#who have been weiting FOR LITERAL YEARS

[luxbub]

Do people new days not know the meaning of y/n or what???

[acewlwtoast]

Sonntag 13:28

this is gonna be a long one

OKAY so I’m doing another one of these. They’re obviously in high demand lmao. Also watch me saying I can’t say anything bout this clip cos it’s already perfect, and then still writing a 900+ word post (insert clown here)

ANYWAYS HERE YA GO this is about the Kieutou date clip. I honestly owe Druck my life for this.

Fatou is EARLY and she looks so nervous sjdjjsjdh

they're both so nervous and awkward i love my disaster children

Once again HEIGHT DIFFERENCE (i will never be over that)

Kieu My, why you walking away so fast, this isn't a race

And Fatou running after her and walking next to her i-

The tension in that blue room is SO PALPABLE

THEYRE LITERALLY DANCING AROUND EACH OTHER AND TRYING NOT TO LOOK

WHY ARE THEY SO AWKWARD, YOURE LITERALLY ON A DATE

Kieu My pretending to take notes for physics, girl we know you aren't good at being subtle

Fatou looks almost sad like she's feeling ignored again?? Bebi.

Kieu My coming up from behind her like i don't wanna say anything but that's hot ngl

Like two stars gravitating towards each other they will be the death of me 

Gay stares™

LIKE THEM PRETENDING LIKE THEY ARE NOT ACTIVELY FOLLOWING EACH OTHER

H A N D S i need more hands tbh #LetKieutouHoldHands2k21

Those stares....this is even worse than on horror-night

Kieu My why you so nervous, you both know why ur here

LIKE THIS IS A DATE WHY CANT THEY COMMUNICATE WILL THEY EVER LEARN

i don't even need to talk about the perfect metaphor of stars inevitably colliding, like these two are literally soulmates

Kieu My trying to get herself to talk to Fatou akjfhkadslj my girls are trying okay?

She starts talking and suddenly sounds so confident, beginning something is always the hardest

She's literally panicking and geeking out about her space stuff

SHE OPENED UP AND THEN WAS IMMEDIATELY SCARED THAT SHE WAS BORING FATOU LIKE BEBI NO

Fatou got her girl tho. Not only does she make sure Kieu My knows she isn't boring her, but also continues to talk about the thing she knows Kieu My is obsessed with

actual girlfriends

Kieu My actually looks so perplexed when Fatou is interested in her rambling, you really found the right girl.

Like, who has ever asked her about her interests, and THEN also actually listened and cared?

The way Kieu My's looking at her like girlie is in love

“I think it's crazy that everything happened the way it did.” Fatou. You are such a dork and i love you. Also you’re right.

MORE. GAY. STARING.

Kieu My looking at her lips so many times before finally kissing her

AAAAH again, the metaphor of stars colliding 

with the red star symbolising Fatou's warmth, and the blue star being a metaphor for Kieu My ice queen persona? (I've heard this theory from Vic in our discord server :))

-> creating a new galaxy that is their relationship

“Ich wollt dich jetzt nicht weiter verwirren/I didn’t want to further confuse you” - “mich oder dich?/me or you?” The fact that fatou can already read her so well

She's smiling at her like "that's my dumbass" and mirroring her posture

Fatou just knows Kieu My needs someone to talk it out, someone who understands her

Kieu My said she's bi out loud, i love that!

Kieu my feeling safe enough to tell this all

Sharing insecurities, we love to see it

She's looking for reassurance that she doesn't sound dumb, that her feelings are valid! And Fatou's just like, yeah i got you. Those two istg

“Ich wollte eigentlich richtig, richtig gutes Abi machen. Ohne Ablenkung/I actually wanted to get a really really good Abi. Without distractions” WITHOUT DISTRACTIONS WELL BITCH YOU DONE FUCKED UP YOU TWO HAD TO HAPPEN SOONER OR LATER

they are so adorable

“Ich würd voll gern Astrophysik studieren./I would love to study Astrophysics.” Can everyone just say thank you to Nhungi for proposing Kieu My being obsessed with astronomy? Cos it's honestly so amazing.

She didn't say anything about her parents directly pressuring her, but more like she feels she has to do great things with the opportunities she's been given. Similar to Fatou.

“München ist voll weit weg/Munich is really far away.” So few words, so many feelings.

*Look, I honestly thought that song was the beginning of Soulmate by Natasha Bedingfield like IMAGINE

just lying in solidarity.

ANOTHER INSTANCE of me thinking the clip would end there and Druck just continuing and adding another 20 years to my life (which i will spend further obsessing over this ship)

They're just really out here on the streets like this. My heart is so full.

Suddenly, conversation seems easy, effortless?

They're actually learning more about each other it warms my heart

The close your eyes thing- I don't really have to say more, those two are just amazing.

Also Kieu My being smooth for once in her life you go girl

And they're playing Can't Help Falling in Love like Druck you're SERVING today

Fatou finds Kieu My so adorable when speaking vietnamese like GURL SAME

Also the things Kieu My says in vietnamese, i know i say dork a lot but LOOK AT THEM

DO WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT THE TWIRLY-KISS THING

Also Fatou having to constantly stand on the stairs to be on kinda the same height as Kieu My, I will never shut up about the height difference

ASKING BOUT THE BIRTHMARK and Kieu My like seriously answering the question SOULMATES

i have been waiting for a Kieutou hug for forever, thank you for giving me life

Who needs a cuddle clip (okay i still want one) when you can have your otp hugging and holding each other like this

These nerds just be pointing at the sky. They're perfect.

There you go, this is a LOT. Honestly, everyone who made it this far....respect.

Please touch me I'm lonely

[grumpycatrae]

Years Go By (2019! Richie Tozier x Bowers! Reader)

2017

The night they all got the call from Mike they had all felt that familiar dread loom over them. The thought of what had happened 27 years ago made some of them sick. They didn't want to relive it, the trauma, it was too much.

Richie Tozier however, found himself sitting just outside the hotel he would be staying at until the childhood fear was gone for good. He ran a hand through his dark curls, he would need a shower as soon as he settled in. He exited the car and grabbed his suitcase, knowing he had some time before he met up with the others at the chinese resturaunt.

Richie entered the small hotel, hearing the light 'ding' of the bell. The woman at the desk looked up from her book and gave a wide smile.

"Why hello there! How may I help you today?" She asked him, standing to her feet. Richie walked up to the desk and set down his suitcase.

"Hey uh, I'm here to hopefully to get a room for.. maybe a night or two? I'm not entirely sure how long." He stated. The woman nodded and grabbed the sign in book.

"Alright, sir. And your name?"

"Richie Tozier."

The woman looked up for a moment before weiting down his name and closing the book. Richie seemed a bit off ever since he received the call, not that anyone could blame him if they had seen what he had been through. Sure, he was a successful comedian but even a goofy smile wouldn't cover up the uneasy fear in his eyes.

"Alright, I'll be putting you in Room 237. I can show you to your room, if you'd like?" The woman turned and grabbed the key from the wall, turning back to meet Richie's eyes. The man nodded, seemingly not wanting to talk much. He just wanted to be in the room alone for a bit.

"Yes, I think that'd be nice.." He said, grabbing his suitcase. The woman nodded and walked from behind the desk. She gestured him to follow her as she walked to the stairs, walking just a few feet in front of him. As she walked up the stairs, Richie kept his eyes on the floor beneath him rather then looking up to accidently see up her shirt.

"You're a long ways home, Mr. Tozier. What's the occasion?" She asked him, grabbing his attention. Richie gave a light chuckle. He was positive that no one in Derry watched tv much, they were always stuck in the past. It surprised him to know that someone knew where he was from.

"Oh, just a reunion, ya know? Old friends wanting to get together, I couldn't turn them down."

"Oh? I thought you were going on tour soon?" The woman stopped at the top of the stairs and waited from him to catch up with her. Richie shrugged.

"I guess you could say that these friends are more important.. they're the best friends I ever had." Richie looked to meet the women's eyes.

"Even leaving the wife at home?" She asked. Richie gave a nervous chuckle, shaking his head.

"Oh, no.. I'm not married.." He assured, showing that he had no wedding band. The woman smirked.

"Well isn't that a treat?" She continued walking down the hall until she reached a room. She paused when she noticed that the door was open and the room service cart was sitting just outside the door. Richie was at first confused till he heard the woman give an annoyed sigh. "I apologize, do you mind waiting out here for a moment?" She turned to the comedian, a forced smile on her lips. Richie shook his head.

"Not at all.." With that the woman entered the room, leaving the door opened further than before. Richie stood by the door, leaning in and sneaking a peek to what was going on. He saw the woman at the desk walk up to a woman in a pastel uniformed dress, with an apron tied around her waist. Ah yes, house keeping. It seemed to appear that she was either running behind on the rooms or she was in the wrong room.

"(Y/N) Bowers.. I hope you won't be too much longer in here. There's a man outside waiting to use this room.." The woman that greeted Richie, her cheery voice suddenly blunt. Richie's brows furrowed. Did he hear that name right? Bowers. That name made Richie nervous. He knew that name. Until recently, (Y/N) had been slower than usual, lacking the enthusiasm she had once. Not that anyone would've liked her job, she cleaned after people and was ordered around. She was the hotel maid, what fun was that?

"Oh. I'm sorry, Holly. I'll just be a few minutes longer. All I need to do is change the sheets and wipe down the windows to the balcony. I shouldn't take too long if he doesn't mind waiting here.." The maid explained. Holly gave another sigh, rubbing her temples. (Y/N) didn't know why she was so uptight. Sure, she was running the hotel when the boss wasn't around but rarely anyone came to Derry and stayed the night. That wasn't the kind of place it was.

"This really is unacceptable. I'll just take him to a different room." Holly went to turn and walk out but stopped when she noticed Richie standing in the door way.

"I don't mind waiting.. honestly, I don't want to cause trouble and I'd rather settle in now than wait for a different room when she's almost done.." He said, giving Holly a smirk. Holly quickly covered the annoyed look with a smile, it was too forced.

"I have no problem giving you another room, Mr. Tozier. In fact, for this little.. incident, I'd be more than happy to give you the suite. You are a celebrity after all." (Y/N) looked up from what she was doing and met eyes with Richie. Tozier. Richie Tozier. "And you know what they say, 'Stars Never Pay'." Holly chuckled. He didn't understand why she was smothering herself up to him but it was getting uncomfortable quickly. Richie gave a nervous chuckle.

"Thank you but I think I'll just take this one. Plus I'll have a bit of company before I have to leave for dinner." Richie looked towards the maid who seemingly looked shocked he was talking about her. Holly looked back at the maid and pushed down the urge to protest. She simply nodded.

"Of course." She handed him the key. Her cheery facade dropping. "If you have any concerns or needs, feel free to contact the front desk. I'll be more than happy to help you." She gave a short smile before exiting the room, leaving the comedian and the maid alone.

"I promise I won't take too much time here, I'm just running behind scedule today.." (Y/N) said as she started changing the sheets to the bed, rolling the dirty ones up and laying them on the floor. Richie set his suit case on the vanity and leaned up against the wall.

"No, it's fine. I don't mind a bit.." He stated, watching her as she put fresh sheets on and tucked them in. "So.. Bowers.. You wouldn't happen to have been related to Henry Bowers." The comedian read the look on the maid's face. The name made her uneasy too.

"He was my older brother.." She stood up straight and the two kept their eyes on each other. "Were you.. one of the kids he hurt?" She asked, her fingers playing with her apron. Richie slightly shrugged and nodded.

"I mean.. yeah, I am.. he deffinantly tried to kill us a while back.." He rubbed the back of his neck as though he was embarrased. The subject was completely awkward. (Y/N) bit her lip as though looking for something to change the subject. There was nothing that would have fixed the awkward silence. "How has he been? Is he.. still with us?" Richie didn't want to flat out ask if the childhood bully that literally pulled the rope from the well, trapping them down there was dead or alive. Not that he would've cared if the son of a bitch was rotting six feet under but for the sake of his sister.. perhaps it wasn't rude to ask if the man was alive and doing well. (Y/N) nodded, grabbing the dirty sheets.

"Still at the institution.. after he killed those kids.. I think he'll live his remaining days in there.." She stated, walking towards the cart that stood outside. Richie nodded.

"Well that's good." He shook his head. "Not that he's, ya know, locked up forever but that.. well, I mean.. fuck, um.. well, he's alive.. so.. that's good.. for you, I mean. Cause he's.. your brother.." Richie fumbled his words, making the situation almost unbearable to watch. (Y/N) seemed to get what he meant and chuckled. "Gosh I'm making things really awkward for you.. it's just.. funny to see you again.."

"Funny?" The maid set the sheets in the cart and turned to Richie, a confused expression on her face.

"Not funny.. um, nice? I don't know.. it's been 27 years since we last saw each other.."

1989

(Y/N) stood on her front porch as the coroners wheeled her father out on a gurnee, wrapped up in a body bag. Her father didn't make a sound when he died at the hands of his oldest, Henry. He bled to death on his recliner while his ten year old daughter played with her imaginary friend; Bob Grey, upstairs. Butch didn't think too much of it. His daughter was upstairs, his son outside with his friends. He had a rough day and needed a nap. He didn't know he would wake up to a switch blade in his neck while his son stood above him, no words or even eye contact. It's like it wasn't even Henry.

The police soon found Henry. They arrested him when he tried coming back home to his younger sister, saying nonsense and doing all he could to reach for her. The police didn't let him get 5 feet from her before they took him down. Henry was screaming about the murders of the missing children and how he wasn't finished. He promised he would come back for his sister. He promised.

Not too far from the scene were the kids who belonged to the Loser's club. (Y/N) looked over to see them coming from the barrens. They were roughed up and she remembered the stuttering one was carrying a yellow rain coat that one of her classmates use to wear. She remembered his name being George, but everyone always called him Georgie. He had gone missing around 6 months ago. She kinda missed him in class. He was kind, not like the other rowdy boys in her grade. They shared recess often with each other. He was a friend.

(Y/N) made eye contact with the dark haird boy with the thick frames. Ah yes, the trash mouth. She use to hear about him from Henry often when his friends were over. Talking about how to broke his glasses after having them for a week or that he tripped him into the jewish geek during lunch. She never understood her brother's hatred for those kids. They were just kids. What was so damn special about them that he needed to hurt them so much?

"I wonder what's going to happen to her.." Stan said, his hands by his side. Richie shrugged, taking his eyes away from her.

"Foster home.." He was right. She had no other family that wanted to deal with an orphan, especially one that came from a domestic household.

"S-Surely s-s-she has o-other family that at-will tak-k-ke her.." Bill held the rain coat close to his chest as he watched paramedics approach the girl. Eddie shook his head.

"It's so fucked up..none of this should happen to her." He was angry about the situation. No one should have to go to foster care. Richie never had to experience it but he might as well have. Sure his parents were still around, but were they really?

"There's nothing that we can do for her.." Beverly looked down at the ground, she couldn't look. She was lucky to not go to foster care, that she would be living with her aunt soon. It didn't help knowing that Henry would face punishment for his crimes, but so would the young girl that had nothing to do with him. They didn't see her after that day.

2017

"It has been a while.. I barely remember much of that day.." (Y/N) walked over to the doors to the balcony, spray bottle and a rag in her hand. "The day I found my father in his recliner, a hole in his neck and blood seeping into the carpet.. " She prayed the door and began wiping the smudges of the glass." The day that child care came and took me to some random building and there I had to start a new life..going to a different house almost every year. New faces. New lives.. My life was shitty before but Christ.. I had family that loved me at least.." The maid gave a scoff as she finished the doors, turning to Richie with a pained look in her eyes. Richie stood in silence, returning the pained look. He understood it. The lack of any parental love. The absence of them and having to find some way to get by. He had felt her pain before.

(Y/N) realized that she had to ranting about her life to someone that was basically a complete stranger. Her brother bullied him for years, even tried to kill him and she's the one talking about a rough childhood. She lowered her head and started making a B line for the door.

"I'm all done in here, sir. Spare towels are in the cabinet below the sink. Have a good day." She was just about to leave when Richie started chasing after her.

"Now hang on a sec." He stood in front of her cart, his hands taking a hold of it, preventing her from going forward. She seemed shocked that he stopped her, and far more shocked that she was letting him. Richie found himself speechless, he had nothing planned to say after he stopped her. So here, they stood in another awkward silence. "I.. uh.."

"Yes..?"

"Okay so.. I didn't have anything planned after chasing you down but.. uh.. Why are you here..?" He asked, his brows furrowed. The maid seemed confused.

"Um, I work here..?"

"Yeah but why in Derry.. what the fuck made you want to come back here?" Richie shook his head, a bit frustrated with himself. (Y/N) gave him a sly look.

"What made you want to come back to Derry?" She asked, flipping the question. "I figure a famous comedian wouldn't want to come back to a town that barely exsists.."

"I have specifically different reasons.." He slight alifted his chin up as though to avoid really answering. She wouldn't believe it. The maid arched a brow.

"Exactly.." She pulled her cart from Richie, making him stumble. "Maybe I'll answer your question over coffee, um, tomorrow at 10?" She smirked, pushing her cart past Richie. The comedian was taken back at first but caught on quickly. He didn't see the Bowers sister much of a 'date' type of girl. But she clearly saw something in him and frankly, he was attracted to the thought of coffee with her.

"Tomorrow at 10 then.." He backed up into the door way and felt the corners of his lips turn upward. Was he really going to have coffee with Bowers? He watched the maid continue down the hall, the rolling of the wheels filling the empty silence.

Richie went back into his room and closed the door, shaking his head and taking a moment to take it in. Yeah, she just asked him on a date. There's a difference between having coffee.. and having coffee. Richie looked in the mirror and scoffed to himself.

The others weren't gonna believe him..

(Deffinantly will need a part two and maybe part three if this story really goes anywhere, we'll just have to see!)

[chenziee]

Shingeki no Pocky Day

[read on AO3] || [read the whole series]

Ships: Eren/Levi, Armin/Annie, Sasha/Connie Rating: General Audiences Words: 1338 College AU, Teacher/Student relationship (past), POCKY!!,pretty much everyone is at least mentioned

Note: It’s really silly, and just me pouring out my passion over pocky. It’s from last year. I know I could technically weite a knew one but... yeah. ^^;; Also, I didn’t read it over because I was too scared to realize it’s actually really stupid, so there might be mistakes. Don’t hesitate to point them out to me :)

“Annie, what’s with the bag?” Eren questioned as soon as the girl sat next to him in their lecture hall, a giant, apparently full plastic bag in tow.

The blond looked at him with a blank expression before pulling something out of said bag. Eren could only stare at the small red box in Annie's hand as it was the last thing he expected her to bring out. She just shrugged, opening the box while stating in a bored voice, “It's Pocky day.”

Eren continued to eye her warily during the whole lecture as she slowly ate one stick after another. About halfway into class he decided he couldn’t take it anymore. He pulled out his phone and shot a quick text to Armin, ‘think ur gfs gon crazy’.

The response was immediate. ‘???’, was all it said.

‘Shes eatign pocky.Brougt a ehole bag of it&is esting it’.

‘Oh. Yeah, I know. I helped her stash up on it’.

Now it was Eren's turn to return only question marks.

‘Annie loves that stuff but usually holds back on it. Only once a year she goes all out and that happens to be today’.

Eren stared at his screen, then at Annie, who ignored him completely in favor of taking notes and chewing on yet another stick.

‘Some people are weird’, he thought.

As every Friday lately their group met up that day in their favorite bar to catch up as they were all majoring in different things and didn't see nearly as much of each other as they were used to during high school. This week the group was extra large as not only none of the now-university students had any exams to study for nor projects to work on, but also a bunch of Levi's friends decided to come.

The kids, safe for Eren, Mikasa and Armin, still felt weird hanging out with their old high school teachers but they were slowly getting used to it. Getting drunk together and listening to Hanji spill all the embarrassing stories sure helped as well.

Every time a new person arrived during the evening, they questioned the box constantly lying in front of Annie. Annie quickly got sick of answering the same question over and over and elected to ignore everyone, leaving her previously enlightened friends to explain, instead aggressively munching on the snack, switching between flavors as she eradicated one box after another.

Eren was honestly amazed she still had any left.

Or that she hadn’t gotten sick neither from it nor of it yet.

Of course, first thing Sasha did after her eyes fell on the treat, was to try and steal some. Too bad she was so obvious about it because the next thing she knew, she was kneeling on the floor in front of expressionless Annie with her hand forced into an awkward angle, pleading for mercy.

Luckily, Armin immediately intervened, soothing his girlfriend and saving Sasha from a broken wrist. The second the grip on her hand loosened, Sasha ran away with tears in her eyes, and for a good while kept hiding behind Connie who didn’t hesitate to laugh at her even as he massaged her hand to ease the strain that had been put on it.

However, this incident put a probably disastrous, definitely very dangerous and potentially genius idea into Hanji’s head.

The second Annie left to order another round of drinks for the table, she immediately had to share.

She leaned over the table and took a deep breath.

“Fuck no; shut up, Shitty Foureyes...” Levi groaned into Eren’s shoulder before she managed to get a single word in.

“I didn’t even say anything yet!” Hanji pouted as the rest of the table laughed.

“You were about to and I’m telling you that no, whatever shitty idea you came up with is shitty and no one is going to agree.”

Hanji narrowed her eyes at her best friend. “You’re just scared Annie would beat you.”

“Ooooh,” Petra drew out dramatically, breaking into a fit of giggles when Erwin groaned and Mike snorted in amusement.

Levi ignored them, too busy glaring at Hanji. “There’s no way the brat could even touch me.”

“Stop lying to yourself, Shorty.”

Jean scooted away from Mikasa looking horrified at what she just said, an action that only caused Eren and Armin, who were used to the two throwing teasing jabs at each other, to exchange an amused look. Levi didn’t even react.

“Then you better prove me wrong,” Hanji grinned, knowing she’s won.

A beat of silence passed, before Levi finally cracked, “Fine, let’s hear it.”

“Sorry to break it to you, guys,” Marco interrupted, “but Annie’s coming back.”

Suddenly the tense – or amused, depending on if you were Levi or not – atmosphere broke away and chatter restored.

Levi leaned back into Eren’s side but soon had to stick his elbow into his boyfriend’s ribs to make him stop chuckling. “Sorry, but Hanji’s got you so figured out; it’s funny.” Eren mumbled, not sounding very sorry.

Levi grumbled until Eren pressed a small kiss to his cheek in apology.

Hanji practically vibrated by the time Annie left the table again to go to the bathroom.

Finally, she leaned forward and shared in mock-whisper, “So I came up with a drinking game.”

“Oh great,” mumbled Erwin, already looking forward to having to take care of a bunch of drunk college students and high school teachers acting like college students. Petra patted him on the shoulder compassionately, yet not planning on holding back herself.

Hanji continued when she was sure she had everyone’s attention. “We try to steal Annie’s Pocky. Whoever chickens out, is caught, or glared at in prevention, has to drink.”

“So... Sasha already lost,” stated flatly Mikasa.

“Why?” cried the girl in question in protest. “We haven’t started yet, before doesn’t count!”

“But Annie’s glaring at you constantly to keep you away,” Jean pointed out, to which Sasha sulked visibly but couldn’t argue against.

Armin sighed. He expected something like this. “It’s at your own risk but go ahead. But I’m not participating. The worst that could happen to you is broken wrist; I dare to say the risk for me is far greater.”

“Ooooooooh,” echoed in response around the table.

Armin immediately flushed beet red, throwing the first thing his hand came into contact with, which happened to be Jean’s phone as the boy was sitting opposite of him, at Hanji, who was making obscene gestures at him.

“Hey!” Jean scrambled to collect his phone as everybody else started laughing hysterically.

“That’s not what I meant!” Armin tried to correct his mistake; however, he knew it was too late. The damage was done. He groaned, burying his face in his hands, planning to never come up again.

By the time the game was called off, there were several findings made.

Jean was hopeless. He lost even to Sasha as he was apparently physically unable to be sneaky. Annie caught him every time he tried, even that one time when Annie was making out with Armin after a round of pocky game and everyone else managed to steal a stick or two. He nearly lost his hands twice and was completely drunk before anyone else got even close. However, funnily enough, Ymir, as much as she boasted, was in a much similar situation and honestly, the group couldn’t fairly decide who was worse. The only thing that helped Ymir’s case was that she had better alcohol tolerance than Jean.

On the other hand, Mike apparently had some secret talent for stealing as Annie never caught him. Everyone was impressed. Or had been at least until they counted the score to see who won and Krista came up with literal dozens of the sticks that no one noticed her ever taking. To say they were impressed, a little scared and felt very much betrayed would be an understatement.

Krista was officially announced the Queen of Pick-pockets and they never looked at her the same way again.

[theaterformen-blog]

Nora Nottmie in Sarnia, Canada (2016)

– see English version below –

Wir schreiben das Jahr 2016. Montreal (Quebec) und Sarnia (Ontario) liegen genau 823,9 km voneinander entfernt. Über all diese Kilometer erstreckt sich die Pipeline 9, die Erdöl fördert. Meine heutige Reise führt mich nach Sarnia, in die Abgründe des Chemical Valley. Ich bin mit Vanessa und Lindsay Gray unterwegs. Wir schleichen durch hohes Gras und Büsche hinter der Stadt bis wir an einen hohen Zaun gelangen. Der Weg war nicht weit, Stadt und Pipeline liegen direkt nebeneinander. Ich durchtrenne mit einem Bolzenschneider mühselig den Zaun. Wir steigen hindurch und ketten uns mit Fahrradschlössern an das Ventil der Pipeline 9. Wir haben das Ventil vorher zugedreht und verursachen damit einen Produktionsausfall in Millionenhöhe. Bis uns ein Schlosser gegen unseren Willen befreit, werden etwa zwei Stunden vergehen. 

Lindsay und Vanessa stammen aus der indigenen Community Aamjiwnaang, die von insgesamt 57 Fabriken umgeben ist. Hier ist die Luft dünn und schwer zugleich. Ich kann kaum atmen, oft muss ich husten, bis mir schwindelig wird oder ein Würgereiz einsetzt. Auch das Grundwasser ist durch die Fabriken verseucht und sorgt für hohe Krankheitsraten, eine erhöhte Zahl von Fehlgeburten und andere Auffälligkeiten in Gesundheitsstatistiken. Dass ein Epidemiologe extra engagiert wird, um Statistiken über die Gebiete über eine Laufzeit von 30 Jahren durchzuführen, spricht für mich Bände. Als wir einmal durch ein großes Waldgebiet liefen, spekulierten wir über den Wendigo, ein im Wald lebendes, Unheil bringendes mystisches Wesen. Der Wendigo kann sich gegen die Menschen und die Natur stellen und großen Schaden anrichten, so erzählt man. Es heißt, dass sich auch Menschen mit dem Wendigo verbünden, um Zerstörung zu leisten. Eine unglaubliche Angst, dass die Wälder, die wir gerade durchqueren, nicht mehr lang existieren könnten, überkam mich. Wenn bereits die Gesundheitsprobleme der indigenen Communities ignoriert werden, dass sie nicht einmal umgesiedelt wurden, wer denkt dann an die Natur? An den Teil, dessen Ressourcen genauso erschöpflich sind, wenn auch weniger wertvoll als Erdöl in den Augen der Wirtschaft?

Oft kommt es zu Demonstrationen gegen die Umwelt- und Wasserverschmutzung, die Protestbewegung ist groß. Umso enttäuschender, dass sie niemand erhört. Das bewegte Vanessa und Lindsay zu ihren „Toxic Tours“. Sie wollen dem Gehör verschaffen, was so präsent ist und doch niemand sieht – oder sehen will. Sie fahren mit den Teilnehmenden in einem Bus durch das Labyrinth aus Fabriken, berichten von Unfällen, nennen Fakten, halten ihnen sprichwörtlich vor Augen, was im Chemical Valley passiert.

Die zwei Stunden sind vorüber. Man hat uns von unseren selbstgewählten Ketten befreit, wir werden angezeigt. Wegen lebensbedrohlicher Selbstgefährdung. Darauf steht bis zu lebenslange Haft. Während ich Kanada verlasse und zurückkehre, überschlage ich gedanklich die anstehenden Ereignisse. 

Sie werden vor Gericht ziehen, weil ein Leck in den Pipelines gegen das Umweltschutzgesetz verstößt. Sie werden mit einer Strafe von 5.000 Dollar belegt werden. 21 weitere Aktivist_innen werden ebenfalls freigesprochen. Dennoch werden sie es nicht als Erfolg werten können. Sie wurden instrumentalisiert, um den großen Teil der Bevölkerung, der die Augen vor den Gefahren der Ölförderung durch die Pipeline verschließt, ruhig zu halten. Denn würden sie für ihre Aktion inhaftiert werden, so wäre dies ein klares Eingeständnis, dass eine reelle Gefahr von den Pipelines ausgeht.

Nora Nottmie in Sarnia, Canada (2016)

We write the year 2016. Montreal (Quebec) and Sarnia (Ontario) are exactly 823.9 km apart. Pipeline 9, which transports crude oil, passes through this entire distance. My journey today brings me to Sarnia, to the edges of chemical valley. I am travelling with Vanessa and Lindsay Gray. We creep through tall grass and bushes behind the city until we reach a high fence. We didn’t have far to go, the city and the pipeline are right beside each other. It’s hard work to make a gap in the fence with a bolt cutter. We climb through and use bike locks to chain ourselves to Pipeline 9’s valve. Before that, we closed the valve and caused a production downtime worth millions. Around two hours pass before a mechanic liberates us against our will.

Lindsay and Vanessa are from the Aamjiwnaang indigenous community, which is surrounded by a total of fifty-seven factories. The air is thin and heavy at the same time here. I can barely breathe, I cough a lot, until I get dizzy or start to gag. The groundwater is also polluted by the factories and causes high rates of illness, a higher number of miscarriages and other anomalies in public health statistics. That an epidemiologist has been hired to collect statistics about the area over the course of thirty years speaks volumes for me.

As we were walking through a large forest area one time, we speculated about the Wendingo, a mystical creature that lives in the forest and causes calamity. The Wendigo can stand up against humans and nature and cause huge damage, so they say. They say that sometimes humans work with the Wendigo to cause destruction. An unbelievable fear that the forests were just walking through couldn’t exist much longer overcame me. If the health problems in the indigenous communities are already being so ignored that the communities are not even being moved elsewhere, then who will think of nature? Of the part of nature whose resources are equally finite, even if they are less valuable than oil in the eyes of the economy?     There are often demonstrations against the environmental and water pollution, the protest movement is big. And so it’s even more disappointing that no one listens to them.

That motivated Vanessa and Lindsay to start their “Toxic Tours”. They wanted to make people open their eyes to what is so present, but yet no one sees – or wants to see. They drive through the labyrinth of factories with the participants, give accounts of accidents, list facts, literally show them in front of their eyes what’s happening in chemical valley. The two hours are over. We’ve been freed from our self-inflicted chains, we are charged by the police. With life-threatening self-endangerment. Punishable with up to life imprisonment. While I leave Canada and go home, I turn over the imminent events in my mind.   They will go to court, because a leak in the pipelines breaks environmental protection law. They will have to pay a fine of 5,000 dollars. Twenty-one other activists will also be acquitted. Nonetheless, they will be unable to see this as a success. Because they simply were used to keep the majority of the population quiet, which closes its eyes to the dangers of transporting the oil through the pipeline. Because if they were imprisoned for their actions, it would be a clear admission that the pipelines to pose a real threat.

Übersetzung: Anna Galt (Bochert Translations)