#inquisition indiana

[greypetrel]

*skids in late* "Stay right there! I'm coming! I'll help!" For Cullen/Aisling c:

Hello! You’re not late at all, actually I’m the late one xD

(but for you and everyone reading: Feel free to prompt me whenever, I’m treating prompt requests slowly but I’m always happy to be asked. <3 )

After much modern AU, let’s go back to canon shall we? And with something extremely silly because come on. The damn Temple has floor puzzles, of course it has booby traps as well. Magical booby traps.

I would say I’m sorry for the huge amount of quotes in this but I actually am not.

Tis the prompt list

Not the Years but the Mileage.

"Stay right there! I'm coming! I'll help!"

Two days from leaving the Temple of Mythal, and Abelas found them always new tasks. Because it turned out that running such a big building and keeping it up against time wasn’t only a matter of magic. Oh no, it also was a matter of careful maintenance, and the elves were only too happy of taking advantage of all the extra help they could get, once they knew the hands were good-natured ones.

As Cullen was currently trying to fulfill the task that got him out of the reports and papers that somehow reached him down there too -they always reached him, and he could have sworn the pile he got yesterday grew during the night- he heard her.

Screaming.

He let abruptly down the casks he was bringing to a very specific storage room -Abelas has written him instructions on how to reach it on a loose piece of parchment that flew forlornly to the ground- and just ran towards the scream, worried sick and minding not the sound of broken pottery from what he left fall to the ground.

He hoped, in the back of his mind, that he did't just broken some important relic. Surely the ancient elf would not have entrusted him, alone, with anything so priceless, right?

So, Cullen turned a corner, and turned another, and stopped abruptly.

The corridor opened into a big room whose roof had mostly collapsed, sunshine and vines filling it from above. A couple of parrots had made their nest on the top of the one column that still stood straight and mostly intact of the many that circled a raised dais in the centre, a pedestal on the top exquisitely decorated with gold and mother-of-pearl tassels forming branches and flowers all around, with a golden orb shaped like branches levitating on top.

Looking closely, a barrier shone blue all around the pedestal, buzzing faintly and made almost invisible in the stark late morning sunlight.

And Aisling was there, on the second of three steps that raised the dais… Levitating upside down, blue tendrils of magic tying her arms to her chest, her left calf against her thigh and right leg upward as if she was hanging from a ceiling that wasn’t there. Slightly rotating on herself, and as Cullen looked closely, some magic was also covering her mouth, keeping it shut.

As she rotated towards him and saw him, tho, it was plenty clear what was her opinion on her whole predicament. She was frowning, hard, full of wounded pride, and he knew that if she could have, she would have been pouting and telling him that she had everything under control. Tied like a hog or some cured meat left in a cellar to dry. The situation and the fact that apparently she wasn’t physically hurt, brought a smile on his face that he thought better than to show much.

“Stay right there, I’m coming!” He just told her, and a loud huff from her nose informed him that it wasn’t a particularly clever comment to make to a person who clearly can’t move. He huffed a laughter, her eyes shone bright with offense, which just made forcing back laughter all the harder. “I’ll help! Just…”

He strode towards her, minding his steps: dust and dirt had settled on the ground, and it was easy enough to follow her footsteps and traces towards where she was forced to stop. Which he did, not particularly wanting to fall into another weird magical trap to wait for someone else to notice they were both missing.

As he got closer, the buzz of magic intensified, and squinting he could see that a tile under her head was projecting it upward, shining faintly around the intricate decorations, the same of the weird floor puzzle on the other side of the Temple.

The more they explored that place, the more it seemed to expand… and yet, some of the devices stayed the same. They’ve had ten days to explore, and they weren’t remotely enough to even see and discover the whole place.

“How did you end up in this situation?”

She grumbled something, managing to sound sarcastic even like that.

“No, I’m not leaving you here on your own, not even to ask for help.”

More grumbling, very insisting.

“I know, but by the time I’ll find the way back and find Abelas, you’ll have all your blood down in that beautiful head of yours and will be fainted and unresponsive. Let me try it, I’m sure there’s a solution…”

He took a loose branch on the ground and started to prod at the other tiles before stepping on them, thinking about what to do. The current elven mage was incapacitated of giving her opinion, and he was alone in trying to solve the puzzle, totally out of his comfort zone even with what he knew about magic and grasped in the Circles. Truth to be told, the magic they found there was out of her field of expertise too, even if she was quickly grasping into what she was shown– same way she grasped at most things that weren’t cooking. Her face was turning a shade of red that he didn’t quite like, and so he kept on walking around, trying to solve it, as quick as she could.

She mumbled something else, very grumpy, and tried to cast some spell. The magic reacted by buzzing and fraying around her, and she yelped and stopped as it made her spin around quickly, without relenting its hold. She wiggled as she could, trying to stop herself from pivoting around madly, right before Cullen, instinctively, pulled out his hands to stop her.

Which was how he discovered that whatever magic it was, didn’t hurt him or react to his touch in any way. A small blessing. She sighed from below as he managed to effectively keep her still and thought on what to do. Maybe if he could still dispel it would have done something, but it was months since he stopped having any particular abilities anymore -and in the last period they’ve been weak and hard to call upon. And she would have been silenced too, and quite frankly with her experimenting he thought she'd had enough silencing to last for a lifetime. But maybe… It kinda looked like-

“I have an idea.”

She mumbled something.

“I know, I know. But it kinda looks like something I saw, maybe it works the same way.”

More mumbling and some wiggling, but the spell held tighter the more she moved.

“Stop insisting, please, I’ll explain later. Now. Do whatever you did five minutes before, and I’ll try to slip you out, ok?”

A huff through her nose, and she stopped wiggling.

“Ok. I’ll catch you, you don’t stop until you’re out or I tell you so, ok?”

An affirmative verse.

“On the count of three. One…”

Another verse, he felt her concentrating and starting to call on the Fade.

“… Three.”

She called on her magic again, with more effort this time. The spell constricting her reacted more, frayed and weavered around her body. She slipped, but Cullen was quick to catch her and forcibly dragged her towards him, stepping back, an arm hugging her tight, the other pushing on her back. The spell was strong and it put up resistance, but he grimaced and forced her out, putting more force until-

- Something snapped aloud and send them falling down the steps, with a yelp, and another wave of blue energy sweeping the floor, making dirt and dry leaves and small debris flying, and scaring the parrots away in a cacophony of outraged verses.

Cullen fell on his back, holding on to Aisling as best as he could. It wasn’t a graceful fall, but luckily not a high one. He hit his head, heard Aisling huffing loudly, one of her knees bumped against his ear. But after a minute of stillness, it was clear that whatever spell it was had been broken.

“Are you fine?” He asked between her knees, looking up at the sky and not letting go of her legs just yet.

“Yes. Nothing broken, I think. You?”

“Neither. I bumped my head but it doesn’t feel bad.”

She huffed and wiggled up, clumsily maneuvering herself to untangle from his body. He saw her wobble a little as she tried to stand, and choosing to just stick to the ground with hands and knees and turning to face him. Disheveled, but fine.

“Let me see, don’t move…”

She delicately slipped her hands under his head, fingers treading in his hair - a little more longer than necessary but he pretended not to notice that she took every chance to play with his hair. He always noticed and never said anything, letting her do as she pleased. She very gently touched the back of his head, and it hurt a little, but not unbearably so.

“It’s not bleeding, you’ll just sport a good bump. Give me ten minutes and I can heal it?”

“Can I move?”

“If it doesn’t make your head spin, yes.”

He propped himself up to his elbows first, slowly and with caution, and when he didn’t feel anything weird, sat up, raising both hands to cup Aisling’s face, his turn to move her around and check if she was fine.

“Are you fine, tho?”

“I am, I just have to find a way to mend my wounded pride.”

“I can help with that.” He huffed a laughter and bent forward to kiss her. “The tiles were very faint, and you couldn’t have known.”

She huffed a laughter and kissed him again.

“Do you know how many floor puzzles we had to solve to convince Abelas we weren’t tomb raiders? And that there’s even more in another wing of the temple? I should have expected booby traps around the shiny treasure.”

“It was a honest mistake and you’re-”

He stopped, something amiss in the air, she got attentive too.

“Can you hear it?” She whispered.

“The parrots have stop- Uh.”

Something rumbled, some pebbles started to skip on the ground. The rumble grew louder and deeper, coming from Cullen’s front and Aisling’s back. Cullen looked over and paled, opening his eyes big.

“Don’t tell me, there’s a huge boulder rolling towards us.”

“Yep.”

“Full of magical glyphs?”

“Most likely.”

“Bring it on.”

They jumped up on their foot and, hand in hand, started running back from whence Cullen came, chased by a huge boulder shining in blue glyphs. One of the elves eventually found them and was able, with but a sweep of her hand, to stop the boulder, looking at the human and the Dalish, panting heavily from the run, with an air of scolding particularly towards Aisling. As the boulder slowly rolled back from whence it came -if one had been particularly imaginative it would have been easy to put some air of disappointment to the huge piece of rock- tho, the couple just looked at each other and started to laugh, too caught in the unlikeliness of the moment to really worry about prides to be wounded.

All was well, at least for the rest of their staying.

[soraka-in-warhammer40k]

It is curious that currently in 40k we do not have a dedicated Indiana Jones type of character - for a setting known mostly to blatantly rip off and remix everything cultural from the "barbaric analog ages" (pre 2000) that feels like a bit of an oversight.

Especially when archeology is so much more curious in 40k. Like, what's the biggest thing you could dig up in real world archeology? You find a whole pot, and it might even be a nice pot that has a whole lot of implications about how its made and how it ended up there and who traded with whom and so on, but that's nothing to 40k where the past is significantly more powerful than the present in terms of technology levels. From curious archeotech to stuff that is literally sentient to status-quo-warping things like STCs everything is on the table. That just screams for a specialist to handle these things.

Sitting right in the overlap of Inquisition-daredevil, meticulous techpriest, and gun-slinging Militarum-officer there sure is a massive gap in the named character roster that I am baffled has not been filled yet.

[stwritings]

𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑩𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒂𝒅 𝒐𝒇 𝑳𝒐𝒗𝒆 & 𝑯𝒂𝒕𝒆

𝑹𝒐𝒄𝒌𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒓!𝑬𝒅𝒅𝒊𝒆 𝒙 𝑭𝒆𝒎!𝑹𝒆𝒂𝒅𝒆𝒓 - 𝑫𝒂𝒊𝒔𝒚 𝑱𝒐𝒏𝒆𝒔 & 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑺𝒊𝒙 𝒂𝒖

𝑻𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒌 𝑰 - 𝑹𝒖𝒏𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒐𝒏 𝑬𝒎𝒑𝒕𝒚

𝑾𝒂𝒓𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔: 𝘢𝘭𝘤𝘰𝘩𝘰𝘭 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘶𝘮𝘱𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯, 𝘴𝘸𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨.

May, 1988

The sun beamed through the chipped windshield of Eddie's 1971 Chevy as he made his was through the city of Chicago. Taking quick glances at his map every chance he got, his eyes honed in on the big red pen mark circling his new address.

Truth be told, Eddie wouldn't have believed it if he were told a few months back that he would be uprooting his life one state over. He wasn't much of a plan kind of guy, so this move was rather spontaneous. The town of Hawkins no longer felt like home but a prison, it's tight shackles a reminder of the simpleton lifestyle he was bound to lead if he stayed in this godforsaken place. He dreamt of a bigger life, for it to have meaning. And if he couldn't attain it in Indiana, perhaps Illinois was the place to be.

He finally pulled over to the side of the road next to a dilapidated building. He put the car in park and glanced at his map once more, then back at the rough looking structure. Eddie caught a glimpse of a golden plate on the brick wall reading '242' and sighed. The number, unfortunately, corresponds with the address on his lease. He could only hope for a nicer interior as he climbed out of the driver's seat and walked towards the building.

Upon entering his new residence, his prior optimism was shattered by more unfavorable characteristics. The building had a distinct smell that Eddie couldn't quite place, but it certainly wasn't a pleasant one. It reminded him of his great aunt's home that reeked of cigarettes and peppermint, only so much worse. He tried not to think about too much, making his way up the flight of stairs. As he came to his apartment door, he noticed a small note taped to the door. He squinted as he attempted to read the scribbled writing:

'See 87 for key' the note read.

Assuming this was the work of his landlord, he began looking for the number eighty seven. The apartment was relatively easy to find, given that the building only had 2 flights of stairs. Eddie noted that his landlord lived directly above him before knocking on the door. He took a step back as he waited for a response.

A few seconds passed, then a whole minute did and still... No answer. Not wanting to seem too eager, he decided against knocking again. This decision was forfeited once 2 minutes elapsed without any sign of life inside that apartment. Eddie knocked once again, this time more forcefully which, luckily, yielded results. An older gentlemen with large bi-focal glasses opened the door, smiling, though he did look a tad frazzled.

"Can i help you?" he asked, pushing the bridge of his glasses up his nose.

"I think so... Uh, i hope so." he nervously chuckled. "I'm moving into 82...." he trailed off, pointing at his feet in reference to the vacant apartment below them.

"Oh, yes. Eddie, is it?" the man asked, eyeing him up and down curiously.

Eddie nodded, feeling slightly uneasy under his landlord's inquisitive gaze.

"Brian, pleasure." the old man extended his hand while smiling.

They shook hands and Eddie was taken aback by Brian's strong grip, especially considering his small stature. He handed Eddie the key and gave him the rundown of the building. Despite it's dodgy appearance, this appeared to be a great place to live. Rent was affordable, his landlord was nice and the interior of his bachelor pad was newly renovated.

After two hours and several tedious trips up and down the stairs, Eddie was finally settled in. He sat on the window seat overlooking the city, feeling excited for the morning to come. When it eventually did, he embarked on then next task at hand; finding a job. He figured it wouldn't be too difficult in a city this size, and began wandering the streets, walking into all shops and bars in sight within walking distance from his home.

Eventually, he found a shoe store that was hiring. Now, this wasn't the kind of excitement he was hoping for, but given his circumstance and dire need for cash, it would have to do for now.

_

Following a closing shift one Saturday night, he decided to venture down the bustling street, figuring a night out on the town would lift his spirits. Luckily the shoe store wasn't strict on attire, so Eddie rolled out of there wearing his nicer pair of jeans along with a Van Halen band tee and his trusty leather jacket. He eventually stumbled upon a small rock junction with a flashing neon light reading 'LIVE! SHOWS! EVERY! SATURDAY!'

Obnoxious advertising aside, he was intrigued, and decided to give this place a chance. He felt right at home once her entered, noting that it was very clearly a dive bar similar to the one he used to play at with his former band back in Hawkins.

Given it's size, it didn't take much time for him to find the bar and order himself a beer. His usual go to of Pabst Blue Ribbon was anything but his favorite, but it was the cheaper option. He thanked the bar tender and found a spot to stand within the small crowd gathered near the stage. Eddie noticed almost instantly the lead singer's inebriated state as he swayed and screeched the lyrics into the mic. Eddie quickly took a large sip of his beer in an attempt to hide the grimace forming on his face. He hoped that maybe after a few drinks himself, the drunkard would sound better.

He didn't.

The band carried on for another 10 excruciating minutes, the crowd filing out of the bar as they tried to escape the horrendous performer. Eddie stayed put though, amused yet feeling sorry for the rest of the band mates who looked absolutely horrified.

Without warning, the man hurled the mic down to the ground, causing a shrill ring to blast through the sound system. He then stumbled off the stage, yelling words at his bandmates that Eddie couldn't quite make out before stumbling out the back door.

Eddie downed the rest of his beer, placed it on a nearby table waiting to be bussed and headed out the front door. Once outside, he leaned against the brick wall, sighing as he looked for his pack of cigarettes.

'What a night.' he thought to himself.

His attention was diverted to the front door swinging open and an agitated woman storming out. Eddie avoided eye contact, trying to mind his business and not irritate her further.

"Got a light?" she blurted out, staring directly at him.

Eddie froze at the sudden interaction, eyes widening. He quickly snapped out of it, hurriedly digging in his pocket to retrieve it. He pulled out the small blue lighter, flicking it before the cigarette placed between her lips.

Once he successfully lit it, they stood together quietly, Eddie not daring to speak a word. From experience, he knew better than to try to feign encouragement to make someone feel better about a clearly shitty situation. The antsy woman paced around for a bit, before turning to face him once more.

"You don't happen to know any available front men, do you?"

Eddie chuckled at her desperate, unexpected plea. "Uh.. none that you'd be interested in". he responded while putting out his cigarette.

She perked up. "What do you mean by that?"

"None in the city, i mean..." he quickly corrected himself.

"Shit..." she muttered under her breath, her disappointment very evident.

Eddie felt bad for bending the truth... He would be a front man, hell he was one once! But this band was different than anything he had ever played before, and he knew better than to try to live up to an expectation he knew he couldn't live up to.

"Well, thanks for the light." She offered a kind smile before retreating inside the bar.

"Good luck!" Eddie called out, truly wishing her the best.

_

June, 1988

It had been a month now since Eddie had moved to the city, and he had become quite comfortable here. He finally ditched the shoe store, finding work at a record store where he restored donated instruments, a gig that proved to be urgently needed given how many busted up Les Pauls' ended up in his care. He had yet to make any friends, apart from his co-workers, but that felt like plenty for now. Especially since his time off was mostly spent wandering the nearby shops or visiting friends and Wayne back in Hawkins.

The only real complaint he could think of was with his landlord, Marvin, who had a nasty habit of falling asleep at the drop of a dime. This would often result in the tap being left on causing flooding in his apartment. This, in turn, would lead to the flooding of Eddie's apartment as well.

Despite Eddie's patience and understanding for the older gentleman, he had reached his breaking point one morning when he was awoken by the uncomfortable feeling of damp sheets surrounding him.

"...what... the fuck..." he mumbled while sitting up from his drenched mattress. He instinctively looked up just as a droplet of water splatted on his forehead. "God dammit!!" he screeched, the covers flinging off of his body and onto the floor from the motion of him launching out of bed.

He hurried to his closet where he practically ripped his house coat off the hanger, shoving his arms through the sleeves and tying the loose belt around his waist. He stormed up the staircase and hurried over to apartment 82.

After knocking several times with varying amounts of force, the brass door creaked open. Marvin appeared in the doorway looking rather disheveled, wearing a similar house coat to Eddie's. The older gentlemen chuckled at the sight of his young tenant, not used to seeing him look so.. flustered. "I'm sorry Eddie, you know how i get after I've had tea." was all the gentleman offered as he looked at him apologetically.

Eddie often wondered if the tea in question happened to be laced with some type of sleep agent. Nevertheless, he no longer wanted to deal with it, deciding right then and there to look for new places to live.

His search for one bedroom apartments proved to be a challenge, as most of the places he was interested in were way out of his budget. He was forced to look for bedrooms to lease, even though he wasn't keen on the idea of having roommates.

After a slew of disappointing visits to sketchy buildings with even sketchier people, he had but two ads in the paper left to respond to. One was on the far side of town, and the other was a room a few blocks away from his place. He figured he'd start with the further option since the description of the place sounded a lot nicer than the latter.

After a lengthy cab ride, the car pulled up to a building stained with light blue paint lazily applied onto the brick wall. He exited the cab after paying the driver and made his way into the building. Despite the unkept exterior, the lobby was very nice and even came equip with an elevator, something Eddie wasn't so lucky to have where he currently resided.

He eagerly got into the elevator, pressing onto the number four until it illuminated, signaling it's final destination before promptly shutting the doors. Finding the listed apartment was fairly easy given the small amount of homes per floor. He knocked on the door and waited patiently for his potential roommates to answer. He only had to wait a couple of seconds for the door to swing open, a stark contrast from how long it takes for Marvin to respond.

"No shit!" a familiar voice exclaimed.

'"Oh, hey!" Eddie replied, surprised to find the keyboard player from the bar standing before him.

"What? What is it?" came a muffled voice from another room.

"Just some guy i know." the woman responded, smiling amusingly. Eddie couldn't help but smirk at her response. 'Some guy i know' was generous given their brief interaction a month ago.

"Eddie." he said introducing himself.

"Well, Eddie, you come to see the place?" she began before extending her hand. "I'm Steph."

"Uh, yeah! I saw your ad in the paper..." he shook her hand in return.

"Why you moving, Eddie?" the voice called from afar. "You get evicted or something?" he questioned challengingly.

"Don't mind him." Steph responded while smiling warmly, a stark contrast to her annoyed tone. "He assumes the worst in people."

"Because people are the worst!"

She rolled her eyes in response. "Well, come on in! It's a two bedroom, but we converted the living room into a bedroom, which don't worry! Is not the room you'll be staying in!" she spoke rapidly while making her way through each room. Eddie followed along, though he struggled to keep up.

Steph guided him to the bedrooms, urging Eddie to enter the larger vacant one. "This is the master," she stated. "perks include more space and access to the fire escape!"

Eddie stepped inside to have a look. Although he liked what he was seeing, he wanted to make sure it wasn't too good to be true.

"And you said 200$?" he asked while inspecting the room.

"A month, yeah. Usually we'd get you to pay first and last's but... We're kind of desperate..." she admitted, trailing off.

"Desperate, huh? Well, when could i move in?"

"Tomorrow's good!" she eagerly responded.

Eddie raised his eyebrows, unable to prevent the chuckle from escaping his lips. Just then, a man appeared behind her, presumably the voice that rang through the apartment earlier.

"You're really dropping the ball here, Stephanie." he teased as he put both hands on her shoulders. She quickly shrugged them off of her, turning to glare. "Eddie, is it?" the man continued.

Eddie hummed in acknowledgment.

"Tom." he said dryly.

"Or Thomas if he's being a real prick." Steph chimed in, clearly retaliating for his prior use of her full name.

"Don't call me that." Tom said in a stern manor, pointing a threatening finger at Eddie.

"Noted, Steph and Tom." Eddie reassured, raising both hands up defensively. He had to admit, Tom's attitude was slightly off-putting and he certainly found his and Steph's dynamic odd, but amusing nonetheless. Despite this, Eddie felt that he was a pretty good judge of character, and apart from this small quirk, the lack alarm bells sounding off in his brain helped him make a decision.

He took a leap and agreed to move in, which in tern, caused Steph to leap as well.

Literally.

-

September, 1988

Despite everything that resulted in Eddie seeking a new apartment and Steph's eager offer for him to move in so soon, he chose to give Marvin a few month's notice out of respect. After all, he wasn't a bad guy, he just had a bad habit.

Luckily, there were no more incidents leading up to him leaving and soon enough, moving day came. Much to his surprise, his new roommates offered a helping hand, though Tom seemed less than pleased. What would have normally taken Eddie a full day, only took two hours.

Once all of his belongings were set in his room, Eddie walked around his new place, taking in small details he hadn't noticed before. For example, the collection of shot glasses neatly placed on a hanging shelf near the kitchen. He couldn't help the smile that formed on his face, the arrangement reminded him of his uncle's collection of mugs back at the trailer.

Steph appeared behind him, gazing up at the shelf. "Oh, yeah! Just a.. silly little thing i like to do." she stated, seeming proud of the display.

"My uncle's got a bunch of mugs he collects, too."

"Does your uncle steal them from bars and restaurants, too?"

Eddie turned to face her, eyes wide and fully invested in what he thought was just mindless chit chatting. He glanced back at the collection, then to Steph one more. He nodded, his lips forming into a pout while his eyebrows raised. "Impressive."

-

October, 1988

The trio had gotten closer in the small amount of time spent living together. Tom finally warmed up to Eddie, allowing him to see the good side of him that wasn't always snarky and judgmental. He opened up to Eddie one night following a smoking session, speaking of his tumultuous upbringing. The pair bonded over shared experiences, and realized that they actually had quite a lot in common. Thus, a friendship blossomed where Eddie didn't think it would.

As for Steph, they became close almost instantaneously, all thanks to her bubbly, in your face personality. Their banter, though not as intense as hers and Tom's, was always cause for entertainment. Unlike the men, Steph had lead a simple life, some might even call it easy. Her lack of trauma was almost unbelievable to Eddie, but it made him very protective of his new friend. In his eyes, if she was lucky enough to have gone through 24 years of life without experiencing hardships, now was not the time for that to happen.

Eddie as well as his roommates had varying work schedules, which often resulted in at least one person being left alone at the house.

This time, it was Eddie's turn for some much needed me time. He spent the afternoon reading and smoking in his favorite spot: the fire escape. Though, spending more than an hour at a time in there resulted in him being covered in dust and debris, most likely becoming airborne from the speeding cars passing by.

This slight annoyance caused him to cut his reading session short, heading inside in desperate need of a shower. With everyone out of the house, Eddie didn't feel as bad blasting his music through his stereo as he occupied the bathroom. He sang along loudly to the Black Sabbath album playing through the apartment without a care in the world. He lathered his hair in foamy shampoo, enjoying every minute of this warm shower when suddenly, the bathroom door swung open and a wide eyed Steph came gawking in.

"JESUS CHRIST!!" he exclaimed, quickly covering his bottom half with his hands.

"You sing?!" she shouted over the music still blaring, paying no mind to his naked body.

"Uh, yeah...Do you knock??" he blurted out, now blushing from her presence.

"Why didn't you tell me?" she pushed on.

"Can we have this conversation some other time? Maybe when i'm not naked, THREE FEET AWAY FROM YOU."

Steph rolled her eyes, storming forward and pulling the transparent curtain aside causing Eddie to yelp. "Like this thing covers anything anyway. Besides, i don't care about that right now. Why didn't you tell me you can sing, you could have joined our band ages ago!"

"Because, you... Could you at least hand me that towel?" he asked pleadingly.

"No." she responded without missing a beat, causing Eddie to sigh.

"I didn't think you'd want me to join... Our styles are so... different. Plus, don't you need a bass player?"

"And a singer!" she corrected.

"Right... But i don't play bass, remember?" he asked rhetorically, knowing Steph had seen his guitar hanging up on his bedroom wall.

"I know, jackass." she said, throwing the towel at him. "But if we have you as our lead, it'll be way easier finding a bass player rather than someone who can do both! You've heard of two birds, one stone? Well this is one stone and you're the bird!"

Eddie paused, blinking slowly while trying to decipher her jumbled metaphor. "What...are you talking about...?"

"Forget it, can you just do me this one favor, and please join the band?" she pleaded, bringing her hands up to intertwine her fingers.

"If i say yes will you get the hell out of here?" he asked, wanting nothing more than for this interaction to be over.

"No backsies?" she urged, narrowing her eyes.

"Yeah, fine!!" Eddie blurted out, growing frustrated as the foamy shampoo began trickling down his forehead and into his eyes.

Steph shrieked excitedly while exiting the bathroom. "Alright! Let's find that other bird!"

_

𝑻𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒌 𝑳𝒊𝒔𝒕 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓 2

[candyflossfairy]

𝐺𝑖𝑟𝑙 𝑜𝑛 𝑡𝘩𝑒 𝑀𝑜𝑜𝑛 — 𝟶𝟸

𝟶𝟸. — 𝑗𝑢𝑠𝑡 𝑙𝑖𝑘𝑒 𝘩𝑜𝑛𝑒𝑦

𝑚𝑎𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑙𝑖𝑠𝑡

𝑠𝑢𝑚𝑚𝑎𝑟𝑦: After a rough day at work, you head back to Hawkins to sign your contract with Steve.

𝑤𝑎𝑟𝑛𝑖𝑛𝑔𝑠: 18+ only, praise, dirty talking, nipple play, protected sex (p in v), huge cock, cervix stimulation, overstimulation.

𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑑 𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑡: 4.3k

After you got home, you started packing up stuff. The boys gave you some boxes they had left over from when Tommy moved out, so it was a good starting point. Knick-knacks and decorations were boxed up and loaded into your car. By the time you got finished, it was four a.m. and you finally decided to sleep. 

Your alarm clock woke you at nine a.m. and you slammed your hand on it to get it to shut off. A quick shower later you were blow-drying your hair and getting dressed for the day. Light makeup, jeans, and boots were adorned. You threw on your leather jacket over your Metallica shirt to fight against the cold outside and started your drive to work.

You were thankful you had the early shift today. You’d be done by two to head back to Hawkins. However, you also needed to let them know you were quitting. You felt bad that you couldn’t give them a full two-week notice, but at least you could give them a week to start looking for a new bartender. 

Your boss, Connor, was pretty kind about the whole situation. He was excited for you. He even said he would come to one of your concerts should you be in the area. He did, however, warn you of Rudy’s wrath. You already knew. Once Rudy found out you were leaving, he’d be upset.

He never really got over his little crush on you, and since you were moving and going to be on the road a lot, he really didn’t have a chance.

Not that he had one in the first place. Good friend — not so good boyfriend. You’d seen exactly how he treated women he was dating.

Speaking of Rudy, he was coming in right now. You jumped a little, startled by his presence having been lost in thought. The bar was empty, save for a few patrons having a morning beer with Connor’s breakfast. 

“Hey, I didn’t know you were coming in today.” You greeted him with a soft smile.

“I wasn’t planning on it. Just passing by and saw Rudy put the help wanted sign back up. Who’d we lose? Carrie? Oh, was it Mallory? Yeah, I never thought she was going to be here long.” He leaned against the bartop, an inquisitive look on his face.

“Oh—no, actually. It’s uh—it’s me. I got the gig with Corroded.” You gave him a sheepish smile.

He was silent for a while. A little too long for your tastes. You could practically see the gears turning in his head as he thought about what all this meant for you. For him.

“Wow… that’s… wow. Congratulations.” He nodded slowly, but his voice definitely defied his words. He was upset.

“Yeah, thanks. I’ll be around for another week-ish. But we’re touring Indiana soon… so I have to go get ready with the band.” This was really awkward. 

It shouldn’t be. It was your life, and Rudy had literally no say in anything you did. He was just… possessive? Which was literally insane, now that you think about it.

“Well, when it all crashes and burns, I’ll be here.” He nodded more definitively before patting the counter and turning to walk away.

“Asshole.” You muttered to yourself, shaking your head.

The rest of your shift went rather smoothly and you hopped back in your car to head to Hawkins. 

You pulled up to the house and parked, getting out and heading up to the door. You felt awkward for a moment, unsure if you should knock or just let yourself in — no one had given you a key yet, and you technically didn’t live there yet.

You decided a mixture of both, giving a quick knock before you let yourself in. 

“Hey!” Steve was the one to greet you, sitting at the dining room table. He had papers spread around him, and glasses on his face. It was…kind of cute, really. You didn’t imagine him needing glasses to read, but the accessory on his face was attractive.

He was attractive; and you’d be living with him soon. The thought made your cheeks flush a bit, and you gave him a wide smile.

“Just setting up everything we need to go over before I get you to sign. I kicked the guys out so we could do this with no distractions.” He stood up. “Would you like something to drink? I know you have a bit of a drive here.” 

“Oh yeah, water would be fine!” You stepped over to the table and started looking down at the documents in front of you. It was a little overwhelming, to be honest. There were a lot of them. That was to be expected, though. Paperwork was a whole ass thing.

Steve came back and handed you a glass of water. You took a sip before setting it on the table.

“Alright, I’m gonna do this as simply as possible. There are a lot of big words in these documents, which is stupid, but I promise I’m not trying to scam you or whatever.” He picked up a stack of papers, “This is what is expected of you as a member of the band. None of it is crazy, really. It’s mostly just, you know, showing up on time to rehearsals and shows; but since you’ll be here that’s not a big deal. So if you want to take time to read all of that over, go for it.”

Mama didn’t raise no idiot. You knew to actually read it. So, you took your time, reading everything. Nothing really stuck out to you until you got to the end. 

“This is also an NDA?” You asked, confused. “Why?” 

“It’s mostly just saying, like… you know, we’re all living together and you’ll hear some things, see some things, that we don’t really want to go public with. It’s nothing huge like drugs. But if someone has a girl over, we don’t want everyone and their mother to know about it, you know? Mostly just…keeping our personal life out of the papers.” He explained.

Well, that made a lot of sense. You could understand that. 

You signed the last page and dated it, before handing it over to Steve. 

“Alright, next is what you should expect from us slash the record label. This is your pay, benefits, things like that. Obviously this will change as the band gets bigger because more money will be coming in, but this is the base starting pay per gig and time spent in the recording studio. If we get any interviews scheduled this is what you’ll be paid.” He pointed out each of the different numbers and your eyes went a little wide.

Well. You definitely wouldn’t be worrying about money any time soon. 

“What are the bills for the house? How does that work?” You asked him. 

“We take that into account already. Money is set aside from every gig to pay for the bills, so this number that you get paid doesn’t change.” 

After a few more stacks of papers to go through, all of the contract was signed and you were officially part of the band. 

"Awesome. I'll get this filed and after that we just gotta get you moved here." He smiled at you, shuffling the papers and clipping them together. "We cleaned out some stuff last night, but there's still things we need to move before we can get your bed and everything in there."

"No big deal. I only got, like, two boxes worth of stuff done last night."

"Well, we can get everything out tonight and rent a moving truck. Probably get you here in two days or so?" He asks, stepping around the table towards you. 

You nodded, thinking about what was left to pack. "I can get everything done in two days." 

"Cool."

Then, something happened. Something you weren't quite expecting. He touched you. Not in a gross or inappropriate way, but he lightly brushed his fingers against your arm. Goosebumps erupted on your skin, and you turned slightly to look at him. 

"You know, I was against the whole…letting a girl join the band thing at first, but I never could deny how fucking pretty you were." 

Your face heated up, your head tilting back slightly to look up at him. The air was suddenly thicker, your breath coming out in harsher puffs. You didn't know how to respond, really. 

However, Steve was in total control of the situation, his fingers reaching up to lightly brush some hair behind your ear. 

"I—um.." You didn't know what to say. "Thank you.." you said quietly, biting your bottom lip. 

His eyes searched your face for a long while before he seemed to make a decision. He leaned in slightly, so close you could feel his breath on your lips. This close you could smell him. Spearmint, cigarettes, and cologne. You swallowed thickly. 

His thumb gently touched your chin before it slid up to tug on your bottom lip. You would've been embarrassed by your next action if the heat in his eyes hadn't turned up significantly. Your tongue snaked out to swipe against his thumb, and he presses it fully into your mouth. 

You sucked on it, your tongue laving over it. His lips parted, and his eyes went a little hazy. 

"Fuck—" he breathed out heavily, "That's a good girl." He cooed, stepping closer. 

He slowly pulled his thumb from your lips and kissed you without warning. How could you refuse? Nothing in your body wanted to stop him. Not the fact that you barely knew him. Not the fact that you were officially working with him, and definitely not the fact that you were about to live with him. 

So what if you had a little fun? What harm could it cause?

In reality, a lot, you thought, but you didn't want to think about it. It had been a long time since you'd let loose and just…let go for a while. For long enough to get fucked, anyways. 

Your thoughts left your mind the moment you felt the warmth of his tongue brushing your lip, and you opened your mouth for him, wanting to taste him as badly as he seemed to want to taste you. 

His body pressed up against yours, making the swell of your ass push against the table. His hands gently touched your sides as his tongue curled with yours. He was going slow, but he was definitely in charge. 

He was making sure you wanted this. Well, you didn't have a single qualm — except…

"When are the others coming back?" You asked breathlessly as you pulled from the kiss. 

He scowled softly at the mention, before checking his watch. 

"We've still got a good forty-five minutes at least." He answers, his breathing slightly hard, too. 

You nod, and press up to kiss him again. His hands hook beneath your ass and he lifts you — a little too easily for your liking — onto the table. He was stronger than he looked, and as your hands slid up his biceps you could definitely feel the muscle hidden beneath his shirt. 

He groaned into your mouth as your hands roamed up his arms and around his shoulders. He was appreciating the fact that you weren't shy to take what you wanted. 

He pressed himself tightly against you, and you could feel the hard bulge in his jeans. He was bigger than you expected. Not that you could complain, but holy shit you knew you would be sore later. 

Your hands slid up the sides of his neck and tangled into his hair. It was soft, despite looking like there was a ton of product in it. You weren't quite sure how he did it, but hell why would you think about that right now?

His hand glided up from your thigh to your hip, and then up the bottom of your shirt. He gently grasped your breast through your bra, kneading it. 

"I'm not porcelain," you whispered as you pulled from the kiss. You looked up into his hazel eyes, determined. "You can be rougher. I'm not going to break." 

"Oh, honey. You have no clue what you're in for." He chuckled. "Let me take care of you beforehand, okay? Promise we can get to the rough stuff once your tight little pussy has taken all of me."

You flushed at that, heat shooting to your core as you nodded a little too eagerly. 

His hand slid out from under your shirt and he helped you take off your jacket, tossing it away before his hands threw off your shirt too. He reaches around you and easily unhooked your bra and you let it slide down your arms. 

He looked at you, his lips swollen and wet from kissing and slightly turned up at the edges. "Well… aren't you a pretty little thing?" He hummed, reaching forward to delicately pluck at one of your nipples. 

You shivered. Then his hands were on both breasts, squeezing. 

"Yeah, these are nice…" he sighed happily. His head ducked down to take one nipple between his lips, and he sucked; his tongue working over it.

Your toes curled as you held back moans, your breathing laboring. Fuck, he was good with his tongue. You could only imagine if it was on your—

"Don't hold back." He told you, standing up straight. "Let me hear those pretty noises, hm?" He grinned, before bending back down to take your other nipple into his mouth. 

His fingers rolled the other one between them, and your eyes fluttered as you finally released a moan, your back arching into his touch. 

His tongue and his fingers worked in tandem, almost musically. It made you wonder why he was only the manager of the band. You kept that locked in your mind to ask later. 

Your core was tingling. You needed to be touched desperately. You pressed your thighs together, rubbing, trying to relieve some of the feeling as much as possible. 

Steve never stopped. He kept going; kept working your nipples until you were whining desperately for him. 

"Shit, Steve, please." You moaned, tugging at his hair. "I need you, please."

Only then did he pull back and give your overstimulated nipples a rest. He grinned at you, too cocky, as his hands moved down to pluck open the button of your jeans. 

You laid back, lifting your hips to help him get them off. Your panties were soaked through, and Steve seemed to find this more than amusing as he cupped your pussy. 

"God damn," he sighed. "I can't wait to feel this. I bet you're throbbing in there. Tell me how badly you need me, baby." He gently rubbed you, relieving some of the tingling you felt. 

"Fuck, please, Steve. I need you. I need you so badly, please. Please, please, please, please, pl—"

"Okay, okay," he chuckled. "I know you're eager. Lift up those pretty hips for me, baby."

You did, and he peeled your panties off, tossing them away with the rest of your clothes. 

He was quick to pull his shirt off, revealing his toned chest and abs, complete with a small tattoo on the left side of his abdomen. You didn’t really give the ink another glance, too caught up in waiting for him to fuck you already.

His hands unbuckled his belt and he was quick to shove his pants down. Your eyes went straight to the bulge in his boxers, but you didn’t have to wait long before he was shoving them down, too. 

You almost gasped at how fucking big he actually was. You didn’t know how that was going to fit inside you, and you suddenly understood what he’d meant earlier when he said you had to take all of him. There was a lot of him to take.

“Ah, shit—hang on.” 

You barely registered that he was stepping away until he was gone and you sat up, watching him open a drawer in the kitchen. He pulled out a condom and waved it at you, grinning. “Community drawer,” he explains, “Anytime you need one.” 

You didn’t think about what that really meant right now. Why would you? 

“Just come fuck me already,” You groaned at him, laying back.

“Aww, you can be nicer than that.” He teased, as he stood back in front of you. He tore the condom open with his teeth and rolled it on smoothly. 

“Please come fuck me already.” You huffed, reaching for him with your legs.

He chuckled and pulled you by your thighs so the bottom of your ass hung off the edge of the table. He pulled your legs up over his shoulders and your insides quivered. He was going to go deep, and you both knew it.

He licked his thumb, not that he needed to, and reached down between your legs to give your swollen clit a soft rub, his free hand grabbing himself to guide his cock to your cunt.

Your back arched, zaps of pleasure running up your body from the simple touch to your clit. Then, he pulled his thumb away and tapped his thick cock against you. 

You swallowed thickly.

“You ready?” He asked, his voice thick with need.

“Yes, please,” You were desperate. You both knew it.

He rubbed the head of his cock against you a few times, the very tip of it slipping in slightly. He was using your juices to lube himself up a bit before he began to press in.

The stretch burned. 

You whined, fingers curling hopelessly against the table. 

“Shhh, shhh, it’s okay. Just take it, baby.” He inched himself in. 

Your eyes fluttered as he pressed further and further in, taking it as slowly as he could possibly manage. You thought he’d stop once you felt a brush against that spongey spot inside you, but he just kept going. 

You felt something new you’d never felt before once he was fully seated. It was almost a little painful, it tingled.

He was pressed against your cervix. The thought made your whole body shiver. This was going to hurt at first at any rate, but… no one had ever stimulated your cervix during sex before. You weren’t sure if you should be scared or excited.

Fuck if it wasn’t hot that he was so big though.

He looped an arm around your thigh, pressing his fingers against your clit while his free hand gripped your other thigh tightly.

Then, he started to move.

It was slow at first, pulling out and pressing back in, trying to let you get used to the stretch, to the new sensation of his cock pressing against your cervix. You moaned quietly, feeling as though you were a toy for his pleasure, even if he was slowly rubbing your clit to try and make you feel good.

Slowly, the uncomfortableness began to subside, and you were only feeling pleasure with every thrust, your hips wiggling slightly as his fingers sped up against your clit. 

“Faster,” You gasped, your back arching off the table. 

He did as you asked, finally picking up the pace. His hand gripping your thigh tightened, digging into your skin. You moaned loudly, knowing that the boys could show up at any minute and find you like this. Find you being used by your manager.

It was fucking hot to think about. 

His cock nudged your cervix with every thrust, and your pussy clamped down on him in response, making him groan loudly. His hips sped up and he snapped them a little harder.

Your eyes rolled back as a pressure began to build up inside you. This was a very, very new sensation. You’d had clit-stimulated orgasms before, and even gspot-stimulated ones, but this was different. 

You could almost imagine feeling him spill his own orgasm deep inside of you, breeding you.

You moaned loudly at the thought, your hands grasping desperately at nothing until your nails nicked into the soft wood of the table. You couldn’t care if you left marks right now. You felt so fucking good.

“That’s it… that’s a good girl.” Steve whispered to you. “Fuck, you’re so fucking pretty.” He groaned, his head tipping back.

Your eyes rolled back at a particularly rough thrust, your mouth wide open in a loud moan.

Your voice pitched a little high as the pressure continued to build and build until you were having a full-body orgasm, your back arching high as your pussy clamped down on his cock. It lasted for a good while, too. 

By the end of it, you were so fucking bleary you couldn’t even tell he was still fucking you. He was, though. He hadn’t stopped. The pressure was building up again in your haziness, and you whimpered desperately.

“Steve, please,” You whined. You were so overstimulated, so hazy. He didn’t stop, though. He kept going until a second one hit you and you choked on a moan.

A few more deep thrusts and his hips stuttered to a stop. He was panting, sweat trickling down the side of his face. You barely noticed, still out of it.

You weren’t sure how long it took, but you blearily felt Steve lift you from the table and carry you away. You were placed on a plush surface and covered with a blanket. 

When you came to, it was dark outside. You yawned quietly as you sat up, still very naked but definitely in a bed. It smelled like Steve. 

You flushed. You’d literally fallen asleep right after. 

You stood up on wobbly legs and stepped into the attached bathroom to relieve yourself. Somehow, you were fairly clean, no slickness in sight between your legs. You found your clothes on his nightstand, folded neatly.

Faintly, you could hear talking through the walls. It was too muffled for you to really make out anything, so you put on your clothes and tried to ignore the way your body ached. 

He’d really done you in.

You opened the door and stepped out, walking down the hallway.

“ —I just don’t understand why—”

“There she is!” Eddie greeted you first with a wide smile, being the one facing the hallway. “Glad you got a nap in. Steve told us you were tired from working and the drive. You can always use my bed, you know.” He winked.

You laughed softly, trying to play along with Steve’s lie. “Yeah, if I’m anything it’s a hard worker.” You walked further into the living room and took in a deep breath.

“Well, feel free to stay. Gareth is making dinner and we’re supposed to record songs tomorrow anyways.” Steve told you, smiling.

“Yeah, I’ll stay, just —”

“You can sleep in my room.” Billy and Eddie spoke at the same time, before turning to glare at each other.

“Oh, I don’t mind the couch—”

“C’mon, you don’t need to sleep on the couch. Just let one of us crash on it for the night and you can sleep in the room. We’ll draw straws or something.” Billy laughed.

“...alright.” You nodded.

“Dinner’s ready!” Gareth called from the kitchen.

Everyone shuffled in while insisting you make your plate first. So you did; you made two tacos, and piled a good bit of rice onto your plate. You were definitely hungry after…well, your afternoon activities. Not to mention you’d missed lunch.

You all sat at the table together, beer completing the meal. There was a lot of banter between the boys, save Gareth who gave little comments with a sheepish smile, and Jonathan who glared down at his plate while he ate.

You weren’t sure why he hated you so much. What could you do about it right now?

“Hey, are these scratches new?” Eddie asked, rubbing a light colored line in the wood.

You choked on your drink, coughing loudly. 

“No, those were definitely there.” Steve nodded, as Billy lightly patted your back.

“I’m fine—” You told him, giving him a smile.

Billy smiled back at you, and you both went back to your meals.

After helping clean up, you let the boys — minus Jonathan — draw toothpicks to see who’s room you’d sleep in.

Billy won and he led you to his room.

“I’m just gonna change and shit, so make yourself comfortable. Also—” He tossed you a shirt from his closet, “You can sleep in that, if you want. You know, to be comfy or whatever.” 

You gave him a kind smile and nodded, turning away to give him privacy while he changed. 

“Alright, I’m heading out. But if you need anything, let me know. I’ll be on the couch.” He winked at you. 

You stared a little too hard at his shirtlessness before nodding. “Thank you.” 

“Goodnight, princess.” 

“Goodnight!” You called after him, as he left the room. The door shut behind him and you were left alone.

His room smelled good. You had to imagine it smelled like him. He had a vanity in the corner with a lot of hair products and cologne. He took care in his looks, and there wasn’t anything bad about that. You smiled a little to yourself as you got changed into his shirt and climbed into his bed.

You settled in beneath the blankets, wrapped up in the smell of him. He smelled really nice.

You were half asleep when there was a soft knock on the door and it opened up. You sat up slightly.

“Sweetheart? Hey, just wanted to let you know that I’m just upstairs if you need anything. You know, some water, or some cuddling —”

“Eddie, leave the poor girl alone!” You heard Steve shout from his room.

You laughed. “Thanks, Eddie, but I’m alright. I’ll definitely let you know if I’m in the mood to cuddle, though.”

“Alright, alright. Goodnight.” He chuckled, shutting the door.

You settled back down, and soon drifted off to sleep.

𝑡𝑎𝑔 𝑙𝑖𝑠𝑡: @wh0reforbucknasty @munsonzzgf @feminist-mina-harker @justice4billy

[etherealperrie]

Just A Taste

Eddie Munson x Fem!Groupie!Reader: In which reader has heard a lot around town about Corroded Coffin's lead guitarist, Eddie Munson. Reader decides to head to The Hideout and find out what he's like for herself: the kind of music he plays, the way he looks under the stage lights, and most importantly, the way he tastes.

Word Count: 2.3k

Contains: SMUT (18+ minors dni) | Explicit Language | Drinking and Mentions of Smoking | Groupie!Reader | Lead Guitarist!Eddie | Unprotected sex (plz don't do this, be smart & safe)

A/N: For the purposes of this fic, Eddie and reader are 21. Here, Eddie graduates and focuses full time on music, his band becoming popular amongst the small town of Hawkins, Indiana. This is purely a work of fiction and does not intend to reflect or influence real life actions and behaviors. Read at your own discretion.

...

Everything is a blur, your mind working through a haze of smoke, your senses clouded by booze. The Hideout is packed to the brim with locals, music blaring from the shoddy speakers, the crowd still reeling from the show, the room buzzing with electricity. You slip through the crowd, pushing past sweaty bodies vibrating in the pit, spying a door just left of the small stage. Before you step through, someone hands you another shot of a nameless clear liquid and you down it quickly, emerging into a small dark room to throw yourself into the lap of the closest person, grinding yourself hotly against their body. You press a rough kiss to their lips to get your mind off the burning sensation at the back of your throat. They taste of beer, the smell of cigarettes flooding your nostrils, something soft tickling your cheeks. 

“Fuck,” he breathes as you pull away, wiping your faded lipstick against the back of your hand. The sight of long, frizzy, curly dark brown hair and silver-ringed fingers awakens a path of goosebumps down your spine. You’d landed in the lap of exactly who you came to see. 

Eddie Munson. 

You’d heard a lot about the guitarist of this band – Corroded Coffin – and you had to see him for yourself. Under the golden stage lights tonight, watching his fingers slide across the chords of his guitar and noting the way he took his bottom lip between his teeth as he threw his head back, completely immersed in the music, you knew you had to taste him. And, god, he tasted heavenly. 

“How the hell did you get back here?” he asks, his husky voice pulling you back to reality. 

Your smile grows and he eyes you inquisitively, his deep brown eyes glinting something almost animalistic as he takes you in. Raising an eyebrow, you slowly lift up the hem of your top. 

His eyes widen at the lack of fabric covering you, but a grin flickers across his wet, pink lips. It wasn’t anything he hadn’t seen before, he knew his name spread amongst the crowds and he liked the attention – some would say he thrives on it. 

 “Do you want me to leave?” you breathe, reaching out to comb your fingers through his wild hair. His eyes meet yours as you jut out your bottom lip, bringing his attention down to your mouth. He lifts his hand to your chin, running his thumb along your lips, encouraging them apart. You oblige, taking his finger between your lips, rolling your tongue around the tip, sucking harshly. 

A breath catches in his throat and you feel him growing strained beneath you. Awaiting his response, you pull away, tugging your top back down over your chest. 

“What a tease.” He moves his hand from your cheek down to your thighs, pushing your skirt up to expose the soft skin there. He traces his fingers up and down your legs, moving closer to the ache growing between your thighs with each pass. You let out a soft whimper, grinding yourself harder against his apparent erection, aching for contact. Eddie chuckles, placing his hand back under your chin. He tilts your head back just enough to meet his wanting gaze. “Two can play this game, sweetheart.” 

He leans in to plant an open mouthed kiss to your neck, his breath hot, licking and sucking at your throat, savoring in the sound of your quickened breath. 

“Shit,” you moan as he pulls away, leaning back against the couch. His eyes darken as he admires his work, a red spot that was sure to bruise marking your otherwise bare skin. Desperate to see more of him, you grasp at his jacket, sliding it off of his shoulders. He plays along, slipping out of it and his t-shirt, watching as you toss both fabrics onto the floor, your mouth dropping open at the sight of him. His arms and chest are littered with tattoos, shapes you couldn’t quite make out in the dark. A smattering of chest hair leads down to a prevalent happy trail, pointing towards what you wanted most to taste, tempting you. 

Hungry, you run your hands across his abdomen, leaning in to trail sloppy, wet kisses up his chest and neck, sucking harshly at his jawline. He groans, inhaling sharply, and his hands are at the hem of your own shirt now, easing the fabric up. You pause to appease him, helping him pull the shirt over your head. His hands work quickly, moving erratically to feel every inch of your naked skin, his fingers tracing over every freckle and mole.

As you lean back in, your bare skin grazes his, hot and sweaty, the swell of your breast flattening as you press yourself against him hotly. Your excitement grows as he groans, his grip tightening on your thighs, making you eager to please. His lips capture yours and he deepens the kiss quickly, his tongue and spit mixing with yours feverishly as you slide your hands down his abdomen towards the waistband of his jeans, fingers dipping beneath it. 

He mumbles something against your lips and then his hands are around your wrists before you have time to process. Pulling away from the kiss slowly, he holds your wrists together with one hand while trailing his fingers down the front of you, stopping just above where you craved him most. Clicking his tongue, he looks at you. “Ask before you touch, what do you want?” 

Eddie lets go of your wrists as you rise from his lap, watching as you undo the zipper of your skirt. He grows more strained beneath the fabric of his jeans, his hard cock pressing against the denim, his desire obvious as your skirt falls to the floor, you following suit, dropping to your knees before him. 

“I want to taste you,” you whisper, palming him through the denim. He thrust up into your hand, sucking in a breath, his teeth sinking into his bottom lip, just like he does on stage, but this time it’s you bringing about such pleasure. “Please?” you ask, looking up at him through the shadow of your eyelashes. 

He takes a deep breath and shakes his head, leaning forward, his elbows on his knees. 

“Desperation looks good on you,” he breathes. His hand is under your chin again, his lips grazing yours as he whispers, “You’re just so eager to please me.”  

You open your mouth to respond, but he’s already rising from his spot on the couch, pulling you up with him. His hands push you down onto the couch now and he drops to his knees, nudging your legs apart with his shoulders, aching as his face gets closer to your wet heat. 

“But I wanna know, when’s the last time someone pleased you, hmm?” He asks, bowing his head to kiss the inside of your thighs. You suck in a breath, rolling your hips to him as he trails his fingertips along the delicate skin of your inner thighs. You exhale as his lips kiss their way up to your hip bones, his fingers brushing lightly against your panties. Shivering, you watch him lift his head from your hips, the smile on his lips spreading into something sinister as he remarks at the growing wet patch on the lacy fabric. Chuckling to himself, he slips his fingers underneath the fabric, getting a real feel for just how much of a pool had collected between your thighs, earning a gasp from you. He looks up at you, his hair hanging wildly in front of his eyes, his curls tickling your inner thighs. 

“So wet for me already,” his gaze returns to your slick cunt, hunger apparent in his eyes, “fuck, baby.”

He swipes his fingers between your folds in a slow, bold stripe, tracing a feather light touch up and around your clit. Gasping, you grind your hips down onto his fingers harshly, wanting more from him, unfiltered moans escaping your lips. He hums watching you writhe with pleasure, eager to give you more. Eddie bows his head, bringing his mouth to your pussy, his breath hot as he hovers there for a moment, letting his fingers continue to tease. 

“Eddie, please,” you whisper, lifting your hips to his lips. You hadn’t realized just how much you wanted this – wanted him – but with his lips inches from where you most craved them, you felt on fire with a desire for him. 

Eddie doesn’t waste another second, pulling your lips apart gently with his hands to grant his tongue access to the most intimate parts of you. He’s sloppy at first, running his tongue flat against you, lapping up your arousal. He groans at the taste of you, eliciting a moan from you as the vibrations of his voice rock through you. His tongue is warm, soft as he licks harshly at your entrance and up towards your clit. Humming, his movements become more targeted, flicking his tongue around your clit a few times before clamping his mouth around the delicate bud, sucking. 

“Ah, Eddie, fuck,” you moan, your eyes faltering shut as you ride the wave of his lips and tongue sucking and licking, undoing the knot deep in your abdomen. Your body lights up, writhing under his lips, your hands rushing to his head, holding him there as he sucks, your fingers tangling in his mess of curls. 

He releases you, kissing your swollen bud softly before moving away, peppering kisses down your cunt and across your legs. His fingers work to replace his tongue once again, his eyes returning to you as one hand reaches up to your breast, taking an erect nipple between his fingers while the other eases two fingers into your silken pussy. 

You shake your head, having had enough. “Skip the fingers and just fuck me,” you breathe, your voice hoarse. 

Eddie’s head snaps up and he nods, sliding his fingers through your folds once more, your hips jerking upward in response, before he rises from his knees. Reaching out, you undo his belt and zipper, pulling his jeans and boxers down in one swift movement. His desire is apparent in front of you, his impressive length spilling out in front of your face. You fight the urge to take him between your lips as you first desired. Eddie chuckles above you, whispering a string of praise as you hold yourself back, turning your attention back up to his face. 

His lips and chin glisten with your wetness under the dim light of the room as you both shift to lay back on the couch, your head resting against the leather arm, Eddie hovering above you. With his hands on either side of you, you take advantage of the moment, reaching down between your bodies to take his length in your hand. He’s already rock hard, he’d gotten all he needed in form of arousal from watching you, but he stifles a moan as you stroke him, circling your thumb over his head softly, his cock twitching in your hand, his hips rocking into you. 

“Enough teasing,” Eddie growls. He lets his head drop to you, reconnecting his lips with yours. His lips are warm and wet, the sweet flavor of your own arousal mixing with the taste of vodka and the scents of smoke and sex, your senses alight. 

He leans back, pulling away from you to watch as he lines himself up with your entrance. Whining, you lift your hips and rock, his dick slipping between your folds, the slick sound of your wetness filling the room as he slides over your cunt. A second later he’s sliding into you, easing himself in an inch at a time, cursing under his breath as you take him in, tight and warm. 

Everything shifts once he’s in you, any ounce of patience either one of you had managed to hold onto suddenly gone, both of you desperately craving a release. His thrusts start slowly, but quicken in seconds, his hips snapping against you erratically as his fingers work your clit in small hard circles, that familiar tightening knotting in your stomach once again. You roll your hips against him roughly, finding his rhythm, matching his pace. 

“Shit, look at you,” Eddie mumbles as he watches himself thrust in and out of you, your pussy dripping wet, gripping his cock tightly with each movement. 

“Eddie,” you pant, every inch of your body on fire, sweat dripping down your body, your skin hot against his as he pounds into you. Your hands map every inch of his back, nails anchoring into his skin as pleasure swells in your body, that knot continuing to tighten as he moans loudly, tucking his head down into the crook of your neck, his thrusts slowing, getting harder and more erratic. 

Your name leaves his lips as you come, Eddie fucking you through your orgasm, ravishing in the feeling of you tightening around him as he thrusts. There’s nothing left to say as he slows, pulling out to release his desire across your stomach. He looks heavenly as he comes undone, all of the tension leaving his body as he finds his climax, his dark brown eyes lightening as he looks back to you. Reaching up, you brush your thumb over the crease that had formed between his brow, softening it. He hums, dipping his finger in the pool of his release and holding it to your lips. You take his finger between your swollen red lips, tasting him, sucking his finger down to the ring. He groans. 

“I think next time we’ll see what those lips look around my cock, yeah?”

[duramaters]

Heat of the Moment // E.M.

AO3

Summary: You’re new to Hawkins, working at Family Video and living at the trailer park. Robin and Steve recommend someone who can help you let off some steam - a freshly graduated drug dealer who happens to become a whole lot more.

Warnings: Drug use, explicit language, sexual content, fem!reader

Word Count: 3.5k

Song: Heat of the Moment – Asia

Requested by @radical-munson​ 

You had been living in Hawkins, Indiana for a few weeks now but the boxes containing evidence of your hoarding habit were still piled up in teetering stacks around your trailer. The only things that were unpacked and held pride of place in your new space were your guitar and your collection of books; your dog eared copies of Tolkien perched on the small coffee table, within easy reach at all times. Currently sat next to them was your rucksack and your new work uniform, an offensively green vest with Family Video stitched above the pocket in an equally unpleasant yellow. Even your typical outfit of monochromatic black and grey couldn’t offset the lurid colours but hey at least you had a job now.

The rust bucket of a car that was your beloved Ford Pinto squeaked in complaint as you launched your rucksack into the passenger seat and slipped behind the wheel. It puttered to life and you peeled out of Forest Hills Trailer Park and towards the centre of the small town.

Your new co-workers, Robin and Steve, welcomed you with open arms and endless questions about who you were and where you’d come from. They were genuinely inquisitive so you felt comfortable enough sharing your backstory of absent parents and a crappy high school experience in the city. It wasn’t long before Robin had roped you into a popcorn catching competition and you were belly laughing harder than you had in months, trying not to choke on the kernels as you held back a snort.

~~~

Scraping your hair off of your neck and into a pair of messy buns that loosely resembled those of your favourite heroine, you stood behind Steve as he locked up the store.

“God, I need a smoke.” You whined, fanning your flushed face in the humid heat.

“What kind of smoke?” Robin leaned into your side with a cheeky grin and bright eyes. Your mouth twitched up into a matching grin as you nudged your shoulder against her own.

“What do you think, huh?” You winked conspirationally, “know anyone who sells?”

Robin pondered for a moment before Steve joined the conversation, twirling the keys to his Beemer around his finger.

“Hey, what about Eddie? I’m sure he’s still dealing.” He glanced at Robin and her face lit up, peaking your curiosity.

“Yes! Eddie! He just graduated.” Her bright red lips pulled up in an affectionate smile.

You scrunched your nose at the thought of potentially buying from an eighteen year old, but desperate times called for desperate measures. Robin and Steve seemed to take your nose scrunch as distaste and Steve swung his arm around your shoulder as you all began walking towards the parking lot.

“He’s a good guy, don’t worry about it. His weed isn’t the best, but it does the job.” He seemed embarrassed that he spoke from experience and you laughed at his light blush.

“Oh yeah, remember that time you and Jonathan-”

“Thank you Robin, no need to tell the fresh meat about that.” Steve jumped in, huffing out a chuckle at the clearly amusing memory.

You made sure to get the dealer’s details from Robin before hopping into your little red sedan and waving goodbye to the hapless pair. The drive home was short and the heady heat had sweat trickling between your shoulder blades despite the fact that you had discarded the ugly green vest in the backseat. The craving for a high wasn’t helping so you bypassed your trailer and continued down the dirt track, looking for the van that Steve had described, hoping that this Eddie guy was at home.

You spotted the black and white van and pulled your Pinto up next to it, the engine puttering out in relief as you switched off the ignition. Mindlessly swiping the sweat from you brow you hopped out of the car and jogged up the steps. Just as your knuckles were about to make contact with the trailer door you heard a dull thud from behind you and you turned to watch a tall boy with a halo of soft curls tumble out the back of the van in a cloud of smoke.

“Eddie Munson?” You approached him tentatively, he seemed completely oblivious despite your car very obnoxiously announcing your arrival. He let out a feeble, high pitched squawk when you spoke and you had to stifle a laugh at the theatrics. Eddie turned to face you, flattening his fluffy hair that must have been ten times more voluminous than normal in the humidity.

“Can I help you?” Once he had tamed his mane and regained his composure he stepped towards you, head tilted and arms folded defensively.

“Robin..erm…recommended you.” You made a smoking gesture and his eyes lit up in realisation.

“Good old Buckley, reeling in the customers.” He grinned to himself. His scowl had disappeared and his posture loosened at the mention of his friend. “What was her selling point?” He asked as he approached you, wrapping a leather clad arm over your shoulders.

“Steve said, ‘it does the job’ and my standards aren’t that high so I figured I’d give you a chance.”

Eddie faked a stab to the chest with his free hand, “you wound me, Harrington.”

“I don’t usually buy from teenagers, but desperate times and all that.” You shrugged.

“Teenager?” He paused, dropping his arm from your shoulder and turning to face you with a quizzical expression.

“Yeah, Robin said you just graduated?” A beaming smile lit up his face.

“That I did. That I did.” He oozed pride. “Ms O’Donnell had it out for me you see, hence my super super senior status.” He winked at you and you blushed once you had done the maths, he was probably a few months older than you at most. This realisation had you flustered and you were now significantly more intimidated by the man than you had been when you had him pinned as a kid. At least you could let yourself acknowledge how cute he was now, without feeling like a certified creep.

Eddie lead you through the entrance of the trailer and you spun around, slowly taking in the assortment of hats and mugs lining the walls.

“My uncle’s.” He nodded towards the hat collection, stepping away from you to strip out of his leather jacket. Underneath he wore an old Iron Maiden tour shirt with ripped sleeves. You swallowed thickly at the sight of his pale, lithe arms. The heat in the tin trailer was really getting to you.

“How were you wearing that anyway? I would be running around naked if I could.” You had continued to mosey around the trailer, taking in the knickknacks and furniture so you missed his bewildered expression and the way he bit his lip at the thought of you naked.

“Nothings stopping you.” He crossed his ankles and leant back in an attempt at nonchalance but almost missed the doorframe and went stumbling backwards. You hid your giggle behind your palm and lowered your gaze to the stained carpet to offer him a chance at regaining his dignity. You heard him clear his throat and disappear down the hallway.

“How many ounces?” His muffled voice came from a room further down and you stepped lightly down the hallway to find him, not wanting to shout for the rest of the trailer park to hear. “Or do you just want a couple joints?”

You found yourself in what you could only assume to be Eddie’s room, he was rooting through the closet so you peered around at his posters, the dirty magazines on the floor and the overflowing ashtray. Nice. What really took your breath away was the guitar hanging in front of the mirror. She was magnificent and you let out a low whistle as you approached. You were desperate to touch her, but you could tell from looking at her just how sacred she was so you refrained.

“Wow, Eddie.” You whispered. He turned and caught your awed expression in the mirror. Your eyes flicked to his and a knowing smirk was plastered across his face.

“She’s something, right?” He joined you at his altar of rock and lightly brushed his fingers down the fretboard. You shook yourself out of the spell the guitar had put you under and smiled up at the man.

“What were you saying about those joints?”

He beamed back at you and brandished a freshly rolled spliff in your face. “Wanna share?” His grin gave you goosebumps despite the heat.

“Sure thing, wanna go back to my trailer? It’s a bit cooler.”

~~~

You swung the door of your trailer open and relished in the cool air escaping around you. Having one of the few trailers that sat on the boundary to the woods was a blessing on days like this. Shuffling across your living room, you dumped your vest and bag on the table and collapsed on the sofa, kicking your feet up onto one of the boxes full of books. Eddie flicked through your scruffy copy of The Return of the King that was sat on the coffee table, his tongue poking between his lips as he read your annotations.

“You’re a total nerd.” He grinned, making sure the book was back where he found it before flopping down to join you on the couch, digging around in his back pocket for a lighter. The movement had him lifting his hips and angling his body towards you and you squeezed your thighs together at the close proximity. A slow graze of his denim clad thigh against your own had you jumping up abruptly.

“I’m a sweaty mess,” you twirled the damp flyaway hairs at your temple to emphasise the point, “I’m just gonna get changed real quick while you light up.” Eddie nodded absentmindedly, his focus on the blunt between his moistened lips. You dashed into your room and took a moment to compose yourself before stripping off the stifling clothes you had worn to work and donning a short floral sundress. You would have worn it even if Eddie wasn’t around, but the thought of him seeing you in it was definitely an added bonus. You returned to Eddie as he sat in a swirl of smoke and plucked the joint from his fingers as you slumped back down beside him.

As you relaxed into the cushions you were blissfully unaware that the hem of your dress had crept up your thigh until cool metal stroked your flesh and you felt a thumb caressing your skin.

“From the ashes a fire shall be woken, a light from the shadows shall spring” Eddie’s hushed whisper drew your attention to his hand stroking over the tattoo peaking out from your dress, the Elvish inscription wrapping around your leg like a garter. You flushed bright red and cleared your throat, subtly shifting your leg to hide the embarrassing tattoo.

“I was young and dumb.” You explained, dragging your dress down to cover your thighs.

“It’s fuckin hot, princess.” Eddie’s eyes finally left your leg and flickered up to your face, the deep brown irises blown black with lust. “You got anymore?” A cheeky grin split his lips as he leaned in teasingly. You decided to toy with him, since he seemed so affected by the simple band around your thigh.

“Take a guess” you sighed, breath fanning out onto his pouty lips. He looked ready to risk it all so you plucked the blunt from his fingers and took a slow drag, leaning back into the arm of the sofa to enjoy the entertainment of Eddie’s brain short-circuiting at the thought of other potential tattoos. You muffled a giggle and patted him gently on the head.

“Ok shortcake, stop thinking about it before you hurt that sweet brain. I only have this one.” You motioned to your now clothed thigh.

“Disappointing.” Eddie murmured sheepishly as you leaned forward and dropped the roach into an empty can on your coffee table. His adorable expression had butterflies erupting in your stomach.

“Hey,” you nudged his shoulder with your own, “I show you mine you show me yours, right?” You had already spent more than enough time ogling the Metallica reference and the bats adorning his forearm when he wasn’t looking, but you knew there were more.

“Maybe one day, sweetheart. If you’re lucky.” He winked at you and rose from the sofa. You didn’t want him to leave but the delirium from the drugs, the heat and Eddie’s presence put you at risk of saying something wildly inappropriate and embarrassing.

~~~

Eddie had become more than just your new dealer during the summer of ’86 and your feelings for the man had become almost unbearable. You wanted to simultaneously smush his adorable face, pinch his cheeks and suck on his fingers, tasting the sharp tang of his rings. You not only had the superficial things in common: music taste, style, tattoos, smoking habits; but the deeper, more secret parts of yourselves were also strikingly similar. Your life experiences and subsequent moral codes matched up perfectly and you spent most evenings sat on the stoop of his trailer delving into each other’s minds while sharing a spliff.

Steve and Robin shared knowing looks whenever Eddie stopped by the video store under the illusion of wanting to rent The Thing for the billionth time knowing it was your favourite and you would inevitably find yourself curled up against him on his couch later that evening, watching the disgusting gore and giggling.

It was a cool September afternoon and you could feel a storm brewing; electricity building and sharp gusts of wind battering the windows of the video store. Your temperamental Pinto had finally given up on you and was stuck at the garage for the foreseeable future so Steve had offered to give you a lift home after your shift ended. You were increasingly grateful for that offer as a downpour was looking more and more likely.

As soon as the last customer left you vaulted over the counter to join Steve as he locked up the store. The drive home was full of girly gossiping and laughter at Steve’s music choice.

“Blondie? Really Steve, I expected better of you.”

He rolled his eyes good-naturedly. “It’s Robin’s I swear.”

His earnest tone had you belly laughing so hard it came out as a wheeze and you were almost relieved when Steve pulled up in front of your trailer, you’re abdominal muscles were on fire and you couldn’t take much more of his wounded puppy expression.

You waved at Steve as he drove off before rooting around in your purse for your keys. Shit. You’re trailer keys were on your car keys. Your car keys were with your car. And you car was very much back at the garage in the middle of town. Shit, shit, shit. Normally it wouldn’t be an issue, you’d just go to Eddie’s and beg for a lift to the garage but you knew he was out with his little gang of loveable dweebs playing a new campaign so there was nothing left to do but walk back to town or wait for Eddie to get back. You decided to take a leisurely stroll to his trailer where you could sit on the stoop and smoke the cigarettes you had hidden behind the trashcans.  

You were on your third cigarette when the heavens opened and great fat blobs of rain began to pelt down on you from above. You groaned as your cigarette was extinguished mid-puff and the water was already starting to seep through your clothes. Wrapping your arms around yourself you tried to get as far under Wayne’s makeshift porch as you could, but it made no difference. Within minutes you were soaked through and shivering. At least the oppressive heat had been broken by the storm, you thought, as a loud clap of thunder sounded overhead.

The rolling thunder quieted slightly, allowing you to make out the sound of an engine approaching. Thank fuck. You had the sound of Eddie’s van memorised so you knew it was him but the reckless driving and blaring music would have given him away regardless. You hair was hanging limply down your shoulders by the time he pulled up, the water dripping from your sodden strands down into your bra so that there was no escape from the soggy discomfort.  

Eddie’s eyes went wide behind the windscreen when he noticed you hunched over on his stoop and he flew out of the van, slipping in the mud in his haste to get you inside.

“L-locked o-out.” You stuttered, shivering violently. He wrapped his leather clad arms around you and guided you into the trailer, you felt slightly guilty leaving puddles on the carpet but Eddie was soon bundling you up in a scratchy old towel, palming at your hair with the thin material. Your shivering continued despite his attempts to dry you off and get you warm.

“We have to get you out of these wet clothes, sweetheart.” He said bending down slightly to wrap the towel around you from behind.

“Are you t-trying to get me n-naked, Munson?” You asked, huffing out a chuckle at his responding smile.

“It’s your fault for surgically inserting that imagine into my brain the moment we met.” He dropped his hands from you and shuffled off down the hallway, returning with a pair of sweats and an old Hellfire shirt balled up in his hands.

“I’m soaked through to my underwear Eds.”

“Even better.”

You blushed furiously at his salacious wink and he threw the heap of clothes at you, gesturing to the bathroom where you could get changed with only a semblance of privacy since the door didn’t lock properly and had a tendency to sweep open of its own accord.

With one foot holding the door closed you stripped off down to your underwear and then thought fuck it and flung your bra and panties into the pile of sopping clothes you had dropped into the sink. The soft fabric of Eddie’s clothes against your bare breasts and core felt strangely intimate but you weren’t going to complain. You quickly threw your damp hair up into a bun and tossed the towel into the hamper by the door before going to rejoin Eddie in the living room.

You were fiddling with a few wayward curls that were brushing the base of your neck when you walked back into the living room, your eyes cast to the floor and neck bent so that you could tuck the hairs into your bun. When you had finished fiddling you looked up to see Eddie sat up, strangely alert, a light flush on his cheeks and a cushion in his lap. Oh.

You smirked.

“Seeing me in your clothes doing something for you is it, shortcake?”

Eddie balked and began stuttering out an apology but you waved it off and joined him on the sofa. His eyes were roving over your form and you began to feel shy under his adoring gaze.

“You’re so beautiful.” His half-lidded, lust blown eyes stared down at you and you had to repress a shiver at the feeling he evoked within you. Shuffling about on the couch, you made your way onto your knees and scooted closer to your friend. Friend. God you wanted more.

Without hesitating you closed the gap between the two of you, tentatively suckling on his lower lip as you felt him tense beneath you. He release a groan and immediately relaxed into the kiss, returning your attentions with a light nip. His warm, weighty tongue settled against your own and you felt around for the cushion on his lap, launching it into the hidden depths of the trailer without breaking the kiss. Eddie hissed at the momentary friction before the feeling of your thighs bracketing his own and your warm core settling above his pelvis had his mind blanking.

“Jesus Christ, princess.” He moaned into your mouth and you ground your hips against him in response.

“Fucking finally, right?” You mumbled, lips brushing across his jaw and pressing damp kisses against his throat.

“Hell yeah.” You felt the bright smile pulling at his cheeks and peppered them with gentle pecks.

“I bloody love you, Munson.” You pulled back to look him in the eyes, cupping his face in your soft hands to make sure he heard you.

“If you insist.” He waggled his eyebrows at you and your laugh puffed onto his reddened lips. Eddie pulled you back in to deepen the kiss once again, the desire almost exploding between you. He nuzzled into your neck affectionately as your delicate fingers tugged at his mousy curls.

“I love you too, sweetheart.”

You could feel his heart beating through his chest in a tempo that matched your own.

It was perfect.

[pclyglct]

(  MAYA HAWKE  |  CIS WOMAN  |  SHE/HER  |  24 )  — — —  it's  just  been  another  long  week  in  boring  -  ass  hawkins.  isn't  that  right,  ROBIN BUCKLEY  ?  shit,  i  guess  they  can't  hear  me  over  PEOPLE HAVE THE POWER  by  PATTI SMITH  playing  through  the  headphones  of  their  walkman.  it  looks  like  they're  gonna  be  late  for  WORK  as  a/at  LIBRARY ASSISTANT AT THE PUBLIC LIBRARY.  did  you  know  ROBIN  has  been  in  hawkins  for  THEIR WHOLE LIFE  ?  yeah,  their  family  and  friends  describe  them  as  INQUISITIVE,  but  i've  seen  them  be  HYPER  too  !  i  would  also  say  they  remind  me  of  disorganized bookshelf cluttered with knick knacks, chipped black nail polish, daydreaming about faraway places while language tapes blast through headphones around her neck, the unsettling feeling of sticking out despite every effort to blend in, beaten up red converse covered in doodles, but  is  that  weird  ?  i  guess  nothing's  too  weird  for  this  little  town,  huh  ? 

happy to be here! I'll be sticking to canon, but also using the rebel robin podcast to form the bulk of robin's backstory, drive, and character prior to show antics. tl;dr: closeted disaster lesbian who only recently started feeling comfortable in her own skin. loves her friends but desperately wants out of hawkins. just returned from a 3-month trip backpacking across Europe & has started a new job as a library assistant. 

name: robin buckley

age: 24

gender: cis woman (she/her)

hometown: hawkins, indiana

current residence: hawkins, indiana

education level: high school graduate

sexuality: lesbian (has only come out to a handful of people)

positives: inquisitive, authentic, intelligent, kind, easygoing, open-minded

negatives: skeptical, hyper, anxious, sarcastic, avoidant, aimless

house: ravenclaw

alignment: chaotic neutral

pre-canon (rebel robin)

robin's wiki!

born to domesticated hippies Richard and Melissa Buckley. their former lifestyle and permissive parenting meant robin had experimental, open-minded parents who often didn't give her the attention they should have. the disappearance of will byers changed things for a bit, but they struggled to maintain anything that resembled a firm grip or a nuclear household for long, and that was perfectly fine for robin.

domesticated hippies also = poor af. savings were nonexistent when they spent their youth backpacking and staying in hostels or couch surfing. melissa's pregnancy forced the couple to settle, and they used the scraps of money they had to buy a tiny, shitty house not all that unlike or far away from the byers residence.

growing up, robin has always recognized that there was something... different about her. something off. but she was never certain on what exactly it was. when the quirks of her personality brought on some early childhood bullying, she quickly learned that whatever it was, she had to do everything she could to keep it hidden and to stay out of sight.

as she went through school, she mastered the art of social camouflage, fitting herself easily into certain social categories and being just social enough and just distinct enough to be utterly uninteresting to the regular hawkinite. the movie ticket girl. the band geek. during that time, she saw the loss of multiple different friendships for a variety of reason: her childhood friend barbra holland "dropping" her for nancy in middle school, her fellow odd squad members kate and milton dropping her because of shitty boyfriends or new girlfriends. while she later reconciled the latter relationships, the sting of rejection did nothing to help robin's growing sense of unease and the belief that something was wrong with her, that she was the broken one causing everyone to leave her.

she found solace in the adventures her parents talked about experiencing in their youth: the different people they met, the risks they took, the communities they were apart of, the annual christmas party with old hippie friends from all walks of life, impossibly pouring into hawkins and their tiny house, a colorful oasis in the middle of monstrous town. it all sparked an interest in knowing more about the world around her.

her need for camouflage kept her from exploring her curiosity in school and excelling (less she lose her average B student status by being an overachieving teacher's pet), so she instead funneled that need into exploring literature and learning languages. the books exposed her to interesting philosophical and moral dilemmas, points of views, and (later much-needed) representations of life not found in hawkins. the languages made the possibility of exploring those parts of life feel more like a possibility.

operation croissant bloomed from there: a dream to spend a summer backpacking across europe, venturing on a life like her parents did when they were younger, meeting people who are maybe like her. at her core, robin longs for acceptance and community. she wants to exist as herself, fully as herself, with people who know every aspect of her and love her for it. more than that, she wants to be around people like her, to not be the odd one out. she wants to be surrounded by a community who sees people who are different and their first reaction isn't to judge. as her feelings for tammy were realized for the crush that it was (in large part due to the insights gained from her friendship with mr. hauser) and she began to recognize why she was different, her dreams adapted to include wanting to be a pillar for change, to fight back against the Hawkins monster and to somehow make things a little bit better for the people like her who come after her.

her teenage years never saw operation croissant come to fruition, but she somehow stumbled upon a tiny community with reformed douchebags and prisses and a gaggle of children and she's never been happier (or more traumatized, but alas, a worthy trade off to her).

post-canon

following the defeat of vecna, robin continued to work at family video.

she came out to her parents not long after - their reaction was probably the best she could have hoped for from them: they accepted it in their eccentric way of theirs, regaling her with stories of other lgbtqia+ friends they've met in passing (along with uncomfortable tmi stories of their own sexual explorations from their youth). the whole thing has brought the buckley family a bit closer together, as her parents have made more of an effort to be present and invested in her life in a long-term way.

she's chosen to stay at home partially for this reason, but also because she's too broke to get her own place, and partially still resistant to the idea of investing money in roots in hawkins.

with the money she saved, advice from her parents, and a full year of planning, she finally made operation croissant a reality. she spent the first three months of this year in europe, and it was a lot. amazing and overstimulating and eye-opening and terrifying and beautiful and ugly and bustling and lonely and affirming and a lot. she was relieved to return to the warmth of her loved ones when her trip concluded, but also both comforted and left-wanting in a way she'd never experienced before.

and thus, her dilemma.

she loves her community, can't even imagine a life without her friends, or picture how she can find anyone who'd understand her the way her people do in hawkins. but the idea of being stuck in hawkins and becoming a Hawkinslifer itches at her skin in a way she can't help, can't soothe, can't stop.

she doesn't actually know what to do to solve this problem, so she doesn't really voice it (a rarity), especially now that weird shit is maybe staring up again so leaving is not even an option to consider. but in the back of her mind, operation new york has started sprouting just the tiniest of bit.

anyways, she's always been kind of aimless, unsure of what she wants to do with life since she can't picture an actual future in hawkins. but, after returning from europe at the start of april, she decided a good first step would be to do something that actually interested her for work, so she left family video to take on a job as a library assistant at the public library.

misc/headcanons

prior to working at scoops ahoy, robin worked at the hawkins theater (season 1 timeline). she was fired when she accidently melted a movie.

has maintained a good relationship with her former english teacher mr. hauser since graduation. he was the first person she came out to, and she has always valued his caring presence in her life as an older gay. his gift of a russian-version of anna karenina is the most worn book on her bookshelf (frankenstein remains her favorite though).

she's picked up a few more languages since her high school years. she's fluent in French, Italian, Spanish, Pig Latin, Russian, Portuguese, and Dutch. She's currently trying to learn ASL, but her hand coordination is fucked so it's a slow go.

[quinnbauman]

[olivia cooke, female, she/her] who’s that? oh it’s [QUINN BAUMAN]. i hear they’re [20] and are known as [THE INTANGIBLE CONCEPT] around [HAWKINS]. they’re also an [INCOMING JUNIOR] at [UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO]. they’re known to be [+inquisitive, +resilient] and [-closed off, -harsh]. some people say they remind them of [cigarettes and coffee for breakfast, swimming in lakes, staying up past 2 a.m., biting back tears]. [rocky, 27, she/her, pst]

STATISTICS

FULL  NAME: quintana marie bauman PREFERRED NAME: quinn GENDER/PRONOUNS: cis female; she/her AGE: twenty BIRTHDAY: november 14 SIGN: scorpio HOMETOWN: chicago, il HEIGHT:  5′5″ EDUCATION: rising junior @ university of chicago MAJOR: journalism OCCUPATION: funemployed (currently job hunting) ORIENTATION: compulsory heterosexual

HEADCANNONS

Quintana Marie Bauman, now known as "Quinn," was born to Murray and Lorraine Bauman on November 14th, 1967 right outside of Chicago. She grew up living with both her parents and her grandma, although if asked, she'd say her mom and grandma were the ones who raised her. As an only child, Quinn was always a bit of a recluse, but being shy and having a hard time making friends never bothered her much. She already had plenty to overthink about without adding the ups and downs of friendship into the mix.

When Quinn was little, her dad was her "hero" or whatever. He was tenacious, eccentric, and persistent in a way that she found inspiring. She was always in awe of his ability to crack a story and get to the bottom of a mystery. She admired that he didn't seem to give a shit what people thought of him. That admiration eroded into resentment as Quinn got older. Her mom and grandma had done a decent job shielding her from her dad's drinking and explosive behavior, but then came 1984. Quinn was 16 when her dad really started to lose it. He was erratic and absent and then of course...what he did to that girl...there was no excuse. It was the biggest stain on Quinn's existence and it made her sick. How could he? He was a maniac. An abusive, alcoholic maniac who assaulted a child in pursuit of a story. When his trial concluded and news broke that her dad was being taken away to a mental institution, Quinn swallowed her hurt. When her mom revealed that she'd be divorcing him, Quinn swallowed her disappointment. She put up a good front...but still there were nights where sleep never came and all she did was wonder where he was, if he was okay, why he'd done it and if he'd ever come looking for her to try to make things right.

As far as Quinn knew, her dad never came looking for her. Life kind of just...carried on. She graduated high school, got into her mom's (and dad's) alma mater, and come fall of 1986, she packed her bags and abandoned the safety of her suburb for life in the city. Chicago was everything. Even when it was overwhelming and made Quinn feel small, she loved it. Being somewhere new where no one knew anything about her meant she could be whoever she wanted to be. So...she opened up a bit. Made some friends. Got some hobbies. It was nothing like high school. Life was actually...kind of good? Outside of her mom disagreeing with her being a journalism major (which Quinn insisted had nothing to do with her father and everything to do with the fact that she was nosy), her life was chaos free. Or at least it was...until she found the letters.

Quinn was home for the summer after her sophomore year of college. She'd been looking for some old mix tapes in the attic when she spotted a stack of envelopes poking out of a shoe box. They were letters from nearly four years ago – from when her dad had been taken away. Quinn stayed up in the attic, sweating bullets from the unbearable Illinois heat, reading every letter front to back twice. By the time she was finished, her mother was home from work. Quinn barreled down the ladder from the attic, threw the letters in her mom's face, and quickly began packing her bags.

The decision to go down to Hawkins, Indiana was made on a whim. Quinn had no way of being sure that her dad was still there or even that the contents of his letters were true...but something in her gut told her everything he'd said was real. She was a cynic and a skeptic most of the time...but something about this whole situation...it had never made a ton of sense to her. Maybe these letters were the answer. Maybe there really was something more. And if that were true...then maybe her dad wasn't crazy and actually did love her and didn't just abandon her and her mom without any remorse.

During her drive from Illinois to Indiana, Quinn had close to five hours to overthink her decision. What did it mean for the world if everything her dad had said were true? That there actually were supernatural forces out there? Wasn't it more likely that he was crazy? Now she was being crazy, wasn't she? By the time she'd really started psyching herself out so much that her stomach hurt, she had already passed the worn down Welcome to Hawkins sign. Quinn checked into a crappy motel right outside the center of town and decided she'd go to the address on her father's last letter...after she got some much needed sleep.

What happened the next day shook Quinn to her core. She woke up, had her breakfast of a cigarette and shitty black coffee, and got into her car. As she studied a map to figure out the best route to get to Murray, her nerves got the best of her. She had a change of heart. She'd go back home, work things out with her mother, and then maybe she'd write her dad and get in touch with him that way. No need for this dramatic grand gesture or whatever. The only issue was...no matter how many times Quinn tried to drive out of Hawkins...she always found herself looping back around. She did this for hours until she finally realized...she was stuck. There was no way out. Panicked, she went back to her motel room. A normal person probably would've asked for help...but Quinn was too proud and too scared of looking crazy. So she stayed put and decided to try again the next day. But...when the next day brought the same results...Quinn realized she had no choice. If she didn't go find her father, she'd be stuck in this stupid midwestern town for the rest of her life and her family would think she'd gone missing and all of this would've been for nothing.

Quinn knew what she had to do...she just had to work up the courage to actually do it. And in the meantime, she decided to keep her identity somewhat of a mystery, exploring Hawkins with her head down and never getting too close to anyone. After all, if her dad was crazy, the last thing she wanted was to be associated with him. But if he wasn't crazy...if everything he'd said was true...then Quinn and the rest of the townspeople obviously had much bigger problems coming their way.

[rabbitcruiser]

National Aviation Day

National Aviation Day on August 19 should make us stop and think about the power of flight. Yet, some scientific and technological marvels become so commonplace that we seldom take the time to re-examine their revolutionary impact with an open and inquisitive mind.  In just a handful of generations, aviation went from pure, pie-in-the-sky speculation to a mundane reality that inspires about as much wonder as a trip aboard a Greyhound bus.

It’s that ho-hum attitude to the miracle of flight that makes National Aviation Day such an excellent national observation.  Plus, it takes place on  Orville Wright’s birthday!

Let’s take a closer look.

National Aviation Day timeline

1st Century ADChinese emperor

Legend has it that Chinese Emperor Wang Mang ordered a soldier to strap two wings to his back, who then flew 100 meters.

9th Century ADAn Andalusian takes flight

Abbas ibn Firnas is said to have covered himself with feathers, attached wings to his body and (according to Algerian historian Ahmed Mohammed al-Maqqari) "flew a considerable distance."

1799Cayley is the "father of aviation"

Sir George Cayley, an English engineer, described the model for a modern airplane — a fixed-wing machine with lift, propulsion and control mechanisms.

August 19, 1871Brother Orville is born

Orville Wright was born in Dayton, Ohio. His older brother, Wilbur, had been born in Millville, Indiana, on April 16, 1867.

December 17, 1903Orville pilots a plane

The Wright Brothers — with Orville at the helm and Wilbur making a final wing adjustment — completed the first sustained flight of a heavier-than-air aircraft on a spit of land four miles south of Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.

National Aviation Day Activities

Take a trip to North Carolina

Build your own airplane

Go "planespotting"!

What better way to commemorate the achievements of the Wright brothers than by flying to North Carolina and visiting the Wright Brothers National Memorial in Kill Devil Hills? Think of it as a pilgrimage to the spot where American flight first took off.

It doesn't have to be a real one, of course. You can build an airplane using Legos. Or, you can go for that old school-days standby — the paper plane.

Gather with a group of friends where you can watch airplanes taking off and landing. Bring food if the spirit moves you — a "planespotting" picnic!

5 High-flying Facts About Aviation

There aren't that many aviophobes

Maybe that's because so few have flown

A president flies

It started with bicycles

Who needs an engine?

Although it may seem like a lot of people are afraid to fly, aviophobia afflicts only about 6.5 percent of the population.

Worldwide, only about 5 percent of the population has been on an airplane.

The first U.S. president to fly in an airplane was the adventurous Theodore Roosevelt, who flew in a Wright Flyer on October 11, 1910.

The Wright Brothers got their mechanical training as owners of a bicycle shop.

A Boeing 747 without engine power can glide about two miles for every 1,000 feet or so that the plane is above the ground.

Why We Love National Aviation Day

We always choose the window seat

Space is the final frontier

The proclamation is simple and beautiful

Yes, some of us still stare in wonder out the plane's window as we ponder something that seems delightfully impossible. We are, after all, sitting inside a giant flying machine traveling many hundreds of miles per hour, thousands of feet above the landscape below. How can this be?

Many of the mechanical, technological and scientific breakthroughs in space travel would be unthinkable without the advancements inspired by the Wright Brothers' original experiments on a sandy strip of North Carolina coastline.

The National Aviation Day proclamation invites "the people of the United States to observe National Aviation Day with appropriate exercises to further stimulate interest in aviation in the United States." In short, it's a day to keep planes on the membrane!

Source

[farahsamboolents]

As promised, here are the DELETED SCENES from I’m The First In Line (my steddie fic on ao3)

I’M THE FIRST IN LINE: DELETED SCENES

You might recognize some of these passages from the completed fic - the whole point of having a Deleted Scenes is so I can go through and pick out the buried gems when I find a good home for them. Pretty sure I just mushed two different phrases together there, but you get the point. These are all in here for the reusability factor (in either concept or wording), OR to make a point about why I didn’t use them and explain how it goes against the ethos of the completed fic.

(If I kept retrying the same scene over and over, I mushed them all together a little)

Steve breathed another heavy sigh. “I guess I could just pretend. I could still find a girl who wants to be a mother of six.”

“But you don’t want to.”

“No. I want him.”

[END SCENE]

Deleted because “no, I want him” sounded… too much? Right now he just has a crush, he’s not quite ready for marriage and six kids… with Eddie, anyway. The man is ready to build a goddamn family. Slow down. Turn twenty first.

“I can feel it, sometimes.” She said. “When people are in the Upside Down. And I can find them there, too.”

“Yeah, and I can tell when someone took too much, but only if I’m close enough.”

She looked back at him, studying him.

Eddie matched her gaze.

“I heard about that fucked up facility you went to,” he said softly, “they probably made it sound like it was all your fault, right? Like they could fix you?”

She nodded, looking away.

“I went to - not the same, obviously, no superpowers here - but I kinda had the same thing happen. It’s why I live with my uncle, he got me out of there.”

She met his gaze again. “Why?” She said.

He let out a deep sigh.

“Because god hates gays, or some shit.” She looked at him inquisitively, so he continued, “I like boys. Same way you do. Don’t spread it around or anything, there’s a reason I went there in the first place but, if we’re on the topic of things that aren’t our fault.” He shrugged, shoulders scraping against the concrete.

“It took a lot of time to unlearn the crap that they told me.

[END SCENE]

Deleted because I didn’t want Eddie to come out to El just yet, and didn’t have a way of explaining why he was sent away otherwise. HOWEVER, I still kind of miss the opportunity to have them bond over that. On the other hand, I really really want to make sure I treat that part of his backstory right, and coming out of the closet willy-nilly is dangerous now a lot of the time, and he’s in smalltown Indiana in the 80’s.

The door leading to the house slammed open just then, and they both jumped.

“I found them!” Shouted Mike’s voice, “They’re both by the pool!”

“Jesus,” breathed Eddie, hand over his heart, as he heard a chorus of oh my god and you scared us from the doorway, where everyone spilling out of the house.

He rolled over to get up, fighting against his stiff and aching joints. Fuck, something as easy as standing up should not be this complicated.

He yelped as the ground suddenly flew away from beneath him, limbs flailing wildly for… grip? Balance? He had no idea, but the ground came back, slower, and his feet were placed on the ground just as gently as his cane was placed into his palm.

El was smiling at him as she wiped her nose on her sleeve with the hand was outstretched in his direction just a second ago.

[END SCENE]

Deleted because too many people showed up, and I wanted it to just be him and Steve. I like the idea of El helping him up, though. What I would give to have someone help me up like that some days…

It was the first day of school, according to the walkie-talkie’s nonstop chatter the day previous. The vast majority of Eddie’s friends consisted of teenagers who coordinated a game plan for the first day of sophomore year. The first day of school was a day Eddie knew all too well, and yet, for the first time in six years, he had nowhere to be. It was an odd feeling. It might have even been a nice one, if he had a more pleasant reason to climb out of bed.

[END SCENE}

Deleted because I ended up setting Eddie’s panic attack in late September rather than the first day of school.

It felt peaceful, thought Eddie, to watch the sun rise with Steve by his side. They didn’t talk much, just watched as the sun slowly rose.

Eddie didn’t realize he had fallen asleep until Wayne woke him up with a mug of coffee under his nose.

He was surprised to find that Steve was still there. Wayne handed him a mug as well.

When Wayne ruffled his hair and then Steve’s in turn, Eddie wanted this moment - with Steve’s bashful smile, holding Wayne’s favourite mug, and a comfortable breeze - to last forever.

Steve eventually had to shatter the illusion by leaving for an appointment - some sort of test to make sure he was firefighter ready - but he left behind a warmth in Eddie’s chest, as if he had lit a campfire in there. It was only fitting, Eddie supposed, that he was camped out in there.

[END SCENE]

Deleted because this scene felt unproductive. I kept getting stuck. However, them napping on the front porch together? Golden.

Eddie to Max:  I didn’t even mean to tell you, but now that you know, it’s a 50/50 on reactions. So give me a minute before I play with that ratio again.

[END SCENE]

Deleted because I realized that he was outed to Robin and Vickie who both had neutral reactions (although technically Eddie interpreted them as negative, but that’s neither here nor there), and while I may have failed math, but I know that it’s definitely not a 50/50 anymore. Too bad, though, I liked that line.

He then paused, and his face changed to one of confusion, brows knitting even further into themselves, and his frown was so high that it almost disappeared under his moustache.

“What’re you smiling for, kid?”

Eddie was indeed grinning wryly. “I don’t know, Wayne, maybe because this is the first time since spring break that you’ve actually talked to me like I’m not going to shatter.”

Wayne blinked. After a pause, he said roughly, “You better not have been hurting yourself on purpose for me to get mad at you.”

“Not on purpose, no. I just,” Eddie shrugged, trailing off his sentence.

Wayne sank back into his chair and slowly slid Eddie’s mug back across the table. An olive branch.

“I’m sorry if I haven’t been talking to you right. I’m tired of you being hurt and didn’t wanna be the one doing it.”

[END SCENE]

Deleted because the tension died too fast. Also, has anyone else noticed I make my characters say half sentences and trail off? I keep catching myself doing that. It’s not always bad, but sometimes the quirk is out of character in the moment.

“The Upside Down fucking destroyed me,” he said, voice shaking with a half cooked combination of anger and fear, “And it destroyed you, and it destroyed our home, and it destroyed half of this goddamn town, and it killed Chrissy.”

He swallowed heavily. Wayne looked terrified. He simultaneously wanted to comfort him, and laugh in his face because now you know a fraction of how I feel.

[END SCENE]

I went from “the tension died too fast” to “wow the tension is too high and I don’t know how to pull back from it”. FIGHT SCENES ARE HARD, OKAY. Also I want to have Wayne be like “ok something is fucky with this Upside Down business” without having Wayne be, y’know, in on it. (…Yet.)

Eddie’s eyes flickered to meet Wayne’s briefly, but otherwise he didn’t move.

“I’m sorry.” Said Wayne. “I’m gonna need you to use that cane, though.”

“Oh goodie,” said Eddie, words laced with sarcastic delight, “I love telling people that their favourite murderer has an achilles heel.”

Wayne sighed. “I don’t have answers for you, kid. I just know that hiding from yourself is going to make it hurt worse in the long run.”

[END SCENE]

Might reuse that achilles heel line at some point.

The sirens finally pulled into the parking lot. Eddie felt himself go numb with relief as officers jumped out of the car, surrounding them and shouting.

Eddie wanted to watch Andy get cuffed, but couldn’t really complain when Hopper approached him and Steve.

“You two alright?” He said. Steve looked to Eddie.

“I’m,” said Eddie, and cut himself off. The numbness was giving way to all his injuries, new and old, starting with the pain of his throat from having been strangled.

“I’ll get back to you on that one.” He quipped with a strained smile. His voice was croaky, as if he had a bad cold.

He was dizzy.

Hopper watched him, concerned, and looked to Steve. “Can I trust you to look out for him, or do you two need a ride to the hospital.”

Steve looked back at Eddie again, who began protesting that he surely didn’t need to be hospitalized again, but Hopper cut him off.

“Harrington, I asked you for a reason.” Said Hopper.

Steve looked back and forth between the two of them. When his only response was an irritated expression from Hopper and a confused one from Eddie, his face melted into an embarrassed smile.

“Um, I actually can’t, I can’t hear right now.” Said Steve loudly.

[END SCENE]

Deleted for two reasons: One, why would Eddie go numb with relief at seeing the cops, he called them pigs literally 2,000 words ago (actually it was 1,999, I checked).

Two, I decided that Hop should know about the whole hearing thing ahead of time, since they’re both First Responders.

Steve had something tucked under his arm, and once Eddie was settled in to the ambulance, Steve flipped it around; it was a small whiteboard, and on it, in Steve’s messy handwriting, was. written DO YOU WANT ME TO GO WITH YOU.

Underneath it, in smaller writing, was written sorry for yelling.

Eddie grinned and nodded.

[END SCENE]

When Eddie was younger, he never got the opportunity to pass notes in class.

He wasn’t jealous of the note passing per se, especially when the teacher would steal the notes in question and read out that Tommy H. totally kissed Tiffany behind the gym!, but he was a little jealous of the easy friendship that it represented. He would much rather be passed a silly note in class than have that paper be used to blow a spitball in his hair.

Now, writing little notes back and forth on a spare notepad that a nurse had given Steve, he felt a childish glee as he waited for Steve to finish his sentence.

[END SCENE]

Once the ambulance was moving, Eddie found himself being lulled to sleep by the movement.

The paramedic snapped her fingers in his face. “Oi. Awake.” She said, “We don’t know if you have a concussion yet.”

She turned to Steve before Eddie could complain that he hadn’t hit his head. “You wanna help me keep him awake?” She said.

Steve smiled politely. “You want me to keep him awake?” He said.

[END SCENE

Steve was surprisingly good at hiding his hearing loss.

In the ambulance, the paramedic asked him to help keep Eddie awake. Steve just looked between Eddie and the paramedic, and said, “you want me to keep him awake?”

Eddie figured that it was probably just a logical conclusion to make, given the context, but he was impressed nonetheless.

Steve then whipped out a pen and a notepad out of his pocket and began a game of hangman.

Eddie thought it was a little on the nose, given his bruised neck at the moment, but played along. He laughed through the pain when it turned out the answer to Steve’s little game was Dorothy.

He stole the notepad to write who’s that? and doodled a little face that looked confused.

Steve grinned. No idea! He responded.

That was when the ambulance pulled up to the hospital. Eddie had assumed that being brought via ambulance would get him a room right away, but no, they were unceremoniously dumped in the waiting room.

Eddie should’ve been miserable, he knew. His neck ached, his windpipe felt like it was half the size it ought to be, and his tongue was bleeding through the gauze in his mouth, but he was resting his head on Steve’s shoulder as he filled out the paperwork he had been handed. He couldn’t help but focus on the warm little buzz he felt in his chest instead.

He was halfway through the paperwork - something about consenting to treatment, and he was here, wasn’t he - when Steve slipped a piece of notepad paper on top of the clipboard he had been given.

sorry for the dorothy thing I thought you knew

Eddie snorted.

He hovered his pen over the piece of paper for ages, trying to formulate a response, when his name was called. He looked up to see Dr. Owens standing in the hallway, beckoning him over.

It figured. Eddie hadn’t seen Dr. Owens since he had been discharged, but he had been in charge of Eddie’s care since the day that he had been cleared of all charges, and Mike had explained that he was some sort of Upside Down specialist. Eddie mostly remembered him from the absurd amount of blood draws he had taken; he remembered glowering at Owens’ inceasingly apologetic face and asking if they were planning on draining him completely.

Owens had offered him a lot of cookies afterwards, but Eddie had still been on a liquid diet. It really didn’t help matters.

Eddie made his way over, and Owens took the clipboard from him.

“We don’t need to worry about that, we’ve got you all figured out.” He said, “Although it looks like you might want this back?” He handed Eddie the notepad paper. Eddie pocketed it.

A wheelchair appeared behind Eddie, being pushed by a stern looking nurse.

[END SCENE]

I forgot that Steve was under the impression that Eddie was mad at him and should probably behave differently. Also, I thought it was hilariously on the nose to have them play hangman.

“So,” said Steve slowly, “what was the plan, then? Just so we’re on the same page about… you know, cuz we both find each other attractive here.”

“There really wasn’t one.” Said Eddie. “I’m not exactly the kind of guy that makes plans.”

Steve frowned. “Thought you planned out those games?”

“That’s different. That’s fiction.”

“So’s this.”

[END SCENE]

“You’ve got your walls up like the third little piggie, and I don’t blame you.”

Eddie snorted, surprised.

[END SCENE]

“Is trying to scare me away your current escape route?”

“Kinda.”

“Look, man.” Steve said, features softening. “If you really, actually don’t want,” he gestured back and forth between the two of them, “this, then I get it. You…” his mouth formed a frown, and Eddie broke eye contact to stare at the mug again as he braced himself.

“I can get over you, if that’s what you really want me to. It might… it might take a minute.

[END SCENE]

“You know, I always wondered why the Devil was supposed to be the bad guy.” Said Steve. In response to Eddie’s baffled expression, he continued. “Isn’t he just supposed to keep the bad people away from the good ones? It’s a pretty commendable service, if you ask me.”

[END SCENE]

“So, yeah.” Eddie waved his free hand. “And last time I tried to have, like, romance? It turned out to be shit. And I felt like, alright, that’s what I get, it’s, it’s shit. Compromise, you know? It wasn’t a good thing, but it was something.”

“But I… I don’t know. I don’t want to lose you, but I guess somewhere during all of this, this shit, you became something that I could lose. And you’re not shit. And it’s not like… it’s not like everything I lost went easy, you know? Like, the trailer, it…” He made an explosion noise with his mouth, accompanied by a hand gesture imitating a mushroom cloud.

Eddie finally met Steve’s eyes for good as he gave him a sardonic smile. “So. Now’s a good time for you to back out of, finding me magnetic or some shit.”

Steve leaned back against the driver’s side window, studying him. He had one leg up on the seat, wrist dangling casually off of his knee, his other wrist lazily hung over the steering wheel. A somber expression decorated his features.

“So, what’s the plan? Never be happy again?” Said Steve, voice gravelly but not unkind. He tilted his head to the side, eyes piercing Eddie’s like spears.

Eddie shrugged. “You know, outside of DnD, I’m not much of a plans guy. Honestly, I’ve been pretty consistently surprised every time I woke up alive for the past decade. My only plans at any given moment are to make sure there’s an escape route in sight.” He looked down at his shirt. “You think I planned on spilling my guts wearing this? There’s a hole in the armpit.”

Steve snorted. “Am I allowed to say that I still want to kiss you now?”

Eddie glared at him playfully. “Really, you horndog, I tell you all about my terrible childhood and all you can think about is getting in my pants?”

“Hey, you’re the one escalating here, for all you know I was just talking about a quick peck on the cheek.”

“Were you?”

Steve responded with a mischievous grin and raised eyebrows.

“You can continue talking about your terrible childhood if that makes you feel better.”

“No, actually, I think I’m more than done talking about it.” Eddie looked around the car. “I can tell you a little bit about my terrible adulthood, though, because the last time I was in this car I genuinely thought you were the Devil.”

“Well, the last time you were in my car, you said some pretty Devil-ish things.”

Eddie’s jacket was suddenly much too warm.

“Sorry.” Said Steve, looking bashful, “That was… that was probably a rough day for you. I shouldn’t have brought it up like that.”

“Maybe you really are the Devil.” Said Eddie, resisting the urge to fan himself like a prim victorian lady about to faint. “You’ve sure been to Hell enough.”

[END SCENE]

Guess who struggles with emotional scenes! I did like that last one, I just got a flash of inspiration that contradicted it.  

The fire station was located just southeast of Hawkins. There was a lake nearby, but it was the kind of place littered with rich people and country clubs.

Figured that the rich people would plop a fire station right next to a lake. Where on earth might they find water if one of their fancy candles fell on top of their silk tablecloths?

The trailer park, on the other hand, surrounded by the woods and subject to annual heatwaves, would likely burn to a crisp by the time the

[END SCENE]

Yes I did just stop midsentence. Anyway, I relocated the station to be north of Hawkins, and there’s no lake there, according to Hop’s map from season two. I’ve actually done a lot of research on Hop’s map, because I have a sequel in mind that requires specifics on where exactly everyone is, and it’s convenient for me to place the fire station closer to Loch Nora for… reasons… (actually I found a higher definition version of the map after I published the last chapter pre-epilogue, the fire station is right in the centre of town. Oops. Too late to change it within the fic.)

I also did research on the lake that I initially placed the fire station on. It’s called Tippecanoe Lake and there are indeed country clubs there. I don’t know if they’ve been there since the 80’s, but I already cut the scene so I officially absolve myself of research.

“Steve keeps looking for you.” She said, after handing a baffled Wayne his tickets. “He’s pretending he isn’t, but he keeps on staring weird at people who have canes, so either he got really rude to disabled people all of a sudden or he’s looking for you.”

Eddie nodded, fidgeting with his own cane and smiling.

“Are you doing your side job again?” She said.

Eddie jumped. “What? No. Who said -“

“Jonathan and Argyle were gossipping about it, they want to buy from you but they don’t know if you’re selling. Why, what’s your side job?” She gave him a funny look. “I’m just trying to figure out if you can buy another twenty.”

Eddie narrowed his eyes at her. “Where is Steve, exactly?”

She nodded towards the mayor, who was finally handing the microphone off to the Fire Chief. “Near the stage.” She said, referring to the small wooden platform at the front of the room.

[END SCENE]

“He’s like, the MVP of this freaking ball. They’re probably going to pull him onstage soon. And he started Project Child Endangerment 3.0.” She raised the basket pointedly.

The look Eddie and Wayne shared this time was alarmed.

“Are you in-“

“No, he’s just been forgetting that he owes me a lifetime supply of ice cream on top of what he owes me for being a saleswoman, and that’s my way of reminding him.” She gave him a falsely sweet smile. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have tickets to sell.”

She disappeared into the crowd, leaving Eddie and Wayne in stunned silence.

“Do you know what she’s talking about?” Asked Wayne. “Or is this like the fungus story again?”

Eddie shook his head numbly. “Three?”

[END SCENE]

In the first one, I felt like Erica probably wouldn’t capture that behaviour from Steve — it’s a little too subtle unless you were already looking for it, you know? Although I did find it cute that she didn’t understand what Eddie’s “side job” was, because as badass as she is, she’s twelve.

Also, would Steve be MVP or would he instead be mercilessly picked on for being a rookie? Apologies to my dearest Deanna who watched as I struggled with “would Erica use the term MVP or not” only to cut that line entirely. (The verdict was yes, by the way, she’s been to enough of Lucas’ basketball games that she probably would’ve picked it up if she hadn’t heard it elsewhere already.)

Eddie swallowed heavily before turning around to look Steve in the eye, and fuck.

“You clean up nice.” Said Eddie. Understatement of the century, he thought. He never thought he had a thing for men in uniform, but with Steve standing right in front of him in a fitted dark suit, Eddie had a hard time breathing all of a sudden.

Steve’s eyes drifted up and down Eddie’s body, and Eddie regretted the bell sleeves he had chosen to wear.

“I like that colour on you.” He said, to Eddie’s surprise.

[END SCENE]

Nah ,Steve should just disappear and be smug about how he just made Eddie just melt into a puddle.

Will met Eddie Munson for the first time when Eddie was hospitalized.

Mike and Will, and Robin and Steve, had both gone to visit Max independently of the other, each with books in hand, and arrived at the exact same time. Lucas, who was curled up in the lounge chair - lounge chair? - next to Max’s bed, looked up through heavy exhausted eyelids and bluntly stated that Steve and Robin could stay. When Mike began to protest, he pointed at another lounge chair, containing El, who was holding Max’s hand and concentrating.

“You’ll distract her.” Said Lucas.

Will thought that was a little unfair, because he had only met Robin a handful of times but already knew that when she started talking, it was like a woodpecker hammering on a tree, but Mike was already offering to introduce Will to the coolest guy ever just a few floors away, and, well, alright.

When they did meet this coolest guy ever, Will tried very very hard to keep his expression neutral, because quite frankly, his appearance was a little terrifying. He was skin and bones, tangled hair hanging limply off his head, and his skin was paler than the white bandages decorating his neck and arms. The only colour on him was the angry red gashes crosshatched on his cheek, and the stitches that held them together.

Eddie held his eyes wide, and he had a slightly manic grin on the undamaged half of his face as Mike and Will walked in.

“Baby Wheeler!” He cheered. “And… friend!”

An older man lounging in a chair identical to the ones in Max’s room huffed fondly. “They just doped him with something real strong.” He said, amused, not bothering to look up from his worn paperback. “Hope you didn’t come for chit-chat, his head is full o’ rocks right now.”

Eddie didn’t respond, just kept his odd grin as he eyed Will curiously.

“Hi Eddie!” Chirped Mike, almost breathlessly, in a tone of voice that was usually reserved for El. Odd. “This is Will, I’ve men-“

“Will the Wise!” Eddie raised his hands in the air,

[END SCENE]

My first few attempts at the epilogue wound up being set WAY too early, which made a wordcount impossible to manage because I kept wanting to explain everything. Also, I realized afterwards that Will probably isn’t the biggest fan of hospitals after the first two seasons. Poor fuck. However, I did want to work in that El was helping Max recover even before she woke up at first, but the poor thing would be way too busy.

Neither of the pair had partaken since they had arrived in Hawkins. Argyle said he had stashed his stash in a tree somewhere; the only thing scarier than a cop, he had said, was a cop who had just been resur-fucking-rected.

Also, he and Jonathan were staying at the Wheeler’s, and Nancy had guns.

[END SCENE]

Again, I set the epilogue way too early at first. They’ll partake eventually, this was the first few days after their arrival.

“Mm?” He gave her what the party had nicknamed his Parents Love Me smile, or PLM, pronounced plum. It was kind of obnoxious. The most obnoxious part was that it every parent fell for it.

[END SCENE]

Steve had a new version of the PLM; it was a slightly different smile where he acted strange and extra nice around Eddie, which the party was all very confused by until Argyle offered up the idea that maybe Steve didn’t know how to act around disabled people. DPLM didn’t have the same ring to it, though, so they didn’t bother to change its name. As long as they used it sparingly, it was easy to persuade him into something if they used Eddie against him.

They had yet to see the new PLM in action around Max, though. Steve visited her with his girlfriend Robin instead of with the group, but Max reported that he had a habit of cordially agreeing with whatever she said, especially if Robin wasn’t in the room, so they took that as evidence that the PLM was in full force around her, too. Max made it into a game for herself, to try and see what absurd thing she could get him to would agree to; the more tired he was, the more likely he was to politely laugh and nod when she said that demogorgons would make good pets.

[END SCENE]

The PLM was out and stronger than ever. Will, Dustin, Mike, and El exchanged excited glances.

[END SCENE]

“PLM.” Whispered Dustin pointedly, once Steve was focussed on opening more empty drawers. Eddie gave them an inquisitive look.

[END SCENE]

PLM was going to be a little recurring thing throughout the epilogue that got cut for wordcount. It was gonna eventually lead to a scene where Eddie thought the kids just really liked plums for some reason.

“My mom mom’d him.” Said Dustin, not bothering to look up from the character sheet he was filling out. He and Will had decided to make each other the most ridiculous characters they could think of, and whoever got a lower score in Pac-Man would have to play the character, voice included, in the homebrew campaign Mike was working on.

[END SCENE]

Dustin even took it upon himself to recap fake D&D sessions over the walkie talkie, in the hopes that Eddie would come back over the channel with a what the fuck, a cutlass isn’t a long-range weapon, Henderson, wherein they would have the opportunity to trap him into a conversation. But it was quite literally radio silence from Eddie. Instead, they occasionally got an irritated Steve or Robin - or, during one memorable and terrifying instance, Hopper - telling them to shut up already.

[END SCENE]

“I already promised Max I’d visit today, though.” Said Lucas.

Dustin sighed. “Yeah, okay, he’ll probably let you get away with that. He might even give you a ride to her place cuz he feels bad.”

It actually turned out that Steve wasn’t particularly happy about losing one of his promised crew unexpectedly - with all I do for you, c’mon guys - but begrudgingly gave Lucas a ride anyway. Lucas had to squish into the middle seat with Mike for the trouble.

[END SCENE]

“Did you know Steve was deaf?” Said Will, a week later, over dinner.

“He told you?” Asked Hop, as Jonathan and Argyle both exclaimed their surprise. Will’s mom made a surprised sound around her mouthful of burger.

“You knew!?”

“We’re both first responders, he told his team and mine. Paramedics know, too.” Said Hop, mouth full of food. “Seems real shy about it, I’m surprised he told you.”

“He did not.” Said El. “He was at the craft store and Robin and him were speaking with their hands.”

“You can do that without being deaf.” Said Argyle. “My cousins learned to do that so they could talk shit about our abuela. She’s kinda mean.”

“Yeah, but Robin had to yell at him to get his attention.” Said Will, as his mom gently scolded Argyle for his language.

“Then… yeah, he’s probably kind of deaf.” Said Jonathan.

“Of course he is, I just said so.” Said Hop, affronted. “He says it’s worse depending on the day, but he can usually hear pretty fine.”

Huh. Will wondered if this was why he relied on the PLM so much. Smiling and nodding could get you pretty far. Will knew this from experience.

[END SCENE]

Will was just glad that Eddie switched from teaching her ABBA after only a month - he hated the band. Instead, Jonathan and Argyle did the Thriller dance as she practiced her new music, which never failed to make her giggle.

[END SCENE]

This was the “holy crap I wrote so much and I have to cut stuff for the sake of my word count” section. I liked a lot of these concepts, though.

El was laying on the couch with her head in Max’s lap as she read a Wonder Woman comic aloud to her.

[END SCENE]

I wound up changing Max from “enthusiastic friend” to “well, she’s there” throughout the epilogue, but this line was really cute.

“I didn’t like, love camping.” Said Dustin. “Right, Will?” He gave Will a pointed look.

Later, Will would realize he was trying to subtly bring up their pact.

In the moment, though, Will shrugged. “I kinda liked it. And Max is right, Mike really liked it.”

[END SCENE]

This goes against them agreeing for Max and Will’s sake.

Eddie snorted. “You’re lucky my uncle is outta town visiting his pa. You lot would’ve been knocked into next week if you’d woken him first.”

“But he’s not, so, you’ll be a hospitable host and let us stay the night and meet your girlfriend?” Said Dustin brightly.

“I don’t think it counts as hosting when you just admitted to breaking in using a busted doorknob.”

[END SCENE]

He’s way too happy to be burgled.

“Come on!” “We don’t bite!” “It’s just us!” Cried all of their voices in protest.

Eddie just held up a single finger and said shhhh.

The continued complaning.

Eddie continued his unbroken shh. He had an impressive lung capacity.

They finally all quieted.

Eddie gave them all a smirk that really just told them that his patience was wearing thin.

“You little trespassers are lucky I’m not knocking you into next week.” He stated. “You’re real lucky that my uncle is visiting his pa, or I’d be calling the coroner right now. You are going to sleep in the spare room, you’re going to clean up your muck before I drive you home in the morning, and if I’m feeling generous, I might not tell all your parents about your life of crime.”

[END SCENE]

You ever write past midnight and realize that forget that you established that Max knows Eddie is queer? Also I keep trying to excuse Wayne’s absence.

“What do I know?” Said Steve.

“Not a lot.” Said Eddie.

[END SCENE]

He prooobably wouldn’t insult him like that, but that was just such an easy setup. I would totally roast my friends that way, and expect to be roasted that way in return.

[greypetrel]

✨Self-Rec Tag Game ✨

Thank you very much @shivunin! ✨✨✨

Rules: Share five of your own fanworks (fic, art, etc.). Then, tag five more people to share the things they've made. e.g.: 1. Something you absolutely adore 2. Something that was challenging to create 3. Something that makes you laugh (or smile, if that fits more comfortably) 4. Something that surprised you (in how it turned out, how much other people liked it, etc.) 5. Something you want other people to see

Soooo... I'm actually one of those people who can't just tell you ONE favourite thing. If you ask me about my favourite movie, I'll shorten the list to ten and will cry because I left something I love outside. Oops, I guess.

And I also really love colour coordination. 🌈

1. Something I absolutely adore.

I don't absolutely adore any of my works ahahahahahahah.

Beside some self-deprecation, I'm still very please with this fanart of Aisling and Dorian looking outside the window.

I know you don't appreciate much Crossovers, Mo and way too many people around, but the chance to put together two things I love... I would never tackle fanfiction if I didn't have something mine to put it (that's why I started writing fic with Dragon Age, which is based on the "Create your own character" basic), so this was my chance at tackling Tolkien lore which I absolutely adore and has been part of my life ever since I was a little bean.

There's also a fic which is basically LOTR... But with Dragon Age Characters (taking advantage of the fact that in the book nothing much is seen of Mordor... I slipped everyone there and I promise it makes more sense x°D)

2. Something that was challenging to create

Everything concerning Raina, which you can now find in this convenient folder I'll fill little by little on AO3.

I... Accidentally tackled too many things that strikes close to home with her, and writing her is basically something similar to a therapy session. The current thing I'm working on is proving difficult.

But I'll say this official portrait of her, just for the fact that I tried a new way of colouring (thanks to @ndostairlyrium forever and ever for the tips and tricks) and everything was new and challenging. The amount of times I cursed myself for putting a background! xD

3. Something that makes you laugh

You see, Mo, I am very unable to choose just one thing. If you ask me what's my favourite movie, I can shorten my list to 10. I'll give you three.

The Bi Cullen series. I should do another one, I just have to finish it, but this is close to my heart. Because bi panic and science bros.

This little exploration in the Mythal Temple, full with very necessary Indiana Jones and Emperor's New Groove quotes.

And last but not least, the one and only Haunting Queen, Doris the Rage Demon who lives in Cullen and Aisling's stove and is deeply in love with Cullen... And also very jealous. It's jealousy, it's not Aisling that doesn't know how to cook.

4. Something that surprised you (in how it turned out, how much other people liked it, etc.)

Ok, for this I have 2:

Home Was Never on the Ground aka the Monster fic. It's my first attempt at fanfiction and the first prose I had written in YEARS. I thought of an anthology of moments missed in game, or expansions of scenes I liked. I am honestly surprised by the amount of hits it got and even if I see flaws, I like my baby.

One for the Road. Aka. Fenris/Lavellan 2 chapter fic. I wrote it as a divertissement, it ended up to be extra angsty... And I sincerely thought I had totally misinterpreted Fenris here. I remember being so nervous when posting it that I actually considered keeping it for myself. And instead, it was received well?

5. Something you want other people to see

On this I'm more sure! (well.)

My little joy is the DadWolf AU which you can find here. Basically, a Modern AU following the events of DA2 and Inquisition... With something changed.

Namely, Solas woke up 30 years before, and he and Varric were roommates. And they co-parent my Inquisitor, Aisling, and Dorian who are actually science bros. It's something that brings me joy in doing, there's nothing written as per yet save some prompts but it will be!

Also one fanart I'm very very attached to is this one which was done in collaboration with @ndostairlyrium (I drew it, she coloured it), and which now guards me from my wall when I work in my studio.

In case you all were still wondering yes, I'm wordy. I know it's a surprise.

I reckon that I forgot to tag, OOPS. @rosella-writes @oxygenforthewicked @cullenvhenan @cao-the-dreamer @transprincecaspian and for the rest I think everyone was already tagged...? Send me a word if you were not and would like to!

[pearlypairings]

I loved this newest chapter so much!

Poor Jonathan & Chrissy are really going through it.

The night started well and then Jason shows up and it goes so downhill so quickly.

I love that Jonathon has someone like Nancy in his corner. That scene with them putting it all together and him asking her for advice was so good. I also feel worse for Candace than I thought I would. She seemed so much more suspicious at the beginning.

I also love Chrissy having Jessie in her corner. She may be younger and not know exactly what to do, but she’s really trying. She almost reads like a little sister at times.

(I don’t want this to come across as an “um actually” type thing. I just think “Indianian” is always funny when I clock it in a fic, bc I’m from Indiana and we don’t say that. We’d say Carol isn’t acting very “Hoosier-like”.)

The break up was also so well done. What a dick! I lived for Chrissy getting angrier, not taking his shitty excuses, and standing up for herself. Even if she gets a little reckless immediately after.

I can’t wait for the next chapter & what that brings! (If I had to guess, I think that ‘warm heart’ snippet you posted before might be soon)

ANON, MY BELOVED <3333

I can finally respond to this absolutely delightful ask, which I'd waited a bit so people could catch up without spoilers!!

BUT OMG!! Thank you so so so so much for leaving your thoughts here, they're always welcome!

It was important that I gave Jonathan an ally, and Nance just felt right with her inquisitive, but caring nature. And Candace was stuck between a rock and a hard place! She was a little in love and more than confused on what to do... Too many new things for her at once.

And yes! Jessie is definitely someone Chrissy has taken under her wing! I think she sees a bit of herself in her from that age and wants to be a good influence on her. BUT Jessie feels equally protective (and maybe a teensy bit jealous, the normal kind lol) of her idol.

(LOL about the Indiana-ian moment- for me, I wanted Jonathan to be a bit tongue-in-cheek, facetious about the moment and Hoosier didn't sound sarcastic enough for what I was going for... BUT now i know who I can go to for Indiana facts! :D)

Chrissy had a big night! and she's understandable confused, emotionally pulled in different directions, and a teenager so she's being a little reckless, but also feeling a little vindicated.

And maaaaaybe, your guess isn't that far off ;)

Thank you so much again for this ask, it literally made me so excited every I read it. And thank you for letting me wait to answer so people could catch up to us ;)

hope to hear from you after the next chap!

[kolajmag]

FROM THE ARTIST DIRECTORY

Inquisitive Conviction, Awareness, & Change

Indianapolis, Indiana, USA. BA Thomas is "constantly creating out of my convictions. My work hinges on both texture and tension, weaving particular strains of human suffering and symbolic imagery into cerebral works that confront my viewer with curious reality...Creating these gritty confrontations is how I process my own womanhood, my humanity, and the world around me, but through sharing my work, I aim to bring my viewer into that dialogue and discovery, encouraging inquisitive awareness, conviction, and change." MORE

*****************************

Kolaj Magazine, a full color, print magazine, exists to show how the world of collage is rich, layered, and thick with complexity. By remixing history and culture, collage artists forge new thinking. To understand collage is to reshape one's thinking of art history and redefine the canon of visual culture that informs the present.

SUBSCRIBE | CURRENT ISSUE | GET A COPY

SIGN UP TO GET EMAILS

[123freemoviesfun]

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (2023)

The story centers around an unflinching adventurer and inquisitive archaeologist-researcher who is still in the saddle and using all his impetuous talents to make the future as incredible and impetuous as possible. Right now it's worth using all your impetuous talents to make every day as exciting and interesting as possible. Gradually, it is worth observing all the features of an impetuous and exquisite future. For the first time in one's life, one will have to use one's potential to make each day as impetuous and exquisite as possible. The man will be faced with a very difficult task that is unlikely to be solved. The man will use all of his own positive characteristics to try to demonstrate the true character of the grand Indiana Jones. The man could not give weakness or retreat at the sight of the most hopeless situation, for he has always craved adventure, which brings with it a variety of endless intrigues. Once again the man is reborn and applies all his impetuous talents to make the future as mesmerizing and impressive as possible. Once again, the man is not sitting still, so he seeks with all his might to find delightful adventures.WATCH ONLINE Read the full article

[prosgecko]

meet jocelyn lau // welcome to the island.

the basics //

character name: jocelyn lau  nicknames: josie, jojo, jo  birthdate & zodiac : 3 april 1978 / aries  gender & pronouns : questioning / she & they  sexual orientation: unsure, might be asexual, not sure. occupation : natural history museum curator  ethnicity: hong-kong chinese & white  hometown/birth place : toronto, canada  current town: new york city  secret: they smuggled a chameleon onto the flight family : jae lau ( father ), felicity lau ( † mother ), utp lau ( older brother ), unnamed, three of them ( cousins ) 

trigger warning: death at childbirth ( alluding to, not really mentioned ) 

                    physical appearance & characteristics //

face claim:  jessie mei li eye color:  dark brown hair color: black  glasses/contacts?: no.  dominant hand: mostly right.  height: 1.62 m / 5′2″ tattoos: not yet, she had plans for her first, but you know plane crash. piercings: ears & nose marks/scars: uh josie likely has scars from her pets, because you know reptiles and from just being generally a clumsy individual. 

                                          personality traits //

positive: inquisitive, curious, auspicious negative: vexatious, naive, self-critical alignment: chaotic good

                                deeper dive //

hobbies.

tending to her animals - honestly, she finds so much joy in it and loves when she gets a chance to show off her sanctuary for them !

excursions - she loves, loves going on excursions especially those connected to her line of studies in paleontology 

going to museums - yep, she was the kid that enjoyed museums more than most and enjoyed stopping with every exhibit and reading as much as possible, likely with a hand. 

being social - whilst her hobbies aren’t the most usual, she still does love being social and going out, she just doesn’t necessarily have the same urges as some of her peers. 

                               favorites //

food - tomato soup with a grilled cheese made by her dad 

drink - capri sun or sprite 

movie - jurassic park

song - the tarzan soundtrack 

color - yellow & green 

                              backstory //

though josie never got the chance to meet her mother, she never for a second felt as though her life lacked in love, despite how difficult it must've been for father he never let that show. she certainly has missed and asked questions about her mother at times, both to her father and her older brother, and though at times they weren't in the headspace to talk about her, they always did the best to make sure josie knew who she was. he was a fire chief at their local station and because of this, she spent a lot of time in the firehouse and became somewhat like the station child. she loved it, truthfully, though she never had much of a desire to become a firefighter herself, she definitely enjoyed joining some of their training drills. at one point, she debated becoming a emt because she loved working alongside them from time to time during their training but then, she encountered a real life injury where there was a lot of blood and quickly realized that wasn't the job for her. still, she learned quite a bit during that time. 

but, between watching the magic school bus, jurassic park, indiana jones and lots of steve irwin, josie developed a passion for nature and animals, specifically those of the scaly assortment. josie would spend lots of time visiting the local reptiles at the pet store, the local zoo, etc. and heading to museums around the city, especially the natural history museum. she thought it was the coolest place ever, and through asking lots of questions, josie realized exactly what they wanted to become. 

growing up, her father was always worried about who josie dating and in doing so was always skeptical of a lot of the people that she befriended, but really, dating was the last thing on josie's mind. she enjoyed people's company and that was that, and once this was realized, he started to relax a bit. she did definitely have crushes on people, but none she really did anything about or spoke out about. 

josie was studying on the side of her job and working towards her phd in palentology and through her studies the opportunity arose to travel and join an excursion abroad alongside one of her favorite mentors and she jumped on the opportunity, and was very excited.  

                              wanted connections //

her boss / mentor at the museum

people she annoys, josie can be a lot, she doesn't mean to be, but social cues aren't always her forte 

someone to be reckless with, especially in regards to the nature surrounding them

someone that was seated next to them? whether they noticed the chameleon is open, perhaps they did and thought it was cool? or they were repulsed? who knows! 

someone from the firehouse perhaps? 

fellow museum workers ! i envision her division at work was headed out for some sort of excursion / trip 

people she befriended at the airport before getting on board the flight or during the flight ! 

someone that becomes sort of like a father figure on the island? growing up josie has always been super close to her father, so she'd likely seek out a similar vibe from someone ! 

[roy-dcm2]

Theory - Why No One "Remembers" the Jedi

I've made this argument before, but this is the first time I'm putting it out on Tumblr. Everyone always asks, why no one seems to remember the Jedi in the Original Trilogy when they were around during the Prequel Trilogy.

Here's my fan theory - most people never knew the Jedi.

Let me digress for a moment and ask you an unrelated question, how many people do you know from Gary, Indiana? (I'm not asking the people who actually live in Indiana, btw)

According to Google, there are 73,886 people that live in Gary, Indiana.

I live on the same CONTINENT as the city of Gary, Indiana, and I've never met one person in real life that I know is from Gary, Indiana.

Here's a second question - how many Buddhist do you know?

I know 0, even though there are 4 Million Buddhist living in the United States.

Officially, there are only 10,000 Jedi across the Star Wars Universe, a universe of TRILLIONS.

Most people would never meet a Jedi in their entire life. Some people might have heard that some guy with a glowing sword was part of the Republic Army, but those people were too concerned with surviving the war to actually care if those Jedi had powers or not.

To sum up: People don't "remember" the Jedi, because they never KNEW the Jedi to begin with.

Now, let me talk about some extra background stuff with the Jedi.

After Revenge of the Sith, the Empire painted the Jedi like the Jesuit Priests.

The Jesuits (in their original incarnation) were a branch of Catholicism that did many good deeds, but they also positioned themselves as the "confessors of the powerful." They managed to weasel themselves into the royal courts of Europe to bend the ear of the most influential men on the continent for 200 years.

Eventually, the Jesuits were so pervasive amongst the Elite, that they had to be BANNED and dissolved across all of Europe.

Here's something people don't talk about any more: America used to openly distrust and discriminate against Catholics.

From the outsider's perspective, Catholics look very weird.

They have large ornate temples, and lots of rituals. (Church sermons were conducted in Latin up until the 1960s). Plus, there are the common practitioners, but then there are special members of the Catholic Church - Monks, Priests, and Nuns that are easily identifiable by their unique clothing.

So, just like the Jesuits, the Jedi had positions themselves right next to the Senate, with Chancellor Palpetine often meeting the members of Jedi Council. They are secretive and removed from society like catholic monks.

It was easy for normal people to believe that the Jedi had been secretly plotting to gain control of the Republic since they had already position themselves so close to the people in power, and had been leading the military for three years. It made Palpetine look like a hero for fighting them off.

Of course, the events of Revenge of the Sith were followed by the Purge, as Darth Vader and the Inquisitors sought to eliminate all remaining Jedi.

The Inquisitors are based off the Spanish inquisition. The Spanish Inquisition were religious zealots that were hunting down Muslims and Jews inside of Spain in the 1500s. Just like these Inquisitors are hunting the Jedi.

Like the real world inquisition, the Inquisitors are likely not a branch of the actual army of the Empire. The Inquisition was an extension of the Vatican/ Catholic Church inside of Spain.

The Emperor serves as a Dark Pope that has created the Inquisitors to carry out the purge of the Jedi, those people that tried to assassinate him long ago.

The Spanish Inquisition saw themselves as keeping Spain PURE, while these Inquisitors are maybe convinced that the Jedi really were a threat to the Empire/ Republic. So, the people of the Star Wars Universe tolerate the Inquisitors because they're main goal is to prevent the reemergence of the Jedi, who had plotted to take over everything.