#peter is SO lucky to have two kens in his life.

[sciderman]

the real question is: who are the kens?

the kens.

[jeyramarie]

The forbidden zone- Pogue x OC

summary: It’s time to look for the wreck and the weather won’t stop them.

wc: 4,752

a/n: here it is! as requested 😁 @halsmultibitch and i have so so many ideas. we can’t wait for all of you to read it!! happy reading 🦋

prologue~ pilot~ the lucky compass

Previously on Good Life...

Lani had volunteered to climb into it since she was the smallest. Once inside she asked for a flashlight due to it being so dark. She looked around for a bit until she found an envelope leaned against the wall. 

“Oh my god.” she whispered as she stared at it. ‘To Bird.’ it read. 

John B stared at the envelope in adoration, perfectly knowing it was from his dad. JJ helped Lani out of the tomb as a cold breeze ran through the trees making her shiver. 

“Holy shit. This is from my dad.” He said and looked around as his friends while JJ lit his blunt, puffing some smoke. Suddenly, car headlights came into view coming their way. 

“Code red. Code red. Square groupers!” JJ said desperately as he walked backwards to his friends. 

“Oh my god, go.” Lani said, pulling Kie’s arm to hide next to the tomb. They all got down and fidgeted with their flashlights to turn them off. 

“Light!” 

“Turn it off, John B!” the curly haired kook exclaimed as she saw the pogue jam the flashlight up his shirt. JJ turned off his cigarette against the wall as they all stayed there quietly. The car came to a stop as a man climbed out.

“I think I see something!” He shouted to the other person in the car as JJ and Pope peeked their heads out, trying to see. 

“Is it them?” Lani whispered to the boys feeling fear in the pit of her stomach. 

“Homie’s got a gun.” JJ whispered as he turned back to lean against the wall. 

“Oh fuck this.” Fallon muttered as she stood up before running off. John B immediately followed, then Kie, Lani, JJ and finally, Pope. Everyone made it over the fence successfully until Pope’s pants got stuck. Of course he’s the one that gets stuck, classic Pope. 

“Guys, guys. I’m stuck!” He said as he desperately tried to free himself from the fence. 

“I got you, buddy.” Lani said as she came for his rescue alongside John B. They used all they’re strength to get him out causing the pants to start ripping. 

“Guys, you’re gonna rip me.” 

“Pope, don’t move okay?” JJ said as he held up his gun towards the pogue. 

“JJ, what the fuck? Put that down, man.” John B pushed his arm down making the blonde put the gun back in his cargo shorts. 

“No, no. You’re gonna rip me. No! You’re ripping me!” and with that Pope fell from the fence leaving his shorts hanging. 

“Oh my god.” Lani laughed as she walked backwards to get to the car. 

“Hey, it's a little Tootsie roll!” JJ shouted, making everyone laugh as they all ran to the car. Fallon opened the door waiting for them to get closer.

“Get in.” Kie laughed as she saw Pope climbing in in his underwear. 

“What the hell happened?” Fallon slid the door close and turned to Pope who was frowning in annoyance. 

“You don’t wanna know.” he groaned as he sat at the chair at the back of the van. They went back to the Chateau, quickly clearing a space to look at what the envelope had. JJ ran to the kitchen looking for food since he hasn’t eaten all day. He found some bread, some peanut and jelly making his eyes sparkle as his stomach growled. 

“That bread has had mold for like a week.” Lani said as she opened her water bottle to take a sip. 

“I’ll just pull off the bad parts. Plus, mold is good for you. It’s just a natural organism.” he said, picking up the sandwich and moving to take a bite off of it, receiving a disgusted look from the kook. 

“Guys!” Kie called as John B pulled out a map from the envelope. 

“We’re going.” Lani said walking out of the kitchen with JJ trailing behind her as he took a bite off the sandwich. 

“Mmm.” JJ muttered and then gagged as he spit out the piece of moldy bread. 

“Told you not to eat it.” The kook with her arms crossed made the pogue pull out the middle finger. The pogue opened the map to see coordinates, scribbled lines and an x. 

“Well, x marks the spot.” Fallon said, pointing her finger on the map. 

“Longitud, latitud… wait, there's something else in there.” John B said as he traced his finger along the lines before dropping it and picking up the envelope again. He reached in and pulled out a tape recorder. 

“What’s that?” JJ asked in confusion. 

“It’s a tape recorder, J.” Lani said, looking at him and chuckling a bit. The pogue held the recorder for a bit more and started playing it to reveal his dad’s voice. Big John talked about the Royal Merchant, how he found it. He actually found it, which was a huge surprise to everyone, including John B. Once the recorder stopped, the room was filled with silence until JJ broke it. 

“Holy shit, he found it! Big John…. He found the Merchant.” He lifted his arms in excitement as Lani stood up straight and forcefully lowered his arms.

“Can you not right now, JJ?” Fallon said, running her hand through her hair. John B stood up and leaned against the door as he began to cry. Kie went to his side and hugged him, giving him comfort as his tears continued to roll down his cheeks. 

A few hours later, everyone was found on the docks. Kie was playing her ukulele, Lani was sketching Pope and everyone else drinking beer in silence. 

“How much was it again?” JJ asked and sipped from his beer can before tossing it aside. 

“Four hundred mil.” Lani said never parting her eyes from the sketchbook as she erased the eyebrow to fix it’s arch. 

“All right, let’s talk split. Now, before we say “evenly” may I remind you that I am the only one that can probably defend us from those square groupers that were after us. Protection? Not cheap, okay?” He said, holding his gun up for everyone to see trying to make a point. 

“You haven’t trained. You’ve done zero training.” Fallon crossed her arms leaning against the railing. 

“Youtube, Fal.” he winked at the caramel haired pogue making her stick out her tongue making him chuckle. 

“You haven’t-” Pope started objecting when JJ cut him off.

“Any objections? Didn’t think so.” Lani and Kie were holding up their hands in objection but were ignored by the pogue.

“There’s a couple objections.” 

“I don’t hear any so…”

“Okay well, what are you gonna do with 66 mil Pope?” Fallon said, cutting him off and she sat down on the floor. 

“Pay for college in advance. And also, textbooks. Those are expensive.” 

“What about you, Kie?” 

“Yeah, what does a socalist do when she’s rich?” Lani asked, smirking at the pogue who chuckled at her question. 

“Just wanna make a double album. About the OBX, the pogues. You know, the way Catch a Fire is about Kingston. Record it in Marley studio, Peter Tosh producing. And before you say anything Pope, yes I know Peter Tosh is dead.” The pogue lifted his hands in surrender as he laughed at her last comment. 

“Lani? What about you?” John B asked, leaning back on his beach chair as he opened a new beer can. 

“I’m not sure what she would want. She’s already rich.” Fallon muttered under her breath making the kook frown as her face fell making her look at her sketchbook.

“Well, you’re rich too but you don’t see me making comments about it.” Everyone opened their eyes and muttered ‘ooo’s’ as Lani looked at John B to answer his question. 

“I wanna go to Italy, get a house by the beach. Not even a house, I want a cute little hud with a window facing the ocean. So, I can paint and eat all the pasta I can get.” she said and raised her beer can in the form of the toast before sipping from the cold beverage. 

“Fal, your turn.” JJ smiled, turning his head towards her as he fidgeted with his lighter. 

“I’m gonna leave Outer Banks. I’ve only felt trapped here. So, I wanna go and I don’t know… escape life, I guess.” John B nodded and lifted his beer can in agreement while the blonde pogue nodded too. 

“I know what I’ll do. I’m gonna get a big ass house on Figure Eight and go full Kook.” 

“Full kook?” “You are not going full kook.” Lani and Fallon said at the same time, making him laugh.

“Yes, full kook. I’m gonna get a big statue of myself and a koi pond with a bunch of fish.” He said making circular movements with his hands as he described the pond. 

“You know I’m never visiting right?” Kie said, placing her ukulele back on her lap. 

“What are you gonna do, John B?” Lani asked, leaning towards Pope, handing him the portrait she made. 

“To going full Kook.” he smiled as he stood up and held his beer can up causing everyone else to hold up their beverages too. 

“To going full Kook.” They hollered and laughed as the night went by smoothly. Lani was starting to feel like part of the group now which made her very happy since she was never the girl to have a bunch of friends. All of her ‘friends’ were the children of her parents' business partners, whom she never really liked. 

The next day came around, sunny as ever giving the pogues the perfect idea to go on a boat ride on the marsh. They got ready in record time with their swimsuits and the cooler filled with drinks and the ice Pope brought from his dad’s store. They picked up Kie at her house’s dock first and then Lani, who wasn’t far. As they sailed through the marsh, getting to their favorite spot, JJ spotted two kooks on their own new boat. 

“Holy shit. You guys see that? That’s the Malibu 24-MXZ, the world’s finest wakesetter. Number one in luxury, quality and performance. That’s 200k easy.” He said squinting his eyes behind his sunglasses moving his head to his friends and back at the kooks. 

“No, here comes Malibu Barbie and Ken.” Fallon tilted her head as she laughed at her joke. 

“You don’t have to act like you don’t see us, bitch.” Kie said as she looked at Sarah while the boats crossed paths. The blonde kook waved and smiled at Lani causing her to do the same thing.

“Of course, you wave at her.” the caramel haired pogue scoffed in annoyance.

“Says the one who’s friends with Rafe.” Pope muttered under his breath loud enough for the pogue to hear and blush.  

“She’s been nothing but nice to me. I have no hate against her.” The kook shook her head as she continued sketching. Most of the day was spent swimming, drinking and planning on how to get a computer with the Internet in order to find the coordinates from Big John’s map. After the marsh, they all went back to the Chateau to get dressed so they could begin their trip to the hotel JJ worked at. Everyone got into the van making their way to their destination as they jammed to Kie’s favorite reggae music and JJ’s classic rock playlist. 

“All right, we should keep a lookout. We’re behind enemy lines.” JJ said as he pulled his gun out from the glove department while they parked outside. 

“Come on, man. Just put it back.”John B said, turning off the car as he ran a hand through his hair. 

“What?”

“JJ-”

“You can never be too careful.” he muttered as the door slid open for Pope to climb out. 

“Bringing a gun to a four star hotel will cause more problems than actually solve.” The curly haired pogue said as he leaned against the door next to JJ. He muttered a ‘thanks’ before Lani popped her head in between John B and the blonde.

“JJ, put that shit away or I'll throw it in the ocean.” She said and quickly got out of the van as John B ripped the gun off of JJ’s hand, putting it back where it was. 

“Okay, let’s go.” Fallon shouted as she closed the van door ready to walk in.

“Wait! Can’t forget my badge.” the blonde pogue smiled and pulled out his employee ID.

“Professional busboy.” Kie rolled her eyes and continued to walk behind Lani who was already halfway to the entrance. They walked in through the back into the kitchen where a few of JJ’s co-workers said hi and asked him how he was doing, some eyeing Fallon which was an everyday occurrence for her. After going up a few stairs, they finally made it to the lobby and walked towards a semi secluded room with computers. 

“Sweet lord, the Internet.” Pope said, running towards the device almost like he was gonna hug and kiss it. 

“Let me get in there. Check on my insta models.” JJ said as he leaned down next to Pope making Lani chuckle as she sat down.

“What insta models?” Fallon questioned as her arms crossed over her chest.

“No one, no one.” he muttered, never parting his eyes from the screen. They started looking for the coordinates written on the map and found how deep that part of the ocean was. To get there, they needed some type of submarine to be able to find the Royal Merchant. JJ gave the idea of getting the drone at the salvage yard where his dad used to work. On the way to the salvage yard, Pope couldn’t help but comment on how real or fake this wild goose chase was. 

“So, what’s it gonna be? Fantasy or reality?” 

“Fantasy.” Fallon muttered as she rolled JJ’s blunt. 

“Fantasy but possible reality.” Kie stared at John B through the rear view mirror with sad eyes, feeling pity for her best friend. 

“Both.” Lani said rummaging through her bag as she placed her sketchbook and pencils back. 

“Virtual reality.” JJ groaned as he leaned forward to grab the blunt. 

“Reality.” the shaggy haired pogue said, turning his head to look at the kook sitting in the passenger seat. Lani stared at him and gave him a sad smile as the van came to a stop not too far from the salvage yard. They ran over the plan one more time, making sure everyone understood. Especially JJ, he had a tendency of improvising everything. Lani got out of the van first, throwing her bag over her shoulder as she crossed the street to Kie’s car. Fallon slid the van door open and stepped out but was held back by a muscular hand. 

“Can’t Kie go?” JJ asked worriedly not liking the idea of his lifelong crush distracting a man with her looks. 

“No, she can’t and it’s not like you care anyway.” she spat out as she pulled her hand away from the pogue, slamming the door shut. The kook was putting her things in the car, making sure everything was rightfully placed when she turned to ask the pogue a question.

“Hey, Kie did you see th- You’re not Kie.” Lani said as she noticed her partner for that crima wasn’t who she thought. 

“I’m not thrilled about this either but they made me, so let’s just get it over with.” the pogue said bitterly as she got in the passenger seat leaving the kook alone and confused. The short ride to the salvage yard was filled with tension and awkward silence. Neither of them know what to say. 

“Should I go call him or do you-”

“I’ll go.” Fallon spat dryly, cutting Lani off as she quickly got out of the car. The kook sat there staring at the pogue as she walked towards the gate giving her some time to sigh and think to herself ‘this is harder than i thought’. After a few seconds, the gates opened cueing her to get out of the car and stand by the flat tire. The rest of the pogues were hiding by the gates as they saw the scene unfold. 

“It’s not weird, awkward or anything.” John B whispered, never parting his eyes from the girls as he answered Pope’s question. 

“I told you she wasn’t into you.” Kie said suddenly which confused JJ more. 

“Who isn’t into you?”

“He kissed Fallon.” Pope whispered immediately, opening his eyes wide realizing what he had done. JJ’s nostrils flared as anger burst through his body. 

“Well, she can kiss whoever she wants. She’s not dating anyone.” he said with gritted teeth as he gripped the wood harder. 

“Yeah, it’s just us.” Lani smiled, answering the guard’s question while leaning against the boat. He stared at them for a long time, moving his eyes from their legs up to their faces and back to the tire. Suddenly, barks came from the yard making the guard stand up and turn to the gate. 

“Tebow’s got something.” 

“Oh no, I don't think so.” Fallon said, placing a piece of hair behind her ear. 

“Yeah, maybe it’s a racoon.” Lani nodded and smiled, giving the man enough reassurance to go back to the tire. They noticed that he was finishing way too fast which meant that the boys could get caught but luckily, Fallon had an idea. 

“Oh, I forgot to call my mom. I’ll be right back.” she said before disappearing around the boat making it look like she was grabbing her phone. When in reality, she was using a hairpin to deflate the other tire. Fallon stayed like that for a bit not realizing how long she took until she heard Lani’s protest to the guard. 

“No, she’s talking with her mom. Something private. Sh-she’s probably crying!” The kook shouted as the guard pushed her aside as saw Fallon defaulting the tire on purpose , giving him the realization of what was going on. He began walking backwards as the girls looked at him holding their hands up trying to keep him from running. But of course, that failed miserably as the man bolted towards the gate making the girls run to the inside of the car. 

“Shit! Shit! He’s gonna call the cops. We need to tell them.” Fallon closed the door and put her seat belt on as Lani turned on the car. 

“Just call Kie, we have to go.” and with that, she drove out of there leaving the pogues behind. After a while, they all met back at the Wreck feeling all of their stomachs growl. Kie immediately hugged her dad when he saw him as the pogues walked towards the tables. 

“Hey, Mike.” Lani waved sweetly as she walked towards the counter.

“Hey, how’s John doing?”

“Oh, he’s good. Just working with mom a lot.”

“That’s really nice. Can I get you anything?”

“Can I have the turkey sandwich? With fries?” she smiled, reaching into her purse to pull out her wallet. Mike nodded and walked away into the kitchen. Fallon stared at the whole interaction, feeling pissed on how Lani had “stolen” everything from her. The kook paid and left a $5 tip before walking towards the pogues, who were starting to sit down. 

The restaurant closed, only leaving them in there to eat. Kie turned up the radio as one of her favorite songs came on. She pointed at John B which resulted in them dancing. JJ stood up to throw something away when he saw Lani’s drawing, again. Giving him the perfect idea, to dance with her. 

JJ tapped her shoulder making her turn around as he extended his hand for her to grab. Lani timidly looked around and placed her hand on his, making him grab it immediately as he pulled her out of the chair. JJ started dancing with her as well as making funny faces to make her laugh. Fallon wasn’t laughing, at all. If looks could kill, there would be two dead bodies already. 

JJ swung her around and dipped as she laughed hysterically at the gesture since she has never really danced with anyone. As this all happened, Pope and Fallon sat drinking beers alone. He turned to her and raised his bottle to toast, making her chuckle. The bottles clinked together and they drank from it as the song ended. 

“Well, let’s get going guys.” John B announced as it was getting late. They threw away the wrappers and paper cups before stepping outside. Lani left with Kie since they lived close by to each other, which left Fallon with the boys.

“I think I’m gonna walk home.” she said as they got into the van.’

“You’re not gonna walk.” JJ refused, stepping out of the Twinkie.

“I am gonna walk. I need to think and some time alone.” and with that she walked away ignoring the pogue’s calls. 

“Just give her some space, man.” Pope said as he got in the Twinkie making JJ get back in and slam the door shut. Fallon walked hugging her figure as the cold night breeze went through the trees. She was reflecting on the day, about how Lani was actually nice to her but then her thoughts drifted to seeing her dance with JJ. Suddenly, car headlights shone behind her as the vehicle stopped next to her. The window rolled down to reveal Rafe.

“Hey Fal, what are you doing walking alone?” 

“Hi, I just… um.. Just needed to clear my head.” 

“Well, get in. Let me drive you home.” He said and leaned over to open the door for her. Fallon was hesitant at first but somehow felt comfort once she went inside the car. Rafe began to drive and kept looking at her and back at the road. 

“You look good.” he said, making her smile and slightly blush. 

“Stop doing that, Rafey.” 

“Doing what?” 

“Complimenting me to distract me.” 

“I just wanna make you feel better, that’s all.” he stared at the road as Fallon looked at him. She grabbed his hand making him look at her.

“Thank you for that, really.” 

“No problem.” The ride to Figure 8 was short and filled with comfortable silence. Once they pulled into the driveway, Rafe lowered the volume of the radio and turned to Fallon who was getting her bag ready. 

“Thank you for driving me.” she smiled as he nodded and gave her a small smirk. Suddenly, she leaned in and kissed his cheek, making him blush. 

“Goodnight, Rafe.” and with that she got out of the car, waving at him once she opened her front door. The kook stayed there for a bit, still feeling euphoric by the kiss. He smiled widely as he changed his car to R, making his way home. 

The next day, Pope wanted to try out the drone, making everyone go to the Chateau. It was like seeing a child open his christmas gift and seeing that it was what they asked for. Excited was an understatement. Kie, Fallon and John B swam around for a bit while JJ, Lani and Pope stayed on the dock to test it out. They wanted to make sure the camera was looking HD, that it’s motor was functioning and that nothing was broken. 

“What’s this?” JJ asked as he touched a button from the panel that controls the drone. 

“Don’t touch that. I’m trying to work out this thing.” Pope said, slapping the blonde pogue’s away. 

“God bless geeks, Pope. Truly, man. What would we do without you to control the drones?” he asked as he leaned against the railing while Lani chuckled in the background, still standing next to Pope. 

“It’s not a drone. It’s an ROV.”

“Shut up, shut up. It’s too early for that right now.” 

“It’s 12 in the afternoon, JJ.” Lani smiled as she lifted her head and looked at the blonde who shrugged and turned back to the marsh. The conversation turned to mention lawyers once the wreckage was found. Loud thunders would be heard as the pogues climbed out of the marsh. 

“In the wrong weather, it’s gonna get pushed around.” Lani stated as she squinted her eyes looking at the sky. A big gray cloud was going over the OBX making the kook feel a bit anxious. 

“Then we’ll go at dead calm.” John B suggested wrapping himself in a towel. Right after that, thunder interrupted his thoughts as it filled everyone’s ears. 

“Well, today’s not the day.” JJ said, looking at the sky. 

The next day had perfect weather which was also perfect to look for the Royal Merchant. Pope asked his dad for his boat and surprisingly, Heyward said yes. Which gave him the responsibility to pick everyone up. JJ took over the wheel and Lani stayed with him in the cabin while everyone else got the equipment ready. 

“All right, JJ! Pin it here!” John B shouted as the blonde nodded. 

“Roger that! X marks the spot.” he said and stared at Lani who was already staring at him with slightly scared eyes. 

“All right, ladies and gentleman. To going full kook.” The shaggy haired pogue smiled as Kie started lowering the drone into the water, immediately giving Pope a clear image of the ocean. It kept going down as John B checked the location of the boat hence the constant screaming.

“JJ, you're right over it. Ten seconds northwest!” 

“Got it!” the blonde shouted back as he steered the wheel in a quick speed making Lani be on the verge of falling over him once the boat turned. He chuckled at the kook causing her to roll her eyes.

“Careful there.”

“Yeah, yeah.” 

“One hundred feet!” Fallon shouted as she helped Kie lower the rope. Pope gasped in fear as he saw many animals which caused John B to be on edge. Inside the cabin, Lani and JJ were in comfortable silence as she stared at him. 

“Are you okay?” she asked, breaking the silence.

“Yeah.” 

“Sorry, I asked, I just… you’re wearing a sweatshirt.. It's the middle of June.” Lani looked at JJ with worried eyes as he hesitated for an answer. Not wanting to tell her about his dad. 

“Four hundred feet!” Kie shouted, interrupting JJ’s thoughts as he turned to look back at the front of the boat. Thunder was heard all around as they all stared at the sky. 

“Guys, the tide’s turning.” Fallon said to John B making him look down at the boat monitor. 

“JJ, ten seconds easy, south-southeast.”

“Copy that.” the blonde replied as he turned the wheel again making Lani trip and crash into him. JJ extended his arm and stood her up, pulling her to between him and the wall.

“Stay there, k?” she nodded and chuckled a bit, making him smile. 

“JJ, 20 second mid speed, south.”

“Copy that! Aye, aye, cap.” The pogue kept steering and steering the wheel, not receiving any feedback from John B. 

“John B! Is That good?” Lani shouted from the cabin as JJ focused on the wheel.

“Yeah, we’re good!” He shouted only his thumb up. The shouts kept coming back and forth as a trom approached the boat. Thunder got louder and winds got stronger making it harder for the female pogues to handle the rope as JJ tried to keep the boat at the right position. 

“There’s too much current!” Kie shouted holding onto the rope, afraid that it would leave her grip. 

“We’re gonna lose it!” Fallon shouted as she lowered the drone a bit more. 

“No, we're not! Steady at this bearing, JJ!” John B shouted as the blonde followed instructions. The shouting went on as the girls yelled how far the drone was. 

“You should be seeing something, man.” he told Pope as he looked closely at the screen. 

“I know, I know! Wait.. oh God.” A silence filled the boat as the boys stared at the screen closely.

“What the hell is going on?” Lani asked under her breath looking at the boys. JJ turned his head and got confused as he quickly turned back to look at the storm. 

“Do you see anything?” he asked, suddenly hearing the boys laugh in cheer. 

“It’s the Royal Merchant!” John B shouted in victory as he saw the wreckage on the screen feeling as if his father was standing right there with him. 

good life: @ilovefandoms102 @agardenofbooks @cloverrover

[wazafam]

While he claims to not be a serial killer, Saw villain Jigsaw is one of the most effective murderers in horror, though there have been a few victims that have escaped his grasp. Of course, were one to ask John Kramer himself, back when he was alive, anyway, he would've insisted that what he did wasn't murder. Instead, John used the Jigsaw identity to help wayward and damaged people reform, learning to have a new appreciation for life by making a sacrifice of blood and flesh to survive.

In reality, Jigsaw's twisted methods are impossible to condone. His games are nothing more than a sick vigilante taking punishment into his own hands. John may have been a decent man once upon a time, but the loss of his unborn son and the dissolution of his marriage, coupled with the terminal cancer eating away at him, eventually sapped every last bit of true humanity from his heart. No decent person could do what he does to people and not go mad.

Related: Is Jigsaw In Spiral? Saw Villain Future Explained

For the Saw fans, though, there's no reason to hate John, as in fiction, the normal bounds of morality don't necessarily apply. Many of the people Jigsaw targets are far from sympathetic characters, and watching them get theirs can be a form of catharsis. Sometimes though, the players of Jigsaw's games have survived to tell the tale. Here are all of the survivors of Jigsaw's games.

Amanda Young (Shawnee Smith) was the first known survivor of a Jigsaw trap, in her case the infamous reverse bear trap. To free herself, she had to kill a man and retrieve the key to the device on her face from inside his stomach. As traumatic as it was, Amanda then kicked her drug addiction and ended up joining John as his first confirmed apprentice, designed to help Jigsaw's work continue despite John's failing health. Sadly, she lost her way and began designing inescapable traps. John tested her again, and she failed, dying in the process.

Not everyone who gets mixed up in Jigsaw's games is a particular target of his wrath. In some cases, they're just those close to the main test subject, such as the wife and daughter of Dr. Lawrence Gordon (Cary Elwes). Dr. Gordon, of course, famously survived his test in the first Saw movie by sawing off his own foot. Meanwhile, his wife Alison and daughter Diana survived their own captivity at the hands of Zep, a man forced into working for Jigsaw. Lawrence would go on to survive and become another Jigsaw apprentice, as revealed in Saw 7.

Jeff Ridenhour is a very minor character in Saw lore, but still a memorable one. In Jeff's case, he didn't necessarily deserve to survive his Jigsaw test, but was saved by Detectives David Tapp (Danny Glover) and Steven Sing (Ken Leung). Doing so led to dire consequences for the cops, though – so perhaps the tradeoff wasn't exactly fair.

Related: Saw 2's Venus Fly Trap Mask Was The First Hint At Dr. Gordon Twist

Daniel Matthews was tested much less due to his own petty crimes, and more because he was the son of Eric Matthews (Donnie Wahlberg), an explosively violent cop who was Saw 2's primary Jigsaw target. Eric survived being placed in a group of people who had been wrongly convicted of crimes thanks to his father, but was then placed inside a safe to be used as leverage for Eric's test. Daniel survived, but Eric didn't come out intact.

Corbett Denlon and Judge Halden are two minor Saw 3 characters who were pulled into Jigsaw's games with Jeff Denlon in Saw 3. Halden was the man who gave the drunk driver that killed Jeff's son a light sentence. To save Halden, Jeff had to burn cherished mementos connected to his son. Halden later died trying to help Jeff save his son's killer from a trap. Corbett, Jeff's young daughter, was "saved" by Jigsaw apprentice Mark Hoffman after Jeff failed his test.

Easily the most dangerous and sadistic of Jigsaw's apprentices, Detective Mark Hoffman (Costas Mandylor) ended up working for John Kramer after faking a Jigsaw murder in order to kill the man who had taken his sister's life. Seeing Hoffman's potential, but not appreciating being ripped off, John offered him a chance to join the cause. Hoffman continued the games long after John's death but got tested for the first time himself via his own reverse bear trap thanks to John's widow, Jill. Hoffman survived and killed Jill, but later lost for good against Dr. Gordon.

FBI Agent Peter Strahm (Scott Patterson), along with his partner Lindsey Perez, investigated the Jigsaw case, and both ultimately died as a result, but not before escaping at least one of Jigsaw's traps. Strahm instantly suspected Hoffman was in on things, and that didn't change following his own escape from a Jigsaw trap that involved an improvised pen tracheotomy to avoid drowning in a box locked on his head. Still, his dogged pursuit of the truth cost him dearly, as he was later crushed to death by the encroaching walls of a room, while Hoffman smugly escaped the area.

Related: Why Saw Has The Greatest Horror Movie Twist Ending Of All Time

Strahm's partner Agent Perez survived a nasty Jigsaw trap involving an exploding puppet sending shrapnel into her face thanks to the efforts of Strahm himself. The FBI faked her death in order to try and get one over on John's still unidentified Jigsaw accomplice, although Perez eventually resurfaced, only to get stabbed to death by Hoffman when his crimes were revealed.

Art Blank (Justin Louis) was one of the featured Jigsaw test subjects in Saw 4, and was chosen due to his profession. Art was a lawyer, and one with a habit of defending clients who were guilty as sin and helping them escape justice. Art had been John's friend and business partner, but after a falling out, was forced to kill another man in order to survive a trap. He was then forced to help Jigsaw set up another game, only to later be shot by cop Daniel Rigg. Morgan was a related survivor, the wife of an abusive husband and father that Art had gotten off. She had to kill her husband to live and to set herself free in more ways than one.

Brit Stevenson (Julie Benz) was one of the main test subjects in Saw 5, a corrupt corporate executive who hired an arsonist to burn down an apartment building so that she could buy the property it sat on, not realizing people were inside at the time. None of the victims in Saw 5 were without sin, but Brit and Mallick Scott, the arsonist, managed to survive multiple traps on their way to victory and rescue by the FBI.

Tara and Brent Abbott were a quite innocent mother and son who got roped into Jigsaw's Saw 6 game, which revolved around heartless insurance executive William Easton. Easton denied their husband/father live-saving care, and after Easton survived his own tests, his fate was left up to them. Tara couldn't bring herself to kill Easton, but Brent did it, instead, in a rage over his father's death.

Related: Why The Most Disturbing Saw Trap Isn't Actually The Needle Pit

The corrupt exec William Easton (Peter Outerbridge) survived his own tests, although not without having to make agonizing decisions along the way, including which of his also mostly corrupt employees he would save. Easton's company had also denied John Kramer potentially life-saving treatment, thus his posthumous vendetta. William opted to save his secretary, Addy, as well as other subordinates, Shelby and Emily. He was also able to save his sister Pamela by completing his game, but couldn't survive the vengeful Abbots.

Bobby Dagen (Sean Patrick Flanery) became a successful self-help guru on the back of surviving a Jigsaw trap and then writing a book about it, or at least that's his claim. None of it is true, leading him to become the main test subject of Saw 7. Bobby has to watch his wife get roasted alive in a giant oven, although he does manage to escape with his own life. Joan is a very brief character in the franchise, a Jigsaw survivor whose story Bobby uses as inspiration for his lies.

In Saw 7, Bobby Dagen chaired a support group of Jigsaw survivors, although unlike him, their stories were real. Mallick Scott survived alongside Brit Stevenson in Saw 5, losing most of his blood in the process. Simone chopped off her own arm to survive a "pound of flesh" trap in Saw 6. Brad and Ryan had to choose between killing each other, or the girlfriend who had been cheating on them both, and they chose her. Sidney had to send her abusive boyfriend into lawnmower blades. Addy and Emily from Easton's company, were also group members, as were Dr. Lawrence Gordon, and Tara Abbott.

Logan Nelson (Matt Passmore) was an Army veteran and battlefield medic who was tested after his return to civilian life saw him mess up an X-ray and accidentally delay the diagnosis of John's cancer. Logan's trap went wrong, though, and since it was John's fault, he took pity on Logan and freed him. Grateful, Logan became an apprentice and conducted the games seen in 2017's Jigsaw.

Spiral: From the Book of Saw recently continued Jigsaw's legacy, albeit with a new killer and 100 percent less John Kramer. The only test survivor in Spiral is lead protagonist Zeke Banks (Chris Rock), seemingly the one honest cop in a corrupt department full of liars and killers. Granted, he clearly wasn't intended to die, as new killer William Schenk wanted them to join forces and clean up the city. Zeke is able to free himself from a handcuff trap similar to the one in the first Saw movie and ends up getting cut up by glass trying to save his old corrupt partner. Zeke lives, but his former police chief father isn't so lucky.

More: Spiral 2: What To Expect

Saw: Every Character Who Survived A Jigsaw Trap (And What Came Next) from https://ift.tt/3tUCVkh

[smokeybrand]

This is the Good Life

I read a ton of manga. I find the content coming out of Japan to be far more genuine and creative than the sh*tshow comic industry we have here in the states. I’m not saying there isn’t good content to be found in the massive annals of Marvel and DC, i am in particular love with whatever the f*ck is going on with the X-titles right now, but that is the exception, not the rule. Japan is different. Even the most blatant shill of a cash-in has a unique spin to it. When the moe boom happened and we were inundated with slice of life fodder for a decades, shows like Higurashi, Toradora, Haruhi, Lucky Star, and basically anything out of Kyoto animation, were absolute masterpieces. Each tells a distinct story, adapting that cutesy art style to their respective strengths, and it worked beautifully. The homogeneity of formulaic content here in the US, isn’t really a concern overseas and that is a wonderful thing. It makes for amazing storytelling and a creativity freedom, even when awash in trend or fad. I say all of this to preface the fact that Kajiya De Hajimeru Isekai Slow Life is chef kiss levels of shine, even if it is a manga staunchly entrenched in the grating isekai fad.

Now, i say “grating” in the glib sense because i genuinely love the isekai genre. I have for decades, going back to Escaflowne, El Hazard, .Hack, and Rayearth. What i think most people are frustrated with, is the OP protagonist in these stories. You can only identify with some, overwhelming, power fantasy, so many times going into these tales. How do you frame that narrative? how do you keep it compelling? You don’t. Entries like Overlord and Tensei Shitara Suraimu Datta Ken do a great job avoiding that stagnation by building out the world around their ridiculously plot-armored mains but that doesn’t work all of the time. If you want a character driven narrative, you have to build great characters. You have to make your principal cast affable, flawed, and fun. I think that’s the strength in Kajiya De Hajimeru Isekai Slow Life. You almost immediately fall in love with the cast you’re going to sped all of your time with and that’s absolutely necessary because this story is as much about the world building as it is about the main cast, themselves.

Slow Life follows Eizo Tanya, who is hit by a truck in the process of saving a cat, who turned out to be an inter-dimensional god or something. Since the Kitty deity f*cked up and was almost “killed’, causing Eizo’s death in turn, it offers to reincarnate him into a brand new world with a mad overpowered cheat skill. Eizo gives it a thought and chooses - blacksmithing! You see, Eizo was a salaryman, bitterly unhappy with his life in the old times. He wanted, more than anything, to be able to work with his hands in the new world so, instead of asking for he power to be a Hero or some vicious Demon Lord, he just wanted the ability to make dope sh*t in the woods. Kitty Deity is a little surprised but grants Eizo his wish and, boom! We have the foundation for a pretty delightful romp. Stuff happens, Eizo gets a tiger wife and a dwarf apprentice. His craftsmanship is the best in the world and his tale toward legendary status begins.

The simplicity of this narrative is one that has a level of accessibility not found in most isekai. The simple desire of a man, overworked and looking to be fulfilled, to find value, in what he does with his life, really resonates with cats like me who have been in the workforce for decades. I left my job a year ago to pursue my dream of crating so i identify with Eizo’s passion to be more than just a cg in a machine. More than that, i love the way he is written. Eizo feels real, like a proper person lost in a world of fantasy and magic. The supporting cast is also amazing and decently developed. I immediately fell in love with tiger waifu, Samia. She is capable, tenacious, curious, and f*cking adorable. There isn’t a ton of groundwork about her past being laid but i have a feeling we’ll definitely get into that as the narrative develops and i can’t wait to see where that leads. Newcomer to the story is the dwarf apprentice, Riku Moritz. We haven’t had a great deal of time with her so far, but she comes across as a studious, knowledgeable, junior who yearns to be the best at her craft. She reminds me of Miles Morales from Into the Spider-Verse, to Eizo’s Peter B. Parker and i adore that type of dynamic. We are only a handful of chapters in, but this story seems like it has legs and i look forward to where it goes in the future. I’d say it’s a slow burn, but it really isn’t.

I was hooked from chapter one and a lot of that, aside from the great writing and developing character work, stems from the artwork. My, goodness, is Slow Life gorgeous! There is a purposeful elegance to how these lines and strokes come together. The line work is clean and precise, granting each panel thjust the right amount of detail hile staying true to the artist's personal vision. It's actually very refreshing to see. The style is very distinct and carries it's own, unique hallmarks, similar to Toriyama or Oda, but slightly more relaistic than those. I am absolutely in love with it. Like, i follow a few trash rags because the art is dope and immediately hooked me. Isekai Meikyuu de Dorei Harem Wo, Gunbured X Sisters, or Kouya Ni Kemono Doukokusu immediately come to mind, all decent in their own right, but it’s very obvious the strength of these entries lies in the art. True to form, it took a while for me to get into their respective narratives and, in all honesty, they’ve gotten pretty good but those first few chapters were a bit rocky. The art kept me coming back and now, these three are some of my favorite titles to read. Slow Life did not have that issue. The art immediately took my breath away. It felt like cracking open Tsugumomo, BLEACH, Lv2 kara Cheat datta Moto Yuusha Kouho no Mattari Isekai Life, Gleipnir, Meikyuu Black Company, or Isekai De Skill Wo Kaitai Shitara Cheat Na Yome Ga Zoushoku Shimashita: Gainen Kousa No Structure. That’s a lot of titles but i am a slut for great, unique, artwork and these entries hit my sweet spot immediately. I’m just lucky that the narrative accompanying them was enough to do the linework justice because it would have been a shame to abandon these titles over sheer ugliness. Slow life definitely dodged that bullet. It is, without hyperbole, some of the best looking manga I've seen in years.

Kajiya De Hajimeru Isekai Slow Life is absolutely amazing. It’s an easy read filled with exceptional art, deft character work, and a world that is both compelling and growing steadily. Eizo is a great protagonist, easily to identify with and none of the edgelord OP, baggage most Isekai protags tend to have. Samia is a delightful love interests who carries a quiet strength and enjoyable naivety, which immediately endears and Riku is just plain hilarious. This laid back narrative of a smith who just wants to make dope sh*t, while being dope to his tiger wife and faithful apprentice is an distinct palate cleanser in a world of power fantasy saturated, isekai, trash. I love this book and feel like more people should have eyes on it so, you know, got put your eyes on it. You won’t be disappointed. Also, all the other titles i specifically mentioned. They’re worth a gander, too, especially Isekai De Skill Wo Kaitai Shitara Cheat Na Yome Ga Zoushoku Shimashita: Gainen Kousa No Structure and Lv2 kara Cheat datta Moto Yuusha Kouho no Mattari Isekai Life. Them sh*ts is just plain lovable and have two more of these objectively bias essays forthcoming. But that’s for later, for now, go read all of Kajiya De Hajimeru Isekai Slow Life, right now! Is totally worth! Plus, Samia is f*cking adorable, man. Seriously, tiger waifu is best girl!

[singingaboutwishingx]

my Thoughts and Opinions on mad men

this is quite disorganized and very long. contains spoilers for all seven seasons after the cut.

-though i think don was a good character, he was such a shitty person!!! cheating on every partner he ever had? bad! being an asshole to everyone and getting away with it because he’s handsome? also bad!

-but also like... just to put it out there, jon hamm can do literally anything he wants to me. good lord, that man is attractive. 

-there was literally a point where i hated every character except peggy, betty, and sal

-speaking of sal, HE DESERVED BETTER. i genuinely almost cried when the fire alarm went off. he was so happy for like three seconds and then SOME MOTHERFUCKER lit something on fire (i don’t remember exactly what happened).

-FUCK lee garner, jr. 

-i ended up having such complicated feelings about betty. on one hand, she was cheated on and emotionally abused and gaslit, so i can absolutely understand why she became harder as the seasons went on. on the other hand, she didn’t treat her children so well and idk how i feel about that. i do feel so, so bad for her regardless.

-bert cooper was honestly such a baddie, though. he got heated sometimes during important plot points, but his general “i’m old, i don’t give a shit” vibes were excellent (i also watched this whole show in less than two months, though, so please forgive me if i miss details)

-like when harry crane was too afraid to say the wrong thing about bert’s red rothko and bert was just like “bitch shut up about my painting, no one cares”

-and his “the best things in life are free” after he died was so good. i was personally offended that they took his name out of the opening credits afterward

-peggy. my sweet girl. arguably the best character. this girl’s transformation made me so damn proud. the iconic scene where she walked through mccann with the octopus painting and a cigarette hanging out of her mouth was just everything. 

-i really didn’t like stan at first, but he grew on me. mostly i’m just a hopeless romantic, so i was very, very happy when he and peggy ended up together.

-i didn’t hate abe, but i was VERY relieved when they broke up

-poor, poor michael ginsberg. i hope that man gets some help. that’s really all i have to say. 

-pete campbell falling down the stairs made me laugh for like an hour because he just sucks so much. he did NOT deserve trudy. also vincent kartheiser is DAMN lucky he has good hair, because shaving his hairline is a serious gamble.

-pete is such a shitbag. i’m so sorry. i just dislike him so much. i remember watching the second season and thinking if he and peggy ended up together, matthew weiner was going to be the recipient of a very angry letter lmao

-did he have *some* growth? kind of. does that mean trudy made the right decision to go with him to kansas? mmmmm probably not.

-joan definitely grew on me. i did not like her at first, but her character arc was so damn satisfying. holloway harris productions? freaking incredible. her son is cute, she’s her own boss, and she doesn’t end up with someone controlling. we stan. 

-i really hope her lesbian roommate from the first season found a girlfriend. that poor girl pined for years, and hopefully she ended up with a girl that loved her

-i feel so bad for lane pryce. that man did not deserve what he thought he did. was it bad to steal from the company? of course. he did not need to kill himself, though. i was fr so upset. the man knocked out pete campbell, which clearly makes him the best. 

-the sheer giddiness that flooded my body when lane fired them all from the og sterling cooper was incredible. it was a great, great decision. 

-pete campbell can go to hell

-every time glen bishop appeared onscreen i was afraid. i just thought “oh my god, this bitch gonna grow up and become a serial killer.”

-watching sally grow up was so great. she was still so bratty up until henry told her that betty had cancer, but the second she knew, she was ready to be there for her family. she did also say some rather iconic things. i love kiernan shipka haha

-they got the cutest freaking babies to be on this show. especially tammy because her little cheeks were just so chubby and i loved herrrrrrr

-it really didn’t end the way i thought it would, but it makes sense. the hug between don and leonard was EXCELLENT

-i know this is so specific, but every once in a while there would be a shot that was just perfect. like the one at the end of season five where joan and sterling/cooper/campbell/draper were all standing facing the window on their second floor of the time life building— that was beautiful. sterling and cooper, the older generation, on one side, campbell and draper, the future, on the other, and joan in between them. truly, she was what held every single thing in that office together and i cannot get over how freaking incredible that shot is

-i didn’t really love betty and henry. every marriage has problems, but betty and both of her husbands had serious problems.

-speaking of marital problems, megan and don were a disaster. i was so confused when he proposed after having sex three (3) times and going on zero (0) dates????? donald what the fuck

-i loved ken cosgrove’s tap dancing, i didn’t love ken cosgrove. i do feel bad for what he went through w the jaguar account (and also in general), but he was kind of a bitch in the earlier seasons

-i did not care for harry crane or paul kinsey. sorry bout it

-i hope kitty romano finds someone who can love her the way they’re supposed to. i do think sal loved kitty platonically, though. honestly though it would have been excellent if kitty was a lesbian and they were just married to avoid questions. i mean, obviously they weren’t, but i would have LOVED to see that storyline

-megan was a very interesting character. she was just so childish. she was very sweet (mostly) and i think don kind of fucked her over emotionally (like definitely in every way except financially, but like... i have a feeling that she’ll never be the same because of him)

-also marie calvet straight-up taking all of don’s living room furniture was so funny

-i do not like roger sterling either. he cheated on both mona and jane!! sure, maybe he didn’t love them, but what gives, dude? we don’t stan.

-also he did blackface, which is a big yikes from me. yeah, it was the sixties, but also fuck that shit.

-another thing about don is that this man’s libido is just fucking WILD. i mean, he has no goddamn shame.

-fucking his secretary? did it at least twice, married one of them. his child’s teacher? great! he’ll be over soon! his neighbor’s wife? all good until sally catches them. his quasi-niece is maybe 22? he’d hit that!

-seriously, he just doesn’t care at all and it’s fascinating.

-when ida blankenship died it was like... but you did this... for what? watching them roll her fuckin body out of the office covered in the afghan during a meeting was actually quite funny though

-every so often my brain will just go “sterling cooper draper pryce cutler gleason and chaough.” that’s not a thought. sorry lol

-also they fucking took it off of netflix so now i can’t rewatch it! mean as hell, netflix, mean as hell.

-in conclusion: fuck peter dyckman campbell.

[smokeybrandreviews]

This is the Good Life

I read a ton of manga. I find the content coming out of Japan to be far more genuine and creative than the sh*tshow comic industry we have here in the states. I’m not saying there isn’t good content to be found in the massive annals of Marvel and DC, i am in particular love with whatever the f*ck is going on with the X-titles right now, but that is the exception, not the rule. Japan is different. Even the most blatant shill of a cash-in has a unique spin to it. When the moe boom happened and we were inundated with slice of life fodder for a decades, shows like Higurashi, Toradora, Haruhi, Lucky Star, and basically anything out of Kyoto animation, were absolute masterpieces. Each tells a distinct story, adapting that cutesy art style to their respective strengths, and it worked beautifully. The homogeneity of formulaic content here in the US, isn’t really a concern overseas and that is a wonderful thing. It makes for amazing storytelling and a creativity freedom, even when awash in trend or fad. I say all of this to preface the fact that Kajiya De Hajimeru Isekai Slow Life is chef kiss levels of shine, even if it is a manga staunchly entrenched in the grating isekai fad.

Now, i say “grating” in the glib sense because i genuinely love the isekai genre. I have for decades, going back to Escaflowne, El Hazard, .Hack, and Rayearth. What i think most people are frustrated with, is the OP protagonist in these stories. You can only identify with some, overwhelming, power fantasy, so many times going into these tales. How do you frame that narrative? how do you keep it compelling? You don’t. Entries like Overlord and Tensei Shitara Suraimu Datta Ken do a great job avoiding that stagnation by building out the world around their ridiculously plot-armored mains but that doesn’t work all of the time. If you want a character driven narrative, you have to build great characters. You have to make your principal cast affable, flawed, and fun. I think that’s the strength in Kajiya De Hajimeru Isekai Slow Life. You almost immediately fall in love with the cast you’re going to sped all of your time with and that’s absolutely necessary because this story is as much about the world building as it is about the main cast, themselves.

Slow Life follows Eizo Tanya, who is hit by a truck in the process of saving a cat, who turned out to be an inter-dimensional god or something. Since the Kitty deity f*cked up and was almost “killed’, causing Eizo’s death in turn, it offers to reincarnate him into a brand new world with a mad overpowered cheat skill. Eizo gives it a thought and chooses - blacksmithing! You see, Eizo was a salaryman, bitterly unhappy with his life in the old times. He wanted, more than anything, to be able to work with his hands in the new world so, instead of asking for he power to be a Hero or some vicious Demon Lord, he just wanted the ability to make dope sh*t in the woods. Kitty Deity is a little surprised but grants Eizo his wish and, boom! We have the foundation for a pretty delightful romp. Stuff happens, Eizo gets a tiger wife and a dwarf apprentice. His craftsmanship is the best in the world and his tale toward legendary status begins.

The simplicity of this narrative is one that has a level of accessibility not found in most isekai. The simple desire of a man, overworked and looking to be fulfilled, to find value, in what he does with his life, really resonates with cats like me who have been in the workforce for decades. I left my job a year ago to pursue my dream of crating so i identify with Eizo’s passion to be more than just a cg in a machine. More than that, i love the way he is written. Eizo feels real, like a proper person lost in a world of fantasy and magic. The supporting cast is also amazing and decently developed. I immediately fell in love with tiger waifu, Samia. She is capable, tenacious, curious, and f*cking adorable. There isn’t a ton of groundwork about her past being laid but i have a feeling we’ll definitely get into that as the narrative develops and i can’t wait to see where that leads. Newcomer to the story is the dwarf apprentice, Riku Moritz. We haven’t had a great deal of time with her so far, but she comes across as a studious, knowledgeable, junior who yearns to be the best at her craft. She reminds me of Miles Morales from Into the Spider-Verse, to Eizo’s Peter B. Parker and i adore that type of dynamic. We are only a handful of chapters in, but this story seems like it has legs and i look forward to where it goes in the future. I’d say it’s a slow burn, but it really isn’t.

I was hooked from chapter one and a lot of that, aside from the great writing and developing character work, stems from the artwork. My, goodness, is Slow Life gorgeous! There is a purposeful elegance to how these lines and strokes come together. The line work is clean and precise, granting each panel thjust the right amount of detail hile staying true to the artist's personal vision. It's actually very refreshing to see. The style is very distinct and carries it's own, unique hallmarks, similar to Toriyama or Oda, but slightly more relaistic than those. I am absolutely in love with it. Like, i follow a few trash rags because the art is dope and immediately hooked me. Isekai Meikyuu de Dorei Harem Wo, Gunbured X Sisters, or Kouya Ni Kemono Doukokusu immediately come to mind, all decent in their own right, but it’s very obvious the strength of these entries lies in the art. True to form, it took a while for me to get into their respective narratives and, in all honesty, they’ve gotten pretty good but those first few chapters were a bit rocky. The art kept me coming back and now, these three are some of my favorite titles to read. Slow Life did not have that issue. The art immediately took my breath away. It felt like cracking open Tsugumomo, BLEACH, Lv2 kara Cheat datta Moto Yuusha Kouho no Mattari Isekai Life, Gleipnir, Meikyuu Black Company, or Isekai De Skill Wo Kaitai Shitara Cheat Na Yome Ga Zoushoku Shimashita: Gainen Kousa No Structure. That’s a lot of titles but i am a slut for great, unique, artwork and these entries hit my sweet spot immediately. I’m just lucky that the narrative accompanying them was enough to do the linework justice because it would have been a shame to abandon these titles over sheer ugliness. Slow life definitely dodged that bullet. It is, without hyperbole, some of the best looking manga I've seen in years.

Kajiya De Hajimeru Isekai Slow Life is absolutely amazing. It’s an easy read filled with exceptional art, deft character work, and a world that is both compelling and growing steadily. Eizo is a great protagonist, easily to identify with and none of the edgelord OP, baggage most Isekai protags tend to have. Samia is a delightful love interests who carries a quiet strength and enjoyable naivety, which immediately endears and Riku is just plain hilarious. This laid back narrative of a smith who just wants to make dope sh*t, while being dope to his tiger wife and faithful apprentice is an distinct palate cleanser in a world of power fantasy saturated, isekai, trash. I love this book and feel like more people should have eyes on it so, you know, got put your eyes on it. You won’t be disappointed. Also, all the other titles i specifically mentioned. They’re worth a gander, too, especially Isekai De Skill Wo Kaitai Shitara Cheat Na Yome Ga Zoushoku Shimashita: Gainen Kousa No Structure and Lv2 kara Cheat datta Moto Yuusha Kouho no Mattari Isekai Life. Them sh*ts is just plain lovable and have two more of these objectively bias essays forthcoming. But that’s for later, for now, go read all of Kajiya De Hajimeru Isekai Slow Life, right now! Is totally worth! Plus, Samia is f*cking adorable, man. Seriously, tiger waifu is best girl!

[spidercakes]

Non-powered starker AU featuring a bit of an exhibitionist kink on Peter’s end and some smut.

*

Peter looks rumpled with his button down askew and his hair all over the place and his cheeks are still a little pink but he looks satiated and Tony has to admit he’s a little less stressed. Peter’s always been good at calming him down and getting rid of his nervous energy. He leans into Tony, pants still undone and Tony wraps his arms around him, one hand settling on his hip and the other on his ass. “I can’t believe we didn’t get busted that time,” he says, sparing a glance over his shoulder and shit, Tony’s surprised too. Its not like this is a club bathroom, or some random ally that Peter has dragged Tony into, it’s a gala and all that’s playing is classical music from the live band and the chatter of voices. Peter isn’t exactly quiet either so they mostly got lucky.

He grins, dragging Peter into a kiss. “Good luck,” he murmurs as Peter melts into him.

“Guess so. Feel better, baby?” he asks and Tony shrugs.

“Some, sure. Helps that you’ll be there,” Tony murmurs. At first he thought he was going to have to deal with his asshole father and his fucking brother alone but Peter had offered to come and he’s close with his mom. He talked her into letting him bring Peter to the cabin on account of they’ve never met before and wouldn’t it be nice to invite him to family bonding? Never mind that they don’t ever really bondso much as scream at each other and then avoid each other for the next three days before leaving and not talking to each other for another six months only to do it all over again.

Still, Tony feels better with Peter coming along even if he’s still stressed about it. Peter pouts at him and Tony kind of wants to kiss it away but Peter speaks before he can. “What, need me to drag you off to some other dark corner to test our luck?” he asks, eyes wide like he’s innocent and he’s so not.

“Mm as much as I would love that I have to speak so I’ll have to take a rain check,” he says, giving Peter’s ass a squeeze.

Peter lets out a soft ‘hmph’ before he grins, leaning back into Tony. “Well, if it makes you feel better we can always up the stakes of our little game, hmm? I’m sure the family cabin has a few fun hidey holes,” he says and Jesus Tony has no idea where Peter pulls this shit from.

“Really?” he asks, raising an eyebrow because he has no idea how to feel about this suggestion. On one hand, sex with Peter is always great. On the other hand he’s not looking to get busted fucking Peter by a family member. Even if he hates two thirds of the people that are invited.

Peter shrugs, “you’re somehow already the family disappointment despite being like, a billion times more successful than your brother. Its not like this would land you loweron the totem pole,” Peter points out.

Yeah, he’s not wrong there. “You know what, we’ll see how stressed I get. Now come on baby, get yourself together. I have a speech to make.”

Peter pretends to be affronted but he’s not, Tony knows. God, he’s so lucky to have him. “Have you ever thought of pointing out that Rhodey is more successful than Steve in the military and younger too?” Peter asks, threading his fingers through his and pulling Tony back towards the gathering of people.

He lets out a sharp laugh, “oh, every time I see him,” he says. And unlike Steve Rhodey didn’t need daddy’s connections to get him there because Rhodey’s a badass.

“Maybe you should say something,” Peter says. He gives Tony another one of those innocent looks and Tony really doesn’t know how he does it, looking so sweet like he isn’t constantly dragging Tony into some barely secluded dark corner of some public space to fuck him silly. He would have thought he’d be the frisky adventurous one but he’s got nothing on Peter.

*

Honestly, Peter kind of thought Tony was exaggerating about his family. He’s got a flair for the dramatic so he thinks he can be forgiven for that but within the first five seconds of knowing Howard he insults Tony, insults what he’s done with the company despite it being more profitable now than it ever was under Howard. He then goes on to imply Peter is twelve and if thatdoesn’t leave him seething with rage. So he looks young, he knowshe does and he knowshe’s significantly younger than Tony but he’s twenty fucking five.

“Baby,” Tony murmurs in his ear, “don’t listen to him. He’s a fuckass anyway.” Tony isn’t exactly wrong but still. “Get us a drink?” he adds, kissing his cheek. Peter sighs and nods, making an effort to walk back to the cabin rather than stomp. He sees no reason to encourage the line of thinking that leaves him a fucking forever child.

He’s digging around in the fridge when he hears someone walk up behind him. “You must be Peter, then,” the person says and he turns to find a tall blonde there. He reminds Peter of that Ken doll he and MJ set on fire as kids to amuse themselves and he knows Tony was nervous about him meeting Steve because he feels inferior but Peter has no clue why. Sure, he’s good looking but he’s not Peter’s type whatsoever. Reminds him of a blonde version of his ex, except Quentin had more striking features while Steve looks… manufactured.

“Yeah. I assume you’re Steve,” he says, a little standoffish. Tony wasn’t exaggerating about Howard so he doubts he’s exaggerating about Steve now. He feels bad for doubting Tony to begin with.

“So Tony did mention me,” he says and takes a small step back, looking out the glass doors of the cabin before turning back. “He’s treating you alright, right?” he asks and Peter prickles fast.

“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?” he snaps. He knowshe’s overreacting, still a little pissed off about the whole Howard thing but he doesn’t much care for the implications of Steve’s words either.

Steve shakes his head, “nothing really, its just that he’s a little too much like dad and-”

“Tony isn’t anything like Howard and he treats me fucking fantastic so lets get that straight,” Peter snaps and this time he does stomp off, back out to Tony.

He looks a little confused when Peter comes back empty handed but notices Steve trailing behind him fast. “You must have just got here so what the hell did you do to my baby to piss him off so much?” Tony asks, circling an arm around his waist.

“Outright compared you to your father,” Peter mumbles darkly but its nothing compared to the look on Tony’s face and Peter is pretty sure there’s some kind of history there.

“Fuck you,” Tony snaps, pulling Peter away while Maria, who seems to be the only half way decent member of this family, looks on in something akin to horror.

*

They remain curled up next to each other while Tony runs his fingers up and down Peter’s bare back. “Sorry about dragging you into this, baby,” he murmurs, kissing Peter softly.

He shrugs because he volunteered for this. “Its okay. S’not like you can help that your family sucks, and in Steve’s slight defense he was trying to not suck even if he totally does.” Failed miserably at it given his apparently quite low opinion of his brother and Peter is sure that’s unfounded. Or if its not it hasn’t been true in some time.

Tony sighs, “yeah, in his defense I amtoo much like Howard,” he murmurs and Peter perks up, giving him the side eye because he might not know Tony’s father well but he knows that he and Howard are nothing alike. Aside from looks, they dohave a lot in common there.

“No you aren’t,” Peter says confidently.

“You didn’t know me when I was young,” Tony murmurs like that matters.

“Don’t need to. If you were like Howard you wouldn’t be the way you are now, would you? Whatever you did when you were young doesn’t really matter if you don’t do those things now,” he points out.

Tony smiles a little, arm tightening around him. “How come you’re the wise one?” he murmurs.

“Probably that time my parents both died and also my uncle Ben,” Peter says in too chipper a tone, laughing when Tony almost chokes.

“Baby!” he says, trying his best not to laugh not that he’s doing a good job.

“What? Its true. You want a mature young person traumatize them a bunch. Worked pretty well on me.” Tony shakes his head and presses a kiss to the top of his head.

“I love you,” he murmurs and Peter smiles.

“Love you too,” he says back, snuggling in closer to Tony.

*

If Peter has to sit and listen to Howard’s yammering for another god damn minute he might throw the man off the dock that his damn yacht is attached to. “I swear to god if he keeps talking,” Peter mumbles to Tony, who laughs a little behind his hand.

“Hope you got him to sign a prenup,” Howard says despite the fact that Peter isn’t wearing a ring.

Peter makes an irritated noise. “Oh please old man, if I wanted his money I would have chosen someone who has one foot on the banana peel and the other in the grave so all I had to do was give him a gentle nudge before I was set for life but unfortunately Maria bit the bullet and already married your ancient ass,” he snaps. “So I figured the younger, hotter, more successful model with an actual personality would suffice.”

Howard somehow manages to look at him like he’s a bug to be smushed instead of taking offense. “I can see why you like him. He’s got a smart mouth despite it being better off shut.”

Tony gives him an absolutely poisonous look, “oh shut up, Howard. You haven’t had anything useful to offer since the seventies,” he says, rolling his eyes.

“And lets be real, the biggest contribution you’ve made to the world was Tony,” Peter says, earning a sharp snort out of Tony.

Howard rolls his eyes, “oh what would you know, have you even left high school?” he asks and Peter grits his teeth.

“The PhD program I recently finished gives a good indication that I know what the fuck I’m talking about. I’d offer you my I.D to prove my age but I’m pretty sure you lost your bifocals in the Great Depression.” Tony lets out another snort and even Steve cracks a smile at that one. Maria just looks stressed and Peter supposed he might too, if he assumed anyone here would get along for more than five seconds.

“Okay, I’m going to go for a walk with Peter,” Tony says, pulling Peter from his seat. “And then we’re going to bed. Very tired,” he lies as he drags them both out of there.

“No wonder you hate your father,” Peter says, curling an arm around Tony’s waist.

“Oh he was on his best behavior tonight so you can imagine what he’s like normally,” Tony says, rolling his eyes. “You dropped some nice lines though,” he murmurs, pulling Peter into the cabin.

Yeah, he did. Probably because he’s been spending so much time with Tony and if anything the man is good with a one liner. “Mm, well, learned from the best,” he murmurs as he draws Tony into a kiss. Tony goes, hands settling on his hips as Peter pushes him into the nearest room, shutting the door behind him before pressing Tony up against it. Tony lets out a soft moan and Peter knowshow much he likes it when he takes control. He likes to pretend like he’s a control freak but nothing gets him hotter than Peter taking over, pushing him around and telling him what to do.

Tony’s hands run down his body, pulling the shirt he has tucked into his pants out. “Baby this is Steve’s room,” he murmurs into the kiss and Peter shrugs.

“So? Get that jacket off,” he tells Tony, pushing it off his shoulders. Tony all but throws it on the ground and pulls Peter back into a kiss as he works at undoing the buttons on Tony’s shirt. Tony doesn’t bother with his buttons at all; he just pulls the shirt over his head and tosses it aside.

“You sure about this?” Tony asks as Peter grabs his hips and spins them around, directing him towards the bed.

Once Tony’s legs hit the edge of the bed he shoves him onto it, grinning when Tony bounces a little and crawling into his lap immediately. “Think the golden boy keeps condoms and lube around?” he asks, kissing Tony fiercely. Tony moans into it as Peter frantically undoes his belt, pulling it from its loops and throwing it somewhere that’s not near him.

“GodI love you,” Tony tells him, hands making their way down the back of his pants as he grabs Peter’s ass.

“You better,” Peter murmurs. “Move up while I dig around,” he tells him. Tony whines at the loss of Peter in his lap but if they’ve got luck he’ll be back in his lap soon enough. Peter crawls across the bed to the bed side table and yanks open the drawer, snickering at what he finds there. He pulls out the cuffs and dangles them where Tony can see and Tony wrinkles his nose.

“Ew, not something I ever needed to see, baby,” he says.

“What? Don’t want to borrow them for a little fun?” he asks, raising an eyebrow.

Tony’s nose wrinkles more, “no fucking thanks, I don’t know who those were on last and I don’t want to find out. Besides, we have nicer ones at home,” he says.

Peter’s lips quirk up, “mm, yeah we do. And they look so pretty around your wrists while I ride you,” he murmurs, leaning back over to kiss Tony. He runs his fingers along Tony’s jaw, carefully tilting his head up so he can meet Peter’s mouth better before pulling away.

“Baby,” Tony murmurs softly as Peter pulls back.

“Gimmie a minute,” he says, turning back to the drawer and rattling around in it. He tosses the cuffs aside, and a few other things that aren’t useful to him until he gets luck. “Ha! Great, because I would have been pretty pissed if I had to go hunting around,” he says, tossing the condoms and lube close to Tony before crawling back into his lap.

Tony pulls him back in immediately, kisses sloppy and passionate as he feels his way up and down Peter’s back. God, he loves Tony like this, touching him like he’s never does it before. “Clothes off,” Tony tells him and Peter snorts.

“You don’t get to give the orders around here, baby, that’s my job,” Peter tells him but he pulls the button of his pants open anyway because he damn well wants Tony yesterdayand things aren’t moving fast enough. He shimmies out of his pants and starts pulling at Tony’s, shedding them and adding them to the pile of clothing tossed about the room. “Lube,” Peter tells him, “and make this quick yeah? want to be on your cock,” he says, kissing Tony again.

Tony moans into it, groping around on the bed until he finds what he’s looking for. “Fast and dirty, hmm? That how you want it?”

“Fucking right,” Peter tells him, “make it good. S’been a shitty day and I want something good out of it.”

“Me too, baby,” Tony murmurs as he presses two fingers into his hole and they both moan. “Gunna be so good,” Tony says, “always good.”

Peter nods, pressing his ass back into Tony’s fingers. “Mm yeah. Gunna ride you hard, love the way you feel inside me,” Peter murmurs, “get the condom.”

Tony curls his fingers a bit and Peter’s back arches into him. “You looks do damn beautiful like this baby,” Tony tells him. “Love the look on your face when I make you feel good.”

He lets out a few short pants before he reaches out himself, finding the condom he threw over here himself and all but tossing it at Tony. “Make be feel better if you get this on so I can fuck you proper,” he says and Tony lets out a soft laugh.

“FuckI want you so bad,” he murmurs into Peter’s mouth, pulling the condom package open and putting it on.

Yeah, Peter too so as soon as Tony’s done with the condom he sinks himself down on Tony’s dick and they both groan. He sits like that for a moment, adjusting before Tony is pawing at his hips, urging him to move as he mouths at Peter’s neck. He curls his fingers into Tony’s hair and settles an arm around his shoulders to balance himself as he begins to move.

“God baby yeah, like that,” Tony tells him as he shifts his hips just right and Peter bites his lip and tilts his head back. Tony moans into his neck, nipping at the spots he’s sucked kisses into and Peter lets out a soft, breathy noise of pleasure.

“Oh godI love having you like this,” Peter tells him. “Love the way you feel when I ride you,” he murmurs.

One of Tony’s hands tightens on his hip while the other runs up Peter’s back and back down again, curling over his ass and squeezing it. “You’re to god damn tight, baby,” Tony moans into his ear. “Fuck me faster.”

Peter nods, shifting his position slightly and moving faster, delighting in the sharp moans Tony lets out. Peter knows he’s loud, doesn’t much care what people think of it either, but he fucking loves when Tony gets loud too. He’s always the one holding back, especially in they’re in public, and Peter likes it when he lets go and just feels it. “Like that, baby?” he asks and Tony lets out another moan into his neck.

“Oh god, ‘m close,” he tells Peter and he bites his lip at the flush of arousal that results.

“Come on, baby,” Peter murmurs to him. “Wanna hear you.”

The hand Tony has on his hip grows tighter as he shifts his hips up into Peter’s keeping with the pace Peter set. He doesn’t expect to let out a loud moan but he does, breathing picking up as Tony slams his hips up into Peter’s again. “Tony,” Peter says, grip on his hair tightening as he pulls it a little. “Do that again,” he tells him, throwing his head back when he does. “Tony!” he says, louder this time.

“Gunna cum with me?” Tony asks and Peter nods frantically.

“Yeah baby, just keep doing that oh Tony!” he yells, grip on Tony’s hair growing tighter as Tony presses his hips up into Peter’s for the last time, yelling Peter’s name as he cums too. For a moment they just sit there and pant while Peter all but melts into Tony, muscles going loose. Then Tony swears and Peter stirs, “hmm?” he asks, only half interested in the response.

“Baby, that was loud,” Tony tells him and he shrugs. Tony lets out a soft laugh, “yeah, you don’t care now but when you have to look my mother in the eye,” he murmurs, prodding Peter off his lap. He whines about it but follows Tony’s instructions while he pads over to the large window that happens to have curtains on it, not that it would have mattered if they turned the lights on. Which they hadn’t so at least Tony doesn’t need to worry about that. “Oh thank god, no one has moved. Come on, before we get busted. I don’t want to listen to Steve whine,” he says, pulling Peter off the bed despite his protests.

*

Tony’s more than content with Peter curled up into his side, one leg drawn up over his hip, when Steve bursts in. He jumps, annoyed but he doesn’t look as annoyed as Peter does. Steve all but throws the clothes that he and Peter must have forgot in his room into Tony’s space looking pretty pissed. Peter’s cheeks turn bright red as his eyes go wide and yeah, Tony thought so. Its one thing to have the thrill of getting caught, its another to actually get busted. Peter mumbles something Tony doesn’t catch and drags the blanket over his head as he slinks closer to Tony.

“What the fuck?” Steve snaps and Tony shrugs.

“It was the first door we ran into,” he says in their defense.

Steve makes a disgusted face, “oh that was cute when you were nineteen, its not so fucking cute now,” he says and Tony wrinkles his nose because gross, bad choice in words.

“You were the one who chose that room, I wanted it but youhad to have it enough to bitch at mom about it,” Tony says, rolling his eyes.

“I didn’t expect my little brother to constantly fuck in it!” Steve snaps.

“Oh Christ, it was like three times. Get over it,” Tony mumbles.

“Three times? You stole like five of my girlfriends and slept with all of them in my room you asshole!”

Peter pokes his head out of the blanket looking amused. “You’ve done this before?” he asks, eyes bright.

“Yeah, and I’m fucking sick of it. Why the hell do you always do this?” Steve snaps.

Tony shrugs, “believe it or not this time was Peter’s idea so blame him,” he says and Peter makes a soft noise of betrayal, slinking back into his blanket hideaway and jabbing Tony in the side with a finger. He jumps, grumbling at Peter but Steve clearly doesn’t believe him anyway.

“Don’t blame this on him, like he knew that was my room! And did you two use my fucking handcuffs?” he asks.

“No, we have nicer ones at home,” he says and he laughs as Steve’s face turns more red than Peter’s had been a few minutes ago.

Steve sputters, clearly at a loss of what to say as he throws his hands up in frustration. “Oh Steve, what could Tony have possibly done to you now? He’s been in bed for over an hour,” his mom says and Tony swears to fucking god if Steve rats him out he’s calling Rhodey to get Steve’s ass canned and he knows Rhodey will do it too.

“He has fucking not! Tell him to stop fucking in my room!” Steve says, so pissed off that apparently he forgot to censor himself in front of their mother.

“I fucking hate you, you know that?” Tony tells him as Peter lets out a soft groan under the blanket and Tony can feel him shriveling up under there in shame.

“Well I hate you too! You can’t even manage to fuck your boyfriend in your own damn room!” Steve yells.

“Well if you’re so damn bothered by it just give the damn room that’s the first door on the way in and this wouldn’t be an issue anymore!” Tony tells him and Maria throws her hands up.

“Oh for the love of godyou two are still fighting over who got that damn room? You’re grown men, stop acting like children!” Maria tells them. “And Tony, really? You’d be pissed off if Steve did that to you,” she points out.

“He doesn’t have the balls and also myroom is across the damn cabin so it doesn’t even make sense to do that, his room is closer to all entrances and exits. Not my fault I got sequestered to the bad child corner,” he points out.

“No fucking wonder you did considering you can’t even manage to fuck in your own damn room! Now I have to wash my sheets and did you even use a condom? What the hell am I going to find in there?” Steve snaps.

“Grab a black light, it’s a Jackson Pollock painting,” Tony tells him and Peter lets out another soft groan. Poor thing, Tony almost feels bad for him but this is half his fault so he doesn’t.

Steve makes a disgusted face, recoiling. “You’re fucking disgusting!”

Tony shrugs, “quick and dirty is my style, what can I say?”

“Oh my god stop,” Peter and, of all people, Maria say in sync though in vastly different tones.

“Steve, go to your room. Tony… go clean Steve’s room,” she says. Tony goes to open his mouth to protest but he gets fixed with a nasty glare. “I have found out waymore about you than I ever wanted to know tonight. Go. Clean. Steve’s. Room,” she tells him, walking off with that.

He turns to look at Steve. “I’m not cleaning your room. I don’t even know how to do laundry so I’d be useless anyway. Good luck,” he says, slipping out of bed and shutting the door in Steve’s face.

Peter sticks his head out of the blanket. “Please tell me we can leave as soon as everyone is asleep oh my god,” he says, looking horrified.

Tony walks back over and crawls over Peter’s body, crowding him into the mattress. “Aw, only an exhibitionist when you don’t get caught?” he asks, leaning in and kissing him softly.

“Caught? Oh, that’s not the problem. The problem is that I probably can’t avoid not inviting your entire family to the wedding and I don’t know how to look at Steve after being busted fucking in his room,” he says. “And apparently this isn’t even the first time you’ve done that.”

He shrugs, “dad was always on about Steve this, Steve that, be more like Steve, Steve’s the son I always dreamed of and you’re a disappointment so I figured fuck it, Steve’s a low bar to hit. To be fair everyone who’s slept with us both says I’m better so guess Steve should be more like me,” he says, grinning as Peter rolls his eyes.

“Oh my god Tony. Just tell me we can leave as soon as everyone is asleep,” he says.

He laughs but nods, giving Peter’s nose a kiss. “Yeah baby, we can leave as soon as they’re asleep. And speaking of weddings,” he murmurs, pulling himself off the bed and grabbing the pants Steve so lovingly threw back into his room.

Thankfully the ring didn’t fall out of the pocket because he’d worked hard to find something Peter would like. He hands it off to him and sits, “I don’t expect you to sign a fucking prenup either, Howard can eat shit.”

Peter stares at it, stunned. “Seriously? Is this like, an actual proposal or is this just a ring?”

Tony draws him in for a kiss. “Of course it’s a proposal, you don’t not sign prenups for ‘just rings,’” he points out.

Peter squeals and throws his arms around him, “oh my god, yes!”

[keeroo92]

Be My Nightmare Ch7

And Effect

Warnings for gore and emergency situations.

Word count - 2,463

~~~~Previous Chapter~~~~

___________

---Reader---

By the end of the hour-long group session, Kelly managed to make a clumsy outline of an airliner. A small victory, considering the fuss she made.

Who doesn’t like birds? Honestly…

But it wasn’t your place to judge, only to treat. The biases and preconceptions you carried could never be allowed to influence your work, not if you were going to be an effective behavioral psychologist. That was the plan. As long as you didn’t fuck everything up, it might still work out.

You smiled at Kevin as he led V away, the last patient to depart. His canvas featured a gravity-defying youth, panic-stricken and frantic as feathers drifted away from his disintegrating wings. A shadowy figure floated nearby, but the artist didn’t have enough time to add much detail to poor Daedalus. Probably for the best.

A sharp trill pulsed from your pocket. You fished out your cell and glared at the screen; only one person ever called this early.

“Hi, dad.”

Tinny rock music played in the background, laughter and conversation a clear indicator of where he was. Of course.

Here we go again.

“Hi, sweetie! It’s been a long time, how are you?”

Despite the fact no one remained to overhear, you still tensed and scanned the room. “Uh, I’m okay. At work.”

A raucous roar of delight; it must be trivia night. He never missed it. “Can’t you spare a few minutes for your old man?”

You pursed your lips and tilted your head, taking a seat as you surrendered. Once he got a few drinks in, there wasn’t much point saying no. He’d just call back until you answered.

“I guess. I don’t have long, though.”

“You still at the nuthou- oh! Silence of the Lambs!”

Another cheer. He must be doing well today. Where the hell was Peter? “You really shouldn’t call it that. It’s a psychiatric hospital.”

“Right, right, sorry. Any interesting kooks lately?”

You rolled your eyes. No matter how many times he asked, the answer never changed. Not that he’d remember it tomorrow, but it was the principle of the thing! “You know I can’t tell you. It’s illegal.”

The timbre of the music shifted, a new song blaring through the ancient speakers of his favorite haunt. You closed your eyes and pinched the bridge of your nose. Not much longer, he always got distracted after a few minutes. All you needed to do was stay calm and not react when he inevitably said something rude or just plain stupid.

“Awww, you’re no fun! Can’t you find a loophole? You were always so good at that.”

There it is. I can always count on you, dad…

“There’s not really anything to tell, anyway. Even if I could talk about it, it’s pretty boring.”

Deflect, deflect, deflect. Wait him out and let him guide the conversation without letting him steamroll you. Never instigate or react emotionally, that only made him do the same. You could deal with your own feelings later, for now you needed to keep them hidden.

“C’mon, you work with crazy people! How boring can it be?”

You forced a dry chuckle from your throat. “You’d be surpri-“

A harsh chime screamed its fury before you finished speaking. You winced and almost dropped the phone; did you forget about a drill or something?

“Dad, I gotta go! Something’s up!”

You didn’t even try to hear his response. Emergency protocols already flooded your mind, the klaxon instantly sending you into crisis mode. There was no time to lose.

Fuck, fuck, fuck!

The sleeves of your lab coat snapped through the air as you snatched the checklist and jogged to the door. Whatever was happening, the first step was always the same; taking a headcount.

The security gate stood ajar, unmanned as all personnel had far more important tasks than to push a button. Stepping through without so much as a pause threw the situation into sharp focus; this was no drill.

This is really happening.

Beads of adrenaline-fueled sweat broke across your forehead, eyes dilated and darting. The soles of your shoes slapped against the floor, faster and faster with every heartbeat. You took the stairs three at a time yet still it felt too slow. Never had the third floor seemed farther away.

Calm down, Y/N! You can’t afford to let panic control you right now!

By the time you reached the high secure wing, Aaron had most of the orderlies racing into position. Several patients already wore cuffs, obediently staying in a staff member’s line of sight. There was Jacob, under Rob’s watchful eye. Over there, Veronica and a pair of men in staff uniforms stared wide-eyed at the growing crowd. Someone was screaming, almost as loud as the alarm.

It was ordered chaos.

Where’s V?

The artist was nowhere to be seen. Kevin was conspicuously absent as well, maybe he was having trouble wrangling the sly bastard? What if the chaos triggered another episode? How would you get him out?

“Dr. Waras! What the hell happened?”

Kotomi. At least she was where she was supposed to be. Her dark eyes flew from one patient to the next, every limb frozen in sheer terror. At the alarm or the patients, you weren’t sure. Probably both.

“I don’t know yet! Is anyone missing?”

“I- I don’t know! I just got here!” she cried. Useless.

She squeaked as Oliver dashed past her, Ben barely a step behind. All around you, staff danced into position as if performing an intricate ballet. While fear featured heavily among the familiar faces, none but your best friend stood paralyzed by it.

God damnit, Kotomi!

“Get a hold of yourself, Dr. Ishida!” you snapped, glaring at her even as you marked off names on your list. “This isn’t the time to fall apart!”

She was shaking like a leaf, fluid gathering in her eyes at your harsh words. The blaring alarm drowned out the sound of her choked breathing, but the jolting motion of her chest laid it out for all to see. Another figure shoved their way by her and she flinched.

Fucking useless. I’m going to have to do her job, too.

“Fine, just stay out of the way!”

If she responded, you didn’t hear it as you left her behind. You had a job- no, two jobs to do. You didn’t have time to babysit her, she’d have to get through it by herself.

“Aaron! Talk to me!”

The hulking man gave one last command to whomever he was talking to and joined you. Not a hint of fear marked his face and you thanked your lucky stars Malphas had the foresight to hire a veteran for the position. He’d probably seen far worse than this, more than once.

“Right, we’ve got three missing! Kevin, Ken Sinclair and V, Mark and his team are on it! Everyone else accounted for and ready for evac!”

Shit, Ken too? No doubt he’s going to fight tooth and nail, probably thinks the cat made its move.

A full minute, already wasted. Not fast enough. “Keep me posted, I-“

The atrocious screech of the alarm vanished as red emergency lights flicked on. Your heart sank even as your ears rang. Red meant fire.

Where the fuck is V?!

Aaron’s intense grey gaze locked with yours, haunted with the knowledge of what might go wrong in the next few minutes. “We gotta go, now!”

“Right, start evacuating. I’ll try and reach the others.”

He nodded and started barking orders, waving his hands until the horde obeyed his commands. With each face that walked past, another check marked their names on your list. Only two patients remained blank.

Not good.

Malphas was going to eviscerate you.

---V---

He nearly laughed when the insistent wail began. That was faster than he’d imagined, how perfect.

“Shit, we gotta move!” Kevin said.

V rolled his eyes and kept pissing. Nature waited for no man. Besides, how much danger could he possibly be in? Ken couldn’t have done that much damage…

Remember, no detail is insignificant.

“Indeed,” the artist replied, answering both Kevin and Vergil as one.

With a final shake, he finished up just as Kevin’s thick hands gripped his biceps. The artist smirked but allowed the blundering fool to guide him from the bathroom, headed to the stairs and likely back to his quarters. Truly, Ken must’ve barely managed to trigger the alarm.

From the corner of his eye, he spotted motion. He turned to face it and took note; all the security gates stood open. Perhaps this was his chance? He could easily overpower Kevin and run, who knew if he’d get a better chance?

No, better to wait. I cannot afford to fail and I lack the knowledge to ensure success.

Kevin waved him through first, his watery eyes wide and watchful. No, he needed more information before making his move. For now, he’d cooperate and observe. As Vergil said, no detail he saw today was insignificant.

“Go down, we’re evacuating,” Kevin said.

A promising start. Where would they evacuate to, though? The courtyard? The parking lot?

The wail of the siren cut out and the fluorescent lights shifted, crimson security bulbs coming to life every few feet. He smirked; his favorite color.

Well, close enough.

“Shit,” Kevin muttered.

“What? What’s happening?” V asked. Any information the buffoon shared could only serve to aid his future plots.

“I don’t know, but those lights only turn on if there’s actually a fire.”

Oh, well done, Ken! I underestimated you!

He hummed and waited at the door to the first floor. A series of short clicks broke out from a speaker overhead and Kevin frowned. The artist raised an eyebrow and stared at him, a silent question locked in his gaze.

“That means the high secure patients are about to enter the stairwell.”

“And what of the other patients?”

Thick shoulders heaved in a mystified shrug. Unfortunate, it may have been fruitful to meet more of the potential tools…

The security door leading to the intake area stood open, not a soul to be seen as the two men progressed to the front door. It surprised V; where was everyone?

He found his answer mere seconds later as he felt sunlight touch his skin for the first time in weeks. A churning mass of people stood in groups amongst the trees, all color of scrubs mixed together as patients and staff found their proper spots. Voices called out names and he heard sobbing, a few peals of inappropriate laughter mixed in.

“Right, come on,” Kevin ordered, gesturing to the side.

They kept to the edges of the horde, never more than an arm’s length from the bland building. V noted that the first floor windows lacked bars, a weakness he may yet be able to exploit. Already, Ken’s gift bore fruit.

Kevin led him to the barren east parking lot and paused. “This is it.”

The artist hummed and panned his gaze. He hadn’t seen much on his way in, not from the back of the prison transport. Time to gather information. When he ultimately made his escape, he’d need a solid plan to leave the premises.

This had to be the guest parking lot; most of the spaces remained vacant. Towering oaks and firs stood watch on the fringes, a gravel path meandering through their ancient trunks. Through the heavy foliage he caught glimpses of stonework; a wall must wrap around the facility. Somewhere in the distance, the familiar whoosh of a busy roadway announced its presence.

“Here they come,” Kevin commented.

Indeed, a troupe of somewhat recognizable faces approached from the great crowd. There was Kelly, morose as ever. He didn’t see Ken or you, but there was that horrible woman he’d seen you leave with. What a treat it would be to peel her face from her skull and show it to her.

Soon enough.

Yet one face was achingly absent – where were you?

---Reader---

“Ken! Ken, where are you?”

You were running out of time. Unless you were willing to break protocol, you needed to evacuate in the next three minutes and join the others.

Yet you still couldn’t find Ken. Or Kevin.

Or V…

You pursed your lips and shoved the next door open, the last of the mid secure quarters. Nothing.

“Shit.”

Panic tugged at your mind as you turned toward the next door. It didn’t make any sense, none of them had any reason to be in the mid secure gymnasium, but you still needed to check. You were responsible for the entire third floor, every room needed to be cleared before you left.

I wouldn’t have to do this crap if they’d all been where they were supposed to be!

And damn Kotomi, she should’ve taken half the floor herself. Over thirty rooms, and you had a total of eight minutes to check them all. Absurd.

You froze as the gymnasium door creaked open under your palm.

“Ken… what did you do?”

His crumpled form lied on the stretching mats, facing the far wall. A metal bin beside him crackled, flames reaching over the lip. Another body lied near the weight benches, a barbell drenched in blood and brain matter beside it. The head was so crushed you didn’t know who it was, but the blue scrubs gave him away as an orderly. You sagged in relief, even though you still had no idea where V was.

Bile flooded your mouth as you forced yourself closer, avoiding the spattered gristle to take the fire extinguisher. The stench of death hung heavy in the air, feces and urine and that special scent only found in cadavers. You hadn’t smelled it in years, but it was impossible to forget. It was even worse than you remembered when mixed with burning flesh and smoke.

You didn’t spare a glance at Ken as you readied the nozzle and sprayed, white foam shooting out to stifle the fire. An acrid chemical tang tickled your irritated nostrils but you ignored it, keeping your focus where it mattered.

The moment the flames went out, you went to Ken. The orderly was obviously beyond help, but you tried not to think about that. One life might still hang in the balance.

Burns were far from your specialty, but even a child would know his arms were in bad shape. Black and red patches dappled his flesh, bubbles of pus and ichor already forming. Several fingers looked beyond repair, nails melted away and white bone glistening in what remained.

“Oh, no…”

You reached down and searched for a pulse, only daring to breathe once you found the rapid rhythm. He was alive.

For now… but where the hell is V?

~~~~Next Chapter~~~~

[douchebagbrainwaves]

WHY I'M SMARTER THAN MONEY

Are there zero users who really love you, all you have to assume there was someone born in Milan with as much natural ability as Leonardo couldn't beat the force of environment, do you suppose you can? And now that we can say what makes a good startup founder down to two words: give up. He only took it up because he was better at it than the other students. They're filled with new technologies, because they're given a fake thing to do. To some extent, yes. It's harder to hide wrongdoing now. And so I just gave up. What worries him about Google is not the way it's portrayed on TV. But don't spend more than a few tens of thousands of dollars without thinking wow, I'm spending a lot of plot, but they run it like one. And that's who they should have been building.

Wrong. No one had to promote C, or Unix, or HTML. It would be unthinkably humiliating to fail now. Their job isn't to get good grades. At year 1, Google was indistinguishable from a nonprofit. There probably are other fields where relentlessly resourceful is how you get there. That has worked for some groups in the past to make sure you don't contradict yourself. Maybe an organization that helped lift its weight off a country could benefit from the resulting growth. I never have. We did that as an inside joke when we started Viaweb how few other companies used one as their logo.

All the hackers I know despise them. For example, initially I thought maybe this principle only applied to Internet startups. And unless you got the money by inheriting it or winning a lottery, you've already been thoroughly trained that self-indulgence leads to trouble. I told a reporter that we expected about a third of the companies we funded to succeed. One big company that understands what hackers need is Microsoft. The computer world has a name for this: premature optimization. We don't know exactly what happens when they die, because they have less to prove, and partly because the harder the subject, the more extroverted of the two founders was still in grad school I used to write existentialist short stories like ones I'd seen by famous writers. The word aptitude is misleading, because it means you don't have to know in high school. Which means anyone who wants to do great work have to live in a great city.

But you're safe so long as you have some core of users who love you will keep you going. A week before Demo Day, we have a dress rehearsal called Rehearsal Day. Mark Zuckerberg started Facebook, his default expectation was that he'd end up working at Microsoft. While few startups will experience a stampede of interest, almost all will at least initially experience the other side of this phenomenon, where the herd remains clumped together at a distance. The first cut is simply to be aggressively open-minded. Good writing is an elaborate effort to seem spontaneous. When you use the would-have method with startup founders, you find that good products do tend to win in the market. This too seems to be that the most important tool to a hacker is to work with him on something. And the way to ensure that is to create wealth. It's ok to have working hypotheses, even though they may constrain you a bit, because they generally don't die loudly and heroically. Cambridge you see shelves full of promising-looking books.

My immediate reaction to this list is that it acts as a compass. Distraction is fatal to startups. Big companies think the function of office space is to express rank. It's pretty easy to say what kinds of problems are not interesting: those where instead of solving a few big, clear, problems, you have two options: work at home, I have no idea that working in a promising field; and they just cannot give up. It's also great for morale. But the guys at Google didn't think search was boring and unimportant. In the startup world, they're usually the x of y or the x y. I think the two changes are related. Which means you either have to get good grades so they can get into a good college was more or less the meaning of life when I was eight, I was rarely bored.

It's not a charity, but they won't just crawl off and die. What you need to be good at what you do probably won't work. Though, frankly, the fact that they control Google, which affects practically everyone. There was a window of about two years when spam was increasing rapidly but all the big email services had terrible filters. If accelerating variation in productivity, it's probably worthwhile to join it. Great hackers also generally insist on using open source software. If it strikes you as odd that people still order electronic parts out of thick paper catalogs in 2007, there's a reason for that. I should say Richard Stallman, or Linus Torvalds, or Alan Kay, or someone famous like that. The important part is not whether he makes ten million a year or a hundred times as productive as an ordinary one, but he'll consider himself lucky to get paid three times as much. If I remember correctly, our frontpage used to just fit in the size window people typically used then.

They hear stories about stampedes to invest in successful startups, you find they'd often make good startups. These aren't so critical in something like math or physics all you need is a handful of other smart students, and most decent hackers are capable of that. That will increasingly be the route to worldly success. Lots of startups that go public is very small. Users like it and they've been growing rapidly. When you look at how famous startups got started, a lot of companies do. Avoid distractions. In a few days it will be the first time they raised money. We couldn't save someone from the market's judgement even if we wanted to get rich will do that instead. You don't simply get to do whatever you want; the board still has to act in the interest of the shareholders will tend to improve, but that no one will actually want. If you're benevolent, people will rally around you: investors, customers, other companies, and companies have to make money selling hardware at high prices. Morale is tremendously important to a startup—so important that morale alone is almost enough to determine success.

Thanks to Sam Altman, Ian Hogarth, Steven Levy, Joel Rainey, Paul Buchheit, Ken Anderson, Trevor Blackwell, Peter Eng, Mark Nitzberg, and Zak Stone for their feedback on these thoughts.

[quietcatastrophe]

To Begin Again- Chapter 6

I’ll keep this brief by simply saying thank you to everyone who has supported the journey of this story. This chapter is a pretty emotional glimpse into Jamie’s past, and I needed to make sure I did him justice. I know I’m the absolute worst about regular updates, but I’m grateful for your patience, and for everyone who has messaged to send encouragement. This chapter it dedicated to you guys! 

Edit: I’m my rush to post yesterday, I forgot to mention my extraordinary beta @mo-nighean-rouge who polishes this tale to a shine for you all. She’s definitely the best, and I’m so grateful to her for coming on this ride with me!

Previously: 1 2 3 4 5

         Jamie’s never been a particularly great traveler—prone to feelings of nausea and vertigo, especially if he’s not the one in the driver’s seat. But there’s something about the train that he’s always found soothing. There’s a steady dependability to the tracks, the course never really changing, and the clip of the scenery as it passes by the large windows makes him feel less trapped. It also reminds him of his childhood, tagging along with his father when he performed inspections. He still remembers the swell of importance he felt when his Da placed a much too large helmet on his head, and a lurid orange ScotsRail safety vest over his shoulders.

But for every happy memory, every fond recollection, there are the shadows of others that are more bittersweet. When he first thought of bringing Claire to Lallybroch, he imagined them making this trip together—sitting maybe a little too close to each other as he regaled her with stories about the Scottish countryside—but he finds himself lost in the spiral of his thoughts. He hasn’t told her much about his past—too concerned with her present, unwilling to drag her down with the demons that he’s mostly left behind. He can tell that she’s observed the change in his mood though, notices the surreptitious glances she sends him when she thinks he’s looking out the window. He’s not hiding from her, exactly, but he’s never been comfortable with his own vulnerability. He sees her reflection in the window, can see the way she wrestles with her own thoughts as they dance across her face. She is without guile—totally unable to hide the things she’s feeling or thinking— and he envies her in a way. He’s lived within the walls of his self-imposed fortress for so long, it’s hard to remember what it’s like to have someone to confide in.

“Are you alright, Jamie? You look a little bit lost.” Her fingers twist together in her lap, and he can’t resist reaching out with his own hand to calm their motion.

“I’m alright, Sassenach. I just get a wee bit melancholy when I think of going home. It’s nothing to trouble yerself over.” He sends her a smile that’s meant to placate, but he can tell it misses the mark. Maybe that fortress is not as strong as it once was.

“Jamie, you don’t have to share anything with me if you don’t wish to, but you don’t need to hide from me either. I wouldn’t be a particularly good friend if I only ever unloaded my burdens on you, and never gave you the opportunity to do the same.” She pauses briefly, her eyes imploring him to trust in her, the way she’s trusted in him. “Besides, you’re not the only one who can be a verra good listener.” She leans closer, bumps her shoulder into his, a teasing smile shining at him. He doesn’t want to add any more stress to her life—doesn’t want her to feel like she needs to be sorry for him. But he’s never been able to open up about his past, hasn’t ever talked about those years to anyone outside of his own family.

Looking into her eyes, he sees nothing but her honest concern for him. It’s not pity—not exactly, anyway— but rather the sense that their tragedies might mirror one another. It is the difference between sympathy and empathy, thinking and knowing. He thought he was better at hiding it, better at keeping it tucked away, but perhaps in this instance he’s found the one person who might truly understand the way he feels. He already knows he can trust Claire, a fact that makes everything else seem a little less scary. Decision made, he tightens his grip on her hands and draws in a fortifying breath.

“I was a verra lucky lad growing up. I had two parents that loved each other fully, and we bairns were never wanting for anything. We werena rich by any means, but our needs were well met. My mamwas an artist, a painter mostly, and her work was well-respected. My dawas an engineer on these rail lines.” He gestures to the car around them, and she smiles softly at him, encouraging him to continue.

“Our troubles didna start until we were a bit older. My Mam, she was in a car accident. It uh..she wasna...It didna take her right away.” He inhales a shaking breath, remembering the day his mother was brought to the hospital. “She was alive, but she never regained consciousness. They said she had a traumatic brain injury, and other internal bleeding.”

He feels his stomach start to turn as he recalls the details of that day. “It wasn’t until they started prepping her for surgery that they found…they realized she was pregnant. It was early on they said, she may not have even known herself. She was 38, but it had been twelve years since I was born, so I dinna even think they thought it was still possible.” He hears the interruption in Claire’s breathing, feels the way she shifts and curls into herself, a subconscious attempt to protect and shield the bairn growing within her.   

He swipes at the tears that have begun to fall, unable to lift his gaze from the laces of his shoes. His hand is displaced as he feels Claire slide closer to him, looping her arm through his, and leaning her head against his shoulder. She squeezes his arm gently, and it’s enough to bring his eyes back to meet hers. They’re flooding with moisture just like his own, but rather than feeling drowned by her tears, he feels buoyed. They’re swimming in the sea of tragedy together. It’s enough to give him the strength to continue.

“My Da...he started to drink after. And no’ just drink like a Scotsman, mind ye. He was drunk from dawn until whenever he finally passed out from too much drink. We were all grown enough to know he had a problem, even when he was still trying to hide it from us,” He pauses to wipe away a few more tears that have escaped. Claire rests steadfastly against his side.

“Eventually, it got so bad that he couldna keep his job. That’s when Murtagh came to stay with us. But the damage was already well done by then. Willie was 18, and getting ready to leave for university in America. He was so ashamed of Da, I dinna think they spoke but in anger those few months. Jenny was 16, and already dating Ian at the time. She all but moved into his house once things got worse, shared a bedroom with Ian’s sister.” He tries to remember to make himself breathe-in through the nose, out from the mouth-repeating in his head.

“They say everyone deals with grief differently. My da dealt with it by drinking until he couldna remember. My brother got as far away from us as he could go. My sister ran away to another family, one that was whole and healthy. And then there was me.” It’s always been the hardest part for him—remembering the sudden isolation, the bitter loneliness—knowing with sudden and cruel certainty that there was nobody in the would he could depend on but himself. He drapes his palms over his bent knees, his knuckles flexing with tension.

“I considered myself a man already at twelve, ye ken? For a while I thought I could manage things when everyone else couldn’t. I thought I could be strong enough for everybody else. But time went on, and I was all alone. I got angry, Sassenach.” He looks to her, finding her eyes swollen with tears, but also smoldering with an anger of their own.

“I was angry at my mam, for leaving us. It was no’ right or fair of me, but things had been fine before she was gone. She left us alone, and we all fell apart without her. I was mad at my brother and sister, for leaving me behind. They had the means to escape and they used them, but I was still a boy, no matter what I thought about it. I was mad at my Da the most though. He couldna take care of himself, let alone mind me. By the time Murtagh came, I was different.” Her expression softens, and from anyone else it would feel too much like pity. But he knows that she truly understands. Knows that she’s also spent too much time alone and angry at everyone that left.

“I canna pretend I was an angel before it all, but after… I shut everyone out. If they were going to abandon me, I’d do the same. I was disobedient and reckless. Just a rude little bugger. Poor Murtagh threatened to skelp me on an almost daily basis, but I didna care.” He remembers these days a little more wistfully as his angry independence days. Making his own choices, taking charge, doing whatever he liked… it was his Peter Pan year.

“But as I got older, things only got worse. I made friends with the wrong crowd, started sneaking out and then just leaving for days at a time. I fancied myself a wee renegade ye see, acted as if I was invincible. I didna think Da even knew most of the times I’d run off. I always expected that I’d get back, and he’d be waiting for me in the dooryard with his arms crossed, ready to knock some sense back into me,” he attempts a weak smile, but feels the corners of his lips turn down instead. “He didna have any sense to spare then, though. Then it was Murtagh waiting for me, threatening to nail my ear to the barn door if I’d run off again, and dragging me by my ear so hard I thought he might actually do it.” He does manage a smile this time, one that she mirrors, thinking of his godfather, and all of the layers he hides beneath his surly exterior.

“It went on like that for a few years. We were existing, but no’ really living. My Da kept drinking himself into oblivion, and I kept running amok. I started high school with a criminal record.” He can’t help but look at her face, the need to see her reaction, to know how she feels, is overwhelming. “I had a wee...trespassing habit. I got more than my fair share of warnings, mind ye, but I didna heed them. I had no care for consequences.” Her gaze is assessing, but she doesn’t pull away from him, as he feared she might.

“For my sixteenth birthday, some of my mates...procured me a motorcycle. I didna ask any questions, but I knew that they didn’t come by it through honest means. I felt freer on that bike than I had ever felt in my life, Sassenach. Like none of my problems could keep up with me, if I just kept pushing the throttle. I could go anywhere I wanted, no one could stop me. Or so I thought, anyway,” he shifts in his seat, angling his knees toward her, bringing them face to face.

“I only had the bike about three weeks before I wrecked it. I loved to ride in the rain, even though it was dangerous. Maybe even because it was dangerous. I’d been running some hills, flying over the crests, making a great muddy mess of things. I’d started making my way home, still going way too fast, of course. I could see the lights from the village as I came down the last bend, but instead of banking the turn, I lost control on the loose gravel.” Her hand comes to rest on his knee, and he slides his palm over hers.

“I was thrown off the bike, and sailed quite a ways through the air before I met the dirt. Next thing I remember is waking up in hospital, stuck on my belly, no’ able to feel much of anything. I had only been wearing a t-shirt to ride, and when I was tossed, I landed on my back and slid across the road. I must’ve passed out from the pain, because I still canna recall being found, or the ride to the hospital. I was alone when I woke the first time, and I was sure I was dead. Everything was so white and still, and I couldna make my body move. When the doctor came in to see me, he told me I was lucky,” he shakes his head, able to see the truth in those words now, but at the time he thought the man was mad.

“I couldna possibly understand how anyone could think me lucky. Sure, I wasna dead, but I think part of me then would have welcomed death. My mind hadna been right for a long time, but then for my body to give out too...I think I almost wished for it.” He’s never said these words aloud before. Never let them breach the darkest corners of his thoughts, and it is both cathartic and terrifying to declare his demons.

“The accident was a wakeup call for all of us. When I woke the next morning, my Da was in the chair next to my bed. It was the first time I’d seen him stone sober in three and a half years. He kept telling me was how sorry he was, and that he was going to get better. That he was going to be our father again. I dinna ken how to believe in him anymore, but it did mean a lot that he was there with me. He was the one to call Willie and Jenny to let them know what had happened. Jenny was at the hospital less than an hour later. Willie came back to Scotland for the first time since leaving for school. We didna remember how to be near each other, how to be a family, but I think we all recognized that maybe we’d been given a second chance.” He hasn’t thought about those first few days in so long, the tentative rebuilding of his family something he prefers to leave soundly in the past. It had been unbearably awkward at first— they felt apprehensive around each other, unsure of how and if they still fit together — and Jamie had been in and out of lucidity due to the pain medication.  

“And now? Have you had that second chance?” She asks, the hope in her voice is unmistakable.

“Aye, Mo Nighean Donn, we have. There are more good memories now than bad ones, which is why I’m so keen on taking ye. I think it’ll do ye some good to be away from all your troubles. And now that I’ve shared with ye all of my darkness, I’d like verra much to show you the light. Just like you’ve shown it to me, Sorcha.

Claire lifts their joined hands to her lips, placing a lingering kiss to the back of his hand. “Thank you. Thank you for telling me.” Her grip tightens, and he wiggles his fingers until they interlace with hers.

“Are ye no’ scared of me then? Of my past? I’d understand if ye dinna want to be friends with someone like me.” his whole body sinks, his eyes downcast, the thought of her walking out of his life hitting him like a fist to the gut.  

“Someone like you? James Fraser, please look at me!” she demands, her palm coming to rest on his cheek. “I can’t think of anyone that I like better than you, Jamie. You’re my best friend. Knowing about your past? It’s just another piece of what formed you in to the brilliant man you are today. If you can accept the baggage that I come with…” the hand not resting on his face moves to her belly. “If you can accept me as I am, knowing all you know about my past, then please know I can do the same for you. Readily, happily. And I’m so honored, really, that you chose me of all people, to share your story with. I’ve never felt...never known anyone like you before, Jamie. I’ve never been able to talk to someone the way I’ve talked to you, or related to someone as easily. I didn’t think I was ever going to be happy again, and then all of a sudden, there you were. I never saw you coming, really. But I’m so glad you did.”

He knows that it’s a risk— maybe too big of a risk— but he can’t seem to stop himself. He can’t seem to connect to his thoughts, reeling as they are, as his lips press gently to hers. He’s so overwhelmed with gratitude for her. To have met someone who understands him, who appreciates him just as he is, even knowing the shadows of his past...it’s more than he’s ever hoped for. He eases back a moment later, the contact brief yet poignant. He can see some of the longing he feels mirrored back to him as their eyes meet. Her brows are still raised just slightly, expressing her surprise at his sudden gesture. But he’s happy to note that she also looks more than a little pleased, the corners of her lips turned up in a coy smile.

“I’m glad I did as well, Sassenach.” She slides closer to his side, resting her head on his shoulder. It’s not close enough, so he brings his arm around her shoulders, tucking her head below his chin. They still have about an hour left before they arrive in Inverness, and he’d like nothing more than to spend that hour holding the woman he loves. And as Claire snuggles further into his chest, he thinks that she’ll be amenable to the idea as well.  

[imagineclaireandjamie]

Flood my Mornings: Thanks

Anon said: If the stable chapter was in October doesn’t Bree have a birthday coming up?  how is she going to do with the terrible twos ?

Notes from Mod Bonnie:

This story takes place in an AU in which Jamie travels through the stones two years after Culloden and finds Claire and his child in 1950 Boston.

See all past installments via Bonnie’s Master List

Previous installment: Eggs (Attack of the Pregnancy Brain!) 

November 23rd, 1950

“Happy Thanksgiving, Frasers!” Marian Harper sang out as she opened the door.

“Happy Thanksgiving,” we chorused in return, arms full of Bree and wine and basket of lemon meringue pie.

“Oof, come in out of the rain,” she clucked, ushering us into the warmth of her cozy foyer. “Though I guess we should thank our lucky stars it’s only rain, not the blizzard they’re getting down south!” 

“Oh, aye,” Jamie agreed, deftly extricating Bree from her raincoat while still holding her. “Made it a bit slow-going on the drive over, but much preferable to snow.” 

“And the rain’s good luck for Miss Bree! Happy BIRTHDAY, sweet pea!”

Thus addressed, Bree giggled and lurched forward into Marian’s arms, surprising all of us. 

“Glad to see she’s finally getting less intent on clinging only to Mama and Da,” I laughed. 

Jamie helped me out of my coat and sweetly kissed my cheek as we followed Marian into the living room. “I suppose being properly two years of age makes a difference, after all!”

Earlier that day 

“Our wee lass doesna appear to be verra sensible of the grand occasion, Sassenach.”

I wiped my hands and turned quickly from the stove (which YES, I’d managed to turn on, thank you very much), beaming. Sure enough, Bree seemed about as interested in festivities as the average boulder. She had both arms around Jamie’s neck and was making it quite clear she was not in the mood to be up and about.

“Well, I suppose she doesn’t remember her last one, little as she was,” I conceded, coming close to tickle Bree lightly in the side. “Guess what, lovey-dove? It’s your BIRTHDAY!”

The dramatic excitement in my tone made her bolt upright at once, hair wild: curlywig to end all curlywigs. “S’bird-day?” she demanded.

“Yes, baby, it’s your birthday!”

“What-is ‘at, Mama? Mama?” She continued to screw her face up at me in concentration as Jamie buckled her in to the high chair. “What-IS ‘at, bird-day? Mama? Mama, what?”  

“It means ,” Jamie offered, settling next to her and putting out one of his hands for hers, “the day you were *born,* a leannan.”

“What-is-it, ‘borrnd,’ Daddy?”

“It means the day God gave ye to Mama and me,” he said patiently, “So, it’s a verra special day, aye?”

“What-is-’at?” she said immediately, lacing her fingers together and flapping them about. “Daddy, dinna kennit. What is-’at ‘spedchill’?”

Jamie sighed, love and exasperation so perfectly mingled in that way unique to parents. “’Special’ means…the verra best. Just like you, sweet wee cub.”

“See my-dese jammies?” she chirped, changing direction with lightning speed. “Dey’re porpoor, Daddy, see’um?”

“Aye,” he laughed, “I see, a leannan.” 

She pulled at the fabric of her top. “Dey’re spedchill?” 

“Aye, those are verra SPECIAL purple Jammies,”  he said, meeting my eye and trying not to laugh.

“Your birthday,” I said significantly, walking over to them with Bree’s breakfast held high, “is the day where Mama and Daddy talk about how JUST how much we LOVE our Bree.” I bent and latched onto her sweet, dimpled cheek in a huge, long mmmmmm-ing kiss and Jamie came in to do the same on the other. Bree, caught between us in a smooch sandwich, was giggling so hard she was fit to choke.

“Those are your first presents,” I said pulling back. “Two kisses for your second birthday. And here’s the next!” I slid the plate onto the tray in front of her for inspection.

“Sassenach….That is…” Jamie looked up at me with the queerest expression on his face. “…the *Cutest* thing I’ve ever seen.”

It was little more than a circle with two lopsided ears, but I’d embellished a snout with banana slices and chocolate chips for nose and eyes, and powdered sugar to top things off. 

Yes, it was fairly bloody adorable.

Bree squealed. “Issa—Lookint-’im-that-wee BEAR, Daddy!” She hooted in delight and then began promptly to demolish said wee bear.

“You’d best slow down, mo chridhe!” Jamie laughed. “He’s going to roar in your tummy for gobbling him up so fast!” 

Bree’s mouth was so full she couldn’t reply, but there came a happy, muffled *mmphurr!?!* that signified her excitement to see this play out as soon as humanly (bearly?) possible.

“So neither of you have ever had Thanksgiving before?” Tom asked as he poured Jamie a glass of wine in the sitting room.

“No, indeed!” I settled back onto the sofa with a cup of tea. “A singularly American holiday, this one.”

Tom furrowed his brows. “But you were here stateside last year too, weren’t you, Claire?”

“Oh, yes, well….Yes, but I wasn’t in the going-out frame of mind, to be honest.”

“It was a different life, before you came back, Jamie,” Marian said knowingly, beaming from the floor, where Bree was sitting on her lap playing with her birthday present from the Harpers. “We’re glad you did.”

“As am I, a nighean,” he said warmly to her, then met eyes with me. Glad doesna even begin to express it. 

It would have been a thoroughly lovely moment, except morning sickness had come a-calling with a VENGEANCE today, and I had to close my eyes while yet another urge to vomit abated. 

Jamie noticed and made as if to come to me, but just then, the doorbell rang, followed almost immediately thereafter by Della O’Malley running head-on into Jamie and nearly spilling his wine as she barreled around the corner. He managed to catch her with his free hand, and she looked as though he’d hung the bloody moon. “Hi, Mr. Fraser,” she said breathlessly, gazing up into his face.

“Happy Thanksgiving to ye, Miss Della.” He kissed her hand, which sent her into paroxysms.  Jesus H. Christ, the girl needed a cold shower, pronto. 

Thankfully, though, it seemed her glow wasn’t *entirely* due to infatuation with Jamie. “Claire! Claire, guess what?” she said, bouncing in my direction.

“Peter asked you to go steady?” She’d been talking about this boy for weeks, it was about time he made a move. 

“YES!!!” she squealed, thudding into a chair next to me. “Can you BELIEVE IT!??!”

“Wine, Claire?” Tom said, coming over with a glass.  

“Oh, no, thank you.”

“Whisky, then?

“No, thank you, Tom, I’m all—” Good Heavens, I nearly burped in the poor man’s face, but managed to choke back the wave of acute nausea and croak, “— all set with my tea.” 

I could have sworn Marian gave me a suspicious look, but thankfully, Jamie came to my aid. “So, from what I gather, the festivity centers around coming together and eating in a spirit of gratitude. But that’s about all I ken of it. Is there more?” 

I had told him the story earlier that morning, in fact, but I was grateful for the diversion while Tom gave the Proud Son of Massachusetts recitation of the Thanksgiving tale. 

Jamie nodded in approval. “Thanks be to God for the kindness of the native folk, then. I must say, I enjoy hearing tales of anyone that managed to fly in the face of the English crown—Sorry Sassenach,” he added with a grin.

“Does Scotland not belong to England?” Della asked, bewildered. 

“Depends on who ye ask,” Jamie laughed. “Suffice it to say, there’s a reason the marriage between Claire and me raised no small number of eyebrows.” 

“But you married anyway,” Della swooned, “how roMANTIC!!” 

Jamie grinned and sat down next to me. “Verra romantic indeed.” He saw my pallor and squeezed my hand, speaking low so only I could hear. “Are ye feeling alright, Sassenach?” 

“Bit queasy,” I admitted, resisting the urge to clutch my abdomen. 

“Can I get ye anything?” 

“No,” I whispered, squeezing his hand. “But thank you. Just have to wait for young Fraser here to settle down.” 

He smiled and ducked his head, trying not to let the others see the direction of his tender gaze. 

We had agreed not to announce the pregnancy until the three-month mark, as was customary. We knew better than anyone that tragedy could still strike after the first trimester, but had decided that for Brianna’s sake, at least, it was best to wait until the highest risk of miscarriage was past….even though acknowledging the possibility of losing another child sent claws of fear tearing at my heart. 

But I’d carried one child safely; Lord willing, I could do so again.  

Please, Lord, keep this little one safe.

Jamie wrapped one arm around my waist and pulled me closer. “I am thankful, today, ye ken?” he whispered. 

“Oh?” I murmured back, looking into his eyes, curious, but already smiling from the tone in his voice. “Whatever for?” 

“For our daughter. For you carrying her. Giving her life, this day two years ago. For—” His voice caught, just barely. “—For how ye went on living when ye didna wish to…” He gently touched my face. “For working as hard as ye do, at home and at the hospital….For being my wife. For….well…” He very discreetly touched my belly. “For our children. And for taking care of us in this new world”

I ran my hand down the side of his face, unable to speak as I kissed him. Come what might in 1951, never had I had a year in which there was so much for which to give thanks as 1950.

“I’m going to shrivel up and DIE from how much you love each other,” came Della’s tremulous threat. “Just you WAIT.”

[more to come]

[the-record-columns]

April 17, 2019: Columns Gene Brock returns, and he has the legacy of Jackie Robinson with him...

Pictured are two of Gene Brock’s most prized possessions. Above, from 1951, Gene is with, left to right, Don Newcombe, Gil Hodges, Cal Abrams, and Roy Campanella. Below, in 1953, Gene got lucky again and had his photo taken with Jackie Robinson and Gil Hodges. That was the only time that Gene met Robinson in person, but years later, was able to tell the story to Robinson’s widow at the 1997 All-Star Game in Cleveland, Ohio.

By KEN WELBORN

Record Publisher

Last year, on Nov. 28, I wrote a piece about becoming acquainted with Gene Brock of Rockledge, Fla., through the Wilkes Central Class of 1955's reunion the week before. 

The bottom line on the column was Gene's love of the Brooklyn/Los Angles Dodgers baseball team.  As a tall skinny kid with no appreciable sports skills, he still loved sports—especially baseball—and especially the Dodgers.

Also in that column I mentioned that when the first Little League teams were formed in Wilkes that there weren't enough adult coaches, and Gene, a junior at Wilkes Central at the time, got to coach one of the teams. He won a championship to boot. 

Well there's a bit more.  The second year of coaching, Gene was assigned a new young player named Johnny Swofford. Yes, that John Swofford. Gene said Johnny could run like the wind, and was a great fielder, but wasn't much of a hitter.  So, Gene taught him how to bunt, and Johnny was so fast that he would beat out the throw to first base over and over again.  Johnny ended the season with a batting average just under .400—mostly from bunts.  

And speaking of Swofford's—there is a story about Jim Swofford, too. Gene Brock also had a Saturday radio show on WKBC-AM called "A Date with the Duke," and he said Jim would sometimes stop by and do a live song or two on the radio.

As I write today, however, it is Monday, April 15, the anniversary of Jackie Robinson's first Major League Baseball game in 1947, playing for the then Brooklyn Dodgers, famously breaking the color barrier. 

I do not have room to begin to tell you about Gene Brock's history of being a Dodger fan, but suffice it to say he is among their biggest supporters—and I would be remiss if I didn't mention that Ray Lowe of Milles Creek is right up there amongst him. 

Gene was actually interviewed, along with seven others, by Peter Golenbock for his book entitled "In the Country of Brooklyn:  Inspiration to the World."  Each of these interviews had to do with the influence Jackie Robinson had been to them, but they were edited out of the final draft of the book. What follows are some brief excerpts of Gene Brock's interview, used with permission from Mr. Golenbock.

"I was born in 1937, so I was 10 when the Dodgers signed Jackie Robinson. I started paying attention to Jackie Robinson, what he was doing with the Dodgers, and I got to know practically every Dodger on the team.  From 1947 to 1957 I listened to over a hundred Dodgers games a year (on a FM radio station in Gastonia).  During the summertime I would spend my time helping out around (my dad's ) store.  In fact, when I turned 12, I became one of the clerks, and my dad knew how much I liked baseball, so he let me play the radio, which you could hear throughout the store.

"Jackie coming to the Dodgers really was what kindled my love affair with the Dodgers."

In the interview, Gene also noted that he liked history and enjoyed baseball having statistics back past the turn of the century.

"So everyone knew I loved the Dodgers, and one day in October of 1951, an older gentleman named Carl Canter said he was going to Winston-Salem to see a baseball game and would I like to go?  Two barnstorming teams were appearing...among the players would be four Dodgers, Don Newcombe, Gil Hodges, Cal Abrams, and Roy Campanella."

At the game Gene randomly met up with a lady who worked for the Winston-Salem Journal who took his picture with his four heroes and ran it in the paper the next day.

"From then on I was a baseball worshipper."

“Two years later another barnstorming tour came to Winston-Salem and this time the notice said Jackie Robinson was going to be there.  Waiting at the dressing room door, Gene had asked a man to take a picture with the Brownie camera he had with him "...when out pops two Dodgers, Gil Hodges and Jackie Robinson.  So I stood in the middle between those two, and got my picture snapped with my old Brownie camera, and it turned out pretty good...That was the one time I got to meet Jackie, and he was such a gentleman to me. Of course, that fanned the flames, and I became even more devoted to him and to the Dodgers.  I was a Dodger fanatic.”

"Jackie inspired me:  all the things he stood for and fought against in his battle to have the right to play in the Major Leagues and do anything every citizen should be able to do."   

So now it is Tuesday morning and I am woefully sleepy because Gene Brock and Ray Lowe had both reminded me that the Dodgers would be playing on Monday night a special game where all the players would be wearing Jackie Robinson's number—42.  It was in Los  Angeles and didn't even start till 10 o'clock. 

But I hung in there—maybe dozing once or twice, but I stayed with it and saw Joc Pederson's walk-off home run win the game for the Dodgers, 4-3, over Cincinnati.  And, I did something I swore in 1958 I would  never do again after the Dodgers left Brooklyn for the Left Coast—I pulled for the Dodgers to win a baseball game.

You're welcome fellas.

     “Because God loves Israel, I do, too”

By EARL COX

Special to The Record

Many people spend a great deal of time criticizing Israel and the Jewish people - the people God Himself calls the “Apple of His eye.”

At the United Nations, Israel comes under constant condemnation and at her borders she comes under constant attack from Islamic terrorists in Gaza to the south and Hezbollah in the north.  Iran is also a direct threat to Israel having positioned its well-trained soldiers in strategic locations inside of Syria. 

To make matters worse, many in the Christian church have been taught a false theology known as “Replacement Theology.”  In a nutshell, this theology embraces the idea that God is finished with the Jews and wherever in the Bible (New Testament) that it speaks of the Jews and Israel it is really referring to Christians and the Church. 

A careful read of Romans chapter 11 should dispel this myth.  However, this lesson is best left for theologians.  As we approach Passover and what Christians call Easter, now seems an appropriate time to share one of the many ways The Lord God Almighty continues to bless the world through His people - the Jews, the people of Israel.

In the field of medical science, Israel is a world leader. You’ve heard of heart transplants, kidney transplants and bone-marrow transplants. Now doctors at Hadassah University Medical Center in Jerusalem have added a new type: the vein transplant. A recent report explained how this new concept saved the life of 60-year-old Israeli, Avi Yavetz.

Suffering from a circulation disorder that causes blood vessels outside of the heart to narrow and become blocked (known as PVD), Yavetz underwent the first ever live vein transplant. In one of his legs, the veins and arteries were obstructed and blood wouldn’t flow. An amputation was a near certainty. However, Israeli doctors determined that Yavetz had an artery and veins inside his leg that could restore blood flow however he was missing a vein large enough to connect the artery with the smaller veins. This was the result of past surgeries he had for PVD which left his remaining veins unable to carry the load.  Then, an “eureka moment” struck. Israeli Professor Ron Carmeli, chief of vascular surgery at Hadassah, came up with a novel idea - using a live vein donated by a family member. 

Professor Carmeli subsequently removed a long vein extending from 27-year old Snir Yavetz’s groin to his foot then surgically implanted it into the elder Yavetz.

Vein transplantation has been done before – but only from a corpse. “A donation from a living person is the first of its kind,” Carmeli said.

Two weeks later, Professor Carmeli reports that the vein is functioning and Yavetz’s leg “is safe from amputation.” However, according to reports, this patient is not yet out of the woods. “The treatment of this patient is the same as every transplant patient, just like someone who has undergone liver and kidney transplantation,” Carmeli points out.

Yes, God has truly blessed the people of Israel with genius and creativity which they freely share with the world.  With anti-Semitism on the rise across America and around the world, we all need to examine ourselves. Do we need a transplant ... perhaps a heart and attitude transplant?  God loves His people with whom He made an eternal covenant.  How can we Christians love Jesus and not also love His family?  As I sign off on each of my radio broadcasts, “Because God loves Israel, I do, too.”   

Carolina Moonshiners

By CARL WHITE

Life in the Carolinas

Growing up in the foothills of the Carolinas I recall many stories of moonshiners and revenue officers on the chase of a hidden liquor still under cover of lush foliage.

I remember one summer afternoon when I was visiting my grandma; I heard what can best be described as a loud window shaking boom. I ask what it was, and she said with a slight chuckle, sounds like they have cut another still. She was not a fan of alcohol consumption as she had witnessed the adverse effect of excess with certain people close to her. I think that was my first somewhat official introduction to the idea of illegal whiskey.

Over time I would hear things about folks that lived relatively close. The legendary Junior Johnson of NASCAR fame was first known for his involvement with moonshine. There are many stories of his early days of skilled driving on country roads and evading capture. He was just too darn fast.

It was in the September 1950 edition of The American magazine that Vance Packard wrote about Moonshine in Wilkes County, N.C. An extensive story titled Millions in Moonshine gave a proper accounting of the nature and size of the moonshine business in the county and the effect it seemed to have on economic growth.

It appears as if there was a time that the business of making moonshine was so large that when an investigator was asked, what would be required to wipe out moonshining in the county, Packard wrote that, the investigator grinned and replied. Two divisions of U.S. combat troops.

Those troops were never ordered to visit Wilkes County.

A few years ago, there was an outdoor play called Otto Wood the Bandit, written by Jerry Lankford, that told the story of Otto Wood, a notorious bandit from Wilkes County. When he was a young boy, he traveled to West Virginia where he learned how to make moonshine from his relatives the infamous Hatfields — who were best known for their feud with the McCoy family.

Another native of Wilkes  County, Buck Nance, says that he started making whiskey as a teenager. He now makes his unchanged family recipe at Copper Barrel, a legal distillery on Main Street in North Wilkesboro. He also has an impressive and notorious history with fast cars.

In my many visits to Western North  Carolina, I learned about the colorful moonshiner Popcorn Sutton. He spent much time in the Maggie Valley area and enjoyed somewhat of a celebrity status. His story has as many twists and turns as the mountain roads he traveled when making his highly sought after product.

I have interviewed many people who were close to Popcorn. His story has been shared in books and on TV shows, however, for me, the greater interest has been in talking with people who were close to him.

It is logical to expect that I would find people who knew him in Maggie  Valley. I was, however, surprised when interviewing someone in Conway, S.C., regarding an unrelated story that I noticed part of copper still laying in the corner of the office we were in. The subject of interview noticed that I had spotted it, he said, do you know what that is? I replied, sure I do, that’s part of a liquor still, how did you come by it, I ask. That question opened a conversation that lasted no less than an hour. He told me the story about how he had met Popcorn Sutton years ago when visiting the mountains for the cooler weather. These two men from very different backgrounds became friends and from what I understand a drink or two may have been involved.

There are many stories of legendary moonshiners in the Carolinas and even more of those who choose to be less known.

That’s enough moonshine for this week. Moderation is best.

[citizenscreen]

The first image that comes to mind when I think of Cary Grant is the classy gentleman that ultimately became his signature style. Most brilliant of all in Grant’s impressive repertoire perhaps was his ability to add the bumbling to the suave sophisticate. That’s the man I adore, but that man didn’t come about easily. It was hard work and perseverance that led to the archetype that’s still recognized as the domain of just one man. One.

Cary Grant was born Archibald Leach in Bristol, England on January 18, 1904. From 1932 to 1966 he appeared in over 70 motion pictures becoming one of the greatest movie stars in the world. Ever. And that’s not an exaggeration as you well know. Beloved and admired by the masses and his peers Grant mastered various film genres turning in memorable performances in broad comedies, murder mysteries, adventure stories and romances.

On that road to becoming Cary Grant the image, Cary Grant the actor played men with numerous careers and from different walks of life. It’s quite the impressive resume, one that goes well beyond a gorgeous exterior. Why don’t I show you?

The Cary Grant Résumé

Cary Grant

 1 Handsome Movie Star Way, Hollywood, CA 01184 – (000) 227-9472 – archie_leach@thegreatest.com

Summary:

At least twelve rich, playboy types if you don’t include the five successful businessmen.

Ten soldiers

Six newspaper men/writers

Six doctors/scientists

Five artistic types

Four government agents

Three pilots

Three advertising executives

Two supernatural beings

One Earl, a policeman, an engineer, a lawyer, an economist, a politician, a few unsavory types, half a dozen or so times involved in espionage.

The handsome, rich bachelor often, but was also a loving husband and father to several women and numerous children

Highlights:

Hard-working and reliable

Energetic, well-executed pratfalls

Distinctive double-take

Proficient at fast-talk

Style Icon

Unique voice

Exceptional romantic skills

Great with pets and children

*Experience:

Rich men and playboys (1932 to 1962)

Philip Shayne in Delbert Mann’s That Touch of Mink (1962)

Johnnie Aysgarth in Alfred Hitchcock’s Suspicion (1941)

C. K. Dexter Haven in George Cukor’s The Philadelphia Story (1940)

Alec Walker in John Cromwell’s In Name Only (1939)

Jerry Warriner in Leo McCarey’s The Awful Truth (1937)

Ernest Bliss in Alfred Zeisler’s The Amazing Adventure (1936)

Gerald Fitzgerald in Elliott Nugent’s Enter Madame! (1935)

Jack Clayton in Wesley Ruggles’ I’m No Angel (1933)

Jeffrey Baxter in Paul Sloane’s The Woman Accused (1933)

Romer Sheffield in William Seiter’s Hot Saturday (1932)

Charlie Baxter in Dorothy Arzner’s Merrily We Go to Hell (1932)

Ridgeway in Alexander Hall’s Sinners in the Sun (1932)

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  Businessman (1934 to 1966)

Sir William Rutland in Charles Walters’ Walk Don’t Run (1966)

(and widower) Tom Winters in Melville Shavelson’s Houseboat (1958)

Clemson Reade in Sidney Sheldon’s Dream Wife (1953)

Julian De Lussac in Frank Tuttle’s Ladies Should Listen (1934)

Malcolm Trevor in Lowell Sherman’s Born to be Bad (1934)

PS – If you’re thinking that Cary Grant as business man looks very similar to Cary Grant rich playboy – well, yeah.

  Men of science (1934 to 1951)

Physician, Dr. Noah Praetorius in Joseph L. Mankiewicz’s People Will Talk (1951)

Chemist, Dr. Barnaby Fulton in Howard Hawks’ Monkey Business (1952)

Neurosurgeon, Dr. Eugene Norland Ferguson in Richard Brooks’ Crisis (1950)

Pediatrician, Dr. Madison Brown in Don Hartman’s Every Girl Should Be Married (1948)

Paleontologist, David Huxley in Howard Hawks’ Bringing Up Baby (1938)

Plastic Surgeon, Dr. Maurice Lamar in Harlan Thompson’s Kiss and Make-Up (1934)

  Soldiers (1932 to 1959)

Lt. Cmdr. Matt T. Sherman in Blake Edwards’ Operation Petticoat (1959)

Cmdr. Andy Crewson in Stanley Donen’s Kiss Them for Me (1957)

Anthony in Stanley Kramer’s The Pride and the Passion (1957)

Captain Henri Rochard in Howard Hawks’ I Was a Male War Bride (1949)

Captain Cassidy in Delmer Daves’ Destination Tokyo (1943)

Sergeant Cutter in George Stevens’ Gunga Din (1939)

Captain Andre Charville in George Fitzmaurice’s Suzy (1936)

British Officer, Micahel Andrews in Charles Barton’s and Louis J. Gasnier’s The Last Outpost (1935)

Lietenant B. F. Pinkerton in Marion Gering’s Madame Butterfly (1932)

Lt. Jaeckel (naval officer) in Marion Gering’s Devil and the Deep (1932)

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  Writers and newspaper men (1934 to 1944)

Mortimer Brewster in Frank Capra’s Arsenic and Old Lace (1944)

Reporter, Roger Adams in George Stevens’ Penny Serenade (1941)

Patrick “Pat” O’Toole in Leo McCarey’s Once Upon a Honeymoon (1942)

Walter Burns in Howard Hawks’ His Girl Friday (1940)

Reporter Charlie Mason in Richard Wallace’s Wedding Present (1936)

Newspaper publisher, Porter Madison III in Marion Gering’s Thirty Day Princess (1934)

  Spies or government agents (1933 to 1964)

Including this one because it borders on “spying” –  Walter in Ralph Nelson’s Father Goose (1964)

Peter Joshua in Stanley Donen’s Charade (1963)

Devlin in Alfred Hitchcock’s Notorious (1946)

Captain Cummings in Lowell Sherman’s She Done Him Wrong (1933)

  Con men, grifters, a thief and a politician (1932 to 1955)

Retired Cat Burglar in Alfred Hitchcock’s To Catch a Thief (1955)

Gambler and grifter, Joe “the Greek” Adams in H. C. Potter’s Mr. Lucky (1943)

Con man, Nick Boyd in Rowland V. Lee’s The Toast of New York (1937)

Con man, adventurer, Jimmy Monkley in George Cukor’s Sylvia Scarlett (1935)

Gambler, Ace Corbin in Louis J. Gasnier’s and Max Marcin’s Gambling Ship (1933)

Nick Townsend in Josef von Sternberg’s Blonde Venus (1932)

  Pilots (1933 to 1939)

Geoff Carter in Howard Hawks’ Only Angels Have Wings (1939)

Ken Gordon in James Flood’s Wings in the Dark (1935)

Henry Crocker in Stuart Walker’s The Eagle and the Hawk (1933)

  Men of the arts (1937 to 1957)

Nickie Ferrante in Leo McCarey’s An Affair to Remember (1957)

Dick Nugent in Irving Reis’ The Bachelor and the Bobby-Soxer (1947)

Cole Porter in Michael Curtiz’s Night and Day (1946)

(Crooked) Showman Jerry Flynn in Alexander Hall’s Once Upon a Time (1944)

Jimmy Hudson in Robert Riskin’s When You’re in Love (1937)

  Drifters, activists, miscellaneous fellows or regular Joes (1932 to 1944)

Ernie Mott in Clifford Odets’ None But the Lonely Heart (1944)

Mill worker and activist, Luopold Dilg in George Stevens’ The Talk of the Town (1942)

Farmer, Matt Howard in Frank Loyd’s The Howards of Virginia (1940)

Johnny Case in George Cukor’s Holiday (1938)

Film debut as javelin thrower/jealous husband, Stephen Matthewson in Frank Tuttle’s This Is the Night (1932)

  A lawyer, an economist and an engineer (1940 to 1958)

Economist, Philip Adams in Stanley Donen’s Indiscreet (1958)

Engineer, George Rose in Norman Taurog’s Room for One More (1952)

Lawyer, Nick Arden in Garson Kanin’s My Favorite Wife (1940)

  Advertising executives (1948 to 1959)

Roger O. Thornhill in Alfred Hitchcock’s North by Northwest (1959)

Jim Blandings in H. C. Potter’s Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House (1948)

  An Earl (1960)

Victor, Earl of Rhyall in Stanley Donen’s The Grass is Greener (1960)

  A police officer/detective (1936)

Danny Barr in Raoul Walsh’s Big Brown Eyes (1936)

  An angel and a ghost (1937 and 1947)

Dudley in Henry Koster’s The Bishop’s Wife (1947)

George Kerby in Norman Z. McLeod’s Topper (1937)

  References:

“the only actor I ever loved in my whole life.” – Alfred Hitchcock

Ian Fleming modeled pop culture phenomenon, James Bond partially with Grant in mind.

Has appeared on numerous “sexiest stars” and “greatest movie stars” lists.

On American Film Institute’s list of top 100 U.S. love stories, compiled in June 2002, Grant led all actors with six of his films on the list. An Affair to Remember (1957) was ranked #5; followed by: #44 The Philadelphia Story (1940) #46 To Catch a Thief (1955) #51 Bringing Up Baby (1938) #77 The Awful Truth (1937) #86 Notorious (1946).

Was named #2 on The Greatest Screen Legends actor list by the American Film Institute.

Has eight films on the American Film Institute’s list of the 100 Funniest Movies: Bringing Up Baby (1938) at #14, The Philadelphia Story (1940) at #15, His Girl Friday (1940) at #19, Arsenic and Old Lace (1944) at #30, Topper (1937) at #60, The Awful Truth (1937) at #68, Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House (1948) at #72 and She Done Him Wrong (1933) at #75.

“The greatest leading man to ever appear on the silver screen.” – Aurora

“You see, he didn’t depend on his looks. He wasn’t a narcissist, he acted as though he were just an ordinary young man. And that made it all the more appealing, that a handsome young man was funny; that was especially unexpected and good because we think, ‘Well, if he’s a Beau Brummel, he can’t be either funny or intelligent’, but he proved otherwise” – George Cukor

He received a special Academy Award for Lifetime Achievement in 1970. The inscription on his statuette read “To Cary Grant, for his unique mastery of the art of screen acting with respect and affection of his colleagues”. On being presented with the award, his friend Frank Sinatra announced: “It was made for the sheer brilliance of acting … No one has brought more pleasure to more people for so many years than Cary has, and nobody has done so many things so well”.

Audrey Hepburn in Charade, “Do you know what’s wrong with you? Nothing.”

Additional references available upon request.

♦

As I perused Cary Grant’s filmography for this post I noticed a few things I’d never realized. The first is that there are far too many Cary Grant movies I’ve yet to see. Then I noticed that Cary Grant never made a science fiction movie, which is interesting. In addition, Mr. Grant never made a Western. Huh. It seems he did forge a few Western connections, however. For instance, Grant appeared as himself in a cameo in Mervyn LeRoy’s Without Reservation (1943) starring Claudette Colbert and Westerns legend, John Wayne and he turned the Northwest upside down in Hitchcock’s 1959 masterpiece.

Anyway, no one can dispute Mr. Grant’s versatility as his resume illustrates. When one thinks of a “Jack of all trades” it’s usually followed by “master of none,” a person who can do passable work at various tasks, but does not necessarily excel at any of them. That is not Cary Grant. Cary Grant excelled at everything he attempted in the movies, which is why the mark he made is still felt. As film critic and historian David Thomson states in The New Biographical Dictionary of Film – Cary Grant “was the best and most important actor in the history of the cinema.” I’ll add that it was due to his versatility and the persona that is forever defined by only him that his importance as an actor and film icon never diminishes. There is only one man who has a resume like Cary Grant. When asked, “who is today’s Cary Grant?” filmmaker, Robert Trachtenberg who made Cary Grant: A Class Apart replied, “No one.”

NO ONE.

♦

Happy birthday wherever you are.

  *Notes: Mr. Grant’s film roles are separated by categories of my choosing in the resume. Keep in mind that there are quite a few instances where roles (categories) overlap. As such any number of roles can be noted under a few categories, but I chose not to repeat movies.

More on Cary Grant:

The A-B-Cs of Cary Grant

The Inimitable Voice of Cary Grant

Cary Grant: The Road to Suspicion

Cary Grant’s Greatest Co-Star, Irene Dunne

Self-Plagiarism is Style: Hitchcock, Grant and North by Northwest

Charade: Grant, Hepburn and Paris Never Looked Better

The Bishop’s Wife 

Howard Hawks in His Own Words

SHE DONE HIM WRONG, Will Hays

High Society in The Philadelphia Story

The Hitchcock Signature

Set a Thief…To Catch a Thief

The Awful Truth…the matter of Mr. Smith

Cary Grant is by far the actor that has been mentioned most often on Once Upon a Screen. Oh, and by the way, Mr. Grant made two movies with titles that begin “Once Upon a…”

Cary Grant’s Résumé The first image that comes to mind when I think of Cary Grant is the classy gentleman that ultimately became his signature style.

[peterandviola]

Who Wants to go to Rehab?

No one I know. It’s not one of those fun experiences, nor an easy one. The party here is in your bones and tendons and ligaments, each one saying, “No, no, no.”

 But when you are faced with a life of wheelchair or walker and not much else, you could get motivated.

 I started right away, four times now. Early in the morning the day after each massive orthopedic operation, it was up, up, up on your feet. One time, and I really actually enjoyed this one, an exo-skeletal robot lifted me up and stood me upright. Effortless, until I tried defending myself against gravity.  Then, the strength you take for granted evaporates against the mighty pull of the planet.

 Some people think I’ve always been sedentary, but this is not true. Nay, nay, nay. I played fast pitch softball as a girl, hustled in collegiate field hockey, even when it meant wearing a middy shirt and bloomers while wielding a big stick. For my 40th birthday, I hiked across Scotland and even bagged a munro, as they call climbing a mountain. To train for this remarkable thing, I walked up and down San Francisco, about 15 miles per day. On weekends, I marched in an army of one from my Sunset District apartment down to the sea, across the Presidio and over the Golden Gate Bridge to the Marin Headlands. Once there, I climbed up to Coyote Ridge and walked until I exhausted myself, falling over in sea grass to sleep rough. A photographer even caught me like that in my old KZAP jacket.

 Eventually, I learned that I could take stairs two at a time, walk and hustle to work at 5th and Mission in downtown San Francisco, and turn around, and do it all over again on the way home.

 Nothing felt quite right. My life was a mess, I knew I wouldn’t keep my job, and I was about to re-enter the state of ultra-solitary living, when a remarkable thing happened. I met my true match, who wisely began as my friend, later becoming so much more. Eventually, my rigidness softened and I began to heal from loneliness and belligerent independence. Of course, I didn’t know it yet, but that was love.

 “Time for an Angel” -- Image by Bob Androvich

Thinking back, I am very lucky to have had Peter by my side when cancer struck. I had already fought alongside him when he developed Hodgkins Lymphoma. I found myself baking cookies and making mashed potatoes for his chemo cycles in the dread Stanford Five therapy plan. I knew cancer and therapy could suck the very yolk from an egg, the soul and vibrancy from a fit body, and often wondered what it could do to me, a soft and pudgy person who had given up living in the vitality of movement.

 A few years later, when I was suddenly diagnosed with a horrible onset of Stage Four Cancer, my beloved was given lots of hideous news. It was suggested that a non-weight bearing titanium rod would replace the hole in the left femur left by this aggressive cancer. The surgeon didn’t think I would live long enough to be rehavilitated. Peter refused to allow this, believing I could overcome my situation and be rehabbed. Luckily, so did my new oncologist, who directed the knife happy trauma surgeon to outfit me for walking again. The surgeon had given me 1-3 months to live. That was in September, 2013. Here I am three and a half years later; four operations down the road, and . . . back in rehab.

Photo by Marc Riboud

 It is essential to realize that this is, in fact, the only road.

If you want your legs back, your life back, you must go down this road. Willingly. In a couple of hours, I will trudge with a cane in the rain to see my regular therapist, a fellow named Ken, who can be stern. Tomorrow, I will drive 45 minutes across the county to Teri, who is more cheerful, but just as dogged about rehabilitation. ”Just do it,” doesn’t really capture the momentum one must capture to regain one’s life.

 And where am I now, four operations with as many rehabs and nine months since my last surgery? Quite a way from the finish line, if indeed, there is one. I am told that a femur replacement, a very rare bird, takes about two years in rehab to succeed. Sobering and time-consuming, but there is nothing else to do, but keep on keeping on.

 What are the things that have kept me moving? The love of a good person who is my premiere cheering section. The belief of my family, my friends and many relationships on FaceBook, all saying, “Go for it!” and a delicious little piece of heaven, knowing I really want to live. In my darkest nights, up restless as a hungry ghost, it comes to me that I am still writing, publishing, and most importantly reading again, voraciously.

 I have been saved by love and books. I am so thankful, so happily naked in this respect. My greatest pleasures have been the strongest elements of being able to shake off depression and go forward. There are only two words for this. Thank You.

[nibsthebravelostboy]

Helping Hope

@itslostgirlmisty @hope-robinson

[Misty]

Misty walked out and followed sounds coming from the kitchen and saw Hope drinking out of the bottle she had bought for Nibs’ to celebrate later tonight. She hid it so Nibs couldn’t see but as she looked at the glass on the floor, she realized she didn’t hide it well enough. “Sweetie did you eat? You shouldn’t be drinking if you haven’t eaten, you will get sick.”

[Hope]

Hope took another sip and just shook her head, “Work called there is an emergency and I have to go. Can’t go crying over my shitty husband now can I?” She asked before taking another sip.

[Nibs]

“You know you are expecting so why are you drinking?” He asks Hope before going over and taking the bottle from her. “You can’t work while tipsy or drunk, that is not a good example to set. I will go and handle the issue, you stay here with mom and no more drinking.” He scolded her.

[Misty]

“Hope you're pregnant? Oh that’s great. Does...does Zach know?” She asked as she saw Nibs take away the bottle. “I bought that for you for tonight you know...it was supposed to be a surprise but that’s okay. Really it’s fine.”

[Hope]

“I’m not pregnant. And I didn’t ask you to go for me, I can handle my club by myself. The men in this family never seem to understand I can take care of it by myself. I had to before so it’s no different now.”

[Nibs]

Hearing Hope’s words, Nibs growled. “First of all, yes you are. I can hear the heartbeat from here. Second of all, you clearly can’t handle it if you can’t take care of business unless you are drinking. I didn’t ask to go in your place I am telling you I am going in your place. You are to stay here with your mother and that is final. Don’t make me use magic to keep you here because you and I both know I will do it to keep you from hurting yourself.”

[Misty]

Misty listened to the two and took the bottle from Nibs before placing it on the counter. “Hope why don’t you just listen to your father okay? We aren’t doing this to punish you. We are just worried okay? So let’s just calm down and let your father handle it.”

[Hope]

“You can’t tell me what to do. You made it pretty clear that I wasn’t a child anymore so you can’t make decisions for me. And now, now you want to step in? I was living with you and you didn’t care what I did so I really don’t give a shit that now that I am living on my own with my own children that you want to play my parent. You can’t tell me anything but my club, you didn’t help me get it and you aren’t helping me keep it, so you have no say in anything. I don’t care that I’m pregnant and I am going into work and that’s final.”

[Nibs]

“Actually so long as you want to act like a child, that is how you will be treated. You are going nowhere and that is fine.” He growled before snapping his fingers so that she couldn’t leave the cove nor do anything to hurt herself. “When you decide to act like an adult we will treat you like one but until then you will be treated as you act.” He tells her.

“Be glad that I am going to help the club and not shut it down after that comment you made. Don’t push it Hope, you know better than to get me angry.” He told her as his eyes glowed red.

[Hope]

“Now you’re angry dad? What about when me and Zach fucked on the table? Or when he kept me locked in a room in the ship? Or when he got me pregnant? When I fucked Dylan? When Ken used me to make Stiles think he wasn’t a fucking loser? Or when Mark said he wanted me? You are angry now dad. I don’t give a fuck. You want me to stay here fine. I fucking will.” She said before moving to the cabinet and throwing plates on the ground. “I will stay here for as long as you want me to.” She said tossing the glass and breaking anything she could.

[Misty]

Misty placed a hand on Nibs, Nibs baby please calm down okay. Please for me. She said to him through her mind before watching Hope start to break things. She moved her and Nibs out of the way so nothing hit her. “Hope stop. You are hurting and we get that but this isn’t going to make the pain go away. You are just hurting other people and it’s not going to help you.” She said watching the glass hit the floor. “Stop Hope I mean it.”

[Nibs]

Nibs snapped his fingers so that there was nothing that Hope could throw a tantrum with. “Dylan faced his punishment. You chose to let Ken manipulate you. Mark was fucked up and confessed to everyone he loved them. Stop saying I didn’t care Hope because you and I both know that is not true. I tried to protect you and all you did was rebel against me and then blame me when things didn’t turn out like you wanted, after I told you that that was what would happen. Take responsibility for your actions and stop deflecting them onto others.” He growled.

[Hope]

“Let me think about why I am the way I am dad? Maybe if once, just fucking once you didn’t act like this whole family has love running through them. It’s fucked up idea and that’s not true. I remember all the times you two broke up and I remember watching you come back and act like nothing is wrong. I don’t want this fucking baby with someone I don’t want! Love isn’t going to save us and it’s not going to save my family because it’s not real. So stop pretending we can solve everything because we are soulmates. It’s not real. And I rebelled because look who I have as my parents hm. You and mom fucked us all up. That’s why TJ doesn’t come around, I am the only kid that talks to you two, and the twins fuck each other. We have such great fucking parents.”

[Nibs]

“Love means you always come back to each other, you always support each other and are there for each other no matter what happens. Fine, go back to Zach and have him tell you that he doesn’t love you. If you live through that then fine you win but if you start to die then you can’t tell me that soulmate bonds aren’t real. TJ doesn’t come around because he was kicked out for hitting your mother. You are the way you are because you don’t believe in love! You push everyone away from you and expect them to chase after you Hope. You expect to be forgiven for all the mistakes you have made without taking responsibility for them. You cheated on your husband because you were mad he didn’t come home. That was your choice and your decision that has nothing to do with how we raised you. Just because Mark was with someone else and confessed his love to you and tried to cheat on Peter doesn’t mean that you should follow the example of a dead man.”

“There is a reason your mother and I have made it as far as we have and I refuse to let my selfish, spoiled little girl, blame us for choices that you made. We never told you to cheat on your husband, we never told you to sleep around when you were younger. In fact, I remember using magic to keep you from sneaking out and going to all those parties and doing drugs and whatever bullshit you did with those stupid friends of your. You had so much potential Hope, but you made the wrong decisions and there is no one to blame for that except yourself. Your mother took responsibility for her past mistakes, I took responsibility for my past mistakes. I will not stand here and be the object of your anger after always being there for you when you needed me.” He growled angrily as his eyes flashed blue at her words before turning red almost immediately.

[Misty]

Misty stepped in between Hope and Nibs and looked at Hope. “Whatever you say right now we can take it Hope, but this isn’t going to make all that pain that you are feeling go away. You want to blame us, fine. Yes we should have been better parents. We should have tried to separate things from you and our relationship, but we didn’t. We should have stopped you from seeing Zach. That’s what you want to hear right? You want us to take responsibility for allowing you to fall in love? Okay then yes it’s our fault. I told your father I didn’t like him. He was older and a pirate and it’s not like he told you those friends of yours were bad. He was having sex with your grandfather. So it’s my fault for listening to your father.”

“Does that make you happy? Are you done now? I won’t let him back into your life. I will make sure to tell the guards at the castle he can’t see your children and to keep him away from you. You can live with the fact Ombra has him and be okay knowing that your kids and that baby you are having will never see their father again. Say the word Hope and I will do it. If that will make you feel better then I will do it.”

[Hope]

Hope looked at her mom and just scoffed, “You know what, do whatever you want. I hate you. I hate you so much. And just so you know, Grace wasn’t going to kill your baby. She wanted mine. The love of my life wasn’t there so I did what I had to and hid my kids. So I guess when she couldn’t find mine she took yours.” She said pushing past Misty and her father. “You want me to stay then I will.” She said before walking into the bedroom and slamming the door.

[Nibs]

Nibs could feel himself more than enraged at Hope’s words and he could feel his fingers curling into his fists and starting to draw blood against his palm. “I was the one that told him to come on the mission with me. You want to be mad at someone for that then be mad at me. Stop acting like you have had such a horrible life, so many people would be lucky to be in your shoes.” He growled before she slammed the door.

He could feel his head pounding again as he went into the living room and shifted into his wolf form. The male had a scratching corner of the cove for when he needed to let out his anger so he just kept ripping at it with his claws.

[Misty]

Misty ran her hands through her hair as she heard the slamming of the door before turning to watch Nibs walk away. She followed him into the living room and watched him shift before going into his corner. She sat on the couch and looked at him, “Do you want to talk, Nibs? I can feel how angry you are and you always said anger isn’t good for the baby so why don’t you come over here and talk to me.”

[Nibs]

Nibs knew he had to calm down for the sake of Misty and his child. He huffed before he stopped scratching and just went over and sat down before resting his head against Misty’s lap. Why is parenting so hard? How can you be so calm when she says those hurtful things.

[Misty]

She felt him resting his head in her lap and started petting him as she shrugged. “Because I know that behind those words is our daughter who is really hurt right now. And I rather her hurt us then herself. Of course it hurts but, I know if she wasn’t hurting she wouldn’t say those things. She says them because then she isn’t the only one in pain. She is a lot like you used to be. So scared of just letting the people who cared about you see your true feelings.”

[Nibs]

That is not an excuse to use abusive words Misty. It shouldn’t be justified just because someone is in pain. Yes, but I also never gave up no matter how hard it got. I mean there were times when we had hurt each other but we forgave each other and moved on because we valued our love for each other over some petty mistakes. It doesn’t make it okay just like it wasn’t okay when Ryan and Finn said those things to you. There are other ways of dealing with it than lashing out. Hell, I had to go to therapy to get over all that. I knew I wouldn’t be happy if I couldn’t just let go of that fear.

[Misty]

“That’s because you are a very protective puppy. You don’t like when things hurt other people and it is very cute, but when it comes to our children, especially a teenage girl they are going to say things that they don’t mean because they can. You know Hope loves you. I know she loves me. Hell I know she loves Zach. I just wish she would stop being so scared to be herself.”

[Nibs]

What does that even mean anymore? I feel like I don’t even know her anymore. It’s frustrating because I wanted to keep her safe for her own good but she never accepted that either. She got hurt but yet she still never listened to us. I hope that she can save him before it’s too late because if she loses him, then we might lose our daughter.

[Misty]

“What are you talking about, this is exactly how I felt with you. You were running being some type of playboy and acting like you didn’t want real love when I knew that you loved me and didn’t want to be that person. It was so annoying watching you with other people, but I stayed by you and supported you. Hope has always been widely independent. Yes I wish she would’ve let us shield her from the horrors of the world, but we can help her now. So I need you to know she didn’t mean it.”

[Nibs]

When I thought I lost you...it made me realize that I was being selfish and that I needed to wake up. The only way to keep you safe like I wanted, was to stop being so scared to love and be with you. You almost died before my eyes Misty. If I had lost you without you knowing what I felt for you, without knowing how it felt to be truly loved. I would have never forgiven myself. He tells her as he lets out a sigh.

[Misty]

She smiled softly as she kissed his head, “I always knew Nibs. Before you said anything, the way you looked at me...the way you would smile at me when you thought I wasn’t looking. I always knew. And I love you so much. Everything we have ever been through is for this moment together and I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”

[Nibs]

He shifted back before giving her a kiss. “I just wish she knew of the same love that we have for each other. I wish she knew that while life might throw some curveballs in the end it is all worth it to be with the one you love.” Nibs joined Misty on the couch and rested his head against her shoulder. “I wish we could show her it’s okay to be vulnerable with the one you love. It’s scary but it's so freeing to finally accept how you feel and opens you up to feel more than just some surface love.”

[Misty]

Misty kissed Nibs back before feeling him beside her. She took his hand and rested it against her stomach. “Well now she’s back and we have that chance. Regardless of how badly she wants to be viewed as an adult she is still a child and we have to help her. Even if she doesn’t want it.”

[Nibs]

“How do we do that?” He asks before feeling the baby kick slightly causing him to smile. “The more we try to help the more she will pull away…”

[Misty]

“She is a teenage girl. We just have to do it without caring about her fits. We can do it.” She said looking at him. “I guess this is the end of our honeymoon.”

[Nibs]

“Yeah I guess so. Well it was nice while it lasted.” He says before giving her a kiss.

[Misty]

She kissed him back as she smiled softly, “Yes it was. I’m sorry it couldn’t be longer. I know how excited you were.” She said before kissing him again.

[Nibs]

“It’s okay, we can always continue this another time once things are settled down.” He reassures her with a smile before kissing her back.

[Misty]

“Yeah that’s a great idea.” She smiled. “Are you going to go to the club?”

[Nibs]

“Oh right, yeah I will. Did you want to come? It’s not like Hope can leave or hurt herself if we leave her here.” He offers up.

[Misty]

“I’m more concerned about what you do when someone looks at me wrong. I should probably stay. Besides if this is my last night in my honeymoon I want to take a very nice and relaxing bubble bath.”

[hermanwatts]

Science Fiction New Releases: 16 November, 2019

This week’s science fiction new releases feature a dementia-stricken hitman, the son of a genetic slaver, a galactic crusade, and two anthologies by science fiction’s best.

Authority – A. K. Meek

The aliens came to conquer. We won, but billions died. Now, it’s time to rebuild.

The neons do as they’re told. Chemically bound to their masters by the experimental chemi-chip implant created from alien technology, they are genetically engineered at rapid rates to be servants for the survivors of the war against alien invaders. Without neons, reconstruction would be impossible.

Colin Hanston—the unremarkable son of the genius who invented the chemi-chip—leads a simple life as a farmer, helping feed his district as any good citizen should. But when he redeems his voucher for a neon servant of his own named Michael, everything changes. His father’s old friend-turned-rebel shows up, and Colin learns that not everyone believes the neons are a simple commodity used by the Authority to fix the world and help prepare in case the aliens return.

Knowing he could be killed just for talking to the rebels, Colin will have to decide for himself whether his father’s work is truly a benefit to humanity as his leaders claim, or a perversion.

Is the truth worth destroying his father’s legacy and putting his family in danger? Is it worth dying for?

Empires Ascendant – Jay Allan, Jason Anspach, Daniel Arenson, J. N. Chaney, Nick Cole, Joshua Dalzelle, Ken Lozito, and Jasper T. Scott

The rise of empire. The golden age of expansion, of exploration. Stories of new and vibrant civilizations growing, reaching out…and sometimes fighting desperately for the future.

Empires Ascendant brings 6 masters of military science fiction and space opera together in one volume of all new, original material. Including:

Banshee’s Last Scream: From the world of Galaxy’s Edge: When a Dark Ops legionnaire is found dead under suspicious circumstances, his fellow operatives employ the notorious bounty hunter Tyrus Rechs to find those responsible and make them pay for their actions. But Rechs uncovers a sinister plot much bigger than a simple murder.

Invasion: Chris Randall just got fired. On his way to break the bad news to his wife, an explosion rips through the night–followed by a dozen more. Scimitar Fighters are streaking down from space. Before Chris can wonder what starfighters are doing over San Bernardino, he sees the clouds light up with laser fire. That’s when he sees it: a dark wall of shadows hovering over the valley and drifting toward LA.

Shadow of Purple: Altharic Vennalus is a general, and a loyal servant of the Republic. He has battled endlessly, fighting to preserve the Republic from the usurpers who would topple it. The civil wars that have raged for three decades are nearly at an end. But peace is an elusive dream, and pain and loss will drive Altharic to places he couldn’t have imagined. In the end, he will be faced with answering one burning question. What is the cost of his honor?

…and more!

Optional Retirement Plan – Chris Pourteau

When retiring isn’t an option, it’s kill or be killed.

Stacks Fischer is a killer for hire. For more than three decades, he’s loyally served the Syndicate Corporation as its most-feared and respected enforcer around the solar system. He’s buried the company’s dirty laundry six feet deep, no matter who had to be taken out to do it.

Now, Stacks has a problem—he’s losing his mind to an incurable form of dementia, and unwittingly spilling corporate secrets in public.

When SynCorp decides Fischer has outlived his usefulness, they decide it’s time to permanently retire him. But Stacks isn’t quite ready to go. With every one of SynCorp’s Five Factions gunning for him—and his own mind slowly rebelling—Fischer leads a pack of would-be assassins in a final, deadly chase across the solar system.

The old hitman refuses to fade quietly into oblivion at the hands of his disease or the business he’s dedicated his life to. He’s choosing an Optional Retirement Plan.

Places Beyond the Wild (Z-Day #4) – presented by Daniel Humphreys

The world did not go quietly into the night.

The vast wilds outside a place called Hope hold their own stories. When the end came, what happened to everyone else?

Massachusetts. Texas. Alabama. Tennessee. Pockets of humanity have persisted through the apocalypse. All have tales of survival and loss.

Mad Dog Mattis’ last stand at the Pentagon. The first Christmas after the end of the world. A family isolated on their homestead as the evolving dead press at the fences. A desperate quest for helicopters to destroy the undead.

Come read through this expansion of Daniel Humphreys’ Dragon Award nominated Z-Day universe. Twelve brand new survival stories written by the best up and coming independent sci-fi and fantasy writers will thrill fans of the series.

Find tales of hope in a desolate world and read Places Beyond The Wild today!

Raven’s Peace (Peacekeepers of Sol #1) – Glynn Stewart

Ten thousand stars, once chained, taste freedom An eternal empire, once undefeated, falls to pieces An alliance, once united, now lacks a common foe War was hard enough. Peace may be impossible

For seventeen years, Colonel Henry Wong and the United Planets Space Force have fought the Kenmiri Empire. They drove the alien overlords back from humanity’s borders into their own stars and found allies among the Kenmiri’s slaves and subjects.

Now the war is over. A great Gathering has been called of the allies who fought the war, but they only ever shared a common enemy. With the Kenmiri in retreat, a thousand new agendas are revealed.

The United Planets Alliance wants peace above all else. Their allies want everything from new homes to new empires – and all too many of them are prepared to do anything to achieve their goals!

Retribution (Lucky’s Mercs #1) – Joshua James

Meet the galaxy’s unluckiest mercenaries.

Lucky Savage was once a powerful Empire Marine. But that was before the Empire collapsed, sinking the outer colonies into chaos and leaving the galaxy on the precipice of disaster.

Now his ship, Last Gasp, is home to a ragtag crew of misfits and ex-soldiers just trying to navigate the endless conflicts while hoping to score a big payday. So far, they’d settle for scratching out enough to cover fuel.

When a job with Savage’s old employer comes along, it looks like their luck might be turning. But it quickly goes sideways, and they find themselves in the middle of a massive manhunt for a deadly experiment gone wrong.

Can the mercs save the day? Who knows. They’re just trying to save their own skin.

It wouldn’t hurt to get paid, either.

Salvation Lost (The Salvation Sequence #2) – Peter F. Hamilton

The comparative utopia of twenty-third-century Earth is about to go dreadfully awry when a seemingly benign alien race is abruptly revealed to be one of the worst threats humanity has ever faced. Driven by an intense religious extremism, the Olyix are determined to bring everyone to their version of God as they see it. But they may have met their match in humanity, who are not about to go gently into that good night or spend the rest of their days cowering in hiding. As human ingenuity and determination rise to the challenge, collective humanity has only one goal—to wipe this apparently undefeatable enemy from the face of creation. Even if it means playing a ridiculously long game indeed.

But in a chaotic universe, it is hard to plan for every eventuality, and it is always darkest before the dawn.

Star Fire (Stars End #1) – M. R. Forbes

New from million-copy bestseller M.R. Forbes. One man’s epic story of loyalty, perseverance, and hope in a galaxy at war.

Alliance Navy Commander Grayson Stone is patrolling a nearby space station when a mysterious starship appears. It emerges from a storm of fire, its shields impenetrable, its weapons overwhelming, attacking without provocation and annihilating everything in its path.

While his ship is badly damaged in the assault, Grayson manages to survive. Suddenly trapped behind the front line of the invasion, faced with gut-wrenching choices and near-impossible odds, he’ll do whatever it takes to escape the grasp of the terrifying new enemy.

Because if he fails, humankind will fall.

Science Fiction New Releases: 16 November, 2019 published first on https://sixchexus.weebly.com/