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shybunnie20 · 2 years

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Check One Two - Eddie Munson x Female Reader | 𝙿𝚊𝚛𝚝 2

Jealous!Rockstar!Eddie Munson x Fem!Rockstar!Reader

★Part One ★My Masterlist

Fic Summary: When you joined the band last summer, no one had a clue that this is where you’d all be today. Who would’ve thought a small garage cover band would end up as the opener for Alice Cooper? Although, life on the road proves to be strenuous when your best friend Eddie crosses the line.

Author's Note: This is my first ever smut piece... a little nervous to post but I hope you enjoy it! Be sure to reblog, follow, and show some love ♡

Word count: 3.4k

Warnings: MDNI 18+. Reader has skin tone that shows blushing, softdom!Eddie, fingering and oral f!receiving, unprotected p in v, creampie, praise kink, possessiveness, marking/hickeys, includes swearing, mentions of anxiety

Softdom!Eddie, fingering and oral f!receiving, unprotected p in v, creampie, praise kink, possessiveness, marking/hickeys, includes swearing, mentions of anxiety

tags: @protecteddiemunson4vr @haylaansmi

The four of you high-five while heading backstage, adrenaline still coursing through your veins. The celebratory post-performance interaction leaves Eddie to drift behind.

Donny slows his pace to walk beside him. “Great show, man,” He says with a trace of pity. It’s difficult to ignore the gray cloud looming over Eddie’s head while he mopes behind the whooping group.

“I owe her an apology, don’t I?” Eddie asks rhetorically.

“You know she didn’t sleep with that guy, right? All they did was smooch.”

“Jesus Christ.” Eddie groans and runs his fingers through his sweat-drenched hair.

How could he be so stupid? He humiliated you over something that didn’t even happen. God knows you’re not oblivious of the times he’s taken a groupie into your shared dressing rooms to have his way with them. You’ve never given him grief about it, yet he shamed you for making out with someone.

Sitting in the director's chair in front of a vanity, you remove the heavy jewelry from around your neck. Eddie strolls into the dressing room with a generic foam coffee cup clutched in his hand.

“Guys, can we have a minute?” He requests, motioning to the door. Your bandmates file out of the room without opposition, shutting the door behind them.

Your eyes roll in your skull and your body tenses at the sound of his voice. With the intention of ignoring him, you lean forward to grab the laces of your leather boots. It’s hard to imagine what he could possibly have to say to try and make up for his barbed accusation.

Eddie places the cup on the vanity beside you. “Look, I know you hate me right now and you have every reason to.” He kneels down and replaces your hands to untie your boots for you.

You bring the foam cup to your lips, leaving a scarlet lipstick kiss on the brim. A single sip of the chamomile tea brings you to a more peaceful state of mind. You were expecting it to be plain and scorching hot. Surprisingly, he prepared it just the way you like. Very warm, but not hot, with two tablespoons of honey and a dash of lemon juice. The toasty liquid soothes your stressed vocal cords.

“I wish I did.” You say firmly to the top of his head before taking a long swig.

Eddie’s fingers work fast on the laces and he slips your boots off. For a moment, his breath catches in his throat. The sight of your pedicured feet caged in fishnet tights is hot, to say the least. An image slips into Eddie’s mind before he can stop it. You sprawled out on your bed and his hands ripping a hole in the tights to gain access to your… Stop it.

You continue, “I want to. Hate you, that is.”

It’s true. You really wish you could hate him, but you’re unable to. One particularly fond memory is holding you back from it. At the beginning of the tour, you were a nervous wreck. Understandably so, because your life had practically changed overnight. Eddie had never seen you like that before. He’d never seen you impacted by anxiety to the extent of hyperventilating. There were only a few minutes left until it was time to take the stage and the countdown weighed heavily on your conscience. Eddie pulled you aside and caressed your waist. “Hey, shhh. Focus, look at me. Breathe, c’mon take deep breaths.” You didn’t have to say anything, he knew exactly what was on your mind. Squeezing your hand wasn’t going to be reassuring enough this time around. “You rock harder than anyone I know. You’re gonna be great, I promise. I’ll be right there beside you, ‘kay?”

Eddie looks up at you from the floor and your eyes dart away, avoiding his face at all costs.

There’s a knock at the door and Gareth pokes his head back into the room. “Y’guys gonna watch Vincent play tonight?” He likes to think he’s on a first-name basis with the headliner, THE Alice freaking Cooper.

Eddie peers over his shoulder with an exasperated sigh. Sure, he’d asked for a minute alone with you but he expected more than sixty seconds. “No, we’re good. Go have fun.” Gareth nods and disappears.

Eddie gets to his feet. “Can we go talk on the bus? It’s more... private.”

Behind the curtain divider to your room, you change into more comfortable clothes. Eddie sits on the couch in the front lounge, bouncing both of his legs. “You know I’m sorry right? Did I say that already?”

“No, you didn’t.” You tug the curtain open and plop onto the bed, laying on your back to stare at the ceiling. In your peripheral vision, you see Eddie hesitate before sitting on the edge of the bed with his back facing you

“I’m sorry. I really am.”

“Why the fuck did you say it?”

“I don’t know what I was thinking.” Eddie digs his elbows into his knees, holding the weight of his head in both hands. “I guess I thought-”

“You thought what?” You scoff. Eddie’s outburst this afternoon revealed exactly what was on his mind, but you want to hear him say it. He owes you that much.

“I don’t know! I mean, you’re the kind of girl that all guys want and-” He can’t even finish his sentences when your fiery responses are biting his words short.

“Wait a sec, you were jealous!”

Eddie stands swiftly and clutches his forehead. “I was not jealous! I just-”

“You’re being awfully defensive for someone who’s not.” You prop yourself up on your elbows and furrow your brow. It’s all starting to make sense now.

It feels like eons since the last time you looked him in the eyes, despite it only having been a couple of hours. Your unforgiving gaze grips him like Wonder Woman’s Lasso of Truth, his walls crumble under the weight of your attention. “I didn’t-I don’t want anyone to have you.” There’s no malice in his voice, instead, it hums with insecurity.

His confession hangs in the air like fog, fumigating the bitterness you’ve been feeling. The stunned expression on your face causes Eddie’s shoulders to lower from their tense state. “You’re blushing.”

You hide your face with your arms, falling backward onto the bed from the loss of support. “No way in hell! I do not blush.” Oh, but you do. If he could, Eddie would paint the sky with the rosy color of your flushed cheeks.

He stands at the foot of the bed by your extended legs and traces light patterns on your skin. Instinctively, you pull your knees upward toward your body, running away from his touch. Eddie leans down onto the bed and grabs your ankle.

You lower your arms and peek briefly before you’re yanked to the end of the bed. Eddie laughs playfully as he takes your hands and pulls you to sit upright. Your limbs flail uncooperatively like a rag doll.

“Look at me,” Eddie begs with a pout.

You comply, looking up as he stands tall over you. A fixture emits light from behind, cascading his frizzy curls with an amber glow. A grin stretches across his lips while he caresses the side of your neck and drags soft strokes with his thumb along your jaw.

“I ache for you.” He admits with a lustfully deep tone. “Y’know that, don’t you?”

All of the feelings you had at the start of your friendship are resurfacing. Your breath hitches when he bites down on his bottom lip, losing himself in your eyes.

Part of you is having a tough time processing this. Outside of Hawkins Eddie can pull just about anyone he wants, without even name-dropping the tour headliner. Being a guitarist undoubtedly entices women. Particularly beautiful women, at that. He must be messing around like always. He can’t seriously be choosing you over a buffet of chicks.

The expression on your face is all too familiar to Eddie. Despite not being able to read your mind he has an idea of what’s going on in your head.

“Only you.” He articulates with a firm tone. “Got it?”

His sentiment sinks into your skin, the apples of your cheeks blotted with the rosy tint he adores so much. You bat your eyelashes at him and quirk the corner of your mouth into a grin. “Is that so?”

When he nods “yes,” you scoot to the center of the bed and lay back.

Without missing a beat, Eddie crawls onto the bed and settles between your legs. His arms press firmly into the mattress as he hovers over you.

“Don’t be shy.” You coax by placing one of his hands on your bare thigh. “Touch me.”

The way you flinch at the cold of his rings against your skin lights a fire in his belly. Eddie isn’t certain that he isn’t dreaming right now. He’s fantasized about similar scenarios but never thought they could be anything more than his imagination. Reality proves itself when you grind your wanting heat against the zipper of his jeans in search of friction. Holy shit, this is really happening. After a quick lick of his plush lips, he presses them tenderly to yours.

Of all the things he’s daydreamed about doing to you, kissing you for the first time was what he longed for most. The taste of your lips is just as he’d hoped and it’s sweetened by the lingering flavor of honey from your tea.

Eddie can’t help but let out a groan when your hands snake under his shirt. Your fingertips imploring him for more affection. Desire burns relentlessly between your legs when he pulls back.

He shifts his weight upward, toying with the waistband of your cotton shorts. His eyes fall from yours as they trail down your midsection. Eddie takes notice of the red flannel shirt you’re wearing, the one you swiped from him months ago.

“You’re lucky you’re cute, ya little thief.” He titters.

Before you can proclaim your innocence he releases the elastic waistband, letting it snap against you. Your whimper is captured by his mouth as he gives you a fleeting kiss. Your fingers drift over his navel to fumble with his belt buckle but you’re promptly prevented.

Eddie shakes his head and whispers, “Not yet, sweetheart.” Without warning, he pulls your shorts off and tosses them aside.

You pin your knees together, suddenly feeling vulnerable under his love-sick gaze. Eddie gives you a comforting look and strokes your calf with his fingertips. Then he guides your knees apart, spreading your legs open for him. Pressure swirls in his chest as his eyes descend on your partially undressed figure.

The buttons of the red flannel are undone with your unsteady fingers, but you don’t take it all the way off. You separate it enough to reveal your sternum, to show Eddie that you’re not wearing a bra underneath his shirt. It’s a subtle tease, but it’s more than enough to beckon him.

Eddie leans forward and places sloppy kisses at the bottom of your neck and trails them between your breasts. You gasp at the sensation of his index and middle finger pressing against the wet spot on your panties, his thumb rubbing your clit over the fabric.

“So wet already.” He purrs, continuing to kiss sloppily up your neck. “God, you’re fucking gorgeous.”

If you could, you’d try to hold back but the fact is, you’re melting at his touch. Eddie has you wrapped around his finger and he knows it. There’s no point in trying to hide it.

Eddie pauses by your ear, his hot breath searing the side of your face. “You like it when I play with your pussy, baby?”

You’ve been called a plethora of pet names by Eddie, but nothing tops this new one. A faint “uh huh” falls from your lips as his thumb rubs a little harder, keeping the motion to a tight circle.

“More,” you plead breathily.

The sudden absence of his fingers makes you cry out pathetically. Your desperate plea is met with a soothing tone. He can see the effect that the nickname has on you and it encourages him to lay it on even thicker. “Don’t worry. I’ll take good care of you, baby. Imma give you what you need, what you deserve.”

Eddie sucks a bruise onto your neck, unofficially marking you as his. A hickey to show the world how he feels about you. He sits up on his knees to take off your underwear. Before he does, he looks at you for approval.

You nod eagerly, “Pretty please.”

His fingers grip the band of your panties before he pulls them off. This time you don’t feel the need to hide and you spread your legs readily. For a moment he feels like he’s having an out-of-body experience. His face tells all, unable to look away from your slick entrance that calls for him.

“Earth to Eddie.” You giggle, gliding your fingers through your arousal, resuming the stimulation.

He shakes his head and blinks hard as if to pull himself out of a daze. “Just taking in the view, don’t mind me.”

Eddie flashes you a smile and takes off his shirt, then lays on his stomach. Wrapping one hand underneath your leg to grasp the top of your hip. The scent of your heat makes his cock twitch, fighting for room to grow in his jeans. As if exhaling cigarette smoke, he blows a steady stream of air against your clit.

When his mouth latches onto you, your entire body shudders. His tongue works quickly at licking like you’re a melting ice cream cone, not wanting to waste a single drop of you. Two of his fingers tease your slit before they gradually push inside and he fingers you at a slow and steady pace.

The empty tour bus is filled with melodic moaning. Your singing has always sounded softer than velvet to Eddie, but the noises that are spilling out of you transcend anything he’s ever heard before.

With your head thrown back in bliss, the ceiling fades. The only thing keeping you sane is the fistful of his curls clutched in your hand. Every little tug at his hair causes him to hum against you, amplifying the ache in your core.

Your breathing shallows, nearing the clifftop of your climax. “Ed, I’m I-”

His eyes flutter open, dark irises looking up at you from the junction of your thighs. He lifts his mouth for a brief second to catch his breath before diving back in. His fingers quicken with force and they curve to reach your sweet spot.

Up until now, you couldn’t stop making noise. But with the change in pace, it feels like your release is trapped in your throat. In a matter of seconds, you leap off of the cliff with a whimpering moan. Your orgasm freezes every muscle except the ones in your legs. They quake under Eddie’s softening grip.

Using his thumb, he rubs the top of your thigh to guide you down from your high with comfort. “You taste so good, baby.” He praises, licking your glossy sugar from his lips.

Your eyes are closed as you pant quietly. Releasing his hair from your grasp, you comb through it with your fingers. “Tha-that was,” you clear your throat, “commendable.”

Eddie smiles and places a kiss on your clit, the overstimulation causes you to squeal. He laughs and kisses upward from your pelvis to your ribs. The flannel shirt managed to stay in place through your squirming. Eddie sucks his teeth and shakes his head. It’s unacceptable that he hasn’t paid your breasts any attention yet. You open your eyes and crane your neck to look at him.

Using his teeth, he bites a button on each side and pulls the flannel away from your chest, earning an exasperated giggle from you. Your amusement is interrupted by a gasp when he sucks on your peaked nipples.

Your back arches and your legs wrap around his waist, forcing his body flush against yours. Your hands brush his flexed shoulder muscles and wander down his back. The warmth of your palms exploring his skin causes him to grow harder. Eddie groans in discomfort from his pants restricting his bulge. “These have to come off, I can’t take it anymore.”

After shedding his pants and boxers, he crawls back between your legs. Retracing his kisses from your waist, belly, exposed breasts, neck, and then mouth. The kiss starts off gentle but grows feverish when his tip rubs through the slick between your legs. You reach down and wrap your hand around his base.

“You see what you do to me? I want you so bad.” Eddie says with a heavy exhale. The tension in his chest eases with each languid pump of your hand.

You guide his length to your opening, teasing the sensitive head with your thumb.

Eddie’s chocolatey eyes dart between yours, doing his best to soak in the intimate moment. After gliding your hands up his sides, you rest your open palms against his pecs. His own hand caresses your cheek. Eddie lowers his hips, pushing inside you inch by inch. “Jesus! Fuck- so tight. You feel so good…” He grunts through his clenched teeth.

A sharp burst of air fills your lungs at the dazzling sensation of him stretching you out. The numbing ache in your core subsides as he lays still to let you adjust to his size. With a few soft kisses placed on your cheek, he drags his hips away and forwards. Each thrust is smoother than the last as he builds momentum. A faint whine falls from his lips every time he sinks back into you.

You can’t help but squeeze your eyes shut, focusing on the feeling that’s rippling through your body. Eddie won’t have any of that.

“Let me see those pretty eyes. Look at me.”

Being the good listener that you are, you comply with his command. You smile at him and dig your grip into his pecs. He returns the smile with a hint of mischief. You didn’t have long enough to question it before he lifts your leg over the bend of his arm, allowing him to bottom out.

“Oh my god!” You moan loudly, fingernails digging crescents into the ridges of his shoulders.

“Fuck, baby. That’s my good girl. Take it, just like that.”

The tuft of curls at the base of his length glisten with your arousal. Your hand slithers down to rub your clit. When you do, you tighten around him. He lets out another whimper, unabashedly. Typically he isn’t this vocal, but making love to you for the first time is sending him into a realm beyond time and space as you know it.

Eddie buries his face in your neck and sucks harshly to leave a second mark while quickening the speed that he drills into you. The bus encapsulates the lewd sounds being created: the slapping of skin making contact, the choked-back grunts that rumble from his chest, the squeaking springs of your mattress. Eddie keeps his head buried in your shoulder, hiding his furrowed brows and slack jaw. His hushed cursing brings you to the edge of climaxing again.

Eddie groans against your pulse, panting as his thrusts get sloppy. “Agh-shit. I’m so fucking close-”

You grab a fistful of his hair and yank hard. “Cum for me, baby.” You whisper in his ear.

When he hears you call him baby his thrusting stutters. Your orgasm punches through you once more and his thrusting halts as he fills you with his spend. He breathes heavily, pulling his face from your neck to look into your eyes. Both of you wearing exhausted, fucked-out smiles, Eddie places a soft kiss on the plum colored bruises that decorate your neck.

“Wow. I guess jealousy is a great motivator for you, huh?” You giggle and brush away the sweaty bangs that cling to his forehead.

Eddie laughs and tucks your hair behind your ear. You share a long and deep kiss, savoring the taste of your sugar and his spit. He pulls out and falls onto the bed beside you. He pulls you close, arm around your shoulder and you curl up to his chest. Your perspiring bodies slightly stick to one another.

His eyes settle on your naked bodies pressed together. Trying to memorize each curve and dip of your body. Even when you’re sweaty and tuckered out, you’re still the most gorgeous person he’s ever seen. His enamored heart thumps in his chest and you listen closely with your ear against him.

“I’ve never felt like this before, the way that I feel about you.” Eddie’s hand strokes your arm soothingly.

Your muscles are taxed, not having the physical strength to look at him. “I’d be yours if you asked.” You state meekly.

“You wanna be my girl?” Eddie’s finger guides your chin for you to look him in the eyes. He searches yours for an answer. He shouldn’t be nervous. He isn’t expecting to be rejected but his confidence falters. Your friendship means the world to him, but he can’t be friends anymore.

You nod “yes” and place a kiss on his subtly swollen lips.

Eddie chuckles and strokes your hair, embracing you with every bit of energy he’s got left. “Gi melethig.” You are my love.

You contort your face in confusion to the gibberish that danced from his tongue. “What?”

“Nothin’, baby. Just know… you’re my girl, all mine!” He declares, smothering you with kisses.

★Part One ★My Masterlist

★Ko-fi ♡

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cable-knit-sweater · 2 years

Note

Hopeful about the second prompt? The pairing is Stucky and the prompt is endearments. I would love to read a fic where Steve and/or Bucky forget themselves and call each other honey or darling while confronting a villain, possibly a Hydra maniac.

Or the possibility of Evanstan+endearments? Chris and Seb have agreed to do another movie together, and they mistakenly forget the microphone is still on during a press conference.

Hi lovely!!! Thank you so much for sending in a new prompt!! 💗💗 Your first idea was so lovely, and I’m sorry I couldn’t do that one (for now), but these ones are amazing too and I definitely had a lot of thoughts on them. I decided to go with the Evanstan one, even if I love the Stucky version too and might end up writing it some day soon!

I have to say, this one has been on my mind SO much, I couldn’t wait to start writing it. I even dreamed about it 😂, but unfortunately I can’t remember any of the details. Anyway, here it is. I hope you enjoy!! 💕💕😘 (and I’m sorry for spamming everyone’s dash with two fics in one day, I just finished this one and I had to put it out there immediately 😂)

Evanstan + Endearments, 1.9k, T

Read on Ao3 or below

They’ve been doing press for days now, sitting in hotel rooms for junkets with press coming in and out, the same questions asked over and over again. Today is the last day, with a full press conference, all of the cast and the director together, sitting behind a long table. They’ve been at it for about half an hour already, all the same questions again.

He’s proud of this movie and he’ll gladly talk about it, don’t get him wrong. He just wishes people would be a little more original in their questions. Chris hears Seb sigh deeply next to him, and he looks over. “I just wish this thing could be over already”, Seb whispers when he catches Chris staring. Chris nods. “Yeah, me too baby, me too”, he breathes out, slumping in his chair a little.

But then Seb’s eyes get huge, and Chris notices the room suddenly falling silent. He looks around, confused. Are they done? Did someone ask him a question? He looks back at Sebastian, who seems to have a little difficulty getting his words out. “The…Chris- the mic.”, he finally stutters, a blush on his face, looking a little scared.

It finally dawns on him. Fuck. He said that out loud, into the mic. Everyone heard. How could he be so stupid? It’s not like this is his first press conference, for god’s sake. He feels his own cheeks heat up. He tries to get himself together though, knowing he needs to fix this. He looks back into the crowd, no longer silent but people murmuring to each other, staring at them.

He chuckles nervously. “Uhm. God, I guess I’m really exhausted, aren’t I?”, trying to play it off, and the journalists as well as some of the cast laughs with him. “But I can’t be blamed really, Sebastian really does have a baby face, must have been on my mind staring at the posters for this thing so much. Have you seen them? Doesn’t he look great?”, he rambles. “Wait until you see what he does in this movie, I’m so glad I got to work with him again, he’s so freaking good.”

He’s not sure whether his nervous chattering helped any, but people seem to move on. The next question is mercifully not directed at him or Seb, so he slumps down again in his chair, but tries not to let his face show how worried he is about the whole thing, everything he said and everything they heard. He feels Seb press their knees together under the table, out of sight, trying to offer a little comfort.

It helps a little bit, but he can’t get himself to look at Sebastian for the rest of the conference. He answers the questions he gets after that as best as he can. It’s over soon enough, and he follows everyone else out the room into the backstage area. He gets some looks from other cast members and the director, but no one says anything. He can’t find Seb though, even if he should’ve been right behind him.

They get to leave soon enough, the premiere for their movie that same night, so they all have some time to decompress and get ready. He gets into the car organized by the studio. He knows he shouldn’t worry yet, Sebastian would’ve gone back separately anyway, but he can’t help it. He needs to talk to him, and the panicked texts he’s sent so far have gone unanswered.

When he gets to the hotel and thanks the driver, he immediately goes up to Seb’s room. They’ve been staying in Chris’s room together, but something tells him he’s not going to find his boyfriend there right now. He knocks on the door impatiently, all sorts of scenarios going through his head. It only takes a moment before the door opens though, Seb resting his head against the frame, looking at him for a second with a look Chris can’t quite figure out.

Then he shakes his head, opens the door wider and walks back into the room, Chris taking it as an invitation to follow him. Sebastian sits down on the couch, and Chris hovers a little close by, not sure how welcome he is right now. Eventually, Seb sighs. “Come on, sit down Chris, you’re making me nervous.” He does as he’s told, sitting down but giving Sebastian enough space.

He nervously scratches the back of his neck. “So i uhm. I fucked up a little there, didn’t I?”, he chuckles. “I was really just so tired, can’t believe I messed up like that.” Sebastian nods. “Yeah, don’t worry about it. It happens, it’s fine”, he says, but clearly things are not fine. “Come on Seb, what’s going on?”, he presses.”I did mess up, but I think I covered well enough? I think people just found me a little odd, I don’t think we should be worried about anyone thinking anything more of it.”

Oops. He’s clearly batting a 1000 today, judging from the look on Sebastian’s face after he says that, a deep frown on his face, the annoyed puff of breath he lets out. He can see Seb bite the inside of his cheek, like he’s trying to stop himself from saying something. “Seb…Please just talk to me?”, Chris says, and he can hear the worry and desperation in his own voice.

Sebastian doesn’t look at him, sighs deeply. Eventually he seems to take pity on Chris, and starts to explain, words coming out in a rush. “I think that’s the problem though. It was so easy for you to cover it up, pretend like it was just some odd outburst. And I get it, I do. You made a mistake and you wanted the attention off of you, off us, and I understand. But… I-I just can’t help but wonder how long you want to keep this a secret, how long you want to keep doing this. And I know there are things to keep in mind, that it could affect our careers, yours maybe more than mine, but I just…”, he trails off finally taking in a deep breath.

“Oh honey”, Chris says, feeling a little guilty. He knew Seb struggled with this, he does too, but it’s clearly been eating at Sebastian more than he thought. “Come here baby”, he says, grabbing Seb’s hand and pulling him towards him. Sebastian lets himself be pulled, ends up sitting in Chris’s lap. Chris pushes a lock of hair out of Seb’s face, tucking it behind his ear. “Hey, can you look at me?”, he whispers, and when he does, the sadness in Sebastian’s eyes almost kills him. “Oh baby, I’m so so sorry. I didn’t think. I wasn’t thinking. I know how hard this is, how hard it must be on you”, he apologizes.

He frames Seb’s face with his hands, softly rubs his thumbs over his cheeks. “Just know one thing. I do want to keep doing this, but not in this way if it’s hurting you so much baby. I’d do anything for you, you know that?” Sebastian nods a little, tears starting to form in his eyes, and Chris wipes them away carefully when they start to slide down. “So whatever you want, I’ll do it. You’re right, we can’t keep doing it this way, hiding all the time, worried about saying the wrong thing to the wrong person. It’s not fair to you, to me, to us.”

Sebastian nods again, and when Chris lets go of his face, he slumps down a little and burries it into Chris’s neck. Chris runs his hands up and down Sebastian’s back soothingly, just holds him for a while. They’re both tired and a little emotional, he needs this just as much as Seb does.

After a while, something occurs to him. He jostles Seb a little trying to get his phone out of his pocket, trying to write a text, but it’s hard to move around his 6ft boyfriend. “Can I move you a little?”, he asks, and Seb turns around to sit on his lap more sideways, giving Chris room and the use of both of his hands. “What are you doing?”, Seb whispers after a moment. “I’m…I’m texting Megan. Just give her heads up.”

Sebastian frowns at him. “A heads up about…?”, he asks, and Chris finishes his text before throwing his phone on the table and pulling Seb closer to him again. “Well. If you want… I thought we could go to the premiere together”, he says, a little nervous but hopeful. Seb lets out a little noise. “You mean…together, together?”, he croaks. Chris presses a soft kiss to his temple. “Yeah baby. But only if you want to.” Sebastian nods his head quickly, a beaming smile on his face, eyes a little teary. “Yes, yes I want, yes”, he says then, before peppering Chris’s face in kisses. He can’t help but chuckle, beam back at his boyfriend. “Then that’s what we’ll do baby.”

They take a quick nap before getting ready, even if putting on their suits takes a little longer than usual because Chris can’t seem to keep his hands off Sebastian. The giggle that Seb lets out when Chris adjusts his tie for like the 5th time and runs his hand over Seb’s chest, makes him smile so big his cheeks hurt. God, he loves this man, and that sound is his favorite thing in the world. He can’t help himself, placing a kiss on that scrunched up nose.

They both feel a little giddy, full of excitement, for most of the car ride. Chris keeps looking over at Seb, looking gorgeous as always in a suit, the light blue perfect against his lightly tanned skin, making his beautiful grey eyes look even more vibrant. He tells him so, Sebastian blushing a little and ducking his head, mumbling a “so do you”, that makes Chris grin. He can’t wait for this to be over, so he can slowly get him out of that suit again.

When they get closer to the venue, they start to get a little more nervous. This kind of event always makes Chris anxious, and even more so now they’re doing this. Sebastian must notice how he tenses a little when the car stops outside the theater. He grabs Chris’s hand. “We don’t have to do it now, you know? I can wait”, he whispers. Chris shakes his head, brings Seb’s hand up to his lips. “I know you can baby, but we shouldn’t have to. I want to do this.” He puts his other hand on the door handle. “Ready?”, he asks, and Sebastian squeezes his hand. “I’m ready. For anything”, he whispers, “anything as long as it’s with you.”

They make their way down the carpet, hand in hand. Chris almost forgets about the flashing cameras, tunes out the voices screaming their names, completely focused on the man beside him. He doesn’t feel as anxious anymore, not while Seb’s holding his hand. It feels like a weight has been lifted, being able to touch Seb and stare at him and whisper sweet nothings whenever and wherever he wants, without worrying about getting found out. They’ll deal with everything that comes with this later. As long as it’s together, he’s ready for anything too.

#maya’s follower celebration #maya tries to write #evanstan #rpf

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explosionshark · 8 months

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Okay so bs4/as1 has been a bit hit and miss for me so far (I've generally been watching one Buffy episode followed by one Angel episode whenever I sit down to watch and I've not often had a double bill of hits, but also never gotten a double miss so far so it's not I'm not having a good time even the misses have some stuff I like) but I watched I Will Remember You last night and it was such a banger I loooove the Bangel tragedy and it was such a good one. I watched Pangs right before and I was thinking wow they brought back Angel for this episode (this had so much baggage there was stuff I liked in it but oof)? But it was worth it I guess to get Buffy into Angel for the following one. I kinda wish In the Dark hadn't happened though cause it kinda cheapens the Angel being human in the sun thing by having him be in the sun already just four or five episodes ago and its way better in this one. I thought it was gonna just be hallucinations for a bit when he and Buffy hooked back up, there was no way that could be allowed in the timeline even if Angel vamped up again, but resetting the clock is way better, should've realised from all the clocks they were showing. It was just a real good Angel/Buffy power hour played all the hits, doing what they do best. I ship Bangel primarily in the sense that I love to see that tragedy aspect of it, no desire to see them together long term just burn bright, fast and break each other's hearts. And since it was a heavy crossover episode Buffy and Angel can share the crown of favourite episode yet across Buffy's s4 and Angel's s1.

Spike being fully into his loser era is great I can really get behind that. The Initiative at first glance I thought this is a bit goofy dunno if I'll buy this and then Walsh was the director of it as well as Buffy's psychology lecturer and I decided yes this is just goofy enough to get behind. Riley's alright he's not really got enough meat yet to get me into him yet but the duelling secret identities thing he'll have going with Buffy should be fun, I do find it kinda funny that now that we know who they are the Initiative goons just never wear masks anymore.

I thought Wild at Heart was real good but its wild to me that this feels like the first actual episode about Oz and its about him cheating on his girlfriend, killing the person he cheated on her with and then leaving forever (there's extenuating circumstances but still), wild, also kinda sad there's no more werewolf episodes cause somehow those costumes were getting even more ropey and I was interested to see how much worse they'd get. This was also a day where I got two hits with the Bachelor Party being just a really a fun Doyle episode.

Other hits I've had Room with a Vu, great Cordy episode her insisting to the ghost that she can't scare her cause she's from Sunnydale and refusing to give up on such a good place to live was incredible, and that scene with her talking about how she wants to stop being punished great stuff, and I Fall To Pieces, psychic limb detaching surgeon was wild and unsettling, I also really enjoyed Melissa's work as the victim. Admittedly, Angel is leaning very heavy into the damsel trope now that they don't have to write a show with a female lead. Oh yeah also it does feel a bit like they're playing fast and loose with the whole sunlight thing I feel like Angel's been in sunlight a fair few times this show.

Honourable mention to Fear, Itself, it's got some good stuff but largely it suffered from me thinking its not on the level of the s1 fear episode "Nightmares" and not as fun as the s2 "Halloween", but I didn't hate it by any means just didn't quite hit. And also its not fair to it but I thought going towards the climax it was either gonna be a that the Demon didn't want to be there either (hence saying "Release me" all the time) or that it was gonna be an Anya knowing him from her demon days thing so when it got to oh the demon's just tiny while fun felt like a bit of an anticlimax to what I wanted which isn't really the episode's fault.

Now Pangs, Sense and Sensitivity and Beer Bad those were hard misses. Pangs and Sense and Sensitivity, Pangs at least felt more like a fumble (Buffy sideplot about wanting a good Thanksgiving was also fun) while Sense and Sensitivity felt more intentional with it going hard into if only lawyers didn't get in the way of us beating suspects we could catch so many more criminals. Beer Bad on the other hand just not good (I was admittedly primed for this though I had my vague recollections of that great Sarah Z video essay on that time Buffy made government propaganda, so I knew going in it was not a well received episode) "My brother in law is a warlock" and then just moving past it is a GOAT explanation behind a plot and it was at least goofy and Buffy got to beat Parker with a stick.

Other minor things, Anya's just solid gold she's in the same vague area Cordy was for most of her Buffy run time (which is fitting considering she was introduced as someone who could steal Cordy's life and is now dating her ex) where she can just show up say anything, and its a winner. And I love the infrequent appearances of Harmony just redecorating in her lair she's basically inherited. Also feel like there's not been many cold opens of just slaying Vampires, which I guess fits with the Initiative capturing a bunch of them and storing them under the university. Also also I saw there's episode coming up where Cordelia is magically pregnant and I remember that Angel does not do well when its cast get pregnant so I'm filled with a sense of looming dread.

YESSSS okay. i will remember you is a great episode for folks who ship bangel in that particular way. for me - i love what they mean for each other and the role they play in each other's lives. i think they're just a fun, dramatic, supernatural version of the classic great first love. someone you outgrow, but you'll always love somehow. and i will remember you nails that so well because like - it shows them at their best, their passion and devotion to each other, and also why that's not enough to keep them together.

i'm definitely sympathetic to angel's choice at the end, his reason for undoing things and giving buffy up, but it's precisely why they don't work for me as a long term ship. his decision to protect her by making this choice for her, by taking the memories from her is just classic angel. it's something buffy would hate if she knew. for him, it's duty and selflessness. for her it would be a betrayal. it lays bare a kind of unavoidable paternalism that infects their dynamic from the beginning.

hard agree re: spike i always like him best when he's fully being the show's resident buttmonkey. put him in silly clothes! have him be a little pathetic and snarky! make him run around with that smoking blanket pulled over his head!

glad you're having fun so far and getting through it! the initiative will remain kind of weak, but there's still some really great stuff coming up in s4. hush, this years girl, and who are you remain series highlights imo.

#replies #Anonymous #buffy anon

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blankdblank · 2 years

Text

The White Dove Pt 27 - There is Magic, There are Pandas, There is Carnage

Was a day late week before last so here it is a day early. Hope you guys enjoy it and do please let me know what you think of the new faces introduced or anything else that catches your fancy. :)

The White Dove Masterlist

...

Finally you were out in the fresh air for the half hour trek to Columbia where mainly those in the Science Wing knew but were kind enough not to bring it up. Doctor Connors when you had a free moment smiled walking with you between classes to say, “Got our spider research up and running, first nest is already beginning to harden off and I cannot wait to trade notes on that ship of yours. Any progress?”

“Have about ten feet clear of barnacles and the crust. Pretty slow going, eventually I’ll have it naked and ready to see what I can do with it to clean it up.”

“The beauty has been hidden a long while and everyone will be patient while you uncover more of it.” He said widening your grin and his own at the lift of your spirit on the way to when your paths split and he was off to check on his research while you were off to sit in a seat lost in the sea of tiered desks.

“Da?” you answered in Russian the call from the Director of the adaptation of The Nutcracker you had been in, while in wait for the signal to cross the street to get from the subway back to the path to Midtown again.

Every question clarifying your place still in New York and readiness of your body to peak show levels for the real drop of news that had you sit down on the half wall outside the front entrance of Midtown. Silently you sat in their offer to have you play Aurora in a new take on Sleeping Beauty to be performed by another team from Bolshoi Ballet Company who hoped to have you dance with them again for a full run of a show this time around.

No matter what you had to agree to further your chances to have this happen again to add to a history of roles to possibly land you amongst a company of dancers if you wished to go that route later on. Paperwork and details would be sent within the next couple weeks so that you could plan accordingly with ample time to adjust class work and your job shifts as well as warning Eddie on this change.

Shaking your head you tried to focus as messages came from fellow dancers who hoped to possibly at least get a glimpse into your place this time around that had you worried on not having enough space for very many of them.

This would just take some fine wording to get everyone on board and the most convincing plan to have the smoothest path to land your tiny self on that stage come November. All of October when they had arrived you would be training with them on the role to fit the show they had been working on since January now to have its title role.

“Bill, bill,” you muttered to yourself. Ignoring the spot on the stairs you had been snatched from only to pause outside your apartment door at the letter from the second hand furniture shop where you had gotten your ancestor’s wardrobe. “Hmm,” you said, then looked up as your apartment door was opened to reveal Eddie, wide eyed and anxious to see his baby sister.

“You forgot your lunch,” he said and stepped aside. Ushering you into the apartment with a buffet of food to help lift your spirits along with a warm hug while Venom took hold of your bags he set down for you on the couch then came back to join in the sniffle laced embrace.

“Can’t believe that Hussy hijacked your post gym session meal. I’ll stake out the place next time and guard the corner so he won’t pester your time alone.”

“I mean where does it say that if I’m crying I have to be forced in someone’s company? Just because he’s some star spangled soldier of ridiculousness does not mean I need him to calm me down.” You said as he pulled back to guide you to the food.

“He’s the last one who could do that, him and Stark, bottom of the barrel for emotional support.”

“And he had the gall to say he doesn’t throw his shield at civilians,” you said taking a large bite of your food making him grumble a scoff around his mouthful.

After he swallowed he said, “Bull, steaming big seven foot pile of bullshit. He’s thrown that thing at you three times out of your armor in rebound shots while trying to take other guys out. Nearly caused that balcony to collapse on you if Isaiah hadn’t tugged you out of the way.”

“Last thing I need is his pity,” you said accepting the envelope two of your bees had fetched and added a stamp to for you to add the cash for the meal you would mail later on when you were off for your next shift. “Man jumped out of a plane to go save Bucky back in the war now he’s resting on his laurels waiting for his bestie to just saunter in through the door on his own. Guess obviously there is something missing in his eyes to not risk life and limb in a world he dislikes to save his friend from mental captivity this time around.”

“Think he’s just hiding behind a technicality, not able to get around some legal loophole to do as he pleases. Either that or the man had unbridled anxiety of facing Hydra again after seeing how the world has changed while he was frozen.”

“Needs to stop lying to himself.” You said taking another bite of your food to not focus on the Super Soldier who interfered with your cathartic try to get over an emotionally devastating task you had to take on. Now muddled internally you still felt both the pain of their death, your abduction and torture afterwards on top of what you could only place as rage for having to be the one to legally declare them dead. Both behind why you were taken and they were killed now you had to confirm for the world you knew they were never going to come back submitting those papers somehow was almost more painful than what you had endured for those eight years.

The mail still at your side had him ask, “You had your mail? Something important?”

“Oh, I got a letter from the furniture shop. Maybe it’s a sale or something.”

“Open it,” he said taking another bite of his food causing you to do the same then lower your fork to lift the envelope you turned over to break the seal and bring out the letter inside.

“Hmm,” you said chewing as you read to yourself then summarized aloud after swallowing. “He remembered about my great great grandfather building that wardrobe and they found another one. Said he’s holding it for me.”

“That’s nice of him, they’re super rare he could have just waited to hock it for the most cash possible.” You nodded and he asked, “What else did I miss?”

“Got a call from Bolshoi,” you said earning a nod from him echoed by a spreading smile as you shared news on the job offer he was pleased to hear about. “Some of the dancers said they wanted to see my place though. I don’t really entertain here.”

“Well we can find you some more seating,” he said knowing you had been using your whale chairs to help organize your school things to not mix them up and to grab with ease and go in the mornings. And in your deep inhale he knew to be the start of a try to backtrack to keep him from feeling obligated he said, “I need a good table anyways, and you could use a desk, something nice.”

“Alright, maybe they’ll have that same marble looking table that was kind of cheap.”

“Anything you want after this I’m getting for you.” He said with a grin that you couldn’t help but to mirror feeling at least in his and Venom’s presence you were safe at least from feeling any worse than you already did with the only family the world now knew you to have.

Right away the wardrobe beside the counter the man stood at had the knot in your belly lift up an inch to the smooth of fingers over its doors. And the man with glee started up the delivery form while you and Eddie began to browse. A duo of tables had you both freeze however, someone with an online shop needed to liquidate some of their inventory to make room for more and two resin and oak tables were now added to the delivery list. Yours in bright clouds of blue resin around honeycomb patterned oak pieces while his was cut more like a river of black glitter filled resin out of the oak chunks like an above view of a river reflecting the starry night sky through a desert.

More seating came next and for an eight foot long slightly curved green corner in the back of the shop you found your choice. Out of forest green velour a slightly curved couch whose back sloped from right to left in a hill to sink then rose again and end lower than the other side as if to split a loveseat section from an individual slot with a single shared cushion to join the spots together called to you. In front of that along with it came two woven knot velour poof footrests that to finish off the list would be sent to your places as soon as the delivery team were back from their late lunch post morning delivery.

“These are nice.” Star backed plushy dining chairs in glittery black material were added to the items of the purchase. To be partnered with his new table so he could get rid of the tattering borderline lawn chairs he had been using for years now since the move to his place he’d found for free uptown and brought home. Softly he gasped seeing the trio of chairs Venom pooled out under his jeans to turn him towards what the symbiote wanted.

“Ooh,” you said, silently agreeing to his draw to the plushy armchairs in a fabric fluffy like wool on sheep in appearance but soft like fur. The round base on four angled wooden peg legs curved up with two arms flat to the base and back that rose up to be topped by rounded bear ears. Black and white like a panda in pattern two large chairs for Mama and Papa Bear sat around a smaller chair for Baby Bear in a Goldilocks themed set. “Even Buddy gets a seat,” you teased making him chuckle and share with the man they were being added.

A sale he greatly appreciated to free up more space and had him remind the second worker to go fetch the pair of ostrich feather lamps like yours in coral that had come in the week prior Eddie agreed he wanted. Turning to keep going he chuckled in awe and went closer to a hand carved wardrobe in mahogany, that unlike yours had a seated panda carved into the doors on the top half with hidden drawers disguised as reeds of bamboo carved across the lower half. “Oh this is nice.” And he just about had the man explode with glee in pointing out a final addition of a colorful misty blue resin and wood, the upper half visible through the oval shaped top part of a hippo’s head and back hips, the lower half adorably capturing the creature mid prance through a river with a foot raised to take its next happy step.

Again you seemed to be the odd customer to claim what he didn’t have use for and couldn’t imagine selling. To be honest he did try to sell the wardrobe. But pieces in this country weren’t nearly as important compared to other defunct designers and would have had him shipping out of the country to make a decent payday. A hassle he didn’t need or want so at least for your own connection he knew there would be one eager to at least inspect the piece if not buy it right away. Delivery was confirmed while you and Eddie each carried one of his lamps out of the store the man was mentally rearranging to bring in newer more broadly welcoming pieces now that these harder to sell ones were off his hands.

“So,” Eddie said on your walk to the subway to get home again for the deliveries, “Do you want the lawn chairs at the shop? Could melt or break them down or use them to climb on the ship if you need it.”

“Sure,” you said with a quick nod wondering if you’d be able to sleep tonight. “Could always use more surfaces.”

“Wanna tinker a bit?” he asked luring a hint of a grin from you, “And I can crash at yours for sleep if you want.”

“Tinker yes, the other, maybe. I feel weird, felt like screaming before the gym, then crying, now I just feel, weird.” He nodded and down the steps for the subway you both trotted and aimed yourselves for the proper train and once inside you both went to an empty standing spot in the back where you said, “I knew.” That had his eyes on you again, “I was there, I knew.”

That had him settle around your back in a comforting hug that made some more room for others passing you by to take up the bench trying to ignore your odd Dr Suess like lamps, “Always hurts worse seeing it in stone. Take it from a fellow orphan. When people stop looking your way post wake things’ll die down.”

After a nod from you his head came to rest on top of your head and you leaned back into his hold asking, “Do you think vibration will help?”

“For the barnacles?” he asked and you nodded again. “I mean it could, irritate their roots a bit before the solution hits them. You actually managed to get the twitch box up and running?”

“Got it rewired fixing up the lunch I didn’t take in. I think it shouldn’t make the ship light on fire, if I didn’t try it tonight I’d have waited for Elliot on his drop by tomorrow. Trying not to be scared of the ship.” Making him chuckle, “Said there’s no metal that can damage it but still doesn’t mean I can’t lop off part of the hull if I get a bit careless.”

“You are not careless. And I’m certain Vili did much more damage than you ever could,” making you smirk to yourself. For the rest of the ride you shared your thoughts on the process of clearing off the crust to see just how the ship looked underneath to see the true condition of the base to work off of.

Together in two stops you showed the delivery men on where to take the things. Eddie chose to be second so that you could change out of your nice outfit to something able to be dirtied or destroyed and then meet him outside of his place to walk together to the garage. He left you behind and carried his lamps to show the men into his place that was double the size of yours with not even a third of the furniture you had. Each piece made new spaces, or like his chairs expanded on his sitting area, where he could focus those areas instead of his big empty place not much comfort beyond room to pace on his worst nights.

What looked to be a palm sized air pump and attached wire ends were fixed in your hand when you met him outside his building in the freshly cleaned set of clothes from when you had been stolen with the other children of this planet.

Tucked under his arms were the chairs he excitedly carried with him to help you get started. Even if it meant he had to go a night without sleep to ensure you were able to get to the next day without too much harm to your usual pattern and schedule knowing how badly that set you off each time it happened before.

“You know I’m proud of you,” he said once inside the garage that had you look up at him in taking hold of two of the chairs. “Got into school all on your own and accepted to a second, getting calls from a top dance company. Building things this generation can’t compare to, I love you, and I am so proud of you.”

Venom out of his neck eased, “We are, little one.” And with a nod you turned your head to blink away the tears in your eyes. To help distract you Venom announced what he realized, “Eldfalls has begun to hum again.”

“Elliot says it will, linked to my genetic makeup now. Wonder if that means if that means it passes down by blood heirs or not.”

Venom answered, “Not likely. One would assume if their bonded master is destroyed they would not be capable to test others for lineage if the child was not raised around the craft.”

Eddie spoke again, “How did Columbia go?”

“Good, Dr Connors began to share on his experiment. Spiders are nesting so progress is well on pace.”

At the glint of a look that flinched across your face he asked, “You don’t like hearing about his progress?”

“No,” finishing to set up the chairs along the wall, setting down the device to fetch the bucket of solution still left from the day prior you left to grow stronger in its time left to do so. “I do. I just know he’s bound to ask me about my papa’s code on labeling various genetic makeup on creatures as obviously the various layers of the spider capabilities he is adapting are covering for some form of regeneration and strength manipulation tactic for Oscorp to market.”

While you turned to glance his way he gave a quick nod asking, “And that’s, bad?”

Softly you sighed and answered, “It worked,” you said parting his lips, “His synthesized process to adapt regeneration codes from certain animals when applied to human DNA worked. Mama’s condition was improving, her Chorea was nearly reversed entirely, before Hydra broke in to take me. What I based my allergy shots and emergency compound off of. Loosely, you have to make his off the genes of the subject while mine is less efficient but a broader band aid for triage purposes.”

“So, Connors if he used that research could actually make it work. Wow,” the last bit he added with a sharp puff of air. “I don’t want Oscorp to have that.”

“No, he’d just sell it in bottles to make more Super Soldiers like Stark Senior did.”

“Hydra didn’t get those notes, did they?”

“No, never kept that at home, hid it with our digital backup. Only submitted what he had to for his patent for the process and only ‘Mad Scientists’ would dare to pick up where those left off.” You said making him smirk your way, “I know, I picked it up. And to be honest Mama’s work on genetic predecessor markers only enhanced his work tenfold upon their sharing and comparing notes.”

After a moment he asked, “They ever give you a shot?”

“Mainly antibiotics when I would fall hurt, what I can recall. Papa used to work at the children’s clinic as well when the regular Doctor went on trips out of town, he took me there for that. Mama said I never was hurt for very long when I was, so I think my healing came first before the magic.” And like a switch being tapped with a mental finger you realized how you had been addressing your parents aloud as you did when alone to your adopted brothers. “I know the compound for the Super Serum and I can’t find any traces aside from allergies in my makeup left in me, and even that seems to be waning with my own healing. I don’t know where that came from aside from the Norns delegating it so.”

“Not a big leap to think you could change the medical world to live on its head if you wanted to take that path. Course we have to keep Big Brother’s hands off it outside of the Vet system obviously.”

“But he’ll do fine, wrote a book on his field, if he won’t then it’s a waste of paper. For now, we can see how this works out and fingers crossed it doesn’t spark up Eldfalls to shoot me across town.” You said making him chuckle.

“Highly doubt it wouldn’t give a warning shot first,” he asked in a move closer to pat the bare strip of metal you already had cleared with his palm. “Earth boats are female, would it be the same with ships from Asgard?”

“I don’t know, hasn’t said anything to me and it wasn’t in the notes.”

And as a grin eased across his lips he asked, “Are we filming? Please tell me we are filming.”

“We are,” you said grinning back. “Have to keep record of the progress.” Carefully on the side of the ship your hand rested as you said softly, “Heimdall, you would send a warning shimmer of light or something first if I was set to blow myself up, right?” A question that had the golden eyed gatekeeper smile to himself at the obvious fact that he would.

Off to your right your recording bee ready to do so hovered in clear view of the section of ship in front of yourself including the bucket at your feet and Eddie as he added his chosen gloves to not harm his skin from the solution to remove the barnacles matching the ones he tucked into your back pocket.

With a smile you looked at the recording bee and said, “Welcome, again back to Queens where myself and Eddie are burning the night oil back at work on returning Eldfalls here to its former glory.”

The Swedish sentence flowing out of you had Eddie grin to himself. Recalling how your prior videos in your native tongue that had a few comments from Norway. Who had found it amusing in your tries to clarify a few things in that tongue which you had been trying to gain fluency in as well but found it difficult as for how close it was to Swedish to keep the two straight when you got to rambling. The country with ample references to your late relations there from your father’s side, not unlike those formerly from Denmark for your mother’s, both with languages you recalled your parents using but somehow felt a mental scar there that twinged with pain in tries to become fluent in them.

“Now I have a contraption I have tweaked a bit, this will send pulses and vibrations through the metal that I hoped might help to loosen the coating off of the outer shell and we will gradually work our way up to see how much we can go to get some wiggle room at least from those barnacle roots.”

Like suction cups the square pads were stuck in a curve up against the crust border you secured what you hoped to be the best points to work effectively then pulled out one glove first to ease on while the other hand held the control box. A simple turn of the dial and flip of the power switch had the already soft hum of the ship grow a bit lower in the evident buzz of the pads that seemed to have a few specks of rust fall off of the crust already.

“Now we’re getting somewhere,” Eddie mused and helped to use an empty squeeze bottle to angle the solution to spill under the crust you used a wide chisel to slide under the hard layer that only eased more of the liquid out. Barely the vibration seemed to help so you noted aloud that you were turning the setting up a few more times to show varying results until upon the final change a capture of the wide eyed reaction to the clear split heard down the side of the ship.

“Was that a good crack or a bad crack?” you whispered to Eddie who shrugged and was the one to ease closer and spray a bit of the solution, that to his and your awe bubbled up down a significant five foot stretch of the ship. Excitedly you let out a squeak and neared to scrape as much off as possible to continue freeing up more naked metal. “So we seem to be on a roll so I think this is as good a time as any for a montage,” you said wiggling fingers at your sides viewers would enjoy later.

Music later would be added under the sped up footage showing larger chunks down one side and around the front and back curved edges with loud splits of crust that dropped off the bottom of the ship. Almost rust stained panels covered the newly revealed stretches of what seemed to be more scale than overlapping panels of the same non Midgard native metal your bees already had analyzed to be able to copy the atomic structure to reproduce later on.

Hours you worked up a storm until you had to give in and head home for Eddie to spend the night on your new green couch nearby to your bed to know you could sleep with company and not wake up alone. Subtitles in varying languages were added to the video for viewers to choose from later. Detailed scans had been captured as you worked to compile more assumed images of what could be hidden to join the scans your bees had taken of the inner compartments and mast to repair those later on.

*.*.*

“Wonder how she does it,” Mariah said in a lunch out with May and her uncle who had seen the recorded footage of the rehearsal for Color Guard you had stood as one of the routine sharers amongst other Seniors. “Barely got any sleep then head first all day to two campuses and back to the first for this just days after being abducted by those Inhumans.”

Cooper answered, “Sleep deprivation is a common event in our prior training sessions.” Having both women look at him. “I prepared her well, is all I am saying. Far more resilient than given credit for,” he paused and said, “Besides, for the damage memories of her lost family could stir up I would wager she might find it easier not to sleep.”

May asked, “Do you know how the family that had her got her?”

Cooper shook his head, “Never got specifics. Just told to train the girl.”

Mariah said, “There’s got to be more than that, you took vest shots for her.”

That had him look her dead on, “She hit me with a stun dart to break the kill switch implanted in my chest and the trackers in my head. That girl, they wanted perfection, and she is beyond their comprehension. Our best student, we trained her and she helped to set me free. She didn’t promise me safety, but freedom, same thing our training guarantees for her. Trust me, if she hasn’t told you all the details it’s because you haven’t asked or she has plans and is watching someone they do have.”

“Another kid?” May asked and he shook his head.

“No, they don’t allow bonds, make them kill each other to prevent that.” Parting the lips of the duo, “Looking back on where she came from, you will never see who she is, what she is aiming for. Widen your view, if she’s scared you will see, she will call out for allies she’s been making. Clearly she has a schedule to reach her goals.”

May asked, “Any more messages lately for Barnes?”

“No, been preoccupied with her ship. That in itself should be that she is keeping busy and helping to widen a piece of her blood’s history.”

“And you think that’s wise?” Mariah asked.

And he answered, “Better to keep as visible to a steady group as possible, you mentioned most of your nephew’s circle moved away,” getting a nod from her, “So daily or checks in a few times a week she needs someone to be able to notice if she goes missing right now. Besides more effort she puts into that ship less likely government will step in to take it from her.”

Both ladies said, “That won’t happen. We won’t allow it.”

“Wait till she makes it fly,” he said causing the duo to give him curious grins, “All the ships in her tales could fly.”

*.*.*

“In the headlines today once again Misique and Venom are being sued for theft of property, not property theft,” a news anchor emphasized with an amused chuckle, “But for again having placed borders around now forest filled patches of what used to be industrial land throughout Africa. Including an emerald mine that father of Elon Musk once owned and is still a large shareholder of and a plant where they create the batteries for Tesla cars.

Now as the mine has been found to have been operating on illegal means and documents towards employment President Nelson Mandela has joined the coalition of African leaders who are in favor of restoring the land to a nature reserve and stripping the proprietary rights from the mining company.

Not making many back here in the states who have been purchasing said emeralds on the cheap very happy. Least of all the shareholders, I.E. Daddy Dearest to one billionaire who is amongst the list of American based company holders who have joined the line to sue the infamous pirate duo sure to fail their try to recover the industrial lands they have been pillaging since purchase.”

The audience jeered and the streets had been echoing with the news that just like before while Misique and Venom this time were seen to be entering a courthouse once more now held the hands of a little girl and boy they had answered the call to oversee the removal of an abusive parent from their home. While mistaken for a cut and dry case, now since being handed over a simple intake swab had the parent linked to several unsolved crimes and the terrifying duo were there to ensure the children had courage to share their story as the Vigilante duo sat on the floor of the witness box to not make either child let go of their hands.

What could have been scarring for the children in the press a cover for the duo were explosive. Elon Musk and others dropped their billionaire status to the meager border just underneath middle class. Causing even Tony Stark to almost choke on his morning smoothie to the news of student and small business loan debt being wiped out in North America. Along with heavy HIV/AIDS and other medical care funding program donations to the poorer nations within the continent their companies based their part manufacturing for cheaper forms of employment with lesser laws on care for those working for them to improve profits.

Billions upon hundreds of billions were donated and medical care was going to be ensured to be instated under watch of a chosen ally, King T’Chaka who held the seat upon the foundation his neutral country had begun decades past to keep it from falling into corrupt hands. They would be granted full charge to schedule the beginnings of what was to come for many who greatly required it with full support of the country leaders who welcomed the aid and exuberance that exploded through their continent.

20 billion last time to now a hundred times more than that had been donated this time and had the world reeling, all at the words of Musk and the owners of Disney and Nestle. Who had made it personal in losing their slave labor and child smuggling production levels of their empires to keep the parts for their greater whole of merchandise rolling in. Already the latter with the ample losses had the owner on the outer edge of their seat and the monopoly enterprise having to offer up some of their dozens of acquired brands to gain funds to keep up the lawsuit.

They swore no one would forgive them for the lack of chocolate goods sold across the globe, while Musk had insulted you on an all too personal scale. Since the discovery of the ship all over Twitter and just about any platform he could extend to the self proclaimed genius had been butchering the history of your people and culture in a means to pressure the US Military to remove custody of the ship to be handed over to someone ‘more qualified’ than yourself. While Disney went silent Nestle again was battling back the apparent ‘lies’ of relying on child labor for their cocoa bean farms and Tesla had seen an up-tick in their cars suddenly exploding or falling apart in driveways or on roads that had car lots offering deals to trade in the slavery profiteering death traps.

Venom’s shriek outside your apartment building and screeching tires had woken you up to hear later on from neighbors who had gathered around Harry’s car and the confused teen himself who said, “Did you hear Elon Musk came by earlier? Apparently Venom scared him off.”

“Ah, that’s what that was. Remembered my lunch though,” you said making the teen smirk and let you in his car first to leave the people to keep talking, just what everyone in school did on your way inside to your first class.

“Don’t worry about it,” Harry said bumping his arm to yours when your paths split up, “See you at lunch.”

“See you,” you said softly and continued on only to pause in seeing a blue eyed blonde haired freshman who stopped in your way familiar from the Color Guard tryout the day before.

“Hello, um, hi,” she said clearing her throat in an awkward shift of her weight and sweater over the navy dress she had on in a grey to match her tights.

“Gwen Stacy,” you said causing her brows to arch up at your knowing her name only to let out an awkward breathy laugh realizing you had to know her name as a group leader yesterday.

“Yes, tryouts,” and after a nod she said, “I need help.”

“Are, you lost?” you asked with the end of your brow ticking up as a few people nearby pretended to not be listening in as they crept by at a snail’s pace.

“No, with the gun, rifle, throwing. Can you help me?” she asked awkwardly in pauses then all at once.

“Well I am a group leader, be a bit foolish not to fulfill my required role.”

“Good!” she said with another quick nod anxiously brushing a stray strip of hair that came loose from her ponytail behind her ears as she took in her stance a few inches taller than you even with your tall wedges on. “Today?”

“I have a shift today, I can stay after practices half an hour if you can stay late?”

“Yes! And I will buy coffee,” she said and then promptly shifted on her feet to step around you and continue in a mental battle with herself while you shifted your gaze to your former Russian Professor who chuckled in passing and commented she must be new to public school making you smirk and continue on to your class.

Lunch passed and back to the subway you went once your next class was through to head to the Columbia campus. Alone in a bench seat you sat down with focus on the notepad and one of your printed textbooks on your lap until a bodysuit clad fellow traveler who caused the car to empty slid up next to your side luring you to look up at them upon recognizing their scent. “What’s up with the boat?” Deadpool asked, clearly singed all over making you smirk unable to help but wonder how that happened. “It kind of explodes when ya touch it.”

“Magic ship,” you answered with a hint of a giggle.

“Ya think?” he replied sarcastically. “Real magic, go figure. Not a scratch on it, new scratch, that is. Something bit your magic ship.”

“Odin’s brother rode it to battle in the legends. Was lost to the seas in his victory.”

“Magic battle ship, no wonder people want it. Don’t think they know it explodes though.”

“No, not many believe it’s more than a broken ship.” You said then asked, “Tesla hire you to steal it?”

“Oh no, Disney.” He said making your brow arch up, “Apparently they’re out to get their portion of the land grab back. Technically they wanted me to kill you first, sort of a double stab to get to Misique too, but we both know how it went the last time I shot your tiny terrifying explosive friendly self. Still have the scar on my collar bone safe and sound under the rest of my scars, never leave home without it. Like a pair of invisible friendship bracelets.”

“You shot me first,” you said with a hint of a giggle in your tone.

“A mistake I won’t make twice. Was a one in a million shot you got me, got the one opening between those branches in that Japanese cherry tree forest, didn’t hit a single leaf, flower or bit of bark. I hit three. Took the money though anyways, heard some whispers Venom is in an uproar though in Queens?”

“Musk showed up on my doorstep.”

Making the hired killer chuckle throatily, “Proof he’s more wallet than brains.” And near to your ear he leaned to whisper, “Pity he didn’t get to face the mighty Duckling himself.” Making you roll your eyes.

“One person makes a joke that I carry duct tape with me and now I have another alias.”

“Prefer it to the White Dove,” he said making you smirk, “Ducks can be ferocious, formidable, and no one can resist their charm.” As you giggled he asked you, “So what, you’re nine now, right?”

“16,” you answered.

“16! Holy guacamole, that Wall-E birthday card is not going to age well then.”

“I like Wall-E,” you said.

“Good! Got the one that sings. Ran out of the glitter shooting ones.” Up at the screen reading the name of the stops scrolling from right to left he looked and said, “I worry about you, you know.” Making you look at him. “Fucked up what you go through, little girl should be able to keep her magic exploding ship.” The doors opened and he stood up to storm out clearing a path as he said, “I’m gonna blow some of their shit up, see how they like it. Teach them to believe in magic again!” Making you grin to yourself and look back down to your notebook.

“Are you alright?” A burly stranger asked in their creep into the car after ensuring there were no other threats in the train after Deadpool had left.

“Oh ya, he’s still a bit upset about the child smuggling involved in chocolate company practices.”

“Understandable, I can never look at candy the same way again.” Shaking his head he said, “Used to love me a Snickers bar.” He said on his way to his own seat in the spread of the shared sense of mourning over the clear onset of what would be a chocolate shortage. Though where those companies would struggle the ones who actually harvested the cocoa beans in legitimate ways were set to pick up in sales until Nestle proved they righted their process, if they were going to be granted a second chance at all to get those lands back ever.

*.*.*

Two words within a text message from Fury had Rhodey lift a finger in the middle of a meeting inside a hangar with new recruits to tap the fellow trainer at his side on the shoulder luring eyes onto him as he whispered, “I gotta take this. Five minutes.” The woman nodded and let him step aside while she shared the newer adaptations on the jets the military would be training the new pilots on to get battle ready fresh off their qualifying hours on digital training models.

Outside the hangar Rhodey walked with his mind spinning at the mention of an explosion and Pluto Pear’s new ship that sent Deadpool soaring through the air. Scans of her apartment showed no risk of harm to that or a trap having been laid showing still the same glowing flower shaped sensors in her window and little hint of any activity within the building at all aside from the elderly women who remained home all the time.

“Fury,” Rhodey said phoning the one who warned him via text of the odd event.

“Garage is fine.” Fury said making Rhodey shake his head as if he had sand thrown in his face.

“You just-,”

“I don’t understand it.” Fury spoke, not just to himself but to his friend.

“That makes two of us. Enlighten me.”

“We got a signal of some activity and Deadpool was sighted on his way to Queens. He went into the garage and then there was this fireball of an explosion that blasted him well into Brooklyn. I’m in the garage, I’m staring at the ship and it’s, well the fire just went out, been burning for an hour now and it just went out. May-,” he huffed at the curious agent who reached out to touch the bare rust stained metal section of the siding.

“It’s cold,” she said making him shake his head and shift on his feet to turn sideways to possibly begin pacing if he felt the need.

“And it’s cold. Fire just went out and it’s cold.”

Mariah on the other side of the ship said, “Fire read -94 degrees F, it’s up to 35F now.”

Rhodey said, “So he tampered with it, and it exploded with freezing fire.”

“And the garage is unharmed, there’s gas and oxygen tanks in here on the far wall no harm done. Unless it’s a hell of a visual trick that somehow propelled a human body into another borough to ward people off of stealing the thing…”

“Sir,” Mariah said in her step into Fury’s view from her finalizing a scan of the ship he asked her to take showing little results even when on fire aside from temperature of any mechanisms or security systems. “She did say it was Thor’s uncle’s ship. Fair to say it’s a wrecked Asgardian ship and research showed a trick to work on it.”

“What sort of trick could she dig up in a Norse myth to know how to keep an alien ship from exploding into freezing flames?” Rhodey cut in making Fury shrug and shake his head again.

“Logically, Thor is just over a thousand years old, add a couple thousand to that since he shared he never met his uncles, I can’t think of a way to hide a password or type of key or trick to their ships in a myth. They’re not called tall tales for nothing, over the years they change in translation or forgetfulness. I don’t see any markings aside from the sail, we’ve watched the videos she filmed, nothing.”

Mariah chimed in, “The tesseract was found out of legends. Pulled this out of the middle of some ocean. Bound to have found something in all those books to have brought this ashore without any explosions.”

“I’ll give Pluto a call, just try not to blow yourselves up in the meantime.”

*.*.*

Out of your purse to answer the alert of your phone you let go of the book you were holding to smirk at the call from Rhodey mid gather of your things to stand and get off on your stop. Up to your ear post press of the talk button the phone was lifted to answer, “Lt Rhodes, I um, might have a notion why you’re calling. Busy morning?”

“Well, um, have some new trainees in the hangar right now, but um, humor me, why am I calling?”

Out to the steps through a sea of people you wove between taller bodies and said, “Had a meeting with Wade Wilson on the subway bit ago. Said he was hired to steal my ship and it exploded.”

Seriously he asked with brows furrowing, “Deadpool came to, are you safe?” He asked in your trot up the steps to get to the street where you’d have a bit more room to speak.

“Met him when I was eight on a trip with Barnes to a Japanese cherry tree forest, he’s not going to hurt me, wanted to let me know who hired him to steal my ship and kill me to get at Misique.”

That had him let out a puff of air in the snap of his eyes wider at what mole to take a whack at in that sentence. “Did you know the ship explodes?”

“Sort of. Met some exiled Asgardians on my summers and they said they do latch onto the next pilot or engineer who find them once sea wrecked and refuse to be taken away from them.”

“Latch onto people,” he muttered to himself.

“In the first video when it cut my hand since then it gives off a hum when I get near it and the case on the rudder mechanism box inside the hull only opens when I’m alone.”

“Okay, that is good to know. These Asgardians, say anything else about these ships?”

“Apparently only Nobles learn on them, older and more finicky for the mandatory service citizens learn on that don’t have sails. None of them worked with them or near them, most were bakers or made clothing and furniture aside from a stone mason who’ve apparently been here since travel to Midgard was blocked a few thousand years back. No worries on any of them leveling a city, apparently by their laws if they did Odin would send a metal guardian to return them for imprisonment. Like he did for Thor.”

“They volunteered that they were from Asgard? Just, freely after thousands of years?” he asked in shock.

“I shared with you about my necklace from the Goddess Frigg.”

“Their Queen!” he exclaimed, understanding how that could come up.

“She rarely gave tokens to Midgardians. I don’t ask much of their former home but they did share the dangers of the ship to those who would try to steal it from me. And Wade more likely was curious more than anything and jumped in it to peek inside than steal it.”

“You said, he say who hired him?”

“Disney is up for some of their land back apparently, I thought Musk at first for his tantrum about my lineage and qualifications, but no they wanted to take a double sided stab on top of the lawsuit against Misique and Venom.” Approaching a crosswalk you heard him take a few deep breaths to take that news in.

“Okay, you’re heading to class right?”

“Yes, almost at the campus now.”

“I’m gonna let you focus on that, and, I’m going to make a phone call, or a few.”

“Okay, talk to you later. I think if anything they’ve pissed Wade off to the point of arson, try not to worry yourself too much.”

“Someone hired an assassin to kill you, this is beyond worrying territory. I am the one supposed to be reassuring here. We will dilute this today. I will check in on you later after practice.”

“Oh, one of the new girls asked for spare rifle help so I’ll have my phone in my locker a spare half hour.”

“Good to know, and my phone is on if you spot anything.” He ended the call and you shook your head and used the rest of the time walking to mentally through a bee resting in your hair send off a string of texts to Eddie about the news. And much like times before when the hive was convening your Symbiote tingle went off as those on Earth were bristling at the news. Conveniently out in California that was facing rolling blackouts due to power conservation to fight another wildfire one of the hive would take full advantage of this news to quell their ever thriving hunger for blood.

*.*.*

“Boots on the ground,” Steve Rogers said over his com system in a shift of his grip on the arm strap of his shield with eyes swiveling over the oddly quiet building in front of the chosen crew to take the heads of Disney into custody to find who exactly was behind the hiring.

“Heat signatures are centralized on the twelfth floor,” Stark said landing beside the heavily armed crew of men in black and grey who shared their own required radio sound offs on roles to keep eyes on various angles upon approach. The billionaire not having paid much mind as to even the name of the child who the hit was put on but chose to come along to keep Steve from murdering anyone after seeing him snap a table in half at the news of who was the target cementing the star spangled wonder’s seat on this mission. Steve hadn’t spoken the entire flight aside from a few teeth grit utterances of his best friend’s name and a string of Gaelic curses under his breath but the look in his eyes said more than he’d ever have to.

Natasha on Stark’s right brushed her fingertips across the holsters on her thighs during a mental check list of steps for this process she was tasked to oversee directly by Fury then contact him upon moment of capture of prisoners to be taken for transport and interrogation. She was the one to crack the lock on the front entrance and lead the way to the elevator Stark attached a small tablet sized generator to so it would let them up to the proper floor to avoid the stairs. And much like the other floors beneath them the twelfth would have, it had hairs on end with its unique silence mingled with copper in the air warning of blood.

Bloody handprints and smudges led to smears and bits of torn fabric and flesh that led to the board room where rather cinematically decapitated heads were taped to the head rests of their chosen chairs. While heads of other notable figures within the monopoly under the Disney umbrella were taped across the walls opposite the projection board that read a chilling message stating just who had answered this assumed unknown hit against a child. There is Chaos. There is Bloodshed. There is CARNAGE.

Up to her ear Natasha’s hand moved to reach Fury over the earpiece he was tapped into, “Fury, we’ve got a problem.” Clearly Deadpool was currently down in one of their other headquarters out of state burning messages into their otherwise perfect lawns after a few choice explosions having posted and printed signs his friends were handing out of Disney execs hiring assassins to target children. Meaning they had to work fast to round up the others who filed jointly within the lawsuit to ensure no other hitmen could be hired, or if they had plans would be uncovered prior to any damage being done.

Pt 28

@jesevans, @lilith15000, @devilishminx328, @theincaprincess, @jiminapickle

#Escaped Child Assassin #Painful memories #Emotional trauma #Eddie Brock #Venom #Gwen Stacy #Deadpool #Nick Fury #James Rhodes #Magic Ship #Death threats #Shopping #Asking for help #Carnage #Marvel

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regalbastard · 2 years

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Spoilers for ‘Jurassic World: Dominion’ ahead

So I went to the cinema today with my sister's and mother because they really wanted to watch Dominion in cinemas and they know how much I love dinosaurs and paleontology in general, also it's basically our small tradition to see Jurassic World in cinema as we have done so for every other film release.

I have to say that it was a pretty big pile of 'meh': sure, I can give it credit for at least being more entertaining than Fallen Kingdom because that one is a total slog, but this one is just really lacklustre when you scratch the surface.

Somehow, our favourite dino protag Blue managed to reproduce asexually and has a baby called Beta, and not only that, but she has magically managed to find Owen and his new family, out of all the places in the damn country, and has decided to nestle there - she's also become extremely aggressive ever since she's become a mother and she acts like she has never been bonded with Owen, as much as I hate the guy. The gigantosaurus design is ugly as hell and gets nowhere near the grace the Indominus Rex got, though I did enjoy how it was defeated by the pretty epic team-up of Rexy and a therizinosaurus. Also, nobody even mentioned the fact that the cloned girl, Maisie, released all the dinosaurs, which has caused many human deaths, and she only obsesses over the fact that she's a clone, something which they manage to retcon the cause of, funnily enough. Like, this girl is indirectly responsible for so many human deaths just because she was sad about having to kill dinosaurs for the sake of humanity’s safety, and this was not touched upon, at all.

I also wish the scientist guy had more focus, especially since he was just brimming with the potential of a redemption arc and there were absolutely zero character arcs in the entire movie - but no, the guy was just shoved to the side and got a half-assed, pseudo-redemption, I guess.

The dialogue for the movie was just so awkward and painful to sit through, and there was even one moment where one of the Jurassic Park characters, Ellie Sattler, mentions that Ian Malcolm “slid into her DM’s”, and, good gods, did I curl into myself from the pain, knowing full well just how the film’s whole dialogue will age like fucking milk. There were one too many coincidences, such as Blue magically nestling right next to Owen’s family, and then the car, containing most of the key characters, crashing down right next to the other characters, and creating a reunion. The music from the OG Jurassic Park kept on being replayed and really tried to manipulate you to feel utter nostalgia, so that you could ignore the lifeless story. Characters like Alan Grant were practically lifeless and did nothing other than be a lovesick cuckold, which sure wasn’t great, and leads me to my next point: the forced and dreadful romance between Alan Grant and Ellie Sattler, the classic characters from Jurassic World.

Yes, these two absolutely were a Thing way back in the first film, there’s no denying that, but it’s clear that they parted their ways and started their own lives while keeping in contact with each other, which was shown in Jurassic Park 3. I think the one thing the third Jurassic Park movie, shallow and mundane as it was, was the mutual respect and platonic love Ellie and Alan had for each other - even though they were no longer together romantically, these two very clearly cared for each other and always had each other’s backs, no matter how far apart they were, as seen by Ellie rescuing Alan and the team with the backup of the military and navy. As any of my followers know, I am a total sucker for platonic shit, especially male-female friendships, so their relationship has always been delightful for me to watch.

But no, the directors and producers of Dominion really looked at their wholesome, caring friendship, went ‘a loving friendship between a man and a woman? Nonsense!’ and practically shat all over it and turned it into a pining shit show, and, boy oh boy, was it uncomfortable to watch, not to mention just how cliche and painfully predictable it was, too. These guys desperately wanted their ship to become canon, and it was so disappointing.

All in all, I definitely have more issues that haven’t been discussed here, but I just want the Jurassic World franchise to die already, it’s been dragged out for way too long and I am sick to death of having to see studios get away with lifeless garbage like this.

#jurassic world #jurassic world: dominion #regal rambles #<- because this isn't a very serious post lol

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elegantsparklyllama · 5 days

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Smaller and Smaller Circles by F.H. Batacan Thoughts

I usually hesitate to read socio-realism books. In my honest opinion, most Filipino media is oversaturated with socio-realism. To justify the existence and purpose of an artform in a country where arts are looked down upon, Filipino artists often resort to socio-realism. I'm not saying socio-realism is a bad genre but as a consumer I'm getting tired of seeing it. I just want some variety ya know?

Smaller and Smaller Circles is dubbed as the first crime novel in the Philippines and it obviously sits in the socio-realism genre. The book follows two Jesuit priests as the NBI (the National Bureau of Investigation) assigns them to investigate the mysterious murders of young boys in Payatas.

What I love about this book is that it doesn't feel like a commentary first and a fiction seconds. Batacan incorporated both the socio-realism and fiction elements to create an entertaining yet interesting peek at the issues of the Philippines.

The priests feel like genuinely engaging characters rather than blank slates. Father Saenz and Jerome are the Sherlock Holmes and John Watson the Philippines needed. I would love to read investigating other mysteries. Most characters, although appearing in a scene or two stood out because of their quirky personalities. They feel like people I could talk to in the street.

My favorite character is Ben Arcinas. His redemption is beautiful, from an attention-seeking lawyer to a more cooperative worker, able to work with Saenz and Jerome. I love reading scenes where he is in. The character I least liked is Joanna. She is spunky and sharp but she doesn't stand out to me. Another character who I least like is the serial killer himself but I'm not gonna spoil.

I feel I can't enjoy this book without overlooking the reality that is reflected in the story and in real life. The book has a way of testing my empathy and biases about the country I live in. I relate more with the priests and the priviledged characters in the story rather than the boys who were murdered. We get glimpses of the boys' lives when they lived which aids to the tragedy. The NBI doesn't want to waste their time investigating the serial murders because of the boys' economic status.

I want to see people create fun fanart and fanfiction of this book but it simultaneously feels wrong.

The dreariness of the story and reality ironically made the two protagonists stand out even more. In a country of incompetent government officials and law enforcers, Father Saenz and Jerome stand out as a shining light amidst the darkness. They are the people whom I wish exist in real life. Although Batacan shows the deep-seatedo corruption in institutions such as the church and the NBI, I find this story very optimistic in its lense. Characters like Arcinas could be better people and a predator like Father Ramirez could be served justice. If it weren't for Director Lastimosa, the case wouldn't even be touched by the NBI.

At the end, everything in the story ties up into a neat little bow, a far cry from reality.

BTW, I haven't seen the movie yet and from the trailers, it doesn't match the imagined vibes of the book. And Father Emil is a sweetie.

#f.h. batacan #smaller and smaller circles #review #book review #night thoughts #rant

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lettuceflower · 3 years

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Alright, now that the episode has officially aired and everyone has seen the iconic Akito Flying Choke Slam™, here’s a compilation I would like to call:

Season 3 Moments I am Worried About

(aka moments that are already dramatic enough but the director is probably going to turn them up to an 11 because more intense = better, apparently. 🙄)

spoilers under the cut of course.

kyo’s dream

kagura SLAP

haru’s rage

ren shenanigans 🤪🔪

attempted stab

the actual stab

tohru’s cliff fall

kyo and yuki FINAL FIGHT

#fruits basket #tohru honda #yuki sohma #kyo sohma #akito sohma #LOL THERE ARE SO MANY INTENSE SCENES THEY COULD POTENTIALLY RUIN #it’s bound to happen to one of them #place your bets on which ones will get the flying choke slam treatment! :)#(im sorry im being very snarky right now but im doing this to cope)#god i really hate to say it but these moments are a big reason why i’m not as hyped for season 3 #i don’t hate these moments in the manga but knowing how this adaptation has been going i can’t help but go into every ep nervously now #i hate that i have to watch this anime like ‘oh man what emotional scene are they going to make over-the-top this time”’#i wish i could just sit down and enjoy the show but the director has tramped all my good will towards this adaptation by this point #this is why i watch the ep and then immidiately reread the equivalent manga chapters to cleanse myself LOL #i’m sorry for sounding whiny i just wish they didn’t feel the need to overdo moments like these #i genuinely think at the very least one of these is going to be botched #mark my words #probably anything with the knife is gonna be soooo bad #also tohru’s cliff fall is going to look real bad -_-#fruba posts

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outivv · 2 years

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Hey! Tysm for all the writes you do for me :) also I love it when you add other characters cuz I only simp for tao lol, it's nice to see the others :)

Ngl you've inspired me to post my own writes on here! Thank ya, I hope ur day is amazing

Could I ask for a s/o who's struggling with self worth/depression (if not that's ok) and Hu Tao and whoever else telling them that they'll stay and love them no matter what? :3

Synopsis: s/o struggling with self worth and depression

Warnings: insecurity, mentions of depression/ depression like symptoms, and not proofread

Game/ fandom: genshin impact

Characters: hu tao, xiao, and zhongli

Pronouns for reader: gender neutral/ not mentioned

A/n: hello again! I genuinely really like writing your requests, you always have really fun prompts for me! And I’m glad I could inspire you to write your own stuff! I hope you enjoy, and take care of yourself!

— hu tao —

Hu tao is someone who used to struggle with that same thing when she just became the funeral director, she felt she couldn’t live up to the former funeral directors reputation, and everything she wanted to do for the funeral parlor was considered “bad”

She understands how you feel considering self worth, and will do anything to have you see yourself the same way she does.

Hu tao will notice immediately when you start feeling depressed/ considering your own self worth, and her heart will absolutely break.

“Love…?” Hu tao said peeking around the corner. You were in the kitchen, making yourself some lunch on your day off. You let out a soft ‘hm’ your attention not shifting away from your lunch. “Have you been feeling ok recently?” Hu tao asks, she seems… quieter than usual, her normal excitable nature, seems to have… faltered, and was replaced with a more serious undertone. “Yeah I’m ok. Why?” You quickly respond, looking at her for the first time for this entire conversation. “Oh no reason… but you know I love you right?” Walking over to you and cupping your face, she says with love and adoration in her voice, “I think you’re amazing, and I’ll think that no matter what.” A smile spreads across both of your faces. You giggle, and say a small thank you.

— xiao —

Xiao understands, but he wishes you wouldn’t feel this way. He’ll almost force you not to feel that way, and when that doesn’t work and you deny you feel even slightly depressed, he be aimed frustrated.

Xiao is someone who doesn’t… say he loves you, but would rather show you. He would rather show you that he thinks your wonderful, show you that you’re worth all the love that he gives you and more.

“Xiao?” You say looking over at the adeptus in front of you. You were sitting under a tree, reading your book, when xiao just suddenly appeared in front of you, a glare plastered on his face. He seemed like he was seething with anger, and that his anger was directed at you. “Move over.” He sternly said, and you did just that. Quickly moving over, so he could plop down next to you. “Do you… need something?” You ask, genuinely worried. “I need you to know that you’re… great.” Xiao said, his ears turning a bright red. He rested his head on your shoulder suddenly, almost dreading the moment that he thought you would shove him off for acting weird. But that never happened. Instead, he heard your giggles and the souls of pages flipping, “thank you xiao.” He keeps his eyes closed, “so stop… feeling like you’re not great.” You giggled again, “ok… I’ll make sure of it for you”

— zhongli —

Zhongli isn’t very familiar with these feelings himself. Sure he has felt depressed, especially when his friends were slaughtered by other gods, that he just couldn’t fight…

He definitely notices the moment your attitude and demeanor changes, but doesn’t say anything about it.

You’re laying in bed, little to no motivation to leave the comfort, warmth, and most importantly security of the bed. But you had to go to work… beyond would wonder where you were, more work would be placed on them, you’d have more work tomorrow… you didn’t wanna burden anyone. “Love I’m coming in.” You heard zhongli say, walking into the bedroom. When he saw you still in your pajamas, just laying in bed, he was… worried, “darling? Why aren’t you getting ready for work?” You just simply shook your head and said, “I can’t…” you felt like there was a weight in your chest, suffocating you, making you sink into the bed further, and further… until shingling spoke, “hm… I see… I’m sorry to hear that. But, on my way to the store today, I’ll let your boss know that you’re not feeling well and taking today, and tomorrow off.” Your eyes widened and you quickly looked over to him, “what…? You’d do that?” He smiled warmly, and said, “of course I would. I love you, so… I’d do anything to make you feel well.”

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incomprehensiblelentils · 3 years

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Bering and Wells Reunion Panel Transcription (4/17/2021)

This is from the ClexaCon Virtual panel with Joanne Kelly and Jaime Murray, with Dana Piccoli as moderator and Mark as ASL interpreter. I spent around six hours on this and there were really only a couple of brief bits I couldn’t make out - I tried to make this as thorough as possible even though the audio quality was iffy at points and there was a lot of overlapping talking. I also included all of the ums and uhs in the interest of thoroughness so sorry if that gets annoying. Let me know if I’ve gotten any screen names wrong.

Content notes: brief discussion of on-set injury, allusions to homophobia from higher-ups, discussions of hostile workplace experiences due to gender, brief discussion of the ovarian cancer subplot, Jo misgenders Mark once and then corrects herself.

Dana: And I think we are live! Hey everyone, welcome, welcome, this is day 2 of ClexaCon Virtual. So glad to be here with you for our Warehouse 13 Bering and Wells panel. What a great video! I believe that was Mal that made that. Fantastic work! [They showed a fanvid prior to the panel on the stream.] Uh, I want to take a second to introduce Mark, our ASL interpreter. Thank you so much for being here, Mark. Well, I know that the Bering and Wells fandom is still going strong and, um, I’m so excited to be able to present this panel to you today, so without further ado, let’s get started. It’s been seven years since we last embarked on the wonderfully quirky world of Warehouse 13 and we’re thrilled to have not one, but two of the show’s stars here with us, Bering and Wells in the flesh, please welcome Joanne and Jaime!

Jo: [laughs] Hi!

Jaime: Hi guys!

Dana: Hi!

Jaime: Oh my goodness, I was tearing up watching that, that was just...

Dana: It’s so good, right?

Jaime: And Mal made it, of course, I mean just, the fandom is so amazing, that we have a fan who made that amazing movie, and I’m sitting here... were you tearing up, Jo?

Jo: Yeah... [laughs]

Dana: She’s like, I can’t talk right now!

Jaime: Aww.

Jo: Yeah, it’s, you know, it’s like, it’s like a, a wormhole, it’s like going in a wormhole, really, to see that put together in that way, and just, that somebody did that is, um, crazy, wonderful.

Jaime: Yeah.

Dana: When, when we are in person in, uh, in, in Las Vegas, I’m often backstage with the actors as they see these videos maybe f- for the first time, and your reaction is the reaction that everyone has. They all get teary, they all just like hold onto each other, it’s, it’s really sweet and wonderful.

Jaime: Oh my gosh, I, I wish I could go back in time and like, we film more of it and, and enjoy it more, because sometimes when you’re in it, you’re just going so fast and, you know, you don't even realize the meaning of, of, of what you’ve created until you see it through the eyes of the fans and what it meant to them, and then I, I wish I could lean into it more. [laughs]

Dana: Well, we’re certainly gonna get into that. [laughs]

Jaime: [laughs]

Dana: Alright, well, let’s kick things off! Uh, as of a we- a week ago, I was prepping to interview Jaime, and then suddenly the heavens opened up, and what was one became two. [they laugh] Joanne joined the party! How did this crazy kismet even happen?

Jo: I’m trying this new thing where I say yes. [laughs]

Jaime: [laughs] Well done!

Jo: Thanks. [laughs] Um, it’s a new thing I’m trying. Um, Jaime texted me and she’s like, I'm doing this thing, we had talked about it, I think the last panel we did at Dragon*Con maybe?

Jaime: Yeah.

Dana: 2018.

Jo: And she had told me about ClexaCon and I was like, that, because I really enjoyed that panel that we did, it felt, you know, I think one of the reasons, and I think that the work between us is, and I look at it now and I’m so touched because I, and I also just think the world of Jaime as an actor, I think she’s brilliant and her choices are so clean and-

Jaime: Ditto.

Jo: -full heart forward, like I, I’ve always been a fan of what she bought, and just personally on set I was in a, it was a very male environment, and Jaime came and I was like, oh my god, like, someone to talk to, someone who cared, and she took care of me, like she really - so I just, I don’t know, when she reached out I was like, of course, yes, yes.

Dana: Like it’s in two days, sure! Let’s, let’s go!

Jaime: We missed each other as well. It was also an opportunity to hang out, like, we missed each other!

Jo: Yeah.

Jaime: We had this flurry of texts of like, checking in with each other, and what-

Jo: What have you been watching? what are you doing?

Jaime: Yeah.

Jo: Where are you?

Jaime: Yeah, so.

Dana: Oh, that’s amazing! So you’ve maintained this really wonderful friendship since, since the end of the show.

Jo: Yeah, I mean, actors are nomads and we’re very sort of, I feel, Jaime, I don’t know if you feel the same way, but it’s like those friends that you have that you don’t see forever, but when you see them you fall back into a rhythm automatically, there’s never, it doesn’t feel push or pulled, it’s just, it’s just nice.

Jaime: I, I think also for us, um, I think there’s a sisterhood as well, you know, I think that, you know, Jo just touched on it. You know, often in a cast there’s, um, it’s changing and it’s evolving all the time, and this was seven years ago, and it was seven years before that, it started, so like fourteen years ago-

Jo: Oh my god. [laughs]

Jaime: But there’s, ninety nine point five percent of the people behind the camera are men, the majority of the parts are often men, or it’s, it’s male and women, but the men have the more heroic bits and the funnier lines and you’re kind of struggling with that and you’re glad to be working so you’re kind of making good and making it okay, but you’re kind of like, you know, getting feels, and, you know, as, as Joanne said, it, you know, you’re laughing at dick jokes when you don’t find them particularly funny- [all laugh]

Jo: Like wow! Oh! [sarcastic thumbs up]

Jaime: And so when I came in, I saw Jo - I had been on shows, like I was on a show called Hustle, I was the only girl in the cast, and then everybody, uh, behind the camera was, um, all men. Um, on Warehouse we had one female writer on some episodes, um, we never had a fe- uh, um, a female director on anything or a producer-

Jo: No we had, we had Tawn- [presumably about to mention Tawnia McKiernan] we had two fem- we had a few, but we were-

Jaime: No- no- not on my, not on my episodes.

Jo: Oh, on yours.

Jaime: But it was just like, I came in and I saw Jo and I understood, and I knew what her experience was, and so there was this kind of kinhood, this sisterhood, and I think it, it’s not a male-female thing, but it’s, it’s a minority and majority thing. When you’re in a minority and the majority is doing something, you either have to get down with the program and go with that flow, or you get kind of fe- you feel like you’re difficult or annoying to everybody. And I kind of came in and I just was like, oh like, I get it, it’s hard, and I’m gonna give this woman, like, my, my energy and my love and, so it was-

Dana: So you were like I- you looked at Joanne and you were like, that is someone I can smash the patriarchy with!

Jaime: [laughs] Yes.

Dana: Let’s do it!

Jo: No, I read a lot of books [laughs] when we weren’t filming. I would like get on my chair and just be like this. [mimes holding book in front of face]

Jaime: Yes!

Jo: [laughs] Like I’m doing this now, I’ll see you guys when we’re rolling again, you know, it was really- and, but also, you know, it’s so, and it is changing, it’s changing and evolving in a really, um, at a wonderful rate, but also I would get so excited to be in a scene with another woman that wasn’t about a man, you know, or that we weren’t- uh, it was just so nice to have girl-girl scenes. That never happens, it hardly ever happens. Like, the majority of scenes that you do are about love or acrimony with men, um, and it’s so nice to have a relationship with a woman that’s, um, sort of reflective of how relationships with women actually are. Um, I’ve been, I shifted into writing because of frustration with just not reading stories that I felt were reflective of our, my experience as a woman, you know, that sort of, um, and I think that Bering and Wells sort of in, I mean, that’s when that ship turned for me, as well.

Dana: Well ho- hold that thought, we are, we are going there!

Jaime: And, and also because it wasn’t, it actually wasn’t written. Um, there was, in a way we were able to steer that ship, and then we’d already kind of given a road map for the way this energy was, so it wasn’t written in the conventional way. Like, even like, when a, when a, when a, when a woman will have a love interest it’s, it’s often written by men and it’s o- often in a conventional kind of way, whereas our relationship, at a time before people were even kind of, uh, exploring this that much, um, now, now much more, thank god, it’s more, more inclusive. But it was more kind of, um, uh, complicated than, than maybe would’ve been written about, so it was given more nuance, yeah.

Jo: You mean like, do you mean like actual relationships? [laughs]

Jaime: You what? Say that again?

Jo: Like actual relationships! [laughs]

Jaime: Yeah, yeah, yeah. [laughs]

Jo: You know, that don’t come in and you have a “where they start and where they finish,” like that we, oh, we know where they’re gonna end up so we’ll just gonna-

Dana: Right, right.

Jo: -move them around like chess pieces. It was actually an energy that Jaime and I created, and the story sort of evolved from that energy as - it was inside out as opposed to outside in, which I think made it a real relationship.

Dana: Well, so my friend Dorthy Snarker, she once said that HG and Myka’s storyline has been main text pretending to be subtext, which feels really apt to me.

Jaime: Yeah!

Dana: So at what point-

Jo: Very smart.

Dana: What point in the show did it really click with the two of you that this connection that HG and Myka shared was something much deeper?

Jo: Jaime just had, Jaime, you just explained this very coolly in, in, um-

Jaime: One of our chats.

Jo: Yeah, yeah. Why don’t you speak to this, why don’t you take this?

Jaime: Well, well, first of all like I said, there was like kind of this sisterhood when I came in and, um, Jo, uh, Jo wasn’t like, like it wasn’t like I came in and she was like hey let’s be friends. I came in and she was behind a book, and she wasn’t particularly accessible, and she wasn’t, like, she was a bit grumpy, you know. And so I was like, my personality type is like, how do I crack this nut? [laughs] How do I make this woman love me? [laughs] This is the most unaccessible woman-

Dana: That explai- Jaime that explains a lot! [laughs]

Jaime: This is the most unaccessible women on the set, the mo- the most unaccessible human to me. How do I make her fall in love with me? So it’s like partly my narcissism-

Jo: [laughs] Jaime Murray in a nutshell, everyone!

Jaime: -and my ego, um, so I was kind of winning her over off set, and then, you know, as she was opening up to me and, you know, she was kind of telling me about some of the challenges she was coming up against, I was like, yeah, that’s, that’s not fair, and yeah, I completely get that, you know. So we were kind of like having that kind of journey, I’m like, like, I’m like, oh no, you’re not crazy, everyone else is crazy! Like, let’s smash the patriarchy!

Jo: [laughs]

Jaime: And then, and then unfortunately, um, Jo hurt herself really badly doing a stunt, and, um, you know, there’s no time to hurt yourself on a film set, and there’s no time to take time and, and kind of heal your back or anything like that. So she was taking some pretty strong painkillers and she was working through it, and I had spinal surgery, I, I know what back pain is like, it’s, it’s the worst. I mean, it’s literally everything, you know, you feel like an old person. And so I was, um, taking care of her as best as I could, and we had the scene, and it was the scene in the street where, I, I think it's the first scene that, where I get the grappler out-

Dana: Oh, the grappler.

Jaime: And I shoot it into the air and I put my arm around her and we shoot up-

Dana: We’re very familiar with this scene. [laughs]

Jo: [doing grappler motion] [laughs]

Jaime: Yeah, so, so it’s like, it had like, physicality, and also it was a really, um, we always laugh that Toronto has about five seasons in one day, so you’ll like start shooting the scene and then suddenly there’s a, like a snowstorm! Bright sunshine!

Jo: Then it’s sunny! Then rain!

Jaime: Torrential rain, wind - and it was one of those, and we had to move to a new location, we were really behind in the day, and she had this one pice of hair that kept on like blowing in her face-

Dana: Oh, I know where this is going, Jaime. [laughs]

Jaime: And she was, the thing was, she was like, also these painkillers-

Jo: I was like, I can’t even see with the hair, I was like, I was hopped up on so many painkillers...

Jaime: Yeah, she was hopped up, she was like, I can’t even get my hair out of the way!

Jo: I think I actually called that day, it was the only time where I was like, guys I can’t work anymore, like, I literally, the doctor was like, you need to rest and I’m like I can’t. And the first AD came over to me and he was like, you’re gonna have to say stop, because nobody is gonna stop the filming, and I didn't wanna do that because you don't want to be the person that, that loses the day.

Jaime: That’s part of it, isn’t it? You’re, you can’t be, you can’t have any vulnerability or be a woman in any way, any shape or form on a film set. [laughs]

Jo: Yeah.

Jaime: So I knew in the morning, and so I’d been like trying to take care of her and had, had like this experience of having spinal surgery, so I was like caretaking as much, as best as I could. I’m a Cancerian as well, so it’s in my nature.

Dana: Sure.

Jaime: And, um, and we‘re in this scene and we’d had to kind of cut so many times, and this hair just kind of-

Jo: [laughs]

Jaime: -came over her face like this, and I just lent forward and on my line I just moved the hair out of her, um, face and put it back, and there was this, this look of genuine-

Jo: [laughs]

Jaime: -surprise and shock in her face because we hadn’t rehearsed it and, and, and you know, we rehearse everything, and then, and then Joanne, what did you say that you-

Jo: I said I had this feeling, you know, when she did that I was like, oooh, um, what’s happening? [laughs]

Dana: [laughs]

Jaime: What are these feelings I’m having?

Jo: I did not expect all these feelings.

Jaime: Someone is being nice to me in this hostile world!

Jo: I was like this is so, it was like, pink light came up and there was glitter all of a sudden, and a unicorn in the back and, um-

Dana: Yep.

Jaime: They were really good drugs, you can’t, they’re illegal now, you can’t get them now cause they’re illegal now, but-

Jo: [laughs] No, no! But that point I’d say that the storyline really developed from inside out, you know outside, it was actually something, she did something that made me respond in a certain way, and as an actor you have those openings and you can choose to go, you either close them, like if, if I don’t like an actor [laughs] and someone does something, I might go like, no, I don’t wanna gonna go with that- [laughs]

Jaime: Yeah.

Jo: -and change the track, but because I love Jaime and, and that happened, I sort of just was like I’m gonna go with this energy and see where it leads. And so it was a very organic, and it took me completely, and I had not expected it, it took me completely- but I liked it, so I started, then that...

Dana: So you are the reason, you two are the captains of the Bering and Wells ship. You made that happen!

Jaime: Yeah.

Jo: Yeah.

Jaime: But also I felt like HG, you know, she came from an era when the suffragette movement was, um, happening, and she was active in that, however, she had to write under her brother’s name, um-

Dana: Yeah.

Jaime: And as a woman, you know, she couldn’t be even open about her brilliance and she had to let her dimwitted brother take credit for it, and then she was frozen. So she was an activist before her time and suddenly she’s waking up in a world where there’s this dynamic woman, gun-toating woman kind of using her wits and brainpower and like, god bless Pete [laughs] but he was a little bit, like, she was the brains and the brilliance, and often he would be kind of like, you know, taking the credit for it or like having the girls flirt with him, and I just felt like if I grow up, if I woke up from, you know, a dream of, of being a suffragette and I woke up and I saw Myka, surely I would be more fascinated-

Jo: [laughs]

Jaime: -by this woman who is everything that I had ever wished to be, so I started playing off this fascina- I was fascinated by her. Pete was just as stupid as my brother. [laughs]

Jo: And I do have to say, I do have to give the showrunner Jack Kenny credit here too, because Jack really let us run with it and started to lean into it, and the writers were all very accepting, so it was, and, and Jack particularly, you know, we had a lot, we had our creative differences, but he was really generous in this storyline with us, like I think, he gave us a lot of rope to play with-

Jaime: Yeah.

Jo: And it was interesting rope, because they never-

Dana: It was attached to a grappling hook is what it was!

Jo: Yeah, and they never, like what i really loved about it is the never like put it on the nose it was always very elliptical, we always had room to breathe, um-

Jaime: Well partly I don’t, I think that it was, it was, it’s funny to talk about it now because it doesn't seem that long a- long ago, but it-

Jo: But it was so long ago...

Jaime: -it was unusual-

Jo: For that.

Jaime: -for the genre and for the audience that we were going for to, to actually go there, um,

Dana: Yeah. Seven years ago, you’re absolutely right. Things have changed tremendously, and especially in the last five years.

Jo: Yeah, yeah.

Jaime: And, but I think that Jack and Drew, they were kind of excited about what we were doing, but actually, you know, we weren't sure what the network would say or what the advertisers might think, and so, um, you know, I’m really proud of the work that we were able to, to say-

Jo: Yeah.

Jaime: You know, being the first in some ways.

Jo: It’s interesting, you know, like Jaime texted me, she sent me this video and I was looking at it and I was just so proud-

Jaime: I sent you Mal’s video, I sent you one of Mal’s other videos.

Jo: She’s wonderful, so like shoutout to her!

Jaime: Yeah

Jo: That’s, yeah, it was gorgeous, and I was really proud of the work, you know, after, it’s, you create these things in a bubble and, I haven’t se- I haven’t seen Warehouse, I never watched it. [laughs] so I’m always very surprised to see these videos, it feels like I’m cracking open-

Jaime: And I want to say as well, you know, when we say we haven’t down and watched all the shows, or you know, in some peoples’ cases, many of the shows, you know, it’s, it’s not because we don’t love the show and we don't love the work that everyone else has done, done, it’s actually a lot of actors don't watch, um, their own work. It’s, if, if you’ve ever heard your own voice on an answer phone or something and you're like, who’s that? Oh my god, that’s me!

Dana: [laughs]

Jaime: Like, so when you see yourself on TV or screen it’s like that on crack, it’s absolutely terrifying, and, and you’re like oh my god, like behind a pillow, like-

Jo: Filled with self loathing and despair. [laughs]

Jaime: Yes.

Dana: That’s okay.

Jaime: Which is a work in progress, I’m trying to deal with that now.

Dana: Well, when, at what point did you realize that queer people were actually starting to flock to the show to support this direction with these characters?

Jaime: We, we didn't know, we didn’t know-

Dana: No?

Jaime: Well, we, um, I, um, Jo’s not on social media so I don’t know when she knew, other than maybe when I told her. I saw replies on twitter-

Jo: Comic Con.

Dana: Somebody didn’t like hire a plane and like, around the area with like, a Bering and Wells forever…?

Jo: I, I remember, I remember going to Comic Con, for me because that’s’ when I had the fan interaction, um, because I wasn’t on Twitter-

Jaime: Yeah, there were fans that told us.

Jo: And, and, uh, a lot of the women, I remember being asked some very specific questions during panels, and, you know, there's a lot of guys who like to talk at those panel so I didn’t get to talk a lot but I made it quite, I, I made it quite clear about how important that storyline was to me and it, it, I realized very quickly that it was important to a lot more women than me. I didn’t really realize, too, that storytelling wasn’t represented in that way, at that point, you know. I didn’t feel that. I didn’t feel like that was a groundbreaking choice, to choose to be attracted to a woman in a scene to me is life, it’s how I live my life, I, I’m you know, I don’t have those, I’m not in a box [laughs] and it so when I realized, it was a eye-opening moment. I’m like, I’m like, wait, wait, this is, this is something new that’s not being done?

Dana: You guys were kind of on, you were like right here [miming going up a hill or mountain] and then shortly after Warehouse, it started going like [woosh noise of going down the other side of the hill] and this wave of representation started happening.

Jaime: Well, ev- even in Warehouse, there was an openly gay character in, in Warehouse.

Dana: Right, yes!

Jo: Yeah, yeah, there was Aaron.

Jaime: But it’s been, it’s been incredibly, um, powerful for, for, for, for me, um, you know, I I, think that a lot of people, some people are like oh my god, you know, I wish I could go back to my childhood or my teenage years, I, you could not pay me anything for, I would not go back to my teenage years for love or money. It was, it was a incredibly painful time for me, um, and not a particularly happy time for me, and, um, you know, just awkwardness, you know, all the stuff that, you know, all the stuff people feel in their teens, all the bad stuff I felt in my teens, so when I’ve spoken to people at conventions, um, and they've’ spoken to me about, um, Warehouse having, and our relationship in Warehouse having a positive effect for them in their teen, in their painful teenage years, it’s, it, it, it can bring me to tears, because i- if I could have imagined having kind of that, some kind of impact when I’d been a teenager maybe I wouldn't have been so miserable, but, um, I’m really humbled by it. it’s really lovely.

Dana: Yeah, you, you most certainly have had a tremendous impact on a lot of peoples’ lives and I’m so glad that you are able to take that and keep it in your heart.

Jaime: Yeah.

Dana: Speaking of this kind of sea change of the last few years, do you think that if Warehouse had been airing now that things might have ended differently? Do you think that maybe that subtext really would have been pulled much more into main text?

Jaime: You’d know better, Jo.

Jo: I...don’t know the answer to that question, um, perhaps, actually, absolutely! It’s twenty twenty-

Jaime: If we were writing it, maybe.

Jo: I mean, that’s what I’m trying to do. [laughs] Um, yeah, I think so. Maybe we would have been able to lean more into that storyline, um-

Jaime: Maybe we would’ve had a, be a stronger voice in shaping the narrative there.

Jo: It, yeah, I mean, Jack was, Jack was great about it, but it, it was a different, it was a different era. I think now is, is really a beautiful time for storytelling in the sense that it is really becoming so much more inclusive and we have representation, which, I mean, seeing ourselves represented in stories is how we understand ourselves in the world, and that’s, it’s so important, you know, it’s so important where we’re going, um, and I wish there could have been more of that in Warehouse, but I’m glad there was what there was.

Dana: Yeah.

Jaime: I, I, I also think that, um, you know, it’s changed so much in just such a short space of time, but particularly in the last couple of years, like, women were always, um, portrayed like, like, women always had to be perfect and kind of cute, and, you know, there had to be kind of something attractive or charming about them at all times, you know, and so we always had to put a bow on a woman to make her acceptable. And one of the things that I’m really loving is, you know, that women can be flawed and they can still, you can still love them and, you know, one of the things that always stun- stunned me is that I’ve been so welcomed into a community of kind, inclusive, um, you know, powerful activist, um, women, uh, um, and I’m like, why do these amazing women even like my characters when I’ve played such, um, a bad character, and it’s like-

Dana: But, but we love that! Queer women love a villain!

Jaime: Well, it’s like, flawed characters, and it’s like, and then recently I watched this show called, um, I hate Suzie Pickles [actual title of show: I Hate Suzie], um, there’s a show called, um, uh, I May Destroy You. They’re British shows, actually, both are.

Dana: Oh, yeah, it’s so good.

Jaime: And they, these are complex, um, women who make bad choices, and they self sabotage and they do things that are kind of frowned upon in society, and yet I love them, these women, and it’s like, if I can love these women for all their flaws, then maybe I'm okay too. And I think that we, we have to allow women to be flawed and lovable instead of just being cute little heroines that kind of support men at all times. I mean, it’s changed so much, that’s kind of, like the old, the old order of what it used to be, like, but yeah, it’s exciting.

Dana: That happe- That was what was written in my yearbook! Just, Dana Piccoli, flawed but lovable.

Jaime: Ah! [laughs]

Dana: So I totally, I totally can appreciate that.

Jaime: Was it that? Was it- that would be the best!

Dana: [laughs] I love that.

Jaime: Flawed and lovable, not but.

Dana: Oh yeah, yes, flawed and lovable, sorry, sorry. That’s, that’s what, that’s where I went wrong in the yearbook.

Jaime: Exactly.

Dana: Uh, J- Jaime. A lot has been made of this, the apples scene.

Jaime: Yes.

Dana: Do you think I smell apples is basically saying “I love you”? Were you, what do you think that Helena was trying to express at that time?

Jaime: I, I, I think that it was, um, a sense of, uh, acceptance, and, um, and, and, and, and, and love, I mean, uh, because Helena had always been such a, kind of a troubled character in so many ways and she had kind of, um, these struggles and this darkness and these mental health issues and I think that “I smell apples” was a, a, a wa- wa- was, she, she’d kind of come to the light, you know, she, she had, had kind of accepted herself, and it was such an altruistic act of love, she was sacrificing herself in order to save the others, that it was true love, like she’d overcome the darkness. So it was, uh, I, I, I, I, love that, uh, moment, yeah, that kind of-

Jo: I know we wanted, uh, one of the most beautiful definitions of love onscreen is recognition of your soul in someone else.

Dana: Mhmm.

Jo: That’s really what happens, and I thought that when Jaime did that, there was a very beautiful, I mean it’s sort of like Romeo and Juliet. You see this moment of, and we talked about it earlier, that energy, that to me is that. what that is-

Jaime: Yes.

Jo: -the scene is, “I smell apples.” It’s these two people who see each other in each other and are profoundly connected, whether, in whatever way that it is, it’s just a profound connection, you know, and so often we find boxes to put these connections in, you know, as humans, we want to make sense, we want to make logic of them, you know, which is, I think, um, why storytelling suffers in the representation, because you want to define what a thing is and kind of, um, the most beautiful things about some of the most special relationships is they, they're beyond what you can say they are, they’re beyond categorization, they are, you know...

Jaime: I, I, I definitely think that, although it wasn’t written in that way, I mean, if you actually go back and look at the footage, I’m saying “I love you” to, uh, uh, HG is saying “I love you” to Myka and Myka is is let-

Jo: I only think that’s what she was saying.

Jaime: -letting, letting it land.

Dana: Confirmation, folks! Confirmation, um, everyone!

Jo: In here. [points to head]

Dana: Write it in your vows, write it now in your vows!

Jo: Dana, you’re funny! [laughs]

Dana: Thank you!

Jaime: But wh- when, when did I come back and I was like, married to, what-

Dana: You, you weren't married, you were with a gentleman, and he had a, a young child and-

Jaime: And he was a bit of a drip as well!

Jo: And the house was very suburban, that’s all I remember was, I like walked into this house and I was like-

Jaime: That was, was that, I don’t really know the chronological, um, ordering, but like, I had like a ponytail, and I had a, possibly-

Jo: You were probably like driving a minivan.

Dana: You were teaching, you were teaching, weren’t you?

Jaime: Cause wasn’t I [indecipherable]

Jo: It’s okay, Jaime, I [indecipherable]

Dana: You were like in Phoenix or something.

Jaime: Yeah so, so what was that, after a bit I, so like “I smell apples” was the ending of my character, right? So like that, was that after a bit-

Dana: Right, and then you got rev- you were brought back-

Jaime: Right.

Dana: And then you kind of disappeared for a bit.

Jaime: Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Dana: Yes. Yeah, um-

Jaime: Yeah.

Dana: The, um, the, the, uh, the fans [laughs] were, um, confused by that, were like what?

Jaime: I d- I’m confused, I’m confused! [laughs]

Jo: Not just the fans, not just the fans.

Jaime: Well, I actually, um, I, I, I really want to go back and see that scene, um, I, I feel like you came to, I don’t, I was living in like suburbia-

Dana: Mhm.

Jaime: And, and didn’t you come to-

Jo: I don't remember.

Jaime: -the house and I, I think you came to-

Jo: I remember that horrible house though, because it was like, it… [makes disgusted face]

Jaime: It was so weird and I was like hello, I’m kind of like a completely different woman!

Jo: It was like very Stepford, I like, I walked in and, I don’t know why Myka was so accepting, I would’ve taken a baseball bat to the house, gonna be like, we’re leaving!

Jaime: So, so, so, so, I, so I, Jack, so Jack, Jack-

Jo: Get out of here, you drank the Kool Aid!

Jaime: I remember Jack was there and I was like, um, uh, oh, like this, like, like this doesn't work because of this and this doesn’t work because of that, and I was having a little, kind of like a creative difference with him, and, and he left for the day, he left for the day, and I really want to go back and see that s- that, that scene, because I remember I was asking him if I could, yeah, I know it’s, it says this but could I play it like this? And I do- I remember he didn’t want me to for the storyline, but I remember he left. [laughs] So I’d love to go back and see, I, I remember think- feeling like I was quite naughty, that I actually got away with it, but, uh-

Dana: Oh, I am loving all the subversive shit that was happening behind the scenes. [laughs]

Jaime: Yeah. [laughs]

Jo: Do you remember the park bench as well? Remember that scene, it was-

Jaime: Oh, yeah, a bench.

Jo: Wasn’t that a bench?

Jaime: Oh, that was a love scene, that was a love scene.

Jo: That was a, yeah, we really went for that one. [all laugh]

Jo: Everyone was like, what? And I’m like, well, we’re doing it. Might as well!

Jaime: [laughs] And we’re in like, Toronto, and everyone behind the camera, like, they’re very blokey, and it’s not in the script, and then they're like, “oh I didn’t, they’re, they’re, oh I didn’t see that coming!” [laughs]

Jo: They were like, what are you guys doing? We’re like, we’ll figure it out! [laughing]

Jaime: Exactly! We’re just doing our own thing. [laughs]

Dana: Oh, a little, a little mutiny, a little bit! [laughs] Well we, we, we’ve ha- we’ve had such incredible conversation so far, and I have so many fan questions for you, and if we were onstage everyone would get to come up to the mic-

Jaime: Aw.

Dana: -and ask you questions, but I do have a bunch of questions that were sent in, um, so I do want to get to your fans, because your fans are so integral to keeping this like-

Jo: That’s why we’re here.

Dana: -story alive. Uh, let’s see here. Let’s kick it off. Alright, so wellsbering wants to know, what personality traits do you share with your characters?

Jaime: Well I think, I think that, um, I, uh, definitely always get cast as the baddie for whatever reason, but then I think that, um, really the quirky mess that I, I, I morphed into is basically me. [all laugh]

Jo: I like that answer, that’s great. Um, I, uh, am very A-type when it comes to certain things, and Myka very much, I’m very like, flowy, Myka wa- didn’t flow, but there are certain parts of my life where I’m not flowy around. My work is one of them, writing is another one. Um, and I’m very afraid of letting people down. I think that’s why I've been, I was te- telling a lot of the people that I was talking to today that, you know, the reason I didn’t do this a lot when the show was on, I couldn’t understa- i was like, why do people wanna meet me? They're gonna meet me and be disappointed.

Dana: Ohhhh.

Jo: Yeah.

Dana: I think everyone thinks that though, I think that’s very common.

Jo: I think tha- yeah, I think that’s the human condition, right?

Dana: Yes.

Jo: Um, but, but I think Myka and I share that sort of reserve, you know, that thing where you’re like I don’t, no, don’t get too close. I’m like a Monet, stay back. [laughs]

Jaime: And I, I think that was part of the chemistry as well, it’s like, you have that kind of like, you know, protectio- protective-

Jo: Yeah.

Jaime: -kind of like, edge. And so it’s like, if, I think that i- in a way, the gift that we had by it not being written for us is, if had been written we would’ve, the characters would’ve made each other, um, accessible to each other far too quickly. It was like the slow burn of, Myka could be quite prickly, and my character was completely messed up so it was kind of like, this kind of like energy between them where they were kind of like, you know, like working each other out, feeling each other out-

Jo: Is there? Is there an energy there?

Jaime: And then the laughs were well earned, and the smiles, and the deciding to work together was well earned. There was a, a lot of suspicion around each other, and when they opened up or they kind of let their guard down, it was hard earned, and and it was like, you know, something you would wanna rejoice at.

Jo: Yeah, aw, I love that.

Dana: Um, okay, so this is from mayberrycosplay, uh, you may remember mayberrycosplay, I believe one of them dressed as HG at a con, uh-

Jaime: Oh!

Dana: -but they wondered-

Jaime: I’ve seen a few HGs.

Dana: You’ve seen a few HGs.

Jaime: [laughs]

Dana: This is for Jo about, uh, Myka’s experience with ovarian cancer and, uh, like, how the awareness of this silent killer of women, like how that storyline, what that storyline meant to you and how it felt to portray that?

Jo: I was really nervous about that storyline, you know, anything that has affected people and their families and, and it’s always, I, you know, difficult territory to walk as an actor, especially in a show like Warehouse where there's so much happening on such a grand level that I’m like, are they going to pay attention to this? Are they going to really honor a storyline like this? was my concern, you know, like very often things like that are added like, uh, it’s like putting a robot arm on a story, and you're like oh, and by the way, there’s ovarian cancer! And so I was really, you know, concerned about showing up for that and, and, and and serving it in a way that people understood and, and could identify with that, you know, it’s such a catharsis, that’s what I think it’s supposed to be. Um, so it was, uh, I, the fans told me I pulled it off, that’s the only way that I know.

Dana: Well it meant a tremendous amount to, to mayberrycosplay and so that’s why they, they sent that in because it, it really affected them because of their own personal-

Jo: Yeah.

Dana: -you know, family journeys and such.

Jo: Well I’m so, so, thank you, I mean, I’m still wondering, you know, I worked really hard to make sure that was in there. We’ve all lost somebody to cancer, we all know what that’s like, we all know- I mean, I mean, I certainly have, to feel a lump and be like [does the Home Alone face] you know. I have two friends right now who are going through it, so I try to honor it in the best way. I- it’s one of the things that makes me want to be an actor, uh, that I think is so special about it is that you get to tell stories that people, it’s a group catharsis, you know, so I’m glad that, glad they think I, the only thing that, if they think I sh- I showed up then... [laughs] yes, good, good, good.

Dana: Um, let’s see here, cloxy813 wants to know what was your favorite, favorite scene to film together?

Jo: Probably the heaving bosoms scene. I was excited for the heaving bosoms scene, which was all like [mimes placing gun to forehead] kill me!

Jaime: [laughs]

Dana: Hashtag heaving bosoms scene.

Jo: It was so hot that day, I remember my tank top-

Jaime: So hot, oh my god, it was like-

Jo: It was like, my tank top, I would like look down and find, I was like, my boobs are out, um. [laughs] I just saw him sign, them sign, um.

Jaime: We were by that lake, I just wanted to dive in there. It was-

Jo: Yeah, yeah, yeah, but I loved, I loved, I loved doing that scene, I have to say. And, and the chess scene, I remember that.

Jaime: Oh yeah.

Jo: I remember that very well. Um, I really enjoyed my work with Jaime because I, as I said, you know, there’s not a lot of scenes that are two women just being women. It was so, it was like a breath of fresh air and so I, I wasn't, I was, uh, you know, a lot of the times Myka was there to witness Pete-

Jaime: Or, or, or to laugh, or to kind of laugh and sigh at his super funny jokes.

Jo: The funny jokes... um, so, so it was so nice to not ha- be in a scene from that point of view. So often women are are written as accessories-

Jaime: Yeah.

Jo: You know, and, and this was a storyline where I felt like she was a whole person and I could be like a whole, real person, I didn't have to be like-

Jaime: I, I, I, I, I was on a show called Hustle and there was a character on it called Danny Blue, and he had all the funny lines, and one of the refrains that I had was “oh Danny. Oh Danny,” where every time he said something cheeky or naughty or a joke I’d go “oh Danny,” and I remember just being so excited to get the job, but then after awhile like me saying “oh Danny” really wore thin, especially as off camera I feel like I was more witty! [laughs] In that space I was much more funny, but all the funny was written for him, and I was going “oh Danny.” So when I came in I really, I kind of, um, you know, I knew the frustration of playing the, kind of, you, you know-

Jo: Straight man.

Dana: The “oh Danny.”

Jo: -if you were playing, right, right, the brainiac, uptight brainiac, and Pete had all the funny lines, so obviously we were in a lot of scenes with the rest of the cast and keeping the story going, but I felt as though all the character stuff that we had as, as women came from the scenes when we were on our own, and obviously that first scene with the grappler, um, you know, was, it was kind of the first scene where I’d been playing kind of like a little, kind of kind of like sneaky little looks and curiosity and fascination with this woman-

Dana: Yeah, we noticed.

Jaime: And, but, but, I, but, it wasn’t until the grappler scene that I thought that, that i was starting to get this, kind of, this chemistry going, and then there was a scene, do you remember the scene where I didn’t know how to work a computer or open it, it was like a, I was like a monkey-

Jo: Yeah [laughs] yeah.

Jaime: I was like a, it was like, I didn’t know what this is, we were-

Dana: Well, I mean in, in f- in fairness you had been in bronze for a long time.

Jaime: -we were in like a stu- a student room, a student's room, it was-

Jo: Yeah, we were at the college, we were at U of T.

Jaime: And, and. and we’d, it was the first time we’d deci- you’d, you’d kind of begrudgingly decided that we could work together, and HG was kind of a little thrilled, and you were a bit begrudging and-

Jo: Yeah.

Jaime: There was all, we, we still had to, ‘cause like, in sci-fi there’s a lot of storyline and exposition and kind of fantastical stuff, which is super fun, but actually as actors you really get excited about the character stuff and there was always just this great character stuff whenever we were on our own with a scene-

Jo: Yeah.

Jaime: -um, because we didn’t have to worry so much about servicing all the other characters, we just serviced each other.

Dana: Well, you know, there are only two kinds of queer women. It is thrilling or begrudging, it’s one or the other. [all laugh]

Dana: They fit perfectly in there.

Jaime: I mean maybe that’s why it resonated so well, and maybe it was the reason it was so great, that it wasn’t written, because you had these two kind of like, kind of sli- slightly spiky kind of like flawed women, kind of like o- one, you know, one not particularly into the other at all, you know, so-

Jo: It was interesting, I still remember, I still remember receiving that energy and receiving that stuff and realizing, sort of plotting, cause I’m like, how long would it take Myka to figure this out?

Jaime: [laughs]

Jo: Seriously, I was like, cause, Joanne is not her,, I’m, you know, I’m wasn’t in the box that she, I always thought, Jack’s like, you’re exactly like that character, I’m nothing, I’m not- [laughs] I mean there’s a part of me that’s uptight but there's a part of me that’s most definitely not, so I was like how, and I really wanted to do the discovery of it within her, the like, this, the, this feeling started, and then her sort of, and M-Myka to me as a character as a whole was always somebody who was afraid, this is somebody who was always very scared of everything and presented themselves in this very [mimes acting stuffy and uptight] way because there was so much going on here [gestures to heart] and it was slow in the five seasons, I really wanted her to like, you know, relax and start laughing and not be so, and I was like, there’s a certain amount of wonder that was like-

Jaime: Endless wonder.

Jo: -ohhhh, ohhhhh, ohhhh, like you kind of see her, one of the things about that journey is you start to see her discover sort of herself and her own feeling surrounding that, which I thought was really special.

Jaime: And also you, um, you, you kind of ended up, you, you know, HG was kind of like a tricky character and she was always one step ahead, um for, that first season, but then when she started to fall apart, you were the one that kind of put her together, and then I felt like there was also this humor introduced, this lightness introduced to your character through the humor el- elements-

Jo: Yeah.

Jaime: -and the surprise, which was, um, really lovely for your character.

Jo: Yeah, I, I think for m- for me, you know, it was a decision I made like in season two that I k- she had to evolve and grow and sort of, um, I couldn’t, I was, I was, I was like, I can’t keep coming to work and putting a giant stick up my ass [laughs] like we’re doing, like I need just to like expand her and go towards her relaxing and really finding, I think for her the big thing was always finding connection, you know, this-

Dana: Sure.

Jo: -we, we see in the beginning of the show is, it’s very cut off, very isolated, very like, and I, she lost her partner, that was, when I read that script, immediately I was like, this is someone who’s so scared of losing people again that she’s never gonna let anyone else in, and that was sort of like my understanding of her. And when Jaime came on, it was such a great way to explore that, Myka opening, you know, as feelings developed, her opening, you know-

Dana: Well, that, the growth, the character journey that both of your, your characters went on, I think that is what makes the show still so enduring to fans, like why they feel so connected to it, because we do, we saw that journey, you know, both of you had your own journeys to go on and you somehow managed to cross, cross paths, and it may not have ended the way fans had wanted it to, but we still go so much out of it.

Jo: I’m so glad.

Dana: I wish it was endgame, but what can I do?

Jaime: We, we, we need a spinoff show for Jo and I, we, we need a spinoff show.

Dana: Okay, yes, the spinoff, okay! You need to talk about that because-

Jaime: Who do we need to talk to to make that happen?

Dana: I got in a lot of trouble on Twitter yesterday for not asking a spinoff question, uh, what, like, what would a spinoff look like between between HG and Myka?

Jo: I think it would be have, to be now, which we-

Dana: Yeah.

Jo: And we’d have to get her, there’s no ponytails in this story, there’s no suburbs, there’s no fucking ponytails, um, no-

Jaime: I won- I won- I wonder if, um, it could be now, but, or, I wonder if I, I had to come in for a mission and then I actually pulled you back into my time, that might be an interesting way to turn it on its head.

Dana: Ooh, Jaime Murray, there we go!

Jaime: If we both had to go back-

Dana: I love me some period.

Jaime: -into my time or you know what made me think that [she does the Jaime Murray hair flip™] what I-

Jo: [laughs]

Jaime: I saw that, I saw that ne- The Nevers-

Jo: I miss that hair flip!

Jaime: -the, the, the a- the adverts for The Nevers on HBO, and I’m like that is the HG Wells spinoff right there, and I was like super fucked that I wasn’t in that, and then I read that Joss Whedon was a consultant and I was like [inaudible] really bad, so, but, anyway I think that that’s what we should do. I, I’m also obsessed with that time period.

Jo: I mean, yeah, and also like it was real, yeah-

Jaime: It was the beginning of ps-

Jo: Yeah.

Jaime: -psychology, of like Tesla, of of like different thoughts, there was like, they were like spiritual, um, kind of scientists and atheism and there was all it this opportunity for change, which actually wasn’t taken, but it was actually, it’s super interesting right at the time, there was suffragettes-

Jo: Also a fish out of water for me would be so wacky, because I’m a fish out of water too, alright.

Dana: I’m curious if yo all saw the Saturday Night Live sketch the other, uh, last week with, uh, lesbian period drama-

Jaime: Oh!

Dana: -and how, how every lesbian, like anything that features lesbians now has to be- [laughs]

Jaime: Well have you e- have you ever-

Dana: -it’s like the Edwardian or, like the Edwardian times.

Jaime: Have you guys read Sarah Waters, do you know this?

Dana: Oh, of course!

Jaime: Like, so, and maybe that is actually what helped me get to HG Wells, but I loved those books when-

Dana: Oh, they’re so amazing.

Jaime: -I was growing up and I feel like we should make those o- we should remake one of those b- Jo, you’ve got to read those books, and then-

Jo: I’m writing it down! I’m taking notes!

Jaime: Oh, it’s amazing.

Dana: You two would be amazing in her most recent one.

Jaime: She writes these amazing Edwardian, Edwardian kind of wanton lust and then there’s like, like the vervain or whatever, that kind of drug that they used to take back then-

Jo: Opium?

Jaime: -so it’s like slightly, kind of like psychedelic, oh, it’s amazing, yeah, she’s amazing.

Dana: [laughs] Well, we unfortunately are out of time, and it’s been so much fun to talk to the two of you, and I, I love the love that you have for your characters, for your friendship, for the fans, uh, it’s, it’s so lovely to see, and thank you so much for making this work in your schedules, I know you’re both super busy doing your own projects, um, and I want to think Mark. Mark, you’re amazing, thank you so much for, for interpreting.

Jaime: Thank you, Mark!

Jo: Thank you, Mark!

Dana: Um, do you have anything you want to end with, to say to the, to the Bering lesbians out there?

Jaime: Well, first of all, I want to say that, um, if anyone sends me messages to, you know, pictures or anything that that Jo needs to see, I’ll make sure that Jo, Jo gets it, ‘cause she’s not on social media, and I’ll, I’ll share stuff with her so that she can kind of know the love from the community.

Dana: Yeah, great.

Jo: I think, um, I’m actually gonna try to put together a newsletter because I’m trying to get my shows made and I could use this community, you know, to help-

Dana: Oh, we will support you to the end! We will march off that cliff with you.

Jaime: I could help you make a Twitter account, just for our community.

Jo: I don’t wanna do Twitter, I wanna do a newsletter. [laughs] I don’t wanna, I don’t know how many characters are in it, but it’s not enough. [laughs]

Jaime: But Jo, Jo, you have to actually read some of the fanfiction. The fanfiction is epic.

Jo: I have a book that I got, somebody wrote a book-

Jaime: Unbelievable, oh my god.

Jo: -like a novel.

Jaime: They’re brilliant, these people are brilliant, like best fans ever.

Dana: There is some really incredible work out there.

Jaime: Well, do you want to-

Jo: I just wanted to say thank you to everyone, um, you know, I don’t do these very often, and just like, the outpouring of love, like just the connection, I really appreciate it, I’m so grateful, so thank you.

Jaime: Yeah, it��s such a beautiful community. I feel really proud to have been welcomed into it and, uh, very grateful.

Dana: Well, we’ll hope to see you another time, and thank you all who turned in to this panel. [Jaime blows kisses]

Jo: Thank you.

Jaime: Bye, guys.

Dana: Do you smell apples?

Jaime: Bye, Jo, I love you so much.

Jo: Do you smell apples? I love you too. [blows kiss] I’ll talk to you soon.

Jaime: Yes, I’ll see you later. Bye bye, darlings.

Jo: Bye.

#bering and wells #myka x hg #hg x myka #joanne kelly #jaime murray #warehouse 13 #clexacon #clexacon 2021 #myka bering #hg wells #helena wells #nerdsbians

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alluringjae · 3 years

Text

queen of hearts - sjn

summary: for the first time, one of your star students hasn’t been fetched right after class. but when she finally does, you weren’t expecting such a fine man to be her father.

pairing: johnny x female reader

word count: 5.5k

genre: fluff, romance, comedy | ceo and single dad!johnny + ballerina!reader + modern day!au

warnings: mentions of an absent parent, johnny being an overthinker, sexual innuendos (ten saying dilf hehe), slight explicit language, technical terms of ballet, a mini reference to mean girls

author’s note: sooo i came in touch with my former dance life, which led me to write this. there are links for the variations i used; their names are underlined when they’re mentioned. i am going to get technical with ballet terms here (even when my ballet knowledge decreased), so to any dancers reading, i really did my best, so please don’t come for me or do correct me for any mistakes.

although one character and her dance background, plus the name of the setting, are real, everything else about it is still a work of fiction.

i miss dancing, no cap.

leave me some feedback, constructive criticism or hellos!

Ballet student and teacher by day, a soloist of the Korean National Ballet at night.

This was your daily routine, and it wasn’t the typical 8-5. But it’s debatable whether or not it was worse, because you’re always going overtime. That’s the thing when you’re an overachiever. Nonetheless, you loved what you do. It’s the lifestyle you gradually built since your preschool days.

Mornings on the weekdays were mostly vacant since all the kids were still in school. You’d start at 10 am for a warm-up class for the company. Before you delved into teaching and assisting, you’d train right after your lunch break. Partnering class, en pointe class, 1-on-1 sessions with choreographers, self-practice, then the company night class, that’s the organization of your week.

Now adding the teacher title, you mostly handled kindergartners to 5th graders in the academy aspect of the company. Your first teaching class would start at 1 pm. It’s when the younger students who finished their morning classes zoom into your assigned dance studio. One class would last an hour and a half, then you have a 30-minute break in between another class with the older kids. Their lesson repertoire was more strenuous due to the added across-the-floor lessons and jumps. Water was always your best friend, water refilling stations located everywhere in the company building.

You wouldn’t say you’re a strict teacher, but you weren’t shy to correct anyone from wherever you stood. You’d lightly align their arms or back properly so your students were working on the correct body parts. Compared to the other teachers, a lot of students enjoyed your kind yet frank approaches. Your former students, who’ve already gone to the higher levels, missed your lively presence and wished repeatedly that they want you back as their teacher.

“Teacher (Y/N), I miss you so much! Teacher Ten is so intense. I get the jitters especially when we’re en pointe on the floor.”

“Teacher (Y/N), Teacher Sicheng and Teacher Seulgi scare the heck out of me during partnering class. Especially when I tried to lift my partner, I keep losing focus because of Teacher Sicheng’s never-ending comments!”

Not to be sadistic, but you’d simply laugh at their minuscule complaints. Even if they’re struggling in the academy, those comments were directed to fix their techniques if they wanted to breakthrough.

“Kids, you’re going to be fine! They wouldn’t say or do those things just because they wanted to. They’re here to push you to the next level, like how I used to do with you. It’s a cut-throat industry after all.”

This was always your reply, bittersweet and truthful. Not everyone makes it, unfortunately, so if you’re really striving, you’d do whatever it takes. Throughout your career, you’re relatively impressed with how far you’ve come.

Trainee at 17, Corps de Ballet at 18, Demi-Soloist at 21, and Soloist at 23.

You’ve been a soloist for 4 years. The final stage, which was to become a principal dancer, is your running goal. Becoming a soloist was praiseworthy enough because you’ve seen so many give up in the Corps, but claiming a spot as a principal dancer has been the ultimate dream. Since you’ve watched Swan Lake for the first time at 4 years old with your parents, that’s where you found a passion for dancing and the stage. Here you are years later, practicing numerous variations daily, performing in opera houses, and mentoring all these gifted kids.

Your last class with elementary kids, which began around 5 pm, reached its end once all the students curtsied in front of you and scurried to their mothers or their nannies. The remaining plan on your agenda today was the company class at 7:30 pm, which exceeds the average hour and a half. It’s worse during show season. There have been times everyone went beyond midnight to polish every scene from head to toe.

Currently, there’s no upcoming show for the public, though the annual summer recital for the students was around the corner. Selected members of the company were chosen to perform individually in it, which was both exciting and intense. It’s also because it’s an evaluation on whether you’d get promoted in status or staying put. You’ve partaken in 3 recitals in the past, two of which elevated you from the corps and demi-soloist ranks. The recent one, however, didn’t change your soloist ranking.

It was a major first in your career in ballet, and after finding out the result of the latter, it emotionally pained you. Recalling how much soul you put into that piece, the rejection from your artistic director clenched your heart. Though in time, you moved on from it and viewed it as a stepping stone. Also, Sicheng and Ten personally stormed your apartment to pull yourself together with wine and pizza after going on a short leave.

Since you were trainees, Sicheng and Ten were your best friends in and outside the company. Working daily to occasional barhopping, that’s your youth summed up. It wasn’t because you didn’t like the girls you’ve worked with (though a lot of them were fake and bitchy), but these two were frank and humorous as hell. Together, you’d help each other with your goals rather than be competitive. Over time, Ten leveled up to a principal dancer for 2 years running while you and Sicheng were still soloists. The way you’d watch Ten take all the big roles, that’s where you want to be one day.

Back in your last teaching class, the entire dance room was vacant. Since it’s mainly used for ballet classes, you’d either run through anything you’ve practiced from the company classes and polish it or warm up a little bit more.

Except for today, this was the only free time to sew a new pair of pointe shoes because your current ones were dead. Dead in a sense that the hard shell turned soft, which won’t be able to support you when you’re up on your toes. You’re not taking any risks of minor injuries especially when you’re in the current lineup of company members performing for this upcoming recital again. You have to prove to everyone that you deserve a position as a principal dancer.

As your legs sprawled in a half middle split, your sewing equipment laid in front of you like you’re about to perform surgery, a tiny girl stood by the ajar studio doors. In her neat bun and holding on to her small duffel bag, you’re convinced everyone has gone home already since it’s quite late.

You may have your priorities as a company member, but she was still your student.

“Minji!” You shouted her name, speedily waving your hand. You’re not one to have favorites, though you couldn’t help wonder how extraordinary she was. She’s always taking charge in demonstrating the lessons to everyone and improving every session in the 3 years she’s joined the academy. “Come in! Come in!”

At age 7, she’s gotten taller through the years, above the average from how you see it. She must have amazing genetics. Her legs sauntered in seconds to you. Sitting down across you, she marveled at your setup. Specifically, at the fresh pointe shoes.

“Are those yours, Teacher (Y/N)?” She perked up, caressing its soft fabric and playing with the mini bows of the drawstrings.

“Yes, it is, Minji!” You answered while trying to insert the thin thread through the small eye of the needle. “Why are you still here? Is your nanny stuck in traffic or something?”

“My nanny went on sudden leave, so my dad’s the one fetching me. But I think he’s running late from his job.”

Oh, this was a first to know about her father. In all the years she’s been your student, you rarely caught sight of him, even in recitals. Maybe he sat in an unknown section, but you’re pretty much acquainted with all the parents of your students. Even if some were snobbier than the rest because they wanted their child to have more stage time, you still got to know them out of respect. Quite odd, if you said so yourself.

After deep concentration, the thread triumphantly passed through the eye so you tied the two ends of the thread in a double knot. Seeing as Minji attentively watched you, you tasked her to cut the ribbons of your shoes according to the trail of pencil marks. This was so she wouldn’t cut it too short or too long. While she did that, you hammered your shoes against the floor to soften the hard front, bending the shank back and forth so the arch of your feet could move without difficulty later.

Minji wasn’t expecting such loud sounds, her entire body shaken awake. Her facial expression was priceless, explaining to her, “Once you get your first pointe shoes in a few years, this is one of the basic things you need to do so your feet won’t hurt too much while dancing.”

“Will you be there to teach me how to make my pointe shoes?”

“Absolutely! Come to me first then I’ll mentor you all that I know.”

The process of sewing and breaking new pointe shoes engraved your mind since your adolescent years, with changes along the way. Inspired by some tricks from your former teachers, but there were some differing rituals you followed. There’s no definite process of it, just as long you’re comfortable to dance after.

With your feet, you stepped on the hard boxes of the shoes to soften it more, creating a popping sound. Followed by sewing your elastic bands in. For your ribbons, you liked to burn the edges with a lighter so the thread of it won’t run. Kindly asking your cute assistant for the lighter beside her, you scanned the edges back and forth the flame. In seconds, the edges had a distinct mark, fully closed. From there, you slid your feet to your shoes to make final sewing adjustments. Sewing your ribbons took you another few minutes, plus adding superglue inside the shoe so the shoe won’t collapse when it unstiffens and scratching the shank with a cutter so you won’t slip later while dancing.

Voila, the final product is done! Hopefully, it can last you a week at least.

“Wow, Teacher (Y/N), it looks pretty!” Minji applauded, collecting the mess you’ve both made to dispose of later. You, on the other hand, gave her your thanks once you applied some bandages on your big toes and put on your toe pads. Slipping inside the shoes and tying them, you rose up back to your feet and headed to the bar to break them in. From plies-relevésto forced arches, the shoes gave you the sensation that they were an extension of your feet. The ease flowed through, meaning you were ready to practice your variations.

While you stepped your shoes in rosin for friction, your curious student moved to the front where the mirror lied to watch what you’ve prepared.

“What variation are you dancing to?”

“This is the Gamzatti variation from La Bayadere.” You replied, tapping the play button on your phone and racing to your position on the side. Talking a short ballet walk, you strongly prepared your arms before the music of the orchestra takes off.

This variation consisted of a lot of jumps and turns. Grand jetés, attitude turns, chaîné turns, you needed a lot of core control and proper spotting so you won’t get dizzy. The thrilling music lessened your nerves because you enjoyed learning this piece from one of the principal dancers, smiling and letting the music guide your legs. Once you nailed 3 consecutive grand jetés, the variation ended with a sus-sous and the wrists of your hands flicking upwards.

Holding it for 5 more seconds, you landed back on your feet with heavy breathing and a need for water. But before you could, small claps and cheers from Minji in front erupted. Momentarily, you’ve forgotten her presence because dancing solo puts you in your own space. You’d never let anyone take you away from it.

“Teacher (Y/N), that was wonderful! Are you performing that in the summer recital?”

Yikes, she’s right but she wasn’t meant to see it yet. Solo performances from the company members for the recital were top secret, only unveiled during the production rehearsal. Well, you didn’t think this through, but you didn’t mind.

“Can you keep a secret?”

Time ticked a lot faster today, only 10 minutes left until the company class on the ground floor whereas you were in the second. Just a few steps down the stairs away, yet Minji was still here. You only presumed that within your hour break, her father could’ve made it already. But maybe he’s stuck in traffic or at work.

“Minji, my class starts soon. Have you contacted your father?”

“I already texted him earlier, but he hasn’t responded. This happens often, he’s a busy man.” She bowed in front of you suddenly. “I’m sorry, Teacher (Y/N) for the hassle.”

“Oh no, please!” You shook your hands so she’d stop. Because this situation was relatively new, you were unsure of how to handle it. Or that was until you remembered what Ten texted you earlier. “Minji, the blinds of the main studio are going to be lifted so anyone from the outside can view us practicing. Would you like to watch until your dad gets here?”

With her insistent nodding, she situated herself in one of the seats in the front row. When you entered the main studio, your two close companions already carried a metal barre to the center and leaned towards it while observing you walking to them in your flat shoes.

“I see we have a bit of an audience here.” Ten glimpsed at the young girl, astonished by the many dancers prepping and chatting away with their cliques from the glass barrier.

“Her dad isn’t here yet, and you did say the blinds were up today. Might as well give her a show while she waits, you know.” You lifted your right leg to the top barre, stretching it with your arms.

“Hmmm, shouldn’t her dad be more cautious though? It’s getting late and it’s a Thursday. Doesn’t she have school or something?” Sicheng pointed out, discarding his muscle tee to straighten out his leotard.

“That’s not my business though. She’s just my student, and since she’s still here, I have to entertain her while she waits.”

Before your friends said anything back, the artistic director of the ballet company strutted her way to the center of the room. It’s a common rule here that once she entered, everyone must be silent to listen and race to any free spot in the numerous barres spread out if they haven’t.

“Alright, everyone. We’ll do the typical barre, then before doing across the floor exercises, I’ll be requesting those performing solos already in the recital to dance any variation tonight as another evaluation on who deserves to perform twice.” She eyed the pianist directly beside her. “Proceed first with two demi-pliés then one grand plié. Don’t forget to do the port de bras of each position.”

As the live piano music played, your focus was divided. Partly properly executing the exercise while your artistic director roamed each barre area, partly thinking about what variation to perform. This was a first for the company, and everyone was just stunned to hear the breaking news. It’d be nice to get an extra opportunity to showcase to people your potential.

30-40 minutes flew by quickly. As the guys carried the bars to the side to clear out the floor and the girls changed to their pointe shoes, the artistic director ordered all the performers of the recitals to stand in a line in front of her. Everyone else was seated around the room, so the interested eyes of everyone were on you. There were 10 performers, half are from the corps and the other half are either demi-soloists or soloists. You and Sicheng stood beside each other, internally shaking with nerves under the intimidating eyes of the artistic director. She used to be a principal dancer for the Stuttgart Ballet in Germany before moving back to Seoul, making her undeniably capable of leading all of you.

“Okay,” From her seated position observing the 10 performers, her finger pointed at you directly. “Ms. (Y/L/N) (Y/N), you perform first.”

Your nerves intensified and more sweat streamed out your upper body. Even if going first felt more relieving, no one was ever brave enough to perform individually in front of the esteemed artistic director. Principal dancers aside from Ten that you’re close with were intimidated when they have 1-on-1 or partnering sessions with her. But anyhow, in less than 2 minutes, you’d be done. This wasn’t the first time she’s had your full attention either, so you’ll treat it like the other individual performances you’ve had.

You smiled to yourself when the other soloists left you alone, while you gave the name of the variation you’re dancing to the pianist. Running to the side to put on a practice tutu, the artistic director asked, “What will you be dancing for us tonight, (Y/N)?”

“I’ll be dancing Queen of the Dryads from Don Quixote.”

The last time you did this variation was 3 years ago during the recital that didn’t change your position as a soloist. Even if this variation hurt to think about for a while, it was still one of your favorites to watch and do. Moving on, you could only muse how powerful and beautiful you felt at that time. This isn’t an easy piece to perform in your opinion. Yet according to the members of the company, this was their favorite solo of yours.

As the starting notes unfolded, you took a deep breath and elegantly walked into the frame. You only wished you wore your fake crown again for this. Minimal smiling and light arms, you imagined yourself as an actual queen who captured the eyes of many. In this case, your fellow seniors and juniors held their breaths at the captivating sight of you.

Off you go into a series of glissade jeté developpé on relevé at elevating heights, then a fouetté arabesque and another arabesque on relevé before ballet walking again to the side to dance across the stage. Sissonne to the front, right developpé to the front on relevé, pique to prepare for a single pirouette, you gracefully did a chassé to the front twice and stood on your toes with a sus-sous.

Doing it a few more times, the climax of the entire variation was nearing. Returning to the center, you took another deep breath and lifted your left leg for the Italian fouettés. Spotting to the front and back while maintaining your balance, the variation approached its end with lame duck turns, posing with your arms were positioned at a 45-degree angle, your back slightly arched and your left leg doing a tendu derriére. Your eyes reflected at the mirror in front, surveying your alignment. Once your 5-second hold was finished, you properly put your arms down and closed your back leg into 5th position.

The applause from everyone in the room roared, Ten and Sicheng wolf-whistling even for more support. It’s a usual thing every time any of you perform individually, and no one minded it. The artistic director grinned, giving a quiet clap from the front before calling out the next performer, who was from the corps. Bowing to everyone hastily, you paid more attention to spot your student by the window. She was smiling ear to ear, waving both hands at you.

“You did amazing, Teacher!” She mouthed. Hearing words of praise from members was one thing, but hearing them from students was another. You’re so used to watching them and giving them your compliments that you often forget that you’re a dancer first before a teacher. Seeing them all delighted, saying that it motivates them more, showed that you’re doing a great job teaching them. You’re a reflection of what you pass down, and all you want was for them to be the best they could be.

From her jolly expression, a tall masculine silhouette hovered a part of the window. Her instinct of giving a brighter smile when the hand of said silhouette patted her head then carried her duffel bag again, that could only mean one thing. Excusing yourself to the artistic director, you stepped out to bid your goodbye and maybe meet her father. Minji and the tall man were about to leave the building if it weren’t for your breathy voice calling them out.

“Seo Minji and Mr. Seo?”

They stopped their tracks. Minji was fast to react, familiar with your voice and racing towards you for a sweaty hug. Meanwhile, your focus shifted once the masculine silhouette came into full view. You finally understood why Minji’s growth spurt spiked up, noticing that he was taller than Sicheng.

The top buttons of his shirt were off, yet he kept his formal blazer on. His hair was a bit tousled, some strands falling in front of his forehead. He must’ve run here. Peeking through were some roots of his scruff growing. His eyebags were almost as dark as his brown hair. Yet by the way his Rolex remained spotless, you blatantly assumed that he was more than well-off. Especially when the ballet academy was one of the most prestigious ones in Seoul.

Out of all the parents you’ve met, none of them appeared youthful like him.

“Teacher (Y/N)?” Thanks to Minji, you moved your staring eyes away from him. This was another first, since meeting only the fathers of your students wasn’t your norm. Meeting young-looking fathers, to be specific.

“O-Oh,” You ate your words, suddenly blanking out. “You’re leaving me without saying goodbye, Minji? Not polite of you.”

“My father was rushing right after watching your performance, and I don’t know why.” She responded, her finger scratching the top of her head in confusion. Speaking of said father, his strong presence appeared right in front of you. The wrinkles of his forehead creased while his eyes barely looked at yours.

“Uhm,” His fingers toyed with his Rolex. “I apologize for my tardiness. I got caught up in work and all, plus her nanny le-”

“Mr. Seo.” You halted his rambling, already aware of the situation. Like father, like daughter. “It’s fine. Minji loved watching us practice while waiting, and she wasn’t a bother either. You have nothing to worry about.”

“Phew.” He swiped an imaginative bead of sweat from his forehead, displaying his relief with his playful nature.

At age 23, Johnny Seo started his own company in the fashion scene and it grew internationally in the coming years. Then when Minji unexpectedly joined the picture, he’s been multi-tasking to make ends meet. Lately, as a CEO, he has had meetings and conferences on a daily. So, his position as a single father was always tested. It worsened when he rarely has proper time to spend any time with Minji unless it’s the weekend or late in the evening. Breaking it down, it wasn’t because he didn’t want to meet you. It was more like he couldn’t when his schedules were packed from head to toe.

Having the guilt of taking your precious time, “Seriously though, I am sorry for being late. Her nanny resigned suddenly, and I have no time to find her replacement.”

“Mr. Seo, again, don’t worry about it. As her teacher and a company member, I am practically here 24/7 so it won’t be a nuisance at all if this happens again.”

“Thank you so much, Teacher (Y/N). That is your name, right?” He planted his palm on his forehead, stressed. “Being a single parent is hard. I am always forgetting things.”

A part of you couldn’t restrain from feeling sorry for his struggle. Taking care of a child should be the work of both the mother and father, not one of them being absent. You’ve feared this would harm Minji, but she’s a strong girl.

“The fact you didn’t forget to fetch Minji despite the late time is still something to be happy over. I’m not a parent or anything, but parenting, in general, is a challenge.” You added an insight, patting the head of the young girl beside you. “Cut yourself some slack, Mr. Seo. I’m sure Minji still loves you, right?”

Minji shouted a big yes, now clinging to the leg of her father. “It’s okay, dad. Really.”

Over the years, Johnny has been doubtful of his parenting skills. He was an only child, and he struggled to ask for guidance from his own parents due to the shame of having a kid at a young age. So, he’d ask for help from his other friends and co-workers. No matter how many times they’ve reassured him that he’s doing well, he’s an overthinker who always reflected on the bad scenarios. There’s also that pressure to find someone who can fill that absent position not just for Minji, but for himself too. No matter how many girls he’s asked out or been set up with, he failed in the love department badly.

It’s the soothing way you voiced out your truth that made all these negative thoughts running through his head freeze briefly. Over the past 3 years since Minji started ballet, she always had a great story about you to share. One of them was how ballet made her a lot happier because of your influence. If he had at least an hour of his day to meet any of his daughter’s mentors, it would’ve been you.

“Do feel free to call me Johnny instead.” He casually introduced himself, taking his hand out for you to shake. “Mr. Seo makes me feel like I’m at work right now.”

Despite his informal approach, you understood his intentions and returned the action with a promising smile. “Pleasure to finally meet you, Johnny.”

“Pleasure is all mine, Teacher (Y/N).”

Earlier, the nerves from performing in front of the artistic director died down fast. But for some reason, they rose back up when you’ve spoken to this man in a matter of minutes. As someone whose feelings don’t flourish in a single glance, why did this man specifically deliver you such a strong effect?

If it weren’t for Ten calling for your name by the door, you would’ve held on to Johnny’s hand longer, which would’ve been inappropriate. Letting go first, this was your cue to return to your class.

“I must head back inside, Johnny. Don’t sweat on fetching your daughter late, though she is still a student with school the following day. Right, Minji?”

Minji nodded as Johnny kept that mind, knowing where he has to improve next. “Yes, Teacher (Y/N). Thank you again, sincerely. I’ll definitely see you again in the coming days until Minji has a new nanny.”

“That’s no problem with me at all, Johnny.”

Soon as Johnny held his daughter’s hand to exit the studio and you were re-entering the studio with an impatient Ten, he swerved swiftly as if he forgot something.

“Oh by the way Teacher (Y/N), I saw your whole performance awhile ago. I was blown away, you deserved the applause.”

Although you could only distinguish his silhouette, you didn’t suppose he watched you from head to toe. Most parents or nannies would’ve dragged their kids out of the studio once they find them like they were on a tight schedule, so this was novel to experience. That performance showed your prime too.

“Thank you, Johnny. See you again soon.”

Giving a final nod, you led yourself back to the studio, not bothering to acknowledge the erupting heat on your cheeks and entire body. Not to sound narcissistic, but compliments weren’t foreign to you. You’re conscious of the hard work that you put in your talent and if they pointed out your greatness, why would you deny it? However, receiving one from Johnny was like gearing your engine with new fuel.

Before you could try to reject these harboring feelings, Ten was fast to pick up on it. You cannot hide anything from this man at all because body language was like another language he’s fluent in (aside from the other 5). Unlucky for you, the saga continued.

“You’re so into dilfs, (Y/N)!” He shrieked in your ear, nudging your shoulder repetitively. He placed things in his own way, yet they always shocked you because it was so inappropriate. Typical Ten for you.

“Shut up, Ten!” You objected, watching the other performers. You’ve improved in ignoring his remarks over time. That was until Sicheng sat down beside you after his solo and got up in your business. That placed you in the middle of boys from the water sign clan of astrology. They just loved getting down to your love life, going raunchy and whatnot.

“Who’s into dilfs, Ten?”

“A Miss (Y/N) beside you, who met Minji’s dad awhile ago, was basically eye-fucking him.” Ten elaborated, planting his elbows on your leg and gave you a sneaky glare. “Minji’s dad is fine as fuck, guys! I’m telling you, like a literal god! I’m surprised this is the first time he showed up here after 2-3 years?”

“How come (Y/N) is always getting students with good-looking parents? Especially the single moms.” Sicheng slumped his shoulders, attempting to get your attention too. “Is he that hot, (Y/N)?”

“Yah.” Sighing with annoyance, you’ve given up trying to appreciate one of the corps dancers with her rendition of Dulcinea from Don Quixote. “Don’t speak of Johnny like that. You barely know the man, yet you talk about him so unprofessionally."

“Oh, Johnny is his name, huh?” Sicheng sing-songed, bobbing his head. He’s certainly going to stalk him later on social media, you felt it in your chest. Like it was ESPN or something.

“Talking about being unprofessional, yet you’re here referring him as Johnny, not Mr. Seo.” Ten barked back, his lips pursed and one eyebrow lifted.

Just as soon as you could retaliate, the artistic director’s velvety voice boomed the room.

“Alright, thank you to the performers. I will deliberate with the staff and principal dancers over the weekend, and let you know the results on Monday. Now please, let’s proceed to the center.”

Everyone began to spread out on the wide floor, snatching a good position so they could monitor themselves in the mirror. Maybe you’ll defend yourself later after class because now, you needed to beat everyone else and have a crystal-clear view of yourself doing these following exercises.

In the meantime, Johnny was in the middle of driving Minji home. He had a designated chauffeur, but he gave him the night off because he wanted to spend time with Minji. Around this time, she’d be sleeping soundly, but instead, she’s boosting with so much life. She hasn’t even eaten dinner yet, which was the first thing on Johnny’s agenda now.

Playing Coldplay in the car, Minji belted some lyrics from her favorite songs while Johnny smiled to himself while listening to her attentively. Taking a breath, her thoughts reverted to her fantastic ballet teacher and shared them with her father.

“Dad! Don’t you just think Teacher (Y/N) is so cool? Ugh, I want to be just like her when I grow up.”

“Oh, to become a ballerina like her, you have to work hard every day and memorize lessons fast. Are you up for it, Minji?”

“Absolutely, dad! I want to pull off perfect jumps and turns like her one day!”

In the other after-school activities Johnny enrolled Minji in the past, none of them compared to the passion she had for ballet. Her work ethic was alike to Johnny’s: if they want something, they’ll do whatever it takes to make it possible.

Aside from being a star student in her school, she’s aiming to be a star ballerina. Being the supportive father he is, Johnny was on board to do what it takes to make it happen. Unlike his parents trying to mold him into the next heir of their company, he’s all ears to the dreams of his daughter. His only dream for her was to be live long and happy, not to merely pass on anything.

Johnny lost so much in his young life, so he doesn’t want to lose Minji in any way. As much as he loves his profession, he wanted to be an active father as much as time allowed it. He mostly received complaints from others that he’s not prioritizing his time well, but after hearing your kind words, this heavy weight on his shoulders decreased. All this doubt started to vanish after meeting you for the first time.

“Dad! Isn’t Teacher (Y/N) so beautiful?” Minji honored whilst gazing at the twinkling night sky. “She loves what she does and shines at it.”

Johnny was accustomed to his female co-workers throwing themselves at him due to his attractiveness, more than flattered even to have them feeling weak for him. Yes, there were times he used it to his advantage, some he frankly turned down.

However, the radiance you carried whether you’re dancing or not was something Johnny couldn’t cease wondering about. Unknown to him, he’s the one getting weak. Behold, an unlocked first for the confident CEO.

“Yes, Minji. I do think Teacher (Y/N) is absolutely beautiful.”

470 notes · View notes

st4rdust-ch0rds · 2 years

Text

The Song of Purple Summer || J. M. Kiszka

Part One

Masterpost || Part Two

Synopsis: When auditioning for a local production of Spring Awakening, you meet someone new.

Pairing: Josh Kiszka x Fem!Reader

Word Count: 1.5K Words

Warnings: None

Tagged: @theweightofstardust @samkiszkasbitch @sammykiszkamyass @kaaaaatekizska @obetrolncocktails

A/N: First off, THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart for the love I have received in my writings so far. Never would I have imagined that people could enjoy my writing and so quickly. Getaway received over 100+ notes which are absolutely mind-boggling to me. I truly love each and every one of you. Second, hopefully, this will birth a series from me. Shoutout to Stella for the idea of doing something with theatre!Josh. Lastly! The song listed is referenced in the story if you wish to listen

(please send me an ask or dm me if you want to be added to my taglist for this series or in general)

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You pace the floor of the crowded lobby. The room is filled with various backing tracks and scales to help those warm-up. Everyone seemed to be more confident in you, but you know that it’s all just a faux front. Your local community theater was holding auditions for a production of “Spring Awakening.” You wanted nothing more but to be even the smallest part in this show. Sure, you would do anything to be Wendla, but you would settle for parts like Anna if it came down to it. You ran through your audition piece one last time to make yourself feel better about it before it was your turn.

“Number 23?” A woman holding a clipboard yelled, trying to overpower the harsh falsettos echoing the room. You looked down at the number pinned to your shirt and realized that she was calling you. You took a deep breath and followed her into the auditorium. The only people in the empty auditorium were four people sitting at a fold-up table, surrounded by papers and folders.

You handed whom you assumed to be the director your resume and handed the accompanist the sheet music.

“Whenever you’re ready,” the director said. You took one last deep breath, nodding to the accompanist to begin.

Once you were finished, the director took a pause to finish what he was writing and said, “We’ll be in touch.” With that, you swiftly grabbed your belongings and made your way back to the lobby.

A day passed before you got an email stating you were chosen for a callback. Ecstatic by the news, you readied yourself to the best of your abilities by practicing the material you needed.

When walking into the auditorium, you were eyeing up who was also called back. There were about 16 girls and guys each. The callback didn’t specify who they wanted you for and assumed the others were told the same. You found an open seat next to a guy who appeared to be around your age. He had tanned skin and curly brown hair.

“Is this seat open?” you ask. He looked up at you.

“Oh, no, by all means,” moving his jacket over to give you more space. “So how do you think this will go?”

“I’m not sure. I was told to have ‘Mama Who Bore Me’ prepared, so I’m assuming they are considering me for Wendla.”

“I was told ‘All That’s Known,’” you nodded. “I’m Josh, by the way,” he held his hand out for you to shake.

“Y/N.”

Your attention was diverted to the director taking the stage in front of you. Your stomach tied itself into tighter knots when getting hit with the reminder of the situation. The director wanted to begin with the group numbers, followed by duets, then solos.

“First on the list,” the director announced, “The Bitch of Living. Group A, take the stage.”

“That’s my queue,” Josh says to you. Your eyes follow him as he makes his way to center stage. He seems to be very familiar with the other guys as they’re all talking like friends do. Either that or he has incredible social skills and can make friends instantly.

You couldn’t help but watch him the whole time. You tried your best to focus on the other boys in the group, but Josh had this magnetic attraction. His voice held this power in its tone. The way he almost seemed to glow when he was on that stage, even with the stage lights off and the only light coming from the work lights. Eventually, he made eye contact with you from the stage. He smiled at you, causing you to blush. You didn’t mean to blush. You just met the kid, how could you be flustered by him already?

Once Josh’s group finished their turn, the boys made their way back to their seats in the audience.

“How was that?” Josh asked.

“Good,” you said affirmingly, “Really good.”

The director shouted out, “My Junk, Group B.” Your turn is here. You felt confident in this number since there are others singing along with you. The harmonies you were still a bit iffy with, but you felt more comfortable with this portion than the others.

“Here I go,” you sighed to Josh.

“You got this!” Josh shouted to you, holding two thumbs up.

Once on the stage, you tried to shake your nerves and focus on getting into character. While singing with the others, you scanned your eyes across the audience seats eventually landing your focus on Josh. He was staring at you attentive and focused. Josh let a comforting and supportive smile grow on his face when he realized you were looking back at him. He seemed to be glued to you like you were with him.

You finished the number and returned to your seat beside Josh.

“That was really good!” Josh said, catching you off-guard by his support and kindness. You both continued talking to yourselves throughout the rest of the callbacks. Whispering comments about who was currently singing to each other. Holding back reactions when someone had an unfortunate voice crack. Trying to stifle your judgment when someone decides to take “creative liberties” and place over-the-top riffs and runs to their songs.

Next for the callbacks was duets for Melchior and Wendla. At first, you both were paired with other people. The director mixed and matched each of the pairings until you were put with Josh. You two were supposed to sing The Word of Your Body around the piano. This acted as a test to see if your voices mixed well together as well as a chemistry test. Josh leans over to you to whisper something in your ear,

“We’re gonna have to pull as many stops as possible if we want them to consider us, right?”

“Sure, but what do you have in mind?”

“Just follow my lead,” he leaned away from you and gave you a wink. You had not a clue what he could have in mind for “pulling out all the stops.”

The pianist began playing. You looked down at your hands placed lightly upon the piano. You picked your head up once your queue was arriving.

“Just too unreal all this. Watching the words fall from my lips,” you sang.

“Baiting some girl with hypotheses,” Josh joined. Then you sang together, harmonizing,

“Haven’t you heard the word of your body?” You two looked at each other. Chills sent down your spine. Just simple eye contact filled your body with electricity. You can’t even begin to imagine how else he could make you feel beyond that. You felt his hand lightly grab your arm, gesturing you to turn yourself to face him.

“Don’t feel a thing you wish.” He placed his hand gently on your cheek.

“Grasping at pearls with my fingertips,” You delicately – almost hesitantly – placed your hand on top of his. Looking up at his eyes. He had a sort of longing in them. You couldn’t tell if he feels this emotion deeply, or if he's a damn good actor.

“Holding her hand like some little tease,” He held your hand in his. He lifted your arm around your head, making you spin slightly to put your back against his front. If Josh focused hard enough, he would’ve mistaken your pounding heartbeat for the metronome.

For the rest of the song, you felt very entranced by Josh. You had only met him mere hours ago, and somehow you felt as if you’ve known him forever. However, you didn’t let yourself get in your head about this because he could just be giving all he has for the sake of a good callback.

“That was great!” Josh exclaimed once you two got backstage.

“Yeah, uh, that felt…” you thought strategically on your word choice, “Good.”

“That was amazing,” he said, settling his excitement to look at you with intent, “You were amazing.”

You stared intently into his dark brown eyes. You drank in every feature of his laid before you. You couldn’t help yourself but feel this way.

~~~~

Those who were at the callbacks were told the finalized cast list would be sent to your emails within the next week. You stalked your inbox like it was your only purpose in life. After your callback, you and Josh exchanged numbers and would text every now and then. You had just changed into your clothes for the day after stepping out of the shower. You heard your text tone sound off repeatedly, followed by a phone call. You frantically rush over to your phone, beginning to list every worst scenario that could cause your phone to have this many notifications. Your caller ID read, “Josh Kiszka.”

“Hello?”

“Email! Check now!” Josh shouted, almost out of breath. Your heart dropped as you pulled up your email.

An email on the top of your screen read “SPRING AWAKENING CAST LIST.” Your heart was pounding. Your hands grew shaky as you were trying to navigate. Your heart skipped a beat when you read the first two lines.

“Oh, my god,”

#josh kiszka fanfiction #joshua kiszka #josh gvf #josh kiszka #joshkiszka #greta van fleet #greta van fleet imagine #greta van fic #gvf imagine #Spotify

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kass-storycorner · 3 years

Text

Oh god, okay hear me out. I suffer from insomnia and I couldn’t get Childes letter out of my head (btw the English version is so much less “I am in love with you” than the German one. He literally says in the German version that he misses us and wants us to visit him, like straight up this is a love letter!! The English version is really toned down in comparison).

So. I know his birthday is over, at least where I’m from. But. I wrote this whole ass fan fic, that is way too long, because I was so inspired by that letter. I’m not really satisfied with the ending, I honestly wanted to add so much more fluff but… I also didn’t want to make this too long, I actually planned for it to be short??? help (also it’s 4am now noooo)

Happy birthday, Tartaglia

Genre: a little bit angsty, fluff, comfort

Rating: SFW, though mentions of kissing and sharing a bed

Content warnings: mention of a family death, Bennett’s bad luck lol but both are unrelated haha

Characters: Tartaglia x gn!reader, a guest appearance of Bennett, mention of Zhongli

Word count: 2,796 words (oooh f*ck haha)

You’ve been busy the whole day doing some commissions for the Adventures Guild and were now on your way to Mondstadt, when you heard a familiar voice call your name. “(Y/N)!”, Bennett called out to you and ran into your direction. A deep sigh left your throat, while you enjoyed Bennett’s company most of the time… you had to deal with a ton of your own bad luck today. Not one of the commissions today went the way they usually did, everything that could’ve gone wrong did go wrong. It was honestly just very frustrating, although you couldn’t be really sure if it was because of bad luck or because your mind was somewhere else most of the day. You shook your head, trying to get rid of the tiredness you already felt in your whole body and made your way towards Bennett. No matter what he needed help with you would be sure you could handle it. And in that moment, as the thought of how it wouldn’t be a big deal whatever Bennett had on his chest, you saw how the young adventure tripped over his own feet and fell face forwards into the dirt. ‘Ouch, that must’ve hurt’, you thought while running up to him. “Are you hurt? Here, let me help you up Bennett”, you asked while helping him get up from the ground. All you got as an answer from him was his usual laugh and smile. “Oh man, I really didn’t see that stone. Haha, thanks for the concern though!” You couldn’t help yourself and chuckled at the way he wiped off the dirt from his clothes. “So, what’s up? What do you want from me?.” “Yeah, right! I nearly forgot!”, he exclaimed and started fumbling in his bag. “Oh, got a present for me?”, you asked sheepishly. “Kinda, not really. Here!” Bennett held a letter in his hands, both bandaged again, and stretching it out to you. “A letter? For me?”, you took it in your hands. In a fine handwriting there was your name on it. It didn’t even took you a second for you to register who’s hand writing it was. What a surprise.

Before you could even start to ask Bennett how he got his hands on the letter he was already excitedly explaining it to you. “Today I had a commission on Dragonspine and to be honest, it didn’t really went that well until I ran into this one guy. I accidentally activated a few Ruin guards and well, even the most seasoned adventurer can’t fight more than one of these at a time and sadly the newest members of Benny’s adventure team had to go home again before we made it even to the mountain.”

The thought of Bennett nearly finding his end today on Dragonspine really… it really did not sit right with you. You made a mental note to ask him later who the new members were that ditched him. After you had your talk with them they wished they had stayed with Bennett on Dragonspine. “Well, in that moment when they approached me that one guy showed up and it only took him a few minutes to defeat them all. (Y/N) that was so cool! I tried to recruit him for my adventure team, but sadly he said he was already occupied with something else. Oh man, it would’ve been so cool to have him on my adventurer team, imagine with such an excellent fighter no one would be afraid of my bad luck to join my team.” While you enjoyed Bennett’s enthusiasm you had to interrupt him. “Wait, wait, Bennett. The person who gave you this letter is on Dragonspine?”

“Oh yeah! As I was saying I tried to recruit him for my team, but failed however we talked a bit and somehow he mentioned that he knew you! When I told him we were friends he asked me to give you this letter the next time I saw you.”

You felt how the excitement in you grew. He was on Dragonspine? He was so close to you again? Now you hardly could pay attention to what Bennett continued to say, all that was on your mind was the man, whom you saw the last time months ago in Liyue was so close again. “Bennett,” you interrupted him again. “Thank you so much for the letter, but I really need to get going. Thank you so much!”

And with that you changed your direction and made your way directly to Dragonspine. “Oh? Okay, bye (Y/N)!”, you heard Bennett call after you, but your mind was already occupied with opening that letter he gave you.

With shaking hands you read what stood on that thin paper in that neat and familiar handwriting:

“Hey, comrade! How have you been? You must have traveled far and wide since we last saw each other, right?

For me, I can only seek out some entertainment for myself. These past couple of days, I’ve used a work opportunity to explore Dragonspine and seek out some local specialties. I hope they will be of use to you.

The harsh cold of the snow-capped mountains is reminiscent to the scenery of my hometown…

Sigh, I’ve had many mundane days that makes me nostalgic of our time together. Whether it’s a fight or a challenge, I always feel that having you around is what makes life really interesting.

Haha, to be honest, I’ve been planning a special day to meet up with you, today could be that chance! If you have no special plans, how about you swing by my place?

I miss you, Tartaglia”

Quickly you put the letter in your bag with what accompanied it and now you were basically running towards Dragonspine. Right now you didn’t want to think about what kind of “work opportunity” there could be for the Harbringer on Dragonspine, all you could think about was seeing him again.

It has been months since you both parted ways in Liyue. You met him while being on a commission, funnily enough it was a bit similar how Bennett ran into him today. In one of Liyues ruins you looked for a book some historian in Liyue Harbour desperately tried to get their hands on. By the amount of Mora they were willing to pay it should’ve been obvious to you that it wasn’t a one-person mission… and still, you went alone into those ruins. You had no problem in destroying the first two ruin guards you ran into, but when three activated at the same time… If it weren’t for Tartaglia back then you would probably be dead. At first you were very thankful for his help, however when you found out he was also there for the book you needed your thankfulness quickly turned into anger. “Well, don’t you think I deserve a reward for helping you out, comrade?”, he teased you.

After that day you somehow always managed to run into him in Liyue Harbour or on your commissions. Back then you only knew him by his name used by the Fatui, Childe. Though it was well known in Liyue that he was one of the Harbringers, you somehow didn’t get that message after months of openly antagonising him. Only after Childe invited himself to your usual afternoon teas with your friend Zhongli you learned about his affiliations, but also more about him. If someone was hearing two people bickering, the people of Liyue knew it was you two. However none of it was malicious. Somehow it was the way you and Childe showed each other the appreciation you had for one another.

The first dislike you had for him grew quickly into a warm friendship. And that friendship grew in something more after awhile.

The first time you noticed a change in your feelings towards Childe was around the time of the Lantern rite festival. One night you were supposed to meet up with Zhongli - but Childe showed up in his instead. Apparently, so Childe, there was a lot to do at the Parlour because of a new promotion the director wanted to try and needed Zhonglis help with, so Zhongli asked Childe to accompany you to the Lantern rite.

Until this day you weren’t sure if this was just a set up by Zhongli, but even if it was, you wouldn’t hold it against him.

That night, when you and Childe walked around Liyue Harbour and watched the lanterns something fundamentally changed between the two of you. After that night you knew so much more about him and he about you. From that day on he wasn’t Childe anymore, he was Tartaglia. And both of you finally knew how the lips of the other felt on your own.

Now you were so close again to feel his warm arms around you, to listen to the sound of his heartbeat when you rested your head on his chest and to feel his lips on yours again. Oh how you missed him too.

Parting ways wasn’t easy. Both of you knew that it was best to not be so public with your relationship, for several reasons. On the one hand the Fatui weren’t what you would call popular - most people would use some stronger word to describe them. Being a Mondstadt citizen in Liyue openly dating a member of the Fatui, yeah no. On the other it was also not really well liked by the Tsaritsa for the members of the Fatui, no matter if you were just a low henchman or a Harbringer, to get involved in that way with outsides. With “not well liked” it was more implied that she forbade any romantic relationships outside and inside the Fatui ranks when they were on a mission. And Tartaglia was on a mission, a mission you knew nothing about, but to be honest? You preferred it that way. The longer you were able to ignore what it meant for him to be part of the Fatui, the better.

So because of all of this you both decided it would be best to keep the relationship in the shadows.

You both knew for sure was that you had to part ways one day, however none of you expected that you were the one going home before Tartaglia. There were a lot of nights of laying in bed with him, sharing stories from each of your homes. You told him about the Windblume Festival and Ludi Hapestrum, he told you about the festivals and traditions of Snezhnaya. When you shared stories of how your little siblings and you loved to collect as many dandelions as possible when you were children to pretend that it was snowing in the summer, he would counteract that story with the times he built entire fortresses with his siblings out of the snow in the winter. Only to then pull you closer and whisper in your ear that he’ll show you how to do that when you come with him back to Snezhnaya. You would always whisper back “okay, but first you’d need to glide with me off Startsnatch cliff”. The lovely nights you both spend together, telling each other of your homes and how much you want to show it to them were harshly interrupted by a letter you got from your family.

Life sometimes isn’t fair. It’s hard and it brutal and it’s short. So when you got the letter from your family informing you that the youngest member of the family had died, it broke you to pieces. They were only 14. That night Tartaglia held you in his arms, his hand on the back of your head, your head pressed into his chest and none of you could say a word. Only the sound of you crying piercing the quite room. Too heavy was the grief for anything to be said anyways.

The day immediately after you received that letter you and Tartaglia parted way, a quite and sad goodbye. None of you were actually sure when you would see each other again. With his hands against your tear stained face, the tears not only being shed out of grief but also out of the pain you had to leave your lover, he promised to write you as often as he could. You promised you would answer. And then you left, wishing he could come with you. Words you did not dare to speak, because you knew he couldn’t, no matter how much he wanted to.

Now you found yourself close to one of the Fatui camps on Dragonspine. It was quite irresponsible to just run up the mountain, without any proper preparation or knowledge where Tartaglias camp actually was. You sighed. The excitement of seeing him after such a long time, after just exchanging letters got the best of you. Frustrated with yourself you made your way towards the campsite, hoping that this time the Fatui henchmen wouldn’t immediately start attacking every stranger they see. However when you arrived at the camp site you saw that no one was there. Too exhausted from the commissions earlier in the day and running up the Dragonspine you let yourself fall down in front of the extinguished campfire. Slowly but surly the cold weather of the Dragonspine was catching up to you.

Going through your bag you were looking for the stones Tartaglia send with his letter, hoping to ignite a fire with them. But before you could find them you heart footsteps in the snow behind you.

You hadn’t even had the chance to turn around before you felt two arms looping around your body, immediately warming you up.

“Hey comrade, did you miss me?”

You felt his head on your shoulders and you couldn’t help but to lean your own against his. One of your hands made its way up to his face, touching his cheek. “Yes,” you whispered.

Turning your head you now looked into his deep blue eyes, they were filled with all the love he had for you. You wished he could look at you like this forever… that you could look at him forever.

Tartaglia leaned a bit forward, placing a soft kiss on your lips and you couldn’t help it but smile.

He slowly pulled away, entangling himself from the hug and holding his hand out to you. “Come, let’s go inside the tent. You must be freezing out here”.

Inside the tent Tartaglia threw one blanket on another blanket over another over you, while lecturing you on what appropriate clothing was for a weather like this. You really didn’t give it any second thought when you made your way to Dragonspine, still wearing the same clothes you would wear on a sunny day in Mondstadt. But you also couldn’t hide it how much you loved to just hear his voice, even when he was nagging you. “It’s fine really, now stop trying to bury me under all the blankets and warm me up yourself”, you took his hand and pulled him towards you onto the plank. “You know some people would find what you said very suggestiv”, he joked, joining you under the immense amount of blankets. “Mmmmh,” was the only thing you replied, completely enamoured with him having you by your side again. For a few minutes the both of you just laid there, close to each other and feeling each other’s heartbeat.

None of you could actually believe your luck to be in the arms of the other again. How much you had missed this. Missed him.

“Hey,” he spoke softly, making you look into his eyes again. “How you’ve been doing?”.

It was such a soft question and you knew what he meant. You wanted to tell him how exhausting everything has been since your arrival, how your family was breaking apart at all ends, what a shit show it all was. In your letters you only alluded to how bad it actually is. How it was all just made worse by him not being at your side. Though you knew you would have to tell him all of this sooner or later, right now you didn’t want to talk about it. Not in detail. Not when today was actually his special day. “It’s manageable, but better now that I’m here with you”, you replied to his question. “You?”

“Better, now that I have you here”, was his reply. You both smiled at each other, a warm and tender smile. Slowly you adjusted your position so that you now were laying on top of him, your chin on his chest. “Hey, there is something I forgot to tell you.”

“Oh, and what is it?”

“Happy Birthday, Tartaglia”, and with that you kissed him.

#happy Birthday Childe #happy Birthday tartaglia #tartaglia #Childe #Genshin impact #Childe x reader #tartaglia x reader #genshin #Genshin fan fic #fluff #angst #comfort #okay I’m adding more tags tomorrow I’m tired and I want to post this now haha #well at least writing this brought me closer to dream land hurray

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cjsinkythoughts · 3 years

Text

FATWS One Shot #1 - Back to the Beginning

Word Count: 1644

Warnings: Cursing, Mentions of Intoxicated Automobile Accident, Steve Being a Slight Puppy

Setting/Characters: Directly after Captain America: The First Avenger, New York City; Reader, Director Nicholas Fury, Captain Steven Rogers

A/N: Here it is! The first One Shot that goes along with my FATWS Series! Keep in mind; it doesn’t take place during FATWS. There are NO SPOILERS in this and there will be NO SPOILERS in any of the One Shots. I do recommend still reading the Series, though, to understand the Reader more. These are more like…prequels to the Series. And it won’t be a series. It’ll just be a collection of One Shots based on what I think is important and what you guys wanna see. I also WON’T BE DOING A TAGLIST FOR ONE SHOTS! (Only those in my All Works Taglist will be tagged!) I’ll be adding them to my FATWS Series Masterlist under a ‘One Shot’ section, so you’ll be able to find them there, and I’ll also be tagging them with #fatws series oneshots. Feel free to send in requests for what you wanna see. I’ve gotten a few already, so I’ll be writing those tomorrow. I’ll say that they’ll all be shorter like this one, but...knowing me...we’ll see.

(Also, I’m aware of the theories that SHIELD chose the woman because the resemblance to Peggy, but just ignore that for this.)

As always, not beta’d so please excuse mistakes! Be kind to yourselves and each other! Enjoy and stay tuned!

FATWS Masterlist

cjsinkythoughts Masterlist

You knew. You knew the moment his eyes raked over your form. You knew when he looked over his shoulder at the radio playing some baseball game from 1941. You had done your homework, just like you did with every mission you worked. Granted, this one was a little different, but when Fury called you in personally, you couldn’t say no. You told them your uniform was wrong. You told them the game was too close to when he went under. You told them.

So you weren’t surprised in the least when he smashed through the wall, running out of the room. You didn’t necessarily regret pushing the button; you did it because you knew your cover had been blown, not because you were threatened. But you regretted calling out Code 13, not realizing that they’d chase him out into the middle of Times Square of all places.

Before you could head outside, wanting to know what happened, Fury’s name flashed across your vibrating phone.

“Y/L/N.”

“We’re heading back.”

An eyebrow raised, showing your confusion. “That was quick.”

“He’s fine, if you’re insinuating what I think you are.”

“I’m not insinuating anything, sir.” It was a lie, of course. You wouldn’t put it past Fury to slow down the Captain anyway he could, especially if the Man Out of Time was putting up a fight. “Sir, with all due respect, I tried-”

“I know, Agent. When We get back, we’ll set up in Conference Room C. I want you to join us.”

Your eyes narrowed, free hand on your hip. “You only called me in to ease him into this whole new century thing-”

“And he’s not eased.”

“It’s not my fault, Fury. I told your guys that it was wrong-”

“I know, Agent. Introducing him to the new century obviously went less smoothly than we anticipated.”

“Ya think?”

“Conference Room-”

“C. I heard you the first time. I’ll be there. Give me a few minutes.” He hung up without any farewells, making you roll your eyes. The director had pulled you off an assignment - in the middle of it - and promised you could get back to it once you finished helping him with the Star Spangled Man problem; help Captain Rogers integrate into the new times. But it was starting to seem that Fury didn’t just mean when he woke up.

You quickly changed, switching the old fashioned uniform for the tighter SHIELD-assigned one, before heading up to the level with all the conference rooms. You understood doing this in New York instead of the HQ in DC - the captain was from New York and, as much as it changed, some things would be familiar - and you definitely understood not doing this on the Helicarrier since Rogers didn’t even know about smartphones yet. And you definitely weren’t complaining; you had an apartment here in the City that you hadn’t slept in for months now.

Glancing at the room plaques, you paused in front of ‘C’. You took a couple breaths, relaxing yourself just as you did before any mission, before opening the door and stepping in.

Fury and Rogers were sitting at the table on opposite ends, the blonde looking around warily, eyeing the few agents lining the walls. You shot Fury a look, disapproving of the firepower in the room.

“Captain. Director.” You nodded to them in greeting.

Roger’s eyes snapped towards you, recognition lighting up his features. “You-”

“Agent Y/N Y/L/N. Sorry about the act.”

He nodded hesitantly, watching you as you sat down a couple seats from Fury. “I have some other business to attend to, so I’ll make this quick. To help you adjust, it’s been decided to assign an agent to help you for the next few months. Agent Y/L/N, here, will take that position.”

You blinked, turning to Fury, not expecting that. “What?”

Fury ignored you, standing up and setting down a file on the table in front of you when he passed. “The file has what you need to explain to him. Start now.”

“Fury.” You snapped, eyebrows furrowing as you stared at the file. Looking back as the door opened, you scrambled to stand when you realized he was leaving. “Fury! Excuse me.” You pardoned yourself from the captain, chasing after the director without waiting for his reaction. “Nicholas!”

That got his attention, his stride pausing. He spun on his heel, an eyebrow quirked. “Agent-”

“You didn’t mention anything about months helping him. I thought you meant, at most, a week!”

He crossed his arms tightly across his chest. “You’re the first person he saw when he woke up. You’re the best option.”

“First off,” you mimicked his position, popping your hip for good measure. “Even though I was the first person he saw, I deceived him. Why would he trust me? Second, why me? I understand having me for the little show you put on. I get that. But me? Of all people? You know I don’t do personal stuff.”

Fury narrowed his eyes. “You’re on this, and that’s final. He needs to know politics and technology. Settle him into the apartment in the file.”

You gaped as he turned around and started towards the elevators at the end of the hallway. “What about-?!”

“Your mission is being taken care of!” He called over his shoulder. “Politics and technology!”

You huffed, stomping your foot, frustrated, well aware of the fact that you were throwing a mini tantrum. You worked behind the scenes, acting as someone other than yourself. You didn’t help 93 year old super soldiers settle into new houses, teach them about current politics, and explain what cell phones were.

Walking back into the conference room, you found it empty besides Rogers, who was looking through the file, eyebrows knit in confusion. “Sorry about that.” You apologized, moving around the table to plop into the seat next to him.

He gave a half hearted shrug, glancing over at you. “It’s okay. He didn’t tell you the plan. I don’t blame you for being annoyed.”

“Yeah…it’s nothing personal. I’m not annoyed at you, and it’s not because of you. It’s just-”

“You don’t do personal stuff.” At your quirked eyebrow, he tapped his ear. “I could hear you.”

You cleared your throat, feeling slightly embarrassed at being heard. “Oh. Right. Enhanced hearing. Um, so, I guess you’re already starting without me.”

The tips of his ears turned red as you gestured to the file he was scanning. He dropped it, moving it over to you. “Sorry.”

“Don’t apologize.” You shook your head. “It’s your schooling. However you wanna do this, whatever pace you want, we’ll do that. Fury just wants you to know-”

“Politics and technology.” He shot you a small smirk. “I heard that too.”

You chuckled a bit, nodding. “Right. Okay. Let’s see here. Nickie said there was an apartment they got you…”

“Page six.” He informed you as you flipped through the pages.

You hummed, looking at the small apartment, perfect size for one person, right here in Manhattan…in the same building as yours, you noted. “Of course.” You rolled your eyes. You’d basically be his babysitter, and you knew neither of you wanted that.

“What? What’s wrong?”

You sighed, shaking your head. “This is my building.”

He blinked, looking down at the picture of the apartment. “Oh. Well, if you want I can request a change-”

“No, no. It’s fine. I just - I wish Fury told me.”

“Can-can I ask you a personal question?”

You shrugged, thumbing through the rest of the file. They basically wanted you to give him a government lesson starting with the fifties and then go over military technological advancements - a lot of Stark Industries stuff. “You might as well. We’re gonna be spending quite a bit of time together.”

“Why don’t you do personal?” You stopped your reading, tapping a finger on the table as you chewed on your cheek. “Sorry. You don’t hafta share if it’s too personal. I get it. I was never really into sharing my emotions, either.”

Turning your head to him, your lips pursed thoughtfully. His head was ducked, his blonde hair previously parted and styled was falling into his eyes, which were trained on his linked hands in his lap. His forehead was still creased, but it was more contemplative than confused as it was previously.

“I specialize in undercover operations.” Ignoring the way he whipped his head to you, slight surprise in those blues that you were answering his question, your head dropped back to the files, trying to act nonchalantly. “Before that I grew up in foster homes. My parents died when I was little. Drunk driver. No one survived. I was…two. I think. Maybe three. I learned to keep my head down to stay out of trouble; be the kid whoever had me wanted me to be. Anyways, I’m used to playing other people. I’m not really used to being myself.”

The room was blanketed with a silence that wasn’t uncomfortable. It wasn’t exactly comfortable, either, but it was welcomed as Rogers processed what you had just told him. His voice was quiet, almost shy, when he spoke up. “You can be yourself with me…if you want.”

You looked over at him again, your lips turning up slightly as you met his sincere gaze. “Thanks. You can be yourself with me too, Captain Rogers.”

“Let’s start with you calling me Steve, Agent Y/L/N.”

Your features broke into a bigger grin as you nodded, accepting his terms. “Alright, Steve. I don’t really have a preference. Just don’t call me Agent. I get flashbacks to every conversation with Fury.”

Steve laughed and you couldn’t help but enjoy the way his eyes shut, his nose scrunching up. “Alright.” He agreed with a beam. “I think I can avoid that, honey.”

All Works Taglist:

@happygoreading

@bibliophilewednesday

#cjswriting #fatws series oneshots #falcon and the winter soldier series oneshots #fatws series oneshot 1 #fatws series #back to the beginning one shot #steve rogers x reader #kinda #💛🧭#❤🐦💙🦾⏪

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