#plus I gotta lead my own team this year and get back to some assignments I told them to do

[abstract-moth]

for once I would like to be struggling academically bc my brain actually struggles to comprehend the material and not bc I have some dumb*ss sh*t going on in my personal life

[just-dreaming-marvel]

Out Of Time ~ 141

MASTERLIST

< previous chapter

Word Count: 3,200ish

Summary: Things start to get real. (gifs aren’t mine) PLEASE READ THE NOTE AT THE END.

“Now, you better be on your best behavior for your Aunt Pepper and Uncle Happy, alright?” Y/N said. She was kneeling down to Morgan’s level, brushing the little girl’s hair behind her ears.

“Alright, momma,” Morgan agreed with a nod. 

“Daddy and I will call you every day.”

“Can’t I just come visit you? The—the com… compod… com—“

“Compound,” Y/N gently fixed with a smile.

“Yeah! It’s not too far away. I can come and help a wittle!”

Y/N sighed. “I wish you could, honey, but this is grown up stuff. Someday you’ll understand.” She pulled the girl into her arms, holding a kiss to the side of her head. “I love you, Morgan, so much.”

“Don’t tell daddy,” Morgan giggled, trying to whisper, “but I love you more than 3000.”

“Hey!” Tony exclaimed with mock hurt, coming onto the porch after packing the car. “I heard that.” He came and joined in on the hug. “But I forgive you.” He kissed the top of Morgan’s head before him and Y/N pulled back. “Don’t give Happy too much grieve, okay?”

“Okay, daddy!”

Tony leaned closer to Y/N. “If we’re going to do this, we’ve got to get going,” he whispered, placing a slight kiss near her ear.

“Okay,” Y/N whispered in reply. She leaned in and gave Morgan one last kiss on the forehead. “We’ll call you later tonight. I love you.”

“I love you too, momma and daddy,” Morgan responded.

Y/N and Tony stood up. She had an arm around his waist, holding herself close to him. Pepper and Happy came up behind Morgan.

“We’ll take good care of her,” Pepper promised.

“Thank you guys,” Y/N said before Tony led her to the car.

He opened the passenger door for her then got into the driver’s seat. Y/N waved and blew kisses to Morgan as they drove off. When they were too far away, she sighed into the seat. Tony reached one hand over and gave her knee a slight squeeze. They didn’t talk though, they were both too overwhelmed with what they were both headed to do.

~~~

Steve was standing outside, staring at the ground. His hands were on his hips as he looked beat. Bruce, Scott, Natasha, and himself had just tried to send Scott back in time, to no success. All they did was age and de-age Scott. Steve needed to get out of the hanger and clear his head. It had gotten his hopes up to bring everyone back, but it was looking like their plan wouldn’t be a possibility.

As a noise broke the silence, Steve looked up to see a car speeding towards the entrance. The car pulled over to him, passing him slightly, before reversing. As it backed up to stop in front of Steve, Tony rolled down his window to reveal himself and Y/N.

“Why the long face?” Tony asked. “Let me guess: he turned into a baby.”

Steve looked away with a slight smile on his face and a nod. “Among other things, yeah,” he responded looking back at the couple. “What are you two doing here?”

Tony got out of the car, Y/N following, and walked around to the back. “That's the EPR Paradox. Instead of pushing Lang through time, you might've wound up pushing time through Lang. It's tricky. Dangerous. Somebody should've cautioned you against it.” He leaned against the car as Y/N moved to stand beside him.

“You did.”

“Oh, did I?”

“Tony,” Y/N scolded quietly, knowing Steve did deserve the sass.

“Thank goodness we’re here. Regardless, I fixed it.” He held up his right hand, device on it. “A fully functioning Time-Space GPS. I just want peace.” He made a peace sign. “Turns out, resentment is corrosive, and I hate it.”

“Me too.”

“We got a shot at getting these Stones, but I gotta tell you our priorities: Bring back what we lost? I hope, yes. Keep what we got? I have to, at all costs. And... maybe not die trying will be nice.”

“Sounds like a deal.” 

Steve reached out his hand to shake, in which Tony took it. Pulling away, Tony opened his truck. He reached in to pull out Captain America’s shield. He handed it toward Steve, who didn’t take it.

“Tony… I don’t know,” Steve said.

“Why?” Y/N asked. “Howard made it for you.” 

“Plus, honestly we had to get it out of the garage before Morgan took it sledding,” Tony added. “She’s been way too eager to take it out since she found out it belongs to you.”

With a light sigh, Steve took the shield, placing his arm in the straps. It had been too long since it had rested on his arms, seven years in fact. It felt nice to have it back.

“Thank you,” Steve replied.

“Will you keep that a little quiet?” Tony asked as he pulled out a few more things from the car. “Didn’t bring one for the whole team… we are getting the whole team, yeah?”

“We’re working on that right now. You guys might be able to be of some help.” Steve began leading them back into the hanger. “Who’s with Morgan?”

“Pepper and Happy,” Y/N responded. It was clear to the men that Y/N was feeling hesitate to do this and leave Morgan. “You’re going to have to join in on the call tonight. She’s upset she didn’t get to talk to you that much when you guys showed up a few days ago.”

“Y/N? Tony?” She heard Natasha gasp. Her friend quickly ran to her, engulfing her in a hug. “You came to help. Thank you so much.”

“Woah there, Banner,” Tony said, causing everyone to notice him studying Bruce, who had merged with the Hulk. “What did you do?”

“I know, it’s different,” Bruce responded. “But I finally found a way to live with both my sides.”

“That’s wonderful,” Y/N smiled. “I’m so happy for you, Bruce.”

“Thank you.”

“What’s the plan with the team though?”

“I’ve called Rocket and Nebula,” Nat explained. “They’re on their way. Once they get here, Bruce with go with Rocket to fetch Thor from New Asgard. Rhodey needs to finish up a few things before he comes. They should all be here tomorrow.”

“What about Clint? Is he still off the grid?”

“I’ve pinned pointed his location and am going after him tonight.”

“Do you need any help?”

“I think this is something I need to do on my own.”

~~~

Night had fallen and Tony had already started building a platform for the time travel. Natasha had left to retrieve Clint and Y/N was just finishing up her video call with Morgan.

“It’s time to go sleepy night-night, now Mo,” she told her daughter. “I love you, and I’ll talk to you tomorrow. Goodnight.” She blew a kiss.

Morgan blew one back. “Love you, momma!”

Y/N smiled softly as she hung up. Turning the phone in her hands, she looked around the bedroom she was sitting in. This old bedroom was filled was so many memories, good and bad. Y/N honestly never thought she’d ever come back here, again. With a small sigh, she pushed herself up from the bed and walked out onto the small balcony that was attached to the room. She leaned on the railing by her forearms and looked over the once bustling grounds of the compound.

“I thought I’d find you out here,” Tony said, snaking his arms around her and pressing a kiss to her neck. She jumped slightly. “Sorry, did I scare you?”

“A little. I guess I was too caught up in my thoughts,” Y/N responded.

Tony rested his chin on her shoulder. “Care to share?”

“This place used to be so lively… even after the team broke. There were people running around and working hard. Now… now It’s empty. Too empty… I don’t want this to be the world Morgan grows up in. I want to her see busy streets and cheer in crowded arenas. I want her to experience what life should be like. Not this… this mess.”

“I get it… I want her to meet Peter. I can already imagine the chaos those two could cause.” 

Y/N laughed. “Me too… And Harley.”

“And Harley… we have to get our boys back.”

“We have to. And not die trying.”

~~~

The next day, Tony and Y/N spent building the platform, while everyone else came and went, going about their assignments. Natasha left to get Clint, having got some concrete leads about him being in Japan. Rocket, Nebula, and Rhodey arrived. Rocket and Bruce quickly left for New Asgard to fetch Thor. Nebula, Rhodey, and Scott began thinking of suit ideas for the time traveling. Steve gathered together everything he could find on the Infinity Stones, the whole time itching to ask Y/N questions. He wondered if she knew more than they had learned from past experiences. And it wouldn’t surprise him if she did.

Rocket and Bruce arrived back with Thor first. It shocked the team to see Thor in such a state as he was. His hair and beard were long once again, and he had gained more than a few pounds. It saddened Y/N to know that this had all taken such a toll on Thor. Her and Tony really had been one of the few lucky ones. 

Rocket quickly began helping Y/N and Tony with the platform. Which Y/N was extremely grateful for because she could only understand, or do, very little of what Tony was asking of her. 

Thor was drinking a beer as he clumsily walked towards the platform. Tony was walking from behind Thor, dragging a long hose.

“Drifting left,” Tony warned Thor as he began to pass him. “On the side there, Lebowski.” He faced Rocket, who was working underneath the platform. “Ratchet, how’s it going?”

“It’s Rocket,” the raccoon corrected. “Take it easy. You’re only a genius on Earth, pal.”

“Thank you!” Y/N exclaimed jokingly, pointing at Rocket.

“Hey!” Tony exclaimed, a little hurt.

“I love you!”

Tony scoffed. “Sure.”

Y/N giggled as she came up to Tony. “I’m sorry,” she pouted slightly as she grasped his hand. “Forgive me?”

Tony sighed, rolling his eyes playfully. “I guess.” He gave her a light kiss. “Want to go check out how the suit is coming?”

“Of course.”

They intertwined their fingers and headed to where they were figuring out the suit. When they arrived in the room, Scott was in the suit with Nebula and Bruce working on it around him.

“How’s it coming with the thingamajigger?” Tony asked as him and Y/N walked over to the Scott. “What’s our status?”

“Now?” Bruce wondered. “Yeah, it’s just about ready.”

“Alright, let me see. Wow. Got a little Pym,” Tony pointed, “Stark styling.”

“Yeah.”

“And the, uh, noggin bubble, courtesy of, uh,” Tony turned to Nebula, “Rings of Uranus. What’s your troop called?”

“The Guardians of the Galaxy,” Nebula answered.

“We just need someone to test it,” Bruce said, as he grabbed some small glass tubes with a red liquid and started doing something to Scott’s suit.

“Time travel suit?” Rhodey questioned, walking in. “Not bad.”

“Hey, hey, hey!” Scott exclaimed, stopping Bruce. “Easy, easy!”

“I’m being very careful,” Bruce responded.

“No, you’re being very Hulky.”

“I’m being careful.”

Scott held up a red tube. “These are Pym Particles, alright? And ever since Hank Pym got snapped out of existence, this is it. This is what we have. We're not making any more.”

“Scott, calm down,” Rhodey advised.

“Sorry. We've got enough for one round trip each. That's it. No do-overs. Plus two test runs.” Accidentally pressing a button, Scott quickly shrunk and returned to his normal size. “One test run.”

“Shit, Scott,” Y/N muttered, shaking her head.

“Alright, sorry. I’m not ready for this.”

“I’m game,” Clint’s voice suddenly came from behind them. They all turned to look at him. “I’ll do it.”

He looked different. It wasn’t just his hair cut and his sleeve tattoo. It was his eyes. Clint had lost his wife and three kids. Y/N couldn’t even imagine what he was exactly going through.

“Clint,” Y/N gasped softly.

“Y/N,” Clint responded with a nod.

Tearing up, Y/N let go of Tony’s hand and quickly wrapped her arms around Clint’s neck, bringing him in for a hug. Clint didn’t hesitate to hug her back.

“I’ve missed you,” she whispered.

“I’ve missed you too, Y/N/N,” he responded. He pulled away and looked back at the others. “Suit me up. Let’s do this.”

~~~

Tony and Y/N got the platform set up and gathered everyone while Bruce, Rhodey, Scott, and Nebula got Clint situated. As everyone slowly gathered and Bruce came to help Tony, Y/N stayed back and close to the wall. She had started to tremble at the thought of the time travel actually working and all that came a long with it. Her head had also started to get fuzzy. And, from past experience over the years, she knew that a seizure could easily be triggered. Steve had noticed at discretely came over to her.

“You alright?” He whispered.

“I-I-I… I don’t know,” she responded, shakily. “This all… what if it works? And… what if it changes things? I… I can’t lose Morgan. I-I can’t.”

Steve came around and cupped Y/N’s face with his large hands. “You are not going to lose Morgan. I will not let that happen, I promise.”

“You can’t control that Steve… you don’t know… I’ve seen things. I know things… something’s still coming.”

“What do you mean?”

She shook her head quickly. “I can’t say anymore. I can’t.”

“Y/N—“

“Don’t push this, Steve. I…” She swallowed, getting a tad dizzy. She gripped onto Steve’s arm, trying to keep herself steady. “I… oh…”

Steve held onto Y/N’s upper arms, noticing that she was struggling. “Talk to me, Y/N. What’s going on?”

“Just keep me close. I’m not feeling so good.”

“Maybe we should sit you down in the other room.”

“No. I want to be here. I need to be here. Just wrap your arm around my waist and keep me close to your side. I don’t want Tony to worry.”

Steve gave in with a sigh before turning so that they were both facing the platform and wrapping an arm around Y/N’s waist. Everyone else was at the control panel and Clint was taking his position on the platform.

“Alright, Clint,” Bruce said. “We’re going in 3… 2… 1!”

A helmet formed over Clint’s head before he went quantum. That was the longest minute of everyone’s lives. Y/N could barely breath as she stared at the space Clint once stood. When he finally rematerialized, Clint was on his hands and knees, breathing heavily. Natasha rushed up the platform, crouching down and cupping Clint’s cheeks. Scott and Tony rushed up onto the platform as well.

“Hey, hey,” she called. “Look at me. You okay?”

Clint held up a baseball glove and threw it at Tony. “Yeah, it worked,” Clint said. “It worked.”

Tony smiled triumphantly, holding the baseball glove, as he turned towards Y/N. She was the only one that didn’t seem excited. In fact, her complexion was off and her breathing pattern had changed. Tony knew what was about to happen before her eyes even rolled back.

“Rogers!” Tony shouted, surprising everyone. “Get her on the ground and on her side. Now!” 

When Tony had called out to Steve, that was when her eyes rolled back and Y/N began to seize. Steve quickly did as he was directed, already familiar with the routine. The whole team quickly surrounded them, with Tony and Bruce pushing to the front to help.

“What’s going on?” Thor asked, confused and completely worried.

“She’s having a seizure,” Natasha responded. “She had a car accident a few years back, left her with some brain issues.”

“When was the last time she had one?” Steve asked as he kept his sister on her side. 

“Probably a little bit over a year,” Tony replied, helping Steve.

They all let out a breath of relief when she finally stopped moving.

“Let’s get her to her bed,” Bruce suggested.

Tony picked her up. “I’ll handle it,” he said. “I’ll get her settled and then we can figure out a plan.”

They watched as Tony carried Y/N away.

“Steve,” Natasha called gently, looking at her friend. “What triggered it?”

“I have absolutely no idea,” Steve asked, keeping his eyes on the pair as Tony walked away.

~~~

Y/N immediately knew what had happened the moment she opened her eyes. She was laying in her bed, all tucked in, and Tony was sitting next to her, reading something on his tablet.

“How long have I been out?” Y/N asked, voice slightly horse.

“Hey, you’re awake,” Tony said, placing his tablet down and turning to face her. “You had us all worried.”

“Sorry.”

“What happened?”

“I was just thinking about… well, everything… and I guess I stressed myself over the edge.”

“Maybe you should go home, stay with Morgan.”

“No. I need to be here.”

Tony pursed his lips as he studied his wife. He definitely didn’t like the way she emphasized need. “Why? Why do you need to be here?”

Y/N sighed and closed her eyes. “You know why.”

“No, I really don’t. You’ve always been so vague around your destiny and the Stones and shit. Just tell me what’s going on. What do you know?”

Y/N tossed her covers off and sat up, sitting on the edge of the bed facing away from Tony. “I can’t say Tony.”

“Like hell!” Y/N stood up, walking onto the balcony with Tony following. “If you’re scared of the Stones, no need. They’re gone, Y/N. You felt that yourself.”

“You don’t understand… Things could still happen and I can’t have more lives on my hands than I already do.”

“Y/N, what happened is not solely your fault.”

“But it is. I was tasked to save everyone. And I failed…I failed Wanda, I failed Vision! I failed Peter! And Bucky!”

“Bucky,” Tony scoffed. There had always been a question lingering in Tony’s mind, fighting for an answer. But he was too frightened to know the truth. Until now. He had to know. “Are you still…” He studied Y/N for a quiet moment. “Are you still in love with him?”

“Tony…” She tried to turn away, but Tony grabbed onto her arms, keeping her facing him.

“No, you don’t get to run away right now. I need an answer. If we’re going to do this, bring everyone back. I need to know the truth, once and for all. That I wasn’t the second choice, that I wasn’t just the only option so you went for it… So, tell me, would you have chosen me if Barnes was still here?”

Ending 1: It’s Always Been You >

Ending 2: I’m From Brooklyn, Too >

I hope this wasn’t complete crap. And I couldn’t wait to post this! I know I’m on a break, I just got too excited about getting to the 2 separate parts!

I would love to hear your theories/hopes for the endings! I would love for everyone to read both, especially because they’ll take on Endgame very differently!

Also, my tag list is struggling to work. So please be patient with me. Also, Chapter 140 did not get a tag list because tumblr is the WORST right now and hates me and kept deleting it. So, again, please be patient with me. I’m just a human trying my best.

If you want to be added to the tag list, please dm me or send in an ask.

OUT OF TIME TAG LIST:  

@paintballkid711​

@cherthegoddess​

@capstopavenger​

@tommy-holland (won’t link)

@marinettepotterandplagg​

@bestofbucky​

@demidia​

@maia030 (won’t link)

@thatrandomcatoverthere​

@xwackk​

@idkanymoremansstuff (won’t link)

@loveisallyouneed1125​

@jasbins​

@thewidowsghost​

@pukklv​

@thegayseance​

@allonszassbutt​

@caligrl1992 (won’t link)

@superunnatural23​

@fangirl-swagg​

@ihavenocontrolofmylifeeither​

@laic2299​ 

@lilred254​

@livinglikebritishroyalty​

@azure23x​

@sammyrose222​

@taina-eny​

@mallyallyandra (won’t link)

@paintmekala​

@booksarebae2000​

@supernatural-bangtanboys​

@a--1--1--3​

@irrelevantyettopicalusername​

@supernaturallover2002​

@loveyou3000tonystark​

@jatriciaaaa (won’t link)

@radicaljoy​

@newheart97​

@roxytheimmortal​

@sydney-m​

@emmuut​

@mikariell95​

@bihoeofmanyfandoms (won’t link)

@dontputyourfckingdrinkonmytable (won’t link)

@sxpxrnxturxl (won’t link)

@follow-hi-this-is-my-brain (won’t link)

@booknerd-3000​

@captain-of-my-game1992​

@pastel-boy-sungjae​

@the-person-in-the-circle (won’t link)

@topstory21​

@the-hell-is-life​

@cspr-2​

@bellamy-barnes​

@nish-xiii​

@theofficialzivadavid​

@tuttifuckinfruttifriday​

@outsideratheart​

@23victoria​ 

@austynparksandpizza​

@stuckupstucky​

@aubreeskailynn​

@finnologys​

@love-couldbe-my-weakness​

@i-dumb-bitch​

@osugahunnyicedtea​

[miracleonice87]

38 with Mat

from the Winter/Christmas Writing Prompts list

38. “You’re under the mistletoe so stop stalling and just kiss.” 🎄

quick note: this one is prob a bit longer than the others will be. I just L O V E writing Sydney and Marty as secondary characters in Mat stories.

quick warnings: swearing, alcohol, super snowy powdery Christmas fluff

and, just for fun, song pairing: mistletoe by Justin Bieber (obviously)

_____

There really was no place like home.

After moving away to Los Angeles to attend USC for both undergrad and grad studies, you were finally back in New York. You hadn’t been able to resist the pull — it was almost as if, from all the way across the continent, you could feel the Atlantic tide receding and pulling you home along with it. For better or for worse, you belonged to the Empire State.

Sydney, your lifelong best friend and a New Yorker herself, was beyond ecstatic, as she had recently gotten engaged to her longtime boyfriend Matt, a hockey player, and named you her maid of honor. Planning a wedding — not to mention showers and bachelorette festivities — would be far easier, and far more fun, with you in the same zip code. Since moving back six weeks ago, you’d spent about ninety percent of your time with Sydney by your side, making up for lost time with the woman who had long been your other half.

So sweet, right? There was just one problem. Sydney wouldn’t stop trying to set you up with guys. She was insistent that you’d been single for too long — you’d broken up with your college sweetheart by the end of your senior year — and she made it her mission for you to find love again. And she, on her own, was bad enough — she’d already hooked you up with so many friends of friends that you’d lost count, and none had been interesting enough for a second date — but her fiancé conspiring right along with her made resisting them that much more difficult.

This particular night, she had lured you to the home she shared with Matt under the guise of having dinner with her family, when in reality, she was throwing a Christmas dinner party for Matt’s closest friends on the team. All of whom had — and brought — significant others. Except for one. What a coincidence.

Also coincidentally, his name was Mat, too, or so you were told — you didn’t quite believe Syd’s Matt when he told you that upon introducing the two of you.

“Mat with one ’t,’” he announced, one arm slung around Mat’s shoulders. The handsome, dark-haired man swallowed thickly and gave you his best polite smile — it was in that moment that you realized beyond a shadow of a doubt this was yet another set up.

Matt made a lame excuse about needing to check on Sydney in the kitchen and snuck away after some brief pleasantries, but not before blatantly nudging your much-smaller frame toward New Mat. You gave Matt a menacing glare before recovering, standing a safe distance away from New Mat, leaning against the wooden beam behind you to keep you steady.

“So, Mat with one ’t,’ how long have you played with the ever-obnoxious Matty?” you asked, trying to play it cool.

Mat laughed easily. Damn, he had a nice laugh — the kind that made his pretty eyes crinkle at the corners. Nice hair. Nice teeth — perfect fucking teeth. Wasn’t he supposed to be a hockey player? Wait, what was he saying? Something about Seattle, and the draft, and… now you were lost. You nodded slowly with a forced smile as you tried your hardest to focus on what he was saying. He was just so goddamn pretty.

Thankfully, Sydney’s call from the kitchen saved you from the embarrassment of not having heard a word this poor boy had spoken.

“Dinner’s ready! I’m really type A, as you all know, so I made little placecards for everyone at the table,” she announced to the group of ten, hands clasped before her as Matt snaked an arm around her from behind and smiled proudly.

“Guess that’s our cue,” Mat mused. “Shall we?”

You threw him a grin and nodded, turning your back to him and making your way to the dining room.

On your way, you paused in front of your dear friend just long enough to grumble, “Assigned seats? Really, Syd?”

She clapped enthusiastically and smacked your ass as you passed her. “Yep! See you in there, champ!” she exclaimed as you heard frantic whispers exchanged between Mat and Matt. You couldn’t hold back your snicker, and as you glanced over your shoulder, Mat gave you a strained smile. You shook your head bemusedly and turned to the table to find that, to no one’s surprise, you and Mat were indeed to be seated side by side at one end of the table. You cleared your throat and nodded toward the cards bearing your names.

“Subtle, no?” you joked, causing Mat to blush pink. He choked out, “Ah, yeah. You gotta love them.” Then, he pulled out your chair and motioned for you to take a seat, which, as luck would have it, Sydney and Matt caught just in time because they were bringing in the food on serving dishes at that very moment. Their eyes sparkled and Sydney looked like she may self-destruct out of sheer joy as you sat down and thanked Mat. You gave her an icy look and she visibly retreated, holding herself back from making a complete scene.

“Okay, dig in!” she said instead as she sat down across from you.

Dinner was incredible, as usual — while your talents lacked in the cooking area, Sydney had always been an outstanding chef. Even more, you enjoyed the conversation, which was mostly inclusive of everyone at the table, save for the occasional chirp Mat secretly muttered in your ear about Matt or Anders, making you cover your mouth with your hand to stifle a giggle as Sydney looked on smugly. Meanwhile, whenever you and Sydney would say the exact same thing at the same moment or finish the other’s sentence, Mat would look to Marty, who would only raise his eyebrows and nod, confirming Mat’s suspicion that these two were always this in sync. Mat found it endearing. He adored Syd — if he didn’t, he wouldn’t have agreed to come here tonight when she told him, “There’s someone I want you to meet…” — and already, he saw countless similarities in the two of you.

After he’d helped you clear the plates and load the dishwasher for your hosts, you and Mat settled onto a couch in the farthest corner of the living room, near the Christmas tree, while the others gathered in the center of the space, loudly entertaining themselves. As you curled your feet underneath yourself, you didn’t miss how Sydney reached for a nearby remote and slowly flickered on the fireplace right beside you and Mat. Yet again, you shot her a killer look that she pretended not to see as Mat smiled, amused at how flustered you were by Sydney trying to further set the mood.

“So how long have you known Syd?” he asked as he took another swig from his beer bottle, attempting to get you back on track. “Has to be a while. I swear I’ve never seen two friends who were more alike.”

You tucked some hair behind your ear and let out a breathy chuckle. With anyone else, you were ever prepared to skirt that question and quickly move on to another subject. But with Mat, it was nice knowing you really didn’t have to.

“Yeah, my whole life, actually,” you answered, a smile on your face at the thought. Your eyes flickered up to his as you added, “My dad played for the Jets... with Boomer while he was there.”

Mat’s brows quirked noticeably, but not in the familiar way that made you feel like he was about to ask you to FaceTime your dad or get an autograph from him. Because he was a professional athlete himself — which was ironic because you’d sworn up and down your whole life that, because of the lifestyle you saw your dad and his teammates, not to mention their families, lead, you’d never fall for anyone who played sports for a living. Even when Sydney insisted with a shrug after settling down with Matt, “It’s not that bad.”

“No way,” Mat said with a casual laugh. “That’s awesome. What position did he play?”

“Uh, receiver,” you replied. “So he and Boomer were tight. Our moms hit it off right off the bat and have been best friends since. Since then, we’ve always vacationed together, ended up living in the same neighborhood after they both retired. I’m three years younger than Syd and I was basically like her shadow. Still am, I guess,” you added with a smile.

Mat nodded, his eyes never leaving your face as you told the familiar tale. “I think that’s awesome though,” he spoke. “You guys could be sisters I feel like. You act just like her. Plus Marty says you’re the only friend of hers who’s kicked him out of bed so you could sleep with her.”

You threw a hand to your chest and your head back laughing at that, and Mat’s heart soared at being able to elicit such a reaction from you himself. You pointed a gold-polished index finger at him and admitted, “He tells no lies on that one.”

Just then, you caught Mat’s unabashed gaze, which had shifted from well-mannered and nonchalant into something deeper, something... affectionate. You swallowed, casting a downward glance at your lap, and swirled the ice cubes in your otherwise empty highball glass.

“I need a refill,” you said with a nervous giggle. “You want anything?”

Mat looked all too pleased with himself at your offer, and he nodded. “Sure, yeah, another beer would be great. Thank you,” he said. You smiled and nodded as you turned away and headed for the kitchen.

Ever the subtle one, once again, Sydney, who had been shamelessly watching the two of you from her perch in Matt’s lap across the room, stumbled over Jax’s paw as she bolted to the kitchen island where you now stood. You blinked at her wildly and said, “May I help you, Sydney Irene? You nearly wounded your poor dog.”

“So,” Sydney sang, ignoring your question completely as she leaned back against the kitchen counter, propping her palms on the edge and looking much more smooth than she had just a moment ago. She waggled her eyebrows at you before continuing. “Whadd’ya think? He’s cute, right?”

You scoffed. “Sydney—“ you began in a warning tone as you reached for the rum, but were interrupted before you could speak another word.

“If you hate him, it was Matt’s idea,” she deadpanned, then allowed a mischievous grin to stretch along her painted red lips as she cocked her head. “But if you like him, it was mine.”

You rolled your eyes as you poured yourself another rum ginger, ignoring the flush you could feel creeping up your chest and neck under Sydney’s scrutiny.

“You’re blushing! You do like him!” Syd squealed as she poked at your side, thankfully making an attempt to stay quiet as the guys, Mat included, carried on noisy shenanigans in the family room before you.

“Sydney, stop! I just met him,” you tried to argue, turning away from her. It was Sydney’s turn to roll her eyes.

“Like that matters. I fell for Matt like—“ she snapped her fingers for dramatic effect, “—that. And look at us now.”

You pursed your lips to the side. You couldn’t exactly argue that. With no quick comeback coming to mind, you stirred your drink, took three generous gulps — as Sydney watched, wide-eyed — and licked your lips before sighing at her.

“Well, fine,” you grumbled as you opened the fridge and grabbed a fresh beer for Mat. “Let’s not keep the boy waiting then.” You sashayed away from your friend who, spinning away from you, quickly squeezed her eyes shut and crossed her fingers before turning back and following behind you.

Mat thanked you profusely for the drink as you returned to him. Now he sat among his teammates, and Sydney sat back in Matt’s lap as you took the seat beside Mat on the opposite couch. You noticed how he immediately leaned back and comfortably stretched his arm across the cushion behind you, and you’d be lying to yourself if you said you didn’t inch a little closer then. It briefly occurred to you that you were drawn to him in the very same way you’d been drawn back home not long ago.

He felt like home. Already.

And soon, after a few hours more of merrymaking, Mat never leaving your side, the other couples had all headed for home. You four who remained had played several rounds of euchre and sang and danced to half a dozen Christmas carols before you realized how late it was. Knowing you’d had too much rum and wouldn’t be fit to drive, you’d already established that you’d stay in Sydney’s guest room — or maybe kick Matt out of the master. Regardless, you were staying put. But Mat, reluctantly, was leaving — the boys had practice in the morning.

“I guess I should go,” Mat sighed after a long round of goodbyes. Matt and Sydney gave him one last hug and retreated to the far side of the spacious room, aiming, of course, to leave the two of you to your own goodbye.

You nodded. “I guess you should,” you said, caught off guard by the twinge of sadness in your tone. “I’ll walk you out.” Mat smiled and turned toward the front door, and your heart truly may have skipped an actual beat when he glanced back at you and reached his hand out for you to grab. You did so, biting down on your smiling bottom lip as you followed him down the hall into the entryway, acutely aware that, if Sydney and Matt were indeed watching — of which you had no doubt — they could still clearly see you.

But when Mat pulled on his shoes and stood up straight again, stepping slowly, so slowly, closer to you, all you could think about was how hard your heart was thumping against your ribcage. You looked up at him in anticipation, and he smoothed his hands down the sleeves of your sweater softly.

“I had a really, really nice time tonight, you know,” Mat spoke. You had to remind yourself to breathe as the sincerity of his voice flooded your senses and his warm, honey-flecked eyes pierced through you. “Tonight was honestly the most fun I’ve had in a long time.”

You beamed — how could you not? “Yeah?” you asked incredulously. Mat nodded.

“Yeah. In fact,” he cleared his throat. “I was wondering if maybe, uh, you’d want to go to dinner with me sometime. Like maybe this Sunday night, after we play?”

You felt yourself grinning like an idiot, yet had no control.

“Yeah,” you finally answered. “Yes. Of course. I’d love that.”

Mat blew out a long breath and chuckled nervously. “Thank God,” he added as you both dissolved into a fit of giggles. You stepped closer to him and smelled his clean, woodsy cologne, inadvertently breathing it in. Mat came nearer, too, and tentatively reached his hands around to your lower back. “It’s a date then,” he spoke, his voice lower now, gravelly. You swallowed — hard — and gave a nod.

“It’s a date,” you echoed.

You simply stood in one another’s presence for a few long moments, smiling giddily at each other, before Mat sighed once more and glanced toward the door.

“I really don’t wanna go, but I—“

“No! Syd, just leave them be,” Matt suddenly whispered sharply to his fiancé — who seemed to have literally leapt up from the couch — though there was no point in whispering at all because you still heard him loud and clear. Jumping up behind Sydney, Matt easily wrapped her in his arms and clapped his hand over her mouth just as she started to speak.

After wrestling for control of Matt’s hand, she finally pulled it away just long enough to call out, “You’re under the mistletoe so stop stalling and just kiss already!”

With one final “shush!”, Matt covered her mouth once more, though his entire body was wracking with silent laughter.

“Goodnight, kids!” Matt said tersely as he all but manhandled Sydney down the opposite hallway into their bedroom, the two of them erupting with laughter the second they closed the door.

You rolled your jaw and looked above you and Mat to find that, yes, indeed, there hung a very Sydney-like crystal ornament adorned with glittery mistletoe, suspended from the archway.

“Un-fucking-believable,” you muttered, resting your head against Mat’s chest as you both laughed anxiously.

But a moment later, Mat’s voice rumbled in his chest. “Hey...” he spoke. You took that as your invitation to look up at him, and when you did, you found him gazing at you even more tenderly than he had before.

“I mean, since there’s mistletoe and all.. would it be okay if I kissed you?” he asked. His hand found your cheek and you grasped his fingers in your own.

“Well,” you began, leaning further into him. “Only since there’s mistletoe.”

Mat breathed a chuckle and whispered, “Okay, good,” before his lips found yours in a toe-curling, snow-melting, heart-growing, hell of a Christmas movie kiss that you both found yourselves smiling into by the end.

“Wow,” was somehow all you could whisper when you finally pulled away for air.

“Yeah,” Mat agreed simply. “Wow.”

“It worked!” You heard the muffled squeal from behind Sydney’s closed door.

You rolled your eyes once again, hating Sydney in that moment, as Mat snickered and leaned in for another kiss.

Little did you know that a few years later, your dear, meddling Sydney would stand up at your side in front of a ballroom filled with your and Mat’s family and dearest friends and proudly tell the story of that cold late-December night when your love story with Mat began.

[yikestripes]

Masquerade

Request: Can you write a Hotch x reader where the BAU team attends a ballroom party after helping a rich man from an unsub as thanks. Hotch meets the reader and they talk and dance all night. The reader is intrigued that Hotch is a profiler and at midnight she gives him her shoe and tells him to find her based only on that. Thanks!!!

here you go @lavenderblossom12 !!!! i hope you enjoy this !!! i actually had a ton of fun writing it and i usually have such a tough time writing for hotch. if it’s good maybe i’ll write a part 2 ;)

key:

(Y/H/C): your hair color

(Y/D/J): your dream job

(Y/E/C): your eye color

word count: 2.5k

“Hotchner,” Hotch answered with his usual monotone draw, narrowing his already narrow brow as he listened to whatever the caller was saying on the other end. “Well, I suppose that would be alright. Send me the location. Thanks.” He hung up and turned the phone over and over in his hands before looking to the ceiling.

“What is it, Hotch? Is everything okay?” JJ asked, concerned.

“The BAU team was invited to a masquerade party to celebrate our returning the Schaffer’s daughter,” He said, sounding unsure. He recognized the caller ID as soon as he saw the D.C area code, having spent extensive time with the family in pursuit of the most recent psychopath. They had gotten a location at the most crucial time, they had shown up right before the unsub slit the young woman’s throat. They apprehended him in a matter of minutes and were able to return the girl safely to her family. She had been the target in a war of spite between the unsub and her father, since he had personally fired him from his company 3 months later without any sort of rhyme or reason, beyond slow work ethic. He was furious and decided to get back at him by taking the most precious thing in his world; his 19 year old daughter.

“Well, that’s never happened before.” Reid said, looking confused. He hated parties, clubs, anything of the sort. The loud music made it hard for him to think and he had a tough time connecting with other people, his tangents tended to turn others off from him. Hotch remained unsure about agreeing so quickly, but decided not to press the issue. It was the right thing to do; it was, after all, partially in their honor. The team could deal with it for one night, not to mention they had been working especially hard and could use a single night to let loose and celebrate their work, especially since this case had been a win for the good guys.

It was set to take place that Saturday and although attendance was not required, it was recommended. This was to celebrate the return of a young girl and it was to thank them, so it was only right of them to go.

At least, that was the way Hotch was going to continue justifying it to himself, whether the team or anyone else understood or not. He was going to find a way to enjoy this party if it took everything in him, or even all the liquor at the open bar. Tonight was about relaxing. Every single person in his life never failed to remind him how uptight he could be, or how he could never relax. With all the things he’d seen since starting at the BAU, how could he?

He straightened his tie in the mirror of his small apartment and took a deep breath, before making his way to the ballroom where the party was being hosted. He had apparently been assigned to a table with the rest of the team, of which he was the first to arrive, and he eagerly awaited his fellow agents’ arrivals. Prentiss came shortly after Hotch, wearing a long red gown that accentuated her curves without trying to make a spectacle of herself, followed by Penelope, who was the complete opposite. Her dress was colorful and bright, just like her personality- and typical work attire. JJ wore a gown similar to Emily’s and Reid had gone with a classic all black suit. Derek was what he called “fashionably late”, sporting a suit that was similar to Reid’s, except navy blue as opposed to solid black.

It didn’t take a profiler to see what each agent’s outfit said about them; Reid didn’t want to be noticed, Morgan was impartial since he got attention no matter what he wore, and the girls’ dresses and makeup spoke more to their individual personalities. JJ was able to snag a babysitter for Henry and brought Will as a plus one, so she dressed more suited to being with someone. Classy and elegant, without attracting attention to herself. Emily was similar in the sense of class and elegance, but she didn’t bring anyone so attracting someone else was more of her goal with her dress and her overall demeanor. Hotch, on the other hand, didn’t have much of a motive for anything beyond looking nice and enjoying his time off from work and his typical worries, sporting a plain black suit with a classic red tie. Nevertheless, all the agents looked fantastic and it showed as they slowly eased deeper into the party.

Hotch excused himself from Reid as he went on about the periodic table, he wasn’t even sure how the prior conversation of the butterfly room on the second floor could possibly have any relation, but of course Reid found a way to bring something like that into a conversation. Hotch shook his head to himself as he approached, being only one of two who were at the bar, besides the bartender.

“I’ll take a Kettle One on the rocks, please.” Hotch took a long drag from the glass as soon as the bartender set it in front of him, earning him a small chuckle from the person beside him.

“Thirsty?” You asked, your eyes alight. The liquor went down his throat icy, forcing him to pause for a second before responding. He offered a small smile.

“Not quite.” He said quietly, looking down into the glass.

“Fair enough.” You took a sip from the wine in your hand as you looked across the room, throwing a lock of (Y/H/C) hair over your shoulder. Hotch took another sip himself before inching slightly closer to you.

“It’s a lovely venue.” Hotch said quietly.

“It really is. I came to a wedding that took place here about a month ago, for one of my best friends from college,” You paused to take another drag from your wine. “I gotta be honest though, I like what they did with the place now much better.” She set down the empty glass on the bar and the bartender filled you up without you saying a word. You took the glass in your hand once more, looking to Hotch.

“Is it safe to assume you’re one of the guests of honor this evening?” You asked, cocking an eyebrow.

“Yeah, how did you know?” Hotch asked.

“Well, you’re sitting at a table that is slightly apart from the other tables, and the other guests at your table who I saw you sitting with before are all glued to one another, seeming as if they’re the only ones they know here.” You said.

“Wow. I guess we do sort of stand out.” Hotch replied, taking another sip of his own drink, feeling the effect slowly loosen him up. He downed the last few swigs and offered you his hand.

“Care to dance?” Hotch was never the dancing sort, except when he went out with his ex-wife and/or coworkers. Haley enjoyed dancing enough, as did Hotch, but they never found the time to do so. However, tonight was about relaxing, and ignoring everything in him that told him not to at least try and enjoy himself. He was going to enjoy this party, he was determined to.

A blush crept up to your cheeks as you accepted his hand, entering the dance floor from the side. Hotch placed his hands on your waist, and you rested yours on his chest as you slowly swayed around the floor.

“So, tell me about yourself.” You said, smiling up at him. You had to hand it to him, he was extremely attractive, and his elusive smiles were something that clearly had to be earned, and you seemed to be doing a pretty good job so far.

“Well, uh, there really isn’t much to tell.” He said, looking around for something to trigger a memory as to what he could use to impress you.

“Come on, a handsome guy like you? I’m sure you’ve got some sort of exciting life.” Now it was Hotch’s turn to blush; he wasn’t used to hearing things like that.

“Well, I’m an FBI agent for the Behavioral Analysis Unit, so I guess that’s pretty exciting.” He shrugged as your eyes widened, fascinated.

“That’s pretty incredible, I gotta be honest.” You said, closing your dropped jaw. He smiled again, somehow making him even more attractive.

“Thanks. It’s hard work, but it pays off. What do you do?” He asked, readjusting his hands a little higher on your waist. You couldn’t help but feel slightly disappointed, but ignored it.

“I’m a (Y/D/J).” You grinned. Hotch brushed a stray strand of hair behind your ear, as blood rushed to your cheeks.

“Wow, that sounds exciting.” He whispered. The slower song had ended and led its way to a more upbeat song, and Hotch saw JJ dragging Will and Reid out onto the dance floor, followed by Morgan, Garcia, and Prentiss, who winked in Hotch’s direction.

You dropped your hands from his shoulders and grabbed his hand, leading him in the direction of your table where you had set down your wine glass previously. You took a long gulp, and turned your attention back to Hotch.

“What do you do for the FBI?” You asked, steadying yourself on a nearby chair.

“I’m a, uh, profiler. My team and I work together to create a profile of both a victim and/or the perpetrator, and use that to help solve the case.” He said, shoving his hands in his pockets.

“That’s fascinating.” You said, in awe. That sounded like the coolest job you’d ever heard, definitely something straight out of a movie.

“I’m going to grab another drink, did you need a refill?” Hotch asked, eyeing your emptying glass. You paused for a second to check yourself, and see if another could cause you to embarrass yourself. You decided that if you paced yourself, you would be fine.

“Sure, chardonnay.” You downed the rest of the contents and handed the glass to Hotch with a sweet smile. You watched as he made his way to the bar, confident. Another man approached him, and sent a small grin in your direction before turning his attention back to the man you’d spent almost half the evening with, but you didn’t even know his name. That was the funny thing about these sort of corporate parties; names were almost never necessary, you have the most incredible evening, but never ruin the memory with names and empty promises. You were interested in the fact that the man had never even mentioned anything about names, numbers, or anything of the sort. You almost always had to bring up the idea yourself, whether it was after one glass of wine or several. Most usually wanted to sleep with you, something that usually became apparent by this time of the night.

Not with this man, however. He was sweet and sure of himself, but not so sure that he thought he could sweet talk you back to his apartment. He genuinely seemed intrigued by you, and you by him.

“That’s a pretty girl you’ve been chatting up, Hotch.” Morgan appeared at Hotch’s side, ordering himself another beer.

“Isn’t she beautiful? She’s intelligent, too. And miraculously interested in our line of work,” Hotch replied with a small laugh, taking a sip from his glass.

“You think there’ll be a second date?” Morgan asked.

Hotch sorta shrugged and didn’t answer the question, just picked up your wine and his kettle and was off to find you. Luckily for him, you hadn’t wandered far, just to look at some of the paintings that were hanging up around the venue.

“Your wine, my lady.”

“Why thank you, kind sir.” You giggled as you took a short drag, sighing in content. “I hate to say it, but the evening is almost over..” You trailed off, looking toward the giant clock on the wall.

“Wow, I didn’t realize it had gotten that late.” It was nearing 12:15, and the party ended around 12:30.

“Yeah.” You took another sip of your wine as Ed Sheeran’s “Photograph” filled the room. “This is one of my favorites, shall we?” He set his glass down on the table beside yours, took your hand, and led you onto the dance floor once again. This time, he allowed his hands to sit directly on your hips as you wrapped your arms around his neck.

“You look beautiful, by the way.” He said with a shy smile.

“Thank you, so do you.” You giggled. This made his entire face break out into a grin as he lifted your arm, indicating for you to do a small spin. You dressed fanned out around you as Hotch brought you close again. You’d lost your footing amid the spin, not used to spinning in such high heels and after about 3 glasses of wine. You giggled a little bit more.

Hotch licked his lips as he took in the color of your eyes, (Y/E/C), sparkling and bright. He smiled a little and looked down at your lips, which were a lovely shade of pink, slightly parted. You could instantly tell what he was thinking, and closed the gap quickly. He stiffened in surprise, and then melted into it. You pulled away breathlessly, grinning from ear to ear.

The song ended faster than you would have liked, when you got a wild idea. It was something you’d always wanted to do, something you’d only ever seen in movies. There’s a first time for everything, right?

You pulled him down a little so you could whisper in his ear while leaning on him, taking off your left shoe.

“Come find me, Mr. FBI agent.” You whispered, pressing the shoe into his hand and walking away, purse in hand, in the direction of the exit.

Hotch’s eyes widened when he finally processed what had just happened, Morgan and Prentiss quickly approaching.

“What was that?” Prentiss asked, somewhat coherently.

“I… I have to find her.” Hotch said, staring at where you had sauntered right out of the ballroom, and beyond his reach.

[everybodyscupoftea]

drunk in love

jj x reader

word count: 2136

warnings: lots of drinking and not really responsibly (some underage but mostly of age); cursing (as usual); weed and smoking

synopsis: a headcanon thing where jj is your long time drinking buddy but with feelings

a/n: please drink responsibly friends

The first time you met was at a house party thrown by one of your new coworkers freshman year. You’d heard of the infamous JJ and his wild tendencies, but you’d never seen them or even him in person.

That is until you were sitting on the couch with another girl you knew and he dropped into the empty spot next to you, promptly spilling his full beer all over your leg and the couch. He slurred out, “Oh fuck, my b,” more to the couch than you.

The second time you met JJ was when you were the only one brave enough to take on the cement mixer with him. Four shot glasses, two with Baileys and two with lime juice, sat on the counter in front you. The group of people standing in the kitchen counted you down and the two of you quickly shot both and started shaking your heads quickly, allowing them to mix.

JJ accidentally spilled some down his chin but you swallowed no problem, resulting in cheers erupting all over the kitchen. You heard one of your friends scream, “Noob!” at him while wrapping you in a victorious hug.

He held a hand out for you to shake, “I yield to the superior drinker.”

The third time you met him was when your flip-pong team wiped the floor with his. You shook your head at him as he pouted, “Absolute fucking amateurs.”

He scoffed, “Your ass got carried through that game.”

You couldn’t let that stand, so you pulled up your friend’s story showing you absolutely annihilating him in a flip cup matchup which led to his team having to drink. And what exactly was he supposed to say to that?

The fourth and final time you met JJ before finally becoming friends was at a tailgate. Your friend was dating one of his frat brothers, so the two of you often tailgated with them. Admittedly, your one weakness when it came to drinking competitions was shotgunning.

Naturally, when JJ saw you there, he challenged you immediately, and you had a point to prove. You’d let to lose to JJ and it couldn’t start now. Your friend knew you were bad, but handed you an unopened beer and squeezed your shoulder for luck.

You lost but barely. JJ wrapped his arm around your shoulder, “Maybe next time, fucking amateur.” And you had to laugh at that.

“Hey I’ll get you one day and then you’ll never be able to beat me. I’ll be unstoppable.”

He shrugged, “In that case, you’re my new pong partner. John B who?”

From then on, anytime JJ got invited to a party or planned a night out, you were involved. Your favorite nights with JJ were when a group of you got together for bar-hopping downtown. One time in particular, about two years after meeting JJ for the first time, stuck out from all the others.

After a tailgate, you went back to your apartment to get dressed to go out instead of going to the football game. The plan was for JJ to come pick you up after the game to go back to the frat house to pregame before going downtown for the night, and you were excited.

It was dark by the time JJ pulled up and most of your closet was on the floor due to indecisiveness of what to wear. JJ had his pregame playlist blasting when you opened the door and his whole truck smelled like weed. You picked up the dab in the cup holder and took a hit as he sped off toward frat row.

“You look nice.”

A blush you didn’t want to acknowledge warmed your cheeks and you blew out smoke, “Thanks bud, wish I could say the same to you.”

He rolled his eyes, “Fuck off, I’m going to change before we go out.”

You just laughed and took another hit as he turned into the driveway. Following him to his room, you sat on the bed while he dug through his drawers for a shirt he hadn’t sweated in yet. He threw a shirt off the floor at you to get your attention, “Call John B and make sure he picked up the alcohol from Sarah’s please?”

“He’s your brother, you do it.”

JJ gave you a dirty look as you stretched out on his bed, “I’m getting dressed, can’t you just call him off my phone?”

You rolled your eyes, feeling unusually difficult, “I think you’re done getting ready, you look pretty, J, call him.”

He tossed the phone at you, already unlocked, and you begrudgingly pressed John B’s contact. You kicked your shoes off and got more comfortable in his bed as it rang.

“J, I’m on my way home, chill.”

“Not JJ, but I am calling to make sure you got the juice.”

“You’re just as bad as him, yes we have the alcohol.”

“We?”

John B paused for a few seconds, clearly hesitating, “Me and Sarah.”

“You’re bringing Sarah to pregame?” you asked incredulously and JJ’s head snapped up to look at you. He motioned for you to give him and phone and you shook your head.

“Give it,” he whispered.

“No,” you hissed at him, backing into the wall as he walked across the room to you.

JJ lunged toward the bed and held his hand out, “I just need to have a word with him.”

You hung up just before he ripped the phone out of your hand, and he gave you a dirty look. You smirked, “Gotta be faster, Maybank.”

“You’re the one who’s going to have to hang out with her.” And fair enough.

He crossed his arms, “Fine, you can find your own alcohol source tonight, I’m cutting you off.”

Pouting, you scrambled off the bed and wrapped him in a hug, “No, I’m sorry, I promise I’ll be nice to you.”

With an eyeroll, he wrapped his arms around you too, “Fine but only because you’re my girl.”

When John B finally showed up, you and JJ were sitting on the couch scrolling through twitter together with a plate full of pizza rolls on the table in front of you. John B lifted a heavy looking cooler over the threshold and set it down next to the table, he huffed when you two didn’t even look at him, “Hey you lazy fucks, here’s the alcohol, venmo me $20 each please.”

You walked to the cooler to grab a few beers for you and JJ while he set up drunk jenga on the table and yelled out for the other residents of the house to come play. Using one of your rings, you popped the bottles open and handed one to JJ before sitting back down next to him on the couch.

Several rounds were played as you got into a comfortable buzz. One of the freshman brothers of JJ’s frat was assigned designated driver, so he sat on the floor near you, sipping on water instead of beer with the rest of you.

After Pope lost the third round in a row he stood up, annoyed, “I’m going to play beer pong, anyone up to join?”

And obviously you were down. You followed him over for a solos game and JJ followed close behind you. Pope was a little drunker than you because of all his losses, but he was still a pretty good pong player anyway, definitely one of the best in the house behind JJ.

One of his shots hit the rim of one of your cups just as JJ blew smoke in your face, causing you to miss the swat. You glared at him, “Fuck off, J.” Of course, it landed in another cup and you quickly drained both cups before tossing the ball back to Pope.

“Fuckin right, JJ,” Pope cheered, “keep up the good distraction work.”

Pope missed the rest of his shots, and you shoved JJ away long enough to make three in a row. And from that point on, you were on fire, making quick work of the rest of the game. JJ cheered as you sank the last shot and wrapped an arm around you excitedly, “That’s my girl!”

You weren’t really in the mood to black out that night, and you knew you’d be drinking downtown, so you declined Pope’s rematch challenge.

When the sober freshman finally managed to gather everyone up to be dropped off downtown, you found yourself squished in the back seat between JJ and Sarah who had been pretty quiet all night, really only talking to John B. You didn’t know much about Sarah, just that JJ didn’t like her much plus some of the stories he’d told you that didn’t give the best impression.

Kie met you in front of your favorite bar, and your group quickly shuffled inside, barely stopping to get your hands stamped before going up to the bar. Your roommate worked there and gave you discounted drinks, so it was always your starting spot.

She leaned over the bar to press a kiss to your cheek and slid a vodka cranberry to you, “Cheers, bitch,” she yelled over the blasting music.

JJ ordered shots for the group and you ordered a beer for him in return. The whole group quickly took the lemon-flavored shots and you pulled JJ onto the dance floor, barely giving him enough time to grab the beer off the bar.

An hour and three vodka cranberries later, you were screaming along to Post Malone’s I Fall Apart, one hand holding an empty cup and the other clutching the back of JJ’s neck. He was laughing at you slurring the lyrics, but he was just as drunk, and you really considered kissing him to shut him up, not for the first time.

But before you could work up either the nerve or the coordination, the song ended and he leaned down to talk in your ear, “Wanna head next door, John B just texted me they’re doing half priced shots for the football win today?”

You nodded and stepped away from him, which was a little disappointing, but JJ didn’t let you go far. He wrapped his arm around your waist and let you lead the two of you off the dance floor and out of the bar. The air outside was warm, but cooler than inside, and a breeze chilled your sweat soaked neck.

The two of you stumbled inside the building next door and met your friends at the bar where they had shots lined up for you. With a cheer, everyone slammed their shot glass on the bar twice and tossed it back.

Three hours later, you and JJ stumbled out of your fourth bar of the night and headed slowly down the sidewalk, hanging onto each other. JJ’s arm was thrown around your shoulder and your arm was wrapped tightly around his waist, hand gripping his t-shirt.

You weren’t sure how, or why, but the two of you ended up on campus, two miles away from the bar. JJ stumbled over to the fountain in the center of the quad and climbed onto the raised edge. He was swaying and you were suddenly overwhelmed with the urge to shove him in. So you did, and unfortunately, he grabbed your arms and pulled you in with him.

“Fuck, J, why?!”

He splashed you with a bright, dopey smile, and you rolled your eyes, kicking water back in his direction. That started a fight, one you weren’t prepared for, and he overwhelmed you quickly, moving closer to wrap his arms around you.

Before you even realized what was happening, he was kissing you. You responded immediately, returning the kiss enthusiastically. It seemed to go on forever before you heard yelling coming from the edge of the quad.

JJ turned and waved clumsily at his freshman brother who had apparently tracked the two of you down to drive back home. He huffed at the two of you exasperatedly and held out towels, “Thank god for snap maps but Jesus fuck, the fountain…really guys?”

You started giggling and climbed into the backseat, plucking the juul out of JJ’s fingers to take a hit of your own before he could bring it to his lips.

“You owe me so many pods.”

Pouting, you held onto his hand, “But you love me so I get privileges.”

JJ muttered something under his breath and you leaned in trying to hear. He raised his eyebrows at you encroaching his personal space and spoke up, “Yeah I guess I do, you absolute menace.”

“Good because I love you too and that’s why I’ve been letting you drag my pong record down for two years now.”

Instead of answering, he just rolled his eyes and kissed you again.

[sitcomified]

fighting dragons with you

summary:  amy gets injured on a case and jake pays her a visit. (pre-canon) word count: 3.5k rating: teen?

read below or on AO3

content warning for minor depictions of violence and general discussions of assault

Amy Santiago wrote her life plan when she was sixteen years old, and revisits it each month like clockwork. She figured out from a young age that if she could clearly define a set of rules to follow to a tee, then she would never fall off course. Most nights, the three inch purple binder lives on her bedside table, where after long days of life-threatening work, she can put everything into perspective. Most days, the plan works out great for her. But she’s not invincible. She still scrapes gum off her brand new shoes and wrestles with her too warm pillow. 

It’s not that she can’t deal with unpredictable situations. If anything, being almost comically prepared for every possible situation has made the challenge of taking on these changes that much more thrilling. She knows she excels at tasks that demand quick thinking and efficient problem solving. Hell, that’s why she became a cop.

Amy clocked into work two minutes late that morning. She stared at her watch, already mentally preparing how she would make it up to her squad (even though a quick glance around the bullpen would let her know that she was still the first officer there for her shift.)

By the time her partner showed up nearly thirty minutes late—an occurrence so routine she’d be surprised if anyone even noticed—Amy was already wrapping up her first report of the day. As she reached across her desk for the folder containing crime scene evidence, her partner finally acknowledged her.

“Nice spiderman band-aid,” Jake greeted her, gesturing to her right hand. She sighed deeply. The band-aid in question is nursing a particularly nasty paper cut from when she tried to intercept one of her partner's paper airplanes (probably made from some actually important file) the previous day. Amy rinsed the cut under the precinct kitchenette’s ice-cold water, swearing she’d be fine for the rest of the day, but her finger still stung when she got home and discovered that her only first aid supplies were from the last time her nephews visited.

“Hello Detective Peralta,” Amy replied, trying to salvage any semblance of workplace professionalism. Honestly, she wasn’t even sure if her partner’s retort warranted a response. 

“Aw, is that your pet name for me?” he joked, clearly not wanting to drop their banter, “I’m going to call you sugar...nose.” He extended a finger and lightly tapped her on the nose, to emphasize the point. 

Amy flinched in response. “Sugarnose?” she repeated incredulously.

“Yeah I didn’t want it to be too sexual, and then I panicked,” Jake explained. Amy half expected him to follow it up with one of the “title of your sex tape” jokes that he was so prone to making, but thankfully, today she would be spared.

It wasn’t that she didn’t like Peralta. At his best, he could be just as sharp a detective as she was. The problem was, that was rarely ever his goal. He showed open disrespect for any authority that would dare get in his way, almost as if it were a game to him. On the field, he spent more time trying to portray himself as an action movie star than trying to catch criminals, and she’d be surprised if he actually followed any of the NYPD’s safety guidelines. 

Her day went on as it usually did. Finishing up reports, interviewing witnesses, investigating a crime scene—fortunately on her own. Amy had no idea why Captain McGintley was so adamant about partnering her and Peralta. Their approaches to every aspect of police work seemed fundamentally incompatible. Her captain probably just needed someone responsible to babysit New York’s Least Mature Detective (a title he had bestowed upon himself) in the field. It was a horribly sexist and insulting implication that gave Amy flashbacks to a whole childhood’s worth of classroom seating charts and group projects, where she was put in the exact same position. 

That afternoon, just as she was getting into the rhythm of responding to the perpetual flood of emails in her inbox, Peralta tore her away from her work to go on a stakeout for a case they were working on, insisting that the new lead was “actually legit this time.”

When Amy left the precinct she was surprised to see that her partner decided not to “ball out” and instead opted for a sensible SUV for their stake out. “Nice ride, Peralta.”

“Thanks, I borrowed it from some guy Diaz is testifying against,” he said smugly. Amy raised her eyebrows in return. Of course there would be a catch. “Kidding,” he reassured her. “It’s the precinct’s, I’m surprised you don’t like have the license plates memorized by now.”

Amy wasn’t sure if she should feel relieved or insulted by that. She had only been there a couple months, surely that wasn’t an expectation; if it was, it was never conveyed to her in the brief amount of training she received. Regardless, she responded, “very funny, but I’m still driving.” 

Jake soured with mock offense, “Seriously, Santiago? You think that my driving is more dangerous than that drug ring you busted last month?”

“I’m a detective. I know that I might die on the force. What I’m absolutely not okay with is dying because some idiot would rather play air guitar than follow basic road safety concepts,” Amy said, crossing her arms. On their last stakeout, they almost lost their perp during his particularly enthusiastic rendition of Lose Yourself.

“Too-shee,” he responded, with a smirk on his lips. He was messing with her. Surely, he wasn’t actually that dumb.

Amy corrected him, “you know it’s pronounced touché.”

“Ok nerd,” he replied, and tossed her the car keys. “But I get to stay on AUX.”

She was a bit taken aback by how quickly he agreed to cooperate with her. “You’ve gotta stay focused,” she added, as she climbed into the car. There was a foul smell that she couldn’t quite place. All the more reason to rush this.

“Of course I am a professional, Santiago,” he said from the passenger seat. He reached into his bag and pulled out a giant pack of Cheetos. “Want one?” he offered. She shook her head in disgust.

“Alright, so the informant, Dragos, said the operation is based out of a pharmacy on Atlantic, I assume that’s where we’re going?” Amy asked, as she started the car.

“Toit, and also holy shit is that his real name?” Jake questioned, eyes wide. “That’s badass.”

Amy frowned. “Did you even read the case file?”

“I skimmed it. Your sentences are all so long!” he complained.

“I’m sorry that I’m thorough and I actually follow procedure. Maybe you should take a cue from me, I mean that’s gotta be why McGintley assigned us to this case,” she said.

Jake laughed at her. “I have the most arrests in the precinct,” he bragged. Amy wanted to bring up that arrests weren’t actually a good indication of community safety, but she couldn’t quite bring herself to articulate the problem to him once more.

“That’s just because you make Boyle do all your paperwork,” she retaliated. “If you did everything you were supposed to, you know that I’d be ahead of you.”

Jake stopped fiddling with the car’s radio, and turned to face Amy. “First of all, Boyle loves paperwork. And for the record, I actually asked the Captain to put us together on this case.”

“Exactly, because you knew I would do all the work,” Amy said, smugly.

“No! It’s ‘cause I knew it was a tough one, and you’re obviously super smart.” Amy blushed a little. She assumed that Jake thought as little of her as she did of him. “Plus, I heard you talking to Diaz about how you weren’t getting any good cases,” he continued. She’s surprised, not at what he noticed, but the fact that he actually cared enough to try and fix her problems. It was true that McGintley was underutilizing her—the other day he had her spend an hour finding an anniversary present for his wife. 

“Well, thanks,” Amy responded with an awkward smile. “I didn’t think you cared.”

“‘Course, you’re part of the 99 now. Anything for the squad.” he said. Right, Jake was just doing what any good cop would do for their team. He didn’t actually care about her, at least not enough to not get cheeto crumbs on the seat that she’d have to clean up. 

Jake points at the car’s speaker system at the next red light. “Hey, do you know how this works?” 

“Do you seriously not know?” she teased. It was a strikingly simple set up.

“Obviously not, or else we’d be listening to my sick beats right now.” Jake said. “My car still uses cassettes exclusively and I fear my mixtapes would cause this lame car to spontaneously combust.”

Amy sighed. “Here, give me your phone,” she told him, and plugged in the audio cable. Immediately music started blaring out of the speakers. She recognizes the opening chords instantly and starts laughing. “Is this what you listen to?” she asked. 

Jake started frantically pushing buttons on the dashboard, only making the music louder by accident. “No. I swear I don’t know how this got on here.” Amy grinned. It was so rare that she had the upper hand in embarrassing him and she was already thinking of how to capitalize on it.

“Keep it on,” she said, guiding his hands away from the speaker system before he had the chance to break something. “I like this song.” He leaned back in his seat and helped himself to another handful of Cheetos. Amy returned her focus to navigating the complex puzzle of Brooklyn traffic. 

Over the revving motors and honking of angry drivers, she heard him begin to sing along. It wasn’t obnoxiously loud and it didn’t feature impromptu parody lyrics. His voice was surprisingly soft, and she wondered if he was even conscious of his singing. She was perplexed by how he managed to focus on nothing and everything at the same time. How he managed to let loose in the most tense situations. Amy couldn’t even bring herself to have that kind of fun when she specifically scheduled it in her planner. 

What the hell, they were still a fifteen minute drive from the pharmacy. She joined in with the chorus. He looked at her with a confused, yet happy, expression, and ramped up his volume, and even incorporated his own dance moves. “Damn, Santiago, didn’t know you had it in you,” he said, after they finished the chorus on a tone-deaf harmony.

“There’s a lot you don’t know about me, Peralta,” she replied, raising her eyebrows with feigned confidence. 

Jake chuckled and opened his mouth; she assumed to argue, but instead he just continued the second verse. She didn’t know the rest of the lyrics, and she certainly couldn’t decipher them from the dramatic voices he was adding into it. 

“Hey isn’t that our guy,” he interrupted, pointing to a man who was standing by the trash cans on the corner, despite his right of way. Amy paused and took a closer look. Surely enough, their perp, Andrei Volkov, was standing there, waiting for the deal they had been told would occur miles away.

“Oh my god,” Amy said, turning to park their car just out of eyesight.

“Luckily he didn’t seem interested enough in the two adult Taylor Swift fans, to notice we’re a police vehicle.” Jake replied. He leaned towards the trunk window to sneak a better view of their target. 

“Do you want to call for backup?” Amy asked. “How many guys are there?”

“Looks like about three, and it seems pretty exposed for back up unless they have access to one of the houses,” Jake said, propping himself back in the seat. “I think we should be good.”

Amy paused for a second. Her instinct was always to air on the side of caution, but Jake had proven himself to be more reasonable than she assumed. “Okay, I trust you,” she said.

“Take my lead,” he instructed, before she could argue, and secured his vest as he left the car. Amy followed him out hesitantly, one hand hovering protectively over her radio. They crossed the street while Volkov’s back was turned. As soon as they made eye contact, Jake whipped out his gun, and cornered him against the lamp post. “NYPD, you’re under arrest.” Amy instinctually dove behind the trash can. Through the grated metal she could see both of Volkov’s men pull their guns at Jake from behind his back. She can’t quite recognize exactly which members of the operation they are. He held one hand on Volkov while he turned to face the others. They kept their guns raised in his direction. 

“Here’s the deal, come back to my precinct, and I won’t shoot. I’m all alone out here.” Jake kicks the trashcan Amy is ducked behind. Then twice, to get her attention. And again. The Funky Cold Medina, she realized. Amy felt her heart pounding all the way in her fingers and toes. 

“What’s the matter with your leg, pig,” one of the men scoffed. She recognized the voice. Apparently Dragos was more involved in the operation than he led on, and had intentionally given her the wrong address. Amy reached for her gun and jumped up, turning to cover Jake.

“Hey, you’re the lady with the thank you notes,” Dragos said, as he lowered his weapon, “almost made me feel bad for lying to you.” 

Amy fixed her eyes in his direction, “yeah well, thanks for nothing.” 

“That was a pretty weak comeback, Santiago,” Jake muttered from her side. She shot him a nasty look.

“Your partner’s right,” Volkov added, still struggling against the lamppost.

“Nice try but you’re still arrested,” Jake said, as he reached for his handcuffs and began reciting the Miranda Rights. Amy stared down the other two men in the meantime, instructing them to drop any weapons they’re carrying. They obeyed and placed their guns at her feet. Just as they began to stand up, Dragos punched Amy in the face, his ring leaving a deep gash on her cheek. The metallic taste of blood floods her mouth. Her vision was blurred as tears welled up in her eyes, causing searing pain in the open wound.

Dragos started to bolt but Jake managed to trip him and keep him pinned to the ground. He struggled to handle both perps, however, and Amy watched as the third man ran away. She tried to chase after him, but she was too shocked to make it any farther. “Dragos, you’re coming with me,” Jake said, locking the handcuffs in place. “Amy, I’m calling you an ambulance.” 

She was too dishevelled to protest.

That night, Amy’s brother drove her home from the hospital where she received seven stitches. Half her face was still numb from the anesthesia. Still, the second she got her phone back, she sent a text to her partner: “LMK if you need help processing.”

Half an hour later she heard her apartment buzzer go off. She paused her episode of Jeopardy, kicked on her fluffy slippers, and answered it. 

“Delivery for Lady Amy Santiago,” Jake said, in a terribly butchered British accent through the phone. 

“Come up,” she replied, stifling a laugh. The meds had worn her down enough that she could fully embrace his immature humor. 

Three minutes later Jake announced himself with a knock on her door. “Alright, so I got you this. Hope you like shitty diner food because that’s all that’s open right now,” he held up two take out bags. Through the semi-opaque plastic she noticed two liters of the horrible orange soda he spilled on her desk once and still couldn’t get the stain out from.

“Yeah that’s fine,” she said, gesturing for him to come take a seat. She braced herself to be tormented for her decor. Suddenly she realized Jake came all the way to her house for her. He didn’t have to be here. Why was he here? “Thanks, by the way. You didn’t have to do any of this.”

He took a seat on her couch and plopped the bags on her coffee table. She never ate there, it was reserved for drinks, at most, but she didn’t correct him. Especially when he was doing her a favor “I know. I wanted to though. I also finished processing Dragos and Volkov, all by myself,” he said. 

“Why are you being so nice to me?” Amy asked flatly. She peered into the bag and examined the feast he brought: two cheeseburgers, a plate of chicken tenders, one hamburger, a salad, about three orders of fries, and of course the two orange sodas. For someone who was proudly in debt, he sure spent a lot on this meal.

“Cause it’s my fault you’re like this,” he said. Amy wanted to protest, he made a bad call re-backup, but she could have gotten injured either way. “Also you’re so hopped up on painkillers there’s no way you’ll remember this,” he added, cracking a smile. He really wasn’t capable of a genuine moment. 

Amy rolled her eyes at him. “It’s not that much stronger than Advill, and memory loss isn’t a side effect,”

“Hmm,” he frowned, “we’ll see about that tomorrow.”

Amy froze. “I hope you’re not here to try anything,” she said, half joking. Jake was a jerk, but she never thought he would stoop that low. Even still, she couldn’t let her guard down that much.

“Oh, God no, absolutely not. I would never take advantage of you—of anyone—like that. Is that what you thought?” Jake stammered, scooching himself away from her on the couch. He looked as if he had seen a ghost or something, and his messy hair only added to the effect.

“I dunno,” Amy said, “I guess I can’t be too trusting.” She took out a container full of fries and handed him one as a peace offering. 

“Right, right, men are a nightmare,” Jake agreed through a mouthful of potato. He even didn’t try to distance himself from “other men”, or go with the “but I’d never do that route”. Her chest was heavy with guilt at the thought of making such an implication.

“No, no, no, it’s fine, really. Sorry for accusing you.” Amy said. 

“It’s not fine. And you shouldn’t apologize because that’s a real fear. It’s on me,” he replied. She looked at him with confusion. It was rare for guys to understand that much. “And I’m sorry for being such a dick to you these past few months,” he blurted out. 

Amy couldn’t believe that the guy sitting in her apartment was the same one who decided to address her via paper airplane for a week, and only stopped when he ran out of papers on his desk.  “Hey I wasn’t much better. I was so obsessed with out-doing you, I never went to you for help—” he shot her an expectant glance,“—also I’m sorry for ratting you out all the time.” He nodded, and helped himself to another fry from her container.

“Why are you so competitive?” he asked through a mouthful of potato. She noticed a bit of ketchup on his chin and reached for a napkin.

“I have seven brothers,” she provided him with the stock answer.

“I know that,” he said, “that doesn’t answer my question.”

She pauses. “My parents were always comparing us, so many siblings meant the bar for anything was set super high, I don’t know, that sort of stuff.” 

“But why do you care?” he pushed. She hadn’t ever considered that before. The endless treadmill she shoved herself on was just always there. Even when she knew the goals she set were irrational she would just keep running, because the idea of falling off was so much worse.

“I guess it makes me worried, if I’m not measuring up,” she confessed. “I feel like I did something wrong.”

“You know you’re crazy, right?” he asked, smirking at her.

Amy rifled through the bottom of the takeout bag. “Did they give you any mustard packets?” she asked.

“Nah. But, as your self-appointed guardian angel, I will go to the bodega and get you some,” he said, picking up the jacket he threw on her floral carpet.

“You don’t have to do that, really,” Amy insisted.

He looked back at her as if the very notion were ridiculous. “Amy, you just got injured in the line of duty. If all you want is mustard, you can have all the mustard in the world.” 

“Thanks, Jake. You’re a really good friend,” she ventured. She waited for a moment, to see how he would respond, hopefully solidifying their friendship. Maybe she was friendzoning advances she wasn’t even aware of. Maybe he was confused, and he was just doing a nice thing for a coworker.

“You too,” Jake said. However he interpreted all the implications, he didn’t let her know. “When I get back we’re watching Die-Hard!” he added as he rushed out the door. Amy smiled to herself as she heard the lock click into place. 

[smokahuntis]

Watch and Learn

Watch and Learn

Pairing : Derek Morgan x Reader

Prompt: “watch and learn...”

Warning: Smut! Sub!Morgan!

Summery: The new girl is quiet and shy, so he tried to help her out a bit with questioning, only to find she may not be as shy as she claims.

“I want Reid, JJ and I down at the station, “ Hotch started giving out orders as he pointed his pen to the people in question. “Rossi and Prentiss at the first crime scene, Morgan and (Y/L/N) at the latest, there is people there that need questioned and it needs looked at again.” He said and everyone agreed instantly and began discussing the case at hand.

It wasn’t to long before they landed and everyone went where they were assigned. On the ride over Derek found himself trying to start conversation with (y/n), it really did bother him that she hadn’t said anything to him but her name and that he can drive. He did however find she liked talking to Reid, they got along well, it made him think maybe she was just as smart as him if not smarter, but anytime he listened in on their conversations they were usually book related instead of science or math.

“Soooo... you ever questioned someone before?” He said glancing over at her, causing her to look up from the case file. She just shook her head and looked back down at the papers in her hands.

“I don’t really know much about you, ya know?” He chuckled and raised an eyebrow at her as he drove, glancing between her and the road. “Most of your file was marked out, there a reason for that?” He asked trying to pull what he could from her, it really bugged him he didn’t know his own team mate well enough to say what she did before the BAU, and she’s been here for almost a month. She sighed and closed the file looking at him.

“So do you always ask so many questions ?” She asked ignoring his question, which rose suspicions in him, but he has to trust her, plus he liked the way she talked.

“So you can speak.” He said smiling those beautiful white teeth at her, “how about I give you a few pointers on how to question people okay?” He said trying to be nicer as the pulled up to the most recent crime scene that only happened a few hours ago.

“Okay...” she said back to being quiet and calm, they stepped out of the car and she made sure her gun clicked on her side tightly as they walked towards the two people that were separated from the crowd of people watching and trying to peak inside. Just before getting to them he stopped and looked at his partner.

“Watch and Learn.”

Morgan approached the young blonde who was dressed for a run, in skin tight pants and a shirt, headphones hanging loosely around her neck. (Y/n) stood in her spot a bit away from them as she listened in and focused on him. He couldn’t wipe that smile off his face the whole time, giving subtle flirty remarks back and forth with the girl as he asked his questions, it worked for him well, it really did. The way the blondes eyes raked his figure and how he soothed one of his hands over her arm to calm her down. He got what he needed from her ad walked back over to (y/n).

“See it’s not that hard.” He shrugged and glanced at the male witness. “Your turn princess.” He said and she gave a small smile before handing him her glasses and walking over to the guy.

He was dressed much more fitting for the neighborhood they were in, he wore a suit and had his hair fixed perfectly, shockingly perfect for the blood that covered his hands still.

“Hello you must be Mr.Corbet, “she said smiling at him and handing him a handkerchief to wipe his hands. “I’m (y/f/n) with the Behavioral Analysis Unit, of the FBI, mind if I ask you a few questions?” She said smiling at him, her smile was beautiful and radiant, seemed to real to be as fake as it was, she would have definitely had to practice that. But Morgan loved seeing it never the less.

“Of course, anything that helps.” He said taking the clothes from her hand and giving a small thank you before starting to answer questions. His answers lasted much long then the girls since he tried to revive the victim and saw a little bit of the unsub, but his flirty didn’t stop. (Y/n) didn’t notice it but Derek did. The way Mr.Corbit bit his lip as she wrote down his answers, and the way his eyes trailed her body and chest when she looked away, it made Morgan sick and he couldn’t figure out why. She was almost done when he heard the guy ask for her number ‘in case he remembered anything else’. That was when Morgan stepped it, laying his hand on the small of her back and smiling at the guy.

“Come on (y/n) there is something you gotta see.” He said before leading her away and into the house, putting her glasses back in her pocket as he did so. Once inside and alone she looked at him.

“What was that about?” She asked quietly.

“Don’t let them flirt with you like that...” he said before walking away leaving her dumbfounded in the living room.

—

That was almost a month ago, and (y/n) still hadn’t opened up to Morgan, but she had to tonight, they were partners again at a club. The club wasn’t far from Quantico so they were getting ready at head quarters.

(Y/n) wore a tight black dressed with her hair down, completely out of character for her, and Derek wore a nice suit the screamed he had money. (Y/n) was walking to Garcia’s bat cave at the moment in search for something to really complete the look. She was to focused on trying to get a bracelet on however to notice who was there.

“Hey Garcia do you have any lip gloss I can-“ she was cut off once she looked up and saw Derek standing there and not Garcia, he looked good, almost to good. “You’re not Garcia...”

“No I am not, but I can tell you the answer is yes, she told me to give this to you.” He said handing her a clear sparkly lip gloss.

“Thank you...” she said taking it, noticing her struggled with the bracelet he walked over and latched it for her, his hands gently moving over her skin as he did.

“I need you to stay close to me tonight okay?” He said calmly as he watched her face, how her eyes tried to look everywhere but him.

“Yea, of course...”

“Good... now let’s go, Buttercup.” He said walking with her. Once they got to the club the team went in one at a time, scattering to have eyes on (y/n) and Derek at all times. If everything went correctly the unsub would speak to (y/n), she was his type after all, (h/c) and (e/c), it was what he looked for in his victims. And she fit the bill, almost to perfectly for him to not go for her.

Everything was going smoothly but Derek could tell this was not (y/n)’s kinda crowd, and so when she excused herself for a drink he really didn’t think that much of it since he was close to the bar and everyone had eyes on her. She leaned over the bar and spoke to the bar tender quietly as a man approached her, he didn’t fit the profile so No one worried, specially when we could hear him over her Com.

“What’s a beautiful thing like you doing in a place like this?” He asked smiling at her, leaning over the bar. She blushed and let out a small giggle playing a long so no one knew she was an agent.

“I’m Andrew” he said holding out his hand,

“I’m -“ just as she was about to say her name and take his hand Derek stepped in, his hand grabbing Andrews in a firm hand shake and the other around (y/n)’s waist tightly.

“And I’m her boyfriend, nice to meet you.” He said smiling kindly at the guy who hurried away, Derek looked down at her raising a brow. “What was that?” He asked.

“Why do you care?” She asked looking back at him. He shook his head and they continued with the case.

—

Jefferson City, Missouri, it was late everyone was tired and they left in the morning, right now they were at the hotel getting some sleep, or supposed to be. And today (y/n) had had enough of ‘Derek to the rescue’ any time a man spoke to her. It was honestly tiring, but with her training or way of life she kept quiet, everytime he did it she didn’t say a word. She was trained not to speak or let things bother her, and sometimes she just couldn’t keep it in, so when she saw him at the ice machine she made sure to not look at him, because with one small step in the wrong way and she would loose her cap.

Though of course, he is Derek Morgan and he had to say something. “You okay Buttercup?”

She snapped.

“You know Morgan, I can defend myself! I don’t need you to run in every time you see someone talk to me! I’m an agent on this team, not just a random girl at a bar, you can’t just sweep me off my feet!” She yelled looking at him, he was taken back by her words but she wasn’t done. “I’m probably more qualified for this job then you are! With your little “watch and learn.” This and “ watch and learn” that! I don’t need your help! I was a fucking Spy for christ sake Morgan! I could take out anyone who laid a hand on me let alone speak to me!” She finished and let out a sharp breath looking down at him. When he didn’t reply fast enough she rolled her eyes and left the room going back to her room, leaving him completely dumbfounded by her comments.

He was taken from his thoughts by a laugh, looking over seeing Rossi who had saw the whole thing.

“You saw that?” Morgan said looking at him.

“From start time finish buddy.” He said patting his shoulder. “You should probably apologize...”

“For what?”

“It doesn’t matter, just apologize.” Rossi said looking at him. That’s how he found himself knocking on her door, which was a long way from his, 2 floors actually, so when she opened the door to see him instead of Reid who she did share the floor with, was a shock.

“Morgan...” she said before sighing, guilt riddled her face as she shook her head. “Look I’m so-“

“You’re a spy?” He said looking at her.

“Wow they really blacked out my file didn’t they...” she said moving away from the door letting him in. “Yea i was Interpol Intelligence...” she closed the door behind him and looked up at him. His eyes darted around her face trying to figure out if she was lying but he found nothing. She sighed and walked more into the room.

“I spent 8 years under cover, and I guess being quiet and submissive just became my thing after.” She say on the bed and looked up at him.

“Who else knows...” He asked quietly sitting next to her.

“You, Hotch, Rossi...” she said looking over to him, he chuckled rubbing his brow bone trying to process everything he was taking in. “ I needed something calm, something to get me back on my feet, so I ended up here.”

“What were you like before?” He asked his hand coming up rubbing circles onto her back. She looked at him and her eyes meeting his honeyed brown ones. Something about the way she looked at him in that moment, that moment of weakness. It sent him over his edge and he leaned forward kissing her soft lips. She kissed back almost instantly but pulled away and looked at him.

“You wouldn’t like the real me...” she said looking at him, and he shook his head.

“ teach me, teach me who you really are (y/n), please.” He said pulling her back into another kiss, her hands came up wrapping around his neck as she moved straddling his lap. His large hands moved down to her waist, gripping the skin the escaped her small pajama shirt. Their lips never left each other as they fell back onto the bed with her on top.

“We shouldn’t do this...” she said, and she clearly meant it but neither of them wanted to stop.

“If that’s what you want...” he said his hands not leaving her hips. “But I need you to know, that there won’t be a second that goes by I won’t regret walking out that door...”

“Don’t be to loud...” she said kissing his neck.

“Oh buttercup, you won���t need to worry about me, it’s you we should-“ he tried to flip her but she stood her grown and firmly pushed on his chest laying him back down.

“Watch and Learn Morgan....” she said before she started to grind onto his forming erection. It pulled groans from his lips like no other women has, yet she was silent and calm, she looked unfazed, and he almost thought she was until he felt the wet spot on his sweat pants causing his to grip her hips again.

“Come on baby, let me take care of you...” he said and she Tsked him and swatted his hands away.

“You want to learn the old me,” she said taking his hands tightly into hers and putting them above his head before pulling his hardened cock from his sweat pants. “The old me was Dominant,” she growled out as she grinned down on him harder, back and forth.

“Careless,” she moved side to side.

“And Independent...” she said before moving her shorts to the side and sliding down onto him, letting out a quiet yet satisfying moan of his name, as he stretched her walls and went deeper then any man has ever gone. She loved the feeling of him inside her, tearing her at the seams but she didn’t care, and neither did her. Specially not when she began to move up and down and rounding her hips as she rode him, her hands fell to his chest as she used it for leverage. He thought she was stunning as she used him, and she really did use him. It was the most pleasurable thing he’d ever felt as she rode his cock like it was her job, like she knew it like the back of her eye lids.

Part of him never wanted this to end, but it was his luck, the best women he’s ever had sex with, was his partner. The best women he’d ever felt or seen, and he’s not even seeing all of her, just what was exposed from her pajamas and what the moon light lit up. She was an angel really, she was so good at it it didn’t take him long to cum, and without warning.

He moaned out loudly almost yelling her name, she had to kiss him to muffle the moans he created as his thick seed coated her insides. It threw her over the edge as she came around him clawing at his chest as she did so. It was heaven for both of them, a fall they never thought they’d make. But the landed to quickly as she fell onto his chest and his arms found there way around her body. Kissing her head and layer back again closing his eyes.

“We are in so much trouble in the morning.” He said as he drifted off to sleep. She giggled and kissed his neck one last time.

“It’s your fault, loud mouth...”

Taglist: @hxldmxdxwn and the girl who anonymously requested it! 

[im-fairly-whitty]

The Mortifying Ordeal of Caring: A DBH oneshot

Gavin and Nines have been working together for nearly a year now and dating for more than half of it, but the suggestion of moving in together has Gavin anxious about the bad habits he’s only just managed to kick and that he fears could come back at any moment.

To his own great discomfort he realizes that—unlike most things in his past—he cares too much about his relationship with Nines to just run away from it, leading him to hunt down a real life professional (android) therapist to give it to him straight and tell him once and for all if he’s too messed up to really be good enough for Nines in the long run. (Or if he maybe has a chance at actually becoming a better person.)

“Gavin Reed?” 

Gavin stood up fast enough to wack his leg on the low waiting room coffee table, making him wince.

Luckily the sharp new pain in his shin was easily stuffed down underneath the sheer terror that had been rising in his gut since he’d awoken two hours before his morning alarm and been unable to get back to sleep.

“That’s- Um, that’s me.” He coughed, having to clear his dry throat halfway through the first word. 

Was not being able to speak properly enough of a screw up to justify leaving? He could probably bear the shame of running out of the office now, right?

But the android just smiled warmly and held the door open for him. “Come on in Gavin, I’ve been looking forward to meeting you!”

Gavin teetered on the edge on flight for another instant that felt like an eternity before gritting his teeth, ordering himself to man up, and stiffly walking back into the office with the same care he’d take entering an uncleared area with a reported active shooter on the loose.

But once inside the office he realized it didn’t look much like an office at all. He’d been expecting some clean lined minimalist space with the stereotypical red couch that cartoons had taught him to expect, but this room instead seemed...cozy.

There was a couch, but it was worn in and brown, not an ostentatious slick velvet red. A rolling chair was beside it, presumably for the therapist. On one wall was a collection of drawings scattered with stickers, and against the other wall stood a low bookshelf filled with baskets of toys. 

“You, uh, you get a lot of kids in here?” He asked stiffly, gingerly sitting in the exact middle of the couch on the extreme edge of the cushion.

Beside him on the couch was a small novelty pillow covered with blue and purple sequins which he carefully ignored.

“I do.” The android said, closing the door behind them and taking a seat on the rolling chair, relaxing into it and leaning against one of the arms. “Most of my clients are adults, but many of the more complex situations I work with since the revolution are android children with human parents. Having toys for them helps ease things a bit when we talk, and I’ve found my adult clients don’t mind either.”

“Shit. I didn’t even think about kid androids.” Gavin said, eyes wide as he stared at the shelf. “Fuck, how does that even- uh, sorry about the swearing, I, uh...”

“While we’re here together I don’t want you to worry about censoring yourself.” The android said easily. “If you need to swear in order to best get your thoughts and feelings out, then I want you to swear up a storm. I know this is our first time meeting, and sometimes it can take a few tries to find a therapist that best meets your needs specifically, but while we’re here today I want you to feel as comfortable as possible.”

Right. Like feeling comfortable was going to happen.

It suddenly occurred to Gavin that she hadn’t pulled out the large notepad and pen he’d assumed all therapists scribbled away on during meetings.

“Are you recording this?” He blurted out, cheeks turning red as he tried desperately to think if that was an offensive question. “I mean, just, you don’t have a notebook and I know you probably gotta take notes, but if I’m gonna talk I’d rather you didn't record anything, you know? Or like, at least not without me knowing? Sorry if that’s a bad question or whatever, I really don’t know what the hell I’m doing here, I’m sorry.”

“Not a bad question at all, this is a new experience for you, so it would be unfair for either of us to assume you already knew everything.” She said gently. “I don’t record sessions unless I ask the client for permission first. I may make some notes after a session, but I generally prefer to be in the moment so that our conversation can flow more naturally and you feel like you have my full attention.”

“Okay. Yeah, that’s good I guess.” Gavin said, his gaze now trained on the floor.

“So Gavin, what is it you’re hoping to gain from our sessions together?” She asked, watching him. 

At least her gaze somehow didn’t feel intense. That and Gavin had the feeling she would wait as long as he needed to get his words together, which was great since it took nearly two full minutes. 

Usually when he was uncomfortable he could fall back on sharp insults or biting sarcasm to shield him, but he’d promised himself he’d give this an honest try after managing  to drag himself in and that meant not resorting to his usual cop-outs.

“I have a boyfriend.” Gavin finally managed to spit out after a mortifyingly long silence of throat clearing. 

“Congratulations.” The therapist said with a smile. “Can you tell me a little bit about him?”

“His name is Nines, we’ve been dating for, uh, seven months now I think? And he’s an android.” Gavin said, palms up and hands open. He found himself impossibly hoping that alone would miraculously explain all his issues to the therapist without him having to wrangle together more words.

“That does explain why you would seek me out as a therapist.” She said, her smile a little wider than it had been so far. “I haven’t had many new lone human clients since the revolution.” 

“I wanted to make sure I got someone who really understood, you know?” Gavin said. “I didn’t want to waste time on some doc who still thinks androids aren't people or some shit. Plus I figure an android would be a better help for me getting better about...certain stuff than a human would. Better perspective on things, you know?”

“What model is Nines?” The therapist asked, nodding. “That’s always an important bit of context for me.”

“An RK900.” Gavin said, clearing his throat and finding himself watching the therapist’s LED, which indeed flickered yellow before she got it under control.

“I’ve never had the chance to meet someone who’s that model before.” She said, her eyes a bit wide.

“He’s the only one out right now, his series got put on hold after, you know, everything.” Gavin said, waving a hand vaguely. It felt much easier to talk about Nines instead of himself. “They released him to our precinct as a prototype since we were the ones who tested the first RK800 too, Connor. You’ve probably heard of Connor actually, he was all over the news during, you know...” 

Another vague hand wave. 

“Anyway, I got assigned Nines as my partner—I’m a detective by the way—which I’m pretty sure was because my boss hates me, and Nines and I hated each other too for like a month or something, but then we started not hating each other so much, and he’s really amazing actually, and you wouldn’t really think he’s caring since he looks so fucking scary when you first see him, and he can rip the door off a car door like no problem and everything too.”

He could feel himself starting to ramble out of sheer nerves, but found himself unable to stop now that the words had finally started.

“But he’s actually really caring and sweet and looks out for me without making me feel like it’s a problem? And right before we started dating he found this kitten in a rain gutter and took it in and we started teaming up to take care of it and whatever cause I’ve already got two cats. And anyway we’re dating now and I’ve never dated someone I care about this much before, and I feel like I’m always about to fuck it up, and the other day we were talking about maybe moving in together which I know sounds kinda fast but it feels right for us, and it sounded awesome when we were talking about it, but then afterward I started feeling like shit about it, and I’ve never really been good for anyone ever and I’ve got so many issues and I just don’t know how I can possibly be good enough for him long term, you know?”

Gavin rubbed his arm as he forced his ramble to an end, his panic having risen slightly the longer he went, sure the android was going to cut him off any second.

But instead she just nodded, eyebrows raised, but seeming understanding. “Sounds like you’ve really got a lot on your mind, Gavin.”

“Yeah.” He said weakly.

“Well first of all, thank you for sharing this with me.” She said very sincerely. “It sounds like you’re doing a lot of soul searching and feeling vulnerable right now, and I’m glad you trust me enough to share.”

“Well, I mean it’s your job, right?” Gavin shrugged, feeling somehow embarrassed at being thanked for spilling his guts. “If I’m working a case I want all the evidence I can get so I can solve it, I figure it’s the same for you and I’d be an idiot if I tried to keep it back, right? Be a waste of my money not to help you do your job right.”

She chuckled. “That’s definitely one way to look at it, though often most of what I do involves helping people solve the puzzle themself.”

Well that sounded like bullshit to Gavin, she wasn’t even going to fix his problems for him?

“So,” She said. “What I’m hearing is that you are currently in a relationship that you value very much with someone who you feel values you back, and now that you two are coming up on a big relationship milestone you’re starting to have doubts and feel afraid that you aren’t good enough for him? Is that right?”

“Yeah, I guess.” Gavin said, not particularly liking hearing it said so plainly, but relieved at least to have communicated it well enough.

“What are some of the reasons that make you doubt yourself?” The therapist asked. “Everyone has strengths and weaknesses, and it sounds like maybe you’ve got some weaknesses you’re noticing more and wanting to improve if you’ve made the step to come in and see me.”

“Anger issues, rudeness, occasional insubordination.” Gavin said, reciting the most popular topics in his disciplinary file. He scratched the back of his neck, his gaze wandering to the bookshelf.

“And in your personal life?” She asked, clearly seeing through his strategy.

“I don’t know.” Gavin said, hedging as he unconsciously reached for the sequin pillow, fiddling with the edge.

He knew this was probably the part where he was supposed to say well doc, it all started with my dead mom and abusive, alcoholic dad... But despite his earlier claim that he wanted to hand over all the evidence, he found himself suddenly balking.

“I, uh, I don’t really date a lot.” He said, feeling like he was prying the words out of himself. “I’m more of a one night stand kind of guy. I don’t like people thinking I owe them anything.”

He scruffed his fingers through the pillow’s sequins, flipping them from blue to purple and back as he was silent for a long minute, letting his thoughts wrestle themselves out.

“I’m angry a lot.” He finally managed. “Sometimes I try working on it, like when I was in college or when I first joined the force. But then I get tired or forget I guess and I get just as bad again. Or, you know, something happens.”

Like when Hank had slipped into alcoholism after his kid died and Gavin had handled his old friend’s trauma in the worst way possible because of his own issues.

“Would you say that’s your biggest concern?” The therapist asked, considering him without an ounce of judgement in her gaze. “That you’ll revert to old negative behaviors as your relationship with Nines progresses?” 

“I guess.” Gavin said, starting to scrape all the sequins on the left side of the pillow blue. “I uh.” He cleared his throat. “I think I’m extra worried because...because he’s an android. I was really...not great about androids before we met. He’s the one that helped me get my head on straight about it all, you know? So I guess I’m extra worried about going back to how I was because of that. He deserves better than that, and if it’s a lost cause I’d-”

He ducked his head, coughing and scrubbing at something in his eye.

“I, uh, I guess that’s why I’m here. I wanted to get a professional opinion on if I’m too screwed up or not. If I gotta...gotta let him go or whatever I need to do it before we’re both in too deep. I can’t move in with the guy and realize a week later that it was a mistake, I won’t do that to him. He deserves the best, and if I can be that I want to be, but if not I don’t want to hurt him. You know?”

The therapist watched him quietly with a softly understanding expression, her LED flickering blue.

“Have you talked to Nines about this yet?” She asked. “It seems like you two must have a strong relationship if you’ve already overcome so much together and work together professionally.” 

“God, no, I haven’t.” Gavin shook his head, grimacing. “I mean, well, kinda? I mean, he knows about my issues obviously, and he knows all about my parents and everything. I think maybe he probably knows I’m nervous about moving in together, but he doesn’t know I’m here doing this. I mean, maybe he does, he is the world’s most expensive detective.” He said with a chuckle.

“Is there a reason you haven’t talked about it with him yet?” She asked gently.

Gavin felt himself blush a little, picturing Nines’ unimpressed but still caring expression all too well. “Uh, probably because he’d tell me it’ll be fine, that we’ll work through whatever happens together. And that he’s put up with my shit too long already to let me go so easily now.”

The therapist smiled at that. “It sounds like he’s as dedicated to you are you are to him.”

“I guess, yeah.” Gavin said, looking at the pillow.

“It sounds like your main fear is that you’re afraid that you’ll revert to a past version of yourself that you don’t like very much anymore, but it also sounds like you’ve already made some incredible personal steps recently that already put you far apart from the old Gavin, is that right?”

“Well sure, old me never managed to get himself in to see a shrink, no matter how many people told me to.” Gavin said wryly.

“Precisely. And it sounds like you have something and someone you value enough to really put in the effort to make a change. And most importantly,” Her gaze got a little more serious. “It sounds like you’re changing yourself because you are growing and realizing that you want to be better. Putting the responsibility on your partner to make you better is unhealthy, but working to improve yourself because you’re no longer satisfied with the status quo is admirable. Even just the fact that you would be willing to let him go if you wouldn’t make him happy despite how badly you want it to work out says a lot about your motives.”

“Yeah?” Gavin asked, for some reason feeling a little like he might cry. 

“You’re right in knowing that change isn’t easy, breaking old habits and thought processes takes a lot of hard and consistent work, but genuinely wanting to change is the first and hardest step.” She said with a nod. “The fact that you’re here and willing to put in the work to make it stick is a huge deal Gavin, and if you are willing to put in that work then I have no reason to think that you won’t succeed. It’s never easy and there will sometimes be some setbacks of course, but you’ll have all the resources you need to work through it and succeed.”

“O-okay.” Gavin said, voice stupidly fragile. “That’s good I guess. Yeah. Good. That’s good to hear.”

“I think my first homework assignment for you though will be to talk to Nines about your concerns and be honest about your fears about this big potential change.” She said, her smile almost teasing, but not quite. “It’s normal to feel nervous about important relationship milestones, but it can also be an opportunity for both of you to grow closer and learn about each other. Does that sound fair?”

“Yeah, that’s fair. I can do that.” Gavin said, clearing his throat and pulling out his phone to make a reminder that he definitely didn’t need. “I guess talking about my feelings shouldn’t be that much of a surprise for therapy homework, huh?”

“Perhaps not.” She chuckled. “As for the rest of our time together today, I’d like to learn more about you so that we can start getting to know your old Gavin habits better. That way we can tackle them in the best way possible. For the rest of this session and our next visit I’d like to hear everything you feel comfortable telling me that you think is relevant.” She tilted her head a bit. “That is assuming of course that you choose to continue our visits, otherwise I’d be glad to refer you to some other android therapists you might be interested in visiting.”

“Yeah no, I’m coming back, don’t worry.” Gavin said hurriedly, in that moment realizing that he absolutely would be. “I'm not ditching you for another therapist, otherwise I’d have to do the whole almost crying thing again, right? What’s the point in that?”

“Well I'm happy to hear that, Gavin.” The therapist said warmly.

Gavin realized with a silent groan that he didn’t even remember her name, if he’d ever paid attention in the first place after looking up a nearby well rated android therapist online.

“And don’t hate me for this, but I forgot your name already.” Gavin said, trying to sound as not guilty as possible.

“It’s Amelia.” She said with a smile. “You can call me that or Amy if you like.”

“Amy. I can remember that. Amy.” Gavin said with a nod, forcing the name into his long term memory. “So, uh, where should I start?”

“How about you tell me more about Nines?” Amy suggested. “I’d love to hear more about how the two of you managed to end up together.” 

Gavin grinned. “Now that I can talk about for hours.”

[nyisles]

Magic in the Hamptons

~my first fic be kind~ 

Player: Mathew Barzal 

Words: almost 3.5K 

Warnings: language

Notes: heavily inspired by the dooley-lee wedding, thank you anders and grace. s/o to the song magic in the hamptons being v fitting as well. there could be a playlist for this, but that’s excessive for part one of a fic that might FLOP :-)

         When you had agreed to be your best friend Reese’s plus one to some wedding, you had certain expectations. A night of average (at best) food, middle aged couples bopping along to some outdated party songs (including and not limited to ‘I gotta feeling’ by the once popular black eyed peas) and finally an evening ending around maybe midnight where you’d be knocked out from pure boredom. You’d always found it interesting how being bored could really make a person so tired. With extreme hesitation, you accepted your friends request as a plus one strictly as repayment for the time you had taken him to a miserable holiday party in college. Although when his car pulled up to the most elegant vineyard on all of Long Island, you felt a completely different aura. “And uh… how do you know the couple again?” You questioned suddenly looking down at your dress playing with the hem hoping that you were appropriately dressed. Glancing out of the car window seeing all these tall blondes dressed perfectly walk into the event space that the party would take place in, you gulped feeling a bit intimidated. Reese couldn’t even tell you what black tie optional was, or whether or not this wedding had a dress code and you should’ve never just assumed. “My Dad’s friend’s daughter… Sydney. She’s marrying some hockey guy…Martin… I think.” He said so casually with a chuckle, “I’m bad with names. I’m just looking to slip in, eat a nice meal, drink some free booze and slip out. Mainly doing it for my parents, since they’re away on business someone had to show face for Boomer.” Your eyes scrunched up in confusion, there was just too much to unpack in those simple statements... Martin, Sydney, Boomer... but then as you thought about it maybe for a millisecond more, you slowly found yourself hating how stupid you could’ve been. As a Long Island native, you had just come to terms with the fact you were now facing the IT wedding of the year. The upper crust of your small island would all join in one place, and so would an entire hockey team that your family had found itself rooting for season after season. Leaning back into the leather seats of Reese’s car, you refused to take off your seatbelt, clutching onto the middle console and the handle above the door. “Reese, I can’t go in. I’m…sick. I’m underdressed. I am a no one in comparison to these people. I have…zits, within an hour of being outdoors in a fucking vineyard in July my hair will frizz, and I will smell.” You said going over the top with the dramatics. Something you weren’t typically known for, but this was an emergency. You couldn’t really face these people without feeling well, not confident in yourself. With a roll of your best friends’ eyes, you heard him unclip your seatbelt, after unclipping his own. “(Y/N), slip in… slip out. Do it for me, for the Booms.” Reese said as he popped open the car door for himself. How the fuck had he managed to forget he was family friends with all of these socially important people?

         You absolutely clung next to Reese as you looked around at the beautifully decorated reception area trying to keep a poker face. The venue was just like a pinterest wedding in a barn, but much, much classier. There were gorgeous flowers in almost every shade of pink imaginable, and tables as far as the eye could see. Just beyond that was a large dance floor and a band set up. Of course, there was a band. This was a classy event that no DJ would be able to touch. “Oh look, here we are.” Reese said leading you over to a table filled with little place cards. You tried to quickly eyeball over the names to see what guests would be in attendance, but Reese was quick to find your card along with his. “Table 28.” You muttered quietly picking up your card. “Hush, I promise this will be fun. I won’t leave your side. We’ll be inseparable… now let’s get a drink and try to find this table.” 

         Now that was over an hour ago when Reese had promised to be what you considered a good friend. Now you were maybe two Stella Artois deep. You felt classy when asking the bartender for this beer. This event probably didn’t have your go-to bud light and almost if on cue you heard, “Hey, can I get another two buds?” It only took a second to feel the body whose voice it came from stumble into you a bit as they managed to get to the crowded bar that you’d been at for at least twenty minutes waiting for Reese to return from the bathroom. “Sorry.” The voice said, not managing to look over at you, but oh boy had you looked over at him. You gulped a little after recognizing that face. God, you could recognize that side profile anywhere. You weren’t a crazed hockey fan, but you’d been to enough games to know who he was. Maybe he felt your eyes piercing the side of his face, but he looked over at you with an awkward smile and a nod as he patiently waited for the bartender to find him his drinks. “I didn’t even know they had bud light here, this place just screams classy to which... your drink of choice does not.” You muttered taking another swig of your drink, totally unsure of who you had become after these few beers. A boom of laughter escaped from his mouth, “You clearly don’t know Matt or Syd.” He quipped, reaching over the bar grabbing the two beers from the bartender. “Can you muster up another for my friend over here?” Your new hockey playing bar friend nodded towards you. “I’m Anders… and I don’t think I’ve seen you before, so you’re either family of the bride or…a wedding crasher?” You suddenly felt a little stupid, maybe taking the party too seriously, and unfortunately for you Anders Lee had just pointed that out to you. Settling down your Stella Artois you stuck your hand out keeping your gaze low towards the table top of the bar while your cheeks flushed with embarrassment. “(Y/N), and neither… just a plus one who got ditched by her best friend.” Anders gave your hand a gentle shake. “Ah, well stop by table 29, we’ll show you some fun and we all drink bud light.” 

- - -   

         Dinner service was incredible, you sat at your assigned table, one table over from your new friend Anders, but he didn’t seem to notice too much. He was caught up in conversation with who you presumed was his wife. They were sitting close and comfy, so instead of watching them you let your eyes gaze across their table. It appeared that every boy around the table had been more attractive than the one next to him and of course with an even prettier date. The one with the beard – Nick, then the one with the cute gap tooth – Jordan, the blonde – Casey , the one with the sleeve of tattoos - Cal, and then your eyes landed on a much younger one – Mathew. His hair slicked back, a crisp white linen button down covered with a blue blazer and not the boring navy-blue kind. It was a bright enough blue to grab the attention of others, which was exactly the vibe you were getting from him. Someone who liked being noticed. His own eyes were scanning the room and had stopped when they landed on you. A soft smile appeared on his face, lifting up his drink as if to toast yours. Cocky. Anders had looked over at his teammate and caught at his gaze found your eyes “(Y/N)!” He shouted giving you a wave over. They had an empty seat at their table and Reese had been schmoozing Boomer. Apparently his father and Sydney’s dad were very good friends. “Come here kid, you look like you need some fun.” 

        It took you a moment to pull up from your chair, and try to navigate your way around the other wedding goers to an empty chair at the table. “Guys, this is (Y/N). Be nice. No biting.” Anders said jokingly, while narrowing his eyes at Mat. You tried not to blush or think of it too deeply. Plopping yourself down in the most graceful way you could after 4 beers. “Hi everyone, thanks for letting me crash your table.” You said softly trying to give them all a small wave. Everyone then went on to introduce themselves, as if you hadn’t really known them. “We weren’t planning on sitting very long. The dance floor is calling, (Y/N).” Mat said, with your name rolling off his tongue in a way that sent shivers down your spine. God, you’d been single for too long to have this attractive boy speak words to you. It seemed like everyone was already halfway to the dance floor before Mat was standing in front of you putting out his hand to help you stand up. “Well… what are you waiting for. The night is young.” 

        Mats hands pulling your arms around swirling you around, grazing your hips, and all of the above while the band played song after song. For the first time all evening, you felt like you belonged with the crowd and you were having fun. You didn’t have to look at your phone pretending to text anyone for the next hour like you once imagined you’d be doing. At first you thought it’d be weird, dancing with some boy you barely knew, but the way he was casually working in conversation and getting to know you while moving his hips in all sorts of silly ways was soothing for you. Everyone else was in a happy state of drunk to notice Mat’s poor dancing, or yours for that matter. “So, you’re here with some guy, but you’re dancing with me?” Mat leaned over and spoke in your ear making sure you could hear him over the music. Feeling your face flush from both the comment and the fact he was so close to you. “You’re going to kill my ego if you tell me that’s your boyfriend.” Mat said once more in your ear, pointing over at Reese who was at the bar drinking and talking to some older men. “He’s not my boyfriend. Just a friend from college that needed a plus one. I’m pathetically single!” You said leaning back in to him, your lips practically on his ear. As soon as you spoke your last sentence you cringed, at least internally. You had to keep a poker face. You managed to make yourself feel like you were back in high school with that silly comment. Mat was so cool and you couldn’t even formulate more than one coherent, non-embarrassing sentence at a time. “I’m glad to hear that.” was all he said placing his hands on your hips helping you sway along to the classics. ‘Come on Eileen’ was playing and right as the breakdown hit, Mat moved his hands from your waist to grab your wrists, holding your arms up as he sang right in your face. “At this moment, you mean everything! You in that dress...” You couldn’t help but laugh and sing along with him and the rest of the wedding guests. “Mat, let’s get a drink.” you shouted over the music as the song came to a close.

        He ordered two more beers, and you thought tonight you might potentially die of alcohol poisoning, or worse, make a fool of yourself in front of the most beautiful boy you have ever met. “I’m having a lot of fun with you, so thank you.” Maybe when you get drunk you get sappy, but you genuinely meant it. Staring at Mat’s features you tried not to get lost in the way his eyes followed your lips with every word, or the way his jawline seemed to be so defined, or even the way his hair was tucked behind his ears because it was becoming far too long and unmanageable. “It’s nice to hang out with a pretty girl.. And come on, you’re fun. Don’t act like you haven’t been destroying it on the dance floor. ” He spoke finishing his sentence with this laugh. This seemingly annoying laugh that was maybe a little too loud and obnoxious though none of the wedding goers seemed to notice as they all were enjoying themselves. Right now they were doing the electric slide on the dance floor, and couldn’t be bothered to pay attention to whoever you were and Mathew Barzal. “It’s very attractive, to see someone being themselves in a crowd of people they don’t know.” He leaned his big body against the bar, still facing you waiting to see what you had to say. It took a few seconds for you to muster up your thoughts, trying to come up with something not totally pathetic. 

        “You’re such a flirt.” was all you managed to come up with, “Don’t use those lines on anyone else, Barzal. I need to feel like I’m the only girl you’ve picked up at a friend’s wedding.” He licked his lips after taking another swig of his drink. God you really just wanted to kiss his stupid face when he did that. “You are! I pinky promise.” He responded sticking out his pinky finger, attaching it to your own momentarily. “Give me your phone, I want you to have my number.” He grinned pulling out his iphone from his back pocket handing it over to you. “(Y/N), unofficial wedding date… Love the contact name” Mat said reading from his phone as he got it back with a dorky grin. Right as you were about to open up your mouth and try to lay it thick, the rest of the Islander crew made their way to the bar. Nick slapping Mat’s back, and the rest of the boys immediately grabbing more drinks. “We’re about to head to the after party. I heard Marty got McDonalds to cater, and Trotzy doesn’t even have to know about it.” Nick called out. “Anders said he’d keep it quiet too.” Jordan said to Mat, as he looked over to you giving you cheeky grin. “You can probably bring your new plus one.. If she wants.”

 - - -

        Shuffling onto the party bus with the rest of the Islanders and their wives or girlfriends or friends was just… different. You didn’t necessarily belong, but Mat was doing everything in his power to make you feel like you did, much like he had at the wedding. He’d continued to introduce you to teammate after teammate, especially as you all piled on the bus. Matt and Sydney probably didn’t account for an extra person, as there was only one seat left by the time Mat was done introducing you to everyone. “Are you sure it’s alright I’m here? I don’t think Reese left yet and he can drive me home.” You gently whispered, not wanting to be a bother. Instead of responding, Mat slumped himself down in the seat, grabbing your waist and having you sit on his lap. For someone whom you’d met hours ago, it all felt very comfortable. “Safety first, gotta keep the prettiest girl on the bus safe.” He kept his arms tightly around the waist as if to mimic a seat belt. Leaning his head on the top of your shoulder, resting his eyes shut. The compliment made your face flush, but he wouldn’t see that. “Can’t take you home if we don’t make it there first.” Mat said speaking against the back of your neck. 

        “Barzal, eyes open! The night has just started.” You heard one of his teammates scream at him, leaving you no time to respond to his much steamier comment of the night. Turning back and looking at his face, you saw him slowly open up his eyes, looking at you rolling his eyes. “Their right you know, can’t take me home if you fall asleep.” you quipped back. One of his arms moved from your waist to the back of your neck dipping your face in close to his for a kiss. In that moment you forgot you were on a party bus surrounded by other people. You sunk into his lips perfectly only letting it last a moment before deciding you didn’t want to make a show. “(Y/N), shut up.” Looking around the bus quickly it seemed that no one noticed, and if they did, no one seemed to care. 

        Music blared across the small bar, solely filled with those of you who had come right from the wedding. Sydney had changed from her beautiful ball gown of a wedding dress to a much shorter, tighter party dress. The hockey men had all managed to unbutton their shirts, whipping them off dancing around. The party was quickly becoming everything you’d seen on instagram. Your eyes widened at what was going on, and you felt a hand on your shoulder. “Welcome.” the voice said as you turned, fully expecting it to be Mat trying to pull you off to some corner for more dancing or drinks, but it wasn’t. “I’m Grace, that one…” she said pointing at Anders, “he’s my responsibility for the night.” to which you both chuckled knowing it was her own special way of introducing herself as the wife to The Captain. “It’s nice to see a fresh face around here. Mat’s always so mopey when we go out and are all coupled up.” 

        “Well we just met today…” You said looking at Grace, and then past her to see Mat dancing wildly with his teammates with a schoolboy grin on his face. There was something about him that was just so intriguing, something that made you want to be around him because he had this infectious personality. “He’s a great guy, (Y/N). But can I give you a piece of advice? Don’t go home with him. Mat’s attention span is so small. I can see he likes you, and maybe you can be someone special...but if you leave with him, he won’t call tomorrow. He won’t text.” Soon another couple of girls appeared, more of the wags you assumed. They wouldn’t have made it into the bar if they weren’t friends of Sydney or Matt’s. “Same thing happened to me, with Casey. It took a lot of work to become something serious… not to be nosy.” A different blonde said with a shrug. You assumed she had to be Kristy, married to Casey Cizikas. “Hockey boys are the same. You give in easy, and you’re just another sucker.” 

        “Amen, sister! I’ll make Josh order you an uber home. And then, we’ll add you to our group chat, if Mat misses out on you, at least we have a cute new friend.” Megan Bailey added in giving your shoulder a squeeze. All these pretty put together blonde women wanted to be your friend, and it didn’t make sense but you went with it. Grace quickly nudged the side of Megan seeing Mat coming up from behind, not wanting to spoil your quick gossip session “You ladies done stealing my date?” 

        “Let’s dance.” You said immediately grabbing his forearm dragging him onto the dance floor trying not to let what the girls said get to you. They did seem to have an idea of how Mat would be. Even if it wasn’t in your intentions to go out and have a serious relationship with this boy, you at least wanted to see where things could progress. It hasn’t taken much for you to find your crush growing infinitely. Dancing was exactly what you both did for the rest of the night, intermixed with casual make out sessions in a side hall of the bar leading to a bathroom, and downing a few more drinks. This boy had you hooked, and now you really couldn’t leave with him if the girls knew what they were talking about. You needed him to want to text you tomorrow, to take some sort of an initiative. 

      So it was 6:30 am before you got home, in fact, Josh Bailey ordered you an uber from the after party (as promised by Megan, your new favorite human, no one else pounded back margaritas, made you feel at home, and offered to take you shopping quite like she did). Mat managed to sneak a kiss goodbye before you wobbled into your uber. At exactly 7:03 am he sent you a text, ‘had a great time’. That was it. It felt like it was missing more substance, Mat was acting like you were his date and that you’d known each other forever. Though you promptly answered, and waited. And waited. And waited some more. And you’d wait three more weeks until you were to receive another text from Mathew Barzal. That’s exactly when your life was totally and royally fucked. The girls were right, he was a challenge and  right as you had almost forgotten this special evening, he made his presence known. 

Mat Barzal: hey. 

[therainroguefanfiction]

🔥 ℝise Ⱥbove I̾t ◈ Chapter 027 [Cruel and Insane]

📑 Table of Contents | ◂Backward

Word Count: 2,018

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〈“We are the warriors, who learned to love the pain. We come from different places, but have the same name. We are the broken ones, who chose to spark a flame.” The Score, “Born for This”〉

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“And now, we’re finally approaching the last obstacle and everyone had better tread carefully, you’re stepping onto a minefield!!”

Bitch, what?? Who the fuck puts a fucking minefield in a school competition? U.A. is on drugs, man. Maybe I shoulda played more Minesweeper growing up, I never once won a round of that shit, I’m so screwed.

“If you look carefully, you can see where those little bombs are buried, so keep your eyes on the ground, folks! By the way, those land mines are designed for the game so they might be loud and flashy but they’re not all that powerful~ Just enough to make you wet your pants!!”

“Get ahold of yourself.”

Damn it, Todoroki, I ain’t lettin’ you take first place, fam. I held my hand out, allowing flames to lick at my skin. The flames shot down into the ground before shooting in a straight line across the field, setting off mine after mine and clearing a narrow path for me to safely pass through. Pink smoke filled the air. Why did they have to choose pink? Of all the damn colors…

Bakugo went flying overhead, aiming straight for Todoroki. “Bastard! Your declaration of war… was to the wrong person!!” He aimed an explosion at Todoroki’s face, who easily dodged it.

“Just like that, a new student takes the lead! The media here is going crazy! There’s nothing they love more than an upset! Hey, hey, hey, the rest of the competitors are catching up, too! Can our two leaders fight each other and stay in front of the competition?!”

No, they can’t. I grinned, sliding underneath Bakugo when he jumped. “Later, losers!”

“Get back here, you bitch!!”

“No thanks! Wouldn’t want to ruin that sexual tension you and Todoroki got going on there!”

“Winchester has taken advantage and slipped into first!”

BOOM!!

Uhh, what the fuck was that? I glanced over my shoulder, seeing a huge cloud of pink smoke filling the back of the field.

“What’s with that huge explosion in the back?! That’s way more powerful than it should be!!”

Yo, I think U.A. really be out here trying to kill its students, man. Did they accidentally put a real fucking mine in with the fake ones? Something shot out from the smoke and my eyes widened. Izuku?!

“Incredible! What just happened?! Whatever the case, class 1-A’s Izuku Midoriya is suddenly in hot pursuit of first place!!”

Oh… oh, shit. That fucker is barrelling right toward us!

“The lead is his!!”

“Deku!” Bakugo took off after him with me and Todoroki in hot pursuit. “What the hell do you think you’re doing, huh?!”

“Look at that plot twist! Those two aren’t fighting anymore, they’re chasing Midoriya! That’s what having a common enemy will do in this competition! This fight is still far from over, though!”

Izuku is starting to lose momentum and is falling from the sky. Suddenly, he flipped in mid-air, slamming down the metal plate he had been riding on. It hit the ground directly between the three of us, smacking several mines in the process. The resulting blast sent him flying forward, covering us in pink smoke. I coughed a few times, covering my mouth and nose with my arm as I continued to run. Why the fuck does this smoke smell like a french hooker?

“In a stunning move, Midoriya has busted past his classmates from 1-A! I don’t believe it! He cleared that minefield in an instant! Eraserhead, your students are amazing!! What the heck are you teaching them?!”

“This has nothing to do with me. Each of them is powered by their own drive to succeed.”

“There you have it! Eraserhead is a terrible teacher!!”

“I’m what?”

I bit back a laugh at their antics. Poor Zawa.

“Who would have imagined at the beginning of this race that the climax would be a non-stop megamix of surprises?! The first to make it back to the stadium is the first place winner! Izuku Midoriya is our champion!!”

Todoroki passed the threshold, followed by Bakugo and me seconds behind. I leaned over, hands on my knees as I breathed heavily. Fuck, this is way more effort than walking to the fridge.

Izuku stared up at Toshi, tears in his eyes. Sheesh, kid.

“Deku… no way!” Bakugo clutched his left forearm, eyes wide as they stared at the ground. “Not again…!”

I frowned at his back, scratching my cheek. Should I try to comfort him? I’m still shit at that and it’ll probably just piss him off more… but leaving him be feels wrong. I cleared my throat, setting my hand on the small of his back. “Hey, Baku -”

He shoved me back. “Don’t fucking touch me!”

“Oi -”

“Leave me the fuck alone, Winchester!”

A bead of sweat rolled down my cheek. I don’t think he’s ever used my name before… I sighed deeply, walking away from him. He has a serious Izuku Midoriya complex, he’s gotta get over that if he wants to keep moving forward, but there’s nothing I can do to help with that. That’s all him.

“The contestants are pouring in one after the other! Let’s hear some applause for all of our competitors as we prepare the results!”

“The first game for the first years is finally over and what a game it was!” Midnight grinned as the students gathered in front of her. “Now, let’s take a quick look at the standings, shall we?”

Eh, fourth place ain’t too bad. Hiryuu got thirty-firth, yeesh.

“Only the top forty-four will advance to the next round, but don’t be too let down if you didn’t make the cut, we’ve prepared other opportunities for you to shine.”

I don’t like that sadistic face she’s makin’. Why is she licking her lips?!

“Now, the real fun is about to begin. The chance to fully move yourselves into the limelight! Give it your best!” She held her whip out to the side as the screen started to cycle through events again. “Let’s see what we have in store for you next! Will your wildest fantasies come to life?”

Not unless the next event is a taco eating competition where the winner gets a lifetime supply of Dr. Pepper and gets to meet Deadpool.

“What could it be? The waiting is torture.” She pulled her glasses down over her face. “Guard your loins and prepare for your next task!”

The only torture is listening to you, Midnight…

“Cavalry battle? I’m terrible at those…”

“You’re terrible at everything, Sparky, it’s okay.”

“You’re so cruel, Winchester!”

“Yeah, no shit,” I muttered, kneeling down and hanging my head. He’s totally right, I’ve been a complete bitch to everyone I’ve met, so how the fuck am I supposed to make it through this event? I glanced at Bakugo, but he still looks pissed off at the world, more so than usual. What am I gonna do~?

“I wonder how they’ll split us up.” Tsu wondered.

“Allow me to explain,” Midnight started, motioning toward that screen that displayed All Might being carried by Thirteen in the front, Mic on the left and Snipe on the right. “The participants will form teams of two to four people as they see fit. In theory, it’s basically the same as a regular playground game, but there is one difference – each player has been assigned a point value based on the results from the obstacle course.”

“I get it, a point-based system like the entrance exams. That seems pretty simple,” Sumo commented.

“So that means each team will have a different point value based on which students are on it,” Ochaco concluded.

“Maybe you should shut up and let me explain things to you!!” Midnight snapped, glaring at the two of them.

Midnight, you need to chill, it ain’t that serious.

“Now then, the point assignments go up in increments of five starting from the bottom. For example, forty-forth place is worth five points and forty-third is worth ten. And the point value assigned to the first place contestant is… ten million!!”

Uhh, I’m shit at math but I’m pretty fucking sure that’s way over what it should be. That’s a big oof, fam. I glanced at Izuku with sympathy as the color drained from his face. Everyone snapped their attention to him, eyes full of hunger. Can I get some Fs in chat for our fallen brethren?

“That’s right,” Midnight smirked. “It’s survival of the fittest with a chance for those at the bottom to overthrow the top! Those of you at the top will suffer the most. Of course, that’s something you’ll hear over and over again at U.A. Show us what plus ultra means!”

So, I’m worth two hundred and five points, huh? What a pain.

“First years, these are the rules that you’ll abide by! The game itself will last fifteen minutes. Individual point values will be added together to reach your team total. Everyone will know how much you’re worth thanks to your headband!”

“Wait wait wait wait,” I stood up, catching Midnight’s attention as I stepped forward. She looked annoyed at being interrupted. “I’m already wearing a more important headband, I can’t wear that.”

“You’re saying a logo for a taco restaurant is more important than the sports festival?” She cocked a brow, resting her hand on her hip.

“Absolutely,”

“I think you have a problem, Jen. Ribbit.”

“She’s cruel and insane.”

“But she’s so manly!”

“I don’t think calling a girl ‘manly’ is a compliment, Kirishima.”

Midnight’s eye twitched. “Silence!”

“What I’m askin’ is, does it have to be over my forehead?” I scratched my cheek thoughtfully. “Can I wear it on top of my head? You know, tied under my chin like Lupin III.”

“Winchester…” her eye twitched again.

“Or maybe tied around my arm like Shikamaru Nara? Maybe the wrist? But that would have to be wrapped a couple times.”

“Enough!” She slapped the whip through the air, pointing it at me. “Now listen here, you little -”

“Take that ridiculous thing off your head, Winchester.” Aizawa ordered with an exasperated sigh. “You’re not an advertisement, you’re a student.”

“I refuse,” I glared up at the commentator’s box, pointing my finger. “This has nothing to do with you, Aizawa!”

“Huh?” I could feel his glare. “Take it off or I’ll make sure Lunch-Rush never serves tacos again.”

“What kind of threat is that?”

“Y-You wouldn’t dare,” I stepped back, swallowing hard.

“Try me,”

Shit, he’s dead serious. “Goddamn it,” I reluctantly tugged the bandana from my forehead, stuffing it into my pocket.

“That actually worked?!”

Midnight sighed deeply, running her hand down her face. “If the two of you are done… Swipe as many headbands as you can to raise your team’s score! Stolen headbands must be worn from the neck up, so the more you steal, the harder it’ll be to manage them.” The board changed to show All Might with his neck completely covered by bands and looking uncomfortable. “And another thing – even if your headband gets stolen or your team falls down, you can keep playing until time’s up!”

“It’s anyone’s game, then,” Momo commented.

“And since there are forty-four contestants, there’ll be ten or thirteen teams fighting on the field the entire time,” Sumo added.

“Sounds hard…” French Fry commented, folding his arms over his stomach.

“So, if you lose your headband at the beginning, you have more time to make up a plan.”

“I don’t know, Mina. Maybe we should wait and see how the teams turn out before we start strategizing.” Tsu said.

“This is going to be rough. You may use your quirks as much as you like! But there are still rules. Make a team fall on purpose and I’ll slap you with a red card! You’ll be disqualified!! Now, you’ve got fifteen minutes to build your teams. I recommend you get started!”

Man~ Why’s life gotta force you to constantly interact with other human beings? Just let me be anti-social and live in peace with my tacos and unhealthy obsessed with Wade Wilson! I kneeled down again, hanging my head.

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[svtmatokis]

Mingyu OfficeAu! P2

So late..so so late....I am so sorry! I hit a writers block with this so this may be more of a filler chapter then anything but I swear the good stuff is coming in the next chapter ;)  Thanks for your patience and support guys and for those who celebrate it, I hope you had a good Lunar New Year! ^_^

Plot: You’ve transferred to the Korean division of your company as a high ranking associate but no one but those you have previously worked with know how high you ranked since you’re a firm believer of working your way to the top. Focusing on your career, dating never crossed your mind. That is..until you meet Kim Mingyu, the tall dark and handsome associate who too has never dated but is fairly popular with the girls. Will the two of you end up together? Or will work get in the way again?

Part: 1 - 2

Genre: Fluff kindda boring?

Words: 3961

Pairing: Reader x Mingyu

You team had taken you to a restaurant within walking distance from the office and you got to know more about everyone and by the end of the day, you had a slight grasp on who was close with who and was curious to see how the dynamic would change now that you were here.

As promised, you and Jun were waiting for Minghao who was finishing a report for Jihoon and Kyulkyung who was currently closing up with her team.

“Gosh, I say 5pm and we’re the only ones on time.” Jun said looking at his watch with a roll of his eyes making you giggle.

“You know how Kyulkyung can be. Apparently a few of her teammates have been causing trouble and you know how she reacts to things like that.” you said as Jun gave you a sideways glare.

“The same way you do?” he asked and you gave him an innocent smile.

“Well, we are best friends for a reason…”  you explained as you spotted Kyulkyung walking towards you with an annoyed look on her face which relaxed once she saw you and Jun. “And I assume alcohol will be involved tonight?”

“Of course.” Jun answered.

“Good cause I’m going to need it.” Kyulkyung said joining the conversation.

“Rough day?” you asked empathetically.

“”Interns.” she said with a roll of her eyes. “But, I am off work mode now and we are going to get some good food.”  she looked around. “Where’s Hao?”

“Over there” Jun pointed in the direction Minghao was coming from with Mingyu and Wonwoo. “Dude, you’re the last one to arrive. That means you buy the first round.”

Minghao shrugged, “I’m fine with that.” he then turned to Mingyu and Wonwoo. “We’ll see you tomorrow.” he said and the two nodded their heads in unison.

“Have a good night Y/N, it was nice meeting you today.” Wonwoo said with a wave.

“You too” you responded with a smile, “Enjoy your evening.”

“ I hope you enjoyed your first day Y/N.” Mingyu said with a smile, “Let’s have lunch sometime. I’ll see you tomorrow.” with a wave, he went to catch up with Wonwoo who was waiting by the door.

Minghao and Jun just stared after Mingyu in slight shock.  

“Well he was never great with words.” Minghao muttered.

“But he is also known to be quite straight forward.” Jun added and the two looked at each other.

“He’s screwed.” they said in unison.

You watched as the two boys exited the building as Kyulkyung scoffed next to you.

“Office Casanova right?” you asked and the three others chimed together.

“Bingo.”

“Just like Yanan, goooot it” you sang, “Let’s go, I’m so hungry, I could eat a horse.”

“You weren’t  saying that on our way back from lunch.” Jun sang as you punched his arm making him laugh.

Behind you, three girls stood on the side as they witnessed the whole interaction.

“Who’s the new girl?” one of them asked.

“I heard from Chan that she’s a transfer from the China office. They fired that girl on Joshua’s team and they put in a transfer request.” the other said. “Probably someone the China office just wants to get rid of.”

“I don’t know Mina...she seems close with our Team lead…” the last girl said with uncertainty. “And she was with the other China office transfers…”

“They’re probably just taking her out as a courtesy or something. She is Junhuis team and I bet you by tomorrow, she’ll just be another employee.” the first girl said crossing her arms.

“Don’t worry Nayeon, I doubt she’d be a threat to you and Mingyu.” Mina said smirking at her friend.

“What threat?” Dahyun asked, “Since when was there a you and Mingyu? He flirts with like half the female population of the office.”

“He’s just playing hard to get” Nayeon said with a flick of her hair, “It’s only a matter of time till he asks me out.”

“Yah, if Kyulkyung doesn’t kill him first.” Dahyun muttered with a roll of her eyes.

Meanwhile, you, Jun, Minghao and Kyulkyung were at their favorite BBQ restaurant discussing your next steps.

“Wait, so you didn’t get the S.A (Senior associate) position that was posted a while back?” Jun asked in shock, “I was sure you were a shoe in for the position.”

You shrugged your shoulders and took a shot of Soju, “I guess management preferred Yanan. Plus, he deserved it with all the extra hours he put in towards the end. It’s fine though, I’m alot  happier where I am now.” you said with a smile looking at your three friends.

“We’re happy to have the fourth musketeer here.” Minghao said with a nod pouring you another shot and rose his own glass, “To Y/N.”

“To Y/N” the other two chorused and the night ended with a few bottles of Soju and the four of you at your apartment discussing your next steps.

“Well, furniture shopping is a big thing..” you said looking around your empty home..

“That’s fine, I’m sure you already have an idea of what you want right?” Minghao asked and you nodded, “Why don’t we go shopping over the next few days and Jun and I can round up a few of the guys to help build it this weekend?”he suggested and you all looked at each other.

“It sounds like a solid plan.” Jun said with a nod, “Girls?”

You looked at Kyulkyung and she shrugged her shoulders, “We’ll barely have to do any heavy lifting and the guys on your floor are all good friends so I doubt it’d be hard to round some people up.”

You looked at the two boys, “Let’s do it. I’ll leave the organization outside of my apartment to you then Hao. Thanks.” you grinned.

“We weren’t as close back then but I hope that can change now.” he said with a nod and you agreed fully.

The next day Mingyu was in his usual spot in the breakroom surrounded by a group of girls. He was talking to Nayeon about a recent project when you walked into the room towards Joshua with Jun at your side. It was obvious that his attention was no longer on the conversation with Nayeon and was only half paying attention to what she was saying while most of his attention was now on your conversation with Joshua.

“Thank you so much for letting us use your car tonight Josh. I really appreciate it.” you said as you shook his hand. “I’m still trying to figure out the whole car thing so this is a really big help.”

“It’s all good. I gotta take care of my teammates you know.” he said shooting you a wink, “Plus my only condition was that I drive, I hope you don’t mind.”

“Not at all.” you said with a smile, “The more the merrier.”

At the last statement Mingyu’s ears perked up and he abruptly ended his conversation with Nayeon and made his way over to your group.

“We’ll get what we can tonight and have the rest delivered for the weekend.” Jun said, “Kyulkyung said she can’t make it tonight and Minghao’s cars’ in the shop so we’re down a few drivers.”

That was Mingyu’s cue, “I can drive.” he said as all heads turned on him.

Jun raised his eyebrow, “You don’t even know what we’re doing.”

Mingyu shrugged his shoulders, “I’m free tonight and you just said you’re down a few drivers. I can drive for whatever it is.”

“Great you can drive Y/N and Jun and I can ride with Joshua.”  Minghao said coming out of nowhere. “That way, we can fold the backseat and the passenger seat behind Joshua down.”

Mingyu sent a thankful look to Minghao as the latter winked at him.

Everyone looked at you as you shrugged your shoulders, “Sure, I don’t mind.”

“Plans set, now everyone get to work.” Joshua said clapping his hands shooing everyone off to their respective places.

At the end of the day,  Mingyu was making his way to your desk as Nayeon cut him off with a tap of his shoulder.

“Hey Nayeon, what’s up?”

“Oh, umm..I was assigned this new project and I was hoping to get your insight on it. It looks like something that’s more down your alley so I was wondering if you’d like go for coffee or something to discuss..” she said nervously holding the folder in her hands while she looked down. It took a lot of courage for her to do this but frowned when Mingyu shook his head.

“Sorry, I have plans tonight but I’m sure Kyulkyung could give you a hand. She’s your team lead right?” he suggested before nodding his head, “Have a good night.” And at that, he continued to make his way over to where you were packing up your laptop.

“Hey Y/N,” he said causing you to look  up at him with a smile that almost stopped his heart. “Are you almost ready to go? Joshua said something about finishing a report…”

“Hey Mingyu, just on time. Thank you so much for waiting.” you said gratefully. After lunch a client had sent in an urgent request which caused you to write a report which took you longer than you intended. Joshua, Jun and Minghao left earlier since they would hit rush hour traffic anyways and you agreed to call them when you arrived.

Joshua had relayed the message to Mingyu who was more than happy to wait since it allowed him time to finish his own reports.

“It’s no problem at all. I had some work to finish so the timing was perfect.” he responded instinctively grabbing your coat from behind your chair was you finish zipping up your purse.

“What a gentleman.” you said giggling sliding your arms into the sleeves. Grabbing your purse (Mingyu already had your laptop bag in his hands) the two of you made your way to the elevator.

Nayeon stood fuming from her spot as she Mingyu happily converse with you. She had waited  a long time to get Mingyu’s attention and she was sure that things were going in the right direction. That was until you showed up the day before and suddenly you were the new apple of Mingyu’s eye. She was sure it was just a phase, Mingyu was just showing interest in the new girl because she was interesting but a plain jane like her couldn’t be all that interesting could she?

Throughout the drive, you found out that Mingyu wasn’t so bad. Not like you ever had that thought in the first place considering all the good things you’ve heard from your teammates. You also knew that he and Minghao were really close friends and Minghao wasn’t one to let just anyone in.

Furniture shopping went well and you were happy you didn’t have to do any heavy lifting and by within two hours, you were able to get everything you needed including a few decorative necessities. After packing things into the car, you all decided that shopping had worn you out and that it was time for dinner.

“No way! You were up for an S.A position but they gave it to Yanan instead?”  Mingyu asked as the two of you approached the table everyone else was at. The two of you hit some traffic (more like Mingyu drove a little bit slower) so you arrived later than everyone else.

“He deserved it.” you responded, “One of the hardest working guys I know.”

“You told him about the almost promotion?” Minghao asked and you nodded.

“What almost promotion?” Joshua asked confused.

“Y/N here was up for an S.A position prior to her transfer.” Jun said and you shot him a look. “What? It’s not like a big secret now that Mingyu knows.”

“You were up for an S.A position?” Joshua asked as a look of realization dawned on his face, “That means…”

“The China office was nice enough to replace your Tier3 associate with a Tier 1 associate.” Jun confirmed with nod. “Aren’t we lucky?”

“That must be why Jihoon wants her to transfer to our team so badly.” Minghao said with a smirk. “I overheard him  muttering to himself again.”

“Wait...you said you started around the same time Jun did before he transferred over. But he’s still a Tier 2…” Joshua said confused. “How did you become a Tier 1 so quickly?”

“We did start at the same time but as it was expanding into other regions, they gave certain Tier 3 associates an opportunity to show what they had. We were given two options, we could either take a training program to work with the opening of the new offices and by the end of the course, be promoted to Tier 2 so we could mentor other Tier 2 associates in the new offices” you responded.

“Like, Jun and Minghao. “ Mingyu stated. He was enjoying the conversation and was glad that he wasnt wrong when his gut told him that you were an interesting person. Someone he wanted to get to know more.

“Yep” you nodded, “The other option was to take a training program that fast tracks us to Tier 1 associates. There were two openings and we had to fill in an application. Hardest six weeks of my life but at the end of the day, totally worth it.” you finished with a smile.

“The course got you a Tier 2 promotion so it wasn’t like those who applied lost anything but the Tier 1 promotion was the money spot. It wasn’t mandatory obviously but Y/N and I always had a work hard play later attitude.” Jun continued and gave you a nudge, “Pays off in the end doesnt it?”

“So you obviously got one of the two spots” Joshua said, “Who was the other?”

“Yanan” you, Jun and Minghao all said simultaneously.

“You two kind of pushed each other towards it if I recall…” Minghao stated, “You two are almost as close as you and Jun so it didn’t make sense when you said he had no idea of you transfer…” he shot you a look.

“The transfer literally happened yesterday Hao.” you said giggling. “It was sudden and then Yanan got promoted so we haven’t had the time to really touch base.”

“I heard from Cheol that there’s going to be a regional office meeting here in a few months time . Ask him if he’s attending and I’ll clear your schedule for a day to chill.” Joshua said with a smile.

“Thanks.” you said with a small smile.

By the time everyone dropped your furniture off at your place it was extremely late so goodbyes were quick and you couldn’t thank your coworkers enough.

As everyone dispersed, Jun and Mingyu were the only ones remaining.

“Thanks again guys, I owe you guys so many lunches.” you said bowing again.

“It was fun.’ Mingyu said with a chuckle before looking down at his watch and let out a sigh,”I’d stay longer but I have an early meeting and Jihoon hates it when we’re late.” leaning to kiss you on the cheek not only surprising you but also himself, he pulled away and with a wave was out your door leaving you blushing at your step.

“Don’t explode, I won’t clean up the mess” Jun said smirking as he walked out your door.

As the week went by, the kiss on the cheek from Mingyu ghosted your mind. You weren’t sure what it meant but the little tidbits from Kyulkyung and Jun defined Mingyu as someone who was and knew he was attractive but had no interest in dating but at the same time, was more of a distraction then anything.

You recalled a day where you were in the breakroom and Mingyu walked in followed by Nayeon, a girl you heard about from Kyulkyungs team and as he was making his coffee. She shot you a glare as she walked by but continued to smile at Mingyu asking him about his weekend plans among other things that you couldn’t remember. You observed him as the two conversed and you could see why people found him attractive. He was the full package of tall, dark and handsome. He had a charming attitude but a cute boyish smile to go with it and you had to admit that he was cute.

As the weekend approached, Minghao had called on a  few people to help you set up your home and you were surprised by the turnout. Your team and Jihoon’s team had all shown up along with Chan and even Jeonghan and Seungcheol came to help.

While the boys did most of the heavy lifting and building, you and Kyulkyung worked on organizing things and putting up pictures and by the evening, everything was setup and built.

“Thank you so much guys! I really appreciate it!” you said waving from your door as almost everyone had left. You had ordered Jjajangmyeon for everyone and after a little small talk,the group had dispersed.

“No problem Y/N, what are teammates for?” Seungcheol asked, “Plus, you did a really nice job with this place.” he gave you a thumbs up, “It’s good to have you here, have a good rest of you weekend.” and with a wave, he was off and all that was left was Mingyu and Minghao.

Jun and Kyulkyung had wanted to stay longer but a project the two had crossed over on had an emergency and they were going to be spending the rest of their weekend at the office.

Looking between you and Mingyu, he saw this as his opportunity and shot his best friend a wink.

“I have to meet up with some old friends tonight so I’m going to head off” he said giving you a hug and Mingyu a fist bump, “Are you okay cleaning the rest up yourself?”

You nodded your head, “I’ll be fine. Thanks so much for organizing this again. It was a huge help.” you said with a grin.

“Hey, like I said, what are friends for?” Minghao asked, “I’ll see you guys on Monday.”

Once Minghao left, Mingyu turned to you and asked, “Do you need help cleaning up?” He knew what his best friend did for him but at the same time, he didn’t want to overstep his boundaries.

“Oh no it’s okay.” you said with a smile as you two stood awkwardly in your living room, “It’s Saturday night, I’m sure you have somewhere to be.” you had overheard a conversation in the breakroom a few days ago between Nayeon and another girl about having coffee with Mingyu so you assumed that was his plan after helping you out.

“No, I don’t have any plans tonight..” Mingyu said laughing awkwardly, “I kinda left the day free cause I didn’t know how long this was going to take. If you want me to leave I can-”

“Oh no you dont have to” you said suddenly catching both of you off guard and you had to clear your throat.

“If you have nowhere to be, you don’t have to leave.” you gave him a small smile as a blush crept up your cheeks. “It’d be nice to have some company that isn’t Jun.”

Your statement broke the ice as Mingyu let out a small laugh and the two of you spent the rest of your night organizing and talking that by the time Mingyu had left, it was past midnight.

“I’ll see you Monday.” he said and leaned down to kiss your cheek again like he did last time which made you look at him wide eyed.

Shooting you a wink he walked away after whispering, “Sweet dreams.”

As weeks went on, you were more settled in your new role and your friendship with Mingyu was taking an interesting turn. You had a feeling that you weren’t really liked at the office at the moment due to the fact that Mingyu was at your side almost as much as Jun was.

Minghao was happy for the progress and Jun was curious and after that day at your apartment, even Kyulkyung could see that Mingyu was changing the more he hung around you.

“He’s like a lost little puppy.” she said with a giggle one day as the two of you had coffee, “As much as I didn’t like him for distracting my teammates, it seems that he’s found his own distraction.”

“He is not distracted, if he got distracted Jihoon wouldn’t hesitate to hit him literally with a bat. You know that.” you said with a giggle, “I guess Mingyu’s cute…”

“Oh come Y/N, he’s totally into you.” Kyulkyung said leaning forward, “You’re the only girl he’s actually taken out to lunch you know that right?”

“What do you mean? He always has lunch with Nayoung and them.” you responded and Kyulkyung rolled her eyes.

“Yea, but that’s always in a group setting with other teammates, I’m talking about one on one Y/N. In all my years at this company, he has never taken a girl out and it’s not even against company policy either.”  Kyulkyung retorted. “Trust me, he’s into you.”

You raised an eyebrow at her, “Weren’t you not his biggest fan say...three months ago?” you asked.

“As long has he isn’t distracting my team, I could really careless what he does.” she said with a flick of her hair, “But if he hurts you, he’s dead.”

Giggling you took your bestfriends hand, “I wouldn’t expect anything less. Plus he’s not into me, I heard that he’s supposed to have coffee with Nayeon anyways” looking down at your watch you gasped at the time, “Crap, I gotta go. I have a client appointment and it’s across the city.” packing up you stood up as the door chimed.

“Y/N?” a voice made you look up and you made eye contact with Mingyu. Looking to his left, you saw him with Nayeon and you turned to look at Kyulkyung with an ‘I told you so” look in which she only smirked.

“Mingyu, hey.” you greeted him with a smile, “Sorry, I really have to go or else I’m going to be late for a client meeting. I’ll see you tomorrow.’

“The Gangnam client?” Mingyu asked, remembering you had told him a few days prior that this was a big meeting. At your nod, he looked at his watch and confirmed that you were actually running late. “You’re never going to make it. Let me drive you.” he said as a throat cleared behind him.

“Mingyu, I thought we were going to go through the report…” Nayeon said, “There’s still certain things that need to be finished and I need-”

“I’m sure Kyulkyung can help you.” Mingyu said noticing Kyulkyung nod with wink, “She is your team leader so she should be your go to.” then he turned to look at you, “Let’s go, if we leave now, we might get there early.” and without waiting for a response, he grabbed your wrist and ran out the door with you trying to keep up with his long strides.

That left Nayeon and Kyulkyung at cafe and it was clear that Nayeon was seething.

Kyulkyung watched in interest, “Let’s go Nayeon, lets see what you’re having so much difficulty with that you have to ask Mingyu who isn’t even on our team for help.” her tone coming out almost sarcastic.

As she watched Mingyu open the door for you to get into his car, she smiled. He really wasn’t so bad afterall.

[thorofasgard007]

Casting my WIP:  “Blade of Penance Volume I:  Bore of Great Sacrifice”

Haven’t posted anything in a while thought I would put up a fun game for us aspiring authors out there.  My first draft nears completion.  Just a the final fight, “mop-up” and a couple appendices to write.  Hoping to be done this week while I am on vacation. *fingers crossed*

Anyway, I saw a YouTube video posted by an authortuber I follow named Kim Chance where she went through the dream casting of her newest book Seeker (soon to be released here is the video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q5Rmhm8HhE8).  I was thinking while I was running some errands earlier today I should do something similar.  If my novel(s) ever get made into a movie whom would I cast as each character?  So I decided to post that here and see what other authors/aspiring authors would cast as their characters.  Name the character, a brief description of them, then the actor/actress and why you would cast them.  

Here are the rules:  #1)  You have to use the actors/actresses as they are TODAY.  No using “Early 80′s Arnold” or Clint Eastwood like he was when he played Dirty Harry.  It also goes without saying you can’t use actors that have retired from acting or passed away.  #2)  If there is a seminal movie/tv show in your genre you cannot use actors from that franchise.  Since this rule can really make things difficult you can use up to TWO exceptions to rule #2.  Since my WIP is epic fantasy both actors from Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings movies and Game of Thrones are disqualified.

Okay here we go.

Dorath:

The father of my hero Kaaldor.  A former general and hero of the Battle of Gos.  The last scion of the House of Dranus who’s progenitor alongside Ka’Reyus The Elven Warrior King lead the Great Liberation against the Dragon Rule of Rab Yangin 500 years ago.  Few either human or elf could match his skill with the blade save maybe one.

At first I thought of The Most Electrifying Man in Sports Entertainment:  Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.  I even used his physique as a bit of a template when I was doing up his character model.  However in the end I thought he should be cast a bit younger (Don’t hit me with the People’s Elbow Rock.)

Therefore I will use one of my exceptions early and go with Aquaman, aka Kahl Drogo, Mr. Jason Mamoa.

Ka’Reyus:

The Elven Warrior King and Grandfather to my hero.  Unquestionably the greatest warrior alive.  Has gone unmatched in swordsmanship for over 500 years.  Single headedly fought and slew three dragons at once.  Him and Dranus (Dorath’s ancestor) tag-teamed to slay the corrupted dragon lord Rab Yangin to free the continent of Kalis from drake rule.  Is Dorath his equal as a warrior??? SPOILERS :)

For him I batted around a few choices including Liam Neeson and Russel Crowe of course cgi would have to be used to size them down because as an elf Ka’Reyus was only 5 feet tall.

I finally decided on Wolverine himself (aka Jean ValJean, aka PT Barnum) Hugh Jackman.

(Yes this is an older pic... but I wanted one of him as Wolverine :) )

Princess Almelphia:

Mother of Kaaldor.  Only child of Ka’Reyus.  The unchallenged beauty of Elvendom.  All the nobility compete for her attention not only for her beauty but that whomever she chose as her husband would be the likely successor to the elven throne.  She is also is the only member of the royal house with any magical ability, even though it is just limited to reading the memories left behind on things/people that she touches.  While my hero was growing up she always called him her “little champion” and he did everything he could to live up to that title.

She was a tough choice.  If I wanted to use my second exception I would have chosen The Khalessi herself Emilia Clarke but considering Jason Mamoa is Dorath… that may be a little much.  I also considered Miranda Otto (aka Eowyn) but again didn’t want to use my second exception.  Therefore I decided to go with Jenna Coleman aka Clara Oswald from Dr. Who, and Queen Victoria on Victoria.

Here she is from the “Robin Hood Episode” of Dr. Who so you could see how she would look in a fantasy setting.

Ka’Vatch:

Lifelong friend of Ka’Reyus and Elvul Ka’s(the elven nation’s) foremost smith.  Him and Ka’Reyus both learned their weaponry by working his father’s forge.  Growing up Kaaldor learned from Ka’Vatch at the same forge.  To be a great warrior you must both know your weapons and then know yourself.  The weapons part started with Ka’Vatch after an 8 year old Kaaldor hid in his smith from bullies that didn’t like that he was half human.

For him I thought about Michael Ironside.  Granted you usually see him as a bad guy (and he plays a great villain, especially with his voice work... if they ever do a live action version of Darkseid they should have him reprise the role from his voice work on Superman: TAS etc).  However age is a factor.  Therefor I chose Josh Brolin aka Thanos… aka Cable.

Ka’Draoi: (pronounced Ka’ DREE, gotta love Gaelic)

Grand Thaumaturge of Elvul Ka’ and one of the world’s most powerful wizards.  He draws his power from the Blue Flame like all elves and fought along side Ka’Reyus and Dranus in The Great Liberation.  Being such a long time friend of the king he can often get away with breaches of proper decorum and has been known to have a bit of a ...shall we say “unique” sense of humour.

My original choice for this role was of course Sean Connery... but he has been retired from acting for some time.  I thought about Terrance Stamp (aka General Zod from Superman II, my all time favourite movie villain) but decided against it.  I didn’t want to use another exception or to be seen as him being a Gandalf clone so no Sir Ian McKellan.

In the end I chose another James Bond Pierce Brosnan, he can command the regal presence and wisdom Ka’Draoi needs, plus have the comic timing to pull off the sense of humour needed.

Ok.  That covers Kaaldor’s family and the elves.  Now lets move on to some more human characters.

Admiral Jagaran:

He is the Admiral of the Palan fleet (the main villain nation of the story) and in command of its new flagship The Jorgmundr (a ship completely made of dragonbone).  He is a very skilled warrior, especially at see and a cunning strategist.  He always takes the most straightforward path to victory whether it is an honourable choice or not.  However he has been known to let his ego get the better of him.

My first choice was Peter Wingfield.  Highlander fans will recognise him as Methos from the 90′s Highlander TV series.  (As a point of trivia I watched some of Methos’ sword fights on the series to map out some of this character’s move sets).  However he has apparently retired from acting and at last report was pursuing a career in medicine.

So instead I went with Rome’s Ray Stevenson, he has been in many other things but I mostly know him as Titus Pullo on Rome, Volstagg from the MCU and as Frank Castle in Punisher: War Zone (I should dust that one off I haven’t watched it in a while)

Anonyus:

The Mage assigned to the Jorgmundr.  Although he technically outranks Jagaran as he is a mage his role on the ship is similar to that of a “political officer” on the old Soviet ships.  He is your classic sadist that makes King Joffrey and Reese Bolton look like boy scouts.  He prefers to invoke fear in his adversaries of what he may do than to actually inflict the pain.

For him I went back to the MCU and chose Tom Hiddleston, aka Loki.  I just love him as a villain.

(Point of trivia... he originally auditioned for the part of Thor... go fig because he was so good as Loki.)

Armorton:

The chief slave-driver on The Jorgmundr, and a sadist son of a... gun (trying to keep this PG) in his own right.  He takes perverse pleasure in publicly and brutally executing slaves that can no longer work in the bowels of the ship... or just make an example of.  As he is more a hand to hand brute than a swordsman I went with a wrestler/actor for him.  Dave Bautista from Guardians of the Galaxy (gee I am pulling a lot from the MCU) and Spectre, also a former WWE Champion.

Ok... let’s get away from the villains for a bit.

Dex:

The classic dashing rogue.  Thinks he is “the pyres” gift to women and even names his lockpicks after his conquests.  Never met a maiden he didn’t want to hit on.  Or a full coin-purse he didn’t want to cut.  Always ready with a witty retort but also willing to help when he sees something unjust.  Kaaldor sometimes sees him as his best friend... and other times wants to punch him.  But they somehow make it work as they defend the village of Belieret from the warlord Tyv.

This character needs the comic timing that only Ryan Reynolds can provide.  I have been a fan of his since he was in Blade: Trinity (not as bad as everybody says) and he was dead on casting as Deadpool.

Klok:

A Baegian merchant that is one of the few in Belieret willing to learn how to fight to protect his new home.  His own brother betrayed him when the Baegian King became a vassal for Q’Rab The Sorcerer King of Palis and Klok began to speak ill of the new regime.  He couldn’t let hit happen again with Tyv.

I have chosen a bit of an odd choice.  A TV actor named Alimi Ballard.  He has been on many TV shows but I mostly remember him as David Sinclair on Numb3rs.

Ok lets do some more villains then we will go for the Hero and Heroine.

Tyv:

The warlord that is pulling the old extortion racket on the village of Belieret.  He blames Ka’Reyus for ***SPOILERS***.  Little do the villagers know he is just a cog in the machinery of one of Q’Rab’s plans.  In the meantime he plans to take his revenge on Ka’Reyus by sending him Kaaldor’s head.

For this I am going cast Clancy Brown, mostly because he played my #2 all time favourite movie villain The Kurgan in Highlander.  You would also recognise him from The Shawshank Redemption and Starship Troopers.  He as also done a lot of voice work, including Lex Luthor for Superman: TAS, Savage Oppress on Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Mr. Krabs on SpongeBob SquarePants (lol).

Hespera:

Apprentice to the Sorcerer Q’Rab and Master/Mistress to Anonyus.  She suffers no failure and many of her apprentices have felt her wrath.  None have lived to tell the tale.  Her vanity is her weakness and although devoted to Q’Rab for centuries she has been known to have her own machinations to undermine his plans.  You only briefly see her in the first book... but I plan to have her take a much larger role in book 2.

For her... if she is willing to be a redhead my first choice is Wonder Woman herself Gal Gadot.  She can be both regal, the flirt to ensnare men but then switch gears to be something menacing all at once.

(come on I had to choose a Wonder Woman pic... all the world is waiting for you... and the powers you possess :) )

Q’Rab:

Sorcerer King of Palis and has ruled for over 200 years.  He draws his power from the Black Flame and rarely gets his hands dirty himself but is always a Master of Puppets pulling strings from afar.  All under his rule are fanatically devoted to him.  Whenever he is mentioned they finish the sentence with “May his reign be eternal”.   It has yet to be determined who is the more powerful wizard if him and Ka’Draoi were to meet in a duel, and the true goal of his plans while he is at war with the nation of Corlot are ****SPOILERS****.  His origins are ***SPOILERS***.

For him I went with a bit of an odd choice, I needed a classical type of actor but one that wasn’t your standard English baddie.  I went with Alexander Siddig.  While best known as Dr. Bashir on Star Trek:  Deep Space Nine, he also has a long movie and TV career including 24, Gotham on the small screen and Kingdom of Heaven and The Nativity Story on the big screen.  If he can pull off both The Angel Gabriel and Ra’s Al Ghul he can pull of Q’Rab.  (Note:  As he was also Doran Tyrell on Game of Thrones... he is my second exception)

Ok... you are saying enough with the villains.  Fine lets get to the main event.  My hero and heroine.  First the Heroine:

Renna:

Daughter of the captain of The Divine Lady, the ship that Kaaldor is a passenger on when The Jorgmundr strikes.  While able to fight for herself knows when she is out of her depth and instead fits into the facilitator role to get Kaaldor what he needs to win.  She can also act as the diplomat to Kaaldor’s brute force as she knows not every problem can best be solved by the right amount of smashing.  She is not the damsel in distress like Lois Lane that always needs a Superman to rescue her, but she also knows she doesn’t have to be Xena to be strong either.

This one was a hard choice... The aforementioned Jenna Coleman was a strong contender at one point.  I also considered Rosa Salazar (loved her in Alita Battle Angel) however in the end (maybe because I just did a binge watch of Cobra Kai over the Labour Day Weekend) I chose Mary Mouser (Samantha LaRusso on Cobra Kai).  Her look is the right combo of innocence, beauty and strength which is what you need to play Renna.

Finally.

Kaaldor:

The hero of the story.  Half-elf and half human.  Trained by his grandfather since he was eight years old to be a warrior without equal.  He was even able to fight Ka’Reyus to a draw.  Though of the elvish royal family very few fully accept him as part of elvish society.  He can never let an injustice stand and sometimes gets himself deep in a bad situation by acting without thinking.  But still is the one willing to act when others are too scared to.  In the end he must complete his quest to ***SPOILERS***

For him I originally thought of Daniel Cudmore, I best remember him as Colossus in X-Men 2 and X-Men 3 (boy did three SUCK).  However in the end thought a Hemsworth was a better fit.  Not Chris (Thor)… but Liam (Expendables 2, The Hunger Games).  (Note:  He will probably have to bulk up a bit as when I wrote the character I was thinking “Early 80′s Arnold”)

Well There you go... It was a lot of fun going through this.  For all you authors/aspiring authors out there... lets see your own lists.  Use the Tag below. :)

[ravenchaitea]

Hello out there! I don't know how many of you followed this blog just for the P5 content itself and how many followed it because of my fic writing. Either way, I'm flattered! For any of ya'll that are interested, I've started a new P5 Pegoryu fic and I'll be posting a preview of the first chapter here. Eventually it'll move to Archive.

Summaries are not my thing, but here goes nothin’: 

Ryuji's two years out of graduating from the Colony Defense Force program when he gets his first real assignment in deep space. It's not something in his field as a fighter pilot, he'll basically be acting as a glorified ambulance driver. If he can pull it off, in a year he can put in for a transfer. It might be his only chance. He's never been good at following the chain of command and he doesn't shine academically, but he knows ships. He knows how to fly them, build them, repair them. It's the only reason he was able to get into the program in the first place. It's the only thing he's good at.

He’s surprised when someone takes notice, especially when that someone is Commander Akira Kurusu. The man is the youngest war hero in Earth Colonies history. He was there during the fall of Shido, when the entire planet was wiped off the map. Now he’s a walking poster child for the Alliance of Emergency Medical Services, AMES. He leads a specialized team that travels from planet to planet, offering aid when needed. It’s the complete opposite of everything Ryuji was trained to do, but he’s finding it impossible to say no. Especially when he’s going to be serving under such an attractive commander. 

Act. 1.1

On the Earth colony planet of Kamoshida, the sun is going down, bathing everything in a honey-orange glow. Acres of tall yellow grass grow up from the ground. The stalks roll like waves, stirred up by a mild evening breeze. Ryuji Sakamoto sits on the hood of his silver hover car, hands folded neatly behind his head as the last light of day bakes heat into his skin. He strains to keep his eyes open, drifting in and out of a lazy afternoon nap. It's one of the few moments he's had to himself since spring ended.  

They say Kamoshida is the closet of the Earth colony planets to resemble Old-Earth. It's the only planet in the sector to have a true four season cycle, making it ideal for growing most Earth staples. The planet's major export is its crops, providing more than half of the colonies' food supply. The entire population of the Kamoshida colony is involved with the farming efforts, growing, selling, or packing. Ryuji's family happens to be fifth generation bean growers.  

He opens his eyes and lifts his hands up in front of his face, studying his oil-stained fingers. He's supposed to be working on his hovercar but he can't muster up the energy. Between school and chores, his free time has been limited. This is to say nothing of the spring sowing and all the extra chores that came with that. Their farm is one of the smallest in the area and he's always been expected to help wherever he can. His father won't tolerate laziness. Any time spent working on his car definitely falls into that category.    

He's been putting on the finishing touches for weeks, pushing himself towards the goal of being able to take it out. Although 'out' is a bit of an overstatement. He won't legally be allowed to take it anywhere besides ground streets for two more years. Air flight is restricted to the eighteen and up crowd. Despite that, he figures two years is nothing compared to the four it's taken him to get it all put together. It was little more than an empty chasse full of scraps when he brought it home from the junkyard. A fact his father continues to lord over him every chance he gets, even with all the progress he's made on it.  

He's poured all his monthly allowance into buying parts and making needed repairs. What he couldn't afford, well-... He figures it's all stuff that won't be missed. It needs fresh paint and to have the chrome touched up, but there's time for that later. Having a ground vehicle will at least get him away from the house on weekends. Plus there's a point of pride to be had in being the only one in his circle of friends with a car.  

His hazy mind is busy going over possible paint combinations when he catches himself dozing off for real. He allowed himself to be lulled into sleep by the darkening sky and the warm pre-summer air. He forces his eyes open and glances up, able to see the beginning of stars among the pale pink hues of atmosphere. His body is bone tired and for a few more minutes he lies still, fatigued from weeks of not getting enough sleep. He thinks it odd that someone of his age should feel so run down. There's no time to dwell on that though. His mother will be finishing up dinner and he's expected to be home to set the table.

He slides down off the hood and begins the short walk through the fields to get back to the house. When he emerges from the sea of tall grass he sees his father's truck in the driveway. It's an instant disappointment. Friday nights are usually the night his father stays in town after work to have a drink and 'catch up with the boys'. It's a rarity for him to forego bar time for family time. Ryuji crosses the yard at a slow pace, dragging his feet to stave off the inevitable. The thought of sitting down to eat with his drunkard father is more than he can stand.  

As he's approaching the house his wristwatch display lights up, receiving an incoming call. He pauses just off the porch to answer it, waiting for the video connection to buffer. The eager expression of his longtime friend and classmate Takeishi appears on the screen.  

"What's up?"  

"We still on for tonight?" Takeishi asks and the question throws Ryuji for a moment. Had they made plans? He thinks they might have made plans. "Y'know. Captain Kidd's ship. Parked at the shipyard."  

"Oh shit," Ryuji breathes as his chest lights up with excitement. "Man, I totally forgot about it."  

"How the hell did you forget?"  

"Spring sowin', remember? We've gotta get the fields resown before summer rolls around. I've been busy."  

Takeishi studies him for a moment, eyebrows furrowing in concern, "You good?"  

"I'm okay," Ryuji assures him. It's not exactly a lie, at the moment he's fine. He's tired. Worn down from weeks spent working in close quarters with his father. From trying to meet the man's impossible expectations. "We're meetin' at midnight in old man Iwai's cornfield, right?. Hope you and Nakaoka don't bail on me this time."  

"I wasn't the one who bailed."  

"I'm serious, man. If you guys don't show I'm goin' in alone."  

"We'll be there." Takeishi insists though it does nothing to diminish Ryuji's doubt. "See ya."  

"Yeah." Ryuji sighs, tapping the end call button. Inside he can hear his father's voice. It's more the tone than actual words and he already sounds riled up about something. He ascends the porch stairs and presses himself against the wall beside the front door. He's trying to give himself a moment of composure before he goes in.

He doesn't want to deal with this right now.  

"Hey," He calls out as he pushes the front door open. From his vantage point, he can see into the kitchen. His mother is standing with her back against the counter and her arms crossed over her chest. She widens her eyes at him, a silent warning for him to tread cautiously. He kicks his shoes off and nudges them into neat alignment by his father's work boots. He crosses the living room and turns the corner to his father seated at the dining table.  

"The hell you been?" The older man demands, swinging one of his worn hands towards the table. "I come home from bustin' my ass and your mother can't even get dinner on the table because you're off god knows where."  

"Yes sir," It's less of an agreement and more of a neutral answer. Ryuji knows he's already on thin ice and he's not about to make things worse by arguing.

"Welcome home," His mother offers, a subtle change in the conversation. He hates this. Friday night dinners are usually their thing. It's the one night of the week they don't have to tiptoe around his father.  

"Go ahead and sit down, Ma," Ryuji insists, guiding her towards the table. He washes his hands clean at the sink and gathers the plates from the cabinet. He has to reach around his parents to set the table. Out of the corner of his eye, he can see his father watching him. He's looking for a reason to yell at him again. Wordlessly Ryuji serves the food and grabs his father a bottle of beer from the fridge. On his way to his chair, he sets a light hand atop his mother's shoulder hoping to reassure her. She pats his fingers lightly in acknowledgment. The whole exchange is missed by the man at the head of the table as he pries the lid off his beer and takes a long drink of it.

Ryuji watches in silent disgust as some of the foamy liquid pools at the side his father's mouth and runs down his chin. His entire face looks like well-worn leather. It's creased and tanned by his many long days working in the fields. He runs equally aged fingers across his spotty stubble covered chin, wiping the beer away in an almost thoughtful gesture. He sets the bottle down and clears his throat before taking up his utensils to begin the meal. Neither Ryuji nor his mother dares to start eating before he does, lest they affront him.  

"Spring harvest was profitable this year," He announces, sounding almost on the verge of pride. There's no doubt in Ryuji's mind that his father spent most of his day in town stroking his own ego. Beans are not a big spring crop and their farm has been mostly dormant since winter. That doesn't stop Ryuji's father from acting as if the entire town's spring harvest is his own personal success story. 

"Ryuji,"  

"Yeah?" He's surprised by his father's calm use of his name. He sets his fork down beside his plate and lifts his eyes up to meet the older man's. They're the color of a stormy ocean and dark, cold, and dimly glazed over from the alcohol. Ryuji's always been thankful that he got his mother's brown eyes. He hopes that they somehow make him look more like her and less like his dad.    

"Y'worked real hard these past couple months. Don't think I didn't notice."  

"Uh, thank you," Ryuji replies, feeling his guard go up and his hands curl into fists on reflex. It's not often that the man offers him praise and it usually doesn't come without strings attached. His father rises to his feet, his body swaying under the effects of the alcohol. The half beer that sits on the table is a pallet cleanser for whatever hard stuff he drank before coming home. It's a wonder he was able to drive without causing an accident. Sometimes Ryuji wishes he would crash. It's not malicious but out of a desire to keep him off the road and away from other people. It's easy to picture his father drunkenly swerving in front of somebody else's family.  

His stomach lurches at the thought, the feeling intensified by the sudden approach. The man stands over him like a tree shadow, blocking out the kitchen lights. It casts darkness over him. He turns his head upwards to meet his father's eyes. He strains to keep a straight face as the scent of alcohol on his father's breath wafts down over him like a heavy fog. The older man smiles a grin of yellowing teeth and brings his hand down to clap over Ryuji's shoulder. He flinches away, a sharp jerk of his muscles that's more memory than anything else. The reaction doesn't go unnoticed.  

"The fuck, Ryuji?" His father breathes, training his callused fingers up the back of Ryuji's neck to grip a handful of his hair. Across the table, his mother sits up straighter in her chair. He body is tense with nerves as she prepares to intervene. Ryuji prays that she doesn't, wills her to sit still and stay quiet. "I'm not gonna hit you."  

He definitely would, and has.  

"I was gonna say," He continues, gripping his hair a bit tighter, bordering the point where it becomes painful. Ryuji takes measured breaths to force his body to relax and like a cue, it eases his father's hold on him. Almost affectionately he runs his weathered fingers up through the top of his hair to tussle it. "-that since you helped out so much, I'll give you a bigger allowance this month so you can get your car fixed up."  

"Really?" Ryuji forces enthusiasm into his voice because he needs to act accordingly. "Thank you. I appreciate that."  

"I've never been prouder. Makes me think you've got more than shit for brains after all. Might have someone worthy of passing the fields down to someday."  

Ryuji pointedly ignores the insult.  

His father turns unsteadily on his toes and almost falls over in an attempt to seat himself. He shakes it off and returns to his food. Ryuji and his mother follow suit and for the rest of the meal, he's forced to avoid his mother's concern filled eyes. His father continues to ramble, making small talk and bad mouthing his bar friends. It's a one-sided conversation. He's too drunk and too into his rant to notice that no one's paying attention to him.  

Ryuji continues to mindlessly force food into his mouth, though he can't taste it anymore. Twice he has to pause to keep it from coming back up, his stomach so tied into knots that it's making him nauseous. He doesn't have to suffer for very long, his father begins to doze in and out of consciousness at the table. His mother stands and coaxes her husband to his feet. She leads him down the hallway to their bedroom, guiding his wobbly footsteps the entire way. Ryuji turns his attention to clearing the table and putting the leftovers away.  

It's half past ten when his mother emerges from the bedroom, looking exhausted and frustrated. She enters the kitchen and makes a beeline for the fridge. She almost rips the handle off the freezer door as she yanks it open. Ryuji grabs two spoons from the silverware drawer and waits while she chooses a flavor of ice cream.  

"Feels like a mint chocolate chip sort of night," She mumbles, to herself more than anyone. The two of them sit side by side at the table, sliding the pint back and forth, eating in silence. Ryuji thinks it would be comical if it wasn't also so damn sad.  

"Hey," Ryuji begins, watching as she carves out a large spoonful of ice cream for herself. She glances up at him, prompting him to continue as she tries to find a way to fit the entire oversized scoop into her mouth. "I'm gonna go hang out with Nakaoka and Takeishi tonight."  

"Mmm," She muses, raising her eyebrows in a clear question of 'Oh yeah?'.  

"It's not a school night and I'm pretty sure that he," -the drunken idiot in the bedroom, "isn't going to wake up anytime soon."  

"It's getting pretty late."  

"You really gonna try and pull the curfew thing on me?"

Narrowing her eyes, she points her spoon threateningly in his direction, "It's my right as a mother."  

"I have to get out of here. At least for a little while," He presses, glancing over his shoulder towards their bedroom door. "If you let me go out, you can lay down in my room and get some decent sleep. We can swap beds when I come back." 

"Where are you going exactly?"  

"We're gonna troll around old man Iwai's corn field. Might go down to the lake or somethin'."  

"I hope you realize you're going to have to learn to lie better," She sighs. She takes her spoon and begins to scrape at the bottom of the ice cream carton, hoping to get one final bite out of it. "Fine, but you need to be back before sunrise. And I mean before sunrise."

"I will be," Ryuji swears, leaping to his feet with a sudden surge of new energy. He takes the stairs up to his room two at a time, though his footsteps are measured and quiet. He's not about to risk waking his father up, even though he knows that the man is out for the night. He gathers his backpack and throws his tools into it. Screwdrivers, wrenches, portable laser torch, he runs through a quick mental inventory to make sure he has everything.  

He grabs his ComTab off his bed and sends a quick text message off to his friends to remind them of the time and place. He tosses the tablet into his backpack and tiptoes rapidly back downstairs. His mother gives him an uneasy look as he brushes past her on the way out the door. Despite himself, he can't stand for her to be disappointed in him. As an act of good faith, he doubles back for a hug and promises once again to be back before sunrise.

He slips out the front door and sails over the porch steps and down the driveway. Old man Iwai's cornfield is a few miles down from his house. The night air is crisp and clear, it's temperature situated in the middle of warm and cool. It's the perfect atmosphere for a run. Sometimes Ryuji thinks he was born for it. He should have joined the track team with Nakaoka and Takeishi, but he knew it would be one more thing for his father to play against him. Still, it's a favorite past time to turn to when things get bad at home.  

It doesn't take him long to fall into a steady rhythm of feet on dirt road. The roads are from the early days of the colony, back when vehicles had actual wheels. Once hover crafts became the norm, the roads became more of a guideline for those who preferred to drive closer to the ground. Ryuji himself can't imagine wanting that. He's been dreaming of air flight since he was young. This is due in part to his admiration of Captain Kidd.  

Captain Kidd, like Ryuji, is from the colony of Kamoshida. Something of a local celebrity, he started his career as a well-known stunt pilot. Later he joined up with the Colony Defense Force and within a few years became captain of his own crew. They traverse the galaxy to fend off threats from hostile planets. Ryuji's been obsessed with him ever since the first broadcast of his trick flying. He's collected every holo-vid he could find and has spent hours watching them. The flips and spins are burned into his memory. Even as he jogs he can visualize it.  

It's the reason behind his meeting with Takeishi and Nakaoka. There's a rumor that Captain Kidd is in town visiting his family and that his famous stunt ship is with him. According to the rumor he's even parked it at the local shipyard. Ryuji isn't sure if he believes it, but he's not about to pass up an opportunity to find out. He's broken into the shipyard before to collect discarded parts or to look at the ships and cars. It's almost a joke that Captain Kidd would want to store his trick craft there.  

Their meeting place is on the far end of the Iwai cornfield, where the crops end abruptly and give way to an open flatland. He glances at the time on his watch, ten till midnight. He's the first to arrive, that is if his friends decide to show up. The last time they planned something like this the two boys bailed out, leaving Ryuji waiting for hours. Although, the mission to sneak into Ann Takemaki's sixteenth birthday party was a little less dire than their current plan.  

It's almost midnight on the dot when Takeishi and Nakaoka arrive, stepping free of the tall corn stalks. Takeishi is full of smug arrogance, hands tucked casually into his pockets, head held high. He's always been a bit full of himself, though it's a facade that always seems to crack when things become dicey. Nakaoka is reserved and somewhat nervous. He tries to be the voice of reason for the other two, but his words often fall on deaf ears. He frequently gets dragged into Ryuji and Takeishi's schemes. Although on this particular night, even he seems to be somewhat excited.  

"Told'ya we'd be here." Takeishi steps over to Ryuji and the two of them bump fists. Their knuckles crack together in a way that feels very manly.  

"I was about to go without you," Ryuji shoots back, hoisting his backpack further up onto his shoulders. "If I had any sense I would'a."  

"Yeah, yeah. Shut up and start walking, Sakamoto."  

Ryuji is all too happy to fall into the role of leader, moving with confidence over the large expanse of flat land. Kamoshida's twin moons gleam overhead. They light the way as he guides them along a well-memorized path.  

Before they can get to the local shipyard they have to pass Kamoshida Commercial Shipyard. It's a literal metal city where all the off-world space ships dock. It's one of the larger ones on the planet, a center of commerce for all imported and exported goods between the colonies. Twice a month huge ships dock there to load or unload, staying only a few brief days before departing again.  

As they near the yard, bright overhead beams of light come into view. Steel rafters rise up like metal giants, dotted with high rising staircases and elevators. Skyscraper buildings intermingle with the docks, full of places for ship crews to spend their shore-time. It all feels very exclusive, surrounded all on sides by thick metal walls. They're designed to keep foreigners inside and locals outside. A huge impenetrable fortress in the middle of miles and miles of farmland.  

It's not their destination, but every time Ryuji passes by it, he has to stop to take it all in.  

"Wouldn't it be badass to go off world?" He breathes, turning his head around to look at Takeishi and Nakaoka. The two of them look just as awestruck, maybe more-so, since this isn't a common sight for them.  

"Those ships are huge," Nakaoka says, stepping up next to Ryuji. "I mean, I knew they were huge. They have to be to carry so much stuff, but I guess I didn't have a scale for it before now."  

"My dad works down on dock 37. He says that they're even bigger up close. Bigger than the buildings in the capital." says Takeishi, then adds as an afterthought, "I think about leaving this shitty planet all the time, but let's get real here. The only way any of us are going to make it off is if we join the defense force or the medical brigade. We're all too stupid for that."  

"Maybe you're too stupid. I bet I could get in. Sakamoto could get in if he got real good at fixing ships."  

"Yeah, you're probably right. He'd get himself a job doing custodial work or something."  

"I would not!" Ryuji protests, although they might be right. The only way he'd ever get off Kamoshida is if he got a crappy job on a transport ship. Although the alternative as a bean farmer isn't exactly appealing either. "Maybe I need to become a trick pilot like Captain Kidd."  

"What? You'd never be able to pull that off." Takeishi laughs the words into his face and Ryuji feels his blood heat up under his skin.  

"Why not?"  

"Sakamoto, you got beans for brains? The only thing you've ever piloted is a wheel-tractor. You don't even have your car up and running. What makes you think you're going to be able to do flight tricks?"  

"Guys, let's just go." Nakaoka intervenes right as Ryuji opens his mouth to reply. "If you guys get into a fight we'll never make it to the shipyard to see the ship. So let's just go."  

"Fine," Ryuji concedes for the moment, knowing that Nakaoka's right. He ignores Takeishi for the rest of the trek.  

The local public shipyard is a much less impressive sight. It's a large flat patch of concrete surrounded on all sides by a well worn and rusted chain link fence and an unfathomable amount of weeds. It's mostly a glorified parking lot with a few hangars on the far end. There's even a small collection of Old-Earth style vehicles, camper trailers, and trucks. Most of them are covered in thick layers of dust and surrounded by grass that pushed up through cracks in the concrete.  

"Where do you think he parked it?" Takeishi steps up to peer through the fence, or rather over the fence. It's so old and weak that it halfway hangs off of its support poles. "Inside one of the hangars?"  

"If it's in a hangar, there's no way we'll be able to get in to see it," Nakaoka mumbles, giving into defeat before they've even made it inside. How very typical of him.

"I've broken into this place to collect parts for my car," Ryuji says, stepping up to the fence beside Takeishi. He shifts his backpack around to the front and digs through it until he finds his portable laser torch. "Security is an old guy who falls asleep watchin' the monitors and outdated patrol robots. I don't think the keypads on the hangars work and even if they do I'm sure I can disable them. They're simple coded panels."  

"Since when did you become a hacker?" Takeishi challenges, though there's a touch of admiration in his voice.  

"Not that kind of code, like a number combination. It's less hackin' and more... Cuttin' wires."  Ryuji grabs hold of one of the fence supports. He flicks the torch on and cuts through the small pieces of metal holding the fence up. The panel collapses the rest of the way down into the grass and the three boys clamber over it. Ryuji breathes a sigh of relief. They're finally in, all that's left is to find the ship. "Stay close to me and keep your voices down."

The three of them make slow but steady progress through the shipyard, avoiding motion sensors and cameras. Ryuji knows the layout of the complex like the back of his hand and he continues to lead his friends onward. They've almost reached the long line of hangars when Ryuji hears the unsteady approach of a security robot. He motions for the other two to get down and follow him up under one of the Old-Earth vehicles. They're packed together like sardines and every time Ryuji shifts he's poked by bramble weeds that grew up under the truck's front end.  

Nakaoka's nervous breathing stirs the hair on the back of Ryuji's neck. It's the only sound outside of the approaching patrol robot. The tread on its tires is almost non-existent and it bounces violently over every crack and dip in the concrete. It stops beside their hiding place and begins to run it's scanner down over the side of the vehicle. Blue light beams down into their eyes and Nakaoka stops breathing entirely. The robot lets out a soft crackle of static before turning to wheel away.  

"This is a bad idea. We should leave." Nakaoka insists as the three of them crawl free of the undercarriage of the truck.  

Ryuji resists the urge to roll his eyes, instead offering words of encouragement, "We're almost there. It'll be another half hour before the robots make it back over here."  

"We can't go back," Takeishi adds, though his words are anything but soothing. "You can't wuss out on us now. Not when we're this close. Grow a pair already!"  

"Come on," Ryuji is tempted to ditch them both, tired of their theatrics, but Takeishi is right for once. They've come too far and there's no going back. They begin scoping out the hangars, peering in small side windows to check the inside for the ship. They're almost to the last one when Ryuji finally spots it, an unmistakable outline. Grinning ear to ear, he waves to his friends and they join him at the window. "In here!"

"No way," Takeishi laughs, slapping Ryuji jovially on the back. "I didn't think we were gonna find it."  

"Kinda pissed that you two doubted me."  

"Let's get in there to get a closer look."  

"I'm on it." Ryuji slips around the side of the hangar to the entry door while Takeishi and Nakaoka keep watch. It doesn't take him long to pry the panel off so that he can access the wires. He snips through the alarm wires and then gets to work on the ones that control the lock. He shifts them from connection to connection until he hears the lock click open inside the door. "Guys, come on."  

"Sakamoto, you're such a badass." Takeishi raves as they enter and the compliment fills Ryuji's chest with pride. He's the first one who approaches the cruiser. He runs his fingers admiringly over its sleek navy blue paint. The chrome accents along the front and sides are gleaming, perfect mirrors that reflect Ryuji's wonder-filled eyes. The other boys join him and the three of them circle the cruiser like sharks, drooling over every last detail. "Alright, now that we've looked at it, let's start it up."  

"Whoa, what?" Ryuji glanced at Takeishi, his eyebrows raised in surprise. "What do you mean start it up?"  

"Well you're good at hot-wiring things, right? So get in there and start it up."  

"For real? I can hotwire the crappy hover cars parked in town, but this is a really high-class ship. It's got to have a whole computer devoted to an alarm and protection system," He says it as if he doesn't already know. He does know. He knows everything about it.  

"C'mon, Sakamoto. I know you lay in bed at night fapping to ship schematics."  

"The hell?!"  

"Jerkin' it to all those Captain Kidd posters you've got.”

"Takeishi, I swear-..."  

"Moaning his name when you cum."  

"I'll do it if you shut up," Ryuji growls. He swings his backpack down to the ground and kneels over it. He knows there's nothing in his bag that could possibly work on such an advanced ship. He's got to at least try for the sake of his dignity. It isn't enough for Takeishi that Ryuji brought them to the shipyard and broke into the hangar, no, he's always got to push things too far.  

"Ryuji, don't." Nakaoka implores him. "Guys, this is stupid. We should go. There's no way Ryuji could hotwire a craft like this."  

"Let him work." Takeishi snaps, beginning an argument between the two. Ryuji ignores them as he approaches the stunt ship, heart pounding with nervous anticipation. He never dreamed he would ever see it up close and in person and it's better than any photo he's ever seen. He lightly runs his hand over the lock panel, surprised when it opens up to reveal-... An Old-Earth style key lock? This isn't what Ryuji's expecting.  

Most high-class ships and cars are programmed with fancy identification software. Usually, that means voice recognition or palm and iris scanners. To see something so archaic on Captain Kidd's stunt ship is both amusing and fortuitous. Ryuji can pick old style car locks without even having to think about it. He pulls his tools from his bag and gets to it. He presses his head against the hull, listening for the pins inside the lock.  

"He's got this," Takeishi whispers, earning a sharp look from Ryuji.  

"Don't talk," He commands, straining his ears to move the final pin out of the way. The lock clicks and then turns and with a soft whoosh of air, the door to the ship begins to fold down. Ryuji's eyes bulge inside his head as he realizes what he's done. The lights inside the cruiser flick on, bright white LEDs that make the interior shine like the gates of heaven. Without even thinking about it, Ryuji steps forward to climb the stairs and enter the craft.

Takeishi and Nakaoka bumble up after him, but he hardly notices that they're there. His wonder and excitement have dimmed upon seeing the craft's interior. Although the outside of the ship for all the world resembles the trick craft, the inside is that of a basic hover car. It's even got cup holders and a console. It dawns on Ryuji that Captain Kidd's trick ship likely isn't street legal. The vehicle they're sitting in now is either his civilian car or a really really good fake that someone made.  

"It's not the right one," Ryuji explains lamely, turning to glance over his shoulders at his friends. Nakaoka is wearing a similar mask of disenchantment, but Takeishi on the other hand-... Anger flares to life inside of Ryuji's chest, he realizes he's been baited. "You knew."

"C'mon Sakamoto. You didn't actually think that Captain Kidd would drive his stunt ship into town, didya?" Takeishi gloats, his grin wide with amusement. Sometimes Ryuji wonders why they're friends. Why does he even bothers spending time with someone who acts the way Takeishi does? It's likely all close proximity, they certainly wouldn't have met by any other means. "My dad says Captain Kidd's got a regular hover car made up all nice like his stunt ship. I knew he'd probably park it out here."  

"You're such a friggen asshole."  

"I never said it was the actual ship, you just assumed that."  

"You brought us out here for this?!" Even Nakaoka's upset, a rarity for him. Normally he's immune to all the usual bullshit that Ryuji and Takeishi drag him through. It makes Ryuji feel even worse knowing that his own anger is justified in Nakaoka. "Come on, Ryuji. Let's go."  

"Yeah. Right behind you," Ryuji says, following Nakaoka down out of the ship, or rather, the hover car. He gathers his tools and throws them back into his bag with a satisfying use of force. They clink together as they hit the bottom of the bag and settle. "C'mon Takeishi. Get out of there. We're leaving."

"You're not gonna try to crank this thing up?" Takeishi asks, oblivious to the sour mood of the other two.  

"No! I'm not! Now get outta there!"  

Takeishi pouts as he climbs down the stairs. Ryuji ignores him. He seals the car door back up and starts for the hangar exit, eager to be out and on his way back home. Once they're outside again, he can breathe better. The cool night air calms his nerves a bit. Overhead the stars glimmer and the twin moons shine like the eyes of a cat. It's beautiful in a way Ryuji can't always describe and looking up at it takes the last bit of the edge off. He's still disappointed but it's less biting than it was inside the hangar. That is until Takeishi opens his mouth again.

"You're both being a couple of little bitches about all this," He goads. Ryuji bristles with newfound anger. He tosses his bag onto the ground and brings his hands up to slam against Takeishi's chest. It knocks him against the side of the hangar. The metal rattles and echos across the shipyard.  

"Find your own way home," Ryuji seethes, hissing the words through clenched teeth. Takeishi opens his mouth like he's going to say something else, but Ryuji doesn't allow it. He slams his fist against the hangar, knuckles making contact with the hard metal. It sends a shockwave of pain up his arm but he doesn't care. Takeishi flinches away from both the action and the sound, his eyes wide with disbelief. Ryuji shoves away from the wall and snatches his bag up. This time when they turn to leave, they're not immediately followed.

"Should'a hit me like your daddy hits you!" Takeishi taunts, but the two of them ignore him. The vein in the side of Ryuji's forehead is pulsing and he feels lightheaded. When they're out of sight of Takeishi he stops for a moment to catch his breath.  

"Sorry. You shouldn't'a had to see that," Ryuji apologizes, glancing sidelong. Nakaoka offers him a worn smile.  

"He deserves it," Nakaoka concludes, shrugging his shoulders. "For real though, let's go. I don't want to get caught in here. My mom'll kill me."  

"Mine too."

The two of them set off together in comfortable silence, following the same path they took to get in to get back out. They're almost to the fence line when they hear approaching footsteps. It's followed by the sound of tires bouncing over the cracked concrete. Ryuji throws his head over his shoulder to see Takeishi barreling after them. There's a security robot hot on his tail. Only once has Ryuji ever found himself in a similar situation. He knows from experience that the security bots can outrun a human. There's no way Takeishi is going to make it to the fence in time.  

He knows he's going to regret this, but-...  

"Take this and get outta here," Ryuji snaps, tossing his bag into Nakaoka's arms. He gives the other boy's shoulder a firm push. Nakaoka does what he does best and takes off. Ryuji spins around in the opposite direction to go back for Takeishi. He's doing a fair job of throwing the bot off, ducking between hover cars to cut off its straight forward path. Despite that, the machine is still closing the distance between them. Ryuji sticks his fingers in his mouth and whistles, catching both the bot and Takeishi's attention.  

"Go long!" Ryuji calls out, gesturing towards the far end of the shipyard.

"There's another downed fence that way!" Takeishi throws up a fist in acknowledgment and breaks out running. He's a few aisles down from Ryuji, zigzagging a path through the parked cars. It's a good method to prevent the bot from gaining distance on a straightaway. So far it's working, the bot only has ground capabilities and it can't keep up with Takeishi's random changes in direction. Ryuji for his part races ahead, keeping his eyes out for more security bots. They've almost reached the fence line again and the opening that waits there for them.  

Takeishi's been doing track since middle school and it shows in the way he runs, his stride long and practiced. He catches up to Ryuji and the two of them push on towards the fence. For a moment they catch each other's eye and share twin smiles of amusement. This is easily the craziest thing they've done to date. This Takeishi is the one Ryuji is friends with. He's briefly reminded of that as they come upon the end of their shared row. They dash around the side of the last hover car and almost crash into the fence.  

"No effin' way!" Ryuji curses, staring incredulously at the brand new panel of fencing. "This thing's been down for months! When did they replace it?!"

"Worry about that later! Where else can we get out at?!" cries Takeishi as he checks over his shoulder for the bot. "Shit, Ryuji we gotta go, man! There's two of them back there!"  

When Ryuji looks, sure enough, two security robots are coming down the aisles towards them. In the distance, Ryuji can make out a third. He turned to Takeishi, his stomach clenching nervously at what he's about to do.  

"Takeishi, climb! I'll help you over. Then I can go back down to where we came in," Without thinking he kneels down and offers himself as a foothold to his friend. Takeishi stares at him for a heartbeat, eyebrows furrowed with indecision. They both know its unlikely that Ryuji will be able to make it out. "Please man, just go."  

"I'm sorry," Takeishi apologizes as he steps onto Ryuji's back. He hoists himself up and over the fence, turning around in time to offer a mournful look. Ryuji doesn't have time to do more than wave him off, the bots are closing in around him. As a last-ditch effort, Ryuji takes off back towards the hangars, hoping he might be able to get inside of one to hide. He's almost there when his foot catches in a crack in the pavement. His body shoots forward and lands against the hard ground, skinning his palms and forearms in the process. For a moment he lays winded, trying to will himself to get back up.  

The security bots surround him, having picked up a fourth on the way. They began to run their scanners over him, bright blue beams of light that shock the back of his eyelids. He raises up a hand to cover his eyes against their glow. There's a soft crackle of static that passes between them like they're having a private conversation in robot. One of the bots scans him a second time for good measure and then it begins to speak.  

Ryuji Sakamoto, age 16. No prior offenses. Citizen, please remain where you are. An officer has been dispatched to this location and will arrive shortly. Please do not leave the scene, as this could be taken as a sign of an attempt to resist arrest. There are no charges currently being brought against you. However, I will begin the Mirandizing process should this incident be taken to court in the future. In accordance with local laws, you have the right to remain silent-...

Ryuji pushes himself up onto his knees, listening to the security robot's electronic voice. His pulse pounds at the side of his forehead and he thinks for a moment about how fucked he currently is. He's going to be arrested. The moment that gets back to his father- Ryuji isn't sure what will happen then, but it knows that it won't be good. He debates on trying to run again, but the bots have already logged his identification code. There's a slim chance that they haven't yet transmitted it, but it's a long shot even then.  

In the distance, he can hear sirens.  

[ruffsficstuffplace]

And The AWRD Goes To... (Part 50)

Pages of pages off books that needed to be read, notes to be written, and papers to be done.

The sound of a new set of blank index cards being ripped open, the steady tap-tap of Diana’s trusty external keyboard, and presentations and recitation answers being rehearsed and refined.

Items on their to-do list crossed out, schedules constantly modified and rearranged to fit the new work they were being assigned, unexpected hang-ups, and “mandatory fun time,” arguments about how late any one of them should have been staying up, how much black moss tea was too much, and whether or not to tie Diana down to her futon and force her to go to sleep again.

The rest of AWRD’s week passed by in a blur, the team trudging through their days almost entirely on auto-pilot, until there was finally a break late one Sunday morning, the team sitting at a shed with their bags and Professor Ursula, waiting for the ride down to the city and the pool Souma had arranged for them.

“Happy it’s the weekend, team?” Ursula asked.

The four of them just groaned or muttered a halfhearted reply.

Ursula nodded, before she kept quiet, nothing but the sound of other cars arriving and leaving Haven, and the other people at the terminal. Akko herself almost dozed off, leaning on the side of the waiting shed, until she saw a van winding up the road, a very familiar bright red sea serpent graphic painted on its side.

Weiss’s eyes widened as it finally rolled up in front of them, and she could see that the beast had its maws around a full moon painted on the driver side door, a name underneath it:

Bakunawa.

Ruby perked up. “Hey, isn’t that Aqua’s family’s restaurant?”

The driver side window rolled down, revealing Aqua herself. “That it is!” she said, smiling as she killed the engine then rested her arm on the door. “So, I heard you guys needed a pool and a ride there? ‘Cause I’ve got both, if you’re interested!”

Everyone but Weiss got up and picked up their bags, and everyone quickly noticed.

Aqua frowned. “Not interested, Weiss…?” she asked quietly.

“No, I still am,” Weiss said as she got up and slung her bag over her shoulder. “It’s just that I would have really appreciated someone telling me it was you giving us a ride...” she muttered, glaring at Ruby.

“Sorry!” Ruby said. “Souma being cryptic and vague is nothing new to me!”

“Actually...!” Aqua started. She hesitated for a moment, before she quietly continued, “This is totally my fault… I asked her to not mention my name, because I wanted it to be a surprise...”

“And I understand the intention behind it, Aqua, but let’s be frank here: surprises and you haven’t exactly had a very good track record for a long while,” Weiss muttered as she opened the sliding door, and stepped into the car.

The rest of the team shared looks with each other, before Akko, Ruby, and Diana climbed in after her, with Ursula sitting up at the front.

“Everyone all buckled up?” Aqua asked as she looked over her shoulder. “Alright, let’s roll!” She restarted the engine, and started making her way back down the road. “So, how’ve you guys been? We haven’t really talked since we ran into each other at the shop.”

“We’ve been pretty busy!” Ruby replied. “We all missed a lot of class, mostly because we keep getting hospitalized for all kinds of reasons.”

Aqua cringed. “Ugh, that sucks.”

“To say the least...” Weiss muttered.

“Waters ahead looking less choppy, I hope?”

“We’re gradually getting there,” Diana said. “At least physically, Akko and Ruby are well on their way to becoming healthy enough for practical exercises and field work again, while myself and Weiss can finally get started on our own recovery training today.

“I’d like to personally extend my thanks for your help, by the way; it’s been… rather frustrating for me to be reminded so strongly about the limited extent of Haven’s facilities and finances compared to that of Atlas.”

“Hey, don’t mention it!” Aqua said as she got in line for the vehicle elevator. “To be honest, I’m happy to be doing this for you! It is helping out one of my favourite customers and--” she stopped awkwardly.

“It’s fine, Aqua,” Weiss said. “I told them all about our history together, minus some of the much more unsavoury parts of it.”

Aqua nodded as the line continued to move, the car in front of them started getting inspected by the guards. “If there’s anything else you guys need from me, don’t hesitate to ask, whether that’s the van, another in with the various establishments of Mistral, or just getting me to look for machine parts at a good price for you guys.

“The Arm And A Leg may explicitly deal in automotive tech, but being an unofficial dealer for Bunker students have given me all kinds of ins to pretty much every kind of technology in Remnant, short of Atlas’ most cutting edge and guarded.”

The team shared looks as Aqua rolled up to the checkpoint and the van was inspected. They silently debated among themselves, reached a consensus as Aqua rolled onto the elevator with the other cars.

“There is one thing we could really use your help with, Aqua...” Ruby started. “You remember you said that you seriously owed me one?”

“I still do!” Aqua said as she killed the engine, rolled backwards, and spun around to face the others. “Just warning you, though getting Bumblebee all the parts she needs for free, or at a steeper discount than usual will definitely not fly with the Boss.”

“It’s not that, actually,” Ruby said.

“Well, I’m listening, then!” Aqua said, putting her hands on her lap and smiling.

Weiss sucked in a deep breath, and said, “Aqua, do you think the Bakunawa could sponsor me for the singing competition at the Tsukimi Festival, in exchange for me advertising for the restaurant like you used to?”

Aqua blinked, stunned. “Weiss… are you serious…?”

“We all are,” Weiss said, gesturing to the others. “All of us plus some friends of ours have ideas about how we can help--”

“No, Weiss, I mean: are you serious that you want to do this NOW?” Aqua said, cutting her off. “There’s only like six weeks till the Festival, and the final auditions are a month away! The restaurant and you guys will have to go at this 120% if we’re going to even have a snowball’s chance in Vacuo of drumming up some extra business, let alone making it to the final cut!”

Weiss blinked. “Y-You mean you don’t have a problem with this plan?”

Aqua smiled. “Weiss: why would I?”

“I just…” Weiss struggled for a moment “… you never sponsored anyone for the singing competition since the incident!”

“Because we could never find anyone we could actually work with!” Aqua replied. “Weiss, the competition is cutthroat, especially at this bracket; all the big names have already snapped up the best if they weren’t already on their payroll, family businesses like us have to do with the ones leftover.

“And trust me, the less we talk about them, the better.”

“So you’re fine with me taking your place…?” Weiss asked.

Aqua laughed. “Weiss, I always have been; if you’d offered the same year I lost my legs, I would have still said yes, and been behind you 100% percent.”

Weiss stared at her, before she started tearing up. Ruby pulled out some tissues from her bag and handed it to her, she wiped her eyes.

“Sorry to sound insensitive, Weiss, but I’d appreciate it if you can shut off the waterworks and help us get started on the prep work,” Aqua said. “We really can’t waste any more time leading up to the Festival, and on that note, please tell me you guys have already made some progress on this.”

“We have.” Diana said, pulling out her scroll, and opening it to their notes.

“Then let’s get to work!” Aqua said, clapping her hands together.

They spent the rest of the ride making plans; calling friends, family, and suppliers; and getting a crash course in the surprisingly intricate and ruthless world of idol singers in the Tsukimi Festival. It was such a long discussion that they weren’t done by the time they had arrived at their destination.

“Gah!” Akko cried as they started climbing out of the van. “I never realized entering the singing competition was this much work! How did you guys do it every single year?”

“Generally, we started preparing for it several months before the Festival, not one and a half,” Aqua said. “Don’t worry, though, I’ve got a plan in my head that’ll help us make a dent with all the year-long ad campaigns and dedicated fanbases we’ll be going up against!

“Just gotta let it marinate for a while,” she said, gently tapping her forehead. “Might be a good time for all of us to go swimming first.”

“Let’s, seeing as that is why we’re here in the first place,” Ursula said, smiling.

Soon, they were all heading up to the gym nearby. The wooden planks that made up the path were worn smooth from age and constant use, the ground around it was either bare dirt or covered in grass, and the wooden and concrete face of the building was covered in scars and some plant-life.

“If you guys haven’t guessed already from how low the price was, this place isn’t exactly the fanciest or best gym out there,” Aqua said. “You have my word that it’s kept well and clean, though. Oh, and one more thing: the old folks that run this place can get very loose about what counts as fooling around in their gym.”

The six of them stepped into a giant, spacious hall, people of various ages already training and exercising on the floor or busy in the upper levels, the front desk no more than an elderly man sitting on a cushion with a low table with a lockbox before him, and a bamboo screen behind him.

“Touga-sensei,” Aqua said, nodding at him.

“Aqua-san.” Touga said, nodding back. He eyed Ursula and AWRD warily, rapidly scanning them up and down in turn. “You are the huntresses Aqua spoke of?”

“That we are, Touga-san,” Ursula said, before they introduced themselves, and handed over some Lien.

Touga counted the bills, hummed as he slipped the money into the lockbox. “This is sufficient, you are welcome to use our gym,” he said. “I hope you have been informed of the rules already, both written and unwritten?”

“We have, Touga-san,” Ursula said. “My students have given me their word that they won’t break any of them, and I trust that they will keep it.”

“Good.” Touga said. “We show respect to tradition in this place, and thus will not tolerate anyone that shows dishonour to it, along with anyone who seeks to distract or tempt someone to stray from the right path,” he said, casting a surly look at Aqua.

Aqua sighed. “I promise I won’t try anything with them while we’re here, Sensei.”

“Forgive me if I take your words with a very large grain of salt,” Touga said softly. “Now go: the pool is just through the locker rooms on this side,” he said as he pointed with one arm, and handed them keys with the other.

They thanked and bade him farewell, and headed off.

“What did you do to get him so pissed off at you?” Akko asked quietly.

“I may have had a hot girl give me a lapdance in the ladies’ locker room late one night,” Aqua whispered back.

Weiss sighed. “Still found a way to continue your old lifestyle, huh?”

“I only lost my legs that day, Weiss,” Aqua said, smirking.

As Ursula handed out the keys, they found they were three for either side of the lockers dividing the room; Aqua, Weiss, and Diana took one side, while Ursula, Ruby, and Akko took the other.

“Do you need assistance, Aqua?” Diana asked as they set down their bags on the bench, started pulling their swimwear out.

“Nah, I’ve been doing this by myself for the past two years, I’m fine,” Aqua said as she laid out her two-piece bikini. “Besides, if anyone here needs help, it’s you.”

“… Pardon?” Diana asked.

Aqua pointed at the item she was holding. “A wetsuit? Here, really?”

“I’ll have you know it served me very well during my time in Atlas, and it’s still capable of serving for a long time more!” Diana said as she turned it inside out. “I don’t need to buy new swimwear.”

“And that is where you are very wrong,” Aqua said as pulled off her shorts.

Diana looked at her with mild annoyance. “Then please, feel free to expound,” she said flatly, before she began to strip out of her clothes.

“Aside from the fact that you’re not an athlete, a surfer, nor diving into a giant ice-bath, you’re doing yourself a serious disservice,” Aqua explained as she took off her shirt. “You could pull off anything with a figure and skin like that, why something that’s going to hide it all?”

“Because, I happen to dislike attracting that sort of attention to myself,” Diana replied as she carefully slipped one leg into her wetsuit. “The romantic and/or sexual overtures of my peers were distracting, annoying, and unwanted enough, I didn’t want to put myself at more risk of their unsolicited opinions on my appearance.”

“Is it really worth not looking your absolute best?” Aqua said as she took off her underwear. “Because you can learn to ignore and shut the worst of them down pretty easily, and reap the rest of the benefits.”

“I think the attention and effort I’m already putting into my personal appearance is sufficient, thank you,” Diana said as she rolled her wetsuit up past her waist.

Aqua shook her head as she slipped on her bikini bottoms, before she turned to Weiss on her other side. She blinked. “Wait, is that the same two-piece you were wearing all those years back?”

“It is,” Weiss replied. “Look, it still fits me and is in decent shape, alright?”

“You could have at least had these ruffles chopped off without any problem!” Aqua said, reaching out and gently flicking the fabric up.

“They’re an important part of the design...” Weiss muttered quietly.

“And they’re still not fooling me, nor will it anyone else,” Aqua said as she tied her top on. “Look, Weiss, I know this has always been an issue for you, but you really gotta work with what you have, than trying to disguise your assets,” she said quietly.

“If there’s a decent amount of objectively wonderful people that think this is part of my appeal”--she gestured to the stubs where her legs used to be--”then I guarantee you that there’s an even bigger population of people who prefer the virtue of justice over generosity.”

Weiss sighed as she shut her locker. “I’ll take it into consideration,” she said as she put her towel around her shoulders.

Aqua shook her head. “You two have definitely got it, you really should start flaunting it,” she said as the three of them headed out.

They all stopped as they saw Akko, Ruby, and Ursula already warming up and stretching nearby. Ursula was the only one wearing a one-piece, but like Ruby and Akko, there was no hiding her extremely well-developed musculature, the way they rippled and moved as they stretched and flexed them.

“… Case in point...” Aqua muttered as Diana blushed and put her hand over her mouth, and Weiss wiped the sudden onset of sweat on her brow with her towel. “Damn, are all those registered? Actually, never mind, is it even legal to have all those high caliber guns open-carried in a public venue like this?”

“Let’s just go, Aqua!” Weiss stammered as she and Diana headed off to join them.

“With pleasure!” Aqua said, grinning as she rolled on after them. “Hey, can I ask if any of them are single and don’t have any problems dating a double leg amputee? Mostly talking about Ruby and Akko, but if Ursula’s free...”

“Aqua!” Weiss snapped.

“What, are they already spoken for?”

“No!” Weiss cried. She paused, and continued, “Well, not to my knowledge...!”

“Then what’s the problem?” Aqua asked, smiling.

“We are not ‘hooking you up’ with our teammates, and especially not one of our professors, Aqua!” Diana said firmly.

Aqua chuckled. “Oh, I see how it is... well, just to be polite to you both, I don’t try to move in when someone’s officially taken anymore, but living under the same roof as my cousins have taught me that dibs doesn’t really count for shit.”

“I am not interested in any of them, Aqua...” Weiss murmured.

“And I think I speak for the both of us when I say we also do not appreciate whatever salacious things you are implying about us,” Diana said coldly.

Aqua shrugged. “Eh, suit yourselves! Just don’t say I didn’t warn you...”

[zak-animation]

Into the Wolf’s Den: Speaking with Golden Wolf Studios

After sending an email to Golden Wolf Studios a few weeks ago, I received a response from Henry Purrington, head animation lead for the studio. He manages the student outreach, and mentioned how he would be ‘more than happy to help’ with my assignment. Over several emails, we discussed meeting up in person and arranged a date and time for me to head into London and get a tour of the studio.

This was an amazing experience, and in the process, I was able to get some great insights into the animation industry. Walking into Golden Wolf reminded me that this was just an animation studio, run by people. The ‘first thing you’ll notice’, Henry said as he opened the doors, ‘is that we’re all just people’. And it’s true, it was just a collection of people sitting behind their Apple Macs, working intently on their projects.

I was lucky enough to receive a tour of the studio, as Henry walked me around the various rooms and explained how it's a tight-knit community, and that the team works best when they feel ‘at home’ in the studio. The studio itself maintains a level of minimalist elegance with a monochrome black and white design, mixing smooth orange lights with a wooden interior that looks more like a bar and hangout area than an actual workspace.

After being shown around the studio, Henry and I grabbed a cold refreshing Diet Coke and sat down to discuss their work in more detail. Whilst I couldn’t record the interview, I was able to write down our discussion. We spoke about the animation industry as a whole, how advertising is changing to be much more subversive than before and the importance of a showreel. This was an excellent experience, and I’ve got plenty of information to present for our Industry Roles presentation in a few weeks time. I’ve presented the discussion below.

The Interview

Hello! Firstly, thank you so much for having me. Unfortunately, my team couldn’t make it today, so I’m a bit of a lone wolf. Could you tell me a little bit about yourself?

Sure! I’m originally from the Isle of Wight and studied animation at the University of Portsmouth. My twin Tom and I then worked under director Ingri Ellingson in the animation department for a studio called ilovedust, before we branched out and formed our own thing with Golden Wolf here in Shoreditch, London.

And the rest is history! What’s it like to work in the studio?

Well, we all work as a team. We’re a non-directorial studio, so we work as more of a collective. We have directors, but it’s all in-house and our work all goes out as Golden Wolf. There’s a real team mentality, because everyone downstairs [points to the artists working in the below studio] can make great things on their own. We’re here because we want make stuff thats bigger and better than ourselves.

Wow, that’s a really cool approach. Do you have a personal mission statement for the studio?

That’s a great question. Well, we aim to create bold and youthful content. The focus is on fresh, but still youthful and dynamic content. Our audience is always ourselves - if we find it fun, then others will. We’re a design-focused team, and we think of ourselves an entertainment studio rather than advertising. Today, clients want to advertise on any and every screen they can get, all the time. At the same time, audiences will skip and ignore these ads. Back in the 90s advertisements were fun and exciting, but now we just wanna skip them.

We make little animations and sequences that are just entertaining, which just happen to be advertisements. It is subversive advertising, developing short content for social which is ultimately throwaway and short lasting, but its something that engages people. That’s the main goal.

Could you describe one of your typical workdays?

Yeah, but it’s different for everyone. There’s a structure, we have the art team and the production team. That split, that’s how most studios work. Production goes to the clients and find out what they want, and break it down to the artists. The artists then carry out the tasks and hits a deadline. There’s always a deadline, something to always work towards.

But me personally? I manage a few different projects, as I’m now older and bolder, my main job is to catch up on emails from freelance artists, interns and students. I manage the creative and social media stuff. Our projects are overseen and led by two animation directors, but our days will change. Everyone’s role changes, and everyone needs to know both preproduction and production skills.

So they have to be multi-disciplined, then. Could you give an example of these?

So we have around thirteen artists leading the charge, and each one needs to be able to handle both preproduction and production areas of a project: from character design and storyboards to final animation and even editing the project in post. The important thing is to keep things malleable and keep things flexible. We don’t want to overstretch anyone.

Typically, we have around six projects running at the same time. We have small teams that can then jump between different jobs, to collaborate with each other.

Something I’m really interested in is the use of social media for Golden Wolf. What is the role of social media within the studio? I loved the vertical project you made for Instagram in particular.

Yeah, so we pretty much use social media as an opportunity to explore different styles that we want to try. Whenever we have any downtime in the studio, we wanna try new things and fill that time. It’s a way of experimenting and trying new styles, because we’re all keen to work on different stuff. There’s a quick turnaround - working on advertising is a quick process and working on these short animated loops, for social media, really works well within this idea.

Typically, a project will last around eight weeks but for some specific clients like Nike, they want a fast turnaround. We’ll only get three or four weeks to complete a finished piece, and the briefs will be restrictive: fast paced, and with no time to play around. We have to play it safe.

We use it [social media] as an opportunity to try different things: like spinning camera moves. Social media is the opportunity for artists to explore, and gauge an instant reaction. It’s about building and diversifying the brand.

Plus, it’s these sort of experiments on social media that can really lead into the next project, and get the ball rolling on client work too. An internship experiment, where we got a few interns to make animated stickers of facial features. We put them on Giphy and they went viral and everyone thought they were really cool, we got photos in with people putting them on dogs and some guy even put them on the Mona Lisa. Giphy saw these and commissioned us to make some animated stickers of some original characters, called the Hoxton Zoo.

Wow, that’s really cool! I had no idea those started as intern experiments. Any words of wisdom for someone looking to join the studio in the future?

Just talent, skill and a willingness to work as a team. Don’t be afraid to ask questions, like you have today. You gotta remember that people are human, and to ask people for advice, or copy something that you love until you can make it your own - that’s the best advice, I think.

How long have you been an animation lead for?

Two and a half years, before that I was a 3D generalist in the studio. We’ve evolved from a design studio from ilovedust, and I’ve been working in the sector for over ten years. Our original job was to take the illustrations from the design department of ilovedust, and just make them move. Right now, we’ve expanded to be a lot bigger than that. We use a lot of freelancers, so it’s a real collaborative process. We are heavily design focused - the style frames should look cool, not just the movement.

As an animation student, something we often get told to do is work on our generalist skills rather than specializing in one area of the industry. As a professional yourself, would you say this is a good idea?

Hmmm, well in my experience it purely comes down to what you love doing. It’s long hours and hard work, and it’s a competitive industry! Really, just do whatever you enjoy the most. Be aware of the jobs and studios you want to work for, but if you like a little bit of everything go ahead and be a generalist. It’s up to you, but there is an appeal to having a range of skills.

As a studio, in particular, Golden Wolf hires artists who are efficient in a range of roles, but yeah as I said, typically an artist has to be able to work in both pre-production and production roles: so a storyboard artist or character designer and an animator, or editor. We’re all multi-skilled, we aren’t a large studio, just twenty or so people making cool shit.

But there’s only five of the artists downstairs that are from the UK, it’s actually hard to find talent here. Studios and colleges in the US teach and train artists to be up to an extremely high standard in animation and motion graphics work, some of their stuff is incredibly fluid and impressive, and it’s hard to find that sort of thing here in the UK.

But yeah, you need to be able to do character animation, clean up and animate different types of characters, with a range of line qualities. Golden Wolf in particular, we like to see finished frames and a short animation. Does it look good? That's what we’re more interested in. Every studio is different, but what it comes down to is can you do it well? It’s better to be told that you’re shit, and then work on it and do better.

Golden Wolf has worked on several music videos in the past, with Zedd and a few others, are these the type of projects you want to do more of in the future?

Music videos are hard, man. But we love the creative freedom they bring, and having an audiovisual track to make something to. With something like a music video, it’s hard to make one financially without making it a studio investment. With the Zedd video, we could only do the storyboarding in the studio and reached out to our friends in other studios and freelancers to make their own little piece of the puzzle. It’s modular storytelling, though I’m not sure if we made that up or if it’s already a thing. But anyway, we put all these little clips together from ourselves and our friends in the industry, and it was a nice way of making a video.

We always will do music videos if the studio has the time, and if we dig the track, but they aren’t for profit. At the moment, we’re actually really interested in the idea of exploring the potential of a short film, that means longer and more narrative-based work - which is something Golden Wolf has never done before.

One of our team members is looking into the role of an animation director, and wanted to ask if you have you personally had the opportunity to play the role of director in any projects?

So Golden Wolf is a non-directorial studio, meaning we have in-house directors under the name of Golden Wolf. So yeah, we do have directors. Art directors will be someone who directs and oversees the motion and informs the aesthetic of the project, working on style frames and making sure everything looks good. We do have that. Art directors need to be good at design as well as animation, and it’s a title that has to be earned. You have to have experience, having made loads of short films and their own personal projects.

So it’s sort of like a sensei - you have to earn the title.

Haha, yeah, exactly. You need to learn and cut your teeth, learn how things work and gain the experience. It’s an important role, and we all need to know if you can cut it as a director, or not.

At the moment, one of our projects is to build a showreel.

Yeah, what will sell you forever is your portfolio, your showreel. Honestly, grades don’t matter. It’s just the content that you come out of university with, that’s what we care about most. Your portfolio will sell you, and you can get client inquiries purely from that, if it's good enough. You need to put it on Instagram and build a following. You are your own brand, we are our own brand, and we’re constantly building it with content. Industry experience is good, but you can’t sell yourself through that alone - you need a good showreel.

Oh wow, really? I’d assumed what grade you came out of university with was crucial to your career.

Nah, it’s the showreel that will sell you. I don’t even know what any of the guys got downstairs grade wise. No one worries about that - it’s the showreel and portfolio. That’s the only thing we care about.

Any advice on building a showreel, given your industry experience?

Be concise, you just need to have your name and email address. We get seven thousand emails a year, purely inquiring about jobs. You need to catch someones attention within the first seven seconds - we see the showreels first, and then if we like it, we’ll go back and read the email.

My main advice? Find some music, and cut it to the beat. Treat the showreel as it’s own project, and remember that copyright isn’t important. It’s easier to ask for forgiveness than permission, and if you find a track that is contemporary, but copyrighted - go with it. I remember asking a band that I liked for permission, and I went ahead and used it anyway. It’s not for commercial use - you aren’t making money from your showreel, so it’s fine.

A good rule of thumb is to find the track that you like first, that represents you and your work and edit based on that. As always, you should put your best shit at the beginning, the more mediocre stuff in the middle and finish on a strong piece of work to reward the viewer for staying that long. A showreel shouldn’t be over a minute, and ideally around 40-50 seconds. Our attention span is only lasting around eight seconds now due to social media, so you should cut a scene or sequence whenever you’re bored.

Students tend to love their work, and as a result, never cut. It’s long and boring, and honestly, I end up skipping most of them. You don’t need to put your name large in the credits, just make it easy for people to find you online. There’s no point making a fancy website, just have a good showreel with a popular and modern track. For us, that tends to be US hip hop artists, and EDM tracks: things that have a beat that you can cut to, and are fast-paced. We sometimes get showreels with jazz soundtracks, and we just mute those ones. [laughs]

Do you have any rules or ideas that you return to for Golden Wolf? Any designing principles or beliefs that work for the studio?

So yeah we have three rules, the Golden Wolf Ethos, if you will. The first part is ‘no egos’. Don’t come in here thinking you know everything, and that you’re better than everyone else. You need to want to work as a team, in a collaborative environment.

Secondly, there’s no room for ‘okay work’. We need to constantly work to produce the best stuff we can: you need to have a good working attitude, to always push harder, and always have fun. If we are not having fun, then we also won’t be making our best work. We need to feel comfortable in our surroundings - the best work we’ve made, is when everyone chips in.

That, and understand that there’s always better work to be made. Go back and try harder. There’s always ways to make it better, you just need to invest the time.

What about software? Is there a particular package you would recommend an aspiring Wolf learns?

Hah, honestly, it doesn’t matter what software you learn. For 3D animated films, it’s Maya. For advertising, it’s Cinema 4D. TVPaint is quickly becoming the standard for 2D animation, but I’m a strong believer in the idea that once you know the basics of an animation program, you can apply it to any of them. Really, it doesn’t matter what software you use, it’s just mastering a specific program and getting that basic understanding of the key principles.

For example, we’ve got a guy downstairs who learned animation in Toon Boom and has quickly picked up TVPaint. It’s the same process, it’s just finding out where the buttons are. For Golden Wolf, we do our 2D animation in TVPaint or Adobe Animate, as you’ve got all the drawing power of the Adobe suites in pretty much both packages. The virtual camera tool in TVPaint is weird though, so we composite everything in After Effects. I think it’s important that you learn how to animate in TVPaint, and then comp it in After Effects, adding texture and different effects (like the virtual camera) in After Effects.

You mentioned Golden Wolf plan to explore stop motion, is this something you want to explore for advertising or for more personal projects?

So yeah, stop motion! It’s really cool, and it’s a rising medium. Everything’s fluid, and it’s really trendy at the moment. A while ago, everyone wanted 3D in advertising, but not the big thing is 2D. But at the moment with the Wes Anderson films, stop motion is really hot right now. It’s really interesting, and it’s something that we will be looking at in the future as a way to diversify and experiment with animation. At the moment, though, it costs too much for a full stop motion advertisement, and it’s not going to be as popular or gauge as big of a reaction in comparison to a 2D thing. So it’s still not quite there yet for us.

Anything else?

Something I would say is to really use reference, man! Grab gifs of films, video games, animations and panels from comic books, illustrations and posters and make a reference moodboard for each project. It’s something to always return to, and it’s not stealing or tracing because you’re taking something and responding to it, and making it your own. In particular, look at anime and study how they simplify the body mechanics in normal sequences and focus on the action. Its that idea of an economical approach to animation, and it’s all in the planning.

I hope I was able to answer all your questions man, and it’s great that you’re asking these questions now. When I was a first year, no one even had any idea or the thought to do this sort of thing. It’s great that you’re doing this now, that you’re brave and confident enough and it shows that you have an idea of where you want to go. That’s extremely rare for a student like yourself.

But yeah, I manage the student outreach here at Golden Wolf, as a way to give back and help the developing community. You’re one of the only students to actually come here and speak to us, and it’s a great start and practice to keep doing. Reaching out to industry professionals is probably one of the best things you can do as a student.

Summary Here, I was actually able to meet up and speak with animation lead Henry from Golden Wolf Studios. This was an amazing experience for me to walk around the studio, take photos and really discuss the company and the animation industry as a whole with an experienced professional. Whilst my initial plan was to look at motion designer Mattias Breitholtz in particular, I feel it will be more valuable to present parts of this actual conversation with Golden Wolf to the class in my presentation, as a way to evidence actual primary research into industry practices. I had the opportunity to see how the studio runs, and discuss Golden Wolf in-depth in a way that I haven’t been able to find online.

My next move will be to take some of the key points from this interview and present them into a visually pleasing and minimalist presentation, as my focus has shifted on discussing this primary research as opposed to my own secondary inquiry into motion design as a whole. I’m happy with the amount of research I have been able to collect and gather for this Industry Roles assignment, and have reached a point where I can begin designing the presentation with the help of my teammates.

[noprepracing]

Part 5: Eliminations

It’s already our fifth day in Texas, and it’s finally time to crown a champion, both for this race and the entire season. Jeremy, Lorenzo and I are up early – we’ve been tasked with picking up some Rain X, just in case we need to put some on Robin’s side window later in the day. The weather is absolutely perfect as we pull into the track. It’s clear the schedule change hasn’t hurt the fan count, as the Motorplex is once again packed.

Four drivers are battling for the points championship this weekend – Ryan Martin, Kye Kelley, Lizzy Musi, and Scott Taylor. The high stakes quickly become clear as teams try anything to give their drivers an edge, leading to numerous questionable call outs during the first round chip draw.

“I hate call outs in the first round,” says Roberts. “Call outs in the first round originally came about so that you could race someone you really didn’t like, or you really wanted to put out. It was never meant to be for team use, or for somebody to be able to skate around. This season, it turned into that. And I don’t like it, but on the other hand, if it’s going to be a part of the rules, then you gotta play the game with them.”

None of those games truly affect us, however. Robin is aiming for a top five points finish, but the main goal today is taking home that $40,000. Do that, and the points will come along with it.

During pre-race ceremonies, Melody is asked to sing the national anthem. This has become a new tradition at No Prep Kings events, after she blew everyone away with her

rendition earlier this season. The crowd reaction is indescribable – cheers far louder than any driver has received this weekend, and highly warranted.

“I’m so proud of her for doing that anthem,” Roberts says of his wife. “It’s a great opportunity to set the tone for the race, and I know she has fun singing. She was a professional singer for 20-plus years. She did Barack Obama’s inaugural ball, Donald Trump hired her to sing in Miralago, Florida, she’s sang for governors, she sang for Bill Clinton at a fundraiser. I mean, she’s pretty special. A lot of people that see her go up and do that anthem don’t realize how good she is, or the history she has.”

Robin draws fellow 405 team member and No Prep Kings race master Chuck Seitsinger. Chuck’s car is broke, though, and he is borrowing a blown Ford Probe owned by Wayne Smozanek. For the first time all weekend, Robin is in the left lane, which he prefers. As we pull out from under the tower, the feeling is almost surreal. I look out at the sea of people along the fence and in the bleachers. The film crew is rolling. Robin and Chuck roll through the water box and shake the ground with their burnouts. Robin has warned me that this is the most nerve racking time of the weekend. Nobody wants to spend all their time and money just to go home first round. Thankfully, we don’t have to worry about that today.

Robin makes a nice solid pass, and easily defeats Chuck. We may have gone winless the previous night, but when it counts, this team has brought their A-game. The hardest part is over, and now we can focus on winning the whole thing.

“When we’re racing with the 405 guys, as our team and our friends, the last thing we want to do is draw one,” says Roberts. “The fact that he was in a borrowed car – and he told me he might not be as sharp in it – we just put in a tune we knew would get down and go pretty fast, and that’s exactly what happened.”

In the pits, the routine maintenance begins again. Everyone has their specific assignments, and Robin must trust each of them to do theirs correctly. Because unlike the past few days, he isn’t able to assist as much. The majority of his time is spent doing between-round interviews with Pilgrim Media for the show, meeting fans that want an autograph or picture, or returning to the starting line for his round two chip draw.

“Having a crew you can trust is everything,” Roberts says. “For me, Allen is that stabilizing force in being sure that my mind can be clear that when I come back, the car is done right. And you take the other guys – everybody’s got their duty, everyone’s got their share, each of those guys I fully trust. And that just changes the ability of your mind as a driver to just focus on what you really have to do. The fact that it is a race that is a TV show means part of your driver function is to create a fan experience, to be someone who is personable for those fans to appreciate. They spend a lot of money to come there, they chose a whole day to set aside, and they deserve a reasonable interaction with you. The rest of the crew sees that as important too, and they give me the time to do that. And the fact that they are great gives me the time to do it, and not worry about what they do.”

The next round will be a much stiffer test, as Robin draws Eric Bain and his Boosted Ego split bumper Camaro out of Texas. Prior to our run, however, the season championship is also determined. Lizzy Musi has lost. Scott Taylor is still in, but can no longer win the championship. And in a turn of events not even Discovery could make up, Ryan Martin and Kye Kelley – numbers one and two in points – draw each other. Unfortunately, Kye has issues with his trans brake after the burnout. Ryan drives the Fireball Camaro to an easy win, and $100,000 as the season 3 points champion. There is a pause in the action as Ryan’s team – as well as other members of Team 405 – celebrates the accomplishment.

With most of the drama out of the way, it’s time to get back to racing. And just like last night, Robin is thrown into the right lane, which has not been good to us. But with the crew having done their job, Robin does his – he drills the tree, leaving on Bain, and pulls away all the way down the track. Two rounds, two win lights. High fives and shouts are exchanged as we run back to the golf cart. We’ve made it from 32 cars down to the final eight, and the Firebird is flat hauling today.

“Eric’s a really good competitor, and we know they’ve been making that program better,” says Roberts. “Again, we weren’t worried about it from a standpoint of how well our car has been running, but I was worried about it from a standpoint of how good Eric is. I have a lot of respect for those guys, but I really thought we had the advantage, and we did.”

Spirits are high and the mood relaxed as we prepare for the quarterfinals. Out of the eight drivers left – Robin, Ryan Martin, Jeff Lutz, Scott Taylor, Cody Baker, Rich Bruder, Dean Karns, and Giuseppe Gentile – we feel very confident about outrunning all of them, except perhaps Ryan. A final between High Voltage and Fireball would be the dream scenario. But after two rounds of highs, a low of sorts would arrive again. With only four pairs in the chip draw, we watch as everyone steps forward except for Robin and Ryan. We are matched against the one car we didn’t want to race this round.

Sitting in the staging lanes, the two teams keep things light, and we continue to congratulate Ryan on his championship. There may have even been a playful suggestion that he would have more fun if he went to his pits and celebrated this round, rather than race.

“When we drew Ryan, and he’d already won the championship, we knew we wanted to beat him,” says Roberts. “I think we did the right thing, we put a great tune in it, we made the right decisions on what we could do.”

Once the cars roll through the water box, my nerves begin to tighten. I can’t speak for anyone else, but I found this to be far more tense than the dreaded first round. Robin is in the left lane, a good sign. Not only does Robin prefer it, but the previous three winners this round were all in that lane. The cars leave together, flying side-by-side. But approximately halfway through the run, it suddenly appears the Firebird loses power, and we see brake lights soon after. Ryan’s win light comes on.

In an instant, our weekend is done. Confusion passes through our team as we drive down to pick up our driver. When we return to the pits, we learn the problem is twofold: Robin first informs us that the car never shifted from 2nd to 3rd gear, causing him to hit the rev limiter. He had no choice but to lift, or risk severely hurting the car. As Allen looks over the data, he also learns that there was a malfunction with the boost controller, sending the car from 16 lbs. of boost to 60 lbs. in half a second. A bad combination, and one we find out is linked together.

“Our boost controller has had random issues, and it had one of those during that run,” Roberts says. “It shook the tires real bad, and when it shook, it knocked the wire off the shift controller. So it made the one-two shift fine, but shook ‘em hard and knocked that wire off. So on the two-three it just hit the rev limiter and stopped. I could see even when that happened we were in reasonable striking distance because he was having issues. The worst part is that if we would’ve had a good run, or a run like we had against Eric, we would’ve beat him. But that’s how it goes. That’s racing.”

While the loss stings, conversation quickly turns to how far this team has come in their first full season on the show, and where they’ll go from here. A television crew comes by to interview Robin one last time, and informs him he has finished sixth in the points. Not quite the top five finish he’d dreamed of, but very impressive nonetheless.

As I sit just outside the trailer, I hear Robin say to a couple members of the team that he’s not mad, it’s okay, everyone makes mistakes. Curious about the subject, I learn the issues from our quarterfinal loss may have been self-inflicted. Over the past few days, he has been very straightforward in telling me that he believes it’s very important to treat everyone on the crew with respect, and we discuss it even more now.

“A wise racer told me years ago, ‘Win as a crew, lose as a driver.’ I never really understood what that meant,” Roberts says. “But in putting a crew together to do this, that’s where it became very apparent to me. You need those guys to be willing to jump in the middle and fix something, not be hesitant or feel like they’re under the gun any more than they already are. And so, yeah, the wire fell out because one of our guys hadn’t crimped it well enough from the changes we made the day before. That guy has been our crew guy this whole season. He’s my favorite guy, he’s so humble, he just takes care of things. I love him like a brother, or like a son, really. I don’t want him to hesitate in the future. Maybe you could say it was his fault, but we all make mistakes. In Florida, I screwed up the bump into the lights, totally screwed it up. Well the crew didn’t beat me up, and so we all have to win and lose together, we have to win and lose with a positive spirit. When someone makes a mistake, you use that as a learning example, not as a reason to bash someone. It’s disappointing when those things happen, but you’re disappointed in the fact that you’re not going on and racing. You’re not disappointed in the person or in your crew, because I love those guys.”

We continue to watch eliminations unfold, with Ryan earning another $40,000 at the end of the night. As Ryan is filmed with his huge stacks of cash on the starting line, Robin and Melody head to his pit with bottles of celebratory champagne. Soon the bottles are opened,

drinks are poured, and it’s time to relax from a grueling five days. The ensuing party lasts for hours, with music blasting out of Jeff Lutz’s trailer.

“Ryan and I have grown really close this season. Our personalities click with each other, our interests and the way that we see the world click, and that’s been great,” Roberts says. “We’d already brought champagne, anticipating that he’d win, but we didn’t let him know that, in case he was superstitious about it. So it was fun to be able to go over there when they finished up, have a toast, and talk about the season. Winning something like that is a grueling affair, and he needed a chance to feel special, and it was great to be able to do that with their crew, who we’ve really grown very close to.”

When the celebration finally winds down, it’s time to say our goodbyes. Most of the members of our team have flights out early in the morning, a byproduct of the schedule change. Friends I’ve made this week and spent countless hours with – Robin, Melody, Jeremy, Lorenzo – head back to their hotel. I’m sleeping in the RV tonight, and Allen and I will make the trip back to Missouri on our own tomorrow.

Part 6: Final Thoughts from a Long Trip Home

Monday morning comes with thick fog and cold air again. I’m immediately grateful for the two perfect days of we had for racing over the weekend. While Allen is perfectly good company, and we have music going to entertain us, the return home is somewhat miserable. The drive is long, the adrenaline from a huge race weekend is gone, we travel through constant rain and then snow, and I’m admittedly missing my wife and kids. We survive on snacks and caffeine, and finally pull back into the shop at 7:20 Monday night. After getting the rig parked and our belongings unloaded, Allen and I say farewell and go our separate ways. Another hour through the snow, and I’m home, ready to pass out in my own bed for the first time in six days.

The long road home has allowed me one thing, though, and that’s time to reflect on everything that has happened in the past week. I’m eternally grateful to Robin and Melody, who not only accepted my idea of following them around on this journey, but embraced it. I was truly treated like part of the race family they have created. To Allen and Jeremy, who along with Robin, always took the time to answer any questions I had, even when they were busy. To Lorenzo, my spectating partner when everyone else was busy thrashing on the car. I think once again to those little moments that don’t seem significant at the time, hours spent laughing and sharing meals with our crew and others, of talking about things that have nothing to do with racing. It’s a situation Robin has found himself in many times before.

“There are those moments after a race where you’re tired, and you’re driving home,” Roberts says. “But the good memories of spending time eating with your buddies, jacking around and having a couple drinks while cooking steak because it’s raining outside, you’re all crammed

in a little motor home…there we are with my daughters, my wife, friends for many years that we’ve raced with. Where else can you do that? It doesn’t happen anywhere else. We take Ryan’s crew out, we all go to dinner, and you get that time together where the pressure’s off, you’re not at the race track, you get to hack on each other and have a little fun with it. The opportunity is that you’re there at the race – we’re all too busy in our lives to really spend time doing much of that – but during the race, there’s the intensity of the race, but there’s also the down times in between, and that’s where you really become a family. You become a family with your own crew, and you become a family with other crews. And that, to me, is a big part of the fun.”

Most fans only get to see what is presented on a two-hour television show, not the other 20 hours or more of footage that gets tossed to the side. Some attend a filming of these live events, and get a little better idea of the work that’s put in by teams on any given weekend. I heard fans come up to Robin more than once and talk about their newfound respect for what these racers do. But to peek behind the veil, to see that it’s not just the race weekend itself, but days of testing beforehand, last-minute fixes on the car less than two days before leaving home, and multiple days of routine maintenance between every event, I realize this isn’t just an expensive hobby. It’s a full-time job. And although he isn’t a big name on television yet, it’s clear that the passion, drive, and determination that has led Robin to be a successful business owner will also translate into the no prep world.

“I look at this season as building on something for the future,” Roberts says. “I know that sounds a little bit crazy, but I’ve been competing long enough that I know you don’t come out of the gate ready to be great. You have to go through some experiences, and you have to go through some learning situations, that you can’t do in practice. We went into the season with the goal of just being competitive. I told the team that a highlight would be if we could finish around

number five [in points], that would really be huge. But my main goal was to grow and learn and build on it so that we’d be better for the next season. That’s what I hoped would happen, and that’s exactly what happened. The team grew closer, we learned little things, and we just got better. Even through mistakes, we got better. And that’s what I really wanted to do.”

So where does that leave Robin and his team heading into season four? Where do they go from here? This is certainly not a group that will be satisfied with staying where they are.

“Next season we’d like to stay in the top three the whole season, and we’d like to have a shot at that championship,” Roberts says. “We had several races where we went out first round from goofy issues. We had a few weird failures along the way, that if you took any of those basic things out, we would’ve been much better than sixth. Because when we were flying – I was right, the crew was right, and the car was right – we were pretty tough. I know we can be in the top five fastest cars out there. Now the question is, can we bring it together enough to where we get into that rhythm. If we get into that rhythm where the car is good and more consistent, and I’m good and more consistent, then I don’t think that top three is out of reach at all.”

With a skilled – and now veteran – driver, a knowledgeable crew, and top of the line parts, High Voltage is set up perfectly to do a lot of damage in the fourth season.

As Allen told me late one night at the track, “If Robin didn’t believe he had a chance to win this thing, he wouldn’t do it. Plain and simple.”

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