#cay talks

[catermeow]

The DHP office is so… liminal. Misplaced. Hidden away from sight, a building and parking lot one might expect to see in a major city instead located in the middle of a forest, no roads in or out. There is no way in. If you force entry, you are greeted by a vast empty room, the only furniture a receptionist desk and filing cabinets in the center of the room. There is a single light hanging above it. 

There is a man standing behind the desk. There is no one else there. You approach, and inquire about… something. The words don’t feel like your own. The man smiles, an average customer service smile, but there seems to be some tinge of malice behind it. He explains the forms that need to be filled out, the paperwork that needs to be signed- this is such a long process, you know. 

The light seems to be getting dimmer. You look up, and it has begun corroding, decaying as you stand there watching. Some of the words the man says don’t make sense- you’d think they were gibberish, but something about this place is off, and you don’t trust yourself right now. You ask what he means. He says he’ll have to put you on hold for a moment, and music begins to play. You feel almost rooted in place. The man stares at you silently. The light gets dimmer. You can’t move. The music, pleasant at first, begins to grate. Finally, the man leaves, disappearing behind those file cabinets. You still can’t move. It feels like an eternity. Moss has started creeping its way up the cabinets. The ceiling is leaking. The floor is eroding. The light gets dimmer. You don’t want to move. 

Something pops, and suddenly the music is gone. The man is back. You can move again. The light is back to normal, no sign of any damage. The room is pristine. The man says something about the paperwork not being quite ready yet, you’ll have to come back later. You aren’t really listening, something in your brain is screaming that something is wrong. You want to leave. You don’t want to come back. Something about the man’s blank eyes seems to look through you, and you get the feeling you won’t have a choice. You thank him. You leave. You want to run, get as far from that place as possible. You walk.

You enter the forest, and turn for a final look at that strange building. There’s nothing there but more forest. Something doesn’t feel right.

#horror #<- probably? #grian #hermitcraft #mcyt #goodtimeswithscar #cay talks #cay’s writing #idk. something about a random office building in the middle of the woods is just so off to me. fae vibes

[caycanteven]

I don't remember what I was going for, but here's a sketch horror boi <3

~Sorry I haven't posted for a hot sec, been working on these commissions and some stuff on the side! Hoping to get some of the finished ones posted today and not get sidetracked again. Doing the same on my other socials too, cause I'm a goober with a brain of a goldfish teehee.~

#my art #sans #sans au #caycantdoodle #cay talks #undertale au #horror sans #horrortale #horrotale by sour apple studios #axe #horror sans aka axe #i always liked axe #it's just hot teehee #sorry for my inactivity as of late #im pretty sure i have to do a follower thank you too #goodness heavens

[yummycrummy]

my fav p1 voicelines cuz he's a loser

#srry guys its the brainrot #yes ik its the demon talking #made this also for my friend cai so if u see this bestie...hi >:] #postal 1997 #postal #postal dude

[yuri-is-online]

Been brainrotting lately and now I present to you what I think is an underused story beat for Yuu. What if “Yuu” isn’t even the prefect’s real name?

Considering that Yuu’s first experience in Twisted Wonderland is waking up in a coffin, wandering around an obviously foreign place, and being questioned by a suspicious man in a crow mask surrounded by people in black hooded robes… I just think most people would not give their real name in such a sketchy situation.

Fast forward to when Yuu is more comfortable with the cast and there is both comedy and angst potential here. On one hand, the reactions to the deception could be pretty funny. (Cue a “woe is me” from Crowley. Of course he can’t find a way home for you when he doesn’t have your real name!) On the other, this could be a great way of exploring the prefect having a crisis. Yuu already lost so much in being taken to Twisted Wonderland, and now in a way even the prefect’s name has been taken.

What do you think?

waking up in a coffin, wandering around an obviously foreign place, and being questioned by a suspicious man in a crow mask surrounded by people in black hooded robes…

Annon, annon, annon, when you put it like that it sounds like Yuu woke up in the middle of a cult ritual of some sort. Which I suppose if you were an edgy Night Raven student idia you might argue that the enrollment ceremony totally is as an excuse not to go

But to be more serious, I have seen a few memes about this concept and I like it a lot σ(￣、￣=) It's a fun character concept, it's not everyday you get a chance to re-invent yourself completely.

That being said, just based off of the few dialogue options Yuu has at the start, I think Yuu is implied to believe that they are dreaming:

Which honestly doesn't make this idea any less valid. If you're dreaming about waking up in the middle of some weird necromancer's rite, why not give him a fake name? It's not meant to be serious anyway. Just go with the flow and hope things don't get too weird (and get offended when your dream doesn't give you magic powers) until it's too late and you realize everyone thinks your name really is that bad joke you made.

If you want to get darker, maybe Yuu really did think they died. A black carriage pulling a coffin really only goes to a funeral, and death has been depicted as an unmanned coach with black horses. Maybe Yuu is only just coming to grips with the fact that they really are alive when they see Riddle overblot and he hurts them. Maybe they now are sitting next to two people who have started to think about them as a friend, a really close one. Maybe they think Yuu is really brave because they charged headlong into danger without a second thought, and won, twice now. Maybe Yuu cries themselves to sleep that night because in a way... you died so yuu could live.

As for reactions, Crowley and the other staff members I think would be the most dramatic, followed by Adeuce and Grim. Jack I can see accepting your reasons and not thinking too hard about it, maybe even respecting your survival instincts, while Epel... well he says he's mad but mostly he's just concerned. He knows what it feels like to have two dueling parts of yourself and trying to find the middle ground. Ortho would be excited, you have a secret identity just like a magical girl/super sentai/anime idol/superhero take your pick really. He certainly doesn't mind getting to know you all over again.

Sebek screams at you for being a threat to Wakasama but it's clear to everyone who actually knows him that he's really just worried about the amount of stress you put on yourself. He would hate for you to have the same issues with self loathing he does. And Malleus? Well he lied to you about who he was because he was worried you would be afraid, even though you didn't know he existed. It would be very petty for him to hold a grudge against you for doing the same.

In general I think this would be something the others would have an easier time understanding as opposed to Yuu's sense of alienation or loneliness at not having magic. Identity issues are common themes in fiction, so I could see them actually seeing it as a problem as opposed to an abstract problem like no government papers (since these kids with one obvious exception don't do taxes.) But it would make for a great way to explore the prefect having a crisis just as you say, in a way it's the perfect example for every problem they might have with being in Twisted Wonderland.

#<3 asks #twisted wonderland x reader #twst x reader #twst yuu #i think azul jamil and ruggie? would probably be the most accepting of yuu in this situation #jamil understands wanting to start a new life but wanting it done on his terms #ruggie understands poverty and not trusting the government #and azul #well he does try to collect secrets on people #it's how he tries to make friends #but he's also clearly “sympathetic” to those he perceives to be living lies #in a way it could be a mirror to how yuu sees him at the end of book 3 #“hard work is harder to master than magic seriously your amazing you don't need to steal from people” #vs #“i too value hard work and incremental progress” #“you don't need to lie about who you are to be worthy of respect and admiration” #and let's not talk about cay cay #because i sort of might have spoiled his 800 followers entry if i squint at something i wrote up there

[lunarharp]

"Found out" set in kind of a made-up chapter where the girls are in trouble, or something.

#witch hat tag #orufrey #i hate having a strong cinematic image in your mind for months..working hours on it..& at the end looking you have to be like “Sure. :/" #i'm especially unsatisfied with the beginning and the end and how i can't get eyebrows to work as i want #but i dont care any more... this is probably the comic that has given me the most trouble ever i just dont care #i barely even care whatsoever if anyone even sees this..Ugh..but at least i can move on to the next era now #i'm just annoyed i cant get out good enough my image of qifrey flinching bc he thinks oru will hit him but then he is not hit #i feel like sensei will do something along these lines. i want to see what she will do. #there are also other variations i have in my mind. i just want to know #i just don't want it to happen with qifrey on his deathbed or something. but it possibly will. I DONT EVEN KNOW. #i have another very cinematic image in my mind for something sort of along those lines which i will do soon. it never ends... #btw after this is probably my fics. yeah.... i think it has to be my fics. jasmine sort of goes along these lines #i need that space for dialogue. look - i'm a writer. this is HARD for me. so i am really glad i had the space and freedom of words #to process all the feelings. but i tried to get something out in a quick visual space too. <- me defending myself to myself at cai court #anyway going along the lines of 'Jasmine' - they talk this out and argue and cry and oru pushes the hat at him and tells him #why not just erase every memory i have of you then. That would be easier for us all wouldn't it? #they kiss and sob and kiss and lie outside in the flowers for many hours in that one. and then there's 'Deep End' where it turns out #way way way way more time and words is needed for this actually and that's upsetting for everyone. #the destruction of the hat is certainly another path to take. Can you make this work without that hat going up in flames? #something you have always had and have been clinging to will have to be destroyed. You have to lose something now. This is the crux qifrey #I CANT GET IT OUT IN ONE COMIC!!! I CANT DRAW IT OUT!!!! I NEEDED THOSE FICS!!!! PRAISE WORDS!!!! whatever im going to have dinner now

[chloegong]

ICYMI... my children<3

OFFICIAL DESCRIPTION:

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Chloe Gong come two captivating novellas surrounding the events of Foul Lady Fortune and following a familiar cast of characters from These Violent Delights.

In A Foul Thing, Roma and Juliette have established themselves as the heads of an underground weapons ring in Zhouzhuang, making a living the way they do best while remaining anonymous in their quiet life.

But when they hear about Russian girls showing up dead in nearby towns, they decide to investigate – and discover that this mystery is closer to home than they ever imagined . . .

In This Foul Murder, Benedikt and Marshall have been summoned by Roma to find the illusive scientist, Lourens, and bring him to Zhouzhuang. Time is of the essence aboard the week-long Trans-Siberian Express, but when someone is murdered on board, Benedikt and Marshall convince the officer in charge they are investigators and promise they can solve the murder if he doesn’t stop the train.

But as they dig deeper, they realize that the murder might having surprising ties to their own mission . . .

BUY LINKS

#these violent delights #foul lady fortune #chloe gong #romajuliette #benediktmarshall #juliette cai #roma montagov #rosalind lang #benedikt montagov #marshall seo #feels weird to be using the tags like this when i was always a talk in the tags tumblr girlie #last violent call #a foul thing #this foul murder

[no-1-rosalind-lang-apologist]

Juliette, the Girlboss Trope, and Structural Change

From what I’ve observed, stories with “girlboss” protagonists tend to be less likely to critique existing power structures and end up focusing more on slightly tweaking surface level aspects of them to allow the protagonist to prove themselves within the context of the existing system. To me, this is extremely interesting within the context of These Violent Delights because Juliette is arguably initially set up to fulfill this archetype. Because she is a girl, her claim to the status of heir is questioned by those around her more than it would be otherwise. She feels more pressure to be ruthless and to do whatever she can to earn the respect of those around her. Toward the very beginning of These Violent Delights, she threatens to kill Tyler when he attempts to upstage her, saying that she will kill him before she lets him take her heirdom away from her. Without knowing that These Violent Delights is a Romeo and Juliet retelling, it wouldn’t be unreasonable to expect Juliette to become the leader of the Scarlet Gang and somehow fix things from the inside at the end. She is well set up to be the Strong Female Protagonist ™ who takes what is owed to her and is hardened and kickass and ruthless and doesn’t let interfering men get in her way. 

But importantly, regardless of how much Juliette initially knows it, this is a facade. The image of the hardened ruthless heir may be one that Juliette encourages, but it is a heavily distorted reflection of who she truly is. Because at her very core, though she was raised to be the heir of the Scarlet Gang and therefore should be the literal personification of the continuation of the blood feud, that is not who Juliette is. Throughout the duology, her main motivation is protecting those she loves. At first, she believes that she can do this by working within the existing system. She tries to legitimize herself as heir within the existing power structure of the Scarlet Gang. However, the Scarlet Gang Juliette is set to inherit is one built upon a foundation of fractures that legitimizes its existence through the perpetuation of the blood feud to the extent that to solve the blood feud, or even seek to calm it, would be a violation of its very nature. The Scarlet Gang could never accept a leader that sought to do this, nor could the White Flowers, who equally rely on the blood feud as a source of power, accept the figurehead of their rival gang as an ally. To do so would be a fundamental betrayal of the nature of these two groups. Thus, Juliette must choose between legitimizing her position as heir, bringing more suffering upon the people and city she loves in the process, and giving up her position as heir and forfeiting her power. 

But if Juliette forfeits her power, who does she forfeit her power to? After all, if she merely walks away, the blood feud will still exist. The refusal of one person to fall in line cannot topple an entire system. The answer comes back to Tyler who, unlike Juliette, truly is meant to represent the continuation of the blood feud. He feels the need for vengeance and hatred at his core, and is constantly suspicious of Juliette, recognizing her lack of loyalty though it is incomprehensible to him. Ultimately, there was never room enough for both of them. When Juliette threatened his life in These Violent Delights, she did so out of fear of him usurping her place. Little did she know, he already had. In representing the longevity of the blood feud, Tyler, not Juliette represents the longevity of the Scarlet Gang. While she was the heir in name, he embodied the very lifeforce of the gang. In a way, he almost represents the Juliette that could have been. And that is precisely why Juliette had to kill him.

Though Tyler’s death is foreshadowed by Juliette’s initial threat in the first book, when she shoots him in Our Violent Ends, it is not the callous, unfeeling kill of an heir pushing aside the final obstacle before claiming their rightful place at the top. Instead, it is Juliette’s final severance from the vicious cycle of the blood feud and the illusion of her status as heir. She recognizes that the power she would wield as the future leader, or even the true heir, of the Scarlet Gang stakes its legitimacy in the continuation of the blood feud, and therefore, she would lose legitimacy as a leader if she were to act against the blood feud. This is further demonstrated when Lord Cai tells her that she can choose between dying a White Flower and being heir following his discovery of her relationship with Roma, representing her direct defiance of the blood feud, and her murder of Tyler, representing her sabotage of the longevity of the blood feud and her rejection of her status as heir.

By this point, Juliette has established that she cannot live as a part of the blood feud. She put a bullet through its heart, firing on her own kin to do so. Because the blood feud has no future, she can no longer pretend to occupy the role of heir. But at the same time, in killing Tyler, she has rejected her place within the blood feud. She cannot die a Scarlet, and she cannot die a White Flower because she refuses to be either. In the end, it is not her and Roma’s apparent deaths that aid the end of the blood feud. Instead, it is their rejection of its perpetuation through their rejection of their statuses as heirs. Their continued survival after their apparent death and the birth of their daughter stands in direct defiance to the division brought on by the blood feud. Though, as is further explored in Foul Lady Fortune, this division is still very present, Roma and Juliette’s continued survival both acknowledges that the kind of change required cannot be brought about by the efforts of one titular protagonist, no matter how world ending their sacrifice, and gives hope for a better future. Unlike the girlboss protagonist, Juliette rejects the status quo and achieves her goals by rejecting power. Instead of seeking to be the figurehead of change, which would also be extremely ahistorical, she does her part and steps back, acknowledging that as a singular person, she does not and should not have the power to fix everything. In the end, she watches from the outskirts of Shanghai, and though she is doomed to forfeit her place within her home to protect the people she loves, she is safe enough to live with her husband and raise her daughter and use her remaining connections to do what she can. Because in the end, one person cannot fix everything, no matter how powerful they are. And the spark of hope represented by Juliette and Roma’s continued survival and the birth of their daughter as well as the protection offered by their weapons ring is enough. 

#disclaimer: i am not necessarily saying that that any of this is correct and true i just sort of went into a trance and wrote this #also i didn't even touch on juliette grieving for tyler and the contrast that was drawn between them there #i might revisit this and talk more about how structural change is approached throughout chloe gong's work #and/or maybe how this is continued within foul lady fortune #or maybe the difference between the girlboss trope and the morally gray thing #hopefully this is coherent #if someone wants to add onto this please do i love overanalyzing things #i was going to wait to proofread this again after sleeping but its fiiiineee #chloe gong #secret shanghai #these violent delights #tvd #our violent ends #ove #last violent call #lvc #a foul thing #aft #juliette cai #roma montagov #juliette x roma #romajuliette #mai #katherina montagova #tyler cai

[moobrvoobl-moobmoob-oobmpoobroom]

Roma 🤝 Orion

this scary woman is my wife

#Swift talks #swift reads secret Shanghai books #FLF #foul lady fortune #rosalind lang #orion hong #these violent delights #our violent ends #secret shanghai #juliette cai #roma montagov #romajuliette #what is Rosalind and orions ship name please #only a few pages into LVC and god I missed them #Last violent call #Last violent call spoilers #not really but just to be safe #secret shanghai spoilers

[skepticalcatfrog]

This is my first time joining a small fandom in a while and it's so funny to keep seeing usernames I recognize in my notes. I'll post something new and I'll be like "hey. I know you"

#the last time i was really in a small fandom was a few years ago #and now I'm in this one! and it's like I'm in a little classroom where i recognize all the people but i don't talk to them #these violent delights #our violent ends #foul lady fortune #foul heart huntsman #last violent call #secret shanghai #juliette cai #roma montagov #alisa montagova #benedikt montagov #marshall seo #rosalind lang #celia lang #orion hong #oliver hong #phoebe hong #silas wu

[catermeow]

I think it’s funny that the three people Mumbo didn’t want to ask about blowing up his base (Grian, Zed, Doc) are the ones already responsible for exploding his vault door.

#grian #docm77 #mcyt #zedaph #mumbo jumbo #yes mumbo! Those are definitely the ones you don’t want to ask about blowing up your base! #so much so that they’ve done it already! #they exude ‘will blow up your base’ energy for a reason mumbo #hermitcraft #cay talks

[caycanteven]

I drew this instead of eepin, because I got dragged back into the mafia verse (i could never run from the mafiaverse in the first place, thanks for the reminder Mothie lmfao) so now you guys get this delicious midnight snack.

Maybe I'll do a fun lil story to play on his character some hehehehehe

#my art #sans #sans au #undertale au #caycantdoodle #cay talks #lexverse #balsam sans #horrorfell sans #MHF Sans #is he like #how does this work LMFAO #Looking at boysen (by mothiepixie) and wondering if mine still counts #im gonna say he does #had more sketches planned but im so eepy #will take this man to my dreams tonight. #and for the peeps who like reading the fluff in the tags #He would ask politely to caress your hand and leave a skeleton kiss on your fingers #he'd be real slow and careful #then he'd offer to take you anywhere to eat #but he'd try to persuade you to eat out at a little hole in the wall diner that he finds comfort in.

[excaive]

There's a hole in the sky 💠

#ocs #keith sun #cai arts #comic #there's. two links to different tunes #(or three links technically as i dropped a playlist in the middle of the sentence lol) #Advanced Lore... which I think I have not even talked about on here #anyway blue bitch of a god [kqo'twec] isn't the only god in Black Orbit and they also have a playlist #what's a blue team w/o a red team amirite

[teshiee]

unbelievable!! its been a full year since i made this blog i commemorate with grian art i never posted 🎉🎉

#grian fanart #grian art #grian #1 year tumblrversary #tumblr milestone #unlikely crossover #the first grian was made based on a chat i had with cai grian #the grian with scar is based on a fic #i drew fanart of that fic before!! #but lets not talk about that #i drew the comic right after finishing that episode #i was havinga BLAST

[lunarharp]

qifrey & the gals

#witch hat tag #more recent things. i already miss the motivation and peace of mind inherent to being offline i was drawing so freely and happily Hahhhhhhh #i miss you i love you i need you (talking to the state of being Officially Offline) coco thinking she's the 5th household member... #and not the 6th makes me think of my irl dad. kid me thought they were his firstborn child and turns out i'm his. 6th. #sorry for the very wild cai lore. qifrey 🤝 my father: Mayhaps i could reveal just how many children there are or maybe not teehee

[nevsclowntown]

tell us some of the omegaverse founders angst we can handle it some of us

okay, i hope you're sure you can handle!

in which war is still coming and even though it was supposed to be a peaceful negotiation talk, their enemies didn't really think the same and ended up not only overpowering but killing Tobirama.

They dropped his dead body in front of Konoha's doors and Hashirama.

Madara tries to be there for both of them, but Hashirama won't let himself be talked to and all he can do for Izuna is take their child from his hands from time to time - though Izuna secretly teaches himself Edo Tensei and everything gets worse. before it gets better though

#naruto #naruto shippuuden #hashimada #tobiizu #hashirama senju #tobirama senju #izuna uchiha #madara uchiha #major character death #foundersomegaverse #nevart #ask #anon #doodle #/ i hope you were ready for this #i also briefly talked to kris about this plot line #and i swear my fiance cai and i created this au to give them a happy family life #but i need the angst to breath #i love to suffer emotionally

[halfadoginatank]

RE:BOOTING, Awakening.

Part one-> Here.

Have fun!

———————

There are three things John believes in. The divine, The machine, and The flesh.

His own body has been over, under, twisted around this conglomerate of parts for months. People have called, texted, mailed him for Christ's sake. But there's nothing more important than feeling unforgiving metal bend under his human hands.

Ghost is a machine so broken and tragic, John cries when he's alone with it.

he forgets there's a human inside of there, forgets though always passively aware of the chip in the machine's name where he works around it. When he's welding metal together, wiring it, staring into its chassis with adoration and wonder, he neglects the fact there is a human ‘soul��� in there, waiting to wake up.

John's never been dead, he doesn't know what the real man inside the metal feels.

But he longs, he wants to shove more than his hands inside this robot. This Replicant, he wants to become one with it, in a body he's created himself. In his hazy mind he believes there's god inside this machine, because there is some god in everything and in him, and he is inside this machine, bits of himself- his handiwork, his blood, his sweat, the tears from drunk nights sobbing over a machine while he tells it things he could never admit to himself.

It takes his time, his sleep, his awareness away from the world. There's a bottle of medication right by his night stand and everyday he avoids it, he's so focused now. There's never been anything else like this, like peeling the synthetic skin away from metal and improving what couldn't fix itself. John doesn't want to lose any attention he has on this machine.

Days and nights pass, he prolongs the inevitable, making tiny worthless upgrades, small details, painting back some of Simon Rileys tattoos onto the cold dark grey metal, they barely show up unless in the right lighting but who cares? Anything but turning it back on, anything but having the man inside look upon John and see what he's done, to see him, see inside John's head and every thought he's had while inside him.

John hopes robotic bodies don't hold memories, he hopes when a Replicant's body is turned off that they can't see anything, can't hear anything, he hopes Simon is sleeping well in whatever realm of data his soul is in now. He doesn't want to be seen, he just wants to work. Free to love and care for things that feel nothing at all.

When he turns this machine on it will cease to be just that, it'll be a person. A person who will look down at themselves, call it good, and never see him again.

He'll be letting go of the best thing he's ever made, he'll be letting go Ghost.

[«»]

Time catches up anyway. He sends the email and they respond in kind. A week from now John Price, Kyle Garrick, and Kate Laswell will arrive at his office, So it's time. John will turn the ‘key’ and Simon will wake up.

When he does, for a brief moment he considers a gift from god- there is silence. Those brown eyes blink open, the synthetic skin on his face and neck pull when he turns his head, scrunches when he sniffs the air. John has never felt so… unsure of what he's done.

“Where am I?” Simon's head pulls up, he rattles against the metal table, john looks down in shame and purses his lips- unable to really make anything of his own doing.

“Where the hell am I?!?” Simon rattles again, John looks away from the restraints on him in guilt.

Simon continues his questioning, his flailing, John can only hope it'll end soon so he can get a word in- maybe explain. But in truth, how could he explain being reborn into a machine?

The sounds grow closer and John makes nothing of it until a towering figure blocks every inch of his vision.

Of course, he would make Ghost inhumanly strong, and of course he would fail to make proper restraints.

“Who are you, what orders were you given?”

Simon's face looked down at him, that face he had painfully put onto a plate he 3D printed just so he could keep it as accurate to what few pictures he was given. Scars and everything, even those tiny freckles he hand painted on- exactly where they should be.

Orders, right, orders are much easier to explain.

“You're aware of what a replicant is, yea?”

God let him keep his eyes anywhere but on the man in front of him.

“Captain Price, your superior; found you dying in Texas of all places- put you in a very old Replicant soldier body that was beat up and declared a spare.”

John thanked whatever gods out there that Simon had taken steps back to sit on the table, the table with broken leather straps- Christ above.

“He came to me to fix you up the best I could, so I did. Fix you, I mean.”

He felt… tired, John didn't bother explaining even more. couldn't really think beyond the sudden wave of exhaustion. Instead he sat down at his closest chair and bemoaned some of the papers and parts Simon had stepped on.

There's a giant silent expanse between them, John yearns for cold metal with no gaze to freeze him solid.

“When am I on active duty.”

John bites his tongue, goes for a cup of coffee on his desk he knows is cold.

“Price is coming around with the rest of the squad in three days, presumably he'll move you and you'll be in their care.” He can't keep the bitterness out of his voice.

Simon is prone to one word responses and direct questions, John shouldn't blame him for it. He doesn't, not really, he blames himself most of all. For getting involved with a Replicant, for spending what little sleep he got at its bedside, for whispering his secrets into a hollow skull.

“And you?”

Oh, John doesn't know. What does anyone do when losing a part of themselves?

“I'll move on to other projects- military always has issues with something, once someone gets word about who patched you up, i'll get more orders. I do good for myself.”

He wants to brag, he wants to brag and act like Ghost isn't the best thing he's worked on in his life.

“Right.”

[«»]

In the end those three days are spent in silence. Simon only needs to recharge really, so John goes back to sleep in his bed. The world has never felt colder.

He's not listening to their reunion, not really. Price is happy to see Simon again and Garrick makes his introduction- he's charming and John finds he likes the people in this squad, it's certainly better then some.

Laswell is who he spends most of the time with, there's papers and documents of all kinds. John wants to poke fun at them using ancient methods like a paper contract but he's still so tired.

In truth, the only thing that really catches his attention is when Price turns to him and asks him, John Mactavish, to join the one-four-one.

It's been years since he'd been on a military base, he shriveled at the thought of shitty “laboratories” and rec rooms full of people that became uninterested in him once he spoke about what he was truly passionate about.

He lays down his clauses, he'll work here, loath to change his environment.

There's a secret glee inside of him though. Proper gym equipment, maybe the opportunity to work on more specialized robotics then just his usual contract allows. When he says yes, Kate slides his contract from under the one he just signed.

Quietly it feels like fate.

——————

👍I take my leave.

#mw2 2022 #cod modern warfare #call of duty mw2 #simon ghost riley #ghost mw2 #ghostsoap #johnny soap mactavish #cod mw2 #very badly written sifi #call of duty modern warfare #modern warfare #modern warfare 2 #modern warefare ii #cod mw3 #ghost cod #cod mwii #ghoap #I swear the religious stuff wasnt supposed to be there #you can blame it on me letting my partner talk about preachers daughter by Ethel Cai #I think it screwed those last two tags I dont know because im on mobile life is such joy :)