#oddlies: artie.

[choicescreen]

@oddlies as artie said: you know lots. you sure are something.

to wong foo.

" weee--ll, you see, in my line'a work, " his legs crawl up the tree, always moving, " to know only one thing is to, " here, he adopts a pitch-perfect german accent, " know nothing! " sergeant schultz don't have a thing on howlin' mad.

quicker than one can say lickety-split, he's turned around and sitting criss-cross applesauce on the table. he whistles a tune -- the hogan's heroes theme, now that his impression has it on his mind -- for a few seconds, then his face splits into a wide grin.

" you wouldn't have a coin on you, would'ya? "

[rainworld-enot]

Since you replied, I'll elaborate (jk, I was gonna do that anyways) enot's funky little trait is spawning those singularity eggs every cycle, so if enot was engineered by an iterator, it's obviously meant to be ascendy. but the egg doesn't actually permakill or ascend anyone, so it's a failure. But it does succeed in a different way. It warps reality! this is best showed in the dating sim thing, as every time the egg is used, or cracked, it causes some pretty weird reality-bending (in one case, just making a whole new universe) in the standard game it just acts like a regular singularity bomb, but you could also interpret that the weirdness of the Enot campaign is due to the egg's influence. Enot on their own is (mostly) like a regular slugcat. It's when they bring along the egg that things get all funky and, of course, the dating sim setting itself! you unlock it by ascending as Enot, which implies that rather than truly ascending, they ended up resetting the cycles in a new alternate universe or timeline, and the routes where they end up using the egg causes further weirdness... and most notably, Saint knows about this and has tried to break the cycles using it! it's implied it just resets the cycle instead, though. So, thanks to enot your au could technically be cannon! (Thx to bluenightold for putting this in my brain. And sorry that this is excessively long :( )

You're good with having it really long- I like reading people's rambles as a whole!

Void in general causes reality warping properties, we can see this in general with echos, singularity bombs, and karma flowers which all have void fluid in them from what we can see of the effects.

Even Rubicon has this odd effect of changing properties of things, and is probably closer to the void freaking the fuck out from Saint... Saint-ness. We can see the creatures with void in them as a whole tend to have a lot more energy and movement. given the destruction too it's likely that void has a stupid amount of energy but also highly corrosive by all means.

It's very interesting as a whole, given the fact this means there's an unnatural vs natural power sources issue within the game and likely has been in affect in the past given that the emergency power batteries (known as Rarefaction cells)! which act nearly exactly like singularity cells if destroyed via a leviathan if not a bit worse. probably a bit more of the aftershock (best word to use I suppose) is affected and twisted much worse to the point where artificer can not survive the aftershocks... but given it's literally warping everything with the amount of energy produced, it's like a much worse version of breaking the wind barrier in a way. Probably a very painful death given everything.

Saint is definitely fucked up! and I love it. it's very fun to imagine the relationship of em in my own hc and aus of these lil guys :)!!

[yukikorogashi]

   5 minute sketch for @oddlies ❤️

[sscrambledmeggss]

My father having strangely good glee opinions

[bewitchingbaker]

56.  FAVOR :  for one muse to owe the other a favor. With… Artie mayhaps… (or any other muse you’d like!)

The baker opened a window within Luna's Moonlight Delights. A light sheen of sweat covered his forehead along with the heat that came with living in the desert. Of all days, the A/C would break down on the hottest day in Arizona. Working in a bakery in dry heat was one thing but it was a death wish if one chose to keep working through the combined sources of heat.

"Christ..." he sighed, plopping down in the nearest chair.

A few minutes passed, eyes darting between the window and Artie. The baker considered who he should pray to in hopes it would bring back the cooling device.

That's when he heard the heavenly hum of the A/C, making his eyes wide with joy. The baker's attention turned to Artie, a wide grin on his face before he high-fived the repairman.

"Dude," Chris began, "You saved my life. If you ever need a solid or want a few free lunches here, I got you. Don't hesitate to ask!"

[@oddlies]

[kinkandkreep]

𝑫𝒚𝒏𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒚: 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓 4

♡︎ 𝑷𝒂𝒊𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈: 𝒀𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒆!𝑪𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒓!𝑴𝒊𝒈𝒖𝒆𝒍 𝑶'𝑯𝒂𝒓𝒂 𝒙 𝑭𝒆𝒎!𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒅𝒆𝒓

♡︎ 𝑪𝑾: 𝑴𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏/𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒐𝒇 𝒅𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒉

♡︎ "__" 𝒓𝒆𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒔 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒏𝒂𝒎𝒆

♡︎ 𝑨/𝑵: 𝑯𝒆𝒚 𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒚'𝒂𝒍𝒍! 𝑾𝒆'𝒓𝒆 𝒈𝒆𝒕𝒕𝒊𝒏' 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒆𝒏𝒅 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒚, 𝒐𝒏𝒍𝒚 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒐 𝒈𝒐 𝒑𝒍𝒖𝒔 𝒑𝒐𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒚 𝒂 𝒍𝒊𝒍 𝒔𝒖𝒎 𝒆𝒙𝒕𝒓𝒂 𝒇𝒂 𝒚'𝒂𝒍𝒍! 👀 𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒊𝒔 𝒂 𝒍𝒊𝒍 𝒐𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒓𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒔𝒊𝒅𝒆, 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒔𝒉𝒆'𝒔 𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒂 𝒈𝒐𝒐𝒅𝒚. 𝑰 𝒉𝒐𝒑𝒆 𝒚'𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒆𝒏𝒋𝒐𝒚! 

♡︎ 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓 1 𝑯𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓 2 𝑯𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓 3 𝑯𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝑭𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝑯𝒆𝒓𝒆

♡︎ 𝑻𝒂𝒈 𝑳𝒊𝒔𝒕: @pinkrose1422 @freeingrebels @lollipoppersposts @brown-eyed-thang @winwin70 @khaylin27 @afro-hispwriter @sleepyamaya @bittersw33t-lotus @pix-stuff @twentysomethingwereyote @steveoscousin @jollystrawberrydaze @shibble @baker-and-fangirl @miggyoharaswife @decaffeinatedplaidwinnersoul @iseizeyourmom @jenniferdixon05207 @newearth5s @risinglightmoon @mimooyi @d1nne @robinastro @ella-janehaven @vvitcxen @sparklyphantom @chessecakelover @alexiris @kxszy @fabhoesmadness @darkfairy102190 @lickmytoesgirl @trullyitrymybest @shinyunknownninja @liz67900 @sydneyyyya @akosuathegreat-pretender @kittiowolf210 @ngadasansblog @luna4mnoon @kamivq @nataliahemsworth @rheeves @sikrettt @bittercyder @1lyyff @rheannajrs @nunezr99 @beebreezus @msvanillabean @harpy-space @her-majesty-theking @yourgurlbri

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When Miguel returned, he seemed oddly calm. Almost eerily so. 

You’d been married long enough to know that usually meant he’d done something he deemed necessary, but that most would consider extreme or outright bad. 

Miguel was always able to make the hard decisions that way.

He stood with his shoulders relaxed, his arms hanging loose by his sides. His hands weren’t twitching, nor were they balled into fists like they normally would be. He wore that familiar flat expression, crimson eyes lidded. 

You observe him quietly as he stands, gaze matching yours evenly. 

“I did what I said I would do.”

“And that would be?” You question him in return, hands folded in your lap protectively. 

“I took care of the problem.”

No sooner are the words out of his mouth are you on your feet, approaching him swiftly. 

“What the hell does that mean Miguel?” The words come out severely, your voice set in a low, almost conspiratorial whisper. 

His expression changes little, the only outwardly visible sign that he heard you is the slight quirking of his lips downward at being addressed by his given name. 

“Layla. She was a problem. So, I did what needed to be done.”

You’re immediately horrified at the implication. 

Your eyes and mouth widen, and you slowly, carefully back away from the man you once considered the love of your life. 

“Miguel…you didn’t.”

“She made threats. Said she would hurt me, hurt us if I didn’t deal with her. So I did.” 

In the moment, you feel incredibly conflicted. 

Yes, Layla was the woman who had been sleeping with your husband and harassing you, but you also couldn’t fully convince yourself that she’d deserved to die. 

Taking a seat on the bed, you try to further process this information. 

“You…you killed her.”

“Yes.” Miguel’s voice is even, he’s seemingly unaffected by his heinous act. 

You’re silent again, trying to decide what to say next.

“What about her family Miguel? And the other spiders? How will you handle them when they realize she’s gone? And what did you do with her body?”

You’re not entirely sure why you want to know such macabre information, but you do. 

You try to convince yourself that it’s more out of concern than a morbid sense of curiosity. 

“Layla didn’t have any family. She came from a different universe, where she’d lost mostly everything she had, including her people. As for the other spiders,” he pauses, finally looking away before turning back to you, his expression the same as before, “they didn’t know about Layla. She kept hidden, never interacting with them out of fear.”

“Fear of what,” you press. “Fear of how they might receive her when they found out you were cheating on your wife with her?”

The words come out scathing, and Miguel at least has the decency enough to look ashamed. 

“Yes,” he finally says after a few tense moments. 

You nod, standing and walking towards Miguel. 

“So now what? Your mistress is dead and your wife is locked away. It looks like you’ve had your cake and gotten to eat it too huh, Miggy? The majority of the blame lies squarely on your shoulders, but you’ve suffered the least.”

Your arms are folded across your chest defensively, eyes narrowed as you gaze up at the man who once held your heart. 

He can’t seem to meet your eyes, and he appears to be mulling over your words. 

“I know you’re angry,” he speaks, and the words are shaky. “And you’ve every right to be. But please __, please understand that I’m truly sorry. I regret ever having sought out another. You were completely right, I am a fool. And a shitty hero, and an even shittier husband. There’s no excusing what I’ve done but…”

To your absolute shock, Miguel gets down on both knees, head bowed and gloved hands tightly gripping yours. When he looks up, there are tears streaming heavily down his face, and you internally roll your eyes. 

“But please let me make this right. What more must I do to prove to you that my love for you is still true? Name it, and I’ll do it.”

“Let me go.” 

Miguel releases a shaky breath, head bowing once more. 

“I-...anything but that.”

“Then there’s nothing you can do, Miguel. I want to be free of you. And if you really loved me as much as you claimed, enough to kill for me, you’d fulfill this one simple request.” 

His grip on your hand tightens as he seems to consider your words. 

Finally, after some moments Miguel stands, his tears having somewhat dried. 

“I can’t…I can’t let you leave just yet. But,” he meets your eyes, crimson gaze sharp. “I’m willing to compromise.”

At this, your ears perk up, curious to see what he has to say. 

“I just want 1 month. 1 month to try and earn back your heart. If after that time you’ve truly lost your love for me, I-I’ll…” he takes a deep breath, eyes shutting before opening again. “I’ll release you, and leave you be.”

You remove your hand from his grip, turning away from him momentarily. 

“How do I know I can trust you to keep your word Miguel? How do I know this isn’t some sort of trap, that you won’t find some sort of loophole to exploit?” You level him with a critical stare. 

Miguel’s shoulders square, his hands balling into fists, both signs of his resolve.

“After what I’ve done, I can’t blame you for not trusting me. But I swear on my life that I mean what I say. Just 1 month, that’s all I ask.” The man’s eyes have become softer and more rounded as he spoke, and you can tell he’s being sincere. 

“I want time to think it over. In the meantime, I want you to leave me be. So that I can think in peace, without your influence. That means no talking to me through the intercom, no spying through the cameras and no randomly showing up at my door.”

A few seconds pass, but Miguel reluctantly nods, turning to the door. 

“Take as much time as you need,” he mumbles over his shoulder, before exiting. 

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*✧･ﾟ: *✧

It’d been 3 days, and you believed you’d finally come to a decision. 

“Miguel! Come here. We need to talk.”

Silence met you, but only for a few minutes before beeping could be heard from your door. 

It slid open, revealing Miguel. He looked a little better than he had before- his hair wasn’t as messy and his face wasn’t so droopy. 

He entered with cautious but anxious steps; he was excited to see you, as it had been three days. You appreciated that he’d respected your wish, and took it as a good sign. 

Well, as good a sign as it could be, given the circumstance. 

“Have you made your decision?”

You nodded, moving from the bed to sit in your swinging chair. You began swinging absentmindedly, taking a deep breath before speaking. 

“...I’ve decided that I will give you one month, though to be completely honest, you’ll be more so trying to earn my forgiveness before anything else.” His eyes snap to yours, but otherwise he seems to be calmly listening. 

“During this month, you will not smother me. You will give me the space I need to think and process my emotions. You will not bombard me with questions and constant check-ups. I recognize that in order for you to show me you’ve changed, we’ll need to be around each other some of the time, but I get to dictate when. This is the very least you owe me given what you’ve put me through.” 

You’ve held eye contact with him as you spoke, to gauge his reaction. You could immediately tell he wasn’t the most pleased with your stipulations, but oh well. It’s what you wanted, and if he wanted you to cooperate, he would have to agree. 

He took a moment to respond, but you were surprisingly pleased by what he said. 

“That’s perfectly reasonable. I’ll allow you all the time and space you need, and when the month is up, I’ll ultimately respect your decision.”

“Very good.” Standing, you approach the larger man, eyes slowly drifting across his face. “There had better not be any funny business. Don’t make me regret trusting you a second time Miguel.”

He frowned, eyes softening. “You won’t, I promise.” 

With that, you both separated and Miguel left you alone with your thoughts.

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*✧･ﾟ: *✧

As Miguel walked back down the hallway leading to your room, his eyes darkened, a manic grin spreading across his face. 

“Don’t worry __. You won’t regret your decision. By the time this next month is up, you won’t even be able to think about leaving me.” 

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*✧･ﾟ: *✧

Buy Me a Kofi?

[spacetimesally]

Hey, there, action figure aficionados and playtime pals! It's our (sometimes) weekly look back at some of the action figures spawned by the classic sci-fi tv show Spacetime Sally and the short-lived animated series, The Spacetime Sally Animated Adventures. This week we'll be looking at some robot figures from the shows.

Above, we have the "Trapped on Yedd Star 7" Sally with her SkyEye, Gertie the Birdie. This accessory obviously didn't levitate or hover and this particular advertising photo had to be pulled, just as we saw last week with the KyooBee accessory. You'd think the marketing department would learn.

Here we have Sally figures sporting a similarly styled outfit/costume, but you can see the difference in craftsmanship as these figures were released 3 years apart from each other. These were both one-off figures from Cincinnati Toys out of Cleveland. And you may remember this particular costume (and while the right side is overall more accurate, the black shoulder strap, as seen on the left side, was part of the costume at the beginning of the episode, before Sally removes it upon arriving at the MetroLine offices) from the Knight Doom episode, 'Once Betrayed' - which segues nicely into our robot figures!

Ah, good ol' Knight Doom, the dicer, the slicer, the costume that was a total budget hole. Knight Doom was also featured on the cartoon, but not very often for he was too terribly intricate to illustrate and animate. This toy didn't stay on shelves for very long before it was pulled due to its pointy and sharp bits. Kids were shivving each other on playgrounds all across the country. It was terrible.

And speaking of toys that got pulled... 2 robots labelled only as MetroBot B-Zero and MetroBot 8Four were oddly designed with these very prominent "crotch dispensers," for lack of a better term. Neither robot was seen on any version of the show and their designs are often chalked up to a disgruntled toy designer.

Variations on generic WorkerBots.

Left: a ScannerBot; Center: the wise-cracking BreaktimeBot as seen in various kitchens, breakrooms, eateries, and space station lounges and common areas from the show; Right: C-Artie, an AvatarBot for face-to-face communication and surveying distant/remote areas, or wherever you are not.

[spaceorphan18]

Why do people now hate Duets so much?

I'm going to be honest, Nonny, and say - I don't know?

I do know what you're talking about, but I haven't seen that much of it -- only a handful of people? So I don't think it's everyone. (Clearly - it still won that match.)

I think (and rightfully so) what might be turning people of is Finn's hypocritical (and continually homophobic) stance towards Kurt? And I've even mentioned it in my own meta.

It's kind of bonkers to me that there's so much pressure placed on Kurt to /not/ sing with Sam. Even when Sam does not give a flying fart. And all of this pressure is from Finn - who is just so not supportive about it. And on top of that, Burt doesn't help by reinforcing Finn's ideals that two men can't sing together because - omg what would other people think?? He's just kinder in how he phrases it.

And the whole thing is so ridiculous - especially when there are f/f duets and people don't bat an eye at it.

Finn is just a douche canon.

If there are other issues with the episode, I'm unsure. It's the beginning of the real Brittana story line, though it's also the start of Brittany and Artie. Sam and Quinn are as boring as ever. It is, oddly, one of the few times Rachel is actually thinking of people other than herself.

Personally, it's one of my favorites in Season 2. I do love the Kurt angst and I think it's a great lead in to where they're going with the story when they introduce Blaine.

If anyone has any insight for Nonny -- please feel free to share!

[choicescreen]

@oddlies as artie said: are you making fun of me?

to wong foo.

gino, blessedly nonexistant to this young man, " i certainly am! jesus, would'ja get a load a-- "

" no, arthur -- it's arthur, isn't it? -- i'm not making fun of you. "

gino threatens pomeroy with something smartin' if he opens his fat trap again, and that causes deputy james to come between the two, and, oy vey, it's getting too loud in here, and only redmon is aware, and--

" quiet! " he shouts. the characters listen, thankfully, which is a miracle, but now he has to explain to artie why he did that when it is only the two of them in the apartment.

" -- listen! listen, i believe i heard something, yes, arthur, follow m--eee to th--eee? " dutch points to the window. ah, yes, of course! what would he ever do without his good pal, detective van dyke? " window! "

[zoetheneko]

Zoe's lore: Part 3

Notes: this part had gaps that were difficult to fill. I wasn't not even sure if putting them into writing is enough to make you guys understand the many key scenes of this chapter of the story.

Even when was cleaning herself up and getting her injuries treated, the girl would only stir up a few words and little eye contact was made between her and the staff.

Once in her room, all she did was laying in her bed and stare at the ceiling. Want someone would come in to bring her food, she'd just look away from them.

While the kid was contained in her room, Cassie, Johnny, Kurtis & Rambo were discussing of what they should do with her. They can't set the girl free like this, they need to make her talk; Someone had to stay in a nearby room for a while to make sure that the girl was kept stable, or in case things went south.

Everyone agreed for Rambo to go an do it. According to Cassie, it would bring "reenforced support".

Now, everything was (kind off) settled.

_____________________

When the night came and everyone went to sleep, at first and for a few hours, everything went just like every night at the medical clinic.

But then a terrified scream alarmed John and the nearby staff, it came from the girls room.

John rushed first to it and once he opened the door, he found the poor child laying on her side with her face shoved into the mattress, back towards the door shaking and cry. Oddly, there were no signs of a fire.

Rambo could now tell that she woke up from a nightmare. He moved towards the other side of the bed and took a seat beside her.

The girl gazed in surprise when she turned her head to see who was beside her, his hand lying on her shoulder. It was him, John Rambo right? The guy who got her out of that desert, he was there and he was actually cool with her.

She suddenly got up and gave a hug to him, starting to cry again. After a while, she let go of him and went back to sleep.

_____________________

The next morning, the girl's mood changed.

She gave less cold-shoulders and looked at people a bit more often. Perhaps it was a good sign and seemed at a decent enough state to make a conversation.

John actually came to the kid's room with her dinner and tried to have a chat with her. He asked to introduce herself since she wouldn't do so the first two times. The girl's name was Zoe.

Through the conversation, she also told him that she was ready to tell her story tommorow.

After the chat was over, John exited the room and came to Sonya & Cassie and told them that the girl, Zoe, was willing to coorperate.

To be continued...

Previous part - Next part

@theelderhazelnut @geeky-trash01 @scentedcandleibex @darialovesstuff @huepazu @mitsuko-saito @bloody-arty-myths @zombieoffender @onehornedbeast

[boogiewrites]

Seeing Stars Pt. 21

Part 1 if you missed it!

The aftermath of Star and Eddie's big fight spills over into the lives of those around them. It takes them a few tries before they're able to talk again, both feeling hurt and defensive. What will it take for Eddie's stubborn nature to be derailed? What will be the thing that makes Star realize she has to confront her fears to grow? Eddie finds out from the source what Star went through in her past relationship. Star is left with no more reasons to deny that she's in love with Eddie.

CW: Descriptions of events that happened in an abusive relationship given by the victim. Not graphic but I still wanted to mention it. The abuser uses hurtful language toward the victim. Use of gay slurs by the abuser. A short conversation on men and women and their differences, it's a bit black and white and outdated so I wanted to mention that as well, gender roles and that. More fighting and more hurt. But also a light at the end of the tunnel.

-

Star survived the long lonely night after her and Eddie’s fight. She drove to school, painfully aware of the fact that she was very alone. She had only taken her sunglasses off if commanded by teachers. She was hung over, she felt like hell down to her bones. New depths of feeling hurt and terrible had been discovered.

She was shaking, watching the clock tick to lunch. She was starving and somehow also nauseous. She didn’t know how to face him. Would he act like nothing happened? Would he tell her to fuck off? She had no idea. So she acted in the way he had called her, and she hid in the bathroom for lunch. She wasn’t proud. She’d try again tomorrow.

Feeling defeated already, the universe felt it suited to further punish Star for withholding her feelings. If she wouldn’t open up and be vulnerable on her own, it could always beat her into submission. So it started with her car. Except that’s exactly what it wouldn’t do. Start. She was on the side of the road out of town and banging her head against the steering wheel. Unlike the guys in her life, she didn’t know much about cars. When your older brother is a great mechanic you never have to learn anything. She let out a groan before popping the hood to make it feel like she was doing something. That way when Robbie inevitably asked her what happened she could say she looked and that it wasn’t on fire at least. She grabbed her bags, locked up the car, and started the walk home. The dark clouds were a middle finger from the universe as it started to rain.

“I would say it can’t get any worse but I know you’ll prove me wrong and hit me with lightning or something so okay I GET IT!” She shouted alone on the side of the road with her arms in the air in annoyance. Luckily it wasn’t too long of a walk.

Tomorrow came, and she’d found Eddie completely ignoring her in their classes like the day before. He made her wonder if she’d gone invisible. She didn’t know he could act like that. But then again, she hadn’t expected him to blow up like he had either. Even if she was starting to understand it. She felt really strange about it. As heartbroken and sad as she was, she felt oddly… calm. She didn’t know that it was acceptance creeping in. Deep down she agreed with everything he’d said. She just had to realize it for herself now.

Greeting her was a not-unusual collection of mail on her counter Robbie had politely sorted for her. She knew the news couldn’t be any worse than the one she’d already got about Bobby so she flicked through them without much thought until one from a Chicago address came into view. Holding it with unsure hands she realized it was from the art scholarship group.

“I don’t even have to open this with the week I’m having do I?” She said aloud.

Sure enough.

“We regret to inform you you were not selected to receive-“ she sighed and tossed it into the trash can not bothering to read the rest. “Fucking great. So I’m stuck here with a guy I love that hates me now and I can’t even escape after graduation to be some shitty artist. Great.” She kicked the cupboard and immediately regretted it. “I guess this summer I’ll be working doubles until I collapse to save up, huh?” She plopped into the bed, full of disappointment in herself.

The next day she made it halfway to the Hellfire table. Eddie still ignoring her, she thinks she would’ve preferred if he was been glaring at her. Indifference hurt more somehow. So she turned at the last minute and sat with Robin. She didn’t ask why. At least not at the table. She did demand answers when it was just her alone, so Star gave in and went to Family Video to spill the beans to both her and Steve. Both were disappointed in her. Both were surprised at Eddie.

After rehashing everything with the Family Video duo, she felt a new wave of gloom wash over her. The bad news of the scholarship and an out-of-service car was enough to push her into old habits. She fell back on the old coping mechanisms she’d taken comfort in before and found herself at The Hideout. She wasn’t proud of it.

Unlike his usual behavior, Eddie took to the confines of the dive too. He knew he could be left alone to brood and have a few drinks. Fulfill some aesthetic of a heartbroken man wallowing in his self-pity for a bit. But he’d been wrong. Now he was trapped, unable to leave the corner booth where he’d hidden away because Star was busy drowning her sorrows across the bar. He had his hood up, zip-up black hoodie, and thankfully no major identifying articles of clothing like his vest. Star had been quiet at first, sulking and somber, sipping away at hard liquor and making small talk with the bartender she liked. The longer the night went on, the louder she got. In 2 hours she was singing karaoke and although it wasn’t bad, the articulation of her words was certainly lacking. Sad song after sad song she went, being ignored by the few other bar customers. It wasn’t hard to tell the poor girl was going through something, so they let it be. She was finishing up a Queen song, trying to sing every part, which was physically impossible, but that certainly wasn’t stopping her from trying. To Eddie’s surprise he saw Steve enter the bar, a noticeable sigh, then a fond smile, a shake of his head as he watched her perform. He took in the space around him. A leftover paranoia from his trauma always compelled him to know where exits were, see who was in the room, and check for danger. He missed waltzing into a room without a care, thinking he was untouchable.

He met Eddie’s eyes, and despite his hair being pulled back into his hood to make himself less noticeable, Steve recognized him. At first surprise, a step back and glancing quickly around the room. His face then shifted and gave him a look that Eddie had seen him give the kids. It was full of irritation and disappointment. Eddie’s eyes widened as he saw he’d been discovered, quickly shaking his head no, pleading with Steve through his eyes to not draw attention to him. Steve picked up on the situation quickly, crossed his arms, and rolled his eyes, head still shaking back and forth as he ran his hand through his hair and left Eddie’s line of sight to retrieve Star.

He was being gentle despite how annoyed he was, Eddie could hear him politely telling Star it was time to go. He heard Star perk up at his voice, saw her melt, and hug him around the neck tightly.

“Oh, Stevie. M’so glad you’re here.” she cooed, kissing his face.

“Alright, there hun.” Steve pat her back and rubbed it as she nuzzled into his chest.

“God you smell so good.” she groaned. Eddie felt heat rise in his face.

“Thanks,” he mumbled, knowing any response from him wouldn’t truly be heard. “Let’s go home. C’mon. Get your coat.” he instructed the wobbly lady.

“We gonna go to your place?” she asked.

“Do you want to?”

“Whatever you wanna do Stevie, baby.” she pat his cheek and Eddie scowled. “Wherever you wanna take me I’ll go,” she said with a bright smile and a nod. She was fully giving in, throwing her misplaced affections at Steve. He was handsome and sweet, and she was craving intimacy something awful. Of course, Steve had no intention of letting her try anything. Eddie was his friend, and Star was drunk. That wouldn’t stop her from acting out though.

“Let’s get you back home then,” he said putting his arm around her shoulders and directing her out of the bar. He shot daggers at Eddie one last time, a look of, 'see what you’ve done'. But to his surprise, Eddie was shooting them right back at him this time. Steve scrunched his face in confusion, shaking his head and turning his attention back to Star who had slid her hand into Steve’s back pocket.

“You gonna stay with me? I don’t wanna be alone.” he heard her whine as they walked out the door. Eddie didn’t hear Steve’s reply but he could certainly hear the blood rushing in his ears with jealousy.

-

So the next day she sat with them at lunch. Eddie was surprised but from a lifetime of hiding his emotions he didn’t give away anything at first. She tried to talk to him, fleeting moments of eye contact as he’d lower them to the table and give her sharp, short answers. He could see her hair hadn’t been washed that morning or the night before, he saw the way it lay flatter in the back because she’d slept on her back. Or had she been on her back for other reasons? He took in every inch of skin he could, any mark of redness or bruise pulling his attention and fueling his delusion that she’d slept with Steve. There was a red splotch on her neck, it wasn’t like the ones he’d left on her before but his mind wasn’t listening to reason. He was fuming, grinding his teeth down to nothing. Star could feel the anger coming from him now, assuming it was from her. The conversation kept moving among the other people at the table.

“I don’t know, I’ll ask Steve after school, I couldn’t get ahold of him last night.” Eddie’s eyes shot to Dustin, snapping the pretzel he had in his fingers.

“He was with me,” Star said casually and Eddie wondered if she was crueler than he had ever imagined she could be.

“Oh, did he say anything about this weekend?”

“No, sorry. Not that I remember anyway. But we weren’t really talking about him taking you all to the movies so I doubt it.”

“What were you talking about then?” Eddie hide his emotion, looking down as he asked then a pointed swing up as he saw Star turn her head with hopeful eyes that were matched with his, black with anger.

“We-uh.” she stuttered at the surprise of the question, and more so the fact that he was speaking to her directly at all.

“Or were you two not doing much talking?” he accused and she tilted her head in confusion. Everyone felt the wave of anger now, looking at Eddie with the same expression.

“I don’t-? I was…” she huffed, her cheeks turning red. “I didn’t wanna talk about it but I was drunk and he took me home,” she confessed, looking down, her hands fidgeting. She was ashamed. She looked at him defensively, turning in on herself, feeling hurt from his stinging accusation. Dustin glared at Eddie.

“Dude,” Jeff said sympathetically to Star at Eddie’s tone.

“Why are you talking to her like that?”

“If you’re so sore-assed about it maybe you should’ve taken her home.” Gareth, a surprising voice of reason caught Eddie’s attention as they stared each other down. No one knew exactly what had happened, they only knew Eddie was being a dick this week.

“Thankfully Steve was there to take care of me last night,” she said looking down, gathering her things as Dustin reached to stop her but she shook her head. “You’d be surprised what a little support and kindness would make a girl wanna do.” She stared right into Eddie's eyes as she stood. She was seething with anger. She wanted him to hurt, wanted him to think his friends had scorned him by sleeping together. She walked away with her tray and Eddie was left to be gawked at.

-

So naturally, the next question Eddie asked Steve when he went to Family Video the next day was direct and full of venom.

“Are you fucking her?” He almost growled at an unsuspecting Steve in the empty store. His eyes blinked rapidly, his hands raising between him and the glaring man across the counter.

“Woah, Woah. What?” Steve sputtered out.

“Don’t play stupid, sweetheart. I know you well enough to know you aren't.”

“That’s the weirdest compliment I’ve ever gotten,” Steve said bewildered.

“Stop avoiding the question.”

“No!” Steve shouted, now moving into being offended. “What the hell, man? You think I’d sleep with Star? Now? You’re off your meds, man. Don’t be crazy.”

“I saw her all over you at the bar.”

“She was drunk. You saw her. You know how she gets. She’s very friendly.” his nose wrinkled at the underselling of Star’s physical affection needs when intoxicated.

“And she’s pissed at me. Plenty of reasons to try it with you. I know she wants to fuck you. It’s the perfect storm to fuck me over.”

“Calm down,” Steve said in a drawn-out deep voice, leaning on the counter. “We didn’t do anything like that. I took her home, and all she did was cry over you.” he shook his head, his hair bobbing at the force.

Eddie blinked and leaned back in response.

“You think I’d sleep with her knowing you loved her? Good to know you think so highly of me, shit.” he leaned back and crossed his arms.

“I-” Eddie shook his head and put his hands to his face. “I’m sorry, Steve. Fuck.” he groaned. “I accused her at lunch and she-”

“You didn’t.” Steve groaned, his chin leaning forward “You idiot! Why would you do that!” he shook his hands at the run-down looking man across the counter.

“I don’t know. I’m all messed up. I saw her all over you and I saw red, man. I’m sorry.”

“All she did was sling snot and blubber on about how much she loved you but she couldn’t say it because what if she fucked it all up? What if she’s a terrible person and you find out and leave her? And you go and accuse her of sleeping with me? No offense but- you know, NO, FULL offense that’s bullshit!” Steve was angry on his behalf as well as Star’s now.

“I see that now,” Eddie muttered and hit his head on the counter in front of him.

“Get your shit together man, Jesus.” Steve scowled. “Go talk to her. Apologize. Don't be a dick. She’d never do that to you. I can’t believe you’d think that. And about me! I thought we were friends!”

“We are! I’m sorry. Old habits die hard.”

“You’d gonna die alone with your old habits if you don’t stop being such a stubborn jackass.” Steve pointed out, leaning down to Eddie’s mushed face on the counter.

“I know I hurt her, I thought she was trying to hurt me. I know she used to-”

“Yeah. USED TO. She even said that. That before she would’ve tried. To distract herself for a minute with someone else. But she wouldn’t anymore because of you. That she didn’t want to take a step back or hurt you. She was already upset she got so drunk.”

“Fuck.”

“Yeah. Fuck… you.” Steve said with a joking tone but there was truth behind it.

“Yeah, fuck me.” Edie groaned and hit his head a few times on the counter.

“Stop that shit. Someone’s gonna come in and 5150 you.” he shoved Eddie’s shoulder and he stood up.

“The Van Halen album?” Eddie asked, a bit dazed.

“Did you hit your head that hard?”

“Sorry I-”

“The more you say that the less it means you know.” Steve glared.

“What?”

“Sorry doesn't mean shit if it doesn’t come with changed behavior.”

“You sound like her.”

“Good! Because she’s smart! She’s trying to get better despite you being a baby and saying you were done with her because she couldn’t say she loved you back.”

“Wouldn’t you wanna hear it?” Eddie hit his hands on the counter, the weight of them making a heavy sound.

“Of course! But when she tells you she can’t because she’s afraid she’ll fuck everything up and then YOU go and leave, proving her right…what does that accomplish? Nothing! You need to see how much she loves you. She needs to be brave enough to say it and not think everything is gonna go to hell when she does. You’re both wrong and you’re both right.”

“I have the right to want to hear it from her. I’m not wrong.”

“That isn’t wrong, no. It’s how you’re going about it.”

“I deserve to hear it. I said she has to say it for me to be able to keep doing whatever it is we’re doing. I’m not even asking her to be my girlfriend, I just want to hear her say it.” Steve sighed, seeing the circles under Eddie’s eyes and the hurt behind them. He was just as sensitive as anyone else. So much for the whole macho tough routine. “If I don’t stick to my guns, then nothing I say means anything.”

“Yeah, you’re stubborn.”

“I’m not stubborn, I’m sticking to what I said.”

“Dude! That’s THE definition of stubborn.”

“Ugh!” Eddie threw his arms up. “It’s like everyone’s gone crazy this week.”

“If everyone around you is an asshole…. Chances are you’re the asshole.” Steve said with a lecturing face.

“I’m not the asshole here. Neither is she. I’m stating what I need from her. That’s it. That doesn’t make me the bad guy.”

“It doesn’t… not.” Steve bobbed his head side to side in thought. Eddie stared with a deadpan expression back at him. “Look, you’re asking her to do the one thing she can’t. That’s the issue. If you can't get past that then you need to tell her and drop it. End it. Completely.”

“But I love her, I don’t want to lose her.”

“You can’t have both.”

“Yes, I can. She’ll say it.”

“At least stop being an asshole to her in the meantime then? Just treat her like she’s your friend.”

“I can’t. If I’m around her I'll give in. I can’t act like she’s just my friend anymore I don’t know what that feels like. I’ve loved her for months now and I don’t know how to act.”

“Sounds like a you problem.”

“Now you’re being a dick.” he grumped at Steve.

“Yeah. That was me being a little bit of a dick.” Steve grinned. "Cut me some slack I’m stuck in the middle of you two. It’s not fun for you? Imagine how much it sucks for me to have to hear you both bitching and moaning?”

“Nothing about this is fun.”

“No shit,” Steve said sarcastically. “Love hurts, man. It sucks. It’s also the best thing that exists. It’s…” he sighed.

“Yeah. I know what you mean now.”

“First time, huh?”

“Yeah,” Eddie grumbled.

“I don’t have any happy metaphor for you man. My first love ended in flames. I won’t bullshit you.”

“I appreciate it.”

“Then don’t accuse me of sleeping with your…girlfriend…person situation.”

“Sorry about that.”

“Yeah, you should be.” Eddie sulked. “You’re a good guy.” Steve slapped his arm. “But even good guys can be assholes sometimes.”

“Not an asshole.”Eddie lilted, raising his head, his mood lighter but not chipper by any means.

“You’re not… not an asshole.” Steve clarified.

-

Thursday was awkward. Eddie felt like an idiot after what he’s said the day before. But Star braved his misplaced anger and sat with them anyway. If anything, she could use spite to be brave even if she was still hurt and sad. Eddie was apologetic with his eyes. They didn’t say much, but the intensity was certainly more tolerable. The group conversation flowed with no issue this time, Eddie answering like a sane person and Star doing the same. They exchanged a few words and kept it civil. She felt hopeful.

At the end of the day when Star shut her locker, she jumped at the appearance of Eddie after the door moving gave away his approach.

“Shit!” she squeaked and grabbed her bag. “You scared me,” she said, looking down immediately.

“I didn’t mean to,” he muttered, hands shoved into his pockets.

She stood with her face downward, fingers picking at the yarn in the strap of her bag, her eyes turned upward to meet his. She didn’t say anything, she didn’t know what to say.

“I wanted to apologize for what I said yesterday. At lunch.”

“Okay.” she nodded slowly, eyes wandering again.

“I saw you two in town that night and you looked… awfully cozy together.” he groaned out, eyes now losing their bravery as he too looked away.

“I was drunk. You know how I get,” she answered quietly, but the tone wasn’t lost on Eddie’s ears. I was drunk because of you, is what she’d wanted to add.

“Yeah.” he kicked at the linoleum floor with his sneaker.

“We didn’t do anything. Not that you’d have any right to be mad at us if we did." Eddie tilted his head and his nose twitched.

“I think I would have the right,” he muttered.

“You essentially told me to fuck off,” she stated plainly. “Or do you not remember storming out and saying you were done with my bullshit?”

“That’s not what I said.”

“It’s burnt into my memory because I’ve been crying about it for days, I’m pretty fucking sure that’s what you said.” she hissed back.

“Then that’s not what I meant! Okay?” he said back with the same defensive attitude she had.

“Then what did you mean?” the snarky attitude she was giving him wasn’t helping their situation.

“I meant…” he lowered his voice. “That whenever you were ready to give me the validation I needed to hear that I’m here. I didn’t mean I’m done with you, like, totally. I..” he groaned and sighed. “I love you, I don’t want you being with anyone else,” he mumbled, eyes paranoid and seeing if anything else was around to hear. “I meant I was done with… that conversation. There was no point in fighting more about it. It wouldn’t have helped.” he added with his exhaustion showing through.

“And I still can’t give you that,” she said entirely annoyed with herself and the situation, but Eddie took it for her not caring. He felt like a dagger had been shoved in between his 4th and 5th rib. “I’m sorry,” she added quietly. “I’m… trying,” she whispered, less angry as she saw the hurt in his body language. “I don’t know how to do this. I’ve never done this… felt this before. I’m not... equipped to deal with this level of shit.”

“So what we have is shit now?” he blurted out.

“No.” she whimpered, “You know that’s not what I meant.” she huffed and closed her eyes.

“That’s what you just said.” he bit back.

“Shit as in the overwhelming amount of emotions I’m having. Everything little fucking thing is triggering the hell out of me!” she admitted with a crack in her voice.

Eddie didn’t say anything, he sighed in response. They stood in painful silence for a moment.

“Well, I’m gonna go. This clearly isn’t going anywhere. I wanted to say sorry for accusing you of sleeping with Steve. And I did. What I said still stands. When you want to give this a real try, and man up to how you feel then come talk to me. Otherwise…we’re just going to argue.” he threw his hands up.

She didn’t respond as he turned and walked away. She felt the exhaustion hit her all over again. She missed him so much. She missed how he used to bring her comfort and not pain. She was sick and tired of feeling sick and tired. Something had to give.

Star was dehydrated she’d cried so much. She thinks if she tried again dust might come out of her eyes. She was drained. So she did what she knew, and sat at her kitchenette, her cards in her hands.

“Alright. Hit me with it.” she sighed.

The Star reversed slapped onto the table.

Star let out the first laugh she’d had since the argument.

“Yeah.” she let out a deep breath. “Fuck me, right?” she snorted and chuckled, rubbing her face. “Okay… Two card pull here.“ She says aloud, another shuffle. “If I tell him I’m in love with him. If I let myself be vulnerable enough to very likely fucking up... What’s gonna happen?”

The Lovers.

Star rolls her eyes and pulls another card.

10 of cups.

“If I had a dollar every time I pulled that when I asked you about him.”

“Then maybe you should fucking listen, you dumb bitch.” She heard in her head and laughed again.

“It’s too good to be true though. But… every time.” she tapped the 10 of cups card. “Is he really it?” she whispered, holding up The Lovers card. “Did you really send me a soul mate?” her face was sad, tired at even the thought of the effort it’d take for her to digest such a weighted statement. “Okay, so if I don’t tell him? At this point... why pull these? You’re going to hand my ass to me.” she slapped down a card.

Two of swords.

“Yeah, no shit.” she cringed.

Five of cups.

“Ugh.” she leaned away from the table, concerned. “Fuck.” she frowned and looked around as if something was going to jump out at her. “Tell me how you really feel.” she slumped back in the booth. She lovingly put the cards that had just rode her hard and put her up wet into their velvet holder. She sat, elbows on the table, chin on her hands, looking out the window. She wasn’t being left with a choice. Not if she was going to grow and change. What Eddie had said had hurt. Deeply. She wasn’t denying that there was truth to it though. How long was she going to stay like this? She wasn’t happy. It wasn’t working. And according to the cards she’d handed a gift she was shunning. So of course her life was going to shit. She had to adjust. She’d extend the olive branch, she’d figure out how to tell him. Somehow.

-

So then came Friday. She wore her Hellfire shirt, the same as the rest of them and Eddie was visibly tense. More so than usual before a session. She could feel it coming off him from where he sat at the table adjacent to her. Lunch was civil enough again. She hoped he wasn’t as angry as he had been the previous afternoon. She stopped him, waiting him out to be the last two to leave the table.

“Eddie?” she asked, his back facing her as he was walking away. His eyes screwed shut at the way she said his name. Man, he missed that.

“Yeah?” he asked, turning, his shoulder shifting with anxiety.

“I just wanted to say I’m really looking forward to Hellfire tonight,” she said with a subtle smile.

“You are?” he met her eyes, surprised.

“Yeah. I was looking forward to it as a distraction at the least. I’m sure you’ve come up with something brutal. Plenty of… fuel for that sort of thing.” she laughed nervously, tucking her hair behind her ear.

“I’ve put a lot of time into it this week,” he confirmed with a small nod.

“I was looking forward to seeing you too.” she offered, losing her nerve halfway through the sentence and looking away.

“Yeah?” a hint of hope in his upturned voice.

“Yeah.” she nodded chewing her lips. “I mean, it’s weird not seeing you. Talking to you.” she quietly added.

“Yeah.” was all he was managing to say. “I’ll see you tonight then.” he nodded and turned away. It wasn’t the warmest of interactions but it helped fuel Star’s optimism.

So she showed up early to Hellfire. She hoped to extend that olive branch. To show him she was trying. She wanted so badly to move past whatever this was that they were stuck in. If could just get through to him she was certain things could get closer to normal.

“Hey,” she said with bright eyes and a hesitant smile as Eddie was putting out the grid and making his control center.

“H-hey,” he said looking around, then to his watch seeing she was early. He hadn’t expected her to be early or alone.

“I thought I’d come early to talk.” she hesitantly stepped farther into the room. “Is that okay?”

“I mean… you’re doing it so…” he shrugged, anxious about her appearance. He saw the dejected look on her face at his response.

“I was hoping I could maybe… extend an olive branch, you know? I hate this weird disconnect, this animosity between us. I know it’s not good for anything, especially the campaign.”

“Yeah I’d been thinking about that.” he stood still and rubbed the back of his neck.

“I wanted to say that I get where you’re coming from, you know? I was hoping you had had time to think and see things from my point of view too. So maybe we could go back to talking to each other like…not like we used to but more like normal.”

“Star…” he sighed, and rest his hands on the table in front of him. “I said what I said. If you’re not ready, I can’t.” he saw the lump in her throat, and the shine in her eyes grow.

“I’m trying to meet you halfway. I’m trying. I want you to see that I’m trying.”

“Trying isn’t doing, sweetheart.” he shook his head.

“Don’t call me that,” she whispered, wiping away a tear before it fell. “Not like that.”

“I’m not trying to be difficult,” he said in an exhale.

“That’s good to know because it feels that way,” she admitted with a soft laugh, rolling her eyes and sniffling. “You have to try to do. And you being so cold and distant is making it harder. I can’t respond with love when I don’t feel it back.”

“You’ve been feeling it for months. It’s there. It’s just... I’m having a hard time too.” he admitted.

“Then we could make it easier on each other by trying to be normal again.” she offered with upturned hands.

“I can’t do that, Star.” he rubbed his face. “I’ll go back on what I said if I do.”

“And that’s SO terrible?” she snapped, covering her face after the outburst to hide the way it contorted with a building sob. “It’s so hard to see you and not be able to be myself,” she whispered, sniffling.

“Then maybe you should go?” he said calmly, his eyes sad as he looked up to find hers full of tears. “We’re both still emotional about this and I don’t want it to affect the session. It’s not fair to everyone else.”

“You don't want me in Hellfire?” her voice broke and her lip quivered.

“I mean you’re crying already and we’re not even fighting. It’s going to make you play poorly. It’ll distract me. Maybe sit this out until you figure your shit out?” he shrugged.

“Y-” she choked and stopped, looking away. “Fine.” she bit back, tears now proud on her cheeks. “I don’t see how I’m supposed to want to be with you when you’re picking this game over me.” she motioned to the table.

“Star, That’s not-”

“If you say that’s not what you mean one more time I’m going to fucking scream.” she hissed in a loud whisper. “Start saying what you mean instead of backtracking and maybe we could get somewhere!” she said fists balled and shaking.

“Maybe you should take your own advice,” he said back, his exterior so calm it made her infuriated. She said nothing, a huff, and a choked sound left her as she turned her heel and ran.

She sobbed in the girl's bathroom. She couldn’t control it. She’d run out of the theatre, and into the far wall of the bathroom where she slid down it into a lump on the floor.

Eddie hit the large wooden table so hard he worried he’d hurt his hands. He hadn’t meant to be so angry still. He was so cold. Too cold. She was trying but he couldn’t meet her in the middle. All he had was his word, and if he went back on what he said he’d do then his word would be nothing. He slammed himself into the throne, covering his face and groaning into his hands.

Dustin and his insatiable curiosity followed the sound of crying into the girl's bathroom. He hadn’t expected to find Star there, hiccuping as she was crying so hard. She met his eyes as he appeared, lip trembling before a cry broke from her throat, a wail that quietened only when she shoved her face into her sweater to dampen the sound.

“Holy shit, Star. What’s wrong? Are you okay?” he ran, sliding on his knees on the tile floor toward her.

“No.” she sobbed.

“Do I need to call an ambulance? The police? I’ll go get Eddie.” he began to rise and her hand shot to jerk him back into the floor so fast he was startled.

“No.” she said, wiping her face and raising her head. “He’s why I’m crying.”

“What’d he do? I’ll kick his ass.” he meant it and it broke Star out of her self-hating cycle.

“It’s my fault too.” she shook her head.

“I’ve never seen you like this, man. This isn’t normal. This seems like his fault.” he put his hand on her arm.

“We had a fight.”

“Oh.” he grimaced.

“Yeah.” she let out a wild-sounding laugh. “He kicked me out of Hellfire,” she said, looking at him and trying to stop her sobbing.

“He fucking WHAT?” he shouted.

“I tried to make amends. But he didn’t wanna hear it. He told me if I wasn’t there to apologize and do what he said that I shouldn’t come back. That me being there was too much of a distraction for him.”

“Eddie said that? Shit.”

“I fucked up, Dustin.” she whispered, shaking her head.

“Nothing could warrant him kicking you out of Hellfire.”

“Maybe it does.” she shifted and leaned against the wall, her eyes far away and unfocused.

“What happened?”

“I don’t know if he’d want me to say.”

“C’mon. Let me help.” his eyes were so kind, and his hand was so warm and comforting as he rubbed her arm. Star took a deep breath.

“He told me he loved me. But I couldn’t say it back. Even though I do. With the parole thing and the abuse from before I just… I’m having a really hard time. He got mad and told me I was a coward. And he’s right.” her lashes fluttered and she sniffled, wiping her face. “He told me he was done. Until I was ready to say it back he didn’t want anything to do with me.”

“He’s being a fucking asshole,” Dustin stated plainly. “I don’t know what’s wrong with him.”

“He’s right though. It happened over the weekend and I’ve been thinking a lot you know. And I thought that by coming here tonight I could start to make amends. But he…” her lip trembled and she whined, wiping her face again. “Don’t tell him any of that, please. I don’t want him more mad at me.” she grabbed Dustin's jacket and looked desperately into his eyes.

“I won't. I won’t. Don’t worry. I’m going to talk to him though.”

“I don’t know. I thought maybe I could do it you know. Stop listening to my ex’s voice in my head and maybe I could be with someone. Maybe I was worthy of it. But now he’s making me feel like I was right all along. That I’m not. Why can’t I just fucking say it back? It makes me feel like the world’s gonna end if I do. I hate it so much.” another sob grew.

“Star you’re a badass.” Dustin grabbed her face and shook it, her eyes went large from surprise. “You’re great. You’re a good person, you’re a great friend. I know you’d be a great girlfriend. You practically are Eddie’s girlfriend already. He’s just being a dick right now and I’m sorry. He’s a sensitive guy. I think he’s just acting out because he’s hurt too. But he needs to realize he’s not the boss. He can’t just demand things from you.”

“Thanks,” she mumbled from squished cheeks. “He was really mean tonight.” she whimpered.

“You should go home. I’ll talk to him. You shouldn’t have to be here while you’re this upset.”

“Okay,” she said meekly and it broke Dustin’s heart. She truly was defeated.

“Is there anything you want me to say to him? I can relay a message since he wasn’t willing to listen to you. I’ll make him fuckin’ listen.” he said angrily.

“Yeah I made him some things,” she muttered and dug through her bag. Dustin's shoulders slumped, seeing the formerly strong girl broken down to next to nothing in front of him. “I mean you can have it.” she handed a large cookie to Dustin, wrapped in plastic cling film. “It’s his favorite,” she whispered.

“It’s a D20.” Dustin grinned, hard icing tracing out numbers on its surface.

“I thought it was cute. He likes the hard icing.” she swallowed audibly. “I thought if I made him something he’d see I cared.” her bottom lip trembled.

“I’m so sorry he was such a dick.” Dustin looks at her with pity and she hated it but she needed it.

“I know.” she nodded, wiping her face and sitting up straight. “I also made him this but I wanted to give it to him myself. I don’t know if he’ll talk to me.” she shook her head and held out a cassette. “Don’t open it. There’s a letter inside for him. It’s… personal.”

“I won’t. Promise,” he says holding her hands as she extended it to him. “I’ll make him take it. And promise me he’ll read it. Okay? It’ll be okay.” he promised her with a nod and crooked smile.

“Thanks, Dustin. I don’t know that I deserve all this but thank you.”

“Don’t listen to him right now. He’s just hurt. He’s a stubborn dick when he’s got his feelings hurt.” Dustin rolled his eyes. “You go home and rest okay? I’ll handle this.”

“Thanks. You’re a really good guy. A really great friend. I mean it.”

“Shush, I know.” he grinned and stood, holding his hand out to help her up. “Let’s get you out of here.”

-

“What’s your fucking problem you absolute dick head?” Dustin strutted into the Hellfire Club chest first.

“Excuse you?” Eddie said with high brows.

“He kicked Star out of Hellfire.” he stood and declared it to the group, jerking his seat back and not taking his eyes off Eddie. He wanted him to be publicly shamed.

“You what?”

“What the fuck dude?”

“She was really good!” all came in a chorus of annoyed members.

“Shut up!” Eddie screeched and everyone leaned away, surprised. “That’s not what happened. You shouldn’t be throwing around accusations when you don’t know what you’re talking about.” Eddie gritted through clenched teeth.

“I do know. I just talked to her. I found her crying in the bathroom because of you, you asshole.” Dustin was pissed, and Mike was side-eyeing him, impressed and also scared at what Eddie might do. “She came here trying to make amends.” he raised his voice at the glaring man opposite him at the other end of the table, now standing with his hands on the table. Dustin looked at the group. “They had a big fight over the weekend, that’s why she’s been so weird and Eddie’s been such a pain in the ass,” he announced to the other members, meeting their eyes as they nodded and groaned, now understanding. “She brought you this.” she tossed the cookie down the table and it slid to a stop in front of Eddie. “But you were too busy being mean for her to give it to you.” It split on impact, and he looked just as sorry as he felt at that moment. “It’s your favorite.” Dustin spits out.

“Did she tell you what happened?” he asked, now less boisterous. Eyes not leaving the rifted cookie.

“No. She said you fought. She wanted to respect your privacy even after you were a grade-A piece of shit to her tonight.” He crossed his arms. The exact comment hit Eddie like a knife. That’s what he’d called her ex. That’s what he said he wasn’t. Shit. “I’m here to play. But this isn’t over. I’m talking to you after this.” he pointed his finger angrily at Eddie.

“She would’ve been a distraction from the campaign.”

“C’mon.” Gareth, to everyone's surprise, groaned. “So you and your girlfriend had a fight. Put on your big girl panties and deal with it.” Gareth gave a much-needed pushback to Eddie’s stubborn stance. “She’s a member of this party. We get a say in who comes and goes. You’re the DM, you aren’t God.” he sassed back and Eddie blinked with a blank face. “I’m here to play too. But this is about D and D, not your feelings.”

“Okay then. She can come back next session.” Eddie raised his hands in defeat.

“If she’ll come back.” Jeff says with a more subtle lecturing look toward Eddie.

“If she doesn’t I’m gonna be so pissed at you, dude,” Gareth says with a shake of his head. “Her stats were just getting good,” he mumbled.

“Fine!” he slapped the table to break the subject. “Let’s get this fucking going.” he said loudly as he plopped back into his throne.

The session was fine, Eddie went a little too hard on them but no one fought him about it. They understood why.

Dustin sat in his chair with his arms crossed, waiting for everyone else to clear out.

“So?” he says with a sassy bob of his head. “Since when do you make girls cry, huh?”

“I didn’t mean to. Not really. I might’ve gone a little too hard on her.” he said, sitting on the tabletop beside the judging younger guy.

“A little? She was hiccuping on the bathroom floor from crying so hard. That’s not you being “a little too hard” on her.” Dustin scowled and use air quotes.

“I couldn’t have her here tonight. I wouldn’t be able to think straight. I’m a fucking mess about all this. Is that what you want to hear?”

“YES!” he screeched, his arms going up in the air. “Maybe if you’d brought this kind of honesty, to begin with we wouldn’t be having this conversation!” Eddie rolled his eyes and slumped, his hands on the edge of the table by his thighs. “Look, she gave me this,” he said pulling out a cassette and Eddie’s brow lowered in surprise and hesitation. “I told her I’d give it to you and I told her I’d make you promise to listen to it. She said there’s a letter in it.” he held it out and Eddie took it, looking it over. “She’s really sorry. I’ve never seen her like that, man she was fucked up over you. She really loves you, Eddie.” Eddies eyes snapped to Dustin's.

“She said that?” his voice gave away a certain desperation.

“Yes.” Dustin leaned forward and nodded.

“Then she should say it to me. Why is she saying it to you?” he deflected again, back to brooding.

“Well, she’s not in love with me so I don’t think those two things are comparable.” Dustin snarked.

“I just want her to tell me,” he whispered and Dustin softened his approach.

“She would if you’d give her the chance. She said some super depressing stuff about her ex. She’s still really messed up from that, you know.”

“And how long am I supposed to just wait and act like I’m not in pain every time I’m around her? Huh? It physically hurts to be around her I love her so much.” he gritted out, still looking angry despite the soft subject. “And I know she loves me. She did everything but say it when she was drunk. She even said she feels it but can’t say it. What the fuck does that even mean?” he groaned and hung his head.

“I think you’re being selfish,” Dustin said calmly.

“What the fuck, man? Are you hear to make me feel like shit or talk about this?”

“I’m not trying to, you feel guilty and you’re feeling that way all on your own.” he said with a confident turn up of his chin. Eddie turned away and glared at nothing in particular.

“What if I am? Don’t I have the right to? I’ve been the dirty little secret for most of my love life, do I not deserve to hear it if it’s true now? I feel like she’s being selfish by not saying it to me. Because she knows it’s true. She’s being a baby about it.”

“You’re in so deep you don’t even know it.” Dustin chuckled.

“What?”

“You’re in love bad. You’re getting possessive. That’s how being in love goes bad. You think you’re entitled to something from her. You know better.” Eddie glared, unhappy with the truth coming from the little shitty sage. “You’re acting just like one of these assholes that bully us.”

“That is NOT fucking fair.”

“I think if you were honest with yourself you’d agree.” Dustin stood, leaving Eddie to sulk. “Maybe do that meditation stuff she talks about. Really think about it. Listen to what she has to say.” he motioned toward the cassette. “Maybe what you want is right there.” he shrugged, grabbing his bag.

“Unless it’s a recording of her saying she loves me back it’s not.”

“Quit being such a stickler for rules. I can’t believe I’m saying that to you.” he rolled his eyes.

“I said what I needed. I’m sticking to my word!” he said with a pointed finger.

“Rules are made to be broken, man. What can I say? Think of it this way, would you withhold affection from an abused dog?”

“That’s a messed up comparison, Henderson,” he said feeling defensive of Star.

“No! Hear me out. A stray shows up and it’s scared right, it's clearly been abused by someone before. Do you get mad when the dog snaps or cries or runs away? No. You understand that it has to learn that YOU won’t hurt it. YOU have to be in control and not get mad and hit it when it snaps or growls. You have to be patient with it.” he chopped his hands at Eddie. “Star had a bad owner before. He taught her she was bad and wrong and to expect to be hit. And how are you fixing that point of view for her right now by doing this?”

“It’s not the same.”

“Is it not?” Dustin said with a low brow, his head tilted and a tone full of disappointment. “You show her you love her by loving her, dude. It’s that simple. You can't demand she all of the sudden open up after she’s been told that opening up is the worst thing that she could do. Do you get it? She’s scared. That’s why she was such a tough nut to crack when she first showed up. You see how much she’s changed. If you’d keep supporting her like you have, she’ll be able to change. Just like she has with other stuff.”

Eddie looked away, not knowing what to say because he knew the child genius was right.

“It’s Psych 101 man.” Dustin continued to rub salt into the wound with his words.

“Okay! Fine. I get it. Shit, man.”

“No shame in being wrong. You can apologize,” he said walking back towards the door. “I’m looking forward to telling you I told you so!” he called out as he walked out of the room.

Eddie snarled, his nose wrinkled as he glared at the cassette. He put it in his bag and went on to put away everything else before heading home.

The tape mocked him that next day. He went to band practice, ran errands, and ignored it. He was now mad at himself and not just her. He smoked himself stupid and fell asleep. If he’d had more money he would’ve added some drinking to the mix. He hadn’t felt so emotionally drained in years.

He woke up sweaty, Wayne was already asleep, back from work in the living room. The sounds of the first frogs he’d heard since summer ended were croaking in the puddles around the trailer park. He shut his window, taking his comforter with him across the room. He sat back down on his bed and his bag sat there looking back at him.

“Okay.” he sighed and stood, still dramatic even alone. “Let’s do this.”

He took his portable radio and sat with it on the bed, plugging his headphones into it. He opened the cassette with its pink broken heart on the front and a letter, folded up tumbled out. He saw the label on the cassette, C120, and became more interested. This was two full hours of music. She’d put work into this. What he didn’t know was that she’d been working on it for days, from the time she got home to her falling asleep listening to the radio for inspiration. She’d put her heart and soul into the flimsy plastic rectangle.

He snapped the tape in and unfolded the sheet of paper. One side was simply a tracklist. It was written out beautifully in ink, he’d always admired how pretty her handwriting was with its loops and leans. The other side was a simple message.

“We know I’m not good at saying these things. The songs can say it better than I ever could. Listen to the lyrics. Please. I hope they tell you all you need to know.”

Another chunky square had fallen out of the squeezed-in paper. He dug around it, unfolding the intricate bends. He saw a flash of orange. He pulled out the Get Out Of Jail Free Card he’d given her. He cracked a smile, feeling a hint of tears in his eyes. He’d practically forgotten. On the inside of the paper around it, concealing it until he took he time to open it was also simply stated.

“Forgive me.”

He sighed, looking at the card, he put it to his mouth, tapping it against his lips in thought. It even smelled like her. He wondered where she’d been keeping it all this time. He had to play by the rules of the card. He had to forgive her. She’d held onto his silly little gift and remembered it this whole time. He owed her for the sentimentality it showed in the gesture. She really did love him, didn’t she?

Eddie clicked the tape on, mouth dry and fingers fidgeting on the edges of the paper. Looking over the track list it was apparent that this mix was not for him. It wasn’t music catering to him, it wasn’t metal or thrash or a collection of songs he liked. It was all songs that were distinctly Star. He could feel her in the choices. First, a gut punch of nostalgia with Fleetwood Mac. He recalled her singing and dancing, how he’d spent so much time learning new songs just for her. And she was always appreciative of each one. Even if he didn’t quite get every chord just right. A throwback to an evening with Wayne with her favorite Dion song.Then Maggie May. She memorized every song and every emotion attached. He felt a little nauseous, she had remembered. She’d remembered that post-Valentine’s night this whole time. Moving out of nostalgia he listened to songs that spoke to him directly in the lyrics. Stumblin’ In, Right Down the Line, I Saw the Light. They all told him what he needed to hear. He sat there, unmoving for hours. He rewound and listened to some over, he read her letter again. He finally laid back, Otis Redding in his ears. He looked to the window and the sun was up, he didn’t even know for how long. He stared at the stain on his ceiling, hand to his chest, hearing Star tell him how much she truly did love him through someone else’s words.

“But it seemed so natural darling, that you and I are here. Just talking over cigarettes and drinking coffee. And oh, my whole heart cried out love at last I’ve found you. And honey won't you just let me build my whole life around you?” he let the tears fall. Finally. The warm brass sounds pulled them out of him. He wiped them away, but not denying their existence this time. He sat up, switching off the tape, his ears suddenly cold from being housed in his headphones for hours. He put the papers in his bedside table, somewhere to keep them safe and close to his other prized possessions. He snapped the tape back into the case and put it into his bag. He stretched and took a deep breath, shaking off the anger he’d felt before. He had to go to her. He‘d forgive her and he could take it slow. Music was a love language for Eddie. It was also Star’s. By showing him in a way he could hear and feel, she’d been able to get through to him. He could feel she did love him. There couldn’t be lyrics like that that resonated with her if she didn’t love him. For her, he would try to be patient. He would apologize. He’d probably have to beg and maybe deservedly so. For her, he’d do anything.

Eddie had jumped into the shower, leaving without a word to Wayne, speeding to Star’s house with the tape in the console. To his dismay, she wasn’t there. No one was. Everything was locked and shut. He took the key he had, and let himself in her trailer, there was an old suitcase out, and a letter on the countertop.

“Shit. That’s tomorrow,” he whispered. The parole hearing. “Fuck.” he shouted out in frustration. They’d left early. He’d missed her. Being back in her space made the last words he’d said there smack him in the face. He’d promised her he’d be there for her for that. He felt another wave of nausea. “Oh god I really am an asshole.” he whispered.

Wayne was awake when Eddie returned, another morning just like the last, sipping his coffee on the front porch. He was no stranger to Eddie driving like a maniac. But Eddie leaping from the van and stumbling up the stairs was new.

“You okay?”

“I'm going to Chicago.” he said before disappearing into the house.

“What in the Sam Hill?” Wayne muttered as he followed him inside. “Now?” he followed Eddie to his bedroom, dumping the school contents of his backpack onto the bed and shoving things he’d need for a long drive in. “I didn’t think ya’ll would head out until later, maybe leave before dawn tomorrow.”

“Yeah, neither did I. I’ve been so caught up in being mad at her that I forgot. I didn’t forget I just… I didn’t think about it.”

“So that’s why she’s not been here and you’ve been sulking.” he nodded and took a drink.

“Yeah. We had a big fight. And she wrote me a really sweet letter and apologized and I’m seeing that I’m the asshole in this situation.” he shook his head, scoffing at himself. “I didn’t get it until this morning and I went to her place to apologize and she’s gone. So… I’m going to Chicago.”

“Do you know where to go?”

“I know the name of the prison. I can figure it out.”

“I'll grab a map.” Wayne said, calm amongst Eddie’s chaos. Eddie soon bound into the living room with his bag on his shoulder. “Here.” he handed Eddie a folded-up map. “Just in case.”

“Thanks. I’ll be back sometime Monday afternoon I think. I’ll call if I need to.”

“Take this too,” he said with a fatherly tone, holding out a 50-dollar bill to him. Eddie stared at it for a moment.

“No way, that’s too much. I don’t need that.”

“Take it.” he shook it at him.

“No, that’s too much Wayne, I’ve got gas money, I’m fine.” he insisted. Wayne took it and shoved it into his boy’s pocket.

“You say thank you when people give you things, Eddie. I raised you better than that.”

“Thank you.”

“That’s better.” he grinned and fixed Eddie’s collar. “Mind your manners when you find her, alright?”

“I will.” he nodded. “I”m gonna fix this. I’m gonna come back with her. It’ll be okay. It’ll work. Like you said. Me and her we’re… we’re supposed to be together.”

“C’mere.” Wayne said bringing him in for a hug. Eddie felt small in his father figure’s arms. They didn’t NOT hug, but it wasn’t a daily occurrence by any means. Eddie hugged him back, slow on the draw. Wayne pat his back. “You’re a good man. You’ll figure it out. Plenty of time on the drive to figure out how to beg her forgiveness.” he grinned at him, pulled away, and slapped his shoulder supportively.

“Yeah. Lots of that.”

“You be careful.” he wagged a finger at him. “And remember what I taught you about women. Don't make me look bad.” his tone was serious but he said it with a smile.

“I won’t let you down.” a promise to his uncle and himself.

“You never do.”

-

Eddie drove with Star’s tape blasting, shaking the metal of the van for hours. He cried, screamed, and talked to himself. The long hours of the highway gave him plenty of time to playback everything everyone around him had been saying. He could eat the I told you so’s with a smile if it meant having her back and happy again. He hoped his ego hadn't done irreparable damage.

He drove for hours in the city, finding the prison then seeing the parking wasn’t 24 hours. So he went on another adventure to find overnight parking somewhere. He figured a parking garage with a security guard at the gate was the safest bet to not get carjacked. He took a short walk, some blocks to find a place to eat. He took it back to the van where he played her tape at a much lower volume in his portable stereo not wanting to drain the van battery too much. He ate what might’ve been the best pizza of his life and talked to himself for hours. He had a method to his madness. He practiced apologizing, going over what he might say when he saw her. He tried to cover every retort and response he could think of.

-

Star had one place in mind she wanted to go upon returning to Chicago. She was someone Star’s mom had liked. She was part of the reason her name was Star. Robbie waited outside, not willing to leave Star alone or get involved with any of her hippy-dippy shit. His words.

The place smelled like incense and years of cigarettes. It smelled like home to Star. Through beaded curtains and shimmery drapes, she walked down the floor of stairs and into the small business.

“Would it be to cliche to say I was expecting you?” An older woman with wise eyes and a welcoming demeanor sat at her small round table. The entire space was covered in jewel tones and occult paraphernalia. The neon sign with a palm and the word psychic across the top buzzed and gave a glow to the sacred space.

“Just a little.” Star smiled and was welcomed into the arms of the woman. She was someone she’d sought out during hard times for guidance, especially after her mom had passed. She was a big part of who Star was now.

“Are you okay? I thought you were running when you left? Oh, wait no don’t answer that. You know I like a challenge.” She said spiritedly with her long layers of skirts and shawls flowing with animated arms. “Is this business or pleasure?”

“Both as always.” Star sighed contently and sat in the worn thatch chair across from the whimsical woman.

“Do you want your cards?”

“No, I’ve been doing them a lot and they’ve been very rude.” Star chuckled.

“You’ve kept up your studies?” The woman perked up at the news.

“I’ve never been more into them.”

“But?”

“I still need guidance.”

“Are the cards not clear?”

“Too clear. I kinda wanted to see what my guides had to say. I’m not good at tuning into them and certainly not like you can.”

“They’re annoyed.” She laughed. “Proud and annoyed.”

“Can’t blame them. Things have been weird lately. I’ve been struggling.”

“They’ve been trying to take care of you.” She looked around the room at times and others shut her eyes. Star sat amidst a realm she couldn’t touch yet. “But you’re fighting it. They don’t like being ignored when they work so hard to reach out.”

“I should say it shouldn’t I?” A question vague enough for the woman to not know what she meant. But her guides did.

“A resounding yes.” She nodded. “I’m seeing… two things?” She tilted her head, her eyes narrowing as she tried to see something more clearly. “Whatever these two things are they’re okay. Oh, it’ll be okay. You’ll be okay.”

“Good news.”

“They’re showing me…” she held out her two hands as if she were weighing something. “A good thing and a bad thing. They’re not being very clear sorry.”

“Outcomes?”

“No.” She paused.

“Oh, men.” Star nodded. “A good man and a bad man.”

“They seem to be happy with that answer.” “One is being tossed over the shoulder and forgotten. The other..” she giggled. “The other they're acting like they’re kissing something in their hand.” Star laughed.

“Eddie.” She grinned.

“Oh, they like him.” The woman laughed. “Tell me more about this Eddie.” She leaned in like a gossip. “There’s a man in your life already? So soon.” She seemed happy but curious.

“I said the same. I thought he was too good to be true.”

“Smart girl.” She nodded her hand to her chin. “You can ask them about him. They’re open to it.” Star pondered for a moment.

“I know the cards have told me I should be with him. Soul connections and whatnot. We’ve channeled each other before. It’s very intense. Is that all true?”

“There’s a box with a bow. Like a Christmas present.”

“I don’t know.”

“Oh! He’s a gift!” She laughed, amused.

“But am I the same for him? Or am I a lesson for him?”

“Don’t shoot the messenger but I’m being told to tell you to not be stupid.” Star snorted out a laugh.

“I’m trying.” She sighed. “So I should go against all my instincts and go balls deep, deep end of the pool with Eddie? Full in love and believing in soul mates and all that?” Star didn’t look convinced.

“Oh hello, darling.” The woman cooed. Star sensed she wasn’t talking to her. “Yes. Live the life I couldn’t.” The woman sighed. “She was always so sweet, wasn’t she? She loved you so much. Still sacrificing even now to give you good things.” Star softly smiled.

“I miss her.” Star pouted unintentionally.

“She knows.” a warm smile and nod from her mentor to ease her fear.

“I’ll do it for her, I’ll believe in fairy tales.” Star huffed out an uncomfortable laugh and wiped at her cheek.

“Believe in yourself.” The woman confidently said. “Open up your heart. That’s where your higher self is.”

“And becoming my highest self is the goal of this trip, this realm.”

“What scares you most shows you where you need to grow the most. You’re still cynical. For good reason, my dear but letting go of that and trusting the universe will care for you is the next step.”

“Hard to take the next step when you can’t see the stairs” Star sighed and stared at nothing.

“That’s why love is blind, sweetheart. You don’t have to see the stairs to know it’s there.”

-

Eddie set his watch for dawn, not knowing when to expect Star. So, he was going into the prison lot as the workers were. He parked out of the way, not wanting to draw attention to himself. Just being at a prison made him nervous. He thought the weird metal guy sitting in his van alone was suspicious enough, it’d be worse to stand at the gate and wait or be parked in the middle of everyone else and have them stare him down. Again, he waited hours.

9 am was the start of the parole hearings for the day. Like the prisoners, no one else knew when they would be called. So Eddie waited with burning eyes, watching the entry gate. Eventually, Robbie's truck pulled in. He saw him taking up a good portion of the cab and Star with her head against the window. Unlike the last time she had to speak in front of people she looked like herself today. He watched as they pulled in like him, a little out of the way. Eddie got out of the van. Taking a deep breath and then checking it to see just how bad it was. So a stick of gum was shoved into his mouth at the last second.

Star was feeling numb. Only because she was feeling so much she couldn’t compute it anymore. Robbie held her around her shoulders, half comforting and half making sure she didn’t run. She’d been so quiet the whole ride. The whole night in the hotel. She’d barely eaten and the one thing she missed the most about the city was the food.

Robbie saw Eddie before she did. Even his jaded heart lept a little at the site of the goofy guy. His hands were clenching and unclenching, slowly walking away from the entrance and toward them.

“Star?” Robbie said softly to not startle her.

“I’m fine.” She mumbled, still looking at the ground.

“Star.” he demanded again, this time in a deeper voice.

“What?” She said with a tired voice, looking up at Robbie.

“Look who showed up.” He had such a warm smile on his face Star was gobsmacked. Robbie didn’t smile like that. He nodded his head toward the already very apologetic-looking man tentatively approaching her, almost tripping over his feet as he dragged them.

Star turned with a low brow and her eyes landed locked with Eddie’s as if she’d been aiming for them. She stopped moving, involuntarily. Her face fell, mouth dropping open as he approached. She could swear there was a faint ringing in her ears from the shock. Her breath caught in her throat and she felt a wave of tingly ice move across her skin. Robbie stayed by her side as she shakily took steps forward. A sob erupted from her throat, but for the first time in a long time, it was accompanied by a smile. She took another step, another sob rocking her torso. She held her hands out with no shame in her desperation for Eddie who started jogging towards her, his frightened body language switching seamlessly to caregiver. She picked up her pace, leaving Robbie behind as her knees gave out on impact with Eddie’s chest. He lifted her into a hug, her feet leaving the ground and kicking up. She gripped him with white knuckles and sobbed loudly into his chest. He held her as tightly as he could and pressed his face to her hair. His tears fell then too, he didn’t sob like her but his cheeks were wet in the early light just the same. He held her, letting her sob. Ugly choked gut-wrenching sounds left her small body. It was a release she’d needed desperately.

“Man am I glad to see you.” Robbie said with a hand to Eddie’s arm.

“Wouldn’t miss it.” He smiled back, only his wet lashes giving away he was crying too.

“I told you not to give up on this idiot.” Robbie grinned, rubbing Stars back.

She cried something unintelligible.

“You’re gonna have to use your words, kid. Breathe for a second. It’s fine. Your knight in shining armor is here.” There was no ill will towards Eddie for Robbie. He’d known from the moment Star cried about their fight that he’d come back. Eddie wasn’t a quitter. He knew the guy that much. Everyone has fights, and he knew Star was admittedly hard to love sometimes. But she had people around her that were the same way. When you found your people like that you didn’t give up on them. He knew Eddie was one of their people. First loves were intense and these young fools were no exemption to the rules of messing things up when emotions ran high. Robbie's years of experience told him that with time, the two bumbling goobers he had watched fall in love would be just fine.

“I’m here.” He spoke softly in her ear. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

“M’Sorry.” She blubbered out as he smiled wide at her pitiful little red face. He took his handkerchief out of his pocket and wiped her cheeks then squeezed her snotty nose. She cracked a smile through her quiet tears and took the cloth to clean herself up.

“There she is.” He put his hands to her cheeks. “There’s my pretty girl.” He watched her face screw up into a comedically deep frown as he laughed and kissed her forehead.

“Y-yours?” She shakily breathed in.

“Yes. I’m sorry. Okay? We can talk about it later. Today's about you right?”

Y-yeah.” She nodded.

“Just know I’m here for you, okay? I’m sorry I made you doubt that.”

“Did you get my tape?” She asked with big bright glossy eyes.

“That’s what snapped me out of it. I'm sorry I doubted you. I was just so used to being a secret, a backup plan, a story to tell, you know? But I’m here now. I hope that counts for something.”

“It does.” She said finally losing her quivering voice. “I’ll fight you later, kay?” She gave him a soft smile and she saw a tear fall down his cheek as he beamed down at her, squishing her cheeks and kissing her pooched lips.

“You can hit me with your car if you want, I know you’re good at that.” He joked and got a laugh out of her.

“That would make me feel better.”

“Yeah? It’s a date then.” He kissed her forehead and squeezed her.

“No sex on the first date but murder is okay.” She said into his chest as she felt him warm and laughing around her.

“I missed you so fucking much.” He said pulling her away to kiss her cheek.

“I missed you more.” She admitted with a crooked smile, it and the statement made Eddie’s heart flutter for good reasons now.He kissed her briefly again.

“I’ve got you today alright? Whatever you need I’m your slave. Got it?” He smoothed her hair down and wiped some errant mascara off her cheek.

“Hold my hand and don’t let go until I say.” She stated as her first order. He stood next to her and laced their fingers together. He stood up straight and she mirrors him. He lifted her chin back up.

“Lead the way, boss.” He said with an approving nod, holding his free hand out for her to take the lead.

They sat on the uncomfortable wooden bench outside the room for hours. Star had her headphones on for a good part of it, Eddie sat next to her, only breaking their handhold to put his arm around her and take her hand with his other. She’d fallen asleep on him, he’d been stroking her hair and rubbing her back and she’d fallen into the missed lull of safety only he could bring her. Eddie looked down at her for the longest time, smiling and kissing her head.

The woman across from them watched them with an adoring smile.

“She have to speak against someone too?” She asked, giving the information that she too was there for the same reason.

“Yeah,” Eddie said softly, rubbing Star's arm.

“First time?”

“Yeah.” He nodded again.

“She’s lucky to have you “ she gave a sad smile.

“Nah.” He shook his head and chuckled. “I’m lucky she puts up with me.” He said wholeheartedly.

“You’re the boyfriend then?” The woman grinned. Eddie paused, his mouth open trying to figure out how to answer that.

“He is,” Robbie answered. “More like the husband.” He smirked from behind his magazine. The woman looked over at him in surprise as he joined the conversation. “I’m her older brother.” He added to give context. Eddie had blushed at Robbie's words. “I’m here for moral support since I dealt with her going through this the first time around with her piece of shit ex.”

“Ah yes. Same here. She reminded me of me my first time back here.” She gave Star a sad smile even though she couldn’t see it. “It won’t be so hard next time.” She said kindly, looking to Eddie. “It won’t be easy but there’s a fear that first time.” She shook her head. “You don’t get the same fear after that.” She sighed. “If she can get through putting him in there she can do anything. Remind her of that when she needs it.”

“Thanks,” Eddie said softly to not wake her. “I never know what to say because I can’t relate you know? It’s hard to understand sometimes.”

“Because you’re a man.” The woman chuckled. “No offense, but you can’t understand what it’s like dealing with a man like that unless you’re a woman. There are certain things you just can’t understand. It’s something that makes us different.” She shrugged. “The world is different for us. It’s harder in ways you don’t have to deal with. Just be there for her, listen to her. Believe her.”

“That’s what I plan on doing.” it was Eddie’s turn for a sad smile as he thought about how he’d failed her.

The woman let out a content sigh. A small sign of hope in the young couple.

She came and went before them, Star waking up as the doors opened and the next was called. She’d turned to read the list she’d written. She didn’t know if she’d stick to it, not knowing how she would react when she saw him. But she felt better to have it. There were only bullet points and words on the page, they didn’t make much sense to Eddie. It was funny, it was a list of reminders of the most heinous things he’d done to her. And he couldn’t understand a word of it. He would understand far more than he bargained for very soon.

The next steps ensued, the warning call of the name. Her standing by the door waiting to be let in. Her hand trembled in Eddie’s and he squeezed it tight.

“I’m gonna throw up.” She whispered.

“No, you’re not. You’ve got this.”

“What if I can’t?”

“You can. I know you can. You can do anything.” He meant every word and she felt it.

“You had to put that bastard in there last time,” Robbie said from her other side. “This time he’s already in. You’re just helping keep him there.”

She nodded and took a deep breath. The door started to open.

The funniest thought she had walking into the room to sit at one of three tables in a rather anti-climatic conference room, was that orange looked terrible on him. She wasn’t in any spot to chuckle about it, but seeing him and not feeling fear or conditioned attraction made her feel a huge wave of relief. Part of her was worried she’d fall under his spell as soon as she saw him again. But she stood a little straighter feeling the old her slipping away.

Eddie was flabbergasted at the guy. He didn’t know what he’d expected, but it hadn’t been this. This guy was very possibly the best-looking guy he’d ever seen in real life. He had two realizations, one, he understood why a 16-year-old girl would fall for whatever he said, and two, he looked nothing like Eddie. They both had dark hair, that was it. This man had hair that hit about his ears, swooping back thick and shiny. His eyes were a soul-piercing blue and stood out like some lich king around his dark lashes and brown skin. He had a jaw that could cut glass and a strong nose that suited his intense appearance.

He didn’t look in the guys' direction much, it wouldn’t have mattered anyway, Bobby's eyes were only set on Star.

They all three sat down at a table as his name and charges were read.

“We have Florence Reynolds. The plaintiff in the case that sentenced him to prison.”

Eddie’s brow lowered, confused, and looking at Star who didn’t flinch. He turned to look at Robbie and he nodded. Eddie hadn’t know Star's real name.

There were formalities. Name stating and the relationship to the prisoner. She was asked to stand and did so without stumbling or projectile vomiting across the room. She considered that a win.

“As she said I’m Florence, I go by Star.”

“I always like Flo better.” Bobby smirked.

“Please refrain until she’s done speaking.” The woman who was calling out the formalities said and gave Star the nod to continue.

“I’m Star.” She stated again just for the reason of making him hear it again. “I was the victim of Bobby, as I knew him. He was found to have a narcissistic personality disorder and one we now both share, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. I’ve been in extensive therapy since leaving the violent and manipulative relationship I had with him. My therapist has given me many diagnoses that affect my life every day because of the mental, emotional, sexual, spiritual, and physical abuse I endured while with him. I was only 15 when we met for the first time. A minor and a child. He was over a decade my senior and I believe that speaks to how he chooses his victims. If you let him out he will do it again. I know this because after I left him he did the same thing to one of my peers. He told them I was trying to get back with him and she believed him. That’s how I got the scar on my head, from a brick the girl and her friends hit me with. After a fire was set to the outdoor area of the school where I was knocked unconscious, I got these.” She held up her arm. “I have these and had to go through painful surgeries and physical therapy on top of mental therapy because of this inmate in front of you. I hesitate to call him a man because I don’t believe he’s human after the things he did to me and my family.” She put the paper down and took a deep breath, Eddie put his foot next to hers, she could feel it. She put her hand on the table, fingertips brushing the surface and she felt Eddie’s with its signature cold rings slide into hers. “He will tell you whatever you want to hear to get his way. That's what he does. He can act however the situation calls for. He'll lie and pretend and he’s so good at it that you won’t know it. Which is what I know is happening here. I went from a young teen who wanted nothing more than to be loved and dance with her friends on the weekends. I turned into a shadow of myself, alone and isolated and turning to drugs to make it through the day. He made me need them by tearing me down piece by piece for years and then supplied me with the drugs. He assured that I wouldn’t go anywhere. Control and isolation were his end goals. He framed me for stealing from my brother who knew of the trouble I was in and had warned me from the start about Bobby. But I didn’t listen because Bobby told me everything I ever wanted to hear and made me dependent on him for everything. Before I was able to escape I would be locked in our apartment with no key and no phone. He took my money and at one point my shoes so I couldn’t leave. As I said he made it look like I stole from my brother, both money and material possessions that belong to our mother. Robbie believed him and gave up on me. He thought I was a lost cause. This is what Bobby wanted. I was truly alone. He proceeded to keep me in the apartment after getting me fired from my job. I escaped by smashing a window and leaving via a fire escape. I made my way to Robbie where I told him the truth and seeing the state I was in and that I was sober he believed me. Without him, I wouldn’t have escaped. He had to physically defend me and himself to retrieve a few prized possessions I had left from my apartment, that’s when the original assault charge started. With that, I told everything to the cops, and trauma dumping as they asked me what happened, they took me to the station and asked if I wanted to press charges to which I said yes. I hope you believe me and the court's decision that he isn’t fit for public life. I hope you don’t make the same mistake I did and believe his lies. I hope you don’t force more women to be victims like I was by letting him free.” She nodded and sat, looking at the surface of the table in front of her and breathing through her nose. She’d done it.

“The board will take a recess to make a decision.” Was announced. Bobby was staring, unwavering at Star.

“You’ve looked better, Flo Jo.” The man smirked, spread legs, and sat back in his chair. Star met his eyes, glaring. “Was I so bad I turned you into a dyke? Who is this?” He laughed nodding at Eddie.

“It is a priviledge you get to stay out here while they deliberate. That can be taken away just as quickly.” The woman snapped as the officer standing off the side took a step forward.

“We’re just talkin',” he said with a smug face. Eddie and Star's hands were both shaking now. “This your boyfriend? That’s cute.” He looked them over. “Did she tell you what she told the courts that I did to her?” He asked sucking his teeth. “I didn’t do it of course.” He raised a brow. “But if you’d heard the things she told them you wouldn’t be able to hold her hand right now I’ll tell you that. She’s a dirty… filthy little girl aren’t ya Flo?” He winked.

“Robert! Last chance.” The woman says having the officer approach him.

“Nothing she doesn’t know. Don’t worry. I’m good.” He said with his hands up in cuffs.

With a united front of indifference, they didn’t give him the reaction he was hoping for. Nothing upsets a narcissist more than seeing they don’t have control over you anymore.

“Thank you ma’am it’s fine,” Star said as calmly as a glass lake. “He's trying to get a rise out of me.” She rolled her eyes and blinked lazily.

“You too good now?” He laughed. “You ran away from your home just like you do your problems and you think you’re too good for me now? That it?” He kept it lined with a huff of laughter to not seem angry and stay in the room to try to mess with her. “I hope you’ve your fun with Mr. Trianon over there because once he finds out what you’ve done he’s gone, baby girl.” He threw his head back and laughed. “I don’t know how she’s not the one locked up in here man. She's done some wiiiild stuff with me, my man. She’s a good time. Especially when you get a few drinks in her. I’ll give her that… but save ya some time and let me tell ya, that kitty cat ain’t worth it. If ya catch my drift.” He snickered and leaned into the table, despite being far away. They all three gave him a stone wall in response. They could see him get angrier, nostrils flaring. “You’re really gonna be with that pile of damaged goods?” He went for hurting them both again. “He must be as pathetic as you if he knows how messed up you are and he’s still with you.”

Star raised her hand to the woman who opened her mouth to stop him. “He’ll tire himself out eventually.” Another wave of reddened face from the handcuffed monster.

“You can’t talk to me like that alright? Just because I’m in here. You aren’t better than me now little Flo Jo. These?” He raised his hands in cuffs. “Don’t mean anything alright? They don’t make you right. They don’t make you okay now. Because I know you, Flo. I KNOW you.” He leaned in as far as he could and glared. “And you’re always gonna be that stupid little girl. The one with a sick mommy who can’t do anything right. You were born stupid that’s not your fault.” He lashed out. Star held a finger up as the woman caught on to what was happening. “Your mother was stupid for fuckin around with those queers and gettin' sick. She knew better, and so should you. But it never stopped ya. Your daddy was the only smart one because he got a jimmy free ride off ya mom and left!” He laughed again, deep and menacing, eyes growing slightly erratic.

“When you’ve said the same thing so many times it becomes boring.” Star responded, a perfectly timed yawn appearing afterward.

“There’s the mouth. There’s that smart mouth again, eh?” He nodded. “This guy isn’t hittin' you enough.” He growled. Star saw the door the deliberations were happening behind start to open and she smiled. “You’ve gotta keep this bitch in line. If not she’ll think she runs the place. She’s got a bad attitude and no respect, you need to remind her of what a little fuck up she is. How everything she’s touched has turned to shit. She’ll take your money, she’ll fuck your best friend then have the nerve to cry about it when you hit her for it. You gotta hold her down and-“

“I think we’ve heard enough to make our decision.” The man speaks as Bobby jumps and turns with wide eyes.

“You’re back just in time. She’s been out here trying to make me mad this whole time! It’s like I said before, check the papers, she’s a lying little snot. She’ll push you to the edge until you pop.” He rushed out to place the blame on anyone else.

“Ms. Reynolds thank you for your time we know this wasn’t easy. We appreciate your candid nature and you’ll be happy to hear we agree with you. The board will not be granted parole. The case will be revisited in 5 years' time.”

“FIVE YEARS? You fucking kidding me with shit?” He shouted as he was being stood up and moved away. “You did this to me Flo! Look what you turned me into! You’re taking a man’s life away here!”

Star stayed sat until he was gone, his voice fading behind a now closed door.

“Thank you.” She said with a nod and stood.

“I'm sorry for him speaking to you like miss. But I believe you knew how he’d respond and it seemed to work in your favor today. I'm glad.” The woman with a very sharp and cold suit said but he eyes were warm.

“Thank you, ma’am. The one good thing to come from all my therapy is I know what makes men like him tick now. It’s not hard to upset them.”

“Good luck. Enjoy the rest of your time in the city. ” She nodded and gathered her files. Onto the next one.

-

Not a word was spoken as they walked out of the prison. Eddie had so much information thrown at him so quickly he felt like the words were falling out of his ears.

The early afternoon sun hung high but not harshly over the drab grounds of the prison. Star stepped out feeling the familiar wind on her face and in her hair. It was at its longest she couldn’t ever recall it being, a grown-out choppiness with a few of her home-style cuts in the mix. Breaching the gate she walked calmly until she reached Robbie's truck where she slowed to a stop. The two men trailed behind her, letting her set the pace for the next move. Eddie moved beside her to observe but not disrupt. He couldn’t help but be compelled to treat her like she was fragile. She had every right to be. Plus, focusing on her needs let him ignore the avalanche of epiphanies and questions the last hour had brought down on him.

She closed her eyes and took in a chest-rising breath she felt into her toes. A single tear tan down her cheek to meet the corner of her mouth that curled into a smile. Her closed lips were tight before she turned them in to chew at them for a moment. Fluttering her eyes open she released her second audibly exhale. She turned, knowing she should address her support system. She didn’t meet their eyes, mouth opening to speak before she tilted her head, brows rising and falling as she tried to pick which words to come out of her mouth like a ball being plucked from a bingo cage. That’s how her brain felt anyway, rattled and spinning. She didn’t know how she felt, she knew it was good but, it didn’t feel real.

She decided to meet Eddie first, he knew she had on her thinking face. It always made his hands want to mush her cheeks with the way her lips pouted and her nose took on a bunny-like characterization. He mirrored her loss of words, both blinking as if they were trying to remember how to speak.

The silence stretched over a minute. After which Robbie decided to be the adult and guide them in a direction. Any direction.

“You two have a lot to talk about.” Both a factual statement and a jab at how they were looking at each other like fish out of water. He put a hand on both their backs, putting them both into the shade with his large silhouette. “I assume you’re gonna drive back with Eddie?” He asked with a gentle tone.

Star had been looking up at Robbie like she had when she was small and listening to his advice, eyes full of trust and awe. They quickly flicked to Eddie’s as he too looked away and to her.

“I’d like that.” He stuttered out, leaning forward a little nervously. “If you want to. That is.” He nodded and looked away leaning back again with his chin pressed into his neck. This decision came much faster and not to mention easier as she nodded before affirming with words to accompany it.

“Yeah. I’d like that.” She looked down with the same bashfulness and took his hand into hers.

“Are you gonna stay up here a while or get on back?”

“We’ve got school tomorrow we should just get back.”

“Eat first,” Robbie instructed.

“Oh right.” Star became aware of the painful empty feeling in her stomach. For once it was from a physical cause and not an emotional one. “That okay?” She asked Eddie.

“Whatever you want.” He nodded with high brows.

With that Robbie wrapped her up as she smiled into his shoulder.

“Proud of you kid. You should be too.” He kissed her cheek and she pouted, almost tearing up again. “Shush you know I love you don’t make me say it.” He grinned and shoved her shoulder to knock off her balance. With the order to drive safely and not be stupid, Eddie and Star found themselves side by side in his van again. It felt like months they’d been apart. Both scrambled to recall the last time they’d been in his van together.

“You need to talk about it?” He asked before turning on the van. Star shook her head and looked at him with a subtle smile.

“Not yet. I’m still processing it. It’s not hit me yet. Not really. It’s been a hell of a week, I don’t think my brain's caught up yet.” She huffed out a quiet laugh.

“It really has.” They both stared at nothing, eyes out toward the front of the van. “I’m sorry, you know. For… everything. For me and this today and just..” he sighed.

“It’s okay.” She put her hand on his arm. “We have all the time in the world to talk about it now don’t we?” She said with hopeful eyes. He put his hand to hers in his arm. He gave her a smile that showed his dimples and she softened even more. He took her hand into his and kissed it.

“Yeah, we do.” It was a tender moment they both needed. A moment of recognition and reprieve.

“But food first.” Star said seriously then she shifted into a light-hearted smile.

“Of yeah duh, obviously. Food first. Always.”

-

PART 22

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If you enjoyed it, reblogs, likes and comments help IMMENSELY.

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Here's the playlist for the mixtape mentioned in the chapter if you're interested.

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Tag List:

@kik511999 @banannie255 @paracetamollvr @honeyshiftss @simonsblueee @suspirian @likeficsinthewnd @hollyismentallyillhelpp  @eddiesgoodgirl @ouuwitchywoman @michaelfuckinglangdon  @hannahdinse8 @thikkiesixx @idyllicbutterfly @lonesome-dovee @kaelyn-lobrutto24 @eriseffigy @kriffingstars  @psychedelephantt @laurathefahrradsattelltel @munsins @secularlunarsorceressss @angelofthorrrr @eddiemunsonsbedroom @justiceiswater @unnecesarysstuff @divadinag @boomhauerr @br0ck-eddiee  @the-fever-of-mankind @nitafromtheshadows @sammararaven  @bambipowerblueadditionaddtion @trixyvixx @bimbobaggins69 @sillypurplemurple @sunnyhoney420 @sugar-bears-smilee @hellfires-harlot

[skylermadness]

Warehouse Expedition (Sniper, Medic, and Engineer (TF2) TFs)

(Original Date of Upload: February 8, 2023)

A gift for my close friend and boyfriend! I've actually been meaning to write a Team Fortress 2 character TF for a few months now, and I kinda did with a ficlet of mine a while back, but I never really got to do one until now! I wanted to write something special for my friends to celebrate something, and considering TF2 was a shared interest of ours I decided to go that route for things. Also my boyfriend kind of got me in the mood for Medic so that had to be dealt with swiftly. Admittedly I was planning for this story to be a bit shorter, but push came to shove and the end result ended up being about 20 pages in the document after I converted everything to Times New Roman. The TFs are still probably shorter than my usual runs though, but that's fine. I just wanted to write something short and special as a dedication to how much I care about my friendships with them! Anyway time to watch both websites I upload this on eat my formatting.

   "Are you sure this is a good idea?"

   "Of course it is, Mike. All of my ideas are good."

   "Arti, this is illegal."

   The sound of three voices reverberated around the narrow walls of a very dusty, dark hallway. A trio of friends; Mike, Arti, and Parker; have found themselves in an… interesting predicament.

   Arti had been the first to suggest exploring some random abandoned warehouse for 'fun'. Neither Mike nor Parker thought it was a serious suggestion, and jokingly agreed to pulling off such an endeavor. They had quickly realized that it was indeed an actual suggestion for how they spent their night as the car they were in jerked into a new direction.

   So here they were, walking inside a supposedly abandoned warehouse in the middle of the night. Mike's current thoughts involved this being the last place they ever walk in, as the darkness proved that this place would be one that would be where you'd go to get murdered.

   "I thought it was a good idea anyway. The place had no fences or guards, the door was unlocked. Seems like a nice place to spend the night really."

   Mike eyed Arti skeptically. "Your idea of 'nice place to spend the night' concerns me."

   "It'll be… fine, probably…" Parker said in an uneasy tone.

   "It'll just be an easy five minute in and out thing then."

   "I seriously doubt that…"

   The three had soon found themselves at the end of the hallway they were walking in, the volume of the space very noticeably expanding drastically as they approached the ending. They were very much nearing the storage section of the place.

   "Guess we're here," Arti said, oddly excited about the prospect of trespassing.

   "Let's just not touch anything," Parker cautioned, Mike nodding in agreement from behind.

   "Yeah, sure. Yeah!"

   Their conversation was abruptly halted once the trio crossed the threshold. The rather sudden, loud sounds of overhanging lights turning on in ordered succession echoed through the walls of the storage area; illuminating the place instantly.

   "I uh, thought this place was abandoned-" Mike said, now very uncomfortable.

   "I mean, power could still be getting routed here…" Parker responded in an attempt to rationalize things.

   Arti turned the flashlight of their phone off. "At least we can see now. Now how about we go look around for a little bit?"

   Mike and Parker, both feeling like they're already in too deep to really refuse, nod in agreement. Although Parker did speak, "Only for five minutes though."

   "Ye"

   Arti was the first to walk ahead with Parker and Mike following behind them.

   The trio's steps echoed throughout the room. It looked like a proper warehouse; large, lots of shelves, although most of them seemed empty. It was slightly triggering to Mike's agoraphobia though.

   "God, this room is too big for the amount of nothing it contains…" Mike said with a shudder. He had elected to look downwards for most of the trek, but he flicked his gaze upwards every so often just to check the shelves. They were bare, usually.

   Parker nodded. "Yeah, it does seem a bit… empty?" He was casually looking at each shelf as the three of them walked between them. Usually very dusty, or had some kind of cobwebs. If he was unlucky he'd see a dead bug. 

   "Hm. Disappointing," Arti responded. Yeah, this place was empty. They were hoping for something interesting though.

   Things seem to drone on though. With none of them finding anything remotely interesting it didn't take very long for their group to have navigated two-thirds of the shelves in this space.

   "Perhaps they moved everything out before abandoning it?" Parker said in an attempt to rationalize things.

   Arti sighed. "Eh, yeah. Probably. Kind of wish something would be here though."

   Mike looked up at the back of Arti's head for a second. "We'd be doing this for nothing if the end result was… nothing."

   They all eventually rounded the corner of a shelf to inspect the next row. With the rate they were all going, this would be done in less than the five minutes they agreed upon.

   "Er, why was this place even abandoned anyway…?" Mike asked out of curiosity.

   Arti looked back at him and shrugged. "Dunno. Just heard about it from somewhere and got curious."

   Parker followed up. "That's really your only reason coming here?"

   Arti fully turned around, now walking backwards. "I mean, I thought there'd be something cool here, and I also thought 'hey, why not bring my friends with me as well!' Spur of the moment-"

   Before Arti finished their sentence, the heel of their shoe dug into something hard. Stopping, their gaze moved downwards to find a box. A few boxes, actually. "Did none of you see these?"

   "Nope," they both said in unison. Mike had gone back to avoiding taking in the place's size, and Parker was focused on Arti. 

   The triangular formation the trio had established broke as they proceeded to inspect the boxes. Instead of being on the shelves, the three of them were laying around the ground. Seemingly untouched, unopened, and covered in dust.

   Even more peculiar, all of them had a logo on them. One recognizable amongst the trio. A simple design of a bomb with a lit fuse, the word RED scrawled within the object in fancy lettering.

   "Red Team Logo" Arti said flatly.

   "That's… weird…" Parker knelt down to stare at the box. "Promotional boxes, maybe?"

   "They're still sealed…" Arti said, a hint of excitement in their voice. Their head was full of thoughts related to criminal acts; specifically larceny at this moment.

   The air was suddenly pierced by the abrupt sound of a box being forcibly pushed into by an external force. Arti and Parker both looked at where the source came from, that being Mike who had shoved an elbow into the box. Mike stared at them blankly. "What? I had nothing to open it with!"

   "...I have a multi-tool with a knife," Parker said.

   "Oh."

   The knife was passed around between the three, and the boxes were opened properly.

   "Oh my god…" Arti said in astoundment. They rummaged around the box, a few packing peanuts flying up into the air and onto the ground, and pulled out an… exact replica of the Medic's Medi Gun from Team Fortress 2.

   Parker raised a brow, then rummaged around his box. He pulled out a wrench, very likely a replica of the Engineer's melee weapon from the same game. Although the metallic feel to it felt oddly realistic. He hummed, a little confused. 

   Last was Mike, who pulled out a sniper rifle. It was realistic. Too realistic. It was unnerving.

   Arti was having fun though. A 1-to-1 replica of the Medi Gun? Perfect for their collection of Medic memorabilia. "Yup, I think I got something cool…"

   Parker stood back up, inspecting his wrench. "Er, so the only thing in here is just… replica weapons for TF2?"

   "Seems like it…" Mike said as he stood up as well. Although he seemed noticeably uneasy, holding a very realistic weapon and all.

   "It's good though! This Medi Gun almost looks functional."

   Parker then looked at Mike. "Aw, you both got ranged weapons and I just got a wrench."

   "This isn't a weapon, Parker-" Arti corrected.

   "I would take that over a firearm…" Mike said as he continued to inspect his rifle, slowly turning away from the other two. Proper gun safety and all. Speaking of safety, he was checking to see if this thing has an active safety guard, just to make himself feel a bit more at ease. 

   His eyes then widened. "There!" he whispered to himself. Inactive trigger safety. Just have to activate it and… click.

   At that moment a slight shock emitted from the rifle and into Mike's hands, the younger man momentarily shivering from the sudden electrical input. "Woah, what was that…" He was going to investigate, but suspicions suddenly arose at the sight of his hand.

   Was his hand… growing?

   A few seconds passed and his suspicions were confirmed way too easily. It was indeed growing, although it didn't seem to grow too much. He unclasped his other hand from the rifle and lifted it into view, finding it too had looked to gain some additional sizing. 

   Things only got weirder from there. The palms of his hands began to callous. Age started to creep into them while the now slightly thicker fingers blunted themselves. A certain angularity etched into them as well, the changes slowly jumping from his hands to his wrists as they did so.

   The diameter of his wrists expanded, followed by his forearms beginning to shift. Muscles were starting to expand to a more moderate size. Follicles of hair began poking out the skin before quickly dusting the area more prominently. The tone of his skin deepened slightly as well, pale becoming a darker beige.

   His upper arms followed with similar changes as well. Arm hair growth cascading upwards, although appearing not as prominent. Muscles continued to tone, his biceps and triceps increasing in size slightly as well. The short sleeves of his shirt were tightening as a result, although not uncomfortably so. This tightness progressed as his shoulders started to broaden.

   A hand was still grasping onto the rifle, and Mike was staring at the free one. "Whoa, what's… happening?"

   This was definitely abnormal, and if he were to be honest he felt kind of scared. However, it also felt… nice? Really nice! Although casting a glance at his other hand and the rifle within it, he was beginning to connect the dots as to what was happening.

   Meanwhile, his body was widening. Not much, but it was enough to begin straining the split of his shirt slightly. He also felt a pressure in his back, his spine elongating as he was starting to gain an inch or two. This was riding the hem of his shirt upwards, revealing a small portion of his lower abdomen.

   Changes soon started to transition inwards, reaching his torso and unifying at his chest. This was signaled by a momentary gain in strength, his chest pushing out slightly and straining his shirt buttons as a pair of pectorals arose from that area. Hair started to poke out of the skin of his chest as well, slightly more plentiful than it was on his arms. This hair steadily trailed downwards, meeting at the lower portion of his cleavage and running down his midline to make a dusty treasure trail.

   While the trail coarsed downwards to his abdomen, that region altered alongside it. His body fat started to melt away, steadily getting replaced by ridges that creased into his skin signaling a newly forming musculature. Abs slowly emerging, a standard looking four-pack getting solidified. As time progressed the dusting of hair poked from beneath his shirt and moved down into his waist, which had widened to fit his new proportions. 

   At this point Mike was getting curious, the young man now spending a little too long trying to unbutton his shirt with one hand to look at his body. He managed to do so, a little glad he could alleviate his discomfort a bit. But that was disregarded as he started to stare intensely at his torso. His muscles. They weren't the most impressive thing, but they did look nice…

   He squeezed a pec. "Ohhh, that feels… that feels good…"

   He blinked. Did his voice… deepen? "Er, t-testin'-"

   Yeah, it was deeper. And… accented as well. The accent was eerily similar as well. Swallowing a lump in his throat, he let out a deep sigh. "I'm turning inta Sniper, huh?"

   While he came to this realization, his transformation surged beyond his waist and into his legs. They mirrored the changes in his arms, gaining significant tone as hairs speckled the deepening skin. His loose jeans were filling up as a result, becoming oddly snug against this new gain in mass. He could also feel the back of his jeans fill slightly more substantially, his rear getting slightly larger. Whether it was a result of his glutes getting thicker is debatable. All the while, the bones in his legs were lengthening and adding a little bit more to his height.

   His calves flared as everything washed beneath his knees and into the crus of his legs, then from there the changes began to pool at his feet. His shoes were starting to feel smaller as his feet stretched and got larger, slightly thicker. His heel dug into the back of the shoes a bit more, and he could feel the laces and tongue strain against the bridge of his feet. His toes, getting more rectangular and blunted like his fingers, pushed up against the toecap as well.

   "Agh, damn! Things're gettin' tight-" Mike said before his speech sputtered to a caught. His voice was getting more accented; decidedly more Australian with each word. "Feels good though… real good."

   He felt a tickling within his neck, likely his vocal cords fully adjusting while the area got thicker. But shortly after that, a slight itching in his face notified him that the last change was nigh.

   It was more a slew of changes really. The itching was a result of scruffy, grayish stubble running across the sides of his face and jaw. He felt his skull pushing slightly as its shape got slightly thinner and more rectangular. His facial features morphed; eyes narrowing, nose thinning, ears pulling back slightly. His jaw crunched as it lost its roundness, getting seemingly trapezoidal while his cheek fat seemed to fade giving him a more chiseled look.

   The last major physical change came to his hair. Messy and curly at first with a murky brown tinge. However, that brown coloration seems to darken to a more fuller brown. The curliness of it dissipated, straightening out while the overall length steadily shortened back into his scalp. It eventually shortened rather drastically, although not so much that it could be classified as a buzz cut.

   Almost instantly after his physical changes ended, his eyes caught onto his clothing beginning to change. His shirt seemed to go first, its sleeves becoming even shorter until they shrunk into nothing and left it sleeveless. The plain white tone of it shifted to brown, split between a lighter upper portion and a darker lower portion. The material clearly shifted to something more leather, buttons sinking into the material while a zipper formed in the split. A couple pockets emerged in the lower half. The collar remained raised, although the fold dissipated into a single raised portion of leather. 

   Beneath the newly changed vest another set of clothing materialized, red washing across his torso as a new shirt formed beneath it. A collar raised from the shirt's neck, a portion of the split remaining unfastened to show a white undershirt beneath it. Sleeves unfurled from beneath the sleeveless vest, bunching up at the elbows as they were clearly rolled up. A watch manifested on his left wrist with a fingerless glove appearing on the corresponding hand. The denim of his jeans shifted color as they turned to a dark brown.

   Something fastened itself to his belt, that being a pouch containing a canteen. His shoes enlarged to fit his new foot size, laces and cloth smoothing out as they took on a brown hue as well. The topline had also lengthened, but was quickly obscured by his pants.

   Finally in one fell swoop multiple things manifested around him at once. Orange lensed hunting glasses in front of his eyes, a bush hat with a portion of the brim raised up plopping itself onto his head, and a scabbard for his rifle on his back with its strap around his body. With a glow on the sleeves of his new shirt, a symbol of a rifle scope bullseye manifesting onto them, his changes came to an end.

   Mike practically instinctively sheathed his rifle on his back and smiled, inspecting his new form. "Huh, didn't expect this to be happenin'..."

   A brow then raised. If he'd been transformed, that would mean…

                                        ----------------------------------------------------------

   Arti was oblivious that Mike was transforming just a few feet away, as they were still a bit focused on inspecting this Medi Gun replica. It looked so accurate, so real! They'd honestly take it as a real life copy if it were possible to even shoot healing beams like that in real life.

   Arti smiled, an idea crossed their mind. That would mean it wouldn't hurt to just pull the handle down to "activate" it. They put a hand on the object's bottom handle with another hand grasping onto the upper handle. They pulled it back and…

   Their eyes widened. It's…

   "It's glowing…"

   The area around the object shone with an intense red aura, although instead of firing into something it just glowed around the weapon. Actually, wait…

   Their gaze moved from the weapon and onto their arms, then their chest. It wasn't just glowing, it was firing into them?? That shouldn't be possible, but… Arti's smile widened. Who cares! This felt… great, actually! Like it was making them stronger.

   The truth is while they haven't noticed it yet, it was indeed making them strong. Albeit it was bit by bit.

   It started with their hands, since that was the piece of their body in contact with the actual weapon. Their size stretching out to be substantially larger, getting thicker and meatier. Each finger expanding, thickening as well as they gained a more angular look to them. Age was getting poured into them as well, getting rougher and older with each passing second. It didn't take long until their hands became large, with the changes crawling up to their wrists and etching into their arms as well.

   Hair sprouted from the skin of their arms, lightly dusting their forearms as things began to trail upwards. They could feel the sleeves of their coat begin to constrict as well, the muscles within the region warming up and bulking out, trying to reach a proportion adequate to their hands. Nice and thick and muscular, the warm heat of this instant workout surging through Arti's very body.

   "Yes! This feels great!!" they exclaimed, a bit abruptly, although nobody really answered back. They didn't mind too much though, their focus was on this sensation. Feeling their arms amass in strength, their coat tightening against their bulging biceps and thickening triceps. A few rips even pierced the air from its failure to contain their new muscles, although Arti didn't seem to notice. They were more so wondering if this was what steroids felt like.

   Hairs continued trailing upwards, lightly layering the sides of their arms as this newfound musculature settled itself in. Another rip of their coat entered the air as their deltoids started to bulge as well, a sign that their shoulders were beginning to broaden as the changes crossed the barrier into his body. This was exacerbated by a body-wide feeling of tightness as their form began to expand and widen, changes surging in order to make it lose its twink-like body type.

   With this development, everything soon came rushing onto their torso. A tingle cascaded down their back as it began to pressurize and extend, making them taller and steadily bringing the bottom of their coat and undershirt upwards. The zipper of their coat started to pull at itself as their form got wider, easily prompting their attire to lose its previously proper fitting state around their body.

   Things intensified as their very core felt like it lit aflame, hot and intense as the muscles within their chest began to expand. A crevice slowly started forming in the fabric of their undershirt while the zipper of their coat struggled even more than it did before. Beneath them, their pectorals were enlarging. Thicker, bulkier, meatier. Getting larger and larger, becoming like two massive slabs. It didn't take very long for their coat to just give up, the zipper busting off of it and the teeth splitting apart to reveal the now massive set of pectorals they possessed. Their new pecs were cleanly etched into the fabric of their undershirt.

   Body hair began to poke of their cleavage, soon quickly spreading around their pecs before moving downwards. Their abdomen started rippling as the muscles in that region started to shift next. Abs gradually slotted themselves outwards as moderate amounts of hair grew around the midline. It didn't take very long for them to attain a six pack, although the creases that divided it weren't extremely deep. However they were deep enough to etch into their undershirt as well.

   The zipper of their coat continued to break apart against Arti's new musculature. The rips of the seams and tears of the zipper splitting apart were no longer ignorable. They looked downwards at their body, their eyes widening at the sight of their massive pectorals.

   They grinned. "I guess that- that strength wasn't just a feeling after all! O-oh-"

   As they spoke, their voice was slowly starting to alter. It's tone and pitch shifting, a Germanic accent seeping into it. Despite being in its fairly early stages, they knew what was happening.

   "Ohoh, guess this wasn't just a replika after all!" Their grin only seemed to widen at that realization, at this point bordering on the maniacal. 

   Their pants were the next to begin undergoing trouble, the singular button and zipper tightening against their now wider waist. Things were rapidly surging downwards as well, the muscles in their thighs packing on mass rapidly. Hamstrings and quads were growing in tandem at a quick pace, the denim of their pants squeezing up against them in an attempt to contain this bulging strength. At the same time, the seat of their pants steadily filled out as their butt rounded and expanded. A testimony to the size being amassed by their glutes.

   Leg hair sprouted across their legs, around their thighs and jumping down to their crus to sprinkle that region. The muscles there were thickening, calves aflame with heat as they were given an increase in musculature all the same as the rest of their body. The bones in their legs ached for a moment before pressurizing, elongating to increase their height some more. Their jeans continued to attempt to hold together, but the sides were already beginning to split against this raw strength. Their shows soon followed, already rapidly becoming undersized as their feet expanded. Much like their hands before, their feet were getting larger, now to fit their new bodily proportions.

   The neck of their undershirt was getting increasingly uncomfortable as their own neck thickened, but at this point that didn't matter to them. All they could think about was how great this felt! 

   "Zis… zis power is…" They couldn't even find a proper word to articulate it. It was just so good to feel all of this strength coarse through his form.

   "Deific…" they said under a breath, their German accent thickening a bit more. The word was the closest thing to god-like. Although whether or not this was some newfound God complex from just the thought of becoming Medic was beyond them.

   Thoughts were cast aside once they felt pressure wrack their skull. "Ohh, I'm going to enjoy zis!"

   Arti had a pretty rounded face at first, but steadily their skull structure was losing that. Angularity getting introduced, their jawline hardening and getting more chiseled while the overall shape of their face became more rectangular. A small cleft formed an inch beneath their lower lip as well, accentuating that masculinity that was being formulated.

   Aspects of their face shifted as well. Their face was overall developing a more aged appearance. Their mouth seeming to get wider. Their eyes getting larger while their brows thinned and gained an almost stylized crookedness to them. Even their nose flared as it lost its almost button-like shape; reshaping to something wider, concave bridge with an almost pointed base. Their glasses weren't really accustomed to this size, although the new wideness of their skull was already giving them trouble anyway.

   Last to the physical changes came their hair, which was on its way to getting shorter. The black coloration of it lightened slightly, gaining a deep brown tone. However, the hair at the sides of their temples gained a grayish tone, signaling their age a bit more. Hair continued to shorten, rushing back into their scalp as its once neck-reaching length and almost slightly messy style became long forgotten. Their hairline had also receded a bit as well, developing quite the substantial U-shape. What could be considered close to a three on the Norwood scale.

   Still grinning, Arti took a moment to ungrasp the handle of the Medi Gun and feel their jaw. "Ja, this feels great!"

   Although no words could probably explain the pure ecstasy they were feeling. This wasn't just great, this was great! So, so great…

   Their gaze descended back onto the Medi Gun, although their vision was still a bit blurry thanks to the fact their glasses no longer fit. The object was still glowing, pouring red energy into them though, they could tell that. "Hm, handle must be stuck."

   They placed their hand back onto the handle and tried to push it forward. No response. Maybe it had one last thing to change? Hopefully it was their clothes.

   Luckily, their hopes were answered.

   Tightness was being alleviated rather rapidly, all the clothing on their body concurrently growing in an attempt to fit their new form. It was also shifting as well. Undershirt gaining a split while already fastened buttons lined it, the neck raising as well as it formed into a collar. The blue color was shifting into a plain white, it becoming more like a dress shirt than anything else. A red object slithered around their neck and beneath the collar, comfortably wrapping around it as a tie started to hang perfectly from it. Their coat probably endured a more drastic change as what rips and tears formed fixed themselves while the material seemed to alter and become softer. The soft fur of the collar seemed to fade into this material as well. The deeper blue coloration was shifting to a shaded white as well. The zipper slunk into the new material while a few buttons lined a portion of the upper half, steadily buttoning themselves over Arti's now much muscular torso. The bottom of the coat lengthened drastically, quickly going from their hips to their knees, all the way down to reaching the lower half of their legs. A more triangular collar swelled from the now lab coat's neck, and a breast pocket emerged above where the left pectoral would be.

   Their jeans soon followed, getting subsumed by a dark brown color as they seemed to take on a much baggier appearance than before. A belt materialized around their waist, large and with a single pouch already clipped to it. Their shoes gained a smoother shine to them as they dulled to a full black color. The topline raised halfway up the crus of their legs, making their footwear more into boots. Following this, the portion of their pants shoved themselves into their boots, which resulted in their legwear getting a puffier appearance in the lower half.

   The red aura steadily dialed down as the final aspects of the changes came forth. Red latex materializing and covering their hands, hardening into gloves that extended to cover their forearms. Their glasses grew larger, frames thinning as they now better Arti's new facial structure  A sudden weight (albeit one that they could definitely handle) manifested on their back as a massive metallic backpack seemed to have just appeared with straps coming from it, snaking down the front of their body, and buckling to their new belt; all while a hose connected the Medi Gun to the backpack. The final piece was a glow on the sides of their sleeves, a red cross symbol with a yellow background appearing on the upper portion on each one.

   And with that the handle dislodges and the Medi Gun deactivates. The aura fully disperses, leaving Arti with their new body. With a hand on the bottom handle, they lower the object and look down at their body. Their muscular form clothed in a dignifying set of doctor's clothing. "Perfect!"

   Now, the only logical conclusion would be that their friends…

                                        ----------------------------------------------------------

   A few minutes earlier…

   Parker had found himself looking at his other two friends. They seemed to be exploring the supposed replicas pretty well, especially since Arti was practically beaming with euphoria. Although Parker had also noticed Mike's apprehension with the rifle. The other guy seemed to have turned away though, probably to inspect the rifle in peace; all while Arti seemed about ready to test their new Medi Gun.

   Parker looked down at their wrench. It was… large, he supposed. And a bit heavy, although not so much so that he'd be unable to lift it. It looked to be some kind of standard agricultural wrench as well, although Parker wasn't quite sure how he knew that. 

   He fumbled around with it, rolling it around in his hands idly as he thought. It wasn't really the most impressive thing in comparison to the other two, and it felt a bit odd to have a replica wrench of all things. Like, yeah that could be considered Engineer's signature tool, but it's still an odd choice to him.

   They sighed. It's fine at least. Plus, what are the odds everyone decides to take these home with them? Well, for Arti that was 100% but that's whatever. Parker then smiled to themselves, lost in thought and deciding to just casually tap the top of the wrench onto their belly. They weren't sure why they did it. It just felt a bit silly.

   He was unaware that that action alone kick-started his own transformation, alongside those of his friends…

   It was subtle at first, very small amounts of fat beginning to accumulate around his abdomen. A small bit of chub at first, but it didn't take very long for that small bit to increase by a lot. Fat continuously piling on his belly, the area bloating more and more as the hem of his undershirt rode up it, the region just getting larger and softer. It didn't take very long for it to be considered less of a belly and more of a thick gut. And all the while, abdominal muscles had started to form beneath it, although greatly obscured by his sizable tummy.

   It would be hard for such a development to go unnoticed, especially with the chill running across the skin of his abdomen thanks to his shirt slowly becoming more ill-fitting. Parker looked down, eyes wide as he nervously moved a hand towards his belly. "What the heck…"

   The gain in weight only persisted though, moving from his belly to his chest with ease. Mirroring what occurred on his abdomen, a softness filled his chest region as his pectorals pushed out slightly. This was still accompanied by a firmness of muscle mass, giving him a more balanced mixture of muscle and fat in that area. It steadily squeezed up against his shirt, faintly etching his cleavage into the light blue portion of it.

   At this point Parker had started squeezing his belly, then moving that hand upwards to squeeze a pectoral. He winced as he felt something squeeze his spine, him slowly getting taller and his shirt moving even further up his belly. This allowed him to catch onto body hair starting to grow on his usually hairless form, slowly rising up his midline and moving beneath his shirt. Judging by the itchiness on his chest, he could tell he was getting some chest hair as well (although the amount wasn't extremely impressive).

   "Soft…" was the primary thing Parker could think of as he continued to squeeze himself. It was nice and warm, kind of reminded him of all those stereotypical images of a dadbod. An ideal for him, really…

   He didn't notice the few specks of gray entering his chest hair as he thought this. What he did notice, though, was his shirt and jacket getting a little more constricting. It was starting to stretch out, Parker taking a few moments to realize his body was widening as well. The slight discomfort only continued as the shoulders of his sleeves filled up, his own shoulders steadily welling up in size.

   While fat started to spill into his arms, muscle seemed to grow a little more prominent in that area. His delts getting thicker, his biceps and triceps steadily increasing in mass. All with the accompanying feeling of strength entering them, years of hard work being granted in mere seconds. If he were being honest, the newly amassing upper body strength was slowly aiding in making the wrench less heavy than before.

   Things then trickled beneath his elbow and onto his forearm. Muscles growing, getting nice and strong. Hair speckling across the top of his arms with ease, mixed with browns and grays. The area in general was growing to fit his new proportions. However, once the changes reached his hands things began to get stranger, each hand changing on in a different way.

   The right one seemed to be normal. Stretching out larger and getting thicker. Fingers getting meatier. Age creeping into them as the palm calloused, cuts forming and scarring instantly. Even a few fingernails seemed to chip as grime got beneath them. 

   The left one though, the one holding the wrench, that one was the one Parker was focused on. It started to feel numb, the skin upon it looking discolored. An almost metallic sheen coming into it as if the wrench's metal was melting into his flesh. His skin soon started to harden, that metallicness getting more and more prominent. It was consistently getting more inorganic, the fingers segmenting for free movement, hand disconnecting from his wrist as the associated forearm underwent a similar shift to metal. It did somewhat hurt, having his nerves reconnected to the now prosthetic limb, but that was only temporary.

   The shine was only temporary, dulling as grime dirtied up the metal and years of work piled onto it in seconds. He could see assorted dents and gashes emerging as well. It was definitely well worn, but as he casually turned it around he found that it still responded to his every movement. 

   "Woah," Parker started with a smiled, "a-a robotic limb!"

    He blinked his eyes. "Wh-what happened to mah voice… there…"

   He cleared his throat. His voice was getting deeper? And… "Is that a… Texan accent??"

   His cheeks flushed momentarily. It was. It sounded really good though. Deep, masculine, part of him wanted to say 'yee-haw!' just to hear how it'd sound, but he decided to do that later. Once all the changes were done.

   Speaking of, his jeans were beginning to be next on the list of things that were steadily losing their fit on him. His waist had already widened to incorporate his new width, now all that remained was his legs. Slowly bulking with muscles, fat forming around those as well. Thighs getting decided thicker as an end result. He could even feel his butt round out as it swelled up, filling up the seat of his pants.

   The floor started to get a little further, his height increasing a second time with his legs getting a bit longer. The muscles in that area were also gaining in size, although at this point it was clear his leg muscles weren't as worked on as his arm muscles. But they still possessed a substantial amount of bulk to them, at least in comparison to what they used to have on him. It actually felt quite empowering.

   Following this came the changes in his feet. His shoes were quickly filled, before filling out a bit more as his feet grew larger than what his previous shoe size was. Larger, bulkier, heels digging into the back in, ankles digging into the size. The straps started breaking from the Velcro they were attached to, and an outsider could probably see bulges where their toes were. To say their shoes barely fit them was an understatement, especially since they were doing more to attempt to contain the changes rather than try to fit around them like the rest of his clothing had.

   "Agh- darn body bulkin'-" Parker said, smiling in contrast to his complaints. The sound of his Southern accent getting thicker was pleasing, although he wasn't quite sure if the way things were being phrased was him leaning more into the accent or not. "I hope my clothin' changes soon, don' think it'll last too much longer."

   He pulled at the neck of his shirt with his organic hand, his neck having already thickened a bit over the size it'd actually be comfortable in. The scarf he kept around his right arm was also rather constricting, Parker swearing his blood flow there was getting cut off. "That don' sound very good…" he said towards that thought. It was fine though, it was fine-

   Parker shivered as a tingle ran up their spine and zapped into their skull. Pressure started to squeeze into it, him feeling it get squished and molded like putty. His jawline getting squeezed, roundness becoming a little more chiseled and square. Dusty brown stubble prickled out of his face, starting at his chin and gradually working its way up the sides of his face and around his mouth. His eyes got a little smaller, his rounded nose getting more pointed and triangular. His brows even seemed to fade a bit, getting thinner than they were before. The youthful look of his face seemed to harden, aging and weather as his age crept upwards towards middle age.

   The most noticeable change came to his hair. It was long, full, fluffy, but as the transformation seeped into his face that was getting lost. His hair began receding back into his scalp, steady at first before picking up the pace with the rest of his face. Shortening from neck length, retreating consistently as its fullness got lost. His manbun undid itself almost instantly as a result, and his hairline had receded slightly as well. His hair continued to get shorter until the brown reached a point of being more of a dusty brown equal to that of his facial stubble. He was sporting more of a buzzcut now, extremely short and scratchy.

   "Ah hell, kinda wish I'd keep that!" Parker exclaimed, rubbing his head with his human hand. It did feel kind of nice though.

   A rip then pierced the air, the sleeve of his jacket unable to handle this kind of movement with this bulky an arm. Parker let out a nervous laugh, "God damn, eheh- now'd be a good time for some new clothes right about now!"

   His desire was granted in an instant with all the constricting of his clothing steadily fading, everything better growing to fit his size. The hem of his shirt edged downwards, finally covering his belly as the light blue and white coloration of it saturated to a hard red color. The sleeves of it elongated, then rolled themselves up. Meanwhile, the neck lengthened and folded into a collar, a small placket forming in the middle of his shirt to accompany it. A white undershirt seemed to have separate itself from the red shirt as well with it being visible from that placket.

   His jacket was next to follow, although its changes were exceedingly peculiar. The split started to merge with itself on the lower half while much of the upper half seemed to practically dethread itself into oblivion. It promptly, albeit temporarily, disconnected before metallic clips materialized and snapped them onto the changing attire, seemingly to conform it to being a pair of overalls. The coloration of both his jacket and pants shifted, the denim altering to a deep brown. A belt then manifested, snaking around his waist while coming pre-equipped with various pouches and a sheath for his wrench. His shoes then enlarged, blue and white cloth shifting to a normal brown leather, the soles growing more rigid, and the topline raising and going beneath his overalls. All of which was in one slew to change his footwear into a more fitting pair of boots.

   The last fixtures to his attire came in a slew of various materializations. Metallic knee pads appearing from thin air and wrapping around his knees. A yellow and gray glove effortlessly slipping on his robotic arm. A hard hat had even popped into existence atop his head, a pair of goggles slipping from within it and clinging comfortably to his face.

   Any remnant of his old attire that remained was the colorful scarf on his right arm, which just grew to fit the arm more comfortably. With all of that settled, a soft glow emanated from the sides of the sleeves of his shirt, a yellow symbol with a red wrench insignia within it forming and signaling the end of his transformation.

   "Heheh, lookin' good Engie…" Parker said, patting his belly proudly as he sheathed the wrench. 

   He then looked up to speak. "Ey guys, ya see this- oh!"

   His eyes widened beneath the goggles. In Arti's place was Medic, and in Mike's place was Sniper.

   "Parker, my friend! You got transformed as well?" Arti said excitedly.

   "Yup!" Parker slung an arm around Arti. "Glad t' know I ain't the only one!"

   After just a few seconds Mike walked up to the two. "G'day, mates! Guess uh, we all got changed, huh?"

   "Yep!" the other two said in unison.

   "It feels… strange, don't it?" Mike said, pulling at the collar of his shirt awkwardly. "Still tryin' to grasp all of this. Weird feelin's."

   "I do quite like the strength zis body provides, if I do say so myself!" Arti said, their mind jumping to their newly gained muscles. His attire felt quite nice on them.

   "The dadbod I got is quite nice as well, although I do agree with our partner here. This does feel rather disorientin'. Head's been a little achey, a lot of unfamiliar knowledge comin' ta me." Parker explained, rubbing the back of their head nervously. 

   "I can alleviate that easily!~" Arti said with a smile, pulling back the handle of their Medi Gun and shooting a stream of healing energy into Parker. 

   A smile formed on Parker's face, the pain getting alleviated. "That feels real nice, partner…"

   "Glad you two are enjoyin' yourselves. Now, how 'bout we get out of here before someone else decides to come in after us?" Mike said, slightly worried about the prospect of getting caught in here. Although odds are they'd just be seen as very accurate TF2 cosplayers over anything else…

   "Sounds good to me!" Arti responded, with Parker giving a thumbs up in response as well.

   "Great, although…" Mike looked around for a moment, his agoraphobia not triggering for once as he noticed the room looked different. "Does this place look any different to either of you?"

   His friends looked around curiously. Parker was the first to speak, "It does look a lil' dirty. A lot more brown than gray."

   Arti didn't speak at first, but they had a look on their face that Mike could clock as them having a theory. They did speak after a few seconds though. "I think we should take a look outside-"

   Mike and Parker looked each other in the eye quizzically, then nodded in agreement. Something weird was going on…

   After a couple minutes, the trio had found themselves walking through the very hallway they used to get in here. Dust was replaced by dirt, and both Arti and Mike were pretty sure they saw a few bloodstains around, albeit it was long since faded.

   "The hell are we…" Mike said, his deep voice practically rumbling as it echoed through the hall.

   The trio eventually found the door they came through, and Parker was the one to push it open and walk out first. Arti came out behind him, Medi Gun in hand; and Mike seemed to almost instinctively pull out his rifle as he stepped outside.

   The grass crunched under everyone's boots. The sun was hanging high in the air, and the once heavily forested area around the warehouse seemed to have heavily lost much of its foliage. 

   "What in tarnation…"

   "Car seems to be missin' to," Mike observed as he stepped out from behind Parker.

   "Seems like it. Where even are we? This place… looks like where we were." Parker responded. 

   "I have a feeling that transformation changed more than our bodies-" Arti said. Mike and Parker both looked at him.

   Mike was the first to ask, "Mate, what are you tryin' to say?"

   "We done got reality shunted?" Parker followed up.

   "More like time shunted!" Arti corrected, a finger raising to punctuate their point. "I think ve might be in some kind of… alternative 1970s? It's quite convoluted to explain-"

   "Time travel, got it." Unease fading, Mike sheathed his rifle. "I have a feelin' this'll be quite the interestin' week…"

   Parker nodded. "You and me both, partner."

   Arti smiled, placing their hands on their Medi Gun. "So, my friends, how about ve head out and live these new lives we've been granted?"

   Mike was a little perturbed, but a part of him felt… oddly accepting of this. Especially since he's got both of his friends here. "I don't see why not, I suppose. Had to be put here for a reason."

   Parker brought both of his friends towards him and slung both arms around them, the middle aged man smiling. It could be the steady amount of knowledge being hammered into his mind making him think this, but he also wants to think that this is a legitimate feeling he's having. Being in a strange alternative world with his two best friends, planning out some kind of weird adventure. "I think we should as well, partners!"

   Parker's enthusiasm was infectious, Mike softly smiling alongside him while Arti grinned (although with their new facial structure it looked practically devious).

   All tension that was in the air was displaced by a strange buzz of excitement. The trio of friends were still rather confused why this all happened, but all of them came to a mutual agreement that…

   One way or another, they were all going to find this out together.

[thesufferingisendless]

Last post for tonight I swear lmao

Artificer and Hunter find a pile of spears arranged very specifically

(In case text is too small to read:)

—Panel 1—

Hunter: Hey Arti?

Artificer: yeah

Hunter: I need you to tell me I’m not going crazy…

Artificer: You’re not going crazy

Hunter: No, not right- Whatever. It’s just…

—Panel 2–

Hunter: Doesn’t that pattern of spears look… oddly specific? And familiar?

Artificer: No? You might be going crazy, actually.

[rosemary-posts-random-crap]

Wanders division incorrect quotes

Ramiel: Yesterday, I overheard Ember(the lamb) saying “Are you sure this is a good idea?” and Narinder replying “Trust me,” and I have never moved from one room to another so quickly in my life.

Mammon: Can I have some water?

Leshy: *starts chugging their water bottle*

Leshy: *chokes from drinking too fast*

Leshy: *spills water all over themself*

Leshy, coughing: I don't have any water.

Barbatos: What’s it like being tall?

Arty: Is it nice?

Heket:..Can....you..reach...comfortably.. for... the..cupboards?

Aamon: We live in constant fear of the short ones who, in my experience, will climb four chairs, two boxes, a small coffee table, and six oddly placed stools to get what they want.

[rivuletmansion]

Mansion AU’s Cast: Part 1!

The first part of the colorful cast of the au, introduced in order of left to right!

Rivulet, The Mansion Owner (They/Them)

The titular character of the AU, Rivulet is the crazed and chaotic owner of the cursed mansion, who delights in throwing parties and causing chaos for its residents (and sometimes the people in the nearby town) on a daily basis. Armed with oddly friendly mannerisms and even odder whimsical desires to create fun, happy atmospheres for everyone in vicinity, this undead ex-assassin is sure to either brighten up your day… or make it very wacky- Often times, both! Just don’t piss them off (which is quite difficult), and you’ll prolly be fine- unless you’re not a fan of dark and gallows humor, which Riv loves to indulge in!

Artificer, The Mother of Six (She/Her)

The mansion’s first living visitor and inhabitant, Artificer is a fierce fighter in her own right who will fight tooth and nail to keep her family safe, and do whatever it takes to make them have the happiest lives they could ever ask for. Yet underneath this strong front lies a gentle, sensitive and surprisingly shy soul whose scarred heart is as big as the world she lives in… and as fragile as glass at her lowest moments. Her family’s previous poor living conditions was due to a terrible betrayal by those she once held dear- a part of her past that she hesitates to speak about, and has been trying to move on from. But maybe, just maybe, her heart has room for one more chance at love?

Saint, The Light Priestess (She/Her)

In this world, priestesses and monks also double duty as protectors of the living who are tasked with fending off threats against towns and cities- especially ones of the supernatural variety. Saint is no different, and thus was horrified when she first discovered the cursed mansion. Before she could do anything about it though, Rivulet found her and forced her on a tour similar to Arti’s first time, and made her swear to keep the mansion a secret. She eventually complied, first begrudingly and later happily, too curious about the mansion and the nature of its inhabitants to hold any ill will. She visits the mansion every weekends, not just to keep an eye on things but also to keep her eyes on Arti… who she has been developing feelings for! Now, Saint is, as you’d expect from her name and position, usually a dignified slugcat who uses her light magic prowess with grace. But she also has a surprisingly short temper (that Rivulet loves to stoke, resulting in many comical chase scenes), a childish sense of humor revolving around memes, and overall cares way too much about the state of her hair!

Spearmaster, SRS Riot Police Captain (He/Him)

Adorned with a fancy cape, the ability create to makeshift spears out of his tail and mastery over various weapons and firearms, Spearmaster is the iconic captain of the Seven Red Suns Riot Police Force (SRSRPF) and the paragon example for many police officers. Loyal and brave with a strong sense of justice, he’s an old friend of Arti who’s been trying to track her down so that he can do something about her poor living conditions. When he discovered Riv’s mansion and the fact that she lives there, he was quite suspicious about the mansion owner’s possible nefarious motives. While willing to give them the benefit of the doubt, Spear makes it a point to visit his old friend twice a month to catch up and keep an eye on things. It’s in his visits that he reveals himself to be something of a dork- someone who tries his best to look “cool” to Arti’s kids, only to falter hilariously due to his fear of ghosts and jumpscares, something that the mansion has no shortage of. Thus, he’s often the target for pranks courtesy of the mansion owner, much to his chagrin!

Survivor, The Silent Sister (She/Her)

The oldest of Arti’s children, Surv takes on the role of a quiet, kind and caring sister towards her younger siblings. Due to past trauma, she’s selectively mute and thus struggles to voice out her feelings vocally. That however doesn’t stop her from being very expressive- both in terms of facial expressions, and when writing out messages on a small whiteboard (that she always carry around) for others to read. She’s also very animated when she wants to be, using exaggeratedly dramatic gestures and body languages to get her messages across. Around people she’s comfortable around, Surv is actually quite sarcastic, with a sense of humor as dry as desert and a sharp wit that ensures no one wants to be on the receiving end of her ire!

Monk, The Sunshine (He/They)

Despite being the 3rd oldest child of Arti’s kids, Monk is nonetheless fussed over by his siblings and mother a lot, due to a mobility impairment that prevents him from walking on his own. He is also very physically fragile, and is more sensitive to pain than most, making injuries feel all the more awful for him. But this doesn’t stop him from being the most happy-go-lucky and positive child of the group, who often has to act as a mediator (alongside Surv) whenever arguments between siblings happen, and has an extremely friendly and social demeanor that makes him very likeable. Out of everyone here, he is the most tolerant of Riv’s antics, and is more or less amused by them most of the time- but he can still get annoyed if pushed too far, like being reminded of his inability to walk. He can also sass his family and especially Riv all day, if he feels like it, so don’t get on his bad side!

Hunter, The Fierce (She/Her)

The 2nd oldest sibling only behind Surv, Hunter used to help her mother forage for food using her agility and quick thinking to get out of dangerous situations. Now that she no longer has to do any of that after the family’s relocation, she has taken to instead training with practice weapons so that she can one day become a professional bounty hunter. Passionate and stubborn, she won’t let her blind left eye and PTSD regarding fire hinder her from becoming a world known fighter that’d make her family proud. Hunter doesn’t like accepting help, as it wounds her pride, but she’s willing to set her ego aside when it comes to her family and friends. She knows she has a long way to go before she can reach the top, and until then, she’ll keep on training hard- especially with her mother, Riv and Spear giving her fighting lessons!

Gourmand, The Innocent (He/Him)

The youngest and tiniest of Arti’s children, Gourm often gets fussed over just as much as Monk. He inherited his mother’s oversensitive nature, and this alongside his separation anxiety has caused him to be prone to crying a lot, though he’s been trying his best to work on that. For being as young as he is, Gourm is very smart for his age, and although the more mature stuff often eludes his childlike innocence still, he’s always eager to learn something new. He’s also quite knowledgable about cooking, and while he needs help when preparing the ingredients, he knows a lot of his family’s favorite recipes by heart and loves seeing his family enjoy a good meal personally made by him!

Marine, The Determined (They/Them)

Eager to please their family and even more eager to learn new things about weapons and firearms, Marine looks up to Spear as their idol and strives to one day become like him. Being the 2nd youngest sibling of Arti’s family also doesn’t stop Marine from trying to take on the role of a responsible sibling, which they succeed at very well for their age, and they can often be seen helping their mother and/or Surv at anything they can and with all the determination that a young child can muster... so long as they're not in the mood for causing mischief, that is. No matter what they’re doing, whether it be simple chores around the mansion, combat lessons taught by their idol or silly pranks they want to pull on their siblings and mother, Marine always give it their all. And if you think constant nightmares related to their insecurities and their lack of tail will slow them down, think again!

Wolf, The Wild (He/Him)

Out of all the kids living in the mansion, Wolf is the one who prefers the outdoors the most. His love for nature makes him very in tune with wildlife, and animals often flock to him whenever he gives them any attention. Wolf can often be seen tending to his personal little garden by himself, not just because he enjoys the activity, but also because he’s very self-conscious about his anger issues. He tries to limit his interactions with others for fear of snapping at them, though he’s been making steady improvements towards self-control and socializing more. Wolf is very protective regarding his family, and will not hesitate to direct his aggression towards anyone who wishes his loved ones harm, no matter who they are. He’s the first one of the family to openly show hostility towards Riv, back when the family had just relocated, and the mansion owner was so impressed by his guts that they’re currently tutoring Wolf on controlling his “inner beast”!

[supersabbatical2024]

4/15/24: Take OFF

We had a sabbatical with our kids 10 years ago, but we always new we might be heading off on our own on the next sabbatical. Here we are, flying duo, and feeling incredibly grateful to be meeting up with Mari a couple times during this multi phased trip, and also knowing our son is holding down the fort, caring for our special loved ones, including our dear Normie, and yes, Oreo, who seriously injured his back 48 hours before we left.

Was really intense heading off, away from Normie, not to mention our ailing dog, and the idea that anything can happen at any time. Life is funny that way, so you really have to remember to live and find joy. —-Quote from a not particularly famous daughter, mother, wife, dog mom, and home health aide, Sara Goetz

Claude upgraded us to Polaris on Untied to Nice, and that is fully half the fun of a trip — faucet OPEN. We each had our little pod, we had wine with dinner and ice cream sundaes for dessert, with hot fudge AND caramel —now THAT is living. And then Claude slept. I used the restroom, pulled out my drawing stuff and a magazine and my headphones and struggled with the tray table, used the bathroom, tried to read my magazine, watched 4 four episodes of the Frasier reboot show (and used restroom), tried to read my magazine, watched a movie, messed around with the lie-flat seat controls (…could it be that not flat was more comfortable than flat flat? Let me try that again…); had to pee again and then got myself situated again, tried to read my magazine, used the bathroom again; messed around with the remote control, located Relaxation DeepSleep mode, tested out the various video options combined with various audio options, but “mediation” music was kind of scary sounding, nature music was repetitive, classical (never truly calming for me, I think it dates back to when my dad would lug his 2 foot tall stereo speakers right up to the kitchen doorway and blow us all away with the classical radio station); ambient music was oddly bouncy and upbeat; switched to cities video, and “chill beats” which were not that chill, and the cities on the screen were too bright for sleeping, and my headphones were too bulky to lie on my side for sleeping, so I switched to Mari’s old airpods (which only have sound when twisted into a very specific position in your ear); then tried to get comfortable again, went to pee again, and then moved the seat up and down and determined that slightly less than full flat was truly the most comfortable; and then I got hot and changed out of my jeans right there under the blanket and THEN, I slept for a couple hours before we landed. And you know what Claude was doing the whOLE time…?

We rented our car and Claude drove us the 1.5 hrs to Aix to find the dump of a place that Claude picked out this time…all terraces and private gardens and beautiful arty decor, a pool complete with lion’s head fountain, chaise lounges, and a glorious minstrel breeze in the morning (Claude tells me it’s actually called a “Mistral” wind, which makes way more sense). If ya like that sort of thing. Seriously, though, it was just GORGeous!

We took naps and then dragged a ourselves out to dinner armed with a few suggestions from our lovely host Carole, and a will to meander. We ended up at Fauborg 46 (F’bg), where I had a fine Daurade and Claude had a steak. I had a Chardonnay, and actually said to the waiter, “un vin blanc, si vous plait” (just like Saski taught me before I left). French wine—Dee Lish OUS. Very hard to concentrate as we sat on the couch back at our place. I tried to read a kid’s book, T’Quipo about a not human but not quite bear with a red circle for a nose. Claude perused the tour guide for what to do tomorrow. He was looking for something slightly more specific than our general goal to eat as many croissants as possible in the next few weeks. I love staring at my husband sleeping, and I love when he wakes up, and I feel really really lucky to be on this trip, and this whole life’s journey, together with him.