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ohgoddard · 4 years

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Fist of Fire.11.Arc-1-end.

Cloaked bodies huddle in the dark, in the time before sunrise. In the middle of an empty parking lot in a part of the city that no one goes to in any regularity, the meeting was clandestine and secure. From a corner covered in shadows, a man wearing a three piece suit and a tophat emerges, brandishing a cane. He looks quite pleased with himself, overlooking the group.

“I assume,” the man spoke with smug satisfaction, “all is ready for the big event?”

“Yes, Lord Emesh.” A voice came from one of the taller cloaked people, a dry gravely tongue. One by one they all took off their hoods, revealing themselves. A teenaged boy with golden hair, three huge lizards, and a simple old man with spectacles. The old man spoke, in a southern drawl reminiscent of a slave owner, “Although we are very confused as to why you are not appearing in person. Is this not the perfect time to unveil yourself to the world, Lord Emesh?”

Emesh clicked his tongue and slowly tilted his head towards the old man, who quickly bowed his head. “ Phantom, now is in fact not the time for me to appear. My precious has not finished growing, and I fear that a premature opening would bring unwanted attention from abroad. I do not want both Omegaman and All-Might attacking me, do I? It's not a fight even I could win.”

The mention of Omegaman shuddered the three lizard people, and the old man now known as Phantom bowed his head deeper. “My deepest apologies, Lord.” Emesh gave a single hmph before turning to the boy with the golden hair. “Now, you are the lynchpin of this operation. The others will run interference along with the other nobodies I recruited to distract the other heroes. But you? You will carry out the job.”

The boy bowed his head. When he looked up, he wore a smile upon his face.

“I will not disappoint you, father.”

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Jade was not expecting the venue for his tournament to be as large as it was.

“WELLLLLCOME EVERYBODY TO THE SOUTH-EAST HERO CONFERENCE!” A voice roared from loudspeakers placed all around the largest stadium Jade has ever set foot in and thousands of voices screamed from packed seats. There were people wearing jerseys, people wearing hero merch, music blaring from speakers all over the place. Confetti was being shot into the air as three heroes flew at sonic speeds over the stadium, creating a huge boom. The crowd only got larger.

And Jade stood there dumbfounded. Riley walked up to her, and put her hands up to her eyes to see better. “Damn, turnouts a bit big this year. Was only about 90% this last year. Must be a champ coming.” A marching band was on the field playing a tune that was loud and inspiring, and acrobats were jumping into flaming hoops made by pyromancers below. It was an experience completely foreign to Jade. “Why..Why are there so many?!” “You don’t know?”

The students were standing in a box room above the rest of the stadium with a huge glass window looking down at the rings and fields below. Ricardo had just walked in on RIley and Jade talking and had overheard Jade’s plea for help.“This is one of the three hero conferences before the championships. It's like a college football game, but bigger. Scouts from all over the country come here to recruit people they see from the games, and the games only get more intense when you get out of the highschool circuit and into the college. Some people even go professional and go onto the HCL and play the sport as a living.” Jade was gobsmacked; she did not know of this beforehand. “Most people don’t watch the Highschool circuit, except for one bit.” And just as he speaking-

“ATTENTION AUDIENCE! IT IS TIME FOR THE FIRST EVENT OF THE HIGHSCHOOL CIRCUIT!” A voice sounded off from the loudspeakers and the crowd roared, screaming and cheering. The band on the field started peeling out, the acrobats following suit. The crowds started to chant, “Coaches! Coaches! Coaches!” The loudspeaker rang out once more, “Can the coaches of the highschool circuit please take the field.” The crowd cheered, and from a distance Jade could see five people walk out of a corridor. The announcer started reading off the names, “Representing New Orleans High, it’s Bayou Queen! From Nashville Academy it is Bluegrass! From Chattanooga Academy its Lakeside! From..” as the names were read off, sections of the stadium would cheer accordingly. The biggest cheers thus far came for the Little Rock High coach, Jungle King. However everyone was starting to notice something. “Where is Reverse?” Jade started to ask, but was once again interrupted by the loudspeaker. “AND! Making their first appearance in the circuit it is the Atlanta Hero Academy with their coach,” and as he spoke a streak of blue and white whizzed into the stadium creating a huge boom. Dust clouds flew everywhere, and when cleared the crowd saw standing in the middle..”REVERRRRRRRRRRSE!” The stadium exploded. Cheers and chants carried throughout all sections of the crowd. Reverse was dressed in bright white, red, and gold. He looked like a titan carved of marble, and his posing did nothing to dissuade the notion.“That’s right ladies and Gentlemen, Reverse! Savior of the President’s Daughter, the Knight of Mt. St. Helens, the defender of Boston!” The crowd was chanting his name and only died down when Reverse did a motion towards them. “Folks, this coach fight is going to be a doozy! Now, for any newcomers out there, let me explain the rules.”

The coaches started to go into seperate corners of the stadium, each doing small stretches. Reverse was just leaning against the wall. “To decide which school goes first in choosing the brackets, the coaches must duke it out! In order of who goes down last to first is how it goes. Normally, the games are set before they even begin but this time it's anyone's bet. We only have one returning coach from last year in Lakeside, so we need to see how well he holds up!”

The coaches were all eyeing each other. Ricardo continued explaining,”It is no secret that coaches for the school must be trained in hand to hand combat on a professional level before they can coach. It's so the school does not lose face in the ring. So they hire coaches more for punching other coaches than teaching the kids proper. However, the AHA decided that Reverse needed no supplementary coach for this part of the match.” Ricardo chuckles. “The coaches are now in place, and are waiting for the mark to go!” Jade and the rest of the AHA crew, even Emily, were pressing their face to the glass in anticipation. Then, a loud buzzer sounded and the coaches were off. Reverse did not move however. What’s his game plan? Jade thought.

Lakeside rushed in and summoned a large stream of water from the grates on the stadium floor and shot it at Bluegrass. Bluegrass ducked and weaved away from the blast and punched the earth, causing ripples of vines and plants to follow in a jagged pattern to the feet of Lakeside. The vines shot from the floor and lashed at Lakeside, who fell over. He sent another splash of water at Bluegrass who thought he could take it. But the water had small rocks in them and went at high speeds all around his face and neck, causing small but oozing cuts everywhere. Meanwhile, Bayou Queen and Jungle King had just finished their fight. Jungle King had jumped over a beam of darkness shot from the Queen’s hands and delivered a strong hook into her jaw, causing her to crumble to the ground like a wet paper bag. Jungle King’s gaze turned towards Reverse, who was still leaning against the wall. He shook his head at Jungle King, who made no advances towards him. The king was instead blindsided by the coach from Birmingham PowerSchool, Kintay. She grappled onto him like a child riding a bear, bolts of electricity jolting out of her and going into the King. He jumped in the air and fell on his back, nearly crushing the coach had she not jumped off at the last second. The King turned to fight her only to be hit in the face with a stream of water, temporarily blinding him. With the combined water and electricity now, King was being electrocuted. That is, he would have had Kintay not also shot a bolt of electricity at Lakeside and gotten him too, making him out for the count. His body fell to the side of Bluegrass, who he had taken care of earlier. King, now no longer being soaked, leveled his shoulder and charged Kintay, who was unfortunately not lucky enough to dodge him this time. She was thrown against the wall and fell to the ground unconscious. Which left only Jungle King and Reverse in the stadium.

Reverse walked forward, and took off the helmet of his coach uniform, letting his face and short cut hair show to the whole crowd. Jungle King gave a low chuckle and readied himself against Reverse. “Never thought I’d get a chance to fight you again, after you put me away six years ago.” Reverse’s face was stone, making no reaction. “I’m surprised,'' he said as he tossed his helmet to the ground, “they hire convicts as teachers in the state of Arkansas. Especially convicts who’ve killed.” The crowd was so loud, not a soul could hear what they were talking about to each other. All they could see were the two men circling each other. Jungle King was a huge, 7 foot 3 inches 360 pound man of muscle in a wife beater. His skin was a golden bronze and his hair was in a mohawk. One could describe his face as a wild boar with no tusks’.

“Well, it was easy for me when it happened then, now there should be no different this time.” Jungle King charged Reverse and delivered a mighty left hook into his body which .. did nothing. Reverse stood there, unmoved. The crowd went silent. Even Jungle King took a step back, in surprise.

“You just don’t learn.” Reverse simply walked forward and within a second delivered an uppercut to the behemoth’s body and he went flying into the air and outside the stadium walls. The crowd once again exploded.

“I CAN’T BELIEVE IT! NOT SINCE THE DAYS OF OMEGAMAN HAD WE SEEN SUCH POWER IN THE SPORT!” The band was now in the stands and was now playing a tune to hype the crowd up as Reverse retrieved his helmet, turned around to face the cameras all along the stadium edge, and gave a little wink. And as the stadium was cheering he walked into the corridor he came out of. Jade stood still in their room, speechless as the rest of them. “He went so easy on us in practice…” John muttered under his breath. Not even two seconds later, the man himself appeared in the room.

“Man, that was some fight. I'm pooped yall. I ran here from the hotel after sleeping in jeeeeez.” Reverse sauntered over to a couch in the box room and crashed down on it, putting his feet on the armrest on the other side. Riley walked up to him, sat in a chair next to the couch and put her hands on her knees. “So, who’s gonna go first?” Reverse yawned and scratched his face. “Jade. She’s gonna fight this telekinetic kid. So uh, good luck kid. All of you go change into your gear.” In just a few seconds, Reverse had shaken Jade twice.

A few minutes later, Jade was down in a corridor leading out into the field, facing another corridor across the way from her. Standing with her was Reverse, who stood rather mightily. “All you have to do is throw fire at em, he can’t concentrate on more than one thing. Just don’t get caught in his grasp and you should be good.” Jade was shaking a small amount, the nervousness getting to her. She had already vomited in a nearby trash can, her nerves running rampant. “Don’t worry, you won’t get hurt too much. If anything, this is great practice for you. “ Jade gave a sideways look at Reverse. “That doesn't help my nerves.” “Well, don’t say I didn’t try.” A buzzer sounded from outside the corridor , and it called for the contestants to take the field. Jade gulped and Reverse pushed her out of the corridor, to the sound of screaming and cheering.

There would be three fights this round, so that they can get through the fights faster. Jade saw three giant concrete platforms on the field, with their contestants approaching them. Jade didn’t pay much attention to the other contestants, instead focusing on the boy approaching her. He was slim, smug faced, and jauntily walking teenager with a short dollop of golden hair on his head. He was dressed in the purple and green on black suit of the New Orleans School, with a popped collar. “CONTESTANTS! TAKE THE PLATFORM!” Jade stepped up to the platform, and was now mere yards away from her opponent. The boy is about her height, and his hands are in his pocket. His face is plain, spotless and essentially featureless aside from his golden yellow hair atop his head. His teeth were a shining pearly-white. Reverse was looking at the large screens around the stadium, and was hit with a hint of familiarity when looking at the boy. His hair, why does it look so familiar?

“CONTESTANTS! ON YOUR MARK!” The competitors took their fighting stances, except for Jade and the golden haired boy. Jade was far too taken aback by his non-chalantness to take form. What did Reverse say about his power? Her mind was racing, trying her hardest to remember his words. Only pulling up memories of the bus ride with Riley and coach fight.

“GET SET!” The golden haired boy spoke, in a voice that sounded like a love song.”Don’t worry, you won’t have to fight very long.” Jade’s blood ran cold. “GO!”

Then the stadium exploded. This time not with the cheers and screaming of joy, but with shrapnel and cries for help. The contestants run for cover, save for Jade, who just stands there in shock. Reverse sees this and starts to run towards her, him realizing what's going on.

But he was too late. The golden boy raised his hand at him and, miles away he was still only a few yards away, was forced into the ground by an unseeable force. Jade started to run towards him, her arms glowing with the sun energy within her, but soon found herself wrapped in the same bands that held Reverse.

“Oh no, that's not going to happen. You’re going to stay for the show. And I'm leaving with the girl.” Reverse was livid, his body heaving with anger and the energy within him. Jade was dripping puddles of burning energy and could only watch in anger and desperation as all around her explosions happened. The box rooms were on fire, the stands were frantic with other explosions. The heroes who were on guard are seen being easily bested by huge lizard people. An old man is seen floating in the middle of everything, pointing at locations and explosions happening. Heroes would rush in only for another lizard man to appear out of nowhere. The crowds were halted from leaving the stadium by the fallen rubble collapsing the exits.

Then, a voice echoed throughout the whole stadium. “IT'S BEEN FAR TOO LONG, REVERSE!”

The large sports casting screen at the end of the stadium lit up, baring the face of a man in a suit and tophat, smiling cruelly. He sported several scars across his face, with a notable dent in the right side of his head. His evil grin was accented by disgusting yellow teeth and his eyes with heavy bags under them shone with red evil fury. A strand of dirty blonde hair dangled down his crooked nose, between his eyes. The whole stadium was held still by an invisible force. “I would not try to escape civilians. You will find yourself cubed, No, no I do not come here today to kill. Although, I might make an exception.” While he was speaking, the boy in golden hair walked up to Jade, grabbed her arms , and started pulling her like a balloon at a state fair, away from Reverse. He was seething with hatred, a faint light coming off of him now. “Emesh…” Reverse muttered underneath his breath. The man on the TV gave a hearty laugh, as by driving the civilians who were in his clutch began to pull from their stopping points, now circling above in the air in varying poses of escape. “Reverse, I thought you finally bit it in Boston, after I let loose that plant beast. But no, you always had a penchant for survival. Did you run away again?” The faint light around Reverse was now growing brighter. “I am frankly surprised you are knowledgeable of my new name. You never were the smartest of the group.” Jade and the golden boy were out of his sight. He would have to deal with that later.. He has to save all these people now. “I think a punishment is in order. For daring to live after I tried to kill you, I will now drop all these people from the sky. A fitting exchange, isn't it?” He started to cackle, as the people began to slowly stop spinning and then.. Fall.

Then an earth shattering explosion was heard, causing a huge dust cloud to appear in the middle of the field. “Phantom! Did you kill him?! THAT WAS FOR ME!” The old man was whipped in front of the screen, and was babbling. “Nonono-no. I did not do that!” “I did it.”

The dust was split down the half as a cyclone of air shot from its origin, a bright light standing tall. Around the light were the thousands of people who were in the air, and the unconscious bodies of the lizard men. In the four seconds after the explosions, Reverse grabbed all the people out of the air and took out the lizard men. And was still raring to go, the bright white light still beaming out of him. “Where are you Emesh? Are you too afraid of being beaten twice? Of being broken and humiliated within the decade?” Emesh screamed into the screen, causing earthquakes.”hHOW?!” The beam of light that was Reverse stood there, stalwart against the man on the screen. The ground around Reverse was slowly decaying, turning grass into dust.

“I could always break your chains, Emesh. When you were still Planeteer. You were never stronger than me.” Emesh laughed. “ Oh really? Care to wager?” Suddenly the stadium started to shake and the giant screen caved in, creating condensed points of iron and television screens. The old man floating nearby was also sucked in, screaming that he was suddenly silenced as he was crushed in the mess of mass until the ball exploded.

In its place was a floating man with a three piece suit, a tophat, and a cane.

“Would you wish to put your life on the line?”

Reverse leapt from the stadium at lightning speeds and delivered a punch into the face of Emesh, traveling hundreds of feet in the air doing so. Emesh flew backwards and slammed into a concrete wall of the stadium. Reverse landed on an exposed girder from the scoreboard, standing resolute still. “I have ten years of regret in me, ten years of what ifs. Because of you. I would put my life on the line if it meant you don’t get to have yours.” Emesh shot from the hole he was thrown into, and launched a part of the stadium with him. Entire rows of seats and concrete chunks slammed against Reverse, only causing him to glow brighter.

Emesh was floating still, a look of fear creeping across his face. He knew he could not win against Reverse.. Why had he let his ego bring him out here? A drive to wipe away those we wronged him? Whatever it was, he could not die now. He was so far away from his goal.

Emesh spread his hands wide and the ground shook, creating a great tear in the earth where pillars of molten rock started to pour out. “Look familiar?” The cries for help reached Reverse’s ears as he remembered the tons of civilians down at the stadium floor. He was torn. End Emesh and cause thousands to be killed, or let him go and allow millions to die. Just as he was about to decide, a voice came from the field. “Don’t worry! We got this!” He turned to see Riley and his class carrying people to the corridors in the stadium side,along with other competitors and the coaches moving rubble to carry to injured and moving people out.

Emesh hated the community that he had to fight. While Reverse was distracted, he launched a pillar of lava at him from the crack in the ground, hitting him straight in the back. “Just like Victor! The same trick carries such great merit!” He began to cackle, but was stopped when a bright white glowing fist struck him in the chest. Emesh was thrown hundreds of feet into the air before righting himself. Standing atop the wall where Emesh was floating was Reverse, still glowing bright white. The space around his body was dark because of his presence,he illuminated so much light. “This ends today, Emesh.” The sky begins to turn red and dark clouds start to roll in from nowhere. “I would have no other way, you mistake!”

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Jade ws being pulled down a series of hallways in the stadium, each one echoing with the sounds of explosions and shakes. The golden boy was holding her arm and moving through the labyrinth of tunnels. I need to get out of here, and fast! Jade had been struggling the entire time in their mental grasp of the golden boy. She had been unable to get out, but she noticed something. His brow was becoming more and more tense, and the sweat was pouring off of him. His concentration is waning.. If I can surprise him I bet I can break his will! Jade began to concentrate on her right arm, the arm that the golden boy was holding, and tried to focus all her power on it. She steadied her hasty breathing , then -

“FUCK!” the golden boy yelled as his hand caught fire with solar energy and he let go of Jade, her hitting the floor. He turned to look at her with vitriol in his eyes. “You burnt my hand you BITCH!” He pointed at her and the pipes on the wall of the utility corridor he was pulling her down began to bend and pull from their place. Jade, however, tapped into something. In her concentration and desperation to escape, a latent power clicked. Her eyes glazed over in gold and she lashed her arms as if whipping someone, a beam of light shooting from her hand and creating a rope. The rope went around the golden boy and he screamed in pain as the rope began to burn his clothing. He jerked his head to the side and a pipe flew from the wall, steam pouring out. Jade let go of her rope in surprise, and had to dodge another pipe being thrown at her head. She raised her hand again and shot a bolt of light from it, its radiance illuminating the steam as it sailed down the hallway. And also giving away the position of the golden boy. The golden boy lunged at her, scratching her face. He punched Jade in the gut and she fell to the ground. Jade turned over and grabbed his head in both of her hands, and summoned her flaming arms. He began to cry out in pain as the sides of his head burned. He shoved her off and stumbled away. He turned to her.

“You’re not worth it… my face.. My hair! I don’t care if my dad wants you for his dumb plan! It’ll work anyways. Just you see!” Jade raised her hand to shoot another bolt of light but was halted when the boy raised his hand and collapsed the ceiling in front of her, separating them. He then turned tail and ran, his hands still clutching his face. Jade was about to pursue, but the shuddering corridor reminded her of Reverse and Jade started running the opposite way to try and find a way back to him.

It took her a while, but she came back to the corridor that led into the stadium, and was shown a devastating picture. Competitors were guiding people out of the stadium which was now a huge tear in the ground with gushing lava pouring out of it. And in the air, a glowing ball of energy was fighting an increasingly erratic moving flying man. Jade was watching a fight for the ages.

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Reverse lunged at Emesh and finally made contact. He grappled onto his legs and started climbing up the three piece suit. Emesh raised his cane to smack him, but as it got close to Reverse’s body it disintegrated. Reverse raised his right fist and punched Emesh into the ground. His body went flying towards the Earth, Reverse not too far behind. As he was falling, Reverse raised his arm in the air. Emesh hit the ground, and was struggling to stand when he looked up. He saw the rapidly approaching Reverse and raised both his hands to stop him in the air. Reverse’s descent did not cease, only slow. Flames started to form around his forward fist, like a meteor entering the atmosphere. “Must...not….let.you..win!” Emesh shouted as blood started to pour out of his eyes and nose.

“This is for Victor.”

Reverse kicked his legs into the other and a force propelled him into Emesh, who screamed in fear as he approached.

Hikers along the Appalachian trail would report seeing a bright light appear on the distance. The people of Charleston would say they thought a nuke dropped. But what happened was that Reverse delivered one kiloton of energy into the body of Emesh. The explosion was immaculate, the stadium now gone entirely. A crater now stood where it once stood.

And at the center of the crater was Reverse, on his stomach, unmoving.

End Arc 1.

#FoF:og #creative writing #creativewriting #creative #original #original writing #original story #originalwriting #orignal female character #superhero #superhero story

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closetofanxiety · 5 years

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Mania Madness: In Queens With Queens Quest

Wrestlemania was in New York this year (well, New Jersey, but you know what they mean), and since I live about two and a half hours away, I felt like I would be failing in my duties as a wrestling fan if I didn’t attend some of the related events. Make no mistake: I did not want to go to Wrestlemania itself, as the idea of sitting in a football stadium and squinting at a faraway shape that might be Buddy Murphy in the springtime chill is not high on my bucket list. But there were lots of other things to do, and I did very few of them! I did go to see the Stardom show in Queens and to WrestleCon in Manhattan, though, and herewith are my observations, jotted down for posterity and, hopefully, your amusement and/or edification:

FRIDAY

I think this is only the second time Stardom has run a show in the U.S., and it’s definitely the first time they’ve done it amidst the surge of popularity they’ve experienced in the GIF era. Although going to visit Hakujinjoe in Tokyo is a goal towards which I am even now socking away money, there’s no guarantee that I’ll ever actually get to see Stardom in Japan, and so this was the must-see event of the weekend for me.

This anticipation was accompanied by two apprehensions: First, my nature reluctance to drive in New York City, even in the outer boroughs. I live in the woods, and your city ways frighten and confuse me. Second, based on many of the US joshi fans I have encountered online, I worried this crowd would basically be a giant convention for creepers, perverts, rageaholic gatekeepers, scam artists peddling $300 autographed gravure DVDs, and people who seem to have only a dim understanding that the characters portrayed in the ring are not, in fact, identical with the women portraying them. Listen: I am not exactly Cary Grant when it comes to wit and charm, and just being an American who watches Japanese women’s wrestling puts me among a tiny percentage of hardcore nerds, so I hope this doesn’t come off as haughty. But there are good nerds, and then there are the nerds we encounter online way too often.

The first apprehension turned out to be baseless, as I got to Queens with plenty of time to spare and, like most joshi fans, headed over to the Rufus King Homestead on Jamaica Avenue for a tour of the mansion once owned by the fiery antislavery advocate and signatory to the Constitution. OK, so I was the only joshi fan who toured the Rufus King Homestead (in fact, I was the only person, period; Rufus does not get much love), but I still learned a lot. Rufus King used to loan money at exorbitant rates to local farmers who owned slaves, and when they couldn’t pay him back, he’d accept the enslaved people as collateral, only to immediatly free them. Rufus King, Loan Shark For Justice!

It turns out the second apprehension was also baseles, because the crowd turned out to be full of awesome people. Really friendly, outgoing, and super enthusiastic nerds, the best kind of nerd, really. The dominant attitude was not, “Oh you like Stardom? Name five of their faction drafts” but “I can’t believe we all get to see this awesome show together.” It was also, by a country mile, the most diverse indie wrestling crowd I’ve been part of, and about 35-40 percent of the people in attendance were women, which really made the whole experience better. I’m not saying everyone was awesome, but it was definitely a fun group of people to be part of for an afternoon. I am ashamed that I assumed it would be full of unbearable dweebs.

So, that out of the way, here’s the highlights of the show, in the time-honored spaghetti Western sytem of categorization:

THE GOOD

Momo Watanabe vs. Utami Hayashishita: Easily the match of the day, and one of the best matches I’ve seen all year. The Queen’s Quest teammates were batling for Momo’s Wonder of Stardom title, which she won from the departing Io Shirai last year. I don’t just like Momo, I identify with her image as the studious but introverted nerd kid who thinks hard work and playing by the rules is enough to guarantee success, only to be constantly frustrated as flashier peers take shortcuts to the top. The tension between these two has been building since Utami’s debut last year and subsequent mega-push as The Big Rookie and Utami All-the-Belts. Momo, who put in years of quiet, dedicated work as Io’s understudy, is in danger of being usurped as Queen’s Quest leader by the newcomer before her tenure has really even gotten under way. This is a great basis for a wrestling match, and these two, aware they were in front of their biggest audience outside of Japan not just in person but watching on Fite, rose to the occasion. I’m terrible at describing wrestling matches, but this was a nailbiter full of near-falls and what-will-it-take kickouts that felt earned rather than slathered on. It helped that the crowd was rabid, with Utami having a slight edge, WHICH ONLY SERVED TO MAKE ME CHEER LOUDER FOR MOMO. I honestly had no idea who was going to win: normally you’d know the champ would retain in an away match like this, but having their second most important belt change hands would also have been a great way to make a splash in their New York debut. In the end, though, Momo retained with her Peach Sunrise finisher and I LOST IT.

Stars vs. Oedo Tai: The villainous but lovable Oedo Tai were over like crazy with this crowd, and people went bananas when they came out to do their pre-match war dance. They could have basically just done that and most people would have been, but they had a fun elimination match with the Stars faction. A lot of zany action in this and a genuine surprise elimination of Kagetsu midway through. The only missing piece of the puzzle was Sumire Natsu, who didn’t come over with the company, possibly because she’s a freelancer. She made appearances at Tokyo BDSM clubs instead during Mania weekend, which is the most Sumire Natsu thing ever.

Yurie Kozakai doing the ring introductions: Stardom was really smart about the idea that they were giving fans in New York “a real Stardom show,” and having the promotion’s normal ring announcer introduce the wrestlers was a perfect touch.

Hana Kimura: The newest Stardom signing looked like a superstar and basked in the crowd’s adulation during a three-way tag match that also involved Konami and Bea Priestley (making her US debut?) and Britt Baker and Brittany Blake, who should have called themselves the Britt-ish. No? I’m - I’m [putting my finger to my ear, like I’m listening] I’m being told “No, they should not have called themselves that.” Anyway, the match was fun but insubstantial, but Hana’s charisma is off the charts.

THE BAD

IPW:UK ran a show at the venue (the NYC Arena, which is an arena only in the sense that a mid-sized nightclub is an arena) right before Stardom, using House of Glory’s ring (the compromises and arrangements of Mania Weekend!), and the bottom rope broke. The effort to fix the broken rope was mostly unsuccessful, and also delayed the opening of doors at the venue by nearly an hour, meaning 600 hearty nerds were standing in line in 39 degree weather, with sleet pelting us. The paperback I had brought to pass the time in line was USELESS. On the lemons-lemonade side of things, though, this did mean we were all in line when Stardom’s bus rolled up, and all the wrestlers disembarked to head inside. Big cheers from the crowd, which obviously delighted the wrestlers. “It’s gonna be awesome!” Hana yelled at us. It was! Once we got out of the sleet

The broken rope delay also meant they had to cut the already abbreviated (five matches) show short, and it showed. The first three matches were all obviously truncated, with the High Speed title match between Hazuki and Dust suffering the most for it. Don’t get me wrong, it was good, and I was impressed by Dust, who’s new to me, but it felt like they were just starting to get going when it ended. IPW:UK, YOU ARE NOW MY ENEMY. OR MAYBE HOUSE OF GLORY, I DON’T KNOW. SOMEONE.

THE UGLY

Maybe half the appeal of this thing was the promised meet and greet afterward, but the meet and greet was more chaotic and less organized than Kelley Square at rush hour (sorry, this is a Worcester reference, Worcester people will know this). Nobody seemed to know where to stand, lots of fans didn’t realize they had to buy little tickets before meeting the wrestlers, and as someone whose job sometimes involves putting up signs in medical buildings, the lack of even rudimentary paper signage was APPALLING. This did not stop me from getting nerdy fan pics with Hana Kimura, Kagetsu, Momo Watanabe, Mayu Iwatani, and Konami. Hazuki left her table before I could get to her, and this failure will haunt the remainder of my days upon this earth. Possibly. The wrestlers all had pieces of paper with common American names written on them, so they’d know how to address the autographed pictures, which was sweet. Hana has great conversational English. There was no line when I went up to Konami, which is preposterous. Konami rules, fellow nerds. The whole thing was nice, and the language barrier prevented any of that thing where guys try to unburden their psyches onto female wrestlers in a bid to make some kind of emotional connection. JUST SMILE FOR THE CAMERA AND MOVE ALONG, PAL.

Also, apparently the Fite stream was choppy as hell and cut out completely right at the end of the Momo-Utami match, and only came back after it was over. Glad I went in person!

In part two, we’ll cover the gregarious Jesse Ventura, the surprising lack of merch slingers at WrestleCon, and the puzzling fame of that fan who had a cardboard sign saying “FACE FUCK ME FINN” at a Takeover a few years ago.

#Stardom #joshi puroresu #makin towns #Mania Weekend #show reviews

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gascon-en-exil · 6 years

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I Liked Fates Before It Was Cool!: The Opening

Prologue

Here begins my run of Fates, in which I react to things that I believe merit either praise or criticism and that hopefully haven’t been thoroughly picked over yet hundreds of times by everyone else in the fandom. I’ll be doing each route in the sequence I used last time, with gameplay details to follow as they come up. To answer @damoselcastel, I’ll be doing an all-male run, and it does indeed suck that the game screws this over a bit at the very beginning by forcing me to take Felicia over Jakob first. Breeding will come when I feel like it, more to have extra chapters to play through than anything.

Prologue

In what I assume will continue to be a series trend going forward, all of the 3DS FEs open somewhat in the abstract, including a flash forward to a future event. Fates’s particular take is both the most surreal and the least dependent on shock value, as the events it depicts are only several chapters away rather than near endgame. Azura picks up her Lady of the Lake associations right from the start, there’s a very early glimpse at what will be eventually revealed to be Valla, and Ryoma and Xander and Xander’s ludicrously acrobatic horse square off to set up this setting’s central conflict. The chapter proper is (fittingly) dreamlike, with surreal music and a high-energy scenario that begins in medias res and doesn’t entirely follow the normal rhythms of FE combat. I have absolutely no idea how this would come across to a newcomer to the series - I got my hand held through Lyn Normal Mode, cut me some slack - but I imagine it would be disorienting.

Chapter 1

That’s apparently official concept art of Nohr. Reasonable worldbuilding, what’s that?

The in-game presentation starts off rather less absurd. Hell, if it weren’t for the ominous castle rooftop setting of Xander’s training session one could almost find Corrin’s slice-of-life interactions with their servants and their Nohrian family quaint. Xander is just a drama queen like that. This fight calls back to Path of Radiance and New Mystery, which also start off with training sessions against significantly more powerful named characters. For Birthright it also forms a narrative bookend, but I’ll get to that in due time. I have Feelings about the presentation of Xander...and not just because he’s my husbando either.

I like that Corrin’s retainers are domestics first and combatants second unlike those of the other royals, because it stresses that they’ve been isolated in a non-combat role during their upbringing, their exposure to Nohr’s allegedly spartan military culture limited to sparring with Gunter and Xander. I have no idea how that would be enough for them to survive when they evidently live in Mordor, but then Nohr is the source of the most consistently sloppy worldbuilding in Fates so at least we get that established right away.

Oh, and Lilith is here. There’s never a point anywhere in this game where Lilith’s character is competently handled, so I have a tendency to forget she exists unless she’s on-screen. Here she’s just an unassuming stable girl with an unusual design, and Elise makes an incestuous insinuation in her direction that’s only funny if you played the appropriate DLC.

Chapter 2

Structural contrast with the towering Hoshidan royal palace aside, I don’t entirely get how Krakenberg works. A dragon did it?

Anyway, Corrin gets an under-explained and clearly evil magical sword from his shamelessly homicidal father only to balk at the thought of killing anyone with it. Leo salvaging this faux pas isn’t the silliest example of Corrin not understanding the basic concept of lying - it’s presumably easier to fake someone’s death with magic than with a giant sword - but it’s definitely up there. The Nohrian royals on the other hand have no trouble with such things based on their traumatic but mostly implied experiences at court. Important to note that everyone here up to and including the prisoners of war calls out Corrin for their sheltered worldview; their development from here on out really is dependent on the player’s choice of route. I vastly prefer this approach to Awakening’s for explaining why the Avatar is such a relatively blank slate - almost no amnesia necessary this time.

And while they appear in most chapters, I want to praise Dragon Veins here for being a really cool concept that doesn’t get as much love as it should. Draconic or otherwise superhuman bloodlines in FE are usually expressed in gameplay with the ability to wield certain legendary weapons, and while that also makes an appearance in Fates Dragon Veins represent more dramatically visible utility. They really make a difference in some chapters, and I’d like to see them reuse the concept in future games where it would be a logical addition (which would be most of them since humans with dragon blood pop up all over this series).

Chapter 3

I chose this image because I want everyone to appreciate as I do that Hans dresses like the world’s most tasteless leatherman. A harness and straps that show off all the wrong bits, and it’s in purple. Not even the overall weirdly fetishistic look of this game’s berserkers can excuse that.

But aside from that, Hans sucks. Iago also sucks. Less characters than plot devices that pop up whenever there’s a need for someone to act completely despicable to move the conflict along, there’s no way to spin them in a way that sounds like they contribute anything positive to the narrative. Case in point: in this chapter Hans single-handedly reignites hostilities between Nohr and Hoshido by Leeroy Jenkins-ing his way through the chapter and later (possibly) killing Gunter, with the only interesting caveat that he claims to have done so at Garon’s behest. And sure, Garon is also flat over-the-top villainy incarnate, but he at least has gravitas and a master playing a long game that arguably succeeds in two of the routes. Hans and Iago are just two more in the line of FE villains with flat motivations and personalities who lack even the good grace to be attractive, but unlike Desaix and Darin and Chagall and others like them they stick around in the story long after they’ve worn out their welcome. Did Nohr really need not one but three flat antagonists in its ranks around for most of the game?

I haven’t even gotten into the first appearance of Camilla’s...issues surrounding Corrin or whatever the dimension-hopping hell Lilith pulls with her invocations to presumably deceased dragon “gods” now that she reveals her true form. This is really the first chapter to offer a hint of how disjointed and frequently contrived Fates’s stories are going to end up, saved only by the very end when Rinkah puts this game’s new blunt weapon category to its logical use. Not like the game wants us to feel bad for Corrin....

Chapter 4

...because Hoshido is paradise. And also Takumi.

Everyone knows the story, both as it’s explicitly told and as can be read through the lines. The writers weren’t afraid to let their biases show, the localizers and the Western fandom did a fair amount to mitigate that with some bias of our own, and the final product is one big mess that fails to make logical sense in-universe and teeters on the edge of real-world two-way racism. Here we’re introduced to Castle Shirasagi, glimmering and verdant and awash in cherry blossoms, as well as Azura, Corrin’s foil in Stockholm Syndrome. But it’s all good, because Mikoto is tranquil and peace-loving and enforces her tranquility through a plot contrivance magical barrier that is just one of many examples in Fates of magic not working the way it does in the rest of the series (or at least I can’t think of anything else like this, correct me if I’m wrong). We don’t learn just why Nohr is so hellbent on invading Hoshido that they’d resort to summoning soulless monsters to do so until much later (and only in Birthright of all routes!). For now they just sound like unprovoked aggressors, and the Hoshidan royals Corrin’s true and loving family.

However, what I really wanted to bring up for this chapter is how oddly it’s structured, such that it never fails to throw me off a bit. It opens in an unnamed Fire Tribe village in a snowy area of Hoshido, which might I mention is the only point in the game we see anything of the Fire Tribe other than Rinkah herself. Considering all the time we spend in multiple routes with the Wind and Ice Tribes, that lack of detail strikes me as peculiar. Kaze then brings Corrin to the Hoshidan palace where Ryoma and Mikoto reveal the truth, then it’s immediately back to the snowy north to rescue Hinoka and Sakura from Faceless before returning to the palace to meet Azura. Was there any reason the Faceless fight couldn’t have happened before Corrin left the village, and the reveal and trip to Shirasagi left for after the chapter map and partially in response to Hinoka’s OOC crying fit?

I also hate maps where high-powered NPCs go around stealing kills. Kaze barely got to see any action this chapter, poor guy.

Chapter 5

Props to this manakete design, which is unlike anything else in the series and manages to work in elements of Anankos and Corrin’s weird outfit. No props to the scripting of the thing, as after this chapter Corrin may as well not even be a mankete except for gameplay purposes (which are minimal anyway unless you need them to tank something). You’d think learning that you can turn into a dragon would leave more of an impact on...anyone really, but nope. I guess it technically becomes relevant again in Kana’s paralogue, but that’s as tangential and ultimately irrelevant as everything else involving the kids.

There’s a lot else going on in this chapter, but I’m sorry to say that neither Mikoto’s death nor the obliteration of a large chunk of Hoshido’s capital lands as powerfully as they were meant to considering Corrin and the audience have spent all of 1.5 chapters with these people. This isn’t anything like Elbert or Greil’s death scene or even remake!Rudolf’s for that matter - at least that one came with a shocking twist that was responded to appropriately. It’s hard to even appreciate these events from the perspectives of the Hoshidan royals because they’re still pretty new characters in the player’s mind, though with the hindsight of Conquest I can maybe sympathize with Takumi here at the beginning of his downward spiral.

Corrin also picks up their legendary sword in a way that feels extremely random. I guess the Yato was inside the statue that got blown up? Weird place to keep a divine peace-bringing relic, that’s all I’m saying.

Branch of Fate

Despite some early warning signs and a few slight missteps, I’m happy to say that this story moment works. It’s a good thing that it does too, as this is the defining moment of FE14 in everything from its marketing to its game design to its core themes. The setup is rushed and tense and allows only Corrin, i.e. the intended player self-insert, full knowledge of the weight of the choice put before them, as none of the other royals are aware that they are all in a way family to the person they’re now abruptly forcing to pick a side. Familial connections (biological or otherwise) may not be a narrative hook that grabs me personally, but nonetheless this scene sticks with you. There is no easy choice, and the consequences of any of them immediately define the direction of the story.

This is not to say that all three of the iterations of Chapter 6 that follow succeed equally well, but that’s for other posts...including the next one, which will kick off Birthright.

Next time: Birthright Chapter 6 - 11

#Fire Emblem #Fire Emblem Fates #FE14

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popcorn-for-dinner · 6 years

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Wakanda Forever: Finding Black Pride in Kings and Teenage Girls

“You don’t know what you were missing, till you have it”

There’s a particular scene in Wonder Woman that often gets referenced when the film is being discussed; the “No Man’s Land” scene. I had the pleasure of watching Wonder Woman alone (yeah, come at me) and at the time of watching, I had no reason to believe that this would become an iconic scene. To me, it was just another good action set piece. Granted, one that I applauded (metaphorically, of course. I’m not trying to validate those stereotypes), but still, just a well-done sequence.

I would soon come to realise the power of subjectivity.

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In various discussions since leaving that theatre, I have listened to countless women, both in my real life and online, talk about the effect that the scene had on them. Their experiences of joy, pride and childlike glee, with many being brought to tears.

I am under no illusion that its star (Gal Gadot) and director (Patty Jenkins) were both aware of the importance of the scene they were constructing and the need for such a scene in this movie in today’s world. I quickly realised that this scene wasn’t (primarily) directed at me. Sure, I could appreciate it from a story or technical point-of-view, but it could never get me in my feels the way it did my female counterparts. Where I saw another hero blocking bullets, they saw a woman standing, against and for men, for what she knew was right. The largely underrepresented female, superhero-watching audience was finally seeing a woman exhibit such heroics on the big screen.

“Those who complain about representation, are the ones who’ve always been represented”.

Like most sane people, I love Will Smith. I grew up on Fresh Prince of Bel-Air reruns, then came the Men in Blacks, Hitch, Hancock, I, Robot etc. He was a movie star, he did it all: action, drama, comedy, sci-fi. To me, he was the movie star. I would go on to, harshly, learn that he wasn’t the norm, but the exception.

I was now seeing the ubiquity of white movie and tv stars, I now noticed that beyond the handful of black movie stars, people with my skin colour were criminally underrepresented. This was weird because I was living in a country (Nigeria) where everyone had my skin colour. So, to a young boy who was falling in love with the arts, the idea quickly became, only white people get that shot and maybe a handful of Black Americans, but even then, they definitely still gotta tell the white man’s story.

Which brings us to 2018. A year in which I get to see an African King and a black teenage girl save the world. An African King and a Black Teenage Girl! Many have criticised the hype for Black Panther, with some stating that the importance of the movie is being overstated by its fans. “Y'all acting like this movie gonna solve racism”.

I do not think the importance of these movies can be overstated.

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Black Panther is a big budget superhero film that focuses on an African nation, its king and citizens. It features an impressive, predominantly black (and beautiful) cast. This cast not only boasts talented actors with strong African backgrounds (Lupita Nyong'o, Daniel Kaluuya and Danai Gurira) but it also includes actors based in Africa, not least of whom is the South African legend, John Kani. Twenty years ago, a convergence of all these factors would have seemed nearly impossible.

A Wrinkle in Time, in its own right, conquers its own fair share of impossibilities. In keeping with a career that continually breaks new ground while affecting change, Ava DuVernay now brings a sci-fi, Disney, epic with a brown skinned girl as its heroine. Who would have thought? Even in a world where Katniss Everdeen and Hermione Granger became household names and shot their respective actresses to bona-fide movie star status, such a movie still seemed impossible.

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Ava DuVernay has not shied away from the fact that this is new ground for everyone. I’ll admit that I am not familiar with the original 1963 novel and its ensuing legacy (it wasn’t high on our literary lists in Nigeria). But boy am I excited. In creating this film that will inevitably be a sea change moment, Miss DuVernay has surrounded herself with notable producers (Catherine Hand and Tendo Nagenda), the writer and co-director of Frozen, Jennifer Lee and a cast that includes Mindy Kaling, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Michael Pena and Oprah Winfrey (playing an all-knowing being, because, duh) along with Chris Pine and Zach Galifianakis rounding out the cast.

As mentioned earlier, A Wrinkle in Time’s heroine is a brown skinned teenage girl. However, this was not always the case. In the original novel, Meg Murry is white. Here she is portrayed by newcomer Storm Reid. Miss DuVernay has continually referenced her desire to create new worlds and how, expectedly, these worlds would be different from what her white and male counterparts would envision. The effect such inclusion could possibly have cannot be overstated.

Really, is that not what we hope for? What we all want? That inclusivity. A world in which a young girl can look at a big budget Disney movie poster and see herself as the heroine. A world in which we get Angela Bassett finally playing a queen. Where young brown and black skinned girls, and maybe just as importantly young boys, can see that girls can save the world too. The same world where the great Forrest Whittaker admits to carrying out extensive research on the Yorubas in order to bring authenticity to his role. This world only has positives. It provides filmmakers with more diverse voices, from different backgrounds, the opportunity to share their visions. All sorts of stories are told in this world and everyone gets to be represented. Such inclusion can only lead to better, well-informed stories and more opportunities for people too often left in the fringes.

In their introductory scene from Captain America: Civil War, King T’Chaka (John Kani) and his son, T'Challa (Chadwick Boseman) speak “isiXhosa” (A South African language). This was not originally in the script, it was an input from John Kani. This input led to a scene in a Hollywood film in which two actors are speaking isiXhosa and neither of them is a warlord nor an internet scammer. It might not seem like much, but in the grand scheme of things, it’s huge.

It just goes to show that the inclusion of diverse voices behind and in front of the camera bleeds its benefits in such subtle and wide-ranging ways. Some of these benefits may not be visible to the lay man but they mean the world to those marginalized groups.

At the premiere of Black Panther, John Kani gushed about the “seriousness” of the movie and why he wanted to show Africa and its denizens in a different light. To deal with the myth that “if the white colonialists did not land in Africa, we’ll still be walking in skins…”. Frankly, that’s a cause we can all rally behind.

Now, no one is saying that things are automatically fixed or that change has happened, we are definitely still some ways off but it’s a hell of time to be alive. What we need to then do, is not falter but use these burgeoning changes as catalysts for a much larger attack on the status quo.

While the eventual quality of both Black Panther and A Wrinkle in Time is not the driving force of this article, I would be remiss if I did not mention that in the hands of Ryan Coogler and Ava Duvernay, I feel little reason to fret about the outcome. They are two filmmakers that made instant splashes with their unique visions in Fruitvale Station and Creed (Coogler) and Selma and 13th (DuVernay). I’m not sure I trust any two people to better understand the importance of the positions they have been placed in and the need for success. They are not only capable of delivering the goods, they are more than deserving of the opportunity. They, it seems, live their lives by that mantra that we, as minorities have stuck in our psyche.

Would it be a stretch to draw a line between the release and adoration of Wonder Woman and the rise of female empowerment (#MeToo, Time’s Up) in 2017? Probably. Could I make the argument to you after some shots of Vodka? Most likely. The point is that change starts from all sorts of weird places and all we can do is hope. Hope that the change is not stifled by its location but given the space and support to grow. So yes, I’ll be with my tickets opening weekends of Black Panther and A Wrinkle in Time hoping that this is the beginning of some form of change in Hollywood that would hopefully grow and spread to the larger world.

Bankole Imoukhuede

#black panther #a wrinkle in time #ava duvernay #ryan coogler #marvel #disney #chadwick boseman #popcorn for dinner #black history month #film #marvel cinematic universe

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daggerzine · 6 years

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Coming up for air….Phil Sutton of the Pale Lights opens up.

A few years ago I began hearing the name Pale Lights in NYC indie pop circles. Then, leader Phil Sutton was nice enough to send me a package that included the band’s terrific debut LP, 2014’as Before There Were Pictures, plus a single and a cd by his other band, Soft City (see below). Well, I had been playing that Pale Lights record constantly until earlier this year when Sutton and Co released their as good/maybe better sophomore effort, The Stars Seemed Brighter released at the tail end of 2017. Listening to the records it seemed like Sutton wasn’t just some newcomer on the scene and as it turns out he’s not. He cut his teeth (into fangs) in DAGGER favorites Comet Gain back in the early 90’s and then with some other bands in between. In his music you’ll hear the classic songwriting style of The Smiths, Felt, Orange Juice, Go-Betweens, etc. A breezy pop sound that Sutton and Co. make seem effortless. Honestly, The Stars Seemed Brighter might by my most listened to record this year so far. These days the lineup of Pale Lights seems pretty solid with bassist Maria Pace, drummer Lisa Goldstein, guitarist Andy Adler and keyboardist/vocalist Suzanne Nienaber (who also plays in the Great Lakes) and Sutton singing and playing guitar as well. Phil took some time while healing up after an illness and was more than happy to elaborate on my questions. Take ‘er away, Phil! (**also, if you happen to be in Brooklyn, NY on 8/4/18 try and catch their show with The Essex Green and Adeline Hotel at the Knitting Factory- link at the bottom of the interview).

Pale Lights gettin’ some sun (L-R- Andy, Suzanne, Phil, Maria and Lisa)

Where did you born/where did you grow up?

I was born in Germany, an army brat for the first ten years of my life. When my Dad left the army we settled in a village in Oxfordshire. I ended up in London as soon as I could manage it, via a shortish stays in Banbury and Oxford. The village, which I for the most part hated, was inspiration for the Pale Lights song, Coming Up For Air, which gets it’s title from the George Orwell novel, which is about someone returning to their childhood home, a village in Oxfordshire.

Whar was the first instument you picked up?

Drums, playing for Comet Gain, in 1992. Well, I say drums, I didn’t own a kit until 1995. I was always borrowing one. I didn’t pick up a guitar until I was in my 30s. I think it shows!

What was your first ever gig?

The first live music I ever heard was Ultravox, at the Oxford Playhouse. I went with a schoolfriend. We had gotten the tickets about 8 months before. The BMX Bandits were playing the same night, but I had committed to Midge and the boys. It was pretty terrible. The set ended with the band all standing in line playing bodrums. Not very synthesizer-y. The woman next to me spat in my ear as she screamed “Go Billy!” when the Billy Currie caught a violin shown to him by a roadie to play the solo in Vienna. It was pretty swish, but seemed…not cool. My next show was, I think, The Soup Dragons with The Thanes, a great Scots 60s inspired garage band. Then it was, I think, Felt with the TVPs and many, many indie pop types after.

What was your initial entry into the world of indie/punk music?

Comet Gain was my first band. David, the groups founder, was my flatmate. He asked me to drum, even though I couldn’t, and I said yes, because I think it was me or no one. I didn’t really learn to play drums until after I’d left! We made a series of terrible DIY tapes in his bedroom which were sold in the Rough Trade shop. Comet Gain completists go nuts for that stuff.

I’d heard you were in Comet Gain. What year was that? How long did your tenure last?

I was in Comet Gain from 1992 to 1997. I played on the first 2 LPs, and a bunch singles, compilation songs, and a couple of BBC sessions, one for John Peel, and one for the Evening Session. I left when the original lineup split and played drums for Velocette. I did a couple of singles and a Peel session with them, before I left to form my own group. Even though I quit the group, Comet Gain were super important to me, and together with the whole riot girl movement shaped how I think about music, if not directly (I’m really not very punk) then at least in spirit, that isn’t sexist, cliched, macho. The idea of being independent, DIY, creating art that tries to be about something. I always try and play in mixed gender groups, for instance. For me music is more interesting when it’s not a boys club. I’m still a big fan of Comet Gain’s music. It was sad that the first lineup was too dysfunctional to stay together (mostly because we were two groups), but Comet Gain improved by leaps and bounds when the focus shifted solely to David’s song writing. I think their last LP was their best.

The Soft City (that’s Phil far right)

In between Comet Gain and The Soft City (I know , a looooong gap) what bands were you in?

I formed Kicker with Jill Price (then Jill Drew), Andy Jones, and Laura Bridge (Harper Lee) in 1998. We were joined later by Jax Coombes (Comet Gain, Velocette), Beatrice Hatherly, Cat Cormack, and Ben Phillipson (18th Day of May, Comet Gain, Bonnie Dobson’s band). Kicker was the first band where I wrote and sang (sometimes). Jill was the main singer. I’d been fired by Velocette, and decided to start my own band so I couldn’t be fired. But I had to write some songs! So I did. I couldn’t play an instrument, so I sang the songs to the others, who worked out the chords, etc. We did OK, got played by Peel and the other BBC evening types, recorded a couple of albums for the London label Track and Field, and played a lot of shows. We were label mates with people like Essex Green, The Projects (for whom I played drums for one LP), Ladybug Transistor, Great Lakes, Tom Paulin, The Loves, Saloon. Lots of great bands. Kicker split in 2007 when I met my wife and immigrated to the US. I was strumming a Kicker song called Blue the other day, which I’m thinking of playing out at some point. David (Comet Gain) told someone (not me) that it was a proper song. Which I think it is.

Tell me about the Soft City? Were you mostly the drummer? Is the band still together?

When I arrived in New York City I didn't know many people. Kevin Pedersen, who runs What’s Your Rupture? was a good friend I’d met through his love of Comet Gain, and was a real good host, introduced me to some lovely people, including Andy Adler, and I got to know Gary Olson. I wanted to start a new group, so pretty much put together Kicker USA, The Soft City. I put an ad in Craigslist, and it was answered by Jason Corace, who made records as A Boy Named Thor, and Dora Lubin. I say Kicker USA because it was mostly me writing the songs (Jason wrote some too, which I think may have been superior songs! Plane In The Sky from out 7” EP is lovely), and I played drums too, although I was writing on the guitar by this point. I decided not to sing though, to give the audience someone to focus on. We played our debut show at the Cake Shop, at the NYC Popfest 2008. It was great! We had already recorded our album, I think. Or had nearly finished it, maybe. Kyle Forester, who we met through Gary Olson, played bass and keys on the first record. Incidentally Knight School played that show, and Lisa was their drummer I decided that if I stopped playing drums, she would be The Soft City’s drummer. It was kismet! Or something… The Soft City made an LP for Plastilina Records, and an EP for my own label, Calico Cat. The Lp bombed, but the EP sold out. C’est la vie! Turner Stough joined us for the EP as bass player. Jason then got tenure in Baltimore, and Andy Adler and Lisa joined.

When did you move to the states? Was it right to NYC or did you live anywhere else?

2007. I’ve always lived in New York City, in Manhattan, then Brooklyn, and now Queens.

Pale Lights debut from 2014

When did the Pale Lights come together? How did the current lineup come about?

Dora left NYC in 2011, so The Soft City stopped. I decided I wanted to sing again. The first The Soft City release was recorded in the UK just before I left, as a sort of demo, a 3 track affair. It got released by Roque Ruiz’s Cloudberry Records. So I started Pale Lights, initially with Lisa and her friend Maria Pace, and very soon after Andy Adler joined. We recorded our first EP pretty soon after that, with a librarian friend, Brooke Watkins on keyboards. One of our earliest shows was the NYC Popfest, in 2012. Comet Gain played that year, so we got to hang out I had a ball!

Tell me about the recording of the latest record, The Stars Seemed Brighter. How did the recording differ from your debut?

Perhaps not that much? I think it’s a stronger set of songs, maybe. We recorded with Gary Olson at Marlborough Farms, and Kyle Forester did the keyboards. The main difference is that Suzanne Nienaber joined us and now sings on all of the songs. Maria’s bass playing has come more to the fore too.

What about your recent tour of Germany, did you get sick? Were you able to play any of the shows?

Yeah, I got sick right at the last minute. I delayed my flight, but it was no good. very sad about that, as we had been planning it for months. The group was already there, so, with a little persuasion from our label boss, Ronny at Kleine Untergrund Schallplatten (KUS), Suzanne was persuaded to sing lead vocals. She did a great job. The group was joined onstage in Augsburg by Kenji Kitahama, who’s currently in Clay Hips, Friedrich Sunlight, and The Golden Eaves, and Shaun Charman, who plays in Jetstream Pony, our label mates. (Shaun was in the Wedding Present and The Popguns). They’re from the UK. Beth Arzy is their singer. They’re very good. They have a new EP out on KUS soon. Beth is in Luxembourg Signal too. Who are also our European label mates! Anyway, they all took care of my group, coaxed everyone along, and were generally lovely hosts. So though I wasn’t there, and didn’t get to meet everyone, I know that everyone at the label and on the label is lovely. I tour managed from my sickbed, wrote some new songs, did social media.

Pale Lights- cleaning up the streets of NYC.

Tell us about your day job, are you a librarian?

Yes. So is Lisa. Have been since 2010, at The New York Public Library, in Genealogy and Local History division. It’s not very indie pop, but I do love it. I mostly do reference and instruction. Actually, it probably is pretty indie pop. Lots of cardigans and spectacles. It’s not twee though. I hate that word.

What are some current bands that you love that we might not know about?

I’m terrible at new bands. Lake Ruth I love. Great Lakes aren’t new, but their new LP is really great. Jetstream Pony, I mentioned. Jeanines is a very new band I like. We played with them at our LP launch in the Spring. Very catchy, jangly, old school indiepop, but not twee. Jed from My Teenage Stride drums, and Alicia is the singer. Alicia writes short, neat pop songs that are very catchy. I had one song in my head for about two weeks. I started going a bit mad, actually. I’ve mostly been listening to Francoise Hardy and Microdisney lately. I really need to listen to some new music. I spend all my money on buying 60s-80s records though, to be honest. I have been listening to The Dentists a lot too. A group I missed first time out. I’m going to buy the new Clay Hips LP. That’s Kenji’s new band. Kenji sings like an angel. He got us signed to KUS. But I’m not biased. My wife thinks I listen to a lot of old man music, but her ears pricked up when she heard me playing the Golden Eaves, one of his other bands. She was “Who’s this?!” She’s from the same small town near Los Angeles as Kenji. Small world.

What’s next for the Pale Lights? More shows? More recordings?

We open for Essex Green at the Knitting Factory in Brooklyn, August 4th, which I am excited about seeing as we are old label mates. Their new LP sounds very good. KUS is releasing a split 7’ featuring ourselves and Lake Ruth doing each other’s songs, that should be out in the Fall, and we have a song on a KUS compilation coming out later in the year. We’re working on new songs for a 7” for Slumberland Record’s 30th anniversary singles club, and a 12 EP/mini LP too.

Final words? Closing comments? Anything you want to add that I didn’t ask?

If you don’t have a library card, people, get one. Use it or lose it. Also Pale Lights are available for shows. Book us!

https://palelights.bandcamp.com/

***ALL PHOTOS BY LEIGH FOX

***Upcoming gig in Brooklyn with the Essex Green. See info here:

http://nyc-shows.brooklynvegan.com/events/2018/8/4/the-essex-green

Album #2

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formerprincess · 6 years

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South Grad - Crazy capitalized || Chapter 1

Chapters: 1/? Fandom: Teen Wolf (TV) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Liam Dunbar/Theo Raeken Characters: Liam Dunbar, Theo Raeken, Corey Bryant, Brett Talbot Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Human, AUS are life, so have this, Human!Thiam, Drag Queens, because Drag Queens are everything, Slow Build, Alternate Universe - Bar/Pub, Gay Bar, Mutual Pining Summary:

Theo is a notorious workaholic and has literally no friends in town but a bad day at work seem to change it when he meets the young barkeeper Liam. Liam is so different than Theo and drags Theo into his world of the entertainment district South Grad.

If there was a competition being held for bad days, Theo was absolutely sure this day would take the cake. It had started with someone spilling coffee over his new dress shirt, causing Theo to almost being late for work because he was in the bathroom trying to clean himself; then his boss - already in a bad mood- had scolded him for the coffee stain on his shirt, proceeded to diss the progress Theo made in the project he was working on and used the team meeting to make a fool out of him. Rosie, who was working in the office across from Theo, had looked absolutely delighted. Since he started working for the company she hated his guts and never held back with snarky comments.

To say Theo was annoyed and done with the day when he finally could leave work, was an understatement. He drove home, grabbed his gym bag and then drove to the gym to punch the sandbag repeatedly but even that didn’t help. And so, after he took a shower and changed into casual clothes, Theo was in desperate need of a drink. Or several drinks. He wasn’t picky about that one. Leaving his gym back in his car, Theo decided said car was perfectly parked in the parking lot of the gym and he could always take a cab later on. It was Friday (thank god!) but since he basically had no friends in the city, he also had nobody to pick him up after he drank. A cab would do for sure.

A cab was also what he slid into after leaving the parking lot since he had no idea where the next bar was around. “To the nearest bar with decent drinks.” He told the cab driver and the man frowned and looked in the rearview mirror. “I could bring you to South Grad, there you have as many bars as you would like. But it’s not the most classy area around.” “Fine by me. A drink is a drink, classy or not, right?” Theo said and leaned back while the cab rolled onto the street. He didn’t care about the way, he cared that he got something strong to drink. Since he had moved to the city, he rarely paid attention to the town he lived in and rather focused on his work. The opportunity he had was truly something and he would not waste in in favor of exploring the city. That was also the reason why he had no idea where the cabbie was driving him to but when they stopped after a while, Theo realized they were close to the harbor. He paid the driver, even with a tip, and then left the cab.

He put his hands in the pockets of his bomber jacket and just walked straight ahead. In front of him were several narrow winding streets filled with all kinds of establishments, nightclubs, bars, some restaurants, strip clubs and the people populating the streets were colorful, loud, and exactly what you would expect in a district like that.

Theo stopped by the first bar he came across and stepped inside. It was dimly lit and the blue neon sign above the bar bathed everything in a sick blueish light. But Theo couldn’t care less when he sat down at the bar and ordered a whiskey on the rocks for himself. He needed alcohol and he needed it asap! The barkeep didn’t pester him like some other might tend to do but instead handed the finished drink over and then walked to the other end of the bar to clean glasses. Theo sipped his drink and grimaced at the burn in his throat. That’s what he needed after today.

It took two more drinks for Theo to realize that the last thing he ate today was during his lunch break and it had only been a salad and a granola bar. Maybe he should lay the foundation for drinking since he didn’t plan on throwing up cause he drank too much on an empty stomach. So he paid and then left the bar, intending to find the next restaurant and eat the greasiest thing on the menu.

The nearest restaurant was a Diner two doors over and Theo sat down at the counter again, hazel eyes wandering over the menu on the wall. An elderly waitress with rosy cheeks and short pastel purple hair hurried over to him and took his order for a grilled cheese sandwich with bacon. The Diner was empty aside from an old man in one booth solving crossword puzzles and a younger couple making out in the other booth and sharing a milkshake (Theo almost gagged at the cliché) so his order didn’t take long and he could indulge in his food. The waitress didn’t try to talk to him and rather talked with the chef who left his kitchen to bear her company behind the counter.

The door to the Diner opened when Theo was halfway through with his sandwich. “Joy, Manny, how are you today?” The newcomer asked and leaned over the counter to press a kiss against the elderly woman’s cheek and high-five the chef. “As healthy as two squirrels in a tree.” Joy answered with a giggle. The other chuckled and then looked at the chef. “Manny, I need two six-packs of your delicious beer. I lost a bet and as you know betting debts are debts of honor.” He ordered and Manny nodded and walked back into the kitchen to get the ordered beverage. It gave Theo time to check out the newcomer. He was younger, around Theo’s age probably, and dressed in a black dress shirt and black jeans which really accentuated the great ass he was having. His light brown hair was cut short and sweaty and disheveled as if he had run his hands through it several times. While he waited for the beer his full lips were almost constantly moving when he talked with the waitress and his ice blue eyes sparkled with happiness. Even with the pale lightning of the tube lights on his fair skin, he looked healthy and really fucking attractive and Theo enjoyed the view immensely.

Manny came back and put the two six packs on the counter. “Why are you even betting?” “Because Brett talked shit, as always.” The young man grinned and handed the cash over before grabbing the beer. “One day I will win against him, you will see!” He said while walking to the door again. “See you, guys. And, Manny, don’t eat too many fries, you need to watch your cholesterol.” Theo bit in his sandwich to hide his chuckle. That had been cute. Great ass obviously was not only sexy but also cute and caring, who had thought? Good to know those people still existed, even though Theo knew he wasn’t such a person himself. No, Theo - and that was something he had made his peace with overtime - was an asshole, a lone wolf. He worked best with that, something he experienced several times now. Starting with his family over so-called friends who betrayed him in the end, Theo had learned to only rely on himself. That way nobody could disappoint him.

Theo finished his sandwich, paid and then left the Diner, intending to find the next bar and drink again now that his stomach was full. Intending being the key word because he just passed a smaller alley when he caught glimpse of a girl pressed against the wall by a guy who obviously tried to kiss her. She was squirming and trying to push him away but she was no match for his physical strength when he held her hands. And self-declared asshole or not, Theo could not watch that. So he stepped up and grabbed the guy by his shoulder. “Dude, don’t you see she’s uncomfortable?” He asked while pulling him back. The girl squeaked and shot him a grateful look.

“What is your problem? Can’t you see you’re disturbing the fun we were having?” The guy growled and Theo scrunched hid nose when he smelled the alcohol in the guy’s beath. “It wasn't fun. You tried to kiss me and I said no.” The girl said and he glared at her before grabbing her arm. “We’re on a date, don’t play coy now!” He ordered angrily and she whimpered when his grip obviously hurt her. Theo narrowed his eyes and now it was him who gripped the guy’s wrist and twisted it painfully, causing him to let the girl go.

“Not cool!” Theo hissed while the girl ran. The guy growled and stumbled back when Theo let him go. He glared at Theo but he simply didn’t care and instead turned around to walk away from the drunk man as well. He tried at least, but suddenly he has swung around and a fist collided with his nose. Theo groaned and held his nose when pain blossomed from there through his whole face. He felt blood pouring out and slumped against the wall. He expected another hit but suddenly a guy the size of a bear was between them and grabbed the drunk guy. “Didn’t we have a talk about you causing trouble last time?” He asked in a deep voice and dragged the drunkard away. Theo was still holding his nose and blinked against the tears in his eyes from the unexpected pain and suddenly the guy Theo had checked out at the Diner was in front of him. “Hey, you okay?” He asked worriedly and gently grabbed Theo’s wrist to pull his hand away from his nose. “Fuck, he got you good.” “You think?” Theo groaned and held his nose again, trying to stop the bleeding. Great ass bit his lower lip and seemed to think about it, then he grabbed Theo’s arm. “Come with me.”

He had said it like Theo had a choice but he then turned around and pulled Theo along with him. Out of the alley they were in but into another alley and then towards the back door of a building which he opened with a key and Theo followed because he was mad at the guy who punched him, in pain from the punch and because this was the fitting finish for his crappy day. Why not follow the stranger into what looked like the back of a club and through a small hallway right into a small office where the guy pressed him on the crappy red sofa in the corner and then picked up a first aid kit from next to the desk and then sat down next to Theo to inspect his nose? He tilted Theo’s head back and Theo briefly wondered why he let this happen but the guy’s touches were just so soft and comforting, he had it not in him to refuse the treatment.

“I don’t think your nose is broken. It doesn’t look broken anyway.” He cleaned the blood from Theo’s nose and then pressed a wet washcloth against it to stop the bleeding from getting too much again. “Hold this for a few moments, it should stop the bleeding.” He instructed and took Theo’s hand to put it on the washcloth. Theo blinked but kept his hand where it was and after a few minutes the bleeding really stopped, thanks to the cooling from the washcloth. Lowering his head again, he took the washcloth away.

“Thanks.” He said and the guy nodded and nudged a trashcan with his foot so Theo could throw the washcloth into it before he stepped closer and inspected Theo’s face. “Still a bit red but not bloody anymore. Would be a shame if your pretty face was spoilt by that.” He winked at Theo’s surprised face and Theo could not help but chuckle. Look at that, the guy could also flirt. “To be honest, it would be the perfect finish for the shitty day I just had.” “Ah, bad day. Makes sense you came to South Grad then.” “Is that so? Why?” Theo asked and raised an eyebrow. The guy chuckled. “Because 90% of the people around came here after a bad day and most never really left. The other 10% only want fun.” “Uh uh.” Theo nodded. “What exactly is this area?” The guy looked surprised. “You don’t know about South Grad? Are you new in town?” “Not new I just never had time to explore so this is my first time here. Why? Is South Grad a household name?” Theo asked amused. The guy grinned and then nodded in the direction of the door. “Come on, I’ll show you what South Grad is all about.”

“I don’t even know your name.” Theo realized but still got up from the couch. The guy held out his hand. “I’m Liam, nice to meet you.” “Theo.” Theo introduced himself and shook Liam’s hand, before following him outside. On their way out, Liam started to explain. “South Grad is the entertainment district of the town. Here land the people who didn’t get to experience the bright side of society.” “You didn't get to experience the bright side of society?” Theo asked. It was surprising cause Liam looked like a nice guy, attractive and also really well-mannered, so what could have gone wrong? Liam looked over his shoulder while he pushed the door to the street opened and stepped outside. “Take a look around. You have many bars, strip clubs, and gay clubs here, drag shows, and it’s mostly all done by people who are not like society tells them to be. People society would rather shun and ignore, so they gathered around here. They are great people but most of them can give you a lot of stories about ignorance, judgment, and prejudices.” He explained without really answering Theo’s question but Theo decided not to push it. He rather followed Liam down the street.

“There are also lots of cultures gathering around here, blending together and creating this colorful place filled with life. I came here years ago while I was in college and sweet eighteen years old, not even old enough to enter most establishments here.” “How old are you now?” “Twenty-three.” Liam said with a smile and Theo felt himself smile back. What? The guy’s smile was too cute to resist.

He now looked around again. Liam had brought them on the “main street”, a wider street where most alleys diverted from. He pointed at the building they had just rounded. “One of the best strip clubs around. Caters to all needs, female and male. We don’t judge, that’s the mantra. Basically the mantra of the whole district.” He waved a young man dressed in nothing but grey sweatpants and black converse who took a drag from his cigarette a few feet away from the entrance of the club. He waved back at Liam with a bright smile. “That’s Brett, one of the dancers.” Liam explained Theo and passed the strip club in favor of wandering further down the street. “South Grad is - according to the city guide - the artistic part of town where art meets culture. The art thing is true but not in the way that we have museums here but drag is an art form, so are the dancers and performers, heck even the chefs in the restaurants are artists, the tattoo artists around. We are not high class but we are creative and that’s what counts.”

Theo nodded along with Liam’s explanation. He couldn’t help but notice how many people, men, women, Drag Queens, and other people walked past them and talked to Liam, hugged him, and kissed his cheeks. It was all very familiar. “You guys seem to be very close.” He commented. “Here at South Grad, we are one big family. Sure some people can’t stand each other but when push comes to shove we stick together. I have made the best friends here and I consider those people my family, yeah.” Liam cast a curious look at Theo. “What about you? Any family in town?” Theo shook his head. “I don't talk to my family anymore.” Liam’s mouth formed an ‘oh’ shape but he nodded. He obviously didn’t hear this for the first time. “You said you had a bad day? A fight with your girlfriend?”

He was so curious and open, Theo couldn’t stop answering. Something about Liam pulled him in and made him willing to keep the conversation going. “I don’t have a girlfriend. And no boyfriend either. Single and workaholic.” Liam snickered. “What are you doing for a living?” “I work for a publishing company.” “That’s cool.” Theo just shrugged. It was repetitive most days if he was being honest, lots of paperwork and not the good kind of paperwork he had expected. “It mostly consists of me sitting at my desk in my suit and look through the paperwork.”

“Ah, you’re a SZ.” “SZ?” Theo asked. “Suit Zombie. The ones who hang out in their offices all day, grab a salad for lunch and are so busy and successful.” Theo laughed. “That’s pretty much what I’m doing, yeah.” Liam gave him a look, blue eyes wandering over Theo’s appearance. “That’s really a shame.” He finally said and when he looked back at Theo’s face, he smirked and winked again. And Theo really hoped the light from the neon lights around them didn’t make it look like he was blushing. Theo Raeken didn’t blush but damn this guy knew how to flirt. He grinned back. “I never had the motivation to change that, until now.” He gave back, going for a flirty undertone. Liam’s eyes sparkled with mirth and he laughed before turning around and leading Theo directly into a bar named Purple Heel. On a small stage stood yet another Drag Queen and did her show and Theo followed Liam to the bar.

“This is my workplace.” Liam explained and leaned against the counter. “Corey, two shots...make it four. For each of us” He looked at Theo who stepped next to him. “You drink, right?” “Bet you sweet ass I do.” Theo replied and Liam grinned. His colleague, Corey, put the ordered drinks in front of them and Liam handed one glass over to Theo. “As you can see, the program consists of Drag Queens. Lovely people, really. Even some of them can be downright mean.” “Are you talking trash about me again, puppy?” A Drag Queen with a black wig and lots of makeup in white and blue on her face and dressed in a blue and white dress stepped next to him. Liam grinned at her. "Well, if the shoe fits, wear it, Gabriella.” He smirked and she swatted at his shoulder and then pointed at Theo.

“And who is that? Can’t I let you run around the streets without you dragging yet another friend in? Does he need feeding too like the last one?” She gestured towards Corey who scoffed. “I didn’t need feeding!” “You still do. Look how skinny you are!” Corey just rolled his eyes but smiled. “She’s our boss.” He explained to Theo. “I’m not.” Gabriella said. “I just tell them what to do with their lives and pay attention that they don’t go to the dogs.” She held out her hand. “I am Gabriella, most call me Gabs or Brie.” “Theo, nice to meet you.” “You met me. If it’s nice or not is something you should decide later on.” “Brie is an insult comedian.” Liam explained Theo and Theo laughed. “My favorite kind of comedian.” “If you try to sugarcoat me, honey, let it be known, you’re too young for me.” She told him and Theo grinned. “That’s a shame.” Gabriella turned to Liam. “I like him. You can keep him.” “Thanks, momma.”

Liam chuckled and then clinked his glass with Theo’s before downing it in one go. Theo smirked and knocked his drink back too. “And he can drink. Those are the requirements for South Grad.” Gabs told him and then nodded over to Corey. “Another round!”

“Theo here is an SZ, Brie, and he had a bad day.” Liam filled her in. “I changed my mind, Corey, just give me a whole bottle and three glasses.” Corey nodded and handed the desired things over. While Liam filled their glasses, Brie gave Theo a once over. “You’re hiding this body in a suit all day long? That’s a crime.” Theo shrugged and accepted the glass Liam held out for him. “It pays the bills.” "That does stripping too. Or look at me! I put on my makeup, a wig and ten-inch heels and make fun of other people. So that doesn’t really count. But as long as you like what you’re doing.” Theo shrugged. It was what he learned to do and what brought him into town in the beginning. He had no idea what else to do if he was being honest. So he nodded and clinked his glasses with Brie and Liam.

“Gabs, Theo here got punched by one of those drunk idiots. The one from last Friday.” She rolled her eyes and sipped her drink. “Don’t remember me. Didn’t Chico give him a dismissal? Some people never learn.” “Who is Chico?” Theo inquired. “The guy who took care of the drunkard. He’s kind of the security of the district.” “The district has a security?” “Kind of.” Corey explained. “Chico and his guys pay attention to all of us and make sure nobody causes serious trouble. Nobody knows what they really do for a living, some say Chico stems from a rich family, but they protect us. That’s good enough.” “Here at South Grad, we protect each other and we stick together. Crazy is capitalized here and we are a bunch of misfits but we are true.” Gabriella told Theo.

He sipped his drink and nodded. It must be nice to have something like that. And for the first time since he moved into town, he realized he was lonely. His work had covered that up quite good but days like this made it impossible to ignore the ache in his heart. But sitting there with people he just met and talked made him feel better about himself and for the first time in a long time, Theo could say he had a really good time.

This idea came to my mind and as I thought about it, I got a few more idea for further chapters. So I would like to hear your opinion. Is it worth continuing? (I still will continue my Mates series as well as A tale written with fangs and claws, don't worry) This would be just a story I have as an Au because I love Au and I found the idea very intriguing. I would add more chapter if inspiration strikes and I think it could be really cool. So, thoughts? Opinions? Comments?

#thiam #My writing #South Grad #something I'm trying out

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lifeinahole27 · 7 years

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CS ff: “Wait for the Moonrise” (Chapter 2/10) (au)

Summary: Emma doesn’t remember who she was before she was found in the woods, but she knows that she has a few close friends, a good job, and a loyal cat that greets her every day when she gets home from work. What she doesn’t know, however, is that her past is about to catch up to her in the strangest of ways. She learns quickly that not everything is as it seems, not even her cat.

Rating: E

Content warnings: smutty smut, brief mentions of the loss of a hand

Chapter specific content warnings: sexual situations, kidnapping (not at the same time)

A/N: My thanks are the only notes I have: to my beta, @captainstudmuffin, I owe my first born; to my artist, @clockadile, I owe at least ten fruit baskets; to the two lovely mods who had to put up with my weird brain, @phiralovesloki and @sambethe, I probably owe gold bars or something. To my guest artist on this chapter, @pompeiiablaze, I owe my meager possessions, and my eternal love. Sorry guys, I ran out of stuff, and don’t actually have any of the above -mentioned stuff. And now, for something completely different!

Chapter 1 |

Catch it on Ao3 or FFN! And catch @clockadile‘s artwork HERE!

For almost as long as he can remember, Killian has been a friend of the castle. Liam, fifteen years his senior, starts climbing the ranks of the navy even before Killian is left in his care at age seven. With their mother recently passed and their father presumed dead after he disappeared one night several years ago, Killian is left in the charge of the palace workers because of his brother’s status.

It doesn’t take long for the princess to take interest in him, this newcomer just two years older than she, and Killian is thankful for it every day. His life growing up with Emma is one of constant adventures of the mind, and their imaginations take them to every corner of the known world, and beyond.

As they grow, so does his fondness for the princess. Emma, the beloved and respected heiress of the throne, becomes known for her own brand of mischief, but also for encompassing a deep well of love for the people of her kingdom. She earns the surname Swan after it’s shown that she exhibits grace in the face of the public, even if she moves more like a calf still learning to walk when behind the palace walls. As a bonus, Killian has also been witness to another characteristic she shares with the birds that bide their time in the garden fountains. When provoked, Princess Emma will not hesitate to snap at those she feels deserve it.

When Emma begins to show signs of magic, they bring in fairies to start training her and honing her skills. Killian watches in fascination as she creates delicate swirls of fire or water, as she manipulates the air and cascades a line of sparks around her in a circle. He watches as she learns to control not only the magic, but also her emotions, as the two go hand in hand. Only once does she singe the bushes in the courtyard when her temper flares, but that’s the day that her parents tell her that she’ll be expected to find a suitor to marry when she grows older.

Killian joins the navy for two reasons. The first is to follow in the footsteps of his brother, and the second is to somehow make himself more worthy of Emma’s attentions. It’s at the age of eighteen that Killian first entertains the thought that Emma might one day view him in a romantic light, however he is well aware of their difference in status. As it happens, his undeniable intuition and his organized nature make him valuable to the inner workings of the fleet from his position on the land, while Liam moves up from captain to commodore out on the open waters.

It doesn’t hurt, either, that the strategy position means Killian is never far from Emma. Under the king and queen’s watchful eyes, they not only grow together, but also begin a very long, drawn-out courtship. They spend every moment between their duties as royal and lieutenant locked in the delicate art of flirtation and subtlety. Still, it takes them much longer to develop from first kiss to full courting.

It’s during one of these moments that Emma tells Killian to meet her in the flower fields, and he finds her playing with the tendrils of her magic, the blooms changing all colors of the rainbow with her in the center of the beautiful chaos.

“Emma!” he calls out, some mixture of fondness and exasperation in his tone as he smiles at her antics. She’s beautiful in her tumultuous jubilation, her smile shining brighter than the sun above her. With a snap of her fingers, every flower in the field goes back to normal and she makes her way over to him. The hem of her dress is slightly darkened by the dew and dirt, but she doesn’t seem to notice or care as she wraps her arms around his shoulders and pulls herself close to him.

“You’re getting much stronger,” he comments as his hands go to her waist.

“That’s not why I asked you here,” she says, pressing her forehead to his as she sighs in contentment. “I’ve told my parents not to invite suitors to my birthday celebrations this year.”

His heart speeds up, but he tries to keep his tone calm as he utters one syllable of a question. “Oh?” It’s been years since their first kiss, their only kiss to date, but still he hopes more than he ever has before.

There’s another hum, and she opens her eyes as she drops back to her bare feet, her smile the very definition of happiness. “I’ve told them that I have an interest in someone that I’d prefer to explore.” Her right hand comes forward to stroke along his cheek. Her thumb playfully dips into the dimple in his cheek, deepening it further as his smile spreads wider.

From there they only blossom together, much like the flowers in their field. Every chance they get, they stroll in the gardens together, her arm linked through his, and talk of everything and nothing at all. They duck behind hedges to kiss, hiding from her parents as they explore the tender beginnings of intimacy. They go no further than kissing, as is only appropriate, but as the summer stretches towards autumn, Killian knows that this bond between them is real, and he wants it forever.

In the weeks leading up to Princess Emma’s twenty-fifth birthday, a lot of changes take place. Some of these changes, like the ones that Killian is involved with, are nothing but good. He’s still in a pleasant state of shock that Emma returns his affections, and he spends the time before her birthday celebration ball looking for the perfect, official ring for his bride-to-be.

Thankfully, the palace jeweler finishes the ring he commissions with only days to spare, and with the ring in hand, Killian requests an audience with the king. He only speaks to Emma’s father as a courtesy, as he wishes for the man’s blessing, even if Emma would marry Killian with or without permission. His own brother, as beloved as he may be, knows nothing of his younger brother’s courtship. It doesn’t help that Liam is gone for months at a time. How is Killian to sum up his fortunes in a matter of lines to be sent to the Commodore of the First Armada of the Misthaven Royal Navy?

The talk with King David is nerve wracking to the highest degree. It’s not just asking for a king’s blessing, but everything that they discuss once David settles into an armchair across from Killian.

“You’ve been a member of this castle since you were very young, Killian. You’ve worked hard to gain your rank with the navy. And if you are Emma’s choice, then I have no room to say otherwise, not that I would. For what it matters, you both have my blessing, and I’ll save the protective father speech for another day.” David holds up his hand when Killian opens his mouth. He would never dream of hurting Emma, or ever leaving her.

“There are things you need to know now, to take into consideration as you head towards an engagement, and I’m sure you’re aware of some of it with your own military position.” He seems to weigh his words for a minute, rubbing a hand over his face as he stops just sort of sighing. “I almost wish I’d told you sooner.”

The king looks so serious, and suddenly so tired, that Killian fights to shift in his seat. “Whatever it is, your majesty, I am ready to hear it.”

“Of course, Killian. You’ve always been ready to jump into battles you can’t see,” David says amiably. His smile flashes quickly, before his expression reverts to one of concentration. “There is a prophecy we’ve learned of recently, in which Emma is the remaining hope for destroying the Dark One. He knows of this, and we’re afraid that he’s going to attack Emma in some way. We’ve enforced all the security around the castle that we can, but no plan is impenetrable. You understand that, don’t you?”

Killian nods, beginning to understand the delicate nature of this talk. “And I’m to help in this plan to defend the princess?”

“Everyone has a part to play here. Just stay vigilant at all times. If we can just make it out of this month unscathed, we have a chance of beating him. We’ve even called your brother’s fleet home to protect the shoreline. I just hope he’s back in time for the ball tomorrow night.”

At the mention of his brother, Killian does shift in his seat. Liam knows nothing of his plans to marry Emma, and he still isn’t sure whether or not his brother will approve.

“By your expression, I take it Commodore Jones doesn’t know what has happened on the land in his absence.”

“Aye, your majesty. I’m afraid he’s a little behind on the events of my life.”

“Well, I hope this will give you brothers an opportunity to catch up when everything settles. Have you gotten a ring for her?”

At the switch of topics again, Killian’s smile spreads again. “Aye,” he says dreamily, pulling the small pouch from the inside pocket of his jacket and upending it for the king to see the masterpiece. King David takes it from his palm and holds it up, admiring the smooth band and the reflective gem.

“Not as ornate as I expected you to get, which means you’ve catered to Emma’s tastes instead of your own. You’re already shaping up to be a wise husband.” For the first time during the whole conversation, Killian finally relaxes enough to laugh.

He excuses himself a short time later, heading towards the princess’s quarters as if his body is naturally drawn in that direction. The birthday celebrations are still a day away, but he knows she’s taken to hiding out in her quarters to avoid the bustling masses. He inspects his uniform for wrinkles, or any sign of imperfection, as he walks. After all, he has much to discuss with his beloved.

Love. It’s a concept he never fully intended to discover, as his own family being ripped apart felt like a sign that he should keep his head at his station and never look for any of life’s pleasures. And then the princess tilted her head to consider him, and even at the tender age of seven, he handed over a piece of his heart to her. He, a simple son of a captain gone missing, orphaned at a young age, somehow worthy of the cherub-faced girl that grew up into a headstrong, intelligent woman.

He’s just about to tap on the door to Princess Emma’s quarters when he sees the door is slightly ajar and voices are speaking from within. He has every intention of moving down the hall a bit, to give Emma her privacy, but he hears Queen Snow’s voice echoing the information that King David has just passed along to him.

“We’re going to do everything we need to in order to keep you safe, Emma.”

“I know, Mother.”

“I want you to have this for the time being,” the queen continues after a pause. He’s tempted to peek through the opening in the door to see what it is Queen Snow is giving to her daughter, but he cannot intrude on their privacy that way.

There’s no need, though, especially from the princess’s shocked words that follow. “This – this is your wedding ring. Why would you give me this?”

A heavy silence falls over the two women while Queen Snow seems to gather her words. “Even the fairies are worried that the precautions we’ve taken aren’t enough. There’s going to be a protection spell over the castle the night of your ball, but it can only last so long. And the fairies, well, they can only make it so strong.”

Hearing this, and hearing the way the queen speaks of her worries so candidly with her daughter, the pit that took up residence in Killian’s stomach before his talk with the king grows a little larger. He leans his head against the wall and evens out his breathing, sending up a wish with each exhalation that they can all manage to keep the princess safe.

“With this ring, and the one I’m sure is on the way from a certain young man that is enamored with you, maybe in the face of the worst case, you’ll always remember that we will find you, Emma. We will always find you.”

There’s a muffled sniffle, and he’s not sure which one of them it comes from, but he’s sure there must be an embrace involved.

"Okay, now that's out of the way, I do believe I'm off to the kitchens to see how the preparations are going for tomorrow night. You’ll join me shortly to check on all the details, yes?”

"Yes, I will. Thanks, Mother."

Killian pushes off the wall and quickly makes as if he was just walking down the hall, and it's as he's reaching the door that Queen Snow emerges from Emma's room.

"Good morning, Killian," Snow greets him warmly.

"Good morning, your majesty. It's a beautiful day for preparing for a princess's birthday, if I may say."

"Right you are. Oh, and I do hope you had a nice chat with the king," she says, a sly smile appearing as she turns just enough to look back at him. "Have a good day, Killian."

He stumbles over his farewell, taking a moment to breathe deep again before knocking on the door before entering.

"Who is it?"

"A dashing pirate, ready to steal you away and sail the high seas," Killian growls out as he sticks his head through the space. He moves further into the room, catching her eye in the reflection of the mirror on her vanity.

"Oh!" Emma feigns, pressing the back of her hand to her forehead as she spins in place on her vanity stool, "but who will save me!" They both snicker, with Emma dropping her hand as she rises from her seat.

"Good morning, love." He joins his hands behind his back, standing straight and trying to appear calm despite the roiling of his thoughts.

"And to you," she replies, moving to stand in front of him and reaching out to rub the pad of one finger down the detailing on his uniform coat. He's helpless from stopping himself when he reaches out and clasps her hand in his. He brings it to his lips, letting them linger on the soft skin on the back of her hand.

She hums, sounding content and happy as she looks at him with affection she can't seem to hide now that they've been honest with each other about their feelings.

"I trust you slept well?"

"I did, with all sorts of wonderful dreams about a certain set of lips and that spot you've just discovered behind my ear." She bites her lip after she says it, smiling so wide that her eyes crinkle up and a light blush heightens her coloring.

"I look forward to finding all the spots you enjoy as much as that one," Killian murmurs, careful to keep his voice low so if Emma's dressing maids are still anywhere nearby, they won't hear.

Emma presses forward, wrapping her arms around Killian's neck as she reaches behind him to push the door closed. "I wouldn't mind finding one or two of your sensitive spots, you know."

"You'll hear no objections from me."

“I only have a moment before I have to go help my mother,” she says, a furrow forming between her eyebrows. “Kiss me until I must go?”

“As you wish,” Killian says immediately, more than happy to attempt to put a smile back on her face before she heads off to deal with last minute details and party planning.

“The maids have all gone, if you’re worried about that,” Emma murmurs between meetings of their lips.

“That sounds like you want me to do more than just kiss you, love.”

"Maybe," Emma says coyly. She doesn't let him argue one way or the other, though, as she leans up again to capture his lips in a rough kiss. Her lips will be red if he lets her continue any longer, and her mother need not know what they've been up to, so Killian decides to take their little tryst in a different direction. Her gown is already laced over a corset, and they certainly don't have time to remove all those layers, so he improvises. It also gives him a chance to ask for something he’s wanted to try for a few weeks.

"Will you permit me to love you with my mouth, Swan?"

By the way her eyes darken and she sucks in a quick breath, he knows she's intrigued by the idea. They've not gone this far. They've barely touched each other at this point but there's something so enticing about the possibility of tasting her that makes him want it now, before he'll not get to see her again until they meet at the ball the next night. There's also a possibility that tomorrow will mean more than just the birthday of the woman he loves.

All those thoughts fly away, far far away, when Emma quickly nods her head. Pulling him down for another kiss as she drags him over to the nearest chair in her sitting room. "How...?"

"Hold on, love. I've got to - "

"Killian, just pull - "

They both pause as they laugh, trying to find their way beneath the skirts of Emma's dress.

He bites down hard on his lip when he finally makes his way beneath the necessary layers. While he is twenty-seven years of age, he’s spent most of his time pining after Emma. The rest of the time, he’s kissed a lass here and there, but just as much as Emma’s kissed a lad or two, if memory serves. This right here, as he eases her knickers down, is something he’s only heard about from ill-reputable sources or saw in the illustrated guide a group of sailors brought to the tavern one day.

“Are you sure, Emma?” They’ve already wasted so much time just getting to this moment, so maybe they should just wait.

“Are you sure, Killian?” The tone of her voice is all the answer he needs, but he makes sure to unbury himself for just a moment to see her face, to raise his eyebrow at the sass, before he ducks back under her skirts.

The stories he heard from other sailors fuel the moments that follow, as his lips brush against her heated skin. The soft ‘oh’ he hears from Emma is encouraging, though, so he presses further. Her legs widen further, allowing him all the access he needs to finally taste her properly. Her body directs him, from that moment forward. Although her quiet sounds are muffled by the fabric over his head, Killian strains to hear every whimper and gasp, obeys when she tells him to stay where he is or move to a new spot, and groans against her in earnest when she asks for a finger to be inserted. It seems he’s not the only one that’s been seeking outside education in the matters of pleasure.

When her skirts suddenly disappear from around him and her hands find his head, Killian worries that he’s gone astray from her desires. He starts to pull away but she frantically commands him not to move, to not stop exactly as he’s doing, and it takes only a few more moments before he feels her climax taking her over the edge. Her breathing stops for a moment, just a few inhaled gasps taken in and held, before she clenches her thighs on either side of his head and holds him there.

His name is her quiet incantation for the stretch of time she’s immobilized, until all her muscles relax. He eases away, then, taking in the rosy tint that spreads from her cheeks, down her neck, to even the tops of her breasts. Emma’s head is resting on the back of the chair, a serene smile lighting up her whole face. Her hands, which had fallen away as she slumped back, surge forward to tug at his shoulders.

“No, no, Swan – “ She kisses him before he can stop her, and he watches with enjoyment as she pulls away just as quickly. She touches her fingertips to her lips, her eyes slightly wide at the taste of herself on his lips, before she smiles and kisses him again.

“You were marvelous, Killian.” Her voice is dreamy when she leans back and speaks. “I can’t even find words to describe what that felt like, but I assure you, you’ll be finding out soon how it’ll feel on you.”

He’s painfully hard in his uniform trousers, and Emma’s words don’t help one bit. But she’s already surely missed from her party planning, and Killian has his own details to see to, now that he’s helping tighten up security.

“I will look forward to that, my love. For now, you must see to your celebration.”

She deflates a little when she realizes he’s correct, and they work together to make sure her undergarments and skirts are all back in proper place before she checks her hair. The flush is still fading from her fair skin, but it can be passed off as exertion when she will have to all but run to the kitchens.

“I’ll see you tomorrow night,” Emma says as she kisses him softly after they’ve both freshened up a bit. They talk quietly, standing just outside the door to her quarters but still cautious of any who might be around.

“Until then, Swan,” he kisses the back of her hand one more time and bows over it, accepting her smile and the hand she places gently against his cheek as she returns the sentiments.

She’s gone in a flurry of skirts, after that, and Killian turns on his heel to go find the men he needs to talk to about the perimeters of the gardens.

-x-

Perhaps it’s due to Killian’s familiarity with the undecorated ballroom that makes it feel so much more amazing to walk through the double doors at the far end the night of Emma’s birthday. He arrives early, before a majority of the guests, though some have already been escorted in and are mingling with family members and friends. Killian walks the room slowly, greeting those he knows warmly and enquiring after their health before he continues his circuit.

There are troubling tales, even at such a festive gathering, as Killian overhears stories of people gone missing, or suspected kidnappings. He listens as carefully as his slow pace permits before continuing onward. These kinds of gossip are common, especially in the quiet moments before gatherings, and even more so when there’s such terrible darkness out beyond the walls of the castle.

For ages, the Dark One has lurked in the corners of the world, and the prophecy the king mentioned comes back to him, reminding Killian that Emma is allegedly part of what could bring Rumplestiltskin, along with the whole history - centuries - of Dark Ones down.

The beginning of the ball will consist of dinner, and so tables are situated through the entirety of the room. Killian walks among those to admire the details that Queen Snow and Emma have considered. The cutlery is all sleek and plain, much like Emma prefers, as are the plates and glasses at each setting. It’ll all be cleared away for the second half of the celebration, so that the guests can all lose themselves in the dancing and music.

He rests in this moment for just a moment, his finger gliding along the handle of the nearest fork before he goes to meet with the soldiers that will be patrolling and the fairies that will be guarding them. From that moment forward, the ball gets even more opulent as the chandeliers are lit and hoisted, as all the wall sconces receive their flames. The lanterns that were lit for early mingling are shuffled away until it’s time to douse all the party lights. Killian watches all of this, nodding in approval as everything falls into place for Emma’s wonderful day.

As the ball gets underway, Killian is somehow still amazed at how busy he is the whole time. He takes one moment before the guest of honor joins, off to the side with the rest of the soldiers, to eat a quick plate of the princess’s favorite delicacies. He’s thankful for the distraction of his own assignments and that he needs to circulate amongst the guests and members of his own military; Emma’s had to spend so much time and attention on all her guests that he’s not even had a moment to say hello properly, yet.

There’s a small break in the festivities, where the guests shuffle out of the way and servants replace them to clear away the tables and chairs, and then the small chamber orchestra sets up in one corner to begin tuning their instruments. It’s the midway point in the evening, and as beautiful as it all is, and as stunning as Emma looks, he’s able to breathe a little easier that they’ve reached this point. The wavering sounds of strings being tuned echoes around the ballroom for a moment before they quiet and the first true note begins.

The first dance at the princess’s birthday always belongs to the king, but Killian takes the chance to work his way closer by presenting himself to the queen for a dance. She smiles at him, that one that borders on matronly, as he bows low and holds out his hand. With the queen’s hand in his, they make their way to the dance floor to join Emma and King David.

Emma’s smile when she spots them could light the ballroom all on its own, and as soon as the first dance ends, King David gives him a knowing look and he cuts in on Killian’s dance with Queen Snow so that Killian can dance with his daughter. Other couples begin to join, forming swirls of color much like her favorite trick with the flowers, as dresses of all colors move around the floor.

It’s the first time Killian has a chance to really get a look at her, other than flashes of red from the corner of his eye as she moved from one dignitary to the other. Up close, he admires the fine details of the embroidery on her dress and enjoys the rustling of her skirts as they go through the movements of the waltz.

“You look absolutely stunning tonight, Swan.”

She preens a little at the comment, her eyes darting downward and her lashes fluttering as she graciously accepts the compliment. “You’re looking very fine yourself, lieutenant. Have I mentioned how much I enjoy the dress uniforms?”

“I know,” he says, full cockiness in her voice to make her chuckle in response.

“I’ll have to dance with a few of my guests for a while, but save me a dance or two before the end of the evening, yes?”

“Aye, your highness, I’ll save them all for you if you’d like.” He wants to reach out and stroke the curve of her cheek, to taste her painted lips, to whisper all her deepest desires against the shell of her ear. Instead, he repeats the same low bow for her when the song ends, giving her one meaningful look before moving away to fetch himself a drink.

He’s just finished a perimeter walk and checking in with some of the guards when a broad chest interrupts his path. He almost berates whoever has just run into him, but he recognizes that coat, and his eyebrows shoot up in surprise to see Liam before him. He’d heard his brother was back but had yet to actually see him.

“Welcome home, brother,” Killian says, a smile breaking across his face as the older man pulls him into a bear hug. Killian slaps him on the back a few times, not only to further his greeting but also to remind Liam that he needs to breathe and that he’s hugging him too tight.

“Goodness, Killian. I couldn’t tell if they were feeding you too little or too much when I first saw you, but I do believe that’s all muscle you’ve put on. And here I figured since you took an assignment on land that you’d go all soft on me,” Liam says, the twinkle in his eye reminding Killian that he’s joking, but the barb still stinging just a touch.

“I may require that my mind be stronger than my body where I’m stationed, but I keep both very sharp, indeed.”

“Come, let’s talk about that positioning you suggested for the Second Armada outside of Arendelle.”

With one last furtive glance back at his princess, Killian lets himself be dragged away for talks of politics and military and naval strategy. Liam grills him on his choice to stay on land instead of going out to work his way through the ranks, and it takes a lot of patience for Killian to not talk back to his older brother in a manner unbecoming. Liam doesn’t question any more of his personal life, preferring instead to talk of life with his Armada or the rationing of treats among sailors to keep up morale.

It’s nearly half an hour before he can get back to the dance floor, back to Emma and that very fetching dress which he admires a little more each time he sees it, and when he’s able to slip in to be her next dance partner, he notices how much she perks up when she catches sight of him.

“Oh, thank goodness, it’s you. I’ve just had the most dreadful last few partners and I value my toes.”

“You’re only happy to see me so your dainty little feet don’t get squished by the uncoordinated men in attendance, then?”

“That, and because I happen to be rather fond of you,” she adds, smiling when he twirls her expertly and brings her back into the hold. “I saw you chatting with Liam earlier. Was it just me or were you wearing an expression akin to what I gather you’d look like if someone was stabbing you during the whole conversation?”

“Stabbing might have been less painful, love.”

“That bad?”

“Aye, which is why I’m much happier to be with you, right here, right now, instead of seeking out more thrilling conversations about the armada.” He’s thankful that the next dance step brings her close so he can whisper in her ear. “Plus, when we’re close like this, I can very nearly see down that dress of yours and I’m very hopeful that the black corset of yours is all lace and that I get to see more of it later.”

When the next move shifts them, Emma raises an eyebrow at him, otherwise staying silent, but he can practically hear her thoughts through that look. If he wants to find her maids mysteriously out of the way and the door to her antechamber unlocked tonight, he’d better be on his best behavior for the rest of the dance and evening or else neither of them will go to bed in good moods tonight.

“I’ll find you for the last dance of the evening,” she tells him, smiling a little as she says so and accepting his bow. “Go try to enjoy yourself a little, for the sake of my birthday?”

“Aye, your highness, I will do so.” He leaves the dance floor before anyone else can claim a dance with him, and heads back to the gardens for a breath of fresh air.

The security around the castle is impeccable, as far as he’s concerned. Every time he’s done a walk to check on them tonight, everyone has been exactly where they’re supposed to be. All the fairies, dedicated to their role in the realm, have been steadfastly homed in on making sure their dust and spells are all in order. When he’s reassured that everything they’ve carefully planned is still in place, he heads back to the party to mingle again. He tries to spend a little time with his brother, and even dedicates a little time to dancing with the ladies he’s met before, usually mothers of his favorite soldiers or friends of the royal family.

As promised, Emma appears at his side to save him from a dreadfully dull conversation about expense reports of some sort between Liam and another commodore. She’s clearly growing tired, but she’s still enjoying herself by the looks of it. She’s surprisingly affectionate for a public event, and over her shoulder, he catches sight of Liam’s questioning look. Before his brother can put any pieces together, he makes sure they pass behind a few more couples to hide them from view.

“For the record, as soon as I’m dressed for bed and my gown has been stored, I intend to send my maids away for the evening so they might have a little bit of an early night,” Emma says mid-way through the dance. “Just so you know, for security purposes, of course.”

“It’s important to know these things,” he comments, and longs to continue by teasing her, but the other couples dancing are far too close. Not only that, but another shift around a pair brings them side by side with her parents.

They both look approvingly at their daughter’s final dance partner of the evening, and he so hopes that when he sees them tomorrow, he’ll be betrothed to their daughter. The looks they give him before they spin away say they hope for it, too.

This time, when the song concludes, Killian makes sure to kiss her hand as he bows over it, making sure to whisper that he’ll be at her quarters just as soon as he can be, before they go their separate ways for the end of the celebrations. He watches a short time later as the princess is escorted back to her rooms, followed by her parents, and the ballroom clears of all the guests. He wants to make sure that the changing of the guard goes off without a problem, and he bids his brother a good night afterwards as they go to their own rooms.

Waiting for the palace to quiet down afterwards is one of the hardest things to do, and Killian has to make sure that he times it just right so that no one will be awake to question why he’s wandering towards the princess’s rooms. After what seems like too long of a time, he eases out of his room and shuts the door firmly behind himself. He has to take a roundabout way that seems to take him in the opposite direction at first, just to be certain that everyone else is where they’re supposed to be, before he heads swiftly to her chambers.

The antechamber door is, in fact, unlocked when he tries the handle. He makes sure to secure it after he enters, making his way back to her bedroom with a candle to light the way. He almost drops it as he turns from shutting the door behind himself, as Emma is lounging as casually as she can, wearing nothing but the lace corset and skirts that leave very little to his imagination.

“No, no, darling. I do believe it’s supposed to be your birthday, and I’m supposed to have a present for you. This feels quite backwards to me.”

“I’m pretty sure we can turn this into a mutual gift, so get over here already,” she commands. He sets his candle down on her nightstand to join the ones she already has lit before moving to stand in front of her. She sits up when he does, leaning into his hand as he caresses her cheek and closes her eyes. He wants to tell her so many different things right now, like how much he loves her and how beautiful and poised she looked all evening. He wants to say that there’s no way he deserves her, but that he would also possibly expire on the spot if she rejected his proposal. Thinking of the ring makes him consider getting it now, asking her now, but instead he leans down to kiss her.

Emma takes the initiative in undressing him, removing his suspenders from his shoulders and pulling his shirt from where it was tucked into his trousers. He bends to quickly remove his stockings, and marveling at the plushness of the ornate rug beneath her bed before he’s brought back to reality.

“Killian, I’d like to love you with my mouth, like you did to me. And then I want you to make love to me.”

“Darling, are you sure you don’t want to wait?”

“You said you wanted to give me a present. And this is all I can ask of you tonight.”

“Turn around, so I might help you out of that lovely undergarment, then.” She smiles at him, this one a combination of her excitement and her love for him, and he basks in the warmth that they will be irreversibly joined very soon. She stands and turns for him, unfastening the skirts from the waist of the corset and tossing them to the side. She’s forgone her own stockings, and he realizes she really wasn’t wearing anything else under the skirts when he gets his first unhindered look at her pert, perfect backside. His hands stray, briefly, to run the backs of his fingers over the smooth skin he finds there, before he focuses again on loosening the laces.

When enough of the corset is loose, she unhooks the front, letting the two halves part while her back is still turned towards him. She stands there, haloed by the glow of the candles, nothing but bare skin from the nape of her neck to the soles of her feet, and Killian isn’t sure he can breathe. This is such a monumental moment for them, and will only be overshadowed by the moment he asks her to be his wife (as soon as he can remember how to speak again) and the moment he does truly become her husband.

And then she turns toward him.

He thought he was breathless before, but she’s now standing before him, naked, and moving to remove the trousers that have become far too confining in the past couple minutes. While she eases them over his erection, he finally moves into action and yanks his shirt over his head, letting it fall to the floor just as he steps out of the bottoms.

While he drinks in the sights of her skin, she does the same to him, reaching out to touch his chest in awe, to run her fingers down the hair she finds there, until her palm is closing around his cock and he can see stars behind his closed eyelids.

“Killian,” she calls to him softly. “Touch me.”

He opens his eyes to see the lust burning in hers, and he starts by tentatively reaching out to cup one of her breasts, marveling in the way it feels and the taut nipple pushing against his palm. She pushes into the contact, moaning as he gently massages and brings up his other hand to do the same to both at once.

She lets him keep up at that for a few minutes, with her fingers gliding up and down the length of him in a featherlight touch, until she guides him back to her bed. She kneels on the mattress, but when he tries to sit up, she pushes him back and instructs him how she wants him to lay. Once he’s in position, Emma seems to steady herself before she reaches for his cock again.

“You’ll tell me how you like it?”

He can’t verbalize, not when her breath is blowing across the head of him, so he nods and watches with wide eyes as she eases the foreskin down his shaft and closes her mouth around the tip.

“Bloody hell, Emma,” he whispers, because it’s the only volume his voice can reach that doesn’t sound like he’s shouting in pleasure in his own mind. She hums around him, and he quickly tries to think of anything to stave off the orgasm that’s edging up on him. “Emma, Emma my love, you can’t – I can’t…” He’s on the brink of climax from having his cock in her mouth for less than a full minute and if he doesn’t stop her now, this evening will end rather quickly. And he’s so been working on longevity during his private pleasure times, too. All wasted, in the face of reality.

He shifts, careful to ease her away from his delicate part before putting her in the same position he was just in. She looks adorably befuddled, but also worried, so he moves to quickly reassure her.

“It felt too good, Swan. I wanted to be able to last for the rest of your requests, and I can’t do that when your mouth feels like heaven. Where on earth did you learn to do that wondrous thing with your tongue?”

“I practiced kissing once I was old enough with the maids of mine that are also my age.” His eyes widen at this information, but she smirks at him. “Don’t act so scandalized. You practiced kissing with my maids once or twice, as well. Anyway, they’ve given me great amounts of advice on how to please both ladies and men.”

He shakes his head, marveled as always at this intrepid princess that he fears he may always be two steps behind. With no further response to really give, he turns back to the idea of bringing them both pleasure, and decides to revisit what he tried on her yesterday.

“Killian…” His name melts on her tongue as he makes his way back down her body, stopping to kiss and love her breasts for a moment now that there’s nothing hindering him from doing so.

“Hush, love,” he speaks as he trails kisses down her stomach. “This will allow me to give you the gift you’ve requested once I’ve calmed my blood a little.”

She tastes sweeter today than she did yesterday, and he eases her thighs further apart as he dips his tongue into her. He brings his hand up to rub at her clit, incredibly glad for whichever lad it was that told them all of the pleasurable spot to ensure a woman orgasmed. He must move in the correct combination because Emma arches off the bed with a gasp, the moan that follows much more wanton than he’s ever heard in their months of tentative exploration.

Without breaking contact for long, he trails a finger down to slip inside while he moves to focus his lips on her clit this time. He finds a rhythm that she seems to appreciate, with the way her hips thrust against his mouth in time. As best he can without stopping, Killian looks up the length of her body, feeling his own arousal renewed at the way her hands massage at her own breasts, the way her head tilts back into the mattress as she makes noises that urge him to keep going. Knowing she’s about to scold him for stopping, he does so anyway, only to slide up the length of her body to kiss her.

“Are you positive you want to, Emma?”

“I’m sure,” she says, nodding. He sees the lust in her eyes, but he also sees the love she’s not spoken of yet.

In preparation, he adds another finger to the one that was already working in and out of her. He just doesn’t want to hurt her. By the looks of it, though, especially with the flush that spreads down her chest, he’s fairly certain she doesn’t know what pain is right now. Regardless, he makes sure when he replaces his fingers with the tip of his penis that he goes as slow as he can without diminishing their pleasure.

He’s barely fully sunk into her when he feels his climax building again, and it doesn’t help when Emma clenches around him. They both react to that – Emma with praise for how good he feels and Killian with obscenities at how he’ll surely die before this is over.

“I don’t care if you last long tonight, Killian. I’m so close. We’re both so close. Move and touch me and let go.” Sure enough, she’s covered in a sheen of sweat, one that has little to do with exertion and more to do with being so close to climax for far too long, especially if she was as aroused as he was when he entered her room.

He moves – slow, deep thrusts that get harder as he gets surer that he’s not hurting her in any way. He knows he’s not when Emma reaches down to grab his backside, guiding him in again and again. He remembers what else she said, working a hand between them and finding her clit with sure fingers to bring her over the edge. When she pulls him down roughly and holds him in place, he lets her take what she needs, bending to kiss her when she asks him to.

Feeling her come around his cock is an entirely different experience than feeling it around his fingers. As soon as her climax begins, it sets off his, and he sucks in a breath and holds it as he presses into her. His face gets buried in her hair and it’s only once she starts to come down from her own that Emma reminds him to breathe as her hands slide up along his spine.

The air whooshes out of him, and he groans as an aftershock of hers causes one of his own. It’s so tempting to let himself collapse on her, but he remembers that he likes her alive and not smothered, so he rolls off to the side.

They both remain immobile for a minute, their panting breaths echoing around the large room as the sweat dries on their skin. She rolls to him, then, her bare breasts pressed against his chest as she drapes herself over him, and she kisses him long and deep.

“That may be the best birthday gift I’ve ever received,” she tells him once she pulls away.

“It’ll supposedly get better once it can last longer,” he comments, enjoying the way she laughs as she moves off the bed to retrieve a towel she had folded on a nearby settee. Once she’s cleaned herself, she runs it over his softened cock to clean up some of the mess before balling it up and hiding it at the bottom of her dirty clothes. She fetches a clean nightgown for herself while Killian turns down the bed for them, figuring it’s the least he can do at this point. He considers proposing before they turn in for the night, but when Emma climbs back onto the bed, he can see the exhaustion pulling her down.

In the morning – he can make her breakfast and propose in the morning.

For now, he climbs in next to her and pulls the covers over them both. Before sleep can claim them, he remembers to wish Emma a very happy birthday, and whispers his love to her as she closes her eyes.

“So perfect,” she reiterates, murmuring her gratitude in return. He’d be offended if he didn’t know her so well to know she’s awful at expressing her emotions in words. Instead, she curls even closer to him, placing a kiss on the nearest skin she finds before drifting off to sleep.

Killian wakes before she does, with the sun filtering through the doors to her private balcony and just lighting upon Emma’s sleeping features. They’re still close – not as fully fitted together as they were when they fell asleep, but his hand is trapped between their pillows by Emma’s hand. He doesn’t mean to wake her, but she stirs as soon as he shifts his hand, and she scoots closer to relinquish his hand in favor of wrapping her arms around him instead.

“Good morning, my pirate,” she says in greeting, and he smiles down at her.

“And good morning to you, my princess.” She accepts the kiss he gives her, sighing happily as their lips move against each other. Her hand wanders across his bare chest, and he watches the cogs turn in her head as she considers his still-nude state. “Ah, ah. No, my love. You still need some rest. I’m going to make you breakfast, however, and bring it to you here and as soon as you’re nourished, you can think about ravishing me within an inch of my life again, aye?”

“Oh fine,” she responds, but it’s barely more than another sigh as she snuggles against him. “Just stay with me until I fall back to sleep, though.”

“Of course, Swan.”

She takes one more kiss from him before settling back down against her pillows. He waits until her breathing evens out before carefully extracting himself from the covers. He tucks them back around her, making sure she’s warm and safe before he re-dresses in the clothes he wore last night.

The palace is still asleep, so he makes his way back to his quarters with no issue at all, ducking into his chambers and heading straight for his dressing room. He catches sight of himself in the mirror when he enters, his grin wide on his face as he takes in the disarrayed hair and the stubble coming in. He rubs a hand over his face, considering shaving before heading to the kitchens but deciding it can wait.

He shucks his dirty clothes and pulls on fresh, making sure to comb his hair and clean his teeth before he retrieves the ring and makes off for the kitchen. Some of the staff are likely to be awake, which means he won’t be making an utter fool of himself in an attempt to cook, which actually calms him from the nerves that have built over his plan.

If any of them are surprised to see him, they don’t show it. But they happily take the gold he offers in exchange for setting up a beautiful breakfast setting for the princess. They all buzz with excitement when he pulls the pouch from his pocket, and they all help arrange the ring in such a manner that the food surrounds but doesn’t touch it. The plate is topped with a cover to keep everything warm, and then they all but push him out the door so they can start spreading their gossip about the princess being engaged.

Between the kitchen and the princess’s rooms, Killian counts his steps and his blessings, fully sure that he could spend one, maybe even two, hundred years on this earth and still not love anyone as much as he loves Emma. With careful maneuvering, Killian gets through the door to the antechamber and shoulders his way through the door he propped open when he left.

Surprisingly, the bed is empty, and Killian surmises that she may have woken up to relieve herself. Perhaps she woke and decided to dress herself – one of her favorite activities when she gives the maids a day off. But when he sets the tray of food down and goes looking for her, he finds each room empty. She only managed to throw her corset in the vicinity of her dressing room the night before, and nothing else in there has been moved. He places a hand on the sheets where he left her and finds they’re still warm, so she couldn’t have gotten far.

Outside, the sun goes behind a scattering of clouds, with the wind gusting beyond the doors. One of them creaks a little, which catches Killian’s attention immediately. They kept those closed and locked the night before. He rushes over, seeing the broken hinge immediately and starting to worry. He turns back to the bed, his eyes a little wild, his mind racing a little faster.

The clouds move away, and the sun shines back through the windows at his back. The sun catches something, and Killian moves forward, feeling as if he’s suddenly moving below water as he reaches out for the glistening strand on the pillow where Emma so recently smiled lovingly at him.

It’s gold. It’s a single strand of pure, spun gold, the signature mark of a madman. He barely has time to consider his next move beyond waking the castle and sounding the alarm. He stands in place, clenching and unclenching his fists, maiming the strand in his hand as he does so, and then his limbs finally catch up with his brain.

The guards outside the doors to the king and queen’s chambers are understandably alarmed as Killian comes running around the corner, but when he gets close enough, he tries to slow and calm the blind panic and anger coursing through him.

“Are the king and queen awake? It’s the princess.”

Both of their faces show alarm at the news and one immediately ducks through one of the double doors to report. Killian is waved in a moment later, just as Queen Snow is tying the sash to her robe and joining where King David is already situated with various parchments.

“Killian, what’s happened?”

“She’s gone,” he says, holding out the crumpled strand of gold to them and trying to maintain his composure. He wants to scream, or cry, or find a sorcerer to take him to Emma right this second, but he can’t do anything without knowing what course of action they want to take next.

King David lifts the strand, his face hardening at the evidence, while Queen Snow covers her mouth with her hand and her eyes well up with tears.

“David, our Emma. We have to find her.”

“We will, Snow. We will,” he says, determination strong in his voice as he shoves aside the reports he was reviewing and grabs several blank scrolls to send out as messages.

“Killian, I need you to go wake your brother. We’ll need both of you to round up as many men as you can to start searching. If he was able to break in, maybe he couldn’t use magic and they’re still in the area. But we have to move fast. Go now,” the king urges, and Killian immediately turns on his heels to follow his orders.

Liam is just pulling on his boots when Killian practically bursts through his door with barely a knock, and he gives his brother a very pared down version of what’s going on to get him moving quicker. They make their way back to the strategy room to receive their next assignment.

“We’re in the process of sending messages to our neighboring kingdoms for assistance, and to keep their eyes open for any possibility that he’s had to take her without using magic. All our best trackers are out there already, but I want every inch of the kingdom searched. Commodore Jones, I want you to assemble as many of your men as you can to start searching the northeast corner of the village and woods. Take your brother with you.”

He moves on to the next commodore and then to the captains after that, which leaves Killian bristling just slightly that he’s been tossed in under his brother’s command, not even with his own captain, instead of being seen as the man that was about to ask the king’s daughter to marry him. He can’t even fuss about it, however, as Liam ushers him from the room to gather the men and start their search.

It takes less than an hour for every military man, every castle civilian, and every volunteer they could round up to be searching the entire kingdom. They fan out, going door to door to either ask for clues or ask for them to join the search. They comb the woods, inspecting every bent leaf and broken branch.

Half of Killian is glad to be moving, glad to be keeping busy, but shortly after they begin their campaign to find Emma, Liam is called back to launch a portion of his armada to go to other kingdoms. He takes the news in stride, redoubling his efforts and almost refusing to turn in for the night when they start losing daylight. He has to be verbally reprimanded by his captain, reminding Killian that he’ll be of no use to the kingdom if he freezes to death overnight or injures himself without light to search by.

He tries to go back to his own room, first, but he ends up in Emma’s when that’s where his feet carry him. The lady’s maids have been through the room after it was turned upside-down for any other clues. The bedding has been replaced, the bedding they made love on for the first time less that a full night ago. Her corset and wardrobe are tidy, but the tray of food that he set down is still there, and Killian realizes that there’s no cushion to break the fall that’s about to take place.

Lifting the lid slowly, there’s the ruined breakfast, with the ring still pristine in the center. He lifts it, feeling his heart clench in pain in his chest as he stares at it in the low light of the candle he brought and the last of daylight beyond the windows.

The sun will rise on an empty room tomorrow.

“Killian?” He turns quickly at the soft-spoken voice, but it’s not his beloved magically returned. It’s Queen Snow, standing at the doorway and looking lost and bereft. Her chin quivers as she sees what he’s holding, and she slowly strides toward him with a silent request to see it. He doesn’t speak, just holds it out for her to take as he swallows hard, swallows back the tears that are now threatening to break free.

“I will find her,” he promises, his voice barely more than a growl.

“We will,” Queen Snow echoes, looking sadly down at the gem in her hand. “We just need to be patient.”

“I was gone barely a half of an hour,” he tells her. The fight drains out of him, then, and he drops onto the closest chair. “I shouldn’t have –“ He realizes what he’s said, and what he was about to say, just a moment too late, but the queen doesn’t look offended to know that he spent the night with her daughter.

“You couldn’t have stopped him. He’d have found a way to get past us eventually.” She places her palm on Killian’s shoulder, a gesture to comfort a son, and he fights harder to keep his composure. The queen needs strength right now, not to hold him together.

“May I ask a favor, your majesty?”

She nods once, also clearly trying to hold back her emotions.

“Would you mind holding onto that, until I can find her and bring her home to you?”

“Oh, Killian…”

“Please. I’d rather it be somewhere safe, and it’s only fair since the ring she has is yours instead of mine.”

At that, Snow’s lips barely crack into a smile. “I was sure that I’d be getting that back this evening. You know she’d never have kept it if she was showing off yours.”

“Aye,” Killian agrees, feeling that tightness in his chest all over again. “I know.”

“Try to get some rest. The maids have a special tea blend to help you sleep if you need the assistance tonight. I’ll have one of them take away this tray.”

“I’ll carry it down,” he tells her, waving her off from touching it. “I just want another moment before I retire for the evening, if that’s all right with you.”

Instead of a response, Queen Snow reaches out and pats his shoulder again, only bidding him a goodnight when she reaches the door so he can only slightly make out that her voice is breaking when she says it.

He hangs his head when he’s alone again, trying to rein in his emotions, tamp down the anger that boils hot in his blood, swallow down the panic that he’ll never see his almost-betrothed ever again.

“I promise to find you, Emma. No matter what it takes.”

-x-

Nearly a month into their searches, they recall the military forces out in the realm and order them home. Killian is beyond frustrated at this point, knowing that they all know it’s the Dark One and that he certainly wouldn’t be hiding in some bloody village right under their noses. The only clue they ever found was in the southwest quadrant of the woods, where a scrap of what could’ve been Emma’s nightgown was found on a bramble bush. There were no other signs that she might still be anywhere nearby.

In that time, Killian becomes more vocal about his doubts that this will lead to any breakthroughs in finding the princess. He becomes belligerent on more than one occasion, leading to a meeting with the king and queen so very different from the ones he’s ever had with them.

“Killian,” Queen Snow says gently. “We’re getting disturbing reports back from your captain about your recent behavior.”

“We know this is exasperating, waiting for news and hoping for results, but it is the best way to look for Emma right now. We have eyes and ears all over this kingdom, and several others, all looking for the same purpose. We just have to wait for him to slip up.”

“He’s the bloody Dark One. Don’t you get it? He’s not going to slip up because he knows the game better than we do!”

“Killian!” The king almost sounds scandalized, as Killian has never raised his voice at them, has never spoken so candidly to them before. And never has he sounded so defeated, either. “You are a lieutenant in the navy under your captain’s command. And if that’s not good enough, then it’s under my command. I need you to be doing your job and not squabbling with every superior you come across. Do you understand me?”

There’s a war over his emotions for a moment. There’s some shame, that he spoke to the man and woman who have only ever cared for him in such a manner. But he never had a father, and he isn’t looking for one now. Still, despite the comment that wants to come out at David’s tone, Killian holds back and steels himself.

“Aye, your majesty.” He salutes, not meeting either of their gazes as he exits the room. He nearly knocks Liam over on his way back to his quarters.

“Slow down, little brother,” Liam says, a gentle but genial smile on his face. Killian scowls, a combination of the pet name and his brother’s ability to smile about anything right now.

“It’s younger brother, and I’m retiring for the evening.”

“It’s the middle of the day, Killian. Why – hey! Come back!” Despite Killian’s attempt to exude his unwillingness for company, Liam follows him, going so far as to push into his room and shut the door behind them. “What the blazes is your problem, Killian?”

“My problem? The princess is missing. She’s been kidnapped by the vilest man in the realm, and we aren’t trying hard enough to find her. That is my problem,” Killian snaps, removing his jacket and whipping it towards his wardrobe.

“The king and queen are using every resource available to find their daughter. You know how much she means to them. They wouldn’t cut any corners where she’s concerned. Why – Killian, calm down, brother. Why are you so worked up about this?” Liam just barely manages to dodge one of the boots that Killian sends sailing across the room, followed by the other.

“I was about to ask her to marry me!” Killian finally yells. “And not in a couple days, or a couple hours, Liam, I was on my way back to her room with the bloody ring.”

Silence falls over the room after his outburst, and Killian sinks onto the foot of his bed. He runs a hand through his hair, scrubs them both over his face as the full weight of the last month sinks into his bones and soaks up his dwindling hope.

“Killian, I didn’t… I didn’t know. Why didn’t you tell me?” Liam’s voice is quiet and serious when he asks.

“When should I have told you, brother? In a letter sent to your ship with the monthly reports? Or how about when you were shrugging off your leave? You’ve barely been around since making commodore, and there was no good time. Even at the ball you wanted to talk about my strategy moves and rations.”

Liam moves slowly to sit next to him, folding his hands in his lap as he looks at his brother. “You should’ve said something sooner,” he says, and Killian immediately stands in agitation.

“Oh yes, because that would’ve gone over well. Tell me, Liam, how you would’ve reacted if I told you six years ago when this all began that I was in love with the princess and wanted to vie for her affections?”

“I would’ve said you’re bloody stupid, but to go after whatever it is you wanted.”

“Even at the expense of my military career?”

Liam sits back and thinks about that, and Killian can see it all coming together in his mind. “The strategy position kept you in the castle. You could’ve been out captaining a ship and making twice as much already,” Liam says, as if Killian didn’t already know this.

“I don’t give a damn about the money, you fool. I care about Emma.”

“Princess Emma,” Liam commands, and Killian grits his teeth.

“She’s Emma to me, as she’s been for many a year while we’re alone. You can’t come back here and expect to suddenly control me. You’re not my commodore, Liam. I’m barely even your brother at this point. Just some lieutenant you’re in charge of at times, and nothing else.

Liam stands, suddenly, marching straight for the door with anger puffing out his chest. “Sod off, little brother. You’re not the only one who has feelings around here, and maybe it would do you good to remember that.”

He slams the door when he leaves, and Killian is only disappointed because he would’ve enjoyed applying force to something other than his uniform at this moment.

The next morning, he’s summoned to the king and queen’s antechamber again, and his stomach sinks when he walks in to see Liam in attendance, as well.

“Your majesties, Commodore Jones.” He bows to each of them in turn. “You wanted to speak with me?”

Snow sends a worried glance to David and Liam, but remains silent.

“We’ve decided that you’re to be suspended from the navy until such a time that you can learn to follow orders again. You are commanded to stay out of the strategy room for a length no shorter than one month,” David says, his face set in stone as he speaks. Liam turns away when Killian looks at him, opting instead to gaze out the window at the back of the ante-chamber as snow begins to fall outside.

He seethes inside. “Liam, what did you do?”

“He didn’t do anything, Lieutenant.” Calling him by rank after telling him he’s suspended is a slap to the face, especially when they’ve always called him by name. David takes a deep breath. “You’ve hounded our advisors and told them they aren’t looking in the right places. You’ve taken liberties with authority figures lately. You’ve spoken to a commodore with absolutely no respect. Do you have anything to say for yourself?”

Killian stands perfectly still. He doesn’t look at Snow, whose eyes are pleading with him to say anything to make the situation better. He doesn’t glance again at Liam, who has still not turned his attention from the window. His jaw clenches and he averts his eyes to look somewhere over the shoulder of a man whom has always received his respect. Instead of answering any of them, he bows low and turns to leave.

“Killian, wait,” Snow calls out, but he’s out the door and doesn’t stop until the door to his rooms is barricaded shut.

It takes him less than two days to formulate his plans. He works around the clock, sleeping in shifts so he’ll have the energy to enact his idea once it’s time, and otherwise staying locked away. Someone from the kitchen always delivers his meals, but he never opens the door for them, preferring instead to wait until they’ve given up and left the tray beyond the door.

On the third day after his suspension, the food is delivered, but when they come again at lunch, the untouched tray is still sitting out in the hall. They find the note addressed to Snow after they’ve had to break down the door, and all it says is “Keep it safe for me.”

When she receives the note, she shakes her head, a broken chuckle coming from her as she folds it and holds it to her chest. She’s not even surprised when a captain reports that the Jewel of the Realm, his brother’s favorite ship, has been commandeered overnight.

By the time it’s reported to the king and queen that a ship has gone missing, Killian has managed to make it a considerable distance away from the shore. The Jewel is the fastest ship they have, and even the second fastest won’t be able to catch him with the lead he has. With a ragtag group of men he managed to hire in the shortest time possible, Killian has officially claimed himself captain, and their first order of business is to get as far from Misthaven as they possibly can.

“If you see a ship, men, you alert your captain and we will take what we desire. But no harm shall come to any crew we encounter, do you understand?”

A chorus of men all respond at once, “Yes, Captain!”

“Good. You’ll all make a fine crew aboard this ship, and you’ll have more riches than you know what to do with in no time at all. Let’s get this vessel in order and be our own masters!”

With the men cheering on deck, Killian takes the helm, his fists closing around the handles on the wheel as he steers them towards his own destiny.

Chapter 3

#cs ff #cs ff au #captain swan ff #csbb #csbb 2017 #wait for the moonrise #sarah writes ff #enchanted forest/modern au

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