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kpopfanfictrash · 4 years

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TAOM Drabble: The Party

Author: kpopfanfictrash

Pairing: Jungkook / Reader

Word Count: 1,611

Rating: PG-13

Summary: An accompanying drabble to The Art of War More. This drabble takes place during Y/N and Jungkook’s kiss at hockey house, as well as the immediate aftermath (aka what Seokjin said to convince Jungkook not to follow).

[ PART OF MY JUNGKOOK BIRTHDAY DRABBLE GAME ]

You had to be the most maddening person alive.

Only an insane person would actually be mad at Jungkook for purposefully losing a game of beer pong to you. Only an insane person, or maybe a drunk person – which you were dangerously close to becoming, based on the volume of beer you’d consumed.

Jungkook recognized the fact that he was also insane, since instead of being annoyed by this fact – as he rightfully should’ve been – he just kept staring at your lips and wondering what they would taste like.

“You’re the ridiculous one here, not me!” you complained, your brow adorably crinkled.

Jungkook shook himself free from his stupor.

“Oh, yeah?” he shot back. Then, he sighed. “God, this conversation is stupid. You drive me crazy – you know that?”

“Well, same!”

“Great.” Fuck – Jungkook was staring at your lips again. With great effort, he forced himself to look you in the eyes. “Anything else you want to say?”

He expected you to cuss him out, maybe tear him a new one, or swear at him about his parentage, so your sudden hesitance came as a surprise. As was the determined way you stepped forward to tilt your face up to his.

“Yeah,” you breathed, almost in a daze.

Jungkook’s entire world seemed to slow. He was able to feel the heat from your body, the warmth of your hands when you reached for his face. As your fingertips brushed over his cheekbones, Jungkook stared wonderingly back at you.

He had imagined this many times prior, but most of those times had been on desperate nights spent alone in his bed when he couldn’t sleep, couldn’t think about anything but your smile, or your scowl.

When you reached up to press your lips against his, Jungkook seemed to short-circuit.

A strangled noise tore from his throat – did that really come from him? – and he tried to reconcile your touch with reality. Luckily, his insanity only lasted a moment before he came to his senses and wrapped both arms about you.

Tugging you forward, Jungkook’s spine hit the wall and he pulled you between his legs, kissing you fiercely. You shivered when one of his hands brushed your back, which ripped an arrow of fire straight through his chest.

Swiping his tongue at your lip, Jungkook demanded entrance and when you parted beneath him, his knees seemed to buckle.

He’d spent so long not touching you, not even letting himself think about touching you, that now that he had you, he seemed to lose control. Skimming your cheek with his thumb, Jungkook moved his lips to your neck and kissed slowly down your throat.

When your hands wound their way into his hair, he couldn’t help but moan. His two weak spots had always been his hair and his nipples. Jungkook started to drown in your kiss; he imagined you siphoning off pieces of him to leave something better behind.

As soon as he grasped the enormity of this moment – he was kissing you, after all – Jungkook roughly pulled back to rest his forehead to yours.

“Y/N,” he breathed, his voice graveled and strange.

When his eyes finally opened, he saw you staring at him and – instead of his hopeful desire mirrored back – Jungkook saw something inside you which made his heart stutter. You looked at him panicked, uncertain as his gaze roamed your face.

“Y/N?” Jungkook managed to ask. “Are you okay?”

Suddenly desperate, you wrenched yourself from his grasp. Jungkook faltered, feeling cold without you.

“I – yeah. I’m fine,” you said, although you clearly were not. “Just… fine.”

When you spun around, shoving your way towards the door, Jungkook felt his heart tear in two as it sunk to his shoes. He remained frozen for a moment, staring after you and then he tore himself free to plunge into the crowd.

Jungkook rose up on tip-toes, peering over the party to spot you by the door. He pushed himself in your direction, calling your name, although you did not seem to hear.

The further he moved, the higher his heart lodged in his throat. He’d fucked this all up again, somehow. Somehow, Jungkook had made you bolt and he couldn’t even fathom how he’d make it up to you now. It had taken him so long to get you to look at him again, to get you to smile at him again, to get you to trust him again.

Freshman year, Jungkook had been such a shit after you went home with Jimin. Now he knew Jimin meant nothing, but Jungkook had been too prideful and stupid back then to let you know that he cared.

Heart pounding, Jungkook shoved his way towards the exit. He had almost reached you when a hand closed over his bicep, yanking him sideways.

Pulled from the main room, Jungkook found himself facing Seokjin. “Not now,” he grunted, trying to shove past. “I need to talk to Y/N.”

“It’s about Y/N,” Seokjin said, grabbing his arm again.

Gritting his teeth, Jungkook evaluated the situation. He could definitely overpower Seokjin if he had to, but it’d take longer than convincing Seokjin he had good intentions.

“I need to go after her,” Jungkook said, whirling around. “I just want to talk. Promise.”

When he met Seokjin’s glare, Jungkook nearly recoiled.

It was strange to see Seokjin wearing an unpleasant expression. Jungkook knew Seokjin as the affable guy, the funny guy who got along with everyone and whom everyone liked. He’d never seen Seokjin as the type of guy to pick a fight in the middle of a party, but Jungkook was quickly reassessing that statement.

Finally, Seokjin let go. ��She doesn’t want to talk to you,” he said, somewhat heated. “Whatever dumb shit you said, she doesn’t want to hear it.”

“What I said?” Jungkook asked in disbelief.

“I saw you two making out, JK.” Seokjin’s eyes narrowed. “I don’t know what royally stupid thing you said after to make Y/N run, but whatever it was, you can save the apology for tomorrow. Let her cool off for tonight.”

“I – but...” Jungkook gaped. “All I said to her was her name!”

Seokjin faltered for a moment. “If that was true,” he said slowly. “Y/N wouldn’t have run away like she did.”

Somewhat desperate, Jungkook glanced over Seokjin’s shoulder. He no longer saw you standing with Gina by the door, which made his heart twist.

“I don’t know,” he groaned, turning back. “I really don’t know why she ran. I don’t know what I did to make Y/N angry. Please, Seokjin – I just want to talk to her.”

The longer he looked at Jungkook, the more Seokjin’s expression seemed to shift. He no longer stared at Jungkook with open distrust, but rather uncertainty.

Still, Seokjin held his ground. “Give it one night, at least,” he sighed, rubbing his neck. “Maybe you’re right and you did nothing wrong, but Y/N still looked upset. Give her some time to cool down.”

Chewing on his lower lip, Jungkook glanced again at the door.

You had looked upset – which made Jungkook wonder why. Why had you looked so utterly torn? That wasn’t the normal reaction Jungkook got after kissing people. It wasn’t the sort of reaction anyone hoped for after a kiss, which made Jungkook wonder if Seokjin had a point.

If you really didn’t want to talk to him, maybe Jungkook should leave you alone.

The instant he thought this, a protest rose to his lips. This was exactly what Jungkook had done several years ago – he had left you alone and pretended not to care – and look where that had gotten him.

Still, he couldn’t help but see your face again in his mind. Your stricken expression, the panic in your voice as you dashed into the crowd – if you really had no desire to see him, Jungkook shouldn’t keep pushing you into something he wanted.

“You’re right,” Jungkook said at last, leveling his gaze with Seokjin. “I don’t want to upset her any more. But I’m not giving up,” he declared, making a decision right there. “I’m not letting another stupid misunderstanding come between us.”

Spinning around on his heel, Jungkook marched into the crowd and left Seokjin standing, somewhat bewildered on his side of the room.

Yanking his phone from his pocket, Jungkook flipped to your messages and scrolled to the bottom. The last text you sent him was a simple ‘okay’ in response to the house address Jungkook had sent you earlier.

Coming to a stop, Jungkook’s thumb brushed the screen. He had typed and re-typed that message several times, debating whether to add something more personal before deciding against. Now, he wished he’d been a little more forthcoming about why he really wanted you here.

About why Jungkook always seemed to want you near. It was more than just wanting to be friends with you, more than the begrudging cooperation between two detectives. It was about how Jungkook couldn’t stop thinking about you, couldn’t stop dreaming of you and each time someone said your name, it felt like a physical wrenching because he couldn’t say your name how he wanted.

He had finally said your name that way tonight and then, you disappeared.

Squeezing his eyes shut, Jungkook took a deep breath – and when he opened them, he composed himself enough to send a text.

Jungkook: Y/N, are you okay? [12:15 AM]

Jungkook: please talk to me [12:15 AM]

Jungkook: please [12:16 AM]

#bangtanarmynet #btsbookclub #jungkook fic #jungkook fanfic #bts fanfic #bts fic #bts drabble #bts fluff #jungkook fluff #jungkook drabble

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brihana25 · 5 years

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In “Defense” of John Kreese

NOTE: Okay, here goes. I wrote this weeks ago, when I was still processing Season 2 (which, honestly, I’m still doing), and I wrote it in reaction to some of what I was seeing about Kreese in the wake of it. It’s long, so there’s a jump.

To say I was surprised to see the posts about Kreese would be an understatement. I meant and still mean no offense to anyone who expected more than we got, but it truly baffled me, because we got exactly what we were promised. I saw the betrayal coming from the last seconds of Mercy Part II, and I didn’t understand how other people didn’t.

So, this is me trying to explain why I felt and feel the way I do about Kreese. And for better or for worse, since I’m posting it, it’s open for discussion.

Wow. Talk about five words I never in a million years imagined I'd type.

I watched Season 2 of Cobra Kai within fifteen seconds of it dropping. Once I started, I didn't stop. I didn't pause. I was far from the only one. A little over five hours later, I'd seen the entire thing. I was devastated, of course. We all were. I intended to do an immediate rewatch, but I couldn't make myself do it. I was left reeling, numb, and completely emotionally drained for the rest of the day. Again, that's not unique to me. We all were. And even though I have rewatched it since then, more than once, that feeling hasn't really faded. I'm still having a hard time putting my thoughts and feelings into words. I know it's only a television show, but the impact it has had on me – on all of us – cannot really be explained. We're all shocked. We're all stunned. We're all feeling and dealing and still processing it.

If there is one word to sum up Season 2, it is this: brutal.

And no one was half as brutal as the man himself, the creator of Cobra Kai, the puppet master who holds everyone’s strings and pulls them to make them dance, knows every character's buttons and how to push them: John Kreese.

I know a lot of people are upset about Kreese still being bad. And not only is he bad, but he's possibly even more despicable and irredeemable than he was in the movies. I know a lot of people feel that they were lied to, or somehow misled, into believing he'd be a good guy by the end of the season.

I'm going to defend not only the pre-season interviews that may have led fans to believing that, but also the character of John Kreese himself. And those of you who know me and what I have said about this character in the past will understand what an odd thing this is for me to do. But one of the things I love most about this show, and about the movies that spawned it, are the characters and their development. That does include John Kreese, and it always has.

If you think back over what we were told about Kreese pre-season, no one ever said they were going to redeem him. The Big 3TM said they were going to make him human. They did. Martin Kove said he was "a little bit good, and a little bit bad." He is both.

First, to The Big 3TM's statements that either said or implied they were going to make him more human: they did. They made him much more human than he was in the movies; they just didn't make him a good one. Instead, he is devious, manipulative, abusive and cruel. And those are things that only humans can be.

He's always been a kind of caricature, a stock character "baddie" with memorable lines and no discernible motivations for being the way he was. The most human we saw him in the movies was at the beginning of The Karate Kid Part III. We see him walking down the street, alone, dejected. He is a broken man. He has lost everything and everyone, and he knows it. He has hit absolute rock bottom, and he does not know how to climb back up.

That doesn't last very long, of course. He walks into the dojo, glances at his bills, half-listens to his answering machine, picks up a newspaper article about Daniel's victory, and immediately, his dejection turns to anger. His desolation morphs into a singular obsession with destroying the old man who humiliated him and the child who dared to defeat him.

Terry's words to Daniel and Mr. Miyagi in the garden, about karate being Kreese's entire life, about losing his students (mostly Johnny, we now know) breaking his heart - I believe this was entirely true. It's probably one of the few honest things Terry said in the whole movie. It is also probably one of the purest descriptions of John Kreese’s motivation we have ever been given. There was a glimmer of hope at the beginning, in Kreese's conversation in the car with Terry, when it looked like maybe he wasn't wholly evil. But as we realized later, his protest to Terry that he didn't "need to do this" - didn't "need" to torture Daniel and Mr. Miyagi - was token only. He wanted it to happen. I'd go so far as to say that he played on Terry's love for and protectiveness of him to make it happen. That became obvious later in the movie, when he came up with the "brilliant" idea of making Daniel's knuckles bleed. And now that we have seen just how manipulative and calculating he can be, it fits with who and what he is.

Does he have PTSD? Certainly. He told Johnny as much when he said the psychiatrists wouldn't let him re-enlist. Does it stem from the Vietnam War? Again, there is very little doubt. Is he still fighting a war in his mind that never ended for him because he wasn't allowed to finish it? I don't question that for a second, either. Do any of those things excuse what he did - to children and adults both - after he returned? Absolutely not. Understanding his mind and seeing the world through his eyes gives us insight into why he is the way he is, but it doesn't excuse what he's done. And it doesn’t justify what he may do in the future.

Humans aren't always nice and decent. All people aren't basically good. Daniel learned that when he was sixteen years old. Johnny learned it at fifty-one. John Kreese is 100% human, and that's undeniable. They gave us exactly what they promised us.

As for Martin Kove's assertion that Kreese is "a little bit good, and a little bit bad": he is. This is where understanding his mind becomes vital. Kreese's "bad" qualities are on clear and open display for us to see. His "good" qualities aren't as obvious, and some would say they don't exist at all. That is because his definition of "good" is warped, and it doesn't fit with how we understand that word.

Also, I believe very strongly that John Kreese loves Johnny Lawrence.

No, it doesn't look anything like love to most of us. It looks like control, and domination, and manipulation. It looks like abuse. And that's because it is. It is dysfunctional, and destructive, and based on a power imbalance that Kreese cannot let shift in Johnny's favor for even a second. But in John Kreese's mind, it is love.

Make no mistake about it, Kreese abused both of these men when they were children. He abused Johnny - mentally and emotionally - for five years. Whether the karate training ever rose to the level of physical abuse is debatable, but after what we saw in Season 2, in Johnny's memory of receiving his blue belt, the rest of it is inarguable. The hardest concept to grasp, after watching just that one small memory and the impact it still has on Johnny almost 40 years later, is that Kreese honestly believed, and still does, that he was doing a good thing.

Listen to the things he says. Really listen to him. Even after everything that happens, even after Miguel and Robby, and Tory and Sam, and even after the destruction of everything and everyone Johnny loves, Kreese is still convinced that what he's doing is what's best for Johnny. He truly, honestly believes that he's helping him.

In his mind, he is making Johnny stronger. He is making him better. He is turning him into a good little soldier who will follow orders to the letter, because if he does what Kreese tells him, he will not and cannot lose. He is doing this because he doesn't want Johnny to feel the things he felt. He doesn't want Johnny to ever feel the sting of a defeat he had no choice but to accept. He sees in Johnny his chance to redeem himself for all the losses he himself has suffered, and he will use any means at his disposal to get him there.

His abuse of Daniel is strictly about punishment. He doesn't love him. He didn’t want to make him stronger. He didn’t want to turn him into a winner. His abuse of Daniel was purely for revenge. He smiled about it. He laughed about it. He wanted to see “a lot more” of it. He tortured a child, and he enjoyed it.

As much as John Kreese loves Johnny Lawrence, he hates Daniel LaRusso.

He hates him for forcing defeat on Johnny. He hates him for being a better student, or a better fighter, or a better anything than Johnny. He hates Mr. Miyagi for being a better teacher, or a better fighter, or just a better everything than him. Mr. Miyagi succeeded in turning Daniel into what Kreese failed in getting Johnny to be, and so Daniel - at the ripe old age of sixteen - gets the dubious distinction of being the living embodiment of both Johnny's and Kreese's failures. Kreese will never forgive him for any of that.

And so, Kreese (in conjunction with Terry Silver, of course) brainwashes him. They convince him to torture himself, and they torture Mr. Miyagi through him. They turn him into something he isn't and never has been. They turn him into the opposite of what Mr. Miyagi taught him to be. They send him home every night, bloody and bruised and completely oblivious to the fact that he's a nothing more than a pawn to them. He's a toy. If Johnny is Kreese's good little soldier, Daniel is his cannon fodder.

Kreese loves Johnny, and he hates Daniel, and he destroyed them both. But what has to be understood is that in his mind, everything he’s done have been "good" things.

To redeem Kreese now, to turn him into a "good guy," to have both of his victims forget and forgive him for everything he did, would not only be wholly unbelievable, it would invalidate everything they've been through. It would erase everything that turned the children they were into the men they are. It would cheapen and dismiss everything Kreese did to them.

It wouldn't just "flip the script" on their story. It would rewrite it wholesale.

At its heart, Cobra Kai is Johnny's and Daniel's story. Kreese plays a large part in that story, absolutely. But it’s not his. What they suffered at his hands shaped who and what they are, what they feel about each other, and what they believe about themselves. For better or worse, he is Cobra Kai.

He is their boogeyman.

And if the show is about Johnny and Daniel, then it has to be about them dealing with the impact Cobra Kai - and John Kreese - has had and continues to have on them and the people they love. For that to be possible, Kreese has to remain what he is and has always been.

A little bit good, and a whole lot bad.

#cobra kai #cobra kai season 2 #john kreese #daniel larusso #johnny lawrence #i essayed a thing #fangirling again #meta ahoy!

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swordsandrayguns · 5 years

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Riker’s Beard And Family Time: Looking Back At Star Trek: TNG

I write science fiction and fantasy novels… so I am no stranger to things dubbed “nerdy.” The last few months, though, I have been doing something that pushes the boundaries of nerdy even for me. I’m watching all the Star Trek properties in the order of their release. Yup, an epic binge watch covering over five decades of television series, cartoons and motion pictures. Look, I can try to explain and rationalize this a couple ways. Truth is, I travel a great deal and have to fill the time I spent in airports and on planes (preferably with things I can download as oppose to stream). I am also, as an author, studying some of the great examples of “universe building” and epic story arcs. Still nerdy, though; I admit it.

Obviously, I started with the original series and jumped into the animated series. I timed this all so my viewing of Star Trek: The Motion Picture coincided with the the special 40th anniversary showings in theaters. I followed through the next couple of movies into The Next Generation, alternating in movies and even the original series pilot The Cage (which was originally made available to the public as a pay per view offering between the first and second seasons of The Next Generation) as they fell in the original release timeline. I am getting to the end of the fifth season of Next Generation now and very much looking forward to alternating between episodes of The Next Generation, Deep Space 9 and even the occasional film in the near future.

Just in case you are wondering, I am pretty dedicated to sticking to the timeline but I am not strictly adhering to it. As I find myself, for example, in a hotel with channels such as BBC America or the Heroes and Icons channel I will only turn on episodes that have already showed up in my series overview… so no DS9, Voyager or Enterprise (yet) but the adventures of Kirk and company are fair game, as are Next Generation episodes up to season five. On the other hand, I am still watching Discovery’s Short Treks as they come out and I am definitely watching Picard as soon as I get a chance (meaning on my big screen at home instead of streaming it on my laptop over shaky hotel wifi).

Even though I have not finished the complete rewatch, I find that I already have some new thoughts and ideas about I have seen so far starting with Riker’s beard.

Star Trek The Next Generation has generated a basketful of memes from “Tea. Earl Grey. Hot.” to “I am not a merry man” but undeniably the greatest is “Riker’s beard.” Just as the Internet has given us “jumping the shark,” the phrase to mark when a show is never quite as good again named for a really stupid moment when Fonzie was in Hawaii, it gave us “Riker’s beard” to mark the opposite. To this day, I know people that will immediately turn off an episode of The Next Generation if Jonathan Frakes turns up clean shaven (or if Wesley is in it, but that is a whole different story and, honestly, my harsh view of Wesley softened a bit with this re-watch). My first revelation from my Next Generation binge is that while season two, when the beard shows up, is better than season one, it is not when Next Generation really hits its stride.

First of all, let me defend season one of Star Trek The Next Generation. Twenty one years after the premiere of Star Trek, after three seasons of a pioneering science fiction drama, a year of the animated series and four feature films, Star Trek The Next Generation had to take up the incredibly difficult challenge of continuing one of the world’s beloved stories without a single character from the original series. Even more difficult, the real world had changed. Where the original Star Trek was making a statement by having a Russian, an Asian and an African woman on the bridge The Next Generation would not have made any statements with this type of casting. After all, when Picard met his crew and first face Q at Farpoint the biggest show on television focused on the an upper middle class African American family, something that was absolutely unthinkable when Kirk boldly set forth with his crew.

The first season of Star Trek The Next Generation not only introduced Q, the Ferengi and Data’s not so lovable android brother Lore it killed a main character. Star Trek The Next Generation took a major step that not only the original series never tackled but most shows avoid. Sure, other shows tease it and even then it was usually on a season ending cliffhanger. Even the original series backed away from the only death of a major character they ever portrayed with an entire movie dedicated to reversing it. Star Trek The Next Generation killed Tasha Yar completely out of the blue with three episodes left in the first season. This incredibly bold move cast a shadow on the entire series, adding a real threat to future episodes.

Is season one perfect? Oh, no. Not at all. Not even close, but like I already mentioned it had an amazingly difficult challenge facing it. The fans were expecting… well, everything. Next Generation was trying to stay true to the essence of Star Trek while making itself something new. They put families on the Enterprise to emphasize it was a vehicle of exploration, not a military ship. They made sure there was not a Vulcan to be found and put the odd man in a kilt wandering the hallways. They put a Klingon on the bridge! But then they had to deal with it all.

Season two was better. For one thing, the anticipation and the expectations were gone. The show made it through the first season and when it came back with its second season it was coming back as Star Trek The Next Generation not “the new Star Trek.” Ironically, due to a writers’ strike, season two actually started off with a script recycled from the ill-fated Star Trek: Phase II series. In addition to the first officer’s facial hair, the second season brought Whoopi Goldberg on board as the ship’s bartender and saw Diana Muldaur (in her third Star Trek universe role as Dr. Pulaski) taking over the sick bay from Dr. Crusher. Geordi La Forge also migrated from the bridge to take over engineering. It was always a bit odd, somehow, in season one to not have the chief engineer as a major character, if only because the chief engineer would seem to play as an important of a role in the operations of the ship as, say, the ship’s counselor or a teenager doing his after school work study program as an acting ensign.

While season two was an improvement, it had its issues. Dr. Pulaski, playing a role meant, no doubt, to help humanize Data, came across as abrasive and (in my opinion) mean spirited. Gates McFadden had been fired, apparently because the head writer did not like her, but Gene Roddenberry resisted killing her character so Dr. Beverly Crusher merely transferred off the ship. When the head writer left the popular character of Dr. Crusher returned in season three. Whoopi Goldberg, although an interesting character, was the ship’s civilian bartender which is just kind of weird. Did the ship have a food court, too? The season was also shortened, because of the aforementioned writers’ strike, and it actually ended with (of all things) a clip show. A clip show!

As a final defense of season two, it did introduce the Borg, one of greatest science fiction villain races of all times. But was it really that much better than season one? Well, season two saw five episodes get a total of six Emmy nominations and won two (both technical Emmy awards related to the sound department). Season one’s premiere was the first television episode to be nominated for a Hugo Award in 15 years. Another season one episode was the first syndicated television episode to win a Peabody Award and six episodes gathered a total of seven Emmy nominations, winning three (for makeup, costume design and sound editing). If you place your faith in the numbers, it seems season one might have actually been better (at least if you go by its awards).

So by now, if I may be so bold as to make a prediction, you are probably thinking “This guy has put way too much thought into Star Trek The Next Generation” and “Okay, so if season two is not when The Next Generation gets great, when is it?” First, I said as an author I am studying Star Trek so cut me some slack. Second, I am glad you asked.

Star Trek The Next Generation, in my opinion, really hit its stride is the fourth season. Season four swept onto screens with the second part of season finale cliffhanger The Best Of Both Worlds. The Federation was facing the awesome might of the Borg and the crew of the Enterprise was desperately trying to save Picard, who had been taken and turned into Borg mouthpiece Locutus, so the season started with big action and drama. This quickly led to a series of episodes focusing on character relationships, particularly family relationships.

After he is rescued, Picard is left a broken man and returns to his family’s vineyard in France. Although there had been several stories about Picard’s history, this was the first to address his family and his entry into Star Fleet. Data’s Day not only explored how the android navigated through his duties and relationships, it introduced Chief O’Brien’s new wife Keiko. The O’Briens are the focus in the very next episode, showing not only the natural difficulties they were having adjusting to their new life as a married couple but also O’Brien’s past Star Fleet career and the psychological wounds left by his service in the war with Cardassia. To me, Riker’s beard does not signify when Star Trek The Next Generation really gets good, it is when Keiko O’Brien appears.

Family was a major theme of the fourth season, as Worf discovered he was a father and worked to regain his family’s honor in the eyes of fellow Klingons. Luxanna Troi re-appeared as did the ghost of Tasha Yar when the crew encountered her sister. Data’s brother also made another appearance, as did Data’s creator. Data also grew a great deal, even being shown to try out a romantic relationship with another crew member. The true strength of Star Trek The Next Generation, as of season four, was that it was well established enough as a series to feature stories based on human relationships instead of action or the “alien of the week.”

It should also be noted that season four also brought more episodes which were a part of longer storylines, such as Worf’s dishonor and the political intrigues of the Klingon Empire. There were also many returning minor characters and new characters being set up for multiple appearances. It is only after three seasons Star Trek The Next Generation finally had established enough of its own universe for this to happen. Also, though, by season four plans were in motion for a second live action Star Trek series, one to run concurrently with Next Generation. It could have been that the introduction of multi-episode storylines were a result of the producers consciously attempting to expand the Star Trek universe while starting to differentiate Next Generation from the upcoming Deep Space Nine.

Ironically, season four also marks Star Trek The Next Generation outlasting its predecessor in terms of seasons on the air. While this did not actually influence the formation of my opinion season four is when Next Generation really gets good, it does really make me wonder what Star Trek may have become if it had a season four.

#star trek #next generation #rikers beard #science fiction #indy author

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aaronobrian · 5 years

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Re-thinking Star Wars: The Last Jedi

Last night my kids and I sat down to watch the Last Jedi. After a little squabbling on what movie to watch we decided on The Last Jedi. This would be the fourth time I have watched this movie. I wasn’t really excited about seeing it again, only as a way for us all to relax for the evening. I was never that impressed with story of the Last Jedi, especially some of the story arcs. I have not changed my mind on all of these issues. You can read them here. But there are a few on this last viewing that has changed.

1.) Put a shirt on Kylo... The connection between Rey and Kylo Ren. I first read their interactions through time and space as the doing of Snoke and the movie playing up a odd romantic relationship between them. But it occurred to me that Rey and Kylo are opposites. They are like the Chinese philosophy of Yin and Yang. Yin and Yang is defined as “concept of dualism, describing how seemingly opposite or contrary forces may actually be complementary, interconnected, and interdependent in the natural world, and how they may give rise to each other as they interrelate to one another.” If you remember the symbol of Yin and Yang, it looks like a black and white fishes with a white eye in the black fish and a black eye in the white fish. This helps these dueling characters to understand each other. With that explained, I see Kylo Ren and Rey as the same concept. Kylo Ren is evil, committed himself to the dark side. Yet, there is a light side within him. He can’t bring himself to kill his mother Leia. He has an odd affection towards Rey (later asking Rey to join him). Kylo is Ben Solo the offspring of the best of the last generation. All the cunning of Han Solo and the Skywalker blood line with the power of the Force. Where Rey is the exact opposite, she comes from nothing and has nothing. Her parents were nobodies, no noble lineage, that abandoned her. She led a hard life growing up as savager of junk with no guidance, no love, no direction given to her, unlike Ben Solo. Yet Rey is kind and caring and is drawn to the light side of the Force. But her “black dot/eye” is her grit that was deeply learned from her hard life. And there is the aspect of her answering the call of the Dark Side. She went into the Dark Side cave and found nothing but herself. And if the Force is an active player in the Star Wars story, then for every rise in the Dark side that has to be an equal rise in the Light side like Snoke had said. The raw power on Kylo is then met with the pure power from Rey. (Which leads me to believe that Rey and Kylo might be brother and sister. Or maybe Rey is cloned from other Jedis? I could be wrong, but it is a pet theory.)

2.) Luke Skywalker (or the heartbreak of every Gen Xer) We have seen this before. Obi Wan Kenobi living far away on Tatooine watching over Luke. The same as Yoda hidden away on Dagobah. Both not rebuilding the Jedi Order or fighting against the Empire. When we see Luke he has closed himself off from the Force. He is unwilling to train Rey or join Leia and the Resistance against the First Order. This is a BIG disappointment in Luke for many who grew up as our hero. A hero that saved his father, even after Vader killed his teacher, killed his Aunt & Uncle (by proxy), maimed him, and turned him over to the Emperor. Luke did not give up. He was always optimistic no matter how grim the situation was. When Rey finds him on his lonely island, he has lost all of that aspect of his character. This is what is unbelievable to those of us that grew up with this character. This was maybe the hardest pill to swallow in TLJ. Luke has a new philosophy about the Force, it is not “ours to control”. There is a bit of truth to that in life as well as the Force. You can’t control people or every event in your life. Some things you have to “let go” and let them work themselves out. That things resolve themselves for the better and hope that Martin Luther King, Jr. was correct when saying “The arc of history is long, but it bends toward justice.” Luke saw the raw power and darkness in Ben Solo and it scared him. And which ever iteration of how Luke and Ben clashed in his bedroom you believe in, this event shook Luke to his core. Like Obi Wan thought that he could instruct Anakin just as well as Yoda and he was wrong. Luke failed Ben as a teacher. Ben had too much of the Dark Side and Luke could not change him like he could with his father. All of this is made Luke into a hermit. And if Luke was an ordinary guy, then we could all say, hey man you tried your best.” But this is Star Wars! Luke is a hero! Heroes don’t give up! Right? But wait… Is Luke right? This battle of the Light and Dark Side has gone on for thousands of years. Jedi and Sith battling for dominance for thousands of generations. Luke looks at that long “arc of history” and thinks this isn’t working. The Jedi Order was too rigid. There has to be another way, a better way. But how can that happen when the Sith don’t care but to gather all the power. Like a seesaw the Force becomes unbalanced if only the biggest kid sits on the one side. There is three or four options … 1) Keep things the same. The Light and Dark battle it out forever. (As we have see for the last 8 movies.) 2) Let one side become so powerful that there is a schism and the powers re-balance themselves 3) Let one side become so powerful that there is a mutation and different type of Force is invented. 4.) Let the Force alone and maybe the Force will be distributed equally throughout the galaxy. Either way, the Dark Side will prevail for a period. And like the Manhattan Project, or the Race for Artificial Intelligence is might be better for us never to touch these civilization ending technologies. But it would be far worse if the Soviets or China won these races. So we press on because the outcome could become too unthinkable. And so is the same as in Star Wars. I don’t have an answer to all this. But I agree that Luke has a point here and it is worth considering. Which leads me to my next thought… 3.) “Let the past die.” Okay - I still have issues with Rey’s control over the Force with little training. It doesn’t make a lot of sense. But maybe Rey is like a virtuoso genius? We have all seen a child 4 years old playing piano. So MAYBE it is possible. With that said, the whole point of TLJ is to subvert the old order. Luke wants to end the Jedi Order. Rey has no Master. Kylo kills Snoke and asks Rey to join him. And on the surface many of us think, “no this is not Star Wars.” But with more movies coming down the pipeline the formula needs to change or it will become repetitive. And if Luke was right, this Jedi/Sith battle is not working and it never will resolve itself. Let’s find another solution. Maybe it is time for a new path. And maybe TLJ is the first step on this road.

4.) Kylo Ren’s Fear Lastly, I have reconsidered Kylo Ren. As I recall I called Kylo’s character “a whiny bitch”. But the last scene, showing Luke staring down at Ben Solo and ignites his lightsaber Ben has a look of pure fear in his eyes. I have seen that look in my children eyes and even my dog’s eyes. I realized that like Anakin, Ben’s seduction to the Dark Side is through fear. And instead of helping Ben through his fear it is ignored by Luke. Thus Ben Solo turns to the Dark Side by unfortunately Ben is trying to be someone else -- Darth Vader. We see Kylo is trying to be Vader in the last 2 movies. But like anyone trying to be someone else it can never be achieved. You have to find yourself and follow your only path. This time I pity Kylo. A boy that never felt safe and was never guided out of his fear. Trying to be someone else for everyone else. It is a pathetic existence. He sees Rey naturally being herself and succeeding. Rey is living a fulfillment of her own unique life. As Nietzsche said "a wheel rolling out of its own center." What is unknown is the fulfillment of our own unique lives, the likes of which has never existed in this universe. And you are the only one who can do it. Rey is doing this. Kylo is maybe discovering that he can’t succeed from the past. He kills Snoke and unshackles himself. Maybe this is his first act of courage.

In closing, this movie might have a deeper meaning behind it. But it killed a lot of sacrificial lambs to get there and thus upsetting the old order. I am the “old order”. I was there in the theater in 1977 as a 3 year old. I saw Luke as quintessential hero. The battle of the Light and Dark Side as a forever war. But if Star War is to continue forward something has to change. I still stand by many of my original statements of this movie. It does suffer from some bad story arcs that go nowhere. But there is more happening in TLJ then what I originally understood.

#star wars #the last jedi

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ship-ambrosia · 6 years

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Heavens Bringer, part 5

Can you believe this idea started out as a one-shot? Yeah, me neither! Here it is, the final chapter of Heavens Bringer! I’m so proud, and relieved it’s done, but thanks to everyone who read this! Not only is it my first big multi chapter fic, but it’s also been a blatant showcase for the type of writing I’ve really been practicing - action and fights. This is the shippy chapter though, fair warning. I wanna dedicate the nalu to @a-fairy-tail44, the gale to @mountain-c (even though you cant read it yet boo), the jerza of course to @sweetmemories2606, little taste of albis to @allie-and-her-fandoms, the gruvia to both of them, and the kinabra to myself~ I’ve gotten a lot of new followers recently however, especially since posting the last chapter, so I’m leaving the link to Heavens Bringer on AO3 both this chapter and chapter 1. Chapter 1 Chapter 5

Demons were powerful beings, that was undeniable. But this was at the loss of a sense of caring, honor, or will. The instant that Keyes recognized those mortals he had so amusedly looked down upon had backed him into a corner, he began to crumble. “You foolish, weak humans!” He growled, though he stepped back as Jellal narrowed his gaze at him. “When will you learn to quit when faced with overwhelming, superior strength?” “There is no such thing to Fairy Tail!” Erza yelled, having re-equipped into her Adaraxia Blade Wing armor. The impressive swords that made up her wings fanned out around her as she stepped up next to Jellal. “When we stand together, we overcome anyone who calls themselves our enemy! Haven’t you learned that by now?” “We beat your ass once back in the war between us and Tartaros, so really this shouldn’t have come as a surprise,” It was Gray who was the first to step forward. Though his chest rose and fell at an elevated pace expressing his exhaustion, he still looked willing to fight some more. “Even if you’ve gotten stronger, you’re still alone. Natsu and the other dragon slayers proved the will of your heart combined with those around you can overcome any amount of power when they beat Acnologia.” Keyes followed Jellal’s gaze, where the resurrected body of Hades was finally fading away into nothing. With Levy’s enchantment negating his demonic powers, his seemingly-permanent Necromancy curse had also finally been canceled out. “We’re gonna end this now! For real this time!” Natsu slammed his fist into the ground, a burst of flame erupting once again from the impact. “I’m sending you straight back to the Book of Zeref!” From around him, a blazing dance of flames rushed at the demon, congregating into a single pillar that consumed Keyes in a brilliant display of magical power. Wordlessly, Gray created a bow of ice just as he had when they fought Mard Geer, and the excellent marksman that he was, saw his demon-slaying arrow fly true. Erza spread her arms, and her wing blades all at once converged on him. “We still need more magic? Damn!” Gray grunted in dissatisfaction. “That’s fine, leave it to me,” he turned back just in time to see Jellal take off into the sky once again using Meteor, darting across the sky in a familiar pattern as he drew magic circles at his breakneck speed. “May you be judged by the seven stars of the heavens!” Jellal’s voice echoed through the courtyard with iron-clad conviction while casting the spell he was most recognized for. “Grand Chariot!” The intensity, the measure of Fairy Tail’s combined hearts beating as one, finally was too much for Keyes to take and Jellal’s Heavenly Body magic, as the one to start the fight, was also the one to end it. The Demon Gate let out a roar of agony, but instead of dissipating into smoke this time, melted into the ground as shadows before they too, scattered and disappeared under the light. Each wizard could feel it in their chest as the bane particles ceased to exist with the demon who had created them. Despite this, a silence hung over the courtyard as the walls of Levy’s enchantment came down, as if they still couldn’t believe everything that had just occurred. “Oh my gosh! You guys! Natsu! Gray! Erza!” A young voice suddenly called from the sky, breaking the silence. “Gajeel! Are you all okay? Jellal! Erik!” Jellal rose his head at his name and spotted three silhouettes with wings descending from the sky. Wendy was the first to land, having been the one who yelled for them. Carla appeared beside her as the other two wizards landed. To everyone’s surprise, it was Lyon and Chelia of Lamia Scale who joined her, carried by Pantherlily and Happy respectively. “Natsuuuuuuuu!” Happy wailed, rocketing himself like a missile into Natsu’s chest, sobbing. “Hey little buddy. You’re okay!” He exclaimed. “I was starting to get worried about where you were!” “What do you mean ‘starting’? Natsu, you’re so mean!” “Lyon!” Meredy exclaimed, a comically exaggerated blush had appeared on her face when she realized he was standing in front of her. “Wh-what are you and Chelia doing here?” She shot Erik a glare and elbowed him hard when the dragon slayer began chuckling beside her. “Carla, Happy, Lily and I got away when Hades first started attacking the guild,” Wendy explained to the confused, battered wizards as she and Chelia dispersed to heal the injured members of Fairy Tail. “We flew to Lamia Scale because I knew Chelia could help me heal everyone, and I thought Lyon might be able to help fight him off.” “I’m quite relieved to see you no longer need my assistance,” Lamia Scale’s ace wizard replied while still looking at Meredy, before his attention was diverted to his rival ice mage and brother. “You too, Gray. I can’t help but get worried about you, my little brother. Especially when Juvia is unable to help you.” “Shut up,” Gray grunted, but the smile on his face gave away his true feelings. He turned back to the glacier holding her, Laxus, and the Thunder Legion, pushing both of his palms against the ice as he worked to take it down. “Gray, what is this?” Lyon asked, studying the ice as he walked up beside him. “I’ve never seen anything like it,” it was then he noticed the wizards suspended within it, noticeably the water mage who was carrying Gray’s child and whom he previously also had feelings for, and his expression hardened. “Why is Juvia in there? Did Hades do this?” “No, I did,” Gray huffed. “It’s some sort of healing ice. It protected them from bane particles and caused them to regain consciousness. I still have no idea how I did it. Keyes tried to attack Juvia... and I just remember feeling furious, that I couldn’t let him touch her.” “Keyes?” He echoed in confusion. “That’s right,” Jellal grunted, from where Wendy was working on healing his injuries. Levy was also casting another ‘PURIFY’ solid script over the group for good measure. “It was Keyes who attacked Fairy Tail. The Hades we fought was just a reanimated version of the true Grimoire Heart master. Hades is still dead.” “I thought all of Tartaros was gone! Especially Keyes. Juvia killed him,” Wendy was shocked to hear the news as well. “Yes, but he said it was because of Zeref’s death that he was able to use Necromancy to revive himself,” Erza answered. “Hopefully now he stays that way.” With a sound somewhere between crumbling rock and shattering glass, the icy cocoon protecting the wizards within it opened. The onlooking group watched in awe as Laxus and his Thunder Legion appeared, unscathed, as Laxus reached up to help the three of them down off the ice. And all the gathered fairies watched as Juvia slumped forward into Gray’s chest, who had already been rushing to meet her the moment he opened the glacier he’d put her in. She looked up to him, smiling as Gray shifted his arms to slip one under her knees and lift her off the ground. “Wendy, will you check her out for me?” He called down to the dragon slayer with some desperation. “Can you make sure Juvia and the baby are okay?” “Of course!” She waved back at him. In response, Gray slid back down the ice with her before letting her down back on her feet at the bottom. Juvia reaches up and placed a gentle kiss on his cheek, whispering something in Gray’s ear that caused both him and Wendy - who had been standing nearby, along with her enhanced dragon slaying hearing and perpetual bad luck in always overhearing the wrong things - to blush across the entire width of their faces. She smiled innocently at him as Wendy nervously got to work. Jellal let out a bit of a chuckle, watching as the rest of his guildmates gained their wits again, reuniting with relief for one another. Gajeel and Levy had joined back up with Lily, and all three were gathered around Jet and Droy as they came to. The Strauss siblings had joined Laxus and the Thunder Legion not long after they all woke up, with both Mira and Lisanna beginning to examine the group’s injuries. He saw as Erza made her way toward the doors of the guild hall where Alzack and Bisca had appeared, the former cradling their daughter in his arms. Asuka was still unconscious from having what little magic was in her drained from her body, but because neither parent looked extremely worried he figured she must be okay, perhaps even just sleeping after waking from the whole ordeal. It was a moment of relief for all who had experienced the pure terror Keyes had subjected them to, as life had been breathed back into Fairy Tail. “Damn it’s loud again,” Jellal turned when he heard Erik speaking, and he saw the dragon slayer and Meredy nearing him. “Oh stop pretending like you aren’t happy everyone is all right,” the petite wizard scolded him. Erik yawned, indicating he was purposefully ignoring her statement. “Even though it’s loud again, I can still hear what you‘re thinking, pinky. Why don’t you go talk to Lyon instead of bothering me with both your lovesick voice and thoughts? It’s too bad he didn’t get to play hero for you, huh? Although, I must say you’ve got quite the imagination.” She blushed again. “H-hey, that’s...! You’re horrible! Agh, get out of my head you ass!” He rolled his eyes and looked to Jellal, a look of bored annoyance on his face. “Look, if we’re done here Jellal, I’m just gonna-“ “Erik!” His composure, however, was caught off by the sharp cry of his name that also echoed from the guild hall entrance. And there stood Kinana, the very sight of her which immediately stripped his indifferent facade away. “Kinana...” he gasped, and Jellal couldn’t help but chuckle at him too, as his mind seemed to instantly stop, relief flooding his face so quickly that the Poison Dragon Slayer looked as though he were about to cry. The next instant she had crossed the courtyard and flung herself into his arms, nearly knocking Erik over in the process. He held her tightly though, wrapping a hand around to cradle the back of her head like he couldn’t believe she was all right. “You’re okay... you’re safe...” he was mumbling. “Kinana...” Meredy rolled her eyes and continued over to Jellal’s side. “Can you believe him? Such a softie when it comes to her.” Jellal smirked and turned his gaze to her. He was about to ask her if she was all right when a sudden ignition of flames erupted from where Natsu stood. Surrounded by so many reuniting couples, it was blatantly obvious what had him so upset when Jellal realized there were still two members of Fairy Tail who were not amongst the joyful crowd. “Lucy!” Natsu’s despairing exclamation immediately darkened the mood of the celebrating guild members. “Where’s Lucy? And Cana?!” When no answer came, only stunned realization from his friends, Natsu whipped around to glare at all of them. “We defeated Keyes, right? His curses should be broken too! Whatever he did to them, shouldn’t they be safe now?!” “Calm down man-“ Gray started, but was cut off by another furious eruption of flames from the dragon slayer. Instinctively, he pushed Juvia back. “How can I calm down when I still don’t know where Lucy is?!” He roared, causing the air around him to heat up and expand, his guildmates groaning in protest. “I promised to always protect her, and I did it, didn’t I? No... I fought Keyes with everything I had to bring her back, and it still wasn’t enough.” When no one responded again, his shoulder slumped forward and the heat suddenly disappeared. “I-I promised,” This time when he spoke, his voice had dropped and he had never sounded more defeated. “I promised... I would tell her today.” Upon realizing what he meant, Erza’s eyes widened. “Natsu...” Despite being forced by Gray to stand behind him, Juvia pushed past her boyfriend and was the first to approach Natsu. She placed a cool hand on his shoulder, the effect instantaneous as all the tension began to disappear from his body, leaving him trembling. He rested his forehead on the water mage’s shoulder, pushing his nose into her. Happy, who had started to cry, flew over and landed on Natsu, clutching tightly as he sobbed for their missing partner. “I- I’ve never seen him like this before,” Gray mumbled in somewhat of a state of shock. He knew the extent of Natsu’s feelings for Lucy, but he had never expected to see him so distraught. “Could Keyes have done something to them that wasn’t a curse?” Erza wondered aloud. “But even then, wouldn’t anything he have done been canceled out when he was slain?” “Yes,” Jellal drew their attention upwards with his face to the sky. “It just took some time to be undone. Look.” A crack ran across the clouds itself, much like it had when the dragon slayers fell from the ethernano dimension just outside theirs after defeating Acnologia. The very fabric of time and space, opening up as Keyes’s power completely and finitely faded from the world. And from that crack came the screams of two girls as they plummeted from their inter-dimensional prison. One brunette and one blonde, the members of Fairy Tail who had been missing when Jellal and his team had arrived. While most of the group on the ground were stunned by their sudden arrival, two of the wizards leapt into action. “Lucy!” Cana shrieked, reaching for her friend, but the two of them separated quite quickly in free fall. “Happy!” Natsu exclaimed desperately, and his partner gave an intensely gleeful ‘Aye, sir!’ as he spread his wings and pulled Natsu from the ground. The combination of Exceed and dragon slayer, familiar in its own right, rocketed through the sky toward Lucy faster than anyone had seen either of her boys move. Natsu plucked his partner out of her free fall effortlessly, and Happy was already a mess of emotions when he set them both on the ground gently. Lucy screamed and gasped all at once, in shock that it was all over so suddenly. She stared up at her partner for a moment in silence before speaking, her voice trembling. “Natsu...?” She sounded as though she didn’t believe it was really him. At the sound of her voice, the tears that had been so close to falling, that had threatened him before spilled forth silently. But there was a smile on Natsu’s face, a smile of so many emotions all at once. Relief. Guilt. Anger. Frustration. Protectiveness. Love. He placed a hand on the top of her head, reminiscent of the gesture he had once offered the Lucy of the future during the events before the dragons descended upon Crocus. And he pressed his forehead against hers as he closed his eyes and revelled in having her so close to him once again. “Lucy,” was all he whispered, before she too, crumbled into tears. It was Jellal who rushed to catch Cana before she struck the ground. With no Exceed to take him into the sky, Jellal positioned himself beneath her; he crouched, leaning his hand down in preparation as he gathered the little magical power that had returned to him. And then instantly Jellal sprang up, surrounded by the blinding light of his magic. Like a celestial body, he swiftly met Cana in the sky and landed with the Cards Mage safe in his arms. As quickly as the moment had occurred, it was over and relief flooded his face with both Lucy and Cana finally safe. “Thanks, big guy,” Cana planted a kiss on his cheek, which left Jellal stunned. “But ya might wanna put me down, wouldn’t want to make Erza jealous would we?” With his face turning the shade of the aforementioned wizard’s hair, Jellal gently set Cana down on her feet. As the guild took that cue to surround both girls and tears were shed, Jellal couldn’t help but realize he would’ve never felt like he did now if he hadn’t joined Fairy Tail. It was pride, but a pride that burst forward as magical power over the family that was their guild. His eyes settled on the flash of scarlet that wrapped around Lucy and shoved Natsu out of the way. He had protected this family. It was a guild - a family - that he now belonged to.

~ “We do have something very serious to discuss, however,” Erza spoke authoritatively to the guildmates before her. Once the tearful reunions with Lucy and Cana and the rest of the guild had been calmed down, the wizards had all moved back inside Fairy Tail and several of them had left to fetch Porlyusica. “And that would be the information Keyes told us about why he had attacked our guild in such a manner.” Erza had then gathered a group of the wizards who had been involved in the incident, including those present at the guild who had learned the secret of the Fairy Tail previously. “Right, that there is a new Fairy Heart amongst our members, which someone could potentially use to create another Lumen Histoire,” Levy agreed. “It troubles me as to how Keyes would have come across such information,” Jellal muttered darkly, his face concerned. “And how he even knew what the Lumen Histoire was. He believed that Lucy or Cana have the same abilities as the first master, because they’ve both learned one of the sacred Fairy spells of the guild.” “But didn’t that happen because Master Mavis had the Ankhseram curse cast on her?” Gray crossed his arms. “She was immortal, but was left somewhere between alive and dead because Zeref’s curse had been around far longer, and was stronger than hers, and also because he loved her but she hadn’t returned that same love for him. That’s what we learned from Master Mavis and Zeref during the fight against Alvarez. The curse of Contradiction worked on another immortal because she was the one he felt for most in the world.” “Realistically, he couldn’t make another Lumen Histoire with Cana or Lucy even if they were the next Fairy Heart either, because neither of them had the curse set upon them,” Mira expressed softly. “And I don’t think that curse is something you could force upon someone. It seems to me the person themselves has to wish to defy death or the cycle of life. Brainwashing, or mind control, that wouldn’t change the fact that the target wouldn't truly feel the way that makes Ankhseram punish people.” “I think we’re giving Keyes too much credit,” Erza answered. “I can’t imagine he had the entirety of his attack planned out. If I had to guess, this is what he knew: One, that Fairy Tail was hiding the secret of the Lumen Histoire. The only explanation for this would be Zeref telling him at some point, or he heard it from one of the Spriggan 12. Two, that the Lumen Histoire is created from a member of our a guild. Three, Mavis could perform all three of the Fairy Spells, and only passed down Fairy Law. No one besides her has ever used Fairy Glitter or Fairy Sphere, until Cana and Lucy,” She gritted her teeth. “I think he was going on a whim with what he was going to do to Cana and Lucy. He had no idea how to make them into the Lumen Histoire, only believing that one of them has the potential for it.” “But we have no way of knowing which one it could be,” Gajeel pointed out grimly. “Is there any proof that one of them is it at all?” Erik suggested with a cynical sigh. “Or are people just gonna keep coming after them for no reason?” Jellal was especially disturbed by this thought as he glanced at Erza. There was the soft sound of whimpering, which drew everyone’s attention. It was Lucy, trying desperately to hide the tears that were coming down her face. Every member gathered there understood why. Both she and Cana had described the dimension that Keyes had locked them in. The unending darkness had made time stretch on forever. If they hadn’t had he each other - grasping hands the entire time so as not to float apart - they could’ve easily been driven insane. Undoubtedly, she was upset over the thought of having to go through something even remotely like that again. That the lust for power was so great in some people, some dark wizards or corrupted masters or something of the like, that there was a very real possibility of having to endure worse. Though she was already tucked against him, Natsu pulled his partner in closer to comfort her. Jellal sighed. “Unfortunately, I don’t really think there’s a way of determining which of them it is, or if either Cana or Lucy are truly the Fairy Heart.” “You’re kidding right? It’s obviously Lucy,” Cana got on her feet, leaning over the table. Everyone’s attention immediately went to her. “And I’d bet she really is the new Fairy Heart! There’s no one else who’s ever been in Fairy Tail more similar to Mavis Vermilion than her. Not only did Lucy use Fairy Sphere against Acnologia, which is what made her the target, but she loves Fairy Tail more than anyone else I could ever know. She believes in Fairy Tail more than anyone else. Remember during the end of the Battle of Fairy Tail, when everyone was arguing, yelling at each other even while Gray made it apparent that we were running out of time?” She threw her thumb in the direction of Lucy. “She was the only one who rallied everybody, because even though she hadn’t been in our guild all that long, she loved it more than all of us back then. She showed us all up, I even remember Macao congratulating her on getting all our heads out of our asses. During our war against Tartaros, she saved all of us by herself! And after the guild broke up... she kept track of everyone, was the only one willing to reach out and ask everyone to return to our home. She barely knew me as more than a guildmate, no where near the level at which she knew Natsu and Gray, and yet she partnered up with me against them for the S-class trials on Tenrou Island. We might’ve ended up fighting Freed and Bickslow, but we could’ve very well been put up against Natsu and Happy, her damn partners! Lucy went against them for me, because I asked her! Because I needed her help!” When no one said a word, Cana sneered and crossed her arms, continuing her point. “This isn’t about just the damn spells... what makes Lucy the Fairy Heart, what makes the Lumen Histoire such a powerful weapon... is the love she has for the guild. No one alive loves Fairy Tail like Lucy Heartfilia.” The aforementioned female stared in shock at her friend, listening to her long speech. After a while, she drew in a shaky breath. “You’re right... I love Fairy Tail more than anything. But that makes everything so much more painful,” her voice was soft, but when she spoke again it got even quieter. Jellal had to strain his ears to hear her. “If I’m the new Fairy Heart, then I’m putting everyone in danger by being with the guild.” Immediately, everyone around the table began to protest. Even Jellal himself; Lucy had been part of the light that saved him, too. He’d just as quickly put himself between her and danger as he would Erik or Meredy. The protests seemed to only hurt Lucy more, however, as he saw her bite her lip, holding back something whether that be tears or anger. He understood her frustration. She didn’t ask for this. When Lucy joined Fairy Tail, she wanted a family that she could live with, laugh with, love so wholeheartedly and where she could be herself; none of them could anticipate it would only lead to making her a target for those who might learn of the Lumen Histoire. Natsu got to his feet, instantly silencing everyone. Lucy looked up to him, and in that moment Jellal wasn’t sure what they communicated to one another but he saw Lucy’s eyes widen. Her partner clenched his fists, and Jellal was almost worried he would burst into flames just as quickly as he had while fighting Keyes - he looked so furious. “After everything, we would never give you up Lucy,” Natsu answered through gritted teeth. “We wouldn’t do it back against Phantom Lord, and we sure as hell wouldn’t do it now. If anyone other than you even suggested it, I’d torch them on the spot!” Lucy looked down to her lap, smiling gently to herself. “You’re right, Natsu... I shouldn’t have even thought of it. I would never want to leave, I... will always fight to protect Fairy Tail.” The group of wizards were silent for a moment, until Erza cleared her throat. “We’ll have to be extra vigilant in who knows this information,” she concluded. “The secret of the Lumen Histoire was exposed by Zeref, but that doesn’t mean people have to know it can be created again. And, if at all possible, I’d like to keep the people who know Lucy is the new Fairy Heart to those present in this room.” “I’m the new secret of Fairy Tail,” Lucy said softly. “But I can’t promise that I won’t give myself up if something like this happens again. This guild means everything to me. My family means everything, and you all got hurt because of my love for Fairy Tail.” “And we love you too, Lucy,” Mira answered in her melodically sweet voice, reaching over and putting her hand on top of Lucy’s on the table. “That’s why we won’t let you do anything like that.” “You really are just like Master Mavis, Lu,” Levy shook her head. “Willing to do anything to protect the guild. You’re more important than the secret. You’re our family.” “I suppose we’ll just have to protect Lucy from anyone who might come looking for the Fairy Heart,” Jellal smirked, looking at the dragon slayer beside her. “Think you can handle that?” Natsu clenched his fists at his side. “I’d already do that. No one’s ever getting through me.” Lucy got to her feet, grabbing his arm. Natsu looked down at her for a moment, and for the first time his expression softened. When he spoke again, the same determination was there, but his voice was gentle. “No one’s ever gonna hurt Lucy again.”

“You should be celebrating with everyone else, Jellal.” Jellal broke his gaze from watching the other members of the guild. He was particularly unable to keep his eyes away from the dragon slayer and his celestial wizard, who couldn’t have separated for more than a few minutes since being reunited. He looked up to see the source of his strength, the brightest beacon of hope in his life, join his side. Erza gave him a sly smile. He groaned and leaned back against his hands. “Nah, think I’ll leave the celebrating for the people who weren’t at the real party. Wendy’s magic is getting better and better all the time, but I’m still almost too exhausted to stay awake.” “Hm, you could lean on me then. I don’t mind,” he heard her laugh. Jellal made a slight guffaw in protest. “Are you making fun of me?” “Hardly. I don’t think anyone fought more than you did. Natsu and Gray might have fueled their magic with their fury, but there was one point at the beginning where you were the only thing standing between Keyes and our guild.” “They were driven like that because Keyes had hurt the girls they love,” Jellal glanced up at her. “I was furious like that too, at first. When I saw you had been hurt.” There it was, that sweet blush she did that he found so endearing. Erza was always so confident, but he found she shied away a bit when he was as open with his feelings as he wanted to be. His smile widened a bit more when he felt her take his hand. Jellal looked back toward the guild again, toward the wizards he had been watching before. “I’m sorta disappointed. I thought Natsu would’ve taken the opportunity I gave him to confess how he feels to Lucy like he said he was going to. So he chickened out in the end, did he?” “I knew he wouldn’t be able to after that,” Erza spoke fondly of her guildmate. “It seemed like the perfect moment of course, especially after what Lucy said about leaving Fairy Tail to make sure no one gets hurt again. But Natsu has never been one to do things the same way other people do. I think it’ll happen either in the middle of a guild brawl or while he’s on a job with her, just the two of them.” He chuckled. “Still, it would’ve been something rather nice for the guild to celebrate after the day we’ve had.” “We are celebrating; that everyone is safe now. Besides, I can’t imagine Lucy is completely unaware of how he feels,” she continued. “When Natsu first confided in Gray and I that he had feelings for her, he actually wasn’t that bad at hiding it. However, as time went on he became more obvious and once Mira knew pretty much the entire guild did. So I think that Lucy has at least some idea.” He turned his attention toward the two of them again, where Natsu sat next to Lucy with his arm around her shoulders as he argued with Gray. His rival was sitting with an arm drawn around Juvia’s waist. Honestly the only difference Jellal could see between the two pairs was that one was dating and expecting a baby. “Lucy isn’t exactly subtle with how she feels either, but Natsu isn’t well versed in social cues like that,” Erza noted with a smirk. “Unbelievable,” he shook his head. “They both told you, and you aren’t going to do a thing about it? “I intend to let it happen naturally.” Once again shaking his head at Erza’s answer, he waited a moment before speaking again. “She’s his strength... just like you are mine.” Erza stumbled over her words in response, but Jellal didn’t even notice as he sat up, brushing his hand over her cheek. But he kept going, leaning over and stealing a kiss from her. When he pulled back, her face matched her hair and there was a dreamy look in her eyes. It never mattered whether she was in the middle of a fight, scolding Natsu and Gray for their antics, or simply caught flustered in a moment like this; she was always the most beautiful woman in the world to him. It was almost embarrassing how much he was enamored with her, if Jellal wasn’t completely sure of himself and their relationship. All was well - perfect, even - until Erza gathered her bearings again. “Shouldn’t you not be kissing other woman, lest your fiancée finds out?” Jellal choked on the very air. “Are you ever going let me forget about that?” “Not for a little longer,” she teased, before boldly returning the gesture.

#original post by bree #bree writes #heavens bringer #part 5 #the final chapter!!!#thank you for all the support!#it means a lot!!#here's to everything else im gonna write lol #jellal fernandes #erza scarlet #jerza #nalu #gruvia #gajevy #kinabra

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worldofblade · 6 years

Text

Head Assassin Ch 3

BTS Fanfic: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | (T-1) | (T-2) | 5 | 6 | (T-3) | 7 | (T-4) |

Warnings: Forced marriage, talk of non-con elements, talk of child abuse, violence, gore, dark!namjoon, dark!bts

Beta: None (If someone would like to help me, please let me know)

Rating: R

Summary: General Kim Namjoon was going to get what he has always wanted, no matter what.

Pairing: Kim Namjoon/Female OC

Notes: Thank you so much for the love and interest. I hope you guys like this chapter as well. As always, thanks to @gimmesumsuga for her own Dark!Namjoon, who made me think about this.

~~~

“The perimeter is secure. Our guys have it closed up.” Yoongi said as he sat, swinging his legs up onto the desk and stretching out. “What the hell is this room, and what is going on upstairs?”

“This was Kim Ji-hoon’s way of showing his power.” Namjoon said, looking around at the animal heads mounted on the walls, and elaborate paintings of the Kim ancestors that adorned the study. He hated this room. “It will be gutted soon and rebuilt for my own needs.”

“Daddy dearest is rolling in his grave as we speak, I am sure.” Yoongi only smiled back at Namjoon’s hard look. “So, upstairs?”

“My wife is having some servants help her block the interconnecting door that is between our rooms. I think her plan is to place any and all heavy objects against it.”

Yoongi wondered if Namjoon knew that he had a smile on his face while he talked about what Ji-Soo was doing. Probably not, the General didn’t like showing emotion in front of others. Not even his friends.

“She doesn’t know that those types of measures are useless against you, I take it?” Yoongi truly smiled for the first time in a while. Namjoon was what they called a “B-hybrid”. B for brains, B for brawn, and some liked to say B for brake everything. His class of hybrid were extremely smart, and extremely tough. They were usually the ones who planned out the battle, and then could also be sent in to bust down whatever highly reinforced door was in the way. Namjoon could open the door that Ji-Soo was barricading without breaking a sweat.

“I felt no need to enlighten her on the subject. She needs to feel like she has some sort of control right now.” Namjoon went back to reading a daily report. The door opened, and Jimin bowed to both men before taking a seat next to Yoongi.

“So how goes the blocking of the door?” Yoongi asked Jimin.

“She told me to leave, that I was a spy for the enemy.” Jimin shared a chuckle with Yoongi at that. “As I was leaving, she was telling 4 of the strongest men to go around to the General’s room and see if they could push open the door.”

“Joonie, she thinks you only have the power of 4 men. Are you amused, or offended?” Yoongi asked, laughing at Namjoon’s annoyed look.

“How about we focus more on work, and less on what my wife is up to?” Namjoon said, causing Yoongi to finally bring his feet off the desk, and Jimin to sit straighter in the chair. He was in “General Mode” now.

```

Ji-Soo jerked awake. Chastising herself for falling asleep, she got up from the settee to check her “security”. The mountain of things that were in front of the connecting door, were still in place. Going to the main door, she saw that it was still locked. Ji-Soo knew that the tiny lock would do nothing to stop Namjoon if he truly wanted to come in, but she was at least happy with the major concern of the door that lead straight into his room. Having that secure, went a long way for her mental well-being. Sitting down on the bed, that she was trying her hardest not to get into, Ji-Soo took in the room again. It was very light and airy. If a room could be called dainty, it was it. The last women who had lived in this room was Jisung and Namjoon’s mother. Not that Namjoon thought of her as such. Ji-Soo was pretty confident that Namjoon had no familial feelings whatsoever for the Kim family. Which was not surprising. Hybrids were not treated like family. Really not treated as humans. Hybrids were tools being bred to serve the noble houses and the old government. Even Jisung, didn’t understand why she had felt sorry for Namjoon. Why she wanted Namjoon to come and play with them, and get the same treats that they were getting as children. To Jisung and the rest of his family, Namjoon did not deserve and would not understand those types of things. Ji-Soo had felt different, so would try and sneak things to him whenever she could. Jisung had thought it dumb, but did not try and stop her.

“Oh, Jisung…” Ji-Soo whispered, feeling pain slash through her heart. She mourned her old friend. Unlike what she said to Namjoon in anger, she did not actually love Jisung, at least not in a romantic way. Her feelings were that of a familiar friend who one felt comfortable around. She knew that Jisung felt different, and eventually she would have had to bring her own feelings to light...but then a war started. The government changed, and then Jisung was dead. That macabre thought, propelled Ji-Soo off the bed. Pacing, she rubbed her arms, suddenly feeling cold. They all were dead. In this very house. The house that she was now a prisoner in. Shuddering, she moved towards the balcony hoping that some fresh night air would help her.

```

Namjoon felt trapped. He hated this house. Hated how small and wounded he felt just by being here. Even though he knew it was impossible, he could feel all the broken bones that he received while living in this house. Namjoon would have gladly watched it burn to the ground, taking all the bad memories with it. Unfortunately, the new Chancellor wanted the noble houses to remain intact, being led by hybrids. Namjoon understood the reason, but it didn’t mean he was happy to be back at the Kim manor. This was only the second time he had been back to the house since he was young. The first being when he had set Taehyung loose on the remaining Kim family. Yes, he set a Scorch on his so-called father and brother, along with any servant that had laid a finger on him as a child. Namjoon knew that modern morality said he should feel guilty for that. He didn’t.

To escape the gloom that was pressing down on him, Namjoon stepped out onto the balcony. He was stretched out, his long legs crossed in front of him, enjoying the night air when Ji-Soo’s door slid open, and she too came outside. Knowing that she had yet to notice him, Namjoon just let himself drink in the sight of his wife. Ji-Soo was a beauty. Dark hair, big brown eyes, and a face that lit up when she laughed or smiled. He had wanted her from the moment he even understood what that meant. As a child he lived for when she came to visit Jisung. Would do anything, even though he knew he would be punished afterward, to be in her presence. The treats that she would force Jisung to let him have were worth the beating that Jisung made sure he got afterwards. She was everything he had always wanted. Light, joy, beauty, and laughter.

“Couldn’t sleep?”

Ji-Soo jumped, and then peered into the dark corner where Namjoon sat. She felt her breath leave her, as she realized that the balcony was just one long one between his and her rooms. Feeling her heart kick-up a beat, and her face going red. Here she had spent hours erecting a barrier between the interconnecting door, not knowing that a flimsy glass door was mere steps away for him.

Namjoon could almost hear the wheels turning in her head as Ji-Soo thought. Forcing himself not to laugh when color flooded into her cheeks, and she tried to take on a more dominate pose. He loved that she did everything in her power to not be the wilted rose in front of him. He remained seated as she walked towards him, he would let her feel that she had the higher ground.

“I wanted to talk to you anyway,” Ji-Soo said, feeling happy that her voice sounded matter of fact. “What exactly am I supposed to do here?”

“You mean other than be my loving wife, and mother to my children?” Namjoon’s heart sped up when she threw an adorably rude gesture his way and then with a sigh leaned against the balcony railing facing him.

“Yes. Other than that.” Ji-Soo said, rolling her eyes.

“Each room of the house will be re-done, so I assume you will want to oversee that. I also assume you will want to continue your work with the local hospitals?”

“You know I do that?” Ji-Soo asked, shocked that he knew of her volunteer work. She and her mother had started helping at the hospital during the war, and they both took great pride in their jobs.

“I know everything about you, Ji-Soo. In fact, my men have instructed their households to help with the benefit you and your mother are throwing, I gather there has not been much interest so far.”

Ji-Soo felt a tingle go down her spine, at Namjoon’s statement of “knowing everything about her”; but then focused in on what he was talking about.

“Oh, my goodness, how wonderful!” Ji-Soo clapped her hands together in joy. “The hospital needs the money so badly, and we were worried that nothing would come of our efforts.”

Namjoon saw when Ji-Soo realized who she was talking to. The bright smile on her face slowly slid off, and her body again became back-breaking straight as she took a few steps away from him. For a moment she had been the happy and excited girl that he remembered from childhood. Now she was back to the women who had been married against her will to a monster.

“So, you are fine with me going about my life normally then?” Ji-Soo asked, back to a poker face.

Coming to his feet, Namjoon leaned against the railing facing Ji-Soo. “As long as you take your body guards wherever you go, and I am made aware of your schedule at all times; I don’t see why you can’t pursue your past times.”

“Body guards? You mean Jimin is going to be following me around all the time?”

“No, Jimin is far to important and busy to be your personal body guard. He has his own job to do and house to run.” Namjoon said. “I will introduce your driver and body guard to you tomorrow.”

“I will not be followed by your little minions, General!”

“It is my minions, or you don’t leave this house.”

Ji-Soo glared at Namjoon, but also began to weigh the pros and cons. Yes, she would be followed by people who would report anything and everything to him; but she would also be able to see her mother, and do the other things that she had been worried Namjoon would take away from her. The minions it was.

“Fine.” Ji-Soo turned to go back to her room, but felt her stomach start to tie in knots when she thought about how close her sliding glass door was to his own. Taking a deep breath, she faced Namjoon again. “Will you…will you promise not to use this door?”

Namjoon could almost feel his cold heart break as he took in Ji-Soo’s face. He knew that the only reason she allowed him to see her fear and vulnerability was that she had no other choice. He knew how much this request was costing her.

“I promise not to use your balcony door.”

“Thank you.” Ji-Soo’s soft voice floated back to him, as she quickly went back into her room.

```

“Why are we doing this again?” Yoongi huffed, pulling at the collar of his tux, scowling.

“Because the General wants to get inside his wife’s pants.” Taehyung said, ducking away from a slap to his head by Jimin.

“Because,” Jin straightened his own collar, and pulled down on his lapels to make sure everything was straight. “It is good press for the new government. Showing the 7 noble houses of this region coming together to better the community.”

“…and because Namjoon wants to get in his wife’s pants.” Hoseok chimed in, causing everyone except Jin to laugh.

“The women of my house were not happy when I told them they were going to be helping.” Jungkook spoke up combing through his hair with his hands. “It seems they don’t like the Lee family.”

“You’re too soft on them if they think they can question what you tell them to do.” Taehyung’s lazy voice drifted over to them from his position slouched in a chair.

“While we are on that subject. There will be photographers and journalists. So, we are nothing except happy families. Yes? Especially you, Tae! No scaring people to see if you can make them wet their pants!” Jin snapped the last part, glowering down at Taehyung.

Taehyung made a motion that could be either yes or no, and then came to his feet stretching. “Let’s get this party started. Why don’t I go find my lovely ladies, so we can get the pictures taken, before anyone…how did you put it? Wets their pants?”

Sighing, Jin looked towards Jimin.

“I’m on it.” Jimin said, as he followed after Taehyung.

“I would have never thought I would say this about a noble house, but I feel pity for Tae’s people. Even I worry that one night I will wake up to him happily slashing at my throat.” Yoongi said, coming to his feet. “Good thing Jimin is his anchor.”

Anchor Hybrids were bred specifically to be attached to the Scorches. Anchors were a different side of the same coin. Scorch Hybrids were frenzied, out of control, bloody mayhem, who were happy to rip off people’s heads and play catch with them; while Anchors were controlled, calculated, hit the target and get out. So, the Scorches and Anchors went in to battle together. Mostly so that the Anchors could stop the Scorches from playing bloody-head catch and get on with things.

“Let’s go, everyone.” Jin said, herding them towards the door that Jimin and Taehyung had left through. “Time to smile, and show the world how happy we all are.”

#kpopwonderlandtag #bts hybrid fic #bts fic #bts dark fic #dark namjoon #bts namjoon #kim namjoon fic #dark bts #bts au fanfic #bts #kpop #bts fanfiction #bts fanfic #kpop fic #kpop fanfic #kpop fanfiction #head assassin #fic by worldofblade #namjoonxoc

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oddree13 · 7 years

Text

Entre-nous, between us

Written for Nursey/Dex Week Day 3: Alternate Universe

Nursey/Dex Week: Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4, Day 5, Day 6, Day 7

(Read on AO3 - also for historical notes!)

Following the Great War, Derek realized returning to Louisiana wasn’t an option. His mother had passed while he was away at war, and his bastard of a father had already remarried in order to get back into his family’s good graces by marrying a woman of proper lineage.

With no proper family to speak of anymore, and a bit of inheritance in his pocket, Derek spent two years after his discharge wandering around Europe before deciding to settle in Paris. Soon Derek found himself immersed in the city of love, deep in the jazz age, playing bass in a band.

He liked Paris - good food, pretty sights, and no one cared who you loved or slept with. He spent his days in cafes and wandering the streets, his nights in clubs, and his late nights in the beds of his lovers. Most excused themselves in the morning once they saw the state of his chest and back, scared by the chemical warfare of the front. Derek shrugged it off and pretended it didn't bother him. He shrugged it off and performed another gig, at his usual haunt, Le Caveau de la Huchette, eager to see what the 1920s would bring him.

It started off like any other performance. Men and women pairing off to the music, switching between themselves to keep dancing. Most nights everyone who came to the club danced - why come if not for the music after all - so it was rare to see someone just watching from a table. Glancing every so often at the ginger who sat alone drinking, Derek wondered what had brought the stranger to his little slice of freedom. He tried not to dwell on it too long, except the ginger made that difficult due to his repeated glances up at him too.

It wasn’t that Derek wasn’t looked at often, his appearance usually only led to confusion because of the colonies, but it wasn’t as common from the men. But the look was unmistakable - the ginger was taking him in.

At the break, Derek walked off the stage and sent a drink over to the stranger’s table, before heading to the back to stretch and re-apply some ointment to his stiff muscles.

Coming back to the front, Derek was elated to see that the ginger was sipping on his fresh beer and giving Derek a pleased, but surprised look. Well, at least he had a shot then. Usually most men who weren’t into that kind of bedfellow downed the drink,, but wouldn’t look at him, or sent it back and left the club all together.

Leaning against the wall closest to the stage, Derek stared at the man a bit more, admiring the smattering of freckles that played over his skin. Pulling out a small notebook from his pants, he made a few notes about autumn before closing it, ready for the next set.

Derek became more of a showboat on stage, especially when the ginger kept eyeing him, but not taking any offers from the women to dance. Seeing a shot he made himself seem like the most charming man on stage, working up a sweat as he really got into the music and was lucky enough to lock eyes once more with the recipient of his drink. Looking across the room at his hazel eyes, Derek winked at him and licked his lips before focusing on the solo he was coming up to. He was pleased to see the man flush, and not look affronted by his advances.

Once the set ended, Derek went to the bar to get a drink of water before packing up, watching people file out. He was bent over his case when a shadow moved across the floor before him.

“Tu joues bien,” Derek hears in a poor French accent and looks up to see the ginger.

“Merci, je suppose que vous ne parlez pas français?” he asks slowly, and gets a nod from the ginger.

“Je suis Irlandais,” the ginger attempts, shakily, and Derek smirks.

“Well lucky for you, I speak English,” he laughed, clicking his case closed, and standing up. “Do I get a name from you or do I keep calling you Gingembre?”Derek winked, continuing to pack up his instrument.

“Name’s William, but you can call me Will or Liam.” The newly named man said, fidgeting nervously. “I gather from the barman you’re Derek?”

“You’ve gathered right. Passing through town or are you settled here in our fair city?”

“A little bit of both. You say our fair city, but your accent sounds American?” he asked, uncertain.

“You’re right, I’m American, but the French decided to claim me for a bit so I can manage their tongue well enough.” Derek said, closing his case and leaning against the stage next to him. He looked up to better asses the Irishman in front of him, greatly enjoying what he was seeing.

“Interesting,” he hummed, standing a bit stiffly, unsure of what to say next.

“I guess it might be, Liam. But as much as I’d like to stand here all night chatting a fair sight like you, the barkeep it giving me a look at means I need to head home. If you have nothing to do, I have a few bottles of wine and a bed to enjoy,” he spelled out, being forward enough for the man before him to get the hint.

Derek could tell that even the direct approach took him a moment to process. After a pause a blush slowly began to spread over his cheeks, and down his neck.

“D-did I give you that i-impression sitting there?” he asked clearly confused by what signals he had been giving off that told Derek he was looking for company in bed too.

“Most men I send drinks to don’t stay and chat if they don’t want me looking their way,” Derek explained, grabbing his case in one hand and gesturing towards Liam with the other. He began walking towards the doors and out into the emptying streets of the city, guiding his companion along the way with a gentle hand. “I won’t take offense if you just wanted to tell me you liked my music and head home by the way.”

“People like you don't buy people like me drinks...” Will replied, but there was no venom in the statement and he continued to walk alongside the other man.

"What do you mean people like me? Ruffians? Vets? Negroes? Americans? Bass players? Men? You'll need to be a little more specific,” the musician chuckled, ambling down the road.

“All of the above I guess. But I was going to be saying fine, you know good looking people,” he murmured, keeping his hands in his pockets and his head down.

“Well first off, thank you. I’m not a lot of people’s types, but I seem to have gotten your eye,” Derek grinned, nudging the Irishman. “Second, this is Paris, it's not criminal to want who you want here. I go home with men, and women, and sometimes both. Depends on who I find attractive that night, and tonight my eyes landed on you," he grinned, pulling out a cigarette for the walk home. “It ain’t like England here. They don’t send guys like us to the labor camps for doing what we do. Sure some look at you funny, and if you get a policeman with a grudge he holds it against you, but overall, it’s entre-nous, between us.”

“That’s certainly a change from back home,” he replied, shoulders relaxing and low whistle emanating from his teeth. “I could get used to that,” he added, looking up to smile at Derek.

“Good because you look good when someone flirts with you. Got this gorgeous flush,” Derek winked, brushing his finger against a pale cheek and causing said flush to reappear.

"I don't flush," Will grunted, cheeks tinting pink just as he said it.

“This is me,” Derek stopped walking and pointed to a set of stairs leading up to a second floor apartment. “You can come in for wine. Come in for wine and more. Or head out. I won’t say I wouldn’t be heartbroken if you walked away now, but if you do, I play at Le Caveau de la Huchette every other day.”

“Can I say just wine now, and maybe something more later?” Will asked, shyly.

“We certainly can,” he assured him and began the climb upstairs.

Once inside, Derek put down his case by the door and hung up his hat. The place was a modest studio, with a bed bigger than was typical and a small kitchen. He hadn’t wanted to waste all his money on living expenses if all he would be doing here was eating, sleeping, and occasionally entertaining. Pointing to the small set of table and chairs, Derek told Will to make himself comfortable as he looked at his wine selection, plucking two bottles along with some glasses down from the shelf.

“Had you ever heard jazz before tonight?” he asked curiously, pouring each of them a large glass of red.

“Only once on the radio. Different, but a lot of it looks like the music from back home. Communal in a way,” Will tried to explain, wringing his hands. Derek could tell he wasn’t used to talking so much.

“That it is. Takes at least a few people for a jazz band and what good is playing if you have no one to entertain?” Derek smiled, handing the other man a full glass. “I saw you didn’t dance with anyone, even when that lovely lady asked you.”

“I don’t do much dancing,” Will confessed, running a hand over the back of his neck. “And I’m don’t do much with women,” he added.

“Shame, I bet you’d make a fine dancer with some practice,” Derek grinned, and leaned over the table a bit. “So tell me how did you wind up here? I’ll tell you mine if you tell me yours.

Over a few glasses of wine Derek found out the following - Liam got mixed up in some business with the Irish Republican Army and had to leave his country. He’s trying to find a place he can stay that he likes enough and lets him send money back home to his family. Derek in turn told him that he fought in the 93rd Infantry Division during the Great War, but instead of returning to the States when it was over, he had settled down in Paris.

“I learned the fiddle growing up and well it wasn’t too much of a leap to bass,” he wrapped up, feeling pleasantly buzzed.

“Me too. It wasn’t mine, but I learned. Never knew when a good party would get going and it wasn’t right for the same fellas to play all night you know?” he laughed, his cheeks ruddy from the wine.

“So you said you don’t do women? Never had a chance or never got the urge.”

“Never got the urge. Tried stealing a few kisses in my younger years, but never made my heart race like some other lads. When I got involved with the IRA I met a few forward thinking sorts and had a few tumbles with them, but nothing more,” he explained, swallowing down the rest of his wine.

“More of a Wilde man. No harm in that,” he winked, but the reference didn’t register with Will.

Draining the wine from his own glass, Derek collected the empty bottles and glasses to clean later. “So, Liam, did you want to stay for more or head on home?” he asked, leaning against his counter to look at the other man.

Standing, Will looked around the room, clearly trying to think, but Derek was pleased that the ginger’s eyes kept coming back to him. Seeing the thought process running through Will’s mind, Nursey stepped forward and placed a hand on his waist. “Stay,” he whispered, moving in closer to kiss his cheek. “I’d hate to let a handsome man like you walk out the door.”

The simple kiss seemed to make Will’s mind up for him and he moved his head to capture Derek’s lips. He’d done this much before, and even if it had been a long time, kissing still came naturally to him from what Derek could tell.

Letting his hand rest upon Will’s waist, Derek deepened the kiss, feeling the hard muscles beneath his fingers. Will was certainly a laboring man, and he wondered just how sculpted he was under his shirt and trousers.

It didn’t take long for Will to let go a bit, his hands roaming over Derek’s chest and back. Moving over a particularly sensitive spot, Derek laughed and pulled back and when he looked up he could see that William was smirking.

“You look good with a smile like that. That sultry act is good and all, but I like a man who has a good smile,” Will offered, and moved back to Derek, grabbing his hand and pulling him close.

“So the position of strong, silent type for the night gets taken by you?”

Will nodded and moved Derek to the bed in the corner of the room, kissing him as he moved. Settling down onto the edge, he pulled Derek down gently so he was straddling his lap, and moved a hand to unbutton his shirt, but Derek stopped him.

“You don’t want to do that. The war did a number on my body, but was nice enough to leave my face alone,” he explained, trying to not let show how affected he was. “I promise whatever we want to do I can do it without making you look at that. It isn’t pretty,” he mumbled. Derek tried to move back in for a kiss, but Will moved out of the way.

“I don’t know what kind of people you’ve been going to bed with, but your face isn't what caught my eye.” The ginger said, deadly serious. He pressed his hand firmly against his lover’s chest. “Your fingers played that instrument like you had a story and I wanted to know more. So while your face is right handsome, and your build is something to admire, I ain’t here just for that,” he promised, and moved against to unbutton his shirt. This time Derek let him.

As his shirt was peeled off, Derek didn’t look at the way Will reacted. He’d seen it before. People would think they could handle what they thought the scars would look like, but then his clothes would come off and they’d see the extent that the mustard gas had molted his skin. The gas mask he wore that day had saved his lungs and face, but did fuck all for the rest of him.

It took him a second to realize that the dulled pressure he felt on his torso were kisses that William was peppering over his skin, his arm resting around his waist as he did so. He was so stunned by the gesture that it took Will kissing his lips again to move, swallowing his feelings down with a shaky breath, and chasing after the red-head’s mouth.

“There you are,” he heard the ginger murmur. Derek grinned, pushing Will down to the bed, stripping away the other man's shirt. He was pleased that the freckles adorning Liam’s face were just as prevalent on his torso, and that a sturdy build was hiding underneath.

“I like how your freckles are everywhere, and I want to see how far down they go,” he hummed, as he kissed down his neck, his confidence bolstered a bit.

It didn’t take much longer for both men to be stripped down bare, laying side by side on the bed.

“We don’t have to do more than kiss if it’s too much for one night,” Derek offered, his eyes closed, focusing on the touch of Will’s fingers caressing his skin, the sensation ceasing every so often as it hit a patch of skin that was too damaged to feel.

“I’ve done more than kiss before, you aren’t the first naked man I’ve seen,” Will hummed, and moved to grip Derek’s shaft, stroking him slowly. The sensation caught Derek off guard who tucked his head into the crook of Will’s neck, gasping a bit at the stimulation.

Moving his hands up, Derek gripped Will’s shoulder with one while the other reached to grab his lover's prick, returning the pleasure.

It was Will’s turn to suck in a breath, not having expected Derek to return the favor. “Hope you didn’t think I would leave you wanting. If flirting makes you flush I want to see you after climax,” the American grunted, picking up the pace.

It didn’t take long for Derek to grip both of them in his hand, stroking them together, their combined friction and slick adding more to the pleasure of it all. Within no time, both men were spilling between each other, neither admitting that it had been a long time since they’d been with another person.

They came down, kissing each other, and touching whatever skin they could find, basking in the afterglow. Eventually Derek got up to get a towel, wiped them both down, and collapsed on the bed.

“If you stay until morning we can heat the water for a shower and fool around some more,” Derek whispered, placing another kiss on Liam’s lips, hoping the hot shower would incentivise the other man a bit more.

“How about I stay until morning, we shower, and we go get a croissant and walk around the city. That is if you don’t have to work,” he countered.

“I’ve got all the time in the world for you.”

#nurseydexweek #nurseydex #alternate universe #omgcheckplease #check please #derek nurse #william poindexter #myfics #myposts

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singingpeople · 7 years

Text

Paying the price

Chapter 23

*not edited*

@beautifulramblingbrains @pathybo @tigpooh67 @jojuarez26 @bookwarm85 @carefultheyspit @deepfrz @lets-play-truth-or-dare @scorpio2009 @iammarylastar @feminamortem

I knew the day had come when Dante carefully approached me after we were done running around the compound and told me it would be better to stay in the dorms for tonight.

Starting to smirk, I only gave him a wink since Avery choose that exact moment to pull me away for dinner and a little relaxing time after.

We stayed in the pit for an hour, all of us nursing one beer, the anticipation for tonight running so high that everyone knew what was coming. Even when ignoring all the comments being thrown our way.

Pretending to throw my bottle away when the three of us turned to leave, I purposely bumped into Rob, telling him to not get drunk and at least two hours of sleep. Ignoring his questions, I let Ivy pull me away towards our dorms.

After their teasing about how this was the first time I actually slept in my bed, not just coming to change in the early morning was done, we went to sleep at 10 pm just to be woken up at 2 by Dante banging a pipe against one of the beds, telling us we had 5 minutes to meet him in the pit. Smart as we were, we had already dressed in thermal underwear, only having to grab our combat clothes and our jackets, slipping in our boots before being ready to go.

The four of us, including a very grumpy Owen, were the first ones to arrive and I was pleasantly surprised to see that instead of the transfers instructor, who despised basically everyone, Harper stood tall at Theo´s and Ben´s side, flanked by the twins and Krissy, her best friend and Christina´s daughter.

Seeing them standing side by side, I couldn’t contain the smirk that threatened to split my face in two. This was going to be one hell of a night.

Harper and Krissy wore matching fishtail braids, only adding a more military air to their uniforms, not one hair out of place. Catching my grin, Harper wiggled her eyebrows at me but schooled her face carefully when the rest of the initiates arrived almost simultaneously followed by a loud holler of the drunk dauntless all around us.

Satisfied that everyone was here, the fourteen dauntless born as well as the ten transfers, Theo stepped forwards standing tall as ever.

"Listen up!" He called, his voice full of authority. "We are going to participate in a dauntless tradition as old as this faction." His announcement was interrupted by hollering and things banging from all over the pit. Raising his hand, Theo demanded them to shut up. "But since the factionless are still unsettled the security measures are heightened immensely. We´ll be on the old pier as every year, but for the duration of our war games, you´ll be forbidden to leave a certain area that is patrolled by our forces who made sure that this will go over without a hitch.

So, if I catch anyone of you beyond that certain area your ass is mine, understood?”

His answer was a series of yelled ‘Yes, Sir´s’ and Theo nodded, seemingly satisfied by our reply since he gestured for Ben to open the bag. Stepping forward, Ben pulled out a small gun and a packet I knew contained ammo, holding them up for us to see.

“We´re going to play capture the flag like every year. But this time, there will be a little twist.”

Cocking his head, he smirked. “We´ll explain everything in the train which will arrive in exactly four minutes at the rails. Everyone who´s not making it will pray for mercy once we´re done with you. Grab a gun and hurry the fuck up!”

Hollering the last part, he started jogging away followed by all of the members accompanying him, guns already hanging by their sides. Shooting Dante who smirked slightly a dirty look, I threw myself into the middle scramble.

We all made it onto the train, barely.

Panting like crazy, most of the transfers and a few of us were doubled over, hands stemmed on their knees, trying to catch their breath. My own chest was heaving heavily as I pushed through the initiates to get where my family was, sending them all glares.

"Listen up!" Harper called, the crowd quieting down slowly. "You all got a gun and a set of ammo.”

“Looks more like a toy.” One of the transfer said, inspecting the plastic gun with distaste. Knowing exactly what Andy was going to do, concluding from his expression, I loaded one of the darts into the weapon and pulled the trigger the same time as he did.

The transfer fell to the floor, clutching his abdomen while Andy´s leg gave out, sending him too, to the floor. With one knee on the floor and the other in front of him, he send me a glare, aiming in my direction. But before he could pull the trigger and start a personal war, Theo swatted the barrel away, bend down and pulled the stim dart out of Andy´s ass cheek, sending me a reprimanding look as he held it in the air.

"Thanks, Lexi." He commented dryly, walking over to the transfer to pull that dart out, too. "The neuro stim darts simulate the pain of a real bullet wound but only last a few seconds up to mere minutes, depending on where the target is hit. So far so good.” Theo nodded at Harper who stepped up with another bag, handing out devices to every one of the initiates.

"Those are trackers, lights, and sensors at once, they even have speakers so you´ll be able to communicate." She spoke up, pushing button making the device light up white. "You will place this and your jacket and be synced with whoever is your team captain." Looking up at Theo he gestured for him to go on and he pulled out something that looked like a tablet, typing something in. Harper's light flashed red. "See. That way your captain will see wherever you are at any time but beware: If this falls into the hand of the enemy you´re pretty much screwed." Her lips curled into a smirk and I knew it got even better. "Your sensors are also able to detect if you got hit and through the electric impulse also know which part of your body. Since you´ll synchronize all your darts before we start there will be also a ranking consisting of a hit-to-fire ratio, how often you got shot and if those would have disabled or killed you. All of this was specially developed for this year's initiation from yours truly." Gesturing towards herself and the smirking twins, Harper stepped back and let Theo take over again.

“Believe me, you don´t want to be last in this ranking.” Giving us a meaningful look, he clasped his hands in front of him, his expression turning excited. “Since we´re done with the formalities, Ben and I are captains, Dante with him while Harper´s with me, let´s choose.”

Gesturing for him to start, Ben stayed back taking everyone around him in. Smirking, Theo let his gaze flit through the compartment before he stopped at me. “Lexi.”

Walking towards him, he ruffled through my hair, pulling me into his chest while Ben groaned. “Marc.”

Freeing myself from his grasp, I came to stand beside Harper who slung one arm around my waist as Theo called Owen over. The choosing went on and to my delight did Cat and up on Ben´s team, just like Riley, while Ivy and Rob joined us.

Soon the initiates were all chosen, leaving the few members.

“Tonight we´ll see who´s victorious. The Coulter or Eaton clan.” Harper murmured into my ear and as I looked up confused by her statement, I saw that both of the twins had joined Ben, while Krissy came over to us. Turning towards our team, Harper stemmed her hands on her hips, her face turning stony as she addressed them. “Like you see, this is a family feud and if we lose you not only has to answer to your ranks but also to my father.”

Several faces turned white at her threat but Harper was unfazed, as she walked by me towards the door. “That should get them going.” She whispered before speaking up again. “We get off here, get ready to jump!”

Pulling open the door, she was the first one to disappear into the night and I let the transfers scramble after her, only turning around before getting out to look at Dante who was already watching me with a regretful smile. I replied with a promising smirk, throwing myself off the train, rolling up when I hit the floor, unable to just come to a stand.

“Okay, guys. Over here!” Waving his arm in the air, Theo ordered us to come closer, tablet in hand. “It looks like we´re ready to go, everyone´s synced. From the moment, the others are also done, we´ll have fifteen minutes before it officially starts. So, let´s discuss where we hide the flag!”

“What´s the strategically best place to hide it?” The erudite who knocked me over on the roof after the choosing ceremony asked, his eyes taking in the abandoned fair around us.

“We won´t help you transfer. This is an exercise for you all so don´t expect our help. We´re just here to make sure you don´t kill yourself out of stupidity.” Harper replied coldly, seizing him up. He shrunk back, her expression obviously intimidating to him and I snorted.

Pushing through the people, I came to a halt beside Rob who was standing on the sidelines, only watching. Turning away from the others, I murmured beside his shoulder. "The Ferris wheel."

“What?” He asked, startled by my appearance.

Rolling my eyes, I nodded towards my siblings. “The Ferris wheel is the best place to hide it. Speak up.”

Giving me a doubtful look, he hesitated but when I raised one eyebrow he scurried forward, interrupting whoever was speaking, drawing all the attention to himself. “We should hide it on top of the Ferris wheel. Technically we don´t even have to hide it, no one will be able to get up there, especially if we have a sniper targeting everyone who gets too close.”

Theo and Harper both stopped to stare at him, stunned that someone so ordinary as Rob would come up with a typical dauntless strategy. I could see that they took him in a second time, reevaluating their opinion of him. A light blush appeared on Rob's cheek when everyone turned towards him, only getting stronger when one of the transfer girls snorted at his idea.

“Yeah, Rob? And who the hell I supposed to get up there? None of us are stupid enough to even try…”

She trailed off as I slowly stepped forward, narrowed eyes never leaving hers as I grabbed the flag and demonstratively pulled it out of Theo´s outstretched hand, daring her to question my abilities. She was smart enough to keep her mouth shut.

Catching my brother´s gaze, I waited for his affirmative nod before gesturing for Rob to follow me when I simply walked away, determined to get the neon colored cloth of fabric onto the top of the Ferris wheel.

I was already several feet away from the group when he came running, falling into step with me, breathing heavy. “Damn, you showed it to Scar!” He laughed, shaking his head unbelievingly. “She´s from candor, her honesty can be scary sometimes.”

“The only ‘scary’ thing about candor´s is that they´re too stupid to keep their mouth shut.” I rolled my eyes, fastening my steps when Theo let us know through the sensor that our fifteen minutes had begun.

“I guess.” Rob replied off-handedly, an excited skip in his steps. “But it doesn’t make it less cool.”

Snorting, I refrained from answering, instead taking in the Ferris wheel in front of us. It used to be white but the years took their toll on the metal, several of the bars not safe to climb on. The first half was easy, a ladder would bring me to the center of the wheel but the rest I´d have to brachiate from bar to bar with nothing beneath me. I guess that´s what dauntless is really about, taking risks.

“You´re crazy.” Rob breathed, pulling me from my thoughts. I made a questioning sound, too lost to realize what he was talking about until I followed his wide-eyed gaze, looking up to the top from where we were standing at the bottom.

“That´s a possibility.”

“So…” He started to speak just as I went to step forward and begin my climb. “I realized that I´m the only one you´re talking to. I must be pretty special.”

Furrowing my brow, I looked at him incredulously, starting to laugh loudly at his smug grin. “No, you´re not. Get over yourself." Shaking my head in an overly exasperated manner, I couldn't help but grin when his face fell a little.

“Oh…”

“Yeah. There are a few others but if it makes you feel better, you´re the first from our initiation class.” Shrugging his shoulders, he pouted.

“Maybe a little.”

Chuckling, I playfully shoved him out of my way. “Now stop holding me up, I have a game to win.” Jogging over to the ladder, I paused when a thought hit me. “Hey, Rob?” Looking up, he threw me a questioning gaze. “Can you climb?”

His confused face was slowly overtaken by a knowing grin as he hurried over, ready to listen to my plan.

Like predicted, the first half of the climb was easy, even for Rob who admitted to only have ever scaled his house back in abnegation. That´s why I left him there, with the instruction to just make his way to the cab to our right. Halfway away from the ground he´d be in the perfect position to take out our opponents without getting hit himself or giving away his location.

Knowing I´d need to be fully concentrated I waited and watched him until he was safely in the cabin before going on, starting to pull myself up the bars. Having practiced so much in the city it was fairly easy especially since I was wearing my gloves, I only lost my footing once when I felt a bar crack beneath my grip, threatening to give way. I had avoided falling by swinging around, grabbing another one to my right.

After the scare, I took a short moment to catch my breath before going on, reaching the top only seconds before the red pyro at the other end of the fair signaled that the game had started. Balancing myself on the cab, I tied the neon-yellow flag to the metal bar and it immediately started flattering in the wind, glowing brightly for everyone to see.

Slowly making my way down again without trying to kill myself, I had just reached solid ground again and contemplated what to do shaking out my strained fingers when the sensor started to buzz, signaling that someone was trying to contact me, it was silent since every noise could have given my position away. Pushing the button, I was greeted by my brother´s heavy breathing.

“Lexi!” It cracked slightly and I could hear people running in the background. “If you´re done get on the roof of the building, we need you to cover for us! We´re surrounded on the west side of the pier! Hurry!”

Not losing a second, I sprinted across the open square without seeing any of the others, gun held securely in hand, ready to shoot.

Reaching the building, I pressed myself against it, looking around the corner. Squinting my eyes, I was able to make out the silhouette of two people creeping through the shadows towards the Ferris wheel. Waiting until they were in plain sight, I aimed and pulled the trigger bringing the one on the right to fall just as another dart came flying from the cabin I knew Rob was in, hitting the second one.

Concluding from the high-pitched scream, he had just hit Cat and I mentally congratulated him and me, for teaching him.

Still smirking, I stretched my fingers before jumping up to get a hold of the facade, slowly pulling myself up the building, relying mostly on the strength of my upper body. Judging from the height, it must have been around eight stories high, my breathing labored, arms burning from the exertion when I finally pulled myself over the ledge, careful of the steep of the roof.

I took a moment to level my breaths before getting up, unstrapping the gun and running over the roof ducked, trying to lay low.

Reaching the other side, I laid down, slowly robbing towards the edge of the roof near where I heard shouts coming from earlier. And there the majority of my team was the only cover a huge cement block on either side, my cousin's team slowly advancing. Counting at least eight of them, I slowly inched the barrel of my gun over the ledge, taking aim just as the devices vibrated again. Knowing it must be my brother asking where I was, I ignored it, grabbing one of the pyros he had handed me earlier. Scratching it along the stone of the roof, it caught fire and I threw it down, the red fire illuminating everything around it. Taking a deep breath I fired, took aim and fired again, not bothering to look if I had hit my target. The shouts of pain told me enough.

I rapid succession, I managed to hit the three on the right that blocked the way towards their flag, one managed to duck behind a tipped over car, the ones on the left following his lead, taking cover. My brother and the three with him were able to break through without getting hurt and I laid still, waiting for another opponent to come into range when suddenly a barrel was pressed against the back of my head.

Freezing, I cursed myself for not having them heard coming near me and let my gun fall, raising my hands. I knew that it most likely was a gun loaded with stim darts but in that moment it could have also been a real one, sending shivers down my spine.

Getting up slowly, the barrel moved with me, always staying pressed against my skull. One shot with a stun gun would knock me out cold, a real one would kill me.

Upright, I didn’t have time to move before a strong arm slung itself around my waist, pulling me back into a broad chest. “I just knew that I would find you up here, little monkey.”

Letting out a shaky but relieved breath, I let my head fall against his shoulder for a moment, closing my eyes. His chest was warm against my back, familiar, as he placed a palm on my stomach, burying his face in my hair.

The relief fast vanished and I turned around, punching Dante´s shoulder hard.

“You ass!”

Rubbing the place that would surely bruise, he winced but suddenly started laughing after he looked up, only fueling my irritation. “Oh, I´m sorry. Did I scare you?” He asked, a little twinkle in his eyes he rubbed the stubble on his skin, the gun now hanging from his shoulder.

Narrowing my eyes at him, I crossed my arms. “Fuck off.”

Shaking his head, Dante continued chuckling lightly as he pulled me back to him. Not wanting to give in so easily, I stayed rigid but when he nudged my head to the side, placing open mouthed kisses on my neck, I started squirming, winding my arms around him. He pulled back slightly to press a kiss to my lips and I pouted at him. “I meant it, you´re an ass.”

Looking down at me softly, Dante shook his head, pressing a kiss to my temple. “I´m really sorry but the opportunity was too good to pass up." Rolling my eyes, my lips curled up slightly and I bit down on them, not wanting to give him the satisfaction to forgive him that easily. But he lightly shook me, still laughing when his expression suddenly turned more intense, his hand wandering towards my jaw, angling my head up towards him. "I really missed you the past few days. I´ll be so happy when the first stage is finally over." He breathed against my lips, not quite touching them. "I´ll have to my own for a whole weekend."

“Oh, really?” Pressing myself against him, my voice turned hoarser. “And what are you planning to do with me?”

Looking deep into his eyes, Dante only let out a low groan, pulling me against him with all his strength, capturing my lips in a searing kiss almost prying my mouth open with his tongue. Meeting his passion with the same fervor, I pulled him closer with one hand around his neck, the other slowly wandering over his abdomen, dipping into the waistband of his pants.

Rubbing over the front, I felt him harden against my hand and I pressed myself against him, letting my other hand trail over his arm until I reached his hand.

Stepping out of his embrace so sudden stunned Dante and he stared at me with a confused expression, his eyes widening the moment he saw what I held in hand.

“Payback´s a bitch, love.”

Pulling the trigger, I shot him three times with his own gun only feeling slightly bad when he crumbled on the ground, groaning loudly frantically trying to pull the darts off his abdomen. Throwing the gun further down the roof to get a head start, I firmly grabbed my own and took off, running towards the towers on the end of the roof facing the moor.

Not slowing down, I jumped from one ledge onto the smaller roof, the glow of the green flag greeted me, taunting me to come and get it.

I knew that there were stairs leading up, most likely guarded by several players but the dirty white ornaments on the outside, cut outs, were perfect for climbing up on.

Casting another glance towards the door, making sure that this time no one would be able to sneak up on me, I grabbed the lower part of the circular cutout above my head and pulled me up, placing my feet on the ledge that framed the ornaments. Internalizing my way up, like usual, I started climbing, the texture making it so much easier than climbing the Ferris wheel or even onto the roof of this building. At the end, there´d be an upwards curve but it should be manageable.

But halfway through, about 20 feet above the roof, the doors were slammed open, a series of shouts and whizzing darts appearing beneath me announced the arrival of both teams.

I knew they couldn’t see me yet from where they fought but they were coming closer and I started pulling myself up faster, not wanting to be hit by a stray dart.

I thought that no one would be stupid enough to shoot me while I was climbing a tower but I was wrong.

The only indication of the pain to come was a silent whooshing noise before I was hit several times, the pain spreading quickly through my backside excruciating, pivoting up and down my spine.

Arching my back in reflex, I let go of the wall not even feeling myself topple backward until I was falling with no way of catching myself before hitting the concrete ground 20 feet beneath me. Closing my eyes, I pulled my knees up to my chest and covered my head with my arms, not knowing what was worse – the sensation of free falling or the pain spreading through my back.

But I knew, landing on the ground it would get so much worse.

The fall only took a second but for me it felt like forever as I clenched my teeth, waiting for an impact that never came. Instead of being met by concrete, a soft pair of arms encircled me, the force of my fall sending us both to the ground, him groaning in pain while I whimpered, the darts pressing painfully into my already bruised skin.

“Fuck, Lexi! Are you alright?!” Dante asked, frantically searching for injuries that weren’t there. Gripping his vest until my knuckles turned white, I buried my face in his chest, eye´s clenched shut.

“Take them out!” I whimpered, the darts even further inside my skin through the impact. Turning me slightly with a hand on my waist, Dante quickly pulled four parts from my skin, one directly over my spine, which explained the light numbness in my legs, making me wince with every single one. Immediately, his hand crept beneath my shirt, rubbing the irritated places in soothing circles.

Running his other hand through my hair, he positioned my lying frame on his lap, bending down to look at me. “Are you alright?”

“ ´m fine…” Murmuring into his vest, I breathed in deeply, my eyes still closed. The sharp pain was slowly fading, the gentle ministrations of his fingers slowly massaging the feeling back into my body.

A pair of feet came running over and someone fell on their knees beside me, cradling my head in hands, brushing the hair away from my face with shaky fingers. “Lexi, are you hurt?”

Looking up into the scared blue eyes of my sister, I shook my head grabbing her wrists in one of my hands. Getting the message, she slowly helped me up, catching me when I stumbled, my legs still shaky. Leaning against her, I felt her press a kiss to my hair, pulling me closer as she turned to Dante. “Are you sure she didn’t hurt herself? She can hardly stand!”

“Don´t worry.” He assured her, smiling tightly. “One of the darts hit her directly over the spine, not to mention that she almost died. It´s normal that she´s a bit shaky.”

I weakly rolled my eyes at his exaggeration. The fall wouldn’t have killed me, only given me a few broken bones and a nasty concussion, most likely. Trying to hide my wince, I straightened up, indicating that I was alright on my own and Harper slowly let go, cautiously watching me taking a step, her face hardening when I stumbled.

“I´m going to kill the bastard that shot you!” Harper seethed, her eyes narrowed into slits. But then her gaze fell onto Dante and it softened as she threw himself at him, slinging her arms around his neck. I watched as he caught her with wide eyes, only starting to smile when she mumbled something I couldn’t decipher.

A strange feeling rose in my chest as I watched him squeeze her tightly before letting go, a soft smile on his face as he looked from her to me.

Turning my gaze to the ground, it was hard to swallow as I angled away from them. Only a snort made me look back up into Harper´s incredulous face as she raised one eyebrow at me. "Seriously, Lex? Jealous of your own sister?"

Opening my mouth, I closed it again, staring at her wide-eyed. Harper only started laughing, shoved Dante´s shoulder and came over, ruffling my hair.

"How sweet! You thought I didn't know… We all do." She exclaimed laughing, before scrunching her face up shrugging her shoulders. "Well except mom, who´s too busy dealing with the Amity bitch and maybe dad, but you never know with him."

“I hope it stays that way.” Dante mumbled, his face contorted into a distasteful expression as he turned towards me. "I can imagine more pleasant things than being beaten up by your father and brother at the same time."

“Well,” Harper´s smile grew mischievous as she hooked her arm around his. “her sister is already on your side.”

“Yeah, just because you´re banging my best friend, H.”

My jaw was hanging open by the time Harper pushed him away, the faint red color of her cheeks detectable in the glow of the moon. Harper and blushing in the same sentence was something I had believed impossible but here she was, turning red as a tomato just because a guy was mentioned.

“I´m not just banging him!” She exclaimed, pointing a finger at him before suddenly turning shy. “Jeff´s special…”

“Yeah, a former amity that can down three beers in less than two minutes – special.” Raising one eyebrow, Dante sassed at her.

“Be careful my friend.” Fixing him with her stare, Harper crossed her arms. “We wouldn’t want dad to find out you´re doing his little girl, now would we?”

“As if you´d ever risk letting him find out you´re being defiled by an amity. I´m sure he´s more concerned about his princess than his little misfit.” This time it wasn’t Dante who answered and Harper froze, incredulously staring at me while I just smirked.

“You… you´re…” She stuttered, blinking rapidly. But a second later she already had me in her arms, squishing my tender back in a bear hug. “Oh, Lexi!” Harper exclaimed, almost choking me with her hair in my mouth.

"Harper… air…!" Letting go of me, she grabbed my face pulling it towards hers, pressing another kiss to my forehead before embracing me again. I felt awkward and tense, not used to so much affection coming from my oh-so-serious sister but Harper didn't care, not letting go.

“I love you, L.” She whispered against my ear and all uncomfortableness faded away as I melted into her arms, slinging mine around her.

“I love you, too, H.” Her only answer to my admission was a slight squeeze of her arms.

A loud cheering from right above us made us jump apart and all three of us whipped our heads towards the noise. There behind the railing of the tower stood Ivy victoriously thrusting the green flag into the night sky before being lifted off her feet by Theo, who placed her on his shoulders, joining in on their screams of triumph.

“What. The. Fuck.” Squinting her eyes, Harper watched our brother with a freaked-out expression. I felt her dilemma, seeing our ever-serious brother acting like a drunk adolescent. Snickering quietly, I slung my arm around Harper´s neck and pulled her closer, Dante watching our interaction with an amused expression.

"That my dear sister is the porn king celebrating the defeat of his worst enemy: Our cousin. Let the Coulter clan forever rule over the Eaton´s!”

Turning her head, Harper stared at me wide-eyed for a second before we both burst into laughter. He would never live it down.

Ivy and Theo had been the two of our team fighting through the whole tower, bringing us the victory while Robb had managed to defend our flag all on his own. It turned out that he was the only one that hadn’t been hit by a single dart while I, myself, was hit by four at once. Even his hit rate was good, one hit in every two tries and that from quite some height – I was proud. Theo only read out the more important statistics, claiming that he´d declare the rankings from tonight tomorrow afternoon at training, giving us the morning off.

With that he dismissed the group, most initiates being led away towards the train by Ben who said his goodbyes, since we stayed back for another dauntless tradition, having volunteered since the older siblings always took their younger ones and he´d already done it with Jon and Andy at their initiation.

The train that they took to leave also brought a few others who wanted to join us, just as the guards who had been patrolling the perimeter arrived. They did a great job making sure the factionless stayed away but I noticed how two of them approached Theo, speaking in hushed voices with him.

Giving them orders, they scurried away and he watched them with a serious expression before looking over at us, forcing a smile.

“You did great, L.”

“Yeah, except that she almost fell off the tower and died.” Harper replied sarcastically, making Theo´s eyes widen.

“Are you okay?” He asked, scanning me from head to toe. Giving him a thumbs-up, I ignored Harpers disapproving glance. I liked starting to talk to people individually, too many elated dauntless at once was a hazard in itself.

“So, who was it?” Snatching his tablet away, Harper pushed away on the touchscreen, her face turning stony when she found what she was searching for. Shoving it back into Theo´s chest, her gaze wandered over the people around us. “Great, thanks.”

Letting go of my arm, she sauntered away forcedly purposeless until she was a few feet away from us where she started fiddling with her gun, whirling it around like a stick. Theo, Dante and I watched her curiously, knowing there was no way to stop the force that was Harper Coulter.

Inspecting the barrel of her gun, it suddenly went off – shooting a stim dart right into Marc´s crotch.

Howling loudly, he fell to his knees clutching what I knew to be his manhood while everyone stopped and stared. Clasping my mouth, I tried to stifle the loud laugh that was bubbling from my throat and I wasn’t the only one.

Especially when Harper bend down to look at him, her face contorted in mock-horror. “Oh, no!” She cried, her hands flying to her cheeks. “What an accident! I should have looked where I was aiming my gun at, right?!”

Her tone dropped, turning into something frightening as she positioned her face right above his ear, whispering something with such a sickly sweet expression that I knew it must have been a death threat. “Understood?”

When he nodded, still writhing in pain Harper smiled brightly, clapping her hands as she came floating over to where we were standing, watching her bewildered while everyone around us started laughing at him. "Let´s get going, people! We´re almost there!"

And she was right, the Hancock Building rising up into the sky front of us in all its glory, the lights already turned on by some dauntless who had started the generator. Grabbing my hand, Harper pulled me through the lobby towards the elevators, pushing the button that opened the doors. We were the first ones inside, followed by Theo, Dante, Krissy, Ivy and a lot more, so much I was worried for a second the elevator couldn’t hold us all.

But like it has been for over a hundred years, it carried us up to the 99th floor where the dauntless poured out if it like a flood, the first one climbing the ladder and opening the hatch that would lead us onto the roof. Others had the harnesses, reaching them to the ones who were already on the roof.

We patiently waited for our turn, which wasn’t long since they all respected Theo too much to let him wait for an extended period of time and we climbed up the ladder, finding ourselves on top of the building that overlooked the whole city. The wind was blowing harshly through my open hair as we waited for the guys to secure everything and send the first ones down to catch the others. Leaning against Harper, I watched how Theo took out his tablet, once again going through the data of tonight’s game when he suddenly halted his scrolling, his face scrunching up in confusion.

“Dante?” He asked tentatively, reading again through whatever he was seeing on the screen while Dante looked at him inquiring, shooting Harper and me a cautious look as Theo opened his mouth again. “Why does it say here that you shot yourself?”

It was silent for a second, before –

“Why don´t you ask your sister?” Dante grumbled, turning to me with an accusing expression. Feeling all their eyes rest on me, I gave him an apologetic smile just as the guy on the rope called someone else to the rope. Shrugging my shoulders, I gave Dante my sweetest smile before sprinting away not longer able to contain my loud laughter.

"Don´t you dare!" He called, taking long steps after me but I had already bypassed Owen who just wanted to go on the zip line and let the guy in front heave me into a harness. Pulling the straps tighter, he winked at me, pulling me back and send me flying. The last thing I heard as the city extended beneath me was Dante calling my name and Harper´s loud laugh.

With a small smile on my face, I closed my eyes, stretching out my arms. This time, I wasn’t falling, this was flying.

I´m really sorry for the long wait but it took me a while to figure out how I wanted this to go since I´ve read so many capture the flag scenes that I didn’t want to make it boring. I hope you like the sibling time!

The next update for undoing will be soon, too! I have most of the chapter finished :)

Today (okay so yesterday since it´s 4 am :D) six months ago was the day I posted the first chapter of Faction before Blood, my first story…

Facts: FbB has 154 pages and 82.000 words

Paying the price has with this chapter 221 word pages and 114.400 words

FbB-Eric is 51 pages and 25.600 words long

Meaning that I wrote 426 pages and 222.000 words in total for this series which is… just crazy :D

I also looked up the meaning of some of the names and found that they are really fitting:

Amy – (dearly) beloved

Eric – honorable leader

Theodore – divine gift (that´s really sweet)

Benjamin – son of my right hand (somehow ironic)

Alexis – helper/ defender

Sam – sun child/ bright child (that´s just sad)

I think that´s enough of it… But I still want to thank every single one of you who liked/followed and/or commented on my fic, it means so much to me! All you´re encouragement helped me so much, not just because I´ve developed my writing skills immensely because you always manage to make me smile, so thank you!

Anna xx

#Eric #eric divergent #Eric Coulter #daugther #Dauntless #war games #Capture The Flag #divergent #sibling time #factionless #navy pier

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johnchiarello · 6 years

Text

Sunday sermon

Sunday sermon 12-16-18

1Corinthians 10:13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

https://youtu.be/tuPBUII-jLw Real Life- Church Unlimited

https://ccoutreach87.files.wordpress.com/2017/07/7-2-17-real-life-c-u-verses.zip

https://ccoutreach87.com/7-2-17-real-life-c-u-verses/

ON VIDEO-

.Real Life Church- Church Unlimited

.David and Bathsheba

.The sin

.The scheme

.The judgment

.The other son is born

.The prophets

.Avoid materialism

Blog- www.corpuschristioutreachministries.blogspot.com

Facebook- https://www.facebook.com/john.chiarello.5?ref=bookmarks

Youtube- https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZ4GsqTEVWRm0HxQTLsifvg?view_as=subscriber

Other sites- https://ccoutreach87.com/links-to-my-sites-updated-10-2018/

Today [12-16-18] I will re-post a past Sunday sermon- as far as I know the video links are good.

Later today I will try and post the video I make to YouTube and Facebook- I will probably be speaking on the verses for the mass for this date- as well as the verses from the Local Church I attend. Hopefully the new video cloud sites are working ok- you should be able to download the past teaching videos from those sites. I’ll be finishing up our 2nd Samuel study soon- the one I have been posting during the week- and am not sure what the next study will be. Eventually I hope to start a new study on another book of the bible-

Ok, that’s it for now-

Thanks, John

Other videos- [these are the videos I post nightly to my various sites]

12-10-18 Teaching- Furman and the bird https://youtu.be/KpkjRiBHtpg

12-13-18 Update https://youtu.be/8g4r6vF_jBw

https://www.facebook.com/john.chiarello.5/videos/10205115302800410/

see it to believe it https://www.facebook.com/john.chiarello.5/videos/10205115480644856/

https://youtu.be/7Pjp8893jI8

Another 1 https://ln.sync.com/dl/09c115fb0/5j24sxyn-acqyxda9-yzj6urpr-b42y27u4

https://www.facebook.com/john.chiarello.5/videos/pcb.10205115575007215/10205115536366249/?type=3&__tn__=HH-R&eid=ARBRhuYHwinzWoZiBQCWOQ4nGZpUCwJo7Y0iiFmttiTF9NyuGLD19eBQJ1nsb0Oy_JEGOKhMYv5ubSxo

12-8-18 A talk between the Father and the Son [parable] https://youtu.be/Kn9MTgC1QOg

https://www.facebook.com/john.chiarello.5/videos/10205097588277558/

Does God exist? https://mega.nz/#!iW523QZZ!68TdkeTUXGSl1NPjA4Gudlmg_uwvueJqnEnzh3TxAkQ

The lake [North Bergen- N.J.- view of NYC skyline] https://bit.tube/play?hash=QmXXSDPbRhiLbf9JXTucUePEHtqhSefcrj3yKyBux63cCe&channel=160276

Isaiah 61 https://www.dropbox.com/s/ltjx14b5vtttril/3-4-17%20Isaiah%2061.mp4?dl=0

Kings 17 https://1drv.ms/v/s!Aocp2PkNEAGMdDGvaPNxP9Hgz3E

The unknown God https://youtu.be/wZeEPrdyZ20

Samuel 19 https://www.bitchute.com/video/nufsajIHfW17/

Acts 3 Alamodome- San Antonio https://mega.nz/#!ebRl1IYI!Vl28NVWsFbNwu2Cqq7UkkIGX_sZP9G278UWp6c5a5m8

Acts 1 https://1drv.ms/v/s!Aocp2PkNEAGMddxUWpVS9RrGHjM

At the doors https://youtu.be/GI8PSYPjCW8

1-14-18 Sunday sermon https://1drv.ms/v/s!Aocp2PkNEAGMeMlCArzzEG7ZgL0

2nd Samuel 21 NYC view- North Bergen- N.J. https://bit.tube/play?hash=QmXSABcWgJpnruxjchJ2y8EbD8atTfctVGrMVPNRqqJLmk&channel=160276

Hook up the truck! https://youtu.be/8Yiwx4r3LjE

Plymouth Rock https://flic.kr/p/ES9TYY

Christian- Muslim dialogue https://1drv.ms/v/s!Aocp2PkNEAGMeb-Izqhz78bdVGI

Mark 3 https://www.dropbox.com/s/9ml9cechvsvcpk2/3-3-17%20Mark%203.mp4?dl=0

Wal Mart and creation https://youtu.be/PTMTrQDpeus

Galatians 5 https://1drv.ms/v/s!Aocp2PkNEAGMejbeju1g4BLexRc

Bus to NYC https://bit.tube/play?hash=QmdDXYtysG89dqXuLx7XizFyTrLwZkBbWfJZfiZoyigDBd&channel=160276

7-22-18 Sunday sermon https://dai.ly/x6yeybx

Furman and Bill https://ln.sync.com/dl/5022ea000/sicjnmri-mvzq6gyp-rga7k23w-hefectmp

Sunday sermon https://ccoutreach87.com/2018/12/09/sunday-sermon-35/

2nd Samuel 23 https://ccoutreach87.com/2018/12/13/2nd-samuel-23/

PAST POSTS- [Today I spoke on the bible chapters from Real Life church and Church Unlimited- below are my past teachings on those chapters. I also added links to my complete studies on those bible books- and other links that relate to the post- verses below]

http://corpuschristioutreachministries.blogspot.com/p/1-st-2-nd-samuel-8821-st-samuelintro.html

http://corpuschristioutreachministries.blogspot.com/p/1st-2nd-samuel-links-updated-3-17.html

http://corpuschristioutreachministries.blogspot.com/p/james-2015-video-links-included-james-1.html

https://ccoutreach87.com/house-of-prayer-or-den-of-thieves/

https://ccoutreach87.com/galatians-links/

https://ccoutreach87.com/1st-2nd-corinthians/

https://ccoutreach87.com/james-2015/

SAMUEL 17- David goes down to the battle front and hears Goliath mocking God. The Philistines are confronting Israel and they have their champion giant [almost 10 feet tall! Like the Roman emperor Maximus, he was huge] Goliath. David hears the enemy challenge Israel day after day and he decides to take him on. Saul tells him ‘you can’t do this, you are too young and inexperienced, he is a man of war from his youth’! David insists that he is able, he killed a lion and bear while defending his fathers sheep, why not ‘this uncircumcised rascal’! Saul says ‘fine, hears my armor’. David tries it on and realizes it’s not his style of armor. He goes back to the simplicity of a sling and stone. He goes out to the battle, Goliath can’t believe his eyes ‘did you send me some mammas boy with a stick? I am not some dog that you can tame with a stick’! Oh really? David says ‘sir, not only will I win this thing, but I will remove your stinking pagan head from off that 10 foot frame and feed you and your buddy’s carcasses to the animals’! Old Saul must of been thinking ‘what in the world did we get ourselves into’? Sure enough the battle begins and David runs up to the giant and sinks a stone into his head. He stands over him and severs his head with his own sword. Now the poor Philistines heard the whole conversation and didn’t want to hang around for the rest of David’s mission statement to be fulfilled. They fled! Israel pursues and has a great victory. A few things; David show us the necessity and simplicity of warfare. Jesus taught the disciples that they had what it took to carry out the mission. He warned them not to fall for the wrong headed idea of ‘God has called us to start an organization, and the organization will accomplish this noble task’. After all the years of befriending and working with the homeless and down and out. I realize that many well meaning believers will see the needs of people, but then want to ‘put on Saul’s armor’ to effect change. Try and start another mission ministry, or make others aware of the problem. I have found the biggest need to be that people are simply not willing to actually give their time and substance and get involved. Jesus told the disciples ‘don’t think you need a lot of extra equipment for this, you are the equipment. No special appeals for funds!’ [Message bible]. We get lost in trying to put on Saul’s armor [lot’s of complicated ministry ideas] when Jesus says ‘just use the stone and sling that I have given you’. The church of Jesus needs to realize that the power to effect society is in the hands of simple followers, truly the meek will inherit the earth.

2ND SAMUEL 11- David sends Joab and his men out to war. He stays home and takes a walk on his roof and spots Bathsheba. He sends a servant to contact her and he sleeps with her. He finds out she’s pregnant and the gears in his mind start moving. He calls her noble husband, Uriah, from the front lines of battle and pretends he just called him to inquire about the battle. He sends him home, hoping he will sleep with his wife, and then David will be off the hook. Sure enough Uriah is so noble that he refuses to sleep in his house when his men are in the battle. So David gives it a second shot and gets the brother drunk. He sends him home again and Uriah refuses to sleep with Bathsheba. So David calls for Joab, the lead commander of his army, and says ‘put Uriah in the front lines and draw back and let him die’. Something interesting happens. Joab carries out the plan but also allows some of David’s other men to die. Then he sends a messenger to tell David ‘we were at the front lines, close to a wall, and some of our guys were killed’. Joab tells the messenger ‘if David gets mad and says “what were you thinking by getting close to the wall? This is a basic mistake that should have never been made!”’ Joab says if David asks this, then say ‘Uriah is dead too’. It’s possible that Joab stuck it to David here for making him partake in his personal problems. Military men do not like carrying out personal political vendettas. Either way the messenger goes and tells David and David feels he covered up his sin. Of course we will soon find out the cover up didn’t work. Bathsheba does move in with David and they make plans for the coming baby. A few things; David was a great man, he followed God as a man ‘after Gods own heart’. David was also human. Hebrews says ‘every high priest taken from among men must make sacrifice for his own sin as well as the peoples’. I don’t want to excuse sin, but I want you to see that all of us have ‘feet of clay’. Modern ministry has a system where we present the best image of leadership to people. We feel this is part of the role of leaders. The scriptures show you ‘the good, the bad, and the ugly’. We just saw the ugly.

(931)2ND SAMUEL 15- Absalom sits daily at the city gate and when the people come to the king, Absalom ‘steels their hearts’. He says ‘o, if I were the king I could do such a good job. I am better than the one God appointed’. Avoid trying to gain peoples acceptance by comparing yourself with others. God might use you to be an example in some way, but this is a matter of grace. Paul said he excelled more than the other apostles who were ‘in Christ’ before him, but nevertheless it was Gods grace that caused this to happen. Absalom slowly wins the hearts of the people and stages a takeover. Some men go willingly, others followed ‘out of simplicity’. They were led astray like sheep. Remember, when dealing with followers of groups who have ‘rebelled’ [classic cults] some have been raised innocently with their beliefs. Try and honestly talk to them and treat them courteously. God can give you an open door with them if you see them as people who have value and worth. We see David as a type of Christ in this chapter. He is forsaken by the city of Jerusalem and loses his following. He even ascends the Mount of Olives while weeping! He says ‘If God chooses to forsake me, so be it. But if he brings me back again [resurrection!] and allows me to see the Ark in Jerusalem, then let his will be done’. Jesus said ‘not my will, but thine be done’. The Father, who forsook his Son, did delight in him and ‘brought him back again’ to see ‘the Ark in the city of Jerusalem’. Jesus saw the tabernacle of God [Gods people, the dwelling of God] in ‘the city of God’ [the church is called the city of God that comes down from God out of heaven] and he was restored to his former place of exaltation at the fathers right-hand. David is reaping some stuff here. He makes some plans for a future return to leadership, but recognizes when it’s time to retreat. Now, I realize that God wants us to move forward and ‘take the kingdom by force’. But Jesus also gave us a principle; he said ‘when one king is facing another king. He sends out messengers to check out the opponent. If word comes back that you are really out of your league in this battle, then try and come to terms of peace if possible’. In essence there are times where taking a step back and re-evaluating is a wise thing. David plants a few spies in Jerusalem who will report back to him every now and then. David also finds out who his true friends are. Some follow him instead of Absalom, even though Absalom is the ‘hot ticket item’ at the time. These brothers who stick with you till the end are true friends, but they aren’t always the most encouraging. Thomas [one of Jesus disciples] says at one point ‘Lets go, we might as well follow him all the way to our deaths’. Thanks for the willingness to follow Thomas, but you think you could change the attitude a little! So David is doing the best with what he has, Gods people are surviving, but they are being used as pawns on Absalom’s chess board. Absalom looked good at the start, but he will not finish well.

(932)2ND SAMUEL 16- As David flees Jerusalem, Ziba, the servant that was under Mephibosheth joins with him. David asks ‘what are you doing here? You should be home with your master’. Ziba says ‘as soon as Mephibosheth heard about the take over, he said “I will stay in Israel and become the new king, God will restore to me Saul’s throne”’. Now David believes it and says ‘I now put you in charge of all the household of your former master, it belongs to you’. Later on Mephibosheth will deny all of this. Its possible Ziba made this up for his own benefit. Leaders, be careful of advice from people with a personal agenda. They often make themselves look better than others. Now as David flees another enemy comes out and curses and throws stones at him along the way. This guy says ‘look at you now, you rebelled against the old king [Saul] and now you are receiving the just reward’. Now David responds with a Christ like attitude and says ‘let the guy curse me, I will not retaliate. Maybe God will look on this persecution and reward me’. One of David’s men wanted to ‘take his head off’. Gee, David has all types in his leadership circle! Did this guy who was cursing David misread the whole situation? Yes, but don’t forget we are reading this story from the real perspective, some people living at the time of David and Saul saw this new king [David] as a threat to the old ways. It’s only a few days after the 2008 presidential election. Barack Obama won. Though there were many reasons for and against him, now that he won we ALL need to pray for him. But some of the supporters of McCain sincerely saw this ‘new kind of person’ as a rebellious threat to the ‘old order’. Sincere people who saw things from a different angle. So David’s accuser sees the story from a wrong lens. David was being judged by God, but not because he toppled the old order of King Saul. Back at Jerusalem Absalom listens to the advice of Ahithophel and sleeps with his fathers concubines. The advice was that when all Israel heard about it, they would realize that this rebellion was a real rebellion and the people would unite under his illegal rule. Scripture says Ahithophels counsel was like ‘hearing from God’ in those days. Leaders, be open to the counsel that is coming forth from particular streams at certain times. It is not only important for believers to ‘learn the bible’, but also to be able to discern the signs of the times. Specific things God is saying and doing in our day. If you were living in the 16th century the issue of the reformation was vital for every one who was a believer. Whether you were Catholic or Protestant, you needed to be up on the issues. Erasmus, the great Catholic scholar and humanist [not ‘secular humanist’] wrote insightful criticisms against his own church, yet remained within her fold. So matter what Christian tradition you align yourself with, you need to be aware of the seasons and purposes of God for your generation. In Absalom’s day, Ahithophel was the go to man.

(934)2ND SAMUEL 17- Absalom is strengthening his position as the new king. Ahithophel, his chief counselor, advises to strike while the irons hot. He tells Absalom ‘let me gather a 12 thousand man army and quickly pursue David. I will come upon him and his men while they are tired and fearful, then I will kill David only and bring the people back to you’. Now, this advice was the best, but Absalom asks for the advice of Hushai also. He was the secret spy that was really on David’s side. He advises Absalom to wait and gather all the people and mount a broad attack. God put it in the heart of Absalom to believe the bad advice [bad for Absalom, good for David!]. So Ahithophel sees that his counsel is rejected, he goes and hangs himself! Once again we see the ‘sword of David’s enemies enter into their own heart’. Remember what we said earlier about this? So Hushai sends word to David about the plan and David responds accordingly. Leaders, understand the strategy of our mortal enemy [satan]. He wants to target you when you and your people are weary and tired. He wants to take you down more than any other thing. The bible teaches ‘smite the shepherd and the sheep will be scattered’. Now this is a Messianic prophecy with a lot of meaning, but one of the points is the lead ‘point man’ is usually the main target of the opposing side. How can we mitigate this factor? Practice plural leadership as much as possible. The new testament churches were not ‘run by a Pastor’ in the way we do it today. So adjust your leadership paradigm and bring it more into alignment with scripture. Also, spread ‘the wealth around’ [a recent key issue with the newly elected president, Barack Obama]. If you can get the wisdom and truth that God has communicated to you into the hands of many others, then you have accomplished a lot. Paul told Timothy ‘the things that you have learned and been assured of, commit to faithful men who will be able to teach others also’. This is true apostolic ministry. David will survive this rebellion against his kingdom, but if Absalom listened to the best counsel David would have been finished for sure.

(935)2ND SAMUEL 18- David and his men regroup and mount a counter attack against Absalom. They divide into 3 groups and go for it. David tells his men ‘take it easy on Absalom’. Why? Understand that David is seeing the prophetic judgment upon his family that was a result of his own sin. I wonder how many times David saw the fulfillment of this former word [the sword will never depart from your house] thru the seeming insignificant acts of Absalom along the way. David felt guilt over this whole rebellion mounted by his son. Now the battle rages and David and his men kill around 20 thousand troops of Absalom. Word gets back to Joab that Absalom got his hair caught in some tree and is hanging in the tree. Joab says ‘why didn’t you kill him!’ the messenger says ‘God forbid that I should kill the king’s son! I heard the strict orders from the king for no one to take his life’. My King James Version says Joab responded with ‘I may not tarry thus with thee’ in today’s terms ‘I can’t waste time listening to your reasoning’. Joab goes and kills the king’s son. When I read thru this chapter earlier this morning I saw 2 possible things here. First, Joab and his history with David are one of Joab being a ‘bloody man’. He killed Abner against the king’s wishes, and now Absalom. Why in the world did David not remove Joab from this position earlier? One reason, Joab knew how to war. The boy was capable; he knew how to get the job done. In ministry [or business] loyalty is important; people need to be able to carry out the decisions of leadership. But loyalty in and of itself doesn’t cut it, you need skills and abilities as well. You say ‘that’s not fair’ well if you don’t have the skills go get them for heavens sake! Proverbs says knowledge is in the street corners calling out to the simple and saying ‘come, receive of my learning’. The resources are there, laziness prevents people from accessing them effectively. Now Joab also acted responsibly to some degree. He realized that Absalom would be a permanent threat to David’s rule, he killed him and saved many. Right after his death Joab blows the trumpet and the battle is called off. 2 Messengers run to bring the word to David. Ephesians says ‘blessed are the feet of those who bring the gospel’ Gospel simply means ‘good news’. In the New Testament this good news was the reality of Jesus death, burial and resurrection [1st Corinthians 15] but in the Old Testament it was simply the news from ‘the runner’. You could tell from the way the runner was running whether the news was good or bad. How? Say if your wife took a lotto ticket that said ‘you one a million dollars’ and said ‘I am going to ask the store clerk if it’s real’. As you are waiting in the parking lot you see her coming out of the store. Do you think you would be able to tell if the news was good or bad by watching the way she approaches the car? So this was what the king looked for as the messengers came running. If they bore good news their feet had this special pep to them. News gets back to David and he is broken over the death of his son ‘O Absalom, my son Absalom. Would God I had died in your place’ I always stop and meditate this verse every time I read it thru my yearly reading thru the bible. This contains the heart of the Father in redemption. A few more things; in this chapter it said that Absalom raised up a monument/pillar after ‘his own name’. Because he didn’t have any sons to carry on his legacy, he left ‘a thing’ that would honor his name after he died. Absalom didn’t simply have a rebellion issue against his father, he really wanted to build for himself a legacy. His motivations were self serving. Jesus warns the leaders of his movement not to approach ‘church and ministry’ with the same ‘gentile’ [worldly] concepts of leadership. The world often succeeds thru the motivation of greed and lust and power. It’s very easy to fall into the Absalom mindset and take it out on Gods people when the ‘pillar’ [the thing of ministry] doesn’t ‘go up right’. Many well meaning sincere men have been side tracked into seeking fame and acceptance by seeing ministry thru the lens of ‘I want to leave some institution that will bear witness to my name after I am gone’. Ministry, according to Jesus, does not operate along these lines. In Absalom’s obsession to become famous in the eyes of men, he went down a path that did leave a memorial to his name for generations to come. We just read it.

VERSES- [These are the verses I taught or quoted on Today’s post- Real Life- Church Unlimited]

Galatians 6:7

Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.

In Context | Full Chapter | Other Translations

Ephesians 6:12

For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

In Context | Full Chapter | Other Translations

1 John 2:16

For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of theFather, but is of the world.

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James 1:14

But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.

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James 4:7

Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

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Jeremiah 1:4 Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

Jeremiah 1:5 Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.

Jeremiah 1:6 Then said I, Ah, Lord GOD! behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child.

Jeremiah 1:7 But the LORD said unto me, Say not, I am a child: for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak.

Jeremiah 1:8 Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the LORD.

Jeremiah 1:9 Then the LORD put forth his hand, and touched my mouth. And the LORD said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth.

Jeremiah 1:10 See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build, and to plant.

Psalm 37:4

Delight thyself also in the Lord: and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.

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1Samuel 17:1 Now the Philistines gathered together their armies to battle, and were gathered together at Shochoh, which belongeth to Judah, and pitched between Shochoh and Azekah, in Ephesdammim.

1Samuel 17:2 And Saul and the men of Israel were gathered together, and pitched by the valley of Elah, and set the battle in array against the Philistines.

1Samuel 17:3 And the Philistines stood on a mountain on the one side, and Israel stood on a mountain on the other side: and there was a valley between them.

1Samuel 17:4 And there went out a champion out of the camp of the Philistines, named Goliath, of Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span.

1Samuel 17:5 And he had an helmet of brass upon his head, and he was armed with a coat of mail; and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of brass.

1Samuel 17:6 And he had greaves of brass upon his legs, and a target of brass between his shoulders.

1Samuel 17:7 And the staff of his spear was like a weaver's beam; and his spear's head weighed six hundred shekels of iron: and one bearing a shield went before him.

1Samuel 17:8 And he stood and cried unto the armies of Israel, and said unto them, Why are ye come out to set your battle in array? am not I a Philistine, and ye servants to Saul? choose you a man for you, and let him come down to me.

1Samuel 17:9 If he be able to fight with me, and to kill me, then will we be your servants: but if I prevail against him, and kill him, then shall ye be our servants, and serve us.

1Samuel 17:10 And the Philistine said, I defy the armies of Israel this day; give me a man, that we may fight together.

1Samuel 17:11 When Saul and all Israel heard those words of the Philistine, they were dismayed, and greatly afraid.

1Samuel 17:12 Now David was the son of that Ephrathite of Bethlehemjudah, whose name was Jesse; and he had eight sons: and the man went among men for an old man in the days of Saul.

1Samuel 17:13 And the three eldest sons of Jesse went and followed Saul to the battle: and the names of his three sons that went to the battle were Eliab the firstborn, and next unto him Abinadab, and the third Shammah.

1Samuel 17:14 And David was the youngest: and the three eldest followed Saul.

1Samuel 17:15 But David went and returned from Saul to feed his father's sheep at Bethlehem.

1Samuel 17:16 And the Philistine drew near morning and evening, and presented himself forty days.

1Samuel 17:17 And Jesse said unto David his son, Take now for thy brethren an ephah of this parched corn, and these ten loaves, and run to the camp of thy brethren;

1Samuel 17:18 And carry these ten cheeses unto the captain of their thousand, and look how thy brethren fare, and take their pledge.

1Samuel 17:19 Now Saul, and they, and all the men of Israel, were in the valley of Elah, fighting with the Philistines.

1Samuel 17:20 And David rose up early in the morning, and left the sheep with a keeper, and took, and went, as Jesse had commanded him; and he came to the trench, as the host was going forth to the fight, and shouted for the battle.

1Samuel 17:21 For Israel and the Philistines had put the battle in array, army against army.

1Samuel 17:22 And David left his carriage in the hand of the keeper of the carriage, and ran into the army, and came and saluted his brethren.

1Samuel 17:23 And as he talked with them, behold, there came up the champion, the Philistine of Gath, Goliath by name, out of the armies of the Philistines, and spake according to the same words: and David heard them.

1Samuel 17:24 And all the men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from him, and were sore afraid.

1Samuel 17:25 And the men of Israel said, Have ye seen this man that is come up? surely to defy Israel is he come up: and it shall be, that the man who killeth him, the king will enrich him with great riches, and will give him his daughter, and make his father's house free in Israel.

1Samuel 17:26 And David spake to the men that stood by him, saying, What shall be done to the man that killeth this Philistine, and taketh away the reproach from Israel? for who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?

1Samuel 17:27 And the people answered him after this manner, saying, So shall it be done to the man that killeth him.

1Samuel 17:28 And Eliab his eldest brother heard when he spake unto the men; and Eliab's anger was kindled against David, and he said, Why camest thou down hither? and with whom hast thou left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know thy pride, and the naughtiness of thine heart; for thou art come down that thou mightest see the battle.

1Samuel 17:29 And David said, What have I now done? Is there not a cause?

1Samuel 17:30 And he turned from him toward another, and spake after the same manner: and the people answered him again after the former manner.

1Samuel 17:31 And when the words were heard which David spake, they rehearsed them before Saul: and he sent for him.

1Samuel 17:32 And David said to Saul, Let no man's heart fail because of him; thy servant will go and fight with this Philistine.

1Samuel 17:33 And Saul said to David, Thou art not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him: for thou art but a youth, and he a man of war from his youth.

1Samuel 17:34 And David said unto Saul, Thy servant kept his father's sheep, and there came a lion, and a bear, and took a lamb out of the flock:

1Samuel 17:35 And I went out after him, and smote him, and delivered it out of his mouth: and when he arose against me, I caught him by his beard, and smote him, and slew him.

1Samuel 17:36 Thy servant slew both the lion and the bear: and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be as one of them, seeing he hath defied the armies of the living God.

1Samuel 17:37 David said moreover, The LORD that delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine. And Saul said unto David, Go, and the LORD be with thee.

1Samuel 17:38 And Saul armed David with his armour, and he put an helmet of brass upon his head; also he armed him with a coat of mail.

1Samuel 17:39 And David girded his sword upon his armour, and he assayed to go; for he had not proved it. And David said unto Saul, I cannot go with these; for I have not proved them. And David put them off him.

1Samuel 17:40 And he took his staff in his hand, and chose him five smooth stones out of the brook, and put them in a shepherd's bag which he had, even in a scrip; and his sling was in his hand: and he drew near to the Philistine.

1Samuel 17:41 And the Philistine came on and drew near unto David; and the man that bare the shield went before him.

1Samuel 17:42 And when the Philistine looked about, and saw David, he disdained him: for he was but a youth, and ruddy, and of a fair countenance.

1Samuel 17:43 And the Philistine said unto David, Am I a dog, that thou comest to me with staves? And the Philistine cursed David by his gods.

1Samuel 17:44 And the Philistine said to David, Come to me, and I will give thy flesh unto the fowls of the air, and to the beasts of the field.

1Samuel 17:45 Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied.

1Samuel 17:46 This day will the LORD deliver thee into mine hand; and I will smite thee, and take thine head from thee; and I will give the carcases of the host of the Philistines this day unto the fowls of the air, and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.

1Samuel 17:47 And all this assembly shall know that the LORD saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle is the LORD's, and he will give you into our hands.

1Samuel 17:48 And it came to pass, when the Philistine arose, and came, and drew nigh to meet David, that David hastened, and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine.

1Samuel 17:49 And David put his hand in his bag, and took thence a stone, and slang it, and smote the Philistine in his forehead, that the stone sunk into his forehead; and he fell upon his face to the earth.

1Samuel 17:50 So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone, and smote the Philistine, and slew him; but there was no sword in the hand of David.

1Samuel 17:51 Therefore David ran, and stood upon the Philistine, and took his sword, and drew it out of the sheath thereof, and slew him, and cut off his head therewith. And when the Philistines saw their champion was dead, they fled.

1Samuel 17:52 And the men of Israel and of Judah arose, and shouted, and pursued the Philistines, until thou come to the valley, and to the gates of Ekron. And the wounded of the Philistines fell down by the way to Shaaraim, even unto Gath, and unto Ekron.

1Samuel 17:53 And the children of Israel returned from chasing after the Philistines, and they spoiled their tents.

1Samuel 17:54 And David took the head of the Philistine, and brought it to Jerusalem; but he put his armour in his tent.

1Samuel 17:55 And when Saul saw David go forth against the Philistine, he said unto Abner, the captain of the host, Abner, whose son is this youth? And Abner said, As thy soul liveth, O king, I cannot tell.

1Samuel 17:56 And the king said, Enquire thou whose son the stripling is.

1Samuel 17:57 And as David returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, Abner took him, and brought him before Saul with the head of the Philistine in his hand.

1Samuel 17:58 And Saul said to him, Whose son art thou, thou young man? And David answered, I am the son of thy servant Jesse the Bethlehemite.

2Samuel 11:1 And it came to pass, after the year was expired, at the time when kings go forth to battle, that David sent Joab, and his servants with him, and all Israel; and they destroyed the children of Ammon, and besieged Rabbah. But David tarried still at Jerusalem.

2Samuel 11:2 And it came to pass in an eveningtide, that David arose from off his bed, and walked upon the roof of the king's house: and from the roof he saw a woman washing herself; and the woman was very beautiful to look upon.

2Samuel 11:3 And David sent and enquired after the woman. And one said, Is not this Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?

2Samuel 11:4 And David sent messengers, and took her; and she came in unto him, and he lay with her; for she was purified from her uncleanness: and she returned unto her house.

2Samuel 11:5 And the woman conceived, and sent and told David, and said, I am with child.

12Samuel 11:6 And David sent to Joab, saying, Send me Uriah the Hittite. And Joab sent Uriah to David.

2Samuel 11:7 And when Uriah was come unto him, David demanded of him how Joab did, and how the people did, and how the war prospered.

2Samuel 11:8 And David said to Uriah, Go down to thy house, and wash thy feet. And Uriah departed out of the king's house, and there followed him a mess of meat from the king.

2Samuel 11:9 But Uriah slept at the door of the king's house with all the servants of his lord, and went not down to his house.

2Samuel 11:10 And when they had told David, saying, Uriah went not down unto his house, David said unto Uriah, Camest thou not from thy journey? why then didst thou not go down unto thine house?

2Samuel 11:11 And Uriah said unto David, The ark, and Israel, and Judah, abide in tents; and my lord Joab, and the servants of my lord, are encamped in the open fields; shall I then go into mine house, to eat and to drink, and to lie with my wife? as thou livest, and as thy soul liveth, I will not do this thing.

2Samuel 11:12 And David said to Uriah, Tarry here to day also, and to morrow I will let thee depart. So Uriah abode in Jerusalem that day, and the morrow.

2Samuel 11:13 And when David had called him, he did eat and drink before him; and he made him drunk: and at even he went out to lie on his bed with the servants of his lord, but went not down to his house.

2Samuel 11:14 And it came to pass in the morning, that David wrote a letter to Joab, and sent it by the hand of Uriah.

2Samuel 11:15 And he wrote in the letter, saying, Set ye Uriah in the forefront of the hottest battle, and retire ye from him, that he may be smitten, and die.

2Samuel 11:16 And it came to pass, when Joab observed the city, that he assigned Uriah unto a place where he knew that valiant men were.

2Samuel 11:17 And the men of the city went out, and fought with Joab: and there fell some of the people of the servants of David; and Uriah the Hittite died also.

2Samuel 11:18 Then Joab sent and told David all the things concerning the war;

2Samuel 11:19 And charged the messenger, saying, When thou hast made an end of telling the matters of the war unto the king,

2Samuel 11:20 And if so be that the king's wrath arise, and he say unto thee, Wherefore approached ye so nigh unto the city when ye did fight? knew ye not that they would shoot from the wall?

2Samuel 11:21 Who smote Abimelech the son of Jerubbesheth? did not a woman cast a piece of a millstone upon him from the wall, that he died in Thebez? why went ye nigh the wall? then say thou, Thy servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also.

2Samuel 11:22 So the messenger went, and came and shewed David all that Joab had sent him for.

2Samuel 11:23 And the messenger said unto David, Surely the men prevailed against us, and came out unto us into the field, and we were upon them even unto the entering of the gate.

2Samuel 11:24 And the shooters shot from off the wall upon thy servants; and some of the king's servants be dead, and thy servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also.

2Samuel 11:25 Then David said unto the messenger, Thus shalt thou say unto Joab, Let not this thing displease thee, for the sword devoureth one as well as another: make thy battle more strong against the city, and overthrow it: and encourage thou him.

2Samuel 11:26 And when the wife of Uriah heard that Uriah her husband was dead, she mourned for her husband.

2Samuel 11:27 And when the mourning was past, David sent and fetched her to his house, and she became his wife, and bare him a son. But the thing that David had done displeased the LORD.

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investmart007 · 6 years

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LA MALBAIE, Quebec | Trump pulls out of joint G-7 statement, attacks Trudeau

New Post has been published on https://is.gd/wGikPK

LA MALBAIE, Quebec | Trump pulls out of joint G-7 statement, attacks Trudeau

LA MALBAIE, Quebec — The annual G-7 summit appeared to have weathered tensions over President Donald Trump’s threats of a tariff-fueled trade war until the mercurial American pulled out of a joint statement while citing “false statements” by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

It was an unprecedented attack on the leader of the U.S. neighbor and ally.

Trump was aboard Air Force One heading to an historic summit with North Korea’s Kim Jong Un when he issued a pair of tweets Saturday criticizing the G-7 host and stepping back from the generally positive tone that had ended the two-day meeting. A few hours earlier, Trudeau had told reporters that all seven leaders had come together to sign the joint declaration.

Trudeau said he had reiterated to Trump that tariffs would harm industries and workers on both sides of the U.S.-Canada border. He said unleashing retaliatory measures “is not something I relish doing” but that he wouldn’t hesitate to do so because “I will always protect Canadian workers and Canadian interests.”

“As Canadians, we are polite, we’re reasonable, but also we will not be pushed around,” Trudeau said, and he described all seven leaders coming together to sign a joint declaration despite having “some strong, firm conversations on trade, and specifically on American tariffs.”

In the air by then, Trump tweeted: “Based on Justin’s false statements at his news conference, and the fact that Canada is charging massive Tariffs to our U.S. farmers, workers and companies, I have instructed our U.S. Reps not to endorse the Communique as we look at Tariffs on automobiles flooding the U.S. Market!”

He followed up by tweeting: “PM Justin Trudeau of Canada acted so meek and mild during our @G7 meetings only to give a news conference after I left saying that, “US Tariffs were kind of insulting” and he “will not be pushed around.” Very dishonest & weak. Our Tariffs are in response to his of 270% on dairy!”

A spokesman for Trudeau did not address Trump’s insults in a statement. “We are focused on everything we accomplished here at the #G7 summit,” spokesman Cameron Ahmad said. “The Prime Minister said nothing he hasn’t said before — both in public, and in private conversations with the President.”

Reporters asked Trudeau for his reaction as he and his wife and another couple took an evening stroll, but the prime minister begged off. “Good to see you guys … It’s a beautiful evening, a great weekend,” he said.

Before leaving for Singapore, Trump had delivered a stark warning to America’s trading partners not to counter his decision to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum imports. But Trudeau, whose nation was among those singled out by Trump, pushed back and said he would not hesitate to retaliate against his neighbor to the south.

“If they retaliate, they’re making a mistake,” Trump declared before departing the annual Group of Seven summit, which includes Britain, Italy, France, Germany and Japan.

Trump himself insisted relationships with allies were a “ten” just before he left the summit. But his abbreviated stay at this Quebec resort saw him continuing the same type of tough talk on trade as when he departed the White House, when he accused Trudeau of being “indignant.”

The summit came during an ongoing trade dispute with China and served as a precursor to the unprecedented meeting with Kim, in which Trump has sought to extend a hand to the Asian autocrat who has long bedeviled the international order.

“His message from Quebec to Singapore is that he is going to meld the industrial democracies to his will — and bring back Russia,” said Steve Bannon, Trump’s former campaign and White House adviser. Bannon said China is “now on notice that Trump will not back down from even allies’ complaints in his goal of ‘America First.'”

Speaking on Saturday during a rare solo news conference, Trump said he pressed for the G-7 countries to eliminate all tariffs, trade barriers and subsidies in their trading practices. He reiterated his longstanding view that the U.S. has been taken advantage of in global trade, adding, “We’re like the piggy bank that everybody’s robbing, and that ends.”

He said U.S. farmers had been harmed by tariffs and other barriers and warned that U.S. trading partners would need to provide him with more favorable terms. “It’s going to stop or we’ll stop trading with them,” he said.

Trump cited progress on reaching an agreement on the North American Free Trade Agreement with Canada and Mexico, saying the final outcome would lead either to an improved trade deal or separate pacts with the two U.S. neighbors. Trump said he was discussing two types of sunset provisions in which any of the countries could leave the deal. A Canadian official said the leaders discussed accelerating the pace of the talks.

But Trudeau objected strenuously to a sunset clause of any length. “If you put an expiry date on any trade deal, that’s not a trade deal. That’s our unequivocal position,” he said.

Prior to his arrival on Friday, the president injected additional controversy by suggesting that the G-7 offer a seat at the table to Russia, which was ousted from the group in 2014. Trump said Saturday that re-admitting Russia to the elite club would be “an asset,” telling reporters, “We’re looking for peace in the world.” Trump said he had not spoken with Russian President Vladimir Putin in a while.

Discussing Russia’s absence, Trump made the vague comment that “something happened a while ago where Russia is no longer in. I think it would be an asset to have Russia back in.” In fact, Russia was expelled from what was then the G-8 after it invaded and annexed Crimea and for its support for pro-Russia separatists in Ukraine.

Trump placed the blame on his predecessor, President Barack Obama. “He was the one who let Crimea get away — that was during his administration,” he said, adding: “Obama can say all he wants, but he allowed Russia to take Crimea. I may have had a much different attitude.”

It was not clear what Trump thought Obama should have done to prevent Putin from sending in Russian troops to seize the Black Sea peninsula from neighboring Ukraine.

Trudeau said he told Trump that readmitting Russia “is not something that we are even remotely looking at at this time.”

___

Thomas reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Jill Colvin and Darlene Superville in Washington, and Sylvie Corbet in Paris contributed to this report.

By CATHERINE LUCEY, ROB GILLIES and KEN THOMAS, By Associated Press

___

#alse statements #La Malbaie #TodayNews #Trump pulls out of joint G-7 statement

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johnchiarello · 7 years

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