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#And then THEN we come to Wodehouse

anza-redstar · 4 days

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Further discoveries in the the early P.G. Wodehouse files include the time he heard Sherlock Holmes would be coming back from the dead, and wrote a song parody about it:

When Sherlock left his native Strand, such groans were seldom heard; With sobs the Public’s frame was rent: with tears its eye was blurred. But the optimists reflected That he might be resurrected: It formed our only theme of conversation. We asked each other, Would he be? And if so, How and where? We went about our duties with a less dejected air. And they say that a suggestion Of a Parliamentary question Was received with marked approval by the nation. And Sherlock, Sherlock, he’s in town again, Sir Conan has discovered him, and offers to explain. The explanation may be thin, But bless you! we don’t care a pin, If he’ll but give us back our Sherlock.

#one for the ephemera files #letters regarding jeeves #letters from watson #don’t know what’s happening to the italics in this. I’ll check again when I’m not on mobile

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lettersregardingjeeves · 2 months

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Leave It to Jeeves - The Unused Images

Halloa! I’m back, and ready to chat about more pictures I didn’t use.

Well, here I'm being a bit nitpicky, I confess, in a way that isn't awfully fair to the original artist. But I'm the curator this round, what? So some freedom to pick and choose is allowed, I think. The Bertie here does look a touch on the old side, but not awfully so - and this is before "Jeeves Takes Charge", anyhow, so that would also be an unfair criticism even if I leaned into it - but my main trouble with these images is that Bertie is canonically a slender string bean of a man, while this Bertie is considerably heavier. The artist had no way of knowing this, so he certainly cannot be blamed, but due to the depiction not matching the Bertie we as a society know, I did not include these images.

(For the record, the reverse happened with the magazine illustrations of Wodehouse's Ukridge stories, which had an awful tendency to make the canonically tall and heavy James "Corky" Corcoran (who is, believe it or not, seemingly unrelated to this story's Bruce "Corky" Corcoran, though I like to pretend they're cousins) much too small and skinny to be plausible. But more on that when the time comes.)

Everything about these expressions cracks me up. Corky's smug face. The absolute nothingness behind Bertie's eyes. Incredible.

Once again, Tony Sarg kills in expressions. Definitely the one reason I'm sad about not including them.

#letters regarding jeeves #lrj #jeeves and wooster #bertie wooster #reginald jeeves #tony sarg's art deserves to be seen #but it ought not to be attached to bertie when it goes too much against our modern perception of him i think #that was my executive decision

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scrittorio · 4 months

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Coming Soon: Scrittorio, Issue #2!

The second issue of Scrittorio Magazine will be released on December 31, 2023. If you'd like to get it straight in your inbox (in PDF format), subscribe for free here!

In this upcoming issue, you will find articles about:

artificial intelligence in fiction writing

interactive fiction

posthumous censorship

fiction podcasts

why we write horror

You'll also find three awesome interviews with:

Etta Grace (writeblr's very own @ettawritesnstudies - check out her author website!)

Kit Riemer (creator of Universal Hologram - and lots more!)

Underboss (author of As Good As Dead)

And there's even more!

Our focus for this issue's In the Margins is an excerpt from PG Wodehouse's humorous Carry On, Jeeves.

Last, but not least, you'll get a bunch of free worksheets to help you with your character development, interactive fiction plotting, and more!

Reblogs very much appreciated! <3

#writeblr #writing #writers #writing community #scrittorio

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jabbage · 11 months

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I keep seeing a post floating around from an aspec person saying how they'd been made to feel monstrous and broken and wrong.

I went through those feelings in my teens and twenties and had some really dark times. I think that society gives us such limited views of what happiness and success look like, and it can be crushing. If you're someone who knows you're not going to pair off or get married or have kids, it's hard to know what a happy domesticity looks like?

I'm in my early 30s now, and I'm so contented with my life. I thought I'd share a little, in case it gives anyone a bit of hope to see one form a happy life can take which isn't perhaps the mainstream?

I wake up to find my little cat purring on my chest, and I give her a cuddle.

I get dressed in a new suit I've brought. I realised recently that off-the-shelf clothes never fit me right, so I've been saving up money to have them adjusted at a tailor. It fits perfectly now and I feel great in it. It's taken a while, but I feel like I've finally nailed a style for myself.

I walk to work, through the park so I can admire the flowers. This takes longer, but it gives me some exercise and I enjoy having the time to think. I stop off at a shop on the way and get some nice sandwiches, my favourite kind of pastry and a drink. Normally I make a pack lunch, but this is my weekly Tuesday Treat.

I have a morning meeting with some of my coworkers, who I feel value me and my work. Personal organisation in my worklife has been a struggle for me, but recently I realised I'm one of those folks who probably has ADHD and wasn't caught by the system. Just knowing this has given me so many new tools which are designed for the way by brain works, and I feel so much more confidant.

For the rest of the day instead of staying in my office I work on a picnic table in the sunshine, occasionally stopping to watch some skateboarders. At lunchtime I eat the food I bought, and I chec discord and catch up with online shenanigans. I enjoy having friendships I've forged with people across the world. I love to visit people and to travel, and my independent lifestyle gives me chance to do that. I also like having people over to stay. I like to say I'm like Bilbo Baggins, I live along in my little hobbit hole but if you come round I'll cook you an elaborate dinner and put you up for the night.

After work I go on a free guided history walk around my local area, and find out about lots of little historical things of interest I hadn't seen before. I also meet new people. Even if I never see them again, it's nice to have that moment of connection. When I get home, I video call with my parents and we share our news with each other.

I cook a quick dinner - these days I don't put pressure on myself to do anything too elaborate. I figure if frozen chopped onion and ready meals help me to eat moderately well and keep healthy, I'll use them. I have some cream which needs using, so eat it with some absolutely monstrous strawberries.

I check my personal emails with my cat purring away on my lap. I've got a little side gig writing and illustrating. I worry that I'm not very good and It doesn't make me much money and I know I'll never be famous (do I even want to be?!), but I do enjoy it. Sometimes I'm confronted with a pile of rejections which can hurt, but it's all good stuff today: the money from a book I worked on came in. There are some more details about a talk I'm giving at the British Library later this year. My agent is sending some possible opportunities my way.

I still have a few hours before bed, so I work on a creative project for a bit. Not something I'm being paid for today: it's a personal craft project. I realised a while ago I have a bad habit of monetising everything, so now I make sure to set aside time in the week to work on things that will be presents for myself or friends.

And then when it gets to about 11, I snuggle under the covers and read PG Wodehouse. I giggle. A lot.

It's been a hard slog, but I suddenly find that I'm a very happy person. There's no partner-shaped or child-shaped hole in my life. I'm content. Every life has highs and lows of course, some days are better than others. I'm sure I'll have many troubles to face in the future, but I consider my asexuality to be a positive and joyful facet of my life.

#asexual #asexuality #aroace #aromantic #aromanticism

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johannestevans · 1 year

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Hey there, long time listener first time caller,

One of the things I’ve loved for ages about your stories is how you’re able to impart a huge amount of characterisation very quickly through character voice and fun, effective shorthand. Within two paragraphs I have a strong sense of what one of your characters is about, even if there is naturally more depth to come. I’m able to buy into the basic nuts and bolts of how they think and who they are, and want to follow them through whatever they’re up to.

I’m trying my first stab at original fiction after writing fanfic for a good few years, and I’m finding a bit of trouble. While I’ve gotten alright (from what I’ve been told) at doing (ostensibly) engaging stuff with characters whose traits and characterisation is known by readers who are already up to speed on who XYZ is and who they broadly are, I’m finding that I’m having trouble introducing the lead characters effectively. What I’m doing either comes across as 1) didactic and heavy-handed, meaning the moment I’m using to demonstrate character feels out of place or 2) weak, meaning there’s not a strong sense of character as I’m launching into their adventure.

You always have such a strong characterisation in all of your stuff, whether long form or short, how do you do it?

Hey there, Anon!

I'm a strong believer in dialogue as one of the biggest things that establishes a character, and part of crafting good dialogue is creating unique and individual - especially contrasting and/or complementary - voices among your characters.

I've done a big in-depth guide to crafting unique dialogue that's about 8.5k that I think you might find useful - it's basically in the format of explanation, and then a bunch of questions to ask yourself to help you craft this stuff from scratch, so definitely don't feel you have to adhere or use the whole thing!

Have a scan through and see whatever is most useful to you:

(And as ever if you can't sub on Medium and you're out of free articles, just use an Incognito window.)

I'll repeat this rec list of good studies for dialogue from the article because these are all pieces that do great individual characters from the immediate intro:

I have a few absolute favourite media which I consider to have some extremely tight screenwriting and/or extremely strong character-led dialogue, and specifically very unique individual character voices, which are:

Cabin Pressure (Radio comedy. Comedy, 4 seasons between 2008 and 2012. Written by John Finnemore.)

The Great White Hype (Movie, 1996, dir. Richard Hudlin. Sports comedy.)

Deep Cover (Movie, 1992, dir. Bill Duke. Action thriller.)

Hustlers (Movie, 2019, dir. Lorene Scafaria. Comedy/drama.)

The Discworld Series by Terry Pratchett, particularly The Truth, Going Postal, and Lords and Ladies.

Jeeves and Wooster (TV Series, 4 series from 1990–1993, but I only really recommend S1 and S2, as S3–4 are much weaker. With that said, the whole series is very directly adapted from the Jeeves books by P.G. Wodehouse, so I would recommend those).

A lot of this is practice-based, though, and it sounds like you're on a really good track!

I know it doesn't feel like it, but when you're reading back through and you can immediately identify the problems in your own work and where it's not hitting in the way you want, that's a sign that you've already got the skills to analyse this stuff and see what does work!

Many artists have a keen sense of what makes good art in their field, and that means we have a good critical eye in other people's work to see what works and what doesn't - when we can turn it on our own work and immediately see the problem and what we want to change, that's half the battle.

If you're coming at this from a fanfic perspective, an exercise I might advise is to pick a few favourite characters that you've written in fandom, and basically strip them down to their absolute brass tacks.

Not their whole backstory or biography, but like... Take a character you've written again and again and again. Say you're transplanting them into a different AU to their base universe - so if they're normally characters from a cop show, but you were theoretically going to write them into a sci-fi universe on a space station, or a fantasy universe with dragons, or a historical AU set in the 1860s.

For that character, what traits are most important that they keep, and will have to be adapted to the new universe to keep them "the same" character? Aspects of their appearance, their voice, their class, their parents, their upbringing, their job, their style, their personality? What stays the same, and what will change?

And then think about how you'd introduce that character to the reader within that new universe - this is someone they know and love, but they're different now in many ways. When we put a character in an AU, in many ways when we bring them to the reader's gaze, we're reintroducing them - it's the same person they know and love, but it's also a stranger.

Crafting new and individual charcters and introducing them to a reader is the next step on from that!

#musings #writing

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isfjmel-phleg · 8 months

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Why I like it: Psmith in the City

After I read and enjoyed Mike and Psmith, I interlibrary-loaned the rest of the series and read them in rapid succession.

And honestly, my greatest appreciation for this book came during rereads and the need to overanalyze the text for annotations and conversations with a very longsuffering Allie.

Mike and Psmith's friendship comes about in the first book, and we get to see how much Psmith is willing to sacrifice for his friend, but their connection really comes to the forefront during Psmith in the City.

There's something delightfully escapist about these two friends rooming in Psmith's luxurious flat, braving the drudgeries of their shared misfortune of working at the bank by day, and living it up in Edwardian London by night. It's a setting that feels very real--and it was! Wodehouse peppers the narrative with real locations, and when I was in London, I was able, using this information, to take a little private walking tour of Psmith's part of town and experience it. Even with the reality of the locations, though, there's a certain glamorization. Thanks to Psmith's father's money, the boys are able to afford an experience of young adulthood and a first job that isn't available to most people, either then or now. And perhaps there's some glamorization of the friendship too.

Because it isn't easy to be Psmith's friend, and this starts to be evident. Psmith is a jerk in a lot of ways in this book, more so than in the others--even in his interactions with Mike. But these moments are easily brushed aside, and the friendship never really suffers. This is a Wodehouse novel, so we can be confident that when things get really bad, Psmith will come through as the good friend that he really is, and he'll find a way to save the day for Mike. The worst of his behavior vanishes by the last part of the book, never to be seen again in how he treats his best friend. Not especially realistic, but it is compelling. A real-life Psmith would be absolutely dreadful to put up with; the page, however, allows us a distance that assures us that despite it all, his intentions are good and he himself is good at heart.

And on the whole, he is. We know this because he really does care about Mike, because he's capable of dropping the flippant mask to show compassion when the situation requires. He's just...a complicated mess here. He's under a lot of stress that he hides most of the time. He's angry at his father and taking that out on his awful boss. He's an arrogant rich kid with more money than is good for him. He has one (1) and only one friend whom he's clinging to like the only thing keeping him afloat in life. (Psmith's got attachment issues, I'm starting to realize. That may be another post.) He's a very complex character, not just the comic relief or the trickster archetype, and because of that, he goes beyond hilarity to being interesting, even if he's not always easy to like.

Mike is still the everyman, perhaps even more so because his story is such a relatable portrait of what it's like to be eighteen, fresh out of school, and having to take on for the first time an adult world that you're unequipped for. Mike's classical education and cricket skills aren't particularly useful now that he has to make a living. The former class clown and jock is now an awkward mess of social anxiety. Wodehouse pokes as much fun at Mike as he does anyone else in the story, but he also takes Mike's struggles and pain seriously--because much of it was probably his own. Mike's grief at losing the glorious future he was promised, his increasing frustration and despair at being trapped in a dead-end job that stifles his talents and personality--they're very real, and poignant.

Mike and Psmith may inhabit a glittering dream world in their version of London and maintain a desirably close friendship that would have probably fallen apart eventually if it existed in the real world. Their shenanigans are sheer comedy with no grounding in reality. But the heart of the story is two eighteen-year-olds on their own in the adult world for the first time, with no support system but each other, trying to figure out life and often failing--and this is what makes the story resonate, because we've all been there.

And sure, their ending is a fairy tale, down to the final lines in which Mike imagines his future as pretty much perfect from now on (which will not turn out to be the case!), but...well, when you're a twenty-something in your first non-college job, taking the bus, feeling incompetent, dealing with difficult coworkers...a fairy-tale ending alongside a true friend is pretty appealing.

#Psmith Pseptember #I RP'd Mike on another social media site for a few years and the City plot was mostly the same year I worked in a public library #and maybe it was silly but playing that character helped get me through that year #I loved having another life to imagine in obsessive detail

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fandomtrumpshate · 1 year

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Unlisted Fandom Challenge 2023 - update!

There are now 129 write-in fandoms in our 'Unlisted Fandom Challenge' …

Talk about coming from behind - in our last update on Unlisted Fandoms, Young Royals had ONE signup. It now leads the challenge, ahead of Malevolent (6), and The Queen's Thief (5), with EIGHT signups! In a similar jump, 911 Lonestar had zero signups at the last update, and is now tied with Overwatch for fourth place on the leaderboard with FOUR. Fifth place is a ten-way tie …

Below the cut is a list of all the fandoms with just one signup SO FAR … you can write in your fandom to get it on the list, or sign up to create in one of these and literally double their number of offers.

Signups are open through Feb 19!

1 A Series of Unfortunate Events 1 A Voice from Darkness (Podcast) 1 Ace Attorney 1 All The Wrong Questions 1 Animorphs 1 Be Kind My Neighbor 1 Bioshock 1&2 (only) 1 Blood of Youth 1 Blue Exorcist 1 Bug Fables 1 Call the Midwife 1 Cats the Musical 1 Citizen Sleeper 1 Cobra Kai 1 Coco Pixar 1 Cosmere (Brandon Sanderson) 1 Cyberpunk: Edgerunners 1 Danganronpa 1 Dead Poets Society 1 Dice Punks (podcast) 1 Digimon 1 Divergent (Movies) 1 Downton Abbey 1 Dragon Ball Z 1 Dragonriders of Pern - Anne McCaffrey 1 Dungeons and Daddies 1 Eerie Indiana 1 Emma - Jane Austen 1 Firefly 1 For All Mankind 1 Grace and Frankie 1 Greys Anatomy 1 Grimm 1 Guardian/Zhen Hun 1 Half-Life 1 Howl's Moving Castle 1 IDOLiSH7 1 Imperial Radch Series - Ann Leckie 1 Infinity Train 1 Jane Austen (any novel any pairing) 1 Jeeves - P. G. Wodehouse 1 Jojo's Bizarre Adventure 1 King of Scars Duology 1 Lout of the Count's Family / Trash of the Count's Family 1 Love Between Fairy and Devil 1 Madre Solo Hay Dos 1 Miss Scarlet and The Duke 1 Mob Psycho 100 1 Monochrome Factor 1 Outlast 1 Parasol Protectorate 1 Persuasion - Jane Austen 1 Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen 1 Psych 1 Qi Ye 1 Ranma 1/2 1 RPF 1 Sable 1 Sanders Sides 1 Scooby Doo 1 Shadow and Bone 1 Shameless (US) 1 Sidemen 1 Suits 1 Tangled the Series 1 Ted Lasso 1 Temple of the White Rat series by T. Kingfisher 1 Th e Ancient Magus Bride 1 The Boys 1 The Daevabad Trilogy 1 The King: Eternal Monarch 1 The Legend of Drizzt 1 The Lion Hunters Series - Elizabeth Wein 1 The Man From U.N.C.L.E. (2015) 1 The Man From UNCLE (TV) 1 The Tarot Sequence - K.D. Edwards 1 The Terror (TV 2018) 1 The Vampire Diaries (TV) 1 This Way Up 1 Tortall - Tamora Pierce 1 Tower of God 1 Transformers 1 True Blood (TV) 1 Twilight 1 Until We Meet Again 1 UuultraC 1 Valorant 1 Vikings (TV) 1 Warframe 1 Warrior Nun (TV Show) 1 What We Do in the Shadows 1 White Collar 1 X-men

#fth 2023 #unlisted fandom challenge #signups are open #signal boost!

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spaghettificationandpretzels · 1 year

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The Reaper and the Death Angel Part 62

Part 61 Snippet 6 - The Lesson II

Series Masterlist

Contains: Fluff, smut (oral sex M receiving), angst, violence, and more fluff.

8.5K words (this is the last plot heavy chapter so it's super long)

Comment if you want to be tagged/removed or follow #the reaper and the death angel.

“The fascination of shooting as a sport depends almost wholly on whether you are at the right or wrong end of the gun.” ― P.G. Wodehouse,

Everyone was up before the sun rose to prepare Disoa for her grand opening, but most of you wanted to stay in bed with Jax. His calloused hand was brushing your leg from your knee to your thigh and he was going over his plans for the day in that soft, half asleep gravel voice that made you think of how he sounded when he moaned in your ear while he was inside you.

His chest was pressed to your back as he whispered into your ear, "I know we'll be there all day so I'm hoping we can get back home before dinner, I don't really want to be there when the sun goes down."

You nodded, "ok my love, whatever you want."

Jax chuckled, "whatever I want?" His hand moved from the outside of your thigh to your inner thigh as you bent your knee to make room for his hand, "I want to hear you beg again."

You sighed, that did sound nice, "sadly my love, we don't have the time for that. The balloon arches aren't going to blow themselves up."

Jax groaned and gave your leg a gentle squeeze, "there's a joke in there somewhere." He pressed his lips to your crow and rolled away, extending his hand to help you up, "we've got a long day darlin, we better have a good breakfast."

Everyone was at Disoa on time, albeit a little tired and cranky, "how long is this going to take?"

You raised your eyebrows at Bobby's tone and he shrunk back, "right, we're here to help not complain."

You nodded, "yes, maybe you can get a taste of what the ladies have to go through every time you want a party." You turned to Jax, "my love, use those leadership skills and delegate, Venus and I have balloons to inflate."

You walked off with Venus and Jax took a deep breath, "alright then, Juice and Bobby, head to the kitchen and start making the bread and finger food. Ope and Hap, start hanging the decoration, the rest of you are with me getting all the furniture ready."

Sam smiled, "sounds good man, I'll take the tables."

They all walked off and Jax swaggered inside, bending down to whisper in your ear as you set up the metal frame, "I'm going to get what I want darlin, we both know it."

He pressed his lips to your jaw and walked off and Venus smiled, "what was that about?"

You smiled, "his ego, don't worry I have a plan."

****

It was almost done, the balloons were up, the food would be ready when people arrived and you wanted to sleep for a week, "hey y/n can you come and look at this?"

Happy called you to look at menus he had just finished folding and you looked up from the calling cards you were organising, "I'm not your boss Hap, Jax is."

"Ok." He raised his voice, "Jax, can you come and look at this?"

Jax's hand brushed your skin you as he walked by, a gesture he had repeated a million times that day, "what is it Hap?"

Happy held up the menus with a smile, "this good?"

Jax looked at you then turned back to his friend, "would you be happy with that if it was at a T-M party?"

Happy nodded and Jax smiled, "then yes, it's good. Good work man."

You yawned, and Jax stopped in his tracks and walked over to you before placing his hand on your cheek, "we've got forty minutes before we open the door, you wanna head into one of the rooms for a nap?"

You shook your head, "I can't, there's still so much to do."

Jax looked around, "Tiggy, get off your ass and come and do this." Tig was up in a flash, and Jax turned to Ima, "I'm sure you can show Tig what to do?"

Ima blinked, "yeah, it's not brain surgery."

Jax smiled and placed his hand on your back, "thank you Ima."

Jax led you to one of the couches and sat you down, "you doing ok?"

You nodded, "yeah, I'm just tired. Being up before dawn is never fun."

He smiled softly and sat next to you, brushing the back of his finger over your cheek, "no one's going to judge you for taking a break, you've been working since before sun up."

You shook your head, "I don't want to nap in the backroom of a brothel Jax."

You closed your eyes and the brushing of his hand lulled you to sleep, "I'll stay with you, they can't handle themselves for half an hour then they're doom." You went to protest but Jax didn't let you, "nope, you're having a nap then I'm going to sneak you some food and you can get right back to what you were doing."

You sighed and opened your eyes, "fine, twenty minutes and then a sandwich. Don't think this is a win Teller, you can't charm away my unshakeable work ethic."

Jax chuckled and his arm around you as you stood up, "I wouldn't dream of it darlin."

You walked to one of the back rooms and Jax locked the door behind you, lying down and opening his arms for you to climb into them. You did so without protest, resting your head on his chest as he held you in his arms.

"Was that so hard?"

You shook your head and pressed further into his side, "no. Tell me about your plans for T-M?"

Jax smiled, "sure darlin." He shifted on the bed and brushed your hair out of your face, speaking softly until your breathing evened out. He kept talking but pulled out his phone in case they still needed help outside but he only got one text from Sam.

"Thanks"

****

You were awoken by Jax squeezing your upper arm gently, "was that twenty minutes?"

Jax smiled, "twenty five, you just looked so peaceful and I wanted to hold you for a little longer."

You sighed, "I'm immune to your charms Teller but I can't be mad at you when you talk like that."

He pressed his lips to yours, a slight smirk on his face, "come on, let's get some food in you so you can get ready for opening." Jax pressed his lips to your forehead before pulling you up and walking you out the door and to the kitchen.

Jax waved towards a stool and you sat down as he walked up the food line up, "what can I get you darlin? There's a lot here, how about a tuna melt?"

You smiled, "you know me so well." Jax washed his hands, collected a plate then found the nicest looking sandwich and served it to you with a smile.

"There you go."

You shook your head and sighed, "you're too sweet for me. Are you going to have anything my love?"

He thought for a moment, "sure, I can't think of anything better than having lunch with my girl."

He got himself something and sat next to you, "so what happens after the doors open?"

You scootered closer and Jax's free hand found your thigh, "we welcome them in, we explain the rules and people have fun. Pope, Marks and the Mayans will be here to show support and then we go home before the sun sets so we miss the sin cave that I imagine this place will turn into once the daylight fades."

Jax chuckled, "I'm sure it will be all legal and above board. What about everyone here who isn't an escort?"

You wanted to laugh, "we have shirts, everyone will be told when they enter that asking for a date from anyone wearing them will lead to being tossed out."

Jax smirked, "good, because I don't want to shoot one of our clients."

You rolled your eyes and lifted your empty plate, "which reminds me, I need to get changed and then we need help get the food ready and go outside."

Jax sighed, "alright, but I mean it, if anyone comes up to you, I'm going to shoot them."

You shook your head, "you better not, we worked over hard on those decorations and I don't want them covered in brain matter."

****

You met everyone outside right before it opened, your plain black shirt earning a smile for Jax, "I told you there was no way it was going to bring me attention, it's so unsexy."

Jax shook his head, "You could be sexy in a potato sack, I'm smiling because you're amazing."

You shook your head, "Keep laying it on thick Teller, you won't get what you want."

Jax smirked, "We both know that's not true, you've begged before."

You went to reply but men started to get out of their cars and you had to put on a show. As people began to stand around, Nero stepped towards the door with a smile, "Welcome to the grand opening of Diosa Norte, we have all the food and alcohol and man could want. The ladies in the black shirts are our staff, friends and business partners so they will not be available for dates."

Jax's arm wrapped around you protectively, "The women with CaraCara logos on their shirts are also not up for dates, however, they'll will be here to talk to you about some options for personalised videos with their staff if you have something special in mind."

He reached for the door and waved his hand, "well then Gentlemen, enjoy our new location."

The door opened and everyone walked through, the prospective client being greeted by women with their hands full of trays of food and drink. Jax smiled and looped his arm around your shoulder, "wow, with a full house it looks amazing, you should be proud."

You pressed a kiss to his cheek, "I am, it was a lot of hard work."

You picked a quiet corner of the room the wait for Pope and the Mayans. It didn't take long for the other Sons are their partners, to follow. There was a moment when they took Eva in, Tig's smile growing as he extended his hand, "I'm guessing your Eva, Hap talks a lot about you."

She smiled and accepted his hand, "I am. I'm so happy to finally be meeting all you, Happy speaks highly of his brothers."

Jax looked over your face and tapped your shoulder, leaning in to whisper in your ear, "if you keep smiling so wide you're going to pull a muscle."

You knocked your knee into him, "hey, I picked well."

Jax chuckled, "yes you did."

He turned back to the group as she sat in Happy's lap, "well Eva, we're just happy to finally get to know you."

She smiled, "I'm happy to share. In fact, now that I'm getting Hap's crow I think it's very important that I get to know each and every one of you, Happy cares for you all deeply and that's reason enough."

It was hard to miss the look in Happy's eyes, the man was head over heal in love. Juice chuckled, "hey, we want to get to know you first, Hap hasn't shut up since y/n set you too up."

You gasped in mock offence, "I did no such thing."

Jax raised his eyebrow, "really darlin?"

You continued the pretence, "I had a extra ticket to that conference and I knew Happy would like it, what happened after he walked in those doors was up to fate."

Eva shook her head, "no one believes that for one minute." She turned back to Juice, "I'm a vet at an animal shelter in Oakland, and of course in my spare time, I'm a dominatrix but that doesn't matter to Happy so it shouldn't matter to any of you."

Juice shook his head, "we don't care, we've never heard Hap talk so much about someone."

She reached her hand out and placed it on Juice's shoulder, "you must be Juice, you are as kind as Happy says you are."

It was Chibs' turn to smile, "well lass, like Juicy said, tell us about yourself?"

****

The conversation went on and the rest of Diosa faded away. You kept your eyes on the clock as you waited patiently, twenty minutes before Pope and the Mayans arrived, you put your plan into action.

"Jackson my love, can I steal you for a while before out friends arrive?"

He placed his beer down with a smile, "of course darlin, shall we head to one of the back rooms? It's a little loud out here?"

You nodded, "yes please." You got up and Jax followed you, you kept it professional, making sure it didn't look like you were taking him somewhere to "service" him. You closed and locked the door and Jax sat on the comfy chair while you sat on the armrest, "you got a plan?"

You nodded and stood up, leading him over to the window as you parted the blinds so he could look out, "you want to keep this business in the Club right, you don't want this guys putting their hands in the pot?"

He watched all the people milling around, "yeah, I don't think it's a good idea to mix streams."

You smiled, "I'm glad we're on the same page, you need to make sure they are too."

He nodded, "I know, I'm going to make it clear to them that this is our thing, it's too dirty for Pope and the Mayans are busy with the drugs so they have no reason to want it."

You took your hand away and the blinds closed, "still, you need to let them know that this is a Sons business, even if you do it nicely."

His lips curled slightly, "you didn't bring me in here to talk strategy, did you?"

You shook your head, "no." You pressed your lips to his and Jax's hand looped around your waist to pull you closer, before he could take over, you pushed him away for you with a smile and slowly sunk to your knees, brushing your hands down his sides as you went.

Your knees finally touch the ground and you were grateful you took Nero the go for the extra thick rugs. Jax's hand found your face and your fingers found his belt, "we're doing this here?" There was a hint of something in his voice, but his face told you all you needed to know.

"As far as everyone else is concerned, we're just talking." You run your fingers over his covered cock then gripped his jeans and boxers and pulled them down in one go, his cock already half hard and asking to be touched.

Jax raised an eyebrow, "this isn't going to get you out of anything, you'll be begging me eventually." You didn't respond, rather, you took his cock in one hand and licked him from base to tip.

Jax's head fell back as you sucked him into your mouth, his hand brushing your cheek gently. You pulled back and kissed his skin softly, Jax groaning as your hand stroked him. Before he could get used to that, you were taking him in your mouth again and rolling his balls with you free hand, "fuck."

You moaned and the vibration travel up his body and his hips bucked into your mouth so you did it again, "you're killing me here darlin."

Normally you would pull back and tell him he would die happy but you had places to be and now wasn't the time to tease. You swallowed him down as far as he could go and placed your hand firmly on his hip, signalling him to enjoy himself.

His hand was still gentle on your cheek as he grew closer to the edge, and other than some soft grunts, he was quiet. You moaned one last time and there was a rapid tap on your cheek before you felt him twitch. You swallowed, then pulled away, tucking him back into his pants before standing up and wiping your face with the back of your hand, "you good?"

He sighed and fixed himself up, hoping that everyone would be none the wiser, "I'm good darlin, are you?"

You smiled, "I'm great, I got what I wanted."

He huffed, "really, because I'm sure you feel left out?"

You shook your head, "our friends will be here soon and remember, we were only talking."

You brought him into a kiss, Jax's hand more aggressive as they squeezed your skin. He smirked back, his lips brushing yours, "you're not going to win."

You pecked him and smiled, "we shall see. Now you have business to do."

You headed back outside and sat down like nothing had happened, "you got your plan?" If Chibs knew anything, he wasn't giving it away.

Jax nodded, "yeah, you all look very cosy?"

Eva smiled, "Happy was right, everyone here is wonderful."

You didn't miss the look Tig and Venus exchanged as Tig's foot tapped nervously. Tig swallowed and looked at everyone, clearly steeling himself for something, "I need to tell you guys something," everyone paused and gave him their attention, "Venus and I have been seeing each other."

There was quiet and you gave Tig a soft smile, "before anyone responds just know I can make your death look like an accident."

Juice looked upset, "for how long?"

Tig relaxed a little, "a few weeks."

Venus raised her hand and looked around, "I was the one who wanted to keep it quiet, I didn't want to cause any problems."

Sam reached out and placed his hand on her shoulder, "well you're not, we're all happy Tig's finally found a nice woman to settle down with."

Jax smiled and turned to you, "did you know about this?"

You nodded, "yes, you didn't clue in when I insisted that we sit them together at the wedding even though you had only met her a handful of times?"

Jax shook his head, "no, I thought you were playing match maker again."

You smiled, "yes, and I was already successful."

Jax sighed and smiled at Venus, "we're happy to have you darlin."

Some of the single men exchanged looks, and Kozik cleared his throat, "you're not planning on setting any of us up, right?"

You shook your head, "well no, before I introduce two people I think long and hard if they'll get along, half my guys are married because of me, I'm just good at it."

Sam raised his eyebrow, "you just suck at doing it for yourself."

You waved your left hand, "I'm getting married you little shit."

Sam huffed, "yeah and how long did it take you to come clean about how you felt?"

You glared at him, "that's all in the past now, there's no need to rub it in."

Jax chuckled, "to be fair, I'm equally at fault."

You smiled, "see, it's all Jax's fault."

Jax pulled you off your chair and into his lap, "really, I do the noble thing and you throw me under the bus."

You pecked him, "I would never."

****

The look on Pope and Marcus' faces told you everything you needed to know. The group had broken up, everyone doing their own thing while you waited for the Club's partners to arrive.

Pope held out his hand with a smile, Jax taking it with a nod, "we're very impressed Jackson, if this is what going legit looks like we might consider it."

Marcus echoed the sentiment before going to find Nero about the old location and you led Pope and Marks to the bra, "Please enjoy some drinks on us, I'm giving a demonstration on the new safety system with some of the staff, you're more than welcome to join if you aren't looking for a date."

Jax watched you as you walked away, taking a deep breath before jumping into his speech, "as you can see, we meant what we said and we were done with all the shit. Our deal still stands, the Club will be there if you need help but that's as far as it goes."

Jax thought that he should have been a bit softer but he didn't want anything to slip through his fingers, and he knew gentle wasn't going to get him anywhere.

Pope nodded, "we know your last run a few months ago marked the end and we know that you're a call away if things go to shit. We have no interest in pulling the Club back in Jackson, you being out of it is far too profitable."

Marcus blinked at Pope's statement, "we're on the same page, shit's working with the Sons out of the game. We appreciate all the back up but there's no need for anyone to worry that shit's going to jump off again."

Jax relaxed, "good."

Marks chuckled, "you think you'll miss it?"

Jax took a moment to gather his thoughts, looking around the room until his eyes landed on you talking with Ima, "no, I don't think I will."

****

The day droned on, you managed to show most of the staff before Jax came to get you late in the afternoon. "You ready to go darlin?"

You nodded, "I am. I'm getting old Jax, all this shit is too much for me."

He chuckled, "yeah well you've got another party next week."

You rolled your eyes, "don't remind me about that, I'm dreading going back to that school."

Jax wrapped his arms around you and ran his hand up and down your back, "you'll be fine. You're smart, successful and the most beautiful woman in the world, they don't have anything you."

You lifted your head from his chest and kissed him, "well when you put it like that. I can hang out with my teachers anyway."

Jax's chest vibrated with laughter, "teacher's pet."

You pinched his side and he flinched, his face breaking into a smile, "you are so mean to me."

Jax pressed his lips to yours then rested his forehead on yours, "well I'm going to be even meaner and take you home and cook your dinner."

****

The call from Vance wasn't a surprise, nor was the men in suits at the door handing you your new papers.

Permanent termination of operative status.

Contactable only on special request.

Special privileges retained.

You signed the papers and sent the men on their way, a strange mix of relief and emptiness coming over you. You could still help the Club keep their friend happy, but that was a thank you for all your hard work. In truth, that part of your life was truly over.

You took a deep breath and headed to the kitchen, wondering what to do with yourself. After some thought and a glance at the clock, a hot bath and a joint sounded like a pretty good way to say goodbye to the last thirteen years.

****

Jax was sore when he got home, part of him was grateful to be done with all the violence but there were parts of manual labour that were harder than being shot at and trying to avoid the cops.

All he wanted to do was have a long, hot shower and have something good to eat. He flopped down onto one of the chairs at the kitchen counter, the plush cushion doing wonders for his back. As his eyes unfocused, he noticed a piece of paper on the normally clean bench top. Out of curiosity, he picked it up and gave it a read.

His chest felt funny as his eyes swept over the words, most of him was happy but part of him knew that this was hard for you. He headed upstairs, hoping that you'd be waiting for him so you could talk it out but as he opened the door his heart sank.

You were sitting in bed crying. Jax rushed up to you, taking your face in his hands, "what's wrong darlin?"

You shrugged, "Nothing. I got my papers today. I probably shouldn't have smoked a whole joint for the first time thirteen years all by myself."

Jax could smell it on your clothes, there was no point in being upset, he understood why you did it. "You don't seem like the type to cry when you get high y/n."

You shook your head, "I'm sorry."

Jax pulled you closer, "for what?"

"You've had enough of dealing with this, I don't want to bring up bad memories."

Jax squeezed you tighter, "you're not, don't worry. Something big changed today, you're allowed to be sad."

You took a deep breath, "I hope you're not bored of me now."

Jax pressed his lips to the top of your head, "now you're just being silly. Just because you're not in the CIA doesn't mean I love you any less. I thought you were cool before I found out what you did."

You shook your head, "I'm just me now, I'm just an ordinary, everyday person."

Jax put his hand on your cheek and lifted your head to look into your eyes, "nothing has changed. You're still you, you're still just as badass as you were yesterday. I get why we're here now, and I'm not mad but next time, maybe we can get high together rather than you just sitting here letting your brain be mean to you?"

You nodded, "yeah, that would be nice."

He smiled, "ok then. Well I'm going to hope into the shower, then we're going to soak in the bath while I rub your back. How does that sound?"

You nodded, "that sounds like fun."

Jax's lips landed on your cheek, "good. I love you darlin."

"I love you too Jackson."

****

You were happy when the middle of the week rolled around without any more drama. Sam and Ima dropped in just in time because you had just finished setting up the fanciest ultrasound you had ever seen and Sam could tell by your smile that something was going on.

He walked over, already shaking his head, "what?"

You waved to the sleek machine by your side, "This is the best ultrasound money can buy. Litteral, it's worth five million dollars. You wanna see your baby in super HD?"

Ima's hand landed on her grown stomach, "how much will you be able to see?"

Your smile grew, "at almost sixteen weeks? So much."

Ima took in the look on Sam's face and sighed, "sure, before your bother has a heart attack."

You all but jumped for joy and wheeled the machine into your office. She lay down and rearranged her clothes. You paused, "you sure you're alright, I have to admit this is a bit weird?"

She nodded, "I'm sure. I'm actually kind of relieved. I mean, I can also come here if I'm freaking out, can't I?"

You nodded aggressively, "hell yeah." Sam took her hand as you spread the blue gel over her skin and pressed the wand to her stomach. The screen was a mix of black and white before a shape came into view. "There's the little one. It looks like they're just hanging out right now."

You moved to wand more and pointed to the screen, "Everything is growing nicely. Great limb development and good skull size." You pressed a button and a soft thump filled the room, "and a great heart beat. You have a very healthy baby"

You looked over at Sam, unshamed of his tears, "thank you." He lifted Ima's hand to his lips and kissed her fingers, "are those little knees?"

You look over to where he was pointing to confirm and caught a glimpse of something or lack thereof as it were. You moved the wand quickly and tried to force the image from your mind as you nodded, "yep, tiny little knees."

Ima chuckled and you handed her a tissue to wipe her skin, "I'm sure there are elbows too Sammy," she turned to you, "thank you y/n, now I better take Sam home before he does have a heart attack."

You smiled, "good idea. Anytime you want to have a look just drop in."

They walked away and you finally allowed yourself to relax, you had no idea how you were going to keep this a secret.

****

Jax knew something was off the moment he laid eyes on you, every time he went to ask if you were ok, you suddenly found a reason to be in another room. After much effort, he managed to corner you in the library, his eye raking over your face as you avoided looking straight at him.

"Alright darlin, what's going on?"

You blinked, "I have no idea what you're talking about."

Jax eyebrows wrinkled, "you're acting strange. Did something happen at work?"

You shook your head, "no, stop asking before it flys out of my mouth."

Jax huffed, "you wanna give me a hint?"

You sighed and tried to come up with a way to let him know you knew without letting him know what you knew, "ok say you knew who won a bike and it was a bike they had wanted for ages. But they wanted the colour to be a surprise, they're fine with any colour but they still don't want to know. What would you do if you knew what colour it was going to be?"

Jax blinked, "ummm? I'd keep it to myself because they want it to be a surprise."

You nodded, "yes, so what if the bike is a baby and it's not the paint job but the sex?"

Jax's face lit up, "you can tell me, I won't tell anyone."

You shook your head, "You'll give it away, Sam will see it on your face and he'll know I knew and he'll never forgive me."

Jax chuckled, "did you know I was going to propose?"

You shook your head, "no but we had talked about getting married so that's different."

Jax smiled, "yeah but I was waiting for months to be able to do it and I kept it secret the whole time. If I can keep that to myself I think I can keep this a secret too."

You rubbed your face, "Swear on your honour you won't give it away."

Jax raised his right hand, "I swear on my honour. Now tell me."

You got as close as you could, your face breaking into a grin, "it's a little girl, a tiny little girl with little knees and a little nose and I can't."

Jax's smile mirrored yours, "alright see, that wasn't so bad. I won't tell a soul."

You shoved him playfully, "you better fucking not."

****

"You're not wearing your Kutte?"

Jax shook his head, "nope, we said the invite said to wear what you wear to work so I'm going in my T-M vest."

You sighed, "isn't there a charter like twenty miles away? Maybe we can hang there for the night."

Jax gave you a look, "no, we're here and we're going. Plus, since you made mine a bet, I want to do the same."

You rolled your eyes, "fine, shoot."

Jax smirked, "you have to brag, make sure everyone knows how great you are and if you do, I'll make sure you don't regret it."

You raised your eyebrows, "really and how are you going to do that?"

Jax stepped closer, his fingers drifting over the collar of your shirt, "another pause to our stalemate, where we make full use of the bed."

You rubbed your face, "fine but you better make it worth my while."

Jax leaned in close, his lips brushing your ear, "don't I always?"

****

Things had changed since you last saw the place but not enough for it to feel new or inviting.

Jax looped his arm around your waist and pulled you close as you walked into the hall and towards the desk. You sighed as recognition flashed over Teresa's face, "y/n, wow you look good. I hardly recognised you," she turned to Jax, "and who's this?"

Jax smiled and pulled you closer, "I'm y/n fiance Jax, were you two friends?"

Jax knew you weren't. Tess nodded, "of course we were. I'm Teresa but you can call me Tess."

You sighed and Jax took your name tag off the table before turning towards you and holding it up with a smile, "may I darlin."

Teresa blinked, seemly unhappy that Jax wasn't paying her any attention, "you may."

Jax stuck the name tag to your lab coat and linked his arm to yours, then turned back to Teresa, "it was nice meeting you Teresa."

You could feel her eyes burning into the back of your head as you walked away, "I told you this would happen, she treated me like shit all through school and now she's being nice to me. Given a chance, she'd rip my eyes out."

Jax chuckled, "that's because she has plenty to be jealous of. Now, I want you to find all those assholes that pushed you around and rub in how amazing you are."

Jax all but dragged you over to people, and you regretted showing him your old yearbook since he seemed to zero in on everyone you hated. You wanted to punch him when he waved over two women in matching outfits, their hair up in buns and their heels as high as they could go.

"Little Jenny Dahmer? Wow, you look the same and you finally found a man."

Jax smirked, "shit darlin, you weren't lying about the nasty nicknames."

One of the women extended her hand, "I'm Livia, are you y/n boyfriend?"

Jax ignored her hand and shook his head, "no, I'm about to be her husband."

She swallowed and the other woman spoke, "we're were kidding about the name. I'm Sara, by the way."

Jax looked them up and down, "you two must work together, what do you do?"

Livia smiled, "we have our own jewellery line, called A Girl's Best friend. Let's see the ring."

You held out your hand and they looked at each other, "no gems, what a shame."

Sara turned to Jax, her face masked in a false smile, "Your vest says you're a mechanic. If you can't afford a nice ring, we can do you a deal. The woman you love should have the best of everything."

You pulled your hand away and took a deep breath, "Jax knows I don't want something on my hand that's been pulled out of the ground by a child slave. I know your company because, I helped set up L&O's forever jewellery and you're on our name and shame list because you get your gems from the Southland group."

Jax turned to you and placed a hand on your forearm, "you mean the one that funded those rebels that filled a mass grave full of their workers?"

You nodded, "the very same. I don't need some rock to know how much Jax loves me and I don't appreciate you disparaging his job. At least he doesn't rip children from their mothers in pursuit of a hunk of compressed carbon."

Sara sighed and gave you a condensing smile, "you haven't changed at all."

They walked away and you glared at Jax, "are you happy now?"

He sighed, "I wanted to see you hit one of them so now, but did that feel good?"

You nodded, "yeah, it did."

****

The night wore on you fast but Jax wasn't going to let anything slide, he always found a way to slip your achievements into a conversation. You didn't get the chance to brag between him mentioning all your best sellers and how well the lab was doing.

You really thoughts things might go well until the school bully approached you.

"Paker, I thought you'd be in prison by now."

He laughed, "nah, I got into banking. I heard you on Alpha Male Talk, nice to see you haven't changed."

Jax clenched his jaw, "I don't think he's worth your time. You told me you introduce me to your teachers before we called it a night."

Parker was shocked as you walked away, his mouth opening and closing like a fish. Jax leaned in close, his head against yours, "we'll say hello to your teachers, then we can go back to the room. You were right darlin, these people really sucked."

You chuckled, "you were right too, it felt good to be able to brag. Even if you were the one doing most of it."

****

You practically fell over when you got back to the Anvil safe house. Jax removed your lab coat and hung it up with a smile before arming the alarm and holding out his hand, "you wanna have a shower?"

You nodded, "yes please. Are you happy with yourself?"

Jax sighed and wrapped his arms around you, "hell yeah, I'm not surprised your teachers loved you do much, you sounded like a cool kid."

You shook your head, "I wasn't really. I'm really happy you made me go, despite having to see those people again, it was worth it."

Jax's hand rubbed your back, "yeah, and why is that?"

You leaned into his chest as you answered, "Because I got to show everyone who did matter how wonderful you are."

Jax chuckled, "are you trying to sweet talk me?" You went to respond but a yawn cut you off and Jax sighed, "come on darlin, let's get clean up then call it a night. We can have our roll in the hay in the morning."

****

The ringing of your phone woke you up for the second time, it was clear that your efforts to ignore it and stay asleep were a waste. You rolled off Jax's chest and picked it up, "what?"

Sam sounded wired and worried, "Pope's been hit bad and four of his men are dead. They grabbed one of the shooters, he said we're next. The Mayans are already in lockdown."

You rubbed your face and shoved Jax, his head popping off the pillow, "what's wrong?"

You handed the phone to Jax and got up to get dressed, Jax scrunching shut when you flipped on the light. You threw on your clothes and ambled into the bathroom to wash your face before Jax knocked on the doorway with his eyes blarry.

"That was quick?"

Jax nodded, "they can handle it until we get there. Pope gave assurances that this is just a precaution and they're got it handled."

You huffed, "do you believe him?"

Jax shrugged, "we'll see won't we? I'll drive, you get some rest." You went to protest and Jax stopped you, "if everything goes to shit, you'll be the one keeping Abel safe while I handle business."

You shot Jax a look, "ok. We better leave now, there's no point waiting for the daylight."

****

You stopped by the house to get some clothes before you headed to T-M for the lockdown, Jax's ear stuck to his phone while you packed. Your home was already empty, Sam having gotten Ima and Abel safely to the Clubhouse the moment the call came in.

Jax hung up just as you packed your guns and came over to help, "do you know any more?"

Jax nodded, "Pope know who it was. An old rival just got out, he's been planning a takeover from the inside. The second he got out he made the call to hit one his Pope's warehouses and now we're here."

You huffed, "doesn't Pope have cops who could have warned him this was coming?"

Jax sighed, "he does. The cops didn't know. This guy didn't let anyone know what he was planning, there was no chatter until it jumped of."

You leaned against the gun locker and rubbed your face, "you sure Pope's going to deal with it? Jumping into a gang beef is about a far from legit as it gets."

Jax ran his hand through his hair, "yeah, the guy the grabbed said there was a hit squad going after all of us. Pope sent his assassins the shot caller. He assured me that nothing was going to touch us and this guy would be dead by midnight tomorrow."

You shook your head, "he can't make that promise, this guy would have gone to ground. How can he be sure that his black ops group will find him?"

Jax swallowed, "I'm sure you know about his five million dollar guarantee?" You nodded, "well, Pope's promised that on top of another two million for the first man that turns on his boss and gives up his location."

You blinked, "that will do it. Still, everyone should be a high alert. If this shot caller has promised his men three empires, you have no idea what they'll do."

Jax lifted one of the duffels over his shoulder, "I know. If they come for us, we'll be ready."

****

The Clubhouse was locked up tight when you and Jax drove in, Rat even checked the bottom of your car with a mirror for an explosive even when you insisted it was fine. You felt an overwhelming sense of pride when you saw how they all worked together, if the Clubhouse was hit they would be able to handle it.

Kozik and Hap walked you inside then went back to their posts, Abel running up to you as you walked in, "hi mummy, I missed you."

You gave him a big hug, "I missed you too. Are you having fun at the sleep over?"

He nodded, "yes, are you and daddy staying here?"

You smiled, "of course we are sweetie. Daddy and I need to see uncle Jucie but we'll be back soon. Can you stay with Sammy until then?"

He smiled, "yes."

Jax ruffled his hair, and you walked away to Juice's newly renovated computer room, Juice turning with a smile when he saw you in the screen.

Jax spoke before you did, easily slipping into leadership, "what do you know?"

Juice clacked his keys, "enough, I'll bring the files in when you call church."

Jax looked relieved, "good, will you be ready in ten?"

Juice nodded, "I'm ready now boss."

Jax smiled, "then head into chapel, we'll be in soon."

You walked out of the room and into the hall, leaning against the wall and taking a deep breath, "do you need me in there or do you have this handled?"

Jax reached out, his hand landing on your hips, "I've got this darlin don't worry."

You smiled, "alright then, I'm going to read Abel an extra long story."

Jax pressed his lips to your forehead, his lips lifting in a soft smile, "I'll try to be in before the end."

****

You had nodded off when Jax came into the dorm, his face a mix of angry and worry, "what's wrong my love?"

He looked over to Abel who was fast asleep, "The Mayans got hit. Everyone's whole, they're weren't all that organised but two of their guys got shot."

You rubbed your face, "shit, what did Pope say?"

Jax swallowed, "he's going to pay them for their troubles and he's sent some of his men watch the Clubhouse until the shot caller is dead. I told him we'd call him if something happened here."

Jax watched your face for signs of worry, "just make sure the guys outside keep their heads on a swivel. These guys are brazen and something tells me they won't stop because children are involved."

Jax's jaw clenched, "I know."

****

You were sitting with Ima in the kitchen when it happened, the alarm rang out and Jax was rushing in with his gun drawn, "you need to get into the bedroom and look after Abel, they're here and they're trying to get in." Jax put a firm hand on your shoulder, "we've got this y/n, I need to be there to keep our child safe." You started walking and Sam rushed in to scoop Ima up, following you and Jax to the dorm.

Sam and Jax didn't spend long in the bedroom. Sam pressed a kiss to Ima's kiss, then dropped to his knees and kissed her belly before telling her he loved her and then he was off, gun in hand.

You watched him go and Jax brought you into his arms, "I'm not going to let anything happen you anyone."

You hugged him back then pulled away, "I know. Go, they need you."

Jax broke from you and walked off and the locking of the door had to have been the loudest thing you had heard in years. The whole exchange from the kitchen to now must have been no more than two minutes, it was another two before the shooting started.

You and Ima moved over to the bed and you sat closest to the door, ready to pull your gun. Abel was still asleep and Ima reached over, soothing him with her hand cheek, "Do you think they'll be ok?"

You nodded, "I do. I know it might not make much sense, but there's not enough nosie to worry me." You paused, and three pops rang out, "that pattern is how we're trained to shoot, aim, three squeezes of the trigger, check the target's status, move to the next target. When it comes in short, uneven bursts you worry."

Her hand moved to her belly, "tell me more, Sam's been good about telling me about the shit that happened over there but…" Her voice stuttered

You didn't break eye contact with the door as you spoke, "but knowing helps." You paused to listen more, the gunshots had stopped and your hand moved to your gun, "there's no noise now, that's normal. If we were somewhere else, you'd expect single shots."

She blinked, "from what?"

You kept your eyes locked on the door, "clean up."

The sound of the door rattling had your hand gripping your gun, ready to raise it at whoever came through the doorway, "darlin, it's me."

You relaxed and the door swung open, "what's the damage?"

Jax walked in, "they sent nine guys, seven of them are dead and Happy's working over the other two until Pope's men arrive. Hale knows what's going on, we're good on that end."

You looked him over, he had blood on his hand, "how many shots were fired?"

Jax swallowed, "three, as far as the cops and the neighbours are concerned, someone was fucking with a gun."

He glanced at Abel, "he's still fast asleep."

You nodded, "yep, you were quiet."

Jax looked down at his bloody hand, "yeah, we didn't want to worry anyway and they made it easy for us."

Ima stood up before placing her hand on your shoulder, "I'm going to find Sammy, I'll leave you two to talk."

You shot her a smile and Jax came and sat down next to you, "you good?"

He nodded, "yep, it was easier than I thought it would be."

You swallowed, "stabbing someone or giving out orders?"

Jax's face didn't change, "both. The shooting was from Sam, he spotted someone trying to get into a window. Pope and his men will be here soon, it is alright if I wait with you until then?"

You nodded, "yeah. How long do you think that took?"

Jax's face wrinkled, "it's strange, I know it couldn't have been more than ten minutes but it felt like hours."

You held up your phone, the stopwatch frozen. "It took seven minutes and twenty eight seconds for when I heard the front door close. Good work Jackson, you should be proud of yourself."

He smiled softly, "I'm proud of them."

You reached out and brushed a fleck of blood off his cheek, "I'll clean you up, let's hope Hap has something by the time Pope and his men get here."

Jax gave you a look, one you knew well, "he will, don't worry."

****

It took an hour for Jax to return with Pope, his face was neutral but you could tell by his eyes that it was good news. "It's being dealt with darlin, we should be home by tonight."

You nodded, "good," you turned to Pope, "this isn't going to blow back on us is it?"

Pope shook his head, "no, I can assure you we are dealing with it. We greatly value this relationship, we don't want to change that."

Jax waved you out of the room, "go get yourself something to eat, I'll be out in a little bit."

You smiled, "alright my love."

Pope smiled at you, "you have nothing to worry about."

You gave him a slight nod, "thank you Damon."

Jax joined you not long after, sitting next to you and placing his hand on your bouncing leg, "Pope left out the back. Hap got the guys we grabbed to give up the shot callers location, Pope sent his hit squad to deal with it."

You sighed, "so when can we go home?"

Jax wrapped his arm around your shoulder and twirled a strand of hair around his finger, "soon, he's going to tell us when it's done. You wanna go outside and play with Abel?"

You nodded, "yeah, that would be nice." You hopped up and Jax pulled you into a hug, his arms squeezing you tight.

"I'm not going to let anything happen to us darlin, I promise."

You smiled and craned your head, pressing your lips to his, "I know Jackson, I love you."

He smiled, his hand coming up to stroke your cheek, "I love you too."

You made your way outside, Abel running up to Jax and jumping into his arms, "daddy, daddy, I found a lizard."

Jax's face broke into a grin, "can you show me?" He put Abel down and hr grabbed Jax's hand, dragging him over by the swings. Jax bent down and looked where Abel was pointing and sure enough, there was a lizard bathing in the afternoon sun, "that is a cool lizard."

You sat in Jax's lap while Abel hopped onto the swing, twisting the chains around and then letting them go, laughing like a manic the whole time. You must have stayed in Jax's arms and watched Abel play for hours because before you knew it, a text came through and Jax flashed you his phone.

"The problem has been handled, we'll give you twenty per cent of next month for your troubles."

It felt like a weight was lifted off your shoulders, "it's really over, isn't it?"

Jax buried his face in your hair and took and deep breath, "yeah darlin, it is."

Snippet 7 - The Victor Part 63

There are only three parts left after this dear readers!

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kittttycakes · 8 months

Note

Because I am a hopeless addict for your writing and the wonderful world and relationship you have created between Morpheus and Grace and Hob, can I beg any scraps of thoughts or head canons for these three?

Don’t need specific answers to the following questions required, but these are some things I’m just (selfishly) craving to know more about them…

- Who likes to be the the biggest/littlest spoon?

- What sort of music/food/books do they prefer?

- What sections of Lucienne’s library would Grace and Hob visit first or spend the most time browsing?

- Hob and Grace’s parts of the Dreaming?

- Favourite places to travel in the waking world?

- What sort of relationships do Hob and Grace have with their coworkers?

- Do any of their coworkers or friends get a sense that there’s something a little different about Morpheus (other than his propensity to wear a wooden coat in the middle of summer)?

And of course, this wouldn’t be an ask from the cave of shame without some kind of brain filth…

- Is there room for an extra one or two people on that marble throne? Is that something one of them has ever considered before (imagining some naughty and very distracting daydreams coming from Grace or Hob for Morpheus to ‘overhear’)

- Could or would Grace ever pinch any of Morpheus’ clothing to wear (picturing her recreating that photo she took for the ex, but in one of Morpheus’ coats…)

- What is something that will immediately get each of them going?

- Have any of the Dreaming’s main residents been an accidental witness to something they’d rather not picture their boss and his partners doing?

Feel free to share your thoughts or none at all, I just needed to get these down and hopefully out of my head for a while!

You can always ask for headcanons!! I love talking about these three, just fully will not shut up about them. I’m putting this under the cut because otherwise this is going to be obnoxious on the dash:

Grace is often the littlest spoon, with Morpheus in the middle (both spooning and being spooned), and Hob on the outer edge as the biggest of spoons. All three are switches at heart, though, and this is no different, so Grace is sometimes the biggest spoon with Hob or Dream in the middle. Hob or Morpheus is, however, always closest to the door, in the waking world, putting Grace either closest to the interior of the room or safely between them.

I’ve talked a little bit before about romance novel enjoyer Grace, and that is a good chunk of what she reads in her free time for fun. Think historical romance, a bit of romantasy, and some light monster romance that she definitely hides from Hob. She’s a big fan of fiction, broadly, and she always digs a fairytale retelling or fairytale adjacent fantasy novel. Definitely likes Angela Carter.

I’m pondering what I think Hob would like reading in particular. My gut is saying classic mysteries (Agatha Christie, anyone?) and maybe some P.G. Wodehouse for fun. I wonder if Morpheus has much of a concept of reading for pleasure? That said, I like to think he might enjoy The Picture of Dorian Gray, for obvious reasons, and I would love to see how he’d feel about E.M. Forster’s Maurice.

Grace’s Spotify would be an absolute horror show. She’s a mood listener, so you’ve got 80s pop side by side with folksy alternative rubbing elbows with top 40s hits right next to classic oldies. She’s a menace to society and must be stopped. Probably quite likes Hozier.

Both Hob and Grace love the library (and Lucienne!) and spend a good portion of their time in the Dreaming there. Grace is all over the place: she’s checking out lost works that are referenced in other works that we do have, but that have no surviving copies; she’s reading (with permission) some of Hob’s love letters from the 18th century; she’s finding the never written but dreamt about sequel to her favorite novel growing up. Hob is finding that book he read once a hundred years ago that he could never remember the name of and reading work that Marlowe never had the chance to write and, very occasionally, reading a dream from the book of someone he knew and loved but lost.

Grace and Hob’s most favorite part of the Dreaming is debuting next chapter, but besides that, Grace really, truly, genuinely loves the Nightmare Sea. She likes to visit Leviathan and she likes to walk along the beach and wade out into the water a bit. She also really loves Fiddler’s Green and spends a lot of time visiting with him. Hob also is a big fan of Fiddler’s Green, and he likes the gardens. There’s also an armory that he’s surprisingly fond of.

Hob wants to take Grace everywhere that he possibly can, now that they have all the time in the world, everywhere that he’s been and quite a few places that he hasn’t besides. Hob likes to travel to certain parts of America, and Grace’s favorite is actually probably Scotland.

Both of them get on quite well with their co-workers! Hob has quite a few friends in his own department and others, as does Grace, minus her professional nemesis. They’ve been to a few co-workers weddings and other events, along with the occasional after work drink and, of course, the staff holiday parties. We haven’t had much of a chance to see them in the WIP, but Grace has a solid handful of friends, a few of whom are old school friends, a few more from her doctoral program, and then another handful from her job at the university. They’ll go out for a bit of a girls’ night occasionally or just have lunch, and overall, Grace really likes where she’s at.

The friendly and well meaning rumor mill surrounding who, exactly, Morpheus is to the two of them is absolutely thriving. Their friends and the staff at the New Inn are mostly just…bemused. Here’s this man who carries himself like a model, who dresses in unseasonable black, who pops up at the oddest hours, who isn’t exactly rude but who exudes that sort of distant politeness that makes you think he’s either very snobby or very shy, who both Hob and Grace just cannot seem to get enough of. He’s been introduced when needed as Hob’s friend and a sort of vague colleague if pressed, but there’s just something about the way he looks at the two of them…Their mutual friends who have met him have independently decided that he must be some sort of generationally wealthy artist who has some kind of psychosexual muse/artist relationship with them both because it’s easier than trying to explain why they all feel that there’s just something that isn’t quite right about him. He’s human enough, it’s just sort of at the edges…

I got your other ask too but I am always down to talk about the throne again because that absolutely is not the only time the throne has been used as a prop. It’s just something about the power, the location…Hob wants to kneel in front of it, Grace wants to sit on it, and honestly I think that says a lot about both of them, in a way! Morpheus just wants to cover them both in gold and ruby jewelry and systematically take them both to pieces on it. Hob and Grace are both incredibly distracting daydreamers and neither of them will apologize for it. I also think Grace would quite like to have Morpheus on his knees in front of it, too, but that’s something they can work up to.

Grace sees her partner’s wardrobe and immediately goes, “No, our wardrobe.” She steals Hob’s clothes frequently. T-shirts, sweaters, cardigans, any and all are fair game. She likes feeling close to him when he’s not around, she likes the ghost of his cologne on the collars, and most importantly, she likes driving Hob just a little bit insane. The same is naturally extended to Morpheus once they get to that level and she can convince him to stop just…disappearing…his clothes in the waking world. It’s the t-shirts, mostly, but she’s absolutely taken the coat again, once she saw the reaction she got from him the first time.

Hob and Morpheus both have a thing for Grace with her glasses on. She has them for reading and for screens, and she only occasionally remembers them, but when she does…both of them get a little hot under the collar for a look over the rim of her glasses at them. Hob also very much has a thing for stockings with the seam up the back. Grace really, really likes it when Hob rolls the sleeves of his button downs up his forearms, and he knows this, and shamelessly uses it to his advantage. She also goes a bit feral when Morpheus finally lets his guard down and starts wearing lower necked shirts. It’s the neck and the collarbones and the hollow of his throat, it’s intimate and vulnerable and she’s into it. All of them have a hand thing: anything to do with using the hands conspicuously, the movement of them, it’s just a bit of a turn on.

Matthew has absolutely flown in on them kissing, but that was enough for him, he’d rather not picture his boss that way, thank you very much! The residents of the Dreaming take closed doors very seriously, especially to the throne room…or Morpheus’s private rooms…or any of the towers…and also maybe avoid the gardens…

#anon <3 #oc: grace talbot #dream of the endless x of x hob gadling #thank you for letting me ramble about my favorite menaces #I just adore them all so much

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transbennysummerfield · 2 months

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Late for the book ask BUT 4, 8, 12 :)

4. What are your top 3 comfort reads?

1 - The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (series) by Douglas Adams. My grandad recorded the original radio version onto cassette tape and we used to listen to it in the car on long journeys. He gave the tapes to me before he passed away and I still have them on my bookshelf. Hitchhiker's means a lot to me because of it, and also because it's just a really fun book.

2 - The Princess Bride by William Gibson. Just like in the movie where Columbo reads the book to his grandchild, my grandad gave this book to me when I was a kid, and it always reminds me of him.

3 - Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K Jerome. I know I mentioned it last ask, but I love it. It's a book my dad really loves, and it's a book he shared with me when I was a kid. It's just such a funny, charming read that its guaranteed to cheer me up when I'm feeling down

8. What series has most pleased you?

Excluding previous answers (Discworld and Hitchhiker's) I think it is probably the Jeeves and Wooster stories by P. G. Wodehouse. The first one I actually read was Code of the Woosters and it's delightful. Prior to that I had watched a lot of the ITV television adaptation with Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie, and they are so good in those roles. The books themselves are really fun to read. The plots do have a lot of similarities to one another sometimes, but they're so well written that it doesn't really matter. Bertie Wooster is honestly one of the characters of all time, to me.

12. What book have you re-read most often?

It's not the Discworld book I recommend to people who are new to the series, but Night Watch is to me the peak of the Sam Vines series, and it's the one I go back to most often. Specifically, every 25th of May. I think it's the perfect mix of funny prose, tragic dramatic irony, political historical and social world-building, character study, and musings on the idea of revolution. It fleshes out the backstories of previously joke characters and does it in a way that will really get to you if you've spent the last few books laughing at their silly antics. I may have described It to some friends before as the Disco Elysium of the Discworld series. It puts you in Sam Vimes' worn out boots and makes you truly invested in things that you know probably won't come to pass. "Tomorrow the sun will come up again, and I'm pretty sure that whatever happens we won't have found Freedom, and there won't be a whole lot of Justice, and I'm damn sure we won't have found Truth. But it's just possible that I might get a hard-boiled egg."

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appendingfic · 4 months

Text

I've seen a few episodes of jeeves and wooster, so it's not like i was UNaware wodehouse is hilarious

But my substack is currently sharing a (non-wooster) story about

well, say Chuck Tingle got married to a strait-laced serious novelist and decided to hide this fact because he was worried they'd be put off by the reams of erotica he's been writing and selling

And let's say he made enough money off that to make a living, and said he idk had invested heavily in tesla and that's where he got his money

and then one day tesla absolutely tanked and his spouse is all "we're ruined aren't we?" but people are still buying human/anthropomorphized conceptual entities erotica and he has to figure out whether to pretend to be poor or come out (as it were) about his actual source of income

#pg wodehouse

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aspecpplarebeautiful · 2 years

Note

hey:) any asexual headcanons?

Oh man so many.

Some of my favourites:

Data (Star Trek the Next Generation): It's canon he never experiences attraction though he is capable of sex. He also tries dating in one episode and stops because it's just not feeling right. (also Soji from Picard, though so far they haven't established with her whether or not she experiences no attraction like Data does, so if she come back that may change.)

Bertie Wooster (PJ Wodehouse's Jeeves books) : Especially the books version of Bertie who as the books go just gets more and more disinterested in relationships on all levels.

(Also maybe Jeeves as well)

Elsa (Frozen): I see her as either aroace or lesbian ace. She just has that vibe to her.

Ned and Chuck (Pushing Daisies): I see both as romantic aces. They just don't seem that bothered by the fact a relationship with each other means they can't physically touch.

Jessica Rabbit (Who Framed Roger Rabbit): She has such strong romantic ace vibes. And the line, "I'm not bad I'm just drawn that way," is her saying people judge her by appearance but it's not the real her. Which you can assume includes that people believe she's a very sexual person, when in canon all we ever see is that she likes playing innocent games like patty cake with Roger.

Benton Fraser (Due South): I very much see him as demisexual and someone who's only attracted to people he's been through life and death struggles with. He says Victoria is the only person he was ever attracted to when she shows up, and that happened while they had to survive in the frozen tundra over multiple days. He starts catching feelings for Maggie later while being held hostage with her by train robbers. At no point is he ever shown to be attracted to anyone else, and is actively uncomfortable whenever other people show a romantic interest in him.

Michael (The Good Place): He just has such strong aroace vibes. "Kissing is gross. You just mash your food holes together. It's not for that." Mood.

All the best, Anon!

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scrittorio · 3 months

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Scrittorio Magazine, Winter 2023 Feature: In the Margins, ft. Carry on Jeeves by P.G. Wodehouse

Scrittorio isn't Scrittorio without In the Margins!

In this segment, short stories or excerpts from books are dissected to extract practical techniques and tips on how to write stories in a range of genres.

For the Winter 2023 issue, we delved into comedy writing with P.G. Wodehouse's Carry On Jeeves!

Looking for a genuinely laugh-out-loud story? Check out P.G. Wodehouse's works here!

Want to learn about writing comedy from his writing? Pick up the latest issue of Scrittorio here!

Scrittorio is free and always will be. What are you waiting for? Nothing to lose - lots to gain!

Subscribe here to get emails when submissions open, and when new issues come out. As always, I strongly recommend that you download the PDF rather than read it online, so that the links in the magazine work, and so that you can fill out the worksheets if you’d like to.

#scrittorio #scrittorio magazine #writeblr #writing #writers #pg wodehouse

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