#the first two i made last season but then forgot about them whoops

[thegeminisage]

whoops, i almost forgot about the star trek update. tuesday we watched tng's "firstborn" and "bloodlines" and last night we watched ds9's "the wire" (honorific)

firstborn (tng):

i was actually bracing for this one to suck ass bc everyone says worf is a bad dad. and i dont think he is!!! like, it doesn't come as easily to him as it does to sisko, and he sometimes forgets to be gentle or kind with alexander because he's so laser focused on how things SHOULD be he forgets to the importance of taking others' feelings into account, but that's how he is ALL THE TIME with EVERYONE not just his kid. considering the circumstances i'd say he's doing well

before we get started, GREAT cameo from the duras sisters. i was initially really annoyed with their tit windows but im becoming rather fond

i really liked "the family protector guy "k'mter" at first because he said all the right things to alexander...like, it's scary not being able to defend yourself, etc. then he also was a dick to alexander and i was really exasperated...but then he IS alexander so that totally fixes it. he's angry with himself and conflicted and just wants a HUG FROM HIS DAD and that FIXED it!!! like when he said "nobody will look at you and see a human you are alone on this ship" initially it felt like racism but it being like, not quite self-loathing but just bitter experience...that's actually so clever

this is the only episode where they brought up alexander's mom kind of hating ""klingon stuff"" and how that could possibly have negatively impacted him and it only got two lines of dialogue but still. i think it's really damning that she hated her own heritage and also brought her kid up to hate it and now he's sort of out here...pretending to be human, almost, to the point where he doesn't want to participate in hsi own culture or even bond with his own father (a klingon). like it sucks so bad for him

i was afraid that the plot twist would be "k'mter talks alexander into wanting to be a warrior after all just when worf realizes he doesn't have to be" which would have been sad but a real "oh shit" of an ending. mixed feelings about them not doing that but i understand why they wanted to properly wrap things up for s7

i almost forgot but rare w for picard for bending the rules a little bit to give worf time to go to the klingon festival with his kid. credit where it is due

bloodlines (tng):

i have never been so BITTERLY DISAPPOINTED.......................

they gave. picard. an affair baby.

THEY GAVE HIM AN AFFAIR BABY!

what have i been saying since farpoint! he has an affair baby! AND THEY GAVE HIM ONE

AND THEN TOOK IT AWAY

what was the POINT OF THE EPISODE

if that's not his fucking affair child

pussy ass little FUCKS couldnt commit to changes...

i can't even remember what else happened in this episode i was so disappointed about this plot twist

oh yeah actually i do remember picard made a bald joke which i THINK was the only time he's done that in seven seasons? i think the only time ANYONE'S done it? please correct me if i am wrong but i was so shocked it got a big laugh out of me. also a rare w for picard. if he made bald jokes more often i'd hate him less maybe

the wire (ds9)

ooohhhhhhhhhhhh my god. oh my GOD. let's fucking...get into it

i rly thot garak was just a guy but not only is he a former assassin he's a current junkie. A JUNKIE! he's just like me fr

also, he can act? like that scene where he was withdrawing and saying horrible shit to julian......i was on the edge of my seat.

i love that he gave us 3 different stories about how he got kicked out. i'm gonna be honest, i looked it up, and apparently we never find out the truth? that is a bold fucking move. a daring choice. we, like julian, will never have any certainty. like, sure, i WANT to believe he released some kids from being tortured, but it's also equally as likely that he killed civilians or did a number of other horrible things

like, the fact that he can lie about it even while under significant distress.........king. like you could say oh that's the true one because that's the one where he was physically unwell but he also referred to "elim" in that one which gives it the ring of a potential falsehood

julian forgiving him anyway, even after all the horrible stuff he said, even after being physically ATTACKED (WHICH WAS SCARY!!! i was scared of him!!!!!) for "whatever he did," just because garak said "i need to know someone forgives me"..........AUGHGHGH JESUS CHRIST

THE FACT THAT HE WON'T TALK ABOUT IT. he won't tell even US what he did. eliot spencer core actually. i am beside myself about it all

maybe he's right and it is all true. maybe he destroyed a ship and framed a friend AND let some kids go. it's literally none of business though like he's not gonna tell us

anyway, i heard the term "brain implant" and nearly died on the spot, so 10/10 episode

honestly, they should have just upgraded this guy to a regular. he is so good

NEXT TIME: tng's "emergence" and ds9's "crossover" AND YES I KNOW THAT'S MIRRORVERSE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

#personal #star trek blogging #tng lb #ds9 lb

[teenagegoldrush]

My Druthers

words: 11,712

MASTERLIST Season Two

A/N: I do not claim to, nor do I own Outer Banks; the concept, characters, plot, etc

DAY SIXTEEN

The four of them spent the night at the Chateau, but everyone was gone when Andy awoke.

There was a text on her phone from Kie, explaining where everyone was. Obviously, Kie and Pope had gone to school. But there was no text on JJ’s whereabouts.

where are you? Andy texted him.

out and about

Where’s everyone else JJ replied.

school. it is Monday Andy said.

whoops

I’ll be back later, just hang tight ❤️

Andy shook her head. They were royally screwed with their attendance and it was only the third week of school.

It was still relatively early, not even ten o’clock. Andy decided to clean up a bit, picking up beer cans and closing up the chairs from their party the other night. Then she cleaned up inside, which didn’t need as much work as the outside, save for the dishes.

After a shower, and a piece of toast, Andy made her way back outside, sitting in a hammock and trying to enjoy the day. It was a little cooler than normal, after all, it was early September now.

The sound of a boat approaching broke her from her thoughts. She had no clue who it could be, considering the Pogue was tied up within her eyesight, and Pope was in school, so he wouldn’t have Heyward’s boat.

She sat up, straining to see the boat that was tying up to the dock, until Sarah walked up the ramp, Topper trailing not far behind her.

Andy, frowning in confusion, got up, walking to meet them. “Andy!” Sarah called, relieved to see her.

“Oh thank god you’re here, you won’t believe what happened!”

Andy replayed her and Sarah’s argument from the day before in her head. “What happened?” She asked, pretending to care.

“Well I finally got ahold of Wheezie last night, and she told me to meet her somewhere. So I did, but it turns out that it was Rafe. Somehow he got ahold of her phone.”

Andy nodded, listening to Sarah’s story. “So how exactly did you come to be with Topper?” She asked, referring to his presence.

“I tried talking to Rafe, even though I don’t trust him-“

“Oh, there’s your first mistake.”

“But he got so angry, and… Well he-“

“He tried to drown her.” Topper stepped in. “Lucky for her, I just so happened to be in the area and I saved her.”

Andy narrowed her eyes at him. “That’s totally not creepy at all…”

“She spent the night at my place, and asked me to bring her back here.”

A million thoughts ran through Andy’s head as she tried to rationalize her next move.

What would John B think about his girlfriend spending the night at her exes house?

Why the hell would Sarah trust Rafe at all?

It was totally weird that Topper knew where Sarah was, wasn’t it?

Why would Sarah think that Wheezie would actually be able to help them?

Why would Sarah think that Andy would want to help her after what she said?

“Well there’s nobody here to comfort you.” Andy snapped.

Sarah’s jaw dropped. “What-“

“Kiara’s at school, so is Pope, and in case you forgot, John B’s in jail.”

“Of course I haven’t forgot, it’s John B, I was there when it happened.” Sarah frowned, shocked at Andy’s rash behavior.

“Of course you were there…” Andy shook her head. “This whole thing is your fault.”

“What?” Sarah scoffed.

“Are you serious-“ Topper began to speak.

“Yes, of course!” Andy chuckled sarcastically. “Everything leads back to you, Sarah Cameron!

We were fine on our own to find the gold, and I appreciate you finding the plantation maps for him, but you didn’t need to kiss him! Jesus Christ, everything that happened over the past month, is because of you!

The night of Midsummers, your dad taking responsibility for John B, John B taking the fall for Peterkin’s death, and everything in-between it’s all because of you!”

“Andy, are you kidding me? You think everything is my fault?”

“How could I not, Sarah! Before you came along, John B wouldn’t have even batted an eye at a Kook, any Kook! Now, he’s in prison for a murder, he didn’t commit!” Andy’s chest heaved with anger.

“I thought my best friend was dead! Do you understand how that feels? To think someone you’ve known your entire life is gone, just like that?” She snapped her finger.

“No, you don’t.” Andy shook her head. “So don’t give me your bullshit sob story about your psychotic brother, when it was your own dumb fault for trusting him in the first place.”

Sarah stood before Andy, leaning on the railing of the dock, tears streaming down her face. “Andy, I told you guys I’m sorry-“

“Sarah, don’t waste your breath.” Topper wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “She’s clearly not your friend, let’s just go.”

“You can try back later, when school’s over. But don’t expect anything extravagant. They’ll probably agree with me.” Andy had no doubt in her mind, that the others would side with her, save for Kie, perhaps.

But it wasn’t like she hadn’t fought with Kie before too.

Andy watched as Topper and Sarah loaded back onto Topper’s boat and left. She knew deep down, she should feel bad about what she said, everything after the fishing trip, wasn’t Sarah’s fault.

The fishing trip wasn’t even Sarah’s fault, but it did in-fact all lead back to her. If she hadn’t kissed John B, nothing would’ve changed.

Andy went back to doing chores. She fed the chickens, did some laundry, tried to clean up the guest room, and before she knew it, JJ had returned. “Hey, what’s up?”

He smiled upon seeing her, leaning down to give her a kiss. “What’d you get up to today?”

“Nothing much.” She shrugged. “Cleaned up a bit, sat out in the sun, nothing exciting.”

“Sarah show up yet? Kie said she left last night and she didn’t know where she went.” JJ sat beside her on the couch.

Andy shrugged, playing dumb. “Didn’t come here. It’s just been me all day.”

“Huh, weird.” JJ shrugged.

“You gonna tell me where you were today?” Andy asked, propping her feet up on JJ’s lap.

“Had to go tie up some loose ends with cousin Ricky…” JJ sighed. “Man was not happy.”

Andy laughed. “Can you blame him? We stole his bus! What’d he say?”

“Well not much. He pretty much told me to fuck off and never bother him again.”

Andy nodded. “Sounds about right. Where else did you go?”

“Went home.” He shrugged. “Cleaned up a bit, just to get my mind off of things.”

“Oh…” Andy frowned. “What things?”

JJ turned to her, eyebrows furrowed. “John B, last night… my dad.”

Andy sighed, looking sympathetically at JJ. “Your dad’s gonna be fine, JJ.” She pursed her lips. “I almost think he’s better off in the big house-“

“D, are you serious?”

“Well that way you know where he is!” Andy defended herself. “You know that he’s getting taken care of, and he’s relatively safe.” She shrugged.

“That’s a good way of thinking about it.” JJ mumbled.

“Exactly-“ Andy was cut off by the sound of Kie’s car, and she and Pope entering the house.

“Afternoon schoolbirds.” JJ greeted them. “Anything interesting happen at ye old house of hell?”

“Everybody’s asking about ya’ll.” Kie said, tossing her backpack onto the floor.

“People actually care about us?” Andy asked.

“I guess so.”  Kie shrugged.

“No, they think you’re the next Sarah and John B.” Pope said.

“What!” Andy exclaimed.

“Word about last night spread and they all thought you guys went to jail together.”

“That’s sick-“ JJ grinned.

“Negatively sick!” Andy scoffed. “How did anyone even hear about it?”

“Peeler’s dad’s an EMT and he has a scanner at the house.” Pope shrugged.

“Peeler’s big fucking mouth…” Andy shook her head.

After a bit more recapping from school, the gang moved outside to the bungalow, trying to soak up the last few bits of summer that were left.

JJ decided to re-wax his surfboard, Kie strummed on her uke, Pope tinkered with a random clock he found, and Andy was waiting for her nail polish to dry.

“That’s a lot of wax on your board man. Put too much wax on it, it’s gonna be slippery.” Pope said, glancing over at JJ.

JJ ceased his actions, turning slowly to Pope. “Are you telling me how to wax my board Pope?”

“No, I’m just saying that’s a lot of wax-“

“No, no, no, no, you’re telling me how to wax my board. Are you kidding-“

“I’m just saying that’s a colossal waste of wax!”

Andy looked over at Kie, an amused smile on her face. “Guys, really?” Kie asked, annoyed with their bickering.

In the distance, the sound of a car horn broke through the trees. “Do you hear that?” Andy asked, sitting upright.

They all turned their attention to the driveway, as the Twinkie barreled down it, leaving a cloud of dust in her path. “No shit…” Andy grinned.

“Hold on, am I dreaming?” JJ asked, dropping the wax in his hand.

“No!” Pope shouted, eyes wide in shock.

“Guess who’s out the clink boy!” John B shouted back, getting out of the van.

“No freaking way man!” Pope exclaimed.

They all jumped up, rushing over to him. Kie made it to him first, then Pope, and JJ and Andy, the five of them sharing a group hug.

“We missed you.” Kie said.

“I missed you guys too.” John B smiled.

“So, how’d you do it? You bust out?” JJ asked as they broke apart.

“Um, they dropped the charges.” John B shrugged.

“They dropped the charges.” Pope repeated, confused.

“That’s phenomenal!” Kie smiled.

“So you’re telling me, I did all that work for nothing?” JJ asked, slightly offended that his plan didn’t aid John B at all.

Andy’s eyes widened. “The most elaborate escape plan of all time? From which we needed emergency evacuation from these two with? Try again slick.”

“”Foolproof”.” Kie quoted with her hands.

“Yeah, it was actually.” JJ scoffed.

“Wait, where’s Sarah?” John B asked, looking around them.

“Um…” Andy kicked at the dirt beneath her feet. “I’ve been here all day and she hasn’t shown.”

“She went to go meet Wheezie last night. She didn’t come back.” Kie shrugged.

John B shook his head, pushing past them and down to the dock. With John B back, Andy knew the inevitable would come, Sarah would return, and tell everyone how horrible she was to her, and shit would hit the fan.

It would happen, sooner probably than later. But Andy knew how to handle herself amongst the group, and it wasn’t like they hadn’t all fought before.

“So Sarah just dipped and didn’t call?” John B wondered aloud, as the rest of them had followed him.

“Yeah man, she just left her bag. Didn’t tell anybody.” Pope shrugged.

“Okay, well I really think Ward got to her.” John B began pacing up and down the dock. “I mean the dude tried to have me killed in jail-“

“Whoa, what?” Andy asked, leaning back against the dock post.

“Yeah, he sent someone to the prison who yoked me up and almost killed me.” John B replied, almost nonchalantly.

“Do we know who this dude was?” JJ asked.

“No-“ John B said.

“No, and you don’t need to get your dad or his buddies after him.” Andy glared at him, seeing right through his plan.

“I swear to god, I’m just gonna kill that son of a bitch someday.” John B shook his head, sitting back down on the boat.

“It’s okay…” Kie tried to reassure him.

“No Kie, it’s not okay. We gotta find Sarah.”

“No literally, it’s okay, she’s right there.” Kie pointed over his shoulder, where Sarah and Topper were returning on Topper’s boat once again.

Shit.

“John B!” Sarah called happily.

“What the hell is she doing with Topper?” Kie asked quietly.

Sarah radiated joy as she tossed a rope to JJ, he and Pope tying up Topper’s boat with the Pogue.

Andy stayed in her spot, messing with one of the buttons on her flannel. “What happened?” Sarah asked, after sharing a long hug with John B.

“They dropped all the charges.” John B smiled. “I’m a free man.”

“That’s amazing!” Sarah smiled, pulling John B in for a kiss.

Topper watched, unimpressed, over Sarah’s shoulder. “Listen Sarah, they’re coming after Rafe.” John B broke the news.

“Good, he’s completely unhinged.” Sarah nodded. “He jumped me last night.”

“What?” Kie asked.

“That’s why I didn’t come back last night.”

“Yeah, man, Rafe has lost his mind. He literally tried to drown his own sister.” Topper agreed, reminding everyone of his everlasting presence. “Thankfully I got there just in time.”

Still not creepy… “Yeah he did.” Sarah nodded.

“Well I guess I owe you one then Topper, don’t I?” John B said, refusing to look at Topper.

“It’s all good.” Topper shrugged. “I mean, somebody had to rescue your girlfriend, right?”

“Uh, that’s funny because she’s not actually my girlfriend. Right?” John B tapped Sarah on the shoulder.

Oh this should be good.

“Well what is she then?”

“Tell him.” John B nodded to Topper.

Sarah took a moment, looking between Topper and John B a few times. “I’m… I’m with him.” She nodded, convincing herself that was the right choice of words.

Topper chuckled. “Gotcha, you’re with him. Just needed a little clarity there.” He turned to look at JJ and Pope. “You guys clear on that?”

“Crystal.” Pope nodded.

“I think it’s clear you gotta go now.” JJ nodded too.

“Yeah, I think I’ll head out now. It’s about that time…” Topper turned, stepping back into his boat.

“Topper-“ Sarah grabbed his attention before he could leave, pulling him in for a hug. “Thank you.”

“Of course.” Topper relished the hug. “I’m just glad you’re okay.”

With that, Topper returned to his boat, JJ tossing him the ropes and leaving.

Sarah seemed content to be back in the presence of the group, save for Andy, who she wouldn’t even look at.

Now she was starting to feel a little guilty.

“Hey, Sarah, when you said you didn’t come back last night, what did you mean?” John B asked after a few minutes.

“What?” Sarah asked, playing dumb. Snitching on Andy wasn’t part of her plan.

“You didn’t come back last night. Did you come back another time?”

Sarah pursed her lips, looking around awkwardly. “Yeah… I came back this morning.”

John B frowned, not understanding what she meant. “You came back this morning? Was anybody here?”

Sarah sighed, looking up at the sky. “Andy was here.”

Shit.

“Andy, you said Sarah wasn’t here.” John B turned to look at her.

Sarah sadly looked over at Andy. “Topper brought me over after I stayed the night at his house, to see if any of you guys were here.

I mean, my brother had tried to kill me, so I wanted my friends to comfort me. But um… when I got here, it was only Andy.” Sarah sighed. “And she showed me her true colors.”

John B clenched his jaw. Andy could tell he was getting mad. “What did she say to you?”

“She said that she wouldn’t give the comfort I was looking for.” Sarah swallowed nervously. “And she said that everything that’s happened to us was my fault.”

Andy could practically feel the energy in the air change. This was some deep shit she had made for herself.

“You’re joking.” John B said. “Tell me she’s joking, Andy, I swear to god.” His eyes burned into her.

“She’s not lying.” Andy said calmly.

“You’ve got to be kidding me!” John B shouted, standing up. “You’re so self-involved that you couldn’t be there for her after a traumatic event? What is wrong with you? Is that how you really feel? Everything is Sarah’s fault?”

Andy frowned, tilting her head at John B. “Yes, John B, that’s how I really feel.” She sighed angrily. “Kie told you, the moment you involve her, everything goes to shit. And it did! We lost the gold, you got accused of murder and had to flee to another country! How could I not think it was her fault-“

“It was nobody’s fault, Andy! That’s what you don’t get! No matter what happened, it wasn’t anyone’s fault!” John B yelled. “Actually, you know what, since honesty is suddenly your new favorite hobby, I’m gonna tell you how I feel? Would you like that?”

Andy stood up, getting level with John B. “Be my guest.”

“Okay, first of all, how dare you?” He snapped. “How dare you treat her like that- How dare you treat anyone like that. That’s such a miserable and nasty way to be to people, especially my girlfriend, who’s supposed to be your friend too! I don’t know what the hell’s wrong with you, but you’re a completely different person than you used to be-“

“You mean I’m a different person from the one that couldn’t go a single minute without being drunk or high? I wouldn’t think anyone would complain about their friend finally being sober-“

“Don’t even fucking blame it on that shit, you’re just a mean person Andy!” John B was seething. “After everything I’ve done for you over the years, you couldn’t just once, put your own feelings aside and help someone else out?!

Who took you in after your piece of shit dad decided it would be cool to let his ten-year-old daughter live unsupervised on an island?

Who took you to school, and gave you food to eat, and signed your school permission slips?

Who kept you alive for seven years? Me and my dad, that’s who!

All your life, I have been there to pick up the pieces, and you can’t even treat the girl I love with enough respect to make her feel safe with you?

You’re a joke Andy. A selfish, mean, ungrateful, joke.”

Every word John B said was like a dagger in her heart. The words were true, but nonetheless, daggers. “John B-“

“I think you should leave.” He snapped, pointing towards the house.

“John B, seriously-“ Pope began to say.

Andy’s shoulders dropped, the weight of her actions settling on her shoulders.

“No. You’re right.” She nodded. “I’ll go.” She let out a shaky breath, turning and walking down the dock.

“You’re just gonna let her go? Just like that?” She heard Pope ask as she created more distance between them.

“You’re just as bad as she is, John B…” Was all she heard before they were finally out of ear-shot.

Andy made it to the edge of the driveway before the tears began to fall. Never in her life had she fucked up this badly. Not when she got arrested, or when she fought with Kie, or any other time.

She had never fought with John B like this. But she brought it on herself. Karma caught her, and she deserved everything she had coming.

Secretly, Andy hoped somebody would chase after her. She pretty much expected JJ to do so, considering he was in-fact her boyfriend.

But Andy made it the entire way home without anyone following her.

Wiping the tears from her cheeks, she unlocked the side door, stepping slowly into the trailer. But she wasn’t alone.

The trailer was no longer silent, as it usually was, the television could be heard in the next room.

Goosebumps rose on Andy’s arms, as she kicked her boots off. Pure dread replaced the feeling of guilt, and she slowly walked towards the living room.

She inhaled deeply, preparing herself for what was to come.

He sat on the couch, head propped against the back of it, eyes trained on the program playing on the screen. He hadn’t moved at the sound of her entering the house.

“Nice of you to finally make it home.” He spoke, eyes still fixated on the television.

“Dad.” Andy exhaled nervously. “You’re home.”

Dean finally looked away from the television, turning to look at his daughter. “Sit down. We have some things to discuss.”

Nervously, Andy sat down on the arm chair diagonal from him. Her dad turned the volume on the T.V down.

“So, what are you doing home?” She asked, trying not to set him off.

“Boat took a dump.” He sighed, readjusting his position to see her better. “Impellers busted, the water pump cracked, overall she just needs some fixing up so I decided to take a few weeks off and let her get cleaned up.”

Andy nodded, the fact that her dad would be home for the foreseeable future, sinking in. “What did you wanna talk about?”

Her dad chuckled. “Where to even begin with you?” He tapped his fingers on his leg. “So last time I left you, I had to pick you up from jail… How’s that restitution money coming?”

Andy had to quickly devise a game-plan. Have an answer for everything, but don’t give away too much. There were too many tiny details that would fuck up everything she had going for herself; bare minimum answers only. “Almost paid off. I’ve been working a lot at the shack, even throughout school. Nothing to worry about there.”

“Nothing happened between then and when I mysteriously got a phone call from Luke Maybank?”

Andy shook her head.

“Fill in the blanks there Andy.”

She sighed. “Well, to make a long story short… John B got involved with a Kook-“

“Involved?” He interrupted her.

“Romantically.” Her dad turned his nose up in disgust, as if he hadn’t done the exact same thing before.

“And, if you don’t mind me asking kid, what Kook?”

“Um, Sarah Cameron.” She sighed. “Ward Cameron’s daughter.”

Andy swore she saw the color drain from her father’s face. “Well I’ll be damned-“

“Anyway, Rafe- Ward’s son, shot the Sheriff. And they framed John B for it. Him and Sarah had to flee the country, in Luke’s boat, and we thought they were dead.”

“Thought they were dead?”

Andy nodded. “Turns out they weren’t, considering they drove right into a tropical storm. They turned up in Charleston a week later, we ran into them on the street-“

“You were in Charleston recently?”

“Yes, just the other day…” Andy waited a moment before continuing. “We made it one night before John B got busted, and we thought he was as good as dead, until he showed up this afternoon back at his house. But we got into a fight and he kicked me out. So that’s why I’m here.”

Dean sighed, absorbing the information. “That’s a lot to take in, kid.” He scratched his chin.

“I have questions: How did you end up in police custody? Why the hell were you in Charleston? And, why are you hanging around with the Camerons?”

Andy frowned, hoping the conversation wouldn’t take a wrong turn. “We- Me, JJ, Kiara, and Pope were technically accomplices to John B’s escape.”

She wasn’t going to mention the plethora of other minor crimes they had committed in the week prior to that, the entire premise of the event (the gold), or the fact that she punched Ward in the face.

“Well, Pope had a scholarship interview lined up, which he tanked, but the people that fund it wanted to meet with him. And their office is in Charleston, and we’re kinda a package deal, so we all went with him.”

She also wasn’t going to mention the fact that they skipped school, ditched Heyward’s truck, ended up running from a psychopathic descendant of the captain of the Royal Merchant, or hitched a ride on a stolen boat back home.

“And I’m not. Not really… Not anymore.” She sighed. “Sarah’s not my friend by choice. And if I ever had a chance to be her real friend, I blew it this afternoon.”

“I’ve always told you Kooks are bad news, Andy. Especially the Camerons. Nothing but no-good, snobby, trouble. Just trust me.” Her dad toyed with the remote in his hands. “So you been staying at John B’s?”

Andy hesitated answering this too. Her dad knew she was living with the Routledges when Big John was still alive, but she wasn’t sure what he would think if he knew she was staying there without any parental supervision. (Not that parental supervision was high on his list of priorities).

And they hadn’t even touched the topic of JJ yet. “Yeah… It’s where we all stay. Me, John B, JJ-“

“JJ, that’s Luke’s kid, right?”

My best friend, boyfriend, actually- “Yeah. Yeah it is.”

How unfortunate.

“You see much of him?”

“JJ or Luke?” That was a stupid question, but it was good to clarify.

“JJ.” Her dad squinted at her.

“See him? In what way?” Andy was growing nervous, avoiding the question.

“How many ways are there to see a person? He your friend or not?” He was getting agitated.

“Eh…” She couldn’t get a straight answer out.

“Why can’t you just answer me, damnit?” He snapped.

There it is. “Are you guys friends? Yes or no? Or is there something else you want to tell me? Be an adult and spit it out!”

“No!” Andy said, a little too loudly. She flinched, anticipating the worst.

“We’re just friends. Sort of- We fight a lot, bickering like little kids. But we stick around.”

Dean clenched his jaw, his shoulders relaxing as his daughter finally gave him a straight answer. “That’s nice. I hung around with his old man in school. Good to see bloodlines sticking together.”

Andy got the sudden urge to throw up. She was unsure what the exact pinpoint was. It could be many things; the comment about bloodlines sticking together, because everybody knew the Kane/Maybank bloodlines were nothing to gawk at, the entire fact that her father was home rather than anywhere else, or the fact that she had no escape. No safe-haven, nowhere else to go.

She was trapped.

Andy felt the sickening feeling enter her chest, her chest tightening. It traveled to her hands, which began to shake in her lap. The air around her grew thick, and she had a hard time breathing, her lungs feeling heavy.

Her father’s voice snapped her from her panic. “I’m not gonna get a hospital bill for that, am I?” He pointed to the very obvious bandage on her side.

Andy’s eyes widened and she looked down. “No, um no. We didn’t- I didn’t go to the hospital. I wouldn’t let them take me. I’ll be fine.” She inhaled nervously, looking anywhere but her father’s face.

“Is there anything else you have to ask me, because I’m just feeling a little sick. I think I got food poisoning or something, Pope isn’t the best cook-“

“No, nothing else.” Simple as that, her father turned the television back up, and no sooner than he did that, did Andy jump up, running outside, all the way to the dock, where she emptied the little contents of her stomach into the ocean.

Tears streamed down her face, her hands shaking as she collapsed onto the dock.

This was her worst nightmare. Her father was home, about to make her living a living hell, with his sick mind games. And she would have to endure them.

See, Andy’s father was abusive, but not in the way JJ’s father was abusive. No, Dean never laid a finger on his daughter, she was too physically strong for that.

Instead, he played with her emotions. He would rag on her about school, her appearance, her friends, he would keep secrets from her, creating the never-ending dread she felt.

She was almost seventeen, and she still didn’t know exactly what her father did for work, she knew he worked on a boat, but didn’t know what he did. And she would never know who her mother was, not with the way her father was.

He was the root of all evil. The source for all her issues.

And when he was gone, she had nothing to worry about. But now he was back, and she had nowhere to go, no John B in shining armor to whisk her away to the safety of the Chateau, no Kiara to provide her comfort through text. Not even JJ would probably answer her. He was John B’s ride-or-die.

She was alone. Completely alone. And she had nobody to blame but herself.

“Fuck!” She screamed to no-one. She screamed it to the sky, colored a beautiful orange, the day fading away. She screamed it to the birds, and the grass, and to the water, willing it to take her troubles away.

“Hey!” Her father’s voice interrupted her emotional struggles. “Quit fucking yelling and get inside!”

There it was. The unrelenting thumb of parental supervision.

She quickly wiped away the tears from her cheeks, clearing her throat, removing all suspicions that she could have been upset, and nodded, sadly walking back into the house.

When she went back in, her dad was back on the couch, thumbing through his phone. “I think it’s best if you spend the night here tonight. You said John B kicked you out anyway.”

Andy swallowed more tears. “About time, if you ask me. You’ve been mooching off of him for too long.”

Andy nodded, furious and fearfully, walking past him into her bedroom.

And that’s where she stayed for the rest of the night.

DAY SEVENTEEN

Andy awoke the next morning to the sound of someone banging on the side door. She had no clue who it could be, considering she thought all of her friends were mad at her. But the knocking persisted, and so she jumped up, lightly stomping to the door.

She swung it open, and behind it stood Pope, his fist raised to continue banging on the door. “Jesus Christ Pope, you’re gonna wake the dead!” She whispered. “What are you doing here?”

“Why are you whispering?” He asked, slightly annoyed.

“Shush!” She clapped her hand over his mouth. “You trying to wake my dad up?”

Pope’s eyes widened as Andy slowly removed her hand from his face. “Your dad is home?”

Andy nodded, sighing. “Boat’s out of commission for a few weeks.”

“Holy shit. I’m so sorry.” Pope said sadly. “I wanted to come over last night but I was so mad at John B and JJ I just went right home.”

“You were mad at them?” Andy asked, confused. “Not me?”

Pope had suddenly remembered why he had shown up at Andy’s. “Oh, no time to talk, I’ll tell you on the way.”

“On the way where?”

“Just get dressed, I’ll wait out here.” Pope ushered her back inside, closing the door on himself.

Andy, still confused, but eager to get away from her dad, practically ran back to her room.

She changed out of her clothes, into clean ones, brushed her teeth, and tripped over her own shoes as she rushed out the door. Pope had his dad’s truck back.

“Pops forgive you that fast?” She asked, climbing into the passenger seat.

“Emergency circumstances.” Pope answered, peeling out of the driveway. “But I do have to pay the entirety of the repair costs.”

“That’s to be expected.” She replied, already feeling better being away from home. “So tell me what’s going on.”

“Well, while you and JJ were playing prison-break, I visited my Meemaw’s old apartment. The one above the pharmacy. And I found the key Limbrey was talking about.”

Andy’s eyes widened. “No shit!”

“Yes shit!” Pope grinned, proud of himself. “I told my pops about it last night and he said I should go talk to her. But the only person I could think to take with me, is you. Plus, I think you’re the only one not mad at me right now.”

Andy frowned. “So what happened after I left yesterday?”

“Basically I yelled at John B for being too hard on you.”

“John B wasn’t too hard on me Pope, I didn’t need to be so mean to Sarah.” She shrugged. “Even though I was just telling her the truth.”

Pope glanced over at her. “Not saying I disagree with you, but just because it’s the truth, doesn’t mean it isn’t mean.” He sighed. “You were pretty nasty to her.”

“That’s just how I am!” Andy defended herself. “You saw how I was with Kiara!”

“Yeah, but Kie’s used to how you are, Sarah isn’t. You just caught her off-guard.” Pope looked at her again. “I don’t think she’s mad at you, I think she’s scared of you.”

Andy shook her head. “I did it to myself.”

“And I yelled at JJ for not sticking up for you. You are his girlfriend after all.” Pope paused for a moment. “John B got mad at you because he’s blinded by his love for Sarah.”

Andy scoffed. “I wish JJ was blind like that.”

“I think he is.” Pope shrugged. “But I also think he has a tough time choosing between you and John B.”

“Seriously?” Andy narrowed her eyes at him. “He shouldn’t have to pick sides.”

“I know, I know.” Pope nodded. “I know he’d never choose, but I’m just saying. He could’ve at least stuck up for you, defended your honor.”

Andy nodded too. “He’d never undermine John B’s “authority.”.”

“I’m just saying, if I had to choose, I know who I’d pick.”

Andy paused, staring thoughtfully at Pope. “Don’t say that.”

“What?” He smiled softly.

“Don’t go all soft on me Pope.” She shook her head, laughing quietly. “I appreciate you sticking up for me though, and coming to my rescue.”

“Don’t worry about it.” Pope shrugged. “What are friends for?”

Andy smiled. “Now, tell me where we’re going.”

“We’re going to talk to Meemaw.”

Pope drove them to Shady Acres retirement home, right on the border between Figure 8 and the Cut.

Pope parked the truck, and the two of them got out. Much to Andy’s surprise, they didn’t have to check in when they got inside, Pope simply knew exactly where Meemaw would be.

She was asleep in an arm chair, the sun’s rays illuminating her face through the window.

“Come on.” Pope led her to Meemaw. Pope patted her leg. “Meemaw. Meemaw.” Andy felt really bad about waking Meemaw up, but it had to be done.

Meemaw woke, raising her head. “Oh…” She squinted at Pope. “Bobby?”

“No Memaw, it’s Pope. Heyward’s son.” Pope replied, standing up straighter.

“I don’t know how I’m supposed to know that was you, standing so far away like that. Come on, show me your face.”

Pope sat down beside Meemaw and her face lit-up. “Oh yes!” Now she could see who it was.

Andy stepped forward, taking Pope’s place. “Meemaw, this is Andy.” He motioned to her.

Meemaw turned to look at her, smiling. “Nice to meet you sweetheart.” She looked back at Pope, continuing to smile. “Hello Bobby.”

“It’s Pope. Your great-grandson.” Pope corrected her. “Do you mind if we talk to you about something in private?”

With the help of a nursing assistant, they moved Meemaw to another room, where it was just the three of them.

Andy and Pope sat on either side of Meemaw. “Meemaw?” Pope asked. “Can I show you something?”

“Sure.” Meemaw replied.

Pope pulled the key out of his pocket, holding it out for Meemaw to see. “Do you recognize this?”

She took it in her hand, examining it. “Now what’s this to?”

“It used to belong to you. There’s an inscription on it.” Pope said. “It says “the path to the tomb begins in the island room.”

“The path to the tomb?” Meemaw asked.

“Do you know what the island room is?” Andy asked. “Or why your family has the key?”

“Take it away.” Meemaw shoved the key back into Pope’s hands.

“Meemaw? Meemaw, please you have to remember. Do you know whose key this is? Is this Denmark Tanny’s key?” Pope fired off questions.

“How did we get it?”

No answer.

“Are we related to Denmark Tanny?”

“And his wife.” Meemaw sighed, refusing to look at Pope.

“Cecelia?”

“Denmark and Cecelia are your great-grandfolks going way back.”

“Why did you keep this a secret from us?” Pope swallowed nervously. “Denmark Tanny is in our family, that’s a good thing!”

Andy couldn’t believe it. Little old Pope, related to the infamous Denmark Tanny?

“Do you realize what happened?” Meemaw asked, shocked by Pope’s reaction to the news.

“They hung him! I didn’t want nobody out there trying to avenge his name. I didn’t want what happened to him, happen to you or your daddy!

Pope frowned. “But we should’ve known.”

“I was protecting you baby. It was better you didn’t know.” Meemaw grabbed Pope’s chin, forcing him to look at her. “And I don’t want you doing nothing crazy now.”

Pope shook his head. “No crazier than I normally do.”

That made Meemaw laugh. “Oh, I love you Pope.”

She leaned in, and Pope did too, the pair hugging each other. “Family’s all we got.”

After they finished hugging, Andy stood up, joining Pope. “We’d better get going now Meemaw. Thank you for talking to me.”

Meemaw smiled again. “Well come here baby, you can’t leave without letting me hug you too.”

Andy smiled softly, leaning down for Meemaw to hug her. “You got a good one here Pope, don’t let her go.”

Pope and Andy’s eyes widened. “No, Meemaw, we’re not-“

Andy tapped Pope’s shoulder. “Don’t worry about it. She won’t even remember we were here tomorrow.”

They turned, walking back out the door they came in and to the truck. That was when Pope’s phone rang.

“Dad? Hey, calm down. Okay- Okay, okay, me and Andy are on the way. Don’t move.” He hit the gas, the truck lurching forward.

“Whoa, Pope, what’s going on!” Andy smacked her hands on the dashboard.

“Somebody attacked my dad.” He replied, clutching the steering wheel. Andy nodded, understanding his anger.

Heyward was the nicest person Andy had ever met, and any person that hurt him deserved a special place in hell.

They arrived at Pope’s a few minutes later, Pope barely throwing the truck into park before he jumped out and ran up the steps to where his dad was.

Andy chased after him, frowning at the sight of Heyward’s injury. Truthfully, it could’ve been worse; a large gash was slapped on his forehead, blood running down the side of his face and onto his shirt.

“Andy- Hi.” Heyward sighed at her.

She waved at him, approaching him to examine the injury. “Pop, what happened?”

“I shoulda known better. He came in right as I was about to lock up. Caught me by surprise. Once he got me down, he had his knee on my chest.” Heyward took a moment to catch his breath.

“He asked about the key from that drawing you showed me- And in case you’re wondering, I ain’t tell him nothing.”

Andy smiled at Heyward’s comment. “Now, did you track it down?”

Pope sighed, pulling it out of his pocket. “I found it, in Meemaw’s old apartment above the pharmacy, just like you said it was.”

“We actually just went to see Meemaw when you called Pope.” Andy nodded.

“Shit, boy you should’ve just given it to me. I wouldn’t have had to take a beating. And what’s the big deal anyway, it’s not worth anything-“

“No, dad, you don’t understand, this key is rightfully our’s.” Pope handed it to his father. “We’re related to Denmark Tanny. And I was gonna just give it to that lady, the Limbrey lady, but I wanted to talk to Meemaw first.”

Heyward smiled. “Well it’s a good thing you did, son. I didn’t raise you to back down from a fight.”

“I’m gonna call the others, let them know what happened, Andy you mind cleaning Pop up?” Pope asked, pulling his phone from his pocket.

Andy shook her head. “I’ll be right back.”

Pope stepped away to call the others, and Andy went down into the shop, coming back up with the first-aid kit.

“So how comes you two aren’t with the rest of your friends? Something happen?” Heyward asked as Andy began to clean his head up.

She sighed, ripping open an alcohol pad. “I got into a fight with Sarah, and then with John B about Sarah And Pope got into a fight with John B and JJ about me. And here we are.” She dabbed his head with the pad.

Heyward winced, nodding. “I don’t even wanna know what the hell ya’ll could’ve been fighting about, but you’d better make up. Especially if you’re going on another damn treasure hunt. You gotta stick together.”

Andy nodding, knowing Heyward was right, and an apology was in-order. “Ya know, you’re totally right.”

“I usually am.” He nodded. “And, you better tell that JJ to watch his ass because if he don’t start sticking up for you, I’m gonna kick him-“

Andy laughed, wiping the blood from Heyward’s face as Pope came back up the steps. “They’ll be here in five, just hang tight.”

“Ain’t got nowhere else to go.” Heyward shook his head at his son.

Pope paced back and forth on the deck, waiting for the others to arrive. Andy opened a large bandage. “Just let me know if I’m hurting you at all.”

“You’re doing just fine.” Heyward replied, just as the sound of the van doors could be heard.

“I didn’t tell them you were with me.” Pope said quietly, as the sound of the rest of their friends could be heard growing closer.

She turned her back to the steps, dunking her hands in a bucket of water Heyward had filled to clean the deck at the end of the day.

“Hey man, your pops okay-“ JJ asked, practically running up the steps. He stopped as soon as he saw Andy.

When she turned around, Kie, John B, and Sarah had arrived too. “What are you doing here? You sneakin’ around with Pope now?”

Andy knew deep-down, JJ meant that as a joke, but she wasn’t in the mood.

Before she could respond though, Pope answered him. “I picked her up this morning and we went to see my Meemaw, to ask her about the key.”

“Well what the hell happened to your dad then?” JJ asked, squinting to see Heyward’s head better.

“The guy from Charleston, Limbrey’s brother? He’s here, and he jumped my pops to try and get information on the key.”

“He didn’t tell him anything, did he-“

“Quit talking about me like I’m not here, JJ!” Heyward snapped. “I ain’t no snitch!”

Andy couldn’t help but laugh at Heyward’s outburst. “He didn’t even know anything about it until we just told him like ten minutes ago.” Pope added.

“I wasn’t interested before, but now I am. Got personal involvement. Did she tell you why she wants it?”

Pope shook his head. “Something about an old cross. I think it might be some kind of lost treasure.”

“Meemaw didn’t say anything else?“

“Nothing except the fact that you guys have a dangerous legacy.” Andy shrugged, only speaking because it was to Heyward.

“A dangerous legacy? What do you mean?” Kie asked.

Pope sighed. “Meemaw told me that we’re related to Denmark Tanny.”

“No shit.” John B finally spoke.

“So what’s our next move?” JJ asked.

“I think we need to meet with Limbrey.” Sarah said.

“Level the playing grounds, get even with them. For the sake of your dad-“ Andy twisted one of the rings on her finger.

“No, no, hell no.” Heyward patted her leg. “You don’t need to go out there avenging my name, not especially to that man. He might be a bit much for ya’ll to handle. Although I appreciate your enthusiasm. Ya’ll just go get some answers, and when you find the treasure, make sure I get some for my grievances.”

Pope frowned, squeezing his father’s shoulder. “You sure dad?”

“The hell I am!” Heyward shrugged his son off. “Go get rich, kids!”

JJ shrugged, standing up off the bench he was sat on. “You heard the man, let’s go!”

John B, JJ, Pope, and Kie all started down the steps. Sarah and Andy were the last to go.

Andy was actually planning on walking home, and not continuing on the journey with her friends, but Sarah’s voice caught her off-guard. “Aren’t you coming?”

Andy stopped, staring back at her. “I- I don’t know if that’d be the best idea.”

“Andy, we’re not a team if you’re not involved in it.” Sarah waved her hand towards the van. “Come on.”

Andy followed her a few steps. “Sarah, wait.” Sarah stopped, back-tracking a few steps. “I’m sorry.”

Sarah frowned. “Andy-“

“No, Sarah, really. I’m sorry. Nothing that happened was your fault, and even if I felt that it was, I should have kept it to myself. I didn’t take your feelings into consideration, and that was a pretty shitty thing to do, especially with everything you’ve gone through.”

Andy sighed. “So, if you can learn to live with me around, I’d really appreciate it, because without my friends around, I think I’m better off dead-“

Before Andy could say anything else, Sarah grabbed her, pulling her into a hug.

“I hope you don’t mind me saying, you’re like the biggest bitch I’ve ever met. But I accept your apology because I need you around too. Even if we haven’t been friends that long.”

Andy chewed on her lip, afraid to let go.

“And quit saying shit like that, “you’re better off dead”, you don’t have to worry about losing us. We’ll always come crawling back.”

Sarah pulled away, smiling softly. “Also, me and John B are also fighting, so we can consider ourselves two peas in a pod, okay?”

Slightly shocked, Andy nodded, following Sarah the rest of the way to the van.

Inside sat Kie and JJ, then Pope up front with John B, and Andy and Sarah in the very back. The group was clearly divided.

“Guys, the thing that Limbrey said, I don’t think she meant for it to slip.” Pope held the key in his hand. “She said the key leads to the Cross of Santo Domingo.”

“Are we supposed to know what that is?” Sarah asked.

JJ reached to Pope, taking the key from his hand. “I’m sensing some major attitude from the backseat.” He mumbled, examining the key.

Pope ignored his comment. “I’m guessing it’s some historical artifact of great importance.”

“Well, according to the inter-webs, it was a gift from New Spain to the Spanish king.” Kie read from her phone.

“New Spain? Is there an old Spain?” JJ asked.

“Shit, talk about over-gifting. Look at that thing.” Kie showed a picture of the cross on her phone to everyone.

“So it’s a giant-ass cross.” JJ shrugged.

“It was widely considered at the time to be the most extravagant tribute ever from the provinces. It was lost off the coast of Bermuda in 1829.”

“Did you just say Bermuda?”

“Oh no, not the triangle.” John B gasped in mock-shock.

“It always leads back to the triangle dude.” JJ groaned. “Like every single time something’s weird, its the triangle.”

Halfway through town, Pope insisted they make a pit-stop, so they did, and the girls too the opportunity to take a gossip-break as well.

"So what, you two made up? Sarah, you forgave Andy like that?” Kie asked as soon as they were out of ear-shot of the van.

“I actually apologized, Kiara.” Andy shrugged. “I know, very out-of-character for me, but I think it’s part of my new, less self-deprecating outlook on life.”

Kie nodded, impressed with Andy’s newfound self-awareness. “So, Sarah, what’s got John B’s panties in a twist?”

“I thanked Topper for saving my life?” Sarah snapped back.

“Oh my god, you thanked Topper?” Andy asked, mockingly.

“Of course I thanked him!” Sarah said. “He saved my life, and I put him through so much already, and you’d think it was the crime of the century!”

“Tell me about it.” Kie sighed. “All of this crazy shit is happening, and Pope’s giving me the silent treatment for not being in love with him.”

“And we’re the dramatic ones.” Sarah smiled.

“And for once, I’m the opposite.” Andy sighed. “I’m the one whose pissed, because my boyfriend won’t even stick up for me in a fight, because I was fighting with his best friend.”

“I know John B was defending my honor, but honestly, JJ kinda pissed me off too!” Sarah nodded in agreement. “He should’ve stuck up for you like John B was doing for me.”

Kie also nodded. “Shitty move.”

The girls quieted down when they arrived back at the van, climbing inside without a word.

Pope returned a moment later, and they ended up where Pope had arranged to meet Limbrey. Sarah, Kie and Andy stuck together, trying to not let it seem like they were about to gang up on the boys.

“I still can’t believe that you’re related to Denmark Tanny.” John B smiled at Pope. “Are we in the presence of a royal?”

“A king?” JJ asked, placing an imaginary crown on Pope’s head. “We shall crown him! All hail, Lord of Tannyhill!”

Andy almost laughed, before she realized it was JJ making a joke. “Okay, relax. Relax.” Pope shook his head.

“Relocate to Cat’s Ass, question mark?” Sarah asked. “After our very important meeting, of course.”

“How soon can we move in?” Kie asked, grinning at Pope.

“Cause I don’t have a place to stay.” JJ nodded in agreement.

“Oh, same, I really don’t wanna go home to my dad-“ Andy nodded, catching herself before she said anything else.

Andy could tell that her statement made the vibes immediately drop. “Your dad’s home? What?” Kie asked, suddenly concerned.

Andy kicked her legs in the air, her shoes swinging back and forth on the cooler she was sat on. “Yeah, not a big deal, the boat’s broken, he’s just home so Guffy can fix it for him.”

“Why didn’t you say anything?” JJ asked, sitting his beer down.

Andy furrowed her eyebrows at him. “Well I figured none of you would want to look at an SOS text from me after I fought with all of you like that.” She sighed, pausing, and stuffing her feelings back down her throat.

“It’s not important anyway, Pope, didn’t you say that the letter Limbrey sent had that wheat symbol on it? Like the one from Denmark’s letters?”

Pope stared at her for a moment, almost as if to ask “are you positive you don’t want to elaborate on your feelings about your dad being home?”

“It must mean it has something to do with the Royal Merchant. And if we find the cross, we can split it, like we’re gonna split the gold.”

“And live happily ever after?” A new voice, coincidentally belonging to Limbrey herself, came into play. If Andy thought she brought the vibes down, this lady brought them to a new all-time low.

“You assaulted my father!” Pope snapped, stepping forward, but the man beside her pushed him back.

Andy jumped down from her cooler. “Oh I didn’t assault anybody.” Limbrey responded.

“Yeah, it was you, you son of a bitch.” Andy snapped, shoving at the man as he walked Pope back against the railing.

Andy expected him to retaliate, but before he could, JJ grabbed her wrist, yanking her back beside him and keeping her in place.

“Why would my employee assault your father? That’s absurd.” Limbrey chuckled to herself. “Listen, we can keep negotiating, but the fact is, I want that key. And I won’t stop until I have it. I don’t have a choice, and that means you don’t either.”

“It’s Limbrey right? Is that right?” John B asked, holding the key in his hand, high enough in the air for everyone to see.

“Yes.” She replied, eyes widening at the sight.

“Is this what you’re looking for?”

“Yes it is.”

“Looking at the tide, right now, I’d say it’s about twenty feet deep.” John B shrugged, staring out at the water behind them. “So, if I just threw it in the channel, the probability of you finding it again is slim-to-none. You wanna give it a shot?”

“No, hey!” John B faked her out, pretending to throw the key into the water. “Please don’t do that.”

Andy, wrist still in JJ’s hand, glared at John B, who locked eyes with her, nodding. “Get him to back the hell off.” She said, referring to Limbrey’s attack dog.

“Of course.” She nodded, and just like that, he stepped back. Andy yanked her wrist out of JJ’s grip, stepping to stand beside Pope.

Limbrey shuffled forward. “As I’ve told you from the beginning, I’m wiling to be reasonable.”

Pope looked at Andy for guidance. She nodded. “Okay.”

“Okay?” Limbrey asked.

“I’ll give you the key, but I want the tape.”

“Of course.” Andy could tell a weight was lifted off of Limbrey’s shoulders.

John B stood up off the railing. “Pope, hey, you don’t have to do this, okay?”

“No, it’s okay.” Pope insisted.

“It’s your family-“

“No, it’s okay.” Pope nodded. “It’s about your dad. That’s way more important.”

John B hesitantly handed the key to Pope, who handed the key to Limbrey’s “employee”. “The tape.”

Limbrey nodded. “The tape, give him the tape.” Limbrey made an even trade with Pope, exhaling loudly when the key was finally in her hand.

"You know, I wish you’d have come to this decision earlier. We could’ve avoided all this unpleasantness.”

“Nice to meet you.” John B said as they walked away.

Limbrey’s lap dog turned, smiling. “See you around Pope.”

Andy clenched her jaw, stepping forward, fully ready to take some frustrations out on that man, but Pope stopped her, holding her wrist in his hand, like JJ had.

“Not worth it.” He mumbled, making her step back beside him.

“How long you thing it’ll take before she realizes she has your father’s old key?” JJ asked John B slyly.

“Ten minutes.” John B shrugged.

Pope whipped around. “Whose idea was the fake key?”

“Shockingly, not mine.” Kie shrugged.

John B and JJ grinned like a pair of Cheshire cats. John B wrapped his arm around JJ’s shoulders. “I dunno, should we tell them?”

“Wow!” Kie exclaimed. “I’m impressed. Maybe you are good for something.”

“Did hell freeze over?” Pope smiled, wrapping his friends in a hug.

JJ shrugged nonchalantly. “Even a blind pig can find an acorn at times.” He laughed, enjoying the hug with his boys. “I actually don’t even know what that means, I saw it on Reddit.”

Andy was in shock. The whole thing was a ploy, made up by JJ and John B, of all people? Hell had to have frozen over.

“We have to take the tape to Shoupe.” John B said.

“Yes sir.” JJ saluted him. “Ward Cameron, we’re coming for you big boy!”

The boys decided, the very next morning, they would all ride down to the police station and give Shoupe the tape, but for the night, a group sleepover (even if they were separated by girls/boys) was in-order.

Sarah and Kie had taken up in the spare room, Andy planning on sleeping on the floor, and the boys had free-range of the rest of the house, a small price to pay for a girls night.

John B and Pope were sat out at the hammocks, and both Kie and Sarah were inside showering. Andy thought she was alone, internally fighting herself on whether or not to go home for the night, when JJ sat down beside her on the couch.

“You okay?”

At first, Andy said nothing, she simply turned to look at him, waiting a long moment before answering. “No. I don’t think I am.” She sighed, looking away.

“Why didn’t you text me? About your dad coming home?”

“Like I said, JJ, I didn’t think anybody would care about an SOS text from me considering none of you followed me after John B kicked my ass out of here.”

“I care-“

“Really JJ, cause it really seems like you don’t.” She snapped. “You’re always saying shit about how things would be different if you were like John B. Well John B was fighting with me because he was defending Sarah.”

“My best friend and my girlfriend were fighting with each other Andy, I don’t know what you wanted me to do! I’m not gonna chose between you two!” JJ shook his head, growing angry with her.

“I’m not asking you to chose, JJ!” She snapped back. Suddenly, her anger was replaced with sadness, and tears filled her eyes. “I’m just asking for a little backup once in a while, because I can’t do it all on my own all the time-“

Her voice broke, and she stopped herself, burying her face in her hands as tears streamed down her face. “This is me asking for help.”

“Fuck.” JJ muttered, pulling Andy’s body onto his lap and holding her tightly. “Fuck, I’m sorry. You’re right. I should’ve known.”

“How could you have known?” Andy sniffled. “It’s not like I’m super open with my feelings or anything.”

“No, I know.” JJ shook his head. “I should’ve told John B to shut the fuck up and made you two make up right then and there.” JJ frowned, leaning his head on top of her’s.

“And when you left I should’ve followed you. Instead Pope swooped in and saved the day.”

“He’s pretty good at it too.” Andy chuckled half-heartedly. “I forgot all about my dad for a few hours.”

JJ shook his head. “Well you don’t have to worry about anything anymore.”

Andy looked up at him.

“I mean it. I’m not leaving your side ever. I’m gonna go where you go, and I’ll take care of you. Even if you say you’re fine.”

“Okay.” Andy nodded, leaning back into him. Although, the independent woman in her hated to admit it, it felt damn nice to be back in his arms.

It felt nice to know that she had someone safe to go to if she needed help. And it was nice to know that someone cared about her enough, to love her when she needed help.

“Hey, I see you lovebirds made up.” John B suddenly appeared on the porch. “You in the mood for another reconciliation?” He nodded at Andy.

Andy sat upright on JJ’s lap, turning to John B. “I mean, I kinda have a sleepover to get to… but I think I can squeeze it in.”

She got up, JJ’s hand lingering in her’s, and she followed John B. He lead her down the dock, where the HMS Pogue was sitting pretty.

“Andy, I need to apologize to you.”

Andy rolled her eyes, leaning against the railing of the dock. “You really don’t John B.” She shook her head. “I deserved it.”

“Are you kidding me? You should’ve knocked me on my ass the way I was talking to you-“

“John B, you were doing what’s right, you were defending Sarah. She doesn’t have many people on her side right now, and she needs you.”

Andy looked over at him. “And I’m not trying to side-step from our fight, but you really should forget about the whole Topper thing. Because it’s not worth it.”

John B didn’t look at her, but instead, up at the moon.

“But anyway, I’m sorry.” Andy looked up at the moon too. “I’m sorry I treated Sarah like shit, and thought you weren’t gonna find out. I’m sorry for everything. I just want everything to be okay again, like it was before.”

“Before what, specifically?”

“John B.“ Andy sighed. “Before you died? Before Ward fucking Cameron decided to make us all public enemy number one? Before everything seemed to come crashing down on me?”

“Andy-“

“Shit is not alright. Not for me.” She sighed. “I keep fucking stuff up, or getting mixed up in shit and it isn’t getting better, so the least I can do is have my friends. So I’m done fighting with you guys. I don’t care anymore-“

John B cut her off, pulling her in for a hug. “I’m sorry too, Squid.” He mumbled against the top of her head. “Shit is going down but hopefully it’s gonna stop. I’m just glad you’re going through it with me.”

She pulled away, staring up at John B, who smiled at her. “By the way, did you ever realize that you ramble when you’re upset? Kinda like JJ does when he’s excited-“

Andy swatted at his chest, shaking her head. “I know, I know, we’re just two peas in a pod. Perfect for each other. You don’t even need to say it.” She and John B laughed.

“Hey, Andy! You coming to bed?” Sarah yelled, standing on the porch.

Andy nodded, although Sarah couldn’t see her. “Yes ma’am!”

She and John B walked back up the dock, hugging once more. “Night sis.” He smiled softly at her.

Andy nodded, hesitantly. “Night bro.”

Joh B turned, joining Pope, and now JJ at the hammocks, and Andy met Sarah on the porch.

“Look at you, making amends with all of your vendettas in one day.” Sarah slipped her hand into Andy’s, leading her back into the house.

“Well if I can make a bunch of problems in one day, why not solve them in one day too?” Andy smiled, swinging their hands dramatically.

When they got into the spare room, Kie was already passed out on the bed. Sarah climbed in beside her, shutting off the light as Andy made herself comfortable on her makeshift bed on the floor.

She slept peacefully that night.

DAY EIGHTEEN

The next morning, Andy opted to hang with the boys, instead of Sarah and Kie. John B had woken up bright and early and gone to the police station on his own, returning after everyone else had awoken, with the news of Ward’s impending arrest.

The sky was crying again, rain pounding on the old roof of the Chateau, as Kie and Sarah sat quietly on the sun porch.

Andy sat at the kitchen table with the boys, celebrating their victory.

At last, justice would be served. Rafe was in jail, and Ward was next. John B was finally free, and the nightmare was over.

Andy felt a weight lifted from her shoulders, on her friend’s brother’s behalf.

The presence of her father was still looming over her, but it didn’t compare to the feeling of finally being free from Ward’s watching eye.

“Brrr-ing.” JJ imitated a phone ringing. “Ladies and gentlemen, Ward Cameron, king of the Kooks, is going to jail!” Andy couldn’t help but crack a little smile, as John B and Pope laughed at JJ.

Andy did feel some remorse for Sarah, after all, it was her father. But, she didn’t feel as strongly about Sarah’s emotions, as she did about John B.

“Goodbye! Adios! He’s outta here!” Pope joined in with JJ.

Andy noticed, out of the corner of her eye, as Sarah stood up from the couch, her phone to her ear.

Kie looked into the kitchen, shrugging when Andy tilted her head at her. The boys cheered around her, goofing off in the name of Ward.

Sarah hung up with whoever she was on the phone with, and turned back to Kie. “I need to go.”

“We’ll come with you.” Kie nodded, standing up. “Guys, come on!”

Without a word, Andy knew what was going on. The person who called Sarah, was Topper. His grandfather was the judge, and he had undoubtedly signed the warrant request.

Topper was calling to warn Sarah. They were going for her dad.

They all piled into the van, John B taking off as fast as he could.

Unfortunately for Sarah, the Twinkie didn’t do well in general, especially under-pressure, and they had to make it all the way across the island, dodging police vehicles on every street.

“Oh my god, can you please hurry, I need to be there for Wheezie!”

At the risk of sounding ungrateful, that her (ex?) boyfriend was driving her to watch her father get arrested, Sarah gripped her seatbelt as John B took a turn rather sharply.

“You think I wanna miss this?” John B asked, eyes never leaving the road.

Andy winced, reminding herself that she needed to have a talk with John B about reading the room, before speaking during certain situations.

They pulled up outside the Cameron residence, the cloud of settling dust from the police cars telling them they hadn’t missed anything important yet.

They gathered outside the wall outside the property, struggling to see. The hoard of police officers running towards the back of the house.

“Sarah, are you sure you don’t wanna go in, with Wheezie? I mean, it’s still your house-“ Kie turned to Sarah.

But John B had other ideas. “Screw it, I’m going over.” He hoisted himself over the wall.

“Right behind you.” JJ nodded, jumping too. Wordlessly, Andy grabbed his hand, pulling herself up and over the wall too.

She locked eyes with Sarah as she hit the ground, feeling another pang of sadness, but not enough to deter her from wanting to see Ward get his karma.

Pope helped Kie and Sarah over, and then the six of them were headed in the direction the police went.

Wheezie and Rose exited the house, grabbing Sarah’s attention. “Why are the police here again? Sarah!”

Sarah ran to her sister, holding her in her arms. “Wheezie, Wheezie, listen to me. Go inside, don’t come out, okay?” Wheezie nodded, returning to Rose, and going back inside.

John B, followed closely by Sarah, and the rest of them, ran towards the point, where the police were situated.

“Dad?” Sarah called, still unsure of where he was.

They all held their hands up, showing the police they weren’t a threat, as they reached the wall of police. “Hey, you gotta let us through-“ John B begged.

“That’s Sarah Cameron, let ‘em through!” Shoupe yelled, and a break was made in the wall of humans for them to pass through.

Sarah stepped in front of John B, walking down the dock. “What are you doing here Sarah?” Ward called.

Andy’s eyes traveled to him, where he was perched on the top deck of the Druthers, a glass of scotch in-hand. He seemed oddly casual about the situation, but the fact that he wasn’t within arms-reach of the police force made a chill creep up Andy’s spine.

Something was going to happen.

“Dad, what are you doing?” Sarah called back, tears threatening to spill down her cheeks.

They kept their hands up until they passed by all the officers, Andy immediately grabbing JJ’s hand when they reached the end of the dock.

He ran his thumb over her knuckles, looking at her, concerned. “Something’s not right, J.” She whispered.

He shook his head, still holding her hand, and turned back to watch Ward.

“Vic, you gotta get her outta here! She can’t be here right now!” Ward shouted, becoming hysterical.

“Just come on in, you can talk to her!” Shoupe replied, trying to reason with him.

“Sarah, I’m so sorry baby, I can’t!” Ward turned, pushing the button to pull the anchor up.

He was going to try and escape, as if the police hadn’t already pre-planned for that.

“What are you doing dad? No, no no!” Sarah tried to persuade her father to stop.

“Ward!” Shoupe yelled. “This ain’t gonna end the way you want it to.”

In the distance, police and coast guard boats were headed towards the point. “You don’t need her seeing this!”

“No, dad, don’t leave! Where are you going?” Sarah shouted.

Ward climbed down to the middle deck. “I love you Sarah!”

“Damnit Ward, turn it around and get back here!” Shoupe yelled again.

“Please don’t go!” Sarah cried, begging her father to rethink his actions.

Ward disappeared inside the cabin of the Druthers, pulling the door shut behind him. No sooner did he shut the door, than did the Druthers explode.

Andy gasped, stumbling into JJ from the shock of the blast.

The boat went up in flames, bits of fiberglass and metal flying throughout the air and landing in the water.

On the dock, they could feel the heat, it was hotter than any summer heatwave they’d ever experienced, and the smell of the fire was unimaginable.

Sarah gasped, staring in shock at the boat. “Dad!” She cried, her voice breaking. “Dad!”

Andy frowned, feeling the utter grief radiate off of Sarah. She couldn’t help but be in shock, she had just seen a boat explode, with Ward Cameron on it. And deep-down, she was relieved, and slightly joyous, that the world was rid of that monster.

But she also was sad, for Sarah, because Andy knew what it was like, to live without a father. (Even though her’s was alive, he wasn’t present, ever.)

“No, Dad, no!”  Sarah sobbed, turning to John B for comfort. But he provided none, he simply stood, stone-faced, watching his father’s killer burn.

John B watched as Topper ran down the dock, in just enough time to catch Sarah as she collapsed to the ground, overcome with grief.

Andy couldn’t watch anymore. She turned, hiding her face in JJ’s shoulder as she tried to block it all out. The heat, the sound of Sarah’s wailing.

Andy didn’t think she would ever be able to forget the sound of Sarah crying.

“S’okay.” JJ whispered, rubbing her arm. “We’ll get outta here soon.”

Andy nodded, trying to regulate everything in her brain. “Shit’s going down, but hopefully it’s gonna stop.” Was what John B had said the night before.

And it had. Ward was dead, and they were finally free.

Face still buried in JJ’s shoulder, Andy, despite the overwhelming emotions she was feeling, couldn’t help but crack a little smile.

Ward Cameron was dead.

TAG LIST

@chaoticsteverogers @secretwilliams @writingjjfics

#kane content #obx fic #obx #obx oc #jj maybank imagine #obx imagine #obx2 #outer banks #kiara carrera #pope obx

[lynaiss]

My contribution for the Autumn Season of @tgtw-project​ with the Trostenwald dark ales!

There's a few CR C2 easter eggs peppered all over the piece, can you spot them? 😀

Notes about my process for this are under the cut!

I've been learning a bit about how to make my process more manageable and helpful to me, so I thought I should share! This post isn't so much a walkthrough as it is just some general ideas and techniques that work for me. Hopefully some of it gives you ideas for your own workflow too or an insight into how I approach things.

So lets start off with getting the prompt for Trostenwald ale (part of Critical Role Campaign 2 setting lore) while working on a fan project. The first thing I did was go on wiki and read up on Trostenwald in more detail to figure out what vibe and props should go into the piece. I'm mostly looking for "what" and "why" to build a scene around. 

After doing so I came up with a  rough mental checklist of things I wanted in the piece: barrels (because beer is a common produce), a fish and grains based dish (also a common produce), bottles representing the three named breweries (it is directly linked to the prompt) and a warm golden hour-like atmosphere (to convey the cozy tavern vibe I was aiming for).

Before I started on a sketch I looked at images of beer ads to get a sense of how they arrange things composition-wise and what are common props.

As I made a rough sketch I was largely concerned with the color palette and light, and some general shapes and elements of the composition, like the barrels framing some of the  bottles and foam of the drinks creating a fun pattern that guides the eye to the palest bottle. I wasn't concerned with details or prop design, just getting my idea down quickly while using all the ideas I got from my beer ad research. Note that I forgot to add a third bottle for the last brewery that we know of by name from the show. Whoops.

After having the sketch down, I realized I had no idea what kind of shadows  this type of lighting would cast or what angle would be best to show the scene, so I mocked it up in Blender. This was the first time I fully did it and it helped so much with lighting and perspective! Cycles render takes a bit to render but all the reflections and shadows it shows are very handy for realistic lighting.

3D is such a great tool and it can truly help tackling complex lighting scenarios and unusual perspectives. It's okay to not know everything; that is what reference is there for!

The Sketchfab plugin was insanely helpful in this because I could just import models other people made and adjust them - as someone who doesn't know  how to model and texture things from scratch effectively yet that saved  me so much time because I only had to nudge things around. I arranged  everything as close to my original sketch as possible and rotated the camera to find the best angle. During this I realized some things (like the barrels) would work better composition-wise in a different position so I just moved them until I got something I liked. The tankard was rotated as well because the shape its handle was creating in the sketch was overly confusing and made the eye focus on it too much.

(and I also remembered that there should be three bottles rather than two!)

With  the 3D model there to guide me and my collection of refs ever expanding, I made a much tighter sketch. I even traced some parts of the render with slight adjustments because I was content with where they were. There is actual item design now and lighting is more firmly defined. I finally added in the third bottle and figured if Trostenwald is also known for fishing to include some fishing net decor in there.

This is where the idea of adding some easter eggs as clutter started to form. I knew I needed more stuff in there to make it feel less staged and adding something fun seemed, well, fun. Spaces in real life are rarely perfectly orderly, there is always some clutter or things are at odd angles. In pieces like this finding balance between clutter and readable composition is something that can make it work as a piece and sell the atmosphere!

(yes, I forgot to add foam in the tankard...)

After this majority of planning is done and there is pretty much some 10% of work left to do but time-wise this step takes the longest because there is a lot of fine work to do. Rendering is where a  good piece can become a fantastic piece if important things are touched up properly and less important ones are touched up just enough that they do not seem "unfinished". 

I have very mixed feelings about rendering because on one hand I enjoy capturing very fine detail of various materials but on the other, a lot of the time it feels like you are making very little  progress and you're working on the piece for hours on end. It does end  up worth it in the end, though!

During this stage I made some small changes like finally adding foam to the tankard, and flipping the candle so it points the eye into the piece rather than out, along with a lot of detail work. I also finally tackled designing the beer labels. Graphic design is absolutely not my area of expertise but it was a fun challenge.

And  some 15 hours later we end up with this! I'm sure that would've been a  much lower number if I could've worked on the piece more consistently  but instead all progress was stretched over several weeks so I often struggled with getting back into the swing of it and wasted a lot of time.

I'm fairly happy with how it turned out and it made me  really push texture work, but one thing I realized I should definitely  improve on is where I put detail and how much of it. Quite a ways into  painting the background I realized it had a ton of visual information  and was competing a lot with the focal points (the bottles and glasses),  and then when I reduced the contrast a lot of the detail I spent hours  working on got lost - wasted. I easily could've been looser and avoided  the entire issue to begin with. Finishing this piece provided me with a roadmap to further improvement and I don't think I would've spotted my weakness if I haven't completed the work on this.

A note that I didn't know where to put - through the entire painting process I kept adding more references because there are always things that I need more visual info on and know that I won't do my best off the top of my head. No matter how  many times I draw something, I only retain 20% of the actual information and need refs to get it right. 

By the end of it, I ended up with a reference board that looked something like this. I often keep several images for items or materials that are important so I can spot as many features of it as possible.

If someone got this far and is still reading, here is some technical info: I probably spent around 25 hours working on this piece, not counting putting together a Blender scene. That one probably took another 8 because I'm still very slow at using the program. I did all of my painting with Wacom Intuos graphics tablet, in Clip Studio Paint, with 2 custom brushes.

#tgtw #tgtw project #critical role #critical role fanart #Illustration #my art #lynart

[angry-geese]

At Dawn’s Break

PB!Dio x Maid!reader

Warnings: none! a little spicy, but SFW. Mostly fluff. Kind of suggestive towards the end.

notes: reader is a maid working for the Joestar family, Dio begins to develop a crush on her. Not the healthiest relationship dynamic. Fem!reader

I didn't really edit this so if there's any egregious errors I'll get to them tomorrow. It starts out kinda slow so whoops

Part Two, Part Three, Part Four

You were alone the first time you arrived at the Joestar estate.

As your father grew ill, you slowly took over as the head of the household. Work still had to be done, the house needed to be kept, you had mouths to feed.

There weren’t many job prospects for an unmarried woman, even less for a girl. At times you thought about turning to less honest means of work, even if only in passing.

The head maid was a close friend of Mr. Joestar’s, and a childhood friend of your father. It was a job, something you could not refuse, however far from your home. You would be fed, clothed and housed, with a healthy sum to send back to your family each month.

The offer seemed almost too good to be true.

Leaving your siblings behind wasn’t something you found yourself eager to do. They could take care of themselves- you made sure of that- but there was a nagging feeling that plagued you. 

Your first night there, you were stripped of your belongings and shown a room you would share with two other girls.

It took no time for you to fall into a routine at the estate. At dawn you would get up to work in the kitchens, preparing that morning’s breakfast. During the day you would spend time cleaning the library, or doing other miscellaneous tasks asked of you. In the evening, you would help with dinner, before returning to your shared room. You were worked to the bone- and even more after that.

You had heard the tales of Mr. Joestar’s adopted son. Occasionally, girls would come into the kitchen crying, hysterical and inconsolable. They’d tell you just how cruel he was. How he’d ruthlessly bully anyone that crossed his path.

Before you, Dio had frightened off any maid that dared go near him.

Jonathan was the more approachable one, you quickly learned that. Your interactions were few, and only in passing. In your two weeks there you had yet to encounter the other son.

It would take another month before you’d finally meet him.

...

Their fight could be heard from across the manor.

That night, the kitchen was alive with rumors. They weren’t things you often concerned yourself with. Not that you viewed yourself as above it, but it was never more than mundane things dramatized for the sake of entertainment.

Today was a bit different.

“I heard Dio started it.”

“I heard Jonathan won!”

“I heard Mr. Joestar is sending him away!”

“He’d never do that!”

“Young lady!"

The head maid’s sudden appearance makes you jump. The kitchen falls silent as she enters. She carries a tray with fine china, and what looks like a glass of wine.

“The boys will be eating in their rooms tonight. Take this to Mr. Brando.”

Your heart drops.

The girls that aren’t stifling giggles are looking at you with pity.

“Can’t someone else do it?”

Your plea falls on deaf ears. The other girls, however kindhearted, know better than to take your place. 

...

You walk like you’re being marched to your own execution.

His door is closed by the time you reach it. Knocking once grants no answer. Walking straight in is rude, sure, but you’d rather get this over with as soon as possible.

The room- at first- appears empty. A single candle is lit, providing the only light as the curtains have been drawn shut. The bed is neatly made, there’s an open book on the nightstand.

Dio grabs you by the back of the dress, spinning you around to face him.

“How dare a little wretch like you enter my room!” 

Caught off guard by his sudden outburst, you backhand him across the face.

His eyes well up but he says nothing. You silently set down the tray, fixing your apron before leaving.

Returning to the kitchen, you make sure to tell the others just how awful he is. 

Soon you’d forget all about him. But Dio never quite forgot about you.

You slowly consumed his every waking moment.

...

Dio began following you around like a lost puppy.

At the beginning it was endearing, but it quickly grew old. His presence was suffocating. Every free moment he had he would trail after you. The only time you got away was when you briefly lost him in the gardens. 

That evening you were asked to bring him dinner again. Then the evening after that.

This time his door was open. Light streamed into the room from the open window. He’s sitting on the edge of his bed, a book in his lap. You set the tray down on his side table

“What’s your name?” His face is red. He refuses to meet your gaze.

“Y/N.”

“Will you stay with me, Y/N?” His voice sounds small.

Perhaps it was pity you felt for him. Had he really scared off so many people that he had to make friends with a maid? Or was his request more dubious in nature?

You could only hope that if you fail to return in a timely manner, help would be sent.

Reluctantly you agree, taking a seat next to him. 

...

His company was enjoyable, if a bit awkward. He was standoffish and not what you would consider easy to talk to. As time went on, your conversations continued. You grew to enjoy his company. He went from being a pest, to someone you looked forward to seeing.

In his own twisted way he cared about you.

He would never put it that way. Since his mother’s death- and his subsequent arrival at the Joestar estate- he’s only looked after himself.

The girls talked- as they did- and it was soon made known that if anything needed to be brought to him, you were the one to send. You were the one who would come out unscathed.

It was no secret that this crush was much less innocent than it seemed. You were more of a possession- something pretty to show off- than a companion. 

Of course you would be the last one to realize that.

Passing conversations turned to sneaking away to the library together. Sneaking away to the library turned to night trips to the garden. You soon found your every waking moment consumed by him.

The girls you roomed with long stopped caring about your nightly trips to the garden. The coin you paid them was sure enough to keep word from spreading to the head maid.

...

The spot you typically meet at is an old, gnarled apple tree at the far end of the gardens. There’s a little nook to sit in that shields you from the breeze and any prying eyes.

Your linen shift does little to protect you from the cold English night.

Tonight he’s late. You settle into the nook with a quilt, and leftover teacakes from the morning.

Its not long after he appears, carrying a lantern. He sits next to you under the tree, which has grown barren and scraggly from the changing of seasons. He places a hand on your knee. Its more possessive than suggestive. You can’t help but lean into his touch. The warmth is welcome.

He kisses you. It’s no more than a quick peck. You quickly pull him back to deepen the kiss.

He’s the first to pull away. His gaze burns.

“Will you stay with me, Y/N?”

“Always.”

#phantom blood #jjba x reader #dio brando #dio brando x reader #dio x reader #jjba #jojo part 1 #jojo's bizarre adventure #yandere dio brando x reader #yandere dio brando #cw yandere #fem!reader

[lovely-ateez]

Vampire Shift~

ꕥPosted: 5/23/21

ꕥGenre: Fluff, Smut, Angst, College!au, Horror!au

ꕥPairing: Fem!Reader x Vampire!Jongho (feat Wooyoung and Minho from skz)

ꕥWord Count: ~5.9k (whoops)

ꕥWarnings: Horror themes, Language, Thigh riding, Unprotected sex, Mentions of blood and blood sucking (please lmk if I missed anything)

ꕥTag List: @cappujinho @bobateastay

ꕥA/N: I hope you all don’t a more spooky concept! Halloween is my favorite holiday and even though its May, it’s always spooky season to me lolol. Also! Feel free to listen to Vampire Shift by All Time Low while reading this (it’s only on YouTube I cry) since this is inspired by the song :)

It was a terrible idea, really, to work the night shift at a gas station alone. Even more so when you’re a young woman whose only defense is the pepper spray on her key chain and 911 on speed dial. Alas, college bills don’t pay themselves and every spare opportunity to get cash was one I had to take.

The digital clock sitting on the counter next to me briefly flashed, indicating another hour had gone by. It was currently four a.m. and it was safe to say I was losing my mind. I’d worked for five hours now, and not a customer had come in. That was the only advantage, really. So long as no one was around my boss let me finish any assignments I had, which came in handy on more than one occasion.

I was only six paragraphs into a five page report and had been staring at my laptop screen for over an hour, feeling beyond brain dead. I was assigned the topic of financial statements and country trade deficits, and wanted to cry every minute I thought about it. I was half convinced to pay someone to write the report for me.

The ringing of a bell indicated a customer opening the door and I closed my laptop to peer around the counter, ready to greet whoever entered. The first man to catch my attention was wearing sunglasses which fazed me, but I tried not to stare. The man that followed had black hair with blond underneath, a combination that I strangely liked. Both men were donned in all back, their faces stoic. They were attractive, I had to admit, but neither were my type.

And then, the last man entered. He looked over to me as he walked through the door, giving me a nod and a slight smile. His slicked back black hair matched his black ripped jeans and highlighted his red leather jacket. He was so handsome he looked like he jumped out of a magazine and I had to suppress a ‘wow’. A string of butterflies fluttered in my stomach and I did my best to ignore them, not even knowing his name.

The three of them wandered through the aisles until I could no longer see them, and I scolded myself for being so thrown off that I forgot say any form of a greeting. I sighed and turned my attention back to my laptop, opening it and blankly staring at the screen. My ears perked when I heard the men’s hushed voices.

“Y’oughta get that girl’s number. I saw the way you looked at her.”

“Yeah, Jongho. She’s pretty cute. If you don’t get her number you know I will.”

“Shut up.” One of the men, Jongho apparently, responded with a laugh, “Let’s just get some snacks, okay? It’s gonna be a long night. Also I’m buying tonight so get whatever.”

A smile crept on my face and I looked down, fiddling with my thumbs.

They think I’m cute. Maybe Jongho’s the one in red?

I heard the bell ring once more and a girl entered who I vaguely remembered from high school. She was popular but for good reason, probably being one of the nicest people I’d ever met. Our circle of friends overlapped slightly so I’d spent a fair amount of time with her. She was smart as a whip and gorgeous all the same, which seemed to stay with her. She looked bright, long red hair falling around her face, freckles still prominent as ever.

We met eyes and she smiled, “Hey y/n!”

I smiled and waved, “Hey Annabelle. How’ve you been? I haven’t seen you in awhile.”

“Good! I got into my dream college and it’s been great, although I’ve had to take some pretty hard classes.” She giggled, walking towards me. It’s honestly not too far from here. You go to Westgate University, right?”

I nodded and I put my laptop aside. She spoke again, genuinely excited for me, “That’s awesome! Congrats!”

“Thanks,” I smiled, “I’m taking it you got into Orholt?”

“I did! I was really-”

One of the men that entered earlier—the one still wearing sunglasses—shouted the redhead’s name and caught her attention, “Hey Anna do you want a Redbull or a Five Hour Energy?”

“Redbull! I’m not a monster.” She laughed.

The man nodded and walked toward us with several drinks and snacks in his hands.

“Oh! I want to introduce you to my boyfriend!” Annabelle turned to the man still wearing sunglasses and reached for his arm, “This is Minho. I met him at Orholt.”

Minho gave me a slight nod as I introduced myself and he placed the food and drinks on the counter. I began to scan the items, the mindless routine that I was used to by now. The loud sound of laughter made me look up, seeing the two other men approach us and place their snacks down as well. I watched them long enough to notice the way two-tone—my new affectionate name for the man with blond and black hair, I decided—shamelessly checked me out, a cocky smile on his face when I caught him. I just let out a small laugh before resuming my task, watching his confused reaction in my peripheral vision.

“Oh my god I totally forgot to introduce you to my friends.” Annabelle giggled and pointed to two-tone, “This is Wooyoung.”

“Hiya, Wooyoung.” I said with a confident smile, enjoying the way he still had a slightly confused look on his face.

“And this,” Annabelle nodded towards the man in red, “This is Jongho. Both him and Wooyoung go to Orholt, too.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Jongho. I’m y/n.”

“Very nice to meet you.” The man smiled before he sent me a wink.

I had never been a particularly shy person, but as he did so my eyes darted down as I felt my face flush. I didn’t notice the gears turning in Annabelle’s head as she put the pieces together.

I placed the final items in the bag, raising my head as Annabelle addressed me,  “You know I’m having a bonfire tomorrow night at my place and you should totally come!”

I stopped to think, first trying to remember if I worked the next day, then wondering if I was willing to go the bonfire when I realized I didn’t have to.

She sensed my hesitancy and her face fell, “Aw do you work tomorrow night? It’s a Saturday!”

“Oh no, I don’t. I...” I stopped to think for a minute. Although I likely didn’t know anyone else who would be there, I was familiar with Annabelle’s house, which brought me a bit of comfort, “Are all of you going?”

Annabelle gave a knowing smile, “Yes. All of us will be here.”

I nodded, accepting the credit card Jongho gave me, quickly after handing them the bags, and returning his card, “I’ll go.”

“Yay! We’ve gotta head out but I’ll send you the details. You’ve still got the same number, right?”

“Yeah I do.”

“Alrighty! I’ll see you tomorrow then!”

Annabelle left with a wave, her boyfriend on her arm and Wooyoung behind her. To my surprise, Jongho didn’t leave with them, the cocky look on his face all but telling me why he stayed.

I looked at him with wide eyes, playing innocent. “Can I help you?”

He placed an arm on the counter, his dark eyes seeming to put me under a spell. The confidence he was radiating was almost palpable and I felt myself being pulled to him. It was intimidating, to be honest.

“You’re really cute and I want your number.”

I let out a surprised laugh, “You really don’t beat around the bush, do you?”

“No, not really,” He propped his other arm on the counter, leaning towards me and raising an eyebrow, “So what do you say, doll?”

A smile crept on my face as I mirrored his actions and leaned towards him, “You gonna memorize my number? Or do you have a phone I can put my number into?”

Jongho’s smile got brighter as he reached to grab his phone, handing it to me. “You’re a firecracker, aren’t you?”

I shrugged, “I’d like to think so.”

When I handed his phone back, our fingers brushed and I could’ve sworn I felt sparks shoot through me at the simple interaction.

“Well I need to head out before the rest of them get too annoyed,” He nodded towards the exit where Annabelle, Minho, and Wooyoung left, “But it was enchanting to meet you, y/n.” He bowed, drawing a laugh from me.

“Ah yes. You as well, absolutely delightful.”

He gave me a smile, “I’ll text you later.”

"Sounds good. I’ll hold you to your word.”

“I’d expect nothing less.” And with that, he was out the door, leaving my heart a fluttering mess.

-

Me [8:37pm] So is there a dress code for tonight?

Annabelle [8:42pm] Nope! Wear whatever you’re comfortable with. I’m wearing this if it helps at all!

Annabelle [8:43pm] 1 Image Attached*

Me [8:45pm] So leather jackets and crop tops?

Annabelle [8:48pm] Haha sure! We can match!

Me [8:51pm] Lol bet. See you at eleven :)

Annabelle [8:51pm] See you then!

I started the process of slipping on a white cropped top followed by my light washed ripped jeans. I knew I was getting ready far earlier than I could have, but something about new events made me anxious and I had to make sure I looked nice. I giggled at the black leather jacket I was throwing over my shoulders, not having worn it since high school. In the middle of debating whether or not I should add another layer of mascara to my lashes, my phone dinged.

New Number [8:59pm] Y/n this better be you. This is Jongho and I’m texting you for a really important reason and I need you to reply quick

Me [9:00pm] Yeah it’s me. What’s going on are you okay??

New Number [9:02pm] I’m gonna go grab some food before I head to Anna’s. You wanna come with?

Me [9:02pm] Oh my god don’t do that to me, you buffoon. You scared me so bad rip

[New Number name changed to A Cute Buffoon]

Me [9:03pm] But sure I’m down lol. Here’s my address btw

Me [9:03pm] 1 Location Shared*

It occurred to me perhaps a bit too late that I was sharing my address with someone that I’d met only once and in a gas station.

I mean, he’s friends with Annabelle so he’s gotta be good right? God I hope so. I thought to myself.

A Cute Buffoon [9:04] Then it’s a date :) I live pretty close so I’ll be over in 10. That work for you?

Me [9:06pm] Fine with me!

A Cute Buffoon [9:06pm] Sounds good. I’ll see you soon ;)

I set down my phone and thanked myself for already doing my makeup. I checked myself out in the mirror, satisfied with my appearance and proud of how well my makeup turned out. I grabbed my bottle of perfume and spritzed the liquid in the air, letting it gradually fall on me so it wouldn’t be too overpowering.

You look beautiful, babe.

The waiting game was harder than I thought, not knowing what to do except awkwardly sit around and play an assortment of phone games. When exactly ten minutes had passed I heard my doorbell ring and I lifted myself from my couch, grinning at his punctuality.

I opened the door to see Jongho holding a bouquet of flowers, a smug look on his face. “Lovely to meet you here, stranger.”

I wanted to make a joke back but I couldn’t seem to think of anything, too surprised by the flowers in his hands. It wasn’t anything extravagant, the small bouquet of violets, but I felt my heart swell.

It’s perfect. He’s perfect.

My voice was small when I spoke, “No one’s ever given me flowers before.”

His eyebrows furrowed as a confused look painted his face, “Really?”

I nodded, taking the flowers from his outreached hands and smelling their sweet fragrance, “They’re beautiful.”

My eyes flickered to his, the tender look on his face making me feel as if I was melting on the spot, “You’re beautiful.”

I squealed, my face undoubtedly turning pink while my mind short circuited. I’d never become so shy around someone before and the only thing I could think of to say in response was another ‘thank you’ followed by ‘I’ll go get a vase for these.’

I opened my door further, rummaging through my cabinets for a vase when I noticed Jongho was still standing by the door, “You can come in, you know? That’s why I opened the door.”

He laughed nervously, “Sorry about that. Force of habit, I guess.”

I raised my eyebrows in a teasing manner, “What? Are you a vampire? Can you only come in if someone invites you?”

I thought I saw a flicker of shock on his face for a moment, but it was gone before I could register it and I shrugged it off, my eyes finding the perfect vase for the flowers.

“It’s just how I was raised.”

“I get that.” I placed the flowers in the vase, giving them a bit of water before walking up to Jongho and gently patting his cheek, “Your good manners are appreciated.”

He laughed in surprise, full gummy smile on display as he playfully swatted my hand away from his face, “Alright, alright. Let’s head out already.”

I made a sound of agreement before noticing a slight pink on his ears. I was temped to tease him, but ultimately decided to save it for later. If I could fluster him once I knew I could do it again.

-

The diner we went to was one I’d never heard of before, let alone been to, and I was beyond frustrated that I didn’t even know about it’s existence. It was an adorable fifties style diner and even the attire the waiters were wearing fit the theme.

“This is the cutest place to ever exist, I’m convinced.” I said as we sat down on the same side of a bright red booth.

“I really hoped you would like it. This is my favorite restaurant ever and they have fantastic milkshakes. If you’d like to share one for desert, I’m all for it.” A wink.

I bit my lip and hid my face in the menu that was placed in front of us, thankful for any method of escape.

“You’re so cute.”

“Ahh no don’t say things like that.” I giggled from behind the menu.

His hand grabbed the top of the menu, pulling it down so he could see me, “Why’s that?”

“Because you make me nervous. Like a good nervous!” I tried to explain, which only resulted in becoming even more embarrassed, “I-I mean I’m excited to be around you but I’m also nervous. I hope that doesn’t sound weird.” I cringed at myself. Never in my life did I think I’d be blushing and stuttering over some man, but my god did he prove me wrong.

“Not at all,” he reached over to take my hand in his, “because I feel it, too.”

Before I could properly react our waitress came over, taking our order and effectively saving me from becoming a human tomato.

We handed our menus back to her after ordering and she looked at us with a soft smile, “You two make a cute couple.”

While I was a bit too stunned to say anything, Jongho didn’t seem to have the same problem and went along with it, “Thank you, ma’am. That’s kind of you to say.”

When she left, Jongho leaned closer to me, “I hope I didn’t make you uncomfortable by saying that we we’re a couple. I thought that-”

“No, I didn’t mind it!” I bit my tongue after likely saying that way too fast with far too much enthusiasm, but I meant it, “I didn’t mind it,” I said again, softer this time.

The tips of his ears once again turned a faint shade of pink, “Good to know.”

The food was as wonderful as it possibly could’ve been, their fries alone being one of the best things I’d ever consumed. Just as Jongho suggested, we shared a milkshake, which led to shy eye contact and laughter and my crush becoming stronger by the minute.

Just as Jongho paid and we were about to leave, a certain song began to play and he looked at me with an air of mischief, holding out his hand to me, “Dance with me.”

I took his hand, trying to hide my smile but failing. He led me away from the table and next to the jukebox. The area surrounding it was more open, probably with the intention for people to dance near it. He grabbed my waist, holding the hand of mine that wasn’t placed on his chest and looking at me in a way that could make any woman fall in love on the spot. We swayed to the music and I couldn’t help but feel full. Like I’d found all that I’d ever need.

Put your head on my shoulder~

“Do you know this song?” He asked with a smile.

I scoffed, “Of course I do! It’s one of my favorites.”

“It’s one of mine, too.”

Hold me in your arms, baby~

I mouthed along to the words as I felt the need to prove it to him. As if to one up me, Jongho began to sing along, his gorgeous voice amazing me.

Squeeze me oh so tight, show me~

That you love me, too~

I blushed as he looked at me while singing along, becoming a bit flustered himself when the lyrics clicked with him.

Put your lips next to mine dear~

Won’t you kiss me once, baby~

As if we were in sync our eyes darted to the other’s lips at the same time. I could feel Jongho’s breathing becoming heavier before he said in a hushed tone, “Can I kiss you?”

“Please.” Was all I could respond before I pressed my lips to his, fireworks igniting inside me when he kissed me back. His lips were so soft and warm and as crazy as it sounded, he felt like home. I felt him smile against my lips as the music continued to play.

Maybe you and I will fall in love~

-

The fire was loud, crackling and lighting up the faces of all those crowded those around it. It was essentially the only source of light in the dark of the night, except for the distant lights still on in Annabelle’s house. My hands were interlocked with Jongho’s as we sat around it’s warmth, both of us finding it hard to separate from one another.

Conversation was flowing all around us, and I was relieved to find that everyone I had talked to was kind and welcoming. I was more nervous than I realized, but having Jongho next to my side alone calmed me. Someone around the fire mentioned an old story involving Annabelle and I began to wonder where she was, having not seen her since Jongho and I first arrived. I mentioned I was going to look for her and he nodded, at first wanting to join me but then getting pulled into conversation with one of his former classmates. I told him I’d head off on my own and he nodded again.

I looked around what seemed to be the entire property and still there was no sight of her. At that moment I heard yelling coming from her house, startling me. I felt my blood run cold when I recognized one of the voices as Annabelle’s. The yelling didn’t sound like it was out of fear, but instead more aggressive, out of pure anger. Without thinking I ran inside, hoping to calm the situation but instead found what seemed to be out of a work of fiction.

An unfamiliar man was on the ground, obviously trying to get away from a hidden figure before him that seemed to be cloaked in darkness. He let out a sound that I’d never heard a human make, one that I couldn’t even compare to something I’d heard before, and a shiver ran down my back. As the figure took a step forward I recognized it as Annabelle, or what seemed to be some version of her. Her normally grey eyes were now bright red, sharp fangs on display as she snarled at the man. A group of people were surrounding them, alarmed looks on their faces but hardly trying to intervene.

“What the hell?” I whispered, my eyes wide as I tried to back away without anyone noticing. But of course, I just had to step on an empty soda can, all eyes pointing my way. As I looked at the people around me, their expressions seemed to mirror mine and I swallowed, suddenly feeling immensely claustrophobic.

I met eyes with Annabelle and she seemed to change in a flash, her eyes returning to their former color and fangs disappearing. She looked more panicked than I had ever seen her which only scared me more. She was always able to keep her stressors under control, but as she stared back at me, I saw a version of her I never had before.

I was barely able to form a sentence, adrenaline coursing through me at a rampant rate, “Um...” 

Annabelle slowly walked towards me, “Oh—hey! Sorry I disappeared for a while but how’s the party going? Are you having fun?” Panic was still evident in her voice but I knew she was trying to keep a hold of the situation.

“I...I don’t-”

A stern voice came from left, and I nervously turned to meet Jongho, an unreadable expression crossing his face, “Y/n.”

“Yeah?” My voice squeaked as I began to regret agreeing to come along in the first place, still hyper aware of all the eyes on me.

“Come with me.”

His eyes softened at my panicked state and he held out a hand, “Please?”

I was hesitant, but being anywhere away from the crowd and whatever Annabelle turned into seemed to be a good idea. I took his hand and watched as he exchanged a look with Annabelle that seemed to calm her. Turning on his heels he led me back to the bonfire, sitting in a chair and motioning for me to do the same. Seeing no one around us gave me a feeling of both anxiety and comfort, and I wasn’t quite sure which feeling was winning at the moment.

“Well I’m sure you have plenty of questions.” He started, “I won’t lie to you and try to convince you what you saw wasn’t real, because it was, but I need you to know that no one is going to harm you. That guy is Anna’s roommate and they get into an argument at least once a week. Sometimes it can be nasty, but they never get physical and neither would ever hurt anyone unprovoked. No one here would.”

I was silent for a few minutes, trying to process what I saw on top of the time bomb of information he dropped on me. “Is she...is everyone....are you a vampire?” I whispered the last words, almost too stunned and afraid to say out loud.

He smiled slightly, his kind eyes making me feel safe. “Yes. We’re what you’d call vampires.”

I took a breath, almost afraid to hear the answer to my question, “Am I in any danger by being here?”

“No, everyone here is good. They don’t pose any threat. There are plenty of dangerous vampires but we stay away from them. Besides,” He placed an arm around my waist, playfulness in his eyes, “If there were, I’d protect you from them.”

“Oh? And how don’t I know you’re not dangerous?”

He leaned closer to me, clearly enjoying this, “You don’t, I suppose. Doesn’t that make it fun?”

“That’s very much debatable,” I smiled for a moment before a frown took over, “Everyone just seemed really...I don’t know, startled I guess?”

Jongho let out a loud sigh, looking down at the ground for a few seconds before looking back up at me, “Humans aren’t normally invited to these parties. It’s assumed that everyone here is a vampire. The perfume that you’re wearing, whatever the hell it is, is masking your scent. If I didn’t meet you before today I wouldn’t have known you were human. I guess Anna didn’t tell everyone, either.” He placed a hand on my knee and looked at me with kind eyes, “How are you feeling?”

“Surprisingly calm considering that I just learned vampires exist.”

Jongho laughed, “Yeah I’d say you’re taking it pretty well. Like I said earlier though, I’m sure you’ve got plenty of questions, so fire away.”

“Yeah I have a few.” I hesitated, hoping he wouldn’t be offended by my question, “Exactly how old are you?”

“Oh are you gonna age shame me?”

“No but it’s probably an important thing to know...since we kissed and all.”

He laughed again and leaned back in his chair, placing his arms behind his head,  “How old do you think I am?”

I used his question as an excuse for my eyes to wander over his body. He was beyond attractive, very clearly fit and he knew it, which equal parts pissed me off and turned me on. As hard as I tried, I kept finding myself being pulled to his thighs. Even through his jeans I could tell he had strong thighs and I had to press my fingernails into my palm to keep from drooling. “From your appearance? Early twenties. From what age fiction usually tells us vampires are? I’d guess you’re a hundred and three.”

Jongho nodded with a smile, “I’m not quite that old but that’s a fair guess. You had it right the first time. I’m a pure born and we actually age, but we don’t age as quickly as humans. I’m twenty.”

“Pure born?”

“It means both of my parents are vampires.”

I nodded as another question came to mind, a smile on my lips. “Do you sparkle in the daylight?”

“Oh my god,” He covered his face with his hands, a mixture of a groan and a laugh escaping his mouth, “No, we do not sparkle in daylight, “His hands came to rest on his knees, “But it sucks that we really shouldn’t be in direct sunlight for over two hours a day. That’s normally the rule to go by. It’ll burn us if we’re in it for much longer than that.”

“So do werewolves and witches and everything like that exist, too?”

“Yeah pretty much. We don’t all get along, but we have to coexist. It’s something we’ve struggled with for a while, unfortunately. Basically everything you’d believe to be supernatural exists.”

I was silent for a while, not really knowing what else to say.

“Y/n? Are you doing okay? If you’re not comfortable being here I can drive you home right now or if you’d rather be alone I can call an Uber or—”

My heart skipped a beat at his kindness. “No, I’m okay. I guess I’m just surprised I’m learning about this just now.”

“We do a good job of hiding it. Also it was probably a given, but keep this as a secret if you can. Having a lot of people know about our existence can be risky.”

I gave him a silent nod, unintentionally leaning closer to him. The sound of approaching footsteps made me jump into Jongho’s arms. I didn’t know why I found comfort in him, knowing that he could be dangerous as well, but he’d been nothing but sweet to me. I had no reason to fear him.

Annabelle approached us but stopped, taking a few steps back when she saw how I was buried in Jongho’s arms.

“Hey y/n.” She rubbed her arm, looking down as if she’d done something wrong.

“I guess Jongho probably told you everything at this point. I’m really sorry if I scared you and I understand if you don’t want to be friends anymore.” Even in the dark I could see tears beginning to stream down her cheeks and I felt a pain in my chest.

I got up from Jongho’s hold and wrapped my arms around her, feeling her stiffen, “I trust you, Annabelle.”

Those four words seemed to relax her and she returned my hug, still sniffling, “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. We aren’t supposed to tell anyone and I thought you might hate me—”

I pulled back, “Why the hell would I hate you? You’re still you.”

She laughed through tears, gripping me tighter, thanking me over and over for not pushing her away.

We’re gonna be okay. It’s all gonna be okay.

-

Not too long after, Jongho drove me home. The ride was more silent than when we were headed to Annabelle’s house, but the air wasn’t heavy or uncomfortable. Feeling tired, I laid my head on Jongho’s shoulder, faintly hearing ‘sleep well, baby’ before drifting asleep.

When I woke, I was in my bed. I reached for my phone on the bedside table and found a little note placed next to it that read:

I hope you don’t mind that I carried you inside. I tried to wake you for like five minutes but you were out cold. Anyways, I had a really good time with you yesterday and I hope you had fun too :) Text me when you wake so I know you’re okay. -J

I looked at my clock and saw that it was still early, but I texted Jongho anyway.

Me [3:00am] Not sure if you’re still up, but I really enjoyed yesterday, too. I’m exhausted so I’m gonna go back to sleep but I just wanted to say I’m okay and everything is good :))

A Cute Buffoon [3:00am] Sleep well, darling. We can talk in the morning

-

It had been roughly a month since Jongho and I started dating, and while I felt like I knew him pretty well, we had only known each other a little over a month, on top of the fact that he was a vampire which was essentially an entire separate culture. I’d asked him most questions I had early throughout our relationship, but one in particular kept replaying in my mind.

We were currently sitting on the couch in my apartment, cuddling each other. The TV was on but neither of us were really watching it. I was far more interested in the warm body in front of me, and based off of how Jongho was looking at me, the feeling was mutual.

I bit my lip, anxiously mulling over the question I’d wanted to ask him for weeks. I didn’t know how he would take it, let alone how I would bring it up, but I needed to ask at some point. Knowing he could probably sense my nerves, I gave in. “Jongho, can a human turn into a vampire?”

He hummed, turning to face me. “Why do you ask?”

“I just...I didn’t know if it could happen or not.”

Jongho chuckled, “Yeah it’s possible. It’s a long ass process to go through though, and there’s a lot that can go wrong, so it rarely happens.”

I shifted in my seat, trying not to appear overly interested. “Why is that? What can go wrong?

He smiled and raised a brow, his cocky persona resurfacing, “You sound so eager to know, dear. Do you want to become a vampire?” His eyes briefly flickered towards my lips before he tilted his head, dragging his soft lips across my neck. I let out a gasp when I felt the tips of his teeth lightly scraping the skin, “Or maybe you’re just looking for an excuse for me to put my mouth on you?”

Like with anything that exuded him, I felt myself becoming quickly overwhelmed, my mind now hazy and distant. I shut my eyes in an attempt to gain some semblance of control over myself.

“Your thoughts are swirling, doll.” Jongho began leaving gentle kisses along the side of my jaw, “Don’t think too much. Just let me take care of you. Okay?”

“Okay.” I said through a short breath, knowing we’d just have to have the conversation another time.

We’d had sex before, so it wasn’t like this was new territory for us, but every time felt like the first, leaving me just as out of breath each time.

He lifted me and placed me on his thigh, dragging me across his flexed muscles. I felt my eyes roll back at the simple motion, my need growing at an embarrassing rate. I grabbed his shoulders as I began to drag myself against him, whines and whimpers spilling from my lips.

“God you’re hot,” Jongho said through hot breaths, beginning to kiss my neck, no doubt leaving marks.

“Thanks I try.” I managed to say, pleased when Jongho laughed.

“You don’t even have to, and it’s completely unfair.” His hands moved under my shirt and danced along my skin, “It’s like you’re an angel come to life.”

I let out a loud moan, feeling tears well in my eyes from his praise, “You always make me feel so beautiful when I’m with you.”

Jongho responded with a smile, carrying me to my bedroom and laying me down on the bed while hurriedly discarding both of our clothes.

“You’re always so eager, babe.”

He nuzzled my neck as he climbed on top of me, his hands finding my own and holding them, “As if you’re not.”

“I never said I wasn’t.”

He then moved in between my thighs, teasing me with his fingers as he ran them along my wet slit, occasionally rubbing my clit, drawing small whines from me.

“Jongho please just fuck me already.”

“Sweetheart, do you even think you’re wet enough for me?” He cooed.

Feeling frustrated, I pushed my fingers inside myself with ease, pulling them out and spreading them so he could see my essence dripping down my fingers, “I don’t know you tell me.” I said with far more sass than I intended.

Jongho’s eyes widened at the sight and wasted no time positioning his cock at my entrance, pushing in and letting out the most beautiful groans.

Neither of us ever bothered to use protection because, to put it simply, vampires couldn’t get humans pregnant. It was only possible when both partners were vampires, and we took full advantage of that.

“Fuck—baby you feel amazing. You’re so warm and tight ohmygod.” Jongho moaned as he began to move, thrusting in and out of me at a steady pace.

I clenched around him, loving when he was vocal. His sounds helped get me off just as much as his actions, at times it seemed.

“You feel...really good...too.” I said through heavy breaths. And as much as I wanted to last longer in bed, with Jongho, I never could.

“I don’t know if it’s because you’re a vampire and you’ve got like magic powers or something or maybe you’re just a sex god—but holy shit...I’m close.”

He threw back his head and had the audacity to laugh, something I really couldn’t stay mad at with how good he was making me feel. “Babe it’s been like six minutes.”

“Don’t be an asshole.” I joked, my laugh turning into a moan. It only spurred Jongho on, making him angle one of my legs up higher, hitting deeper inside of me.

“I know you’re close, baby. I can feel it. Cum for me, baby girl. Let go for me.”

He reached down to tease my sensitive nub, drawing quick circles until I was seeing stars, chanting his name like a prayer.

After Jongho came down from his high, he disappeared into the bathroom as he always did, coming back with a warm towel. As he pressed the towel to my thighs I tried to ask again.

“So...about the human to vampire thing?”

“Well,” Jongho sighed, “I didn’t think I’d be able to distract you forever.” He smiled, “It’s mostly done because couples want to stay together. The thing is though, the vampire obviously gets a taste of the human’s blood and it can be hard to stop once you’ve marked them, especially since smell is such a big allure for us.”

He took a long breath, “Then the human will almost always pass out, and needs to be taken care of for the next couple days because they’ll be so weak. Another problem is that the scent of their blood will be amplified during those days and it’ll be harder for the vampire to not, you know...” He looked away, not able to say the words. I knew what he meant, we both did. In some cases, vampires would kill their human partners for of their blood. Sometimes it was beyond their control. Just a primal need that would betray them. “Then their scent is more easily detected by other vampires and the whole thing is just kinda a mess. I think I’ve only heard of five attempts and only one of them was successful.”

I nodded, not really knowing what to say.

“And then on top of it all, it can be harder for the human to adjust and it can put a lot of pressure on the relationship. Human and vampire relationships are dangerous.”

His face was serious as he ran a hand through my hair. I looked up at him and leaned into his touch.

He cleared his throat and averted his eyes, a shy behavior I hadn’t seen from him before, “I guess it’s important for you to decide then.” His eyes met mine again, “Is this still something you want to continue?”

“Our relationship?”

“Yeah.”

“Of course, are you crazy? You mean the world to me.” I swallowed, realizing he hadn’t voiced his own thoughts, “What about you? Do you want this?”

“I think you have a pretty good idea of what I want.” He smiled and pressed a quick kiss to my forehead, his eyes sparkling.

“Hey Jongho?”

He hummed, looking at me.

“I want to spend forever with you.”

#ateez #kpop #imagines #ateez au #ateez fluff #ateez imagines #ateez smut #atzinc #ateez vampire au #vampire au #jongho smut #jongho imagines

[mysterylover123]

Buffy Rewatch Season 3 Episdoe 15 "Consequences" Fuffy Angst to the MAX

-Horrifying opening with Buffy's 'Faith's drowning me' nightmare'. Poor girl.

Wesley and Cordy meet for the first time! OMG! Angel feels! So weird that they were into each other at first. Don't blame them though, they're both so pretty.

-"But you can pretend Angel's good when you have to protect him" Faith is jealous of Buffy's ex. And Buffy wants to help her so bad. Poor Buffy.

-POOR SCORNED WILLOW. Willow-Buffy-Faith triangle vibes are so powerful here.

-Faith shows her humanity is still there. Buffy tries to understand and Faith gets defensive again. Oh boy. The tension.

-"that's not your real face and i know it. I know what you're feeling because I'm feeling it too". WOWSA.

-This debate is so fascinating. Such a discussion of morality. It's interesting. And speaks to Buffy and Faith's different senses of morality at this point in the story.

-Faith is Buffy's shadow self. Buffy tried to kill Ted last season, literally did. Faith does the same here. Losing control of her slayer power.

- 'Since when wouldn't I understand' The parallels between this this and Season 4's Wilara conversation. And the Willow/Buffy feels are strong.

-The 'Faith lied to Giles' scene HURTS. OMG Faith how could you. Thankfully Giles knows Buffy too well. The situation of how to help Faith too just hurts.

-Ooh Wes you're about to screw up. I watched Orpheus recently. OMG WEs. You complicated tragic anti hero. Mistakes were made.

-Poor Xander thinks he has a connection with Faith. LOL Buffy's "yeah she don't really swing that way'.

-The Xander and Faith scene is pretty horrifying. Faith needs to learn when no means no. But Angel and Faith starting their epic platonic reformed anti-heroes connection is timeless.

-I forgot that Buffy asked Angel to talk to her! OMG Buffy you are so nice. She even tries to get Faith some stuff. THIS IS THE HARDEST BUFFY HAS EVER TRIED TO SAVE SOMEONE'S SOUL. Even Angel Buffy gave up on quicker.

-"We're a lot alike, Faith. WE've both killed, we're both cynical, we both love Buffy and long black cloaks. Let's bond instead of fighting over her'.

-whoops Wesley dammit he was so close. Man this scene hits different after rewatching Orpheus.

-God Buffy is clinging onto the chance that FAith could be saved for so long. So desperate to save her.

-Wes and Angel's first 'We didn't save someone right' fight. It last two seconds. And man I feel bad for Wes this season cause i know him from later years. He did screw up but damn.

- OMG this final conversation. Faith omg you're losing it. And whoa there's my girl. That line gets one hell of a callback later on.

- Faith still goes to help Buffy when the create falls on her. Buffy pushes her out of the way. Faith still saves her. Even now theyve got each other's backs.

-Sweet Buffy and Giles scene where Buffy is still "Faith can be saved!". But Faith betrays her to the mayor nooo Faith.

#fuffy #buffy rewatch #buffy 3x15 #buffy consequences #faith lehane #buffy summers #the mayor #angel #wesley wnydham pryce #wes x cordy x angel #willow rosenberg #willow x buffy #the willow buffy faith love triangle feels here #are deafening

[fruitcoops]

Hey, I love your writing! Could you maybe do like Marlene makes Sirius and Remus do the boyfriend tag for the lions media page and the questions are just a mix of cute, normal things and then really really not so cute normal things 👀

I may have gotten a little carried away with this ideas, whoops! There isn’t much ~spicy~ stuff here, but if you guys liked it I’ll do a part 2! Writing this was easily the best part of my day. Credit for Coops and Sweater Weather goes to @lumosinlove!

“Hello, everyone, I’m Dorcas Meadowes, and welcome back to Lion Pride!” Dorcas smiled at the camera and waved. “Today I’m here with team captain Sirius Black and our newest player, Remus Lupin, for the boyfriend tag. They’ll be asking each other a series of questions and they are legally obligated to answer honestly!”

“Wait, really?” Remus asked, his eyes wide.

“No, but it’s a good idea anyway.” Dorcas shuffled the small stack of notecards in her hands and passed half to each of them. “I’m here to supervise and clarify if you need it.”

“Alright, first question: how did we meet?” Sirius grinned. “Take your time on this one.”

“We met in the PT room before I was formally introduced to the team because Pots unscrewed the lids of the Gatorade bottles and the spout hit you in the eye.”

“Oh my god, I forgot about that!” Sirius turned to the camera. “Watch out, Pots, vengeance is coming.”

“Question number two,” Remus laughed. “If we’re going out to eat, where are we going?”

“Sid’s.” They said in unison.

“Number three: What’s one food I don’t like?”

Remus paused and bit his lip. “That’s a tough one. You’re kind of like a black hole for food. Uh, maybe pickles?”

“Yeah, I hate pickles.” Sirius shuddered dramatically. “Leave the poor zucchini alone.”

“Pickles are made from cucumbers.”

“Same difference.”

“No, it’s not!”

“Moving on!” Dorcas interrupted. “Remus, you’re up.”

“This is why we need a supervisor,” he said to the camera. “Okay, question four. How many siblings do I have?”

Sirius lit up and beamed at him. “One! Jules!”

“Your number-one fan,” Remus teased.

Sirius glanced down at the next card and barked out a laugh. “Oh, I’m going to get roasted so hard here. Am I a morning person or a night person?”

“You are the earliest early bird of all time and it’s terrible,” Remus groaned. “Six a.m. rolls around and he’s wide awake while I’m barely a person until eight, and that’s assuming I’ve had coffee.”

“You’re the cutest zombie I’ve ever seen at seven in the morning,” Sirius said.

“Aw, babe. Question six: what’s our song?”

Sirius thought for a moment. “Hmm, I don’t know.”

“I was going to say, I don’t think we have one yet.”

“We’re taking suggestions if anyone has ideas,” Sirius said to the camera. “What’s my best friend’s name.”

“Harry Potter,” Remus answered without hesitating. “You only like Pots for his baby.”

“True.”

Remus started to read the next card, then looked to Dorcas. “Do I have to ask this one?”

“Yes!”

“Cover your ears, everyone. What’s my nickname?”

“LOOPS!” Sirius shouted, cupping his hands around his mouth. “But to me it’s mon loup. What’s my weirdest habit?”

Remus dropped his face into his hands. “Your order of operations. To anyone out there who still thinks Sirius Black is cool—stop kicking me!—last night he got stuck in his t-shirt because he was brushing his teeth at the same time.”

“It’s efficient!” Sirius protested, poking him in the calf one more time. “You don’t appreciate me.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” Remus kissed him on the cheek. “Okay, what’s one of my special talents?”

“Hockey.”

“That doesn’t count,” Dorcas said.

“Bummer. You can sing really well.”

Remus’ ears went pink. “I don’t know about really well.”

“You do it all the time!”

“That doesn’t mean I’m good at it!” They both laughed until Dorcas cleared her throat.

“Sorry, sorry. Question number…something. If you were baking me a birthday cake, what flavor would it be?”

Remus snorted. “Bold of you to assume I can bake. But if I could, I’d do a vanilla cake with chocolate frosting.”

“You’d steal all the frosting off it, wouldn’t you.”

“Oh, definitely. Next question! Where was I born?”

Sirius was quiet for a solid ten seconds. “…Wisconsin?”

“What, the entire state?”

“I know you were born in a hospital.”

“Do you have any idea how many Wisconsin hospitals there are?”

“Well, you were only born in one of them.” Sirius shrugged. “I give up, what city?”

“I’m not telling you. You can call my mom and ask when we’re done here.”

“She’d tease me for days. I’ll get it out of you eventually.” Sirius shook his head and turned back to the cards. “Oh, here’s a good one: could you tell I liked you?”

Remus burst out laughing. “Are you kidding me? No!”

Sirius turned to face the camera. “If anyone out there doesn’t know the whole situation, we basically just stared at each other for, like, a year before anything happened.”

“I think the first time I started picking up on it was when I came back from vacation and got a fifteen-second hug from this one,” Remus said, pointing his thumb toward Sirius. “At that point I kind of went ‘…wait a minute’.”

“Let’s do the next question before you spill any more embarrassing stories.” Remus’ smile turned sharp. “Oh, no.”

“What was your first impression of me?”

“Hot.” Sirius’ eyebrows shot up. “Woah, I said that way too fast, didn’t I?”

“A little bit, but I appreciate it.”

“Are you comfortable with PDA?” Sirius looked over at Dorcas. In lieu of an answer, Remus scooted over on their shared couch and settled down in Sirius’ lap. “Hello.”

“Hi. As you can see, I can’t stand it if you even breathe on me in public.”

“God forbid we make eye contact.”

“In all honesty, I think we’ve already crossed the PDA bridge,” Remus said. “Once pictures of you and your boyfriend making out go viral, there’s really no incentive to tone it down. My turn: who’s my favorite musician?”

“Fucking ABBA.” Sirius let his head fall on the back of the couch. “Sorry, I mean ABBA.” Remus started whistling the intro to ‘Gimme, Gimme, Gimme’ and Sirius scrambled for his notecards. “What’s my favorite time of the year?”

It took Remus a minute to catch his breath from laughing. “Uh, fall. Autumn. We have the same favorite, actually.”

“It’s a great season. You get hockey, big sweaters, and there’s still a little bit of sunshine.”

“Halloween, too,” Remus added. “Oh, shit, you’re going to have a field day with this one. What word do I use the most?”

“Jeez.” Sirius gave him a big smooch on the cheek. “Such a Midwesterner. Where was our first kiss?”

“Pascal Dumais’ guest room, on a dark and stormy night,’ Remus said. “We got snowed in for Sirius’ birthday party.”

“It was really romantic though.”

“Yeah.” Remus planted a quick kiss on his lips before grabbing the next card. “Who would win in an argument?”

“What’s the argument about?” Sirius asked. “Dorcas, is there a specification?”

“I think we trade off,” Remus mused. “We don’t fight much.”

“Nah. Kissing or cuddling?”

“What about it?”

“Which one do each of you prefer?” Dorcas clarified. She hadn’t stopped smiling since the interview started.

“Ohhhhh.” Remus readjusted himself in Sirius’ lap so he was leaning against the armrest more. “I mean, both are great.”

“Agreed.”

“Last question for me!” Remus waved his final notecard in Sirius’ face. “How would you describe my style? Tread carefully, Cap.”

Sirius thought hard for a moment. “This is a dangerous question, Dorcas. Um, you’re going to hate me for this.”

“Spit it out, Black.”

“Sexy librarian?”

“Fuck off.”

“See! I told you!”

“Sexy librarian? Really? At least I own clothing other than monochrome t-shirts!”

“I have my game day suit, too.”

“…the suit is nice.”

Dorcas was laughing too hard to get them back on track, so Marlene had to motion at them from behind the camera. “Sorry, Marlene, we’ll finish up. Okay, Fruit Loop, am I a dog or a cat person?”

“I think you love dogs more than you love me,” Remus said. “You don’t hate cats, though.”

“First of all, that’s not true, I love you most.” Sirius kissed him soundly on the lips. “Second of all, Regulus is enough of a cat person for both of us.”

“I was genuinely afraid we’d come home and find out he’d adopted eight kittens while he was still living with us. Dorcas, is that it?”

“That’s it,” she confirmed, still dabbing at her eyes with a tissue. “Great job, you guys killed it. Thanks for watching everyone, and make sure to stay updated with Lion Pride social media!”

[prettyboyjackhughes]

-Little Crosby- |D. Cozens| [Part 1]

It’s finally here! @workhorsefromwhitehorse24​ and I have been working on this for a while now and I can honestly say that this is probably my favorite thing we’ve collaborated on! This was a little outside my comfort zone but I enjoyed writing it so much! Hope you enjoy! Let us know what you think!!

“Ava Grace I’m home!” Dad calls from downstairs. I sit up and grab my sweatshirt off of the floor. 

“Coming!” I say as I pull it over my head and run out into the hall. I attempt to make it down the stairs without dying but almost fail as I get to the bottom step. “Whoops! Sorry!” I yell as I knock one of the pictures off the wall. He stands in the kitchen doorway and watches me, amused, as I fix the picture then turn to face him, a grin on my face. He had been gone for 2 weeks on a 5 game road trip, resulting in the Penguins going 4-1. Dad scored a pair of goals in the first two games. But sadly, it wasn’t enough of a push to get them to the playoffs. 

“Hi Daddy!” I say, running to hug him. He lifts me off the ground and kisses the top of my head. Dad and I have always been super close. It’s been just him and I for years. Ever since I was born, it’s just been Dad and I. Grandma and Grandpa were always in the picture too, along with Aunt Taylor. The 4 of them have been my entire world and my family for the past 17 years. My mom has never been in the picture since she and Dad had me when they were super young, before Dad was in the NHL. Dad had moved from Nova Scotia by himself when he was 15, down to Faribault, Minnesota. Mom and Dad met within his first week of school. Dad tells me I look just like her but from what I can tell, the older I get, the more I look like Dad. But basically one thing turned to another, Dad had his first taste of freedom, being away from his parents and all, and 9 months later, I was born. As soon as Grandma and Grandpa found out, they moved Taylor and everything else down to be with my dad and help out with me. But one Saturday, Mom dropped me off with Dad and told him she had decided she wanted more than raising a baby and my dad so she left me with Dad and left. I’ve never heard from her, except for one birthday card when I turned 6. Grandma and Grandpa raised me alongside Taylor until Dad’s first season in the NHL. That’s when he moved me to Pittsburgh with him. I mean, before he was in the NHL, he made sure that he was a part of my life and made sure I knew that I was his little girl. But it hasn’t really been that big of a deal that Mom hasn’t been in the picture since I’ve had Dad, Grandma and Grandpa, and Aunt Taylor, plus all of Dad’s teammates through the years. It’s been a ride, having a dad like I do. I mean, he’s pretty much the face of the NHL and one of the greatest players to ever play hockey, being Sidney Crosby and all. Everywhere we go, he gets recognized so it was always hard for him to come to my things as I was growing up. But he always made sure that someone was there for me, whether it was one of my grandparents or Aunt Taylor. But even through all of that, my dad is my best friend. I’ve never needed anyone else. 

“I missed you so much!” He says, setting me down and looking at me. I smile and nod.

“I missed you too! Nice set of goals by the way. Sorry about the playoffs...” I say, smiling as he walks into the kitchen. He shrugs as I follow him into the kitchen and sit down at the table, watching him wander around the kitchen, making one of his shakes he always drinks.

“It was a long two weeks for sure, but I’m glad I have you to come home too.” I nod and smile.

“Oh Sweetheart, before I forget, we’re going up to Toronto next weekend for the Leafs’ first playoff game, for your birthday. We’ll spend two weeks up in Toronto.” The Penguins missed out on the playoffs, ending their season early. But my Leafs made it to the first round of the playoffs. He smiles as my face lights up. The Toronto Maple Leafs are my favorite team. As disappointed as Dad was in me when he found out, he still supports it, just happy that I like hockey. My favorite player is Mitch Marner, which is a player Dad approves of. He raised me on the ice, around his team and made sure I loved hockey as much as he does. I played for 6 years but I decided I liked watching hockey better than playing. 

“Really? We are?” I say, giddy. 

“Yep, I think Tanger and Geno are going to come with us. I invited Taylor too, figured we could make a whole vacation of the trip. We can go out to dinner, shopping, all the fun, girly stuff you love. Oh and there’s a surprise flying out to see you too.” Kris Letang and Evgeni Malkin are Dad’s alternate captains and my honorary uncles. Up until about 4 years ago, I had 3 honorary uncles. Marc-André Fleury, the Penguins' goalie and now the Vegas Golden Knights’ goalie was the third. He and Dad are still close which means he still claims the third honorary uncle spot. When he got married in 2012, I was the flower girl. I’ve actually been in all 3 of my “uncle’s” weddings. They’ve been a huge part of my life since I was little, even when Dad was trying to keep me out of the spotlight.  I smile, pushing my hair out of my face. I think the thing that everyone always finds so interesting about Dad and I, is that he did such a good job keeping me out of the spotlight up until I was old enough to understand what was going on. But as soon as I started going to events with him, everyone knew I was his daughter. I mean, I look and act like a female version of Dad so it makes perfect sense that I’m his daughter.

“Ava girl, do you want to see if one of your friends wants to come with us? Might be a little boring to spend your birthday weekend with a bunch of old people.” Dad says, finally sitting down with his gross shake. I nod and laugh, thinking of who I could invite. I go to Shady Side Academy in downtown Pittsburgh, which is a big, fancy private school. There’s a little over 1,100 kids that go to my school, but only about 70 of them are in my grade. 

“Oh, I’ll invite Carter. Let me text her and see if she can go.” Carter James has been my best friend since 2nd grade. She’s my total opposite and somehow, it works. 

“Okay Honey. I’m going to go lay down for a little bit. Our flight left pretty early this morning so I’m pretty tired. Go ahead and order something for dinner. Anything but pizza please.” I pout a little, my bottom lip jutting out. He smiles and drops a kiss on the top of my head as he walks out of the kitchen and up the stairs. I walk out to the living room and flop on the couch, getting on my phone to watch Tik Tok for a while. Suddenly, the door to the house flies open and my Aunt Taylor waltzes in.

“Hello my absolute favorite niece in the entire world!” She calls, dumping her purse and everything in her hands onto the bench by the door. Grandma decorated the entire house. Dad was going to hire a decorator but Grandma insisted and somehow, Dad ended up liking what she did with the place. 

“I’m your only niece so I hope I’m your favorite. But hey Aunt Tay. What’s up?” I asked, sitting up.

“Nothing much. Just came home to drive my big brother crazy and talk about your birthday trip with you. How excited are you? Hey wait, isn’t it your 18th birthday?” I smile and nod again. Aunt Tay is a little scatterbrained and once forgot how old I was turning and bought me a 13th birthday card. I was turning 11. But of course, she always means well and loves me a ton. 

“Carter is coming with us. Do you know what the surprise is? Dad just told me there is one but didn’t say anything else.” Taylor grins as she nods.

“I’m not telling you but just know this, you’re gonna be really really excited.” She says, sitting down on the couch by my feet. 

“So how’s things at school? Still thinking about going to UPenn?” She asks, tapping her thumb against my knee. I sigh.

“Ugh I don’t know anymore. I fell in love with UPenn when I visited there with Grandma last fall but I don’t know if I want to be that far away from everyone. I mean, it’s only 4 hours but going from how things are now to that? That’s a lot to process.” She nods, watching me. 

“Well Honey, you know your dad would make sure you had a car on campus and everything. So you can always come back home and visit. But I mean, it’s been you and your dad since you were a baby. Maybe it’s time to go out on your own a little?” I cringe a little at the thought.

“I don’t wanna leave!” I say, falling into Taylor’s lap and drawing out the end of the word. She laughs and smooths my hair down. 

“We’ll figure something out. You’ve still got time, Ava Grace.” She says and somehow, those words make all the anxiety I have about college and everything else coming up in my future fade to a dull roar instead of the screams it has been for the past couple weeks. I’ve always been able to talk to Dad about anything which is why he and I have such a good relationship now. But the one thing I haven’t been able to talk to him about is college. Dad went straight from high school into the NHL. He always claims to understand but I’m pretty sure it just confuses him sometimes. 

“Okay you two, it’s very hard to sleep when all I can hear is laughing and carrying on.” Dad says, coming back downstairs. 

“Yeah yeah, keep it down, Patrick.” Taylor says, looking up at Dad. Dad hates being called by his middle name which is why Taylor calls him that. He rolls his eyes and bats her hand away as she reaches up to poke him. When the two of them are together, Grandma always says they act like they did when they were little. 

“Have you girls figured out everything for us leaving on Thursday? Ava, is Carter going with us?” I grab my phone off the arm of the couch and turn it on, quickly reading the notifications on the screen.

“Yeah she’s going. And she’s gonna be here in 3, 2, 1!” I count down as the door bursts open again. Carter and my Aunt Taylor are two peas in a pod. They’re practically the same person which is why I love them both so much.

 “Hello Crosby family!” She shouts, sliding across the floor and landing on top of me.

“Oh this is going to be a long two weeks.” Dad says, laughing and rubbing his forehead. 

“So we’re going to Toronto for your 18th birthday? And to see the love of your life? Hell yeah this is going to be a great trip.” Carter says, looking up at me. 

“Okay, Carter James, slow down please.” I say, patting her head. 

“Wait, isn’t the legal drinking age in Canada, 18?” Carter asks, sitting up and looking at Dad.

“Oh my God Sidney Patrick. You’re taking your daughter to Canada to drink for her 18th birthday?” Taylor says, looking over at Dad with a smirk on her face. 

“Taylor Jane, you’d better cut it out or you’re not going anymore.” He says, shaking his finger at her. Carter and I laugh and Taylor rolls her eyes.

“She’s responsible enough to handle this. You two are the ones I have to worry about.” Dad says, pointing at Carter and Aunt Taylor. 

“Tanger and Geno are going too? Oh this is going to be a blast!” Taylor says, rubbing her hands together and grinning evilly. Dad’s head drops into his hands and the 3 of us burst out laughing. Carter and I spend the rest of the evening planning our trip out while Dad and Aunt Taylor watch the St. Cloud game. The week leading up to our trip to Toronto flies by, but my excitement for the game only builds. It’s not the first time I’ve been to a Leafs game, nor is it the first time I’ve gotten to watch my favorite player play. But it’s happening on my 18th birthday and that makes it even more exciting. 

Thursday morning, two days before my birthday, Carter wakes me up by bouncing on my bed. 

“We’re leaving today!” She sings, bouncing more. I roll over and groan. 

“Carter James, it’s too early!” I say, shoving her. She laughs at me and I sit up.

“Come on, we’re going to dinner with the love of your life tonight!” She says. I jump out of bed and look at her, eyes wide. I’m 100% a Mitch Marner fan girl. Carter thinks it’s hilarious but she’s the exact same way for Patrick Kane. We ran into him at the Stanley Cup Finals one year and she was speechless. 

“What are you talking about? Dinner with who?” I ask. Dad walks in and is now standing in my doorway.

“I called in a few favors and we’re going to dinner with Mitch Marner and Morgan Rielly tonight. How does that sound?” He says, as my mouth drops open.

“Oh my God thank you thank you Daddy!” I say, running over to hug him. He smiles and Carter laughs. 

“She’s gonna faint as soon as she sees him. Total freak out.” Carter says, crossing her arms and laughing. 

“I am not! I’ll be perfectly fine. It’s just another hockey player. Not like I’m in love with him or anything.” I say, pointing at her. She rolls her eyes and we both laugh.

“Where my favorite birthday girl?” I hear a deep voice call from downstairs.

“Geno, it’s too early for you to be this loud. Shut up.” I hear Taylor say.

“I take it G and Tanger just got here?” Dad calls and Taylor groans in response. 

“Alright girls get ready and we’ll leave in a little over an hour. Go down and say hi to everyone first though.” I nod and follow Dad downstairs, Carter tagging along behind me. 

“Hi Uncle Geno, Uncle Kris!” I say, running to hug both of them as they stand up from where they were sitting on the couch. Taylor is taking up the other end of the couch, facedown in a pillow. “Are you excited for your birthday trip?” Kris asks, patting my back as he hugs me.

“I’m so excited. Do you know what my surprise is? Dad still won’t tell me.” Geno laughs, still too loud for Taylor apparently because a pillow goes flying across the room and just misses his head.

“Tay, go drink some coffee please, you’re being a brat right now.” Dad says, patting her head.

“I know surprise. You like a lot.” Geno says, crossing his arms and looking down at me. I raise an eyebrow. I’ve been the victim of one of Dad’s surprises before and let’s just say he doesn’t have the best track record when it comes to surprises. 

“Is it bad that I’ve been your best friend for 12 years and I still can’t understand what he’s saying?” Carter asks, leaning over to me. I laugh and Geno looks between the two of us.

“Who you? You Ava’s best friend?” Carter rolls her eyes and nudges Geno, who laughs again and hugs her. “Alright, Little Crosby, let’s get this show on the road.” Kris says, pointing towards the stairs. I smile and rush upstairs to get dressed and grab my bags. I pick out a pair of black leggings and a peach colored Adidas sweatshirt. I change into the clothes and put my pajamas in the dirty clothes. I put on mascara quickly, finishing everything off with some lip gloss. I grab my Birkenstocks and slip them on. 

“Okay, I’m ready!” I call as I drag my bag down the stairs behind me. I again attempt not to die on my way down the stairs. But yet again, I fail.

 “Oh God, Little Crosby.” Kris says, somehow managing to catch me as I trip down the last 3 steps. 

“Your daughter is a human wrecking ball. You know that, right Sid?” Dad laughs and nods.

“I haven’t killed myself yet. So far, we’re safe.” Everyone laughs and I smile. All these people filling this house are my entire family. They’ve raised me and I wouldn’t be who I am without all of them. 

“Okay, let’s get going! Our flight leaves in 45 minutes!” Dad calls, attempting to herd us all towards the door. Taylor has finally had her coffee and returned to the world of the living. 

“Toronto here we come!” She calls as we all get out the door and into the two cars we’re taking. Dad locks the door behind us and turns to look at me.

“You excited, Ava Grace?” I nod and he hugs me to his side.“I hope this lives up to your idea of the perfect 18th birthday.” I laugh and nod again as we head to his car. 

The drive to the airport and the flight to Toronto are pretty boring but Kris and Taylor keep everyone entertained the whole trip. Carter finally crashed after the Red Bulls she had while we were waiting for our flight to get called in the airport, leaving me to my own thoughts pretty much the entire flight. When we land in Toronto, everyone is pretty excited for the next two weeks. 

“Little Crosby surprise time!” Geno calls from the back of our group.

“Geno, we’re still in an airport. Keep it down a little please?” Carter says, patting his arm. Dad scoffs and looks between me and Carter.

“He’s right though, your surprise is right through those doors.” Dad says, pointing towards the exit of the airport. I see Taylor pull her phone out of her pocket and start recording me. I hand my bag to Kris and look over at Geno who motions me towards the door. I walk towards the doors, which slide open. I glanced around then back at Dad and Taylor who followed me out.   

“Little Crosby!” I hear a very familiar voice yell over the buzz of the airport.

“Oh my God! Uncle Flower!” I shout, rushing towards my uncle Marc and hugging him.

“Surprise!” Dad calls, smiling as I hug Marc.

 “So you were my surprise?” I say, stepping back and looking at him.

“Yep, I was the big wonderful surprise. Hope you weren’t too disappointed.” He says, smiling as his arm rests around my shoulders.

“I figured you’d want all of your uncles here for your big 18th birthday. So we worked it out and got him here for you.” I smile, quickly hugging Dad before returning to hug Marc again. 

“Alright well, it’s time to get heading to the hotel. We’re going to dinner at 6:30 tonight. Geno, Flower and Kris are taking Tay to something that I know nothing about. And you’re okay with Carter going with us?” I nod as Marc leads us and the rest of our group to the waiting van. 

“I’m taking a nap when we get to the hotel. You woke me up too early this morning.” I say, nudging Carter as she slides into the van next to me. 

“Sounds like a plan. The Red Bull ran out.” She says, laying her head on my shoulder. The two of us manage to fall asleep on the 20 minute drive to the hotel. Geno shakes us both awake when we get to the hotel. We sleepily wander into the hotel and wait in the lobby while Dad and Tay get everything figured out. The adults herd us all over to the elevator and into it, somehow managing to get us all to the conjoined rooms we have for the next two weeks. As soon as we make it into the rooms, Carter and I collapse onto the bed we’ll be sharing and fall asleep. 

About 2 and a half hours later, Dad comes in and wakes us up.

“Girls, we have about an hour before we have to leave for dinner. Go ahead and start getting ready.” He calls as he closes the door behind him. I sit up and stretch, the excitement building in my chest all over again.

“Okay, I think I’m gonna curl my hair and wear that frilly, layered red skirt with the white sweater and my little brown boots. What about you, Carter?” I ask, looking back at her who is still laying in bed. 

“So I have to dress nice right? I think the army green pants romper thing with my jean jacket, Vans and straight hair. Sound good?” She asks, finally sitting up. I nod and get started curling my hair. She gets started on doing her makeup while I work on my hair. Somehow, we both end up being done with plenty of time left to spare. So we do what typical teenagers do and spend the extra 15 minutes we have, on our phones. Dad comes in and the two of us follow him down to the elevator and out to the car. It’s some super nice, fancy car; just like the one that lives in our garage except on home game days. Dad lets Carter play music which automatically, I can tell, he regrets as Cotton Eye Joe plays for the third time. Carter is having the time of her life and I can’t help but laugh along with her. When we get to the restaurant, it’s one Dad and I came to, back when we came to Toronto for some charity event a few years ago.

“Alright, how excited are you?” Dad asks, as he parks the car and we climb out. I squeal a little and Carter laughs. Dad smiles, draping his arm around my shoulders as I link arms with Carter. The 3 of us waltz into the restaurant and walk up to the hostess.

“Hello, Mr. Crosby. Your two guests are already seated.” I squeeze Carter’s arm and we squeal a little together. As we follow the hostess to our table, back in the back, we pass a table with two teenage boys. One looks Carter up and down, obviously checking her out, while the other locks eyes with me. I smile, forcing myself to look away as we disappear into the back, private room Dad reserved for us. 

“Holy crap, did you see those guys?” Carter whisper-yells into my ear. I nod, trying to focus on the fact that Mitch Marner is standing a few feet away from me, a grin on his face, instead of the guy I just saw.

“Hey Sid. This must be Ava and Carter. Nice to meet you girls.” Mitch says, reaching his hand out. I shake it, the smile on my face impossibly large. Morgan Rielly stands next to him and shakes our hands as well. As we all sit down, I happen to glance around the room and see that both of the boys are looking into the room. As much as I want to pay attention to what Mitch, Mo and Dad are talking about, I can’t. I’m too distracted by the boy I saw. Carter, apparently can’t either. 

“Ava, they were literally so hot. Can I please go get their numbers?” She asks, nudging me when she catches me staring again.

 “No! Dad will kill me if he catches me talking to a boy!” I whisper-yell, glancing up at Dad and Mitch. 

“Ava Grace, that could be your freaking soulmate and you’ll never know because you won’t let me go get their numbers!” I roll my eyes and glance over my shoulder at the boys’ table. Sadly, they’re gone and I sigh, looking over at Carter.

“They’re gone anyway. Not like we’re ever gonna see them again anyways.” I say, glumly, resting my chin on my hand. She shakes her head. “There went your soulmate.” I sigh, knowing she won’t let me live this down. Dad clears his throat, pulling Carter and I back to the conversation happening at the table.

“So Ava, I hear you’re a pretty big fan of mine.” Mitch says, leaning on his elbows against the table. I smile, taking in all of his features.

“Yeah, you’ve been my favorite since you came into the league. Dad’s always a little disappointed when I don’t tell people he’s my favorite player.” Mitch and Mo laugh. The rest of the evening, conversation flows easily and Carter and I both have a blast. As I glance at my Apple watch and see the time, Carter nudges me again. 

“Your dad is looking at you funny.” She says, nodding her head towards Dad. I look up, my eyes meeting my dad’s gaze.

“It’s getting late, are you girls ready to head back to the hotel? Your aunt and uncles should be getting back soon too.” Carter and I nod and I turn to look at Mitch.

“I’ll be wearing your jersey on Saturday night. Don’t disappoint me. Also it’s my birthday so a goal or two would be nice.” Mitch and Mo laugh as Dad smiles down at me. 

“I will try my hardest. Glad we could spend the evening with you lovely ladies. See you on Saturday after the game? There’ll be passes for your whole group at the ticket desk.” My face lights up and I know Carter’s does too.“Okay great! See you then! Good luck!” I say, standing and hugging Mitch. Mo shakes Dad’s hand and then the two of them head out. 

“You two seemed very distracted all during dinner. Was everything okay?” Dad asks as the 3 of us head back out to the car after he pays.“Yeah everything was fine. Dinner was super good and fun. Carter just saw some cute boy and wouldn’t shut up about him.” Dad laughs and rolls his eyes.

“Hey, in my defense, your daughter was looking too so it wasn’t just me.” Carter says, crossing her arms. Dad’s head whips around as we climb in the car.

“A boy? What?” I groan internally and elbow Carter. I’ve never been that into boys. I mean, I’ve thought plenty of boys were cute and had quite a few guy friends but I’ve never had the time or the effort that comes with having a relationship. So it’s never been a topic of conversation for Dad and I. 

“Nothing, it was nothing. Don’t worry about it, Dad.” I say, trying to avoid the topic. 

“It’s interesting though. I was just talking to your uncle Kris about how you’ve never had a boyfriend or anything like that. Which is fine with me because I know what boys are like.” Dad says as we drive back to the hotel. Carter is dying sitting next to me, her hand pressed against her mouth to avoid laughing out loud.

“I-I know...I’ve just never had the time or wanted one.” I say, burying my head in my hands. 

“Well you don’t need one. You have all the guys you need in your life. Me, your Uncle Geno, Uncle Kris, Uncle Marc, and Grandpa.” Carter finally bursts out laughing and Dad looks in the rearview mirror at me. 

“I’m serious, Ava Grace. Why do you need a boyfriend?” Dad has never really been the overprotective dad. He’s protective for sure but he kind of lets me do my own thing most of the time. He knows if I need to, I’ll come to him or one of the other main adults in my life. But he lets me make my own decisions and figure life out by myself. This whole ‘no boyfriend’ thing that he’s doing right now is new. 

“I guess I don’t. You’re right.” I say, putting an end to the conversation by turning and looking out the window. Thankfully, Dad doesn’t push any farther. The 3 of us ride in silence, the radio off, the rest of the way back to the hotel. Once we get into the hotel and up to our rooms, I tell Dad goodnight, give him a hug and a kiss then follow Carter into our room. Carter distracts me from the disaster of a conversation that was with Dad and forces me to watch some cheesy rom-com with her. I fall asleep midway through and sleep in late the next day. Taylor takes Carter and I out shopping all day on Friday while my dad and the uncles do who knows what. The topic of boys is avoided all day, All night at dinner on Friday, we catch up with everyone. I fill Marc in on what Dad’s latest old person moment was, even though he’s only 33. Everything seems so perfect and happy but I keep replaying the conversation with Dad over and over again in my head. 

Saturday morning, my birthday morning, Carter wakes me up with cake in bed. It’s a tradition we started when we were 12. Every year on our birthday, the other girl brings the birthday girl cake in bed. It’s one of my favorite birthday traditions. 

“Happy birthday Little Crosby! You are adult now!” Geno calls, leading the rest of my family into my room. Dad brings up the end of the line and walks over to the bed. He hugs me, pressing a kiss to my forehead.“Happy birthday my sweet girl.” He says, smoothing my hair down and getting all teary-eyed. 

“I can’t believe the young lady you’ve grown into. You are beautiful, strong, independent and so responsible. I...I didn’t think things would end up this way, especially with your mom not being in the picture. But I look around you and I see all these people who helped raise you and I know, you’ve turned out more than okay. I love you Ava Grace and will always love you. Happy birthday.” Dad says. I take another bite of the cake Carter brought me and smile up at him.

“I love you so much, Daddy. Thank you for everything. Thank you everyone for everything you’ve done for me. I love all of you.” They all share a sappy smile and I keep eating my cake. The rest of the day, we hang out at the hotel, lounging around before the game tonight at 7. Marc and Geno see how many pieces of pizza they can eat while Dad keeps score. Taylor paints Carter’s nails and I pick at mine. Kris sneaks out to buy me ice cream and comes back with at least 10 different kinds, all of them my favorite in one way or another. 

Carter and I start getting ready around 4:30 so we’re ready to leave by 5. I straighten my hair and do just light makeup. I dig my Mitch Marner jersey out of my bag and put it on with some black leggings. Carter wears the jersey of the only Leaf she likes, Frederik Andersen. She opted for black ripped jeans instead of leggings. Everyone else is just dressed casual. Marc did wear a Leafs hat just to please me. The drive to the arena, Carter gets to play music again. She plays our ‘Hockey Game Hype Up’ playlist, something we made a few years ago. Even though I’m the music person, she’s much better at putting playlists together. I’m only really good at finding one or two songs I love and just playing them over and over again. As the songs ‘Auston Matthews’ by Svdvm and ‘Toronto Maple Leafs Anthem’ by JDME play back to back, we pull into the arena parking lot. No matter how many times I’ve been to Scotiabank Arena, it never ceases to amaze me. I think I’ve been here a grand total of like 15 times in the last 10 years, solidifying it as my favorite arena. 

“Come on Ava, let’s go watch your boy play.” Carter says, linking her arm through mine. She leads me and the rest of our group into the arena. Everyone else heads to the box but I decide to stay down in the main area and wander around a bit, making sure I get the full experience again. All around me, Leafs fans are hurrying to one place or another. I take everything, wanting to remember this for the rest of my life. As I’m walking down a small set of stairs, I collide with a pretty solid body. And of course, with my human wrecking ball abilities, I manage to take both of us down, all the way to the ground. “Shit! I’m so sorry, are you okay?” I ask, sitting up and looking at the boy I collided with. He sits up, looks at me, down at the ground, then back up at me. His eyes are huge.

“I-Oh my God. Yeah-Yeah I’m okay! Are you?” He asks, jumping to his feet and reaching his hand out to help me up. I take his hand and he pulls me to my feet. “Yeah I’m all good. Sorry for taking you out. I’m known for being clumsy. Like the jersey by the way.” I say, pointing to where the number 16 is stitched into the arm of his jersey. The same number sprawled across my back.

“Hey, I like yours too. Marner your favorite player?” I nod, pushing my hair back out of my face.

“Yeah, I grew up a Penguins fan because of my dad but the Leafs are my favorite team.” He smiles and nods. He looks so familiar but I can’t place where I know him from. Talking to him comes so naturally and it seems like the world just goes on around us while we stand there and talk. Before I know it, they’re starting the lineup announcements.

“Oh shoot, I gotta get going. Enjoy the game!” I call over my shoulder as I run back towards the box we’re all sitting in. Of course, I trip up the steps and almost fall. As I glance over my shoulder, I see the boy with a smirk on his face. I blush and mentally kick myself for first off accidentally tackling a cute boy then tripping and almost falling in front of him. As I rush back into the box, Dad eyes me with a raised eyebrow. I huff and flop into my seat next to Marc and Carter. Carter glances at me out of the corner of her eye and smirks.

“Why are you all red and bothered about?” I bite my lip and Marc looks over at me.“I accidentally tackled a cute boy…” I say, burying my head in my hands. Carter and Marc laugh and Marc pats my back.

“There there, Little Crosby. I did much worse to your aunt Véronique.” I laugh and lean my head on his shoulder. Geno and Kris are behind us, teasing Taylor as Dad watches what’s going on down on the ice. His hand is resting on my shoulder, absentmindedly squeezing and releasing in a protective way. As I sit there, watching the game, all I can think about is the boy. But as I do, I think about the conversation Dad and I had last night in the car. Did he really mean what he said? Would he really get upset if I did ever decide to have a boyfriend?

#sidney crosby #dylan cozens #nhl #nhl hockey #nhl imagine #Dylan Cozens imagine #hockey imagine #nhl fanfiction #hockey #hockey boys

[lesmond-sycamore]

OH SHIT I FORGOT I FORGOT TO DUMP ABT MY S3 SOREN WHOOPS

OKAY SO first of all I want to say that the biggest reason I think he'd be the final boss is because of the fact that he's literally called the Builder of Worlds in the intro of "The Order of the Stone" like. hello? sounds a little more impressive than "The Redstone Engineer," "The Rougue," and "The Warrior" imo. also, he has a book in every world in the Portal Hall + Fred's Keep, meaning that he's been to all of these seemingly impossible places only available to powerrful people (the Old Builders and the Admins). how else in the world would he be able to get to these places without being powerful himself?

also, the command block. holy shit where did it come from? you can't craft one (there's no proof Ellegaard's would've actually been crafted), so where did it come from? my answer: Soren spawned it in as a way to show off his powers without seeming like he did it on purpose. he tells Jesse that initially, the Order did actually rough it out on adventures, but once they found the command block, they began to use it and rely on it more and more. this begs the question: if Soren's so powerful, why would he go through the trouble of using it? for that, let's look at his past

in my s3, it's explained that Soren created every world, and had 3 children who created the dimensions. "The Sun" created the overworld so that the inhabitants of the worlds could live happily in the day, "The Moon" created the Nether for the adventurers of the worlds, and "The Star" who created the End for ████████████████. these three were dubbed as "The Creators," and they worked together when creating the dimensions, and sprinkled in a litte bit of each other's dimensions in each other ("The Moon" made the nights filled with monsters and filled the End with loot to entice people to journey through the dimensions, "The Sun" made glowstone/shroom lights in the Nether and made end rods in the End to show that no matter the outlook, there's always light (they also made chorus fruit in the End so that people would have something to eat), and "The Star" made the Endermen available to every dimension so that way they'd ████████)

after that, he dedicated admins for every world who would use the dimensions to sculpt the worlds how they saw fit, make/remix mobs, and add their own blocks/mechanics/etc, but most of them became corrupted, ran away, or killed. because of this, he wanted to wipe everything and start again, but he wanted to give his worlds the benefit of the doubt and so, he decided to explore them, hidden amongst the common folk

in every world he traveled to, he was alone, scrounging for resources, not able to use his powers so that he could experience life the way the people who lived on the worlds did. it was... humbling, really. not using your powers is a nice way to really feel alive after getting what you wanted with the clap of your hands for thousands of years. he ended up running into the Old Builders soon after they had formed and joined them (hence the book A Man Voyaging Forever from his time alone). it was with them that he researched and created the redstone heart (hence The Redstone Heart in Harper's lab).

he actually watched The Games (and occssionally participated in them), but once Hadrian and Mevia began to become corrupted, he and Harper dipped to Crown Mesa, where after some time, PAMA happened, and he dipped because PAMA chipping him would be catastrophic. once reaching the world where "A Portal to Mystery" takes place, he began to occasionally study enderman and followed them around, observing them in their hauntings (hence Walking Among the Enderman). unfortunately that world was difficult to really observe them because the world prefered to spawn zombies at any given chance, so he dipped again.

when he made it to Sky City, Benedict was incredibly useful to his research. he befriended Isa and asked her only for the endermen spawn eggs, and in return, he would give her information about mobs that he had acquired over the years so she could know how to get/use the best drops mobs had to offer (hence Habits of the Endermen, whixh he gifted it to her once completed) the only issue was that he couldn't fully observe them in the overworld and thus, he dipped.

that brings us to the world of Fred, Xara, and Romeo. he had joined The Oasis and befriended the admins (although they didn't know who he actually was) and was actually very close friends with Fred. Fred inspired Soren to break the cycle and start a permanent life here (hence A Brave New Enderman), but after Fred died and the world was bedrocked over, he tried to dip again, but was horrified to find that the portal he used to get there was gone. turns out when the Old Builders got to that world to kidnap competitors, they broke and replaced the portal so that it would be on the surface. with this, Soren began a quest to find the portal.

however, once he got to the surface, he had nowhere to start, so he went adventuring again to search for clues. turns out that when you don't adventure for a while, you get rusty, and he almost got seriously injured during a fight with a hoard of spider jockeys. but just when he thought he was going to get seriously hurt, someone (or rather, some people) jumped in to help. these some people where Gabriel and Ivor. the two had become adventuring buddies because Gabriel was the perfect fighter and Ivor was the perfect brewer and enchanter, and they worked really well together. Soren was invited to join the two due to his extensive knowledge of the world, and because he had the ability to be a great member physically once he got back into the swing of things. soon, Ellegaard and Magnus joined the team, and they became the "Stone Age" (this name was changed after the Ender Dragon encounter because they needed something that sounded cooler). at this point, he was quite truthfully happy

but then came the command block. Soren had always carried it as a fail-safe, but when the group began to take on more dangerous challenges and almost fatally wound themselves, he began to use the command block. he had planted it so that it had seemed like it was discovered, but he knew the truth. and with that, he began to use it. not because he wanted the easy way out like Ivor believed, but because he didn't want lose any more of his friends.

that brings us to s1. with Soren losing Magnus/Ellegaard and seeing the destruction and pain he himself had caused because of his command block, he did what he knew best and ran away, leaving his only friends to fend for themselves.

now let's talk about season 2. Ivor doesn't know where he is, but my s3 explains that Soren's lack of an appearance in s2 is because of the fact he was once again trying to run away from his problems, but he still doesn't know where the portal to the portal hall is, and was just roughing it out once again by himself. that is, until he encountered a very particular enderman that doesn't seem to be under the control of the Ender Dragon. despite this new companion, once he's heard about what happened to jesse and the admins, he realizes just how badly he set up the worlds and is back to thinking about wiping the universes clean and starting over, and now, his plan is already underway (hence why the au Jesse shows up in the first place)

now, you may be wondering "how does that make him the final boss?" well, it's simple. before he becomes the last boss of the series, there's another adventure right before it that involves "The Sun," "The Moon," and "The Star" that takes place as the first arc of the game. by the time that arc is finished with, the universes that are being wiped are getting closer and closer to the world he inhabits, making Jesse the only one able to stop him and save the day

#mcsm #g's mcsm s3 #long post #IT'S A LOT. I KNOW. I'M SORRY.

[shadlad24]

More Funny Little Moments #1: Season 1, Episodes 1-12

So, I decided to do this post after all. Halp. LOL Because I apparently LOVE giving myself a bunch of unnecessary work, I decided to choose two to three extra moments, per episode! SUPER halp! X’D Anyway, these are moments that didn’t make the cut for my FFLM series because: my sense of humor is a little weird, they were gonna be too much work (LOL/Siiigh), I like to highlight patterns, and I don’t like a lot of repetition. [Links to each FFLM along the bottom of the post. :)]

Let’s start with something I originally agreed with other fans on but have since changed my mind. A lot of people didn’t like this part of “Chariots of War” because it seems so ludicrous that Xena would forget her chakram anywhere. Well, let me tell you! This lady has left her weapons behind most episodes thus far. I didn’t note it every time here (and especially didn’t bother with her whip) because that’d really overrun the post buuuuut… You’ll see. XD

1.01 Sins of the Past

Xena’s shift being so much dirtier than the little boy’s clothes though she’s high up off the ground, and he lives in smoked-out rubble.

Yup. Xena forgot her sword (and later, her main saddlebag) at her mother’s tavern. Pft.

Sorry these were kinda lame, but I didn’t want to re-use any more of the original fifteen points I made about this episode... Ah well. Moving on! (heh)

1.02 Chariots of War

Xena loses her sword after the chariot crash, taking up and discarding Sphaerus’s but walking off without her own. (See her front and back and both of Argo’s sides.)

Gabrielle chewing Xena out, Xena being bummed about it, and Argo being surprised. X’D

1.03 Dreamworker

This got me good. Gabrielle does Xena’s war cry so well here that I really thought it was Xena for a few seconds. Realizing it was GabbyWabs only made me chuckle more because she apparently can’t do it when it really counts in “The Greater Good.”

Argo NOT being on Team Gabrielle. XD (Their feud is a little funny to me.)

1.04 Cradle of Hope

Xena tossing aside her sword after killing Nemos. Extras even dance and celebrate right on top of it! Wut thuh?

I decided to avoid mentioning Hope in the FFLM because Xena’s quote here is more ironic than comedic, and Gabrielle’s little face is just so sad, but I didn’t want to let it pass by entirely unremarked upon. At least GW gets to show off her oracle skills again? :’)

1.05 The Path Not Taken

So, Xena and Gabrielle walk into a bar… Heh. No, but really, they enter this tavern for the first time ever, yet the bartender not only knows what they want, he knows that they’re coming and has their drinks waiting for them too. All Xena has to do is knock on the counter and nod to get her fire-breath alcohol/oil, and Gabrielle barely has the word “cider” out of her mouth before the guy hands it to her. Xena, like me, is duly amazed.

Lucy, through Xena, making another timely anti-peanut statement. I just didn’t want to do the same thing twice back-to-back in the FFLM. X)

1.06 The Reckoning

Gabrielle thinking along the same lines Xena and I did about this poor excuse for a judge.

Me not being well-versed in ancient Greek heroes and picturing the fool who Draco killed so handily in the first episode. heh

1.07 The Titans

I’ll let Xena explain this one. …Mostly. I can’t believe Gabrielle not only sassed the Titans such that she unashamedly put Xena and Phyleus in danger too, but also kinda got this (admittedly awful) town demolished and didn’t lift a finger to actually help anyone in the temple. Tsk tsk. XP

So… Hyperion here can smash homes and businesses that were probably well-built and reinforced and all, but he can’t get his hand out of a stocks-cuff that was made in a single evening with scraps from those destroyed buildings. He also, inexplicably, has no use of his left hand or the power-breath that he used to knock Gabrielle over. Okie. XD

1.08 Prometheus

Is this really a thing? I was giggling quite a bit in disbelief that severed windpipes can heal. Like, perforated is one thing; completely bisected? Yeah, I don’t think so.

Gabrielle being incredulous upon learning that Xena has other friends, realizing what the warrior princess means, and then wondering if that could be her one day. 

   1.09 Death in Chains

Gabrielle enjoying watching Xena kill someone for the first time, then quickly realizing that fact. Whoops.

I found this moment really odd and then kind of hilarious. This poor dying old woman begs for water and goes ignored not only by the hospice workers, but also Talus and Gabrielle. Then Talus decides to be helpful. Gabrielle goes to the woman and lets her talk a lot (undoubtedly drying her mouth and throat even more), hears that Xena might be in danger, and then just… leaves. Talus goes with her, not having gotten water from the well after all. What a couple of jerks! XD

1.10 Hooves & Harlots

I really don’t know why Gabrielle kept making this face as Terreis died, but it tickled my funny bone too. So, I provided alternate subs to go with it. [Did you notice how she kind of cringes when Terreis tries to hold her hand and then just lets the Amazon flop once she’s died, flinging her hand aside like, “Ew, get it off me!”? What was that all about? X”) Hm… maybe she has an aversion to dying people, and that’s why she abandoned the old lady last episode?]

Gabrielle being a smart aleck, just like me, because Phantes’s complaint here is so ludicrous. But then you see the close-up of little hoofies in cuffs too, and, if you’re anything like me too, kinda just topple over laughing. The poor actual horse they did this to, though, man! What even?

Gosh, this episode was chockfull of hilarity, eh? Why did this happen? Gabby, take it away!

1.11 The Black Wolf

I laughed at this too. But now I wonder. Is Xerxes related to Caesar and/or connected to Rome or something? Because Xena does this twice around them too. In “When in Rome,” she jokes that the two guards lost playing tag with her, and in “A Good Day” she informs Pompey that if there were more guards hiding around their meeting space, then she would have had more helmets. heh Oh, Xenie. I think I know why Gabrielle’s turning out to be such a little punk ...or vice versa? Is Gabrielle actually a bit of a bad influence on Xena? XP

So, this fight just struck me as really odd. Xena passes her sword to Flora though she (Xena) needs to battle the big boss of the episode, and… actually, is totally right. The king throws a single wide-ass punch, waits while Xena kicks the guy behind her a few times, lets himself get kicked in the face a couple of times, and then comes at her with a little piece of chain, presumably from the restraints that were intended to keep Flora in place during her execution. Sir, you have a sword! A giant sword, right there on your hip! What are you doing? Then, when Xena kicks him a final time and sends him flying, his (supposed-to-be) metal armor is no match for the splintered wood of the axe she broke earlier. …Okie. XD XD XD   *gif below*

Xena once again leaves her chakram somewhere. …And I am now imagining this being part of Gabrielle’s maid duties: the poor kid has to go find Xena’s weapons each night and bring them back to her. I’m especially imaging the fluffball hilariously, adorably struggling to get the chakram out of things like this wall, as she did with Xena’s sword in the tree stump in “Dreamworker,” but more parallel to the floor. Cuuuute! XD

This plus this 

*pic + GIF below*:

1.12 Beware Greeks Bearing Gifts

This scene too really made me wonder, though amused as well. Why is Gabrielle so surprised that the only city nearby, that they were headed to, is the one they find? Is she really being that loud? Is Xena goofing around with the bootlaces question? Why startle Gabrielle and then yank her into enemy territory screaming, when what you want is quiet? What’s with the trapdoor-spider soldiers? Xena’s pose throwing the chakram. XD Gabrielle mostly featherlight dance-y moves through the battlefield. XD XD XD Why is it that when Xena tells Gabrielle to stick right behind her, Gabrielle disappears? And what was with the bucket-sitting soldier? Gabrielle is like, “Oh; no, thank you!” when she sees him and turns tail. Then Xena ...follows her. “We’re goin’ this way! Now we’re goin’ that way!” But they still end up dead-ahead from where they burst out of the bushes. XD That was ridiculous and nonsensical, and I’m very confused but had lots of fun. heheheh  *gif below* [ETA: Darn! The original file was too big, so I had to remake the GIF and cut quite a few things out. :( Sorry]

Xena’s outta-nowhere crusade to emasculate Deiphobus coming full-circle. What was that all about?

Welp, I hope you had as much fun as I originally and then later did. Not so much in the middle with the collage-and-GIF-making and editing and redoing, but; y’know. XD Wouldn’t trade it for …Hm… Nevermind. LOL

If you missed any of the FFLMs, then please click on the corresponding number-links below. :D

#1  #2  #3  #4  #5 #6 #7 #8 #9 #10 #11 #12

#xwp #xena #xena warrior princess #gabrielle #xena and gabrielle #fflm #funny #comedy #season 1 #forgetful #magic #shenanigans #argo #chakram #sword

[dustofbrokenheart]

The Covenant: Apple Orchard Date

Tyler Simms x Reader

Word Count: 1,293

One of your favorite things about fall is apples. Many get lured in by pumpkin, but not you. You were always a very loyal type of person. Apple fritters, apple cider, caramel apples, you name it. It was the superior flavor. Period.

So, it was only natural that you loved going to apple orchards during this time of year.  

Your phone started vibrating on the night stand next to your bed in the dormitories and you reached over to answer it. “Hello?”

“Hey, sweetheart,” Tyler’s voice came through clearly. “I just pulled up in the front.”

You grabbed your things and quickly locked the door behind you. “I’m coming. See you in a few,” you hang up with a kiss.

Tyler sat parked in his black Hummer just like he said. His arms leaned against the steering wheel while he messed around on his phone. When he looked up and saw you walking towards him, he hurried to get out of the car. He started waving excitedly, like a little kid, and had the biggest smile on his face.

Once you were close enough, he pulled you in for a tight hug. “I’ve missed you,” he mumbled.

You threw your head back and laughed. “Ty. We literally saw each other two hours ago. Plus, we talked on the phone last night.”

“I guess… Still missed you though,” he insisted, messing with your hair. You slap his hand away and it was his turn to laugh while you pouted. “Come on then,” he made a show of opening the Hummer door for you. “Your chariot awaits.”

That day Tyler planned to take you to an apple orchard just outside of Ipswich. It had taken a while to figure out scheduling—midterms were always in mid-October and Tyler was in-season with the swim team—but he was determined that he would take you. So much so that he had skipped a family trip to Boston with his parents that weekend in favor of going to pick apples with you.

Caleb was universally regarded as the sweet one, but, in your opinion, that role definitely belonged to Tyler. At least when it came to you.

The drive went by in a flash and soon the hand painted sign for Tanner’s Family Orchard came up on the left side of the road. Tyler was even more excited when he saw that there were only a couple other cars parked in the lot. “See?” he whooped. “Perks of being a responsible morning bird.”

“Says the actual night owl in this relationship,” you smile and roll your eyes.

The property was large, but well kept. The first thing you noticed was the coy red barn that acted as the main store front. Behind the barn, the trees seemed to stretch on forever in neat, uniform rows.

Inside smelled like quintessential autumn from all of the countless kinds of apple products. You grabbed a basket from the pile the owners had set aside for visitors who wanted to pick fruit for themselves. Basket in tow, Tyler and you went back outside and started lazily wandering. You weren’t in any kind of rush.

“What kind is your favorite?” he asked.

“Hmm… it really just depends,” you answer truthfully. “If I’m baking, or cooking, I use Granny Smiths. And you know, no one else in the family bakes besides me. Does that make me weird? Anyway, if I’m just snacking, Pink Ladies or Gala are my top choices.”

He chuckled and added some red apples to the basket. “I’ll be honest—before you I didn’t know anything about the specifics of apples. I used to distinguish only by color.”

You suddenly felt embarrassed by your enthusiasm. You had a bad habit of going off about your interests, most of which were niched topics that were unfamiliar to most people. And you knew that you shouldn’t feel bad about gushing to your boyfriend (Tyler had always accepted you and never judged) but embarrassment still crept up every now and then.

Whether is was your own insecurities, or him belonging to the untouchable Sons of Ipswich, you weren’t sure. Maybe it was a combination of the two.

He must have noticed you avoiding looking at him because he snatched the basket from you and marched up to a tree. “Might as well get to picking.”

Thankful for the distraction from your own awkwardness, you nodded and helped him add to the apple pile.

“So… what kind are these?” he asked with a wink. You couldn’t stop the large smile from spreading across your face. Tyler really was the sweetest.

Bit by bit the basket filled up with a rainbow of different colors. You figured there was enough space left for only a few more apples, if that, and you told Tyler as much.

“Yeah, I think you’re right.”

He pointed at a section of trees that had been picked near clean except for the very tops where bright green apples stood out among the leaves and branches. “How about we get some of those and call it good?”

You made a show of looking at the trees he was referring to. “Um, those are at the top, Ty. I don’t think we can reach those.”

“What?” he said standing at the base of a tree, hands on his hips. “I totally got this, Y/N, don’t worry. Besides, you need the green ones for your baking.”

You tried to reason with him but he ignored you in favor of shaking some of the lower branches. When nothing fell you told him again that he was wasting time. That got him to pause at least, and he tilted his head up to look at the tree in concentration.

He started shaking it again and the craziest thing happened—the all the apples started falling at Tyler’s feet. Your mouth hung wide open in disbelief. You didn’t know how else to react to what just happened.

He pushed off the tree and bent to pick up the newly available Granny Smiths. He arranged them and you continued to stare at him.

“How did you actually get to work?”

“Simms family secret,” he teased. “I can’t share it unless you’ve been initiated.”

“Fine. It really seemed like magic or something though.”

Suddenly, he leaned in for a kiss and you quickly forgot all talk of magic and secrets.

It started out as an innocent meeting of two sets of lips, but soon Tyler licked into your mouth. Tongues stroked and twirled together.

Your knees went weak and Tyler followed you to the cool ground, hovering over your body. He used on hand to raise himself up and the other stroked your stomach. Goosebumps raised on your arms. Your nails raked the back of his neck which caused him to moan into your mouth. You trailed kisses along his jaw and he whispered in your ear, “We should stop.”

Logically, you knew he was right, and you even answered, “We should.” But your body wouldn’t be turned off that easily, the warm energy extremely seductive, and your tongues met again.

It took a warbling bird nearby to break the two of you apart. “He’s totally judging us.”

“You guys should get a room,” you mimicked in a high pitch voice.

He extended a hand to help you stand. His baby blues still electrified, he said, “That can be arranged, you know.”

No words were exchanged. You both hurried to pick up the apples that had spilled when the basket tipped over during your tryst. You rushed back the barn to pay, even running at one point, so you could pay and leave without delay.

After all, you did love apples in the fall, but you loved your boyfriend more.

I’m back in a big Covenant mood these days and I’ve noticed my favorite Son, Tyler, has a criminally low amount of fics. I guess it’s up to me to write what I want to see. Thanks to anyone who took the time read it! 

#the covenant #tyler simms #tyler simms x reader #the covenant imagines

[i-have-feelings-bitch]

some thoughts on ÉLITE s4 immediately after finishing it

MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD, obviously

so. i have some thoughts.

i really disliked how they kept on piling up problem upon problem and i’ve seen that a couple dozen times by now and it always ends the same - nothing gets solved. Not really, anyway. The solution usually is; another problem happens, but its bigger and far more important and severe than all of the other ones combined and it overshadows everything that had happened before.

on that note, and to be fair, this is a teen’s drama show. So i don’t mind it, just to be clear here. i enjoyed the heck out of this season, right now, it’s my favorite season of all. That might change later, as all of this still is so new and fresh and exciting so my mind naturally snaps onto it.

first things first; Omander went just like i predicted - they broke up just so they could get back together eventually, after some hardcore drama. (i cried anyway. a lot.)

there’s one character i liked throughout the whole season. no, wait, two actually. first is rebeka. i feel like her decisions made sense. i liked her story arch a lot. the second one is azucena. what a queen.

.........guzman has a really bad temper. always had and probably always will. (to the samu/guzman/ari drama; why couldnt they have a pretty threesome, ari was quite obviously polyamorous (but i guess nobody has ever heard of that lol) and samuel and guzman almost fucked any second anyways so what exactly was their problem)

surprisingly enough, i liked Patrick in a lot of moments, about 50%. i absolutely despised him in the other 50%. tbh im really not sure about his character like with him, i don’t see any reasoning or goal or whatsoever. i have no clue what he wants to achieve?? guess he just wants to be gay and fuck around and honestly? fair enough

Mencia. Oh, Mencia. i liked her a lot from the get go and i still think her character is cool as shit, but there were quite some moments when i wouldve loved to smack her across the face. i also cried a lot when it came to Mencia/Rebeka. when Samu said “Fuck, you two are cute”? i felt that. i very much cringed at the chocolate scene, but to each their own i guess.

Ari; about 95% of the season disliked her. i didn’t hate her, but she was like a knockoff version of Lu? listen, i know i’m being biased here and it’s very unfair towards her, but to me, it just felt like she always tried to be the mean girl but never really succeeded. my opinion of her skyrocketed in the last few minutes of the last episode, though. we love some good sibling care in this house. not like it had been like that in the beginning, mind you.

i. fucking. hated. Benjamin. like the whole time. i think there was legit one single moment when i thought like “okay hold on that was the first (and last) good move you made this whole season” and it was when he offered Mencia to listen to her anytime she wanted or needed to. otherwise. fuck him. his attitude, his way of talking, his way of acting, fucking everything. (in the very last scene, when he destroyed the table? like yeah, i get that you’re emotional and angry and shit but my dude, your youngest daughter just told you she basically got r*ped on a daily basis by the guy *you* invited to your house because you only saw his money. can you please show some motherfucking self-control and not scare said daughter to fucking death oh my god i hate this guy so fucking much) also because he kicked out azucena. on that note, ander being protective of his mom? absolutely living for it.

aaand Ander. here we go. oof. i did not like him for a good part of the season. actually, i think it probably started in episode one and ended in the last one, lol. i just felt like there were little things that made sense? i appreciated him telling Omar that he finds this other guy (aka Patrick) hot, but like some time later, they break up in this really horrible and heartbreaking sequence and a minute later, Ander goes whoring around like there’s no tomorrow? like, literally? huh? i found myself really torn between who to dislike more; Ander or Patrick. nice el desorden reference. (both the shot where he masturbated alone in the shower and the book, lmao)

as for Omar; can the writers just leave him the fuck alone please? what did he ever do to yall to ever deserve all this shit he has to go through constantly in this show holy fuck i HATE how he got treated by Ander and Patrick and Benjamin. This boy deserves so much better. he did seem a little out of character sometimes, i gotta say. not sure why tho. most times, he was the sweet, empathetic cinnamon roll we know him as. like idk man he does so much for his friends?? the thing with Philippe and Caye at the bar was adORABLE

which leads us to

Philippe. dude. what. was his character. most of the time, i felt kinda bad for him, like his so called friends literally all just saw the royalty in him (not that he made the impression that he didnt like that in the first few episodes, but yeah it’s a thing so i reckoned that would come up later on). also i was so happy for Cayetana ughguhghguhghh they were really cute together......but then he gotta pull this shit, like what??? in the actual fuck. he’s just like “yeah some girl tried to sue me, saying i r*ped her” and then later he’s like “so yeah i’m actually a r*pist, whoops, sorry, can you stay pretty please?” like ex fucking cuse the shit out of me sir. no. the problem is i *want* to like him because pol granch is a fucking sweetheart and i’m catching myself thinking stuff like hes kind of aware that hes a borderline r*pist and that hes also very aware that it’s not okay? but like? he doesn’t try to change? don’t even get me started on his mother. ugly ass bitch. that’s all i have to say.

so i didnt like Cayetana for a major amount of s3, like at all. but yeah, what can i say. shes just a sweet girl okay and now i have a soft spot for her. much like Omar i feel like, she gets a lot of shit, completely uncalled for and there’s nothing she can do against it she just like stumbles into the pile of crap and then is knee-deep in. i feel very sorry for her man i just wanna hug her.

just for the record, there was not a single second that i thought Amomrdm(shit i forgot his name lmfao) -the bad guy- was just being nice and helpful. tbh he just deserved what he got. whoops, there, i said it.

the build up in the last episode was very nice, i gotta say. it was low key obvious who would be the one to attack Ari, but it’s alright. i did not expect the thing with Guzman tho lol. You go man. (but still, aggression problems.)

side note; dude it really sucks that guzman and samuel were too busy fighting over Ari to actually notice her missing lmao

oh also - Rebeka’s ninja kick on the dock??????? HELLO????

guzman and ander leaving made me so fucking emotional?????? excuse me??? who gave them the right?????

edit; (a day later)

just noticed i completely forgot Samu, lol. hes just so far away from my type and i dont really have an opinion on him like yeah hes kind-hearted and cares for his friends, and thats sweet, but uuuhhhhhh. i was only there for the lil gay moments between him and guzman. there were a lot of them. i was really happy when he and Rebeka made up and talked to each other again, that was kinda wholesome. aside from that tho? idk hes just kinda [shrug-emoji] for me (like he had been from s1 all the way on to be quite honest)

that said, i’m sure theres lots more thoughts in my mind but the heat is making my head hurt lol ok bye

#elite #elite4 #this is neither a pretty post nor something serious #literally just me rambling #also it was like 3am when i wrote that initially #but i guess in case anyone wants to read it ill post it #also saving it for later #lily rambles

[alj4890]

12 Days of Ficmas

Day 9

(Bryce Lahela x F!MC*Chris Valentine) in a Choices Open Heart one shot.

A/N Bryce’s plans don’t seem to be going like he wanted for Christmas with Chris. 

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Masterlist

Song Inspiration: Christmas Without You by Ava Max

Going Home

December 19th...

Bryce finished stacking his luggage by the door. He looked around at all the Christmas decorations he had talked Chris into buying with a touch of bitter irony.

This was supposed to be their Christmas.

Leave it to his family to find a way to mess up yet another part of his life.

"You forgot to pack this." Chris walked in with a small box wrapped in green paper. The red ribbon on top had been hastily tied into a lopsided bow.

He chuckled while pointing it out. "Sloppy stitch work Dr. Valentine."

"This is why I don't operate." She slipped her arms around his waist. "I leave that up to you."

He pressed a lingering kiss to her lips. "I really don't want to go."

She hugged him tight. "I know."

He set the gift on top of his bags, while keeping her in his arms. "I wish you were able to come with me."

"Me too." She murmured.

He pressed his forehead against hers, for once unable to think of something humorous to say to break the tension.

If his little sister had not called two weeks ago with an outrageous request, he would be able to stay in Boston and enjoy Christmas for once. He could follow through with all the plans he had made with the very reason he had gotten excited again for the holiday.

His Chris.

He knew how lucky he was. The love of his life had survived being poisoned six months ago and he had been given another chance to show her just how much she meant to him.

And Bryce had held nothing back.

All the special dates he made after her recovery had led to a proposal on Thanksgiving Day.

Sienna had nearly choked on a piece of turkey she had popped in her mouth when he dropped down on a knee in front of all their friends.

Chris had said yes, making that a day Bryce knew would always hold a special sort of thankfulness in his heart.

Plans were made for Christmas and New Year's Eve that night. Schedules were studied while the couple began to think of ways to balance everything.

Which was why Keiki's phone call had been unexpected. Like her older brother, she had decided that she needed space from their parents. She had not been in any rush to return home to Hawaii and was happily settled in the bordering school Bryce had found for her.

He and Chris visited her often and she in turn came for the occasional weekend here and there.

Bryce had been floored when she asked him to go with her back to Hawaii for Christmas.

**************

Two weeks ago...

"You want me to do what?!" He asked, ignoring the stares from other doctors sitting in the lounge.

"Mom and Dad have been calling me for a few weeks now." Keiki explained. "They really want us to try and be a family again."

"No." He didn't bother to hide his bitterness. "I have nothing to say to them."

"Please Bryce." She pleaded. "I--after running away...I can't face them on my own."

Bryce ran a hand through his hair, gripping a handful in frustration. "Keiki, I haven't seen them in ten years. Do you have any idea how uncomfortable it is going to be for all of us if I'm there?"

"But they want to try." She said again. "Couldn't you try too?"

"I probably can't get time off." Bryce clutched on to that excuse. "I'm still a--"

"I asked Chris to check before I called." Keiki admitted.

"You did what?" He demanded. "Why would you--"

"Because I thought you wouldn't bother checking until the last minute then say you weren't able to take off work." She grumbled.

Bryce blinked in surprise. His little sister knew him too well.

"Anyway," Keiki huffed, "since it is kinda a family emergency, they are giving you a week off. The nineteenth until the twenty-sixth."

Bryce dropped his head back. Seeing no way out of this, he groaned into the phone.

"Please do it for me." Her voice had softened, worried he might not go.

Unable to resist when she dropped her typical teenage attitude, he promised to pick her up on the nineteenth from school.

Keiki whooped and began to say thank you over and over again. "You're the best!"

"Remember that when you buy me a present." He added before telling her he needed to go.

Bryce decided to find his helpful fiancée and thank her for this.

After searching the diagnostic floor with little success, he found Chris in the cafeteria.

She was reading a medical journal while picking at a salad.

She jumped when he swooped in from behind and kissed her cheek. Her delight at seeing him disappeared when he sat down without a word or smile across from her.

"What's wrong?" She asked, reaching for his hand. "Did something happen with Mr. Wallace's bladder cystectomy?"

"No, that went well." He laced his fingers with hers. His eyes dropped down to the princess cut diamond engagement ring he had given her, sparkling under the florescent lights. "Keiki called."

"Oh?" Chris pretended a new interest in her salad. "How is she?"

"Thrilled that someone I know and love happened to do the impossible and got a third year surgical resident off for Christmas."

Her cheeks colored. "I wonder who could do such a miracle?"

"Chris." He sighed her name. "You know I have no desire to see my parents."

"Yeah, but after you talked to your mom about Keiki's bordering school--"

"That was brief compared to spending a week with them." Bryce countered, slouching in his seat. "At least you'll be there as a buffer."

The woman he adored began to squirm in her chair.

"Oh no, no no." He gripped her hand. "Come on, Chris! You're not making me do this alone?"

"I wasn't able to take off. Dr. Ramsey always goes to his Dad's place for Christmas. Since June left, it's just me and Baz working the diagnostic department." Chris pushed her tray to the side. "I'll be working Christmas Eve so that Baz can be with Zaid and their parents. Apparently there is some kind of twin holiday tradition they have involving Santa and his elves."

Bryce softly cursed under his breath. "I'm not spending Christmas away from you. This is our first one as a couple." He reminded her. "I'll tell Keiki she has to face Mom and Dad on her own."

"No!" Chris reached for his other hand. "I love that you want to spend it with me as much as I do with you, but your sister needs you right now." She then shrugged as if it was no big deal. "I'll be working and sleeping the holiday away."

She swallowed against that lie, knowing all her own holiday plans she had dreamed of with him were destroyed. Having Christmas Day off would be incredibly lonely. Their friends were either working a different shift or finding a way home to see their loved ones. Her own parents were leaving for their yearly trip to Switzerland in a few days.

She would be completely alone this holiday season.

"I really don't want to do this without you." Bryce tugged her out of her chair and into his lap.

Ignoring her frantic whispers that there were people around, he cupped her cheek and kissed her.

"I don't want you to either." She whispered, giving in to the need to kiss him once more. "I'll be just a phone call away."

"Not good enough." He grumbled before giving her a half-hearted smile. "But it seems I have no choice since the two bossy women in my life are guilt tripping me." He squeezed her close before letting her get up. "I'll see you this evening after your rounds."

Chris smiled warmly at him. "Can't wait."

***************

December 19th...

"Cheer up!" Chris shook him a little. "You'll be in Hawaii. Warm, sandy beaches--"

"That would be more inviting if you were there." His lips curved into a suggestive smile. "I'm picturing all kinds of bikinis--" he jumped when she swatted his backside.

She cleared her throat to continue. "As I was saying. You'll get to surf. See old friends--"

"Enemies. Exes. People who hope every Lahela dies some horrific death." He muttered.

"Why would you be seeing exes?!" Chris jerked back, eyes narrowing on his face. "Is there something I should know about, Lahela?"

He snorted in his laughter. "Nothing at all. I was only trying to think of the worst things I could see on this trip."

"Better be the worst." She grumbled, allowing him to once again pull her close. "Or else you will encounter a fiancée colder than the winters here in Boston."

He shook with laughter as he kissed her again. "I love you so much, Chris."

She gently caressed his cheek, giving that somewhat special, secretive smile she had just for him. "I love you too."

He checked the time and reluctantly let her go. "I better get going before Keiki calls again." He gathered up his bags, insisting Chris remain inside where it was warm. "I won't be able to leave if I see you standing out there alone."

She bit back her tears. "Be careful and call me when you get a chance."

"I will." He slung the last piece of luggage over his shoulder. "I want you to actually rest and sleep on your days off. None of that study fest you try and sneak in."

"I promise." She reached over and pulled his coat closed for him.

Bryce ducked down and stole one last tender kiss before slipping out the door. He flashed that same charming smile that still made her feel butterflies. "Later, Valentine."

Chris knew she couldn't say goodbye back without choking up. She merely waved with a smile, eyes blurring with the tears that were threatening to spill over.

She closed the door, pressed her head against it, and finally allowed herself to cry.

*****************

Later that night...

"I'm here." Bryce stepped out on the balcony of his old bedroom. "We just finished dinner."

"How did it go?" Chris asked, readjusting her phone as she finished doing the dishes.

"Great. Just great." He replied. "We said hello. Awkward pauses. Questions about school. Awkward pauses. The hospital. Even longer pauses with avoiding eye contact. Then Kiki decided to break the tension by telling them about our engagement. Blah, blah, blah. They want to meet you. Hope I actually invite them to the wedding--"

"Of course we will invite them!" Chris dropped the pan she was scrubbing. "You told them that, right?"

Bryce hesitated. "No. I indicated that we were still up in the air on the guest list."

"BRYCE!" Chris shouted. "Get in there and tell them that I want them at our wedding! They're your parents!"

"See, this is why I needed you to come." He snapped. "I don't want to be here. I don't want to talk to them. I have nothing in common with these people!"

"They're YOUR parents!" She snapped back. "Get over this crap and try and develop some type of relationship with them. Do it for yourself, Kiki, me, and any children we might one day have!"

A couple of beats of silence went by.

"Children, huh?" Bryce teased.

"Well, yeah." Chris mumbled. "One of you in the world is clearly not enough for me."

He couldn't stop the goofy smile forming at that. "I know the world needs more of you, Valentine."

Bryce loved hearing her stutter at his compliment.

"Anyway," she said in a softer tone, "Try and find a way to be around your family."

"I guess I do owe it to all the little Lahela's we will have." He leaned against the railing. "We're having six, right?"

"Six? Why not eight?." Chris joked, calling his bluff.

"How about two?" He countered as he quickly did the math for putting eight people through college.

"It's a deal." She checked the time and sighed. "I need to head to the hospital."

"Okay." He told her again that he loved her before ending the call. Taking one last glance at the ocean, he walked inside to speak to his parents.

**************

A couple of days went by with everyone in the Lahela household walking on egg shells. Each person seemed to keep the conversation impersonal. Generalizations were made on the weather, possible activities were suggested, and uncomfortable silences were falling at alarming rates.

The only time Bryce felt a little like his normal self was when he was either talking to Chris or alone with Keiki.

One morning, it all came to an end.

After taking his little sister out for a sunrise surf, Keiki had suggested they surprise their parents with breakfast.

"We can make it ourselves!"

"I hope you mean bowls of cereal." He teased. "Because even those are pretty much a hit and miss for me."

Keiki rolled her eyes. "You're a surgeon! Surely between the two of us we can come up with something."

"I'm not cooking while in the operating room." He added. "Edenbrook frowns on that."

She elbowed him in the ribs.

"And I'm out." He snickered at annoying her. "I can't handle a skillet with bruised ribs." He dodged her next attack. "Much less crack an egg."

Keiki chased him into the Lahela mansion, threatening to crack an egg over his big head. Their laughter caused their parents to look up from their morning coffee.

"Good morning." Their mother called out.

The two stopped in their tracks.

"Morning." Keiki greeted.

She and Bryce stood in the foyer, making sure they weren't tracking sand in.

"Did you have a good time?" Their father asked.

"Yeah." Bryce rubbed the back of his neck. "Smooth waves all morning."

His mother chuckled fondly. "There were so many mornings when you were little that I couldn't find you. Your father kept me from freaking out by showing me your favorite surfing spot."

"I suggested getting a houseboat to live in so we could see you more often." Their father teased. "But your mom had this weird fixation that home meant one on land."

Keiki glanced back and forth between her parents and brother. This was the first time anyone mentioned something from the past.

Bryce hated that he felt that familiar tug to his heart when it came to childhood memories. He had a good life for the most part. His parents might have committed crimes, but they had treated him well in their own way.

They had always been busy, flittering to one event or planning one to show off the Lahela fortune. But in between those moments, they had tried to be parents. They weren't perfect, especially when compared to stories his friends shared about holidays with family and such.

But maybe, maybe they weren't that horrible.

"Keiki and I were going to try our hand at making breakfast for all of us." He found himself saying. "We'll try not to burn the house down."

Tears came to his mother's eyes. With a choked laugh, she nodded. "That--that is very thoughtful of you."

"Thank you." His father's voice was raspy with emotion. "We promise to eat whatever you serve." He tried to joke. "Good thing we have a son who's a doctor."

Keiki pulled on Bryce's arm. "Let's do this."

Feeling a little guilty that an offer to cook had affected his parents to such an extent, Bryce decided to give it his all and make this a breakfast none of them would forget.

***************

Edenbrook, Dec. 23...

"And don't forget to test--"

"Ethan, shouldn't you be on the road by now?" Chris interrupted. "The weather is only going to get worse."

"Is this your way of trying to keep me from repeating the lab work I want done?" He countered.

She held up a readout. "Did it last night."

An expression of approval appeared on his face. "Well done, Rookie."

"A compliment? It really is Christmas." She teased.

He snorted while gathering his things. "Enjoy. It only happens once a year."

"Tell your dad, I said Merry Christmas." She yelled out as he left.

He waved in acknowledgement without looking back.

Chris dropped her head on the table, softly groaning in misery.

"And then there was one." She sat up and focused once more on her research of skin irritations, frowning at this being her holiday treat.

***************

Lahela Mansion...

"Our Bryce is not only one of the top surgeons, he is also engaged to a brilliant doctor."

Bryce forced a smile as his mother continued to pull him from one group to another. Lucky for him, he was only meant to stand there and appear delighted with life.

He wasn't really in the mood to socialize.

He glanced across the room and saw that his dad was doing the same with Keiki. The siblings shared a mutual glance of resignation.

After that one breakfast, their parents were ready to show the world that the Lahela's were still a prominent family that deserved awe and respect.

He hated being paraded like this. The only reason he still smiled was he felt a little guilty still over keeping them out of his life for so long. It surprised him that their parents had practically become recluses when Keiki also left. Having both their children move across the country to try and escape the Lahela name had been the wakeup call they needed.

Things still weren't what they once were, yet there was no denying the effort his parents were putting forth in the hopes of finding a new normal.

The only thing was, Bryce wanted to go home.

And home meant anywhere Chris was.

He felt his phone vibrate in his pocket and excused himself.

Opening up the image Chris had sent made his brow furrow in confusion. It was some type of weird skin rash.

He then burst into laughter when he read the words she had typed under it.

This could be the eggnog talking, but does this guy's rash look like a fat reindeer to you?

He set his drink down and began to text back.

This is why I love you.

He smiled in anticipation as he waited for her response.

Who knew skin rashes had this kind of effect on you?

And? He sent back.

And I love you too.

Keiki sneaked over and peeked at his phone.

"Is that a reindeer?" She tilted her head to the side.

"Maybe." He put his phone back in his pocket.

He leaned against the doorframe, quietly observing the party.

"You don't have to stay." Keiki whispered.

"I know." He ran a hand through his hair. "But it won't kill me to hang out another hour at this party."

"I mean, you don't have to stay here for Christmas." She corrected.

"I thought you wanted me to."

"I did. Or do. But now that things have been talked about, I don't mind being alone here with Mom and Dad." Keiki explained. "I know you must miss Chris."

"I do." His mind began to whirl with possibly leaving. "You don't think it would upset our parents if I up and left?"

"Not if you tell them why."

He slung his arm around her shoulders and pressed a kiss to the top of her head. "You know, for little sisters, you aren't that bad?"

She rolled her eyes while fighting a grin. "I guess you aren't the worst either."

He squeezed her close, grinning when she hugged him back. "I'll talk to them after the party."

"This means I get to open my gift from you early, right?" Keiki asked.

"Gift? From me?" He placed his hand to his head. "Was I supppsed to get you something?"

Bryce grunted when she punched his bicep.

"I take everything nice back I ever said about you." She sniped back.

"Easy there, Ms. MMA. Some of us need our arms for work." He nodded toward the tree. "Your gift is wrapped in the candy cane paper."

She stood on her tiptoes to see over the crowd. "Is it anything from my list?"

"Of course it is. Do you honestly think I have any clue what a fifteen year old girl likes?" He reminded her. "Plus Chris made sure we got exactly what you wanted."

Keiki hugged him again. "I'm so glad you came with me."

He gently patted her back. "Me too, kid."

****************

Dec. 23rd, a few hours later, Honolulu International Airport...

"I understand that what I'm asking is the impossible." Bryce took a deep breath. "If you can get me as close to the east coast, I'll pay extra and drive the rest of the way if needed."

"Sir, we are having to cancel a number of flights due to weather." The ticket agent explained. "Your flight is for the twenty-sixth."

"I know. But I need to be home tomorrow." He repeated. "I'll fly anywhere. It doesn't have to be a direct flight to Boston."

The agent began to type while the line of people behind Bryce grumbled at the hold up.

"The closest I can get you is a five hour layover in Dallas." She typed some more. "You can then be on standby for a flight to Grand Rapids or I can book you in our economy class to Chicago which has a two hour layover in San Diego and another two hour layover in Houston."

"Chicago." He decided.

She printed out his new ticket. "Departs from Gate B-9 in one hour."

"Thank you." He hurried over to security.

***************

Dec. 24th, around four a.m. Chicago...

"I need something with four wheel drive." Bryce added.

"Yeah, you and everyone else." The car rental rep snickered. "It's Christmas Eve in the Midwest. You'll be lucky to leave here with a car that isn't a convertible with the top down."

Bryce ran his hand through his hair. "Just give me whatever you got."

"Huh." The rep's eyes widened. "Must be your lucky day. We have one SUV left."

Bryce felt the first glimmer of hope since his last three turbulent flights. "I'll take it."

*************

Dec. 24th, Boston...

It is going to be a white Christmas for Boston. Snow has been falling and will continue with a possible accumulation of eighteen inches. Some areas of the country are expecting up to twenty-

Chris changed the channel while getting ready for a long night at work. Her mood had been less than cheerful the more she thought about being alone tomorrow.

That and she had not heard from Bryce at all.

He's probably at another party, she thought. Maybe his family planned something special.

"Get your head right, Valentine." She told her reflection. "Nobody wants a depressed doctor missing her fiancé."

She searched her closet for something more festive to wear, hoping it would brighten her mood and her patients'. After choosing a red knit dress, she snagged a gingerbread cookie and headed out into the snow.

****************

Somewhere in the snow...

"A cup of coffee, please." Bryce checked the time again and softly groaned.

He had been driving since around five in the morning. With all the snow, the fifteen hour drive seemed to be growing longer and longer. He still had another five hours at the very least until he made it to Boston.

His phone chimed with a message from Chris.

Merry Christmas Eve! I miss you and hope you're having a good time.

He took a sip of the coffee and debated on whether or not to tell her what he was really doing. Typing out that he missed her too, he decided to remain quiet on how he was spending the night before Christmas.

**************

Dec. 25th, 8:00 a.m., Boston...

Chris trudged through the snow, playfully kicking up some of it. The night shift had thankfully been quiet for the most part. She had been able to go to the children's ward and play some Christmas themed games with them and their families.

Seeing their excited faces went a long way in helping lift her spirits.

Some of the staff had brought in some holiday treats and even Dr. Banerji brought in some homemade wassail in a crockpot to help stay warm in the snow.

Chris found a Secret Santa gift on her desk when her shift ended. Smiling, she opened it up to find a green cashmere scarf. Wrapping the soft material around her neck, she pulled on her snow boots and left in a much better mood than she had arrived in.

Humming Christmas carols, she continued to her apartment. She decided that this Christmas on her own would be spent in pajamas and dozing on the couch with A Christmas Story on continuous loop.

She was on the third verse to We Wish You a Merry Christmas when she unlocked the door.

"We won't go until we get some," she sang as she tossed her keys on a side table. "We won't--"

"Well, if you insist." Bryce said suggestively.

She stopped in her tracks. Her jaw dropped as she stared at him.

"Should we exchange presents before we get some or after?" He laughed when she launched herself into his arms, squeezing him tight.

"What are you--how--" she sighed into his kiss, snuggling closer.

"I wanted to spend Christmas at home." He told her.

"But you were home." She reminded him. "With your family."

"That's not home anymore." Bryce backed her to the sofa.

"So you're saying Boston has become your new home?" She laughed when they fell onto the cushions.

He gazed down at her, thinking of all the emotions she made him feel. His voice turned sincere as he smoothed her hair out of her eyes.

"Funny thing is, it isn't the place so much as the reason why this is now home." He pressed a sweet kiss to her cheek before brushing his lips against hers as he spoke. "Wherever we are, as long as you're there, then that is where I will call home."

#choices oh #12 days of fictmas 2020 #choices 12 days of fictmas #bryce x mc #bryce lahela #open heart bryce

[bearmustard]

2021 Fic/Writing Goals

Ok, so, I go away for every new years and therefore I totally forgot to do a 2020 wrap up post, but I’m getting back on the writing horse after a crazy Nov/Dec period and wanted to make some commitments! 

I was SO proud that in 2020 I came back to fic writing, and published new fic for the first time in a decade (find them here and here!) I am also SUPER proud of both of those fics, and their reception has ABSOLUTELY given me the confidence to keep writing, so thank you so much to everyone for your encouragement. I especially want to thank @sashinalash, @twopoppies and @lululawrence, as well as the rest of the Panic Room GC, for their encouragement, support and cheerleading. I honestly could not have done it without you. 

Now, onto the 2021 fic writing goals!! 

Overall word count goal 

50,000 words - If I write all the fics I plan I will easily make this, but I have learned not to overestimate myself haha. This seems reasonable, with plenty of room for improvement :)

1D Fic: 

5x Fest Fic - This is due in 10 days, and I cannot wait to share it with you all. I have had it planned, blocked and (semi) drafted since Oct, so I’m on the home stretch. It is gonna hurt and I’m so sorry/not sorry at all. I wish I could say more. You’re just gonna have to read them all to guess which is mine!! 

In Those Years Pt 2 - The second instalment of my In Those Years series, and the follow up to At Risk I Fold, set throughout 2016, is story blocked but not drafted... yet. I am hoping to get it done by the end of the year but this is something I want to take my time on to get right, so it might take me a while. Who knows what will happen to inspire me?!

Melbourne Pubs AU - Another WIP I am sitting on that I am regularly thinking about - who knows if this will be finished this year but I am putting it here because Emma/ @sashinalash keeps egging me on. 

SPN Fic

If you haven’t noticed, I’ve kinda fallen deeply back in love with SPN in the past few months (over 12 years since I left the fandom whoops). I have two WIPS that I’m thinking about: 

Civilian - WIP - SPN/Generation Kill crossover (Alternate Season 5?) - In which pre-Series Dean joins the marines and goes to iraq, and Sam doesn’t find out until after Lucifer Rising. I have snippets of this written on my phone but it’s a bit all over the place right now. I guess I’ll just HAVE to rewatch Generation Kill (what a chore lmao). Most importantly, though, I have made a playlist, which means I’m serious about getting it done.

Alternate Season 12 WIP - Dean centric (duh) fic in which Amara brings back Charlie instead of Mary at the end of season 11, and lots of character work ensues. A really character based/figuring my shit out fic with lots of characters calling each other out on their bullshit. This will likely take me a while to write but I’m thinking about it a lot. 

Dark Angel Fic 

People who have been following me for a LONG TIME know that my original fandom is Dark Angel, which I recently rewatched. 

Escape and Evade AU WIP - ok, I have had this fic in my head since 2006 - and in my recent rewatch I finally solved how I was going to approach it. This is a deep cut fic that probably no one will read but it is so near and dear to my heart that I am putting it on the writing list anyway. 

Dark Angel Character Studies/Episode Codas - I also want to build my repertoire with a bunch of shorter DA character studies in prep for the fic. Putting these here as a goal because I am more likely to finish these than anything else. 

Tumblr Drabbles

Last year I published a bunch of my old tumblr drabbles and was surprised by how much I liked them, so I want to get back to taking ask prompts for short fics in any of my active fandoms. Good exercise! 

 I don’t know if anyone else has set goals but I thought I’d tag some people in case they want to do it: 

@harryanthus, @harryrainbows, @mercurial-madhouse, @lululawrence, @jacaranda-bloom, @reminiscingintherain, @cuethetommo, @twopoppies, @sashinalash, @indiaalphawhiskey, @cupcakentea, @choface, @heriz, @stunning-stylinson, @crinkle-eyed-boo, @cyantific and anyone else who is so inclined! 

#mine #fic goals #writing goals #2021 #2021 goals #multifandom #my fic #in those years #civilian wip #spn fic #DA fic #HL fic

[kiara-carrera]

leah and jj + hugging while walking for the touches ask game?

season 2 spoilers for everything up to the bonfire episode (where this it set)! this is both canon and not canon because i will in fact adjust all of my ideas at least seventy-four times whoops ... we’re also gonna ignore the fact that the hug while walking lasts exactly one line, a true blink and you miss it kind of nonsense. is this well written? no, but that’s not my strong suit anyways.

18. hugging while walking: leah + jj

“I’m just saying — I don’t trust her. And I really don’t think we should be leaving John B alone right now, especially with her.”

Around them, the annual bonfire was in full swing. Music was blaring, drinks sloshing out of solo cups and dripping down the arms of kids too slow on a shotgunned can, bodies clustered in the middle as friends danced and chatted the night away. The bonfire was like a Boneyard party — neutral ground where Pogues and Kooks could (mostly) coexist for a night of getting shit faced and making terrible decisions.

Instead of being up in the mix, Leah found herself off to the side, a frown on her face as she watched John B get yanked into a conversation with a girl from their school — Yvonne, a junior like them, and also someone John B had gotten fairly familiar with the previous year, before dads began disappearing at sea, gold cropped up in wells, and mysteries and murder landed on their doorsteps.

Even if the relationship (marriage?) between John B and Sarah hadn’t just fucking exploded — okay, wait, maybe that wasn’t the right word to use all things considered. Either way, she would have been having the exact same reaction. Because like most of the people John B and JJ had gotten involved with over the years, Leah couldn’t fucking stand the sight of her.

JJ snorted from beside her, watching on as Leah glared across the party where John B had all but been wrangled into a conversation with Yvonne. “Remind me what your problem with her is again?”

Her head snapped towards him, finally breaking her one-sided glare session, regarding JJ as if he’d suddenly grown another five heads. “You’re kidding, right? Do you not remember how fucking exhausting she was when John B was doing ... whatever the fuck that thing he had with her last year was?”

“He was banging her,” JJ said bluntly, laughing when Leah wrinkled her nose. “And no, I don’t.”

“Figures, because you’d always run off with Pope and leave me alone with them. Like, she was fine at first until she started getting super weird and territorial over him with me, which was fucking weird because they weren’t even dating and also newsflash — I was so not trying to steal John B from her. It’s John B. I’d rather eat a bar of soap.”

“John B can handle himself,” JJ told her, taking a sip from his drink. He’d already had half a beer that he’d failed to shotgun and had scored a solo cup from some kid in their year. “He’s probably going to be bitching about missing Sarah to her the whole time anyways, and I know I’m not spending my night babysitting him with you.”

Leah raised an eyebrow at him, reaching out to snatch his drink from his hand. She grinned when he made a noise of protest when she took a small sip. Grimacing at the taste, she told him, “This tastes like lighter fluid, first of all. And who said you had to hang out with me tonight?”

Another grin broke out on her lips, watching as his eyebrows knitted in confusion at her words. There was just the tiniest hint of a frown that she might have missed if she hadn’t been watching him as closely as she was or if the flickering lights of the bonfire hadn’t casted a decent amount of light to where they were standing.

She wasn’t expecting him to turn it around on her though. 

His confusion disappeared at the drop of a hat, a somewhat cocky expression tugging at the corner of his lips as he replied, “Figured you wouldn’t be complaining about that.”

Embarrassed heat crawled up her neck at his words, eyes narrowing at him. Leah wasn’t sure why she expected JJ to not be a teasing dick about everything — perhaps it was the way he’d been far to eager to put his mouth on hers the other day that made her think they were on the same page.

Apparently not.

Everything was just weird. Between the kiss the night Rafe and Barry crashed John B and Sarah’s welcome home party and everything that had happened between then and now it was just ... it was like her world had been thrown off-kilter. They’d barely talked about it. Every conversation either got ruined, interrupted, or ended in a kiss. She wasn’t complaining about the third one, but it felt entirely too vulnerable to not know where she stood.

Did she like JJ? Yes. Did JJ like her? ...Wildly undetermined. On the one hand, he definitely liked the physicality of it all. But there was still that horrid little voice in the back of her mind that worried. Worried because he’d never actually been in a serious relationship, had never looked for one. Worried that she’d divulged too much too soon and that he was trying simply for the sake of their friendship.

She’d already seen the way Kiara and Pope had fractured. She didn’t exactly want to be the star of the sequel.

It was already hard enough accepting that her feelings for JJ were far beyond anything platonic. It was hard having to go around knowing what it felt like to have his mouth on hers, his hand tangled in her hair as she tasted weed and Natural Light on his lips. It was hard enough to know that there was something there, but not knowing what that something was.

He’d told her to stop putting words in his mouth, to stop jumping to conclusions about how he was feeling, but what the fuck was she supposed to do when it seemed like this was all just some weird way to pass time?

It was just her luck that she was shit at feelings like this and that she just had to go fall for her friend who was quite possibly worse than her.

And now he was fucking teasing her. Yup, saying shit to him was starting to look more and more like a colossal fucking mistake.

“You’re a dick,” she muttered to him, cheeks burning as she turned to go find Kie or Pope.

Leah made it all but two feet before two familiar arms wrapped around her waist, JJ doing his best to prevent her from going any further.

“Lee Lee,” he whined in her ear. “C’mon, it was a joke.”

“Must have forgot to laugh,” she replied, beer sloshing around the cup in her hands as she tried to keep moving. But his arms were wrapped around her in a bear hug, his boots shuffling in the dirt behind her converse.

“Jesus,” he muttered, finally tugging her to a complete halt, groaning in annoyance a little as she refused to turn around to face him. But she’d stopped trying to move forward, still wearing a frown as he released her and circled around her to be face to face once again. “Done pouting now?”

“I hate you.”

“You love me.”

“I’m gonna shove you into the bonfire.”

He wrinkled his nose. “Not really into that, but thanks.”

Another flush of heat, this more out of annoyance than anything else, rose to her cheeks. “Can you be serious for like five seconds and stop making it your night’s goal to annoy me?”

The seriousness of her tone made his smile falter just a little bit. “Oh, c’mon, it was a joke. I wanna hang with you tonight, you know that.”

“Do I?”

“Don’t see me standing around anyone else, do you?” He glanced around, as if trying to prove his rhetorical point.

The tiniest, most traitorous of a laugh escaped her, but she quickly doubled back with a semi forced frown. “Too late, your friendship privileges have been provoked for the night.”

“What about macking privileges?”

The frown? Gone. Eyes? A little wide. Heart? Well, she was lucky her ribcage was there to keep it from popping out of her chest like a fucking cartoon.

A little flustered, she told him, “Funny, JJ, should consider being a comedian.”

“Not joking.” His tone was as serious as his words, more serious than he tended to be, especially at a party which surprised her, but it was the next thing he did that really caught her attention.

Leah knew that JJ was annoying when it came to getting what he wanted, but nothing really could have prepared her for the way his hands pulled on her arms, tugging her close to him, closer than she had any right to be as his friend.

Leah knew that no one at the bonfire around them was playing a lick of attention to them — the Pogues had been a hot commodity for all of two minutes when they’d arrived, a bit of attention of the newly freed John B, but that spectacle had gone stale all too quickly. And yet, her heart didn’t seem to care because there was something daunting, exciting about him treating her like this in public.

She knew from experience that JJ was nonchalant about PDA, making out and dancing with people at parties before with not a care in the world. His standing close to her and tugging him into her like he was some fictional pretty boy starring in a cheesy teen rom com shouldn’t have made her feel as special as it did but this was just different.

It was him and it was her and there were so many things about this situation that seemed like they’d only ever exist in vague daydreams. It seemed like there shouldn’t have been a universe where he’d look at her like the way he was right now, with anything more than friendship.

“We can even ditch,” JJ told her with a grin, eyes sparkling just a bit in the firelight. His hands slipped from her arms to her hips smoothly, like being nonchalant about this kind of shit came all too naturally to him. “Me, you, and the lighter fluid.”

She was certain that he could see her sour mood diminish embarrassingly quick as she asked, “Oh really? To do what, exactly?”

“That all depends on how you wanna spend your time tonight,” JJ answered, giving her one of his easy, mischievous smiles, that fucking smile that had gotten her into this mess in the first place.

Leah wasn’t sure how long she’d cared for him like this. Maybe it had only been a few days, maybe since Midsummers, or hell, maybe it had been forever, her subconscious just waiting for that perfect moment for it to click that her joking I hate you’s were laced with something else, something more.

“Know a good place, too,” he added, gesturing his head towards the tree line past the wall, into the woods where most people only vacated to for hookups, which definitely didn’t go over her head.

“If you’re taking me to where you take all your bonfire party hook ups to, I’ll pass,” Leah remarked dryly. She didn’t intend the words to come out slightly bitter, and she thought she passed them off as joking as she could, but she couldn’t ignore the twist in her chest at the thought.

Before all of this, she wouldn’t have even batted an eye at JJ possibly having secret bonfire hookup spots, but now? Now the thought made a ball of lead form in her stomach.

“I mean I took Pope there once when I didn’t want to share my good weed with anyone.”

This time, she didn’t try to hide the laughter that bubbled over her lips. “Oh, perfect, I get to see where you wander off with Pope, wonderful.”

“So you’re in?”

She pretended to ponder it for a moment, but it was clear to just about anyone — especially JJ who knew her better than anyone in the world — that she’d had the answer sitting on her tongue. “I guess I could spare you a few minutes.”

JJ grinned at her, once again shooting her that fucking smile and she wasn’t sure if it was that or the way he replied with, “That’s my girl!” made her feel like she could fucking conquer the fucking world, off-kilter or not.

#asks #touch prompts #mayson #claryxjackson

[twilightofthe]

Chapter Fourteen liveblog of The Mandalorian Season 2!  Let’s go!!!

Gonna say right now this episode already has VERY large boots to fill, my only prior experience with Tython is when my DM took our party there in the Star Wars RPG I’m playing in atm and we had a blast doing stuff like negotiating peace between warring peoples, finding lost children, visiting and exploring the very temple Din and the baby will be going to, AND we got attacked by Imps and I got to steal and drive an AT-AT.  Idk how to make Tython better than that xD

Ok but here we go, opening scene

Ooooooh we getting the FENNEC SHAND flashback???  (Lol but seriously if she is showing up again I’m all too happy to see my girl Ming-Na but how the fuuuuuck are we going to tie aNOTHER character’s storyline into this season? xD)

Once more I would die for the nameless baby Yodito 

SEROUSLY LOOKIT HIM AND HIS WIDDLE BALL DIN HOW COULD YOU EVER GIVE THAT UP

Welp I guess acknowledging the kid’s name is good parent/child bonding activities

“Bitch that’s my ball you keep taking it”

BABY LISTENS TO DADDY

HE’S HELPING THE BABY TRAIIIIIIIN AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

HEY NO I’M NOT MAD AT YOU AAAAA GOOD PARENT

“Nice lady” lol perfect way to describe Ahsoka

OMG THE SOFTNESS IN HIS VOICE MISTER PEDRO YOU ARE KILLING ME ;_;

“You’re very special, kid” KILL ME RIGHT FUCKING NOW HOW DARE YOU TOY WITH MY HEART--

DIN YOU DO NOT SOUND CONVINCING AT ALL

NOT EVEN TO YOURSELF

JUST ACCEPT YOUR FATHERHOOD GODDAMMIT

“The TRAGEDY???” Oh No

Welp I guess Gideon tracks the Crest and kidnaps Baby in this one waaaaaah

Ok so forest planet like my DM said, but he made it snowy instead of acrid.....

Temple didn’t quite look like the first battle outcropping from Fellowship of the Ring either...

Oh is this another “wave your hand to pull it out of the ground” thingies like the Lothal temple?

DIN DON’T YOU FUCKING DARE JUST ABANDON HIM THERE

Ah ok he’s just doing the seeing stone thing

Oh honey this must be a pain in the ass to deal with the Force when you’re not remotely Force sensitive

BABY AND BUTTERFLY I’D DIE FOR HIM

Oh whoop we have company, not the Imps already?

Ahhh nope just Boba

Wait was HE the one who found Fennec last season???

If Boba’s the one who ends up turning over the baby to the bad guys just know nothing y’all say will make me forgive him for it xD

Fennec I’d kinda expect it from tho lol

I still think the Slave 1 (still a Very Hmmm Name) is the one of the goofiest looking ships, like why is it shaped like that and why does it fly standing up? xD

OOP I guess Baby just needed some pressure?  Glowy stone!

Glowy stone wiiiiith magic forcefield oh dear

Guess this ep’s gonna have Din trying to fight off opponents while Baby’s openly vulnerable and meditating, a la Katara in ATLA season 1

And ultimately fail too oh no....

Lol first thing visible coming out of ship is dramatic-ass cape, this fucking galaxy xD

TEMUERAAAAAAAAAAAA ;_;  Loooook I’m not the biggest Boba fan but I fucking love Temuera Morrison and his perfect voice

Wait he wasn’t the one who planted the tracker on his ship was he?

Looool at least Din’s finally found out there’s deadass like two groups of people he ends up coming across in this story

Hmmm we lookin’ dressed kinda like a Jedi, huh there Fett boy?

Wait Boba why didn’t you just try and ask/fight Cobb for the armor???

Oh so they really aren’t gonna make Boba Mandalorian again?

Oop Boba down for child murder

FENNEC OK I’M STILL KINDA IN LOVE WITH HER

“There’s no need for bloodshed” ok maybe Boba’s had some character development???

PROTECTIVE PAPA GETTIN’ OUT THE WHISTLING BIRDS

God Ming-Na is so fuckin’ pretty

“left for dead” BITCH YOU GOT FUCKING EATEN SHUT UP

Ohhhh does Fennec have some of those special new artificial guts like they gave Breha Organa?  Ngl I’m thinking of using those in one of my fics.....

Ooooop and NOW there’s the Imps

And that looks like enough room for a LOT of Stormtroopers

Oh dear

OH lol I guess Boba and Fennec have it covered

Ok fine Bobs that’s kinda badass

Lol Stormtroopers can’t even aim a mortar 

And STILL can’t properly aim a rapid fire gun either

Dumbass should have moved

Boba don’t steal the armor you’ll just be doing exactly what all the other Mandos are trying to accuse you of

AND DIN DOESN’T EVEN CARE ABOUT ANY OF THIS HE’S JUST DESPERATELY TRYING TO RESCUE HIS BABY ;_; ;_; ;_;

NOOOO DON’T LEAVE HIM

And of COURSE if he had waited five more seconds

Oh I guess Boba’s changing into his armor

Yep there he is

Ooop is that the Boba Fett theme?

THAT STILL ONLY COUNTS AS ONE

Aaaaand of course they’ve got a Star Destroyer 

WAIT ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME

Y’ALL SERIOUSLY TOOK THE RAZOR CREST AWAY

BITCHASSES

Damn but if Gideon doesn’t have a perfectly menacing theme too

Ok Favreau we see them looking more like Iron Man than anything else

Goddammit Boba why’d you make him take off his jetpack

Star Destroyer/Imperial Cruiser same thing, one’s just bigger

Y’ALL SHOULDN’T HAVE MADE HIM TAKE OFF HIS JETPACK

THE FUCKING TOY BALL GODDAMMIT Y’ALL ARE GONNA MAKE ME FUCKING CRY

Ooop at least the beskar’s fine

Yeahhh Boba knows this is at least kinda his fault xD

HAHAHA YEP THE FETTS ARE MANDOS AGAIN

Ohhhh and Jango fought in the Mando Civil War huh????  INTERESTING

Ohhhh they are picking up Ahsoka again

Wait fuck me I forgot, has Ahsoka ever directly met Boba before?

Wait you’re fucking kidding me you’re bringing MAYFIELD back nooooo he was annoying and untrustworthy

I hope Ahsoka bullies him

Dammit Gideon I hope the baby bites you

HAHA FUCKING GET THEM BABY

ok ok ok yeah I know Baby using the Dark Side is bad

OK OK OK NEVER MIND NEVER MIND NEVER MIND THAT’S REALLY BAD THAT’S WHAT THIS BASTARD WANTS

BITCH YOU STOP THAT

GIDEON I FUCKING SWEAR

DON’T Y’ALL FUCKING TOUCH HIM

OR SHOOT HIM YOU FUCKING BITCHES I HATE THIS I HATE EVERYTHING

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

POOR BABYYYYYYY

DIRECTED BY SPY KIDS MAN????  SIR HOW DARE YOU MAKE ME HURT

Okay okay okay fine, yes, Boba was Very Cool(TM)

Damn this was a good episode

#liveblogging the mando show #sw the mando show #mando man of mystery #the mandalorian #the mandalorian spoilers #the mandalorian season 2 spoilers #star wars #star wars spoilers #sw #sw spoilers #boba fett