#but sadly I do Like the keith sides of things that I have already written... | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

thesibfiles · 3 years

Text

Courtney going on tour right after?

Theres a misconception that after Kurts death, Courtney went straight on tour right away. This is false. The album was already set to release a few days after and they couldnt change that on such a short notice. Promotion for the album was cancelled and she pushed back the tour 4 months.

“Live Through This was supposed to provide Love an opportunity to step out from her famous husband’s shadow. “It’s annoying now, and it’s been annoying for nine years, Love said in a 1999 Jane Magazine interview of always being connected to Cobain. Released four days after Cobain’s body was found, the album’s promotion was put on hold. Rather than retreat from the public eye, Love openly mourned and helped fans of Cobain and Nirvana make sense of the singer’s death. She sat with grieving teenagers gathered outside the couple’s Seattle home and recorded a reading of parts of his suicide note that was played at the singer’s memorial that gathered near the Space Needle. In the days following his death, Love showed a very raw and emotional side and admitted that, like many fans, she didn’t have all the answers.

It was, and still is, impossible for people to discuss Live Through This without noting the irony of the album’s title. Love has said the name was not a prediction at all, but instead a reflection of all she had endured in the months leading up to its release, including a very public custody fight with the Los Angeles Department of Family Services over daughter Frances Bean. Rumors suggested that Cobain had written much of Live Through This (it’s Miss World, not Mister, just FYI). “I’d be proud as hell to say that he wrote something on it, but I wouldn’t let him. It was too Yoko for me. It’s like, ‘No fucking way, man! I’ve got a good band, I don’t fucking need your help,’” was Love’s response to critics in Spin’s oral history of Live Through This. Love and Cobain often shared notebooks and lyrics with each other, and while there is talk of Cobain’s influence on Love’s work, or the writing of all of it, less is mentioned in the press of her impact on his lyrics and music. Rather than sucking all the life out of Nirvana or threatening the success of the band, like many assumed she would do, she inspired Cobain. Fun fact: In Utero, Nirvana’s last album, was named after a line from one of Love’s poems.

Sadly, songwriting rumors would be replaced by other rumors. Women are often vilified and condemned for the deaths of their male partners. Love, like all women, was supposed to save her partner from death and addiction. Fans of Cobain projected all their anger and resentment over the loss of the Nirvana front man onto Love, and soon she was blamed for not only his addiction but also his death. There are even two movies devoted to the theory that Courtney killed Kurt: the awful Soaked in Bleach (2015) and the equally awful Kurt & Courtney (1998). If you think we’ve come a long way, baby, sadly we haven’t.

One year after Anthony Bourdain’s death, Asia Argento is still being blamed, and in September 2018, Ariana Grande had to take a break from social media after fans blamed her for the death of her ex Mac Miller. A few months later, she would be blamed for new beau Pete Davidson’s mental health and addiction issues. It’s amazing she finds the time to write hit songs what with all the dude destruction she has going on. When women are not being blamed for the deaths of the men in their lives, they are being attacked for not grieving properly. “She wasn’t crying. She’s got $30 million coming to her. Do you blame her for being so cool?” a hospital staffer said of Yoko Ono following John Lennon’s murder in 1980.

About four months after Cobain’s death, Love went on tour to promote her new album. Some questioned and judged why she would go on tour so soon, but Love has said it was a necessity. She had a young daughter to support. She needed to work. She also, sadly, still needed to prove herself. “I would like to think that I’m not getting the sympathy vote, and the only way to do that is to prove that what I’ve got is real,” Love told Rolling Stone in 1994.

Twenty-five years later, Cobain’s death still hangs over Live Through This. In the days leading up to the anniversary of Cobain’s death, former Hole bassist Melissa Auf der Maur wrote an open letter to music magazine Kerrang saying she “would not stand for Kurt’s death overshadowing the life and work of the women he left behind this year.”

“We were extremely well designed for each other,” Love has said of her relationship with Cobain. In a letter reprinted in Dirty Blonde: The Diaries of Courtney Love, she calls him “my everything. the top half on my fraction.” The two had similar upbringings, both came from broken homes and spent childhoods shuttling between relatives and friends. They both grew up longing for love and acceptance. When we tell the story of Kurt and Courtney we talk about drugs and destruction, but we don’t talk enough about love.

The two also shared an intense drive and ambition. “I didn’t want to marry a rock star, I wanted to be one,” Love said in a 1992 Sassy interview. Evidence of her drive can be found in the many notes and to-do lists she kept, some of which are collected in Dirty Blonde. There are reminders to send her acting résumé to agencies, to write three to four new songs a week, to “achieve L.A. visibility.” A scene in the documentary Kurt & Courtney features an ex of Love’s reading from one of her to-do lists, which has “become friends with Michael Stipe” as the number one task to complete (not only did Love do this, but he is her daughter’s godfather). This ambition is not surprising from a woman who, when she was younger, mailed a tape of herself singing to Neil Sedaka in hopes of getting signed. Love knew what she wanted at an early age, and what she wanted was fame.

She was certainly living by the “do not hurt yourself, destroy yourself, mangle yourself to get the football captain. Be the football captain!” motto she championed in the 1995 documentary Not Bad for a Girl. Ambition is often a dirty word when it is used to describe women and Love is no exception. She has been repeatedly described as calculating and controlling when she should be rewarded for her blond ambition and viewed as an inspiration. Critics and the press often call her a gold digger who only married Cobain for fame and money. They fail to mention that when the two met Pretty on the Inside was actually selling more copies than Bleach, Nirvana’s debut album. Even post-Kurt, Love’s intentions were always under scrutiny. On the Today Show to do press for The People vs. Larry Flynt, Love refused to talk about her past drug use, despite the host’s repeated questions, saying the topic was not an appropriate fit for the show’s demographic. She was right, but it didn’t stop a writer from describing the move as “calculating” in a 1998 Spin piece.

Cobain was ambitious too; he was just much slyer and more secretive about it. He was known to call his manager and complain when MTV didn’t play Nirvana’s videos enough, and he would correct journalists who misquoted the band’s sales figures in interviews. While success is typically celebrated and rewarded for men and it certainly was for Cobain, he also had to be mindful of the slacker generation that loved Nirvana and greeted success — and especially mainstream success —

While female celebrities like Love are criticized for their rebellion, male celebrities, like Cobain for example, are celebrated and mythologized for it. Cobain and Love both struggled with addiction, but it is Love who is repeatedly vilified for her drug use. “She was vilified for being a mess, for being a drug addict, for not being a great parent — in other words, all of the things we expect in a male rock star,” said Bust magazine in a piece in the magazine’s 20th anniversary issue, which featured Love on the cover.

We make jokes about the drug antics of male celebrities from Keith Richards to Charlie Sheen, idolizing their debauchery and depravity. The new Netflix/Lifetime movie by Jack Daniels, The Dirt, about Mötley Crüe, takes the band’s excesses to almost comic levels. Check out crazy tourmate Ozzy Osbourne snorting a line of ants by a hotel pool! Such zany antics! I would love to see Lindsay Lohan try to get away with that. We never allow women to live down their arrests and their addictions, but we repeatedly allow men to have a redemption arc. Robert Downey Jr. was in and out of jail and on and off drugs for much of the mid to late ’90s, but we rarely, if ever, talk about his past.

When Love isn’t being attacked for her addiction issues, she is being judged for her parenting. Love’s first unflattering press was “Strange Love,” the much publicized 1992 Vanity Fair profile by Lynn Hirschberg. While the piece talks at length about Love’s drug use and constantly questions her parenting ability, it doesn’t paint Cobain in the same light. “It is appalling to think that she would be taking drugs when she knew she was pregnant,” says one close friend in the piece. Hirschberg relies on many unnamed sources and focuses often on the tabloid-like aspects of Love’s life and addictions. “Courtney has a long history with drugs. She loves Percodans (‘They make me vacuum’), and has dabbled with heroin off and on since she was eighteen, once even snorting it in Room 101 of the Chelsea Hotel, where Nancy Spungen died,” she writes. “Reportedly, Kurt didn’t do much more than drink until he met Courtney.” (Even when it is reported by Kurt and Krist that Kurt tried heroin in 1989, way before Courtney, It was also known that he smoked weed and used caugh syrup to get high in 1989 and 1990.)

This double standard was common in coverage of the couple. In Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck, the 2015 documentary by Brett Morgen, Love asks her husband, “Why does everyone think you’re the good one and I’m the bad one?” Later in the film we see a scene of Frances Bean’s first haircut. The child sits on Cobain’s lap while Love searches for a comb and scissors. The camera shows Cobain nodding off, and while he maintains that he is just tired, it’s clear he’s not. The scene is painful to watch, especially because those around Cobain carry on like nothing in wrong, giving the feeling this is just like any other day in the Love-Cobain household. The scene is a reminder of how the press treated Cobain’s addiction when he was alive. They just carried on like nothing was wrong, instead directing all their judgement at Love.

#courtneylove #courtney love #hole #grunge #nirvana #kurt cobain #kurtcobain #90s

51 notes · View notes

bird-in-a-cage · 4 years

Text

Hey, guess what, its a sequel that absolutely no one asked for but I’m forcing upon you anyway because I got really into this idea and one google search led to another and I needed to get this out of my brain!

Part one is here. Probably best to give it a read first so you know what the hell is going on. But, for everyone who has already done that here’s part two of California Dreamin’. Enjoy some spectrophilia!

Lucid

The adults only section of Family Video was always a hive of sleaze. Most of the time though, thankfully, it was empty. Steve could always tell when someone would first walk through the door if that was their intended destination or not. They would stop, check out other titles, pick up a case of two from the shelves and roll it over in their hands, very visibly debating with themselves, all the while slowly but surely making their way to the back corner where it was all hidden behind a thick beaded curtain to give the illusion of privacy. The reality was it was never private. There was a camera in the top corner, blinking red and bright. A deterrent.

That didn’t stop some people though.

Robin was on Twizzler duty again, now doing it everyday to piss Keith off, seeing how far she could push until he snapped but in her own way. A drop of water slowly breaking through a mountain. It was kind of fun really, to watch her loudly eat the red candy but not give any eye contact to him as he walked around the store every now and then, giving all her attention to a copy of The Turning of the Screw. It did mean Steve was on return box duty again though while they had their little silent war. Robin mouthed thank you as he went off to start, then went back to being as unbothered as ever.

Steve took the two cases that were left after he’d done the rest of the store and dipped through the thick beads. Thankfully today the room just smelt like hot plastic rather than suspect body odour. One side of the small room was horror movies deemed too graphic and violent to be put on public display. Video Nasties. Steve had rented a couple a few times, they weren’t all that scary or good, but then he was probably just biased to that situation, having dealt with real life monsters that wanted to eat him and kill everybody and take over the world. On the other side were pornos.

Why anyone would publicly rent a porno tape he would never understand. Maybe some people just didn’t have an imagination. Watching one was just fine, no problems with that at all, and it was common practice for a dirty magazine or two to be passed around the locker room as a joke, but actually walking into a store with the intention of just renting a tape to jack off too? No, Steve couldn’t understand that. Probably because the shame of having to do it would burn him alive, but that was another matter. He slotted a case into a mid level shelf, a Terminator parody so wittily titled Penetrator, all these tapes had such awful names, when a case lower down started making its way out from the shelf. Steve rubbed over the pendant under his shirt, it was ice cold.

Of course he’d visit now.

With a grin he couldn’t hide even for a second, Steve nudged it back into place with his foot. Another title further up poked out. Mad Max: Beyond Thunderbone. Steve shoved it back home too.

“Cut it out,” he muttered low only so no one could hear him if anyone was close by. He was still grinning though, so much his cheeks started to burn a little. Another case slowly wiggled free and stuck out at eye level. For Your Ass Only. Steve bit his lip so he wouldn’t giggle and give the specter that followed him the satisfaction, pushing it back in place with two fingers. A final case at shoulder height was brought out into the light of day. Risky Jizzness.

“You wanna tell me why this looks like you pretty boy?” The voice floated around Steve’s head, deep and sultry. Billy was in one of those moods. Steve pushed it back into place and kept his almost whisper tone.

“Because my boyfriend is a ghost and I’ve gone completely insane so staring in a porno was the next logical step, obviously.” Steve felt a warmth envelop his chest, leaving his arms free to rearrange tapes and put the final one from the box back in its place. It was instantly comforting and a little tight. Easy to imagine Billy just stood behind him, holding him for real in the middle of his work day, resting his head on Steve’s shoulder and being a distraction from the monotony of stacking video tapes in alphabetical order.

“You should have mentioned that was your end goal, I’d have been more than happy to hold the camera.”

“Uh huh, sure, cause that’s all you would be holding.” He could feel Billy’s dirty grin burn his cheek, heat pressing and creeping up along his jaw like slow kisses.

“You know it baby.”

Steve still wasn’t sure on a lot of things about this, whatever this was. Whether anyone could hear what Billy was saying was a big point. He tended not to come out if there were other people around so it wasn’t as if Steve could test it. Even if he could he would look totally crazy, which he still wasn’t entirely convinced he wasn’t anymore. His mental state was one of those things he didn’t think about too hard. Like the Cold War, or being sucked back into dark, monster filled tunnels. Their presence was always there but it didn’t affect his day to day life so much. If anything, Billy following him around some days made Steve happier. More at peace. Of course it raised a lot of questions like why and how, and why and how again because there would definitely need to be several rounds of why and how before anything even started to make sense.

Then there was the where. Billy didn’t think he was in hell, was pretty sure he wasn’t in heaven, and wasn’t entirely sold that he was in the middle place either. They spoke about it sometimes when Steve slept and was whisked away to either the quarry or the beach, wherever Billy wanted to be that night. Steve kind of liked the beach more, it was always bright but not hot, calm and tranquil. It felt almost like a little vacation away from Hawkins. They would always lie next to each other on brightly coloured beach towels. Steve had never seen Billy in the lime green board shorts he liked to wear on beach nights, but he certainly wasn’t complaining. Even if Steve was stuck wearing what he wore to sleep and looked ridiculous by comparison. There was never anyone else there to judge.

That was just another thing they hadn’t quite worked out yet. Turns out no one gives you an instruction manual when you die and become a spirit just floating around, stick in limbo. You kind of just have to figure things out yourself. Billy had worked out how to change his clothes and the landscape of where he pulled Steve too. He hadn’t yet worked out how he did that though.

“I just, think, and here we are.”

He’d worked out how to pick things up and put them down, push and pull and throw. Steve would sometimes leave objects on the kitchen counter for Billy to touch and move, getting such a thrill just seeing an empty Pepsi can be flipped onto its side and rolled away with a hollow clatter into the trash can on the other side of the room. Steve had suggested that maybe Billy was stuck until he found his purpose, but neither of them could think what that would be. Max was fine every time she came into the store to just hang around, get a break from the noise of the arcade next door, and let Robin suggest scary movies she should watch even though she wasn’t old enough to rent them yet. There was never a mark on her, which is what Billy was worried about but would never say out loud. He always pretended to be such an asshole and that he didn’t care, when he was blatantly obvious he did.

“Maybe you have to save a baby or something? You know, push a stroller out of the way of oncoming traffic?” Steve suggested while they were on the beach. Billy pushed himself up off his towel printed with lavender stripes onto his hands to look down. The sun was shimmering off his forever perfect body.

“This isn’t the 30s. And I’m pretty sure that only happened in silent movies,” he smiled like Steve was an idiot. An adorable idiot. His adorable idiot. Steve reached up to cup Billy’s jaw. That golden skin still felt numb under his fingers. They would need to work on that.

“Pretty sure that us being here right now means anything is possible.”

They’d both worked out that the pendant turning icy cold instead of just its regular cold meant Billy was close by instead of just in the general vicinity, still invisible sadly but his presence was there. Small steps. They were slowly piecing it together. It wasn’t as if either of them had any time limit on it all. But really, a manual would have been helpful. Even a small information pamphlet written in Chinese was better than the nothing they had.

---

Billy was still in that mood that night. Even as Steve’s clock ticked around to three am and he still couldn’t sleep. He lay on his stomach, staring at the hands move slow around the face. He wanted to sleep so badly, he could feel the gentle pull around his chest come see me, I miss you but no matter how hard he tried it just wasn’t happening. Maybe it was too warm out, the air too soupy to properly relax into sleep and drift away. The sheets were long kicked to his ankles. He could feel Billy getting restless. The pendant felt like it was frozen, trapped between his chest and the sheets. Steve tried one more time, squeezing his eyes shut and hoping to just be hypnotised by the soft monotonous tick tick tick. But five minutes later he was as awake as ever. He kept his eyes shut though. Wishful.

The warmth left his chest and became more direct, felt like a hand stroking his back over his t-shirt, drifting up, rubbing the back of his neck and through his hair. Steve couldn’t help the small purr that gathered in his throat. He was a sucker for having his hair played with. By anyone. With permission obviously.

“I’m sorry Bill,” he mumbled into his pillow, head still turned towards the clock. “I’m trying...”

Steve didn’t get a response. He wasn’t really expecting one, sometimes Billy didn’t respond, couldn’t respond. It was just another thing they hadn’t worked out yet. In truth he wasn’t sure if his words were more for his spector boyfriend’s sake or his own. The hand pressed firmer. Steve easily imagined those tan fingers rubbing the little spot behind his ear. It definitely felt real enough to fool his brain that the other side of his bed wasn’t completely cold and empty. A gentle pull on his shoulder had Steve laying flat on his back, eyes still closed towards the ceiling.

“You’re making this harder you know…”

He felt heat on his cheek, across his jaw, over his lips. Kisses he couldn’t reciprocate no matter how much he wanted to. One hand became two, felt over his chest like they had done so many times before. Steve knew their pattern. What those blue eyes once liked to see. He chuckled and peeled his shirt off, tossing it to the floor.

“There. Happy now?”

Steve didn’t get a verbal response. Instead the touches became hotter, drifting over his skin with purpose, invisible fingers raking through his coarse chest hair, pressing and circling slow around his nipples. The heat left his face and worked its way down, across his now exposed collarbones one by one, his skin prickling as they crossed his body in two perfect lines. With his eyes closed it was so easy to imagine Billy was there. He kind of was. Steve moaned softly for him. One hand continued its way down, pressing over the waistband of Steve’s briefs. He chuckled again, putting his hand where he felt the pressure, slipping his fingers under the material, plucking them off his hip and circling towards his middle.

“You want these off too?”

Steve giggled a little, feeling nibbles on his earlobe, the phantom hand rubbing slow and firm over his lower stomach, through his happy trail. The air felt thicker still as his body got excited from all the direct but indirect attention. Steve definitely felt like he was being watched. He kind of liked being watched like this. He kicked his briefs off into the bundle of sheets at the foot of the bed, already half hard. He pictured Billy’s smirk, his tongue poking out from between his teeth in approval and arousal. It made Steve grin in return to the empty room as he flopped his arms up above his head to touch the underside of the headboard, reminding him that this was real, he hadn’t drifted off to sleep quite yet.

That seemed to get Billy’s blessing. The kisses placed to the side of Steve’s neck were searing. It felt so real, felt like sucking and that wicked tongue lapping over his skin to make bright red marks everyone would see, high under Steve’s jaw. They caused his dick to kick. He groaned feeling a hand suddenly around it. Thick and strong, pumping up and down with little abandon. The friction was delicious. Impossibly so. He was soon completely hard, pointing up towards his stomach, the first few drops of pre hitting his skin. Everything felt so real. The kisses moved back to his lips, desperate and pressing and wanting. Steve opened his mouth and felt a tongue slide along his own, dragging out sounds from his throat that sounded alien even to him, as he kept getting stroked and played with like a toy. Hips bucking up into a memory of Billy’s hand, tight and firm, thumb pressing along an underside vein.

Then there was nothing. Steve panted in the dark, left teetering on the edge of almost there but not enough. But then there was pressure on his shoulders, hands hanging on, thumbs rubbing in circles where his collar bones ended. Steve gripped the headboard tighter before his cock was pressing into an ever familiar tightness he could never forget. Even with his eyes shut they still rolled into the back of his head, a groan escaping his lips before the tongue was back, capturing and swallowing his sounds of pleasure. His cock sunk further and further until there was nothing more to push into.

“Jesus…” Steve managed to get out somehow, voice ripped and cracking deep. “You gonna bounce for me baby?”

He could picture that grin, a deep flush high on those freckle covered cheeks, eyes dark with desire and want before the movement happened. Steve felt his brain just about stop. It had certainly stopped trying to make sense of what was happening to him. Billy bouncing on his lap was one of his most favourite things. The way his chest glistened with sweat, the way his stomach pulled tight, pushing his abs further on display, the way his hair would stick to his forehead, the way his athletic thighs would clamp around Steve’s hips. Even though he was taking Billy was still definitely the one in control.

Steve moved his hands from under the headboard, felt fingers lock between his own almost immediately as the drag on his cock got faster, more desperate, less rhythmic and far less precise. He started muttering things to space that’s it baby, just like that, keep going I’m so close, his head started swimming as the heat low in his gut started to pull tight and impending. Steve wanted to keep going though, keep feeling all of this for as long as possible. The hands heavy on his own. The scorching kisses over his cheek and neck and lips. The impossible warmth and tightness around his cock, dragging and pushing quicker and harder. To just keep picturing Billy’s strong hips working and rolling, his thick cock aching and desperate to be touched but keeping Steve pinned so it couldn’t be, pre pooling into his belly button.

Steve came over his stomach with a cry.

The kisses over his jaw were warm instead of hot as he panted hard, chest heaving and heart rapid, skin shiny with exertion. One hand holding his own was the only feeling that remained as his cock fell lip over his hip. An unmistakable smell of smoke suddenly filled the air after what would most definitely have been two clicks of a zippo with a homemade etching of a skull on the side. Steve couldn’t help but laugh tired and worn out.

“God you’re an asshole.”

Warm arms clamped on around Steve’s chest again, the gentle pull. Come see me, I miss you, I love you. Steve was just about tired enough this time to fall.

#harringrove #my writings #billy x steve #steve harrington #billy hargrove #cross posted to ao3 #ghost smut #steve x billy

50 notes · View notes

whiskehorange · 5 years

Note

Michael with a soul mate AU where the words on his wrist is 'Ass'

Damnit, these are so long ksjdhfskhjf

Michael

He’d never seen you before, so the only explanation was that you were visiting friends and relatives or moving in, and seeing the boxes on the front step of a new house made it a clear shot that you were moving in.

And his hunch was right, you had moved here from Nevada, just in search of a fresh start and an old friend of yours that you’ve talked to since you where both young. Family was all spread out, the boyfriend just not quite the one for you, but that’s what you both get for dating when your words didn’t match up. The first phrase you said to him was ‘No thanks’ while his arm said “How much for a gram?”

But you both gave it a shot anyways, even though, now that you look at this, if was just a desperate take on his side. So what better was to start fresh than just moving completely. It’s what you did, anyways. So let’s start anew here and be on your way, spending time with Keith, your friend.

Hey, maybe your match is in Illinois.

Michael, on the other hand, was not too worried about the words either. Though his ‘fresh-start’ would be starting with you, a new comer that he wouldn’t tolerate on his grounds.

Considering the words written on his wrists, he never payed too much attention to them. By the amount of people he’s killed, he firmly believed he had probably already killed his so called “soul-mate.” So, with that he just rolled his sleeve back down and went back to terrorizing his small hometown.

Then again, he did find it quite amusing to have the one single word on his wrist be “ass.” Maybe he’d let a few words slip right on out of his next few victims just to get a laugh out of it but, who knows? There’s no time to play with your food.

Now you had heard of The Shape but not enough to concern you. Every small town had their small ghost stories from word of mouth by the elders, which is just what The Shape was, at least, so you thought.

Sadly enough, it would be that night that you figured out otherwise.

The moving could wait until tomorrow morning. The bed and dresser mattered, and you were able to bribe the movers with a few extra bills to help you move then in and up the stairs. That would be good enough for tonight.

This made Michael’s job easy, though. He was a man walk into the house to greet you, so he thought, during your move while helpers hoisted a few items into the house. You both seemed to get along, dating, maybe. But Michael had seen that man before, so perhaps just friends.

But not for long. Your house was far to close to Michael’s for comfort.

“The Shape, he’s a real person. I swear, no shit,” Kieth said.

“Yeah, okay. Let me see him, then I might believe the woman next door.” You snarked back. You were too tried to deal with his shit right now.

“Just wait till the boogeyman gets you night. Be careful,” Kieth playfully punched your shoulder and said his goodbyes. He would be back in the morning to help you move the rest of your things into the house.

“What an ass.”

~~~

By 10:30 pm you were out like a light, so Michael being able to get into the house was fairly easy. He even managed to step on a few wrong boards, sending a long, drawn out creek throughout the entire house and you didn’t care to budge.

It was when he reached your bedroom door that the smallest squeak seemed to disturb you.

Michael watched as you jolted up from your bed and looked around the room for him. Luckily for the abundance of trees blocking out the moonlight, Michael was able to stand right in the corner and blend in completely with the dancing shadows.

The wooden floor was exceptionally cold on your feet as you slid out of bed, right past Michael and down the stairs.

“Keith?”

He was always one for playing sick jokes on you when you both were nine. He would hide in the bathroom and wait for you to wake up at night and make you fall backwards, or even hiding under your bed and grabbing your feet to make you screech.

“C’mon you asshole, it’s like... 11 o’clock, go home,”

You laughed at the fact that you were almost 100% talking to just the wind. Old house, old noises. But the noises came from upstairs this time. The fucker probably hid under your bed like he used to.

You called up to, what was hopefully, Keith, “You’re such an-”

Turning around to go back upstairs, you stopped and looked at the figure directly behind you, standing on the same ground as you but almost the size of a towering building;

“Ass...”

So much for letting Michael let a few words out of people to figure it out. He honestly never planned to make it this far. Would he kill his ‘soulmate’ or would he attempt a relationship? Don’t be silly, of course he wouldn’t let you live.

But this was technically a... a prophecy... right? In some way...

He needed time to think about this and right now he wasn’t sure who was more alarmed. You, with the intruder ready to strike in your home or him, the intruder trying to figure out his emotions.

Michael slowly rolled up his left sleeve and showed you his wrist.

“Ass.”

Everything hit you like a tone of bricks, leaving you to do only one thing,

Faint.

So much for moving all your belongings in in the morning.

#michael myers #michael myers x reader #halloween #slashers #slashers x reader

400 notes · View notes

blueplanettrash · 6 years

Note

For your wolf Lance au what about they go to a planet where they treat Lance like an animal and take him away. The team finds him with a collar and hurt from trying to get away... idk I love your writing your amazing

It’s been a hot minute since I’ve done a werewolf Lance AU. Todays as good a day as any. I hope you enjoy! ❤️

As more and more planet became aware of Lance’s ability to switch forms, Lance became more comfortable leaving the Castle in his wolf form, preferring it over his human form even. As a wolf, he felt more capable of protecting his team if they unknowingly walked into danger. Unfortunately, he had already been right about this assumption before but was able to act quickly to not let things get out of hand. It hasn’t happened since.

Not until now.

Not that something happened to the rest of the team, it was only him that was singled out. They didn’t necessarily come for a planetside visit though, they came for a battle. They got it. As soon as they were in close range, Shiro dropped Lance to the surface and he started taking out the foot soldiers, making sure that they weren’t able to harm any civilians.

He didn’t notice the terrified looks that he got from them as he turned back to battle.

It was only after the battlefield was clear that he found out they didn’t know who he was. Or didn’t like who or what he was.

As he stood panting in the middle of victory, his legs shaking in exhaustion, blood drying on his matted fur, he looked around in confusion at the silence that permeated the air. He made sure that there was little to no casualties, so where was the celebration?

He let out a loud yelp as a ligature of some kind was thrown over his head and pulled taut against his neck. His head whipped around to see one of the aliens tugging at the cord before he could make a move towards them, another cord was overlapping the first. They pulled at the cords, dragging him further into the woods. He dug his paws into the ground trying to resist the pull but they were far stronger than him and easily had him moving forward.

He desperately looked up at the sky for any sign of his teammates but wasn’t able to see them through the dense canopy of the trees. Even though there were only two of the aliens single-handedly pulling him to god only knows where; panic was coursing through his veins. His eyes darted around looking for any means of escape. He tried pulling against them, tugging them in a different direction, anything to lose their hold on him but nothing worked.

Finally, though they stopped and one of them went to work tying the end of the cords around the base of a thick tree. The other stood at the side, carefully watching Lance. He took it as his time to strike.

He bared his teeth with a growl and lunged.

He didn’t get far. Immediately, the one standing guard struck out, some sort of stick materializing in his hand. It hit him in the side of the muzzle, hard enough to knock out a tooth. He whined, stepping back and shaking his head in shock. He snarled lifting his head up and glaring at the smirking aliens.

“Stay down you filthy animal,” he sneered, waving the stick threateningly. Without his consent, his ears folded back and he tucked his tail. Though he wanted to stand up to his attackers, he also didn’t want to be hit again when he was already tired and weak after the battle.

“Why aren’t we taking care of it now?” The one tying him up asked.

“It will take to much time, we’ll do it after we meet the paladins,” he explained, excitement lacing his tone as he talked about his teammates. About him.

At the mention of them, his struggles started again and he pulled back on the cords, digging them into the back of his neck painfully.

“Let’s go,” one of them muttered, not paying attention to the wolf anymore. Not that Lance was complaining, too wrapped up in trying to get free from his hopefully temporary prison.

His claws dug deep into the ground as he yanked against the tree, choking himself slightly as he tried to snap the cord but it stayed strong, denting into the bark of the tree and cutting into Lance’s neck, drawing rivets of blood that matted his fur. He let out a pitiful whine, moving on to bite at the wire instead, not caring about the sharp metal that cut into his gums, turning his usually white fangs red with his own blood.

After a while of struggling, he stood back on trembling legs, trying to force himself to calm slightly. He needed to change back, then he could just slip out and run back to the Castle. Naked or not, anything was better than being stuck in that forest until either his team found him or his capturers came back to finish the job, whatever that might be.

He closed his eyes, waiting for the familiar feeling of change to wash over but after a few seconds, nothing happened. Maybe it was because of the adrenaline still pumping through his veins, or the ever ensuing panic that clawed at his mind at heart but he wasn’t changing back. His breaths came out shaky and uneven as he tried to think through the predicament but nothing would come to him besides,

I need to get home.

I need to find my friends.

Where are my friends?

I want them

Where are they

Help me

I don’t want to be here

He didn’t know why it was affecting him so much. It could have been because of the stories his Abuela told him before bed of hunters tracking down bad werewolves and trapping them. It could have been the fact that the aliens said they would take care of him soon. It may have even been the little voice in the back of his head telling him that because he got captured that he wasn’t worthy of being rescued.

But all he wanted was to go home.

He could see all of them in his mind, reaching out to him but not able to grab on. He raced after their silhouettes but he couldn’t keep up.

He wasn’t even thinking when he tilted his head back and let out a mournful howl. One after another they drifted into the sky, sorrowful cries replacing the sounds of a battle only just finished.

The paladins waited outside of the palace, looking around for any sign of their teammate. They were surrounded on all sides by the aliens of the planet, asking for pictures or autographs from them while Allura and Coran handled talking to the leaders of the planet. They only absentmindedly paid attention to the swarming crowd, instead, looking over their heads for even a glimpse of Lance.

“I don’t like this, he would usually be here by now,” Hunk said quietly, leaning over to talk into Shiro’s ear.

“I know, but we have nothing to go on right now, we can’t just leave and wander aimlessly,” Shiro replied, concern clearly written on his face. “As soon as we get any word we’re leaving,” the rest of them nodded in agreement, still not fully committed to the meet and greet. Shiro turned away and walked over to Allura and Coran, who both glanced over at his arrival.

“Any word on Lance?” He asked, gravely they shook their heads. Shiro sighed, rubbing the back of his neck in thought.

It wasn’t like him to not check in with them or meet them right after the battle. Of course, they were worried but they hadn’t got any word that Lance was injured from any of the civilians so they had to assume that he was safe for now. Hopefully, he would come trotting over by the time they were done dealing with the grateful aliens and they would be quickly on their way back home to shower and sleep for the rest of the day.

Suddenly the crowd fell silent as a loud howl rang out of the forest. The paladins perked up at the familiar sound, looking back at Shiro. He nodded and immediately they were sprinting towards the source of the sound, brushing low hanging branches out of their faces as they rushed through the foliage.

What they ran to, broke their hearts.

He sat on his haunches, head tilted back towards the sky, his ears folded tight against his head, wailing sadly at the top of his lungs. His fur was darkened around the neck where a silver looking cord was pulled tightly against his neck. He was so engrossed in his sorrowful song that he didn’t notice their presence behind him until one of them stepped on a twig and snapped it.

His howl cut off and he whirled around, tail tucking in fear and he hunched closer to the ground, his eyes wide. Shiro carefully crept forward, his hands in front of him and a soft smile on his face.

“Hey bud, we’re here to get you,” he said quietly, coming within easy range of Lance. It only took a second for Lance to quickly pad over and push his head in Shiro’s stomach. His heart sank as he carefully scratched Lance’s ears, careful to avoid the wounds circling Lance’s neck. He trembled beneath his hands, soft whines puffing out of his mouth as he pushed further into Shiro’s warmth.

Keith cut through the wires, Hunk and Pidge holding them so they didn’t pull on the lacerations they left behind. As gently as they could, they loosened the cords and lifted them off of his neck.

“C’mon bud, let’s get you to the infirmary,” he said. His hand never left Lance’s back as they walked back to Black.

When Lance transformed to go into the cryopod, they could clearly see the damage that had been done. His neck, all around had been sliced open and deep bruising had already set in around them. There was also a bruise on his jaw that was steadily swelling and from the scans of the pod revealed to have a crack running through the bone.

They could only imagine what had done that to Lance. For all they knew, it was the Galra that had caught him and tied him to the tree, for nothing more than to prolong his torment.

They would only know after Lance got out of the pod.

Stories Masterlist

557 notes · View notes

n-writes · 6 years

Text

i loved & i loved & i lost you

"you're going to ace it, lance."

lance stares into bright grey eyes, full of confidence and belief.

he knows he's just overreacting but can you blame him? he's about to take the exam to be a fighter pilot. shiro and lance studied together for days and last night crammed more than enough. 4 in the morning training sessions everyday since lance confirmed his appointment for the exam.

he's just so nervous.

"i know your nervous right now, baby. i'm going to be right here when you get back. no matter what happens." lance's eyes water slowly.

"stop, you're going to make me cry." he whines softly, pressing his head into shiro's chest. shiro wraps his arms around lance and laughs lightly.

"you better go." lance sighs, but pulls away and pouts.

"you'll be here, right?" shiro nods, raising his hand mock saluting at lance.

"right here, sir." lance smiles, leaning up to press a short kiss on shiro's lips.

"at ease, commander." lance moves away from shiro quickly, laughing at his blushing face. he walks to the door, he stops as the automatic door slides open. lance looks back shiro a small smile on his face. "i love you."

shiro smiles back.

"i love you more. good luck."

----

"this isn't going to work. you know it's not. i didn't pass. i didn't get into your team. cargo pilots get different training. i'm a cargo pilot."

shiro, watches lance pace back and forth.

"lance c'mon. being a cargo pilot, isn't bad. you can try again, it's not the end of the world-"

"i know that shiro!" lance snaps, glaring at shiro. lance's face softens abit and he sighs. "i just, wanted it so badly. i wanted to give my family good news for once." he drops into a whisper, hugging himself, hiding. shiro stands from his chair walking to lance, pulling him into a hug. just holding him.

"i just wanted to be closer to you. so this could be easier on you. so you won't have to make up an excuse when i want to see you. i wanted to make you proud." lance says, a sob finding it's way out of him. shiro holds him tighter.

"why are you even with an idiot like me?"

shiro stops his hands moving away from lance completely.

"you are not an idiot, lance. you are so incredibly smart. i'm with you because i love you. i'm in love with the way You treat me. how you treat others with nothing but kindness. i am so proud of you. proud of you for, trying, studying, staying up so late you pass out. i'm proud of your dedication to this. you're not an idiot. sure, testing isn't your strong suit but that does not make you an idiot." shiro lifts lance's chin up. "uderstand?" lance nods, wiping his eyes with his sleeve.

"i love you so much."

shiro smiles, hugging him again.

"i love you."

----

lance stares at himself in the mirror of shiro's connected bathroom.

he takes a deep breath.

"c'mon mcclain, you've faced scarier things than this." he checks himself once more before placing the large white tshirt he borrowed -stole, from hunk, on. lance takes another deep breath before opening the door and seeing shiro laying on his bed, reading.

upon hearing the door open, shiro looked up from the paper. he smiles lightly.

"what took you?" lance moves towards the bed, straddling shiro's waist. he takes the paper out of his hands as shiro places his on lance waist.

"dunno, just wanted to look pretty for you." lance, smiles brightly.

"you always look pretty." he mumbles, fingers gliding under the shirt touching lance's thighs. his breath hitches, leaning into his touches.

lance can feel shiro's fingers brush against the frabic.

"lance." lance looks at shiro's face. his eyes are wide.

"you're leaving tomorrow. and i just wanted to give you something..." shiro stares at lance. then he frowns.

"are you sure? you're not doing this just beca-" lance cuts him off with a kiss.

"shiro. i've been sure for a couple months. i would have done it earlier but with those surprise exams and you having interviews and constant health test...." his voice drops into a whisper. " i really want to." shiro stares another few seconds at lance before pulling him close and pressing lance on his back as he turned them.

"i love you." lance says, smiling softly up at shiro, confidence and reassurance written all over his face. shiro's hands graze over the lightblue frabic that's shown now, that the shirt lance is wearing rides up abit.

"i love you, too."

-----

PILOT. ERROR.

those words have been splattered on every screen of the garrison for weeks.

classes have been canceled to give students time to grieve.

lance hadn't cried. he should have. but he knew, before anyone. when sergeant jameson called him into his office before word got out. father mccarthy was there aswell.

"now, lance. i want you to listen very carefully. because shirogane is a dear friend to me, and i'll continue to keep my word but father mccarthy and myself know what your capable of." lance doesn't know what to even think What this is about. every second his sitting here, creates a new wave of nausea.

"you're well aware of the kerberos mission, shirogane, holt and dr. holt are on." lance nods not taking his eyes of jameson, fist griping the chair under him. "but what you don't know is that we lost contact with them a week ago. there was no signs of life on kerberos. not even the ship was recovered." jameson sighs furstratedly leaning back in his seat.

lance's shoulders shake slightly. his breathing growing harder with every intake. father mccarthy seems to notice and comes over to sit next to him taking both of lance's hands in his.

"deep breaths, son." lance's listens but his heart is beating so loud in his ears he barely catches jameson's words.

"they're going to claim it as a pilot error. i wanted you to hear it from me that it's not true. alright?"

lance nods. then finds his voice.

"why are you telling me, though? i'm not-"

"i'm aware of your status, but that doesn't apply and by the looks of it. you'd be next of kin." he says waving a hand towards his neck. lance let's go of one of mccarthy's hand twirling the silver ring that hangs on a chain, securely around his neck.

"he said we would when he comes back." lance tells them, "if it wasn't a pilot error. then where is he?"

jameson sighs looking at lance sadly.

"i'm so sorry, lance."

they sit in silence for abit until jameson tells lance, he would need to take shiro's belongings. lance wants to but he can't.

"give them to keith. keith grew up with shiro. keith should have them." jameson nods without another word. father McCarthy placed a hand on lance's shoulder.

"if there's anything you ever need, lance. please don't not hesitate to come to me or sergeant jameson." lance nods, almost numbly.

"thank you."

---

he found him. he found shiro.

a whole year, without him. and he found him. he's okay. he's safe now.

the scars visible to him make lance's heart clench. but he's breathing and he's alive.

he also was so glad to see keith.

after he got kicked out, lance hadn't known where he'd gone. he was worried on shiro's behalf. shiro would have wanted keith to stay at the garrison. lance tried to interact with him, but without shiro it could have been masked as a one sided rivalry between him and keith.

when they reached the small shack, hunk tried to convince him to go back. pidge demanded that she'd speak to shiro about the other crew. keith wanted them all out.

"pidge just wants to ask him some questions. once he knows, then we'll be out of your hair. lance tried to reason as calmly as he could but keith just glared at him. then turns to pidge.

"the minute he gets up, you ask him and get out."

lance's hand subconsciously go to the necklace around his neck, twirling it as he sits beside hunk on the small couch. pidge taking the small beanbag. keith goes into the other part of the shack.

they wait.

---

lance wakes up, hours later with his arm tangled behind his back half draped against hunk. lance moves off of him, stretching his joints. he gets up and stretches his back. he notices movement outside and moves toward the window.

shiro and keith are talking. about what lance doesn't know.

he wondered why shiro didn't wake him. a spike of fear rushes through his brain.

what if he doesn't remember you?

lance closes his eyes tight, hand reaching to twirl the ring.

no, shiro just didnt know how long he'd been out there. there's no way he forget him.

or could he..?

lance couldn't believe it.

lance watched as keith turned away from shiro and started back toward the shack. shiro followed not to long after. lance turned away from the window, moving toward hunk to wake him.

then he wakes up pidge and shiro and keith are already inside.

keith was explaining the strange engery force in the desert. written things on the walls of a blue lion. lance felt a soft shiver run up his spin.

a blue lion?

shiro turned to face keith more and lance caught confusion written all over his face. lance couldn't blame him. then shiro looked at him. and lance's heart stopped.

"i'm sorry. lance, right?" the twirling stopped as lance looked at shiro's face. his fear proven correct.

lance feels himself reach for shiro's hand but stops staring at the metal. he takes a deep breath and presses his hand in shiro's, then sends him a soft smile.

"right."

shiro doesn't know him.

lance let's go of shiro's hand, then immediately moving to the ring.

right there, lance decides that maybe it's best if shiro didn't know him. doesn't know about all they went through. lance grevied. he doesn't need to grieve again.

in the moments that he found him. lance lost shiro all at once.

#small #lance #shiro #shance #shanst #all characters r depicted as 18+#my first work after weeks i finally finished.#i also have to do pt2 of about u series #and i suck becasue i haven't even put up pt1 of sky doesnt blue #sigh #its been so long #and i haven't finsihed anything #writing is hard yano #but enjoy this small drabble!!!#jdjdjdjdjd #n-writes #myfic

73 notes · View notes

chibichocopaws · 6 years

Text

Visions of a Dark Star

A theory by chibichocopaws!

(Note: This is stupid long. There are no actual facts backing my theory up, it is, after all a theory. I am open to friendly discussion or debate on the topic as well. Apologies for any grammatical errors. I may or may not have written parts while enjoying some prescribed pain relievers. And....

SEASON 6 VLD SPOILERS AHEAD!

K.thanks!)

Krolia: “Time collapses this close to dark stars. Going through the light triggers glimpses of the past and the future.” (Season 6, Episode 2: Razor’s Edge)

We are starting with Kieth's return to the Castle of Lions in Season 6, Episode 4: The Colony. He seems very accepting of what's happening with Shiro, and even slightly pulled back when he sees Shiro at first.

What I mean by this, is the first time Keith speaks to Shiro is over a com when he's on the Altean space pod. He seems slightly frantic, given the information about Lotor. He quickly identifies himself, saying "Shiro it's Keith." Then instantly asks where Lotor is. Granted, this isn't very unlike a Leader of Voltron to do. "It's me. Don't fire. Friend not foe. Now here's the important part."

But even when he lands the Altean pod, and steps out, there's little interaction between the two. Now, Sheith fans jump on the look Shiro gives Keith. It's a big "Holy shit, you look hotter." Look. As a Sheith fan, I'm not going to argue that look, but I am trying to be unbiased here. Soooo, how about we take that look as something different. Where is the hug? Where is the hand shake? Some sort of physical contact. We know Keith and Shiro share physical contact frequently. A hand on the shoulder, an arm around the shoulder, etc. It's uncommon for them to not be near each other, or exchanging a touch. We know Keith doesn't do this with many others. “He's not exactly handing out love hearts to anyone.” Whether that be as a friend or more. Again, different topic. So, we know Keith is reserved to begin with during this reunion, so perhaps that's really what the look is for. Keith barely acknowledges Shiro here. Sure, he's matured, but he's holding back. There's only one point he's smiling at Shiro when he's returned. Otherwise, he's rarely interacting with him. He's brushing off Shiro’s questions, and focusing on other people's questions. If you watch the episode closely, he rarely even looks at Shiro.

To touch on the “one time he is smiling” was when Haggar was looking through Shiro’s eyes. Of course she was. Why would she not be. The universe really hates Keith sometimes. Poor guy. Anyways, it's after the introduction of Krolia, when she thanks Shiro for raising him to be the man he is today. So, even if we dissect this, it can still stand to reason, that he's simply smiling because of his mother's words. If they had the visions, and Krolia too saw what was bound to happen, why would she do this? It's a funny thing, mothers. They do things that their kids don't always understand, but it's for the best. Krolia understands that Shiro has been and is a huge part of Keith’s life. She's had 2 years and countless past and future visions to discover this, nevermind if Keith opens up to her verbally (which is likely considering 2 years with only one other person, not including cosmic wolf because I'm left to assume it cannot communicate, is a long time to sit in complete silence, especially with all their dirty secrets being shown in visions to each other). So perhaps, Krolia does and says this more for Keith than Shiro. Krolia is difficult to read though, she's naturally obscure with her facial expressions, most likely due to her being Galra and a member of the Blade of Mamora.

So let me throw this out there. Based on what we know from Episode 2, every time that time collapses, Keith and Krolia fell victim to visions of the past and the future. Yet, Episode 2 only showed one vision from the future, then proceeded to only show visions of the past. Yet, this makes no sense, unless of course, the visions of the future were obscured by the creators to "not give anything away" (such as the small snippet of battle between Shiro/Kuron and Keith. As viewers we only knew it was going to happen, though we didn't know to what extent or why at the time of episode 2).

They were on that space whale for 2 years. I'm not sure what the frequency of time collapses was, but they occurred on the space whale as well. It seemed the trip to the space whale from the destruction of their ship, could not have lasted more than a couple of days to a maximum of a week. I say this based on Keith being human, because he mentions they won't survive much longer without food or water. Some humans can train their bodies to go longer periods without sustenance, and sadly, I imagine Keith has had to do just that based on his history as a child. Ok, so supposedly the average human can last without food for about three weeks. I, personally don't believe that. (Backstory: I went an entire week without any food as a cleansing exercise and by day 6 I was about ready to pass out, day 7 found me literally blacking out randomly. Keeping in mind, I only drank water, and continued to work at a grueling physically laboring job). So I’m assuming this 3 weeks statement is for those that can basically veg out without much, if any, physical labor. Now, water is a different story. The human body cannot survive very long without it (a matter of days really). Days under normal circumstances, not extreme labor, like pushing from space rock to space rock, sweating from exertion, etc. But, if we take into consideration that Keith is also half Galra, that may extend the amount of time he needs liquid. I am not familiar with how frequently Galra need sustenance to survive.

Back on topic though... In that time we were given three time collapses. So, let's say we go with the maximum of a week they were jumping from space rock to space rock before encountering the whale. (This time frame is important because we need to figure out how often the time collapses were occurring and we need a point of reference, which would be prior to the space whale) That's 3x52 (52 weeks in a year) which is 156 time collapses in a year. Now that's 156 times 2 for 2 years that they were gone, and that's 312.

Obviously that's not including any changes. So yes, there's a possibility that maybe the whale has blocked some of the collapses, or that the collapses happen less frequently the closer or farther away the whale gets to or from the star. Or even if the collapse is blocked from hitting them by something. But even if it were only 100 visions of the past and future, that's still A LOT!

So here's my theory. Keith knows. He knows the entire time what's going to happen. I'm basing this on a linear future, meaning it cannot be altered.

There is a time in episode 4 where Keith tries to reach out to Shiro (right after Shiro steals a pod and Lotor and flies off, Keith calls him through vocal com) desperately. He tried to keep his voice calm, telling Shiro it will be alright. Without my theory, it's something Keith would maybe do. I mean, if he doesn't know what's happening, why would he speak calmly to Shiro. Why wouldn't he yell and be like "Shiro what are you doing!?" Sure, he's matured in two years, but it seems like something more of a last hope reach out. I truly believe, at this point, he knows already. He knows that Shiro is a clone. He knows that they are going to battle, but that doesn't mean he can't try to stop it still.

But, 2 years is a long time to come to terms with the inevitable. It by no means makes it any easier, but it can be accepted. He's also had 2 years to discuss this with his mother. Now, looking at Krolia, she is very cool headed. She seems to know herself and her limits very well. She has seemed to since before having Keith. Krolia very well could have been the voice of reason he needed to accept that he may have to kill Shiro/Kuron, or at the very least, fight him.

Now, because it's not released, it's impossible to know how much was revealed in the future visions. The past visions seemed to be weird intervals, some long, some very short. So I'm not sure what was shown for future visions or the lengths of them. Though 2 years is a long time to get the entire fight and what brought Shiro to that place. So, I honestly have little doubt.

Ok, this finally wraps around to “The Battle”. Ugh. My heart hurts rewatching this episode, but I didn't feel I could full circle my theory without doing it.

Season 6, Episode 5: The Black Paladins.

The cracking sound you're hearing? Oh, just my heart shattering. I'll find some glue or something later.

Anyways. They rush out as Voltron to fight Haggar’s goonies. I really want to call them the switchers. It's hard to keep up who's side they're on. Point is, they do their battle, get flung into a rock and Haggar opens up a wormhole. So at this point he says “We have to make sure we get Shiro back.” (Well there's this little conversation prior to this line, but it doesn't pertain to my point.)

Hunk: “But Shiro isn't Shiro anymore.”

Keith says he knows, but it's almost exasperated. Like, sure he could have taken that tone because it was obvious, or he could have taken the tone because he knew well before they did. He says “But something is wrong with him, the Galra or Lotor have to be behind it.” Weird right? Because if he had visions for two years, he should have been able to piece things together, right? Maybe not because there's two bad guys right now. Lotor and Haggar (which would currently be classified under as Galra). So sure, he's had visions, but it's like being handed 5 different ingredients to a meal and telling someone “cook whatever with just this”. If you hand those same 5 ingredients to someone else, there's a good chance they won't come up with the same menu. So, maybe Keith was able to piece together most of it, but pinpointing which bad guy was responsible for which scene (ingredient) could be trickier for him.

So after their little chit chat, Keith goes on to say: “We all know he wouldn't give up on us, we can't give up on him.” Yet, he doesn't say this immediately. He stops, closes his eyes, takes a breath then says it. Why? We know the creators of VLD don't ever put anything in the show without meaning. So why have Keith pause? This action, the looking down, closing your eyes, breathing. It's a way to center our thoughts. He's trying to remain focused, but why? Is it because he feels himself slipping, becoming emotional? I mean, he doesn't look emotional. Or is it because he's trying to re-center himself within the timeline of the visions he remembers?

Why does he have to recenter himself within the timeline of visions? Maybe something is missing! Maybe he was unable to piece together why the other Paladins weren't by his side during his battle with Shiro. Maybe he thought they gave up on Shiro. Maybe this part of the timeline wasn't revealed to him (this part being the fact that only Keith gets through the wormhole), so he felt that he needed to reassure them that Shiro was worth saving.

Now, look at Keith’s shift when he yells disband. All that coolness from earlier, the calm collectedness he had is gone, and he legitimately looks like something has clicked. He gets it. He understands why they aren't there during the battle, because the only one who can make it through the wormhole is him. He goes from calm to confident in a second. And although his facial features change when the speed is intense, he doesn't look scared or nervous. Just in pain. Like he legit knows he's going to make it, it's just taking a lot of exertion on his body to do so, but he has no doubt he will get through. Why? There should be a glimmer of doubt unless he knew otherwise.

Except of course when he comes out the other side of the wormhole and is met with a fleet of Galra battle cruisers. Oops. Guess that part wasn't in the vision. Oooor maybe it was. He literally effortlessly glides through that. The Black Lion isn't at full capacity with its broken thruster, and yet he GLIDES through the line of fire, almost as if he's done it before. So why the face of surprise? Let's be honest. Someone could tell you “oh, there's like a thousand bees over there. Look I took a picture even.” But then you go over there and seeing a thousand bees can be intimidating face to face. Or, maybe he's surprised because he recognizes it instantly. Like “Oh, right. Seen this part before.” This would also make sense, if he didn't know why the other Paladins weren't around for the fight. As in, he missed a vision from two seconds earlier, but now it's one of his visions again.

Even Ezor turns around and is like “Wow, I can't believe he made it through that.” Maybe she's talking about the wormhole, or maybe she's talking about the fleet of Galra battle cruisers.

His mini battle with Acxa kind of proves my point further. He has been Lion-less for over 2 years. Sure, it could be like riding a bike, but his moves are so precise, you know, almost like he knows what's going to happen!

Also, he flies right to the ship and to the area where Shiro, Lotor, Ezor and Zethrid are. How did he know where they went in the middle of a fleet of ships, while distracted by Acxa? (As a side note…. I love Ezor’s line of “Is it broken?” *poke* *poke*. She's so damn cute I can't take it.)

Now, I personally think Keith does not believe this is a linear timeline. I think he truly believes he can alter what he saw somehow. So at this point Acxa has grabbed his attention again. He says “Think. Think. How are we going to get in?” If he truly believes he can change this timeline, at this point he could really be trying to avoid the next part from happening.

Now things are going to get intense and I'm going to cry… again.

“Shiro…. Shiro come in! I don't know what's wrong, but I know we can fix this.” Listen to that desperation! Still stuck on him not knowing? Him just being more mature? Spent so much time with his mother he adapted her calmness in moments of crisis? I disagree. He's begging. Keith is legitimately begging. He knows where this is leading, and he's pulling a last call to try to stop it before it goes there. We know he saw a part of the fight in a vision. We know that much. He has to know where this is going. “Let me help you.”

But wait…. Acxa has locked his position. He knows she's on his tail. Why isn't he moving out of the way? He's given her a clear line on his position. Keith is an ace pilot. He can maneuver and have a conversation. Why isn't he? Because Shiro is more important? Sure we could go with that, or because he knows she won't fire. He saw she doesn't fire.

At this point he turns his attention towards Black. Look at his face. Listen to the sound of his tone. He's accepted this is going to happen. His facial expression is bitter acceptance. Bitter acceptance in the manner that he knows it's going to happen, but it doesn't mean he has to be happy about it. “I know you're hurting. We just need to keep it together a little longer.” He said we. We need to keep it together a little longer. He's hurting too. He knows what's about to happen. How could he not. He's not only telling Black, he's telling himself.

At this point we have a focus shift. The virus shuts down the Castle of Lions, it's panic, but let's focus on what little amount of Krolia we can see. When Pidge gets the systems fixed for all of like 3 seconds, Krolia remains rigid. As if she knows it's not going to last. This could be a stretch, sure. I mean, maybe she's just rigid from the panic, but when the systems fail again, you can see her face. It's detailed. She's worried, but distant. She's not worried about herself or the crew. Distant look implores us to believe she's worried about someone or something that's not present. Keith. Shiro. Their battle. If Keith saw Krolia’s past, it's safe to assume Krolia was able to see Keith’s future. At first, I wondered if this was only when they were touching, but it appears not. If we go back and look at Episode 2 again, there is a point, on the space whale, where Krolia sees a young Keith over his father’s gravestone. At this point Krolia is not touching Keith. She's across the way sitting next to the fire with Keith on the other side sleeping, or at least laying down. So it's easy to assume the memories and future visions are shared between the two of them every time the time collapses.

Ok, skipping over the Lotor/Honerva and switchers (Yup. Doing it. Zethrid, Acxa and Ezor shall now be known as the switchers) scene, it's unrelated (though… woah Lotor you sneaky bastard).

Next we see Keith has found an abandoned shuttle pod. He tracks the footsteps. And his face. It says it all. “This is it. It's time.” The pure definition of determination. He's ready. It's happening. There's nothing he can do or say at this point. The time has come.

He even walks with purpose. But here's another thought. When he no longer has footprints to follow, how does he know where to go? He takes a lift and goes exactly where Shiro is. How did he know unless he saw it?

There's a lot of facial expressions talk for the next few scenes. So first he enters the room with a surprised look on his face. This could be from a “where am I?” in a sense of visions showed him nothing, or with my theory this could be a “Wow, it's exactly as the vision showed me.”

The next facial expression is back to determination, which leads me to believe the surprised look was more of a “Wow, exactly as my vision.” If he were lost or unsure of himself he wouldn't have switched to determination so quickly and suddenly.

Now, the determination expression could also be confusion. If he's confused, it could really just be him thinking “Ok, I'm here, but where is Shiro? This is where I'm supposed to be, but I don't see him.”

Next he seems genuinely surprised. He places a hand on the clone pod, and one by one they all light up. This very well could have not been part of a vision based on his reaction. Sure, the pods were there during the battle, therefore there during his vision, but it could have been background, and he could have been far more focused on the battle with Shiro as opposed to what was around him.

But, “Hello Keith” is in his vision. If we go back to Episode 2, those words are in it. At this point Keith turns. He kind of looks surprised but I interpret the look more as a “Oh no.” So at this point, we know for a fact Keith has seen this. We don't know how much of this he has seen. The entire thing? Just parts? We don't know. We do know he's seen from this point and at least part of the battle based on what was shown to us from episode 2.

In the vision from episode 2 we hear the following words. “Hello Keith.” “Yes. I know.”

“It's going to be ok, we just have to get back to the castle.” “Shiro!!!!!”

and “....are not going anywhere.”

Which, if we're following it in sequence, means he saw the entire before-the-fight-sequence, but also more. The beginning of the fight Keith does not yell Shiro. The words were all spoken before Shiro goes in for attack.

Next scene, Pidge to the rescue in the worst way. Also not pertinent to this, but something I would like to touch base on some other time.

Battle ensues between Keith and Shiro, but Keith isn't fighting. At least not at first. Keith is strictly defending. At least until his helmet comes off. The punch hits him hard, maybe he whacks his head on the way down. His Galra is showing. (kek). It isn't until his Galra side comes out that he starts fighting back. This could be because he doesn't want to hurt Shiro, or because he's still holding out hope that the timeline isn't linear.

“That's the Keith I remember.” Seems to spark something in Keith and bring back his human side, and once again he starts avoiding attacks and defending. No longer on the offense.

When Shiro knocks down a tower, and Keith starts talking to him by saying “Shiro.” Is this the Shiro from Episode 2? It's hard to tell. This Shiro call sounds more raw vocally, than the vision. So, let's move on, pretty sure this is not it.

Now, I know this was touched upon by someone else, but here’s another take, Keith’s lack of reaction to Shiro’s hurtful words. “And I should have abandoned you, just like your parents did. They saw that you were broken. Worthless. I should have seen it too.” If Keith had been able to hear these words in any of the visions, he could have already dealt with the pain they caused. He could have already spoken with Krolia about it. She has already told him he was the most important thing to her. So I believe he's already dealt with that pain, and been reassured of its falseness by Krolia herself.

Ooh, another time Keith yells Shiro. At this point Shiro is… well I'm not really sure what's happening. His hand is connecting with the Galra tech and turning into a giant laser? Well, whatever the case may be, this sounds more like the Shiro yelled in ep 2. So, this implies Keith’s first and only on screen vision was from before the battle to this point. Keep in mind, the creators would not include an in depth vision in episode 2, but leave hints. They didn't want to give away the fight entirely.

Now, the next set of scenes depicts Shiro destroying the base. There are times where Keith seems surprised, but ironically, he knows when to jump out of the way of a falling piece without looking up to see it. How would he know to jump out of the way? He's already seen this all happen. He's pretty banged up, sure, but just because he knows what's happening before it happens, doesn't mean it's less painful either physically or mentally. Remember, we are basing this on a linear timeline. So regardless, certain things are going to occur.

He lands on a ledge, catches his breath for a moment and immediately looks in the direction of his blade, like he already knew where it had landed. He's determined. He knows he has to get to it. He knows it's the only way to end the battle, but his body is exhausted. Far too much exertion.

He doesn't make it till the last second, but does manage to grab it before Shiro’s killing blow. Next we fans all die a little. We all know the line. “Shiro, please. You're my brother. I love you.” That's a whole different subject for a different time. (Can't even describe how difficult it is to not touch on this right now, but it's not pertinent to my point.) So Shiro proceeds to tell Keith that the castle and Paladins are gone. Why doesn't Keith react? Sure he's using all his strength to hold off Shiro from cutting his head clean off, but he should have had some sort of reaction unless he knew it wasn't true! He saw it wasn't true.

Now, there's a chance that he does react. That the news is what wakes up his Galra side, but I don't really think so. It's several moments after Shiro’s words that Keith reacts. If we look at just moments before when Keith was punched, we can use this as a safe assumption of what causes his Galra side to wake up. Pain. He's being burned by Shiro’s blade. Boom. Galra side is awake.

So, with the Galra power awakening, Keith gains strength and cuts off Shiro’s arm. The camera pans to his face. Oh gosh. The feels are too strong. Keith is the definition of regret right now, but is it just regret that he's hurt Shiro, or is it regret for more. Regret he couldn't stop this before it got to this point. It's a horrible thing.

They fall, but his face. Oh that agonizing face. What's this tell us? He didn't want it to be like this, but he's not giving up. He could be not giving up because it was a promise Shiro made that he needs to reciprocate, or maybe he already knows Shiro will come back to him.

Flashbacks. End episode 5. Aaaah.

Nope. Not done yet. Hah. You thought that was it?

Season 6, Episode 6: All Good Things

This episode starts off strong. And confusing for my theory, but things still work, I promise. The visions from Episode 2 are never inclusive of thoughts that we can see. They tend to be themselves during the visions/memories. So why does Keith look surprised and sound surprised by Shiro’s words in the black lion? Because, technically, that never actually happens. It's in Keith’s mind (well actually Black’s mind). So because it doesn't occur on a physical plane, it is not shown in his visions, thus he is surprised by Shiro.

This also relates back to my theory of Keith having known. He seems unsure now. Out of nowhere. He's reacting how we would expect Keith to react when Shiro stole Lotor. He's angry, scared, nervous, anxious. What happened to our calm, collected and determined Keith? Where'd he go? Could it be because Keith never had a vision of this. He wasn't prepared for this? I really believe so.

But what about when he says “The others. You said… you…” And then glowy Shiro appears behind him and Keith turns, interrupting himself. This leads us to believe that Keith didn't know the others were going to be ok after all, right? I disagree. So far, Keith has been very aware of every moment. Things have been very linear, but he's done everything he can to try to change it. This was never in his visions, and now he's doubting them. Now he's wondering if he did change things, and that fear that maybe things aren't linear anymore is taking hold, and Keith is Keith once more. Sporadic. Moody. Easily angered Keith.

“I died Keith.” Surprise! Keith didn't know this either, even with my theory. Because again, he was only being shown things that happened on a physical plane. So if we take this scene out entirely, and pretend it didn't happen, it would still be difficult for Keith to piece that information together unless specifically told so on the physical realm.

Back to calm and collected Keith now. Things are back to normal, visions are back in sync? Notice how he doesn't tell any of the crew that Shiro died. He just says that the other Shiro is a clone. So if he had a vision of this part, he still wouldn't have known Shiro was really dead, thus the shock when he found out.

Almost half an episode not pertaining to this post later, and we have Krolia asking Coran if setting a bomb off in the main turbine is a good idea. Keep in mind, if Krolia and Keith had experienced future visions, she could be nervous at this point that this is where the Castle of Lions gets destroyed. If the visions were not shown to them in a linear fashion, but random fragments, there's the possibility that she doesn't really know exactly when or how the Castle of Lions is destroyed. But if you also notice, she doesn't seem too surprised that his theory worked, just relieved.

Back to Keith. After unlocking the Black Lion’s thruster wings and making it back to the team. Keith says “Now hurry, we don't have much time. Form Voltron.” I mean, this could be an educated guess. Maybe he just assumes that Lotor will be up and moving quickly, but look at his face. Again. Self assurance. Self confidence. He knows.

Season 6, Episode 7: Defender of All Universes

The battle with Lotor. Ok, trying to make this a quick synapses as opposed to going attack per attack, otherwise this will result in another Episode 5 length segment lol. So, Keith is making some great calls during this battle, quick on defense, quick on the offense calls, but what really struck me was when he yells “move”. Is that Shiro telling him? Or is that him remembering? Or is his reaction time (after two years of peaceful waiting) that good?

Ok, what about when Lotor teleports (for the first time)? Well, if we look at Kieth’s face here, he's the only one that isn't showing an expression. He's blank. Completely blank. Almost like he's trying to recall what happens next. He looks over right before the portal appears though, why before if he didn't know?

Next scene shows Krolia staring at the pod that Shiro is being put in by Coran. Her face. It's of betrayal, pain and yet relief. She knows too.

Voltron and quintessence scene was next, yanno, after Voltron got the snot kicked out of him. I mean, there's only so much they could have done, even with Keith knowing what was going to happen. Voltron was infinitely slower than Lotor’s suit. But anyways, on topic here. Keith says it's the only way, they have to try to enter the quintessence field to win. Everyone else has trepidation or nerves, but not Keith. He knows.

In the quintessence field Keith seems surprised once more, but only after his “we did it look.” This could be because maybe, the quintessence field isn't exactly a physical plane of existence. I mean it is the plane between existences, so perhaps it falls into the same category as Black’s consciousness. Or maybe it is considered a physical plane, and he's just caught up by its intensity. I mean, a infinite space full of power? Who wouldn't get caught up in the moment?

So after the battle, and the Castle of Lions is destroyed Keith says “We need to find somewhere to land to see if we can help Shiro.” He seems calm, but not necessarily knowing. It's hard to tell with this scene. I feel it would be easier if they showed his facial expression, but they simply showed Shiro.

Now Keith admits that Shiro’s soul is in Black, but heard out of context there's a good possibility that, if Keith had seen this as a vision on the space whale, that it was misinterpreted. Maybe he thought that somehow they transferred his spirit there to save him because the clone body was barely alive. We have to think about those ingredients again. They've been handed to Keith randomly, and he can't be entirely certain what he's required to make. What order he's supposed to put them in.

I must point out here, that this scene focuses a lot on Lance’s grief, panning away from Keith, so it's difficult to really tell what Keith is thinking or what he looks like at the point Allura walked up to the Black Lion to rescue Shiro’s soul.

At some point the scene pans to the Paladins watching Allura. Everyone has their eyes wide and their mouth hung… except for Keith. His mouth is open, but his eyes are not wide. We know wide eyes is an expression Keith takes often. So it's not like a shocked expression would be out of place on his face either. So why aren't his eyes wide in shock. He knows what's happening. His eyes are squinted slightly, as if expressing a relieved “finally”.

Keith does look surprised and hopeful when it works, but if we look at Krolia, she's smiling and doesn't even flinch a single bit (unlike Romelle) when the Green Lion roars behind her.

And to testify for my cause more, Keith looking surprised and hopeful, keep in mind what Keith has experienced in life. Things can being going perfectly for him and suddenly everything is in pieces. It's a mindset he's used to expecting, why would this be any different. Sure, based on my theory, he's seen the outcome, and thus far everything has been true, but Keith is the universe’s punching bag. He's privy to this, he always expects the worst, and I'm not surprised he would wait with bated breath for the validity of this part of his visions.

While we've spoken about his facial expression. The ending. (Wait... is that my heart glue!?) Look at Keith's face now. Totally different. Relief. Happiness. He's back to looking at Shiro how he used to. How he hasn't since before the space whale. He knew. He had to have known.

Aaaand end! Well of my points from the episodes.

In summary, I truly believe Keith and Krolia have seen every moment on the physical plane of both their pasts and their futures up until this point. I can't quite tell how much farther past the end of Season 6 they have seen, but with the grin on Kieth’s face at the end of the episode, he definitely knows something we don't know. I can't wait to see if this theory is true, and I would love to hear what others think of my theory. If you totally disagree please share with me! I would love to hear other people's theories, or even examples on why my theory is bogus. Bring it on!

And, if you've made it this far. OMG I love you. I love you. I love you. Special kudos and Web cookies for you.

Thanks for reading! :D

#vld #vld thesis #vld spoilers #vld keith #vld shiro #vld krolia

9 notes · View notes

knightdale-secret · 3 years

Text

Bee Stings and Board Members

Nothing sets a fire under your ass to get something done than a literal burning behind haha....

yesterday I received a detailed response from Melissa in Archaeology regarding the contents of the surveys conducted on the site. She couldnt show me the actual surveys but she did kindly type out all of their contents that she could share. I asked her if the surveys may have lent any information for dimensions or size but she said they did not. here is the email:

The rest of the graves may still be there, just without any surface evidence. From what little they wrote, I take it that even 20 years ago they were mostly only identified as grave depressions. It's very easy for unmarked (or no longer marked) graves to become lost in the leaflitter or depressions erased by erosion.

I would check to see when that fence went in. If was close to the 2000 survey, then it probably was laid out when the pin flags were in place, meaning everyone was caught within the perimeter. If it was much later or after the flags were removed, then there may be folks north and south of the central part of the cemetery. The way it's written on the 2000 form, I would say that the cemetery is oblong or rectangular, so I would expect any missing folks to be found north (heading towards the pool) or south (within the confines of that treed area).

If you look at the tax parcel maps (

https://maps.raleighnc.gov/iMAPS/

), "WIDEWATERS VILLAGE COMMUNITY ASSN INC" is listed as owning that huge parcel (PIN 1744638638). There's no reason why they didn't sell the rest of the plots except to avoid the cemetery. I think that's why they had that contract archaeology group come in.

If they had moved the graves, there are NC General Statutes that cover the process (

NC GS 65-106

). If you want to double check the law states that you have to file a cemetery move with the county board of commissioners. But again, the plan listed on the 2000 form was "avoidance," so I bet they're all still there. They may be less visible on the surface but are still resting in place.

Melissa A. Timo, M.A., R.P.A.

Office of State Archaeology

Historic Cemetery Specialist

This did not tell me the exact size of the area, which according to the article by Schulz was greatly reduced from 130 plots to about 50. It did however tell me that there were 30 rows of graves, so that would be about 5 or 6 per row. roughly. Keith offered to meet me there and see if we could identify the rows and work out how many there are and if its all contained in that fenced area as Melissa thought they should be.

I met him there at 7:30 and we walked the site. he showed me the remnants of some of the flags him and his party had placed years before at graves they could identify by sight (depressions in the ground with a head stone and foot stone). when we counted across it did appear that there may be enough area there that they are all safely contained and not built over as previously devised by Schulz. Sadly, he is no longer with us so we cannot ask him what the area looked like before construction.

So, although that means there is less scandal to uncover here, it is reassuring that they did not build on top of any graves. they all appear to be able to fit in the fenced area on the top of the hill. we can only confirm for sure the number there once we get approval to have the ground penetrating radar examination conducted on the site. Unfortunately, I walked over and stuck my foot into a large ground bee nest - which caused an angry swarm of bees to attack me all the way out of the woods and down the sidewalk .I received at least 10 good stings on my bottom and arms, back and leg. the bees were still attacking my ankles so I took my sneakers off and after making sure none were in there walked back to the cars parked in the swimming pool parking lot in my blue socks. I havent been stung by a bee since i was a little girl. i forgot how much it burns. My back and rear were instantly on fire. If i had been alone or with someone who wasnt a stranger i would have surely put up a lot more of a fuss, but i was mostly embarressed. So i put on a brave face, winced thru the pain and swelling and when he suggested we go to look at Clay Hill cemetery area, i said “sure!”

We road out to Clayhill and tried to identify the cemetery grounds there, but there was a driving range put in that has since been closed down and grown over in that area so the ground has been much disturbed. I thought he had eyes on the cemetery before and knew where it was, but when we got there we walked largely the same areas I had trapsed blindy with my mother and there were no identifiable depressions or stones there that I could see. We hope to add a marker for that cemetery too and maybe have the radar guys come out and do their thing, but its hard when we are not sure exactly where it is. Schulz said at one time it had a stone wall around at least part of it. There was some cement chunks under a tree discarded, not sure if that was part of that wall, but could be from the putt putt so hard to say. I want to go back and look around another day to try to find something. There is also supposed to be evidence of indian burial mounds around that area since Tuscarora lived by the Neuse River there as well.

after that, he rode me around to look at the neuse recreation area on Old Milburnie I hadnt known existed and showed me the damn there and we looked at the plaque installed by the daughters of the Revolution marking the site of Clay Hill Plantation and he took me over to an old abandoned clubhouse lodge deep in the woods behind a trailer park by the river where the KKK meetings allegedly took place presumedly after the clay Hill house, the original clan meeting site, burned down in 1923. THe lodge sits in sad disrepair, a place that could be fixed up and put to good use by the trailer park residents, but it seems now to just be a place to store old junk. A neat building of wooden beams and round stones.

Correspondence:

Yesterday I also reached out to someone affiliated with Wake County Historic Preservation who i saw on an article regarding the proprosed move of the Hinton family cemetery plot and they wre trying to deny the Hinton descendants request to have it moved stating that they wanted to let the majora nd his family rest in peace - arguing that their graves should be “incorporated” into any construction. i thought maybe they had a hand in the incorporationg of the slave cemetery in my neighborhiood’s constructio then. So i sent an email to the contact there, Terry Nolan, to see if he had any information about it he could share.

His response:

Dear Ms. Chiari,

Thank you for your email. I consulted with our staff member who processes grave removals and he did a little research on this particular site. He believes that the subject cemetery is intended to be permanently preserved within the open space/recreation area for this subdivision (which was platted in 2003). The cemetery (and the subdivision) is located within the town limits so anything related to the subdivision or the cemetery must be processed through the town. Town staff may know more about any private efforts to restore and recognize the value of the site. I encourage you to contact Jason Brown with Knightdale. [email protected]

The Historic Preservation Commission has a small budget of a few thousand dollars that is used for small studies as well as plaques for landmark properties. They are meeting today and I will bring this up with them and get back to you.

Regarding the Hinton family cemetery’s relocation—the county did not make any financial contribution to the moving of that cemetery, the reconstruction of the stone wall at the reinterment site, or the rededication ceremony at Oakwood Cemetery. The county involvement was limited to the formal review and processing of the grave removal petition made Board of Commissioners via a public hearing. If you are interested in learning more about that process please feel free to contact Keith Lankford at (919 612-6744) in our office.

Sincerely,

Terry Nolan

Hi Summer,

The members of the Historic Preservation Commission offered up some ideas. Not exactly sure what you need but if you are looking for assistance with research and documentation Sarah Koonts with the state archives can help. Also, Wake County’s Olivia Raney Library has historical documents. The state has grants for research and interpretive signage. There is no public funding for restoration that our board members know of, however, they mentioned Cary Christian Church privately raised funds for a project and may be good to talk to.

Best wishes,

Terry

Okay, so that provided an idea about some potential funding and he gave me a contact for the town. I emailed that person and have yet to receive a response. I also havent received a response from Widewaters yet.

After I returned home and licked my wounds, it was clear that do anything further on this project, we need to open a dialogue with WideWaters that owns the land there. Keith suggested i try the NextDoor app to see if any members on it would know who to talk to about it. I grabbed the 5 member association member list from the association side and went to work. 3 of the 5 were on the app and I sent them all the same message letting them know what I wanted to do and asking who to talk to.

Benjamin was the first to response, but he wasnt very helpful. He said to try to contact the town, but i let him know i did that already and since widewaters owns that land anyway, we probably need their approval to do anything. He said he’d talk to the board and get back to me within the week on who to speak with about it.

One other of the 3 responded and basically said the same.

so now we wait. Who do i talk to next. Whose door do i beat down next? I already have a Plan B and C if they tell me no. If they tell me no, then we go to the media. if they tell me no, then we go to the BLM advocates and the papers and local community and the churches until we get some pitchforks and torches and make something happen.

i’m really hoping it wont come to any of that. I’d like to quietly get the approval, assemble the interested parties who want to help and clean it up, clear it out, get the ground penetrating radar guy in there to do what he does and mark the graves and get the funding for the plaque marker and have that placed identifying the cemetery and work out who will maintain it and the funding for where that would come from.

I just need the GREENLIGHT. I am really grateful for all of the help from those i’ve reached out to thus far. I hope that this can be started sincerely in the very near future.

0 notes

bluethepaladin · 7 years

Note

1: Hi! I just recently found your Tumblr page and can I say I really love your discussions on Lance and him being Cuban? I'm not actually a part of the fandom (because I haven't actually watched the series yet) but I have seen some fanworks and I honestly want to read something with the prompts you made? —

2: Like Lance and his Cuban identity and his Altean identity conflicting with each other? It made me wonder of an Altean Lance who grew up in Cuba and Allura and Coran being so excited to have someone to relate with but he can't because he didn't grow up as Altean? So maybe he has some of their abilities, sure, but imagine the difficulty in understanding of Allura and Coran when Lance doesn't relate or understand, forgetting his identity has been shaped by his culture? —

3: That his opinions, his beliefs, have been shaped by how he and society interacted with one another? Or does Lance feel conflicted because he was already different when he went to the Garrison, being the only or one of the only Cubans in his class, and he thought that, hey, at least in Voltron I'm with four other humans who understand my situation in a universe of aliens? —

4: But then he turns out to be not even human and the only one who could maybe understand his situation is Keith, with him being half Galra and all. But at the same time, does Keith understand? Do they realize that they're forgetting who Lance really is by just seeing him as Altean? As forgetting that Lance is a mixture of his past and his experiences? —

5: Sorry for the long message. I just got so excited because I love reading fics like those and I'm kind of sad that there aren't more fics like those? That explore that? Especially coming from someone who lives in a country where we have this inferiority complex and believe that foreign things are better, and are only getting a bit better now.

6: So coming from someone who has trouble speaking in her native tongue because English was thought to be better, from someone who was teased for her accent when she tries to speak in her native tongue, from someone who was brought up to believe that foreign is always better than local, this is a topic that I hold dear to me and I would love to read a story that would have something like my experience in their story. So thank you so much for sharing those discussions.

7: Again, sorry for rambling, and if I knew the characters or the source material more, I would love to take a crack in writing something that tackles it. Sadly, I am a uni student and I have no time.

First of all, NO PROBLEM! Like rambling is good and I’m actually pretty touched that some of my posts made you think about something enough to even ramble in the first place?

Just to be clear, in canon, Lance is human. Altean!Lance is purely a fanon invention. You make an excellent point, a good, well-written Altean!Lance fic should read like a multiethnic or biracial fic. Both sides of him should be fleshed out fully.

Altean!Lance is just not my jam, so I probably won’t write this either. But to anybody else, consider this a prompt. We want an Altean!Lance fic that doesn’t erase Lance’s Cuban identity and deals with Lance coming to terms with both his sides. And since Altean culture is dead he’d have to deal with that, too. You can use these posts for reference.

#voltron #voltron prompts #lance #vld Lance #altean!Lance #langst #Anonymous

42 notes · View notes

voidwaren · 7 years

Text

So I saw this beautiful art strip by @linipik and I thought, “Holy shit I want to write something like that.”

Except I didn’t totally, because my image went a little haywire. I don’t usually write (read: have never written) Voltron. The idea is thanks to that art piece, though, so make sure you’ve checked it out first.

“Do you think people ever wonder what happened to us?” Pidge asks one day at the table.

It had been a solemn day to start, but now a blanket of disquiet falls over her and the three seated with her. Keith sets his fork down, Lance stops his chewing. Hunk’s already finished, but he sits up from his reclined position to give Pidge his attention.

Pidge pushes her food around, eyes on her plate, then glances up through her eyelashes when no one speaks.

“It’s crossed my mind,” Hunk admits.

“Yeah,” Keith mumbles.

“Me, too,” adds Lance, once he’s swallowed the food in his mouth. “More than once, actually. I wonder what the Garrison told my parents.”

Hunk looks over at Lance sadly. “I wish we had some way of sending a card or a message so they know we’re alive, Mom’s probably been freaking out since we vanished.”

“We don’t even know where we are,” says Keith.

“Corran probably does,” Hunk points out, then frowns. “But I bet we’re really far away.”

Lance’s head drops into his hands. “I’d thought about it more than once, how it must be for them when we just disappeared off the face of the planet one day without a word, but...”

He trails off. Silence coats the air, filled with the unspoken thought of Shiro, and then broken by Hunk in a whisper, “Now we have an idea of what it’s actually like to be in their shoes.”

“What if we don’t find him?” Pidge says, the first thing she’s said since she started the conversation, and the thick sound of her voice alerts them all that she’s on the verge of tears. “What if we don’t find anyone? What if we never get to go back home?”

And then the tears fall, sliding down her face and dripping onto her abandoned food. Hunk pushes his chair back and stands, going around the table to Pidge’s side and unceremoniously pulling her up into a hug. Her glasses skew, but she turns to press her face into Hunk’s shoulder.

After a moment, Lance follows suit, and Keith is right behind him. They crowd her in her seat, a mass of arms and faces pressed into shoulders and backs, but it feels right to them all. There’s a piece missing, and they can sense it’s not complete, but it feels right to them all the same.

“We’ll find him, Pidge,” Lance declares, muffled slightly from where his chin is half-against the curve of Pidge’s jutting shoulder blade. “We’ll find all of them, and then we’ll find our way home.”

“But what if we can’t?” The defeat in Pidge’s voice is unmistakable. It breaks them all, just a little, but they know they’ll build back. They must.

“We’ll keep looking until we do,” promises Keith. He sounds angry, upset, pushed back into his raw state of loss. His arms tremble. “They have to be out there somewhere.”

“What if there isn’t a point?” Pidge persists. Because she’s been at this for so long already, and she’s losing hope. Because maybe she’s not as smart or strong or capable as she thought she was when she first decided to hunt down her father and brother.

Because maybe it was a lost cause from the very start, and she’s been a fool for dragging this on so long.

“We have to try,” Lance says, and Hunk nods at him once. The mass of arms tightens, and Lance raises his head to rest his chin on top of Pidge’s head. She sniffles in response, and, just like that, hope blooms once again. “Even if it’s all we can do, we have to at least try.”

#Voltron #Pidge Gunderson #Keith Kogane #Hunk Garrett #Lance McClain #Drabble

4 notes · View notes

luckygirl-blog1 · 4 years

Text

memories of 1977

1977 The first Apple Computer goes on sale. Quebec adopts French as the official language. Jimmy Carter is elected as the President of United States and the first oil flows through the Trans Alaskan Oil Pipeline. The precursor to the GPS system in use today is started by US Department of defense. Elvis Presley Dies from a heart attack aged 42.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZ-k3oblIM8

British Public sector trade unions including Firefighters strike for wage increases over the 10% ceiling imposed by the British government. The first ever Quadraphonic concert in London by Pink Floyd. The first commercial flight Concord London to New York. NASA space shuttle makes its first test flight off the back of a jetliner. Voyager I and Voyager II are launched unmanned to explore the outer solar system.

When Britain’s fire crews walked out on national strike, members of the public were advised to take matters into their own hands. Although the armed services, with their so-called "Green Goddess" fire engines, were drafted in, they were seen by many as a last line of defence.

As the strike took hold in the encroaching winter of November 1977, people were encouraged to keep buckets of sand and water at home. And at a time when many still relied on open fires for heating, householders were advised to have their chimneys cleaned. The London Fire Brigade issued its own 11-point safety guide, advising checking for smouldering cigarettes and leaving only essential electrical appliances like fridges plugged in. The strike began on 14 November and lasted for nine weeks, running through to the New Year. At the time fire fighters worked a basic 48-hour week, for which they were paid an average of £71.10, which amounted to £3,700 a year.

The fire fighters finally agreed to settle for a 10% pay rise with guarantees of future increases and they went back to work on 16 January.

Silver Jubilee of 1977

The Queen’s first biggie was the Silver Jubilee of 1977. The two previous monarchs had not reached this milestone; the Queen’s father King George VI died after only 15 years and two months on the throne and her uncle Edward VIII did not even make it to a year.

Britain in 1977 had recently experienced power cuts, a forerunner of the Winter of Discontent.

No wonder the country was in the mood for a party. But celebrations were different then. Children’s parties used to consist of jelly and ice-cream and Pass The Parcel; now they want a cabaret show and expensive goody bags. Similarly, the Diamond Jubilee involves a cast of thousands and many hours of airtime each day over the better part of a week. The Silver Jubilee coverage consisted of less than seven hours in total, mostly on Jubilee day itself, with not a single celebrity in sight – unless you count Margot (actress Penelope Keith) from The Good Life presenting Jubilee Jackanory.

The Royal Family was smaller 35 years ago so the Queen had to carry out all her own Jubilee engagements.

She went on a royal progress through Britain, much of it by car, so that she could be seen by as many people as possible, even if time did not allow for a walkabout in every town. Late in Jubilee year, a newspaper published a picture of her looking weary, with the comment “Well she IS 51.” And now here she is doing just as much at 86.

The tide was already turning in 1977 as that was the first year when foreign cars outsold British ones.

In Silver Jubilee year leisure for most people meant watching your newly-acquired (but in many cases rented) colour TV. There were only three channels – BBC1, BBC2 and ITV – but somehow there was always something worth watching. The Professionals was a favourite, starring Martin Shaw (sporting a bubble perm) and Lewis Collins and their Ford Capri, as was The New Avengers, a revival of the Sixties series, starring Joanna Lumley and her Purdey hairdo, a modern take on the pudding bowl. Roots, the ground-breaking mini-series tracing a black man’s family history from capture in West Africa, was broadcast in April 1977. Morecambe and Wise ruled the comedy roost. A staggering 28million – half the population at the time – watched their 1977 Christmas show, a figure unlikely to be exceeded.

Sadly the same might be said of Britain’s Wimbledon hopes. No one has really come close since Virginia Wade won in Silver Jubilee year in front of the Queen.

Before videos and DVDs, people still went to the cinema and in December 1977 everyone wanted to see Star Wars, a new kind of fantasy film about “a galaxy far, far away”, that spawned the genre that now includes The Lord Of The Rings and even Harry Potter. Meanwhile the pop world was fragmenting. On one side there was glam rock and disco; on the other, punk. The Sex Pistols’ snarling version of God Save The Queen was released in Jubilee week and their manager Malcolm McLaren said it was proof that there were “barbarians at the gate”.

They never made it through. The popularity of the Royal Family surged in Silver Jubilee year just as it had in Diamond Jubilee year.

We are not the same country we were in 1977. But perhaps we are not entirely different either.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=CV3hC1-JVbg

Cost of Living

In 1977, 56 per cent of Britons owned one car or more, 74 per cent owned a washing machine. 50 per cent of people had central heating in their homes. Computers, DVD and CD players were non-existent. A couple with two children had an average net income of £363 a week. A single pensioner received an income of £180 a week. We spent 25 per cent of our income on food. We spent 10 per cent of our income on leisure and holidays. In 1977, 93 per cent of men aged 25-54 were in work. However female employment in the same age group was 59 per cent. 26 per cent of jobs were in manufacturing.

Despite the vast majority of adults thinking that things were better in the 1970s, figures from that era suggest that life was not easy.

1977: Star Wars fever hits Britain

Thousands of people were flocking to cinemas in the UK to watch the long-awaited blockbuster, Star Wars – a movie which is already setting US box offices alight. Bracing the cold weather, young and old queued from 0700 GMT in London at the Dominion, and Leicester Square cinemas, to snatch up non-reserved tickets which were otherwise booked until March.

Star Wars, which was first released in America seven months ago, has taken audiences by storm and outstripped last year’s blockbuster Jaws to gross $156m (£108m) at the box office. Carrie Fisher, Sir Alec Guiness and little known Harrison Ford star in this fairytale set in space. Produced by Gary Kurtz, written and directed by George Lucas who directed American Graffitti, the U-classified sci-fi film is a classic epic of good versus evil. It has enthralled audiences under a dazzle of special effects with wizards, heroes, monsters in "a galaxy far, far away".

The 900 people involved in the film included giants, dwarfs, artists and the man who built machines for James Bond. Many of the optical special effects were developed in California by Industrial Light and Magic, a George Lucas company. The on-stage special effects were put together at Elstree studios in Britain. Filming took the cast to Tunisia, Death Valley California, Guatemala and the EMI soundstage at Elstree.

The build-up and hype has led to store wars over Star Wars with products including T-shirts, sweets, jig-saw puzzle, watches and food to name but a few. Mr Lucas has published a paperback version and Marvel comics have produced a special edition to meet the thirst for Star Wars’ merchandise. But for those queuing today nothing will satisfy them but a chance to see the film itself – easy targets for touts trying to sell £2.20 tickets for £30.

1977 The Murders of the Yorkshire Ripper

5 February – 28-year-old homeless woman Irene Richardson is murdered in Leeds, at almost the exact location where prostitute Marcella Claxton was badly injured nine months ago. Police believe that this murder and attempted murder may be connected, along with the murders of Wilma McCann, Emily Jackson and the attempted murders of at least three other women.

Near the body, the police discovered an important clue. The killer had driven his car onto the soft ground of Soldiers Field. The police were able to determine the tire marks as being two India Autoway tires, a Pneumant, and an Esso 110, all cross-ply. With a rear track width of between 4′ 1 1/2" and 4′ 2 1/2", the number of vehicles that it could apply to was twenty-six, including Ford Corsairs. A staggering 100,000 vehicles in West Yorkshire would have to be checked, and before the killer changed any of his tires.

23 April – Prostitute Patricia Atkinson is murdered in Bradford; she is believed to be the fourth woman to die at the hands of the mysterious Yorkshire Ripper.

Patricia Atkinson, aged 32, a prostitute, was the second murder victim in 1977 by Peter Sutcliffe. To the police, the Leeds killer had now expanded his territory to include Bradford. A blood sample showed that Patricia Atkinson had consumed about twenty measures of spirits. The police also found a bloody foot print on a bottom bed sheet from a size seven Dunlop Warwick wellington boot, which matched the foot prints found at the Emily Jackson murder scene. It was clear, from this, and from the injuries sustained, that the Yorkshire Ripper had now expanded his territory to include Bradford. As well, for what would be the only time, he had committed a murder indoors.

26 June – 16-year-old shop assistant Jayne McDonald is found battered and stabbed to death in Chapeltown, Leeds; police believe she is the fifth person to be murdered by the Yorkshire Ripper. About 30 yards into Reginald Street, near an adventure playground, Sutcliffe struck Jayne MacDonald with the hammer on the back of the head. After she fell down, he then dragged her, face down, about 20 yards into the corner of the play area. Her shoes made a "horrible scraping noise" along the ground as he dragged her. He hit her again with the hammer and then pulled her clothes up and stabbed her several times in the chest and in the back.

The slaying of a young girl, not connected to the prostitute trade, an "innocent", brought not only national attention to the case, and outrage from the public not seen in the earlier murder cases, but also caused Chief Constable Ronald Gregory to appoint his most senior detective, Assistant Chief Constable George Oldfield to be in overall charge of the escalating Ripper murder investigations. Peter Sutcliffe claims to have been shocked when he saw the newspaper headlines that Jayne MacDonald had not been a prostitute as he had assumed.

Jayne’s father, Wilf MacDonald, a former railwayman, was to die two years after her murder, never having recovered from the ordeal of her murder.

10 July – Bradford woman Maureen Long, 42 is injured in an attack believed to have been committed by the Yorkshire Ripper in the West Yorkshire city.

Maureen Long had remembered going to the cloak room at the club, and walking towards the city centre. She also remembered his white Ford with the black roof. But the description of her attacker that she was able to provide – white, well-built man, aged 36 or 37, about 6ft. 1in. tall, puffy cheeks, thickish eyebrows, collar-length wiry blond hair, with noticeably large hands – relieved Peter Sutcliffe of some of his worries about being caught. His only concern was the description of his car by the nightwatchman. In August he sold the white Ford Corsair to Ronnie Barker. When it broke down, Sutcliffe reluctantly took it back, stripped the car down, and redistributed the spare parts around the replacement car he had bought in September 1977, a red Ford Corsair.

10 October – Missing 20-year-old prostitute Jean Jordan is found dead in Chorlton, Manchester, nine days after she was last seen alive. Police believe that the Yorkshire Ripper may have killed her; the first crime outside Yorkshire which the killer has been suspected of.

Jean Jordan, also known as Jean Royle, and a prostitute, was killed on October 1 1977 as the Yorkshire Ripper expanded his territory to include Manchester. The events of the murder resulted in the Yorkshire Ripper leaving a clue that could be (and was) directly traced to him. Sutcliffe would also return to the body nine days later to try and recover the incriminating £5 pound note evidence, and when he failed, would carry out the worst attack and mutilations on any of his victims.

The handbag had not been found on October 10th, as it was just outside the police search area. The £5 note, which Peter Sutcliffe had been searching for on his return visit to Manchester, had finally been found. The incriminating note, the police discovered, had been from a batch issued in pay packets days before the murder.

Unfortunately, the five day delay in its discovery, coupled with the delay caused by the fact the body had not been discovered before Sutcliffe returned to it, and other factors, such as the delay by the police it announcing its discovery and the serial number, meant that too much time had passed to further narrow the search for its owner by any public input (see £5 Note Clue for information about the hunt for the owner of the note).

28 October – Police in Yorkshire appeal for help in finding the Yorkshire Ripper, who is believed to be responsible for a series of murders and attacks on women across the county during the last two years.

14 December – 25-year-old Leeds prostitute Marilyn Moore is injured in an attack believed to have been committed by the Yorkshire Ripper.

Marilyn Moore, a 25-year-old prostitute, survived an attack by Peter Sutcliffe, and provided one of the best photofits of the suspect from a known Ripper victim. As well, a clue found at the scene tied this attack to the Irene Richardson murder. Her description of the car was that is was a dark coloured or maroon vehicle, about the size of a Morris Oxford. Sutcliffe was, in fact, driving his red Ford Corsair. The police found an important clue in the tire track evidence that they found at the scene of the attack on Marilyn Moore. The tire tracks where consistent with the tire track evidence found at the Irene Richardson murder scene, the same India Autoway cross-ply tires were on the front wheels. There was no doubt that the Yorkshire Ripper had been the one who had attacked Marilyn Moore.

1977 Timeline

January–June – The United Knigdom holds the Presidency of the Council of the European Union for the first time.

January – The Ford Fiesta goes on sale in the UK.

1 January – The Clash headline the gala opening of the London music club, The Roxy.

3 January – Roy Jenkins, the Home Secretary, announces he is leaving the House of Commons to become President of the European Commission.

6 January – Record company EMI sacks the controversial British punk rock group the Sex Pistols for their behaviour on ITV’s Today Show, whose presenter Bill Grundy was also dismissed by his employers for inciting them.

10 January – Clive Sinclair introduces his new two-inch screen television set, which retails at £175.

29 January – Seven Provisional Irish Republican Army bombs explode in the West End of London, but there are no fatalities or serious injuries.

4 February – Fleetwood Mac’s Grammy-winning album Rumours is released, featuring songs that include "The Chain", "Don’t Stop", and "Go Your Own Way".

Police discover an IRA bomb factory in Liverpool.

10 February – Elizabeth II visits American Samoa.

The three IRA terrorists involved in the 1975 Balcombe Street Siege in London are sentenced to life imprisonment on six charges of murder.

11 February – Elizabeth II visits Western Samoa.

13 February – Anthony Crosland, Foreign Secretary, is seriously ill in hospital after suffering a stroke.

14 February – Elizabeth II visits Tonga.

16–17 February – Elizabeth II visits Fiji.

17 February – George Newman, chairman of Staffordshire County Council, is sentenced to 15 months in prison for corruption.

22 February – David Owen, 38, becomes the youngest post-Second World War Foreign Secretary, succeeding the late Anthony Crosland, who died 3 days earlier.

22 February – 7 March – Elizabeth II visits New Zealand.

28 February – State Opening of the Parliament of New Zealand, by Elizabeth II.

1 March – James Callaghan threatens to withdraw state aid to British Leyland unless it puts an end to strikes.

7–30 March – Elizabeth II visits Australia.

8 March – State Opening of the Australian Parliament, Canberra by Elizabeth II.

12 March – The Centenary Test between Australia and England begins at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

14 March – The government reveals that inflation has pushed prices up by nearly 70% within three years.

15 March – British Leyland managers announce intention to dismiss 40,000 toolmakers who have gone on strike at the company’s Longbridge plant in Birmingham, action which is costing the state-owned carmaker more than £10million a week.

17–23 March – The Prince of Wales visits Ghana.

19 March – The last Rover P6 rolls off the production line after 14 years.

23 March – Government wins a vote of no confidence in the House of Commons after James Callaghan strikes a deal with the leader of the Liberal Party, David Steel.

23–25 March – Elizabeth II visits Papua New Guinea.

29 March – Income tax is slashed to 33p in the pound from 35p in the budget.

31 March – Elizabeth II visits Muscat.

April – Mike Leigh’s comedy of manners Abigail’s Party opens at the Hampstead Theatre, starring Alison Steadman.

2 April – Red Rum wins the Grand National for the third time.

8 April – Punk band The Clash’s debut album The Clash is released in the UK through CBS Records.

11 April – London Transport’s Silver Jubilee buses are launched.

18–30 April – The Embassy World Snooker Championship moves to the Crucible Theatre, Sheffield, and attracts television coverage for the first time.

23 April – National Front marchers clash with anti-Nazi protesters in London.

Prostitute Patricia Atkinson is murdered in Bradford; she is believed to be the fourth woman to die at the hands of the mysterious Yorkshire Ripper.

29 April – British Aerospace is formed to run the nationalised aviation industry.

30 April – Mid Hants Railway reopened.

3 May – HMS Invincible is launched at Barrow-in-Furness by Elizabeth II.

5 May – Silver Jubilee review of the Police at Hendon by Elizabeth II.

Conservatives make gains in local council elections, including winning the Greater London Council from Labour.

7 May – 3rd G7 summit held in London.

Prime Minister of Canada Pierre Elliot Trudeau does a pirouette behind the back of Elizabeth II.

The 22nd Eurovision Song Contest is held in London. With Angela Rippon as the presenter, the contest is won by Marie Myriam representing France, with her song "L’oiseau et l’enfant" ("The Bird and the Child").

13 May – The Silver Jubilee Air Fair is held at Biggin Hill.

15 May – Liverpool F.C. are English league champions for the tenth time.

17 May – Elizabeth II commences her Jubilee tour in Glasgow.

18 May – The UK is among 29 signatories of a Convention on the Prohibition of Military or Any Other Hostile Use of Environmental Modification Techniques.

Elizabeth II visits Cumbernauld and Stirling.

19 May – Elizabeth II visits Perth and Dundee.

21 May – Manchester United win the FA Cup for the fourth time by defeating Liverpool 2-1 at Wembley Stadium in the final. It is their first major trophy since they won the European Cup in 1968.

23–27 May – Elizabeth II visits Edinburgh.

25 May – Liverpool win their first European Cup by defeating the West German league champions Borussia Mönchengladbach 3-1 in the final in Rome.

27 May – Elizabeth II opens the new Air Terminal Building at Edinburgh Airport.

Prime Minister James Callaghan officially opens the M5 motorway, which is now complete with the opening of the final stretch around Exeter, 15 years after the first stretch of the motorway (beginning near Birmingham) was opened.

28 May – Climax of Windsor Silver Jubilee celebrations: Elizabeth II visits the town on her Jubilee tour.

30 May – A gala performance for the Silver Jubilee is held at the Royal Opera House, London.

6–9 June – Jubilee celebrations are held in the United Kingdom to celebrate twenty-five years of Queen Elizabeth II’s reign, with a public holiday on 7 June.

17 June – Wimbledon F.C., champions of the Isthmian League, are elected to the Football League in place of Workington in the Fourth Division.

20 June – Anglia Television broadcasts the fake documentary "Alternative 3". It enters into the conspiracy theory canon.

Seventeen people are arrested during clashes between pickets and police at the Grunwick film processing laboratory.

26 June – 16-year-old shop assistant Jayne McDonald is found battered and stabbed to death in Chapeltown, Leeds; police believe she is the fifth person to be murdered by the Yorkshire Ripper.

4 July – Manchester United manager Tommy Docherty is sensationally dismissed by the club’s directors due to his affair with the wife of the club’s physiotherapist.

7 July – The first episode of the BBC documentary series Brass Tacks is aired, featuring a debate as to whether Myra Hindley should be considered for parole from the life sentence she received for her role in the Moors Murders in 1966.

10 July – Bradford woman Maureen Long, 42 is injured in an attack believed to have been committed by the Yorkshire Ripper in the West Yorkshire city.

11 July – Gay News found guilty of blasphemous libel in a case (Whitehouse v. Lemon) brought by Mary Whitehouse’s National Viewers and Listeners Association.

Don Revie announces his resignation after three years as manager of the England national football team.

12 July – Within 24 hours of resigning as manager of the England national football team, Don Revie accepts an offer to become the highest paid football manager in the world when he is appointed manager of the United Arab Emirates national football team on a four-year contract worth £340,000.

14 July – Manchester United appoint Dave Sexton, manager of Queen’s Park Rangers and previously Chelsea, as their new manager.

23 July – Chrysler Europe launched the Sunbeam, a three-door rear-wheel drive small hatchback similar in concept to the Ford Fiesta and Vauxhall Chevette.

29 July – Finance Act abolishes the collection of tithes.

August – Government introduces voluntary Stage III one-year pay restraint.

10 August – The Queen visits Northern Ireland as part of her Jubilee celebrations under tight security.

Kenny Dalglish, 26-year-old Scotland striker, becomes Britain’s most expensive footballer in a £440,000 transfer from Glasgow Celtic to Liverpool.

11 August – Cricketer Geoff Boycott scores the 100th century of his career for England against Australia at Headingley, Leeds.

12 August – 19 September – Union-Castle Line RMS Windsor Castle (1959) makes the line’s last passenger mail voyage out of Southampton for Cape Town, the last major British ship to operate in the regular ocean liner trade.

13 August – Battle of Lewisham: an attempt by the far-right National Front to march from New Cross to Lewisham in southeast London leads to counter-demonstrations and violent clashes.

15 August – Rioting breaks out in Birmingham during demonstrations against the National Front.

17 August – Ron Greenwood, general manager of West Ham United, who guided the East London club to FA Cup and European Cup Winners’ Cup glory as their team manager during the 1960s, accepts an offer from the Football Association to manage the England team on a temporary basis until December.

23 August – A new, smaller, £1 note is introduced.

September – Ford launches the second generation of its popular Granada model.

6 September – Car industry figures show that foreign cars are outselling British-built ones for the first time. Japanese built Datsuns, German Volkswagens and French Renaults are proving particularly popular with buyers, although British-built products from Ford, British Leyland, Vauxhall and Chrysler UK are still the most popular.

16 September – Rock star Marc Bolan, pioneer of the glam rock movement at the start of the 1970s with T. Rex, is killed in a car crash in Barnes, London, two weeks before his 30th birthday. His girlfriend Gloria Jones, the driver of the car, is seriously injured.

19 September – Manchester United, the English FA Cup holders, are expelled from the European Cup Winners’ Cup after their fans rioted in France during a first round first leg game with AS Saint-Etienne (which ended in a 1-1 draw) five days ago.

26 September – Freddie Laker launches his new budget Skytrain airline, with the first single fare from Gatwick to New York costing £59 compared to the normal price of £186.

UEFA reinstates Manchester United to the European Cup Winners’ Cup on appeal. However, they are ordered to play their return leg against AS Saint-Etienne at least 120 miles away from their Old Trafford stadium.

3 October – Undertakers go on strike in London, leaving more than 800 corpses unburied.

14 October – Fourteen people are injured in a bomb explosion at a London pub.

25 October – Michael Edwardes succeeds Richard Dobson as chief of British Leyland.

27 October – Former Liberal leader Jeremy Thorpe denies allegations of attempted murder of and having a relationship with male model Norman Scott.

Never Mind The Bollocks, Here’s The Sex Pistols is released in the United Kingdom, and the Sex Pistols perform on a boat on the River Thames shortly afterwards, only for the police to wait for them and several arrests occurred, including that of Malcolm McLaren, the band’s manager at the time.

14 November – Firefighters go on their first ever national strike, in hope of getting a 30% wage increase.

15 November – The Queen becomes a grandmother for the first time when Princess Anne gives birth to a son.

The first SavaCentre hypermarket, a venture between J Sainsbury and British Home Stores, opens at Washington, Tyne and Wear.

22 November – British Airways inaugurates regular London to New York City supersonic Concorde service.

3 December – The England football team fails to achieve World Cup qualification for the second tournament in succession.

10 December – James Meade wins the 1977 Nobel Prize in Economics jointly with the Norwegian Bertil Ohlin for their "Pathbreaking contribution to the theory of international trade and international capital movements."

Nevill Francis Mott wins the Nobel Prize in Physics jointly with Philip Warren Anderson and John Hasbrouck van Vleck "for their fundamental theoretical investigations of the electronic structure of magnetic and disordered systems".

12 December – Chrysler Europe announces its new Horizon range of five-door front-wheel drive hatchbacks, which will be built in Britain as a Chrysler and France as a Simca. It will give buyers a more modern alternative to the Avenger range of rear-wheel drive saloons and estates.

Ron Greenwood signs a permanent contract as England manager, despite England’s failure to qualify for next summer’s World Cup. The appointment is controversial, as there had been widespread support for Brian Clough of Nottingham Forest to be appointed.

14 December – 25-year-old Leeds prostitute Marilyn Moore is injured in an attack believed to have been committed by the Yorkshire Ripper.

16 December – The Queen opens a £71million extension to the London Underground which runs to Heathrow Airport.

21 December – Four children die at a house fire in Wednesbury, West Midlands, as Green Goddess fire appliances crewed by hastily-trained troops are sent to deal with the blaze while firefighters are still on strike. 119 people have now died as a result of fires since the strike began, but this is the first fire during the strike which has resulted in more than two deaths.

22 December – The Queen’s first grandchild is christened Peter Mark Andrew Phillips.

25 December – The Morecambe & Wise Christmas Show on BBC 1 television attracts an audience of more than 28 million viewers, one of the highest ever in U.K. television history.

27 December – The much-acclaimed Star Wars film, which has been a massive hit in the United States, is screened in British cinemas for the first time.

Inflation has fallen slightly this year to 15.8%, but it is the fourth successive year that has seen double digit inflation.

Colour television licences exceed black and white licences for the first time in the U.K.

Lynsey De Paul teamed up with Mike Moran as the UK entry for Eurovision in 1977, staged at Wembley Conference Centre, and finished in second place with Rock Bottom.

Music Events

1 January – The Clash headline the gala opening of the London music club, The Roxy.

22 January – Maria Kliegel makes her London début at the Wigmore Hall, with a programme of Bach, Kodály, and Franck.

26 January – Fleetwood Mac’s original lead guitarist, Peter Green, is committed to a mental hospital in England after firing a pistol at a delivery boy bringing him a royalties check.

27 January – After releasing only one single for the band, EMI Records terminates its contract with the Sex Pistols.

4 February – Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours is released; it goes on to become one of the best-selling albums of all time.

15 February – Sid Vicious replaces Glen Matlock as the bassist of the Sex Pistols.

10 March – A&M Records signs the Sex Pistols in a ceremony in front of Buckingham Palace. The contract is terminated on 16 March as a result of the band vandalizing property and verbally abusing employees during a visit to the record company’s office.

2 May – Elton John performs the first of six consecutive nights at London’s Rainbow Theatre, his first concert in eight months. John keeps a low profile in 1977, not releasing any new music for the first year since his recording career began eight years previously.

7 May – Having been postponed from 2 April because of a BBC technicians’ strike, the 22nd Eurovision Song Contest finally goes ahead in London’s Wembley Conference Centre.

11 May – The Stranglers and support band London start a 10-week national tour.

12 May – Virgin Records announces that they have signed the Sex Pistols.

7 June – The Sex Pistols attempt to interrupt Silver Jubilee celebrations for Queen Elizabeth II by performing "God Save the Queen" from a boat on the River Thames. Police force the boat to dock and several arrests are made following a scuffle.

12 June – Guitarist Michael Schenker vanishes after a UFO concert at The Roundhouse in London. He is replaced for several months by Paul Chapman until he appears again to rejoin the group in October.

15 June – The Snape Maltings Training Orchestra makes its London debut at St John’s, Smith Square.

25 June – The Young Musicians’ Symphony Orchestra of London, conducted by James Blair, gives the belated première of William Walton’s 1962 composition Prelude for Orchestra.

6 July – During a Pink Floyd concert before a crowd of 80,000 at Olympic Stadium in Montreal, Bassist Roger Waters having become increasingly irritated by a fan until he exerts his frustration by spitting on him. The incident becomes the catalyst for the group’s next album, The Wall.

22 July – The first night of The Proms is broadcast by BBC Radio 3 for the first time in quadraphonic sound.

26 July – Led Zeppelin cancels the last seven dates of their American tour after lead singer Robert Plant learns that his six-year-old son Karac has died of a respiratory virus. The show two days before in Oakland proves to be the band’s last ever in the United States.

1 September – World première at the Royal Albert Hall in London of the expanded version of Luciano Berio’s Coro.

16 September – T.Rex frontman Marc Bolan is killed in an automobile accident.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=CgCNm6eNLAw

27 October – The Sex Pistols release their controversial album Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols, which would be their only studio album.

Number-one singles

Wings – Mull Of Kintyre Abba – Name Of The Game Baccara – Yes Sir I Can Boogie David Soul – Silver Lady Elvis Presley – Way Down The Floaters – Float On Brotherhood Of Man – Angelo Donna Summer – I Feel Love Hot Chocolate – So You Win Again The Jacksons – Show You The Way To Go Kenny Rogers – Lucille Rod Stewart – I Dont Want To Talk About It Deniece Williams – Free Abba – Knowing Me Knowing You Abba – The Name of the Game Manhattan Transfer – Chanson DAmour Leo Sayer – When I Need You Julie Covington – Dont Cry For Me Argentina Johnny Mathis – When a Child is Born David Soul – Dont Give Up On Us

www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYwR7_EHPA0

Television

Mike Yarwood’s 1977 Christmas Show tops the list of most-watched Christmas programmes.

27 March – Jesus of Nazareth, a British-Italian television miniseries dramatizing the birth, life, ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus based on the accounts in the four New Testament Gospels debuts on British television, starring Robert Powell as Jesus.

28 March – Yorkshire Television and Tyne Tees Television launch a nine-week breakfast television experiment. It is credited as being the United Kingdom’s first breakfast television programme, six years before the launch of TV-am and the BBC’s Breakfast Time. Both programmes run at the same time, with Tyne Tees, Good Morning North, and Yorkshire’s Good Morning Calendar. Both programmes finish on Friday 27 May.

22 April – The original series of motoring programme Top Gear begins as a local magazine format produced by BBC Midlands from its Pebble Mill Studios in Birmingham, presented by Angela Rippon and Tom Coyne. In 1978 it is offered to BBC2 where it airs until 2001. In 2002 the series is relaunched in a new format.

7 May – The 22nd Eurovision Song Contest is held in London. With Angela Rippon as the presenter, the contest is won by Marie Myriam representing France, with her song "L’oiseau et l’enfant" ("The Bird and the Child").

6 June-9 June – Television viewers in Britain and around the world watch live coverage of the celebrations of the Silver Jubilee of Elizabeth II, while the soap opera Coronation Street features an elaborate Jubilee parade in the storyline, having Rovers’ Return Inn manageress Annie Walker dress up in elaborate costume as Queen Elizabeth I. Ken Barlow and "Uncle Albert" play Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tenzing respectively.

20 June – Anglia Television broadcasts the fake documentary "Alternative 3". It enters into the conspiracy theory canon.

7 September – The Krypton Factor makes its debut on ITV.

18 September – The occasional ITV bloopers programme It’ll be Alright on the Night is first aired.

1 October – Ian Trethowan succeeds Charles Curran as Director-General of the BBC.

26 November – Southern Television broadcast interruption: Just after 5.10pm in the Southern Television ITV region, a hoaxer hijacks the sound of Independent Television News from the IBA transmitter at Hannington, Hampshire, and broadcasts a message claiming to be Asteron of the Ashtar Galactic Command. Thousands of viewers ring STV, ITN or the police for an explanation; the identity of the intruder was never confirmed.

25 December – Both the Mike Yarwood Christmas Show and The Morecambe & Wise Christmas Show on BBC 1 attracts an audience of more than 28 million, one of the highest ever in U.K. television history.

Scum, an entry in BBC1’s Play for Today anthology strand, is pulled from transmission due to controversy over its depiction of life in a Young Offenders’ Institution (at this time known in the U.K. as a borstal). Two years later the director Alan Clarke makes a film version with most of the same cast, and the original play itself is eventually transmitted on Channel Four in 1991.

Colour television licenses exceed black and white licenses for the first time in the U.K.

First edition of BBC Top Gear

www.youtube.com/watch?v=v-y-FgOikNQ

BBC1

2 January – Wings (1977–1978) 15 February – Take Hart (1977–1983) 12 April – Citizen Smith (1977–1980) 7 July – Brass Tacks (1977–1988) 7 September – Secret Army (1977–1979) 17 October – Des O’Connor Tonight (1977–2002)

ITV

11 January – Robin’s Nest (1977–1981) 8 May – King of the Castle (1977) 18 May – A Bunch of Fives (1977–1978) 6 September – You’re Only Young Twice (1977–1981) 7 September – The Krypton Factor (1977–1995, 2009–2010) 18 September – It’ll Be Alright On The Night (1977–present) 30 December – The Professionals (1977–1983)

Posted by brizzle born and bred on 2017-11-23 09:32:34

Tagged: , memories of 1977 , 1977

The post memories of 1977 appeared first on Good Info.

0 notes

hapskyscribbles · 6 years

Text

First Flight

The Black Lion got heavily damaged during the last fight against Zarkon, and it needs the sky’s elemental essence to be repaired. However, this essence can only be found in the core of a Namika, a majestic creature guarding the skies of an ancient planet. So the Paladins visit one of the villages on this planet and try to get help from the natives, but they are told the Namika were extinct thousands of years ago. All hope seems lost, until Natie asks the Paladins to jump, and Shiro does.

Written for the Potential Zine

Read on AO3

Shiro feels weird, on their way towards this ancient planet. Feels weird to leave Black behind, injured and hurt. Feels strangely lonely. The planet they are approaching is home to his element and it feels out of place to feel like returning, when in this reality, he has never been there before.

Shiro's element is the sky, Allura had told him. His, and that of his Lion. He can feel the major hole in his soul, now that Black's elemental core got damaged and removed, can feel his Lion's wound. It irritates him to miss a part of himself he never knew he had. It's a dull pain, a mix of feeling lovesick and homesick, and feeling alone.

He keeps silent, ignores Keith's and Lance's bickering in Red, and when Pidge asks him if he is okay, he nods.

From afar, the planet looks like one big cloud. But as Red and Green come closer, Shiro can see cliffs and islands the colour of milky pearls poking through the white mass. Entering the atmosphere, no clouds hinder their view. The sky is clear. The clouds hover on the ground, moving in slow waves, like an ocean of fluffy snow. Pidge is left speechless, Keith and Lance are in total awe as well.

But Shiro can only feel strangely detached. It sure is a pretty planet! The sea of clouds is impressive, and so are the huge dazzling cliffs. Still, it's not the sensation of seeing something new and amazing that strikes him. It's the familiarity this place emits. The feeling of déjà vu tricking him to believe he has been here once before.

Maybe he has, he wonders. Maybe this part of him he didn't knew existed, that Guardian Spirit of the Sky within him, maybe this is it's home. He smiles sadly at that. Good to know, that if anything should happen to their earth, the Paladins of Voltron will have a home amongst the stars waiting for their return.

This planet is home to the Namika. Coran had described them as majestic creatures, elegant and graceful. Gracious and kind. Shiro hopes they will be able to help them. He does not know what the elemental core exactly is they need to repair black with, Coran had only mentioned it being similar to quintessence, but instead of solely consisting of energy, the Namika's core is pure essence of the sky's element. Black's element.

He wonders what they are like, creatures that carry an elemental essence within themselves. So far, they haven't seen anything on this planet that could be a living being. Or homes and houses of living beings. Maybe they don't live in houses, Shiro thinks absentmindedly. But then Lance calls out, “There!” and proves him wrong.

The Namika do live in small dome like dots, made of the cliff's material. White circles arranged in an even bigger circle near the cloudy sea, a wide empty middle in the centre of the town. It is deserted, the town. Like the skies. No Namika flies, or hustles busily on the ground. Pidge and Keith land their Lions outside of the village, to not startle the natives. Shiro doesn't know if there even is someone to startle. Maybe the Namika had left this planet.

They inspect the round houses. No windows, and oddly enough, no doors. Lance knocks, but shrugs as he gets no answer. Keith sighs.

“Maybe they are not here?” he asks the same question Shiro had asked himself as well. “Maybe Coran's information is wrong, I mean, it is a few thousands years old...”

Lance nods at that, but Shiro shakes his head. It feels like home, and as disturbing as it is to feel at home in a foreign place, it also means that this planet hosts life. There can't be an atmosphere of home if it's no one's home at all.

So Shiro shakes his head, and his companions smile quietly. There is something to it, to this planet, that mutes their desire to speak. Lance and Keith walk in silence, Pidge doesn't mutter to herself. Shiro's thoughts are placid. They search the village for any signs of inhabitants, a trace, something. Anything.

They find nothing, and when the day's light starts to dim slowly, they sit down in the town's centre. There is no feeling of haste within them, no disappointment either. They don't expect the houses to start glowing, like there has been light lit inside, behind windows they haven't been able to see. But they are also not surprised when they do.

The town comes to life, warm yellow lamps the traces in the ground they have been looking for earlier. An old lady steps out of one of the domes, a door like opening melts out of the wall, and other people follow suit. They surround them, the foreigners in their circle.

The Paladins are welcomed with a small grin, a tiny crook in the corner of the old lady's lips, and a nod to shoo them inside. She wears a white robe over a deep blue shirt and some straight cut jeans. Shoes similar to black sneakers. Her hair is made into a loose bun. A weird outfit, familiar, but also slightly off. It's strange.

A table with tea and sweet bread awaits them inside, it smells delicious and looks fantastic. Comfortable chairs around the table, on which some other natives had sit down already. The lady gestures for them to sit as well.

“Thanks!” Lance beams at her and does as he is told, Keith takes the seat next to him wordlessly. Pidge nods, smiles, and sits down on Keith's other side. Shiro stands. He has no tears in his eyes, but his heart sure feels like it. If it could shed tears, it would.

“Thank you,” he says in a hushed, grateful voice. “For inviting us in your home like this...”

The lady smirks a toothy grin. “Sorry we’ve let you wait,” she says with an old, rough voice. Warm and friendly. Shiro sits down next to Lance.

“I'm the chief, you can ask me for whatever it is you need,” she laughs and offers tea and bread. Like a doting grandmother, but not quite. Again, it's so very familiar, which makes the feeling of something being just a tad bit off so strange.

“We came to this planet because we are looking for a Namika's core,” Shiro explains. “We are the Paladins of Voltron, and the Black Lion's elemental essence got damaged in our fight against Zarkon.” The chief lady hums understandingly. Although it also sounds sad, as if she were sorry. In her eyes glitters an apology, she worries her thin lips.

“Here I brag about helping, but I can't help you with that I'm afraid,” she mumbles slowly, creaks in her voice. She really looks sad, as if she had been looking forward to help their guests. Her face, traced by time’s harsh treatment, crinkles up in wrinkles. “The Namika, the creatures guarding our skies in ancient times, are no longer to be found on this planet like they have been.”

The news are shattering, but also not. Not really. Lance’s shoulders slump down and he mutters a small “Oh…” but then, he accepts defeat so easily. Keith and Pidge just nod, as if she had been telling them the sun won’t shine today, it’s going to rain. Something within Shiro stirs. He politely accepts the chief’s offer to stay as long as they want though, thanks her for her hospitality, for the hospitality of her people.

“Natie can show you around if you’d like?” she says and at here words, a young native steps forth. He is relatively tall, but slender. He wears a simple knitted black sweater that’s a tad bit too big for him, black pants and white boots. His hair is of a dark night sky blue, fluffy and airy. His skin is pale and his eyes are of a strong azure hue. He is beautiful, and his heart seems kind.

“Thanks,” says Lance with a good mood and smiles at Natie, who smiles back, eyes closed. It’s the little things, Shiro realises. Small acts that seem so right and seem so wrong. When Natie takes them around the village, Shiro observes the townspeople.

There are no children, but some natives still act like they were. Laughing, chasing each other. It’s off, but maybe their species just ages slower? Shiro really should stop comparing them to humans, but it’s so hard when they are so alike. They greet each other with a hug, Shiro has never seen so many people hugging each other in one place. But maybe they just show affection more openly? It feels weird though, still feels weird. Suddenly the village is full of life.

Natie tells them about little somethings, Pidge listens closely. Lance and Keith have stopped, have started watching a street musician play on a flute like instrument. He moves his fingers, but there are no holes in the flute. A child’s song melody.

“Why do you fight Zarkon?” Natie asks. Shiro turns his head, sees genuine interest in those clear eyes.

“Because others can’t, and we do. Because no one else would,” he tells him. It feels weird to watch Natie’s eyes. They are of a deep endlessness. They can hold anything, Shiro thinks. Like a big heart can hold many feelings. Natie’s eyes are filled with an empty sky.

“Your Lion lost its core, and you lost your arm,” he hints at the danger coming along with a fight like theirs.

“I haven’t lost my life yet,” Shiro says. He will fight for others, others who can’t or won’t fight for themselves. “I want to live, even if it might not seem like it,” Shiro laughs. “I value life.”

He feels a whisper of warmth in his chest, watching the oddly behaving natives, his oddly behaving comrades. Keith and Lance never did get along this well. Pidge never liked sitting still.

“We value life as well,” Natie follows Shiro’s eyes. “We trust each other with our hearts,” he whispers. Shiro glances back at him.

The chief had greeted them with an attitude much alike to the behaviour of water, Shiro notices. Bending and adapting. Cool and distant. In the chief’s welcoming words had echoed a tone of subtle obedience, a shy submissiveness lies in all of the natives’ manner.

It’s wrong. Humans are the creatures from the blue planet, the planet of water. The water’s characteristics belong to the humans. These people, the natives of this white planet, they try to imitate the water, and fail, because they are not supposed to be like humans.

Natie’s eyes are the only ones caging the skies within them. The only ones that gaze back at him with the unpredictable power of the wind, the only ones that carry the determined strength of the horizon. At the end of the day, Shiro asks to spend the night on this planet, and of course, his wish is granted and they are shown their rooms.

The beds are comfy and warm, the air is mild, but Shiro can’t find sleep. So he silently sneaks out, away from the village. When he halts, he has reached the edge of the nearby cliff.

The night sky is like glass, Shiro thinks. Crystal clear, covered in a hundred galaxies' stars. Standing here, he can see far beyond the horizon, there is no end to the eternal black. A blackness, that is not black at all. It's everything but black. It's full of light. Stars and moons and suns jared in the glassy sky of this planet.

Shiro turns around, and turns and turns and no matter how much he twists his head and neck, the sky remains endless. He is lost in a black shining, twinkling sky. The star's glinting spreads over into his eyes, fills them with the night’s glow. The warmth of home unfurls within his soul. It's calm, steady. Grounding. Grounding to let his mind float weightlessly in the skies.

He sits down and watches the ocean of clouds. Slowly whirling, oh so slowly whirling in circles. It's so easy to believe there is a world down there, beneath the clouds, like it used to be on earth. Shiro knows, there is not. The skies above and the skies beneath him are the only world here. His world.

He is alone, when the sun rises. No one is there with him, no one to warn him. Stars fading and black turning violet, then purple, then lilac, are the only hints of morning's dawn. It comes with a blast.

Night gets blown away by the sun. Red and yellow intermingle in a fiery twirl, and shoot across the sky. Unfiltered, clear, behind air so clean, Shiro gets bathed in the sun's early rays. And suddenly, the day is here.

A blazing sun on the horizon, clouds painted a crimson tigress' orange, wild and untamed. Where the night's calmness has been mere seconds ago, there now is the day's buzzing energy. Shiro's heart had stopped, then had started pounding fast and faster, to keep up with the morning's power rushing through his very being.

It has been only seconds, but seconds that had taken his breath away. The sky calms again, colours itself in a soft rose hue and a light arctic blue. Sole remains of the morning's energy are the flaming red the clouds still are dressed in, and the silent promise of return hovering in the air.

It gives Shiro strength, the strength to have faith in hope. He smiles, as he realises with a beating heart, it's called trust. A sun will rise again, over these endless and everlasting skies. That's what suns tend to do.

When Shiro comes back, the natives have gathered around the chief’s table again. Lance and Keith happily munch away on their breakfast, Pidge seems still half asleep. Shiro wordlessly joins them. No one asks where he has been. Maybe no one had noticed his absence, or maybe they just didn’t bother about it. The bread still tastes sweet.

“We need the elemental essence to repair the Black Lion, and this planet is the one chosen by the Guardian Spirit of the Sky. We need something, anything, from this planet that carries the sky’s spirit, and we need you to help us find it,” Shiro speaks to all of the natives gathered here. “Whether we can form Voltron again or not lies in your hands.”

He repeats himself, he does know so. The chief repeats herself as well, she can’t help finding the ancient creatures, they are not to be found. But then, Lance throws in that it doesn’t have to be a Namika’s core, just something similar. Shiro listens, but his mind is elsewhere. He doesn’t miss anything of importance though, it’s an endless back and forth. The Paladins wonder what could hold as much elemental essence as a core can, the natives make suggestions as well.

“How about a lamp?” one of them beams with excitement about their idea.

“It’ll shatter,” Keith flatly states.

The sweet bread is mentioned, and Hunk would have been delighted if they brought food back with them, but Pidge snorts and shakes her head, saying this conversation turned out being ridiculous. She is right.

Shiro keeps silent, watches the others discuss and gesture animatedly. The only other person not saying anything besides of Shiro is Natie. He too looks like this whole talking is not worth engaging in. He fixes Shiro with his stare. Completely tuning out their surroundings, their gazes lose themselves in each other.

There are no words carrying the message, but Natie hears the unspoken “I trust you” in Shiro’s eyes. The mission Shiro leads his team into is in no way a pleasant one. Shiro knows that very well, and Natie begins to understand too. It’s dangerous and devastating, wounds and pain and sorrow and grief, even darkness and horror and fear are constantly accompanying them while they fight a war they chose to fight for the sake of others.

Shiro asks them to help him get back into this terrifying chaos. He asks them to support, when he could also just ask them to stand up and fight for themselves. He would have the right to do so. He has given enough. Still he wants to give more. What have their people given so far, Natie asks himself. Is it really asked too much of them, to have faith in Shiro?

“Jump,” Natie interrupts the world around him. He says nothing more, no details or instructions or terms. The discussion had died immediately, with how out of place Natie’s word has been. The looks Keith, Lance and Pidge give him are confused ones. The looks his fellow people give him speak of shock and indignation. Natie wouldn’t dare… would he?

It’s with his newfound trust that Shiro blinks at Natie, a bit surprised as well. He slowly turns his head, looks out the open door. The cliff isn’t too far away.

“Jump?” Keith asks like he hadn’t heard right. He didn’t quite catch how jumping is connected to finding a substitute for the core.

“Jump,” is all that Natie asks of the Paladins. He stares directly into their souls, no trace left of trying to follow human’s social standards. It is almost uncomfortable, his intense look, his open eyes. His honest heart, desperately pleading. Lance averts his gaze, as well as Pidge. Not strong enough to last. Keith turns his head to Shiro.

Shiro stares back at Natie, eyes as open as his. Accepting. He doesn’t understand, but he doesn’t know if he has to if he decides to trust Natie. He can feel a warm wave rushing through his veins, like a sun had risen within him. Like drums, humming in his heart. He can’t tell why he suddenly is so excited, but he smiles as he stands up. It’s simple, isn’t it? To just jump.

The energy the morning had awakened with radiates in powerful waves off his figure. Shiro’s steps are unwavering and determined, his eyes are sharp with unyielding willpower. No doubt or qualms, no insecure hesitation, no second thoughts. No looking back and no turning back. He carries his body with the strength it holds for once, his presence is that of a Black Paladin. With every step towards the cliff, Shiro’s smile widens into a grin. His heart beats faster and faster for an unknown reason, and his legs speed up his steps, trying to match his racing heart. Coming into existence with a blast, just like the sunrise has, suddenly wild joy thunders within him, heats his body and shakes his breath. He pushes every bit of energy into his last step, pushes off the ground with all the power he has.

One second, he floats midair. A laugh escapes him and he closes his eyes. This! Exactly this. This is his home. But a second doesn’t last the eternity it feels like it lasts, and Shiro can’t fly. He falls. He lacks the bird’s wings.

Behind him, an atmosphere of silent disbelief shudders through the natives, more so, paralyses his teammates. Their eyes are glued to his back, but too late do the Paladins react. It’s too late when they jerk awake from their haze, alert attention back on their leader.

Lance yelps a short sharp “Shiro!” and Keith abruptly stands up. Natie asks them to jump, and Shiro does. Shiro did. He just jumped.

A choked sound leaves Pidge’s throat at the sight of Shiro vanishing, of Shiro falling. She storms over, nearly hitting the ground, and comes to a stuttering halt at the cliff’s edge. She doesn’t dare look past it. Her eyes shoot back at Natie, silent and confused rage glittering in them. Why had he asked for such an incomprehensible request?

Natie feels like for once in his life, he can’t breathe. No air reaches his lungs. And when finally, he is able to inhale deeply, all he can sense is Shiro’s unfiltered joy. A laugh, a wide smile. Tears welling up. He is shocked as well, he too can’t believe what just had happened. But he wants to. Wants to believe, so he doesn’t give his mind enough time to catch up, and with a smile so much like Shiro’s had been, he sprints towards the cliff, and dives down. He follows Shiro, he jumps, and never has he felt so alive! Had Shiro felt the same? Weightless and brave and free?

Shiro feels a rush of air surpassing him, and when he opens his eyes, he sees Natie. Tears sparkle in his sky blue eyes, tears of utter joy and delight, of happiness and relief. Tears in the air, as they leave a trace in their fall. A smile so wide, it reaches past his eyes, reaches the far horizon. His arm had started to form into a wing, flesh turns into azure scales, feathers like shards of shining glass. Like his body shatters, Natie releases his figure from its human cage. The shape of a Namika breaks free.

Gigantic and majestic wings, lithe body. A long tail, feathery fan on its end. An elegant face. Kind azure eyes. Natie turns, and Shiro gently holds onto his neck, almost hovers over his back. With a sudden jerk, Natie beats his strong wings. Clouds rip apart beneath them and air races past them, as Natie turns their plummet down into a plummet up.

The Paladins as well as the natives, still shaken, had gathered at the edge of the cliff. Gazing down, they had watched with big eyes. Minds too stunned to process what is happening, they get tumbled over and thrown to the ground, by the rush of wind Natie leaves in his wake, as he beats his wings to reach the sky. Shiro clings to his back. Twisting, Natie pushes into a spiral upwards, wings spreading wide with one powerful clasp, breaking free and welcoming the sky’s air in his feathers. Natie’s call is high and melodic, mellow and mild, but of such endless strength, it reaches deep into every soul, leaving hearts stuttering and shaking.

When Natie lands near the cliff, near his people and near the Paladins, when he carefully helps Shiro back onto steady ground, he speaks through the air that connects them all.

“We are the Namika,” he says as he straightens his stance, and opening his wings, he holds himself with pride. “We are the ancient race that once protected the skies of this world.” He lowers himself, almost cowers in front of Shiro and bows his head. “We changed. Haunted and killed by Zarkon’s claws, slaughtered for our quintessence, the skies changed, and we did as well. Now we are shape shifting, taking form of whatever intrudes in our atmosphere, so our home will become a home to our enemies, and we will be seen as one of them.”

In Shiro’s face, all Natie can find is compassion and a quiet apology. No accusation, that the Namika had hidden themselves. There is sadness, for their suffering. Sadness that turns into determination and a promise. Instead of being angry and feeling deceived, Shiro shows them kindness. Natie can feel it, the hitch in Shiro’s breathing, the swelling of his heart.

“The Guardian Spirit reaches everywhere the air reaches, and we share a heart with the sky. It is dangerous, we learned, to expose our hearts, to expose even our true selves to strangers that come to our planet in search of a Namika’s core,” Natie explains. He breathes in, and starts to open his chest. The chief calls out to him, tells him to stop, but Natie won’t listen to his people’s words. He folds his wings protectively around Shiro, urges him closer with his tail.

What Shiro sees is a beating heart and a crystal like orb next to it. Both nestled into bright and smooth cloud like texture. It’s a wound. Scales had ripped apart, leaving sharp edges, deep cuts.

“One gives their core and replaces it with the core of their mate,” Natie whispers. “We trust each other with our hearts, for they hold our soul.” Natie’s fond voice resonates within Shiro’s chest, “Take it.”

Shiro closes his eyes, he feels Natie’s fear and nervousness. He sees a beating heart and a shining soul when he looks up again. His hands are not wavering, but he feels like his whole being trembles as he reaches out for Natie. Sharp edges, deep cuts. Shiro doesn’t stop, his hands get grazed and sliced, blood trickles down, drops into Natie’s own wounds. Light blue scales stained with deep crimson red. Shiro doesn’t stop. He never felt as scared and as resolute at the same time.

He takes hold of Natie’s core with a firm grip. A gasp shudders through Natie, his soul is in Shiro’s wounded hands. And Shiro starts to pull. It hurts and panic arises within him, but Natie forces his chest to stay open. So Shiro can tear his heart out. Shiro’s hands and arms get utterly shredded by Natie’s shard like scales, and he wants it no other way. Natie gives his core, and all Shiro can give in return is his blood. With one last powerful yank Shiro rips his heart out of Natie’s chest.

Natie screeches in agonizing pain, his cry vibrates in Shiro’s chest as well. It hurts. When Natie listened to the elders telling tales of exchanging souls with their mate, he never had thought it would hurt like this. And maybe it doesn’t, but Natie will never know. As it had pained him to open his chest, it takes all he has to close it again. His body screams at him, every fiber of his being tries to fight back, because his chest is left empty. It won’t be filled. There is no soul taking the place where his own has been. With mute suffering he closes his chest. A scar takes shape, like lavender cracks.

Shiro cradles the core in his arms. It weighs heavy and pulses in a soothing warmth. Tears join the droplets of blood. He understands now, Natie’s words of sharing a heart with the Guardian Spirit. This heart is his now. He can feel every breath taken, he can feel Natie’s wheezing and choking, the shocked gasps of the natives. He feels the wind whirling white clouds around, and feels breezes caressing cheeks, tugging at hair and clothes. There is a link between his mind and the air. His soul is in the skies.

With all his desperate gratitude, he reaches out to every being on this planet. Like Natie has spoken to him, he speaks the way the Namika communicate. Through the link connecting him with the skies, he releases his emotions. There are no words, but the sensation of a tight chest, a beating heart, tearful joy, a sighed relief, buzzing excitement, a painful ache. The hole in his soul he had felt when coming here is filled now, but his soul is no longer the only one he can sense. He leaves without giving his thanks, without promising to cherish Natie’s sacrifice. As soon as Natie folds his wings back he dashes towards the Lions.

Words mean nothing, when he can let everyone glimpse into his soul. He doesn’t know if the natives are understanding or forgiving him, he doesn’t dare to intrude into their minds. He just lets them in and hopes. He trusts. Faith makes him believe it’s okay. Everything will be okay. So he makes haste, to give Natie’s soul a new home.

“Quite impatient, are we?” Coran mocks Shiro, who doesn’t even try to defend himself. He keeps pacing up and down, up and down. Like a caged animal, or a child that can’t await to get a present. It had taken days to repair the Black Lion. And finally, finally Coran smiles at him, amused but proud, and nods. “Go, Paladin.”

When Shiro enters his Lion, when he sits down in the pilot’s seat, when his bandaged hands reach out for the handles and his mind reaches out for his connection with Black, a breathy laugh rips from his lungs. The Black Lion’s soft rumble, Natie’s airy chuckle fills his soul.

“Fly,” is all that Natie asks of him.

Thanks for reading :)

#potential zine #zines #vld #vld shiro #vld keith #vld lance #vld pidge #character study #original character #fanfiction

0 notes