#OOOO thank you so much for this!! great detective work!!!

[yourdeepestfathoms]

The Crucible (part three)

[UK Tour; Carrie AU]

Part 1 Part 2

Word count: 10,566

TW: Bullying, vomit

-----------------------

-Mind Over Matter-

  “So, you and Anne Boleyn…”

Katherine looked up at Mulaney, her right eye twitching. A barrage of emotions blistered through her whenever she thought about her cousin- anger, sadness, mourning, betrayal, happiness, guilt, pain, longing. It was a flurry of madness that she hated having to deal with. And hearing that name come out of this man’s mouth didn’t make her feel any better. It didn’t sound right when the detective said it, like Anne had just been some character in a movie that was killed off too soon for a cheap sad moment. She was a real person, whether Katherine wanted to remember that or not.

  “Friends until the end?” 

  “I wouldn’t say that,” Katherine said.

  “And why is that?” Mulaney asked.

  “We’re cousins,” Katherine answered. “She was born a little bit before me, and we grew up together, so I guess everybody just assumed we were going to be close forever.” She shrugged. “But we had our differences.”

  “Differences about Joan Seymour?” 

  “Differences about a lot of things,” Katherine clarified. “I played with Barbie. She played with horses. She’s a back to front. I’m a front to back.”

Mulaney blinked at her and then turned his head to look at Madeline, who was trying very hard not to smile in amusement. Katherine set her shoulders back, smirking. It seemed Mulaney didn’t know how to reply to her statement because he moved on, taking a piece of paper out of a yellow folder on the table.

  “Do you know a girl named Donna Kellogg?” He asked.

  “Yeah, I know Kellogg,” Katherine replied smoothly. “Every guy in school had a bowl of her cereal.”

Mulaney stared fixedly down at Katherine. At his side, Madeline snorted a laugh, but was quick to cover her mouth and straighten herself back up professionally. Katherine let out a huge sigh, wiping the grin from her face.

  “She moved to Germany in Year 12.” She said. “What about her?”

  “She got an email from your cousin about four days before the prom,” Mulaney said.

  “What’d it say?” Katherine asked with mock enthusiasm.

Mulaney peered down at the paper in his hands and began to read, “‘Dear Dirty Donna--”

Katherine raised her eyebrows and exhaled a rueful breath, rolling her eyes skyward. That DEFINITELY was her cousin's writing.

  “--so I’m out of the prom, but they’re not going to get away with this. I don’t know exactly what we’re going to do, but I guarantee you everyone is going to get a big’-- Expletive--‘surprise.’” Mulaney put the paper down and looked back at Katherine’s pale face. “Now, what do you suppose she meant by that?”

And, for once, Katherine made no snarky reply, only able to shrug silently, as her words were too caught in her throat to answer.

------

Mr. Stephens’s creative writing class was one of those rare cases where everyone wanted to be in it, regardless of whether they could write or not. And for a good reason, too. He was a laid back, supportive, jolly man who always made his lessons fun and engaging. His room was like no other, either, airy and full of light. He rarely ever turned on the overhead lights, opting to instead let the sun come in from blue-and gold-tinted windows he had paid for to be put in himself. 

A jungle of indoor plants snarled the interior, all fit with small golden plaques with names on them (one of the best assignments they had yet was to choose a plant and write a story about it; Katherine, personally, had chosen Hornet, the sassy lesbian honeysuckle). Shined mahogany bookshelves were arranged all around the room with their books sorted precisely in alphabetical order. Putting any borrowed books back into the right place was a rule even the most mischievous of students obeyed. Racks and drawers full of papers and pencils and pens of every color were set up for everyone’s writing pleasure, and there were several places to sit and write when it was time to work. Sometimes the black and pink bungee chair, sometimes the big blue bean bag or the strange egg-shaped cubbyhole you could climb into and nestle in the blankets and pillows that filled it.

The tables were assorted in a very different way, too. There were six in total: Fantasy, Horror, Romance, Sci-Fi, Adventure, and Historical. At the beginning of the year, students got to pick their seats at whatever genre table they were most interested in, letting people meet others with the same interests. Or, if you were like Katherine, you just bustled into the same table with all your friends.

Mr. Stephens was her first class of the day and was always what she needed to get energized for the rest of school. The sun was out again, bleeding its early Monday morning light through the tinted windows and casting beams of gold and blue across the room. All her friends, including her beautiful Anna, were already inside when she got there, along with a few others. Bessie was sharpening several pencils at the expensive electric pencil sharpener by the door, while Maria looked through the Q-T selection of books, and Anne, Maggie, and Anna were sitting at the table they all had claimed at the beginning of the year: Fantasy (although Katherine had debated on going to the Romance table, but several of her friends didn’t like the romance genre, and Anne had proclaimed that the “gang had to stick together,” so she gave up that option).

  “Kitty!!” Anne cried gleefully, throwing her arms in the air.

Katherine smiled as she walked over, sitting beside Anna. The two shared a quick kiss.

  “Morning, gang,” Katherine said. “What’s the tea?”

  “Prom,” Maggie stated. “You guys picked out your dresses yet?”

  “A dress? Me?” Anna snorted. “If I ever wore a dress and heels, I'd look like a freaking giraffe or something.”

  “Anna, shut up!” Bessie suddenly barked, whipping her head around from the pencil sharpener. “You would look great!”

They all stared at her in silence, watching as her face slowly faded to a light red color, a hugely bright contrast with her bleached white hair. She cleared her throat awkwardly.

  “What? Girls eat that shit up!” She said, and then frantically began sharpening her pencils again. The table laughed and nodded knowingly.

  “But no,” Anna said. “I’m not wearing a dress. Your girl is going with a suit.”

  “Ooooo!” The chorus of intrigued coos whisked around the table.

  “How fancy!” Anne said.

  “You are a lucky lady!” Maggie said to Katherine.

Katherine grinned brightly and leaned her head against her girlfriend’s shoulder. She sighed dreamily. “I know…”

  “I have mine picked out,” Maria said, walking over and sitting down with The Great Gatsby in her hands. “It’s orange.”

  “Oooo, nice pick!” Katherine commented. “Orange looks good on you!”

  “Why thank you!”

  “Okay, okay, question,” Maggie butt in as Bessie sat back down. “Do any of you know about waxing or shaving, you know--” She leaned in, “--down there? Like, for sex preparation?”

  “How naughty,” Anne teased, making Maggie stick her tongue out at her.

  “Well,” Katherine said expertly, “there are a few things you can do.” At her side, Anna shook her head and laughed. “There’s the rainforest. That’s where you don’t do anything at all. Hitler’s mustache. The landing strip. The Brazil.”

  “The Brazil?” Maggie laughed. “What does Brazil have to do with getting--your area waxed? Is it, like, the shape of the country?”

  “It’s because things like thongs and Brazil are so small you have to wax EVERYTHING to wear one.” Maria said.

  “Ohhh,” Maggie nodded. “Where is Brazil, anyway?”

Laughter and snickers and whispers suddenly bubbled loudly from the hallway, seeping in through the open door. A moment later, Joan entered wearing an oversized, rather ugly shade of pale yellow sweater and a long maroon skirt with small white flowers. She dragged her feet as she walked, not looking up, clutching her binders and folders close to her chest. 

Seeing her sent a sharp pang of guilt lancing through Katherine.

She had desperately tried to forget about Joan Seymour over the weekend, partially succeeding in that task, even when her father confronted her about it. But seeing the pathetic girl again sent all her shame come barreling back into her at full force. She could now see that she and her friends had ruined this class, once a place of serenity and peace, for Joan. Joan seemed...scared to even be attending.

  “Well, if it isn’t Prayin’ Joan!” Anne exclaimed. She jumped up and blocked Joan’s path, causing the younger and much scrawnier girl to reel back in fright. “I wonder who’s taking her to prom? Her mother?”

Katherine tried to laugh along with Maggie, Maria, and Bessie, but the sound raked her throat fiercely like talons of fire. She glanced to the side and saw that Anna had her jaw set firmly and a grim look in her eyes.

  “Leave her alone, Anne.” Anna said.

Joan tried to dodge around Anne to get to her table, but Anne stepped right back in front of her and she reared away again like she thought she would be burned if they were to make contact.

  “Come on, church girl!” Anne spread her arms in a grand gesture, smirking widely. Everyone in the class, even people out in the hallway, were watching, now. “Dance with me! I will make you see God!”

And then, out of the blue, Anne yelped out in fright as she suddenly crumpled to the floor. Katherine blinked in shock, watching the way her cousin had shifted her weight on her feet and slipped on her Heelys’s wheels--but that didn’t seem right. Anne hadn’t been leaning on her heels at all. It looked more like something had swept under her legs and made her fall--but what? There had been nothing there, nothing to trip her. She shuddered, and her skin began to crawl with goosebumps.

  “How’s your pussy, princess?” A boy at the Sci-Fi table asked over the laughter that had filled the room.

Anne shot up to her feet instantly, her face inflamed with rage. She glared at the boy, and her stared was filled with enough hate to make him snap his mouth shut immediately.

  “What are you laughing at?” She snarled. Her head whipped around to Joan. “The goddamn BITCH TRIPPED ME!!”

Is that what happened? Did Joan trip or push Anne? Had she finally snapped like that kid from Anna’s story on Friday night? But Joan hadn’t moved her arms or legs at all when Anne fell…

Katherine jerked out of her speculations when she saw that Anne was advancing on Joan with a murderous look in her eyes. Joan flinched away, as if she was expecting to be struck, and then there was suddenly the clattering of a chair to Katherine’s left; Anna was standing in between Anne and Joan.

  “What are you doing?” Anne demanded.

  “You’re being stupid, Anne.” Anna said calmly. “If you hit her, you’re definitely going to be thrown out of prom. Just sit down.”

Anne growled, but prom seemed to be more important to her than revenge, so she cast one like dark glare at Joan, and then let her anger snuff itself out for now. She returned to her chair like nothing happened. Anna turned to Joan, who was staring up at her with wide eyes as if she were Jesus Christ himself.

  “Are you alright?” Anna asked. She reached out to set a hand on Joan’s shoulder, but respectfully pulled it back when Joan flinched away. “Don’t listen to that gremlin. She’s just messing around.” And then she flashed Joan a dazzling smile that made Joan get an expression on her face that said she’s never been smiled at like that before.

  “Th-th-thank you…” Joan choked out, and then skittered past her to the Horror table, which she shared all alone (“Of course that crazy bitch would choose horror” was something Maggie had muttered the first day of class when Joan had chosen that genre).

Anna righted her chair and sat back down, looking like a true savior. 

  “Well, aren’t you just a knight in shining armor.” Anne said bitterly, and Anna grinned at her.

  “What can I say?” She said with a shrug. “I can never pass up the chance to be the hero to a poor damsel in distress.”

The bell rang a moment later and everyone who wasn’t already sitting down bustled over to their specific table. First period was the smallest class, with Katherine and her five friends obviously at Fantasy, three kids at Sci-Fi, two girls at Romance, three more at Adventure, no one at Historical, and then Joan all alone at Horror. Writing utensils and notebooks filled to the brim with stories and projects are brought out as Mr. Stephens entered from the hall.

  “Good morning, children!” He chimed happily. He was a slightly plump man with olive skin and dark brown hair he always had up in a man bun. The aquamarine flannel shirt he was wearing today made his green eyes pop brightly. “Let’s get this show on the road!”

After the initial opening for class, the lesson quickly curved into the topic of an assignment the students had been given last Friday, probably the only okay thing that happened on that day (aside from Katherine’s time with Anna in her car, of course).

  “As you know,” Mr. Stephens said, “last Friday I gave you all the task to write your own poem after selecting a word from my hat.” He held up the bedazzled top hat for reference. “Now we are going to read them! So…” He scanned the class, bypassing the people who usually always read first, like Bessie and Katherine and the boy with glasses in Adventure, for now. A smile broke out on his face. “Joan Seymour!”

Joan’s head whipped up so fast Katherine was surprised her neck didn’t break. She had been listlessly twirling a strand of her strangely natural white-blonde hair and writing in her small notebook with a black pen, which she accidentally sent flying across the room behind her when she was called on.

  “Present,” She sputtered. 

  “It’s not roll call, Joan,” Mr. Stephens said gently. 

  “Idiot,” Maggie muttered, rolling her eyes, and Mr. Stephens shot a glare at her and some of the other giggling students. He was one of few teachers who actually made an effort to stop the constant bullying Joan got in class. 

  “Did you write a poem?” Mr. Stephens asked. His voice was so patient and kind, his gaze merciful and lacking any irritation or scorn, despite the fact that Joan was floundering like a useless cow in a cattle chute. He never yelled at Joan or even got the slightest bit annoyed with her, even when she was being completely incompetent and probably deserved a good rapping on the knuckles with a ruler to get her head back on straight.

  “Oh-- Y-yes, sir.” Joan nodded.

  “Why don’t you come up and read it to us?” 

That seemed to be a death sentence for Joan, who became very rigid and pale. She opened and closed her mouth like a weird-eyed fish out of water, then finally choked out, “D-do I have to?”

Mr. Stephens tilted his head at her, sympathy in his gaze. “No,” He said. “But I would love to hear what you wrote.”

Joan perked up slightly, a new light flickering ever so slightly in her eyes. “You would?” She squeaked.

  “Yes, Joan,” Mr. Stephens smiled, and Katherine saw that he was telling the truth. He was genuinely interested in what Joan had written.

Joan thought for a second, then grabbed her notebook, stood up, and said, “Okay.”

Shyly, with her head angled to the floor, Joan shuffled up to the short stage-like platform at the front of the class used for reading out loud. Mr. Stephens motioned for her to sit in the big black leather computer chair he would let students use when presenting, but she shook her head, clearly too tense and nervous to sit down. Mr. Stephens respected her choice and didn’t push her.

  “What was the word you selected, Joan?” Mr. Stephens asked.

  “Umm-- Stone.” Joan answered. Now that she was up and centered, Katherine noticed violet and indigo bruises along her jawline and a split in her lip that definitely hadn’t been there on Friday.

  “And what is the name of your poem?”

Joan fumbled. “E-Evening Prayers.”

  “Oh my god.” Anne said loudly. Mr. Stephens shot her a sharp look, and she shut her mouth instantly.

  “Go ahead, Joan. Whenever you’re ready.” Mr. Stephens said kindly.

It took a moment and a few deep breaths for Joan to find her voice, but she eventually gathered all her courage and began to read:

  “Jesus watches from the wall,

But his face is cold as stone.

If he loves me,

As she tells me,

Why do I feel so all alone?”

A few giggles and snickers and mocking whispers whisked through the class, but Mr. Stephens shut them down quickly. Joan looked at him fearfully, and he gave her an encouraging nod to go on.

  “Baby savior, meek and mild,

What do you do with my prayers?

If you hear me,

Why do I feel that no one cares?”

Joan lost some of the tension in her shoulders, easing them back down into a more relaxed position. A strange flicker lit up in her eyes, like the first silvery wisps of a fresh flame. 

  “Mama sees inside my soul,

But her face is cold as stone.

If she loves me

Why do I feel so all alone?”

Was that...hate in Joan’s voice? Katherine tilted her head at the girl, suddenly filled with so many questions. Had she always been this interesting?

  “There's a movement in my head

Satan? Angels? What can it be?

It's growing!

It's stirring!

It's churning, shifting!

Bending!”

Joan released a shaky breath and raised her glowing grey-blue eyes. 

Silence. 

Mr. Stephens would have said anything, but he still seemed to be too enamored to speak, in awe at his timid student’s raw poem.

Then, Maggie raised one of her hands and spoke without waiting to be called on, “Shouldn’t people like that be home schooled?”

Mr. Stephens blinked at her, his eyebrows furrowing together. “People like what, Maggie?” He asked cautiously, falling right into Maggie’s trap.

  “Creepy religious people,” Maggie said blithely.

Joan flinched back as if she had been struck and hunched her shoulders around her neck. Her fingers grip tightly around the edges of her notebook, staring at her poem with a sudden expression of shame and hatred and disgust.

  “Yeah, aren’t we, like, not supposed to talk about religion in school unless it’s in history class?” Bessie piped up.

Mr. Stephens glared at all of them. “Does anyone have anything to say about the poem?” He said, steering the lesson back on track without giving Maggie or Bessie any attention.

  “It was disturbing,” Anne offered. “I think that’s the most little Joey has said in class all year!”

Laughter erupted in the classroom, far too much for Mr. Stephens to wrangle. Joan shrunk back, like she was hoping she could disappear right into the wall, and Katherine thought she could see tears shining in her eyes.

  “Got anything else to share with us, sweetheart?” Anne asked in a sickly sweet voice. “Or are you done scaring us?”

  “Asshole…”

The laughter stopped abruptly. Joan’s head jerked up sharply. All eyes turned to look at Anna, who was leaning back in her chair and pressing her tongue against the inside of her lip.

  “Anna?” Mr. Stephens said. “Did you say something?”

  “Yes,” Anne said, her words sliding slowly from her mouth like slithering snakes. “What did you say?”

  “I said awesome.” Anna said, sitting up. “I just thought that Joan’s poem was awesome.” She looked at Anne. “Didn’t you, Annie?”

Anne glowers at her, growling lowly. Joan, on the other hand, had the exact opposite reaction. Her eyes were wide and lit up, like that had been the nicest thing anyone has ever said to her, and a bright pink blush dusted her cheeks.

  “Yes!” Mr. Stephens nodded his head enthusiastically. “Awesome! That is a great way to describe Joan’s wonderful poem.” He smiled at Anna, then at Joan. “Thank you for reading, Joan. You did very good.”

Joan dipped her head in thanks and hurried back to her table. When she sat back down, she immediately glanced at Anna, a wistful look of adoration in her eyes. Katherine noticed it, and things began to click together in her brain.

  “Anna,” Mr. Stephens said, “since you spoke up, would you like to go next?”

Anna shrugged coolly. “Sure.” She stood up, grabbing her red spiral journal, and walked to the platform at the front of the class. She, like Joan, decided not to sit in the computer chair, opting to stand up tall before her peers.

  “GO ANNA!!” Her friends cheered from the Fantasy table and she rolled her eyes in a good natured way.

  “The word I got was ‘eagle,’” She said, then looked down at the page she was opened up to in her journal. “Dreamer In Disguise. By Anna von Cleves.” She cleared her throat, and then began reading smoothly:

  “An eagle's just another bird

Until he can spread his wings.”

Maggie suddenly leapt onto her chair, flapping her arms and letting out a bird-like screech. The class all giggled, except Joan, who looked startled, and Anna, who looked used to these kinds of antics.

  “Guys!” Mr. Stephens barked. “Quiet!”

The class settled. Mr. Stephens looked at Maggie.

  “Maggie--that was a pretty good bird, but hush up.” He said.

Maggie bowed and then plopped back into her seat. Mr. Stephens turned to Anna, nodding at her to go on.

  “A river is just a sheet of ice

'til winter turns to spring.

And though the clouds may block the sun

Don't mean that it's left the sky.

Just when you think you've seen it all

There's more that meets the eye.

Like things I dream and things I feel

There's more to me than I reveal.

And 'cause I shine in quiet ways

I'm someone you don't recognize.

I'm a diamond in the rough

A dreamer in disguise.

An eagle's just another bird

Until he can spread his wings.”

Applause filled the classroom. Anna smirked proudly, bowing her head.

  “Very good, Anna!” Mr. Stephens said. “Class,” He turned to the others. “Any comments?”

  “Beautiful.”

The marveled comment came before anyone else could say anything, spoken before Mr. Stephens had barely even finished his sentence. Joan had a thoughtful look in her shimmering eyes. A small smile was tugged at the corners of her pale lips.

  “Beautiful, yes!” Mr. Stephens said. “Excellent, Joan!”

  “Yeah, nice one, period girl.” Anne tittered.

Like that, the light in Joan’s eyes is gone. She looked away, suddenly ashamed. Anna seemed to notice this on the platform and glared viciously at Anne.

  “Shut up, Anne.” She snarled lowly.

  “Go on, Joan,” Mr. Stephens said to his shy student. “Tell us how the poem spoke to you.”

Joan looked back up, fidgeting, and then stuttered out, “I-I just think it said that just because something or someone seems one way, doesn’t mean they have to be that way.”

Mr. Stephens beamed. Anne gave Katherine a “what is wrong with this girl?” sort of look, while Anna looked vaguely rapt. She smiled at Joan, and Joan blushed madly.

  “Very good observation, Joan!” Mr. Stephens said.

  “Yeah,” Anna agreed. “I think you have the poem more thought out that I do, and I’m the one who wrote it!”

Joan ducked her head with a shy smile. “Thanks,” She whispered, and all the pieces fell into place in Katherine’s head.

Did Joan like Anna?

Katherine spent the rest of first period pondering this- Joan was hopelessly shy, but it could very well be possible. The way she looked at Anna… There was some form of longing in her eyes. Like she wanted Anna to like her--not even in a romantic way, just to--like her. As a person.

The bell startled Katherine out of her thoughts and she shook her head. Anna had to run off quickly to get to her next class that was all the way on the other side of the school, and Bessie and Maggie left in a hurry, too. Katherine was about to head out with Maria to the next class they shared together when she noticed Joan still gathering her things.

  “I’ll meet you there, okay?” Katherine said to Maria.

Maria shrugged and nodded. “Okay!”

Katherine walked over to Joan, catching the attention of her cousin, who was still in the class and now watching them with interest.

  “Hey, Joan,” Katherine said.

Joan jumped and looked at Katherine, then over her shoulder, as if thinking she were talking to someone else. She blinked up at the older girl with big grey-blue eyes, and Katherine could see so much painful anxiety in them.

  “Earlier--that was nice.” Katherine said. “That was really nice, what you said about Anna’s poem. I thought it was beautiful, too.”

Joan continued to stare at her, frozen like a deer in headlights.

  “Look-- Umm-- About the other day… I don’t know, things just sort of got out of hand and--”

  “Haven’t you had enough?!”

This time, it was Katherine’s turn to flinch, and she stepped back as if she had just been shot. She looked down at Joan and was shocked to see pure rage blazing in her eyes, which flickered like lit embers. Her teeth were bared, mouth pulled back in a snarl, and her fists were clenched into shaking fists.

  “Do you think you can just go on tricking me forever?!” Joan cried.

  “Oh no, Joan, no--” 

Katherine reached for her, but the girl clawed her hand away. She ducked under her arm and ran out of the classroom, leaving Katherine behind in shock.

  “My, my,” Anne said, sauntering over with a chuckle. “Little mousey’s got a temper!”

  “I--” Katherine’s words hitched for a moment. “I’ve never seen her angry before…”

Anne rolled her eyes and slung an arm around Katherine’s shoulder. She began guiding her out of the classroom.

  “Oh, who cares?” She said. “Just forget about it!”

But Katherine couldn’t forget.

Especially when they stepped out of the class and saw Joan, among many others, staring at the graffiti scrawled across the nearby lockers.

“JOAN SEYMOUR EATS SHIT”

Joan turned to Katherine with tears in her eyes, bared her teeth like a wounded fox, and then took off running down the hallway crying.

Guilt roared through Katherine and, this time, she knew it would be staying for good.

------

All the girls in the fourth period gym class got dressed in silence. 

The minute they had walked through the locker room door, conversations died away, giggling dissolved, and horseplay seized. There were no catcalls, no playful wrestling, no pinching or nudging or tickling. They just changed out into their gym clothes without speaking a word, already knowing what was coming.

Some teachers forgot.

Miss Aragon was not one of them.

It was no surprise when the locker room door slammed open with force after the bell rang and Miss Aragon came striding in. Her silver whistle bounced against her chest with every step she took, and a large, bulky black duffel bag was slung over one shoulder. She looked more like a wasp than usual, and not just because her outfit was a bright shade of lemon yellow with bands of black lacing over the fabric. She simply looked like she wanted to prick each and every girl in the locker room with something sharp and pointy until she had them squealing for mercy, just like they had Joan Seymour squealing in the stall just a few yards away. Resentment and disgust twisted her features as she scanned the class with brown eyes so dark they looked black.

None of her students dared to look at her.

  “Well, aren’t you all just the bunch to send off to graduation,” Miss Aragon said after five minutes of just watching the teenagers fumble with their gym uniforms. She had seen Bessie try to stick her head through an arm hole three times and Katherine apparently forgot how bra clasps worked, and she decided that it was more pathetic than anything they’ve ever said Joan had done. “When is it? A month?”

Nobody answered. Miss Aragon sneered. 

  “And then there’s the prom!” Miss Aragon began again. “Katherine, you’ll be going with Anna von Cleves. Maria, William Willoughby.” She turned to Anne, one eyebrow raised. “What about you, Anne? I imagine you can take your pick. Who’s the lucky guy or girl?”

  “Catherine Parr,” Anne said. “You don’t know her, she doesn’t go to this scho--”

  “Who?”

Anne ground her teeth when she was interrupted.

  “I’m sorry, Anne, I can’t hear you.” 

  “Catherine Parr.”

  “Well, isn’t she the lucky one?” Said Miss Aragon. “Are you going to get her a corsage? Or are you just going to tie a bloody tampon around her wrist?”

Anne’s face went red and she growled like a wild animal. Miss Aragon was anything but intimidated, easily towering over Anne and beating her in terms of fierceness and muscle. 

  “Hey, I have an idea!” Miss Aragon said. “Why don’t we skip the sport we were going to be doing today and make boutonnieres and corsages for your prom dates instead!”

The girls exchanged confused looks, finding this awfully suspicious.

  “Yeah? Sounds fun, right?” Miss Aragon said. “We can make them out of these!”

As fast as lightning, she ripped open the duffel bag and began throwing its contents all over her class. 

Tampons.

Their teacher was throwing tampons at them.

The sanitary items flew like a raging blizzard of white plastic and cotton. Bessie got hit in the eye by one and reeled back into Katherine, who nearly toppled over in shock. Another got caught in Maria’s curly hair and she clawed to get it out. Maggie let out a piercing alarmed screech. Miss Aragon smirked at their hysteria, then threw the bag down at her feet, fuming both in rage and pride.

  “I’m leaving.” Anne said, storming past the coach.

Something flashed in Miss Aragon’s eyes. 

Fury. Boiling hot fury.

Miss Aragon hadn’t been able to stop thinking about Joan Seymour at all over the weekend. Every time she closed her eyes she would see that poor child crying out to her for help. Her dreams were tainted by visions of Joan bleeding to death or killing herself because of all the harsh bullying she faced. She kept hearing her scream “I’m sorry! I’m sorry!” over and over and over again. She couldn’t keep her wrath tamed any longer, and unleashed the full firestorm on her class.

Miss Aragon reached out, moving as quick as a cracking bullwhip, grabbed Anne by the arm, and slammed her into one of the rows of lockers. The sound of the student’s back smashing against the metal rattled loudly throughout the room, only beat by Anne’s cry of shock. Her eyes went wide in disbelief.

  “You can’t hit us!” She yelled.

  “I barely touched you.” Miss Aragon said, as if she were talking to a whining younger sibling she had just punched in the face. She pinned Anne against the locker in a position that looked to be very uncomfortable on Anne’s shoulder.

  “You’ll get canned for this.” Anne growled, tears of pain springing to her eyes. “See if you don’t, you bitch!”

  “I don’t really care, Boleyn.” Miss Aragon said. “If you--or any of you--think I’m wearing my teacher hat right now, you are sadly mistaken.”

She backed up so she could glare at all the other girls, but Anne didn’t dare move from her spot against the locker. Her eyes darted to Katherine in a sort of plight for help, Katherine looked away uneasily. Her gaze landed on the shower area, where this all began, and she jerked it away to look at something else. Anything else.

  “I hope you all know what you did on Friday was a really shitty thing.” Miss Aragon said. To her left, Maggie snickered and she glared at her so fiercely it was a wonder Maggie didn’t drop dead. “Do any of you ever stop to think that Joan Seymour has feelings?”

She looked around. Her rage only continued to build when she got no answer.

  “Do any of you ever stop to think?” She narrowed her brown-black eyes dangerously. “Katherine? Maria? Bessie? Maggie?”

Another pause. Miss Aragon seemed to be swelling up like a King Cobra.

  “Oh,” She said as if she had just read their minds. “You think she’s ugly, don’t you?”

Maggie snorted and made a “well obviously” face. Miss Aragon rounded on her, eyes flashing.

  “Well, you’re ugly.”

The stupid, shit-eating grin Maggie had been wearing was wiped clean from her face instantly.

  “I saw just how ugly all of you were on Friday.” Miss Aragon said.

Anne suddenly reared up, shaking her head. 

  “You can’t talk to us like that!” She snapped. “My dad’s a lawyer! He’ll sue your ass!”

  “SHUT UP!” Aragon roared. She got in Anne’s face, smoke practically billowing from her ears and nostrils. “Open your mouth one more time, and I’ll plug you up.” She jabbed a finger into Anne’s nose, cracking her head back against the locker. “Want to find out if I’m telling the truth? There’s plenty of tampons here to see.”

Anne said nothing, but that didn’t stop her from glaring mutely at her coach. Miss Aragon backed away from her, smirking briefly. The rest of her girls were exchanging frantic, nervous looks, wondering if they were about to be murdered or beaten to death or something horrible like that. Personally, Katherine thought they all deserved such a fate.

  “Now,” Miss Aragon said, lowering her voice to a slightly calmer tone, “my punishment for this little charade you pulled was a three day suspension and refusal of your prom tickets.”

An immediate uproar of unhappy gasps and murmurs eddied through the locker room. Katherine found herself sighing with them, but did agree that that would be a good way to get back at all of them.

  “That would hit you where it hurts, wouldn’t it? And you would deserve it, too.” Miss Aragon said. “Unfortunately, this administration is staffed entirely by men. I don’t think they have the slightest idea how utterly nasty what you did was.” A sneer tugged on the angered grooves in her face. “So you’ll get a week’s detention.”

Instant relief.

  “But it’s MY detention.” Miss Aragon went on. “Fifty minutes. In the field. Every day. And I’m going to run you ragged!” 

They all could already feel their legs burning from exertion and throat aching from dry heaving so intensely. 

  “I won’t come,” Anne said, shrugging.

  “That’s up to you, Anne.” Miss Aragon said. “That’s up to all of you. But I just want you to know that the punishment for skipping detention is a three day suspension and refusal of your prom tickets.”

There was that wave of unhappiness again, sweeping powerfully through the locker room, and it was music to Miss Aragon’s ears. She smirked wickedly.

  “Get the picture?”

Nobody said anything.

  “Good. Now change out. And think about what I said.”

With that, she turned and surged out of the locker room like a triumphant killer wasp. The tension of her presence quickly lifted, but only slightly. The girls were still mumbling and whispering, not daring to raise their voice in fear their coach may come back in and just take their prom tickets now.

Anne must not have gotten the memo.

  “She can’t get away with this!” She snarled.

  “Anne…” Katherine sighed.

Anne yanked her gym shoes out of her locker and hurled them across the room, as if she were hoping for Miss Aragon to materialize inside and get hit.

  “This isn’t over!” She screeched. “It’s not even in the same area code as over!!”

And she was right.

------

Meanwhile, skipping gym class like she was told, Joan was in the library.

For most of her life, books had been her only friends.

Books accepted you the way you were and shared all their secrets with you.

Books never told you that you were creepy or called you a monster or a freak or a pig or any other mean names. Books never said, “Joan Seymour eats shit.”

Joan had hid out in the bathroom after she saw the writing on the walls, rocking back and forth in one of the back stalls and crying to herself until her throat ached and she felt like she couldn’t breathe anymore.

She remembered the bathroom door opening and somebody walking in. She had tried to keep quiet as the girl was reapplying her makeup in the mirror, but her lungs began to burn and she let out a choked sob that seemed to echo throughout the room.

Silence.

  “Hello?” Called a voice Joan didn’t know or recognize. “Are you okay?”

  “I-I’m f-f-fine.” Joan choked out.

  “You don’t sound fine.” The girl observed. “Is this your stuff on the ground?”

Right. She had just thrown her belongings on the floor in her panic to get away from prying eyes to cry alone.

  “U-umm--” Joan sniffled.

Outside the stall, she heard the shuffling of feet and the rustling of papers. Her binders and folders were slid underneath the door a moment later.

  “There.” Said the stranger. “Just so nobody will take it if anyone else comes in.” She paused for a moment. “Are you alright?”

Joan tried to answer, to lie, even if God would strike her down for it, but all that came out of her mouth was a sob. She curled up tighter in the stall, burying her face in her knees. Fresh tears ran down her cheeks like streams of molten lava.

The girl outside made a sympathetic noise. “You poor thing.” She said. “Crying in the bathroom at school. I know that feeling.”

Joan’s crying halted for a moment. She sniffled and looked up slightly.

  “Y-you do?” She stammered.

The girl laughed. “Oh yeah.” She sat down on the other side of the stall, her back pressed against the door. “I got dumped in Geometry in Year 11.”

  “Oh no…”

  “Oh yes,” The girl laughed again. “I wanted to hide in the bathroom forever, but I eventually went back to class. Trust me, crying in here is completely normal. I’ve seen tons of girls do it.”

  “Did you talk to them, too?” Joan asked quietly.

The girl thought for a moment. “No, I don’t think so.”

  “...Then why are you talking to me?”

  “I had this feeling.” The girl said. “That you just--needed someone. More than those girls did. You know?”

She didn’t, but she still said, “Uh huh.”

The girl outside shifted slightly. Joan wished she could see her face.

  “So...what was it?”

  “Huh?”

  “What brought you in here to cry?” The girl specified. “If I may ask… You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to, though.”

She was giving Joan an option, Joan realized dizzily. She wasn’t forcing her to answer.

Sniffling, Joan said, “I-it’s, umm--kinda silly…”

  “Nonsense,” Said the girl. “Was it a breakup?”

  “Umm-- N-no.” Joan said shyly. “I don’t date…”

  “Good for you.” The girl chuckled. “We love a strong, independent woman.”

Joan felt a flurry of butterflies flap wildly in her stomach and she bit her lip to keep from grinning like a giddy idiot. She was always flattered way too easily.

  “School problems?” The girl guessed again.

  “Kinda, yeah…”

  “I feel you, girlfriend,” The girl said. “They expect so much from us, you know? It’s like, do this research project in a week, but I’m only giving you one day to work on it in class so you’ll have to try not to procrastinate when you do the rest on your own and do this math assignment I barely taught you at all, oh and also, find the cure for cancer!”

Joan couldn’t help but giggle. She thought the girl outside the stall may be smiling.

  “It sucks, but you’ll get through it,” The girl said. “It’ll all be over soon.”

Joan nodded slowly. “Thank you.”

The girl got up. “No problem.” She said. “I gotta run. My teacher is probably going to tear me a new one for taking so long.” She laughed. “I hope you feel better soon!”

  “Thank you,” Joan whispered again. “Bye…”

And then, her savior was gone. Joan hadn’t even known her name. She wondered if the girl would have treated her any differently if she knew who she was…

Joan had managed to make it to third period after finally coming out of the bathroom, and then got to retreat to the one place in the school where she felt at peace.

The library.

Nobody was ever mean to her in the library. They were always too busy to pick on her, and that was one of the reasons why she liked it so much. People didn’t care about her in there, instead hunched over tables with research spread out over the surface, clicking furiously on computers, scribbling in notepads in the windowsill nooks, and reading, reading, reading.

A kind of peace settled over her as she stepped inside, breathing in the crisp smell of books. She felt like she belonged here, with all the oddities of literature, even if she didn’t belong anywhere else. In here there were answers and information and thousands of stories waiting for her to read...right behind Mama’s back. 

Mama didn’t like her reading a lot of things, especially young adult novels. But what Mama didn’t know was that she was already ankle-deep in a franchise about wild cats who were in clans and several other standalone books. When she was at school, the Bible was not Her Holy Book.

Shelves radiated out from every direction like a burst of sun, and more aisles with more books filled the overhead balcony ring. Yes, her school technically had a two-story library. A DOUBLE-DECKER library! You had to take a narrow wooden staircase to get up to the top ledge, which wrapped around the upper perimeter of the room and had a few private rooms to study or read in. The guard rail was laced in white fairy lights, causing the ceiling to glow beautifully.

Another thing Joan loved was the statue at the front, poised below the two entrance ramps and short staircase. It was of a long, serpent-like dragon made of white marble, coiled up on a mound of books with its snout dug in a thick, bulky novel. Its name was Haze, and it looked as though it might glance up at any moment, see Joan, and say, “Oh my gosh, have you read this one? It’s amazing!”

Joan gently brushed one of the claws as she passed by. There weren’t many kids in the library, rather in class, but there were a few Year 13’s in there for a free period. None of them even glanced up at Joan.

  “Mrs. Johansen?” Joan called meekly as she walked up to the librarian’s desk.

Mrs. Johansen was the blatant stereotype of a librarian- big, wide-rimmed glasses, older, warm amber eyes, curly brown hair. She looked up from the book she was reading to smile at Joan.

  “Yes, dear?” She said.

  “C-can you show me how to do a search?” Joan asked. She felt painfully awkward asking that, especially to an older woman, who apparently supposed to know nothing about technology, but Mrs. Johansen smiled kindly and nodded.

  “Of course,” She said. “Come on.”

It took a good five minutes, but Joan was eventually adept enough in computers to search things up. The first thing she did was look up ‘miracles’ and began to scroll through the search results, hoping to find some answers to the strange sensation she had been feeling in her veins ever since Friday.

mir·a·cle

/ˈmirək(ə)l/

noun

a surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divine agency.

Joan blinked, tilting her head at the definition as if she thought the words may start explaining their meaning to her even further if she stared hard enough.

Surprising? And welcome? She looked down at one of her hands, flexing her fingers. Mama didn’t seem to think her...issue...was either of those things. She clicked down to keep searching.

Miracles of the Renaissance

Jesus - Man of Miracles

Apparitions and Eucharistic Miracles 

Miracles on the internet!

Pray for a miracle

Herbal Miracles

Miracles and Modern Scientific Thoughts

Miracles: HIDDEN POWERS OF THE MIND

Joan paused. That last one seemed interesting. She clicked on it and was opened up to a page using big, fancy words she couldn’t really wrap her head around. But there was one in particular that caught her attention-- /telekinesis/. She had no idea what it meant, but something inside of her seemed to latch onto it and tug her interest towards the word until she searched it up in the search bar.

Psychokinesis (from Greek ψυχή "soul" and κίνησις "movement"), or telekinesis (from τηλε- "far off" and κίνηση "movement"), is an alleged psychic ability allowing a person to influence a physical system without physical interaction.

Joan’s eyes go wide with interest. Isn’t that what she did to that annoying neighborhood boy? And to Anne Boleyn? She moved them with her mind? 

She looked down at her hands again, but didn’t see anything special about them. They just looked like normal hands, just more bony and scarred than usual. Suddenly self conscious, she rubbed the old burn over her knuckles while clicking on a video about telekinesis.

And it was like watching a dream come true. Joan’s eyes widened even further as she watched as a man simply held out his hand and began to move the pages of a book without even touching them. Just like she did with Anne and the biker boy! He must have the same powers as her! Oh how she wished she could reach into the screen and pull this man out and ask him all the questions now running through her mind. Like, how are you doing that? And when did you know you could do it? And are there others like us? And will you teach me how to do that, too?

She was so enthralled with the video that she didn’t even realize someone was creeping up behind her…

  “Sorry! Sorry.” The brown haired boy with a camera around his neck said when she flinched around to look at him. “I just-- You can make it full screen, you know? Watch.” 

He reached over Joan and clicked the ‘f’ key and the video filled the entire computer screen. Joan’s eyes glimmered in awe.

  “Thank you,” She whispered.

  “No problem!” The boy said with a cheeky grin. He quickly hurried off to an empty table, leaving Joan alone.

He...wasn’t mean to her.

How strange...

------

Katherine quickly realized she had a lot less stamina than she thought she did. She has always been a perfect, well-behaved girl, always slipping out of punishment during the few times she wasn’t, so there wasn’t ever a need to have tough endurance for running because she never thought she would piss off a gym coach of all people.

But here she was, running Suicides in the field after school, fighting the urge to dry heave every few seconds.

The sun seemed to be unnaturally, blisteringly hot that evening, like it, too, was punishing her and her classmates for what they had done on Friday. Katherine doesn’t think she’s ever been so hot before. Her skin felt like it was baking, her hair was tassels of golden fire, and her back was a plateau of roaring flames. Gleaming yellow sunlight made her eyes prickly and sore, and if she squinted through the haze of exhaustion, she swore she thought she could see a big black buzzard circling overhead that seemed to be just waiting for one of them to drop dead.

  “Come on, ladies!” Miss Aragon shouted from the side of the field, looking absolutely delightful. “Lift those legs up! Faster! Faster!”

  “She--she can’t do this to us,” Anne wheezed as she careened up next to Katherine. She was absolutely dripping with sweat and red in the face, but Katherine couldn’t tell if that was from the sun, the exertion of the Suicides, or the fury from both.

  “Just--let it go, Anne. We’re almost done.” Katherine said through her teeth. It took a great effort to speak; she could feel bile curling in the back of her throat like bubbling acid.

  “And then every day this week?” Anne spat. “All because of Joan Seymour?”

  “Anne.” Katherine hissed. She picked up her pace to get away from her cousin, but when she turned to run back to the starting line, her foot slipped in the slick turf of the football field and she was sent sprawling on her stomach. The impact jarred her heavily and she dry heaved painfully until her lunch finally came rushing out of her mouth. A few girls winced, but mostly everyone kept running--not that she blamed them. Anne, however, darted over to her side, and she wasn’t sure if she was happy about that or not.

  “Are you okay?” Anne asked. Her concerned Big Cousin voice was slipping into her words and Katherine couldn’t help but crack a tiny smile at that. This was the side of Anne she liked, not the evil, cruel one who liked to pick on kids three years younger than her.

  “Y-yeah--” Katherine answered, spitting out the last of the bile in her mouth. “I’m fine.”

  “Howard,” Miss Aragon called, walking over, twirling her whistle on her finger. “Are you alright?”

  “Like you care…” Anne muttered. Miss Aragon gave her a dangerous glare, and Katherine set a hand on her knees to not only calm her cousin, but to also boost herself back up.

  “Yes ma’am,” Katherine said. “I’m okay.”

  “Good.” Miss Aragon rumbled. “I’m glad.” She shot Anne another look for a brief moment. “Get back to it. You’re almost done.”

Katherine nodded and then took off again, shortly followed by Anne, who was muttering something about this being “child abuse”.

Ten minutes of running in the searing heat passed and Miss Aragon’s whistle finally pierced the field. A collective sigh of relief swept through the class as girls skidded to a halt and instantly doubled over or completely collapsed to the floor in moaning, groaning heaps of soreness. A few scrambled for their water bottles and began drinking like it was the end of the world. Miss Aragon walked over to them, amusement painted brightly on her face.

  “Don’t drink too fast,” Their coach said to the girls guzzling down water, “or you may throw up.”

  “My legs are gonna fall off,” Bessie said in a woebegone voice. She was flopped over on her back, spilling her bleached white hair all across the green grass.

  “Now you know how it feels to be Joan Seymour, don’t you?” Miss Aragon said, looking down her nose at the girl.

  “I don’t think I’ve ever seen her have to run before,” Maggie pointed out grumpily. “Even though she’s the worst at literally everything we do in class…”

Miss Aragon glowered down at Maggie for a moment, then began marching up and down the cluster of girls. They all watched her tensely, waiting for her to exact an even harsher punishment than Suicides.

  “Life’s all about making choices, ladies,” Miss Aragon said. “And, last Friday, you made the wrong one. So here’s how it’s going to go.” Her eyes flashed like gleaming pieces of onyx in the sun. “You’re all going to apologize to Joan.”

There was an uproar of annoyed confusion. Miss Aragon rolled her eyes.

  “You are all going to apologize to her in front of everyone.” Miss Aragon said. 

  “And if we don’t?” Anne challenged.

  “Do you really want to find out?” Miss Aragon said scathingly. She turned and strode away from the field to go retrieve Joan Seymour from wherever she was, swathed in gleaming gold. 

The minute she was out of sight, Anne let out a roar of fury.

  “That goddamn pig!” She yelled, working herself up to a proper fit. “This is all her fault!!”

  “Let it go, Anne.” Katherine said tiredly. She carefully eased herself to the ground, wincing when her throbbing muscles pulled and bent. Relief was short lived, because Anne came charging up to her a second later.

  “Why are you taking her side?!” Anne cried.

  “This isn’t about taking sides!” Katherine cried back, a new sharpness in her voice. “What did Joan Seymour ever do to you? Or to any of us?”

A few of the girls exchanged looks, seemingly only now thinking about that, while others, like Anne, looked unfazed. Katherine saw Anne’s fists clench tightly at her side, but she didn’t back down her own defense. She didn’t think Anne would strike her, but if she did, she liked to think she could take her in a fight.

  “My, my,” Anne said with sickly sweet venom in her voice. “Look who’s become the little Joan of Arc around here?” Her demeanor then switched, flaming into seething resentment, and Katherine could now see that her older cousin hated Joan Seymour with every inch of her being--simply for existing. There was no rhyme or reason, she just despised the girl. “Oh yeah, remind me. Who was in there pitching with the rest of us?”

Katherine sucked in a sharp breath, but blew it out in a sigh. “I was.” She admitted.

  “Yeah.” Anne sneered. Several of the other girls were packed behind her, backing her up, while a few, like Bessie and Maria, stood or sat in the middle, looking from the swarm of sweaty, angry teens to Katherine and then back to the swarm. 

  “But I’m sorry.” Katherine said.

Anne barked a laugh. “Sorry?” She laughed again, then turned to the girls behind her. “Hey, everyone, little Miss Perfect is sorry! She’s so sorry! Oh, Kitty’s sorry!”

  “Anne!” Maria hissed, then jerked her head to the side, where the yellow figure of Miss Aragon could be seen walking back over. The group quickly dispersed and Katherine shook her head.

Miss Aragon stopped in front of them. At her side, little Joan looked absolutely horrified. Her eyes are wide and paler than the moon in the sunlight, and she kept fidgeting like she wanted to run. She was trying very hard not to look at any of the girls, but didn’t know where else to stare, so her gaze kept shifting around everywhere in a panic.

  “Now, do you all have something to say to Joan?” Miss Aragon said sternly.

  “Joan--” Katherine stood up, gritting her teeth through the awful wave of pain that burned through her muscles. She slowly walked up to Joan as to not frighten her, but Joan still backed up into Aragon’s side anyway. “I’m sorry.”

Joan hunched her shoulders in and looked away. 

  “Maria.” Miss Aragon said.

Maria hesitated for just a moment, then gave in. “Sorry.”

  “Your turn, Maggie.”

Maggie pressed her tongue against the inside of her lip and spat an uncaring, “Sorry.”

  “Bessie.”

Bessie squinted up at Joan through the sunlight, then said, “Oh. Sorry.”

  “Alright, Anne,” Miss Aragon said. “Let’s hear it.”

  “When goddamn pigs fly…” Anne muttered stubbornly. A few giggles broke out around her. Miss Aragon narrowed her eyes dangerously.

  “What was that?” Their coach said. “We’re waiting, Anne. I can’t hear you.”

  “Please, it’s okay,” Joan squeaked, gripping onto Miss Aragon’s sleeve. She looked up at her with the saddest, most scared eyes Katherine had ever seen before. Miss Aragon gently touched her head in a form of reassurance, then instantly glared at Anne.

  “I said--” Anne growled lowly.

  “You don’t have to do this!”

Joan is in front of Anne, now, hands outstretched like she wanted to grab onto her. In the sun, Katherine could see the silvery scars on her hands more clearly, whorled in strange patterns in her skin. The light made her long white-gold hair look like it was charged with glittering electricity or made of jeweled silk. Anne looked down at her, and Joan backed up, clasping her hands together against her chest nervously.

  “Joan Seymour?” Anne said softly, stepping towards the girl. She stooped down to her height and spat, “Eats shit.”

Joan flinched backwards as if she were just sprayed with venom. Miss Aragon instantly got between her and Anne, acting as a protective shield of sorts.

  “Good news, ladies!” She announced. “Because of Anne’s comment, you will all be getting another week of detention with doubled time!”

The class simultaneously groaned, now turned against Anne. Anne clenched her fists, smoldering with rage.

  “I’m not running another goddamn inch,” She snarled, “because Joan Seymour got her period and was too stupid to know what it was.”

Joan flinched again, and Katherine had the unbearable urge to run over to her and cover her ears so she wouldn’t have to hear this. Her own blood began to boil and she glared at her cousin.

  “That’s it.” Miss Aragon said. “You’re suspended.”

That seemed to hit Anne like a punch to the gut. Her eyes bulged hugely out of their sockets.

  “What?”

  “You’re out of prom and you’re out of my class.” Miss Aragon stated firmly. “Now.”

  “No!” Anne shouted.

  “NO?” Miss Aragon towered over her, eyes ablaze. She looked ready to rip Anne’s throat out, and Katherine found that she wouldn’t quite mind seeing that happen.

  “You can’t decide that!” 

  “Watch me.” Miss Aragon said. She turned her gaze to the other students, as if she were challenging them to try and speak out. “The rest of you. Another lap. Come on.”

  “You can’t do this to us!” Anne squawked. “Someone could die of dehydration! Bessie, you have a heart condition, don’t you?”

Bessie apparently decided that she didn’t know who Anne was, because she was looking at everything but her.

  “If we all stick together, they can’t suspend all of us!” Anne said fervently. There was a spark of craziness in her eyes as she watched her group of friends crumble around her, suddenly not backed up anymore. “We didn’t do anything wrong!”

Joan’s quiet whimper begged to differ. Miss Aragon looked at Anne in disgust. 

  “Come on, guys!” Anne desperately attempted to rally them together. “Haley, Allie? Maria? Heather?” She spun around for somebody, anybody, and then her eyes landed on her cousin. “Katherine!” She strode over to her and clasped their hands together. “You’re with me on this, right?”

  “Katherine…” Miss Aragon warned.

Katherine’s heart ached in her chest. Anne was looking at her with so much desperation and need. There were flickers of love in her gaze, love for her little cousin, love that showed that the old Anne was still in there somewhere and ready to play harmless pranks with Katherine again. But when she looked right into her eyes, all she saw was Joan on the floor of the stall, crying and hyperventilating and surrounded by blood.

Her mind was made up.

  “Come on, guys,” Katherine pulled out of Anne’s grasp and jogged over to the starting line to get the last bout of Suicides over with. The others followed, and out of the corner of her eyes she saw Anne staring at her with a look of heartbreak and betrayal. 

Heartbreak and betrayal that morphed into something awful and sinister.

  “You fucking bitch,” Anne seethed lowly, wheeling around to glare at Joan. The poor girl was shaking like a leaf in the wind, practically cowering behind Miss Aragon. “I’ll get you for this! See if I don’t, you filthy pi-”

Anne’s words were silenced by a fierce slap across her face. She tottered backwards, and all the girls running stopped to gasp and ogle the scene with wide eyes. Miss Aragon was scowling and rubbing her hand.

  “You can’t--” Anne sputtered, and then yelped loudly as her collar was grabbed. Miss Aragon shook her roughly, screaming in her face.

  “ONE MORE WORD OUT OF YOU AND I’LL MAKE YOU WISH YOU NEVER SHOWED UP TO SCHOOL TODAY!!” Miss Aragon roared. She shook Anne again, then drew her in close. Her words came out barbed and wrapped in shards of glass. “Do you understand me?”

Whimpering, Anne nodded. Miss Aragon released her and Katherine watched as her cousin took off, crying. Miss Aragon looked at the rest of them and shook her head.

  “You’re all dismissed,” She said. Then, she turned, gently took Joan by the hand, and guided her back inside.

Everyone else dispersed pretty quickly, not caring enough to change clothes. Katherine, however, had to trudge to the locker room because she stupidly put all her stuff in there. When she entered, she could hear voices coming from Miss Aragon’s office.

  “Joan, sweetheart? I’m so sorry, if I had known it would have gone like that--”

  “Oh, Miss Aragon, you just have to let Anne go to the prom! You got to!”

Those were Miss Aragon and Joan. Now Katherine had to stay and eavesdrop on their conversation. She shut the door silently so as to not alert them and crept closer to hear better.

  “Joan--”

  “Prom is very important to her…”

  “And what’s right is important to me.” Miss Aragon said firmly.

  “But prom is everything to those girls!” Joan warbled. “It’s the one night they get to dress up and be beautiful! It’s like a dream!”

  “But what about you?”

Pause.

Hesitation.

  “No--” Joan said, and Katherine thought she may have been shaking her head. “Oh, no, I’m not going. I’m--I’m /different/.” 

Was that disgust in her voice? Why?

  “Not that different.” 

  “Yes, I am.” 

That was sadness and grief. 

Joan added a moment later, solemnly and slightly envious, “They all got someone…”

  “And so will you one day, things change.” Miss Aragon told her.

There’s a moment of silence. Katherine could bet a million dollars that Joan was looking at Miss Aragon in disbelief right now.

  “I tell you what. Let’s pretend--”

  “Miss Aragon…”

  “Just for a minute! Pretend that the right someone comes up to you and says: ‘Joan, will you be my date to the prom?’ What would you say?”

A beat of silence.

  “No.”

  “J--”

Miss Aragon sighed heavily. Katherine struggled not to laugh.

  “Joan, why not?”

  “I’m not--” Joan fumbled. “I’m not--pretty.”

Miss Aragon gave a tiny gasp.

  “Oh, sweetheart… Sure you are! Look--” Katherine can faintly hear her root around for something, most likely a pocket mirror. “See there? That’s a pretty girl.”

Katherine’s mind was spinning. She kept thinking “poor Joan” over and over and over again. The girl’s self esteem was so low. It was normal for people to make comments about their body, but there was a sort of deep hatred in Joan’s voice when she said that she wasn’t pretty that made Katherine think all of this ran a lot deeper than she thought.

Would there ever be a way to make things right?

[australiancarisi]

Secrets ~ Sonny Carisi

You are the newest detective at SVU, things are great until things from your past come back to haunt you.  Look at me starting a new story when I have a million stories to be written... oh well.  Also, I know my stories are very dialogue-heavy, I'm working on it  Also posted on ao3 Words: 1360

You took a deep breath as you looked up at the building in front of you. The 16th precinct in New York City, the home of SVU, your new home. With one last big breath, you walked in. The precinct was relatively busy with unis coming in for change of shift and a few perps in handcuffs. A Sargent sent you to the elevators towards the back of the precinct.

“Can I help you?” A blonde lady looked up from her desk.

“I’m looking for Captain Olivia Benson” you say, holding your hand out “I’m detective y/n Diaz, LAPD”

“I’ll get her for you” she shook your hand before walking into an office.

“Y/n nice to you” Olivia said shaking your hand “we’re really looking forward to having you”

“I’m really looking forward to working here, heard good things about SVU” she quickly gave you a tour of the precinct and showed you to your desk. You were setting up your computer when two people walked in.

“Hey who’s sitting at Carisi’s desk?” the man asked

“Carisi?” you asked Amanda

“Former detective now our ADA” Amanda filled you in.

“Y/n this is Detective Kat Tamin and Sargent Tutuola, guys this is detective y/n Diaz, she’s transferring from LAPD Major Crimes unit”

“Call me Fin” he said shaking your hand before you shook Kat’s hand. “Liv, you didn’t mention that were getting a transfer”

“It was very fast, Chief Dodds told me about it a couple of days ago”

“What brings you to New York?” Kat asked

“Wanted a change” you shrugged “my captain thought New York would be a good fit”

“Well, I’m glad to have you we need more help around here” Fin nodded as everyone go on with their work. 

A few hours later, you were standing behind the one-way glass of interrogation 1 as Fin and Kat worked over a perp.

“What have we got?” A man with a heavy accent asked as he walked into the room. Staten island you were pretty sure. You looked him up and down. He was tall and lanky, carrying a briefcase. 

Must be a lawyer, you thought to yourself. He had also been carrying his phone as he walked in but had slipped it into his suit pocket.

“Jack Davis, 24, he’s the Vic’s ex-boyfriend they broke up a week ago. We’ve got footage of him following her out of the club and through the park and then 20 minutes later he’s walking out and she’s found dead in the morning” Amanda said

“And you are?” He looked at you

“Detective y/n Diaz, just transferred from LA Major Crimes” you said

“she’s your replacement” Amanda smirked at him

“So, you’re Carisi?” you asked

“ADA Dominick Carisi Jnr” Amanda introduced him

“Call me Sonny” he said as Amanda mouthed along with him. Sonny pushed her lightly with his elbow “I thought Kat was my replacement”

“Well y/n got your desk, Kat can be Dodds’ replacement about time we got more detectives” Amanda grumbled before you all turned your attention back to the job at hand.

You groaned as you sat down at your desk. You were tired, exhausted really. You had barely slept last night after deciding just to stay in the cribs last night after realising it was 2am, you had finally made a break in a high-profile case. A ‘highly respected’ senator had been accused of rape of a 15-year-old schoolgirl and after you finally convinced Sonny to get a warrant to look through his computer you had found child pornography of not only the girl that came forward but a three of her classmates that you guys had interviewed and a number of unknown girls.

“Do you ever leave?” Liv asked as she walked into the prescient with Kat and Fin.

“Not last night” You shrugged, and Liv gave you the look.

‘The Signature Liv Look’ Fin called it. Also known as her mum look. From the moment you started at SVU, it didn’t take long for you to learn that Liv was fiercely protective of her squad.

 Mama Bear.

“y/n” the tone was one of warning “you’ve been working too much lately; you need to get more than three hours sleep and when was the last time you had a home-cooked meal?”

“When was the last time I ate with Sonny?” you grinned at her

“Last Wednesday” Sonny called. He walked in with Amanda “After court, we went back to yours”

“Last Wednesday” you said to Liv

“y/n- “

“I promise I’ll take care of myself, but this is a big case” you pointed out

“They are all big cases” Liv said “Carisi what are you doing here?”

“Well” he held up a box from the bakery around the corner from his apartment “Happy 9-month SVU anniversary Detective Diaz”

“Oooo” you made grabby hands at the bag

“You promised me something?” Sonny asked

“Uh fine” you rolled your eyes before getting on your laptop to pull up the photos “found these last night”

“Does this mean we don’t have to plead him out?” Kat said

“So long as we can get these girls to talk at least Dianna and her classmates we’ll have this in the bag” Sonny nodded

“Fin Amanda go talk to the girls” Liv said

“So, did I do good?” you grinned at Sonny. All he did was hand you the box “Cannoli! My favourite”

“Happy 9-month SVU anniversary” Sonny winked

“Do you always give people cannoli on their 9-month work anniversary?” Fin raised his eyebrows

“Where was mine?” Kat smirked

“Or does it have to do with the fact Detective Diaz’s 9-month anniversary for SVU also happens to be your 6-month relationship anniversary?” Liv joined in on the teasing and your face turned pink. You never intended to get in a relationship with Sonny, it just happened. You and Sonny worked well together even though you bickered. You managed to hold yourself out for a while but after a particularly hard case you and Sonny went out for drinks and the night ended with you in Sonny’s bed. After 3 months at SVU, you and Sonny started dating. It was the worst kept secret.

“How do you even remember that?” Sonny asked “He’s had to remind me for the past week” “You finally disclosed on your 3-month anniversary, that was 3 months ago” Liv said

“How does she remember that?” You mumbled around the cannoli you had just shoved in your mouth.

“Charming” Fin shook his head

“Alright come on let’s put his pig behind bars” Liv changing into boss mode. Sonny leaned down and kissed your lips.

“We still on for tonight?” He asked

“Depends on how-“

“Yes, you are. She is not staying here any later than half-past five” Liv called over her shoulder making you roll your eyes.

“I’ll see you then” you pecked his cheek and pushed him towards the door “Thanks for the cannoli!”

You sat at your desk and savoured your cannoli while Liv went over all the details that you had collected overnight and shared them with the rest of the squad. While Liv was talking you took a moment to realise how much your life had changed in the nine months you had been at SVU. Besides the fact that you had a great job and amazing boyfriend who treated you like the princess deep down you wanted to be, you were also a part of an incredible squad who had quickly become like a second family to you, especially Amanda, having her as your partner was great. Overall you were just so much happier now than you ever thought you could have been nine months ago.

“We’ve got him” Kat smirked

“Let’s not get too confident” Liv sighed as a uni walked up to you handing you a letter that had been dropped off “we never know what could happen when it goes to trial” you slowly opened the letter. As you opened it all the colour in the world instantly drained away and you thought you were going to fall apart

we’ll be together again soon baby girl

[girlbookwrm]

Bah! Bah! Bah da-dah. Badabadabadadah bah dah dah! (<-- this is the iron man song)

THE MIGHTY ENDGAME REWATCH CONTINUES: PART THREE

(parts one and two are HERE)

The Gal Pal has joined us, so tonight we are three (@goteamwin is the Roommate and @pegasuschick is the Gal Pal.) This time we ALL pregamed with booze and cookies. 

Further note: It Has Been Years and I Still Miss The Old Marvel Logo

The Gal Pal: For a second I thought this was Lord of the Rings

THIS WAS A GAMBLE. I have to remind myself of this every time I watch this movie because this was a hhUUUUUGE gamble starring a recovering addict and directed by a nobody using technology that had been tested in Transformers, a franchise known for it’s kwality filmmaking (not u bumblebee i’m sure you’re g r e a t)

(the roommate would like it noted that they probably stipulated in RDJ’s contract that he wouldn’t be fully paid until he finished the movie because he’d flaked out on previous filming commitments for. you know. getting arrested and going to jail.)

This is a solid opening. A Super Solid Opening, in fact. Quality flashback. Actually TFA, take note. This is how you do a flashback, TFA

WELL THAT ESCALATED QUICKLY

comedy moment with the stark missile here. 

Howard Stark Mark I. (of three. Never forget. that there are three howard starks)

Oh No it’s Wrong Rhodes. Rhong Wrodes? just Wrodes?

Obadiah Stane? Really?? who thought he was a good guy??? although I love how easily he does this “getting on the stand to accept an award for Tony” thing. like he’s done it a thousand times before. because of course he has.

GOD THEY'RE ALL SO YOUNG

no da Vinci his a fair comparison, actually, given that Da Vinci apparently designed loads and loads of Very Deadly Things. 

At this juncture, the Gal Points out:

Not to be super gay here, but I would observe that the later Iron Man movies get hotter lady extras. Just a note.

she is not wrong. 

You're better than this journalist lady.

actually wait is she only sleeping with tony for the purpose of snooping?

SHIT SHE TOTALLY IS.

on the one hand DAMN PEPPER I HOPE CHRISTINE GETS MEDICAL ATTENTION FOR THAT BURN but on the other hand BOO GIRL ON GIRL CRIME.

Tony your music is bad

why isn’t it the iron man song

what band is it that does the iron man song

black sabbath, said the Gal Pal and The Roommate in unison.

tony i thought you weren’t a painter how do you even know who pollack is

The perpetual question with this movie: Was the script That Good or is RDJ Just That Good?

Will We Ever Truly Know

WRONG RHODES HAS A POTATO FACE RIGHT RHODES HAS A GREMLIN FACE. YOU NEED CORRECT GREMLIN POTATO FACE PAIRING.

Things that Date This Movie:

Tony’s suits (the fabric ones)

The phones (ohhhhhhhhhh my god flip phones oh my gooooooooddddd)

the fact that the hero is a new york billionaire with his name on the side of a building and people actually like him

Wait is Obie fucking someone? NO DON'T MAKE ME THINK THAT

I hate this part NOSE NO THANK U. GROSS. GROSS. NO I DON’T LIKE IT. NO. i came here for an ACTION MOVIE not a BODY HORROR MOVIE HELP PLS

Yinsen is v well dressed. like. Yinsen is SO dapper wtf Tony looks like a bum by comparison. And his chemistry with Tony is Un. Paralleled (except by pepper.) He fucking NAILS THIS ROLE. Ho Yinsen, International treasure

sub note YINSEN’S FIRST NAME IS HO. YOU ARE ALL VERY WELCOME.

sub sub note: The Roommate spent like fifteen minutes calling him Jensen. This Seems Racist. She points out that I am being racist for thinking that. She may be right. 

the ten rings IT IS LOTR

“I don't watch Iron Man that often, it's always a surprise when I enjoy it” - The Roommate

I THOUGHT YOU SAID YOU WEREN'T A PAINTER TONY. THOSE ARE VERY GOOD DOODLES FOR SOMEONE WITH NO ARTISTIC INCLINATIONS.

I love/hate that it’s like: Oh no this bad guy speaks English NOW WE'RE IN TROUBLE.

THAT. SEEMS. RACIST.

“Yes I would like a delivery date” says the roommate, someone very accustomed to working with clients that do not provide a coherent delivery date/schedule.

every time i see this scene i am reminded of that interview where Cevans is like: tthHHAT’S RDJ?? and then he licks his lips like the thirsty little bitch he may or may not be.

army recruitment - avengers - dick swinging contest - dumpster fire <-- this is literally the note i made for myself, i don’t know exactly how we got onto this particular sidetrack but look here’s the story:

the pentagon subsidized the early marvel movies, but then they stopped. that was a fun fact that I knew

the gal pal looked it up and it is Very Real. She was explaining to us that they STOPPED subsidizing marvel movies after the avengers because SHIELD. ‘Does the army answer to SHIELD or does SHIELD answer to the army?’

Me: SO ARE YOU TELLING ME. THAT THE ARMY. A REAL LIFE ORGANIZATION. STOPPED FUNDING MARVEL MOVIES. BECAUSE THEY GOT INTO A DICK MEASURING CONTEST WITH SHIELD AND MIGHT HAVE LOST????

yes

the answer to that question is yes

the military industrial complex is a dumpster fire.

32 minute mark and Tony has more time with yinsen than anyone else

I cannot believe it took them them THIS LONG TO FIGURE OUT SOMETHING WAS WRONG. No one thought to question that glowing thing in tony’s chest, just like: Nah that seems right. That’s part of the missile building process, right? They're working. this seems fine

It's still a horror movie but now Tony is the monster 

he was always the monster

YINSEN WE HARDLY KNEW YE

Tony Tedward Stark you're literally the only person in the world who didn't know Yinsen’s family was dead. “I’ll see them when I leave here?” THEY’RE DEAD TONY. THEY’VE ALWAYS BEEN DEAD.

also: YINSEN IS AN INTERNATIONAL TREASURE

Tony, at the end of this fight scene, is A) deaf from all the bullets pinging off his suit. B) very badly burned, and C) has broken every bone in his body.

All Jameses in the MCU come with an innate Bullshit Detection Sensor. “Steve’s in trouble” “What’s that explosion? probably Tony.” JAMES POWERS ACTIVATE.

40 minutes in and this is the first time I buy Wrodes as a pal. Maybe

Tony Stark: BRING ME BURGERS. YINSEN TOLD ME NOT TO WASTE MY LIFE

oh hey phil is here!

Tony you have PTSD ---- aaaand you also have a burger stashed in your sling? that’s the best thing. THAT’S THE BEST THING.

UGH GOD OBIE’S ON A SEGWAY GROSSSSS (as if we didn’t already know that he was evil just from his NAME)

The Gal Pal, re Tony vs his PTSD: of course he builds himself a suit of armor. we're lucky he didn't end up in a gimp suit.

me, internally: bold of you to assume he doesn’t.

I refuse to even imagine this movie with Tom Cruise it would be so Wrong. (For those who don’t know, the studio really wanted Tom Cruise  to play Tony, Jon Favreau really went to bat for RDJ against the studio, you know. on account of the whole. addiction getting arrested thing.)

TONY THIS IS A LABORATORY, WE WEAR OUR SHOES AND BUTTON OUR SHIRTS.

Mad money really dates this too. Add that to the list of things that date this.

Tony: Pepper you’ve got small hands, right? get down here.

 Now is the perfect time to remind you all that comics tony has canonically been pegged by Gamora.

You Are Welcome

A) pepper is great. B) Tony is definitely not really going into cardiac arrest. C) I’m remembering that they were my first Marvel OTP and I love them.

Re: Rhodey and the whole “Manned vs unmanned flight” and Tony coming in like “What about just the pilot with no plane” or whatever QUICK QUESTION ASKING FOR A FRIEND WHEN DOES THE FALCON PROGRAM HAPPEN

RDJ and his big sad brown cow eyes. 

The Roommate: I know I wasn’t into it at the time, because I was a youth and he’s like forty and I was like “No, he is Not For Me.”

Me: PAST YOU WAS A MORON.

The Roommate: Yeah i know that NOW.

Tony built his own keyboard that's so extra

Yikes generic ten rings bad guy you should put a bandage on that

ROBOT ABUSE, but also, can we talk about how much I love DUM-E, U, and also this entire sequence?

U is getting real fancy with the camera zooms

At this point we got into a discussion of whether the arc reactor gives Tony powers:

Me: Please. He’s a glorified normie. He’s the Batman of the Marvel Universe.

The Roommate: Yeah! He’s the Batman of marvel with out the...

Me: The what exactly? 

The Roommate: The dead... no his parents are... the car-- no he’s got lots of fancy-- The pearls. He’s the Batman of Marvel without the pearls.

now we have to wait until Civil War to see if Maria Stark is wearing pearls when she dies.

PIZZA. Obie is like the stepdad with that pizza. “I’m taking the pizza back. Nah go on take a slice.” G R O S S

Paul Bettany! You're better as a disembodied voice. 

The Roommate: I do not care for your purple robot form. I know Wanda does but--

Me: Listen. We’ve all made mistakes and bought an unreasonably large purple dildo

The Gal Pal: And we’ve all gotten attached to non-human characters. 

The Roommate: Like the fox from Robin Hood!

The Gal Pal: Exactly. And hey, maybe he just keeps going, you know? like the energizer Bunny.

Me, Upset: NONONONONONONO

The Roommate: now hang on a minute that’s interesting.

Tony, i feel like you didn't think though. But seriously, what is this scene? Why is there a Ferris wheel? Are those the director's kids?

YOU’RE DOING GREAT, DUM-E.

Tony, quick question, did you cut holes in all your tee-shirts? Why? There’s no need for it? It’s Literally? Just for the dramatic effect? Tony?? WHy??? ARe YoU LIke THiS????

they are literally titty windows

these shirts are probably very expensive

sToP

oooo the bad guy (side note, put on a bandaid my guy. get some neosporin or something) has the iron man 1.0 suit and waaaIT A SECOND ARE THERE BULLET HOLES IN THE CROTCH ARMOR??? DID THEY SHOOT TONY IN THE CROTCH?

First of all, Jarvis is a treasure, I’m sad they ever got rid of him, second of all I love that Tony can just show up unannounced at a Very Important Party and no one questions it, third of all:

Poooterrrrrr

Oh hey Phil is here!!

Oh Pep. You are so on top of things, you basically run SI, you know your fear about the deoderant is just paranoia. You applied twice and you have an extra one in your purse and you’re wearing perfume. You smell like roses and victory.

O! T! P!

Christine, why do you have these photos where have you been keeping them why don’t you just pull them up on your phoneOHHHH RIGHT THIS IS THE PAST THERE ARE NO SMART PHONES YET FFGHSSJJSJSDKDKD I FEEL OLD.

Tony is standing on a higher step than Obie for this. The Smolest Avenger.

This is the first full iron Man moment but all I can think is:

Toe socks Tony? really?

~Cool guys don't look at explosions~

SOMEONE REALLY NEEDS TO TELL MARVEL THAT MORE VILLAINS =/= BETTER VILLAINS.

Rhodes sees the boom on the screen and is like but… Tony is here. in the US. I know he's here. I'm 99% sure. 98%. (explosion #2) I’m 95% sure. (by explosion #5) I’m 42% sure that Tony is in the US.

Definitely the worse thing that Pepper saw was him cutting titty windows in his tee shirts

MARVEL! MORE VILLAINS ARE NOT BETTER VILLAINS!!

beeteedubs We All Hate the way Obie says “data” and “manufacturing.” Dah-tuh. Man-uh-fact-ering. U G H.

YOU DON’T UNDERSTAND PEPPER I HAVE A NEW JOB NOW AND IT'S SAAAAVING THE PLANET

every movie ever: Is this hacking? Is this how hacking works?

Obie’s frankenstein vein and the way he slllluuuuurrrrps his whiskey. GROSS.

Oh Hey Phil Is Here!!!

What other applications?

WAIT WHAT OTHER APPLICATIONS ARE THERE FOR SHORT TERM PARALYSIS?

NO DON’T TELL ME I DON’T WANT TO KNOW

Hhhhhhow does Obie already have a specially designed arc reactor extractor?

TONY WHY DON’T YOU GET ON THE SCOOTER INSTEAD OF SHOVING IT AWAY? WOULDN’T YOU GO FASTER?

DUM-E IS A TREASURE

Re Pepper:

The Roommate: Pepper’s superpower is calling the right authorities and making sure the right people get arrested.

Me: so what I’m hearing is that Pepper’s superpower is being a responsible adult???

This Seems Accurate.

“Anything else I can do?” says Terrence Howard. “yeah, you can turn into don cheedle” say we all.

Where's the water in this creepy underground lair. Whyyyyyy are there water light effects? WHERE? IS? THE WATER???

OMG look at that cgi wowwwww he’s just coming up through the concrete and it is Definitely CGI.

dear obadiah stane: YOU DO NOT FIRE PEPPER POTS SHE IS ESSENTIAL. IF YOU FIRE PEPPER POTTS YOUR COMPANY COLLAPSES LITERALLY THE NEXT DAY.

Hey Obie. Did you put the Batman voice modulator in yourself orrrr... 

Holy Cow Digital Hand is Very Digital.

HANG ON ISN'T THIS EXACTLY WHAT ANT MAN DOES TO TONY IN CIVIL WAR???

Blow the reactor, he says. JUST DO IT, he says.

The Gal Pal: Shhhh you can hear Howard Stark rolling over in his grave

oh hey Zuul is coming

OH HEY PHIL IS HERE!!!!

The roommate: THAT'S NOT TRUE SMALL AIRCRAFT ARE VERY SAFE

WAIT WAS CAPTAIN MARVEL PHIL’S FIRST RODEO? *need to see Captain Marvel Intensifies*

“Girlfriend who worries about me” Tony says. It's Rhodes. Right? I mean. He already has a girlfriend who worries about him. It’s Colonel Rhodes. 

tony is so bad at lying

which is cute and all but FORREALS do you remember seeing this movie for the first time? whether you like Iron Man or not, whether you like MARVEL or not, this is fucking cinematic history happening here. this is the first franchise of its kind, it opened the door for so many others and it is so weird to remember that.

BAH! BAH! BAH DA-DUH. BADABADABADADAH! BAH DAH DAH!!

we have spent literally the entire movie waiting for this song to play

wow Jarvis u ok

THERE HE IS. Lookit him. with his eyepatch. he’s Seen Things. he’s Done Stuff. him and phil. geeze.

Me: I really wish I had just seen Captain Marvel 

The Gal Pal: I feel like that every morning

i mean i don’t want to harp on this given that we’ve already moved on from the incorrect hulk but WHY WOULD TONY STARK BE RECRUITING ROSS?????

[boarix]

Wraith in the Ruins: A Fallout 4 Story Part XV

Nefarious They

Trigger warnings: Canon violence/language/gun use. Mature content *throws lemons* so look out

Game spoilers

Please enjoy!

 “It was deliberate. A direct attack on Sanctuary.”

Hancock idly flipped his tricorn, “Hmm. I’d say more like it was a attack on you, sunshine.”

“What do you mean? I wasn’t even here.” Wraith, who had been examining gouges in some of the trees that bordered Sanctuary’s fence, now turned to the ghoul, confusion on her face, “I thought that they waited until they were sure I wasn’t.”

“I don’t doubt it; you’re too terrifying to mess with directly! But you’re hurt if your loved ones are hurt, you feel me?” His smile was pitying, “If someone wants to punish you, make you suffer, than the best way is to kill your people.”

Confusion turned to anger and then swiftly to fear, “To hurt me…”

“Trouble is your people are very strong. MacCready and Danse alone could take out a score of… whatever they got.”

“They… who are ‘they’?”

After returning Valentine to his wife and appointing a new Quartermaster to Diamond City, Wraith had made good on her promise to Edward Deegan; offering her support and condolences as they delivering the remains of Emogene and Virgil to the Cabot house. Afterward she had continued on with her interrupted schedule by travelling to The Castle to check in with Preston. A few weeks had passed since the incident and Wraith would have had nothing to go on but hearsay had Danse not taken pictures.

As soon as he had known Panther would recover, he had taken the settlements camera to the breach. The photos documented the unmistakable Mecanum wheel tracks left by a sentry bot leading to and from the massive hole in Sanctuary’s defense as well as boot tracks from the aforementioned ‘They’.

“I suppose the robot dragged the caged deathclaw here too.” Wraith was running her hand back and forth over her freshly clipped hair, “Why didn’t anyone hear it? Or see it? I supposed they could have rigged it up with a stealth-boy and waited until Mac’s class started… Rust Devils? They certainly would have the knowledge…”

“They ain’t particularly stealthy though. They like it when their victims know whose victimizing ‘em.” Hancock took her fidgeting hand in his and squeezed it gently, “And if they knew to wait for MacCready’s class to mask the noise then that means there’s been a spy skulking round for a bit. Seen any new faces lately?”

“I haven’t been here… I should check in at the gate and the Rocket; talk to Tina, she was a Devil.”

“I don’t get how they could have dragged a caged deathclaw cross the Wealth without attracting some attention. I realize the population ain’t exactly dense…” Hancock paused, smiling to himself on his phrasing, “Somebody had to have seen somethin’.”

“You up for playing detective with me?”

“I’m always down for some roll-play.”

 Tina shook her head emphatically, “No ma’am. The Devils would want you to know it was them. It’s possible this was staged to look like them to make you crush them.” She offered Wraith a somewhat abashed smile, “It’s not like there are many of them left for you to punish.”

“The Hounds have been doing a commendable job in keeping Minutemen settlements safe. You should be proud, Tina.”

Lifting her chin, the former raider gave Wraith a sharp salute, “I am very proud, general! Thank you for taking a chance on me.”

Stepping out of the Red Rocket, Wraith winced as the wave of light and heat washed over her, “Ugh… so…”

“Who’s left?”

“This seemed more organized than your average raider group. L&L?”

Hancock was quick to dismiss them, “Not likely.” He removed his hat and held it aloft, blocking the sun from Wraith’s face as they walked, “I’ll have my network look into things. We’ll figure out who’s fuckin’ with ya and serve them up some bad days. No worries, sunshine.”

“In the meantime, I guess I’ll have the Minutemen make sure to check new visitors. I’ll reinitialize long patrols on all settlements… I hate to do that but we are going to be on high alert.”

Bear stopped them after they passed through the gate, “C’mere a sec, Wolf. I want to measure your feet.”

“My feet? Oooo, are you going to make me some new gofasters?”

“New gowhatnow?”

Bear chuckled, “It’s slang for ‘sneakers’, Johnny Boy. And no, I’m making you some serious shit-kicker boots! That deathclaw hide made some fantastic leather and I’m itchin’ to start creating.”

Wraith had worked with the ghoul to re-build the home just to the right of the bridge. Now with a full workshop and storefront, Bear’s business was booming. So much so that he had begun an apprentice program, just so he could have assistance with the near-overwhelming volume of orders.

“I noticed you seem to make a big deal about everyone else’s birthday, while doin’ your best to pretend yours don’t exist. Well, I’ve literally known you for centuries, so I’m making you something special and I want it done for the BIG one.” He passed her a vest as she sat down, “Try this on too.”

Wraith groaned, “Two-hundred forty years…”

“You’re only as old as the woman you feel.”

“It’s not the years, it’s the mileage.”

“Thanks, boys. That’s great. Super helpful.”

Bear clapped his large hands together, “Oh yeah, I finished the new armored jackets for the Hounds.” Turning, he grabbed an enormous coat off of a rack and held it up for them to see, “I even made one for my buddy Strong!”

The garment’s main body was fashioned from dark green leather and on the back the Hounds’ symbol, the Triskelion was done in golden inlay.

Hancock whistled appreciatively, “That is some mighty fine craftsmanship there. You’re a true master!”

“Incredible! Cait is going to spaz!”

“You think so?” Bear ducked his head, suddenly embarrassed, “You think she’ll be happy?”

Hancock’s eyes crinkled in a warm smile, “Yeah, brother. She’ll love ‘em.”

Leaving the shop, both were quiet as they entertained happy romantic thoughts. Arm in arm despite the heat, they slowly made their way up the street. Sudden bombastic laughter made them both jump slightly and as they turned a corner they could see Duncan, mouth open wide, laughing and pointing at Shaun. Wraith’s grandson was singing and dancing in a goofy manner along to the radio.

“Pretty good set of pipes on that kid… Nate sing?”

“Not as well as you. Honestly. I’m not just saying that to blow up your ego, or get in your pants.”

“I like it when you do those things too though…”

“Anchor! Anchor!” The song had ended and Duncan was clapping and shouting, “More! Anchor!”

Breathless, Shaun bowed with mock solemnity, “Jus a min, Dunk. I wanna talk to Grandma Wraith...”

Wraith clapped as well, “Anchor? What’s Anchor?”

“Oh, he just means ‘encore’. Dr. Curie said it earlier… So, speaking of that; Cap’n Danse left the clinic a little bit ago and he looked, I dunno… like, scared.”

“Brother Shaun! I asking politely, please!”

“Give me a second please.” Shaun smiled and shook his head, “He’s really needy today… So, yeah… um maybe you should poke your head in and see if Dr. Curie and…”

“I ASKING POLITELY!”

“Not at that volume.” Even with a quiet and even tone Shaun’s admonishment cracked like a whip.

“You have this under control?” Wraith popped her chin at the now apparently sullen Duncan.

“He needs to know I’ll stop playing with him if he gets too bossy, right?” Shaun flashed her an impish grin, “It’s just as important for a child to be told ‘no’ for reasonable reasons, as it is to receive positive reinforcement.”

“Ha! Well alright then.”

“That one from you?” Hancock tucked his chin, his question quiet.

“Yeah, but hearing it said back to me… ugh, it sounds really…”

“Robotic?”

“Yeah…”

Once inside the clinic, Wraith knocked politely on Curie’s exam room. Both jumped back when the door flew open and Fahrenheit, face scarlet in fury, yelled at them.

“I TOLD YOU TO LEAVE!” As soon as she realized who she was roaring at, the red in her cheeks deepened, “What do you two want?”

“I’m sorry Fahr; I thought your exam would have been over…”

Curie’s voice carried an uncharacteristic tone of irritation, “Mademoiselle’s exam has not yet started.”

“This is all just a waste of time! I will not be a party to this farce!” The redhead swept out her hand, seeming to indicate all of Sanctuary, “I will not stay here for the remainder of my pregnancy to be poked and prodded!” She stabbed a finger in Curie’s face, “Perhaps you’ll do better to convince Mrs. Valentine to be your lab rat. I will not!”

“Who said anything about you staying here? I thought you just came to get an ultrasound? Maybe hear th’ lil one’s heartbeat…” Hancock’s face clouded in confusion.

“I simply asked.” Curie pushed herself to her feet and frowned at Wraith, “This… woman… yelled at Danse after I asked him to help me move equipment.” Her struggle to maintain a professional tone was becoming increasingly apparent, “He would have naturally left before the examination commenced! Her… bellowing was unnecessary!”

“YOU’RE UNNECESSARY!”

“Okay whoa!” Hancock stood between them with his hands up, “Let’s all just breathe…”

Wraith’s laughter cut through the room like a saber, “Ha ha… you’re… hahaha.”

“I fail to see what is so damn funny.”

“Fahrenheit this is so unlike you! No one is going to make you do anything! As if we even could.” Wraith wiped a tear from her eye, “I’m sorry for laughing but this has gotten really out of hand, right? You came all this way… so let’s regroup. Do you want me to stay? Do you want your dad here? You tell us how you want this to go.”

“Monsieur Hancock is… oh my.”

“He raised me but he didn’t help make me.”

“Oh, I don’t know about that.”

She rolled her eyes, “Semantics… you were pivotal in my development as an individual. Satisfied?”

“Quite.”

Fahrenheit’s shoulders sagged, “Very well. I might have overreacted. But I am firm in that Amari will deliver my child.”

“But surely my procedural knowledge far outweighs even Dr. Amari’s.”

“How many babies have you delivered?”

“Well… none.”

“She has delivered several to drifters; in poor health, no less.” She gestured to Hancock, “He himself has helped with at least four in my memory. Their practical experience far outweighs your procedural knowledge, Dr. Curie.” She offered the synth a slight smile, “If we can time it out and you would like to come and observe, I suppose I would have no objections.”

“You’ve delivered babies, Hancock?”

“Helped. I helped. Mostly just made sure there was clean water and a hand to hold.”

“I’ve been made to understand that even these simple things can be pivotal, oui?” Curie sighed, “I would be remiss if I did not defer to the mother.” She turned and pulled a book from the shelf behind her desk. Smiling, she offered it to the ghoul, “In that case, please accept this, Monsieur Hancock. I know you will have no difficulty in committing it to memory and I am certain Dr. Amari will find it useful as well.”

“Tiny, Tiny Babies: All You Need to Know About Pediatric Medicine.” Flipping through the first few pages, his smile was tender, “I might get choked up here…”

“In that case, please leave! I’ve had my fill of hormonally-induced, excessive emotion today. Thank you.”

“Fine by me.” Smiling wickedly, he kissed the top of her head as he passed her on his way to the door, “Love you, Fahr.”

“I said no more.” Her smile betrayed her tone.

 That evening, Wraith used her guests as an excuse to throw a settlement-wide cookout. The outdoor communal dining area was filled with the sounds of people happily eating and visiting. Wraith sat at a picnic table with the MacCreadys, Shaun, Hancock, Fahrenheit, Curie and Danse. Sighing with contentment she watched their faces, committing their expressions and happy tones to memory; fighting dark thoughts about how she might have lost them to the deathclaw.

Fahrenheit’s exam had gone well and she agreed to go back after dinner so that Hancock could hear the heartbeat of his grandchild.

“You and Mikey come up with some names yet?”

“No, MacCready; Michael and I will decide when we actually meet the child.”

“You see my eyes rolling, right? Jeez.”

“Mon ours, would you pass me the carrots? Merci beaucoup.”

“What’s ‘ours’, Docker Curie?”

“It means ‘bear’, sweet boy.”

His cherubic face screwed up in confusion, Duncan pointed at another table, “Unkie Bear is right there.”

“It is a nickname that I have given to Danse. It demonstrates the deep affection I have for him.”

“It’s like how Wraith calls you ‘Dunk’ and me ‘Mac’, because she loves us.”

“Oh, you call Mr. Cap’n ‘Tin Can’ cause you love him too, right daddy?”

MacCready choked on his Nuka Cola.

“Is that true MacCready? Do you love me?”

Danse’s tone was so perfectly deadpan, Wraith couldn’t trust herself to look up. Afraid she might ruin the moment, she feigned fascination over the carrots on her plate.

Looking down at the hopeful and sweet smiling face of his son, MacCready visibly swallowed, “What… ahhh… what’s not… to… to love?”

“You alright MacCready? Looking painful o’er there.” Hancock’s voice shook slightly with suppressed mirth.

“… just overcome with love, man. Overcome…”

 Later, Shaun was helping Wraith wash dishes and she could tell he was working himself up to ask her something big. Alone in her kitchen, with the radio softly playing, he would normally hum along. Quiet and stiff limbed, the youth practically shouted anxiety at her.

“Mr. MacCready says that I’m a really good shot.”

“Mmm hmm. He brags about you almost as much as he brags about himself.”

I have a feeling I know where this is going…

“I was able to disarm Nat almost every drill and my throws have gotten better too…”

“You certainly have improved but don’t forget; it’s almost impossible to defend against a knife without getting cut. If you can run away…”

I’m not going to make this too easy on you, kid.

“Yeah, I remember. So, I heard that you were going to start long patrols back up…”

“Yup.”

“If… if Mr. MacCready goes out, may I go too?” He stood perfectly straight with his arms down to either side and his chin high. “I won’t get in the way and I think that if we bring Dogmeat or… or another adult…”

“I’m not sure Mac will want to leave Duncan.” Wraith reached out and tapped her grandson’s elbow, hoping the contact would help him relax, “He isn’t, technically speaking, a member of the Minutemen. He has gone on long patrol before, that’s true, but mostly it was because he was frustrated and bored.”

Shaun’s face fell, “Oh…”

“I tell you what; it’s up to him. If he agrees and you take both a Minutemen solider and Dogmeat, then you have my permission.” She held up a finger in the face of his jubilant bouncing, “Maybe not a loooong patrol, okay? Maybe a longish patrol.”

“Really! Oh cool!” Suddenly serious he schooled his features back into attention, “I won’t let you down, General!”

 “Why are you laughing at me, Mac?!”

The sun had set and Sanctuary was quiet. Sitting on the bench next to the mill, Wraith and MacCready waited for Hancock and Fahrenheit to finish at the clinic. Snuggled up under his arm, she had told him about Shaun’s proposal.

“I’m just surprised ‘s all. You barely let the kid go to the bathroom by himself…”

“Oh, please! I’m not that bad…”

“Uh huh. Yeah. Sure.”

She dug a knuckle into his ribs, hitting a particularly ticklish spot, “Robert Joseph, you take that back!”

When he attempted to twist away, she hooked her arm around his waist pulling him fully beneath her. Popping herself up, she straddled him and held his arms; pinning him in less than a blink.

Breathless and aroused he tried to lean toward her, “Or you’ll what? Tell me what you’ll do to me.”

“Hmm, I don’t know…” Smiling evilly, she shifted her pelvis, grinding against him, “See how close I can get you? Hmm? Make you shudder and shake…”

“Please, yes…”

“That’s it, ask me nicely.” Reaching down between them, she palmed him through his jeans.

“Plea… uhhhh.”

She stopped stroking and gave him a squeeze, “What was that? I didn’t quite hear you.”

“Don’t stop. Please don’t… God yes. Just like that. Please, Wraith. Please touch me.”

“Why, I’m surprised at you!” Arching over him, she bent to set her teeth on his neck, nipping gently even as she slipped her hand beneath his waistband, “Asking for such things on a public bench.”

“You’re so… I’m… puh… ye… plea…”  Close to climax, he bucked involuntarily into her hand.

“Tell me, baby. Tell me how good it is.”

“Shit! Wraith, it’s so fucking good… I’m gonna… HUH UHHhhhhhh!”

After a few seconds of heavy breathing, MacCready suddenly sat up and pulled Wraith to his chest, kissing her hard, “Your turn…”

“Oh yeah? I don’t know; I’m not an exhibitionist…”

“There’s no one to see…”

“I can see you two got started without me.” Hancock smiled down at them, “And I hear that foul mouth of yours, Robert. What’s the matter, house too full?”

“Nothing quite like screwing on a hard bench outdoors…”

“Mills open, ain’t it?” Hancock opened the barn door and bowing, bade them enter.

MacCready picked Wraith up princess style and carried her across the threshold, “Good, you can help me with something.”

“From what I could see, you got it well in hand.”

 Bossy and the Goodneighbor provisoner caravan arrived a few days later. Despite his protests, Fahrenheit had insisted that Hancock stay with Wraith.

“You’ll drive me crazy. I’ll not have you under-foot and following me around.” Her tone softened briefly when a flash of hurt crossed the ghoul’s face, “Stay for a month and return home on Bossy’s next run. I’ll be sure to contact you, either through Radio Freedom or a courier, with any new information on the deathclaw incident.” Then to everyone’s amazement, she embraced Wraith, “I want to thank you Queenie, for everything you’ve done. Oh, and one more thing; the mattress in your guest room is terrible. I’ve slept on cobblestone streets that were less… lumpy. I’m almost positive, judging from what I know of you, that is most likely the best bed in the house. I’ll have Daisy find you better ones.”

“Oh… Okay Fahr… thank… thank you?”

“A larger one for your room as well since you are oft sharing a bed with two others. Especially since MacCready sleeps like he’s making snow angels.”

“Oh, I do not!”

“You kinda do…”

“Be well.” Turning briskly, Fahrenheit led the caravan through the gate an across the bridge.

“What the heck is a snow angel anyway?”

“Like this, daddy.” Duncan flopped onto his back and made angels in the dirt.

“Smart kid.” Hancock scooped the small boy into his arms and tousled the sand from his hair, “Your aunties teach you that?”

Sighing, he laid his head on the ghoul’s shoulder, “Yup. I miss ‘em.”

“Good thing it’s bath night...” MacCready sighed as well, “So, are you going to start on the new greenhouse or are you two going to go talk to the Abernathy settlers?”

Hancock passed Duncan to his father, “I still think it’s a dead end; they would have sent someone if they saw something.”

“I’m not going to leave it to chance. Any small detail could prove invaluable.” Wraith smiled at the MacCreadys as they hugged each other, “What about you, Mac? You figure out a ‘patrol for beginners’?”

“Yeah, Tenpines. I’ve got a couple more days of lessons then we’ll head out.”

“You takin’ Lloyd?”

“Naw, man; I’m going to let Shaun pick.”

Hancock gave him a mischievous grin, “You know he’ll pick Danse, right?”

“That’s fine,” He rubbed noses with his son, his voice going up an octave, “cause we all loooove Mr. Cap’n, don’t we?”

 Hancock was right. The trip to and from the Abernathy farm was both uneventful and fruitless. Frustration drove Wraith to sleeplessness and she slipped away from her lovers to go for a late-night walk. Her intention was to do a complete circuit of Sanctuary but instead found herself at Nate’s grave. To her surprise, Curie was standing near the make-shift headstone. Not wanting to shock or scare her, Wraith froze in indecision.

“What ez it, Panther?”

The large feline walked through the synth’s legs and padded to Wraith, whiskers extended.  Crouching slightly with arms out, she picked them up; holding them to her chest like a child.

“Oh, Madame, it is you.” Curie’s voice was strangely thick, “May I assist you?”

“Me?! Curie, what’s wrong?!”

“Oh! I do not want to burden you…”

Setting the cat gently on the ground Wraith went to embrace her, “You’ll never, ever be a burden!”

Seeming to melt in her arms, Curie cried bitterly for several minutes. Wraith thought her heart might break and her own eyes filled with tears.

“Oh, crying this much is so very taxing.” Sniffling and hiccupping she motioned to the grass, “May we sit?”

“I’m crying myself, and I don’t even know what about!”

“I… Even if we decided to… I wanted to… But, we cannot!”

A sudden revelation came to Wraith, “You two can’t have kids.”

“Mon ours would have been the greatest father…” Crying anew she bent forward, placing her face in her hands.

“Oh, honey. I’m sorry.”

“There is more… I’m sorry but… Danse isn’t aging… but I… I AM!” Raising her head, she turned to Wraith, eyes filled with deep sadness, “How will I ever tell him? He will have to watch me grow old and die. I will be gone and he will be alone… again alone.”

The realization that Curie was upset, not at her own mortality, but at the thought of Danse’s grief, set a pain in Wraith’s chest. “He’ll have time with you, right?” Reaching out she patted Curie’s back, “You are still young! There are years of memories for the two of you to make. And when you are no longer with us,” Fighting her own emotions, she swallowed hard, “he’ll…”

“Oh! That’s right!” Her face suddenly brightening, Curie clasped Wraith’s face in her hands, “You and Hancock will be with him! He would no doubt take comfort in your love and friendship.” Pulling Wraith’s face to her own, she clunked her forehead affectionately.

“You ladies alright?” Hancock had woken up when Wraith got out of the bed. Worried when she didn’t return, instinct drove him to check Nate’s grave, “Somethin’ happen?”

“Et is well, Monsieur Hancock.” Curie cocked her head to the side, considering the ghoul’s silhouette with the moon as a backdrop, “Have I done a metabolism study with you?”

“That a pick-up line?”

 Wraith did her best to keep occupied while Shaun, MacCready, Dogmeat and Danse were gone on patrol. From Tenpines, the group would head to Starlight Drive-in then on to Abernathy Farm and finally return to Sanctuary. Knowing that her grandson would be beyond her protective reach for several days was bothering her. However, she did take comfort in the strength of the adults (she counted Dogmeat as one such adult) he was with. Joining Sturges’s greenhouse work crew certainly helped as well; working hands helped to still a working mind.

“General, we’ve got a white flag bearer on the road.” Lloyd’s voice crackled from the walkie on Wraith’s hip, “Children of Atom, from the looks of it.”

“It’s not Marie, is it?”

“No ma’am, from the posture and gait, I’d say it’s a middle-aged woman.”

“Good job. Have Gabby meet her at the Rocket. I’m on my way.” Motioning for Hancock to join her, she set a brisk pace to the bridge, “I think it might be Isolde. I’ve been expecting to hear from her, but not in person!” Accepting her coat from a helpful soldier, she stopped to work the various clasps, “I’m thinking she’ll be a more reasonable conversationalists then her daughter...” Catching sight of her face in a window, she stopped again to work on a spot of grease.

“Having to talk to any of these… folks, doesn’t exactly razz my berries…”

It was indeed Isolde. Sitting on a barstool, she stared at the air conditioner with a mixture of fascination and keen distrust.

“Mother Isolde, welcome to Sanctuary. This is an unexpected honor.”

“Forgive me child, for surprising you this way. I was concerned that any attempts to contact or indeed warn you, in any way, would have been thwarted by Marie.”

“Is there a… difficulty concerning your daughter? Some aid I might provide?”

Looking down at the glass of water that Gabby had given her she seemed on the verge of tears, “My daughter’s obsession with you has not waned. She has convinced herself that if she kills you she will have destroyed a false profit.”

Hancock growled deep in his chest, “That’s bullshit! Wraith has never claimed to be this… whatchamacallit, ‘Fog Walkn’ Favored One’. From what I heard that was all that Tektus asshole’s nonsense.”

“I’ll have to respectfully disagree Mayor Hancock. Wraith is indeed the Mother’s Favored One. Although she chooses not to embrace it, your wife is a Blessed Child of Atom and that holds immense religious significance to my people.”

“My… wife...”

Doing her best to ignore Hancock’s confused and sappy smile, Wraith pushed the conversation to the point, “All that aside; we recently came afoul of a chameleon deathclaw. Was that Marie? What else can I expect from her?”

“I truly know very little.” Looking up at Wraith there was a great deal of fear and regret in her eyes, “She began stirring up some of the younger, more fanatical Children and pushing for open war; against you and your Minutemen.” Her gaze returned to her cup and her voice softened, “My Marie, my daughter…”

“Isolde, what has happened?”

“I feared for my people. I knew that you would never want to destroy us but… you would. Utterly.” Standing, she set her cup aside and squared her shoulders, “I have denounced her. I cast her out.”

“I’m so sorry. That must have been so hard…”

Islode held up her hand, “I fear I have made the situation worse. After I exiled her she and her followers traveled to Megaton. It is my belief that they intended to recruit Infamy.”

Hancock sucked air over his teeth and groaned, “Goddam…”

“Who or what is Infamy?” Hancock’s reaction genuinely spooked Wraith.

“Nyx has had some… difficulty with ‘em. They’re Children but they are closer to feral than even I am.”

“They act like a collective; all of them ghouls. Having discarded their names, they are all Infamy. They defer to a glowing one who believes he’s Atom’s personal assassin.”

“You can hire ‘em if you can convince ‘em, that your goal is beneficial to Atom.” The ghoul rolled his eyes, “MacCready has bitched about ‘em too.”

“They are Atom’s ‘Divine Blade’. Very cunning. Very deadly.”

“Not so deadly when it comes to my people.”

Islode shook her head, “Marie somehow blames you for not receiving visions of her own. She blames you for her exile… for the loss of everything she holds dear. She wants you to lose everything the same way she has; then watch as you die in anguish.”

Revelation struck Wraith like a hammer, “If there was a spy… then they knew I’d set long patrols… Shaun, Mac, Danse and Dogmeat…” She practically turned herself inside out to sprint to the Radio Freedom tower…

 “I’m not sure when I noticed… Maybe that one time with the deathclaw… when she broke her ribs, remember?”

“I missed that one. I must have still been at the police station.” Danse’s brow furrowed, “What about her breaking her ribs would have made her alluring?”

“Not cause she got hurt. Just… I don’t know… the fact that she would get hurt for other people’s sake.”

“That I can understand; her selflessness and devotion to others does make her compelling.”

“And her legs and her eyes and…”  

“Mr. MacCready… can we please change the subject…”

Navigating the rocky terrain south of Tenpines, the group had fallen into an easy banter.

“Shaun, buddy, I’ve told you to drop the ‘mister’. Call me ‘Mac’; like Wraith does.”

The youth’s mouth twisted, “No that’s weird…”

“Well kid I have plenty of names… how about ‘MacCready’ like Hancock does?”

Danse chuckled, “I think that might be weird for similar reasons.”

“Okay… what about ‘RJ’?”

Happy to have moved on from the ‘Wraith is a Knockout’ discussion, Shaun readily agreed.

The sniper’s bullet hit Danse and he fell from the ridge.

Dogmeat instantly turned and made a beeline for the assailant.

MacCready’s first thought was for Shaun and he screamed his name, even as he was overrun by a herd of feral ghouls.

A slight movement out of the corner of his eye was all the warning Shaun got before a hooded attacker, wielding an evil looking dagger, hacked at his face. Grabbing his opponent’s right elbow, Shaun pulled forward and raised his own right arm up; tight to theirs. Pivoting to the left and using his back and hip as a fulcrum, he thrust his arm toward the earth, rolling them both to the ground. Keeping his momentum, he put some small distance between them, and then vaulted to his feet while unsheathing his bayonet.

Infamy was impressed.

Shocked to see his foe was a glowing one, Shaun backed away even as eyes kept flicking to the cliff where Danse fell. And to his rifle that lay midway between them.

Infamy noticed.

“That your friend, there? Too bad little boy.” Their voice had an odd, echoing quality that sent shivers down the spine. “That your precious mentor, getting gnawed at by my children? So tragic! What will you do, little boy?” They chuckled low and evil, “I got you, you know? You’re cut. Your blood is flowing, ha ha. Flowing away.”

Ignoring the baiting, Shaun's mind was filled with only one thought:

Danse didn’t cry out when he fell…

Thank you so much for reading! Like what you read? Looking for more? Please check my Wraith in the Ruins tag for the full link tree. As always, if you have any questions/comments/concerns, my ask is open (anon too). I would love to hear from you! =^..^=

[riskeith]

hi again!!

shooting games huh? i’m a big softie i mostly play among us, animal crossing, zelda and sims.. shooting games are way to hectic for me i tried and nope! didn’t work lmao. (i know but gaming on the phone can be bleh but if you recommend it i’d happily check it out!)

my winter break is gonna be until january 2nd. i have to study and write an essay during the break so not rly a break, sigh. still, no classes so i’m not complaining. wbu? hopefully you get a longer break. and it does usually snow but climate change has been fucking insane it’s like fall weather here still..? not to sound stalkerish but i think you live in aus, right? you must have warm weather now hehe lucky u ):

AW smart girl, congrats! celebratory hug mwah!! i do love true crime a lot i mainly chose this path bc of that. idk if u know the anime case closed but i used to watch it a lot as a child and it just made me fall in love with solving crimes.

BIOMED!! you’re so smart that’s so intimidating haha... 😳 also taking japanese sounds so fun, what are your skills like? congratulations on finishing ur first year, what did you think of the uni life? (did you get to fully enjoy it despite covid and everything?)

now i’m interested, when did you get into tdbk? 🥺

dude!!!!!!!!!!! amaya and janai are my fucking life!!! i think about them all the time and the potential they have. they give us that juicy enemies to forced companionship to friends to lovers and it makes me CRY. 😭 as far as the boomerang scene, i think it was jack de sena and the writers that wanted to pay homage to atla? they worked together before on alta so 🥺 there’s some end credit art too that’s literally callum doing sokka’s poses 🥺 SOREN BEST BOY!! yes yes yes his redemption arc was well deserved. his father has always treated him like shit bc he wasn’t magically included like claudia and it makes me glad to see him realize that now. if you want more content there are some graphic novels out. especially through the moon which takes place between season 3 and 4... <3

thank you for the reassurance.. 🥺 it means a lot hearing that come from you. as long as you’ll have me i’ll keep talking to you. who knows maybe if i’m brave enough someday i’ll just direct message you... <3 hope you’re keeping well too angel! <3

henlo~!

aw nice!! among us scares me AHAHHA anything with like.. having to lie or deduction (mafia, werewolf, spyfall) i’m just like nope. could never be an actor ahahah. (honestly i recommend genshin to everyone. you, whoever you are reading this go play genshin! that being said marriage anon i haven’t tried it on mobile so i’m not sure how it feels, and i’ve heard it gets people’s phones running super hot so be careful of that! i wouldn’t fault you for not trying it out idk that i would either if mobile was my only option lmao)

noooo that’s such a short break that sucks! is it more of a mid semester break then? since you still have work to do. but yes i agree 1000% that no classes is worth it ahah. and i have a 3 month break woo!! 🥳 icb i get this at the end of every uni school year but at the same time is it worth all the suffering i must go through before that comes fhdjcnks

:o!! autumn weather isn’t bad right, at least it’s not cold? (unless you like that—i for one hate the cold brr) and noooo not stalkerish at all! i’ve got that listed in my bios and mention it now and again so it’s ‘common’ knowledge :) it is definitely warm! it was pretty hot earlier this week but it’s cooled down now~

AHH thank u 😭💘 ooo is that also called detective conan? i’ve never watched it but ik it’s very popular! if you’re interested, there’s a true crime podcast called casefile that i highly recommend, it’s very good!

HFKSNFKS no need to be intimidated pls rest assured i’m very Dumb in other areas fjjdsjsn. and japanese is fun! i think my skills are okay it’s kinda my bludge subject tbh so i lowkey neglect it and don’t memorise all the vocab i should lolll でも大丈夫です！(but that’s alright!) ((tho i would argue it isn’t ha)

fun fact, i had one (1) day on campus this entire year! so i don’t think i’ve got much to say about what uni life is like, bc i didn’t get to experience it 😔 (i even missed orientation AKA free food and goodies, so sad) online learning was an Experience to say the least. hbu? has uni been impacted a lot?

i believe i got into tdbk in the break between s3 and s4, from a manga chapter! all it did was show the two of them together and instantly i was like “they shall be my everything from now” 😆 i don’t even think there was anything that spurred it on, they really just snatched me up by looking good wow

when amaya and janai held hands in front of the dragon queen i was like omg?? are they??? and when i asked my cousin she said amaya had signed “[janai] thinks i’m cute but won’t admit it” earlier and i was like ohhhhhhhhhmg 🥺

i love that!!! will def have to go watch the credits for those references heheh. ngl sometimes when callum spoke i was just thinking about sokka lollll. exactly!! so good of soren to stand up for himself and also apologise to callum and recognising the fault and reasons behind his behaviour.. legend! and oooo i’ll give the graphic novels a look!

of course!! this is the highlight of my tumblr experience rn and i have you to thank for that 💗 whether you end up DMing me some day or not i’ll still always be here through asks 😩 so don’t stress! if anyone has a problem w it i’ll fight LOL. hope you have a great day~ 🤗

[everyonesomething]

Session 23c

Hiram: "Welcome 'round the fire, s'long as you talk straight."

Capridi shrugs and takes the flask and takes a few swigs. Capridi: "I assure you, none of us are straight" Capridi assumes that none of the party is straight Edith Runekill looks delighted to be included in that now.

In this session, we cheer on the good guy.

The set-up: Two stories down, it's Syd's turn now.

The Game: Cap's awake now and leaves the camper to join the group at the fire hoping to score some food. There isn't much left, but Hiram gets Grim to fix a bowl for her and she sits down.

Hiram: "Didn't catch your name, big'un?" Capridi "Nancy Drow" Pepper squints. Malkas sighs. Edith Runekill just looks confused Hiram: "Sure." "You come down from Neverwinter too?" Malkas: "Had a good time in the trailer, huh, Nancy? Sydney Gaydos makes the biggest O:!!! SHE LOVES NANCY DROW. Capridi holds up the rest of the fruit leather she's eating in a cheers gesture. Pepper: "Nannnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnncy," she says, trying the name out. Capridi eats the rest of it and takes the plate of beans and rice. Edith Runekill looks at Capridi, obviously disappointed she'd try to lie to poor Hiram :C Pepper doesn't like this name as much as Cap. Grim smokes and s t a r e s at Cap

Grim explains to Hiram that Cap is working for the group to pay down the bounty Mal holds over her. Hiram nods, then turns his attention to Syd.

Hiram: "Where'd we get to, now? Gaydos, ain't it? Says you were some kinda detective?" Sydney Gaydos was about to once again help Pepper up BUT OH STORY TIME! "You are very correct! And to come with that title, Gaydos has many exciting tales and adventures." Hiram grins Pepper has given in to gravity's sweet pull. Hiram: "Y'got a favourite?" Capridi isn't paying attention. She just stares into the fire. Sydney Gaydos taps a claw to her chin in contemplation. "Gaydos is fond of one of her first outings, specifically the story of where she gained her very first gumshoe." She stands up suddenly and puffs out her chest, raising a finger in the air. "It is called The Great Bejeweled Rapier Caper!" Pepper hopes Syd remembers she's down here by her feet. Pepper is in no condition to help herself. Sydney Gaydos didn't step on the floor Pep don't worry. Malkas: "Oh God." Hiram nods and gestures for Syd to go on, settling down to repack his pipe Sydney Gaydos: "It all started when Gaydos first founded her detective agency, and she was assigned to find out who capered the rapier..." [ohhhhh FLASHBACK TIME] Pepper sees the sky around Syd get all wavy. Weird. Capridi is used to seeing things Pepper knows how to fix that! And a very unsteady mage hand pops into existence near Mal and begins dragging one of the more full alcohol bottles towards her. Sydney Gaydos as a much younger version, meticulously examines every little trace of evidence over the shattered glass of the case. "It seems..." "... this glass was BROKEN by a blunt object." Yes. Good detective skills. Sydney Gaydos: ("The Great Detective is allowed a few uncritically examined investigations...") Capridi is mildly impressed Jemily as the NPC Jewelry Store Owner: "That... is obvious, detective. You know maybe I should look around s'more, see if there's some more seasoned—" Sydney Gaydos: "N-no! Gaydos can do it!" Sydney waves both her hands, flustered. "Just, she has her own way of doing things, please trust in her." Pepper: ( "I believe in you, Syd," Pepper whispers. Flashbacks are a little too advanced for her to wrap her mind around right now. Jemily: "Fine." He crosses his arms, annoyed. "So what else have you figured out?" Sydney Gaydos: ("Your vote of confidence warms the depths of Gaydos' heart always, Pepper.") "It's—" she glances around the store, looking at the floor, just, for something! "There—... there was a group! Yes!" She motions towards the ground, pulling out her magnifying glass to get a better look. "As see may see there are several different sets of footprints! We are searching for a group of capers!" Malkas: ("I don't think that's what a caper is.") Sydney Gaydos hands the magnifying glass to the owner. "As you also may notice, they are small and reptilian with three claws. Gaydos deduces—!" she pauses for dramatic effect and POINTS, "—they are Kobold in nature! Which is supported by the Kobold's love of jewelry and jewelry-like accessories!" Sydney Gaydos is also, being VERY animated in the present, making these gestures she are in the story. Malkas: ("Racist!") Sydney Gaydos: ("Gaydos is not proud of her younger self's blatant disregard for contributing to racial stereotypes. She apologizes now and tries to do better in the present.") Pepper: ( "Mal, is that racist?" she asks a full half minute later. Time is in a precarious state for her right now. Malkas: ("Yeah but it's like when Infernal Tieflings and Abyssal Tieflings don't get along. It's, like, a thing.") Jemily: "I knew it!" He slams a fist on the frame of the broken case in anger. "Those little scaly filthy thieves! I knew it was them!" Sydney Gaydos looks... uncomfortable now at the "term", and a little less confident. "I— yes if you know of them, then it can be inferred they are the ones behind this! Tell Gaydos where they reside if you know...?" Malkas: ("This took a turn.") Capridi is thankful there aren't enough people who look like her for jerks to call her a wooly, despite actually having scales. Pepper: ( She frowns. This guy sounds like a jerk. Jemily: "'Course I know! I've chased those little thieves back to that alley they live in! Weekly! Always lookin' in my store. I knew they'd do something like this eventually—" he grabs Sydney's arm to drag her out of the store and point down the street. "That way, and take a left at Elfroot and keep going til you see the hovel they live in. And don't come back til you have my stolen rapier." He slams the door to DeBugBeers. Sydney Gaydos awkwardly looks between the door and the street, now visibly uncomfortable before setting off in the direction she was told. Jemily: [OOoo oOOOoO OO TIMESKIP] Malkas: ("You don't gotta make that noise, Syd.") Capridi: "yes, she does" Sydney Gaydos: ("It's important to the world building of the story!" Sydney goes back to her Story Voice "And then, The Great Detective arrived to her destination! Suddenly, she was surrounded! There a dozen, no— two dozen! A dozen's dozen Kobolds! Closing in!") Pepper: ( She squints. Pepper: ( "That many?" she asks. She's having trouble visualizing a dozen dozen anythings but that sounds wrong. Malkas: ("That's a lot, Syd.") Malkas isn't quite paying attention, he's waiting for Edith to keel over. Sydney Gaydos: ("Y-yes! Gaydos' memory is not the best but she clearly remembers that many..." she lies so very hard.) Hiram gives Syd a level look Edith Runekill: ("Sounds reasonable to me.") ("Sydney's tough!") Sydney Gaydos SEES that looks and deflates. "Mmmaybe it was less then that." ) Edith Runekill takes that in stride ) Edith Runekill: ("Well, every story grows in the telling!") Sydney Gaydos gives a Edith a small smile. "Quite right Deputy Edith! Gaydos will be more accurate about what happened." ) Edith Runekill smiles back. ) Sydney Gaydos does, in reality, take ONE step into the alleyway before she's caught up in a single snare trap, strung up in the air upside down, and then surrounded by four young Kobolds with daggers. Sydney Gaydos: ("The following conversation is in Draconic, but she will do her best to translate into Common.") Vhinzizzork: "The Hells ya' want, Dragonborn?" she points her dagger towards Sydney's head threateningly. Sydney Gaydos struggles a bit, trying to free herself before dropping her arms. "Gaydos is investigating a theft of a valuable jeweled rapier not too far away and she suspects you did it!" she swings forward to point an accusing claw towards them. Pepper: ( She's having trouble following half of this story now, Syd is occasionally making dog noises for some reason. ( She drinks, rather than ask for clarification. Vhinzizzork she pokes Sydney's head a little with the dagger, looking annoyed. "Rapier? Haven't seen anything like that "Gaydos". Go sniff around somewhere else." Sydney Gaydos: "She found evidence! You were in the store!" Vhinzizzork: "Must'a been some other gang of Kobolds." Sydney Gaydos HUFFS. "She knows you did it! So just cut her down from this darn thing and accept your criminal actions and punishment!" Vhinzizzork with the group, darken considerably and she pokes Sydney's head again with the dagger, a little deeper this time. "Listen up, Gaydos. We didn't steal NOTHIN' that didn't belong to us FIRST y'got that?" Sydney Gaydos blinks at that. No longer annoyed or angry, she looks thoughtful. "What... do you mean by that?" Malkas: ("A twist!") Edith Runekill: ("Gasp!") Pepper: ( "Did you say gasp." ) Vhinzizzork is taken off-guard by the question, and glances between the group before nodding slowly. "That slob owner ripped us off. We needed the money, so we worked and worked in some mines of his!" The grip on her dagger begins to shake in anger. "We didn't understand Common. We didn't understand getting a handful of copper per WEEK wasn't right! Now look at'im! He's selling our hard word for quadruple the price while we live HERE! That's not right!" Sydney Gaydos lets out a heavy, sad sigh after the explanation. "No, that isn't right. Please, let Gaydos down, she only wishes to seek justice for the wronged. " She looks directly at Vhinzizzork. "For anyone." Grim is actually listening with interest for the first time tonight Edith Runekill has been interested all night but she looks PARTICULARLY interested right now. Capridi wants cheetos Vhinzizzork once again glances between the group before they they all agree silently. She throws her dagger at the top of the snare to cut Sydney free, probably none too gently. The group takes a few steps back but Vhin stays right where she is. "You really mean that?" she asks hesitantly. Sydney Gaydos lands with a hard fump and a grunt, before rubbing her head and standing to her feet. "Of course. Gaydos is a detective for that reason! She will see criminals be punished, " despite the dull pain, she gives the group a smile. "Please, do trust her." Vhinzizzork glowers. "You gotta' prove ya' deserve that trust, " she states harshly before softening, "but if ya' do this, ya' get that slob punished or whatever. It'd be earned, " Pause. "Detective." Pepper: ( "Give 'em hell, Syd!" She fist bumps Syd's foot. She's way into this story. Sydney Gaydos: [present making noises sound] "... and due to Gaydos' wonderful charismatic talent, that store owner was shut down and jailed for severe neglect and abuse of underaged employees under his care due to under payment and poor living conditions, while the young Kobolds only received community service at the Private Eye, where! Vhinzizzork decided to remain after the service hours were up." Malkas: "W- But how?" "How did you, like ... prove it?" Sydney Gaydos: "Lack of payment records. It was also four against one on what had happened. Not to mention Gaydos' own account of the owners rather distasteful opinion on scaled races." Pepper: "And she's the great detective!" She's being sincere. Syd is just the greatest. Malkas: "Well, good job Syd." Hiram: "Justice kinda sides with the seven foot fire breather in private disagreements, I found." Edith Runekill: "You did a really good thing there, Sydney." Capridi: "syndeee, champion dogooder" Edith Runekill glows with admiration Grim grunts affirmation Edith Runekill: "It's always good to be able to look at a situation from another angle and figure out what's really the right thing to do."

Sydney Gaydos: "Also that. Gaydos assumes she was "lucky" in getting some police officers who were rather.. small and a bit more easily swayed." She BEAMS at all the praise. "Gaydos thanks you for the kind words, and hopes her actions continue to speak for herself."

Syd is so good, y'all.

[park-j1m1n-bts]

“Should we know us a little better” Tag RULES: you must answer these 92 statements and tag 20 people I was tagged by: @justbeingbrookee THANK YOUU BABE💛hopefully I’ll be able to answer all! THE LAST: 1. Drink: Water, it is so hot right now in England so I’ve been drinking GALLONS 🤤. 2. Phone call: I don’t often call people but it was probably my mum. 3. Text message: My bestie . 4. Song you listened to: Currently listening to Monsta X’s new song “Shine Forever” 🔥🔥 5. Time you cried: oh god I cry all the time 🙈 last time I full on cried was about a week ago before my last uni exam! God I was stressed!! 6. Dated someone twice: no 7. Kissed someone and regretted it: no 8. Been cheated on: no 9. Lost someone special: YES 10. Been depressed: no, I always try to be happy and positive 11. Gotten drunk and thrown up: no, I’ve got a strong stomach and can handle my drink pretty well 😎 LIST 3 FAVORITE COLORS: 12-14: Ooo this is hard, it changes all the time but at the moment: Pink, Yellow and pale green. IN THE LAST YEAR HAVE YOU: 15. Made new friends: yessss, met some lovely people at uni 16. Fallen out of love: no 17. Laughed until you cried: haha all the time!!! 18. Found out someone was talking about you: yep constantly 💁 people just hate to see you happy 🐸☕️ 19. Met someone who changed you: ermmm don’t think so 20. Found out who your friends are: Hell yeah, when you are away from home for most of the year it is interesting to see who stays in contact. 21. Kissed someone on your Facebook list: nope GENERAL: 22. How many of your Facebook friends do you know in real life: All, I only add people I have see in real life 23. Do you have any pets: yes!! Two gorgeous dogs 24. Do you want to change your name: no, I’m quite happy with mine :) 25. What did you do for your last Birthday: i’m not someone to have a big celebration, I think I just went to the beach with my family and watched some films 26. What time did you wake up: 6:30 AM ugh work 😞 27. What were you doing at midnight last: YOUTUBE! Omg I’m obsessed I could spend hours and hours watching videos! can’t really remember exactly what video but I know it was BTS related. 28. Name something you can’t wait for: To be able to drive 29. When was the last time you saw your mom: 10 mins ish ago. 30. What is one thing you wish you could change in your life: I love my life! I would not change a single bit, anything negative has shaped me into the person I am today 🤗 31. What are you listening right now: Binge listening to Monsta X today!! I love them. 32. Have you ever talked to a person named Tom: My brothers name is Tom soooo yes! Haha I love him so much we are so close 💑 33. Something that is getting on your nerves: the heat definitely and responsibilities haha! Come back from uni expecting to relax but no, need to earn money, need to learn to drive etc ugh 34. Most visited Website: Youtube 100% 35. Mole/s: I have a lot of freckles?? Same thing or not I don’t know 36. Mark/s: I have 3 birthmarks and a chicken pox scar on my left cheek 37. Childhood dream: Okay this is gonna sound weird but I had a recurring dream where it was my job to push different size balls down their according tubes and I remember waking up panicking because I accidentally jammed a big ball down a small tube ….. haha god knows what was wrong with me 38. Hair color: brunette 39. Long or short hair: medium length. 40. Do you have a crush on someone: other than idols 😅 I don’t think so… 41. What do you like about yourself: oh nooo this is a horrible question! I seriously lack self confidence so this is going to be tough…. I would like to think I am a kind person, I am not someone who ever is nasty to anyone and I always try to see the good in everyone 42. Piercings: One in each ear 43. Bloodtype: no idea … 44. Nickname: don’t think I have one … 45. Relationship status: Single 💁 46. Zodiac: Virgo 47. Pronouns: she/her/they 48. Favorite TV Show: I’m a sucker for crime/detective dramas so like Silent Witness or Death in Paradise 49. Tattoos: not yet 50. Right or left hand: right handed 51. Surgery: nope 52. Piercing: still one in each ear 👀. 53. Sport: HAHA great joke. 55. Vacation: Haven’t been abroad in ages because of my dogs but anywhere with my family I’m happy! . 56. Pair of trainers: I’m really bad when it comes to trainers, I always end up by the expensive branded ones 😬😬. MORE GENERAL: 57. Eating: Just had a ham roll (classic) 58. Drinking: Water 59. I’m about to: Watch BTS’s V live as I got a notification halfway through doing this! 61. Waiting for: BTS to come to the UK 😪😪😪( a girl can dream) 62. Want: JIMIN!!! …. sorry er I mean…. chocolate errr yep chocolate 😅😅 63. Get married: Yessssss, just need a groom now 😪 64. Career: hopefully two more years at uni will help WHICH IS BETTER?: 65. Hugs or kisses: HUGSSSS I literally give hugs to everyone 66. Lips or eyes: I love people with good smiles so lips 67. Shorter or taller: its not a massive deal for me but if I got to choose it would be taller 68. Older or younger: Don’t particularly want a guy older than 21 or younger than 17 (I’m 19) 70. Nice arms or nice stomach: THIGHS. 71. Sensitive or loud: i am quite a quiet person, I find loud people quite intimidating 72. Hook up or relationship: relationship deffo!! 73. Troublemaker or hesitant: very hesitant HAVE YOU EVER: 74. Kissed a stranger: nooo 75. Drank hard liquor: as a dare yes 76. Lost glasses/contact lenses: 20/20 vision baby 😏. 77. Turned someone down: yes 78. Sex on the first date: no 79. Broken someones heart: don’t think so 80. Had your heart broken: no 81. Been arrested: no 82. Cried when someone died: yes 83. Fallen for a friend: 😶 DO YOU BELIEVE IN: 84. Yourself: depends on the situation 85. Miracles: yes 86. Love at first sight: until faced with this, who knows 87. Santa Claus: no 88. Kiss on the first date: no, I have to know the guy properly I think. 89. Angels: yes OTHER: 90. Current best friends name: He doesn’t want me to say his name but I only have one best friend and he is such a lovely person and I am so thankful that he is part of my life ❤️ 91. Eyecolor: green 92. Favorite movie: oooo tough question to finish off…. got to love anything with Jim Carey in

Wow! That was long but fun!!! I tag : @my-bts-obsession @heyhosam @bangtansonyeondarnit @kookiecat @strongjooheon @al3lora @starryyoongi @hyobincat @kaymaybeonfire @btserenity @panicattheswiftie @jiminismysnakeu @killerjulie @jeonnings @nini17 @randomlyguilty @trying-not-to-stan-another-group @notoverbtsyet @reiladay @kpop-and-animee I think that is 20!! Obviously you don’t have to do it but the option is there ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

[azrielsiphons]

Nessian + "Could you just wait? Please just hold on a second!" (I'm going to keep sending these until it gets annoying also side note all of the prompts I'm sending seem to be very angsty. Hush, it's fine)

I live for the angst my friend, no worries. By the way, I LOVED THIS ONE.

___________

“Illyrian Publishing, how can I help you?”

Nesta rolled her eyes at her own chipper voice, trying to pay attention to the person on the other end of the line.

“I’m sorry ma'am, Spring Court Publishing is no longer in this building … Well Illyrian Publishing bought them out … Yes ma'am.”

Nesta leaned back in her chair and sent a prayer up to whatever deity was listening to save her from this stupid job. It was her first day and this was her eleventh call from someone asking her for Spring Court Publishing.

Did no one read the papers anymore? Illyrian Publishing had bought them out two months ago after a huge scandal between the CEO and some government official.

Which was how Nesta ended up there working as a damn assistant when she had a degree in English.

“Just work your way up to the top, Nesta. They have positions opening all the time, but you have to start somewhere,” her sister Feyre had said.

Feyre’s boyfriend Rhys was best buds with the CEO of Illyrian Publishing, Cassidy, Chase, Connor… some name that started with a C, Nesta really didn’t care. Well when Rhys heard they needed a new assistant because the other one, some girl named Ianthe, got a little handsy with the other employees, Feyre insisted she apply for the position.

So here she was listening to some woman rant about how Spring Court Publishing published some of her favorite author’s books and Illyrian better do the same or she’ll file a complaint and blah blah blah.

“Yes ma'am, I understand … No ma'am, we haven’t gotten rid of any of the authors previously taken care of by Spring Court.”

“Excuse me,” a male voice spoke suddenly over Nesta’s shoulder.“

“Gimme one second,” she told them without turning in her chair. “No ma'am, I can’t give you any information on when that particular author’s next book will come out … Well quite frankly ma'am I highly doubt Spring Court Publishing ever gave out that information either.”

“Excuse me,” the voice repeated.

“Could you just wait? Please just hold on a second,” Nesta snapped back at them, her temper rising. “Ma'am you are not entitled to any of that information but I’m sure if you … Well you know what name-calling isn’t going to get you anywhere!”

The person behind her laughed lowly and she growled at them without turning.

“Look ma'am,” Nesta all but shouted into her headset, “You aren’t going to bully me into finding you any information about when your next werewolf erotica book is coming out, so either send an email to your author specifically or learn to wait, but don’t call back! Thank you, have a nice damn day!”

Nesta ripped her headset off and slammed it down on the desk before putting her head in her hands and groaning.

“Well it looks like you’re having a great first day,” the male voice spoke up again.

Nesta lifted her head and swiveled slowly in her chair with an expression that any sane person would be running away from.

“Can I help you?” She spat, briefly noting that the man leaning casually against her desk was handsome as hell with deep golden brown skin and wavy brown hair that reached the nape of his neck. He was dressed nicely in slacks and a button up with the sleeves rolled to his elbows. His eyes were hazel and bright, matching his shit-eating grin.

“I just wanted to come and say hello,” he said brightly, obviously amused by her annoyance. “I heard it was your first day and thought I’d meet the new girl. The new, very beautiful girl, might I add.”

Nesta’s bitch face did not waver.

“Hi,” she deadpanned.

The stranger only grinned wider.

“So I take it your calls have been less than exciting so far.”

“Wow you’re really observant. You should become a detective.”

“Nah.” He shook his head. “I’ve got the best job in the world.”

“Well lucky you,” she mumbled. “It must be nice to get a degree and actually work in the job you want.”

“Oooo,” he sing-songed. “Do I detect some bitterness?”

Nesta only rolled her eyes.

“So I take it you haven’t dreamed of being a desk secretary all your life.”

“No. I want to write. And edit. And actually have a real job at this damn company but noooo, Feyre says I have to work my way up from the bottom. I had a perfect 4.0 GPA and now I’m at this damn desk answering calls from stupid people and I have to pretend to be chipper all the freaking time!”

Nesta only realized her voice had escalated when she felt everyone’s eyes on her in the lobby. She gulped, only to look back up at the stranger and see him still smiling down at her as if she were the best thing he’d ever seen.

“You know you and Feyre don’t resemble each other all that much,” was all he said.

Nesta blanched.

“You know Feyre?”

“Oh yeah. She’s dating my idiot best friend for some reason.”

Nesta just looked up at him, her eyes widening as the puzzle pieces slowly slipped into place. If he knew Rhys and Feyre, and Rhys said his friend was the CEO of Illyrian Publishing and hence how she got this job, then…

“Oh fuck me.”

“I’d love to. But let me introduce myself first. I’m Cassian.”

[bizmediaweb]

10 Reasons Celebrities Are Better at Instagram Than Brands

The 25 most-followed accounts on Instagram are, more or less, what you’d expect. There are quite a few familiar faces: Selena Gomez, Taylor Swift, Beyonce Knowles, Justin Bieber, Katy Perry—the list goes on.

And, of course, the ubiquitous Kardashian-Jenners make a good showing. The alliterative sisters Kim, Kylie, Kendall, Khloe, and Kourtney all rank within the top 20.

It’s hard to deny that celebs are good at social. And why is that?

There are a few things that they get about Instagram that brands just don’t.

Bonus: Download a free checklist that reveals the exact steps an adventure photographer used to grow from 0 to 110,000 followers on Instagram with no budget and no expensive gear. Plus we’ll show you how you can use Hootsuite to grow your own following on Instagram and other platforms.

1. They get internet humor

The internet is a vast place, full of disparate people voicing a cacophony of opinions. There’s very little that can typically be attributed to the culture of the internet as a whole.

Except maybe humor.

The internet at large, and social media in particular, is home to a particular sense of humor—a unique constellation of memes, clever hashtags, and puns, mixed with a healthy dose of nostalgia. Add in a dollop of self-deprecating jokes and you have internet culture.

And celebs get it. They get it in a way that brands just don’t.

Kylie Jenner pokes fun at herself in this Instagram post where she wears a t-shirt featuring an unflattering photo of herself that’s been circling the internet for years.

A post shared by Kylie (@kyliejenner) on Apr 18, 2016 at 12:44pm PDT

This shot of Kylie Jenner is a great example. She’s showing that she can laugh at herself—it’s goofy and self-deprecating in a way that the internet loves.

2. They’re so relatable Not only do celebs get internet humor, they also get what works online: nostalgia (the #tbt is alive and well). Specifically, they get that their primarily millennial audience responds to 90s references.

🦋🦋#Butterfly is my favorite album, it's the most personal work I've ever done and will always be a defining moment in my career and in my life. I'm so happy to celebrate this anniversary with a special picture disc vinyl release – link in bio. Stay tuned for more surprises!🦋🦋

A post shared by Mariah Carey (@mariahcarey) on Sep 16, 2017 at 2:36pm PDT

So when celebrities post throwbacks—like this one from Mariah Carey—to 90s moments from their own lives, it’s very relatable for their audience.

But the relatability of celebs—that authenticity that people love to describe as ‘so real’—goes beyond embracing nostalgia. It’s about sharing moments from their lives that are a tad less glamorous than the usual red carpet shot.

In a way, the content that celebs now share on their own Insta timelines is reflective of the kind of material that paparazzos once doggedly pursued. But they’ve realized something fundamental about it: if they post it themselves, they control the message.

And, on a less cynical note, these down-to-earth, ‘authentic’ moments give them the opportunity to connect with fans. It’s precisely this relatability that explains why followers love celebs’ bathroom selfies.

A post shared by Demi Lovato (@ddlovato) on Feb 15, 2017 at 5:32pm PST

And the oh-so-relatable moments they share with the mini-humans in their lives.

Love u so much x kisses @Cruzbeckham X ✨

A post shared by Victoria Beckham (@victoriabeckham) on Feb 12, 2018 at 8:43am PST

Or their relationships with their parents.

Bonnie and Clyde

A post shared by chrissy teigen (@chrissyteigen) on Aug 5, 2017 at 5:18am PDT

Or those moments of uncontained, bona fide joy.

THE TRAILER IS JUST EEEEPPPPPPPIIIIICCCCCCC! Star Wars is back! gaaaaaad laaaaard! You know what! Let me just relax because this kind God oooo! Lmao! Seriously congrats to everyone ! December 18th!

A post shared by John Boyega (@johnboyega) on Oct 20, 2015 at 12:02am PDT

John Boyega’s reaction to The Force Awakens trailer is so utterly relatable, because his excitement reflects that of the franchise’s fans. It’s the sort of over-the-top, genuine, unabashed enthusiasm that spawns reaction GIFs—the kind people share with the comment, “Same.”

3. They get that the caption can make or break a photo

I think we can all agree that celebs have great photos. They’re often glossy, professional images that beat the average snap. But it isn’t just their photos that make their Instagram feeds stand out from the crowd. Celebs get that Instagram captions can be just as important as the image they’re attached to.

When you could go anywhere for your bday dinner but you're so OG that you go to OG with all your OG's. 📷 by @ronyalwin #thosebreadstickstho

A post shared by KATY PERRY (@katyperry) on Oct 27, 2015 at 12:37pm PDT

This Instagram from Katy Perry is the perfect example. The photo itself is nothing special, just another group photo at a restaurant. What makes it special is the caption, which cleverly plays on ‘OG’ as short for ‘Olive Garden.’

I'm up at 4am everyday to work extremely hard BEFORE I go into work, not because I'm bat shit crazy (well maybe a little;), but because I know my competitors are not paying that price and sacrificing to that degree – and that will alway give me the edge and anchor for an opportunity for success. You don't have to get up at 4am, but I encourage you to find the thing that gives you the edge over everyone else around you. Once you find it, let it be your anchor. Then you've just created an opportunity for yourself to succeed. And that's all we ever want to work hard and create for ourselves.. opportunity. #GainTheEdge #FindYourAnchor #ButForTheLoveOfGod #YouDoNotWantToWakeUpAt4amEveryday 🖕🏾😂

A post shared by therock (@therock) on Apr 12, 2016 at 2:14pm PDT

In this shot, The Rock goes beyond simply posting a photo from the gym. Instead he gives his followers a behind-the-scenes glimpse into his routine and his motivation. It’s the details around it that make the shot special.

When brands post to Instagram, their captions are often short and unexpressive—they lack personality. But personality is something that celebs have in spades. And when it comes to Insta, it not only shows—it pays off.

What many brands fail to recognize is that they need to go beyond the image. A picture may be worth a thousand words, but a great Instagram caption can be worth so much more.

4. They get that people connect with faces

Love ‘em or hate ‘em, celebs have selfies down to an art. And while selfies may be considered narcissistic, they’re based on a fundamental truth—people respond to faces.

A study by Georgia Institute of Technology and Yahoo Labs found that Instagram photos that feature human faces are 38 percent more likely to receive likes than photos without faces. They’re also 32 percent more likely to get comments.

The study’s lead, Saeideh Bakhshi, theorized about why this might be: “Faces are powerful channels of nonverbal communication. We constantly monitor them for a variety of contexts, including attractiveness, emotions, and identity.”

The researchers also found that the number of faces in a photo, their age, or gender didn’t make a difference.

We would like to share our love and happiness. We have been blessed two times over. We are incredibly grateful that our family will be growing by two, and we thank you for your well wishes. – The Carters

A post shared by Beyoncé (@beyonce) on Feb 1, 2017 at 10:39am PST

This shot of Beyonce announcing her second pregnancy proves that faces work—it was the most-liked photo on Instagram in 2017.

5. They understand that cute animals win on social

It’s a truth universally acknowledged that the internet loves a good cat photo. Or a snap of a cute puppy. Or basically any warm fuzzy thing. (Chewbacca aside, though the internet certainly loves him as well.)

Taylor Swift gets this.

Some real tough questions I had for Olivia.

A post shared by Taylor Swift (@taylorswift) on Sep 7, 2017 at 8:05am PDT

She incorporates her adorable felines, Dr. Meredith Grey and Detective Olivia Benson, into her feed, with excellent results.

Mary Jane ❤️

A post shared by Miley Cyrus (@mileycyrus) on Dec 2, 2017 at 11:18pm PST

Miley Cyrus is no stranger to this tactic either. Her feed boasts snaps of her own pets, puppy Boomerangs, and a personal tattoo commemorating her dog Mary Jane—effectively taking her ‘cute animal’ game to the next level.

Thankful for @beaglefreedom and their mission to free captive pups from inhumane animal testing labs! Without BFPs work I wouldn't be falling asleep next to Little Dog, being lulled by the sound of her heartbeat …. #whosavedwho #myrescuerescuedme #fucktestingonanimals ❤️💙💚💜💛 @happyhippiefdn

A post shared by Miley Cyrus (@mileycyrus) on Jul 22, 2017 at 9:41pm PDT

How can brands make this work for them? Think beyond your product and get right into your customers’ lifestyle. Might that lifestyle involve pets? Insta ‘em. Hootsuite does it with our #HootDogs hashtag.

Building friendships 👫 Some new #hootdogs getting aquainted with Owly over lunch 🐾 Welcome to the team! #lifeofowly 📷: @evarobin

A post shared by Hootsuite (@hootsuite) on Mar 31, 2017 at 1:46pm PDT

6. They go Insta-first for big news

Something that celebs do often that brands rarely emulate: they announce big news on Instagram.

Taylor Swift did it with a music video. Beyonce did it with an album.

Surprise!

A post shared by Beyoncé (@beyonce) on Dec 12, 2013 at 9:12pm PST

Others have gone Insta-first for more personal news, like engagement and pregnancy announcements.

Like Kylie Jenner did with the first shot released after the much-anticipated birth of her first child.

stormi webster 👼🏽

A post shared by Kylie (@kyliejenner) on Feb 6, 2018 at 1:14pm PST

Or Danneel Ackles did with the announcement of hers and Jensen Ackles’ twins.

Yep! Doublemint here we come! http://celebritybabies.people.com/2016/08/10/jensen-ackles-danneel-harris-pregnant-expecting-twins-son-daughter/

A post shared by @ danneelackles512 on Aug 10, 2016 at 11:31am PDT

Or this heart-melting post from Michael Phelps on his engagement to Nicole Johnson.

She said yes😁😁😁 @nicole.m.johnson. (Photo credit to @arschmitty )

A post shared by Michael Phelps (@m_phelps00) on Feb 21, 2015 at 10:49pm PST

When Disney employed this strategy it was massively successful. They released the much-anticipated Star Wars teaser trailer on Instagram first and fans went wild.

There has been an awakening… #StarWars #TheForceAwakens

A post shared by Star Wars (@starwars) on Aug 27, 2015 at 10:00am PDT

7. They don’t shy away from taking a stance

Leonardo DiCaprio’s Instagram feed is a mix of beautiful landscapes and endangered animals, accompanied by fact-filled captions urging action on climate change, environmental, and humanitarian issues. Nearly all of them are Regrams.

DiCaprio uses his Insta to amplify the images, causes, and work of activist organizations. The few original posts he shares are still clearly focused on his overall message of environmentalism.

Last night’s win at the #Oscars was an incredible honor – but it was also an important opportunity to bring even more attention to #climatechange. Last year was the hottest in recorded history. Climate change is real, it is the most dire crisis our species has ever known, and it is happening right now. We must empower leaders who don’t speak for corporate interests but who speak for us, our children’s children and those whose voices cannot be heard. Take action now: LCV.org/act

A post shared by Leonardo DiCaprio (@leonardodicaprio) on Feb 29, 2016 at 7:53am PST

This dedication to his core message gives his feed a consistent focus that fans can connect with. It also tells the world what he’s about, giving him a chance to do good.

#Regram #RG @nrdc_org: Anti-environment members of Congress are trying to weaken the Endangered Species Act, effectively declaring it open season on imperiled species like the gray wolf. Visit the link in our profile to help us defend the Endangered Species Act before it’s too late.

A post shared by Leonardo DiCaprio (@leonardodicaprio) on Feb 12, 2018 at 5:43pm PST

DiCaprio isn’t the only one doing this. His single-minded focus is similar to Emma Watson’s commitment to gender equality, as she often shares posts on her talks and appearances. Like DiCaprio, Watson uses captions as a call to arms for followers to learn more and take action.

Marai- what can I say. You were the best date on the most meaningful red carpet I have ever walked. Thank you for being so darn articulate and fun. Thank you for the trust, care, compassion and solidarity. I am so proud to say I work with #Imkaan and the End Violence Against Women Coalition and to be learning from you. Emma 💪 @jusmarai

A post shared by Emma Watson (@emmawatson) on Jan 14, 2018 at 11:41pm PST

While companies don’t necessarily need to transform their feeds into a list of social justice issues, it can be beneficial to declare public support for causes about which the brand feels strongly. For example, Hootsuite is a B Corporation. B Corps use business as a force for good to solve social and environmental issues.

8. They shoot for a consistent look and feel

Celebrities are excellent at creating aesthetically-pleasing feeds. Whether they’re filled with vibrant colors, muted tones, or black and white, celeb feeds are typically identifiable by a distinctive look and feel.

Kourtney Kardashian has mastered the art of the #triplegram—a series of three related photos posted to Instagram consecutively (something that any pre-Instagram photographer would identify as a triptych).

      Image via People

    On the other hand, Joe Keery is all about creating consistency through the look and feel of his overall feed. Joe’s photos typically have a matte-finish look with muted tones reminiscent of film photography. Wherever you land in his feed, it’s clear whose photos you’re looking at.

9. They talk up their friends

Who do you see most often in celebrity photos (other than the celeb you’re following)? Their friends and family of course, just like anyone else.

Except for them, those people just happen to be other celebs.

Gettin advice. From da GOAT.

A post shared by Samira Wiley (@whododatlikedat) on Dec 14, 2017 at 3:08pm PST

They’re all about the casual name-drop mention.

Happy Birthday to my work sister #JenniferAniston !! 💕🎂 Wishing you a day filled with lots of love and laughter ! 🎊 #HBD

A post shared by Reese Witherspoon (@reesewitherspoon) on Feb 11, 2018 at 1:38pm PST

And the birthday wishes.

You might be thinking: my brand doesn’t hang out with celebrities, how is this useful to me?

The key, you see, is in the mentions. Brands should mention their friends, influencers, people they admire, and customers in posts. Tag people to show a little love and increase the potential reach of your content. After all, if you mention them, maybe they’ll mention (or even Regram) you!

10. They get that it’s all about the fans

Celebrities are only famous because of their fans. But some of them are better than others at recognizing this crucial fact.

Selena Gomez is the queen of this.

Just look at how she shows off her appreciation for her fans on her own feed.

I have a lot to be thankful for this year.. My year has been the hardest yet most rewarding one yet. I've finally fought the fight of not 'being enough'. I have only wanted to reflect the love you guys have given me for years and show how important it is to take care of YOU. By grace through faith. Kindness always wins. I love you guys. God bless

A post shared by Selena Gomez (@selenagomez) on Nov 24, 2016 at 6:21pm PST

One of the best ways for brands to show appreciation for their fans on Instagram is, of course, engagement. Like and comment on photos that have to do with your brand or your business. Emulate Selena Gomez and make your interactions personable.

Due to safety I couldn't go outside tonight in Winnipeg. That did NOT stop me from gettin my pic tho 💘

A post shared by Selena Gomez (@selenagomez) on May 20, 2016 at 8:40pm PDT

Whether you follow celebrities on Instagram or not, there’s a lot that brands can learn from them.

Follow your favorite celebrities on Instagram. Schedule posts, manage, and publish directly to Instagram with Hootsuite. Try it today.

Learn More

The post 10 Reasons Celebrities Are Better at Instagram Than Brands appeared first on Hootsuite Social Media Management.

10 Reasons Celebrities Are Better at Instagram Than Brands published first on https://themarketingheaven.tumblr.com/

[hebblog]

#WalingReview S7E14+15

Another doubleheader going into the finale! 

:: So last weekend they dropped the trailer for S8, which reminded me I haven’t even friggin finished THIS season! How did I get so wrapped up in Netflix’ sudden surge in great programming, that I completely forgot this show even existed. I really wish major producers and studios would get with the program and just make this stuff easily accessible online. //previously

a whole bunch of shit happened that has been happening for too long and we’re growing tired of

//currently

Maggie teaches people to fight and build weapons. Except they’ll need weeks to train, not just one montage.

kay but I kinda dig this silent training

This whole opening sequence has a very Tell Tale’s Walking Dead vibe

5:43min in and we get our first word

“hi”

//credits

geeez this show has become NOTHING NOTHING NOTHING but build ups! Silent training and planning turned into one a few words, turned into the longest stare, into the credits

//currently

oooo that one word slip, “boy”, I see you writers fighting for onscreen equality

also how ironic is it that the guy named Jesus, who saves everyone, is gay

yeaaaaah no one in this show likes to talk about shit. They all just act and then are all surprised when stuff goes wrong

ugh, the Saviours always know how to ruin a moment.

I do love this henchmen though! What’s his name again? GTA5 guy?

“use the whole word”

what the fuck dude? You slaughter people, but picking on a little girl and the english language is not to be messed with

Also Abe’s ex’s need to get over themselves. The world ended, you’re teenage angst means nothing.

Simon, that’s GTA5 guy!

nooooooo crying Daryl is the only thing that can break me!

is that zombie wearing Uggs???

ummmm your flaming car thing only worked for like, a split second. You wasted resources for nothing

HOW DID THESE TWO SNEAK INTO A PERFECT SNIPER POSITION WITHOUT BEING DETECTED!!!

now they bond, which means one of them is going to die.

oh man I’m just waiting for it…

aaaand with one message from Mullet they scrap their plan to go in guns blazing. You KNOW he’s faking it

ummmmm actually maybe he’s not

oh shit…Eugene…

oh shit

wait, what? Sasha? Just runs in guns blazing? Riiiiiiiiight, that’s gonna work. Ugh, she’s gonna die in like two paces

Daryl! Frick that guy always knows how to show up like a superhero! 

//previously

lots of people are scattered, and not telling each other things

//currently

oh yeah, there’s zombies in this show

OH i love this idea, a boat that was floating when everything hit, finally crashes and all the zombies from another country land here!

Also this forces that coastal town into the fight, good, cause we needed more towns

awe yeah Ethan’s bf is finally in the fight!

Wait, they got Sasha? Wait what happened with Rosita and the shadowy figure

wow shibari is popping up everywhere!

WOAH! KNIFE THROATED

well, at least ol’ Neeg’s is anti-rape

My friends told me at this point in the series they all were super bored or annoyed with Negan and his way of…everything. I don’t get that, I dig him so much. His character is ridiculous in a world that needs some ridiculousness.

also the soundtrack for this episode is the best they’ve ever had in the entire series!

Mullet has always been one of my most hated characters. Him and Gabriel. It’s like they willingly choose the dumbest reaction to every situation, KNOW it’s dumb, tell everyone it’s dumb, but then continue forward

thiiiiiiiis fucking mayor

jesus christ bro has Negan actually twisted you that much?

Wait is she still pregnant? I thought she lost the baby…hadn’t she? What the frig??

and why’s she taking so long with that one walker? She could’ve dropped it in a second

hahaha lil bitch of a bad guy. wants so badly to be feared, and he can’t even handle himself alone for two seconds.

soooooo the Group is no different than the Saviours now?

Like, I get it, but still…shit dude. You’re robbing a village for their supplies?

Also Rick isn’t as scary as he used to be, not after Negan

yeaaaaah the horde always saves the day

THIS DAT SHIT I DO LIKE!

are you kidding me….Negan knows about Ricks plan? who told…what the hell….the mayor? He didn’t really talk he just acted like a bitch. ….but was all that nonsense taken as “Ricks planning something” ??? Did Negan really put all the pieces together already???

usually on the 2nd last epi of a season someone dies, which sparks a big fight on the finale. I’m calling Mullet, or Mayor.

I don’t trust her voice. Yeaaaaaah tire’s that smile. I knew it. She’s snapped, she’s gonna kill Mullet, Negan, and then herself.

shut up Gabe

“Thanks for saving my life, oh and that other time, oh and that time, and then the other time”

That dialogue was lame, but cute.  

hahaha flipping off kids is funny

notice how all the characters are slowly starting to lose their minds? Everyone is beginning to believe they need to become something crazy in order to survive and iiiiiiii like it!

and Rosita’s back? Kay I seriously missed something. or did they straight up not show who saved her?

oh this is the reveal…

WOOOOAAAAAAAAH……

I want to believe D is being honest, but i just just just can’t

WHAT THAT’S THE END???

GET ON YOUR KNEES?? Good golly this show has mastered the art of blue balling us