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pacthesis · 9 months

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our vietnamese tea ceremony

some may or may not know i just got engaged to a weird guy i met in college that (to put it lightly) i wasn’t too fond of but after like 2 years of snubbing him he somehow won my heart i guess

i scribbled a comic about it cause whenever people ask how i met him they sometimes get invested haha

some people also may have seen him on america’s got talent or cbs news or jimmy fallon or on tiktok doing his pizza man shenanigans lol

people often ask if he pulled me with his dough skills and i have to clarify i didn’t even know about the dough spinning hobby until after we started dating and he didn’t do the tv/media appearances until like 6 years into our relationship 🤣

my parents were both boat refugees from vietnam (they fled during the war when they were teenagers and met as adults) and i’m american- but we’re not really that “traditional” i guess

i think many viet people don’t get married or commit without having a tea ceremony haha

a hetero buddy asked who were my bridesmaids and when i told him i don’t have any he asked why and i just said “i like my friends” 🤣 (my childhood friends were there as guests though!)

i also didn’t want/ask pizza man’s family to bring the customary gifts cause i didn’t wanna cramp my style

basically the purpose of this event was for people to witness us getting engaged and be an opportunity for our families to meet one another!

5/23/2015 is when we started dating

for our first anniversary i got our initials and anniversary date stamped onto a penny and pizza man still carries it around 🥺

so 8 years later we got engaged on 8/5/2023

8 for august (8 years later)

5th of august (5 for the month we began dating)

year of 2023 (23 for the day we began dating)

i think people often go to a fortune teller or someone who knows what they’re doing to schedule important dates using the stars and other factors but my grandpa doesn’t believe in that and the rest of us aren’t really superstitious

we wore áo dài- it’s a vietnamese ensemble consisting of a tunic with a long front and back panel that is worn over pants

áo means “shirt/clothes” and dài means "long"

a lot of the time the bride wears red and the groom wears blue i guess but i wanted my outfit to look bridal when i imagine an american bride or a vietnamese bride!

i also wanted to wear a gold khăn đóng headpiece and to incorporate pearls to resemble what my mom wore when she got engaged to my dad

sunflowers are also my fav

(after we started dating i thought pizza man was tall and sunny like a sunflower haha 😭)

my makeshift shoebox altar- or as i like to call it: my “spirit pager” 😤

the double happiness symbol is two copies of the chinese character 喜 (xǐ) which means joy/happiness and red symbolizes luck for the couple

my mom asked if we should put up pictures of our deceased and i was like i don’t wanna make pizza man’s parents go out of their way to bring photos 😭

i think we were supposed to ask our ancestors for permission to get engaged or married or whatever but since my mom raised me to believe my life is mine to live i just announced it to em

as far as i know it’s not really a buddhist thing- ancestor worship is more of a vietnamese thing apparently

my mom said vietnam is a country with a lot of war and death in its history- so imo it makes sense how they incorporate the dead into their culture and traditions

after introducing each of our family members and friends- we lit a couple of incense to (casually) announce the news to our deceased grandparents and relatives

apparently burning incense is an invitation to ancestral spirits and to deliver wishes to predecessors

smoke from the burning incense guides people to safety or safe passing when they die- it also guides em back home on days like these

the spirit(s) depart when all of the incense has burned

next month is my grandma’s "deathiversary” (giỗ) so we’ll be paging her again soon

we used a tea set that was used to celebrate my 1st birthday to pour and serve (my pick) of vanilla caramel black tea to my grandpa and our parents

pizza man’s mom doesn’t like tea so i was happy i picked something she did enjoy!

but when my mom brought her family to america from vietnam- she asked them if they could bring a tea set specifically for me

my mom said it’s meant to be used to celebrate any of my special occasions

then me and pizza man said some nice words to each other and exchanged rings

my ring was pizza man’s grandma’s- his grandpa initially proposed with a smaller diamond but after he saved up enough he got her this bigger one

i don’t listen to any comments that suggest or imply this carbon rock is not humongous 🤣

pizza man paid to get it resized and to repair its prongs (it was well worn by grandma mercedes 🥺)

also found out my ring size is 3.25 (US) haha 😭

he also decided to get his grandpa’s ring resized and to wear it too!

my mom put this necklace on me- she says it reads “happiness” (i can’t confirm lol) but she received it from her mother-in-law when she got engaged to my dad

my mom was too scared to wear it after their tea ceremony cause it’s 24 karat gold and she didn't wanna wreck it

she said 24 karat gold hasn't been combined with other metals so it’s soft

i guess couples at viet tea ceremonies often get 24 karat jewelry- the idea is they can quickly sell it/melt it down for hard times

my mom also passed down her favorite jade bracelet and my grandma’s favorite diamond earrings to me 🥺

and on my 1st birthday my mom got a special ring made to celebrate my birth- she put it on a chain so the person i marry can wear it close to their heart

my mom also got a special ring necklace made to celebrate my sibling’s birth and gave it to their fiancée during their tea ceremony

it’s just the two of us so no more shiny token trophies up for grabs! 😤

i laughed when pizza man had to squat down so low so my mom could put the necklace on him

after the ceremony i asked him if he wanted me to help him take it off (my sibling's fiancée keeps theirs in a safe cause she’s too scared to wear it daily) but pizza man was like "no i like it 😄" and wore it to sleep and showered with it and hasn’t taken it off since 😭🤣

at the end of the ceremony we lit the candles on the altar to represent the union of our families!

then we ate lots of food haha

my parents both cooked! egg rolls, fried rice, lo mein, bột chiên (fried taro rice cake)

my mom was excited because she knew many of our guests weren’t very familiar with vietnamese food and wanted to share that with them 🥺

and my dad was just so excited for me and pizza man and had so much fun getting the supplies and decorations 😭

my aunt and uncle and sister-in-law brought vịt quay (peking duck), heo quay (roast pork), gỏi tôm (shrimp salad), bánh hỏi (rice vermicelli), xôi gấc (sweet red sticky rice topped with coconut, peanuts and salt)

and pizza man’s mom and family brought lots of desserts

we have always been so amazed with how good their sweets taste and look! 🥺

we also got an ice cream cake

i wasn’t thinking and asked em to write “nicholas and amy lễ đính hôn” and they called me and were like wtf is this and i was like oh no it’s ok haha don’t worry about it! 😭🤣

we had some photos displayed but my sibling took lots of nice pictures of the whole thing!

i was happy i actually got the chance to spend time with and talk to everyone who came!

it went so well and we had so much fun that we’re thinking of doing something similar for our wedding- probably a backyard wedding haha

i was telling pizza man apparently some tea ceremonies have the first half take place at the bride’s home and then the later half is at the groom’s home 🤔

anyway reminder that leftover egg rolls can be reheated in the toaster

#vietnamese tea ceremony #lễ đính hôn #đính hôn #đám hỏi

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fleurlia · 3 years

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here is part two of this.

[7:13 pm] for all the phases you have been through in the past few months, all of them were disastrous. a couple of months after jeno has told you about his proposal karina and he appears with new rings, explaining to everyone how both just choose to make things more swiftly and not wait until graduation.

you already knew it but that didn't stop you from spending at least twenty minutes crying pathetically in the ladies' room.

certainly when you thought things couldn't get any worse, believe me, they did. you were convinced for the moment karina asked you to help her choose the dress. again, you couldn't blame anyone against yourself.

renjun and donghyuck stood next to you, holding their laughs as she was asking for help in the most loving way. just for when she was gone the duo were shouting loud and attempting to comfort your poor heart. following that, you saw yourself sat there watching karina trying on more than a thousand wedding dresses, for getting married to the love of your life.

it would be easier to hate her if she was a bitch and 20% less attractive. you thought.

and talking about him, you couldn't even hold his gaze without looking weepy and bitter. your friendship existed only by devices, which you believed would be turned off the moment he said yes to her.

after a year of planning and torture, the big day has arrived and even though you have created every possible excuse, none seemed good enough to not going to your best friend's wedding. including a sweet smile, your mom comforted you as you got ready for the wedding, holding up tears and making yourself at least looking attractive on the worst day of your life. you asked more than once for your mother to be merciful and to fake an accident but she keeps telling you how could you get over it if you didn't see "the dead body".

instructed to stay at least a few minutes late, you made everything possible to be delayed. not wanting to arrive and have to deal with the reception and face the bride and groom. not craving to deal with the fact that if you held more than five seconds alone with jeno, you would presumably tell him the truth that was stuck in your throat. then when you arrive everyone was already at the ceremony, your entry causing a small noise that drew attention. jeno's eyes catching yours immediately.

the couple looking supremely beautiful, like always. the dress that karina and you have picked just not fits her but makes everyone around her look poorly ugly. oh my god, i hate myself so much. that was the only thing going through your mind.

sitting down next to renjun, he sends you a glance. "it's almost ended, i thought you were not coming."

"as if i were that lucky"

he chuckles but gently takes your hands. even though you said more than a thousand times that you didn't want anyone feeling sorry for you, he tried his best to make things a little better.

while the minutes started to grow, your mind stopped a few more every time that ceremony got close for the "yes". holding up every tear you possess in your body, you almost failed as the old lady next to you smile in your direction and whispered;

"what are you from the groom??"

"i... i am his best friend, since freshman year at college."

"oh, that's why he is looking right here all the time."

quietly you agreed with her, not even daring yourself to look up and catch all of his stares. the moments pass with you staring to anywhere, you couldn't even look at them without feeling your chest squeeze in sharp pain.

"so lee jeno, do you take this woman as your wife to lover her, respect her, and looking for her?"

wishing to not stand there or even existed, you were close to starting to crying but renjun squeezed your hands and all that people heard at next was; "yes, i do."

lee jeno, the love of your life just got married... but it's was not whit you.

later on, — this including the time you spent crying and sobbing in the car — you were supposed to go to the celebration and that's is what you did as a supportive friend.

the first hour was going like a blink, you have to pretend so much happiness that the idea of the newlyweds just got blanked out of your mind. it was the last straw when jeno's sister approached you with a gentle smile, you could feel her pity just by the look on her face and you felt even more miserable when she said it in a low tone: ''i always thought that on a day like today, you would be my new sister.''

that hurt so much.

the rest of the night passed like a blur, a slow and painful blur. you had taken so many pictures and you were sure that you looked ridiculous in the picture with the bride and groom, donghyuck and renjun were there to support you but your false happiness was quickly destroyed by jeno's stares.

almost at the end of the celebration, everyone full of the food and tired from the dancing, people decided it was time for the speeches and in the crowd of invited people you hid behind your friends. if by any chance the universe hated you that much you would be chosen to give some words and you were ready to make a whole speech based on rose's in "love, rosie". it would be tragic.

karina's mother said beautiful words to the couple and praised jeno so much that you at that moment felt happy for him. many relatives passed by, all of them talking about how perfect they were for each other and at end wishing them happiness. you felt like a jealousy bitch at every second.

almost at the end of all your torture, you already agreed that renjun or one of his friends would take you home because you didn't even want to talk, it was the newlyweds' turn to speak. karina sounded so perfectly in love with every word she spoke out. you were thankful to be far away from the couple because your stomach flipped as you watched jeno stand up, straightening his suit and black hair.

you were about to get up and walk away, not wanting to hear about how much he loved her and was grateful to be married to her but after a second thought, you knew you would draw pitying and pitiful glances in your direction.

"i can give you more than a thousand and one reasons about how i ended up here, married to karina." his soft voice echoing throughout the room. "one of them is because sometimes... we don't notice that what we need is right under our noses. sometimes we even notice... but only a few people dare themselves to confess their love to that person.'' at that point nobody else understood where he was getting at with that speech. just like all evening, you didn't attempt to look at him and be unlucky enough to find him also watching you.

''one more reason why we are here, on this particular night, is that maybe i took too long to realize, waited for too long. i wish i could confess this earlier because... deep down i always knew it was you. the love of my life and my best friend.''

something inside of you clicked. back when you started to date, jeno looked you up one day and you fought, he was just being jealous that your then-boyfriend also claimed to be your best friend and you didn't say anything, the point is that he would never call karina his best friend. on that day, both promise never forgets about their besties and never, never calling anyone ''best friend''.

nobody knew about that.

"if... if i could only go back in time... maybe i would tell myself how i should confess to you.'' you looked up, getting his gaze. you stood surprised when you noticed that his eyes were tearing up. ''if only i had known that we would be here today. i never would have let your lips leave mine years ago, on new years'. i never should have walked away. i never should have panicked. i never should have lost all those years without you... because i've realized that no matter where you are or what you're doing, or who you're with, i will always honestly, truly, completely love you.''

you couldn't believe in your damn bad luck.

you couldn't discover what was more pathetically tragic. the fact that karina would watch the video of her wedding in the future and see her husband confessing his love to someone who wasn't her. or the fact that jeno had chosen his wedding day to acknowledge that he loved you.

karina never kissed him on new year's, their first one was in a cinema. only you did, once in your second year as friends. you two never spoke about it.

karina didn't like romantic comedies, she was a literature major and only liked movies that was focussed on classics. you did. you had made jeno watch "love, rosie" so many times that you both knew the script.

with tears rolling down their cheeks, the two of you stared at each other for what seemed like hours. he loved you too. you both now knew about the other's love. inaudibly while you wiped your tears you both agreed that; maybe in another time, another life, we were meant for a happy ending. but not here, not at this moment.

but it didn't matter, only you two knew how much you loved each other and always would.

ok guys, sorry for making this so long and for any mistakes. let me know if you wanted to me doing scenarios, reactions or timestamps or even let my asks open for requests.

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laryna6 · 3 years

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One of those ‘A Christmas Carol’-based fics with Saotome Eiji.

Kyousuke’s dad appearing warning of the demons of the Sanzu river and the measuring of karma that awaits the dead, and Saotome going ‘I must have fallen asleep/that’s a foreign Buddhist thing’ because of the... heavy pushing of a... propagandized version of Shinto as part of Japanese nationalism building up to WWII.

Instead of Christmas it’s Obon (a festival of Buddist/Confucian origin) ofc.

To fit with ‘the idea that people have to earn the right to live is effed up’ from the original, perhaps as a child he was sent to an orphanage bc his family couldn’t feed him? The additional damage of not knowing who your ancestors were in a culture practicing ancestor worship.

Other students of psychic research inviting him to hang out at the university but he wanted to get an officer position in the army, so needing to avoid undesirable elements.

Saotome’s present day obon, Kyousuke who was raised in China being taught about Shinto because as a half-Chinese person on top of an esper in an era of nationalism... they worry about the kid and he might be safer if he do all the ‘I am a loyal subject of the emperor’ signaling. Two of the espers in the unit canonically come from traditional priesthood families and have OPINIONS about what these motherfucking nationalists are doing to corrupt and twist everyone’s spirituality and traditions and their sense of connection to their families and their people and the land. Making shinto priests government officials?!

Saotome going they’re not proper LoyalTM to the army and Japan

Spirit #2 going ‘was the army ever loyal to them?’

Fujiko and her father discussing how their family is nobility and the need for the nobiiity to give up power and instead bring about democracy if Japan was going to escape being conquered and exploited by imperialists like the countries around them.

Fujiko going ‘but the warrior classes all got positions in the military, and now we’re a military dictatorship and Japan has just become one more imperialist power, it’s disgusting and her father going absolutely, and discussion of duty to their ancestors and their country foreshadowing Fujiko making a choice that according to traditional morality and the noble code of conduct was ABSOLUTELY UNACCEPTABLY HORRIBLY WRONG to the point of disgracing her entire family line because what kind of people could have produced a traitor like that... but because of it in the modern day Japan is the second least awful country in how it treats espers.

Then spirit #3, and Saotome going ‘I’ve seen the precogs, espers going to war with normals, Kyousuke betraying the country/me to serve a queen’

And then it’s the younger queen and two other girls going ‘Minamoto we want to go to a festival with you’ while a harried man basically shoos them out the door with a broom and goes ‘go! Your families want to see you! Here are your boxed lunches and snacks for the trip’ and the girls are espers who use their powers to get to their normal families. the queen and her big sister get in a wrestling match over the cookies and only belatedly realize their mom’s eaten them all while commentating while they dress for the festival. another girl and her normal father engage in some police brutality towards festival pickpockets as bonding. the third girl, at least, is traditional and proper even if she’s performing a ceremony that comes from non-Japanese origins (and yet... it’s still a tradition that ties them to their ancestors and the gods and who they are, and Shinto says that tradition is sacred, it doesn’t say that traditions that first came from outside aren’t sacred)

The man is following his mother around as she chatters with everyone and gets up to shenanigans at the festival. ‘Father couldn’t make it again’ mentioning a grandmother who used to stay with him at these. Looking up at the sparks rise above the fire to send the dead home, lonely even though he’s surrounded by people in his hometown... and then he gets tackled by the three girls demanding he take photos with them while they’re all in kimonos

And then it switches to someone announcing That Bastard is finally dead. Far from the land he was born, with no one in the country he served who cares to claim his body ‘so we should send someone to pretend to be a relative’ and someone declaring that this is now a formal meeting because while obviously they all want to desecrate his grave, they are going to do it in an organized fashion that reflects the gravity of his crimes and pays respects to his innocent victims and continuing victims of that bastard’s legacy of murder and hatred. Eggs and toilet paper are not up for discussion is said with a pointed look at another man, who whines ‘big bro!’

This is the most diverse group of people Saotome has ever seen, people from all over the world united in their hatred of someone who gets referred to with several different languages’ curse words.

And then someone walks in and goes ‘here you are, okay, what are you up to? I’ve been raising kids for half a century, I know that when you’re all quiet and busy somewhere you’re up to no good’ and it’s Kyousuke. The guy who went ‘big bro’ gets his ear twisted, and whines ‘dad!’

It’s revealed that ‘that bastard’ is someone who hurt Kyousuke, who they’re protective of like the unit is (he still looks so young...) but when he gets it out of them he’s no! and there is a whine of ‘dad! He shot you!’ ‘I know’ *bullet scar revealed* ‘I’m the one he shot, so I get to decide what to do with him’

Kyousuke lifting away a sheet to reveal a body old and twisted and crippled. And Saotome’s. Kyousuke is blank an solemn... and sad.

Going through the Shinsosai funeral rites, all foreign Buddhist influences removed as he would have wanted, and maybe there’s a reason the people of Japan for centuries were happy to have Buddhists to help them usher their families into the next world, because he can see the weight of the kegare on him, how Kyousuke mourns him, is the only one who mourns him. Eventually a woman who treats Kyousuke as both an embarrassing younger brother and as a respected father comes to help, to cheer him up, even though she despises Saotome too, for hurting him.

A picture of the unit, in Kyousuke’s family shrine. ‘Now everyone in this photograph but Fujiko is dead... He took my family from me, but he, too, was family.’

Then he grabbed the woman, teleported, and dragged her down with him into the ocean for purification.

...then Kyousuke goes to bully the man from before, who is arguing with the three girls about how yes, they are sleepy, Kaoru nearly flew them into the ground getting home, while making them all tea before he shoves them into their bedroom. When he turns around Kyousuke has stolen the cup that was supposed to be for him, and the man at first automatically raises his hackles, but then looks sympathetic.

Kyousuke looks away, annoyed and pouting, at sympathy from this person.

‘...If I try to comfort you you’re going to shove my head in the toilet again,’ the man says, getting himself another cup of tea.

‘Absolutely’ Kyousuke agrees.

Silence, and eventually Kyousuke says, ‘at first I thought you were his reincarnation, even though he would have been offended at the idea of him reincarnating. Then I found he was with the Comericans, had been since the war, and I thought, it would have been better if he was you. Not for the Queen. But for him. If I hadn’t failed to avenge my comrades back then, he could have moved on to a better life or the otherworld. Not been forced to live on a failure and a pawn in a foreign land, unable to return home. He was a proud man.’ Looking down at his tea, ‘when I met him again, he asked me to kill him.’

‘..in the precog, I know there’s a nuke on the way when I shoot Kaoru,’ the man says, and now Saotome knows where he’s seen him. ‘even though I want to kill her so she can’t leave again and I want it enough to kill her before she stops that nuke from destroying Tokyo, I still know that I have to die for this. I’m just getting the order wrong. I should die before I do that. Having to live with what I do in that precog would be a fate worse than death.’

‘That was why I erased his memories that day. He... there was no point in him continuing to suffer. None of us would have wanted that for him. I thought... didn’t he know our feelings? That we were loyal to him, that we didn’t mind dying for him? And then I saw that he truly didn’t recognize our feelings. Because he didn’t know what it looked like, to recognize when people truly cared for him. But he cared for us, and so when he thought that espers would turn against normals, that it was impossible for us to ever care for him... Those damn precogs. They broke his heart before he put a bullet through mine.’

‘Maybe... next obon?’

a shake of the head. ‘he thought it was too foreign. It’s fine, our comrades will beat sense into him in the afterlife.’ Kyousuke drank the rest of his tea.

‘..Some of the parts of the traditional ceremony... PANDRA loves you, but I think that would have made it hard to force them to cooperate,’ the man said. “I don’t want to hear words honoring him either, but you like to do things I don’t want.’

‘What, are you going to give me condolences for his loss?”

‘I can honestly say that I am very sorry he’s dead, because it means I will never get to strangle him,’ the man vigorously throttled the air, going from kind and patient to a man more than capable of shooting a young woman in love with him, and back, ‘from turning you from such a sweet, good little kid into the godawful brat I have had to deal with.’

Kyousuke snorted.

“Do you want another cup of tea, or a cup of milk?”

“Milk.” Kyousuke said, and when the man was on his way to open a white door, he began, “Utsumi-san said that he graduated first in his class, but he had no family and no background. The esper unit was his proposal, so when he told us that we could serve our country and be accepted, he wagered his own future on the chance that ours could be happy. Utsumi said later that he never trusted Saotome-Taicho, because he knew he didn’t truly care for us. I asked once why he didn’t warn us, if he knew that, but... Utsumi knew his heart, so he knew that Saotome-taicho also was different, was desperately wishing to prove he was valuable enough to accept. He knew what bait to dangle before us because it was the exact same lure that led him to the army. We all wanted him to have that happy future, along with us.’

#zettai karen children #hyoubu kyousuke #saotome eiji #minamoto kouichi #all of the bunnies #I want to turn this into fic but aargh so much work

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talix18 · 4 years

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November 21

Yesterday Katelyn called to see if I wanted to hang out. Katelyn is the almost 22-year-old who I call my adopted niece but she’s something more than that. I lived with K and her mom from the time K was 18 months old until she was four-and-a-half so I was her de facto other mom. I know it’s just the slightest approximation of what parenting must feel like but I treasure the memory of her being satisfied with coming to me if Mom wasn’t available. Three-year-old K running towards me when I showed up to pick her up from daycare. The memory of the Christmas when all K wanted from Santa was to see her father and her mother and I couldn’t make that happen – talk about powerlessness. Watching her sing at her high school variety show remembering how I’d been too terrified to sing in front of people…

She inherited some things from me – her opinions and eagerness to share them is probably the big one, but she also, somehow, has come to love Def Leppard (I suspect that’s her boyfriend’s influence). You already know how Def Leppard introduced me to my first boyfriend. I can tell you exactly where I was and who I was with when I heard about the car accident that ultimately took Rick Allen’s arm. I remember that someone who worked at a music store called me to tell me Steve Clarke had died. Def Leppard was my third concert (1st: Asia; 2nd: Stray Cats) – I still can’t believe Mom let me go with Allen and some of his friends at 15. Some people have made-up imaginary friends – mine were real people.

I went up to see K at her mom’s place after work (Kate’s mom and her husband of a year and a week are still on their delayed honeymoon in Tennessee) and we talked about all kinds of things. She said something about Def Leppard touring with Motley Crue, which led me to the Crue documentary I just watched on Netflix over the weekend. I was a fan – saw them open for Ozzy once; had a poster on my ceiling for a while – but the milestones in their lives were vague memories. Of course Tommy was married to Heather Locklear and Vince committed vehicular manslaughter, but that was most of what I knew.

The documentary is an unflinching portrait of the toll drugs took on the band – specifically Nikki Sixx – but that’s not the part that really got to me. I know how addiction works. I had to stop the movie to Google what happened to Vince Neil’s daughter after her cancer diagnosis, which paid off as the next scene opened on her dead four-year-old body laying in the hospital bed. So now I’m having feelings about poor Vince losing his daughter after killing his friend how many years after the fact?

On the way home, after playing a Def Leppard song, the DJ mentioned the tour with Crue and I had to call Katelyn. We are definitely going, I assured her, now that I have even more emotions tied up with these people. I am definitely not thinking about the fact that “Crue called their friends in Def Leppard” to arrange the tour because I assume that means the Leps were also hard partiers and I’d rather not consider all the sordid debauchery that follows along. (Poison is also on the bill, and we’re all down with Bret since Rock of Love. Don’t threaten me with a good time!)

K and I also watched Mean Girls, which I had never seen, and I’m always happy to patch up a hole in my cultural reference knowledge. “Her hair is so big because it’s full of secrets” is everything. Feel free to welcome me to fifteen years ago.

I have to believe the increased meds dosage is making a difference. Tuesday alone I scheduled a doctor’s appointment (colorectal), an ultrasound (thyroid), a dinner/movie date with a friend, a massage, an eye exam, and a dentist’s appointment AND I enrolled for supplemental vision insurance. It seems like a reasonable amount to accomplish in one day, but I’d been putting off some of these appointments for months. Why is it so hard to pick up the phone and call someone? I will never be able to explain it. Trust me – I wish I could help people understand! The best I can do is recognize that I’m functioning more effectively and keep track of what I’m doing that’s different.

Yesterday I committed to flying to Boston to see a friend get married on New Year’s Eve. “Black tie optional”? Hell yeah I want to go hang out in that hotel and see that venue that my amazing friend and her intended are having a black-tie optional shin-dig in! I can’t imagine my lifestyle ever affording me such luxurious splurges on the regular so I need to take advantage of the opportunities when they manifest. Besides, I already have a dress that I got for a black-tie New Year’s Even anniversary party a few years ago; wearing it a second time makes it an even better value! (We don’t discuss how much money I ultimately spend on a wrap and statement earrings.) (Ack! I need to make an appointment with Katelyn for my hair!)

I haven’t seen Karen (the friend getting married) in FIVE years, which seems impossible, but there it is. Karen is one of my original gang of Webpeeps – Webpepes 1.0! Most of us met on a news aggregate website, got to know each other in the forum (4um elites represent), and created a new bulletin board to hang out in. At our peak we had about 150 members but the core group was about 40, and I’ve had the pleasure of meeting at least 30 of us in meatspace.

The first time I met Karen (GreenBeans/GB) was at her then husband’s 30TH (?) birthday party. Rider (PsiDefect), Tim (GasMasher), and I drove my car up to Boston from Philly (Tim and I drove up from MD) to surprise this dude we’d never met, and that cemented my friendship with both Karen and Ted (Law). Their marriage broke up some time ago, which I learned the weekend she and I got together in Orlando with Catrina (CatWritr) and CJ (Hajen). Which was somehow five full years ago.

The first time I met ANY of these nerds was…I don’t even know how long ago at the original Farkoasterfest. I lived with Katelyn and Vanessa at the time and V straight up took pictures of Rider and his license plate when he pulled up to scoop me and head out to Sandusky, OH. I do know I was working at SSA and it was relatively early in my tenure, so early-2000s? It was also probably the first time I spent an entire weekend with people not in recovery since I’d gotten clean. Several hundred miles away with nearly perfect strangers – who thought that was a good idea?

It turned out to be one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. Some of the people I met that weekend and after are straight up some of my closest friends. It was my first experience making friends as an adult, which is startlingly difficult to do. My first group of friends that didn’t start in our hometown or on campus or in recovery – people I connected with in a realm where all we had was the words on the screen and our wit.

Places I’ve since hung out with these people include Seattle twice, Cedar Point one or two more times, Northern VA, DC, PA, and Toledo. I’ve seen at least three couples wed and have almost ten kids between them. I dated the guy in Toledo for a few years. I flew out to Seattle for Andrea (BigOrangeCat/TheOtherAndrea)’s 40th birthday party and to visit her in the hospital before she died. We helped Amy (Hisey) mourn the loss of her nearly full-term daughter. We helped Joe (ThedNeedles) deal with his ex keeping his son away from him – some of his helped him with legal aid. We watched each other’s kids grow up and have kids of their own. Norm (Zorgon) just emailed to let me know he was in town (-ish –northern DC suburb) and wanted to connect but was laden with germs – we get together for a meal very few years when work brings him this way. Never let anyone tell you your online friends don’t count.

(Logging back in to the old bulletin board to count heads gifted me with a video of Mike (BitZero) (father of FarKoasterFest) smashing up some obsolete Fark hardware. Good times!)

I reached out to CJ and Cat to see if either one was planning on coming to the wedding to offer the other side of the king-sized bed I’ll be sleeping in in Boston and I’m glad I did. CJ’s got a handful of kids so money is always a concern and I’m paying for the room whether I’m alone or with someone else. We’ll be FaceTiming Cat at midnight and maybe during the ceremony too.

In fact, I’ve been suspiciously functional this week. Monday was meh, but since then I’ve had three good, productive days in a row. I have no specific plans tonight so I could go to a meeting, or I could go home and see if any of this momentum can be channeled into house projects. Coming up with a fictional framing device has given me the opportunity to figuratively walk myself through the necessary steps to get started. So whatever comes of this writing exercise, it’s been worth doing.

#nanowrimo #f**k fifty

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mobianflame · 4 years

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Twin siblings, 32, 'found dead in joint suicide' were My Large Fat Gypsy Wedding ceremony stars - Mirror Online

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Paired bros found dead with each other in a suspected dual suicide have been named as superstars of My Major Fat Gypsy Wedding Celebration.

The physical bodies of the 32-year-old siblings, named locally as Bill as well as Joe Smith, a dad-of-two, were found in forest in a segregated country street in Sevenoaks, Kent, merely times after Christmas.

Heartbroken household, pals and members of the UK's journeying area have commemorated the siblings, along with one composing on Facebook: "The love they ate one yet another. They couldt online along with out each other." [sic]

An additional created: "They both took their own lifestyles. Hard times is swarming one of our folki."

A third included: "Born together and left behind the earth with each other.

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Good friend Jane Chippendale claimed Expense and also Joe, the father of a young son as well as little girl, functioned for their uncle's landscape design company and also had actually lately stayed at her house in Tunbridge Wells for almost pair of months after earlier staying in Weald.

She final observed all of them a month back when they left, telling her they were mosting likely to reside at an aunt's property, quickly after they returned coming from a trip to Thailand.

Mrs Chippendale pointed out by means of tears: "I'm still in surprise. It doesn't create feeling. Their garments are putting up in my restroom.

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The Johnson siblings wound up remaining at her home considering that a regional B&B was actually full.

She said to Looking glass Online: I have a cancer medical diagnosis. They delivered me an information saying 'keep good, you're heading to outlast each one of this'.

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Paddy Doherty, the Famous personality Big Bro winner and My Huge Fat Gypsy Wedding event star, inquired his enthusiasts to wish the Smith twins' loved ones, including their moms and dads and grandma.

He claimed in a Facebook video recording: "Pair of excellent appearing kids, God bless themselves.

"That's an awful disaster. Hope for the young boys' family members.

"I'm incredibly, incredibly unhappy for your problems.

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At a wedding ceremony pair of weeks ago the siblings videotaped an online video as they performed and danced to Mariah Carey's All I Really wanted for Xmas Is You.

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Both included in the 3rd set of My Major Fat Gypsy Wedding ceremony, which described them as Romani gypsies, when they were 24 as well as operating as garden enthusiasts.

An incident observed all of them throughout a shift in Kent, in the house where they covered the traveller way of living as well as marriage, and during a holiday in Tenerife prior to they were actually expected to settle and also begin loved ones.

The identical twins' physical bodies were actually discovered close to a ranch on the outskirts of Sevenoaks at approximately 11.30 get on Sunday.

It is mentioned that their family had recently expressed problem for their welfare.

Kent Police claimed the deaths are not presently being dealt with as suspicious and a coroner will certainly calculate the cause.

Post-mortems result from happen as well as an inquest is actually likely to be composed the brand new year.

Friends and family said to of their heartbreak in tributes published on Facebook.

One created: "Rest in calmness expense as well as joe this globes therefore heartless as well as in some cases the demons in your head receive the much better the lord labels you an angel way to very soon.

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A spokeswoman said to Looking glass Online: "Kent Authorities was called at 11.34 get on Sunday after the body systems of pair of males were discovered in Dibden Lane, Sevenoaks.

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This content was originally published here.

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tysonrunningfox · 5 years

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Open Flames: Part 17

Ok, this is an insane roller coaster of a weird ass chapter and I think I love it and also, it has the funniest slapstick I’ve ever written and I don’t even care, that is correct, objectively.

(<5 days until I see httyd3......probs need to write like 20k to finish this.....I’m going to try, we. shall. see.).

Masterpost | AO3 (AO3 is better, it’s organized, sorry)

I can't say traveling with Arvid is just like old times, because I don't think we ever had a multi-day trip just the two of us with no real danger hanging overhead, but it's like I wish old times had been. We sleep a few hours in the afternoon and fly mostly at night, because campfires are easier to avoid than people hidden in dense pine forest. On the morning of our third day, pine gives way to ice and occasional brush land and Arvid signals that we're getting close. I don't know how he knows, considering the only other time he came here it was by boat, but after only a couple false starts and wrong turns, he zeroes in on a tiny village at the mouth of a river alongside an icy bay.

We land on a nearby hill where a small copse of trees can at least mostly hide the dragons and he points at a shallow valley behind the village.

"Dad disappeared that direction for a while last time we were getting tattooed, said he had to pay some respects and because no relatives came to meet me, I assume that's where the tombs are." His tone is somber in a way I struggle to place, until I remember what else was going on in our lives the last time he was here. Mom had just married the chief. He wasn't talking to me because I'd jumped him for insulting Mom.

Maybe this adventure can heal that too, or at least smooth out some of the scar tissue that might be left.

"Alright, let's get to it."

"Wait a second," he stops me and points at the Berk insignia holding my furs on. "I grabbed some of Dad's old clothes."

"Good plan." Even if all of the clothes aren't from here, most of them aren't from Berk either. They're covered in patterns I only vaguely recognize and none of them are that distinctive Berk green or red or blue that so much of our clothing is dyed. Everything seems to be more of a natural wool, and my hair stands out like fire against it. I pull up a furry hood and tuck as much back as possible, but there's no helping the beard.

What I don't expect is for the clothes to almost fit. Sure, they're baggy, and I almost don't mind that because it'll be easier to slip a sword underneath, but I would have expected to be swimming in Dad's clothes. Arvid must notice the same thing, because he looks at me strangely as he yanks at a jacket that's a little tight on him.

It makes me feel older, somehow, more ready for what I'm about to do, both here and back home. I wonder if Mom is freaking out yet, but I'm sure Fuse is handling it fine. I miss her, of course, but the fact that I won't have to for much longer makes it easier, like I'm racing towards a finish line after months or years spinning out in the last leg of the race.

"Trade?" I offer my own borrowed layer and he nods. The switch is a bit better on both of us, and I think I still have room for a modest armory of a single ceremonial sword. Arvid looks bigger somehow, foreign in a way he doesn't feel anymore and I nod. "I hope the runes look the same, because that's the only way we're finding the tomb."

"We'll just open them all until we see a family resemblance," he jokes and I snort.

"Yeah, I'm sure that'll go over well." I hadn't truly thought through the implication of showing up outside another village and rooting through their grave sites, but it's too late to think about that now. Or it won't help anything. I just need to get the sword. "Let's go."

We briefly skirt the edge of the village, and Arvid risks a nod at a few almost familiar faces as I pull my hood down further over my face. They wave back and I shake my head at him when we're clear of the last few houses. He shrugs, that easy grin that's the perfect accompaniment to Aurelia's easy diplomatic lies stretching across his face.

The first tombs aren't very far from the village but they're old, the runes on the small plaques in the hill face worn almost smooth. It's more like they were placed far away hundreds of years ago and in the centuries since, the village has slowly crept closer. The newer tombs are a little harder to see, placed more creatively around rocks and set into shallow caves. Arvid is curious, tracing over names and with a gloved hand, but I feel very strongly like I'm not supposed to be here, like I'm being watched. I don't see what I'm looking for so much as I feel it, around a small corner that heavy forbidden feeling relaxes. I look almost directly at a carved stone half hidden by some dry branches.

It's my name. The runes a little different, angles less sharp, words underneath it spelled so that I don't quite recognize them, but my name is clear. Nothing after it.

"Over here," I wave at Arvid, crunching through the knee high snow and breaking the branches off to get at the age-sealed edge of the stone. It feels weird to do this in the middle of the day, on Berk it's always the night before the wedding, and I wish I had a torch for ambiance or something.

"Let's hope Eret wasn't as common of a name a few decades ago," Arvid jokes, the edge he lost on the flight up here reappearing for a brief second as he hands me a sturdy branch to pry with. I wedge it against the edge of the stone and it takes a couple angles until it shifts. Then it moves too fast, falling on the ground and cracking a wedge off of the corner. "Sorry grandpa," Arvid mutters to himself, taking the branch back and carefully picking up the plaque.

The skeleton in the tomb is covered in mostly disintegrated cloth and I touch it with a careful hand before looking over my shoulder. The tombs on Berk are opened from the top or they're large enough to enter, I'm not sure how to get at what is inside of this one. Arvid shrugs and I look back at the half rotted away boot on a skeleton foot before sighing.

"I'm just going to stick my head in and see if there's a sword." For the first time ever, I miss my previous scrawniness as I edge carefully into the tomb beside the bones, leaning hard on my elbow and trying to ignore the pull of nearly healed stitches in my arm. There's a glint, barely visible and blocked when I move my head just wrong, but a definite glint. I reach for it, wincing when I wobble and accidentally grab a long dried arm bone for balance.

Thank you, namesake. Grandpa doesn't make sense without context, but I appreciate the support all the same.

"Eret," Arvid hisses, smacking my hip as my feet lift slightly off of the ground in my attempt to reach for the sword.

"Just a second, I've almost got it." I barely avoid planting my face into a ribcage covered in stringy, cold preserved leather, "and don't jostle me when I'm snuggled up against a dead guy."

He says something else but I don't quite hear it because my arm is against my ear as I stretch to grab...a blade. Yes. I've got it. I pull it carefully towards myself, ancient fabric tearing around a worn and battered blade. It's corroded in the middle, pockmarked with rust that makes it feel more historic as I carefully slide it into the collar of my coat, tucking the point into a seal skin lined pocket by my waist.

"Ok, you can pull me out--"

Arvid takes the suggestion with unnecessary force, yanking me by my leg and throwing me face down into the snow. He lands on top of me, straddling my waist and gathering my wrists in his hand behind my back. The sword in my coat digs into my layers of shirts and if it were sharper, it would be cutting where I don't want to be cut. As it is, it's just bruising me, making it hard to breathe where it digs into my ribs. Was he this jealous about Dad's sword? I don't think so, especially because I handed it over.

"Got him!" He announces to someone else before leaning down and whispering in my ear, "did you get it?"

"Yes, if you're going to steal it you'd have to roll me over." I kick at him but all the heavy clothes are in the way and he's securely seated, one hand on the back of my neck, pressing my face into the snow.

"Keep it hidden, we got caught, play along."

"Is it playing along if I tell you to stop crushing me?" I wheeze, trying to kick him again and getting a mouthful of snow for the trouble.

"Hey, don't worry, I've got him." Arvid announces, standing up and yanking me to my feet with his grip on my wrists. It's tight but nothing I couldn't break out of and I resist the urge to do exactly that. I should trust him, plus, if I tried anything, the sword might fall out of my furs and get abandoned if we had to flee. I have to blink a few times to see the group of men approaching us clearly through the ice encrusted on my eyelashes. There's eight or nine of them, maybe and they're holding spears in our direction, but they lower slightly when they see Arvid, his tattoos almost matching some of the group's. "Trying to hide in my grandfather's grave after I chased him down here."

"Your grandfather?" One of the men raises their spear, "I don't recognize you."

"I do," another frowns and scratches under his chin with a short sword, its craftsmanship familiar to the one under my coat that's currently cold on the bruise it made. I think my cheek might be scraped too, from stone or ice I'm not sure, and I'm going to personally make Arvid explain himself to Fuse.

"My father, Eret son of Eret brought me here a few years ago," Arvid lets go of my wrists with one hand to point at his chin and I almost throw him again. He seems to sense my plan and tightens his grip, giving me a warning look.

"What are you doing here now?" The guy in front with the largest spear, presumably the leader, asks and Arvid stands up straighter, flaunting the inches he has on the man.

"You're asking me what I'm doing here when I just caught a thief in my grandfather's grave?" He says it with such conviction that apparently none of them think to press the issue further, which is a relief for all of a couple minutes of frozen marching, until it becomes obvious where they're marching me to.

"That looks like a dragon cage turned jail cell," I hiss at him, tugging experimentally on his grip. I don't want to break it if he doesn't want me to, because then my other captors might tie my hands with something more serious.

"Just play along," he whispers, "I promised Thorston I'd get you home un-injured, and I don't think that's going to happen if we take on eight men without our dragons."

"So you're going to lock me up?"

"If I have to," he pushes me forward a little harder than necessary, just to make me trip, and I catch the men looking at us. I struggle for a moment, just for show, and Arvid yanks me back upright with a hand on my shoulder. "I'll grab the keys and get you later. Keep the sword hidden and don't do anything stupid until then."

"Stupid? When am I stupid?" I elbow him, probably harder than I need to for show, and he coughs before handing me over to two of the guys who try to be rougher than he was. They half succeed, mostly they just grab handfuls of layers of Dad's old clothes as they toss me into the cage. I'm glad I'm wearing so much now because the room has a hard rocky floor and the late fall sun isn't anywhere near as high as I'd like it to be.

The front door of the converted jail slams shut behind the group, Arvid included, and I sigh, hitting my head on the bars in frustration and aiming to hit the lock before realizing how wide the warped, rusty metal would split my knuckles. Fuse doesn't make exceptions.

Even if this is going to be a long, cold night.

00000

The first and only time Aurelia got kidnapped, I found her in a dragon cage on some asshole trapper's boat. Everyone else thought it was the crony we'd been dealing with, dancing around in the non-fatal chief style for months, but I had a hunch things were escalating. Well, it wasn't so much a hunch as it was the fact that Arvid was inconsolable and liable to get himself killed if he stepped up the chain of command, so I did it.

That was the first day I realized that only some people will talk. Some people just aren't made for compromise, and when I was alone on a boat with one such person who was in command of about twenty who might listen to reason, my decision to...end discussions came more easily than I would have thought it could.

Aurelia threw up, I still think it's why she dove so stubbornly into diplomacy. If she talks fast enough, she doesn't have to see inside of anyone's lung, theoretically.

Anyway, the reason that this stupid stony jail cell has me thinking about that day is I remember so clearly being irritated when I landed that Aurelia was still in the cage. It was built for Nadders or maybe Gronckles, and the bars were practically as far apart as her shoulders were wide. She could have turned sideways and gotten out at literally any time, but I had to explain that to her while she dry heaved and tried not to look at the bloody puddle that used to be the biggest up and coming dragon trapper in the archipelago.

She later explained that she stayed in the cage because the trappers couldn't get in, and she didn't have a weapon or a dragon so there was no point in escaping, but I don't have either of those concerns now. I have Dad's dad's old corroded sword, which probably couldn't cut anything, but it's heavy enough to bludgeon with, and if I could just get outside, I could call Bang. Even if I couldn't, we didn't leave him that far away, I could make a run for it.

But I don't fit.

The bars look far apart. I didn't even wait until nightfall to try at first, pressing my shoulder against a gap and expecting the layers of clothes to compress and bunch and ultimately let me through, but I had no luck. Now, it's finally late enough that I don't think anyone is dropping by to give the poor prisoner some dinner, so I start taking off layers, folding them carefully to hide the sword and shivering as I get down to my undershirt. I push my shoulder again against the space between two bars and get a little further, arm slipping through past my armpit until the cold, rusted metal introduces itself to my collarbone and back, not quite at my spine.

I turn my head and press my face between the bars to push harder. My head fits, barely, but it does. My chest doesn't move, though, and the rust bites into my collarbone, scraping enough that my shirt starts to tear and I yank my arm back. There's no blood in the hole, just a little reddened skin I won't have to explain to Fuse, and I sit down on my pile of clothes with a huff.

Picking the lock with the sword is a no go and I can't get enough of a running start to bust the gate open, as rusty as the lock is. I get excited for a second when I find Fuse's gifted smoke bombs in a deep pocket of my original clothes, but I think they've gone bad or something because the color is different. I still try and light them, first by sparking the sword against the wall and then by ripping off a piece of my sleeve and laboriously getting it to light, then holding the fire to the unraveling wicks. They fizzle out almost immediately with a rotten smell but no smoke and I throw one at the wall in frustration. It sparks, uselessly, the place it impacted chipping off to reveal a red clay color underneath, which I take to be the definite sign of a bomb gone bad.

Sleeping isn't an option. Not only am I not tired, but there's nothing remotely comfortable in this cell. The couple of slices of bread that a sullen kid drops off at first light could be a pillow, I guess, because the moldy crust prevents them from being food. Maybe I’m spoiled from living in the chief’s house, but I’m not keen on a moldy bed either.

Mostly I have too much time to think. About Fuse and the fact that we're engaged and the fact that for the first time in a long time, there's a future that I want to get back to. About the chief's advice and going after what I want and how horribly it is currently going for me. Except I also wouldn't be where I am without it, there wouldn't be a house and a future on the horizon and...well, it's a vortex I can sink some thought into. Approximately two days of thought, judging by the volume of my stomach's growls when I assess each morning's moldy bread as I watch a tiny square of sun make its way across the floor, even though the light makes me feel colder.

Where is Arvid with the fucking keys?

Briefly, on the third morning, I wonder if he left without me, especially with the sword and the tackling. Nothing in the last four years would lead me to that conclusion, but the last four days? Maybe. I don't know. Maybe I don't want to know. Maybe I don't count on anyone but Fuse to be bedrock during changing times, but she's understandably not up to it so I'm drifting. I want to be wrong.

I jump up when the door slams open, rattling rust off the bars over the tiny window.

"I didn't do it!" Arvid shouts as the same kid who brings my bread shoves him through the makeshift prison door, his hands bound with thick rope, his eye swelling a shiny pink.

"Tell that to my dad," the kid grumbles under his breath as he gives me a wary look, one hand flitting to the keys on his belt.

Arvid could get out of that hold, but he doesn't. I hope it's part of a plan and hold my hands up in silent surrender, taking a step back from the gate. I could dash out, but I don't think I could take the kid with how easy it would be to use Arvid as a shield. I can also hear voices outside, and as much as my clearing out the Thorston pantry and then sleeping a solid day in Fuse's bed perked me up, the last few days without food or sleep are catching up to me.

My brother's stumble isn't necessarily exaggerated when the kid pushes him into the cell and locks the door behind him, but I freeze until we’re alone and the voices outside go silent.

"Moldy bread?" I gesture to one of the plates still by the gate and my stomach growls. So helpful.

"I'm good, thanks."

"No keys, I take it."

He blinks, "I'll pull them out of my ass if you untie me."

I laugh at that, the tension half-melting. It's not quite the bottom or top half though, it's one of the sides and obviously asymmetrical, because the atmosphere teeters and finds a new upright.

"These knots are...a mess," I struggle with the rope, pulling a little too hard and flinching as Arvid's vaguely blue thumb jolts. He was struggling as they tied him up, apparently, "I'd cut it loose but we might need the rope."

"Planning a grand escape?"

"Always," I sigh, "looks like a rope-less one though." The corroded sword cuts a surprisingly effortless path through the rope and the shreds fall to the floor as Arvid flexes his hand. Honestly, the pile is a more appealing pillow than the bread and I almost contemplate it for a second. "Better?"

"Not really," Arvid half smiles, exhausted as he turns away to press his swelling face against the hard stone wall, "almost as good as ice, right?"

"I guess," I lean by back against the wall next to his face, glancing casually at him. I'm mostly glad for someone to talk to, but I'm also really glad that it's him, weird tension aside. "Who did that?"

"Jailer's wife made a move," he snorts and I roll my eyes. "I'm serious, I was trying to get the keys and she offered a deal. Apparently, I'm still pretty good looking by Dad's hometown standards." There's that jealous look again, but it's hollow. Not even tired, just...expired, like a log that's too charred to keep burning.

"Did you do it?" I ask even though I already know the answer and it's his turn to dismiss me, standing up to carefully poke at his swelling eye.

"She told her husband I did because I didn't, so...no luck with the keys, do you have a plan?"

"Time travel about five years into the past and fit through the bars," I shrug, "I tried a few times, but no luck. Maybe another week avoiding moldy bread and cutting off an ear would do it, but Fuse would never forgive me." It's meant to get a laugh but Arvid deflates instead, slumping down against the wall, staring at the ceiling.

"It's really hard to be pissed at someone so clueless, you know?"

"I don't," I shove cold hands into my pockets, fiddling with Fuse's ruined smoke bombs. "I'm usually the most clueless."

"You and Mom," he sighs, "you two trade off."

"How hard did you get hit?" I laugh.

He looks at me seriously, exhausted, and I recognize some version of Aurelia's most cutting, honest face. The one that only comes out when she's too preoccupied to unpack my nonsense in to neat piles. Arvid's version is more mallot than dagger though and I steel myself.

"You know, sacrificing yourself isn't without casualties."

"Aren't you the one who tackled me and lied about your involvement in my scheme and it led to me being here?" I raise an eyebrow but he doesn't notice or more likely, doesn't care. "What's your problem? You've been weird ever since Dad gave me his sword. Am I facing another coup, because if so, you need to starve and not sleep for a couple days before I'm willing to call anything even--"

"I know my place," Arvid cuts me off, sharp and definite, "trust me--"

"Sorry if you ordering me to trust you doesn't have the desired effect--"

"It's not an order," he sighs, probing the swelling under his eye, "it's just hard watching you get everything, alright? I'm over it--I mean, I'm dealing with it." He swallows hard and shrugs a broad shoulder, "badly."

"Watching me get everything?" I snort, gesturing to the cell, "right, a dank, freezing jail, everything I've ever wanted."

"Before you go back to your life and your family and your future marriage to the woman you love," he hits his head against the wall and sighs like it's the last ounce of deflation. “And your job that’s neatly waiting for you, all responsibilities listed out.”

Oh.

"That wasn't umm, what I was expecting," I sit down next to him, back against the same wall, one leg extended with my hands folded over my knee. I don't feel as casual as I'm trying to look and I clear my throat, "do you want to talk about it?"

"About your future chiefdom?" His lip curls and the muscle under his eye twitches, which brings him right back to sad. That's going to be a nasty bruise and I passively worry how big the jailer is.

"I talk about that enough," I shrug, bumping his shoulder with mine, "whine about it, mostly. So much that I forgot to ask if you were upset about anything, apparently."

"You do that."

I think about Fuse and rub my eyes with the heels of my hands, "yeah. I'm working on it."

"It's not that you do everything wrong," Arvid thumps a heavy hand on my shoulder, "it's that somehow, I do everything right and it doesn't seem to matter."

"What are you talking about?" I laugh, "you're the only one of us that Mom trusts to be an actual adult."

"Is it trust?" He doesn’t want an answer and I don’t nod, “or was Mom just the first one to forget where I fit?”

"She trusts you," it comes out flat and Arvid sees right through me to what I haven't fully verbalized yet.

“It doesn’t matter.” He sounds like Fuse, and I hate that I’ve become someone that people are scared to lean on. “Not—it’s good that she trusts me, it makes it easier. For you.” He laughs, “which is what matters, I know—”

“From where I sit, nothing seems very easy,” I gesture at the wall in front of us, the sun dipping below the small, dingy windowsill and shepherding in another long, cold night. “It’s funny though that you say you don’t know where you fit, because I just told Fuse that you’re co-chief’s wife, because she’s nervous about that, apparently.”

“I’ll be a Thorston-Mom translator,” he snorts, miserable but at least talking, “that sounds like a full time job.”

“It’s yours whether you want it or not.” I follow his lead and relax a little bit, “you’re already kicking ass at managing all of us, which is basically Mom’s job aside from being married to the chief, and unless there’s something you need to tell me about your feelings…” I joke, gesturing to myself and he sighs.

“I hate that Dad gave you his sword.”

It’s better than another confession but it still hits me like a physical blow.

“Oh?”

“Yeah.”

“Well…uh, do you want to talk about it?” I prod, trying not to look at the empty sheath where Dad’s sword was. I saw him leave it with Wingspark before I got captured and I’m assuming it’s still there, but it’s absence is like a presence in and of itself.

“Not really,” Arvid scoots closer to me, notching his shoulder over mine against the wall. “I’m tired, it’s cold.”

“You aren’t too mad to huddle for warmth, that’s a good sign.” I’m more relieved than I let on when I scoot closer, the bubble between us where Dad’s sword should be the only warm patch I’ve felt in days.

“I’m not mad,” he shuts his eyes, obviously not asleep but not daring me to call him out either, “there’s no one to be mad at.”

“I get that feeling.” The place I used to use to deflect everything at the chief is as empty as Arvid’s belt and I let my eyes close, at least for a few hours.

00000

I dream about cribs in a prison cell while Dad’s sword glows red hot from a fire I can’t see, emanating from my side where Arvid hit me all those years ago. When I wake up, Arvid is slumped over my lap, arms too tight around my legs as he uses my thighs as a pillow. My nose is numb from cold and my toes are numb from my brother’s massively heavy head and I try to shake him loose, my breath foggy in the gray morning light.

“Arvid.”

“Mmph,” he presses his face into my leg, “five more minutes.”

I shake his shoulder and he looks up with a sleepy squint, staring at me for a second before remembering where he is and frowning. He sits up a little too quickly, brushing dust from his front and trying to straighten his hair. The bruise around his eye is fully black in the corner and blue-purple around the edges and it makes him look younger the way his sheepish expression does, like he’s been caught after picking a bad fight.

“I would have let you sleep, but chances of keeping all my toes are already less than ideal, considering what serves for a blade right now,” I joke, awkwardly standing up and pacing to get warm. Arvid examines Eret the Original’s sword pensively, tracing a battle-faded inscription along the flat of the blade.

“Don’t worry, I don’t want this one too,” he says when he catches me staring.

“I wasn’t worried,” I shrug, “that one, I’ve definitely earned.”

“You chose it,” he sets it down, “you could have had any Hofferson or Haddock sword on Berk, but you chose Dad.” His smile is sad and pensive, and a little sheepish still, daring me to cut him off. “And as always, he chose you.”

“Well,” I swallow, gesturing at him and seeing nothing more than a young version of Dad, less heroic in reality than he would be in the story when he retold it later. Or not less heroic, just more real, more alive instead of a living legend. “He doesn’t have to choose you, it’s obvious.”

He shrugs.

We both look so much like our dads that sometimes, when I look at him, all I see is Mom. I hope he feels the same.

“I guess I know what obvious feels like, and I’m not a fan of it either.” I sigh, running my hand back through my tangled mess of hair. Somehow, needing a bath is what makes me miss home. Or maybe it’s the feeling of being assumed, and I’m a hypocrite for missing it right when Arvid is explaining how he doesn’t have it. Mostly though, I suddenly miss Fuse, everything I’ve held off due to necessity threatening to knock me back. “I’m sorry—”

“And then there’s the house,” he smiles, “which is ironic, because I’m the one responsible for spoiling you there.”

“The house? What’s up with the house?” I cock my head, “does it have an interior hot spring or a never ending bread cabinet or something? Axe storage for twenty?”

“It’s not going to feel empty,” he shakes his head, the last of the tension melting into a miserable fog around him, hovering above the frozen ground. “Four years with two people in a house meant for six starts to get a little quiet.”

All of the sleep and time to think has meant something, because the concept clicks immediately.

“The babies.”

“Right? Plural. Two of them.” He sighs, “it’s not that you do everything wrong, but when you do, it always turns out so right for you.”

“And you do everything right.”

“Well, I don’t think there’s a wrong way to do that.”

“What do you—oh Gods, no, I’m trying to have a heart to heart with you and—”

“I had to,” he tosses a pebble at me and it bounces off of my forehead, “you should see your face.”

“I don’t need to, I’m betting it’s projecting horror and disgust and I just meant you got betrothed and then married in that order, not—can you throw up after not eating for however many days? Because I might try—”

“Who else am I going to talk to about this stuff? Rolf?” He’s a little pleading, a little joking, and I can’t deny that I owe him after apparently rubbing something like this in his face, even if I didn’t know. “He’d give me a pamphlet in Latin or something.”

“You could try Ingrid, she’d give you…I don’t know, a map to nearly abandoned boats with free babies on them.” I sit back down next to him, doing my best fake placid and hoping it’ll translate inward eventually. “How long have you felt like this?”

“Finn didn’t help things,” he scuffs his toe on the ground, “how is it that Ingrid rejects absolutely everything she’s supposed to do and somehow, she’s happy with Smitelout and a two year old?”

“Because she’s Ingrid,” I laugh, “you talk about me getting everything.”

“True, she’s the real favorite.” He lacks the weight of his secret, “I hate to break it to you but I think she’s even the chief’s favorite. Well, and Snotlout’s.”

“I’ve been thinking the same thing,” I laugh, “I kept wondering if Snotlout would take in another unconventional duo just so that Fuse and I could sleep in the same bed. And I bet if I threw in grandpa bragging rights, he would have done it.”

“Aurelia says we have time.” Arvid’s voice carries a dismal hint of sarcasm that’s more mine than anyone else’s and I remember my own conversation with Aurelia, offering her my kids if I start messing them up too bad. “Maybe this will change her mind, at any minute I could be locked up for life and she’ll want someone to remember me by.”

“Uh, I know that we’re having brother time right now and pretending you didn’t remind me that you’re married to my sister—”

“I’m not pretending.” He teases and I shake my head.

“No, I—that’s something you need to talk to her about—”

“What did she tell you?” Arvid’s reaction makes my heart throb for Fuse, because it’s the same obsessive worry I feel whenever I let myself think about her. It’s the same pull, the one that makes the prison bars look like rusted matchsticks. “She talked to you? About kids?”

“We share issues.”

“What did she say? Is she ok? Why isn’t she telling me?” The pain is familiar too, the shame-tinted grief I felt when I learned Fuse hadn’t been telling me everything.

I shake my head, “that’s all I should tell you, it’s not—you know, as much as my history surrounding Aurelia still perturbs me,” I tread lightly, “mostly it seems really messed up for me to moderate relationship talk as both your siblings.”

He doesn’t hear me, not in any way that would matter, because he’s on his feet, rattling the bars with force that makes the rust flake to the floor.

“Have you tried to pick the lock?” He takes the ceremonial sword and gouges the tip trying to shove it into the lock.

“Hey, be careful with that.” I try to take it back but he drops it on the floor, narrowing his eyes at the gate.

“I could bust that open.”

“I tried that, yes, after picking the lock didn’t work—“

“Youtried it, alright,” he plants his foot against the wall to build up more speed as he takes two running steps and slams his shoulder into the rusty gate. It clangs like an orchestral sentry, the lock taking the high notes as the tumblers inside clatter around.

“That’s really loud.”

“Well, I hit it really hard,” he rolls his shoulder and sets up to try it again.

“Whoa there,” I put a hand on his shoulder and he nudges it off, a little too hard, “hey!”

“You might be content to let Stoick claim your kids while you—fuck!” He cuts himself off, “I don’t mean that, I just—”

“You’re worried, it’s fine,” I kick a plate of moldy bread and it skids harmlessly under the bars, clattering against the door, “thinking about Fuse is killing my appetite as much as the potential food poisoning. We need to get out of here, I just think doing it without drawing the attention of multiple people massive enough to do that,” I gesture at his eye, “is probably a good idea.”

His jaw flexes and he glares at the door a second before nodding, “you said you tried to fit.”

“I did, I don’t fit,” I assure him and he cocks his head.

“I bet I could make you fit.”

“I…don’t know if I like the sound of that,” I stare at him for a second before starting to take off layers. “But I don’t see any other options at the moment.”

“Take off the sweater,” he holds his hands out to take my clothes, tossing them on the floor to cover the ceremonial sword. Fuse’s ruined smoke bombs fall out of my inner pocket and roll to the back corner. “Wait! Those are Thorston’s, you had them the whole time?”

“I’ve had them for months, they’ve been soaked about half a dozen times,” he grabs my arm when I don’t move fast enough, maneuvering me against two of the wider set bars. It’s different than where I tried and maybe a few days without food will matter. “You think bombs wouldn’t be the first thing I’d try if I had them?”

“I never know with you,” he laughs, waiting for me to get my foot against the base. My feet aren’t going to be the problem and I can kick off my boots as need be, but the first squeeze I feel mid-foot still makes me nervous.

“If I say stop—“

“I’ll stop,” he pushes gently when the gap introduces itself to my collarbone again, “it’s so close.”

“Yeah, how close is close if I leave my nose behind and Fuse kills both of us?” I squawk when he shoves on the back of my head, “bad angle, that’s not gonna—ouch!”

“You’re being louder than the gate,” he grunts, knee against my hip and the gap pinches my pelvis where I don’t want to be pinched. I squeak and kick backwards at him.

“If you want nieces and nephews—”

“I’ll already have a spare,” he eases up when he jokes but it makes me laugh anyway and my chest expands into the gap, pinching my stomach. I squeak again. “Exhale—”

“That won’t get my ribs out of the way, fuck—”

The door opens and the jailer’s son drops a plate of moderately more moldy bread than usual on the floor, teenage face wide eyed in shock.

“Uhh,” I cough, “I don’t fit.”

“Yeah,” Arvid yanks me back with a tug that feels like it scrapes all the hair off of half of the front of my body and I yelp. “He’s been bulking up on the bread.”

“Yeah,” I wheeze, “it’s dense. Nutritious.”

The kid slams the door behind him as he presumably runs to get bigger guards.

“Well, they know now,” Arvid says quietly before flinging himself against the gate again. It breaks partway free of the roof, along with the whole strip of wall. “Help me,” he tosses me my coat for padding and I shrug into it, counting to three with him and throwing my own shoulder against the wall near the corner, where it’s stubbornly holding on.

Once. Twice. Three times makes my whole arm sing, my no bruises rule falling away as I remember the stitches I haven’t dealt with as they yank and sting.

Arvid beats me to four by a half a second and the bars fall down, Arvid crashing onto them with me following a second behind, clutching my arm. Two things happen at once. First, the door starts to open, a single spearhead poking its way through the gap. Second, the wall of bars falls against the door entirely and bends under my brother and my combined weight, folding in a neat corner against the floor and jamming the door shut.

Guards start pounding at the door but I roll onto my back, head uncomfortable against the bars as I rub my shoulder. Arvid jumps up and starts pacing like a caged Rumblehorn.

“Hey, it’s ok, they can’t get in.”

“And we can’t get out,” he kicks the bars holding the door shut and I sit up slowly, “what are we going to do?”

“We’ll figure it out,” I might imagine the dragon sounds outside. Bang’s warble, Wingspark’s frantic squeal at the sight of weapons in the hands of people she doesn’t know. I don’t imagine the weapons against the door, clanging dully as unfamiliar voices rise into a familiar angry wave.

“How? The window?” He points at the tiny window, “Gods, I wish Aurelia were here. For so many reasons.” He tugs at his hair and my stomach hurts with how much I feel the same.

“I wish Fuse were here.”

“She couldn’t fit through there,” he snorts, gesturing at the bars, “not now, at least—”

“No, I mean I wish Fuse were here with some firepower.”

I definitely hear Bang now, his blast making the air in the cell blur in familiar rings of compression and speed. I see Fuse’s smoke bombs in slow motion, rolling with the blast to the corner of the room and leaking odd red smoke that I don’t recognize.

“What the—”

“Get down!” I shout at Arvid, clapping my hands over my ears as Bang blasts again.

The bombs slam into the wall and everything is loud and white and dust.

#open flames #eret iii #festerverse #arvid hofferson #feret #arvelia #two boys on a road trip without their brain cell #am I gonna make it before httyd3 #with some self loathing and lack of sleep just maybe #maybe just maybe #I'm very close

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samuraiyuvia · 6 years

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Actual brothers theory

I know damn well i ain't the only one who thought this. Tumblr peeps be theorizing faster then me 😂😂 but damn

But firstly....

OKAY.... I think this is a sort of weird marriage/ honeymoon, we are 'one' type of thing. When Sangwoo killed the 'gay club' guy, he wanted Bum to witness it. Then Bum killed the girl, Sangwoo was happy cause now their the 'same'. Throughout Sangwoos plan to kill her, he tells Bum "this is for us"

So When they killed her.....now its like a engagement/marriage.

The marriage wasn't CONSUMMATED until they got out of the police station. Sangwoo was like.. "100% sure ride to die Bumi." So they fucked, and now are official...i guess.

Now how are they Brothers?

Okay, so the whole thing is that Sangwoos mother looks like Yoonbum

Yaass gorgeous. Any who, this is a important point to keep this theory alive. We all know Sangwoo avoided killing Yoonbum because he reminds him of his mother.

In Bums flashback we also know Bum inherited all his mother's genes....

In Bum's flashback we know that his parents are dead, his uncle has custody meaning he was a minor when living with his uncle. I'm not sure of Bum's age? But I'm guessing he's a old teenager. His hair cut is the same to his flashback when he got a drink poured on him.

We also know that Bum's uncle was his mothers boyfriend...before she ditched him for his uncles tall, handsome brother ...being Bum's dad...

The uncle then quotes "she even married him, it's like she was running away from me....."

Looks back at bum and says " then to make somthing like you"...somthing like that

We know Bum is 4 or 5 years older then Sangwoo. We don't know what age was Bum his parents died?..right? It's possible his parents had him before having Sangwoo, then died. OR DID THEY DIE?

...my theory in this part is that the Dad is a prick. He didn't want his first son to be a weak small man. Since Bum is identical to his mother, his dad could probably assume that Bum wouldn't be like him.

So in the accident he abandoned Bum, probably told the Mom bum died. And since the uncle was a creep...might as well fake our death and be rid of relatives.

Somthing like that... AND WHEN SANGWOO WAS BORN...

We all know Sangwoo look like his Daddy. Sangwoo cries about not wanting to be like his dad. Maybe his Dad was superficial and conceited like Sangwoo. Adding to the point of not wanting Bum as a son, maybe.

We all know Sangwoos dad beat his mom. Maybe it's because he knows deep down he lied and abandoned their son.

This is me filling in some blanks. Not everyone will agree....

People are trying to say "maybe koogi changed her style? OR ELSE THIS WOULDN'T MAKE SENSE"

And im like ...in both flashbacks Sangwoo is a kid. It doesn't take that long to gain wieght people. The Dad was probably stressing, probably lost his job, probably gained weight n beat his wife.

Tho to me in chap. 5 Sangwoo looks a bit older. Any who...

..Back to this sexy lady

The secret. Could of been that Bum is alive. Her baby boy is living and breathing. Which could of sparked the begining of the murder of Sangwoos parents.

Did Sangwoo find out he had a brother? IDK. Personally i would say no.

But... Sangwoo is a prick..he probably like "the ceremony is incest is wincest. Bum we bros."....

Then a remembered somthing...the thing that shook me

"...cousin...you might as well should of said you were my brother..."

If koogi is foreshadowing...then this is some Game Of Thrones shit.

...now 10 years would mean Sangwoo was 11 or 12, since he's 21 or 22... According to Korea. U.S might be he was 10 or 9 depending ?

....Who knows...still some blanks....lets inspect more before completely hoping on this crazy train.

#killing stalking #oh sangwoo #yoon bum #killingstalkingchapter40 #killing stalking chapter 41 #killingstalkingchapter41 #killing stalking chapter 40 #koogi #koogi killing stalking #support koogi #ks koogi #thank you koogi #samuraiyuvia

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aggimaginary · 5 years

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The Grinch 2: Happy New Year Capter 2-Agatha Galido

Somewhere in the big universe, the Earth is one of the planets of the Solar system, and our home planet or home world. The world of the Whos is quite different from our world, the world where we lived in. The world of the Whos is probably from other solar system or other galaxy. It's like a dimension. And in Earth, in the country called Philippines, there was a woman named Agatha Galido, a.k.a Aggie.

This human girl is born with large insect-like fairy wings and is the only human around with such wings. Ever since she was a child, she was always loved by her family and relatives, but never have good friends in school because of being so different, making her feel miserable and friendless. When she was almost old enough, her father invented an interdimensional remote control that can open portals or gateways to many different worlds in the whole universe. Using this remote, Aggie made lots of friends that are different and unique species than her. Some are also humans like her, some are animals, and some are like cartoon and animated characters from TV. Some are also super heroes and magical creatures that weren't exist in Aggie's world. When she started making friends, like when she was 10 years old, Aggie created a team, called the Imaginary team, a.k.a. the I team, that can spread love and friendship in different worlds in the universe, and showed to everyone how friendship is important to everyone and everywhere. Since Aggie made almost more than 200 friends, she created groups according to the respective worlds where her friends lived. Since there are 36 groups, she also divided the whole team into three division; Main, Honorary, and Back-up. 22 groups in Main, 10 groups in Honorary, and 4 groups in Back-up. Aggie became the leader of the whole I team, despite that her teammates themselves are her mentors. Aggie and her team became the new owners the most power elements in the universe; The Elements of Friendship. Each group owned just one element. Some group shared the same element, according to which they represented. As the leader, Aggie represented the leading element: Imagination. Because of her position, Aggie have to look out for her team, and she loved them all like a family.

When she was 21, Aggie received a family heirloom that was originally owned by a dark god of the Land of the Forgotten in Mexico, and it's called a wand staff. Aggie's family heirloom was protected and kept by five families; Galido, Borra, Resano, Mondejar and Besares. Aggie belongs to these five families, with Galido (at her father's side) and Mondejar (at her mother's side) as her major families. Even before she received a wand staff with different magical powers, Aggie already developed super and magical powers from her powerful friends by giving her half of theirs, like sharing powers. The wand staff has been a magical heirloom of the five families, required with a spell book that contained the histories of the previous owners and magical spells they have written in it.

For many years that the I team kept organizing, the team had increased their status that each group was called by their respective element to fix a friendship problem that is related to their element either in their respective world or in other worlds that they never visited just yet. So, Aggie asked her dad to make more interdimensional remote controls for her friends, but it's quite impossible since the remote needed more energy and power for the remotes. Since the team has magical wishing members, like fairy godparents, Aggie wished for a interdimensional remote control for each group, and the leader/s are in-charge to hold the remote.

Since it was so many years, Agatha Galido is now 43, got married with one of her friends from another world and her third-in-command, which is was a red bird named Red, when she was 24, got three children and one egg. Ever since she has the power to transform into any form, she was an albino bird when she got pregnant with her 4th child, and laid an egg. The egg was five days old, so it won't be hatch so soon. Today, after Christmas, Aggie was having a great resting time with her team and family in their secret I team HQ under her and her parents' house. Aggie's parents are not as old as we thought, so they are still alive. They didn't mind of their daughter taking care of her team and family under their house. Aggie and only the Main division were sitting on the meeting table that shaped like a big letter 'I'.

"Wow, that was the best Christmas party ever we had last night," Lily said.

"I know! I can't wait for another party next year," Blueberry Pie jumped up in excitement.

"That's too soon, Blueberry," Cubby chuckled.

"I thought this is called 'Hearth's Warming day'" Gemstone thought.

"Christmas, Hearth's Warming, they're the same," Poof corrected.

"Everyone's always excited for Christmas, including us," Jet added.

"It's a good thing you two didn't ruin Christmas again this year," Saltor scoffed.

"Because Jet and I learned a lesson that we should respect our holiday; Halloween," Jack Skellington stated proudly.

"Well, at least you survived. I almost cried when I thought you two were dead!" Aggie cried out loid.

"You're 13 that time. You always cry," Sally Skellington reminded.

"Thank you for reminding me," Aggie replied sarcastically.

"It's quite shame that Mom, Dad, Phineaks and Israbellra didn't spend Christmas with us," Marie Flynn said.

"Yeah, neither do Uncle Flerk and Ferb," Maren Flynnto added.

"Yeah, well, your parents had to go to back to your world and to Switzerland for the award ceremony next week," Aggie explained. "And even Ferb and Flerk are still in Camp David. Those guys are very busy. At least Vanessa, Varessa, Thomas and Themas attended."

Marie sighed dreamingly, "Yeah, Thomas is so sweet."

Frantis almost barfed in disgust, "Uh, you do know you guys are cousins, right?"

"Umm, their fathers are stepbrothers. So, their not related," Tootie corrected.

"I just still don't get why Basil wasn't in a mood to celebrate Christmas," Jerry said. "Sure, he attended, but he doesn't seem to have fun with us."

"You already know detectives, like Sherlock Holmes, Basil was not in a mood for Christmas joy. He's always been like that for years," Pilair replied.

"So, any plans for New Year? We only have five days left," Skenda asked.

"We can have colorful fireworks," Roo suggested.

"Fireworks can be nice, but no fountain, no firecracker, no harmful firework stuff. They might blow your fingers," Leia warned.

"She's right. We don't want to have fireworks incident in the team, just like what happened to Aggie's neighbors last year," Chet agreed.

"Yeah, lots of fingers blew up last year," Smantha added.

"We can use my Pixie dust Snow ball Firework Shower spell. That's safe," Aggie lifted her wand staff.

"How about the candles? You know, the sparking ones and colorful flame ones." Fred Figglehorn inquired.

"As long as they don't explode," Azul was concerned.

"But, where can we celebrate?" Lola questioned.

"Grandpa Leo and Grandma Bernadette invited us upstairs," Amaranth Red raised her hand. "The backyard is so wide, so there's enough space for all of us to watch the fireworks in New Year's Eve."

"Close enough. We didn't celebrate New Year with Mr. and Mrs. Galido for a while," Blossom nodded.

"Okay, so we already know where we will celebrate and what stuff we will use, any more ideas?" Baby Bugs asked as he listed in the what-to-do list about New Year plans.

"How about a song for New Year?" Chyna got up from her chair, and then, pointed Aggie, "And Aggie will sing!"

"What? Why me?" Aggie asked.

"Come on, Aggie, you haven't sing a song every New Year for years. You only counted on us. It's your turn," Miley explained.

Aggie sighed, "Fine. I'll try my best. I'll just find a perfect song."

"Great! All we have to do is to invite the Honorary and Back-up divisions here for the New Year," Perry said.

Just then, Crimson Red noticed his mother's element on her I team ID began to glow.

"Mom! Your element! It's glowing!" He pointed out loud.

The whole Main I team heard the half-bird as Aggie looked down at her ID where she saw her element glowing and blinking.

"Sweet Celestia, Aggie!" Rarity gasped. "You were called. This means there is a friendship problem!"

"How come there could be friendship problem after Christmas and before New Year?!" Red growled.

"Everyone has problems all the time, Red. Including you before you became a hero," Stella recalled.

"Yeah. Thanks for telling me that, sis," The red angry bird rolled his eyes.

"Kowalski, Kelda, activate the map!" Skipper commanded.

The tall penguin and his adoptive guardian or wife saluted as they pushed two buttons together, and the table showed the hologram of the Earth.

"Alright then, where the friendship problem could be in my world?" Aggie looked up at the Earth hologram.

"Let's see here," Kowalski swiped the hologram of the Earth to rotate it and find a friendship problem, "So, there's no friendship problem in your world, Aggie."

"How about all of our worlds?" Captain Jake inquired.

When Dr. Blowhole and Dr. Blest typed something on the keyboards, the hologram showed a live footage of every world that the I team lived.

"Okay. The New York City and Central Park Zoo is okay. No friendship problem," said the reformed villain dolphin.

"Not even in Halloween town," Samuel checked on the footage of his and his family's home world or home town.

"The Hundred Acre woods is always peaceful," Rabbit said.

"Fairy world and Dimmsdale is fine," Timmy added.

"No monsters, crime or even quarreling happened in Townsville," Bubbles said about her world.

"Bird Island is still peaceful and happy community," Hal told them.

"Webster High and Z-tech is still good," Fletcher looked at the footage of his and his two friends' old and current schools.

"Our world is okay," Tom announced.

"So was ours, and Kat and Kit's home planet," Coop gritted his teeth, not wanting to mention his former enemy's home planet.

"Our world seems good too," Oggy said.

"So was Danville, O.W.C.A., and other countries," Pelry concluded.

"Including the 2nd dimension," Dofelia added.

"Pixie Hollow and the Winter Woods are still balance," Tinker Bell stated.

"Neverland is still clean," Skully scanned the footage of Neverland.

"Acme Acres in the future has no trouble," Petunia announced.

"Not even at our home," Baby Petunia added.

"Hollywood is still shining," Oliver made a thumb-up.

"My home town is also good," Fred Figglehorn nodded.

"No Devinos attacking in our town," Serio pointed.

"The Do-Jo and our world weren't affected by the master," Yin said.

Her brother, Yang, cleared his throat, "Umm, it's because there's no night master anymore, remember?"

"Shut up," the pink rabbit was annoyed by the blue one.

"Everything's fine all of the planets we visited years ago," Han mentioned.

"Starlight City has no trouble at all," Skidmark said.

"Equestria is also good," Twilight looked at the footage of Equestria.

"Did you guys check the worlds of the Honorary and the Back-up?" Aggie asked.

"Yeah, the chickens, the Kids Next Door, the herd of sheep, Pasadena, Transylvania, Zootopia, Mousedom, the garden gnomes in their world, Stork Mountain, and cars world are all okay and safe. No friendship problem at all," Clover Scarlet answered her mother.

"The Danger HQ, Smurf Village, the Lands of the Remembered and Forgotten, and the ocean where Marlin, Nemo and Dory lived are in peace too," Roy added.

"If none of our worlds have any friendship problems, then we have to search the whole universe," Aggie suggested as the whole team nodded in agreement.

When the hologram map extended, showing the hologram of the whole universe, there was blinking white light on another galaxy, just beside Aggie's home galaxy.

"There it is!" She pointed.

The hologram zoomed on the blinking white light, and showed a town with lots of houses.

"Wow, that's a pretty cool town," Bubs commented.

"And snowy!" Crimson Red exclaimed, then frowned that there's no snow in the Philippines, "Lucky!"

"Oh well, I think I have to go dimension travel again," Aggie stretched her hands and arms.

"You mean, right now?" Piglet inquired, "But what about the plans and New Year?"

"I'm sorry, Piglet, but this is very important." Aggie apologized. "But this is very important."

"Are you not going to celebrate New Year with us, Aunt Mom?" Rebecca made a sad face.

"Of course I'm going to celebrate with all of you guys. Don't worry. When I'm done with the friendship problem, I'll be home in no time."

"That's right, Rebecca," Ruby patted her daughter's head. "Your step-mom is going to spend New year with all of us. She does this every year."

"Thanks, Rubs. Now, I have to bring my wand staff and my interdimensional remote control." Before Aggie gathered her things, she was interrupted for a moment.

"Just a moment, sis," Joseline halted her, "It's snowy in that world and the town. You need to wear your winter clothes."

"Don't worry, I got this," With a smirk on her face, Aggie wore a gray jacket and warm gloves to prepare herself before going to that world where she was called.

"Is that all you have to wear?" Lumpy asked.

"It was never snow here in the Philippines, so this is all I've got. Don't worry. I'll warm myself when I get there." When Aggie opened the portal with her remote, she turned her wand staff into a sled.

"Since when Xibalba taught you how to turn your wand staff into a sled?" Periwinkle inquired suspiciously.

"He didn't. I made the spell myself. Hey, I'm the owner of the wand staff now, so it's my turn to create my own spell," Aggie explained to her wing sister, "Oh, that reminds me…" She grabbed a backpack, then her big spell book, and put it inside of her bag. "Can't use my wand staff without a little guidance from the spell book!"

"Are you sure you have to do this?" Red looked at his human wife in concern and worry.

"I have to, Red," Aggie answered with a sigh. "It's my duty."

Her bird husband exhaled in defeat. Red truly respected Aggie's duty. Then, he pecked her on the lips, "Just be careful out there."

"I will. Thanks," Aggie kissed him back and waved at her team and family, "Bye guys!"

"See you soon, Aggie." Bomb waved.

"Bye, Mom. I love you!" Amaranth Red did a flying kiss gesture.

"Be safe," Wands added.

Aggie waved one last time before she stepped into the portal until her body disappeared as the portal closed.

When the whole Main I team was left behind, they still felt sad for their leader and best friend that a friendship problem called her just before New Year.

"Man, this is a rough New Year for Aggie," Matilda said.

"I know. I feel bad for her, too," Screwball added, worried for her adoptive aunt.

#Crossover(s)#original character #fan-made #fanfic #the grinch 2018 #Dr Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas #Dr Suess' The Grinch #The Grinch #Deuteragonist #My little pony reference #Star vs the forces of evil reference

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haidas-anxiety · 4 years

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Ted Hughes's Winter Pollen Has Descended Upon The World

I omit my mother increasingly every day. Gerard says quite a few unkind matters approximately people that I don't like however possibly that is just her way. But on our wedding ceremony day she turned into my Cinderella. I became her prince. For the young making love is only for fun. I even have never study Charles Buckskin, William Faulkner, D.H. Lawrence, Nadine Gordimer, and J.M. Colette. I've by no means even heard of Salinger. They have all swept my eldest daughter away. Sometimes I suppose to myself will she ever be a bride? Will she ever fall in love? Feel what her dad felt as he checked out his new wife. With our married existence in advance people. A day vintage. Will a man ever take her in his palms and say, 'I love you pleasant?' But these are simply the thoughts of an old guy inside the autumn of his years. This morning I felt depressed. The world can do this to you while you're infirm. You think nothing will ever hurt you again. You're built like an impenetrable fort inside the mountains at the give up of the sector. Our marriage had promised us new beginnings. Wonderful beginnings. But now there's silence Custom Made Jewellery I cry for what I have misplaced. Not real tears. Just a sob or that wracks my frame. She's now not up to now faraway from me. The double beds are inside the identical room. Gerda is analyzing through the light from a lamp even as I search for my prescription drugs. Swallow my pills as if they were aspirin. Curbing my enthusiasm as I watch her disrobe. Looking at her now I recognize how a good deal I still love her. Let me matter the ways. Love has a sensitive scent. It manner to provide you the rituals of sacrifice, buying a residence, transferring furniture, a wife with the aid of the name of Gerda observing her mirrored image inside the replicate while she brushes the tangles out of her hair, pats her hair down, puts a stocking on and wraps a headband round her head. She is still beautiful, however no longer simply to me, to different human beings as well. I nonetheless suppose I didn't deserve her. Is she satisfied? Have I made her happy? She stayed with me for better or for the worst. I ministered to my kids. I lectured my children when it had to be achieved. To set them instantly. To set them on their life adventure. Their pilgrimage of kinds. And I took them all, my loving, boisterous circle of relatives from hell to an eternity of hell. And of direction in the wards of hell, or the wards of Valkenburg, there isn't always a whole lot of a presence of turning into indoctrinated with the aid of religion. I failed to discover Buddha once I was in Valkenburg. I failed to turn in a Brahmin. I turned into most effective brought to that a good deal later when my children were youngster-agers. Things like meditation. I did give up smoking, however not red meat. Wiping the fat off my lips. I never drank lots. I hated the stuff. I saw what it did to my own father.

Gerda is silent. In her own world, and I marvel (it isn't always for the primary time) what is she considering? Does she nevertheless love me as a lot as I love her? What I would not do to embrace her like I did the first night of our married life? I hate this loneliness that is flowering interior of me like a lotus. I need to write about what I like, what I mesmerises my all-knowing, all-seeing eyes, approximately the difficulties of married life, the first meal my spouse cooked for me as my wife, how I watched the moves of my spouse at our wedding ceremonial dinner set out in a church corridor, packed with Johannesburg human beings, and some contributors of my circle of relatives. I ought to write approximately what makes me emotional (yes, even guys get emotional, over-excited about the annihilation of evil with the aid of properly). I have to write about what makes me misty-eyed, what cuts me deep where the depths of suicidal infection awaits, watching my youngsters in Victoria Park playing whilst I watched them from afar, sitting on a park bench that turned into as soon as reserved for Whites only in a White people's park. Over weekends the park would usually be abandoned. I'd get chocolate and packets of crisps for the kids. I'd see their smiles. Their laughter and sticky fingers might carry me. Give me a buoyant mood. Perhaps you are sensing that I am no longer telling you the whole fact. There had been days once I needed to pressure myself to get away from bed. I was a man who had lots of duties. I could not just deliver in, end existence, cease family life, lie at the couch, stop taking bloodless, clean showers that restored some power, some electricity to my mind, and readability of idea, vision and self-actualisation to my insight. I couldn't escape my youngsters, I could not no longer renowned me them (their pain turned into my pain, their emotional material in time, become my emotional material in time and area, and their moments of early life depression stopped me dead in my tracks). I could not simply stop my kid's global, divorce their mom, live with out the problems of a husband, live in a bachelor pad with relative freedom, no home duties from their world, due to the fact they wanted me. My family wished me. And as I watched my small kids looking at all of the things I could not buy for them (their picks they already knew had to in shape my pocket), such things as that could soften my heart within the Greek's keep, and as they carefully made their purchases I was endlessly thankful that I had made it through any other day. I had made it thru another manic depressive episode. No greater aspirin for me. I had placed Valkenburg at the back of me. There turned into Elizabeth Donkin, and the start of lithium remedy. There become my beautiful wearing blue denims, a comfy jersey that I had visible her in usually, and a white shirt. There became my wife getting out of the auto. I was expecting her on the steps of ward F. Waiting for her perfunctory kiss at the cheek. Waiting to take a seat down in properly-worn chairs.

'How are you?'

'I've missed you.'

'I've overlooked you too. When are you coming home?'

Well, the verbal exchange could move some thing like that.

I watched her guard her eyes, looking, searching, and seeking out me. And then her discipline of imaginative and prescient modified. Her eyes met mine. And then she become locking the auto door. Making her way towards me with that day's newspaper, a variety of magazines, bottles of juices, or a fruit basket. And the depression, with its elated highs that felt so invincible, that made me sense fantastic frustration, the faith that I had that the emotions were killing me, each day could include their turning points. My coronary heart turned into suicidal melancholy's apprentice. My brain turned into its master. I put my wife on a pedestal, however did she realize it? In the beginning earlier than I become married, I concept of all women as sex objects. Did I tell her how tons I loved her? I worshiped the ground she walked on. Before her I became now not romantic. Before I met my future wife my fashion and technique of a lover turned into dry after I changed into depressed. She made me into the man I am nowadays. Throughout it all she satisfied me to pick life, discriminate loss of life. For each season there may be a mindless tragedy. In love nothing is insignificant.

'Off to the vintage age domestic with you.' She stated the other day. It broke my heart to hear her say that. We do not make love anymore. We sleep in separate beds. There's a distance between us now that I can't describe. It has no time or area. It's like a bridge. If we stayed together or maybe for so long as we've got it's far only due to the kids. Sometimes I wonder what my spouse changed into like as a child. The grief she have to have felt as a younger child after losing a sibling, a brother. But we never spoke approximately things like that. I never yearned to invite my fiancé, or new bride anything that might make her sense uncomfortable. In her eyes, I desired to be give her simplest top recollections. I desired to make her forget about about the ache of her early life the way she made me neglect approximately my very own painful childhood. How I became bullied, terrorised at the playground, teased, called names.

As a toddler I become a watcher, a dreamer. I changed into constantly in love with books. With self-getting to know. With coaching myself new matters about the world around me. Life revel in. That's what White human beings referred to as it. White human beings had motors. White humans sold. White human beings had been business minded specialists. When I became a child I fell in love with training. Maybe that is after I became a instructor. In adolescence. I had an unquiet mind. I still do. There are a whole lot of rituals when I visit church on Sunday morning. There's the breaking of bread and Holy Communion. It's now not actual wine of course. It's simply grape juice. I'm a modified man after I go away the church (less depressed. I feel less lonely. I do not know why this is. Maybe is has to with the biochemistry of the brain, or social sports, being involved in some thing although it is as mundane as going to church). And the bread is not the thin wafers we used to get on the Union Congregational Church that the youngsters looked at so longingly of their innocent hearts with that angelic shine on their faces. My wife and I could bite into the wafers. With that one bite the body of Christ become now a part of our spirit, our soul awareness, our physical our bodies. Abigail could not take into account that she needed to be confirmed earlier than she could partake of the body of Christ and the consuming of grape juice. She advised me that we (it become always we despite the fact that I turned into the one in the back of the steerage wheel of the auto) road past Mrs Turner in the road, and that even though Mrs Turner (Abigail referred to as her Mrs Turnip at the back of her lower back after that day) saw us, need to have regarded our car she did not wave lower back. Well her body is all weirdly fashioned like a turnip was Abigail's concept and I instructed her that is what befell to people as they got older. Everything bodily modified and on occasion they commenced to forget matters too like their manners (etiquette to Abigail).

I just smiled after which I laughed and stated, 'Really? Maybe she didn't see us.'

'Daddy, really? Are you certain? She looked right at me and I waved and I waved and I waved and she nevertheless didn't wave back.'

I couldn't inform her this then. She turned into too young. An innocent. They should harm me, however I would no longer allow them to hurt my children.

The following 12 months we started out going to Pearson Congregational Church which was located in Central. Everyone who went there has been White. You love your youngsters. You without a doubt do whether they have got carried out some thing precise or horrific. You're the one individual within the international they are able to to after they want something. If they ask you for cash you bend down and you inform them to select the money off the money tree. You tell them that you love them because that is the treatment for the whole lot. When they may be sick you nurse them back to health. When it's their birthday you buy them a cake, provides wrapped in brightly coloured paper, blow up balloons, and also you give them a celebration and invite all the neighbourhood. You provide them a hug once they it the most even if they are at their most rebellious nature. Shower them with fatherly subject whilst giving recommendation. It's also your honour, and privilege to offer day by day inspiration from a verse in the Bible, to high school initiatives. But after they get depressed of course you worry for them. You have discussions in the back of a closed bed room door within the nighttime that go and cross on until the early hours of the morning and you observed back to when you had been in high faculty. I become from a distinct technology. The extra matters alternate the greater they live the same. Isn't that what the adage says? Should all of us cross and speak to someone like a family counsellor, a therapist. Gerda was usually the only who become two steps in advance of me. She didn't pop out and say it or tell me what she turned into thinking. She took Abigail when she turned into barely out of her teens to a psychiatrist who studied in Vienna. He had wild hair like Einstein. She have been prepared for an eventuality of this value. She become the one who had been organized. Not me. And there was part of me that felt like a failure. I were absolutely blindsided. I had now not seen the diagnosis coming. Not from a mile away. My beautiful, darling daughter. My darling, darling daughter was a manic depressive much like me. Bipolar. Bipolar. Bipolar. I was struck dumb. Speechless. What may want to I say? How ought to I comfort her?

She hated college. She hated each minute every 2nd of it. A monumental waste of her time it became she said. She already knew that everything she changed into being taught got here out of a textbook that supported the reason of a colonial grasp. That supported a White motive. A liberal's troubles. Not hers through a protracted shot. We needed to do a whole lot of speakme, and listening, and the having of extra conversations in the back of a closed bed room door at night time to try to persuade her to live in faculty. They were masses of tears. Everybody cried. There were arguments. There had been instances when she stayed with her aunt in Johannesburg and we'd be underneath the false impression that now the entirety could be all proper once more in her world. We had goals for me. She became brought up with norms and values. And we failed to, could not simply let her throw her lifestyles away like that. Somehow, somewhere whilst she become fifteen years old she had written away to The London Film School. 'So she wants to run away to London now.' Gerda sighed. She wore a perplexed look on her face, chewing her backside lip in pensive mode. I notion back to Abigail's last phrases of the communique the 3 folks had, mother, father, with their rebellious, fiercely clever, notably temperamental daughter. 'I hate you.' She almost spat. 'You're killing me. If I stay right here I'll die. You'll see. I'll display all of you. I'll kill myself if I do not visit film college. I want to go to London.'

Gerda had greater intuition, information and insight into how ladies thought and bonded and at the hours of darkness she bloomed. Her face pale in the moonlight, with aquiline features that her daughter Abigail had inherited from her however no longer her tennis legs or her mom's love for that recreation. I could not make out her face but I knew it changed into shining full of affection for me, and for our daughter. All 3 of our children had been conceived in love.

'Where will she stay? Where will she sleep? What will she devour each day for breakfast, lunch, and supper? Is she drowsing now I marvel? She just sits glued in front of that tv all hours of the day and night time. Ambrose inform me, what do you watched I need to do? We? Us? She'll never be widespread. I read that tale. It's terrible. But if I say that to her it'll damage her coronary heart. She's fifteen taking place sixteen.' Back and forth my flashbacks goes. Presently we are right here. The house is quiet haunted by ghosts from the past. Stephen. Jean. Magdalene. My mother and father. Gerda's own dad and mom surpassed away while Abigail turned into nonetheless a infant. Baby Ethan is sleeping soundly among his parents on their double mattress. He is a real busybody. He best has eyes for his mom Already he has two milk teeth which has anybody in a frenzy inside the household.

I want sometimes that I had listened extra, praised her cooking skills (even though she burnt the pots more times than I should maintain track of), given extra attention to my spouse. Had no longer dealt with her like I had handled all the ladies in my lifestyles. Indentured slave women best there to make me tea, be my secretary, flirt with. Women who could stroke my ego given the danger. She had given me the entirety of herself that she may want to as a wife, but I had no longer been absolutely open with her. Only on reflection after I look again on the activities of the beyond decade and that they fashioned all 3 of our kids's futures did I see how egocentric and arrogant I had been. I had not come smooth. Pharmaceuticals can not wash away sins. With my silence I had passed down three lifestyles sentences. I want I had achieved some thing. Said anything to console my spouse it'd be twenty years until we got our daughter returned. Have I made Gerda satisfied, and what about my kids, are they satisfied? Are they successful? Have my children fulfilled all their childhood goals? People exchange from one generation to the following. That's the factor with humans, milestones and events. They are usually changing, and yet constantly staying the identical. I concept I would be my daughter's anchor in that second like my mom have been in mine.

'Fine. If you need to head then leave. We won't stand to your manner if that is going to make you glad.' I stated with my eyes assembly the floor we covered in carpet.

I failed to want her to see the dejection in my eyes. I would omit her laughter, our talks, heated discussions, and debates. Mostly I would omit her presence. But she changed into depressed. She hated school. She had carried out very badly in the tests. Magdalene become still alive then. So Swaziland it turned into then for O and A levels after which The London Film School this is if she ought to get a British Council scholarship if she become lucky.

My mom have been my anchor for the duration of my depressive episodes. The crushing highs that took me to the wuthering heights of Rhodes and London and the numbing, frustrating lows that took me to my mattress. Sometimes I could simply lay on the bed still in my fit.My body become not sore, did not experience tired, my eyes had been burning, but sleep could now not come, handiest a numb sensation starting from the top of me head that could make its way all the way down to the guidelines of my feet. Every parent desires to protect their infant, once in a while guard them from the entirety. The world isn't always all awful. Tomorrow isn't going to be all doom and gloom like today become. There are desirable human beings in this world who are simply as affected by sickness, continual contamination, cancers, diseases

Madness? Madness! What is madness? What a query! Do humans query John Nash? Do they call him mad, insane, tell him that he is weird? Do they query this genius's sanity, his intelligence, or do they just write him off as stressed out otherwise from the rest of the human race. Is he an anomaly? One nighttime my youngsters came to me. My son looked at me. Tall, darkish, and good-looking, one might be forgiven for questioning his introversion is conceitedness he stated, 'Dad. It's time in an effort to sit down down and write your tale. Write your memoir. Write your autobiography if you may.' To tell you the truth it's been years now, almost 3. I can't sincerely don't forget if that communication ever passed off. I cannot consider who said what, when, the how I become going to head about it. I actually have written approximately depression. I actually have written about mental fitness. I have written books. South End. The aftermath of the forced removals. To be honest with you human beings didn't stand in line for me sign that book. My guess that that become a signal. A sign from God. I paid attention. I listened. And I grew to become my attentions elsewhere to committee conferences, studying the newspapers. People simply failed to like me to talk approximately apartheid. That e-book quietly disappeared, and went out of print. People simply were not into that vibe. The book wasn't giving off suitable vibrations so human beings were not turning up to buy that ebook. But out of the whole lot that I have written thus far that book is my favourite. I have written about melancholy earlier than from a victim's perspective, and that little e book grew to become out to be an tremendous little bit of loose cannon, then a diamond in the tough, after which a little gem of a book.

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dgarski · 4 years

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This Journey (Part XCVI)

A brother passes

I've been putting this off for several days, mostly because I am still in shock. I've been wanting to write about Mike, but a few things have kept me from having a chance to really sit down and think about what I want to say. Now that I have the time. I would like to start off with how much I still cannot believe that he is really gone. Like so much of the past year and a half, this too, feels like a really bad dream. I know that the best therapy for me is to both talk about things and write about them. So, I will try to be short-winded and brief. However, I will be starting from the very beginning so, "being brief", may prove to be an exercise in futility. That's okay, it's my blog and I can indulge as much as I wish.

Way, way back about 50 years ago, my younger brother and I met two kids who lived down the block from our house. Mark and Andy were also brothers who were the same age as my brother and I. We became friends and rode our bikes around the neighborhood, played basketball in their parents driveway, played hide and go seek...all the fun stuff kids did back then. I don't remember how old any of us were at the time, but Mark and Andy's two cousin's, Mike and Joe, were over to visit. It was the only time I can remember meeting them when we were all really young kids. Fast-forward about 8 or 9 years. Mark and I had become closer friends, because he and I started taking guitar lessons at the same time, way back in 1976. By the end of the 1970's, I had also become friends with another kid down the other block. A kid by the name of Curt. Well, by the time we were around 14, 15, 16 years old, Mark, Curt and I were inseparable. The three-musketeers, as it were. We did everything together. We spent a lot of time at Curt's house. It was a huge house and he had the entire upstairs to himself. So, we did a lot of sleepovers back then. We'd be up until late, eating snacks, drinking soda and talking on the CB radio, all night. Each of us had paper routes, so we always had money burning holes in our pockets.

By the time we were out of high school, many things had changed about our priorities as friends. This was mostly due to us chasing girls. We were driving, working jobs and trying to figure out how to have fun in a very boring town. Drinking alcohol seemed to be the answer to everything. Mark and Curt both took up smoking. I couldn't handle the coughing part, so I never really liked smoking anything. In 1983, Curt's older brother Peter died. This understandably devastated Curt and his family. Curt sort of became a little recluse. Mark and I tried to be there for him as much as we could. He was really messed up about Pete dying so suddenly. Mark and I hung out with him and tried to take his mind off of his loss. Mark's family has always had this annual tradition of camping up in Door County, Wisconsin every summer. Well, this was going to be the first time he and his two cousins were going to go by themselves without parents. Mark suggested that Curt and I go along for the trip. I was absolutely up for it. He was reluctant at first, and it took some doing, but we finally talked Curt into going too. This would turn out to be our first trip of many, to D.C. Mark, Mike and I rode our motorcycles while Curt and Joe took Curt's moms' car with all of our stuff.

Mike and Joe's parents had been up the week before us, and had left the camper at the site, for us to use when we got up there. I had only ever been up to northern Wisconsin, with my own family. The only difference was, we usually stayed in a cabin. I never really did the tent in the woods thing, and neither had Curt. In fact, Curt had never been camping in his life. It would be a brand new experience for him, and it proved to be just what he needed to deal with the death of his only brother. For the next several years, the camping trip became our annual thing. We all looked forward to it, all winter long. In 1984, I purchased a brand new, very fast motorcycle. Joe had also gotten a new bike too. Mike bought a ski boat, and we were about to add two new members, Jim and Chad, to the Door County alumni group. Joe and I decided that we would ride our new bikes up to D.C., Mike would pull his new boat and Jim would pull the camper with his old man's truck. Seven guys, one camper, one tent and a week to ten days to try to not kill one another. The next few years camping, were unique in their experiences. We met four girls from Green Bay in 1985. We kept in touch with them for a long time. Then in 1986, we met two more girls from Illinois. Every year brought a whole new meaning to camping. Throughout all of this time during the 1980′s, Mike, Mark, Jim, Curt and I went out a lot to clubs and venues in both Milwaukee and Kenosha. Curt became a bartender at his Uncle's restaurant. Mike and I used to drive down there to sit at the bar and wait for Curt to get done with his shift so we could go to another bar nearby, and shoot pool. Mark was in a relationship with his girlfriend and playing guitar in his band. Mike was doing pizza deliveries while he was going to college with Curt and Jim. I was working at the local bakery, six nights a week, and had very sparse socializing opportunities. Whatever fun I was going to have, was going to have to happen on a Saturday night, or not happen at all. Sometimes, Mike and Mark would come over to my apartment, and we’d have a few beers and watch a movie.

In 1988, everything changed. Mark and I moved to Orlando, Florida and left everything and everyone we knew, behind. We both desperately needed to start new lives. Curt, Mike, Jim and Joe had a difficult time with Mark and I leaving all we had ever known, to start over in a town 1250 miles away. A few times, they would come to visit with us, and other times, Mark and I went up to Wisconsin to see all of them. By the early-mid 1990's, the trips were few and far between. We had all been separated for a long time, and had all grown apart. We all moved on with our lives as adults. We weren't kids anymore. We had all established our own lives away from each other. Some got married and divorced, some had kids, some bought houses, some ended up with great paying jobs, and some didn't. Regardless, the original brotherhood remained. Time has a way of reminding us that the only thing permanent is change. We all did the best we could with what we had.

By the time we all entered our 40's, the only thing we all really had left in common, was our history together. This sometimes proved to not be enough. We had all changed so much that any sort of visits were brief and relatively insignificant. I went back to Wisconsin a few times for Christmas. Mark did his own trips back to Racine, as well. Everyone had long since changed into completely different people. I flew back to Wisconsin in 1998, to go on the annual trip up to Door County. Unfortunately, it wasn't very much fun for me. Too much had changed and it would end up being the last time I would go camping with those guys. In 2004, Mike flew down to Florida for a business trip. He, Mark and I got together and went out to dinner and shot some pool. Mark was dealing with a lot of domestic issues in his marriage which would eventually end up in a really bad divorce. He and I would hang out a few times and I would try to be there for him while he was going through his divorce.

In 2009, Mike flew down to Florida again, for another business trip. He drove over from his meeting in Tampa to stay at my apartment. Mark came over and spent the night as well. This would prove to be the last time the three of us would be together. In early 2014, I lost touch with Mark. He disappeared off the radar. We're now all in our 50's. None of us are who we were, even a few years ago. So, much had changed over the years..and as much as we all tried reliving those leftover fragments of our youth, it just wasn't going to happen, effortlessly.

March 6, 2019, I have my collapse. I ended up back in Wisconsin to recover and heal at my parents house. One night, I got a text from Mike, asking me if I wanted he and Joe and Curt to pick me up to go get pizza. I agreed. They drove up and got out of the car, came up to me and each of them embraced me as their brother. They knew that I had almost died. I think it really shook them. The four of us went to the pizza place we had gone to a million times before. They asked me a lot of questions about my health and what I had been through. We sat and ate and talked for about two hours. We finished up with our pizza and headed out the door. We pulled up at my parents house and they let me out. This would be the last time I would ever see Mike.

I made it back home to Orlando, last January. I hadn't stayed in touch with any of those guys. We had all gone our separate ways, once again. Here it is, a few months later, and I am slowly getting my life back together. Then last Friday, while I was at work, I saw a Facebook post from one of the girls (Lori), we'd all known from camping, since 1983. It was the first time I would read about Mike being killed in an accident. I couldn't really absorb what I was reading. It had to be a mistake. I messaged Lori and asked her what had happened to Mike, She assumed that I already knew that he had died two days earlier. I, of course, had no idea Mike was dead.

Mike is gone. It still seems like a bad dream to me. It just doesn't seem real. I haven't talked with Curt or anyone from the original gang, yet. I still don't know what happened to Mike. How he was killed. All I know is that it was a vehicle versus bicycle accident. Mike's obituary finally made it to the Internet yesterday. His funeral is this coming Sunday afternoon. I won't be going up there for the ceremony. I really feel badly for Mark. He lost his other cousin, Jim, back on April 24th. Now, he's lost another cousin, only a few days ago.

It is so hard to believe that Mike is gone. He did everything right. He went to college, got a good job, got married, lived in a really nice house, built an old motorcycle, drove out to Colorado on motorcycles, with his brother Joe, and lived a comfortable life. He had everything going for him. A bright future and retirement with his wife, Beverly. Then this tragedy ended his life. Not to sound too self-indulgent, but I can't help but wonder about life and death. Last year, I almost died and I lived. This year, Mike died. There is no rhyme or reason to any of it. We're here and then we're gone. Just like that. Poof, you're gone.

I will always remember Mike as a very smart, very funny guy. I will miss him, just like I miss all of those guys and the lives of our youth. Rest in Peace, Mike.

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iammarylastar · 7 years

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Here you go! Final chapter! 11. McClanes. Jack throws his CIA badge on McKay's desk. "I'm done McKay. I quit." "What? You can't do that! You're one of our best man here!" Chief McKay whimpers. "Your best man is tired of this job. I've been shot, hit, stabbed, threatened to death, punched and kicked enough for a lifetime. And I'm mandated by my wife for giving you her resignation as well." He slams a handwritten letter under his nose. "Your wife? You and Shade got married?" McKay ticks. He thinks he would count among the guests. "She was supposed to marry me 5 years ago. I won't wait another minute before making her mine. She almost died, chief, I could have lost her and Anna. I have a family now, I can't jeopardize it for some motherfuckers." He hands McKay a wedding invitation. "Shade insisted to have you with us. Next month. No excuses accepted." "Fuck. You almost made me cry McClane. My two whiz kids of the intelligence let me down and get married . What would happen to people of L.A. without you?" "They will survive. Mostly because John McClane is going back to New York and we're moving with him." Jack can't help but smile. New York. New life. New start. Shade made it just to testify at trial and thanks to her proofs and bruises, Varela and his minions got a one way ticket to the maximum security wing of Santa Anna jail. Anna. Jack's heart stops at the reminding. He ran in the debris in fire, the safe house was nothing safe nor house. No roof, no walls, nothing left. Only dust of his so short happy life. Anna. Where was she? Jack was not ready to face the death of his daughter, he had known her existence for less than a week, but had fallen in love instantly. John was right she looked like him so much. He loved the sound of her laugh, the glitter in her blue eyes, the scent of her hair warmed by the sun. The softness of her skin, her fingers running through his stubble, her lips pecking his cheek. But it was gone. She was gone. He couldn't wander in the destroyed basement anymore, there were only jagged wooden pieces, fishing stuff and an old shredded couch. And a reversed bark; he planned to bring Anna for a boat ride that day. Jack fell on ̂his knees. Shade had been shot but she was strong, with John taking care of her bleeding, she would surely make it. But Anna. She was young and innocent, fragile and defenceless. He was the one supposed to take care of her, protect her. He was the professional hired for her safety. He failed. Miserabily. Unforgivably. He slammed his palms on his face, scratching his skin with ferocity. He wished he was dead instead of her. His little princess. Images of her shiny face and laughs flashed before his eyes, he burst into tears. Cries. Useless cries. He could have saved her life if he had acted like a pro. Prostrate, devastated he bent down and let his rage and regrets scream out. His hand landed on something fluffy and soft. Anna's bunny. John bought her the stuffed animal during their trip to the safe house and Anna and Bunny became inseparable. Jack grabbed the toy and crushed it on his chest. The last souvenir of his daughter. His eyes glanced at the spot where he found the bunny and tried to focus despite the river of tears. Under the rim of the boat, a tiny hand. Dirty and grey. A finger moved. Jack jumped forward and threw the boat over with all the force he had left. Anna. A petrified, trembling girl laid there. Alive. "Dad." The little girl whispered. "Are the bad guys gone? Mom told me to stay hidden and grand pa showed me that hole. The better hole of the house he said." Jack rushed to her on all four and caught her, wrapping his own flesh and blood in his arms. "Anna! Baby... my baby..." he couldn't stop crying, laughing, kissing and stroking his daughter altogether. "You won. The bad guys are gone. They couldn't find you so they left. You won baby." "John!" he screamed. "John! I got her! She's safe! " All his forces left him. He kept cuddling Anna, rocking her back and forth on his lap. And stayed glued to her until the cops arrived. They made the healthy decision to leave Los Angeles to protect her. Jack and John killed most of Varela's henchmen but they'd rather be twice careful, to avoid any retaliation. Shade already planned to open a yoga and kravmaga center. The Yin and the Yang in the same woman. She could both soothe your pain or kick your ass. She's fantastic. "New York? OK. Let me warn the N.Y.P.D. about that bad news. " Chief McKay fakes to make a phone call. "See you next month. Without fail." Jack says, leaving. "I warned you McClane! What have you got yourself into? No hanky panky during the mission!" McKay shouts for Jack to hear. "What had I in mind?" He whispers to himself. "McClanes never give a shit to orders." * It didn't last long before Jack and Shade got married. A few weeks, time for Shade to recover from her surgery and bruises. Molly nearly choked when hearing the unexpected news. She was a granny. Jack was going to marry the love of his life, a woman whom she had heard the name once or twice but never had met. Jack, Shade and Anna, and that asshole of an ex John were her fucking family and everybody could have died while she was having a scalp massage and a manicure. Lucy jumped up and down, clapping her hands, singing on the top of the roofs "I'm an aunt! I'm a fucking aunt!", then blaming her brother to have had an interesting father-and-son week-end while hers had been boring and uneventful. They grew to know each other, mostly at the hospital during Shade's recovery. Jack took residence in her room, at the ICU first, then at the viceral surgery wing, finally in rehab, the bullet in her shoulder had made more damages than expected. He didn't give a fuck where she was transferred and followed, calling Shade his home. Anna was so happy to spend time with her new aunt and granny, but always asked to stay with her parents. Everyone agreed she could skip the last month of school, Anna in first place. "I already know everything there is to know at school. All I need to know now is my Dad, and he needs me to show him what to do." She stated. "And mom needs someone to keep Jack from being all over her all day long. She needs her rest! " the little girl scolded her father, hilarity ensued. Molly and Lucy had some girl chats with Shade, while the guys had a walk outside with Anna, laughing at Jack and his stupidity and cowardness, blaming the McClanes for their lack of common sense when it was about love. Mrs and Miss McClane are now all scrubbed up, overstressed and over excited, running here and there, checking the food , the music, the flowers, the chairs, the cake, their hair and make-up. As perfect hostesses, they're welcoming and chatting with the numerous guests, mostly cops and MacClane's relatives. Shade's guests are reduced to chief McKay, Anna's nanny Kendra, two moms from Anna's school, and few friends from her yoga class. Jack insisted on a reluctant Shade to call her family, arguing that if the MacClanes could have done it, her broken parents could follow. Shade gave a call, Jack by her side. "Hello? Mr Johnson?" She asked when a tough hoarse voice answered. "He's dead. What do you want." The tone was rough at the end of the line. "Mom? " Shade hesitated, thrown into the nightmare that her childhood had been. "It's Shade..." "Shade who? " the voice coldly said. Shade dropped the phone and stayed stone-faced until Jack wrapped his strong arms around her and said it was ok. Shade then, let go all the tears and sorrow she had been holding back for so long. She left the house at 15, and ran to save her life and her virginity. Her father started to find the curves of her hips and boobs tasty and his touch changed. She'd rather liked when his fists took her as a punching ball. Jack wrapped her in a warm and safe embrace, hugging and rocking her, so sorry to have forced her in this mess. He had become addicted to hugs, particularly with Anna, and practiced his new skill on the two women of his life as often as he could. Jack and Shade planned the simplest wedding ever. None of them really cared, being finally united as husband and wife was all that mattered. If it was up to them, they would have opted for the quickest ceremony, no guests but John, Molly and Lucy, Anna running around and twirling in her beautiful dress. Jack even proposed to skip the wedding and jump directly to the honeymoon. Molly pulled Jack's ear and scolded him, no way she'd wed his son like this; she had to marry him with pomp and ceremony. Shade laughed heartily and agreed to all Molly and Lucy proposed, on one condition that they took care of everything and leave them alone. Jack had only one request. The gifts Jack had imagined and designed for that special day lay on the central table, beautifully arranged around a wedding picture of Shade and Jack saying: "Boo and Cupcake". Cupcakes with tiny koala bears on top, boomerang tied on their backs. Shade hated the caption but found the idea so cute. "John McClane Junior!" Jack hears from behind. Turning around he's met with an all scrubbed up John Senior, a large smile spread on his face. "Dad! You look fucking dapper! You're not late, nor burned or bruised, that's amazing!" Father and son open their arms and share a big, male hug, patting the other's back like to make a hole in their suit. "Grandpa!" Anna rushes then jumps on John as he opens his arms to welcome the little girl. "Anna you look gorgeous! What's that beautiful dress you're wearing? And you tied up your hair? You look so wise with a ponytail." John walks away, chitchatting wedding gown, make up and little ponies with his granddaughter. Shade radiates, her long hair cascading around her shiny face, too happy about this day to bother to get things ready. Who would care? She's about to marry her lover, her saviour, the father of her child. Jack comes behind her and wraps his arms around her waist, catching her hands and intertwining their fingers together. "Ain't the groom supposed to not see his bride before the wedding?" Shade leans her head back on his shoulder. Jack chuckles and whispers in her ear: "Ain't the bride supposed not to sneak into the groom's room and give him the best sex he ever had?" Both sigh at the memory of Jack, up to his knees behind Shade, thrusting slowly inside her, one hand gripped on her breast while the other rubbed her soaked pussy, guided by Shade's hands and moans. Her sweaty back leaning on his hairy chest, his teeth grazing her shoulder, he fought not to bite her soft flesh; leaving visible marks on her would have been noticed by all the guests. "Dear husband, more remains to be done during our honeymoon..." she teases him, lightly wiggling her ass against his hip. They stay in a comfortable silence for a while, lost in their own thoughts. "How are you Honey?" Jack asks. "Fine! I can't wait to marry you. I'm still waiting for some troubles to happen. But with all those McClanes around, I'm pretty confident everything's gonna be under control." She laughs. "Are you sure you're OK? I called you Honey and you didn't punch me or point a loaded gun on my face." Jack nuzzles his face in the crook of her neck, and pulls her closer. "You did? Maybe I'm getting dumb by love. I love you Mr. McClane." She purrs. "I love you Mrs. McClane." Jack whispers in her ear before capturing her lips. Pulling back, Shade takes her husband-to-be's hands and gently lays them on her stomach. "Actually I'm known as McClanes." Jack flips her to face him, his eyebrows quirked in surprise. "Are you...? But.. " "How could have this happened? Jack, we fucked like rabbits." She laughs at his stupidly blessed mug. He laughs out loud, hugging his so romantic wife-to-be . She is awesome. "Yeah... I second that. I'm just so proud of my ability to knock you up so fast." He shows off. "This little one is already a McClane. Stubborn and unbreakable enough to survive a shot and a surgery." Shade has been used to the strong personalities of the clan. "So boy or girl? What do you want?" "I really hope it's a girl. I don't think the world could handle one more John McClane." She laughs before moulding her mouth to Jack's. The ceremony was beautiful. None gave attention to the pastor's shit. All the eyes were focused on the pair of lovers. Nothing mattered. Fuck the 20000 $ wedding gown, fuck the wedding pic on the beach, fuck the first dance on Sinatra's "Fly me to the moon" -they finally have opted for "I got you under my skin" as their first dance song, way more appropriate-. Nothing mattered but the two of them. Jack and Shade were lost in each other's stare. Their hands firmly intertwined, so close their noses almost touching , their lungs breathing the same air. They barely heard the pastor say the words, he had to ask the question twice and cleared his throat to have the couple back to the world. Shade said 'I do'. Jack said 'fuck yeah I do.' and attacked the lips of his newly wed. "By the power vested in me by the state of California, I pronounce you husband and wife. You may..." the pastor glanced at the couple still busy in a passionate kiss. "You're already kissing the bride." In their back, John took Molly's hand and brushed the tears from her eyes and shouted: "Yippi-kay-yay kids!" @kenzieam @pathybo @frecklefaceb @oddsnendsfanfics @badassbaker @beltz2016 @captstefanbrandt (for later) @bookwarm85 @red-diary @angelswannawearmyredshooz @singingpeople @beautifulramblingbrains @liendre50 @lunaschild2016 @jaihardy @jaicourtneyseyes @jojuarez26

#jack mcclane #live and die hard #11 #McClanes #Jack and Shade

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inexchangeforyoursoul · 6 years

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I’ve had some dreams since the new year started so I better write ‘em up before I forget :P

In the first one (that was also on the first I think) I had some kind of small computer on me... kinda shaped like that Rotom pokédex. Anyway, it detected errors of some kind? Or plot holes in a script maybe? It was black and the also dark display had green text appear on it. That’s all I can remember tho.... #debugging2018

Then there was a scene in our yard; dunno about the details anymore, but the cherry tree in it died and you could pull the bark and inner parts apart like.... hmmm... like bone marrow and bone, is the best comparison I have. I also caught two lizards in our garden, it might have been part of this dream. The second one glittered all golden, and once I held it and looked at it, it had about 6-8 small fins instead of legs on its sides! Was really pretty. I released it afterwards.

Then there was some dream where the only detail I remember was that mom already died, like, probably way back. I think that’s about all there is to it by now... actually, no, I also remember travelling around my old dormitory in Budapest in that one. It’s late fall or winter, I’m at a bus stop at one point.

Then I was late for my, uh... degree awarding ceremony once. (Is that what you call it? I’m a few months early to worry about that lmao, anyway, that dream is from the 4th, before I traveled up to take 2 exams.) I’m positive I was in the dream iteration of the hill with the many vinyards around my father’s place. Which means it looked much more pleasant than it is. I’m p sure my subconscious is molding it together with my short time on my grandpa’s plot, where you could actually see a lot of various flowers planted around. It was oddly close to where I was supposed to go in town, and there were trams. Obviously, I took the wrong one. The settlement looked more like my home town, however, the street was a lot like Sycamore Row with the plants it was named after. I eventually did reach the building, it kinda was a mix of the place we went to for St. Nicholas’ day and my elementary school, there even were those low benches that had seen a lot of wear. Before I could actually catch up to the others after changing(?), I woke.

Then, two days ago on the 7th, I was dreaming of some Egyptian tomb, at least that’s where my memories start... someone killed a dude, and another vaguely pyramid head looking guy got gutted with a longish knife. After the killer hid the stuff happening bahind a blanket, for some reason. The staircase behind them however was already school building-y, and the scene turned into the university building I’m in a lot nowadays. Turning back and removing the blanket, the guy himself is gome and the guts are all shriveled up; there’s a small machine attached to one of the organs, like... a way too oversized pacemaker. That looks like a transformator tbh. Anyway, next thing I know some of me fellow students are there, the first one of them is Adam, and for whatever fucking reason the things on the floor are “his”, and he’s slowly dying on me because his heart stopped and his organs don1t het oxygen anymore. He starts turning purple and all that; spots on his hands and around his mouth, then there’s a cartoony deadness-level also appearing on his head, slowly crawlying up his face. As is customary in dreams, you turn around once and he’s another person, this time Matthew, another student. It was fine watching him/them die and just talk about shit until the friends of his arrived who were all emotional and shit and dream-me caught up tobeing like that soon enough, too. It’s all as if he would have died soon anyway, because he has two sweaters, one for greeting 2018 alive, and one for 2019. (wow I jsut realized how close 2020 is... geez). Anyway, then the next and last thing is that me and the girls are miffed about the staff removing the fuckign coffee machine. (Let’s be honest, the whiplash here is hilarious.)

And today on the 9th... it was a brief one... I remember walking around in the dark, talking to some kids about ghosts and such... then I walk into a house. I’m a maid or something? Maybe? Either way, apart from the one room I start in, everything is fucking dark and creepy, only the lights from outside show the way... you can basically feel the amnesia dude on your back all the time. And all the walls are covered in switches that don’t work. Like, fuck me, right? Needle in the haystack... then the owner dude arrives, and I look for a toilet. Guess I had to go already irl, anyway, there are none and I walk out of the building to some park that also has none. The place has small-ish buildings themed from all around the world, I remember a castle and a Japanese pagoda + shop. It was Japanese because there were geishas painted on it, okay? Okay. Anyway, I make my way back through the street and my system doesn’t really keep any other info, I wake up shortly.

(The street view itself reminds me of another dream I had, from around summer... it was Christmas at a university that I positively never attended before. There was some kind of gifting among the students near the enthrance inside, and a big-ass tree next to the staircase. I go outside; it’s already dark in a big, dirty city and there's snow. I walk along the street, looking for someone. There’s a bridge I cannot cross. The sun rises with some orange-ish hues beyond the bridge and the city centre, it’s relatively cloudy.)

(The previous one also made me remember another recent dream, from last year. I was with, like, a class, but the teachers were the uni professors. We walk deeper and deeper inside in a wannabe-tournament, kind of like the running race from Boku no Hero. I get a regular old gun for hunting with who knows what kind of bullets to shoot at anyone when I come in among the first people in one stage of the race. The gun doesn’t work and I give it back to the dude who handed it to me; I go after them and enter a very Bloodborne-y part of the building. It looks like underground stables, I think thre’s also cows. Since I see noone, I decide to go back and I run into Jeb, our American teach. He leads me to an elevator to lead me out, but does not join me and just sends it down instead of up. As the thing opens a lot of people try to get in; they press some floor up, but the thing goes down again. The mild panic of the people gets contagious at this point ngl- everyone is obviously trying to get up. The next stop is some elementary school place- I follow a teacher to show us the way, but it’s just a dumb joke she draws on the chalkboard. I laugh and get back to the elevator, but take the stairs next to it instead, because fuck this, and I’m gonna get so fucking fit anyways. Except it only takes one floor to get back... I’m at the main entrance with the receptionist. Turns out the entire fucking building is, like, cursed or haunted or whatever. Jeb was just some ghost or something taking up his appearance, and the panicking people around the elevator are more lost students who have been erring around since god knows when. I see the worried professors sitting around near an office and ask them for how long we’ve been gone. Idk what they answer tbh... after a bit more erring around trying to fix things I wake up.)

#names are ~englishized~ where necessary lmao #Kate has dreams

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dontbeallupinmyfriesdawg · 7 years

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Ooh I've got a cute idea. What about a little reunion between Caroline, Bonnie, Elena, Tyler and Matt, a few years after TVD and they're all alive and happy and talk about their relationships (KC, KB, Stelena back together, Liz is revived and Matt can either be with Bekah or a human OC). Elena could be a writer and someone could be engaged... I just want all my babies to be safe and happy and for my ships to live.

A/N: A thousand apologies to the person who sent me this prompt ages ago. This is pure and beautiful and I’m honoured you sent it to me. I’ve just had so many exams and I only got around to writing this. I hope I’ve done your vision justice.

*For argument’s sake were gonna say that Klaus didn’t kill Tyler’s mom. Just the hybrids.

Thank you @purestheartslove for being my beta.

“I’m so glad you guys could make it!” Caroline exclaimed happily, nearly over-pouring Tyler’s glass of champagne in her excitement.

“Well your invitation was both heartwarming and semi-threatening so it wasn’t like we could say no,” Tyler teased, earning him a half glare from Caroline.

“All that matters is that you’re here,” she chided him. Raising her voice over the buzz of chatter in the living room. “Not my methods,”

“‘Car’s parked,” Both of them turned at the sound of Liv’s voice behind them. “What did I miss?”

“Caroline has alcohol as promised on the fancy invites,” Tyler smirked, looping his arm around Liv’s waist as she drew closer.

Caroline smiled softly at the couple. Thinking back to years ago, nearly a decade now. After she and Tyler had ended things and they were still raw and uncomfortable between them, he’d broken her heart and she’d shattered his in return. Never in a million years did Caroline think she’d be able to talk and joke amiably with him in her living room - the in the house she shared with Klaus no less.

They had both moved on and were living happy lives with other people, whom they respectively adored. Caroline had always inwardly taken pride in the fact, that she’d had a hand in bringing Tyler and Liv back together.

Despite what Tyler claimed.

Okay so, maybe it had had something to do with the fact that Liv’s brother had risen from the dead, hell bent on making Jo’s big day the wedding from hell and threatened everyone’s lives but somewhere along the lines, Caroline was certain Tyler had caught her memo about being adults and talking through his problems. So she afforded herself a pat on the back all the same.

After both reapplying to Whitmore and graduating, Tyler and Liv had decided to New York. They’d also decided to elope. Liv detested any sort of large scale function that involved her whole family - especially after the last time - and Tyler equally hated any kind of fuss and frills so, of course, it had seemed like the obvious solution.

Caroline had been thrilled for them, despite the party planner inside of her mourning the missed opportunity of arranging a spectacular ceremony.

At the mention of alcohol, Liv’s face perked up with interest.

“Good, I hope it’s something strong. That plane ride was hellish,”

“Just champagne,” Caroline replied, holding up the bottle and shaking her head. “How bad are we talking?”

“Try the fact that we were trapped between this sweaty-ass guy, who weighed about 300 pounds and a newborn that spent the entire flight screaming its ass off,”

“I got the screaming baby,” Tyler interjected, smiling humorlessly.

“If that wasn’t enough, our pilot decided to fly us through a tornado,” Liv deadpanned.

“The turbulence wasn’t that bad,” said Tyler, taking a swig of champagne. “She’s being dramatic,”

“Psssh, that’s easy for you to say. You, we’re snoring like crazy through the entire flight,”

“I didn’t snore!” Tyler protested.

Liv snorted.

“Why do you think the baby was crying?”

“Okay, well, drinks will help! Strong ones.” Caroline said, cutting into the couple’s playful bickering. “I think I have something better than this in the kitchen, I’ll be right back,”

“Oh by the way!” she added turning back around. “Is Luke coming?”

Liv chuckled and rolled her eyes.

“Luke is with his new fitness instructor boyfriend in The Cayman Islands- But he sends his best.”

Caroline nodded and headed out of the room, leaving Liv and Tyler to continue their spirited debate about who had the worse experience on the plane.

She wagered that antisocial hybrid of hers would be in their kitchen somewhere; lurking about, attempting to hide from what he described as a deplorable mixture of his relatives and Caroline’s friends. No doubt, he’d gotten through half their supply of bourbon already, Caroline mentally decided to stake him if he’d ignored her instructions and opened the good scotch she had been saving for the toast.

A smile formed on her face, as Caroline drew closer to the kitchen and she could distinctly hear the deep undertones of Stefan’s voice mingled with Klaus’ raucous laughter.

“You’d better not be up to no good in here,” Caroline called out, rounding the corner and coming face to face with a smirking Klaus and a slightly guilty looking Stefan.

“Are we ever, sweetheart?” Klaus grinned, knocking back the glass of brown liquid in his hands.

Seeing Caroline’s intent stare Klaus grabbed the near empty bottle of 1978 brandy from behind and showed it to her.

“Worry not love, it isn’t the good stuff I promise,” He strolled over to where she stood and placed an affectionate kiss on her forehead.

“I was just making sure our old friend had something substantial to drink while the two of us caught up.”

At the mention of Stefan, Caroline turned and flashed him an apologetic look.

“I am so sorry I haven’t had time to catch up with you and Elena since you arrived, I’ve just been so busy trying to get everybody comfortable that I just completely spaced. You guys must think I’m so rude-”

“Care, Care, slow down okay?” Stefan interjected. “Nobody thinks you’re rude, I’m sure it’s not easy playing hostess, especially to a bunch of vampires.”

“Ugh, you have no idea,” Caroline said, slumping down into one of the stools by the counter. “Where is Elena, anyway?”

“Uh, the last time I saw her she took off to go find Matt. Probably to grill him about his new sweetheart,” Stefan answered, taking a sip of his drink.

“Ooh, have you met her yet?”

“No, but considering we’ll only be able to see her two, maybe three more times before she gets suspicious that none of us are ageing, I’d better do it while I can.”

Caroline shrugged. “So we’ll compel her not to notice,” Noticing the pointed look Stefan was giving her she added. “With Matt’s permission… obviously.”

Klaus, who was rummaging around in the fridge for another bottle, laughed at that, prompting Caroline to glare at his muscular back.

“So how are you and Elena doing?” Caroline asked, changing the subject swiftly. “I hear her books doing well.”

“Number 1 New York times best seller,” Stefan replied, beaming proudly.

As Caroline had predicted, Elena saw sense and gave up on her ‘dream of becoming a new-age Meredith Grey, instead reverting back to her first love; writing. Under the pseudonym L.J Smith, Elena had released the summer’s hottest teen novel ‘The Vampire Diaries’. The story of Helen, a teenage girl struggling with the knowledge that vampires exist, while attempting to juggle school, family and love.

Was it predictable? Yes. But Caroline had to admit, Elena was a good novelist. In fact, she’d purchased a copy out of pure curiosity and found herself completely hooked and anticipating the next instalment, which Elena (or L.J) had promised would be released in the Fall. Caroline’s favourite character in so far had to be Carrie, Helen’s blonde, tenacious, fearless, best friend who reminded her of a certain someone. Although Klaus was less than impressed when informed of one of the story’s main villains, Nikolaj. A fearsome vampire hybrid, who could turn into a fire breathing dragon at will.

Caroline, needless to say had found that particular part hilarious.

“I haven’t had a chance to congratulate Elena in person,” Caroline mused, pouring the remaining bit of champagne in her hands into a glass.

“Hmm, yes nor have I,” Klaus interjected closing fridge. “Especially considering all the suggestions I have for Elena’s next book.”

Caroline turned and shot Klaus a warning glare as Stefan snorted in amusement.

“Well I’d love to sit here all afternoon and chat but I have a party to host,” Caroline said, swinging her legs off the stool and sweeping her hair out of her shoulders, exposing the diamond earrings Klaus had purchased for her birthday to the fluorescent light of the kitchen.

“And also the hostess with the mostess needs to tinkle so-”

“Okay, well we’re glad you invited us Care,” Stefan said coming towards her for a hug. “Hopefully you and Elena see each other at some point she’s been dying to catch up with you,” he hummed placing a kiss on her cheek.

“Hmm I hope so too,” Caroline smiled pulling back. “Hey, keep him in line the rest of the evening for me okay?” she asked pointing over to Klaus.

Stefan glanced at him over his shoulder and laughed.

“I’ll do my best.”

_____________________________________________________________________________

As Caroline headed up the stairs, she idly wondered if it was time to change the wallpaper in the foyer. Coming to a stop at the top, she frowned, hearing voices from the bathroom.

“Hello?” Caroline called out in confusion.

The voices stopped abruptly and then to Caroline’s surprise Bonnie emerged from the bathroom.

“Bonnie! Oh my gosh. When did you get here? Where have you been? I’ve been texting you, Bonnie!-” Caroline half chastised, half squealed pulling Bonnie into a tight hug.

“Oh!- Wow, hey Care. Yeah, I know I’m so sorry. I got here and I needed to freshen up so I just went straight to the bathroom,” Bonnie said, hurriedly attempting to answer all of Caroline’s questions.

“I’m so glad you came!” Caroline exclaimed, proceeding to hug the life out of her best friend.

“Are you kidding, I wouldn’t have missed this for the world.” Bonnie beamed, easing herself out of the hug.

“So where is he?” Caroline asked, a knowing glint in her eyes.

“Where is who?” Bonnie asked, shifting slightly on the spot, a faint blush on her cheeks.

“Kol, obviously,” Caroline said. “I know he’s here, he told Klaus on the phone last night he would be, he also said something about us preparing to have our entire liquor supply drained.”

“Mmm, well… you know Kol,” Bonnie chuckled, nervously rubbing the back of her neck.

“Bonnie are you okay?” Caroline asked, eyeing her, the tone of her voice shifting into one of concern. “You look weird.”

“Jetlag,” she replied quickly.

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, definitely- uh, do you wanna go downstairs and get a drink?”

Before Caroline could answer a voice sounded from the other side of the bathroom door.

“Does that mean I can come out of here now?”

“Kol!?” Caroline said incredulously. Bonnie winced as she turned to look at her.

“What is he doing in there wh- what were you doing in there Kol?” Caroline demanded as Kol pushed open the door. Inexplicably, Caroline’s eyes were immediately drawn to the zipper on Kol’s jeans he was frantically attempting to do up as he emerged from the bathroom.

Only then did Caroline take notice of Bonnie’s rather dishevelled appearance; Caroline’s eyes darted between them and the widened in shock at the realisation.

“Were the two of you in there…. doing it, in my bathroom?!”

Judging by the smug look on Kol’s face and how embarrassed Bonnie looked in comparison, Caroline knew she had her answer.

“Seriously!?”

“I’m sorry, we got carried away, we’re sorry aren’t we Kol?” Bonnie insisted, elbowing a very un-sorry looking Kol in the chest.

“Ow! Bloody hell, fine I’m sorry. I promise Bonnie and I will replace everything we broke during our rampant love-making.”

“You’ll do what!?”

“Kol!” Bonnie shouted, scandalized.

“What’s all the screaming about up there?” A shrill voice demanded from the bottom of the steps.

Rebekah’s long legs, encased in a pair of ten-inch heels came into view. Looking up at the three of them with an unimpressed look she held up an empty bottle.

“You’re out of champagne Caroline. If I can’t drink I’ll be forced to socialise which if I remember correctly you insisted I didn’t do.”

“And I still am.” Caroline deadpanned, throwing Kol and Bonnie one last disparaging look before heading down the stairs, pointing her index finger at them threateningly. “I’ll deal with you two later.”

“Really?” Bonnie hissed at Kol, “You couldn’t have stayed in there three more seconds!?”

“What can I say,” he shrugged mischievously. “I like to make an entrance. Besides you weren’t complaining while we were in there.”

“Where’s your useless boyfriend,” Caroline asked Rebekah. “I sent him to get more drinks ages ago.”

“Honestly Caroline, if the responsibility of hosting is too much for you, perhaps you ought to leave this sort of thing up to the professionals.” Rebekah sang-song patronisingly.

“Oh, and that would be you I suppose.” she said dryly, eyebrows raised slightly.

“All I’m saying is, at my parties the guests are never dying of thirst.”

“At your parties, you compel a bunch of people to do all the work for you,” Caroline fired back.

Before Rebekah could fire a response the door was flung open and Enzo walked in holding ice and a large crate in his hands.

“Champagne on ice, just as her majesty ordered.” he quipped.

“Yeah, well, ‘her majesty’ ordered it about an hour ago so good job,” Caroline answered sarcastically.

“Lorenzo I could murder you,” Rebekah grumbled.

“Wonderful,” Enzo said. “Between the time I left and now, I’ve somehow managed to anger both of you.”

“You left me here, for God knows how long, with Caroline’s insipid guests-”

“-Don’t insult my guests!” Caroline gritted out.

“Women eh?” Kol interjected, strolling nonchalantly down the stairs. “There’s no pleasing them.”

“For my own safety, I’m not answering that,” Enzo replied as the two men shared a conspiratorial grin.

“I have other guests,” Caroline said, exasperated. “Enzo put that in the kitchen, Bonnie keep Kol away from people and Rebekah-”

Caroline angled her head towards the blonde original, her voice on edge and demanding. “-A smile wouldn’t kill you.”

______________________________________________________________________________

“Oh my goodness it’s beautiful!” Caroline squealed admiring the sparkling engagement ring, encased in a red velvet box in Matt’s hand.

“D’you think she’ll like it?” Matt asked, referring to a petite, honey blonde women in the middle of the room, making small talk with some of the other guests.

“I think she’ll love it.” she confirmed with a smile. “You know I’m really happy for you Matt and really proud.”

“Thanks, Care, I just hope this goes well,” he paused and flashed Caroline a bashful smile. “I really love her.”

“I can tell.”

“So does she know about us?”

Matt face contorted in confusion. “Caroline that was nearly fifteen years ago?” he whispered.

She nearly choked on her drink attempting to hold back her laughter. “No, Matt. I don’t mean us us. All of us.” Caroline said, gesturing to the scattered figures of their friends.

“Oh. No. No way.”

“Matt-” she began.

“It’s safer this way Caroline.” he insisted, stuffing his hands defensively in the pockets of his jeans.

“That’s a pretty big part of your life to withhold from someone,” Caroline gave him an imploring look. “Are you sure?”

“Positive.” Matt nodded. “I love you guys but I don’t really want her involved in all of this. I just wanna live a normal life, y’know?”

“Sure,” Caroline nodded “I understand,”

Although it was a lie, really. If Caroline was honest, she hadn’t thought about the prospect of living a life anywhere near normal in a very long time. Honestly, there wasn’t much about being human that she missed. Certainly not ageing. At that thought and seeing the laugh lines beginning to form in the corner of Matt’s eyes now that he was entering his thirties was a particularly surreal wake-up call. Eventually, Matt would settle down, lead his perfectly normal life and have kids.

And age.

And eventually, die.

Like all humans did.

One day, so would Bonnie and even Tyler. Even her immortal friends like Stefan and Elena may be living such different lives in 50 maybe 100 years from now. Who knows the next time they’d all be in the same place together.

______________________________________________________________________________

“Excuse me,” Caroline called out, tapping her spoon daintily against her glass. “Hello, can I get everyone’s attention please?”

“Here we go,” Rebekah muttered, downing her 3rd glass of champagne in the last hour.

“Vampire hearing, Rebekah,” Caroline whispered under her breath, invoking an eye roll from the Original.

“I would like to thank all of you for coming.” The attention of nearly all occupants of the room turned to Caroline.” Some us in this room have been through so much together and although a lot has changed and our lives have definitely panned out differently than we imagined I’m really proud of the people we’ve become and what we’ve managed to accomplish. I love all of you so much and hope that whatever happens next, I hope we’ll always remain a part of each other’s lives. So… here’s to us. Cheers.”

As a chorus of the same sentiment echoed around the room Caroline looked up and noticed Klaus smiling at her from across the room. She returned it and tilted her flute of champagne towards him, smiling at the irony.

Review Here.x

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Batwoman - S1 E1 - Pilot

Alright, now or never.... Here we go..... Wait, how the fuck old is Batman in the present day, that he was already active when Kate was a kid? So Gotham is so dependent on Batman that they're so desperate to fill the void when he's no longer around (because fuck Robin, Nightwing, Batgirl or the Birds of Prey) that they'd rather have a private security firm instead of, I don't know, making the police department in Gotham better? How is private security supposed to be any better or less susceptible to corruption, like the GCPD is supposed to be? A private entity is literally in it for the money, unless it's inexplicably "not-for-profit" - which I suppose it might have to be, since otherwise where would the funding come from? Kate just says her dad started a private firm, not that he's generously financing free access to such security, but even if he were, what would make his agents immune for the same problems the actual authorities are plagued with in Gotham? Bruce had any number of factors going in his favor, starting with the fact that he had more money than God, so what could a criminal offer him that didn't already have or could get if he wanted it; not to mention the whole morality thing, combined with the concealed identity, meaning he was literally beyond approach - if you can't be found, no one can offer you a bribe to look the other way. They also don't know how to find those you love in order to use them as leverage; which was a major reason he concealed his identity.

"Batman gave up on us." Fuck you, you ungrateful bastards. Either he's dead, which all things considered I kind of hope he is, because if nothing else the Birds of Prey series from 17 years ago (dear God, it's been 17 years??) already used the idea of Batman simply walking away from Gotham. But even if he didn't, this shit hole city can't seem to just appreciate of whatever strides he made during the time he was active, that he has to get dragged for "abandoning them;" because they apparently can't go unsupervised and everything went to the hell moment he turned his back. If I were Batman, assuming he's not dead, I'd show up at this ceremony just to be like, "Yeah, let me help turn that off - that signal's not a right, it's a privilege; and you guys abused it." And then just slow walk through the crowd, flipping everybody off. "Kate. It's Mary....Your step-sister?" "Mary, our parents have been married for over a decade. I know who you are." But the audience doesn't and the writers don't know how to convey things to the audience through anything less than heavy handed expositional dialog, because they think we have the attention span of a two year old. Wait, what? You had to travel the fucking world, training with all sort of combat and survival specialists in order to join the private security agency your own fucking father owns and commands? I mean, I get wanting to avoid accusations of nepotism, but seriously, do all the Crows agents go through that sort of preparation? Because that seems kind of extreme for such a niche job. Especially seeing how easily all of those Crows agents get their asses handed to them by seemingly run of the mill street thugs; including the top agent who as it turns out is Kate's old flame. So a lot of fucking good their training was. Where exactly was she training, that she's already back in Gotham before her father is finished with the briefing about Sophie's capture? Also, how is surveillance "non-existent"? I know they took out the cameras focused on the event, which a)how, but more important, there was nothing, no surveillance of any kind in or around the area? I feel like that should have warranted a stronger response from the head of a fucking citywide security firm so bent on filling Batman's shoes. I'm genuinely curious which "Academy" Sophie and Kate were attending. I know in the comics they were actually in the army, and the guy who finds them is wearing fatigues, but is this supposed to actually be the military? Is it the Crows? Something else? Don't Ask, Don't Tell was repealed in 2010 and effective since 2011 - which, wow, I can't believe it's been nearly a decade already - so are we to believe that this flashback is taking place more than 10 years ago? Or is it's a general fraternization thing they're taking issue with? Come on, you can't have it both ways; you can't suggest that Bruce played the billionaire playboy routine to the hilt so much that Kate's dad thinks he a complete disgrace; yet such an integral businessman that his absence lead to the collapse of Wayne Enterprises and its corporate headquarters in Gotham shuttering its doors. Bruce had his mother's peals framed in his office? That's just weird. So the building is boarded up, the furniture is covered; yet they have a full time security guard working out of a high tech office with a retinal scan - but just the one guy, working in the city that's become a total hell hole since Batman disappeared; because apparently it's vital to look out for squatters and watch the furniture collect dust, but not so important as to commit more than one person to do it at a time..... Why the fuck would any password at Wayne Enterprises be just "Alfred"? It might as well be fucking Guest.

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Why does a place that's literally boarded its doors have access to anything of value to this case, that the Crows don't have access to? Didn't the one Crows agent say surveillance was "non-existent"? What sort of useless security firm wouldn't try to find anyone else's surveillance to supplement their own in a situation like this? .....What??? There's a woman from the Crows missing, a woman Kate is known to have a past with (especially by Mary. You know, her step-sister) and they decide to throw Kate a surprise party. Kate, the woman who was God only knows where until she heard about Sophie being taken hostage; and only came back to Gotham when she did because of that? Do people under 40 still keep boxes of photos, let alone dirty photos that were ostensibly more than ten years ago? How was Kate not qualified for the Crows? She lasted at least as long and arguably longer than all of the other Crane operatives. That's a lame-ass locking/unlocking mechanism to access your secret vigilante auxiliary lair.... Like that's something the cleaning staff could accidentally trip.

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Of all the cases, Bruce had a....what is it....murder board? Case board? Whatever. All about the accident the accident with Kate's mom and sister? No. Dear God, if crime is that bad in Gotham that you need that kind of security at an outdoor fucking movie, just move. Leave and burn the city on the ground. A bigger issue I have with this scene is the scope relative to everything else. I've actually helped organize a few outdoor movies for my hometown of about 7000+ people. We were lucky to get 20 people to come out for it, but the real point is that this looks like an event being put on in a relatively small to medium sized town; hell, they mentioned earlier that the mayor had some kind of say in whether or not it was happening. Glossing over yet another example of how bad things are if there's concern about allowing a moderately size public function to go on outdoors at night. This sort of an event looks like it should be a blip on the radar in a sprawling city like Gotham. It's basically meant to be DC's answer to New York City. There should be 5-10 other things of equal importance or public interest going on at the same time; and probably a few other things of a higher profile than people watching Grease 2 in the park. "I don't like that building. Who's covering it?" "Dobson, sir." "And no one else?" "No, sir." "I'm sure one person in an entire open structure I have tactical concerns about will perfectly fine patrolling that space alone. It's not like we're under threat of attack by an enemy we've recently encountered who's kicked the ass of several of our agents simultaneously and took one of them hostage. And we've thoroughly vetted Dobson, right?" "Were you saying something, sir?" "What? Oh, no. Just looking forward to seeing Michelle Pfiefer in tonight's movie. I need a c-o-o-l r-i-d-e-r....."

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The Crows security sucks. Gotham would probably safe under the protection of Paul Blart. That seems to have taken zero effort to tailor Bruce's custom made Batman suit to fit Kate; and my only assumption is that Bruce is actually very petite. Oh my God, Alice is Kate's sister? Whoever could have seen that coming..... :|

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