#gave him a bandana cuz i think it looks cool

[kebbybites]

saw that one puzzlevision thing and i have been thinking about them nonstop for an entire month

also i'm trying out a new rendering style do you guys like it!!!

[where-does-the-heart-lie]

Revolutionary Army Punk AU

Ft: Luffy (not punk)

Steampunk is cool but i think just straight up punk would be cooler. I just think what they stand for lines up a lot better

Design notes:

I did some research and talked to a punk friend of mine for these as i am not a punk, myself, and I dont want to look like a poser. I think i did a really good job translating them and i want to explain my thoughts!

Sabo was first, of course.

I not only wanted to make the characters punk, but i also wanted to crank their designs up about 20 notches, so i gave Sabo’s scar one hell of an upgrade. In this version I tried to make it very clear that that cannon ball hit him head-on. I think it works really well with his punk vibes because under-cuts and shaved parts of the head in general are very popular in punk culture.

I largely tried to keep the silhouettes the same with this au, and It was really easy to keep it with Sabo because of the fact that he already has a lot of design elements that translate well to punk. His big pants into tall boots were perfect to translate, crust pants and steel toed boots fits him well. Trench coats arent a staple in Punk, but i couldnt take the coats away from him… him or Belo. They deserve it…

I threw away his cravat for a choker, i replaced his vest with a red tank top and his undershirt for fishnets, Patches up the wazoo, he looks very cool.

Belo Betty was next, she was super easy to translate. She’s already in the punk spirit with her tits out, we love to see it. Her hat was really difficult to translate, along with all the other hats, but a red knitted hat that has those two points cuz it’s essentially a scarf sewed together looks nice on her.

My punk friend suggested i give her a bunch of nets and harnesses and i really agreed that was her style, so i gave her red tie to Morley, slapped some harnesses on her and just overall just turned her sexy up like 50 notches. I think i was clever how i adapted her striped stockings here with how they have runs in them.

Karasu is almost the exact same. I just threw out his dinky little cravat and gave him a bandana and harness. I also gave him piercings. That’s the only difference. In the words of my Punk friend “hes naked and wearing a spiked mask, He can hang”

Speaking of what my punk friend said, he said that Lindbergh would get “demolished” in the pit, and that he looks like he’s scared of bees. The consensus was that he couldn’t hang. But also i still had to make him punk, so then he suggested CBGB punks:

Redneck, bluegrass, southern american punks. I was really in a rut with his design, I didn’t know what to do to keep the silhouette of his backpack. But everything changed when I chance got the idea of a guitar. And then everything flowed from there

Morley was really really fun. Punk friend suggested i make him Pop Punk, inspired by this pic

Mainly Lindsey way with this plaid skirt and tie

He was so so fun to draw, i love his fucked up eyes.

For dragon, i didnt change much at all, even though it’s only his bust that’s shown. Imagine everything is the same, except now he has piercings. Dragon isnt concerned with the punk fashion, but the punk cause.

For Luffy, I wasnt trying to make him punk, but he felt a bit plain looking like base Luffy next to punk Sabo, so i just did the “turn design up 20 notches”, and just gave him a more visibly tattered hat, bangles and waist beads.

That’s about it! Ive been getting a lot of comments and asks lately saying that you guys like when i go on my design explanations, and i realized that i didnt do that for the last few AU’s, so i thought id type this up :)

Thank you for reading!

[urlocalnonbinarybastardwrites]

Hcs for greasers with a GN!goth s/o who moved to town, and everyone, both greasers and socials are afraid of them, because everyone thinks they’re a “witch”

<twinning with @sadie-bug345 btw go check out her blog it’s amazinggggg here’s the link to her hc for this>

Ponyboy Curtis

-he was definitely afraid of you at first, and he 10/10 believed you could actually brew potions but also secretly thought you were cool and interesting

-he was SUPER intimidated by you

-but one day got enough courage to approach you when you were reading under a tree and found out that you were pretty chill and not yk a witch (he does ask tho, just it case)

-Y’all hit off and you showed him some of your music which he actually liked!

-eventually you guys started dating n stuff which was only surprising to those who didn’t know Pony that well

-you go on library/reading + music dates a lot

-Not a lot of Socs mess with him now that he’s always with his witch

-Fr no Socs mess with him he has such a scary dog privilege with you

-matching bandanas + belts

Johnny Cade

-he’s so in love with alt people honestly

-didn’t believe you were a witch and knew weirdos get a bad rap

-he wasn’t scared of you because he thought you were a witch, He was just scared to actually go up and talk to you

-he kind of always admired you from afar cuz yall had a similar vibe and you went to the lot a lot (hehe)

-One day after a long pep talk in the mirror he got the courage to go up and talk to you

-you guys really got along and started dating!

-when you first chatted he admired one of your best rings and you just gave it to him

-(he hasn’t taken it off since istg)

-you did his eyeliner one time and it looked SOOOO GOOD

-10/10 he does matching rings n belts and sometimes small makeup with you

-you guys are v cute together and honestly make so much sense, you’re also his scary dog privledge

Sodapop Curtis

-he saw you and was like ohhhh that’s why they call them a witch

-honestly surprised he liked you bc you aren’t usually his type but opposites attract yk

-he finds your style exotic and so different from his own it opens up his world

-you meet buying snacks at his gas station and he does his usual charming boy personality, suprised when you don’t respond to his flirtation and roll your eyes

-after lots of him flirting and you rejecting (more playfully over time) he finally manages to get you on a date with him

-you guys actually hit it off rlly well

-you guys are like golden retriever x black cat and compliment eachother soooo well

-tbh people saw it coming because yk opposites attract

-he tries to copy ur makeup one time and it did NOT end well 😭💅

-yall turn heads fr

Darry Curtis

-he didn’t necessarily wary of you because of the rumors, he’s just a traditionalist and not rlly used to seeing different people

-so when you come into town you rock his world

-one day your walking along just minding your own business when he grabs your arm and is like “wait” as if he isn’t stopping you from literally moving

-“so uh, what with the, uh, getup?”

“Idk man I just like to dress this way….”

-you guys start talking and actually become good friends

-after a few months he asks you out

-you guys are a pretty stable couple, and ponyboy definitely thinks of you as his rlly cool older sister

-I think yall are the most surprising

-he’s the most likely to change his wardrobe to match yours, def goes all out. Like not tooo far but he changes all his outfits to be vaguely goth

Dallas Winston

-was he a little (a lot) scared of you because of the rumors? Hell yes. Was he going to show that? Hell no.

-probs approached you on a dare or some shit 💀

-made a rude remark or joke so you slapped him and he was kinda surprised such a quiet thing could leave his face that red

-he was kinda in love with that ngl and loved your spunk

-he bothered you everyday after that

-back and fourth after much banter (enemies to lovers energy)

-he managed to actually get you to go on a date with him

-POWER COUPLE FR

-people are SO scared when they see yall walking down the streets yall are sooo intimidating together fr

-matching belts and rings

Two Bit Matthews

-you guys probs met in the back of the classroom

-he made some joke like “Damn, how’d you get out of your coffin this mornin’?!

-to which you responded with an eye roll and a chuckle

-you guys actually end up cracking jokes the whole period and laughing a little too loud

-he finally asks you out and you say yes

-you guys go out and make fun of Socs together and have a grand time

-you guys kind of started dating a bit immaturely, but you actually get to something that’s a lot more mature and have really deep conversations, you kind of ground him, and he kind of bring the humor out of you a bit

-he def takes advantage of the fact people are scared of you and you both jumpscare people and just have so much fun

-best Halloween couple fs

-overall pretty solid

-matching shirts

Steve Randle

-he probably heard the rumors and thought they were stupid and he was the least phased by your look

-I mean don’t get me wrong he liked it but he wasn’t gonna tell you that right away

-you don’t like eachother at first but after you start talking you start to appreciate eachother

-he asks you out and you say yes

-you guys are sooo cute n iconic

-you sometimes play music out loud when he fixes cars and just vibe together

-the EGO boost he gets from your compliments on his style

-he wears matching rings and shirts with you

[huntingforsatisfaction]

My live reactions to season 4 episode 9 (part 1)

But they're slightly out of context and a complete unfiltered adhd mess

Also ofc spoilers

-will yuri ever give up on trying to trick them

-and I think he might legit be attracted to that helicopter

-are JOYCE AND HOPPER GONNA FUCK IN THAT CHURCH?!?!??

-AHUT UP

-shut up

-OMFG

-FINALLY

-not the us government cockblocking

-Robin making fun of Steve is my fav

-don’t like the foreshadowing of Steve telling Eddie and Dustin to abort the mission

-there’s so much foreshadowing for Eddie dying I can’t take it

-Eddie and his bandana is doing things to me

-also Dustin is so cute with his little outfit

-that boy is my son

-I really hope el’s plan works because it’s so cool

-so happy for Kate bush rn because she’s truly in her bag

-shit angry hick

-Joyce is the best mom, but I hate this plan

-not argyle making a pizza

-THIS US IT

-ITS HAPPENUNG

-Eddie’s hand…

-MY HEART IS RACING

-I think this scene will actually get me pregnant lol

-get this stancy off my screen, I want Eddie’s sexy ass playing Metallica to save the world!!!!!

-“you’re there” just let out the deepest sigh

-this is making it sound like I don’t like Steve or Nancy, I’d like to clarify that I absolutely love both of them, I just can’t stand stancy for so many reasons

-Enzo is either gonna die or double cross them calling it now

-jk on the double crossing, but homeboy is NOT surviving

-I’m so anxious I’m tempted to look on Twitter for spoilers so any deaths don’t hit as hard

-LUMAX LUMAX LUMAX

-max better survive to see that movie istfg if she doesn’t

-Jonathan best brother ever

-please make them explicitly say Will is gay by the end of the series

-yas the show setting it straight on how bad Billy was

-Catholic guilt max is so real

-fuck I have chills. I love max so much and I really just want her to actually be happy.

-shit vecna has her

-Caleb is acting his ass off in this scene

-starved for elmax content

-skater girl max truly has my heart

-IS THIS REALLY IT

-YES

-omfg Chrissy this is for you

-I just audibly screamed

-already knew it was gonna be master of puppets, but I’m still freaking out cuz I love this song

-DADDY DADDY DADDY

-stfu Dustin head banging is adorable

-this is already one of my top 10 fight scenes from any show/movie just because of the song choice

-I INWO THAT RAGEDY BITVH DIDNT JUST TACKLE ERICA

-Eddie nation how we doing?

-I will be rewatching that scene for the rest of the summer istg

-Max’s best memory being there snow ball<3

-Russian crew is so unbelievably fucked I’m horrified

-bro demaflayers?!?!?!?

-Steve’s hopping just gave me the ick

-ronance moment

-baby max<3<3<3

-lmao I forgot this was the song they used in the snow ball scene

-it’s 3:30 am and I’m so tired, but I’m only half way through and HAVE to watch on one sitting

-seriously the cinematography

-fuck Jason omfg

-IF HE HURTS LUCAS

-I hate this it’s so unnecessary

-I don’t wanna watch the Russian teams scenes because I’m so scared

-fuck hopper being the bait

-NO JOYCE GETTING FLASHBACKS

-still so scared for Eddie too

-ROBIN

-STEVE

-NANCY

-god Russia needs to come through rn with that hive mind theory

-if Eddie doesn’t get through

-BO NO NO NON NO NO

-pausing to accept that Eddie is about to die

-just caved and looked at spoilers and now I don’t wanna finish :(

-it’s honestly on me for falling in love with him

-just spoiled Max too so I can handle it

-I’m finishing this shit in the morning

-Eddie nation plz don’t stop posting fanfics because it’s all I have now

[r0b0-writes]

ooo h for the hurt/comfort questions :00 can be with main scc or musical nerds or the cove idm its up to u lol

H - Home - What things (objects, sensations or people) remind them they're safe after a scary situation?

[This one made me think! But, I like what I managed to come up with. To avoid spoilers I answered w/ main scc in mind. And don't mind me absolutely overanalyzing everything and giving everything deep meanings]

[Sweet] - His turntable. It's an escape. If Cap'n and Cakes are ever gone, they can always take it and fly off for a while. The fact that if he needs it, he'd have an 'out' is a lot of comfort. Just taking the turntable up above the city and being alone for a bit, completely distancing himself from whatever upset him. Sitting with his arms curled around his legs as he looks down at the cars and the lights. They're all so small. But he isn't when he's that far up. So far nothing can touch them.

[Cap'n] - The bandana and hat. I headcanon Sweet and Cakes gave him those (idk who gave what, though). He plays them off as just being cool accessories, but they're comfort items. It's nice to have something from the homies that remind him that he's cared for. That he isn't dragging them down. So, when something scary happens, he instinctively grips the bandana (the hat usually stays in place). Sometimes he'll hold the hat to his chest and shut his eyes. He tells himself everything's going to be okay because Sweet and Cakes are his buddies and they wouldn't let anything happen to him. Cuz they care about him. And that sometimes gives him the strength to face whatever's scaring him. Because as long as they care for him, he can do anything.

[Cakes] - The lemon candy. They've always liked the taste, but they didn't start constantly carrying them around until they met Queen. Sweet might get candy because he's so 'sweet'. But Cakes gets the lemon drops because he's just like those candies. (Queen's good at seeing people for who they are). Cakes sweet, sugar-coated on the outside, but on the inside there's a spark of sour. There's nothing wrong with sour, it's a good thing! It's what gives it that spunk! It's what allows it to sweetly say crude jokes that no one was expecting, it's the bluntness in how it speaks. It's the everything that no one expects, because they only see the sugar coating. When something scary happens, it can always pop a candy in its mouth and know that it's going it be okay. Because he's got that spark! Whatever scared him isn't expecting him to come out of this okay, but he will. Because that's what it least expects.

[jj-babebank]

Room 107 // chapter I // JJ Maybank (smut)

I have started my first JJ story, which will consist of several chapters that I will constantly be updating. The story picks up where season 2 leaves us. TW: Contains mentions of drugs, alcohol, cigarettes, sex and violence. 

Chapter 1 can be found below.  Oh, and - please feel free to submit requests, I tend to write a lot ;) 

Enjoy xx

Chapter 1 - La Guardiana

Days had passed since the Pogues had last seen civilisation, maybe even weeks. The sun was hotter than ever, with close to no wind to mask the warmth. JJ was taking this particularly badly. 

“I’m so done with eating bananas, man,” he moaned, kicking a pebble as he trotted a little behind the rest of his friends, “Can’t we just stumble across an oasis or something and end up in, like, an actual city?”

As if on command, his friends stopped in their tracks, the girls awing and the guys smiling happily. 

“We just might, JJ,” said John B, looking at the city unfolding itself in front of them in the distance, “We just might.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“I’m actually starving,” laughed Sarah, nudging John B’s arm, “Don’t tease!” “Hey, so am I,” he cooed, “First joint we find, we’re going in for food.” Kiara rolled her eyes, “As much as I would love to accept that offer, let me remind you that we have no money.” Sarah nodded, “Mhm, nothing at all.” “Nada,” John B looked at the two girls sternly, “And when has that ever stopped us exactly?” Kiara rolled her eyes once again, smirking at her friend, “Alright, I suppose a good meal would give me the energy I’d need to run a marathon after getting caught not paying.”

The group continued walking down a not too busy street, studying the buildings, looking for a restaurant, cafe, diner - anything, really. They hadn’t had a proper meal in God knows how long and they were famished. They couldn’t help but notice how all the buildings on the street were of the same height - no more than four storeys each, all painted in different colours. If they hadn’t known any better, they’d have thought that they had left the United States of America altogether, although one thing was certain - they were definitely not in the Outer Banks anymore. 

The street wasn’t crowded at all, there were hardly any cars or people lurking about. JJ concluded that this was probably an unpopular area of whichever city they were in. This would also explain the lack of supermarkets and restaurants. He really wanted to ask his friends to stop for a little break - his throat was so dry and his legs could barely hold him up anymore, but he knew better. The longer they walk, the faster they’ll find what they are looking for. Having no indicator of the time on them wasn’t helping either, hell, they could have been walking for 12 hours for all he knew, and with no result. 

“Maybe we should just ask someone,” Pope suggested, “Neither of us is a wanted criminal anymore, I’d say we have nothing to worry about.” John B smirked at his friend’s remark, but ultimately agreed to ask the first person they ran into where the nearest food joint was. Turns out, they were standing right in front of it. 

“La Cubanita Hotel and Restaurant” it spelled out in bold, red letters. The building was narrow and a light shade of blue, totally contrasting the obnoxiously coloured sign planted in front of it. Much like the rest of the buildings on the street, it had no more than four floors, each consisting of a row of Spanish windows with brightly coloured frames. The Pogues looked at each other with a hint of uncertainty before John B lead the way into the building. 

On the inside it looked like a typical diner - tiled floor, red and blue booths, a long bar accompanied by bar stools and, cheesily enough, a boombox. JJ guessed that the way to the hotel was through the back, but he didn’t put too much thought into it. The place seemed dead, with only one of the booths being busy. It was either an off-peak hour or this city was actually a ghost town. 

The group sat at one of the booths on the other side of where the other people were and JJ took a second to observe them. A group of bikers, all wearing stereotypical biker outfits from leather jackets down to bandanas. They were in their mid 50s and were all smoking indoors, drinking what looked like whiskeys, despite of the blazing sun still very much being out. JJ had to give it to them though, they did look pretty darn cool if he did say so himself, and those cigarettes looked eerily appetising to him at this given moment. Oh, what he’d give to have a sip of whatever they were having and a long, much needed drag of one of their cigarettes. He was so lost in his daydream, he barely realised Kiara poking him in the arm. 

“JJ,” she urged, “Waitress is here!” In this moment JJ turned his attention to the new subject in question, their waitress. She was standing at the foot of their booth, wearing her uniform, black and red, holding a pen and a notepad, chewing a piece of gum, waiting for his order. Could this place get any more stereotypical? JJ thought to himself. “So what’s it gonna be, handsome?” She said, not even bothering to look in his direction. “Uh…” JJ fumbled with the menu, “I’ll just have whatever they’re having.” He said, pointing at the bikers in the booth across from theirs. The woman rolled her eyes, popping her bubblegum. She took the rest of the Pogues’ orders before disappearing somewhere behind the bar. JJ followed her with his eyes, blocking out the conversation his friends were currently having. The waitress came back out of what he assumed to be the kitchen and handed the paper with their orders to another girl behind the bar. JJ guessed she was the barmaid, and boy was she a bit of him. 

She was wearing the same uniform as her colleague, although JJ had to admit - it looked a whole lot better on her, at least from what he could see from above the bar. Her hair was long and brown, half of it tied up effortlessly, and slightly messily, although JJ didn’t mind one bit. He watched her as she took the paper from her colleague and went to fetch the drinks written on it. He couldn’t make out what exactly colour her eyes were, and quite frankly - he didn’t really care, she was gorgeous regardless of what her eyes looked like, and she looked around his age. Had the sun and heat gotten to his head, or was it just the fact that he hadn’t touched a female in so long, he didn’t know, but if there was one thing JJ Maybank was notorious for, it was his ability to pull any girl his heart desired effortlessly. This is why he excused himself from the table and, albeit his friends’ confused looks and comments, he made his way towards the bar, sliding into one of the stools directly across from the girl. 

She looked up at him, “Can I help you?” “Brown…” JJ mumbled to himself. “Excuse me?” She said, this time sounding slightly annoyed. Her eyes were brown, JJ thought, brown and sexy. He coughed, trying to compose himself and gave her his signature Maybank stare. It worked wonders back home, surely it would work wonders now again. “Name’s JJ,” he said suavely, “I’m not from around here-“ “Clearly,” she muttered, picking up a bottle of whiskey. JJ assumed it was for him, “Aren’t you a little young to be drinking, JJ?”

JJ smirked, “What can I say, I have the face of a boy but the body and mind of a man.” The girl snickered under her nose, “Sure. Well since you’re here, make yourself useful and bring your drinks over to your friends,” she gave him a fake smile, placing a tray with their orders on it in front of him, after which she turned her back to him and walked towards the back of the bar. JJ was too busy observing her behind to notice the other waitress standing next to him, her arms crossed in front of her chest. “Should I take that or will you?” She said, waking JJ up from his everlasting daydream. “Oh, uh, don’t sweat it…” he said, picking up the tray and carrying it over to his friends’ booth. “So much for customer service,” Sarah laughed. “And to think my dad says I’m hostile to our customers,” Kiara muttered out. JJ took his seat next to her, his eyes never leaving the bar. “La Guardiana,” Pope read out loud, “This place is called La Guardiana, and apparently we’re somewhere in Florida.” “Florida?” John B said, confusion dripping through his words. Pope nodded, pointing at some text on the bottom of the menu. 

La Cubanita Hotel & Restaurant **, 97 Diego’s Crescent, La Guardiana, FL 

“Holy shit, we’re in Florida!” John B whisper yelled. Sarah laughed at his reaction, “Calm down now, Sancho, let’s not draw any attention to us,” “Yeah, you might wanna tell Casanova here that,” teased Pope, nodding his head in JJ’s direction, “Was it really worth it to potentially blow our cover just to talk to that girl?” JJ snapped at Pope, “Hey, man, just ‘cuz you don’t have the nuts to go over there and talk to her yourself,” “Yeah, I really want to attract the staff’s attention, you know, even more than we already are, seeing as we’re the only other busy table at this place.” “Your food,” the waitress from earlier was back with some of the Pogues’ orders. They waited for her to be out of earshot and JJ spoke up, “Relax, P, I bet you I can charm the pants off that girl and we won’t even need to sneak out without paying!” Pope gave JJ a fake smile, “Mhm, I’m sure she’s gonna be so deep under your spell she won’t even notice us leaving without paying a cent." JJ rolled his eyes, picking up a toothpick from the table and placing it between his teeth. “Might even offer us a place to crash, you know, because she’ll be so captivated by you.” Pope continued to tease. “Yeah, chicks totally dig this whole I’m homeless and I haven’t properly showered in like 15 days look you're going for,” Sarah joined in on the teasing. Kiara laughed and added, “Yeah, and the bit that’s gonna fully seal the deal for her is that you have literally nothing to offer her, like 0 dollars.” Everyone was laughing while JJ just crossed his arms in front of his chest and turned to look out the window, “Talk all you want, guys, but once we get that gold back, you’ll see who’ll dig what.” “The rest of your order,” he recognised the girl’s voice. It was her bringing their food over this time. She placed John B’s plate in front of him and then made her way around the table, next to where JJ was sat. She handed him his plate and bent down slightly, so that her lips were on the same level as JJ’s ear, “Next time you decide to share your criminal plans, you might wanna talk a bit more quietly.” She whispered, setting his cutlery down for him, “Oh, and, you might be charming wherever you come from, but your friend’s right. That shit doesn’t work around here.” She said, patting him on the shoulder before walking away. JJ didn’t waste time sitting around to listen to his friends pass comments about what had just happened, he downed his whiskey and practically chased after the girl. “I’m guessing you’ll want another one?” She said, not even turning around. JJ wondered how she knew that he was there. When she turned to face him, the bottle of whiskey was in her hand. “Let’s see… Do I pour you another one and close my eyes about you planning to leave without paying, or do I do what anyone else in my position would do and call the police on you? Hmm…” she pretended to think, her eyes never leaving JJ’s now panicking ones. “Please don’t call the cops,” he blurted out, the whiskey hitting his brain and making him stress out more than he wanted to admit to, “Look, we - we were in a boat accident, we don’t even know how we got here, hell - we didn’t even know where we were up until 10 minutes ago! And we - we don’t have  any documents on us, we don’t have any sort of identification, what would you -“ “Relax, kid,” the girl smirked, picking up two glasses and pouring a generous amount of whiskey in both of them, “I won’t rat you out.” She said, handing JJ one of the glasses and raising hers for a toast. JJ clinked his glass with hers, a large smile growing on his face, his dimples becoming very prominent, “Thank you, really… That means a lot.” The girl took a moment to observe JJ, then to look at his friends having a heated conversation at their booth, all of them practically stuffing their faces with food in an almost animalistic sort of way. Could this boy really be telling the truth? Could these kids have been lost at sea with no place to go? She looked back at JJ who was also looking at her. Despite the smile plastered on his face, she could clearly see that he was extremely nervous still. “Hey,” she said, “I told you to relax, didn’t I. I won’t charge you for your food, in fact… I might even have a place for you to sleep and clean up tonight.” JJ’s eyes grew wider at her words, “You what?” She leaned in closer to him over the bar and lowered her voice so that he would be the only one to hear, “Hotel upstairs, my aunt owns it. She’s currently out of town with my cousin. Should be back next Thursday. I think I can fit you and your friends in. You just have to promise to be on your best behaviour.” She said, pulling away and taking another sip from her drink. JJ couldn’t believe what he was hearing. It was too good to be true. She was hot and she was willing to help? This must have been his lucky day. Sarah could suck it, and so could the others. Clearly this girl was into him. Why else would she be offering to help? “So, uh, what’s in it for me?” He asked, a hint of mischief in his voice. The girl opened her mouth, but before she could speak, the other waitress groaned from behind her. “Samara, how many times do I have to tell you?” Her croaky voice rang. The girl, who JJ had just learned was called Samara, rolled her eyes and repeated with her colleague, “No drinking on the job, yeah yeah, I know. But Heather’s gone and so is Conner, so who can tell me what to do, really?” She said, finishing what was left of her whiskey, “Besides, Georgia, as far as I’m concerned, since they’re both gone, that leaves me in charge, no? Now get back to work,” she said, making her colleague roll her eyes at her. Samara turned around to face JJ again, giving him a wink, before disappearing into the kitchen. JJ couldn’t believe his luck. He swung his arm over the bar and picked up the bottle of whiskey to pour himself one more drink before returning to his friends. “Guys-“ JJ tried getting their attention. “So what are we supposed to do now? We’re totally screwed!” “They’re gonna call the police on us, hell, they probably already have! The cops could be on their way!” “Guys!” JJ yelled, catching even the bikers’ attention. His friends looked up at him, worry filling all of their eyes. “You’ll never believe what I’m about to tell you, oh, and Sarah? You can eat your words.” He smirked before telling them what had just happened. “Hold on,” said Kiara, her face revealing her confusion, “So this random girl in this random place just randomly said that we can crash here until when?” “Next Thursday, or was it Tuesday? What day is it today?” JJ scratched his head. “JJ!” Kiara slapped his arm, “What if this is a trap? It sounds too good to be true doesn’t it? Like, what’s in it for her? We don’t even know her! What if she’s a murderer or something?” “She’s right, you know,” Cleo chimed in. “She is,” said John B, “But we have nothing to lose, literally.” Pope nodded, “I’d usually agree with Kie, but John B’s right. We have nothing to lose. And what if she calls the police? What could even happen then? We get put in jail for agreeing to sleep in a hotel for free? Come on, guys, I’m sure we can all agree that a bar of soap and a normal bathroom would do us good. I mean, we stink.” Everyone laughed at Pope’s remark before Kiara turned to JJ again, “So what’s the plan?” Realisation just struck JJ that he didn’t in fact know what the plan was. Samara had told him virtually nothing about how any of this would go down. Where were they supposed to meet? Was she going to take them to their rooms? Would they all be sharing one room? He was so busy thinking about how all of this would go down, he barely noticed Samara herself passing him a note. It was taken out of her colleague, who JJ now knew to be Georgia’s notepad. The note read in messy handwriting:

Bring your friends to the lobby. Straight down the hallway by the bathrooms. 

JJ turned the piece of paper towards his friends and they all got up, rushing towards the hallway by the bathrooms.

[milk-carton-whump]

To celebrate me being back, here is the long overdue last piece of the story, part 7 to Stuck in the Middle!!

Part 1 Part 6

Tagging: @castielamigos-whump-side-blog @sideblogformindtrash @tears-and-lilies @unicornscotty @abitefullofeverything @getyourwhumphere @whumpasaurus101 @lektric-whump @twistedcaretaker @skunkandgrenade @heathenville @freefallingup13 @sunnysunfire @alliecat5594 @whatwasmyprevioususername @redstainedsocks @justabitofwhump

CW: caretaking, blood, bruises, hurt/comfort, apologies, wound cleaning, nap time, cowboyfriends, prior kidnapping, mentions of beating, idiots in love, sunburn

Stuck in the Middle 7

It had been a few hours and Percy had taken a much needed nap under the watchful eye of his sweetheart, Ritz. Of course he had managed to fall asleep in the bandit's lap, his arms wrapped around Ritz's neck and his head on the blonde's shoulder. 

Ritz enjoyed feeling the gentle rise and fall of Percy's body with each breath he took, the bandit did notice a slight shudder with each breath, the ranch hand must've been hit in the chest at some point. Ritz gently combed his fingers through the blood caked brown hair, slowly working tangles and knots out. 

Those few hours were up as Ritz gave his sweetheart a soft shake until he finally awoke. The bandit pressed a butterfly kiss to Percy's lips as he tirefly grumbled about having to wake up. 

"Have a nice rest, lover boy?" Ritz mumbled and kissed him again, "we should probably get ya all cleaned up, hmm?" 

Percy reluctantly nodded and stayed where he was, arms embracing the love of his life. 

"As much as it pains me, ya have to get off my lap." Ritz said with a light laugh and Percy gave an annoyed sigh before climbing off his boyfriend and crossing his arms. The ranch hand watched as his beloved got up and went over to his saddle that sat propped against a rock, he brought a canteen and one of his spare bandanas back over before he sat down again. 

Ritz poured some water onto the bandana and gently began to wipe and scrub blood from his lover's face, he tried to be as careful as he could but there were so many bruises. He saw Percy wince and a few involuntary whimpers came from the boy's throat as Ritz cleaned off the blood and flaking skin from his sunburnt cheeks. 

"I'm sorry Ritz… I think I bit off a lil more than I could chew. But, I knew you'd come back for me, buttercup." 

"Don't apologize, loverboy. If this was anyone's fault, it was mine. Ya suffered cuz of my mistakes." 

Percy let out a quiet hiss of pain as Ritz cleaned the blood from his nose that looked like it was from a bad nosebleed. The bandit gently dabbed the cool damp cloth against Percy's burnt cheeks, he watched the boy nearly sigh in relief. 

"I coulda kicked their asses if they hadn't been cowards and tied my arms behind me. I did manage to beat up that Archie guy." Percy said confidently.

"Sweetheart, ah'm sure ya could've and by the looks of it, ya beat the shit outta him." Ritz said with a laugh as he could finally see the freckles he loved so dearly, peek through the bruises after the blood that had been covering them was wiped away. 

Percy couldn't help but stare at his beloved, the determined look on his face and the clear line on his cheeks from where his hat shaded his face and where the sun hit it. He couldn't help but admire the beautiful whiskey brown eyes that darted around looking for the next scrape or patch of dried blood to clean. Now that he looked closer he could see dark circles under those maple eyes that indicated Ritz had barely slept these past few days, if at all. 

"Have you slept at all, buttercup?" 

"Not yet, ya were my top priority and besides, ah can sleep later." Ritz mumbled and leaned forward to press another kiss to Percy's chapped lips. 

"Ritz, I know you told me not to apologize, but I at least want to thank you for coming back for me…" Percy muttered hesitantly.

"Darling ah would come back for ya everyone, even if the stars above decided ta fall, ah will always come back for ya." Ritz said gently and cupped Percy's face in his hand, being mindful of the purple bruises. 

The ranch hand smiled and wrapped his arms around Ritz's neck and pressed a love soaked kiss to his boyfriend's lips. Ritz wrapped his arms around his beloved's waist and they fell backwards onto the dusty ground. Just loving the way that their bodies seemed to fit perfectly into each other's embrace. The world could wait while their time together seemed to make time slow, they were finally back together and intended to stay that way. 

[keziha-writes]

Coffee College And Skeleton Roomies 4/31

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Chapter 4: The Roomies

Your first day of classes is over but that didn't mean your day was over in fact the most daunting part of the day was right in front of you, as you stand in front of the dorm building you'll be calling home for the next few years, mustering up the courage to walk in and meet your new dorm mates.

You take a deep breath before stepping through the door, dragging your suitcase along with you. 

This dorm just so happened to be the cheapest one available mostly for the simple reason that it didn't include any furniture in the rooms, other than a little built in wardrobe, so your little old bed and bean bag you'd brought with you were waiting in your car with a box of your things, which of course you'd take up with you once you knew exactly which room was yours. 

You pass a group of friends hanging around the entrance, pick up your keys at the desk and head into the elevator. 

Floor four dorm one… that was where you were gonna be living.

You step out of the elevator on floor four. The floor was split into two sections, one door each side of you… the door you needed was on the right so you step up to it… if you were remembering the layout plan right then behind this door was the living room shared between you and your eight dorm mates… although you have a key you should probably knock this time right?

So you give the door a little knock…

You hold your breath as you wait a moment, before the door opens. Behind the door… is yet another skeleton, how? You wonder, is there just that many of them here or what? This one looked a bit like Blue, a little taller maybe and not quite as excited looking, in fact he looks tired, maybe they were related just like how Rus and Stretch are kinda cousins. 

“Hey...” He says, his voice is deeper than Blue’s. “You the new girl?”

“Um, yeah, that’s me...” you reply sheepishly, “uh… is this my new dorm?”

“Yeah come on in, the names Sans, Sans the skeleton.”

“Hey vanilia who's there!?” You hear a gruff even deeper voice yell.

“Just the new roomie.” Sans replies back.

You step in and Sans leads you around the corner into the living area, oh and kitchen this was more open plan then you thought. There was a corner sofa with its back facing the door with more skeletons sat on it...

“Ya didn't tell us we got a new roomie! What's with that! What's he-” The one yelling turns around looking over the back of the sofa, “Oh...” he lets out a little chuckle. “Hey there Sweetheart.”

He gives you a little wave as his bright Red eyelights look you up and down... you notice he’s round like Sans and Blue but has pointed teeth like Rus and a gold tooth and a crack in his socket too, just his is more jagged.

“The name’s Red, nice to meet ya doll.” 

The other skulls look up from laptops, books and phones to see you, out of the four you see three familiar faces who simultaneously chime out your name in a confused and surprised tone. What were they doing here? Were they gonna be your new dorm mates?

The taller one you didn't recognise came over quickly and shook your hand.

“I AM THE GREAT PAPYRUS!! NICE TO MEET YOU! I’M SURE WE WILL ALL BE GREAT FRIENDS, NYEH HEH HEH HEH.”

“I hope so.” You chime back, Papyrus is very friendly and chipper.

 “WHAT’S ALL THE RUCKUS ABOUT!!?” 

You jump as a tall skeleton, taller than the rest barges in from the door you think goes to some of the bedrooms. He looks sharp and mean, dressed in red and black.

“MY QUESTION EXACTLY! WHY ARE YOU ALL SO LOUD!!?” A smaller but just as pointy and mean looking skeleton, in purple pushes past the other.

“I’M TRYING TO WORK!!” They both yell at the same time before they turn to scowl at each other. 

“Meet our new roomie.” Sans says as he pushes you towards them a little.

 “Um.. hi I’m-”

“WHAT!? A NEW PERSON STAYING HERE? WHY WASN'T I INCLUDED IN THIS DECISION!?” The smaller one asks in a raised voice.

“I WON'T ALLOW IT!!!” The taller exclaimes.

“Guess I forgot.” Sans shrugs.

“I DON’T LIKE THIS!!”

“No point protestin’ boss what's done ‘s done.” Red chips in sending you a wink.

“I DON’T LIKE THIS EITHER!” the smaller one folds his arms under his purple bandana.

You look between them in confusion and concern as they all argue about the fact Sans didn’t even tell anyone else you were coming… you didn’t like this, you don’t want people arguing and fighting because of you, not again…

“Just introduce yourselves.”

“YOU CAN’T TELL ME WHAT TO DO!”

“What you scared of a kid?”

“YOU’D BE SURPRISED WHAT A HUMAN CHILD CAN DO!” 

“Heh you're scared of them.”

“I AM NOT!!!”

Just as you think you can’t take much more shouting, Rus is at your side, he puts his hand on your shoulder, when did he even get there?

“Hey…!” he said barely above the others but they all go quiet mostly out of shock by the looks on their skulls.

“So....” Rus laughs slightly nervously. “You all gotta know she’s cool, ain't a threat and is nice.”

“HOW DO YOU KNOW HER?” The one in purple asks.

“She’s a classmate.”

“SHE BETTER JUST BE A CLASSMATE.”

“She is, I met her today jus like you.”

“THEN HOW DO YOU KNOW SHE’S SO GREAT?”

“Cuz i gave her a chance, could you all just do the same?”

“FINE, BUT JUST SO YOU KNOW HUMAN, ONE WRONG STEP, IF I FEEL LIKE YOU’RE A THREAT TO ME OR MY BROTHER.” He moves his finger across his neck, and you get the point. 

You swallow the lump in your throat and nod. 

“GOOD! WELL THEN LET ME INTRODUCE MYSELF I AM THE MALEVOLENT BLACK. DON’T FORGET IT!! MWAH HAHA! NOW IF YOU'LL EXCUSE ME I HAVE LOTS OF WORK TO DO!!” At that he turns away and leaves...

“Come on boss your turn don't let Black show you up.” Red adds.

“FINE!” He huffs. “HUMAN! IF YOU DON’T KNOW ME ALREADY THEN YOU’VE PROBABLY BEEN LIVING UNDER A ROCK. BUT SINCE THAT IS A SAD WAY TO LIVE I’LL SHOW YOU PITY, FOR I AM THE GREAT AND TERRIBLE EDGE! FEARED AND ADMIRED BY ALL. NYAH HAHAHA!!”

This is where you're supposed to introduce yourself right? 

“Oh um… it’s nice to meet you? My name is-”

“I REALLY DON’T CARE AND I ALSO HAVE MUCH WORK TO DO, YOU’VE TAKEN FAR TOO MUCH OF MY PRECIOUS TIME.” He turns away flicking his cape like scarf behind him as he leaves…

The room goes quiet for a second. 

“Before you ask… yeah it’s usually like this…” Sans sighs…

“But ya get used to it.” Red adds.

Blue bounds over. “WELL THEN HOW ABOUT WE GET YOU SETTLED IN?”

“Your room is this one.” Sans turns you around and points you in the direction of Your room… “You got your key right?”

“Yeah here.” 

You open the door to an empty room, it's a cozy size, the far wall has a good sized window and the wardrobe, the left of the door is your bathroom.

“IT'S A BIT DUSTY IN HERE ISN'T IT? FEAR NOT, THE GREAT PAPYRUS WILL HAVE IT SPARKLING FOR YOU IN NO TIME!” He goes and fetches a bunch of cleaning gear.

“YOU HAVE MORE THINGS RIGHT? WE WILL HELP YOU BRING THEM UP.” Blue chimes volunteering the rest of them.

“Are you sure? I don’t have much to bring up.” You really don't want to be a burden for these guys.

“IT NO PROBLEM IS IT?” Blue asks Stretch, giving him a nudge.

“Yeah, no problem, we can help.” Stretch shrugs.

“You guys are so sweet.”

“JUST LEAD THE WAY!”

So you head out, Blue drags the others out and you, Stretch, Rus, Sans and Red have an ever so slightly awkward trip down the elevator while Blue races down the stairs. He greets you when the elevator opens… did he just race down four flights of stairs? Faster than the elevator, without breaking a sweat?!?! Ok…

You lead them over to your car while you hold idle chatter. 

They don’t make any comment about the cheap little car you have but when you open the trunk…

“You weren't joking, you’ve not got much at all, have you?” Rus comments.

“IS THIS IT?” Blue queres.

“Yeah this is it...”

“Quit complainin’ will ya? Makes our job easier.” Red huffs as he… somehow makes the headboard of your bed glow blue? and float? He floats it out of the car.

“How?” you mumble...

“RED STOP SHOWING OFF.” Blue rolls his eyelights as he makes the rest of the bed frame float, yeets your bean bag chair at Stretch and picks up the rolled mattress in one hand.

“Yer the one whos showin’ off li’l Blue.”

“How are you guys doing that?” You ask.

“It’s magic, kid.” Sans tells you as he uses said magic to grab your box of things. 

You’ve never seen monster magic at work before, “It’s so cool.”

There is nothing left in the car for you to carry…

“Um.. guys can I carry anything?”

“WE HAVE THIS!”

“Maybe you could just open the doors for us hun?”

“I can do that.”

The boys take your things to your room, Blue gets Red and Sans to start building your bed as he helps Papyrus with cleaning. 

You feel a little out of place… and a little bad that they are doing so much for you who is practically a stranger. 

“Hey hun?” Stretch calls. “We're getting pizza, you want any?” 

“Oh… um” you think about it… do you have enough money for that? the scholarship you were oh so lucky to grab only just managed to cover most of this… and you’ve not got much to live on… you already treated yourself to lunch... you should probably save up, you could just eat that bread you brought.

“We’ll all pitch in and pay for yours.” Sans says from pretty much under your bed as he builds it. 

“No I wouldn't want you to do that for me.”

“It won’t be much if all of us split” Sans says.

“I can tell ya my bro won’t be too happy if he notices.” Red chuckles. “And I usually only pay for food if it's a date. But I’ll live.”

“Way to inspire confidence.” Stretch says.

“Are you guys sure?”

“We’ll take care of you darlin’, we wanna make you feel at home.”

“YES! I AGREE, LET US TREAT YOU.”

What’s with these guys? They are way too helpful and super nice, usually you’d find it a little suspicious but for some reason you feel a sort of connection to these skeletons even the scary, angry two. Seems like moving here was a good choice.

[iknowiknowiknowtheend]

as I lay in my bed unable to sleep I bring you more au garbage.

someone somewhere is going to say “oh bad ur such an angel.” because he’s so sweet n shit and he’s gonna be like “haha literally!” the angel joke will be made it’s been in my head ever since I went “yeah, bad=angel”.

bad and skeppy both wear bandanas around their necks and they swap them out sometimes, it kinda f’s up their set color pallets thingies but whatever it’s for the sake of platonic cuteness it can slide.

the au is has elements inspired to stuff from supernatural because I unfortunately like that show, I’ve already mention how schlatt’s deals are akin to demon deals and I figured I’d also mention au angels are like supernaturals angels. that being that they don’t float around with harps, they have stabby stab sticks and also generally don’t care about humans. with that being said any angel other than bad that might make an appearance would most likely be a huge asshole.

bad does have a sword but he gives it to skeppy at some point because skeps should probably have something to defend himself with and bad can just resign himself to throwing knives because haha cool.

bad and skeppy are kinda like wonder and silvia from the Disney (not) hit show Wonder Over Yonder, where they go around making friends/helping people.

okay okay I’ll stop talking about bad and skeppy now- I just haven’t touched on them as much as I have for the others so it was info dump about them time.

minx is a cool demon lady with a liiiittle too much power but whatever it’s chill (no it isn’t).

schlatts always had weird knowledge over magicy stuff- people born with sigils (things that help them do magic) are just born with it randomly and aren’t often gifted with knowledge of how the magic all works. like sure they can throw water around but that’s about it.

sigil magic can be conducted through runes, which can be carved into things (ex. schlatt carving tunes into his swords so he can do more fancy stuff with his fire powers)

the rune swords r good anyway for schlatt because he could really only do fire stuff through his hands/palms more specifically, and when you’ve got swords in hands that’s kinda hard bro.

anyway now we get into the ~old times~ with young schlatt who was a sword fighter because I guess he had nothing better to do with his life. he was good at it, like Coliseum fight people to the almost death and win way too often all the goddamn time good. and that was just for shits n giggles really.

so the good fighting skillz were what got him into the god killer bunch. minx probably picked him out, looked down at him and went “oh aye look at that guy down there he’s really good at this let’s get em-“

currently unsure of how to say schlatt got his immortality, he certainly wasn’t born an immortal ram guy. I’m thinking of maybe like minx curses him or something- maybe it’s just an all of the bunch thing that happens on some weird outing.

minx has always been immortal though, she’s a timeless demon.

anyway at some point schlatt fuckin drowns and wakes up on an island coughing up gallons of water because you can’t fucking breath if ur lungs r filled to the brim with salt water. (worth noting that was not a pleasant experience)

it’s part of my weird immortality rules- direct murder only is the singular way ur getting outta this mess. pretty much anything else under the sun goes as a “nope ur still getting to live, have fun.”

like charlie- charlie wasn’t part of the god killer bunch he came up years and years after, but schlatt gave him an apple that granted him immortality. charlie ate that apple as a regular human person and ended up (as seen in the immortals mini-reunion comic)one slimey boy in one slimey pit of despair. he fell in it and just became slime which would’ve normally killed him but hey it’s my bat-shit immortality rules so he’s fine. well, as long as you count still being alive but as a weird slime creature fine. whatever he’s alive- that’s the point.

anyway the immortal drowning rules are drowning, then passing out for a good while only to regain conciousness (hopefully somewhere dry) and coughing up the water in your lungs. not breathing can’t exactly kill you but you shouldn’t live with water in your lungs it’s not cool.

jeez I’m a terrible au god aren’t I?

*note to self stop saying anyway all the goddamn time*

as we’re on the topic of water I suppose I should discuss fundy a bit more. as much as I love both fundy and wilbur I’m not exactly sure what I’d be doing with them. they’d be minor characters that would stick around for a while and then get back to whatever it is they do most likely..

fundy should never be in the middle of a deep body of whatever because if he falls off he’s probably gonna fall to the bottom of said body of water and die. ironically if you’ve seen fundys impossible difficulty videos you’ve probable seen the feature where any water you come into proximity with just fuckin disappears, and that’s pretty much what fundys water powers are. he gets close to water and the water just disappears. although I might fix that to where instead of it being a passive always active thing, it’d have to be something he’d bring about himself. or could have it be that it is a passive always active thing but he’d have to concentrate to make it go away— that might work. cuz you know you can’t just NOT have water. okay long fundy paragraph cool I guess.

on to dream and george then-

dream and george grew up in the same general area. they were friends as kids n shit because why the fuck not, they would play in the forest and fight with sticks and be dumb because that’s what kids do. one day dream goes out (probably without George I haven’t decided 100% yet) he’s probably like 5 or 6 and he gets attacked by like a jackass monster or whatever and he gets this weird kinda freaky scar thing. so that’s why he wears the mask- it was at first because the wound was pretty bad and then he just had grown accustomed to it.

I’ll leave it at that because I can’t think of anything else + I’m hungy.

[jornthur]

“Unshaken” Chapter 10

Originally posted: June 8, 2020

Arthur Morgan x Reader, Slow-Burn Romance

Summary: You save a mysterious man who is dying on a mountain. Finding out he has Tuberculosis, you use your knowledge and skills with herbs and natural remedies to save him from death and help nurse him back to health. As he slowly starts to recover, you can’t help but wonder: Who is this man? Why had you found him the way that you did, beaten and ill? Only time, patience … and perhaps love … will tell.

•••••

The first mile was peaceful, and Arthur looked around as the wagon strolled down a narrow dirt path through the thick forest. The trees were tall, the hilly landscape like the huge waves of the ocean. His heart almost skipped a beat when he recalled those monstrous walls of water when he was on board that ship. Never again was he ever going on another damn boat as long as he lived.

He took in a deep breath, the smell and feel of the fresh forest air overcoming and relaxing his senses. It felt so good to be out in the wild again, he had to admit. He’d actually found himself missing the familiar scent of wilderness, reminding him of all those nights when he’d been out on his own, hunting, camping, whatever the hell he felt like doing.

Arthur almost laughed to himself then.

He was still here … still alive … still breathing … And the rest of the world believed he was dead, including his old friends — or what was left of them. Anger began to simmer deep within his gut at the thought of Dutch, Micah’s betrayal, what they’d done to him and John, the rest of the gang. He squeezed his eyes shut, lifting his hand to tug at the brim of his new hat, trying to find comfort in the new gift. All he could tell himself was that Marston was safe. The boy was an idiot, sure, but when it came to his family and their safety, Arthur knew nothing would stand in John’s way.

A gentle gust of wind hit him, blowing back his hair and cooling what little heat had begun to grow in his cheeks from the anger he felt. Arthur let out a sigh, allowing the cool feeling to seep into his skin. Looking around, he took in the surrounding views. He knew he was somewhere far north of Roanoke Ridge, but he’d never been up this far before Y/N and Austin had taken him in.

The place was beautiful, he thought, taking in the towering trees around them. He’d learned a few interesting terms from Y/N’s herbalist books. He’d been drawn to those bookshelves of hers many times while he’d been cooped up in that cabin, if only to avoid dying from boredom rather than Tuberculosis. Turned out he’d ended up drawn to the knowledge.

There were so many kinds of trees he could now identify— Spruce, Cedars, Pines, Oaks, and very many Sequoia trees. These trees were extremely tall, forming a thick canopy of leaves far overhead, the sunshine piercing through them in rays, hitting the ground with glowing warm light.

The air smelled so fresh as well, and Arthur took in another deep breath, relishing the real cool feeling in his lungs and the fresh and unique smells around him. There was so much plant life growing up here, all kinds of colorful flowers and foliage dotting the thick green grass everywhere. Damn, this area was gorgeous.

Arthur reached up again and stroked the feather on his hat gently, the bristles soft as, well, a feather. He gripped the crown and took the hat off, lowering it to his lap so he could examine it further. The black leather was worn, but genuine, and he could tell it was made from real cowhide, examining the hundreds of skin pores scattered all over. He ran a finger over the brown braided leather tied around the crown of the hat, similar to how his father’s hat had the looped rope. The texture was rough, but also soft, little furs sticking up here and there from years of use.

Then Arthur looked at the feather, and he squinted, his brows drawing down tight as he stroked the thing with the tip of his finger. It was that of a great-horned owl, a primary feather from the wing, the black and gold colored stripes giving away its identity. He wondered, then … why an owl feather? Maybe it was just something her grandfather hadn’t thought much about, but sometimes a certain kind of bird feather in a cowboy’s hat had a meaning behind it.

Thinking back, he recalled Y/N telling him that her grandfather hadn’t lived ‘the best life.’ That he’d been some kind of wanderer. Arthur found himself being curious as to what exactly she had meant. A wanderer?

What kind of life had the old man lived that had her hesitating to tell him the whole story? And what of the feather?

A cough escaped him, and he lifted a had to cover his mouth, clearing his throat then.

Austin looked over at him with curious eyes, “You alright, cowpoke?”

Arthur couldn’t help but give a small smile as he turned his head to face the young man, narrowing his eyes at him, “I’m just fine, little feller, how ’bout yourself?”

The brother narrowed his eyes in return, showing that he was clearly offended by the term Arthur had used on him, “I ain’t ‘little.’”

Arthur laughed, “Why, sure you is, little feller. As long as you call me a cowpoke, I’ll keep callin’ you little. Sound fair?”

Austin grunted, “Not really.” He reached up to scratch at his cheek, then added, “But you kinda do strike me as a cowpoke.”

“Well, you strike me as little, boah,” Arthur said with a grin, his voice a low rough tone as he patted his chest with an open palm, “And it’ll be much worse if you ain’t careful, son.”

Austin grunted, letting out a huff as if he wasn’t amused with Arthur’s teasing in the least.

Several more moments of silence passed, and Arthur gently placed the hat back on his head.

“So she decided to give you our grandfather’s hat, huh?” Austin asked, his voice sounding a bit sour as he cracked the reins again.

Arthur looked over at him, noting the expression the boy had on his face. He didn’t look angry, exactly, but from his eyes Arthur could tell there was some kind of story. “What do you mean?” He asked.

Austin let out a long sigh, “Well, I know she told you it belonged to our grandfather, and he weren’t the best man when he was alive. I never wanted to touch the damn thing after he died.” He lifted his eyes to meet Arthur’s, “Kinda feels weird that you’re wearin’ it, s’all.”

Arthur took that moment as a chance to find out what he could, maybe the brother could give him some of the information he’d been wondering about. “Who was he?”

Austin let out a sarcastic laugh, “I don’t think that’s for me to say. If she didn’t tell you, I don’t think I should be the one to do so.”

Arthur’s natural instinct would’ve been to reach out and choke the bastard to get the information he wanted. It was a feeling he was used to whenever assholes gave him a hard time, but he could respect the brother for looking after his sister.

Another curious thought occurred to him then, and he couldn’t help but ask, “What were y’all doin’ before you found me up on that mountain?”

He could see Austin freeze up at the question, and the young man turned his gaze over to look at him, “You mean that night? We were travelin’ back from Emerald Ranch. Y/N needed to do a trade for some of the supplies we needed for the horses. We have a few contacts scattered here and there for supplies we need that we can’t get up here, and sometimes we need to travel a ways to get them.

“We were supposed to arrive home sometime in the late evening, but we ran into this strange man on the road. He looked odd, short gray dreads, green bandana around his head, weird old clothing. Said his name was William.”

Arthur stilled at that.

“But anyhow,” Austin continued, not noticing that Arthur had suddenly froze, “he was camping out on the side of the road near Moonstone Pond, and he had all these strange plants he seemed to be workin’ with. Of course, it grabbed Y/N’s attention and he invited us over, so she and I stopped to chat with him for a while.” Austin chuckled as he recalled the memory, “What was supposed to be a small chat ended up bein’ a two-hour conversation. I didn’t really listen to what they were sayin’ since I was wrapped up in a book I’ve been readin’. Eventually I had to pull her away since it was gettin’ late.

“When we were just about to leave, she mentioned a special plant that grew over by O’Creagh’s Run, must’ve been somethin’ they were talkin’ about earlier. I was about to say no, but she gave me this look. She has this thing that she does with her eyes, drives me crazy ’cuz I can’t turn her down when she does it.

“So we headed over there, and I stopped the wagon by the small lake so she could explore the area. I just hung out under a tree with my book to pass the time … That’s when we heard the sounds.”

Arthur lifted his head and narrowed his eyes, “Sounds?”

“Gunshots, shoutin’ — We was goin’ to leave the area as quickly as possible, but — well, Y/N could hear the struggles, fighting, a man in pain, and she couldn’t stop herself.” Austin paused, as if he were deep in thought, “We saw someone runnin’ away from the mountain before they disappeared into the trees. I didn’t really get a good look at the man, but it looked like he had dirty, long blonde hair … someone you knew?”

The fury that suddenly welled in Arthur’s chest didn’t surprise him in the least damn bit.

Micah.

That damned rat.

The rat that weaseled his way in and ultimately destroyed the Van Der Linde gang in such a short amount of time.

Twenty goddamned years of loyalty and service to Dutch, and the old fool had decided to listen and believe someone who’d just joined the gang not half a year ago, a man who’d only been out for himself in the end … Just like Dutch …

“Arthur?”

Austin’s voice interrupted Arthur’s thoughts and snapped him back to reality. “Yeah, sorry ’bout that, kid. Just thinkin’.”

Austin seemed to have picked up on Arthur’s mood, no doubt from the gravel Arthur felt in his throat from the emotion that had just been about to take him over. He couldn’t dwell on such things, not right now. What good did it do?

At that moment another thought occurred to him, “You didn’t want Y/N takin’ me in, did you?” He stated it as fact since he knew the answer, but he found himself wanting to hear what Austin’s response would be.

The boy chuckled darkly, looking straight ahead at the narrow dirt trail. “Honestly, when we heard the gunshots, I thought it was going to be a trap, an ambush of some kind. But Y/N … When we reached that mountain and found you laying on that rock, it was like she didn’t care about anythin’ else in the world but you.” He cleared his throat, “The whole time I was worried that she was going to get herself killed, being so close to a stranger. I feared that something terrible would happen, like you would have a knife hidden on you, or a friend of yours would come leaping out of a hiding spot and shoot her dead.” Austin lowered his head, looking down at his lap as if lost in thought, “To tell you the truth, I don’t know what I would’ve done had that been the case. Y/N is my whole world right now, and she matters to me more than anythin’ else in my pathetic life.”

Arthur’s eyes softened, almost finding himself sympathizing with the poor boy, but he continued to listen.

“When she insisted on taking you to our cabin, I nearly lost it. Watching her take you in and nurse you back to health every day, I couldn’t help but fear for the worst. I still thought you had something evil planned. Some monsters would go to any length to take advantage and trick people like us to get what they want, even if it’s hurtin’ one of their own.”

The boy was smart, Arthur admitted to himself. There were definitely men like that out there, and he should damn well know.

“But when she mentioned you had Tuberculosis, and I began seeing the signs from you, how truly sick you were — I guess … Well, I guess I noticed how stupid I was bein’ at that point — but I was too proud to admit it.

“After you showed your skills with the gun, I realized you could’ve killed us both whenever you wanted long before that point. The thought was scary, of course, but finally seeing that all you needed was a gun or your bare hands to take us both out and you never did? Well, I guess you can say my stupidity wore off a lil’ bit at that point.”

Arthur grinned, amused with Austin’s confession at how much of an idiot he had been for all the trouble he’d given him.

But could he fully blame Austin? The boy was just looking after his sister, and Arthur couldn’t do nothing but respect him for it. “Don’t hurt yourself too much over it, boah. You’re just lookin’ after her, I understand. In fact,” he leaned back and rolled his shoulders, stretching out the tension in his back, “I kinda like that.”

Austin acknowledged his statement with a small nod and a smile. “I love her, I really do. She’s family, and the most wonderful person I know.” He narrowed his eyes at Arthur and teased, “If you ever hurt her, though, I’ll make sure to shoot you square in the chest, got it?”

Arthur threw back his head and laughed at the threat, “If you say so. But don’t you worry — I ain’t got plans for that.” The fact that the young man had the courage to actually threaten him was truly entertaining, and Arthur couldn’t help but note how much smaller the man actually was compared to him. Arthur had a good six inches on him in height, and a whole lot more muscle, despite the fact that he was still sick. The boy worked hard, but they clearly didn’t eat enough for him to gain a whole lot of meat on his bones. He was about as contrasted as he could be compared to Arthur.

He was grateful Austin had finally swallowed his pride down enough in order to ask him how to hunt. They truly did need it, and he would do his best to teach them. It was the least he could do for him and his sister after everything they’d done for him.

The next several moments were quiet, minus the sound of Lily’s hooves hitting the ground and the tittering of birds high up in the trees.

“So what’s it like livin’ up here?” Arthur asked. “It don’t seem too bad.”

“It ain’t,” Austin replied with a shrug, “It was tough for the first few months, but we managed. Built ourselves a camp, then eventually built ourselves a cabin — then the stables for the horses and other animals.” He cleared his throat, “Of course it’s been hard, what with my lack of huntin’ skills, but Y/N absolutely loves it. She enjoys bein’ surrounded by all the wildlife and plants.”

Arthur found himself suddenly more invested, wanting to know more about Y/N and her passions. “And her garden?”

“She’s been in love with flowers since she was a tiny thing. When we came up here, she brought a few supplies that belonged to our mother, and she got to work on that garden right away.” He let out a small laugh, “What started as a small batch of flowers and herbs turned into a small estate of all kinds of plants. She’s been finding different herbs all over the place and replanting them here for the past three years. Every month it gets larger and larger. I’ll admit, it looks pretty damn beautiful.”

Arthur grinned. “That is does,” he agreed with a nod. It did indeed, Y/N’s garden was a pretty good size, and the colorful shrubbery was a marvel to look at, truthfully. He’d been able to see it out through one of the windows as he’d been recovering on that couch all that time …

“So how are you feeling, Arthur?” Austin asked, breaking the silence.

Arthur turned his head to look at him, “What?”

Austin lifted a hand to point at his chest, “Your TB, you were coughing a bit earlier, just checking to see how you’re feelin’ now?”

Arthur rubbed his own palm over his chest, “I’m just fine, you’re sister’s got some healin’ magic goin’ on with those herbs of hers.”

The boy’s laugh was loud and sharp, “Y/N has a talent with nature, that’s for damn sure. I swear she may be Mother Nature herself.”

The two men’s laughter echoed through the trees as they travelled further down the trail. A squirrel skittered across the ground, and Arthur watched it disappear into the thick foliage on the other side.

More time passed, until finally they reached a small clearing. Arthur lifted his finger to point over to a small grassy area. “That’s a good spot to start.”

Austin pulled back the reins until Lily stopped, bringing the wagon to a halt. He looked over to where he was pointing and lifted a brow, “Really? Doesn’t seem like the kind of spot wildlife would be, it’s too open.”

Arthur gave him a bewildered look. “Wildlife don’t always need to be in a particular spot in order for you to track ’em, Austin.” He said, his drawl annoyed, letting the young man know through his tone that what Austin had stated was completely idiotic. He got up and climbed down out of the wagon, walking towards the small patch, “This area’s got plenty of plant-life, tellin’ you it’s a good spot to start pickin’ up trails.” He narrowed his eyes as he placed his hands on his belt, turning his head as he took in the surrounding forest. “It’s perfect for grazin’, plenty of cover ’round here if they need it.”

Austin crawled out of the wagon, grabbing his carbine repeater. It was smart — even though they didn’t need it for killing today, it was better to be safe than get caught off-guard by any wild predators. He walked over to Arthur, and Arthur began walking slowly across the grass, looking down to examine the dirt. “Now whatchu wanna do is look for any signs, footprints, fur, dung, broken branches and whatnot.” He took several steps forward, crouching low so he could see better.

Austin did the same, crouching to help look around for anything they could pick up. “So look for those things, got it.” He said, crawling low to the ground.

“You also wanna be quiet as possible, don’t wanna draw any attention towards yourself or you’ll scare off anythin’ nearby. Same thing can be said about your gun.” Arthur looked over his shoulder at him, “You ever use a bow before, boah?”

Austin shook his head, “Only a couple times when I was young. We got one up by the cabin stored in the shed. Another thing that belonged to our grandfather, but I never touched the damned thing.”

Arthur huffed, amused at the other man’s stubborn nature. “It’s a useful weapon, kid, it can be used to make quiet kills so you don’t frighten off any wildlife in the near vicinity.”

The young man just let out a grunt, “I ain’t touchin’ that thing.”

Arthur just shrugged at the boy’s pride, “Up to you, but I highly suggest you start learnin’ how to use it.”

Over the next several minutes, they examined the grounds, both of them crawling quietly through the tall grass.

“Arthur?”

Austin’s whispered voice reached Arthur’s ear, and he turned to see him waving his arm, gesturing for him to come over. He made his way over, and once he was beside Austin the kid pointed at a few small hoof prints in the soil. He smiled, “Good job there, feller, now see if you can follow them.”

The boy nodded and did just that. Over the next half hour, Arthur continued to help him by pointing out other signs, such as crushed grass, a couple broken branches, and bits of fur here and there. The last sign was several strange marks on one of the trees twenty yards away. ‘Tree rubs,’ of course.

“This way,” Arthur whispered, leading them quietly through a few tall bushes.

Finally they reached a new wide-open clearing. This one had a small pond directly in the center, and in the distance, Arthur spotted the white-tailed buck grazing on some of the lush green grass at its feet.

For a moment, Arthur froze, recalling all the dreams he’d been having. The buck looked so similar to the one in his dreams; the size, the coat, the large antlers it displayed. Every single detail was precise.

Austin sat beside him, and Arthur felt rather than heard the boy lifting his gun.

At that moment, a doe and two young fawns appeared from behind one of the large boulders, the three of them approaching the large buck.

Arthur grabbed the barrel of the gun before Austin could aim the thing.

He watched as the doe came over to the buck with the two young close behind her, and the creatures nuzzled each other lovingly.

It was a sight that Arthur found himself lost in, and he couldn’t help but think of his own family, what was, what could have been, what might have been … If he’d only chosen a different life for himself …

What the hell was wrong with him?

“What the hell are you doin’, Arthur?”

Austin’s voice echoed his thoughts, snapping him back out from his mind. Arthur cleared his throat, “Let’s leave ’em be, kid.” He was going to leave it at that, but then he added “We promised Y/N, remember? Just trackin’.”

Austin gave him a strange look, but after a couple of moments he seemed to decide not to argue with him. “So what now?”

Arthur gazed at the family of deer a few seconds longer, then he flicked his gaze over to Austin, “I don’t know. I reckon we should head on back,” he turned to face the younger man, “You suppose your ready to travel back?”

Again with that strange look, what the hell was Austin seeing? Had Arthur suddenly grown his own pair of antlers? What was running through that boy’s mind?

Finally, he answered, “I guess so, I think I learned plenty today.” They both stood quietly and started heading back towards the wagon. Austin tucked the gun strap over his shoulder, reaching up to scratch at his cheek again. “I’ll admit that was actually quite fun. Thanks, Arthur. You’re a pretty great tracker, in all honesty.”

The compliment felt strange, Arthur thought, especially coming from Austin of all people, but he supposed he would take it. The boy was grateful, having learned something that would be incredibly useful for him and his sister when it came to their survival. “It ain’t no cake walk after this, boah. We still got a long way to go, trackin’ requires a lot of patience — an eagle’s eye.”

Austin nodded, giving him a small smile, “I suppose that makes sense. A lot of patience — kinda like fishin’?”

Arthur let out a genuine laugh at that, “I guess you’re right.”

2 Weeks Later …

Birds tittered high up in the trees, singing there own unique songs as the sun’s rays bore down on your back. The weather was absolutely gorgeous today, you thought to yourself as you knelt in your garden. You were in a cheery mood, humming softly as you pruned several of the herbs and flowers. You looked over your shoulder to see that Arthur was still relaxing on the porch swing, working on something in his journal. Writing or drawing? You had no clue, but you were going to leave him to his privacy.

The last two weeks had been quite the ride.

Arthur’s body was improving, his skin and muscles filling back out with each passing week. Even though his blood still showed signs of leftover Tuberculosis bacteria, it was clear his body was slowly but successfully fighting it off. You continued to give him treatments every other day, and he still took daily doses of honey per your instructions.

But despite the fact his body was getting better physically, you knew the herbs and medication still had a large impact on both his physical and mental state, so you still urged him to be cautious with his actions so that he didn’t overwork himself too much. It was crucial for him to stay in a calm state so his mind and body wouldn’t somehow become unstable.

He’d been sleeping a lot better. Every night you woke up to check on him, and Arthur was sleeping peacefully every time. Truly, it made you happy to see him so relaxed now. Ever since you’d sung that lullaby for him so many nights ago, that nightmare of his hadn’t seemed to come back. Though you still wondered who this John was, no matter how much it bothered you, you didn’t want to risk bringing anymore pain to Arthur.

For the past several days Arthur had been on his feet helping out around the cabin, whether it was doing chores or hunting with Austin, he managed to keep himself busy throughout the day. He was regaining the muscle and healthy tone he’d no doubt once had before, his face, eyes, and cheeks becoming full once more, and he was beginning to gain a tan from being out in the sun so much now.

Ever since you had given it to him, not once had Arthur ever taken off his new hat. Unless he was asleep or bathing, the thing rarely ever left his head.

It really did look good on him.

You had to admit, the man was absolutely stunning. Whenever he worked or did any kind of physical labor, you couldn’t help but watch those muscles in his body sometimes, how they moved and flexed beneath his skin, noting the healthy shine of sweat on his face, his neck, his forearms, and God help you, but sometimes he went shirtless when he worked, and it was all you could do not to throw yourself at the man. Push him to the ground and take him there and then —

What on earth was wrong with you? You shook your head hard, trying to perish those dirty thoughts from your mind. You weren’t exactly a plucked flower, but you’d read enough romance novels to give yourself plenty of naughty imagination.

Letting out a sigh, you plucked another dead leaf. There were so many scars across his body, old and new, but one stuck out to you the most. You recalled the scar you’d seen on Arthur’s chest, just above his left pectoral. There was no doubt it was a gunshot wound, the scar tissue around it having sunken down into the ruined flesh. It had long since healed, but the skin there was still pink, still soft, so it hadn’t been too long since it was inflicted on him. Again you wondered, what had happened to him? Who’d shot him? Why? The thoughts of possibility raced through your head, but going off his nature and what you’d seen of him thus far, you couldn’t come to a conclusion or even imagine why anyone would want to hurt that man.

Reaching out to crush another dead leaf, you smiled to yourself.

Arthur was strong … indeed he was a fighter.

You’d slowly been getting more and more comfortable with the thought of Arthur going out with Austin on his hunting trips, allowing them to start traveling out as far as they needed to go. Food was getting low, and finally you’d told the two boys that they could start hunting for game if they wished. You were proud of them both, for keeping to their word and staying safe.

You could tell your brother was improving with his skills thanks to Arthur, just last week they had managed to bring back a boar, and Arthur had told you that your brother had managed to track it down on his own, but Austin had admitted that he’d missed the first few shots, and Arthur had to kill the boar himself. The two had slowly been getting along, you’d noticed. It was more than refreshing to see.

Arthur had been helping Austin out with his aim several times over the last two weeks, the two of them practicing down by the stream in the late evenings.

You would stay back and watch to observe every chance you got. Honestly, you secretly wished it was you Arthur was teaching. To show you how to handle a gun, how to aim it, how to shoot. You had no idea how to use a weapon, so you picked up whatever you could from the two of them.

Your brother had recently started working with your grandfather’s bow, which confused you at first, since he’d always insisted on using his own carbine repeater. But then he’d explained to you that Arthur had told him it was a stealthy hunting tactic in order to capture more game.

Finally, you’d understood. Winter was slowly approaching, and it was more than important to learn how to use a much quieter weapon, especially when wildlife was so much more scarce during the cold parts of the year.

But — despite countless hours of practice — Austin hadn’t managed to get the hang of it, which worried you somewhat. Poor man, each time he tried aiming an arrow, the thing would wobble in his grip and the shot itself ended up with the arrow landing on the ground only a few feet away. No matter how Arthur instructed him, it seemed hopeless. At one point Austin had nearly thrown the thing into the stream, shouting something about how the bow wasn’t working properly. But Arthur had tested the thing for himself, and of course it worked flawlessly when he’d used it, the arrow finding its mark perfectly on one of the trees he’d been aiming for..

You’d found yourself strangely drawn to the weapon, you had to admit, though you weren’t quite sure why.

The bow itself was very beautiful. The long round limbs were made of dark maple wood, painted with some kind of glossy coating to protect the wood from wear and tear. The handle was wrapped in finely engraved black leather strips. There were several more curly engravings that ran along the weapon itself, and two small metal owl heads were placed at each end, the beaks holding the tight silver bowstring.

A part of you really wanted to try it out for yourself at some point.

The two men were planning on going on another hunting trip today, so it was going to be another quiet evening alone at the cabin for you. Strangely enough, even though you finally felt comfortable with them both being gone, you still weren’t quite used to it.

“How you doin’ there, Y/N?”

Arthur’s deep voice nearly had you jumping out of your skin. You leapt to your feet and turned around to face him. “Arthur!” Your voice cracked, and you cleared your throat, “I didn’t hear you comin’ over.”

Grinning, he let out a soft chuckle, “Sorry bout that, honey, I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“You’re fine,” you said, waving off his apology.

He looked over your shoulder at the plants behind you, “So what’re you doin’?”

You turned to look down at the herbs you’d been working on, “Oh, well I was just pruning some of the plants.” At his questioning look you added, “Sometimes some of the leaves or stems die and I need to take them off, otherwise it could cause disease and the nutrients inside the plants are wasted trying to feed what’s no longer alive. When I get rid of the dead pieces it allows them to focus on keeping the rest of the plant strong and healthy.”

Arthur nodded, though you had the feeling he was only pretending to understand what you were talking about in order to make you feel better, going by the confused look and his face; his eyes narrowed, his mouth her in a small grimace. “So these herbs,” he cleared his throat, “them what you used to treat my TB with?”

His curiosity nearly had you taken aback. Honestly, you hadn’t really expected him to care enough to ask such a question. “Yes,” you said, your voice soft as you looked up at him, “I — I gather pieces from them from time to time and make several elixirs and medications from their properties.” You pointed to one of the plants, “That right there is Ginger, it’s used as an antioxidant, which can help take care of some of the negative effects caused by most bacterias.” You pointed to several others, giving the names and explaining what each of them did.

By the time you’d named a few more, you looked back at Arthur, and his brows were drawn down tight, his hand rubbing at the side of his temple as if he’d gotten a headache. You nearly laughed, “I’m sorry, Arthur, I tend to get carried away sometimes.”

Arthur lifted a brow as if he were actually amused, “I can tell you really enjoy your work,” he said, a wide grin stretching those lips of his, “It’s really amazin’. You should be proud, honey.”

You lowered your eyes, feeling a blush creep into your cheeks, “Thank you, Arthur. I honestly wouldn’t know as much as I did without my mother’s journal. She taught me so much.” You voice nearly hitched, and you blinked several times in order to keep any tears from welling.

Arthur reached out and laid a warm hand on your shoulder in an effort to comfort you, “I’m sure she’d be real proud of you, Y/N.”

You couldn’t speak, so you just nodded in answer.

Several moments passed, and Arthur spoke again, “Austin mentioned to me that you ran into a man named William?”

Your head jerked up that that, surprised. “He told you about that?”

Arthur nodded, “The night you saved me from that mountain, told me you met an herbalist the same day. Quite a character.”

Your brows lifted, “You know him?”

“Yeah. Met him a few times, a long while ago, before — Well, before all that shit went down.”

“Language, Arthur!”

You both laughed, and he tipped his hat to you.

He was truly adorable, you thought as you smiled at him. You lifted your gaze to look at the hat. “So, how you liking your new hat, Arthur?”

Your question had him letting out a laugh as he ran his fingers across the leather brim. “Keep’s the sun outta my eyes, like you said,” he teased. His eyes softened then, those beautiful sapphire-emeralds seeming to stare directly into your soul. “Thank you, Y/N.”

His grateful smile alone nearly overwhelmed you, and you quickly spoke your next words before you found your idiot-self getting lost in his gaze. “I’m glad you like it. My grandmother made that hat for our grandfather when they were both young. It was … meant to stand for something … but he didn’t do it justice with the life he led. It needs to be worn by a good man. Someone like you.”

Arthur’s expression seemed to change at that moment, and you couldn’t help but notice the softness in his eyes suddenly grow hard.

•••••

A good man.

It was all Arthur could do not to lose himself then and there. To take the hat off and give it back to her immediately, to leave and never turn back even once. Dammit, he didn’t deserve to be here. He didn’t deserve the treatments he’d been given, all the hospitality, the food and shelter that Y/N and Austin had so generously given.

He wasn’t a good man, and he damn well knew it.

It was the second time she’d called him that, and he nearly had to bite his tongue. But what could he possibly say to her at that moment? That he wasn’t the man she truly thought he was? That he’d been a liar? A thief? A ruthless killer?

An outlaw …

Arthur did his best not to squeeze his eyes shut from the sudden pain that welled in his chest. What the hell was wrong with him? There was nothing he could say or do to get past the ache in his heart from those words.

For once, he was extremely grateful to hear that sill boy’s scratchy voice calling out to both of them.

Y/N smiled, looking over Arthur’s shoulder, “Austin, how are ya?”

Austin came jogging over, his face and clothes covered in dust and dirt from whatever work he’d been doing earlier. He stopped a few feet in front of them, “I’m doin’ just fine, sis,” he panted, nodding at Y/N and meeting Arthur’s gaze. “Hey, Arthur, so you ready for our next huntin’ trip?” The young man asked him, a naive yet excited smile spread across his face. Over the past two weeks he’d learned to enjoy the trips, getting to learn something new from them each and every time.

Arthur shrugged with a small chuckle, “That depends, are you?” He nodded at the dirt covering the boy.

Austin scratched his cheek, “Yeah, sorry about that, sir.” He brushed off the dirt from his clothes, “It ain’t nothin’, Just noticed the two of you over here and I wanted to see if you were prepared to head out.”

Over the last several days, Austin had grown the strange and somewhat annoying habit of calling him sir, and Arthur didn’t really know why. Was he trying to show some sort of respect toward him? Maybe after acting like such a dumbass over the past month, he might’ve thought addressing Arthur in that way would gain him redemption? It felt odd, and Arthur really wished he wouldn’t call him that, but he’d go along with it if it made the younger man feel better.

“Well, Austin,” Arthur said, clearing his throat, “Ready when you are, then.”

“Dandy! I found an interestin’ new spot I think we should go check out a ways up north, the wagon’s already loaded up and ready to go.” Austin stated, pointing over toward the stables where the coach stood, with Lily already attached to it. The boy was quick, Arthur thought. He must’ve been busy getting everything prepared while he and Y/N had been working on their own tasks.

Arthur lowered his eyes. On one hand he didn’t want to leave Y/N so abruptly, but on the other he needed to escape the tension that had suddenly risen in his gut from her words. A good man … how could he follow up that line with any further conversation? It hadn’t angered him, but he was tired of hearing it — from anyone. He gave a single nod, “Let’s head out, then.”

As Austin nodded and headed off toward the wagon, Arthur looked back over his shoulder to meet Y/N’s gaze, “We’ll be back soon, honey.” He said softly, winking and giving her a small grin. He hoped she wasn’t disappointed, but he needed to get out of there. Clear his head.

But she didn’t look upset. No, instead her eyes absolutely glowed as she gave him another one of her beautiful smiles. “Y’all stay safe, Arthur.” After a slight moment of hesitation, she returned his wink, “You keep Austin safe now.”

Her teasing helped the tension ease away somewhat, and he let out a chuckle, “Don’t you worry, I’ll keep him in line.”

With that, he headed over to join Austin on the wagon.

•••••

“So where we headed?” Arthur asked as Austin steered Lily up the narrow trail through the tall sequoia trees. He and the younger man waved farewell to Y/N with her returning the gesture as they disappeared around a large rock.

Austin lowered his hand, pulling out a piece of paper from his pocket. He unfolded it and handed it to Arthur, “There’s this new place I wanna check out, passed by it a few days ago while ridin’ Butch. Seemed interestin’.”

Arthur took the map and held it up, looking over a simple drawing of directions. They appeared to lead up north towards the larger mountains, further into the forest.

The kid pointed at a thick scribble he’d made on the paper, “That area right there, it’s right at the foot of the mountains between the trees. A small area of tall grass. I saw a family of elk there a couple times. If we can spot them again, I’m sure we can bring back enough food to last us for a month.”

What he said was true, one elk could last them quite a while. If they managed to kill one, they’d be set for weeks. Arthur folded the map back up and handed it back, “You seem to know what you’re doin’,” He said with a light laugh.

Austin shook his head, “Only a little, sir, it’s why I thought it best for you to come along on this one.”

Arthur shrugged, “You’ll get the hang of it soon enough, kid,” He reached out and patted the man’s shoulder. “I’ll look after ya.”

The younger man narrowed his eyes, “I don’t need no hand-holdin’, Arthur.”

Arthur’s heart suddenly skipped at those words, his smile dropping from his face as his eyes grew flat.

Those words … when had he last heard those exact words —

A memory flashed through his mind … Lenny …

He flinched, lowering his head as he reached up to tug down the brim of his hat, hiding his expression from the brother. The pain was almost unbearable … coming back to bit him in the ass once more.

The loss of his friends, of his family — it had only been a couple months, and the agony still felt just as sharp, as though it had only been yesterday when his life had completely fallen apart.

… What life, though?

Arthur nearly wanted to laugh at himself from the thought.

His family had meant everything to him, the bond they’d shared more real than anything else in the world.

But Arthur would be lying to himself if he’d thought what they had was any kind of real life. He’d spent the majority of his chasing a dream for a life he weren’t even sure about, along with the rest of the gang who’d followed over the years. He’d failed all of them. Hosea, Lenny, Kieran, Sean, Grimshaw, Mac, Davey, Jenny … they’d all had their own lives snatched away from them so abruptly.

They’d never had the chance for the life they’d so desperately fought for.

And the others … Charles, Sadie, Tilly, Mary-Beth, Uncle … Karen, Swanson, Trelawny … Where were they now?

The wonder of their whereabouts prodded his mind like a hot poker every single day. Even though he tried so hard to move on in hopes that they would do the same and lead normal lives, it was extremely difficult to do so. He only hoped they were all safe. They all deserved so much more after all the shit they went through in the gang.

And Jack, Abigail, John …

Arthur lifted his eyes to stare up at the sky, the sun’s bright rays peeking through the small clouds.

‘You’re my brother.’

Those words echoed through his mind, and he allowed himself a sad smile. He thought back to Sister Calderon, the words she’d spoken echoing in his head. ‘Take a gamble that love exists.’

Arthur wasn’t the religious type, but deep inside his heart he prayed for the sake of John and his family, for their safety, so that they may go on to live the lives they’d damn well earned.

John Marston. The man was a goddamn fool, but he loved Abigail and Jack, and Arthur knew he’d do anything to protect them. 

They were safe.

He knew, deep down in his heart something told him. They were out there.

Time passed by quickly, and finally the wagon stopped. Arthur felt the seat lift as Austin hopped out, and he shook himself out of his thoughts, realizing that they’d arrived at the foot of the mountains. Arthur looked around, taking in the small grassy clearing. He raised a hand to lift the brim of his hat, looking up at the base of the mountain, a tall cliff that encircled half of the area. The other half was enclosed by the thick forest of trees that towered over them, their green and multi-colored coming-autumn leaves providing cool shade to the tiny meadow.

“We’re finally here,” Austin said cheerfully as he rolled his shoulders, stretching out the stiffness in his limbs. He walked behind the wagon to grab his carbine repeater.

Arthur examined the area closely. Indeed, it was a great area for wildlife of all kinds. Plenty of grass, soft ground, perfect temperature, and shelter. He narrowed his eyes, noting a small cave opening at the base of the cliff. It was too small for a bear or cougar, so it was probably just a family of deer, he thought. Still, they had to be cautious. It was an unexplored area. He looked over his shoulder as Austin approached him from behind and stared at the gun he held, “You need to get a handle on that bow soon, kid.” He said teasingly.

“I know, I know, and I ain’t a kid!” Austin snapped, “I’ve been tryin’ but I’m just hopeless with the damn thing!”

Arthur nearly laughed at the blush that crept into Austin’s cheeks as he looked away, unable to meet Arthur’s gaze.

He really had been trying his best, Arthur did notice, but the bow was turning out to be the boy’s natural enemy. Either he weren’t a good teacher, or the bow was truly hopeless for him. Where was Charles when he needed him, Arthur thought almost sadly.

Arthur shook his head at the thought, then threw his hand up in the general direction. “Lead the way.”

Austin gave a small but nervous nod, stepping forward and leading them both across the grass towards the cliff. They crept slowly and quietly, staying low to the tall grass to avoid being spotted by any of the nearby wildlife. There were small sounds here and there as Austin examined the grounds, but they were mostly from squirrels or small rabbits. Since Austin only had the gun with him, they weren’t going to risk scaring off any larger game by shooting and possibly missing smaller targets. Arthur had taught him to be careful with such things.

Gradually they got further and further away from the wagon, and Austin led Arthur towards the foot of the cliff. “There,” the younger man whispered, pointing toward some hoof-prints that had been left behind in the ground. They created a trail, and the two men followed it, making their way around the cliff. Finally, the tracks stopped at the base of some large rocks that formed a small ramp towards the top of the cliff. Austin began to climb, and Arthur followed behind him, as quiet as they could possibly be.

Suddenly a small rock bounced down from atop the cliff, landing in the small meadow below, and Arthur looked up, spotting a small glimpse of large antlers just over the peak. “There’s one,” Austin whispered next to him, having seen them as well.

“Alright, get your gun ready,” Arthur whispered back as they approached the top. His heart was racing, but he forced himself to calm down as they reached the top of the plateau. The elevated area was covered in thick foliage, and the two men hid behind the thick shrubbery as they made their way over to a large rock that provided solid cover.

Austin slowly and quietly cocked the gun, peering over at the large creature nibbling on some of the grass by the cliff-edge. It was a huge bull elk, appearing to weigh at least seven hundred and twenty-five pounds. The creature was definitely large, larger than any Arthur had seen in a long while. The creature was magnificent, he thought. The meat on its bones could definitely keep them fed for weeks.

He looked over at Austin, noticing that the boy was breathing hard, creating too much noise. “Calm yourself,” Arthur muttered, “Elk can hear very well, take a deep breath and let it out slow.”

Austin did as he was told, closing his eyes as he did so. “Alright,” he whispered, then he slowly began scooting forward. He crouched carefully, propping the barrel of the gun on the tip of the boulder.

A small loose rock was knocked off as the weapon was adjusted, landing with a small crack on the hard ground. The elk snatched its head up, its ears perked in their direction. It looked over toward their spot, and before Arthur could stop what happened next, Austin quickly stood from behind cover and fired the repeater.

It was so quick, the kid having not given himself the proper aiming stance, and the recoil shot him backwards, the bullet missing the elk as it pinged off the one of the rocks several feet away. The creature jumped, bounding off quickly in the opposite direction. Austin lifted his gun and fired a few more rounds as it fled down the cliff.

“What the hell are you doin’?!” Arthur grabbed the man’s firing arm as the elk disappeared into the forest below, Lily whinnying and rearing in the wagon as the creature sped by her.

The boy grunted from the small pain of his fall, “I’m sorry, sir,” he grimaced as he stood slowly, “I thought — I thought it heard us, I wanted to try and get it before it ran away —”

“Of course it heard us, you goddamn fool!” Arthur snapped, anger boiling in his blood. “But it didn’t see us! Now the whole damn forest knows we’re here.”

Austin lowered his head, no doubt feeling ashamed from his actions.

“All you had to do was stay still,” Arthur growled, snatching the firearm from Austin’s grip. “Start headin’ down to the wagon. Ain’t no hope of gettin’ anything out here now.”

The boy didn’t say anything, only giving a small nod as he turned away and headed towards the rocks. It was more than clear the man knew he’d made a mistake, and Arthur was more than upset with him. The next few moments were quiet as they started making their way down the way they’d came.

As soon as they reached the meadow, Arthur halted in his tracks, placing a hand to Austin’s chest to stop him, “Hold on.”

Austin looked at him questioningly, “What is it, sir?”

Arthur didn’t answer as he skimmed his gaze over the tall grass. Something wasn’t right. It was way too damn quiet …

Just then, a massive wolf lunged out of the shrubs from behind, jumping up and catching Arthur on his left shoulder, its sharp teeth sinking deep as its claws caught his flesh.

“Arthur!” Austin yelled.

Arthur shouted in pain as the force knocked him forward, his hat falling away as the heavy weight of the wolf bore down on his body. The gun was knocked out of his hands, and he hit the ground hard. His heart began to beat fast as sharp snarling noises pierced his ears, sharp claws digging deep into his shoulders, Arthur cried out as his flesh was torn open, and he began to struggle, trying his best to flip onto his back. He wasn’t going out without a fight.

The massive gray wolf was unbelievably strong, but Arthur managed to grip the wolf’s head, crushing its skull between his hands as hard as he could until the wolf let go, jumping off his body momentarily. He looked over to see the gun lying on the ground just a couple feet away.

Arthur flipped himself over just before the beast made another attempt and leapt back onto him, its teeth bared for another bite as it aimed for his throat. But Arthur barely managed to block its target by taking hold of the wolf’s neck with a single hand, using the other to try and reach for the gun. Blood was seeping from his neck and shoulders, and his heartbeat began rushing throughout his entire body as the sharp teeth gnashed and snapped just inches away from his face, getting closer as his strength grew weaker.

He let out a loud guttural sound and gathered all the strength he had left, finally managing to grip the gun and swing it through the air, using the butt of the handle to knock the large beast off of him. He staggered to his feet, aiming quickly as he fired the weapon, hitting the wolf square in the chest just as it rushed towards him again. With a loud whine the thing fell to the ground dead, and Arthur’s head whipped around as he heard more growling.

Two more wolves had crept out of the bushes and had cornered Austin near the cliff. The kid looked absolutely terrified as the beasts stalked toward him, his body having frozen entirely.

“Austin!” Damn him if he was going to let another person die on his watch.

Arthur’s gaze began to spin as he aimed at the wolves. He cocked the weapon, but he was seeing damn near triple of everything around him. He was losing blood fast, and he nearly collapsed as he began to feel light-headed. With no other choice, he let out a hard huff, and with everything he had left he lurched across the grass and lunged forward, pushing Austin aside just in time right before one of the the wolves ran towards them.

The heavy creature tackled Arthur’s body hard, causing him to collapse again as the weapon was knocked out of his hands once more. The butt of the cocked gun hit the ground and went off, a sharp whine echoing through the trees as the stray bullet miraculously hit the other wolf. It ran off, leaving a heavy trail of blood in its wake.

As the last wolf held Arthur to the ground, he thought this was going to be it. He had nothing left, he felt absolutely nothing, his mind having completely turned off as his own blood seeped out onto the ground beneath him, his weak limbs refusing to move as his vision began to dim.

Suddenly, another gunshot went off, and he felt a heavy weight fall onto his body. It was soon pushed off, but he found himself unable to care as his heartbeat started drumming between his ears.

Arthur looked up at the sky, his breathing barely audible as he struggled to take in any air. Everything had happened so damn fast … He could hear someone calling out his name. A man’s voice, but who? A blurry figure appeared over him as a dark red haze began to creep in around his vision, or was that just his imagination? Something hard pressed into his shoulder, and the pain shot through him like a lightning bolt.

Flashes began going through his mind, each one followed by his slowing heartbeats.

Two crosses, placed side by side …

… A large buck, lifting its head as it gazed off into the distance …

… The sun, setting just over the horizon.

Arthur thought of watching the sunrise … the last time he’d had this ethereal feeling … back wherever he’d been. A sunrise, now a sunset …

He felt his body getting lifted … was he finally leaving?

Just before he closed his eyes, a long howl echoed through his head.

•••••

— To Be Continued

[tpstudios34]

This took me forever to finish!!

But this is my entry for the Pokémon challenge or thing I started.

So we are only allowed to pick 6 Pokémon to battle with.

1 to travel the world with and 1 legendary Pokémon.

I drew myself the best I could but... I look like a boy... oh well.

I tired to keep the Pokémon style but you don’t have to. You can also give an explanation on why you chosen the Pokémon if you’d like. Put #PokéFamilySO for all to see.

My explanation is a bit long but like I said you can give one if you want to.

My Pokémon that I would travel with would be Natu. Not just any Natu, a shiny Natu. Natu is a Pokémon that I would say I would be if I were a Pokémon. It’s small like a humming bird, it’s design reminds me of Natives, and in the Pokédex it states that it cannot fly yet due its wings being small and that it will stare at you and will flee if you move slightly (meaning that I take it as not being ready and needing to learn much more). I would really spoil my Pokémon and give them piece they may like. For example, Natu has his feather. I think his nickname would be Zay.

As for my 6 Pokémon I choose to take to battle.

The first would be Piplup. Piplup holds a very special place in my love of Pokémon. Piplup is the very first Pokémon that I had in a game. It the very first Pokémon that I evolved, and it’s the very first Pokémon that I bonded with. In my first ever Pokémon game my dad bought me, I picked Piplup cuz he was the cutest (mind you I was a little girl who picked cute Pokémon and chose names very carefully). His name? Welp, I named him Pedro. He is always and forever will be known to me as Pedro. Thus I gave him a bowtie.

The second Pokémon I picked is Luxray. Luxray is the very first Pokémon I caught and raised alongside Pedro. I loved him as Shinx but when he evolved the last time, I immediately fell in love with Luxray’s design. As a kid, I have always imagined myself riding on Luxray on an adventure like in the movies. I have various nicknames throughout all my games I owned but if I had to pick one for life, I believe it would be Aryan. I always liked how bandanas looked on animals like how our pup Ren proudly wore his blue bandana before he passed, thus in memory of our puppy, I gave him a bandana.

The third Pokémon I picked is a shiny Gardevoir. Again, as a kid, I liked cute and pretty things. Gardevoir then came along later in the game. Not that I had own one, another trainer had one. But I loved the design on her. I think her description in the Pokédex is what got me to love her even more as she is such a protector. I always liked those girls in anime who are ‘t afraid to be a badass and fight than those who run and hide. I always wanted to strive to be able to protect myself and others than run and hide. Gardevoir is such an inspiration to me from then on, especially in the show. So she be the third Pokémon to take with me. I always had one name for her, Sakura. Not from Naruto... I just liked the name in general as she is pretty like the flower Sakura and is graceful in battle. For her, I give her a bow to top off her colors.

The fourth Pokémon would be Vulpix. I had always had a thing with characters portrayed either as a fox, personalities like a fox, or is compared to a fox. Then when I learned about Kitsune, it made me fall in love with more characters with fox like aesthetics. Vulpix reminds me of my favorite anime shows and some of my favorite characters. So when she evolves to Ninetails, I fell in love with her more. But I’d like to keep her little. For her, I gave her a flower for her blazing soul. Her nickname is Koko.

The fifth Pokémon would be Lucario. Lucario is another Pokémon that fascinated me. He was one of those who reminded me of a fox like personality, yet at the same time reminds me of those characters who like to think they’re cold, but in reality are actually pretty protective. Honestly, I think with my team, I think we’re a rescue team like a response team than a adventure/trainer team. That and I think Lucario would be a great campion as well who will help you as they tap into auras and know what you are feeling or thinking. Like a therapy Pokémon. For Lucario, I gave him a bandana similar to Aryan but with a gem to help with his powers. Oh, and his nickname is Sammy.

The last Pokémon I’d have with me for battle (campaign) is Sableye. Honestly, I thought he was creepy as a kid. He scared me. But growing up, I became more fascinated with horror movies, gore, haunted houses (the kind you work in and not literal haunted), creepy pastas, and halloween. So I became to have more appreciation for Sableye. Then while watching the show, I found that Sableye is not what he seems. He really is a curious creature. A very shy creature. While the Pokédex says otherwise, I fell in love with Sableye and he had become one of my best Pokémon to raise in a game besides Pedro and Aryan. For Sableye, I gave him a bracelet with an emerald. As for his nickname, Spirit came in mind as his Pokédex says his eyes were to steal spirits of people... but he can’t... he’s too cute...

My legendary Pokémon I have chosen is Celebi. He was the very first legendary Pokémon I have seen. I saw one of the Pokémon movies and he was the first one I saw. He was soooooo cute! But really powerful. I mean he can time travel?! Come on! How cool would it be to travel back in time? Or even in the future?! And not just a celebi, but a shiny Celebi?

As for me, I’d be either a trainer or a ranger. I like forming bonds with Pokémon. Sometimes I wish they could be real. I’d wear by favorite purple sweater and some soft sweats, along with my hat and maybe some gloves, before going on my adventure.

[dreamcloudlanding]

Dad AU: Rat’s Nest

Jamie: *in the middle of a long elaborate story while walking down the school hallway with Hana, Lucio, Genji and Mei, a strip of bandages wrapped around his head* “So this gang is circlin’ us like a bunch of vultures shoutin’ “GIVE US THE JEWELS” So I shouts to them “I GOT YOUR JEWELS RIGHT HERE!” Cuz I had stuffed em down my front for safe keeping, but this gets em all riled up for some reason and one of hits me square in the head with a beer bottle.”

Mei: “What did the doctor say? Do they think you have a concussion?”

Jamie: “What doctor?”

Lucio: “You didn’t see a doctor??”

Jamie: “Nah, Roadhog took care of me. I ain’t got no insurance.”

Lucio: “Maybe I should take you to the nurse.”

Jamie: “Oh calm down, this ain’t the worst head injury I ever goOO- HEY!” *scampers over to the girl attempting to wipe the dirt off his locker and glares at her* “What the hell you think you’re doin’?”

Girl at Jamie’s locker: *turns and holds her dirty handkerchief, that she was using to wipe the locker, in front of Jamie’s face* “This is unsightly.” *tosses the handkerchief at Jamie’s face* “I am Satya Vaswani, and as President of the Student Counsel, I demand that you clean out your locker, Jamison Fawkes.”

Jamie: *flinches and swipes away the handkerchief before pushing his way in between Satya and the locker* “There ain’t nothing wrong with my locker! It’s perfect the way it is.”

Satya: *backs away slightly, not wanting to be too close to Jamie’s oil and smoke covered gloves and puts crosses her arms, narrowing her eyes* “Look at the lockers surrounding yours, nearly pristine stainless steel, could use a polishing, but are in acceptable limits. Or at least they would be except your locker has tarnished the quality of this entire hallway. Smeared with oil and dirt, dented so severely that it’s a miracle the lock still functions, those horrid bumper stickers, and worst of all the revolting odor that emanates from it, leading me to believe something died in there!”

Jamie: *smirks and leans against the locker* “Yeah, it took me a while to give it some proper personality.”

Satya: *gets a disgusted look* “I demand that you clean this repulsive locker!”

Jamie: “I don’t care if you are student captain or whatever, last time I check, the student council was just a buncha preps who do nothing but whine to the teachers and beg for money!”

Satya: *glares slightly and tightens her fist* “Then you obviously know nothing. Clean your locker or I will be forced to take drastic measures.”

Jamie: *makes a rude noise* “I’m sooo scared! Why don’t you clean it yourself? Heh, I bet you’re too much of a prep to even touch the thing with your bare hands!”

Satya: “I may have higher standards for myself, but that is why I am in a position of authority. And why someone like you is always going to be-“

Jamie: *wipes a hand across his locker, collecting a large amount of dirt, and holds it out threateningly toward Satya* “Will ya look at that, I just soiled my good glove, be a shame is I were to touch something with this hand.”

Satya: *eyes widen as she turns her body, trying to keep her bright, white shirt out of Jamie’s sightline* “You wouldn’t dare.”

Jamie: *snickers and approaches, wiggling his gloved fingers mockingly* “Oh dear, I think I’m fallin’! Better hold my hand out for protection!” *gets within 5 inches of Satya’s shirt*

Satya: *tries to keep her cool, but yelps and backs away when Jamie gets too close, her eyes brimming with tears* “Vile parasite!”

Jamie: *smirks in delight and continues approaching* “What’s that, love? Didn’t catch it. Speak into my hand!” *jumps forward, swiping his hand at her*

Satya: *screams and side steps, immediately turning and running*

Jamie: *laughs delightedly and puts his hands on his hips* “See ya later, prep!”

Mei: “Jamison, that was mean!”

Jamie: *turns to her, a confused look on his face* “Whadya mean? She was askin’ for trouble so I gave it to her!”

Genji: “She’s only trying to help the school, Jamison. Maybe cleaning your locker isn’t such a bad idea.”

Jamie: *frowns and narrows his eyes* “Who’s side are you on? My locker’s the way I like to keep it! So what if it’s a little different?”

Hana: “Well.. the problem isn’t really that it’s different..”

Jamie: “What?! You too? Ain’t their anybody on my side in this?”

*The other 4 remain silent for a moment*

Jamie: “... You gotta be kiddin’!”

Lucio: “It’s not that we don’t support you, it’s just... you’re locker’s kinda..”

Hanzo: “Repulsive.” *walks up to them with Jesse next to him* “It’s the single most disgusting thing in this school.”

Jamie: *stares blankly for a moment* “And you all think this?”

*Another awkward silence*

Jesse: “Come on, now. Let the man do what he wants with his stuff. Ain’t harmin’ nobody.”

Hanzo: *gives him a look* “You’ve never been around when he opens it.”

Jesse: “Whadya mean?”

Jamie: *makes a rude noise* “Hanzo’s just a prep like the girl! Watch.” *turns and pounds his fist on the locker, opening it and sending a pile of unidentifiable, grime covered school supplies to the floor and a ungodly stench into the air*

Jesse: *eyes widen and water up, covers his mouth and nose with the bandana around his neck* “Sweet merciful Mary!”

Hanzo: *coving his nose and mouth with his sleeve* “I told you.”

Jamie: “What? It ain’t that bad!” *picks up the pile of supplies and shoves them back into the locker, taking out a book and slamming the door closed*

Everyone: *start breathing again*

Jesse: *gags slightly* “Fawkes. I ain’t one to normally switch sides, but that was the most unholy thing I’ve ever witnessed.”

Jamie: *scoffs* “You’re all a bunch’s Nancys. My lockers fine and it’s stayin’ the way it is!”

Lucio: *looking a bit queasy* “I don’t know, Jay Jay. I was on the student council last year, Vaswani isn’t one to back down that easy. She was the reason I had to get out of there. I’m telling you, this ain’t over.”

Jamie: “What? That little dainty prep? She ain’t got nothin’! I can handle her easy.”

Lucio: “But Jamie-“

Jamie: “You worry too much! She can’t even touch my hand. She’s a coward through and through. Now, if you’re all done nagging me, I gotta splittin’ headache I gotta sleep off in class.” *walks off down the hall*

Mei: “Do you really think Satya can force him to clean his locker out?”

Lucio: “All I know is, with her on the case, that locker’s gonna be clean by the end of the week, one way or another.”

Jesse: “If we’re so lucky... I swear I saw a pair a eyes starin’ me down in there.”

[cyhyr]

Messages

For Day 5: Prompto is in Insomnia when Niflheim invades @promnisweek

It was dark when Prompto started making the walk to the Citadel. His new Crownsguard fatigues fit nicely, a comfortable weight on his back, and he hummed as he stuffed his hands in his pockets. He thought about calling Noct, but figured with how late it was that he and the others were being gently rocked to sleep on their way to Altissia. Tomorrow, he’d be on his way with Cor and a few other Crownsguard members; today, he’d had to take care of closing up his apartment and finalizing the sale of his parent’s house.

Everyone was going to Altissia. Prompto kicked a rock in the road.

And then the ground shook and the wind kicked up around him. He looked up and saw airships flying in, the Wall collapsing around Insomnia. “Shit, the King!”

He ran.

He was only a few blocks from the Citadel’s front gate. He called Noct on his way.

Three rings and he picked up. “Hey, man, what’s up?”

Prompto stopped in an alley and pressed himself against the wall. Fuck, those must be the Magitek Troops. They marched right by him while in his ear, Noct started calling his name. Prompto quickly shushed him, but then two of the troopers stopped and turned to look at him.

He hadn’t had much life-or-death experience in pulling the guns with which he trained out of the aether that linked him to Noct, but he said into the phone, “Gimme a sec,” and pulled.

Just like Cor, and Gladio, and Ignis taught him. His pistols, right in his hand. He shoved his phone into his pocket and also pulled with that hand, now with two pistols. He gunned down the advancing MTs. They fell and echoed, empty and hollow, and Prompto knew he didn’t have much more time. Pushing the weapons back into the aether, he turned and ran down the alley, hoping that it was only the two of them that had split off the main patrol.

He picked his phone back out of his pocket and heard Noct screaming at him before he lifted it to his ear. “Prompto! What the hell is going on???”

Prompto stopped to catch his breath. “I don’t know, man, but it looks like the treaty discussions didn’t go well at all. There are MTs everywhere—oh shit!”

The ground rumbled again, and the thunder of a collapsing building deafened him. He curled up behind a large garbage disposal, yanked his bandana off of his arm, and tied it around his face. The wind and dust screamed around him almost as loud as Insomnia’s own screams, and he felt a tear slip down his face.

“Prompto, you gotta get out of there!”

“Get out?” Prompto scoffed, then coughed as he had taken in a bit too much dust from under his bandana. His eyes were tearing up from the ash that began falling from the sky. “I have a duty to the Crown, or did you forget?”

“Then just. Just stay where you are, and we’ll come find you!”

Prompto looked out from his spot and saw chaos on either side of the alley. He shook his head. “Can you put Iggy on the phone?”

Noct paused, then the phone scuffed as it was clearly being passed. “Prompto?” Ignis's smooth accent was a light in the night and Prompto sobbed, relieved to hear him.

Okay, now he could admit it. It wasn’t the dust or the ash or the chaos. “Iggy, I’m scared,” he whispered.

“We’ll come for you. Noct’s right, just stay put and—”

“No, Iggy, I. I have to check on the King. The Wall is gone. Something happened.” He took in a deep breath. “Before I do this I… I gotta tell you that it was never just sex, not for me.”

“Prompto, don’t—”

“I need you to know, Ignis. I fell in love with you a while ago.”

There was a moment’s pause and then Ignis answered softly, “And I, you. Stay safe, we’ll find you.”

Prompto laughed, more tears slipping down into his bandana. “I’m sorry, Ignis.”

He pulled the phone away from his ear and hung up amidst Ignis’s pleas for his safety. He shut his eyes tight, pushed his head back against the wall, and then threw his phone at the opposite wall to shatter it.

No distractions. He was Crownsguard. He tightened his bandana around his head, pulled his guns from the aether, and took one last deep breath.

He charged into the fray.

Ignis was running on Ebony and willpower, and his Ebony supply was low. They’d met up with the Marshall and heard from Iris; but while both had escaped the city, neither had seen Prompto. His phone wasn’t connecting. His firearms were missing from the aether and Noct reported that he couldn’t feel anyone else accessing it. Ignis didn’t want to think the worst, but it did seem the most likely.

Gladio and Noct were both getting food inside and paying for the gas. Iris had asked them to meet her in Lestallum, and so they were on their way. Ignis leaned back in the driver’s seat and tapped his fingers on the wheel. Many other refugees had made it to Lestallum; perhaps Prompto was among them.

Then he heard a yip.

He looked out and saw a white dog sitting just in front of the car, tail wagging slowly. The dog barked again, then turned around in a circle.

“Pryna,” Ignis whispered. He got out of the car and knelt down beside her. A quick scratch behind the ears got him a lick on the hand in return. “Is Lady Lunafreya alright, then?”

Pryna sat down and pawed at Ignis’s hand. He then gave it to her to “shake”, but then the Messenger gave him a vision.

“So, I just talk?” Prompto said. He was dirty, but unharmed, as sat alongside the Oracle on a bench overlooking the skyline of Duscae.

“Yes, and Pryna will deliver it. Go on,” Lady Lunafreya urged.

“Okay,” he blew out a deep breath. “So, Iggy! Um, first of all, I’m okay and obviously, I’m with Lady Lunafreya. We’re in Lestallum, but not for long, cuz she has things to do at the Disk of Cauthess. I’m going with her, to keep her safe—for Noct, of course!

“I’m sorry that I unloaded all that on you the other night,” he continued. “That really wasn’t fair of me. I mean, I meant it, and I still do, I… I love you. But it wasn’t cool to drop that on you and then hang up and run into certain death. I almost lost my nerve, hearing that you maybe like me back, but. You know I had to do it. I had to try to help.

“Pryna won’t take a return message, unfortunately. She’ll actually probably be gone once this message plays through. We’ll meet up soon, though, okay? Luna’s promised.

“Take care of Noct and Gladio. Let them know I’m okay.

“I love you.”

Ignis came back to himself and wiped a tear away. Before him, Pryna was indeed gone, but Noct and Gladio were standing over him.

“Specs, what was that?”

“That was Pryna,” Ignis said. His throat was thick and he smiled up at Noctis. “She had a message from Prompto. He’s with Lady Lunafreya, and unharmed.”

“Where are they?” Noctis asked, as excited as Pryna had been.

“Lestallum, but not for long.”

“Well, then let’s get moving,” Gladio said, and reached out a hand to help Ignis up. The three of them piled into the car and Noctis continued the drive to Lestallum.

Ignis, full of relief that his once-friend-with-benefits not only returned feelings he’d been hiding for the better part of a year, but was also alive and well, sagged into the back seat and finally let himself rest.