#the hunter boys who leapt through time

[jimvasta]

Humans and their pets

The sentient races of the universe have just about started to get their heads, or approximate similar in function body parts, around the odd nature of humans but only recently have humans begun to bring other Earth creatures into space with them.

“Don't worry about Fluffy, he's totally ship trained.” the human designated Bradley spoke with frightening casualness about the creature sat at his side. It's muzzle was level with his hips and it's forward facing eyes showed it had predator history just as much as humans did.

“It has fangs.” Captain Mota'tog was unimpressed. The permissions were correctly stamped on the file and yet such a creature hardly appeared inoffensive.

“He does not, he's not poisonous. Of course some of his teeth are sharp, he's an omnivore.”

“He's a hunter.”

“He mostly hunts biscuits. He'll scavenge in the canteen from anyone soft enough to feed him. He's a certified well-being dog. People stroke him, he's got really soft fur, it makes them feel better. Look, he's wagging his tail, it means he likes you.”

Mota-tog whistled uncertainly.

“Oh wow!” One of the human engineers arrived at the airlock and dropped her bag as she stared at the dog. “So cute!”

Fluffy jumped round, tail wagging furiously, nuzzling in as the woman buried her hands in his warm soft fur.

“You are totally gorgeous. You're so fluffy and beautiful, you're like a little polar bear. You're here to stay, yes you are.” the woman happily baby talked to the dog who was more than half her size.

Bradley looked at the Captain and indicated. “See. Dogs make us happy.”

“You do all the care for it.”

“Of course.”

There were some false starts with the rest of the crew who were not so trusting of the huge pack hunter in their midst, but over the next few months they slowly learned to trust that the worst he would do was beg for food off their plates at meal times. Some of the braver aliens even began to pet him.

Then an alarm sounded.

Everyone raced to their emergency stations.

Bradley was in the cargo hold, his duty was to check the cargo was safe and secure.

He had quickly trained Fluffy to sit in a corner out of the way. It kept him safe in case anything shifted. The last thing he wanted was for his pet to get hurt by moving cargo.

The clang of magnetic grabs was deafening.

The alert was for a boarding raid.

Pirates.

Bradley cracked his knuckles and picked up a pry bar.

Through the rest of the ship there were varying degrees of panic.

A few of the other species could fight but most looked to the humans, having learned the way they fought when cornered and knowing their best hope to survive was to stay back and wait for the screaming to stop.

“What the fuck is that?!” the shout was shock and outrage. More anger than fear in the moment.

Crouching as it came through the main airlock was a creature taller and broader than anything else on the ship.

“Star spirits preserve us,” Mota'tog whistled. “A Batath.”

“It's a bloody troll is what it is.” Martins snapped.

Everyone froze as they heard the snarling and growling.

It was not coming from the Batath.

Fluffy arrived at speed and leapt, not caring can his opponent was huge. His fur was already matted with the blood of pirates and this was just another opponent.

The humans charged.

The Batath could only concentrate on one enemy at a time, it was used to picking off creatures as they ran, not fighting them off as something had its teeth deep around a knee trying to rip it apart.

The pirates ran when the Batath fell and the gore covered humans turned to face them.

Bradley let himself drop to the deck. “Don't worry, I'm fine. Good boy, Fluffy.”

Mota'tog shook his feathers as he watched the dog go back from snarling killing machine to placid fuss receiver. “I swear to the spirits, all Earth creatures are insane.”

[dindjarindiaries]

Senator's Shadow - Chapter 9

summary: Hunter and the squad do their best to reinforce you as you aim to end the crisis on Eirus once and for all.

pairing: hunter (the bad batch) x fem!reader

rating: mature (18+)

tags: bodyguard romance, forbidden love, fluff & angst, emotional & physical hurt/comfort, canon-typical violence, injuries & blood, trauma, eventual/mild smut

word count: 6.912k

chapter 8 ⟸ series masterlist ⟹ chapter 10 (epilogue)

chapter 9 ⟹

Hunter was holding his breath from the moment you had stolen it. His eyes followed you until you disappeared from sight, his chest burning from both the lack of air and his effort to let you go rather than keep you close. He would have gladly surrendered himself with you, but you needed him elsewhere. That was enough.

That would have to be enough.

Wrecker cleared his throat louder than he had to. The sound brought Hunter back to the present, and he snapped his head around to face the squad. They were all staring at him through their helmets, frozen in place in a way Hunter had never seen before.

Despite the severity of the moment, Hunter couldn’t help chuckling to himself. He smirked as he set his helmet back in place and raised his brow at his brothers. “Don’t tell me you’ve all gotten shy, boys.”

They all slowly began to shift around. Tech was bold enough to attempt words first. “We… simply had yet to observe such an affectionate gesture.” He glanced down at his datapad, avoiding eye contact. “Between you two, that is.”

Hunter’s visor looked pointedly around the group. When no one else spoke, he chuckled again. “Clearly, we haven’t spent enough time at Seventy-Nines.”

He let the amusement fade from his tone as he straightened shoulders. You were on your way down to some unknown fate, and here he was, cracking jokes.

“Come on. We have our orders.” Hunter pointed to his left, and the boys’ right. “Wrecker, Tech, you take this side.” He did the same with the other side. “Crosshair, Echo, you go the other way.” He drew his blaster and nodded. “We need to make sure we’re surrounding this courtyard at every possible angle, so keep yourselves spread out.”

“Are we staying up high?” Echo asked, his blaster also drawn.

“Affirmative. We have the high ground, and we need to keep it.”

Wrecker groaned, but Tech was nudging him back towards the stone railing before he could make any other kind of protest. Hunter turned to Crosshair for a quick moment. “Position yourself somewhere with a good shot at anyone who approaches the senator.”

Crosshair nodded and turned to follow Echo, who had already leapt from the outpost’s roof and swung down. Hunter waited until all of his brothers were safely on their way to steady himself with a breath and approach the railing that separated him from the courtyard.

He slowly stood from his crouch, giving himself just enough height to see between the intermittently raised pillars of the railing and view the courtyard. The chaos below had already fizzled out, and the first thing he observed was that the fighters had stopped shooting to concentrate their fire on one specific target.

You. Hands raised, mask and hood both lowered, moving from the safe shadows of the outpost to the exposed light.

Hunter tightened his grasp on his blaster.

“There’s no need for fighting.” Your voice was so calm yet authoritative that it instinctively made Hunter want to obey the gentle order. It was a wonder how just minutes ago, you were trembling in his grasp during your desperate kiss. “I’m here now. Let’s talk this through.”

“At last.” A new voice spoke as soon as you had finished. Hunter was even more alert at once, and he sensed the powerful march of the man’s boots before he had even walked into the light. “We’ve been waiting for you, Senator.”

And there it was, the face he had spent this entire mission memorizing and dreading: Lii Alvani.

Hunter busied his rageful hand with the task of pressing down his comm. “Alvani’s here. Crosshair, your aim needs to be on him at all times.”

“Understood.” Even Crosshair’s cool tone sounded more focused than usual, as if he was suppressing the same amount of rage as Hunter.

You continued on without a single waver in your voice. “I had a feeling you’d be here.”

Alvani opened his arms. “As did I.” He had a sinister grin that Hunter wanted to punch off of his twisted face, but he kept holding on to the self control he had learned so long ago. “It was bold of you, Senator, to leave the capitol. And without any reinforcements!”

You remained unshaken. Warm pride bloomed within Hunter’s chest, despite the circumstances. “I spent many years fighting against you, Alvani, and my people and I emerged victorious. I knew that I could do it again.”

Alvani bowed his head. “This is true.” He lifted a finger. “Aside from a few key details. Your people are mine, now. But even then…” he chuckled, “you are not alone.” Alvani waved a hand at some of the fighters to his left. “Look for the clones.”

The fighters entered the outpost first, no doubt following your own trail. Hunter cursed and turned around to set his back against the stone, allowing himself to face the steps as he prepared to hide from the incoming patrol.

While he waited, Hunter turned his head to scour the nearby rooftops. The squad was blending into the night thanks to the dark ponchos that concealed them. He lifted his hand to his helmet. “Not sure if you’ve all heard, but Alvani’s looking for us. Stay alert, stay low, and stay quiet.”

“Copy that, Sarge,” Wrecker attempted his best whisper.

Hunter continued to listen to you and Alvani even as he attuned his senses to the incoming group of fighters. “The lies have already begun.” Alvani scoffed. “And some of you still trust her? Some of you think that she, and her supposed government, truly care about you?”

Hunter’s blood ran so hot that it started to prickle his skin. Even the rain that had started to fall steadily couldn’t have cooled him down if his skin was vulnerable to it. He was forced to move past the feeling when he heard the echoes of the patrol’s step, signaling him to push himself forward and hide amongst the shadows around the corner.

“These are not my troops opening fire on civilian villages, Alvani. Who do you think thwarted your last attack?”

Alvani laughed. “My attack? Senator, please. These riots have nothing to do with me.”

Hunter bit back a scoff of his own, his blaster raised as he slowly backed away from where the patrol had just emerged. They split up, causing Hunter to reach over his shoulder for the spare line in his pack and dart towards the center of the outpost’s roof.

Your patience was thinning, and Hunter could hear it. “And the fighters who are currently under your command?”

Hunter attached one end of the line to his belt and the other to the small spires of the inner railing. Once it was secure, he leapt over the edge, keeping himself pressed against the stone wall just above the transparisteel barrier. The quickening rainfall pattered against the fragile material, which would have made it hard for anyone without his heightened senses to hear the ongoing conversation.

The sound of Alvani’s voice was still grating, even at this distance. “They’re protecting the people, clearly.”

“From who?”

“You. And your supposed Republic.”

You let out a curt laugh. Hunter tensed as he watched the shadows of the patrol search the perimeter of the rooftop. “Is that the narrative you’re going with, Alvani? That’s ridiculously untrue and low, even for you.”

“Is it?” Hunter’s free hand tightened into a fist as he leaned his helmet against the slickened stone. The urge to launch himself back up and fight was getting harder to ignore. “The people of Eirus have been going without proper resources for many standard months.”

“Because what the Republic and I have been requesting for our people hasn’t been implemented. That’s why I have returned. Instead, I have found that Eirus’ elected officials are debating an alliance with Count Dooku for a deal that would strip this planet of its resources in a detrimental way.” You paused, and Hunter ached at the rising desperate tension in your voice. “I presume it was your idea, Alvani.”

“It’s clear up here,” one of the fighters on the rooftop reported. “We’ll descend and begin searching the outer perimeter. You two, stay up here.” Hunter grinned to himself. Finally, a way for him to take out his anger.

“The count offered me refuge when my homeworld turned its back on me. Now, I’ve come back to return the favor. His Confederacy can help Eirus to flourish once again as the droid factories boost our workforce.”

Hunter waited until the footsteps descended the staircase to pull himself back up the line. He gritted his teeth both at the physical effort and at Alvani’s blatant lies.

You sounded just as unconvinced. “Either you truly believe his lies, Alvani, or you’re deliberately using the same ones.”

“You’ll hear no lies from me, Senator. If only your people could expect the same from you.”

Hunter channeled his red-hot energy into battle as he swung himself over the railing and disconnected the line. His alert senses told him exactly where he could find the first fighter. Hunter lifted his arm and wrapped it around the human’s throat, squeezing it tighter and tighter as he continued to listen to what was happening in the courtyard.

“I do not, and will not, lie—especially not to my people. I can wholeheartedly admit that the Republic isn’t perfect, because as you have so graciously pointed out, even they have not yet provided for Eirus the way they should.”

The deadweight of the fighter began to fall upon Hunter as unconsciousness overtook him. Hunter eased his body down to the ground and moved ahead, seeking the second soldier in the shadows as you spoke.

“But they also have yet to take advantage of Eirus during this war. If the count establishes his droid factories here, then that will be bringing this war to our home permanently. Do we, a peaceful planet, really intend on forever tying ourselves to the production of these droids who have been targeting innocent civilians all across the galaxy?”

Hunter found the second guard and swung out his leg at the back of the Weequay’s knee to trip him. He knocked the fighter’s comlink away while he still had the advantage and kept him on his knees, yet again pulling his arm tight around the soldier’s throat.

“A peaceful planet being represented by a senator who’s arrived here in combat gear?” Alvani laughed. “Who earned her place by fighting her way there?”

Hunter took cruel pleasure in the ceasing of the Weequay’s breath.

“Being a senator was never my choice.” Your voice had gone calm again. “It was our people’s. I’m only fulfilling my duty at the request of the people of Eirus.”

“Perhaps it’s time for new leadership, then.”

Hunter was finally able to return to his previous place, his blaster raised again as he watched you and Alvani through the railing’s small spires. The downpour made it harder to see, but it seemed you were paying no mind to it as you faced Alvani with your hands held out by your sides in constant, peaceful surrender.

You nodded as you responded to him. “Perhaps it is.” You then shook your head. “But not under Count Dooku. He may have deceived you and all our elected officials, Alvani, or perhaps you’re taking part in his deception, but his intentions are cruel. He cares nothing about our planet, nor our people.”

Your focus went to the people who had started to surround the courtyard, from Alvani’s stationed fighters to the villagers who had dared to leave their homes.

“I learned a terrible truth before I came here. I discovered these supposed ‘riots’ have actually been orchestrated by the count and his forces to manipulate Eirus into accepting his offer for protection.”

A hushed gasp went around the crowd. Hunter saw the corners of Alvani’s mouth twitch downwards, though he otherwise held onto his smug expression.

“I don’t believe all of these fighters know this truth, because…” you paused, a new pain evident in your tone, “many of them are the same forces I fought alongside when we freed the planet from this man’s rule.”

Hunter watched as some of the fighters surrounding you started to lower their blasters, but they weren’t yet fully committed to abandoning them.

“I have gone undercover with my clone protectors on this occasion and one other to try to change the outcome of these attacks. We were only able to save one village. My home village being targeted and attacked just after that effort is not a coincidence.”

You paused again, and Alvani still didn’t say anything. Hunter’s brow furrowed as you took the opportunity to go on.

“I understand that Eirus has been through a lot. I was on the front lines for much of it. When I went to Coruscant, my mission continued, but there was a disconnect. Your officials, myself included, have failed you, and I cannot fully express how sorry I am for that.

“But I want to make things better. I don’t want to bring the war here. We have all fought and suffered enough. I propose that we re-elect brand-new officials on every level, including senatorial.” Hunter’s brow shot up. “Give the Republic one more chance to maintain the peace we have long since been seeking. Just as they sent the clone protectors here with me, they can protect us as a planet, but will do no further. Not unless we request it.”

Your words were met with stunned silence. Hunter looked around and watched the faces of your people, especially the villagers, soften at the sight of you. He smiled to himself. You were finally winning them over.

Then Alvani spoke. “What a well-crafted collection of deceit you have made, Senator. Truly, I commend you.” He shook his head. “But such lies cannot stand without evidence to prove them true. Can you at least provide your people with that, if you cannot provide them with the resources they need to live?”

Hunter watched you closely, and what he caught was the calculated way your focus went up and around at the surrounding structures. You were looking for something, or someone.

The signal.

Hunter lifted his hand to his helmet. “That’s the signal, boys. Time to join the party. Tech, have your datapad ready. Crosshair, stay where you are with a shot on Alvani.”

Crosshair’s tone was as cool as usual. “I copy.”

Hunter wasn’t waiting around for the others. He swung out over the edge of the roof and traded his blaster for his blade, digging it into the mortar of the outpost’s bricks to slow his descent. Once he was at a safe enough range, he let go and let himself fall, tucking and rolling once he landed.

The fighters had reinforced their grips on their blasters, but Hunter put away all of his weapons as he stood. He lowered the hood of his poncho and made his way to your side. Alvani’s eyes had widened as he made his approach, but once he was next to you, Hunter’s visor was only concerned with you. There wasn’t much you were giving away, even if Hunter could still see the sweet light of relief in your eyes. He nodded at you before facing Alvani again.

“Heard you’re looking for some evidence.” Hunter crossed his arms as he spoke.

Alvani gave him an incredulous once-over. “And what gives you such authority?”

Hunter lifted his hands to his helmet and removed it, exposing himself to the downpour in favor of staring down Alvani with his own eyes. “I’m the sergeant whose squad has been investigating and combating your attacks.” Hunter tucked his helmet under his arm and shrugged. “May not give me credibility in your eyes, but you can take that up with the Republic.”

Alvani scoffed. “And where is this ‘squad’ you speak of?”

“Right here.” Wrecker’s booming voice made Alvani jump as it appeared from behind him. Wrecker followed Hunter’s lead in having his weapons put away as he held his hands into fists and walked to your other side. “If you have any complaints, you can take ‘em up with me.”

“I wouldn’t risk that if I were you, sir,” Echo warned as he walked up from the shadows. He gestured with his helmet to Wrecker. “He’s not as lenient as the rest of the Republic.”

“Technically, we are supposed to be subject to the rules of command.” Tech held up his finger as he joined the rest of the group, though his focus was on the datapad in his other hand. “We, however, are not obligated to follow those because of our exceptional success rate.”

Once Tech was standing at Hunter’s other side, Alvani looked upon the squad with utter shock. His stare then found yours as he let out a laugh of disbelief. “Are these your aforementioned ‘clone protectors,’ Senator? Really?”

Hunter looked over at you, and your gaze met his as you smiled and nodded. “This is an elite clone squad, Alvani.” You peeled your stare from Hunter to face Alvani once again. “Underestimating them would be unwise.”

“We have the requested evidence.” Tech didn’t give Alvani a single second to speak. For once, Hunter was grateful for it. “Here, I have numerous communication recordings, coordinates of your whereabouts following Eirus’ previous crisis, and confirmed visuals of allies you worked with before being present on-world currently.” Tech looked up from his datapad. “Is that sufficient?”

The murmurs of the surrounding crowd became louder at that. Hunter heard your relieved exhale at his side, and he let it relax him further. The tide had shifted; you had the advantage. Your gamble had paid off.

You spoke into the silence when Alvani failed to. “Your deceptions are over, Alvani. It’s finally time for the people of Eirus to choose their own fate.”

You earned a few enthusiastic shouts at that. Hunter looked around and watched the fighters glance at one another before dropping their weapons to the ground. The corners of his lips started to turn up in a smile, one that only grew the moment he looked at you.

But Alvani sighed, and it wasn’t a defeated sound. “I had a feeling it would come to this.” Hunter’s attention snapped back to Alvani as he lifted his wrist to his lips. “Prime Minister, would you like to do the honors?”

It was then that Hunter sensed a frequency so strong it almost made him wince. Once he got a firmer grasp on it, he realized how familiar it was; too familiar. He lowered himself to the ground to make sure of it, no matter how confident he was in his own abilities. He splayed his palm over the muddy soil.

Your voice was strained with newfound worry. “What is it?”

Hunter put his helmet on and drew his blaster. “You need to get the civilians to safety.” He then spoke to his squad, who was already following the sergeant’s lead in grabbing their weapons. “Lads, we’re about to have some company.”

Echo took a step closer to Hunter. “What kind of company?”

Hunter lifted his blaster to his shoulder. “Clankers.”

Wrecker let out a cheer. “Oh, yeah! Finally!” Hunter took pleasure in the way Alvani’s expression twisted at Wrecker’s excitement.

“Droids?” Your panic was breathless. Hunter turned to face you fully. “How many?”

Hunter set his free hand on your shoulder. “Enough for us to handle.” He gave you a gentle squeeze. “We’ll take care of them. Have the fighters guard any gathered citizens inside the outpost.”

Your gaze gave him a once-over, your brow furrowed. You ultimately exhaled a light breath and nodded, setting your jaw. Hunter wished he could do more to comfort you, but with such an audience, it simply wasn’t safe. Your eyes flashed with sweet understanding before you stepped away and raised your voice.

“Everyone, inside the outpost! Now!”

Thankfully, the fighters had fully pledged their allegiance to you, and they obeyed your order without hesitation. They picked up their blasters and started directing the gathered citizens to the outpost, but you weren’t going with them. Hunter tilted his helmet when your stare found his visor again, and your smile and shrug said it all.

You had told them long ago that you would be on the front lines of this conflict, and that wouldn’t stop now.

But his senses were slammed by the awakening of the battle droids, and it would only be a matter of moments until they would start to open fire. Hunter was ready to warn you until he sensed an alarming movement much closer than the droids were. You weren’t the only one who had mastered the craft of a hidden holster.

Hunter reached for his knife and threw it without a second thought. The golden blade whizzed through the air and struck Alvani’s blaster just before he could pull the trigger on you. Hunter focused on aiming his own blaster, but it wasn’t his weapon that dealt the blow.

One blue circle of light from Crosshair’s perch was all it took to put Alvani out of commission, and his body hit the mud as soon as the droids who had been hiding in the darkness began to open fire.

Hunter positioned himself in front of you and fired his blaster into the fray. “Wrecker, get Alvani inside the outpost!”

Wrecker was quick to obey the order, allowing Hunter to focus on their surroundings. They needed cover, but they couldn’t afford to be pinned inside the outpost with everyone else. They were going to have to split up and use the infrastructure to their advantage.

Hunter spoke into his comm, regardless of the fact Echo and Tech were right beside him. “We’re splitting up again. We’ll stay in our original pairs. Wrecker, you’ll rendezvous with Crosshair’s position whenever you’re done with Alvani. Crosshair, stay where you are and watch our backs.”

“With pleasure,” Crosshair assured him.

“I… copy… Sarge!” Wrecker was breathing heavily from his run.

Hunter looked at Echo and Tech, directing them to the right with his blaster. They nodded and began to split off, which left you and Hunter to head to the left. He continued to shield you and fire at the droids until you had proper cover.

Taking shelter inside a tight alleyway with time to spare, Hunter kept you safe between himself and the wall that was at your back. His free hand removed his helmet while the hand with his blaster carefully wrapped around the back of your neck to bring your mouth to his.

You didn’t resist, at least not at first. You melted against him as easily as the rain trickled over your faces and his armor, and for a moment, you fisted the material of his poncho to pull him even closer. But then you flattened your palms against his armored chest and parted your lips from his, your brow furrowed as you sought an explanation.

Hunter pressed his wet forehead against yours. “You’re okay.” He exhaled his sigh of relief against your brow as he kissed it. “And you did it.”

You smiled at him, and though his breathless admiration and affection was reflected in your gaze, you were still able to quirk up an eyebrow. “Of course I did.”

Hunter huffed before he kissed you again. He needed this reassurance, and given how eager you were to match each desperate stroke, you did, too. Hunter could still spare a few words. “Giving up your senatorial seat, huh?”

You pulled away, your arms now wrapped around his neck, and gestured with your head to the alleyway’s opening. “Surely we can find a better time to talk about that.”

Hunter chuckled, his lips spreading wide in a fond, confident smirk. “I wouldn’t worry if I were you. I could fight clankers in my sleep.”

You gave him a dizzying once-over. “I’m sure you could.” You kissed his cheek that time. “So why don’t you show me?”

Hunter hummed and lifted his helmet once again, setting it over his head before nodding. “Finally.”

He had to agree with Wrecker’s earlier sentiment: he had missed this, the rush of battle, the thrill of doing what he and his brothers had quite literally been made for. There was still a lot to sort out, but now that you were okay and you had accomplished what you set out to do, Hunter was finally free to let himself loose again.

His squad was always showing off, but now, he had an even more important audience to show off for.

“So,” your voice had returned to a more tactical tone, “what’s the plan?”

Hunter holstered his blaster and took up the knife he had retrieved from the mud. He tilted his helmet at you. “Try to keep up.”

With that, he darted towards the alleyway’s opening, going right back to all the action. Cover had been important, yes, but only as a means of regrouping. Now, Hunter could weave himself in-and-out of all the gaps between buildings to avoid fire if he had to, all while pursuing these droids as if it was just another day’s work.

In a way, it was, though you had made this mission feel anything but ordinary.

Hunter didn’t have to consume himself with your wellbeing because of his confidence in both his own actions and yours, even if he did glance back to make sure you were still close. You already fit in nicely with his technique, acting as a defensive line of cover while Hunter pursued his assault with his blade.

He dodged, dove, flipped, and sliced, using his senses to find each target and confirm each kill. You were always there at the edges, illuminating them with a warmth that rivaled the chill of the rain seeping beneath his armor. He could hear the familiar jolts of Crosshair’s rifle firing shots from his perch, and at one point, he heard Wrecker’s yells as he finally plowed through to get to Crosshair’s position.

Everything was just as it should be. And to think that at the end of it all, there was even a chance for your place with them to be permanent, should you want to take it.

Hunter had his blade deep in a droid’s skull when his comm went off. “They really didn’t bother sending their best here,” Echo commented.

“Which was a wise course of action,” Tech chimed in. “This is the final chance they are giving Eirus. It would be a waste of resources to send their most refined droids to a planet they do not even know if they will have.”

“That would explain why there’s only one wave.” Crosshair huffed, though the noise was mostly static through the comms. “We’ve nearly fought through all their forces.”

“Already?” Wrecker was disappointed. “Aw, man! I just got here!”

“We’ll be back in the field before you know it, Wrecker.” Hunter paused as he sliced through a droid on his left and then swung around to stab the neck of one on his right. You blasted down a droid just behind him, and he nodded in your direction to thank you. “Just have fun while you can.”

Your voice rose above the sounds of battle to speak to him. “I quite like your squad’s idea of ‘fun,’ Sergeant.”

Hunter let out a soft laugh and glanced at you over his shoulder. “You’re a natural, Senator.”

Hunter had chased another kind of pleasant adrenaline with you before, but he had to agree: this was just pure fun.

It wasn’t long before the rest of the boys were back in Hunter’s sights. The droids’ numbers were dwindling fast, and the squad’s restlessness during the course of this mission had much to do with it, no doubt. They were all itching to be back on the battlefield again, and that meant these droids never stood a chance. Hunter honestly felt a bit of pity for them.

Then he remembered why they were sent here, and that softer feeling faded fast.

When there was only one left, Hunter held up his men and let you do the honors. He tossed up his blade and you caught it just as you holstered your blaster, continuing your movement to bury it down to the hilt inside the droid’s wired neck. You retracted the knife only when the droid collapsed, bringing an end to the conflict.

“Ha-ha! Yeah!” Wrecker lunged forward to give you a high-five. Hunter crossed his arms and shook his head, despite the fact he was beaming underneath his helmet. He glanced over at Tech, who was already tapping away on his datapad.

Hunter’s brow rose. “Reinforcements?”

Tech’s gaze flickered up at him. “Negative. Just as I said before, the Separatists have no interest in a planet that cannot promise its resources any longer. This was, indeed, their final chance.”

Hunter’s focus returned to you when you handed him his blade. He took it, his fingers brushing yours, and sheathed it. Your gaze was relieved as it bore through his visor, but it was also exhausted, vulnerable to him in a way that made his chest tight. When you were at his side, he held a hand upon your back, and you leaned your head against his armored shoulder.

“Awww,” Wrecker cooed.

Crosshair nudged him with his shoulder. “Grow up, Wrecker.” Hunter huffed.

“So,” Echo gestured to the open stretch of ground littered in droid parts, “that’s it, Senator?”

You lifted your head from Hunter to nod. “It is.” Your stare scanned the group, a fond smile stretching across your lips. “I can’t thank you all enough for your tireless effort to help me see this through.” You let out a soft laugh. “Especially seeing how much you’ve had to hold back this entire time.”

Wrecker rolled his neck. “That’s not even the half of it!”

You beamed at him. “I’m sure.” You let out a slow and steady exhale. “Now… well, the Prime Minister’s involvement is troubling, but not entirely unpredictable.” You glanced up at Hunter. “It makes me glad I promised to re-elect every position.”

“Are you really gonna give up yours, Senator?” Echo’s hand was on his hip, now.

You bowed your head. “If that’s what my people want. Whatever it takes to maintain this peace and give the Republic another chance.”

Crosshair shifted his weight to one hip as he kept his arms crossed. “And if you do give up your seat?”

You shrugged, unable to resist a smile as your stare met Hunter’s through his visor. “Then I guess I’ll have to find another way to serve the Republic.”

Hunter tilted his helmet, as if he actually had to consider your words. “I’m sure something can be arranged.” His hand gave your back a few gentle pats. “But first, we have to wrap this up.”

Your gaze flickered low as you nodded. “And you have to get back to the battlefield, now that this mission is over.”

Hunter returned your nod. “We should at least stick around until all the Separatists’ allies are gone. Only then can we really guarantee your safety.”

Your stare simply lingered in his. It would buy you both a little more time until you had to separate, if only for a little while—that is, if your people even wanted to choose someone new as their senatorial representative. It surely seemed like you had won them over again. That left you with maybe one or two more nights together.

Hunter wasn’t even sure how much time you could spend together tonight. There was so much left to do, but seeing you drenched by the downpour and splashed by mud made him want to do nothing except help you wash with warm water and hold you until the exhaustion left your eyes.

But duty would come first, just as it always had.

The rest of the evening was a blur. You and the squad were met with cheers when you returned to the outpost, which meant it wasn’t difficult to get the fighters to join you on the trip back to the planetary capitol. They acted as the necessary force to get the Prime Minister and the other officials involved with the droid attack to surrender, though Hunter and the boys were with you, too.

You had promised a session the next day to begin sorting things out. You would be bringing more Republic officials on-world to facilitate, and to take care of Alvani, the Prime Minister, and the others. The arrival of those officials would also mark the departure of the squad. They were set to arrive in Hunter’s predicted window: two nights from now, including the rest of tonight.

The watch shifts were no longer, but Hunter’s presence in your bedroom was enough protection, anyway. He did eventually get to care for you in the way he had wanted to before, and he even allowed himself to smile at the thought of it before exhaustion took him right along with you. There wasn’t enough time or energy between the two of you to pursue anything else.

The second night, however, was one you both made use of. There was no promise yet of when, or frighteningly if, you could join his squad in some capacity, and that nervous energy was channeled into breathless and passionate desperation. It somehow managed to rival that first night you spent together, leaving Hunter’s senses frayed and pleased as exhaustion overwhelmed him in a much different way than the night before.

When the morning came, Hunter wasn’t brave enough to face it. He woke and remained where he was, his face pressed against the nape of your neck as your naked shoulders rose and fell in time with his own. Hunter listened to your heartbeat, gently stretching his senses just enough to memorize its distinct rhythm. It kept him calm, as if it was always meant to tune him.

Your entwined fingers eventually gave his a soft squeeze, and he exhaled a breath of defeat. There would be no hiding from this day, nor this goodbye.

You kept your hands together as you rolled over to face him. Hunter gave you a once-over, though the contrasting sparkle of sweetness and sadness in your gaze gave him pause. He held your stare as you lifted your free hand to brush through his hair, right where his bandana would usually be.

“How long have you been awake?” Your voice was no louder than a whisper.

Hunter let out a gentle huff. “Longer than you think.”

You laughed, though your amusement was short-lived as you heaved out a troubled breath. “This won’t be the end.” You gave him a nod, one of those determined ones that made his chest swell. “I don’t know what choice my people will make, but… I won’t let this be the end.”

Hunter raised his brow. “You’ll do whatever it takes to help your people, because that’s just who you are.” Hunter’s hand cupped your face as he returned your nod. “And that’s okay.”

You smiled at him. “You’re right.” You moved close enough for your nose to brush his. Hunter closed his eyes and tried to memorize that feeling, too. “But someone once told me that I don’t have to sacrifice all my wants for my people’s needs.” Hunter reopened his eyes and met the breathtaking sincerity within your own. “And I want to be with you, Hunt.”

Hunter smiled. Stars, he would never get tired of hearing you say his name like that. “I want that, too.” He couldn’t resist a kiss, even if it was brief. “You’ll know where to find us. We’ll just be out there chasing clankers.”

You hummed with amusement as you pushed your lips harder against his. It was easy to accept you, to meet each eager, desperate stroke and let at least one of his hands explore you while he still could. But there wasn’t any more time left to use up. Duty called.

Somehow, Hunter managed to pry himself from you and begin dressing for the day. You followed his lead, and Hunter couldn’t help noticing you had slipped on the same dress from the day you first met. Warmth consumed him from head to toe as he finished securing all his armor in place. He then sat in sweet silence with you until you were ready.

There was no other reason to stall. Hunter guided you out of the bedroom and the suite with a hand on your back, just like he had in that grandiose ballroom what felt like ages ago. Once the two of you had stepped outside, Hunter alerted the squad, and the next few minutes were the last you would have alone together.

For now, Hunter reminded himself. He agreed with what you had said before. Somehow, he knew, and truly knew, this was far from the end.

The boys were surprisingly quiet as they emerged from their rooms, as if they also felt the weight of the upcoming goodbye. They would be departing after breakfast, which made this silence stretch even longer, aside from a few of their usual quips and sibling disagreements. That might have been the one dining area where Wrecker didn’t start some kind of large-scale food fight.

You walked close enough to Hunter’s side for your hand to brush his a few times as you made your way to the platform where the Marauder was waiting. Hunter experienced a twinge of relief at the sight of it, with the ship feeling more like a home than even Kamino at that point, but the weight of this goodbye hadn’t fallen from him yet.

Your captain and your guard were waiting on the platform with the other Republic officials, representing the trade-off of protective duties that would go from Hunter and his squad back to your own guard. Hunter wasn’t too happy with it, but at least he knew you could protect yourself if you had to. It wouldn't be much longer until he could protect you again.

That’s what he had to keep telling himself.

You stopped by your captain, facing the squad that stood in a loose formation with their backs at the Marauder. Your gaze looked upon them all as you smiled and spoke in your formal tone. “I cannot thank you enough, Clone Force 99, for all you have done.” You closed your eyes and nodded, bowing your head a bit before looking upon them again. “Eirus would not have its freedom without you.” You chuckled. “Or its senator.”

Hunter set his jaw at the thought of it.

“I wish you all safe passage to your next journey.” Your stare caught his as you spoke one last time. “I’m sure our paths will cross again.”

“They better!” Wrecker insisted.

Hunter gave his head a fond shake. He watched as his squad all nodded and even smiled at you before heading for the ship, soon leaving just him and you. Your smile was sweeter than ever as you reached your hand forward, just like you had done on Coruscant.

Hunter took it and pressed his lips upon the back of it, his stare never once straying from yours until he forced himself to let go and turn away.

The squad all spun around to pretend they hadn’t been watching, as if Hunter and his senses hadn’t felt their gazes boring into his back. It made him chuckle to himself as he closed the distance to the ship.

The Marauder was quiet when he stepped inside, aside from the rumble of its engines as Tech prepared for takeoff. Echo’s hand caught Hunter’s shoulder before he could make his way to the cockpit, but no words came. They simply exchanged a nod, and Echo let Hunter go to join Tech up front.

Tech had obviously noted Hunter’s approach. “Where are we headed?”

Hunter sat down in the chair beside him and crossed his arms over his chest. “We’ll go back to Kamino, reset before we take our next mission.”

Tech nodded, and his hands flew over the controls as he input the coordinates and lifted the Marauder from Eirus’ surface. Hunter was glad he couldn’t see the sight of it fading behind them.

He was surprised when Tech started to speak again. “You failed to meet the proper protocol with the senator yet again, Hunter.”

Hunter turned his head to look at him, his brow furrowed. Tech gave him an amused glance, though he kept his focus on the stars that were starting to stretch ahead of them.

“I believe you were supposed to aim for her lips, not her hand.”

Hunter’s ears began to burn as he shook his head, though a fond smile stretched over his lips. He would have only risked that if he knew it was your final goodbye, and he didn’t truly believe that it was—not for a single moment.

chapter 8 ⟸ series masterlist ⟹ chapter 10 (epilogue)

hunter tag list: @zenrobbins0021 @cw80831 @yunggoblin @maddiedrmr @Molmcb @jellybeanstacey0519 @violetlilly2020

senator’s shadow tag list: @callsign-denmark @dindadjarin @clintbarton-anon

[bestanimatedmovie]

Welcome to Revenge of the Underrated!

Some of you asked me to put a "haven't watched both" to be more fair to the more unknown movies, but I've seen other tournaments doing this and I think it limits too much who can participate in the polls. So what I decided to do is a double elimination!

What does that mean? That means a movie has to lose twice to be eliminated. In other words, there will be a sorts of losers bracket that'll be part of main bracket. I'm undecided on whether to do this for only one round or the whole bracket, as it would make the tournament very long. Do let me know if you have any opinion about it.

Anyway, Revenge of the Underrated, Round 1:

Miss Hokusai vs Happily N'Ever After

Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children vs Tiger and Bunny: The Rising

Ballerina vs Book Girl

On-Gaku: Our Sound vs Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Eternal The Movie Part 1

Cats don't Dance vs The Flight of Dragons

Dragon Ball Z: Cooler's Revenge vs The Girl Without Hands

The Twelve Tasks of Asterix vs Flatland: The Film

Felidae vs Pokemon the Movie: The Power of Us

An American Tail: Fievel Goes West vs Unico in the Island of Magic

Rock and Rule vs Rock-A-Doodle

The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Beginning vs Freddie as F.R.0.7

The Plague Dogs vs The Magic Riddle

Pokemon Heroes vs The Pebble and the Penguin

Strange Magic vs Sea Prince and the Fire Child

Help! I'm a Fish vs Red Shoes and the Seven Dwarfs

16.Azur and Asmar: The Prince's Quest vs Rainbow Brite and the Star Stealer

17.Titan A.E. vs Ico, the Brave Horse

18.The Adventures of Mark Twain vs A Troll in Central Park

19.The Case of Hana and Alice vs Once Upon a Forest

20.Underdogs vs Long Way North

21.Mars Needs Moms vs The Twelve Months

22.Phineas and Ferb: The Movie: Candace Against the Universe vs Blinky Bill

23.Robot Carnival vs Revue Starlight: The Movie

24.One Piece: Baron Omatsuri and the Secret Island vs Winx Club: The Secret of the Lost Kingdom

25.Ruben Brandt, Collector vs Samurai Jack: The Premiere Movie

26.Lupin III: The First vs Pippi Longstocking

27.The Three Caballeros vs The Legend of Manxmouse

28.Princes and Princesses vs The Snow Queen

29.A Letter to Momo vs Seven Days War

30.The Wild Thornberrys Movie vs The Rabbi's Cat

31.Night on the Galactic Railroad vs The Boy who Wanted to be a Bear

32.The Swan Princess vs Planetarian: Hoshi no Hito

33.Patema Inverted vs Bartok the Magnificent

34.Next Gen vs Padak

35.Asterix: The Mansions of the Gods vs Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland

36.Thumbelina vs Catnapped!

37.Early Man vs Rainbow Magic: Return to Rainspell Island

38.Junk Head vs Hey Arnold! The Jungle Movie

39.Charlotte's Web (1973) vs The Princess and the Goblin

40.Shaun the Sheep Movie vs Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius

41. Redline vs Balto

42. The Addams Family vs Inu-Oh

43. Epic vs Mary and the Witch's Flower

44.The Girl Who Leapt Through Time vs Vivo

45.Barbie: Princess Charm School vs Kronk''s New Groove

46.Waking Life vs The Transformers: The Movie

47.Barbie in the Nutcracker vs Barbie as Rapunzel

48.Pokemon: The First Movie - Mewtwo Strikes Back vs Cool World

49.The Land Before Time vs When the Wind Blows

50.The Secret of NIMH vs Summer Wars

51.The Black Cauldron vs All Dogs go to Heaven

52.The Red Turtle vs FernGully: The Last Rainforest

53.Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas vs Ron's Gone Wrong

54.The Boxtrolls vs Jin-Roh: The Wolf Brigade

55.Arthur Christmas vs One Piece Film Red

56.Barbie of Swan Lake vs The Rescuers Down Under

57.Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole vs Secret of the Wings

58.The Castle of Cagliostro vs Pokemon: The Movie 2000

59.Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust vs Arthur and the Invisibles

60.Tinker Bell vs Barbie as the Island Princess

61.Mind Game vs Tekkonkinkreet

62.The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh vs Dragon Ball Super: Broly

63.Mirai vs Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero

64.The Lion King II: Simba's Pride vs Scooby-Doo! and the Cyber Chase

[thou-babbling-brook]

Cold Feet

AO3

Rating: G

Word Count: 2216

Tags: Davenport Homestead, Assassin's Creed III, American Revolution, Canon Compliant, Happy Ending, Light Angst, Mild Hurt/Comfort, "The Wedding" Mission

Summary: Connor convinces Myriam to start her new life with Norris. Set during "The Wedding" Homestead mission between the chase sequence and the wedding scene. Hope you guys enjoy!

Connor would be the first to admit that he knew little to nothing about colonial wedding customs. Aside from a few comprehensive history and culture lessons from his teen years when he first traveled to Achilles, Connor knew nothing about the complexities of colonial weddings. Father Timothy had been kind enough to explain a few key details, such as “giving” Myriam away at the altar (which Connor was more than happy to do for his old friend), but details slipped Connor’s mind from time to time over the next several days of intense planning and preparation.

But there was one thing that Connor was sure they did not include: chasing the bride in question through the snow-covered trees minutes before her wedding.

The day began with as much chaos as one would expect. Before the roosters began to crow, nearly every member of the Homestead bustled about preparing for the joyous celebration. Oliver and Corrine worked hard preparing their finest wines for the occasion while preparing the livestock meat and crops gathered by Warren and Prudence – and of course, little baby Hunter, who cooed excitedly against his mother’s back. Once finished organizing the food, Prudence and Corrine joined the ladies in adorning Myriam in fine, comfortable fabrics suitable for the huntress. Ellen poked needles into the sides to ensure the stitching was up to par, while Diana and Catherine squawked at Connor and Norris for accidentally stepping near the bride’s suite (which Connor did not dare remind the ladies was his home). 

In the meantime, Big Dave and Lance worked tirelessly to adorn both the inn and the church with banners and decor fit for the Homestead’s very first wedding. Big Dave lifted the chubby woodworker up to pin the wooden posts on the side of the inn, waving to Terry and Godfrey as the lumberers warned Norris of the horrors of marriage to come.

“You’ll ne’er be right ‘bout anythin’ again, ya hear me, boy?” Godfrey teased as he slapped his palm against Norris’s back.

“Aye, and forget about havin’ the covers to yerself! You’ll be shiverin’ like a leaf!” Terry explained. Norris merely laughed and shook his head.

In the church, Dr. White and Achilles aided Father Timothy in preparing his short sermon, arranging the pews, and finishing the final touches hours before the wedding. Even the Assassin recruits were more than happy to help with the preparations. Stephane set to work in the kitchen alongside Oliver to cater the large meal ahead. Duncan, ever the Catholic, assisted Father Timothy in rehearsing his sermon. Jacob offered his wisdom for marriage while he straightened Norris’s hair, while Dobby stood guard outside Myriam’s dressing room in case of wandering eyes from stray men. Clipper and Jamie helped Mr. Faulkner and the crew of the Aquila find their drunken ways to the church, all while Connor wandered about and assisted where he could.

So, given the day’s chaotic events, it was not surprising to Connor as he announced happily to the pacing Norris that all was in order that Myriam was “missing.” After all, the ladies had only just left her room. How much trouble could the huntress find herself in?

Apparently, thought Connor as he raced through the trees and leapt through the branches, quite a lot. 

“Leave me be!” Myriam shouted as she jumped to the next branch, a stray branch slowing her down as it caught on her white dress. It was not enough to stop her, but it was enough for Connor to come within speaking distance.

“Why do you run?!” Connor replied, his voice echoing through the forest with concern lacing his tone. He swung to the next branch, careful not to slip and even more careful to ensure Myriam did not.

“Leave me be!” Myriam exclaimed. She crossed over to the next tree in an attempt to throw Connor off her trail. “I’m no housewife!”

Connor’s brow furrowed. While he could not necessarily speak for the entire Homestead, “housewife” would be one of the last descriptors attributed to Myriam. She was a huntress, and a respectable one at that. Through his confusion, Connor quickly ducked through another tree and sprinted across the large, sturdy branch. “No one thinks you are one!”

Myriam slid down a fallen tree, stumbling into the snow before whirling around to face Connor. “That’s what all of this means!”

A silence passed between the two as flurries of snow cascaded around them. Myriam sighed, grabbing her crown of flowers and tossing it to the ground. She sunk to the snowy ground and hid her face in her knees.

Quietly, Connor knelt beside Myriam. Lifting the flower crown into his hands, he joined her in the blanket of snow. He said nothing, only silently thumbing the daffodils adorning her crown. The two sat for a moment while gazing over the rushing river, watching as it cascaded over weathered rocks. Myriam reached forward and threw one into the water. When it sank to the bottom of the river, she huffed angrily through her nose.

“I don’t want to be some housewife that sits around waiting for her husband to come home,” she explained, tossing her hands into the air in frustration. “That’s not who I am. I’m not… I’m not some lady wanting to be kept pregnant and barefoot!”

“No one thinks you are one,” Connor repeated gently. Myriam shot a glare at the hulking man, Connor shrinking in on himself in response despite his size. 

“That’s what this means! This whole wedding! Shoving me into this stuffy dress, preparing me to take vows, giving me away!” She stood, pacing by the riverside. She gave Connor an apologetic look. “No offense. If I want anyone to give me away, it would be you.”

Connor rose and nodded his head. “None taken. But what is it that causes you to believe that you will become a housewife?”

Rubbing the bridge of her nose, Myriam groaned before settling her hands on her hips and staring out into the river. “I… I don’t know!” She tossed her hands in the air again, rustling her hair and pacing back and forth. “I don’t belong inside a house cooking and cleaning and caring for a husband and an entire brood of children. I belong in the open air, in my hunting blinds, with my rifle in my hands!” Her hands formed the gesture of her weapon in question. Then, they fell to her sides. “If I marry Norris… I’ll be leaving behind all of my freedom that I worked so hard to gain.”

Stepping closer, Connor laid a hand on Myriam’s back. “That is not true,” he murmured quietly. “You know that better than I. Norris wants only for you to be happy.”

“Do I?” Myriam asked. Her voice faltered and she turned her nose to the rushing river. “What if, when we get married, all he wants is for me to sit at home and… I don’t know, wash his feet?”

Connor unintentionally wrinkled his nose. At the very least, the gesture provided a quick laugh for the two hunters. The uncomfortable silence returned soon after, broken only by the sounds of quiet chirping and rustling bushes.

“Norris did not fall in love with a housewife,” Connor finally spoke up. He met Myriam’s gaze with his own, gentle eyes. “Why would he expect such?”

“All men do,” Myriam sighed. 

“I do not.”

“You are not all men.”

Connor glanced down at the flower crown in his hands, thumbing over the white petals. “Perhaps I am not.”

Myriam pinched her nose again. “I’m sorry, I don’t mean to offend–”

“No, it is alright,” Connor assured her. His brows furrowed in thought while Myriam squinted into the horizon. Then, a candle sparked in his mind. “How much do you know of my people, Myriam?”

“I don’t see the point of your question,” Myriam remarked tersely. When Connor gave a serious expression, she sighed. “But to answer it, not much.”

He moved in front of Myriam. “I think you would like it very much. For my people, it is the women who lead. We may have chiefs and war councils, but these men are voted upon by our women. Clan Mothers lead the village. We trace our ancestry through our mothers. For women, marriage is not just a union of the husband and wife, but of the village to the couple.”

Myriam raised a brow. “Your point?”

Placing the flower crown upon her head, Connor continued. “You are not a housewife, but even if you were, it would not change who you are. You are a skillful leader and hunter. Norris knows this. He marries you because of it, not in spite of it. He admires you for who you are. You need be nothing else. And by marrying Norris, you unite our friends as a whole, too.”

Silently, Myriam adjusted the crown and tucked stray strands of hair behind her ears. “Do you really think so?”

“I know so.” He cracked a rare smile. “Besides, you are a better shot than Norris. If anyone will be the housewife, it will be him.”

Myriam snorted. “The bad part is that I think he would enjoy being a housewife.” Her shoulders shook as she began to laugh. “Could you imagine? Me, coming home with a pipe of tobacco sticking out of my mouth, my rifle on my back, and hares in my hands while Norris cooks and cleans?”

Connor chuckled, then gently led Myriam towards the path leading to the church. “But you cannot imagine such a fate until you are wed.”

“No,” Myriam smiled, “I suppose I can’t.” As they reached the church, Myriam turned to Connor with a mixture of fear and excitement.

“I’m scared.”

Connor nodded. “I know.”

“What do I do?”

“What do you do when you face a cougar?”

“I shoot it. Are you suggesting I shoot Norris?”

“No, but I am suggesting that you face him like you would any animal.” He laid his hands on her shoulders, squeezing gently. “You are a strong, cunning woman, Myriam. He loves you deeply. He would not be marrying you if he had no intention of respecting you.”

Myriam inhaled sharply. “How do I get over it?”

“The fear?”

“No, the weather – what else would there be?”

“You won’t,” chimed a gentle, soft voice. Prudence and Ellen emerged from behind the church. Ellen offered Myriam her bouquet of flowers while Prudence wrapped a white shawl around her shivering shoulders. Prudence patted her cheek. “When I married Warren years ago, I was terrified of our future. But you learn, in marriage, that you are both equally frightened.” She giggled along with Ellen and Myriam.

Ellen took Myriam’s hands in her own. “My marriage was an unhappy one,” she confessed. Connor looked on solemnly, catching Ellen’s somber gaze for a mere second before Ellen mustered a smile. “But I can offer this wisdom: a good husband will cherish his wife for her talents, her wit, her love, her devotion, and her faith. Norris practically worships the ground you walk on. He will make a fine husband.”

Myriam sniffled. “Fuck,” she cursed. “I can’t believe I’m crying like some… some old hag!” Prudence and Ellen laughed, rubbing Myriam’s shoulders before holding her tightly.

“Besides,” Prudence cooed, staring over Myriam’s shoulder into Connor’s watchful gaze, “once we have you and Norris married, we can finally focus our attention on finding Connor a wife.”

Cheeks flushing, Connor brought his fist to his mouth and cleared his throat. “That will not be necessary.”

“Oh, hush, Prudence,” Ellen giggled. “We mustn't scare him from the prospect yet.” She turned back to Myriam, kissing her cheek. “We have to go back inside, but we will support you no matter what.” Prudence nodded in agreement before waving goodbye, giggling alongside Ellen as they hurried into the church.

Myriam rubbed her arms and faced Connor, walking with him up the steps. “You will be there every step of the way?”

“Every step,” Connor assured.

“Okay.”

“How do you feel?”

“Terrified. Like I want to run away again,” Myriam chuckled breathlessly. Connor hummed and looped his arm with hers.

“I will be there regardless. I am sure Norris will be as well.”

Myriam smiled. “Thank you, Connor.”

“You do not need to thank me. You are my friend.”

She stood on her tiptoes, pressing her frigid lips to Connor’s freckled cheek. “No, but I will. Thank you.”

Blushing, Connor cleared his throat and led Myriam to the entrance of the church, where the guests began to rise as they spotted the bridge.

“Prudence and Ellen are right, though. We must find you a bride,” she whispered, doing her best to ignore the endless amount of eyes upon her and Connor. 

Connor chuckled, patting her hand. “I can only hope she is not as fast nor agile as you.”

“Ha, ha. Who knew you had such a sense of humor?”

Years later, when Connor would find himself fidgeting in front of his betrothed’s longhouse, Myriam would loop her arm with his, kiss his flustered cheek, and walk him into the longhouse with the same kindness he had shown her before.

Luckily for Connor, his wife did not run into the trees. How fortunate he was indeed. 

[chief-of-restless-hearts]

Chapter 25: Toxic

. . .

March 17

…a few days ago…

Gotham’s only moon glowered down at Slade from its place in the roiling red sky. It bore the Dark Knight’s symbol—the brand of the gutter’s guardian. Slipping his half-drained flask back into his breast pocket, Slade swallowed its rancid aftertaste and searched his dim surroundings.

Unchanged since his last impatient glance, glinting bottle fragments still littered the untamed park turf beneath his boots. Crudities were still scrawled across the trees, fences, and filthy cobblestone. Shadows still flickered in and out of the corner of his eye, nightly omens that had long since chased seasoned Gothamites behind locked doors.

It was a city of madmen, guarded by a man no less mad than they. A man below Deathstroke’s notice. But this ‘guardian’ had allowed treasures to slip through his fingers. Left them for the wolves to scavenge. And the man hadn’t even the decency to show himself while the world’s deadliest assassin had stood within fifty paces of GCPD headquarters’ doorstep for as long as that pathetic beacon had shone in the sky.

Not that the so-called detective would have recognized the unmasked, haggard face of an old man who had buried a son one miserable year before.

Had it really been only one year?

Slade’s hand hesitated halfway toward the flask that he had in his week of absence refilled countless times with brandy that reeked of Park Row. Instead he snatched a cigar from the recesses of a different pocket. The last of Wintergreen’s hoard. Pressing the tobacco between his lips, he lit it, and waited for the familiar taste to chase away the ghost of a boy withering in his arms; a boy bleeding and voiceless; a boy cold on the floor with a smoking gun in his hand.

Smoke settled like ash on his tongue, returning him to the grave he had abandoned to come here, of all places.

A week spent in a city some called hell, during which he had acquainted himself with the gutter’s dubious virtues. The grime on his trench-coat thickened with every passing hour.

But he couldn’t go back. To that cavern. That plan. That—

Not yet.

Not while his eyelids still burned with the faces of those three boys, somehow most vividly with the one whose face least resembled his own—that, as little sense as it made, far more closely resembled that of Mr. Bruce Thomas Wayne.

Draining his flask might cure him of that thought—but there: the artificial moon had gone out of the sky. Either the Bat had finally shown himself or the Commissioner had resorted to doing his own job. In either case, the park had suddenly become far less interesting.

The breeze was fingering the hem of his coat, with only the soft flap of his coattails disturbing the stillness, except for the softest whisper of crushed grass behind him.

With the tobacco pinned between his tautened lips, he turned a fraction. Just enough to catch a glimpse of Gotham’s guardian.

The madman was nowhere in sight.

In his place stood the Batman’s little shadow.

  + - + - + - + - +

  A hunter stared up at the sky.

Setting her face toward the crisis that had lit the Commissioner’s beacon, Batgirl leapt from the GCPD rooftop, her grapple line swinging her through the tangy night wind above Gotham Park. Where a hunter waited. Still, and hungry.

For prey? Or for—

The hunter continued gazing up at Batman’s signal even after it blinked out of the sky.

Batgirl dropped lightly onto the park’s soft spring earth. Two arm lengths behind the tall, broad back, she stared. Half of her knew why. The other half stared, perplexed by the figure’s contradictions.

The hunter wore a long overcoat that flapped in the wind that passed over his still form like water. He was old, but his age lived in the world-worn carry of his shoulders, and nowhere else. This hunter’s body was very much alive.

And already he had heard her.

Half-turned to his left, he looked at her. Anticipation, disappointment, and curiosity flickered across his body like half-formed thoughts. He had expected Batman. Hoped for Batman.

  + - + - + - + - +

  The shadow hardly reached Slade’s rib-cage. It was female, but young—startlingly so. And her heart-rate reached Slade’s ears like a bloodthirsty battle drum. Unnatural.

Whether the shadow was a freak of science or nature, Slade couldn’t bring himself to care. What the Batman did in his spare time was no one’s business save his own.

His upper lip twitched slightly. So. Having run dry of sons, the Bat had resorted to daughters. Another radicalized tin soldier, green as ACE chemicals sewage.

…But no.

Slade watched the girl as she continued to study him, and something in her stance gave him pause.

  + - + - + - + - +

  The hunter stood statue-still. A killer’s poise. As native to Batgirl’s blood as to that of Gotham’s underbelly—and yet this killer was foreign to Gotham. Foreign; Familiar. A strap clung to the back of his skull, as though it held something against his face. Or his eye. The eye that hadn’t turned to examine her with so much…what was the word?

Oracle had used it once, to describe Batman during those past frozen weeks, after he’d returned shattered in ways Batman was never meant to be. With a hideous wound in his side, and worse, so much worse, blinded to anything and anyone but that Robin, who had run from him.

…Apathy?

It seemed too small a word to describe what she’d seen, then. All words did.

But why did she look at this man, and remember a tattered Robin costume that reeked of gasoline? Why, as her eyes traced the lines of his shoulders, of his half-obscured profile, did she see a rolling stride with deadly intent, and hear Robin’s far-too-familiar scream—

A vision of black, orange, and turquoise armor flashed across the nameless hunter—and she knew.

  + - + - + - + - +

  As though struck by lightning, the little bat recoiled from Slade.

—And lunged.

He pivoted, only half-braced when the storm hit. With no apparent trigger, or fathomable reason, the shadow jabbed, parried, and advanced with impossible, unnatural speed.

He struck back; she dodged effortlessly, and swept a leg toward his neck for the kill—

But as he evaded, with a speed only his enhancements made possible, he recognized its trajectory as calculatedly redirected to strike nerves rather than spine.

Whatever the shadow had once been, she had unquestionably become a disciple of the Bat. Who did not know Deathstroke’s face.

This was fact, not speculation.

Some other explanation, a different suspicion must have unleashed this single-minded fury—

“Where—” the shadow snarled mid-lunge, coarse as an un-whetted blade. “Is—” Slade bent nearly double to evade a keen swipe. “���Robin.”

Impossible.

His hands snapped out toward her neck; desperate—obvious. She slipped through his grasp like water.

His hands itched for the hilt of his sword—that he’d left behind. Along with every other blade or firearm, without even the thinnest layer of kevlar against his skin.

The tireless little demon’s speed rendered hand-to-hand combat a waste of precious time. Even a gamble.

But his pockets were full.

“WHERE?” she demanded with a viper-strike he only narrowly deflected. The glancing contact’s bone-deep aftershock decided him.

He sprang at her, twisting into an aerial kick directed squarely at her sternum, while his right hand slipped into his inner pocket. Past the crumpled scrap of newspaper that was his only souvenir from Gotham’s gutter, his fingers closed around a ridged sphere, looping his forefinger through a metal ring—

Breathless black.

Echoing out of his left side in waves; all-encompassing impact.

He struck earth, and the pain split through him like a spear. He threw himself back to his feet, defying the blinding waves as he registered that the gaping hole in his torso was exactly the size of the shadow’s bare hand, flat as a blade, that flickered wet with blood. It was recoiling for a second strike.

He brandished the grenade between them.

She halted.

One flick of his forefinger would free the pin. But his shoulders rolled with labored breaths, while she, the little bat, remained utterly unwinded. Already she was calculating her chances of knocking the grenade out of range, of dodging it. Either success would decide the night’s outcome. The park offered little cover for flight.

Breaths passed between them in the narrowing impasse.

“Need some backup, Batgirl?”

A girlish, uncertain voice. ‘Batgirl’ reacted, an agitated twitch toward Slade’s left. He permitted himself to follow her glance just long enough to pick out a slight figure in a purple cloak. Her fists were clenched as though for a fight, but her stance was amateurish. Juvenile.

“Go!” Batgirl barked.

The cloaked girl began a retort.

Barely three months previous, Deathstroke had known better than to try to tag Batman with a direct hit. But he had known just enough about the madman to find an alternative strategy.

It was time for the little bat to prove herself her father’s daughter.

He flicked out the pin.

Batgirl’s face snapped toward his. Took in the grenade. The grim line of his mouth. Her eyes seemed to widen behind the full-face mask.

He hurled the grenade toward the cloaked girl. And, with reflexes equal to those of the madman who had leapt between Deathstroke’s blast and his prodigal once-Robin, she lunged after the bait.

Slade didn’t linger to watch the explosion that ripped through the trees and licked his back with scalding heat. He tore unsteadily across the park to weave himself into the fabric of a crumbling city.

He was not pursued.

He stumbled against the sedan that would carry him back to his long-delayed responsibility. There, at least there, he could lick his wounds in peace. With the aid of a few swigs of courage to help the homecoming go down.

He dropped behind the wheel and fished out his flask, wincingly probing at his left side as the first swallow hit his gut. The wound would hurt like hell for at least another couple hours before it closed. His clumsy fingers stilled. He remembered, now: the shot he’d blasted into the Batman’s side. He couldn’t have replicated the injury more closely if he’d tried.

He choked out a laugh.

    + - + - + - + - +

    “Wake up,” Stephanie choked, her throat coarsened by the smoke and grit settling atop the tattered black cape that still half-covered her. The cape that wasn’t hers, that had taken the brunt of the blast along with— “Oh God—wake up.” Her hands fumbled for Batgirl’s face, the mask half burned away, and the face underneath—what little she could see of the soft face beneath was caked with dark, wet streaks. “No. Nononono.” She fumbled for Batgirl’s neck, pressed two fingers there.

Please, please…

A pulse. Half-sobbing with relief, Stephanie raised her eyes slightly. And gagged. The kevlar along Batgirl’s right leg was wildly shredded, and the leg beneath it was nearly as dark with seeping blood and ohgodohgod—

“Batgirl! Batgirl report! Answer me—”

She snatched the comm out of Batgirl’s exposed ear. “Oracle,” she sobbed, “she’s, she’s hurt bad, dying, please help her, please…”

Oracle was saying something back, a jumble of words that didn’t mean anything to Stephanie with this bleeding girl’s head cradled in her lap. Was this how the too-silent Batgirl always felt?

“You didn’t even blink,” she whispered to the girl—her age?—whose face she’d never seen before, whose name she didn’t know. Who was dying for her. “And you hardly even know me…” Trembling fingers brushed a crimson teartrack from the girl’s dark, still lashes. “You hardly know me.”

    + - + - + - + - +

    March 22

A sharp tug at his scalp jolted Dick toward consciousness. Toward awareness of the dead-rat taste in his mouth, the cold ache in his limbs.

“This is new,” said a voice—Cheshire’s voice. And Dick remembered. His heart-rate thumped unevenly in his chest. Breathing slowly, carefully, he stayed limp as a rag in her grip. “Far as I remember, back in Taiwan he had both ears intact.”

The flat pressure beneath him had to be a chair—wooden, judging by the slight creak as Cheshire leaned over his shoulder. Pressure wound numbingly tight around his chest, wrists, and ankles. His feet felt like blocks of ice. They’d taken his boots. Smart. But leaving his feet flat against the cement floor? Not so smart. Sportsmaster and Co. clearly didn’t make a habit of taking prisoners.

Humming thoughtfully, Cheshire wrenched painfully at his hair, tilting his head to the side. “The cut’s too jagged for a near miss.”

“Deathstroke might crop his trainees like dobermans for all I care.” Sportsmaster’s voice came from just a few feet to Dick’s right.

“It’s fresh. A few days at most.”

“Let me see.” Footsteps. Thick fingers pinched Dick’s jaw, turning it to the side with a low whistle. “Four months sure did a number on his face.”

Cheshire snorted. “Sloppy. It’s a wonder the Terminator’s kept him.”

“The boy’s a time investment.” Sportsmaster’s voice moved away. Muffled slightly as he turned away. “And if there’s one thing the Terminator hates, it’s wasted time. He’ll come, alright.”

“...Is that right, birdy?”

Cheshire’s claws prickled suddenly-poisonously against Dick’s thigh.

He threw every ounce of strength he had onto the soles of his feet, shoved off, and hurled himself and the chair forward, ripping his leg away from Cheshire’s touch and ramming his head into hers. His skull was ringing with the impact as his chair struck the floor, splitting on impact.

His eyes darted around the bare, grimy warehouse that was populated only by the three of them and the stack of weaponry that Sportsmaster was just beginning to whirl away from. Cheshire would be on him in an instant.

His strangled limbs felt as wooden as the splintered chair legs. His vision swam unnaturally, dangerously. The tranquilizer. He hadn’t reacted this badly last time. Something was wrong—but there. A gun was sticking out of a bag, just out of his reach. He lunged for it

—and dropped flat on his stomach, yanked short by his ankle. He twisted to defend himself, and had just enough time to recognize his attacker as a spiteful jumble of mangled chair and duct tape before Cheshire was upon him, teeth and claws bared.

Dick tried to kick her off. Too late. His foot connected with her midriff too sluggishly to impede her trajectory. She landed, pinning his legs and core, knocking the wind out of him in a rush.

Her claws closed warningly around his throat, and her green, hate-filled eyes stared into his, daring him to give her an excuse. Blood trickled from her nose, that didn’t look quite broken, down over her lip to stain her teeth a grisly shade. Suddenly Dick remembered the third, absent member of Sportsmaster’s family business.

“Where—” the word croaked out, half-conscious, desperately fearing the answer.

The claws tightened a hair as Cheshire’s eyes widened, the implicit threat cutting his question short. “My sister is still very much alive,” she hissed. “Fortunately for you. Crock,” she called. “Give him another tranq.”

Dick’s heart-skipping panic must have shown in his eyes, because Cheshire’s glittered down at him darkly.

Sportsmaster huffed. “Just give him a lick of your poison, girlie.”

Cheshire’s grin sharpened. She was giving her namesake a run for his money. “Not yet.”

Sportsmaster grunted indifferently, and stooped to rummage through his bag.

“Wait, wait-wait—” Cheshire’s claws cut Dick’s struggle short, biting into his skin almost-almost deep enough to draw a deadly drop of blood. Suddenly very still, he forced himself to speak through the warning pressure. “If you don’t want me dead, listen! That last dose was already too much—I can tell. I’ve been tranquilized before and this time was different. Another dose might kill me.” Sportsmaster’s old-timey hockey mask sauntered into his field of vision. The man knelt beside him, and Dick fought to meet his eyes without turning his head. “Listen, don’t—”

Pain sliced into his shoulder. Instinct caught his cry behind his teeth, even as tears pricked at his eyes.

Slade might have been proud.

“Just so long as you last ‘til the grand finale, kiddo,” Sportsmaster graveled as he withdrew the needle. “Do us a favor and make an effort to stick ‘round then then, ‘kay?”

With a brisk pat to Dick’s throbbing shoulder, the man’s already blurring shape withdrew.

Cheshire’s voice chimed in smilingly. “Assuming you do last that long, what then? With your mentor out of the picture, will there be anywhere left for you to go? Maybe we should see how the Dark Knight feels about getting his little runaway back.”

Dick laughed. It was a strange, almost hysterical hacking sound that made the claws dig deeper.

Had Cheshire pulled away? Dick was pretty sure she had. He could have sat up, if he’d wanted to. If he’d been capable of it.

“Or maybe we’ll hand you to Waller. She’s always looking for warm bodies to fill the ranks of that new Suicide Squad of hers.”

Those new words, strung so coolly together, rolled slow and heavy as molasses through Dick’s mind. This time, he didn’t feel like laughing.

“I’m just spitballing options, of course. Maybe I’ll just kill you with my bare hands.”

Dick mumbled something as his view of the dilapidated plaster panels overhead dipped in and out of shivering darkness. He was going out again. He’d been afraid of this before.

Of what?

Of who?

He blinked, the molasses in his mind filling the corners.

Who’d nabbed him? He couldn’t remember how it had happened. Had it been Dent? Joker?

He was too tired to shiver at the possibilities. It didn’t matter anyway. Whoever it was, he was coming. Just like always. Sure as a lucky penny. Any second.

…Who was coming?

The molasses settled, cooled, and questions slipped away unanswered.

  . . .

  Renegade lay flat against unforgiving cement, surrounded by clanking, churning gears, and blinking screens designed to remind him that his friends were a trigger-switch away from death. And that it’s his fault. All of it. Always.

He tasted copper. Whether it was the air that smells of oil and dust, or the blood on his tongue, he couldn’t tell.

Garbled voices were discussing what to do with this failure of a team leader.

No.

No, that wasn’t right.

He heard a new voice. It blended easily with the metallic cavern in his mind, though he couldn’t quite…

  . . .

  Claws rapped an annoying rhythm along one side of his neck, with a needle-sharp pressure set against the other.

“That’s right,” said a grim, unfamiliar voice. “Nice ‘n slow. Drop it.”

“Alright, Crock. I’m unarmed. Now let me see the boy.”

It was that voice. The one from the cavern…

“Not so fast.”

“Stand aside before I decide you’re wasting my time over a dead apprentice.”

Apprentice? The word echoed unnaturally through Dick’s mind. Robin wasn’t anyone’s apprentice.

He was a partner.

“Jade?” the grim voice called.

A searing pinch to his right ear gave Dick strength enough to hiss in pain, though not enough to lift his leaden eyelids.

“Satisfied, Wilson?” A short laugh. “That’s right. The HIVE finally decided to share a few key details with us. It is helpful when your target comes with a name attached—and a history.

“A man’s only as good as his word, Wilson, and your entire rep’s a sham. The ‘world’s deadliest assassin’, who’s never failed a hit? What a joke. You’re a smarmy bastard, Wilson, but you’re just a man—a man who’s lost before. The HIVE sure had tales to tell about you. Now we know why you didn’t choose one of the home-grown brood for a trainee. With your track record, it’s a miracle this one lasted as long as he did.”

  . . .

  Harsh laughter scraped across Robin’s ears like a steel rod against a cold cement floor. The clown was nearby. He was laughing. The warehouse floor was cold as death. Harley was crying. The crowbar was swinging down—

…But it wasn’t, was it?

Dick hadn’t been there, when it had happened to Jason.

  . . .

  “Anyways, down to business.”

A rustle of shifting cloth and clanking metal.

“As you see, it’s a risky affair taking on trainees. They get in the way. Drag you down. Little things like that can turn the game in or out of your favor. Well, Wilson. This time, the fight’ll be just between you,” a hungry, grinning beat, “an’ me.”

“Really? One on one?” It was that new voice again. The one that sounded like gears, dust, and copper. “You’ve been awfully quiet, Cheshire.”

Labored breathing beside Dick’s ear, not from exertion. Something seeping to soak the back of his head. It was damp. Warm. He smelled blood. His own? No. As much as his head throbbed, it was someone else’s wound soaking his hair, a knotted bandage pressing against his scalp. Claws twitched distractedly against his throat.

That Voice huffed. “I shouldn’t be surprised. I’d heard you’d finally gone solo, Cheshire,” into his tone crept the barest hint of a too-familiar sneer, “but you always were more comfortable playing second fiddle with your brat sister.”

Dick’s head struck cement with a vicious crack. Light and dark flared behind his eyelids. “You’re dead, Wilson!,” a woman’s voice roared—already distant. “Dead!”

“BACK, Jade!”

Ringing ears, ringing head. Still, the sudden battle-drum of fleshy percussion and whistling blades traveled across the room to tap a beckoning rhythm against Dick’s ribcage, his skull.

He was lying on cold cement. Someone must have lobbed him from behind. His head throbbed mightily enough, though he couldn’t remember how. Or who.

Not that it mattered. He was coming for him. Just like always. Partners. Dynamic, even. Bound by common oath and a gleaming sun in the night sky that beckoned them to fulfill that promise. And besides, he owed Dick one, after that last time he’d outsmarted a rogue single-handedly to save his partner’s neck.

He’d come.

But he would need Robin’s help when he did.

Get up. Get UP!

Run or fight.

…Run?

Had that ever been an option?

He rolled to his side. The earth lurched with him.

He couldn’t afford to wait for the ground to settle, or for his stomach to ease out of his throat. Because his eyes were drifting open and closed, revealing hazy gray shapes before a new wave of darkness wiped the slate clean of those chalky smudges, and amidst the clatter he could just make out a rhythm of nameless form and footwork he knew by heart. Was the name important? He couldn’t remember.

But He needed him. He always did.

Dick heaved himself up onto the numb, rubbery pillars that had once been his limbs.

A storm of earth-shattering thunder-cracks whipped a scalding gale against him, knocking him down to trembling elbows and knees. Swirling wind and pounding rain—no.

Pounding steps.

Louder—closer—and every instinct, every voice of every teacher screamed at Dick to move. His limbs refused. But the staggering, heavy gait swept past him, its breeze tickling hair against Dick’s burning ear.

A woman’s scream of rage like a battlecry followed the fleeing shape.

This time, the approaching steps were lighter. Lamer. And Dick’s eyes snapped open just in time to see a woman’s leonine snarl lunge to envelop him.

The world upended in a tangle of claws and limbs, and settled to swimming stillness with familiar, stinging spears against his throat.

A large, dark shape loomed before Dick’s swimming vision. He knew it. He was sure.

“Back, Wilson,” hissed the voice behind his ear. “You know how this works.”

Hanging limp and fearless with death against his neck, Dick couldn’t shake the feeling that the three of them had been here before.

“Drop him now,” said the shape, in slow, labored tones, “and I might not kill you.”

And he knew how it would end.

“Liar,” she spat.

He was a worm.

“These, Wilson, are my terms: let me go my way…or let the brat bleed out.”

A worm on a fishhook.

. . .

. .

.

The cement had been cold, before. Now it was warm. Sticky. Soaking.

Burning.

Large gloved hands drew him away from the warm pool, and clamped a slippery grip around his neck.

He would have screamed, but with four hooks set deeply into his throat, he hadn’t the strength to complain.

“Speak to me, boy.” The voice came from far, far away. “Say...say something.”

He was small, so very small. He fit neatly between the arms that lifted him.

He’d fallen asleep at his desk again, hadn’t he? But Bruce had found him. He would wake in his bed to the sun peeking through the manor window.

“...Bruce?” he rasped; the rib-cage against his ear surrendered a ragged breath. “M’cold…”

Burning cold. Icy flames laced outward from the hooks into twitching fingers.

“I know. I know, kiddo. Hold on.”

Vision and cognisance were fading, but for now, Dick felt safe. And even though the voice didn’t sound quite right in his ears, he pressed his face against the kevlar chest (heartbeat thundering against his ear, just like it should...) and slipped back into the dark.

    . . .

    Dick’s breath hitched at the sluggish pain in his neck. Raw, stiff, but strangely numb. Bandages, stitches, and localized anesthetic: a nostalgic combination. He exhaled slowly, drawing another equally cautious breath as he peered out from under his lashes. He was breathing the crisp scent of antiseptic, and the narrow bed and white walls he glimpsed in his first cautious glance pointed to a hospital of some kind. As if that made any sense.

His neck twinged again with his next breath, but he forced its rhythm to remain even. Sleep-like.

A ragged exhale from the left side of the bed instantly told him he’d been right to be cautious. Someone was stationed beside him.

A sharp cheshire-cat smile flashed across his mind. Sportsmaster, Cheshire: They must have brought him somewhere to lie low and wait for—

“God, kid,” rasped the voice beside him. It took everything in Dick not to flinch. “I should know better by now, shouldn’t I? They were after me, they always are...but somehow I’m never the one caught in the crossfire.” It was Slade’s voice, altered by a foreign huskiness. Something gripped Dick’s chest tightly, something too fragile to pass for relief. “Dammit...you’re my responsibility, now. My kid. And look what happened. Again. Maybe I’m just bad luck.”

Slade let out a ragged breath, and then his fingers were in Dick’s hair, brushing damp strands away from his forehead and smoothing them back against the pillow. “You’ll be okay, kid...we both will be.”

Those fingers, cold, fumbling, searched through the locks along Dick’s scalp, and a sensation gripped his throat so fiercely he could hardly breathe. The sensation crept higher, building dangerously at the corners of his stinging eyes. The monster whose fingers clutched his hair like a lifeline lowered his head to rest against the sheets over Dick’s arm. Blind to the tears that slipped unnoticed into Dick’s hairline.

The hand was too large, too heavy, missing scars and calluses from endless nights of clawing for hope in the gutter. But that absence wasn’t what caused Dick’s eyes to well and bleed like open wounds.

The tears fell with something like relief.

Because too many months had passed since he’d been allowed to cry tears of pity.

[avatarmerida]

More squad in the human realm (ofc with huntlow tho)!

Will I ever stop writing Huntlow fluff about Willow’s photos? The world may never know.

----

“Oh look! A photo booth!” Willow pointed excitedly, running over in its direction as Gus and Hunter followed. “We gotta do it!”

“Why would we use a booth to take photos when you’re so talented at it?” said Hunter.

“Smooth,” Gus whispered, gently nudging him in the ribs with his elbow and giving him a wink, genuinely impressed.

“What?” He asked, confused before looking back at Willow who was rummaging through her purse, with a new blush on her face. He was completely unaware he was the reason for it.

“Because it’s fun!” she said, finally finding enough change. “C’mon!”

She took Hunter’s sleeve and dragged him into the small space as Gus eagerly followed behind closing the curtain. As Willow plopped the change into the he machine, Hunter noticed just how small the space was. He attempted to shove himself in a corner as to not crowd either of them, but they didn’t seem the notice. Willow sat between the two boys, fixing her hair in the reflection on the screen as it loaded as Gus stood on the bench to try and match Hunter's height. With the curtain closed, the three of them unconcealed their ears and prepared for the picture .

“Oh! Oh! It’s giving us prompts for how to pose!” Said Willow, looking at the screen.

HAPPY

“Okay easy! Everyone smile!” instructed Willow as she donned her signature smile and the boys followed, smiling brightly behind her. They all laughed as it snapped the photo and gave them time to adjust to the next pose.

STYLIN

“What does that mean?” Hunter asked.

“Oh! Do that pose like in your penstagram profile pic, that’s perfect!” Said Willow as she folded her hands under her chin to adopt a cute pose like she was on the cover of one of her teen magazines. Hunter obliged, looking at his expression in the camera a finding it suitable. Gus decided to stand out in his own way and adopted a look Mrs. Noceda would refer to as “very rock n roll.”

BATTLE CRY

The three of them needed little assistance excelling at this one, as they all simultaneously lunged toward the camera screaming. Despite laughter wanting to take over each of them, they each let out a vicious battle cry. Gus leapt into the air and nearly fell over giving it his all.

“Alright! Next one, next one!” Hunter laughed, feeling like he was winning at taking photos after successfully completing each prompt. Gus shared his excitement and used his height on the bench to push himself in front of Willow and Hunter towards the screen as though knowing the prompt first gave him some sort of advantage.

He read the prompt and turned his head back to his friends, purposely covering it as he gave them a mischievous grin, as Willow tried in vain to get him to move.

“Ya know, I think I’ll sit this one out,” said Gus as the timer started counting down from 10, and Willow and Hunter attempted to move him, the task more difficult as they were trying not to succumb to their laughter. They playfully grunted and groaned, dramatically pushing him out so they could read the prompt.

“Quick! What does it say?” Willow giggled, adjusting her glasses as she has gotten a little carried away shoving Gus.

Hunter leaned forward to read the screen. “‘Romantic.’” he said as he sat back down. He turned to Willow and prepared to strike a pose when the definition caught up with him. “Oh, uh-.” he was about to suggest they follow Gus’ lead and sit this one out when Willow met his gaze and must’ve interpreted his turning to her as his half of the pose. She gave a small shrug as though to imply she was at the mercy of the screen and her actions were beyond her control before gently placing her hand on his shoulder as she leaned over to place a quick peck on his lips.

Hunter was perplexed as to whether it was Willow’s boldness or dedication to complete instructions that flustered him more but he knew his face kept no secrets as to how he felt about her choice. Even after the flash went off, she lingered for a moment as though the make sure the photo wasn’t blurry before slowly pulling away. Hunter was frozen. Willow giggled at his dazed expression and winked at him before bolting up to retrieve the photos. Hunter stayed behind for a moment, feeling as though Willow had taken all the air out of his lungs with her.

“Aw! They look so cute!” Willow gushed as Gus crowded around her to see. Hunter managed to shake himself out of whatever trance had found him to view the photos as well, needing tangible proof he wasn’t dreaming just then.

“I should really consider modeling,” said Gus. “You guys look fine too, I guess.”

Hunter shyly peeked his head out through the curtain as Willow and Gus laughed at the photos, stretching his neck to see the bottom photo to know if the camera can captured the moment if it was all in his head. 

“So they turned out o-woah!” Hunter exclaimed as he leaned too far and fell out of the booth. Willow carefully tucked the photos into her purse as she reached down to help him up.

“You okay dude?” asked Gus as he and Willow brought him to his feet.

“Yeah I’m great totally, totally normal and everything,” he sputtered, failing to be convincing. 

“Clearly,” sighed Gus with a knowing look.

“Good, c’mon; we’re late meeting the others at the food court,” said Willow, linking her arm with Hunter’s to lead him away. “We’d better hurry.”

———

Later that night, Hunter walked into the kitchen and found Willow at the table, her scrapbook in front of her as she was adding the most recent photos and decorating the pages accordingly. Hunter had to admire her organizational flair, commending her ability to chronicle their experiences. He looked over her shoulder as he walked past her to sneak a peek at the latest page. He knew not every photo she took made it into the sacred book and felt pride at how many memories involved him.

“Oh, Hunter hi!” she said, whipping her head around to greet him. “I’m almost done with my summer section, wanna see?”

“Sure,” he said, attempting to downplay his eagerness and he leaned down to get a better look. He saw a photo he had taken of her when they were watching what they thought was going to be a documentary, but Willow found it unimpressive as expressed by the distinct way she scrunched her nose. He remembered thinking that even disappointed she looked so cute, and had picked up her camera to discreetly take a picture as she often did, unaware the flash was on. He had felt embarrassed, worried he had embarrassed her despite her laughing it off in the moment but the inclusion of the photo settled his nerves. His eyes scanned the page until he found the memory he was looking for.

“Weren’t there, uh four photos from the photo booth?” Hunter asked, pretending as though the thought had occurred to him randomly and wasn’t constantly in the back of his mind.

“Oh yeah,” confirmed Willow. “Gus thought I should cut that photo out since my dads might see this album. Didn’t want them to bombard you with questions.”

“Oh really?” He replied as casually as he could, knowing he probably had the exact same questions and none of the answers.

“Yeah,” laughed Willow, as she turned to her side to reach into her bag. Hunter felt his heart sink into the deepest part of his chest at the idea that she had thrown the photo away. Maybe he could dig through the trash to find it, but what if she had ripped it up? Did that mean she wanted to forget it happened? Was she trying to tell him to stop talking about it and he wasn’t getting the hint? That happened a lot with Willow, she would say something with a certain tone she only used with him and he couldn’t help but feel like she meant something else. He just never knew what, well, sometimes he suspected he might know but didn’t want to be wrong. She was just full of surprises.

“But it was such a cute picture, I wanted to put it somewhere extra special and so Camila gave me this to keep it in.” She showed Hunter a simple golden medallion handing on a delicate chain. Hunter instantly recognized the iconic markings carved on the pendant.

“Woah, is that O’Bailey’s memory keeper that he got from Ivy after they got stranded on the desert moon?” He said, looking at the trinket closer as it glimmered in the light.

She was truly full of surprises. 

“Oh, yeah I think she mentioned it was something  like that.” Said Willow, pretending as though she hadn’t been hoping for this exact reaction. “Look it!” She opened the pendant to reveal it was a locket and their picture rested inside. There was Hunter, red as a tomato looking utterly confused and delighted as Willow sat beside him kissing him as though it was second nature to her. She managed to look stunning and effortless and Hunter couldn’t help but hope she looked a little happy too.

“It’s a... nice angle,” he said as though he was looking at a photo of her garden and not a moment that played over and over in his head in slow motion. 

“I’ve never seen you look so surprised,” Willow giggled, as she continued to place and glue the other photos. He had never been so surprised.

“It was my first... time in a photo booth.”

“Wait, really?” said Willow lightly, and then something about the way he rubbed his thumb slowly over the locket and the way tips of his ears turned red when she caught his eye made her realize what he really meant and her voice turned more earnest. “Wait, really?”

“Yeah,” he said softly, averting his gaze again.

“That’s actually kind of surprising,” said Willow with a small chuckle as she brushed a piece of hair behind her ear.

“Really?”

“Yeah, I mean you’re just very... photogenic. I would’ve figured you’ve been in plenty of photo booths.”

“Uh, no,” he hesitated to admit, unsure if he was still talking about photo booths. Though it was true he had never been in one before, and he most certainly had never been kissed in one before. “Didn’t really have time for photos or photo booths in the Emperor's Coven.”

A small pause danced between them and Willow began to question her earlier actions. In the moment, everything had happened so fast and she had been so certain and it had just seemed so…romantic. The way he had said that word rang in her ears, it wasn’t with refusal or dismissal but with curiosity with a speck of what Willow hoped was hopefulness. She thought he had stopped and was waiting for her to erase the space between them, but had he actually just stopped? 

“So what did you… think of it? About the photo booth? Was it okay?”

“Of course!” he said a little too loudly, before dialing it back. “It was nice, it was really nice. I’m... glad you were there to... take the photo with me.”

He screamed at himself internally, why couldn’t he sound cooler? Why was he diving so deep into the code that he wasn’t sure if he was making sense? Why couldn’t he just tell Willow how he-

“Oh, good. Me too.”

“So... have you ever been in a photo booth before?” Hunter’s eyes darted around the room as he casually leaned on the table and methodically twirled the chain between his fingers.

“Well they have one at Grom every year...” she started to answer, scanning his face from the corner of her eyes for a reaction as she fought back a wide smile.

“Oh?”

“Yeah,” she replied casually, not knowing how to continue their messy metaphor but not wanting to drop it as she couldn't help but find his curiosity endearing. Willow was glad to see he wasn’t upset with her impulsiveness. In fact, if she had to guess, he seemed rather fond of it. “It’s a pretty nice one.”

“Oh?” he said again, trying to make sense of her answer in terms of whatever secret code they had suddenly developed. Willow often spoke in codes like this with him and sometimes he knew what to say and sometimes (like right now) he felt lost and sweaty for seemingly no reason. He panicked that she wasn’t speaking in the code at all and he was potentially making a fool of himself, but her tone suggested she was enjoying the conversation even if it didn’t make total sense.

“Yeah, maybe after we get home and things get back to normal, we can go together and have another photo shoot.” Now she was the one avoiding eye contact, acting as though she was engrossed with applying stickers to the page in front of her to see  Hunter looking at her with wide eyes. Even without the code, she was implying something. He had never been to Grom, but he knew enough to understand she wanted to make plans to spend time together. Just with him. At an event that had certain... implications.

“That sounds like... fun,” he said carefully and honestly. “I’d like that.” Even if he was misunderstanding the extra layers to her words, he would never say no to spending time with her. He opened the locket to stare at the photo again, his chest spinning at the small smile Willow wore as she caught him off guard in the best possible way.

“You can keep it if you want,” Willow asked sweetly, and Hunter closed the locket as though he was caught reading a diary.

“Oh, uh really?” he asked, hoping it wasn't because she didn’t want to keep it.

“Yeah, since the locket means a lot to your character I’ll know you’ll take good care of it,” said Willow, hoping it wasn’t the only reason he’d cherish it. ”It’s my only copy, so if anything happens to it you owe me a replacement.”

“Of course Ca-,” he attempted to say, and once again was out of sorts by the playful shimmer in her eyes. “Of course, Captain,” he said with conviction as he placed the long chain over his neck, determined to be worthy of her trust and unaware of her intentions to have it go missing for a while one day in the future, knowing he was true to his word. “How does it look?”

“Perfect.” 

Also unbeknownst to Hunter was that the photo booth actually took five photos. In the very back of the book, as though to be the grand finale, was a photo of Hunter sitting by himself in the photo booth. His fingers were gently touching his lips, his eyes wide in shock and his face bright red as he seemed to try and process a great mystery of life. He looked totally dumbfounded and star struck and Willow felt utterly delighted to be responsible. She had covered the border with doodles of vines and placed yellow hearts stickers on the corners to keep in on the page, and marveled at it as though it foreshadowed a pleasant epilogue.

[photogirl894]

"Sun and Rain Part 2: Age of the Empire"

Chapter 21

"Discomfort and Doubt"

A "Bad Batch" fanfic!

Pairing: Hunter x fem OC, Echo (more best friend pairing)

A/N: Holy crap, why did this take me so long?? 😫

I do apologize for being away from this story for a bit! Things got crazy at the end of the school year, then I started summer break and I've been a little busy since the start of that, as well. Plus, I've had a bit of writer's block in the middle of that, so that didn't help either 😒

Well, we're back with our favorite Clones and things are ramping up for the Imperial gala, which we'll be getting to next time! This is a long one to make up for the wait, so I hope y'all enjoy!! 💜

Taglist: @the-sad-batch , @nimata-beroya , @intrepidmare , @cole-kenxbi , @tech-aficionado , @ladykatakuri , @d1n0-dan , @sammi9498 , @darthzero22 , @scarlettrose9901 , @tech-deck , @thebadbatchscyare , @chxpsi , @ilikemymendarkandfictional , @4pplecider , @locitapurplepink , @l-lend , @nekotaetae , @eternalwaffle , @merkitty49 , @avathebestx , @idoubleswearimawriter , @techs-stitches , @fantasyproductions

《 Chapter 20

》 Chapter 22

All chapters (Part 2) (Part 1)

Explanation: Emotions are running high for many as the Bad Batch and Koriena Force make final preparations for the upcoming Imperial masquerade gala.

In a dark hallway, Rina was running from a pursuer who had ill intentions. They called out for her and carried with them a container filled with chemicals they wanted to use on her, which was never going to happen. They had sent two others after her, who were chasing her even faster. She ran as fast as she could. There was no way they were going to use those chemicals on her. It was dangerous and there was no telling what it would do to her. Her heart was pounding as she kept going and ducked into another room. She had to get away.

"It's no use, Rina! You know you can't hide from us!" one of the people chasing her cried out.

"I can and I will," she muttered to herself as she slammed her hand on the door console and made it close, locking it afterwards.

She slowly backed away from the door, still in a defensive stance in case they managed to come through. She figured they wouldn’t blast through the door; that would be too much of a hassle for them. She heard them come up to the door, there were beeps from the console followed by them frustratedly realizing that the door was locked. They spoke in hushed tones, quiet enough that Rina couldn't make out what was being said. Then she heard a whirring sound, a click and then a beep from the door console, the red light on it switching to green. She cursed to herself. They'd gotten the hacker to override the door. She should've known…and now, it looked like that maybe she would have to fight her way out.

The door slid open and the two chasers who'd been after her suddenly leapt into the room and they each grabbed her by an arm, quicker than she'd anticipated.

"Let me go!" Rina shouted.

"Stop fighting," one of them said as Rina struggled against their grip.

The third person walked in, the bottle with the chemical concoction in their hands at the ready. Rina's heart rate spiked at seeing it and the person drawing nearer. She fought harder against those holding onto her, but they weren't letting up. How she wanted to scream for help. Specifically, for Wrecker. If he were there, he could take care of them with no problem. To her dismay, he wasn't there. He and the boys were off on yet another mission. She was left to her own devices, but, as the person with the chemicals drew nearer, it looked like she wasn't going to get out of this one.

With an angry grunt, she yelled at the person as they approached, "I'll die before I let you use that on me!"

"...oh, will you get a grip, Rina? You'll get your color back, but this needs to be done!"

In the refresher room of the Aurora, Kida stood before Rina, rolling her eyes at her friend and unamused at the fact she had to sic Kimber and Lex on Rina to stop her from running. In her hand, Kida clutched a bottle of color stripping solution that she intended to use on Rina’s hair…and Rina was being less than cooperative.

“Don’t make this harder than it needs to be,” Lex warned Rina, who was still struggling against her and Kimber’s grip.

Just then, Irys walked into the room, holding a datapad. “I see you managed to capture our little fugitive,” she commented.

“Oh, bite me, Irys,” Rina replied flatly.

“Look, even though we stole his invitation, the doctor from Balmorra could very well find another way to get into the gala,” said Kimber. “He saw you and would recognize you immediately, even with a mask on.”

“Your hair is a dead giveaway, so we have to get rid of the color,” Kida added.

With a frustrated growl, Rina shot back, “Well, he saw Boss Lady, too! Why aren’t you coming for her hair and stripping it?”

Giving the solution bottle a shake, Kida told her, “Kimber’s hair color is much more common, which means she’ll still blend in just fine.”

Rina let her head fall forward and heaved a loud, heavy and exasperated sigh. “I must be out of my mind,” she muttered under breath. Then she lifted her head up and said reluctantly, "Fine, do what you gotta do…but I’m dyeing my hair again after the gala."

“You’re going to be fine. It’s not the end of the world,” said Irys.

Rina just mumbled in response.

Loosening her hold on her friend, Kimber looked to the other ladies and asked, “Is it that bad?”

Lex answered her, “Rina isn’t a fan of her natural hair color. She thinks it doesn’t suit her.”

Getting more uncomfortable with the whole situation, Rina just waved her hands around and blurted out, “Can we just get this over with before I become sane again?”

Kimber gave her a reassuring pat on the back and then said to Kida, “We leave her in your capable hands, Kida, and if Kori wakes up, we’ll watch him until you’re done.”

“You ladies are lifesavers,” Kida commented as she started unscrewing the cap to the bottle.

While Lex and Irys left the room, Kimber stole one more look at Rina and noticed how uncomfortable she appeared. She really did not want to do this to her hair. The unique coloring of her hair was a huge part of her personality and in doing this, it was almost taking that away from her, even though she knew she could easily dye it again later. Kimber felt she needed something to help her through this, so she told Kida to hold off on starting for just a minute and took off from the room. She made her way to Rina’s room on the ship and grabbed something she knew would offer Rina some comfort. Once the object was acquired, she ran back to the refresher.

“Rina…I think you need this,” she said to her friend, holding out the black and blue sweetblossom-laced tooka doll named Kicker that belonged to Rina, having been given to her from her sweetheart, Wrecker, months prior.

Seeing one of her favorite possessions, Rina’s unhappy scowl softened, touched at the fact Kimber had thought to bring that for her. She reached out and took the doll, running her thumbs over the fuzzy fabric. Then she brought it up to her face and deeply inhaled the sweet aroma of the sweetblossom inside that almost right away began to calm her nerves.

“You know me so well, Kimber,” she stated, her tone now more pleasant and at ease.

“That, I do,” Kimber answered as she flashed her a smile and then exited the room.

As she made her way down the hall, her comm device chirped and she heard the voice of her beloved speak through it, “Kimber, we’ve got the gear and supplies from Cid ready. Where are you and the girls?”

“We’re all on the Aurora,” she answered him.

“We’ll make our way there,” he said.

She grinned to herself. “I’m counting down the seconds until I see you.”

“Isn’t that what I’m supposed to say?”

She snickered, knowing he’d pick up that she’d referenced words he’d said to her before. “Well, maybe I wanted to say it this time, my love,” she replied. “I’ll see you soon.”

She pocketed her comm device and remained standing in the hall for a brief moment, taking in the fact that she was now alone. The boys were on their way, Kida was with Rina and then Lex and Irys were off elsewhere in the ship. Being alone made her thoughts begin to wander and a familiar temptation rose up within her; one she still wasn’t sure why she continued giving in to. Nothing had come from it, which she knew from the beginning would be the result anyway. But she couldn’t shake the feelings she was having, so she decided to duck into Rina’s room, which she knew was unoccupied. Then she took out the encrypted holopad she kept with her now instead of in her pack. Her head fell back against the door for a moment after the door closed.

"I can't believe I'm doing this again," she whispered aloud as she went over and sat down in a chair in Rina's room.

She took a deep breath and activated the device to record her message. Then she spoke, her voice low, "Hey, Crosshair…it’s me again. I really don't know why I keep doing this. My other transmissions haven't resulted in anything from you, which I knew would be the case anyway. I'm sure you probably don't care to hear from me. I mean…why would you? You most likely see me as a traitor…but I promise you, I want nothing but the best for you. That's all I've ever wanted." Her throat tightened and she could feel the tears coming to her eyes, so she rapidly blinked to keep them from falling. "When will this end, Crosshair? When will you open your eyes and come home? I don't know what the Empire did to you to make you turn against us…but if I had known this was what would've happened, then I…I would've accepted Tarkin's offer to join the Imperial army."

Her attempt to keep from getting emotional failed and the tears fell down her cheeks. Through her quiet crying, she continued, "He had threatened to kill all of you if I refused, but I knew if he did, then at least we would all die together. But this…having you apart from us, resenting us and having tried to kill us…this is a fate worse than death to me. If I had known this was what would happen; if I could do it over again, then I would've taken Tarkin's offer to save you, Crosshair. Then, at least, you'd be safe and still with your brothers." She brushed her tears away, taking a deep breath. "I don't know if anything I say has any effect on you at all, but I need you to know that these are the things that are on my mind every moment we're apart. Not a day goes by where I don't think of you and miss you so much, it nearly kills me." She paused again for a moment, wanting to say a thousand more things and ask a hundred questions, but she knew there would be no point to it. Instead, she said in conclusion, "Know this, Crosshair: no matter where you go, no matter what you do…you'll always be my brother and I'll still love you. That'll never change…goodbye."

With that being said, Kimber ended the transmission and it sent. Most likely never to be watched, but she didn't care at this point. This was the only way she was able to cope with Crosshair’s absence and betrayal. It probably wasn't the smartest idea, but she felt she wasn't able to really talk about it with the Clones, so it was the best she had.

She put the holopad in her pocket and sat there for a minute, mulling over everything she'd said. Shortly after that, she heard baby cries coming over the ship's sound system, which meant Kori was now awake. Guess it was time to take care of the baby like she'd promised Kida. Carefully, she snuck out of Rina's room and made her way to Kida and Kori's room.

Though, as she walked inside the room, she found Irys already there, rocking the baby up and down in her arms.

"Oh! I heard him crying and thought I’d come check on the baby. I didn’t know you were already here," Kimber stated as Irys watched her walk in.

"Yeah, I happened to be close by," said Irys, continuing to rock Kori, who was starting to calm down.

Kimber just gave her a nod and moved to leave the room.

"I know what you were doing, Kimber."

She halted in front of the door. "What?" she asked.

With unwavering eye contact, Irys stated, "I know you were sending a message to Crosshair."

Kimber was shocked. How did Irys know? "I..I wasn’t--" she tried lying.

"You don’t need to lie to me," Irys interrupted her. "I walked by Rina’s room and overheard some of the things you were saying. It didn’t take me long to figure out what you were doing."

Hearing that, Kimber knew she couldn't talk her way out of it. Irys had figured her out. Instead, she sighed and explained, "I didn’t tell him where we are or anything. Plus, I’ve been using the encrypted holopad that Rina gave me a long time ago, so he can’t trace the transmission."

Irys's head whipped back to face her, her eyes widening slightly. "You’ve been using it? You mean you’ve done this more than once?"

Kimber rubbed the back of her neck nervously. "Twice, actually," she admitted.

Then it was Irys's turn to sigh with exasperation. Setting Kori, who was now calm, back into his bassinet, she said to Kimber, "I don’t think it’s wise of you to be doing that."

"I know," said Kimber, hanging her head briefly. Then she lifted her eyes again. "It’s just…he’s like my brother. I love him and I miss him so much."

"I understand," said Irys, coming around the pram to stand in front of Kimber. "I’m not surprised that, despite what he’s done, you miss him and you’re trying to still reach out to him." She laid a hand on Kimber's arm. "You’re a good person, Kimber, with a very kind heart. Your compassion and trust is something few in this galaxy deserve yet you offer it freely to just about everyone you meet. You trusted us, a group of women with questionable and shady backgrounds, and now look at us…you helped us change for the better. With the way you talked about your boys when we first met, it doesn’t surprise me that Crosshair’s betrayal has affected you so much and you’re still holding onto the hope that you can get him back."

Kimber tried to muster a small smile in acknowledgement of Irys's reassuring words, but failed to keep it and she hung her head again in sorrow.

Removing her hand, Irys went on to say, "Though, I wouldn’t let that hope cloud your judgment. The reality of it is: Crosshair made his choice and it’s likely that continuing to pull on the thread that you can get him back will end in disastrous results. Just be careful, okay?"

"I will," said Kimber. Then she placed a hand on Irys's shoulder. "Please don’t tell any of the lads about this. I don’t know how they’ll react, especially Hunter. I know we promised to not have secrets between us, but…he doesn’t ever want to talk about Crosshair and I know it’s because he’s hurt just as badly as I am. I’m just handling it differently than him."

Irys bowed her head. "I won’t say a word. I still would advise you not to keep this from Hunter or your squad for long, but your secret is safe with me." Then her face fell a little and her tone turned solemn. "You’re not the only one who has to mask their real feelings around those they care about."

Kimber's hand fell away and her eyebrows furrowed in confusion. What did Irys mean by that? "What do you mean? What do you have to hide?" she asked.

For once, Kimber saw Irys appear hesitant and Irys turned her gaze away and replied, "I may be highly intelligent…but let’s just say that my heart doesn’t always act in accordance with my brain."

"I’m not sure I understand," said Kimber.

The Togruta woman closed her eyes and her head hung just a little more. "Meaning I care for someone against my better judgment...someone whom I know already cares for another."

Kimber found herself a bit stunned at this revelation. She'd never thought Irys had feelings for anyone since she'd never said anything. Kimber was about to ask who it was, but then Irys looked up at her with sorrow in her eyes Kimber had never seen from her and an almost knowing look. Something about the look she was being given gave Kimber the impression that she knew who it was Irys was referring to. She began to reflect on those in their group. It couldn't be any of the Bad Batch. Irys had never really showed romantic interest in any of them; the only one she interacted with the most was Tech, but he didn't have feelings for someone else like Irys said, so it couldn't be him. That left the Koriena Force. Well, all of them all had feelings for someone else, so that didn't seem to help. Kimber began to think of those in the squad that Irys seemed to interact with the most; the ones Irys seemed to have a closer relationship with...and then it became clear to her, realizing there was only one Irys seemed to show the greatest care for.

"Lex," she said aloud.

Irys got the tiniest sad smile on her face as she simply responded, "Yes…Lex." Then the smile disappeared and she hugged her arms across her chest. "I can’t let my true feelings be known, not when I know she’d never reciprocate them." When she looked back at Kimber and saw the sympathy in her eyes, Irys waved a dismissive hand and, going back to her normal demeanor, told her, "There’s no need to pity me. I accepted this a long time ago. She and I are still close friends and that’s all that matters to me."

The words Kimber was hearing from Irys were beginning to sound all too familiar…as she herself had once heard such words from another Clone Lieutenant some months before. Her heart began to ache and she put a hand over her chest.

"Do the other girls know?" she asked.

Irys shook her head. "No. I've carried this secret alone for a while." She sighed quietly and then went on, "That’s why I’ve pushed so hard for her to embrace her feelings for Echo. He’s a good man and I know he’s someone that can restore her faith in love, if he feels the same. I know he can make her happy and that’s what I want most for her is just for her to be happy. I can’t do that for her, not in the way she needs. What she needs from me is my friendship and I’ll gladly give her that for the rest of our lives."

Finally, Kimber couldn't hold back anymore and she threw her arms around Irys, hugging her tightly, which slightly startled Irys. "I’m sorry, Irys…," Kimber said, "...but it’s sweet of you to support her feelings for Echo. You really love her that much, don’t you?"

She felt Irys's arms slowly come up and hug her back and then Irys answered, her voice catching just a little, "I do."

Kimber's arms tightened to try and comfort her friend. "To care that deeply for someone enough to let them go and find happiness with another is incredibly selfless. I admire that about you," she reassured her.

Her mind once again wandered back to Jesse, now seemingly understanding what he went through with her. It seemed easier to sympathize when it was someone else involved instead of herself and not feeling that guilt of having to reject the other. Both Jesse and Irys were in love with people who would never return their feelings, but they were strong enough to accept that and even encourage those they loved to be happy with others. That level of noble loyalty and devotion to someone, despite the pain of unrequited feelings, was unlike anything she could ever imagine.

Kimber pulled back and placed her hands on her friend's shoulders. "Will you be okay?"

With an assuring nod, Irys told her, "Yeah. Don’t fret over me."

Just then, Kimber's comm beeped again and they both heard Echo's voice speak, "Look alive, Kim. We're approaching the Aurora."

"I'll let the ramp down for you guys," she replied. She gave Irys a nod and then left the room.

"Is all of the Koriena Force present?" then came Tech's voice. "We shall need to continue planning for the upcoming gala."

Kimber said into the commlink, "They're here, yes, but Kida is currently putting Rina through torture, so we might need to wait a bit."

"Why is Kida torturing Rina?" she heard Wrecker asked worriedly.

She chuckled. "Not literally, Wrecker. She's fine. Kida's just having Rina do something she finds unpleasant, but it's necessary. You'll see when you get here."

Then a smile crossed her face as Hunter's voice responded, "Be there soon, sweetheart."

About an hour passed before Kida emerged into the back room of the ship and declared with a flourish of her arms to the Koriena Force and the Bad Batch, who had since arrived, "My work is now complete."

Rina came out from behind her looking the most uncomfortable anyone had ever seen her, her cheeks bright red and her attention directed at the floor. The purple in her hair was gone and it was now a darker blonde color.

"Wow…so this is your natural look, huh?" asked Lex, who was lounging on the sofa next to Echo.

"I don't believe we've ever seen it," Irys commented to Lex.

"Shut up…," Rina mumbled.

Wrecker made his way over to her and Rina immediately wanted to curl up and roll away like a Droideka. Not Wrecker, she was already so embarrassed. She hated her natural hair color and now he had to see it.

He leaned from side to side to get a good overall look at her hair and then asked, "Rina, why do you look like that?"

Unsure of what exactly he meant, she asked, "My hair or my face?"

"That look on your face," he answered.

"I hate my hair…," she grumbled.

"Why? I think you still look amazing!" he cried out with a huge smile on his face.

Then Kimber spoke up from behind him, "Yeah, I think your natural color still suits you."

"Even I concur with that assessment," added Tech.

Omega ran up next to Wrecker and said with a heartwarming smile, "I think you look cute!"

"You look great, Rina. Don't worry so much," said Lex.

Kida smirked at Rina and just said, "See? I told you."

Rina blushed again at the support she was getting not only from her now sweetheart, but her friends, as well. She had also seen approving nods from Hunter, Echo and Irys, too. "Thanks, guys," she shyly replied to them.

"Now that that's taken care of, let's get to work and finalize our gala plan," stated Hunter. "What do we already know so far?"

Tech spoke up first, "The details from the gala invitation were that it is being hosted by Senator Gume Saam, the representative of the Techno Union in the Galactic Senate, on his home planet of Tibrin. Cid informed us that it's going to be a front for Imperial negotiations regarding the assets of the collapsed Trade Federation and Techno Union. Our objective is to gather as much intel from the gala as possible."

Raising her hand in the air, Kida said, "I already have half our outfits done."

"Already? It's only been a week," said Hunter.

She just smirked again and replied, "Yeah...I'm just that good, Hunter darling."

He simply gave her an impressed look.

"The first thing we need to determine is how we're getting in," stated Rina, folding her arms across her chest as she and Wrecker came over to join the others. Then she turned to Tech and asked him, "Hey genius, you duplicated those invitations yet?"

Straightening his goggles, Tech answered, "Indeed. There are now seven invitations in our possession."

"Though, even if we have invitations, that might not be enough," said Lex. "We gotta have a reason to have them and, if we're not any sort of Imperial higher-ups or emissaries of the Trade Federation, it could arouse suspicion."

"I agree," added Echo, bringing a hand up to his chin in contemplation. "If we're going in undercover, we need a good enough motive to be there."

"I don't think it'll work pretending to be certain Imperial personnel, not with a team of our size," Irys put in.

Omega stepped up. "What about the entertainment? All parties need music or something to distract the guests."

Wrecker said in reply, "None of us play any instruments."

With a bob of his head, Hunter stated, "Well, actually…Kimber does sing."

Kimber's eyebrows shot up at him making that revelation and all eyes were suddenly on her.

"You can sing?" asked Echo.

It hadn't even occurred to Kimber that Hunter was the only one who knew that about her. She had sung at a bar on Kuat when she and Hunter stayed at an inn some time ago, but after that, she'd never had any occasion to sing around the others.

"I can, yes," she answered timidly.

Pointing at her, Rina cried out, "That's it! Cid can contact an informant and get Kimber lined up as one of the entertainers and the rest of us can be her entourage."

Hunter turned to Kimber and asked, his tone calm and soft, "Do you agree to this, Kimber?" There was also a subtle apologetic look in his eyes as if trying to imply he was sorry for even bringing up her talent in the first place.

While she desperately wanted to say "no", it was seemingly the only good enough choice they had that would work. With a heavy sigh, she said back to him, "Yes, I'll do it."

He gave her a small, reassuring smile in return.

"You said there were seven invitations?" inquired Kida.

Tech said to her, "That is correct. Irys, Omega and I will remain on the Aurora to assist with the mission as well as to monitor your child, which leaves you, Hunter, Kimber, Echo, Lex, Rina and Wrecker."

While tapping her chin in thought, Irys suggested, "Kimber will have to be on her own if she's going to be singing, but it may be prudent to split everyone else into teams. That way, we can cover more ground and therefore, possibly gain more information."

Rina looked up over her shoulder and inquired, "What do you say, big guy? You and me wanna be backup in case things go south?"

With a giddy smile, Wrecker pumped his fist and proudly answered, "Oh yeah!"

Echo then said, "I can sneak off eventually and find an access terminal to the Senator's primary computer. I'm sure he's bound to have loads of information I can gather."

"Lex can go with you and watch your back," said Irys.

Lex's eyes widened. "Wait, what?" she questioned. "I--I don't think…."

"I'm okay with that," said Echo. He looked at her and a pleased grin crossed his face.

Seeing his smile made her feel warm inside, but at the same time, she wanted to turn away, which she did. A week prior, she had finally realized for herself that she had fallen for Echo and that whole notion scared her. Ever since her unfortunate fallout with Dune and his betrayal long ago, she was terrified of opening her heart to another man, even one as kind and wonderful as Echo. Since the night she'd gone to him in the medical room, she'd ended up only avoiding him when she could, even though it pained her to do so. Irys suggesting she go with Echo on the mission was going to make that difficult.

Her reaction did not go unnoticed by him.

After hearing Irys's suggestion, Kida leaned into Hunter's arm and said in a flirtatious yet teasing tone, "That just leaves you and me, handsome. We can scope out the crowd together."

Hunter simply grinned back in amusement. "Sounds like a good plan to me."

"You just want an excuse to flirt with all the Imps," said Rina.

Kida replied nonchalantly, "Maybe…but if you seduce a man the right way, you can get him to spill all his secrets. It's an effective method."

"All right, looks like we've got our plan," said Hunter to everyone. "Tech, Irys and Omega will stay aboard the Aurora to monitor the mission and assist when needed. Kimber is our ticket in as part of the gala's entertainment. The rest of us will go in under the guise as her attendants. Once we're in, Kida and I will mingle through the crowd and keep our ears open for any useful intel. Rina and Wrecker will do the same and serve as backup for Kimber if things go wrong. Echo and Lex will stealth out and find the Senator's primary computer and gather as much information from there as they can. Is that understood?"

"You got it, boss," answered Wrecker.

"Hear you loud and clear, Sarge," added Rina.

Then Tech said, "Now that our plan is finalized, might I suggest we sort through the gear and supplies we acquired from Cid?"

"Good idea, Tech," said Omega with her usual big smile.

"I don't know why you are so eager. You're not going to need any of the supplies," he replied to her.

"I know. Doesn't mean I still can't be excited," she said back.

Hunter grinned at Omega's enthusiasm and then declared, "Let's go then."

He led the way and everyone moved to follow him. However, as Lex got up to move, Echo spoke her name and she halted in her tracks. Why did she have a feeling this was going to happen?

When he approached, he asked, "Have I...done something wrong?"

"What do you mean?" she asked.

He went on to say, "Ever since the night you came to me in the med room, it seems like you've been avoiding me. Then just now when Irys suggested you go with me on the mission, you looked uncomfortable. Did I overstep that night or have I offended you?"

She should've known he would notice her behavior, but she couldn't allow him to think it was anything on his part. Shaking her head, she told him, "Echo, it isn't you. It could never be you." When he looked surprised, she said, "The problem is me…and I just can't talk about it right now." Without another word, she quickly left the room and followed after the others.

Echo opened his mouth to call after her, but then decided against it and let out a quiet sigh. He didn't understand what was wrong. Everything had seemed fine that night in the medical room when she'd opened up to him...it had all felt right. Now, she was shutting him out. He wanted to know why, but he also knew it would do no good to push her. He would respect her privacy for now, but soon, he would do his best to get answers from her.

Around a corner ahead, Irys had stayed behind and overheard everything. Lex had run past her and didn't even notice she was there.

"Lex…you hard-headed idiot…," she thought to herself, shaking her head in frustration.

The road those two were on was going to be a long one.

Kimber sat on the bed in her and Hunter's bunk, now just in her blacks, attempting to rebraid her hair as she waited for Hunter. They all had gotten the supplies and gear ready to go for the gala in the coming week and Cid, in remarkably quick time, was able to secure her a spot in the gala's entertainment lineup under the pseudonym Kahna Sora…and that was what was making her anxious.

She knew it was the best option for the mission in order for them all to successfully get into the gala, but…why did it have to be her? Why did she even agree to it? Would she even be able to do what was needed of her? She couldn't understand where all this self-doubt was coming from, but she couldn't shake it. Her fingers fumbled clumsily with her hair, which messed up her braid and she groaned in irritation, pulling it all apart again.

"My love?"

A familiar voice she loved brought her back to reality and she found Hunter sitting beside her on the edge of the bed, now also in just his blacks and looking her over with concern.

"What's on your mind?" he asked her, laying his hand on the small of her back. "I can tell something's bothering you."

"My role for the mission…I don't think I can do it," she admitted.

Taken aback, he inquired, "Why not? You've sung in public before. This won't be any different."

Turning to him, she responded, her voice rising slightly, "I did that willingly and this time, I'm singing in front of a bunch of Imperials. I'm there to amuse people who are wreaking chaos across the galaxy and who knows how many atrocities all of them as a collective have committed. Not only that, I'm doing it alone!"

Clearly hearing her frustration as well as sensing it, he assured her, "You may be by yourself on a stage, but sweetheart, you know you won't be alone. Rina and Wrecker will be there and same with Kida and I. You know we won't let anything happen to you."

"It just…feels so wrong," she said, hanging her head.

He brought her closer and rested his head against hers. "I know it does, but everyone believes in you. You're strong and capable; you've done undercover missions before, which is how I know you'll get through it again. We all have your back and if it'll ease your worries, we can have Kida add more armor and weapons to your dress to ensure you'll be protected."

Kimber rotated her head and nestled into his neck, inching closer against him for comfort. "Please don't go far from me, Hunter," she pleaded with him. "If somehow things go wrong, I need to know you'll be there."

Gently, he urged her back and lifted his head so he could look at her and he told her to turn around. She turned her back to him and he pulled all her long hair into his hands and began carefully braiding her hair, having noticed her distracted attempts at trying to do it herself moments before.

As he weaved the locks of her hair between his fingers, he told her calmly, "Kimber, you know I'll come running to your side immediately…but you also don't need me to." He saw her turn her head to try and debate what he said, but he stopped her by saying, still in a patient tone as he continued braiding her hair, "Just listen to me. You are a soldier; skilled, brave, resourceful and smart. It's okay to be nervous, but you've done this before. Your first undercover mission, you met Wat Tambor, a Separatist leader, and still stood your ground and even pulled a blaster on him without any fear."

"That was a stupid move on my part," she stated.

"But it was still a move that not only proved your loyalty to Echo, but that you were truly a soldier who belonged with us," he said back. "You are fully capable of handling things on your own and you fought to make me see that a long time ago. I'm not about to forgo that now." He tied the end of her braid and pulled lightly on her shoulder, making her turn to face him as he then took her hands in his. "If things go wrong, I will still fight everyone at that gala to make it to your side and I'll protect you with everything I've got...but you don't need me. Should the mission go south, I know you'll be able to take care of yourself. You and I both know it took me a while to bring myself to trust that because all I could think about was keeping you safe."

She very lightly scoffed and nodded. "Yeah, it sure did," she commented.

"I don't need to worry about that anymore," he told her. "The many missions we've been on together as well as seeing you lead the Koriena Force have fueled the trust I have in you to do things on your own without me having to be there. I know you'll be okay. You'll enchant those Imperials with your voice the same way you did with me and keep them distracted enough for us to complete the mission. You can do this. I believe in you and I need you to believe in yourself. Got it?"

Kimber smiled gratefully at Hunter, overwhelmed with love and touched at all the words of affirmation he had just given her. It still amazed her how much he had grown since their relationship first started; from hardly ever considering putting her in any danger to now completely trusting her to hold her own in a dangerous situation. He always knew the right things to say to help calm her down and quell her fears.

With a small nod of her head, she replied, "I will, Sergeant."

Pleased, he grinned and bowed his head.

"Thank you," she said.

"Of course. I love you and I'll always be here for you," he said back.

She laid her head on his shoulder again and said as she felt his lips touch the top of her head, "I love you, too."

Then he shifted backward towards the head of the bed, laid down on his back and then held out an arm to her. "Come here," he invited her.

Promptly, she accepted and laid down beside him, laying her head on his chest as his arm came around her, pulling her closer. His hand came up and held hers that was resting on his chest, as well.

"Forget your doubts, Kimber," he said softly. "You don't need to be afraid. I'm here…and I always will be." Then he placed a kiss on her brow.

Kimber lifted her head and lovingly kissed Hunter's lips before laying back down, now feeling content and protected in the safest place she knew: in the arms of her Hunter.

[whump-tr0pes]

Hate in My Heart

(This was supposed to be an assignment for an anthropology class, but I couldn't help but make it whumpy. Hope you guys enjoy me being a goof.) Rhaeti (Ötzi the Iceman) thinks it would be a good idea to spend a few days in the mountains.

Contents: historical fiction, hand gore, neolithic field medicine, revenge, murder, major character death, spoilers on a 5300 year old murder

~

Rhaeti’s right hand stung. This cut was deep, far deeper than any cut he had suffered before. He cursed the gods, and his luck – but it wasn’t his luck to blame, it was his damned slow bones. And that damned boy Breun. Rhaeti had known the boy was going to get into trouble someday, he just hadn’t figured the trouble was going to be trying to overpower him. And over the ownership of a damned bow. The boy could make his own damned bow if he wanted one so badly, or just have Isar make one for him. He didn’t need to take Rhaeti’s.

Damn, damn, damn.

Still, it was good that Rhaeti was giving the boy a few days to calm down. Rhaeti had beaten him soundly after Breun had come at him with a hatchet, damaging his hand – his good hand, gods damn him. Staying away from the village was the careful thing to do. And you didn’t live as long as Rhaeti had by not being careful.

Gods, but his hand hurt.

He drew in a slow breath, pushed out a gusty exhale. The afternoon was warm, the sun beating down on the naked rocks around him, warming him through his leather clothes and bearskin hat. His grass cape kept off the breeze. He needed his cape this far up; the trees offered no protection. They did not grow, this close to the sun. Still, he liked it up here, where he could see the mountains stretching farther than any man could see. He didn’t mind waiting up here, where no one but the gods and the wind could hear him, while that damned fool boy cooled down from his stupid ideas of having Rhaeti’s bow for himself.

His hand was throbbing, though, so he settled himself down on a rock. His knees and back ached. He knew he would have to return to the healer to have more tattoos drawn on him to stave off the pain. The tattoos helped for less and less time, now. Still, he was grateful that he was old enough to have sore knees and a stiff back. It meant he was still alive.

He dug through his pack and pulled out the large, soft mushroom the healer had given him. He took a small bite and ground it to a paste between his teeth. Gently, he smeared the paste in his cut, wincing as he did. He pressed bog moss over the poultice to bandage it. Still, the medicine did nothing to stop the pain.

Damn that boy and his damned envy.

He stretched out his legs, groaning as he did, and reached into his pack again. A meal of deer meat, ibex fat, and bread would do him good after his hike up into the mountains. His legs were strong, but he wasn’t the young man he once was. As he ate, he hoped his stomach wouldn’t hurt after it so often did when he ate ibex fat. Still, it made him strong. He would not give it up, just because of a little pain. He sighed as he tilted his head back and let the sun warm his face, wondering how much farther he would hike today.

-

Venos’s heart leapt as he laid eyes upon his target. He ducked behind a large rock, grateful for the cover in this land of no trees. He peeked around the rock, hands tightening around the bow he held – his father’s bow, the one he had taken from his home, swearing to his father that he would take his revenge.

Rhaeti – the gods damned old man who had crushed Venos’s happiness in a single afternoon – was staring up the mountain, away from Venos, his foot up and braced against a rock. He was about thirty meters away, but Venos’s eyes were sharp; it was why he was celebrated as the village’s best hunter, why he came home with ibex, red deer, fox and beaver, enough to keep everyone well-fed and healthy. Enough to keep the old man standing on the slope above him clothed in his fine pelts, outfitted with tools he did not even know how to make. All so that he could take away Venos’s joy, then escape into the mountains as if it meant nothing.

Not today. If the gods did not punish Rhaeti for his sins, then Venos would. He blinked tears from his eyes as he nocked an arrow to his bow. The old man had not moved, but still looked upward at the terrain above him, as if looking for the best route up. Venos drew the string back. He took aim at Rhaeti as if he were an animal, ready for slaughter.

“For you, Breun,” he whispered as he let the arrow fly. It struck Rhaeti behind the left shoulder. The old man crumpled to the ground.

Venos leapt towards the fallen old man, clambering up the rocks and reaching him in what felt like a breath. Rhaeti lay on his stomach, his left arm collapsed under him. Blood poured from his forehead from where he’d struck it on a stone. He moaned as Venos grasped the arrow and twisted.

“My brother died from his wounds this morning,” he hissed, his voice shaking. “You killed my brother, old man.”

“Please,” Rhaeti mumbled.

“I have nothing but hate in my heart for you,” Venos said through his teeth, tears flowing freely now. He jerked the arrow from the wound he had made. It was fatal, he knew, but he would not grant the old man the relief of a quicker death than this. “And I’m not wasting one of my arrows on you.”

He turned to go, wiping his eyes on his sleeve so he would not slip on the rocks as he made his way down the mountain.

[fan-ficwife]

˗ˏˋNew FanFic Creator ´ˎ˗

₊˚ପ⊹ Hello to everyone reading! My name is “fan-fic wife” and I decided to make an account to publish fan fictions of fandoms I’m in. This post will be an introduction of me, my top 3 fandoms, and extras you’ll have to read more to see ♡

★・・・・・・・・・・★

⋆ ★ About me

⋆ I’ll go into personal things about me that I think you all should know!

──── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ────

✧˚ · . My online name is Cali

˚ · . I will not be disclosing my age to anyone!!

✧˚ · . My pronouns are She/They

˚ · . I also enjoy role playing as much as fan fics

✧˚ · . I watch and read lots of stuff

˚ · . Currently on mobile but plan on getting a laptop soon

✧˚ · . I also only have tumblr for this stuff but I plan on making a tiktok, twitter, and maybe instagram for this content!!

˚ · . Will not tolerate racism, homophobia, ableism, disregarding triggers, etc.

★・・・・・・・・・・★

⋆ ★ Fandoms

⋆ I’ll talk about my top 3 fandoms I’m in, there is much more I’ll make a post on later!

──── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ────

✧˚ · . The first fandom I’m in is BTS! I’ve been an army since 2017 but I’ve been into K-Pop since 2016.

˚ · . My bias is Min Yoongi/Suga/Agust D. He’s been my favorite since I’ve gotten into BTS.

✧˚ · . I don’t have a favorite song from them since it’s so hard to choose, but my top 3 right now are Boy In Luv, Anpanman, and 21st Century Girl!

˚ · . My favorite song from Yoongi currently is Haeguem and my favorite collaboration is That That ft. Psy

✧˚ · . Last thing I wanted to put is I’ll miss them while they are in the military but they will be back in 2025! Let’s keep fighting army!

──────────────────────

✧˚ · . The next fandom I love is Alice In Borderland! I’m very into psychological horror and I like how they incorporated it into the manga and the show.

˚ · . My favorite character is Niragi, especially in the manga. It upset me how in the show he did some bad things though

✧˚ · . It’s my favorite non-drawn show, there’s a possibility for a season 3! I personally like the ending and think it’s fine but I also have unanswered questions so I wouldn’t mind a season 3.

˚ · . I got into Alice In Borderland in 2018 and read the entire manga. When the show came out in 2020 I watched season 1 but never finished season 2 when it came out until this year, 2023

✧˚ · . Lastly this show for some reason is emotionally connected to me, it’s just a hyper fixation of mine and I love it a lot

──────────────────────

✧˚ · . The last fandom I’m in is pretty broad but I a favorite it’s just not popular, it’s anime!

˚ · . I’ve been into anime since I was a kid, my first anime was Glitter Force but the first official anime I really started to watch was Fairy Tale! (Never finished it.)

✧˚ · . Currently I’m watching Neon Genesis Evangelion but I’m not too much of a fan of it, but I’ll still finish it

˚ · . I have an anime list of all the anime’s I’ve finished completely and I will post it!

✧˚ · . My favorite anime is “The Girl Who Leapt Through Time.” It’s by far amazing though it is only a movie!

˚ · . I don’t have a favorite series but I guess if I had to choose my top 5 are Hunter X Hunter, Puella Magi Madoka Magica, Ouran Host Club, The Day I Became a God, and Junji Ito!!

★・・・・・・・・・・★

⋆ ★ Extras

⋆ I’ll talk about this account a bit, what I plan on posting, etc.

──── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ────

✧˚ · . First, which I’ve said before, I’m only on mobile but I plan on getting a laptop soon!

˚ · . I also, again, will most likely make a TikTok and Twitter/X!! Maybe an instagram but not sure

✧˚ · . I have many fan fiction ideas in mind! I plan one writing at least one for each BTS member, but most likely there will be lots of Yoongi/Suga

˚ · . I also plan on writing at least one for each main character in Alice In Borderland, maybe some side characters I enjoy

✧˚ · . Lastly I’ll definitely be doing lots anime fan fictions, maybe one shots, etc.

˚ · . This blog will mainly be about me, memes, and updates!! I also have one of those “Question” response things where you can request things but I might make a google form for requests on TikTok and Twitter and put it in my bio, same for here on Tumblr!!

✧˚ · . Also I have CharacterAi so if y’all like the fan fiction so much I might start making bots for you all to use with my fan fiction stories !!

★・・・・・・・・・・★

˗ˏˋYou Read It! ´ˎ˗

₊˚ପ⊹ If you read all of this and are interested in anyway thank you so much! You probably saw it on here or from my TikTok that will be posted in the future lolz. I hope you all have nice days/nights and again thank you!

[bluecube92]

My Anime Movie List *UPDATED*

Ghibli:

My Neighbor Totoro Castle in the Sky Ponyo Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind Howl’s Moving Castle The Secret World of Arrietty Kiki’s Delivery Service The Cat Returns Porco Rosso Spirited Away Pom Poko Whisper of the Heart Princess Mononoke My Neighbors the Yamadas Tales from Earthsea Grave of the Fireflies From Up On Poppy Hill The Wind Rises When Marnie Was There Only Yesterday Ocean Waves Earwig and the Witch

Pokemon:

Pokemon The First Movie Pokemon The Movie 2000 Pokemon 3 The Movie Pokemon 4Ever Pokemon Heroes Pokemon: Jirachi: Wishmaker Pokemon: Destiny Deoxys Pokemon: Lucario and the Mystery of Mew Pokemon Ranger and the Temple of the Sea Pokemon: The Rise of Darkrai Pokemon: Giratina and the Sky Warrior Pokemon: Arceus and the Jewel of Life Pokemon: Zoroark: Master of Illusions Pokemon the Movie: White-Victini and Zekrom Pokemon the Movie: Black-Victini and Reshiram Pokemon: Kyurem VS. The Sword of Justice Pokemon: Genesect and the Legend Awakened Pokemon: Diancie and the Cocoon of Destruction Pokemon: Hoopa and the Clash of Ages Pokemon: Volcanion and the Mechanical Marvel Pokemon the Movie: I Choose You Pokemon the Movie: The Power of Us Pokemon: Mewtwo Strikes Back Evolution Pokemon: Secrets of the Jungle

Case Closed:

The Time Bombed Skyscraper The Thirteenth Target The Last Wizard of the Century Captured In Her Eyes Countdown to Heaven Phantom of Baker Street The Crimson Love Letter Zero the Enforcer Episode "One": The Great Detective Turned Small

Other:

The Girl Who Leapt Through Time Summer Wars Yu-Gi-Oh! The Movie Yu-Gi-Oh! 3D Bonds Beyond Time Yu-Gi-Oh! The Dark Side of Dimensions Digimon The Movie Card Captor Sakura The Movie Card Captor Sakura The Movie 2: The Sealed Card Revolutionary Girl Utena The Movie Night on the Galactic Railroad Spring and Chaos Professor Layton and the Eternal Diva Lupin the Third: The Castle of Cagliostro Paprika Memories Tokyo Godfathers Patema Inverted Steamboy Oblivion Island: Haruka and the Magic Mirror Perfect Blue Wolf Children A Letter to Momo Princess Arete Akira Millenium Actress The Boy and the Beast Little Witch Academia: The Enchanted Parade Tekkonkinkreet Ghost in the Shell (1995) Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence 5 Centimeters Per Second The Garden of Words Appleseed (1988) Appleseed (2004) Appleseed Ex Machina Appleseed Alpha Miss Hokusai Your Name Cowboy Bebop The Movie In This Corner of the World The Sky Crawlers Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex: Solid State Society Mary and the Witch's Flower The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya Steins;Gate the Movie - Load Region of Deja Vu Robot Carnival Napping Princess Flavors of Youth Eden of the East: King of Eden Eden of the East: Paradise Lost Legend of the Millennium Dragon Martian Successor Nadesico: Prince of Darkness First Squad Children Who Chase Lost Voices Mirai Godzilla: Planet of the Monsters Godzilla: City on the Edge of Battle Godzilla: The Planet Eater Fireworks No Game No Life 0 Short Peace A Silent Voice Like The Clouds, Like the Wind Jungle Emperor Leo A Wind Named Amnesia The Fantastic Adventures of Unico Unico in the Island of Magic Fuse: Memoirs of the Hunter Girl Mai Mai Miracle Ni No Kuni The End of Evangelion Strait Jacket Evangelion 1.01 You Are (Not) Alone Evangelion 2.22 You Can (Not) Advance Evangelion 3.33 You Can (Not) Redo Evangelion 3.0+1.0 Thrice Upon a Time Modest Heroes Okko's Inn A Whisker Away Tiger and Bunny The Rising Children of the Sea Little Norse Prince Redline Weathering With You Origin Spirits of the Past Genius Party Genius Party Beyond Promare The Life of Budori Gusuko Ride Your Wave The Night is Short, Walk On Girl Welcome to the Space Show Project A-Ko Project A-Ko 2: Plot of the Daitokuji Financial Group Project A-Ko 3: Cinderella Rhapsody Project A-Ko 4: Final Birthday Wonderland Blood: The Last Vampire Venus Wars Maquia - When the Promised Flower Blooms Re: Cyborg 009 Words Bubble Up Like Soda Pop Penguin Highway Golgo 13: The Professional Golgo 13: Queen Bee Puella Magi Madoka Magica Rebellion Lupin III The First Escaflowne The Movie Stand By Me, Doraemon Stand By Me, Doraemon 2 Expelled From Paradise Child of Kamiari Month Bubble Dirty Pair Affair On Nolandia Dirty Pair Project Eden Dirty Pair Flight 005 Conspiracy Trigun Badlands Rumble Urusei Yatsura Beautiful Dreamer The Place Promised In Our Early Days Belle K-ON! The Movie A Tree of Palme Drifting Home The Princess and the Pilot Fruits Basket Prelude Hells Black Butler: Book of the Atlantic Black Jack the Movie Josee, the Tiger, and the Fish Lupin the 3rd: The Mystery of Mamo The Deer King Inu-Oh Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba The Movie Mugen Train Jungle Emperor: The Brave Can Change The Future To Every You I've Loved Before Re:Cycle of the Penguindrum: Your Train is Your Survival Tactic Re:Cycle of the Penguindrum: I Love You Pompo: The Cinephile Lupin the 3rd Episode 0 First Contact Slayers The Motion Picture Poupelle of Chimney Town To Me, The One Who Loved You Colorful Hal

Short Movies: Little Witch Academia Kakurenbo - Hide and Seek Voices of a Distance Star

Movies I want to watch: The House of the Lost on the Cape Goodbye, Don Glees! Giovanni's Island

[ultraericthered]

COMING SOON - ANIME UPDATE V3

“V3″ in this case stands for “Version 3″. I did the V1 series of posts from late 2019 to the end of 2021, then did the V2 posts in 2022 and 2023. Time for another shake-up, once more before the last time.

Vinland Saga S2 will continue with its second half, and once I'm done with it, and once I'm done with it, the newly revived Kimi ni Todoke will be taking its place, itself to be followed by Vision of Escaflowne once I'm done with it.

Hunter x Hunter will continue to the end this year, and once I'm finally done with it, Fullmetal Alchemist will be taking its place.

SHUFFLE! will be a new anime I start up, and along with it will soon come the 13 episode AIR. Jun Maeda's prototype for CLANNAD, Kanon, would be the most likely to take its place afterwards.

Fate/Stay Night: Unlimited Blade Works draws to a close, soon to be replaced by The Case Files Of Lord El Meloi II.

Konosuba will be taking over from Re:ZERO (talk about whiplash!), and once its done, its place will be taken by Black Cat.

Symphogear XV will finish off the Symphogear series, and once that's done, K-On!! will be taking its place.

Eureka Seven will continue through the year, and once I'm done with it, I'll finally look back to the Gundam franchise with Gundam Wing.

Gintama will be returning as well. with me finally getting closer towards the really good parts.

EXTRAs that I intend to also give watches to from now to perpetuity: A Certain Scientific Railgun, Akame Ga Kill, Akiba Maid Wars, Attack On Titan, Azumanga Daioh, Bakugan Battle Brawlers, Baccano, Berserk, Black Butler, Bloom Into You, Blue Exorcist, BNA: Brand New Animal, Bungo Stray Dogs, Captain Earth, Chainsaw Man, Code Geass R2, Cutey Honey, D-Gray Man, Date A Live, Demon Slayer, Digimon anime, Dragon Ball anime, Durarara, Full Metal Panic, Gabriel Drop Out, Great Pretender, Gundam & Macross anime, Gurren Lagann, Haruhi Suzumiya, Horimiya, Inuyasha, Kill La Kill, Little Busters, Little Witch Academia, Made In Abyss, Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic, Marmalade Boy, Megaman NT Warrior, Monster, Moriarty The Patriot, My Hero Academia, My Next Life As Villaness, Nadia: The Secret Of Blue Water, Nichijou, Non Non Biyori, Odd Taxi, One Punch Man, Ouran High School Host Club, Persona The Animation, Pokemon anime, Pretty Cure, Princess Jellyfish, Puella Magi, Ranma 1/2, Rewrite, RWBY, Rurouni Kenshin, Sakugan, Shadows House, Shaman King, Shikimori's Not Just A Cutie, Slime Taoshite 300-Nen, Soul Eater, Steins;Gate, SSSS Dynazenon, Tales of the Abyss The Animation, Tenchi Muyo, Tiger & Bunny, Trigun, The Demon Girl Next Door, The Girl Who Leapt Through Space, The Pet Girl Of Sakurasou, The Rising Of The Shield Hero, The World Ends With You Animation, Yuna Yuki Is A Hero, and likely plenty of others that might come my way, old and new, rewatches included.

Yeah.

[battery-low]

some movies/series i have seen/want to see

first slam dunk

blue giant

mary and the witch's flower

sirocco and the kingdom of winds

rascal does not dream of a dreaming girl

the tunnel to summer, the exit of goodbyes

the girl who leapt through time

‌wolf children

boy and the beast

mirai no mirai

belle

summer wars

in this corner of the world

metropolis anime

your name

children who chase lost voices from deep below

5 centimeters per second

the place promised in our early days

‌suzume

weathering with you

garden of words

little nemo

‌fist of the north star

vampire hunter d

vampire hunter d:bloodlust

wings of honneamise

ninja scroll

macros plus

patlabor

redline

the melancholy of haruhi suzumiya

the disappearance of haruhi suzumiya

tekkonkinkreet

serial experiments lain

the case of hana & alice

the piano forest

night is short walk on girl

okko's inn

millennium actress

i want to eat your pancreas

a silent voice

liz and the blue bird

kimi no iro (releasing: 082024)

the heike story

dog of flanders

angels egg

giovannis island

night on the galactic railroad

to the forest of firefly lights

a letter to momo

josee, the tiger and the fish

summit of the gods

kodoku no gurume

time of eve

panda go panda

patema inverted

kabaneri of the iron fortress

orange

gravity

wayne

big boys

small lights

old enough

begrijpt u nu waarom ik huil

schindlers list

colourful (1999)

colourful (2010)

‌anthem of the heart

‌maquia

maboroshi

inu-oh

birdboy

‌banana fish

‌terror in resonance

short peace

500 days of summer

summer ghost

chungking express

goodbye don glees

fleabag

one day

office space

lost in translation

manchester by sea

blue valentine

paddington 1, 2

neon genesis evangelion

end of evangelion

evangelion: 1.0, 2.0, 3.0, 3.0+1.0

le otto montagne

the bear

met mes

call me by your name

beatiful boy

beau is afraid

chainsaw man

white lotus

sopranos

band of brothers

monster anime

pluto

master keaton

to your eternity

miss hokusai

‌your lie in april

march sweeps in like a lion

‌a place further than universe

the perverts guide to cinema/ideology

yuki yukite, shingun

everything everywhere all at once

the hunchback of notre dame

jojo rabbit

coldfish

love exposure

in the mood for love

house

in bruges

midnight gospel

‌god father i,ii,iii

‌scarface

‌death parade

one punch man

mob psycho i,ii,iii

vinland saga

bee and puppy cat

‌violet evergarden

violet evergarden (special)

violet evergarden (movie 2019)

violet evergarden (2020 movie)

‌anohana the flower we saw that day

erased

scavenger reign

inuyashiki

over the garden wall

‌bojack horseman

‌better call saul

‌breaking bad

‌game of thrones

severance

shogun

‌naruto

‌scrubs

‌moonlight kingdom

‌freedom writers

a sun

handmaids tale

carnival row

7 samurai

kingdom of heaven

persona

a brighter summer day

past lives

perfect days

dear zachary:a letter to a son about his father

paris,texas

time still turns pages

silent love

monster (movie)

wonka

get out

poor things

‌us‌

candyman

‌nope

fionna and cake

audition

on the count of three

sensitive the untold story

lucy

the creative brain

rudy

nyad

‌the whale

memories of murder

taxi driver

after hours

goodfellas

a clockwork orange

eternal sunshine of the spotless mind

‌requiem for a dream

‌children of heaven

‌my sisters keeper

‌hachi dogs tale

the big short

‌gardenstate

‌boyhood

‌perks of being a wall flower

‌into the wild

‌good will hunting

mishima: a life in four chapters

what's eating gilbert grape?

better days

king of staten island

schindlers list

meet joe black

we are who we are

cowboy bebop

yasuke

nr. 10

dead poet society

ghost in the shell

ghost in the shell sac

memories 1995

euphoria

atlanta

the vince staples show

matrix i,ii,iii

animatrix

star wars visions

castle of cagliostro

my neighbour totoro

spirited away

howls moving castle

kikis delivery service

ponyo

the wind rises

whisper of the heart

the cat returns

the boy and the heron

tales from the earthsea

from up on poppy hill

castle in the sky

nausica valley of the wind

porco rosso

princess monoke

ocean waves

only yesterday

pom poko

grave of fireflies

the tale of the princess kaguya

the neighbours yamadas

gauche the cellist

arrietty

when marnie was there

red turtle

samurai shamploo

oldboy

tales of the unusual

insidious

the face of another

rin daughters of mnemosyne

afro samurai

close

paranoia agent

bullet in your head

gladiator

american gangster

american psycho

poltergeist

eyes wide shut

mind game

if beale street could talk

heat

a time to kill

killers of the flower moon

dunkirk

the iron giant

tree of life

mindhunter

blue eyed samurai

twin peaks

[ackerfics]

rory, can you maybe give a list of your anime movie recs? feel like you've got good taste and yeah

i feel like you already watched the anime movies that i'm going to rec 🥹 but here it is !!

anything studio ghibli (marathon them to have the best experience. fun fact: my favorite studio ghibli film is from up on poppy hill and howl's moving castle.)

perfect blue (such a mindgame wtf)

paprika (yeah, i think i see a pattern in satoshi kon's works)

tokyo godfathers (this is perfect for christmas!)

millennium actress (in short, satoshi kon has a grip on my heart)

in this corner of the world (such a wholesome film but tw bc it has war in it)

mamoru hosoda's works (summer wars, mirai, wolf children, the girl who leapt through time, the boy and the beast, belle; these movies are just chef's kiss)

maquia (to this day, i cry to this movie)

makoto shinkai's works (your name, weathering with you, garden of words, and the upcoming suzume which i haven't seen yet fjiejd; another director omg)

vampire hunter d (the animation and the usual vampire plot is divine)

anthem of the heart

children of the sea (bEAUTIFUL.)

colorful (tw talks about suicide)

hotarubi no morie (😭)

a letter to momo

a whisker away

her blue sky

i want to eat your pancreas (😭)

hal

the night is short, walk on girl

words bubble up like soda pop

whew, i went crazy on this but there are still more me thinks 🥹 enjoy watching these masterpieces, anon !! have a great one 🥰

[emptymasks]

Hi, can you recommend some good traditional animated movies that aren't Disney, Don Bluth, and pre-CGI DreamWorks and WB, please? Even obscure traditional animated movies will help, too.

oh boy okay um, i don't know why you came to me with this as i don't like make posts about animated movies very often and it's not really a topic i know a lot about so i'll name the few i like that fit that criteria guess? also by traditionally animated i don't know if you want 2d or specifically 2d without using a computer so.. i'm just going to list some 2d animated movies i like that aren't disney, don bluth or dreamworks.. wait you said pre-cgi dreams? so i'm going to include dreamworks 2d animated films as well then. and you didn't use a comma so i don't know if you mean no warner brothers or only non-cgi warner brothers so.

The Transformers (1986)

Vampire Hunter D (1985)

Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust (2000)

The Prince of Egypt (1998)

Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron (2002)

Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas (2003)

The Road to El Dorado (2000)

My Neighbor Totoro (1988)

Kiki's Delivery Service (1989)

Princess Mononoke (1997)

Spirited Away (2001)

The Cat Returns (2002)

Howl's Moving Castle (2004)

Ponyo (2008)

Akira (1988)

Ghost in the Shell (1995)

The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (2006)

Your Name (2016)

The Swan Princess (1994)

Scooby-Doo! and the Witch's Ghost (1999)

Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island (1998)

Scooby-Doo and the Alien Invaders (2000)

Scooby-Doo and the Cyber Chase (2001)

[a-crow-ready-for-a-murder]

Screw it chapter 5

Fight! Fight! Fight!

Hope you all have fun with this chapter.

“Shapeless abyss beneath my finger tips, pull thyself to mine palm

Let gushing ink dry and be wings written from murders of old

From the form who cried nevermore I call to bring forth

The Corvids Shadow!”

Rook turned as the spell was cast and witnessed Jaylin pulling her very shadow into her hands and forming it like a malleable substance. Once it had solidified his eyes widened. A large, black sledgehammer that Jaylin was now running at him with “You Dumbass!” she hollered as she leaped and brought down the hammer, hoping to get him square on the head. Rook wasted no time jumping out of the way as the hammer narrowly missed him and thudded hard on the grass where his feet had been. Undeterred, Jaylin brought her weapon back up and swung it to the side where Rook leapt back and just avoided another hit. With an angry huff Jaylin reformed the shadow into a series of small blades then with a forceful wave of her arm sent them flying. Knowing he couldn’t simply step to the side, Rook quickly rolled onto his shoulder and back to his feet as the blades flew over him. “What were you thinking!?” Jaylin spat as she called back her weapons “All you had to say was ‘no’ but somehow” turning her shadow into a long whip she swung at him again “you just made things more difficult!” Another roll spared Rook from being hit “What.” She swung again, he dodged again. “Is.” another swing, another roll “your.” she was growing thirsty from exerting herself but her anger drove her on “Problem!?” Rook was trying to move behind her so she spun around letting the whip gain velocity and managed to clip his leg as he tried diving forwards in hope of getting closer, without getting hit. “My my, oiseaux chanseus, what a good strike” said Rook with a slight grimace as he gripped his now bleeding calf “Give me one good reason not to continue” growled Jaylin through her dry throat

“Ah mon ami, I don’t think there is an explanation that’ll sate you, but if you want to know why I gave le roi d’or all those names, consider this, each one of those boys are in Savanaclaw and perhaps when monsieur dandelion sees his dear prince talking to all those suitors with his bouquet in hand it might spark true bravery on his part so he may finally court his beloved”

Jaylin blinked once, then twice, surely this wasn’t real, surely he didn’t actually just declare he’d set up a romantic drama. Upon seeing he was dead serious her rage grew tenfold “So you just pulled that stunt to add drama!? Are you insane!?” Once again her whip was soaring and Rook was dodging as if he didn’t have an injured leg “Ah but it makes the success all the sweeter” he said as he started panting. That’s when Jaylin stopped for a moment, Rook was a hunter, conserving energy is a practice he’d been drilling into all the first years, he was a master of pacing, so why was he out of breath so soon? She was about to ask him when the dryness in her throat turned to an irritating tickle that made her cough instead. Rook looked around, the air was suddenly very dry, usually he could handle most climates but all of a sudden he was horribly parched. That’s when they heard it, “I am the one who hungers, I am the one who thirsts” The familiar baritone made them both face the direction of a now awake, and very annoyed beastman. They didn’t need any other warning to turn and leave. Once they were out of his sight, Leona yawned and went back to his comfortable spot under the tree.

[total-cards]

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