#The moment someone loses their cool & lowers themself even lower than they already are you already won

[winslowat3am]

You prob won’t see this but hi! I follow you and your beautiful wife bc of your love for black women and life tips! I wanna share a story that happened yesterday where I was harassed in a gas station by an aggressive black male security guard and get nonblack poc feedback bc I no longer feel safe around black men and just curious to what advice or thoughts you have.

Last night I walked inside a pilot gas station to use the restroom where I wore a yellow camo track suit with the hood up bc I was cold. The security told me to take my hood down even tho there was no policy where I could see and followed me to the restroom door and called me out my name (I heard him thru the door), after I finished in the restroom I went to confront him at the register he was hiding behind where we got into a heated verbal exchange , I cussed him out amd I hurt his ego evidently bc he felt the need to follow me outside to escalate it but I outtalked him and got in my car. I never took my hood down. I went back in the gas station with a girlfriend for water after informing her of what happened where he then tried to make me remove my hood again and tried to encourage the women at the registers to refuse me service bc I wouldn’t remove my hood, we got into it again. He was aggressive, approached me slamming his hand on the counter, got loud, and sensitive bc I got the best of him twice verbally and in the end I still got the water and never took my hood down; the nice white lady at the register took my money from my friend who paid for it, the black woman at the register was a m@mmy. He nitpicked my outfit and physical appearance but ppl passing thru wore hoods and had pants hanging off their asses, tummy shirts, brought dogs in the store, but was never harassed like I was. I don’t have a problem following a policy but I won’t follow a policy when it’s enforced on me but no one else. So I called the police and they told me to file a complaint with corporate and see what I can do about it so I will be calling them in the morning. Did I mention the security tried to get me banned for trespassing just bc i didn’t back down and verbally whooped him?? LOLL!!! I’ll be carrying a switchblade from now on and learning to shoot a gun real soon!

Read my tags. I'm assuming you're a bw? It doesn't take all the hoodrat buffoonery Glocktavious displayed to ask someone to remove their hood. Talk to a lawyer, they'll help you go about prosecuting Dustavious the right way. So unprofessional. I hope this isn't a late response, I don't really check Tumblr lately or read every ask but yours grabbed my attention. You did the right thing! Always stand up for yourself. You're a savage for checking his ass. Never be afraid of a man, & keep a weapon on you. 👏👏👏👏Insecure, pussy "men" pick fights with women, they think being aggressive & loud intimidates you & they never prepare for a strong retort that shuts their shit down. My completely honest & straightforward unfiltered pov: We need to address the fact that the bullying of bw is a problematic behavior that is perpetuated by bm primarily (not all, but atp it's so common it might as well be). You'd be better off opening up your dating options to men outside of your race, tbh. (Be very selective & careful when itrl dating). Non-bm build their communities & protect their women. [Redacted] That's why I don't understand why some ww leave wm, who have privilege & power, for bm, who 9/10 don't have anything to offer except dick, kids & struggle love. Even when bm manage to have success it doesn't change their crusty ass mentality. I recently learned that a bw is killed by a bm every six hours. [Redacted] Bm are the only race of men who publicly bash, degrade & bully their race of women while praising, fetishizing & worshipping non-bw. But you can't expect men who hate themselves to love or value you. I see the bs bw have to deal with daily & it saddens me. I feel like they target bw cause they think it'll make them men & acceptable in the eyes of wm, it's embarrassing. [Redacted] I can't imagine treating my baby like that. [Redacted] I'll never post or reblog a "this is a safe space for everyone" post. It's not. I don't post for them. I don't want racists/colorists in my space where bw & woc tell me that they feel safe, seen & protected. I gatekeep my blog so that you're safe expressing your feelings here. I thought it was obvious since I never acknowledge bm but it needs to be said. I 100% agree with the bw advising bw to choose higher quality men. You should watch Cynthia G & Paris Milan on YouTube & other black women who cover domestic & racial topics, it's very educational & insightful, they offer a lot of perspective & I agree with so many points they make. [Redacted] The best advice I can give you is to run & never look back. Good luck. ❤️

#you can sue him personally for discrimination & verbal harassment & file a complaint with corporate #If you're banned from the store then you can have the cops get his information & press charges #once corporate finds out about the incident he'll more than likely lose his job #Make sure to stress that he intentionally embarrassed you by making a scene followed you to the bathroom & outside of the store in attempt #to escalate the situation he was highly aggressive & approached you & that you felt scared for your safety which caused emotional distress #those are super important details & ultimately where he fucked up #& if you're able to write down the date/time this occurred & have the camera footage obtained by police & your friends as witnesses #it'll help your case #The moment someone loses their cool & lowers themself even lower than they already are you already won #As you go through life the more jackasses you'll encounter & you'll become so immune that shit won't even anger you the way it used to #Speaking from experience #I don't see him living long cause losers who fuck with people & think being loud & ghetto gives them an upper hand never live a long life #toxic masculinity is a fear of strong women masked by a fraudulent superiority complex #he's corny asf if the only thing he could think to call you was ugly like what guy doesn't automatically run to that as an insult? #They even use it when they get rejected it's always that or 'bitch' cause they're sooo original #they're tiring #long post #ask

[delimeful]

the end of being alone (2)

donation drive commission for @bumblebeekitten for the next chapter of TEOBA, with the prompt: patton & virgil fluff! hope you enjoy reading it as much as i enjoyed writing it!

chapter 1

warnings: miscommunication, false impression of a very bad situation for like .5 seconds, recklessness, sometimes you just gotta have a good cry

-

The next sunrise, they set out again, this time with considerably less weaponry and considerably more snacks. Roman held point again, since he was the one with the most practical experience in tracking. 

There had been a somewhat tedious argument on whether or not Patton should come, one that Roman had thoroughly lost, since it was Patton’s quick thinking and emotional attunement that kept the previous cycle’s encounter from descending into disaster. 

He had acquiesced in the end under the combined force of Logan’s reasoning and Patton’s disappointed look, but that didn’t mean he had to be happy about it. After catching barely a wink of sleep between restless nightmares, he was feeling more grumpy than generous. 

Still, his own irritation faded as they grew closer to the rocky cliffs where he suspected the Human was, shifting into an intense concentration on the task ahead. It was a miracle that their initial encounter hadn’t gone sour, a miracle that this Human seemed young enough to be somewhat nonaggressive, and while he hoped that whatever they had said to scare the young kit off hadn’t irreparably damaged their budding acquaintanceship, he wasn’t counting on it.

He had his underarmor on for a reason.

The other two didn’t quite share his concerns. Logan’s arms had been in an excited, information-gathering flurry practically non-stop since they set out, and he and Patton had been discussing the plants and insects in the nearby forest that were relatively non toxic to them (and so would probably be no issue for a Human), and how many nutrients they would provide. None of them knew how much or what a Human needed to eat, but Patton seemed firmly of the opinion that whatever the kid was eating, it wasn’t enough. 

“Fledgelings need plenty of food and the proper nutrients to grow up healthy! A lone child in the middle of one forest can’t possibly have all the variety they need in their diet,” the Ampen insisted, feathers fluffing up at the mere idea of a kid going hungry. 

“Another important factor to note is the planet itself is not the child’s home, and so may not have the necessary nutrients available at all, let alone in one localized area,” Logan added. 

“You two have enough variety in those packs to weigh down a mountain,” Roman interjected, “so how about we focus on not scaring the kid off before we even reach them. Human senses are ludicrously strong, enough so that they’ll hear you two yakking a parsec away.” 

They agreed to be stealthier, and just in time, because Roman was pretty sure he’d found a more solid trail than the ghost-like faded prints that seemed all to trek over the place. He gestured in Crav’n sign for the two of them to stay put and stay quiet, and then followed the fresh tracks until they came to the mouth of a small cave amongst the crevices and steep drops of the pale cliffs.

He slowly stalked into the cave, keeping his movements light and quiet even as the light grew dimmer and his vision more restricted. Before it could grow too dim, however, his gaze caught on round, un-rock-like silhouettes. 

It took a moment to identify the shapes as small, limp Humlilts, all piled up around the larger Human. He nearly physically recoiled at the sight. So, this was why the small creatures had gone missing: slaughtered en masse at the hand of a Deathworlder. Not for food nor shelter, not in defense of itself or others, just for the sake of the callous cruelty and disregard for life that Humans were apparently born with. 

Humlilts were small, but Patton was scarcely bigger. Once the Human got tired of playing at mimicry, would it try to add the Ampen to the hoard of bodies?

He wasn’t going to lose another family.

Almost against his will, a low, near-subsonic growl rumbled out of his throat. He took one advancing step forward, and then… 

And then, a tiny head poked up from the pile, small dark eyes staring at him over a long snout. 

Roman nearly tripped over his own feet, astonished. There was still a living Humlilt in there? 

Before he could even finish his thought, another head appeared, and then another, until there was a sea of fluffy faces and huge ears all pointed in his direction. The undersized ungulates were fine, each and every one of them. They had simply been sleeping, all cozied up with one of the most dangerous species in the universe. 

Roman felt a strange and overwhelming mixture of relief and shame, his scales flattening down guiltily. It was too late, though, the movement had already rippled through the group until it reached the Human. Their creepy mask was absent in rest, and they pawed at their eyes sleepily as they sat up to see what all the commotion was about. There was a red mark on one of their cheeks from where it had pressed against the cave floor.

The moment they saw who stood at the entrance of their little nook, all the color drained from their face. The Humlilts shifted uneasily, and Roman found himself bracing to have thirty miniscule sets of horns charging at him. They couldn’t really hurt him, but they were persistent little things, and Patton and Logan would not be happy if a bunch of Humlillts tried to drive them away from the Human before they’d even properly spoken.

Instead of siccing the plethora of tiny mammals on him, though, the kid whistled a few notes in a perfect echo of the Humlilts all-clear call, settling them down. They carefully detangled themself from the pile, trailing a few stray twigs and leaves behind them in the process. Roman wondered absently how long they’d been building the collection of plant matter that covered them. 

A few parting trills later, the kid was in front of him, holding their bony shoulders firm but unable to conceal the tremor in their legs. They raised their chin up in what looked like a friendly Crav’n greeting, but attitude-wise seemed more along the lines of a challenging stance. 

“No hurt,” they said firmly before Roman could say a word. “No hurt small--,” a few words in their own language here, “--small good. No hurt. No hurt. Yes?” 

“I’m not going to hurt you,” Roman tried to reassure them, “I swore, remember?” 

The kid stomped their foot once in… some kind of emphasis. “No hurt,” they started again with deliberate slowness, and then ended with the Humlilt whistle-greeting. Many of the Humlilts whistled back from where they were still observing the two of them. The small cavern echoed with the sound eerily. 

“You don’t want me to hurt the Humlilts? The small creatures?” Roman asked, gesturing to the pile of fluff and hooves, and was rewarded with the kid seeming satisfied. 

“Yes. Small good. Good good small. No hurt.” 

Roman extended his hand palm up for another oath. “I vow not to harm your small good friends,” he intoned solemnly. The kid patted his hand twice, bobbing their own head in a curious motion. Roman could only imagine the sort of notes Logan would be taking. 

Oh, right. He’d left the others in the bushes. 

“I brought my friends, too,” he informed the kid, who blinked up at him. “Logan and Patton, remember them? Little critter?” 

He said the last words in the chirps of the Ampen language, only a little strained by his accent, and the kid visibly brightened. “Little critter!” 

“Wait right here, and I’ll get them,” Roman instructed, lowering a flat hand to convey wait. The kid probably didn’t really grasp it, but seemed content enough to stay put, shifting from one foot to the other. 

It took no time at all to find Patton and Logan, who had progressively edged closer to the cliff face as he’d taken his sweet time in there. 

“Okay, so,” he started, “I know where all the missing Humlilts went.” 

---

Virgil shuffled his feet slightly, feeling the cool stone under his toes. 

He should probably leave now, because even if the fluffy chirp alien really was there, they knew or at least suspected he was a human, and aliens hated humans. All of them, even the ones that looked soft like birds or cool like dinosaurs. 

A soft, velvety nose poked up against his hand, and he squatted to gently pat the strange little singing puppy-antelope that had parted from the group to check on him. He couldn’t help but smile a little bit as it bumped its snout against his knee, sounding like a windchime. 

Okay. Maybe not all aliens. 

He looked up at the clitter-clatter of talons on rock, and then the fluffy chirping alien really did careen into view, feathers all puffed up like that very angry owl that had roosted outside his window for three whole hours one time. The other two bigger aliens came in only moments later.

Virgil couldn’t help but shrink back slightly from where he was still crouched, because aliens were weird and sometimes they did weird things that he didn’t really… get. Typically, this would be right before they started getting really mad or shaky, and screaming at him. 

Before Fluff-Chirp could get any closer, though, the puppy-antelope had charged between them, planting its little legs and lowering its head so that the little horns were pointed out in warning. Virgil went still, eyes darting between Fluff-Chirp and the little creature, who he was pretty sure was the one with the white spot on its forehead, the one he’d named Susan after his nice neighbor. 

The cool dinosaur alien had promised not to hurt them (he was pretty sure), but would it count if the puppy-antelopes attacked them first? 

Fluff-Chirp stepped forward a little bit, and Susan let out a shrill cry like someone blowing really hard on a flute. Virgil clapped his hands over his ears as he attempted to whistle the calm-down sound, but Susan would not be budged, even as the other two aliens got all tense and twitchy.

In front of it, Fluff-Chirp stopped advancing, and instead plopped down on the ground with a soft thump. They ruffled in their bag, and Virgil was struck with the fear that they would pull out a space blaster gun to shoot Susan for trying to protect him. Hurriedly, he crawled forwards and threw his arms around the puppy-antelope (puppylope?) and hugged it close to shield it from any laser gun beams, his eyes squeezing shut.

There was a grunt-grumble from the cool dinosaur, and the click-click-click of the bunches of arms of the blue one moving around, but all he heard from Fluff-Chirp was shuffling, and then—

“Hello good morning,” the fluffy alien said. Or at least, that was what Virgil thought the birdsong-like words meant. 

Fluff-Chirp always said it when waking up in their little camp, and Virgil had said it back, because that was just basic manners, especially when someone gives you stuff. Fluff-Chirp had given him a bunch of sweet sliced up fruit, kind of with the feeling of mangoes and the taste of strawberries. It had reminded him of home. 

It… kind of smelled like Fluff-Chirp’s fruit now, actually. 

—

Patton watched hopefully as the kid slowly opened one eye to peek over at them. 

He hadn’t meant to scare the poor little guy by rushing in, he’d just been absolutely delighted to hear that not only would he get to see some Humlilts after all, but also that the kid seemed to have some company after all.

Some very loyal company, if the one threat-displaying at him was any indication. Patton was careful not to engage, particularly since further back in the cave, he could see a whole assembly of tiny, reflective eyes. Roman would probably just hold him up in the air if there was any real danger, but it was the principle of the matter. He didn’t want to upset the little guys! 

Or the kid, who had finally spotted the dishes of fruit Patton had set out. 

“You wanna come eat with me, little critter?” Patton offered, patting the ground near him. 

“Little critter…,” the Human murmured. Their face was much more expressive now that it wasn’t mostly concealed by wood, and the kid looked painfully young. Probably no more than seven or eight sun cycles. Patton’s hearts twanged in sympathy.  

Slowly, like they were waiting for the rug to be yanked out from under their feet, the kid scooted forward enough that they could grab a few pieces of the dana fruit, setting one down in front of the Humlilt to distract it. Patton eye-crinkled encouragingly, and took a piece of his own to nibble on. 

“Do you remember me? I’m Patton. Patton,” he emphasized, ‘pat’-ing his own chest in example. 

The kid paused mid-bite, and then swiped their wrist over their mouth before mumbling, “Patton,” back. Patton glowed with happiness. 

“And that’s Logan,” he said, bolstered by one apparent success. Logan obligingly stepped forwards and gestured to himself. 

“I am Logan,” he enunciated clearly. 

The kid, who had stopped eating to focus wholeheartedly on this new task, scrunched his brow up. “I am Logan?” 

“No, not quite,” Logan corrected gently. “Logan. I am Logan.” He cast a meaningful look to Patton. 

“And I am Patton!” he added cheerfully, gesturing between the two of them. “Logan! Patton!”

“Logan,” the kid mimicked, looking at the Ulgorii and then the Ampen, “Patton.” 

“You got it! Good job!” Patton noticed that the kid was very careful to keep their hands in their lap, and wondered if Humans were normally this withdrawn, or if exposure to other aliens had caused this reticence. 

“Good job?” the kid echoed, wide eyed. They looked to Roman curiously, though only for a moment before dropping their gaze. 

“I am Roman,” Roman surprised them both by beating them to the introductory punch. 

“... Roman?” the kid offered, and got a chorus of nonsense praise for their effort. They bared their little teeth and clapped their hands together, and it took the three of them an alarmed pause and exchange of glances to realize that they weren’t, in fact, being threatened by a youngling. 

“Joy? Or perhaps, contentment?” Logan was mumbling to himself. “The skin around the child’s eyes folds much like an Ampen expression of happiness, so…” 

“It would make more sense to be happy after receiving praise, right?” replied Roman, who had gotten a bit bristly from nerves for a moment. Patton resisted the urge to elbow the both of them into not saying long, confusing sentences. Luckily, the kid seemed too occupied with their own thoughts to notice. 

“Patton, Logan, Roman,” they recited, looking at each of them in turn. Then, very carefully, they reached up and patted their own chest. “Virgil. I am Virgil?” 

There was a brief moment of stunned silence, and then Patton trilled in delight, clapping his hands in an echo of the Human’s gesture, in hopes that it would convey his own happiness and pride in the kid’s quick learning. The kid jumped, but then did that teeth-bearing smile again.

“Virgil!” he tested out, not quite getting the Human tones right, but that was okay because he could practice! “Virgil Virgil Virgil! Yes! That’s you!” 

“I am Virgil!” the Human was practically bouncing in place as they matched Patton’s energy, and Patton couldn’t help but dart forward and try to bump his head to the Human’s affectionately. 

Roman hissed something exceedingly panicked, but Patton was already using one of the Human’s bent legs to reach, and then he was brushing his antenna to the kid-- to Virgil’s forehead, and then the Human was lifting their arms slowly and curling them around him, and okay now Patton was a little bit concerned, but. 

But, all Virgil did was lean into him slightly, arms bracing but not suffocating, and sniffle once, like they were holding back tears. Any resolve Patton had to not give his teammates stress ulcers faded away like dust in the wind, and he leaned in carefully and wrapped his arms around as much as he could reach of the kid’s shoulders and neck, which Roman would tell him was stupid dangerous because necks were weak points on Humans and they would absolutely react defensively-- 

Virgil promptly burst into tears, their chin coming to hook over Patton’s shoulder as a stuttering little wail worked its way out of their system. Patton made soothing nonsense croons and sung Ampen lullabies as the kid shuddered their way through a good cry, and tried not to feel too alarmed that unlike Ampens, Humans apparently leaked emotions while they cried.

Once Virgil had more or less settled down, they seemed completely wiped from the outpour of emotion, eyes drooping, body tilting to one side. For the first time since they’d arrived, the kid looked too wiped out to be nervous. Sure enough, only a few moments later, they shifted to curl up on their side, falling asleep on the cold stone easily.

Patton looked up at his teammates from where he was sitting in the center of the curled c-shape of the kid’s body, and offered them a sheepish shrug. “Well. Now we know that Humans can experience touch hunger?”

#sanders sides #ts patton #ts virgil #ts logan #ts roman #the end of being alone #teoba #donation drive #commissioned works #wibar #wibar au kid virgil #bumblebeekitten #space au #writing #my writing #i genuinely feel so soft writing this au #let virgil have hugs 2020

[brinkofdiscovery]

Iridescent Stars

They smiled, and he could feel his breath catch in his throat.

Contains: Guns, Death, Car Wrecks (aftermath)

Tyler steadied himself on twisted metal, chilled by the freezing water that flowed around his ankles. Around him, broken glass glimmered beneath the water, a hundred tiny stars dashed along the freezing creek bed. Music played softly from ruined speakers, struggling out in short, sputtering bursts as the sun set golden across the snowy ravine. 

His client sat still and bloodied in the driver's seat, and just as he reached for their chest, a shadow cast itself across the valley. The frigid water suddenly became colder somehow, without the grace of sunlight shining through it. Tyler looked over his shoulder, a shadowed figure loomed, magnificent and motionless on the highway far above. Golden sunlight filtered through magnificent, outstretched wings, spread wide on either side of the silhouette that stood haloed by the sun.

Tyler stared up at them for a moment; they stared back--unmoving, unwavering. He sighed, turning back to his client with a quiet resignation. Slowly, he placed his hand against their chest, feeling out the rhythm of the shallow rise and fall of their breath. With their exhale, he dipped his fingers through their skin, down, and past their heart to the small, glowing mass of energy that sat behind it. With one gentle motion, he pulled their soul from their body, and their steady breathing slowed to a halt.

He took his time putting his shoes back on. Part of him hoped that if he stayed by the bank for long enough, the angel would leave, or at the very least come down to confront him on their own; it’d be nice to get it over with. He’d like to climb out of the ravine knowing he wouldn’t have to face them at the top.

But as always, he’d have no such luck. By the time he finished tying his laces and turned to face the hillside, the angel was still there, staring down at him from high above. Tyler shook his head, and dropped his eyes back to the task at hand. With the soul held securely in one hand, he reached out to a sturdy branch with the other, and started his climb up the snow covered slope.

Exposed roots and rocks threatened to give way when used as footholds, and with one hand dedicated to keeping the soul off the ground, he could barely manage to catch himself when they did. The ice and snow was loose and unreliable, and as it shifted and broke beneath his weight he quickly learned he could only trust it to numb his hands to the cuts and scrapes the climb subjected him to.

A single, gloved hand reached out to him as he reached for the highway’s guardrail. He stared at it for a moment before taking it, and accepting the angel’s help as he finally climbed onto the pavement.

The angel was tall, and somehow just as delicate as they were imposing. The setting sun shone behind them, illuminating strawberry blonde curls in a second halo beneath the golden ring that already floated above their head. They held Tyler steady as he pulled himself to his feet, fretting over him with gentle hands in wool lined mittens.

“It’s getting dark.” They said, glancing over their shoulder to the sun setting over the ridge. The sun caught their face at a different angle, and their freckles seemed to shine somehow, like a dusting of tiny opal across their cheeks. Tyler watched as the colors danced on their skin. He was still staring when they cut their eyes back to him.

They smiled, and he could feel his breath catch in his throat. “Do reapers typically work into the night?”

Reapers. That’s right. He was working, and though the angel’s eyes didn’t move from his for even a second, he knew the soul was in their periphery.

He realized his hand was still resting in theirs; he lifted it gently out of their grasp and took a slow step away, his eyes fading back to a practiced intensity as he finally spoke.

“What do you want?”

The angel watched him silently. Silence hung in the air. They didn’t make a move for him, they didn’t so much as take a step forward.

“Can I tell you a little bit about the soul you’re holding?”  They said gently.

“I already know.” Tyler sighed. His eyes closed, shaking his head wearily.

“You know?”

“I already know,” Tyler repeated, “I know who he is, I know what he did. I know all the good he put into the world. Whatever you’re about to tell me, I already know.”

“Then you know you’re holding someone very remarkable.”

“I am.”

“And you know why I’m here.”

“I guess I do.”

Silence hung in the air, the two watched one another with dwindling patience. Tyler didn’t make any distance between them; he just waited for them to ask for the soul, and they waited on him to offer it.

“Can we talk?” They finally asked.

Tyler slowly shook his head. “I’d rather not.”

“Please, listen. I know what you’ve been through, I know how hard it must have been. But you’re not dealing with demons right now. I’m not going to take the soul from you, I promise. I’m asking.”

Tyler didn’t answer. He just stared back at the angel, a spark of fire growing behind tired eyes.

The angel cleared their throat, trying again with a nervous smile and a quaver to their voice. “You’re resilient, I’ve heard. Seventy years and you’ve only lost one soul, is that right?”

Tyler winced, he thought back to the smell of iron and the feeling of chilled floorboards against his cheek. The cool blue moonlight through the window of that cabin.  The horrible slamming he’d tried so hard to block out. The shame of his client’s soul leaving the room alongside a demon’s.

He stared at the ground for a while. “You know a lot about me.”

“I try to learn what I can.”

Tyler frowned, finally looking back up to them. “Then you know that this is my job, right? Not some,” He looked down at the soul, starting to struggle for his words, “Some game? I mean, I could get in serious trouble for losing a soul. You know that, right?”

“I know, I know.” The angel assured him, “But I also know that other reapers have been able to reach certain… compromises. Maybe we could--”

“No.” He interrupted, “There’s no compromise to reach. This is my client. This is my job. I ferry the souls of a dozen horrible, cruel people every day. And you think I’m going to give you one of the decent ones? No. Absolutely not.

“Unless Life or Death tell me otherwise, this soul?” He held the soul up, for the first time the angel allowed themself to look at it. “Belongs on another reincarnation cycle.”

“I promise you I’m not trying to disrupt any sort of--”

“Do you think you know better than Life?” Tyler demanded.

“No, no no, not at all.”

“Better than Death?” He held the soul out further, shaking it in front of him.

“No! I--” The angel stammered. Their eyes flickered between Tyler and the soul he held between them. They took a careful step forward with their hands out, like they were ready to catch the soul if Tyler happened to drop it.

“Please,” They said carefully. “If you would just listen.”

“No!” Tyler shouted. He snatched the soul back and held it protectively against his chest, it’s vibrant green glow shone brightly through his fingers. “There’s nothing else to say about it! I’m not giving you the soul.”

He realized for the first time how the angel loomed over him, how close they were, how far their wings stretched on either side of him. He backed away slowly, his heart drumming hard in his chest now. He clutched the soul tightly in both hands.

“Tell all the angels,” He said, “Or your higher ups, or-- whoever you need to tell to leave me alone. Tell everyone to leave me alone! I want you all to leave me alone!”

He turned to run, to open a rift in reality for escape, anything to put some distance between himself and everything--everyone else, and a hand fell gently, carefully on his shoulder.

A single gunshot echoed through the valley.

Tyler stood with his pistol held high, his gaze levelled on the angel in front of him. They had drawn away, folded their wings in and shrunken in to make themself smaller. Wide, panicked eyes watched Tyler as he slowly lowered his gun, cooly settling his aim on them. Tyler placed his thumb on the hammer, fire burning in his eyes. One shot left.

“I want you all to leave me alone.” He whispered.

The angel nodded quickly, their hands clasped into a nervous, pleading gesture. They didn’t move, their eyes begged Tyler to have mercy, to step away, to let them go. Tyler held their gaze for a long while before he nodded to the sky, and they took their cue to escape. Their wings spread wide, and with one magnificent push, they were gone. Snow swirling on the pavement in their wake.

Tyler looked up in time to see them sail over the ridge and out of sight. He looked down at the soul. The first decent person he’d held in what seemed like months. He didn’t want it. He didn’t know what he wanted.

Right now, he wanted to go home.

He noticed he was still aiming for where the angel had been standing. With a sigh, he holstered his gun and took a seat on the edge of the road. He could see the wreckage at the bottom of the ravine, still soaked in the golden glow of the setting sun. It was getting late, and he had places to be. But he could rest for a while.

#tyler #push comes to shove #ansel #writeblr #myocs #mywriting

[skinnamon39]

Recall

“The mind, once stretched by a new idea, never returns to its original dimensions.”

The sentence (and its originator’s long Western name) had been present in one of the first chapters of their psychology textbook. They had read it, agreed with it, and moved on. Now, Es could only wonder why they hadn’t really noticed it before.

They didn’t have to wonder. All they needed to know was that they were Es, Milgram’s warden. All they needed to focus on was their work. There was no need to think of anything else. But more than all of that, they already knew why.

“Let’s try to learn about you!”

Hadn’t Muu said something similar? They couldn’t remember. Did it bother them, not knowing anything about themself? They didn’t even know that for sure anymore, and that did bother them. A little. Maybe.

Ah, they didn’t like this.

They opened their eyes to the near total darkness of their room. (Or, office? Eh, it was kind of both.) Sleep stubbornly refused to come. Guided only by the faint light out in the corridor, Es swung their legs onto the floor, stood up, and made their way to the dining hall.

Things seemed so much simpler in the beginning.

They didn’t go into the dining hall much, usually opting to eat in their office-room-thing. They went into the kitchen even less - Jackalope did the cooking, after all. But tonight, here they were in the pantry, rummaging through boxes of tea.

They had tried, perhaps just to satisfy the itch, to look up the possible benefits of different teas, but it seemed to be a topic too obscure or niche even for their extensive personal library. They had said they didn’t care, so it shouldn’t have bothered them too much. In any case, their hand picked out the box of green tea and a beige-colored mug from a cabinet.

...Wait, how do you boil water again? You just apply heat to it, right? Hopefully this was the right kind of pot… Hopefully they weren’t making too much noise…

They realized a little late that they should have used a kettle instead of a pot. Oh well, a kettle would have made that whining noise. But how would they pour the water into a mug…?

Gripping the mug’s handle with their fingertips, Es lowered it into the pot of water and then moved it to the counter, where they wiped it down with a towel. Who knew that just making some tea would be such a hassle?

After mixing in the tea powder, they took their tea and sat in the dining hall.

They had chosen a seat on the end - picking one in the middle would have been weird, somehow - but that only let them see how long the table was without any people at it. They imagined the prisoners sitting down by their numbers, but in all reality, they probably sat as they liked. Who sat where? With whom? The ten chairs offered no answers.

It occurred to them that even if they wanted to eat their meals here, there was no chair for them.

Es looked back down to their mug of tea. It should have been sufficiently cooled by now. With both hands, they picked it up and took a small sip. Then they took a larger one, trying to wash away the lump in their throat.

They had no good words to describe its actual taste, only that it was mild. Oh, the aftertaste was slightly bitter. Maybe that’s normal for tea.

Improved memory, huh? They took another sip. They weren’t feeling it. Maybe it would have worked for someone else, but not them.

“...like it’s someone else’s…”

What had she said then? What was it about it that made them lose their cool like that? It wasn’t like they could even ask her; she had also forgotten it.

Their eyes glanced up towards the corridor.

“If you don’t walk faster, I’m going to step on you.”

Es chuckled to themself. They had been completely serious in the moment, but now...it seemed funny. Especially since Jackalope had reacted by screaming his tiny head off.

“...Huuuuuh?!”

Now that was funny to begin with. The fact that Yuno really did go and give him such a gloomy report…

Hm. Maybe this tea really did work for memory and things. Or was this just an example of that “placebo effect” they had read about?

“...the pain receptors in my shin simply transmit electrical signals to my spine and brain…”

Ugh, not him. Why’d they have to remember that? Think of something else, think of something else…

“That hurts! What are you doing?!”

Did they feel bad about that? No, they didn’t think so. He had needed it. It had helped them see a different side to him as well. It was creepy, but nice to learn.

That’s right. They liked to learn.

“I want to learn more about myself through them.”

“Es…”

Now that they thought of it, green tea has caffeine in it, doesn’t it? Well, it was too late now.

They walked back into the kitchen. After downing the last of their tea, they rinsed out the mug.

“...How pitiful.”

…!

#cinnamonwrites #milgram #ミルグラム #deco*27 #es #I wrote this when catgirl-brain's translation was the only one available #and she mistranslated gingko tea as green tea #oh well #I FORGOT TO INCLUDE YUNO AAAAAA #quote is from ralph waldo emerson btw

[the-melting-world]

Grit

~ In which a secretive barhand meets an intriguing musician...

Khleo x Alec

@apprenticealec’s Alec heard about Khleo’s secret fight club and it led to this...

Khleo’s pronouns for this fic: they

cw: *mildly acidic*

~ 1.8k words

***

Khleo looked at the clock. 

Not even four yet.

Ugh. Why did they have to look?

For the thousandth time that day, Khleo promised themself that they would forget about the damn time and just focus on something else until happy hour rolled around. The problem was that there was nothing to focus on. 

The bar was dead.

The only reason Khleo was there suffering? Because they needed those hours. They always needed the hours. Normally, Khleo wouldn’t mind holding down the place until the other barhands showed up. The issue was that they were not alone.

“Von Heine, von Heine, von Heine,” Khleo’s boss drawled from his perch in the crow’s nest, as he liked to call it.

Khleo suppressed the urge to roll their eyes. “What’s wrong, boss? You need more peanuts?”

All the head barkeep knew how to do was binge on nuts while the rest of his employees swept up his crumbs in addition to taking care of their own bartending duties. 

“Did you forget how to use that rag in your belt? We’ll have customers coming in soon.”

Khleo clenched their jaw and assessed the empty tavern hall. There were no glasses that needed cleaning. No surfaces in need of a polish. 

“Oh. Right. Let me just...” Khleo slapped the rag on the counter loud enough to make the barkeep flinch. “get started on that.”

They knew they were in for a very rude comeback, but it got cut off by the sound of the front doors swinging inward. The new customer was striking enough to bring both the barkeep and Khleo to attention.

Khleo didn’t want to stare, so they tore their gaze away from the customer and pretended to focus on wiping the counter. Before that, however, they managed to steal a long enough glance, which sealed the image of blue eyes against a warm skin tone, and beauty marks dark enough to make Khleo wonder if the gods themselves had inked them into her skin.

The barkeep stood up, peanut shells cascading down his front. “What’ll it be, Miss?”

“Nothing right now. I’m here to ask about the uh…. Well, actually, I’m not sure I’m supposed to talk about it. Anyway, are you the one I talk to, or…?”

Khleo could practically hear their boss scowling. “Oh. You’re looking for Khlee. They’re over there.”

Khleo braced themself for the woman’s eager approach, taking her in fully now. Once again, they tried not to stare. But that was hard when the customer was so easy to look at, especially after a day of seeing nothing but peanut husks and cantankerous bosses. Khleo didn’t fail to notice that underneath the comfortable cottons and skirts, the customer carried a fair amount of muscle. Honestly, that didn’t guarantee an advantage in a fight, but it definitely didn’t hurt…

“Hi! Khlee, right? My name’s Alec and I’m here about possibly joining the,” Alec cleared her throat and checked for the nonexistent bystanders before whispering, “club.” She followed it up with a conspiratorial wink.

Khleo’s lip drifted into a smile. This… Alec was cute. Enough that Khleo didn’t want the barkeep’s eyes on them while they were talking. They decided the best way to get Alec alone somewhere was to play along. 

Dropping their voice to a lower octave, Khleo angled their head towards the back and asked, “You want to check out the basement and get a feel for the space? That’s where we have our meetings.”

Alec’s eyes lit up.

After Khleo had guided Alec underground to the warmly lit, cavernous space, they said, “Oh, and it’s Khleo by the way.”

Alec smiled over her shoulder at them. She had already wandered off a bit, inspecting the modest fighting ring marked by a chunky braided rope on the floor. 

Khleo was content to lean against the mini bar and observe her, tracing how her weight shifted as she bounced from one curiosity to the next. When she started showing interest in what lay behind the curtain at the hearthside, Khleo said, “Careful.”

Alec backed up a little and glanced at them in confusion.

“That’s where my lion sleeps.”

When Alec scoffed in disbelief, Khleo merely smiled without elaborating.

“So Alec,” Khleo said, “what do you do when you’re not hunting for fight clubs?”

Khleo didn’t expect such a rich laugh to spring from her. It felt good on their ears, like water babbling out of a brook. 

“I’m actually a musician – a singer. Well, songstress if your pockets are fat enough to host a full concert.”

Khleo had a sudden vision of wrestling with Alec, followed by another – Khleo was leaning against her,  listening while she sang them to sleep. Their mind blanked until Alec asked if everything was okay.

Khleo refocused. “Do you like the space?”

Alec nodded. “I do. I’ll be back later tonight.” She briskly headed towards the stairs. 

Khleo suppressed the urge to abandon the mini bar and block her from getting away. They had to think fast.

“The screening isn't over,” they said softly, feigning interest when Alec slowed down.

“What do I have to do? Or better yet,” she crossed her arms, “who do I have to fight?”

Khleo took a moment to linger on Alec’s defensive body language. 

“Me.”

Alec lifted a dark brow.

Khleo relaxed a little more against the bar. “Is that going to be a problem?”

Alec didn’t answer right away. She slowly crossed the room. Khleo straightened up and tried to ignore the fact that their heart was beating very, very fast. Alec came to a stop about a foot away, and, without breaking eye contact, lifted the front of her skirt above her knees.

Khleo swallowed a little too suddenly.

Alec gave a knowing grin as she swept the hem back between her knees before pulling it taut around the back of her thighs and tying the ends in a knot below her navel. Then she nudged her head in the direction of the fighting ring and turned before she could see if Khleo followed.

By the time Khleo made it to the mat, the blood rushing to their head was trying to punch its way out through their ears. But they coached their body into a more meditative state as they prepared to face Alec. 

Khleo felt so much more at home in the fighting trance. At first, they went easy on Alec, but when they quickly discovered that she was no Vesuvian poodle, they had to adjust their technique. Alec was strong, and for the most part, she knew how to use her strength. She focused it in her legs through measured kicks and whenever she rooted herself in order to grapple. 

Though Khleo’s capabilities were far beyond that of anyone who ever wandered into this basement, they had no urge to reveal this to Alec. Only to study and react to her. But with all of Alec’s grunting and the sweat she created between the two of them, Khleo was too damned distracted.

Still, Alec was keen enough to realize what was going on.

“Hey! No fair! You’re letting me win.”

Khleo used Alec’s shift in energy to catch her leg midair and jerk her a little off balance. Alec gasped as she collapsed against Khleo’s chest. 

“It’s not about winning or losing. I’m testing you. For uh…” The two of them shared a look. “Grit.”

Khleo swept Alec’s feet out from under her and pinned her to the cool floor. 

“There. See? I stopped holding back.” Khleo moved until they were straddling Alec before easing themself into an upright seat. 

Khleo felt so much more at home like this, where they could feel their opponent’s breath rise and fall between their legs.

“Happy now?”

The red band of color sweeping the bridge of Alec’s nose emboldened Khleo to drop to their forearms, bringing them face to face with the musician. Alec held eye contact and didn't stop them. 

Khleo used the moment to take in those blue eyes and god-marked features before they pushed their lips against Alec’s, this time testing to see how it felt to be close to her. Khleo pulled back before either of them thought to deepen the kiss. The barhand licked their lips as they checked Alec for a reaction.

As if waking from a midsummer’s dream, Alec’s eyelids fluttered open. Then something shifted in her and she was back for more, startling Khleo with fierce, hungry kisses. 

Khleo could hear all the effort Alec put into trying to catch her breath. But when they tried to withdraw to give her some room to breathe, Alec only chased their mouth more aggressively. 

So Khleo gave up and just lost themself, rolling with Alec until she was finally on top. Her weight was a comfort, especially when her leg muscles hugged Khleo in all the right places. They reached for Alec’s knees and dragged them up past their hips, forcing her to deepen her seat. Then Khleo coasted their palms along Alec’s strong thighs and dug their fingers in a little each time the musician rolled her hips.

Khleo wanted to reach higher, but they waited until Alec came out of a kiss and sighed a little more forcefully than before. Khleo leaned into instinct and filled their hands up with Alec’s sweet, athletic ass. The musician moaned into the bold touch, gently grinding her hips. Khleo bobbed their own, desperate to catch and hopefully lock onto Alec’s in a way that could only lead to one thing...

That’s when Alec’s hand came down over one of Khleo’s, breaking them from the moment.

“Hey. How did you know that’s what I wanted?”

Khleo could feel Alec smiling as she posed the question.

Khleo kissed her, lightly catching the edge of her lip between their teeth and whispering, “Because you told me so.” Their voice twisted into something more teasing and sly.

Before Alec could respond, the door to the basement opened. Light rushed in from the top of the stairs as someone made their way down. Khleo and Alec couldn’t untangle themselves fast enough before they were spotted.

One of Khleo’s coworkers paused halfway down the steps. “Oh! Am I interrupting?”

By now, they were both on their feet, trying to adjust their hair and clothes.

“I was just here for the screening,” Alec said, a deep blush still clinging to her face. 

The new bartender laughed. “What screening? For the fight club, you mean?” Then he glanced at Khleo, who was doing their best to signal him to cut his line of questioning.

Instead, the bartender looked back at Alec and added, “No screening necessary to join the club. Did Khleo tell you otherwise?”

Khleo glared daggers at their coworker, silently praying that this wouldn’t ruin their chances to spend more time with Alec. But one look in the musician’s direction put them at ease. Because if the way Alec was looking at Khleo was any indication, they would be seeing her again before the day was over.

#fear not #there will be a part 2 #khleo has major heart eyes for alec #khleo the barhand #khlee von heine #lemony #my writing #apprentice alec #khleo x alec #the arcana

[danetobelieve]

Big Brother’s Always Watching || Marley and Winston

Exhausted, mentally and emotionally if not physically, Winston sighed as they stepped out of the police station and headed over to the car that was more duct tape then automobile at this point. Dropping most of their work stuff in their car, they looked around them to make sure that no one was watching and grabbed a different rucksack that was full of research materials. Some of the cameras that they had set up at the side of the lake with Kaden had gone offline and Winston wanted to see what was going on. The lake wasn’t all that far from the station and they didn’t exactly want their car seen around that part of town right now. The sky turned black for a moment as the giant eyelid slid across the sun and blinked, but as soon as it had happened it stopped. Winston’s heart had also stopped in that moment, but they were actually starting to get used to the sun-eye blinking and it wasn’t making them panic as much as normal. There were so many things that they hated about that sentence. Heading towards the lake, they glanced over their shoulder once more, satisfied that they weren’t being followed. 

As Marley left the station that evening, she hadn’t been expecting to follow someone. The sun was still out, though dipping low beyond the horizon-- but its light meant that she couldn’t slip into her unseen form. Which was a bane, considering she just watched Winston grab a pack and head off into the forest by themself. It would be easier to follow them if she were invisible, but that didn’t mean she still didn’t have the skills to do it. And with the conversation they’d just had, she wasn’t eager to let them wander off alone. So, she’d followed them. Into the forest and through the trees to grandmother’s...lake? Why were they heading for the lake? Hadn’t the Sarge just issued the warning about the hooded cultists around? What a stupid kid, this was exactly what she’d been talking about. They were gonna get themself killed or hurt and it would be up to Marley, now, to make sure that didn’t happen. This was why she hated kids.

Double checking that they had everything, Winston’s hand brushed against their wallet, inhaler and phone. Convinced that everything was in place they pressed onwards, reaching the lake in less then half an hour, though not with some effort. Winston was pretty tired but headed to the first camera that they were having problems with. Fortunately this was the one that was furthest away from everything. Sometimes the problem was something as simple as a wire coming lose and as Winston approached the camera they were pleased to see that was the case here. Continuing on their journey, they moved closer to the lake, approaching the camera’s location to where the next camera should’ve been. Approaching it’s location, Winston found the lense covered in the thick ink like substance that seemed to have invaded White Crest’s water supply, which was … weird.

As they crept along, Marley kept a fair distance. The sun would dip low enough soon that she could slip into the shadows unseen, but for now, she stayed back. It seemed like they were headed somewhere specific, and she was proven right when they approached what looked like...a camera? Confused, Marley pressed a little closer, and when they left, she approached it, examining the evidence. It was attached to a tree and pointed towards the lake. Some sort of surveillance? She took her own phone out and snapped a quick photo of the location before heading back to continue following, this time slipping into something a little more invisible, allowing her to get a tad closer. At the next camera, she, too, saw the ink. Her eyes narrowed. Something was wrong here.

Muttering a quick curse, Winston quickly removed and cleaned the lense before replacing it and making sure that everything was working how it should. They had to admit the ink thing was weird. They would have to be more careful in the future. Checking on these things seemed more important then ever and Winston wished that they had made more of an effort to hide these better or enchant them or something more. But they didn’t have time for regrets and as they hurried closer to the lake they were sure that they could hear creepy chanting like from the other night. Of course that would make sense because there was a hundred and one cultists in the area and they really liked to chant. What made less sense was the fact that the bush which had been home to the third camera was now empty, there was literally no evidence that it had even once been here, Winston was sure they hadn’t made a mistake, but they couldn’t really corroborate it because just as they were checking a small herd cultists entered the clearing and Winston was forced to cower behind the small bush they had been checking. They knew it couldn’t give them all that much cover, their heart was pounding and their blood roared in their ears as they tried to keep calm. “Oh fuck fuck fuck.” 

Oh, this wasn’t turning out good. Marley could hear the chanting through the trees, casting her glance towards the darkened-- well, not for her-- treeline that led to the lake. There they were, heading their way. “Fuck,” she muttered in response, getting ready to bolt, but-- Winston. She paused for a minute. She could just leave them. It would be their own damn fault for coming out here. But, no. She couldn’t. She just couldn’t. Whatever forced dragged her back, she was racing towards them silently before reappearing right next to him. “Don’t scream,” she said, snagging his arm, “we’re leaving, follow me.” Hoping the cultists hadn’t seen them, but already pulling her gun out with her other hand and flicking the safety off. She wasn’t going to take any chances, and without eyes to look into, it was her only line of defense, a fact which she really didn’t like.

Winston basically choked as they did everything within their power to not scream. Swallowing the sound back Winston glanced around at Marley and whispered frustratedly at them. “Marley if you’re just going to appear out of mid air — which by the way was REALLY fucking cool — then maybe start with saying something other then don’t scream.” They shook their arm free of her grip and shook their head. “I can’t go yet, I have one more camera that I need to check, I need the footage off of that one specifically.” They crouched lower and slowly crept backwards with Marley from the cultists. “I know you said not to do something stupid and I know you’re going to be like I told you so, but I really need that footage so if you want to go…” Winston hated what they were about to say as they swallowed back anxiety and nerves, “I get it.” Was their voice higher then normal in that moment? Absolutely not … they were just whispering or something.

“Well it worked, right? You didn’t scream.” And Marley didn’t often make a habit of appearing out of the blue to people, but this was a special case. She furrowed her brow. “When the hell did you even set those up? Just...tell me where your stupid camera is and I’ll go check it,” she grumbled, pulling them behind more solid cover than a little bush. “I’m not leaving now. Cause then if you die, I’ll be responsible.” Get her voice low, the gun lower, and her gaze sharp, examining the tree lines. “So just…” waved her free hand, letting them go enough to gesture towards the treeline and the cultists. “I’m better at this than you.”

“Not because I didn’t want to, I don’t know if you noticed or not but I almost had an aneurysm trying not to.” Winston shook their head gently. “Like a month ago maybe, I caused a distraction and came in and set them up, they have solar generators and big batteries so they’re usually pretty good but I think the cultists have been fucking with them…” they scratched their head and shook it, “I have it set up so it’ll wipe itself if someone tries to tamper with it and unless you can break the codes I’ve got set up on there you won’t be able to access them…” they looked at Marley and shrugged. “Maybe you are, but I didn’t ask you for your help here, besides, I’m a fucking adult dude, I can do this if I want to.” Winston headed away from the cultists who had paused and started chanting once more. “You don’t have to come.”

Marley would have groaned loudly if they weren’t hiding. She stood to give chase as Winston headed off in the opposite direction. At least they were smart enough to do that much. “Well, I’m not leaving now,” she muttered, “I’m curious.” Yes, that was all. She was a detective after all, she loved a good mystery. “And you don’t have a gun.” She wasn’t sure why she needed to explain herself to them, but it made her feel better knowing they knew that was all she was there for. Even from behind her glasses she could see the darkened forest clearly, falling in step next to them, before pausing, putting out a hand. “Wait…” a rustling of leaves. Out here, it could be any number of monsters, but she had a feeling it wasn’t just any monster. “Hide.”

Secretly — maybe not so secretly — Winston was relieved that they weren’t having to do this on their own. With everything going on right now it seemed like a good idea to have back up. “To be fair, the camera rig and set up are all custom work, specifically made for this, so they’re really cool basically, I’ll show you how they work if you want.” If the camera was still intact. “I … I don’t have a gun because I don’t need one,” Winston wasn’t exactly a fan of being armed if they could help it and they weren’t a cop so they wouldn’t get one if they could help it. Winston however was somewhat concerned by her sudden command. They liked Marley and they respected her, so when she gave the order they didn’t hesitate, dashing behind a tree and wishing they’d learned how to make glamours or had developed a magic camouflage mesh or something. They quickly typed a reminder so that they would remember to look into that later. Making eye contact with Marley, or trying their best to, Winston mouthed over to her. “What now?”

Marley followed suit and hid behind the tree with Winston. It would be easier to go invisible, but that would leave Winston alone and possibly expose her abilities a little too much, even if they had probably already figured out a little bit. All this camera info flew by the wayside when a hooded figure emerged from the bushes where they’d just been and Marley pressed them both back against the tree as they walked forward, right past their hiding spot. Didn’t let out her breath of relief until they were gone through another bush. But, of course, it was too soon. She should’ve learned better by now. A knife sunk into her shoulder, thrown from afar. But with the protection of night, it did little but sting. Yanking it out, she turned to Winston. “Run,” she said, a little less urgently than the situation probably called for, “you should probably run.”

Holding their breath, Winston pressed themself against the tree and prayed that they weren’t about to be found by the hooded figure. They felt a moment of relief but then unease once more. A second later and a knife was being pulled from Marley’s shoulder with almost no reaction and Winston couldn’t help but wonder what the fuck was going on. She seemed almost unconcerned by this. Winston on the other hand wasn’t sure they agreed. They were about to do exactly what she had said, but mainly in an attempt to get them both out of there rather then leaving Marley on her own. But as they were beating a tactical retreat they found their path blocked by more cultists. Backing up, Winston swallowed and looked at Marley. “I don’t think that’s option, I guess I won’t tell if you won’t?” Winston really hoped that some of the tricks they’d brought with them worked. Fishing a glass vial from their bag, Winston hurled it at the first cultist they could see, they weren’t the best shot but building cannons or launchers for these things was a bit beyond their capabilities. The good news was that although they missed, the vial exploded against a nearby tree and the metallic substance that it had held soaked one of the cultists, they looked at Winston confused and in response Winston muttered a quick phrase and the liquid immediately began to change into thin ropes that began to bind themselves around the cultist who fell to the ground in shock, a knife in hand desperately cutting themselves free. Which was not great because those were meant to be unbreakable ropes. Winston needed to fiddle with the formula more clearly. 

Magic. Of course it was magic. Marley was sure why she hadn’t thought of that before, it was always witches, after all, jumping to try and give a solution to problems. She just supposed, of anyone, WInston had seemed like the least likely to do magic. Must’ve been the stereotype about tech nerds or something, but she’d have to examine that line of thought later. “Fine,” she said, deciding to cut the crap. She held up the gun and fired. The bullet sailed straight through one of their heads and the body dropped heavy to the ground. She pulled her glasses off-- who knew? Maybe it would work-- and pocketed them. As she aimed, another came up behind her and tried to stab her again, but she ducked, jabbing the knife she’d still been holding into their gut before putting the gun to its head and pulling the trigger. In the next moment, two more were on her, knocking her gun-- and the knife-- away. Then a third, and a fourth. “Fuck you!” she grunted, turning her body intangible and watching them all flop to the forest floor. “Hey!” she snarled, turning to face the one that had cut straight through WInston’s ropes. “They said stay.” Grabbed them by the collar while they still struggled against the restraints, glaring directly at them. She smothered their mouth with her free hand, fingers digging in, before she pulled her hand back, sucking in a deep breath. The hooded figure sagged and dropped dead to the ground. She turned to look at Winston. “Now you should run.”

Watching Marley work was quite something, not that Winston had the time to admire it or anything. To be honest, the fact that they were even admiring someone killing other things was pretty jarring for Winston. But now was really not the time to examine just how comfortable with these things that they found themselves becoming. Now was the time for action. Winston was probably never going to be as good at this as Marley was, but they knew that they could help in other ways. As the cultists worked their way out of their bindings, Winston set about incapacitating one cultist with the spiderbot that they’d used on their mime. The thing scuttled along, latched onto their back and tazed the cultist hard. Winston watch as they crumpled to the floor. Turning down the power had been a good idea. They were admiring their own handy work when a cultist tried to tackle them from behind, Winston honestly panicked a little and released a blast of kinetic force from themselves that sent the thug crunching into a tree. “Camera, got it,” Winston hadn’t been far from the spot. They sprinted over to the camera and were dismayed to see more cultists crowding around it. Reaching into their bag, Winston pulled out a second object. Hurling it into the trees behind the cultists, Winston waited for it to explode in a burst of sirens and other cop noises. It would distract them long enough to get the camera, at least that was the plan as Winston sprinted towards the camera as the cultists ran in the direction of the noise. 

WInston was just full of surprises. Marley didn’t really care for theatrics, but the kid had a certain flare that made her grin. At least, until a cultist tried to punch her in the face. His fist went straight through, of course, as she made her body untouchable. Once he was done recoiling his fist, she came back into the physical world and made sure he knew how to punch properly through demonstration. Winston was heading off towards his camera now and Marley took chase, picking up her gun and one of the knives, as she headed over. “Hurry and get what you need, I get the distinct feeling there’s more of these guys than I have bullets and you have magic grenades,” she said, holding the gun out, waiting for them to realize the loud sirens were just a distraction. Took aim and shot one right through the heart. That was 3 bullets she’d have to report now. She held up the knife, then, bracing herself. “I’ll cover you.”

Scrambling up the tree where they’d set up the camera, Winston popped it out of it’s mount and slid it into their back pack. There was point leaving it here now if they knew where they were hiding these things and Winston would rather get it back then have someone trace the signals back to them. “I’m down to my last one,” Winston was hoping that this would be enough, but they weren’t completely sure, either way they needed to get out fast, “I’ve got to say, the whole ghost thing and then not being a ghost, what’s it called … intan-intangibility? That’s really cool.” Winston wished that they could learn something like that. You couldn’t die if everything just went through you. At least that was their theory anyway. Quickly packing everything away, Winston grabbed the small solar panels they’d set up and was back on the ground. “Let’s go,” they said as they fished out their final ‘grenade’ a aerosol cannister with a pin in the top, “smoke grenade, you’re definitely a better shot then me.” 

“It comes in handy, yeah,” Marley said, glancing back once to watch them climb up the tree and fish out the camera. She was still annoyed they’d thought doing this alone was a good idea, but she wasn’t about to comment on that. “Better hurry,” she said over her shoulder, “looks like they figured out your trick.” The remaining few had all turned to face them again, withdrawing their knives. If fear wasn’t something she actively fed from, she might have felt it now. Their sewn mouths and eyes were almost as creepy as the lids in their palms, and the fact that they could still somehow see without having proper eyes. And that they couldn’t be taken care of using her preferred method. Her fear paralysis was of no use here. When they descended the tree, Marley took the offered grenade. “Get ready to run,” she said, then beamed one of them in the head with the grenade. For a moment, nothing happened-- then a burst of billowing white smoke exploded from the center and encased the entire area. Marley grabbed Winston, and ran.

Winston did not need to be told twice. Although the scar or eyelid, whatever you wanted to call it on the back of their hand itched like crazy but Winston didn’t focus on that. They had to get out of here. They turned behind them and glanced to see a cultist emerging from the smoke, however at that point Winston and Marley were sprinting away, camera in hand. Winston really hoped that there was some good information here, because if not then Marley might be a little pissed off. Probably a good thing she’d been there too. Winston would’ve been seriously hurt if not. “That, was,” Winston paused trying to catch their breath, puffing quickly on their inhaler, “fucking insane.”

“That,” Marley huffed, though not entirely winded still a bit short of breath, “is exactly why I told you not to to try and help.” Whatever they were thinking by placing those cameras, or coming out here by themself, Marley knew better. Everyone wanted to be the hero, everyone wanted to be the one to solve it. And that was how people got killed. Once she’d caught her breath, she moved forward, out of the woods. “I know you think you can help, but you’re just going to get yourself killed, and then we’ll have to find another new intern, and I’m not eager to be the one Jane bothers about all her computer problems.”

“Are you kidding?” Winston asked trying their best not to grin from the adrenaline. It wasn’t that they enjoyed doing this. But there was a mad rush to survivideath situations more or less. “I would have worked something out in the end, like, one hundred percent thank you for saving my life multiple times, I am immensely appreciative, but I’m not completely helpless I promise.” Winston paused for a second. Looking at Marley and trying to think of how they were meant to explain this. “People need help, no one is doing enough to resolve this cult problem, not me, not the police, but it isn’t just going to go away on it’s own. So yeah, maybe I’m pretty much completely out of my depth, but I haven’t died yet and I’m not going to stop trying to help. I know you think I can’t help. But you’re wrong.” 

“I never said I didn’t think you could help!” Marley snapped, whirling on her heel to face them again. “I said you’re going to get yourself killed if you do try to help! And, oh, look-- you almost died! Multiple times!” Threw up her hands, groaning. “I get it, you wanna help. All you little goody-two shoes all always just wanna help-- but sometimes helping means staying behind. Sometimes, there’s just nothing you can do. And you just have to accept that,” she said, her voice sharp. And yeah, maybe she was projecting, but sometimes people needed to hear it just as it was. No sugar coating, no sweet talking. She rubbed a hand across her face before turning to head back towards the precinct again. “But, you know what? Fine. Do whatever you want. See if I care.” It was no skin off her back if they died. She didn’t have to care. She didn’t have to help if they didn’t want her advice.

“Almost, I’ve been almost dying since the beginning of this year and since I worked all the supernatural shit out and had a magical ability thrust in my lap. There comes a point, where if you’re already almost dying all the time, you might as well continue almost dying and make a difference.” Winston wouldn’t normally argue like this with a co-worker. But frankly this had been a bullshit week, in a bullshit month, in a bullshit year. “Except right now there is something that I can do to help,” Winston pulled off the bandage that they’d kept over their hand, “I’ve got this thing, I did a ritual before this shit happened trying to research more and I found out that there is more to this then just the eye and the sun and the cult, and if we don’t fix this then we might all just get fucked. So forgive me if I care enough to try and stop it. I tried to get you to let me help and you said no, that’s fine. I also really appreciate everything you did for me just now, that was amazing -- super bad ass by the way -- but I didn’t ask you to intervene.”

Dammit. Damn this kid. Damn this place. Marley stopped, one more time, and turned slowly to look back at Winston. She didn’t have to keep doing this, it wasn’t like she ever cared. That wasn’t the kind of person Marley was. Because Marley wasn’t a person. “Stop it,” she said, eyes sharp behind her glasses, “stop saying it was badass. Almost dying isn’t badass. And I already said fine, do what you want, kid. I don’t care. Not my problem if you die anymore. I did my part.” Her hands were clean. She’d tried, that was more than she could normally say. She didn’t want to be interested in the fucking eyelid on their hand, but she was. Couldn’t help it. “You did a ritual? Jesus, do you have a death wish?” She shook her head. “No, don’t answer that. And that--” she pointed at their hand, “--tell it to someone who cares. Whatever big, scary, townwide curse has befallen us, I can’t help. That’s not what I do.”

Shaking their head, Winston sighed. “Being a bad ass isn’t the point and I don’t know what you are, but just because you’re not human or you are a type of human I’ve yet to meet, or whatever doesn’t mean you’re a monster. It just means you’re a part of this world and you can make your own value. Also, I know werewolves who are total badasses and they qualify for the monster thing much more then you.” Winston shrugged. “Fine, you don’t want to care, that’s fine, sorry for trying to save the town that we both live in.” Winston held their hands up in defeat. 

Marley threw her hands up in defeat again. “I never said-- I’m not--” but they were right. Marley did think she was a monster. No, she was a monster. And they had no idea what she was capable of. Because as big and scary and cruel as werewolves could be, even they felt fear. Even they needed breath. Even they would tremble before a mara. “Just don’t cry when I get to say I told you so,” she muttered, before finally walking off, disappearing into the shadows, leaving Winston alone again.

#p: marley #para #wickedwriting #big brother's always watching

[mystupidwritingsorart]

My Universe

For Better or For Worse

Pairing/Character: reader x Galaxy-and-star-collector

Word Count: 1602

Warnings: angst, real person fiction, real person shipping, divorce alluded to

A/N: This was looked over by the lovely @iflostreturntosteverogers/@littlehotmess26 but all mistakes are my own. This was for Mel’s 3k Celebration my prompt was “Why do you hate me?” @fictionalabyss​ Also listen to What A Wonderful World by Louis Armstrong for the full experience.

     You stared at the empty space on your bed thinking back to where it all began.

☆☆☆☆

     It was like any other day, the sun was out, kids were playing on the street, and you were alone in a house too big for one. You had run your finger over your wedding band, you had thought it would be the start to so much better, to more happy days than bad, but you were wrong. They pushed you away harder, pulling in on themselves further. You knew they had relapsed but they denied it saying it was an alley cat.

     You took the band off your finger and placed it on the counter. There it sat on top of the note you rewrote so many times mocking you. You grabbed your already packed suitcase and looked around the kitchen once more before heading to the door. Your hand wavered just a moment before you took a deep breath and walked out. The sun was shining bright and full and yet all you felt was the cold chill of the air slap at your face. You caught the first bus you could thanking God you lived near a bus stop. You needed to be anywhere, anywhere that is, but here. Once seated on the bus you broke down into tears. The other patrons just left you be, your grief an overwhelming storm cloud on the bus. 

     Eventually the bus emptied and you were alone with just you and the driver and after 2 more stops he said it was the end of the line. You got out and found the closest hotel booking a room for at least a week. After crawling onto the bed exhausted you started up your phone and saw 50 messages and 27 missed calls. You couldn’t open the messages and broke down again leaving the phone on the dresser falling into a fitful sleep.

     You dreamt of what you wrote the words echoing in your head. “To my beloved Galaxy, I can’t do this anymore. It hurts too much to love you when all you do is destroy yourself. We were supposed to be a team, til death do us part and yet you pushed me away more than ever. You never come home, never tell me if you’re okay so I sit and worry each and every day. You are my best friend and that’s why it pains me to say that this is unfortunately our end. Please don’t try and find me I can’t do it anymore. I love you mi amore." 

     You woke up with a jolt to someone knocking on your door, well knocking was the polite term more like banging. You glanced at the time and noted it was 10:30 pm. You stumbled out of the bed and wiped the tears from your face. Standing on your toes to look out of the peephole you saw them. They looked worse for wear, they had sweat dripping down their face and tears as well, their hair was a fiasco, hair sticking to their face and at all odd angles. You heard someone yell at them to shut up and they just crumpled to their knees and with the soft thunk you heard you imagined they let their head rest against the door. With a sigh and a heavy heart you kept the door closed your hand resting against the door knob. A soft "please” was heard and your heart shattered. You opened the door slowly, which caught them off guard as they had started to fall forward with you opening the door.

     "I don’t expect you to forgive me or to take me back but please it can’t end like this. I’m scared of losing you please don’t do this.“ They sobbed and curled up into themself even more. You reached out to touch them before pulling your hand back and shook your head.

     "Why do you hate me?” You asked softly refusing to look at them. From the corner of your eye you saw them flinch and pull back.

     "I don’t hate you I love you more than anything please…just take me back I can do better!“

     "I can’t do that and you know that. Please…just go…” you said softly the tears clouding your vision. Their head lowered in defeat and you closed the door again leaving them there. You turned your back to the door and slid down its surface a heart wrenching sob tearing out of you. You cried until no more tears would come, until no sounds left your throat, until you passed out from exhaustion.

You woke up the next day and slowly pulled yourself to your feet an awful crick in your neck and back from having slept on the floor propped up against the door. You slowly peeked out of the peephole again and seeing no one quickly dressed yourself and grabbed your wallet to go get food to at least start your day. You found a small gas station nearby where you purchased some eggs and some milk just to make something quick to eat, knowing you wouldn’t be able to stand much more than that.      

     You quickly headed back to your room and made yourself some scrambled eggs. You grabbed your phone from the bed room and saw that you had 5 more missed calls and some more texts but you couldn’t find it in your heart to read them and so you did the only thing you could think to do. Your finger hovered above the button before pressing it down blocking their number. You let a few tears fall down your face before going back to making your eggs and plating them. You stared down at the meal but couldn’t bring yourself to eat. You pushed the plate aside and rested your head against the cool wooden table wondering why it had to come to this. You knew that in the long run this would probably be better for you. You knew that if they couldn’t help themselves with you that they needed to be alone before you could accept them back into your life. 

     So, in the first time in a long time, you felt alone again. You quickly called up your boss noting that the time was 1230 and that your shift started at 3 to tell him that you wouldn’t be able to make it in today. You couldn’t bear facing other people in your current state everything still feeling raw and painful. You dragged yourself to the bed and stared at the empty space next to you. You longed for better days, for past days where everything seemed to be going good. To waking up to their smile or a nice hot breakfast in bed. You longed for their arms around you to hold you tight and tell you everything would be alright. Yet it wouldn’t come, you knew that, but you hoped that one day it would, that this break would help them. Even though you were the one hurting most from this situation you still looked after their wellbeing more than your own and so you cried. 

     From that day forward you drew in on yourself. You weren’t as happy, weren’t as bright, a shell some would say of your former self. Your coworkers would invite you out to the bar or even for lunch and yet you couldn’t bring yourself to go out with them. What if they were there, you found yourself asking. You were so frightened of running into them and not being strong enough to reject them again. What felt like years passed by slowly, little things reminding you of them at every store. Eventually you met someone new. 

     His name was Justin. He was sweet, kind, charming. He reminded you of Z. It lasted 3 days before it became too much for you. You broke up with Justin and felt your world crumble as when you told Justin the news, instead of seeing Justin you saw Z. You couldn’t eat for the next 2 days, your stomach refusing to hold anything down. Your friends grew worried seeing you returning to that same state you had been in months previous. You thought you would never be able to turn around from this, any one who showed interest in you just painfully reminded you of what could have been. Your fingers often found the empty space on your ring finger in times of stress, trying to twirl a band that had long since been abandoned. 

     You saw children playing in the park and was reminded on how the both of you planned on seeking out a sperm donor to have children of your own. You saw their favorite movies while looking for something to watch and was reminded of countless nights falling asleep, head in their lap as a movie droned on in the background. Z never tried contacting you after blocking their number and for that you were grateful. This break from them broke you in ways you felt could never be fixed. Years down the line you found yourself becoming happy again, just like before everything went to hell. There were days you panicked thinking you had seen them in passing in a store, at the park, at the mall, yet if it ever was them, they never noticed you. You moved on with your life, granted there were still chips in your life, some days you couldn’t get out of bed, others you cried yourself to sleep. However, you knew you came out stronger and that this was for the best.

#real person shipping #real person fiction #mels3k #tw #trigger warning #tw divorce #divorce #tw real person shipping #tw real person fiction

[clean-bands-dirty-stories]

Pulled Together ~ part 3

A/n: So I'm REALLY into this series :) I wrote a ton and will start queing these to post at midnight of each day and if I pull this off, you guys will get one part a day. If this series goes on too long, it might turn into every other day or once a week or something. I have a lot planned though so I don't think I'll burn out because I'm not just completely winging it? Eh we'll see lol

Word Count: 4000+

MASTERLIST

Jai felt sick to their stomach. Upon waking up, they weren’t tied to an interrogation chair - as the Second Sister called it - or in a cell. They’d woken up in what they’d soon learn was an infirmary, the Second Sister herself in a chair right by their bed, lounging as they waited for Jai to wake up.

“How long have you been there?” Jai asked.

The Second Sister looked at them, away from the entryway of the infirmary, where she’d been focused on before. “Not long, thankfully. I come in every once in a while to see if you’re awake yet.”

Jai raised an eyebrow. “How hospitable of you.”

The Second Sister shook her head and Jai got the impression that she might have been rolling her eyes. “Do you remember what happened?”

It was as clear as anything. The room lit up with blinding white light. The three other bodies falling to the floor instantly, incapacitated. The distant yells of more troopers at the comotion. The feeling of… power. “Yeah,” Jai whispered. Their voice was suddenly weak and hoarse. They didn’t like to think about it. Remember it. It was another one of those things they just knew: they’d caused that lightning. They’d created it, hurting the people around them. They didn’t really feel bad about hurting the troopers and the Second Sister- it was more the weird feeling the power they’d used to do it had given them. It felt dangerous, and yet they were almost eager to do it again. They weren’t sure what any of it meant.

“Do you know what the Force is?” The Second Sister leaned forward, planting her elbows on her knees.

“Of course,” Jai responded, nearly scoffing. Their voice was back. “I’ve heard the stories of the Jedi and the Sith and the Force- just like everyone else.”

There was a pause and Jai shifted. Why did it suddenly feel so warm in here? “They’re not just stories.” Another stretch of silence and Jai’s eyes fell to their hands, resting limply in their lap. They’d sat up to talk to the Second Sister but were still feeling weak. This news wasn’t helping. Of course Jedi were real. The Second Sister had already confirmed that. Which mean the Force was a thing too, of course. Jai hadn’t until this very moment considered that those two things existing also confirmed the reality of a world with Sith.

“If I used the Force, shouldn’t you kill me?” Jai looked at the Second Sister. “I mean, isn’t it your job to hunt and kill Jedi and other Force users or whatever?”

The Second Sister sat back in her chair, nodding. “It is.” She exhaled briefly.”Do you want to die, Jai?”

It was the first time she said their name. It was terrifying. “No.” They were as honest as ever. “But it doesn’t seem I have much of an option here.”

“Well… what if I told you that there was another option?”

Jai started. “What option?”

The Second Sister stood, pulling off her lightsaber from her belt. She rested it in her palm, raising her hand in the air. The deactivated saber began to float in the air, just above her hand. She lowered her hand but the saber stayed, floating, suspended by nothing by the Force. “You could join us. Become an Inquisitor. I’d train you, help grow your powers. You’d stay alive and grow even stronger. Make something more for yourself than a pathetic, rainy planet where all you can do is hide your real worth and waste away doing whatever meaningless thing you did down there.”

Jai couldn’t lie, it sounded insanely tempting. They’d always thought the idea of the Force was so cool, and had secretly wanted to use it as a kid. They’d spent hours as a child meditating and trying to connect to it but had never succeeded… or, maybe they had. Surely not on a level like recently, but… maybe. At this point, they’d believe anything.

There was something that made them pause though. “I don’t want to torture people like you did me. I’m not made of the same material as you.”

The Second Sister hesitated, then the lightsaber moved within Jai’s grasp. “Grab it.”

Jai didn’t have to be told twice. They forced themself to their feet, feeling silly holding a lightsaber of all things while sitting weak in a bed made for broken and sick people. They looked at it for a second until they got that sensation again- that simply knowing something it made no sense to know. Their finger found the switch and the lightsaber activated. The double sided beam was a glowing line between Jai and the Second Sister. “Amazing,” they whispered.

“Indeed,” the Second Sister agreed. Then she did something odd. She took a defensive stance, her hands tense at her side. “Do you want to escape, Jai?”

Now Jai could place why their name in her mouth sounded so threatening. It wasn’t just a name when the Second Sister said it. It was a challenge. “Yes,” Jai responded immediately, their hand tightening on the saber.

“Kill me then. Use that saber and kill me and everyone who stands in your way and get out. Go find your precious Cal Kestis and his little group of friends and help the rebellion they fight for. Or don’t. Return to Bracca. Or go somewhere completely new, a lightsaber and the Force on your side. Free yourself of this place.”

Jai felt it. The pull. They felt a distinct wanting. A desperate yearning within them to turn the weapon against its owner and finally be free. They could do it. The saber was foreign and Jai had no real combat knowledge, but they’d had dangerous things held against dangerous people before. They could do it if they really wanted to.

That feeling was scary.

Jai opened their hand, letting the saber fall to the floor. It deactivated in midair, landing with a clatter. “No.” They stood tall. “You’ve changed me. You and your pain and this promise of something more. And I don’t like it. I won’t be like the people in those stories. I’m not evil.”

The Second Sister took a second to stand straight before reaching up and taking her helmet off. Jai was surprised by the action. “Neither am I,” the woman underneath said evenly. Her hair was dark and short. Her eyes were cold but her expression was calm. Jai pictured a much crueler face. The Second Sister was strangely… attractive. Not even a little bit of what Jai had been expecting. “There’s no such thing as good and evil, Jai.” This time it sounded like a name. It was a weird change, this woman and her face and the way she said Jai’s name. “There is only power and weakness. This pain. The change it caused. You feel stronger, don’t you? Can you remember before? What scared you? What hurt you? Can you imagine any of it bothering you now?”

Jai had to say: she had a point. Before, the worst thing that Jai was concerned about was… what? A little hunger? Cal losing interest? There were so many much worse things to be afraid of. Things that Jai wouldn’t have to fear if they got even stronger. They wouldn’t need someone else anymore. No more feeling pathetic and useless. No more creating situations that weren’t real in a desperate attempt to feel worth something. Anything.

Cal was out there fighting his fight. Why couldn’t Jai fight theirs? What was waiting for them anywhere else? Cal? Jai had no idea where he was, and he had no idea where they were. Bracca had been a dismal place to end up in the first place, and Jai wouldn’t have ever gotten off of it if not for this whole Inquisitor thing happening. They thought of that power. The Lightning. The surge that made them feel - KNOW - they were completely unstoppable. Watching even the Second Sister fall to her knees, completely helpless.

Swallowing hard, Jai met the eyes of the Second Sister. “I’m listening.”

Training was exhausting and overwhelming.At least now Jai had an actual bed to crash into at the end of every night when it was all over. They actually got sleep, and when they woke up they were allowed to eat actual food. The Second Sister refused to give them a lightsaber, so Jai was being trained in the Force exclusively. It was an easy study, and with fulfilling rewards. The Second Sister got frustrated with them a lot, eager to have them be ready to be in battle and fighting at her side. Eager to have them ready and out there. Every day Jai got stronger, though. The food and sleep were probably a huge help.

Training required a lot of emotion, and it built up a lot of tension and frustration. Jai had been wishing they could cook again. They always used to when things would get really bad. It was something they were good at that they could just do, and please people with the results every time. No one was ever disappointed with Jai’s food as Cal had been when they’d first bothered him. As the Second Sister was in training. As they were at how easily they’d succumbed to the draw of a power that was so very wrong.

Except, as the time passed, it started to feel less wrong. The Force wasn’t just the Dark Side. It was the Jedi and such as well. One day Jai’s curiosity got the better of them. “Second Sister,” they began during a break in training one day. “You’ve taught me about the Dark Side and Sith and such, but… what about the other side of the coin?”

The Second Sister raised an eyebrow. “You want to know about the Jedi?” Jai shrugged. The Second Sister sighed. “That’s not something you need to know about?”

“Why not?” Jai pushed, testing the water. “I’m not going to become a Jedi. I’ve already used the Dark Side far too much. And I’m studying under you, unable to leave this place. If you want me to fight them eventually, isn’t it important to know how they work? Keep your friends close and your enemies closer, yeah?”

There was a moment of silence where the Second Sister just looked at me very intently. Searching. “The Jedi considered themselves peacekeepers. They used the Force mainly for defense, and sometimes to gain knowledge about things. They run and hide like cowards and in the end, they always betray you when it comes down to it. They’re weak.” Her face twisted with anger just slightly and Jai went quiet, not pushing their luck. They waited for the Second Sister to change the subject, but she kept going instead. “They focus on positive emotions and focus. Value things like mercy and self-sacrificing. The strongest of the Jedi always end up dead. It’s better to be what we are now. What you will be someday.”

That really did sound super lame. “How is it different from the Dark Side, the power?”

The Second Sister thought about it. “Well, they have powers that work to defend and teach. Protective shields, or tuning into the memories attached to objects. A long time ago, there was an incredibly powerful Jedi who could see the future.”

Jai’s eyes widened. “What happened to him?”

“He died.”

Jai looked away. “Oh.”

“Yeah. They had the dumbest rules. Attachment was seen as a no-no, but even such a supposedly rule was broken constantly. Masters got attached to their Padawans, and plenty of people had friends or family or romantic partners. They preach love and happiness but breed loneliness and isolation. And endless amounts of hypocrisy. They act like heroes and then fail you when it really matters.”

It was quiet for a long time. “Jedi sound shitty.”

The Second Sister’s lip… twitched. Almost a smile. Jai smiled themself, quite proud of the accomplishment. “They are.”

“You say it like you know on a personal level.” The Second Sister stood, turning away.Jai frowned. They were curious but also kind of irritated. Not at the Second Sister but at these Jedi. The ones who run and hide and let everyone else suffer, but see themselves as heroes. As the staple good guys. These people who preach how much they care, then turn around and in the same breath speak against attachments. Against family and friends and love itself. Jai might have been weaker before this whole thing, but at least they were happy. They were much, MUCH happier without the Force and Jedi. “I’m sorry to-”

“Stand up,” The Second Sister demanded. Jai obeyed, much more willing to follow the Second Sister than before. “You’re angry. Use it. Tap into it and really use it. Let it loose. Let it be as strong and wild and free as the day with the lightning. Be as angry as you were afraid.”

Jai sighed. This wasn’t a life that held happiness or peace aymore. Even the Jedi who apparently focused on positive emotions didn’t harness happiness when they used the Force. This was a life of misery. Of being chased, or chasing. Being killed, or killing.

Only now was Jai realizing that it had actually always been that way- only now were they really understanding that it was.

Training had been lots of little things thus far. Pulling or pushing small objects. Summoning things into their hand. Now they felt the anger. They hated these choices they were given. They hated being trapped on this stupid planet learning how to use a power they resented the second they ‘d really learned what it was. The Force wasn’t good or bad. It wasn’t power or weakness. It was a tool. It was like holding a hammer or a blow torch or a pencil. All it did was take any chance of being really happy, forcing you to use it one way or the other. They hated this stupid power that wouldn’t ever listen to them. That had stayed dormant inside of them for so long, just to surface at the single worst possible moment.

Reaching out their hands, they tried to summon the bag on top of the box. This was the small object of the day. They’d started with dishes and silverware then moved to slightly bigger but lighter things. Clothings and blankets and sheets and such. Now they were stuck on a larger, heavier object. On this stupid bag and things like it. They were stuck, as they always were nowadays.

Jai’s fingers curled as boiling, red rage bubbled up in their chest and spread throughout the rest of their body. Hopelessness and frustration and fear- it all turned to an anger that consumed them. They focused on the bag and it refused to move and they felt even worse. Even more anger. Suddenly the large, stee; box underneath the bag seemed to crumble in on itself, as if Jai had reached out with their fingers and crushed it like a foam ball.

Eyes wide, Jai stepped back, their hands falling to their side. They looked at the Second Sister with shock to see the smirk on her face. “You’re capable of so much more than you ever thought was imaginable. Just let yourself unlock it. Her wrist flicked and Jai felt it before they saw it. They raised an arm and looked just in time to see that same crushed box hovering perfectly suspended in the air, maybe two feet from smashing full force into Jai.

“How did you know I’d be able to stop it.”

The Second Sister’s smirk grew. “I didn’t.” She approached Jai. “How did you?”

Jai swallowed. “I didn’t.”

There was… something huge. Something very big, and Jai was just a second away from completely seeing it. Like a word on the tip of your tongue or your favorite treat that you’re desperately craving being on a shelf, just barely out of reach as your fingers brush the bottom of the container. Like tasting a meal that was missing just a touch of- of something. There was something that Jai wasn’t quite grasping yet, but suddenly it seemed much more in reach because now they understood. Just a little more, they understood the Force and the people who used it.

Everyone was full of fear. Anger. No one wanted to be weak, so they sought after power. Jedi had just as much the capability of crushing and destroying as Sith did, and vice versa. This whole thing was just a way to get just a little stronger. To just have a little up on the person you were fighting.

And it worked, every time.

Maybe the Force wasn’t what Jai should be mad at. It was good and bad, just like everyone else. Everything else. If someone stabbed you with a pencil, it wasn’t the pecil’s fault. It wasn’t the Force keeping them trapped here. It was the Inquisitors. It was the Jedi they fought. It was this stupid eternal war between the “good” and “bad” sides that didn’t exist. The “weak” and the “powerful” that were all doing the exact same things but getting slightly different results because they had slightly different approaches.

Now Jai had a real goal. Not to find Cal or just survive or get more powerful. Jai wanted to understand the Force. To really understand it. They wanted to understand themself and why the Force had been something they of all people could access. They wanted to get off of this god forbidden planet and go do something with their life.

Who cares if they had to be an Inquisitor to do it?

Using the Force after that was suddenly a lot easier. The negative emotions were easy to access. They remembered not only all that time spent in the interrogatio chairs being ruled by endless pain that they couldn’t stop or even slow, but also the days they spent as a child. The days of perfect happiness. Their mom had died when they were very young, but the few memories Jai had of her were always warm and wonderful. Their dad had been just as loving and kind. If they had spent the rest of their life working right by his side and never leaving, that would have been heaven. He was a cook. He’d taught them everything they knew. He saved portions to make for those who really needed it. He was kind and merciful, and what had the world given him in turn? Intruders in the night, murdering him in favor of robbing him and kidnapping his only child.

The robbers had been going to kill Jai until they showed their useful cooking skills. Then when they got the chance as they made a stop on Bracca, they’d booked it and disappeared. They’d taken ages to gain their trust and hadn’t taken the time to take any revenge. No thieving or killing or even hurting- just gone in the night. How many people had they killed since Jai had been gone? How many had they killed while Jai was a part of them? How pathetic were they to simply sit back and let it all happen, just to duck out and pretend none of it had ever happened as they faded into the background of Bracca, doing what they could to survive?

Jai was tired of being helpless. Of being useless. Defenseless. Or running and keeping their head down and closing their eyes and pretending nothing was happen because they couldn’t stop what was, even if it was right in front of them.How many years had they spent simply fading in and out of lives until they’d met Cal and determined he was worth it for whatever reason? Until now, when they’d been found and broken and trained? Well, it didn’t matter, because they wouldn’t be doing it anymore.

They were their own person, and no one was allowed to claim otherwise.

It was the determination above everything else that made Jai strong. Not peace or anger. Not mercy or protectiveness of justice or fear. Just sheer will power. A wanting, above all else, to have something real. Not some temporary purpose like a war or hunting down Jedi. Because then what about after? What happened once the war ended? Once all the Jedi were dead? They’d be back to square one- lost, without a single purpose.

Their new goal? Live.

One day they convinced the Second Sister to let them cook, using the excuse that it helped them focus their emotions more instead of burning them all in one go and then being exhausted afterward. And it did. Just like always, they blew off steam in the kitchen, feeding some eager troopers who were lucky to get there in time to dig in, and then they trained in the Force with determination. Not good or bad. Not peace or chaos. Not power or weakness. Just a refusal to fail.

They became stronger. They also grew wiser. They learned what they’d been seeking in the Force. Just as they’d realized all those times ago- the Sith and the Jedi were both wrong. It wasn't about one or the other, it was about learning about how to balance both. Black and white was dangerous. To every rule there was always an exception.

No killing. What about in self defense?

No stealing. What if someone who’s working for world peace was dying and they were poor and the cure was expensive and it had to be stolen?

No lying. What if some creeper came up to you asking for information?

The world was made up completely of shades of grey. There was not one or the other, but always both. Power AND weakness. Black AND white. Good AND bad. Hard work AND luck. Mercy AND justice. Kindness AND cruelty. Everyone was capable of both, and everyone accessed both at different times. There was a good and a bad, and it was important that you knew the difference and found the balance between both. The only thing that was truly wrong were extremes. Balance was key.

Jai never told the Second Sister or anyone else about this mentality they developed. They never shared their revealed secrets, and continued to instead obey because for now, it was necessary. It was where the Force was taking them. It was the only way forward, and they could be okay with that. They trained and they got stronger and finally the day came.

“Are you awake?”

Jai turned at the Second Sister’s voice. “Of course I am.”

She seemed proud. “We have a mission for you. Are you ready to get off of this planet?” She held out a mask. It was over the lower part of the face, covering their mouth and chin, looping over the ears to the back of the neck. Jai took it and put it on, clicking it closed in the back. It allowed for communications while also leaving the top open. Their vision was unimpeded and their face was mostly revealed- they had no reason to hide it, and had voiced irritation about those who unnecessarily hid their faces. The Second Sister had finally gotten them to stop talking about it, since she herself had a full helmet, but had obviously kept it in mind for Jai’s own mask.

“I was born ready.”

The Second Sister’s chin protrudes slightly, her smirk turning into a dark grin. Jai knew more than ever that what they were doing was going to lead them down a dark path, but they also still recognized that they had to do it. It was time to live. Time to learn and grow and do something other than what the Jedi or the Sith were doing, because both sides were losing and killing everyone else in the process. Jai could settle for this right now. “Let’s go then, Inquisitor.” Jai suddenly missed their name, but the Second Sister hadn’t used it in a long time. She’d been waiting for this moment for far too long, and Jai got the heavy feeling that she was even more excited for this than Jai was. “Let’s get out of here.”

Despite everything, Jai didn’t even hesitate to follow.

#cal kestis #the second sister #cal kestis imagine #jedi fallen order #star wars #star wars imagine #star wars jedi fallen order #sister merrin #cal kestis x merrin #sister merrin imagine #cal kestis x OC #merrin x OC #star wars jedi fallen order imagine #cal kestis x inquisitor

[yeenybeanies]

Gone Hunting pt. 2

continuation of this little piece! not sure how long i’ll keep going on with this specific story beyond here, but i love charles & i want him to meet devin, so there’s probably going to be at least one more :> 

arthur morgan, charles smith, & devin clarke ( oc ) 

2640 words

mild language warnings

feel free to leave comments in the tags!! thanks!! 

part 1 | part 3

Ever since they’d left camp, the blue streak of curses hasn’t quieted much. Arthur’s jaw is tense, along with the rest of him, as one might expect when there’s an angry ( and scared ) borrower trapped under his hat. Who knew so much vitriol could come from such a small body? Arthur can’t bring himself to be upset at them, though; Devin has every right to be as pissed as they are. 

And they are pissed. 

Unfortunately, Arthur’s company doesn’t quite know what’s going on. He can tell that something is off, that Arthur is bothered, but he hasn’t the foggiest as to why. Arthur knows he’s onto him, too; he sees the man glancing over at him, growing more and more suspicious by the minute. Never mind that Arthur isn’t much of an actor as is, but Charles is as sharp as they come. How the hell is he going to play this one off? How is he going to delay the inevitable? 

“ Arthur. ”  

Here it comes. 

Arthur looks over at his company, all while trying to keep his movements from jostling Devin. They’ve gone quiet after hearing Charles’ voice. 

“ Yeah? ”  He can do this. He can spin some excuse for the pained look on his face. 

“ What’s wrong? ”  

There’s no point denying it. Arthur swallows and forces the tension out of his jaw.  “ Think whatever Pearson made last night’s actin’ up. Not presently feelin’ my greatest. ‘m okay, though. Don’t you worry about me, Charles. ”  He forces a smile for his companion. Charles only looks semi-convinced ( it’s not an unbelievable story; everyone’s suffered an unhappy gut at least once at the hands of the camp cook ), but he opts not to press on it for now. 

“ Okay . . .. If you need to stop, just let me know. I could probably find you something to soothe your stomach. ” 

“ Naw, I’ll be alright. Hopefully it’ll settle down by the time we get to where we’re goin’. ”  Devin shifts under his hat, their little hands holding onto locks of his hair to try and keep themself from flopping around too much. It can’t be comfortable for them up there––at least, not while Arthur’s on horseback. Even a Tennessee Walker’s gait would be bothersome to a borrower, he imagines. 

Devin goes quiet now, but it’s not very comforting. Arthur’s not sure what he likes less: the cussing or the silence. At least with them chewing him out, he knew they were still alive and kicking. The silence is a bit more ominous. All he has to go by now is feeling their grip on his hair, and trying to interpret how they’re doing from that. 

This is going to be a long ride . . .. 

The sun is low in the sky by the time the two men reach their destination: a hilly grassland spot sparsely sheltered with trees and mounds of rocks. Devin’s silence has continued to worry Arthur, but he’s pretty sure he’s felt them move a little here and there. He thinks he feels them move, too, when he and Charles slow their horses on their approach to their would-be campsite under one of the rock piles. 

“ Alright, then . . .. ”  Arthur pulls the reins, slowing his horse to a stop, and dismounts at the base of the rocks. Devin seems to be moving a bit more, no longer being jostled so much now that he’s on his own feet.  “ I gotta relieve myself, then I’ll help ya set up camp. ”  Which isn’t entirely a lie; he’s been on horseback since he woke up. 

“ Sure thing, Arthur. ”  Charles starts to unpack, and Arthur takes his leave, heading around to the other side of the rocks. 

“ You alright up there, Devin? ”  He speaks just above a whisper, and looks up at the brim of his hat as if he could see the borrower settled atop his head. 

“ . . . I’m alive, ”  comes the weak voice. Arthur breathes out a heavy, relieved sigh. 

“ Miss Devin, I––I’m real sorry about this mess. I promise you I didn’t mean to kidnap you and bring ya along. ”  It is sincere, but Arthur wouldn’t be surprised if the borrower snapped and blew up on him again. Hell, he might if he were in this situation. 

“ Just––just do what you need to do and let me out, ”  they say, sounding exhausted from the journey.  “ . . . and rinse your hands off first. ” 

Can-do. Arthur takes care of his business and, as requested, rinses his hands off with a bit of water from his canteen, then gently lifts his hat. Devin takes in a deep breath, taking in cool air for the first time in hours. 

Relief is short-lived, though. 

“ Arthur? ”  

Charles. 

Arthur quickly puts his hat back on, once more covering Devin, and looks back towards the voice, a little bewildered. 

“ Are you talking to someone? ”  The man steps out more, rounding the rock to better face Arthur. 

“ I, er . . . naw, not really. I was just voicin’ some thoughts that I’ll probably end up writin’ in my journal. ”  He looks a bit sheepish. How much longer is Charles going to let him get away with these little fibs? The man narrows his eyes, one brow lifted. 

“ You sure you’re okay? Stomach’s not still bothering you, is it? ” 

This isn’t going to last much longer. Charles knows that Arthur is hiding something, which makes Arthur feel worse for continuing to hide it than he already did. 

“ Nah. Think I got that cleared out. ‘least until the next time I get it. ”  He attempts a chuckle, though it’s half-hearted and weak. Charles, of course, looks unconvinced.  “ Charles. I’m okay. don’t worry about me. ”  

“ Arthur, you––– ” 

“ I said I’m fine, didn’t I? ”  Atop his head, Devin tenses, their little hands holding tighter to his hair. Arthur is a little taken aback himself; he hadn’t meant to raise his voice at Charles. The man doesn’t deserve it. He clears his throat, fist to his lips, and tips his hat down, hiding his eyes. God dammit . . .. 

“ . . . okay. ”  Charles straightens. 

This doesn’t feel good, but Arthur doesn’t see another route right now. He isn’t sure for how long Charles will be placated, but at least he’s dropped it for now. 

“ Right. Let’s get this camp set up. ”  Arthur takes a breath and straightens his belt, then heads back around to the other side of the rock. He can give Devin some relief when manages to set his hat aside so they don’t have to endure him constantly bending down and straightening up. However, it doesn’t change the fact that they are stuck out here, so the relief is minimal. 

It’s startling, seeing the hat shift around them when Arthur starts to lift it. Devin feels a moment of panic, only exacerbated as that massive hand sweeps in through the growing crack. They squeak, which makes the hand pause for a moment, almost looking remorseful, before it overtakes them, surrounding them. 

“ Arthur––– . . .. ”  The rough callouses scratch at them, but the skin is warm, and, despite the confines, the cowboy is impossibly gentle. He isn’t squeezing them––not beyond needing to keep them contained in his hold. Devin’s heart still pounds in their chest, but they remind themself that Arthur has never been anything but kind and careful with them . . .. 

Devin squeaks again when the hold on them loosens, and they drop down into Arthur’s hat, now upturned. The borrower shakes their head and looks up. Silhouetted against the oranges and pinks of the sky, Arthur towers above them. It isn’t just the setting sun that’s casting long shadows on his face, though; he’s clearly bothered. Devin feels a pang of guilt, aware that they are the source, but––but it’s also Arthur’s own damn fault that they’re here at all! They huff quietly to themself and huddle against the leather, trying not to focus on the shifting world beyond the hat. 

“ Gonna set you down while I help Charles, ”  the man whispers, sparing a glance down at Devin. 

“ Thank you, ”  they squeak back, no louder than a mouse. The hat tilts, and they follow the movement to avoid falling. Arthur lowers them to a smooth patch of rock, and settles the hat down over them, keeping them concealed. At least for a little bit they don’t have to deal with the constant swaying that comes with being carried by a human.

Between Charles and Arthur, it doesn’t take long to set up camp and get a fire pit built. Charles is mostly silent through it, and Arthur can feel the tension. It’s eating away at him. He doesn’t want to lose his friendship with Charles over this, but Devin . . . their life depends on their secrecy ( not that he thinks Charles would hurt them, but it isn’t his place to expose them ).

“ Arthur! ”  Charles’ sharp voice cuts into Arthur’s thoughts, making him jump. Charles must have been talking to him, and he hadn’t been listening at all. Damn . . ..

“ Hn? Yeah? Sorry, I was––I was miles away. ”  He rubs his neck sheepishly as he faces his friend.

“ As you’ve been this whole trip. ” The man frowns. For a moment, Arthur thinks he’s going to ask again what the problem is, but he doesn’t. He sighs and continues,  “ We should get some rest. We’re getting up early tomorrow and going after the bison. ”

“ Right. Sounds good. I’ll start the fire. ”  Arthur heads back towards where he left his hat and tries to subtly lift both it and the borrower under it. It’s a little awkward, but Arthur does feel some relief when he feels the minuscule weight in his hand. At least they haven’t run off yet, or worse. He shifts to carry Devin and his hat in one hand so he can use his other to grab the matches from his saddle bag. 

Charles doesn’t seem to be paying too much attention as Arthur returns to the pit they’ve built, holding his hat a little awkwardly. Once he manages to get a fire going one-handed, he shuffles back to settle on his bedroll, hat coming to rest on his stomach. Little footsteps push against his palm and hop down onto his shirt. It tickles. Arthur has to keep himself from reacting, wanting neither to disturb the borrower or alert Charles to more of his odd behavior. 

Dinner isn’t anything spectacular: foods warmed up over the fire, or, in Arthur’s case, eaten straight from the can. He manages to sneak Devin a few pieces to fill their belly while they stay hidden. The poor little borrower––they’ve been through a lot today. Arthur sighs, then kicks himself mentally. He should try to keep his breathing steady if he’s got Devin on his stomach . . .. 

“ Arthur, ”  comes Charles’ voice. Arthur glances over towards his friend, one brow lifted.  “ You aren’t upset with me, are you? That’s not why you’re acting strange? ” 

Oof. Arthur winces and looks away.  “ Naw, Charles. You n’ me––we’re good. Promise. I just . . . got a lot on my mind is all. ”  At least that’s a truth he can offer. Charles’ features glow in the fire’s light, still shaped with concern, but he does show some understanding to Arthur’s answer. 

As the conversation dies, Arthur gingerly shifts to make himself a bit more comfortable on his bedroll. He should sleep. He only hopes that Devin will manage to do so as well. 

It’s been almost half a day now since they left the camp––Charles and Arthur, with Devin brought unwillingly ( and accidentally, to Arthur’s credit ) along for the ride. Almost half a day’s worth of bouncing around under Arthur’s hat has now brought Devin to be lying . . . well, still under Arthur’s hat. At least the ride here is less bumpy. From where they are, they can hear Arthur’s breathing, and they can feel the thumping of his pulse under his shirt. If they’re honest, it’s a little bit comforting, a little bit soothing. But it is also, as they eventually come to realize, very hot under here––hotter on his middle than it was on top of his head. The borrower does try to move carefully, though they know well that Arthur doesn’t wake easily, as they feel around in the darkness for the hat’s wall. Once located, they dig their arms under and lift, taking in a breath of fresh, cool night’s air. 

“ Okay, Devin, ”  they whisper to themself,  “ everything’s fine. Everything’s going to be fine. ”  Arthur will get them back to camp. Alive. This whole ordeal will be over soon. They take another deep breath, then shuffle their way out from under the hat’s brim, out into the open. The surface beneath them continues to rise and fall slowly; Arthur is still asleep, as expected. Much of their anger with him has faded by now. There’s just exasperation left in the ashes of the earlier flames. Devin thinks for a moment that they ought to apologize for the verbal lashing they’d given him, but . . . nah. He deserved it for being so damn stupid. Besides, they’re sure he won’t hold it against them.

Using what little light the moon and the faded fire offer, Devin makes their way down to the cowboy’s hip, and down further to his knee––the one lifted, crossed over the other. There’s a gentle breeze blowing through, stirring their hair, calming them. For the first time in the past twelve hours, things are peaceful. 

Unfortunately, in the case of borrowers and unlucky cowboys, peace doesn’t tend to last long. Whispers reach Devin’s ears, making them go stiff. Their head snaps in the direction of the voices, eyes wide and straining to see what––or who––is out there. In the darkness, they can just barely make out two shadowy figures. From the look and sound of it, they seem to be getting closer. 

“ Arthur . . .? ”  Devin pushes themself to a crouch, eyes locked on the figures. The whispers are getting louder, more intelligible. 

“ We gonna jus’ rob ‘em? Or we gonna kill ‘em too? ”  says one. 

“ There’s only two of ‘em. We can kill ‘em easy n’ see if they got anything valuable on their persons too, ”  says the other. 

Oh no. Bandits. Devin’s blood runs cold. They shoot a quick glance towards Arthur’s face. He is still very much asleep. And the bandits are getting closer. 

“ Arthur! “  Their own whispers aren’t going to wake the cowboy, but they don’t exactly want the bandits to hear them either. 

Then again, if they don’t wake Arthur and the bandits end up killing him as a result––– . . ..

“ Arthur! ”  Louder now is their voice, yelling. They scurry off of his knee and slide down onto the ground, hidden from the bandits’ view, but also now unable to see them in return.

“ Wait. D’ja year that? ”  Oh no.  “ Sounded like a squeaky li’l voice. Is there someone else here? ”  

Now the panic sets in. Devin sprints up a couple of feet, sticking close to Arthur’s side. 

“ ARTHUR! ”  

#g/t #g/t writing #G/t fiction #g/t rdr #rdr #arthur morgan #charles smith #devin clarke #hyena writes #hyena ocs #also hello this is the 100th post on this blog!!

[aweebwrites]

The Final Battle

(So! This is the fourth installment I've done for the Rejected Prophecy AU and is actually the third part to the series. This one I had fun writing but for good reasons. Here you go guys! @cakeking-cole @mostlysunnydays)

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Part 1

Part 2

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Lloyd limped his way up to the top of the Garmatron, Kai holding Nya off and the others most likely evil right now. This is it. The final battle. It'll be up to him to save everyone. He has to. He doesn't want to think of what would happen if he fails. All he can hope is that if he does fail, he doesn't survive.

'This is literally your only purpose. Fail and you drag all of Ninjago down with you.’ He remembered Kai's harsh words before they began the ascent.

'Knowing him, he most likely will.’ Was Jay's comment to that. 'We might as well get cozy with the Overlord ruling us all. I mean, he already failed twice. Third time's the charm? Ha! I wouldn't hold my breath.’

'He will succeed. He doesn't have a choice.’ Zane had said, shooting Lloyd a glare.

‘With his leg he got busted up? I'm with Jay here.’ Cole huffed. 'But we have to still try. He may have the title of green ninja but we won't let anything happen to ninjago.'

That talk really helped him in losing all confidence that he could win this fight. But now, facing the Overlord that has possessed his father, he found something. Not confidence. Not hope. But vengeance. Vengeance for his father. Save Ninjago? He wish he could do that but narrow things down to avenging his father? One of few who treated him like an actual person, who had hopefully loved him… He would do everything in his power to destroy the monster that has taken him over.

“If it isn't the green ninja. Face it boy, you are in no shape to fight. It's over. Evil wins.” The Overlord says, sharp serrated teeth on display, as terrifying as the rest of him.

“It's not over yet! I will fight you!” Lloyd yelled at him, fists coiled tightly.

'For my father!’ Went unsaid.

“You don't even have a sword.” The Overlord says condescendingly and Lloyd glared. “You don't even have friends. Face it green ninja. You are all alone. And you always will be. You cannot defeat me.” He says then laughed at the struck expression Lloyd wore.

He's right… He had no-one… The ninja all hate him… Wu… His own mother… Everyone… He can't do this on his own.

He lowered his head in defeat, making the Overlord laugh harder.

I'm sorry father…

.

.

.

Lloyd furrowed his brows, just the thought of his father's name igniting fury in his heart. Father. He had to avenge his father. He wouldn't want to live like this, forever possessed by the Overlord, being forced to watch everything he cared about being destroyed by his hand…

He couldn't do this alone… But he wasn't alone. Nya may be corrupted but he knew without a doubt that she would always be by his side. Dr. Julian too. He had kept him going through the ridicule of his 'brothers’, mother and uncle, told him that they will try their hardest to bring him down but he was confident he will rise above it all. Even Dareth. Dareth had always bandaged him up, given him ice for sore spots, even gave him hugs on particularly hard days after the ninja trained him in his Dojo. While he couldn't do anything to stop them, he had always told him that despite everything they did, he knew he would become someone great.

He even had the Ultra Dragon whom he was sure adopted him in a way, somewhere along the way. He remembers sneaking out of the cramped apartment to the roof to visit and to sleep. They were always so gentle with him, nudging him when he had been staying up too late, tucking him under their wing, growling at the other ninja whenever they got too close to him… They may not he human but the distinct lack of hatred from them was like a cool breeze on a hot summer day.

He had all of them… And he had his father. His father who loved him despite the evil in his veins, who never hesitated to protect him whenever he could, even if it was in battle against he and the other ninja. His father who had his heart in the right place but his mind in the wrong. His father who made him feel like more than a welcome mat. He wasn't alone. He had them. All standing behind him. They may not be much but they certainly were enough.

He opened glowing gold eyes, looking up at the Overlord in defiance.

“I am not alone!” He yelled as he began to float off the ground.

“No! Impossible!” The Overlord roared before swiping a clawed leg at Lloyd but he deflected either his green energy now spiking gold.

“I am never alone!” Lloyd yelled at him and the Overlord roared, turning his head away as Lloyd glowed brightly.

Once the light faded, Lloyd was left floating mid air, his gi completely golden as a golden aura lingered around him.

“I am the Ultimate Spinjitzu Master.” Lloyd spoke with narrowed eyes. “And I will defeat you!” He yelled and the Overlord growled, swiping at him with his claws but Lloyd dodged, punching his wing back once he swung it at him and blocking his next attempt to gut him with his massive claws.

He then pushed his paw back and kicked him, almost sending the Overlord tumbling over the side of the building, forcing him to take flight.

“No!” He roared at Lloyd as he used his golden power to summon the golden dragon that roared back at the Overlord.

“You go kid!” Dareth yelled from his place in the ground, watching the battle unfold before smiling. “I told you you'd be someone great…” He says softer, pride swelling his heart.

“You can't defeat me! Where there is light, there will always be a shadow!” The Overlord roared at Lloyd, hovering just off the edge of the Garmatron.

“Unless my light is bright enough!” Lloyd yelled before using the golden dragon to tackle the Overlord, making them both plummet from the sky in a tangle of golden power and dark wings.

Dareth gasped once they were falling directly where he was standing and ducked but the Overlord gained enough control to fly up last second, spiraling upwards with Lloyd and the golden dragon still clinging to him as he roared loudly.

“This ends now.” Lloyd says with narrowed eyes from the back of the golden dragon as they faced off mid air again.

“You cannot defeat me!” The Overlord roars before flying rapidly around Lloyd at all angles, engulfing him in an sphere of pure darkness.

The golden dragon roared before spinning around quickly, its light fending back the darkness as the sphere grew. In the midst of the darkness, the Overlord laughed as his head appeared before Lloyd and the golden dragon, utterly massive compared to them both. He then closed his mouth down on Lloyd and the golden dragon, convinced that he has won- That is until he felt Lloyd's golden power grow inside his mouth.

“No!” The Overlord yelled, Lloyd's golden power seeping out through his mouth, his power only growing more intense with each second. “No! Nooooo!!!!” He yelled as Lloyd's power peaked.

The orb of darkness vanished under a burst of brilliant light that scattered the dark clouds overhead and bathing Ninjago City in bright sunlight and Lloyd power that purified all the corruption spread throughout the city. At the city center, Garmatron was gone, leaving nothing but a few sharp rocks and debris.

Kai opened his eyes from his place laying on the ground, blinking up at the sky for a moment before sitting up.

“Ugh. What happened?” He groaned as Jay sat up next to him, both of them spotting Nya in the distance as she sat up.

“Nya!” They both yelled, getting up and rushing over to her.

“My sister…” “You're back!”

“Ugh. Where's… Lloyd?” She asked, instinctively pushing them away from her.

“Of course.” Jay says bitterly, crossing his arms.

“The brat actually did it.” Cole says as he and Jay walked over, the Ultra Dragon landing moments after with Wu, Misako and Dr. Julian.

“Is this really happening? Lloyd did it?” Dr.Julian asked happily as he slipped down gingerly from the Ultra Dragon's back.

“Let's not give him all the credit here.” Misako says as Wu helped her down from the Ultra Dragon's back, missing the looks she earned from Nya, Dr.Julian and an approaching Dareth who overheard.

“Agreed. The ninja played a crucial part.” Wu says, gesturing to his students who puffed their chest out with pride while Nya glared harder.

His nephew was missing, possibly... And he was praising his precious students?!

“But where is Lloyd?” Nya pressed, feeling like the only one worried for him.

“It looks like the Overlord was not the only one who is no more this day.” Wu says and Nya looked horrified as tears filled her eyes.

Lloyd watched them speak from the back of his golden dragon, expression blank. His purpose was fulfilled. He had no place here.

Not that he did to begin with.

He was about to leave when he spotted the rubble nearby move and some one with gray hair pulled themself out. He paused before flying over there, making his golden dragon disappear and landed on his feet.

“Are you ok?” He asked the person who looked up at him and smiled.

“Lloyd, my son.” They spoke and Lloyd's eyes widened, knowing that voice anywhere.

“Dad? Is that you?” Lloyd asked in awe, looking him over in shock and Garmadon did the same.

“The Devour's venom… It's… Gone…” Garmadon says in awe before smiling as his son hugged him tight, his heartfelt 'dad’ muffled into his shoulder. “It's me son. I'm here.” He whispered, hugging him back before he spotted the others not too far away from the side of the huge boulder they were standing behind.

He made up his mind then.

“Let's leave before they notice.” He told his son seriously and he looked wide eyed in shock.

“Leave? To where?” Lloyd asked, a little confused but gradually found himself getting more and more eager.

“Away from this place, away from the ninja, away from my brother and… And away from your mother.” Garmadon told him, placing his hands on his shoulders. “For all they know, we haven't made it. They won't come searching for us and I can finally protect you. I can finally keep you safe. Will you come with me?” He asked his son and Lloyd glanced back at the others.

The only thing that had him hesitating was the true friends he'd leave behind. But his answer was already set. He looked back to his father before nodding. He would follow his father anywhere now that he wasn't needed. He would miss the others but if he could get away from the ninja and his so called family for his real family then… He would take the chance.

“Thank you.” Garmadon whispered, pulling him into a tight hug before taking him by the arm. “Let's go.” He says before they took off, sneaking their way towards the city, staying out of sight of the others by keeping the boulders between them.

Lloyd looked back once more and his eyes widened once he found Nya looking directly at him with wide eyes. She stared for a moment before smiling.

'Go.’ She mouthed and Lloyd's eyes filled with tears.

“What has you so happy?” Jay asked, moving to turn around and Nya panicked a little.

“Nothing! Just-” She grabbed him by the cheeks and kissed him, making everyone else cheer as she kept her eyes on Lloyd and his father, only pulling back when they disappeared into the city.

'Gross…’ She thought, forcing a smile as Jay smiled widely at her, a flush in his cheeks.

She could never love someone so cruel and heartless.

At least Lloyd is safe now….

_____________________

Part 4

_____________________

(Basically Garmadon still opens his monastery but no-one knows about it and Lloyd lives there with has dad, learning his self worth again. The Overlord let it slip on his return that Lloyd was still very much alive and the ninja stumble across the Monastery while escaping. They try to guilt trip him into fighting him but Garmadon took him and got lost instead. Rebooted unravels the same way and Tournament of elements is where they do manage to guilt trip them into helping them save Zane and Garmadon ain't about to leave his babie boi with those jerks so he tags along. Ze end! Hope you liked it!)

#ninjago #ninjago nya #ninjago jay #ninjago zane #ninjago cole #ninjago kai #ninjago lloyd #ninjago garmadon #ninjago sensei wu #nya #nya smith #jay walker #jay #zane #zane julien #cole brookstone #cole #kai smith #kai #lloyd garmadon #lloyd #sensei garmadon #garmadon #lord garmadon #sensei wu #ninjago wu #ninjago overlord #rejected prophecy au #lloydangst #aweebwrites' work

[gildedalchemist]

1 - 100

Well then! I actually have some downtime so im doing this. Post was from a while ago but i saved it for when I have time. I’m not gonna answer a number of these fully bc thats TOO much sharing, but I’ll answer as many as i can.

1. What is you middle name?not answering this one

2. How old are you?24

3. When is your birthday?August 25th

4. What is your zodiac sign?Virgo

5. What is your favorite color?Royal Purple, though I like many shades of lighter purples nowadays

6. What’s your lucky number?Yup, 2. If not 2, then 8.

7. Do you have any pets?I have a family dog at home, hes a labradoodle named Sebastian

8. Where are you from?Southern California

9. How tall are you?I like to think I’m 6 feet tall, but im just short of that I think

10. What shoe size are you?11 US Mens, which i think is 14 in womens? I forget the conversion, and it’s damn near impossible to find anything in my size in that department.

11. How many pairs of shoes do you own?enough that I’ve lost count

12. What was your last dream about?hanging out with @the-senor-sperm​, Xavier

13. What talents do you have?I don’t believe in talent. Nobody starts good at anything, it’s all skills that must be trained and maintained.

14. Are you psychic in any way?I have very good gut reactions when I first meet people, generally. It has almost never steered me wrong, especially when it comes to my personal safety. If someone is not to be trusted, I generally know pretty quickly.

15. Favorite song?I’m not sure right now, I’ve been introduced to a lot of new music in the last year and I have a hard time choosing.

16. Favorite movie?Clue!

17. Who would be your ideal partner?Someone who challenges me to be the person I want to be. Someone I can trust with my thoughts and feelings. Someone I can spend my time with and be okay when all else is crumbling. Someone I love. Someone who would sit up with me while I’m deliriously I’ll, and make sure I’m drinking water, and eating, particularly microwave cup ramen. ;P

18. Do you want children?I dunno. I used to. I used to feel like I wanted to prove I could be a better parent, but I don’t feel that need, nor do I want that to be my reason anymore. I just want to live and be happy with my partner. Whatever happens after that, will be decided when the time comes.

19. Do you want a church wedding?Oof. I dunno. The thought is nice but I don’t know if the church would be cool with the wedding I’d wanna have ówò;;;  

20. Are you religious?Not really at the moment. I want to believe in something, but that something has no form for me right now.

21. Have you ever been to the hospital?Yes, I’ve even had surgery! (on my sinuses, im fine now!)

22. Have you ever got in trouble with the law?Not really

23. Have you ever met any celebrities?Nope, unless you count internet celebrities, which I dont really. I met Arin Hanson before I knew who he even was.

24. Baths or showers?Showers

25. What color socks are you wearing?white

26. Have you ever been famous?lmao nope

27. Would you like to be a big celebrity?No, i don’t like that kind of pressure

28. What type of music do you like?little bit of everything, though i do quite like electronic stuff

29. Have you ever been skinny dipping?nope, but if i ever have my own pool and could do so without peeking neighbors, i’d consider it.

30. How many pillows do you sleep with?2 usually, but i only have 1 right now because reasons

31. What position do you usually sleep in?either on my side if the bed is real soft, or on my stomach.

32. How big is your house?its pretty decently sized, but I’m living in a dorm right now and not at my parents house

33. What do you typically have for breakfast?nothing

34. Have you ever fired a gun?Yes. I wasnt a fan. I didnt like how easy it is to just point and kill, and i especially hate that people think having that power is a right that should be protected like it is.

35. Have you ever tried archery?yes i have. I enjoyed it from a skill aspect

36. Favorite clean word?spaghetti. its real fun to say

37. Favorite swear word?i like saying chucklefuck

38. What’s the longest you’ve ever gone without sleep?about 40 hours. I’ve never done 2 consecutive all nighters. at that point, i start to pass out when i blink.

39. Do you have any scars?Yes, I have one on my shoulder and lower back from the same injury, one on my knee and shin from unrelated incidents, and scars on my hands, face, and shoulders from injuries and acne over the years

40. Have you ever had a secret admirer?If I did, they kept it a pretty good secret. Or not. I am quite oblivious in that regard. Its hard when you just assumed for years that youre unloveable.

41. Are you a good liar?I used to be but not much anymore

42. Are you a good judge of character?Almost always

43. Can you do any other accents other than your own?Nope, it is embarassing for me to even try

44. Do you have a strong accent?people say they dont notice an accent from me until i say certain words, like dude, or awesome.

45. What is your favorite accent?New Zealand accents are a hoot

46. What is your personality type?Timid, but caring

47. What is your most expensive piece of clothing?honestly not sure. most of my stuff isnt that expensive. by original cost probably a cashmere sweater, but I bought it at a thrift shop. 

48. Can you curl your tongue?yes

49. Are you an innie or an outie?innie

50. Left or right handed?right

51. Are you scared of spiders?somewhat, but I dont react as badly as I used to at the sight of them. only if they touch me.

52. Favorite food?spaghetti? pizza? Xaviers cooking? hard to say

53. Favorite foreign food?sushi!

54. Are you a clean or messy person?clean in many ways, except for my room

55. Most used phrased?“aww, gay.”

56. Most used word?at this point, probably “fuck”

57. How long does it take for you to get ready?if im in a hurry, minutes, if im not, hours.

58. Do you have much of an ego?I can, but i’m working on it. I dont think I do though.

59. Do you suck or bite lollipops?Bite

60. Do you talk to yourself?Usually, mostly to walk myself through things

61. Do you sing to yourself?Rarely

62. Are you a good singer?I think i’m better than i used to be, but im not great

63. Biggest Fear?Losing my best friends. I lost one in a very bad way, I cant stand the thought of losing more.

64. Are you a gossip?Once i got to university I became one, but I didnt used to be. Thats just kinda the environment I’m in. I feel like if i didnt people wouldnt trust me as much or even at all.

65. Best dramatic movie you’ve seen?i dunno, im not sure what constitutes “dramatic”

66. Do you like long or short hair?on me, Long. I cant stand how ive looked with short hair anymore. On other people I have no preference.

67. Can you name all 50 states of America?Fuck no lmao

68. Favorite school subject?Chemistry, after that Psych or English

69. Extrovert or Introvert?Extrovert with anxiety that makes me present like an introvert, i think is what ive settled on

70. Have you ever been scuba diving?nope

71. What makes you nervous?So many things oh my god

72. Are you scared of the dark?Yes

73. Do you correct people when they make mistakes?I do for some people but it is seen as inappropriate to others, and in some cases makes people think im trying to be superior, so I try not to anymore unless asked. Its not my place, unless they want to be corrected.

74. Are you ticklish?Don’t fuckin touch me. I am but I’ll bite.

75. Have you ever started a rumor?No. I had too many false rumors started about me, I wouldnt do that to someone else unless it was true and people needed to know the truth.

76. Have you ever been in a position of authority?Sort of? I’ve been in classrooms and worked with kids, so i’ve been in situations where they answer to me, but I’ve never really been the main figure head so I’d say no overall.

77. Have you ever drank underage?yes

78. Have you ever done drugs?yes

79. Who was your first real crush?Honestly? I dont even know anymore. I know I had some, but what counts as “real”? I’d guess the one that lead to my first relationship. that was in 2011.

80. How many piercings do you have?none

81. Can you roll your Rs?“nope

82. How fast can you type?pretty fast

83. How fast can you run?I can run pretty fast but only for short bursts now.

84. What color is your hair?brown

85. What color is your eyes?blue-green

86. What are you allergic to?a variety of weeds, trees, grasses, molds, and dust mites

87. Do you keep a journal?not physically. what i post online and in recordable formats count as my journal, so i may look back on what ive said.

88. What do your parents do?my mom is a housewife, my dad works in law

89. Do you like your age?y...yes?? what does this even mean?

90. What makes you angry?injustice and unfairness

91. Do you like your own name?Not my full name, I like my first name’s shortening, so thats why i go by Matt

92. Have you already thought of baby names, and if so what are they?Only John. To honor his memory, and all that he did for me. He set me on the path to become who I am.

93. Do you want a boy a girl for a child?I want my kid to decide that for themself, if I ever have one.

94. What are you strengths?Tenacity

95. What are your weaknesses?Cowardice

96. How did you get your name?My dad named me after his best friend first, then his karate instructor for middle

97. Were your ancestors royalty?not to my knowledge

98. Do you have any scars?wasnt this #39?

99. Color of your bedspread?light blue

100. Color of your room?the one at home is sort of yellowish i think. the room i’m in right now is white.

#asks #long post #personal #Anonymous