#guess hannah’s crack ship?

[takearisk-x]

I'll write a Ginny x Dobby fic if you write a Ginny x Myrtle fic🤝

how long does the fic have to be

[gotta-get-back-to-hatchetfield]

Here's what you missed on Hatchetfield...

Okay so Nerdy Prudes Must Die is happening in a month's time and I'm aware that lots of people who enjoyed guy who didn't like musicals and black friday might not have had time to watch nightmare time. While Nick has said this musical will be fully stand alone and no knowledge of nightmare time is required, nonetheless some of you might be curious about what we've learned that might come up

Presenting a tldr lore drop for nightmare time:

1) Wiggly has brothers (aka the Lords in Black)

You remember Wiggly from black friday? That ugly green little fucker? Well turns out he has brothers. They call themselves the Lords in black because they're pretentious little fucks and they all have different 'powers'.

Itemised list

Pokey (pokotho) - mind control type stuff, likes to make hiveminds

Wiggly (Wiggog Y'wrath) - idk you saw black friday whatever the fuck goes on there

Blinky (blinklotep) - massive eye, likes watching things

Tinky (T'noy karaxis) - fucks with time

Nibbly (nibblenephem) - massive mouth, eats shit

You've actually met Pokey before - remember the blue shit from guy who didn't like musicals? That's the same blue shit leaking out of the cracks in pokey's face in the picture above.

They also have a sister called Webby that I believe Hannah references in Black Friday. We don't know much about her but thus far she seems like a good guy

2) Grace Chasity is a nerdy prude

Remember the girl Bill is trying to set Alice up in guy who didn't like musicals because 'at least she's nice to him in church'?

Well turns out Alice was right. Grace Chasity is a nerdy prude. And also coincidentally one of the main characters of Nerdy Prudes Must Die (to be played by Angela Giarratana).

We meet her in nightmare time 2 (episode 2 part 2) which takes place at a religious camp designed to educate people about the perils of pre marital sex.

Grace Chasity is, well she's many things, but she is very much the stereotype of an American evangelical Christian. She even showers with a swimming costume on so as not to tempt herself into sin.

Despite all this, however, she is a devious motherfucker who will absolutely fuck you up

3) You remember Ted from guy who didn't like musicals...

Well not only are he and the homeless guy the same person (time travel, its a whole thing, blame the yellow guy from the Lords in black photo)

But also we learn that his surname is Spankoffski (because of course it is) and he has a 'nerdy little brother' called Pete Spankoffski who will be one of the leads in nerdy prudes. In nightmare time he's played by Nick Lang but in nerdy prudes he'll be played by Joey Richter

We meet Pete in nightmare time 2 (episode 2 part 2) but we've actually met him before in guy who didn't like musicals. You remember hot chocolate boy? The one who had very low blood sugar?

Yup you guessed it that is one Peter Spankoffski

(If you've been super out of the loop and are wondering why he was recast and for that matter where the heck is Robert anyway just trust that that is a whole thing im not going to get into and it's for the best he's gone)

4) Meet the Lauters

Two more characters who have been announced for NPMD who we met in nightmare time 2 are Stephanie Lauter (Mariah Rose Faith) and her father Solomon Lauter (Corey Dorris)

Steph is actually pretty nice and chill on the inside but definitely has a reputation for being a bit of a party animal/wild child.

This isn't helped by her father who is the mayor of hatchetfield and from what little we see of him will always put his career before his daughter.

Steph and Pete hook up in nightmare time so look out for a possible romance between these two

5) What the fuck is a Holloduke?

You may have seen the word 'holloduke' batted a lot around this fandom lately which refers to the ship of two characters that we've been introduced to through nightmare time.

While it's unclear if either of them will appear in nerdy prudes, given that both Kim and Curt are in the cast and they go a long way out of their way in nightmare time to show Kim's character getting a job at Hatchetfield High in set up for *something* a lot of people think there's a good chance she at least will be appearing.

The Hollo of these characters is called Miss Holloway although at the end of nightmare time she ends up ret conning herself and is forced to assume a new identity as Miss Holiday so if we meet her in nerdy prudes that will likely be her name. She is a witch who has a deep love for all things 80s. We don't know a huge amount about her but that might be because she's cursed(?) so that anything she reveals about her backstory will be instantly wiped from the mind of the listener.

Curts character is an ordinary social worker called Duke who among other things works with Hannah and Lex when they're having troubles with their mum. He's in love with Miss Holloway/Holiday, and it's reciprocated, but due to the curse(?) et al things keep not quite working out for them.

They're both absolutely wonderful people who deserve the world and are absolute OTP fodder

6) The Gift

We don't know a huge amount about this yet but we do know that some people in Hatchetfield, notably including Hannah from black friday have something called 'the gift' which gives them some loose powers

Most people grow out of the gift as they go through puberty, for instance Lex also used to have it, but they may be able to use it in some scenarios (such as manifesting a firearm from the black and white as Lex does in Black Friday)

People with the gift were historically persecuted in Hatchetfield by a group of people called 'the hatchet men' who may or may not have turned them into trees(?)

7) The Black Book

There is a book of spells called the black book which Miss Holloway/Holiday uses to do her magic

[plotandburn]

Harry Potter Gets Adopted By

Rules:

No reader-inserts, self-inserts or unhappy endings are allowed.

spanking, watersports, extremely underage ships or parent/child incest are only allowed if portrayed on a negative light.

Peter Petigrew and Dolores Umbridge must be bashed

Dumbledore must be gay and atracted to Grindewalt and Grindewalt alone.

poor grammar is not allowed (you don't need a beta but at least use grammarly some form of grammar corrector)

You are not allowed to bash Severus Snape, Sirius Black,Draco Malfoy or Remus Lupin.

In the prompts set on Timmy's Era, Timmy himself can't be praired with: Tottie, Chloe Carmichael, Geraldine Waxelplax or His Parents.

Out of Timmy Turner's Peers, Only Trixie Tang is allowed to,should the writer chose, be a wixen,everyone else has to remain a muggle...and yes that includes Timmy himself.

Timmy's Secret Wish! is garbage and therefore should be compleatly ignored in each and every single prompt on this list. Same applies to the Grow Up Timmy Turner movies

Like a good portion of the fandom, i hate Sparky the dog so the writer of these prompts must pretend that Sparky never even existed to begin with and thus any epiosdes centered on him must be disconsidered entirely.

However episodes where he is featured as a side character can be included,just replace him with Poof

While Chloe Carmichael is allowed to exist and live in dimsdale she is not allowed to have fairies. On these prompts we are going under the rule that "Fairies only grant wishes to miserable people of the dominant species of Earth whose misery was caused by circunstances outside of their control. If the godchild for whatever reason becomes cheerful or the godkid says, "I'm happy and don't need my godparents anymore," the fairies will leave them and search for another miserable kid"...meaning that : No Chloe you can't get fairy odd parents because you stupidly chose to help a monster and that caused you misery for...like a day.

Hagrid can only be paired with Madame Maxine and no one else

Mad Eye Moody and Amelia Bones can't be paired with anyone

Minerva Mcgonagal can only be paired with Poppy Pomfrey or anyone on the staff that she never taugh herself.

Crabbe and Goyle can only be paired with Astoria Greengrass, Daphne Greengrass,Milicent, Susan Bones, Hannah Abbot, eachother or an Oc.

Cosmo/Wanda must be endgame.....Anti-Cosmo/AntiWanda however must NOT.

Da Rules must be followed.

New Rules that must be added later:

Rules 1 ("When a godkid reveals whose fairies theirs secretly are, they and any other witnesses shall have their memories wiped by Jorgen and his agents (who can sometimes make the godchild horribly disfigured) and their fairies and magical items they have come in contact will be taken away by Jorgen. However, if Jorgen doesn't find out, he can't take the godkid’s fairies away or if the witnesses understand how much the fairies means to the godchild then said child can keep them under conditions that the witnesses have their memories erased.") and 27 ("When you has reached the age of no longer needing a fairy or when they are completely grown-up personality-wise, they will have their mind erased of all memories involving their fairy/fairies, the fairy/fairies will leave either in the Fairy Cab or with Jorgen Von Strangle and everything magic will disappear forever.") do not aplly to wixens as the fairy's method of memory erasure is not effective against wixens and....even if it where every single wixen can see and hear fairies even when they are disguised.

Now...onto the prompts. These will be divided into "Timmy's Era", "There's no way this is not Crack", "In Between eras" and Tammy & Tommy's Era".

so....Lets Go:

1.

so.....aparently fanon decided to name them Nataliya Turner & Daran Turner so if you ever want a name for them feel free to use those. Anyway, in this instance Harry would basically be Timmy's brother wich means that they would not only share parents but also fairy godparents and...you guessed Vicky! so while Mrs and Mr Turner would treat them with love on the few ocasions in wich they are present they would also be absent more often than not. Uh....this Harry could fit into basically any house and date anyone,much like Timmy so... the sky is the limt.

2.

.like in the first prompt Harry would have to face Vicky...only now he would face her pretty much 24/7 only being free from her in the brief moments were she leaves to babysit/tourment other kids so....Cosmo & Wanda would not be his fairies,'cause they would belong to Timmy at this point but he should probably get someone else.....or not,choice is up to you. This harry would definetly be a griffyndor 'cause he would resent his parents for being so coward. Pretty sure he wouldn't favor readheads 'cause they would remind him of Vicky.

3.

Harry would basically be Remmy's brother wich means he would share Juandissimo andn the extreme emotional neglect so...he probably be starved for affection of any kind and cling to Remy and any friends that he makes. This Harry would probably be a huflepuff and as for ship...pretty much anyone besides Percy, Severitus and Hermione is ok.

4.

This Harry would have everything he could ever ask for and a best friend for life in the form of his own sister Trixie who would use his status as a boy to make her dad buy a shit ton of boy stuff like comics wich they would then share, with Harry hiding everything in his room. Harry would be pretty happy overall but he would often wish that their dad never forced them to uphold the image of distant popular kids (and yeah...pretty sure it's their parents 'cause Trixie definetly dosen't pay the securty guard herself). He would be pretty sympathetic of Timmy and even axct friendly towards him on ocassions where they do talk. This Harry would probably be either a Gryffindor or a Sytherin and i think he would be better suited for a slytherin due to his upbringing.

5.

Harry would basically be Aj's brother, thus he would basically HAVE to be science Genious in order to fit in...or you could go a different route and have him be an art genious instead...but he'd have to be a genious of some kind. This Harry would probably fit in Ravenclaw or Slytherin. Recomended ships: Hermione, Percy, Neville or Luna

6.

This Harry is Chester's brother and would probably bond with the Weasley's more than anyone else,due to their similar upbringing. I think it would be funny if... Despite being a Mcbadbat he was actually awesome at baseball. He would probably be Slytherin or a gryffindor. As for ships, the sky is the limt.

7.

Ok so...they basically either raise Harry in the Anti-Fairy world to be their godson or turn him into an Anti-Fairy so that he can be their son by blood (choice is up to you). Regardless of your choice though, Harry would probably end up as a goth...and probably a bookworm due to Anti-Cosmo's influence. He would be much less of a goody goody, taking active joy in watching his parents (whom he would view as such regardless of your choice) cause bad luck on friday 13th.I'd imagine he would be more drawn towards Percy, Hermione, The Weasley Twins or any slytherin that is not Crabbe or Goyle and his house would be either slytherin or ravenclaw.

There's No Way that's not Crack:

1.

Harry would be the og Cleft the Boy Chin Wonder but he would be SUPER tired of constantly fighting crime, thus would basically jump for joy whenever Timmy Turner takes his place with Cosmo and Wanda turning him into Timmy and sending him into the real world to fool Timmy's parents wich would be when he would get his Hogwarts letter at 11 making the whole "turning him into Timmy to fool Timmy's parents thing more complicated. He would be unaware that he lives in a comic book untill Timmy mentions the comic's writer to his dad and one of their arch nemesis. This Harry would definetly be either a Huflepuff or a Ravenclaw and as for shipping....i think anyone who dosen't view him as an idol or a soldir.

2.

This Harry would be SO embarassed of his dad....Like....for real....You think Chester Mcbadbat is embarassed of his dad? well that is nothing compared to what Harry James West fells. He wishes he could die everytime is dad does cat stuf in plublic and it forced him to basically grow up super fast in order to be his dad's owner (in a non sexual way ofc) meaning he is the one to give him food in a bowl and clean his shit from the sandbox. He basically hates his life so when the hogwarts letter comes he jumps for joy, trilled with the chance to get away but he does spend christmas with his dad 'cause he still misses him despite everything. Still he is as trilled as his canon self when presented with the oportunity to live with Sirius....speaking of Sirius, whoever picks this prompt must be a masterat writing comedy/humor cause They MUST provide me (and the other readers) with funny interactions between Wolfstar (together or not) and Catman/Adam West where the latter is irrationally frightened of the former two for being a dog animagus(Sirius) & a werewolf(Remus). This harry would definetly be a slytherin and would not date cat owners,cat people or cat animagus because he has had enough of cats in his life.

In Between Eras:

Ok so...the reason why this is "in between Eras" is because this prompt, like the one's that follow would happen in the movies timeline meaning it would be set in the 200's rather than in the 90's like Hp actually is. Harry would be a baby during the envents of Foop, only going to Hogwarts during Tammy & Tommy's era. being the son of who he is Harry James Skylark would have an amazing singing voice & dance skills wich would probably be what atracts his romatic interest to him. He would probably be Gryffindor or a Ravenclaw and as for shipping....i think anyone who dosen't view him as an idol for the get go.

Tammy and Tommy's Era:

1.

this prompt in particular is what inspired this whole list and it was created based on the pixies last line on the following episode:

So in this pompt Harry is adopted by the pixies who raise him...pretty much the same way they raised Flappy Bob meaning Harry is...basically raised to be a brilliant executive who legit thinks desk job is fun. This Harry would probably be a Slytherin or Ravenclaw and....TBH out of everyone i think he would be most Drawn to the Weasley Twins, who would hate his parents instantly for how they raised him and show him new ways to have fun.

2.

This would be the only instance where Harry would still go by his birth name for no reason other than the fact that, while he would very much view Cosmo & Wanda as his parents and they would with time view him as a son, he would still be raised at the Dursley's. Cosmo and Wanda would be assigned to him as soon as Albus Dumbledore leaves him on their doorstep and they would be the one's who actually provide Harry with the love and care that he needs. This Harry would be no different than canon Harry so...the sky is the limit on both houses and shipping.

[ao3feed-crimeboys]

The Internet was a mistake and other life lessons from aliens

by Aimandfire

Galactic date 48/17/3450

Recorded by Second class SMP Assistant, T. Underscore

At 11:34 a recording was received from the SBI. They were assigned to suspected smuggler ship 573, which is expected to belong to known smuggler boss B. Illiam. The ship was found abandoned, but functioning. SBI requests approval to search through the vessel before bringing it to docking port.

Transmission sent at 12:27 by head commander C. Puffy to SBI ship:

Request approved. An abandoned ship is highly suspicious so remember to use proper protocol for ships with potential bomb or gas threats.

Or-The sleepybois stumble upon two trafficked humans and need to take them to a sanctuary. Tubbo wants to play Minecraft and accidentally invents cryptocurrency. Purpled makes everything worse.

Words: 7623, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English

Series: Part 32 of Dream SMP Kidnapping Oneshots But Like A Good Portion Already Has More Than One Chapter So I Guess They're Not Really Oneshots, Part 8 of Insanity Week/The fortnight of insanity

Fandoms: Dream SMP

Rating: General Audiences

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Characters: TommyInnit (Video Blogging RPF), Clay | Dream (Video Blogging RPF), Wilbur Soot, Phil Watson | Philza, Technoblade (Video Blogging RPF), Cara | CaptainPuffy, Toby Smith | Tubbo, Ranboo (Video Blogging RPF), Grayson | Purpled (Video Blogging RPF), Hannah | Hannahxxrose, Darryl Noveschosch | BadBoyHalo, Sam | Awesamdude

Relationships: Clay | Dream & TommyInnit (Video Blogging RPF), Wilbur Soot & Technoblade & TommyInnit & Phil Watson, Wilbur Soot & TommyInnit, Grayson | Purpled & Ranboo & Toby Smith | Tubbo

Additional Tags: Aliens, Dehumanization, In the weirdest way, Crack, Humor, Human Trafficking, Fluff, Recovery, Sleepy Bois Inc as Family, Clay | Dream is Not Evil (Video Blogging RPF), Protectiveness, Rehabilitation, Accidents, accidentally inventing cryptocurrency, Chatlogs, Kidnapping, Rescue, Hijinks & Shenanigans, Teenage Drama, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Happy Ending, Alternate Universe - Aliens, Outer Space, Alternate Universe - Space, Sneaky Bastards, What Have I Done, Correspondence, Feral Behavior, Transcribed, Comedy

[ao3feed--reylo]

Wampa Mine

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/bciOId6

by Melusine11

As soon as Rey saw it in that small oddities shop in Hannah City on Chandrila she knew she had to have it. That it was hers. Something about it spoke to her, made her pulse thrum in her veins. So she dropped an absurd amount of credits on the counter and made her way back to her ship with her brand new wampa rug.

Words: 1165, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English

Series: Part 5 of Monstober22

Fandoms: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy

Rating: Explicit

Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings

Categories: F/M

Characters: Rey (Star Wars), Kylo Ren, Ben Solo

Relationships: Kylo Ren/Rey, Rey/Ben Solo

Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Crack, crack treated mildly seriously, wampa rug Kylo, Inanimate Objects, Inanimate Object Porn, i guess, This Is Not Going To Go The Way You Think, or maybe it will!, its short and sweet and weird, Plushophilia

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/bciOId6

[autistickhunsam]

Bree and Timberly though! Thank you sm for giffing them❤️ I love that they didn’t just let Timberly be the dumb one and that Bree fully admitted that she was being terrible to her and apologized. Them sleeping together was a bonus and idk if they’re going to be serious but they’re cute. I love how vulnerable Bree was the morning after like ‘what does yous laid mean’ cracked me up lol. Hannah being gay too though, wow I hope she gets or has a gf. I wasn’t sure about it at first but I like the show more every week and really wish it was getting more than 8 episodes. I know 22 episode seasons like how regular sitcoms do it is out but but for a show like this, 16 or even 13 episodes would work I think?

of course! i love doing it and honestly its a bit extra fun when its for stuff that doesnt really have a lot of content. but its a good show so im sure it'll pick up and more big content creators will be making edits. its funny though because as much as i love it i was actually feeling pretty frustrated for various reasons and thinking about quitting. just finish my wips and be done making edits but reboot reeled me back in

anyway. yeah! its not very often a show surprises me but i'll say this show has more than once. i thought maybe they were gonna go that way with timberly too and i thought we were gonna see them trying to get her kicked off the show but then turns out she could act. i also didnt think they were gonna go there with bree and timberly even though i totally thought they should. tho when bree was on the phone with reed i was like "they did didnt they?" and then they did!

like i said in another post i was expecting there to be sapphic characters and i thought maybe hannah. i actualy wanted something to happen with elaine but it looks like theyre setting something with zack. also kimia! i love her so im happy shes there regardless but shes another character i thought might be gay especially since shes married to a woman in real life so my guess is her character isnt gonna be straight either. idt they'll go there with janae but i can totally see her being into women too. after she pointed out women dont scissor and its a bs male fantasy i was like 🤔 but yeah timberly and bree were the two characters i wasnt expecting to go there lol. even after it happened i was like is it gonna be a one time fun thing is it gonna be just about bree, a straight woman, having sex with someone as a palate cleanser but not only was that the opening scene but immediately shes wondering if shes gay and obviously coming to the conclusion that shes not straight and being totally cool with it. i hate the whole "i dont like using labels" thing and i get that some people do feel that way and nothing wrong with that but thats a notorious way to avoid saying bisexual on tv. i also hated the "no one says lesbian anymore" like it was some outdated term not to mention completely wrong. but aside from that i loved the episode and i love the show. it has me laughing out loud every episode

and yes i was thinking that too. i think i said that on another post too about bree being vulnerable and nervous about being good. its especially nice since idt she really is vulnerable with others very often. it was a good scene and funny. lol the whole looking stuff up was so funny. "yous laid" would be a good ship tag lol

i still don't think it'll develop into anything but at this point i wouldnt be surprised either way

i didnt know it was only getting 8. i guess thats not abnormal for a first season in a comedy, even before streamers. i do hate that its common practice now to do 8-10 episode seasons tho. it can work but generally i think shows should definitely be longer than that

[author-luna]

My writing ideas (1/?)

Part 1 | Next >>

I know I said I have exams but I couldn’t stop myself from doing this-

Basiaclly, a new series where i write down my writing ideas for different fandoms as well as some notes about it for future references. I might never get to write them, but at least someone else can see them and enjoy it!

This posts fandom is TCF because it’s my current obsession-

(please excuse my poor naming ability, I can’t come up with names for things on such a short notice)

TCF actor AU

An AU in which the novel gets a life action adaption and the casting director happens to find actors who are, quite literally, the characters they portray.

Slight dynamic and personality changes between the characters as well as some OCs that will probably be mentioned a few times.

Uhhh Dad! Cale strikes again with the children averaging nine-years-old being his actual adopted children.

Still gotta figure out where I wanna go with this I guess? Truth to be told I jus want crack texting between everyone, don’t mind me-

Also Rosalyn and Cale are childhood friends/basically siblings and everyone thinks they’re the MOST iconic duo ever (they are,of course, right)

Everyone’s twitter account is a mess because no one knows how to run a social media account and the only one who knows how actually run one is Hannah

Probably no shipping, just open flirting because why not :3

Any help for coming u with names for the actors are welcome (read: desperately needed)

Might leave the names the same?? I dunno I’ll decided when i actually get to that part

Hall of universes fic

One peaceful day, as everyone is gathered to celebrate New Year, they suddenly find themselves in a spacious lobby. How did they get here? How do they get back? Who’s the girl typing away on a laptop on one of the couches? And what the hell does she mean by “Have fun exploring the different universes?”

Basically a self indulgent fic (I’m literally in the fic what more do you want me to say?) and crack fic, where our dear TCF family sees different parallel universes ranging from modern AU, spy agency AU, mythical creatures to sad angst shit

Buckle up to see them walk down a hallway with many doors, behind each one a different world with it’s own twisted rules and fateful encounters, until they reach the very end

mostly crack and a place for me to put out my AU ideas together as well as try to do some character exploration

Do they get back at some point? Probably, the question is just when

Fic-me is a little bitch but I don’t care

Each AU aka ‘room’ will probably have like 1-5 chapters about it and then they will move onto the next door

I hate Deruth with a passion so we will be witnessing him get torn down to pieces by guilt, shame, self hatred and more

OG Cale gets the love he deserves in some of the rooms, maybe, I don’t know, I’m not there yet

Some of it will be cringe asf and OOC but like, soft content i guess?

I definitely am going to add a room about childhood friends! AlbeCale because they would be such an iconic duo if they knew each other earlier

A chapter about Cale taking “I’m sipping wine, in a robe. I look too good, to be alone’’ shit to another level

Human! Raon concept where he looks exactly like Cale to the point where people think he’s his biological son and Cale just goes with it

Lots of Dad! Cale with his children because I’m soft for them

This is getting too long so I’ll mare a cut here-

[swaps55]

You Just Might

For @jedirangerpenguin

~

The N program hadn’t covered teenagers.

David Anderson has only been alone with the kid for an hour, and he already has a new respect for the parenting skills of Daniel Shepard. He’s not sure a dreadnought would be a big enough space to contain Sam, and here they are stuck in the cramped passenger compartment of an Alliance shuttle with two hours to go before they reach Ares Station.

This is who Hannah Shepard wants to turn into a biotic soldier. The kid can’t sit still. Sam is like a walking, talking action figure, in a perpetual state of motion with no sense of his own body. According to Daniel he’d just hit a growth spurt, shot up to over 175 cm in the space of a month, and it shows. It’s like watching a puppy try to figure out what to do with four feet, and the Alliance is shipping him off to learn how to play with dark energy.

No wonder Daniel had called him. Without someone to keep an eye on him, this string bean of a kid might take out the whole system.  

“Do you think snapping my fingers’ll trigger it?” The kid has the most earnest eyes Anderson has ever seen. The kind that see right through you. Just like Hannah.  

“I’m assuming you’ve tried that,” Anderson replies. A hundred times, no doubt.

“Yeah, but maybe I’m doing it wrong. I can’t snap for shit.”

“I think that’s the whole point of learning. Figuring out how to control it without breaking your arm.”

Sam shrugs, rubbing his left arm. According to Daniel he’d hidden the fracture for three days before finally confessing to his father. “Sure, I guess.”

Anderson isn’t sure what’s more troubling, that Sam has already broken enough bones to have an aversion to bone knitters, or that he’d apparently spent those three days trying to replicate the lash of dark energy that had broken the arm in the first place.

The kid kicks his feet, squirming in his seat. Aside from the constant kinetic energy, everything about him screams Hannah Shepard. Except for the ears. He’s got Daniel’s ears. The grin favors him, too. But everything else belongs to Hannah.

“I hear biotics can fry people’s brains,” Sam says.

Heaven help them all. “Having been tossed around by a biotic a time or two, no, that’s not how it works.”

The kicking stops, and Sam’s eyes widen. “You’ve fought biotics?”

Anderson straightens, oddly pleased to suddenly have the kid’s undivided attention. “Fought a lot of things. But yes, biotics.”

“When? Where? How many? What was it like?”

“Which time?” he asks with a smirk.

Is he really trying to impress a fourteen-year-old?

“All of them,” Sam says, with a reverence that makes him wish he had kids of his own.

Apparently Anderson is indeed trying to impress the fourteen-year-old.

Why not share a few stories? Would be nice to have a captive audience for once. Someone who hadn’t heard the rumors about Dah'tan and already made up their mind.

So he tells a few. It’s the closest Sam comes to being still, though he constantly interrupts to ask questions. Apparently Sam can be either still or quiet, but not both.

The questions are unnervingly shrewd, too. Anderson tells those stories with some spectacle – why not, he’s earned it – but Sam never once gets lost in it. Instead he wants to know how biotics interact with kinetic shields. Asks about squad formations. Even interrogates him about the layout of that shipping plant on Ilium, to figure out how Aesir Fina’s mercs had managed to flank him. The kid is tactical. The gears turn in his head as he digests every answer. You can see it.

When there’s a lull in the conversation, Sam points to the red stripe on the right arm of Anderson’s shirt. He’s been eyeing it the entire trip. “You’re an N7.”

“The first N7,” Anderson replies, not without pride.

Sam tilts his head, and for a moment he looks just like Daniel, not Hannah. It’s not the only mannerism they share. The occasional twist of frustration in his lips. The lilt in his voice. That’s where Daniel lives in his son.

“I want to do that.”

“Never had a biotic N7,” Anderson says, thoughtfully. He can only imagine what ICT would do to someone with the caloric needs of a biotic.

“Good. I’ll be the first,” Sam says, smug smile on his face that belongs to neither of his parents.  

“It’s not easy,” Anderson cautions him. “Lot of hard work, especially for someone used to temperature controlled environments. Planets aren’t nearly as comfortable as ships, and ICT’ll put your face right in the mud.”

He scowls and crosses his arms over his chest. “I’ll figure it out.”

You know what, you just might.

Sam toys with a thread on his sleeve. Anderson has no doubt that if you left him in an empty room he’d be naked standing in a pile of thread before long. “So how do you know my dad, anyway?”

The sudden moodiness in his voice takes Anderson off guard. The kid hadn’t had any trouble looking him in the eye a moment ago.

“We go way back. Boot camp. Officer candidacy training. I know your dad well, actually.”

Sam’s expression turns skeptical. “My dad. Buddies with an N7.”

“Why is that so hard to believe?”

Sam shrugs one shoulder, eyes fixed on the loose string. It’s definitely longer, now. “Mom flies a ship, dad rides a desk.”

Anderson exhales through his nose. You’ve got no idea, do you? Does he even know his father is N1? It would be like Daniel not to tell him. Accolades have never mattered to Daniel the way they matter to Hannah. The way they matter to Anderson.

Hannah had wanted her career. Daniel had wanted Sam. Simple as that.

“Don’t sell your dad short,” Anderson tells him. “His proficiency scores were better than mine.”

Sam snorts. “Bullshit.”

“Suit yourself.” Anderson leans his head back against the headrest and closes his eyes. What are the odds he could get a nap in before they arrive?

Not good. That stare is like a directed energy weapon. Forget the biotics, the kid could fry Anderson’s brain with just that stare. He cracks one eye open. “Anyone ever tell you you’re a pain in the ass?”

“Yep.”

Anderson doesn’t doubt it. They eye each other for a while. Sam starts tapping the arm rest. First with his left hand, then the right.

“You still have model ships?” Anderson asks. Every time he’d seen Sam as a child he’d had some kind of ship in his hand, and a wide array of sound effects to accompany it. Usually a model of whatever cruiser Hannah was doing a tour on.

“Nah, that stuff’s for kids.”

“Nothing wrong with being a kid,” Anderson says.

“Then you go do it.”

He puts a fist to his mouth to stifle a chuckle. “Fair enough.”

After a few more minutes of tapping Anderson sighs. “So why do you want to be an N7?”

“To be the best.” Sam goes back to kicking the seat. Could be a good interrogation tactic to suggest. Stick a suspect in a room with Sam Shepard and see who breaks first. Safe bet it won’t be Sam.

“And why is it so important to be the best?” Every now and then, Anderson wishes someone had asked Hannah that question. He wonders what the answer would be.  

Sam shrugs again. That moody look is back. He pops out of his seat and strolls to the shutter. “Think we can see it yet?”

“No. And you’re deflecting the question.”

“So?”

“If you want to join up, better get used to orders, son.”

That gets him. He abandons the window, squares his shoulders and trades the moodiness for defiance. “Because someone’s got to be.”

Anderson hums. Big talk for a fourteen-year-old. That has to be Hannah’s influence. It’s a wonder Sam got to be a kid at all.

Sam returns to his seat and draws his knees to his chest. It makes him look…young. Far too young for where he’s headed. “Think mom’ll come see me at all?”

Well, shit. Shouldn’t be Anderson answering that question. Daniel said she’d been on tour for four months, either couldn’t get leave to see Sam off or chose not to. Even sent him a pre-recorded message for his birthday a few weeks ago. She hit the lottery with you, kid, and did nothing to earn it. But it’s not his place to get involved in family politics. Daniel decided a long time ago he wasn’t going to do anything to tarnish her name in his eyes.

“She can’t, Sam. Classified facility. She doesn’t have clearance.”

For the first time all trip, he’s both silent and still. “But you do.”

Anderson taps the N7 logo on his chest. “Yeah. I do.”

Sam nods. His brow furrows. He opens his mouth to say something, then closes it, turns that directed energy stare at the shutter and rests his chin in his hand.

Damnit.

Daniel had only asked him to take the kid to Ares. He doesn’t know anything about whatever insane plan the Alliance has to train biotic kids after cratering BAaTT. But looking at those hunched shoulders, the long legs he hasn’t grown into, the shoulders he hasn’t filled out yet…he’s a kid, damnit, out here alone with no one to look out for him.  

He’s not your kid. But someone’s got to do it, and he’s the only one here.

Hell with it. He’s got plenty of leave stored up. The Alliance can spare him for a week or so. Just to get him settled in.

He leans back in his seat and props a foot on his knee. “Think I’ll stick around a few days. Never been to Ares station.”

Sam picks his head up. There’s something hopeful in his eyes, and if Anderson had any reservations about staying they’re gone now.

“Yeah?”

“Sure. Besides, if I’m going to recommend you to ICT one day, need to see what you’ve got.”

There’s Daniel again, in the tilt of his chin. “You’d do that?”

“If you earn it.”

Sam straightens. “I’ll earn it.”

Anderson smiles. He’s got some growing up to do first, in more ways than one. But there’s a glimmer in his eye that could take him a long way, if he lets it. If someone sticks around long enough to help him figure it all out. And if he does manage to put it all together? Hell, you know what, kid? You just might.

[cattles-bians]

Damie Vibecca exes AU part 4

post directory

[em note: this one is LONG i had to split it!!!]

obsetress: deflecting to viola protecting becs

obsetress: once they are dating

obsetress: and thinkin thoughts

em: viola asks rebecca if she wants to put a hit out on peter and rebestiecca is like????

em: that’s hot but

em: u can do that? also maybe don’t. but mostly that’s hot

obsetress: i was literally gonna say peter is still her ex and he's a persistent fucker even though it's been a year at least and viola's response is... not far off from canon!

obsetress: becca just stares at her for a minute and then she's cupping viola's cheek and murmuring "come here" and pulling her down

obsetress: they're like kissing or whatever and rebecca's murmuring "that was hot, you know" between kisses and viola's like "oh?" and becca's like "don't be cheeky, you know it was" and vi just grins against her mouth

em: I’m Really Invested In This Crack Ship

obsetress: ok but rebecca tells jamie and dani about vi offering to put a hit on peter and they're both understandably and reasonably aghast and rebecca's just like (takes a sip of wine, ducks head, smiles to self) i think it's sweet

obsetress: dani and jamie look at each other out of the corners of their eyes

obsetress: (later, dani agrees how absolutely out of line it is but also admits that it sure does feel nice to be so taken care of sometimes)

obsetress: (jamie throws a pillow at her)

obsetress: also thinking about secret soft vibecca are sometimes and how horrified dani and jamie are the first time they see it with their own eyes

em: jamie and dani excessive PDA queens get a taste of their own medicine

em: it’s so funny that i’m like. always on the verge of viola horny posting but as soon as it’s vibecca i’m like look at these babies. these beautiful babies

obsetress: viola and rebecca kissing one (1) time at brunch and jamie, arm slung around dani’s shoulders, is like “oi, no one wants to see that” and dani, leaning into jamie, one hand in her lap, crinkles her nose and rebecca’s like “y— you’re kidding, right?”

obsetress: also like. we talk a lot about what vi does for rebecca but also like

obsetress: vi massive abandonment issues and rebecca just

obsetress: she just stays

em: ur gonna Kill me here lies em

obsetress: i know i didn’t mean to and then i just

obsetress: i can’t think too hard abt them or i will Melt Down but just like

em: look if rebecca can see the best in someone as awful as peter

em: viola isnt nearly as terrible

obsetress: esp vi post dani like

obsetress: she’s obnoxious and haughty and neoliberal but

obsetress: radical love goes a long way!

obsetress: rebecca grounding her thru touch and rebecca slipping her hands around vi’s and easing them loose when vi’s hands start to clench and rebecca just pressing a kiss to viola’s temple and murmuring “i’m here, yeah? with you. not going anywhere”

em: like i just think after eddie dani wouldnt like, just go w the flw any more. like i think abt her challenging viola occasionally

em: lovingly! gently

but like, holding her accountable

em: also violas absolutely little spoon

em: like i know blah blah viola top rebecca top leaning switch but viola little spoon

obsetress: “actually viola” (vi always knows she’s in trouble when dani calls her viola) “that was really hurtful” “i’m sorry you feel that way, dani, but—“ “i don’t need you to be sorry for how i feel. i need you to show me you’re sorry for what you did”

em: dani calls vi the Full Name and viola knows shes in trouble bc thats at least 4 extra vowels w danis midwest accent

em: it is always v surprising how much like, working w kids equips you to work w adults. b/c at least w kids you dont have layers and layers of social nuance to work through. u can just say 'hey. that was hurtful and your apology sucks'

obsetress: meanwhile dani’s over here trying to explain to vi intent vs impact and how no, it’s not semantics or nuance, it’s actually kind of a chasm

em: i kind of love like um. look viola is terrible but she wasnt born terrible

obsetress: she just has a lot to unlearn

em: and id belive that even if i wasnt a ghostfucker thats just rogers theory of self actualisation babyeee

obsetress: dani viola big fight n dani's like

obsetress: "i'm sorry and i love you but it's not my job to fix you, vi" and she just breaks down and she's like "it's not"

obsetress: jesus why did my brain take THAT turn

em: wrow

em: its ok i was gonna be like 'so they obvs break up at some point....'

obsetress: anyway viola just stares at her for a second and then she's like "you put the 'i'm sorry' before the 'i love you'"

obsetress: and dani just stares at her for a long time and she's like "yeah. i guess i did"

em: HANNAH

em: BESTIE

obsetress: i KNOW what the FUCK

obsetress: anyway dani's like "i guess i did" and vi's like "is that it then?" and dani just looks at her with her puffy eyes and is like "i think so"

obsetress: dani clayton queen of saying "i love you" over and over in the midst of breaking up w someone

em: well! she has a lot of love to give but, she also has to love herself sometimes!

em: i was thinking abt scenarios n i just remembered that. whole video rental shop thing so i think that slots in nicely

[em edit: u can read here]

obsetress: god i love that lil scene

em: dani sends viola a tentative little meme peace offering and they get back to talking and its nice but maybe a bit awkward and viola mentions like, going to therapy and seeing someone for help n its

obsetress: vi's stewing on "i can't fix you" for weeks and then she's begrudgingly. BEGRUDGINGLY calling a therapist

em: like its still awkward and dani is still nursing some wounds but she can ALSO be happy for someone she used to care about

em: still cares about!

obsetress: she's always gonna love her in some way or another

obsetress: but yeah also like. smth to viola being too stubborn to do anything she doesn't wanna do except suddenly when dani clayton gets involved and that feels p canon in its own way too

em: 'i cant fix u' weird bc every time i see viola im like 'i can fix her'

obsetress: it's like ur in my head bestie

em: how do u think viola and rebestiecca met

em: not that u think abt it or anything

obsetress: MAN i was just thnking

obsetress: in this universe how did dani and jamie meet but i guess it can still just be bly tbh

obsetress: as for vi and bestiecca hmmm

em: am so caught up in the joy of fucked up interpersnal dynamics i forgot a meet cute

obsetress: honestly part of me wants to be like

obsetress: on some dating app but a dating app for posh people yk

obsetress: but then i'm like

obsetress: that takes all the meet cute fun out of it

obsetress: oh GOD

obsetress: i got it

obsetress: ready

obsetress: so like viola landlord we know this

obsetress: and then i was watching whatever ep three the other day and bex mentions wanting to do public law right

em: oooooh

obsetress: bex public housing attorney

em: OOH

obsetress: they meet at some conference

obsetress: hit it off prob fuck lbr

obsetress: and then

obsetress: comedy of errors

obsetress: whoever stays the night, they sleep together again in the morning, breakfast in bed, bex is like "so what do you do, anyway"

em: hjgbjshmdnfbmngbmhnbgs,hndg m,shndgds

em: YES

obsetress: and then they just

em: WHEEZES

obsetress: also i like to think rebecca invites vi back to her hotel room and vi is so charmed by her taking charge ("""taking charge""") that she lets her

obsetress: and then like

obsetress: god for a while what if they just like

obsetress: they're so mortified and morally and fundamentally at odds but like

obsetress: the sex is so good???????

obsetress: that they keep just meeting up and then

em: romeo and juliet situation

obsetress: yk how it goes

obsetress: the sex is good and they see each other as like

em: thats so fucking good thank u hannah

obsetress: super rare intellectual equals whatever

obsetress: thank u i am exceedingly proud rn

obsetress: honestly at this point i'm

obsetress: rebecca and vi uhaul change my mind

obsetress: like not too quick because isabel but, quick enough to be considered

em: so the joke is like. obviously 'extremely pda damie' but when rebecca and vi are alone they Also cannot get their hands off each other

obsetress: they both just. worry about appearances too much meanwhile

obsetress: tweedle dee and tweedle dum in the overalls and mom jeans dgaf

em: accidentally seeing ur friends compromised is just part of the package of being friends w damie. however jamie accidentally catches vibecca in the act and shes Horrified

em: hypocrits

em: danis like yeah what do u. think theyre doing

em: dani is nonchallant bc shes dated viola of all people

obsetress: i mean could you imagine

obsetress: between vi and dani's just

obsetress: insatiable libido

em: HADNT IMAGINED UNTIL NOW BUT YEAH

obsetress: dani, very seriously: jamie, when two women love each other––

em: dani likes dating jamie bc it means she can top occasionally :) maybe even more than occasionally

em: jamies like ooh my god i knw i know how are u so casual about... rebecca... and ... viola... (dani just pulls her in fr a smooch)

obsetress: they have each other's clothes half off and dani's like "i'm so casual because i dated her too, babe" and jamie's like "can we not have this conversation right n"

obsetress: also i still have this on my clipboard from earlier we bopped around so fast but

obsetress: vi and bex hooking up early on:

obsetress: rebecca knocks on vi's door at, like, 6:00 pm after work, vi opens it, rebecca just grabs her and kisses her, vi pulls her in, becca kicks it closed behind her, vi shoves her against the door and they're kissing against it, then vi's ducking her head to kiss along rebecca's neck and rebecca's like "how many people did you evict today" as she angles her head and then viola's finding her lips again and tugging at her lower lip with her teeth "probably not as many landlords as you shortchanged today" and rebecca's laughing and pushing her backwards down the hall as viola tugs at her blouse

em: GOD. viola is probably like

em: ok, disclaimer: fuck all landlords

em: but at least in this fantasy world perhaps viola is 'fairly' 'reasonable' n shes absolutely playing it up for the hate sex angle n rebecca Maybe Assumes shes lying but

em: stupid morons in love

obsetress: yeah

obsetress: i think i've mentioned this before but like

obsetress: now that it's more fleshed out

obsetress: then they're at drinks one night (and when did it go from just sex to drinks? neither of them could tell you) and viola's kinda quiet n moody (n rebecca already knows she Gets Like This sometimes and that she'll usually say whatever she's thinking eventually) and finally she's like

obsetress: "i have... a daughter" and rebecca's just like "tell me about her" like it's the easiest thing in the world

obsetress: and viola's head snaps over and she stares because she was.... not expecting that

obsetress: and so viola does

obsetress: and rebecca's just like "i'd love to meet her one day"

em: soft.....

obsetress: they always turn back to soft

obsetress: like they have a fuckin mind of their own

em: rapidly oscillate between horny and soft

obsetress: that's the mood

em: violas probably like. yknow, rebecca's young and up and cming n she probably assumes rebesticca isnt interested as something as full on as a kid but shes like 'do you have any photos'

obsetress: fuck!!!!!!!!!

em: rebeccas like do u think i didnt. see the photos at ur apartment lmao

em: theres a childs drawing on the fridge

obsetress: rebecca has known almost from the jump but was

obsetress: giving viola her time

obsetress: also smth smth giving her time instead of time wearing her away etc etc we're all in hell

em: cracks knuckles

em: bestie....

obsetress: pls

obsetress: it's what i deserve

obsetress: first tho

obsetress: consider

obsetress: the way viola's face lights up when she's talking about isabel and showing rebecca all the pictures

obsetress: hold pls

em: soft......

obsetress: this one chief

obsetress: right here

[wiypt-writes]

Leave No One Behind

Ch2- The Red Sea Diving Resort : Part 2 Co written with @icanfeelastormbrewing​

Just a reminder- episode Warnings: Bad Language words. Allusions to death and serious injury.

Leave No One Behind Masterlist // Main Masterlist

Part 1

Later that night Ari headed out to meet Kabede who took him to the refugee camp. It was dirty, crowded, there was hardly any food…and then there was the woman. She’d shouted at both Ari and Kabede for bringing her to the camp exclaiming that her father had died, her husband was missing and her son was sick. Ari left feeling like shit, determined to do what he could, as soon as he could.

By the time he arrived back at the resort it was already dawn. As he parked the jeep he spotted Hannah walking down the sand towards the main part of the resort dressed in a pair of denim shorts and a tank top. He gave her a shout and she stopped and turned to face him, her hand shielding her eyes from the rising sun.

“You’re up early.” he smiled at her.

“None of us have been to bed.” she shrugged “We had too much to do, making the place habitable. We’ve figured out what each of the staff do…oh, and we also now have functioning showers. Max and Sammy got the hot water running.” she smirked slightly, nodding at him “You should take one…”

“Do I smell that bad?” he teased.

“Not considering you’ve been in those clothes for like, what? 48 hours?”

“Fuck knows.” he shrugged.

“How did it go?”

Ari took a sigh, his hands dropping to his hips “Honestly? It was horrible. There’s hundreds of them crowded in there Han. They’re sick and…”He ran a hand over his face as Hannah waited for him to continue “There was one woman there, she was crying, saying she’d left her home for nothing and she’d lost her husband and…”

“Well I know how she feels.” Hannah said softly as her hand moved to her neck involuntarily, and Ari saw her eyes flutter shut when she realised her necklace wasn’t there. She’d left it at home, for the same reason his Star of David chain was on his bedside table in his apartment- they were too obvious, invited too many questions, pointed to a part of their real lives and they couldn’t afford anything at all to do so.

“Firefly…you know, if I could change anything, about what happened…”

“But you can’t Ari.” she said softly before she took a deep breath “Andy knew the risks, we both did…” and just like that the walls were back up, and her face had recovered. “Come on, we should get some breakfast and then you can fill everyone in properly.”

With that she reached out to gently touch his arm before she headed off towards the hotel.

Ari watched her go. He hadn't reacted to her soft touch, not even a smile back or even a squeeze of her hand. The skin on his arm was burning where she had placed her hand but he was frozen on the spot consumed by guilt. Guilt about what he had just witnessed a few hours prior and guilt about what he was sure Hannah was feeling thanks to his desire to bring up Andy, once again, to purge his guilt. Fucking asshole, Levinson.

She reached the spot by the tables at the back of the resort where Max was stood having breakfast. He watched the rising sun glowing on her shoulders' skin, her hair blowing due to the sea breeze. Again, fucking asshole, Levinson.

"You ok, Cracker?" Max asked Hannah when she reached him by the back of the building.  He was concerned about the sad smile on her face.

"Yup." She answered and in a flash Max saw that sad simile turn into a wicked grin. But before he could ask what it was about, Hannah had stolen the toast that was in his hand and entered the building.

"Thank you for breakfast, Maltese Falcon." she quipped.

Max stood there, looking at her and then at his empty hand before sighing and following her back in. What was with these lot and fucking up his meals? 

Ari chuckled lightly as he watched the scene. That was the Hannah he had met all those years ago, the annoying but lively little sister. Firefly. He ran his hands through his hair before stretching a bit and heading back to the main building to freshen up and give instructions to the team.

Half an hour later they all had finished breakfast and the local staff were busy doing their assigned chores. Rachel had explained she had been talking to them and had instructed them to resume the usual jobs each one of them had been doing when the previous owners ran the resort. She had made a list with the names of the staff along with their designated tasks, and had asked them to address to her for any doubt or question, as she was the general manager of the hotel. 

When Ari made sure none of the staff were within earshot, he started to explain the situation the refugees he had visited the previous night with Kabede were in.

"It’s worse than we thought. We have to do something as soon as possible." Ari said and stopped as he could hear a pair of men from the staff speaking in Sudanese.

"It's too dangerous to speak here." Hannah said looking over her shoulder to where the voices came from.

"They are just discussing who cleans the kitchen floor." Rachel offered.

"Still. We need to come up with a way to speak more privately." Ari added.

"We could do it on the beach...." Sam started.

"Wait. The boats! We could tell the staff we're looking for diving spots, testing the waters." Jake cut in.

"Great idea, Jake. Let's go for it." Ari grinned.

"Have we unpacked the wetsuits yet?" Max asked looking at Hannah and she shook her head.

"We don't need them. We arrived only yesterday and we want to explore the surroundings there's nothing odd about that." Ari conceded.

They hopped on one of the boats and Jake steered it a few hundred yards off the shore where he cut the engine and allowed the soft waves and current to simply hold them in place as Ari began telling the group about his trip to the camp and his thoughts on their first run.

“Friday's holy to Muslims, so we'll have less military on the street.” Ari nodded as he took off his jacket. The sun was already blazing hot and he could feel it on his arms as he folded the jacket, dropping it to the floor of the boat. “We need a dark night, darkest Friday of the month”

“When is that?” Max asked.

“In two weeks.” Rachel answered him.

“Two weeks. Two weeks it is, then.”  Ari nodded. “Kabede's going to get two trucks from the locals, something inconspicuous that we can park out front of the hotel.” he said, pointing out of the boat back to the shore.

“We should do a dry run.” Sam said, “Familiarize ourselves with the terrain.”

“Jake, we gotta make sure the Navy's on time.” Ari looked at the man.

“What if they can't be?” Jake asked.

“I don’t care, tell them they don't have a choice.” Ari said, an air of urgency in his voice as he shrugged.

“I said, we should do a dry run.” Sam spoke again and Hannah looked at him, taking a deep breath as once more Ari ignored her bother.  

“Max, you and Rachel go with Kabede to get the trucks.” he instructed and Sammy gave a sarcastic scoff of laughter.

“Guess we're not doing a dry run.”

“They're dying, Sammy.” Ari said softly, and everyone turned to face him.  “They're sick, and they're starving. And we're not gonna sit here and enjoy Aziz's fucking cooking, working on our suntan while they're out there suffering, not if we can do something about it.” Max glanced at Hannah who was looking at her feet, before he sat up and cracked his neck. She winced and looked at him.

“I fucking hate it when you do that, you jerk.” she glared, reaching over to shove him. It wasn’t a particularly harsh push in his chest, but it threw him off balance enough to make him wobble backwards, almost sending him over the side of the boat.

“Easy Cracker!” he said, as the rest of the team gave a soft chuckle, the tension of the moment relived slightly as he pointed at her “Just so you know, I go in, you’re coming with me.”

She snorted and looked around, and Ari smiled as Max took a deep breath.

“Sam?” Ari looked at his friend who simply shrugged

“Better start making arrangements.” he replied, raising his eyebrows.

***** Over the next two weeks, in between the preparation they were making for the Mission, the team spent their time ensuring the Resort was cleaned up as much as possible, so that it at least looked passable from the outside. The days consisted of breakfast, work, lunch, work, dinner, drinks, work, bed. They’d done a supply run, stocked up the bar and collected the first supply box that had been shipped out from Ethan which to Hannah and Rachel’s’ delight contained a number of LPs which the girls spent a lot of time listening and dancing to.

The mood was largely light, growing serious when they were planning the mission in depth but overall it was happy, despite the few disagreements Ari and Sammy had over a few minor points. But then, one Wednesday morning drew round, and the mood was noticeably much more sombre. For good reason.

“You ok?” Max asked as Hannah reached into the middle of the table for the coffee pot. She nodded and made herself a drink before she simply turned made to walk away.

“Red?” Jake looked at her, but she ignored him and headed away from the table.

Max watched her go before he turned back to the table. He shared a glance with Ari who was watching Hannah’s back, before he turned his blue eyes to the table, his head bowed slightly.

“What am I missing?” Jake frowned.

“It’s 4 years today since her husband died.” Sammy said gently, looking at Jake.

“Oh, shit.” Jake said with a sigh “Sorry man.”

Sammy waved his apology off and watched Hannah out of the corner of his eye.

"How did it happen? I mean I know you were all on a mission but..." Jake inquired out of curiosity but in an attempt to not hurt anyone with out of place comments or questions as well.

"Jake." Max warned but Ari cut him off, his eyes fixed on the table.

"No, it's all right." he shook his head slightly.

"Ari you don't ..." Sam began to say.

"No, it's not necessary, Ari." Max added looking at Sam and then Ari whose eyes were still fixed on the table avoiding anyone's gaze.

"Sorry, I didn't want to..." Jake frowned as he glanced at Ari who shifted in his seat.

“Ari, are you ok?” Rachel asked him, frowning slightly.

"I'm alive. He isn't. So yeah, I should be ok." Ari replied still not looking at any of his team mates

"What do you mean?" Rachel spoke again, her tone cautious.

"He pushed me out of the way.” Ari spoke slowly “We were ambushed. Most of the team managed to get to a safe place, but Andy and I were stranded. He wouldn’t leave me, because ‘We leave no one behind’ he said. Then there were shots. They were shooting in the dark and a bullet impacted on a rock behind us and ricocheted"

Ari’s voice was steady like he was explaining a story someone had told him hundreds of times. He lifted his head before continuing and everyone could see his eyes watering.

"He pushed me out of the way and took a bullet that was meant for me, straight in the chest." he said looking at Jake.

"Fuck" Jake muttered.

"Fuck indeed" Ari conceded.

Sam and Max looked at each other and sighed. Rachel was unable to take her eyes from the table surface, struggling for something comforting to say and Jake lit a cigarette as he scratched the back of his neck. 

There was a moment’s silence before Ari suddenly stood up and strode swiftly away from the chair.

“Ari…” Max also stood, as if to stop him but Sammy gently grabbed his arm.

“Let him go.” Sammy said.

Max took a deep breath and dropped back into his seat.

********

Ari approached Hannah where she was sat on a large rock cluster at the far end of the beach just before it curved round the shore. But before he could open his mouth she spoke.

"I'm fine, Ari. I just needed to be alone" Hannah said startling him.

"How did you..." he asked.

"I can recognize your smell. Ok, erm, that sounded weird. What I mean is I can recognize the smell of the tobacco you smoke. It's different from Sammy's or Jake's." She explained without looking back at him.

Ari chuckled softly and asked for permission to sit her. "May I?"

She turned her head and looked at him, nodding. Her eyes met his for a few seconds before she turned her gaze back to the sea. 

“I’m sorry.” he spoke softly, “I really am…”

“Yeah, you keep saying, Ari.” she said with a sigh, “But there’s no need. I don’t blame you, you know.” She turned to look at him.

“I was convinced you did.” he said gently, the pair of them staring out at the sun bouncing off the blue water. “That’s why I never reached out to you. Shitty excuse I know but…”

“Would you?” she asked, turning to face him. “Blame me I mean, if it was the other way round and Sarah had died. Would you blame me?”

“How would I know? She left me.” Ari sighed.

“I know. Sammy told me… But still, you know what the answer would be…” Hannah looked at him. “And yeah, for a long time I was angry.” she conceded “Maybe at you too at first, but mostly at him for having to be the hero…but, that’s what you do isn’t it? When you’re out there and you have a split second to make a decision that you think is going to work out…”

Ari didn’t reply, because she was right. He wouldn’t blame her. Knowing what it was like in the field, as a team it was just what you did. You took risks, you watched each other’s 6. You were prepared to make the sacrifice play. With a sad smile he shook his head, looking down at his hands.

“You’re right. I wouldn’t” he said, looking back up over the ocean. “Guess you can still read me like a damned book Firefly.”

She scoffed “I’ve never been able to read you Ari, I thought I could but…”

Ari took that for what it was, a direct stinging barb about him breaking off their relationship, or fling, whatever the hell you could call it. And he deserved it. He had never given her an explanation.

“Andy was a great guy…” Ari cleared his throat. “I’m glad you found each other and got married. You deserved one another.”

“Just wasn’t meant to be huh?” Hannah sighed. “Ironically he’s been dead now longer than we were together…” She fell silent for a moment before she let out a snort “You know, about 6 months ago I went on a date. Just a guy I know from around…”

Ari felt his heart skip a beat. He had taken for granted Hannah would still be grieving and wouldn't be interested in dating. But then again, what did he know? It was over four years now since he had last held a proper conversation with her. She had obviously tried to move on and she had the right to do so. Only he wasn't sure as to why the thought of her going on a date with someone other than Andy made him sick to his stomach. Nevertheless, he smiled and looked at her “Yeah?”

She nodded “I wasn’t gonna but both Mama and Sammy told me I should, that I needed to get out and meet people…” “They’re right.” Ari said, smiling softly.

“Well I wish I hadn’t bothered.” she looked at him “It was a disaster, nothing in common…and he ate his lasagne with a fucking spoon, who does that?”

Ari laughed loudly at the look of disgust on her face “Maya, and she’s 7.”

“Exactly.” Hannah smiled, “and then to top it all off Andy’s sister saw me. I didn’t realise that until the next morning when his mother turned up at the surgery and unleashed absolute hell, calling me every name under the sun.”

“Seriously?” Ari frowned.

Hannah nodded “Mama nearly slapped her.”

“Han, that’s…that’s not fair.” Ari shook his head “They can’t expect you to live your life alone in mourning.”

“Well they clearly do…”

“Then they’re fucking idiots…” he said fiercely “You’re not even 30 yet. Andy…well, he would want you to live your life, be happy.” “Yeah I know.” she said, before she gave a soft laugh “You know, we used to play that game in bed at night. You know the one, the whole would you move on if I died…question. Andy told me he’d run off with a Bond Girl…so I replied that if Simon Le Bon came knocking I’d be off like a shot…”

Ari gave a snort.

“And then it got serious, and he told me…” she took a dep breath, swallowing as the lump formed in her throat “He told me that if it came to it, my heart was more than big enough to love someone else but still remember him.”

Ari glanced at her and sighed as he saw the tears trickling down her face. Automatically he reached out, his arm wrapping over her shoulders. For a moment she tensed, and Ari thought she was going to push him away but she didn’t. Instead she leaned into him slightly, her head resting on his shoulder.

“I never thought I’d find myself actually having to answer it for real.” she said, her voice broken. “Not so soon after us getting married anyway…”

Ari felt a fresh wave of guilt wash over him. She had said didn’t hold him responsible but still, hearing her broken voice as she spoke of Andy made him feel beyond remorseful because the simple fact remained that he was to blame for tearing her life with Andy apart, no matter how much of an accident the whole situation had been.

Eventually she sat up slightly, his arm still round her as she wiped at her face. “Sorry.”

“What for?”

“This…” she gestured to her face and Ari shook his head.

“Don’t…” he said softly “There’s no need to apologise.” he gave her shoulders a squeeze and then he had a sudden idea. “You know, seeing as it’s the first time we’ve all been together in years we should do something tonight, celebrate him a little.  A few drinks, camp fire…” “Yeah.” she smiled at him. “I’d like that.”

“Well then that’s settled.” he smiled, as his stomach gave a huge growl.

Hannah looked at him, and raised an eyebrow “El Lobo Hambriento huh.”

Ari couldn't help but smile at the use of her old nickname for him. He believed her when she had said she didn't blame him and he took her calling him The Hungry Wolf  for what it was, an olive branch of sorts. The line drawn in the sand. But he also didn’t miss the change of pronoun. She had avoided using My instead switching to The. He was once Mi Lobo Hambriento…but that was another story.

For now, the mere fact she’d called it him in any way was music to his ears. His hopes of being able to rekindle whatever friendship they both may have had once were a damned site higher than they had been. So, he let out a loud laugh and gave a sheepish grin.

“It’s been a long time since you called me that.”

She looked at him and gave him a little smile “Well, somethings never change huh?”

He held her gaze for a second before he gave a little sigh and stood up “Well, not wanting to ruin my reputation, I gotta eat…”

He offered her his hand and she took it and he pulled her to her feet. Dropping his hands back into his pockets he walked alongside her back towards the outdoor area where everyone else was sat eating.

“So I take it that it’s safe to assume, seeing as you never left, that Duran Duran’s lead Singer never showed up on your doorstep?” Ari teased and she laughed, genuinely before she looked at him.

“No.”

“His loss.” Ari said, shrugging and she smiled at him again, a genuine smile that warmed the very depth of his soul.

******

The day of the first mission rolled round, and Ari was like a coiled spring. It was planned as best it could be. They went over the maps, the plan, the route again, and their various roles. It was decided that for this one Hannah would be running with them, whilst Rachel would remain behind at base. Sammy was insisting that his sister ride with him and Ari, which Ari wasn’t bothered by in the slightest. If truth be told he was looking forward to it, but the way Hannah had rolled her eyes and merely called her brother a fucking idiot had made him chuckle.

They were fiddling with the military radios that they’d been installing in the trucks, soldering wires, tuning frequencies, Ari slotting an aerial onto his when Jake called over.  

“They're on.”

“Good.” Ari nodded, jumping down from his truck, satisfied both radios were working. “Leaving here in 12 minutes!” he yelled, clapping his hands together.

“All right.” Jake called back.

Ari made his way back into the resort as Rachel dismissed the staff with a thankyou in Arabic

“What did you tell 'em?” Ari asked

“That we were scouting diving spots and that we'd be back in the morning.” she said.  

“Good.” he nodded. At that point he heard some kind of vehicle trundling in the distance.

Hannah and Sammy, who were packing their medical kit also heard it. The siblings shared a glance before Sammy stood up and opened the wooden shades of the window of the hut they were in, and they both glanced out to see a bus approaching in the distance over one of the hills. Looking at one another again, they both exited and began walking across the sand. Max, who was stood by the side of the main building looked at them, waving them over before he glanced back at the approaching bus. The three of them joined Ari, Rachel and Jake at the front of the resort, Ari shooting a glance round at his team.

“You expecting someone?” Max asked.

“Roof. Now. Take the spear gun.” Ari instructed him. Max looked at Ari then down to the half-eaten sandwich in his hand. Hannah reached out and took the food off him with a grin as he rolled his eyes and jogged away to get in position.

As the bus drew closer, Ari turned his head to look up at Max who in turn stared down at him, the spear gun poised whilst the bus stopped outside the main entrance. Hannah instantly spotted the Sudan Ministry of Tourism logo on the side. The doors opened and a large man appeared, clipboard in his hand.

“Ah! Not an easy place to find.” he greeted them cheerily in a prominent German accent “You need better signage, for sure.”

Jake looked around, locking eyes with Ari who turned back to the new arrivals, his face passive as the man continued to talk. Rachel stepped forward and started to converse with him in German, Hannah tilting her head slightly to the right as she caught the odd word, enough to make her understand that Rachel was asking him what he was looking for.

The words “Red Sea Diving Resort” came across loud and clear, however, to the rest of the team and Sammy looked down, scoffing slightly, smile on his face as he shook his head.

“It is, but we are still under construction.” Rachel said, switching instantly into her cover role of Angela.

“Well, we're still months away from opening.” Ari added

“We just drove eight hours from Khartoum because of this.” the man said, his tone less friendly as he pulled out one of the diving resort brochures from his pocket “Huh?” Rachel took it from him no one quite sure what to do.

“Come, come. Alles gut. Alles gut.” the man started beckoning the people off the bus as Rachel turned and handed Ari the brochure. “Ja?”

Ari took the brochure and smiled at the man, as Hannah looked up at Max on the roof who was watching, a puzzled expression on his face as the tourists headed off the bus and into the resort.

“Show them out the back…” Ari looked at Rachel and then to Hannah. “Get them a drink, let them take in the view. In the mean-time have the staff set some of the tables out inside, and then meet us in the kitchen.”

They did as they were told, and once the loud excited chattering between guests outside made Hannah assume they were happy, Rachel nodding and laughing with a few of them, the two women headed inside, where the guys were already waiting, Max once more eating. Hannah hopped up onto one of the counters at the far side of the room, her legs gently swinging as she sat. No one said anything for a moment, Rachel standing and watching the movement in the main room through the lattice wall screen.

“Well, you have to send them home.” she said, turning to Ari.

“We can't do that.” he said as he leaned against one of the wall columns, his hand resting inside his open dark denim shirt, fisting slightly in the black T-shirt he had on underneath.

“Yes, we can. We point them in the direction of a real hotel.”  Sammy said, his back resting on the refrigerator.

“Colonel Madibbo sent them here. The last thing we need is to get complaints about this place.” Ari sighed, looking at his watch. “Fuck, we're an hour late.”  

He strode forward and glanced into the room, watching as he folded his arms, running his hand over his beard.

“So what do we do?” Hannah asked, watching him.

Ari shook his head, thinking for a moment. There was really only one thing they could do.

“Check 'em in.” he said after a moments pause, his hand held out at the side of his face before he turned to look at everyone “Give ‘em rooms”

“Check them in?” Sam asked in disbelief.

“Yeah.”

“Are you crazy? This is a fake hotel.” Sam shook his head.

“So fake it.” Ari pressed.

Max chuckled from behind him, and Ari turned to look at him before he spun back to face the group as Hannah spoke.

“Ari’s right.” she said gently, and Ari looked at her, surprise evident on his face. “We send them back it’s gonna open a whole can of worms and before we know it our cover is blown.” she shrugged and looked round at the team before her bright blue eyes settled on her brother’s “What else can we do?”

Sam’s mouth fell open and he turned to his sister “You’re out of your mind!” he shook his head “You’ve no idea what-“

“Don’t talk to me like I’m a kid Sammy.” she cut him off, her voice stern.

“Ok, ok, look…” Ari said, breaking up the siblings squabbling “We all knew this could happen at some point, right?” “We did?” Sammy said, sarcastically.

“I didn't.”  Jake shook his head.

“Well…” Hannah shrugged, hopping down from her perch, looking around with a soft smile “Our fake hotel just became a real one.”

****

Chapter 3

[takearisk-x]

K well in my head Harry AK the other person you were shipping with Ginny.

SO IT DOESN’T MATTER!

HINNY SUPREMACY!!!

HINNY SUPREMACY DAMN STRAIGHT!!!

[bobbyboops]

Okay then nan! Roast all the islanders!

Cracks knuckles. Let’s do this.

Let’s start with the low hanging fruit first shall we?

Felix- if you don’t shut your dumb ass mouth, I will bitch slap you with your own clammy ass hand. How dare you approach me smelling like a whole can of axe body spray, you overgrown toddler.

Jakub- the amount of confidence you have as a giant ass thumb is almost admirable. Take your ironed socks and your micro penis and get out of my face before your shirt button finally gives up its losing battle and I lose an eye. I am not trying to get hulk smashed today.

Marisol- you chicken handed bitch. Maybe try caring about literally anyone besides yourself. Psychoanalizing everything isn’t a personality trait, at least not one I would brag about, but 🤷🏼‍♀️. Also imagine being immature enough to use and backstab everyone in the game, and you still get voted out before the final... oh wait you don’t have to imagine. That’s your reality.

Hope- imagine a world where you aren’t the boss, and the center of attention?? Can you picture it? Good now you see what everyone else does.

Jo- I honestly don’t even know where to begin with you, so much low hanging fruit I’m overwhelmed. I guess I will just point at your entire self.

Elisa- girl call your gynecologist ASAP.. your lingerie fabric is in places only God can find. Also imagine thinking coming up with a lame ass insult like gossip sneezer made you important.

Elijah- I would roast you, but that would require I find you interesting enough to notice you. Sorry.

Noah- there’s a fancy new thing called a spine... find one.

Lottie- maybe if you weren’t such a watch dog you would have more friends. It’s funny to me on day 2 when you get after priya saying “you make it sound hot, everyone loves authority figures right?” Considering you make it a point to be the enforcer of all things girl code... even though you can’t ever police yourself. Everyone loves a hypocrite right?

Rocco- it’s difficult to come up with a decent roast for someone who self roasts every time they open their mouth and think whatever comes out is interesting... 🤷🏼‍♀️ also shower please. That’s not a roast just an honest request. I can smell you through my screen.

Hannah- It’s sad to me that the most interesting thing about you is that absolute atrocity of your post “glow up” hair, and wondering what kind of core strength you just have to stand in such a way. The back problems you must have carrying that hair flip around. I feel for you.

Kassam-You had no business lying about your age on your application. We all know you’re twelve.

Graham- Imagine consciously choosing to have a crab permanently tattooed on your body. Oh wait.. you did. More than once.

Arjun- a 70’s porno called. They want their mustache back.

Carl- you look like a tiktok eboy... you have suffered enough.

Bobby- Miami vice called, they need their wardrobe back.

Gary- inviting a girl to a ship yard isn’t romantic, it’s how every horror film starts. No girl wants to go with you because they are afraid they will end up in your trunk with you saying “it puts the lotion on the skin.”

Ibrahim- Asking jo to be your girlfriend confirmed to me you are a certified clown. Also you have the personality of your average sack of flour.

Here you go anon hope you enjoyed my sassy side.

[nooneofimportance20]

Chapter 3

"Dream?" I hear a faint whisper and feel arms wrap around me.

"Dream, are you awake?" I hear George ask me in a raspy voice.

"Now I am. What's wrong?"

"Just a nightmare, I guess," The brunette replies, pulling his arms away from me. The places he held me still feel warm, and I almost grab his hands to stop him from pulling away.

What is wrong with me?

"Do you want to talk about it?" I ask.

"I don't want to keep you from sleeping," He replies, his voice cracking a little.

"It's fine, George. I'm not very tired anyway, and I want to make sure your okay."

I turned to my other side to face George and prompted him to tell me about his nightmare.

"Okay, um, so, I get this nightmare a lot, and it's always the same. It starts with my close family and my friends walking out of some building. The building is always different, but the time stays the same. It's around 10:00 pm, and it's extremely dark out. Everyone is laughing and having a good time talking to one another, except for me. I can't hear anything they say, just their mocking laughter as we walk to the car. I can't walk with them anymore. No matter how much I tell myself to walk with them and blend in, I can't," I give him a look of sympathy as his voice begins to shake and he begins to hyperventilate.

I reach out and grab his hand, willing him to continue. He looks back at me with a weak smile.

"I stand there, and everyone turns to look at me, urging me to continue walking with the rest of them. I can't. The harder I try, the more everything hurts. So, I stand there, away from everyone I love, staring. Eventually, everyone turns away from me and continues walking. Walking away from me without a second glance, without even stopping to think, is George going to be okay? They all get into their cars and drive away without me. So, I stand there alone and slowly crumbling to the ground as shadows make their way to me. They engulf me. Distant whispering in my mind telling me what to be and how to act, defining me. Saying I'll never be good enough. Murmurs of how they will never love me as I am, and they will never come back to pick me up from the dark lonely pit of despair I have fallen into. I stumble around in the darkness looking for a light to help me. Eventually, it all becomes too much, and I let the darkness consume the world around me. Whispers cut through me like knives, mocking me. I sit in a ball with my eyes closed, and then I wake up."

By the time George has finished telling me the story, his eyes are filled with tears, and he is shaking.

He looks away from me, embarrassed, and all I want to do is wrap him in my arms.

So I do.

I reach towards George and hold him tightly while he cries.

"Thank you for being vulnerable with me, George. I'm happy that you can tell me this, and I promise I'm never going to leave you."

"Thanks, Dream. Please don't tell anyone about it, though."

A mixture of pride and confidence washes over me at these words. George trusts me enough to keep this a secret.

I placed a small kiss on the top of his forehead. He didn't even bother trying to get out of my grasp or say anything. George melted into my embrace and began to relax, taking deep breaths.

George mumbles something I can't hear and seems to fall asleep.

___________________________________________________________

I wake up early in the morning to a strange movement next to me.

It's probably just Patches.

I lean forward to get up, and I'm immediately tugged back down to the bed.

That is NOT Patches!

Slowly turning my head to look in the direction of my captor, I see George.

My heart stops.

It's as if time freezes and only I can move. The boy looks so peaceful lying there, not a care in the world, as his mind recounts endless memories or things you would never do and see in reality.

I stay staring at him like that for a long time, admiring the beauty of his calmness.

My eyes sweep over every detail on his face. The way his nose turns upward, but not aggressively. How his skin is so soft and how his freckles are dark compared to the pale tone of his face. His lips are thin but thick enough that when he smiles, they don't disappear. The color of his brown hair isn't anything different but still seems to mesmerize me. The most beautiful part is those chocolate brown eyes. It's not noticeable from a farther distance, but I can see flecks of gold in them.

Wait. Eyes? Well, sh!t.

George is staring at me, and a look of shock crosses onto my face.

"Admiring my beauty, I see?" He asks, with a smug grin on his face.

"Well, if you had let go of me, then I wouldn't be," I replied, my face sporting a slight blush.

"So you were?"

"No!"

Lies.

George simply rolled his eyes at me and got out of bed, reaching into his suitcase. He pulls out a white T-shirt and faded jeans.

I get out of bed and go to grab my clothes, taking my shirt off as I walk. I decide to wear an oversized black hoodie and black, ripped, skinny jeans.

When I turn around, I see George staring right at me.

"Admiring my beauty, I see?" I ask, laughing and not expecting an answer.

"Yes, actually." He smiled at me, and the tables were turned.

"Oh really, Georgie? What about me is so beautiful?"

"Your laugh," He replies, smiling, "It's cute."

"I dunno, George. That's kind of gay," I say jokingly.

"Yeah, I know," Still smiling.

I stop laughing.

"What?" My face goes red.

George freezes, staring at me.

"I said I'm going to go and change." He replies, pointing towards the bathroom door and looking very flustered.

"Okay." I manage to say.

George walks into the bathroom and shuts the door behind him.

What just happened. Why is my heart beating so fast? He just said he liked my laugh.

Maybe he just realized how it sounded and was making a joke.

I take this time to put on the hoodie and jeans, then I walk downstairs to see if Sapnap is awake. I don't really want to think about what just happened.

When I reach the bottom of the stairs, I look into the living room and find Sapnap sitting on the couch on his phone.

"Good morning," I greet. Sapnap looks up from his phone and mumbles a 'morning' back to me.

"I was thinking we could go out today for breakfast. What do you think?" Sapnap asks, a smile on his face.

"Sounds good to me. I know of a nice place, and the food is great!"

"When should we leave?"

"I think George is getting ready, and the place is about a half-hour from here. Let's wait for George, then go."

"What for?" I turn towards the stairs and see George walking down them and into the living room.

"Breakfast," I replied awkwardly.

"Oh, okay. Let's go then."

Sapnap puts his phone away and gets off the couch while George and I walk over to the front door.

Patches give me a rub on the leg to tell me goodbye, and I shut the door behind us, walking out to the car.

"So, where are we going?"

"An old diner I used to go to as a kid. They have good food and pastries," I tell the brunette.

I start the car, and Sapnap begins playing music while we drive.

Time Skip~

When I pull into the parking lot, George looks up from his phone and gives me a curious look.

"Is this it?" He asks.

"Yeah, it doesn't look like much, but it's a very nice place."

All three of us hop out of the car and walk inside the diner. A waitress walks up to us after we sit down.

"Hi, I'm Hannah, and I'll be your server for today." She says, staring directly at me.

"Hello, Hannah."

"Can I get you anything to drink?"

"I'll take a water, please," Sapnap replies. Hannah looks at him and scribbles it down without saying anything.

"What would you like?" She says, turning to look back towards me.

"Lemonade would be fine."

"Lemonade it is!" the girl comments, a big smile on her face.

I give her a small smile back.

"I'll have a lemonade too, please!" George gives her a smile, and she mutters an okay. She turns around walking away.

"What are you going to order, Sapnap?" I ask after everyone has looked over the menu.

"Eggs, bacon, and toast. Everything on here looks good, though."

"Well, I'm getting French toast!" George says, looking excited.

"What about you, Dream?" Sapnap questions.

"Chocolate chip pancakes," I reply. The waitress steps back up to us with beverages in hand.

She sets down the drinks and flashes me a smile before taking our orders. When she walks away, Sapnap gives me a funny look.

"She is definitely interested in you," He exclaims.

"Well, I'm not," I reply, rolling my eyes.

"I forgot you were in love with George!" My face heats up in embarrassment at his words. After what happened that morning, I was already feeling a little awkward.

"I am not in love with George. You should have heard what he told me this morning!"

"Don't you dare, Dream!" George whisper shouts, elbowing me in the gut.

"He said my laugh was cute," I snort, laughing while George slaps me in the arm looking mad.

"It was a joke," George mutters, his arms crossed and eyebrows drawn together.

"Sorry, George," I say, looking at him.

Sapnap sits there in awe at what he heard, building a ship in his mind, no doubt.

"Well, this morning, I caught you staring at me while I was asleep!"

"I told you already, I wasn't staring at you!"

"Woah, Woah, Woah. You guys are like an old married couple arguing." Sapnap laughs, looking between the two of us.

I was about to say something when our waitress, Hannah, brought us our breakfast. Instead, I stuffed my mouth with pancake out of embarrassment, hoping Sapnap wouldn't ask any questions.

I looked over and saw George smiling widely at the plate of food in front of him.

Small Time Skip because I don't want to write about people eating.

"Are you all ready to go then?" Hannah asks me.

"I think so."

"Okay, here you go," She says, handing me the check.

"Thanks."

"Yeah," She pauses, "You know, we should go out sometime."

I look at my friend's not wanting to be rude. My discomfort is obvious, at least not to her.

"Sorry, he has a boyfriend," I hear George say.

"Well, I don't see him, and you can let your friend answer himself."

"His boyfriend is right there," Sapnap says, pointing to George.

"Really?" She says sarcastically.

"Yes, really," George replies, giving me a side hug and a kiss on the cheek, not letting go of me.

George stares the girl down until she walks away, scoffing.

I can feel myself blushing hard, and I sit there stiff in surprise. George still has not let go of me

"Thanks?" I say as more of a question.

"Jeez, no need to sound so grateful," George replies, letting go of me. I roll my eyes.

"Thank you, George!"

I pull him into a tight hug and rub him on the head aggressively while he attempts to shake me off.

"Get off," he says, shoving me away from him.

"Where are my thanks. I kind of helped," Sapnap asked, a fake pout on his face.

"You don't get thanks. All you did was point at George and agree with him."

"Fine. I didn't want a 'thanks' from you."

I start to laugh a bit and give him a short thank you. I pay for our food, and we get up to leave.

As we get up to leave, I see George glaring at the girl who was our server, and I smile a little despite what had happened.

We get into the car, and I realize how early in the day it still is.

"So, do you guys want to go home or find something else to do out here?"

"I don't want to waste the day," Sapnap replies.

"I agree with Snapmap," George says, a grin forming on his face.

"Don't call me that!"

"It's s-so c-cute, though," He manages to say between laughs.

"Shut up, George! You too, Dream," I had begun to laugh while he was speaking.

"Okay, Sapitus Napitus." I snicker.

For the next 15 minutes of driving, trying to find something to do, we keep poking fun at Sapnap's name.

"Pull over," he says, a serious look on his face.

"What? Why?"

I pull into the parking lot of a strip mall.

"I'm going to Uber back home," Sapnap replies pulling out his phone.

"Sapnap, we were joking."

"I'm glad you have fun at my expense. Please, continue while I'm gone," Sapnap rolls his eyes, and his voice is filled with sarcasm.

"Were sorry, Nick," George says Sapnap's real name with a sincere look on his face.

"You might be."

"I am too. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings."

"Good to know. That would have really warmed my heart if I wasn't joking," Sapnap answered with a smirk on his face. George and I stare at him in confusion. "The real reason I told you to stop is that I saw a river, and there are some shops around here so we can find something to swim in."

"First of all, what the hell Sapnap, you scared me. Secondly, that's not a bad idea. Don't do that again, though," I say.

"Don't call me names!"

"He has a point, Dream," George adds.

"Fine, let's go swimming, I guess," I mumble.

___________________________________________________________

Thanks for reading. This chapter was kind of all over the place, but the beginning was kind of important to me. The nightmare that George had is actually a recurring nightmare of mine. I tried to show how it made me feel. Writing it out made me understand more about my nightmare. The part where I stop walking and everyone stares at me is me being different than most in my family. I was afraid of people thinking differently of me because of my sexuality. That's where the "No matter how much I tell myself to walk with them and blend in, I cant" part comes into play. The only person in my family that is part of the LGBTQ+ community is my father. He usually isn't in the nightmare. Eventually, trying to keep my being bi a secret and blending in becomes too much. I was becoming depressed, keeping it to myself. One might say I was in a pit of despair. The whispering was the thoughts in my head telling me to be like everyone else and forget. I had this nightmare the night before I finally came out of the closet to my immediate family, and it doesn't come as much anymore. I still get them once in a while when my mom says something that makes me feel like she still doesn't accept me. I just want to thank you for reading this chapter because it will always be special to me.

I hope you guys have a great day or night and stay safe! I love you for who you are!

-Mak

Word Count: 2550 (I am so proud of myself)

[what-is-your-plan-today]

Leave No One Behind Ch2: The Red Sea Diving Resort

Part 2

Co written with @icanfeelastormbrewing​

Just a reminder- episode Warnings: Bad Language words. Allusions to death and serious injury.

Series Master List   //  Main Masterlist 

Part 1 

Later that night Ari headed out to meet Kabede who took him to the refugee camp. It was dirty, crowded, there was hardly any food…and then there was the woman. She’d shouted at both Ari and Kabede for bringing her to the camp exclaiming that her father had died, her husband was missing and her son was sick. Ari left feeling like shit, determined to do what he could, as soon as he could.

By the time he arrived back at the resort it was already dawn. As he parked the jeep he spotted Hannah walking down the sand towards the main part of the resort dressed in a pair of denim shorts and a tank top. He gave her a shout and she stopped and turned to face him, her hand shielding her eyes from the rising sun.

“You’re up early.” he smiled at her.

“None of us have been to bed.” she shrugged “We had too much to do, making the place habitable. We’ve figured out what each of the staff do…oh, and we also now have functioning showers. Max and Sammy got the hot water running.” she smirked slightly, nodding at him “You should take one…”

“Do I smell that bad?” he teased.

“Not considering you’ve been in those clothes for like, what? 48 hours?”

“Fuck knows.” he shrugged.

“How did it go?”

Ari took a sigh, his hands dropping to his hips “Honestly? It was horrible. There’s hundreds of them crowded in there Han. They’re sick and…”He ran a hand over his face as Hannah waited for him to continue “There was one woman there, she was crying, saying she’d left her home for nothing and she’d lost her husband and…”

“Well I know how she feels.” Hannah said softly as her hand moved to her neck involuntarily, and Ari saw her eyes flutter shut when she realised her necklace wasn’t there. She’d left it at home, for the same reason his Star of David chain was on his bedside table in his apartment- they were too obvious, invited too many questions, pointed to a part of their real lives and they couldn’t afford anything at all to do so.

“Firefly…you know, if I could change anything, about what happened…”

“But you can’t Ari.” she said softly before she took a deep breath “Andy knew the risks, we both did…” and just like that the walls were back up, and her face had recovered.  “Come on, we should get some breakfast and then you can fill everyone in properly.”

With that she reached out to gently touch his arm before she headed off towards the hotel.

Ari watched her go. He hadn't reacted to her soft touch, not even a smile back or even a squeeze of her hand. The skin on his arm was burning where she had placed her hand but he was frozen on the spot consumed by guilt. Guilt about what he had just witnessed a few hours prior and guilt about what he was sure Hannah was feeling thanks to his desire to bring up Andy, once again, to purge his guilt. Fucking asshole, Levinson.

She reached the spot by the tables at the back of the resort where Max was stood having breakfast. He watched the rising sun glowing on her shoulders' skin, her hair blowing due to the sea breeze. Again, fucking asshole, Levinson.

"You ok, Cracker?" Max asked Hannah when she reached him by the back of the building.  He was concerned about the sad smile on her face.

"Yup." She answered and in a flash Max saw that sad simile turn into a wicked grin. But before he could ask what it was about, Hannah had stolen the toast that was in his hand and entered the building.

"Thank you for breakfast, Maltese Falcon." she quipped.

Max stood there, looking at her and then at his empty hand before sighing and following her back in. What was with these lot and fucking up his meals?

Ari chuckled lightly as he watched the scene. That was the Hannah he had met all those years ago, the annoying but lively little sister. Firefly. He ran his hands through his hair before stretching a bit and heading back to the main building to freshen up and give instructions to the team.

Half an hour later they all had finished breakfast and the local staff were busy doing their assigned chores. Rachel had explained she had been talking to them and had instructed them to resume the usual jobs each one of them had been doing when the previous owners ran the resort. She had made a list with the names of the staff along with their designated tasks, and had asked them to address to her for any doubt or question, as she was the general manager of the hotel.

When Ari made sure none of the staff were within earshot, he started to explain the situation the refugees he had visited the previous night with Kabede were in.

"It’s worse than we thought. We have to do something as soon as possible." Ari said and stopped as he could hear a pair of men from the staff speaking in Sudanese.

"It's too dangerous to speak here." Hannah said looking over her shoulder to where the voices came from.

"They are just discussing who cleans the kitchen floor." Rachel offered.

"Still. We need to come up with a way to speak more privately." Ari added.

"We could do it on the beach...." Sam started.

"Wait. The boats! We could tell the staff we're looking for diving spots, testing the waters." Jake cut in.

"Great idea, Jake. Let's go for it." Ari grinned.

"Have we unpacked the wetsuits yet?" Max asked looking at Hannah and she shook her head.

"We don't need them. We arrived only yesterday and we want to explore the surroundings there's nothing odd about that." Ari conceded.

They hopped on one of the boats and Jake steered it a few hundred yards off the shore where he cut the engine and allowed the soft waves and current to simply hold them in place as Ari began telling the group about his trip to the camp and his thoughts on their first run.

“Friday's holy to Muslims, so we'll have less military on the street.” Ari nodded as he took off his jacket. The sun was already blazing hot and he could feel it on his arms as he folded the jacket, dropping it to the floor of the boat. “We need a dark night, darkest Friday of the month”

“When is that?” Max asked.

“In two weeks.” Rachel answered him.

“Two weeks. Two weeks it is, then.”  Ari nodded. “Kabede's going to get two trucks from the locals, something inconspicuous that we can park out front of the hotel.” he said, pointing out of the boat back to the shore.

“We should do a dry run.” Sam said, “Familiarize ourselves with the terrain.”

“Jake, we gotta make sure the Navy's on time.” Ari looked at the man.

“What if they can't be?” Jake asked.

“I don’t care, tell them they don't have a choice.” Ari said, an air of urgency in his voice as he shrugged.

“I said, we should do a dry run.” Sam spoke again and Hannah looked at him, taking a deep breath as once more Ari ignored her bother.

“Max, you and Rachel go with Kabede to get the trucks.” he instructed and Sammy gave a sarcastic scoff of laughter.

“Guess we're not doing a dry run.”

“They're dying, Sammy.” Ari said softly, and everyone turned to face him.  “They're sick, and they're starving. And we're not gonna sit here and enjoy Aziz's fucking cooking, working on our suntan while they're out there suffering, not if we can do something about it.” Max glanced at Hannah who was looking at her feet, before he sat up and cracked his neck. She winced and looked at him.

“I fucking hate it when you do that, you jerk.” she glared, reaching over to shove him. It wasn’t a particularly harsh push in his chest, but it threw him off balance enough to make him wobble backwards, almost sending him over the side of the boat.

“Easy Cracker!” he said, as the rest of the team gave a soft chuckle, the tension of the moment relived slightly as he pointed at her “Just so you know, I go in, you’re coming with me.”

She snorted and looked around, and Ari smiled as Max took a deep breath.

“Sam?” Ari looked at his friend who simply shrugged

“Better start making arrangements.” he replied, raising his eyebrows.

***** Over the next two weeks, in between the preparation they were making for the Mission, the team spent their time ensuring the Resort was cleaned up as much as possible, so that it at least looked passable from the outside. The days consisted of breakfast, work, lunch, work, dinner, drinks, work, bed. They’d done a supply run, stocked up the bar and collected the first supply box that had been shipped out from Ethan which to Hannah and Rachel’s’ delight contained a number of LPs which the girls spent a lot of time listening and dancing to.

The mood was largely light, growing serious when they were planning the mission in depth but overall it was happy, despite the few disagreements Ari and Sammy had over a few minor points. But then, one Wednesday morning drew round, and the mood was noticeably much more sombre. For good reason.

“You ok?” Max asked as Hannah reached into the middle of the table for the coffee pot. She nodded and made herself a drink before she simply turned made to walk away.

“Red?” Jake looked at her, but she ignored him and headed away from the table.

Max watched her go before he turned back to the table. He shared a glance with Ari who was watching Hannah’s back, before he turned his blue eyes to the table, his head bowed slightly.

“What am I missing?” Jake frowned.

“It’s 4 years today since her husband died.” Sammy said gently, looking at Jake.

“Oh, shit.” Jake said with a sigh “Sorry man.”

Sammy waved his apology off and watched Hannah out of the corner of his eye.

"How did it happen? I mean I know you were all on a mission but..." Jake inquired out of curiosity but in an attempt to not hurt anyone with out of place comments or questions as well.

"Jake." Max warned but Ari cut him off, his eyes fixed on the table.

"No, it's all right." he shook his head slightly.

"Ari you don't ..." Sam began to say.

"No, it's not necessary, Ari." Max added looking at Sam and then Ari whose eyes were still fixed on the table avoiding anyone's gaze.

"Sorry, I didn't want to..." Jake frowned as he glanced at Ari who shifted in his seat.

“Ari, are you ok?” Rachel asked him, frowning slightly.

"I'm alive. He isn't. So yeah, I should be ok." Ari replied still not looking at any of his team mates

"What do you mean?" Rachel spoke again, her tone cautious.

"He pushed me out of the way.” Ari spoke slowly “We were ambushed. Most of the team managed to get to a safe place, but Andy and I were stranded. He wouldn’t leave me, because ‘We leave no one behind’ he said. Then there were shots. They were shooting in the dark and a bullet impacted on a rock behind us and ricocheted"

Ari’s voice was steady like he was explaining a story someone had told him hundreds of times. He lifted his head before continuing and everyone could see his eyes watering.

"He pushed me out of the way and took a bullet that was meant for me, straight in the chest." he said looking at Jake.

"Fuck" Jake muttered.

"Fuck indeed" Ari conceded.

Sam and Max looked at each other and sighed. Rachel was unable to take her eyes from the table surface, struggling for something comforting to say and Jake lit a cigarette as he scratched the back of his neck.

There was a moment’s silence before Ari suddenly stood up and strode swiftly away from the chair.

“Ari…” Max also stood, as if to stop him but Sammy gently grabbed his arm.

“Let him go.” Sammy said.

Max took a deep breath and dropped back into his seat.

********

Ari approached Hannah where she was sat on a large rock cluster at the far end of the beach just before it curved round the shore. But before he could open his mouth she spoke.

"I'm fine, Ari. I just needed to be alone" Hannah said startling him.

"How did you..." he asked.

"I can recognize your smell. Ok, erm, that sounded weird. What I mean is I can recognize the smell of the tobacco you smoke. It's different from Sammy's or Jake's." She explained without looking back at him.

Ari chuckled softly and asked for permission to sit her. "May I?"

She turned her head and looked at him, nodding. Her eyes met his for a few seconds before she turned her gaze back to the sea.

“I’m sorry.” he spoke softly, “I really am…”

“Yeah, you keep saying, Ari.” she said with a sigh, “But there’s no need. I don’t blame you, you know.” She turned to look at him.

“I was convinced you did.” he said gently, the pair of them staring out at the sun bouncing off the blue water. “That’s why I never reached out to you. Shitty excuse I know but…”

“Would you?” she asked, turning to face him. “Blame me I mean, if it was the other way round and Sarah had died. Would you blame me?”

“How would I know? She left me.” Ari sighed.

“I know. Sammy told me… But still, you know what the answer would be…” Hannah looked at him. “And yeah, for a long time I was angry.” she conceded “Maybe at you too at first, but mostly at him for having to be the hero…but, that’s what you do isn’t it? When you’re out there and you have a split second to make a decision that you think is going to work out…”

Ari didn’t reply, because she was right. He wouldn’t blame her. Knowing what it was like in the field, as a team it was just what you did. You took risks, you watched each other’s 6. You were prepared to make the sacrifice play. With a sad smile he shook his head, looking down at his hands.

“You’re right. I wouldn’t” he said, looking back up over the ocean. “Guess you can still read me like a damned book Firefly.”

She scoffed “I’ve never been able to read you Ari, I thought I could but…”

Ari took that for what it was, a direct stinging barb about him breaking off their relationship, or fling, whatever the hell you could call it. And he deserved it. He had never given her an explanation.

“Andy was a great guy…” Ari cleared his throat. “I’m glad you found each other and got married. You deserved one another.”

“Just wasn’t meant to be huh?” Hannah sighed. “Ironically he’s been dead now longer than we were together…” She fell silent for a moment before she let out a snort “You know, about 6 months ago I went on a date. Just a guy I know from around…”

Ari felt his heart skip a beat. He had taken for granted Hannah would still be grieving and wouldn't be interested in dating. But then again, what did he know? It was over four years now since he had last held a proper conversation with her. She had obviously tried to move on and she had the right to do so. Only he wasn't sure as to why the thought of her going on a date with someone other than Andy made him sick to his stomach. Nevertheless, he smiled and looked at her “Yeah?”

She nodded “I wasn’t gonna but both Mama and Sammy told me I should, that I needed to get out and meet people…” “They’re right.” Ari said, smiling softly.

“Well I wish I hadn’t bothered.” she looked at him “It was a disaster, nothing in common…and he ate his lasagne with a fucking spoon, who does that?”

Ari laughed loudly at the look of disgust on her face “Maya, and she’s 7.”

“Exactly.” Hannah smiled, “and then to top it all off Andy’s sister saw me. I didn’t realise that until the next morning when his mother turned up at the surgery and unleashed absolute hell, calling me every name under the sun.”

“Seriously?” Ari frowned.

Hannah nodded “Mama nearly slapped her.”

“Han, that’s…that’s not fair.” Ari shook his head “They can’t expect you to live your life alone in mourning.”

“Well they clearly do…”

“Then they’re fucking idiots…” he said fiercely “You’re not even 30 yet. Andy…well, he would want you to live your life, be happy.” “Yeah I know.” she said, before she gave a soft laugh “You know, we used to play that game in bed at night. You know the one, the whole would you move on if I died…question. Andy told me he’d run off with a Bond Girl…so I replied that if Simon Le Bon came knocking I’d be off like a shot…”

Ari gave a snort.

“And then it got serious, and he told me…” she took a dep breath, swallowing as the lump formed in her throat “He told me that if it came to it, my heart was more than big enough to love someone else but still remember him.”

Ari glanced at her and sighed as he saw the tears trickling down her face. Automatically he reached out, his arm wrapping over her shoulders. For a moment she tensed, and Ari thought she was going to push him away but she didn’t. Instead she leaned into him slightly, her head resting on his shoulder.

“I never thought I’d find myself actually having to answer it for real.” she said, her voice broken. “Not so soon after us getting married anyway…”

Ari felt a fresh wave of guilt wash over him. She had said didn’t hold him responsible but still, hearing her broken voice as she spoke of Andy made him feel beyond remorseful because the simple fact remained that he was to blame for tearing her life with Andy apart, no matter how much of an accident the whole situation had been.

Eventually she sat up slightly, his arm still round her as she wiped at her face. “Sorry.”

“What for?”

“This…” she gestured to her face and Ari shook his head.

“Don’t…” he said softly “There’s no need to apologise.” he gave her shoulders a squeeze and then he had a sudden idea. “You know, seeing as it’s the first time we’ve all been together in years we should do something tonight, celebrate him a little.  A few drinks, camp fire…” “Yeah.” she smiled at him. “I’d like that.”

“Well then that’s settled.” he smiled, as his stomach gave a huge growl.

Hannah looked at him, and raised an eyebrow “El Lobo Hambriento huh.”

Ari couldn't help but smile at the use of her old nickname for him. He believed her when she had said she didn't blame him and he took her calling him The Hungry Wolf  for what it was, an olive branch of sorts. The line drawn in the sand. But he also didn’t miss the change of pronoun. She had avoided using My instead switching to The. He was once Mi Lobo Hambriento…but that was another story.

For now, the mere fact she’d called it him in any way was music to his ears. His hopes of being able to rekindle whatever friendship they both may have had once were a damned site higher than they had been. So, he let out a loud laugh and gave a sheepish grin.

“It’s been a long time since you called me that.”

She looked at him and gave him a little smile “Well, somethings never change huh?”

He held her gaze for a second before he gave a little sigh and stood up “Well, not wanting to ruin my reputation, I gotta eat…”

He offered her his hand and she took it and he pulled her to her feet. Dropping his hands back into his pockets he walked alongside her back towards the outdoor area where everyone else was sat eating.

“So I take it that it’s safe to assume, seeing as you never left, that Duran Duran’s lead Singer never showed up on your doorstep?” Ari teased and she laughed, genuinely before she looked at him.

“No.”

“His loss.” Ari said, shrugging and she smiled at him again, a genuine smile that warmed the very depth of his soul.

******

The day of the first mission rolled round, and Ari was like a coiled spring. It was planned as best it could be. They went over the maps, the plan, the route again, and their various roles. It was decided that for this one Hannah would be running with them, whilst Rachel would remain behind at base. Sammy was insisting that his sister ride with him and Ari, which Ari wasn’t bothered by in the slightest. If truth be told he was looking forward to it, but the way Hannah had rolled her eyes and merely called her brother a fucking idiot had made him chuckle.

They were fiddling with the military radios that they’d been installing in the trucks, soldering wires, tuning frequencies, Ari slotting an aerial onto his when Jake called over.

“They're on.”

“Good.” Ari nodded, jumping down from his truck, satisfied both radios were working. “Leaving here in 12 minutes!” he yelled, clapping his hands together.

“All right.” Jake called back.

Ari made his way back into the resort as Rachel dismissed the staff with a thankyou in Arabic

“What did you tell 'em?” Ari asked

“That we were scouting diving spots and that we'd be back in the morning.” she said.

“Good.” he nodded. At that point he heard some kind of vehicle trundling in the distance.

Hannah and Sammy, who were packing their medical kit also heard it. The siblings shared a glance before Sammy stood up and opened the wooden shades of the window of the hut they were in, and they both glanced out to see a bus approaching in the distance over one of the hills. Looking at one another again, they both exited and began walking across the sand. Max, who was stood by the side of the main building looked at them, waving them over before he glanced back at the approaching bus. The three of them joined Ari, Rachel and Jake at the front of the resort, Ari shooting a glance round at his team.

“You expecting someone?” Max asked.

“Roof. Now. Take the spear gun.” Ari instructed him. Max looked at Ari then down to the half-eaten sandwich in his hand. Hannah reached out and took the food off him with a grin as he rolled his eyes and jogged away to get in position.

As the bus drew closer, Ari turned his head to look up at Max who in turn stared down at him, the spear gun poised whilst the bus stopped outside the main entrance. Hannah instantly spotted the Sudan Ministry of Tourism logo on the side. The doors opened and a large man appeared, clipboard in his hand.

“Ah! Not an easy place to find.” he greeted them cheerily in a prominent German accent “You need better signage, for sure.”

Jake looked around, locking eyes with Ari who turned back to the new arrivals, his face passive as the man continued to talk. Rachel stepped forward and started to converse with him in German, Hannah tilting her head slightly to the right as she caught the odd word, enough to make her understand that Rachel was asking him what he was looking for.

The words “Red Sea Diving Resort” came across loud and clear, however, to the rest of the team and Sammy looked down, scoffing slightly, smile on his face as he shook his head.

“It is, but we are still under construction.” Rachel said, switching instantly into her cover role of Angela.

“Well, we're still months away from opening.” Ari added

“We just drove eight hours from Khartoum because of this.” the man said, his tone less friendly as he pulled out one of the diving resort brochures from his pocket “Huh?” Rachel took it from him no one quite sure what to do.

“Come, come. Alles gut. Alles gut.” the man started beckoning the people off the bus as Rachel turned and handed Ari the brochure. “Ja?”

Ari took the brochure and smiled at the man, as Hannah looked up at Max on the roof who was watching, a puzzled expression on his face as the tourists headed off the bus and into the resort.

“Show them out the back…” Ari looked at Rachel and then to Hannah. “Get them a drink, let them take in the view. In the mean-time have the staff set some of the tables out inside, and then meet us in the kitchen.”

They did as they were told, and once the loud excited chattering between guests outside made Hannah assume they were happy, Rachel nodding and laughing with a few of them, the two women headed inside, where the guys were already waiting, Max once more eating. Hannah hopped up onto one of the counters at the far side of the room, her legs gently swinging as she sat. No one said anything for a moment, Rachel standing and watching the movement in the main room through the lattice wall screen.

“Well, you have to send them home.” she said, turning to Ari.

“We can't do that.” he said as he leaned against one of the wall columns, his hand resting inside his open dark denim shirt, fisting slightly in the black T-shirt he had on underneath.

“Yes, we can. We point them in the direction of a real hotel.”  Sammy said, his back resting on the refrigerator.

“Colonel Madibbo sent them here. The last thing we need is to get complaints about this place.” Ari sighed, looking at his watch. “Fuck, we're an hour late.”

He strode forward and glanced into the room, watching as he folded his arms, running his hand over his beard.

“So what do we do?” Hannah asked, watching him.

Ari shook his head, thinking for a moment. There was really only one thing they could do.

“Check 'em in.” he said after a moments pause, his hand held out at the side of his face before he turned to look at everyone “Give ‘em rooms”

“Check them in?” Sam asked in disbelief.

“Yeah.”

“Are you crazy? This is a fake hotel.” Sam shook his head.

“So fake it.” Ari pressed.

Max chuckled from behind him, and Ari turned to look at him before he spun back to face the group as Hannah spoke.

“Ari’s right.” she said gently, and Ari looked at her, surprise evident on his face. “We send them back it’s gonna open a whole can of worms and before we know it our cover is blown.” she shrugged and looked round at the team before her bright blue eyes settled on her brother’s “What else can we do?”

Sam’s mouth fell open and he turned to his sister “You’re out of your mind!” he shook his head “You’ve no idea what-“

“Don’t talk to me like I’m a kid Sammy.” she cut him off, her voice stern.

“Ok, ok, look…” Ari said, breaking up the siblings squabbling “We all knew this could happen at some point, right?” “We did?” Sammy said, sarcastically.

“I didn't.”  Jake shook his head.

“Well…” Hannah shrugged, hopping down from her perch, looking around with a soft smile “Our fake hotel just became a real one.”

[thepoetrytheorist]

Since Hetalia is trending due to the new season+manga being announced? Um word of warning/advice to any new/returning fans:

1. You will see people saying that it's Nazi worship. It's not, it mostly just makes fun of different cultures across the world and is like "And at this point in history, in this country, this happened" but funny. A lot of the humor is very tongue in cheek... It's like a mix of the Office and Culture Clash tbh, but from what I've seen (and as a middle schooler I saw most episodes and most of the manga) There isn't much about the politics of the N@zis, just the war strategy styles/how they rationed food. It's also a light hearted show about history, culture, and sometimes war, so it doesn't really talk about the dark sides of war.

2. On the subject of war, It pretty much showcases wars that are Wwii or before, so nothing "recent." Also for the most part, guns aren't shown in the series, and when they are, they aren't shown being used (usually strapped to someone's back). The wars show usually play out as "narration about why two countries are fighting" and then Hannah Montana Style Catfighting.

3. If you do like the show, good! Don't let anyone get you down about it, however be warned that the fandom itself has pretty dark fic, and some people who were in the fandom were not very nice. Not to others within the fandom, or outside of it. The fic can also be classified as "crack fic"

4. The main characters are all stereotypes of countries based on the author's experiences in America and Japan. I.e. America is basically the guys from Buzzfeed Unsolved+ Sanders' Sides' Roman, England is a posh prick, France is Flirty+"cultured?" , Japan is reserved, Sweden is stoic, China and South Korea are both loud, etc. Its all stereotypes, that's the joke. It also talks about where these stereotypes stem from wothin the culture.

5. There isn't a coherent story being told. Most of the episode consist of 5-15 minute snapshots into history. Some of them are cute, some are sad, some are informative, and some are .. a bit weird.

6. There is a movie. It makes no sense, and I'm pretty sure its a ripoff of the Movie Alien.

7. Just... don't look at the old fanfic... don't look at the old fan games. Like, Heta Oni is ok? Dreamtalia is really pretty but really messed up? But other than that it's not worth it. A lot of it is racist/fetishizing, and the other half is so deep in Fan Wars (i.e. "wars" people had over ships, characters, and portrayals. To the point where the author had to clarify whether or not one of the main characters was a girl or not)

A lot of the old fans were misogynistic, homophobic/internalised homophobic, yaoi fangirls, and a little sexist. There were some fans who thirsted so hard over characters that if an adult female character was so much as in their fave's space they were jealous over her and led cancel campaigns towards said character. Those who didn't cancel female characters... sexualised them.

There's a 12 yearold (micronation,Wy) for some reason (said 12 yearold would canonically be about 17 now, but I'm sure she's still portrayed as 12.) who several fans had sexualised just because she wears a bikini top and shorts. They also shipped her, often in a dirty manner, with another nation who is presented as like 12.

Just dont look at the fanworks. The fanart is... ok i guess? But dont go there, its gross. The fandom was prominent during 2012, the same time that Attack on Titan and Yuri on Ice were prominent- and that should tell you all you need to know about the fandom, that it was very gross and immature.

8. All of the characters, as stated by the author, represent the attitudes and stereotypes of the people of a nation, not necessarily their government. That being said, I'm not sure why some of the characters seem to get along and some don't, as their relationships seem to represent political relationships more than how different peoples view each other.

9. IF YOU SHIP, please do not ship characters where the nations hate eachother irl, where the nations have historically opressed one another in whatever way (i.e. England x India, Austria x Hungary), or where the nations, in the show, have some form of Familial ties (England x America, France x Canada, Netherlands x Belgium, n.c etc.)... tbh it's best not to ship, most of the characters hate eachother anyways. But if you do ship, try to avoid ships with those problematic dynamics.

10. Try to enjoy it with a grain of salt. Its a very fun, childish show, that is meant to teach Japanese Children about history and culture across the world. It wasn't really meant for an older audience until about season 4, when it took off in Western Nations as Funimation was adapting and dubbing it.

11. Do check out cosplay culture within the fandom! It's generally the nicest side of the fandom and the most beautiful part of any anime fandom.

12. I have long left the fandom due to personal growth as well as the fandom dying out. It died because of lack of content and internal conflict, but that doesn't mean you can't enjoy the good parts of it... just seriously don't engage with most fanworks.

Good luck to the new season, and to the small revival of the fanbase.

[thesunnyshow]

Name: hi, i am nyx  Age: 20 years old Writing Blog URL(s): jungcity.tumblr.com | v-asl.tumblr.com 

Nationality: filipino Languages: english, filipino Star Sign: pisces! MBTI: infp-t Favorite color: white accentuated by silver Favorite food: it’s sweet and spicy chicken garlic!! Favorite movie: hmmm, it’s prolly flipped because that movie was so cute :,)  Favorite ice cream flavor: rocky road!! Favorite animal: it’s gonna be cats!! although i love lions so much because of narnia :,( Coffee or tea? What are you ordering? coffee :,) Go-to karaoke song: i don’t sing agskh the world would end if i would 

What has been one of the biggest factors of your success (of any size)? i think it’s me writing about jaehyun??? since he’s the king of fanfiction, especially in ncity nowadays. 

What fandom(s) do you write for?  nct + wayv

When did you post your first piece? three days ago!! that would be august 4 i guess???

Do you write fluff/angst/crack/general/smut, combo, etc? Why? i don’t really much write fluff since i don’t have any idea how to write a good fluff!! :( this has been an issue every time i write some au’s. so im always ending up writing and focusing more on angst. it’s the genre i know best. well, crack… it’s hard to make the readers laugh when you can’t even make their tooth ache from sweetness with your fluffy writings. :( smut… i don’t write smut explicitly any more. i’m more on the suggestive side rn. 

Do you write OCs, X Readers, Ships...etc  i write OC’s especially when im writing a series!! to diversify my writing. but i usually am on the x reader side. ships? not that much. 

Why did you decide to write for Tumblr? uhm, back in 2017, i was searching for some website where i could publish my works. ive always been a tumblr-girl since i am that wanna-be-aesthetic kinda person :D then i had found that i could write and publish on tumblr so yeah that’s pretty much why i am on this app rn

What inspires you to write?  ooh, music has been a great help for sure!! whenever i don’t feel like writing something, i always listen to music and the idea would flow like a river. classic poems helps, too. :)

What genres/AUs do you enjoy writing the most?  supernatural!au’s, fantasy!au, medieval!au. i feel like it’s easier to write something out of pure fantasy. i have a hard time writing modern!au’s since i lack the humor and the knowledge for modern slangs. 

What do you hope your readers take away from your work?  ooh, i always always always am careful with the way that i craft all my works. i try to feel what my characters feel to give them a certain validation. i put my shoes on the scenarios i have in mind even though i haven’t yet experienced everything ive written. and i do love writing strong female characters, whether it’s oc’s or female readers. that’s my main priority whenever i write. and i want them to know that girls could do just as much everything boys could. women are powerful. 

What do you do when you hit a rough spot creatively?  i read a lot to get back on my foot. i also try to re-read my past works so i’d be inspired to better my writing on my current draft.

What is your favorite work and why? Your most successful?  my favorite work is the one i’m still writing rn, which is entitled 505. it’s a hendery fic in which he is a bandit and the female reader is a sacristan. it’s my fave since i relate myself so much to the female reader. :) my most successful one is the childhood best friends!au taeyong x female reader. it’s about to reach 600+ notes i guess? and im so grateful of all the feedbacks i got from it. 

Who is your favorite person to write about?  it’s jaehyun and hendery :) 

Do you think there’s a difference between writing fanfiction vs. completely original prose?  character wise, perhaps. since you already have a face value in fanfiction, but in an original prose, you would have to craft everything from 0. 

What do you think makes a good story?  a good story is something that doesn’t romanticize the bad things going on in the world. a good story is something that is emphatic to the hardships of others. a good story is something that gives comfort to those who are in the dark. a good story is something that boosts the hearts of the readers and makes them feel things!! 

What is your writing process like?  first, i think of a plot! (this happens oftentimes when im washing the dishes) when i have the plot, i think of the ending. when i have the ending, it’s time for me to device a fitting title. and the plot would develop from then on. 

Would you ever repurpose a fic into a completely original story?  i don’t think so… this is scary. since some people think of fanfics as delusional works from delusional authors. it’s kinda sad. 

What tropes do you love, and what tropes can’t you stand?  i love love love enemies-to-lovers trope!! one that i couldn’t stand and do my best to not read is probably… hmm… no, i love all tropes!! i just love e-t-l most!

How much would you say audience feedback/engagement means to you?  it means a ton. since it could really boosts me up. heavy sigh. it’s the best thing when you write something— the feedbacks. even though it’s a simple reblog with the ‘#ATKSHSKSHSKAHAKSGAHGEGSJA’ or ‘#myfave’. i would smile like an idiot whenever i read it.

Dream job (whether you have a job or not)? i want to be a successful writer someday!

If you could have one superpower, what would you choose? teleportation!! 

If you could visit a historical era, which would you choose?  ancient greek + victorian era

If you could restart your life, knowing what you do now, would you?  yes!! im so hell deep in indecision right now so i want to restart to make everything right

Would you rather fight 100 chicken-sized horses or one horse-sized chicken?  100 chicken-sized horses!!

If you were a trope in a teen high school movie, what would you have been?  enemies-to-lovers trope agsksj LOL

Do you believe in aliens/supernatural creatures?  YES!!! perhaps they are lurking somewhere here on earth and we don’t know it yet ;)

Fun fact about yourself that not everyone would know?  oh… i don’t really know what to write. i don’t give much attention to my personal details agsksj

Do you think fanfic writers get unfairly judged?  yes!! ugh, there’s this recent issue wherein stan twt called fanfic writers as freaks. and it broke my heart. i mean, most fanfic writers get inspirations from their idols and that shouldn’t be a bad thing. we aren’t delusionals as one might think. we are simply doing our craft. 

Do you think art can be a medium for change?  yes!! our country’s hero ‘jose rizal’ had somehow stirred the nationality of the people back in the old days because of his writings. i do believe that art changes things!! it has the ability to pierce the heart of the people.  

Do you ever feel there are times when you’re writing for others, rather than yourself?  yes. i feel this whenever im writing smut. i mean, let’s be real, your works would do better once you’ve included some steamy smut scenes in it. when i was writing my first fanfic after three years, i didn’t think that i’d ever include smut. but the fear of not getting feedbacks crept up in me, so i forced myself to write some sexy scenes. i know that’s like… weird. but i’m trying not to dwell on feedbacks any longer. and i also have decided not to write explicit smut anymore. honestly, i feel better now that i don’t force myself to do something that i think would please others rather than me.

Do you ever feel like people have misunderstood you or your writing at times?  uhm, as far as i can remember, nope— still hasn’t felt that way. :)

Do your offline friends/loved ones know you write for Tumblr?  yes!! my best friends irl knows about it. my sister knows. my parents are also aware of my passion in writing, and they do know that i write. but where and what, that remains obscured from them :D 

What is one thing you wish you could tell your followers?  that it’s okay to be vulnerable. it’s okay to make mistakes. it’s okay to fail sometimes. it’s okay to feel things. because like a good book, there is always a character development and you have the pen to write your own version of happy endings. 

Do you have any advice for aspiring writers who might be too scared to put themselves out there?  i’ve been there: the scared and conscious part. but one thing i would say is, you have to dare yourself!! you won’t know how your writing would have impacted so many lives and touch the hearts of people if you won’t grab your pen or your gadget and start your draft. 

Are there any times when you regret joining Tumblr?  nope, there aren’t. the community has been lovely to me ever since i started writing. :,)

Do you have any mutuals who have been particularly formative/supportive in your Tumblr journey? yes!! oh my god. i’d like to take this opportunity to thank my mutuals who’s done me nothing but kindness— @legendnct (hannah), whoo!! you know how much i love you, right? thank you for always being there to listen to me. :) @cloudysuh des, since day one you’ve supported me. i couldn’t ask for more. thank you for the never-ending praises, keyboard smashes, for the tags, and for always boosting me up. @bohoes georgie, you know i love you. since 2017 you’ve been with me— praising my works and supporting me. thank you. @cherr-e cherry!! thank you!! for teaching me how to better my writing. i hope endless happiness for u and please take care. @writermoon hello my babe!! thank you so much for reading my works with such vivid imaginations. i love you. @jaeyongf amy!! the bestest person :,) thank you for always leaving me feedbacks!! thank you for being kind to me. thank you for always supporting me. i love you guys so much and let’s be mutuals for a long time!! 

Pick a quote to end your interview with: 

“If the world hated you, and believed you wicked, while your own conscience approved you, and absolved you from guilt, you would not be without friends.” — Jane Eyre, Charlotte Brontë