#aaah the last one! we're finished!

[sicjimin]

Hello! I love your fics, and i'm wondering if you take requests for non mpreg. Something like Taehyung getting sick [emeto] during a Run BTS episode and the members and staff take care of him? Maybe he seems kind of withdrawn during the filming until it builds up into something worse?

— Run BTS Burst —

a.n : aaah sorry for the long wait TT i hope i can potray what you want :) (sorry for the lame ending heh)

Taehyung is exhausted. Beyond exhausted if he must say. The IV drips he took last night didn't help to energize him at all. If anything, he could tell his body gonna crash soon—Jinny's Kitchen was taking his entire soul. That was the hardest shooting that he ever did, and lots of hours flying back just a cherry on top. He sighs, sluggishly taking a hoodie and sweatpants—shivering a bit as chill run down his spines. Why is it so cold today?—putting it on in one swift motions as his phone vibrates.

His manager must have been downstairs.

At time like this, Taehyung want to say fuck professionalism. He wishes he could just suddenly cancel the schedule and just .. curl in the warmness of his bed—sleep the whole day.

His phone vibrates again. And Taehyung groans—that thoughts were too good to be true. Taehyung quickly snatches his phone, wallet, and another layer of coat, before hurrying downstairs.

"What's the schedule today?", he asks as soon as he's seated in the car. The manager turn around from the passenger seat, "It's just Run BTS shooting, after that you're clear"

Taehyung nods, "Oh, okay". His gloomy heart cheered a little bit at the expense of coming home a bit earlier than usual. And it's a Run BTS shooting—he got to do it with the members ; makes it way more bearable. He shifts on his seat as he tugs his coat tightly, resting his head against the cool window, eyes closing briefly at how soothingly cold it feels. "Hyung, wake me up when we've arrived", he mumbles tiredly, already starting to drift off into sleep mode again.

Taehyung wakes up only when they reach their building—feeling his manager shaking his shoulder with an urgency. He slowly lifts his eyelids, squinting slightly when sunlight hits his eyes, "What's wrong?", he mumbles tiredly. His manager chuckles, "We have arrived", he announces, eyes carefully watching the younger that stumbles over his own feet. "Are you tired? What time did you go to sleep?"

Taehyung grunts, feeling even more groggy and heavy after the little nap he took. He could feel a headache forming behind his eye sockets, "Dunno .. i slept early though, but i still feel tired", he mutters, rubbing his eyes tiredly.

He hears his manager chuckle again, gently guiding him inside, "Let's get inside, then", he says, smiling fondly at the idol.

Taehyung follows beside him, "When is the shooting starts?"

"In an hour, i think. Some of the members still have schedule to finish. We're waiting for them"

Taehyung hums, resting his body agaisnt the lift as it goes up. He gulps when he could feel his stomach moving along with the lift as well. "Can you asks for IV hyung?", he asks softly. He feels so drained. "I think i need one"

The managers eyes narrowed, "Are you feeling sick?", he asks as they stepped out of the lift. "No .. just tired", Taehyung explains. He can practically feel his manager's skeptical gaze as he led him towards the door. He's too tired to explain more.

His manager nods quietly, "I will asks it. Have you eat something?"

Taehyung could feel a scold forming on the tip of his manager tongue, but he's grateful when the latter just sighs and go to retrieve his requests.

He look around—none of the members are here yet. So he took a chance to rest—after softly rejecting the make up artists that offering to do his make up first—the couch look too inviting. After all, his bones felt like jelly right now. He plops himself down on said couch, pulling his legs up to his knees as he curls himself small.

He will wait for the members.

***

"Aigooo, are you tired, Taehyung-ah?"

Hoseok's cheery voices is the first thing that greeted him. Taehyung grunts, feeling his body even more heavier than before. He blinks. The room has filled with more people—Seokjin, Jimin, Yoongi, and Hoseok are here. "Hyung ..", he rasps, throat hoarse. "How long have i been asleep?"

"15 minutes? I just arrived", Hoseok shrugs—before he looks down to the younger more attentive, "Are you okay? Your skin kinda flushed. Your manager leave the IV here"

Taehyung hums, hissed when his muscles ached as he tries to lift his body. "I'm just tired", he mutters under his breath. He closes his eyes, breathing in deeply. "Can you help me with the IV hyung?"

Hoseok frowns worriedly—putting his phone down and slowly open the package, "Are you sure? You look pale, Taehyung-ah"

Taehyung slumps his body when Jimin sits beside him, letting his heavy head rests on his friend shoulders. "It's fine. I will feel better after this", he mumbles as he feels the liquid entering his body.

"You're burning up a bit, Tae", Jimin adds, "Sleep more. I will wake you when it's your time to make up"

He nods, eyes closing shut—not actually want to sleep as he feels it gonna make him feel even worst, but he just want to rest. He still can hear Seokjin voices even though the older is meters away doing his makeup, he can hear Yoongi's hushed voice asking Jimin what's up with him, and he can feel Hoseok's gaze at him still.

"He needs to eat", he hear Yoongi says, "His manager left him some, right?"

Taehyung can feel Jimin nods, his head moving slightly against his hair. "Yeah, he is", Hoseok nudges his chin to another plastic bag on the table. The mention of food makes his stomach churn a bit. He doesnt know if its hunger or sickness starts blooming on him. He whines quietly, nuzzling further against Jimin's crooks.

He really don't wanna move at all.

Jimin giggles lightly at the sudden movement, holding on his arm a little tighter. They stay like that for awhile, until Jimin has to shake him awake as it's his turn to do his makeup. He groans, dragging his feet to the chair. He licks his dry lips as he meet his reflection—yeah, he definitely look sick. Pale as hell. He winces, looking away.

"Taehyung, your manager leave you some food. He said you need to it", Hoseok calls from behind. Taehyung answers with a hum, hands slowly moving his hands under his shirt—holding his stomach that feels full— as he let the makeup artist brush eyeshadow on him.

5 minutes later, Everyone is done with the makeup, but still have to wait as the PD prepare the shoot. Taehyung grabs the bowl, hesitantly grabbing the spoon to put some rice in his mouth. He swallows it, grimacing at the taste. He takes another bite, chewing slowly. He can feel his stomach growl—protesting the heavy materials. He quickly shoves few more bites, then drowning the taste with a lot of water, before his hyung notices something on him.

"You're done?", Jimin asks, eyeing the still half full bowl. Taehyung nods. "I'm saving it for later, don't want to eat too much. We're shooting anyway"

Jimin nods, letting the matters go. Taehyung doesn't miss the concern laced within the older, but doesn't say anything.

***

Taehyung thoughts the IV gonna help him feel better—oh, he's so much in wrong for that. He has taken 2 IV ever since he got home from Mexico, hoping that it would lessen the crash, but his body decides the other way. He's definitely sick right now.

The first bad sign that he notices are how cold the studio is. He looks around—this is the studio they have been use to shoot so many times, either Run BTS, interview, or photoshoot. And he knows that no one ever change the air conditioner temperature there. There's no reason. So why is it so cold today? He swallows the urge to run and take his coat back—instead, listening the PD instruction about today's game. Maybe with some moving, he would feel less cold. Definitely not a sign of fever.

The second sign, is how he has to blinks few times to focus his sight to the prompter in front of him. And the instructions feels too fuzzy for his brain to disgest.

"Look at Taehyung, he doesn't understand", Jimin giggles beside him, definitely teasing, so he can't do anything but chuckles awkwardly and try to once again understand the rules. "Jungkook-ah", he whispers after taking a minute to read, "How is it?"

Of course the mic catch his whispers clearly—he only hopes the viewers gonna take it as a funny moment—and Yoongi teases him now. The games went on when Jimin explains it to him in a more simple manner. Taehyung shakes his head. He needs to get himself together.

The third sign—the worse and the final sign.

Taehyung forgot that now Run BTS has been a bigger show, they starts taking some sponsors. So seeing food or drink on the set isn't a strange sight. He—and the others are usually excited for it. Who's not excited for free food during shooting, right? Yeah, that if he's feeling good. Or not sick, at least.

Today, it's hell for him.

He hopes his acting skill after shooting drama, countless ads and interview, and variety shows can help him to hide the grimaces when he sees the food on the table. He could hear his members excited chatters as they starts spitting the script for promotions—Jimin and Jungkook has chewed some.

"Taehyung-ah, you're not eating?", Namjoon asks, taking a big bite—that get Taehyung gulps as he could feel the taste of grease and spice from it. He coughs loudly and he feels like throwing up. "No, i'm on diet"

"Diet? Hyung .. this is so good", Jungkook teases, taking a piece of chicken and shoves it until it touches his lips. Taehyung chuckles, trying his best not to gag at the smell. It smells good, truthfully. It's just his sick body makes him think otherwise.

"It's good, Taehyung-ah. What's the use for diet", Yoongi mumbles beside him. Taehyung smiles sheepishly—and surrender. He just need to eat one, and it's done. He chews quickly, trying to ignore any possible taste of meat in his mouth.

The shooting goes on, and everything was fine—except Taehyung feel worst. He's not even sure if he's still "there" or not. He takes a sip of water. His stomach hurts now. He feels nauseous. He had taken almost half of the water, to wash the taste from his tongue. But for some reason, it still lingers there, and it falls heavy in his stomach. He can feel his throat getting constricted by every single swallowing. It feels weird. And it makes him feel even worse—feeling his chest rising and falling faster.

Yoongi must've noticed his weird behaviour as he nudges his hand under the table twice. "Huh?"

"Are you okay?"

His stomach growls, it's not loud—but it sends ripple of burp that tastes like chicken and food his manager gave to him. Taehyung presses his fist over his lips hard—as the horrible taste causing his body to flinch and convulse with a gag. He is never a quiet person—so the mic definitely catch his gag, as he could see everyone stops on his tracks. He barely can react or anything, before his stomach turns and throws the food in his hand.

Taehyung is dizzy.

Everything is spinning in front of him—he feels faint already—but somehow manages to nod. His hand starts to feel cold. He unconsciously wrapped it around his middle—as nausea washes him. This time more prominent ; like Yoongi's acknowledgement opened something in him.

Everything is blurry now, he doesn't remember being pushed towards someone, or even hearing someone scream his name, but he does remember seeing their faces as he retches. He can still taste the awful taste of the chicken, as he continues puking in between coughs. He doesn't know who puts trashcan on his lap, and pull his hand away from his mouth—as his head immediately ducked into it, mouth opened wide with a big stream of vomit rushes through it. He shuts his eyes, waiting for the next wave of vomit to come over him. And it does—5 seconds later, with a loud belch. All of water he downed earlier pushing itself up, filling the bin in rapid pace. Taehyung chokes, feeling a burning sensation spread across his throat.

"Taehyung-ah, breathe"

Someone touch his shoulders gently and push his hair back. Taehyung lets out a whimper, as he tries to control his breathing again. He can feel another hand rubbing his back, softly. He keeps on vomiting, emptying whatever's left inside his stomach, his throat and his mouth.

After what felt like hours of vomiting, he finally managed to stop. He feels exhausted, shaking and dizzy. Someone helps him—taking the trashcan away, and gives him tissues and water to clean himself. He wipes his mouth with shaky fingers, taking deep breath again and letting out small groans. He's too warm, too dizzy, and tired—all at once.

"Hyung ..", he mutters as he slumps against someone beside him. Maybe it's Yoongi .. or Jungkook—he doesn't care. "I'm not feeling well"

"Yeah no shit, you just throw up, Taehyung-ah", Someone snickers. Probably Seokjin. "Let's call off the shooting. Get Taehyungie home"

"Can you stand up?", Someone that has been his pillar asks him softly. Taehyung frowns—still not want to open his eyes. "Dunno .. dizzy"

A pair of hands support him as a hand comes to hold his waist, helping him up. A small voice speaks again—"Take it slow. I'll walk with you"

With a groan, he manages to move his body. He holds onto whoever is supporting him and tries to keep himself straight. But his body definitely hits a rock bottom today—he only few steps away from their waiting room, when nausea is starting to grows and so does the dizziness. The floor spins under him. He doesn't get a word, before he jerks forward, and watery vomit sprays out of his mouth.

"Tae!"

Taehyung is barely aware of people calling his name—as his stomach rebels against him and convulse, sending the second batch of the vomit flying out, and then another wave. He gasps for air, his arms weakly clutching his stomach—while someone fusses beside him.

" 'm sorry", he chokes out between coughs and groans after the nausea subsided.

He feels awful.

"It's okay, Taetae .. it's okay. Now let's get you clean up and go home, okay?"

[scienceoftheidiot]

I was tagged by @goneadrift ! Thank you 🥰❤️ I know it isn't easy in these times but I hope you feel a little better yet again tomorrow 🫂

Current time: 17:20

Current mood: sleepy but in a nice, relaxed way

Current activity: trying to wake my brain up from a nap

Thinking about: whatever I'm going to do once I manage to shake myself from this

Current favorite song: Rusted from the rain by Billy Talent

Currently reading: I don't remember the name but one of the Pendergast novels, again, yeah there's a lot of them okay. It's not very good, guys. But also easy to read and I've read the book almost all at once until the clichés were too much and I got bored. I need to finish it though I wanna know if Coldmoon makes it out alive (don't tell me. I hope he does).

Currently watching: a very very stupid reality TV show about ghost hunters on Netflix but like. Like right now. It's making us silly. So we're having fun with stupid and lewd jokes. But I'm happy it's soon over because it's. It's really not good. Urgh. Like as a skeptic and a scientist I'm just morbidly entertained by watching these people almost litterally piss their pants through autosuggestion and yet I also want to slap them all and tell them to get a life. Eeehh yet I'm watching.

Current favorite characters: Roy Mustang, Riza Hawkeye, the whole Team Mustang (I am very partial to Fuery 🥺), Olivier Armstrong, I'm sorry I've got a one track mind 🤣 (Though I'm glad it's current and not all time favourite because I can never reply to that)(throwing Edmund Reid in there too because there's never enough guilt ridden arseholes who are also the boss of a fun team on my blog)("fun" I said)

Current wips:  THEY'RE ALL ROYAI HI

"My own worst friend and my own closest enemy", which we're almost done with, with @qs63 and that's been and still is a blast to write

"dismissed Roy" (this is a working title lol) that I want to have finished by the end of summer, and it's going well but there's still so much to write AAAH haha (that's where the "irritated Roy shows them all" small excerpt from last time comes from)

"1923" (working title. I don't have a title. I need a title) that's an AU imagining the lives of Roy, Riza, and other characters (for now Havoc has appeared, Falman, too) in OUR universe, drawing from CoS. Yes, I will have (and actually have already started writing) Roy meet this Hughes, and Ed, too, and no I will not tell how it goes lol

Well I tag @qs63 @dairogo @heirsoflilith @littlelovingmouse and @littleragondin and whoever wants to do this 😊

[seiwas]

hi hi sel !! it’s been a while since i stopped by ( :( ) but i am fixing that to tell you about this week’s excitements! i get to home for break a little later this week so that’s #1 :3 second one is that i am meeting up with my sil to watch jjk! i got her into it but she only watches it when i’m home and we missed last time so we’re suuuuper behind lol but we’re gonna have a little marathon this weekend!

that’s all for me :3 how about you?!? anything you’re looking forward to this week?

aaaah sua bb!! i've missed you!! 🥺 am so excited for you!! am happy that you're able to spend time with the ppl u love this weekend 💗 and that is so cute!!! how you're gonna have a jjk marathon too aaah it's gonna be so good 🥺 i hope she enjoys it!!! (i think it's so fun watching ppl's reactions to smth u've watched alr heheheh) (also jjk s2 is so good i cant even 😭😭 i mean s1 was good but this season is smth else 😭)

as for me!! i've been looking forward to finishing a fic this week 😭 so much that i've started blocking off time to actually just sit and write sbasjd but other than that!! my bf and i are gonna pick up his family from the airport tonight!! and tomorrow we have pickleball with some good friends 🥺 then this saturday, we're going to celebrate his bday w all of our friends too 🥺 i didn't think there'd be this many things to look forward to until i started listing them down omg 😭 but the week's looking to be rlly exciting 🥺

[bulle-blackhole]

Rules: Tag 9 people you’d like to get to know better

thank you @wurm-food for tagging me mwah mwah

3 ships : sunshine/emo, small/big, smart idiot/idiot genius

first ever ship : okay so. i genuinely wont be able to say first /first/, the oldest i can remember tho is maybe Hilda/N from the game pokémon black&white - buuut it was veeery self insert driven so, idk ?

last song : daisy bell duo with vocoder, vokaloid and IBM704. beloved

last movie : aaah fuuck okay i think ? it was probably. the bad guys ???????? maybe ????? its the last one i remember watching a while back with my sister but i cant tell if i watched something else since then maybe

currently reading : nothing - i have yet, to have the courage to start my books. ALTHOUGH, me and hubby started doing a read of the one piece manga together so i could catch up....but we go slow because im a mess

currently watching : naruto ! we're like, episode 20 i think. so just started lol. also skipping filler for the first watch through

currently consuming : i did just finish a melon ramune and wavy chips salt and vinegar

currently craving : cheese cake. always

tagging uuuh @messedupessy @digglesgiggless @dreemurr-skelememer @cyborg-franky @lovelyless-fiction @swagmanconfre @popatochisssp @rosiinantes @me-and-my-gaster

[borathae]

I just finished SA and I'm sobbing.

The last three ones were a masterpiece.

First off, the intricacies of the plot. Wow.

How did you manage to come up with it will be forever beyond me...

Second off my taetae 🥺.

Third off, YOONGIE BOONGIE OMGSHFAFAFAFAFFA.

I'm so happy to know their story now, cause I've read his drabbles but this just explains so much. He's like not even just her soulmate but like WHO SHE WAS MADE FOR!? Like 3000 years after he falls this deep, this is just afhdjksiebbdueb like their souls are one? And their smut had me teary eyed, especially the one before releasing tae i full on had tears streaming maybe I'm just also a little too sensitive and might look crazy to some of your followers, but i said it before, nothing gets me more than that we're the only ones left in the cosmos and the divine created us for no other purpose but to love each other endlessly into the stars type smut.

I loved the universe so so so much and I'm just so emotional because the last chapters were ughhhhhh. I'm still trying to process things. Also your a/n at finis is 😭

I haven't met a man who made me feel this in so long

In conclusion miss Sibi i want to kiss your brain for writing it, it evoked so much within me even though I usually find it hard to do that with fantasy stories.

I also want to say that I think Tinashe - The Last Night on Earth fits Harmony so well...

And the way the walls are movin' got me thinking that I'm way too gone

So I know I shouldn't tell you, but it's easy if it's wrong

I love you

So just in case we die

Let me see your soul

So I'll know what to find

Wherever we go

(please listen to it if you want/can of course I just 🥺)

It's like her talking asking him to let her see his soul to shed his layers like it was their last time... Brb going back to the real world and my friends that are non fictional lmao

Lastly Sibi thank youuuuuuuuuuuuu i couldn't fit all my thoughts but just thank you for writing it

YOU FINISHED IT!!! AAAH I'M SO EXCITED AND HAPPY RIGHT NOW!!! Like I am not lying when I tell you that you sweet message helped me overcome writer's block with a certain chapter in MV. Like, I read your lovely words and felt so motivated to finally finish the chapter even if I was struggling with it. I want to give you guys more of this world because it's so dear to me and it's also to dear to you guys and I just :( I wanna give you all a big hug :(

I'm so happy to know their story now, cause I've read his drabbles but this just explains so much. He's like not even just her soulmate but like WHO SHE WAS MADE FOR!? Like 3000 years after he falls this deep, this is just afhdjksiebbdueb like their souls are one? And their smut had me teary eyed, especially the one before releasing tae i full on had tears streaming maybe I'm just also a little too sensitive and might look crazy to some of your followers, but i said it before, nothing gets me more than that we're the only ones left in the cosmos and the divine created us for no other purpose but to love each other endlessly into the stars type smut.

I WANNA SOB INTO MY PILLOW PLEASE I LOVE HOW YOU SEE THEIR RELATIONSHIP!!! BECAUSE THIS IS EXACTLY HOW I WANT PEOPLE TO SEE IT :( LIKE THEY ARE THE TYPE OF SOULMATES WHICH AREN'T JUST "you are made for me" BUT INSTEAD THEY ARE "no matter how many lifetimes I live, I will always find back to you" TYPE OF SOULMATES AND I JUST WANNA SOB FNDFANFA

Tinashe - The Last Night on Earth

I love that song so much omfg this is so them!! I'm gonna sob!! I'm so upset that it's not on Spotify, I'd have put it straight onto their playlist 😭

Seriously thank you for this message! It made my entire month!! 🥺💜

[fatalezr]

Strike Back

Yelena's feet were hurting with each step on the hard terrain but she continued to run hard. Her target was just ahead of her but she fought through the pain and put in an additional effort. Her lungs burned with the exertion. She gritted her teeth. She was gaining. She dodged her head out of the way of a low hanging branch and hurdled a log on the floor, lengthening her stride, but feeling her head sweat as the sun beat down through the trees. 'Come on' she told herself. Ahead she saw the wood cabin. She must not let her target reach it. She felt the acid build up inside her but broke into a sprint, searching for every last piece of energy she could find.

"Aaah" she cried, putting in a final piece of effort to reach Sandra, overtaking her and reaching for the pole at the edge of the cabin that marked the finishing line of their race. She put her hands on her knees and sucked in the air to her waiting lungs. "How.....how did we do?" she asked, not looking at no-one.

"44 minutes, 50 seconds" Sandra said, sounding breathless herself. Yelena felt an arm on her shoulder. "Well done," the older woman said.

"Fuck, you're quick" Yelena had to admit, happy to have beaten the pace that Sandra was setting finally. A ten kilometre run had become a hallmark of their routine every couple of days and Yelena had been impressed at Sandra's stamina and speed over the distance in the woods. She slumped to the ground, putting her back against the cabin wall and Sandra handed her an energy drink, which she gratefully accepted. The two sat together, catching their breath for a few seconds.

"How do you think our boy is getting on?" Sandra asked.

Yelena shook her head. "He needs time," she said, but peered into the distance. Her heart leapt as she saw Raoul, sweating profusely but running with a determined expression. "Come on" she shouted encouragement at him, and she saw him look down and continue to run as fast as he could towards the finish line whilst she stretched her aching muscles.

Raoul finally reached them, almost collapsing as he hit the finishing post. "Oh fuck" he said, going to all fours and retching a little. Yelena felt pity for him and went to put her arms around him and offer him a drink.

"57 minutes" Sandra said, looking at his watch, "that's your best time yet and by some distance".

"I....I did not stop today" Raoul said, sounding proud and Yelena kissed him on the arm. She felt proud of his achievement too.

"Very good" Sandra said, "your strength is coming back". Raoul had only started joining them in the last ten days. His recovery from the shrapnel wounds he had received had gone well and Yelena had found herself almost relaxing in the cabin. They were deserted but it was pleasant. It had given Raoul space to get fresh air, to walk and now to start running and exercising again. She saw that his appetite was returning and they had been able to spend some intimate time together again, Yelena relishing the feeling of him when they finally made love again.

The previous few weeks had also had their difficulties. After the revelations from their night in New York City, it had been a couple of days before Yelena and Sandra decided to tell Raoul that it was Enzo Falcano who had tried to have him murdered. It had been a blow to him. After dedicating a large part of his life to the family, he found it hard to accept that they would now be turning on him and trying to kill him. It had been another two days before he approached the subject again, reaching a place of acceptance but Yelena saw the hurt that was in his eyes.

Her own vengeful thoughts had morphed. After the initial fury, she had found time to think. Killing the informant had helped but she knew that getting to Enzo would be a far more difficult proposition. There was also the challenge of facing the Picenza gang. "We need to be smart" Sandra had said to them both, "I have connections but make no mistake, we're a small band, trying to take on two armies". The cabin had now turned into their base of operations, Yelena and Sandra spending time outfitting it with the communications devices they needed and going to upstate cities to buy an array of tools and munitions, including a new MAC-10 and suppressor that Yelena had insisted on. With so much change happening in her life, she needed something to remain constant and that weapon would be it.

After a healthy shower and breakfast, Yelena approached Sandra, who was sitting on the sofa in the cabin and grinning wildly as she read something on her phone. "Excuse me" the British woman said, "a friend of mine in London was just telling me of some of her recent adventures and upcoming plans. I might have to go and visit her soon..." her voice trailed off, lost in thought.

"You want to head to London?" Yelena asked.

"Maybe for a short time" Sandra said, "let's see how things develop here. If I do go, you're still very welcome to stay here".

Yelena nodded, and waited patiently until Sandra had finished looking at her phone and put it down. "It's time for us to strike back," she said finally.

"I quite agree" Sandra said, "as pleasant as the woods can be, it's time to start moving forward with our plans". Yelena was surprised by her response. Sandra was normally one to preach restraint. She thought she might have to convince her of the need to start taking back her life.

"I've been thinking about how we can drive Enzo from out of his hole" Yelena said, an anger still rising in her when she mentioned his name, "we need to ratchet up the war between Picenza and Tony".

Sandra nodded. "Yes" she said simply, "get them to inflict massive losses on one another".

"A couple of quick kills on either side should do it," Yelena said.

"True" Sandra said, "but I have an idea I think you might like too". She grinned and Yelena sat back, intrigued. "I think I've found a couple of infiltrators from Picenza's gang in the police department. What do you think about us introducing a new player into the war?"

Yelena grinned too. It was a great opportunity. Whilst the police mainly kept themselves out of the mob affairs, they would have to get involved if they believed two of their own had been slain, and Picenza would surely use it as an opportunity to hit Falcano harder too. Whilst they all looked inward and fought one another, Yelena and Sandra could strike when they least expected. "I like it" she said.

"I've had a tail on the two officers over the last few days" Sandra said. "It seems they like to frequent a bar after work that Picenza owns and play cards in the backroom".

"You tailed them?" Yelena queried.

"Of a sort," Sandra replied, holding up her phone. "Actually they tailed themselves. Some of my associates were able to hack their phones pretty easily".

"Your associates?" Yelena wanted to know more.

"Well the NYPD does have a large range of talented officers, some of whom are friendly with myself too" Sandra said. "Combine that with some other individuals I work with...as I've been telling you Yelena, it's not all about brute force of numbers. It's about being precise and strategic with where you place your assets".

Yelena nodded. Living with Sandra had become an educational experience. "When do we go?"

"How quickly can you get changed?" Sandra replied, grinning at her.

It was music to Yelena's ears. She got up and strode into hers and Raoul's bedroom, hearing the shower still going. She stripped out of the jeans and t-shirt she was wearing, replacing them with a black vest top, new black leather trousers and the leather jacket that Sandra had given her. She looked at herself in the mirror - she looked like she used to and she was happy.

"Ah mi amor, you look..." she heard Raoul's voice say from behind her. He was wrapped in a towel around his waist. "You look perfect," he said, and kissed her on the neck. "Are you going somewhere?"

"For a short while, my love, yes" she told him. "Be patient with me". She kissed him.

"I will try, mi amor" Raoul said, chuckling a little. "It is always hard when you are not around. You will....be careful?"

"Of course," she said. She picked up her new Mac-10, it's suppressor and a couple of magazines that she had pre-loaded with bullets and tucked them around the back of her jacket. "How do I look?" she asked him.

"Like I want you to be forever" he said. He smiled lovingly at her and Yelena felt reaffirmed. They would make it through this difficult time together. She kissed him goodbye and walked back into the lounge to see Sandra carrying a small briefcase. She had changed into a navy blue trouser suit with a plunging neckline that exposed a hint of the white bustier she was wearing but Yelena knew the main item of interest under her jacket would be a shoulder holster with a handgun within it.

"What's in the case?" Yelena asked.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" Sandra retorted. There was a mischievous look in her eye but Yelena simply chuckled in response.

Their drive to the city was more joyous this time. Despite their differences in appearance, age and upbringing, Yelena had begun to see Sandra as a friend. It was hard to often find someone who she could talk to about her work, yet in Sandra she had a kindred spirit, someone who knew what it was like to kill. She wanted to quiz the older woman some more.

"What's the most people you've ever killed in a single...operation?" she said, struggling to find the right words.

"Oh goodness" Sandra said, thinking hard, "I'm guessing it might have been about two dozen, maybe a couple more...It was a long while ago, and to be honest I almost died myself".

Two dozen. The number seemed exceptionally high for one person to Yelena, but she believed it to be true. "What happened?" she asked.

"I was in a dispute with my employer" Sandra answered tersely, "he'd tried to have me killed after I refused an order to murder an innocent child. I decided to strike first and stormed the office where he operated from and well, let's just say, I won".

"What was your former employer like?" Yelena wanted to know more.

Sandra kept staring at the road. Her brow furrowed. "He was like a father to me at first, then in time a lover, and after that, an enemy. He...he was a great contradiction of a man. He could be kind, he could be loving, he was smart, god Yelena he was smart, but he also had this rage and anger. I learned a lot from him, both about what I wanted but also what I didn't want to be".

Yelena could tell from the strain in her voice that the topic was a difficult one for Sandra and simply nodded. She changed the subject as they continued the drive, talking with Sandra about the UK. She has always wanted to visit London but never had the chance.

"Well I shall have to arrange it for you to come in due course" Sandra said. "The food is actually rather good if you know where to go".

They arrived in the city after the sun had just set and the streets of Manhattan were bathed in artificial light from street lamps and neon billboards and signs. Sandra drove them through Midtown and stopped in an underground parking garage.

"The back of the bar is a couple of blocks from here" she said, picking up her phone and sending a message. "Harriet is in position - let's put our gloves on". Yelena nodded and together they both put on a pair of black leather gloves, stretching their hands inside and making sure they still had the movement they needed in their hands and fingers.

Yelena threaded the suppressor on to her Mac-10. It was a familiar feeling to her and she was excited to test her new model out. Sandra had unbuttoned her jacket and was loading her Glock-17 with a long magazine and threading on a thick suppressor before replacing it in her holster.

"It's been converted to fully automatic" she told Yelena, "still discreet enough but useful in a crowded room". She picked up the briefcase in her hand and got out of the car, Yelena making sure her own gun was out of sight before doing the same.

They walked a block before they happened upon Harriet, who was standing against a wall in the alley, looking like she was listening to music in her headphones. The brunette had short and straight hair down to her shoulders and was dressed in tight black jeans and a navy blue hooded top. She nodded at Sandra and gave Yelena a frightened half-smile.

"They've got someone by the back door, I guess doing lookout work" Harriet told them both quietly. "They've got the music going in the front, it'll be pretty loud".

"How many in the back room?" Sandra asked.

"Six" Harriet said, "there's been some comings and goings but six right now".

"You can see that from here?" Yelena asked, a little skeptical.

Harriet narrowed her eyes but showed Yelena her phone, which was actually showing a video relay inside the bar of four security cameras. "Yep, pretty sure" she said sarcastically.

Yelena gave an approving nod and noticed Sandra smiling. "Here" Sandra said, handing Harriet the briefcase, "as I promised"

"Oh my..." Harriet's eyes widened as she took the case, "oh my God, is this...?"

"It is" Sandra told her, "plus a couple of extra bits and pieces I thought might be useful".

Even Harriet was puzzled by that but Sandra put her hand on the younger girl's shoulder. "Don't be scared, you've earned this opportunity" she told her.

"Thank you" Harriet said, giving Sandra a hug. "Good luck today".

"You too" Sandra said, before she watched Harriet disappear round the corner and on to the main street. Yelena looked at Sandra quizzically. "She has a couple of tasks to do and then she'll be meeting Marina. Call it an....onboarding program....for new recruits". She seemed pleased with her description.

"Still recruiting then?" Yelena asked her.

"Oh yes" Sandra said, "our line of work does contain a certain amount of jeopardy and we will need a good number of boots, or should I say high heels, on the ground".

Yelena nodded but then returned her focus to the task in hand. She spied the man by the back door wearing a dark bomber of the bar as Harriet had said and put her hand inside her jacket to feel the Mac-10. The door was down a dark back alleyway with nobody else in it. They would be seen on their approach and Yelena knew they would have to be quick.

Sandra pulled out a throwing knife and handed it to Yelena. She took it gladly and hid it behind her back before setting off towards the man, Sandra just behind her. She watched as his eyes turned towards them and he frowned, as if the spectre of a leather-clad woman was something he had been warned about, but believed was dead.

Quick as a flash, Yelena brought the knife from behind her back and flung it up towards him. It spun and cut through the air until it found the middle of his chest. His face turned to shock as the knife plunged into him and he sank to his knees, mouth open. "Impressive shot" Sandra said, noting the skill, "very impressive".

Yelena said nothing but drew her gun as she approached the body. Pfft-pfft-pfft. She shot into his head and watched it burst open at the impact of her bullets. She smiled. The way the new Mac-10 felt in her hand was amazing and the shots were deadly and quiet. She breathed deeply, feeling the rush of the kill returning to her.

The women wasted no time, stepping over the dead body and standing either side of the back door. Sandra pulled out her automatic pistol and placed her hand on the door. She exchanged a quick look with Yelena before pulling it open.

Yelena saw the room react in shock as the door was opened to reveal her in her all-leather look and raising the Mac-10, one hand under the suppressor and one by the trigger. As Harriet had said, there were six men around a round table, two wearing police uniforms and the other men in a collection of shirts and trousers, one man wearing a fedora hat and braces. They were evidently in the middle of a hand, three men still holding cards whilst a large stash of chips gathered in the centre.

She did not wait for them to say anything or respond, immediately pressing the trigger and sending a stream of bullets into three of the men on her side of the room. Pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft. She aimed for chests and saw them jerk and shudder and she smiled. Pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft. The felt on the table started to rip as bullets ricocheted on it, sending some chips flying. Sandra emerged next to Yelena, her automatic pistol in one gloved hand. Pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfff-pfft. She shot a burst into the other men. Pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft, pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft. For a few seconds the only sound was the soft humming of the weapons interspersed with the grunts and moans of the men as more shots hit them.

It was only when her magazine ran empty that Yelena stopped and admired her handiwork. The only noise was the soft bass sounds of music playing in the bar and all the men were either dead or on the verge of death. The two with police uniforms were on either side of the table, thrown back to the floor. One man was still in his chair but his shirt had been ripped open and he was wheezing. Another man was making attempts to crawl on the floor but was struggling with the number of wounds he had received. "Mmm" she moaned softly, feeling her nipples hardened beneath her vest top.

She looked over to Sandra, who was biting her lip and breathing deeply, running one gloved hand over her breast for a second or two. She gave a happy look at Yelena, and both women ejected their spent magazines and reloaded without saying a word. Pfft-pfft-pfft, pfft-pfft-pfft, pfft-pfft-pfft, pfft-pfft-pfft, pfft-pfft-pfft. Each man received a short burst from one of the women, the shots hitting their skulls and bursting them over. Yelena took careful aim at one of the policemen on the floor and gave a long stroke of her finger. Pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft. It pierced the man's back more. Sandra did the same with the other policeman, shooting him in the chest. Pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft-pfft. "Good" the older woman said, "God, I do like this".

Yelena was pleased to see them both sharing the same moment of pleasure. She heard a noise from the bar and decided their slaughter had come to an end. Her and Sandra disassembled their weapons and walked quickly out of the back of the bar and straight to the parking garage where Sandra's car was awaiting.

"I think I might visit a friend," Sandra said as they approached the cabin in upstate New York where they were living.

Yelena gave her a surprised look but Sandra smirked. She knew the older woman would be letting her and Raoul have the cabin to themselves all evening. She thanked Sandra and got out of the car, almost racing up the steps to the cabin. Raoul met her in the living room and before she could even shut the door, their mouths were intertwined in a passionate kiss and he was unzipping her leather jacket.

The surroundings may be different, but Yelena knew they were finally back in business.

[ellemany]

Cat Lovers

Tokyo is a big place. There's a lot to do there and each agent wanted to do something different. From riding a bullet train to participating in Fashion Week. Fade already knew what she wanted to do since they said they were going to spend a weekend in Japan. But she didn’t expect that her path would cross with a certain agent with a blue fringe.

Words: +2200

Available on Wattpad in Portuguese

Available on Ao3

 - NOWHERE TO...

 - Oh, save it.

 That's what Fade said before shooting that clone in the head.

 Fade became suspicious of the placement of the last attacker alive as she entered the spike's point. No one was so stupid to leave the super weapon unprotected to be easily disarmed. The Turkish agent sacrificed the glory of disarming the spike to hunt down the hunter. And it was a far more pleasurable sensation than it should be killing him mid-sentence.

 She twirled the gun on her finger, returning to the point. Yoru disarmed the spike, while Sage resurrected Raze, with Astra next to her.

 - Ah…- Raze sighed, stretching. - What’d I miss? - She gave a charming smile, looking at the other two.

 - Everything, practically. - Astra shrugged.

 - So, it's over? Raze turned to Sage, eyes gleaming.

 Sage sighed, as if she was relieved. She smiled, nodding.

 - It’s over.

 - AEEEEEEEEE! VACATIONS!!! - Raze jumped on Sage and Astra, swinging them.

 - We're only taking two days off. - Yoru grumbled, finishing to disarm the spike.

 - It's more than nothing! - She smiled, pulling them both with her. - Let's go to karaoke! On Tokyo Tourer! Toer! Tower! Ouh ouh ouh I want some pokemon plushies! YORU! - The Japanese trembled when he heard his name, picking up the spike from the ground. - TAKE ME TO A SUSHI BAR!

 - You wish. - He grumbled, walking towards their base, right past by the girls. - Tourists. - He said in a bad mood.

 Sage rolled her eyes with a smile, letting Raze take her.

 - Just use your phone Raze...

 - Oh yeah! Oooh Astra, didn't you mention a club?

 - Yessss! - Astra gave an excited smile. - Ah chale, now you're speaking my language.

 - FADE! - Raze yelled out of nowhere, turning to Fade, pulling Astra and Sage with her. - You're going with us, right? It's going to be sooooooo fun!

 Fade gave Raze a smile, infected by her excitement.

 - I have plans for the afternoon. - She shrugged, putting her hands in her jacket pockets.

 - Nooooo! - Raze whimpered and held Astra's face, pinching her cheeks. - It'll make Astra cry!

 Astra pouted, eyeing Fade. The Turkish agent rolled her eyes, giving a slight smile.

 - But I accept the club later.

 - EEEEEE! - Raze jumped up and turned around again, pulling Sage and Astra with her. - YORU!

 - Holy shit... - Yoru threw his head back, already tired.

 - You'll kill me. - Sage grumbled, trying to free herself from Raze.

 - No worries. - She hugged Sage tighter. - COME WITH US IN THE CLUB! LET'S GO!

 - No. - He kept walking, not even looking back. 

 - Oxi omi. - Raze grimaced and dropped the two, running to Yoru. Sage let out the air, taking a deep breath. - What do you have to do that 's better than being with us? - She started walking backwards, in front of him. 

 - It doesn't matter. - He spoke through gritted teeth, trying to dodge Raze.

 - Aaah c’mon! - The Brazilian whimpered. - Everyone goes! Please! It will be so much fun!

 - I already told you I don't want to! - He snorted, passing by Raze at once.

 Raze whimpered more, making mention to go after Yoru, but Sage grabbed her shoulder, giving her a slight smile.

 - Let him go.

 Raze looked at Sage and then looked at Yoru, sniffling.

 - I wanted everyone together… - She shook her head.

 - I know. - Sage nodded.

 - Let's go chale! - Astra hugged Raze, excitedly. - Party on!

 The three walked away, laughing and talking about what they were going to do.

 Fade, with her characteristic cat eyes, watched everything in silence, following her own way.

...

 Tokyo is a big place. There's a lot to do there and each agent wanted to do something different. From riding a bullet train to participating in Fashion Week.

 Fade already knew what she wanted to do since they said they were going to spend a weekend in Japan. She carefully researched the place and followed the route traced by the navigation app until she reached her destination. It had an understated facade and looked bigger on the inside. Fade had a burst of joy as she entered the small building.

 A Neko Cafe, with decor and everything.

 The walls were painted in pastel colors, divided between the cat and food areas. Fade did research that would make the FBI jealous about the entire history of the place and CIA agents should learn from her interrogation with the Cafe receptionist about how they treated felines. When she was satisfied, she allowed herself a look at the cats' menu.

 And that was enough for her to melt all of her bounty hunter facets.

 Fade ordered a coffee before entering the cat area, studying the kittens as if she were planning to kidnap each one for herself. She watched the cats from where she was. An elegant Maine Coon strutted around one of the cat toys, enjoying the attention it received from a few fascinated children. A British Shorthair was lying on a bed, allowing a woman to stroke its soft fur. A small Munchkin was struggling to follow a man who was going to drink his coffee with its short legs. Many other stray kittens were at the Cafe.

 Yep. Fade was going to kidnap one of them.

 She watched a cat with eyes as blue as the sky and fur as black as the night moving. He walked slowly, a little tired. Fade guessed he was at least 20 years old. She wanted to take care of that old cat.

 But he walked over to a man sitting in the lotus position against a wall, snuggling into his lap. The man, wearing a hooded Jojo sweatshirt, began to caress the cat with the back of his hand, using circular moves. It was a peculiar movement, as if it were an old habit between them. Fade guessed that those two had known each other for a long time and she thought that was adorable. She kept trying to see the man's face, half hidden by the hood. His thin lips moved as if he were talking to the cat and his down hair had a blue fringe…

 Fade frowned. It wasn't possible...

 The man let out a sigh and leaned his head against the wall, eyes closed. Fade's jaw dropped.

 - Yoru? - She whispered.

...

 Sora was a great listener. Ryo could always tell him everything, really blurt out. And that was the closest therapy he would ever get.

 - Don't get me wrong… - Ryo could feel the blue eyes on him, staring at him without judgment. - I like the… idea of ​​what we do there… But… Ugh I just wanted answers… - He swallowed, lowering his gaze. Sora's head was resting on Ryo's thigh, with his feline face turned towards him. - And I only got more questions… This is getting more and more difficult.

 Sora stretched out on Ryo's lap, letting out a tired meow.

 - I know. It's too tiring... - He shook his head, going back to stroking Sora's back the way he liked. - But I have to do this...

 - I agree.

 Ryo froze, immediately recognizing the voice coming from above him. It populated the nightmares he had when he was awake and was the newest reason for his insomnia.

 - It's not easy to deal with what we must deal with. - She continued and Ryo felt her footsteps around him, soft and silent, stopping in front of him. - But places like this help a lot. It seems to take that weight off our shoulders. - He saw her sneakers first, right before she sat on the floor, hugging her knees.

 The Japanese man swallowed, looking up at Fade. She looked around curiously, as if she felt comfortable there and wanted to find out more about the place.

 - It's nice to see the sunlight. And the energy here is much lighter than the energy at the base. Fear infests that place. - The Turkish agent turned to the other, swaying a little. - Here and now, I only feel fear coming from you. - She tilted her head theatrically, blinking as if confused. - Why are you afraid, Ryo?

 Ryo moistened his lips, not taking his eyes off her. He moved his hands carefully, as if fearing her next actions, clenching his fists on his knees. Sora sat between his legs, facing Fade as well. He knew well when there was an intruder in his territory. 

 - What do you want? - He asked low, defensively.

 - Me? - She made an innocent face, blinking. - I just came to appreciate kittens. Just like you. - She smiled sweetly, looking down at Sora. Ryo gritted his teeth and Sora meowed. - They have a file for each of them, with lots of useful information. I found it extremely helpful. I should adopt a similar method. - Fade smiled and extended her hand towards Sora, carefully. The cat bristled, as if ready to pounce. Fade noticed the movement, stepping away respectfully. - He doesn't like me…- She pouted.

 - We don't like you. - Ryo snorted.

 Fade turned to Ryo, gripping her heels. She put her chin on her knees, watching him intently, like a curious cat.

 - You know each other well... He was accepted at the Cafe on the same day you were registered. Maybe you two share birthdays. - She looked at the two, giving a slight smile. - Sora... Sky... Yeah. It matches with the Night.

 Sora meowed, looking at Fade as if he planned to rip her neck off. Ryo, with his hands close to his boots where he hid a knife, was thinking the same.

 Fade blinked a few times and straightened her legs, sitting in the lotus position in front of him.

 - I didn't come to disturb your safe place, Yoru. It wasn't intentional for me to end up at the same Neko Cafe as you. I won't be in the way anymore. - She tilted her head to the side, giving a slight smile. - But I'm glad to meet another cat lover.

 Ryo looked her up and down, still tense. She represented danger and all his instincts told him to attack or flee. He stood in the same spot, as if waiting for her to make some offensive move. She looked to the side, with a white cub passing by her. Fade held out her hand, catching the kitten's attention. He sniffed at Fade's hand and licked it, allowing her to pick him up and caress him. Ryo and Sora exchanged glances, having an internal conversation that only those who had known each other since their cradle could have.

 - I'm not a cat lover. - He spoke finally, incisive. Which wasn't a complete lie. He would hate to have to worry about a cat in his apartment. Sandboxes repulsed him. - Sora is my friend. That’s it. - Ryo's ears got hot from the words spoken out loud. Heavens, that was ridiculous. But it was true. So much so that the cat meowed in agreement.

 Fade nodded, letting the kitten play with her coat.

 - You are good friends.

 And how they were.

 Ryo remembered the birthdays he spent playing with Sora at that Cafe. He remembered the few people he'd taken to meet the cat, as if he needed their approval to have a relationship with them. Sora never liked anyone and the two had great fights over it. Ryo always ended up getting all scratched up in these fights and soon he was the first to apologize. Ryo stole a master key from that Cafe because he knew that, at some point, he would be so distressed that he would have to go there to cry into the soft black fur in the middle of the night. Sora was the kind of grumpy cat who would never deny Ryo's hug.

 If Ryo had a friend, it was definitely that crabby old cat.

 - Yes. - He finally spoke, shrugging his shoulders.

 Fade nodded, grinning.

 - 300 credits.

 - What? - Ryo raised an eyebrow, not understanding what she was saying.

 - 300 credits and I don't post the pictures I took of you with Sora. - She rested her cheek on her hand, caressing the kitten in her lap. - And you'll start treating Raze better.

 - What?? - Ryo repeated, with indignation. Sora's pupils narrowed. - I thought you wouldn't get in the way!?

 - I will not. - Fade nodded. - As long as you pay me 300 credits and treat Raze well. - The Turkish agent narrowed her eyes on the two. Even as she looked at them, she didn't know if the growl she'd heard was coming from Ryo or Sora. - The girl is kind to everyone. You have no reason to be rude to her.

 - She's loud and...

 - 350.

 - Fade??

 - 400.

 Ryo stopped talking, dumbfounded.

 Fade gave one more smile. Ryo might be friends with Sora, but the man was still embarrassed to admit that he regularly went to a cute Neko Cafe. Shame was a funny feeling. It was the feeling of humiliation generated by an inhibition created, several times, by the own person. Shame could easily be used to manipulate someone.

 It was called blackmail, and Fade has some pride in being an expert at it.

 - No one else will know about your secret place, Yoru. - Fade smiled gently, letting the kitten climb her arm. - Seems like a small price to pay.

 Ryo pressed his lips together, glaring at her. For a moment, Fade thought he wasn't going to fall for that one. If Ryo used his head a little, he'd realize that no one but him would care if he liked kittens. 

 - Right. - He spoke through gritted teeth.

 Fade beamed, catching the kitten before he fell.

 - Good choice! - Fade held the kitten in front of her, rocking him slightly. - Isn't it, cutie? - She made her voice thinner to speak to the kitten, in a jovial aspect.

 Ryo and Sora looked at the woman with disdain. They definitely didn't like her.

◆:*:◇:*:◆:*:◇:*:◆:*:◇:*:◆:*:◇:*:◆:*:◇:*:◆:*:◇:*:◆:*:◇:*:◆:*:◇:*:◆

Thx for reading (๑ > ᴗ < ๑)

[maguro13-2]

The Dark Beginnings ~ Origins of the Ink Demon Chapter 0 Final Prologue (6/7) ~

*Sonic SFX : Chaos Control*

Seto : Alright, is everyone aboard?

Sonic : I think so.

Eggman : OHHH!!! The Death Egg! That darn robot blew it up! And it costs me 5000 dollars!

Seto : Really? I thought it would make you a millionaire, never know geniuses would have all that money.

Shadow : Looks like the doctor's space station is finished.

Sonic : This is the last time we've seen Emerl. I don't know why we were fretting over this.

Darkside Death : Because all of a you were such crybabies for a war machines that kills people.

Sonic : Shadow? Did you say something?

Shadow : No that wasn't my voice. It was something else.

Grim (Metal Sonic) : !? I feel a major disturbance that lies within the reach of darkness. I smell...

[Anubis (Impossible) - Maki Kirioka]

Grim (Metal Sonic) : Heartless!

*DBZ SFX : Suspense!*

Grim (Metal Sonic) : Look outside the window! Someone is here to meet in you person!

Amy : AAAH! What is that!?

Knuckles : Aw, Gnarly!

Rouge : What is that thing!?

Tails : Holy Fishpaste, who the barnacles that!?

Sonic : Woah! Who's the big guy!

Cream : I'm currently wetting myself!

Seto : Relax. That's Darkside Death, Lord Death's true form aka the Real charlatan.

Sonic : Darkside Death, you say? You mean...

All : THAT'S SHINIGAMI'S TRUE FORM!?!

Darkside Death : I never that you would all cower in fear that it would eventually happen to a machine that disappears into thin air. I knew that the mustache moron would let others die just for the sake of you heroes that wanted to protect humanity that are the arrogant species like the echidnas. He was such a capable machine from Professor Gerald.

Sonic : You! You caused all of this!

Eggman : And who do you think you're calling a mustache moron for!?

Shadow : So you're the one behind Witchkind's blame, eh? You hurt Ashley and Marisa's people...for the Devil.

Darkside Death : No, not me. Well...Perhaps from Shinra Kusakabe's orders. I even had to let him die when the Time Eater arrived to destroy his world just to annihilate him for his death.

Amy : I don't know how to say this, but this Shinigami creature that Maka has been working for is a heartless jerk.

Tails : I can't believe you! You made us cry like a bunch of little kids! Why you no good for nothing reaper!

Seto : You're gonna pay for that now, Heartless! You let your creator your die and you even manipulated everyone! I'm gonna finish this quick and we'll see who's the true Shinigami! I won't back down from a heartless coward like you!

Grim (Metal Sonic) : I'm gonna make you suffer!

Darkside Death : (chuckles) Simple as that, you will all die! A farewell gift to those who died peacefully for each of their sake!

Sonic : I'm gonna let you finish him off! Go get him, Seto! Show them what a true reaper you are!

Seto : Thanks for that, Sonic. I won't forget!

Sonic : Ready, Shadow?

Shadow : I'm ready as you are!

[Live and Learn by Crush 40 plays]

*DBZ SFX : Energy warbling+Big Aura*

Seto : (whistles) That's super gold.

Sonic : Alright, Shadow! Let's go take this bad guy out!

Shadow : Copy that!

*DBZ SFX : Instant Transmission*

Seto : Gladly that we can float in space. Hope we don't mind joining you in the fight?

Shadow : It's your call.

Darkside Death : Now this is some good entertainment. I really wanted this form of battle to stand against me. So you'll be lucky that I will be the manipulating these kids to be the under the influence of Shinra Kusakabe!

"Vs...DARKSIDE DEATH"

Seto : Sorry! But I don't take orders from heartless and you're master! You crossed the line, faker!

(Battle Begins)

Darkside Death : Now this is my kind of show! Let's just get this on the road! I wanna more and more power from the devil's influence, a will of the Devil that the meisters have been under! It's all part of my plan for universal domination!

Seto : You think that we're dumb enough to be part of a stupid influence? No we may not let you make Real World AU yours! I only protect the universe to those that is much saving the galaxy than the world itself and you're not the reaper that Maka knew! This sword that I was given has been keeping a secret! It's actually my sword that has the power of a Reaper and I will be the Shinigami that will make everyone their's to be influence me!

Super Sonic : Such a coward like you for hurting a witch's heritage and that is your own fault! Manipulating others was your dirty work and that is the coward's way!

Darkside Death : Coward's way? You make it sound so noble of you! I just let Shinra, Shotaro, and the girls of the Ohkuboverse to make their selves the greatest heroes that I entrust and you want them to believe in truth! But the men of Shinra influence has made humans and witches becoming the arrogant species when the Soul Resonance would be the successor that is key to the future of the Ohkuboverse. But to tell you that, there is no future to the Ohkuboverse! I only wanted to make everyone wake up to reality!

Super Shadow : Say whatever you want, but you're still a coward that spreads the lies to humanity's face! Human and witches are neither nor heartless!

Grim (Metal Sonic) : A human is a human!

Seto : A witch is a witch!

Super Sonic : And heartless is a heartless! Never bring those lies to you!

Super Shadow : This is for making us kill Emerl you creep! Chaos Spear!

*DBZ SFX : Rapid Energy Shots*

Darkside Death : Grrrrgh!!! I'll make sure that you and all of these will sufffer the same fate!

Sonic : You're gonna pay for this!

*DBZ SFX : Exclamation Mark*

Johnny Gioeli : Hey, what gives! Who cut off our song!?

Jun Senoue : Oh my God! Look! (points to something into the sky)

[The World Came Crumbling Down - Yutaka Minobe]

Sonic & Shadow : No way!

Penny Crygor : What the-!?

Ashley : No...It can't be! This heartless created a thing that would end all of Witchkind...including humans.

Kimial Diehl : That could mean thing! This heartless a weapon that could destroy earth! It's a Torpedo!

*DBZ SFX : Suprise!*

Seto : A MISSILE IS YOUR ONLY WEAPON TO DESTROY THE PLANET!?! A VILLAIN LIKE YOU IS SO STUPID OR INSANE! HOW CAN YOU TRUST MAKA ALBARN IF YOU'RE DOING THAT TO OUR PLANET!?!

Darkside Death : BECAUSE OF SHINRA KUSAKABE! THAT ATSUSHI OHKUBO IS SUCH A WEIRD MAN WITH SELF-CONFIDENCE! ALL HUMANS LIKE HIM IS FILLED WITH ARROGANCE, HUMANS AND WITCHES COULD'VE BRING PEACE TOGETHER! So If I can't be Shinigami and if there is no witches to be left on the planet, NOBODY WILL...NOBODY CAN!

Penny Crygor : (via radio) Ashley, Kimmy! The Shinigami that everyone knew was this heartless! Shinra and Maka were played from the start! Lord Death is the bad guy and not Shotaro!

Ashley : Does that mean Shotaro the Dokeshi is innocent?

Darkside Death : Watch as I oblierate Real World AU with this super deadly missile created from the powers... of Darkness!!!

*DBZ SFX : Energy Ball throw*

Johnny Gioeli : Oh god! We're all gonna die!

Seto : I gotta help the inhabitants and save the earth!

Darkside Death : Watch as I obliterate Real World AU with this deadly weapon I have given to all humans and witches a sake for the Kusakabe! I give you, the MISSILE OF DARKNESS!!

[Project C (Master CONTRA Phase 2) - Sota Fujimori]

Seto : Uh-oh! If we don't stop that missile soon, the whole planet will be destroyed!

Grim (Metal Sonic) : Damn, heartless! No wonder why Soul World existed in the first place!

Super Sonic : Shadow! We need to collect those rings to stop that missile!

Super Shadow : That could be a ring to work, but our super powers can't match the powers of darkness against that thing! We need some fire power that attracts light to darkness.

Seto : Light to darkness...Light to Darkness...

Sora's Voice : This is what's light to darkness. A chance to make eveeryone!

[Reunion - Kenichi Tokoi]

*ADVANCED!*

Seto : Light to Darkness! That's it That could work into my advantage! We can stop the missile with the powers of light! If they want light, I'll give them light to darkness! A chance to make everyone happy! Now let's take this missile down before it touches down the earth!

Sonic and Shadow : Got it!

Grim (Metal Sonic) : Nevertheless! It's time make the heartless pay for sabotaging our planet!

Seto : I just got one last trick to stop that deadly missile! I'm going to make a payback for whoever created Darkside Death!

"Let there be light, This is the final showdown!"

~ Prologue 31 : Beginning of the End Pt.1 ~

[paleparearchive]

A Show Of Skill

Van Gogh's initial 2★ story (1/1)

Location: city (morning) | Characters: Van Gogh, Gauguin, Monet, Aoi/MC

Aoi: (I'm sure I didn't forget to buy anything else, so I can go back to the museum and–)

Monet: –Aaaah! After all, breathin' some fresh air makes my brush strokes more lively!

Van Gogh: Yeah, it's going great! Much of the original graffiti is no longer visible!

Aoi: (Over there it's… Van Gogh-kun and Monet-kun? What are they doing in front of the store?)

–Van Gogh-kun, Monet-kun! What are you doing?

Van Gogh: Ah, Miss Curator! Look look, we were both painting on the wall.

Aoi: Such a big picture... Why are you doing it on the wall of the store? I don't think you were commissioned to do that…

Van Gogh: Because, you see, it's a terrible story! We heard that this store is always covered in graffiti.

Monet: They say no matter how much ya erase it, they fill it up again with new graffiti.

Aoi: No way, that's terrible…

Van Gogh: Monet and I heard about it and wondered if we could do something about it. So we came up with this!

Monet: If ya erase it and it gets painted again, why not just paint a different picture? Then it'll be their turn to erase it!

Van Gogh: We got the store owner's permission and finally got this far.

Aoi: I see... It's hard to believe that it was originally a doodle.

Monet: After all, these are the exclusive artists of the Palette Museum!

Van Gogh: Yeah! I hope it's a good advertisement for the museum. Ah, yes! Then I'll put this picture over here…

Monet: Aaah! That's neat! Okay, so this side'd be like…

Aoi: (They both seem to genuinely enjoy it. I'm sure that's why they always make such great pictures.)

Van Gogh: … Ah, wait. I ran out of paint…!

Aoi: Is it okay to use the paint I bought earlier?

Monet: Let's see… Aah, I don't see what we want. I'll go get some.

Aoi: No, I'm going to other places. I'll get the paints!

Van Gogh: Thank you, Miss Curator! It's ok to take your time, just be careful…!

—

Aoi: Sorry I'm late, you two…!

Monet: Don't worry 'bout– Wait why is Gauguin even with ya?

Gauguin: I heard something interesting, so… I thought I might be able to help.

Van Gogh: I'm sure it's going to be a better picture if Gauguin helps us! Thanks!

Aoi: Here, I've brought everything I could find for now. I brought a light, so use it.

Van Gogh: Ookay, then let's finish it up! We'll surprise everyone tomorrow morning!

—

Gauguin: … Van Gogh, here.

Van Gogh: Okay! Thank you! Then, this way!

Monet: You're amazing. It's like a relationship where ya don't need to say anythin'.

Van Gogh: Isn't it the same for you with Bazille-san and the others, Monet-san? I thought you had a good relationship.

Monet: I've known those guys for a long time. … Ah, ya two are the same, right?

Gauguin: Well… That's true. A lot of things happened… and now we're here…

Van Gogh: Maybe it's just like this graffiti.

Monet: ? What does that mean?

Van Gogh: We're not erasing all those things, we're turning them into something new... That's what I mean. I just think that it's because we overcame what was originally there that we have a good relationship.

Gauguin: It's just very Van Gogh-like to tie everything to painting…

Monet: Hahaha, indeed! I can tell that ya really love paintin’.

Van Gogh: I-It's embarrassing when you put it like that! Oh, come on! Stop talking and let's get it over with!

Monet: Hahaha, hahahaha! Aight, one last effort!

—

Van Gogh: Hooraaay! It's done!

Store's owner: This is amazing...! I can't believe that doodle turned into such a painting…! It's a work of art! I'm truly impressed! Thank you so much!

Van Gogh: I'm glad I could help. I hope this will make more people like art!

I'll get better and better and impress everyone! Now that I've decided that, I have to go back and practice!

Aoi: (Fufu, he really likes painting. I hope he can convey that feeling to many people.)

[stayxlix]

Hi hi my love❤❤ I just wanted to pop in and say that I've been thinking about the last few chapters of otde a lot, & I've realized you've kept it really objective <3 with long stories like these it's really hard to not get caught up in the story and just focus on the characters' main goals. When I think back to chapter 1 & 2 you've really kept the story balanced and going in one direction (pun unintended hahah). You give us so much while still being true to the story and your initial vision demonstrated in the earlier chapters.

Also I just wanna zoom in on Jeongin and say that I LOVE his character 😭❤ He's really out here keeping on his grind, with an infected foot that could've ended in amputation. He's such a strong person & so loving to his members aaah. He even wanted them to leave him behind :(

Anyways, with all that being said congratulations on otde so far and take your time writing the next chapter! I know you'll kill it!!

hi hi hi my dear.<33 i know im a little late but happy happy new year (AND HAPPY BIRTHDAY AGAIN💕). thank you so much for sharing your thoughts, you always take such care when reflecting on this story and i am forever grateful for your constant feedback with every chapter.<3 if we're be honest, your influence has been profound on my writing in general over the months we've known each other. im constantly inspired by your perspective when it comes to this little story and it truly warms my heart to know that youre still just invested as i am.🥹 what you said about the balance across the chapters is SUCH high praise, i cannot even begin to tell you what it means to me.<3 and lets talk about jeongin!😭❤️ im having so much fun with the relationships between each of the boys and i'm so happy you love his character (because lets be real he really does deserve all the love😭).

thank you thank you from the bottom of my heart for your encouragement. your friendship and support means more to me than you'll ever know.🥹 take care buddy (and good luck finishing out your exam week!!!<33) so much love for you always.🤗💕

[measuringbliss]

Spider-Man Read-Through Interlude: Spectacular 1+2 & Annual 5

MASTERPOST

Today's program: one story I've read a while ago (SSM 2), one story in black and white (SSM1) and one about Peter's parents (A5)

(you're not ready for this post's plot twists)

"Lo, This Monster" is in black and white, which I dislike in a series I appreciate in part due to its strong colors. However, the shading is excellent and you get used to it quickly. It involves politics (ostentatiously) as a mayor candidate is a key element.

Peter never fails to make me swoon.

Actually, some scenes have seemed oddly familiar to me for a while now... What's up with--

Oh. I've read it before. Okay. Um.

Let's actually read the next one, which is at least something I care more about.

Aaah, seeing this double spread fills me with nostalgia.

See, now we're talking! What a great panel.

This one too.

And these ones. Wow, Norman really sucks. Somehow I'm still surprised. Also notice Harry's purple pants (and purple suit at the beginning). I wonder if the writers had planned for Harry to take the mantle...

Anyway, this is an incredible issue (no surprise that the 1994 animated series did an episode around it! I knew I recognized the dinner scene), what's with Norman acting increasingly for Peter at the party in spite of everybody's discomfort.

Norman says Peter hasn't "spunked enough to try" and finish him, which, okay Norman, we get, you really want to get that ass.

So they do some Mary Jane (any relationship to the character of the same name is coincidental) and become friends again. The Green Goblin is no more... again...! But in our current continuity, he's back, so it was moot. But very entertaining and very well-made.

The last issue of the batch is one I have never read, finally!

OR HAVE I?

Oh no.

I've absolutely read it.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

So I *have* read the issue then. Good grief! I don't recall anything about Peter's parents though...

Gorgeous.

I feel like May's dialogue was lifted verbatim for TASM2.

I'm positive I never saw *that*, so I don't know what happened. Because I'm sure that I read some parts of it (see summary above)...

However we learn Peter loves dem bulges! Oh, and his dad was a double secret agent who betrayed Red Skull.

This is the part I knew about. I would like you to know that this drawing of Doom has been living rent-free for more than a decade in my brain.

Overall it's a messy issue. Of the three, the only one I would happily recommend would be Spectacular #2.

[sharkselfies]

The Minds Behind The Terror Podcast Transcript - Episode 4

Our journey comes to an end with the transcript for episode 4 of The Minds Behind The Terror Podcast, where Dave Kajganich, Soo Hugh, Dan Simmons, and Adam Nagaitis discuss the last two episodes of the series. Once again, Adam steals the show with his revelations about Mr. Hickey, but we also hear about everyone’s favorite death scenes, the fight to let Mr. Blanky say fuck, the many changes the writers made to the ending that differed from the novel, and the importance of trusting your audience’s intelligence.

The Minds Behind The Terror Podcast - Episode 4

[The Terror opening theme music]

Dave Kajganich: Welcome to the fourth and final installment of The Minds Behind AMC’s The Terror as we discuss our final two episodes of the show! I’m Dave Kajganich, creator and co-showrunner of the series, here with the honorable Dan Simmons, creator of the novel The Terror on which the series is based. Also with us is Soo Hugh, executive producer and co-showrunner of the show, and Adam Nagaitis, who plays a man who plays a man called Cornelius Hickey. Welcome back!

Adam Nagaitis: Hi!

Dan Simmons: Hi Dave. 

DK: So we launch into our final episodes. Now we are in an episode where the show begins to bend time. We cover a lot of ground in episode nine, a lot of distance, we say goodbye to quite a lot of characters, and we start to really bend the tone and the shape of the narrative towards the kind of horrible collision that’s coming between Crozier and Hickey and our Tuunbaq.

Soo Hugh: So in nine we say goodbye to so many of our characters. I mean Dave and I cried so--

[laughter]

SH: The amount of tears that he and I shed editing this show, especially with nine and ten. For you guys, Adam and Dan, which were the deaths--well, what did you think of the deaths?

DS: What’s your favorite death? 

[laughter]

SH: Yeah, what was your favorite death? 

AN: My favorite was probably, the one that really moved me was Fitzjames, it’s such a fantastic story, his character’s so interesting, that transition, discovering, you know, admitting who you are, and the firework at the Tuunbaq being his feat of courage, and then to end up, to embrace death, and to do it in such a beautiful way. And then the line of “there will be poems” that Mr. Bridgens says. 

[show audio]

[sad, eerie music]

Bridgens (through tears): It was an honor serving you, sir. You’re a good man. There will be poems.

AN: It’s a beautiful death, it’s probably the best you can ask for, in that situation, you’re with a friend. Yeah, it’s quite sad. Of course you gotta love Blanky’s death as well, that’s, I’m cheating, now, yeah, but Blanky’s death is the greatest line to go out on, surely.

[show audio]

[Tuunbaq growling, shales crunching underfoot]

Blanky: What in the name of god took you so fuckin’ long? 

[Tuunbaq snorts, Blanky laughs maniacally] 

DK: We weren’t entirely sure whether AMC was going to permit us to use that word, a curse word, because on AMC you’re not meant to. Luckily for us, there are a number of AMC shows that have a precedent of using that word and we argued successfully that, you know, could you ask for a better show, a better scene than a Victorian disaster show to use the F-word, and they finally allowed us to use it, and we’re really grateful.

SH: I think just visually Bridgens’ death was so beautiful, and that pull out. And what was interesting was in our research found, we discovered, there was a corpse they discovered who had rolled over and was found sleeping on a set of papers, and in the show Bridgens takes Peglar’s diary when he chooses to die out there in the cold alone comforted with his memories, we see him roll over, and so that’s just our nod to history. Now it turns out we don't know whether or not it was actually Peglar’s diary, it could have been Armitage’s--

DK: No, I think we know it’s Peglar’s journal, but we don’t know whether the man lying on top of it was Armitage or Bridgens.

SH: Then there’s Goodsir’s death. Oh my God, Goodsir! I can’t believe Hickey! Adam! Goodsir!

AN: Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know. He had it comin’!  

[laughter]

AN: I forgot that death, I forgot all of those deaths, actually, what a--so beautifully acted. I mean, unbelievable. It was perfect. The pure clean images of the coral, and the shell, oh I loved it, and the end, I think it’s an orchid, I just loved it, I absolutely--it’s something that I don’t like talking about, that death, it’s really horrible. 

[show audio]

[the rising music from the scene of Goodsir’s death]

DS: They were all very moving in their own way, saying goodbye to each of the characters, surprisingly powerful, you know, some of ‘em were not major characters, but everything connected for me watching your version. When--earlier, when Fitzjames is out with Crozier alone, and Fitzjames sort of acknowledges that he’s a fake, that he’s just been faking this heroism, you know, the admiralty thought they sent a hero, they sent Fitzjames, he was the man of the moment, but he hadn’t done that much, so he had the courage to say that, and Crozier immediately had the compassion to point out, “No, you’re here, now, and you’re doing fine,” that’s not the dialect but that’s the essence of his message. So all through these scenes with the different characters, I found compassion again. [It] was the way Crozier touched men who were close to the end, the tone of his voice, you know, it wasn’t mawkish, he wouldn’t like being at all sentimental, but it was so supportive. It was like Goodsir helping the poor boy at the beginning of the show, telling him how death could be good, how you see light, you cross over. The kid died in terror; some of these people did. But most of ‘em, they’re like--Fitzjames, when he’s, you know, when he finally has to be carried in the sledge, and he has a sense of humor at the end, he can laugh at himself, somewhat, ‘cause he tells Crozier that that the bullet that went through his arm into his chest, that area is now so gangrene--er, rotten, you know, the bullet is finally going to kill him. Haha. 

[polite awkward laughter]

DK: Well you pointed out a line from the first episode, where Fitzjames is talking to Franklin and he says, “Sometimes I think you love your men more than God loves them,” and Franklin's response is “For all your sakes, let’s hope you’re wrong,” and we brought that line back in a different way in episode nine, which is where the survivors of the Terror Camp attack are about to leave, and they know Hickey’s out there somewhere, and Fitzjames’s impulse is to hide or destroy all of their extra supplies so that Hickey’s group can’t benefit from them, and Crozier has the opposite instinct, which is because he knows some people in Hickey’s group probably made that decision because they were afraid that the alternative was worse to stay with Crozier and so many people, that he wants to offer them the resources in case they can use them and in case they wanna make a different decision in the days ahead.

[show audio] 

Fitzjames: And the supplies we cannot carry? If Hickey’s band are waiting us out to loot the camp?

Crozier: Some of the men with them made their choice out of fear, I’ll not take away any chance they have to survive. We may meet them yet again, and if we do, I want them to make a different choice. Leave our supplies in a tidy pile, as an offering. I want the men with Hickey to know that’s how we meant it. 

[shales crunching underfoot]

Fitzjames: More than God loves them...

DK: Lines like that are a real test, I mean, you struggle with them in the editing room. Did we earn that line? Is it important that an audience remembers that as an index point that line has now been sort of superficially applied to one man, but more sincerely applied to another man, and, you know, that goes back to sort of a close reading of the book, Dan, just sort of scouring through your dialogue trying to figure out how does a master, if I can refer to you that way, approach this idea of a relationship with an audience? And we learned an enormous amount from your book about restraint and indirection, and credit, giving the audience credit. And I will say this, the series is different enough from your novel that I would encourage everyone who has seen the television show but not read your book to seek it out, because they will have just as rewarding--even more so, possibly!--a time of learning about this history through the lens of horror than they did watching the show. So I think they complement one another. I hope they do, and I hope people will seek out both. 

DS: That’s kind of you, Dave. My wife keeps track of the tie-in version of the book, and it’s selling very well, so some people are gonna get that. 

SH: There is this fantastic scene that is in your book, that we had neither money nor time to shoot, but it’s where they discover leads, and they take the boats out going around, and they realize they’re just going around in a circle. We didn’t have the time to shoot that and we re-jiggered our narrative so that the leads ended up being a ploy on one of Hickey’s secret mutineers. Nine is a very quiet episode, and in some ways when you, in television shows--did you miss a set piece, in nine? Did anyone miss having a bigger narrative punch?

DS: Well, I'll answer, then let Adam answer, but for me, who had that boat scene and really liked it a lot, I didn’t miss my stuff too much, because what happened was when the young man, a boy actually, who’s secretly under Hickey’s control tells Crozier and the others he sees open water, and they rush to the rocky beach to see it, and of course that was a lie and a ploy to get them there so Hickey can seize them, but my heart just flew, that, “Open water! Ohh boy!” You know? How would men have felt if they’d heard that, in reality, what was their reaction? ‘Cause the open water could conceivably be their savior, they could get other places, not just cross over and start marching through middle Canada, but they could go anywhere on open water, and to see it all locked in with ice was just stunning to me, it was such a disappointment. So no, I don’t miss my part of it very much.

AN: I never thought of it as something that suggests a quiet narrative like you described it, Soo, to me it sort of links--I see nine and ten as one episode, really. It’s this slow build, the creation of that relationship that these two--the antithesis between these two camps, and between the tactics employed... I just think that the way you guys wrote it and put it together is flawless, I just think it’s so beautifully weighted, between, you know, the deaths that to me they don’t seem to just sort of monotonously pile up, they’re all just so beautifully handled and acted. And the whole time you have this tension building, slowly, slowly, that, you know, that it’s gonna come to a head. I didn’t feel when I watched it that it ever lacked punch. It had such clarity and such patience that made it really beautiful.

DS: And I don’t know if we can say the C-word on podcasts… cannibalism? 

[laughter]

DK: Yes, that one we can. 

SH: Yes.

DS: Oh, ok. You know there was a--if Hickey hadn’t already divided the troop into his people, the anointed, and then Crozier’s group, it would have happened anyway because of the cannibalism. And when you think about it, think of that rugby team or soccer team or whatever that crashed in the Andes. They went back into society. They were cannibals, they admitted it, they got a book deal. And so, presumably, even in England, these people would have been forgiven, or they would have kept it secret like some do. So cannibalism, what it did in this show, I think, divides the people. I didn’t see, until he was forced to imbibe in cannibalism, I didn't see Crozier even considering it. And so that fascinates me, just how far people will go to survive. 

[show audio]

[tense music, tent canvas flapping in the wind]

EC: I’ll give you some advice. Don’t indulge your morals over your practicals. Not now. Don’t you also wanna live? 

SH: Dave, we talked a lot about this, is when you’re in that moment, you’re not Dave Kajganich and I’m not Soo Hugh, in that moment, choosing whether or not we decide to eat someone. Something else will take over, whether it is the Goodsir in us or whether it is the Hickey in us, in that moment. I think that’s why when we shot that scene, you know, after Gibson is cut up, Adam, remember when we shot the reaction shots from each one of you eating your first bite of human flesh meat, and we took so much footage, we shot so much. We shot, you know, closes, mediums, just because Dave and I, you know, at that point, we were very confident of how to shoot everything, that was probably the moment when we were like ugh.

DK: Well we wanted to know how little we could get away with, and what we found, of course, which is typical for the show, the performances were so terrific, that we didn’t need very much. And I remember on the mix stage, the first mix that they did of the show, of that episode, I mean, there was quite a lot of chewing.

[laughter]

And so when I said, no no no, let’s pull all of that out, and use the most minute changes in expression, because all of you at that table were so well in character, that even the slightest muscle movement on your face communicated everything we needed you to. And we were obviously very interested in not overplaying that scene, knowing that audiences had been waiting for it, wondering how, in what kind of taste we would show it, you know, how we would modulate it, and you know a rule throughout the show was to try to present everything with its most practical face, including this. And so, you know, hopefully when that lands for people it will be both satisfying in the sense that they will understand how these characters made that decision but it won’t feel that we have over-articulated it, somehow. 

DS: I’m not religious, but I’m obsessed with religion, and in your story, the way you structured it, you have, in a sense, we’ve already talked, or at least I have, about how Hickey seems to be evolving towards Messiahdom, I think he near the end he thinks he is the Messiah, but it’s Goodsir who provides The Last Supper. How much more powerful a story of Christ is there, than, you know, “Take, eat,” and it’s yourself? And it’s fascinating to me that the man who dedicated his life to helping people and curing people and being empathic at their ending, his last act is to kill as many of Hickey’s people as possible. And, you know, so there’s--that’s where the trial was, it wasn’t when Hickey was gonna be hanged, it was inside Dr. Goodsir when he decided that “These people need to end and I will do it.” 

SH: So should we talk about the big scene at the end--well, it’s not the end, it’s the Tuunbaq sequence in 1.10? 

DK: To set it up, Adam, you know, Hickey--we’ll keep calling him Hickey even though we’ve established he isn’t--you get an important piece of information in episode nine where Tozer, Sergeant Tozer, relays to you a piece of information that he hasn’t shared with anyone, that he watched Collins be killed and he watched Collins’s soul be pulled out of his body. And, you know, for Hickey, suddenly a lot of things make sense. What happened to Private Heather, who was alive for many episodes but no longer sort of present in his body, I mean you even have a scene where you poke his brain hoping to get some kind of reaction out of him, and you take that piece of information and you suddenly realize you’re not longer in a kind of survival story, you’re in kind of a spiritual story, you’re in kind of a mythological story, suddenly. Can you talk about how you decided to play that so it was sort of clear to an audience what that opportunity was? Because we did not devote a lot of dialogue to it, it was going to have to be something an audience felt as much as was described to them. 

AN: I can only describe the way that it--the process--the mind of it, that, you know, you see Hickey has a plan, up until that point, he’s started--the way that I thought about it was that, you know, once he starts to hear things, he starts to have this space of this area, creates this space in his mind and he understands the things that have come before him and his curiosity leads him to, you know--one element in him is still practically engaged in survival, and outmaneuvering the captain, and heading south, and coming up with a plan and, you know, a story as to what happened, but then there are other elements of, you know, consuming human flesh, that there might be an answer there, it might be an enlightening experience. And if it’s not in that, is it something else? And he finds the hill, and he understands when he sees that hill, that he hears something, and then he’s not quite clear on what it is, what’s drawing him, and what’s talking to him, and what he’s feeling, but he’s becoming one with this realm, and, you know, he starts to, once he discovers the supernatural element--not that he hasn’t already established that there is one, but the fact that it’s such a specific--he’s been developing his knowledge of the summoning song that Lady Silence sings to become a Shaman, you know, the rules of this particular realm, this empire. And he’s been gathering this information as we go along, all the way through the series he’s been taking pieces of information, and he pockets it and learns and keeps it for later.

[show audio]

[mysterious music]

Hickey: Tuunbaq… a spirit that dresses as an animal, and yet we shot it with a cannon and drew blood. How do you reconcile that?

Crozier: I can’t. There’s much about this voyage I can’t reconcile. 

Hickey: What mythology is this creature at the center of?

Crozier: About the creature I have no answers, Mr. Hickey. We were not meant to know of it. 

AN: And when he gets this key piece of the puzzle, that the Tuunbaq is taking souls, and that... there’s a hierarchy of what the Tuunbaq wants to eat. You know, a captain, and important people, he realizes that he really is the center of this universe. I suppose the way that I adjusted it was that everybody else became irrelevant. Completely irrelevant. I no longer needed to worry about manipulation, control, fear. Everything was gonna sing for me, everything was gonna work as if I had magic hands, and my voice just dictated what the universe would do.

[show audio]

[mysterious music continued]

Hickey: I didn’t have anywhere near an equal on this expedition. But you. I wanted to thank you for that. On the eve of what is quite an important day. 

AN: Every single conversation was an annoyance because it was getting in the way of me listening to the universe, this world, this empire, this realm that was now speaking to me. And I was talking to the Tuunbaq, you know, from this distance, and we had this dance going, and everything that happened was just getting in my way. It was all gonna work itself out because I’ve been chosen to ascend, to reach this ascension, to, you know, ride the Tuunbaq into my new empire, to take my new throne, and I was finally gonna be given the answers to these questions that I’d been asking.

[show audio]

[rushing wind, men singing weakly in the background, creaking]

Hickey (shouting): Bugger Nelson! Bugger Jesus! Bugger Joseph and Mary! Bugger the Archbishop of Canterbury! None ever wanted nothing from me! 

SH: When you offer the Tuunbaq the tongue, and there’s that pause, what’s gonna happen, and he bites your arm off instead, and that look on your face of just, you know, “You too have failed me.”

DS: Et tu?

[laughter] 

“Et tu, Tuunbaq?”

[laughter]

AN: “Et tu, Tuunbaq,” that’s a great T-shirt. But that scene, I drifted, but that scene in particular, is a slight difference to what his plan was, which was to climb the hill, sacrifice the men, sacrifice the tongue, and to become one with the Tuunbaq and to take my place on the throne in this new realm. And to find the answers and maybe, you know, climb through to a different realm, or who knows what. This empire was now my empire, which was the culmination of all of Hickey through his entire life has been leading to this point, and he’s quietened himself enough to hear it, and then suddenly he gets sick, because somebody poisons him. And so it’s a slightly different feeling, as he’s climbing the hill, and it’s a different--something else is happening inside him. He’s still perfectly capable of executing his plan, he gets carried away in that scene, and then by the time the Tuunbaq appears, he kind of focuses again, and becomes very excited. It’s a relationship with the Tuunbaq, it’s a dance, that everything is for him and the Tuunbaq. Everyone else is irrelevant. 

[show audio]

[Tuunbaq snuffling, boat chain clanking]

[the Tuunbaq roars, sound of chomping flesh, then the screeching sound of the soul being eaten]

SH: And what he gets so wrong about the Tuunbaq, and I think what a lot of the Western characters in our show get wrong about the Tuunbaq, is that the Tuunbaq is not a deity, the Tuunbaq doesn’t ask to be a god, right? All it is is just this arbiter of what is good or what is not good for the land, you know, there’s no sense of the Tuunbaq wanting to be the ultimate creative force here, and I think that’s where Hickey was wrong, right?

AN: I think he sees it as a supernatural creature, and again, because everything comes through him, and the universe revolves around him, that it’s a challenge for him, it’s a question for him, and he deals a lot in questions as opposed to answers, and what his position is in the universe, and by the time he meets this creature that eats souls--and the creature’s sick, and it’s because he hasn’t united with it yet! It’s because of me that it’s sick, it hasn’t, I haven’t been in contact with it, and we haven’t united ourselves and taken over this empire, and he doesn’t see it for what it is. SH: And when you guys see the Tuunbaq’s death in the very end of that sequence, how did you guys feel?

DS: Speaking for the novelist here, I was surprised; and then I got through the surprise and thought yeah. And then I immediately wondered how Lady Silence would have to pay for this death, ‘cause you’d already shown me that she’s in charge of protecting the Tuunbaq, so it was controlling it in some way, and she wasn’t really up to the task, so I liked that in going, when Crozier’s with the Inuit band, learning that she’s been punished and sent out by herself. But the Tuunbaq’s death itself just seemed right at that time. 

[show audio]

[Tuunbaq’s death scene--growling noises, boat chain clinking, Crozier struggling] 

AN: It was a horrible thing to watch, as a viewer, it was so sad, and it spoke to me of this sort of contemporary sort of--to me it was sort of a global warming issue, not to bring it ‘round, but it was sort of like, that’s it, they’ve killed it. 

SH: No, absolutely, yeah! 

AN: They’ve killed it, they’ve killed the Tuunbaq and we’re actually rejoicing at Crozier’s survival. But really, the man deserves death, with the creature that creates balance to this culture should be alive. And we have this upside down world that we are celebrating, which is so, you know, intelligent of you guys to create, and it’s difficult to take, but that creature is gone, and so balance is gone, and here we are. 

DK: The very specific and subtle thing that we put in the show that probably no will decode it ‘til they hear this podcast, but was important to us as a structural element, was Sir John dies, when he’s killed down the fire hole in episode three, he has some flashes of subjective kinds of hallucinations, I suppose, or visions, I don’t know what you would call them. But one of them is of open water, it’s just a vista of the future of the Arctic, that there are going to be these, you know, that there’s going to be a huge melt, and there’s going to be all this open water. And for the final shot we tried to match, as much as we could, the angle, so that all of that frozen water that Crozier is sitting on at that seal hole would maybe possibly evoke that memory, to speak to what you’re saying, Adam, which is that this whole thing is a kind of, from the Netsilik’s point of view, it’s a huge tragedy in which these Europeans are the terrors, in a way. And not to be too reductive about it, but, you know, we wanted the season to have that kind of change of polarity, which is one reason why we couldn’t quite use the sort of the ending of the book, as much as we loved it, Dan, it felt like a lot of things that would feel--that would pull the point of view of the season across that line too much and too late. We wanted to try to modulate it a little bit so that every episode felt like you were giving some room in your point of view for Lady Silence’s perspective, or the Inuit’s perspective, and that that change would sort of happen so slowly you might not even notice that it was happening at all, which is one reason why we made that decision. 

DS: You gave every character I saw room to have his or her own apotheosis, which is a big theme with you guys, I meant, the arcs end and people becoming someone else. Crozier grows into his leadership, I think, beautifully. Maybe he deserved punishment, but I found Crozier and his empathy, as Fitzjames is dying in the boat, it’s Crozier that touches him and lets him know, you know, through physical contact, that he’s not alone. And giving them room is unusual. I just find there’s so many unusual elements to what you three have created, that, I have to warn you, I think it deserves a lot of intelligent attention.

DK: Well I hope we can volley a lot of those right back to the book, Dan. Well we should take some time at the end to--given that after the sequence, this really becomes almost a kind of silent film to deliver the ending to Crozier’s arc--to really sing the praises of Jared Harris in this show, I mean, what he did with this role is remarkable. So, Dan, I would love to know what you thought of Jared Harris’s Francis Crozier? 

DS: After watching the ten episodes of him and all those, and watching what he did with it, I just wanted him to adopt me. 

[laughter]

SH: He would love that! 

DS: But it certainly--leading is the operative word, isn’t it? He just, he didn’t give 100 or 1000 percent, he gave more than that to the character. He became Crozier for me. I’m the one who had to dream up the man, and see what he looked like, and write about him for about 1100 pages, 700 finally in type, and so I had my Crozier, he was pretty solid. But now Jared Harris is Crozier. There’s no doubt in my mind.

DK: The ending of the season is quite different from the ending of the book, Dan, how did you feel watching the ending of the show, and, in all candor, do you feel that it was satisfying? Do you feel that it was at least a good companion piece for the ending of the book? 

DS: Well I’m glad I didn't video record my reaction the first time I saw the different ending, because speaking for two million readers I stood up and shouted, “What's wrong with my ending!”

[laughter]

“Is it chopped liver?” And I realized it would be. I realized that I don’t think you could have taken my ending and made it a sensible finale visually in the way it went. So I tracked--the whole episodes, the last two episodes, were enlightenment to me, because I’m just a viewer now, I’m watching something I didn’t create, these are not my ideas, so I sat back and enjoyed it, as horrible as they were. So when I watch your ending, the only thing I was bothered by was I’m sentimental. And the real Crozier, I believe, and certainly the fictional Crozier that we’ve all created, was so lonely, he was so alone in life, I think he was less alone than Crozier was, and, you know, rejected by Franklin’s niece several times from marriage, a life where he really felt rejection, probably more than Hickey did, and at the end I wanted him to be with someone. So as much as I liked your ending and I really thought it was proper and appropriate for the series, I woulda put a person next to him as he’s fishing out there in, you know, in his Inuit outfit at night waiting by a seal--he’s not fishing, he’s waiting by a seal breathing hole to kill it. So if I’d seen a glimpse of two of them, you wouldn’t even need to see their faces, you know, the sentimental side of me woulda been happy.

SH: But we leave that ambiguous in the ending, in terms of he’s not with Lady Silence, she, you know, had to pay the bill in some ways for the loss of the Tuunbaq and her destiny is to venture forth alone, and in some ways her storyline is the most tragic of all the characters in our show because, I mean, the price she paid is so harsh. But in terms of the last shot, which Dave and I just knew from pretty early on that was gonna be our last shot, and it felt right. We don’t know much about Crozier’s biography, you know? For all we know that child could be his, it may not. We actually didn’t want to fill in too much of the coloring book at that point. It’s up to the audience to describe whether or not that last shot is--it’s interesting ‘cause we had this big argument, lovely argument in the color suite, the grading suite, of how we grade that last shot. Whether we grade it bright and sunny to be optimistic, or we grade it with a lot of contrast and stamp down a lot of the light to make it seem that, you know, there’s a sense--a harshness, to this reality. And in some ways we split the middle, so the audience can decide whether or not the life Crozier has at the end is one of punishment, reckoning, or whether or not he will move on and have something different.

DK: And I think something in that final shot that certainly we couldn’t have planned, that tipped things in a warmer direction was the child that plays that boy in the shot, who’s meant to be sleeping against Crozier as he’s waiting at the seal hole, really fell asleep because he was wrapped up in fur, and Jared’s a very welcoming person, and he fell asleep. And in the middle of that shot he twitches in his sleep, like children do. And I think that if you catch that it’s quite undeniably a warm moment. You don’t know whether that’s Crozier’s son, whether that’s just a friend’s son, someone he’s taking care of, but you do get a sense that there is a community and that it’s a warm one, even though that life will be difficult and he will occupy no position of leadership in that world, he will be--you know, he’s missing a hand at that point, it’s going to be a rough rough road ahead of him, but we decided to sort of be as ambiguous as we could but for that child who twitches in his sleep, which we just loved that, that that’s a part of that final shot of the show.

DS: Now you’ve made me wanna go back watch that scene about ten times. I think you did at the ending essentially what you chose to do throughout the series, which is to trust in the intelligence and the sensibilities of the audience. So in that sense I like it a lot, but I admire it too. It just, I’m just sentimental, I just want Crozier finally to find somebody.

[show audio]

[”The Gates of Paradise” by Robert Fripp, which is the music from that aforementioned final scene of Crozier and the little boy asleep at the seal hole, plays] 

SH: And with episode ten, the story of the Franklin Expedition on AMC is completed. And Dave, you’ve been working on this project now for ten or twelve years, I’ve been on it for two and a half years, Adam you’ve been on this journey for a long time, Dan you’ve probably been--how long has it been for you?

DS: Oh, since about 1994!

SH: Yeah, wow. I mean, what is it about this story that means it’s hard to let go? Even now I feel like there’s a grieving process that I feel like I have.

DS: I know why it’s hard to let go. You created real people, you did something that is incredibly rare I think, for any media, movies, series, anything. They’re real people, and when they suffer the viewer suffers with them. When they try to fight back and survive, that’s the viewer’s impression, and we’re sorry to see each one of them go, including Hickey. So, I think there’s a success in what you set out to do. 

SH: We’re just so thrilled that, you know, you gave us the trust to do your book but also that you love it! We were so nervous that you would hate this adaptation!

[laughter]

DK: Well and now what’s amazing is we all get to sort of take a seat in the theater of real history playing out again, now that they’ve discovered the ships. You know, we’ve been told by Parks Canada and by people we’ve met who are actively on the archeological expeditions now, dives to the ships, that there is a chance that they will find a ship’s log, and that all of the questions that have come up and perplexed us and preoccupied us and fascinated us in the researching of both the writing of the novel and the creating of the television show, that those questions may have answers soon. And so now we are all now back in that position of being riveted by this actual history. And what a treat it will be to have a conversation in a year when we have learned hopefully much more about what actually happened on this expedition. 

[“The Gates of Paradise” begins playing again softly in the background]

DS: If I were on the expedition ship and found the log, the diaries, everything, I would hide them.

[laughter]

DK: Agreed.

AN: Yep, absolutely. 

DS: I mean we’ve all done a lot of work here, who cares about reality? 

[laughter]

DK: Well thank you, Adam, thank you Dan, for joining us, Soo and I have had a fantastic time having this extended conversation that hopefully is interesting to people who have watched and appreciated the show. So thank you for the opportunity to do it, it’s been fantastic to talk to you both, and onwards we go, into the future!

SH: Onwards ho!

DS: Onward.

AN: Onward. Thank you so much guys, it’s been a pleasure.

DK: Thank you, and thank you for everyone who’ve watched the show and thank you for everyone who’ve read the novel, and we can’t wait to hear your feedback!

[“The Gates of Paradise” fades out]

[saintobio]

Saaaiint, congrats on finishing SN! This fanfic definitely made my year better! Thank you for all of the effort you put into this masterpiece! To the GojoY/n shippers out there, there's still hope!!! 🥲

Things I'd like to clarify/ask/say:

1. The scene where y/n ended up getting cold feet, was she remembering her first marriage? Was she thinking that it'd end up like the first one? I just wasn't sure if I read that correctly.

2. Which of the characters ship GojoY/n? TojiY/n? Or Y/n's happiness? What about you 👀? I'm curious as to what the numbers look like...

3. I had a feeling Gojo would be wearing his ring even after the divorce, and yet it still hurts 🥺 then you just had to make him reach for Y/n's ring right on his deathbed 🥲

4. You definitely foreshadowed the car accident when he was speeding on the way home to reconcile with Y/n didn't you (after the company's anniversary)??? That was the first thing that popped in my head when he was speeding before the accident!

5. Did Toji ever feel like he was being compared to Gojo during his relationship with Y/n? Has she ever subconsciously thought of Gojo during those times spent with Toji??

6. I'm glad munchkin is still alive co-parent au when 😩??? What's his name? Sachiro, pls let it be Sachiro 🥺

7. I didn't think you'd go for the amnesia route! I was hoping you wouldn't, and now we're back to square one 😞 Darn it Gojo! And he didn't want to end up hating the love of his life AGAIN too 😢

8. Miwa and Yuuta?? What about my mans Kokichi Muta, my fav ship btw 👀 tbh I thought Yuuta would be paired up with Maki or Rika (since this is an au), I'm assuming Mai would be the LGBTQ pairing since it's been kind of hinted in canon?

9. Going back to the first part of #5, lowkey feeling that Toji thinks Y/n still loves Gojo that's why he set up the meeting before the wedding...

10. Really hoping SN2 gets better for the main couple 🥺 I'm guessing the title's Sincerely Yours since it's been emphasized in the last paragraph? Hopefully it doesn't end with one of them dying 😭

Once again thank you Saint for giving us this masterpiece! I hope you'll get some well-deserved rest. Stay healthy and safe!

1. yes, she was. she’s having mad flashbacks of her marriage with gojo.

2. the zen’ins obvs want tojixyn, while the rest are gojoxyn. her dad is fine w anyone as long as she’s happy and won’t be treated like shit by the other person. as for me, i’m gojoxyn

3. the ring is the last piece of yn that he has.

4. aaah, it was unintentional but good catch :D

5. he does, but he honestly does the same thing so. yn oftentimes think of gojo when it comes to her relationship w toji, while toji thinks of his first wife while spending time with yn.

6. i’m really planning to use sachiro, i think sensei off duty!gojo won’t mind hehe

7. amnesia trope brings the perfect recipe for angst ;)

8. i didn’t wanna introduce more characters. besides, role-wise yuuta and miwa are cute

9. he does. he’ll explain it in the sequel

10. great job, u guessed the title <33

thank you very much as well for reading sn !! i hope u enjoyed the ride :’)

[yellowloid]

A couple more Q's 🥰

- what is it that draws you in to write about milex as a pairing?

- do you have any wips at the moment?

- what are you currently reading?

- what is one fic you keep coming back to?

- when it comes to writing about milex, i really don't know how to explain the feeling, honestly. i guess it's different for everyone, but i'd say for me it's the fact that they have this magnetic energy that draws you in and you just fall for them, y'know? platonic or romantic, whatever, they have this insane chemistry that just captivates you. people talk about it being for clout, for PR etc., but i don't think you can fake something like that. maybe it's because they're clearly very comfortable with each other (even just as friends) but there's also so much romantic/sexual tension there, it'd be difficult not to notice it. they play with it, and they have fun with it, and it just feels genuine. idk how to explain it, but there's something so raw in it that it oozes through the screen, and it makes you want to know more, to see just how many lines they can cross - and they've crossed so many you can't help but wonder how far they're willing to go before it's too much. they just have this game going on, always tring to outdo each other - and it's absolutely fascinating. it pushes you to daydream possible scenarios and well, sometimes you just need to put said scenarios on paper bc you can't stop thinking about them and you need to share them with other people who are in the same boat 👀

(obviously i'm talking about their antics on stage! i'm interested in their dynamic when they're performing, not their actual private lives. if they have/had something going on between them then good for them, if they didn't then good for them too, idc. we don't know and we're not entitled to know what they really do when they're not working) (just to clarify lol)

- i do, actually! i'm almost finished editing the second (and main) part of my series, Satin and Lace. i've been working on it for a few months now, and it's really special to me for a lot of reasons, so i've kind of become emotionally attached to it lmao. i honestly can't wait to share it with you guys!!

- these last few weeks i haven't had much time to read, so i'm a bit behind on fics, BUT i absolutely need to catch up with the last few chapters of @kisameanslight college au. i have one or two one-shots that are waiting for me, and i've also been waiting for your skiing holiday fic to be completely posted so i could read it (i have zero patience, sorry 😅). basically i have so many beautiful fics to read and so little time, guess i'll just proceed at a sluggish pace 🤷‍♀️

- aaah it's so difficult to just name one! so many milex fics stuck with me, to the point that i think about them almost daily. it's rare for me to reread fics (even though there are some i read far too long ago and i definitely need to reread them bc they're just Too Good)

however, there's this one fic that haunts me. it's The Boy Next Door by AM505, it's not a complete work and at this point i doubt it'll ever get finished, but it's just a pity because it's so good it's one of my favourites. it's definitely not for everyone, and if anyone is curious and wants to check it out PLEASE for the love of god read all the tags because it's rough, and our boys don't have it easy in it. it's based on a book which if i remember correctly is also based on a true story. it's really dark and twisted, and it could be very triggering for some people.

i have a PDF copy of it, and sometimes i just randomly think about it and open it. i read a couple of random sentences, even just the incipit, and i swear it feels like a punch in the gut. i love whump and i love dark stories - and this one made me sick. i actually cried, which doesn't happen often when i read. it's tragic, heart-wrenching and infuriating, and it's just so frustrating to watch the events unfold in front of your eyes without being able to do anything to stop them.

it's been a year since i read it and i can't stop thinking about it, but i still haven't found the courage to reread it. i really hope the author will come back and finish it, eventually- i need to know how it ends, and most importantly i need a happy ending😭

thank you so much for all these lovely questions, sending you lots of love!! ❤❤

[colour-outside-the-liness]

Hey, I'm doing good too. Just normal amounts of stressful stuff right now. Just moved to a country I've never been to before but can't complain, things are not as hard as the last time I did this so. Thanks for asking! Yeah, I saw you posting about some pretty scary health issues before, I'm glad you came out of that alive and hope you're healthier now!

The nerve some people have! Haha I know I would be pissed if people were questioning my intelligence like that especially after a couple of drinks in haha. Though I do like taunting people when I play group games, I'll be like "don't need to try that hard guys, you're gonna lose anyway" just to mess with them or just call people sore losers if they accuse me of cheating haha (they're probably right on the accusations tho). People get real mad sometimes it's kinda funny. 😂

Omg literally laughed out loud reading this! Hahaha, how did you manage to fall over a road sign then end up in a ditch? lol omg hope you didn't get hurt too bad 😂 I was trying to downplay my drunken escapades but since you shared yours I should tell you my worst one:

I was at this summer street party at night and got drunk on something made out of tropical herbs and cachaça (which is about 48% alcohol), drank 3 and a half bottles of that like it was apple juice, made friends with a bunch of strangers in a bathroom queue (who tried to talk to me weeks later but I had no idea who they were), had to be held by my best friend while I peed (mostly missing the toilet), fell in the middle of the street and scraped my knee, threatened this boy who was helping me walk and told him not to try anything funny or I would beat him up, then dragged my friends to the beach and left them shortly after to go make out with my ex, came back with lipstick all over my mouth and chin and when my friends asked what I was doing I said I was just talking to my ex and they were like NO YOU WERE NOT, hahaha then I kissed all my girl friends on a dare and we danced under the full moon, then I told my best friend I had to puke so she took me to the ocean but I changed my mind and happened to step on a dead turtle on the way back and started crying bc of it, but last month my best friend told me it was a rock I had stepped on (I believed it was a dead turtle for 7 years!). Had the worst hangover of my life the next day. ✌️✨

Ah I'm happy you liked it! I've never listened to Six musical before but it sounds fun! I can see why you like it haha made me want to dance around my apartment 💃. And hey if liking musicals is your thing then it's great, I'm sure Hozier will understand if he's not your top artist of the year. 😋 Here's my "damie" Pinterest board if you or anyone else wants to check it out, totally recommend making one if you're a visual person like me!

https://pin.it/UcHVlkq

Oh I could talk about Dani and Jamie forever I think. I love the beast in the jungle speech too and it's so painful to watch, VP delivered that beautifully, but I have to admit I'm always a crying mess from episode 1 when older Jamie starts reciting that song about being sad while waiting for her lover to return, this show is fucking cruel I hate it and love it at the same time hahaha. Omg your mom 😂 but I mean it's truly an honor to be compared to someone like Dani, no? She's really great even if she needs a little help haha (don't we all).

Aaah you're amazing! Thank you so much, I'll read this pirate AU soon!

I used to draw a lot, really loved doing it when I was a kid as I said before, and all throughout adulthood too but I haven't done that in almost a year now bc I've got a bit of a case of burnout I guess, it just takes a lot of effort to do it when it shouldn't be like that at all. I used to do fanart too, for other fandoms. Even made one for Dani x Jamie but ended up not liking how it turned out haha. I've got a lot of respect for writers and fanfic writers also! Yall can make words make sense in really interesting and beautiful ways, build worlds so enthralling I can see them vividly in my head. Writing is such an incredibly fascinating skill to have! And I guess the most important thing is that we enjoy doing these things right? Even if we think we're not particularly good at it.

Anyway, have a lovely weekend! 👋✨

Good I'm glad you're doing great but sorry you're dealing with stressful stuff!! Hope living in a new country goes well for you I'm so jealous that you've lived in different countries I'd love to live somewhere else even if just for s few years!! Awwh thank you so much I definitely came out of it alive and am feeling so much better now thank you I mean I do some pretty ditzy things so when people say it to me it's pretty deserved sometimes, I'm secretly smart and people just don't expect it so I never mind too much haha I might have to start saying the things that you do and just taunting them over it I mean, I usually do win even when they make me answer different questions so I will definitely have to start saying things like that to them Haha I love that you're just like "yeah they're probably right in their accusations" I agree seeing how mad some people get over games and stuff is funny (it's me I'm people I hate loosing games depending on what it is and I am very competitive) So it was very dark and all we had for light was my roommates flashlight on her phone but while we were walking home a friend of ours that lived else where kept texting her to make sure we were still safe (my phone as dead at this point) so while she was texting him her flashlight was facing down and someone had moved this road sign to the footpath and it was on that sits on the floor so while I couldn't see it I walked into it and fell over it but while I feel I grabbed hold of it and flipped with it and fell in a ditch with it on top of me... I was fine and was just laid laughing while my friend looked down at me and in the most northern accent ever just said "get up you dickhead." and helped me off of the floor and then asked if I was okay... and I was so it was all good!! Haha 😂 I love this drunken story that sounds like one hell of a night and is a roller coaster from start to finish!! I'm sorry you thought you had stood on a dead turtle for 7 years though, someone really should've told you that it was just a rock!! But that sounds like my kind of night!! I love nights like that... stories that will last a life time... the only down side is the hangover... luckily I have only ever had one hang over in my life and it wasn't the morning after the road sign fiasco... I felt surprisingly good the morning after that haha 😂 It's such a good musical it's about Henry VIII wives and I just love everything to do with his wives and that musical is so much fun and actually gives a little insight to the lives the six Tudor queens had away from Henry and with him because at school we're mainly just taught about him which sucks!! I loved the Hozier song and am definitely gonna have to listen to more of his stuff!! I love musicals so much I mainly listen to musical soundtracks at the minute- usually, Legally Blonde and Six on repeat haha 😂 Ooo thank you I will definitely check out this Pinterest board thanks for sending it to me!! I could talk about them forever too... since watching Bly Manor my niece has been asking me so many questions about it and I am more than happy to talk to her about it haha!! The beast in the jungle speech just breaks my heart every time I relate to it so much and VP just delivers it so beautifully!! Oh yeah now I know at the beginning that it's older Jamie I am just a wreck the whole show is just so beautiful and heart breaking at the same time I LOVE IT!! Even though it makes me sob- I keep putting myself through it!! I mean, yeah I was happy that she said it Dani is great but it was the way she said it... my mum can be something else sometimes... she said she thought Dani was like me the first time she does the accent when she says "I've fallen quite in love with London" because I just randomly do accents a lot too but it was the way she was like "She needs help... but I like her she reminds me of you" I was just like... "Should I go get help?" I still don't know the answer to my question about if I need help or not but I mean I probably do need it You're welcome I really hope you like it!! It's a

great fic I love it!! Yeah I get that if stuff starts taking too much effort and burns you out you're not gonna wanna keep doing it so it's understandable that you stopped!! I think fan art is great and I really would love to be able to do it myself but I just don't have the skill it takes!! Awwh it's a shame you didn't like the Dani x Jamie one you did I would've loved to have seen it!! Honestly there are so many talented writers out there and when I read their fics I am just in awe of the worlds they have built and the stories they have created we are so blessed in this fandom to have so many amazing writers and so many amazing fics out there Oh yeah definitely its important to enjoy what you do!! I know I love writing and love writing fics for Dani and Jamie so I think I'll be doing it for a while even if I'm not great at it haha Awwh thank you very much I hope you have a great weekend too!! ☺️

[zensbae]

Emotions rule over the night

~{What if you ignore Jaehee and go to meet Zen in secret when it first comes up? Spoilers for Zen's route}~

Pairing: Zen x mc

General - slice of life, bit of fluff

2089 Words

You've just wrapped up the last of your email replies for the day, it's getting late.. you look out the window of the apartment to see a full moon begin to rise, "Wow, it's so beautiful.. I wonder what Zen's up to?" leaning back in your computer chair, you sigh softly.

Your phone ringtone suddenly sounds off, screen illuminated with Zen's name and profile picture. You smile and flick accept, but in the process you launch your phone off the desk and onto the floor beneath you.

Scrambling out of your chair, picking it up, you bump your head on the desk, "Aaaiish-!"

"Is everything okay, Jagiya? Did I call at a bad time..?"

"No, no it's fine! Sorry I threw my phone when I went to answer;; I was surprised you called. Uhm, I was literally just thinking of you.." The words tumble out as you try to stand up again.

"I was looking at the moon and thinking of you too, Jagi." He says softer than his usual tone.

A warm tingle brushes your cheeks, "No way, that's what I was doing when you called, we really are connected aren't we?"

A soft laugh escapes his lips on the other side of the line, "I told you, physically we may be apart, but we're always connected~"

"Well next time I want to call you first, lovely Zen~"

"Aah, I really like it when you call me that.." He says with a sigh. You can imagine him blushing, which makes you blush.

"Oh-! Hey, so, the reason I called is... I meant what I said before about not listening to the others. I really want to meet you.. what do you think of that?" he breaths out wistfully

"Yes!! I really want to see you! But do I go to you, or do we meet in the middle since you can't come to me?" You say, leaning forward in your computer chair, elbows on your desk.

"We could meet for coffee in the middle, and go from there?" Zen says,

"Hmm, let me see.." You say, pulling up Zen's address from his fan page, he's actually pretty far away.

"There is a SirenCoffee at [names the address], that is about halfway, I think.."

"If I took the subway I could make it that far.." he says

"Uhm, is that okay with your ankle though, am I being too inconsiderate..? We can meet closer to you.." concern beginning to nip at your conscience.

"Babe, my ankle will be fine, I want to go to you so badly I couldn't stand it if I didn't try. I would rather go closer to you regardless, a lady shouldn't really be out late by herself.."

"Oh, you meant tonight?!" You gasp and stand up from your desk

"Yeah.. i-is that too soon?"

Twisting your hair in your fingers, you bite your lip, "No, I just thought maybe you meant tomorrow.."

"The reason I was thinking tonight, is it's less likely one of the others might see us or notice our absence from the chat?" He puffs out a breath, and inhales again, it sounds like he's outside.

"Zen, are you smoking?"

"Yeah; I'm sorry, I can't help it right now, Jagi. I'm tired of holding still.. I can't exercise, or practice the dances for my new role.." he admits begrudgingly, you hear him sniffle, "I've never had to be so still before, it's hard. I'm kind of pathetic, right?"

"No, never! Cheer up, Zenny, I want to see you tonight.. so put your cig out and get ready to go to the subway station."

"Oh! Oh my God, really?!" You hear some shuffling, the scratching of a cigarette being put out.. a door opening, "Umm.. but I meant it when I said I didn't want you going too far at night;; Let's meet closer to you."

"Okay so how about we meet at [address of closer SirenCoffee], is that too far for you?"

"No, no not at all! I work close to there fairly often actually!" He laughs, "So.. what do I look for so I know it's you?"

"I can't tell you, it's a secret~" you quip, getting a whine out of the actor in response.

"B-but Jagiya, that isn't faaair, you know what I look like.."

"You'll just have to wait and see~! I'm getting ready to head out now, see you soon!"

"Okay see you soon, babe!" he responds

You smile to yourself and hang up, so you can start getting ready.

~*~*~*~

You've been walking about 5 minutes, and you hear your phone ping, a text! It's from Zen, he sent a selfie of himself waiting for the train, it makes you blush because he sent this one to you personally and not in the chat room.

You reply, ">_< I'm almost there, warn me next time you're sending a selfie so I don't fall in the street!"

You get a, "Ooh, Jagi!! You should be more careful, this is a problem.." in response.

"Or you could not send me selfies when you're going to see me in 10 minutes?" Laughing, you roll your eyes and tuck your phone back in your pocket.

First one to arrive at the coffee shop is you. Ohhh, this is perfect, you think to yourself.

Sitting at one of the tables facing the street, you flick your lock screen and wait, he's sent you several more texts. This boy is going to be the end of you, making you giggle at your phone like an idiot in public. You get engrossed in trying to bypass the app to get a teaser pic sent to Zen.. should you just send a text directly to him outside the app? That should work.. but what kind of pic do you send?

...

A familiar voice hums out behind you.

Turning to look, you see that handsome face you've grown attached to.

"Well? I found you without seeing a picture! Are you impressed, jagiya?"

"Is that why you texted so much?" a tinge of red dusts your cheeks, "but wait- how did you sneak up on me with crutches?!"

"I've been practicing~" He winks at you.

You gently extend your hand to him, "I'm mc, it's a pleasure to meet you~" taking your hand in his, he gently shakes it.

"Aaah.. it's so nice to meet you. You're cute.. so much cuter, than what I imagined." he grins at you, a light blush dusting his cheeks as well.

Zen is so stunning in person, his silver hair shines in the light, giving off an ethereal glow. He's wearing a charcoal grey hoodie, white v-neck t-shirt peeking from underneath, and black jeans. His frame is lean but toned, just the perfect balance. The crutches and boot cast look so out of place.

"Wooow, you're so handsome in person... ah, but where are my manners? Please sit! Let me know what you want to order!" You say, gesturing to the seat.

"Aaa, it makes me so happy hearing that from you, thank you Jagiya~"

He takes a seat, you move aside to take his crutches and lean them against the wall beside him. He gets his wallet out and palms money off to you, "I'm taking care of this, so don't worry about the cost for yours, okay? I'll just have a hot coffee with a splash of cream."

That smile, it makes you weak in the knees. Is this real, is he real? You just smile and nod, turning to go to the counter. Feeling his gaze on you makes you smile, and suddenly you're too aware of yourself at the same time. So you order an iced drink, cause it's hot in here.

Bringing the drinks back to your table, you place his in front of him, "It's because you smoke isn't it? Isn't that the cliche.. black coffee and cigarettes?"

This gets a laugh out of the actor, "Doesn't it break the cliche because I had cream added though?"

"Potentially.."

"I want to quit, you know.. it's just hard, I've done things on my own for so long I need a fall back when the stress gets to be too much. So I smoke, and I drink beer at home." He lets out a sigh, "Is it not admirable that I do those things, and not seek out worse things for stress relief?"

"VERY admirable yeah! For as attractive as you are you aren't a player" You stifle a laugh, and clear your throat, taking a drink of your coffee.

"Ohhh this is good! Do you want to try it??" You ask leaning toward him. He nods and takes your straw in his mouth, "Mmm.. cinnamon?"

"Yeah! It's not too overpowering and it highlights the taste of the coff..ee-" You're staring at his lips. Indirect kiss. It's so cliche, but it doesn't stop your face from flaring up.

"It's sensible, like you.." he smiles gently, cupping his face in his hands, the look he's giving you is adorable, "Aaah.. this is what I needed, I'm sorry for bringing you out when it was getting dark, Jagi.. I needed to see you."

"Honestly, I needed to see you too. Jaehee's not wrong to act the way she did, but it was starting to wear on me.. is this actually okay, Zen? For us to be seen in public like this?" You search his eyes, being met only with the sincerest warmth.

"If it's what I want, it's fine, besides if anyone asks we can just say we're friends." A light smile plays at the corners of his lips, as he goes to take a sip of his coffee.

Pondering, you ask, "Are we just friends?"

"Well I want to be more but.. I want to give you time to get ready, and I want to be ready to protect and be beside you.. properly." He lets out a deep sigh, "I knew you were a good person the moment you showed up in the chatroom.."

"Thank you for believing in me, Zen.. I've honestly never done any of this before, it's been exciting, and I feel like I belong somewhere for the first time.."

Gleaming at you, Zen takes your hand in his once more, "You make sure and tell me if there's anything or anyone that bothers you, mm?" You feel like you could cry, why is he so sweet and considerate when you just met him?

The two of you talk for a few hours, long after your coffees are finished. It's only when you're informed the store is closing that you realize how late it is! Good thing the trains run until midnight. Helping get Zen his crutches once again, the two of you set out into the brisk night air.

Of course, he insists on walking you as close as he can, but you decline.. it's not that far and besides, Zen has a train to catch!

"I'm really bad at goodbyes.." you admit, looking to your feet

Zen leans forward, "Babe, look at me.."

"Yes?" Sheepishly, you meet his gaze, level with yours.

"Thank you for tonight, I mean it.. thanks to you I can face forward with a smile on my face, and so can you, yeah?"

"Yeah.." You offer him a smile

"Good girl.. now hurry home and text me when you are safe inside.. okay? Bye, Jagi!" He gives you a little wink and turns to walk away.

You reach out, hugging your arms around his middle, "Goodbye Zen, thank you for tonight and I'll talk to you on the messenger later!" you can hear his heart ba-thump loudly in response.

As you turn and walk away, you glance back, and Zen is standing there, his cheeks flushed watching you walk away, "ZEN, YOUR TRAIN! GO!!" you shout back laughing, as he waves and turns to go.

When you get back you text him like he requested, humming to yourself you save the selfie he sent to you before.

Within the next day Jumin says he's sending you to see Zen, but neither he nor Jaehee know you've already met. It's your secret and you can't wait to see handsome Zen once more. ❤️

~{I've had a pretty rough week, but writing zen x mc cheers me up, so here's something inspired from a text I got when I was playing}~

The text in question: