#everything! is! pain! (crab rave)

[seacee16]

when petals fall | bangchan

bang chan x original female character

warnings: mention of panic and family death, lots of angst

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!! FULL STORY ON AO3 !!

ch. 13 ~ when it hurts

“Keep up, old man!”

Seungmin raced passed the group from behind, leaving an invisible trail of smoke in his wake as Jeongin and Felix followed behind him in a fit of giggles. The leader could only scoff at the taunt, knowing well that no amount of reprimanding would get him to stop.

The Jeju sun beat down in strong rays, leaving their skin sticky and warm to the touch. They had risen extra early to get a start on the day’s missions; the first one having been relay breakfast making. The mission had gone significantly smoother than the previous meal, with zero eyes harmed. Once everyone had their share and was dressed and ready for the rest of the day, they divided themselves into three uneven groups – the two eldest males, the three youngest, and the three in the middle as their final group – for a scavenger hunt. The kids were instructed to find, and take photos of, various spots and iconic objects around the town without asking any of the locals for assistance.

They split up, each group venturing into different parts of town to begin their search. As the only pair, Sakura was told to stick with Chan and Lee Know as they explored. She stayed silent, focusing on keeping the camera angled towards them at all time in order to not miss anything. The trio made their way through the coastal area, making conversation in between filming. However, while the boys went about their hunting, Sakura couldn’t shake the pressure building in her chest whenever her eyes drifted to the sea. The chain around her neck forming a loose noose, slowly tightening with every passing minute. But then she’d hear her name being called and see Chan smiling at her, and for a moment, she was able to breathe again. Just a moment.

It had been like every other morning for the group, but to Sakura, it was far from normal. It was painful, everything bringing a new memory to the surface. She was grateful for the distraction the boys brought, having to focus on filming Lee Know and Chan as they ventured further into town. It was the small things that set her off. It always was. The smell of fresh lemon poppy muffins from one of the bakeries they had passed. The warm sea breeze on her skin. A ginger stray with dark copper stripes covering its furry body. Her wrist throbbed under the weight of the camera, her arms straining to keep it up for long periods of time.

 

It was around 4 when all eight members finally found their way back to their original meeting point, after a few hours of walking around. Each one raved about which objects from their lists they had managed to find. Crabs and local statues and even a dog that looked hauntingly similar to their own puppy member.

“Did Sakura-noona leave?” Chan opened his mouth to say ‘no’, but stopped when he noticed that the younger male was right. The girl was nowhere to be seen. He looked around, expecting her to jog into their line of sight at any moment, apologizing for getting lost or stepping away to take a phone call or coming back from the bathroom. But she didn’t. It shouldn’t have worried him as much as it did, but when her voicemail filled his ears instead of her cheery ‘hello’, he felt his stomach twist.

“Maybe she went back to the house? We did finish filming earlier than expected,” Felix reassured, seeing the worry in his leader’s eyes.

Chan forced a laugh, nodding along. “I guess so. After all, she isn’t used to following us around like this. She must have tired herself out with all the walking.” His words were unsure.

“But…”

“She would have told me if she was going back.”

Hyunjin stepped forward, placing a hand on Chan’s shoulder as he gave it a comforting squeeze. The dancer could feel how tense he was. They could all see it. He kept looking around and his fingers wouldn’t break away from his bracelets. “We have time. Let’s split up and look for her. We’ll find her in no time, hyung.” A bitter taste filled his mouth. Surely, she couldn’t be too far.

He wanted to be right, for the leader’s sake, and for his own.

<3      <3      <3

The pain in her chest was too great. Trigger unknown, Sakura had become desperate to get away from them. She should have told them. She knew that. But it was so sudden, all she could think about was finding a safe place where none of them would find her for a good while. That’s how she ended up at the beach. The exact one Sakura had sat by with her father so many moons ago.

Dragging her fingers through the sand, Sakura tried to think of what to say. The thought about the weight of the journal left behind in her room, filled with the events of the last year. Everything she had wished to tell him was buried in those pages. Every smile and tear and dream. And yet, she couldn’t think of what to say. The wind was gentle in her ears, caressing her hair as if he were reaching out from the next world, coaxing the words out of her.

“It was never this hard to think of things to speak to you about when you were here,” she finally admitted, eyes focused on the patterns she had created among the pale grains. Ripples and swirls and valleys. “So, this should be easy, right, otōsan?” The ocean gave no reply, the crash of its waves no more than a whisper in the distance.

“I wanted to come sooner. I kept telling myself that I was putting it off because Soo-yun and Lilli were never free, but I think that was just an excuse. I wasn’t ready to face you. But then,” she said, a hint of joy finding her face, “I met someone. Multiple someones, actually. They’re great. I think you’d like them. I know you always thought it was a little silly to find happiness in the people who make music instead of the music itself. But these boys, they’re special. In a good way. In the best way.” Sakura couldn’t stop the smile that made its way onto her face as she spoke about them. “They’re with me here. Chan wouldn’t let me travel alone, so he put together this elaborate plan to get his company to let them come with me. He’s a sly wolf, that one, but he has a heart with a capacity to love greater than I have ever seen. He is kind, and intelligent, and overflowing with talent. I thank the stars every day for knotting our strings, even if it’s just for a brief time.”

The ocean hummed, easing her on. With every rise and fall, Sakura found it easier to speak. Her index finger slipped through the ring at her neck, seeking comfort in its curves. She took a deep breath. “Are you disappointed in me? For leaving?” Her mind drifted to her family in Japan; the looks on their faces when she mentioned leaving. It broke her heart. Her sister had stormed off in the midst of her rage, but her mother had only offered a sad smile. She wouldn’t restrict her daughter to her four walls. Between the two, Sakura had always been closer to her father. And if her departure hurt her, she didn’t show it. Deep down, she knew that her mother understood. She always did, or tried to for her sake. “It didn’t feel right to be surrounded by you even in your absence. I felt you everywhere I went, and yet you were nowhere. I was gasping for breath in a place that couldn’t provide life to a match. You were haunting me, otōsan. Sadness followed me around like a cloud until I finally broke. I wanted to see the sun again. I wanted to breathe again. And I couldn’t do it there. I had to leave.” Her words hung in the air like a thick fog as she waited for a reply she would never get. It had grown dark, the night bringing a new sense of comfort and hiding to the girl.

“I miss you, otōsan.” There it was. The words she had failed to say since he left. The thought had always been there, but the words were never able to make it past her trembling lips. Her throat constricted, swallowing air as if it were tar. With one final gust, her walls collapsed around her.

That was when he spotted her.

The boy had been tasked with checking the shoreline for the missing girl after the group split up. The last half an hour had been nothing but bare dunes and cold whispers from the sea. However, his efforts were rewarded in the end. On the far side of the beach, under nothing but the moon’s protective gaze, sat Sakura. She looked smaller than usual; knees pulled up to her chest as her chin rested on crossed arms. Her eyes were focused on the water sparkling a few feet away.

Pulling out his phone, Hyunjin sent a quick message to the rest of the boys before pocketing his device and making his way to the lonely girl. He lowered himself to the sand besides her and stretched his legs out in front of him, hands tucked away neatly in the front pocket of his hoodie. He wanted to give Sakura her space, but the boy couldn’t help but turn to look at her. She had tied back her hair with the yellow band she never removed from her wrist, the metal sun on the elastic smiling up at the night sky. Small puffs of air would pass her lips every couple of seconds, slow and calm. To anyone else she may have seemed at peace. Simply enjoying the relaxing twilight. But he knew.

Hyunjin hadn’t expected her to be the first of the two to speak, but when she did, he could hear the hidden quiver in her voice.

“I made him worry, didn’t I.”

“We were all worried,” he responded truthfully. She sighed out an apology, chest deflating as she did.

Her words were haunting. “I can’t keep living like this. Nights like these make me not want to live without him besides me,” she mentioned. Whether it was to Hyunjin or the breeze or the crashing waves, he’d never know. But it was something that had to be said out loud. “It’s too much.”

“I think,” he started slowly. “He wouldn’t want you to forget how to live. It may not feel that way, but you don’t need him here to live. Your heart doesn’t need him to beat. And your lungs don’t need him to breathe. There was always going to be a day where he left this world to go to the next, it just came sooner than you had hoped, much sooner than what you were prepared to say goodbye.”

The sound of a sob broke through the rush of the wind, carried down the span of the beach. Hyunjin could feel the air around her trembling as she cried.

Tilting his head back, he looked up at the dark canvas hanging over them and exhales. His lips tilt.

“He’s up there, Sakura. Waiting for you to come back to him. But not today. And hopefully not tomorrow, or the next day, or even next year. There’s still so much you have to do and experience. You need to mix every paint colour perfectly, and perfect every art form known to you. You need to be there for our last comeback, and see Chan-hyung’s hair reach its peak health.” The latter earned a small, spluttered laugh from the girl. He smiled gently. “You need to live through all of the tomorrow’s that he never had, and you need to make them your own. New people. New adventures. New love. You need to do it all. And when you meet him again, years down the line, you tell him about it. Every single moment that he could only witness from a bird’s eye view. And you spend the rest of your new life telling him. But until then, stay.”

Sakura fell silent, her cries softening, but no words left her lips. So, instead of expecting a reply, Hyunjin shifted closer to his friend, reached over, and guided her head until it rested against his shoulder. And there they sat. 10 minutes. 20 minutes. An hour. Two figures in the sand. Underneath the very stars that waited for their inevitable return.

<3      <3      <3

The sound of the gate to the yard opening caused seven pairs of eyes to shoot up from their meal. The group of boys felt relief wash over them when they saw the girl following close behind Hyunjin as he approached them. However, when he went to take a seat with them, she stayed behind. Fingers locked together tightly in front of her, head hanging low.

Keeping her eyes on her sandy sneakers, Sakura took a deep bow. “I’m sorry for making you all worry.” With that, she walked away.

Chan’s stare followed her figure as she headed towards her own room, lingering on the door long after it shuts behind her. He felt his heart squeeze in his chest, remembering the date she had mentioned the night she had gotten drunk and cried. It’s today. The disposable wooden chopsticks strained under his grip as his hand fisted, all restraint disappearing like sand falling through an hourglass.

“Hyung.”

When Chan finally tore his gaze from the door, he was met by worried stares from each of his members. His eyes caught Hyunjin’s in particular. The leader watched as his head tilted subtly in the direction of Sakura’s room, followed by a small nod of assurance.

Go to her.

So, Chan put down the half-eaten meal and stood. “You guys finish up, try not to stay up too late. Be up and ready to head back before noon.” That was all he said before making his way to her bedroom.

He stopped himself from knocking, counting softly before slipping into the room. Once his eyes had adjusted to the dark, he found her lying awake with her eyes focused on the wooden beams exposed along the ceiling. Her fingers played with the ring that hung a little lower than her collarbones. Chan had noticed it before, but felt no need to question the item of jewelery. However, seeing the way her trembling fingers slid over the smooth curve of the gold band, he knew that there was something more to it. He lowered himself onto the open bedding next to her, laying down so that they were shoulder to shoulder.

There was silence. The pair laid side by side in the darkness. Arms touching.

“I’m okay.”

“I know.”

Cold fingers tugged at the gold ring resting against her heart, feeling the smooth metal slip onto her finger before tipping it off again. Too fine to feel beneath her fingertips, her mind drifted to the single word engraved into the inner surface of the band. Her father hadn’t had the chance to live out the forever her parents had planned to spend together. A mere 25 years was all that he got. He should have gotten more. He deserved every forever out there. Sakura couldn’t help but think back to her crying mother, with tears spilling from her content eyes as she thanked their god for those mere 25 years, because for her that was forever enough. Those 25 years were the exact forever that others prayed for. But the young girl was selfish, and she wanted more. More Star Wars marathons on his birthday, and headbutts right before bed. And if not that, then just one minute to hold him for the last time, and to whisper the final goodbye she wasn’t allowed to give.

She squeezed the ring a final time before slipping the chain under the neck of her shirt, tucking the memories away with it. Quietly, Sakura rolled onto her side, facing the watchful eyes of her sun.

“Hi.” Her voice was small, almost childlike. Her smile, the same.

Chan smiled back at her.

“Hello, petal.”

He watched the sad stars flicker in her eyes, trying not to plummet from their dark skies onto the pale cheeks waiting below. But when the two smiling crescents began to wane, and her lips starts to shake, Chan saw the true extent of her sorrow.

“Come here,” he breathed, wasting no time in pulling the girl to his chest.

Sakura made no attempt to fight him, hiding her face against his chest before any tears could spill. His embrace was warm. Her fingers tightened around the material of his sweater in silent desperation. Deep down, she was afraid that he would leave her too. The closer they got, the shorter their time left together felt. Like they were standing with their toes off the edge, the moment right before you tip and gravity drags you down.

She felt his hand trail up her back and into her hair, smoothing out any bumps and rubbing circles into the base of her neck. Sakura sighed before letting her eyes fall close. Soon, her breathing had fallen into rhythm with the movement of his chest beneath her head. Slow rises and steady drops.

Chan’s other hand reached out to her waist cautiously, waiting for any indication for him to stop. But there was none. So, he moved his hand to her hip, where her shirt had risen slightly over the band of her pants, exposing a strip of skin. Then, with feather-light touch, the boy grasped the hem of her shirt and tugged downwards until her skin was protected from the nippy air once more. Only then did he let it rest comfortably on her side, his thumb stroking soft lines where it lay.

When her breathing had evened out, Chan shifted to leave. He didn’t want to risk making her uncomfortable. But the hand on his chest tightened.

“Don’t go. Please.” Her words were soft, scared. So, he stayed.

Chan settled down once more, making sure to pull the thin blanket pooled at their feet over both of them. He felt the hand on his chest release his sweater, moving upwards to rest at the back of his neck. His eyes slipped closed as her fingers raked up into the hair at the back of his neck, stopping there.

“Thank you,” she whispered to him.

The boy simply hummed in return, relaxing into her touch. The hand that had been placed on her waist moved to trailed up her arm softly, coaxing away the cold felt on her skin. When it reached the hand tangled in his curls, he turned his head and placed a delicate kiss to her bare wrist before letting his head drop to the pillow. And that is how they stayed, until the rhythm of their heartbeats fell into sync and their dreams intertwined, both sharing a deep, uninterrupted sleep for the first time in what felt like weeks.

 

Familiar arms wrapped around her shoulders, the smell of home engulfing her. Once again, he’s presence blanketed her. But this was different. There was no chill to the air, no darkness, and no empty space where he should have been. Instead, she felt warm, a steady rhythm beating beneath her ear. Tears welled in her eyes as she held on tighter.

“You came,” he whispered. Sakura let out a pained noise. She had almost forgotten the sound of his voice. Her mouth opened to respond, but nothing came out. All she could do was nod against his chest, memorizing the melody of his heartbeat.

“How I’ve missed you, my flower.”

He looked healthy, full of colour and light. His eyes were bright and happy and he had more muscle mass than when she had said goodbye. He looked like himself again.

“I miss you,” she whimpered. “I’ve missed you every day since you left, and I will miss you every day until the next life reunites us.” The man smiled down at his eldest daughter with pride.

“You’ve grown.” Sakura felt his hand stroke her hair, reminding her of the night her anxiety kept her awake long into the night. When he would sit beside her until she drifted, the comforting feeling lulling her to sleep. “I’m okay, Sakura. You’ll be okay.”

 

When morning broke, they were still tangled together under the blanket. The cold had failed to get them, being kept out by body heat alone. Chan was the first to wake this time. His eyes found her face immediately, gaze soft as he noticed the tear streaks on her cheeks and the way her hands still clutched his shirt. He shifted closer to her, lips brushing against her temple affectionately. In that moment, looking down at her tired frame, Chan wanted nothing more than to keep her in his protected embrace for years to come. He wanted to carry her sky on his shoulders, no matter how dark or loaded. He wanted it to be him. For as long as she allowed it to be him.

She stirred against his side, face nuzzling into his chest as her eyes fluttered open. He saw the moment that their position registered in her sleep-hazy mind. Only, to his surprise, she seemed okay with it. There was no embarrassed blush to her cheeks or wide eyes. She didn’t rush to put a safer amount of distance between their connected bodies. No. Sakura just looked up at him through thick lashes, a content sigh floating past her lips. His heart squeezed in his chest. Something about the look in her eyes and the weight of her head on his chest and the way her arms stayed wrapped around him felt normal. Like their every morning began this way. And Chan couldn’t help but wish for that to be their future.

“How are you feeling?” Chan asked when her eyes focused on him.

“Drained.”

He frowned at her words. “Is there anything you need me to get for you? Water? Something to eat?”

Sakura just shook her head, turning her head so that her cheek was pressed to his chest. She felt the steady thumping of his heart beneath her ear, the combination of his heart’s song and the heat from his body wrapped around her own almost enough to lull her back to sleep. Her eyes fluttered closed for a moment, taking in the pure contentment she felt. The events of the previous day had left her painfully overstimulated, to the point where the thought of anything touching her made her skin crawl uncomfortably. And yet, she couldn’t bring herself to be anything but in the safety of Chan’s arms. She would happily endure the suffering for a few moments longer if it meant listening to his heart sing beneath her ear.

“On any other day like this, I’d just curl into a ball and hibernate for the next day or two until I feel 100% again, but that’ll have to wait until I am back home and don’t have to worry about someone else hogging the covers.”

Chan scoffed playfully. “You surely weren’t complaining when you were wrapped around me stealing all of my body heat last night.” There was nothing sexual about what he said, but his words made her blush. Flustered, Sakura rolled over so that her back was towards him. She heard him laugh, deep and throaty.

Her heart spiked at the feeling of his arms winding around her from behind, his chest pressed to her back as he buried his face in her neck. “Don’t be shy now, Sakura.” When she tried to get out of his grasp, his hold on her tightened. He kissed her shoulder softly. “Ten more minutes, petal. I’m not done holding you yet.”

“Five,” she said softly, knowing well that she would say yes to any request he had.

In a low voice, he replied, “I wasn't asking, petal.” There was a moment of silence before Chan whispered something so gentle that she had almost missed it.

“I’m glad you’re okay, Sakura.”

#angst #bang chan #changbin #comfort #fluff #han jisung #hyunjin #i.n #lee felix #lee know #kim seungmin #seungmin #hwang hyunjin #minho #fanfic #you make stray kids stay #skz stay #stray kids #Spotify

[kellystar321]

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#periodical life updates #everything! is! pain! (crab rave) #got my second covid shot yesterday and everything hurts??? #whoever decided ''oh you just got a shot in your arm? lets make ALL of your bones hurt; how bout that? :)'' i am going to maim #every limb is very slightly shaking like a minor earthquake tremor its a wonder how im not making more spelling mistakes #its hard to inhale and every deep breath is shuddering. also oof ouch headache. #its very hot and very cold and i am always uncomfortable but moving takes too much effort. i am so tired. #my bones have gone on strike and my chest hurts. wow! things suck #anyway! feeling sick! #there is not much food and i am too tired to get up and prepare anyghing #*sighs* anyway thats all for jace r. starlight's venting hours *fingerguns* have a great night

[brutal-nemesis]

Arthropod Day 2021: 🦀Time For Crab 🦀

Malacostraca Moment 😳🦀

So fun story I wanted this to be on a Saturday because SIDEWAYS SATURDAY but when I was deciding on the date I looked at the calendar for July without realizing it. Happy Sideways Stuesday I guess? 

Castys Masterlist

Ingredients: drowning mention, animal attack (kinda chill tho it’s not really violent), dehydration, autocannibalism mention, parasitic insects, partial nudity, heckin surgery (but it’s CONSENSUAL (⊙ˍ⊙) who am I), suicide for convenience (immortal)

“This looks like a lovely spot for a vacation; thank you guys so much for finding it for me.” The small dingy had just landed on a sandy beach enclosed by dark rocks on either side, a lush forest leading deeper into the island. Casyts’s captor glared at him before harshly tugging the rope tied to his wrists, trying to get him to stand and step onto the beach with her.

“Shut your trap, Ragnarok, or I might change my mind about gagging you. Now get up or I’ll have my men drag you.” 

Castys sighed and rolled his eyes, getting up and following her so his rope burn didn’t get any worse. “Aye aye, Yvonne.” 

“That’s Captain Veldna to you,” she growled, jerking him forward. He stumbled a bit, but he was able to catch himself before he got sand up his nose. He debated trying to yank the rope out of her hands and running away or stealing the boat, but her very strong men were right behind him and that would probably just end in him having extra bruises. So he just followed her like a stupid little goat as she led him towards the rocks, hoping she wouldn’t leave him tied up so he could at least enjoy his time being stranded. But no, this was about sending a message to his crew or making him suffer or something. He didn’t really remember, he’d been dazed as hell when he’d initially gotten captured during a fight between their two ships. Blood loss was a bitch sometimes.

They forced him to sit with his back against a large rock, yanking his bound hands above his head and worming a large nail through the knotted rope before hammering it into the rock. “Not gonna lie, this seems a little extra. I’m not going to go anywhere, so, like, just let me-” Yvonne slapped him harshly across the face.

“You’re not here to have fun, you annoying little parrot.” She looked over at her men, who had just finished tying his ankles together and nailing them down in a similar fashion to his wrists. “If you lot are done, let’s leave.” She turned back to Castys, a wicked grin on her face. “I wonder how many times you’ll die before your crew finds you?”

“My money’s on eight. Do you want me to keep track and tell you next time we see each other? If only I could write in a diary what horrors I suffer sitting on this warm rock that you tied me to during high tide so I won’t even drown later. Now that-agh!” Yvonne stabbed him in the stomach, and Castys bit back a scream as she twisted her blade. 

“The sound of your silence is something I could get used to.”

“Well, the real question is, is silence actually a sound-” Castys’s very valid observation was cut off by the bitch yanking out her sword and promptly kicking him in the stomach. He couldn’t help but cry out, doubling over as far as he could. Yeah, yeah he should probably just shut the fuck up and let them get on their merry way before he got more unnecessary injuries. 

“Enjoy your vacation, Ragnarok,” Yvonne spat. As one last gesture of maturity, she kicked sand at him before walking off, and some of it definitely got in his stab hole, so that was nice. He watched them row away, sighing. Now it was just boredom city, but hey, at least he had a nice beach view. The sun was a few hours away from setting, not that it mattered that much since his skin was dark enough that he probably wasn’t going to get sunburned. 

Being tied to a rock on the beach was...just about as boring as he expected. His arms got all tingly after a while from being stuck above his head, so he couldn’t even properly relax, and a man could only watch little waves roll for so long. He had a nice view of the setting sun, and hey, that means the light of dawn wouldn’t be shining in his face. While the sun was still a little ways above the horizon, he heard an odd rustling noise over in the vegetation, different from the background sounds he had gotten used to. He looked over, hoping it was a friendly man with a knife.

It was not a friendly man with a knife. But it wasn’t something bad, either. “Oh shit hello crabs!” Castys watched as they scuttled out of the treeline onto the beach, glad to have something fun to watch. One of them was slowly making its way towards him, and Castys wondered if he would be able to convince it to snip his bindings. “Hey there mister crab man, come on down, and please for the love of god untie me.” Yes, yes he was talking to a crab, because why not go full send on the insanity right away? It would be so much more fun, and it’s not like anyone else was here to judge him. “Yeah crab get in my zone-wow you’re kinda big.” He’d thought the crab was closer to him, but nope, it had been farther away but giant. Not like giant giant but not, like, normal crab size. It was almost as big as his torso maybe, but he was never great at estimating the relative sizes of things. 

“You’re large but you’re a gentleman, ain’t ya? I don’t know why, but you just seem like a polite fellow.” The crab stopped not too far from Castys and just looked at him blankly. Or maybe it was making a face at him, but he couldn’t read crab body language. Could anyone read crab body language? Crabs, he would hope. “Could you bring me some tea, good sir? Or just...water. Water that’s not salty. I don’t actually like tea it literally tastes like nothing but you know what I would drink it now because I am thirsty.” There was a moment of silence. “Not like thirsty in the weird way some people are. I have no idea what that’s about. But like, I want water. Or...oh my god, Mr. Crab, bring me a coconut!” Castys closed his eyes and leaned his head back. “Yeah… that would be nice. Food and water and it’s prepackaged and I don’t know how I would eat it because my hands are tied but I’ll figure it out.”

A sudden sharp pinch against his wound jolted Castys out of his daydream. He looked down in horror to see that the crab was holding something in its claws. Something pinkish-red that was dripping blood down onto the sand. The bastard. The crab brought the piece of his flesh to its mouth and just ate it while staring right at Castys. “That,” he blinked in surprise a few times, “was incredibly rude.” The crab stayed still, watching him as it did its weird mouth movements that were maybe chewing. “You are absolutely not a gentleman. I rescind everything. You little garbage boy. Rapscallion. I bet you never get invited to the crab raves.”

And the crab. Had the audacity. To reach out its stupid pincher. And do it again. “Little bitch!” Castys yelled, squirming against the ropes in an attempt to scare the thing off. Shockingly, it did not work, because wounded, dying prey squirmed all the time, and...that’s pretty much what Castys was in this scenario, wasn’t he? He was just stuck sitting here while that stupid crab ripped off little pieces of him with its stupid crab pincher and put them in its stupid crab mouth. If he was lucky, this would make him bleed out and die faster and then he wouldn’t have an open wound anymore, which would be a bonus. Though, it had sand in it, and then if it healed…

A problem for another day.

Not the next day, though, or the one after, because, hooray, he was still tied to a rock, so even though he did die a few hours later, he couldn’t do anything about the Sand In His Insides. He made up a song about it, but singing it loudly did absolutely nothing to scare away the crab, whom he had named Crabstard (Crab Bastard). Crabstard seemed to think Castys was his new best friend, coming back regularly for meals. Castys liked to imagine killing and eating Crabstard as a show of dominance, but that made him wonder...would eating Crabstard be a form of autocannibalism? Because Crabstard had eaten him...

He wasn’t sure what was worse, Crabstard and his stupid giant pinchers, or the mosquitoes. There weren’t a ton of them, but their bites were just awful, littering his arms and legs with swollen, white boils, which were unusual and also very concerning but what the fuck could he do about it. Because of course he couldn’t scratch them, and they itched so much it hurt and he just had to endure it. Just like he had to endure fucking everything. The heat of the sun, the awful tingling in his arms, the soreness of his wrists, Crabstard pinching off bits of his flesh, the maddening pain and itch of all his bug bites, the hunger and thirst, the boredom, and the...the loneliness.

No, he was fine, he was fine with just himself, it was always just him anyway. He wasn’t imagining his crew rowing to shore and untying him and tending to him in his cold, dark cabin, because he couldn’t get his hopes up, because they probably weren’t even coming for him. They were just going to leave him behind like everyone else and fuck he was wasting water like a useless idiot and he couldn’t stop or even wipe them away and he probably deserved this for everything he’d done so what did it matter?

And, great, the next day he started hallucinating a passing ship and a rowboat coming for him. Thank you, dehydrated whore brain! Let’s get our stupid little hopes up! Dang, the people on the boat kind of even looked like some of his crewmates, which was rude of his brain to make this so realistic looking.

It wasn’t until his first mate, Kaveri, was untying him that Castys realized that this was real, that they’d really...really come for him. “I’m so glad we found you, Captain.” She pulled him into a hug as soon as he was free, and he hugged her back as best he could with his sore arms. 

“I’m glad y’all did, too.” He leaned back when she let go and looked down at himself, wincing. “Well, before we get back to the ship, I am going to deliver a much needed death upon mys-“

“Captain, Captain, wait,” the ship’s medic, Sixtus, called as he ran over. He knelt beside Castys, taking his arm and examining the bug bites closely. “I knew it. These bites all over you are...they contain fly larvae. We’re going to need to dig them out before you heal yourself.”

“...what if I’ve died since I’ve gotten bitten. Like, earlier.”

“Well.” Sixtus breathed in sharply. “We will just have to wait for them to, uh, let us know where they are.” He sighed. “For now, let’s get you back to the ship and I’ll get out the ones I can. I don’t have the tools for it with me.”

“Can I kill Crabstard first?”

“Crab...stard?” Kaveri gave him a concerned look, and Sixtus felt his forehead.

“He’s a very impolite giant crab. He is my rival. I wish to vanquish him.” The other two shared a look.

“Do you know where this...this crab is?” Sixtus tried.

Castys held up a finger and opened his mouth, pausing for a second before shutting it and blinking a few times. “I. I do not. He just scuttles out of the trees to commit crimes every now and then. He has no friends.”

“Alright, in that case, no. You’re in no condition to wander around the island looking for a crab.” Sixtus held out his hand. “So, come on.”

“Fiiiine,” Castys groaned, letting the taller man help him to his feet. He was a little unsteady, but he was able to make it to the boat with Kaveri’s help. As they rowed away, he turned back to the island one last time, cupping his hands around his mouth as he yelled, “Fuck you Crabstard I hope you starve and die in a pit and the other crabs eat you!” 

Once they made it back to the ship, Sixtus ushered Castys into his office, instructing him to sit up on the examination table and take his shirt and pants off. Kaveri helped him, opting to stay in case Sixtus needed a hand. He examined Castys thoroughly, using a lightstone to get a good look at the swollen bug bites littering his body as well as the number of small wounds in his side.

“These from the, uh, crab?” Sixtus asked as he gestured to them.

“Yup. Him and his stupid pinchers.”

“Alright, I know you don’t really get infections, but I’m going to clean these out just to be safe.” He paused. “Also it just feels. Really wrong not to. It’ll bother me if I don’t.”

“Do whatever, doctor man.” Castys did his best not to let his pain show as Sixtus dabbed at his wounds with a stingy liquid. It really didn’t hurt that much, but when Kaveri placed her hand on top of his as he gripped the edge of the table, he didn’t wave her off. He’d let it be Fuss Over The Captain Day. For their sake. Because they seem to have been worried about him. 

“Alright, I’m all done with that, so if you could lay down, Captain, I’ll get started with removing those larvae. Kaveri, get him some rum and then hold him down.” She nodded, leaving and returning soon after with a small cup.

“You know, I haven’t had water in days,” Castys mused before winking at her and downing its contents. Kaveri shook her head.

“You literally emptied my waterskin while we were rowing back.”

“Oh dang, I forgot. Nevermind I’m actually not funny and am just stupid.” He scooted a bit and laid down with his hands behind his head. “Get rid of my worms.”

“They’re not-they’re not worms, Captain, they’re insects, since-” Sixtus stopped himself, folding his hands in front of his mouth. “Nevermind.” He cleared his throat. “Arms at your sides, please. Kaveri, if you would.” She nodded, holding down his shoulders as Sixtus turned Castys’s arm, locating the first larva he was going to remove. Castys breathed in sharply as the knife sliced into his arm, doing his best to keep still as Sixtus slid a pair of tweezers into the wound. The rum dulled his senses enough that it didn’t hurt as much as it could, but it certainly wasn’t painless, and he couldn’t help but gasp as Sixtus slowly pulled a small, wriggling grub out of the incision. He dropped it in a metal tray, cleaned the wound, and picked up his knife.

Then the process started all over again.

Castys didn’t bother counting how many times those tweezers probed around inside him, how many wet little plops he heard as another larva dropped into the tray. He focused on staying still, on the prickle of the rough wood table against his bare back, on the feeling of Kaveri’s hands on his shoulders, more comforting than restraining. They reminded him that he wasn’t alone in his suffering, for once. But he wasn’t supposed to need comfort, he was their immortal captain, the one who’d been through everything before and was strong enough to go through it again, the one his crew could always depend on to be strong. And here he was, teeth gritted against the pain, his forehead resting against Kaveri’s arm, fists clenched to mask their shaking, all over a few cuts and some little maggots.

“Alright,” Sixtus wiped his brow with the back of his hand, “I think that’s all of ‘em. That I can see, at least.” He looked down at Castys. “You had seventeen of those things in you, Captain.” He grimaced. “And possibly more, so please let me know if you feel anything, uh, wiggling. But for now, you’re free to...die.”

“Can’t believe I got a new world record for worm friends.” Castys grabbed the small leather pouch that usually hung around his neck from his pile of clothes, pulling it open.

“They’re not worms-”

“Thank you, Sixtus.” With that, Castys stuck his finger in the pouch and touched his death stone. He came back to life feeling infinitely better, but Kaveri and Sixtus still insisted he rest after he cleaned himself up. He grumbled, but he let Kaveri force him into his bed and bring him something to eat. Once he was finished, she collected his plate and stood awkwardly by his bedside.

“Do...do you want me to come back, Castys? Will you be alright?”

“Look, I’m honestly fine, you’re good. I’ve been through a lot worse, and I’m all healed up now so it doesn’t really matter.” 

She pursed her lips. “I suppose, but that doesn’t mean that that didn’t still take a mental toll on you, and…” she sighed. “Just...call me if you need anything, alright?”

“Will do.” She nodded, but as she started to walk away, Castys realized there was something he’d rather not leave unsaid. “Wait, Kaveri?”

“Yes?”

“Th...thank you. For, uh, finding me.”

“Of course, Castys. We’ll always be there for you.” Castys opened his mouth to reply, but he stopped himself and just smiled and nodded, his shoulders only falling once she’d left.

He wished that were true.

Castys Cult: @as-a-matter-of-whump​ @blackrosesandwhump​ @fanmanga1357-blog​​ @thehopelessopus​ @just-a-whumping-racoon-with-wifi​ @hearse-song​ @muddy-swamp-bitch @whumpasaurus101 @yet-another-heathen​​ @galaxywhump​ @starnight-whump​ @his-unspoken-words​ @misspelledwitch

#i wrote something #arthropod day #arthropod day 2021 #castys #immortal whumpee #dehydration cw #animal attack cw #painful caretaking #partial nudity #parasites cw #surgery whump #suicide for convenience #yes the rocks are basalt #welcome to castys's irrational hatred of crabs he now has a blood feud with any and all crabs #using my favorite life hack called ''these crabs are BASED on coconut crabs but since they are fantasy crabs they will do what i want'' #the botfly larvae are botfly larvae ✨ grubby boys #i did write portions of this while on an actual beach so like 😎 kinda pog #wasn't gonna do the rescue bit but castys got sad and also that meant SURGERY #*gives sixtus my obsessive wound cleaning tendencies and adherence to biological classification schemes* #this random man can have these little traits of mine. as a treat #also i realized like a day after i named him that he is in the clan of lads who's names end in -us #six letter names that end in -us are simply peak boy name i dont take criticism #i literally have FOUR of them: erebus jairus corvus and sixtus

[swampgallows]

so fucking pissed about my abandoned therapy. the weather is so nice but i feel like such shit, i stepped outside and was chilling with xena in the backyard and just started crying because i miss my friends so much. it’s kandi party weather or dayparty at the park weather and the way the sun was setting through the trees i just had a billion flashbacks all at once thinking about how far away those things are even though it feels like it just happened or how i would feel like this when the sun was setting at my work, that my friends were there but i couldnt see them because i had to work, always, and that my friends are here now too but i still cant see them because i dont want the vid. it hurts that it feels like it’s down the street but it’s ages away. i hate that i cant see my friends. i miss them so much. i miss kandieland and motel 6s and the park by daygos where sabrina drove the car to the store (even though she wasnt supposed to) so we could get nate a cake and icing to shittily write ‘happy birthday’ on it. i miss the mountains in the distance on the 5 and the desert all around. i miss the jetty at college where i saw the crab and knew he belonged there. i miss pick up stix before fireworks, and peoplewatching til someone stepped on the super melted reese’s cup. 

it’s hard to believe i am such an angry person and so depressed, because i look back on my life and i see ive had so much fun and amazing adventures with wonderful people. but then sometimes i look back and i cant see any of it at all, or i wonder where it all went? why did it stop? what happened to me that it stopped? and i cant blame one thing or another because all of those kinds of things have happened to me throughout my life. i still went to the crud muffin before my ex qp and after my abusive ex. i still saw the desert and mountains after my ex gf. i still had so many adventures but it’s like my brain started curdling or my soul just started flaking apart. i had fun at kandieland even though i dissociated during the party and was molested in the hotel bathroom afterward. even though my abusive ex reamed me about how shitty it was that i went to the party id been planning to go to and excited about for months instead of being his accessory while he got drunk with morons and wanted me to go to a wedding for someone id never met in vegas.

but maybe it’s like that stupid watchmen quote about the past getting brighter the further away you get. maybe in ten years i will romanticize west virginia the same way. i dont know. it was beautiful there but there is pain there. there was no love there. even though the whole time i was aching for it.

why did those times have to stop? i didnt grow up, i just became...

i dont know.

why did i stop wanting to be seen? why did i stop wanting to dress up? why did i keep wanting to hide? when did i stop feeling safe with my rave family? when did i stop feeling safe at all? 

i dont want food. i want my friends. i dont want a job. i want my friends. i stopped making things because i hate them and im scared. i stopped creating because something told me to. now everything else has stopped too. i dont know how to get back there

#blathering

[chasseurdeloup-retired]

Gimme Gimme Gimme || Otto, Nadia, Dot, Nic, Alain, and Kaden

TIMING: Current LOCATION: The docks SUMMARY: A deal gone wrong

Otto glanced at his unfamiliar reflection in a broken pane of glass double-checking the glamour runes carved into his collar bones were still functioning correctly. Sunken eyes, a thicker jaw and plain brown eyes looked back at him. Different enough from his day to day appearance that he could pass without someone recognising and the spell would hold for a few hours now that it was in place. Hand-offs were always tricky businesses even more so when you didn’t know the other parties you were involving yourself with so precautions had been taken. Namely in bringing Nadia along as back-up along with a trusty shot-gun. Spells were useful in a pinch but if things went sideways little beat the pure destruction the end of a shotgun could bring about. Unfortunately, tricky business was simply the life of a newfound criminal trying to find their footing in a small town full of strife.

He glanced over at Nadia who carried the delivery in a nondescript brown box padded and covered in protective runes as an extra layer of precaution as they made their way into the boating house on the docks where the arranged trade-off had been arranged. Boats bobbed silently, crusted sea-salt clung to several surfaces and the splosh of water was broken by the occasional bay of a seagull outside. They’d scouted the perimeter already, checking their entrances and exits before heading inside and even then Otto kept to the pillars as cover. He checked his watch and when he spoke his voice was an octave lower, “they should be here soon. Not met this person before…” in other words, he didn’t trust them at all. But then again, you didn’t live in this job if you truly trusted anyone

Adjusting the box to one hand and pulling her hood up a little more, Nadia grinned. This was what she really needed. A good job, the potential for a bit of action, a shotgun on her back, and a revolver at her side. And she was back to being more connected with her body again. She’d been hungry that morning. Hungry. It might’ve been because she’d forgotten that she even had to eat, but it had gnawed at her stomach in the most pleasantly painful way. Even better was that she’d been able to go somewhere and grab herself something without worrying about someone looking for her. Plus, Nadia wasn’t fighting, and she was back to being the one in charge. So she was ready for whatever Otto’s job managed to throw her way. Part of her wanted something easy, a quick drop off, nothing major, maybe a bit of smooth talking if need be. But another part of her wanted some action. She’d be thrilled either way.

As Otto caught her eyes, Nadia gave him a wink. He was a fun guy, from the jobs they’d run together before. Almost as good with his words as she was for a guy who didn’t have a built in lie detector and emotional radar. Plus, his magic was wicked cool. Following him in, she leaned against a pillar and waited. “Cool, cool. Well, don’t worry, as long as they’ve got a pulse, I think I can figure them out.” She could read his distrust like a magazine at the dentist’s office, so she wasn’t feeling quite as blase as she might have seemed. If Otto was worried, she should probably be a bit worried, too. But being a little worried was always healthy. She took out her revolver and opened the chamber, making sure it was loaded. The shotgun was double-barrel, two bullets in. Everything looked good to go.

Everyone had a secret talent. Some people could juggle or burp the alphabet backward. Dot’s secret talent was getting involved in the shadier shit a town had going on. Her other secret talent was being able to do a really fast crab walk. She didn’t like that one as much as she liked getting involved in crime though. She loved that. People would ask her to do jobs and most of the time she didn’t care if she was getting paid or not, though she didn’t tell people that part. She liked the thrill of it. Breaking rules was fun and she liked when she made things inconvenient for other people. She wasn’t a career criminal, not even close, but she never said no to a job. It hadn’t taken long after she moved to White Crest for someone to approach her doing something for them. After doing a couple of jobs, she proved that she wasn’t a complete imbecile and then this job was given to her. It was simple, a hand-off, nothing she hadn’t done before.

Walking to the meeting spot, she was glad that she actually took her gun and knife with her this time. She relied on being a siren far more than she really should. As she saw the two in front of her, she popped her lollipop out of her mouth. Grinning at them, she spoke in a cheerful voice,“Hello, lovelies. Are you here waiting for me?” She might not have been an idiot, but she was never professional. “It’s like we’re all having a little secret party,” She shook her shoulders at them. She considered asking them if they wanted a lollipop, but she only had green apple left and those were her favorite.

At the sound of approaching footsteps, Otto lifted his head to eye the newcomer. He didn’t recognise them, but then again he didn’t recognise most people in town on first meetings considering most of them weren’t really memorable enough to truly warrant him paying them all that much attention. But this sort of situation demanded a new sort of attentiveness for a lack of it could cost you so much more if you made the slightest misstep. Yet, that wasn’t the vibe he got from the woman he saw approaching; lollipop and all. It was… intriguing to say the least, her grin was infectious and brought one of Otto’s own about. Cocking his head his eyes sparkled with newfound mischief.

“Seems so darling,” he greeted pushing off the pillar “and it does, doesn’t it? Little rave is just what everyone needs… Let off some steam, have some fun. Shame we don’t have music to set the mood.” He knew Nadia had his back in this, it was one of the few constants he actually trusted in this situation which was saying something, “now as much of a sweet-tooth as I happen to be, I’m curious to see the sweetener to this little party hm?”

Looking at the girl walking towards them, Nadia grinned. Good, a pulse. The other woman’s emotions weren’t nearly as easy to read as Otto’s, but that wasn’t a problem. Nadia only needed a sense of what she was feeling to make sure nothing the wrong sort of shady happened here. Not that there really was a wrong sort of shady. Shady was always fun, even if it went to shit. But, taking in the girl’s appearance, her laid back nature as she had a lollipop of all things in her mouth, Nadia couldn’t help but feel that this was going to be nothing but the good kinds of fun.

“I’m all up for parties,” Nadia said. She jerked her head towards Otto. “This guy throws some of the best, I swear. He might not look like it now, but he’s a fun guy. Isn’t that right, Kelly?” She gave him a wink. She was glad that he trusted her still, even after all that she’d told him. Maybe not completely, maybe not the same way that he had before, but the trust was still there. She could feel it, after all. She hefted the box with their delivery into her arms. “Maybe when all this is said and done, we can actually have a party, to celebrate. Music and everything. And booze. So much booze.”

Maybe she would offer these two her lollipops… They seemed like fun and Dot loved some good fun. She had expected a bunch of people with sticks up their asses who would tell her that she’s too immature to be in this business. The type that took themselves way too seriously. Those people were exhausting at the best of times and she wasn’t doing this to be exhausted. Based on the grins these two had, she liked them so far, but she wasn’t naive enough to forget that this was still a job.

It took quite a bit of self-control to stop herself from beatboxing right there and tell them to dance to the music. Slipping the strap of her bag off her shoulder, she waved it slightly at them. “I think this is the sweetener you’re looking for and that’s what I’m looking for,” She nodded to the box. She liked this part a lot, the anticipation right before a handover. “I know a guy who can get us more than booze,” Dot told the woman, a sparkle in her eyes. Sighing, very dramatically, she continued, “But I guess the job comes first. What was agreed to is in the bag.”

Kaden didn’t know much about the situation at hand, but he knew Nic asked him to be here. That was enough. No matter how weird his relationship was with hunting right now, he wasn’t about to drop his loyalties. If a hunter was in need, one he trusted, he was there. The place by the docks looked sketchy enough, seemed appropriate. “You know what it is we’re looking for, Nic?” he asked, making sure for the fifth time tonight that his gun was loaded properly and ready to go. “Probably a little late to ask for details but if you need all of us here, I’m guessing it’s something big and bad.” He wondered if this was some big monster take down, something like the bounty Montgomery had made a call for a while back. Shit, hadn’t thought about that fucker in a while. The thought of the trophy room sent a shiver down his spine. But he trusted Nic and Alain, despite any differences of ideals they had, would never chop off someone's head and keep it. Which was good enough for him. His brow furrowed as he picked up a sound off in the distance, closer to the boathouses on the docks. Looking in that direction, he saw a small flash of movement and a figure headed into one of them. “Hey,” he whispered, nodding over towards the boathouse. A quick glance back and it was clear where the hunters were headed. Whatever shady shit they were looking for, pretty sure they found it.

While Nicodemus still couldn’t quite wrap his head around what a turn it had been with the Bossman, now known as Roy Chambers, he didn’t question Erin when she told him she might have found a way to figure out what the fuck he was. All he did was agree, make a few calls, then pack up what was necessary before making his way to the agreed upon meeting place. It was gonna be a long night. Shit, it had been awhile since he had worked with one hunter. Let alone a whole gaggle of them. That was just the bounty way. He worked his jaw as he double-checked the edges of the knife he carried. “Reckon it ain’t somethin’ that’s gonna be easy-breezy,” he muttered as he slid it back into its sheath. “But hell, it ain’t ever is.” His fingertips lightly tapped against each other as he cocked his head. Looked toward the same place Kaden had heard the noise. A short nod and a quiet grunt of agreement followed. The calm that settled over him before most hunts began to run its course. “Ain’t no time like the fuckin’ present,” he whispered as he started to move, boots quiet. “We goin’ in quiet or goin’ in loud?”

While Alain was still unsure of why it was that Nic had asked all of them to come here, he was relieved to see that he was not the only clueless one here. It was reassuring to be with familiar faces, and with people he knew he could trust, but some details would have been great. On the one hand, he doubted that she would put them all in mortal danger without warnings, but on the other hand, if the hunter needed back up, this could not be good. “Going in loudly when we have no idea what’s in there, that sounds like a really shitty idea, Nic,” walking beside him, the hunter repressed a yawn. He had managed to get a bit of sleep lately, but he was still having too many nightmares to get rather proper rest. Tired or not, he still would help, because while he never signed up for anything, he had always acted like it was the case. With no idea of what to expect, he had left his sword home and gone for shorter blades, and probably for the best, all things considered.

“Stop yawning, slayer,” Kaden said, giving Alain a small nudge. “Isn’t this your normal hours, anyway? When all the creatures of the night come out and shit?” He was giving the other hunter some grief, sure, but he did kind of hope he wasn’t too exhausted to be here. One mistake on a hunt, especially one like this where the details were sparse and the threat seemingly high, well, that could be deadly. Kaden nodded at the suggestion to keep it quiet as they headed in. There were a few entrances and it was best they split up if they were trying to go for a surprise attack. A few gestures and nods and it was figured out. Kaden creeped up to the side door, listened a moment, and heard voices inside. They seemed occupied. For now. Good enough for him. He did his best to slowly and silently open the door, sneaking through and hiding behind a crate near the entrance. With his pistol in hand, he leaned around the corner to get a better look at what was going on. Three people as far as he could tell. None of them werewolves as far as he knew, either. One guy, didn’t recognize him, two women. The one was also unfamiliar, but the other... Was that… “Nadia?” he found himself saying out loud. Or rather, whoever was in her body. Shit, he didn’t mean to do that. He also didn’t mean to keep walking forward. But he had and he fucking tripped and stumbled over a rope on the ground. Putain. So much for his stealth approach.

They were in the middle of the transaction, the briefcase being opened and the requested black-steel music box embossed with silver images of graeco-figures deifying some strange entity revealed, nestled within a bed of foam to protect it from any harm. “As discussed, acquired and undamaged.” Though not tested, Otto didn’t know what this thing was meant to do but the less he knew the more deniability he had regarding it. Closing the lid once more and clicking it shut the runes engraved across its surface glowed a bright purple before fading from sight once more to prevent anyone untoward tampering with it. “Wonderful, in that case let’s exchange and maybe after this we can all go cele-” but any further remark was cut off, by the sudden intrusion of another voice from a stack of crates nearby. Shit. His eyes cut to the man he didn’t recognise who tripped over the rope in judgemental frustration.

But this stranger’s focus seemed to be on Nadia, recognising her - or recognised the old her most likely. But there were perks to this being the Nadia he’d worked with for so long and on so many occasions. A silent language that a subtle look or expression could convey a thousand messages. So the curious look between Nadia and this stranger and the thin smile that followed spoke volumes. Play him, buy us some time. In the interim, Otto subtly scanned the nearby vicinity for options they could run, but who knew how many more people this dude might’ve brought along. The warehouse might be surrounded.... They had their guns but a firefight was never ideal if it could be avoided.

His eyes passed a few of the boats moored nearby. Maybe if they could rig one up it’d be a decent means of escape… Otto glanced at the other woman unsure if he could trust her or if she’d staged this whole thing. What he did know was he wasn’t going to die because of some fucked over job.

Things were going good. Easy, even. And then Kaden fucking Langley literally tripped his way into the meeting. Nadia pinched the bridge of her nose, trying to maintain her control. But, hey, things were still going well. Just not easy. Well, she didn’t care for easy, anyway. She made sure the box was with the others, and she gave Otto a wink. She knew what to do here. “Heya, Kadie!” she said with a sweet smile, letting it reach her eyes. Nadia Diaz had a great smile. Very charming. Easily disarming. Perfect for getting people to let their guard down, even if they knew they were locking eyes with a rattlesnake. The problem with Kaden was that he knew. He knew what she was, had looked at her and really seen her. He wouldn’t be fooled again. Not for long, at least. But she still had the advantage. He didn’t want to hurt her. Well, actually, he probably wanted to hurt her really, really badly. But he didn’t want to hurt Nadia Diaz. She gave him a wave. “Been a minute, yeah? How’s it going? What are you and your friends doing skulking around the docks at such late hours?” She walked a little closer to him, attempting to block Otto and the other woman to give her partner time to think. She knew the bastard would still be quick on his feet. She just had to play distraction. In a stage whisper, she said, “You know that dangerous people hang around the docks, right?”

For all the things Dot had done, she had never been caught before. Sure, she had gotten in trouble with the cops before, gotten a slap on the wrist for trespassing or some community service for fighting, but this was different. Had he been alone, she would have just gone for her gun, but as Nadia pointed out, he had friends. Her lips pressed as she looked over at Otto, trying to hide the rising panic she felt. She was no professional at this and she knew it. She began to inch towards the door she had come through, bag on her shoulder. The deal wasn’t happening with company. Kaden being here was no good sign. Blanche had liked him, but Dot had never really been around him enough to form an opinion other than ‘fun to make fun of on the internet’. “This is a closed, invite only party,” She chirped, popping her lollipop back in her mouth. “Very exclusive rave you just wandered into and partycrashers are no fun. Unless they’re me, but you’re not me, so no fun,” She rambled around the candy. “So. Shoo.”

Alain had a point and Nicodemus nodded in agreement. “Yup, you got a pretty good fuckin’ point there.” He muttered to Alain as he crouched himself and followed behind Kaden through the door, his own gun drawn and a hand over the knife on his belt. Better to survey the area, get the lay of the land, and--Goddamn it, Kaden. Nicodemus pursed his lips and breathed in sharply. That’s alright, he thought. The rest of them could go around, surprise. And then that was also shot to shit at the word friends. He nodded to himself, resigned. “That’s fine,” he grunted quietly. “Knees gettin’ tired anyway.” The hunter stood and worked his jaw as he walked beside Kaden, pistol resting against his shoulder. He glanced at the briefcase between the three of them. The way it looked, the three of them were all talkers. Time wasters. He sucked at his teeth. “Could save us all some time and fuck off,” he said with a tilt of his head as he took a small step forward. Mediation wasn’t a skill he spent time or money on. “Chattin’ ain’t what we’re here for.”

Alain’s eyebrows raised as he gave Kaden an Italian salute. Of course it was ideal to him for things to be happening at this time of the day, but lately he had had to skip a few cemetery trips in order to rest a little. It would be fine, it had to be fine. Besides, even if he was not at the top of his form, he had to be here for these two hunters. Although that did not mean he would agree with everything they did. Are you fucking kidding me? Breathing out loudly, his eyebrows furrowed as he recognized Nadia. What in the goddamn hell was she doing here? He did not suppose that now would be the time to question her life choices, but from the look on his face, you could get an idea of how disappointed he was. The other two, he did not know, but he was not impressed. “Cute,” he said with a sucking sound of disapproval. Now that their plans of being quiet had gone down the drain, he supposed that the least they could do was not to waste their time trying to have a conversation with these people. “Yeah, let’s get this over with,” he agreed.

Shit. There went the stealth approach once and for all. And it was painfully clear which Nadia he was dealing with. At least he didn’t have to worry about this being some weird hostage situation “Hello Janet,” Kaden replied, using Blanche’s nickname for the ghost with disdain as he stepped out from the shadows, properly this time. He kept his fingers ready on the trigger of his pistol just in case. Nadia was no danger to him, but the ghost, Janet or Cordelia or whoever she was, would kill him without a single remorse. He knew that much. “Funny I could say the same to you. Dangerous and all that. Good thing none of us are out here wandering all alone.” The other hunters had seemingly given up the pretense of stealth as well. He peered around Nadia’s body to get a better look at her cohorts here. “Hey. No one move,” he said, holding his gun up, aimed at the woman trying to make a break for the door in the back. “My invitation is right here so how about you show us what you’ve got there.” Kaden wasn’t sure if these were the calls to be making or what exactly they were here for but if it was to break up something or extract something, it was going to be a lot harder to do if anyone fled. “You wouldn’t want to ditch the party early. We’re just getting started.”

Otto had hoped he could slink away to at least get on board one of the boats, having made it several steps backwards though mindful not to blindly signal his intent or direction with his body language. But as another burlier man stood up behind Kaden holding a pistol he knew this evening was likely very soon going to go to hell in a handbasket. What was it with people and guns? They were so… primitive. But it didn’t change the danger they posed either way. His magic ebbed near to the surface, practically urging him to throw the first shot at these intruders and yet he bided his time. No need to give away his game just yet. He’d purposefully not tapped his reserve at all just in case, always just in case. His leather clad grip tightened on the briefcase handle, shifting it out of the line of sight of these assholes while running through the list of options that were fast running short. Think Nova. One thing they did have in their favour was positioning. These guys were too closely spaced and that tipped the balance in their favour. Maybe if they could carall them some density spells would be enough to immobilise them where they stood. Give them enough time to get the hell out of dodge. The guns were trained on the others for now, that counted for something at least. He took a few more steps, nearing some crates stacked up. Just in case things went sideways, cover never hurt. “Sorry, I was taught better than to hang around and talk to creepy men following me at night. Avidazen.”

“It’s cuter when the kid calls me that,” Nadia said conversationally, one hand on the strap of her shotgun, the other resting near her pistol holster. “Speaking of, let her know I said hey, and I want my gun back.” She pretended to think a bit before she perked back up. “Oh! And tell her next time I won’t fucking miss, ‘kay?” She checked on Otto and the chick that was with them, hoping that the two of them would get out before she had to do anything serious. She took a step towards Kaden as soon as he pulled a gun out. Like second nature, she smoothly pulled her own revolver out and leveled it at him. “Sorry, babe. Put the gun down. I think we both know which of the two of us is more likely to shoot someone, yeah?” Could they not just fucking leave? “Party’s over, folks!” she called out to the people with Kaden. “If you could let us be on our way, that’d be so fucking nice.” She tried to avoid the look of disappointment on… Alain’s (she thought that was Alain’s) face. She needed to stay calm. She needed to keep her cool. She… really fucking wanted to kill Kaden, still. She’d take the shot as soon as they all lowered their guards, and then she was making a break for it.

Bro, Dot was not fucking into this. She was so not into this. “Listen, Kandy, Blanche wouldn’t be happy if you went around shooting her ex girlfriend so like what if you put down the gun and I head out.” Dot loved fights, she really did, but she liked them when guns weren’t drawn. She was pretty out of her fucking depth here. “I don’t want to fight, ‘cause we all who’s gonna win and it ain’t these two,” She nodded toward Otto and Nadia with a shrug. “I mean unless you want me to fight with you guys, would that get me off the hook? I might not be too much help, I’m literally a TA, but I got a gun.That wasn’t a threat to clarify. What do you say Mr. Thickness? Kandy? Tall Napoleon?

Nicodemus wasn’t in the mood. These people talked too fucking much. He sure as shit wasn’t Kandy. Tall Napoleon? Nope. That only left one option. Jesus fucking Christ. He glowered but didn’t move his eyes from the one near the briefcase. He shook his head. “This ain’t a conversation.” His stance shifted and the dirt under his boot crunched. They weren’t going the easy route of just handing off the briefcase, were they? Fine enough. The three hunters had a job to do and they would sure as shit see it through. One way or the other. He spat to the side. His hand tightened around his gun, finger under the trigger guard. A second passed before he took off into a dead sprint. Straight toward the briefcase.

“Blanche? What the fuck does pipsqueak have to do with this? Leave her out of--” Before Kaden could finish, it looked like Nic had the briefcase covered, for now. And he was getting shit started. Great. Fighting was better than talking anyway. “No one leaves til we get what we came here for.” Kaden took a shot at the door, hoping to scare the obnoxious TA lady. Catching Alain’s glance, he gave him a quick nod to her. If he had the TA covered, then that left him free to deal with Janet. He knew Nadia had a gun trained on him and while he had a feeling Nadia would do what she could to save him, bullets fired real fast. He ducked behind a box briefly before taking off towards her. Maybe if he could get there fast enough, disarm her, he could help Nic. If he needed it.

Well shit. Those were the initial thoughts that went through Otto’s mind as Popeye McGee took off in a sprint straight at him. Shoving his hand into his pocket and drawing out a pile of iron filings these were dusted over the briefcase, there was a moment of concentration before an aura of purple seemed to circle the briefcase and seep into its essence with it suddenly becoming heavier in his grip. Backing up towards the dock he extended his arm back fighting against the significantly increased weight “hey now, back the fuck up or I drop it and then nobody gets their due!” With the weight of it now and the water finding it again would be a job for anyone. Not impossible, but more work than whatever this job was worth.

Well those were some crappy nicknames coming from Iago - yes, he had read Othello a while ago - Alain deadpanned as she approached them, probably hoping that she could switch sides like that with no consequences. Considering that she was a skinny woman, and that it didn't take too much to knock someone out (much to most people's surprise), it didn't take much for Alain to get rid of the betrayer and leave her down. Glancing over at the drama queen with the suitcase, the hunter tilted his head to the side and looked over at Kaden to communicate his fed-up-ness with someone, then back at the magician. "You do realize that even if you drop that suitcase, you still have to deal with us next? This doesn't change much for you. Or... Well, it does. It gets things a lot worse."

This was all going to shit. Nadia could see that clearly. Fuck the briefcase, fuck the payment, and fuck that bastard charging at her. It wasn’t particularly smart to run at the woman with a gun trained on you, but Nadia had to give Kaden credit. The guy had balls. Too bad that wasn’t going to save his life. Finger on the trigger, she smiled as he got close and, as she pressed down, gave up control for a brief moment.

Nadia always seemed to be around for the inevitable unhappy ending, and her eyes widened as she watch the bullet from her own gun connect with Kaden’s chest. It was like the cabin all over again. She tried to drop the gun, tried to step forward, but she couldn’t move. She wasn’t really in control at all.

Even though Nadia wanted to gloat, there wasn’t anytime. “Too fucking slow,” she told Kaden before she turned on her heels and started running. “It’s not worth it!” She yelled at Otto, hoping he’d take the hint. They needed to fucking leave.

Kaden was running full out, eyes on Nadia. The gun was drawn, she looked ready to shoot, and Nadia might, but Nadia would never let her. He had to count on that. He had to. He kept running at her. He was sprinting, he almost reached her. Until he didn’t. Something hit him. No. Worse. Something shot him. Putain. Kaden dropped down and screamed out in pain, hand clutching to his chest. Fuck, fuck. Where did it hit? Upper. Near the collarbone. Not heart. Fine. He’d be fine. He hoped. But fuck it hurt. “Fuck off, Janet! I’ll make sure your soul is banished to fucking hell!” He curled up by one of the boxes, hand pressed against the wound, blood spilling out. Aw shit, he saw black at the corners of his vision. He tried to fight it off but he was slipping. He looked around for something to press to the wound, hold it together, so he could hold himself together, too.

The tides were turning fast, one person choked out and a gunshot that echoed across the warehouse with two individuals advancing on his space. Apparently not deterred by the notion of losing the thing they came for. Otto’s eyes slid across to Nadia and then to the pile of cash in the backpack the woman had brought along, with her out cold it was there for the taking. So Otto abruptly dropped the case which hit the ground with a dull thud, shoved his hand out in the direction of the bag and curled his fingers muttering the simple summoning incantation. The bag jerked as if tethered by some unseen force before it arrived in his hand leaving him standing there with the two men making ground fast. His hand shoved once more into his pocket and a scattering of iron filings were tossed out in an arc through which Otto pushed an open palm. The magic radiated in a sudden conical shockwave, reverberating around normal air suddenly growing denser and slowing those that moved through it. Giving him enough time to turn and hightail it after Nadia towards one of the boats. “Unhook the rope! I’ll get the engine!”

Nicodemus breathed in sharply through his nose. If the case went into the water, then the fucker holding it wouldn’t be far behind. He moved with an intensity he hadn’t carried with him before. An intensity that if they didn’t get this fucking job over and done with, there was a lot more to lose. A hell of a lot more. Langley was shot, Alain had knocked someone out, and the two left behind were scrambling. Something slowed his progress and he strained against it, sweat gathering at his temples and the back of his neck. It didn’t matter, he thought, as he continued to brute force through it, muscles and tendons bunched as he worked to push through it. The case had been dropped and as far as he was concerned, he didn’t care if any justice or whatever other asinine bullshit happened. The case was what they came for and it’s what they would leave with. He pushed further, stepped closer. Fuck, he hated magic. Vurals withstanding. Blood gathered between his teeth but it didn’t taste like copper when he managed to get closer to the case. Just a few more steps and his hand would be able to wrap around its handle.

With quick fingers, Nadia untied the rope from the dock, more than anxious to get the hell out of Dodge. But the anxiety, the stress, it wasn’t really hers. She wished she could get rid of it, for good. But at least she had control for the time being. She gave a smirk and waved at the men still left on the docks. Win or lose, it didn’t fucking matter today. She turned around and sank down into one of the boat seats as they drove away, running a hand through her hair and laughing breathlessly. “What a fucking shitshow, huh?” She closed her eyes, not even paying attention to an answer. What a fucking shitshow. She never seemed to get paid enough for these things.

#wickedswriting #writing #chatzy #otto #f #gravityfissure #nicodemus #bountybossier #nadia #notia #humanmoodring #dot #dotdotdottie #n #alain #carbrakesandstakes #Gimme Gimme Gimme

[falling-pages]

Worth It: Mori x Reader 2/3

continuation of the ask I received a while back! It’s been crazy with evacuation, but I feel like I am getting back into the groove of writing. This is part 2/3, with part 1 linked here in case you missed it, and I am so excited for you all to see the plot twist at the end of this chapter! friendly reminder that this is an AU where Mori is not rich and he does not attend Ouran. That is important in this chapter. Enjoy this really, really long chapter! A little change I’ve made during drafts: the person who requested it has given me permission to name their character, so instead of (Y/N) that you’ve seen in the first part, the name oft he character is”Gina.”

Your Takashi didn’t take advantage of your giddiness or vulnerable position on your back. By looming over you on the ground, you knew he could have used his strong arms to pin you down and take what he wanted. You knew he wanted to. As you ran a hand through his hair and settled it on his neck, his pulse rattled cathartically against your fingers. 

You wanted him. Pushing down that greedy voice in your stomach took all of your strength, especially when he pressed lightly on your wrist in response. You wanted it, you wanted him. 

But you knew you couldn’t. You shouldn’t. This was your first kiss together, and your first kiss, period. You only met two months ago. You shouldn’t have these feelings so soon.

Takashi felt your concern and ended the kiss, briefly pressing his forehead to yours. His chest heaved; you found yourself shaking from excitement. 

Your hands trembled as you tried to hold his. With a look of great concern he gently propped you up, searching your eyes with his to ask if you were okay. “Was I too forceful?” he asked, a blush burning his cheeks. 

You shook your head vigorously. “No, of course not. It’s just...” You sigh. “Something I have to work through.”

He nodded, pushing himself away from you. From the shudder in his muscles you could see it took everything in him not to hold you. “Should we stop seeing each other, then?”

“No!” You reach up and cup his cheek, feeling your love for him welling up in your chest. “No, love, that’s not it. You’re perfect.” His eyes soften into yours, relief spilling out of his irises. “It’s my family. They think we’re better because we’re rich and famous, so they want me to marry someone rich and famous. Or at least rich. Someone with high social standing.”

A tear rolls down your cheek, and Takashi brushes it away, encouraging you to continue. “But I don’t want someone of social standing,” you whisper, your voice catching. “I want you! And it’s silly because we’ve only known each other a little while, but I feel like I know you better than I know myself. And there’s no one else I ever want to feel that way for.”

You crumple onto Takashi’s chest as he puts on his bravest face. Though swallowed up by his form, you feel anchored to the ground, your spirit aligned with his. It was rash to speak out like that. You were too young to think about forever.

You shook away from him, preparing your speech, only to be met with his kind smile filling up your soul. “Two months or two years, I don’t care,” he said. “I just want you in my life.”

Within your core you felt something tighten, hammering against your ribcage and lungs like a pendulum, strengthening your resolve. You sat up on your knees and gave him a quiet kiss, letting your feelings burst through your actions rather than words.

He grabbed your face tenderly, and everything inside you snapped. Screw your parents. Screw their expectations. Screw what they thought they knew, screw their haughty attitudes. This was your Takashi, and they weren’t going to take away the one good person you have ever met. 

Let them disown you. Let them rant and rave about policy and goodwill and honor. Takashi was the only person of honor you had met in a long time.

As long as you had him, let them scream about what a disgrace they are.  All you needed was him.

- - - - -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - --  -- - - - - - - - - -  -

And scream they did.

It had been four months since your declaration, and keeping a secret was easier than you thought. You never had to worry about your boyfriend spilling the beans; he rarely talked with you, much less anyone else. The real issue was keeping hidden from your family’s bodyguards and nosy Etsuko. 

Takashi always insisted on walking you home after every date, but you made him stop a block away so you two couldn’t be caught. It wasn’t that you were ashamed to be with him. It was just the opposite--you wished you could hug him in the city square, or bring him home to dinner with your family. You wished you could kiss him whenever and wherever you wanted instead of waiting until the safety of his apartment to do so. One day, just one day, you wanted to live without constantly looking over your shoulder.

As graduation loomed and the weather got warmer, you looked forward to your little walks under cherry blossoms with Takashi. No longer bound by thick coats and scarves, you could really see his physique, enjoy the shape and outline of his abs and biceps. You wished you could see them fully, but the risk...

You wished you could bring Takashi over, but you needed to tell your parents you were dating a commoner first.

It didn’t go over well.

Not two words had left your mouth when your father shoved a phone in your face.

“Gina, who is this?”

You choked down a gasp at the picture of you and Takashi holding hands. It was taken from behind, and as your fingers ran along the phone case, you realized it belonged to your sister. 

“Etsuko!” you roared, throwing down the phone.

The culprit, sitting across from you at the dinner table, only shrugged. “Why are you so upset?” she asked. “I’m just looking out for my baby sister.”

“Why don’t you do something actually productive with all this time you have?” you retorted.

Etsuko sneered as your father tapped the phone again. Another picture popped up, one of you and Takashi enjoying lunch on your first date. You looked at yourself. Munching on the crab, mid-laugh. You hadn’t seen yourself look so happy in a while. 

“I’ll ask again,” your father said. His normally-tenor voice dropped deep into his chest, and the tone scraped against you like a knife. “Who is this?”

“My friend,” you whispered. You didn’t want to renounce him, but you knew what they would do to him. You had seen it happen before. 

As if he had expected this answer, your father swiped to the next photo. Your heart fell to your toes. 

It was a picture of you and Takashi kissing goodbye a block away from the house. At the sight of his fingers in your hair, your stomach curdled. His heat, his smell washed over you again. You thought you were protecting him by leaving him so far away. You had no idea how nosy your sister could be.

“Is that what friends do?” asked your father softly, locking the phone and handing it back to Etsuko. 

You sat back in your seat, feeling like a boulder has lodged itself in your sternum. Icy tears rolled down your cheeks. 

“Please don’t hurt him,” you plead. You cast your gaze from your father, standing stoically in front of you, to your mother, shaking her head with a frown. Avoiding Etsuko, you rest your eyes on your other sister, Kichi, silent until now. She raises her dark eyes to yours before bowing her head again. A thousand memories floated across her face, but she doesn’t say a word.

“Kichi, please,” you cry, desperately reaching your hand to your favorite sister. “You loved a commoner once, tell them it’s different, help--”

“Go upstairs, Gina,” you mother interrupts. With her auburn hair and light brown eyes, she and your father were only similar in attitudes: ambitious, prideful, and spoke with snakes for tongues. Never mind how they could make such beautiful music together. All other parts of their humanity were destroyed by greed the moment they tasted fame. “Go get changed. We’re having a special dinner tonight.”

You shook off the maids’ hands and climbed the stairs, throwing one more repulsed look at Etsuko.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Despite the servants refreshing your makeup, the puffy eyes and red tear trails remained. You knew they were trying to be helpful; one had even brought a cool compression pack, but you didn’t want it. You wanted your family to see your pain, wanted them to see your tears. Maybe, if you made a big deal about it, they wouldn’t do anything to Takashi. You knew they could hurt him, uproot his entire life. They had done the same thing three years ago to Kichi’s secret boyfriend. But you couldn’t live with yourself if they actually did anything to him.

Tugging at your dress in the mirror, you felt confusion gnaw at your brain. It was a pretty outfit, but you thought it was inappropriate for family dinner. Shiny green material clung to your thighs, and though it was long-sleeved, a big diamond-shaped cutout clipped across your chest. Nothing too scandalous peeked out, but the cutout drew attention to it, inviting one to stare and imagine. It didn’t help that a ruby pendant landed in the middle of the area, cold against your exposed skin.

With your hair piled up on your head and silver heels strapped onto your bare legs, you couldn’t tell the difference between yourself and, frankly, a hooker.

Realization rattled down your spine. Your family was trying to sell you off.

A hazy memory suddenly cleared. You were only about seven when Etsuko graduated high school, and you remember watching from your playroom as limos surrounded your house, handsome boys her age in tuxedos popping out and entering your house. You remember how uncomfortable she looked in a strapless silver dress, slipping from boy to boy without spending more than a minute with each one. At the end of the night, your father announced her engagement to the son of some hospital management company, and she took that moment to publicly announce that she liked girls rather than guys.

But that was a party, with lots of preparation and glamor. This was only a dinner. A rock lodged in your windpipe when it dawned on you--they had chosen a groom for you already.

Looking yourself up and down once more, you tried to think of a way to get out of this dinner. The windows in your bedroom led to a straight 30-foot drop to the ground, and you didn’t feel like breaking a leg tonight. Even it you forced yourself to vomit something up, your parents would know it was a trick.

Just muddle through tonight, Gina, you thought to yourself. You’ll find a way to fix all of this. There was only one person you wanted seeing you dressed like this, but your parents had taken your phone so that you couldn’t even take a picture to show him later. 

One of the maids knocked on your door, something about your family is ready for you, and you fix one last strand of hair.

They weren’t ready. Your family nearly died of embarrassment after Etsuko came out in front of all those important families, so they plan to just quietly let Kichi pick from a pool of suitors after she graduates business school. If they thought you would go just as quietly, they were wrong. There’s no way you would let go of Takashi without a fight.

Kichi met you at the bottom of the stairs, dressed very nicely but not nearly as provocatively as you. She walks you to the dining room, beyond words until you reach your chair. All she can do is press an apologetic hand against your palm before she takes her seat.

In the half hour you were gone, the servants completely rearranged the room. Double china sat in front of five extra seats, and you shivered at the new chair next to you, envisioning your future husband sitting there. Light glinted off the crystal wine glasses. 

Musicians crowded into the back corner, a whole string ensemble playing what must be good music, but all you can hear is the blood rushing to your ears. Beside them stands a tabloid reporter, friendly with your family, camera and notebook at the ready. A man filed in followed by another woman, and he looked familiar, but you couldn’t place where you had last seen him.

You were beyond impressed. Without Takashi by your side, everything dulled, no matter how expensive or important they seemed to be. Even the swan ice sculpture paled in comparison to Takashi’s eyes. 

As your family members walked in, you grabbed your father by the arm and pulled him to you. You dug your freshly-manicured nails into his suit, hoping to damage it or give him some semblance of your pain.

“Whoever you’ve chosen for me,” you hiss, pointing to the empty chair by yours, “I don’t want him. I won’t have him.”

Your father looked down at you, eyes calculating. “Oh, Gina, you’ve always been so smart.” His tone is light, not with happy pride, but arrogance, tinged with a hiccup of sadness. As he turned you to your chair, forcing you in, he turns much darker than you have ever seen before. “You should be smarter than falling in love with a commoner.”

“You had so many young men at Ouran,” your mother chimed in, gracefully sinking into her place. “Couldn’t you have chosen one of them?”

“They are all mean-spirited and entitled.”

“What about those host club boys?” she suggests.

“Yes, they are all of good breeding and good standing,” your father chimed in. “Even that Suoh boy, despite his maternal heritage.”

You grip your fork, remembering all the boys pimp themselves around like prize racehorses. “Those host boys are worse,” you spit out. “They’re attention whores. They prostitute themselves to desperate girls for status and manipulative satisfaction. None of what they do is real, even as they lead naive girls to believe it is, and I’ll be damned before I become a wife to any of them.”

“Oh. That’s not very polite.”

A cold chill rushes over your body as the familiar rawness of that voice thuds against your stomach. You know his voice. You’ve heard it chuckle cruelly in the hallway. It has been harsh and firm delivering answers in class. it’s the voice you feared the most would appear beside you at the dinner table.

You turn around as the Shadow King himself, Kyoya Ootori, enters the room.

Well. That was really long. Expect part 3 coming up soon! In case you missed it, this is a part 2, with part 1 linked here. Leave be a comment! I’d love to engage with you :)

#ohshc #ouran high school host club #takashi morinozuka #mori #mori x reader #ohshc imagine #ohshc story #ohshc fanfiction #ohshc imagines #ohshc au

[slamsams-blog]

Dr.No - #24WeeksofBond

#24WeeksofBond continues this week with the first ever James Bond film under the leadership of Harry Saltzman and Albert “Cubby” Broccoli who would form Eon Productions to produce the James Bond films.  Hollywood was skeptical about the films and didn’t want to make too much of an investment in it, saying that the novels were too British and sexual.  When they finally got the green light to produce Dr.No, they were only given 1 Million dollars...can you imagine that?  It takes 10 times that to shoot a rom-com these days.  Well even back then, 1 million wasn’t all the much to make an action movie - and it shows.

There’s only so much negative you can say about this movie before you start sounding ungrateful or pretentious.  It’s hard to really shit on Dr.No since this would be the start of a franchise that will last 57 years and counting.  The longest Hollywood franchise ever all starts here with this stripped down, methodical, detective thriller that brought Sean Connery into mainstream heights.  Cary Grant was the man who was the strongest choice for the role, however he was only willing to commit to one film and they needed someone who could provide a bit more staying power.  In walks Sean Connery.

Connery was a relatively unknown at this point, he had a few roles on stage and in film but landing the role of 007 was Sean’s breakthrough.  He went from “oh yeah that guy” to household name in two hours (or whatever the run time is for this film).  Ian Fleming was originally against the casting of Connery but quickly changed his mind after how much of a commercial success Dr.No would become and started to work Connery’s Scottish heritage into the character in the novel “You Only Live Twice”.  

So here we are, off to the races in 007′s first ever adventure to Jamaica where he will go and stay.  Usually with the Bond films they are shot in multiple locations, but with the budget they had - they shot everything in Jamaica and in the famous Pinewood Studios.  Dr.No isn’t what I would call a high octane, action adventure.  The film itself is quite dull and slow, but it is more about the mission than it is about the stunts and the gadgets and the cars.  This is a straight up detective drama.  MI6′s contact in Jamaica goes silent, so they send Bond down to Jamaica to find out what happened.

First of all, this opening is just so 60′s, I love it.  No pre-title sequence that will start to be a tradition come the follow up film “From Russia With Love” so it opens with the gun barrel sequence that Connery’s stunt double films right into this psychedelic light show that makes you feel like you’re raving at Studio 54. (Not sure if thats the right time period for that reference, but oh well).  We see a man named Strangways get shot and killed followed by his secretary.  Now Bond is on the case.  But first we are taken to the local casino where we will meet Bond playing his favorite card game.  Connery looks so good here, and delivers his first “Bond, James Bond” line to perfection, complete with cig hanging out of his mouth.

Right away we get a sense that James Bond is as smooth as butter and takes a lovely lady named Sylvia Trench to the cleaners with the game they're playing.  He charms her and they become a thing.  But after that, Bond is now on the mission in Jamaica.  We come to find out after Bond’s great police work that there is this island named Crab Key that people on the island are scared of and rumors of a Dr.No running the island like a camp.  Bond’s ears are perked up and he is curious.  But everyone who gets a little too close to the island ends up dead.  Naturally Bond finds convincing Quarrel (John Kitzmiller) to take him there.  Quarrel tells the story of a dragon that lives on the island and Bond rolls his eyes.

While Bond is on the trail, there is a few attempts at his life.  One right away when he arrives in Jamaica and a man posing as a driver takes him in his car.  Then he finds a freaking tarantula in his bed while he’s sleeping and Bond get sweaty with fear.  Bond finally defeats the spider with some very intense shoe squishes.  Then there is another “car chase” on his way to ladies house.  This car chase is so hilarious.  You can just tell Connery is doing everything he can to simulate a car chase in front of a green screen with wonderful uses of his facial work.

Bond manages to avoid all the attempts on his life and finds his way to Crab Key with Quarrel’s help.  Here Bond meets Honey Ryder (Ursula Andress), an explorer & orphan who loves wildlife and is very guarded, strapping herself with a knife to protect her seashells.  I love Honey Ryder, she’s sexy but also has a dark past that doesn’t allow her to get close to anyone and is untrusting of anyone.  I guess that’s just what Crab Key does to you.  Bond’s crew is complete and it’s now time to get this Dr.No fellow.

This is where the movie finally picks up a little when the “dragon” or tank that shoots fire kills Quarrel.  Poor Quarrel.  Bond and Ryder are then brought to Dr.No’s office where they will dine and be softened up.  This is where we finally meet Dr.No (Joseph Wiseman), The character that partially inspired the Dr.Evil character in the Austin Powers movies.  Dr.No reveals that he is a member of SPECTRE, a name Bond has never heard before, and little does Bond know that SPECTRE will soon be a big ole pain in the ass for him.

What Dr.No is doing is toppling missiles by use of a beam in an effort to control the airspace and use it to extort countries.  So Bond kills Dr.No because that’s not okay.  But in doing so he has made it so the whole place is going to up in flames.  They escape and the place explodes!  Now apparently the studio got an extra 100,000 dollars to finance this explosion shot.  It was worth it, because that is the big climax that they were building towards.  I think It paid off.

I mean, that’s about it...Dr.No set the bar for what the essence of Bond is, a charming and confident detective who is damn good at his job.  While this film lacks in crazy fight scenes, and plane shoot outs, and remote control cars, it is meant for the viewer to just get to know who James Bond is.  From Russia With Love will then raise the bar when it comes to action, while Goldfinger sets the standard all Bond films from then on will have to live up to.

If you like a Dragnet sort of pace in your detective movies, then Dr.No is the film for you.  I have all the respect in the world for this movie, but it just doesn’t do it for me as a stand alone film, and that’s my take.

What did you think?  Let me know!

24 Weeks of Bond will return next Monday with - 

The World Is Not Enough

#dr. no #sean connery #james bond #austin powers #Dr. Evil #24WeeksofBond

[rawbiredbest]

Einception

Contains: Childhood Memories, Gameplay/Story Integration, League Mechanics Working As Intended Fandom: Path of Exile Characters: Einhar Frey, Alva Valai, Exile (Scion) Word Count: 1038

Fragmented memories allow exiles to look into the past. Einhar accompanies exiles into memories. Einhar doesn’t like to talk about his past.

Everything turns out better than expected.

This was written for the Einhar competition on the PoE forums. While it didn’t win anything, I still like this headcanon, so I thought I’d share it with you. PoE needs more love.

Please enjoy!

- - -

It is very hot today. The longer I’m in here, the less I can find. I wish I had a teacher. Someone who knows how all the parts go together.

“I could have told you that, exile!”

Einhar isn’t surprised she doesn’t respond. He has crossed paths with the exile numerous times. It must be the will of the First Ones. Einhar can tell in the exile’s frown, which is just as frigid as the cascades of ice she summons from her gnarled staff. Craiceann, First of the Deep, has her in a claw, whether she knows it or not. The entire scenario made a name for her, sleek and feminine, leap from the cool waters of Einhar’s imagination.

“Sturgeon! I have been here before!”

The exile glares at him over her shoulder while her chaos golems beat down a writhing mamba. They don’t have time for this. Memories don’t last forever, and already the gloom of decay lurks on the horizon.

A posse of proto-synthetes leap a nearby stone wall. Einhar pulls the pin on a grenade, lobs it at the advancing horde, and watches their delicate filigree and turquoise hearts explode into so much smoke and glitter. “When I was but a small Einhar, I wondered how many things worked. Not mechanical things like Niko, or gem things like gemlings, but living things! Small Einhar would think about this very much, until small Einhar’s eyes grew crispy! Father Frey would drag small Einhar back home and put him in a small, dark place, but he could not take the thoughts out of small Einhar’s head!”

Sturgeon turns around. This is it! Einhar thinks, Finally, she speaks to me!

Raising her staff, she calls an orb of electricity so hot the Beastmaster can feel it through his mask as it launches an arc of lightning past his face. Blinded, the filimite crashes to the ground. Einhar stomps on its casing, and all thought of acknowledgement vanish as he notices brain matter on the sole of his talon. He kneels and scoops some splattered mush into a pouch on his belt. Looking up, he catches a familiar sight.

It’s a cage, half-embedded in a dirt embankment. Einhar approaches it and kneels to the bars, grinning behind his mask. He lifts a hand in greeting. “Hello, small Einhar!”

The child in the cage, curled into a ball, peers out, takes in the hulking red cloth, black dreadlocks, and white, pointed beak, and asks, “How do you know my name?”

Einhar laughs. “I knew you would say that!” He looks behind him. Sturgeon, surrounded in righteous flames, is keeping the synthetic guardians of the memory at bay, but he remembers he needs to keep this brief. Luckily, an arm from some unfortunate monster, severed neatly by a blade of frozen anger, crash lands beside him. He picks it up, peels back its flesh, and offers the steaming pink underneath. “What do you call this?”

“Lunch?”

“Good boy! You have been eating well! Listen, small Einhar, have you heard of the First Ones?”

The child crawls closer to the cage door, eyes wide. “No! Tell me, strange man-bird!”

Einhar’s heart is so fit to burst with pride he nearly forgets what he needs to do. What a clever Einhar small Einhar was! he thinks, brushing the dirt into a blank canvas, Mind always working! Aware of the presence of a genius! Such a smart, sunburnt Einhar! He starts to draw with his finger, hesitates, wipes the slate clean, and starts again, careful to make his pictures upside down. “This is Craiceann, First of the Deep,” he explains, voice low with reverence, “Farrul, First of the Plains, Fenumus, First of the Night, and Saqawal, First of the Sky. They were the first of all beasts, and they watch us from the Great Grove, where the strongest shall go at the end of the world.”

As if on cue, the child says, “I want to meet them! How do I become the strongest?”

The Beastmaster wipes a hot tear from his face. He gets dirt in his eye like a silly Einhar, but the sting is nothing compared to the overwhelming love he feels for himself. This is what mother beasts in the menagerie must feel like when giving birth, with less screaming and hideous, red liquids.

He takes the child’s hand between his own. “Survive,” Einhar says, “Despite it all, survive. The years shall not be kind. Learn the ways of blood, build yourself a home, and give thanks to the First Ones, for they shall guide your path through terror and triumph alike. Only then shall you be considered worthy.”

Sturgeon cries out in pain, clutching her side. The pack of wrought reavers not occupied with attacking her chaos golems turn their attention to Einhar instead. Gold fangs and quills bared, they charge.

“Oh! One last thing.” Einhar crams a repeating bolt into his crossbow. Channeling his thaumaturgy – he needs to make this look life-changing for himself – he pulls the trigger. The reavers collapse in a pile of twitching limbs, mowed down in a hail of crimson spikes. He looks back at the child. “Make yourself a fine weapon! Tell it every day that it is a good weapon! The best that ever was!”

Gritting her teeth, Sturgeon waits for her energy shield to recharge. The memory decay is pouring towards her in waves. It’s too late to press on. If it hadn’t been for the feathered fool who raved about crabs and spiders at the slightest provocation slowing her down—

Was he still with her? It had been too quiet.

“Goodbye, small Einhar! Remember: don’t be a stranger!”

Sturgeon’s gut crinkles with frost as she is overtaken by blue.

-

When she returns to her hideout after what feels like twenty years of warfare, Sturgeon wants nothing more than to pry off her armor and crawl into a hole to sleep. Alva Valai catches her first.

“Did something happen to Einhar?” the time traveler whispers, “I sense a sort of fulfillment about him.”

Sturgeon shrugs her off. Across the snowy courtyard, the Beastmaster licks his pen in preparation for the poem he will write about the greatest day of his life.

#rawbi's writes #path of exile #PoE #einhar #einhar frey

[progeny-ex-machina]

Concept: Fallen Washington

They knew the Raving Plutocrat was unhinged. They never expected him to sell a city to a bunch of giant space bats. Seriously, what the fuck?

Idea-dump, because it won’t leave my head.

I noticed that all the Cities -- past, present, and mentioned candidates for future -- are/were capitals, and that their leaders all lived in them, so this only works if you assume President Dump Truck properly moved into the White House.

But it’s an alternate universe anyway because *whispers* this stuff isn’t real

What did Mr. Potato Head get from the deal: idk, probably more money or something.

And what the fuck is happening on the Surface? Nobody knows. Nobody wants to know. I sure don’t want to know, and I’ll be one of the ones stuck up here.

This is probably the Seventh City but could be the Sixth if certain parties manage to stall for long enough without getting dumped down a well. I’m not an expert on the whole affair, I just know what I’ve read on TV Tropes, don’t ask me

Either way, there’s a huge jump in technology between the previous City and this one, and the remaining denizens of past Cities have to deal with it.

Hilarity ensues.

I mean, this is all serious business to the people in-universe, but to us it’d be great.

Basically think modern FL AU but without the L. The L is over. Our favorite and most love-to-hate characters are all still around to fuck shit up though. No fun in an AU without familiar characters (besides Space Crab and the Crabettes).

Speaking of technology, what happened to the internet? It’s complicated. I don’t think it disappeared entirely, because society would fall apart in days and it’d be Second City II: This Time You Don’t Have Five More Chances. You can still access some things. Games. Research. Many websites have some pages available and others gone forever. The key is, you can’t use the internet to communicate with anyone on the Surface. So, let’s say, you could read fics on FFN, but you couldn’t review, post your own fics, or PM anyone.

Phones are the same. You can call anyone, so long as you’re both on the same side of the ground. Apps work. Microtransactions don’t. There’s no TV. Sorry.

Google Maps doesn’t work either, which is a little bit of a pain because the streets have been warped into a Boston-like mire that nobody can fucking navigate.

Without the hindrance of coal and fossil fuels actually being around to fuel greed, people finally started to use other energy sources. (To fuel things other than greed. Also, to fuel greed.) Solar and wind power are off-limits, but there is still moving water, and some of the stuff that exists down here is surprisingly potent in...electrical potential. ...I’m not a scientist. Artistic license.

Cars? Electric cars didn’t get far enough to be a thing in the Neath, so the gas ran out and maybe people had to get used to horses and carts again. Or something. My goal is to merge the aesthetics so it’s not just “2018 but with candlelight” or “1800s but with more scrap metal because everything stopped working”.

As for society, well, it’s not too different from how it was in the Fifth. There are still insurgents, artists, cops, rich snobs, poorly-supervised orphans, and the rest. Their sensibilities may be more modern, but the breakdown of physical law has inevitably led to a breakdown of other things, such as social standards. I guess I just can’t see a Fallen City without its cliques factions.

The other humanoid species are also present, of course. (Maybe it’s not realistic, but I claim artistic license: racists have pretty much gone “holy shit, what do non-white people matter now that we’re stuck with all these non-human abominations?” So...humanity is just as united as ever, which is to say, it’s not.) The devils are particularly pleased, because with every Fallen City, there must come a new Fallen Leader...and this time, there’s hell toupee.

My contract says that everything I write must include at least one terrible pun.

Anyway, given that said leader is now pretty much powerless other than still being considered part of high society, the insurgents are of course plotting against their new bat-like overlords. Led by the remnants of a council, its members much older than they look, the new revolutionaries quickly claimed the Washington Monument as their territory. Somebody had to.

Other landmarks and notable areas (I don’t know much about DC, okay) are also “owned” by various factions. The rooftops once again belong to the children.

This obviously isn’t a complete rundown of all that’s going on in this AU, because I’m not goddamn Tolkien. My brain has only given me so much ridiculousness; it’s up to you guys to extrapolate more ridiculousness from it.

As for a certain ill-advised game path that fascinated me enough to create an account in the first place...well, here’s where it gets especially fun for me.

Some things are known: there are nine Masters, though at least two are suspected to be the same entity. Deep in the almost-realm of things best left alone, there is a pair of barely-beings. Knowledge about the First has been passed down among the Seekers: it is called Eaten; it was betrayed; it penetrates dreams and lures mortals to destroy themselves in the way it was destroyed.

As for the Second, there’s not quite as much information available, and so of course there are many more rumors. Was it also betrayed? Or was it a betrayer, driven mad by guilt or nightmares, who followed the path of its victim -- Seeking not a Name, but absolution? Both of those speculations are dangerous.

There are safer speculations, for a certain definition of safety. Was it ever alive at all, or is it an amalgamation of the last shreds of spirit left behind by those who Sought and Found? Is it a reflection of the original? Unlikely. It differs from its counterpart in too many ways. It cannot speak in dreams, but it can harm you still. Speak not of it. Seek not its Name. It is Not, and that is all.

And so this: the people whose lives were based on technology and now must find new and creative ways to regain some of what they’ve lost; the shuffling of society, people drawn ever more urgently to those more like themselves; the abrupt change of this post from casual writing into this pretentious poesy: these are some of the parts that make up a potential future.

Oh, and that post about McDonald’s? Yeah, it happens from time to time. The first drive-thru employee to hear a shrill whisper of “I’ll have a burger with no tomatoes, a large fry, and the vague imitation of Dr. Pepper you mortals have created” nearly had a heart attack. Because some things never change.

Along that line: don’t forget about the “hilarity ensues” part. People from previous Cities adjusting to all the technology and culture people brought with them from 2018? That’s a gold platinum mine. Smartphones. Harry Potter. Memes.

I have actually finished a writing thing, even if it’s not proper prose. This may be the best, worst, or most “eh” thing you’ve ever read, but it was a triumph.

#fallen london #headcanons concepts and thoughts oh my #random crap i do #i'm slowly learning to not regret the fuck out of things like this and just enjoy the ride

[nurfhurdur]

Life’s Highway Ch. 53 - Heartbreak

AN: I was going to link it but figure I’ll post the whole thing, why not. This one is rough….on me anyway. 

Request on AO3, Lightning dealing with the loss of Doc. Part 1 of ?

Also! Everything I’ve ever written is humanized.

He’d never dealt with death before, it was something he had just never thought of, surprising when his career revolved around driving a vehicle at incredibly high and dangerous speeds. So because he’d never dealt with death and had never given the topic much thought, he’d therefor never given the causes of death much thought either.

Of course it wasn’t like he didn’t know it happened. No one lived forever and to think otherwise was both naive and idiotic, but the closest it had ever reached him had been headlines in the tabloids. Other celebrities. So and so passed at 81 due to complications of surgery, car accidents, plane accidents, illness, he understood that, but somehow when he was forced to face it for the first time he just couldn’t get a grasp on it, or when he thought he did he’d suddenly be left juggling the notion awkwardly until he was mentally and emotionally exhausted.

Why did his first experience with loss have to be Doc.

He supposed he should be thankful that it wasn’t so sudden. Well it had been sudden, but not blink of an eye sudden. He should be thankful it wasn’t that drunk driver that jumped the curb in front of the hotel down in Concord last fall, who’d hit two people before careening in to a street light only ten feet from where they’d been standing in an attempt to get some air after a long day of press conferences and signing autographs. Lightning had barely realized what was happening when he felt a rough hand yank him backwards, heard tires squealing, people screaming, and in .001 seconds witnessed Doc shift from crew chief to medical professional. He remembered standing awkwardly near one of the pedestrians, holding the phone in a shaky hand and speaking to a 911 dispatcher as he parroted whatever Doc told him. He’d had no idea what half of it meant but it had helped the responders who arrived on scene.

In that moment he’d actually forgotten Doc was ill.

He’d forgotten it rather frequently in the course of those seventeen months.

Had it really only been seventeen months?

Lightning would get so caught up in their usual routine that for days or weeks at a time he would forget there was anything wrong. Or maybe he’d been forcing himself to forget, because there were times when that knowledge would crash through the wall he’d worked so hard to put in place. With blinding force, that fear and anticipation of the worst would jump that barrier and slam in to those weak defenses, scrape across his senses like metal on pavement, send chills down his spine and leave deep grooves and gouges, raw and open and bleeding. It had and still left him with an unexplainable sense of detachment from the rest of the world. How could they keep going when they all knew nothing was ever going to be the same. How do you live day to day knowing that the hands on the clock were slowing down. How could you just wait for them to stop.

In those days when he could forget, though, those blissfully ignorant afternoons at the Butte, he would forget the large brown envelope he’d found on the desk and took the liberty to open. It had looked official enough to pertain to the upcoming season, and everything sent to Doc was always addressed Jesse A. Hudson M.D.

Except it had nothing to do with Piston Cup.

The forms he’d glanced at before shoving them back in to the folder had been filled with terms he didn’t understand, didn’t want to understand, but he’d spent enough time hanging around in the clinic in the off seasons to recognize some of it. He could only sit around so long before he’d pull those text books off the shelves in boredom. One of his favorite pass times had been flipping to random pages, finding the most ridiculous and bizarre medical facts and try to stump Doc, which of course never worked. In doing so, it was hard not to pick up a few things here or there…

He’d stomped through to the garage, intent on throwing a tantrum that would put his rookie year to shame but when he finally did find his mentor, his crew chief, his father, he’d only thrown the envelope on the old desk and glared at him with tear filled eyes.

Doc, for his part, had only regarded the offending parcel in silence from where he stood at the work bench.

“You weren’t going to tell me, were you? You weren’t going to tell anyone.”

Doc had allowed him to rant and rave and vent his frustration over being kept in the dark and Lightning couldn’t tell in that moment whether he was angry at Doc’s silence or that expression of calm that had refused to break in the face of his verbal assault.

One of his most vivid memories of the whole ordeal was how much his fingers hurt when he’d held on to the back of Doc’s shirt, how hot his face felt and the painful sting in his eyes when the tears had finally spilled over, of how there didn’t seem to be anything wrong, there was no sign of frailness or illness when Doc had finally cut off his tirade with a crushing embrace and a muttered I’m sorry, Kiddo.

It had all started after the race in New York. Wet and cold and raining for the majority of the weekend, minus the race somehow, just about everyone had come down with some form of bronchitis or the flu. With Radiator Springs back on the map, the population had been steadily growing and so had the amount of patients at the clinic. Lightning remembered being wowed with some of the new equipment and despite his own heavy chest cold, he’d asked a thousand questions about the mobile x-ray machine.

“Yeah, it’s great.” Doc hadn’t exactly sounded thrilled, but it might have been because while he was being granted the latest and greatest equipment, he still didn’t have the technicians to use the equipment, at least in the case where he’d needed it for himself.

“You could always walk me through it.” Lightning had provided. “It can’t be that hard.” The very idea that an x-ray machine could send images to a tablet wasn’t exactly science fiction to him. It was more the fact that Doc could use a tablet that was the strange part.

“This thing costs more than you make in a year. Don’t even look at it.”

“Why do we need x-rays?”

“You don’t. You have a cold.”

“Then who needs it?”

“It’s illegal to share that kind of information.”

Through process of elimination, Lightning had figured out it was Sarge, who had actually come down with pneumonia.

Because the clinic had no technicians, Doc had been forced to travel for his own diagnosis, which Lightning had just looked at as a field trip, complaining both ways that if Doc had just allowed him to use the mobile machine they would have saved an entire day’s worth of driving. He’d been a little surprised when Doc mentioned going back a month or so later, he hadn’t been nearly as bad off as some of them but only shrugged when Lightning questioned him and offered a vague explanation that they only wanted a follow up.

It was more than a follow up.

What little Lightning had gathered from the forms he’d mistakenly opened, told him that something far more serious had been discovered through the course of the illness that had swept it’s way through the pit crew.

It wasn’t pneumonia or bronchitis, he hadn’t even been able to bring himself to say it, let alone think it. It was a zodiac sign you looked up in the paper to read your horoscope, it was a constellation, the Latin word for crab. It was harmless when considered in that context…

But in those moments he couldn’t just forget, when he was forced to face the facts in those lonely hours at night, when the shadows crept in and his defenses were at their weakest, he’d sway dangerously between fear and anger. Fear of the unknown, fear of knowing that eventually there’d come a time when he’d look up at that pit box and Doc wouldn’t be there.

He wasn’t real sure on how the grieving process worked and he wasn’t desperate enough to google it yet, but he did know that he’d then get angry, because his crew chief (father) was such a walking contradiction that Lightning sometimes couldn’t even come close to understanding his logic. How could someone finally open up and tell such fond stories of people they’d abandoned for fifty years but then make no attempt to return to old stomping grounds. How could a Medical Doctor completely ignore their own failing health but badger him over his own.

How could Doc refuse treatment.

That’s what had hurt him the most, when his ranting and crying and confusion had finally mellowed and he’d gotten himself under control (days later) he’d asked in a conversational tone when treatments would start, because he’d planned to be part of it all.

“Season starts in two months, there’s no time for that.”

Doc had replied in a tone that suggested the conversation was over and of course Lightning had other thoughts on the matter. He’d put up a fight at times in the past, usually coming across more as banter with a suggestive edge behind it but this had turned in to a full blown argument, two hard headed individuals facing off and colliding head on, the way only extremely egotistical Piston Cup Champions could.

Doc had refused to back down, in the same way he refused to back down on anything. “I’ve seen what that does to a person, Hot Rod, and I am not spending whatever time left putting myself through that.”

That had been the end of it, and Lightning never brought it up again.

Web MD was not his friend, and if Doc ever noticed any of his text books missing at any given time he never said anything.

It was months after that argument that he would forget. When the season started they had fallen in to the usual routine and everything seemed to have returned to normal. Or maybe it was just a new normal. It would only creep up on Lightning at random, in the middle of a conversation with the guys or after getting settled in to whatever hotel room he was put up in. Most often it was in those moments where he was able to spend too much time in his own head.

He’d gotten in to the habit of checking his phone, even more frequently than he used to. He’d started sending text messages more often, even if Doc was only in the room across the hall. He could almost feel the initial irritation seeping through the phone the first half of that year, and he was sure those replies that didn't come back until 4:00 AM and caused him to dig around for his phone blearily were more out of spite than anything else.

But then, after about six months, it had almost become an unspoken agreement between them. Instead of his constant harping and questioning on his crew chief’s well being, he’d simply send a text, it was Lightning’s way of checking in without checking in.

(6:42 AM) Press conference at 8?

Generally meant Ok?

Doc (6:45 AM) 7:30 Don’t be late.

Always meant Doing fine, Kiddo.

It had become the new normal and while he hadn’t been sure how long that normal would last, he’d made sure to make the best of it.

#pixar cars #cars fandom #cars fanfiction #my writing #lightning mcqueen #doc hudson #there's my heart #on the floor #i've only ever written humanized fics because writing cars is hard #like how

[gettinziggywithit]

Axetale/Repo! Genetic Opera Blurb Part 2

I spent all day and very nearly into tomorrow writing part 2. I haven’t been this excited to write stuff in awhile. :D

This ficlet is based on @thebananafrappe and @azulandrojo‘s Undertale AU, Axetale with some much needed help from their wiki and of course, @mercy-monster‘s drawings which really bring their creation to life. Thanks to the three of you for helping in spawning this bizarre little idea! Lyrics in bold and italics are from Repo! the Genetic Opera songs, Chase the Morning and Night Surgeon, respectfully. I’m thinking about wrapping it up somehow in a part 3, so we’ll see how it goes. Sorry if there are any discrepancies in the lore or if the grammar is just plain yucky. I tried. lol (I wish I had banana’s talent for writing)

Enjoy part 2!

Completely lost in the middle of the macabre thicket, Aliza realized just how far off the trail she had gotten herself. She literally had no idea how to get back to the house and that was a serious problem. Slowing down just enough to catch her breath, she felt the cut on the side of her face. It wasn’t too deep and the blood that flowed was starting to dry to crust which she wiped away along with some tears that were shed silently.

 “I’m so sorry, dad...”

 She didn’t yet know the story behind her mother and father, but one look from that locket photo told her many things. She saw that they were very happy together and that the Underground wasn’t always the dark, deadly, and depressing world it currently was. Seeing that only made her desperate to know more. Aliza hoped that with the locket back with her father, he’d calm back down and come to his senses. She didn’t believe he would hurt her intentionally, but it was obvious whatever was wrong with him, having the locket in her hands made her seem like a visible threat. If she were able to make it back to the house, maybe he could slowly start to answer her questions and unravel the mysteries in the journal that led her here.

 Sensing she was alone for now, she sat beneath a tree and fished the journal out of her bag and looked over the stained and worn pages with the glue and taped scribbles and notes. After a moment of frustration, she sighed and reached for her magnifying glass. One particular page was calling out to her in this time of need and she searched for the dog eared section.

 Her mother’s handwriting was clear, but the fragments, little paragraphs, and doodles were erratic and to anyone else would appear to be gibberish. It was difficult in the beginning to piece them together what with her poor eyesight and limited reading skills, but she remembered that little by little, she put the clues together to form a map. A map that led back to her real friends and family.

Yield for nothing Let your life be a dream Integrity, honesty It’s too late for me Don’t look back ‘Till you’re free to chase the morning…

That little message scrawled on the scrap of paper was kept close to her heart. Whenever she got discouraged or frustrated, she would repeat those words like a mantra to gain the determination to keep pressing forward. It had gotten her this far, but Aliza knew there was still quite a long journey to complete.

That was the least of her worries at the moment though, she still needed to find her way back to the house. Sans had explicitly warned her to stick close to the house as there were other monsters who would kill her on sight with no mercy. She delicately wrapped the magnifying glass back in its cloth and placed it and the journal into her bag as she rose to start walking back in the general direction she came from. The sound of a twig snapping from behind had her bending down to snatch up a thick branch for defense.

She stood her ground for a moment, waiting for whatever made the noise to appear. She scanned the tree line where the noise came from and another twig snapped, accompanied by a menacing growl, this time much closer. Oh that was not good. Choosing not to *stick* around, Aliza clutched the bag to her chest, pivoted, and started to run. Whatever it was that made the noise exploded from the dense forest line and began to give chase after her. She scrambled to gain distance from it as he soul beat erratically.

“PAPYRUS!”

She screamed in vain for her lone friend, but nobody came. He was most likely closer to the house where sans kept him and couldn’t hear her. The pursuer seemed to multiply into many and she shrieked as she felt the near miss of clawed hands grabbing at her. She abruptly changed tactic and cut through the trees, weaving in and out of the snarled branches. The growls grew into roars as she desperately tried to think and run at the same time.

A twisted root snagged her foot and she fell, the dirty snow muffling her screams. A burst of determination had her rolling into a defensive position, holding the branch in front only nothing was there, not a living soul was in her sights.

All at once, the growls began to trickle in across the forest and not one, not two, but five feral and emaciated monsters emerged from the darkness, looking very Hungry. They spaced out giving her no real direction to run and she was damned if she turned to try and run again. She looked around and jabbed the branch when one of the monsters got too close. Her eyes glowed as magic rippled across her body. She wasn’t skilled enough with her magic to control it fully, but she wasn’t about to lay down and die that easily.

In all her brainstorming, she didn’t notice one creeping up on the side before it tackled her to the ground. Her magic flared wildly, trying to lock on and keep the rabid monster at bay, but her arms holding the creature away ended up taking the brunt of the blows as it swiped and clawed, in an attempt to get at her neck. Another monster took a hit at the one on top of her and threw him off.

Taking advantage, she hoisted herself up and tried crab walking backwards to escape. The monster who had smacked the other one away bared its yellow stained, jagged sharp teeth at her and snarled. It slipped and slid in the snow, grabbing for her ankles and she kicked at it in vain, sucking in one last breath to scream for someone, anyone.

“DAD!”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sans gently clicked the fireplace back into its closed setting and ran for the open door, very nearly crashing into Papyrus. “WHERE ARE YOU GOING, BROTHER, AND WHERE IS THE HUMAN? YOU WILL BOTH MISS DINNER!” Sans hid the blade of his axe behind him and chuckled, “Gotta go fetch Aliza, Paps. You start the spaghetti and we’ll be back in time for Mettaton.” Papyrus eyes his brother carefully and sans was afraid he’d start to ask more questions when he had no time to answer them. “HMM, HURRY ALONG, BROTHER. MY SPAGHETTI WILL GET COLD AND NO ONE LIKES COLD SPAGHETTI.”

The Hunger was incredibly cruel in how it attached itself to someone and robbed them of all their sanity and kindness. Papyrus was somewhat spared from the cruelness by his own making, choosing to live in a fantasy world of his own creation where the Underground is well and good and everything is as it should be. Sans encouraged this behavior as it kept him happy, close to him, and unaware of the wicked world they resided in. Any disturbance to his illusion would cause Papyrus to suffer severe panic attacks that would take many hours to subside and coax him back into his comfort zone.

Even though Papyrus was stuck in his delusional figment, there were times like this where sans was almost positive a spark of lucidity would appear in the tall skeleton’s eyes and he would waver a bit before snapping back into his normal routine. Sans often feared another panic attack was imminent with these occasions and made doubly sure that his brother was fine before attending to other matters.

Thankfully, the look came and went and his brother shuffled into the house, carrying on about what would be going into his super fantastic noodle dish and raving about what would be on the newest episode of Mettaton. Sans sighed and shut the door and locked it, setting the trap to discourage any lesser monster from getting in. After he was sure his brother would be safe,he closed his eyes and kept still to try and narrow down where his daughter had gone. Her desperate cry for him echoed across the dark wood and with a small flicker of magic, he was gone.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Aliza braced herself for a slow and painful death before a sharp *fwip* vibrated across the area. The shrill sound of something metal striking the monster at her feet ceased its actions and it whined and crumbled into dust. Ignoring the sharp pain in her arms and ankles, Aliza instinctively scrambled backwards, knocking into something or someone.

“Hey kiddo, orange you glad to see me?”

Peering up, she met the cold stare of her father, his anger not directed towards her, but to the remaining monsters that glared viciously at the newcomer. He held a giant dust covered axe lazily in his left and put his other hand on Aliza’s head, petting her reassuringly. Some of the monsters growled louder and started to advance again. His axe came down to rest in front of Aliza with an audible ‘clink’, its noise a warning that if they dared to come closer, they would no doubt be in for a bad time.

“I don’t know how you all managed past my puzzles, but if I were you, I’d make like a banana and split unless another one of you wants to bite the crust.” The monsters groaned and growled louder as they started to advance towards the both of them. Aliza dared not to say anything about the puns, that could be dealt with another time. She winced as her arms continued to bleed and she struggled to stay conscious as her adrenaline tapped out and she slumped against his leg. “Dad, I’m...I’m sorry…” Sans’ grin faltered as he gently lay her up against the tree beside them, stroking her face gently.

I remember every dying whisper, Every desperate murmur... I remember when I gaze upon her, She looks just like you...

Assured that she was still breathing, he stood with renewed vengeance, his homicidal throb of magic causing the very air to become dangerously thick and the monsters themselves grew antsy with the change in the atmosphere. His axe scraped against the ground as he turned, and from beneath his hood the blue light of his right eye had completely snuffed out as his left eye flared its twisted gold and the pupil constricted. His grin spread across his face and with the shadows that fell, cast his appearance in an ominous, maniacal fashion. The punster executioner had arrived.

I remember, I remember! I remember judging every victim With acute precision...

“So sad there won’t be any funerals for you miserable filth. After all, not appreciating my puns was a grave mistake…”

The monster who had attacked Aliza first leapt towards sans, aiming for the open side of his skull. He waited till the last minute and stepped to the side, bringing the axe down to cleave the monster’s head nearly in half. Dust rained down on him and he breathed it in, reveling in the violence. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he was grateful that Aliza was unaware of this side of him. That would have to be explained soon, but for now, why not have a little fun?

I remember every time I hold you, My sharp companion... I remember, I dismember!

The remaining three came all at once for him, their focus solely on ridding themselves of this meddling monster. He blocked the first with his axe and threw them back, as they crashed into the tree with a sickening snap. The other two rushed in from both sides and he jumped back, causing the two to ram into one another. He didn’t give them the chance to stand back up before he brought his axe up with both hands and brought it down with a cackle, severing both in half, spraying dust everywhere.

Still laughing, he wrenched the axe from the ground, rubbing his clawed thumb over the edge and admired that it still held it sharpness. Even as the Hunger ravaged and mutated his magic, it almost seemed to give his weapon a permanent malice touch to it, never needing to sharpen it. What was left of his cracked soul was beating rapidly, burning in need of more bloodshed. He sighed and took a few moments to calmly breath in and out, calming his murderous urge.

Aliza was still unconscious as she lay against the tree when sans went to check on her. Her arms were horribly clawed and bloody and sans nearly felt overcome with rage again, but the need to get his daughter to safety overruled his need for more blood. He bent to pick her up when he heard a grunting noise from the last monster that was left. It was trying to pick itself up despite its broken limbs and snarled at sans.

With a flick of his wrist, he sent his axe flying, the sharpened tip impaling the monster into the tree. He took his time strolling up to the struggling monster and the pushed the tip of the axe harder into it’s body, “I know this might sound cheesy, but I feel grate about getting to do this.” He twisted the axe around eliciting a painful groan from the monster and then pulled it free. The body was dust before it fell to the ground as sans hacked it apart.

“Get dunked on…”

Covered in a thick layer of dust and grime, sans let the axe disappear and after a few moments, he walked over to his daughter and carefully picked her up, noting he needed to get her medicine quickly. He decided not to teleport as he burned too much magic and if left unchecked, his need for bloodshed would become unquenchable. He began the trek home, recalling what had happened within the last few hours and wondered if what his ghostly Frisk had said would be true.

Could Aliza love him after what he did? He worried about how to tell her of his past and continued to think about what to do the entire way home. He made very little progress by the time he caught sight of the snow covered roof of their home. Just before he opened the door, he brushed the hair from her face and stared at the mark he inflicted. He pulled her close, tears threatening to flow,

“Dear Aliza, I am so sorry. Can you forgive me for this?”

#Axetale #Aliza #Sans #look more writing #like a lot more writing #i tried giving sans puns #for some reason they're food based #idk #I also think even with the Hunger most monsters dislike his puns #lol #I can't write fight scenes either #oh well

[smilesandstarlight]

SR 1x12: Starlight Revue

Wow, the steam is really well done, animators.

She is wearing house-elf attire! XD

Has she been digging stars out of the sands for 7 months??

Wow, Sisyphus much?

Pause. Ooooh! If reaching the star is the forgiveness of sins, maybe all of them working together will allow them to grasp the stars. Having only ONE winner is what tore them apart. Teamwork makes the dream work - yeah!! Resume.

I don't like the CGI 3d effect here. Everything else is 2d, Come on now!

HAHAHAHA "You like crab huh?" (Throwback to "You like potato huh?")

Aww, that was nice posing with Futaba and Kaoruko at the table :)

I admire your determination, Hikari. Truly. Persist until you succeed.

HAHAHA "Jumping in again, are you?"

Crap. This would drive anyone crazy. A special kind of hell. >_<

Holy cow! The opposite of anti-climactic now ;P

Oh, does she have a whole ring of star barettes now?

How did she steal the star?

OK, the giraffe is creeping me out. And also, I question his understanding lol

Oh my stars. What is with people wanting to do crazy things to "protect" people from an inevitable part of life?

Haha was Hikari raving?

LMBO - Tokyo Tower as a missile

Yeah I def doubt Giraffe's knowledge now. [It had been building for several episodes, I just didn’t want to admit it. I thought it was funny to have an all-knowing giraffe, but his undertone of surprise when he utters, “Wakarimasu” just means that he’s just learned it now, he’s just now put two and two together. Which I guess technically means he knows it now, but it’s still different than being omniscient, which is what I liked to think of him as...he’s just a silly misguided tall thing that caused a lot of pain and heartache.]

"Let me see you take away my everything." How romantic...not.

No fair! Why is Banana on Team B and A??

#Starlight Revue #StarlightRevue 1x12 #LivebloggingSR

[afterourhearts]

food i’ll miss the most in RVA

Hi guys! This is almost more of a post for myself to think back and remember all the delicious cuisine in Richmond that I won’t be able to readily access anymore. As my last month here creeps up on me, I’ve been thinking more and more about how much I’ve grown to love this little “river” city. It’s only apt that I’m taking an archaeology class about Richmond in my last semester as it only reminds me yet again about how rich in culture this place is. Of course, I’m still thrilled to head back to Ohio (or maybe Philly if the interviews went well?), but I think I’ll always be willing to visit Richmond in the future and show my future friends around this adorable place :) ok, but on to the food (not ranked in order of best or anything just places I absolutely adore):

1) Huynh’s now turned Vietnam One Vermicelli with Tofu & Spring Roll - ok so most people have tried this popular Viet dish but I’ve tried at least like 10 of these from diff. places and nothing beats the dish at Vietnam One here. It’s the TOFU. It’s seasoned and cooked to perfection; crispy on outside and soft on the inside and bursting with flavor (as opposed to a lot of other places that have pretty bland fried tofu). Honestly I could just eat the tofu and be pleased. So many memories and probably 50+ trips to this place with my apt., definitely forever going to be in our hearts.

2) Jack Brown’s BBQ chips with mac n cheese burger - only like $6, 5 minutes from my school, juiciest homemade patty, amazing pairing of creamy mac n cheese with crispy chip pieces, and all served with the most refreshing pickle. UGH I WANT IT NOW.

3) Frank West’s Pizzeria Cheese Pizza - omgomgomg so everyone here likes Christian’s which is a NY style thin crust heavy cheese pizza and also fairly good but Frank West’s is even better though less known! A local here showed it to me and I’ve been in love ever since. Crust is on a thinner side but not crazy thin, generous amounts of sauce which I love, and the cheese is speckled with some kind of seasoning that is perfection.

4) Peter Chang’s Dry Fried Eggplant - so there isn’t much Chinese food here to rave about due to the heavily viet but low chinese population in rva but they at least boast one authentic szechuan place (though hong kong house in cbus is def better) STILL they have this standout eggplant dish here that I’ve never seen elsewhere. It’s fried eggplant “fries” seasoned in szechuan flavors/cilantro and it isn’t greasy b/c it is dry fried rather than deep fried. AMAZING alternative to fries!

5) Sugar Shack Donuts esp. lemon poppyseed and strawberry lemon - ok so RVA is KNOWN for donuts and for good reason. Sugar shack has been ranked in national magazines/food blogs all the time and it has literally the yummiest donuts I’ve ever had. Coming from cbus where donuts is just Krispy Kreme, I truly can say I’ve never known anything better existed. Sugar shack is like a bigger, better krispy kreme. It doesn’t melt away in your mouth in seconds like krispy kreme but it is still so fluffy and airy inside like lightweight bakery bread almost. Planning on bringing a dozen of these home after graduation!

6) Bombolini Pasta - a little place in Carytown that has really authentic pasta and delicious sauces, as well as a bunch of homemade frozen ravioli you can buy and cook later at home. I love that the noodles here are never overcooked, like true pasta should be served :) 

7) Honey Truffle Fries and Salt n Pepper Fries with Garlic Aioli at Postbellum - this place has a cute little rooftop bar and the most amazing thin fries!!! honey + truffle oil topped with shaved parmesan - could there be a better combo?! The only fries I like better than here are the crispy BonChon ones but BonChon can be found outside of RVA too!

8) Social 52 Crab Dip with Pita - I’ve never had better crab dip, or maybe I was just really drunk xD this bar does have a ton of tasty fusion style apps though!

9) Toast Sweet Potato Tater Tots - a gastropub right beside my school that often rotates out some really unique fusion style dishes (kimchi aiolis and shiz like that) but we always come back to their staple side dish, the sweet potato tots. MMMMMM mmm mm! People make sweet potato fries all the time, but tots? wowzaa

10) Gelati Celesti Chocolate Decadence - hands down the creamiest, thickest, chocolateyest cold creamy gelato goodness you’ll ever try! 

11) Noorani’s Gobi Manchurian, Chicken 65, Egg biryani, and Seekh Kabab - omg I could go on and on about this place forever. Yes your stomach will rebel against you the following day but it is worth the later pain hahaha. I just LOVE their gobi manchurian (fried cauliflower tossed in an indo-chinese sauce), they have the most well-spiced chicken 65 ever, biryani is on the wetter side which I LOVE, and mmm the seekh kabob is served in the most amazing sauce with sliced ginger and it’s just like pakistani heaven!!! It breaks my heart thinking about how much I’ll miss this place :’( even though service is crap, food is always delicious.

12) Zzzaaaam bibimbap bowls - this place is like a korean chipotle but it has every topping you’d ever want in your bibimbap at extremely reasonable prices, with a variety of super tasty sauce combos and topped with sesame oil drizzle. I always feel fairly healthy eating here too which is a bonus :) 

13) New Grand Market Cafe’s Jajungmyeon with Tangsooyuk = ehrmygawd this is the most amazing combination ever created!! Tasty hot noodles in black bean seafood sauce paired with crispy sweet & sour pork & bell peppers/onions = heaven on earth; place is also a supermarket so you can stock up on asian snacks while you’re here!

14) Chadar Thai’s Drunken Noodles and Curry Fried Rice - the best Thai place in this city. Ignore the overpriced and underwhelming Carytown places (thai diner, mom’s siam, ginger thai, thai top ten, elephant thai, thai palace, etc) and come here! Definitely the BEST and most flavorful thai place around!! Their drunken noodles are UNBEATABLE and yes I’ve tried like 7 other places so I would know lololol

15) Shyndigz Fruit Cake and Key Lime Pie - this place is the cutest little date dessert spot!! they have christmas lights everywhere indoor and outdoors and just the cutest little southern belle/rustic theme; grab a slice of their super moist and fresh fruitcake or absolutely perfectly tart key lime pie with the tastiest crust with your girls or a boo thang and enjoy it under the christmas light warm glow!! you’ll 100% have a night to remember :) 

16) Plaza Azteca burritos/enchiladas - so I’m not a huge fan of Mexican because I find a lot of the dishes bland but this place is diff. and they believe in heavy use of sauces/queso which I LOVEEEE. the free nachos/salsa they give are amazing (super thin crispy nachos and the smoothest/freshest salsa), made to order guac is perfect!!, and any of their burritos/enchiladas are bound to be completely covered in sauce and other drizzles and also laying in like a literal pool of more sauce so ohmygoodness yes I’m a big fan

17) Burger Bach New Zealand Burgers - def on the costlier side but comes with a side of fancy salad w like arugula and shiz not just iceberg lettuce and a bunch of creative dips for your fries; burger is also bigger and more flavorful than at Jack Brown’s but Jack beats this place based on price and bun and size and convenience and that freaking pickle ... lol burger bach to jack browns is like shake shack to in-n-out ... one is obvs more expensive and better in quality but the other is unique in taste and affordable sooooooo ya just love BOTH!

18) Mama J’s Southern Kitchen - if you want real soul food this is where its at; here is the only place I like collard greens and they have the sweetest yams and amazing catfish (only place better was in new orleans!) and these freaking awesome wings you must ask for tossed in something called Edy’s sauce. not even sure wtf is in that sauce but it’s bliss

19) Addis Kitchen’s Injera - have you tried ethiopian bread before?? liz and I came across this place when we went to a lackluster italian festival and still needed more food and tried injera for the first time. it was delicious!! it’s a sour, spongey bread that isn’t heavy at all you could literally eat it for ages and just paired amazingly with their veggie/meat dishes which remind me of indian curries a bit. def an experience i’d recommend!

20) Foo Dog’s Fried Tofu and Malaysian Ramen - ok so this place is no fukuryu but the coconut based lemongrass soup is really tasty (noodles need work) and their fried tofu app is deliciously stuffed with a bunch of flavorful veggies and sauces and if you want some bao sandwiches/asian street food combos this is def a good place!

21) Continental Westhampton’s Poutine Fries - omggg this plate of fries is not only covered in gravy but also scallions and an EGG and cheese and if this isn’t your idea of dream loaded fries idk what is

22) Galaxy Diner Malt Shakes and Pickle Chips - so this diner serves breakfast all day and is perfect for post drinking food binges that will do major damage to your waistline but all the greasy foods are just okay in my opnion; really not a standout place except for the funky atmosphere/lighting and one particularly spectacular drink: their malt shakes!!!!!! enough said

23) Don’t Look Back Fish Tacos (traditional style) and Chorizo tacos (gringo style) - it’s not quite LA street taco quality but it’s about as good as it gets around here!

24) Cookout banana shake, chili cheese dogs, chicken nugs, cheese fries, and onion rings - a late night drive through that has everything you’d ever want at 2am in the morning at dollar prices. how perf is this? 

There’s probably places I’m forgetting (as you can tell I’ve eaten out a LOT in college hahahhaa) so I’ll try to keep updating this but for now, these are the places that will always have a special place in my heart and that I highly recommend you trying if you’re ever heading to VA beach and feel compelled to stop by adorably historic and tasty Richmond!

#richmond #virginia #food #cuisine #eats #nomnom #yum

[flossinginthesunshine]

Cambodia: From Pain to Pride

The year is 1975. There has been a civil war raging in the countryside of Cambodia for five years between the weak monarchy in power and the communist regime known as the Khmer Rouge. The monarchy was made up of mostly educated and wealthy Cambodians working in the government/military, while the Khmer Rogue base was predominantly farmers and rural villagers. On April 17, 1975, the Khmer Rouge overthrew the monarchy and took control of the capitol, Phnom Penh.

Over the next four years, two million people were killed under the Marxist leader Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge. In a dramatic effort to force Cambodia back to the Middle Ages and create an agrarian utopia, one-fourth of the population was tortured, starved and murdered. Intellectuals were the target. Cities were emptied. Currency was abolished. 

We spent a day at the S-21 jail in Phnom Penh, learning about the horrors of just one of hundreds of torture camps in Cambodia during this time. 

Communication to the outside world was completely cut off. One Swedish photographer and his team were invited into the country, and Pol Pot put on a grand show for them… making it seem as though everything in Cambodia was picture perfect. The team returned to Europe and reported to the rest of the world that there was nothing to worry about in Cambodia, and that Pol Pot was a beloved leader taking care of his country.

Meanwhile, 17,000 prisoners were being tortured and killed in the heart of Phnom Penh. Only twelve people who entered S21 survived. 

The Khmer Rouge were eventually overthrown by the Vietnamese in 1979, but the horror would live on in the lives of Cambodians for generations to come and the effects of the war are easily visible today. When you spend time in Cambodia, you’ll quickly notice that you don’t see many old people; it’s rare to see someone over the age of 60 out and about. The U.N. continued to recognize the Khmer Rouge as the governing body of Cambodia until 1991, even though they were no longer living in Cambodia and were hiding in exile in the hills of Northern Thailand. Pol Pot wasn’t brought to trial until 1997, and only then was he sentenced to house arrest where he died a year later.

If any of this intrigues you, I recommend reading First They Killed My Father -- one of the only first person accounts of the genocide, told from the perspective of 5-year-old Loung Ung. She was separated from her parents and six siblings and sent to a child soldier camp, miraculously survived the war, and eventually made her way to America where she began telling her story to anyone who would listen. 

In my research on Cambodia, I came across this quote from Joseph Mussomeli, a former US Ambassador to Cambodia: 

“Be careful because Cambodia is the most dangerous country you will ever visit. You will fall in love with it and eventually it will break your heart.” 

I couldn’t describe the feeling any better. In many ways, our time in Cambodia was like other the SE Asian countries we’ve visited -- markets, temples, beaches, and bungalows -- but what made us feel more connected to this special place was the people. Despite the tragedies they’ve endured in quite recent history, they have the friendliest attitudes and most positive outlook on life. While it continues to be one of the poorest nations in the world, the people have fully embraced tourism as their fastest growing industry and exude hope and optimism with every interaction. 

And with that, I’ll leave you with these photos + captions of our four glorious yet heart wrenching weeks in Cambodia:  

Angkor Wat: The Largest Religious Monument in the World

First up was Siem Reap, a charming city home to Angkor Wat - the largest religious monument in the world. We spent two days exploring the Angkor Archaeological Park, which spans over 400 acres of Cambodian jungle. 

Originally built as a Hindu temple in the 12th century, Angkor Wat was converted into a Buddhist temple in the 14th century, and served as the capital of the Khmer Empire through the 15th century. At it’s peak, the complex was home to 1 million people (!!) making it the largest city in the world until the Industrial Revolution. Today, it’s protected as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, welcoming several million visitors per year.

Watching the sunrise with 1,000+ fellow travelers. 

Garrett and Sarafina (who we met in Laos) traveled with us throughout Cambodia, making our time in this lovely country that much sweeter. 

According to inscriptions, the construction of Angkor Wat involved 300,000 workers + 6,000 elephants, and took over 30 years to complete to it’s current state. However, it was never fully completed and no one knows exactly why... 

The faces of Angkor Wat, otherwise known as The Banyon. Two-hundred and sixteen faces make up the only Mahayana Buddhist shrine in the Angkor Wat complex. The faces are said to belong to the Bodhisattva of compassion, who has mastered the soft smile. 

The Khmer architecture was shaped to express the Hindu vision of the relationship between nature and humanity... creating a strikingly beautiful dichotomy between crumbling stone and thriving forest.

10 Days in Otres Beach 

Next on our list was Otres Beach. We arrived in the port city of Sihanoukville via a 12-hour overnight bus from Siem Reap and walked straight to the beach to find a home. We snagged a private bungalow at Sea Garden Guest House for 10 USD per night. What sold us was the large vegan menu, real coffee and the fact that they delivered your food straight to your beach chair. The employees at Sea Garden were all fellow travelers, working a few hours a day in exchange for free food and lodging.

W quickly learned that Otres Beach moves at it’s own pace and attracts and a very unique type of long-term traveller. We heard this line time and time again: “I planned to stay for 3 days, but now it’s been 3 weeks.” Soon enough, we were saying the same thing; we planned to stay 3-4 days and finally left after 10.

Our days were nearly identical to our week in Goa, India... morning runs, afternoons spent reading and tossing the Frisbee, sunset yoga and reiki and evenings playing trivia next door. The guesthouse next door had a small library that rented books for $0.25/day and boasted a huge collection of Beat authors (Kerouas, Ginsberg, Kesey). If we didn’t have a 30-day visa, I think you’d find JJ still reading at the beach six months later. 

Otres Beach is around 3 miles long, with a large stretch of sand splitting the guesthouses and spanning 1.5 miles of emptiness. Ten years ago, this stretch was full of bungalows just like ours, but they have since been torn down by the Cambodian government to make room for new Chinese development.

The properties on Otres (including our beloved Sea Garden) have already received their eviction notices, and will have to vacate their land sometime in the next three years. Maybe that’s why people stay Otres so long... because they know this hippy paradise of cheap vegan food and unobstructed sunsets is coming to an end very soon. 

One night, we decided to venture out from the safety of our beach and check out a sunrise party in the jungle called Kerfuffle. This jungle rave happens every Wednesday night, and doesn’t kick off until 2am. In an effort to get nearly a full night’s sleep, we went to bed at our normal time (9pm) and set our alarms for 2am, hopped in a tuk-tuk and got to the rave around 2:30am. We boogied until sunrise, making it back to our beach for a nap around 7am. 

The set-up was reminiscent of a music festival... with a DJ stage, Ferris wheel, tree-house behind the dance floor and lights twinkling in the trees. At one point it started pouring down rain and we all huddled underneath one of the carnival rides until the DJ started playing again. 

We’re unable to capture the highlight of Otres Beach in photographs, because it involves seeing the ocean glow. The coast of Cambodia is known for it’s bio-luminescent plankton that glow a bright green color when disturbed. All you have to do is swim out into the ocean in the middle of the night (one of my worst nightmares) and make a lot of movement. After a few minutes of splashing around in the dark, JJ said “look down.” And there it was... thousands of glowing green stars moving with our bodies underwater. It was magical and we spent hours mesmerized by how cool our planet is. 

After swimming with the plankton, it was finally time to leave Otres. Our minivan to Kampot picked us up right on time and then made one additional stop to snag another round of passengers. We pulled up to a nearby hotel and the driver got out of the car to help the guests with their bags. However, he forgot one minor detail of putting on the parking brake... and the van started rolling forward, heading straight for the hotel pool. JJ and I stared at each other in horror while the driver nonchalantly made his way back to the van, put it in park and laughed uncontrollably. He then went back to get the bags and the van started rolling forward AGAIN. This time we jumped out of the van, landing safely on the ground and refused to get back in until the driver promised not to leave his seat. 

Oh SE Asia... always keeping us on our toes. 

Kampot + Kep

We spent the next week exploring the waterfront towns of Kampot and Kep... living in tree houses, eating very mediocre crab and tasting the “world famous” and incredibly over-hyped Kampot pepper (ever heard of it? neither had we).

 . Cambodia in the clouds. 

Funky bathroom art: say hello in your language :) 

What may appear to be a peaceful sunset scene is in reality a fleet of Vietnamese fishing boats that have encroached upon Cambodian waters using illegal fishing practices (electrified nets) to steal the catch of the day. The police department and fishing authorities have very little control, which has led to a vigilante war between the two fishing communities and caused nearly irreversible ecological destruction.

Once a charming coastal town frequented by French vacationers, Kep is now trying to regain it’s status on the backpacker trail as the place to go for fresh crab. Twenty-five stalls line the beach with signs proclaiming their fish superior to all the others. While the flavors were quite underwhelming, watching these two play with their food more than made up for it. 

Rabbit Island: More Hammocks Than People

As if our time in Cambodia hadn’t been relaxing enough, we retreated to a tiny island off the coast of Kep for a few days. What we found was more hammocks than people, the best curry of our entire trip, and lots of Vitamin D.

Forever chasing cairns.

Phnom Penh: Our Favorite Big City in SE Asia

This city blew us away with it’s sense of community, vegetarian food, and booming infrastructure. At one rooftop bar, we counted 40 cranes on the horizon. The smells, sights, sounds, markets, and nonstop dodging of motorbikes reminded us of India, and we quickly took a liking to it. 

Cambodia (especially Phnom Penh) is known for it’s knock-off name brand shopping game. You can get anything from iPhones to Levis to designer bags… and we dedicated an entire day to exploring these markets. JJ hit the jackpot at this little air conditioned store where these five Cambodian women dedicated two hours to finding him the perfect pair of paints. He walked out with three new pairs, all perfectly tailored to his body, for a whopping $32.

In the heart of the market, just when you think you may pass out from heat exhaustion... you’ll find Mr. Al Bounnarith, who makes the self-proclaimed (and rightfully so) “best iced coffee in Phnom Penh.” He started this venture right after the Khmer Rouge in 1980 when coffee was a foreign concept to Cambodians, used all of his profits to care for his sick mother, and now spends his days entertaining travelers and leaving us feeling refreshed and WIRED. 

Finding good, cheap, vegetarian food in SE Asia is difficult... so we were thrilled to find a spot with $0.50 pumpkin juice, $1 fried mushrooms, and $2 veggie noodles. Naturally, we ate here four times in three days. 

If I could capture the essence of modern-day Cambodia in one place, it would be at the Olympic Stadium. Ironically, Phnom Penh has never hosted an Olympics... but nevertheless, our hotel was just a few blocks from here, and we read online it was a good place to run. Little did we know it was also home to the number one place to work out in the city. We went running there twice, once in the morning and once at night... each time marveling at the sense of community radiating from this place. There were street-side market vendors selling fruit and fried noodles at every turn, sand volleyball games, paralympics events, tennis matches, Taekwondo tournaments, zumba classes, and hundreds of people just hanging out. We were the only westerners there both times, and we loved it. 

Photo courtesy of Google. 

Towards the end of our time in Cambodia, we met a fellow traveler who shared our love for the country and had spent way more time there than our 30-day visa would allow. As we said goodbye to him, he left us with this: “The best places in Cambodia have yet to be discovered.” 

So my advice to you is... go to Cambodia! Embrace it’s history. Let your heart break. Support the local economy. Exchange smiles with every person you cross. Discover those undiscovered places. 

We can’t wait to go back one-day soon.

Cheers,

Camryn 

[ceslawrites]

WIP: Starcrossed Chapter 2, “Come Crush a Cup of Wine”

A sneak peek at an upcoming chapter of Starcrossed, my latest Fic.

Puck and McGucket had argued the entire way home, trapped in a stalemate over the issue of Wendy’s party.

“I won’t go,” insisted Puck, who, nonetheless, was putting the finishing touches on a pan of crab dip he had baked once they left the grocery store.

“And why not,” asked McGucket, his hands placed firmly on his hips.

“Well,” said Puck, “for one thing, I’m not wanted there.”

“Horsewallop,” spat McGucket, “Mabel invited ya, didn’t she?”

“Wendy despises me,” said Puck, sprinkling crab seasoning over the dish, “it’s a known fact.”

“I’m sure you two’d get along fine once you get to know each other,” said McGucket. “You and I didn’t like each other much when we first met. Thought you were a mean little turd, I did.”

“You call me a mean little turd about three times a day,” said Puck, who let the dip rest as he cut a large loaf of French bread into little cubes for the appetizer.

“Only when you’re acting like one, which yer doing right now,” insisted McGucket, “Most of the time, yer a charming young man and a good friend. A fella like you could have as many friends as you’d want, instead of staying home cooped up in this kitchen all the time.”

“Even if I were to go, which I won’t,” said Puck, “Whatever would I even say at this thing? ‘Thank you ever so much for the invitation, I do hope you can look past me kidnapping you and your friends earlier this summer and fusing your best friends together into a mutated freak, here, have some crab dip!’”

“Actually, maybe ya should apologize,” said McGucket, “maybe once she sees how sorry ya are, she’ll be more willin’ to forgive ya! You—you are sorry about what happened, right?”

“Oh, of course I am, the devil do you take me for,” snapped Puck, flushing.

“Oh, shoot, I’m awful sorry,” said McGucket, placing his hand on Puck’s shoulder. “It’s just hard for me to tell sometimes, Puck. It always feels like you’re trying to shut people out about how you feel. Like yer an actor onstage, you act all big and showy around people you want to entertain, but you run offstage anytime somebody tries to get to know ya; like with that Charlie fella.”

“Are we still going to discuss Charlie De La Fuente?” Puck feigned a yawn.

“Yer the one who used his full name, not me buster,” said McGucket. “And I think it’d do ya a world of good if you talked to him—“

“No,” said Puck bluntly.

“It’s either talk to him or go to the party,” insisted McGucket. “So ya better pick yer poison.” Then, suddenly hit with inspiration, he added, “How about I throw in some extra incentive?”

“We’re resorting to bribery now, are we,” said Puck as he shoved the casserole into the oven.

“Well, I got to thinking,” said McGucket casually, “This kitchen is awful big. It could use a few more appliances to fill up all the empty spaces. Maybe while you’re out at the party I can look into getting some new whosits and thingamajigs—”

“The ice cream machine.”

Puck had been raving about an ice cream machine he’d seen on a competitive cooking show, and had pestered McGucket every day about getting one himself. Each time he’d said no, pointing out there was no sense in spending thousands of dollars on a machine that made a product you could buy at the store for four dollars a gallon.

McGucket took a deep breath.

“It’s a deal,” said McGucket, “You go to the party, I’ll build the dang thing myself.”

Puck began to laugh.

“You must really want to get rid of me. Deal!”

*  *  *

Wendy was pacing angrily across the room like a hungry panther stuck in a cage at the zoo. Her friends, even Dipper and Mabel, were all cowering on the other side of the living room, worried that any moment she would snap and punch a hole in the wall.

“Maybe one of us should say something,” whispered Dipper.

“Good idea,” said Robbie, who then roughly pushed Thompson forward, “Thompson, go talk to her.”

“What?? Guys, no—”

“Thompson, Thompson, Thompson,” they began to chant.

“OH, WHY DO I ALWAYS DO THINGS WHEN YOU CHANT MY NAME???”

A very nervous Thompson gingerly approached Wendy, who was glowering out the window and muttering angrily to herself.

“H-hey Wendy,” stuttered Thompson, “Um, is everything oka—”

“THAT LITTLE CREEP IS COMING HERE!” Wendy exploded in a fireball of rage. In her anger, she threw both her arms up in the air, accidentally walloping Thompson across the face and knocking him to the floor. Thompson groaned in pain as Wendy continued to mumble unintelligible, angry gibberish about Puck as she stomped around the room.

“Wendy, cool it,” snapped Mabel from across the room. “You’re acting like a dingus!”

Wendy took in a deep breath.

“Mabel,” said Wendy, trying and failing to sound calm as she spoke, “I know you meant well, but Puck is a deranged jerk who tried to kidnap us all six weeks ago!”

“Technically,” said Nate, “He only tried to kidnap Robbie and Tambry, and they’re both pretty fine now? We weren’t there.”

“Yeah, we’re pretty indifferent to the whole confrontation,” replied Lee.

“And I’m literally well past over it,” added Tambry, who was viewing “McGucket Hates Celery” for the third time on her phone that afternoon.

“Well, I’m not,” grumbled Wendy, who crossed her arms across her chest.

“Puck’s not that bad, Wendy,” Dipper assured her, “I mean, yeah, he’s done some messed up stuff in the past, but he also helped us escape Oberon back during Midsummer.”

“Come on Wendy, just give him a chance,” Mabel pleaded, “He so nice!”

“Anybody can fake being nice,” said Wendy dismissively. “That doesn’t mean he’s a good person.”

“I don’t like that guy either,” said Robbie, “He called me a poser!”

“You are a poser,” murmured Dipper under his breath.

“And,” snapped Robbie, glaring at Dipper, “He’s got those creepy eyes that look like they glow in the dark, and those freaky magical powers. I mean… if you think about it… he’s kind of like…”

“Kind of like who,” asked Mabel, who had a terrible idea what Robbie was going to say.

“Look kid,” sighed Robbie, “I know he’s your buddy and everything, but who’s to say that if Puck had been here last year, he wouldn’t be partying it up with that triangle demon and the rest of those monsters?”

“That’s not funny,” said Dipper, who was intensely glowering at Robbie with undisguised dislike.

“I wasn’t joking,” said Robbie quietly.

“You don’t know what you’re talking about,” said Dipper, his voice rising, “Puck isn’t anything like Bill!”

“Oh yeah? You weren’t growing out of your girlfriend’s hip like a tumor because of that guy,” snapped Robbie, “Tell me, how is that any different than anything that monster did last year?”

“Did you forget the part where he almost died to save us,” Dipper retorted, “Or are you just being stupid as usual?”

“What did you just say?!”

“Dial it back, guys,” said Wendy, who pushed herself between Dipper and Robbie, both of whom looked ready to fight.

Mabel bit her lip. She has wanted everyone to have fun hanging out with each other tonight, but instead everyone was angry and miserable. Maybe I’ll just text Puck and tell him not to come because everyone’s acting like jerks, she thought to herself, reaching into her pocket to fish out her cell phone. Things might get too intense if he actually shows up.

Just as Mabel was typing in Puck’s number, there was a great flash of light and a sound like thunder as Puck teleported into Wendy’s living room at last. Wendy and her friends were coughing from all the smoke that Puck’s arrival had generated, once that had cleared, they could see Puck, wearing a floppy sunhat, a bright pink tank top, black jeans and combat boots that had clearly been spray-painted silver standing in the middle of the room holding a casserole dish in one hand and a cake box in the other.

“Hello friends,” said Puck, beaming. “I made crab dip!” 

#Fiddleford McGucket #Mabel Pines #Dipper Pines #wendy corduroy #gravity falls fanfic #some enchanted evening au #Puck #Bill Cipher #Robbie V

[faysal3f]

FUNNY AND FUN VIDEOS COMPITION / BEST CUBE COMPILATION EAP #365

Endless Action Party , you can't stop the time

1. Girl on the rollers 2. Hyperactive Life Coach 3. Bad Boys 4. Scary and hurry 5. Jurassic Class 6. Cat can't stop press to gas 7. Cute Kitty 8. Gentle Kitty Touching Bird 9. Rallylegend 2018 | HIGHLIGHTS Audi Quattro 10. Ronda Rousey 11. Loud car exhaust. 12. Sudden Michael Jackson 13. Somewhere in Minsk ... 14. Stranger 15. water? beer! 16. place for relaxation 17. Try Not To Laugh Extremely Hilariously Funny 1 Minute Video Compilation NO:2 18. the big escape 19. No game no pain 20. What is love Coubs Top Haddaway 21. Astolfo!!! 22. Work, please! 23. Flower Bomb 24. Everything You Want to See 25. Dance 26. screwdriver 27. We are animals 28. L'Uomo Che Guarda 29. Self Parking 30. What's going on here? 31. three from the battlefield 32. lovely 33. Halyam balam 34. Air car and guitar 35. Infinity party 36. The Fall Of The Wall 37. Too Strong Smoke 38. Maradona dancing 39. The Massage 40. The bear showed everyone))) 41. cheesy horror 42. Emma's Dances 43. Octopus rodeo 44. Running of the Bulldogs? 45. Bush fury 46. It's a hard knock life 47. Great Times at the El Royale 48. Like a BOSS 49. Dat kid won 50. Just sex 51. WoC 52. chiru chiru 53. dangan crab rave without text, credit to yingyang48 on twitter 54. Couple na na pa na pa! 55. dANCE 56. Freedom 57. evolution of the "Mustang" 58. Thats OK for me 59. Axelf mechanism 60. Girl P * zdets [Oxxxymiron] 61. Welcome to Party ♥ 62. Yellow 63. Sexy Twerk

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