#through the spyglass

[existential-labrador]

So what brings you to therapy?

[banji-effect]

[multicolour-ink]

Lyra is a character with a destiny.

But I feel like everyone forgets that Will Parry is the reason she was even able to achieve that destiny.

[renrapp]

jenna ortega is allegedly ending her contract with the scream franchise following melissa’s undeserved firing … oh thats MY girl

[cyberbeez]

silly little full moon

[bistaxx]

The census critter has a name apparently! it's Nussaa!

edit: nvm it's the mods name!

[malwarewolf404]

Could you imagine being so fucking entitled and out of touch that you imagine a problem and then proceed to spend $44 Billion dollars on that problem while knowingly burning the subject of that problem faster than the library of Alexandria.

[robocracker]

just realized, this time tomorrow his dark materials is gonna be over...

[radioactive-mouse]

i keep thinking about like. how the brutality levels vary between seasons and how secret life is the natural culmination of everything these people have been through and the watchers pushing everything to extremes. i’m going to try to articulate how crazy this makes me

3rd Life: god. 3rd life was a clear cut war. we haven’t seen a season since where nearly everyone has such an intense devotion to their chosen faction. the fact that there’s no precedent that they’re coming back next season, the fact that as far as they know, dying means staying dead, makes just how much they’re willing to go down with the ship that much more heartbreaking. grian ended the season exactly how it was played by damn near everyone else— i love you, i would do anything for you, i would rather die than keep going without you. the season of widows.

Last Life: and then they come back. and then ending things isn’t an option. and all of a sudden it’s not a war, it’s a death match, and damn is the competition is vicious. deaths are more often than not a vague, impersonal thing— not get away from my king, my husband, my charge— just the flash of a knife and a quick sorry, just playing the game! if 3rd life told you to hold the ones you love close, defend them to your last breath, last life urges you to burn that love out of your chest entirely.

Double Life: but everything slows down eventually. no more dying for the one you love— just learning to live with them. double life is about knowing that when you die, you will go together, hand and hand into the dark. a soap opera, the players joke. a small kindness, the universe replies. again, pearl wins the same way everyone else lost— no, not yet, please, just give us a little longer together, i’m not ready, i’m so sorry—

Limited Life: but the clock, unyielding, ticks ever onward. and god, everyone is starting to feel it. that sick, nauseating feeling of dread creeping up on them: what if it never ends? what if this is it, this is all that’s left for us— tearing each other apart over and over and over again, and for what? for a show? to feed those hungry things lurking in the dark? we’ll give them a show. bombs rain from the sky, the world shaking under the weight of it. there isn’t a thing left by the end that’s not rubble. we’re all doomed! the players cry, laughing with nothing but nihilistic, unrestrained joy. none of it matters! we come back again, and again, and again, have a little fun with it! light the fuse, collateral be damned. when death means so little, what’s the point in pretending they don’t take a little joy in it? we settle this like grian and scar before us, scott jokes, armor and weapons tossed to the side. are you insane? martyn thinks, remembering the hollow look that would wash over grian’s face when he thought no one was watching. it ruined him. it will not ruin me. this is a death match for a reason.

Secret Life: and here it is. the natural conclusion. this season is candy colored, the map dotted with cute pink houses and silly builds, the players all running around doing these ridiculous tasks. it’s so easy to forget how bloody this season was. unclosing wounds, bruises that don’t fade, the sting of fire or falling from a simple misstep. the hurt never goes away, but it gets easier to ignore— distract yourself with something silly to pass the time: spyglasses and frogs and the ugliest house you’ve ever seen and matching leather jackets and the doghouse and the relationSHIP and a weird tunnel full of doors and secret soulmates and god it’s almost, almost, enough to forget how much it all aches, how much the grief weighs on you, how many times someone you love has died, sometimes to your own blade. almost none of the grudges you hold are real by now, not really. not when you’re going to live and die with these people for as long as the hungry, many-eyed things delight in your suffering. you love each other, in the strangest way— sure you’ve all killed and betrayed each other in a thousand different ways, but at the end of the day, they’re all you have. clinging to each other in the face of the vast, unknowable horrors that drive you to slash each other to pieces. it’s still a game, after all. they’ve gotta figure out how to be good sports about it eventually.

[duckimate]

GRUMBO WEEK DAY 3 - " Nightmare " @grumboweek

"read more" at your own discretion. messy+wordy explanation of the concept coming:) .

.

.

pardon me for being late but i really couldn't stand leaving this looking unfinished so. had to spend a bittt more time on it (might even post for grumbo week even after the event's over if thats okay!!)

we all got over the progression from their friendship to their betrayal of eachother in Last Life too soon. i need people to mourn with me

"Nightmare" made my mind immediately jump to the series that waffle duo really got their share of angst from, Last Life. How an unbreakable bond of friendship strengthened by literally passing eachother something as valuable as a life so quickly crumbled into them both betraying eachother in the end, a Nightmare scenario that the two of them would've never even considered for sure. even grian, who upon turning red was still clinging onto the hope that their bond was so strong that mumbo would join him as a redname. (concept) even red mumbo, who in his last ditch desperation tried reigniting post-red yellow life grian's humanity by giving him the spyglass, the southlander's physical embodiment of their friendship, only for grian to crush it mercilessly ,,,,,,,,,

anyway for this piece i tried real hard to cram in as much symbolism and imagery and intent behind my lines and colors as possible, so heres some of it! (theres more but thats on you to figure out!)

Composition + just some of the details : the main concept that i really wanted to drive home is the use of the SPYGLASS as symbolism for the progression of their bond throughout Last life, up until the end. yellow-side grian holds up a spyglass, looking towards the right

day4 past and future concepts ahead the spyglass extends through the past to the present, like a solid line of sight into the future before its unfortunately crushed by red-side grian (him shutting down any friendship or reconciliation from mumbo) mumbo, back against the future, faced twoards the past, reaching his spyglass out looking for who his friend was, only to see a cracked figure of him staring back grian, faced towards the future in both drawings, but also looking back at mumbo, with different emotions but both with the same desire to move forward, one with adoration and another with the desire to move on from mumbo's dead body and focus on self-preservation. he knew he had to move on, and he was right.

SOUTHLANDERS BADGE: mostly for visual interest! but also unlike the spyglass, is an unremovable physical reminder for post-red grian (literally lodged deep into his shoulder)

CLIPPED WINGS: i felt like i had to mention that they're supposed to look clipped in the second drawing:) "HE NEEDS TO LEARN" was a real quote that was directed at both jimmy and mumbo, but we gotta adapt pfft ,,, this post is long. LOng long. i should stop. special SPECIAL thanks to my dearest @justrelaxhere for their hours worth of dissection of my drawing! god i could always count on them to squeeze every drop of symbolism out of my work. without them i wouldn'tve been able to fully articulate my ideas! okay thanks for reading people:D

[taiistired]

Martyn freezes and backtracks mentally, wondering where the conversation got away from him. “It’s just a potion,” he tries. “I said I’m fine.” Scott breathes out hard, through clenched teeth. “Don’t treat me like Jimmy.” “I’m not,” Martyn says, bewildered. “Have I stolen a spyglass from you recently?”

— from i want to say i'm sorry for stuff i haven't done yet

[crowpickingss]

Hiiii can I maybe request a hook x gn reader where some princess gives him a love potion and true loves kiss comes in clutch?

True Loves Kiss

hook x gn! reader

summary: hook asks bridget for a love potion to give to you. Instead of making you fall in love it makes you fall asleep

warnings: magic

a/n: love this request hope you don’t mind I changed the princess to bridget I felt it suit her more

—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—

The first time hook saw you his heartbeat went crazy. He would often watch you from around the corner or through his spyglass. One day while he was watching you at your locker Morgie approached him.

“Spying again I see” Hook jumped when he heard his friends voice “What no, I’m just picking Uli’s next target” Morgie lightly punched hook in the arm “Yeah sure, look I’ve seen you spying a lot” Hooks cheeks turned pink

“Look I’m not judging, but if your this obsessed I would ask Bridget” Hook audibly groaned “Why Bridget, she’s so annoying” Morgie laughed at hooks annoyance “She makes love cupcakes, give one to y/n and boom you two are in love”

The next day hook reluctantly knocked on Bridget’s door. When she opened the door she was surprised to see hook “Look Bridget I wouldn’t normally come here but, I need a favour” Ella appeared behind Bridget “Why should she give you a favour, for all we know your going to use it against her” Hook bring his hand to his hip “I won’t I promise, I just need one of those cupcakes..”

Bridget smiled and welcomed him into her dorm “Which one, I have lots” Hook tilted from side to side in embarrassment “I need uh the love one..” Hook stood silent as Bridget gave him one cupcake “Just give this to the lucky person and make sure that you are the first person they see” Hook nodded and left Bridget’s room.

After the last class he found you sitting by a tree reading a book. He approached you holding the cupcake “y/n, did you want this Bridget gave it to me but I don’t want it” You looked up from your book “Yeah sure” He watches in anticipation as you take the cupcake and bite it.

He looks into your eyes as the form hearts “Hook I-“ His smile quickly fades when you fall asleep right then. He grabs your shoulder and shakes you trying to wake you up. In a slight panic he picks you up and carries you back to his and Morgie’s shared dorm.

He places you down onto his bed and runs to ask Morgie for help “Morgie there you are, you’re stupid plan didn’t work” Morgie turned to face hook a bit confused “What do you mean” Hook grabbed his hand and dragged him over to you “See, I asked Bridget for the stupid cupcake and now they are asleep” Morgie chuckled “Have you tried waking y/n up” Hook looked at Morgie with an angry look “Y/n won’t wake up, I’ve been trying for a while” Morgie’s smirk dropped.

Hook and Morgie both walked over to Bridget’s dorm “Oh hey boys, everything alright” Hook pushed past her and entered her dorm “Your cupcake didn’t work” Bridget looked at hook in confusion “What do you mean” Hook groaned “I mean the person who I gave it too fell asleep” Bridget giggled but stopped when she saw hook glaring her down “To wake the person, they need a true loves kiss” Hook rolled his eyes

“Can you stop messing with me and actually tell me how to wake them up” Bridget smirked and crossed her arms “That is the reason, have you never heard of it” Hook shook his head and shoved Morgie out of Bridget’s room and back to their room.

When they finally arrived hook approached your sleeping body and leaned down. Took a deep breath and kissed you on the lips. He moved back and watched as your eyes returned to normal and as you woke up. You looked over to hook and stood up “Thanks for the cupcake” He stopped you before you left

“Do you feel different” He held a firm grip on your shoulder “No?” He sighed but let you go “Bye James, I love you” His head turned to face you as you walked out “Love you too?” He turned to Morgie “What just happened” Morgie laughed “Your greatest wish I guess”

—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—•—

[fanaticsnail]

Sweet Baby Boy

Masterlist Here

Word count: 1,200+

Synopsis: Your spouse ripped the arm off a young, enemy captain. You feel sympathy for the baby boy, and ensure to tell him as such.

Themes: Spouse!Benn Beckman x gn!reader, platonic!Eustass Kid x gn!reader, Kid has a praise kink, Kid enjoys being babied, fluff, swearing.

Notes: this is just a silly, crack one-shot based on a follow up to the "You Shot A Baby" dialogue post. It's funny, when I write for Eustass Kid, I always seem to want to write for Benn Beckman.

Tag list: @sordidmusings @since-im-already-here @feral-artistry @writingmysanity @gingernut1314 @vespidphoenix @cinnbar-bun @carrotsunshine

Shanks elevated his spyglass with his right hand, attempting to maneuver it to get the best angle to glance at the deck of the Victoria Punk from his position on the Red-Force. He elevates his right knee, balancing his elbow atop it to anchor his elbow against it.

“What did you say they were doing, again?” The redhead called to his first-mate over his shoulder, “Where were they going?”

Beckman, who remained stoic in silence as he stamped out his twelfth cigarette in the span of twenty minutes with his boot heel, huffed and exasperated breath as he sauntered over beside Shanks.

“Go on, big guy,” Shanks encouraged him with a small nudge, “What did they say, hm?”

“They said-...” Beckman bit back a snarl through his grimace, “...-that Captain Eustass Kid is a baby, and needs to be coddled and treated as such after I shot him.”

“They said, what?” Shanks' shock had him drop his spyglass, lunging forward to hastily catch the item in his hand, “Don't they know how dangerous he is? How violent and unpredictable he is? How he nearly took apart our crew with his bare hands before you blew the damn thing off-.”

“-I let 'em know,” he growled in fury, “And they simply would not listen to reason.”

A booming voice erupted from the Victoria Punk, prompting Shanks to elevate his spyglass to his face further and seek out its source. There was nothing on the seas that could have prepared him for the sight he was met with.

Dropping his hand from his face, he wordlessly handed over the metal eye-piece to his first mate with a shake of his head. Beckman snatched the object and raised it to his eye, his own shock evident on his face.

There you were, Benn Beckman's spouse and long-time lover, sitting on Eustass Kid’s topdeck throne atop his knee: cradling the large Captain’s head against your chest, with your lips curved upwards in a pout. Beckman was not an avid lip-reader, but he could just imagine the praises and soothing words you were cooing down at the violent captain.

“You've gotta be shittin’ me, Darlin’.” Beckman whispered to himself, noticing the way you were stroking Kid’s right cheek with the back of your hand, pressing your lips in gentle kisses against the sensitive, scarred flesh of his left cheek.

As if sensing a presence, you turned your head to glance down the barrel-end of the augmentative glass within the metal cylinder, promptly extending a crude gesture with your middle finger at your long-time partner.

Beckman rumbled a growl within his chest, handing back the spyglass to his captain before digging in his pocket for another cigarette.

“Still not a baby-,” he grunted, igniting the tip of his cigarettes.

-

“-Such a big, brave boy,” you cooed at the enemy captain, stroking his hair and pressing another chaste kiss against his scarred temple, “Taking on a legendary captain of incredible caliber, only to have such violence be your welcome.”

Eustass Kid was eating up every ounce of affection you were presenting to him, nuzzling into your chest and embracing you with his right arm hooked firmly around your waist.

“So, so strong. Such a beautiful, brave baby boy,” you continued to affirm into him, a small hiccup fleeing from the red-head tinkerer’s lips.

When you showed up on a dinky row boat and bound it to the hull of the Victoria Punk, he had half a mind to order Massacre Soldier Killer to cleave your left arm off. He knew you were the spouse of Shanks' first mate. ‘An eye for an eye, an arm for an arm,’ he rationalized.

What he didn't expect was for you to immediately begin treating him with the worshipful doting praises a parent would give to an injured child.

And he didn't expect to like it.

“What the fuck?” was the first thing uttered from his lips as you began cradling him against yourself with praises of his bravery and skillful hands. As he felt each small touch granted against his skin, his secondary reaction was, “Oh, what the fuck…?”

He was reveling in the warmth presented to him by your hands, the love and soothing motions you were treating him with. He had no idea how to behave himself beneath such a beautiful expression of sympathetic empathy - especially at the hands of someone he assumed was his enemy.

“He will never come near you again, sweet boy,” you whispered to him, soothing circles from the pads of your thumbs drew patterns against his shoulders, “Not mean, old, naughty, violent Benn Beckman. Not any of the Red-Hair Pirates-.”

“-Aren’t you a Red-Hair Pirate?” Killer spoke over your shoulder, prompting Kid to shoot him a look.

“Shut up, Kil. Let me have this,” he growled at his First-Mate, leaning into your arms with a broad grin, “T-Tell me again? Tell me what I am, again?”

“Oh, you poor, sweet baby boy,” you cooed down at him, witnessing as his eyes softened as he looked up at you from his position cradled into your chest, “So brave, so strong.”

“And my arm? What about my arm?” Kid prompted you, basking under the radiance of your unbridled compliments.

“Such a clever boy, too. Using your abilities to create a masterpiece of violent art, which doubles as an artificial limb,” your pouted lips depicted a soft and melodic tone while uttering your praise.

Eustass Kid hummed in thought, squeezing your hip within his right hand that was woven around your waist. He bounced you a little atop his knee, noticing the way you smiled down at him with a small shake of your head.

“You sure you want to go back to your Captain?” he arched his brow up at you, “I'm a red-head with a missing left arm. Wouldn't be that much of a stretch if I were to captain you.”

“Unfortunately, no, sweet baby boy,” you smiled, giving his cheek a gentle tap, “As much as I want to keep giving you praises and sweet gentle kisses-.” You attempted to stand from the young captain's lap, laughing as his hand grasped at your hip to hold you close.

“-I really should be getting back to my wonderful, very angry-.” you began, Eustass Kid's voice covering your own with his gruff tone.

“-Very violent, masochistic, sadistic, terrible spouse who hurt me by ripping my fuckin’ arm off,” he growled, turning his lips to mirror your prior pouted expression, “Me. Your poor, defenseless, sweet-,” he kisses your cheek in an uncharacteristic peck, “-innocent, baby boy.”

He relinquished his hold on your waist, rising with you to your feet and taking your left hand within his right. He ushered you to the small dingy, aiding you as you placed your feet into the boat. Before he allowed you the luxury of leaving the Victoria Punk, he drew you in one final time and whispered in your ear.

“Now, out of respect to you and your doting and worshipful words you offered me,” he raised his right hand, hooking your hair over your ear, “I'm going to allow you the luxury of a twenty minute head start.”

Your eyes widened, glancing at his whisky-tanned gaze which held such playful amusement. Lips opening and closing and flustered, he chuckled at your flabbergasted expression.

“Get paddling, Sunshine.”

[alexa-fika]

hiya! How are you? :) so i was thinking like child reader and the whitebeard pirates and basically reader gets caught like sneaking out at midnight and they sneak out of moby dick and whitebeard is still awake and sitting on his like chair in the middle of the deck and notices? I think this one will be quite interesting to read! And i gotta say dude, your pretty damn talented.

Bright Escapes (Whitebeard x gn!child!reader x Izou)

A/N I ‘m SO SORRY IT TOOK ME SO LONG I DON’t EVEN KNOW IF YOUR STILL HERE IM SORRY BUT HERE YOU. It is still kinda flop so I apologize but I really hope that it gets close to what you were thinking

Reader here is Replaced by Dokucha as a placeholder which stands for Reader in Japanese

Dividers by @/saradika

The Deck of the Moby Dick laid quiet, not even the talk of the night watch to be heard. Only the sound of the waves crashing against the ship and the port they had stopped at could be heard.

Perhaps that’s why they thought that the night watch would hear the sound of their heartbeat as they hung from one of the lower sails, preparing to jump again to the next one, trying to evade the sharp eyes of the night watch. They regretted not checking which of their brothers would be leading the night watch today, as now they had to hide from the two who had the best eyesight and ability to spot moving targets, Izou and Curiel.

But they couldn’t back down now, not when they had gotten so close to sneaking off the ship. They would only jump one more time, and then they would be off the boat.

“Heh, I'm so closed!” They grinned

That feeling was short-lived as once they made their final jump, a familiar shock traveled through their air, breaking their balance and causing them to fail the jump, only to something to catch their fall.

“Where are you going, twerp?”

They wince at the booming voice, turning on their palm to face him

“Ummm, Hi Papaw….” The child mutters

He narrows his eyes at them as they drop them to the ground, ignoring the yelp they made as he did.

“Ow… Listen, Papaw, it’s not what it looks like?”

“You’re going to tell me one of my children was not sneaking out of the ship at this time of night.”

“I had a good reason!”

“What?”

“There are fireflies on this Island, Papaw! I’ve never seen them; everyone always says how beautiful the sight is.”

“You tried to sneak into a dangerous Island alone, at the darkest time, to see some insects?”

“Umm…pretty insects?” The child tried to fix it with a nervous smile

“You’re grounded.”

“Okay,” they said, slumping down defeatedly, a pout on their lips

“Seeing as we can’t trust you to stay in the quarters, you are to stay with one of your brothers for the rest of our time here. Go to the Crow’s nest, and you'll spend the night with Izou.”

“Yes, Papaw…”

Izou lets out a chuckle at the sight of the frowning child who had taken to sitting down knowing the crow’s nest

“It’s not funny!”

“I beg to differ,” he said with a smile

“You know, if you had asked, I doubt he would have said no to taking you to see them.”

“As if! He and all of you are so overprotective he wouldn’t have risked the chance of me going out on an island like this.”

“You do have to understand our point of view, Dokucha; you are our youngest sibling; you’re only a child.”

“I know that,” they grumble, pulling their knees to their chest and placing their head on top of them

“But I just wanted to see them, only once. We usually only stop on Papaw’s lands, and his lands don’t have these views.”

“Come here,” he said, lifting them up and sitting them in the railing of the nest

“Don’t say I never do anything for you,” he said, handing them a spyglass

They glanced at him hesitantly, looking over the spyglass only to come up with nothing, simply the dark land staring him across the instrument

“Gee, Thanks; I‘ve always wanted to look at grass at night…are you just rubbing it in?”

“Just keep looking,” he mutters, ignoring the kid’s jabs as he pulls out his Flintlock and fires a shot toward the land

Just like that, a blanket of fireflies welcomed them as the fireflies scattered from their hiding spots among the grass, trees, and bushes to escape the sudden movement

Dokucha looks in awe as the fireflies flicker around, giving the coast an ethereal glow as the insects flew around, some illuminating the crashing waves, the blue sea below them reflecting the light in a show of lights orchestrated by mother nature.

“Wow…”

“Still think it’s just grass at night.”

They take their eyes off the spyglass to look at Izou

“Thank you, Big Brother! It’s everything I thought it would be and more,” he awed, returning his attention to the spyglass

In response, the Sniper ruffled their hair

“Anything for our little sibling.”

I have let you down anon im sorry ✊🏽

Taglist:

@imaginarydreams

@amethystviolin

@h0n3y-l3m0n05

[autumnleaves1991-blog]

My Home Is You Part 2/3

A/N: Enjoy. Leave a comment, like, or reblog if you've enjoyed it. Thank you to @kingliam2019 for requesting. And @jellybeanstacey0519 & @mrsyixingunicorn10 for asking about a taglist and commenting on the last part.

Fandom: The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare

Pairing: Gus March-Phillips x Female Reader

Warnings: 18+ for language, Nazi's, canon typical violence, possible spoilers for the movie, and mentions of sexual assault.

Part One Part Three

“So are you two fucking?” Freddy sits across from you, pointing between you and Gus. 

“Freddy!” Gus shouts, outraged as you spit tea across the table, staining the map. 

“What?! It’s a valid question!” Freddy grins, crossing his arms over his chest. You cough, trying to catch your breath while Gus pats your back trying to clear your airway. “It’s a small boat,” he continues, despite the incredulous looks from both you and Gus. “And it’s obvious you’re sleeping together, but what I want to know is if you’re fucking?” 

“Steamin’ Jesus,” Henry shakes his head and quickly grabs the back of Freddys coat to drag him up the stairs to the deck, his vocal protests growing quiet at he moves further away. 

“Here,” you glance up and see Appleyard holding out a glass of water, “Freddy doesn’t have a filter.” 

“It’s alright,” you sip slowly at the water, “he’s right, it is a small boat.” You glance at Gus, “filled with intelligent men that are bound to notice I’ve been sleeping in bed with you since the day I arrived.” 

“But just sleeping,” Gus brushes a finger over your cheek, before a grin spreads across his cheeks like a cheshire cat. “I’m a lady, and I will not have my virtue questioned,” he holds a hand to his chest in fake modesty, “it’s a struggle, Apple, day and night I have to keep this daring rogue off me.” 

“Me?” you ask, faking outrage, ��virtue my ass,” you reach a hand out to Apple, “the lady doth protests but everytime I have her moaning into the pillow that protest falls on deaf ears.” Apple looks between you both with a grin shaking his head and rolling his eyes before you both fall into each other with laughter. 

“I think you might have met your match,” Apple crosses his arms over his chest, “and a part of me is alarmed as well as pleased.” 

“BOSS!” Henry shouts from above, and you rush to the deck, “it’s a British destroyer,” he points off through the fog. 

“Do you think they’ve spotted us?” you ask, eyes going wide, “can we hide in the fog?” 

“I can’t outrun that, darlin’,” Freddy frowns. 

“And if we’ve seen them,” Gus lowers the spyglass, “they’ve surely seen us.” 

“What do we do?” you stand beside him and he tugs off his coat, putting it around your shivering shoulders before placing his arm around your waist. 

“Well,” he looks around at the other men, “we play the part. We are swedish fisherman, let’s be swedish fisherman.” 

The boys work like a well-oiled machine as they quickly remove any guns, explosives, or otherwise unsavory items below deck and hide them away. The destroyer looms closer and the sway of the waves does nothing to quell the unease in your belly. “Time to move, Little Lamb,” Anders, holds his hand out for you and you grab it, sliding your hands into the sleeves of Gus’s coat as he lowers you below deck and hides you away. “Stay put,” he smiles softly, “everything will be okay.” 

Gus comes down the stairs, pressing a hand to Anders's shoulder as he moves past him back up to the deck. “You all settled then?” Gus asks, coming to stand before you, you nod silently, “good,” he looks around, “good. We’re going to be fine. I promised you remember?” 

“Don’t make promises you can’t keep,” he grabs your arm, tugging you closer before lowering his mouth to your ear, his mustache scratches against your cheek and his breath hot against your neck leaves you trembling. 

His voice is low, deep, and etched with promise, “I don’t,” he whispers pressing his lips to your neck for a moment before quickly retreating up the stairs. You fall back against the wall, your breath coming out hard and fast as you quickly pull the wall shut, disappearing from view. The skin of your neck burns like a brand from his kiss, and you press your palm to it and close your eyes remembering every moment like a cinema reel. 

The waves kick up as the ship moves alongside the small fishing vessel and you can hear snippets of the conversation. Your blood churning cold when Gus replies using his normal voice, not the accent he’d been practicing moments before. Suddenly you hear your name shouted from above and push the wall back, running up the stairs, “What’s happening?!” 

“Help Freddy with the sail,” Henry shouts, everyone moving as quickly as possible, “we need to get the hell out of here.” 

You don’t question, doing everything you can to get the boat moving. Finally, everyone but Henry stops, watching the destroyer set off bombs into the water. “U-boat,” Gus replies, coming to stand beside you, holding onto your waist as the ship rocks from the tumultuous waves. The sea becomes quiet, nothing but the whip of the wind as you move further and further away. “Bullseye,” Gus whispers, “I think they got him.” 

“But let’s keep going Hayzy,” Freddy shouts, “don’t want to take any chances.” 

The rest of the day passes in silence as you all take in the close call. And as night descends and dinner passes no one says a word when Gus climbs into his bunk behind you, pulling you close to his chest, hearing him hum a sweet song in your ear as you drift off to another nightmareless sleep. 

The next few days pass without incident as you move closer and closer to the target. Each of the boys has taken to passing the time by teaching you what they do best; Freddy spending hours giving you the ins and outs of explosives, Henry teaching you everything you need to know to man the boat if need be, Apple pouring over maps and documents while discussing strategy, and Lassen, the Danish Hammer, teaching you hand to hand combat so you never have to become a victim again. 

“You’ve been busy,” Gus sits down beside you, handing you his water, as you catch your breath from Anders newest lesson; how to breakout of a chokehold. 

“I like it,” you smile, water splashing down your chin, “I feel like I can take on the world.” 

He grins, brushing the water off your chin with his thumb before putting it in his mouth. Your mouth goes dry as he licks his lips with a wide smile. “Not fair,” you stick your tongue out at him, and he lets out a booming laugh, similar to the first time you heard him back at the Garrison. 

“Do you think it’s been easy for me?” he teases, “seeing Lassen’s hands all over you.” His eyes darken, “maybe I should take over the lessons?” 

“No,” you shake your head, “then I would learn nothing.” 

He scoffs, “I happen to be an excellent teacher.” 

“I’m sure,” you replace the top of the water, handing it back to him and standing. You stretch, reaching your hands over your head, his eyes widening as he takes in the sliver of exposed skin between your shirt and pants you borrowed from the boys. You grin, leaning over him and putting a hand on his shoulder before whispering in his ear, “I’ve been sleeping with you for ten days, Gus, and I know for a fact you can’t keep your hands to yourself.” 

You pull back with a grin and his mouth gaps open and closed like a fish before he grins, “tease. I’m a good girl.” Gus stays there watching through the rest of the lesson, encouraging and giving feedback. It’s a unique feeling to be around men that not only respect you but also encourage you to fight and learn when it seems the rest of society want to see you as a housewife with a home full of children and a hot meal on the table. 

“Alright, Lassen, you’ve hogged her attention for long enough,” Gus stands brushing off his pants. 

“Me?” Anders laughs, “I think you should look in the mirror my friend, see who is really hogging all of her attention.” 

Gus ignores him holding out a hand for you, “come along, darling, it’s time you learn how to shoot.” You take his hand and he leads you to the front of the boat where he’s arranged a variety of weapons. 

“Now what is your experience with guns?” Gus asks, leaning against the table with his arms crossed. 

“Well,” you sigh, “I did end up a prison in a Nazi garrison, so the experience has been less than good. 

His smile drops and he nods before turning back to the table and lifting a simple handgun. “Okay, we start small,” he lifts the gun, “this is a colt .45, small but deadly, it can be easily concealed. To fire, you remove the safety, set your stance, aim, and fire.” 

“Sounds simple enough,” you nod, reaching a hand out for the gun. “First thing, how do I remove the safety?” He spends the next 15 minutes going every minute detail about the weapon until you feel confident you could repeat it back to him. 

“Now, stance is very important when learning how to shoot. Because weapons kick back, and if you’re not standing correctly it will knock you on your butt.” He moves behind you, placing his hands on your hips, and raising them the sides of your body and out towards your arm. His mustache tickles your cheek, and he relaxes against you. “Now, steady on the target,” he gestures to the bottle sitting on the edge of the boat, “take a deep breath.” His body moves with your own, each of you taking a deep breath before he whispers in your ear, “Fire.” 

The gun kicks back and he holds you steady, the bottle blasting into pieces and shattering into the sea. “Bullseye,” you can hear the smile in his voice as he lowers the gun and replaces it on the table, his body still pressed to yours. “That’s my girl,” he turns you slowly, your eyes rising to meet his. 

He’s close, his lips but a breath away, “Gus,” you whisper, “I…I want.”

“What do you want, darling? Say the word and it’s yours,” he smiles softly, his thumbs tracing patterns on your hips. He leans forward, pressing his lips to your cheek, then the other before hovering over your lips, “Tell me, darling. What do you want?”

Your heart thunders in your chest, so loud you’re sure he can hear it. The tension is thick enough to cut with a knife and you can feel the slick between your legs, anticipation for his kiss, his touch building till it’s a raging inferno inside. “I want-” 

“BOSS! An urgent message on the wireless!” Freddy shouts and you can’t help the word that slips out of your lips. 

“Fuck!” Gus lets out a laugh, pressing a kiss to your forehead before quickly turning towards the stairs. 

“Don’t worry darling,” he tosses over his shoulder, “we will continue this conversation later.” 

You stand there for a moment composing yourself, the sea doing little to quench the heat from his touch. Never in a million years did you think you’d crave a mans touch like this especially after what happened in that camp. There is a deep seated fear that that experience would tarnish every future encounter, but with Gus, it’s so easy. Everytime he touches you it’s like all the bad fades away, and all that’s left is him. 

“I need to get my damn head on straight,” you whisper to the wind before turning to follow him below deck. The boys are standing around the wireless, clenched jaws all around. “What happened?” you ask coming to stand beside Gus and see the message on the notepad. “What does this all mean? Tin of corned beef?” 

“It’s code,” he mumbles, wiping a hand on his face, “it means they moved up the sailing date by three days and the port is now filled with more soldiers than any of us were anticipating. Hayzy,” he looks up at the boy, “can you get us there in 12 days?” 

“Not the way we’re going,” he shakes his head, “we’ll need to cut through German occupied sea, otherwise we’ll never make it in time.” 

“Do what you must,” Gus nods, watching as he retreats upstairs to change course. “Heron says he has a contact who might be able to give us some backup. We need more men if we’re going to live through this.” 

“Even then,” Apple sits down across from him, “we can’t take on an entire army.” 

“Trust Heron,” Gus leans back in his chair, “he gave us coordinates to meet him. We will make our way there and see what he has to say. This mission,” he licks his lips, “is vital to the British. If we fail, then Britain will fall to German occupation.” 

“What are you trying to say?” Apple asks with a groan. 

“I’m saying Gentlemen, and Lady,” he nods his head at you, “failure is not an option.” 

The boys sit there in silence processing the news before returning to their duties. Gus sits in his chair, his shoulders slumped like they weigh a hundred pounds each. “What can I do?” you stand behind him, massaging his shoulders. He moans, closing his eyes and leaning his head back into your waist. 

“I don’t know if we’ll survive this, darling,” he says the words quietly so only you can hear. His voice is heavy with the pressure. “The odds are stacked against us and I’m not a gambling man but if I was, I’m not sure I would bet on us.” 

“Don’t say that,” you push his arms out of the way and sit in his lap, his eyes snapping open as he wraps you in his arms and into his chest. “I saw the way you took down that Garrison,” you wrap your arms around his neck and rub the hair at the nape of his neck. “There is not a team alive like yours. If anyone can do this, it’s you.” 

“You put too much faith in me, darling,” he says with a sad smile.

“And you don’t put enough.” His forehead presses to your own and you cradle him to your chest, running your fingers through his hair. “You have to come back alive, Gus. I don’t know what I would do without you.” 

“You’d move on,” he mumbles into your chest, “you’re beautiful, smart, and sharp as a whip. Men would be falling over their feet to marry you.” 

“Well that’s just too damn bad!” he lifts his head at your outburst, you hold onto either side of his face, and smile, “because all I want is you. All I need is you, Gus March-Phillips.” 

It’s like two magnets, colliding together, his lips press to yours with a hunger deep inside. His lips are warm and soft and you feel his tongue seek out your own as he deepens the kiss. He tastes like tea and those ginger biscuits he loves so much and you feel yourself getting drunk on the taste of him. “Shit,” he pulls back with a groan, pressing his forehead to your own, “I didn’t think it would feel like that.”

“Like what?” you ask, suddenly self-conscious. 

He pulls back with a smile, “Perfection.” 

The next twelve days pass in a blur. Each day is filled with training, preparation, and endless amounts of kisses. The boys tease every time you sit down for a meal and Gus pulls you into his lap and presses a kiss to your shoulder. “Don’t fuck in my bed,” Freddy shouts one night over a meal and you kick him under the table, feeling Gus chuckle behind you. “Ouch! What the hell?! Some damsel in distress she turned out to be!” 

“Anders has been teaching me to fight,” you spit back, “I could easily kick your ass.” 

“My little lamb has become a tiger!” Anders shouts gleefully. 

“She sure is,” Gus remarks with pride, “that’s my girl.” You lean back in his arms as the others playfully spit out insults back and forth like brothers. Gus joins in occasionally and makes you laugh so hard your belly aches. 

“All joking aside,” Apple wipes the tears from the corners of his eyes, “we arrive at the coordinates tomorrow. Heron should be there with his contact.” 

“He’ll be there,” Gus nods, looking at the men around the room. “We have a big day ahead of us men, let’s get some sleep. Apple, you take first watch.” 

“Yes, boss,” he nods, going up the stairs.

“Come on, love,” Gus moves you to stand and drags you over to his bunk. The others quietly moving around the room and cleaning up from dinner. He tucks you into his bunk before placing a quick kiss to your lips, “I’m not tired, I’m going to sit up with Apple. I’ll be back later.” 

“Okay,” you tug him down for another kiss, “don’t stay up to late.” 

“I haven’t married you yet and you’re already nagging me,” he teases pressing another kiss to your lips, “I promise I’ll be back soon.” 

You watch his back retreat up the stairs, closing your eyes and snuggling down into his sheets. Suddenly your eyes pop open and you gasp, he said yet.

[krashlite]

I think that c!Jimmy liked being a Bad Boy and a Big Dog because for once in this series a role let him be reckless without being mocked/put down by his allies and without truly harming anyone through the risks he took. In this essay I will explore his character through this lens

Jimmy is an extremely optimistic character, almost always seen smiling and laughing about whatever’s going on. Not in the sense that he laughs when he’s nervous, but in the sense that he makes light of whatever scenario he’s in. On a deeper level, this also translates into overconfidence in a glass-half-full type of way. If there’s a chance a plan could go south, he only focuses on the potential benefit. If there’s a chance he loses a fight, he only focuses on winning

This isn’t to say he’s unaware of negative outcomes, he just chooses to ignore them. The result is him making poor decisions over, and over, and over again. Jimmy knows exactly why he did that but from an outside perspective he’s regarded as stupid

This is seen as early as 3rd life, with Scott practically putting him on a leash to stop him from fighting Ren and his army. Specifically when they manage to chase Dogwarts away from Joel’s base, Jimmy goes to give chase and Scott immediately stops him. They’ve won, and he doesn’t understand why Jimmy would push it further. Jimmy, on the other hand, is thinking about how they’ve been chased across the map like rabbits and knows DW will be back unless they establish themselves as a threat. Now’s the perfect time, since they have the upper hand

But again, Scott doesn’t see this. In his mind, the battle is won and they shouldn’t expend more time, energy, or resources on it. Ultimately he doesn’t want to see Jimmy hurt and believes that restricting what Jimmy does will protect him from harm

I think this shows a fundamental difference in how they interact with the world. Scott’s more practical- he only does what he feels is necessary and is humble enough to know when the risk isn’t worth the reward. Jimmy, on the other hand, wants to test the limits and see what he’s able to accomplish through, once again, taking unnecessary risks.

But this is where things get messy

Again, there is a fundamental difference in their thought processes. This causes them to clash, and since Scott is the one who held more “power” in the relationship (being the one to decide many aspects of their base and being the one to make most deals and plans for the both of them), resulted in Scott putting Jimmy down A Lot. This started with Jimmy returning from the desert without several of the armor pieces he left with and continued throughout the war.

Jimmy, in response to this treatment, started acting More reckless as a means to prove himself. He wanted to be seen as just as strong, smart, and capable as the people around him. Ultimately, he wanted to be respected in his own right, and that didn’t really happen this season!

Nor did it happen in LL,

LL was an entire mess for so many reasons and most of it was due to the game mechanic itself. Lives being treated as currency caused rifts in many alliances, especially the Southlands

This coupled with the fact that Jimmy is already back in 3L habits, trying to prove himself constantly, makes an incredibly messy situation. His efforts in monopolizing sugar cane are downplayed and mocked, he spends so much time getting spyglasses just for Mumbo to lose them. These are meant to be harmless jokes (and really, they are) but Jimmy’s coming off of an unbalanced power dynamic and a tiny bit of it eats away at him and he can’t figure out Why.

Jimmy doesn’t understand why he doesn’t feel valued in the team, so he starts looking at arbitrary reasons Why. The reason he settles on is the life count, with Grian’s death making it known that Yellow-Names are on the brink of being exiled.

This comes back to the game mechanic. Jimmy sees Martyn with four lives, with the ability to either a) bring Grian back to Yellow or b) offer a Yellow-Name in the alliance a life to keep them safe, and Martyn Doesn’t. This tells Jimmy that Martyn either doesn’t trust him or doesn’t value him enough to even attempt to protect him

I think this was even voiced a couple of times during LL, with Martyn closely guarding his lives and finding every reason he could to justify it (he was fully in the right for keeping them, even if doing so hurt others). Jimmy backed off, but there was just a small amount of bitterness that lingered

With Martyn, I think Jimmy picked up on the fact that Martyn was more concerned with protecting his Alliance than the people in it. He needed a group around him, but wasn’t terribly concerned with them otherwise

And that’s what fueled his decision to steal the life. If Martyn doesn’t respect him, if he doesn’t trust him, if he doesn’t care enough to protect him, why should Jimmy do the same. Why should he be a human shield for someone who barely looks his way. Impulse and Mumbo could stay if they wanted, but he wasn’t going to

Which makes it hurt so much more when Martyn asks to run away with him, when Martyn says he cares about Jimmy more than anyone else in the alliance. I want to remind you, Jimmy’s an optimist. He looks at the half-full cup. He doesn’t consider Martyn could be lying because he wanted so badly to just be Seen. So Jimmy gives it back

As it turns out, Martyn was lying. He calls him an idiot, and Jimmy is exiled immediately

All the resolve that Jimmy had in stealing the life crumbles then and there. He starts hanging around the Southlands alliance like a lost puppy, basically begging them to take him back. Martyn’s little ruse inadvertently showed Jimmy that, really, all he wanted is to be valued and supported. The life counts stops being an issue because he’s able to recognize the real issue- he feels undervalued and he feels stupid

That’s a factor even after the Southlands reunites, after he’s almost unanimously voted back in but Grian’s insistent on a recount. I think it’s the main reason why he’s so risky when he goes down to red- with him falling for a trap that he easily could have avoided

Again, it’s the same as 3L. He feels disrespected and undervalued so he takes unnecessary risks in order to prove to himself and to others that he’s just as strong, just as smart, and just as capable as they are.

This is later coupled with Mumbo’s extreme bloodlust when he turns Red. On Red, Mumbo was needlessly violent and is basically the only Red to swing at anything that moved. And I do mean Needlessly violent, he got himself and others into several dicey scenarios because he was impulsive and wanted to Stab. He gave the server a reason to be cautious of Mumbo and any other Red-Name. If Mumbo was a loose cannon, how would others be?

Except Mumbo was only aggressive towards Non-Reds (obviously) and was otherwise supportive of those on his side

I think this actually greatly influenced Skizz’s decision to leave BEST behind, with him seeing Mumbo as someone worth defending/standing by. Not only was he a visibly strong ally with a reputation, he genuinely cared for and supported those who were at his side. In Skizz’s case, he offered a source of stability where BEST couldn’t, and I think the same is true for Jimmy.

Jimmy sees this, and sees Mumbo as someone who can both show him how to be dangerous and respect his abilities in this game. Mumbo was respected as a threat and genuinely cared for those in his company. So he’s the perfect ally, right?

Actually, no, and this isn’t where the Skizz comparison ends either. Remember, Mumbo created the reputation that Reds are a worthy threat and that they’re violent without cause (“oh but what about Joel?” Joel was a joke at best and an annoyance at worst. He I think he definitely did influence Mumbo’s actions but that’s another essay entirely). Mumbo influenced Skizz’s aggression this season, with him becoming more bold in who he threatened or even attacked

So how does this compare to Jimmy? Both of them were coming off of alliances where they were unsupported, so they leaned more into Mumbo’s habits- good and bad. Except they didn’t really see it. Good traits were associated with Mumbo, their friend, and bad traits were associated with their shared condition, their Red-Life.

The plan to trap the bunker played on both, but was coupled with Jimmy’s bad habit of shooting for the best possible outcome. Mumbo had previously turned tail and ran whenever a plan went south, but that’s not how Jimmy is. Jimmy only focuses on the possible gain and ignores possible dangers. When the trap didn’t set off, he insisted on pushing Grian into it. And that actually goes back to him trying to chase Ren’s army- he didn’t know when to call it quits

And of course this causes both of their deaths. To Jimmy, his death caused Mumbo’s. He caused the death of the one ally who actually stood by him. I think this is when he fully internalizes criticism from 3L and LL as a whole. He feels weak, he feels stupid, he doesn’t feel nearly as capable as those around him.

And this carries into DL

Except DL was a much different season than the previous two. The soulmate mechanic in DL meant that you and your ally have to rely on each other, you have to support each other because failing to do so will surely spell your doom

Not only that, but Jimmy was finally paired with a supportive ally from the start. They made their base together because they trusted the other to build more than they trusted themself. When Jimmy came back with cows, Tango’s immediate response was to exclaim “you’re amazing!!!” Instead of criticizing him like previous alliances had- even back in 3L!! This is the first time Jimmy got a fully positive response to his efforts. Tango was overwhelmingly supportive towards Jimmy and Jimmy returned the favor. The base didn’t look perfect, but it was theirs. The server didn’t want them to have a horn so they devised a plan to get one.

Tango had also been following a similar arc up until now- with him being undervalued by his alliances. Except in those alliances, he was pushed to the side or physically harmed instead of being an object of ridicule. I think this is part of why it isn’t really out of place for them to meet through dying. Tango was expecting to be harmed and so was Jimmy, so neither of them blame the other

With Tango being pushed to the side, he also shied away from leadership positions, finding it more comfortable to follow. This paired well with how Jimmy typically takes charge of things, with Jimmy making most plans for the both of them (most, not all)

But again, this is where things get messy

Remember, Jimmy uses risks to prove his worth. He wants to see what he can do, but is also still recovering from previous seasons. He still thinks he’s the reason why him and Mumbo died, and doesn’t want to cause the death another ally, especially one who loves him. Instead of staying careful, he devises a plan to steal livestock, to steal Scar’s horse. It’s for the ranch, it’s for Tango

I think Jimmy realizes the problem when the Ranch is burned. He’s forced to confront this when he sees Tango fly into a rage and almost try to fight a group of people he’d surely lose to. Jimmy cannot be reckless here, he has to talk Tango down from the proverbial ledge.

With this, the roles end up reversing, with Tango being the reckless one and Jimmy trying to steer him to be more tactical. And Jimmy is So careful about this too, not wanting to act like Scott or the Southlands. Because of that he never actually tells Tango no on his dangerous plans- ESPECIALLY the plan to release Rancher’s Revenge, the warden- but instead suggests ways to make the plan better

The dilemma here is that Jimmy needs to choose between being risky and being safe. Both would benefit Tango, except Jimmy knows from experience how much it hurts to be bound in bubble-wrap all the time

Jimmy sees no way to avoid risks without hurting Tango. So instead of fighting against that part of himself, Jimmy leans into it. He accepts it as a key tenet of his identity, even as it puts the both of them in harms way. Yes they went down in the end, but they went down together, Always Together.

It didn’t matter if Jimmy was a “worthy” ally, he didn’t need to be Smart, he didn’t need to be Strong, he didn’t even need to be Capable. He learned that he deserved love not in spite of his flaws, but alongside his flaws.

And this is the lesson he carries into the next two Seasons, with both alliances being fully centered on being reckless

The Bad Boys acted dangerously, but they acted as a unit- ESPECIALLY him and Joel. Bad Boys dig straight down, Bad Boys water bucket clutch from the build limit, Bad Boys care about each other not in spite of endangering themselves, but because of it

And this is because Joel had a nearly identical arc. Joel in previous seasons had a habit of acting recklessly in the same way Jimmy did, and was cast aside because of it. In 3L he ended up a Lone Wolf, in LL he was forced into a position where he’s the villain, and in DL he and Etho leaned into the danger in the same way Jimmy and Tango did. Their stories run parallel so it only makes sense that they’re the ones who end up supporting each other in LimL

And Joel was Jimmy’s main source of support that season, with Grian representing the criticism of previous seasons. This gave Jimmy the ability to confront said criticisms through, again, leaning into them. He did something stupid? Yes, but him and Joel were having fun. A plan went south because of unnecessary risks? Yes, but Joel was being risky with him. Joel gave Jimmy the ability to basically cut through the aforementioned “bubble wrap” Grian was trying to put around them

And I think it’s also important to mention Grian did this out of both love and cowardice, not malice. Ultimately he didn’t want to lose either of them and was trying to keep them alive longer. But because Grian never learned the lesson they did- that it’s more important to act together than to survive alone- Grian chooses survival and ends up alone.

Anyways, recklessness being the foundation of Jimmy’s alliances carries into SL as well

Jimmy was on the brink of death for almost the entire season, man was not thriving whatsoever and that was known. Funnily enough, he ends up with Martyn, who again was previously more concerned with his own safety than the people around him

But Martyn is just coming off of a victory, of finally achieving the very thing he’d been working towards and the thing he centered his motivations on. Without that goal, he’s left with his methods- which was mostly having dangerous ideas and seeing them through

With Jimmy, Martyn introduced plans that involved them being risky and in everyone else’s faces. This, to Jimmy, echoed both Joel and Tango’s behavior. He was able to fully settle into the fact that, for him, good things come from being reckless, from shooting for the best possible outcome and refusing to back down

Jimmy maintains his optimism and his recklessness, traits that had previously been challenged but traits he stubbornly holds onto and values in his Life