they’re going now. Sara’s not exactly comfortable with that. But Rip, a particularly obdurate look on his face, had ignored everyone, this time, setting his course and sticking to it until they erupted into the air over the big country house in a landscape and timeline none of them know.

“We’re here,” the captain says, getting out of his jump seat, jaw set.

“Where is here?” Leonard immediately snarks back.

“Come. I’ll show you.”

Outside the ship, it’s not much clearer. It looks like they’re at some sort of country estate, timeless in its own fashion, but with nothing visible but some hills beyond the grounds.

“Again, where is here?” Leonard mutters, glancing around uneasily. He doesn’t like not knowing where…and when…he is. He’s pretty sure he’s not alone, too. Stein is frowning, and Kendra looks quite uncomfortable, rubbing gently at the curve of her abdomen. Sara glances at him—she knows him all too well—but doesn’t comment.

“We need a safe harbor to keep your younger selves,” Rip returns distractedly, moving onward.

But then a woman in a long blue coat emerges from the house, striding toward them. She smiles, and Leonard frowns. And Rip stops.

“I’ve been waiting,” the woman says. “It’s good to see you.”

Rip glances around, uncomfortably, then back at her.

“It’s good to see you too,” he says. “Mother.”

The parlor is the sort of semi-formal, partly for-show place that Leonard remembers from his grandparents’ home, long ago. This strikes him as a little odd, really, given that there are children running about all over, but that’s just one odd thing in a lot of odd things here.

The woman in the blue coat, whom Rip had introduced as Mary Xavier, had promptly settled them there and fetched all the fixings for tea, including a silver teapot that Leonard’s thief’s eye had pegged as worth rather a bit of money. He’d declined, perching carefully on a window seat, but many of the others had accepted.

Sara hadn’t either, but she had asked Mary for directions to a restroom, which the woman had promptly provided. Leonard, who knows Sara’s need to know her surroundings (and establish an escape route) is as strong as his own, watches regretfully as she vanishes. He should have thought of that.

He’s watching (and listening to) everything else here, though. The kids are laughing, the sort of carefree laughter that can’t be faked, at least not convincingly. They don’t shy from the woman, or even quiet as she shouts at them to take their boots off. Good signs.

One skinny boy, all floppy brown hair and coat that’s a trifle too big, darts into the room in a clear bid for some of the refreshments Mary Xavier has assembled for the guests. Leonard’s eyes narrow. But for all the boy’s furtive movements and slightly underfed frame, he doesn’t seem more than slightly disappointed when the woman catches him and his ill-gotten gains.

“Oi!” she cries, intercepting the boy and turning him about. “Out you go!”

Leonard tilts his head. Interesting.

“So, this is where Rip plans on keeping our baby selves,” Jax says quietly, looking around. The kid’s seemed uneasy since they’d picked up his younger self. Distracted. Leonard sympathizes.

Stein glances at him. “If all goes according to plan,” the older man says, “we'll only be here for a few minutes, then presumably never remember.”

Unexpectedly, it’s Raymond who says it: “When's the last time anything went according to plan?” He takes a careful sip of his tea, looking at Kendra, who laughs softly.

“I don't think there was a last time,” she says, looking down at herself. Leonard frowns as he notices her…flinch?

But Rip’s back now, looking distracted and a bit unsettled himself, and he surveys them with nostalgia clear in his eyes.

“I really would sit up if I were you,” he says, pointing at Jax. “She'll kill you if she catches you slouching.” He turns away, but Leonard thinks he catches a fond expression on the captain’s face. “Don't be fooled by appearances. That woman is as tough as nails.”

Leonard idly inspects a vase on the windowsill. “Funny how you never mentioned having a mother,” he drawls, thinking about what the former Time Master had said before about the group and its thoughts on family and connections.

Mary Xavier herself, however, has returned, teapot in hand. “Adoptive mother,” she informs him. “Now, can I interest any of you in some more tea?”

Several of them accept, and Leonard listens intently as Mary provides them with several interesting little tidbits about Rip himself (Michael, eh?) and the Time Masters. At one point, Sara reenters the room and takes a seat, meeting Leonard’s eyes thoughtfully, and he knows she’s found nothing suspicious, no reason not to believe this place won’t be safe for their younger selves.

Kendra keeps shifting uncomfortably. Leonard’s just about to say something about it when she exclaims, a look of horror crossing her face, and levers herself to her feet.

“I think…I think my water just broke,” she says with embarrassment, looking downward. “Your chair…I’m sorry…”

And then it seems like everyone’s talking at once, then, except for possibly Raymond, whose eyes widen and whose jaw drops as he freezes.

But Mary Xavier doesn’t. She sits the teapot down, nodding to herself as if this is a common occurrence in her household, and steps forward.

“OK, then,” she says briskly. “We’ve having a baby.” She looks at Raymond, who’s looking…well, the best word is probably terrified. “You! You’re the father?”

The inventor blinks at her. “Um. Yes?”

Leonard can’t help it. He snorts. Mary actually throws him a lurking smile but keeps most of her attention to Raymond. “All right. Get her downstairs to the infirmary.” She motions to the other doorway. “The stairs are right there; there aren’t many of them.”

As Raymond starts to escort the gingerly moving Kendra that way, Mary glances around the rest of the room. Her eyes light on Sara, who’s watching her friend with sympathy. “You, Ms. Lance.” Sara looks at her, a question in her eyes. “Please come with us.”

Mary turns away, then, as if she has not a doubt that she’ll be obeyed. But Sara’s eyes widen, and she puts her hands up. “Me? Hey, just because I’m a woman doesn’t mean I know a thing about having babies.” She glances at Leonard, looking a bit desperate. He shrugs. Neither does he.

The older woman, however, turns back around and studies her. “League of Assassins,” she says crisply. “Correct?”

Sara frowns. “Yes. But…”

“Then you won’t faint at the sight of blood. And I need another set of hands.” Mary turns around again, heading for the stairway, clearly assuming that she’ll follow. Sara throws Leonard a helpless look and stands, but Rip does too, giving her a sympathetic smile.

“I’ll come as well,” he says. “I was there when Jonas was born. The least I can do is help with our father-to-be.”

Mary nods, glancing about. “The rest of you, make yourselves at home,” she orders. “This will probably be a while, and you’re safe here. Enjoy the reprieve.”

The others look around at each other. “But,” Stein says a little helplessly, “our teammates…”

Mary Xavier nods to him. “It will be fine,” she says, a certain secretive smile creeping across her features. “I am, after all, a Doctor.”

Leonard may know nearly nothing about having babies, but he does know they come on their own schedule. He helps Stein, Jax, and Mick move their younger selves to the house, younger Raymond excited and curious, younger Leonard cautious and curious—and younger Mick still grumpy and rather recalcitrant. Earlier, the babies had been moved to a nursery in the building, where Mary apparently has helpers. He’s not real clear on the organization here.

A few older children take the younger Legends in hand, and Leonard notices his own younger self glance back to study him a few moments before following the others. Young Raymond had stopped to wait for him, something that Leonard finds oddly touching, although he will never, ever tell older Raymond that.

He explores the house a little after that, finding nothing all that unusual. There’s one door in the very top floor that’s locked and he could almost certainly pick it, but his instincts are telling him that, one, this place is OK and, two, he might not want to see what Mary Xavier considers proper security measures. He leaves it be.

He goes to the kitchen then, but while Mick, Stein and Jax are there, they tell him he’s just missed Sara, who’d ducked in for a snack and to grab something for Raymond. Things are apparently proceeding as they should—which is all he really wants to know.

Stein and Jax choose to stay at the Refuge overnight, but Leonard and Mick head back to the Waverider. Mick heads to his room with a grunt and a nod, while Leonard ambles slowly toward the one he’s sharing with Sara. This whole thing—the Pilgrim, young Leonard, the threat of their families forgetting them—it has him a bit thoughtful.

How annoying.

He tries to read a while, but eventually nods off with the book on his chest. Still, he starts awake immediately when Sara appears in the doorway after an indeterminate amount of time, her eyes tired and her expression serene. Leonard blinks at her, propping himself up on an elbow, and her expression shifts to a weary smile as she crosses the room.

“Alexander Raymond Saunders Palmer,” Sara says with a sigh, dropping onto the bed next to him. “Seven pounds, 11 ounces, 21 inches long. Shock of dark hair and a really good set of lungs. Mom and son both doing well.” She stretches, arms over her head and back arching up off the mattress. “Apparently no harm done from being conceived in 1958 and born...whenever this is. And wherever. That’s going to be a fun birth certificate to acquire.”

Leonard considers that, feels a faint bit of concern he’d barely even acknowledged subside. “Mazel tov,” he says, as if to himself, but Sara hears him and smiles, turning over to lie on her side next to him.

“I can’t believe there are ever younger siblings in this world,” she says with another sigh. “Although they’ve got a full medbay suite here, despite how old-fashioned the place looks, that still doesn’t mean it was a picnic. Kendra was really grateful for the pain blockers.”

“How’d the Boy Scout do?”

That gets a chuckle. “He passed out when the baby crowned,” Sara informs him. “And if you don’t know what that means, I’m not telling you. You’re welcome.” She continues as he chuckles too. “Rip caught him, and he woke up pretty quick, but you can hold that over his head for a while if you want.”

Leonard smirks despite himself. “Nah. I got plenty of ammo, I don’t need that one.”

Sara sighs again, but now the sound is almost wistful. “He’s ecstatic,” she says quietly. “They both are. I don’t know that...that’s a thing I’d ever want, but I’m happy for them. One more little spot of light in the world.”

And as a final line to that long, stressful, complicated day…well, there could be far worse.

[dotbammie]

Walk You Home//Lee Jeno

Pairing: Jeno x Reader

Genre: Fluff (Of course excuse me he’s still a baby)

Summary: You had never expected to make so many new friends so quick.

Author’s Note: This scenario is for my friend whom i love dearly! This is my first time writing in a while, so I apologize if it’s bad >.< I hope you enjoy~

xoxo Sara

It was a stressful day, and you had no idea why. Could it have been your homework? Maybe it was because your teacher was talking too fast, which prohibited you to copy down as many notes as you would have hoped to? Or maybe it could have been the stress of being in a semi-new school?

You didn’t want to call it new; you had been there for a couple of months, but it still felt surreal to you. You were never used to the large walls, the classrooms, the students of teachers— you were usually homeschooled, but you had decided to try something different upon moving to some place new.

You weren’t a bad student, not in the least. You studied as much as a normal student would, you paid attention in class, and more times than not, you handed in your homework on time. You just didn’t like being surrounded by unfamiliar faces.

You felt as if you were outgoing, but not outgoing enough to introduce yourself over and over again to a bunch of new people, so you just sat at the front of the classroom, listening to lecture after lecture being given, and hoping that there wouldn’t be a group project in the near future.

Once the bell rang, you left for your lunch break. You walked outside to the small table where you usually ate; you were surrounded by classmates chattering , people blowing straw wrappers into others faces, while others sat and tried to do homework so they could lessen the load they’d have to do at home.

You sighed softly, running your hand through your hair, when you felt a soft tap on your shoulder. Confused, you turned around, to see a boy with a bright purple hair and a friendly smile on his face.

“Hi!” he said, a small, high-pitched chuckle following right after as he examined your facial expression, “Don’t look so scared of me. I don’t bite, I promise.”

You squinted your eyes at him for a moment, trying to make out his features while he stood straight in the sunlight.

“I’m in your class,” he continued, pointing down a bit, “Is it alright if I sit here?”

You followed his pointer finger to the seat next to you, which instead of a person, your bag had occupied . You nodded, taking the bag from off of the seat while he inserted himself where it had once been.

“I’m Chenle,” he smiled, pulling off his back-pack so he could take out his lunch, “I sit a couple rows behind you. I’m sure you’ve never noticed me there since you’re always looking up at the board and never behind you.“

You thought about the tiny classroom in your mind, pulling together memories of the past to try and find his face, and sure enough there he was in the back of your mind, laughing alongside friends before the class started.

“I’ve noticed you before,” you took a sip of your juice, looking at him slightly before smiling a bit, “I’m (Y/N).”

“I know,” he smiled, unwrapping his sandwich, “You’re always quiet, but you always write the correct answer on the board when you’re called up, so I assumed that you must be smart and you like to keep your head in your books.”

“I’m not too smart,” you refuted, watching as he took a big bite of his sandwich, “i’m average, I guess.”

“Better than me,” Chenle smiled, “Whenever i get called up, I draw a smiley face on the board if I don’t know the answer.”

You chuckled at his comment, his eyes wandering over to you for a moment. “But you seem so nice. Why haven’t you talked to anyone in class yet? I know you moved here a couple of months ago, but I never see you talk with anyone, or walk in the halls with anyone.”

You stayed silent for a moment.“I don’t know,” you put your juice down on the table, “I’ve been focusing on my work a lot, I guess. I didn’t really have time to make new friends with the move and stuff, you know?”

“I know,” Chenle said in an understanding tone, “I’m also a transfer student. I moved here last year, and I was really nervous at first, but one time i laughed in class and everyone thought my laugh was funny, so I used that as an ice-breaker. Hi, i’m Chenle, the boy with the dolphin laugh from class 1B!” He smiled, giggling softly, which made you giggle in response.

“I made a lot of friends. Actually,” he said, looking behind him for a moment, “They should be here soon.”

You followed his eyes over to the door which lead to the courtyard. “One of them is going to come late, though. He always does, so he could get some extra study time in.”

He looked at you, a bright smile on his face. “You should meet them! I think they’d like to have a new friend in the group. One of our friends graduated last year and it feels so weird because now we have an empty seat at our table now.”

“Ah, so you’re using me to fill up your empty s-“

“Hey now,” he interrupted you, holding his pointer finger up to you, “That’s not what I meant. I genuinely want to get to know you. Plus, one of my friends saw you out here yesterday and sent me on a crusade to befriend you so he could talk to you too.”

You raised an eyebrow at his comment; you didn’t know people had noticed you amongst everyone else. You usually just sat and ate lunch and went back inside before class started, which, in your mind, wasn’t very noticeable.

“Oh look, here come some of them now!” Chenle said, patting your shoulder as he stood up, gathering his things messily and shoving them back in his bag. “Come on, i’m sure you’ll love them. They’re pretty nice.”

You watched him briskly walk over to a small group of boys that had just entered the courtyard; one with black hair, two with blonde hair, and one with a reddish hair color. Gathering up your things, you began to stand when you heard Chenle’s voice again.

“(Y/N),” He said, startling you for a moment and causing you to flinch. You heard soft chuckles as you sighed and turned around to see the four boys you had witnessed from a distance now up close to you, “These are my friends!” His smile was bright as he gestured from them from left to right, “ This is Jaemin, Renjun, Jeno, and Haechan.”

They all waved to you and you waved back with a smile. You tried to see if you could recognize them in your memories from the times you looked behind you in the classroom, as you did with Chenle, but you couldn’t seem to do so.

“They’re a year older than us,” Chenle said, almost as if he has went into your thoughts and plucked out what you were most confused about, “There’s one more coming too, but he’s a year younger than us. His name is Jisung, i’m sure you’ve seen him in school. He’s really tall, and he’s got this bright blue hair,” Chenle continued to talk as all of the others kept their eyes on you; their stares almost burning holes into your skin.

“Let’s go sit at the table,” Haechan said with a friendly smile, “It’s just over there, but it’s big enough to fit all of us.”

“Unless Jisung decides to stretch,” Jaemin commented as they all turned around, soft laughs seeping from each of them, “Then some of us get pushed off of the seat.”

They all began to walk in front of you, leaving you trailing behind as you made your way to a small table. The table seemed to be unnoticeable and excluded; almost hidden among the trees rather than being near all of the other tables in the middle of the courtyard. They all placed their things down and sat, waiting for you to sit with them. You had decided to sit next to Chenle, who was patting a space between him and the boy he introduced you to as Jeno. He smiled at you as you sat, his eyes turning into little crescent moons as his gentle smirk took over the rest of his face, making his cheeks plump up.

Boom boom.

You quickly looked away, pulling out the rest of your lunch as the boys began to talk about the lectures their teacher held today, complaining about her teaching style and how they could barely get down any of the notes. You felt relieved that the boys in the grade above you were having the same problems as you, and that made your stress level go down a little.

Chenle began initiating you into their conversation, trying to get you to talk to all of them little by little. “(Y/N) is actually really smart,” he began, “I’m surprised they didn’t like, move her up a grade or something. She always gets her answers correct.”

You sighed as the boys let out ‘ooh’s and ‘aah’s , a small smile sliding across your lips. “No, i’m not smart, but I actually do my work instead of putting smiley faces on the board when i’m asked to do something.”

The boys laughed at Chenle’s demise while another boy slowly approached, squeezing his way in between Chenle and Jaemin, which inevitably shrunk the space between both you and Chenle and you and Jeno. He introduced himself to you as Jisung before he began eating his lunch, saying few words after that. You were happy to have been introduced to some new friends, but you wondered how you were going to keep them if they were in a grade below and above you.

You waited to hear Jeno speak from next to you, but he barely did the whole time that you were outside. He added in commentary here and there, but he never seemed to tell one of his own stories, and it made you wonder about if he was just as shy around new people as you were.

As the bell rang and lunch ended, you all got up and exchanged goodbyes. Since Chenle was in your class, you two walked down the halls together, dropping off Jisung at his class, which was on the way to yours.

“So, did you like them?” Chenle asked you, a small smile on his face as he bumped his arm with yours, “Not so bad, right? They’re pretty cool sometimes, when they’re not teasing me or something.”

“They all seem really nice,” You smiled back at him, letting out a soft chuckle at his comment “But I feel bad that I didn’t talk as much they did.”

“Well, you’ll have the option to talk more when you come hang out with us tonight,” He smiled at you, turning to you in the hallway and inevitably blocking your path to class. “We all live together and stuff. It’s pretty fun, so you’ll have plenty of opportunities to talk to them when you come over.”

“I never agreed to coming over.”

“Well, you should agree to it now, because i’m not letting you leave the hallway if you don’t.”

“Ch-“

“Just say yes,” Chenle said, patting your head softly, “Come on, it’ll be fun, I promise. We have lots of snacks and it’ll most likely be clean when we get there. We can walk you there too, it’s not too far from the school.”

You looked at him momentarily, pondering in your mind if it was worth it; it wasn’t a school night, which meant the homework that you had could be dealt with at another time. Plus, it gave you the chance to be able to get to know the boys, and Jeno, more, because you didn’t have a time restriction on how long you could talk.

“I guess I could come over for a little while.”

“Awesome,” Chenle said, turning around and almost jogging toward the classroom, “Hurry up! If we’re late, i’m blaming you!”

As you sat in class, you pondered how a living space that held six boys could possibly be clean; you wondered how far it would be from the school, how late you’d stay, if you’d stay for dinner, and how you would get home. It was the first time you were meeting anyone outside of school to hang out, so you were both excited and nervous.

When the bell rang, you got up and began to pack your stuff, when you felt an overwhelming presence near you.

“Ready to go?” Chenle asked, leaning his chin on your shoulder as he watched you pack up, “Do you need help with packing up? You’re pretty slow with it.”

“No, it’s okay,” you zippered the backpack and put it over the shoulder that Chenle’s chin wasn’t on, “I’m not slow, you’re just impatient.”

“I’m excited to hang out with you outside of school,” Chenle commented, leading you both to the doorway of your classroom, “So are the boys. They were texting me all class asking if you said yes. They think you’re really nice.”

Smiling at your feet, you walked beside Chenle as you went to pick up Jisung from his class. The other four boys arrived shortly after, waiting for the youngest to exit the classroom. You smiled and waved at them as they each came over, examining their faces one by one, until your eyes landed on Jeno.

Boom. Boom. Boom.

He waved back at you for a moment and smiled, making your heart begin to race. You quickly looked away, hoping that you looked away in time to avoid your cheeks getting red. Why did you feel so nervous around him?

Once Jisung had gotten out of class, you all left the building, small conversations up in the air about small things that happened in the time that the boys had not seen each other. You listened and smiled, laughing when someone told a funny story, adding in small commentary when you felt like it was relevant. You liked being able to talk to them; it was much more refreshing than walking home alone while listening to music. You loved to be surrounded by people, and as you looked at Chenle, you felt grateful that he had introduced himself to you not even a couple of hours ago.

As the days passed by, they turned into weeks, and yet the boys that you had met (and a couple of new friends that you had met that they lived with as well) never seemed to leave your side. You had exchanged numbers on the first night and they all had you in a group chat; mostly to talk about when you would see them next and vice versa, but it was enough to keep you attached at their hip.

You hadn’t felt this happy since you moved to the new town; you had left your old friends behind and felt alone and helpless, but the boys had filled the void in your heart that was made from that time, and you couldn’t be more glad. Their small place had become almost like a second home to you, since you went there frequently. It felt like everyday you were witnessing Mark (A new friend you had made) playing video games while Haechan tried to distract him, or Doyoung (another new friend) baby Chenle and Jisung by making them do their homework or just embarrass them to get a giggle out of everyone. It all became second nature to you—not that you were complaining, though, because it made you finally feel like you had belonged in your new city rather than just being an outsider.

You had gotten all of them to talk to you more as you all began to hang out. Even Jeno began to become more and more talkative around you. Now, he would tell stories about school even if you were the only one listening, and he would even tell you about his family and his pets back at home. You were shocked that he actually talked to you that much. You felt that he had finally let you into his heart and allowed you to become his friend.

It had been another day at the dorm, though, when you began to feel something different. You recall back to the first day you had met everyone and got acquainted; how your heart would speed up when he would smile at you. Even just his smile presence made a warm pit full of butterflies in your stomach grow. Since then, it hasn’t grown much, but it was still evident.

“(Y/N),” you heard your name being mumbled sleepily as the door opened. It was quite early on a Saturday morning— Chenle and Renjun inviting you over to watch cartoons that they had wanted to show you— but usually, they were the ones that were opening the door.

When the door swung open, you were astounded to see Jeno, decked out in his Pj’s, rubbing his eyes with a tired smile on his face. The sight made your heart tremble, and you didn’t know why.

“You’re up?” you whispered, almost in disbelief, “You’re never up this early, Jeno.”

“Renjun wanted me to watch cartoons with you guys,” he said, side stepping slightly to allow you room to enter, “Come in. They’re on the couch.”

You walked in and took off your shoes, Jeno standing over you slightly with a confused look, “But you’re here early, too. Don’t you watch your baby sister on Saturday’s?”

“My dad is letting me stay out a bit, but I have to be back at one. I’m sure cartoons will be over by then.”

Jeno nodded, sliding his hands into his pockets while you made your way to where Renjun and Chenle sat.

“Goodmo-“

“Shh,” you shushed Chenle, placing a hand over his mouth, making Renjun giggle, “Not so loud, Chenle. It’s nine in the morning, people are still sleeping.” You sat on the couch, exchanging hi’s with Renjun, as Jeno made his way over. He plopped down on the couch with a thud, his tired body heavy with sleep as he curled into the side. He looked so cute and peaceful as his eyes fluttered shut, your heart beginning to beat a bit faster than normal as you witnessed him tucking himself inside of his sweater.

As the morning went on, you couldn’t help but noticed every shift that came from your left side. Each time he shifted, he got closer and closer to resting his head on your lap. You looked over to Renjun and Chenle for help multiple times, but each time you did, you would find them indulged in their cartoons, digging into the bowls of cereal that they had laying on the coffee tables. You sighed, looking over to Jeno, who had completely changed his position at this point; his feet now where his head one was, while his head gently rested against the outside of your thigh. He had a soft pout on his lips as he slept.

Boom Boom Boom.

You looked away, your cheeks already beginning to feel hot. You tried your best to focus on the cartoon that Renjun and Chenle wanted you to wash oh so badly, but you couldn’t seem to focus on anything but the sleeping boy next to you.

After the final episode of cartoons was over, Chenle got up, causing you to sink into where his spot had been. You watched as Jeno stretched out into where you had sad, but it still wasn’t enough for him. You looked over at Renjun, who began to clean up the bowls of cereal, before he felt his eyes on you. He turned to you, eyes shifting from you to Jeno, before chuckling.

“Want me to wake him for you?” Renjun asked, “He’s a very cuddly person, he can’t help it. When somethings warm he wants to hold it, especially in his sleep.”

“No,” you shook your head, looking down at him once more, “You don’t have to wake him. But I feel bad. What if I want to change the way i’m sitting?”

“I’m sure he’ll follow your movements, then,” Renjun smiled, taking the plates to the sink and leaving you alone with the dilemma you were facing.

Very gently, you allowed yourself to grab a pillow from the side of the couch, trying your best not to wake Jeno up. You didn’t want him to think that you were leaving him; that wasn’t the case at all. In fact, he was quite warm too, and his warmth was making you sleepy, but you wanted to change position a bit so you could be comfortable as well.

You didn’t want to admit to yourself about the little crush that you had on Jeno, but watching him continuously search for you whenever you left his side made your heart warm. You loved the way he smiled at you when he thinks you’re not looking, you loved the way that he focused on you so intently when he talked, and you especially loved the way that he treated you, but you would never admit that to him. You were too afraid to be reject to do that. You didn’t want to ruin the friendship you had with him, or the friendship that you had with the boys, and it scared you to death to think that all of that could be over with simply expressing your feelings. You’d rather keep it inside than risk losing everything you had come to know and love.

You had ended up laying down, Jeno comfortably cuddling your legs like a warm pillow while you patted his hair gently. You sighed in content, finally being able to close your eyes for a moment or two.

That is, until you heard the soft pitter patter of feet coming down the hall.

“(Y/N)?” Jaemin all but yelled, making your eyes shoot open to see him standing over you both, “You-“

“Sh,” you shushed him, looking down at Jeno and back up to him, “Don’t you see that Jeno’s sleeping?”

“Yes, I see it,” Jaemin smiled, “I can’t believe it. Did he confess? Did you say yes?”

You felt your heart stop and Jaemins words.

“Confess? What do you mean?”

Jaemin went quiet for a minute, looking away for a moment before letting out a soft, “oh.”

“Explain,” you said simply, gesturing over to the free recliner that was perpendicular to the couch that you were sitting on, “What do you mean, ‘Confess?’”

Jaemin sat down slowly, avoiding your eyes and looking at whatever else he could stare at, before beginning to sleep.

“Jeno… likes you. A lot. But he was nervous to tell you because he thought that you found him boring since he never really talks. He was going to tell you but I guess I let the cat out of the bag on this one.”

You felt your heart speed up as you looked from Jaemin to the sleepy Jeno in your lap. You didn’t know exactly how to respond with anything but a smile.

“Don’t tell him that I told you, though,” Jaemin stated simply, “He’ll kill me.”

Soon, you began to feel Jeno shift again, his head slowly lifting off your legs as he forcefully blinked his eyes open. He looked from your legs, up to your face, before turning his head.

“I’m sorry,” he murmured, beginning to sit up to stretch, “I didn’t mean to fall asleep on you. I’m sorry if it made you feel uncomfortable.”

“Not at all.” You smiled at him, stretching a bit on your own, as the boys slowly began to fill the room.

“Look who’s finally awake,” Mark said, plopping down on the couch on your free side while Renjun took the free seat by Jeno,” You guys were knocked out for a little while. Well, Jeno was.”

“How’d you sleep, hm?” Renjun teased, patting Jeno’s head while Jeno pushed his hand away, “You both looked pretty comfortable.”

“Maybe (Y/N) Should sleep over from now on and be your body pillow,” Mark took the remote while he spoke, unaware that he had cause a blush to rise on both your face and Jeno’s, “You slept more than you do while laying on her.”

“It’s afternoon now,” Renjun continued, “(Y/N) shouldn’t you be getting ready to walk home?”

You sighed, “Yeah. I have to watch my sister at one so I should probably start heading home now.” You began to get up, allowing for mark to fall against Jeno. Jeno stood after you, though,  watching you grab your stuff.

“Do you want me to walk you home?” He asked, running a hand through his messy bedhead before smiling, “I need to wake up a bit after sleeping for so long.”

You waited a moment, nodding softly before gathering your things. “Yeah, sure.”

Jeno smiled, heading over to the door with you to put on your shoes. You exchanged goodbye to the others as you and Jeno left the apartment.

The walk to your house was silent, although you didn’t mind too much; you enjoyed the silence, and you knew Jeno did too. You would talk about the small things around you; the way that the leaves are already beginning to change color and how they crunched so easily underneath your feet, how the wind felt so nice and yet so cold at the same time, and he would just sit and listen to you.

You felt his eyes at one point, which made you feel a little nervous. You looked at him for a moment before looking away, rubbing the back of your neck shyly.

“What’s up?”

“Nothing,” he stated all too quickly, shrugging his shoulders, “You just look… Really cute right now, is all. Your cheeks are red from the wind.”

Although you didn’t say, you knew that your cheeks were red because of him, not the wind. Still, the small compliment made your heart flutter. You mumbled a thank you as you continued on.

You both arrived to the corner before your block, when Jeno stopped. You continued to walk, before noticing that he wasn’t beside you anymore. You looked back at him, raising an eyebrow before going back to meet him by the stop sign.

“What’s up?” You asked, looking behind you for a moment, “I thought you were walking me home.”

“I don’t want to take you home just yet,” his voice was soft, almost as if he were nervous. You felt the butterflied begin to form in your stomach once again as you stared at him; for some reason, he seemed so vulnerable, which was something you weren’t used to seeing from him.

“Why not?”

“I don’t.. want to leave you.” He avoided eye contact, looking at everything that he could as long as it wasn’t your face. “Not yet.”

“I’m sure we’ll see each other before Monday,” you mentioned, “If you want, I can come over to the dorm after i’m done babysitting for a li-“

“No,” he sighed softly, making your words get caught in your throat as you waited for him to speak again, “I need to do this now.”

“Do what now?” you questioned him, beginning to feel your hearts pace begin to speed up as he finally found the courage to look at you. His cheeks were slightly tinted as well, and you had thought that it was the wind, until you remembered the words that Jaemin had told you.

“(Y/N),” Jeno began, a gentle tone in his voice as he spoke, almost as if he were too afraid for the words to escape his mouth, “I have something to tell you.”

“What is it?”

Although you thought you had an idea as to what he could be hinting at, you were still nervous; your heart pounding in your ears, almost too loud for you to hear the cars zooming by on the streets.

He took a deep breath, which made you inhale deeply as well, “I really like you, (Y/N). You’re always so nice to me, you understand that sometimes i just don’t want to talk, but when I do talk you always listen to me and you make me feel like i’m not as boring as everyone says that I am, and it makes me so happy. I really wanted to tell you before we got to your house so if you said that you liked me back, I could hold your hand while we walked there.”

He breathed in again, seemingly saying his whole speech in one breath out of nervousness. Your heart fluttered at his words; although you knew that they were coming, you couldn’t help but feel happiness run from your head all the way to your toes. You sighed, taking his hand in yours gently, saying a simple, “I like you, too.” You smiled at him, watching as his face soon mirrored yours as a smile spread across his cheeks. He squeezed your hand a bit, at a sudden loss for words, before beginning to pull you along down your street.

you couldn’t get over how perfectly our hand fit in his; his hands made yours feel so small and delicate, and you loved it. the vulnerable and scared side of jeno you had witnessed moments ago was gone, and now it seemed like he couldn’t stop smiling.

“Since you like me back,” he began, swinging you hands in between you two slightly, “Does this mean that you’ll let me take you out on a date? Without the boys?”

“It wouldn’t be a date if the boys came,” you laughed, making him blush before you looked up at him, “Of course.”

He brought you to your door step, engulfing you in a tight, warm hug. He smelled like wind and still felt warm from sleep, and you relished in the feeling before he pulled away. You exchanged goodbyes, him waiting until he watched you get in safely, and for some reason, even though he had just watched you leave, he already missed you.

[robininthelabyrinth]

Finally watching the LOT episode! 

(Content warning for people who apparently think that strangers not having 100% positive views on everything an authority gives you is the equivalent of insulting them personally, please don’t read. I have actual opinions on things because I’m a human being like that, but clearly you have trouble with that.)

Conclusion: Zari starts the episode badly, but improves throughout. Still not sure where I stand with her, but she’s easing into being an actual person rather than a plot device - good! What really worries me is that the writers keep having her say things that reveal the writers to be weirdly...alt-right. And that SUPER worries me?? 

We finally got a decent Ray episode - a bit too heavy on the 80s references, but that’s what I was expecting, and they at least leaned into it. The episode mostly let Mick be kind of awesome in the background, and they seem to FINALLY have realized that you can have episodes that focus on a few characters instead of everyone. (except Nate. Nate is awful. Why do we still have Nate?)

The Stein side story made no sense with time travel (you could go anytime? you have a time ship?), but hopefully we can get Stein off the ship without killing the one Jewish character aboard in a Nazi episode. Please. Please don’t do that.

Grade: B-. But a B- is better that the shitshow we got most of last season! 

Liveblog:

Sooooo, Zari introduces herself in her first non-backstory episode by...being arrogant and unnecessarily rude to the people she’s stuck with (and a guest of after they saved her life) in a limited space with no exit that she knows of, up to and including the ship that controls things like the life-support systems and the airlock. My estimation of her intelligence drops. But her enthusiasm about time travel is endearing! More of that, please. 

Ray is really maxing out the Upper Class White Kid thing this episode, between the nostalgia and the positive thinking. It’s...actually adorable in just how overwhelming it is, actually; at least the show is leaning into it being A Problem rather than just going with it. Dare we hope for actual character development? A return to nerd!Ray???

And Mick dressed a garbageman (?) being incredibly amused by young Ray is great. I hope for at least one high-five between Mick and young!Ray. 

Zari showed more personality in that one sentence about “clear skies! laughing kids! WHITE PICKET FENCES!” than she has thus far, yay!

Oh, Ray and the bullies. The positive thinking is a defense mechanism. Actual character development! Admittedly character development stolen from every kid movies from the 1980s! But I’ll take it!

Question: Why does he not remember the changes? That’s how it worked last time we had duplicates from different eras? Okay, new...technobabble. Fine, I’ll take it, whatever. 

Miiiiiiiiick <3 “I have my suspicions” <3 (I’m a little concerned at how thuggish they’re playing him - it’s like Dominic Purcell dropped three vocal registers and was told to act even dumber, but at least Mick’s trying to be part of the team and that’s adorable)

Zari. It’s rude to come to someone else’s childhood and immediately start saying how bad your life is in comparison. Bitterness doesn’t look good on anyone.  We know you live in a dystopia. It is not your only character trait. You can stop mentioning it all the time. 

Nate. Please stop being the worst hipster ever.

I’ve seen the Fiddler on the Roof scene giffed, but it’s still the cutest. 

Nate. NO. WTF. Who says that. 

Amaya, you can do so much better. 

(their whispering on the comms is super noticeable, how is everyone missing this?)

Nate. STOP. PLEASE STOP. Jesus, who thought this was a good idea?

Wow...the show isn’t bothering to make Stein’s “betrayal” even remotely plausible. 

Zari playing along with young!Ray is cute. 

Evil Men in Black. “Also known to protect their young at any cost” - you mean, like...the cliche of human moms? 

Heh. Okay, the scene with Sara “you’ll never get it without me!” and Alien “yep, but I’m a telepath” was great. Excellent undercutting of that trope.

Stein unnecessarily lying causes problems? No surprise because this is a goddamn Arrowverse show and no one can talk to anyone about anything for any reason. But awwwwww, Mick insisting they go despite everything!  

Ray seeing older Ray being a hero is hilarious. Ray giving himself a cynicism pep talk? Less so. Good thing Zari is there to go “...yep, nope, not on my watch”. Good for you, Zari. 

Nate. STOP.  NATE. STOP. NATE WTF NATE?! I’m so happy it’s clearly a Dominator in disguise, but, like, let’s not forget that Nate is apparently OK with this??? WTF???

Really, Amaya? You went with GHOST COUGAR for this fight? 

The dance sequence! Oh god they’re doing the dance with armed guns. I’ve gone from :D to :O to D: in three seconds. 

Yep, there’s the ET moment. I’ve been waiting all episode. 

I hate magical memory loss, but I’m hoping that Ray doesn’t remember this because I’m concerned about the changes to adult Ray. Like...the show isn’t going to do anything about it, because they suck with continuity, but this really should be a formative moment for adult Ray once it solidifies? seriously? And possibly retrospectively change last year’s crossover?

Everyone in costume - except Mick. Who immediately robs the kids. I love Mick. Though...this isn’t really as big a moment of awesome as in 80s movies, no matter how much they try to make it so. Like “the bullies run away/are impressed because there’s a giant dragon”? Cool. Everyone would be intimated by dragons. The bullies here are impressed because there are, as far as they know, like 7 adults in ill-fitting superhero costumes hanging around with a kid is...less impressive. No one knows who these guys are. They don’t display any superhero/non-normal characteristics that aren’t explainable as costume.  It’s like someone trying to dress up as the Flash in the 1960s - all they know is that you’re a grown man in a red jumpsuit and that’s not scary/intimidating/cool at all. And from what I recall from my childhood, it is not considered “cool” to go trick-o-treating with a bunch of adults. (I was not cool and totally fine with that, just saying, it’s not what the show was going for)

According to Zari, the FDA outlawed candies. The FDA which is about to be banned itself (despite performing a necessary task to save all our lives!) because Trump is an asshole. Guys. Timing. TIMING. Why is Zari’s future dystopia a caricature of the “liberal dystopia” that horrible alt-right assholes keep ranting on about? That’s the exact opposite of where the US is heading right now. Honestly, this is the most concerning thing about this whole episode.

Last note: they’re in a time ship. Time does not run in parallel. There is no reason they had to go see the birth AT THAT MOMENT. WTF show.

[themurphyzone]

Mayor Murphy Ch 2

Ch 2- Isabelle and Exposition

As soon as Milo set one foot outside the train station, he was immediately swarmed by several excited anthropomorphic animals. “Is that the new mayor?” a white squirrel asked. “I sincerely hope I’m not seeing things.” 

“Oh, Marshal. Patience is a virtue,” a doe rolled her eyes. 

An alligator huffed. “Who cares? Let the guy speak already!” 

A yellow dog gestured for them to calm down. Perched on top of her head was a pair of bells that rang with every move she made. “From us to you, we say, WELCOME TO FORTUNA!” 

Everyone released party poppers, cheering. They failed to notice Milo’s confusion. He waved shyly. “Um, hi?” 

“Milo! What’s going on out here?” Melissa demanded, rushing out of the station. “Who are you people?” 

“Animals? People-animals?” Sara scratched her head. “Did we get off at the right stop?” 

“Everyone keeps saying Fortuna, so we must be in the correct place,” Zack reasoned. “But first, we’re just here on a penpal exchange. Do you guys not get a lot of people coming through here?” 

The yellow dog bowed in apology. “I’m sorry! I’m so sorry! I’ve been planning this day for months since Tortimer retired that I didn’t really prepare a good explanation!” Starry eyed, she grabbed Milo’s hands. “And you, you’re perfect for the job! This sweatervest just radiates power! The storing capacity of your backpack!”

Sara gently pried her off Milo. “We really don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Eep!” she bowed so quickly several times that Milo thought she was going to get whiplash. “I need to explain stuff better! I’m so sorry! My name is Isabelle, and I’m the secretary! But we’ll get to that in a moment. The more important thing is, you’re our mayor!” 

“Mayor?” Milo gasped. “Well, as cool as that sounds, I just got out of 7th grade. I don’t know much about civics.”

“That’s okay, Mayor Milo! I handle all the paperwork around here! Now, we should really continue this discussion at Town Hall. So if you and your friends would kindly follow me,” Isabelle said. 

The other animals whispered to each other, sneaking curious glances at them as they walked away. 

Fortuna looked like a great place to live in, even if it was rather vacant. They passed by several small flower gardens, surrounded by honeybees and small, white butterflies. Peaches blossomed on the trees, though one in particular caught Milo’s eye. 

“Hey, Isabelle?” Milo asked, interrupting her spiel about the previous mayor. “What kind of peach is that? I’ve never seen anything like it before.” He pointed to a golden peach that hung on the lowest branch of a nearby tree. 

“An excellent question, Mayor Milo!” Isabelle tapped the trunk. “This here is what we like to call a Perfect Peach! There are many varieties of Perfect Fruit, and if you sell only one of these babies to a town where it’s not native, then you get a whole lot of Bells!” 

“Bells?” Melissa asked. 

“I’m getting ahead of myself. It would be a lot easier if you learn by doing these things!” Isabelle set off at a much quicker pace, forcing everyone to run so they could keep up with her. “Town Hall is just over that bridge!” She pointed to a flowing, sky blue river with an old bridge above it. On the other bank rested an impressive building with the words “Town Hall” on a wooden plaque above the entrance. 

Isabelle crossed the rickety bridge with ease, lightly humming as she waited for everyone else. “You guys might want to cross first,” Milo offered. 

Melissa set one foot on the bridge, tensely clutching the ropes as she carefully moved to the other side. Zack made it across after much encouragement. Melissa patted his back as he breathed heavily. Sara slipped her arm around a coil of rope before carefully moving across, her foot nearly going through a gap in the blanks. 

“Come on, Milo!” Melissa yelled. 

Milo hiked up his backpack, wobbling as the bridge swayed beneath his feet. He made it to the middle before the plank beneath him collapsed, dropping him several feet into the water below. 

Milo splashed around wildly for a few seconds before realizing that he wasn’t moving. Isabelle giggled. “You’re so silly, Mayor Milo! The rivers aren’t deep at all around these parts!” 

“By any chance, are you aware of Murphy’s Law?” Milo asked, grabbing the end of the rope Sara threw to him. She and Zack hauled him onto the bank, unfolding a towel so he could dry off. 

“No, I’ve never heard of it,” Isabelle said. 

“It just means anything that can go wrong will go wrong,” Melissa explained. “Milo’s descended from the guy it was named for.” 

“It’s a family thing,” Sara added. “But we usually try to see it as a way to explore more opportunities.”

“That’s interesting! It would liven up the town a little more!” Isabelle clapped. “Let’s go in. I might have spare clothes lying around somewhere....” She opened the door, her short, poofy tail wagging in excitement. 

They took advantage of the waiting area at the front while Isabelle dug around for a spare set of clothes. “I’m so confused right now,” Zack shook his head.

“Join the club,” Melissa muttered. 

Sara looked up from drying Milo’s hair. “We were caught so off guard that we left all our luggage at the train station. We’d better grab it the first chance we get.” 

“I don’t think it’s so bad. Suddenly being declared mayor aside, of course,” Milo said. 

Isabelle carried a bundle of clothes back to them. “Here’s what we have available! I have to find the paperwork, so if you’ll excuse me, I’ll need to go find that too. I’m so sorry, I’ll try to be better organized in the future! I promise!” 

She dropped the clothes on an empty seat and ducked behind the counter, several crumpled up sheets of paper flying through the air. Milo looked through the pile, selecting a red t-shirt with a diamond pattern and a pair of jeans. “Isabelle?” he called. “I hate to interrupt, but do you happen to have anywhere private I could change?” 

There was a muffled “ow” as she withdrew her head from a cabinet. “No, you aren’t interrupting anything! And don’t worry about a thing. One size fits all, otherwise it wouldn’t be made from the Able Sisters!” She led Milo to a small office in the back, smiling as she shut the door. “I’ll have the paperwork out before you know it, so please take your time!” 

The first thing in the room Milo noticed was the enormous painting of what appeared to be an old tortoise with a beard. It hung above an empty fireplace, obviously well-kept and free of dust. A polished, dark brown desk proudly sat in the middle of the room. Milo draped his wet clothes on a chair and pulled on the set Isabelle had generously provided. 

“She wasn’t kidding. One size really does fit all,” Milo marveled at how comfortable the jeans was. As an afterthought, he also brought out a spare sweatervest from his backpack and pulled it over the shirt. He spun around in the plush, black chair for several minutes before stepping out. 

Isabelle grinned. “I knew you would look good in the red argyle tee! Even if I don’t have much of an eye for fashion.”

“Okay, so could you please explain all this mayor stuff?” Zack asked. “And about the penpal program?” 

“Ah! I forgot to tell your penpals to include that in correspondence!” Isabelle shrieked. “Okay, our former mayor Tortimer decided to retire so he could enjoy his golden years in peace. This caused a major disruption in the time stream of Crossing Valley. My twin brother, Digby, came up with the idea of the penpal program to find eligible young people to take his place.” 

“Did you say time stream?” Sara gasped. “Milo, it’s like we’re living in an episode of Dr. Zone! This is gonna be so cool! But what exactly is Crossing Valley?” 

It was Isabelle’s turn to be in shock. “You’ve never heard of Crossing Valley? Fortuna is just one of many towns in it! All the towns are at different points in time, so while it’s the beginning of summer here, it could easily be Toy Day elsewhere. And that’s just scratching the surface. I know we look cut off if you just look at the size of the cliffs, but with a few Public Works Projects, PWPs for short, we could easily have contact with other towns.” 

“Right, so time stuff. Okay then,” Zack said. 

“It really does sound like a Dr. Zone episode,” Milo said. 

Isabelle glanced at him. “Mayor, who is Dr. Zone?” 

“He’s a character from a TV show we like,” Sara said. “Say, do you get cable out here?” 

Isabelle shook her head. “Programming in Crossing Valley and the outside world tend to be very different. However, we do have wi-fi.” 

Sara deflated. “Guess we’re livestreaming Dr. Zone for the summer, Milo. It doesn’t really feel as good if we aren’t watching it on the big screen.”

“Before I give you the paperwork, you need to go visit Nook’s Homes. It’s a big real estate office, you can’t miss it! Just cross the railroad tracks and you’ll be there in no time! You need to be a resident of the town before we can officially declare you mayor,” Isabelle said. “Also, Digby can answer more questions about the penpal program. We’re trying something new to attract more animals to move in, but he’ll be able to tell you more about that than I ever could, the dork.”

“Real estate? Hold on, I don’t have the money to purchase a house!” Milo protested. 

“It’s not hard to make Bells around here. But for now, just focus on finding a good place to live,” Isabelle ushered everyone out of Town Hall, waving to them.  

“All in favor of going with the flow?” Sara asked. Everyone nodded. “As I thought. Isabelle’s nice and stuff, but I don’t thinks she realizes that you aren’t staying here permanently.” 

They walked along the riverbank, finding a cobblestone bridge downstream. While crossing, a rabbit with three gaping, empty holes in the middle of her head stopped them. “Hi, you’re our new mayor, right? Diana told me the news, doyoing! Oh, my name is Coco! It’s a pleasure!” 

Zack stiffened. “What’s up with your face?” 

Melissa lightly punched him on the shoulder. “Don’t be rude!” she growled. 

“Oh, it’s okay. I don’t mind,” Coco replied. Her facial expressions didn’t move as she spoke, so it was impossible to tell if she was offended by the question. “I’m actually a spirit possessing a haniwa.” 

She skipped away, oblivious to Zack freaking out. “I have no idea what a haniwa is,” Melissa said. 

“They’re terracotta figures that were used for funeral rites in Ancient Japan,” Sara explained. 

“Let me guess, you learned about it from Dr. Zone,” Melissa said. 

“No, she’s just really into history,” Milo smiled. 

As they swung by the train station to pick up their belongings, they discovered all their luggage was missing. “Hey, monkey man!” Sara shouted. She lifted up him by his shirt, the monkey anxiously squeaking in shock. “What happened to all our things? We have valuables, you know!” 

“Double eek eek! It’s all been taken care of! The Nook’s Homes crew have your things and are waiting for you right now!” the monkey screeched. 

“This is way too much exposition for one day,” Melissa sighed. 

[zombiegirl3878-blog]

Welcome To The Family

CHAPTER 3.

The girls looked at their man like asking, ‘who the fuck is that?’

“Yeah...um….alright.” Shit, I just fucked a chick and here is Angelica. He walked her to the side of the house to have some privacy, “what’s up?”

“I’ve been thinking about what you said. At first, I was scared shitless because I’ve seen on the news about murders all the time and they seem to say it was mafia related. I am quite scared for my life because my boyfriend is in the mafia which means you must have enemies right?” Dominic wasn’t even listening to her because he was still buzzed and high off his mind and he could of swear he smelt like sex.

“Dom, baby….” “Huh, sorry.” He ran his fingers through his hair. She looked at him oddly then repeated the question, “you must have enemies right? Like the girl in the video?”

“Yes, of course I do. I have a lot.  They just don’t have to the balls to come at me because all has failed in the past.” His shoulders rise as if it was no big deal to him.

“See, usually…..this is going to sound silly.” Angelica moved a piece of black hair away from eyes as she was looking down, “in the mafia movies, the enemies tend to attack the person by getting at their loved ones.” Dominic couldn’t help but to laugh. Angelica looked at him with a serious face so he stopped laughing and cleared his throat, “well the movies are accurate. Some of them.” Angelica stood straight, looking as if she was wanting to look tough, “I want in.”

Dominic gave her a funny look, lips parted, “come again?” “I want to be part of this lifestyle of yours. I can do things. I sure as hell can talk good business.” Dominic scratched his head this time, unsure what to say about that. “I can take care of myself Dominic, just teach me what you do, what your men do.” She continued on. “Yeah,,,,,,you really need to think about that Angelica. This is not something you want to get involved with because once you are in, you cannot get out. Only way out is a bullet through your head and that is that.” Dominic explained the danger of the mafia.

“Jesus Dom, I had two weeks to think about it. I can do this.” Dominic didn’t want to stay at the party anymore after hearing what Angelica wanted. Instead, he took her home and they talked all the rest of the night till morning and Angelica had convinced him that she can do whatever he asks of. Dominic had told her that he would think about it and left her with that. Dominic felt like shit right now. Not because Angelica wanted in, wanted things to work out between the two after he just randomly fucked some girl, he was tired as fuck and feeling like sick to his stomach because of the intake of booze. Instead of going home, Dominic dropped by this Cafe that he’s always passing. Parking by the curb, he got down and entered the place with the front door bell ringing. “Hello sir, just sit where ever you like.” The waitress behind the counter told him. A plump redhead with a blue waitress dress on and of course the usual white apron. There wasn’t many people in so he just took a seat at the counter. His elbows met the surface as he settled his head into his hands, groaning because of the headache he has.

“Can I suggest coffee?” Another waitress approached him that he rose his head and nodded softly, “yes please.”

She chuckled softly as she grabbed a coffee cup and the coffee. Placing the cup down, she started to pour him some, “you must of had a good time.”

Oh yes, she has no idea how good it was, “actually I had. Been a long ass time since I had that much fun.”

The waitress gave him a small smile. Now this one was a blonde who had her hair all up into a bun. Her make-up was good. Not looking like a clown and her breasts just pops out, like the buttons would literally pop off if they get any bigger, “you seem young…..keep on having that fun.” Next she grabbed a menu from down below and placed it in front of him, “be back, gotta tend to another customer.” A wink was given and she walked off, in which he couldn’t help but to lean into the counter and watch.

Jesus, what the hell is going on with me? Dominic shook his head, hearing the door chime.

Dominic looked over and saw it was Sara that entered, looking like hell too. He couldn’t help but to laugh as he started to pour his sugar and cream into his coffee and gave it a twirl with the spoon.

“You know, I’ve been coming here since I was a kid and never, have I ever seen you in here.” Sara approached him, sitting on the stool next to him.

“This is the first. I just needed to get some coffee and food in my system.” Dominic admitted. Right now, he couldn’t care less if Sara was there or not. His head was hurting, his stomach was growling and he was hungry as fuck.

“Well you came to the right spot for that.” She said with a smile and quickly made it disappear since she was smiling at him. The waitress came back seeing Sara there in which she didn’t need to ask Sara for anything. Sara always has her usual. Coffee, eggs medium done, bacon, ham and hash browns with wheat toast so she started to write it down as she turned her back on them.

With the two sitting close, it was very quiet, till Dominic finally broke the three minute silent. “You look like shit.”

Sara began to laugh, “you look worse? What, big party, got drunk….took a skank to her home, fucked her and came here?”

“Wow, you really think low of me.”

“Can’t help it big boy. You’re a fucking ass. A dick, bastard….” “You can stop there.” Dominic had to laugh some more, “but you’re wrong. Just party, smoked weed….till the dawn.” Liar. He’s not going to mention about Angelica. “Mhm.” Sara squinted his eyes at him.

“So what will be?” The waitress turned to get Dominic’s order. “Steak and eggs, over easy and a glass of orange juice….oh and make the steak medium rare.” He handed the menu back to the waitress with a smile, “so how’s business?”

Sara looked down, swallowing a large lump in her throat, “good as usual…..you?”

“Same ol’ shit. Same cash flowing, same smile on my fathers mug.” All true.

“That is good.” There was something she wanted to tell him but that will only cause them to fight and right now, she just wanted to eat, drink and go home to sleep so their conversation was light. Dominic even paid for her meal and say he’ll see her later. Which caused her heart to jump. What if knows already and he was just keeping his cool because he didn’t want to kill her in front of everyone.

Dominic got home, being greeted by his dog, Chopper. A huge, healthy Rottweiler. It was more his best friend then a dog to Dom, “hey boy.” He knelt down and started to scratch behind the dogs ears, a place where Chopper loves to be scratched. Getting up, Dominic dropped his keys inside a bowl that sat on a small table by the door. His home wasn’t a big one. Just a one bedroom and bath for him. As for his friends, they all had large houses and lot’s of cars, luxury shit. His was simple. Of course he didn’t have taste in decor so his sisters helped him out in that one. Dominic led himself into his bedroom where clothes were being dropped on the floor. He enters his bathroom to take a hot shower. Dom placed his hand on the tile as he leans in and let the hot water hit his shoulders. His mind went wandering off in how in the hell is he going to put Angelica to work for him but at the same time, he didn’t care if she worked for him or not. Like her life doesn’t matter to him anymore.

Then it jumped to having breakfast in the morning. It was nice even though they didn’t speak much. It was unlike them it seems but it was nice to be around her. “Here we go again Dom, you can’t fucking like her.” He smacked his forehead hard and started to wash up the body and hair.

When done, Dom wrapped his towel around his waist, exposing that v-line. All he did was fell on his bed, stomach down and closed his eyes. It was only 10 am so having a nice nap wouldn’t hurt. He had a day off from the shop so today can just be a lazy day for him. In a deep sleep, Dominic didn’t even move for about five hours but he did jump and was wide awake as he heard loud banging at the door. Chopper was pissed and ran to it, barking his scary get the fuck outta here bark. Dominic groaned as he got up, slipping out of his towel. Jumping into some sweats, going commando he walked out of the room and down the hallway, “QUIT KNOCKING SO FUCKING HARD….DAMN!” Dom yelled, pissed like his dog.

“OPEN THE FUCKING DOOR TARD!” Dom can hear his cousin Zack’s voice. Hell the whole neighbor could.

Dom unlocked the door and barely got it open only to have Zack push his way in, walking into the living room, “that bitch is dead Dom. I swear to fucking god I am going to rip her throat out.”

Okay, what the hell is this all about. Dom closed his door and locked it back up. Entering his living room, he looked to his cousin confused. “That fucking whore Sara…..you know what she did?” Zack started to pace back and forth in an angry kind of way.

“What?” Dom asked curiously. “That bitch managed to steal away three of our very important clients. Bob, Gary and Henry, you know….the wallstreet guys?” “You’re kidding? How did she pulled that off?”

“I have no idea. I went there to their place of work as they always wanted to speak of some merch they want to purchase. I got there and they said, ‘sorry buddy but we’re moving to Vegas shit. Hers seem to be much better.’ MOTHER FUCKERS!” Zack shouted out.

Dominic just stood there, thinking in how is her shit better then his. “I am going to her shop and fuck her up.” Zack said, walking towards the door but Dom pushed him back, “you are not going to do shit man. This is my problem, not yours.” “Damn it Dom, if we kill the bitch we get our clients back not to mention, probably all of hers because her father is a pussy mother fucker that is not going to do shit about it.” Zack was practically in Dom’s face, poking his finger into his chest.

“Sebastian is not a pussy man. He’s been crossing boundaries to many fucking times that my grandfather is wanting him dead and until my grandfather gives the okay to do it, then I will but we can’t do anything to Sara, I’ll fucking take care of it.” Dom went into his room and started to get dressed in his usual street attire. Jeans, sleeveless shirt, a cap turned backwards. Zack wanted to come back Dom ordered him to stay the fuck away and handle the other business. Dom had to make a couple of stops for his own business he needed to handle. You know, pay of some people that are helping the Costello’s get away with shit or give them some time to do some trading before sending the heat in.

By the time he was done, he was parked across the street from Sara’s tattoo parlor, watching closely. When he saw Sara locking up the front and turning the sign to close, he got out and walked across the street. Walking into the back, no car was there but Sara’s so Dom had to quickly go in the back door before she comes out. When he got in, he can hear Sara asking her employer if she forgot something and as she came out from her office. Seeing it wasn’t her employee, she gave a dirty look to Dominic, ‘sorry big boy, we’re closed.”

“You know why I am here Sara.” Dominic said as he approached her, towering over her, “what made you think that you can get away from taking away three of our clients huh?”

Sara rolled her eyes and started to walk up to the front with Dominic following close behind, “they’’re mine now, you can’t get them back. That’s business.” She said, bringing that cold hearted bitch out.

Dominic grabbed her arm hard and threw her up against the wall and wrapped his hand around her neck, gripping it, “you know the consequences of fucking with me Sara. I thought we were good with the clients in this fucking city but no, here you are…..being a selfish bitch and taking money out of my fucking pockets. You don’t learn.” Dominic can see she was turning blue that he finally released her and pulled out his gun, aiming it at her. Choking, gasping for air, Sara looked at him with that dirty look again, “you can’t kill me….you do and my father will have your head.”

Dominic started to laugh, “you think so?”

“I know so.” She smirked, “so pull the fucking trigger.” She kind of sang that last part out as she walked up to the barrel of the gun.

Dom tucked his gun away and gave her another shove but Sara shoved back. Still, he could not bring himself to hit her, beat her ass. She acts like a fucking dude so why not treat her like one.

Dominic wanted to so much bust her face but she gave him a good right hook. “Bastard.” She spatted as she shook her hand, feeling her knuckles hurt. Dom’s jaw did hurt a little but it did nothing to him. Before he knew it, she came attacking him, giving him blows to the face, making a cut to his lip. Finally Dominic, grabbed her, not intentionally, on the ass  to lift her up and slam her down on a table. Her head bounced from the force that she closed her eyes and held the back of her head, “are you  fucking done?” Dominic asked, breathing heavily. Sara opened her eyes and saw how he was looking at her, feeling him in between her legs that it caused aches to her core. Sara started to laugh and wrapped her legs around him to lock him in place and slapped him hard. Damn, that had his dick twitching in his jeans, “do it again.”

She did, and even harder. They both had a still moment, looking into each other's eyes before Dominic dove down and kissed her hard. Sara kissed back but after she bit his bottom lip hard, causing more blood to spill out.

Dominic was pitching a huge tent in his jeans and Sara, was wet. The two went at it hard, kissing each other while Sara sat up. Her legs dropped down as she started to fumble with Dominic’s belt. She knocked his cap off to remove his shirt just to see his chiseled chest. Damn. Back to his jeans. He practically ripped her top off, getting it off her body as well as her laced red bra.

Oh fuck, she was blessed with nice titties. Titties that Dominic likes. Handful, mouthful, with nipples that are the right size.

Sara couldn’t help but to see his expressions, “what, are they deformed?”

Dominic shook his head, “they’re fucking perfect.” So perfect his mouth had to get on them. He sucked in a mouthful hard, releasing it with a popping sound and then began on the nipples. Flicking his tongue on them, sucking them, biting them. All that he was doing to her breast alone caused more wetness that she knew her panties were wet. It’s weird because in previous hot moments, she never got turned on so fast. Sara managed to get into his jeans and felt his rock-hard dick, her eyes kind of widen as she started to run down it, wandering when it was going to stop not to mention the girth of that big boy. Shit, this man is going to tear me apart.

After Dom was toying with her nipples, he stood up straight and rode up her skirt up to the waist and removed her red laced panties off, keeping her in her heels. Sara pushed down his jeans and boxers passed his ass and gazed down at what he was working with. Her mouth drawn into o-shape. The rumors were true about this man.

“What, is it to deformed for you?” He laughed.

“Oh god.” Was all she can say before bringing her eyes to his and again, they kissed. Dom wasted no time in grabbing his dick and rolling the mushroom tip around her entrance before pushing it in. Only that had send all kinds of trembles in his body. Sara’s tight hole was intense for Dominic. Unlike the bitch he fucked last night, it took time for him to get all the way into Sara. Poor girl hung onto him, whimpering right into his ear. As much as he wanted to fuck her hard now, he just couldn’t hurt her. What the fuck is wrong with me?

It took about three minutes to be completely inside of her. His arm was around her, holding her close to him as she still clung to him, breathing heavily. Slowly, he started to ride out, closing his eyes so they can roll back just from the feel of it. Eventually, he got Sara to stretch out and was able to pound into her. She seem to like that. Each thrust had the table rocking back and forth. Little did she know, her ass was sitting on some drawings of her employees and they were about to get wet.

“More…..fuck…..more Dom.” She said against his ear. One arm had to leave his built shoulders to plant a hand back on the table so she can lean back, giving them space in between them.

“Harder Dom!” Sara had no clue what had gotten into her but with her previous sex relationships, she always find the pussies that perfer, slow love making and crying at the end because it was so beautiful. Thus the reason for stopping, cutting it off for two years and now here she is, getting that pussy beaten by one sexy mother fucker.

So at her request, Dominic did not hesitate in giving her what she wanted. He started to assault, brutal savagely taking her. His eyes were plastered on her bouncing tits then up to the expression on her face. Sara’s head went back when she held back a cry. That familiar feeling started to come and as Dominic continued to give it to her hard, it all came out, “oooooohh…..myyyyyy.” She hissed after and looked down at his cock working fast and now seeing it glistening with her juices as she came, and came hard that she was trembling.

Dominic felt it and slowed it down to catch his breath, letting her orgasm ride out. Sara crushed her lips to his, whimpering and whimpering that drove the man insane just hearing that. “I want another….oh god just like that.” She whispered to on his lips.

This was truly not what he came here for but hey, who is he to stop it. Dominic pulled out, getting a pouty face from Sara. Like a true man, he handled her like she was a rag doll. He pulled her off the desk and forcefully turned her around and slammed her upper body down on the table.

Is this man fucking for real? I got to be fucking dreaming but I don’t want to wake up. Sara’s mind was rolling as she felt Dominic entered her from behind and gripped her hips and pounded into her and this time, she can hear his grunts.  Sara would say her body was being violated by her enemy but she couldn’t help but to love it. A dark fantasy of being taken so hard in her own place of work where the windows were clear for anyone to look in and see them fucking. It was crazy, adventurous…and she was in heaven as well as Dominic.

Keeping her pinned down on the table by his hand, he sought out his feeling of wanting to cum but he needed her to cum again. So much force in his thrust and so fast. Sweat began to drip down from his face to her ass as it rippled from the smack of him hitting her. Again, Sara moaned out loudly and she climaxed again like never before. She gripped the edge of the table and cried out his name. Instead of her riding it out, he continued to fuck her till he felt his jiz run out of his dick and into her, “fuuuuuck…….shhhhhiiiit. God damn!” He yelled out, dropping his head as he grasped her shoulder, pulling her down onto him as he kept buried in her, letting his semen spill out into her. Then he released her shoulder a bit and gave some more thrusting. That hit her again with a mini orgasm that she couldn’t stand. Her legs were weak but Dominic had his hold on her, again burying himself in her to let the rest out. Both of their genitals were throbbing in sync.

Dominic pressed his chest against her back, taking some time to catch his breath. Now came the moment of awkwardness. After Dominic caught his breath and started to see straight, he rose up and slowly pulled out, seeing all her juices and his semen pouring out of her hole. Damn, just seeing that he could go for round two.

He backed up and picked up his boxers and jeans, not liking the uncomfortable feeling his dick being wet and sticky, but he tuck his dick back in there and started to buckle up as his eyes stood on her ass. Finally, Sara found the strength to get up, legs shaky and all. She pulled her skirt down and turned around, fixing her messed up long curls. She smiled softly as he got her bra from the floor and placed it on. Both were quiet, now not even looking at each other. “Do you mind giving me some paper towels in the bathroom?” She asked.

Completely dressed with his cap back on, he nodded his head and went into the bathroom, taking out about five brown paper towels and came back to give it to her.

Sara cleaned herself up and whens he was done, she threw it in the trash. She even had to get rid of the drawings. Again, standing there in front of him, she had nothing to say. He had nothing to say.

“Alright….I uh….” Dominic started to walk backwards, “I got to go.” Sara held herself, nodding, “okay.”

“Later.” Dominic turned and rushed out the back door. If he didn’t get out there he would of fucked her again. Rushing across the street and getting into his car, Dominic sat there with his head rested back. Why did he come to visit her?

He completely forgot.

[surveys-at-your-service]

Survey #335

“on my forehead, a birthmark  /  remove it with the kiss of a knife  /  even if it causes me to die”

Do you recover well from surgery? Judging by the two surgeries I've had, oh yeah. I was hyper as hell when I came home from getting tubes put in my ears as a little kid, even though the doctor said I'd be very sleepy. Then, after my cyst removal, I was put on very strong painkillers but was still warned it was going to be a painful recovery, when it totally wasn't. I literally only took painkillers the first day. What addictions have you had? Caffeine, technology. Would you change your name if you became famous? Nah. If Cupid were real, would you hire him to make someone love you? No. I don't want somebody forced to love me. Ever been to an auction? No. Which word(s) do you generally use to describe someone attractive? (e.g. “fit”, “sexy”) It kinda varies with gender. Women I tend to call "beautiful" or "gorgeous," sometimes "hot" or "cute," while men I usually refer to as "handsome" or "hot"/"sexy." The last person you kissed - are they older or younger than you? She's a bit younger. When was the last time someone wanted you to do something, and you refused? Hm. I dunno. I have a hard time saying "no," so. When was the last time you had Pop Tarts? What flavour were they? Many months ago; I kinda stopped eating them because they're truly not filling and just a load of sugar that veils itself as an actual breakfast choice. But anyway, I liked the chocolate sundae ones. Have you ever felt a temperature below 0? No. Did you ever play Spyro? I LOVE!!!!!!!!!!!! SPYRO!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Those games were my CHILDHOOD, and it's half the reason I'm dying for a PS4 to play the remastered trilogy. Speaking of which, it'd be awesome if they remade the The Legend of Spyro trilogy as well. I might just like those games more than the originals, but that's a bold statement I'm unsure about. Have you ever dated someone who was of a foreign origin? I dated a Hispanic guy for less than a day. Have you ever read any of your idols’ books/autobiographies? Ozzy Osbourne's, yes. I'm just fucking waiting for Mark to write one, but he's always said he has so little interest in writing about his life. DO IT, YOU FUCK. Do you own any succulents? No. I think they're pretty, though. Do you have a drone? No. What’s your favorite Netflix series? *shrug* What is something a lot of people like but you don’t? Summertime. The heat, the humidity (at least here), the sunburn from just standing outside for ten minutes... I hate all of it. The ONLY two things I enjoy about summer is swimming and then flowers, though spring is the more floral season here anyway. Do you have revenge fantasies that you never actually play out? They've... happened. Did your first real significant other change you at all? Pretty sure forever. Are you waiting to have sex until you’re married? Once upon a time, that was the plan. Now, nah. I'd just want to be in a healthy, stable, and long-term relationship. What do you think about divorce? It's sad, but necessary for some people in order to be happy, which everyone has the right to be. I used to be very firmly against divorce except in extreme cases like abuse, etc., and I'm still definitely no fan of it and think couples should do their best to work things out, but it's incredibly unfair to believe that someone should be stuck for the rest of their life with a person they just don't love anymore. Getting married can be a mistake; don't damn people forever to be chained to their bad decisions. Do you remember the first time your heart broke? What was the reason? It was probably when Dad just abandoned us. What's the worst prank someone has ever done to you? I don't think anyone's ever pulled a sick joke on me. Have you ever seen someone sleepwalk? Yes; my little sister deadass tried to walk outside late at night. Thank God I was on the computer in the living room and stopped her. What song are you listening to right now? I just turned "Mutter" by Rammstein on. When is the last time you cursed? I'm not re-reading, but I have probably cursed fifty times in this survey already. It's so deeply ingrained into my vocabulary. Are there any words on your shirt? No; it's just a plain gray tank top. Why do you forward forwards? I never do because they annoy the fuck out of me. How many people are you interested in at the moment? Just one in a healthy and logical way. I can't be truly interested in Jason because like come on I haven't spoken to him in four whole years. My PTSD just ensures I never forget the memory of who he was, who probably no longer even exists. I mean, look how much I'VE changed in four years. Do you know any mechanical stuff about cars? Nnnnope. Who was the last person (apart from family) that you spent time with? What did you get up to? Apart from family, I have no idea. If you have pets, when was the last time one of them got on your nerves? Venus never does, but Roman can get on my nerves sometimes when I don't let him lay on me when I'm on the laptop in bed. He's a large cat (not overweight, just a big male cat) and blocks the screen big time unless he lies down properly, which he doesn't always do. He still tends to win when he tries to come over, but sometimes I'll block him with my arm, and this spoiled brat will actually slap it a few times before walking away lmao. Would you rather live in a house with a swimming pool or an indoor cinema? Absolutely a pool. I want one badly. Do you own a credit card? If so, do you currently owe any money on it? Could you afford to pay it off tomorrow if necessary? No. How many hours of sleep do you typically get each night? Is that enough to function or would you rather have more? Especially lately, I don't get nearly enough. Like at the time I'm answering this question, it's 4 AM, and I've been up for almost a couple hours. I struggle with falling asleep, I will ALWAYS wake up at least once in the night, and I jerk awake from nightmares regularly still. It's a big reason why I pretty much require naps. Does your house have a loft/basement? Are they functional or do you just use them for storage? We only have an attic. Do you suffer from road rage? What kind of thing tends to set you off or wind you up while driving? No. I'm way too timid of a driver to get that outwardly pissy about stupid people. I'd just judge them in silence, haha. What kind of animal did you last see in the wild? Is that a common sight where you live? Because of just how common they are, I'm going to assume this excludes birds, in which case it was probably a squirrel? Yeah, the normal brown ones are common. Do you post a lot on social media? If so, what kind of thing do you tend to post on there? Since I was fucking stupid enough to post a suicide note on Facebook (I don't want to hear a goddamn thing about "attention seeking," I genuinely wanted to say goodbye), I almost never, ever, share things about my personal life. Even before, it was rare for me to actually share what's going on with me. All I really do now is share relatable, wholesome, or funny shit I find, as well as political things I'm in firm agreement with. What are some habits you have in common with your parents? I pace like my dad, and it drives people crazy because it apparently makes them anxious? I can't think of an obvious one I have with Mom, but I'm sure one exists. Where's your favourite place to swim - the ocean, a pool, river, lake etc? I feel safest and most clean in a pool, but c'mon, swimming in the ocean is so much fun. When you're saving your place in a book, do you use a bookmark or fold your pages down? Or something else? It depends on the book, it seems. Especially if someone else owns it, like in school or something. Is any part of your body hurting at the moment? Is there a specific incident that caused the pain? My legs always hurt. I've shared enough as to why; it wasn't an actual, singular "incident." What was the last thing to make you laugh out loud? OH MY FUCKING GOD. So in group therapy the other day, one of the girls had her bearded dragon out, and he was being aggressive. I think he tried to bite her aND SHE SAID WITHOUT REALIZING HER MIC WAS ON, "fucking dickhead," and everyone d i e d. She's a really cool chick, I'll miss her when I'm finished with PHP. Who was the last person you heard sing? Myself, surprisingly enough. I barely ever sing. Do you bite your lips a lot? Yes, especially when they're dry. .-. What part of your body would you never get pierced? Anyone who gets a piercing "down there" has a greater pain tolerance than this bitch right here. Have you ever dated someone with tattoos? Juan had quite a few. I don't remember if Tyler did... but I think maybe a The Legend of Zelda-related one? Have you ever failed gym in school? No. Are you scared of dogs? No; I love dogs. What is the saddest movie you’ve ever seen? Man, idk, I'm a little bitch when it comes to emotional movies. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas is high up there, as is of course Johnny Got His Gun. Old Yeller, too. Which one of your friends is most likely to be famous one day? Why? Sara's gonna write a fuckin book series ok you can't convince me otherwise. What is the worst present you have ever gotten? Damn dude, what an ungrateful question. I'm just appreciative someone even thought TO give me something. Do you shave your arms? My armpits, yes, but not my arms themselves. How many people have you dated? I only count three as even remotely serious: Jason, Sara, and Girt. Have you ever performed in a play? I remember back in Sunday school as a tiny kid I played Mother Mary in one we did in class. Do you chew gum? I have been more lately since my doc upped the dosage of one of my mood stabilizers (which I think is actually helping); I mention that because apparently a side effect is dry mouth, and it's the fucking Sahara in there. He advises those who deal with it to always carry around hard candy or something like that for the sake of forcing salivation, so gum works for me. How old were you when you first started dating? I was in the 7th grade when I had my first "boyfriend," but it was total puppydog love. I started dating my first "real" bf when I was just shy of 16. Are/were your parents strict? Dad, no. Mom, only to a degree that I feel was pretty reasonable. She only ever wanted to prepare us to be functional, independent adults. Didn't work so well on me though, ha... Do you wear glasses? Yes. God, I need new ones. I'm blind as hell. What do you miss most about your childhood? Being so outgoing and happy to just be weird lil me. Do you write “To-Do” lists? Not really, no, but I do have notes on my phone about a couple things, like a bulleted list of planned monetary investments by importance, as well as a list of drawing ideas. Do you have a favorite quote? What is it? I don't, really. There's loads I like, but no one favorite. Could you survive as a vegetarian? I pretty desperately want to, but I don't know if it's realistic. I am so, SO picky, and without meat, it's very questionable as to where I'd get an adequate source of protein. I still want to try again though once I'm at my goal weight. Has anyone ever asked you for your autograph? Lol no. Has someone of the opposite sex ever told you that you were sexy? Yeah, but that was a looong time ago when I was actually some semblance of pretty. Do you prefer to take your showers at night or in the morning? I used to be someone who firmly stood by nighttime showers, but now I'm all about them in the morning. It's a nice way to wake up and start the day with productivity. Could you handle living with a male roommate? I mean, I lived with my then-boyfriend once, but I'm going to assume you'd consider him more than a "roommate." We lived with our two other friends, though, also a couple, and I was totally fine with living with them. Has anyone taken their shirt off in front of you? Yes. Do you like Freddy Krueger? His concept is very scary, but all the movies I've seen bits of have always been super cheesy. Which do you prefer, Naruto or One Piece? I haven't seen either and really aren't interested. What do you think of Rob Zombie? I've never really watched his movies, but I'm a fan of his music. What’s you fetish? I don't have one. Have you ever been in the “friend zone?" Well, what I'd call a "fake" one with Jason after the breakup until I was blocked on Facebook. I know now he absolutely did not want to be friends; he was trying to appease me. Is the area you live in more liberal or conservative? Definitely conservative. Do you know anyone who had to have tubes put in their ears as a baby? Yeah, me. Were either of your parents baptized? I'm certain Mom was, but idk about Dad. I think so. The last concert that you were at, was there a mosh pit? No. What was the last computer game that you played? World of Warcraft. Does your bathroom have a theme to it? No. Are any rooms in your house themed? No. What was the last thing that you recorded? I think Mom and I singing "happy birthday" to my late dog Teddy; we knew it would be his last. Do you like the show Futurama? Not really. Have you ever been in a choir class? I was in the elementary school chorus, as well as the choir at my childhood church. Are you ashamed of any of your family members? No, only myself. Were you a chubby child? No. Did you ever have senior photos done? No, even though I wanted them. Who is the person you dislike the most? God, this is so petty... but it's the girl Jason dated after me. I know it's childish as hell to feel like she "took" him from me, and I just feel this horrible hatred towards her that is entirely uncalled for. I just can't get myself to move past it. Do you take part in paying the bills for your household? No, as I'm unemployed and also don't have disability, so I literally can't. How do you usually celebrate New Years? I really don't do much. Sometimes Mom will grab a pack of daiquiris, but that's pretty much the extent of it. Does the place you work have music playing? What sort? N/A What was the last job interview you went to? At a local grocery store to work in the deli. Got the job, lasted there for not even two hours. :^) Do you know anyone with autism, mood disorders or learning disabilities? Autism and mood disorders, yes. I myself may have high-functioning Asperger's (yes, I know that term doesn't technically exist anymore, it's just the umbrella term of "autism," but w/e). Have you ever had an immediate relative pass away of cancer? My grandmother died of pancreatic cancer, and it's pretty much guaranteed that, unless there's some sudden accident, my mom will die of cancer, too. Hers got too bad to entirely eliminate every trace of cancer cells, so it will inevitably re-emerge at some point, just obviously some place else given that she had a total hysterectomy. Would you rather work in an office, warehouse or on a retail shop floor? Office. Are you a fan of sweet, sour, salty, or savory snacks? I enjoy all of those, but sour I think tops the list.