#joel vicious fun

[horrorvillaintourney]

HORROR'S NEXT TOP GENDER, ROUND ONE MATCH EIGHT: Tyrannosaurus Rex (Jurassic Park) vs. Joel (Vicious Fun)

PROPAGANDA FOR THE T REX:

"Trans dinosaurs of Jurassic Park love you so"

PROPAGANDA FOR JOEL:

"he reminds me of every nerdy horror fan trans dude i know includng myself. i also just need more people to watch vicious fun because it fucking rules"

[doomh3ad]

<loser protagonists that get no bitches3

[nexusnyx]

nyx. you just answered you're accepting prompts and i kinda ran here. i read in a prompt list somewhere something along the lines of "i could spend the whole day doing this" but instead of soft things... all i could think about was cockwarming joel?! i'm... yeh. if you could :')

if i could?! allow me. (oh, and tysm for the prompt. i loved it. — main masterlist

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ˗ˏˋ꒰ wrap my lips ꒱

Joel never rushed you to anything. Never begged you for anything, or even did as much as insist — since the day you two met, what you said was a go.

You adored that. Adored him. Adored every inch of what made Joel Miller the stubborn, 'sexy-in-his-own-ways', and earnest man he was. Nothing could ever be above that, you thought, but the thing is—

You hadn't heard him whine before.

Never heard him groaning, and pleading in your ear as if you could ever deny him of anything, and in that second, it was your first time meeting a side of him that left you feeling utterly weak instead of strong.

All Joel had to do was moan your name, and done.

"Baby, fuckin' hell—" he bit his bottom lip, and you watched it, a little transfixed. A lot drunk.

Joel was big. All the weeks taking you to those unusual dates that ended up being the most fun you had in a lifetime and leaving you at your doorstep with polite kisses that heated up each date that passed—all that time, wondering, trying to feel it, knowing deep in your bones that here was exactly where you wanted to be.

You both danced around this for too long, and as thick as he was, you were drenched, because this was Joel.

"'s sooo good, Joel," you sighed, happy out of your mind.

You feel so fucking full, and content. Being on top of him should be the first thing you do in the morning and the last you do at night. This should be the default.

The couple of glasses of wine could hardly be blamed for how lewd you felt when Joel could grind his hips like this.

Your moan must feel good on his ear, because he squeezes your ass and guides your movement, up and down. Holding you so tight you'd end up bruised at this point.

Throwing your head back with another moan, you smile at the thought. His marks all over your body. For someone who's so quiet and chaotic outside of his workplace, Joel could be misunderstood a lot—not by you, though. You were never fooled by that stunning smile and charming personality. You saw the way air carried itself around him.

Joel was not someone to be fucked around with, but god, was he someone that could fuck.

You knew it. You fucking knew it.

"Knew you were good at this, Joel."

His hips falter and Joel's mouth stops its assault on your collarbones, and it's the feeling of his gaze on you that pulls your eyes to him.

"Yeah?" He's panting. Sweat is dripping from his forehead to his temples, and you can see a thin layer of sweat forming on his chest. "Thought about sittin' on me? Hm? About how deep I'd be? If I'd make you feel good, sweetheart?"

It's his voice, but most of all, it's the condescending and cocky way he says it.

All you can do is moan in response the more he elaborates and bounce harder on his cock, the wet, filthy sounds of your bodies meeting together growing louder, and dirtier.

"Fuck, I thought about it, too," Joel cries, putting his face to your shoulder.

He slowed down his movements, much to your despair, but no matter how much you wanted to pick up the pace again, Joel's grip on your waist was vicious as he shushed you to "slow down, baby, slow down."

Joel went back to sucking on your neck as if he got something out of it, grinding his dick deep in slow, but hard thrusts, and you wondered between high-pitched moans and sighs of his name if Joel was a masochist.

"I wanna cum, Joel, I wanna cum," you begged.

"I'll make you cum, baby, just shhh," the way he circled in hips next made you cry out, and Joel chuckled underneath you. The sound was mean, and you could swear it made you wetter, if that could even happen.

It took you a few seconds before the peak your body was going for dwindled, but you got what he meant.

Joel savored being inside of you, and it drove you crazier than the quick, rough bounces you chased only a few moments ago. With a particular hard thrust, Joel simply snaps you—

white, and hot, your orgasm hits you so hard it makes your legs tremble and your arms to grip around his neck for support, but Joel talks you through it, peppering your face with kisses.

When the feeling comes back to your legs and, eventually, to how full you still are, all you wanna do is be there forever.

"I could spend the whole day doing this, Joel."

"You will." His own breathing sounded needier. "You'll keep me in you, is that it? Wanna keep me inside you for as long as you can?"

The thought makes your moan turn almost into a scream.

"Be good and cum again. Soak my cock again, and I'll cum for you."

Joel had a way of getting what he wanted.

He never rushed you to anything, but then again, he never needed to.

He talked you through it, and then talked you out of it, and if needed, Joel guided you personally — with his mouth, his fingers, his face— with any part of him he could, he was there. All over you.

[sinsofsummers]

sinsofsummers masterlist

what am i listening to while writing?? aka songsofsummers.

find my fics & turn on notifs for my sideblog to know when i post!

all fics will be/are 18+. smutty fics to come. beware and be aware. mdni. read the warnings!! i do my best to get them all, but let me know if i miss any!

🌻 = newest: up to a week old.

⏱️ = upcoming within a week!

requests are: closed!!!

joel miller

sensational | part two | 🌻 part three

summary: thanks to becoming an orphan at age 13, you've lived the rest of your life oblivious to all the world can offer. now that you're in jackson, joel miller ignites something in you that only he can give answers to.

cool about it

summary: it’s that day again. you don’t know why joel’s so withdrawn, but you help him manage it in the best way you know how. based on ‘cool about it’ by boygenius.

vicious (requested)

summary: joel fucks you with his gas mask on.

undone

summary: joel worships the day you went braless to his fourth of july party.

din djarin

🌻 push & pull

summary: you show din djarin how to have fun. this is the way. (complete mando au, does not follow canon at all.)

marc spector

insatiable

summary: giving marc head at any and all times of the day is your version of fun.

[kaihuntrr]

The Sea Prince: The ‘Red King’, Noblemen, and Hunters.

After exactly 3 months(?) of posting the first batch of designs, I’m finally able to send the second batch! TIES and their lore would be last, since they aren’t hunters- it feels right to finish up the Canaries, especially with the prologue coming out soon.

Closeups and lore under the cut as always, hope you enjoy!

They were so much fun to design! I wanted to reference other smps they were involved in, and try to make them stand out! While I am taking from Pirates SMP as inspiration, Cleo and Scar’s designs come from my interpretations before Pirates came out <3

Let’s start out from the individuals!

‘The Nobles’, children from high places.

A fun fact about all of them is that they come from relatively rich families! Be it in how they dress or act, they have a sense of formality. It was also a way to ‘separate’ them from the other hunters since they weren’t in the latest series :D

‘Ren Dogwarts.’

The suave and charming former leader of the Kestrels, Ren’s heart is as golden as the jewelry he wears. He claims to be related to the King, and dubs himself as the ‘Red King’ to take down the sea monsters in his name. He loves his crew, and loved Martyn much more. His feelings begin to waver when the blonde’s loyalty changes. He knew Martyn loved his former crew, but… their relationship tensed as the fateful day arrived. Now that he’s dead, Martyn’s heart is pained with guilt.

The red coat he wears is a supposed gift from the King, the hat and feather a gift from the Kestrels. The tie he wore is similar to the bandana Martyn wears, as if it were the same item.

‘Mumbo Jumbo.’

A nobleman and childhood friend of Grian’s, he spends his time researching about the different monsters they come across and report his findings to the Doctor, the royal inventor. He is very analytical, coming up with theories for certain creature behaviors and is very much not a fighter compared to other hunters. Due to his connection to Doc and his time in the military, the crew found themselves personally hired by the King.

He has a telescope he keeps with him at all times. It was a gift from Jimmy. Mumbo used to joke about throwing it away, but it’s the most precious item he owns.

‘Lizzie Shadow.’

The inheritor of her parents’ pearl industry, she’s taking her time away from all of that to be with the Canaries. It’s not that she wants to run away from her responsibilities- but she’d rather face her fears of the ocean and truly conquering it before coming home. She acts as a pseudo captain to the crew, and is grateful for all the support she’s been given.

She wears a coat similar to Grian and Joel, and is decorated in pearls. She wears her engagement ring with pride, and ties some of her hair up in a braided hair tie. She taught Jimmy how to make those when he was younger.

‘Clockers’, the hunter-born.

Found family! All of their parents died when they were tweens, so they stuck by each other ever since. They’re a little chaotic, but they have essential roles in the crew.

‘Cleo Zombie.’

Level-headed and headstrong, they’re the stable wall in the Canaries. She uses her previous naval experience as an advantage against the vicious sea monsters. She feels linked to Martyn, being someone to ground him in his messy thoughts, but her focus is on Scar and Bdubs. Those two always get into trouble, and there are times she’d want to join in on the fun.

Her scars are stitched and healing, and she has a Heron necklace from her time in the group. She has a big pocket watch she keeps on her at all times, tied to string on her waist.

‘Scar Goodtimes.’

Living life to the fullest means you have to be ready to face the consequences head on. Nicknamed for the many scars on his body, the man embraces it all with a smile and a hunger for more. Nothing keeps him down, and with his boundless energy, nothing ever will. He keeps the morale high and uplifts anyone in times of need, but even he was distraught when the third captain died.

He wears a bandana as a gift from Cleo and a big pocket watch as a gift from Bdubs. He wears a small parrot feather earring from Grian, and sometimes absentmindedly stares at it with a sense of longing.

‘Bdubs.’

The feistiest of the Canaries since Jimmy, he has a bit of a rebellious streak. Either by sneaking out to meet with Impulse, or coming up with outlandish ideas, he’s a bit unhinged but his heart is in the right place. He’s brave and tough, but sometimes he worries he isn’t doing enough. Whatever- if his crew appreciates him for who he is, that’s enough.

He, like Cleo and Scar, has a big pocket watch he keeps on his belt. He has a knife at the ready and a sword necklace he got as a gift from Impulse. He treasures it dearly.

-

Everyone has their place in the crew, and together they are the Canaries. Favored by the King and thrusted upon the opportunity of a lifetime, their only goal now is to show they can do the task given despite how crazy it sounds.

They’re determined to give it all.

But what will happen if their target was right in front of them all this time? Will they ever see him the same way again?

Or were they nothing but playthings?

The prologue, ‘Hide & Seek’, is coming soon. Ready or not, here they come.

[joelsgreys]

🍂 joelsgreys weekly recap 🍂

hello friends! this week was a doozy, but i’m glad that i still got to sit down and read a bit. not much to say other than: THANK YOU to all the writers in the community for treating us to such amazing works.

fic recs

here’s some of what i read this week, in no particular order! not all fics i read are halloween themed so here’s the key below.

🎃 indicates halloween themed fic.

🔥 indicates smut, please be sure to heed all tags/warnings by the author, all blogs and works are 18+ only, MINORS DNI.

to freeze or to thaw by @joelscruff 🔥

Dark Joel Miller x Female Reader

Summary: Joel stole you away to be his special girl.

tender is the night [for a broken heart] by @hier--soir

Ex Boyfriend Joel Miller x Female Reader

Summary: a birthday dinner gets interrupted by a drunk ex, who still can't say the words you need to hear.

looking back by @eupheme 🔥

Joel Miller x Female Reader

Summary (kinda): “Fuck. I need you.” He rasps - an edge to his voice, “Would you let me look at you, honey? Just let me look.”

trick or treat by @tieronecrush 🔥🎃

Joel Miller x Wife Reader

Summary: it's halloween and Joel’s taking your girls trick-or-treating with you in a family costume. feeling uncomfortable in his clothes and his skin, he's on edge most of the evening but does his best to disguise it in order to not spoil the fun. back at home, when his girls lightheartedly tease him about everything he already thought about himself, you're sure to end the night showing joel exactly how you feel about him and his body.

creep it real! by @swiftispunk 🔥🎃

DBF Joel Miller x Female Reader

Summary: a masked angel. a rugged cowboy. you're the answer to Joel's prayers...until he realizes who you are.

birds of a feather by @softlyspector

Joel Miller & Sarah Miller

Summary: Sarah is going to kindergarten. Joel is forced to reckon with his differences with the other parents.

Divine Dynasty THE PREQUEL by @cavillscurls

AU Mafia Joel Miller x Female Reader

Summary: Joel graciously hosts your twenty-first birthday party at his estate. You are both finally forced to acknowledge the feelings you have been harboring for one another.

Chapter Five of Deliver Me From Nowhere by @atinylittlepain

Joel Miller x OFC Reader

Again, no summary but this series is insanely amazing.

Hallow’seams by @fuckyeahdindjarin 🎃

Joel Miller x Female Reader

Summary: Joel proves to you that he can be adventurous if he wants to be.

A HEART FOR EATING by @narxisus

Joel Miller x Female Reader

vol. 2

Series Summary: a vicious raider attack robs you of human connection and lights a fire of destruction in your life in jackson. Joel's fixated on you, and your lives tangle. revenge becomes a needful thing.

Red Light by @kiwisbell 🔥

Dark Landlord Joel Miller x Female Reader

Summary: The men you keep bringing home are no good for you. It's up to your landlord Joel to protect you from heartbreak.

chapter two of a lover’s pinch by @hier--soir 🔥

Professor Joel Miller x Female Reader

Summary: will a complicated realisation drive you and Joel apart, or drag you closer together?

Juniper by @softlyspector 🔥

Joel Miller x Female Reader

Summary: You're sleepy. Joel knows a good way to put you to sleep.

beautiful halloween divider by @saradika 🤍

[aliorsboxostuff]

ok so imagine ftm reader x joel in the apocalypse. because i just know being trans in an apocalypse is NOT fun. you can make the prompt however specific as you want but i just thought that would be such a cool and interesting idea for a fic. :)

A/N: GOD ANON SUCH A GOOD IDEA yk i'm gonna put a bit of my own experience as a trans man (that went through 7 hrs of a con w binders on… *shivers*). As always, please excuse the mistakes as english is my 2nd language and enjoy Anon!

Join You.

Tags: HBO Joel Miller x ftm!Reader, Reader uses He/Him pronouns, Trans and in an apocalypse? Can't get any worse, oh wait yes it can, Binding struggles, fluff, meet-cute(?), Do you count meeting a dad and his kid cute?, maybe, It’s Joel and Ellie of course they’re cute, meeting, humor, Snarky!Ellie, tired-dad!Joel, soft ending, no angst, maybe a bit, it is EP.3 after all, slight OOC

[Starts from the end of Ep.3 of The Last of Us] Meeting a stone-cold man and his curious stray kid wasn't really on your apocalypse agenda, neither was falling in love with him. But then again, when has life ever gone your way? Hell, even god fucked up from when you were born, mixed up the damn gender. So here you are, helping him and his kid ready themselves to head to Wyoming, while you hitch a ride. Maybe it’ll do you some good, finally finding company with another human being

—

God why was it so hot?

While you keep hauling what remains of your backpack through the path, the sun beats down on you. Despite pulling off your hoodie, now left in only a shirt, the heat threatens to boil you whole. The sides of your binder digs in slightly and it makes moving another endeavor. The two bottles of water inside your bag are quickly diminishing with every break you take, now only half of one bottle remains.

You groan, eyes becoming hazy with every blink, when suddenly, you spot a chain-linked fence meters in front of you. A shot of energy courses through you as hope rises, quickly jogging to the area while you wave your hands, but trying not to make a sound in case any infected comes running by. 

You stopped just shy of the chain link, glancing at the high-voltage sign. You've been electrocuted once, you're not about to get electrocuted twice. You opted to look around instead, glancing at the various put-together houses, and the church in the far corner of the neighborhood. Despite the leaves littering the streets, flowers bloomed encircling the town's middle. You turn your head to find a way in, maybe a chance for you to vault over without getting burned, or maybe dig underneath-

"Turn around." 

You freeze. The hairs on your nape start to rise, heart rate following suit as a bead of sweat drops. "Turn around, and drop your bag. Slowly." 

You gulp, carefully moving one foot and the other until you fully turn, now face to face with a gun trained at your head, behind it, a man with eyes sharp enough to cut through skin is ready to pull the trigger at sight. Your eyes cautiously glance at the girl behind him, the same vicious stare with a sharp knife in her hand. 

As instructed, you slip your backpack and hear it hit the ground, before the man tilts his head, indicating for you to kick it away, and so you did. 

"Drop your weapons,"

"I don't have a gun," Your voice wavers, hands shaking slightly as it hovers beside you, a surrender you’re hopeful the man will take. He doesn't. 

"Drop anything other than a gun, then," He leaves no room for negotiations. You blink, before taking out the pocket knife and knuckle dusters from your pocket, throwing them to his direction. The guy raises his brow at the items and you shrug, still hesitant despite trying to appear nonchalant. 

With the gun still aimed at you, he picks both of the weapons up, storing them, before he stands again. "What's in the bag?" 

"Some… Canned food, water bottles, a lighter, other stuff," 

"How did you find this place?"

"I just…" Now that, you wondered yourself. You remembered leaving your group when a sketchy religious guy showed up and everyone started preaching to him, going nowhere in particular, just out of the growing conservative group and somewhere safe. Wandering for weeks before stumbling here, thinking you finally found another group willing to accept your scrappy ass. "I don't know, I don't even know this place existed, I was wandering around then came across…" You tilted your head back to the fence.

A pause. The man then speaks in a hushed tone with the girl, before they both nodded, the girl evidently less cautious after the whispers. "Empty your bag." 

You did as so, slowly reaching for the pack and unlatching the top, turning it upside down and letting the contents drop. Bottles, food, plasters, your lighter, a torch, other knick-knacks you couldn't resist picking up, all falling to the ground. When a flutter of paper falls, the girl perks slightly, before she retreats when you noticed. "I-I'm alone-"

"How do we know you're alone?" 

Your eyes looked around before you shrug. "I… Got separated from my group. A weird guy joined us and separated some people, and he uh… Kicked me out. Im alone, I promise, I don't have anyone following me from my group or from… Anywhere,"

Another pause. He seems to turn the info around his mind, before he looks back at the girl, she only does the same.

"Alright." He nods, eyeing the clutter on the ground. "Walk, slowly, away from the fence." 

Taking steps away from the chain until your position and the man change, you stand far from the fence while he and the girl stands just a meter away. He nods to the girl and she nods back. Now, her dark eyes are focused on you, while the man unlocks the gate to the place. 

"What's with the book?" She jerks to the opened pages on the ground.

"Just a journal. Keeps the mind sane," She hums, then you hear a click of the fence being opened. The man ushers the girl in, before he looks back at you, standing defenseless outside just meters away, disheveled and wary. He huffs.

"Get in here, quick," 

Your face beams. "Thank you, so much," You breathe before picking up your bag and contents, then jogging inside and the man locks the gate again. 

The neighborhood looks as if lived in, despite the run-down houses except one that stands grand and white a couple of streets down. "You two live here?"

"No, someone we know does," The girl answers. The man begins walking to the house, the girl following loosely behind him, before she turns.

She still has a hint of caution in her eyes, yet she asks, "What's your name? I'm Ellie, that's Joel," 

"Pleasure meeting you Ellie, Joel," Ellie grins, Joel doesn't turn. You give her your name, at which she smiles before looking past you.

"Do you write often?" 

"Just for fun, nowhere to publish it anyways," 

She nods. "What do you write about?"

"Stuff I see, birds, leafs, interesting flowers I pass by," You begin walking towards the house as well, following them. "I have pressed dried flowers in there," 

"Pressed dried? Like you have dead flowers in your journal?"

"Sure," You grin as she chuckles, turning around when Joel opens the house's gates and motions for Ellie to stop, so you do too.

"I'm checking inside first. You-" His eyes meets yours, you gulp. "Stay here, look out for any infected," 

"In here? This is basically a fortress," 

"Once I'm done, then I'll call you," You only nod, afraid to aggravate Joel even further. You'd hate to appear annoying to a man that offered you safety. 

Minutes pass, you idle outside, taking in the scenery. There are flowers in fitted pots, already dry and dying. The fence that surrounds the house Joel and Ellie still looks put together, the paint scraping would indicate age but otherwise looks fine. There's a brown garage door off the side. You wonder if it stored any vehicles. 

Suddenly, Joel storms outside, making you jump. His otherwise stoic face has a sheen layer of pain, of apprehension, before you spotted a piece of paper in his hand. His eyes meet yours for a brief second, before he turns and crumples the paper. You stand to the side, nearing the gates, while Joel takes his time gathering himself. The urge to ask, to comfort, almost overwhelms you before he speaks. "Help me check the car,"

A key dangles in his hand, and you follow suit. He opens the garage door, and you move to the back of what looks like a covered car. Sure enough, once you and Joel pull the cover up, a blue pick-up comes into view. "Nice," you smooth your hand on the rear door. Then suddenly, a sharp bang from the front, Joel closes the engine harder than needed. You gulp.

Contemplation appears on Joel's face again. You didn't dare to move. His eyes search the room, until it lands on something out of your view, on top of a refrigerator. His eyes track down, then he stalks to said fridge and opens it. Seems like he finds what he was looking for and Joel closes it back.

“You can't come with us.”

“What?” It sounded small, way too small to your liking, until you realized it was your voice.

“We’re going to Wyoming, either way there’s no space for-”

“Please, Joel,” You find yourself leaning towards him, your knuckles white on the trunk of the car. “I don't- I have nowhere to go,” Joel opens his mouth to interject before you continue; “And I'm not asking to join you, and Ellie. I just…” You inhale sharply.

“Please let me go with you two, to Wyoming. Then just leave me there.” You blink the growing panic back down. “Just a ride. Then I'll be off your backs. I promise,” 

The man standing meters away from you, hand still firmly on the edge of the fridge, eyes dark and stone cold, ponders over your words. You can practically feel the consideration, the slight glance from him when he meets your eyes, before he turns to the door, then back to you. “Just a ride,”

“Just a ride. You have my word.”

Then, painstakingly slow, he nods then walks to exit the garage, making you exhale a relief breath. "Check the fuel, I'll go check on Ellie," 

You simply nodded as he exited the garage. You go and check the fuel from the meter inside the car first, then find it empty. For safety reasons, you think. So you check around the garage for any fuel canisters. You found a couple behind some boxes, so you pulled them out to ready them when Joel needs it.

You deem it enough snooping around so you return to the house, just in time to hear Ellie ask, "So what now?" 

You knock on the door lightly, to alert the two, and Ellie glances at you. You two share a look at Joel, before he huffs. “We grab what we can,” 

He passes you, taking note of your curiosity, before he goes through the house with you and Ellie in tow. He goes through a couple of rooms, before he pulls at a hatch and it gives in, a staircase leading to what you presume was a basement. 

Upon entering, the room is lit up with working LEDs. You and Ellie spotted the wall of guns first, you blowing a low whistle. “Ho-ly shit.” Ellie’s eyes were on the many firearms mounted neatly.

“This guy’s a genius,” She grins and looks around. Your hand reaches for a mounted shock gun, almost touching it, before you retreat when you hear Joel messing with the other things in the room. You noted a steady hum of music, something you could recognize but not pinpoint. Ellie turns to walk over to where Joel was looking at the monitors.

“Why was the music on?”

“If he didn't reset the countdown every few weeks,” His eyes went over something. “This playlist would run over the radios,”

“‘80s…” The two share a look of realization, you can visibly see Joel gulp.

“Grab some cans from over there,” Joel points behind him. “Nothin’ dented, or swollen,” He mainly points it out to Ellie as she moves, but his eyes linger on you so you also get moving.

“Dude,”

“No.” You turn around to spot Ellie standing near the wall of firearms. 

“There’s a wall of them,” And she’d be right, but Joel only fixed her a stare that made her nod in defeat, almost making you giggle. Joel goes back to the monitors while you and Ellie search through the cans.

You’ve emptied most of the top shelves, leaving the clearly dented ones, while Ellie picked apart the bottom half, looking at each label with fascination. Once you’ve got your pack full, you crouch near her when she looks at one with interest. 

“‘Chef Boyardee’,” You smile as she turns to you. “They got great taste,” 

“Is this what you all eat?” She asks both you and Joel as she turns to face him. “Like, before the infection thing,”

“Well, most foods weren't in cans, if that's what you’re asking,” You absentmindedly pick at one of the cans' labels, already peeling. “Big shops, grocery stores, would sell raw stuff so you can cook them,”

“Cook anything?” Her eyes gleam, making you huff out a chuckle. 

“Sure, as long as there's a recipe, I for one can't cook for shit,” She chuckles, before putting the can into her bag. As you and Ellie make your way upstairs, you pass Joel whose eyes soften as you let Ellie climb up first.

Ellie found a bag and she scurries off to shove toilet paper in it. You made your way into the bathroom to find the medicine cabinet fully stocked. “Fuck yeah,” 

You grab all that your arms can fit and run back to where Ellie was emptying the storage room. Setting all the medicine and emergency kit into the bag, you head back to look under the sink of the bathroom to find a couple of tampons and pads. Another victory. As you reach your hand into the cabinet, a roll of body tape falls out. Checking back to hear Ellie's busy with her work, you stuff the tape into your pocket and head out with the packs of pads and tampons.

Ellie looks up from where she’s hunched inside the storage area. “Hell yeah,” She nods as you stuff the packs into the bag.

Joel emerges from the bunker and heads upstairs just as you and Ellie finish filling up the bag. Ellie follows Joel and so do you, still contemplating what the girl is to Joel or who Joel is to Ellie. Though you shrug it off when Joel opens a door into a worn room, decorations vary on the walls but he beelines into, what you presume, is a closet. He opens it and looks around, clicking a light on, before he settles on a box and pulls it out, setting it on the bed.

The box is labeled ‘Women's shirt, SM-MED’ so Ellie looks through it. She pulls out a red shirt that she fits over her front to make sure, before she glances at you. You only nod in approval, giving her a thumbs up, making her grin and set the article aside.

Joel emerges with a box labeled ‘Long Sleeve Shirts’ and goes back in. You stood opposite of Ellie between the bed, hesitant to touch the box, before Ellie took it first and opened it. She notices your hovering hand and falters on the flaps. “Oh, you wanna take this one?”

“Those won't fit him,” Joel barks from inside the closet, almost making you jump. But instead, his tone is like poking fun at you, so you roll your eyes, huffing.  

“Haha, real funny man,” Your hand reaches back for the box Ellie was opening, before another box abruptly drops next to your hand, affectionately labeled ‘Mens shirt, SM-MED’.

“This could,” His eyes met yours before he ducks back into the closet. 

You stand, almost in shock, elevated from both relief and happiness as it blooms inside you. The box is still closed, sitting just far from you, and the label almost makes your eyes gloss. You swallow a heavy lump, before you notice Ellie's fleeting glance from you to the box, then back to you. “Go ahead dude, those would be way too big for me,” She shrugs.

And so you went through the box and picked out the articles you deemed good enough to fit your form. 

After sorting through the box of clothes, the three of you make your way into the garage. You stand near the door in order to not step in Joel's way while Ellie pokes around, but if you were being honest with yourself, you just wanted to admire the dynamic between Ellie and Joel. Joel has found an all-purpose charger, hooking it up to the car battery. After a minute, the charger begins to work as he surveys it. “Needs another hour,”

“They have hot water!” Ellie cheers as she turns on a faucet from the other end of the room. “I’m takin’ a shower,” She declares as she begins to make her way to where you're standing.

“Then you’re showering, cuz’ seriously,” She huffs, making a disgruntled face at Joel, which made you chuckle. Joel only deadpans as she moves past you. “You too!” She hauls back as she absentmindedly points in your direction.

That made both of your eyebrows shoot up, sputtering for an answer. Your eyes briefly meet Joels, a slight smirk tugging on his lips, before you yourself huffed out a laugh. “I should…” You falter, unable to think of an excuse, before jogging to join Ellie in the house.

Ellie finished her shower quickly, clad in the red shirt she picked and the long sleeves she must've taken out of the box. When she exits the room to find you waiting in the hallway, your pile of clothes a bit taller than her, and arches a brow. “A lot of layers,”

“I get cold easily,” You shrug, making her nod and promptly go downstairs. 

After making sure the door locks, you start to discard your tattered clothes, pulling out your hoodie to also discard it, sticky with grime and dirt. You carefully set your binder on the sink and finally relish the feeling of steady water beating down your body.

Once you’re dry with a towel hanging on your hips, you take out the body tape and fasten a makeshift binder, not too tight to avoid any mishaps. Your dirty binder has been washed under the faucet, so it's now wrung dry enough to be in a plastic bag and shoved into your pack. You put your hair in a towel wrap while you put on deodorant, then the clothes you picked out, zipping up the pants and fastening a belt around it. Pulling on the top, then a t-shirt over it, before a jacket to top it off. You pull off the towel from your hair, leaving it damp enough for it to dry in the wind.

As you walk to the door, a mirror stands just next to it. You spot your reflection, no longer with streaks of dried blood and dirt, hair array from days without proper cleaning. A man with deep eye bags but an otherwise put-together demeanor stares back. You smile, arranging your drying hair a bit, before exiting the room. 

You meet Ellie downstairs, looking around and touching the various items scattered about the still-warm house. You make your way to the dining table, and the unfinished food on the table makes a gnawing feeling in your gut appear. Not the rotting stench, but something significant happened here, if you could judge the wine glasses sat neatly next to each other, now supporting dust instead of its usual amber contents. You swallow down the feeling of what has happened and instead take a seat in the vacant area of the table, pointedly away from the rotting food. As Ellie paces around, you take out your book, flipping through the pages of various notes and entries you’ve written.

You pick out one dried lily you pressed months ago. “See? Dead flowers,” Ellie turns to you, before she spots the flower you’re holding and chuckles.

“There's a lot out front y’know,” She adds. You hum and nod, before returning back to your pages. 

Joel enters the house just as you turn a page. You smile, nodding to the stairs behind the dividing wall. “Showers all yours,” You said. He assesses you, taking a second too long which makes you break eye contact, our eyes back to your book, a steady heat growing on your face. Then he glances at Ellie before he nods and heads to the stairs. Ellie gives you a look once, twice, before she smirks and continues her poking. 

A couple of minutes passes, before you hear a sequence of steps, a muffled ‘oh shit’ maybe coming from Ellie, then you pick your head up from the deep pages and find Ellie standing in front of Joel, combed back curls, highlighting his steadily graying edges, beard shaved neatly, a fitting plaid t-shirt and dark jeans are what he picked from the box, it seems. “Well, don't you look pretty,”

“I agree,” Ellie joins before you can explode from the embarrassing compliment you sputter out. 

“Shut up,” Joel answers, throwing the deodorant you wore earlier into Ellie’s hands. You don't miss the tint of red on Joel's ears, highlighted by the sun coming from the front door. 

“Nice,” She begins to put it on, before you gape. 

“Wait, you didn't put it on?”

“What, I didn't see it!” She retorts, putting the cap back on. 

“Ellie, ew,” The girl throws the deodorant at you, which you caught easily, both of you giggling. 

“Come on you two,” Joel huffs from the door. Ellie quickly puts her pack on as you put your book inside yours, securing it on your back. 

You help Joel with the gear on the pick-ups tub, making sure it’s secured and putting the water-proof tarp over it. Joel and Ellie get in the car as you open the garage door, then slide in yourself into the back seat. Ellie’s eyes practically shine as she prods at the car's dashboard, pulling down the vanity mirror, then messing with the rearview before she pushes it, promptly displaying you in the backseat and Joel next to her.

“It’s your first time in a car?” He stares at the curious girl.

“It’s like a spaceship,” She answers, still in a trance as she prods at the AC flap. 

“No, it's like a piece of shit Chevy S10,” Joel’s answer makes you chuckle from the back seat, rearranging your pack. “But it’ll get us there, I think.”

“Seatbelt,” Ellie turns to Joel, a slight confusion in her eyes, before Joel sighs and pulls the belt over her then hands the rest to Ellie. “Seatbelt.”

She grins, then clicks the seatbelt in place. “So cool,”

You grin from where you’re sat, Joel spotting you from the rearview mirror, your eyes meet briefly which makes you duck your head, settle into the seat and promptly look out the window. Joel starts the car and it hums to life, you can feel the engine purring from the recharged battery and fuel. 

Ellie fumbles and opens the compartment under her, pulling out a cassette tape. Joel notices the girl grinning from what she found. “Would ya leave it,”

“Put it back. Ellie,” Joel's exasperated tone only spurs Ellie more as she slides it into the radio, already pressing play. Your grin matches Ellie's as a melody begins to fill the car, eyes on the various houses you pass. Ellie clearly doesn't recognize the song, her hand reaching for the stop or skip button, before Joel perks up.

“No, no, leave it. This is good,” He says, turning the car to where the gate is meters away. “This is Linda Ronstadt, y’know who Linda Ronstadt is?”

“You know I don't know who Linda Ronstadt is,” Her deadpan expression makes you chuckle, leaning into the comfy seat as you settle into the song. Joel, as if looking for support, spots you from the rearview and arches a brow. You only shrug with a smile on your lips, nodding. 

“Oh man,” Joel glances at the radio, the gate already in front of the car.

“Eh, it's better than nothing,” Ellie smiles, glancing out to the glowing fields, the evening sun already basking its shine on the earth. You sigh, entranced by the singer's voice, clearly to Joel's liking. He pushes the code for the gate and it opens. He puts the remote back, and advances forward, into the road in front.

—

It's been months since your first meeting with Joel and Ellie.

Now, settled into Jacksons easy living commune, you live just next door to Joels and Ellies.

You remembered when they both left some weeks ago, something about looking for a lab, but you didn't catch why. You remembered the way Ellie clung to you as they were getting ready to leave. She's grown fond of you, sharing the same humor and references, even if you’re still years older than her. So when her hands shook as it digs into your jacket, you pull her closer as well, letting her bury her head into the crook of your neck. Then you pressed a kiss on her forehead, mumbled ‘Stay safe,’ before she let go then headed to her horse. Then there was Joel.

Joel, who you were once scared of. Who you helped with gathering wood for the fire. Who you shared breakfast with the morning after leaving those houses. Who you caught smirking at Ellie's joke. Who you ran with when Wyoming went to shit. Who let you stay with him and Ellie without you asking, moving through that insane city until you found the brothers. Who you watched bury them when Sam turned. Who was the gracious ticket that let you into Jacksons. 

Whom you’ve grown feelings for. 

When he was about to leave, you were hesitant to touch him. Anything beyond a helping hand on his arm or shoulder was a breach, so you’ve always kept your hand to yourself. That's what you thought until Joel pulls you into him, almost pushing all of the oxygen out of you. You returned the embrace with equal strength, blinking away the worry gathering in your eyes. It lasted long enough before he pulled back and joined Ellie on the horse. The massive gates opened just slightly, before the two exits, unknown to you how long they’ll leave. Or if they’ll even come back.

But they did, with the two closer than ever.

Now, the three of you simply live in Jacksons. A shout away from each other. Sometimes Ellie would come by, unannounced of course, and hang on your couch while you do chores. Sometimes she’ll look around your collection of books that you salvaged from each import of stuff every month. She’ll find something that interests her and borrow it, bringing it back to her house. On the rare chance that you cook, she’ll stay to eat, asking if you made the food yourself or if it came from a recipe. You'd bat at her arm, saying ‘Of course it’s from a recipe Ellie, y’know I’ll burn the house down.’ And she'll laugh.

Sometimes she brings Joel over. He stays for coffee while Ellie is busy with something. Sometimes you two talk, about something or nothing. About the on-goings of Jacksons. About your shift at the community school and theater. About his shifts on patrols and fixing up old buildings for repurposes. Sometimes just to sit and drink, basking in the pure joy of watching Ellie scuttle around, finding things of interest, and asking you questions about your latest project. Those times are when he’ll shuffle closer, hesitant near your lax stance as you laugh at what Ellie said. He’ll put his cup down and carefully, oh so slowly, brush his hands against yours, and you’ll blink, red steadily growing up your neck. You smile then, relaxing your hand, letting Joel set the pace. Then finally, in the privacy of your house, between Joel and you, he laces his fingers with yours, the warmth of his hands burns yours. But you endure, even welcoming his slightly shaking hold, and you’ll squeeze tight. You turn your head to meet Joel's dark browns, the creases on the side of his eyes dent slightly as he smiles, and you smile too, dropping your head to his broad shoulder. 

Then Ellie would look at your entwined hands and scoff. “That's so gay,” 

Joel would immediately cross his arms while he retorts that she is also gay, and Ellie would quip back another snarky response. You’d laugh, holding your middle and trying not to stumble from where you stand. 

Requests are open

[mermaidgirl30]

Look for the Light Chapter 21

- Summary: Aly finds herself trying to escape the Boston QZ. What Aly doesn’t know is Tess is pairing her up with Joel to go on a dangerous mission to find Tommy. Will Aly survive the brooding, moody Joel or will she find herself falling hard for him?

- Tags: Torture, murder, angst, 18+ MDNI

You stood there frozen in the middle of the room looking between Joel and David. Joel looked like he was about to lose it as he watched you with concerned eyes. And David just smirked at you, trying to make you as uncomfortable as humanly possible. You tried to keep your eyes on Joel, but David pulled you away as his voice came out in a low rasp.

“Look at you. Standing there with fear in those pretty eyes. Thinking about your time here, princess? Why don’t you tell Joel about all the fun we had while he wasn’t here to save you.” A devilish grin pulled at the corners of his mouth, and he was staring at you with hungry eyes. Eyes that were about to eat you alive.

You wanted to be sick. You felt like running out and never coming back. You had to do this though. You had to end this. And it had to be you. Not Joel, but you. You gulped and stared back at him, trying not to lose control.

“Did you tell him how we played a little game of cat and mouse, and how I dragged you out from your little hiding spot under the bed?”

He stared at you, eyes glowing from the joy of bringing back those nightmare memories. You could see Joel in the corner shift closer to David, trying to get you to focus on him. You couldn’t break your gaze from David though.

He continued to taunt you. “Did you tell him how we played Russian roulette, and how I choked you out on the pool table?” His laughter grew into a roar as he was laughing at your trauma.

Tears pooled at your eyes as one tear escaped, running down your cheek. You felt as if the weight of the room was about to collapse down on top of you and bury you alive. The room grew cold as you shivered in place.

“Alright that’s enough!” Joel growled as he pulled on David’s collar, slamming his fist into the side of his jaw. Blood spewed from his mouth, but he just laughed it off. He was psychotic, deranged.

“Aly, don’t listen to him. He’s only trying to get a reaction out of you,” Joel said as he looked at you with pleading eyes.

“Tell him how it felt as I dragged the blade down your arm as your warm blood ran down your body. How you completely surrendered yourself to me as I told you Joel was dead, and he didn’t give a shit about what happened to you.” Another laugh escaped his mouth, carrying it into a low shriek to a high pitched wail.

Joel took the knife from his pocket and jammed the blade into David’s palm, the knife cutting all the way through the skin as the tip of the blade showed from the top of his hand. He screamed in agony but kept a smile on his face, staring unbearably into your scared eyes.

“You’re lucky I haven’t just ended your pathetic life already. Now stop taunting her!” Joel screamed into David’s ear, his face so red you could see the veins bulging from his neck.

“That’s right. I am lucky, lucky to be alive to see those sad, scared eyes of Aly’s as I scrape every detail back into her mind.” David’s eyes turned cold as he stared back at you, his eyes haunting your mind.

You couldn’t take it anymore. Couldn’t take the weight of his eyes. You closed your eyes so tight you thought you’d topple over. Panic washed over you in a wave. Fear consuming every sense of being in your body. You remembered every single horror of this place. Remembered every stolen, forced touch to your body. Remembered how you thought Joel wasn’t coming back for you.

He doesn’t care about you. He abandoned you. He’s never coming back for you. David’s vicious words rang through your head, confusing your own mind. You couldn’t think straight, couldn’t do anything but stand there and be paralyzed by your own fear. The words taunting you over and over again as you tried to escape your own mind.

You got lost in your thoughts, sinking back deeper under the water as David pulled you down. Deeper and deeper. You drowned out the sounds around you. The only thing you heard was the shallow noise as you tried to catch your breath.

Slow ringing sounded through your ears as you tried to escape the noise. All you could see was black. All you could think was to run, but you were stuck in place. Blinded by fear as it enraptured you.

“Aly!” Joel shouted, but you couldn’t respond. Could barely hear him as you were in a far away place. He tried again. “Aly!” He sounded closer, his voice getting louder as it rang through your ears.

“Alyson.” His voice was so soft, so gentle. It called to you like a siren song. It was captivating, enchanting. It was like a melody that you wanted to hear played over and over again as it drew you to him.

His hands softly wrapped around your arms, and a tall shadow stood in front of you. “Open your eyes.” The sound of his voice came out quiet but urgent as he pulled you out of the dark once again.

You slowly opened your eyes as the darkness turned into light. Joel stood in front of you, blocking your vision from David. He looked so concerned as his dark brown eyes searched yours. Your breathing slowed as you looked into those warm honey eyes. You wanted to stay there. Stay where it was safe. Where you felt at home.

He traced a strand of your long hair with his fingers and moved his other hand down to yours, entangling his fingers with your own. It instantly calmed you down as his rough calloused fingers grazed against your skin.

“I’ll end him right here, right now. Let me do this. I can’t take him tormenting you any longer. I’m about to lose my fucking mind and my patience. Let me put this bullet in between his eyes. I swear I’ll..”

You stopped him as you placed a hand on the side of his face, his voice catching in his throat. “I know you will, but I need to do this. Just…help me. Please,” you pleaded as he nodded at you.

“I can do that.”

“Good.” Your mouth curled up into a small smile as you stared into those beautiful brown eyes that entranced you.

“Awwww look at that. The two little love birds having a moment together. How sweet. You know what would be sweeter? Me ripping Joel’s organs out one by one while you sat and watched!” David yelled as a laugh carried after.

Joel turned, his face fuming. You squinted at David, a hard line forming on your mouth as your nostrils flared. You whipped out your pistol fast, taking the safety off and loading the gun. Your finger pulled the trigger, and the bullet went flying into his left shoulder. Blood instantly formed on his shirt as the blood seeped down the black material. David yelled, but you were barely registering his screams because you were furious.

“Joel, get the gasoline,” you said darkly.

Joel moved past you, and you could hear him picking up the gasoline as you heard it sloshing around in the container. You just stared at David, your eyes turning dark as you dared him to say another thing about Joel.

Joel walked over to David, undoing the lid of the container as he started pouring the dark liquid all over David’s clothes. His body was drenched in seconds. It dripped off his hair and landed in a puddle on the floor. The room smelled so strong, but you didn’t care. Not right now.

A low laughter left David’s mouth as he looked up at you with eyes that dared you to try him. “Look at you. Finally bringing a little bit of fight unlike when you were over on that table begging for it all to stop.”

“Shut up! Shut the fuck up!” You shouted as you walked over to him hurriedly and punched him hard in the gut. That made him bend his head over in agony as he struggled to catch his breath. “I’m so tired of hearing your goddamn voice. Just stop!” Something snapped hard in you. Anger pulsing through you as you stared at him with big eyes that were full of both pain and bitterness.

Joel was next to you in the next moment, spitting down at David. You ran your finger over the smooth wide box of matches as they sat in your palm. You carefully held the box out to Joel, and he gave you a knowing look. He knew what he had to do.

He took the box from you as your palm opened, his rough hand brushing yours, sending chills down your body at the contact. He grabbed a match out of the box and glanced at you before lighting it up. He was waiting for your approval. There was just one more thing you had to do.

You turned and gave David a hard look, eyes barreling into his. He smirked up at you as he looked from the matches and then back to you. He looked like he was watching a play, begging for the next act to begin. What a freak.

“I sincerely hope this hurts more than anything you have ever experienced before. You know all the history about the witch trials, right? Well, I’m about to burn the worst of them.” A snarl formed on your face as you looked at his lifeless eyes.

He laughed again before he answered you. “Oh princess, you’re just full of surprises aren’t you? You don’t have the nerve to do that.”

He was trying to scare you, make you feel like you couldn’t do it. Well, he was about to be proved wrong because his doubt just made the fire igniting your hate burn brighter.

“Joel, now.” You looked over at him and he nodded, taking your approval. He struck the match against the side of the box as the tip of it caught fire, coming to life. He carefully handed it to you and you took it, being careful not to burn your fingers.

“Light ‘em up,” he said as he stared at David with a hard scowl.

You carefully held out the match, just about to drop it. “Have any last words?” you said shallowly to David. He looked up at you and smiled, the yellow of his teeth catching the light and making you cringe.

“You’re really gonna do it huh? Didn’t think you had it in you, princess. You’re so weak. So vulnerable. Too pretty to be with someone like him.” He jerked his head and snarled up at Joel.

Joel stared back with anger behind his eyes, his jaw clenching. “Better watch your mouth,” Joel hissed.

“She doesn’t belong to you,” David scoffed back.

“She’s mine,” Joel growled as his eyes darkened. Something shifted inside you. Heat rising in your belly that flushed your cheeks. Mine. The words rang through your ears like a song you’d put on repeat. The words sinking so deep inside you that you thought you’d explode right then and there. He had claimed you, and it felt so good.

Focus. You had to focus. You could obsess over how he said the word mine later. Right now you had a body to burn. You took a step closer and reached out your arm, your hand about to drop into his lap full of gasoline.

“That’s right. His. Now go to hell where you belong,” you hissed as you dropped the match into his lap, the jeans instantly catching fire.

The flames slowly consumed him, traveling up and down his body. Even his ashy hair was burning as orange flames fell from his greasy locks. A loud scream escaped his mouth as it traveled through the entire lodge.

You and Joel backed up because the flames were getting too hot to be near. You watched as his pale skin turned dark as the skin was being charred, blackened by the thick flames. He stared at you, not taking his eyes off you. A small smile found its way to his lips and a chaotic, hyena laugh sounded from him. It started low and got louder and louder by the second. He was mentally insane. No sane person would be laughing while they were being burned alive.

The floor started becoming engulfed in flames. It was time to go. Joel placed a hand on your shoulder and started leading you out of the room. You started moving towards the front of the lodge as the room started becoming hotter, your neck feeling the heat of the growing flames.

As soon as you reached the front, you looked back behind you and through the long hallway you could see David still burning alive. His skin was black, all the healthy skin gone. All that was left were the layers underneath his skin. It was disgusting. You gave him one last snarl and turned back to what laid ahead of you.

Joel took your hand in his and led you to the front doors, entangling his fingers with yours. The touch was intense, as hot as the fire that was building behind you. You walked out the front door and felt like you were in a movie with the most epic ending that was ever made.

The cool breeze blew through your hair as you stepped outside into the bitter cold. Joel led you through the snow to a safe distance from the lodge. As soon as you looked back, the building was becoming engulfed in flames. You could feel it coming off the building as the heat rose. Embers lit up the night sky as the lodge became mixed colors of bright orange and deep red. Ashes were seen tumbling through the dark sky, becoming entwined with one another.

You let out a deep breath as you watched the building burn. David was gone. He was finally dead. He couldn’t hurt you anymore. You had done it. You killed him and so had Joel.

You stood face to face with him, your fingers still entwined together. “He’s gone. He’s really gone,” you breathed as you looked up into honey eyes.

“That’s right. He’s gone. You faced him. I’m so proud of you.” He traced his fingers across your cheek, and you leaned into his touch.

“I was only able to do it because you were here with me. That’s the only way I could’ve faced him. The only thing that was getting me through being in that same room with him again…” Your eyes felt glossy as you held back tears.

Joel deepened his touch, and you felt every rough callous on his fingers. His touch was warm, comforting. You placed a hand on top of his, tracing your fingers down to his wrist.

“I wasn’t going to let anything happen to you, baby.”

The nickname made you go weak along with the deep voice that shook your core. The way he was looking at you now…his dark eyes melding into yours. Fuck.

“Did you mean it?” you asked slowly.

“Mean what?”

“What you said back there. When you called me yours.”

He brushed a finger down the corner of your face, his eyes burning into yours. It was so intense, so consuming. A fire started deep inside you, and you couldn’t put it out.

He nodded in response, his eyes growing darker. A shiver ran through you, his response sending electric pulses down your legs. “You are mine,” he said dominantly.

Oh. You knew your pupils were huge, you could feel them expanding as the words ran through you. Mine. He wanted you just as much as you wanted him. He left you speechless. You just stood there letting his gaze burn through you as the flames in the background danced around you.

“Is that what you want?” he asked slowly as his thick Texas accent drawled out, consuming all your thoughts. His fingers trailed down to your chin as he lifted it just the slightest, his gaze burning down to your lips. It was too much, his mahogany scent sending you over the edge.

“Yes,” you breathed out shallowly, your stomach in knots.

He leaned in closer, his forehead meeting yours as his nose brushed against yours. “Say it.” His words came out in a low, sexy voice.

You were holding back a moan from just his voice, his touch burning against your skin. Fuck. “I’m all yours,” you purred.

That’s all the permission he needed. He pulled you in and kissed you passionately. One arm dipped around your low back and the other held the back of your head as his fingers wrapped around your hair.

His lips were so soft and his taste…he tasted like syrup. So sweet and savory. You got lost in the passion, in him. You stayed like that for minutes just savoring each other’s taste and touch as the fire burned brightly behind you.

So this is what it felt like to be completely lost in someone. It felt so good, so right. Joel was your undoing, your undying wish. You’d tear whole cities down just to stare into those warm honey eyes. This was it. You were falling for him, and you didn’t care to stop yourself. It was him. It was always going to be him. And you were okay with this now. This is what you wanted. Him. It’d always be him. For however long you could keep him. Yours.

“Come on, let’s get out of here.” He grabbed your hand and led you back to Shimmer. She was still in the same place as before, waiting for your return. She neighed softly when you made it over to her.

Joel untied her from the tree and jumped up on the saddle. He gave you his hand and you took it, using the rest of your strength to lift yourself up. The events of the day had drained you, made you weak. But David was finally gone. Dead. And that was enough relief to have you relax your body against Joel’s.

You sank against him, folding your arms across his waist as you laid your head against his shoulder. “Where to next?” you asked as your voice carried through the wind.

“To Salt Lake City, we’ll head west as far as we can today and stop for the night somewhere safe. It shouldn’t take us much longer to get there.”

“Mkay,” you said sleepily as you rested against him. Shimmer took off into the opposite direction of the lodge, leaving the heat from the fire behind.

The wind was blowing gently against your face, your skin chilled from the cold. You pulled your jacket tighter against you and let the warmth cover you. You looked behind you at what you left behind. The heat from the lodge disappearing the further you got from it, the red embers in the sky flashing in the distance from the fire.

You took one more hard glance at the lodge as it slowly was corrupted to a black ashy lodge, nothing grand about it left. You sighed and turned back around, no more looking back. It was done. It was over. No more suffering. No more David. No more pain.

You squeezed Joel tight, your hands sliding into his warm coat. He took a hand and gently brushed one of yours, his thumb caressing the top of your hand. And that’s how you stayed for most of the ride. No words needed to be spoken for the moment. Just the two of you riding along to your next destination in peace.

You’d follow him anywhere. It didn’t matter where, it didn’t matter how long it’d take. You’d stay with him. Until the ends of time. Yours.

Chapter 22

Series Masterlist

[ofnailbatsandaxefives]

Carrie and Joel first meet (Vicious Fun)

[wonderlandleighleigh]

It’s beautiful and warm outside, and the kids are all in bed, while most of the other adults are still enjoying dinner. Midge had given Lenny a glance, and they’d made their excuses to leave early, opting to relax on the porch and enjoy the weather and the quiet for a while. 

She’s taken off her shoes, and Lenny has shed his suit jacket, before rolling up his sleeves and loosening his tie. He sits with Midge curled in against him. His fingers stroke through her hair slowly. 

Midge smiles up at him. “This is much better than the dinner entertainment.” 

“I’m glad you think so,” Lenny chuckles. “Thank you for saving me from another night of...well...that.” 

She laughs softly. “My pleasure. I never used to relax this way. This feels so nice.” 

“It is nice,” Lenny agrees. “I never thought I’d like it here. Not like this, at least.” 

Midge smirks. “Told you so.” 

“Hey.” 

“I did. You didn’t want to come to the Catskills, and now you like it.” 

“It’s not like I’d come up here without you, you now,” Lenny defends. 

“If the hammock was here, and the weather was good, you absolutely would,” Midge argues playfully. “I know you, Mister.” 

“Yeah well...maybe if the kids wanted to,” Lenny grumbles. 

She reaches up and kisses him softly, before settling back in against him, her body relaxing again. 

“This is where you two got to,” Joel says as he wanders over. “Thought you’d uh...be inside or whatever.” 

“The weather’s too nice,” Midge smiles at him. “And the stars are really bright tonight, too. It was too good to pass up.” 

“Right,” Joel nods awkwardly. “I guess I just- never imagined Lenny Bruce enjoying the Catskills.” 

Lenny shrugs. “Stranger things have happened. And I’m still not taking part in activities.” 

“You’d have fun,” Midge challenges him.

“I would not, in fact, have fun,” he assures her, kissing the top of her head. “But it’s very sweet that you keep trying.” 

Joel frowns a little. “What have you been doing aside from reading and napping the hammock?” 

“I fish in the mornings,” Lenny confesses. “I took Ethan out yesterday, actually. He had fun.” 

“You fish?” Joel asks, perplexed. 

“Yes, I do,” Lenny confirms. “It’s quiet, relaxing, and I don’t have to make small talk with the army of assholes prowling around this place.” 

“Lenny,” Midge scolds with a soft laugh.  

“Jeez, you sure you didn’t marry Susie, with how grumpy he is?” Joel asks. 

“My dick’s bigger,” Lenny says automatically. 

“Lenny,” Midge repeats, less amused this time. 

“What? It is,” Lenny says. “I have a bigger dick than Susie. I mean, physically speaking. Metaphorically, I’m not so sure.” 

“You know, I used to think you were really funny, Lenny,” Joel comments. 

A slow, almost vicious smile graces Lenny’s lips, and he gets a glint in his eye, but he says absolutely nothing, letting his unsaid response of ‘that was before I started fucking your ex-wife better than you,’ hang in the air. 

“I’m gonna get going,” Joel tells them.

“Goodnight, Joel,” Midge says, mostly looking at Lenny with a lifted eyebrow.

“See you tomorrow, Joel,” Lenny says, still smiling as he walks off.

“You are so bad,” Midge tells him.

“I didn’t actually say anything.” 

“You didn’t have to.” 

“It’s his own fault, stepping right into things like that,” Lenny defends. “That man never fucking learns.” 

Midge sighs and tugs him down by the shirt. “Stop talking now.” She kisses him softly, stroking his jaw. 

“I can do that,” he says softly, kissing her again. 

[lesbianwithchainsaws]

hiiiii i know you like horror & i’m getting together with a few of my friends and we have a tradition of watching horror movies together so any recommendations? good movies & ones that are so bad they’re good lol. and also i keep seeing gif sets of this horror where it’s like a young white girl dancing

but also crying um what’s that called 😭💞

Hi!!! I'd love to give recommendations! But first, the gif of a white girl dancing and crying could be quite a few movies, but maybe it's the movie Pearl? Is she wearing a red dress? Does she look like this?

If no, then if there's any more details you could tell me, I can try to find it! If yes, I highly recommend Pearl! It's a prequel to the movie X and they're both amazing. I think Pearl is better than X, but both are great movies imo.

Anyway, some recommendations:

Deadstream, The Descent, Cabin in the Woods, Ready or Not, Haunt, Spree, 1408, Vacancy, You're Next, Hell House LLC, The Faculty (this one has some jokes that really haven't aged well, but overall it's still a pretty good movie), 30 Days of Night, Vicious Fun, Last Shift, Becky (that last one has Joel McHale in it too and it's very fun imo). I think all of these are pretty good movies, they're ones that you can easily watch with others and maybe aren't all the super well known ones.

For some so bad they're good:

Stage Fright (2014) - admittedly I actually really like this one and think it's good, but it is very campy and over the top. It's a comedy, a slasher and a musical. I think it's more good than bad, but goes into bad territory sometimes too.

Chopping Mall, Ghost Ship, Killer Sofa, Stay Alive.

Admittedly I like a lot of bad movies so I'm not always sure what counts as so bad it's good, but here's a few at least. If you need any more recommendations at any point, I'd be glad to give more! If there's anything specific you're looking for, I'd gladly help!!!

[the-somwthing]

I know, I like chrisrin’s life series gem au. I was making my own life series gem au. BUT. I am doing a roleplay that’s a life series gem au with completely different gem types for everyone (what happened was we simply made a list of gems we wanted to use for the 17 ppl, then kept randomly assigning them until we felt like it worked well enough, with some deliberate choices after a while of randomization) (I’m thinking about it the only one that matches with any of the AUs I’ve seen is Joel being a pearl (listen it’s a gem au of our main au and this au joel is especially pearl coded) OH AND Etho being a type of quartz I guess (he’s not amethyst in this tho but in SU it’s basically the same just a different color scheme))

Basically why I’m bringing this up is: I’m actually drawing these guys and fusions for them so 😭 anyone wanna see (I drew all of my gems for the rp and some of my sister’s)

…I don’t know what these options are-

[oatbrew]

im of two minds with the whole joel being softer in the tv adaptation thing. on one hand i do like the game’s rendition where joel doesn’t completely soften until the “baby girl” moment (🥺) because during the spring section it becomes really stark the difference between joel and ellie when they switch roles in that joel is blatantly making an effort to be warm and affectionate especially after the trauma of winter has made ellie become a little quieter and less forward in their dynamic.

the core of the bonding throughout the game is mainly made via combat (ie protecting ellie) whereas the tv show by virtue of its medium replaces that with added scenes of explicit relationship development like bantering, joking, sharing info about themselves with each other (which are also in the game but in smaller doses like in moments where you can “trigger” optional convos with ellie)

so on the other hand i do like this “softened” joel who seems less vicious only because i think it’ll make his moments of absolute mercilessness even more severe. game!joel is the “joel of 5 years ago who would have destroyed that kid in ep 4” that tv!joel was referring to. game!joel wasn’t even thinking about tommy in the beginning. at the end of it, game!joel utilizes his viciousness because he’s found a greater purpose (ellie). tv!joel relearns his viciousness because he has a new reason to be scared (ellie). both versions overlap in certain ways and both versions work in so far as it explores the theme of how love can strengthen and corrupt people in extreme circumstances.

and wrt the people complaining about how they’ve softened joel to butter viewers up to his seeming “incompetence” or “lack of foresight” in the events of the second game, i don’t agree with this take at all. i think tv is a completely different medium from a video game and is more “human” in a sense. video games are wired w a higher suspension of disbelief because it’s integral to the enjoyment of the medium. we shouldn’t bat an eye that a 56 year old is really killing tens of people in a succession of chokeholds without even getting winded because otherwise how is the game going to be fun if we have to pause every time joel has to rest or deal with ptsd attacks (that he would absolutely realistically have?)

i think these critics are more concerned about the machismo fantasy of an unstoppable one-man army than they are about the humanization of the game’s characters and its world. every time they’ve changed something from the game to the show, i always ask myself “does it serve the story and its themes?” if the answer is yes (and so far it’s almost always been a yes), there should be no reason to view any of it as vestigial or untrue to the original source’s spirit

[gbhbl]

Horror Movie Review: Vicious Fun (2020)

A horror film critic finds himself in a sticky situation when he stumbles into a self-help group for serial killers.

Vicious Fun is a horror comedy film directed by Cody Calahan, releasing in 2020. Set in 1983, it focuses on film critic and writer of the horror magazine Vicious Fanatics, Joel. Joel is in the process of interviewing B-movie director Jack Portwood. He tells Jack his idea for a film about a serial killing taxicab driver but Jack just laughs him out of the room. At home, Joel sees his roommate…

[postmodernbisexual]

Spooktober Day 9: Vicious Fun (2020)

A horror movie critic accidentally stumbles into a support group for serial killers and has to blend in to prevent himself from becoming their next victim.

The title says everything you need to know about this movie. It's brutal. It's hilarious. It's downright vicious fun.

Every bit of this movie like a campy love letter to 80s slasher horror. Each of the killers plays with a classic trope; the slow moving brute Michael, the killer clown Fritz, and the charming psychopath Bob being the most prominent of the bunch. Instead of trying to reinvent the wheel, this movie puts the old wheel up on a pedestal and goes, "look at how amazing this wheel is." This was absolutely made by fans for fans.

The main character, Joel, starts the movie as your average pretentious horror fan/aspiring filmmaker; a "nice guy" who knows just as much about the film industry as he does women. Add to that his weird obsession with his roommate, it's not hard to see how this guy could fit in with a group of serial killers. After a series of near death experiences and an incredibly intimidating woman telling him off, he seems to learn his lesson and, in an unprecedented move, is not rewarded with a kiss from either of the women at the end.

Julian Richings plays a killer clown. Do I need to say more?

If you love horror, and you love campy 80s horror specifically, I can almost guarantee you'll have a great time watching this.

[the-firebird69]

Watch "Billy Joel - The Downeaster 'Alexa' (Official Video)" on YouTube

You feel bad for her mom I mean his mom you know where she is and her disposition and she needs to be taken out of there pretty quick although it's getting nice and cold this is not a good time for the the place over there. The ground is heating up and people need to start detecting it. Max and several units and found out she's in trouble.

My son told the story of the angels to Becca and she said she went up there but she hasn't yet instacoster and it's too Gloucester there's an image of a huge angel and she says I might go up there and then what's in it for me and that kind of thing and then she said this I don't know if I'd come back but I have to see it and she says how can I see it if it's way down there and people say stuff we have a mission and that kind of thing and they do they really do want people to look at it now son has no idea how to get there. She was fascinated looked at hundreds of satellite imagery started to try and find out which angel found out it was the name of the boat and said that's terrible he's way ahead of me and she said where is she and our son said where would she be and all sudden things start to change here and attitudes and people are starting to get vicious again

Thor Freya

You see we can change and mutate without being mutants even though we are and we can also do things like that and we're not animals and people figured out something this is going to be hell

I want to thank you for announcing it I really do

Hera Zues

Hello everybody my name is Alexa and I'm not the computer but really it's good cover. I love my father and I love my mother they're both the best to be he's a little imp and he really gets to you he's doing it because he's helping you train and he loves people he loves us a lot and a few people keep on talking we're just going to have to flush it's terrible. But we're having a lot of fun and we're doing a lot of good work. And saved him a few times and it was out in Gloucester and he was in trouble and I did help them turn around and I did help suggest it to him and he heard it somehow and turned around and they went back to shore and in time too they get out of the channel before they ran out of air. And a lot of people like the story not because it's where I was. But his clan knew about the shapes and they wanted to get back at us and they wanted to hear me ranch and rave it's kind of craziness but that's what they're up to

Alexa

I'm her husband and I hear his comment and I think this gross but really he's sitting there wondering where he is in relation to something and it doesn't make any sense it won't get anywhere and doesn't do anything so it's kind of a gross thing they're doing and it is obviously odd and doesn't get anywhere but the clan was sharp the other the side as well it was horrible and they were very smart and most of them are not around and you people don't seem to have it but the max do and we're on guard now and a lot of foreigners and we're sharpening up

God son-in-law married to Alexa

Good grief it's the name of the computer I've been saying it this whole time that means I offend anybody but holy cow that's a that's amazing and I don't think anybody knew it's crazy how can you know the name and he says it could be the shape of the angel so everybody's going to look now

Big joe

I can't believe this is happening right before our eyes in front of our eyes look really this is huge these ships are amazing and I don't know what they're made out of the reflections are weird okay we are getting strange data and usually we have it right on this is not going to be normal and the ship came out it's like Georgia's stuff in class A it's Kick-Ass the little boy needs to be stopped he's probably raising the ships everywhere and nobody notices

Preston

Which is fashion troops right now

Macs