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collecting-stories · 4 years

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Shit Talk - JJ Maybank

Request: Hi !! can i please get a boyfriend JJ Maybank x kook!reader, she decides its time for JJ to meet her kook friends knowing that they’ll like him but they ended up liking him a little too much because all they did was flirt & compliment him and they also kept embarrassing reader infront of JJ to make them seem better than her? Basically fake friends trying to steal your gorgeous boyfriend out of jealousy and reader starts to cry because of this and JJ gets angry!! 😭❤️❤️

Outer Banks Masterlist

JJ slammed the door on your suv as he got out, eyes already on the large plantation style home you were parked in the horseshoe driveway of. Despite the sunglasses he was wearing he shielded his eyes as he stared at the opposing building. “Can we talk about why you’re forcing me to come to this party if you hate all the people here?”

“Cause they’re my friends from school. Sarah will be there too, I don’t hate Sarah.” You reasoned, grabbing the card for your friend’s birthday and making sure you had everything else on you. Keys tossed to JJ over the hood of the car as you slammed your own door shut. He slipped the lanyard around his neck.

“No, but you constantly bitch about everyone else.”

“It’s cause they’re the worst.” You shrugged. And they were truly the worst people you knew. Like all the mean girls from every teen drama rolled into one ultimate evil entity, these girls were literal demons but you were obligated, through school hierarchy and the desire to not ruin your social standing, to attend social gatherings like birthday parties. And you’d been blowing them off lately to spend all your time with JJ.

“But we’re going?”

“Yes.”

“I’m so confused.” JJ confessed, “you know if you don’t like someone, don’t hang out with them.”

“Says the most likable person I know.” You grabbed his hand and pulled him toward the front door.

“Hey, just cause everyone likes me but that doesn’t mean I hang out with people I don’t like. Except you…but I really needed a new phone so-“

You stopped to turn and smack his arm, a fake gasp leaving your lips as if you were truly offended by his teasing. “JJ! Shut up. You’re such a jerk.”

“And yet you like me.”

“Maybe.” You shrugged, “I’m good at faking it.”

“I’ve seen you with people you don’t like…you’re incapable of fake nice.” He replied.

“Prepare to be amazed.” You leaned up, closing your eyes and pressing your lips to his for a kiss only to be interrupted by the door opening and the distinct squeal of your most hated friend. You pulled away and turned around so fast you practically gave yourself whiplash.

“Oh my god you made it!” Scarlett bounced out of the house, wide smile on her face as crossed the threshold and wrapped you in a tight hug. Despite dry hair and skin that looked like she’d just applied a layer of body shimmer her bikini was slightly damp against your cover-up.

“Hey! So sorry we’re late I was halfway out the door when I saw myself in the bathing suit I was gonna wear and had to change…it was not cute.” You lied, returning the hug. You’d pit stopped first to buy a last-minute card and take money from the atm and then to get coffee. As you had reasoned with JJ, there was no way you were surviving this pool party without caffeine in your system.

“Lies, you look good in everything.” Scarlett insisted though she’d definitely sung a different tune in the past. Her eyes landed on JJ as she stepped back and she smiled, “whose this?”

“Oh, duh, this is my boyfriend JJ, I figured when better to introduce everyone than at Ashley’s party.” You offered, stepping aside so you weren’t blocking him.

“For sure,” She did a once over of him like he was merchandise and JJ only smiled, biting his tongue to stop himself from saying anything you would be pissed at him for. He would save his comments for the sanctity of the car. “Well I’m Scarlett, there’s a lot of people here so if you forget just let me know and I’ll tell you.”

“Awesome.” He replied. Scarlett grabbed his free hand, pulling him away from you and beginning to drag him inside the house as you followed behind. He looked back at you, mouthing an ‘I’m gonna kill you.’

‘Airpods’ You mouthed back, ‘and you love me.”

He shook his head, a grim expression on his face but you knew he was only joking.

Despite the entire crowd being contained to the outside pool deck and yard you lost Scarlett and JJ relatively easily. Or, Scarlett lost you so she could spend quality time cozying up to your boyfriend. While you felt bad leaving him to the wolves while you found the drink table and chatted with Sarah, you weren’t too worried about him otherwise. You had heard all about JJ’s past womanizing from a wealth of jealous pogues but you didn’t have any doubt that he was faithful.

He was a great boyfriend, better than any guy you’d dated before. Too good to be subjected to a round table of Scarlett, Ashley, and their friends. So you grabbed yourself a drink and headed over to save him.

“Oh my god and one time-” Scarlett’s voice died off as she saw you getting closer to them and she smiled at you in faux excitement, “oh hey!”

“Hey,” you nodded at her before turning to look at JJ, “hey there you are.”

“We were just getting to know JJ. You know, vet him and all.” Scarlett replied, leaning over her armrest to grab JJ’s arm. He shrugged her off and shifted in his seat.

“Exciting.”

“You wanna sit?” He asked, tilting his head back to look at you, pleading eyes begging you to sit down.

“Oh I don’t think there’s a chair.” Ashley piped up, looking around the table. Four other girls occupied the chairs around them.

“No problem, I’ll make do.” You tapped on the arm of JJ’s chair, smiling at Ashley when he moved the chair so that you could comfortably sit on his lap. He put and arm around your waist to keep you secured and laid a kiss on the side of your neck.

“Oh, good.” Scarlett forced a smile, jaw tense. “Anyway, I was just telling JJ, do you remember that time in 8th grade when we went on that double date to the ice rink on the mainland.”

You paled almost immediately. She was really going to play that game. “Uh…no.”

“Oh my god!” Scarlett turned more toward JJ, wide smile on her face, “First of all, she was so chubby in 8th grade like thank god for hitting the gym and doing those CrossFit classes cause you looked like a potato. Plus she ate like everything! Do you remember that? You had like a hotdog and fries and ice cream and then we were skating and she said she didn’t feel good and she blew chunks all over the guy! Who was it, I can’t remember his name?”

“I have no idea.” You replied.

“Oh my god I totally remember that!” Ashley laughed. “Someone videoed it and put it up on the school’s insta...it was hilarious.”

“Doesn’t really sound it.” JJ said, grip tightening.

“You’re way cuter than he was anyway,” Ashley mentioned, “I think he was like a family friend or something. And you’ve stuck it out too, how long have you guys been dating?”

“Three months.”

“It’s good it’s the summer. You can get out before you have to experience hibernation weight.” Scarlett added and the other girls around the table laughed at the joke. You smiled nervously, trying to look unbothered by what they were saying. You should have known that the moment you sat down the attack would start, Scarlett had her eye on JJ the minute she walked out of the house.

“What?” JJ was not laughing.

“Oh my god, I don’t know what she does but she always gains like…what is it? Like 15 pounds?”

“Yeah.” You nodded.

“Like 15 pounds in the winter.”

“Yeah get her while she’s still cute cause you are way too hot to spend time stuck with someone who bloats up every winter.” Ashley replied.

“I can’t believe I haven’t seen you around, Ashley’s right you’re super hot.”

Suddenly Ashley smiled, reaching across the table to tap the space in front of you and get your attention. “Oh, oh my god do you remember okay, so this one time-“

“Actually, I gotta go. I got work.” JJ said, cutting her off. He bounced his knee to signal for you to get up, “babe,”

“Yeah, of course, I’ll see you guys later.” You stood, trying to remember if JJ had told you that he had a shift today. You couldn’t think but then your mind was swimming with their insults. You were only vaguely aware of JJ grabbing your hand.

“Seriously? You’re ditching in the middle of the party?” Scarlett asked, offended that he was leaving and even more so that he was leaving with you.

“Yeah well,” JJ shrugged, looking over at her, “if I stay any longer I’ll probably punch one of you in the mouth so, not really in the mood to sit around and listen to you bullshit about my girlfriend.”

“We were just joking!” Ashley insisted, “Weren’t we joking?”

“I wasn’t laughing.” JJ replied. He tugged on your hand when you didn’t move, “come on.”

The two of you excited the backyard and made it all the way to your car, JJ slipping in the driver’s side as you sat in the passenger seat, still trying not to have an absolute meltdown in front of him. And in front of the security cameras they would probably check later just to see if they made you cry.

“Thanks…” You muttered, leaning against the window.

“You weren’t kidding, they are the worst.” JJ replied as he backed down the driveway. In the santity of the car he could say what was actually on his mind and it was extensive.

“I know.” You did know, you’d been dealing with it since you were in kindergarten and Scarlett told you that you had fat thighs. “Scarlett’s known me forever so she has years of embarrassing stories.”

JJ nodded. He took one hand off the wheel and reached over to hold your hand. “You know I think you’re beautiful right?”

“Yes.”

“Yes you know and believe me or yes I don’t want to talk about it anymore so I’m agreeing with you?” He asked, glancing over at you.

You bit your lip to stop from smiling, “if you know which one it is, why are you asking?”

“Cause I want it to be the first one?” He said. “Those girls are seriously the worst.”

“Well I hang out with them less now that Kie goes to school with me but I still have to see them sometimes. I can’t avoid it.”

“Yeah I know.”

“Thanks for coming, and for saying you’d punch them in the mouth.” You said, laughing a little as you recalled the horrified look on Ashley’s face when he said that.

“Them and anyone else who talks shit on you.” He replied.

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britishassistant · 3 years

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@emyluwinter submitted: Hi!!With you again a freelance newspaperman who writes about the reporter Yuu and the Prefect!! I am very glad that you liked my little stories so much that I wrote earlier!!! It's very encouraging that my work is appreciated.

So today will be a small addition to the latest events related to the villainy of Crowley in the form of the kidnapping of Yuu's "family" and friends,and after the final" conversation " of the Prefect with Crowley.

Because of the noise and shouting, opening the room with a spare key, several henchmen cautiously look inside. Yuu had already changed back into civilian clothes and put on extra gloves to hide the knuckles on his hands that had been cut from the blows. - Um....chief, how are you? Yuu takes a deep breath. - Your boss should call a doctor. - So we were talking about you, micro-chief, - one of the minions adds, almost in a whisper. - Huh?Why am I a micro-chef? - Yuu looked at them in confusion. - Well...it's like you've just "talked" to the leader of one of the most powerful villains in the League of Villains.. - Plus your uncle, Mr. Cruel. - Your' family ' and friends are all right. We're not crazy enough to hurt them. - I don't really want to have a walrus's heel sewn on my forehead, - one of the henchmen added ruefully. Yuu couldn't believe it. - Are they really all right? - That's right, micro-chief! But please leave before Mr. Cruel breaks us down into test tubes. We want to live. - And I have a cat at home, how can I be without it. So we'll show you to the exit. Yuu chuckles uncomfortably.It was the first time he had felt so strange. Perhaps it was a mixture of shock, fear, and despair, laced with anger and rage. But for a second, he felt all the power that Crowley held in his hands. But now all this was not necessary, only his loved ones were important.

- Thank you..no, really, I'm grateful that they're safe and sound. - Yuu felt that all these minions were no different from civilians, and they just worked wherever they wanted. And now they are worried about the fact that their superiors have made a lot of mistakes. - Your cameraman friend is a great word player! - I lost three rounds in a row to him. Minions distract Yuu with simple and cute conversations. Some of them showed their pets. Yuu was even asked to sign an autograph as their favorite reporter. They were very moved by their understanding. Although for the most part, they behaved so as not to run into even more trouble. ***

TWST Anita hugged her baby tightly. - Oh Yuu, I was worried if you were okay. - Sorry, Mom - Yuu could barely hold on, they were terribly tired for this day and the last thing they wanted to do was go back to the kidnappings and villainies. TWST Roger patted their hair affectionately. - We were tied up just for show. The rest of the time off-camera, we sat on their couch. - He won four games of cards with the guards,- Anita added, chuckling softly. - Well, they're not stupid enough to harm us.- Roger chuckled. Yuu was just glad that they were all right. Yuuken held Grimm in his arms while standing next to them. - You held out well. - I should have burned all his feathers! - Grimm snorted. - And you cheated, Yuuken! You've made up more than half the words! - No, I didn't cheat, the guards told you the words. Yuu took a deep breath, the growing panic attack quickly passed in his parents ' arms and listening to Yuuken and Grimm. Uncle Divus arrived just a few minutes before the lair to make sure they were all right. None of the minions or minions were even willing to leave shadows in his path. "I sincerely apologize, Anita, that that idiot with the feathers would do something like that. Divus said guiltily, looking at his sister. - Don't take Divvy personally, I know that neither you nor Yuu will let us offend anyone. Everything ended well. - Anita said gently. Cruel relaxed a little at the realization that there was nothing wrong with the people close to him. Looking at the tired Yuu,Kruel just silently hugged him and hugged him very tightly. - You did very well, Yuu. I'm proud of you. - Thank you, Uncle Divvy...I think this time it's over once and for all. -I heard from the guards that Prefect beat him to the intensive care unit, but I don't know how he managed to get in. Yuu chuckled mirthlessly - yes, Prefect helped me out when it was most needed. Ah...I saw him get through the vent or something. Roger swore softly. - Damn it, I wanted to get his autograph! - Roger!Why do you need an autograph? - Little kitty King even has one, I also want an autograph!

Grimm uneasily climbs onto Yuu's shoulders and rubs his head against Yuu's cheek. He watched Yuu more closely than anyone else and saw the state they were in. - Hey .. Yuu. - Yes, Grimm? - Let you take a vacation, your hands are shaking like you're not letting go of a jackhammer. - Grimm glared at Yuu. - I absolutely agree with him, Yuu. Honey, you need a break, you have black eyes and you've lost weight since the last time we met. Being under constant stress is detrimental to your health. - Div, what about that country house you were talking about the other day? - Roger immediately joined in, taking up the idea. - I'm driving, so we can all go together. - Yuuken, you'll go too, no objection,- Anita smiled softly. - Yes, ma'am. I'll just talk to my superiors about letting us go for a couple of days. - Weeks at least,- Сruel added. *** Sitting surrounded by at least 15 pups, Yuu felt like he was falling asleep, they were really too tired for everything that had happened. The quiet snuffling of the pups around him brought him back nostalgically to the time when Yuu was just learning to play the piano with his father and, due to his age and height, couldn't reach the pedals below. How he and Uncle Divus would look at all sorts of fashion magazines, and Yuu would try to draw this or that dress or suit with crayons under his uncle's guidance. Even now, he could hear his mother and father discussing something with Uncle Divvy over a bottle of wine and quiet laughter. Grimm and Juuken fell asleep in a couple of minutes lying on the couch. Grimm climbed onto Yuuken's stomach and used it as a pillow.

Only in the evening, waking up from the doorbell, Yuu sleepily opened his eyes, they slept so soundly and well that they did not even notice how one of the particularly daring and playful puppies tried to gnaw his sleeve. - Who's, Uncle Divvy? - Yuu rubbed his eyes and yawned contentedly. Cruel carried several boxes into the room. - Courier with delivery, although it is strange that no one expected a special package. - What's is Divvy? - It came in the name of Yuu. - Me? - After getting out of the trap of the puppies, Yuu looked at the boxes with a puzzled expression. They were all in his name. And then Yuu noticed several small cards attached to the boxes. In the first box were expensive bagels with filling and frosting. It was a gift from Tsunotaro with an apology that they had to go through all this and Crowley had caused them so much inconvenience.

In the boxes from Tsunotaro there was also a basket of wild roses with a very pleasant and subtle aroma. Several varieties of very delicious tea and a letter was enclosed in an envelope. - "The items are very expensive and refined. Who is this secret fan, sweety? - Anita smiled softly. - From a friend, Mom...a very kind and good friend. - Yuu pulled out the letter and sat down on a chair and began to run his eyes over the beautiful written lines. Malleus certainly tried to put all his feelings and sincere empathy into the lines. The letter was very touching and full of grace, but the one phrase that caught Yuu's attention most was the one from the villain. "If you or your loved ones need help, please contact me first. It doesn't matter what the circumstances are, it doesn't matter who I have to stand up against, whether it's villainous or even heroic, I will always help you no matter what happens, my dear and sweet reporter. Your loyal friend and " pink ink was added "and the most important terrible villain" - this must have been Vanruge. ... your loyal friend and loyal fan. Enjoy your vacation, we'll probably take a break for a while, too. " At the bottom was another postscript in pink ink : "One of the minions had the temerity to fall asleep in a den with the windows open. And now in our shelter a flock of birds, rabbits, squirrels and other small creatures that need to be attached" Yuu choked on a laugh as he imagined the mighty Tsunotaro surrounded by all these cute little animals. Finally, this long day gave Yuu something good, at least they will spend a few days with their family and close friends. Finally, the long-awaited rest and a short vacation came. By the way, the bagels with stuffing that were sent were damn delicious. - To bribe me on an empty stomach, up villainy is not otherwise-Yuu grinned, finishing another bagel. Thank you for your attention!

AAAAAAAH, I LOVE THIS!!

The perfect little ending to ease the sad of the last submission!! Yuu getting away with beating up Crowley! Crowley’s henchpeople treating Yuu with more respect and kindness than birb dad does!! Yuu’s dad wanting the Prefect’s autograph!! Forcing Yuu onto a vacation because their family loves them and wants them to feel safe and happy!! Yuuken and Grim going home with them and falling asleep in the puppy pile together!! Malleus’ care package and Lilia’s additions to his note!! I LOVE EVERYTHING ABOUT THIS!!

Thank you so much for sending this in!!

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maxismatchccworld · 4 years

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Patch Notes

PC:1.69.54.1020 / Mac: 1.69.54.1220 Console: Version 1.35 Happy Holidays Simmers! It’s time to go back in to Create a Sim! Where in this update you will find 100+ new skin tones, customization sliders for skin tones and makeup, and three improved base game hairstyles! Every skin tone now has a value slider that allows you to change the light to dark value of that skin tone, unlocking a much wider variety of skin tone options for you to play with! You will also find that our skin tones are now filterable to warm, cool, and neutral tones (as well as miscellaneous that covers our occult skin tones).

The new makeup sliders add more choices and opportunities for you to customize your Sims, and express your Sim’s style! Hue, saturation, value or brightness, and opacity are now available to modify on the makeup. We have locked some of the sliders where it did not provide an optimal experience or make sense for the makeup. Expect us to continue our work on these issues into the future to provide you with more. In addition to the customization opportunities provided, you can also save custom swatches as you tweak your sliders to get the perfect look. When you click on the swatch (for skin tones and makeup) as you modify the sliders, you will have an opportunity to save your custom settings, so you can re-use it later without having to remember your perfect looks! Did we mention that we made some hair updates? We did - we updated a base game child hair (cfHair_BraidedPonyTail), and we added a second version of that hair that removes the baby hairs (cfHair_BraidedPonyTailPlain). And we updated a base game male hair that you may find difficult to recognize from the original hair (ymHair_flatTopTextured)!

We have updated the Main Menu!... Again! The idea behind this change is to create a more cohesive experience and give Packs a more proper space as we continue to grow our content lineup. As a nice bonus, we highlighted the Gallery in a more meaningful way to inspire you.

-SimGuruGnome & SimGuruRusskii

Now onto the fixes:

Sims 4

Sketching so much that the Digital Sketch Pad just quit on you? Never fear! Freelancer Sims that use the Digital Sketchpad will now be able to complete designs without being reset abruptly.

Happy Birthday to all! Sims will now properly Age Up. Adulting is hard but they will make it, don’t worry.

Fixed an issue in which Doors, Windows, and Arches had cutouts when being reflected in Mirrors. Rorrim Rorrim no eht llaw, ohw si eht tseriaf erutaef fo meht lla?

Sims that do not have the Fishing Skill, or have not been Fishing at all, will not get notifications about identifying Fish. THEY WERE FISHING WITH THEIR MINDS.

The following careers have added the “Take Vacation Day” option, yay!Editor Russkii note: I didn’t want to add each line in each pack for this fix, it would have looked weird and robotic so that is why I chose to do one bullet point for all in this section.

Child Sims will no longer forget they are in their Sleepwear when they go to school. Though in these times of Work and School from Home, I don’t blame them one bit.

The Sweet Escapes Country Toilet will no longer be Comfortable AND Uncomfortable at the same time… There can only be one!

Sims with the Best Selling Author Aspiration can now complete their task of writing 3 Best Sellers.

Fixed an issue in which resized objects would disappear when they were part of downloaded Gallery items.

We revised our Careers (Pack specific and not) and we made sure there were no Chance Cards that were repeated constantly.

We noticed we had added the option to Clean Up Toddler on kitchen and bathroom sinks for both Toddlers and Children by mistake, so we removed it for both age groups from the sink… but how would have they fit? Like… how? These are the questions that keep me up at night.

Build Snowpal interaction is no longer available on non-natural ground (For Simmers that own Seasons and/or Snowy Escape). That's why it's called a Snowpal, not a Floorpal!

Gardener (Seasons)

Military (Strangerville)

Lifeguard for Teens and Conservationist (Island Living)

Law, Education, and Engineer (Discover University)

Civil Designer (Eco Lifestyle).

Get to Work

We made a clarification on the Xenophilia moodlet when interacting with Alien Sims. It should no longer say “From Discovering Aliens” but now it correctly reads “From Interacting with Aliens.”

Fixed an issue in which childbirth was not possible if Simmers changed the color swatches of the Surgery Tables. Now listen, I have heard about renting whole hospital wings for a birth in real life and other eccentricities, but this… was really something.

Get Together

Male Sims will no longer get Pregnant after receiving calls from NPC Sims.

City Living

NPC Sims will now text and call with invitations to Festivals. I personally welcomed the calm and quiet of my phone not beeping about constantly. But I can’t miss a Festival!

Sims rejoice! Yard sale customers will no longer invade their Home Lots and use Household objects. It is a Yard Sale… OUT in the yard, not an Open House.

Did you ever regret trusting some Sims enough to give them your apartment keys to constantly get visits from them for Milk and Juice? You can rest assured that they will no longer visit you for this purpose. I think some neighborly love is appreciated, but this went beyond the proverbial “May I have a cup of sugar?” type of situation.

Fixed an issue in which interactions to participate on GeekCon contests would not appear when interacting with objects.

We decided to give a bit more clarity when displaying the location of Festivals, so now it will display as “Near <insert location>” and not a distinct location that is not entirely correct. This is true for Festivals in Snowy Escape as well.

Cats and Dogs

Pets will no longer sleep in random places when told to sleep on their Pet beds. In my world they can sleep where they are most comfortable, my conspiracy… allegedly.

Seasons

Sims can now Shower in the Rain… Jury is still out on Singing and Dancing.

Sims will no longer “lose” their shovels when performing other autonomous activities while performing the interaction “Shovel Snow.”

Our friendly neighborhood Snowpal has been properly renamed to Chill from Chil. Everything I knew before was a lie… a LIE!

Ever felt like the Holiday spirit has just been too much to handle, and Father Winter starting to show up everywhere and not letting you do much of anything getting a bit… out of hand? Fear not! Father Winter will stop replicating himself* to spread holiday cheer. *Note this fix is not entirely retroactive, new saves should see this without issue. Existing saves will correct themselves over time.

Get Famous

Duck Security SCROO9E Super XL Smart Vault will no longer disappear after Sims Woohoo in it… you can say Woohoo can be romantic and magical, but maybe not to this extent?

NPCs from the Actor Career sometimes would never show on Set, making gigs impossible to complete. We've spoken with their union reps and everyone has agreed to stop this ridiculous strike. What were they striking about? Was there even a Strike? We may never know.

Island Living

Mermaids and other Occults should no longer be able to make hybrid occults. How were they making them? Oh boy, I'm not sure if it's appropriate for me to give you the mermaid-birds and spellcaster-bees talk.

Randomly generated Mermaid Sims will no longer be seen without some features in affected Simmer Saves. However this fix is not retroactive, so it should be seen fixed in new saves.

Pizza delivery to Lagoon Look Lot has been fixed to arrive promptly. This is Sulani Deep Lagoon Pizza, home of the 2x1 Mermadic Kelp Pizza and the Salty Llama Combo, may I take your order? <Descriptive Simlish on the line> Uh huh… uh huh… <Indescribable Simlish on the line> Yes, we now can ACTUALLY deliver to Lagoon Look… <Interrogative Simlish on the line> Yes, we told our delivery Sims that they need to deliver it there and not keep the pizza for themselves… like give it to the actual client. <Surprised Simlish on the line>

Discover University

Has this ever happened to you? Your Sim is ready to make an offering to the Sprites only to find a crystal stuck without being able to move it? No longer a problem, Sims now can remove offerings so all their rituals can resume. Sprites rejoice.

We fixed an issue for our Console Simmers that wouldn’t allow them to close the Humanoid Robot’s Behavior Module Menus correctly.

Fixed an issue that would cause items to be repossessed when loans were fully paid. That is NOT how it worked Repo Person… NOT how it worked.

Sims with Research & Debate Skill 3 or higher will no longer be able to “Convince to” with Toddler Sims.

Masquerade Secret Society Masks are now properly unlocked in Create a Sim when joining the Secret Society.

Fixed an issue in which Heckle animation was sometimes not being performed autonomously by Sims while playing Ping Pong.

Eco Lifestyle

Fixed an issue that triggered the Off-the-Grid notifications after traveling to different Lots in Evergreen Harbor, even when they are not labeled as Off-the-Grid.

We spoke to all Eco Inspectors, and they have agreed that they should NOT be charging the Energy efficient appliances fine if your appliances are fully upgraded to be super efficient and amazing. I mean all that work and still get fined? Not in this house!

Fixed an issue in which some placeholder text was showing in notifications after Dumpster Diving.

The Americana Station Speakers will now play Music… as the prophecy foretold.

When the We Wear Bags N.A.P is active, Grim Reaper will not be partially invisible when appearing on a Lot. Grim Reaper contributes!

Living the No Appliance lifestyle? We’ve got news for you! Sims will no longer be penalized for not having “Eco-Friendly Appliances.” No appliances, no fines!

Snowy Escape

Vending Machine Canned Soups and Drinks won’t spoil anymore. Time to stock up!

Sims can no longer go on Hikes while holding their Toddlers.

Space Heaters will now be able to be placed on Lots from Inventory. Sharing the warmth everywhere!

Fixed an issue in which the Shoe Removal Sign in 5-1-2 Kiyomatsu was not working properly. We also added Shoe Removal Signs in 5-1-1 Kiyomatsu and 2-4-2 Wakabamori.

Sims will now be more visibly furious when having the appropriate furious sentiment toward other Sims. “Yes, I’m mad!... No! This IS my furious face!”

Fixed an issue with some animations that would stutter while Snowboarding or Skiing. We also made sure that Sims with a high level of those skills would not always choose the Bunny Slopes.

Izzy Fabulous’ Star Simmi Rank was just too fabulous so we had to correct it to be one star less than displayed. Don’t worry Izzy, you are a full 4 stars in my book, you are that fabulous to me.

After much debate of whether it is the Cave Shrine or the Mountain Shrine for Hiking destinations we finally decided to just call it Mountain Shrine.

We revised the Snoop-Proof Bamboo Blinds and it is now possible to drop’em like they’re hot with the Thousand Words Window.

NPC Sims will no longer “take over” the Slopes for themselves for an indefinite period of time, now they will be sharing with all Sims the joys of the Slopes.

Fixed an issue in which Sims would get highlighted in the Sentiment Panel as if receiving new Sentiments every time traveling is involved.

Sims with Rock Climbing Skill 7, or higher, are able to autonomously climb the Tall Wall (Such tall! So much wall!). There is no need to not face what makes you uncomfortable… autonomously.

Had a chat with Yamachan and asked if he was ok, he seemed to start random conversations and then randomly say goodbye without reason. We are happy to report that he is OK now and will try not to do that. Give us a hug Yamachan.

Food Stalls at Mt. Komorebi Festivals won’t be closing shop randomly during Festival hours anymore. <guitar and piano intro> Closing time, open all the Stalls and eat all the food in the world...Closing time, turn all the lights on and let Yamachan greet you heeeere…

Create a Sim asset ymHat_EP10HelmetGoggles has been fixed to no longer display clipping around the neck area as well as we made sure no facial hair is removed when wearing this asset.

Dine Out

Experimenting with photo frames will no longer use the same picture of an Experimental Meal when displayed.

Hot Pot meals are now part of Restaurant Menus! I miss the times I would go to eat Hot Pot at a restaurant. One of my favorites has a conveyor belt that carries your fixings never leaving your table for a thing. *happy sigh*

Vampires

Vampire Sims will no longer be affected by temperature, so they won't be constantly obsessed with lighting fireplaces trying to get warm.

Post edited by EA_Leeloo at 6:30PM

Source: https://forums.thesims.com/en_US/discussion/984647/december-7th-2020-patch-notes

#s4 patch notes

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cherripeach · 3 years

Text

Chapter 14

Little Match Maker

Summary: Your life motto is “I have the power of god and anime on my side, don’t mess with me,” and you stand by that with your life. No human, magician, or random creature could ever stop your firm belief in it.

However, getting transported to this world that seemed to turn your already bad luck worse was not what you wanted to be in your life story, but you made the most of it. Making friends, enemies, and disasters, you were in your prime in this world, and so you decided to help as many people as you could flourish, at least what you believed to be.

Chapter 1:11-12 good credit, bad credit, you dead: ghost credit

Running to the store on campus, so cute.

Warnings: Curse words, implied violence

Words: 3.1k

Relationships: developing but future twstxreader

Ace groaned while face planting on the counter, “We finally finished peeling them all!”

Deuce moaned in pain, “My arms hurt…” He, then, stretched his arms and popped some of his knuckles while rolling his neck.

You agreed with the two boys, “Yeah, I don’t wanna move for the next decade.” You made your seat on one of the stools next to the counter to take a break after standing for what felt like hours.

Trey chuckled at your reactions, “Great work. I’m sure that your hard work will all be worth it.” While you three were sulking, Trey began cleaning up as much as possible by putting things away and putting things in the dishwasher.

Grim grumbled, “I’m getting hungry just by the smell, yanno.” The cat had tried to take as much of the ingredients as possible while you were preparing, but barely managed to get any.

Trey took a sheet of paper out from a binder and sorted some of the ingredients next to some cooking utensils, “The marron base uses butter and sugar. And then, I also added some oyster sauce as a secret ingredient.”

Ace and Deuce jumped up from their positions of dread in shock, “Oyster sauce?!”

Trey placed the sheet down and grabbed a bottle of the sauce, “Exactly. The savory flavor of the chestnuts gives the cream a rich flavor. And then, to make it better, I use this,” He motioned to the sauce in his hand, “‘Walrus-brand young oyster sauce’. There’s no famous pâtissière who doesn’t use this for their tarts, you know?” He ended it all with a closed eyed smile.

Deuce mumbled, “Really…? It’s a pretty salty sauce, isn’t it?”

“You know how they put chocolate in curry, too?” Ace gave an example, “It kinda makes sense…”

You were, on the other hand, not having it, “Naw, dude. It doesn't; sweet can't just nullify salt or reverse. It’s practically impossible.” You shook your head while the two idiots were just pouting in their confusion.

Trey chuckled while clutching his stomach, “You're right! I was just joking! There’s no way I’d put oyster sauce in a dessert, you know? How’d you know?”

The two idiots never would have guessed that.

Ace’s hand’s shot up in his defense, pointing at his senior, “What the heck!? Are you making fun of us!?”

“It’s obviously impossible if you think about it a little.” Trey’s lighthearted giggle switched to a more wise old lecture, “The moral lesson here is that you shouldn’t believe anything you’re told. Learn to doubt a bit, okay?”

You nodded your head, “See, Ace. I don’t gotta learn that because I knew right away.”

You were a genius. In all eyes besides Ace’s, that is.

Ace snorted, “I bet it was a lucky guess.”

You fought back, “Pshhhh. No way.” You knew this was just the start of one of your many squabbles.

Grim whispered to you behind his hand, “This guy looks nice, but he’s the type who can tell lies with no problem, huh…”

“I guess so.” Your eyes widened at Grim’s statement.

Trey rallied you all together to begin the next step, “Next is the fresh cream!”

A shrill scream ran through the air.

Ace bounced up and questioned Trey, “What’s wrong?”

You joined Ace with your question, “Are you okay?”

“I got carried away with the chestnuts you picked that I went overboard with making the marron base.” Trey laughed at himself and rubbed the back of his head, “We’re a little short on fresh cream.”

Deuce offered, “I’ll go buy some. Do they sell it in the school store?”

Trey explained, “That shop sells pretty much anything, so I’m sure it should be there. Can I ask you to buy some other stuff while you’re at it? Two packs of milk, two cartons of eggs, silicon cups, and five canned fruits…” He writes down the list of items and hands them to Deuce.

Deuce reads the list before commenting, “I don’t think I can carry all of that alone…”

This was your chance, “I’ll come! I need to see if they have uniforms there, anyway.” Maybe you could find some uniforms or even some other clothes for a nice price as if you had any money.

Grim interjected, “I’m going, too! I don’t wanna mix more dough!” He raised his little paw as far as his body would allow it.

“Understandable.” You did not need to lose your arms over baking.

The three of you began your walk to the grocery store on campus with only some light chatter about how excited you all were to taste the finished product and how Grim shouldn’t steal it all.

The grocery store was the size of a drug store, but apparently from what Trey said it had everything anyone at this school needed. It’s gotta be a magic store.

“We sure this is it?” You questioned Deuce because he was sure to know more than you, right?

Deuce pointed out, “I haven’t heard of any other shops here.”

Grim quickly agreed, “Yeah, yeah, yeah. Let’s get a move on!”

While still warry, you approached the place behind the two overexcited shoppers, both who had stars in their eyes as someone from a novel would say.

Deuce gazed around the place with wide eyes after opening the door where a little bell rang, “Pardon us! Whoa, what an amazing shop… Crystal skulls, magical texts, and… wh-what sort of animal is this…?” Deuce motioned to an animal’s skeleton that was just laying out on one of the shelves. Grim and Deuce took two steps closer to inspect the animal while you took two steps back.

Grim, who began to travel by himself around the store, questioned Deuce and you, “Can we really find some fresh cream here?”

“I’d be surprised if we couldn't find it.” You opened a box that was filled with dusty books while nodding to Grim.

Out of nowhere came a voice near the counter, “Hey! Little lost lambs, what can I help you with? Welcome to Mr. S’s Mystery Shop.” The man had one of the oddest outfits with a bright pink shirt but then a black and dark purple jacket. His fashion sense was certainly new, but his vibe was what shocked you the most. Almost like he knew too much. What is it that you wish for today? A charm against cheating?” He pulled out a slip of paper from his chest pocket, “ An ancient king’s mirror?” a small mirror from his sleeve, “Or maybe, some cursed tarot cards?” He even pulled a box out of thin air.

Grim was frozen in shock for a moment and joined the conversation with a breath, “Ah, you startled me!”

You added on, “He reminds me of those characters from video games and movies that are just normal store owners or vendors that have some of the oddest items.” Looking at his shop, you believed yourself for a moment.

The three of you made your way to the little counter at the back of the store.

Deuce took out the list from his pocket and handed it to the man, “Um… We would like to buy the things written on this note.”

Grim used his arms to pull his face onto the counter as to be seen and begged, “And I also want some canned tuna!”

“With what money?” You waved at him in disbelief, “And I have a question for you, Mystery man.”

Deuce pushed Grim off of the counter, “No! We will not buy any canned tuna!” which only caused Grim to growl at Deuce.

The male scanned the note while tapping his finger in his chin, “Mhmm. What do we have here? Fresh cream and eggs… Oh, my! What a pretty sweet line-up” He gave Deuce a thumbs up, “OK! I shall bring them out now. And I’ll get back to you in just a minute.” The male nodded at you with a small wink at the end of his sentence.

Totally an odd vibe.

Deuce gasped in disbelief letting go of Grim’s fur, “Whoa… Will he really have some here?”

You voiced your thoughts, “Maybe the back is just really big?”

The man returned with five bags full of items on your list, “Here, thank you for the wait. It is rather heavy, so are you sure you can carry them all?” The male, then gestured to a sign right next to the cash register about a special bag to carry all the items, “If you act now, I can throw in a special bag to carry all of those things for 30% off of its original price!” Deuce took out the money Trey gave him and handed it to the shopkeeper.

Grim blurted out, “What did you say? Hey, that sounds interesting!” The cat grabbed your clothes as he normally does pointing at the sign to get your attention focused on it.

Deuce shook his head while grabbing three of the five bags, “We. We will have to decline! Let’s go, Grim!”

“But why?! I wanna play more!” A pointing Grim was not resulting in a good day for anyone, but at this rate you couldn’t spend money on any food.

“About that question,” You brought it up to the shopkeeper.

The off-vibe man nodded, “Ok, what's the problem, little lost lamb?”

You asked, “Do you sell uniforms or at least know where I can find one?”

“I should have some, but they're all used ones. I’ll even cut the price because of how damaged they are.” He then told you the price which was great for uniforms but as someone who owned no cash, not the best.

You thanked the male as you picked up the last two bags while the other two began to walk out, “Thanks! I’m gonna come back once I have the money, but please save them for me.”

“Ok! of course, little lost lamb. I’ll have them in stock just for you.” He winked at you again, and at this point and time you’re just gonna assume it’s normal for him.

“Thank you so much!!” You responded while finally walking out of the shop.

Once outside, Deuce began a new conversation, “That was a very amazing shop, in a way…”

Grim was still pouting at the two of you for not giving him free food, “Boo, you two are so stingy.” His arms were snuggly crossed over one another and even his ears were flattened against his head.

Deuce swung around to ask Grim, “Who are you calling stingy?!” This, however, almost resulted with Grim getting a concussion because of how the bag of canned fruits and heavy cream knocked Grim to the ground.

Deuce quickly apologized, “Sorry!”

You placed your bag to check on Grim by feeling on his head for any bumps or any scrapes from the bag, “Well, no one would give a brat what they want now would they? I know you want some tuna, but money is tight right now and I can’t get you any for a while. Once I save up enough, I promise I’ll get you some.” You brushed back his hair before flicking at his forehead, “Just remember to keep that ego in check. Soon, who knows, maybe I can even buy a hairbrush and maybe even a phone.”

Deuce coughed before fixing the bags in his hold to reach his hand out to you, “The bag with the milks is heavy, isn’t it? I’ll hold it for you. I’m experienced with carrying heavy loads.”

You shook your head, “No way, lover boy, I can handle myself just so you know. And besides that's an odd area of expertise. Any reason why?” You kept walking to distract the male from taking your bag.

Deuce flushed red before starting his explanation, “Yeah, Mother always takes me with her during timed sales. She buys a lot, so I end up helping her with the bags. I’m the only man in the family, so I’m used to helping a lot with hard labor. Ah, I’m sorry… I keep talking about myself.” His face flushed even darker.

You rolled your eyes, “That is incredibly sweet of you, Deuce. Don’t be scared to talk to me about anything. We’re friends. You must care for your mother a lot with how you talk about her.”

Deuce stuttered, “No… That’s not true at all. I… Mother was…” Deuce flies back onto the ground after connecting with someone’s chest, “Ouch!”

All of the materials that Deuce was holding fell to the ground, but the biggest problem was that the eggs were now completely broken and leaking everywhere on the sidewalk.

Grim gasped and fell to his knees to try and save the groceries, “Ah, the eggs!!”

“Hey, you ok?” You reached out your hand to Deuce who grabbed it so that you could pull him up onto both of his feet.

Deuce locked eyes on the bag of now broken eggs and cursed, “Damn it!” He picked up the bag of eggs and began to check to see if any of the eggs were not broken and could be used, “All the eggs in the carton broke! The plastic bag’s now reeking with eggs…!” Deuce tossed them in the trash while Grim squirmed to grab the bag from him.

A white haired familiar looking male scoffed at the three of you, “That hurt! Where the hell’re ya lookin’ at,” His eyes darted to each member of your little group before continuing, “Wha? You’re the guys who ruined my carbonara’s soft-boiled egg during lunch today!”

Another familiar red haired student was right on his side, “Damn, it’s you guys again. Ya better give us a break.”

You grabbed as many bags as you could carry that Deuce had before, and you snorted, “And I thought I already crushed your egos, but I should have known you can't break a brick for a brain.”

The white haired boy snickered at the three of you, “Well it seems the little supervisor can’t even get us in trouble so no need for fear. You can’t harm us.”

Deuce had been standing in place for the last couple of seconds with his eyes on his feet, “…Aren’t you the ones at fault for bumping into me?” His sharp gaze met that of the duo of delinquents, “Even during lunch. The egg wasn’t really that badly harmed, but you made a huge scene out of it. Our carton of eggs is totally ruined, though.” Deuce rolled up the sleeves to his jacket.

Grim agreed standing as tall as he could across from the two upperclassmen, “He’s totally right!”

You walked over to where Deuce and Grim had made their little fighting stance, “Let’s just leave. They’re not gonna listen and we shouldn't get into a fight with idiots.” To further get Deuce’s attention, you pulled into the shoulder of his jacket to motion toward the bags, “We can always replace them. Let’s just get what we have back.”

The white haired boy swore, “The hell? You sayin’ it’s my fault, then? And idiots? I’m much smarter than any of you. Respect your elders!”

Deuce paid no mind to you or your constant poking on his shoulder, “Yes, please pay us back for the eggs. And also, please apologize to the chickens.”

“Hah?” The red haired boy quipped at Deuce, “Makin’ a ruckus over eggs, are we?”

Deuce grunts, “Hah?” before turning to you, “Remember the promise right?”

You nodded at him.

“Then, back up.” He lightly pushed you to make you back up, “And don’t get involved.” You locked eyes with the male only to see his eyebrows furrowed and a large scowl on your face. And as much as you wanted to help him and get him out of this situation, there’s nothing you can do against magic users. At least not yet.

The two other students did not realize how ready Deuce was to make this physical or how personal this was.

The whit haired boy groaned, “It didn’t hit the ground so you can still eat it. Stop makin’ a fuss over little things.” The boy slapped his friend before whispering something to him.

The other boy snickered before adding, “Ya better be thankful they broke inside the plastic bag!”

“Not only are they dumb, but blind too,” You mumbled to yourself which Grim could hear from his small chortle.

Deuce still had not lost his eye contact with the other two boys, seemingly eyeing them down to wait for the perfect moment.

Both of the boys let out the largest giggles possible that a teenage boy could without sounding like girls gossiping with their heads thrown back and their hands clutching their stomachs.

“Laughing at something that is surely your fault.” You rolled your eyes while trying to get the boy’s attention on Deuce who was in your eyes about to murder a bitch, “I think you should just pay us back for it. Maybe some extra too for having to deal with your terrible attitude to even it out.”

Neither student responded to you only grunting out stiffles of laughter for the next couple of seconds.

Deuce muttered to himself breaking eye contact with the two to gaze down at his hand which was clenched like in one of those TV shows when a character is going to do something he regrets, “... Mess with me, will you…”

White haired kid raises his eyebrows in confusion as Deuce looks to be slowly going insane, “Huh?”

Deuce exploded at the two, “I told you to stop laughing, damn it!!” His feet began to move closer and closer to the two who just stood in horror for the boy who was once silent, “You ain’t got no choice but to apologize for something that’s your fault! These eggs will be used to make a delicious tart in place of turning into chicks, bastard!! Do you understand me, huh!?”

“Wh-what’s with him all of a sudden…?!” The red haired boy was backing away from the approaching student and had a look of disbelief on his face.

Deuce grabbed his fist in one hand and cracked the knuckles of the other one, “If you’re not gonna pay me back for the 6 eggs, I got no choice but to beat the hell out of you six times.”

The white haired male faltered, “Huh!?” before seeing the blue haired male coming straight for him with his fists in a fighting position.

“Grit your teeth, you little bastards!!” And with that Deuce began his little fight by pulling at the kid’s clothes and punching them a little too hard.

“Where does that phrase even come from?” But what could you do besides stand there and wait even if you didn’t want the two to get hurt going into the fight now would be harmful.

You really need to stop getting involved in fights.

#twisted wonderland #twisted wonderland x reader #twst #twst x reader #twst grim #deuce spade #trey clover #ace trappola

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itsmeevie01 · 4 years

Text

A Moment in Time-Ch 5

I'm back! lots of things to come, and a slightly longer, Tim centered, chapter! and...the build-up to the Timari subplot!

Yay!

I know that is what everyone is actually here for lol.

Tim was tired of looking for Jason.

He wasn’t at any of his normal safe houses, and none of his usual contacts had heard from him in the last few weeks. Three weeks after the ridiculous scandal had broken, the press had all but forgotten Tim for the time being. As he ducked through alleyways, the teen couldn’t help but be thankful as he climbed back on his bike and sped back towards Wayne Manor.

He was done waiting for his brother to show up. There was something sketchy going on in their city, and if Jason wasn’t going to show up, then it was no longer his concern.

When he got home, Tim found Bruce waiting for him in the study looking over the side gardens. The older C.E.O.’s face was grim.

When Tim approached the desk, Bruce handed him a stack of papers. As Tim started to page through them, he had a flashback to when Jared Stone had brought the pile of tabloids.

As he flipped through the new stack, Tim realized that it was Jason’s credit card statement. And-was that…? “did he buy a ticket for Paris? Why didn’t we get notified about his passport passing through customs? Why is Jason in France of all places?” when he looks back at his adoptive father, the man’s face was grim.

“I don’t know, Tim. But we sure as hell are going to find out. Go to his apartment. I know you have a key. We need to see if he left anything out from before he left.” Bruce paused before adding, “he’s been gone for two weeks. There has to be a reason.” Tim nodded as he moved to stride from the room before Alfred spoke, shocking both Bruce and Tim.

“Maser Bruce, did you by chance call Master Jason? Last I remember, his cell phone was still working.” The father and son froze, before turning to the family Butler, slack-jawed.

“We really are stupid.”

Damian didn’t see anything wrong with Todd being gone. It was quieter around the Manor and it meant that the 13-year-old was allowed to patrol through Crime Alley by himself, something none of his predecessors had been able to do at his age.

As the young teen flew over the city, his mind raced. He found this the most relaxing part of his time with his father.

At the manor, there was always something going on and there was always someone looking over his shoulder. Here, as he went rooftop to rooftop, arching over this city, the boy was able to finally find some peace.

A sound over his earpiece broke Robin from his quiet elation. “Robin, how are you doing? Is everything clear?” oracle’s voice filtered through, bringing him to relax. Oracle he could handle.

“it’s a regular night, Oracle. A few of the regulars. Nothing out of the ordinary.”

“perfect. Finish up and head back, B wants you back before 2 because you have school tomorrow.”

The annoyed “Tch” that came down the line made the redhead laugh from where she sat at the computer.

Tim had texted Jason before he had left for patrol. When he got back, there was a response waiting for him.

Jason: in Paris. I’ll be back soonish

Tim: Jay, what’s soonish?

Tim: there’s a situation we need your help with.

Jason: kid, I'll be back when I can.

Jason: if B cares, tell him Gina kidnapped me. I’m staying with her right now.

Jason: otherwise, just wait. It's personal business.

Tim: Jay, we are your family. Doesn’t that make it our business too?

Jason: in this case, no. fuck off, replacement

Tim: See you when you get back Jay

The teen sighed. It was just like Jason to try and handle everything himself. This time, Tim couldn’t play interference either, he was stuck across an ocean. He just hoped this Gina person wasn’t as impulsive as his older brother. If she was, they would all be in trouble.

As he made his way to his room, having showered and gotten himself ready for the next day, Tim paused by his desk.

He had taken the time to compile a file on the girl from a few weeks ago but hadn’t read it yet. He knew that if he was to read it, it would be violating her privacy, but he did that every day, so was this any different? To Tim, the only difference was that this girl wasn’t someone to watch or take in. she was just a normal girl with a normal life, who had run into him for a split second.

It wasn’t like he was going to meet her, right?

The teen shook his head and flopped onto his bed. It wasn’t worth it tonight. He could have the moral debate with himself when he was properly rested.

Maybe he should have called in sick. Tim was definitely finding a way to leave early, as he looked at the list of meetings that he had been scheduled for.

Why had he agreed to this again? He could have sworn that he had told his assistant that Wednesday was his day to go home and work on his college classes. Instead, Tim had a feeling that he was going to be at the office late.

On his off night too.

Partway through the day, he noticed an email that he didn’t recognize in his personal inbox. The inbox that he probably shouldn’t have been checking on the company computer but…

After a moment of hesitation, the young C.E.O. had clicked on the new email and blinked at what pulled up.

From: [email protected]

To: [email protected]

Mr. Drake,

My name is Marinette Dupain Cheng. I believe that we ran into each other quite literally a month and a half ago, approximately. As I am sure that you have at least seen the fictitious stories floating through the media, I assume that you are aware of the interaction that I am referring to.

Originally, I had no intention of reaching out, but a friend of mine encouraged me to reach out. (had actually was the one to give me your email. Does the name Jason Todd ring a bell?) I do hope that this whole press fiasco hasn’t hindered you too terribly.

Kindest Regards,

Marinette Dupain Cheng

Tim blinked once before rereading the short email that the girl had sent. No. no way. She knew Jason? And what did she mean, Jason was the one to encourage her to reach out? Opening up a new draft, Tim hesitated before flicking his wrists to rid himself of tension and trying his reply.

From: [email protected]

To: [email protected]

Miss Dupain Cheng,

I was surprised to receive your email, but it seems that it came at a fortunate time. Yes, I do know Jason Todd. I know him quite well, actually. He and I were adopted by the same man, Bruce Wayne. If you don’t mind me asking, how did you meet my brother?

I must apologize, for the whole scandal from last month. I know that neither of us were directly responsible, but I do feel bad for any trouble it may have caused you. If it is not too much of an intrusion, I might also ask, how were you able to respond so quickly? The only reason I knew about the incident was Bruce’s old friend Jared. The man came into my office in a fit about the nerve of the photographer.

(if you ever meet the man, you will understand what I mean when I say that he never does things halfway. He had picked up a copy of every magazine or tabloid that ran a story about it. When he came in, he actually brought his crocodile as well. Fang scared the lobby staff more than anything has for the past bit, I believe.)

I hope this finds you well,

Timothy Drake Wayne

After reading through his email one more time to make sure it sounded professional enough, Tim hit the send button and let out a deep breath that he didn’t know he had been holding. He didn’t know why, but he had a feeling that this was the start of something important.

Suddenly, Tim was very glad he hadn’t read the girl’s file.

As he was preparing to head to yet another meeting later that afternoon, Tim glanced at his personal email again. To his surprise, the teen was met with another email from the French girl.

From: [email protected]

To: [email protected]

Mr. Drake (or is it Drake Wayne?)

Jason was sitting next to me when I opened your last email. Imagine my surprise when he panicked. Apparently, he had decided against informing any of his family of his departure. I must say, his reaction was quite entertaining.

Onto your question from your email, Penny Rolling, a good friend of mine, dropped off a box full of the tabloid trash that her husband, Jagged had shipped to her as soon as she got it. After my initial reaction, the two of us got a good laugh out of the whole situation. Especially when we heard that Jagged tried to bring Fang into your office! I guess to you, he would be Jared, but to me, he will always be my Uncle Jagged.

In other news, I thought it would be polite to pass on that Jason will be returning in the next few days. He has been fretting over a family emergency, not that he will tell me what it is but, there is only so much I can do. However, I thought it might be prudent to forewarn you that he will be bringing my grandmother back with him. Nona said it was something to do with one of his ‘side hustles’. Knowing those two, however, makes me think that Jason has gotten himself into something significantly illegal this time.

No need to apologize for something that neither of us could control! You did not ask for the photographer to take that ridiculous photo, nor did you ask for the fiction writers who work for the tabloids to write a piece of the photo. That said, I do feel that it has opened many new avenues. I know that Jason and I reconnected because of the photo, and it has given my lawyers something to focus on while we wait on proceedings for other matters.

Have a good day,

Marinette Dupain Cheng

Jason was coming home sooner than he planned. It seemed like Tim’s text had actually gotten through to his older brother.

With a sigh, he marked the email as important so that he would remember to respond to it before he started on his homework.

The teen C.E.O. snagged his thermos of coffee on the way out the door, he had a meeting to go to.

And...there it is! this week I'm going to try and work out my posting schedule. what did everyone think of the emails?

i know that there are a lot more people in the Wayne/bat family, so I'm going to work them in a little bit at a time. as far as Dick Grayson is concerned, btw he knows about the scandal but not about Jason's sister or that he's not in Gotham.

MasterPost

Tag List

@moonlitceleste @redscarlet95 @ultimatetornshipper @mochegato @liquid-luck-00 @maskedpainter

@trippingovermyfeet @nathleigh @m0chick0furan @susiej1118@t1dwarrior-of-earth

#a moment in time fic #miraculous ladybug #ml x dc #mlb #timari #timinette #sibling!jasonette #Cat!marinette

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antihero-writings · 3 years

Text

The Boy with the Unspeakable Name (Ch1)

Fandom: Harry Potter (and the Chamber or Secrets)

Fic Summary: Tom Riddle may have won his battle with Harry in the Chamber of Secrets, but there were a few unforeseen consequences; loss of Tom’s memory being the most obnoxious of them. Is it possible to stop Tom’s past from becoming his future? Or is the young Tom Riddle doomed to repeat his mistakes?

Notes: I’ve actually had this idea ever since the first or second time I read Chamber of Secrets. Though Tom has never been my favorite character, I found young Tom interesting, and I always thought things would have gone differently if he had come back when he was Harry’s age. I was always curious if he could have been redeemed if things had gone this way. Now, I know JK Rowling purposely wanted to create an irredeemable villain, so she wouldn’t have redeemed him even then, but I wanted to write a fic playing with that idea myself.

Despite having had this idea for a long time, I didn’t write it because I was afraid I’d bite off more than I could chew, and wouldn’t finish. But this last time I read Chamber of Secrets, I decided I’d just go for it. I’m still afraid I won’t finish, as this is the longest premise of any of my fics posted, (and I haven’t finished any of my other, shorter, long fics…) but I didn’t want that to stop me from at least trying out the idea. Even if I don’t finish it, at least I’ll have something to show for it!

All that being said, if you like this fic and do want me to continue please consider commenting, and/or reblogging. Sometimes one comment can mean the difference between me continuing, and me leaving the fic behind. It really helps to know people are interested.

Above art from the internet.

Chapter 1:

He didn’t know how fitting it was.

Tom Riddle didn’t know just how fitting it was that the first two things he sensed after waking up were the sound of crying, and the stench of blood.

He didn’t remember how much of his past—or perhaps one could call it his future—was comprised of tears, blood, muffled screaming, and the words avada kadavra! hissed in a cold, high voice that was surely not his own.

Right now, he didn’t remember much of anything at all.

Sixteen years or sixty, he remembered none of pain, the loss, or the victory.

All he knew in this moment was that world was damp and cold, it smelled like death, and someone was weeping.

That was the world to him; an ink spill on living canvas. A hole made in screaming pages.

The sound of weeping was the first thing he knew in this new life—(or this old life, made new)—it echoed and filled the place—whatever the place was—like the slow drip of water in an empty cave; tiny on its own, mistakable in a crowd, but sharp, vast, and overpowering when the world was hollow.

And the world did feel hollow.

He did not wake to a warm, dry hospital bed, a fire, and a heap of get-well cards. His family did not surround him, showering him with love and gratitude, asking what he did and did not remember, and what had happened to their sweet boy. No one held up pictures, pointing to the scenes and people within them fervently demanding remember?!, praying amnesia would leave him sooner rather than later.

Instead he woke to a place in which every sensation burned: cold searched for weaknesses in his damp cloak and slithered across his skin; the smell of blood bored into his nostrils, enough he could almost taste it; and the longer he heard the wailing it burned in his ears too.

Burned because it hurt his heart not just his ears? Because it was sad? Because it mattered, and he needed to know what was wrong?

Surely not.

Burned because it was annoying, and he wanted to shut it up. Burned because it wasn’t a nice sound to wake up to, and whoever they were ought to have more courtesy for orphan boys who just wanted to wake up in peace.

Everything burned because something about feeling, sensing anything at all, was…oddly unfamiliar. Not strange as in a new way; it was like something he once knew well that had been forgotten, left behind for a while, like nostalgia.

And if simply living was this foreign…how long had it been since he was last alive? How long had he been a ghost? And what brought him back to his body?

He opened his eyes.

Sight didn’t change the impression he had received from his other senses; mostly it just added ‘dark’ to the list of not-very-nice things the world was made of. And due to this fact, sight didn’t burn nearly as much as his other senses. Still, the world was crisper, more colorful, somehow, despite its drab nature…

He was in a chamber, a dungeon of sorts—probably underground. Stones and statues, turned brownish-green in the humid atmosphere, lined the walls. Snakes poked their heads out at him from the walls, their eyes glittering as if they’d come alive at any moment. And before him was a particularly large statue of a man.

But, as he sat up, his clothing—long, black robes, with a green patch on the chest—clinging to him uncomfortably, there were a few things sight showed him worth noting:

The first, most obvious, was the gigantic snake lying beneath the statue some ways down the chamber, its scaly green tail glistening in the low light. It was clearly dead; lying still, its belly up. There was blood where its lifeless eyes had been scratched blind, and a hole in the roof of in its gaping mouth, one of its front fangs missing. This was most likely the source of the foul smell. How long had it been dead? Couldn’t have been long, considering the other things around the room…

The second, what may have once been a book. This one was very close to himself. Its pages were ripped out of their bindings, in shreds, surrounding him like fresh snowfall. The leather cover had many holes and gashes in it, apparently made by the missing fang, which also lay beside the book, blackened ink on its tip—(but can words bleed?)—the book mutilated beyond repair. This was one of the strangest sights. It was almost as if someone—probably the person crying—blamed it for their problems and took their anger out on it, before that anger became the sorrow that resonated through the chamber now.

The third was a gleaming orange and red bird, long tail feathers unfurled on the floor, like a flame, its head held high, sitting quietly beside the mourner. It didn’t look like it didn’t belonged in such a grim place—like a rich person walking in a slum.

There was another glittering thing beside him: a silver sword with jewels encrusted in the hilt. This was likely the cause of the snake’s death, especially considering it had blood coating it.

A little way from it was a pile of raggedy brown fabric. …He couldn’t quite tell what it was supposed to be.

The sixth: the source of the crying, a boy. He had unruly black hair, and his black robes—(the same robes, he noted, that he himself was wearing, or very similar)—were christened with the blood and slime of beasts—(and maybe men, he couldn’t know)—and ink. He was possessed by the demon that was tragedy; his entire form shaking, heaving, whether from sadness or rage, or both, only time, and a healthy dose of good questioning would tell.

The last thing of note, and what was most likely the source of the tears: a corpse. A girl specifically, with red hair—almost as fiery as the bird’s feathers—ashen skin, and, once again, the black robes—(must be a uniform of some sort). Perhaps they were at a school? Quite a dreary school it was, if so. She was small, apparently young.

The scene was both a lot, and not much, to go on.

Three living things—one without memory, another without peace—two dead, and four inanimate, one of the inanimate things more mauled than any of the living or dead.

His mind started to provide theories about the scene,

Theory one:

The snake had killed the girl, the boy had taken up the sword and killed it in outrage.

Made sense, but that still left the diary, the bird, and himself. As well as the pile of fabric…

He didn’t see the bird having a big role in this; his best guess was that it belonged to the boy, as it seemed loyal to him, sharing his grief, and that its role was the scratch marks on the snake’s eyes, helping the boy defeat it.

Theory two: The girl had written something in her diary the boy didn’t like, perhaps something about he himself. He had torn the diary apart, and in a jealous rage sent his pet snake after her, but regretted it after the snake went too far and killed her, and decided to kill it after all.

Theory three: Reverse of roles; the diary was the boy’s, and she had found it, and he was either mad she found it and tore it, or she had after finding something she didn’t like in it, potentially about him, and the offended party let loose the snake.

Theory four: The snake belonged to neither of them, it was by accident they happened to wake it, or stumble into its home while fighting about this diary.

But why did they find an underground chamber the best place for an argument? Did they live here? Was this a normal place for them to spend time? Like some sort of secret hideaway? Were they in hiding from something?

Four(a): Or else were they on some quest to find it—was the snake guarding treasure? Did the diary hold the map to it, and they tore it simply to keep anyone else from finding it, or else falling into the same trap?

Theory five: The diary was his own; not the boy's or the girl's. He had some relationship to one or both of them that went awry.

Five(a): The snake was his own, and he had set it loose on the girl for some reason, perhaps he was the jealous and angry party here.

Theory six: The snake didn’t kill the girl.

Six(a): She was already dead or dying before the snake even arrived. Maybe the snake's venom, or something else about this chamber, was meant to cure her and failed.

Six(b): The boy killed her. Perhaps in his aforementioned jealous rage he had took the sword to her himself, and now he regretted it.

Six(c): He himself killed her.

He sat up, blinking at the dreary universe. The boy didn’t hear him, just kept on crying. It was a very tiresome noise to hear so constantly.

He reached over and, quietly as possible, drew the diary closer. What made its disfigurement all the stranger was that every page he could see appeared blank. People didn’t usually have qualms with blank diaries—it was the words that people were so touchy about.

When he lifted up the cover, he could see beneath the gashes a name: Tom Marvolo Riddle.

The sight of the name sent a curious sensation through his stomach; he didn’t remember who it belonged to, but the name set a fire boiling in his gut, a bubbling, swirling, writhing fire within him. A fire that threatened to destroy everything around it too.

He looked up at the mourner. Was that his name? Or was the girl, in fact, a very petite, long-haired boy? Did the diary belong to no one present, and it was the secrets within, not the owner, that mattered? But there were no words at all, let alone any secrets…

Or…was it perhaps his own? His own name that he didn’t even remember.

Sitting here theorizing wasn’t going to get him any closer to the truth.

It didn’t seem like a good idea to disturb the boy in his grief, but he didn’t have much choice—losing your memory is an ordeal of its own, you know.

He got to his feet—this sensation too didn’t feel completely mundane to him. Everything felt nostalgic—like in some fond childhood he walked, and smelled, and saw, and heard, but as he grew up, sense left him, and he forgot what it meant to be alive. His damp clothes clung to his body, making him shiver.

His footstep broke the atmosphere; the first new sound in the stagnant place, the pieces of peace cutting through the tears. The boy gasped—the kind of raw gasp, full of dread and despair, one takes when they realize the dragon is awake.

But the dragon in this particular chamber was slain…

His slow steps filled the chamber, an ominous repetition, the ticking of a clock.

When he got close, the boy’s hand wrapped around the hilt of the sword, the metal twinkling in the dim light, scraping and clattering on the stone as it moved.

“I’d stay back if I were you,” his voice was soft but solid, dangerous, wet with tears, shaking with rage, hoarse from screaming.

He stopped. He didn’t know what that meant, and he wasn’t sure he wanted to find out.

Hmm…What to ask? ‘Why’s that?’ ‘What happened here?’ ‘Who are you, who was she, and, while you’re at it, who am I?’

The scene was still fresh; if he touched the embers it might reignite.

“And…If you were me, what would you do?” he decided to ask. Speech, words forming on his tongue, felt odd too… but it was the sound of his voice that caught him most off guard…why? Had he been expecting to hear something different?

It was an odd question; he could tell the boy wasn’t expecting it. He paused. Then he scoffed,

“I’ll never be like you.” Then his voice grew quiet and dangerous, “But if I were in your place…I would run. As far away as I could, and as fast as I could, before I found out what the famous Harry Potter is capable of when you take something important from him.”

An even odder response.

The boy turned. One of his most defining features was the circular-rimmed, cracked glasses he wore. That, and the lightning-shaped scar on his forehead, which was red and irritated. Seeing this scar, for some reason, made ire rise in Tom’s throat too. His glasses shielded eyes of a bright green which also heralded from a distant memory.

Bright, but dark. A green that pierced the veil of shadows, yet reflected the rest of the world. He wondered if he had ever seen such hatred in someone’s eyes before, in that past he didn’t remember. They burned as bright as the bird by his side, bright as the girl’s hair. They were bright enough to set the chamber ablaze, dark enough to enact the threats in all the room’s corners. Yet his name didn’t immediately come to mind.

Harry Potter. That was what he said his name was. Once said aloud, the name was more familiar than sensation itself; a burning scar upon his mind, never quite healed. The name was rage, and humiliation itself to him…though he couldn’t place the source of these emotions; no memories came to mind.

They were enemies.

Only two names he knew so far, and both sent the same sort of mad fury through him. Curious.

He couldn’t be more than twelve years old. Twelve years old was quite the young age to be defeating monsters, watching girls die, and to hold such hatred in one’s eyes. Very young to be so hated by he himself.

He was just a kid. Did this Harry Potter really deserve all this?

Why did they hate each other so much? Was it normal for him to hate twelve-year-old boys?

Come to think of it, how old was he himself? He sounded young, not much older than him. But he didn’t feel young.

Why did he hate him so much?

It was starting to look like Theory six(c) might be the most likely.

He didn’t take his advice. He didn’t know much about himself, but he didn’t think he was one to take people’s advice, especially not that of his enemies. In ignorant defiance he took a step forward.

“Stay back!” Harry Potter barked, as vicious as a loyal guard dog.

That same hatred he felt buzzed behind his words.

Another step.

He held up the sword.

“I’m warning you.” Tom knew the threat in his voice was very real.

Yet he came closer. Close enough to see the face of the girl.

He didn’t recognize her. Predictable, but aggravating. He had hoped that perhaps seeing her would bring him to his senses. Alas, she was just a dead girl.

He leaned in closer.

“DON’T YOU DARE TOUCH HER!!” the boy’s words, along with the sword, were at his throat without a second to spare.

He simply flicked his gaze to him; no sign of shock or emotion at his outburst on his features.

The world must burn for this boy too. Burn, not because of sensation itself was strange, but because what he felt was currently was too much to bear.

Hatred, horror, heartbreak…hell. It all blazed and overflowed in his eyes.

He backed up one step, then another, and kept backing away until the sword was no longer close to his skin. Harry could have easily followed him, keeping the threat alive, but it seemed staying by the girl, protecting her lifeless body was his highest priority—Why? What could he possibly do now that she was dead? Was he prone to mutilate dead girls? Was his touch repugnant enough on its own to warrant such violence?

The anger was still white-hot, but confusion was in the boys’ eyes too now.

Yes, six(c) seemed pretty likely.

So, how had he lost his memory? He himself didn’t seem hurt in the slightest physically, he didn’t even have so much as a spitting headache to tell him he’d knocked his head hard enough to lose his memory. It didn’t appear as though he and the boy had dueled, despite the indication they were opponents, and the sword in his hand. Nothing indicated how he could lose his memory, or why…or, come to think of it, why he was still alive.

If it was true he had killed her, that they were enemies, why hadn’t Harry killed him in his sleep? He surely had the chance, in the midst of all the wailing. Why didn’t he walk up to him, send that sword through him and be done with it? Why didn’t he fight him, run him through, now? Tom was clearly unarmed, and Harry was likely the one who killed the snake, clearly he had the upper hand, the power to do so. It all made too much sense.

He could tell he wanted to.

…The diary. It must be connected to everything. Would it reveal the truth of the situation, and his lost memories? Everything seemed to trace back to it. From the looks of things, it was the source of the scene…and it was the most confusing part of the scenario. If he started with it, perhaps he could get somewhere.

He sauntered back to it, crouched down and picked up the mangled cover, staring at the name, the holes where someone—presumably Harry—had stabbed it, a few blank pages hanging limply out of the binding. But why would he hurt an inanimate diary?

“Who’s Tom Riddle?” he asked.

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thesims4blogger · 4 years

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The Sims 4: New Game Patch (December 7th, 2020)

There’s a new Sims 4 update available for PC/Mac and Consoles. IPC:1.69.54.1020 / Mac: 1.69.54.1220 / Console: Version: Console: Version 1.35

Happy Holidays Simmers!

It’s time to go back in to Create a Sim! Where in this update you will find 100+ new skin tones, customization sliders for skin tones and makeup, and three improved base game hairstyles! Every skin tone now has a value slider that allows you to change the light to dark value of that skin tone, unlocking a much wider variety of skin tone options for you to play with! You will also find that our skin tones are now filterable to warm, cool, and neutral tones (as well as miscellaneous that covers our occult skin tones).

The new makeup sliders add more choices and opportunities for you to customize your Sims, and express your Sim’s style! Hue, saturation, value or brightness, and opacity are now available to modify on the makeup. We have locked some of the sliders where it did not provide an optimal experience or make sense for the makeup. Expect us to continue our work on these issues into the future to provide you with more. In addition to the customization opportunities provided, you can also save custom swatches as you tweak your sliders to get the perfect look. When you click on the swatch (for skin tones and makeup) as you modify the sliders, you will have an opportunity to save your custom settings, so you can re-use it later without having to remember your perfect looks! Did we mention that we made some hair updates? We did – we updated a base game child hair (cfHair_BraidedPonyTail), and we added a second version of that hair that removes the baby hairs (cfHair_BraidedPonyTailPlain). And we updated a base game male hair that you may find difficult to recognize from the original hair (ymHair_flatTopTextured)!

We have updated the Main Menu!… Again! The idea behind this change is to create a more cohesive experience and give Packs a more proper space as we continue to grow our content lineup. As a nice bonus, we highlighted the Gallery in a more meaningful way to inspire you.

-SimGuruGnome & SimGuruRusskii

Now onto the fixes:

Sims 4

Sketching so much that the Digital Sketch Pad just quit on you? Never fear! Freelancer Sims that use the Digital Sketchpad will now be able to complete designs without being reset abruptly.

Happy Birthday to all! Sims will now properly Age Up. Adulting is hard but they will make it, don’t worry.

Fixed an issue in which Doors, Windows, and Arches had cutouts when being reflected in Mirrors. Rorrim Rorrim no eht llaw, ohw si eht tseriaf erutaef fo meht lla?

Sims that do not have the Fishing Skill, or have not been Fishing at all, will not get notifications about identifying Fish. THEY WERE FISHING WITH THEIR MINDS.

The following careers have added the “Take Vacation Day” option, yay!

Child Sims will no longer forget they are in their Sleepwear when they go to school. Though in these times of Work and School from Home, I don’t blame them one bit.

The Sweet Escapes Country Toilet will no longer be Comfortable AND Uncomfortable at the same time… There can only be one!

Sims with the Best Selling Author Aspiration can now complete their task of writing 3 Best Sellers.

Fixed an issue in which resized objects would disappear when they were part of downloaded Gallery items.

We revised our Careers (Pack specific and not) and we made sure there were no Chance Cards that were repeated constantly.

Build Snowpal interaction is no longer available on non-natural ground (For Simmers that own Seasons and/or Snowy Escape). That’s why it’s called a Snowpal, not a Floorpal!

Gardener (Seasons)

Military (Strangerville)

Lifeguard for Teens and Conservationist (Island Living)

Law, Education, and Engineer (Discover University)

Civil Designer (Eco Lifestyle).

Editor Russkii note: I didn’t want to add each line in each pack for this fix, it would have looked weird and robotic so that is why I chose to do one bullet point for all in this section.

Get to Work

Get Together

Male Sims will no longer get Pregnant after receiving calls from NPC Sims.

City Living

NPC Sims will now text and call with invitations to Festivals. I personally welcomed the calm and quiet of my phone not beeping about constantly. But I can’t miss a Festival!

Sims rejoice! Yard sale customers will no longer invade their Home Lots and use Household objects. It is a Yard Sale… OUT in the yard, not an Open House.

Fixed an issue in which interactions to participate on GeekCon contests would not appear when interacting with objects.

Cats and Dogs

Pets will no longer sleep in random places when told to sleep on their Pet beds. In my world they can sleep where they are most comfortable, my conspiracy… allegedly.

Seasons

Sims can now Shower in the Rain… Jury is still out on Singing and Dancing.

Sims will no longer “lose” their shovels when performing other autonomous activities while performing the interaction “Shovel Snow.”

Our friendly neighborhood Snowpal has been properly renamed to Chill from Chil. Everything I knew before was a lie… a LIE!

Get Famous

Duck Security SCROO9E Super XL Smart Vault will no longer disappear after Sims Woohoo in it… you can say Woohoo can be romantic and magical, but maybe not to this extent?

NPCs from the Actor Career sometimes would never show on Set, making gigs impossible to complete. We’ve spoken with their union reps and everyone has agreed to stop this ridiculous strike. What were they striking about? Was there even a Strike? We may never know.

Island Living

Mermaids and other Occults should no longer be able to make hybrid occults. How were they making them? Oh boy, I’m not sure if it’s appropriate for me to give you the mermaid-birds and spellcaster-bees talk.

Randomly generated Mermaid Sims will no longer be seen without some features in affected Simmer Saves. However this fix is not retroactive, so it should be seen fixed in new saves.

Pizza delivery to Lagoon Look Lot has been fixed to arrive promptly.

This is Sulani Deep Lagoon Pizza, home of the 2×1 Mermadic Kelp Pizza and the Salty Llama Combo, may I take your order?

Uh huh… uh huh…

Yes, we now can ACTUALLY deliver to Lagoon Look…

Yes, we told our delivery Sims that they need to deliver it there and not keep the pizza for themselves… like give it to the actual client.

Discover University

We fixed an issue for our Console Simmers that wouldn’t allow them to close the Humanoid Robot’s Behavior Module Menus correctly.

Fixed an issue that would cause items to be repossessed when loans were fully paid. That is NOT how it worked Repo Person… NOT how it worked.

Sims with Research & Debate Skill 3 or higher will no longer be able to “Convince to” with Toddler Sims.

Masquerade Secret Society Masks are now properly unlocked in Create a Sim when joining the Secret Society.

Fixed an issue in which Heckle animation was sometimes not being performed autonomously by Sims while playing Ping Pong.

Eco Lifestyle

Fixed an issue that triggered the Off-the-Grid notifications after traveling to different Lots in Evergreen Harbor, even when they are not labeled as Off-the-Grid.

Fixed an issue in which some placeholder text was showing in notifications after Dumpster Diving.

The Americana Station Speakers will now play Music… as the prophecy foretold.

When the We Wear Bags N.A.P is active, Grim Reaper will not be partially invisible when appearing on a Lot. Grim Reaper contributes!

Living the No Appliance lifestyle? We’ve got news for you! Sims will no longer be penalized for not having “Eco-Friendly Appliances.” No appliances, no fines!

Snowy Escape

Vending Machine Canned Soups and Drinks won’t spoil anymore. Time to stock up!

Sims can no longer go on Hikes while holding their Toddlers.

Space Heaters will now be able to be placed on Lots from Inventory. Sharing the warmth everywhere!

Fixed an issue in which the Shoe Removal Sign in 5-1-2 Kiyomatsu was not working properly. We also added Shoe Removal Signs in 5-1-1 Kiyomatsu and 2-4-2 Wakabamori.

Sims will now be more visibly furious when having the appropriate furious sentiment toward other Sims. “Yes, I’m mad!… No! This IS my furious face!”

Fixed an issue with some animations that would stutter while Snowboarding or Skiing. We also made sure that Sims with a high level of those skills would not always choose the Bunny Slopes.

Izzy Fabulous’ Star Simmi Rank was just too fabulous so we had to correct it to be one star less than displayed. Don’t worry Izzy, you are a full 4 stars in my book, you are that fabulous to me.

After much debate of whether it is the Cave Shrine or the Mountain Shrine for Hiking destinations we finally decided to just call it Mountain Shrine.

We revised the Snoop-Proof Bamboo Blinds and it is now possible to drop’em like they’re hot with the Thousand Words Window.

NPC Sims will no longer “take over” the Slopes for themselves for an indefinite period of time, now they will be sharing with all Sims the joys of the Slopes.

Fixed an issue in which Sims would get highlighted in the Sentiment Panel as if receiving new Sentiments every time traveling is involved.

Sims with Rock Climbing Skill 7, or higher, are able to autonomously climb the Tall Wall (Such tall! So much wall!). There is no need to not face what makes you uncomfortable… autonomously.

Food Stalls at Mt. Komorebi Festivals won’t be closing shop randomly during Festival hours anymore. <guitar and piano intro> Closing time, open all the Stalls and eat all the food in the world…Closing time, turn all the lights on and let Yamachan greet you heeeere…

Create a Sim asset ymHat_EP10HelmetGoggles has been fixed to no longer display clipping around the neck area as well as we made sure no facial hair is removed when wearing this asset.

Dine Out

Experimenting with photo frames will no longer use the same picture of an Experimental Meal when displayed.

Vampires

Vampire Sims will no longer be affected by temperature, so they won’t be constantly obsessed with lighting fireplaces trying to get warm.

It's here – and a day early! Today, a free game update brings you 100+ skin tones, customization tools for skin tones and makeup, three improved base game hairstyles, and a main menu makeover. Available now to all The Sims 4 players! pic.twitter.com/p7QIIkI74d

— The Sims (@TheSims) December 7, 2020

A huge thanks to @Xmiramira @EbonixSims @MiaZaff1 @RaonyPhillips & @catherinegYT for the candid conversations & constructive feedback! Their input, representing their viewpoints alongside their player communities, was instrumental to current & future improvements. #GameChangers !

— The Sims (@TheSims) December 7, 2020

Every skin tone now has a value slider, unlocking thousands of customizable options. In addition, we made improvements to both new and existing skin tones, including strengthening the quality of suntans and sunburns.

— The Sims (@TheSims) December 7, 2020

#news #the sims 4 #ts4 #sims 4 #game patch

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aer-in-wanderland · 4 years

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구미호뎐 | Tale of the Nine Tailed - Lost in Translation EP03

The saga continues: part three in a series in which my sister and I pick our way through all the (mis)translations, humour, and cultural subtext that dropped from the fan-subbed version of TotNT. Thank you so much to everyone who bought us coffee - this one’s for you. ;)

Before we begin, for anyone just joining us: EP01 / EP02.

We pick up back where we left off last episode with Yeon dressing Ji Ah’s wound.

Yeon’s line that’s subbed, “Stop being a crybaby” can be a bit hard to translate. The word he uses is ‘eomsal,’ which literally means, ‘the exaggeration of pain; feigning pain; a great fuss about nothing.’ So he’s essentially saying she’s overreacting. I'm not a fan of the use of the word ‘crybaby’ here though personally.

“Long time no see, Lee Yeon.” > > > 12 Hours Earlier.

We see Thirsty meet his ignominious end in a toilet (we never got character names for these guys so I’m just going to call them ‘Thirsty’ and ‘Hungry’).

Elsewhere on the island, Rang fishes a curse doll with the man’s picture on it out of the surf. That’s quite the atmospheric shot. Point to the director.

Episode 03 Title Card: The Secret of the Dragon King

We open the following morning as Ji Ah and the man who found the body (who Ji Ah refers to as ‘Captain’) examine the scene.

Sub: “Being at sea wasn’t enough and he drowned himself to death.” I’m not sure that sentence even makes sense. I would have translated the man’s line as: “Ho~ Let no one say he wasn’t a seaman. He managed to kick the bucket by drowning [even on dry land].”

Sub: “Talk about it being all for nothing. This is what he gets after throwing himself at his life.” Um, what now? The line is: “Human lives are so futile. And after he clung so viciously to life, too.”

Lol Yeon. “I see someone threw a party.” I like this sub. What he literally says though is: “Oh~ Looks like it was a really special night.” (‘special’ here is in English).

Sub: “He smells like a stinky fish.” What Yeon literally says is: “Ugh, a smell like rotting fish is coming from this kid!” Yeon refers to the man as ‘yae,’ which literally means ‘this kid,’ but can also be used to refer to inanimate objects. So, either way...pfft

Appropriately, the BGM playing as Pyung Hee casts her curse is ‘Shaman.’

Back over to Yeon and Ji Ah as they investigate the body. The chyron on the screen reads: ‘The first survivor of the Milky Way (Deceased)’ Irony-(probably)-not-intended.

We get another chyron not long after, over a shot of Pyung Hee’s father’s head being returned to shore that reads: ‘Seo Gi Chang (Died aboard the Milky Way)’

Lol None of this has stopped Yeon from nomming on his banana milk. I had thought the milk made him seem like a little kid, but according to Korean fans, it’s also, apparently, commonly enjoyed by old men. heh

Sub: “Besides, they’re not good looking enough.” This is a mistranslation. Yeon’s line is literally: “And besides, I don’t like the look of their faces.” What he means, though, is the feeling they give off, rather than their actual ‘looks.’ It’s a common expression in Korean. If I was translating instead of explaining, I would probably render this as, “I don’t like the look of them.”

As Ji Ah drags him out, however, Yeon can be heard saying, “Ah~ I judge people by their looks~!” I’m 98% sure this is another LDW ad lib. Basically, LDW made a joke of his previous line, as if to say Yeon cared about the look of them because they weren’t attractive enough, when really his line meant they seemed shady. It’s almost as if he predicted the bad sub...

We get a brief scene featuring the second (and only named) survivor of the Milky Way, Jin Shik. Oh, and his headless ‘visitor.’ Creepy.

The music underscoring Hungry gorging himself on raw meat is making everything worse (or possibly better, if disturbing is your jam)

I’ve said it before, but I would watch an entire series of Yeon and Ji Ah being a supernatural investigative duo.

Pfft Yeon refers to Seo Gi Chang as ‘the head’ (mogaji). I’m not sure if I should call that indelicate or irreverent. It’s a bit of both, really.

Yeon’s line here is subbed as, “What happened on the boat?” but it should more properly be: “What did you do on the boat?” He’s not just asking after the sequence of events; the line is a clear accusation.

Sub: “We met an unexpected storm that day.” Actually: “Rough wind and waves hit the side of the fishing boat.” (i.e. causing it to capsize)

I appreciate that Yeon sits back here and allows Ji Ah to take the lead.

So, as it turns out, the 11th hell is actually a fishing boat (I’m sure the cast of 1N2D will back me up on this).

Fun fact: This sequence was filmed in a green screen pool and then made to look like the middle of the ocean with CG.

As an aside, I love that Ji Ah deduced the whole story on her own and that she uses that knowledge to corner Hungry psychologically. Also, that her strategy proves more effective than Yeon’s threat of violence. It’s not so much a ‘you catch more flies with honey,’ as a ‘brain over brawn’ sort of deal.

Ji Ah: You were frightened, weren’t you? Twenty-eight days straight on a perilous life boat without water or food. They’re the perfect conditions for a person to go mad, aren’t they? First-degree burns from the hot August sun striking your body mercilessly, the boat pitching about all day; despite not having eaten, you feel as if you’ll throw up. Clenching your teeth and waiting to be rescued only works for a day or two. The more you think about it, the angrier you get. ‘Why, me? Why?!’ Around the fifth day was the crisis point. Since, in that time, not a drop of rain had fallen. Dehydration would have set in first. [...] But it’s odd, isn’t it? For having starved for 28 days, you lost too little body mass. [...] What did you eat?

Meanwhile, Yeon’s contribution to all of this is: “And you couldn’t have used a delivery app in the middle of the open ocean where there’s no wifi signal.” Pfft He has, of course, caught on to her strategy. As usual, though, he decides to take the cheeky route.

Side note: I find it interesting that, in this universe full of monsters, the first incident Yeon and Ji Ah end up investigating together turns out to be an entirely human horror.

Yo. Hungry deciding Ji Ah is food is just...ugh. Never trust a cannibal.

Luckily for Ji Ah, her guard dog fox is on the job.

Over to Rang, who asks a weeping Pyung Hee what she’ll give him in return for granting her ‘wish’. We don’t get to see her answer him, but it was included in the backstory collection.

It’s unclear to me just how much Rang is involved in ‘granting’ Pyung Hee’s wish. Like, is he the one fueling the curse somehow, or did he just teach her what she needed to know? I’m inclined to believe it’s more the latter.

We cut to Taluipa at the Afterlife Immigration Office, who’s pissed that someone’s messing with her Death List. There’s a fun mythology-related chestnut in this scene: when Hyeonuiong comes running in, he’s carrying a watering can. Taluipa accuses him of having been watching dramas, but Hyeonuiong insists he was watering the Uiryeongsu.

The chyron for it reads: ‘The Uiryeongsu. A tree that measures the sins of the dead by the weight of their clothes when they’re hung on it.’ The hanja for ‘Uiryeongsu’ (衣領樹) literally mean ‘clothing-amount-tree,’ so its name is essentially its function. In traditional mythology, it grows on the near bank of the Samdocheon. This is also the same tree that the Uiryeong’geom (geom = sword) mentioned in EP13 is made from.

“You watered a tree for 3 hours?” Pfft Hyeonuiong and watering can, exit stage right.

Minor detail: I just realized I can actually see from Taluipa’s List in this scene that one of the two fishermen is named Kim Gil Sang. Still not sure which one though, so I’m going to stick to calling them Hungry and Thirsty.

The Dragon King Scroll

Back over to Ji Ah, who examines a creepy scroll hanging in Jin Shik’s vacant quarters. Once again, the show cuts into its own dramatic tension with a moment of levity as Yeon startles both Ji Ah and me by popping open his bag of snacks with a massive bang. The contrast between Ji Ah, who’s in serious investigator mode, and Yeon, who just continues his one-gumiho snack parade, blasé as can be, adds humour to an otherwise grim situation.

Yeon’s response of, “Oh. Sorry.” is in English, making it sound, if possible, even less sincere.

On the off chance that anyone was wondering, the snack Yeon claims as his favorite here is 솜짱 (somjjang). According to the Korean fans again, this is also a food commonly enjoyed by elderly people.

Subs: “Do you know how many people in Joseon died during the 50 years of war? 3.5 million. I’ve seen more deaths than all the funeral companies in this country.” This is another case of diagonal translation. Yeon’s line is more properly:

Yeon: Between the Imjin War and the Manchu War, do you know how much of the population of Joseon-era Korea was lost in just 50 years? 3,500,000. I’m a guy who’s seen more funerals than all the funerary companies in Korea put together.

[Note: Yeon is talking about The Japanese Invasions a.k.a The Imjin War (1592-1598) and The Qing Invasion of Joseon a.k.a. The Manchu War (1636)]

As a linguistic aside, Yeon refers to himself here as a ‘nom’ (rhymes with ‘home’). If you read the breakdown of EP02, you’ll recall that ‘nom’ can mean anything from ‘guy’ to ‘bastard.’ It’s not that Yeon means to call himself a bastard, though. It’s only that the typical alternative here (i.e. ‘person’) carries the implication of 'human.’ Since Yeon is, of course, not human, he opts for ‘nom’ instead. The word gets a lot of mileage in this show in relation to all the supernaturals for that reason.

Lol This exchange about the Dragon King was great. Point to the writer. I would translate it as:

Yeon: You’re right, but it looks nothing like him.

Ji Ah: You’ve...seen him?

Yeon: Back when I was a mountain god. Well, in today’s terms you’d say we attended a leadership conference together. They over-glamorized him. He’s not this good looking.

Ji Ah’s reaction is perfect too. Her, ‘I don’t even know where to begin with that statement so I’m just going to move on’ look came across loud and clear.

Yeon’s line as he leans over Ji Ah’s shoulder is subbed: “This is just like ‘Where’s Wally?’” In Korea, the game is called ‘find the hidden picture’ (‘sumun keurim chatgi’). So the line is actually: “What is this, ‘find the hidden picture’ or something?” I’d say there’s a 50/50 chance this line was another ad lib by Lee Dong Wook.

On an entirely different cultural note, ‘Where’s Wally?’ is know as ‘Where’s Waldo?’ in North America and exactly nowhere else. Don’t ask...

This scene features the first mention we get of Imoogi. Imoogi are among the most famous Korean mythical creatures. In most tellings, they are essentially proto-dragons, though occasionally they can be baby dragons. For example, one imoogi tale claims its imoogi was the son of the Dragon King (the same one Yeon attended a ‘leadership conference’ with). Most of the lore agrees that if an imoogi stays submerged in deep water for a thousand years, it earns the chance to become a dragon, though the caveats vary widely, and many imoogi fail. Finally, while the imoogi in TotNT is evil, imoogi aren’t categorically so; some are good, some aren’t.

Rang and the Mudang

Fun fact: Kim Beom explained in his Instagram LIVE that he chose to wear a red suit partially because the color gave off the feeling of a villain, but also because it contrasted well with the green of the forest. He also named this as his favorite Lee Rang outfit.

For anyone keeping track, Rang speaks to the mudang in banmal. She, in return, addresses him as ‘Lee Rang-nim’ and speaks very respectfully.

Okay, there are a couple of things to unpack in Rang’s following exchange with the mudang:

Mudang: The Corrupt God, King of the Wicked. He is Lee Ryong-nim.

Rang: [Laughs] What’s with that? Ugh, I seriously just cringed! If you slap a fancy title* from the next world in front of its name, does a snake become a dragon?

First, the mudang’s line here is said in an archaic cant. Second, ‘Lee Ryong’ (properly pronounced, ‘i-ryong,’ since there’s actually no ‘L’ in ‘Lee’), is another name for imoogi.

Finally, when Rang says ‘a fancy title from the next world,’ he’s referring to a posthumous name/title. Nearly every kingdom to have occupied the Korean peninsula has used posthumous titles (시호), most often for deceased royalty. By giving one to Imoogi, the mudang is venerating him. Rang mocks this, seizing on Imoogi’s failure to become a dragon. (Let no one say he and Yeon aren’t brothers).

The subs have Rang referring to Yeon as just ‘Yeon,’ but he actually calls him ‘Lee Yeon.’ That’s a very impersonal way to refer to one’s older brother, which is, of course, intentional on Rang’s part. It serves as another linguistic cue to the audience as to how Rang regards Yeon at this point.

A note on the evening primrose: tvN released a short blurb about it, since, as far as I can tell, the mythology was invented for the show. It reads:

Evening primrose that has grown while feeding on the blood and flesh of corpses is the same as poison to gumiho; if they so much as touch its powder, their bodies catch flame.

While the subs consistently just say ‘evening primrose,’ this should more properly be ‘burial ground evening primrose,’ which is how the various characters refer to it.

Fun fact: ‘Evening primrose’ in Korean is ‘dalmaji-kkot’ (달맞이꽃), which means ‘flowers that welcome the moon’.

Sub: “Half-brothers, to be exact.” The term Rang uses in Korean is quite literally, ‘brothers from different stomachs,’ so it refers specifically to half brothers who share a father but who have different mothers. I mention it only because Korean viewers will have been given slightly more information about their familial relationship here than was provided in the subs.

Back over to our leads, as Yeon urges Ji Ah to leave the island post-haste. His line is subbed: “I’m saying you may die if you stay here.” That’s a perfectly fine translation. For anyone curious, though, his line is quite literally: “I’m saying if you stay here, [the conditions are] perfect for dying.”

Sub: “That’s none of your business.” Yeon’s line is more properly: “That’s not for you to know.”

Ji Ah’s response to this is very literally: “I have no intention to go home for a reason I don’t know. So Lee Yeon should find the person Lee Yeon came here to find. I have to know why my parents came to this island.” This is the first time Ji Ah uses Yeon’s full name as a second person pronoun (so basically to mean ‘you’) when speaking to him. It’s hard to make generalizations about any form of address that don’t have multiple exceptions, but in this case, using his name is a more neutral, and somewhat more familiar, alternative to some of the other pronouns she’s been using when speaking to him. To my sense, it softens her rejection of his advice a little bit.

Back to Rang. His line is a bit awkward to translate, but essentially what he says is, ‘Calling my brother a ‘mountain god’ is an overstatement/ putting it nicely.’ I might approximate this as, ‘Sure, my brother was called a mountain god.’ This is the only time in the entire drama that Rang refers to Yeon as ‘uri hyung,’ and it kills me a bit that it’s not out of fondness, but rather derision. ㅠㅠ

Similarly, when Rang says, “I’m a fox, after all. I have to repay eunhye properly,” he is, of course, using eunhye sarcastically.

The subtitle here once again says ‘the underworld,’ but Rang’s line is actually: “I’m going to go to hell, without fail. Together with Lee Yeon.” The subs really need to do a better job of distinguishing between hell and the afterlife.

We see Ji Ah instruct Jae Hwan over the phone as to what to search for in the library records. She’s split off from Yeon since we last saw them.

Elsewhere on the island, Yeon also makes a call, only his is to Halmeom (Taluipa) to ask about Imoogi. When this episode first aired, I thought it was odd that Yeon was using ‘Imoogi’ as if it were a name, since this would be like referring to Yeon as ‘Gumiho.’ He later taunts Terry-Imoogi about just that though (i.e. not even having a proper name), so obviously it was an intentional decision on the writer’s part.

Sub: “If by chance Ah Eum was born again into this world, I can’t let that thing coexist with her.” This sub went a bit sideways. The ‘by chance’ has been mis-attributed. The line is properly: “There’s no way I could possibly (i.e. by any chance/under no circumstances can I) let such a thing exist in a world in which Ah Eum has been reborn.” Yeon is already sure that Ah Eum has been reborn at this point. He’s saying that because she’s been reborn, he can’t allow Imoogi to coexist with her under any circumstances.

Rang vs Ji Ah

Ji Ah returns to Pyung Hee’s to find ‘Pyung Hee’ reading Moby Dick. This is an ironic enough choice of literature to clue her in to the fact that this isn’t really Pyung Hee. Smart cookie.

On a character note, I loved that Ji Ah’s knowledge of, and love for, world literature was threaded believably throughout the drama in a way in which it feels natural that she caught on to Rang’s hint here. Point to the writer.

Again, for anyone keeping track, Ji Ah and Rang speak to each other in banmal, as has been the case since Rang revealed himself at Ji Ah’s house in EP01. Not because they’re close, obviously, but because they have zero respect for one another. It’s a bit of a power play on Ji Ah’s part, too, since she’s (hundreds of years) younger.

Over to Yeon, who barges into the local market owner’s personal quarters to interrogate him. His line when he catches sight of the scroll on the wall is subbed: “Look at this.” This should more properly be: “Check these people out. There’s one here too.” The word he uses that I translated as ‘these people’ is ‘i-geot-dul,’ which is very literally ‘these things,’ so I sort of understand the confusion in the subs. He means the islanders though, not the scrolls. In contrast, ‘there’s one here too’ does actually refer to the scroll.

The knife Yeon throws hits directly over the slit pupil of the scroll dragon’s eye. Nice aim.

Back to Ji Ah and Rang. When Ji Ah accuses Rang of orchestrating the deaths of the Milk Way survivors, ‘to distract us,’ what she says quite literally is ‘to cover our eyes and ears.’

When Rang applauds Ji Ah’s deductive abilities, his line is subbed, “Awesome.” This should more properly be, “Outstanding,” or, “Exceptional.” I honestly believe he’s being sincere in his praise. Being Rang, though, he’s probably just delighted this makes her more challenging to toy with.

Having completed his interrogation, Yeon’s eyes change as he erases the man’s memory of the event. I suspect the reason Yeon is so cavalier about revealing he’s a gumiho is because he can basically ‘undo’ it whenever he wants using this power.

Ji Ah’s quiet, “I decline” is so satisfying. Also the way Rang pulls back in surprise haha I guess he’s not used to being turned down.

Rang’s exchange with Ji Ah is subbed as: “Loosen up. Why be so stiff when it’s just good old me?” / “Let me give you some advice since that’s how you feel. Don’t gamble with another’s tragedy just for kicks. There’s a word for people like you, you know. A colossal jerk.” This is difficult to translate, and I think the subs have done a pretty good job, but a closer translation would be:

Rang: Augh— So uptight! Are you going to keep acting this uptight, just between us* (literally, ‘between you and me’)?

Ji Ah: Between you and me, then, I’ll give you just one word of advice: Don’t carelessly role the dice atop others’ misfortune. People call jerks like you ‘sleazy bastards.’

[*Note: Rang’s phrasing implies that they’re somehow close/on good terms, but he’s being sarcastic, of course.]

First off, the word Rang uses for ‘uptight’ (빡빡하다) means ‘stiff; uptight; rigid; inflexible; strict.’ By this, he’s referring to how she never lets her guard down. I don’t know that any of those words properly conveys that, though.

Second, while I translated Ji Ah’s line about the dice very literally here (in keeping with the spirit of this post), I actually like how the subs handled it from a translation/subtitling standpoint.

Finally, the subs have Ji Ah calling Rang ‘a colossal jerk,’ but the term she actually uses (‘yang’achi saekki’) is a much stronger expletive. ‘Yang’achi’ is a term for a thug, gangster, or hoodlum. ‘Saekki’ literally means ‘child of.’ In practical use, though, it’s close to ‘bastard.’ (I really didn’t think I’d be explaining the finer points of Korean expletives when I started this series, but here we are). I approximated this as ‘sleazy bastard’ above.

Pfft Rang being genuinely offended at Ji Ah’s language. Jo Bo Ah talked a bit about what she thought of all the explicit language Ji Ah uses towards Rang in her wrap interview.

Subs: “When he finds what he wants, you’ll be begging for mercy.” No idea where they got 'begging for mercy.’ What Rang actually says is, “When he finds what he wants, you’ll see hell.” Unlike in the subtitle, Rang’s warning actually has substance to it, since he’s referring to the fact that, once Yeon identifies Ji Ah as Ah Eum’s reincarnation, their fate with Imoogi will repeat itself.

By the time Yeon rushes back to Pyung Hee’s, Rang is long gone. His line subbed as: “What did he say?” is, quite literally, “Lee Rang, that nom, what’d he say?” This use of ‘nom’ manages to come off as fairly mild. (He may be a jerk, but he’s Yeon’s jerk).

Ji Ah’s response has undergone cultural translation to become: “Even when I order pizza, I never go for half-and-half. I always choose just one.” Honestly, though, I don’t know that it was necessary. What she actually says is: “Even when I order chicken, I don’t go for half-seasoned, half-fried; I’m the type to just pick one.”

This scene was originally longer but part of it got deleted. They released the clip, though, so I’ll translate the full exchange here:

Ji Ah: I'm saying I turned him down, your younger brother. Since I bet on this fox.

Yeon: Let no one say you aren’t a learned (wise) woman. Is that all?

Rang (voiceover): Don't trust Lee Yeon too much.

Ji Ah: That's all. But...you said the two of you are brothers.

Yeon: Yeah. We’re brothers.

Ji Ah: Why are you so hellbent on destroying each other?

Yeon: It seems like you don’t know since you’re an only child, but, as a rule, the relationship between siblings is a lot like noir, just without the guns.

Ji Ah: There you go, deflecting the question again. Is that a secret, too?

Yeon: If you ever happen to run into that guy again just the two of you, no matter what, run fast. That kid* despises humans. Especially humans that look like you.

Ji Ah: Why do you keep taking cracks at people's faces?

Yeon: ...I'm hungry.

Ji Ah: Why don’t you take the opportunity to pack up and leave while you still can? Your younger brother...it seems he’s preparing some sort of special event.

Yeon: That’s what I’m waiting for.

*Note: The word Yeon uses that I translated as ‘kid’ is ‘jashik.’ This is another word that, depending on how it’s used, can either be fond or rude. ‘Jashik’ literally means ‘[one’s] child,’ but it’s also commonly used in the sense of ‘punk.’ It’s a bit softer than nom. You wouldn’t use it to refer to yourself, though.

Ji Ah’s “Why do you keep taking cracks at people’s faces?” (meaning he’s insulting/taking issue with how she looks), is referencing their exchange the previous night when he told her not to smile because she was ugly.

We cut briefly to Shin Joo eating at the Snail Bride as he sizes up Yoo Ri from a distance. Come to think of it, we never got this BGM for the Snail Bride, either...

Ramen Heart-to-Heart

Lee Yeon’s one-gumiho meokbang continues. I feel like Yeon has been nomming on something in nearly every scene this episode.

The BGM while Yeon and Ji Ah eat is a remix of Yeon’s theme, ‘The Fox’s Wedding Day.’

Sub: “Just because these ladies wear baggy pants in floral prints doesn’t mean they have kind hearts. Get digging, and you’ll find all sorts of dirty secrets.” Yeon’s line is more literally:

Yeon: Living is all the same [everywhere]~ Just because grannies in the countryside wear flower-patterned pants doesn’t mean that even their insides are flower-patterned. If you start digging, venomous and insidious years come pouring out.

Ji Ah’s response then plays off of Yeon’s turn of phrase: “Is that the case for you too? I just wondered, ‘With what pattern did you live all those long years?’” (referring to the ‘pattern’ of his heart).

On a minor cultural note: the word Yeon uses is ‘mombbae pants’ (몸빼바지), which are a fashion(?) staple in the countryside. You’ll know what I mean if you run the hangeul through a google image search. That’s where the subs got ‘baggy’ from even though Yeon doesn’t explicitly say it.

Sub: “Why have you been searching for your parents all this time?” Yeon’s line is more properly: “Then what about you? What has made you wait for your parents for such a long time?”

Sub: “I’m the same. I’m waiting for the one I miss.” I would have translated this as: “I’m waiting for someone I miss,” which is literally what he says.

Sub: “Why did you part ways when you still miss her this much?” This is a bit hard to translate into natural-sounding English. The word Ji Ah uses is ‘mi’ryeon,’ which means ‘lingering attachment.’ So her line is quite literally: “Your face is so full of lingering attachment, how did you come to part ways/break up?”

Sub: “The first being I loved was a human girl who ended up dying. It’s why I’m still hung up on her. Happy now?” Hmm... I would translate Yeon’s line as:

Yeon: My damn* first love was a human of all things, but she died, so I’m foolishly unable to let go of my lingering attachment. Happy now?

[*Note: Yeon is cursing is the phenomenon of first love itself, not Ah Eum.]

His statement is witty, because the word he uses for ‘foolish’ is also pronounced ‘mi’ryeon.’ In this case, though, 'mi’ryeon’ means, ‘foolhardy and dense enough to be stubborn to a preposterous degree.’ Which is probably a fair assessment given he’s been waiting 600 years. The sub for this line made it sound like he’s saying, ‘I’m hung up on her because she’s a human girl who died,’ which would just be weird.

Shin Joo Meets Yoo Ri

Okay, minor detail, but what exactly was Yoo Ri trying to accomplish here before Shin Joo stopped her from entering an off-limits area of the Snail Bride?

The BGM here is called ‘Skip a Beat’ (‘Kanju Jump’). I found the track title slightly surprising since it’s actually taken from an ad lib made by Kim Yong Ji (Yoo Ri) in a later episode.

For anyone keeping track, Shin Joo and Yoo Ri are speaking in a mix of banmal and jondaetmal in this scene.

We next see Shin Joo on the phone with Yeon, whining about the whole ordeal and asking an unsympathetic Yeon to come back and retrieve his necklace for him.

Yeon’s line that’s subbed as, “Deadly?” could mean more than one thing. The line is literally, “What? The thief was deadly?” The word for ‘deadly,’ though, could equally mean that she was a knockout (i.e. gorgeous). It’s probably a bit of both.

Subs: “There’s nothing more pathetic than being blinded by a woman’s beauty...” / “But you also ruined your life by falling for beautiful woman.” For the record, neither of them actually uses the word ‘beauty/beautiful’ here. I would translate this exchange as:

Yeon: You... The most pathetic thing in the world, is being blinded by a woman, and...

Shin Joo: But being blinded by a woman and wrecking your life is something Lee Yeon-nim did too, isn’t it?

Yeon: What, you punk?!

Lol Yeon’s “What, you punk?!” is a familiar refrain whenever Shin Joo unwittingly(?) insults Yeon. The word is ‘imma’ (임마) or sometimes ‘inma’ (인마). Yeon consistently uses the former.

‘Bad Fate’

Subs: “Why is that branch broken? It must’ve hurt.” Yeon is actually personifying the tree here, which makes sense seeing as he can communicate with it. So his line is more literally: “Now why has this kid gone and made a fuss breaking [his] branch? It must’ve hurt.” Which is cute.

I actually really appreciated this short scene of Yeon healing the tree. Yeon may no longer be the master of Baekdudaegan, but this scene showed that it’s still very much a part of who he is; not just his powers, but the care he has for the forest.

Fun (?) fact: It turns out this simple scene was actually a huge pain to film.

Subs: “I hope you grow well.” Actually: “Eat well and grow well.” I realize that sounds awkward in English, but the line is a directive. He’s once again speaking to the tree.

Sub: “The wind is blowing from the northwest. Something is coming.” I would have translated this as: “A northwest wind blows... Something is coming.” That’s partly a tonal choice, but it’s also a more literal reflection of the original Korean.

We finally catch back up to the end of EP02, as Jae Hwan calls Ji Ah from the library to tell her what he’s found. This time, we see her connect the first dead body in 1954 to what the forest spirit told them more explicitly.

The dates of the four incidents are: August 13, 1954; August 25, 1961; September 6, 1979; and September 7, 1987. Ji Ah quickly deduces that these all work out to be the same date on the lunar calendar: July 15th. In 2020, that works out to be Wednesday, September 2nd. If you’ll recall, the wedding at the start of EP01 was held on August 29, so it’s only been 3 days since Yeon and Ji Ah crossed paths at the wedding hall.

“Long time no see, Lee Yeon.” What is it with Imoogi and choking Yeon?

Subs: “You should’ve let me go.” More precisely: “I know, right? You should have let me go.”

Yeon’s final “What are you?” should probably have been subbed as: “I’m asking what you are!” since both his tone and phrasing have grown more insistent.

Subs: Our ill-fated relationship would’ve ended if you hadn’t stopped the boat from crossing the Samdo River. More literally:

Jimoogi: Our ak’yeon should have ended. That is, if only you hadn’t stopped the boat from crossing the Samdocheon.

The word the subs translated as ‘our ill-fated relationship’ is ‘ak’yeon’ (悪縁), which literally means ‘bad fate.’ In contrast to the broader, ‘destiny’ sort of fate (‘un’myeong’) however, ‘yeon’ (縁) is inherently relational. It refers specifically to the fate between two people (or even between a person and a place). ‘Ak’ (悪) means ‘evil.’ So 'ill-fated’ is a bit misleading as a translation since the word actually refers to the relationship between Yeon and Imoogi (i.e. mortal enemies), rather than the fact that Yeon and Ah Eum’s story ended tragically (as in, ‘an ill-fated love’).

WAIT. Subs: “No. That woman is born with a face that only I can recognize. And I don’t see it in you.” What?? That doesn’t even make sense. Yeon’s line is:

Yeon: No. That woman is born carrying a sign that only I can recognize. You don’t have it.

Obviously, Yeon is referring to the fox bead, and I’m fairly sure that was apparent since the line was intercut with the scene in which he imparts the bead to Ah Eum, but that seems like a pretty critical line to fudge up.

Jimoogi: “You really don’t know anything, do you, Lee Yeon?” It’s weird to me that they have Imoogi addressing Yeon as just ‘Yeon’ in the subs. That makes it seem like they’re friends or something...

Subs: “The scar is gone.” Actually: “The wound disappeared.”

Deadball

Subs: “We hate each other too much to play catch. I actually meant to kill you.” Wait, WHAT?! Yeon’s line is:

Yeon: Our relationship is too makjang for that. That was meant to be a deadball, actually.

Makjang, for the uninitiated, is a slang word taken from the phrase ‘the final scene’ (‘majimak jangmyeon’) that has come to refer to an entire genre, as well as particular dramatic elements or conventions of Korean storytelling. Dramabeans explain the term here. When Yeon says his relationship with Rang is ‘makjang,’ he’s essentially saying it’s overly fraught, not that he hates his brother.

He also doesn’t say he meant to kill Rang. ‘Deadball’ is a Korean baseball term for a pitch that hits a player (typically causing the game to be paused). So Yeon’s just saying he meant for the ‘ball’ to hit Rang, rather than for Rang to catch it.

On a personal note, it really bothers me when the subs spread all over the internet and they’re wrong like this. I don’t mind slight changes in phrasing or wording, but when they grossly misrepresent the characters like this it can be a bit upsetting. It’s no wonder I sometimes feel like I watched a completely different drama. ㅠㅠ

Yeon’s cheeky smile™ XD

The BGM in this scene is actually ‘The Forest of the Agwi.’

Subs: “Run away.” Yeon’s line is quite literally: ‘Get away from here,’ or even, ‘put distance between here and you.’ I mention it because I really appreciated that, despite all the danger she confronts, Yeon never once tells Ji Ah to ‘run away’ (‘domang ga’). His second ‘run away’ in the subs is also just him telling her to hurry up (literally ‘go quickly’).

The following banter between the brothers is something I mentioned in an ask a while back because all the humour had been lost in translation. To recap, though, one recurring joke the show uses plays off the word for ‘bastard/son of a bitch,’ which translates literally as ‘child of a dog’ (kae-saekki). As you might imagine, this gets a lot of mileage in relation to Rang, our resident ‘baby fox’ (agi yeou) a.k.a. ‘child of a fox’ (yeou-saekki):

Rang: This is domestic violence, you know?

Yeon: (Nodding) They say you’re supposed to raise wild children* with a firm hand (literally: hit them as you raise them), but I couldn’t do that, so I ended up raising a fox child into a dog child (son of a bitch), didn’t I?

Rang: And who was the jerk who kicked that child (saekki) to the curb? You treat me like a stray dog any chance you get.

Yeon: My little brother, I’ll have to gift you a muzzle this Christmas.

Rang’s line was subbed: “You keep blaming it on me, when you were the one who turned me into an orphan.” which I find fairly problematic since that makes it sound like Yeon killed Rang’s parents. It’s also just plain wrong; to the extent that I’m not even sure what went wrong in the translation process.

The word Yeon uses here for ‘wild children’ is ‘horo jashik’ (호로자식), which many Koreans understand to mean something like a barbarian child, but the true origin, as it turns out, is a parentless child. It’s also a term used predominantly by elderly people heh

Finally, because the dog jokes dropped out ‘muzzle’ became ‘mouth guard’ in the subs, which is both less funny and less sensical. The two are also conceptually opposed, since ‘muzzle’ implies that Yeon means to protect the world from Rang whereas ‘mouth guard’ is more about protecting Rang.

As Ji Ah continues to put distance between herself and the brothers, she happens upon the mudang’s house, which she immediately clocks as such from the obangi.

I like that Ji Ah doesn’t immediately call the mudang out for lying, but instead continues to question her knowing she’s lying. Sometimes the lies people tell can be as telling as the truth.

When Ji Ah questions her, the mudang tells her the fishing ritual is held during the ‘Ghost Festival’. This is a Buddhist festival similar to All Souls Day. In Korean it’s called ‘Baek Joong Nal’ (literally ‘hundred-gather-day’) meaning ‘the day when all the spirits gather.’ It falls on the full moon of the seventh lunar month (so July 15th of the lunar calendar), which is, of course, the date Ji Ah identified as the day when the murders were taking place. That’s why we get the zoom in and the flash to the newspaper dates: Ji Ah has put everything together.

Chyron: “Obangi (五方旗) A five-colored flag symbolizing ‘life, death, illness, sacrifice, and ancestors’”. This is the quick quotes version. Obangi have their roots in the Chinese philosophy of Wuxing, but for more on that, I’ll refer you to Wikipedia. In Korea, the colors of the obangi (red, blue, white, black, and yellow) are known as the five orientation colors, and are closely tied to both shamanism and fortune telling. You’ll notice these same colors flying outside the fortune teller’s in EP06.

I also appreciated that Ji Ah didn’t just foolishly drink the tea here. She was properly on her guard. It’s only that she mis-identified the source of danger.

Back over to our fox brothers. Rang’s line is subbed: “That was plenty of time.” This is more properly: “I think I’ve bought more than enough time by now.” So he’s actually quite overt in telling Yeon exactly what he'd been up to.

Subs: “Don’t you know why she ended up on this island?” More closely: “Do you still not get it? Why that woman ended up coming to this island of all places?”

We see the mudang encircle the creepy well with burial ground evening primrose to ward against Yeon, who is currently searching the island for Ji Ah to no avail.

Subs: “You tricked your mom while you were in her womb.” This is a bit difficult to translate. The word the mudang uses that was translated as ‘tricked’ is ‘ggweda,’ which means to ‘lure’ or ‘entice.’ So what she means is that the part of Imoogi that was reincarnated with Ji Ah ‘lured’ her mother to the island by sending her recurring dreams.

Gumiho

Lol Yeon: “I am the original mountain spirit, the master of the mountains and streams. Lift this darkness and lead me to her!” This is more literally:

Yeon: I am the original mountain god, the master of your mountains and streams.* Part this darkness and lead me to that woman!

[*Note: ‘Mountains and streams’ here can also be taken to mean ‘nature’ at large.]

Lol The line is met with silence and the soft hoot of a lone owl. That’s basically the director’s version of *crickets* isn’t it?

This line is another rare case in which Yeon speaks archaically, and it serves to make the command sound more formal and potentially magical. It’s also worth noting that he’s addressing the forest directly as a whole here (thus the ‘your’).

Fun fact: When Lee Dong Wook did his TotNT VLIVE, his promotional team made him perform this line again live just to mess with him haha

The BGM here as Yeon heads off through the forest led by his (supernatural?) fireflies is ‘Opening Title: The Legend of the Fox.’ It sounds vaguely Harry Potter-ish to me (not complaining).

For the record, Ji Ah is now speaking to the mudang in banmal out of disdain.

Sub: “Be a sacrifice. You are a very special child.” Pfft ‘Be a sacrifice’ sounds oddly funny to me. Her line is: “Become a sacrifice. I’m told you’re a very special child.” So the implication is that this information came from someone/something else.

Does anyone know what BGM this is as Yeon sprints though the forest? I think it might be another unreleased track, but I’m not positive...

Yeon’s “Halt!” is once again in olden speech. It indicates linguistically that he's in Gumiho mode.

Out of curiosity, is it not odd for people watching with subs when Ji Ah’s only utterance is ‘Lee Yeon’ but the subs just say ‘Yeon’?

Subs: “This has nothing to do with the old master of the mountain. Why don’t you keep walking?” I would have translated this as: “It is a matter unrelated to the former master of the mountain. Beg, go along your way.” She’s once again using olden-speech in her second sentence.

Lol Sub: “Says the living corpse.” I like this sub. Yeon’s line is quite literally: “With the ‘juje’ of a living corpse...” ‘Juje’ is essentially your station or lot in life, and it’s used almost exclusively derogatorily.

Sub: “Who was it that provided you with longevity you don’t deserve?” More closely: “Who was it? The one who gave you a lifespan so much longer than you deserve?”

Yeon: “I asked you whom you serve!” (literally ‘what’ you serve). Yeon once again drops into an archaic cant for this line. It serves to underline his full age and gives his demand an extra air of authority.

Yeon’s TAILS. I can’t believe this was the last we saw of them. ㅠㅠ Personally, I interpreted the firey tails as being a sort of ‘shadow’/ projection of his actual tails, which I assumed were actually more physically there (since he talks about shampooing them in the teaser interview). My sister thinks differently, though. Guess we’ll never know...

The BGM for this sequence is naturally ‘Gumiho.’ If you read our EP01 breakdown, you’ll know I was fully expecting this to be Yeon’s theme. But no, it’s the whimsical 'The Fox’s Wedding Day’ instead haha

Okay, Yeon just casually smiting the mudang is pretty badass. Seeing as he can command lightning, I’m pretty sure he was joking when he told Ji Ah, ‘even gumiho are afraid of electricity.’

If by chance you wondered what was going though Yeon’s mind when he smote the mudang, it’s featured in the EP03 subtitle poster.

I appreciated that Yeon just accepts Ji Ah at her word here when she tells him all she needs from him is one arm for support. I feel like in most dramas the male lead would have just forcefully swept the heroine off her feet amidst her protests, which I always find more problematic than romantic.

For that matter, when it became clear that Ji Ah really did need help, I appreciated that she didn’t act shy or coy and just accepted being carried without making a big deal of it.

Pfft The way Ji Ah’s eyes flash when Yeon tells her the mudang was just a human being says it all.

Yeon: “So you say... Excuse me, but you nearly died just now, you know?” This line is once again cheekily in jondaetmal.

*Ominous close up of the well*

Thank You

We catch up with Shin Joo at the supermarket as he talks to Yeon over the phone.

Shin Joo’s ‘PD-nim’ has once again become, ‘the director lady’ in the subs. *Sigh*

Subs: “Your love story is more than just famous among us.” Actually: “Just how famous is Lee Yeon-nim’s love story in our world? It’s obvious your younger brother* must have been playing tricks!”

Shin Joo refers to Rang here as ‘donsaeng-bun’ (younger sibling + polite word for person) for the same reason he calls Rang, ‘Lee Rang-nim.’ It’s an extension of his regard for Yeon, rather than for Rang himself.

Lol Shin Joo hanging up on Yeon. His love for supermarkets and fried chicken are actually in his character profile. Apparently, they’re what convinced him living as a human was worth the existential crisis that came with it.

Sub: “I’m too much of a human to easily fall asleep after such an event. Join me.” More literally: “I’m human, so on a day like today I can’t sleep sober. You* have a glass, too.”

The word Ji Ah uses for ‘you’ here is ‘ja’ne’ (자네), which is a polite term... except it’s only used to refer to people younger than you. So’s she’s talking down to him politely haha This is what prompts Yeon’s line that follows it:

Sub: “I never said anything since it could make seem old-fashioned, but you’re too informal with me when you don’t even know my age.”

Yeon: I kept holding it in thinking you’d call me an old fart, but you’re [using] banmal really blatantly. Just how old do you think I am?”

Yeon’s ‘Just how old do you think I am?’ is rhetorical. It’s not that Ji Ah is necessarily unaware of his true age, but rather that she acts as if she is.

Sub: “Those over 60 are universally considered as grandpas.” Actually: “You know everyone over 60 can be called a grandpa, right?”

Pfft Sub: “Be as informal as you like.” What Yeon literally says is, “Please lower your speech,” but he uses very respectful language to say it. I’m not sure if he’s being sarcastic, or if he just hates the thought of being considered a grandpa that much haha It’s probably a bit of both.

Aww Ji Ah promising to protect Yeon. I luff her.

Ji Ah: "Do I perhaps have something you’re looking for?” I love that she doesn’t miss a thing.

Lol Yeon: “Who am I, Jesus? Just drink what you have.”

The Vanishing

Subs: “Don’t ever resort to cursing people again. Karma can sting.” Quite literally: “You were lucky you kept your life, but don’t do such a thing* as cursing others ever again. They return, you know. Back on the one who casts them.”

*Yeon uses the disparagement marker ‘ddaui’ (따위) to refer to the act of cursing someone here. You may recall it from our EP01 breakdown.

Ji Ah chooses this moment to come running in to announce that the island has turned into a ghost town over night, which is enough to make even Yeon pause, perplexed.

I love the way Yeon and Ji Ah exchange looks here on the dock. They don’ t know what’s up yet, but they intend to find out.

‘Blue Moon’~~~ This worked great scored over the drone-camera pan out. I may be slightly biased, though.

And that concludes Episode 3. Once again, thank you to everyone who commented or left feedback on the last episode! Never hesitate to send me your thoughts, even if they’re just to say what you found funny or surprising. It helps me to know what’s of interest for one thing, but I also just enjoy chatting about the show. ;)

A brief note on pronunciation/notation: for words like ‘sa’ingeom’ and ‘mi’ryeon,’ the apostrophe is there just as a pronunciation guide. So in the case of the former, to indicate that it’s pronounced ‘sah-in’ and not ‘sine’ or ‘sane.’ Similarly, for the latter, the apostrophe is just to indicate that this should be pronounced ‘mi-ryeon’ and not ‘mir-yeon.’ I could have just as easily done this with ‘Hyeon’ui’ong’ except that’s a lot of apostrophes and I set an earlier precedent of not. It’s not an aspiration or anything fancy. Hopefully that makes sense.

Once again, I’d like to credit my sister for being the main researcher and fact-checker for these, in addition to weighing in on all the translations. I don’t always take her advice, but I do always appreciate it haha.

Thank you also to everyone who bought us coffee! Your support is truly felt and appreciated ♡ As usual, this took an ungodly amount of time, so every coffee helps haha. For anyone just joining us (or not), if you’d like to see more of these, please consider buying us a coffee. If you follow the link, you can buy a $2 cup of virtual coffee. This helps me to gauge how much interest there is, and also how much value people place on these. If you cared enough to read all the way to the end, please at least consider it. Once I’ve established there’s enough interest, I’ll proceed with Episode 4. ;)

#tale of the nine tailed #totnt #lost in translation #구미호뎐 #kdrama #korean language #happy new year!

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darkficsyouneveraskedfor · 5 years

Text

Mr. Self Destruct 3

Part One Part Two

Warnings: Bucky’s a bastard, control, PTSD and other lovely mental issues, noncon (oral, toyplay, restraints, vaginal and anal sex)

This is dark!Bucky Barnes and explicit. 18+ only.

Summary: Bucky has been left by his closest friend. With no other choice, he works for Stark Industries in the name of both Stark and Rogers but before he can begin his new position, he is mandated to attend counselling. With you, the company’s resident therapist.

Note: I’m just taking a break from Tapestry for a day or two. I wanted to finish this little series first. This is just all the kink and darkness so enjoy. Love you all.

Anyway :) Please like, reply, and/or reblog if you read.

Bucky didn’t show the next day. Even as you finished up with your last patient and waited around an hour. You laughed at yourself sardonically after you’d sat back and realized what you were waiting for. You expected to find him in your bedroom again but he wasn’t there either. He was definitely in control. Not just of the sessions, but your life.

It was the day after when he came around. Your last appointment was at three and you were free by four. You didn’t think to linger. You pulled on your jacket and grabbed your bag. You left behind your leather folder. You wanted to hide for as long as you could. Just until he came to haunt you again.

He was there in the lobby. You spotted him the moment you stepped off the elevator and he saw you too. You could tell he’d been expecting you. You tried to act as if you hadn’t seen him but there was no pretending with him. He reached the front doors before you and blocked the revolving escape. You slid to a halt on your wedged boots.

“It’s shitty out,” He said. “You need a ride?”

“No,” You glanced past him. “I’ll catch a train.”

“Oh, sorry, I didn’t mean to make it sound like a question.” He chuckled. “We’ve got a stop to make before we hit your little hole.”

“And if I refuse? Huh? You gonna hit me in front of all these people? You gonna drag me out kicking and screaming?”

“I won’t have to do that.” He pulled his phone from his pocket. “One minute, let me turn the sound off here.”

He flicked his finger across the screen before he turned it to you. You watched yourself on the screen, the uneven angle as the lens peeked out above a stretch of fabric; likely his pocket. It was you with your little silver bullet against your clit. The camera got closer and only your moans could be heard as the focus blurred between your bodies, the flash of his vibranium hand blocked it.

“Seems unprofessional to me,” He smirked. “I think Happy might agree. Maybe the licensing board too.”

You stared at him and reached to zip up your thick jacket. You nodded to him and pushed away his phone. “Just...let’s go.”

He leaned in as he tucked the phone away, “Good girl.” He slithered and your skin crawled.

He backed away and waved you after him. You sighed and followed as he led you to another door. This one led to the attached garage along the side of the tower. He didn’t wait but strolled decisively through it and down the steps to the tarmac. You held the rail as your boots threatened to catch on the stairs.

A dark blue car chirped as he neared it and he opened the door. He dropped inside and you pulled open the passenger side door as he turned the engine. You slipped your bag in front of the seat as you sat and shut the door with a click. He backed out of his spot before you even had a chance to do up your seat belt.

“Can I ask where we’re going?” You ventured.

“You can,” He kept one hand on the wheel as he leaned casually on the console. “But you won’t have your answer til we get there.”

You bit down and lowered your chin. He was drawing it out as long as he could. Whatever he had planned. Whatever new humiliation he had devised. And you had no choice but to bear it. To feed from the hand that would close around your throat and choke the life from you. And if that failed, it would wrought the destruction of the little you held dear.

You kept your eyes down as he drove. The city was pale and lifeless as winter descended upon the fluorescent giants. The street lights loomed over the sidewalks and the mailboxes formed little hills beneath the snowy blanket. You touched your forehead as your vision blurred. The grim vision of the urban sprawl made it all too real.

When he pulled into the small plaza, you were confused. The little convenience store that advertised the lotto jackpot and Marlboro's was nothing special and you doubted he was taking you to the small Vietnamese eatery for dinner. Your eyes found the darkened shop nestled in the corner; a red sign flashing above XXX. No way.

“Out,” He turned off the car as he reached for the door handle. “Stop dragging your ass. I’d like to be out of this shit before it’s past my ankle.”

You climbed out of the car but forgot your bag on the floor. You tucked your hands in your pockets as the flakes gathered in your hair. He rounded the front of the car and whistled to you like a dog as he marched to the tinted windows of the sex shop. You shook your head and trailed after him.

You caught the door behind him and let it close heavily. You looked around at the mannequins in lingerie, the silicon and rubber toys lined along the shelves, and the explicit covers of porno DVDs. A woman with bright red hair greeted you from behind the counter and Bucky returned her cheerful hello. You stayed quiet and followed him.

You weren’t a prude but the last time you’d been to place like this was with your ex-husband. Nothing special, some lube and a cockring for him. You had mulled over a leather garter with studs but left empty-handed. A pathetic attempt to revive a dead relationship.

Bucky grabbed a mesh basket from the stack next to the counter and led you to the wall, though he seemed to have forgotten about you. He tilted his head at the vibes and narrowed his eyes.

“I doubt you need anymore,” He scoffed.

He moved on and stopped sharply at the next display. He unhooked a leather crop and waved it through the air. He dropped it in the basket and you stared at its handle sticking out. He grabbed another item; a leather collar and matching leash, and added some straps to slip beneath a mattress.

“Bucky…” You said quietly as you grabbed the basket. “You don’t want to do this.”

He grinned and licked his bottom lip as he turned to you. “You don’t know what I want but I can show you.” His blue eyes bore into you. “You want me to deal with my control issues, this is how I deal, doc. And beneath all your repression, I know you want it. Your top drawer can’t hide it.”

You cringed and threw your hands up. “Call it therapy but it’s not that. This isn’t coping, this isn’t addressing the issue, this is feeding it. It won’t help.”

“You’re off the clock, doc,” He carried on along the shelf. “Give it up.”

You pursed your lips and shook your head. You tried to avoid looking at the toys, instead focusing on the price tags; pretended it was a grocery store or anywhere else. You looked up as he grab a set of plugs and quickly lowered your gaze again. He stopped and turned back to you.

“You wanna pick out some lube,” He still had the plugs in his hand; a kit, smallest to largest. “You’ll thank me for it later.”

He dropped them in the basket with the rest and spun back to the merchandise. You took a deep breath and glanced around. You crossed to the pyramid display of lubes; hot and cold, flavoured, scented, sensitive skin… The red-haired woman grinned at you as you peeked over at you and you smiled shyly and turned back to the oils.

“Anything in particular you’re looking for?” She asked as she neared.

“No, I… I have a sensitive ecosystem,” You offered. “Don’t really know what to pick.”

“Something water-based,” She advised as she reached to the rack. “This stuff’s good. It’s flavoured but shouldn’t cause any issues.” She smirked and looked over as Bucky scratched his head before a shelf of dildos. “Does he prefer sweets?”

“I guess,” You answered softly. “I’ll just take the strawberry. Everyone likes strawberry, right?”

“He seems open to a lot,” She commented. “You get half-off this brand with the plugs anyways.”

“Oh, thanks,” You grabbed the strawberry lube and smiled.

You parted from the nosy cashier and crossed to Bucky as he moved onto the back corner. He turned and caught your hand before you could drop the bottle in the basket. He wrestled it from your grip and read the label.

“Mmm, strawberry.” He remarked as he let it fall with the rest of his haul.

You wanted to cover your face and curl into a ball. You were mortified. He stopped before the mannequin in a strappy leather number with no real coverage. Tits out and everything else; ass framed by the thick straps. He raised his brows as he admired it.

“Find your size,” He pointed to it. “I know you’re probably more a lace woman but I think this will be...fun.”

He didn’t wait for a response. You sifted through the stack of plastic wrapped lingerie and fished out your size. You caught up to him again and he took it from you without a glance. He led you to the counter and plopped the basket on it.

The red-head began to scan each item at a time and filled a big black bag with them. Bucky tapped his gloved fingers on the counter as he waited. She smiled between you. “Special occasion?”

“You could say that,” Bucky answered.

The woman giggled and hit total. Bucky reached for his wallet and swiped his card. He seemed unfazed by the exorbitant amount he’d just spent on sex toys. He took his receipt and his bag with a smile and a thanks. He grabbed your arm and pulled you close as he led you to the door.

“Now,” He said as he pulled open the door. “We’re ready.”

Bucky grabbed your keys from you as you walked up to your door. He unlocked it with one hand and ushered you inside with a point of his finger. You entered and he was close behind. You unzipped your coat as he set the bag aside and kicked off his boots. He hung his jacket over yours and you struggled to wiggle free of your own boots.

He grabbed the bag again and urged you onward. When you reached your bedroom, his patience had worn thin. He shoved you in and closed the door with his foot. He placed the bag on your dresser and stirred through the contents. He tossed the lingerie at you and looked to the bathroom door.

“Go on, I’ll get it all ready.” He said. You didn’t wait for him to tell you twice.

You hid behind the door and stripped yourself slowly. You could hear him moving around on the other side. It took you several tries to untangle the straps and when you were certain it was correct, you stared down at your body. The straps were set in triangles around your tits and crisscrossed down to your crotch; another exposed vee. Your ass was propped up by the leather and you twisted as you tried to see it.

A rap of knuckles on the door and you swallowed. You opened it and Bucky raised a brow as he nodded over his shoulder.

“Go on.” He ordered and you stepped past him.

He grabbed the bag of toys and as you stood awkwardly in the middle of the room. He went into the bathroom and the sink cranked on. The straps had been secured, the leash was laid out, and only your bottom sheet remained on the mattress. Your head spun.

“Your ass looks great in that,” Bucky said. “Turn around.”

You turned and he looked you up and down. He neared and set his handful of toys on the night table. He stepped back and slipped his fingers beneath the straps along your shoulder. He rubbed them with his thumbs.

“Look at you, doc,” He purred. “You should start wearing this for our sessions.”

Your jaw tensed and you said nothing. He seemed amused by your visible irritation. He let go and reached for the leash strewn on the bed. He unbuckled the collar and spun back to you. You braced yourself as he wrapped it around your neck and secured it there. He tugged on the leash and you winced.

“Even better.” He let the leash hang limp and backed away as he pulled his shirt over his head. “Go on and get on your knees.”

You did as he said. You almost fell over as you did and stared at the carpet as he unzipped his fly. You listened to the rustle of his clothing. When he neared, he was entirely naked and it took all your strength to look up at him. He bent and grabbed the leashed again.

“Come on,” He pulled and you fell forward onto your hands. He snickered and led you around the room. You moved stiffly; thoroughly embarrassed. A literal dog. “It was like Pavlov. I know you’ve heard of him. They had words that they conditioned me with. Like sit.” He motioned and you lowered your ass. “Good girl.”

You trembled in anger. He wrapped the leash around his hand and pulled you closer. “Up. On your knees.” He yanked until you were almost against him. His cock bobbed before you. “Go on and get your bone, doggy.”

You glared at him and he thrust so that his cock poked you in the face. You flinched and lowered your eyes. You parted your lips and poked your tongue out to drag it along his length. You swirled around his tip and he twitched. You covered the head of his cock with your lips. His other hand went to your head and pushed you further.

He hit the back of your throat and you gagged. You barely fought it back as he forced himself deeper until your lips were against his pelvis. You reached to grip his thighs as you struggled to breathe. He relented but quickly crashed back into you. You slapped at him and clawed at his thick muscles. Your loud gulps filled your ears and added to the churning of your stomach.

He moved his hips in time with your head. He fucked your mouth steadily as his groans floated from him. He was like an animal, rutting into you faster and faster. He was fed by the noises of your distress; his power over you. Your body was his to use as they had his.

He sank as deep as he could as his thrusts slowed. He spasmed and grunted. A carnal growl. He came down your throat as your head swelled from lack of air. He held himself at his limit until he was done. He tore you off of him, your leash taut as he kept you from slumping over. His cum dripped from your lips with your spit.

He yanked you up to your feet and dragged his thumb through the mess along your chin. His hand slipped down and stretched over the collar. He unhooked the leash and let it fall to the floor. He backed you up until your knees met the bed.

He shoved you and you fell onto the bed with a bounce. He climbed up after you and pulled on you until you moved. He shoved your wrist into a restraint and secured it tightly. He did the other and then your ankles. He knelt between your legs and tweaked your nipples roughly. You whimpered and he snarled in delight.

He reached to the night stand and grabbed the bottle of lube. He squirted the cool oil between your legs and shoved his fingers down to spread it along your folds. He lifted a brow as he found you wet. He chuckled.

“Oh, doc, you can’t hide it. Not from me.” He continued to rub you and you tried not to squirm. “Maybe that’s the problem, hmm? Did you hold back with the husband? That why he left?”

You bit your lip and looked away from him.

“All you wanted to do was talk but you sure are quiet now,” He taunted and dipped his fingers inside of you.

“He held back,” You snapped. “I left him, okay?” You tried to close your legs but couldn’t move against the restraints. “Cause he didn’t wanna fuck me anymore.”

“Good riddance, then.”

He pulled his hand away and leaned over to grab the dildo he’d chosen from the bunch. It was big and thicker than any you owned. He placed it against you and slowly pushed inside. You gritted your teeth as it stretched you. He stopped as it filled you entirely and you gasped.

Slowly, he began to work it in and out of you. You gripped the straps as your body tensed and your breath hitched. He sped up as he sensed your pleasure mount. As you desperately fought against it. As the moans escaped you and betrayed you to him. Soon, he was slamming the dildo into you as your voice rose without thought.

You came with a curse. You squeezed your eyes shut but could sense his satisfaction. He gloated as he continued to fuck you with the toy. The squelching filled the room and your head. He stopped and let the toy slip out on its own.

“When you did fuck,” The bed shifted as he spoke. “Was it boring? Did he even try?”

“I… Early on, he did. And then, I guess he just didn’t care so long as he came.” You said quietly.

You’d never told anyone the true troubles of your marriage. You’d fed them all the excuse of too much time apart for work and too many differences. It was all true but the lack of intimacy was the worst of it.

“And did you ever…” He paused and you opened your eyes. He held up a plug and your mouth fell open. “Try anything… new?”

“No,” You said as you eyed the toy. “No, please, I never…”

“We’re starting small,” He coaxed. “Tell me you didn’t divorce that moron to fuck yourself with that pathetic bullet every night.”

You stayed quiet as he undid your binds one at a time. He turned you over and you didn’t offer much resistance. Couldn’t. He was too strong. As he strapped you down on your stomach, you raised your head.

“Are you… recording this too?” You asked as you tried to look at him behind you.

“If I am, it’ll be for my own pleasure,” He assured you. “But I already have more than enough footage, doc.”

Your dropped your head back to the mattress and huffed. His knees pressed against you thighs and a cool trickle seeped between your cheeks. He spread it with his metal fingers and circle your tight ring. It tickled and you flinched. He pushed against your hole and slowly his finger stretched you.

He drew his finger in and out several times as you hissed. It hurt but it wasn’t an unbearable pain. Something about it was delicious and you hungered for more. He shoved another finger inside and you dug your nails into the sheet. You grunted as he played with you.

He pulled out and for a moment, silence. The cap of the lube flicked and you felt a new pressure against your ring. Harder, colder. He pushed the plug in little by little. You whined until he had it in entirely and your ring closed around the stem. You head lolled back and forth as you moaned.

“I always knew you were a tight ass, doc,” He slapped your ass with his metal hand and you yelped.

You felt the straps slacken around your ankles and he lifted your hips. He pushed his thighs under yours and his cock poked along your vee. He reached between your legs and rubbed his tip against your folds. He entered you easily. Your walls welcomed him as he sank into you completely.

“Doc, my god,” He groaned. “Shit. He missed out, didn’t he?”

He thrust and you moaned. He did it again and you moaned. Again. Each time he did it, you couldn’t hold back. You couldn’t stifle the sheer pleasure of being so full. And then he wiggled the plug as he fucked you. You’d never felt anything so intense.

The sparks began to spit from your core and seared along your flesh. With each rock of his hips, you grew louder and his hips moved faster. Your back arched as he continued to toy with the plug inside you and his other hand slid down your back. He spread his fingers across your back and held you down.

He pulled the plug out and you gasped. He was quick to fumble around and grab another. He pushed inside and you let out a series of pathetic mewls. It was bigger than the last. You slowly adjusted to it though it hurt all the same.

He grunted with each plunge. Your panting mingled with his and your bodies sang a carnal tune. You could hear it all; the friction, the wetness, the sheer animalism. You came again but couldn’t even cry out as your eyes rolled back. You drooled onto the sheet as the bed jolted below you.

He came too. And he didn’t pull out. You didn’t care as the ripples washed over you. He slowed and exhaled loudly as he leaned back on his heels. He slapped your ass again as he pulled out. His cum leaked from you.

He backed up and dropped your hips back to the bed. He took the dildo and lined it up with your entrance. He slammed it into you and you yiped. He held it there and grabbed the end of the plug with his other hand. Slowly, he slipped it out of you as your ring stretched around it. The emptiness was both a relief and a disappointment.

And then he pulled the dildo out too. He lined himself up with your hole and you tugged at your binds. “No, no…” You whispered. “Please. It’s too much.”

He stretched you around his tip as he ignored your pleas. He pulled back and pushed back in. He repeated the motion several times, each time, pushing further in. He sank down entirely as he spread his body over yours and you exclaimed. Your eyes were singed by sudden tears.

“Bucky!” You cried. “Jesus fuck, get off of me.”

“Shhh.” He covered your mouth with his hand as he reached out with his other arm. “We both know you want this. You want to be controlled.”

He thrust and you squealed into his hand. His other snaked beneath you and you heard a click. The bullet buzzed against your stomach as he slid it lower. He pressed it to your bud as he ground against you. The vibrations flowed through you. His groans trickled through your veins like venom.

He held the vibe to you with his hand, his other clasped over your lips. You breathed frantically as he sped up. You closed your eyes as you body shook against your will. You came violently. The pure pleasure intertwined with an agony so sweet. You shuddered beneath him and it fed his fervour.

He removed his hand from your mouth and pulled his arm from beneath you. He left the bullet to roll beneath you, still buzzing. He planted his hands on either side of you and lifted his pelvis and slammed back into you. He did it over and over again, his flesh slapping loudly against yours. The pain reverberated through you.

He snarled and hissed. He balled the sheet up in his fist as his other went to your head. He pulled your head up and whispered in your ear. “This is what it felt like. I hated it and loved it all the same.”

He grabbed the back of your collar and curled your back as he dropped his hips. He fucked you into the mattress as the leather grew tighter and you gasped for breath. And you felt him cum. The current of warmth within was soothing. He slowed and rested his weight over you. He exhaled in your ear as he unhooked his fingers from the collar and stayed inside of you.

“Gee, doc,” He breathed. “I feel a lot better now.” He rolled his hips and you murmured. “A lot lighter.”

END

#mr self destruct #Bucky Barnes #bucky barnes x reader #dark bucky barnes #dark!bucky barnes #dark!bucky barnes x reader #dark bucky barnes x reader #mcu #marvel #fic #short series #series #au #captain america

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sablelab · 4 years

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Covert Operations - Chapter 118

SYNOPSIS: When Fergus and Murtagh entered the Common Area there is pandemonium everywhere but Section cannot find the source of the breach. Murtagh heads off to Med Lab unaware that Fergus has been summoned to the Perch.

Chapter 117 and all other chapters can be found at… https://sablelab.tumblr.com/covertoperations

THANK YOU to all who have been reading my story about all of the machinations that happen in Section One. Jamie and Claire are still in Med Lab, Fergus and Murtagh have found out some interesting Intel and Dougal's brother is keeping tabs on the happenings with the Riding Dragons' mission. As a consequence of finding the Intel on Jamie all hell has broken out and the chaos is escalating in Section. Thankfully next chapter we will see how Jamie and Claire are faring. Thanks for your observations on the previous chapter and for your kind words. I really appreciate that you are engaged in this story as much as I am.

CHAPTER 118 When Fergus and Murtagh finally entered the Common Area there was pandemonium everywhere and it looked as if all hell had broken out. They shared a look realizing that they were the cause of the commotion. The two friends' innocuous adventure had turned into an all-out circus as Comm. Was crowded with Operatives running around trying to locate the intruder. Orders were flying every which way as everyone tried to find the source of the breach. "Have we localized?" "I think I've got something around Segment 35." "The upper levels are clear ... Send security there." Fergus looked very worried as he knew they wouldn't find anything but he still quickly made his way to his station as if he had never been missing and seamlessly eased back into his tactical role while Murtagh slipped away over to Munitions. Wanting to know if there was any chance that Tactical had found anything to link Murtagh and him to the problem Fergus asked, "The depth of the breach?" His co-worker, Marsali MacKimmie looked over at him and replied. "We don't know everything yet, but we do know whoever it is may have tried to tap into restricted files." "What's the contingency?" "I don't know yet." ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ A short while later Murtagh Fitzgibbons crossed over the Common Area and moved to stand beside Fergus and the other tactical operatives who ignored him and kept on working. As he listened to the confusion going on, Murtagh's expression inferred that he had no idea what all the excitement was about, but in actual fact he surveyed the happenings trying to think of a way to offset the uproar they had caused. If Operations found out that he and Fergus were in fact responsible for the chaos that now ensued then there would be recriminations for the both of them. "Hey. What's going on? " He inquired nonchalantly. "Someone broke deep level security," one of the tactical operatives replied. "There could be a hostile loose within Section." He kept up the charade and asked, "Do they know who?" "No but Tech's all over six and seven. I've never seen it like this before. " Marsali replied. "What can I do?" Fergus watched the interaction with the technicians and couldn't believe Murtagh had uttered those words. His eyes conveyed that very message as he said, "Stay out of the way." His buddy didn't reply to Fergus' veiled response for his gaze caught the movement of three figures entering the Common Area. He looked across to see two operatives enter with a cuffed Gavin Hayes between them, then he darted his eyes to see a furious Operations storm into the Common Area as well. By the thunderous look on his leader's face, Murtagh just knew that Madeline and Operations' meeting with Colum had not gone well and now to top it off, Section had a security breach which he and Fergus were responsible for. Dougal Mackenzie was in no mood for rational thought. Someone was going to pay for the extra pressure on Section One and it appeared that someone was a hapless Hayes who was merely doing his job. The shackled operative looked incredulous as to why he had been escorted here. The two operatives marched him up before the head of Section and Gavin Hayes looked up to see an enraged look on Operations' face. He tried to explain the situation while trying to keep the panic from his voice.

"I didn't do anything! I was just responding to the alarm. " Unfortunately, Dougal Mackenzie wasn't buying his explanation. He was livid. "You were in a closed zone! You must have been viewing unauthorized Intel. " "No, I wasn't! The doors just snapped shut when we went in search of the intruder. " Operations ignored him and gave orders to the operatives escorting Hayes. "Take him to the White Room." "But I didn't do anything," he protested as they took him away. " Ask Lesley ... he will verify for me. I was just doing my job. " Operations glared over at Murtagh and Fergus before stalking back to his office. The two men shook in their boots as the look he gave them indicated that no one was immune from suspicion including them and that he was determined to get to the bottom of the breach. ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ A while later Fergus walked over to Munitions with his mind churning out a dozen possibilities of what would happen to them if Operations and Madeline found out that they were the intruders and especially if they discovered they had accessed Jamie's classified file and the information it contained. He was dejected and fearful for the consequences. Approaching his friend's station where he was busy going over an inventory the young techie uttered worriedly, "Murtagh, I've got to talk to you." "Yeah?" What's wrong, amigo? " "Do you think Operations knows we were responsible?" He looked up hearing the fear in his buddy's voice. "Nah ... he may suspect but there's no proof." "But what if Joe Abernathy tells them he saw us ... hmm? What then? " "Then I guess we face the music." In almost a whisper Fergus then leaned in and asked, "What do you think will happen with Gavin Hayes?" "I don't know, but if he's with Madeline my guess is that he's not having fun." Fergus suddenly felt bile rise in his throat.He'd been against searching for Jamie's records in the first place. They'd had one mishap after another which any healthy person would have realized was a bad omen for them, but Murtagh had insisted and now an innocent operative may very well be terminated because of them. That thought weighed heavily on his mind. "That's all I've been able to think about since they took Hayes away," Fergus admonished glaring at his friend, gesticulating with a raised voice. "This is all your fault Murtagh Fitzgibbons! This will be the ace up our sleeves you said ... something to hold over Operations ... our trump card! " Fearful that someone would overhear their conversation; Murtagh glanced up looking each way to see if anyone was in earshot as Fergus began to rant about their escapades. "Keep your voice down. Are you nuts? Not here and not now. " Lowering his voice Fergus asked gloomily, "What are we going to do?" "I'll let you know." "When?" He replied looking like he had misgivings. Looking around to see if anyone was watching, Murtagh pulled down his screen. "I need to check up on Jamie and Claire again first, but I'll get back to you ... okay?" A little placated, but not totally convinced he replied. "Okay." "In the meantime, pull yourself together Fergus. Remember, there is nothing that points to us breaching Section ... Nothing! " He was not that convinced but nevertheless Fergus tried to be more composed although inside he was a bundle of nerves. He gave his buddy a quick glance then walked despondently away back to his post. His thoughts as usual were dark. Murtagh had got them into serious trouble this time but he wouldn't let him take all the blame if indeed they were found out. Murtagh had said to pull himself together and he would try to do that or else Operations would become suspicious. In the past when something like this had occurred, Section's Leader had called for a general inquiry. He would certainly do it again unless he was convinced otherwise. Maybe ... just maybe ... he could think of a plausible scenario that would get them off the hook. He hastened his step to set an idea in motion. In Operations' Why ... "Are you positive he had nothing to do with the breach?" Operations listened as his second in command gave her report from the White Room where Gavin Hayes had been interrogated. "I see." His face was grim as he severed his connection with Madeline. She'd just reported in that Gavin Hayes was in the clear after all, and that his account of the situation had been verified by Keith Lesley. Now unfortunately he was left with a problem. He was already furious with the meeting they'd had earlier with Colum and now he had the added problem of a suspected breach and no clues as to who it could be. There was much on his mind. Who was responsible for setting off the alarm? Was there an intruder inside Section One or was it a false alarm? Although concerns about the breach were his primary objective, so too were the problems that Colum's visit had caused. Who could be responsible for the Intel he had about Jamie and Claire? … Was someone sending communiqués to him at Oversight? This had been a very trying day. Dougal stood up and went to peer down into the hub of Section at the operatives who were busily trying to find whoever was responsible. He glared down from the Perch and happened to notice the spirited discussion between Fergus and Murtagh. The two men seemed to be arguing which was unusual. It was obvious that Fergus Claudel was very nervous about something and was not himself. Suddenly it dawned on him. Could they have had something to do with the security breach but had decided to remain silent?

Operations studied both operatives' faces remembering that Madeline had said she'd seen the two prior to their meeting with Colum in Committee.

Was it possible that they had been up to something untoward? Murtagh often tested the waters thinking he and Madeline were not aware of what he was doing. If they were responsible for the breach ... what were they looking for and why? Perhaps Fitzgibbons had been trying to access personal files on Claire or Jamie. The retrieval mission could have whetted his curiosity. He wouldn't put it past him to try and do that especially considering how close he was to Claire and Jamie too, for that matter. The head of Section One observed them more closely and saw the quick glance Fergus had exchanged with the older operative before leaving Munitions so he watched as Section's technical expert walked back across the floor of the Common Area to his station.

Had Fergus assisted Murtagh in one of his harebrained schemes and now it had backfired on them to cause the chaos in Section? Or more importantly ... Had he been wrong in his beliefs and they really were responsible for sending Intel to Colum? There was only one way to find out. He would get to the bottom of this before Madeline had a chance to question either Fitzgibbons or Claudel. Dougal Mackenzie believed that it would be easy to trip up Section's computer genius to see if he had been involved. He depressed his intercom button. ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

When Murtagh had crossed the main floor of Section, he'd hesitated for a moment thinking about his conversation with Fergus and what had taken place in Systems. Although his friend was worried, he had a far more important matter to attend to first for his mind was pre-occupied with the fate of Claire and Jamie in Medical. Despite this, before turning down the corridor towards Med Lab, he looked back at Technical where his buddy and the other technicians were still busily working. He wondered if what he and Fergus had attempted to do was all worth it. Perhaps he should have listened to his friend but he was hell bent on finding the information on Jamie for their personal gain. Fergus had been well within his rights to berate him as all hell had broken out because of their little adventure. He knew what they were doing was risky but what he'd done on the mission was risky too. The adrenalin had kept pumping in his veins since his return to Section and he was still on a high about Jamie and Claire's rescue. Finding his Intel seemed like a piece of cake after what the team had gone through on the retrieval mission. He should have realized that being in Section One was profoundly different than being on a mission but his pride had gotten in the way. Consequently, they had stumbled over one obstacle after another in their quest to find Jamie's Intel and the surprise information concerning his relationship to Operations and Colum Mackenzie. Fergus' concerns were valid and he should have listened to his friend but he'd refused to do so thinking that he was invincible. The two friends had tried their best but had just fallen short at the last hurdle. Had it not been for that alarm going off, then they would have been home and hosed even though they had no Intel to barter with. Now Fergus was worried that they would be put into abeyance and it was all his fault. He had to admit that he was a sixty-year-old hippy who had never grown up. He should have known better than to involve his friend in his harebrained schemes and with the wisdom of hindsight he would have done things differently. Now the two of them could be in serious trouble if Operations were to call for a general inquiry unless he or Fergus could come up with a plan. Smiling to himself he was confident that his computer savvy friend would be sure to think of a way to spread the situation and take the heat off of them without his help. Fergus was after all; Section One's top computer expert and he would be able to come up with a number of plausible reasons why the alarm went off. Turning the corner, Murtagh left the problems of Systems behind and made his way to Med Lab to see how Jamie and Claire were faring. His gait quickened as he neared his destination unaware of what was to occur in his absence and that Fergus would be summoned to the Perch. Knowing that it had been over twenty-four hours he was eager to know if Jamie was out of the woods and he was keen to see for himself how his Sugar was coping. Dr Johnson should also know by now how the two patients were and what their prognosis was. In no time, despite all the scenarios of his thought processes, Murtagh was finally at Med Lab and entered through the glass doors. ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ "Fergus!" Operations' gruff voice suddenly blared from the intercom. He looked up at the sound of Dougal Mackenzie's stern directive. It was commonplace for Section's leader to be abrupt in his summons to the Perch but Fergus saw that he was glaring down at his station. That ... was a bad omen. With a feeling of unease, he responded, trying to keep his voice steady as he replied. "Yes sir?" "I need to see you in my office." ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ Nervously he got up, and like a dead man walking made his way to the Perch. His mind was at sixes and sevens as to what Operations could want although he suspected it was something to do with the breach in the restricted area. Had Dougal managed to find out that he and Murtagh were involved in the breach after all? Had he spoken to Abernathy or did he just want to see if Tactical had been able to find something? Fergus knew he would have to muster enough Dutch courage to face his leader's inquisition especially if he suspected them of being involved. It was highly probable that Operations had heard from Joe Abernathy although Murtagh seemed to think not. Fergus feared that he may have reported that he'd found them in a restricted area. He also worried about the ramifications of his bald lie. That in itself was a certain abeyance issue. Murtagh and he were lucky that Abernathy hadn't pressed the issue about who had given him clearance, but it was still at the back of his mind that he may very well have to face the music about the incident especially as he'd said he had clearance from Operations to be there. Why, oh why had he gone along with his friend's harebrained idea? After all the trials and tribulations that Murtagh and he had encountered in their quest to find Intel on Jamie, which his friend was adamant they needed but had failed to gain, he certainly hoped that that the gods of favor were finally smiling on him and that the two of them weren't skating on thin ice and drowning quicker than a lead weight. They'd had one mishap after another with the worst culminating in the phantom breach which was now using up Section's vital resources and all for naught as it had been a wild goose chase. He hoped he could think of something to stop the investigation and appease Operations at the same time. Standing on the threshold of Operations' office Fergus composed himself for whatever may come, and remembering Murtagh's parting words to him.

“ Pull yourself together Claudel. Remember, there is nothing that points to us breaching Section ... Nothing! " ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ Fergus entered the Perch under the guise of bravado and feigned confidence but also with trepidation of his fate. He stood silently before speaking. "You wanted to see me?" "Come in." Operations watched his tactical technician but to his surprise he seemed more composed than before. "The security breach is unresolved. You wouldn't know what happened in that sector would you Fergus? " "Who me?" "Yes ... you. Madeline said she saw you and Murtagh Fitzgibbons in that vicinity earlier. Why was that? " Fergus stumbled over his words caught by surprise by his leader's frankness. He'd completely forgotten that they had run into Madeline when she exited the elevator and he trembled in his boots in fear of what she had told Operations about seeing them in the corridor.

"We ... we were ... heading back to the Common Area." "What was Murtagh doing with you?" His heart began to pound. This was it. This was the time that Operations would want an explanation. He had to think fast and replied with conviction suddenly remembering his friend's reply to Madeline. "Murtagh was stretching his legs. He wanted to clear his head and we went for a walk, but somehow, we lost our bearings while talking. With all that had happened with Jamie and Claire ... and the mission and everything ... "His voice trailed off and Fergus hoped that his superior would have some leniency in thinking that this was indeed what could have happened. Operations studied the young techie's face looking for any body language that would alert to his bluffing. He saw none. "Well ... if I hear that you and Murtagh Fitzgibbons were somewhere without authorization then I will have no recourse than to place you both in abeyance. Is that understood? " "Yes sir. It was an honest mistake. " "Well don't make another one." "Of course." Dougal Mackenzie paced back and forth inside the Perch and Fergus watched as he stopped then turned back towards him. "Rest assured ... I will get to the bottom of this breach. There's going to be a general inquiry. " Knowing that would involve invasive testing which could be their downfall fall Fergus brashly asked, "Do you think that is necessary?" Section One's leader heard the assertiveness in his technician's voice. His eyebrow rose as he stared him down. "You don't approve?" "I think it's premature sir." The IT specialist was clutching at straws to come up with a plausible reason that would appease Operations' inquisitiveness to his statement. Trying to diffuse the situation he put forward an idea of diversion but the only thing he could think of was, "I'm checking to see if there has been a malfunction in the door mechanism that triggered the alarm. I'm running down that possibility now. It could be as simple as that. " Looking intensely at Fergus he wondered if he may have read the conversation between Murtagh and him incorrectly. That room can only be accessed by Level 5 operatives "It's possible." Operations answered thinking out loud. Pushing his advantage and gaining in confidence Fergus then asked, "Did Gavin Hayes and Keith Lesley or the other operatives find any evidence of any intruders?" "No ..." "And neither have we. There is no evidence of any intruder in Section despite the alarm. " Operations' mouth twitched at his reply while his pale gaze narrowed slightly. "And your point?" "Then is a general inquiry necessary sir, considering that they all have found nothing? There have been no casualties. Everything seems to be contained. Perhaps we should pull back until I see if there was a malfunction after all. " "What are you getting at Claudel?" "We might be chasing our tails and all for nothing. An inquiry will be time consuming and Section One is on the edge right now. We have to be careful not to stretch our resources to something that may or may not have credence. " Section's leader was incredulous at his audacity. He moved to scrutinize his wall monitor then cast an icy glare at the young man. "You aren't going to tell me what to do are you?" Fergus managed a weak smile. "No sir ... but we are coming up empty every time. My theory is worth a shot before implementing a full-scale inquiry. " Operations thought long and hard about what he had said. He glanced down at the operatives in tactical still frantically trying to find where or who was in breach but apparently to no avail. Without looking at Fergus, he gave sanction to his explanation.

"Very well. You may go. " He breathed a sigh of relief at being dismissed. "Thank you, sir. I'll let you know of my findings. " Turning, Fergus made his way down the stairs and beat a hasty retreat from an inquisition that he had managed to diffuse ... for the time being. Murtagh would be so proud when he told him what had transpired in the Perch. ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ to be continued Friday 8 th May

#Jamieandclairefanfic #jamieandclaireau #jamieandclairecrossover #outlander fanfic #the lallybroch library #covert operations #LFNoutlander

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kaibacxrps · 4 years

Text

The boarding school

Discord thread with @kaibacorpbros !

Where was he? What happened overnight? What kind of place is this? It looked nothing like the mansion he had woke up in months ago.

So many thoughts ran through the mind of the spirit, as he dared to have a peek at what might be happening to their surrounding. If his timing wasn’t wrong, they should have already been dragged by one of Gozaburo’s servants so he could punish them. However, he was shocked and surprised to find himself in an entirely different setting.

What did he miss out on while he hid away in his soul room?

It appeared his vessel turned 14 a few days ago, the same age he began his training - magic practice allthose years ago. At long last, he could feel his magic flowing within him once again. It is slowly returning to him, finally he will be able to get his revenge on Gozaburo.

Now if only the man was there, to begin with.

The spirit kept looking around, but all he saw were just a handful of other boys- all seemed to be about the same age as them on top of being dressed up in a similar outfit as them as well.How odd. It was all that Set could think of, while scanning the surrounding.

While looking around, he took notice of two children sitting together not too far from them with what appeared to be cards from the same game Seto enjoyed playing.

"Hey, you even listening? Don't walk away from me." There's a shove that comes from behind Seto's body, from one of the kids that was closing in in him.

"I'm sick of you getting all the damn credit just because of who your father is."

The leader comes closer. He was bigger than Seto, and most certainly more fit. There weren't any adults around. And the exits were blocked by other groups of boys, not even paying attention to any of this happening.

"Little teacher's pet. No amount of talking will weasel you out of this." This time, the boy goes to grab Seto instead. He manages to dodge, only to be pushed down by one of the others.

Never show weakness. Echos in his mind. Seto pops right back up with a glare to drive a tackle into the second boy, sending them tussling on the ground and into the two who had been playing duel monsters. Cards fly everywhere as Seto tries to throw the bigger boy off, but he's too outmatched by weight.

They couldn't kill him...right? People would find out. The teachers would. "Get off!" he snarls trying to land a hit, but only managing to catch they bully slightly with one.

’These voices... What are they saying?’

The spirit’s attention was immediately drawn to the source of it. Was he even still in the land called Japan? The boy didn’t look anything remotely similar to what he had seen in the past, and those words... He could understand them, but he could tell it wasn’t the same dialect he and his vessel had been using.

Where are they? What is this place?

Unfortunately, his train of thought was lost when the fight began. He could see Seto trying to withstand the much larger boys, while causing a major havoc in the space they were in.

This could be the perfect opportunity for him to put his powers to the test. If it weren’t for the sheer number of peers, that would go against all his work to remain hidden in the boy’s mind.

But at the same time, he knows he can’t just watch the whole thing either... It’s pretty obvious how Seto has a huge disadvantage here.

The spirit’s eyes remain fixated on the pack’s leader, if he takes out that brat then the others should leave them be.

He just needs to wait the perfect time, for him to take over the vessel’s body.

The end result wasn't pretty. The boys didn't kill him. Little victories, Seto supposed. But there had been too many of them, and he was too small in comparison.

They took their turns having their fun leaving him flecked with blood with purple bruises left all over.

No one would ever come to save him.

The lesson didnt need to be said, but it was clear what Gozaburo socially wanted Seto to learn.

He managed to hide most of the marks. Clean himself up and explain away the ones on his face as a clumsy trip to the staff.

And he was more than grateful to flop into his bunk in exhaustion in the evening. He'd figure out a way to get them back tomorrow. Most of the boys were already asleep. Some, including some of his aggressors were still up. Chatting about who knows what. Seto just wished they would shut up. What was the point of lights out if you couldn't actually sleep?

Could there be any other side-effects to sharing the body and mind with a child? He seems to be lacking his maturity. As a dark- grim wish to give those kids a payback, grew in his mind while he watched the fight unfold. Wouldn’t it be great to teach them a lesson? Scare them away for good?

Those would definetely leave a mark. The spirit came to that conclusion by the end of it all, as he now watched his vessel try to recover from the whole thing. His magic is back, he can feel it. He is more than ready to finally, use everything he has got under his sleeve on that pathetic man.

Yet, Gozaburo doesn’t even cross his mind in that moment as his vessel tried to force himself to sleep.

Those boys have sealed their fate... Perhaps, it wouldn’t hurt for him to have some fun. After all, he has had no joy ever since he was brought back.

So, he waited for the perfect opportunity to swap places with the child’s mind. Which, given his situation it didn’t take long at all. The spirit quickly changed his clothes, and headed out after those that dared to wrong him.

Finding them was incredibly easy, he only had to follow their loud and obnoxious voices. Firstly, he made his presence known by purposely making noises with his footsteps, as he approached them with a smirk on his face.

It almost seemed like he wasn’t the same kid, who was beaten up just a few hours ago.

His walk eventually came to a sudden halt, when he got to a relatively safe distance from his preys and had a clear vision of them. Seto remained in silence, as he simply stared at them while holding onto the golden trinket.

To Seto, he just fell asleep easily for once despite the noise and the nightmares. A rare occurrence.

In reality he couldn't have a clue his body was still walking around.

Another muffled fit of laughter from the group of boys erupted, and only cut off with the sound of footsteps. Instantly all their flashlights went out, thinking it was a teacher coming to scold them for being up.

It wasn't.

"Eh? What the hell--" remarked one. Sure, they had seen that staff of Seto's before, but...

"What, come for trouble again?" spat another, flicking his flashlight on again to see their classmate.

He looked... different.

The last, and biggest one got up, approaching Seto. "Really, Kaiba? You wanna act tough? Did you hit your head when you hit the floor?"

The thing boy didn’t flinch at all when the flashlights shined light at him, there was something very different in the way he looked at them. Seto had a wide grin on his face, in fact he still had on himself all the wounds those bastards had inflicted upon his body a few hours ago. A low chuckle left him, as he flashed his preys his teeth.

He didn’t respond to them, rather he began chanting something - a spell a tune of sorts. It was almost inaudible, and an ancient dialect was being used. Quickly their surroundings became increasingly dark, and it only got worse as the seconds passed.

By the time the biggest thug made it to him, Kaiba’s chanting came to a close “Yami no game start!”. When he exclaimed it, the golden eye of Wdjat appeared on his forehead and it flashed brightly, his rod shined in response to it as well.

A game of shadows has begun, it an ancient kind of magic that had long since been lost to time. Egyptians used it, to punish prisoners and anyone who dared to threaten the royalty.

All three boys were subjected to this punishment, for threatening the body and soul of a pharaoh. It is the biggest offense, any mortal could possibly commit in their lives.

The shadow game didn’t take long to come to a close, but it most certainly affected and claimed three lives. They weren’t dead, but it didn’t seem like they could even tell where they were, the punishment had shattered their minds and consumed their souls.

Kaiba stood there for a moment, admiring his work quietly as he held onto his rod. There is still a lot he has to regain access to... But his powers were finally back. Eventually he returned to the dorm where his vessel was meant to sleep in, before he returned the body to the kid's soul.

Why was he so exhausted? Even more so than it seemed to make sense. But Seto was quickly knocked out of his daze by loud chattering, and even some screams in the wing of where his quarters were. The boy drags himself out of bed to see what the all the commotion was.

As he follows the crowd of kids, he's greeted by the sight of the boys from yesterday being carried out by some of the teachers. What had.... had they all gotten sick? It was improbable, not impossible. People kept muttering about what happened around him.

They were found this morning, they haven't reacted at all, even when the teachers came over. How long are they going to be like that?

Looks like he didn't even have to sneak in some time to sabotage their schoolwork. But something still wasn't adding up...

Who was the last person to talk to them? Not me, I went right to bed. Not me. Not me. Not me.

Wasn't it Kaiba?

And with that, he'd already disappeared. Seto didn't believe in karma or anything like that. But this had nothing to do with him. And if he were lucky, Gozaburo would never hear about it.

The spirit of the rod was very pleased to have returned to where he had left them the previous night, the others reactions only stroked his ego even more. Those three fools were simply the beginning... This place will be the perfect playground, for the spirit to practice and prepare himself until that man returns.

He will have his fun in the meantime, until that happens.

The following days would be marked with similar accidents and tragedies that the three first victims experienced, yet no one had any explanation for what could be happening. There was no comfort, for the families of the boys that fell victims of this mysterious comatose state. There were no witnesses, no leads, clues... Nothing at all that could possibly shine a light at what might be happening in the famous boarding school. The police had even showed up a few times, but to no avail.

Many rumors spread around amongst the students, and the staff would attempt to try and dissuade the children from spreading them even more. An effortless attempt, at trying to salvage the establishment's reputation.

No one in this realm, could possibly suspect that the real cause of all those awful incidents hid within one of their students mind. The spirit was way too thrilled, with the whole situation he had created and the things he has done. But alas, it seemed like their stay was coming to an end. It appeared they would be returning home, sooner than anticipated. What a bummer.

The spirit thought to himself, as he rested within his soul room and watched from there their surrounding. A familiar scene caught his attention from the corner of his eyes, there were two kids playing that same cards game his vessel enjoyed so much.

And by the looks of it, he wasn't the only one.

Things just got odder from that day forward. The other boys left Seto alone for a while after the first three, but eventually new ones took their place. And yet each time before Seto could enact his plans to sabotage their work or belongings, some similar type of phenomenon would happen.

It didn't have to do with him. It didn't.

But at least that vermin was out of the way. The little stint was almost over though. At least Seto would be able to see Mokuba again soon.

But something caught his attention about the kids playing duel monsters, and before he knew it Kaiba had closed the distance to get a better look. No way. It had to be a replica something the kid threw in for a casual duel.

"Is that card real?" he demanded.

When the boy looked up at him, Seto recognized him. Anthony, son of parents with quite the powerful company, at the very least Gozaburo knew of them.

"Ha! 'Course it is!" The boy proudly waves the card between two fingers. "My father managed to collect it and he let me bring it. Awesome, isn't it? 3000 whopping attack. Nothing can beat that!"

Kaiba didn't bother pointing out that what the boy said wasn't true. But of course it would be difficult to get over such a monster in a duel. But Seto's eyes never left the card.

What a waste.

This kid using it for free time at a boarding school. That dragon deserved better than that. It should be bringing victory and glory in tournaments, not in the hands of a spoiled kid who didn't know the dragon's true worth.

Seto wanted it. That dragon was meant to be his, he knew it. It was just a matter of getting it. Already several questionable moral plans were coming to mind. He'd made up his mind. Seto wasn't going to leave this place until that dragon was his. No matter what it took.

"Sorry Kaiba, my father would never give it over for money. You might as well forget whatever you're thinking of."

No way... This couldn’t be real...

’Kisara!’

The name immediately jumped into his mind, as soon as the card was showed to them. His eyes shot widely open, and his entire disposition changed drastically in the split of a second. The spirit felt like he was so close to just swapping places with Seto, and try to steal the card from the kid on the spot.

Thankfully, he gave up on it as soon as he reached his door.

No, no he can’t ruin everything he has been worked on like this... He has a bigger goal, something far greater waiting for him...

Even if it meant he had to give his back to someone- something so crucial, and special to him.

He stood there, motionless as he had to fight against all of his wishes and need to intervene.

How dare a simpleton vermin like Anthony, handle the legendary blue-eyes white dragon like that? It was obvious, how a normal kid just would never be able to even grasp that beast’s full potential...

‘Of course, right. This is another world... It’s all just a game of cards...’

The spirit thought, that information had to be clear to him. Even if the idea in that moment, hurt him. But he refused to believe, there was nothing that they couldn’t possibly try to get it from the kid.

Amidst his silence, he picked up on a sensation that came from his vessel. It felt similar and very familiar, then it hit him. Of course, Seto wants it just as much as him.

‘You have to get it... You need it... No, we both need it.’ The spirit thought to himself, as his attention returned to the outside world from Seto’s perspective.

Kaiba was already angry at this kid. An yet something spurred it on further, igniting from one spark into a fire.

No. That dragon was leaving with him.

He turned his head to Anthony's opponent. "The math teacher was looking for you, by the way. That's the whole reason why I came over...she said it was about the test."

Nothing more needed to be said, as the boy bolted as soon as the words left Seto's mouth.

Now they were alone.

"Everything has a price," Kaiba said.

"Wow, how lame--okay it's a cool card but I think my dad said it was worth millions? Seems a bit ridiculous to me," the boy said as he lazily spun the card in his fingers.

His words only added to the fire. And Seto didn't know what prompted it, it was like he was barely thinking beyond his rage, like autopilot. He grabbed the boy by the shirt.

"I'm not taking no for an answer. Give that to me."

‘Lame?! Watch your mouth, vermin!’

The spirit thought to himself, as he still only watched ovr Seto’s exchanges with the kid. The way the card was being handled, and referred to got under his skin.

Kisara, how dare they insult you and your power like this?

Up until this point, all the kids he had punished were bullies- people who had harrassed and tried to attack Seto. The spirit should only use his powers upon evil souls, otherwise he might end up following the same steps of his former master.

This is the only thing that held him back, in that moment. A furious huff left him, as he took out his anger on a wall by punching it.

He can’t... He shouldn’t... He needs to control himself.

The wonders of being in the body of a child, and assimilating their lack of self-control and maturity.

He won’t let this one pass, he didn’t even care if his vessel would witness it all.

Seto’s bangs began moving aside, in order to reveal the shining symbol from the eye of wdjat. Then his hair became noticeably longer, on top of getting a lot stronger as well (he held the poor kid up a whole lot easier). While the body went through changes, the surrounding also became shroudded in darkness.

“We shall play a game for the Blue-eyes white dragon then, a game to decide the fate of this card... It will be a game of the shadows.”

“Yami no, game start.”

Anthony was no different from all of his past victims, he easily and quickly failed at the game. Which led to him having his soul punished, by none other than the white dragon itself. The game and punishment ended without any major fanfare, other than the kid’s cards collection fly all over the room they were in.

Slowly things began returning to normal, and once he retrieved the card from the floor he swapped places with Seto’s soul.

It was a all in a blur of anger for Seto. He knew he was willing to fight this boy for that card, he just needed to be smart enough to not be caught, or Gozaburo would would reprimand him.

Of couse, a this age he was a bit temperamental, and knew defending your respect was necessary in places like these.

Which is why they flying cards seemed to make sense. They got into a fight, obviously. And the boy was unconscious on the floor. Seto must have knocked him out.

Right?

But then he looked down at what was in his had. The beautiful legendary dragon, raw engine of destruction, Blue Eyes.

It was his, and that's all that mattered now. Seto fills with pride, this is his power, his freedom.

He's always wanted this dragon since he knew of its existence. No one would take it from him now.

Not even Gozaburo. Not giving any of the damage second thought, Seto moved on. The last thing he would want to be stuck with was cleaning up a mess.

#ooc /#| セト • priest set • saved |#AU 03 • ᴄᴏᴍᴇ ғᴏʀᴛʜ sᴘɪʀɪᴛ ᴏғ ᴛʜᴇ ʀᴏᴅ • Yami!Set AU #kaibacorpbros #hOOOO BOI SJHBVDSJGVSD THIS WAS WILD #AnthonY IS FUCKING DEAD MEW

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zen3to5 · 4 years

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J/H 6-01: The Kids Are Alright

Welcome, everyone, to Zenmasters: Seasons 3 to 5+!

I was pretty set on keeping this rewrite project limited to the titular seasons when I started. The only exception, I thought, would be to possibly do a rewrite of the series finale, working on the premise that Season 7 would be the last.

Then I rewatched Season 6 - which, if you’ll recall, didn’t go down so well. So I've decided not only to do a new series finale, but to make some more adjustments along the way there. In doing so, I've set myself the following hard limits:

1. I'm only rewriting what I find to be the rough patches in Jackie and Hyde's material (otherwise, I'd be overhauling virtually every single script of this season, and no way am I going down that road.) Since I think their relationship is generally well-handled in Season 6, that means we're only looking at two areas: their make-up at the beginning of the season (which I think was sloppy) and the Pam Burkhart arc (which has virtually no Zen, when it really should have.) Adding Zen, and still acting on the premise that these could be feasible scripts for the show, there will naturally be other adjustments, but those were only made on the basis that they had to be to make room for J/H material in these 22-minute episodes.

2. I have to be able to use something from the 3 to 5 rewrites, even if it's only a single line, as a basis for adding Zen to a given episode or run of episodes.

With that out of the way - let's get started!

(And, as with 5-01, I couldn't resist imagining a new credits sequence.)

FF.Net AO3

***

We open on a unique title card, patterned after the logo from THE GODFATHER. “The Godfather Theme” by Nino Rota plays as we cut to: INT. FORMAN BEDROOM - DAY DREAM SEQUENCE. The Forman master bedroom, converted to an at-home hospital bed. RED, as Don Corleone, lies in bed, propped up on pillows. Surrounding him are BOB as Tom Hagen, KELSO as Fredo, and HYDE as Sonny. Hyde has SCHATZI in his arms. Everyone is grim-faced and the room is dark, even in the day – very Coppola. BOB: Don Forman, it is an honor and privilege to receive you in your home in the wake of the heart attack caused by your daughter’s wedding. Red rolls his eyes, unnoticed by Bob. BOB (cont’d): While you’ve been away, they locked up that Son of Sam, Al Unser took the Indy 500, and that new movie Grease is such a hoot, boy. RED: What about the Family? BOB: Well, that little dame with the mouth has been hiding down at the pool all summer, on account of these two still being after her. He points to Kelso and Hyde, who shift on their feet. HYDE: Yeah, but that’s over now. We’re sending Kelso out west to learn the nutcracker business. KELSO: Nutcracker business? Why would I - Hyde kicks him in the groin, sending him to the floor. HYDE: (laughing) Loser. He sets Schatzi on the bed and crosses to the bedroom door. As soon as he opens it, machine gunfire rips open. Hyde stumbles back into the room, being thrown about by the many bloodless squibs going off, until he falls down on top of Kelso. Bob and Red briefly glance at the bodies, then return to their conversation. BOB: And your wife, she’s working double shifts again, on account of you not being able to manage the business. KITTY, as Mama Corleone in a nurse’s hat, bursts into the room, with a laundry basket under one arm and a pot of soup under the other. She hurries over to Red, kisses him on the forehead, glances down at Hyde and Kelso, looks up to God, and runs out of the room with tears in her eyes, all while spewing a non-stop torrent of obviously fake Italian. RED: What about my son, Bob? Where’s Eric? Bob shifts on his feet, looks away. We cut to: EXT. ITALIAN VILLA – DAY A picturesque little village in the Sicilian countryside, a lovely image to have on a cheesy backdrop hanging behind the cast. ERIC, as Michael Corleone in his military uniform, and DONNA as Kay stand in the middle of the street, arms around each other’s waists. “Godfather Love Theme” by Nino Rota plays in the background. DONNA: Eric, are you sure we should be going off to college and seeing the world when your father’s heart attack and our friends’ stupidity leaves the Family vulnerable? ERIC: That’s my family, Donna. That’s not me. I’m going my own way. Besides, what’s the worst that could happen? CUT TO: EXT. CITY STREET – DAY The best New York backlot set available. Old roadsters line the street, steam comes up from the manholes, everyone goes about in hats and coats, and a fruit stand with plenty of oranges is set up on the corner. Red and Bob are at the stand, selecting oranges while Kelso waits for them by a black 1941 Ford. Shot-for-shot, the shooting of Don Corleone. A gunman steps out from behind a truck. Red notices their approach. He bolts for the car, knocking over the stand and sending oranges spilling into the street, but it’s too late. FEZ, as Sollozzo, sprays him with fire from his handgun. Slumped down against the car, Red turns around and looks up at Fez. RED: So... it was the foreigner all along. FEZ: Seriously? Have you looked around at this dream? You’re Italian, I’m Italian - we’re all foreigners, you cranky bastard! He fires off one more shot, and Red falls to the ground, dead. CUT TO: SPINNING NEWSPAPER. Headline: FORMAN SLAIN. CUT TO: EXT. ITALIAN VILLA - DAY Eric, clutching at the newspaper, with Donna reading over his shoulder. Eric crushes the paper in one hand, bites the knuckles of the other. ERIC: Oh, Pop. If only I had set aside all my own personal hopes and dreams for my life and stayed at home. If only I hadn’t gone against the Family. He throws his head to the sky in true melodramatic fashion as we crane up. ERIC: Why? Why? WHY? CUT TO: INT. DONNA’S BEDROOM – DAY Late morning. The window curtains are drawn, letting in the sunlight, and Jackie’s cot is empty. Eric and Donna are snuggled together in Donna’s bed, still asleep. Eric stirs, jolts straight up. He takes in where he is, lets out a long sigh. Donna, still groggy from sleep, sits up and puts a hand on his shoulder. DONNA: Eric, is everything all right? ERIC: (beat) Yeah. Eric pats her hand and slides out of bed. He starts to get dressed. ERIC (cont’d): I gotta go. My folks come home from the hospital today. Hyde and I are picking them up. Donna’s closet opens. Out steps Fez, all smiles. FEZ: Mr. Red is coming home? Eric jumps and Donna pulls the covers up to her chin. ERIC: Fez? DONNA: Oh, my God! Did you see anything? FEZ: Not much. You should really think about a night light. Donna and Eric both take pillows from the bed and chuck them at Fez, who retreats back into the closet.

MAIN TITLES INT. VISTA CRUISER – NIGHT A) The gang out on the road. Eric drives, with Donna next to him and Hyde in the passenger’s seat. Behind him sits Jackie, then Fez, then Kelso. THEME SONG: Hangin’ out... B) Hyde drives, with Eric in the passenger’s seat. Behind him sits Donna, and behind Hyde sits Jackie. The girls are leaning forward in their seats, their arms wrapped around the boys’ shoulders. THEME SONG: Down the street... C) Kelso drives, with Fez next to him and Hyde in the passenger’s seat. Behind him sits a scowling Red, then Eric, then Bob. THEME SONG: The same old thing... D) Red drives, with Kitty in the passenger’s seat, holding Schatzi. Bob sits in the middle of the back seat, hands behind his head. THEME SONG: We did last week... E) Fez drives, with Donna next to him and Kelso in the passenger’s seat. Behind him sits Eric, then Hyde, then Jackie. Donna leans into Fez as the gang sing along. THEME SONG: Not a thing to do... F) Jackie drives, with Donna next to her and Kitty in the passenger’s seat. THEME SONG: But talk to you... G) Hyde drives, with Eric in the passenger’s seat. Behind him sits Donna, and behind Hyde sits Jackie. The girls are leaning forward in their seats, their arms wrapped around the boys’ shoulders. THEME SONG: We’re all alright! H) Eric drives, with Donna next to him and Hyde in the passenger’s seat. Behind him sits Jackie, then Fez, then Kelso. THEME SONG: We’re all alright! I) The creators’ license plate, a 1978 sticker in the corner. HYDE (v.o.): Hello, Wisconsin! BUMPER INT. FORMAN KITCHEN - DAY Shortly after the pre-credits scene. Hyde sits at the kitchen table, a plate of eggs and bacon in front of him. He has Schatzi in his arms, cuddled close to his face. He picks up a piece of bacon and holds it up for Schatzi to eat. Eric, Donna (dressed in a bathing suit and dress) and Fez enter through the patio door. They freeze when they see Hyde, and he freezes when he sees them, causing Schatzi to strain to reach the bacon. Though all three struggle not to laugh, Donna finds her voice first: DONNA: (to Hyde) Are you feeding and cuddling with a wiener dog? HYDE: Are you planning to wear a bathing suit to a hospital visit? ERIC: (to Donna) Oh, please do. FEZ: Yes, please. Donna shakes her head and rolls her eyes. DONNA: I’m going to the pool with Jackie. HYDE: She choose between me and Kelso yet? DONNA: I don’t know. But Kelso’s been going down there to show off for her. He’s got a speedo with the Point Place Police Department badge printed on the ass. It’s really disturbing. Hyde pushes himself to his feet, Schatzi still in his arms. HYDE: Whatever, man. She thinks I’m gonna wait around all summer ‘cause she can’t choose between me and a guy who once forgot he was allergic to eggs? His head swelled up to five times its normal size. Screw that, man. I’m over her. Schatzi chooses this time to lick the corner of Hyde’s mouth. Eric chuckles, crosses to Hyde and puts a hand on his shoulder. ERIC: Hyde, the other day I was down in the basement and went to put on Zeppelin, and I found country music records hidden in the sleeve to Physical Graffiti. You’re not over her. Fez smirks, crosses to them. FEZ: (to Hyde) So, you console your loneliness with doggie kisses and country songs, while I am married to Eric’s slutty sister. HYDE: Yeah, how’s that going? FEZ: Oh, not great. But I’m pretty sure when she gets back from our honeymoon in Cancun, things will pick up. ERIC: Laurie went on your honeymoon alone? FEZ: Oh, no, that would be crazy. She took her friend Carlos along to keep an eye on her. But I paid for both of them, so everyone know who the man is in this deal. Eric, Donna, and Hyde all share a look. ERIC: (to Hyde) All right, let’s get going. (to Fez) You stay here. My dad doesn’t want you anywhere near the hospital. FEZ: Why not? I’m family. I want to support my new American dad after his heart attack. ERIC: Fez, you’re the one who gave him the heart attack. HYDE: By marrying his daughter, who’s on your honeymoon with another guy. FEZ: Oh, no, no, no. Carlos is just like, um... he’s kind of like a – a chaperone. He, uh... (beat) Son of a bitch! He stomps his foot and pouts, even as Hyde presses Schatzi into his arms. Eric, Hyde, and Donna file out the door. BUMPER INT. HOSPITAL - DAY A reception desk at the hospital. A DOCTOR leads Eric, Red, Kitty, and Hyde up the hallway. Red is in decent shape and rotten mood; same as always, really. RED: Come on, Kitty. Let’s get the hell out of this weird place. I think some of these nurses are stealing drugs. The doctor gives Kitty a look. KITTY: Red, I am a nurse here. (laughs) RED: I stand by my statement. DOCTOR: Okay, Mr. Forman, just to be clear: no going to work, no chores, no driving for three months. And let’s not forget the root cause of the problem. ERIC: Too much rage, right? Yeah, so he probably shouldn’t, like, yell at anyone anymore, right? DOCTOR: Actually, the reason he ran into trouble is he was holding stuff in. ERIC: (beat) He was holding stuff in? Okay, I weigh 42 pounds ‘cause of what he let out and – I’m sorry – you’re telling me that, uh, there’s more in there? Kitty hurries between her husband and son and takes both their arms. KITTY: (to doctor) No, no, no. He does not weigh 42 pounds. And these two are the best of buddies! (doing Eric) “Hey, Dad, wanna go fishing?” (doing Red) “Sure, son. Let’s hug.” (normal voice) That’s what it’s like at our house! (laughs) RED: (to doctor) See what I mean about the drugs? DOCTOR: (to Red) What you need to do is focus on things that make you happy. ERIC: Okay, but I don’t know where we’re gonna find a boatload of dead commies. HYDE: (points to Eric, himself) Yeah, but there’s two asses he loves sticking his foot up right here. Eric nods. Red gives him and Hyde an appraising look as Kitty shakes her head. CUT TO: EXT. POOL - DAY The Point Place public pool, a small and tidy swimming hole surrounded by a chain-link fence. Donna and JACKIE, in a tiny bikini and skirt, sip sodas at a small cable in the corner. DONNA: Jackie, the summer’s almost over and you haven’t decided between Kelso and Hyde yet. JACKIE: Why should I rush for them? The sun is out, the air is warm, I’m almost at my most delicious shade of cocoa brown – let that two-timing moron and paranoid hophead wait it out a little longer. DONNA: Well, Hyde might be done waiting, so you may not have a choice anymore. Jackie takes her sunglasses off and leans in toward Donna. JACKIE: What do you mean? Before Donna can answer, a shadow blocks their sun. It’s Kelso, fresh from the pool, dripping wet in his PPPD speedo. KELSO: Ladies. Ladies’ bodies. (to Jackie) So, Jackie, what do you think? He flexes, pushes up his shoulders. KELSO (cont’d): Yep. Police Academy starts in a week. All this swimming’s getting me into shape. DONNA: Wouldn’t getting into shape for the police academy mean eating donuts and growing a bad moustache? KELSO: Oh, I’m growing the bad moustache. Jackie rolls her eyes, looks around Kelso to Donna. JACKIE: So is Mr. Forman home yet? DONNA: Eric’s picking him up now. I don’t know what they’re gonna do once we’re in Madison. Kitty and Hyde are both working double shifts, but that still doesn’t cover the lost income from Red not working. JACKIE: Yeah... and what about medical bills? Price Mart offers terrible coverage, and you can forget about any help from the government now that health reform’s stalled. DONNA: I know, right? KELSO: Wait, hold up. (to Donna) You said a bunch of sad stuff... (to Jackie) You followed up with some money and health fact stuff... (to Donna) And you said “I know,” which makes me think Jackie used that right, which makes me think she knew what she was talking about. DONNA: Very good, Kelso. That’s what we call a “conversation.” KELSO: Well, I know some facts too. Jimmy Carter? He had a peanut farm. And the Dairy Queen down the street is selling half-off peanut buster parfaits today. Now, excuse me as I walk down there to get one – without pants. He turns his ass Jackie’s way before strolling off. The girls shake their heads. CUT TO: INT. FORMAN KITCHEN – DAY Welcome home, Red! The family file in through the patio door. Kitty keeps her arms ready to support Red, who looks done with this day already. KITTY: (to Red) Now, let’s get you upstairs for your nap. (to Eric, Hyde) And boys, he needs quiet, so no shenanigans. ERIC: Mom, please, we haven’t shenaniganed in about six years. HYDE: We’ve hooliganed. ERIC: We’ve no-goodniked. HYDE: We’ve ne’er done well. ERIC: And just last week, we found ourselves rabble-rousing. RED: Will you shut up? Eric and Hyde, both laughing, step aside so that Red can go through the door to the living room... INT. FORMAN LIVING ROOM – DAY And find Fez standing in front of his chair with a balloon and flowers. FEZ: Welcome home, Dad! RED: You. You’ve got a lot of nerve, showing your face around here after what you did to my daughter! He slowly advances on Fez, who somehow just doesn’t get the danger he’s in. FEZ: Hey, I did you a favor. That girl’s been passed around this town - KITTY/ERIC/HYDE: NO! Eric and Hyde pull Red back as Kitty rushes over to Fez and takes him by the shoulders. KITTY: Okay. You’ve already given him one heart attack. That’s enough. Now hush. She gently pushes a pouting Fez down to the couch. Eric crosses to the coffee table and grabs a small bowl full of candy. ERIC: (to Fez) Hey, look, buddy – raisinets! Instantly happy once more, Fez takes the candy and chows down. Kitty hurries back over to Red and leads him to the stairs. KITTY: (to Red) Okay, okay. Naptime. She sees him halfway up the staircase, then lets him go the rest of the way on his own as she leans over the railing. KITTY (cont’d): Oh, and Steven, he has a check-up next week during my shift, so I need you to take him. HYDE: Mrs. Forman, I told you, I’m working then. KITTY: Oh, that’s right. Eric, could you - ERIC: No, Mom. I’m not gonna be here, remember? I’m moving away. KITTY: (beat) Oh, so you’re still going? ERIC: Yes, I’m still going. It’s college. I have to register for classes. KITTY: Fine. ERIC: Mom, I gotta get out of here. KITTY: (short) Fine! ERIC: Great. KITTY: Great! ERIC: Fine! Kitty turns away and heads up the stairs. Eric scoffs, points after her and looks to Hyde, “can you believe that?” Hyde offers a shrug, “what can you do?” The front door opens. In walks LAURIE, suitcase in hand. She sets it down by the couch and crosses to the boys. LAURIE: (to Eric) Hey, little brother. (to Hyde) Hey, orphan. (to Fez) Hey, hubby. Fez stands. FEZ: Don’t “hubby” me! I’m mad at you. LAURIE: Aww. But I brought you a souvenir. She pulls a crystal shot glass from her purse and presents it to Fez. ERIC: Oh, look, Fez, a genuine Cancun shot glass still sticky with tequila. FEZ: (to Laurie) Aww, you shouldn’t have. LAURIE: No biggie. Some guy left it in my room. She struts her way into the kitchen. CUT TO: INT. HUB - EVENING A modest evening. “You Don’t Own Me” by Lesley Gore plays on the jukebox. At a center table, Jackie sits alone, reading a newspaper. Kelso, in a leather jacket and a PPPD T-shirt, enters, struts over to her table and leans on the back of an empty chair. Jackie barely glances over her paper to look at him, which Kelso takes for her checking him out. KELSO: Yep. Just picked up the shirt today. It’s a tight fit, so it really shows off all that swimming I’ve been doing. He makes a show of sliding his jacket off and showing his arms before sitting down. Only then does he notice what Jackie’s up to. KELSO (cont’d): Are you reading a newspaper? JACKIE: Yeah. KELSO: Are you reading the news part of a newspaper? Jackie raises her eyebrows at him. JACKIE: That is where the news is, Michael. KELSO: Yeah, but since when do you read it? JACKIE: Since I decided to keep up with interesting things going on in the world. She disappears back behind her paper. Kelso’s eyes dart back and forth; he’s not used to this from Jackie. He snatches one of the other sections from the table and struggles to get it open and propped up before him in imitation of her. KELSO: Well, here’s something interesting – Snoopy is playing in a tennis tournament. Jackie lets out a long breath, refusing to meet Kelso’s stare and smirk. FADE TO BLACK COMMERCIAL BUMPER INT. FORMAN KITCHEN – DAY The next morning. Kitty is at the stovetop in her somewhat untidy nurse’s uniform, hastily putting together breakfast plates – one with eggs and bacon, one with eggs and pancakes, and one with egg whites and lean ham. Hyde enters through the patio door in his half-open chef’s jacket, a small pharmacy bag in hand. He drops more than sets it on the counter. HYDE: Here’s Red’s heart medication, Mrs. Forman. He lets out a big yawn. Kitty presses a cup of coffee into his hands. He nods in appreciation, takes out a wad of bills from his pants pocket, and throws it on the stovetop. Kitty takes it and pockets it. KITTY: Thank you, honey. And I’ll get this money put into your savings account on my way home. HYDE: Mrs. Forman, I’ve told you I don’t need a savings account. Just pay a bill. Of course, this is the moment when Eric walks in from the living room. ERIC: “Pay a bill?” (to Kitty) Mom, what does he mean? Is money that tight? KITTY: It’s nothing. ERIC: No, ‘cause... I mean, Donna and I are both working, so if you need to take a little out of my college fund - KITTY: Listen, both of you – the money in those accounts is for you. Don’t worry. We’ll be fine. She takes the pancake plate and passes it to Eric. KITTY (cont’d): You just eat your breakfast. Eric examines his plate. ERIC: Chocolate-chip caramel whipped cream pancakes? Mom, you’re not gonna bribe me into staying home from school with super sweet breakfast food. (checks the plate) And where are the sprinkles? KITTY: No, no, the pancakes are an apology. I overreacted before. Of course, you have to go to school. ERIC: So... that’s it? No guilt? KITTY: That’s right. Now, I’m late for work. (to Hyde) I’ll pick up the dry cleaning and drop off the packages at the post office. You make sure Red eats his breakfast, and only his breakfast – egg whites and heart-healthy ham. Oh, and remember you promised to give Schatzi his bath. She pats Hyde’s cheek and hurries out the door. Hyde looks down at the plate meant for Red, pointedly avoiding Eric’s smirk. ERIC: Now you’re bathing our wiener dog? HYDE: (beat) He keeps coming down to the basement. His fur-stink’s become incriminating evidence. Red enters from the living room. Eric crosses to the kitchen table as Hyde presses Red’s breakfast into his hands. HYDE (cont’d): Here you go, Red. Red looks down at his meal. RED: Where’s the yellow part of these eggs? That’s the baby bird. That’s the part I want to eat. Hyde crosses his arms and shakes his head, while Eric chuckles and digs into his breakfast. CUT TO: INT. HUB – DAY On a slow afternoon, Donna and Jackie enjoy lunch at a center table. DONNA: Wow, Jackie. You’ve really been showing Kelso the cold shoulder. JACKIE: Well, he deserves it. I told him I needed the summer to think things over, and he’s been after me the whole time. DONNA: I guess that means you choose Hyde. JACKIE: No! I told him I needed the summer to think things over, and he hasn’t spoken to me that whole time! I am so over them both. Kelso enters, still in his police shirt and jacket. He strolls over to the girls’ table, grabs at the badge logo printed on his shirt, and stretches it out as if it were a real badge. KELSO: Ladies. You have the right to remain foxy. Donna shakes her head. Jackie rolls her eyes, stands, and pushes past Kelso on her way out the door. CUT TO: INT. FORMAN BASEMENT – NIGHT That night. Donna and Eric sit close on the couch, going through college materials. ERIC: Oh, my God, Donna. Madison has a course called “The Social Significance of Jedi Culture.” He makes a show of gaping in delight as Donna rolls her eyes. Kitty, still in nurse’s uniform, comes down the stairs with an entry laundry basket. She crosses to the dryer and begins unloading it. ERIC (cont’d): Mom, why are you doing laundry? It’s almost midnight. KITTY: Well, with the double shift, this is the only time I have to do it. Eric sighs. He sets down the brochure and stands. ERIC: Okay, don’t do this. KITTY: Do what? ERIC: Come down here in the middle of the night, doing laundry, looking like hell - KITTY: Oh, excuse me! ERIC: No, I – I’m just saying, you’re trying to make me feel guilty for not leaving, and it’s not gonna work. I can’t stay here, okay? I have to go off and live my life. I deserve that! Mom, I deserve a chance! KITTY: Okay, okay. No need to use your squeaky voice. I understand that you have to leave. I have bigger things to worry about than making you feel guilty. She gathers up the laundry and heads back up the stairs. Donna looks up at Eric, who looks after his mom. DONNA: Eric, if you feel like you need to stay... I mean, we can talk about - ERIC: No! No. He sits back down. ERIC (cont’d): We’re leaving next week and that’s final. DONNA: Okay. They no sooner turn back to the brochure than the basement door opens and Red steps in, wearing pajamas and bathrobe. He has a plate in his hands, with toast that he dips into very runny egg yolks. RED: (to Eric) Yeah. It’s egg yolks. And I don’t care if you tell your mother. She doesn’t scare me. KITTY (v.o.): Eric, I almost forgot... Red tosses the toast aside, drops the plate, and high tails it back up the outside stairwell. CUT TO: INT. HALLWAY – DAY The next day. The upstairs hall of the Pinciotti house. Kelso strolls up to Donna and Jackie’s bedroom door. He’s about to knock when he notices the sounds coming from inside – “Babe I’m Gonna Leave You” by Led Zeppelin, and sniffling. Quietly, he opens the door, and we cut to: INT. DONNA’S BEDROOM - DAY Kelso finds Jackie curled up on the end of her cot. Her arms and legs are wrapped around a pillow stuffed inside a black Led Zeppelin T-shirt, and a tissue is in her hands. Tears are in her eyes. Kelso slowly crosses over to Donna’s bed. He points to the record player. KELSO: That’s Zeppelin. (points to pillow) That’s a Zeppelin shirt. That’s Hyde’s Zeppelin shirt, his favorite one. I know ‘cause one time I tried to use it to clean out a paintbrush. He kicked my ass, stole my shirt, and made me use it instead. A fresh sob wells up from Jackie’s throat. She turns around so her back is to Kelso. KELSO (cont’d): You still love him, don’t you? There was never really a choice, was there? JACKIE: What do you want, Michael? KELSO: (beat) Nothing. Look, Jackie... (sits) I know I’ve been with a lot of girls, but you’re the only real serious girlfriend I’ve ever had, and you’ll always be special to me. When I found out you and Hyde were together, I couldn’t believe I’d really lost you for good. And all I could think about was getting you back. But seeing you this summer... I mean, after being with Hyde, and then on your own, you’ve changed. You’re more thoughtful, more well-read – I think you’ve become a complicated woman. And I don’t want none of that. Jackie turns around just enough to glare at Kelso. KELSO (cont’d): But I think Hyde still does. And you obviously want him. And you should, because you two were good for each other. Not like us. So... so you don’t have to worry about me chasing you anymore. Jackie turns all the way around. JACKIE: Michael, do you mean that? KELSO: Yeah. I release you. He holds his hands out in front of him and mimes a bird’s wings flapping. KELSO (cont’d): Fly, little bird. Fly, fly away! He spreads his hands out, looks up, and makes a noise that sounds something like an object getting caught in a ceiling fan. KELSO (cont’d): (to Jackie) That was you. Jackie offers a weak chuckle and dabs at her eyes. CUT TO: INT. FORMAN BASEMENT - NIGHT Later that night. Eric and Donna are on the couch again, watching TV. The basement door flies open and Hyde staggers in. His clothes are dirty and torn, there are bite marks on his arm and claw scrapes on his shirt, and Schatzi shakes in his arms. Eric and Donna both stand. DONNA: What the hell happened? HYDE: I was taking Schatzi for a walk, and we got to the corner, and you know the Anderson house there, with the Great Dane? He got out of the yard. ERIC: Oh, my God. He went for Schatzi? HYDE: No, he went for me. Schatzi bit the bastard in the groin and then tore his ear and sent him running. It was so badass. Hyde sets Schatzi down. He struggles to stand back up straight. ERIC: Man, are you okay? HYDE: I’m fine. I’ve gotta get ready for my shift, but before that, I need to find that doggie thyroid crap for your little wiener dog. DONNA: What is with you and animals now? When did you get so knowledgeable on pet care? HYDE: I got roped into helping with the cat when me and Jackie were... He trails off; he can’t finish the thought. He drops down into the lawn chair and stairs blankly down at the coffee table. DONNA: You’re not over her, are you? Hyde doesn’t answer. ERIC: You still love her, don’t you? (to Donna) Look at him. So choked up he can’t even speak. Hyde’s throat pulses. He tugs at the top of his T-shirt. DONNA: More like he can’t even swallow. Hyde points to her, “bingo.” DONNA (cont’d): Okay... Hyde, we’ll take care of Schatzi’s thyroid. Why don’t you go take care of the rabies shot? Hyde points again, nods, and scrambles to his feet and back out the door. He’s no sooner gone than Kitty comes downstairs with another empty laundry basket. She goes straight to the dryer and unloads it. ERIC: Mom, you’re still behind on laundry? KITTY: Oh, I sat down just to rest my feet for a few minutes when I got home and – and before you know it, I... (checks watch) Oh, God, I’m late for work. ERIC: You’re working tonight? (points to door) Hyde’s working tonight? You both worked during the day. KITTY: Well, honey, nights can be our busiest time. Steven makes people a big, salty dinner, and then they come my way. (laughs) Now, there’s food in the... oh, who am I kidding? There’s no food! She hands Eric the laundry basket and scrambles back up the stairs. Eric walks over to the deep freeze. He sets the laundry down on it, leans against the basket. He whirls around to face Donna. ERIC: They can’t do this to me. They cannot do this to me. I gotta get out of here. Of all the people in the history of the world that have ever had to get anywhere, it is me having to get the hell out of here! I have to go! (beat) I have to stay. He drops down onto the couch. ERIC (cont’d): Donna, I’m sorry. Donna sits next to him. DONNA: Sorry? Eric, I think it’s amazing that you’d do that for your family. They kiss. DONNA (cont’d): And, you know, we’ll see each other on weekends. ERIC: Oh, so you’re still going? DONNA: Well... yeah, I mean... yeah. ERIC: Yeah. No. Of course. DONNA: Oh, come on. I think I know something that might make you feel better. She leans in to kiss him again. Before she can get things going, though, Eric puts a hand on her knee. ERIC: Hey, um... can we just, like... could we just sit for a while? DONNA: Yeah, sure. She scoots in closer to him. He moves his hand up to her arm, and puts his other arm around her shoulders. They lean their heads against each other and look down at their college brochures on the coffee table. FADE TO BLACK CREDITS EXT. STAIRWELL – NIGHT Another night. Eric and Donna descend the stairwell. They pause when they hear “Baby Don’t Get Hooked on Me” by Mac Davis coming from behind the door. ERIC: Uh-oh. Country. Hyde’s sad music. Hesitating, Donna opens the door. A wall of smoke rushes out to meet them, as we cut to: INT. FORMAN BASEMENT – NIGHT Eric and Donna step into a basement full of diffuse smoke. Hyde sits in his chair with Schatzi in his arms. He’s cackling like a loon, slapping at his knee and swaying in his seat. Snacks of all kinds litter the coffee table. HYDE: (through laughter) Hey, Forman! He waves. Eric and Donna give reluctant waves back. ERIC: So, Hyde... how’s it going, buddy? HYDE: (laughing) I’m freakin’ miserable, man! A fresh wave of laughter comes on as he swipes a piece of salami from the coffee table and holds it up for Schatzi. END.

#z's fics #that 70s show #zenmasters #jackie x hyde #zen3to5+#fan fiction #fan script

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seoulsborne123 · 5 years

Text

The Forgotten Queen: Prologue

The discovery of the ancient city called Yharnam was supposed to be the biggest archeological find of the decade. But perhaps some secrets are best left well alone...

A Ghost Hunt and Bloodborne crossover. Set about two years after the events of Akumu no Sumu Ie.

Prologue

Illuminated only with the dim light of their emergency candles, Joanna couldn’t help but feel the unease creep in. It was not a problem in daylight, or even when they had working lamps that provided a constant source of light, but with the flickering flame the shadows turned the Gothic embellishments on the pillars and doors from being grotesque to outright nightmarish. And despite the roominess inspired by the open archways and the high vaulted ceiling that gave the impression of rising high into the heavens, she couldn’t help but feel stifled.

She shook this feeling away and cleared her mind, trying to focus on the game before her.

"Check."

Her opponent pulled his lips to the side and studied his hand intimately though his eyes seemed to land on nothing in particular. As if sensing her studying his every move, he cleared his throat and feigned confidence, jutting out his chest a little more than usual. Joanna, for the meantime, forgot her unease. He was being too obvious. Normally she would wonder if he was attempting reverse-reverse psychology, but although she’d only known him for a week, she knew that Nick would be too simple and straightforward to consider that option. It could only mean two of the same things: either he had a very low hand, or none at all.

"Yeah, I'll raise the bet," he said, holding up two coins and making a big show of slamming them down on the table. The noise it made echoed obnoxiously loud.

"You do know how poker works, right?"

"Yeah, why?"

She shook her head. "Suit yourself. They’re your chocolate bars to lose..." She threw in another coin to match what he put down.

"Okay, let's see what you got."

Joanna revealed a seven of hearts and a four of diamonds. Counting the community cards on the table, she only had a pair of sevens. It wasn’t exactly the greatest hand, but she knew it would be enough to beat her colleague.

"Damn, again…"

"Oh Nick, you aren't very good at this." She laughed and added three more tick marks on her notebook, the little rush from winning made her completely forget the unease she felt moments ago. "You owe me 12 pieces now. You’ll need to stake another item; I won't care very much for your chocolate bars any more if we keep going at this pace and that'd be a shame."

Nick rolled his eyes and gathered the cards. "Oh be quiet. I've got—" but a sudden loud thud in the distance made the two of them nearly jump out of their seats. They whipped their heads back and tried to search the darkness beyond what their candlelight could illuminate, but saw nothing out of place. Joanna remembered everything again.

"Must have been the wind," Nick mumbled.

"I'm pretty sure the sound came from inside that door and you know there is no chance of wind behind there. "

"Okay, structure settling."

"Stone settles?"

Nick sighed. "'Okay, then what, ghosts?"

"I don't know, maybe," she answered with an edge to her voice. "With everything that's happened, don't you think… don’t you think it may be supernatural after all?"

Nick let out a breath, unsure of what to reply.. "Come on, Jo. You don’t really think that? It's an ancient place. Nothing about… this… screams haunted..." As he said this, the two of them looked warily around their immediate vicinity: ghastly figurine statues of cloaked women interspersed along the edges of the room, hands outstretched towards the heavens in a plea; empty clay jars scattered about, which they thought must have been used to hold wine, though recent findings point to it actually having once hosted blood; a giant lancet window framed with elegant tracery that let in what little of the obscured moonlight there was, which only served to cast formless shadows all around

Nick looked at Joanna again and repeated with less confidence, "Yep, looks normal to me. We should be okay. And it's a holy place. Don’t ghosts fear Jesus, or something?"

"What? Ghosts can be in churches. And churches can be creepy, especially long abandoned ones. Have you not seen any horror movies?" Joanna retorted, wondering how it was possible for this to not be common knowledge.

"No, come on, look let’s be logical about it. Have you been to other dig sites before or is this your first rodeo?”

Joanna deflated and admitted, “No, this is the first.” Although she was only a third year Archeology undergraduate student, her work and track record had impressed her professors and they fully endorsed her in joining this short expedition.

Without turning haughty or dismissive, Nick nodded and simply said, “Then okay, I get it. But let’s consider the facts: a giant city in the middle of a dense forest, abandoned and hidden for over two centuries. Of course it’ll be overwhelming. The buildings here may look like they’re in good shape, but sometimes we can’t see all the damage, which might be causing all the random noises we can’t understand. It could also be rats, or something.”

"But that's the problem, isn't it? We should have at least seen some rats by now. I haven't even seen bugs. Have you?"

"Well it’s a bit too nippy here, probably."

"But rats should—" Once again, their conversation was cut off. This time it was the long, baleful howl of a wolf that made them shudder. Eerily on time, the clouds that obscured the full moon parted and bathed the church in its pale, luminescent light. It only lasted for a few minutes, but it made Joanna question whether she preferred the figures partially hidden in darkness, or exposed fully in the moonlight.

A new thought hit her. "What if this is how it all starts? The last time Professor Gimmel and the others disappeared, wasn't it also a full moon? What if Jon's just the first?"

“Full moon? First ghosts, now you think witches are involved? Or do you mean werewolves?"

"Well, why not?" she snapped, annoyed more at herself, knowing full well how ridiculous she was being. "That was undoubtedly a wolf, and nearby too by the sounds of it, but everyone keeps insisting there are no wolves around here. How does that make sense? Nothing in this place makes sense."

"You know yourself that there's been no signs of wolves around here. None of us have found footprints, or droppings, or old kills in the area. They would have left some kind of trace in the woods outside. Besides even if they were outside, we’re still safe within the city walls since they’re definitely not in here." Nick gathered up the cards and resumed shuffling. "I don't know. Maybe it was an owl."

"That’s just ridiculous. What about that weird singing choir we sometimes hear at night? Kyle and his group heard it, too. I’ve also read mentions of it in the old reports.”

She leaned in closer and whispered, “I think this is a cursed place. Those jars and the bottles we’ve found… I think it’s becoming more obvious that a blood-borne disease led to a slow collapse of this town. Look at those countless graves outside— people had time to bury their dead. The manner of those blood rituals are still unclear, but usually that would point to pagan worship, right? Yet the significance of the Church and religion in this city leads me to think it’s actually something sanctioned by them. To have the Church’s sacrament be twisted... There must have been something seriously wrong with this place.”

“I actually agree with your points, but we can’t just jump to conclusions. I guess we’ll have to wait and see if the lab has been able to transcribe those old texts...”

As if completely unaware he even spoke, Joanna continued her denunciations and was steadily growing in urgency until she reached a fevered hiss, “And that creepy nun! Where the hell did she come from? I don’t trust her. And now Jon’s missing and we could be next. Just remember that three years ago the others investigated this place and disappeared without a trace."

“You don’t need to remind me of that, Jo.”

His tone made Joanna stop and look up. His face was grim.

In her delirium she forgot that Nick was personally connected to the events three years ago. How could she have been so callous? She was trying to formulate a way to properly apologize when to her surprise, he quickly recovered his composure and resumed as if she hadn’t misspoke.

"Jon's always been the kind of 'not always there' type of person though, hasn't he? Maybe he wandered off and got lost. The others will find him and when they do, we'll be right here ready to radio for help."

Joanna groaned. "Nick, something is wrong with this place." She cast another look at her cards and muttered, "I'll raise."

Nick thumbed his cards absentmindedly before calling her raise to stay in the round.

"Again, in terms of its odd history, I agree with you. But to say that what’s happening now is due to supernatural causes? That’s too much, Jo."

He revealed the fifth card on the table and took in a sharp breath as she put down yet another coin to stay in the round. All he had was a pair of twos.

Was it worth to continue on? He shook his head. ”Okay, I fold."

He revealed his cards. She revealed a losing hand.

"Son of a—" but for the third time that night, the sentence was cut off by the sound of the doors opening and heavy footfall fast approaching. It was one of their colleagues who had gone out as part of the search party. He stood before them completely out of breath as if he had sprinted for miles.

He was clearly shaken and quite manic as he gasped out, "They found him! My god, they found him!" Unable to elaborate further, he resorted to gesticulating wildly and pointed outside.

Fearing the worst, Nick immediately stood up and radioed for an ambulance. Unfortunately their heavily secluded location meant that help can reach them twenty minutes at the earliest provided good road conditions. As he spoke to the operator and gave detailed directions, he grabbed one of the first-aid kits nearby and threw it towards Joanna, who caught it and rushed outside with the researcher.

Many scenarios played in Joanna's head, the kind of accidents Jon could have gotten himself into. The current expedition was only meant to go on for two weeks at most and thus their patron did not think it necessary to send out a qualified field doctor with them. At the very best, they had an avid hiker among their group who was trained and volunteered to be their first-responder, but she only knew how to take care of minor injuries. She wondered if Cecile was already at the scene and whether the kit she carried would even be of any use.

However when they reached the plaza, Joanna stopped in her tracks.

It was not Jon.

Most of the group were already gathered, looking on just as surprised as she was. Cecile was already hunched down with him, checking for any serious signs of injuries.

"Who…?" she asked in a whisper, more to herself, and in the still air her voice carried but no one spoke a word.

"What in the--Professor Gimmel!"

Joanna frowned and spun around. Nick had finally caught up. He stood beside her, speechless and confused.

"The Professor? But it's been three years since… Are you sure that’s him?"

Nick finally snapped out of his stupor and slowly approached the sickly, pale man. "Professor Gimmel, are you hurt anywhere? It's okay now. Help is on its way. Are you able to walk further? Our base is at the church nearby." When the professor wouldn't respond, Nick looked to Cecile. "What’s happened? How is he?"

"Shocked, I reckon. Hasn't spoken a word nor looked at anyone in the eye, really. I don't even think he realizes we're here."

Joanna listened to their conversation while her head buzzed with a million questions. She looked the professor over.

He was bony, disheveled, reeked of something foul, but otherwise he appeared unharmed. Where had he been all this time? How had he survived out here for that long on his own? From the looks of it, it didn't seem like he'd had much to eat, and with the absence of any animals and edible vegetation around, how was he able to provide enough sustenance to keep himself alive for so long? But then again, didn't the nun live here on her own as well and was somehow able to survive? Perhaps the nun had known of his whereabouts all along? Where were the others?

She only knew him by name: a distinguished professor from Cambridge who led a team of seasoned archeologists, crewmen, and a handful of graduate students to study the newly discovered ancient city called Yharnam. It was meant to be the next biggest discovery, but in the end it had to be kept hushed up due to the tragic story of the original excavation team. They had been working for half a year before most of the crew, fifteen people including the Professor, suddenly disappeared without a trace.

The case was cold. No leads, no suspects to consider. Work on the site was temporarily put on hold, but eventually another wealthy patron stepped up and fresh, willing workers eager to sign up for an adventure were found. If it weren't for the appeal of the occult and the dig site's macabre history, Joanna would have passed on this opportunity. Alas, though she thought herself not spiritual in the least and refused to believe in supernatural phenomena, the fear of the unknown both excited and scared her. Like a living contradiction, the more outrageous the circumstance, the more she refused to believe, and yet the more mystified she became, the more it terrified and thrilled her to think it could be supernatural.

Her attention switched back to Nick, who, after having no luck extracting any information from the professor, turned to the rest of their colleagues and asked, "Where did you guys find him?"

"It was Adella who found him," answered Thomas. "Karen and I were on our way towards the area below the Cathedral when we came across her and the Professor. She said she found him down there."

"Well where is she now?"

"Slinked off somewhere. You know how she is. The Professor here has been unresponsive to our questions so we just took him here as soon as possible. All he kept talking about was something about some 'big one' or other. Don't seem to realize we're here at all. We need to get him out of here as soon as possible."

As if on cue, the Professor collapsed on the ground, prostrated himself, and suddenly shouted in excitement, "Oh, Amygdala! Amygdala! Oh… what a pleasure it is to see the divine!"

The clouds had cleared once again and the moon illuminated the forgotten city, the towering Gothic buildings, weathered and ancient. The town was a mess: rubble, gravestones, and coffins strewn about, rotted of old age. Though the addition of a new light source was most welcome, the sight of a large, full moon unsettled everybody.

Joanna tried to follow the Professor's gaze. He seemed to be focusing on the rooftop. Whatever he saw there moved him almost to tears, but she saw nothing. A hallucination, perhaps?

The voice of Evan, one of the younger contractors, broke her train of thought. He had just arrived with two others.

“Thomas, we checked the area to corroborate what Adella said, but no one else there, just him."

Thomas whipped around. "What about the Gate? Was it still open?"

“Open?” Joanna interrupted incredulously. The others around her were just as surprised at this information.

"We didn’t venture too close to it, but we saw it was still open."

"Since when and how?"

"Don't know, kid. It wasn’t open yesterday when the others checked.”

Thomas turned to the others. He was the most senior ranking member of the team and was responsible for everyone’s safety, but this new opportunity was just too good to pass up. Previously inaccessible, now its gate lay wide open. What new discoveries could they find in the lower area? Moreover, there was a good chance they could find the remaining missing people there— alive or dead. He shuddered.

“What do you guys think? Shall we take a team down there?"

Nick answered, "I've already radioed in for emergency; they're on their way. The sky's clear now so we can take advantage of the moonlight. Probably best not to venture out too far though, but if the Professor got out, the others may not be far behind."

"Agreed. We'll go with a small team for now. Cecile you're in charge here to make sure evac goes well. Jon might still be out there, too. If you don’t need that kit, we’ll take it with us. Mike, Evan, Karen, Nick, let's go."

“Take me with you!”

Thomas turned around. Beside him, Nick shrugged and said that she wouldn’t make trouble. With a sigh, he also motioned for Joanna to follow along.

The trek was a long one. After climbing several sets of stairs and winding along dark alleyways, they finally arrived at the Grand Cathedral, the tallest, most grandiose building in the city, but instead of heading inside the group turned right, following the narrow pathway around the building and found themselves by a cliff side. Following the long stairway down led them to the central plaza of a small community of decrepit houses, where it's been suggested clergymen and nuns must have once lived. But the trek didn't end there. Further along there were more stairs leading even lower below, leading to a hollowed out, possibly man-made cave. The group was forced to huddle in closer together due to the tight space, the feeling of claustrophobia setting in and making everyone's heart beat a little faster until they all finally emerged on the other side.

From the distance, they could see the atrium that housed the aforementioned gate that sectioned away a part of the town no one had ever managed to step foot in.

Thomas held his hand up, halting their advance. He himself took a few steps forward and frowned.

The Gate, which was the name they've baptized the set of gigantic double doors towering approximately forty feet high, was sealed completely shut as it had always been.

#Forgotten Queen #ghfanfic #ghost hunt #oliver davis #mai taniyama #soulsborne123

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b0osblog · 5 years

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Mafia Blood- Chapter 1

ayyyyyyy! It’s ya boi!.... *coughs* so how you been?.... yeah sorry for not posting in a while.... I kinda get sidetracked... BUT! I now have a story. I’m about 3-4 chapters in writing it (cause i suck at writing with a really short time period so I want to be ahead). Its on the BBS! But I hope you enjoy it. It’s a Mafia-Monster A/U (Idea credit to @hiyometoo). I would like to put a disclaimer as well. There will be some serious themes such as suicide, abuse blood, death. If you are uncomfortable with this, this story isn’t for you. Adding to that. this is a story. I do not view these people or the relationships between them to necessarily be who they are in real life. But I hope you guys enjoy it nonetheless. I don’t really have art for it but I’ll be working on it! If you want to do art or get inspired by it, by all means draw it if you wish! @ me if you post it so I can see it! I love seeing people draw and different art styles! This story isn’t the best but I hope you guys enjoy anyway. This isn’t a Shipping book either, even if some of the writing seems to suggest so. It’s more so hinting at future friendships as such. One more thing before I let you guys get the story. I’ll be posting the story chapters once a month (on like the last Sunday AEST). Anyway I’ll let you guys read it and judge for yourself! I hope you guys are having a good day/night and I’ll see you soon!

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Chapter 1

Every river leads to an ocean. Stars do burn out. So yes, everything ends. But do you want to know a secret? Everything- and I mean everything, begins again.

-Eric Van Vuren

It was a quiet night for the casino. There were still a lot of people but not as much as there usually was.

“You sure everything is in place?” Ryan’s concerned voice was quiet as he hid behind the pillar.

“Yes Ohm. All you have to do is get people to use their cards over their cash. Everything will be fine.” Wildcat spoke slowly and quietly, as if he were distant from the mic while making sure Ohm heard everything.

“OK… Here goes nothing…” Ohm airily said.

“Good luck man. We’re rooting for you.” That’s all Ohm heard before the line went dead.

"OK… no pressure at all guys. No pressure at all.”

He felt that something was up. It almost seemed to quiet of a night, especially with what he had to pull off. He walked out from behind the pillar, taking a deep breath and putting on his best-selling smile. Eyes were felt on the back of his head but he ignored it. Looking would only make him seem suspicious. Ohm did however peek out the corner of his eye. He saw a demon. He seemed to be missing an eye but Ohm didn’t look for long enough to be sure though.

He continued his trek towards the bar, shaking his head as he neared, trying to clear his mind.

“Hey Del! Sorry I took so long! Things got a little out of hand on the phone. Hope things didn’t get too busy while I was gone!” Ohm’s voice was bright, but had an edge to it.

Delirious gave him an understanding nod, his blue eyes glowing behind the hockey mask.

“No problem man. Just make sure you focus on whatever it is that’s happening with your fam.”

“Thanks. I’ll… be sure to do that.” He gave a grim smile a jolt uncertainty gripping him.

He shook his head again and slipped behind the bar and began to serve people, charging them on card.

It was made a lot easier considering Delirious was working the opposite end of the bar. It raised more red flags in his head but he continued anyway.

‘He was family. They wouldn’t betray him… would they?’

Delirious had been occupied talking to an owl like man. One that Ohm recognised to be Vanoss.

‘What was he doing here?’

A demon of sorts sat in front of him downing the shot of vodka he had just ordered His eyes- well eye- narrowed on him slightly.

“Hey floppy ears! That owl shit over there that you keep looking to, why does he get to pay with cash? I gotta pay with card.” The demon asked curiously, peering at him suspiciously.

One eye had a scar in the shape of a jagged edge 'x’. He wore a dark suit with the dress shirt collar flipped up like he was some sort of popular person. He held a lazy-confident sort of smile despite the serious demeanour he held. His dark brown eyes hiding something, though Ohm couldn’t tell what it was.

“Sir, you haven’t paid for the last two rounds. It would be easier if you-”

“You think I’m that drunk that I don’t remember paying? I-”

“Look sir. I’m sorry. I just thought it would be easier for you. Instead of you fishing out cash and me having to get the change. If you’d-” He was cut off by the demon standing up and leaning on the bar, a somewhat sinister smile on his face.

The look in his eye showed something else, it almost looked like regret.

Some people looked over at the disturbance but looked away almost instantly.

‘What was their problem? They looked so scared.’ Ohm thought as he glanced back at the red man in front of him through his blindfold.

“Don’t pull the innocent act with me bunny-boy. I know who you are! I know who you work for!”

Ohm’s ears flattened down against his head. He didn’t like the name, a small frown formed on his face as his eyebrows furrowed.

“Yes. I work for Mr. Frank Patterson. He owns this casino.” There was an edge to Ohm’s voice, causing monsters to look his way and shaking their head rapidly, their eyes screaming ‘no’.

“No. No you don’t. My father wouldn’t hire anyone from the mafia. Especially from Wildcats’ side of things.”

“Sir… I don’t kno-”

“Bullshit!” The demon now had hold of Ohm dark vest, pulling him closer. “Tyler sent you, didn’t he Ryan.” There was a dark sinister side to his voice but there was something else, as if he were almost afraid of something.

“I swear to god I have no clue what you’re talking abo-” Ohm was cut off by Delirious speaking up, who now had a firm grip on his left arm, the demon on his right held the opposite.

“You will remain silent for the rest of the journey.”

A feeling passed over Ohm; it felt like his voice box had closed up and a weight pressed on his chest, making him want to take deep breaths but remained from doing so. He tried to speak but no sound could be heard, leaving the three men in silence.

“Finally the dumb bunny is quiet.” The demon sighed in a relieved kind of way.

Ohm narrowed his eyes, a scowl scrunching his face up.

‘He’s really starting to sound like Wildcat…’

“I wouldn’t mistake Ohm for being a ‘dumb bunny’, Cartoonz. I don’t even know what power he has, so I’d be careful what you say.” Delirious’ voice held a sharp and serious edge to it.

Ohm looked to delirious, confused.

‘He hadn’t figured out his power?’

Cartoonz grumbled something under his breath as he moved to get behind the bar, jerking Ohm forward harshly, towards the exit as he did so.

They neared two Corvettes, one black and the other an azure blue.

“In.” The demon growled as he opened the passenger door to the black Corvette and shoved Ohm forward.

Ryan stumbled but caught himself before sitting calmly as the door was slammed and the demon stormed towards the driver’s side. He shouted something to Delirious before opening the door and throwing himself into the seat with a scowl.

“I know you won’t be able to reply but you can nod or shake your head. If you lie, I’ll know.” Cartoonz sounded agitated but also curious.

The car roared to life and before Ohm could blink they were out of the carpark with a screech of rubber and a trail of smoke following.

They were currently on a highway to nowhere, well from what Ohm could only assume. Cartoonz was staring intensely at the road ahead, while the blue car stayed close behind them.

“Ok, you blindfold wearing dipshit. Is Wildcat planning on trying to over throw my father?” Cartoonz questioned.

Ohm looked thoughtful for a moment. He knew that if he lied he’d probably get his assed kicked, but it was the same vice-versa. He came to the conclusion of telling the truth, it being the lesser of the two evils. Ohm nodded his head yes.

“Was he planning on doing it in the near future?”

Ohm nodded again.

The demon cursed under his breath. “Really starting to wish Del didn’t bind your mouth shut permanently for the ride… how on earth am I going to get the time frame of the attack?”

Ohm stared thoughtfully at the demon before holding up 1 finger.

“What the fuck are you doing? Threatening me?”

Ohm shook his head.

Cartoonz looked to be in serious thought.

“What are you trying to do then?”

Ohm rolled his eyes under the blindfold and slapped his head.

‘Is he really that stupid?’

“Are you giving me a time? Day?”

Ohm gave a quirt nod.

Cartoonz gave him a side long look.

“You’re being awfully open about this…” Cartoonz looked suspicious.

Ohm shrugged but held up the figure again.

“OK… you are giving me a time span right?” There seemed to be a softer edge to his voice, like something changed in his head.

Ohm nodded.

“OK… week?”

A shake of the head.

“Um… please don’t say it’s a day.” A light panic seemed to tint the demons voice.

Ohm looked at him curiously.

‘Despite him being an ass… he seems to really care for his family.’

Ohm shook his head.

Relief flooded the demons features and his grip lessened on the steering wheel.

“OK then… a month?”

His heart was pounding. He had one more chance to falsely lead them, but he couldn’t find it in his heart to do so.

Ohm looked away and nodded. He could deal with Wildcat’s anger.

And worse come to worse, he could flee to Moo’s group.

Cartoonz slammed the steering wheel harshly. “When we get there you’re gonna tell me exactly how and where he plans to do this. Or your neck will find itself bleeding.”

Cartoonz gave him a look that said it wasn’t an empty threat. But there was also something in his eye that told him that Cartoonz wouldn’t actually enjoy it. Ohm only nodded and looked ahead, his eyes beginning to droop.

“Get some rest. I want you to be able to recall every detail of the plan and not be sleepy. ‘Cause you forget shit when you’re sleepy.”

Ohm nodded, he was feeling tired and besides, if he was going to die, he wanted to catch up on some sleep before then.

He rested his head against the seatbelt, letting sleep numb his body.

“I’ll wake you when we’re there.”

It was the last thing he heard before falling asleep.

#bbs #bbs crew #ohmwrecker #cartoonz #bbs cartoonz #h2o delirious #writing #fan writing #BBS Mafia/Monster A/U #i hope you enjoy #have a good day/night

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