#he lives in a small farming community with some of my OCs and some other NPCs and it's very fun and easygoing | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

kingxxlink · 1 year

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With every "!!" I get, I'll introduce you to an OC!

Today's blorbo thoughts are all about Andvir, my first and only firbolg (for now)!

(portrait for his initial campaign - "The Sunless Citadel")

nyx (@eldritch-goth) and I were given free reign to create a community and a pair of twins, so we made Andvir (he/they) and Sindri (any/all), our first firbolg OCs/PCs!

Below the cut, I have the entire backstory I wrote for him based upon a D&D 5e background (Haunted One) and a rolled Harrowing Event.

(t/w; c/w: parental death, blood, major emotional trauma, possession, extreme violence)

Andvir (Andi) and Sindri (Sin) grew up together in a firbolg-only community a few days travel from an average city. The community was very insulated and didn’t often interact with outsiders, but would accept traders and adventurers (with coin or goods) of all varieties.

Andi and Sin were very close, only separating on occasion when Andi would help with the manual labor of the farms and Sin would spend time with her ‘imaginary’ friends. • One day, an adventurer with a strange eyepatch appeared. There appeared to be some sort of sigil on the eyepatch, but no one in the community recognized it. He had goods to sell though, meats and rare potion ingredients galore, so he was welcomed.

Andi and Sin were entranced by the strange man, following him around town for two days while he visited with locals and traded his wares. The two thought they heard whispers following the man, but any mention of this to an adult was quickly written off as another of Sindri’s games.

On the third day, Andvir grew bolder. He tried to steal a small statue from the adventurer’s belt, but this was his biggest mistake. As soon as he touched the little idol, strange voices filled his head, speaking in terrifying, otherworldly sounds. He fell to the ground screaming and was soon taken home to rest by some of the other community members.

The adventurer planned to leave the following morning. He never got the chance.

Andi snuck out of his house that night, a fire in his eyes. He’d taken his father’s greatclub with him. Then only twelve, the firbolg snuck into the hut housing the odd adventurer and beat his head in with the club.

Sindri awoke to screaming, but not screaming that they could hear with their ears. No, she heard her brother as if he was standing beside her, but the sound seemed to be only in her head. She ran out of her family’s home, screaming for her brother, and awakening not only her parents but the rest of the community.

Sin was the first to find the bloody scene in the guest’s hut. Andvir was playing in the blood, speaking to himself in Infernal, his greatclub abandoned. Before the others arrived, Sin managed to gain Andi’s attention by speaking only in his head, and soon the twins were crying together. Andi had been returned to himself, if only for the moment.

Andi told Sin about the eyepatch, the dreaded thing that the fiend now possessing him hated most. Naturally, Sin grabbed for it amidst the gore, fitting the nasty thing onto their brother’s head. • Soon after, the rest of the community arrived. Both the twins were now covered in blood, and both volunteered as the murderer. Both, and their parents, were chased out of town.

The four were on the run for years. Unfortunately, when Andi got very worked up, the fiend inside him would temporarily break loose, attacking whatever was closest to him. The group ran from each town they’d hide out in when this would happen, but the third time this occurred, Andi and Sin’s parents were the victims.

The twins were seventeen by this point, more than old enough to handle themselves in the eyes of humans – though they were still young by firbolg standards. Still, they managed to make it through a few more years on their own. Andi was now bulky enough to wield his father’s greatclub and chain shirt, while Sin had developed new and strange magics. They worked together as common adventurers from then on.

The two live to heckle each other, even on sensitive topics, but no one else is allowed to speak ill of the other’s sibling. They will always have each other’s backs.

===

Long story short, he's a very tragic boy. XD During the course of The Sunless Citadel, his secret was discovered by his impromptu party and later, his possession was resolved.

nyx and I still write a bunch with him and Sindri, including pairing Andi with a captured guardsman found in the dungeon they explored during The Sunless Citadel (named Caleb) and the tortured elf Ekko (who is after the demon that inhabits Andi). Ekko has promised to kill him if the demon should ever take full control/hurt innocents, but both Ekko and Caleb fell for the soft and sweet Andi, who really just wants to help everyone he meets and protect his twin.

we like to make jokes that the demon bangs pots and pans when it angy c:

(unfinished full reference sketch)

I headcanon that he carries a domesticated mimic chest (it's not on his sheet tho lmao; it's just a chest technically) as well as his father's greatclub (though he chooses to use the halberd). the symbol on his eye patch is the symbol of Pelor, who he does not follow, but does respect for the power provided to hold back the demon rattling around in his brainpan.

ty for the ask, daisy!!!

#oc:andvir #campaign:the sunless citadel #kingxlink #my art #oc #my oc #original character #dnd oc #dnd 5e oc #dnd #firbolg #asked and answered

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skaterboyfriend · 2 years

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2-5, 11, 20!

[ask prompt!]

2) 🤗 - who’s your best friend in the valley? delilah tried to remain off by herself - she had always been alone in the past and the new change in scenery sparked no change in her habits, but upon meeting sam, she was drawn towards his family who accepted her, already seeing her apart of their home. when kent finally came back to the valley, delilah had already heard all about him - from jodi's worried run-on sentences and sam's recollections of his childhood... when actually meeting him, she saw herself in the way he was so closed off- unreceptive to any help someone might want to give him. she offered a job on the land to give him some sort of schedule in his day and was partly surprised he actually accepted. the two grew close, with kent opening up and finally finding the motivation to be better, for himself and for his family! 3) 😠 - which villager is the biggest asshole? delilah had butt heads with mayor lewis far too many times when she got into the groove of things. she hated his snarky remarks about how 'young ones hate tradition' whenever she suggested community improvements to liven up the valley and make it once again, the gem of the ferngill archipelago. she had fixed up the community center, willy's old boat, and cleaned out the old joja warehouse- all to his disdain for her earning the locals' trust and good favor. and it wasn't lost on him that her motivation for engaging in all these acts of restoration might lead to delilah opposing him one day for the mayoral office - where she'd most likely crush him. 4) 🙄 - which marriage candidate is most annoying? delilah would make small talk with the local doctor on lazy summer evenings at the saloon when she first moved to the valley, before formally meeting sam. he took a liking to her mystery and asked her if he'd like to join him for dinner some day- she felt extremely awkward throughout the entire short-lived affair, where she ultimately broke it off due to their differences. she swears he charges extra for her hospital bills. 5) ⭐️ - which of your farmer ocs is your favorite? i only have once oc so far - but i lowkey have some ideas for other ocs to develop whenever i have time! but delilah is my first fully fleshed out oc and I LOVE HER so much! i love religious references, especially developing it further so that it is more so reversing the tides, changing up the story! 11) 😉 - who would you openly and shamelessly flirt with (if you had the confidence)? ME PERSONALLY i would go so insane over sam. i love long hair, i love mullets, i love musicians, i love quirky white boys who are so full of positive energy, it's hard not to smile around them. i am not a very forward person LMAO but if i had the confidence, my god i'd shoot my shot- i want him SO BAD!!!! 20) 📍- favorite location in the valley? definitely my own farm, especially summer nights. i finally am happy with what it looks like! i have a little fruit tree area, lots of farm space, a deluxe barn and coop with room for the animals to roam around, fish ponds, a fully set greenhouse filled with mature ancient fruit crops! i like sitting out sometimes on summer nights, looking at how pretty the farm is with the small fireflies floating around the screen, the cicadas singing in the distance. love it!

#delilah #🌻

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oo-hazel-oo · 3 years

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so after we got THIS picture yesterday, my mind travelled to very dangerous places. eventually, it ended up in the realm of farmer!din djarin. so yeah, here’s an idea for a fic i’ll probably never write. please ignore the fact that is 90% plot holes and 10% self-indulgence for my midwestern ass.

okay, dream with me folks:

din is a modern-day farmer. as a mandalorian, he is bound to a secretive group of farmers that value the lives of foundlings (lost/abandoned/abused animals) and who cover their faces with bandanas.

to help provide for his covert, din also works as a bounty hunter. he usually collects bounties on illegal-weapons manufacturers and drug producers that have set up shop in the rural countryside.

meanwhile, empire incorporated, owned by the evil mr. gideon, is a big, corporate enterprise involved in a lot of shady, experimental bioengineering work. the company exploits much of the local farmland while engaging in their research. they are after a kid, grogu, whose unique genetic makeup makes him a target of empire inc.’s experimentation.

the oc or reader could be a scientist at one of empire inc.’s labs, who, after finding out their plans for the kid, helps him escape. din, after initially handing the kid over to empire inc., finds them both and aids their getaway. in a moment of panic, oc/reader lies about their identity and it isn’t until later that din finds out they were originally an empire employee. angst ensues.

other notes:

din takes really good care of his farm animals

razor could be the name of din’s truck, horse, or tractor

shirtless din with overalls is a must

din in a flannel, work boots, and faded baseball cap is another must

oc/reader and din stargazing in the back of his truck please and thank you

sorgan could be a small community on the other side of a nearby river (one of the few areas safe from empire inc. control)

peli is literally the same, except she works on cars/tractors

kuiil is a lonely, elderly farmer in a neighboring town who din goes to for advice

random, but i feel like fennec should ride a motorcycle

also, i see ahsoka living in a tiny little cabin deep in the woods where she grows her own food and has a lot of wind chimes for some reason?

but honestly the thing i’d be most excited about for this *nonexistent* fic is the fanart (i’m looking at you @firehart9 👀). like just imagine farmer!din sitting in the back of his pickup watching the sun set over the countryside with grogu in his arms 🥺🌻

yeah, so i’ll probably add more to this at some point, but you get the general idea: pedro pascal looks great in overalls (and i will fight you on this ⁿᵒᵗ ʳᵉᵃˡˡʸ ᵗʰᵒᵘᵍʰ ⁱᵐ ʲᵘˢᵗ ᵗʳʸⁱⁿᵍ ᵗᵒ ᵐᵃᵏᵉ ᵃ ᵖᵒⁱⁿᵗ).

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wexhappyxfew · 4 years

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The Nightingales of Fortune Favors the Brave

A Band of Brothers Fanfic Coming Fall 2021 (or presumably whenever Landslide finishes up!)

HELLO!! If you’re reading this, then as you can see, I’ve finally created a master post with all my Nightingales (well, not really mine THE PUBLIC’S but you’ve all gifted them to me ever so graciously, and it honestly, it means the world to me). Just to see the excitement and reception I’ve gotten from so many people in the fandom involving a female group of Pathfinders - an area of war, I have wanted to cover ever since nearly over 2 years ago I got involved in the fandom. All OC’s will have their creators name listed beside them - I did not create any of these OC’s, all credit goes to the lovely people who crafted and gifted them to me for FFTB!

Viewing where I currently am in my life, I’m going to going to college this year! I got accepted into the school I wanted, the program I wanted, even a scholarship! And I’m beyond excited. I really wanted to have something there for me when college does finally, you know, HAPPEN, and so Fortune Favors the Brave was the only way to go! To have a wonderful group of Nightingales, of female Pathfinders in the Band of Brothers fandom, seemed to be the way to go. Updates and such will definitely be different - I’m picking up more work hours this year, probably even summer classes, night classes, weekend classes - whatever I can do to benefit my degree and myself, I’m taking the opportunity.

And so, updates will presumably be quite different, depending on a variety of things, but...this will be my college story! No matter how many years it takes to complete and update and write, this will be the thing I have with me through it all for when I need a mental break from school! And I am beyond excited for when I do finally get to share this story more than anything!

We have such a great group of OCs here - different backgrounds, different reasons for joining, different creators who gifted them to me, different friendships, relationships and abundances of sisterhood and brotherhood moments. I’m truly beyond excited to showcase the Pathfinders side of the war in the light of 16 female OCs, whose stories will be told through their viewpoints based on different episodes whether whole or split!

So thank you ALL!! These past 2 years have been a joy in the fandom and let’s hope for another few more! I’ve managed 3 fics and 4 books total and I’m excited to bring, presumably, my FINAL Band of Brothers fic in the fandom to you all in the near future. Thank you!! <3

THE NIGHTINGALES

Team C DZ C for 506th PIR, 501st PIR

-> 2/506 PIR (Stick 2/Plane #4)

-- TOCCOA VETERANS --

Team Leader

Captain Eleanor Graham - @basilone

Eleanor Graham had never met a challenge she couldn’t conquer - the eldest of four and a farmer’s daughter, teamwork and diligence were drilled into her mind like clockwork, along with being as much of a leader in the eyes of her family as she could. There was more to life than a farmer’s wife for her future though, no matter how much she adored the farm her family had grown to craft from the ground up. Iowa brought no opportunity except the farm life deemed fit for her, so upon seeing the advertisement “ It’s Your Fight Too “, OCS had never seemed like a better choice in her eyes. Because it was all their fights - man, woman, child, anyone - it was a World War, a fight for all their lives, for human lives. And with the capability to obtain Captain just before leaving for Camp Toccoa, it solidified her position for not only leading in Easy Company, but leading the Nightinagles - the first stick of female Pathfinders.

Assistant Team Leader

Lieutenant Florence Godfrey - @pxpeyewynn

A British lady and an artist at heart, from the little town of Avebury, set inside Wiltshire of Great Britain, her father made it big in New York just as the war that swarmed throughout Europe, erupted into spitfire. And suddenly thrust into the world of an America before war, was unsettling. Her country fought while America remained neutral. Yet, when the advertisement flooded throughout New York City - she couldn’t help but take it as her only way to get into war. OCS was beyond enough challenges, but walking in as a Lieutenant for Easy and for the Pathfinders, she was no longer the little girl who prayed at night to whomever was above to end the people’s suffering, or avoided interaction to instead draw in her notebook. She was a Lieutenant, and she was a woman at war - yet what was she even fighting for?

Eureka Operators (each equipped with a Eureka Transponder each)

Sergeant (NCO) Marie Reynal - @thoughpoppiesblow

Grandmère Reynal always held her at night, under the dark night sky and sang in her soulful Cajun French, the words flowing from her lips and remaining an ever-present comfort in times where food was hardly ever on the table, or when she had to watch the other girls at school get the latest Mary-Janes and she was stuck with her old ones. Her grandmère taught her to appreciate the small things in life. But when the “It’s Your Fight Too” poster came out in the papers, Marie Reynal knew there were larger things in life than the newest Mary-Janes at school. Packing up what she could, Marie headed out to Camp Toccoa, equipped with nothing but some clothes and her fiddle.

Corporal Edith Lockner - @mercurygray

Remember to look up - her mother would always tell her that. Especially when things on their little farm got hard in Stanford, Illinois where the only thing that occurred there was the wagering price of corn that fluctuated with the ever-changing times. So...she figured that’s why she always tended to look to the stars when her mother would tell her that before bed each night, looking out the wooden window under her quilt as a cold draft blew in. She always imagined herself up there, amongst the stars and for once seeing what the stars saw. But to be up with those stars and to get to study them, she’d need a lot more money than what ever amount the corn tended to bring in. And the Airborne with a fantastic pay grade, along with the Pathfinders and their earnings -- it seemed her ticket out. Maybe there won’t be stars - but anything’s got to be better than here.

Wireman

Corporal Chiyoko ‘Luna’ Omori - @papersergeant-pencilsoldier

Know your place. Eyes down, mouth shut. And most importantly, honor your family. Chiyoko Omori has never been one to step out of line, nor has she been one to speak when otherwise not spoken too. Trained in the art of kendo, the Japanese martial arts that her ancestors trained in, she leads with discipline and integrity amongst the group of Nightingales training as Pathfinders, as the solo wireman of the group. Her intelligence, more than once, has saved her and in war might just save her again and again. Her father’s garage had always been home to a multitude of repairs and many she had learned to do herself. But there she had been Chiyoko. But for war, she must forget who Chiyoko is and embody the only other name besides her family name that she will ever know - Luna.

Lightmen (each equipped with 2 Halophane Lamps each)

Staff-Sergeant (Senior NonCom) Sarah Prowse - @junojelli

For once in her life Sarah Prowse would not have her twin brother by her side. He hadn’t been by her side for years after he went back home to fight with the English and lost his life at Dunkirk. But this was real, this was happening - and the Pathfinders withheld the opportunity to prove to herself that Edmund had died with valor and courage. And he would not have died in vain. The nannies had always said they were inseparable but they weren’t those kids anymore. This was real life. And in real life, there was love and loss and pain. And sometimes the only way to get through it all was to do the thing to distract you most from it all. Some days she wished her family could’ve just stayed in England - maybe Mum would still be here. With her sharp mind, and the ability to read people like an open book, rising to the rank Staff-Sergeant had come easily - reading the field and reading people were pretty similar...right?

Corporal Jean Dawson - @tvserie-s-world

Life in Louisville, Kentucky had always been a sort of cozy-comfort that Jean Doxon had always enjoyed. The weekend fairgrounds filled to the brim with people enjoying the night life it offered, early summers filled with watching her father race horses around the tracks sprinkled throughout the town and nights by her boyfriend, Glenn Hartley, where the sky seemed to stretch forever into the night. That is before the war sent him away to the Pacific. And their only form of communication was reduced to letters, with pressed flowers and the hint of rose perfume. Jean refused to mope about, when she knew this war was hardly far from over. Quick-thinking on her feet, and a town champion for knot-tying in her days in elementary, she packed what she could and left for Georgia the second she was able to take the first train out. The Airborne had much to offer, but more importantly so did the Pathfinders.

Corporal Mercy Codonoa - @whoahersheybars

Mercy Codona always been a traveler, never staying in one place and always on the move to somewhere new that she might've never quite been before. This meant new neighbors, new friends and a new way of life. Something the United States readily offered. Each new town in a new state had a different way of life than the next. She figured that's why she was so quick to adapt to her surroundings - nothing was ever permanent, nor set in stone. Neither was family. Orphaned by 17 and left to fend for herself, left in the care of her mother's estranged sister, Mercy took the liberty by herself to do what she could to support herself. Taking up odd jobs in each town she traveled to and managing what she could to feed herself. But she was proud of her Romani-Croat heritage and what her ancestors had done in their past lives. She intended on continuing what their stories had not finished. If only she could continue to support herself. It was only when the "It's Your Fight Too" showed up newly on the Fort Wayne clipboard by the post office in April 1942 and then and there in that moment did she decided - with the extra money the Airborne offered, along with that of the Pathfinders, she'd be able to support herself in the future as well as possibly find people with the same dreams as herself for their futures, and for once finally belong.

Private Kennedy Rutlidge - MINE

Kennedy Docherty had always had quite a wild and exciting mind, always having a new idea, or a new method on selling the most recent paper that got her a few cents an hour. All through her schooling years and even up to her senior year, she took to the busiest corner on Lake Ave and Lyell Ave, calling out to sell her papers, before heading home for the night and running her normal routine the very next day. She spent summers at Lake Ontario, in her grandmother's home on the lake, where some of her fondest memories of her youth had been born. She always believed that's why she was always fascinated with flying, like one of the birds or hawks that flew out across the lake in the early morning. What she'd give to get that feeling just once in her life, away from school and away from the constant need to make as much money as she could to help with the family. The words "It's Your Fight Too" scrawled across the paper in early April had caught her eye within a second and left her running home just that night to break the news that she was signing up. And almost a week later, she found herself packed on a train towards Camp Toccoa, Georgia, bright eyes and the last bit of innocence fading from sight.

Security Personnel

Sergeant (NCO) Alexandra Calypso - @iilovemusic12us

A Boston girl who grew up with her proud Jewish faith, with a Greek mother, knew hard work and sometimes it was pushing yourself to the very limit beyond what the human body could handle sometimes. So that meant falling, scrapping your knee a few times, sucking up the tears, sending a quick prayer to God and moving on with your life. Life had always been like that - they weren’t the richest, nor the poorest, but there wasn’t ever enough food on the table or enough money to fix the roof, or even to keep the mortgage paid. But her parents never stopped working. And she supposed what drove her to the Airborne and to the Pathfinders was seeing how hard they worked. And they paid well she had heard. She could work with it. And if anything, the Pathfinders were more accepting than any school in Boston she’d been to.

Sergeant Nellie Shaw - @hellitwasyoufirstsergeant

Hailing from a small, coastal town in Maine, the proud Scot wanted more than anything to stay out of war when it finally came knocking on America’s doorstep. But Nellie Shaw, loyal as saint, knew that there was one thing she could do for this country and that was fight. Give her a pack of cigarettes or a bottle of gin, and she’d go in swinging for the war effort, even with her grumpy morning attitude that slowly became infamous in her elementary school days among the school children. She had no purpose on a farm on a mountain side anymore, rather destined to do what part of the fight she could. Taking Greer Riddell under her wing, the fellow Scot befriended the least likely person to enjoy her company and yet Nellie’s easy-going companionship slowly became integral to the entirety of Easy Company and the Nightingales.

Private Greer Riddell - @leighinthesky

Schruz, Nevada was home for 21 years and by the looks of it, home for the rest of her life. A bee farm in a tiny town wasn’t idle for the rest of her life, but if she never got the money for college to get out of the small town, she feared she wouldn’t ever leave. And knowing the military had offered 16 women a stick of a plane to get their shot at becoming Pathfinders for the Army was her ticket straight to Toccoa, Georgia for training. The pay could send her not only to college, but could get her out of that tiny town which had confined her to nothing but her family and a cute little bee farm where hard work always paid off. Don’t be fooled by her subdue and withdrawn nature, the second her hands touched the rifle - the field was hers and yet so was the valley.

Codebreaker [Betchley Park Member]

Sergeant Laverne Robinson - @vintagelavenderskies

For her 23 years of life, Laverne Robinson had known just about every spot in London where you could catch a smoke break and not get caught by one of the older women and get scolded for doing so. She blamed her older brother, he blamed her. It was a mutual thing. But that had been the only thing to fear in London - until war struck, which sent every eligible man off to fight for the effort. Her brother included, leaving her staring out the rain speckled window all alone as the smell of her mother's soup wafted past her nose. Yet, like many women of the time, she wanted to fight too. Fluent in French and German and skilled in mathematics and code-work, Bletchley Park seemed the best fit. Working on codes, both sculpting and breaking them inside the building, keeping her lips shut and going on about her normal day when not inside the institution, life didn't seem as dreary as she had anticipated. Because she knew she was apart of the effort to end this war. That was until, she was called upon in late March 1944 to join up with the 101st Airborne with the first female stick of 12 pathfinders to make the jump into Normandy and assist them in anyway possible. Laverne knew it was a once in a lifetime opportunity and if her brother were there, he would've told her to run with it. Becoming a professor of mathematics would have to wait.

REPLACEMENTS

Corporal Alessandra Lisi - @tvserie-s-world

Alessandra Lisi had never known her parents. She was always told that sickness had taken them when she was just a child. Her brothers had been older than her and had tried to protect her from the sight of her parents dying. And so when their Nonna had taken them into her home without hesitation, Alessandra grew to look to her Nonna as the other parental figure she’d ever had. Of course, her brothers were always there for her, protective as they were, they never let her get into any sort of trouble without hearing about it first. Alessandra grew to adore her Italian heritage, cooking with Nonna on Sunday’s, inviting family over to enjoy the meals and even getting to stir the sauce as Nonna dropped in fresh, cut tomatoes. That was life and it had always been life as such. But when war sent her 3 brothers away, she knew she would not go down without a fight either. Upon receiving the paper in November 1943, she noticed the cover page withheld the picture of 12 women, adorned in jump wings as well as military grade goggles and scarves standing with wide smiles and bright eyes in front of a C-47, the title 'The Nightingales', lying just underneath. Female Pathfinders. If her parents were here, they would've been telling her what Nonna would've been telling her now. Fight for what you believe in, because while there's life, there's hope.

Private First Class Bettie Smith - @sgtxliptons86

Brooklyn, New York had it all - the kids in the streets, the shops on the corners where you could get a piece of candy for as little as 5 cents, even the corner stores in the summer where you could get ice cream for a dime. And as Bettie Smith grew older, running the streets of Brooklyn became like a weekend job - checking in on the younger kids of friends, riding bikes past the floral shops and picking up flowers for her sister, getting a bag of charcoal for her father. Even throwing some curses towards the boys who would heckle her for the way she wore her hair or the old shoes laced on her feet. Her older sister wasn’t too pleased with it all, but ever since Ma had passed, she seemed to let it slide - it was an escape for Bettie. So when war came knocking on the Smith’s door, anger, yet pride for their country filled the home, as well as the streets of New York, as more men and women began signing up for the cause. More friends left to join the effort, leaving Bettie there on the concrete doorstep. So when Bettie received the daily paper in November 1943, showcasing the 12 female pathfinders of the 101st Airborne, front and center for all to see, Bettie took it in quite large strides and took the first train of December 1943 to Fort Benning, Georgia.

Private Annie Laine - @wereinadell

Annie Laine, the daughter of Finnish immigrants, had always dreamed of leaving the quiet countryside her parents had always preferred for their family for the big cities of the Midwest - maybe she’d go to Chicago and study theater, or maybe she’d go and finally attend college in Milwaukee. Anything to get out of the small town she currently resided in. But the countryside had brought alone its perks - orienteering and hunting were big in the Laine family and every child, her 3 brothers, her and her sister, had all been taught the noble art. Swimming the streams, fishing in the lakes, taking hikes through the forests and coming back with a deer for dinner - life had always been quite peaceful Annie felt. But she could always hope that one day it changed. And it seemed war rung those bells quite early on. Annie was tired of structured life and if anything, she knew that the start of structured life in the military would fall quite nearly to shambles once they hit war. The November 1943 issue of the daily newspaper brought upon not only sudden interest in the military, but in that of the female pathfinders who were paving their way in all of military history to be the first stick to jump into continental occupied-Europe. All it took was what cash she had saved for college and a small suitcase to get her on the way to Fort Benning, Georgia.

Private Marla Hughes - @hellitwasyoufirstsergeant

Lafayette, Louisiana had been home all her life - Baton Rouge just to the East and New Orleans just a little further. It had always been home for as long as she could remember. With the fancy parties her father always allotted for the family to attend, talking with the men in pristine suits, or the women with the big hats, some days Marla Hughes just wished to be able to go outside and enjoy nature instead of suffocating amongst the people who seemed to live in a world that didn’t even seem like real life. She supposed that was when she had hit her breaking point and joined the Airborne in Fort Benning, Georgia. She was tired of the life that did absolutely nothing for her. There was more to this world, so much more and yet she was confined to a party dress and an expensive glass of wine that tasted bitter when it rushed down the throat. There were small bars, where the music played, and you could dance until your feet grew tired, there were beer bottles awaiting to be clinked together with friends and there were people beside the stuck-up society she was forced into. The Airborne accepted anyone far and wide - and maybe she could strip of the posh life given to her and finally be set free.

THESE ARE THE NIGHTINGALES!!!

> if you have any questions, feel free to send them in! if not, it’s all good! these are our 16 nightingales! :) thank you to all of you who sent them in back in early December! It’s been an honor to craft these wonderful OC’s!

#band of brothers #fortune favors the brave #the nightingales #pathfinders #easy company #bob fic #band of brothers fandom #band of brothers oc #master list post

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trashcanband4 · 3 years

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The Revelation of the Other Woman Ch. 16

Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15

Chapter Title: Settling in. Pairing: Daryl/oc. Setting: The Prison. Wordcount: 4,837. Warning: None that I can thing of.

After Rick, Daryl and Merle got safely inside the gates we all gathered in the cell block. Daryl, Carol and Beth stood on the perch and catwalk above while Michonne, Glenn, Rick, Maggie, Carl and I stood on the ground below. Hershel sat on the stairs. Merle was locked in the holding room. “We're not leaving.” Rick spoke with finality.

“We can't stay here.” Hershel argued the same case he had been arguing.

“What if there's another sniper?” Maggie asked. “A wood pallet won't stop one of those rounds.”

“We can't even go outside.” Beth spoke up as if what she said wasn't already understood by everyone.

“Not in the daylight.” Carol added.

“Rick says we're not running. We're not running.” Glenn spoke up still playing the part of leader even though Rick was back.

“No, better to live like rats.” Merle spoke up through the bar door holding him back from the rest of us.

“You got a better idea?” Rick asked him.

“Yeah, we should have slid out of here last night and lived to fight another day. But we lost that window, didn't we?” Merle asked. “I'm sure he's got scouts on every road out of this place by now.”

“We ain't scared of that prick.” Daryl spoke up from the catwalk, but I didn't even bother looking at him.

“Y'all should be. That truck through the fence thing? That was just him ringing the dinner bell. We might have some thick walls to hide behind, but he's got the guns and the numbers. And if he takes the high ground around this place, shoot, he could just starve us out if he wanted to.” As much as I hated to admit it, Merle had a point.

“Let's put him in the other cell block.” Maggie said ringing a rag in her hands.

“No. He's got a point.” Daryl said.

“This is all you. You started this!” Maggie yelled at Merle who wasn't affected by it.

“What's the difference whose fault it is?” Beth spoke up loudly. “What do we do?”

“I said we should leave. Now Axel's dead. We can't just sit here.” Hershel said for the millionth time and Rick started to walk off. “Get back here!” he yelled at the ex-cop who stopped, but didn't turn to look at the old man. “You're slipping Rick. We've all seen it. We understand why. But now is not the time. You once said this is not a democracy. Now you have to own up to that. I put my family's life in your hands. So get your head clear and do something.”

After Hershel yelled at Rick he just stared at him for a second then walked off. With him gone, people scattered. Most went to their cell's so that's what I did as well. I wiped the dust off of the metal mirror and looked at myself for the first time in months. Dark circles shadowed my eyes, my skin was darker than it used to be from the amount of sun I'd gotten during the winter and my hair had grown two inches, now touching my shoulders. I didn't look like the me I remembered. I was still studying myself when I heard someone clear their throat and looked over to see Daryl standing with his arm propped up on the door frame.

A pain shot through my chest at the way he was looking at me. With hard eyes and straight lips that gave nothing away. He was different than I remembered, everyone was. I guess we'd all changed over the winter. “Whatever you're selling I don't want any.” I told him emotionlessly and crossed my arms over my chest.

“That your way of tellin' me to go away?” he asked quietly.

“If you're going to call me more names...yeah. That's exactly what I'm telling you.” I said as I sat down on my bed, pulled my legs up and hugged my knees to my chest.

“I ain't good at sayin' sorry.” he said quietly looking more like his old self.

“Good then don't say it. 'Cause I don't want to hear it.” I practically growled at him still hugging my knees to my chest.

“Joanna, I really am-”

“No.” I interrupted him letting go of my knees to scoot to the edge of the bed. “You don't get it. I dreamed about you. Every night that we weren't together was another dream that had you in it.” His face flushed at my words and it was cute, but it didn't put a damper on my anger. “At first they were nightmares. I blamed you for me getting left behind and stuck with that bitch Andrea. But then I realized that you told me to stay behind because you wanted me to be safe and I stopped being mad at you. The nightmares turned to good dreams. I would be hunkered down in a house somewhere and you would find me or vice versa.” my voice was shaking holding back tears. “We would find each other, you would wrap those amazing arms of yours around me and give me the best kiss of my life.” a tear slid down my cheek as I watched him cross his arms over his chest and lean back against the wall.

“Then imagine my surprise when my wildest dream came true. You found me, hugged me and kissed me and...” I closed my eyes and smiled sadly at the memory of his arms around me and his lips on mine. “Damn it that felt heavenly.” I opened my eyes and let the smile fade as I glared at him again. “So stupid me, I think that means you actually missed me as much as I missed you, that you wanted me back. But then your brother comes in the picture and you no longer give a damn about me. I'm just some weak, uppity, booty call. And you leave.” my eyes glared at his hand to his mouth, chewing on his cuticles. “That hurt.” I glared at him with tears slipping down my cheeks. “I never thought you would hurt me. So don't expect me to jump into your arms at the first “I'm sorry.” because it ain't gonna happen.”

He just stared at me for a second as if he were trying to think of something to say before he nodded and walked out. A few minutes later I heard people talking down stairs, practically under my cell so I walked out on the catwalk to see what was going on. “I didn't see any snipers out there, but we'll keep Maggie on watch.” Rick said to everyone.

“I'll get up in the guard tower, take out half them walkers, give these guys a chance to fix the fence.” Daryl suggested.

“Or use some of the cars to put the bus in place.” Michonne suggested.

“We can't access the field without burning through out bullets.” Hershel added.

“So we're trapped in here. There's barely any food or ammo. Glenn added not helping one bit. Honestly his negativity was grating to everyone.

“We've been here before. We'll be all right.” Daryl tried.

“That's when it was just us. Before there was a snake in the nest.” Glenn directed at Daryl.

“Man, we gonna go through this again?” Daryl asked, getting in Glenn's face. ?Look, Merle's staying here. He's with us now. Get used to it.” he looked up at me then at the rest of the group. “All y'all.”

“Seriously, Rick, I don't think Merle-” Glenn started, but I interrupted him.

“Just stop it Glenn.” I spoke up from the cat walk as Daryl came up the stairs. “No one likes him being here, but as much as I hate to admit it, we need him. He knows The Governors tactics and he has military training. So just get off your high horse and deal with it.”

Glenn looked from me to Rick. “I can't kick him out.” Rick said with a shake of his head.

Rick's words seemed to piss Glenn off even worse than mine did. “I wouldn't ask you to live with Shane after he tried to kill you.” Glenn's words pulled a look out of Rick and I tilted my head at Glenn's words. Shane tried to kill Rick?

“He may be erratic, but don't underestimate his loyalty to his brother.” Hershel defended.

“What if we solve two problems at once?” Glenn asked. “Deliver Merle to the Governor. Bargaining chip. Give him his traitor, maybe declare a truce.”

“No.” I said as I walked down the stairs to be a better part of the conversation. “We're sacrificing people now?” I asked with a twisted faced look at Glenn. “Delivering him to The Governor will be no different than leaving him on that roof to die. We couldn't do that back then and we can't do this now.”

“Who put you in charge?” Glenn asked.

I leaned back and raised my brows. “I could ask you the same question mister high and mighty.”

“Guys, cut it out.” Hershel cut off our building argument. “Look, Glenn, Joanna's right. That's not who we are.”

“We're not gonna figure this out now. Let's take a break.” Rick suggested and Glenn and Hershel walked off. Rick jerked his head for me to follow him to his cell so I did. “What all happened out there over the winter? I know you said Michonne found you two while you were running from the farm, but I don't know much more than that.” he asked as he sat down on his bed.

I sat down in the chair in the room with a sigh. “Not a whole lot up until Woodbury. I answered vaguely. Just a lot of running, scavenging and hunkering down for as long as we could. Michonne and I are pretty good friends, we don't communicate a lot, but we work well together. She and Andrea got closer though.” I said with a shrug.

“What about you and Andrea?” he asked looking curious.

“Oh we still hate each other as much as we always did, if not more now.” I said with a small laugh before it faded. “Bitches can't befriend bitches I guess.”

“You're not a bitch.” he said with a shake of his head.

“Really? Because I feel like one after the things I just said to Daryl.” I said looking up from the floor to his blue eyes. I had forgotten how blue they were and the fact that I was apparently a sucker for them. His and Daryl's... the same color yet so different. “But that doesn't matter. What about you and the rest of the group? There's some things I've been wondering since I got here.”

“Like what?” he asked and I sat up straighter.

“Like I hear Shane tried to kill you?” I asked and he nodded with a sigh.

“The night the walkers came through and we all got separated, he killed Randall to lure me into the woods and kill me.” he pinched the bridge of his nose. “I killed him first.” he said before his dropped his hand and looked at me. I didn't know what to say so I didn't say anything. “He wanted Lori, thought killing me was the only way to get her and Carl.”

“I'm sorry you had to do that.” I said and he waved me off. “So... I have to ask based off the way Beth spoke to me, did you and Lori ever work things out?”

He shook his head no. “What did Beth say to you?”

“She blames me for Lori's death.” he just tilted his head in confusion. “I guess she thinks that if I had never...been, with you that you and Lori would have been happier. I guess in her mind if you two were happier then you would have been there to save her or something.”

Rick sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Those aren't only her thoughts...” when he lifted his head to look at me I tilted my head to the side in a questioning manner. “She's just copying what I've heard Carl say.”

“Wait, Carl's mad at me too?” I asked getting tired of being everyone's whipping post.

“Yeah.” Rick sighed and dropped his hand from his face. “He didn't put two and two together until recently...after Lori...”

“I don't know how to handle this... Should we talk to him, try to explain things?” I asked as I shook my head in confusion.

“No, I'll talk to him and Beth. You don't deserve all that hate.” he said as he stood up.

“No, I think it's totally justified.” I sighed as I stood up as well. “I'm a home wrecker.”

“You know that's not true. Lori and I had our problems long before you even came along.” he said taking a step closer to grab my hand.

“I know, but...” I said giving his hand a small squeeze. When I saw a movement out of the corner of my eye I looked out of the cell to see Daryl walk by and glance in our direction. His stopped when he saw Rick's hand in mine and shook his head. I could hear a scoff as he walked off.

I dropped Ricks hand and scratched the back of my head. “What else have you been wondering about since you got back?”

“Daryl and Carol.” I said crossing my arms over my chest

“What about them?” he asked.

“She seemed really upset to hear that he didn't come back and then she blamed me for him leaving like I pushed him into it or something.” I said and he just looked at me. “Are they...together?” I cautiously asked.

“Honestly, I don't know. It's hard to tell with him.” Rick answered with a shoulder shrug. “You'll have to ask one of them.” I sighed and placed my head in my hands. He placed his hand on my back. “Hey,” I looked up at him and he gave me a small smile, “If I hadn't said it yet I'm glad you're alive.”

I gave him a small smile in return and he engulfed in a hug. “I'm glad you're alive too.” I said with a small laugh then pulled out of the hug. His hands lingered on my neck and mine on his sides. In a split second every tender intimate moment we'd ever had flooded my mind. Then came the bad memories and all the arguments. That made me remember why I chose Daryl, why I love Daryl more than anything or anyone. So I let him go and gave him a sad smile. “Thanks for filling me in. I'm gonna go to my cell and try to process things.” he let me go without a word.

Daryl's cell was on the way to mine and Carol's voice made me stop just outside of it. “This is a tomb.” I heard Daryl say as I made sure I couldn't be seen by them.

“That's what T-dog called it. I thought he was right till you found me.” Carol said and it got quiet for a few seconds. “He's your brother, but he's not good for you. Don't let him bring you down. After all, look how far you've come.” she said making him laugh. God how I'd missed that sound. It got quiet and I was about to go to my cell when Carol's words stopped me. “I've never thought Joanna was good for you either. She's too weak, those panic attacks of hers...they'll only slow you down and make you weak.” I felt my teeth grind together as I bit down, forcing back more tears and made myself walk by as if I hadn't heard a thing.

About an hour later I heard some one approach my cell and I thought it would be Daryl or Rick, but instead, it was Merle. “What do you want?” I asked sitting up to pull my knees to my chest.

“Just thought that if we're gonna be under the same roof, we should clear the air.” he stated and I just stared at him. “The whole hunting you two down thing... that was just business. Carrying out orders.”

“Sure, whatever, just don't hurt my people.” I said and he just smirked at me. “What?”

“Good taste.” he answered making me immediately think of what he said back at Woodbury. How his brother had good taste. He just smirked again as he walked away.

I was still in my cell when I heard Rick yell for Daryl, Merle and some others to join him outside because Andrea had been spotted. So I ran out behind Michonne and watched as Rick let her in a treated her like the traitor she was. He pushed her to her knees and took her things before she confirmed that she was alone and she was eventually let into the prison, but just the holding room. Andrea greeted Carol first. “Hershel, oh my god.” she sighed, spotting the old man's lack of a limb. “I can't believe this.” she said as she looked around the room and let go of Carol. “Where's Shane?” he asked still looking around the room before she looked at Rick.

“Why should you care? You're sleeping with The Governor now right?” I asked earning a glare from her before she looked at Rick who simply shook his head and looked away from her.

“And Lori?” she asked and Rick just gave her a hard look.

“She had a girl. Lori didn't survive.” Hershel spoke up.

“Neither did T-Dog.” Maggie added and I made a mental note to find out exactly how he died.

“I'm so sorry.” she said before her eyes landed on Carl. “Carl...” the boy just glared at her sympathy. Then she turned to Rick. “Rick I-” she started to walk over to Rick but he backed away from her. So she looked around the room at other people. “You all live here?”

“Here and the cell block.” Glenn answered.

“There?” she asked pointing to the door to the cell block. “Well, can I go in?” she asked.

Rick stepped in her way. “I won't allow that.”

“I'm not the enemy here, Rick.” Andrea defended.

“No you're just sleeping with the enemy.” I said and this time she didn't even look at me.

“We had that field and courtyard until your boyfriend tore down the fence with a truck and shot us up.” Rick said still standing in her way.

“He said you fired first.” Andrea defended.

I wanted to point out that he was a liar, but I knew I wasn't the person to point that out. She wouldn't listen to me. She never did. “Well, he's lying.” Rick answered and she just stared at him.

“He killed an inmate who survived in here.” Hershel spoke up.

“We liked him. He was one of us.” Daryl said making her attention turn to him.

“I didn't know anything about that.” Andrea said with a head shake. “As soon as I found out I came. I didn't even know you were in Woodbury until after the shoot-out.” she said looking around at everyone.

“That was days ago.” Glenn said and now I agreed with his angry tone.

“I told you I came as soon as I could.” Andrea defended herself and looked around at everyone just to be met with glares and looks of mistrust. She turned to me “What have you told them?” she asked angrily.

“I didn't have to tell them anything.” I said from where I sat at the metal picnic table.

“You poisoned them with lies about me.” she yelled.

“She hasn't bad mouthed ya.” Daryl of all people defended me from where he sat at the table across the room from me.

“I don't get it. I left Atlanta with you people and now I'm the odd man out?” she asked getting mad at everyone.

“He almost killed Michonne and he would have killed us.” Glenn started.

“With his finger on the trigger.” Andrea yelled with a point at Merle. “Isn't he the one who kidnapped you? Who beat you?” she asked then sighed and placed her head in her hands for a second. “I cannot excuse or explain what Philip has done. But I am trying to bring us together. We have to work this out.”

“There's nothing to work out.” Rick said cutting her off. “We're gonna kill him. I don't know how or when, but we will.”

“We can settle this.” she said taking a step closer to Rick.

“God, Andrea!” I yelled at her. “When are you going to open those ignorant eyes of yours and realize that there is no settling this. He will not stop until we are dead, that is just the kid of man he is. Merle kidnapped us, but it was under the orders of your boy toy. He is sick and twisted.” I said walking over to get in her face.

“There is room at Woodbury for you.” she said not giving up on the idea of peace.

“You're blind as a freaking bat.” I scoffed and walked back to the table.

“There's room for all of you.” she said looking around at everyone now.

Merle laughed at her. “You know better than that.”

“What makes you think this man wants to negotiate?” Hershel asked. “Did he say that?”

“No.” Andrea answered.

“Then why did you come here?” Rick asked.

“Because he's gearing up for war. The people are terrified. They see you as killers. They're training to attack.” Andrea warned.

“I'll tell you what. Next time you see Philip, you tell him I'm gonna take his other eye.” Daryl warned back.

“We've taken too much shit for too long.” Glenn spoke up. “He wants a war? He's got one.”

Andrea turned to Rick. “Rick? If you don't sit down and try to work this out, I don't know what's gonna happen. He has a whole town.” she heaved out a breath as she turned toward us. “Look at you. You've lost so much already. You can't stand alone anymore.”

“You want to make this right, get us inside.” Rick said walking around her to be in her line of sight.

“No.” Andrea said shaking her head rapidly.

“Then we got nothing to talk about.” Rick walked around her.

“There are innocent people.” she yelled after him trying to get him to stop.

With Rick gone Michonne and Andrea went outside to talk. So with her out of the way I went back to my cell.

I don't know when she left, I didn't go see her off like everyone else did. I didn't even leave my cell until I heard everyone getting together down stairs and the smell of warm food hit my nose. It turned out to just be rice, cooked with a chicken bullion cube for flavor. It wasn't much, but I sat on the floor next to Michonne to eat it. Not long after I finished my bowl Beth started singing. After listening to the song enough to recognize a pattern and pick up the chorus I started to sing along. “You gotta hold on, hold on. You gotta hold on. Take my hand I'm standin' right here. You gotta hold on.” I sang back up catching a few people's attention, but I didn't look at them. Beth glared at me, but I ignored her too. She wasn't going to put a damper on my fun.

When the song was over most people turned in for the night. So I followed suit. As I passed Daryl's cell he spoke up, stopping me. “So it's you and Rick again, huh?”

I stopped and leaned my back against the frame of his door. "Maybe." I replied with a shoulder shrug.

"I ain't interested in none of your games." He practically growled as he sat up on the side of his bunk.

"Are you and Carol together?" I finally asked and he looked at me like I was crazy. "She was more broken up about you leaving the group than everyone else and people around here seem to put your names together a lot. On top of that you two were close at the farm, so what am I supposed to expect when I find you." I explained deciding to leave out the fact that I heard her badmouthing me and Daryl didn't defend me. He just stared at me, biting his nails. “Was I supposed to expect you to just wait around for me to show up out of the blue? I mean as much as I missed you and longed to be with you I supposed you would move on at some point.”

"Did you move on?" He answered flatly.

“Oh, yeah, didn't you hear? Andrea, Michonne and I got real cozy on the road together.” I popped off and he rolled his eyes at me with a scoff. “No, I didn't.” I answered truthfully. “Have you?”

“Na. She's just a friend.” he answered quietly.

“Good.” I told him with a nod and pushed off of the door frame to walk away.

“You gonna give me a straight answer 'bout you and Rick?” he asked stopping me and I turned to see that he had stood up.

“He's just a friend.” I answered with a sigh. “Now if you don't mind I'd like to get some sleep.” I started once again to walk off but he grabbed my hand pulling me to a stop.

“Sleep here.” he suggested, not dropping my hand.

“Why, so I can be your booty call?” I asked sarcastically.

He bit his lip and shook his head. “Cause I love ya, Woman.”

“W-what?” I asked too shocked for his words to fully sink in.

“Come on, I ain't good at this shit, don't make me say it again.” he practically begged.

What he had done and what he had called me...it was all washed away by those three little words. Three little words that when said separately or with other words between them meant nothing. But when one sentence was composed of just these words they seemed to heal the worst of wounds and mend broken hearts. So what did I do when they finally sank in?

Laughter burst from my lips and I fell back to lean against the door frame again. When I managed to stop laughing I leaned my head back and closed my eyes. “Even in my best dreams you never said that.” I whispered then looked at him to see him looking at me like if I rejected him he would crack. “I love you too.”

A smile spread across his lips as he closed the space between us grabbed the back of my head and pulled me into him. The kiss was hard and passionate. A moan escaped my lips when his tongue found mine starting a battle with no winner. His hand moved from the back of my head to grip my sides and lift me up and pin me to that wall. My legs wrapped around his waist and my fingers embedded themselves into his soft hair.

Thirty minutes later we lay on his bed sweaty and breathless, but still tangled together like an unkempt line of string. “How do you do that?” I asked, not looking at him, but comparing the size of our hands instead.

“Do what?” he asked quietly.

“Make me lose my mind but stay perfectly grounded at the same time.” I said and he scoffed at me.

“Ya ain't makin' since.” he grumbled sleepily.

“Yeah, I guess my minds still a little lost.” I chuckled as I dropped his hand and rolled over to look at him. “It has to be, because I feel crazy for giving you a second chance.” I explained, resting my hand on his taunt chest. “I felt something for you before, I wasn't sure what it was, if it was love or lust or if it was just simply trust, and companionship. So when you told me I was nothing to you and chose to leave me, it hurt but I lived. Barely, but I did. And now, after tonight, after we said what we said? You have my heart, you're capable of destroying me.”

“Ain't gonna do that.” he promised, low and gruff as he placed his hand on my cheek and ran his thumb over my cheekbone. “Can't make the same mistake twice.” from my face his hand slid down to my neck where he touched the mark his brother had left on me. “Let's get some sleep, missed havin' ya by my side.”

I smiled to myself as I tuned my back to him and he tossed his arm over my side. “Goodnight, Daryl.”

“Night, Ballerina.”

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sammisweets143 · 3 years

Text

A New Family Member (OC x Hunter)

Summary: The Bad Batch and Jedi General Sienna Nellock have just gotten off of the Ordo Moon and are in Hyperspace. Sienna is having difficulties coping with her place amongst the batch since she no longer has the Jedi (her family) and she feels out of place with the clone squad. Hunter decides to make her an official member and act on his feelings toward her.

Pairings: Hunter and Sienna (My OC)

OC Description: Sienna has several braids that are pulled into a ponytail fit for any Viking warrior (think Lagertha from Vikings). She also has the same plastiod armor the Clones and Bad Batch have, hers of course are the slate grey/black. She no longer uses her lightsaber, instead she uses a blaster and a knife, just like Hunter.

TW: Wholesomeness, Steamy kiss scene, feelings of not belonging, *I think that about sums everything up*

Notes: I am still learning the steamy/love scenes between characters if any creators have advice I’d love to hear it!

There was a quietness on the ship after take off from the Ordo Moon. Sienna rather enjoyed it.

It was the first time in awhile she’d actually gotten to meditate without interruption from anyone. She sat in the copilot’s chair, releasing a calming breath as she centered herself.

The force flowed through her almost immediately, letting her feel the entire ship’s energy in her grasp. From Omega’s bubbly and energetic spirit to Echo’s hard yet kind spirit, everything was in her grasp again and that made her feel better. It was hard not letting the force in due to the fear of being discovered by the enemy. What if someone knew she was still alive and came for her? For the Bad Batch?

No sooner had she began to feel at peace, a presence she was all too familiar with entered the atmosphere. With her heightened senses she heard him coming first then when he entered the cockpit she smelled the familiar clean yet smoky fragrance he had to him.

“There you are, I was wondering where you’d gone off to,” Hunter’s smoky voice reached her ears as he sat in the pilot’s chair. “You’ve been unusually quite.”

There weren’t many places she could go to unless she released herself out of the airlock. No matter how hard she had tried, Sienna had managed to lose her grip on her control with him. He was forbidden fruit and she wanted nothing more than to have him. For several days now they’d been flirting, they even flirted when they first met, everything was innocent of course, up until recently. Their desire for each other was growing, and Sienna ached for the one thing she’d been told all her life she couldn’t have, attachment to someone.

When she had first met Hunter and the group it was when they were going on a covert mission to the Cyber Center and then to save Echo from Skako Minor. There was an instant connection, almost a magnetic pull between them. They both did their best to ignore the feeling, each having their loyalties set on their duties as Jedi and Clone Trooper.

What didn’t help them was when he’d kept her steady with his hand on her back or waist, or when the shuttle went down and his arm locked around her and she was pressed against his front. I got you, I got you. He repeated in her ear as if it was a promise, he wouldn’t let her go even if it killed them.

“Are you going to tell me what’s wrong?” Hunter pressed on when she didn’t respond to him the first time.

“I shouldn’t have left Saleucami with you. I should’ve got on that shuttle like you told me to,” Sienna said, before she could even stop the words from spilling out of her mouth. When she uttered them it felt as though they hit him right in the face.

“I thought you wanted to?” His features hardened. “You fought me on this and I-“ he stopped as he could sense she wasn’t acting right. “Hey, you are just as important as any of us.” He knelt down in front of her.

“I’m not one of you, I just don’t feel like I belong.” She said. “I’m not a clone, I’m a Jedi. What use am I?”

He nodded as he looked at her. “Okay.” He stood up. “Stay.” He pointed at her and went to retrieve something from a cabinet. He came back and sealed the cockpit so it was just the two of them. “Come here.” He knelt down again and pulled her closer and turned her so her shoulder was to him.

“What are you doing?” She asked as he was grabbing her and moving her.

“Quiet.”

“Hunter.”

“Sienna, I said be quiet. This takes concentration,” he looked at her with a hint of playfulness in his eyes. She rarely got to see that look from him anymore.

He opened one of the container and it was white paint. “Don’t move,” he ordered as he began to paint on her pauldron.

She did as she was told and didn’t move, so she took the moment to look at him, really look at him. The side of his face that wasn’t tattooed had a light dusting of stubble, the other side did too but this side was visible. His lashes were long, and when he blinked they’d dust across his cheeks gently.

As her gaze swept over him she seemed to fall deeper into the trance that was Hunter. All caution was out the window now, anything could happen. And anything did. She found herself reaching up gently to stroke his cheek as he focused on painting, the tiny stubble barely poking at her finger tips. It was one of the most simplest, yet intimate things both had experienced that they let the quiet moment consume them for what seemed like forever.

“Tell me about your tattoos on your back,” He finally said, needing a distraction. “What’s special about them?”

She cleared her throat and took a breath. “I got them because on each planet or moon was where I learned something.” She said.

“Tell me about your favorite one.” He prompted her.

“Sorgan.” a little smile graced her lips as she recalled the memory. “The children there loved to race and play, they were part of this family that owned a farm,” she began. “The mother was so kind and she had a new born with her but she always managed to be doing something strenuous and that benefited her family and community with the child strapped to her.”

“Sounds like quite the woman.” He nodded. For a brief moment he pictured her doing the same thing. She rarely rested since she’d been with them, and she doted on Omega. She never let that girl out of her sight if she could help it, much like himself.

“I also just fell in love with the planet itself. They say it’s just some backwater planet but it’s so beautiful. I’d live there if I could.”

Another picture pushed its way into his mind, of them on that little plant in the middle of nowhere with a farm of their own, a couple of kids running around, maybe his brothers not too far away. He quickly pushed that thought down so not to get ahead of himself. Hunter chuckled some. “Tell me another.” He coaxed.

“Kashyyk, I learned how to shoot a crossbow,” She smiled and bit her lip. “Very fun, and I met several force sensitive Wookiees.”

“Really, interesting.” He smirked as he dipped the brush into the paint again. “A Wookiee with a lightsaber seems unsettling. Could be just like Wrecker with a lightsaber, imagine.”

Sienna let out a small laugh. “They’re very skilled with weapons surprisingly. May I continue sergeant?”

“By all means, General,” he all but purred that statement before resuming his painting.

“Kamino, like I said is where I learned friendship, thanks to 99.” She said. “Well and Rex and the rest of the guys.” She shrugged a little.

“Don’t-” he grabbed her shoulders and chuckled some. “You’ll make me smudge it.”

“Sorry,” She laughed. “Um, let’s see, I actually was dared by Echo to get Endore on me but since it’s a forest planet I didn’t mind.”

“Seems to be your theme, forests and oceans.”

“They call to me the most,” a sigh left her lips, but it was a sigh of relief. “I often wonder if that’s where I’m from, someplace with a forest or water.” She said

“You don’t know where you’re from?” The lines on Hunter’s face settled into a deep frown as he asked her that question.

“I was a toddler when I was given to the temple, I wasn’t told where I was from.” Her voice became gentle, as if she spoke too loud the memories of her past may break. “I’ve come to peace with it.” Her opposite shoulder rose into a shrugged. “Not knowing where your home is I guess is good, so you don’t know if it’s a bad place.” She bit her lip. Sure she said she came to peace with it but occasionally there was a part of her that yearned to know her parents, her home. All the trivial things that many great Jedi were willing to part with.

When Hunter looked up at her he realized she was watching his face. He set the brush down in the container and held her hands. “Your home is with us, you are Sienna Nellock of Squad 99.” He said. “You’ll never be told differently.” He released her hands and then cupped her face being as gentle as he could. “You are here to protect Omega, be a role model for her. You are here to reassure Wrecker that eventually he may be able to blow things up or beat someone up. You are here to make sure Echo isn’t a grump to everyone since he favors you, and to give Tech something new to talk about besides manuals and random plants. Most importantly, you’re here to keep me sane, drive me wild, and make me strive to protect this squad even harder.” His voice was soft as he recited his speech, stroking her cheek with his thumb after each declaration.

Sienna’s pulse jumped as he held her face and spoke to her in the gentlest of ways he’s ever done. “That’s one of the best things that’s come out of your mouth ever. Thank you, Hunter.”

He smirked and pulled her closer. “You have such a way with words,” his voice got slightly huskier as his lips brushed against hers. He was taking a big risk doing this, but he wanted Sienna to know how important she was not just to the squad, but to him.

When his lips touched her’s, that caused her brows to furrow as her eyes closed. This was unexpected but she welcomed it none the less. They weren’t what she expected, his lips, she had expected them to be dry from constantly wearing a helmet but they were actually soft. Returning the kiss was almost instinctual for her, as if she’d done it hundreds of times before. She gripped the back of his neck and pulled him close, causing him to let out a low, hungry grunt, at that point it was the most attractive noise she’d ever heard and she didn’t care about anything else.

Hunter pulled away, wanting nothing more than to keep kissing her but their need for air plus his need to keep a handle on everything took precedence. “So, that’s what it’s like to kiss a jedi?” He smirked.

“You know, I imagined kissing a clone would be weird, like I’d be kissing a friend since you all are the same-” She began.

“But?”

“I suppose since you are genetically defective that might make you better at kissing.” She joked and smiled.

A chuckle escaped his lips as he picked up the paint brush again. “Almost done with this, be still,” He said as he moved her chair so she was turned to the other side.

“Yes sir.” She said as she rolled her eyes. They sat in a comfortable silence as he finished painting her other pauldron and he leaned back, admiring his work.

“Alright, have a look.” He said and smiled.

The excitement built up in her as she looked down at her right pauldron and it was the Jedi crest but adorning each peak was the skull of Clone Force 99. Then on the left was the signature skull with 99 below it. “Hunter,” Sienna smiled. “I love them, thank you.”

“You’re a certified member of the Bad Batch now,” Hunter smirked. “This armor definitely suits you even more than before, I’ll be the first one to admit that.”

Sienna laughed and smiled. “Hunter,” she shoved him playfully. Before she could go anywhere he grabbed her hands pulling her against his chest.

“Would you prefer it if I said I’d rather see it on the floor?” A smirk grew on his face.

“Well, it wouldn’t be the first time something like that came from you,” she mimicked his expression as she pulled him closer. “We’re alone for at least another hour-” she reminded as she stared at him with a new found desire in her eyes.

“Say no more,” he silenced her with a kiss and picked her up, securing her legs around his waist tightly.

A breathy laugh escaped her lips as she pulled away momentarily for air. This was the first time she was able to touch him, memorize his facial feature, run her fingers through his silky, dark hair, and look into his eyes without the feeling of being watched by an audience. He gave her very little time before he pulled her back and hungrily kissed her, letting his tongue explore her mouth. He kept a firm grip on her thighs, keeping her as close as psychically possible. Occasionally, he’d give them a squeeze to make sure this was real, she was real. Like her, he felt like this was their chance to do anything they wanted, no interruptions. The final question, where was he going to start?

#the bad batch #hunter x oc #original character #clone wars 99 #clone troopers #clone trooper hunter #star wars omega #clone force 99 #bad batch hunter #sergeant hunter

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straightlyunstraight · 3 years

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Stardew valley just did a sink and hook on my life now I have 3 oc’s who has different backstories and stuff but Im making it cannon here that Calum is oldest 28 years old while lukas is youngest 23 and Katikus is 26, no katikus is not his real name and his real name is kale, also katikus is half brother to calum and lukas, though this is more of a, what if scenario on each of them

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Calum k

28, brothers with lukas and is actually successful in his office job but decides to just look after the farm because he promised his grandfather to take care of it when he was a child, he only remembered when his mother gave him his grandpa’s letter when he visited them and the letter was long overdue by then, so he decided to drop everything and to take the money he has just for the promise, was he impulsive? yes, but he’s a guy whose stubborn as heck and sticks to his guts, also got his mom’s genes so he’s shorter than his brothers, around 6 feet

he secretly loves animals but has a bad sense of naming, though he still loves his dog emperador and his horse marquess.... yes he still has that dramatic blood in him he inherited from his dad

he also marries emily cuz he loves her personality and just got drawn, did I mention he’s an easy fall? he has a 3 year old daughter named elly, him and emily share the same taste in names.

Katikus(kale)

26, doesn’t like his real name and is like a chuunibyou so he goes with katikus, it’s his game name and he loves roleplay games, he also loves ducks and calls them utka, his backstory is he finished college and is a programmer, and he decides he wants to work solo so he takes out his granpa’s letter and moves to the farm

he meets sebastian when robin decided to just take him in after he kept failing to cut down a tree properly, and when she mentions how sebastian is also a programmer he waits behinds sebastian’s door like a lost puppy until he was finally let in, and the story goes from there

he ends up marrying sebastian and they are so deep in it that even before they dated they acted so close that even the whole community knew they liked each other but sebastian is in denial because he thinks he’s not good enough because he knows sam and abigail fell for him too so he doesn’t wanna ruin the friendship, but katikus on the other hand is working hard to get on sebastian’s familys good side and is doing his best to make sure he gets everything setup before confessing, when they married though katikus went very clingy but they mostly played games and they have a frog son, their not yet really having kids yet and they aren’t thinking about it at the moment

also katikus is tall as heck he’s about 6′8 since both his mom and dad were considerably tall people, he loves to forage and is bestfriends with a lot of older people but he also gets kind of too sensitive sometimes that he punched that jojamart manager and gets sad fast when he thinks he did something bad.

he also has a horse named loki and a gray cat named borden

Lukas

23, now him on the other hand is a college dropout, he connects with shane cuz he did a lot of small jobs to try and make a living but ends up losing them on cigarettes, heck he decided to take the farm because his landlord finally threw him out and calum felt bad for him so he gives lukas the letter to try and rearrange his life, he almost falls for shane but abigail just took him by surprise one day, sadly he’s an overworking kind of guy and when abigail brought up the prospect of marriage, he works himself to the bone because he wants to give her the best things he can and it ends uo with abigail being negected and falling apart, she is at the verge of divorcing him and he knows it so he does what ever he does when he gets fired, drowns himself in drinks and have a one night, it ends up to be shane though they dont go too far, and at the moment he’s still struggling on what to do

he likes drinking and cigarettes, as well as his orange cat Jiji, he farms for a living and hates mushrooms for some reason, he’s 6′3

#stardew oc #stardew valley #stardew farmer #oc and backstory #I did this because it has been in my mind living rent free for awhile now

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floatingfish626 · 3 years

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MC Server ಥ_ಥ

Me and a group of friends made our own MC server. Unfortunately, the server was abandoned. Me, being the person I am, still feel the server has potential, so I still play/write lore for it. This may be wayyyy out of the usual for my page but lets be honest, who actively stalks my tumblr page? This is mostly gonna be a place for me to dump the failed server ideas/backstories. So, here goes nothing. If you wanna read them, random stranger, feel free to! I wanted this server to last a while, and we made it almost 2 months with about 12 people in total. So, enjoy!

Word Count: 2,603 (11,679 Characters)

**ALL ORIGINS ARE WRITTEN BY SEPERTE PEOPLE, ALL EDITED BY ME, NONAME**

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Character Origin 1, Seven: Seven was born into a life of poverty, shortly after he was born, he got sold to work as a slave on a sea village, quickly being transferred to a sand village outside of a prison. He did is work as a farmer to a small, yet kind and caring family, who adopted him as their own. His name, Seven, coming from a number tattooed on his neck while in the market. During Seven’s time at this small village, they had a fatal accident, having a berserk enderman ruin the home he had grown custom to. He rebuilt the fallen Village, only to have a Piglin army slaughter whomever remained. Seven only escaped with his life, befriending a Guardian named Marvin, who became his best friend (RIP Marvin, we miss you <3). The Guardian helped Seven grow stronger, and learn to fight. A few years later, he came across two children, Tex and Rox. Seven, taking sympathy for the two, took them as his own. As the revenge grew further from his mind, his children grew older. As they grew, he taught them what he knew about farming and combat. His kids grew older and left him, a crazy old man in a dirt hut with the guardian, forgetting the revenge he wished for many years. On a normal day, Seven had witnessed something unforgivable happen. He had met Oxlo, Void, and Levi. After spending every waking moment together, the three ended up falling for each other, having adopted Levi and marrying the other two, Seven had have a happy life, with his 3 stolen adopted kids and poly relationship. (End Seven.)

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Character Origin 2, Levi: Levi was born into captivity from a hybrid mother. By the time he could walk, he was taken from his mother, and raised like a solider. Levi had large, beautiful wings, that got removed as a child, leaving him scared and unsure of who he was all throughout his ‘childhood.’ Being he was a hybrid being, he was used on for testing, by horrid endermen. Having experiments done constantly, he had mutated a mouth (basically Venom from the movie Venom) that he had grown to hate. As Levi grew older, he became rebellious against the unfair people. He gained many cruel and inhumane (lol) punishments. During one of these ‘rebellious moments,’ he had expected to be caught. instead, he was left alone to do so. He heard a loud crash and began to investigate. He had walked outside to see 2 large entities trying to fight against the endermen, and winning. Levi took this as an opportunity to escape. He left the end before the two closed the portal to the end. He blacked out and woke up to a short, sandy blonde man and 2, really tall men, resembling endermen, staring at him. After many, many years of building trust and learning how to communicate, Levi became one of their family. He Moved out many years later, only to return to his home town to find everything left barren and abandoned. (End Levi.)

Looks: Light blue, messy hair, dark blue eyes, scarf covering his mouth/nose, unhinged and slimy mouth, white and blue tshirt, black jeans (you can tell this one is my, NoName’s, OC cause he is a lot more detailed LMAO)

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Character Origin 3, Tex: Tex is 15-17, a strider hybrid. He comes from a Nether village called Riften, but now resides in Toadstool Field. He works as a dealer and supplier for the Midnight Mafia. He can easily build and mine, and is also good at navigating the Nether and finding gold (piglins wanted gold all the time so he grew accustomed to getting it) he's obsessive and goes into a blind rage near piglins, and gifts objects and builds often. Tex was a runt in his village, so when it was attacked by piglins when he was 6-8 he was left behind for a offering, after years of being with piglins he came to despise them. He escaped around 11-14. (He isn't good with remembering his age) He had multiple siblings, but cannot remember them very well. He assumes they are dead along with the rest of his village and now only is comfortable around Seven, Void and Levi Tex has pointed ears, and scars from water/staying with piglins. He has sharp teeth. He cannot see well, water is hurtful to him and his memory is bad but he can easily swim in lava/fire resistant. He is twitchy and quick, he has curious movements and is very touchy and talks quickly and mumbly. He wears a magenta sweater, black overalls, purple flowers scattered about and no shoes Tex wants to be renewed in his new family's eyes, he wishes not to be known as a runt he thinks everyone sees him lower bc of him being a runt. Tex doesn't understand human feelings/ striders don't have many emotions, his anger was very new to him he is scared of Piglins/hoglins and hates water

Looks: Messy, dark hair, pointed ears, black eyes, fangs, darker, loosing fitting clothes

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Character Origin 4, Amber:

So amber was born in a town called Fransin in the nether and lived there with her single mother, she was bullied a lot as a kid because she didn't have spare money for the nicest clothes or shoes she stayed there until about 15 when her mother had kicked her out because it's the same as her mother did when she was younger, she stumbled upon a portal and went through which lead into dark woods and after wandering around for a bit she came upon Toadstool Fields. She was a bit scared, but after meeting the town's folk she adjusted to the overworld, yes she had a few bumps along the way (especially when her friends suggested they go swimming, as she’s part blaze), but she has grown more and made more friends, plus they even let her build her own home! She has always been grateful because they've always helped her and given her everything she needs, especially since she grew up kinda rough

Looks: Light brown hair, Golden eyes, ash colored freckles, Bee striped shirts

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Character Origin 5, Rox: When Rox was young around 4, she was made as a science experiment, (hence the endwalk state that will eventually happen later) she was later sent out to the street after all of those tests (for over 3 years), that she hated so dearly, After about one week on her own in the world, she was soon adopted by seven. She was taught how to fight and defend herself. As she got older, he became smarter and was filled with anger from the past. (hence chaotic good and neutral evil yknow?) So yes, around 16, she married milly and has been with her for a year now, she is just trying help people with her bakery and fight people if necessary (Since she’s in the mafia clan thingy).

Looks: short, pink hair, glasses, blue eyes, dark clothes

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Character Origin 6, Void: Void was born in the end, to a noble Enderman, though they don't remember that. They don't remember their original name, or their parents, or anything about their life. All they know is that they're not welcome in the End anymore, being ostracized after a series of unfortunate events in the End. Their first interaction with the Overworld wound up in them in a village and slaughtering everyone in it due to someone making eye contact with them, shortly afterwards picking up the masks to avoid eye contact and avoid looking at the scars on their face. They fled the premises with their sister Redacted and hid deep into the woods, starting on making a mansion for themself and their sister, where they would be safe. They want to keep all those dear to them safe, bordering a bit on possessiveness with the protectiveness. They have a lot of secrets, and in general are an unknown entity to those around them. They're extremely morally ambiguous and run a mafia, with their pet as their right hand man.

Extra: -Redacted is not Void's blood sister. -Void has worn their masks for so long they don't know what they look like. -Void only takes their mask off to threaten people. -They have such a love of birds because the first mob that didn't run away from them was a parrot. -They hate government because one tried to kidnap them once and study them as an Enderman, using water torture against them. Void escaped and killed a few people, grabbing two masks off the wall as they went to hide their identity. -Void's eyes are different from fellow Enderman, and if you look into them it's an unpleasant experience for you both. -Void is a peaceful entity until provoked, just like Enderman. -Void has an immense hatred for sand. -Void likes gazing at the stars because it reminds them of gazing into the void in the End, which is where they got their name from. -Void has a dog named Spark because shortly after they found him they were struck by lightning, which they found hilarious.

Looks: Tall (height unspecified), Dark, fancy clothing, Mask (smile, no he isn’t dream), dark, messy hair)

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Character Origin 7, Milly: Milly is a neko hybrid, she's part feline, part human. Her existence came to be when her mother, a neko, and her father, a human, fell in love. She grew up in a small town which wasn't very popular, she wasn't picked on but she did get pushed around by some people growing up. Despite bullies, she had a normal upbringing; her parents were nice and supportive, teaching her everything they could. Her mother often told her how horrible the world can be, teaching her how kindness is a must and how no matter what, she should always help people in need and keep up a smile if she could. Milly followed this advice the best she could. While her mother taught her things through talks, her father tried to teach her things physically: he told her how he agreed, how the world was horrible, so he taught her to fight- to defend herself and protect others with her fighting skills and feline abilities. Although Milly loved her parents and the friends she had, she grew adventurous when she turned the age of 15- she wanted to explore, to see and meet more than she has. Her parents respected her wishes since they loved her dearly, they gave her all the supplies and advice they could before they hugged her goodbye. It wasn't long after that she met Rox, an enderman hybrid who she grew to cherish being around. So, her and Rox got married at 16 and She moved in with Rox, in the smp she loved living in for all her days. Hence where the story starts.

Headcanons: -Milly has about five cats she keeps, she loves cats. -She likes to draw, collect flowers, bake sweets, and help out people. -She's a lawful good person and pacifist -She likes dogs but they don't like her :( -She has special feline characteristics: she can jump two blocks higher than a normal person, she can purr, she will take random naps sometimes during the day, she has fangs, and she gets distracted by cat toys sometimes

Looks: Long pink hair, light pink eyes, collar (it has a bell), white shirt and a pink skirt

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Unmentioned Characters (ones without backstories): Sammy, Oxlo, Will

this took me an hour. JUST EDITING- (ó﹏ò｡)

#smp #mc #minecraft #we spent so long and for nothing-#ocs #oc #Toadstool Field SMP #TFSMP #this is going to take over my page istg

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galadrieljones · 4 years

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As You Were (Chapter 3)

Fandom: The Last of Us | Pairing: Joel x OC | Content: Fix-it | Rating: Mature

Masterpost

When Joel and Ellie take a wrong turn on their journey from Pittsburgh to Wyoming, they find themselves lost in a beautiful place with a dark and dangerous secret. While there, they meet a mother and son who, after a recent, tragic event on their family farm, are fighting tirelessly for survival. In an effort to find hope for the future, the two groups set out west together, growing closer over time, making choices and altering paths that will change the course of their lives forever.

This is an AU, starting after the events of the Summer chapter in the first game, and extending into the timeline of the second. Joel lives.

Chapter 3: The Driftless

“When you’re lost in the darkness, look to the light.”

After dinner, Joel insisted on cleaning up. Cici said she'd show him around the kitchen, the downstairs. The food had been really good, like way too good. Ellie had never had lamb before, ended up eating almost as much as Noah. At some point, though, while everybody was making small talk, she became dreamy. She was looking out the window, pressing her thumb lightly to the blade of her knife, finding shapes in the stars. Noah came over after everybody was finished with the meal and asked her if she wanted to come with him, out to the Crow's Nest, to help him with something.

"What are we doing?" said Ellie. It was probably about ten o'clock and full dark outside.

"It's a mess out there," he said, throwing the shotgun strap over his shoulder. "I just have to go haul some stuff out. You can come, if you want."

"Yeah, sure," she said. She smiled and closed up her blade. "Let's go."

But then, Joel said, "Ellie."

His voice was big, and deep, like space. Whenever he said her name like that, she immediately found his eyes. Something about choosing to stick together like they had. You can't really unstick.

"What's wrong?" she said.

He was standing with his hands in a basin, which was full of soapy water. The faucets didn't work anymore, said Noah. Nowhere in the whole house, or on the whole property. The running water was completely unusable. Ellie thought it was a little funny, seeing Joel do dishes. She'd never thought of him like that before. He wiped his soapy hands on his jeans, and then he looked down at them and seemed to reassess what it was he was about to say. She was listening. "Just be careful," he said, looking at her in a way that meant compromise.

"Sure," she said. "I will."

"Thanks, Ellie."

"She really listens to you," said Cici, once the kids were gone. She was taking the vacuum out of a broom closet by the front door. "Or is that just when other people are around?"

Joel stopped what he was doing, his hands back in the soapy water. Admittedly, he felt like a stranger in a kitchen like this. It had been too many years. "You mean Ellie?"

"Yeah," she said. "It can't be easy, with just her dad."

"Ellie ain't—she ain't my daughter," said Joel, remembering, suddenly, that Cici did not know. Noah knew, but the particulars of their relationship at large had not come up yet. It just wasn't important. "I'm just looking after her. For the time being."

"Oh," said Cici. She was surprised. "I'm sorry. I just figured."

"It's okay," said Joel. He started washing the plates with a sponge. "Back in Boston, there was a lot of...violence. A small group of us were trying to get out of the QZ," he said, scrubbing. "My brother lives out west, got some sort of set-up there, so that's been our plan, to find him. Some of us got as far as Pittsburgh. But me and Ellie, we're the only two made it this far." He looked down at the plate. It was like a coral color, porcelain.

Cici was quiet. When he turned around, she was just holding the cord to the vacuum cleaner, staring at it like she had forgotten what it did. "Well, we're glad you found us," she said. “Despite the circumstances.”

"Us, too," said Joel. "Y'all said you were in need of some real help. I've been wondering what kind."

She went to plug in the vacuum, but she didn't turn it on yet. Instead, she just stood, like she was piecing something together in her mind. "Infected,” she said. Then she was examining her fingernails. She had her hair braided about halfway down her back. She didn’t seem to want to look him in the eye. “They been tearing up our land,” she went on. “More keep coming, from up the river. And every time they do, they blow the mines on the perimeter. Yesterday, they brought down a tree. Noah had to rewire the entire valley and dig a whole new trench. I help as much as I can, which is usually enough, but given the volume of work, there’s only so much I can contribute these days, reasonably. I just—you coming along, it’s like happenstance.”

Joel took a deep breath, looked down at his watch. He had his sleeves rolled up above his forearms. “How many mines you got down there.”

“Over a hundred,” she said. “There’s IEDs, too. Some can be detonated remotely.”

”Who’s building IEDs?” said Joel.

“I am,” she said. She offered zero explanation. “All the maintenance, everything, it’s getting to be fucking impossible.”

“Well,” he said. “Like I said earlier, I’ll help in any way I can.”

”Thank you,” said Cici.

"Do you have any idea what's bringing them down, the hordes?"

"We got some idea," she said. She bit off a hangnail. She told him he needed to talk to Noah.

"Okay," said Joel. It was a little like she had given up. He didn’t like that. He knew she was keeping something from him, but he didn't press. "You know I thought we might be able to get to all this over dinner,” he went on, “but then the food turned out to be a little too good. I forgot to ask."

She started loosening the plaits of her braid, smiled to herself. "Thanks," she said. She was a subdued woman, at least for the time being. "I mean, I don't think I've ever seen a girl eat as much as Ellie."

"It's mostly canned rations in the QZs," said Joel. "I ain't surprised. Other than squirrels and rabbits, we ain't had real meat in some time. Ellie's certainly never had lamb."

"Was she born in the Boston QZ?"

"I guess so," said Joel, realizing he didn't really know. "The woman who raised her, more or less, she was a Firefly. You know that group?"

"Yeah," said Cici, leaning on the vacuum. "I do, actually. A couple Fireflies came through here, maybe five years ago. They were looking to recruit."

"Anybody go with them?"

"No," she said. "They were spouting off all sorts of plans. Said there was gonna be a cure. But they were focused up in Minneapolis. We had a whole community here, going strong for a while. It was safe. Nobody wanted to risk leaving, not on a lark like that."

“Well, that makes sense," said Joel. He finished the coral plate, set it on the drying rack, then set forth on a plate that was more of a custard yellow. He didn't ask what had happened, with their community, and why it was she and Noah were out here all alone. He washed the dishes.

Cici turned on the vacuum, cleaned up under the table, and around Joel's feet. When she finished, she put it away and started wiping down the surfaces with a damp towel. When the dishes were all clean and drying, and Joel was drying his hands on a linen towel, she brought out the rest of the wine from dinner and poured it into two small mason jars, one for each of them. They sat down at the kitchen table, trying to undo a little bit of their strife as they stared down at their wine, their hands, their knees. As two adults, they were somewhat unaccustomed to small talk. It was easier to hide things, for both of them. They were trying very hard though. Joel could tell that Cici was, not uncomfortable, but a little awkward. She just didn't know what to say to him.

"So," he said, after a little while. "Noah. He's what, eighteen, nineteen years old?"

"He's seventeen," she said, drinking. "He'll be eighteen in a couple weeks though."

"He's big for a seventeen-year-old," said Joel, drinking. "Pretty tall."

"His dad played football at Madison," she said. "He was a tight end. It runs in the family."

"You don't say."

She got a little red in the cheeks, and sipped her wine. "Noah is a good son. He does right by me, and by this farm."

"I can tell." Joel drank some of his wine, too. It was a little thin, made from cabernet grapes they had grown in a vineyard out back. That’s what Noah had said. Grapes don't grow in Wisconsin like they do in California, he'd said. But they do grow. "I will admit that I was a little surprised,” said Joel. “You look kind of young to have such a grown-up son. That's a compliment, by the way."

It was like she was trying to smile, but she hid it. "I'm thirty-six," she said. "I had Noah very young."

"I get it," said Joel. "You don't have to explain anything to me."

They sat for a little while, drinking their fruity wine and listening to the nature sounds coming in the open windows. The river rushing, snaking through the property like a silvery ribbon, the crickets big and deep. The clock on the wall.

"You know, I noticed, on the drive in, this place don't look like what I thought Wisconsin was supposed to look like."

"How so?"

"It's so hilly," he said. "With the stone ridges and the outcroppings, the rivers and the terrace farms. I thought Wisconsin was supposed to be pretty flat."

Cici got up then. She went to the record player, on a shelf by the TV, and she was rifling through a stack of vinyls. "Most of it is," she said. "But where we are, it's different. You ever heard of the Driftless Area?"

"No," said Joel. "What the hell's that?"

She chose one vinyl from the stack, slid the record from the envelope. "It's this small area around the upper-Mississippi, in the floodplain of southwestern Wisconsin mostly, some parts of Minnesota and Iowa. During the Ice Age, you know, the glaciers came down, flattened out everything. That's why Wisconsin is the way it is, but down here, in this tiny little corner, it escaped glaciation, somehow. It just missed us. There are no leftovers from the glaciers, or glacial deposits I guess, and so that's why the terrain looks the way it does, like the waterfalls and the cold streams, all the tributaries and big ridges and everything, the high forests. There's no drift. It's driftless." She was centering the record on the spindle.

Joel was looking down into his wine, feeling dumbfounded. "You're telling me the geography around here ain't changed in a hundred thousand years?"

"More or less," she said, setting down the needle. "It's some of the best trout fishing in the world, where we live."

"Y'all must fish a lot then. Does Noah get out there much with his line?"

"Not anymore," she said. Something about the sound of her voice, he knew that was the end of their talk on the Driftless.

The record player crackled and clicked. A song came on. The music filled the house. It was almost joyful. Joel had been daydreaming at first, but then he realized that he recognized the voice. "Is this Ryan Adams?" he said.

”Yeah," said Cici. “You know his stuff?”

“I do,” said Joel. “I saw him live in Dallas, all the way back in, what was it now, 2004?"

”Really?" she said.

”Really.”

”That's amazing. But you’re so old.”

He laughed. This surprised him, the sudden levity between them. “Well, I was a teenager.”

”What are you now, like forty-five?”

He gave her a look. "You gonna guess my age, Miss Cici?"

"I don't know," she said. "I'm sorry. Is that weird?"

”Not really," said Joel. "I'm just messing with you. If you must know. I'll be forty-eight at the end of the month.”

"How old is Ellie?" said Cici.

"She's fourteen," said Joel.

"What does she like?" said Cici. “I mean, what are her interests?”

Joel wrapped his hands all the way around the mason jar, as if to heat the wine within. "She likes comic books," he said. "I try to pick them up for her, whenever I find some. I've heard her sing, too, whenever we're on the road. She ain't half bad, and she tries to whistle every now and then so I think she likes music. But the place she grew up, it was basically a military prep school. Real stifling. She ain’t really used to having the liberty of interests."

"I thought you said she was raised by Fireflies?"

"It's complicated," said Joel. He swallowed some of the wine.

"I see," said Cici. "How long have you two been traveling together?"

"A couple months," said Joel, right away. "Seems like forever."

"I'm sorry about your people, from Boston," said Cici. "The people you said you lost. I don't know what to say."

Joel saw the shape of Tess, darkening the doorway. It seemed to drop a shadow, over the room, his insides, just for a second. He blinked. “You don't have to worry about me,” he said. Then he looked at Cici. Her face was pretty. Anybody would have noticed as much. "I'm fine."

Her eyes were dark, her braid undone over her shoulder. She drank her wine and said softly, "Okay."

Once they got outside, Ellie looked up. The sky swam darkly. The stars here were like nothing else, she thought. Maybe a million ribbons, maybe fishes in a black pool. It seemed to breathe up there, to teem. Teem. That was the word. She wanted to tell Joel. She thought it was a neat word, he might appreciate. She was used to feeling desperate, warm floods—of emotions, which she would then bury deep inside of herself.

She followed Noah, trailing slightly behind. They spoke little. He did ask her how she felt about it, out there. The farm.

"I love it," she said. "You're so lucky."

They walked back down to the gate where they’d first met. When they finally got to the crow’s nest, Ellie needed a boost up to the ladder, and then he followed up behind her. When she got to the top, she dusted her hands off on her jeans and looked around.

It really was like a little nest, she thought. It was totally his. There was an oil lamp glowing on a low table, and stacked up beside it were dozens of paperback novels. Names like Ernest Hemingway, Cormac McCarthy, Jim Harrison. Noah started cleaning up, right away. Tidying things, sweeping the floor with an old straw broom. There were a couple bean bag chairs with neat, psychedelic patterns, and a battery-powered hot plate, and some dirty plates, bottles and mugs. She could tell he spent a lot of time in the crow’s nest, alone. She could tell that maybe he liked it to be neat and clean up there at the start of each new day.

As he stacked up the plates and things and swept the floor, she flipped through some of the novels on the table. There was one book that was open, conspicuously, on top of the rest. That one, she did not touch, for fear of losing his place. “You like to read?” she said, stupidly.

“Yeah,” he said. “Do you?”

“Yeah,” she said. “Do you ever read comics?”

“Sometimes,” he said. “I have a bunch inside.”

“Sweet,” said Ellie, looking around. There were some posters on the wall, nothing she recognized. One was for a band called Pearl Jam. “I was reading this one series. It’s called Savage Starlight. I mean, it’s stupid. You heard of it?”

“No,” said Noah. “What’s it about?”

“It’s about this chick,” she said. There was a quilt, draped over one of the bean bags. The craftsmanship was very lovely. Ellie ran her hand over the soft knitting. “Her name is Dr. Daniella Star. She’s like a scientist. She invented some kind of crazy time travel, and it’s just like, her adventures in space, I guess.”

“Sounds pretty intense,” said Noah. He dumped the dirty plates into a canvas rucksack. He set the broom against the door jamb. “There’s a comic store in Viroqua. We could go pillage it, maybe tomorrow night? I bet you’d find some of them there. They have a lot of super obscure stuff. And the town isn’t too badly looted. There’s a lot left.”

“Really?” said Ellie. “Are there any people there?”

“No,” said Noah. “Not anymore.”

“Right,” she said.

They climbed back down the ladder. Noah said, "You wanna see the river?"

Ellie said yes. Hell yes. She did want to see the river. She'd never really seen a river, not a real one, not up close. Or at least she didn't feel like she had. They went along a little grass path. Ellie looked up some more, up at the stars, the Milky Way, listening to the nighttime birds and the crickets. Then they came to a river. Noah stopped, and she stopped. It was just this small thing, smaller than she had expected, maybe ten feet across, cutting through the grassy field, snaking around like a ribbon. It was enchanted, almost haunted, how it rippled. Little rapids, here and there. It was so beautiful.

“What's this river called?” she said.

"Technically it’s a creek,” he said, surveying, real pensive. “It flows out of the Kickapoo River, which is a tributary of the Mississippi.”

“Man,” she said."This whole place. It's like, perfect. Like a dream. In the QZ, we couldn't leave. We couldn't go outside the gates. If we did, and we got caught, they wouldn't let us come back. But here it’s like, you're free. Do you love it?"

“I guess,” said Noah. He’d set down the rucksack, his shotgun. “I mean, I don’t know anything else. You didn’t like living in Boston?”

“Not really,” said Ellie. “But I guess—I guess I didn’t really know that until I left with Joel.”

"Why'd you guys leave."

"Too dangerous, I guess. Some...bad stuff happened. In Boston it was pretty bad, but then in Pittsburgh...It’s a long story."

Noah waited, like maybe to see if she was going to keep talking. When she didn’t, he just said, “So he’s really not your dad, huh?”

“No,” said Ellie. “No. He’s just—Joel.”

“He seemed to get kind of worried when you left the house.”

“That’s how he is,” she said. “We’ve been through a lot together.”

“Like back in Pittsburgh?” he said.

She was watching the dark river in the moonlight, all unfolding, the tall grasses on the other side, blinking with fireflies. “Pretty much,” she said.

He took a deep breath then, which made her nervous. He got down to one knee, opened up the rucksack, and from inside, he took out a clear empty bottle from up in the Crow's Nest.

"What are you doing?" she said.

He didn't answer. He just blew the inside of the bottle dry, and then he dipped it into the river, filled it up with water. "It's not perfect here, Ellie," he said. “I know it seems perfect to you, and free, but it’s not.” He fashioned a lighter from his pocket, let it illuminate the bottle.

Ellie crouched down beside him, curious, but confused. She looked at the water in the bottle. She sensed a darkness, all around them. In Noah’s voice, hidden in the moonlight and the greenery of the terrain. But she didn't understand. "What do you mean?" she said. "Is this about what you said upstairs, how we shouldn't drink the water? What's wrong with it?"

"All the water, flowing out of the Mississippi, down from the north, is poisoned," he said.

"Poisoned,” she said, gazing into the light. “With what?”

He pocketed the lighter, tossed the bottle into the river. They watched it sink. “Spores.”

#the last of us #tlou #the last of us part 2 #tlou2 #joel tlou #ellie tlou #joel miller #ellie williams #as you were

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