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sissylittlefeather · 3 months

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A Little Less Conversation: an Elvis One-Shot

A/N: Another smutty one-shot for the people! This one is actually for Elvis, though, during the filming of the movie Live a Little, Love a Little. I hope y'all enjoy this one too. I am infinitely grateful to everyone who reads my stuff! I love you all dearly.

Warnings: 18+ minors DNI, kissing, cussing, fingering, oral sex (f receiving), p in v penetrative sex, unprotected sex, ejaculation

Word count: ~2.3k

You've been on a movie set before. This isn't your first acting job. It's not even your first speaking role. So why is this one so difficult for you?

Perhaps it's the presence of a certain Mr. Elvis Presley that's got you all in a tizzy. When you got the job for Live a Little, Love a Little, you assumed you wouldn't have any scenes with him, but when you arrived on set they told you otherwise. You're playing a receptionist and you have three scenes with Mr. Presley. Your stomach drops out and it feels like you've forgotten how to breathe when he comes over to you and shakes your hand.

"Hi honey, I'm Elvis Presley. I heard we have a couple of scenes to shoot this week." You swallow deeply and finally get some words out.

"Yeah, I heard that too. I'm y/n." You pull your hand away from him and he smiles, his eyes wandering down over your body. He doesn't even try to hide the fact that he obviously enjoys what he sees. Instead, he licks his lips and takes a step closer just as someone hollers from across the set.

"Hey, Elvis!" He rolls his eyes and looks over to the direction of the voice.

"What?"

"Can you come here a second?" He scoffs a little and then turns back to you.

"I'll see ya later." He winks and then walks away.

******

The first scene you shoot together is one where you're at the desk and he's just talking to you. You're supposed to be getting annoyed with him, but you're having a hard time shaking the doe-eyed daze that comes over you every time he looks at you.

"Cut! Y/n, you're still not getting it." The director is less than pleased with you and you're starting to get frustrated with yourself.

"Here. I think I know what the problem is." Elvis walks around the desk to you and takes your hand, standing you up. "Do I make you nervous, honey?"

There's really no point in lying.

"Yes."

"That's what I was afraid of." He turns to the director. "Can we take a break?"

"Oh, um, sure Elvis but not too long-"

"It'll take as long as it takes." He grabs your hand and walks you to a place at one of the sets you aren't using today. He gestures for you to sit down on a bench and he sits beside you.

"What are we doing?" You look up at him nervously.

"We're getting you used to me."

"Used to you?"

"Y/n, I'm just a guy. I eat. I sleep. I'm a man, just like any other man. I'm assuming you've been with men before." You blush a little, but he's not wrong.

"Yes, I have."

"See? Good. Just a man." He turns to face you and takes your hands and puts them on his chest. You nod and move your hands to his shoulders. This makes him so much more real to you and for some reason you're not afraid anymore. "Now, we have a scene later where we have to get up close and personal. I say we practice that a little."

"Okay. That sounds like a good idea." You've read the script and been terrified to do the scene he's talking about, so practicing without the camera will be helpful. He stands up and puts your hands on his chest again.

"Remember: just a guy." You nod and hold your hands next to your shoulders like you're supposed to in the scene. He steps toward you and presses his body against yours lightly. Fireworks go off somewhere behind your bellybutton and you swear it just got ten degrees hotter. "Now, there will be stuff all around us, so we're really going to be in there tight. So it'll be more like this." He puts one hand on your lower back and one on your upper back and pulls you into him so that yours breasts are pushed up against him and your hips are aligned with his. You stand like this for a good thirty seconds, just feeling him breathing and resisting the urge to set your forehead on his chest. Finally he looks down and you look up so that your faces are only inches apart. Next thing you know his lips are on yours and your arms are around his neck. He opens your mouth with his and his tongue slips in to dance against yours.

"Elvis, are you- oh shit! Sorry!" Joe had been sent to fetch you both to get back to filming, but he quickly turns his back. Elvis pulls away from you slowly and notices that his pants are starting to feel tighter. He steps back quickly and tries to stand nonchalantly so that you won't notice.

"I think that's enough practicing. Let's get back to work." He turns you to face away from him and walk in front of him. While you walk away, he dips behind a set piece and arranges his cock to be up under his belt. The last thing he needs is another Girls Girls Girls fiasco.

When you sit back down at the desk to resume filming, you nail the scene in one take. He winks at you after you finish and you try not to blush. Filming is done for the day. Your big scene will take place tomorrow, but you're not nervous for it anymore.

******

"Alright, let's try it again." The director calls for everyone to go back to the beginning of the scene. This is the 9th take, but this time you're not the problem. It's Elvis. Every time he presses up against you, something happens. He either clears his throat or looks away or tries to back away. You're not sure what's going on. It's almost like you make him nervous.

You run the scene again, but this time when he's pressed against you he just hollers, "CUT!"

Before he can pull away from you though, you grab onto him and hold him in place. You put your hand on his cheek and make him look at you.

"Hey. I'm just a girl."

That's when you feel it against your hip. He's rock hard. You can feel the tension as he looks at you and you know he wants to kiss you so badly that it almost hurts. Your eyes flick back and forth between his and then down to his mouth. He inhales deeply and looks up to the ceiling.

"We need a break."

"Elvis, we-"

"We're takin' a break." He turns to you and whispers in your ear, kissing your neck where no one can see. "Trailer. Now."

You nod and he takes your hand and drags you off the set. When you make it to his trailer and up the steps into the little living area, he turns to face you.

"You're killin' me, y/n!"

"What am I doing?!"

"Absolutely nothing, but I cannot get rid of this." He gestures to his crotch and you put your hand over your mouth to try to suppress your giggles when you see his very obvious erection. "It ain't funny! How am I supposed to work with this?!"

"I'm sorry." You rearrange your face to stop laughing. He walks toward you and puts his hands on your hips.

"Well. Are you gonna help me get rid of it?"

"How?"

He takes his suit jacket off and undoes his tie, unbuttoning his dress shirt and untucking it. Then, he removes your jacket and turns you around to unzip your dress. He presses up behind you and pushes it down your front, wrapping his arms around your waist as your dress falls to the floor.

"I'm sure we can come up with something." He turns you to face him and removes his shirt from his shoulders. His hands go to his belt and he looks over your body in your bra and panties.

"Take those off." He instructs, removing his pants and shoes. You reach behind your back and undo your bra and then let it and your panties hit the floor next to your dress. When you're both naked, he reaches out and runs his thumb over your nipple.

"You're so pretty, honey." You throw your head back in pleasure as he takes your whole breast in his hand and squeezes it gently.

"How do you want me, daddy?" You moan as his hand continues to roam over your body.

"Mmmmm. I like that. Lay down on the couch." You do as he says and he arranges himself between your legs, kissing the soft and supple flesh of your inner thigh. "Now, you be a good girl for daddy and don't cum until I tell you to."

"Yes sir." You gasp as he presses his mouth to your center and begins to move his tongue on you. Your back arches and he swirls over and around your hardened bud. He pulls back a little to push his tongue into you several times. Then, he drags it up your slit and slides two fingers into you. You're right on the edge of your orgasm, but you're trying to push it off. He can feel your walls start to tighten around his fingers.

"Not yet, baby. Daddy's not finished yet." You nod frantically and begin to sweat as you stave off your climax.

"Now?" You whimper. He blows on your clit lightly and nods.

"Soon." He flattens his tongue and moves it side to side over you. When he tightens it to a point and licks hard across the sensitive button, you cry out.

"Please, daddy!" He smiles and then sucks on you lightly.

"Now." He moves his tongue in one last circle around your clit and you tumble over the edge into one of the most incredible orgasms of your life. The pleasure is overwhelming as it courses through you and you lose the ability to hear out of your right ear.

"Oh, God! Oh, God! Yes!" You call out as you ride the high of your climax. When you finally come back down to earth, he backs off of you and stands up, his hand stroking his cock up and down. He runs his thumb over the tip to gather the precum that's gathered there and then goes back to pumping himself.

"Mmmm." He leans his head back, glad to finally be feeling some relief for the hard on he's had most of the day. "Are you ready for me, honey?"

"Yes, daddy." You nod frantically and open your legs for him to lay down on top of you. He pushes your legs up until your knees are on his chest. Then, he lines his cock up with your entrance and teases your clit with his tip.

"Tell me how bad you want it, baby."

"I want you so bad, daddy. I need you inside me."

"Good girl." He pushes into you, slowly filling you up as your pussy stretches around his length. He picks up a steady rhythm, pumping in and out of you. You bite your bottom lip as he fucks you, hitting just the right spot inside you. "God, baby you're so tight for me, honey."

His eyes roll back and his mouth opens slightly. You take some pride in the fact that he seems to be enjoying this as much as you are.

"You like that, daddy?" He grunts in response and then moves your legs to wrap them around his waist. He starts to fuck into you harder and faster and kisses your neck up to your chin and lips.

Out of nowhere, he pulls out and uses your legs to flip you over onto your stomach. He spanks your ass lightly.

"On your knees, honey." You follow instructions again and get on all fours. He slides his middle finger from your clit back to your pussy and pushes it into you. You whine at the sensation of his finger instead of his dick. "You want my cock, baby?"

"Mmm yes, please, daddy." He pulls his finger out and then pushes his dick into you. He holds your hips tightly and begins to fuck you from behind.

"Such good pussy, baby." He groans as his cock slides in and out of you. You can tell by the way he pounds you relentlessly that he must be getting close to his own orgasm. It feels so good as he slams into you, hitting the spot inside you that makes you wild. Without much warning, another climax overtakes you and you cry out again in pleasure.

"Yes, baby, that's what I was waiting for." The sound of you cumming on his dick is enough to push him over the edge and he pulls out as quickly as possible, pumping himself with his hand as he shoots his cum all over your ass. "Fuck yes, y/n, yes!"

He stands up and walks to the bathroom to get a towel. He cleans you up and then pulls you onto his lap and you sit together naked for a while. Just then, there's a sharp knock on the door. It's Joe again. Apparently, he drew the short straw today.

"Hey, uh, guys, they really need you back on set. I'm sorry to... interrupt..."

Elvis smiles and kisses your shoulder before he hollers back.

"We'll be out in a minute!" He pats your bottom for you to stand up and you both get dressed again. You make your way back to the set and though everyone seems to know what happened, no one says anything. Just like the day before, you successfully shoot the scene in one more take. The director notices the way Elvis smiles at you during the scene, but decides it's in character for Greg and leaves it in the shot.

It lives forever in the film, but only you know for sure why it's there. And it's something you'll never forget for as long as you live.

******

The End

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

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david-talks-sw · 9 months

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An allergy to the Prequels

While I'm putting together a post about the evolution Lucasfilm's transmedia strategies, this part kinda turned into its own thing!

So I'm not sure if anyone else noticed, but, uh... there hasn't been that much Prequel content since the Disney sale, right?

'Couple novels and comics, some episodes... but nothing meaningful.

The more I look into it, the more it feels like a deliberate avoidance to touch on anything Prequel-related - beyond the required quota, that is - to a point where they'd rather tell stories set during periods that are Prequel-adjacent (Dark Times, High Republic) than something set around Episodes I, II and III.

On-screen policy: "pretend they never happened"

I mean, this one's no secret. When The Force Awakens had been announced, with J.J. Abrams at the helm, everyone sighed in relief. "Finally, George Lucas won't keep ruining the franchise."

When Abrams had been announced as the director of Episode VII, I remember this cringey animated video started circulating online, titled "4 Rules To Make Star Wars Great Again" or "Dear JJ Abrams":

“Star Wars isn’t shiny and clean... Star Wars is a western.”

If you ask me, those two things are not mutually exclusive.

'Cause Star Wars has always been both, for many Prequel kids. Both clean and dusty, Coruscant and Tatooine. There was never a disconnect between the Original Trilogy (OT) and the Prequel Trilogy.

Even the documentary The People vs George Lucas shows Prequel-hating fans begrudgingly admit their kids felt all six episodes tied seamlessly.

Abrams, on the other hand, said: "I think [the "Dear JJ" video] was right on." Later on, he also said:

he considered "putting Jar Jar Binks's bones in the desert" on Jakku, somewhere, and

he intentionally made the lightsaber fights "rougher", "primitive" and "more powerful" unlike the fast-paced ones in the Prequels.

Later, we found out he wanted to blow up Coruscant.

It's clear he wasn't a big fan of the Prequels.

But y'know what? Not many fans over 20 were, at the time. And when The Force Awakens came out, most them celebrated it as a wonderful love letter to the OT.

Star Wars is cool again. Mission accomplished 🙌 !

However movies keep coming out, and references to the Prequels - if there are any - are literally just that... references.

Sometimes in the shape of a cameo ("hey look, Genevieve O'Reilly from the Ep. III deleted scenes is playing Mon Mothma again!")

Sometimes in a name (Luke name-dropped "Darth Sidious"!)

But nothing set during the Prequel era, and nothing treating the events that happened in that period as relevant or impactful, beyond subtextual nods.

In fact, the trend of avoiding anything Prequel-related continues as the final film in the Skywalker Saga comes out:

The Rise of Skywalker has a secret Sith society that chants the name "Palpatine" instead of his Sith name "Darth Sidious",

the film pretends the Kaminoans never existed,

and neither TROS nor Trevorrow's Duel of the Fates script even try to bring Hayden Christensen's Anakin Skywalker back on screen. Let that sink in, we're talking about the Chosen One, Skywalker Senior, whose sins caused this whole mess... and his name isn't even uttered once in the final chapter of what Disney dubbed the *Skywalker* Saga (or the entire Sequel trilogy, for that matter).

But hey, The Clone Wars got renewed for one last Season! That's cool right? So many stories had gone unfinished and somehow the animation looks even better than befo--

-- oh. It's not 22 episodes? Only 12?

Four of which had already been shown to us, but hey! We need to set-up the Bad Batch series, so let's shoehorn those episodes in there, and forget Son of Dathomir, Dark Disciple or Crystal Crisis.

*sigh* Better than nothing, I guess.

In other mediums: "just not a priority"

Now this is something that I'll explore more in the transmedia post (and purely my interpretation), but the noticeable change between Lucasfilm's transmedia strategy *post-ROTS* and the one post-Disney sale is that:

Before, the games, comics and novels were the main content. After all, Revenge of the Sith had been released, so that was it, for the movies. Thus, a variety of other content was being cranked out to keep the Star Wars franchise relevant. There were comics set 100 years after Episode 6, comics set 25,000 years prior, games set in the Old Republic era, other stories in the New Republic era, novels galore, a couple of parody films and an animated show, The Clone Wars, which sometimes received its own tie-in comics, novels and games.

After the sale and ever since, most of the transmedia products have had only one goal: promoting the films & streaming shows.

So while in 2015 you won't see an abundance of Prequel content... you'll see an avalanche of OT books and comics come out.

Why? Because the heroes of that era will be in the Sequel Trilogy movies. It provided context to the kids who hadn't seen the OT yet, and reintroduced those films to a new generation of fans, while priming them for the Sequels.

A multimedia marketing strategy that ultimately proved successful.

However, it continued even after The Force Awakens came out.

Don't believe me? Compare how many comics there have been set during the Prequel era vs the OT era.

If they make comics about the Prequels, they're limited runs.

Case in point: before the current Yoda series, the best any Disney Prequel-set comic series ever got was 6 issues.

Note: it's worth pointing out that the frequency of mini-series aren't just a Star Wars-specific thing, it's a comic book industry thing. The readership for comics is dwindling, many people are reading scans online, and so no publisher wants to commit to a story that lasts more than 4-6 issues. My problem is: there absolutely would be readership for a Prequel comic series to warrant an extended run instead of a mini-series.

Let's talk books. There have been give or 64 canon novels published since the Disney sale.

Only 11 of them are set during the Prequel era. And even those stories only came out when the planets were aligned.

Almost half of them were released while being a part of some bigger multimedia push.

Example:

Before the Obi-Wan Kenobi series was being released on Disney Plus, we'd had one novel and like two comic stories about him during the Prequels... released between 2012 and end 2021. That's about three pieces of content in almost ten years.

Clearly a low frequency.

Then, when the series is around the corner, two books and a comic story comes out in the space of months, plus an anthology book with an alt cover with his face on it and a comic with a story of him and Anakin in the first issue, all in 2022.

My takeaway: short of there being a film or series that needs to be promoted, you'll rarely get any Prequel comics or books.

And this is OBI-WAN we're talking about. The character who even the Prequel haters love. Imagine how little attention the other ones get.

Gaming-wise, Battlefront had no Prequel content at all (again, 2015 was the year where OT content was shoved down the consumer's throats to prep them for Episode VII), and Battlefront 2 only released Prequel content a full year later.

All that being said, we did seen some Prequel elements here and there. After all, some actors got to reprise their roles, books and comics came out featuring Prequel characters... but there's a catch.

The stories they appear in are set in-between Episodes III and IV, a time-period known as "the Dark Times" or the "Imperial era".

"Dark Times" being used instead of the Prequel era

It's easy to see the appeal of this era. You keep the same threat from the Original Trilogy - the Empire - but redress it with Prequel elements... while also cherry-picking the best characters of both the OT and the Prequels and giving them a chance to shine again.

The situation is more clear cut, as opposed to the complex one in the Prequels. Bad guys are stormtroopers, good guys are anyone else. And the stories no longer take place in the shiny capital, you're back on the frontier.

But at this point... it feels like a cop-out.

When you consider how much content has been set during the Dark Times, it's nothing to sneeze at. Since the sale, we've had:

2 movies (Solo, Rogue One)

4 series set in that time-period (namely The Bad Batch, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Andor, and Star Wars: Rebels).

2 video-games (Jedi: Fallen Order and Jedi: Survivor).

17 novels (such as Ahsoka, Lords of the Sith, the new Thrawn books, etc)

And just a whole bunch of comic book series & mini-series (like Kanan, Princess Leia, various Vader-centric comics including Darth Vader: Lord of the Sith, many tie-in mini-series promoting Rogue One, Jedi: Fallen Order, Obi-Wan Kenobi, etc).

There's been so much content made for this time-period that it feels like an unwillingness to do the work and create something set something during the Prequel era, let alone something that follows its Jedi.

After all, why make a story set in the Prequels (disliked by vocal fans) when you can just take the characters in that story and put them in an OT setting (which will appease the Prequel-haters)?

Maybe these stories get relegated to the Dark Times because:

there seems to be a perception that anything set in the Prequel era won't sell?

or maybe the current SW writers weren't fond of Episodes I, II and III, and don't find those Jedi characters likable, thinking they're too righteous and dogmatic which makes it hard to craft a story around them.

Or maybe it's because they're under the impression that the Prequel Jedi are bad. Like, canonically, in the narrative. Not just in a "I don't like them" sense, but also in a "the story is all about them becoming corrupted" sense.

Let's expand on that last point.

Retconning the Prequels as the "Fall of the Jedi" era

Somehow the rare stories set during the Prequels that we do get seem to automatically be about how "the Jedi lost their way/failed".

The series Tales of the Jedi is explicit about it...

... and I already explained why it contradicts what George Lucas established here and here.

You also see it in Rebels and the new season of The Clone Wars...

... in comics...

... in games...

It gets to a point where the Prequels era has now been redubbed the "Fall of the Jedi" era by Lucasfilm.

You wanna know what that period was referred to before the Disney sale? The "Rise of the Empire" Era.

Because - and I'll never get tired of saying this cuz it's factual - the Prequels aren't about the fall of the Jedi, they're about the fall of the Republic and Anakin, and rise of the Empire and Vader.

So in addition to being overdone, the "Jedi lost their way" is not even the intended narrative of the Prequels (if one puts any stock in Lucas' words). It's a minor subplot at best, hardly the focus of the films, let alone a whole time period.

But dubbing it "Fall of the Jedi" implies that there's another era in which the Jedi were in their heyday.

Because Star Wars authors are in luck! Yet another alternative has presented itself in the shape of a new transmedia initiative, and it's even better than the "let's set it during the Dark Times" solution:

A new transmedia initiative: The High Republic

You wanna deal with the Jedi before the Empire, but for some reason you wanna avoid dealing with the ones seen in the Prequels?

Look no further. Meet the Jedi of the High Republic.

Noble, adventurous, inspired by the Knights of the Round Table, they're everything the OT kids dreamed about when they heard ol' Ben Kenobi talk about the Knights of the Old Republic.

That's more like it!

Note: the High Republic was created for other reasons and has many more upsides than the ones mentioned above. Namely, a fresh new spot in the timeline that allows for creative freedom and a beautifully-coordinated transmedia storytelling effort where retcons are non-existent. However it does seem evident that not having to deal with the 'unlikable' Prequel Jedi and their "fall" is one of those upsides.

Another perk that the High Republic era offers is more freedom in terms of storytelling compared to the Prequels.

In 2016, Pablo Hidalgo tweeted he still quotes to authors the following excerpt of West End Games' guide for aspiring Star Wars writers, from 1994.

You can't write "this was the best day in Luke Skywalker's life", for example, because another author may want to write a better day than the one you just wrote.

My guess is that a similar approach applies to how all characters from the movies are treated. They're massively iconic. So you can't write a book that drastically changes how Mace or Yoda or Obi-Wan are perceived overall.

The stories need to be self-contained, disregardable if necessary, because you'll have dozens of writers coming up with new stories for those same characters, and you need to leave them some room.

Examples:

Notice how in the book Dooku: Jedi Lost we never see how Dooku turns to the Dark Side and joins the Sith.

Same goes for crossover comic book arcs of the Star Wars issues, like Vader Down or Crimson Reign... the characters don't really change by much in those comics. You could stick to just watching the movies and you wouldn't really miss anything.

But with The High Republic, you indeed can develop these characters as much as you want.

All stories featuring Avar Kriss leave an impact on her, you can nail down who she is perfectly in one book or one comic arc, both being just as meaningful to her character.

The fact that she's not as iconic/famous a character as Mace Windu means that authors can go to town on crafting an interesting and nuanced character arc for her that'll have a beginning, middle and end... something Mace will never really get.

CONCLUSION:

Back in 2015... let's not kid ourselves. The Prequels were unpopular and Disney is a multi-billion dollar corporation. Opting to make as much money as possible is what they do.

It's the same reason they decided not to go with George Lucas' original plans for the Sequels, in 2012.

I mean, imagine you're Disney. You just dropped 4 billion dollars, with a B, on this franchise. Your next Star Wars movie needs to be worth the price tag. Now, you can pick between two options:

Option #1 is uncharted territory and it explores the midi-chlorians (the cursed word…!) and the guy who presented you with this option also openly admits that a big chunk of customers won’t like it, but he wants this to be done because it’s his vision.

Option #2 is very simple: a soft reboot, that plays on nostalgia that the same chunk of customers (aka the 'boomer and Gen-X fans who grew up with the Original Trilogy and now have kids, grandkids and MONEY) will like.

It's a no-brainer. They gave the customers what they wanted.

But time has passed, the fans who were children when the Prequels first came out have grown up, and grew up with characters like Yoda, Mace, Plo Koon, Kit Fisto and other Jedi as their heroes, aside from main characters like Anakin and Obi-Wan and Ahsoka.

Can we maybe expand on them, flesh them out more?

No, let's either ignoring the storytelling potential of these characters or reducing it to them being "righteous, arrogant and dogmatic".

God forbid we get a story showing the Prequel Jedi in a *gasp* more positive light? One where their POV is more understandable, instead of the same old "we brought this on ourselves" storyline.

There's a whole decade between The Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones... you're telling me there's no space to show us Anakin's training and how he formed bonds with the Jedi we later see in The Clone Wars? I tried my hand at it here:

Interesting or fun Prequel-set ideas from other pro-Jedi fans on Tumblr can be found here, here and here.

And y'know, part of the Star Wars intent is for fans to take the ideas in the movies and come up with their own stories. You're supposed to create headcanons.

What I'm saying is fans of the Prequels are being given less "imagination food" than the rest, and many of us who like the Jedi in particular are forced to rely on headcanons only. "Better than nothing" is no longer an acceptable standard.

There's a range of recognizable Jedi characters that have already been established in films and TCW, can we maybe expand on them, flesh them out more, instead of whole new ones?

#jedi order #star wars #sw meta #long post #meta #lucasfilm #star wars prequels #prequel trilogy #sw prequels #high republic #the high republic #dark times #imperial era #the clone wars #tcw #sw negativity

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starrgaziinggg · 3 months

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wherefore art thou romeo | yang jeongin

SCENE ONE ・❥・ break a leg (6k words)

directory

SCENE ONE ・❥・ ACT ONE

"If you don't start enunciating your words, I'm going to bite you."

You give Jeongin a nasty look, rolling your eyes at him from where he sat behind the counter. Unfortunately, before you could get the chance to offer a sharp tongued rebuttal, two customers walk up to you, hand in hand.

"Two tickets for, Last Christmas, please!" The woman in front of you says gleefully whilst her partner kisses her on the check. Oh, how naive, you thought, knowing that in the movie, the main love interest is actually dead the whole time. You'd been through the trauma of watching the movie yourself, so you could understand the pain they'd be in, in approximately an hour and forty five minutes.

"Here you go," you say, plastering a fake smile on your face as you hand over the tickets, turning back to Jeongin once they leave. The best thing about working in a cinema? Minimal customer interaction. Plus, as a film geek, you got 50% off movie tickets, which meant you and your coworkers spent as much time in the cinema chairs as you did cleaning them.

"Better yet," Jeongin continues, grinning up at you from where he sat on a stool, leaning against the back wall. "Every time you mumble, I'll throw a piece of popcorn at you."

"I'll just catch it in my mouth, dipshit," you tease, sticking your tongue out at him as you pick up your script again. As much as Jeongin was an absolute nuisance, he was helping you prepare for your audition tomorrow, so you couldn't be too annoyed with him.

"Oh yeah? You really think you've got that level of coordination?" He teases more. "Might I remind you, you're the same kid that tripped over every hurdle at sports day circa five years ago."

You huff, fully turning around to lean against the counter as you eyed the boy below you. He was grinning up at you, his perfect teeth gleaming as he pushed some of his dark hair out his eyes.

"Shut up," you huff, folding your arms over your chest. "Can you actually be constructive with your criticisms instead of just bullying me?"

Jeongin laughs at you, shaking his head and pouting. "Come on," he tilts his head at you, waving the script he was holding in front of you. "These lines aren't going to memorise themselves."

You sigh, knowing he's right. You didn't usually get nervous over auditions, since you were more than used to them by now. You'd been acting since you were a toddler, whether that be putting on shows for your family or in your local theatre group, and you had the confidence to soar through them, but this was different. Going to a prestigious school for the arts meant competition for the top roles was more than tough, and your end of year performance was the most important and well attended production each year.

Romeo and Juliet, was this years choice. Sure, it was only because your head of department had just recently got engaged and made her sappy love life everyone's business, but you actually loved the play, so you weren't mad about it. And, of course, you were trying out for the part of Juliet.

"Romeo can, Though heaven cannot," Jeongin starts, putting on a girly voice as he pretends to act as Juliet's nurse for the chosen audition scene. "O Romeo, Romeo, Whoever would have thought it? Romeo!"

You have to admit, you loved practicing with him. Jeongin, being on the same acting course as you, was amazing at performing, and put his all into it every time - even if it was just a silly practice audition.

You laugh as you begin your line, trying to remember your monologue without a script. "What devil art thou that dost torment me thus? This torture should be roared in dismal hell. Hath Romeo slain himself? Say thou but "Ay," And that bare vowel "I" shall poison more...than...than-"

"Than the death-darting eye of cockatrice. I am not I if there be such an "I," Or those eyes shut that makes thee answer "Ay." If he be slain, say "Ay," or if not, "No." Brief sounds determine my weal or woe," Jeongin finishes the part you couldn't remember for you, reading directly from the script in a whimsical voice as you sigh.

"Why did they choose the original play script," you whine, grabbing the script off Jeongin to reread the line. "Surely they could have adapted the language to make it easier to learn. I feel like I'm summoning serpents right now."

Jeongin laughs at your dismay, shrugging his shoulders as he stands up to deal with the group of customers he sees walking in and letting you have time to look over your script. "I dunno, I like the original. That bullshit Di Caprio version - you know, the movie with the guns - that sucked. It was all over the place; you can't have them speaking Elizabethan English and then make them shoot each other in the street and drive sports cars."

You give the back of his head a smile as he serves the customers, giving over their tickets and making up their popcorn. It was just the two of you on shift tonight until the cinema you worked at closed at 12, which you didn't mind at all since Jeongin could help you with you with your lines. That, and the fact that out of your friends, he was the most calm - which was saying something, because Jeongin was loud for an introvert.

"I liked the movie," you say once the customers leave, Jeongin coming over to stand beside you. "I thought it was an interesting take."

"You just fancy young Leo," Jeongin points out, making you scoff and push his shoulder. "Don't even pretend you don't! I was sat beside you in the lecture hall when we watched it for our extra curricular last semester and I watched you physically drool when he showed face."

You frown, knowing he's exactly right. The fact you were slightly infatuated with young Leonardo Di Caprio was not a secret.

"Oh, look how handsome he is," Jeongin continues to tease, pretending to be you fawning. "He looks like a dream!"

"Oh, come on," you laugh, using a phrase you'd picked up from Felix. Working with your best friends meant you'd adopted a lot of their habits, which you'd only realised when Felix had pointed it out. "I wasn't that bad."

"You didn't have to sit beside you."

You stick your tongue out at him, picking up your script again. "Are you not more nervous? Considering you're also auditioning tomorrow?"

Jeongin shrugs, manoeuvring so that he's facing you and gently tapping your feet with his. "Not really. I'm auditioning for multiple parts so I don't really mind what I get."

"Are you going for Romeo?" You ask him, glad the conversation has turned somewhat serious.

He nods, frowning. "Yeah, don't see why not. The more parts I go for the more options I have. You must be pretty dead set on playing Juliet if you're only auditioning for her."

You can't help but to feel nervous, knowing that you were taking a risk by only going for the role of Juliet. Jeongin seems to notice this, though, moving his face so that you look at him and giving you a smile.

"Hey, I'm sure you'll get it," he says, before breaking out into a cheeky grin. "If you remember your lines, that is."

You wish you could be annoyed at him, but you appreciate how he tries to keep the situation lighthearted. You'd always appreciated that of him. He was good at reading a room, and knew how to dissolve tension. It came in clutch when you and Jisung got into a tiff about god knows what whilst you worked together.

Jisung's parents owning the local cinema you worked at meant he liked to, well, not do his job, which you could get pretty annoyed at as much as you loved your friend. There was perks with working with your friends, but there were also downfalls, such as Jisung refusing to do certain tasks.

Jeongin snaps you out of your thoughts, taking the script back from you.

"You're going to do your own head in if you keep going over it," he points out. "Remember that one time when we were auditioning for that play in middle school and you memorised the script so much you started saying other people's lines out loud?"

You laugh at the memory. "That witch of a teacher shouted at me in front of everyone. It was so embarrassing."

"Mhm," Jeongin hums, tilting his head at you. "That's why you should put this down for a bit."

"The only thing worse than over-knowing your lines is not knowing them at all," you groan, stretching your limbs and rolling your eyes at a group of teen girls talking way too loudly for 10pm. Jeongin senses your discomfort and deals with them, unaware of the looks they all give him. Working with Jeongin so often, you'd come to realise he didn't know how handsome he was, evident when he let flirtatious opportunities go amiss. He'd been like that since you'd met him in middle school, though.

You'd first met when the two local middle schools in your area moved into the new, larger and more modern school that had been built to allow the two older buildings be knocked down. After the awkward tension between the two different school groups in one classroom dissolved, your friend group (consisting of you, Yunjin, Jisung and Minho) collided naturally with Jeongin's. Hyunjin, Felix, Seungmin and Jeongin merged well with you and your friends, and thus your new, much larger group was formed.

"Enjoy the movie," Jeongin smiles, finishing up with the group of girls.

"Oh, we will," a particularly bold girl says, turning away with their giggling friends. Jeongin turns to you with a raised eyebrow.

"What was that about?" he questions sincerely, coming back to lean against the wall with you. You shake your head in response.

"You're so niave," you chuckle, knowing even if you tried to explain to him why those girls were so giggly around him, he probably wouldn't understand anyway. "Now please help me memorise these lines."

"Nope," Jeongin says lazily, running a hand throw his curly black hair. "You're done for the night."

You grown for what feels like the millionth time of the night. "We've still got two hours before our shifts end. What the hell else am I gonna do?"

"Hang out with me," Jeongin replies, turning to face you, a smile etching his eternally happy face. "We never just talk about normal stuff anymore. It's always about uni."

"Yeah, well, our lives revolve around it, now."

Jeongin seems as though he doesn't like your answer, scoffing and hitting his shoes off of yours. "I know but - come on, surely you've got some gossip for me."

"Jeongin, we have all the same friends!" You laugh, shaking your head. "If I have any gossip I'm pretty sure you'll know it, too."

"Well how about this," he says, turning fully to face you. "Did you know that Jisung and Yunjin had a thing for each other back in middle school, but neither of them acted on it?"

Your jaw almost drops. Yunjin, your best friends since infantry, had never once divulged this interesting piece of information to you. Plus, Ji and Yunjin were your friends before they were Jeongin's, and it felt wrong that he knew more about them than you.

"How the fuck do you know that?" You ask in disbelief. Jeongin only taps his nose.

"Trade secret," he says ominously, so you lightly punch him on the shoulder. He giggles, pretending to stumble backwards. "Okay okay, Jisung told me at the time and Yunjin told me when she was drunk a few months ago."

You sigh, promising yourself to bring it up to Yunjin when you go back to your dorm later. "Why does everyone tell you their secrets when they're drunk? Nobody tells me anything."

"Cause you're a blabbermouth," Jeongin says with no hesitation, so you give him a look. "What? You have been since middle school. I told you I had a crush on Yeji and you told everyone."

You huff, remembering the event. You were only, like, thirteen in all fairness, but you did feel bad about it even after all this time. Jeongin didn't speak to you for weeks after Yeji shut him down.

"I apologised for that a million times, I didn't even mean to let it slip!"

"Yeah, well," Jeongin rolls his eyes. "I'm still mad at you."

You give him a grin, knowing he's completely lying, and he can't help but crack a smile right back at you.

"See? Isn't this nice?" He says, his eyes glistening from the overhead light. "We've not talked casually like this in ages."

"Aw, are you missing our conversations, Jeong?" You laugh, reaching over to shake his shoulder. He swipes you away, always hating physical affection, laughing.

"I wouldn't go as far as to say I was missing it, but I do enjoy talking to you about non school or work related things," he says honestly, and you can't help but nod your head in agreement.

Once the movies let out around the same time, all you and Jeongin have to do is clean the two theatres, make sure everything is prepared for the day staff tomorrow and lock up. It doesn't take you too long, and Jeongin connects to the speaker system to play his music, which passes the time even quicker.

You're exhausted by the time Jeongin locks the back door, pocketing the keys and leading you to his car. He'd saved up for months to pay for it, claiming he was fed up with Jisung driving him around like a maniac.

"Fifteen minute drive home," Jeongin says out loud, pulling up the maps on his phone despite knowing the route back to the on campus dorms. "You should go for a nap, you look tired."

"Thanks, Jeong," you say with a roll of your eyes, getting yourself comfortable in the passengers seat.

"Not like that," he says lazily, looking behind him as he pulls out of his parking space. "Here, I'll even crank up the heating like you enjoy. I'm sacrificing my own comfort for you, here."

You give him a fake smile, unable to help yourself from curling up as soon as you feel the heat blast your face. Jeongin's body temperature was always much warmer than yours, so you'd always fought about the heat of the car when you were the passenger.

It's not long until you arrive back to the dorms, Jeongin having to gently push you awake after you'd drifted off. He stops off at your dorm first, of course, halting right outside the door. He roomed with Seungmin, Felix and Hyunjin five minutes away whilst you shared with Yunjin and two girls you weren't all that close with. Jisung and Minho had moved into their own flat a month ago.

"If you're not fast asleep in the next ten minutes I'm coming over and forcing you," he says, his face serious, and you know he's only half joking. "Get a good sleep for tomorrow and you'll be fine."

"Same goes for you," you say, stretching your limbs as you open the car door. "I'll see you tomorrow?"

"See you tomorrow," he firms with a nod, giving you a grin after and starting the car as soon as he watches you open the main door to your dorm building.

Yunjin's already dead asleep in her room when you go in, which leads you to crash in your own bed as soon as you've finished brushing your teeth and changing out of your work uniform, the script pages of Romeo and Juliet floating around in your mind.

SCENE ONE ・❥・ ACT TWO

When the time flashes on your phone reading 9:46am, it doesn't compute in your brain that you've slept in. It's not until you hear Yunjin banging on your door, shocking you out of your system and causing you to jump up in terror, that the realisation hits you.

You've slept in. On audition day.

Despite remembering setting your alarm for 8 sharp, you were fourteen minutes away from missing the auditions and getting stuck as a background actor. You fling open your door, revealing a panicked Yunjin on the other side.

"Did you -"

"Yes, I know I've slept in!" You answer, leaving the door open and turning to get changed out of your pajamas at lightening speed.

"And you -"

"Auditions start at ten, I'm fully away," you rush out, able to practically read Yunjin's mind at this point. You'd laugh if you weren't so stressed.

"Jesus, you're giving me so much stress right now," she says, taking a deep breath in and out. "I'll make you a coffee and you'll be out the door with time to spare, okay?"

"Okay!" You shout back, pulling a hairbrush through your hair as Yunjin hurries through to the kitchen.

Thankfully, within five minutes, you look somewhat presentable. You grab your black uni bag, containing your script and other necessities, before scrambling to the kitchen and taking the coffee Yunjin has made you in your favourite travel cup.

"Good luck!" Is the last thing you hear her shout, giving her a hasty thumbs up as you flee out of your dorm building and practically run towards the theatre building, where the auditions were being held.

Luckily, the theatre building was only a five minute walk away from your dorm, so you managed to get there just in time. Everyone from your course was gathered in the hallway, and you spot Jeongin talking to some of his friends by the entrance.

You're huffing and puffing as you walk up to him, resting your hand on his shoulder as you fold over, breathing in and out heavily. He turns around, his eyes widening.

"You slept in," he says instantly, and all you can do is nod. He chuckles, moving himself to face you fully and abandoning his conversation with the guys behind him. "You're such an idiot. I was about to come and break your door down."

"Yeah, well, I've made it," you breath out, standing up right and taking your hand away.

"Thankfully," he says, tilting his head and giving you a smile. "You have two different shoes on, by the way."

You look down, and of course he's right. One black converse and one blue. Groaning, you slump against the wall behind you.

"Have you seen the audition schedule?" You ask, knowing they put out a list of who will audition in what order. There was about fifty or so people on your course, so auditions usually took most of the day, but once you were finished you could go home.

"Yeah, and you're one of the first people to audition, so you're lucky you made it in time."

"Of course I am," you say, knowing it's just your luck. "When's yours?"

"I'm a couple people after you. They say the auditions should finish around 4pm, then roles will be released around 8pm," Jeongin explains. Usually, you're not nervous about auditioning, but since you were going for the main lead, the stakes were high.

Jeongin gives you a nudge. "Don't be nervous," he says, as if able to read your mind. "You'll be great. You've practiced more than enough."

"I know, but still. I really want this part," you say honestly, and he nods knowing exactly how you feel.

"We'll try our best," he says, tilting his head with a grin, his dimples showing. "And I tell you what - no matter what parts we get, I'll get the guys together later for a drink and we can celebrate."

"Or drown our sorrows," you say, which he laughs at. Your conversation is interrupted, though, as your head lecturer comes out to bring the first person in for their audition. Everyone starts to sit down, knowing they'll be waiting around for a while.

Jeongin and you sit cross legged on the floor, going over your lines until you're called in for your audition. He gives you a grin and a thumbs up as you leave, which surprisingly seems to settle your nerves.

Taking a deep breath, you follow one of the student advisors who helped with the audition process through to the large stage room, where the auditions were being held.

Although it was your third year of university and you'd been in this room numerous times, a shiver ran down your spine at the thought of auditioning. Like a true professional, however, you walked with an aura of confidence; standing on the black 'X' taped onto the floor in front of the panel of lecturers assessing your audition.

"You may begin when you're ready," your head lecturer states with a smile, nodding her head at you. With the countless study sessions you've done of the Juliet audition script, you're able to recite your lines with ease, it all flowing back to you in the heat of the moment.

Acting is second nature to you. It had been since you were a kid, putting on performances for your family. It continued through middle school, as you signed up to every school play and scored the lead in every single one. And it shined now, as you spoke your lines out perfectly.

You finish your audition feeling as though you couldn't have tried harder, which was all you wanted. Of course, you realised you wouldn't get the lead role in everything, but there was something so captivating about playing Juliet - you just had to get this role.

Your head lecturer, Miss Choi, smiles at you warmly as you bow, a standard practice after auditioning. She doesn't say anything but nods her head as if to say, 'you may leave.' The audition process of your university was something you'd become very aware of - you knew your lecturers would not be allowed to give any indication of who got what roles until they posted the notice in a few hours.

So, you left the exam hall, feeling all eyes on you as you exited. You walk up to Jeongin instantly with a small smile on your face, not wanting to boast about how well your audition had gone in front of your peers.

"So?" He asks quietly, patting the space next to him as you crouch down against the wall and plant yourself beside him.

"It went well," you whisper, leaning in so that those around you can't hear. People are chatting, but there's a quiet and antsy aura surrounding the hallway space, so you don't take any chances.

"Of course it did," Jeongin says with no distaste to his tone, a grin lighting up his features. "I'm pleased for you!"

You knew he would be as he always is. It was one of the reasons you got along so well - being the only two of your friend group to be interested in acting in middle school caused you to instantly click, but what solidified your friendship was the fact that no matter who got what role, say Jeongin got a 'better' part than you, there was never any controversy between the two of you. You were always genuinely happy for each other.

You help Jeongin go over his lines as the next few auditions go by, listening intently as he says his audition piece. He was such a captivating performer, and you truly had no doubts in him getting the lead. You might have been biased, since he was one of your best friends, but you felt he fit the role of Romeo better than anyone else on your course.

As soon as his name is called, he stands up, throwing you a smile as he enters the hall. You wait patiently for him, scrolling aimlessly on your phone until he comes out, walking towards you and giving you a hand.

You take it, standing up and heading towards the buildings exit. "So?"

"Went good," he says lazily, holding the door open for you since you were both finished and could now do whatever until the roles were announced.

"Yeah? Remember all your lines?" You tease, walking out into the warm September air. Jeongin playfully shoved your side, watching with a laugh as you stumble, nearly missing someone walking in the opposite direction.

"Yeah, I did," he mocks back with a face. "Now, want to go to Eden or Pod?"

You weigh up the options of the two coffee places on your campus. "Eden," you answer. "It'll be quiet right now."

How mistaken you are. The place in general isn't busy, but you walk in to find Jisung and Felix slumped over a table at the back of the café. They notice you straight away, so after ordering your regular, they force you to sit with them.

"Are we looking at the new lead roles of the end of semester show?" Jisung asks instantly. "Or are we looking at the future owners of the cinema?"

"Shut up, Ji," Felix whines at him, nudging his leg from under the table for mocking you and Jeongin. He turns his attention to you. "Are we, though?"

"Calm down," Jeongin rolls his eyes as he pulls over a chair for you both to join the two boys at their table. "We won't know which roles we get until 8pm."

"Pity," Jisung huffs, moving his chair over slightly so Jeongin can sit beside him. "I was looking forward to hearing about it."

"You'll hear soon enough," you remind him, sitting in your seat beside Felix. "And even if we didn't get the leads, I'm sure we'd manage to find work out with the cinema."

Jisung scoffs, waving his hand. "Why would you want to?" He questions. "Best job on earth. Free popcorn, discounted movies - plus, you get to work with me!"

"The last of those is not a bonus," Jeongin teases, making a face when Jisung gives him his middle finger. "I was thinking, despite which roles we get we could all get together and have a drink tonight?"

"I'm up for that," Felix grins, closing his laptop as if he knows he's not going to be getting anymore work done. "Our dorm?"

"Yeah, if the other guys agree," Jeongin confirms. "I'll text them. You up for it, Jisung?"

"I'm always up to get drunk," he points out, which you all know to be true. "Plus, it's a Friday and I have no plans."

"So we're your last option?" You tease. He gives you a frown.

"Of course you are," he says as if it's obvious, no hesitance. "If I had a gorgeous girl to go and see, you guys wouldn't even be in the equation."

"Maybe you will be seeing a gorgeous girl tonight," you say all knowingly, giving Jisung a wiggle of your eyebrows.

"If you're talking about yourself, you're highly mistaken, and that's gross," he says, grimacing. You only roll your eyes and give Jeongin a smirk which he responds to with a laugh, knowing exactly who you were talking about.

"Why are you guys even here?" Jeongin asks, changing the subject. Felix huffs dramatically, turning his laptop around to show Joengin his work, displaying a word document that he'd written all but ten words on.

"Am I supposed to be looking at something substantial?" Jeongin questions cheekily, raising an eyebrow at Felix with a blank expression.

"It would be substantial if I understood the fucking assignment," Felix groans, turning his laptop back around. "You don't understand how much this course sucks now that I'm on my own."

You ruffle his hair gently, giving him a pouty face. Poor Felix was on the dance course at your school for the arts, which he used to enjoy greatly when Hyunjin was also on the same course.

Unfortunately for him, Hyunjin had switched to an art and design course halfway through last semester, claiming that art was his passion and dance was more of a hobby. Despite his warm aura and bubbly personality, Felix was as quiet as mouse around people he didn't know, thus making it impossible for the boy to make friends on his course. Thus, he's been struggling alone since Hyunjin's departure.

"You guys are so lucky you can do all your schoolwork together," Felix says to you and Jeongin, jealousy making him pout. All you do is shrug and give Jeongin a smile.

"He's not wrong," Jisung adds. "I wish I had someone to help with all my schoolwork."

Jeongin screws his eyebrows up, turning to face Jisung. "You have both Seungmin and Yunjin on your course," he points out, which makes Jisung roll his eyes.

"Seungmin is too goody two shows to ever give me the answers to stuff, and Yunjin is an idiot," he replies nonchalantly. Yunjin, Seungmin and Jisung were on the classical music course at your uni. It was kind of inevitable most of your middle school friend group would end up at a university for the arts, considering you'd grown up with a love for it. The only person from your friend group who didn't attend your university was Minho, who ended up going to a culinary school ten minutes away instead.

"Speaking of, aren't you supposed to be in lectures right now?" you point out, thinking about how you knew Yunjin's schedule and she was definitely in class right now.

"Don't care. Didn't ask," is Jisung's response. You roll your eyes, looking toward Felix. He shrugs.

"We do, but we ditched to write this assignment," Felix responds. Jeongin laughs, shaking his head.

"Good thing you've done a lot," he says sarcastically, which Felix gives him the evils for. Jeongin's phone pings then, which he attends to, pulling out his phone and checking the notifications. "Oh my god!"

"What?" You ask, watching him scan over the contents of the message.

"The auditions are finished," he says, eyes not leaving the screen. You don't have time to stress, since Jisung gives you all a grin.

"Excellent!" He claps his hands. "We will all be drunk when you get the results, so no matter what you get we'll have a good night, right?"

"Right," Jeongin confirms with a smile, flashing you his set of pearly whites. "On that note, we should all probably head and get ready."

"Sounds good to me," Felix sighs, closing his laptop down, ridding himself of the assignment he'd written nothing of. "I can't wait for a drink."

"Ditto," you chuckle, ruffling the boys hair. "We'll see you guys later then?"

"Yes you will," Jisung winks, which you gag at. With a nod toward Jeongin, the two of you leave the coffee shop, walking towards the dorms. The two of you say your farewells when you reach your dorm, making the plan to go to Jeongin's dorm for drinks in two hours.

SCENE ONE ・❥・ ACT THREE

"Look what the cat dragged in!" Minho grins when you and Yunjin walk into the boys dorm. Him and Jisung had arrived before you, clearly, and the boys had already started drinking. You give him a quick hug, letting him ruffle your hair. He gives Yunjin a side hug too, whilst Felix walks up to you both with drinks in his hands.

“Audition went well?” Minho asks as Felix places the cups in yous and Yunjin’s hands, which you gladly accept.

“She only made it by the skin of her teeth,” Yunjin giggles, which you roll your eyes at fondly, laughing when she sticks her tongue out at you.

“I think so,” you respond honestly, smiling when he gives you a thumbs up in response.

“Good, come join us. Hyunjin has Jisung in a headlock,” Minho chuckles, ushering you towards the living area of the dorm.

“Classic,” Yunjin laughs at the scene, in which Hyunjin truly does have Ji in a headlock. “Another bet?”

“Of course,” is Felix’s response. You wave towards Seungmin and Jeongin, the two boys waving back with beers in their hands. “Jisung is refusing to pay up.”

“What was it this time?” You laugh. The two boys were terrible for betting each other about anything and everything, which often ended up in debt and arguments.

“Something about Jisung being unable to ask some girl on a date,” Jeongin answers as he walks towards your group, Seungmin making an attempt to split the two boys up. Yunjin audibly scoffs at that, which you send Jeongin a look for. He shrugs his shoulders with an expression you read as, ‘I told you so.’

“Excuse me,” Jisung intervenes, shooting Hyunjin daggers. “I would have asked her out, but she literally wasn’t in class yesterday! Why would I give him money?”

“Because there was no sub rules stipulating her presence in the university building, all you had to do was ask her out by this morning - you could have sent her a lousy text for all I care,” Hyunjin shoots back nonchalantly, giving the two of you girls a nod hello.

“Wah wah, shut the fuck up the both of you,” Minho yawns, checking his phone. “There’s half an hour until your roles get released, so I say we play a drinking game until then?”

“Sounds good to me,” Seungmin grins, opening up a cupboard and pulling out a deck of cards. “These two are giving me a headache.”

Your drinking game flies by. You’d all created it years ago, the easiest game if all you had was a deck of cards. Everyone was dealt three cards, and the person with the highest score got to direct a question to whoever had the lowest score. You could either answer, or take the number of shots as your lowest card.

The last round, for example, concluded with Hyunjin pulling three kings (which Jisung deemed as cheating, since he dealt), and Yunjin ending up with two twos and a three. Instead of answering the incredibly invasive question Hyunjin had directed her, she’d taken two shots.

It was at that point you noticed it was past 8pm, and a notification pinged on both yours and Jeongin’s phone. You send him a nervous glance as you open it, the beady eyes of your friends watching you both cautiously.

“What did you get?” Seungmin asks, impatient as ever. You can’t hold back the grin the spreads on your face as you read ‘Juliet’ beside your name on the cast list.

“You got Juliet?” Jisung grins back, able to read your face a mile off. You nod, whilst your friends erupt in cheers so loud you can’t even think.

“I got Romeo,” Jeongin says then, increasing the noise tenfold as your friends hug you both, congratulating you on getting the leads. Jeongin hugs you tightly, dimples flashing as he tells you how proud he is. When it’s Yunjin’s turn to squeeze you, she pulls back with a weird look on her face.

“What?” You ask her, tilting your head as the boys start pouring celebratory shots, chatting amongst themselves.

“You’re Juliet and Jeongin’s Romeo,” she says, and you think she’s just stating the obvious. “You get what that means, right?”

You scrunch your nose up, not following where she was going with this.

“You’re playing love interests! You’re gonna have to kiss and, like, die for each other and stuff,” she says, flipping a strand of hair behind her ear.

And oh Christ, because no you didn’t think about that, and she can clearly tell as you watch Jeongin down a shot in horror. You’d have to kiss one of your best friends. You’d have to act as though you were in love with the boy you’d grown up with.

Yunjin only laughs, shaking her head.

“Oh girl,” she grins. “Break a leg.”

so after almost a year (I’m so sorry tf) the first part is here!! Lmk if you like it, I’m super excited about this (mainly because I’m biased I heart jeongin) but the concept is so cute too hehe

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writebackatya · 6 months

Text

Darkwing Duck’s* Biggest Fans Haters

*As in the old tv show from the world of DuckTales (2017), not the superhero Drake Mallard assumes the identity of to fight evil

To fans like Drake Mallard and Launchpad McQuack, Darkwing Duck is the greatest piece of television history that helped shape their lives to become the ducks they are today thanks to its titular hero who never gave up despite the odds against him

To the rest of the world, Darkwing Duck was just another superhero show from the 90s that starred a problematic diva d-list actor that may or may not have died

Opinions are subjective of course, neither are 100% correct nor incorrect but I feel like when the fandom talks about Darkwing Duck it’s always about the characters that would also like the show. So why not flip the script a little? We’ll start small and work our way up to its biggest hater

Gosalyn Waddlemeyer:

“GOSALYN!?” You might be screaming at your monitor/phone to which I have to say:

“Yeah”

Again we are not talking about the Drake Mallard or his super identity here, but the tv show he and Launchpad are obsessed with. Because frankly, I bet Gosalyn loves doing all that superhero stuff with her adoptive dads. It’s a cool life to live!

Other than the fact that Drake is a huge nerd who INSISTS that Gosalyn do her “homework” and watch every episode of Darkwing Duck, read all the sacred texts (comic books), and playing the original Darkwing Duck video game on the original hardware so she won’t use the rewind or save features that modern games or ROMs have

Like all kids who have had an adult push their interests onto them, she has a little disdain for the show. But not a whole lot since she’s first on this list. I like to think she’s in the same boat as Dewey where she finds the show cheesy and doesn’t really hate it per say and sees why Drake and LP love the show. She even has a few guilty pleasure episodes

But one thing she doesn’t understand is why Drake and Launchpad insist on watching the Darkwing Duck Christmas Special every year when they’re both practicing Jews

Scrooge McDuck:

Yeah the old man can barely remember Drake, let alone the Darkguy Drake played in that movie he cancelled so I don’t really see Scrooge being a fan of the Masked Mallard. (No, not that Masked Mallard OG DuckTales fans)

If Scrooge did sit down and watch the show, he’d find it to be rather ridiculous if anything. Some vigilante running around dressed like The Spirit or The Shadow or whatever superhero kids are into these days getting slapped around and fighting back just doesn’t seem like his cup of tea

I like to think when Donald and Della were kids they watched Darkwing Duck at the mansion and Scrooge just walked by the room, looked at the TV for a few seconds, scoffed, and moved on with his life forgetting all about that nonsense his niece and nephew were watching

Louie Duck:

Honestly I always had this headcanon that Louie just isn’t a fan of superheroes. Like at all. He finds the stories all copy and paste, using all the cliches he hates from other genres and putting them in tights.

And don’t even get him started on superhero related adventures! If he sees a sky beam, Louie is running in the opposite direction of it. He’s not dealing with the many different diva supervillains out there trying to take over the world with cartoony extreme measures, he doesn’t wanna be around all that property damage

He does have a favorite superhero tho. Waddle Duck because he gave him a Pep once

Lena Sabrewing:

She thinks it’s lame.

Gandra Dee:

This is a no brainer for me. Gandra Dee made herself Darkwing Duck’s biggest hater the moment she heard the duck talk shit about Gizmoduck around Fenton who insisted she does not reveal his secret identity to Drake, because Drake is all he has left

Wanting to respect her boyfriend’s wishes, Gandra decides not to spill the beans but instead add more fuel to the fire by talking shit about Darkwing Duck

And she does not hold back

She’s not ashamed to talk shit on the show. It’s predictablity, it’s cheesiness, the plot holes, how lame it was for its own time, etc

It ain’t her childhood, she ain’t afraid to fight dirty either. She will bring up problematic episodes that depicted races in a not so good and stereotypical light (“It was the nineties! They were different times!” -Drake probably) such as the fact that in one episode Darkwing Duck called a group of Native Americans “primitive savages” or that a non-Asian actor played an Asian character in a sterotypcial manner and that how one of the characters names was “Duck Ling”(Okay but for real, all that shit did happen in the OG show.)

This of course frustrates Drake who is extra suspicious of Gandra ever since he saw her with Gizmoduck and writes her off as a blind fan girl who doesn’t know what she’s talking about

She’s pretty chill about not being into the show with Launchpad tho. He respects her opinions because he’s Launchpad and at the end of the day Gandra is still his friend

#ducktales headcanons #ducktales 2017 #darkwing duck #jim starlin #launchpad mcquack #gosalyn waddlemeyer #gosalyn mallard #scrooge mcduck #louie duck #gandra dee #ducktales #DuckTales fandom #duckblr #lena sabrewing #lena ducktales

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tainbocuailnge · 1 year

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German Dark Knight quests

This is an English translation of the German script for the level 45 and 50 dark knight quests (and some extra bits at the end), meant as a supplement to the translation of the Japanese script found in this and this post showcasing the large differences between Japanese and English Fray’s characterisation. Since haillenarte mentioned in their posts that the German script usually stays closer to the Japanese script than the English script does, and I can’t read Japanese but can read German, I decided to check out the German version and translate it for comparison.

UPDATE: Please check out my translation website! I have the entire dark knight questline translated on there, including an updated translation of what’s in this post, as well as many other scenes from the rest of the game.

Since the English script is already in the other posts I won’t put it in here too, but I will separate it into the same blocks as the other posts for ease of comparison. I’m also sticking to gender neutral pronouns for the WoL, though German is a highly gendered language so all the screenshots of the German script will reflect me playing as a male au ra. It’s been a hot minute since I formally studied German so if you spot any glaring mistakes by all means correct me!

Level 45 quest - What must be said

Fray: It’s your life and it ends again every minute... I’ve been thinking again about what you told me about the voice. Fray: Someone is trying to get through to you. Someone who needs your protection. But we don’t know any more. Fray: We have to perform another ritual as soon as possible. Maybe that will give us a clue about who the voice belongs to. Fray: After all, the voice resonates within your heart. Do you have someone you want to protect? More than anyone else? Fray: ...Sorry. I don’t feel very well lately... I’m alright. I’m just a bit tired. Fray: So, when you’re ready, we’ll perform the next ritual. Fray: Show me what you’ve learned. I’ll wait for you at Moraby Drydocks.

Fray: Do you remember? The sea... Fray: I told you before that I went on a journey once. With someone who... A terrible danger awaited us at sea. Fray: I wanted to stop them. But we’d already drifted too far apart. There was no stopping them from getting on that damn boat. Fray: It was like I was dying. They were the person I wanted to protect more than anything in the world. But my words didn't get through to them. That's why I'm...

???: What’s that? Isn’t the Maelstrom there to help us? ...I’m in need, goddammit! Styrnlona: The Maelstrom isn’t responsible for that. You should turn to the Yellowjackets when reporting something like stolen wares. Demanding dealer: The Yellowjackets... Before they get around to my case my newborn son will be an experienced sailor! Perhaps even admiral! Styrnlona: Hey, you! Aren’t you [your rank at the Maelstrom] [Name]?

Strynlona: You did us all a great favour when you defeated the primal Leviathan. The citizens of Limsa Lominsa are forever grateful. Demanding dealer: Whaaaat? There’s a real hero standing before me! Demanding dealer: You’re a godsend. I’m in a real bind and need help. Demanding dealer: A nasty Qiqirn has stolen all my wares! [cry] What do I tell my clients? [sob] I’m going to lose my good name as trader! [sniff] Fray: Do you remember what I told you last time? You can’t help everyone. You can’t carry all the world’s suffering on your shoulders. Fray: The Yellowjackets will take on his case soon enough. You should worry about your training as a dark knight instead and find a worthy opponent. There’s more important things at stake... Demanding dealer: Don’t leave me high and dry! If you don’t help me, no-one will!

>Yes, or nobody will help him.

Demanding dealer: You’re truly a hero! Thank you! Demanding dealer: The Qiqirn that stole my wares has to be some kind of leader or chief... It’s bigger and stronger than the others.

>No, I can’t help everyone.

Demanding dealer: But... didn’t you just say you were looking for worthy opponents? Demanding dealer: The Qiqirn that stole my wares is a real big guy! Bigger and stronger than the others. A leader or chief, I would say.

Demanding dealer: I saw it walking towards the salt strand, the Qiqirn have a camp there. Please bring my wares back! Fray: It always ends like this... When nobody wants to help, the heroes have to go... You'll never become a dark knight like this.

Fray: Cut that thieving Qiqirn down to size. Doesn’t matter how pathetically it begs for mercy. It shouldn’t have stolen the merchant’s wares... Fray: We’ll use the opportunity to prepare the next ritual. Show me everything you’ve learned as a dark knight.

[Duty battle dialogue] Fray the Dark: There’s quite a lot of them... This’ll be a right bloodbath. Fray the Dark: Now we just need to get the wares! Fray the Dark: The wares are definitely in this chest...

Fray: We... have the wares... [groan] Bring them to the merchant... [huff] Fray: Me? I’m just a bit... exhausted... [groan]. Go ahead, I’ll be right behind you... Fray: Bring it to an end...

Demanding dealer: Hello, hero! Do you have my wares? Demanding dealer: Yes, that’s the stuff! Thank you, thank you. Let’s see if everything is there. Demanding dealer: Nooooo! In llymlaen’s name, I can’t sell these like this! Demanding dealer: Those Qiqirn put their dirty hands all over everything! I can’t offer this to my customers! Or even worse, they’ll demand a discount! Demanding dealer: What should i do? It’s the end for me! I’m ruined! I can say goodbye to that vacation in Costa del Sol... Demanding dealer: I know! I’ve got a hero standing right in front of me! You’ll deliver me new wares in a snap! Demanding dealer: The skin of a dangerous monster... A treasure from a trap-filled ruin... A lock of hair from a primal...

Fray: ENOUGH!! Fray: Does it ever end? Is Eorzea populated entirely by children? Can nobody do anything on their own anymore? Does everyone have to keep begging the heroes for help? Fray: [Name] is also just a [your race]! With their own feelings and interests. Axe blades and thunder magic also hurt them! Nobody thinks about that, huh? Fray: We keep fighting for other people... Like back then, at open sea, against that watery primal... Fray: “We’re not chosen! Let the chosen one fight!” - Pah, you’re just hiding behind those words! What are you doing for Eorzea anyway? Fray: If you lot didn’t keep bringing in your troublesome business [Name] would’ve long since been a more experienced dark knight! Ugh, for real!

Demanding dealer: Who just blows their lid like that? I’m terribly sorry, adventurer... Styrnlona: What the... [Maelstrom rank] [Name], your anger isn’t entirely unfounded, but... Styrnlona: ...A short walk sounds like the right thing to cool your head. Have a good day.

Fray: That just had to be said. Don’t you think? Fray: Seriously, such an ungrateful lot...

>All that matters is the voice.

Fray: Right, the voice. You can’t ignore it. That would mean ignoring your own existence. Fray: I even know who the voice belongs to... Fray: But I can’t tell you who it is. You have to find out yourself. Fray: Well, let’s continue. Stick your hand out...

>I want to become a real dark knight as soon as possible.

Fray: You’re already a real dark knight, [Name]. The dark power, that’s real. Fray: But remember what I told you in the Brume? That you have to face your feelings if you want to walk the path of the dark knight - if you want to survive it? Fray: You’re not at the goal yet. There’s a place in your heart you still haven’t reached. But the voice will help you with that. Fray: Well, let’s continue. Stick your hand out...

>You’re completely right. It had to be said.

[Fray makes a surprised gesture] Fray: You also think I’m right? That’s great, [Name]! Fray: I know it’s not in your nature to lash out like that. But you can rest easy leaving that to me. Fray: I’m glad you’re finally realizing it... Fray: More important right now is that you find out who the voice belongs to. And what its true meaning is. Stick your hand out...

???: The weak call for you, [Name]. As they always do. ???: They call, they scream, they wail... So loud that you can’t hear your own voice... The pain... The anger... The sadness... Nobody wants to hear about those. ???: But you. You will listen to it. ???: You hear my prayers.

Fray: [Name]. Fray: You heard the voice, right? Fray: You don’t have to tell me what you heard. But I’ll ask you one thing: Are you prepared to give up everything to answer that voice? Fray: Your status, your fame, your fortune - everything? Only after losing everything will we have the freedom to do everything. If you’re willing to do that, then... come with me! Leave this Eorzea! Fray: Here you will never be able to fulfil your purpose. To be truly free. Here you will forever have to concern yourself with others. But if you turn your back on Eorzea - you can go your own way. Fray: You don’t have to answer right now. Meet me at the usual place when you’re ready. I’ll wait for you.

Level 50 quest - The knights’ core

Fray: [Name]... There you are again. I was already expecting you. Fray: ...Ugh... We don't have much time left. We have to travel again soon... Or it'll be too late. Fray: Too late for you... You don't understand it yet, but I want to help you. I'm starting to doubt whether you're really prepared... But we'll see. Fray: We'll meet at the Gates of Judgement. Call my name and I'll come.

???: That voice! Isn't that [Sir/Lady] [Name]? The hero of the Scions of the Seventh Dawn? Brave knight: Forgive me. I belong to Lord Drillemont's troops from Whitebrim Fort. Everyone in my regiment knows your name. Brave knight: It can't be a coincidence that I meet you here. It's the Fury's work! She wants you to help us. Nervous knight: A bit to the south from here lives a crowd of Gigas. They've been showing themselves in the region increasingly often and frequently raid caravans. It’s likely they intend to expand their territory. Nervous knight: The troops at Whitebrim Fort are well armed, but the Gigas are numerous and better suited to the cold than us. Nervous knight: They're better organised than other Gigas too. If we can disable their commander their advances will likely cease for now. Brave knight: Indeed. Our commander underestimates the danger and refuses to send troops. Please, won't you help us and hunt down the Gigas commander? Coeus the Loudmouthed, they call the beast. Then our problems will be solved.

Durendaire knights: Please help us. Durendaire knights: What could be more important? Please help us! Nervous knight: Thank you! You’re a hero! Brave knight: We believe we have a trail. Follow us!

Fray: That’s enough.... That’s.... ENOUGH!!!

Brave knight: That’s the place. We believe Coeus the Loudmouthed will come through the pass. Did I mention he’s always accompanied by his two bodyguards? They of course also have to be defeated. Brave knight: Keep watch a little further down the pass. The leader of the Gigas won’t be long. May the Fury preserve you!

Brave knight: You’ve defeated the Gigas’ leader! Thank Halone and you! Brave knight: That should stop their advance. We can easily deal with the few remaining unorganised Gigas. And if not, we know who we can ask. Brave knight: You have our thanks. We will inform Lord Drillemont of your deeds. Brave knight: And our comrades will hear of your heroic deeds too! They’ll all look up to you, if they don’t already. Brave knight: The troops at Whitebrim Fort can use any boost to morale they can get. Your willingness to help us will bring new courage. Brave knight: That reminds me... Could you perhaps autograph my shield? My name is...

???: March, march! Return to base immediately! Brave knight: What happened? Why the rush? Capable knight: Orders from above. Lord Drillemont heard that we’re working with [Name] and ordered us to return immediately. With them in custody, in fact. Brave knight: In custody? What’s the meaning of this? Capable knight: There have been... accusations. People are saying they’ve been spotted in the Brume... speaking with the corpse of a convicted heretic. Capable knight: I don’t believe it of course, but we both know how serious such accusations are.

Brave knight: Surely someone is trying to play us for fools... I mean, speaking with a corpse? Do they take us for idiots? Capable knight: Have you heard the accusations, [Sir/Lady]? They... have a certain weight, since they come from Temple Knights. Capable knight: It might be necessary... Ah, purely as a formality of course... To ask you to remove your weapon.

Fray: Ha, ha! “Remove my weapon”? After what happened in Ul’dah? Are they out of their minds?

Fray: Tomorrow will be the best day in your life, [Name]. Your breakfast will taste better than any meal you’ve ever had. Fray: That is, when you finally manage to look the truth in the eye. [Name], get ready for the evacuation of your soul...

Fray: You know already. You know whose voice speaks in your heart. You know who has to shoulder more suffering than anyone else in the world... You know who you have to save! Fray: Don’t act so surprised. Of course Fray was stone dead, right from the start. But you wanted it to be different. Fray: A sword, a crystal... All that was missing was a teacher. So you made yourself one. Fray: The soul crystal of the Dark Knight, in which all his experiences were stored. Your aether and repressed feelings... The pain that you locked deep inside your heart... All that suffering that you have to endure as a hero.... The fear that the Champion of Eorzea is not allowed to show... Those are the ingredients from which you made a new Fray. Fray: A mentor who could show you the feelings slumbering in your heart. Who could express these feelings for you, like you never could. Fray: You still don’t want to believe it, but you can’t deny it. You can’t deny what we have achieved. Fray: Haven’t I been good to you? I’ve given you a choice that none of your so-called friends ever gave you. Your so-called friends in the Scions or the Eorzean Alliance. Fray: The choice to say no. To not help. To think of yourself. To save yourself. I’ve given your innermost desire to say no a voice, and made sure you heard it too. Fray: Open your eyes! Look at me! Are you seeing it now? I... am you!

[Fray takes on your name] [Name]: Everything that happened until now was your story... [Name]: ...And everything that happens from now on is mine!

[Duty battle dialogue] Dark shadow: Fight me! As hard as you can! You can’t kill me, no matter how hard you try. Dark shadow: You can’t defeat me. I’m a part of you. Drillemont: [Name], I’ll help you! You helped us in our greatest time of need too. Dark shadow: Help them? Bet they’ll have to save you again?

Dark shadow: I... we were so close...

Dark shadow: That is exactly the problem! Dark shadow: Do you even know how ridiculous this struggle must look to the others? Dark shadow: Free yourself from the pain!

[Battle over] [Name]: After a battle everything else in life is turned down in comparison - you can deal with anything. [Name]: I made you strong. I have... given you all your strength... [Name]: Recognise the irony of your existence: Your strength is the cause of your pain. It makes you a hero, and as a hero you’re doomed to suffer.

Knight: [Name]! We’re with you! Cenota: [Name]! Believe in yourself! Believe in us! Clotairion: We know who you really are. Don’t forget that!

[Name]: They stand at your side... while you carry their pain. [Name]: But that’s what you want, isn’t it? You want to suffer. You’re always looking for someone whose pain you can carry. That’s your nature. [Name]: The nature of a dark knight. It’s your fate. Nobody will ever do it better than you... [Name]: You seek this pain. You seek that suffering. [Name]: You’ve brought the last offering. So take this reward... [Name]: [Name]... [Name]: [Name]... I’m the part of you incapable of being a hero. Hide me. Deep in your heart. [Name]: I will speak to you again. Because I know you’re stronger than me.

[Name]: What belongs together comes together. [Name]: I’ll return back into you and give you the power to protect the world. I’ll cry your tears. I’ll carry your burden. I’ll be your rage. [Name]: Let’s go on a journey together again.

Capable knight: We have you back, Halone be praised! For a moment there I thought we’d lost you to your innermost demons. Capable knight: I don’t really understand what happened here, but Lord Drillemont doesn’t seem too angry. Fortunately nobody was permanently injured... Capable knight: First up I’ll make sure Fray’s body is given an appropriate burial. Capable knight: And you? Are you sure everything is okay? You were a little... confused. But what am I implying... Forgive me, my lord. And farewell.

Notes and commentary:

"Das ist dein Leben und es endet jede Minute aufs Neue” is a quote from the German dub of Fight Club apparently, though I never watched it in any language so I have no idea what the context is.

German has formal and informal pronouns, but the only character in these quests to use formal pronouns for your character is the capable knight. That said, everyone still speaks fairly politely to you except Fray, who speaks so casually to everyone it crosses into being rude and overly familiar.

Personally I like German Fray a lot. They feel like the best of both worlds, keeping the emotional vulnerability of Japanese Fray while adding some of the bitter anger English Fray has. They also have a certain awkwardness to them that is really endearing, and which I’m not sure really comes across in just these two quests even with the lame breakfast oneliner. The lv35 quest has this exchange which I really like.

>That voice I heard. Who is speaking to me? >Why were you being accused by the High Tribunal anyway? Hmmm? -->Wild playing and endangering the elderly - shouldn’t that be punished severely? (This is the excuse the temple knights used to take away the old woman’s granddaughter)

Fray: R-really? But things like that just happen when kids play... Fray: A-haha, I get it! You made a joke! You really got me there. Seriously though, what do you want to ask me?

What stood out to me about German Fray next to the English one (and my limited knowledge of the Japanese one) is that they’re a bit of a jokester, though it doesn’t really show in the last two quests because they’re getting desperate. When you free the prisoners from the Amal’jaa in the lv40 quest duty, the enemy yells “You’ll pay for this with your blood!” and Fray responds “Send me an invoice!”

There’s also the exchange with Fray when you learn what happened to the old woman whose grandchild was taken in the lv30 quest, which in English goes like this

Fray: They might spare the girl, you know. Leave her with a few scars and a lifelong lesson. Fray: ...Or, we could beat every single one of them within an ilm of their lives and rescue the girl. You’d like that, wouldn’t you? [You nod, and Fray smiles] Fray: I knew you would.

and in German goes like this

Fray: Are you the dark knight that will stand up for this old woman? Think about it carefully, since it might cost you your head. Fray: Think about the enemies you’re facing, and the wounds they will inflict on you. Think about how you could just turn around and go lie in a warm bed, and nobody would suspect you. [You nod, and Fray smiles] Fray: I feared as much.

In the Japanese and English versions (and French, since French drk is just a direct translation of the English one) the original Fray legitimately lost his trial by combat, but in the German version the trial was rigged. The Ishgardian Citizen describes how Fray was winning until Halone herself struck him down with a pillar of fire - someone in the audience mumbled that it looked suspiciously like a Flare spell cast from the direction of the jury, but naturally the citizen immediately reported that heretic to the inquisition for doubting Halone’s judgement. The reason I even read the German version was because I got mad about translators making some shit up wholesale, but I have to admit I do like this particular thing that translators made up wholesale.

It also turns out Fray writing in the quest journal is unique to the English version! I really missed their commentary when I checked the German journal and it just wasn’t there. Another win for making shit up wholesale I suppose.

I’ve been told the scripts for different languages of the game are written concurrently rather than first in Japanese and then translated, so it’s not entirely fair to claim any one of them as the original that the others are unfaithful translations of. Even if that’s the case I still don’t think the different language scripts should be so wildly different in meaning from each other, but putting that aside I do like having these varying takes on Fray to rotate in my head and I wouldn’t have any complaints if the way they were implemented was through supplementary material like short stories or a manga or something.

I also think each version of Fray has something good going for them, and that they become better when put next to each other. I like how the English script has even your repressed feelings be so repressed that they cling to their front of smug superiority and righteous anger until the very end, and only manage to really express themselves in the journal where nobody would ordinarily look. I like Japanese Fray spilling their whole entire heart out and sounding permanently on the verge of crying from how desperate they are despite their imposing appearance. And my personal favourite is German Fray for how much they feel like genuinely just a regular person who’s in too deep and has no choice but to keep doing what they think is best.

#ffxiv #fray #fray myste #dark knight #translation

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greatsylveon2007 · 4 months

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"Kids with passion to play make-believe;

Will become young adults with the will to achieve"

Alright, so I figured I wanted to make this eventually. I finally finished my part for the Guaraná MAP a few months ago after like, almost two years of having it lmao, and those two years were wild and included a bunch of different versions of the part which would never see the light of day outside of the map server, so I figured I should put them all here :)

Here is the finished part which I am very happy with honestly, love some Hollyleaf angst

youtube

So now let me tell you about how the part used to be IWKFOLSPS

To get the part I actually had to fist fight a friend because it was one of the few really simple interesting parts and we both wanted it pretty badly

When I eventually got the part I made two storyboards for it, and my idea was for it to be very limited animation with mostly tweening, as, in my head, it would make my life easier

The first storyboard I was not happy with so I threw it out the window and made another soon after

This one I was way happier with and is the storyboard I used for most of these two years, here you can see a little light/shadow behind Hollyleaf that, while I liked, was really out of place so I didn't keep it in the end :(

What followed was multiple months of me chipping away at this part and telling myself every time that it would be easy to do because it was pmv, I got pretty far with this, making the assets for all of the cats and only needing to shade Hollyleaf, finish the backgrounds and guaraná plants and edit

At that point however, despite being almost done, I really couldn't bring myself to work on this part anymore, I'm not sure what exactly it was, but messing around with all the assets and tweening and all that just wasn't fun for me at that point and I just began stalling to avoid having to open the file again

Eventually in February a light shone upon me, if I wasn't having fun with PMV then screw it AMV was my new best friend

In a few hours I made a new sketch, skipped the rought animation stage and finished Holly's entire animation (don't do this ever, don't be like me)

I had also started on Lion but I was struggling on what to do with him because of how I animated Holly lol

I don't remember the exact plan but originally the character acting was:

Holly and Lion are looking up, Jay is a little frustrated. Holly talks to him to cheer him up and he looks at her, feeling a bit more encouraged. Then she would look at Lion, he would reassure her, and they'd all end up happy

Somehow though, while animating Holly, I ditched the plan and made her be surprised by Lion and look at him, so I struggled a bit trying to figure out what Lionpaw could do to get her attention, and spent a good while trying to figure out the solution to a problem that I created in a few hours of not following a simple plan ISMOCKSKKDS If you plan something, preferably follow it, don't be like me²

I could have just remade her animation so that would have been solved but I liked her animation I didn't want to redo it :(

Anyway, eventually I figured he could say something stupid to help cheer up Jay or something and I like his and Jay's new movements so it all worked out :)

After making the first shot, I caved in to something I wanted to do for a while which was a transition between the shots, instead of having it cut to the second shot or move the characters around a little bit.

I didn't know if I wanted to do a transition with stars or with the fire scene, until eventually I figured that the fire scene and Ashfur's... thing was what really affected the siblings, especially Hollyleaf. The part also follows a sequence of Hollyleaf feeling guilty for what she did so in general I thought that Ashfur would transition well

You may also notice that I hadn't splattered blood all across Holly's face in the second shot and that was because I forgot she was supposed to have blood on her until I read the script again for some reason and realized I forgot ISNKCKAKDLSL

So, what did we learn? PMV sucks, animate it all at 24 fps in one sitting instead/JOKE

This is all I have about the Guaraná part, it was pretty fun to work on and I loved joining a map about my country, this map lives in a little part of my brain rent free <3

Might do this for other parts that have a bunch of wips or something I'll think about that, it's kind of fun to just lay out your process like this, would recommend 10/10

#map part #sylv rambles #warrior cats #hollyleaf #lionblaze #jayfeather #ashfur #animation #Youtube #sylv animation

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madrigaljail · 10 months

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Cheesus

For @wdtajn: memes/comedy. The rats tell Antonio everything. Pepa doesn't appreciate it.

The sudden drop in temperature and a page-rustling breeze were all the warning Bruno got before his sister interrupted his script-writing session (which had so far consisted of him sharpening all of his pencils and then trying to line them up in order of pointiness). He glanced up, grateful for the distraction from his distraction, and hoped her scowl wasn’t intended for him.

“Bruno, stop being a bad influence on my son."

Well. So much for that. He held up his hands, placating, “Pepa, I don’t know what you heard but whatever it is, Camilo started it.”

“Not that one!’ she said and folded her arms. “I got a note from Antonio’s teacher-”

“Tonito’s never done anything wrong in his entire life!” Bruno declared. It was a reflex.

That gave Pepa pause, which gave Bruno hope that she’d drop it, but instead she formed a cloud and resumed scowling. “The note was to tell me that she had heard my baby, who has never done anything wrong in his entire life, refer to Our Lord And Savior as Quesocristo.”

Bruno was a very good actor. This afternoon he would be playing the part of a marble statue.

“On more than one occasion.” When her brother remained motionless, she pressed on. “He told her he’d heard it from the rats.”

Oh. Shit. “I…don’t see how this has anything to do with me?” Yeah, yeah, it was way too late to beat the weird rat guy allegations but he had to at least put up a fight. “I mean, I’ve been saying for years that they’re really smart, a-and I guess now we know they’ve got a sense of humor? Eh?”

Bruno gave her a toothy grin, hoping it would be enough, but the cloud flickered and thundered.

“He told me the rats heard it from you,” Pepa seethed. “Now, why would you teach them that?”

“That’s a great question, Pepi,” he said, getting to his feet and edging away from the cloud’s reach. “I mean, considering the consequences o-o-of having such an inadvertent influence on a pure, perfect, incorruptible soul, why would I even think to slander Our Lord And Savior by-”

Pepa stepped closer. The cloud expanded. Bruno flinched.

“Because you thought it was funny,” she hissed and jabbed a finger into his chest. It sparked a little.

Bruno let out a desperate, alarmed giggle. “Ha! Well, I mean, it sort of is, yeah? Just imagine those little guys going around like-” He held up his hands in a little rat-like gesture of supplication and cast his gaze toward heaven, then, in a squeaky voice: “Quesocristo, preserve us!”

As he’d hoped, but not exactly expected because he still and always had to be careful with his words, she laughed, and the cloud retracted a little.

“Ok, fine. But, please, Brunito, you need to be more careful. Remember what happened with Lolo and Isa.”

“Hey, now, that was not me, that was all Agustín.”

They grinned at each other, and the sun came out.

“Lunes-”

“Martes-”

“Mierda-coles!”

From somewhere across the house they heard their mother shout “Mind your language!”

(A week later Pepa once again had to confront her brother over the fact that her baby - who had never done anything wrong - now seemed to think bats were rat angels.)

#wdtajn #my writing #ficlet #bruno madrigal #pepa madrigal #writing memes is hard y'all and idk if this counts #whatever i laughed #seda's blaspheming again

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oksana-moods · 1 year

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Queens of Promise - Part 5

Summary: The plot thickens.

A/N: Hey you all! I don't even know what to say here rs It feels like a decade has passed and certainly feels odd to come back after such a long time. I don't know if there are people still interested in this story, but after a request of a dear friend of mine, I decided to post what's already written and work on the last chapter (the only one I haven't fully written yet, only on script).

I'd like to explain that my writing time got reduced by a lot of reasons, but mainly, 2022 was a bittersweet year that I'll definitely remember for the rest of my life.

Without further ado, let's get back to the story, shall we? Everything until chapter 10 is written and almost ready to be posted, I'll just look for typos or other mistakes and you shall have it really soon. For real this time. Chapter 11 however, the final chapter, is still on progress but I promise I will give you the end of this story.

Please, let me know your thoughts.

-Previous parts here

Trigger Warnings: Violence, language, mentions of blood and war. If there is any other that should be mentioned, let me know.

Into your eyes, hopeless and taken

Triskelion Castle

“Absolutely not.” Queen Calanthe manifests her disapproval to your latest idea. “I’m not letting you play spy and into Sokovia’s territory, no less. It’s not time for games. We are at war.”

For the thousandth time, you sighed. You tried countless ideas of how to learn the Maximoff’s plans with the Kree and none of them seemed to please your mother.

“Well, what do you suggest? We need to find out what they are up to, messing with the Kree.” You spat the word Kree as if venom tainted your tongue. “You can’t expect me to sit on this. I’m going to discover this one way or another, even if requires me to interrogate Princess Maximoff myself.”

“I suppose you discarded that idea few months ago.” She seethed, referring to when you had the princess within reach, but you chose to let her go and you hated how she was right. You hated even more not knowing why you allowed her to run away, in first place.

Loki cleared his throat trying to clear the air in the room and intervened with an option. “Perhaps we could send a small unit to the harbor?” He folded his hands behind his back and started to explain his idea. “We know for sure that winter is closing down on us, therefore there’s only one harbor in Starksland that any commotion could happen.”

“Hogan’s harbor.” You spoke, grasping what he was proposing. Loki, in turn, flashes you an appreciative smile, he always admired your intelligence and how receptive you were with those who you trust.

“Precisely. If Kree were to arrive with troops or anything else, that would be the place.” He lifted his hand and started to enumerate the facts that supported his theory. “Hogan is a small town, there’s not many prying eyes. They could count with the snow to slow down Stark’s troops. No resistance whatsoever, not until they are far inland and with the large number of trade routes, they could very well disappear until they’re fanning on our necks.”

You looked at him with a smile on your own. You always prayed to the Gods for your mother to live for more than hundred years, but the idea of your ascension as Queen seemed a little bit less scary because you knew he’ll be by your side, sharing his wise.

You turned to him and grabbed his head forcibly and gave two kisses on his cheeks. “Uh brother, you’re brilliant. I knew we kept you around for something more than just your pretty face.” You finish with a smile, which grew wider after his reply.

“Thank you. I have a pretty face indeed.” He straightened his robes from imaginary crinkles, suddenly uncomfortable with your praise.

You turned to your mother, head spinning with ideas, and started to share them. The meeting went for hours without end, but this time plans were discussed instead of rejecting ideas and later that day, you had convinced the queen that your unit should be the one set off for this quest.

After the assembly, you stayed behind in her meeting room. Her eyes were set on your form, while you pretended to busy yourself admiring an old painting celebrating the bravery of your family on some ancient battle. The painting showed some gran-gran-mother regally mounting a white horse, wielding a sword in the middle of a battle. You wondered how many lives were lost for that ancestor to gain this work of art.

“Do you think her mother doubted her worth?” You spoke quietly, after a moment contemplating the moment eternized on the wall. From the corner of your eye, you could see your mother’s head turn to you harshly.

“Oh my love, I never doubted you.” She took few steps and you turned to look at her fully now. The crease between her brows were deep and there was worry in her eyes.

“Yet, you weaken your troops on the battlefield by keeping my company away. You don’t trust me anymore.” Your voice was flat, as if analyzing an event and not delivering how bad it bothered you.

She took the remaining steps between you and grabbed your hands in hers, giving light squeezes. “I’m a mother and you’re my daughter, my only daughter. After your abduction by the Kree, I went berserk and didn’t stop until I had you in my arms again.”

Her eyes were hard, but they showed so much love that you felt your feet slightly out of balance. “Oh, when I saw your fragile, beaten form laying on your bed that night I vowed that I wouldn’t put you in harm’s way again.”

She paused just for a few seconds to make sure you were following. “And this war has so many blind spots, so many white blanks that scares me, my love. I can’t lose you.” She squeezed your hand harder this time. “And Taharr can’t lose you.”

You looked at the emotion seeping from her eyes, and it was once in a lifetime to see the queen Calanthe so vulnerable, so human. “One of the first lessons you taught me was to serve my kingdom. No matter what.” She laughed dryly, of course you’d use her words and ‘lessons’ against her. “And I am good, mother. I need you to see that.”

She cupped your face with her hands and caressed your cheeks with her thumbs. “You are the best, my love, you are my daughter and I taught you myself. If anything, I made sure the greatest warriors in this world prepared you to be the best knight in Noveria, even better than myself. But, in the end of the day, I’m still a mother worried about my cub.” She smiled lightly and you smiled as well.

As a queen, she knew better. From early age, she made you learn how to fight with all weapons and even without one. The same time spent with physical training was dedicated to study the numbers, letters, history, geography, politics, religions, beliefs and even agriculture. After all, knowledge is never too much and information could be a weapon itself, if harnessed properly.

You nodded but still counterattacked. “But I know that your permission had more to do with the fact that I’ll be away from the front than to my investigation skills. It stings.” She was about to speak but you stopped her. “You can’t protect me forever, mother. We are at war and in Taharr there’s always war.”

This time she nodded and took few steps away from you. “I know and you’re right, but I’m old and one day you’ll step up as the Queen of Taharr and I have to make sure that you’ll live long enough.” Her words sink heavily in your stomach, the veracity of her statement hit you like a rock.

Your mother fought her battles, had her share of wars and now she was looking to the future, worried about the type of person would assume her crown when the time comes. “Do you think I’m reckless? Do I embarrass you?” Your voice was low, exposed and she hated to see you second guessing yourself. She always loved your spirit, even though they brought a fair amount of headache.

“Never.” Her voice was firm, and she spoke the truth of her heart. “I’m nothing but proud of who you are. You’re strong, intelligent and you’re never afraid of fighting for your people. You’re a true lioness.” Her soft smile turned into a small smirk. “As for reckless, I can’t judge your youth’s spirit. I remember giving my father few grey hairs due my own adventures.”

You snorted at her choice of words, and you wondered if you’d ever learn how to speak like this. You wondered if you’d ever be half of the woman she was and a quarter of the queen she was. There were many things you wondered, and you feared you wouldn’t be that good. “Do you think I’ll be a good queen?” Again, your voice was small, foreign-like small, showing her your inner doubts.

You knew you could handle a fight; you knew you had learnt troop maneuvers enough to overpower an enemy during a war, but could you run your kingdom with the perfect balance between ruthlessness and kindness as your mother? Could you guide your people during the darkest times when it comes?

“I know you’ll be the greatest queen to ever grace these lands, even more marvelous than Queen Maria Hill.” Pointing at the Great Queen on the painting in front of you, she spoke with a certainty that pushed away the worries hammering your head and heart, at least for now.

You shook your head amused and locked eyes with her. “Will I be as good as you?” Her smile was bright, thanking you wordlessly for your praise, then she replied. “Oh love, you’ll be better than me, for you have a heart of gold. And when the day come, I’ll be a delighted queen and a proud mother.” She finished with a glint in her eyes, and you nodded you head, smiling lightly.

She patted the seat by her side on the balcony, welcoming you to enjoy a cup of tea admiring the beautiful fall tinting the trees and fields on the outskirts of Triskelion of orange, dark red and light brown as the maple leaves adorned the grounds.

You were still thinking about the conversation you had had with your mother when a nudge on your ribs brought you back to reality and you looked to its source only to find Lady Rambeau nodding towards a specific door at the back of a decaying pub near the docks.

You narrowed your eyes and saw a young woman stepping inside of it and you smiled, for you knew who she was. And something told you that, after weeks lurking around Hogan Village, today was your lucky day.

You waited on your spot for a while longer and a soldier reported that there was no sign of Scarlet Knight or Black Widow, something foreign stirred in your stomach when they said Princess Wanda was nowhere to be seen, it was almost as if you were disappointed.

But why? You shook your head and chewed your own lip, weighting your options and thinking about what your next step should be.

This time, it was your turn to nudge Maria’s side and beckon her to follow you. You signaled for everybody else stay on their posts and wait for new instructions, then you strolled to the pub’s entrance.

Once inside, you immediately asked for a beer, to blend in with other costumers and locals. You leaned on the counter and tried to find sokovian soldiers. “I’m counting two on the right corner and another by the window, the one with white hat.” Your words were low, to make sure only Maria would hear them.

She nodded and turned her body, leaning on the counter, pretending to be bored with her beer stein. “You missed the guy by the side door.” She took a sip of the liquid and used all her mighty to not spat the content on the floor, pursing her lips. “This beer is worse than piss.”

You snorted. “You know, the mere notion that you can make such comparison scares me.” Lady Rambeau sniffled her laughs as to not get unwanted attention. “Come, is time for us to have a chat.” Silently, she followed you to the table were the person you were after was.

“Oh. Squire Kate Bishop, fancy seeing you here.” Your spoke loud enough for the girl in front of you hear you properly, but not loud enough to attract unnecessary attention. You were disguised as trader and so was your partner, but your face was not particularly unknown.

Despite being low, your voice still made her jump, startled, then she turned back to look at you.

“It’s Knight Kate Bishop, actually.” She raised her chin, proudly and you almost felt bad for her. Unbeknownst to her, she gave you more information with that single sentence than she could’ve imagined.

She was proud of her title and so was of her mission, for sure. Therefore, the mission was bound to be important. Therefore, Scarlet Knight should be close and had interest in whatever was going on. Therefore, it’d be a matter of time for you to learn what it was.

You smiled at her. “That’s quite the title, kid. I’m sure you can handle it, though.” You spoke then you let your eyes stray to the stash of papers on her hands.

“I’m sorry, what name did you introduce yourself with?” She tried. You were lucky indeed.

“I didn’t.” Smiling you retreated from the bar and went to the camping on the outskirts of the city, where you shared your knowledge with your companions. The stash of papers in Bishop’s hands were ship manifests, they meant supplies were about to arrive and you knew just when, for you read the ships names.

Forel Star and Valar Zirtys, both braavosi ships and that made no sense in this crescent pile of strange allies sought for Sokovia. First Kree, now Braavos. Unless…

Something popped in your head.

It was known to a lot of people in other continents, but only a few in Noveria knew and, fortunately, you were one of them. One of the papers had the Ragman’s Harbor stamp on it, which means the ship’s last stop was a harbor that’s open to all foreign ships, unlike Purple Harbor, which tends exclusively local braavosi ships.

Obviously, said ships could have made a quick stop in Braavos coming from another place and after loading the new cargo, set off to Hogan’s Harbor. However, there was this nagging feeling that this was a diversion. Maybe, the Kree used the braavosi harbor to laundry the load as to avoid suspicious. Very meticulous.

The question is, what Sokovia had offered in return?

You could be wrong, but the more you thought about it, the more all the details seemed to click into place. Your instincts never failed you.

You were sure they weren’t start just now.

------

Somewhere between Sokovia and Taharr borders

The road to the Krogani Lakes seemed endless, especially with so many turns, road depressions and lakes to go around that took one moon for Wanda’s troops to move from the outskirts of Hogan’s Village to the battlefront.

Even though the interminable trip was a nuisance in itself, the princess felt her restlessness growing with each day. The wagons transporting their goods could turn their luck on the front. There wasn’t just food, which she knew they desperately needed, or new armors and weapons, but especially medical supplies. Nowadays, those were rarer than gold.

The Scarlet Knight was so engrossed on her thoughts that she didn’t hear Natasha’s horse arriving by her side. So, when her friend spoke, she startled Wanda. “One more hill and we’ll get to Sokovia’s camp before dusk.”

“By the gods, how can you still be silent with a horse?” Wanda put a hand on her heart as though this action could calm her down.

“It’s literally impossible to be silent with a horse, Wanda.” Romanoff shot her a smirk. “You were so absorbed by your thoughts that you missed my approach.” She laughed lightly, trying to lift the mood, sour since their encounter with the Kree emissary.

“Urg. This trip is interminable, and though we’re no longer in Taharr’s territory, it feels like we’re been watched still.” The princess shared what bothered her with her protector, there were so many reasons why she’s restless that she does not know where to start.

“I feel it too. Especially when we went around the Gauntlet Valley by the south, but I believe that I’m still creeped about that power stone we delivered to the Witch Harkness.” The Black Widow spoke, eyes never straying from the road and their vicinity, always looking for a threat.

“I’m still creeped about the whole meeting, Nat. That woman didn’t look like she had her mind on the right place, even less were her intentions.” Wanda felt cold creeping up her bones the second she entered the inn the witch provided as meeting point and every now and then she still felt chills on her cells. “Fortunately, it’s behind us now.” She muttered.

“Unless it comes back to bite us in the ass later.” Natasha smirked a sentence dripping sarcasm, and deep down she prayed that it was just a sarcastic remark indeed and not an omen.

By the time Wanda arrived at their camp, the tents for her and her unit were already up, and everything was prepared for her arrival. The redhead was dreaming with a hot bath and a very deserved rest, but the second her boots touched the campsite, she was taken to the Commander’s tent.

“What happened?” Wanda inquired the second she stepped into the tent. There were important Lords and Knights gathered around a table, but she couldn’t see the man to whom the tent belonged to, only his shield broken on the ground.

“Lord Rogers was captured by the enemy, your highness.” Sir Rumlow fed her with the latest news and the reason why the camp was a pandemonium. Another battle lost to Taharr and now their mightiest warrior, their Commander, was captured. This was a blow to the troops’ morale.

Fuck. The princess muttered to herself. It felt as if fate was against them, only when she brings new supplies, this tragedy happens. “Who’s leading now?” She asked but offered her opinion already. “Lady Romanoff can step in.”

“I’m the next in succession line, your highness.” Sir Barnes started, after clearing his throat. “And I’m afraid King Pietro and Lord Vision would approve, as I’m already familiar with Steve’s tactics.” He spoke loud enough for everyone to hear, but not enough for Wanda to think he’s being rude.

“By all means.” She raised her hands in surrender. As for Vision’s wishes she could care less, but Wanda wouldn’t undermine her brother’s commands on the battlefield, besides the Winter Soldier was a formidable soldier and she knew her army would be in good, capable hands. “Now what?” She asked, sitting by the table, sighing tiredly.

“Now we negotiate and until then, we wait.” Natasha replied and every head on the room nodded in agreement.

Wanda always saw herself as a patient woman, but to wait for any ransom request or even a meeting to draw a negotiation was murderously painful. She had spent the days checking the wounded and their treatment as well as the troops meals, she did everything to kept herself busy to try and forget that one of her mentors was in the lion’s den, possibly dead and there was nothing that she could do.

Dread filled her bones as she walked inside the tent built on the once battlefield, so they could stand a conversation and exchange their requirements somewhat sheltered from the cold rain. Wanda’s eyes roamed the room, taking in every single person present, envisaging who could be a threat in case things went south.

Her eyes stopped and never left the smiling person on the other side of the table, neatly separating the place in two.

Right in the center of Lords, Ladies and Knights, there was you in rich red robes with a few lines adorned in golden, and a lion with an imposing roar was embroidered in your chest. You were breathtaking and Wanda took a few seconds more than usual to breathe again, immediately plastering an annoyed look on her face.

“Ah, Princess Wanda, you’re a sight for sore eyes.” You shot her your most dashing smile and Wanda’s annoyed face turned into a scowl. The gal of you to speak with her like that.

“Can’t say the same, I’m afraid.” She replied, crossing her arms and taking a seat on the table in front of her. “Shall we begin?”

“Of course, Your Highness.” There was a glint in your eyes, but it didn’t feel like you were mocking her title, quite the contrary. For some reason, you seemed truly pleased with her presence and that baffled her.

You cleared your throat and started to speak as if this was a simple matter and not a ransom negotiation. “Your Highness, Ladies and Gentlemen, the last few battles bespeak for themselves, I’m afraid this war is dragging itself for far too long.” You look around to see all eyes on you. “I think a truce is in order. Especially now that the winter is here.” You let your lips turn into a smirk and finished. “No pun intended.”

With a sudden movement, Sir Barnes unsheathed a hidden knife and stuck it heavily on the table in front of you, dangerously close to your hand. “Why don’t you stop with your funny remarks and get this over with?” He spat the word funny as if it were covered in venom.

While Carol, Maria and Sam each let out their own indignant forms of exasperation, you didn’t even flinch. You remained still, looking at the man known as Winter Soldier dead in the eye. “I could have your head in a spike for that little stunt, Sir. Or maybe I should ask for your other hand?” You tsked, feigning disappointment.

To his credit he didn’t waver at the mention of him losing his remaining arm, you only heard stories of how this had happened. It wasn’t a sore spot, you suppose. Taking a tired breath, you resumed your little speech. “I imagine Lord Wilson was very clear when he said no weapons allowed, yet here we are.”

“The note said we’d negotiate Steve’s release, yet here we are.” He mocked you and for a second you thought that picking him by his neck and breaking his nose on the table would be a nice way to show him that he was not allowed to speak with you like that. One glance at Wanda showed you that she had an unreadable expression gracing her face.

With a start, you decided that an act of violence would be unwise if they were trying to negotiate a ceasefire. As much as you wanted to put him in his place to make sure he’d never forget to be respectful to you, you relented.

“Why do you speak as if you were in charge of anything?” You decided to keep violence as your second resort, then. After all, you still need to get a truce before your men freeze with the winter that is about to ravage that region.

He was visibly frustrated by your comment, and you immediately knew this was his weakness. He didn’t want to be demoralized, specially not in front of everyone in the room, probably because his position was too fragile at the moment. “I’m the Commander of Sokovia’s Army, I represent-” You never let him finish.

“No, Sir. The Commander is currently in my custody, you’re barely a nuisance to me. I’m here to negotiate with Princess Wanda.” You flashed him a dangerous smile, however, he wanted to have the last word.

“Lord Vision and King Pietro, they both agreed that I-.” Again, you cut him midsentence, too annoyed to keep listening to his voice, you were losing a precious time now.

“I don’t care about King Pietro or Lord Vision, they’re hundreds of miles away while our feet freeze in this hellhole, so let me be clear, if I wasn’t already. I will only talk to Princess Wanda, no one else.” You fixed him with a glare colder than the rain outside the tent and this time he spoke nothing, grumpily leaning in his chair, defeated.

You turned to look at Wanda, who looked like she was ready to deny every single one of the requests coming out of your lips. “Princess Maximoff, I’d say we stop this madness, once and for all, but I’m pretty sure you still want to revenge a crime that we did not commit.” You began, keeping eye contact with Wanda hoping she’d see that you meant every single word coming out of your lips.

The Maximoff, on the other hand, started to open her mouth to protest but you raised your hand, signalling that you still have things left unsaid, in return, she simply closed her mouth and waited. “I’m sure you know better than anyone that winter by the lakes is cruel and will decimate our soldiers, no matter the color of their clothes.”

You paused your speech just long enough for you to see that the princess had her eyes glued on you. Her beautiful green eyes. “So, I propose a truce. You take your army home and I’ll retreat mine. We can try a peaceful, new negotiation when spring arrives. If we fail, then you can march south once more.”

There were murmurs and grumbles of disapproval by her side, but you already expected resistance. Illogically, a lot of people seemed determined to prolong this war even more. Something churned in your stomach when all Wanda had to do was to raise her hand for her companions to cease their complains. Were you proud of Wanda’s leadership? Why?

Why would her little demonstration of power affect you to this point?

Your thoughts were sliced by the princess’ heavy accent, and you had to bite back a smile that was already painting itself on your lips. “Why would I let you go back to your warmer south if my troops can endure the winter longer than yours?”

“Because not only I’m willing to set Lord Rogers free, but also, I might pretend that I don’t know where your new supplies came from.” You could see Wanda’s face morphing because of your words and their meaning.

You were willing to overlook her Kingdom’s deals with the Kree and this was a big offer. Huge even. Sokovia could be the most hated people, just like Hydrarr was, and the price paid as an outcast was painfully high in Noveria.

“Why?” Even under the feeble light provided by the candles, you could see genuine curiosity in her eyes.

“My people need to rest, and we need a truce, Princess. Even if it’s a cold peace until we can settle a more permanent agreement later.” You could still see drops of hesitation in her eyes, that’s why you quickly provided her with an insight.

“If we keep doing this, Taharr will no longer possess an army but the same will happen to you. How long do you think Hydrarr would wait to abuse your borders? Or how long do you think Asgard would take to claim as theirs the share of Bifrost Forest that currently belongs to you?”

You could feel the other sokovians staring daggers at you, but your attention never quavered from Wanda. For a moment, you almost smiled thinking that your mother and your brother would’ve loved to witness your tactics. Information and knowledge are a powerful weapon indeed if one knows how to wield it.

Apparently, all those hours locked up in your chambers learning about boring geopolitics paid off. The basics of being a king or a queen is how to keep your borders, hence why one needs an army and the thin lines on Sokovia’s east were a weakness that you would not hesitate in remind her of.

“You have your deal, Lioness.” Her voice brought you back to present again.

There was a muttering around the tent, but your eyes were solely on hers when you spoke, smiling widely. “We should celebrate with a good southern wine, princess.”

“Don’t push your luck, Princess.” You could’ve sworn that you saw the ghost of a smile flashing on her lips while she got up to her feet to leave the tent, but you probably had imagined it.

taglist: @californianwhiterabbit

part 6

#Queens of Promise #wanda maximoff #princess wanda #wanda maximov #wanda marvel #wanda x you #scarlet witch #wanda x reader #wanda x female reader #wanda x fem!reader #medieval au #wanda maximoff x female reader #wanda maximoff x reader #enemies to lovers

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mslanna · 4 months

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A Mortifying Ordeal

Raphael manages to get to earth after the Nether Brain exploded and killed Tav. Or so it seems. Because Tav is looking alive and eager at this very strange event where many people dress up as people he knows and even himself. Tav doesn't remember anything though. Something Raphael plans to amend. But is it really Tav without memories or just a lookalike that played the game too often? Time to find out. Started from This Prompt the idea evolved into something longer. Mix between fangirl's dream of being pursued by a romantically determined Raphael and the angst of not being who he want/loves/needs.

A Mortifying Ordeal Chapter 2 now up on AO3

Chapter 1 (formerly I've Known You Only Now)

Lemme tell you that while there's lotsa things you get used to on conventions because we're all off our rockers, especially the cosplayers and I must know because I just stripped out of my Tav cosplay. Anyway, I thought I lucked out when an extremely accurately looking Raphael cosplayer started to follow me around and actually kinda wooed my in the same fashion that sopping wet beast of a devil would in-game.

It's not something you expect but it is definitely appreciated. I didn't put on the easy-access outfit by accident, you know. There's a lot you can be prepared for at cons and damned if I wasn't going to make the most of it. Dude looks like a complete buffet.

What one is not prepared for ever, though, is the dude just, like snapping into devil from. Like, are you serious? But there he stands, wings and all, and me sitting on the bed which puts my head in a very unfortunate place.

Because the fuck? Fuck is going on? And also is fuck still on the table? Which is the least of my problems right now, but still very much on my mind. My jaw is on the floor so it's not as if we couldn't just take it from here. I shake my head because as much as I wanna see them devil cock ridges something is not right here.

"Raphael?" I quack, as if I haven't called him that the whole time. It hits different now, what with the smell of cherries trying to drown out the sulphur. I gag a little. In reality sulphur is not very sexy.

He looks down and man those eyes do you in. Black hole indeed. Pull you straight in and spaghetti your every thought.

"Yes, very observant." The word roll from his lips like velvet gravel.

Not gonna lie it is observant. I met no fewer than five Raphaels today and I don't think any of them would've pulled this stunt. Could've. I shut my mouth and try to stop staring at him. Guy saw my phone gallery. Guy knows I think about sucking him off six times from Tuesday. The fact that he's still standing here is a miracle.

And I don't know what to do. There is no script for this. I can hardly squeak 'sex?' up at him, or can I? I wish he'd stop looking at me as if I hold the answers to his universe. I know nothing. I am more out of my depth than a lugworm in the Mariana Trench.

"Cat got your tongue?" He takes my chin with one hand and damn, he is several degrees hotter than human. In any respect, mind you. I nod into his hand which is kinda nice. He has big hands. He is – well big. Tall. Huge. I swallow. Anyway.

"I don't know what to say," I get out. "Or do."

"What did you intend to do before I changed?"

I bite my lip for honesty. It always hurts in the end so I might just start out in pain. Won't last as long then. I smile, or do my best approximation. Nothing but the truth. Let it end in flames early.

"Dinner," I shrug. "Drinks. Sex."

He doesn't leave. Doesn't laugh. Good signs so far. But he leans back and looks down his impeccable nose at me with a slight scrunch. "Communicating more clearly than ever, I see."

It's one thing peeps like me are supposedly good at. Clear cut information instead of dancing around the subject. Damn, I wanna dance around him all night long. If my stomach wasn't a-rumbling, I'd just have skipped the first two step in the evening's plans.

I rise carefully and manage not to bury my snout right into his crotch and forgo dinner after all. "So, you're still game?"

"I am still here, am I not?"

Not quite an answer but I'll take it. "No offence because your devil form is quite lovely, erm gorgeous, well, anyway, I like it a lot, but you cannot leave the room like that. I don't think."

"Whatever happened in here," he taps a finger against my temple and boy do I swallow because claws, "since you left Faerûn. Your eloquence has certainly suffered."

Should I tell him that it's mostly his vicinity causing this problem? Maybe later. There's such a thing as too much truth. He likes them spicy but nowhere in the game does it say he likes them stupid. Which may just break my back in this. Ah well. Where was I? Apart from staring at him.

"Maybe it'll get better," I suggest. "I'm not reacting well to new things." Unexpected things. Devils turning up on my doorstep and turning out to be actually a devil. And not running from my horny person. I hold out my hand.

He transforms back into his human form in a short burst of hellfire. It licks over my outstretched hand without burning which is a decidedly strange sensation.

"Better?"

"Less suspicious in this world." I'm glad I don't have to decide. Both forms have their appeal, all three have but I'm not sure when a wise moment is to disclose I am also an unapologetic monster fucker.

"Then let us proceed." His smile is scorching. So much charisma, the sheer weight of persuasion. I am weak. Doesn't help he takes my hand because that is also so hot and his skin is so soft and my mind is already in full swing putting those deft digits absolutely everywhere.

"One last thing." My fingers curl around his tightly, just in case he's gonna run now. I don't want him to, but well. "What do you even want with me?" I want to know. "What is your plan?"

"My – agenda is, of course, to rekindle your memories."

Oh. No. Frilly fuck with fangs. He thinks I'm Tav!Tav, like, the real thing. Oh dear. Oh no. Wow. Like, never. I was so very far from the real thing, like so far. I couldn't handle a weapon, not even walk for a day and saving a whole city? Unlikely. Impossible.

"I am – doubtful?" He completely ignores my worries and takes my elbow.

"Understandably so." He guides me towards the door. "Give it time. Give me time."

Hells, I'm done for. He can get all the time I have left. The timbre in his vowels is enough to get me on my knees. Question is if he has the patience to actually spend time with me. How long until the lack of serious Tav memories turns out to be my natural state? Not sure I wanna be around for that realisation.

But – that is for another time. Dinner is waiting and the view is going to be utterly amazing. I sigh and lean against his shoulder. Raphael lets out a small huff but it's appreciation, I'm sure of that. Dude didn't hunt me down all day to play hard to get now. I hope.

#bg3 #bg3 raphael #raphael x tav #bg3 fanfiction #reverse isekai #mel writes fanfic #sleazy second-hand car dealer

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nebulouscoffee · 7 months

Note

I can't do the little emoji but for the ask game, what do you do when you get stuck writing?

Thanks so much! :)

Depends on why I'm stuck, I think - usually if a chapter just isn't inspiring me enough to write it, I assume it's probably going to be boring to read, too (I don't actually know whether this is true, but it's definitely a feeling I can't shake!) So what I usually do is mess with the format and/or framing a little lol. For example, I knew the climax of 'Pretenders' was going to be the secret agent holoprogram but with Garak playing Agent Bashir and Julian playing the villain, and all those messy emotions coming out the more and more they got into the roles- but apart from the entertainment value of some of the "lol look how cheesy this program is" jokes, I remember feeling like my outline for this chapter's events just wasn't interesting enough. I also wanted to convey that outside of the "play", Garak was trying to slip back into his old familiar role as an interrogator to escape feeling vulnerable, to try and regain control over this massive dissociation of the self while slowly heading for a mental breakdown- but I didn't want to use words like "dissociation" or "breakdown", I just thought that felt too basic for him! Given his weird, twisted brand of self-awareness from canon. He's too good at lying to himself! It's too normal, Garak would find some way to spin this whole situation into a safely "unreal" story instead! - But once I decided to convey this stuff by alternating between a script format whenever he was in Interrogator Mode and regular prose whenever he's the one to crack and/or accidentally lose himself in the experience- which flips around by the end when he's caged himself in his own narrative (and more and more thoughts in brackets as he dissociates), the chapter just suddenly became sooo much fun to write. Like I had such a blast it turned out maybe six thousand words too long haha!

Conversely, if I get stuck while writing because I suddenly discovered a plot hole, well... 'The Trill with the Golden Gun' hasn't updated since last September, so what do I know really😂

#tysm for the ask friend! <3 #my fics #I affectionately refer to 'Pretenders' as 'Pretentious' in my head & this chapter is a huge part of why lol. It's also one of my favs :D #my fics are very self indulgent & when I am self indulgent apparently I am a bit pretentious!

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outrunningthedark · 11 months

Note

When you point out to people what olivers been trying to say this season, his 6a premiere interviews often are also forgotten. The first time he was asked about eddie and chris for s6 he acknowledged they have been important to buck's journey but was also pretty clear in saying they won't be a huge denominator for his s6 journey. He literally said they will always be a part of his life *but* that buck needs to figure stuff out himself and not always through people around him. This was pre sperm donor knowledge coming out for fandom. He made a distinct separation.

To me at that point I knew whatever story was to play out would not intertwine buck with the diaz boys as they have in the past (which was upsetting to know but it was clear people were not picking up what he was blatantly putting down - they chose to focus on the coparenting comment from the same interview instead) (I can't find the video link - not sure if you know which one I am referring to).

It's frustrating to see people claim storylines were changed completely because they were "facing potential cancellation". I wish everyone could just acknowledge the more likely truth that simply, this isn't what kristen envisaged at this point of the story - she's always blatantly said, currently, she sees them as very good friends (of course, these things are always subject to changing at any point, but she never lied to us, it's just falling on deaf ears because they ascertain this notion that they'd throw us red herrings over buddie in any attempt not to spoil canon buddie - kind of funny considering the history of this show being incredibly loose with spoiling huge developments but okay).

I love buddie spec, I love buddie, but the loops people are jumping to justify what happened or excuse it, is becoming harmful for everybody.

Ugh, nonnie. I love you. (I love you regardless, but THANK YOU for bringing this back.) First of all, gotta acknowledge everyone (including yourself) who started thinking differently about the season off the bat (where as it took me four weeks, I know) because of that interview - I absolutely remember reading the takes about Oliver separating Buck's journey from the Diaz boys and then when the sperm donor arc dropped it was like "Oh. So that's what he meant." The actual quote because I bring receipts when possible: "I think one of the things moving into season six, and you're right that [the dynamic between Buck and Eddie and Chris] will absolutely continue, is that Buck also needs to learn to take steps and make these strides forward for himself rather than always doing it through other people. So, they're always gonna be an important part of his journey, but I think it is also important that he learn to do it for and by himself." While I loved the borderline co-parent role comment because I am forever here waving my #ChristopherDiazHasTwoDads flag, YOU are right in saying that he fired a very, very early "warning shot" with the (paraphrasing) "They'll always be important, but Buck has to start living his own life."

At the time of the interview, the cast would have been working on 6x07 (the episode where Buck goes through with the sperm donation) and possibly reading an early draft of 6x08 (the title was changed the next week). So he was seven or eight scripts in, well aware of just how few Buddie scenes there would be. He knew people were gonna be PISSED, didn't he? And the rest of your ask is spot on as well. Things can change, we aren't capable of predicting the future, especially a future on a new network, but if it's left up to Kristen to tell the story...we just gotta accept her viewpoint for what it is, and that putting her in charge was/is (if things stay the way they are behind the scenes) Tim's way of shutting the potential of Buddie down without being directly involved. (Coward!)

#anonymous #tina speaks #tv: 911 #tv: 9-1-1 #buddie #oliver stark

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sagesilentfire · 1 month

Text

SAMATFOE Short Story

So the short story I promised in my s5 preview is here! It's a Creative Writing project, that I had a lot of fun with.

You can also read it on AO3

This is about Toffee and their relationship with Necahua, their sibling, and Cayeto, their dad.

A/N: This is part of a much, much, much larger story that I intend to finish this year. I've been working on it since senior year of high school, and it means a lot to me. But as I was writing the final volume in this five-work (each novel-length) story, I realized that I had a part of the story I didn't have room in my outline for. The story was already full to the bursting, tying up character arcs for over two dozen characters, and I didn't think this quiet story that introduced and gave the story for yet another character who was only passingly referred to in the text as an example of how ghosts could go wrong was quite... economical. But then my creative writing teacher gave me the opportunity to write a story of my choosing, and I had a huge one right here. So have a short story in play script (I like to write in play script for fun) where I re-explain the relevant parts of SAMATFOE for the uninformed, except it's through the eyes of the people who were antagonists (not really villains) for most of the story and the main characters and plots are only referenced, unless you count Una'met a main character, which I do. So one main character.

And yes, the project is a fanfiction. But only one of the four characters is from the canon.

Familial Love and Other Distractions

SCENE ONE

Open to a small cramped office only taking up half the stage. Centuries' worth of clutter lies around the floor, the bookshelves, and the large desk ending at the middle of the stage, mostly paper and stone tablets, all covered in script in a distinctly non-English language. There is a door on the side of the stage opposite the desk, blocked by some papers, but that clearly can be opened wide enough for someone to slip in. There is no wall opening towards the dark middle of the stage, instead the massive desk walls off the room. UNA'MET CO'TZIN-NEKOHTZACA, a young-looking lizard person in a black dress and veil, sits at the desk, trying to come up with a plan. UNA’MET’s emotions, regardless of context, are deliberately subdued. Their smiles are half-smiles, their anger is understated. Their disapproval is obvious, but still more exasperated than actively disappointed

Enter NECAHUA CO'TZIN-NEKOHTZACA. The sibling resemblance is uncanny, though Necahua is a ghost, in pajamas and an ill-fitting adult's cloak. They are the opposite of their sibling: emotional and passionate. The few times they are quiet is when they are remembering a painful memory. They cross their arms.

NECAHUA: You've been in here for hours. Are you not preparing for battle? I could help you, you know. (They say this in Septarian, but through the Magic of Theater!!!, everyone can understand it)

UNA'MET: (sighs, turns around halfway) No, we're not preparing for battle. I don't expect Star to be as trigger-happy as Moon was. I am preparing a lesson plan.

NECAHUA: Right. Teach the princess all our secrets and then once the alliance breaks down, she'll know how to beat us. You can't trust promises made by Butterflys.

UNA'MET: That's not the worst way to die. And if us living don't get our act together, our deaths will be far more agonizing than yours could hope to be. If you're just going to whine about how Star Butterfly broke a promise one time, then please leave, or I'll demote you so hard you'll wish you were guarding my storehouse.

NECAHUA: Fine, but you've been doing nothing but write in your journals for ages! Our moms are worried about you.

UNA'MET: I'm fine. Sílthéy will tell me when Star is close to arriving.

A chord on a piano strums. It sounds like a chord that could conceivably exist, but a very esoteric one. A spotlight shines down on THE NARRATOR, a large, fiery blue and purple dragon, at a piano in the other half of the stage.

NARRATOR: Hi.

NECAHUA: How the hell did you get a piano in there?

UNA'MET: Don't worry about it.

NARRATOR: (at the same time) The Magic of Theater!!! (Pause) It's been too long since I told a story like this! For the audience's reference, this one (points at UNA'MET) is the last survivor of the destruction of Old Septarsis. We are currently in New Septarsis. Fucking colonizers couldn't keep us down. Also, we can swear in this story, because I've abandoned all pretenses of this one being for kids! Fuck! Ha!

(NECAHUA coughs)

NARRATOR: Please, I'm getting to that. I am the guardian Dragon of Septarsis Old and New. Necahua (points) is Una'met's sibling, who died protecting them when Una'met was only six. Necahua themself died at fourteen, and boy do they act like it.

(NECAHUA growls, but UNA'MET shoots them a venomous glare) (Not literally, their glare isn't actually venomous.)

NARRATOR: Una'met is now the defender of New Septarsis, commanding an army of ghosts against their colonizers and performing magic while I am incapacitated for... reasons. They have two wonderful mothers and a father, who all died protecting them. Which is why Necahua's here. Neca?

NECAHUA: (sighs, to UNA’MET) Dad wants to see you.

UNA'MET: (weary) Dad always wants to see me. You want to keep promises, Dad wants to see us. It's what you do, fixating on the ways you died. He's been calling me constantly for eight hundred years.

NARRATOR: Via the psychic group chat.

UNA'MET: If you have to put it that way, sure. Via the psychic group chat.

NECAHUA: Yeah, but you haven't seen Dad in person in over a year. Xo-Mom says you're overdue, and so does Te-Mom.

UNA'MET: I don't have time! I've sent Dad enough reassurance from our mental link. And dealing with him is... exhausting. If he wants to see me, let him. But I'm not stopping my work to see him, or the entire world will pay for my mistake.

NECAHUA: Oh, there goes the big old martyr! You're the most important fucking person in the world, and the worst part is you're right! You're so important, and smart, and grown-up, and I'm just your dumb, reckless sibling who makes promises with liars and then gets mad that they lied. I'm your sibling, and you still sentence me to an eternity of guarding your shed!

UNA'MET: Yes, and I'm not sure you'll even get that right. Tell Dad I'll visit him when the current crisis has passed. A crisis, might I remind you, that will destroy the entire multiverse!

NECAHUA: Fine! I don't care! Goodbye!

(NECAHUA exits via the door)

UNA'MET: (growls, turns back to the desk, puts head in hands) Idiot... doesn't even care...

NARRATOR: (leans in) You really should see Cayeto.

UNA'MET: (moves veil to glare at NARRATOR full-force) Don't you start.

NARRATOR: Oh, I absolutely will. Starting is my job. You could clone yourself, you know. Do both. Poor Cayeto... dying out of love can absolutely fuck someone up, and when Necahua died, half of his motivation for staying just up and vanished. He's left a half-afterlife, wanting to protect Una'met at all costs, but ignoring or attacking everyone else.

(UNA’MET rifles through the papers on the desk, not seeming to find what they’re looking for)

UNA'MET: I know you're just saying this for the benefit of the audience you'll later tell the story to, but it is kind of irritating when you repeat things I already am far too aware of.

NARRATOR: I thought you might need a reminder. Go visit your dad. Clone yourself.

UNA'MET: That is magically costly, and I don't know if Cayeto would recognize an extension of myself.

NARRATOR: You could have me take over. I've been wanting to add Remedial Magic For Morons to the reading list.

UNA'MET: Absolutely not. I don't want the princess to hate me for a stupid decision you made.

NARRATOR: Now you're just making excuses.

UNA'MET: (snorts) I wasn't that time.

NARRATOR: Aha! You admit it! But really, why won't you see your dad?

UNA'MET: Don’t you already know?

NARRATOR: Fine, keep your secrets to the audience. But I know them all anyways... I want to hear your opinions in your voice.

UNA'MET: I'm glad you value my opinion, but your future audience will have to stay in the dark until the current crisis is solved.

NARRATOR: Ugh. You're really not going to say anything are you. No soliloquies? No deep introspection in iambic pentameter?

UNA'MET: (sighs) Go away, Sílthéy.

NARRATOR: Fine.

(UNA’MET returns to work, lights dim)

SCENE TWO

Open to the same cluttered office taking up half the stage, but the other half shows a city full of stone buildings and winding vines, no piano in sight. A few RANDOM EXTRAS sit around the scene, reading books or eating, without moving on or off stage. The wall behind the desk has been restored, and now clearly delineates the office from its surroundings. UNA'MET remains at the desk, though the clutter has shifted around a bit.

A loud wailing echoes through the stage. UNA'MET looks up, startled, and then exasperated. They drop the book they were reading.

UNA'MET: Seems Cayeto decided to come see me.

NARRATOR: (popping in from the door) You did say that was an option.

UNA'MET: I'm surprised he left the remains of the house. Taulitza, this could be dangerous. I've already had to dampen his magic.

UNA’MET, despite their assertion that this could be dangerous, does nothing to prepare besides standing up. They are used to danger.

NARRATOR: Yes, using a spell you yourself devised! You are very brilliant.

UNA'MET: Please don't flatter me. (Pause, realization) Do you go bragging about me to everyone? No wonder Necahua is sick of hearing about me.

NARRATOR exits, closing the door.

The wailing increases. A pounding on the door. UNA'MET sighs, very "You're really testing my patience", and opens it.

Enter CAYETO CO'TZIN-TOLANÍA. He is a large lizard person with saber teeth and a ruffled blue mane. He wears pajamas. A bright red ribbon cut into pieces wraps around his neck, and he is a ghost.

UNA'MET: Hi, Dad.

CAYETO: Una... I needed... you're alive! You're alright.

UNA'MET: I'm fine. In perfect shape. You saved me, you succeeded.

CAYETO inspects UNA'MET, poking them to make sure they're corporeal, not a ghost. UNA'MET fails to repress a flinch. It's been a long time since they've relaxed around their father.

CAYETO: A little tired, but that's fine. I'm so happy you're okay. Where is Necahua? Did they make it out?

UNA'MET: (Pause, deliberating) Necahua isn't here now. You can see them later, when you're at the house. You need to go back to our house.

CAYETO: Yes! I need to keep you safe. (Grabs UNA’MET’s arm.) Putting you in the cellar like we planned worked, so you've got to get back to the cellar now. That will keep you safe.

UNA'MET: (carefully extracts their arm) I can't go to the cellar right now, I need to work. I'll meet you at the house soon, okay?

CAYETO: Oh... okay.

It seems like UNA'MET has won. They managed to deal with their father without expressing a single emotion. But as CAYETO floats to the door, it opens, and NECAHUA and THE NARRATOR enter.

CAYETO yelps. He approaches NECAHUA, realizing that they are a ghost. UNA’MET glares at NECAHUA and THE NARRATOR. THE NARRATOR is unaffected.

NECAHUA: (waves awkwardly) Hi, Dad.

CAYETO: What did they do to you? Was it her? (Gestures at THE NARRATOR)

NECAHUA: No, it wasn't her. I've been like this for nearly eight hundred years, Dad.

CAYETO: Knew we couldn't trust her! She killed you!

NECAHUA: No, Dad, that's not what happened!

A rumble of thunder outside. The RANDOM EXTRAS outside sigh and take out umbrellas. Seems something MOMENTOUS and IMPORTANT is about to take place. It's just ANOTHER TUESDAY.

Meanwhile, CAYETO is raging. He, via telekinesis, tosses a stone tablet at THE NARRATOR, which shatters on impact.

UNA'MET: My research!

NECAHUA: That's what you're worried about?

UNA'MET: Well, Sílthéy's fine.

THE NARRATOR gives a thumbs up.

CAYETO moves to throw another tablet, but UNA'MET stops him.

UNA'MET: Hey. You always told me the value of talking things out peacefully. Let's talk. (To NARRATOR, in a language they both understand but CAYETO doesn't) Leave as soon as possible. (In Septarian, a white lie) Dad, Necahua is fine. They died a peaceful death. Sílthéy is a friend of theirs. Let's talk about me. I'm trying to come up with a lesson plan for someone.

CAYETO: No, no, you should talk to Tecoloa about that. I'm no teacher. (THE NARRATOR exits via a trapdoor in the floor) But... how can I help you? I need... I need... to help you live.

UNA'MET: (calm, gentle) You can help me, by going to our house. I'll meet you there.

CAYETO: Oh... yes, I'll do that! I will, I will!

UNA'MET: I'll see you there.

CAYETO exits via the door

NECAHUA: You snapped him out of it. I could never do that.

UNA'MET: (crosses the room to NECAHUA) Necahua, you are fourteen years old. Dealing with your parent's mental state is not your job.

NECAHUA: I've been fourteen for centuries. I'm tired of it.

UNA'MET: I get it.

UNA'MET finds a clear area against the wall and sits down on the floor, leaning back.

UNA'MET: You know, I imagine sometimes what it would've been like, if Septarsis was never destroyed. I'd be a small family medicine doctor, and you'd be a world-renowned thespian. You'd come home once in a blue moon to tell me about some award-winning play you're putting on for the Council, and I'd be like, "Cool! I diagnosed a guy with cancer today. Can't tell you anything about the person, confidentiality and all, but it was horrible."

NECAHUA laughs.

UNA'MET: I wish you were the one changing the world, not me.

NECAHUA: Is that why you're so angry with me all the time?

UNA'MET: Angry. That's not how it is at all. It's just... you died for me, just like Cayeto. You died when we both should have lived. I wish you could have lived for me.

NECAHUA: Oh. If Dad had two anchors...

UNA'MET: ...he might be...

NECAHUA: Yeah. (They run their hands through their hair. They look at the shattered stone plate. They pick up a shard.) I'm sorry about this tablet.

UNA'MET: It's fine. (gets up) I've seen Dad, what should I do now?

NECAHUA: What?

UNA'MET: To hang out with my little sibling.

NECAHUA: (Indignant) I'm older than you! (A telling pause) Let's go to the marketplace. I can't eat, or drink, or wear anything but pajamas, which I am very upset about, but I can give you the fashion advice you so desperately need.

UNA'MET: Excuse me, I am not taking fashion advice from someone who died seven and a half centuries ago.

NECAHUA: Fashion is timeless.

UNA'MET: It really isn't. Let's go.

The two leave out the door. A few moments later, they emerge into the outside, laughing and bickering. The sun shines.

#svtfoe #svtfoe rewrite #samatfoe #my writing #toffee of septarsis

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v-lynx-2 · 2 years

Text

< incognito / >

Part one

Summery :

The hacker Nymos has managed to keep many cyber criminal groups on their toes.

Little did they know it was someone else far from being called a hacker.

Could she play the hacker well ? Deceive the fbi ? How would that impact Jake and mc's relationship?

Not sure if lady lotus can see that one.

(AKA How to help your hacker boyfriend 101)

_________________________________________

(Takes place right after chapter 10)

_________________________________________

Warnings:

- material girl, brat , script kiddie and girlboss mc.

- some angry jealous protective strict Jake .

- might get out of hand and make it spicy.

- might mention cyber crimes and violence.

- of course bad language.

__________________________________________

The chase seemed to take longer than Jake has expected, he knows better than to contact mc now, it's best if he just disappears forever..

he doesn't want to of course, it hurts his soul to even think about it, he promised he would be there, he promised to stay, he promised the chase would end soon, he promised her a date.

A kiss.

How much he longed to have her in his arms now that everything is over, he could only think of her, her words seem to stuck on his mind, wondering if she is safe, what could she be doing-

He has to stay focused, thinking about mc now in this critical condition isn't a good idea.

He could barley remember how he made it out of their hands, he took cover in the mess that was around, manged to run away, destroyed his phone before the FBI could use it to track him, they could follow mc instead, his only weak point.

He can't put her in danger like that.

Even if that meant running forever.

Mc on the other hand, has already suspected as much, either Jake was cought or he is on the run, something she wished she could do something about.

In the midst of her tears, fear of losing her lover, she decided that she actually is going to do something.

Breaking her promise, she goes to duskwood, keeping a low profile, Alan might feel like a chat and it wasn't something she was looking forward to.

Traveling to that place overwhelmed mc, as she felt something stuck in her throat, a lot happened, she lost a dear friend, her lover and someone is in jail for a reason she could be the reason too, mc blamed herself for everything

Richy's change of plan, Jake's sacrifice and the pain and fear the group had to go through.

"It was all my fault.. if I didn't answer that time.. things would have gone differently.. "

The stream of tears caused by her frustration didn't seem to stop, the clenching pain in her heart, crashed by her worries, mc decided, she can't meet the others for now.

The reason she went to duskwood was to try and track Jake herself.

Funny, it would take experts in the cyber security field a good amount of time to only gather information on their target, yet she dares to believe she can find him before they can.

" You asked me to walk this path with you "

" Here I am "

Mc was planning her route before she traveled to duskwood, packed the most important things with her, things she might need later as well, she made sure if she disappears it wouldn't look suspicious.

After all, after all that happened. No one is expected to stay and deal with false accusations.

They will never understand, they don't have all the details regarding the situation, not even mc but she is the most understanding, considering she is only chasing the hacker for a good reason.

Jake mentioned before that he was staying at a motel, he didn't specify in or out of duskwood, but mc was willing to gamble it would outside, he also mentioned " being around" when he told mc and the others he was going into the mine .

This made her think, as she remembered Jake only had access to information through the web, she could use that too.

Pinpointing a number of motels around and breaking in, was, something she would never believe she would do, her goal was to find the one which Jake kept his equipment in, she believes that she is running out of time.

Well it didn't always go well.

Cuts and bruises were nothing to her, she was running on adrenaline, fear, knowing if she doesn't act now she might lose him forever.

Act now and think later was the way for now.

Jake would highly disagree with her method, maybe even stop her, cute, he gets too protective sometimes, it's like he knows, she would give her life to him.

She already knows he would do the same.

Which makes her understand his worry.

The plan was successful, she found his equipment, packed them and left the motel leaving nothing of his behind.

Mc didn't know what to do now.

It's good that she has his stuff, the FBI don't have anything concrete, the equipment are better off with her than them.. but what is to do now?

Maybe..

Try to confuse the fbi a little?

Or Maybe it's time to see the others too.

Looking at her phone.

She called Jessy,

" .. hey Jessy "

" Mc? Mc! It was- "

" It was Richy all along, yes, he contacted me "

" I can't believe it, I can't believe it ! "

" Jessy.. "

All mc can hear is crying on the other line, she felt really bad, her vision started to go blurry with tears as well, but she can't just do that now, she is racing with FBI to find Jake.

She has to put her emotions aside, there is no time for them now.

" Jessy, I'm so sorry for what happened, we couldn't have stopped it, Richy meant a lot to me too, I understand"

" Yeah, it isn't your fault mc, I know "

" Thank you.. hey can you do me a favor? "

" Sure, what is it ? "

" Jessy.. I'm in duskwood, can you pick me up ? "

" What ?! I mean sure but why are you here ? "

" Don't get me wrong, of course I want to see you, but I thought you would stay away for a while after Alan- "

" Alan ? What did he do ? " mc asked as the mention of the police caught her attention.

" He contacted us about Jake, of course he didn't know more and we all didn't say anything, we owe that to Jake "

" Thank you guys "

" I'm going to pick you up, mc, give me a second "

It seems Alan was indeed interested in gathering information about Jake, not good, not good at all, mc thought.

But maybe, she can use that to her advantage, just like Jake said , to view what happened as an opportunity.

She can use the information Alan already gathered .. no that's a risky idea, but did Jake hesitate to go to the mine? No, he came up with a good plan, mc didn't like it one bit, it wasn't that bad considering the circumstances.

Jake wouldn't probably like mc's plan as well.

Jessy arrived, in the car, there was Dan sitting in the front seat.

" You are looking for trouble bigger than your size, little girl " Dan said instead of a greeting

" Are you calling me short, Daniels? "

Said mc faking looking offended.

" Welcome to duskwood, mc " Dan said as she got into the car.

" Dan called after you so.. " Jessy said trying to explain why he was here.

" It's fine, it's Dan, as long as Alan doesn't know, I'm good "

"I was serious about the big troubles part "

" What do you mean ?! "

" Listen, before you throw a fit, you are too young to be dealing with this- " Dan informed mc giving her a stern look.

"I'm not! "

" You should be doing college shit or maybe getting a better job, find a person that exists in the real world- "

" Dan, if you say another word, I'm leaving the car. "

" Dan ! You can't just- " Jessy tried to help

" Look this guy is the reason why you are here, am I correct ? "

" Don't glare at me like that, i know you are here for hackerman " Dan continued

" You can't carry on doing mc things without getting in the line of fire, you aren't one of the likes of him, you have your life ahead"

" If it's not with him, I don't want it ! " mc said crossing her arms and looking away.

" Don't think this way, I can't believe I'm going to say this but.. he probably doesn't want you to put yourself in danger"

" That's why he didn't contact you, am I right ? " " Of course I am "

" If I know you would be that annoying, I would have booked a suite in a hotel " mc said seriously considering it, a bit of luxury isn't bad.

" Oh mc, but of course we would like to have you, my house is your house "

" Aww, that's nice and sweet and HELPFUL " said mc for Dan to hear.

" So me warning you not to chase after criminals wasn't helpful? "

" To say the least, No "

In few minutes, they arrived at Jessy's place, it was nice and simple, cozy, maybe staying at a hotel alone was a bad idea, this is much better, not luxurious but oh well.

They sat and Jessy got them something to drink.

" So how are Cleo, Thomas and lilly doing? "

" Cleo and Thomas are staying with Hannah at her family's place, of course lilly is with them"

" Hm ...Richy ..? "

" Never found, at least no information yet "

" .. I'm sorry "

" Don't be, it isn't your fault, if anything we are sorry you had to go through this "

" .. thanks Dan.. but I still feel bad about it.. I couldn't stop it "

" Is this why you are here after all? You want to do something, you are done just staying hidden behind a phone, aren't you? "

" Yes! I didn't think you would understand "

" I understand, I did that as well, I couldn't stay in the hospital and hear about my friends being in danger "

" That's why I'm worried " Dan said looking serious.

" Dan.. you don't have to worry, I got my legs " mc mocked.

" You sassy little shi-"

" Haha, by the way, I need you to teach me how to shoot "

" And why is that ? "

" So-"

" Excuse me, I mean why would I? "

" Don't you worry? "

" If I don't teach you I don't have to worry "

" That's what you think, I can be more reckless than I already am"

" Hey, mc... I was on the phone with Alan.. " Jessy came in after.

" What did you talk about? "

" I wanted to see Phil and tell him what happened and .. but Alan said something.. about Jake "

" Here we go again " Dan said.

" TELL ME ! "

" Alan has photographs, that he intends to send to the newspaper.."

" Jake.. "

" Like that hackerman wouldn't be able to hide"

" Hackerman is done for if that happens .."

" I'm so sorry.. he intends to make us talk this way it seems.. "

" Wait Jessy ! You said photographs? "

" Yes, and ? "

" Not pictures? "

" No, photographs "

" So it was taken with a non digital camera? "

" Well I don't know if that makes any difference but, this usually means he has them in physical copies "

" How lame and old like who the hell- "

" That's freaking great actually! " mc said.

" Jessy, I need you to tell me everything about the duskwood police station, whatever you know about Alan or his whereabouts. "

" Oh no.. not another crazy idea" Dan said displeased.

" Dan if we don't act, Jake would be gone forever ! Come on ! We owe it to him "

" I don't owe anything to- oh fine "

" Yayyyy! Let's go! "

" I'm gonna hate this "

" It's a job for mc Holmes "

" And Jessy Watson! "

" And who am I ? " Dan asked

" The world's greatest driver " mc answered

" Amazing "

Mc set up jake's equipment, she feared the fbi might track him this way but, they seemed to know somehow that he was in the mine.

They didn't exactly go for his stuff, so maybe it was safe?

Now all mc had to do is .. enter the password

Of course his laptop would have a password!

Mc tried to come up with things but they didn't work.

She took a break after

" Any luck? " Jessy asked

" Nope "

" Of course, what did you expect, trying to unlock a hacker's laptop "

" Hey it was worth the try ! "

" So what now? "

" I was hoping to get information about the duskwood police through his laptop but.. well"

" Okay, let's do it the classic way " Jessy said

" You think I would let you run off to the police? "

" Jessy Watson means we would try to locate Alan "

" Again my question still stands "

" What do you think mc Holmes? "

" Are you two treating it like a game? "

" Dan, you are boring" mc said.

" Anyway, my plan is, I will go with you to visit Phil but I can't go as mc .."

" But who would be okay to go visit Phil with me ? " Jessy asked.

" A friend? Well yes but no, your sister ? She might show up later and we would get caught"

" We need someone the police wouldn't find suspicious"

" How about... Phil's lawyer? "

" Mc that's a great idea! "

" Bullshit, you are going in by yourself to the police who suspect you, they won't just reveal the pictures of hackerman, but you as well"

" Now now, I'm not gonna go as mc, I'm going as the gorgeous Ms.lawyer, I will use make up to change my look and should up with a fake card, I won't look like mc that much "

" I still have my doubts about this"

" Relax, they don't know how I look! "

" About time ! "

" Chillax, I've got this, I'm not afraid of people who still take paper photographs"

" I fear you are going to rub this on Alan's face"

" Oh yeah "

" Dear lord.. "

Mc and Jessy went upstairs to prepare for the visit, mc didn't show it but she was very anxious and nervous about everything.. what if it doesn't work out well? What if they get her instead.. mc's stomach started to hurt, not your friendly butterflies anymore.

She stood Infront of the mirror, she can see the same worry reflecting from jessy's face, mc knows Jessy is getting her strength from mc's determination, if mc appears to be doubtful, Jessy would be discouraged, so she had to keep an appearance.

"Fake it until you make it mc" said to herself as she was putting on her outfit.

Black blazer , day make up but in a way that hides her real face structure, it seems like she thought of everything, even the accessories.

" Umm mc? Do you really need this one? "

Said Jessy pointing at the push-up bra laying on the bed.

" Jessy, that's my get out of jail card "

Going down stairs, mc looked at herself one last time, trying to wipe the worry on her face,

That's it, now or never, now would get her a chance to help Jake, never would mean she would lose him forever.

This brought her strength but she is still weighted down with uncertainty.

" Relax babe, you are too hot for the police to handle " mc said to herself blowing a kiss.

" Should I give you some privacy? " Said Jessy giggling

" Yes, if you mind "

As they were about to leave mc remembered.

" Jessy.. heels, do you know a shop nearby? The look needs to be completed! "

" Of course, it's on our way "

" I thought you were planning on knocking out Alan, but I never thought it would be this way "

" Thank you, Dan. you think I got a chance? "

" You would be the main attraction "

" Not good "

" Oh ho that's perfect actually "

" Mc the car is ready! I mean ms.holmes "

" Haha let's go! "

"Jessy? Mc ! Dammit "

" Don't worry, we will be home to babysit you later "

" Fucking brat, if you are going to do this then I will give you a tip, the room that has the photographs will be dark and red, that's where they chemically treat them. "

" Purrfect ! Thank you Dan! "

They drove to the boutique first, where mc picked red bottom heels, the devil wears Prada and so she did.

Back to the car Jessy looked nervous

" Hey Jess, don't worry too much, I won't do anything that might be bad for Phil "

" I know, I trust you, it's just that.. I have never done anything like this before.. it's kind of exciting "

" Me too ! "

" We are on our first mission together! Let's celebrate once we get rid of the evidence they have on Jake, the FBI are probably on their toes so we gotta be careful "

" Yes! " Jessy said.

Duskwood police station, worry started to hit mc like a knife, she isn't going to back down now ! Never !

She can prove to Jake that she can keep up with him like that, he doesn't have to worry.

Entering the place, she prepared herself mentally to be the main attraction, she knows eyes would be on her, even without the new look, talk about confidence.

It only adds to your look, so she mastered fake confidence.

A heel click can be heard and many turned their heads, chic black blazer, designer bag, the outfit says confident, the look on her face says professional.

Suddenly jessy, seemed to forget her lines, so mc took the lead

" Hello, my name is Ms. ____, Mr. Hawkins lawyer " she said in an assertive tone.

An officer dared to speak in her graceful presence, " we haven't been informed of your visit "

" Pity, I did feel unwelcomed "

" I have few questions to ask then I will be in my way, will you show me the way? "

In another room, or office, Alan bloomgate was writing a report, he seemed all stressed like he didn't sleep well lately.

He hears a knock on the door

" Come in "

" Sir, Phil Hawkins lawyer came to question him"

" So ? "

" I thought you might want to hear this considering she would be there to defend him in Michel Hanson's case "

" I will be there in a minute "

Mc has already made her way to Phil, Jessy behind her.

Phil looked her from down to up, meeting her eyes, mc smiles.

The officer leaves them, of course after taking some safety precautions.

" Phil, this is mc, but don't tell anyone okay? "

" Hello Phil "

Phil who appeared to be dazed managed to say hello back.

" I have many questions to ask but now, I have something else that urgently requires my attention"

" Did you catch anything from the police, about a hacker ? An culprit maybe, a person Alan is after "

" Alan asked me if I know anything about a hacker, he said he might help me if I confess.. unfortunately I knew nothing "

" Thank god, thank you Phil, for not lying, I can't stand people who lie in their testimony "

" You know people like that? "

" You would be surprised, moving on "

" Alan said this hacker was involved in this case and could harm Jessy with the help of mc "

" I told him this is not true, mc is a good person, if anything, she wanted to help "

" Aww Phil thank you really "

"You are always welcome, babe"

" So what happened next ? "

" He took his recorder with him and left "

" Hmmm Alan is now after him.."

" Him? "

" The hacker "

" Do you have anything on him, mc? , Anything that can help me, I hope ? "

" Nope, trust me, he isn't the one responsible for what happened to you "

" You two worked together, Alan said "

" Aww jealous? "

" I might be "

" Phil, don't be silly, mc and-"

" Jessy, can I have a second? "

Mc pulled Jessy to a corner and whispered.

"Jess, I don't want many people knowing jake's identity."

" Oh sure, of course "

" So, we were saying. Anything else? "

" Alan is spending more time in his office than before, I heard an officer mutter something like that, he also goes to the police station late as well, he is used to patrolling alone"

" Emo officer, it wasn't just a phase after all, I bet he is all dressed up in black as well "

" Haha "

" There is no respect for police these days among youngsters it seems "

" Speak of the devil "

" Trust me, no one mentioned your name, dear "

" Why are you asking Mr.hawkins

irrelevant questions to his case? "

" Who are you to interfere with my job ? "

Mc said raising an eyebrow giving him a challenging look

" .. this is Alan"

" Oh" oh shit, this isn't good at all, if he knows, everything is over, Jake is gone and- okay calm down mc, stay cool.

" Hello, Mr bloomgate"

" And you are ? "

" Mr Hawkins lawyer"

" I can't get a name? "

" If you are lucky, you might add it to your contact list "

Flirting with the police isn't always a good idea, they tend to backfire, but Alan got more curious.

Something about her confidence and attitude that piqued his interest.

" Ms Hawkins, you can have few moments with your brother, I have to take a break "

Mc left the door making sure she brushes Alan lightly, the sly smile on her face still.

As expected, Alan followed.

" You smoke Ms? "

" No, I would rather have some fresh air instead"

" Would you care for a cup of coffee, Mr bloomgate? " Mc added.

" On me, I hope office coffee is to your liking"

" It's something I don't get bored of to be honest, I wonder how this one would taste~"

" You are a curious one it seems, ever heard of the saying, 'curiosity killed the cat' ? "

" Not this kitty" mc winks.

" What are your intentions? "

" I'm afraid, I've reached a dead end with Mr Hawkins case.. I was wondering if I could get anything through you.."

" I'm sorry if I sounded so rude earlier "

" If you sounded? "

" Okay I'm not too sorry to be honest "

Alan let a short laugh escape, mc smiled cutely, he definitely caught the bait.

" You remind me of a mysterious person I know, or to be honest, I don't know much about "

" That's what makes them mysterious "

" Perhaps. Did you get what you want from this visit? "

" No, I'm running in circles... I wonder if you can help me? What is your officer intuition telling you? "

" To be careful "

" Of me? "

" No, but if you think so, I might have to do that as well "

" Hehe aren't you a bet too antsy, loosen up, I feel like you can help me, that's why my intuition is telling me "

" Please? "

" I can show you some of my investigations in the case "

" I knew it! Thank you Alan! "

" Sorry, can I call you that? "

" Yes, it's fine, what can I call you? "

" Dear " mc winks at him again, he seemed so done with her.

He takes her to his office, it felt weird, he never done it before, but this stranger might help him bring justice to his old friend, or so he hoped.

Mc scanned the room, on her way she noticed many details, the keys to the room that has the photographs, his office computer...only of Jake was here.

She needed Alan to leave so she can do something.

She picked her phone and texted Jessy

_________________________________________

Mc = Jessy???

< Jessy is now online >

Jessy = yes ?

Mc = I'm going to send Alan ur way, stall for time.

Jessy = got it !

_________________________________________

" Alan.. our coffee? "

" Sorry, I was deep in thought, please sit and wait for me "

" Don't take long, I don't like over time"

" Trust, neither do I "

Alan left the office, first thing mc did was get into that room, just walk like you own place and no one looked her way.

Saw the photographs hanging, the pictures didn't show much of his face, mc took one to look at.

Just his raven dark hair, his hoodie not much visible, she is glad and disappointed at the same time, but whatever the plan must go on.

Moving on, she took all the pictures along with the camera and the film in her bag, locked the room and left.

This is going to have some consequences later, let's hope it's only later.

___________________________________________

Note : next chapter should be uploaded this week in two days or so.

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