#worm boi belongs underground

[penguinsblues]

The choice is yours.

#fear and hunger #fear&hunger #f&h #enki #dark priest #fanart #rpg maker #only took like 3 months to sit down and finally finish this omg #I'm trying to accept the fact that wips won't magically become okay if you just intently stare at them for three hours #so might as well just post un-okay ones i guessss #i wanted to convey this eerie feeling when you go outside and somehow it feels more unnatural than the dungeon itself #worm boi belongs underground #couldn't resist giving him a hint of a dumpy too lmfao

[sanguineterrain]

it's a feeling that's fine - s.h.

Summary: You accidentally climb the wrong fence on the hottest day of May. It turns out to be the best thing that's ever happened to you.

Pairing: Steve Harrington x fem!reader

Word count: 10.6k

Warnings/tags: no use of y/n, no physical descriptions, etc. reader is in a toxic friendship; she's slightly bullied in that indirect mean girl way, but the toxic friendship ends. reader cuts her finger by accident. drinking and drug mentions. fluff, humor, strangers to friends to lovers, summer vibes, so many princess bride references. steve is super duper sweet!!! post s4 volume 2.

A/N: so if you wondered where i've been for the last two months.... it was in a cave writing this fic. i'm really proud of this one; the reader is a little different than how i usually write, but i hope you'll like her all the same :) if you enjoy this fic, please please let me know through comments/reblogs!

divider by firefly-graphics

Today is hot. 

Weatherman Dale had said this morning that today is a record high for May. It’s so hot, in fact, that Debbie Wellerman had called you this morning asking if you wanted to come swim in her pool. 

You’d asked if you could dig for worms in her yard. She’d sighed and hung up. You hope that means yes. Joan has been in need of some company. Worms would be good for her.

You go around Debbie’s house and stop at the back gate. The Wellermans are kind of mean and they don’t like it when you take too many cucumber sandwiches. To avoid them, you’ve taken to going through the back gate whenever Debbie invites you over. It works pretty well.

Except today, the gate is locked. Which is weird, because Debbie usually leaves it open. It’s how her boyfriend, Brett, sneaks in during the day, and how Brett’s brother, Chet, sneaks in at night. 

You’d asked once why the brothers come over separately. Debbie had gotten mad and kicked you out without giving you any ice cream. You don’t ask about Brett and Chet anymore.

The problem is that you’re wearing flip flops, which are not ideal for climbing fences. Or anything, really. You once climbed a jungle gym in flip flops and skinned both knees. 

You slip off your flip flops and fling them over the fence. They land a second later, clapping against the ground. The fence is covered in climbing ivy and tiny red flowers you’ve never seen before. You wonder how Debbie made them grow so fast.

The street is empty, which is nice. Sometimes people in Loch Nora like to yell at people who don’t also live in Loch Nora. 

The fence wood is hot but not so hot that you can’t touch it. You stick your feet in the little grooves and start to climb. It’s not too high of a fence, but it’s high enough to warn people who don’t belong here.

That’s never stopped you, though.

Getting over is trickier. You expect Debbie to see you by now, but there’s no sound. She must be inside, or maybe she’s out and forgot she’s invited you. She does that sometimes.

Wood dust clings to your fingers and the soles of your feet. When you’re a foot from the ground, you hop down. Then you turn.

There’s no sign of Debbie. There is, however, a boy.

He’s reclined on an inflatable blue ring floaty in the middle of the pool. He wears sunglasses and red board shorts with little white anchors on them. 

He has very pretty hair, both on his head and chest. He also has pretty lips. And arms. All of him is pretty, really. You wish you could see his face properly. He probably has a nice face too. Symmetrical and kind.

The area around the pool is paved just like at Debbie’s—only it’s a lot larger than you remember. There's a patch of dirt next to the gate. You go and crouch at the edge. You don't see any worms. Probably because it's so hot. You'd stay underground too if you were a worm.

You stand and turn to look at the boy again. He looks like he might be asleep. 

“Did Debbie invite you?” you ask.

The boy shoots up from the floaty. The shift in weight makes him lose his balance and he topples into the water a moment later. The floaty flips with him. 

He resurfaces almost immediately, spitting water and rubbing chlorine from his eyes. You squint.

Yes, you were right. He does have a very nice face.

The water comes up to his waist. He pushes his hair back in handfuls, blinking. Then he fishes his sunglasses out with his foot and sets them on his head. 

“Can you swim?” you ask.

He stares at you, blinking.

“What?” he says after a beat. 

“Can you swim?” you repeat.

“Uh, yeah? Yes, of course I can swim.”

"It would be bad luck if you couldn’t.”

His brows furrow.

“Because I can't swim,” you clarify.

“I wouldn’t be in the pool if I couldn’t swim,” he says.

“That’s good thinking.”

You sit at the edge of the pool and dip your calves in. He wades closer until he’s about three feet away.

“How did you get here?” he asks.

“I walked.”

“I mean, how did you get in my backyard?”

“Oh. I climbed the fence.” 

You peer closer. He looks familiar, but you can’t quite place him. 

“Are you Brett and Chet’s triplet?” you ask. “You’re a lot prettier than them. Did their mother feed you extra vitamins?"

His eyes go wide. “Uh… Brett and Chet Kingsley?”

“Uh-huh. Debbie invites both of them over, but never at the same time.”

“Who's—they don’t have a triplet.”

“That’s good. Three’s bad luck.”

“My house number has a three in it,” he says.

“Don’t step on any sidewalk cracks,” you warn.

He tilts his head, tongue poking out like he’s sizing you up. You let him, focusing on his face instead. He has dark, warm eyes the color of black tea. His shoulders are toned with lots of freckles on them. He looks like a boy who’d like Debbie, not you. 

“Is Debbie going to be back soon?” you ask. You don’t want to get attached to a boy who’ll just end up wanting Debbie instead. You've made that mistake before.

“Um… if you’re talking about Debbie Wellerman, she lives on the next block over. I’m Steve Harrington.”

“Oh. You’re the guy who fought the monsters.”

He eyes you warily. “Wh—how do you know about the monsters?”

"Who doesn't?" 

Steve opens his mouth, then closes it. 

“You can’t tell anyone," he finally says. 

You shrug and kick at the water gently.

“I have no one to tell. Debbie doesn’t believe in monsters.”

“She doesn’t believe in giving you a key either, huh?”

“She doesn’t usually lock her gate,” you say. 

“Well, this isn’t her gate.”

“Yeah. I like your shorts.”

Steve’s cheeks flush pink. 

“Are you getting sunstroke?” you ask. 

That turns his cheeks pinker. 

“No, no." He coughs. "I’m fine.”

“It’s a record high temperature for May,” you say. “That’s what Weatherman Dale said. The highest it's ever been since 1923." 

“Yeah, I heard." He nods. "I didn’t wanna run the AC the whole day so, here I am. My friend Robin was supposed to come over, but I guess she bailed.”

“Robin is a nice name. Is she a bird?”

Steve smiles. “No, she’s a girl.”

“Oh. I thought maybe she was a bird you’d made friends with while fighting monsters.”

“Well.” Steve shrugs. “I did sort of make friends with her while fighting monsters.”

“Robins are good omens. They bring luck."

“Huh.”

You swallow. You’re probably talking too much. That’s what Debbie would say. That’s why boys sneak into her yard and not yours. 

"So." Steve puts a hand over his forehead to block the sun. "Debbie Wellerman, huh? You don't seem like the type to be her friend."

"Friends can come from the most unusual places," you say. "Like under a tree or at the bottom of the ocean."

"Have you made many friends at the bottom of the ocean?" Steve asks with a smile. 

You hesitate. Is he making fun of you? Sometimes, you can't tell. The people in Loch Nora are good at making fun of you without you knowing. 

Steve’s hair has already begun to dry, a little crunchy from the chlorine. He doesn’t look like he’s making fun of you.

"Not many. But that's where I found Joan," you say.

"Joan was at the bottom of the ocean?"

"Kind of. I found her in a pond. Then I found her sister, but I lost her at sea and I couldn't swim out to rescue her. It was a sad day. Joan didn't handle it well."

Steve's brows rise. "Wow. I'm sorry."

"It's okay. Joan has been on the incline. I think she's finally ready to get back out there. I wanted to find her company, but I didn't want to disturb your dirt." 

“My dirt?”

“Mmhm. I'm trying to make a social club for her."

"Out of dirt?"

"Out of worms."

"Huh."

Steve rests his chin on his arm that's perched on the ledge. 

"Your hair is wavy," you observe. 

"What? Oh, yeah. I didn't put anything in it."

"Like what? Secrets?"

"No, like, gel. Product."

You nod in realization. "Your hair was so big in school.”

Steve winces. "Yeah. Sorry, I wasn't the best guy back then."

"You were in your chrysalis. You needed time to grow. But then you turned into a butterfly. Or a moth, if you prefer."

"Moths are spooky," says Steve. "They look like they have eyes on their wings."

"Yes. But they're actually friendly. Unless you eat them. Some are poisonous." You lean in, deadly serious. "Don't eat moths."

"Will do."

"No, don't. And warn your Robin too. She might think one looks delicious and meet her doom."

A smile creeps onto Steve's face. 

"You're kind of strange," he says. "In the best way possible."

"Thank you."

"Do you want some lemonade?" 

"Is it poisoned?" 

"What?" Steve startles. "No, of course not."

"No, I suppose not," you say thoughtfully. "You hadn't expected me to climb over your gate, so you wouldn't have had time to poison the lemonade."

Steve stacks one arm atop his other, looking up at you. The ends of his hair have begun to curl. You like it so much. 

"What if I pour from the pitcher right in front of you? Will that make you feel better?" he asks. 

"You can still put something in my glass," you say. "Or you might have built a tolerance to the poison for this exact moment. Like in The Princess Bride."

"I'm only twenty-one. I would've had to start very young to build a tolerance. Besides, what would be my motivation to poison you?"

You shake your head. "There's no need for motivation. Violent delights. But you've fought monsters, and Lucas Sinclair says you're a good guy. So, yes, I will have some lemonade."

Steve pushes himself out of the pool with ease, dripping water all over the concrete. You stare at the rivulets that hurry down his legs and chest. He has a lot of hair everywhere. You like that too.

He offers his hand and you take it, letting him pull you to your feet. Your shoulder bumps his. Steve's skin is warm. He smells like chlorine and something sweeter. Pineapple, maybe. 

"You would do very well as a knight," you say. "If I were a princess, I'd want you to commit yourself to me."

Steve makes a weird noise in his throat. 

"Uh, th-thanks," he says. 

"You're welcome."

"So you, uh, know Lucas?"

"Yes. He lives on my block. His mom gives me rides sometimes."

You step in through the sliding glass door, which puts you directly in the kitchen. The house is at least twenty degrees cooler. You shiver at the sudden temperature change. 

"You don't have a car?" Steve asks. 

"No."

"You walked from your house to Loch Nora?"

"I took the bus part of the way. Then I walked."

Steve takes two glasses down from the shelf. Then he opens the refrigerator. You sit at the large kitchen island while he pours. 

"Debbie Wellerman has a car," Steve says. 

"Uh-huh. A Porsche."

A money car, she'd called it when she got it for her sixteenth birthday. Boys love girls with money cars. Maybe that's why boys don't love you. 

Steve hands you a glass. You take a long sip. Your mouth puckers and you scrunch your eyes shut as the acid coats your tongue.

"Shit. Not enough sugar?"

You swallow and open your eyes. 

"It's wonderful, Steve," you say earnestly. 

"You don't have to lie. I saw your mouth screw up."

"I'm not lying. It's the right amount of sour." 

Steve takes his own sip. His lips pucker, and he shakes his head.

"Nope. Definitely needs more sugar."

You cradle your glass in your hands. "Don't take mine. She's perfect."

Steve breathes a laugh, returning the pitcher to the fridge. He sits beside you on the island. He's already developing a slight tan. You wonder if more freckles appear the longer he's in the sun. 

"Why doesn't Debbie pick you up?" he asks. 

"Why would she pick me up?" 

"Because that's what nice friends do. And it's unfair to expect you to come all the way here when the buses don't go through Loch Nora."

"Debbie always expects me to come over," you say. "So I do. She doesn't like my house."

Steve frowns deeply. 

"I don't mind the walk," you offer, trying to make him smile again. 

It doesn't work. Steve takes another sip. His lips purse, red like cherry candy and shiny with lemonade. 

"She should meet you halfway more often," he says, dumping his lemonade into the sink. 

You trace shapes into the condensation of your glass. 

"I wanted to go rollerblading," you say. "But…"

"But what?" he prompts. 

"She didn't. Neither did Brett. They wanted to make out in the pool.”

Steve grimaces. “Sounds like a drag.”

“They make weird noises. Like goats at the zoo.”

Steve snorts. You smile and kick your legs, pleased.

“My friends go rollerblading,” he says. “The kids love to skate at the park. You could come with us one day.”

“You have kids?”

“No, I—” Steve shakes his head, chuckling. “Definitely not. No, they’re only a few years younger than me, but me and the other people our age call them kids. They’re part of our little monster-fighting group. Anyway, uh, y'know. Open invite. If you're ever tired of goat noises."

You stare at him for a minute. He seems nervous, and you can't make out why. Nobody's ever nervous around you.

"Okay," you say. "I'd like to meet your kids."

"Cool. Well, um, I can give you my number. We usually meet up on weekends, but once school ends, any day is game."

Your heart rate picks up. You know this part. Only from a distance, of course. But you know what it means when a boy gives a girl his number. 

“You want me to call you?” you ask.

“Yeah. I mean, if you want to. I feel like it’s a little forward for me to ask the girl who climbed my fence for her number. So, um, you can call me. Is that cool?”

Steve looks at you and waits. You chew your lip and nod.

“That’s okay.”

He smiles. “Great! I think I have a pen around here somewhere…”

Steve walks around the table to a stationary caddy on the counter and takes out a blue Sharpie. You stick out your arm, palm up. 

"Uh…" He looks at you. "I can find a notepad."

"This helps me memorize things better," you say and wiggle your fingers. 

"I don't wanna give you ink poisoning."

"You didn't poison me before. You're not very good at it."

"Isn't that a good thing?"

You shrug. "Depends on your aspirations."

Steve hesitates for another second. Then he takes the top of your forearm and begins to write on the soft underside. He writes slowly, which tickles, but you remain still. 

He's so close. You're reminded all over again of his hands and warmth and pineapple scent. 

Steve caps the marker. You inspect the writing. 

"Good penmanship," you say. 

"Think so? Robin says it's chicken scratch. But she can't talk—hers is ten times worse."

"It's neat," you say. "But not serial-killer neat. If I were a graphologist, I would give you the all clear."

"Graphologist?"

"A handwriting expert. I would write in my report, 'not a murderer.'"

"Well, that's a relief," Steve says. "I try to keep the murdering to a minimum."

You hum and finish your lemonade in one gulp.

“Thank you for not poisoning me."

“Yeah, you’re welcome,” Steve replies through a smile. 

His smile makes you nervous. A good nervous, though, like you're about to sled down a big hill. 

You push yourself off the stool. Steve gets up with you and opens the sliding glass door for you.

“A very stalwart knight,” you say, and walk over to where your flip flops are.

You throw them back over the gate. They land with a clack on the sidewalk.

You find your footholds on the gate and turn to look at Steve.

“It was nice to meet you, Steve Harrington. Don’t fight any monsters by yourself.”

“Whoa, hang on!” He jogs over and lightly touches your arm. It sears your skin like you've been kissed by the sun himself. “I’ll unlock the gate. You don’t need to… climb again.”

Steve pulls the latch next to you. The gate creaks open. You hop off and walk through. 

Steve leans against the gate, elbow bent. His bicep bulges. You've never been this close to a shirtless boy. Your stomach flips. 

“Are you sure you know where Debbie lives?” he asks.

Your eyes dart from his chest to his face. 

“Yes.”

“Really? ‘Cause you didn’t exactly find it the first time.”

“Second time’s the charm,” you say.

“I thought it was the third time.”

“No. Three’s bad luck, remember?”

Steve runs his tongue under his molars, once again staring at you like he’s trying to solve a puzzle. You slip into your sandals while he figures you out.

“Well, um. You can come back if you get lost. Or you need help. Or you wanna look for rocks."

You tilt your head. “You’d look for rocks with me?”

“I don’t know how helpful I’d be—all rocks look the same to me. My friends would probably be better at it than me. But, yeah, I would.”

“Okay. Thank you for your hospitality.”

He grins. “Sure thing.”

You take his hand and shake it. It’s warm and slightly calloused. You wonder if he holds girls’ hands often.

"I hope Robin finds your house," you say. "Goodbye, Steve Harrington."

Then you go.

You do find Debbie’s house on the second try. You hide your Sharpie'd arm behind your back when you enter. Debbie doesn’t ask why you’re late. Brett doesn’t acknowledge you, and you wonder how you mistook Steve for his brother. 

“There’s lemonade,” Debbie says as she heads in, Brett at her heels.

You don’t drink any. You know it won’t be the right amount of sour. 

Movies are better in the summer. This is a fact you've learned to accept. 

There's no dread of the cold after you finish a movie in the summer. The tape ends and you can go outside and still love the real world. 

Sorry, we're on a break! the sign on the store window reads in loopy script. You sit on the hot curb in front of Family Video, your yellow shorts bunched around your thighs. Sweat sticks to the back of your neck, and you drag a hand across, then wipe your fingers on your shirt. 

From here, you can just see the cement-filled cracks in the asphalt, where the earthquake split the main road two years ago. Because of the cracks, the bus stops three blocks from the plaza, so you'd walked three blocks in the heat. 

You hadn't been lying to Steve, though. You really don't mind the walk. 

Beads of sweat drip down your forehead. One slips into your eye and burns. You make a fist and press it into your eyelid.

Okay. Maybe you mind a little.

"Hey, neighbor!"

You look up, squinting through the sun. Lucas Sinclair waves at you. You wave back. A girl with two red braids is next to him. 

"Hi, Lucas," you say, standing as they approach you on the curb. 

"This is my girlfriend, Max," he introduces proudly. 

"My congratulations. Getting a girlfriend is no easy feat."

Max studies you for a moment. "I think I should get the credit, considering I said yes." 

"Undoubtedly," you say. 

"Are you his neighbor?" she asks. 

"Yes. Lucas is an outstanding neighbor. You should be very proud of him." 

"I believe it," says Max. 

"What are you doing?" Lucas asks. 

"Lots of things," you say. "Breathing, digesting. But presently, I'm waiting for the video store to reopen. I want to rent The Princess Bride.”

Max snorts. "Good luck with that. Those two take five hour lunch breaks now, ever since Keith moved away. It's barely a business anymore."

"There must be a lot of courses in their lunch," you muse. 

"Yeah… uh, we're going to get ice cream. Wanna join?" asks Lucas.

"Okay." You turn to Max. "Will my presence impede your special plans?"

Max squints. "Special plans? Like what?"

"I don't know. Perhaps you've written Lucas a series of sonnets to profess your love."

"A series of what?"

"Poems."

"Love poems are corny," she says. 

You wonder if Steve would agree. 

"Sometimes corny things are good. When they come from the right person," you say. 

Max acquiesces with a hum. 

"No love poems today," she says. "You should join us."

So you follow a couple steps behind them to the Baskin-Robbins down the block. 

The AC whooshes as you step inside, drying your sweat to your forehead. 

“Wow,” Max says with a scoff. “It’s like Starcourt all over again.”

You follow her gaze and spot Steve. 

Oh. Steve.

He's in a green Family Video vest. A girl sits across from him, wearing a matching vest. She has cropped hair and a bandaid on one knee. 

“Hey, losers!” Max calls. “This isn’t a lunch break.”

The girl flips her off. “The sign says we’re taking a break. It doesn’t specify how long of a break.”

Lucas orders a scoop of strawberry ice cream for himself and a scoop of cookies and cream for Max. 

“Yeah, plus, we’ve had a grand total of one customer today,” Steve adds.

“Well, you would’ve had two if you hadn’t been here on your seventeen hour break,” Max shoots back.

He scoffs. “Oh, really? Who?”

“Can I get one scoop of rocky road ice cream with oreo crumble and gummy worms in a cup?” you ask the cashier. 

She goes to scoop the ice cream. Max proudly points at you. 

“Her,” she says with a smirk. “She wanted to rent The Princess Bride, and now she’s not gonna be a paying customer ‘cause you two are lazy.”

“I would still be a paying customer,” you say.

Max shakes her head at you.

“I’m trying to make a point,” she whispers.

“Oh. You’re doing great."

“Your total is three twenty-four,” the cashier says, sticking a spoon into your cup. 

The sound of a chair being dragged across the floor draws your attention. Steve is up, trying to free his leg from under the table. He finally wiggles free and jogs to the counter, wallet in hand.

"Hi,” he says. "I can pay." 

“But I have money,” you say, brows knitting.

“No, I know. I—now you can save your money. Do you–do you mind if I pay for you?”

“Will I have to pay you back?” you ask.

“Oh my God,” the cashier mutters under her breath.

You shrink at her tone. You've missed something, evidently. You have no clue what. 

Steve glances at her, mouth pinching. 

“No,” he says gently, turning back to you. “You don’t have to pay me back. It’s a gesture. As a friend.”

“Oh. Okay.” 

Steve gives her the money. You take your ice cream. 

“Smooth,” you hear Max say to Steve. He bumps her arm with his elbow.

Steve pulls a chair from another table for you. You all sit down.

"This is, uh…" Steve trails off, turning to you. "I'm sorry, I never got your name."

"You kept calling her Buttercup," the girl says. 

Steve whips his head around to hiss at her. 

"Robin." 

"She's my neighbor," Lucas says. 

"We know," Max tells him. 

"I don't." Robin raises her hand briefly, shooing Steve away. "I'm Robin Buckley."

"Hi, Robin. Watch out for moths," you say. 

She tilts her head and smiles. You look at Steve, who's already looking at you. 

"Princess Buttercup?" you ask. 

"Well." He rubs the back of his neck. "Y-Yeah, kinda. You mentioned The Princess Bride and, uh, I don’t know your name, so…”

You mull that over. 

"If I'm Buttercup, you must be Westley." 

Steve's eyes widen. "Uh…" 

Robin snickers. Max smirks. 

"Interesting shade of red you're turning, Westley," Robin says. 

"Shut—"

He kicks her chair leg. She yelps and shoves him in retaliation. Max rolls her eyes. 

"Have some class, will you?" she says. 

"I'm classy!" Steve insists. 

"Not anymore," Lucas says gravely. "Now you're a glorified babysitter." 

"Childcare is dutiful work," you say. 

Steve grins at you. Your stomach flutters.

“Is that a mud pie?” he asks. 

You nod. 

“Gummy worms?” 

You tilt your head. “How did you know?”

Steve chuckles. “Lucky guess.”

Across the table, the others argue about the classiest ice cream flavors.

“It’s obviously mango sorbet.”

“Sorbet isn’t ice cream!”

“Are they your kids?” you ask.

Steve leans in so you can talk in his ear. His arm is on the back of your chair. If you shift the slightest inch, you’d feel him.

“Minus Robin. Though, sometimes…” He rolls his eyes playfully. “But, um, yeah. Two of them.”

“How many kids do you have?” you ask.

“Let’s see…” Steve counts on his fingers. “Six?”

“Wow. You must be some babysitter.”

“I’m alright.”

You lean in. Steve blinks.

“What’re you doing?” he asks.

“You have an eyelash.” 

You swipe the hair off his cheek and hold your finger in front of his mouth.

“You have to make a wish.”

Steve’s eyes slide to you. He gently holds your hand in place. Your heart beats faster.

“‘Kay.” He blows the eyelash away, but doesn't release your hand. “Let’s see if it comes true.”

The numbers stare at you. Taunt you, really.

You practically have them memorized. You’d written them thirty times on a piece of notebook paper. Then you’d shoved that under your bed. 

Now you have it taped to your dresser mirror. 

You wish you could talk to Joan about it, but she’s bathing in the sink after an unfortunate encounter with a paint can. 

The Sharpie is gone from your arm, has been gone for several days now. But if you concentrate, you can see its silhouette on your skin. 

You get up and peel the paper off the mirror. Then you go down the hall to your phone. 

Carefully, you dial, making sure not to press any wrong buttons. 

The phone rings. You rock on your toes.

“Hello?” Steve says.

You freeze. 

“Hellooo…?”

“Hi,” you finally say. “It’s Buttercup.”

“Oh!” He sounds so happy. “Hey! Hey, how are you?”

“Good.” You chew on a cuticle. “It’s Saturday.”

“Oh, right! Did you wanna go rollerblading?”

Relief floods you. He remembers.

“Yes. If you’re planning it.”

“I haven’t talked to the kids, but I’m sure they’d be down.” You can hear the smile in his voice. “I can pick you up in twenty?"

“I can walk.”

“C’mon, in the sun? You live on the same street as Lucas anyway, don’t worry about it.”

“Well.” You twirl the telephone cord around your finger so tightly, it threatens to cut off your circulation. “Okay… if it’s no trouble.”

“It’s no trouble,” Steve promises. “I’ll see you in a bit, okay?”

You hang up and run to your room to dig for your skates. They’re stuffed under your bed next to a mini gumball machine. You shove two green gumballs in your mouth and race to the bathroom to check on Joan, nearly slipping on the wood.

“I’m going out, Joan. I think he might… he might like me.” You crunch on the gumball shells and shudder. “What a terrifying thought.”

You pull out the drain stopper and set Joan on a washcloth to dry. Then you go down the hall to put on your sneakers. 

Steve arrives five minutes early. You only know that because you spend the whole time watching the road from your curtained window. You shake your hands out, overwhelmed with nerves. 

It’s just a boy. He’s only a boy. 

The two of you meet halfway. Steve jogs backwards, unusually skillful, and opens the passenger door for you.

“Hey. Does Joan want to come?” Steve asks. 

You shake your head. “She’s having a spa day. It’s just me.”

“Well, I’m happy to have you,” he says, sweet and earnest. 

You duck inside the car and shake your hands a little, trying to fend off the returning nerves. Just a boy.

“So, that’s El,” Steve says as he gets into the driver’s seat, pointing to a girl with short curls. “And you know Max and Lucas.”

Max nods at you with a smile. Lucas waves.

“Hi, El,” you say. “Cool hair.”

“Thank you,” she says, voice soft. “I like your skates.”

“I found them at a yard sale. You can find anything in a yard.”

"Okay," Steve says. "Everybody buckled?" 

“Yes, Mom,” Max mumbles. 

Steve catches your gaze and rolls his eyes. You smile.

Briefly, you worry you’ll have to fill the silence and talk about yourself, like people expect you to. But Steve and the kids hold conversation easily. They talk about anything and everything. 

They're more energetic than you're used to; Debbie always prefers it to be quiet. 

But you don't mind it. You don’t feel lonely like you do when you’re with Debbie.

“Alright, please stay within this area,” Steve says when he parks and everyone gets out. “Within—”

“Shouting distance!” Max yells. “Yeah, we know!”

The park isn't crowded. Most of the paths are clear, so skating will be no problem. 

Max gets out two skateboards from the trunk. 

“Max is going to teach me how to do an ollie,” El informs you. “Would you like to join us?”

“Maybe later,” you say. “I want to master my yard skates.”

She nods and follows the others to the small skate park on the other side of the trees. 

You bring your skates to a bench and sit, lacing them up your feet. Steve is a few feet away, swinging his arms slightly.

“Aren’t you going to join them?” you ask.

“Oh, uh, no. I brought my own skates… I thought maybe we could skate together, if that’s okay?”

“Yes, I would like that,” you say. 

Steve beams. “Alright, cool. I’ll go get mine.”

You stand, about to take a step forward—and immediately slip.

Steve reacts instantly, lunging to catch you. One hand grabs your elbow, the other on your stomach. You squeal and cling to his shirt. 

“Are you okay?” he asks, helping you stand upright.

“I’m okay,” you say, breath caught in your throat.

You take a step but your foot wobbles. Steve grabs you again. You don’t try to take another step.

“I thought skating would be intuitive,” you say, rolling one skate to test.

“What?” 

You look up. Steve’s face is inches from yours. His hair is golden in the sunshine. His eyes lock on your own; his focus sends a jolt of electricity down your spine.

“You know, like how babies are able to swim for the first six months of their lives?”

“Uh…” Steve tilts his head. “No?”

“Oh. Because they were in the womb, they have that ability. ‘Cause they float around in there for nine months, you know? But then they lose it. That’s why we have to learn how to swim.”

“Wow. That’s a cool fact.”

Nobody ever thinks your facts are cool. But Steve does.

“Well, I thought skating would be similar,” you say. “I’ve watched other people skate, so I thought I’d just… do it. I guess I lost that at six months too.”

Steve’s smiling. It’s a gentle smile, though. Not a teasing smile. 

“I see,” he says. “I’m sorry for your disappointment.”

“It’s alright. Life is far more than disappointment. No use getting hung up on it.”

“Do you want me to teach you how to skate?” he asks. “I promise I’m good at it. Coach Collins said I could’ve seriously pursued it.”

“So skating for you is like avoiding death for Westley,” you say.

“Actually, I’m pretty good at avoiding death too,” Steve says. “And making grilled cheeses.”

“Triple threat.”

He ducks his head with a laugh, and you feel the warmth of it flow through your own body.

“Sure. Can’t make lemonade for shit, though.”

“I think your lemonade is perfect, Steve Harrington.”

His cheeks are scarlet again. It’s quickly becoming your favorite color.

“I would like it if you taught me,” you say.

“Okay. I’ll get my skates after you get the hang of it. Put your hand on my arm, right here.”

Steve pats his forearm. Carefully, you do as he says. 

“I’m nervous,” you confess. 

“I got you,” Steve says, cheek brushing your head. “I won’t let you fall, Buttercup.”

Saint Aloysius’ parking lot has the best rocks. 

You've never told anybody as much because you imagine the lot would get busy, and you like it empty.

Today, you're searching for a brother for Joan. Ever since that tragic day at Macinaw Island, Joan's been very lonely. It‘s hard being a sisterless sister. 

Joan is smooth and round, so you look for an equally smooth and round brother. Commonality is important. 

Your knees hurt from squatting, so you sit. The rocks poke your butt. 

You hear a car rolling up the hill, engine a soft purr. You stop and turn. 

The car is maroon and shiny, with only a couple slight scratches you can't notice unless you look really hard. You don't recognize the license plate, although you have yet to start your record of Hawkins plates. 

It putters to a stop in front of Giovanni's Bakery across the street. The car doors open. 

"I'm losing my edge, Robs! I made a damn fool of myself. I can't even—"

"Okay, first of all, I feel like we're glossing over the fact that you don't even know this girl. And what she did was technically trespassing."

"Do you know her name?" another voice pipes up. 

"No, Dustin, I don't know her name. I don't even know if she lives in Hawkins!"

Their voices disappear as they go inside the bakery. You find Joan a brother, Jack, and Jack finds a wife named Gwen. Gwen isn't smooth and round; she's sharp-edged and will be harder to clean, but she's a muted salmon color and you think she's pretty. You hope Jack will find her pretty too.

As you dig through the pile of rocks, your finger catches on the edge of a broken bottle. It slices your finger. Blood swells immediately. 

You put your new rocks in your plastic red pail with your other hand. Then you stand, joints popping as you do so. You stick your ribs out and bend your spine in a stretch. 

You cross the street to the bakery, pail in hand. The bell jingles as you enter. You hum the ding-dong under your breath. 

"Can I help you?" the man behind the counter asks.

"Hello. Can I have five baci di dama and five of the raspberry sandwich cookies?"

He goes to the display case with a paper bag. You rest your elbows on the counter, pail handles over your arm. 

"Anything else?"

"Yes. Do you have a bandaid? I'm bleeding."

The man purses his lips. "No bandaid, sorry."

"That's okay. Just the cookies, then." 

"Buttercup?"

You turn. Steve stands before you, wearing his Family Video vest. Robin is beside him, her hair piled into a windblown bun on her head. Another boy, shorter than both, younger, is with them. He waves at you, curls bouncing. 

You wave back. Robin squeals.

"Oh my God, what happened to your finger?" she asks, horrified. 

"There was a broken bottle in the parking lot."

"Jesus," Steve says. He takes your hand and inspects it. He's so close and warm. All you can do is stare at the freckles on his neck. 

“Why were you in the parking lot?” he asks.

“I was looking for rocks. This is the best rock spot in all of Hawkins. Well, after Lover’s Lake. But the pH has been abnormally high there. Probably because of the monsters. So I came here.”

"Hi, I'm Dustin," the boy introduces. “Is your finger okay?”

"Hi, Dustin. I think I’ll survive,” you say. “Dustin means brave warrior in Norse.”

Dustin beams. “Yup. I was named after my grandfather. He served in World War Two.”

"Names are important,” you say. “Joan agonized for days deciding what I should call her. Eventually, I decided for her. A name says a lot about a person. Steve has a warrior and good luck at his side."

"Yep, Steve-o here is pretty blessed to have us. And," he gestures to you, "You are?"

"Hungry," you say, taking your bag of cookies with your free hand. 

The bag crinkles as you open it. You hold it out to Steve. 

"Do you want one? I promise they’re blood-free.”

"Uh…” He glances at your hand. “Are you sure your finger is okay?”

“She’s a trooper. Survived ink poisoning and everything.” You wave the bag again. “Cookie?” 

Steve takes a baci di dama out and pops it into his mouth. He hums as he chews, nodding. 

"'S good," he says after he swallows.

"Baci di dama means lady's kisses in Italian," you say. 

His cheeks turn pink again. 

"You should drink more water," you add. "You turn pink easily."

Robin snorts. Steve holds a hand to his cheek. 

"Uh, thanks."

“You’re welcome. Robin, would you like a cookie?" 

"No, thanks,” she says. “I'm picking up a tiramisu for my mom's birthday."

"I want a cookie!" Dustin says. 

"Dude," Steve hisses. 

You hold the bag open to Dustin. He takes a raspberry sandwich cookie. 

"So," Dustin says, mouth full. "Are you Steve’s girlfriend or something?”

“Not that I’m aware of,” you say.

“Du-ude!” Steve says too loudly, voice climbing in pitch.

“What? You talk about her all the freakin’ time. I needed to know.”

You look at Steve. He rubs the back of his neck and half-smiles.  

“Anyway,” continues Dustin. “How do you know Steve?”

"I climbed over his gate by accident on the hottest day of May,” you say.

"By accident?" 

"Yes. All the gates in Loch Nora look the same. Except Steve's gate has climbing ivy and little red flowers. It's much nicer than the other houses. It looks like a person lives there. I mistook it for Debbie's gate." 

Robin tilts her head at you. You don't care what Steve says; she's a one hundred percent bonafide bird. 

Dustin points to your pail, crumbs all over his chin. "Why do you have rocks?"

"They're for Joan," you say.

"Joan? Is she your friend?"

"She's more like my confidante. She doesn't talk much, so I think it'd be presumptuous of me to call her a friend when I have no idea where we stand." 

"Navigating friendships can be hard," Steve offers. 

"Yes," you say. "They can be."

"Being straightforward can help a lot," he continues. "It, uh, at least helped me. That way the other person knows what you mean. No room for miscommunication."

You nod. "That's good advice. I'll have to try that with Joan. Sometimes she can be kind of hard-headed."

You roll up your bag of cookies and reposition your pail on your arm so the metal doesn't dig into your skin. 

"It was nice to meet you, Dustin," you say. "Goodbye, Steve and Robin."

"Wait!"

Steve holds the door for you and follows you out. He still smells sweet, like pineapple, and also a little woody. He touches the small of your back, sending a bolt of electricity down your spine.

"I have a first aid kit in my car. Let me wrap your cut."

"Oh." You'd forgotten about it. "Okay."

You follow Steve to his car. He pops the trunk and rummages. You spot a bat with nails. 

"Very inventive," you say, pointing at the bat. 

Steve laughs shyly. "Yeah, uh, the monsters."

"I definitely wouldn't want to fight you if I were a multi-dimensional monster."

He smiles and takes out a small spray bottle of disinfectant. 

"This is gonna sting, okay? But we need to make sure nothing gets infected."

"An infection would be unfortunate," you say. "I'm quite attached to this finger." 

He sprays and cleans your finger. You wince and Steve squeezes your wrist in apology. Then he pulls out bandaids. 

"Any preference? I have rainbow, Star Wars, 'cause they're all a bunch of nerds, cats… oh, I have flowers! ‘Cause you’re, uh, Buttercup, you know?" 

"Flowers," you say, because Steve's so excited about it. 

He nods and opens the bandaid. You hold out your finger and Steve carefully wraps it. He rubs your knuckle. 

"Thank you," you say. 

"You're welcome. Be careful, okay?"

"I will."

He closes the trunk, swinging his keys on his finger. 

"Sorry if that was awkward, by the way," he says. "Dustin, I mean. He can be… blunt." 

"It wasn't awkward."

“It wasn’t?”

“No,” you say. “I’m happy you tell people about me. I tell Joan about you all the time.”

"Oh." He nods. "That—that’s good. So… we’re both… uh—”  

"Do you want another lady's kiss?"

"What? Oh—" Steve clears his throat. "N-no, that's okay. Thanks."

You take out a raspberry cookie and bite into it. 

"Your hair has product," you observe. 

"Yeah. No secrets, though."

"Everybody's hair has secrets."

"Even yours?" he asks. 

"Especially mine." 

Steve rubs the back of his neck. You open your bag and take out another cookie. He looks like he's trying to find the right words to say. You don't mind waiting. 

"Hey, do you like barbecue?" he asks. 

"I like it as well as anybody else."  

"Well, um, I'm having a barbecue this Saturday. Lucas won a big championship game and so we're celebrating his win."

"That's nice," you say. "Congratulations to Lucas."

"Yeah! So, um, did you maybe want to come too? It'll be at my house. You could bring a friend if you wanted. Like Joan."

"Joan is a vegetarian," you say. "But I'm sure she'd enjoy the company."

Steve smiles. He has such a pretty smile. 

"We're ordering pizza too, so Joan can have some of that."

"You're a very thoughtful host.”

Then you have a terrible thought. But you have to ask it because if you don't, you might be breaking some kind of invisible expectation. You do that a lot. 

"Does Debbie have to come?" you ask. 

Steve blinks. "Uh, no? It's not a requirement."

"Some people ask me to parties because they want Debbie to come." 

Steve frowns. "That's rude. I wouldn't do that."

"Okay. What time does the barbecue begin?"

"You can stop by anytime. But we'll probably start eating around six."

You nod. "Joan and I will be there at five thirty."

Steve's answering grin is blinding. He must be really excited to meet Joan. You get it; Joan's the life of any party she attends. 

"Great, that's great. I'll see you then."

"Bye, Steve," you say. 

"Bye," he answers like he's out of breath. 

Even the way he breathes is pretty.

Every month, Miles Stanwick throws a party. 

Miles is a celebrity in Hawkins, his father being a state senator, and Miles is, according to a drunk Debbie, “the Gatsby to her Daisy.”

You're pretty sure Debbie hasn't read the book. Or maybe she's a living tragedy. Either is possible. 

It had been just you two in her room, without the Other Debbie she pretends to be to impress the people of Loch Nora, when she'd told you what it meant to be in love. 

"You just know," she'd said, her breath reeking of tequila.

You'd turned your head. Tequila made your nose itch. 

"But you love Brett," you'd said. 

"Brett is who I'll marry," she'd corrected. She’d sounded so sad. "Miles is all I've got."

Then she'd thrown up all over her carpet. You'd helped her into bed and made a mental note to find her a friend like Joan to keep her company, for when you weren't around. 

You don't like parties. They're loud and smelly and usually filled with people you don't like or don't know. And at a party, people you don't like and people you don't know are one and the same. 

You would leave, but Debbie is your ride tonight. So you're stuck here until midnight, maybe even later. 

Someone plugs in a karaoke machine and that gets most of the party's attention. The music is horribly loud and is the kind that’s just a lot of synthesizer. 

A guy jumps onto the Stanwicks' coffee table and knocks over the potpourri dish. Dried petals and orange peels scatter across the carpet. 

Debbie appears in front of you, a red Solo cup in her hand. 

"What did I bring you here for?" she asks, mouth curled. "To slump on the couch?"

"No one here wants to talk," you say. 

Debbie rolls her eyes. "Parties aren't for talking. They're for drinking and making out. Someone's rolling a blunt in the den. Go suck on that, will you?"

The people in Loch Nora are so good at making you feel two inches tall. You wish you'd brought Joan. She'd know what to do. 

You've tried alcohol before. Champagne at a wedding. A sip of rum from the Wellermans' liquor cabinet, back when Debbie wasn't so caught up in being just like everyone else. 

Maybe it's your fault, too. Maybe you're too good at standing out. 

You go to the kitchen. It's already trashed. You step over a spill on the floor. Then you turn around and lay down some paper towels so no one will slip. 

There are various bottles of strong liquor strewn across the counters. You decide to try the punch and fill your cup to the top. You sniff it and your nose wrinkles at the whiff of alcohol. 

You so badly want to have fun. You want to know what makes all of this worth it. You want your friendship with Debbie to be worth it. 

You down the punch in one go. It makes you cough and you scramble for water at the sink. You wonder if the punch is poisoned. 

You wobble out of the kitchen a couple minutes later, head already woozy. A girl stands with a drink, one arm folded. 

"Where's Debbie?" you ask. The girl winces and steps away from you. 

"She went with Miles and some other people to the lake."

Your eyes widen. "No, they can't. There's monsters."

She looks at you like you might be an insect splattered on her dashboard. 

"You're Debbie's weird friend, aren't you?"

Weird doesn't make you feel good, like Steve calling you strange did. Weird makes you feel like when a boy in sixth grade stepped on your heels while going up the stairs because he thought it was funny. 

"Debbie would've told me," you say. 

The girl shrugs. "Guess she ditched you. She can't score with Miles if you're killing the vibe." 

Weird tastes like poison in your mouth. 

"Debbie was my ride," you say, but she’s already gone.

Your head aches. You try to think on what to do next. It's nearly midnight. No one is awake, and you have no idea how to call a cab. 

You find the Stanwicks' phone in the hall and dial the only number you know, besides your own, and the local pizzeria. 

"Hello?" 

You lean against the wall, phone in both hands. 

"Uh, hello? Who is this?" 

"H-hi, Westley." Your voice cracks. 

"Hey," Steve says, unbearably gentle. "My favorite rock girl. Jesus, it's… midnight."  

"I'm sorry," you say. 

"No, no, it's alright. I'm just—is everything okay? Are you okay?" 

"Debbie ditched me."

Silence. For a moment, you panic that the line's dropped.

"Steve?"

"Where are you?" 

"I'm, um, at Miles Stanwick's. The address is… well, I don't remember, but I'll go outside and look for the house number—"

"I know it," Steve says. "Stay right there. I'm coming to get you. Don't drink any more."

Your lip wobbles. "'Kay."

"It's okay," he soothes. "Drink some water. Don't take anything from anybody." 

"I just wanted to be fun," you blurt. 

"You are fun, Buttercup. Way more fun than anybody at that house, I guarantee it. I'll be there in ten minutes, okay?"

"Okay. Thank you, Steve," you say, no longer feeling so small. 

You hang up and go to the kitchen to get more water from the sink. Then you return to the hallway and sit, back against the wall, knees tucked into your chest. 

You doze, lids heavy from the alcohol. The next thing you know are two hands on your arms. 

You jolt awake. One hand cradles the back of your head so you don't thump it against the wall. 

"Hey, hey." Steve kneels in front of you. He brushes your cheek with a cool knuckle. "It's me, it's Steve. Are you okay?"

His hands are cool against your overheated skin. He smells like lemon shampoo. 

"My knight," you say. 

"I thought Westley was a pirate."

“He was only pretending." 

You let Steve ease you up. His car keys dig into your hip.

"Ow," you say dazedly. 

"What? What hurts?"

"Keys."

"Oh." Steve shifts you to his opposite side, hand on your back. "Sorry, honey." 

"Honey never spoils," you say. "Did you know that? You could dig up honey from a tomb that's thousands of years old and as long as it was stored in an airtight container, it's good to eat."

"I love that you know that." 

"Do you really?" 

"I really do," Steve says. "C’mon, let's get you home." 

Outside, the moon is a dot of cream in the purple sky. The neighborhood is quiet. Most of the houses are also dark. 

"I'm sorry for calling you so late," you say. 

"Don't be. I'm glad you called me. These parties can get out of hand."

"Debbie left. She went to Lover's Lake with Miles—"

The panic returns, flooding your body. You squirm and Steve tries to keep you steady. 

"Whoa, what's—"

"The monsters! There's monsters down there, Steve. I don't like Miles, but I don't want him to be eaten!"

"No, no, no more monsters," Steve assures you. "They can't come through there anymore."

You still. "Promise?"

"I promise."

He helps you into the passenger seat of his car. Steve leans in and pulls the seat belt over you.

"Comfy?" he asks. 

"I like you so much, Steve Harrington."

It's too dark to tell, but you suspect he's got another case of sunstroke. 

"I, um, like you too, Buttercup. You're really cool."

"Me?" You wave your hand. "No."

"Really," he insists. "You are. The coolest."

If you were Debbie, if you weren't weird in the wrong way, if you didn't go to parties to talk, and if you fit a million other criteria you never will, Steve would kiss you right now. Or maybe you'd kiss him. 

But you don't know how to go about that. You don't think it's your right to do such a thing. 

So Steve shuts the door and walks around to the driver's seat. You stare at your flower bandaid.

"Four three's," Steve says as he turns the ignition. 

You turn your head. "Hmm?"

"The house number. Four three's. That's gotta be, like, astronomically bad luck, right?"

"Without a doubt."

Except you're here with Steve Harrington, and he calls you honey and thinks you're cool. And that doesn't seem like bad luck at all. 

"I'm going to a barbecue," you call out. 

There's no reply. You close the door behind you.

Joan sits in your pocket. You've tied a purple ribbon around her head, right above her googly eyes. You don't know what the dress code is for a barbecue, but you hope she's not underdressed.

You haven’t spoken to Steve since Miles’ party. You’re not sure what you should say, and you can’t bear the thought of calling him to hear silence. 

Even if he doesn’t like you the way you like him, you hope he’ll still be friends with you. Steve and his kids have grown on you. You don’t know if you can go back to who you were before the hottest day of May. 

“Material Girl” plays from inside Steve's backyard. You mouth the words as you fling your flip flops over the gate. 

"What the fuck?" someone says from the other side. 

You climb the gate and shimmy down. It's a good thing you're wearing shorts under your dress.

A boy, lanky and tall but probably Lucas's age, holds one of your flip flops. He stares at you and shakes the shoe. 

"Is this yours?"

"Both of them are," you say. "Does Steve like Madonna?"

He grimaces. "Unfortunately."

"Cool."

You spot Steve sitting on one of the deck chairs with Robin and a boy your age with big, curly hair and a Led Zeppelin shirt with cropped sleeves. 

"Venus" plays next and you wobble in time with the music as you walk over to Steve. 

"Her weapons were her crystal eyes," you whisper. The pavement is warm under your toes. 

"Making every man mad." 

Steve turns just as you reach him. He stands so fast he shakes the chair. 

"Hey!" he says. He sounds out of breath again. "Hey, you came."

"You invited me," you say. 

"Yeah, yes." Steve nods. "I did. I'm glad you're here."

"You play good music."

"Ha!" Steve whips his head to look at the curly haired boy. "Suck it, Munson."

"She's obviously biased." 

"Munson," you say. "Eddie Munson?"

Eddie freezes under your gaze. Robin and Steve glance at you. 

"Yeah, uh, that's me." Eddie smiles weakly. "Look, you might've heard some stuff abou—"

"You helped fight the monsters," you interrupt. "You're very brave." 

Eddie's eyes widen. "I—"

"Most people just like to ignore monsters. It takes a really good person to fight them." You turn to Steve. "Do you have orange Fanta?" 

"Yeah, sure. I'll get you a can. Feel free to sit… where are your shoes?"

You point behind you. "Your bodyguard had to screen them after I climbed your gate. You have very tight security."

"After you climbed my… wait, Mike? God, I’m sorry about him. I'll get your shoes back."

"It's okay. Flip flops are dangerous weapons. It's only a matter of time before the airport bans them." 

Steve tilts his head, eyes warm. "Right. I'll be back. That's Eddie and Robin… you know them."

"I know their names, and that's about all you can know about anybody."

Eddie giggles. You look at him. He doesn't seem to be laughing at you, so you sit where Steve was sitting, across from Eddie's chair. You point at his shirt. 

"I like Kashmir."

"Thank God! Somebody with decent tastes."

"I'll listen to anything," you say. "It's important to be a good listener."

Eddie grins. "Words of the wise."

"Where's Joan?" Robin asks. 

"Right here." You take Joan out of your pocket and set her down on the edge of the pool chair. 

"Sick," Eddie says.

You nod. "The ribbon was my pick."

"I like it," Robin says. 

"Thank you."

Steve returns with an orange Fanta for you and a root beer for Robin. 

Robin points to Joan. "Steve, this is the famous Joan we've heard so much about."

"That's a rock," says Steve. 

"Yep."

"Oh." He nods in understanding. "Joan is your pet rock?"

"Confidante," you correct. "’Pet’ is demeaning."

"Got it. And was Joan's sister also your confidante?"

"No. Joan's sister didn't like me much. She thought I was a bad influence on Joan. But we shouldn't talk about it now. Joan gets very sad when I bring it up."

You open your can. The carbonation hisses. It's itchy and sweet on your tongue. 

"I like your hair," you say. "It's fluffy. Like it was on the hottest day of May."

Steve pushes a couple strands behind his ear.

"Thanks. The gel is too much on hot days like these. Weighs me down."

"At least you won't float away." You look at Eddie. "Is your hair full of secrets too?"

Eddie ruffles his hair. "Not as many as Steve's, but I've got a couple in here. 'S what gives my curls volume." 

"Hm. Just as I suspected," you say. 

"Ste-eve!" Dustin whines from across the yard. "You promised burgers!"

Steve rolls his eyes. "You'd think he's never been fed in his life."

Eddie pats his shoulder. "You've got this, Harrington."

"Oh, no. You wanna eat, you've gotta earn your keep. Come on."

Eddie groans, flinging himself off the chair. "Save me, Buckley!"

"Already did that," she says, pulling her sunglasses onto her eyes. "Never again." 

"You should tie up your hair so it doesn't catch fire," you suggest. 

"Well, at least somebody cares about me," Eddie declares, pulling his hair into a ponytail. 

Steve turns to you and smiles softly. 

"Are you hungry? You can have the first pick of the burgers."

"Won't Dustin be annoyed?"

Steve shrugs. "Kid could use some manners. Besides, pretty girls always get the first pick. It's the law." 

You follow Steve and Eddie to the grill, pretty girl echoing in your brain the whole time. 

Eddie's hair doesn't catch on fire and Steve makes you a perfect burger. The sun sparkles on the pool surface. The kids come out to eat and, predictably, Dustin complains about not getting the first burger.

"Not fair. Just 'cause she's your girlfriend," he mumbles as he goes off to search for the mustard. 

You check to see if Steve had heard the comment. He doesn't seem to have; you can't decide if you're relieved or not. 

The chairs are all taken by the time you finish fixing up your burger. Steve stands immediately as you approach.

“Here, take my seat,” he says.

“We can share,” you offer.

Steve lets you take the back of the chair, settling at the foot. “You Make My Dreams Come True” plays on the speakers. 

“Whoever made this mixtape is a genius,” you announce.

“You like it?” says Steve. “I actually made this one. Robin and Eddie think my taste sucks, but—”

“It’s spectacular.”

He hums, ducking his head shyly. “Well, speaking of spectacular: I made more lemonade, if you want to test it before I unleash it upon the masses.”

“I’ll happily drink your lemonade,” you say. “It’ll build my iocane tolerance.”

Steve grins. “I rented The Princess Bride, by the way. I know you meant to get it a few weeks ago. We can watch it tonight, if you want.”

“You remembered I wanted to watch it,” you say.

He nods. “Well, uh, yeah. Do you still want to? If you don’t, I can—”

“I do,” you say. “Thank you.”

“Yeah, of course.” Steve stands, hand outstretched so you’ll give him your empty plate. “I’m going inside. Anybody want anything?”

“Doritos!” Robin shouts.

“Napkins, please,” El says.

“Cherry Coke!” Mike calls.

“Beer!” Eddie whoops.

“Doritos, napkins, got it. The cooler is right there, Wheeler, and are you kidding, Eddie? No drinking by the pool. Have we not learned our lesson from the last four years?”

“Bold of you to assume I’ve learned anything, Steven.”

“Can you bring us popsicles?” Max asks. “Lemon and grape.”

“Ooh, popsicles sound good,” says Robin. “Bring me one too. Fruit punch.”

Steve sighs, lifting his arms.

“Two hands, guys. Only got two.”

“I can help,” you offer.

“Now that’s a great idea,” Robin says. “The two of you in the kitchen, alone. Really brilliant, don’t you think, Steve?”

Steve glares at her. Then he turns to you, expression softening.

“That’d be great, thank you.”

You follow him into the kitchen. It looks exactly like the last time you were here, except for the food. Steve opens the freezer and digs through the box of popsicles. Then he takes the pitcher of lemonade out of the fridge and sets it on the counter.

“Can you get the Doritos?” he asks. “They’re up there.”

You open a shelf over the stove. The chips are at the very top. You try jumping; all that does is bang your ribs into the counter.

"Whoa, whoa.”

Steve’s hand rests on your back. Your stomach swoops. 

"Easy, Buttercup. I’ll get it, sorry ‘bout that."

You frown. "The Doritos have eluded me."

"They’re a tricky bunch," he says, reaching and successfully grabbing the chips.

"I knew you’d best me and succeed."

"Best you?" 

"Yes," you say. "Like in a duel."

Steve tilts his head, a tiny crinkle forming in the center of his brows. 

"Are we going to duel? Like Inigo and Westley?"

"Not if I can help it," you say. "I'm terrible with a sword."

"I would never try to sword fight you." 

"I appreciate that."

His hand slips from your back. You watch it fall to his side.

“Feel free to help yourself to whatever you want,” Steve says as he takes a glass out of the cupboard. “You can also take food home.”

You exhale through your nose and wiggle your fingers a little, trying to stave off the nerves. You wish Joan was in your pocket right now, but you left her on the deck chair. 

“Buttercup?” 

You look up. Steve has a glass of lemonade in one hand. The top button of his polo shirt is undone. Was it always undone? You can’t remember. 

Anyway, he’s beautiful. And you’re so damn strange.

“Yes, Westley?”

Steve smiles. You don’t think anyone has ever smiled at you as much as Steve does. 

“Everything okay?” he asks.

He puts the glass in front of you. You glance at it, then back at him.

“Everything’s fine.”

“Are you sure? I won’t force you to drink my crappy lemonade if you don’t want to, y’know.”

“You called me strange,” you blurt. “When we first met.”

Steve’s eyes widen. 

“I didn’t mean it in a bad way,” he says softly. “But I won’t call you that anymore if you don’t like it.”

“No, I–I know you didn’t mean it in a bad way. But…”

He nods, encouraging you to continue.

“I’m not like Debbie,” you say. 

“I know.”

“I’ll probably never be like Debbie.”

“I much prefer you as yourself,” he says.

“Oh.”

You sip your lemonade. Your lips pucker but you smile all the same.

“Damn,” Steve says with a chuckle. “I really can’t nail that lemonade, huh?”

“It’s wonderful,” you whisper. 

He takes a step forward. You set the glass on the counter.

“Can I kiss you?” he asks.

“I would very much like that.”

Steve’s lips are slightly chapped. You taste like lemonade and he tastes like Coke and God, you like it so much.

You loop your arms around his neck like you’ve wanted to do for weeks. He returns in kind, both hands slipping to your waist. 

It’s not just a boy kissing you. It’s Steve.

The sliding glass door whooshes open and you jerk your head back in surprise. Max and Dustin trod in. 

Dustin shrieks. 

“Seriously? This is what was taking you so long?”

“If you were gonna do that, we would’ve gotten the popsicles ourselves,” Max says with a huff, grabbing the popsicles and chips from the counter. 

“Told ya they were making out!” comes Eddie’s voice from outside. “I warned you, kiddies!”

They clear out, with one last stink eye from Dustin. Steve shakes his head, nose pressed to your cheek.

“Again, very sorry about them.”

“They wanted to check in on their favorite babysitter,” you say.

Steve lifts his head and rolls his eyes. “I need a padlock or something.”

You hum and lean over to unwrap a popsicle. 

“Oh,” you say. “Three left.”

“Three popsicles?”

“Mmhm.”

“Well, that explains it. Astronomical bad luck, right?”

“Actually,” you say, leaning in for another kiss. “I think my theory was wrong.”

#steve harrington x y/n #steve harrington x yn #steve harrington x you #steve harrington x reader #steve harrington x female reader #steve harrington fanfiction #steve harrington imagine #stranger things imagine #stranger things fanfiction #stranger things x reader #stranger things x you #stranger things

[kanene-yaaay]

5+1 - [Part 2]

5 times Iida was tickled and the one he wasn’t

[PART ONE]

Kanene’s note: What a helloooo! I am baack! Gosh, look at me! Having a posting schedule! Who would say, huh? xDD Well, I hope you like this >u<

Warnings, fun facts, random things and stuff:

* This characters don’t belongs to me! They all belong to the anime/manga Boku no Hero.

* This is a SFW tickle fanfic with family tickles, so, if you don’t appreciate this kind of content, please, look for another blog. There are a plenty of very greeat arts in this site!! ^w^)b

* This is Lee!Iida with Ler!Aizawa and Nemuri sprinkling some tease here and there. All relationships are platonic. Around 1.500 words.

* Sorry for any spelling, pontuation and grammar mistakes! Any and every advice is very very welcome! \(-w-)/

* Look at the window and find something that is worth smiling for. Don’t forget to drink water, sleep and eat! <33

[~*~]

“Iida Tenya.”

 “Ooooh noo,” Nemuri added from the spot on the floor where she sat, pampering and spoiling Shouta’s cats with plenty of snacks, a sharp grin gleaming at the boy who came running from the kitchen and now looked from a side to another with a panicked expression on his face, fast to move his arms in an ‘abort mission’ sign to the woman. “Looks like someone is in trouble! ~”

 “Nemuri-san, please I ask for you to control your voice!!” Tenya whispered in a volume that most people would categorize as a shout, especially with Shouta’s hero trained hearing. Nemuri, though, just expanded her wicked grin as the nine old boy didn’t realize the dark figure arriving right behind him. “He can’t know I am here!”

 “Aw, my dear,” she pouted in fake empathy at Iida’s inevitable fate, scratching Pudding under her chin, her loud motor like purring echoing in the silence. “But Shouta already knows.” Iida stilled as a statue when a shadow loomed over him, starting to turn around, slowly. “He always knows.”

 “Gotcha.”

His quirk activated a second before Aizawa erased it with his own, making the blue haired one stumble on his own legs, almost falling on the ground if it wasn’t for the arms that grabbed him in a firm hug, fingers worming their way to his armpits, prodding and digging on the awfully ticklish flesh there.

 “What,” Shouta started, with a tune that tipped on bored, his plain face contrasting to the smaller’s puffed cheeks as he wiggled and shook with the contained giggles. “Did I say about my orange flavored jelly packs, huh?”

 “Aww, is the itsy bitsy Tenya ticklish? Can’t he take all the tickly-tickly-tickly tickles his favorite grumpy uncle gives to him? Huh? Aww, my poor ticklish boy.” Nemuri teased, ignoring the glare her friend sent on her direction in favor to stare at Tenya, who went redder at her words, a couple of squeaky snorts escaping from his lips.

 “I will remind you what I said about eating my jellies without permission: don’t. Never. Do not look. Do not touch and especially, do not even think about eating it.” Aizawa highlighted the last phrase by blowing a raspberry right behind Iida’s neck, leading the boy to squeal, uncontrolled laughter following it almost immediately. The taller man did his best to keep a serious face, principally as the arms of his ‘victim’ rocked up and down, from the left to the right and in random patterns without even being able to get themselves enough control to attempt to stop him. “And you did, so now you will face the consequences. It’s only logical.”

 “A-Aizahahazawa-san I, I cahahahAAH!” Shout cut the other’s protest by throwing him in the air, resting his hands on his sides when he caught him again, slightly clawing his stomach with his fingers, fishing uncontrollable, bubbly giggles from him. “Please, please! I can-'' Snort. “I can ehehexplain!” Yelp. Half words, Half pleas. Giggles. Giggles. Giggles. “I hahahave the right, Aizawa-sahahahan!”

 Shouta contented himself in making the younger squirm – left, right, left, left, right and repeat – from a side to another by tapping his fingers on his sides repeatedly, sometimes giving a quick scratch only to gain another yelp, pretending to think about the proposal for a little less than a minute.

 “No.” He decided, spidering his fingers merciless on the death spot. Iida threw his head back, crackles flying from him in a waterfall of shrieks and squeaks.

 “Come one, Shou! Let the boy speak! As much I love this lovely, absolutely adorable laughter that makes you want to tickle and tickle him forever and ever, and aww, wouldn’t you love it, my dear? To get all the tiggles-tickles you could ever want for all eternity?” Iida kicked and shook his head in protest, more pleas falling from him, face and neck in flames. “I think he has the right to defend himself.”

 “Which side are you?”

 “No side deserves my awesome presence.” Aizawa rolled his eyes. “What is the matter, Shou? Afraid that you will lose in a logical battle with baby Tenya?”

 “Ihihihi am NOT ahahaha baby!!” Iida protested through his hysterical laughter, nothing giving him more strength than correct factually incorrect statements. “I ahahahaham a very hehehealthy chihihihih- – No! Not there! – chihihihild! Mom said so!”

 Nemuri hid her snickers behind her hands, receiving a very unamused yowl from Pudding, the cat demanding her to come back to her ear scritches immediately. The woman resumed to her wishes.

Shouta recognized a bait when he heard one, but watching the way tears started to appear in the corner of the younger’s eyes, he decided to bite it.

 He adjusted him so the boy would be resting on his hips, his hand resting calmly on his ribs, a much less ticklish spot.

 “You have fifty seconds.”

 “WHAT!” Iida stared at him in disbelief, turning to look at Kayama in the search of reinforcements, and being gifted with nothing more than a joyful shrug, his brother’s best friend being very glad in just watch the chaos unraveling in front of her and, unnoticed by the other two who were caught up on the silliness, the camera carefully hidden behind Pudding’s fluffy form. “That ihihisn’t even a minute! It’s impossiblehe to mahahake a good defehense under this condici- conditionaries… undeheher that pressure!”  

 “Conditions.” Aizawa offered, “and heroes work under pressure. You want to be one when you grow up, right?”

 “Yes!” Iida’s smile got even bigger than it already was, his eyes also becoming even brighter, shining with the determination of his new challenge.

 “Good,” the tired adult smirked, starting to count with his fingers as the seconds went by. “Start to talk then.”

 Tenya tried to clear his mind, together with keeping his resolve strong enough to not visibly squirm or titter every time Aizawa made any infinitesimal move. He never thought he would really be able to convince his uncle to let him make a true attempt to escape from this, therefore he didn’t possess any good enough reason to explain besides the ‘it was orange flavored and oranges are delicious!’

 A sentence pulled him out of the frenzy of thoughts dashing on his brain at full speed. “You have twelve seconds now.”

 “WHAT!” Tenya cried, seriously thinking about just pushing Shouta’s arms away and trying to run to the safety of the guest room.

 “You seem to have a problem keeping track of the time.” The small kid nodded at his direction and Aizawa almost felt bad by his next move.

 Almost.

 “Let me help you, then.”

 The underground hero poked an index finger on the lowest rib, vibrating on the sensitive spot for a few pieces of second, tearing a sputtering guffaw as Iida realized the true meaning of his words. “One.” He pressed another rib, and another, and another. “Two. Three. Four…”

 “Noho! Wait! Wait!!”

 “Five… Six. Seven…”

 “Oops. It looks like you’re running out of time, sweetheart.” Nemuri added, unhelpfully. “Well, let’s just hope the mean Shouta won’t attack those awfully ticklish knees of yours when the time is over, right?”

 “NOHOT MY KNEHES!”

 “Good luck. Ten. Eleven. Twel-”

 “YOULIED!”

 Aizawa stopped.

 “What?” He blinked one, two, three times. As if the meaning of the rushed words would become clearer. “No. I hid it and I was very clear in saying you couldn’t touch it. There is no lie here.”

 “There is! A lie of omiz-” Iida closed his eyes, concentrating on the word and controlling the few giggles that still slipped from his mouth. He wanted to be a hero and heroes succeed through the pressure! “omission! Which means hiding! You hid the information so you were lying to me, so I… I… I taught you a lesson!”

 They stared at each other for what seemed a lifetime.

 Aizawa huffed a chuckle, lowering the boy to the ground, trying to not be blinded by the excitement and proudness exhaling from the younger when he realized that he succeeded in “logicing” his way out of the playful “punishment”, beaming on the ball of his feet at both adults.

 “Good. In a fight, using your opponents’ words against them can be an important tool. Also, as a physical opening, don’t forget that I was carrying you, which means that if you hit the back of my knees hard enough I would weaken my grip and that would give you the opportunity to run. I would try to not hurt you when I fell, so that is also a weakness you could exploit.” After a thought, he added. “Try to do that the next time Hizashi tickles you.”

 “You are a bastard.” Kayama replied, earning an exasperated gasp from Tenya. “Not you, dear. I am talking about Shouta.” That did nothing to alleviate the boy’s rebellion, his lecture of how ‘This isn’t the proper vocabulary of a hero’ was soon interrupted as the apartment door flew open, Ingenium walking through it. He immediately extended his arms, hugging his brother when the aforementioned jumped on him, part of the exhaustion of a day’s work being eased by the younger attics.

 “Tensei! Tensei! I already did all my homework and I brushed my teeth and I played with the cats so they would not be sad or bored and I ate all my greenies and also-”

 “-ate all my orange jelly packs.” Aizawa completed.

 “And Aizawa-san tickled me because of it! Using very villainous techniques even though he is a very good and skilled hero! But then I won! I showed him logic and, and, and then he let me go!”

 “Oof, that sounds like a very exciting day!” Tensei ruffled the boy’s hair, fondness dripping in waves from his acts and words. “But you don’t need to worry anymore about Shouta, the Grumpy Tickle Monster because now I am here!” Tensei posed in a poor representation of All Might's usual pose. “Ready to protect you!”

 “Oh.” A dangerous tune marked Shouta’s grin and voice, making the blue haired hero to shiver with all the teenagerhood memories that this brought over. “Don’t get over yourself, assuming you’re out of danger, too.”

 A wobbly smile took over Tensei's expression as Shouta cracked his knuckles, preparing himself for a chase. “Don’t think I don’t know exactly who told him where I hid my jelly packs.” The older Iida got his younger brother on his arms, flexing his legs, preparing to not give up so easily.

 Aizawa decided he was feeling merciful today.

“You have three seconds.” Iida gasped in protest, an argument on the tip of his tongue. “Run.”

#Playful tickles #! #Aizawa the tickle monster is back/lh #xDD #Nemuri is there to tease and see some chaos #Lee!Iida #Ticklish!Iida #Ler!Aizawa #Bnha tickles #Bnha tickling #Kanene's fic #Kanene's Fanfic #5+1 fic #Kid!Tenya #Nemuri and Tensei make a quick appearence but techinically don't participate of the tickling part #I am with some mean headache and stuff so sdfghyujidfjh no rambling tags today

[chibimyumi]

Kuro 161 Summary & Thoughts

その執事、執拗： 狩るか、飼うか? That Butler, Tenacious: To hunt or to keep?

In the previous chapter (160) we see what Rin had been trained for at last; big target assassinations. She failed at her mission and made Sebastian spill the tea. But now chapter 161 will spill... even more tea.

“Failure of a mission means death, there is no time to think, I gotta run,” Rin reasons and runs for her miserable life. It is but a simple phrase, but it adequately sums up the ways of the underground society she belongs to.

Back in the Phantomhive manor O!Ciel is understandably distraught. Sebastian however seems too amused to be bothered by such an assault on his master even though he only narrowly managed to prevent it seconds ago. I do not blame Sebastian for his peculiar priorities however.

As he claims, he cannot sense the presence of humans within the possible range of shooting, nor were his demon ears able to hear the sound of the trigger being pulled. So who or what could possibly have been able to handle a rifle and aim for his master’s little head with such astonishing accuracy and skill? Quite impressive indeed. As discussed previously in S&S Kuro 158, Rin did indeed turn out to impress Sebastian enough to spare her life.

However amused, the butler’s duty never ends. Hastily Sebastian washes and dresses his master with such astonishing speed, I bet even the dirt on the boy’s body had not noticed they were made to leave.

Without further ado Sebastian excuses himself, and the hunt is on!

Within all normal common sense, Rin believes to have secured enough distance between herself and the Phantomhive manor to be in safety. Despite her logical judgement however, she cannot help but be overcome by paranoia and check her surroundings. This shows just how much knowledge and fear Rin has gotten in her during her profession as assassin.

Then, almost like in a Looney Toons series, a figure bolting from afar leaving a train of dust and smoke behind itself approaches. The figure’s steps leave a loud train of ‘doh doh doh doh...” sounds like an overly aggressive rain dance performed by a seagullzilla. Surely the unsuspecting worms underneath the ground would at least pop out their heads to check what kind of weather would be responsible for this monstrous rainfall.

Seagullzilla’s face is now in sight, and Rin identifies it to be the butler of the household. She is shocked, but allowing the shock to sink in is a luxury that she does not have on her hands, so she decides to finish her pursuer and takes aim.

With great ease and a smile on his face, Sebastian dodges all the bullets headed for him. We know that the demon is very confident about his speed, and now even more so that he estimated to have enough time to first wash and dress his master, seat him at a table, and still be able to catch the assassin. This is yet another reminder of how terrifying our Trash Demon™ is, and that if anyone were to try escape him, they would merely have a snowflake’s chance in Hell.

Only a second ago, Sebastian was still so far away from Rin that she could take immaculate aim for the target’s vitals. Rin probably only had the time to blink, and suddenly the butler has already appeared right in front of her with apparent murderous intent.

Murderous intent indeed, but it was not her life the butler was after, but the man named Pigeon behind her who was about to silence Rin for her failure.

Again Rin does not get the time to ponder about the meaning of all that had happened, and she is already engulfed by Sebastian’s black miasma. “At last we meet.”

“Young master, pardon my insolence, but I have caught you an owl.” Sebastian has brought his prey in really not unlike a tied animal. Rin is pinned against the floor with only her hands tied back. Presumably, even Rin knew why her captor did not bother tying her feet, as any attempt to flee would prove to be moot.

“Haku of the Qing Syndicate keeps an incredibly skilled sniper named ‘Owl’ who is after my life...... it appears that this intel was correct,” the young Earl says. This catches Rin’s immediate attention and she makes the educated guess that there must be a traitor within the Syndicate. “K-kill me! Torturing me will only make your floor dirty!” Rin quickly pleads.

“Torture? Oh I will do no such inefficient thing,” Sebastian scoffs with a ridiculing smile. As it appears, the demon disagrees and looks down on torture. As discussed in this post and this post, Sebastian is indeed not unnecessarily ‘actively’ cruel; he simply does not care about the well-being of anyone he is not interested in. Or in the least, Sebastian is not cruel in a physical way (when it comes to psychological torment though, his cruelty is without peers, of course).

It is very interesting to see how the image of demons most people have is that they would resort to cruel behaviours like impaling or skinning people alive. To Sebastian who 1. is only interested in the soul of a human rather than their flesh, and 2. does not have a physical body of his own but is simply an embodiment of his mind, naturally psychological torture is so much more meaningful.

Though not entirely related to the current chapter, this bit does give a nice little insight of Sebastian’s personality. Thought for later!

Returning to the main case; clearly somebody with accurate information had informed O!Ciel of ‘Owl’s’ existence and the Qing Syndicate’s agenda. Who is this ‘traitor’? The first person to pop up in my mind was Lau, but is this instinct correct? Not very likely, but not impossible. It also entirely depends on whether Lau already knew O!Ciel or not.

Previously in chapter 159, Sebastian delivered a letter from his master’s “dearest”. Was this letter just another one of Queen Victoria’s to send her Watchdog on a mission? Or was this the letter sent by “the traitor”? Judging from the way the letter is wax-sealed, it seems more likely the sender is a person of acknowledged social standing, so the probability of a mafia member to have sent this is somewhat lower. Still, this does not rule the possibility out entirely.

Again, this is material for future speculation and revelation.

After Sebastian makes clear that he will not do anything like torture, he instead proposes something rather outlandish. His proposal is something readers like you and I have known for at least 14 years (waow...this manga is 14 years old now...), but to O!Ciel and Rin, it is something beyond their wildest expectations. “Instead, won’t you come work for the Phantomhive family?”

“What do you mean, Sebastian!?” The boy protests. “I meant my words in a literal sense,” the butler replies. “To speak entirely honestly, we have a severe staff shortage in this household. We just had to be employed be a bizarre master who just seems hell-bent on not employing new servants. If what occurred today were to happen again, Finny would simply not be equipped to handle the situation. Owl’s eyes seem to be especially efficient for far distances, they could prove to be effective in keeping watch in security.”

The young master does not seem to be convinced, and understandably so because the candidate the butler has his eyes on had indeed just made an attempt to murder him.

Sebastian assures his master that there is no need for worry as the assassination attempt has failed. He explains that failure in the underground society is not ever met with toleration. Once someone fails, they shall only be chased to the end of the world and live a life of a fugitive. Rather than being a fugitive for the foreseeable future,  Sebastian proposes to Owl that starting a new life as a servant to the household would be a win-win situation for the both of them.

“Besides, Young Master, did you not say you wanted one maid in appearance alone before?”

“A maid?” the young Earl repeats in puzzlement. “Indeed. “Owl” is... from a human biological point of view, a woman.”

For many years Rin has lived as a man to protect herself from danger. The 19th century was especially unfair to person viewed as women, indeed. Though the butler exposed her secrets in an unacceptable manner, could it be that this also liberated her from having to live hiding true self from the world?

Regardless, I bet that in the next chapter, we shall find out whether Rin views this ‘exposure’ only as sexual harassment and undue exposure, or whether there is also a sense of relief mixed within.

#Kuroshitsuji #Black Butler #Summary and thoughts #Kuro 161 #Kuroshitsuji Spoilers #Spoilers #Manga chapter #Kuroshitsuji 161 #Chapter 161 #ch 161 #Meyrin #Sebastian Michaelis #Ciel Phantomhive #O!Ciel #Flashback #Owl

[gravecinema]

Why The Lost Boys Made Us Want to be Vampires - 05/16/2020

The Lost Boys is one of the most classic and well-known vampire movies ever made. It is also what I feel to be the first representation of the modern vampire. The tagline of the movie says everything you need to know about these vampires: “Sleep all day. Party all night. Never grow old. Never die. It’s fun to be a vampire.”

These aren’t your classic vampires that you’ve seen in movies from years before. More than anything, The Lost Boys shows just how cool it is to be a vampire. You go where you want. Do what you want. Wear what you want and take what you want. Not to mention, you get to ride motorcycles with a pack of friends right off the beach boardwalk. If you were a teenager watching this movie for the first time, there were no cooler vampires than the Lost Boys.

Released in July of 1987 and directed by Joel Schumacher, The Lost Boys tells the tale of two brothers and their newly divorced mom moving in with their grandpa near the fictional beach town of Santa Carla, California; the so called “Murder Capital of the World.” The older brother Michael, played by Jason Patric, soon becomes smitten with the beautiful Star, played by Jami Gertz. Star just so happens to be a part of the local boardwalk motorcycle gang lead by David, played by Keifer Sutherland, and Michael soon finds himself embroiled with the antics of the boys as they make plans to initiate him into their club. Unknown to Michael, it just so happens to be a club of vampires.

Meanwhile, Michael’s younger brother Sam, played by Corey Haim, befriends two local comic book geeks named the Frog Brothers, played by Corey Feldman and Jamison Newlander, who try to warn him about the vampires, and that his brother is in danger of becoming one of them. Michael and Sam’s mom, played by Dianne Wiest, also starts a relationship with the mysterious Max, played by Edward Herrmann, who may have a history with the gang of vampires.

While Sam and the Frog Brothers hunting of the vampires drive the plot forward through most of the final act, it is our first interactions with the Lost Boys that really make the film memorable, and the classic that it has become. When a security guard kicks them off the merry-go-round at the start of the movie, the vampires retaliate by attacking and feasting on him later when he’s alone. The motorcycle ride on the beach with Michael shows the joy that the vampires express by doing whatever they want. They show their complete fearlessness and carefree attitude by hanging off a train bridge as a train goes by, all while trying to entice Michael to join them.

The most iconic scene has to be when they first take Michael to their underground lair, where they offer Michael to join in on having some Chinese food. David then plays some vampire mind games with Michael by making him believe that he’s eating maggots instead of rice, and worms instead of noodles. This is actually a very nice setup that David is playing on Michael, since when he offers him a bottle filled with the blood of their master vampire to drink to start Michael’s transformation into becoming a vampire, Michael then scoffs at Star’s warning that the bottle is filled with blood, believing that it’s just another mind game like with the maggots and worms. He then drinks it thinking it’s probably only just some wine. This whole scene is absolutely great and gets referenced many other times in other media. Most notably recently in the 2014 vampire movie What We Do in the Shadows.

The design of the Lost Boys is also a great influence for future vampire characters and stories. The distinct monstrous brow over their eyes that they develop when they transform their faces right before they feed is a technique also used again most notably in the movie From Dusk ‘Till Dawn, and the Buffy the Vampire Slayer television series. The popular bleached-blonde trench-coat-wearing bad boy vampire Spike from the Buffy series is also quite clearly highly influenced by the character of David from The Lost Boys. Spike was created in the 90’s though, so that glorious mullet that David had was left back in the 80’s where it probably most belongs.

The Lost Boys also has one of the best movie soundtracks ever. The signature song of the movie titled Cry Little Sister has been covered by many different artists and sets the perfect mood for the entire movie, starting with the opening title, and then later with Michael and Star’s sexy love scene. The song Lost in the Shadows that plays during the bike ride on the beach is also another fantastic mood setting song that really makes you want to hop on a motorbike yourself and ride alongside them. Also, no mention of this movie’s soundtrack can go without the truly iconic 80’s performance on the beach of I Still Believe by Tim Capello, who will forever be known to fans as the shirtless greased up muscled sax guy. I got to see Tim Capello perform I Still Believe as well as other songs at a convention recently, and the man still puts on a fantastic show.

The film also offers the viewer a visual lens of becoming a vampire through two different character perspectives. The older brother Michael seeks acceptance with the new crowd and longs for a relationship with Star. The younger brother Sam, influenced by the Frog Brothers and his comic books, sees the vampires as an evil corrupting force against Michael, and sets out to destroy them and the master vampire who may be controlling them. This allows viewers of differing ages to also enjoy the movie in different ways. When I was younger, I viewed the movie through the lens of Sam and wanted him and the Frog Brothers to successfully hunt and slay the evil vampires. Once I reached high school age, I was definitely starting to view the movie through the lens of Michael, and I would want to become the cool and sexy vampire and get the beautiful girl. I also suspect that once I get to the age of the Grandpa, I’ll probably be viewing the movie through his eyes as well. These lenses do a lot to help the viewer enjoy the movie at any age and helped to make the movie the classic that it has become.

It’s interesting to view the movie this way, since the characters of Michael and the vampire gang were supposed to be younger than they were portrayed in the final film. The initial concept of the movie was for it to be a sort of retelling of Peter Pan, only with the twist being that Peter and the rest of the Lost Boys were vampires, which is why they never grow old. Hence the title of the movie. Coming off the success of the Goonies, producers wanted another movie adventure with kids around the same age. It was when Joel Schumacher got directing duties that the decision was then made to age up the vampires and one of the brothers in order to make the movie sexier and to sell better to teens. The reasoning being that vampires are supposed to be creatures and metaphors for sex, and those themes would not play well with preteen characters. This change worked for the movie, since we still have that younger kid adventure story going on with Sam and the Frog Brothers, but we also now get the sexy part of the story with the older brother Michael and the gang of vampire Lost Boys.

The older content provided by the aged-up characters also presents us with some pretty fun and creative vampire death scenes. The scene where the vampires show their fangs for the first time to Michael gives us an intense moment where the vampires feast on a group of punks, with the punks basically being torn apart. The vampire deaths also get graphic with the Frog Brothers taking one of the Lost Boys out with a tub full of holy water. The most iconic death though without a doubt is the “Death by stereo” sequence. It is a moment and line so iconic that it has even inspired a song written about it. The Lost Boys certainly provides the viewer with a great deal of vampire slayage in the final act.

The death of David hits the audience differently though, since he is a very likable and charismatic character. He doesn’t explode when he dies like other vampires, and we’re meant to sympathize with him more. The character was so popular, he was even magically brought back in a comic book sequel to the movie. There’s a reason why the character of Spike from the Buffy series drew a lot of influence from the character of David. David is the absolute essence of cool when it comes to the Lost Boys and being a vampire. He’s the one character who makes us most want to be a vampire, and his death signifies a metaphoric death of that dream of becoming just like one of the Lost Boys.

The Lost Boys would eventually go on to spawn two direct-to-video sequel releases featuring the Frog Brothers in the later 2000’s, about 20 years after the original movie. They’re not bad sequels to watch for fans of the original and can still be entertaining at certain points, but they still come nowhere near to competing with the quality of filmmaking that the original film produced. That original film from the 80’s has continued to stand to test of time as being one of the true classics of the vampire genre. Many other great vampire films have been made since then and will continue to be made, but I doubt that any will quite make us want to become a vampire just as much as that motorcycle gang taking joyrides off a California boardwalk from 1987.

#the lost boys #lost boys #grave cinema #review #video essay #vampire #vampires

[eeveevie]

Salvation is a Last Minute Business (7/18)

Chapter 7: Romantic as a Pair of Handcuffs

It has been a busy month for the Valentine Detective Agency—Madelyn, Nick and Piper regroup to go over all the evidence in the case against Eddie Winter. Marty Bulfinch arrives with a lead and an invitation to an event perfect for “Charmer” and Deacon. After having her partnership with the Railroad spy questioned a second time by Piper, Madelyn confides in the most unlikely of people. Later, at the Third Rail, it’s showtime for two undercover agents.

“Well, you’re about as romantic as a pair of handcuffs.” - Debby Marsh as played by Gloria Grahame (The Big Heat, 1953)

[read on Ao3] x  [chapter masterpost]

April 8th, 1958

The first signs of spring arrived in Boston not a moment too soon, alleviating the city from a harsh winter—weather wise, at least. Piper couldn’t resist using the change in seasons as a clever headline for the latest edition of Publick Occurrences— “Winter is over, but Eddie Winter isn’t.” It had been a busy month for the mob boss, who had all but taken control of all the major crime families in the city. With the exception of a few holdouts, his men had wormed their way across the criminal underground and begun to infiltrate once reputable businesses. Nowhere in Boston was safe.

Madelyn had kept herself just as occupied, juggling her work with the agency and the Railroad. Most days she would investigate leads with Nick, tracking down the necessary proof to pin Winter for his crimes. In her spare time she was partnered up with Deacon, fielding the work from Desdemona or Doctor Carrington, and the few odd job from Tinker Tom (maybe odd was putting it lightly). The two had caught a break and made contact with a surviving safehouse—Randolph—and worked to bring them back into the fold, strengthening the organization numbers. It was still slow going as the data from the Switchboard was decrypted, but she was glad to have given the group—and Deacon—a second chance.

Meanwhile, the agency had been successful in collecting the evidence that had been disappearing from police custody through their own unscrupulous means—but if there was sabotage within the precincts, their options were extremely limited. MacCready’s lead on recordings had so far been a dead end, as promising as it sounded. Nick had followed up on the rumor with his old friend Marty Bulfinch at Precinct 8 but finding physical proof of Eddie Winter’s crimes was like trying to capture lightning in a bottle. Winter’s corruption had spread through the entire government—from law enforcement to the mayor’s office—with anyone from beat cops to prosecutors offered bribes. Nobody could be trusted.

Madelyn was carefully inspecting the handwriting of a newly obtained letter, comparing the messy scrawl to the copies on hand, trying to determine if the note MacCready snatched off a drunken police detective belonged to their set. She read over the lines of text again, wishing that more than a few words in a sentence were intelligible. The most she could make out were the words sir, head, and artist. Whatever that meant. At least she could say the scribbles belonged to the same hand who wrote the other letters. Even though none had been signed, there was enough inference to say Eddie Winter had penned them all.

“He’s done it again!”

A Boston Bugle newspaper slammed down right atop of Madelyn’s work, causing her to snap up in alarm. Nick was fuming, pacing in front of her desk as a waft of cigarette smoke trailed behind his head like a halo. This wasn’t a surprising mood to find him in as of late—as they ramped up their investigation, the detective had become more stressed than ever, bordering on manic—relentless in his endeavor to stop Eddie Winter’s takeover of Boston. Late nights in the office had left his jaw shadowed, in need of a shave, and his light green eyes were dull with sleep deprivation.  

Madelyn glanced down to read over the newspaper print, frowning when she saw the bolded typeface—Boston mob leader Ron Trevio found dead. Nick paused in his footsteps and approached, reaching down to tap his finger against the article in question.

“What they don’t say is that Winter had him assassinated,” he muttered, reaching up to grab at the nearly burnt out cigarette. Madelyn scooted the ashtray she kept in her office specifically for him closer so he could snuff the smoke out. “Whoever he got to do the job blew his head clean right off, destroying the bullet in the process.”

She grimaced at the thought, swallowing down the sickly feeling that crept up her throat. Not that she doubted Nick, but she questioned what made him so confident. Trevio was a mid-level player on the mob-scene but had stayed out of Winter’s way—rumor was that he was even making plans to head east to New York. For him to wind up dead and deposed of in such a gruesome way seemed unbefitting of even Eddie Winter.

“Are you sure?” Madelyn asked, watching as Nick ran a hand through his dark hair, distraught. “We both know he’s unhinged but this…this seems brazen.”

Her partner gestured to the newspaper again. “He knows he can get away with it. He has this entire city in his palm, and this is a warning to anyone who dares to go against him.”

She considered his words, wondering if he had thought about what Eddie Winter would do if he knew about the depth of their investigation. It was likely no secret to the crime-family organization that the Valentine Detective Agency was after them, but Nick had always been considered a joke to the city—something that used to bring him shame, he was now using to his advantage to keep their work under wraps. Still, Madelyn was on edge. If Winter and his men knew how much they had discovered, how close they were to finding a smoking gun, her and Nick were as sure as dead.

“Hey doll,” her partner called her from her thoughts, and she flicked her gaze up to meet his eyes. “You alright?”

This was what she signed up for, wasn’t it? When she first came to the agency all those years ago, he didn’t just need a legal assistant, but somebody who would help him in the pursuit of justice. After Nate’s death, she wound up relying on him for similar reasons. Nick was more than her partner, but her friend and somebody she trusted with her life. She was more than ready to see the Eddie Winter case to the very end with him, even if it killed her.

She put forth a smile. “I’m fine, it’s nothing.”

Before Nick could protest, quick footsteps echoed though the lobby and the two could hear Ellie correcting their guest to the right office.  

“Oh so we’re in here for a change,” Piper joked sarcastically, taking a second glance at Madelyn’s name on the door before entering. She had a copy of the Boston Bugle and her own newspaper tucked under her arm, her bright red coat thrown over the other. As she threw herself into one of the cushioned armchairs, she let out a large sigh. “You saw the news?”

“Yes,” Nick and Madelyn answered simultaneously.

Piper regarded them both, grumbling under her breath. She tossed the papers haphazardly towards the desk, and Madelyn had to fumble to catch the copy of Publick Occurrences. The front page lacked any information on the Trevio murder, instead focusing on Mayor McDonough and his finances—sources were able to track donations to the McDonough reelection campaign back to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology—

“This wasn’t the first time a murder has occurred and we’re the last to hear about it,” she sneered, interrupting Madelyn’s reading. “Talk about a media cover-up. Police corruption is one thing, but now Winter is messing with the freedom of the press!”

Nick choked over a laugh, shaking his head in disbelief. “Of course they’d have a mole at the Bugle. Control the flow of information to the public. Spread fear through lies.”

“Don’t get any ideas,” Madelyn warned, reading over her friend’s newspaper again.

Ever since the agency had begun collecting hard evidence against Eddie Winter, Piper had been itching to blow the whistle, promising to site the two as anonymous sources. As convincing as she made it sound, and as safe as her previous unidentified informants remained, Nick vehemently denied her request. The agency and Publick Occurrences were cut from the same cloth, and it wasn’t because they shared the same building. If Piper shared any information, she’d be painting a target on her back too.

“I know Blue, I know,” she relented, looking more defeated than before. “We’re so close.”

Nick nodded, pulling a new cigarette from the pack in the breast pocket of his shirt. “We are,” he nodded towards Madelyn as he flicked at his lighter. “Let’s go over the list again.”

She shuffled through the small pile on her desk until she found her steno notebook, lined with the details of the case. With a pen, she started at the top, suppressing the memories the name conjured. “Johnny Montrano, Jr.”

Nick and Piper nodded in agreement that they could still find a way to pin Montrano’s murder on Winter, even without a witness. Based on the information she had learned from Henry, the casefile and street rumors, they could corroborate that Eddie’s old hitman Robert Cooper had been hired for the job.

“Mac said Winter’s boys have been trying to keep that one quiet from Johnny’s pop,” Piper quipped. “Maybe he’s afraid of somebody after all.”

Madelyn shrugged, continuing down the list. “Arlington Green three,” she paused. The bodies had been discovered in the sand-trap just before Thanksgiving while Eddie Winter was still incarcerated at Cedar Junction. “Doesn’t Boston P.D. want to pin this on one of the O’Malley brothers?”

“Doesn’t mean the order wasn’t given down the chain of command,” Nick said, tapping his smoke over the ashtray. “Did they ever identify the victims?”

She solemnly shook her head. “The theory is they were low-level members of the Irish crime families.”

“They also could’ve been innocent bystanders for all we know,” Piper argued. She waved her hand, encouraging Madelyn to read on.

“Arthur Black,” she spoke. “Murdered a waiter in Winter’s presence. His girlfriend was there too.”

“Claire Pozinski, what a piece of work,” Nick scoffed. “What she sees in him—”

“Money, probably,” Piper interjected. “That, or she’s got a few screws lose in the head.”

“That’s besides the point,” Madelyn brought them to attention, dragging her unclicked pen down the paper. “Black was found dead, multiple stab wounds outside one of Winter’s clubs.”

“He was a liability. Leaving him out in the open was a warning to the others,” Nick reminded, harkening her back to their earlier conversation.

She nodded, blood running cold at the next item. “Danvers.”

None of them said a word, silently nodding in agreement. Just over Christmas, right after Eddie Winter had been released from prison, there had been a shooting in a speakeasy in the small town north of Boston. Two rival gangs had encroached on neutral territory and it didn’t take long for guns to go blazing. When the dust settled, each side had their fair share of casualties, but civilians had also perished. The prevailing rumor was that Winter had sparked the confrontation, sending his men to provoke the fight. Police had closed the investigation with all responsible parties arrested, even if their leaders still walked the streets.

“Alice Lansky,” Madelyn voiced after a moment of silence. “The missing safety inspector that was found…” she shook her head, unable to form the words. The poor woman had been stuffed into a barrel, remained dissolved in hydrochloric acid. Out of all of the victims linked back to Eddie Winter’s crime family, her death had been the most grotesque.  

“I’m still trying to wrap my head around why they needed to off a safety inspector,” Nick mused, rubbing at the stubble along his jaw. “How does she fit into this?”

“Maybe she stumbled across something she wasn’t meant to see,” Piper suggested, lips falling into a straight line the moment she said the words. As if Madelyn hadn’t already been worried about meeting an untimely end at the hands of Winter’s men, now she was imagining being crammed into a metal barrel, never to be discovered again. She did her best to hide the shiver that ran down her spine.

“Other than the numerous unexplained disappearances, robberies and drug running that have been occurring,” Madelyn sighed as she leaned back in her chair. “That’s what we have so far.”

“I know we’ve been over this before but,” Piper started. “Are you sure there isn’t anybody you trust within Boston P.D. with this information? Other than Marty, that is.”

Nick smiled, shaking his head. “You must think I’m real thick if you believe I trust that snake in a blue suit, Piper.”

The reporter laughed along with him, though Madelyn held back her amusement as she noticed Ellie leading a guest towards the open office door. She straightened in her seat. “Speak of the devil.”

Marty Bulfinch stood in the doorway with a sly grin, hands poised midair as he surveyed the room. He looked disheveled as always—even the expensive, navy pinstriped suit he wore didn’t do much to hide his less-desirable features. “Nicky, you talking trash in here?”

“You can’t walk around Boston with ducks on your ties and expect people not to say something, Marty,” Nick joked, deflecting what they had been actually been speaking about masterfully.

The other man rubbed at his necktie self-consciously. “Hey now, the other guys think its hilarious.”

Madelyn grimaced, wondering when, or how Nick would’ve ever been friends with such a slimeball. Even if her partner kept him on a short leash, she had her doubts about having the police detective as an informant—it was too risky, for all parties involved.

“What brings you here, Mr. Bulfinch?” she finally questioned, motioning for him to sit in the other armchair. Madelyn knew that her politeness always seemed to unnerve him and fairly quickly his expression shifted, eyes fixating on her as he moved from the doorway to the empty seat. He looked like a nervous child, come to the principal’s office for a punishment—that is, until he flicked his gaze back to Nick.

“You know those recordings you’ve been asking about?” he said, hand disappearing into his jacket pocket before revealing a holotape—technology only used by police, the government and a few lucky hospitals—the others in the office were taken aback by its appearance. “Now, I couldn’t well smuggle a holotape reader out of the office, but, I have it on good authority that this tape has Winter’s voice on it. With some self-incriminating information.”

“You don’t know what it says?” Piper asked directly. “Is there a transcript?”

Marty glared at her, tired eyes unblinking. “Beggars can’t be choosers,” he slowly handed it over to Nick, who carefully inspected the foreign piece of data in his palm before passing it over to Madelyn. Marty shifted in his seat. “You’ll have to find your own way to listen to it.”

She had her own ideas, thinking about all of the various gadgets and inventions Tinker Tom had built and tucked away beneath the Old North Church. Of course, she wasn’t about to make the suggestion in front of their guest—for all he knew, the Railroad was a fairytale.

“I also have a lead on where ol’ Eddie might strike next,” Marty continued, fidgeting with his tie again. “Tensions between Winter and Skinny Malone have reached a fever pitch and he’s ready to have him offed.”

“That frosty, huh?” Piper chimed in, eyeing the rest of the room’s occupants. “Last we heard, Winter was allowing Skinny and his Triggermen to operate the speakeasies downtown, as long as they got a cut.”

“Skinny Malone doesn’t want to share anymore,” Marty explained, flatly. “And that made Eddie flip his lid.”

“Any idea on when the hit is supposed to take place?” Nick asked, extinguishing his cigarette. He leaned against the front of the desk, staring his former partner down. “The whole scene has been brimming with activity lately, it could be any day now.”

Marty nodded in agreement. “Skinny Malone is throwing a bash at his joint this Friday to celebrate his broad’s birthday,” he tilted his head side-to-side. “Ya’ know, the Third Rail? It’s been pulling in customers from Scollay Square ever since it opened.”

“That has Eddie Winter written all over it,” Piper remarked, leaning forward eagerly. “There’s no way he’ll make an appearance himself, though, right?”

“I doubt it,” Nick grumbled, considering the information. “Is Boston P.D. working on this? Are they going put Skinny Malone into protective services?”

Marty shrugged. “A few of us are being sent to the Third Rail undercover just in case we have to intercept,” he explained. “That’s when the offer will be made. We don’t expect Malone to come in quietly unless he feels his life is truly in danger.”

“Speaking of,” the investigator spoke, pointing to Nick. “Say the word and I can get you on the short list and inside that club.”

Nick was dumbfounded by the offer for a split second before smirking. “Undercover work isn’t really my schtick, Marty,” he said, raising his right hand to emphasize the prosthetic he wore. “Kind of hard to blend in. And don’t get me wrong but working with a precinct of cops that already hate me seems…risky.”

“I could always fill your shoes,” Piper grinned, fanning her fingers through her hair. Almost immediately the others were shaking their heads.

Madelyn softly chuckled at her friend. “Everybody in town knows about Public Occurrences, Piper. Even if you dyed your hair blonde and wore Nick’s trench-coat, you’d stick out like a sore thumb.”

The reporter slumped, defeated. That’s when Marty reluctantly flicked his gaze to where Madelyn was sitting behind the desk. He cleared his throat. “What about the dame?”

Nick raised an eyebrow, irritated that he was still going on about calling her that. “Madelyn?” When he realized what Marty was implying, he made to argue. “Marty, if you think for a second I’m sending Madelyn in with the wolves, you’re outta your damn mind!”

The danger was very real, and while Nick had every right to be upset and defensive, she couldn’t help but feel offended. It brought her back to that night in the agency, after the destruction of Ticonderoga, when he and Deacon almost came to blows. If the last month proved anything, she did her best work not cooped up in the office or behind a desk, but in action.  

“Nick,” she said his name calmly, gaining his attention. The moment he met her gaze, he knew she had made up her mind. But she could ease his worries, if only slightly. “I don’t have to go alone.”

Piper caught on to what she was inferring immediately, a disgruntled expression pulling at her lips as she sank further into her armchair. Nick remained stoic, but eventually relented as he nodded, looking back to Marty.

“You can get her in?” he asked. “Plus one?”

The Boston police detective looked unsure, meeting her gaze for a long moment. “Uh, sure,” he mumbled, before quirking his mouth up in a smile. “You better come with one hell of a disguise, ya dame.”

Madelyn rolled her eyes, and Nick took the cue, politely gesturing to Marty that it was time for him to leave. “Come on, you oaf, you better get back to the pen before they start searching the gutters for you.”

Marty let out a hearty laugh, slapping Nick on the back as he brought him into a handshake. “Don’t be shy around the precinct, Nicky. They don’t hate you—that much.”

The three were silent as he exited the room, listening to Ellie wish him farewell.

“You’re seriously going to take whatshisname to the Third Rail?” Piper wasted no time in questioning Madelyn as soon as the agency door slammed shut.

“He has a name,” Madelyn replied with a sigh. “If I can’t take you or Nick, what’s the harm in taking Deacon? Undercover work is what he’s best at.”

“Are you sure about that?” Piper mumbled, crossing her arms.

Madelyn frowned. Her friend had been upset ever since she had first met the man and learned of the deception it took to keep the Railroad a secret. The strain hadn’t eased, even as she continued to work with the organization and as his partner. It seemed the reporter couldn’t get past the fact Deacon wasn’t willing to divulge much of the truth—at least with her.

“What do you have against him?” Madelyn asked, wanting to clear the air.

“I’m just saying Blue,” Piper’s tone softened. “You seem to trust this guy a lot, but you barely know him. How long has it been? A few months? And he’s come in here and—whew—swept you off your feet like it’s damn Roman Holiday!”

Madelyn was stunned into silence, a warmth settling in her chest. She couldn’t tell if it was embarrassment, or excitement at having the relationship she had with Deacon described in such a way. But the more she thought about it, the more she realized how whirlwind it had been. Since their first meeting in the Memory Den, she had been chasing that feeling back and forth all through winter. There was an unspoken intimacy between the two, lingering touches and close calls where she was sure either one of them could’ve closed the gap and just kissed. And yet, there was also a silent boundary, an invisible line keeping them apart—she had always assumed it was her guilt, the weight of the wedding ring she still wore on her finger, the specter of a dead husband lingering above watching her every move—but now, she wondered if there was something more.

“I mean, what’s with the codenames?” Piper sighed. “Do you even know his real name?”

“I—” Madelyn choked on her words, at a loss. Her friend was right, and she was suddenly second-guessing every one of her emotions all over again.

Nick had been silent through the entire exchange, but finally spoke, reading her mind in the process. “Maybe Piper is right,” he mused with a little shrug. “But damnit if this isn’t the happiest I’ve seen you in months.”

Madelyn was flattered, especially when she noticed the way Nick was smiling at her, considering she knew how there was still tension between the two men whenever they happened to interact. But her chest felt heavy—the doubt had already started to creep its way in. Piper seemed ready to continue her verbal pestering when Nick sharply shook his head in warning.

“Don’t let it get to you,” he assured—a little too late. Still, Madelyn put forth a small smile and nodded. “We should plan for Friday.”

They had work to do.

The conversation with Piper and Nick continued to replay in Madelyn’s head the remainder of the day and into the evening. Even on the carbide home (on which she insisted on, so that Nick could make it home at a reasonable hour for once), her mind was clouded with conflicting emotions. She couldn’t deny that she had felt livelier, more like her true self in recent months—but didn’t want to base that happiness on lies or deception. A part of her understood it was the way the Railroad operated, outside the fringes of society where dishonesty was a necessity.

“Remember, you can’t trust everyone.”

“Even you?” she asked.

“Especially me.”  

Months later, he would put an addendum to his well-spoken phrase, holding her hand as he told her he was in her corner, and always had been. As the memory came to her, all she felt was confusion. Madelyn wanted to see him, but she wasn’t sure what she would do or say, or how her feelings would shift—for better or worse? What was stopping her from acting on impulse like she had been as of late? What if Codsworth had never walked in on them that cold March evening? Would she have kissed him and sealed the deal right then? She shook her head, breaking herself free of her delusions, knowing it wouldn’t do any good to dream of what-ifs. Instead, she needed to focus on the future and what she really wanted—if only she could figure that out.

As Madelyn walked into the lobby of her apartment building, she noticed Drummer Boy at the mailboxes, sifting through various envelopes. He regarded her with a polite smile, moving to join her in the trek up the staircase.

“Have a good day at the agency?” he asked.

She sighed, trying not to sound too disgruntled. When he shot her a concerned look, she forced a smile. “It’s been very…busy. With the Winter case, that is.”

“Right,” Drummer Boy replied, letting her half-assed excuse slide. It was difficult to bluff when she was emotionally compromised, and exhausted after a long day—and hauling herself up seven flights of stairs. “I have a note for you, from Deacon.”

Madelyn swallowed down the tightness in her chest at the mention of his name. “Isn’t he in DC?”

He had been put on a special assignment by Desdemona to make contact with the southern branch—something about helping set up a new safehouse for the newfound agents and assisting with their first round of assignments. As much as Madelyn wished she could’ve joined, her obligation to the agency and the Eddie Winter investigation kept her in Boston.

Drummer Boy nodded, handing over a folded note. “I thought it was a serious correspondence, so uh,” his cheeks became red in color, which made her feel equally flustered. “I shouldn’t have read it.”

The two paused on the third story landing if only so she could scramble to read the letter, which was hardly filled with anything important, or relevant. Rather, it was incredibly lewd, and even a modern woman such as herself was turned flushed by the contents. Of course, she realized fairly quickly as the note rambled on and became more grandiose that it couldn’t possibly be real. Oddly enough, it sparked a wave of relief as she was unable to contain her laughter.

“You know he did this on purpose to get a rise out of you, right?” she chuckled, trying to give it back to Drummer Boy who waved it away, still red in the face.

“His idea of jokes sure are…elaborate,” he sighed, lifting his blue cap to run his hand through his hair. “Too much time on his hands, even hundreds of miles away.”

Madelyn regarded his words. “Do you think he’s bored?”

“No,” he answered as they continued walking up the stairs. “The opportunity to set up a new safehouse is right up Deacon’s alley. Not that he doesn’t have the experience, but to do it all on his own is a big deal.”

“He helped with HQ, right?” Madelyn clarified. She eyed Drummer Boy carefully. “After…”

He looked solemn but held back any grief. “After the Switchboard, yes.”

“Deacon’s been a big help to Dez even before the move, he does a lot more than is asked of a regular agent or heavy,” Drummer Boy mused. “You’d think he was the second in command, or the head honcho but…”

She stole another glance when he paused, seemingly in thought. “You know our history, right?”

Madelyn shrugged, taking a reprieve on the fifth story landing. “Tom once rambled off a lot of codenames to me in-between telling me how the air was going to poison me while I slept and that I needed to take the immunization shot he invented to protect myself against ‘invisible bugs’”

Drummer Boy softly laughed, nodding along. “Well, before Dez, there was Pinky Thompson. She only became leader because of a string of organizational failures under Pinky’s watch.”

“Are you suggesting that somebody might be vying for Desdemona’s position?” Madelyn questioned. “As in, Deacon?”

“No, not really,” he replied. “Deacon would never stage a coup like that. Carrington maybe, but never Deacon,” he smirked. “He’s been around…well, before my time. He was around when Wyatt and John D. ran the show, building the Railroad into the organization into what we know today.”

She found herself amused. “I always thought he was lying when he said he helped create the Railroad. Sounded too boastful, even for him.”

“Well, depending on who you believe or what you make of the records,” Drummer Boy flashed an impish grin. “Some of the agents like to think Deacon and John D. are one in the same.”

The confusion from earlier settled back into her mind, but this time, she wasn’t sure what to make of the information. This was just more conjecture—a rumor—Railroad gossip that had been passed down from agent to agent. Deacon himself had even fanned the flames, relishing in the spotlight. If anything, it only fueled the argument set forth by Piper that Madelyn truly didn’t know anything about him—about his past, about his present…about their future. Rather than anger, she felt despair—whatever had been built between them had to end, and when it did, it wasn’t going to be easy.

On the seventh floor, the two separated to their doors across the hall from one another. Almost as an afterthought, she turned back to him, motioning to her ajar door. “I prepared a pot-roast this morning, if you’d like to join me for dinner,” she offered, feeling more awkward than she meant. Even he looked perplexed. “As my neighbor, Robby. No Railroad business. Otherwise, most of it is going to Dogmeat.”

After a beat, he laughed. “Pot-roast sounds great, Hardy.”

April 11th, 1958

Madelyn hardly recognized the woman staring back at her in the reflection of her vanity mirror as she applied the finishing touches to her makeup, searching her drawers for the perfect red hue of lipstick. Her natural golden hair had been tucked back and hidden beneath a long, wavy dark brunette wig, the soft barrels falling over one shoulder and resting across the sweetheart neckline of her dress. Gown—she could hear Jenny correcting—Madelyn reminded herself she would need to be extra careful with the borrowed garment. It would not end up in the box of ruined clothes she had ripped or stained while running around the city investigating with the agency and Railroad.

Outside her bedroom, she could hear Dogmeat happily barking, Codsworth murmuring something while a third voice laughed along. Deacon—fresh from his trip to the nation’s capital, he had wasted no time in agreeing to an undercover operation and promised a show. She hadn’t seen him since he departed—communicating through dead drops to confirm their ‘assignment’—and could feel the anxiety bubbling to the surface over her conflicted feelings for him. But that night, more than ever, she would need to suppress her emotions for the sake of the investigation and stay focused.  

She slipped her feet into a pair of strappy black heels as she stood, reviewing her appearance in the full-length mirror. The strapless gown was black, with a sheen to it that sparkled under the right light. The fabric hugged her curves (and then some), loose around her legs with a slit along one slide that was almost too high for her tastes. It was unlike anything Madelyn had in her closet, and not something she would’ve expected her partner’s fiancé to own either, until it was offered as the perfect outfit for the evening’s festivities. The only problem was that she and Jenny weren’t exactly the same size—she stretched to reach the zipper again, struggling to get the right angle to make it budge.

“Miss Madelyn,” Codsworth buzzed outside in the hallway. “Mr. Deacon is inquiring about your presence. Is everything alright?”

With a defeated sigh, she opened her bedroom door for the robot, laughing at the way his mechanical eyes widened as he inspected her appearance. “Can you work a zipper?”

“Pardon, mum?”

She gave his metal chassis an affectionate pat as she walked past him, awkwardly holding the dress to her body as she walked the short distance to the main room of her apartment where Deacon was sitting at the kitchen counter, turned towards the hallway as if he had been waiting for her appearance. Or at least she thought it was Deacon—if it weren’t for his ever-present reflective shades, she wouldn’t have recognized him. The black pompadour (which High Rise had strongly hinted wasn’t natural to begin with) was gone, replaced with a short, wavy style instead, a warm ginger in color—it matched his eyebrows. He wore a different, well-tailored black suit than he had before, black wingtip shoes looking like he hadn’t been walked a step in. Handsome was an understatement—Madelyn wasn’t sure what to make of the not-so-subtle transformation—reminding herself to remain on task.

“Need some help there, Charmer?” he asked, breaking the silence. He gestured to her dress and beckoned for her to come closer.

Madelyn approached with a small nod, finding that her tongue felt too heavy in her mouth to speak. She turned her back to him, breathing in deep and straightening slightly when she felt his fingers brush across her skin for the zipper of the dress. What should’ve been a simple and quick movement had turned into another spark between the two, his touch lingering far longer than necessary, thumb sweeping across her spine. But she didn’t move away.

“You look downright sinful.”

She glanced at him over her shoulder, hoping he couldn’t sense how nervous she was, how her skin had turned burning hot at his words. She focused on his hair, and curiosity got the better of her.

“Is that your natural hair?”

He smirked, one eyebrow arching up like he expected something a little more flirtatious from her. “Maybe.”

Madelyn twisted around to face him, resting one hand along the kitchen counter to balance herself. As Deacon pulled his hands back to himself, she noted the glimmer on his left hand and a new tightness formed in her chest at the sight of the golden band. Why was he wearing a wedding ring? At her confusion, he gestured to her own wedding band, causing her to clamp her right hand around the diamonds to hide the jewelry.

“I knew you weren’t going to take it off, even for the sake of an undercover persona,” he explained. “Figured we’d go for the easiest play in the book. Better to blend in than stand out.”

As uncomfortable as she suddenly felt, a new wave of emotions taking over her body and mind, Deacon was right. He was also far more of an expert at espionage than she was—he knew what he was doing, and as much as she didn’t want to admit it, she needed to trust him.

“We’ll need a good cover story,” she offered, nodding in agreement. Still, she anxiously twisted at the ring Nate had given her almost twelve years prior, burning against her skin. More than ever, she could feel the weight of his presence around her, the guilt compounding as she agreed to this charade—even for one night.

“What do you suggest?”

Madelyn deliberated, fidgeting with the slit of the dress before thinking of who had leant it to her in the first place. Her mother had always taught her that when in doubt, use what you know.

“I’m a nurse at Medford Memorial Hospital and you’re a retired army vet. We met when you ended up in my ward after a training exercise went wrong and I had to nurse you back to health. Sparks flew, our parents disagreed, and we had to elope. Thanksgiving weekend, 1954 in Manhattan.”

She thought about the rest of the specifics. “Catherine,” she said. Her mother’s name—not that Deacon needed to know that. “My name is Catherine. Kitty for short.”

Deacon looked stunned. “Did you just come up with all that right now?”

She softly chuckled. “Thank Nick and Jenny, give or take…the rest of the details.”  

“How romantic,” he mused. “I’d say you’re better at this than you think. A natural.”

He stood, signaling to the clock on the wall that they needed to catch a cab across town, or they would be more than fashionably late to the party. Feeling more confident than she had earlier, she smiled at him. “So husband, what should I call you?”

Deacon grinned as he laced their hands. “Dollface, you can call me Johnny.”

The Third Rail was classier than Madelyn expected for a speakeasy, built into one of the abandoned subway tunnels downtown. Even if Skinny Malone and his gang of Triggermen—as he dubbed them—were gangsters, she had to give it up to them for the ingenuity of the idea. There was a certain kind of ambience to the place—low lighting and dark linens spread across the tables—seedy characters lining the walls with leery expressions, it was enough to make anybody fearful. Yet Madelyn felt strangely at ease, and it had everything to do with the way Deacon’s hand was resting along her waist.

For an hour now, they had been seated at a candlelit table, chairs pushed close to ensure their cover as husband and wife remained intact. Despite her comfort, her mind had been running wild, filled with questions about Johnny. Was that supposed to be an allusion to John D.? As Madelyn took a sip from her glass of champagne, she took a side eyed glance at him, fixating on his hair. She wondered if this was his way of shedding his Railroad persona and if for a little while, he could be himself without anyone knowing. The mystery of not knowing frustrated her even more—this wasn’t exactly the place to confront him for the truth. Instead she continued to sip at her drink, allowing herself one brief moment to think about brushing her fingers through the ginger waves before looking away.

A gorgeous woman adorned in a sparkling red dress crooned a slow song about love from the lit stage, her small band of jazz musicians accompanying her like they had rehearsed the melody a hundred times. Skinny Malone had introduced her as Magnolia—a starlet in her own right among Boston nightclubs, there as a special treat for his beloved girlfriend on her birthday. So far the evening had been as calm as one could expect when in a room full of drunken mobsters, with no sign of anyone suspicious, even as she sighted a few men so green they had to belong to the Boston police force.

“Kitty darling,” Deacon leaned to murmur in her ear. “We’ve got eyes on us.”

She nonchalantly glanced to find a man at the bar taking too many looks at them over their shoulder. In spite of his disguise, his fidgeting and whiskey gave him away. Marty Bulfinch. With a small smile she shook her head. “That’s a friend.”

Deacon nodded, though his lips twisted into a thin line. “Looks familiar.”

“Hmm?” she was genuinely curious, wondering how their paths could’ve crossed.

He frowned, quickly dismissing the topic. “Not now. Later.”

Madelyn continued to survey the crowd as she drank her champagne, giggling on cue when Deacon would provide her with information from the conversations he was eavesdropping on, under the guise of saying something nonsensical into her ear.

“You didn’t happen to sneak a weapon past the guards, did you?” he asked, fingers tightening along her waist as he took a long sip of his brandy.

She brushed her foot against his ankle, catching his attention so he’d glance down to wear she was hiking up the slit of her skirt ever so slightly to reveal the holster attached to her garter belt—a trick Piper had taught her after watching too many detective movies. Madelyn didn’t realize how practical it would become, the .22 cold against her skin. Deacon made a low sound, somewhere between a hum and a growl and it caused a warmth to bloom in her chest.

“If all else fails, there’s the hairpin in my curls,” she added, adjusting her dress and flashing him a knowing look.

He held her gaze, the candlelight flickering in the reflection of his sunglasses. “We both know how deadly you are with that.”

As Magnolia dedicated the next song to Skinny Malone and his gal, Deacon shifted out his seat and extended his arm to her. “Come on Kitty Cat, let’s dance.”

Madelyn took his hand and allowed him to lead her to the dance floor, her heart racing with excitement and skin tingling alive with goosebumps. Almost immediately she was transported to that first dance at the Memory Den—the electric feeling that had engulfed her body and soul. Maybe she should’ve known then that she would be enraptured by his enigmatic nature. It was inescapable, no matter how hard she tried to deny herself the truth. But what was the truth?

Deacon tugged her close as they swayed to the slow song, dipping his head so his lips were angled near her ear. “What do you think?”

She blinked, struggling to remind herself what he was referring to. Her eyes danced around their environment, looking from the pairs of dancing couples to the patrons that sat at the surrounding tables. As far as she could tell, the only people present were Skinny Malone’s Triggermen and the people Marty Bulfinch had brought from the precinct. If any of Eddie Winter’s men were in the building, they had yet to make themselves known. She didn’t want to assume they wouldn’t take the opportunity to strike, not when the iron was hot.

“Something isn’t right,” she muttered, unsure. Madelyn focused on the bar where Marty was sitting earlier, only to find he had disappeared. In an effort not to panic, she steadied her breathing, looking towards where Skinny Malone was standing, entertaining some guests near the stage. A waitress came by with a new round of drinks, just in time for the birthday toast.

Madelyn tried to lead him closer, but he wouldn’t budge.

“Easy now, kitten,” Deacon assured, the hand at her waist tightening a little. “We have an audience.”

She flicked her gaze over his shoulder to the two Triggermen on the edge of the dancefloor, muttering to themselves as they gestured to where they were dancing. With one steady breath, she slinked herself closer, resting her head against his shoulder. “We need a distraction.”

“I like the way you think.”

Madelyn looked up at him through her lashes, and felt his fingers trail up to her shoulder and then her neck, leaving a burning path in their wake. Cupping the side of her face, she could feel the cool metal band of the wedding ring he wore, reminding her of the charade they were meant to be playing. He wasn’t Deacon, but Johnny—not her Railroad partner, but her husband. If she wanted to, she could kiss him, and blame it all on the undercover assignment. It didn’t matter what her real feelings were—she could face them later—or live in this fantasy and sin for as long as she wanted.

He noticed her hesitation. “I won’t kiss you if you don’t want me to.”

She didn’t say anything, tilting her chin a fraction closer just as Magnolia finished her song. Somewhere in the distance, she could hear the sound of clinging glasses and the echoing sounds of cheers! It faded away as Deacon’s lips ghosted over hers, and she didn’t even care if the Triggermen were watching. Madelyn fluttered her eyes closed and could feel herself drifting—

A loud crash resonated through the entire club and on impulse she pulled herself away, inhaling a sharp breath as she focused her vision. For the split second she settled on Deacon’s face it was difficult to discern his expression—was he disappointed? It quickly melted away as they both diverted their attention towards the stage where Skinny Malone had collapsed, the table knocked over and glasses shattered. Madelyn was disoriented as she rushed over through the crowd of people—there hadn’t been a gunshot—what had happened?

A stocky man in a well-made, pinstriped suit was inspecting the tray of drinks that had been discarded on the floor. “Boss’ been slipped sumthin’!”

Poison? Madelyn felt the dread settle in her chest—this was unlike Winter—he always liked to take a direct approach when killing off his competition. But she had no time to question his methods when as of late, his crimes had become unpredictable.

“Move away!” she yelled over the crowd of frantic Triggermen. “I’m a nurse, maybe I can help!”

In the chaos, nobody made to stop her as she knelt over Skinny Malone’s crumpled body, pressing her fingers to his throat to check for a pulse. Frosty white foam was sputtering from his mouth and his eyes were wide, bulging. His hands were scrambling at the carpet for purchase, but a moment later they switched to yank at his jacket and tie. It was all in vein as he lie there suffocating, choking on his own tongue—there wasn’t anything Madelyn could do, even if she was a real medical professional. She gave him a sympathetic look, before noticing the thick pocketbook in the seam of his blazer. Without a second thought she snatched it, tucking it as well as she could in the front of her dress.

Skinny Malone began to struggle, gripping the arm of his nearest Triggerman. Madelyn was swept up at that time, Deacon’s hands tight around her waist as he led her away as calmly as possible.

“Time to hit the road,” he said through gritted teeth, suppressing his distress that they would be stopped in the confusion as they made their exit.

As they left the Third Rail, Madelyn felt as though their undercover assignment was a failure. Eddie Winter had gotten what he wanted with Skinny Malone’s death and was one step further in his complete take over of Boston.

It was time to play their hand.

#fallout 4 #noir au #deacon x f!solesurvivor #madelyn hardy #deacon #nick valentine #piper wright #marty bullfinch #drummer boy #the john d. theory persists even in noir okay #piper has valid concerns #who called for undercover lovers?! #AND GINGER DEACON!? #👀👀👀 #i am so sorry this is 7k+

[fen-ha-fuck-you]

the 100 ask game

hi i was tagged by approximately a million of you for various things in the past few weeks, so forgive me if i missed you, but I believe this one included: @little-oxford-st — @yourereallyhere — @foreverandalwayscrysis — @clarkgriffon — @mamabearsdontthink 

and i’m putting the rest of this under a cut bc she’s thicc ladies

1. What station on the Ark would you be from?

honestly, probably alpha tbh

2. What would you get arrested for on the Ark?

treason. i don’t know specifics, but it would absolutely be treason

3. Would you take off your wristband when you landed on the ground?

nah

4. What would the necklace Finn would make for you look like? (Clarke: deer/Raven: a raven duh..)

bold of you to assume i’d let that boy so much as speak my name

5. If you could resurrect any MINOR character who would it be?

gina martin, may she rest in peace

6. Create a squad of 5 characters to go on missions with. Who are they?

clarke and bellamy, clearly, and also lincoln, diyoza, and roan. i call it Competence Squad™

7. What Grounder Clan would you belong to?

get grounder culture 31596026746 feet away from me. skaikru.

8. What would your name be in Trigedasleng? (example: Octavia=Okteivia…just make it up!)

Abi 

9. Thoughts on Finn? Some people hate him, and others love him, so I’m curious

from a writing perspective? fascinating character and arc  from a personal perspective? boy can choke 

10. Be honest. How willing would you have been to take the chip without knowing all the horrible things it does?

absolutely not, nope

11. What character do you relate to most?

clarke 100%

12. What character do you like the least?

currently? echo. the one thing I like less than a complete asshat of a character is one with absolutely zero development, and there she is, right there. don’t @ me

13. Describe your delinquent outfit. (Would you wear something like Murphy’s jacket with the spikey red shoulder patch or have a trademark like Jasper’s goggles? Be creative, yet practical)

clarke’s s3 fetish gear but like............... more leather

14. Favorite type of mutant animal?

i have a soft spot for the worms, idk why. i love their useless non-existent asses

15. What would your job be on the Ark?

i’d probably be doing some high-level organizational work or some shit. i’m good with patterns and recall

16. Would you have willingly pumped Ontari’s heart if Abby asked?

without hesitation

17. If Lexa wasn’t Heda, but she was still alive then who would have made the best commander?

let’s make it a democracy babey

18. How would you act if you ate the hallucinogenic nuts like Jasper and Monty?

i have no goddamn clue

19. How would you have dealt with Charlotte’s crime? A more John Murphy approach or Bellamy Blake approach?

neither. clarke griffin approach. protect the kid, but give her some tough love because holy shit, you can’t just kill people charlotte

20. Who should have been the Chancellor, if anyone?

clarke was basically the chancellor anyway and saved their asses more than any of the other “chancellors” so i’m gonna go with clarke

21. Would you have been on Pike’s side like Bellamy or on Kane’s side? Or Clarke in Polis?

kane’s

22. Mount Weather had a lot of modern commodities. (example: Maya’s Ipod) What is the one thing you would snatch while there?

gimme the tunes

23. What would your Grounder tattoos look like? Hairstyle? War paint?

a nice mix of geometric patterns and flow-y nature. undercut. classic american football shit

24. Favorite quote?

"You won’t do it.” / “You don’t know me very well.”

25. If all of the characters were in the Hunger Games, who would have the best shot at winning?

i keep answering clarke, and i’m gonna keep answering clarke. girl fights smart and dirty, and uses her surroundings to her advantage. plus she’s highly adaptable

26. Least favorite ship? Favorite canon ship? Favorite non canon ship? NOT INCLUDING CL OR BC OR BE

i’ll say BE is my least favorite ship if i damn well feel like it, and i do. very closely followed by CL. for writing reasons, specifically and bellarke might as well be canon already so i’m gonna say that for both of the other ones

27. A song that should be included in the next season? If there had to be another guest star like Shawn Mendes on the show, who would you want to make a cameo?

no more cameos.............. blease, i’m begging................................ but i’m gonna go with season 6 because i have a whole playlist for it and say The Devil Within by Digital Daggers

28. What would you do if you were stuck in the bunker with Murphy for all that time?

jam out and snark until we inevitably killed each other probably

29. You’re an extra that gets killed off. How do you die?

just let clarke kill me in a really hot way

30. A character you’d like to learn more about and get flashbacks of?

where the fuck is harper’s backstory jroth

31. A character you’d bang?

i would be in the middle of a blarke sandwich, thanks. the dream. alternatively, a roan/diyoza sandwich. the forbidden ship

32. Would you stay in the Bunker? Go up to Space? Or live on your own in Eden?

would i rather eat people, only algae, or a whole variety of fresh fruits and vegetables? are you joking?

33. In the Bunker, would you follow Octavia? What would you do to pass the time underground?

yeah, hard pass. i’d sure as hell train though holy fuck

34. What crime would you commit in the Bunker that lands you in the fighting pits?

again, treason. 

35. Up in Space, who would you bond with first? Who would be the most difficult for you to get along with?

i’d probably bond with murphy and clarke first. i probably wouldn’t get along with jasper much

36. How long do you think you would last on Earth by yourself?

i’d be fine with the solitary element for a good chunk of time, it’s the outside survival part that’d be the problem

37. When the Eligius ship lands what do you do?

recon that shit

38. Favorite Eligius character? Least favorite?

DIYOZA. mccreary.

39. Would you Spacewalk?

fuck no space scares the shit out of me

40. Would you prefer to eat Windshield Bugs, Space Algae, or Bunker Meat?

... bugs. but people are a close second.

41. Would you start a war for the last spot of green on earth? What would your solution be to avoid it?

no??? a peaceful solution was right there. it wouldn’t be difficult. as long as i didn’t have a group of people staging a coup to remove the person i made a deal with and also someone who didn’t give a flying fuck about anything but war at the time. *cough*

42. Would you rather dig out flesh-eating worms or stick thumb drives into bullet holes?

i’d rather try to save someone’s life than cause so much damage to someone’s injury that it kills them, if that’s what you’re asking. 

43. Are you willing to poison your sister for the Traitor Who You Love? What would you do to stop Octavia?

LMAO, i’d probably just straight up kill her, but i also don’t have a bellamy to be in love with, nor is she my sister

44. Would you go to sleep in cryo or stay awake like Marper?

cryo, fuck that shit

45. Who are you waking up first to explore the new planet?

clarke, bellamy, diyoza. everyone else is window dressing

#the 100 #tag games #long post

[hamletteprinceofdenmark]

the 100 ask game

tagged by the lovely @pendragaryen

1. What station on the Ark would you be from?

Whichever used to be the Australian station I guess.

2. What would you get arrested for on the Ark?

I’d like to say I’d go down for something brave and heroic but it would probably something stupid and trivial, like the space equivalent of jay-walking.

3. Would you take off your wristband when you landed on the ground?

Not at first, but I’d definitely take it off for that sweet, sweet panther meat after a day or two.

4. What would the necklace Finn would make for you look like? (Clarke: deer/Raven: a raven duh..)

Well, first of all, I’d punt him halfway across the dropship camp before he even had a chance, so jot that down.

But an elephant, I guess, ugh.

5. If you could resurrect any MINOR character who would it be?

Fox, poor baby, I miss her.

6. Create a squad of 5 characters to go on missions with. Who are they?

Bellamy, Murphy, Roan, Clarke, Diyoza

7. What Grounder Clan would you belong to?

Floukru babey, take me to the sea!

8. What would your name be in Trigedasleng? (example: Octavia=Okteivia…just make it up!)

Lucia ... but emphasis on the second syllable... so like ... Lu-SHA. It would probably just get shortened down to Sha.

9. Thoughts on Finn? Some people hate him, and others love him, so I’m curious

Finn Collins is the boy who you think is cute at first, but then he turns out to be that middle class white boy who thinks he knows more than the professor in Philosophy & Ethics 101 and interrupts then at every chance he gets. He has a BLM tshirt but also insists on knowing where any POC he meets is “from”. Goes to the Gender Studies class, but you heard through the grapevine that he’s cheating on his girlfriend. Shallow, third-rate garbagé who thinks he knows better than you because he’s ~sensitive~

Finn Collins could die in a fire and I would not care.

10. Be honest. How willing would you have been to take the chip without knowing all the horrible things it does?

A chip that cures my mental illness and helps me live the day to day nightmare that is Earth? Hell yeah I’m taking it.

11. What character do you relate to most?

Probably Harper actually. I too am a Mum friend who is sweet and caring and who will absolutely rip you a new one if you attack any of my adopted kids.

12. What character do you like the least?

See Question 9.

13. Describe your delinquent outfit. (Would you wear something like Murphy’s jacket with the spikey red shoulder patch or have a trademark like Jasper’s goggles? Be creative, yet practical)

black skinny jeans, combat boots, blue long sleeve shirt white singlet layered combo, and big green army surplus jacket.

14. Favorite type of mutant animal?

Pauna. Rest in peace you chaotic 2-tonne plot hole.

15. What would your job be on the Ark?

I probably would have been in the childcare system, or some kind of human relations work.

16. Would you have willingly pumped Ontari’s heart if Abby asked?

Of course! I gotta keep our girl Clarke alive in there! Imma be real with you though chief, I would probably be looking at the wall the whole time. I don’t have a great stomach for body gore.

17. If Lexa wasn’t Heda, but she was still alive then who would have made the best commander?

Out of all the Nightbloods? No one jumps out at me as particularly competent tbh. I’ve got high hopes for Madi though.

18. How would you act if you ate the hallucinogenic nuts like Jasper and Monty?

Probably sobbing, stuck within the dark inner workings of Depression Brain. I have absolutely no faith that I would have a good trip.

19. How would you have dealt with Charlotte’s crime? A more John Murphy approach or Bellamy Blake approach?

Charlotte needed help desperately. I would have pardoned her.

20. Who should have been the Chancellor, if anyone?

Bellamy and Clarke as co leaders.

Kane and Indra as consultants. Raven is head of Tech. Let’s go people!

21. Would you have been on Pike’s side like Bellamy or on Kane’s side? Or Clarke in Polis?

I would’ve been on Kane’s side

22. Mount Weather had a lot of modern commodities. (example: Maya’s Ipod) What is the one thing you would snatch while there?

New books probably.

23. What would your Grounder tattoos look like? Hairstyle? War paint?

I’d probably have the tatts and war paint of my kru. I loved Octavia’s hair during season 2, so something along those lines, or wild and free with beads and braids like Luna.

24. Favorite quote?

“The dead are gone, Clarke, the living are hungry,” is a fucking raw line.

“It won’t survive me,” is another banger.

“You may be the Chancellor, but I am in charge,” cemented my love for Clarke Griffin.

I could go on...

25. If all of the characters were in the Hunger Games, who would have the best shot at winning?

Team Cockroach. Murphy.

Clarke and Bellamy have that Plot Armour though so I like their chances.

26. Least favorite ship? Favorite canon ship? Favorite non canon ship? NOT INCLUDING CL OR BC OR BE

Least fave: I have been prohibited.

Fave canon: Memori.

Fave non-canon: I have been prohibited.

27. A song that should be included in the next season? If there had to be another guest star like Shawn Mendes on the show, who would you want to make a cameo?

I am waiting for them to use Bloodsport by Raleigh Ritchie. Or something by either Delta Rae or Sara Barielles, simply because I love them.

28. What would you do if you were stuck in the bunker with Murphy for all that time?

Probably be a couch potato. My latent doomsday brain would kick in and I’d just give up, so the bunker finally opening would be a nice surprise.

29. You’re an extra that gets killed off. How do you die?

I was chipped and never seen again bro.

30. A character you’d like to learn more about and get flashbacks of?

I want more Aurora flashbacks so bad it hurts but I know we’ll never get them. I just want people to stop treating her like she was a deadbeat or even an abusive parent. She wasn’t. She was doing the best with what she had, which was fuck all.

31. A character you’d bang?

They’re all my children ... I couldn’t.

On the other hand, if Lindsey Morgan was interested...

32. Would you stay in the Bunker? Go up to Space? Or live on your own in Eden?

EDEN. Are you kidding? I’ll take berries over algae or bunker meat any day.

33. In the Bunker, would you follow Octavia? What would you do to pass the time underground?

I would follow her cause if I didn’t I Would Die. I would spend my time trying to be as quiet and small as possible, and stay out of her way!

34. What crime would you commit in the Bunker that lands you in the fighting pits?

Someone reported me muttering dissent when I didn’t think anyone was around.

35. Up in Space, who would you bond with first? Who would be the most difficult for you to get along with?

This may come as a surprise but I don’t bond with people very easily (lol). Harper probably sought me out and made sure I was okay. Echo and I have the same sense of humour so we’d probably be close. Monty too. Murphy would drive me up the wall.

36. How long do you think you would last on Earth by yourself?

2 weeks, tops.

37. When the Eligius ship lands what do you do?

Hide and observe from a far. Don’t attack or provoke in any way.

38. Favorite Eligius character? Least favorite?

DIYOZA.

McCreary.

39. Would you Spacewalk?

If I’d passed all the tests and training and it was all above board? Sure. If not? Absolutely not are you crazy?!

40. Would you prefer to eat Windshield Bugs, Space Algae, or Bunker Meat?

The right answer is algae, but my tastebuds say steak over bugs or glorified pond scum. Sorry.

41. Would you start a war for the last spot of green on earth? What would your solution be to avoid it?

I won’t win a fight to the death, so you best believe I’m going to use diplomacy to it’s absolute limits and then some.

42. Would you rather dig out flesh-eating worms or stick thumb drives into bullet holes?

USB to the arm 100% percent. In and out, quick extraction, no pain caused since they’re already dead, and thumb drives aren’t vicious, carnivorous murder worms which is a huge plus.

43. Are you willing to poison your sister for the Traitor Who You Love? What would you do to stop Octavia?

If my sister had gone that far off the deep end? Probably. I can’t really imagine it though, my sister is so level headed.

44. Would you go to sleep in cryo or stay awake like Marper?

I’d volunteer to be a custodian. It suits me. Getting to live in peace, taking care of the people I love for the rest of my life after the chaos and trauma of the ground seems near heavenly.

45. Who are you waking up first to explore the new planet?

Bellamy and Clarke.

I tag: @clarkgriffon @honeybellarke @nvermindiseeyou @ffaraday @galaxydanvers @marvelscaptainss @raven-reyes-of-sunshine @perpetual-fantasy @prosciuttoe @fen-ha-fuck-you

The above is in no particular order, and you should feel no obligation to fill out the questions if you don’t want to. This is all fun and games. Take care 💖

#the 100 #tagged #ask games #finn collins #bellamy blake #harper mcintyre #aurora blake

[willowdrabbles]

Little bird no more chapter 6

It's been a minute guys! Sorry about that, but here's a short chapter for you all just to prove I'm not dead!

Word count: 2138

"You did well little brother."

Kagome flinched at the voice, stirring and fighting the ringing in her head to open her eyes. When she did she scowled at the lanterns around her, the lighting alone making her head spin. It appeared she had been taken to an old building, the intricate dark stained wood ceiling above her formed and built into a rockface, as boulders and granite peeked through broken boards and interrupted formation. So was she was underground? Or in a cave? But inside a building? Great.

Shifting and flexing her muscles to try and sit up, she glanced down at the dark black tendrils that held her captive. Wormed and tangled around her arms, legs and waist, she was left with no room to wiggle her way free.

"Are you awake little witch?" The dark rumbling voice above her head had her jerking her chin up, tilting her head backwards into the stone surface she had been placed on.

Inhuman green eyes and a dark silver furred muzzle filled her vision. With a curl of flesh around it's face, the creature let out a low growl and bared it's large fangs, fangs as big as her very face.

Unable to control herself she let out a high pitched wail. Thrashing her arms and legs against her restraints as she tried to get away from the creature.

"Ryuu, her screams hurt my ears." The first voice called gently over her screams, and the creature backed away from her sight. Kagome ceased screaming but looked around frantically for where the thing went.

The stone beneath her vibrated and shifted. And she could see around her a large silver and red furred limb(?) uncoil from around her stone perch. Following the path of the thing around her, it slithered off to her left and up wooden steps towards a throne.

'For crying out out who are these guys?' Kagome swallowed as she met the eyes of her captors. Curled around the throne from left to right, the tail and head of a massive silver and burgundy dragon shifted up almost like a cobra, it's dark grey talons piercing the wood as it's arms held its upper body up in a proud stance. Large gray horns adorned its temple, and it's green eyes glared at her. It let out another growl Before a flare of red miasma engulfed the dragon and shrunk it, fur and horns evaporating in seconds to reveal a boy.

Kagome blinked and took in this new appearance, he looked just a little younger than Kohaku. With short silver hair and bright green eyes. Little purple stripes adorned each cheek and his eyes were rimmed with navy. He leaned in close to the throne, a hand reaching out to grasp the sleeve of the person who sat there.

Without the frightful presence of a dragon in the room, Kagome finally noticed the woman sitting upon the throne. Her silver hair was piled elaborately on top of her head, her cheeks adorning two purple stripes on each side, and her dark red eyes lined with blue. On her forehead, underneath her bangs, was the dark glow of a jewel shard. She shifted forward to observe Kagome with a bored gaze, her tongue darting out to lick her top lip. Kagome shivered at the expression. But more than that, she blinked to make sure she wasn't seeing anything, hovering in the darkness above them was one of Naraku's insects.

"What's the big idea?! What do you want huh?" Kagome yelled, trying to cover up her fear with outrage.

"The idea, little jewel witch, is to absorb that soul of yours and retrieve my father's power." The woman spoke, standing from her position and striding down the steps towards her. Green lights illuminated from the ground around Kagome as she approached and Kagome glared.

"Yeah well get in line! You're not the first person to want my soul and you ain't gonna get it either!" Kagome squirmed as she got closer, eyes widening in fear as the woman reached out a pale hand towards her face. "Who are you? Get away!" She yelped, a barrier bursting from her chest and snapping at the woman's hand.

The woman flinched away, a snarl escaping her painted lips as her skin steamed from the burn. "A barrier?" She growled, and Kagome made a squinted face at the deja vu. Why was everyone after her soul? Why did they always expect it to be easy to take? She was kinda attached to it for crying out loud!

The woman stepped away and began leaving, a flourish of purple silk in her wake.

"Chiyako?" The boy called after her, moving to follow her until she raised a hand to make him pause.

"This complicates things. I shall return shortly Ryuu, watch our guest." Her red gaze glared back over her shoulder at Kagome for one moment before she moved up the steps and around the throne, disappearing from Kagome's sight.

"Why me?!" Kagome groaned, the boy looking at her with a bland expression. She glared back "What? Wouldn't you be in a bad mood if people keep trying to steal your soul?" She countered at him, again met with silence.

Kagome huffed "Who are you two? What lies did Naraku told you?" her eyes darted into the darkness, seeking the insect that had been there minutes ago. She could no longer see it now, but that didn't mean it wasn't still watching. Or that Naraku wasn't watching.

"Who?" He asked plainly, a small frown on his round face. Kagome glared at him, trying to see if he was playing dumb, but by his demeanor she could not tell.

The boy blinked at her as she judged him, and tried again "I am Ryuu, of the eastern dragon clans. My sister is Chiyako. Who is Naraku?"

Kagome hesitated at his answer, seeing no lie upon his face or in his tone. "Did you not see the insect demons?" She asked quickly, her eyes flickering to the shadows once more in confusion.

"They follow my sister. They serve her." He shrugged, moving closer to her once more. She tensed as he approached, unsure of what he was doing. With a wave of his hand, the tendrils across her chest lifted, allowing her the ability to sit up which she gratefully took.

Looking around her curiously, she took in the room formed by rock and wood. It was like someone had decided to build a shiro within a cave, molding the structure right up to the rock as she had seen on the ceiling. And the stone slab she was strapped to seemed to be like a centerpiece, or an altar.

"Those insects belong to a evil half demon named Naraku. If they follow your sister I'm sure he's just using her for something." Kagome said quietly, almost sadly. She saw this too often over the years, Naraku using people and demons alike to get what he wanted, lying to them and twisting their minds to his will. It was disgusting.

"My sister would not be used human, she wishes to avenge our family name and restore our place as a great power in the east." Ryuu recited, Kagome furrowed her brows at him.

"Avenge your family? What happened to them?" She asked curiously. 'If I learn enough, maybe I can solve this and keep Naraku from playing whatever game hes trying at this time.'

Ryuu blinked, seeming mildly startled at her curiosity. "We were once a great family, loyal to the throne of the east. My father lost in a great battle with a powerful Miko, and lost his place as general. Soon after, to restore his place he attempted again, and lost his life at the hands of the same Miko, his soul trapped for eternity." Kagome stopped breathing, feeling dread wash over her at the tale and where it seemed to be going.

"My mother, sister and I retreated here, where my mother sealed us away for our protection from the Miko and the anger of the throne. My sister woke me not long ago."

Kagome drew a breath through her teeth "And your mother?"

His green eyes narrowed at her, and the dark red miasma flared around him again with a flash of power. "You and your's killed her, witch!"

...

He would give her credit as due, she could defend herself.

Though the action was surely instinct, it still packed a punch. He was sure his own aura tired to overpower hers in the moment, pride and dominance seeking to subdue the female into accepting him. He was unsure however if it was his own power or the surprise of his actions that had caused her powers to surface in self defense.

He had miscalculated. His frown deepened as he flexed his fingers, the pure power slowly evaporating and allowing him to move once more. Her power though great, had not harmed him, it was more like a backhand, his power sparking against hers and causing an almost steam effect.

His brows furrowed, this substance to Bokuseno's words about intent in regard to conflicting powers.

To think he had miscalculated, was unsettling. Bokuseno had warned him she would not be easy to court in comparison to others. He assumed she would just need a more forward approach. Now he would have to recalculate his method of approach once more. Damn insufferable woman.

"Kagome!" Inuyasha bounded into the clearing where the miko had run from, right past the broken tree and still Sesshomaru. Catching a glimpse of him out of the corner of his eye, Inuyasha whirled on him, hand gripping the hilt of his sword as he stared down his older brother.

"Sesshomaru! What happened to Kagome? Where is she?" Inuyasha demanded, baring his fangs at the older Inuyoukai.

"Inuyasha!" Miroku called out, approaching the small clearing as well, Sango and the rest of their company not far behind him. Miroku hopped back away from Sesshomaru, seeing the state he was in and not wanting to be within harms range. "Lord Sesshomaru what has happened? We felt Kagome's power, and then another dark miasma not yours!"

"What did you do to Kagome?" Inuyasha snarled again, muscles flexing and tensing. Sesshomaru finally acknowledged him with a glare.

"It seems the priestess has been captured." He said blandly, his mokomoko flicking in an effort to remove dirt from his person.

"Yeah and by who? I can smell her aura all over you, so what did you do to her ya bastard?"

"Are you alright my lord?" Rin called as she bounded up upon Ah-un's back, right behind Sango on Kirara

'Hn. What have we always been doing little brother?" His eyes flickered to the tree the priestess has been using as target practice. Though he knew his brother would not catch what he had always been doing, spending time observing and learning about his mate and her capabilities. Inuyasha followed his gaze and saw the mass of arrows. But his scowl did not lessen.

"What you're telling me you actually let her hit you with her power? And she actually hit you?" Inuyasha scoffed in disbelief.

"She would not hit me had I not allowed it so. However there was miscommunication. She ran away in what I can assume fear or embarrassment of her actions when I was rendered unable to move." Sesshomaru explained as he gained enough movement to stand.

"And you let her run off to be captured! This is more and more suspicious by the second you bastard!" Inuyasha took a step towards him as if to attack.

Miroku chose then to step in between them then, holding his free hand out to Inuyasha in a halting gesture.

"Lord Sesshomaru has given his side of the story Inuyasha. Perhaps we should focus on finding her first. That aura seems to be fading by the second and if we continue like this we will lose the trail to find Kagome." Sesshomaru brushed past him towards the coast, passing his brother as well.

"Feh." Inuyasha growled, somewhat calmed by Miroku's words and turned to follow behind Sesshomaru as they both sped up. Miroku and Sango shared a look before turning their attention on Rin.

"Rin, Shippo, please stay by the village with Jaken, we have no idea what this enemy will be like." Miroku said carefully as Kirara walked over to allow him to climb up on her back.

"Why should I listen to a filthy human like you?!" Jaken yelled, waving his staff.

"You would rather risk Rin's life and Sesshomaru's wrath?" Sango shot at him, arching a brow at him. The imp stuttered and huffed, looking away in angry contemplation.

"We shall await your return." Rin nodded and smiled at them. "Be safe!"

#inuyasha #kagome #sesshomaru #little bird no more #lbnm #chapter 6 #sango #miroku

[johnmurphysass]

The 100 Ask Game

I was tagged by @thelittlefanpire @mamabearsdontthink @she-who-the-river-could-not-hold

1. What Station on the Ark would you be from?

This is a hard one. I don’t really know which one I would belong in. I mean I can be cocky and say that I belong in Alpha just based on my leadership role as a supervisor. Or I can go with the less cocky answer and say Factory station because of my time helping others.

2. What would you get arrested for on the Ark?

I would get arrested for being one of the ones that steals to help others.

3. Would you take off your wristband when you landed on the ground?

Depends on how serious my crime is and if they need to know that I’m alive. Okay let’s be real here for a second...if Bellamy Blake asked me to take it off the wristband it’s going in the pile with the rest.

4. What would the necklace Finn would make for you look like? (Clarke: deer/Raven: a raven duh..)

I think a cat

5. If you could resurrect any MINOR character who would it be?

Oh boy that would be a hard one to answer...Wells or Roan but I don’t think that Roan counts as a minor character.

6. Create a squad of 5 characters to go on missions with. Who are they?

Clarke, Bellamy, Murphy, Raven, and Monty.

7. What Grounder Clan would you belong to you?

I would probably belong to Flokru just because of their peaceful nature

8. What would your name be in Trigedasleng? (example: Octavia=Okteivia…just make it up!)

Tricia=Treesha (I really don’t think that looks right)

9. Thoughts on Finn? Some people hate him, and others love him, so I’m curious

You know in the beginning I didn’t mind him and when I say that it was definitely the few episodes before Raven came down. Then he became an irritating mess that just needed to go.

10. Be honest. How willing would you have been to take the chip without knowing all the horrible things it does?

Oh man I probably would’ve just to be like the cool kids and not have to deal with everything that I have going on but then again there is the whole unknown that I couldn’t handle. So probably not

11. What character do you relate to most?

John Murphy. Alright, Alright pick your jaws up off the floor. I relate to him on so many levels. There are a lot of things in my background that give me the ability to understand him. I am in a good place mentally and emotionally but that wasn’t always the case. 

12. What character do you like the least?

Echo...I just have no use for her. Also just an FYI my dislike for TT bleeds into my dislike for Echo not the other way around. 

13. Describe your delinquent outfit. (Would you wear something like Murphy’s jacket with the spikey red shoulder patch or have a trademark like Jasper’s goggles? Be creative, yet practical)

I’m wearing black leggings, combat boots, dark grey henley that is over sized. I would probably have a signature jacket of some kind. Probably more like a zip up hoodie or a pull over. I mean that is basically what I wear everyday. 

14. Favorite type of mutant animal?

Those butterflies are beyond beautiful. 

15. What would your job be on the Ark?

I would be a social worker or counselor

16. Would you have willingly pumped Ontari’s heart if Abby asked?

For Clarke absolutely. If Abby just needed me to probably not. 

17. If Lexa wasn’t Heda, but she was still alive then who would have made the best commander?

Roan

18. How would you act if you ate the hallucinogenic nuts like Jasper and Monty?

My lazy ass would just sit there and just ride the trip

19. How would you have dealt with Charlotte’s crime? A more John Murphy approach or Bellamy Blake approach?

I would probably approach it like John Murphy because I am prone to rash decisions.

20. Who should have been the Chancellor, if anyone?

I don’t like the idea of Chancellors but I think that Clarke and Bellamy have the capacity to lead together.

21. Would you have been on Pike’s side like Bellamy or on Kane’s side? Or Clarke in Polis?

I would probably be Clarke in Polis, advocating for the entire group. 

22. Mount Weather had a lot of modern commodities. (example: Maya’s Ipod) What is the one thing you would snatch while there?

Books that people only ever talked about but that I could finally read.

23. What would your Grounder tattoos look like? Hairstyle? War paint?

I would be covered in tattoos but they would be tasteful in their design. I definitely could see the tree of life etched on my back with stars flowing down my arms. I would probably have my hair braided to keep it from becoming a tangled mess of frizzy curls. I don’t think I would have war paint. I don’t like things on my face lol

24. Favorite quote?

“If I’m on that list, you’re on that list” - Bellamy Blake

25. If all of the characters were in the Hunger Games, who would have the best shot at winning?

Octavia

26. Least favorite ship? Favorite canon ship? Favorite non canon ship? NOT INCLUDING CL OR BC OR BE

Least: Kabby

Favorite canon: Marper

Favorite non-canon: Murven 

27. A song that should be included in the next season? If there had to be another guest star like Shawn Mendes on the show, who would you want to make a cameo?

Where We Are by Billie the Kid. And I think that I would love to see Hozier on the show to make a cameo

28. What would you do if you were stuck in the bunker with Murphy for all that time?

Oh boy that’s a lot to unpack. There would be braiding each other’s hair, talking through trauma, alcoholic mothers, singing, and dancing. It would basically be one giant slumber party where we lot our minds together.

29. Your an extra that gets killed off. How do you die?

I’m getting an arrow to the face.

30. A character you’d like to learn more about and get flashbacks of?

I want more story on Indra and Emori.

31. A character you’d bang?

Ummmmm...the majority of them let’s be real. They’re all gorgeous and fun in their own way. 

32. Would you stay in the Bunker? Go up to Space? Or live on your own in Eden?

Eden

33. In the Bunker, would you follow Octavia? What would you do to pass the time underground?

I think you have to follow her or die. I’m gonna live especially after all the shit from before the bunker. I would probably be making babies and cute ones cause we know I’m good at that one. 

34. What crime would you commit in the Bunker that lands you in the fighting pits?

Having too many babies...

35. Up in Space, who would you bond with first? Who would be the most difficult for you to get along with?

I would be with Murphy. We would take turns on who got the empty side of the ring. Echo would be the most difficult for me to get along with because she shouldn’t have been there in the first place. I will forever be salty about that one.

36. How long do you think you would last on Earth by yourself?

I think that I could last pretty well on my own. I don’t really like being around people and if I don’t have to be even better. I would probably spend my days sleeping and exploring.

37. When the Eligius ship lands what do you do?

Run...always just run

38. Favorite Eligius character? Least favorite?

Diyoza is definitely a favorite. Least favorite would have to be McCreary. 

39. Would you Spacewalk?

Hell fucking yes

40. Would you prefer to eat Windshield Bugs, Space Algae, or Bunker Meat?

Space algae

41. Would you start a war for the last spot of green on earth? What would your solution be to avoid it?

I would find a way to cohesively live together with the prisoners/criminals or find a way to get the Eligius IV logs open

42. Would you rather dig out flesh-eating worms or stick thumb drives into bullet holes?

Have to go with the thumb drives into bullet holes. I would not want to touch those worms or be accidentally killed by them.

43. Are you willing to poison your sister for the Traitor Who You Love? What would you do to stop Octavia?

In a heartbeat if I thought that was the only way to win.

44. Would you go to sleep in cryo or stay awake like Marper?

I would go to sleep like a baby

45. Who are you waking up first to explore the new planet?

I’m taking Clarke, Bellamy, and Murphy..

Tagging: @lieutenantshaw @peterstarkss @nvermindiseeyou @bettsfic @ghoulbrothers @peraltiagosclarke and whoever else wants to do it

#the 100 #tag game #about me

[talistheintrovert]

The 100 Ask Game

I was tagged by all these fabulous cuties @peraltiagosclarke @prophecy-gurl @mamabearsdontthink @thelittlefanpire and I adore them 💖

1. What Station on the Ark would you be from? Probably Arrow Station, because it sounds rad?? I don’t have many space applicable skills, because my maths is terrible and I can’t grow anything, and we don’t know what the Arrow Station people did, so I can say that they were the keepers of library and it could possibly be true. I would probably be an archivist or something. 

2. What would you get arrested for on the Ark? Something similar to Clarke? I’m not really the illegal activies type, but I like to think I wouldn’t just sit aside while injustices happened, and if I’m an archivist, I’ve probably got access to lots of information about the Ark that people don’t want the general public to know. 

3. Would you take off your wristband when you landed on the ground? Probably? But I’d probably have given it to Monty - don’t want to be skewered by the other delinquents, but I don’t want to be unhelpful and that’s a happy medium.

4. What would the necklace Finn would make for you look like? (Clarke: deer/Raven: a raven duh..) Maybe a book? Or a dragon. Either or 😅

5. If you could resurrect any MINOR character who would it be? WELLS MOTHAFUCKING JAHA. OBVIOUSLY. 

6. Create a squad of 5 characters to go on missions with. Who are they? Clarke, Bellamy, Murphy, Monty and Raven (but if we’re counting season 6 Raven so far, then I change my answer to Emori)

7. What Grounder Clan would you belong to?  Probably Podakru? I fucking love lakes man. 

8. What would your name be in Trigedasleng? The same, probably? Tah-liss maybe???

9. Thoughts on Finn? Some people hate him, and others love him, so I’m curious. I think he’s a well-written character who served his purpose; we were supposed to love him in the start and grow to dislike who he became. His arc is one of the better written ones in the show. 

10. Be honest. How willing would you have been to take the chip without knowing all the horrible things it does? Not very. Pain is how we know we’re alive. Living with depression, I know what it’s like to feel completely numb. Pain is better. 

11. What character do you relate to most? Clarke/Bellamy/Murphy. All three of them, for varied and complex reasons, but in particular as of season 5, Clarke. 

12. What character do you like the least? ............Echo. Because I don’t like badly written characters and it bums me out that she wasn’t written better when they made her a main. 

13. Describe your delinquent outfit. (Would you wear something like Murphy’s jacket with the spikey red shoulder patch or have a trademark like Jasper’s goggles? Be creative, yet practical) Black jeans, Doc Martens, large loose v-cut shirt tied off at the side, fingerless gloves.

14. Favorite type of mutant animal? One of the water ones. Imagine being a giant mutated river creature just fucking with people and living your life of solitude??? 10 out of 10. 

15. What would your job be on the Ark? Archivist/writer/scribe. 

16. Would you have willingly pumped Ontari’s heart if Abby asked? Yep. I’m not that squeamish and I’d do ANYTHING to help Clarke Griffin while she saves the world. 

17. If Lexa wasn’t Heda, but she was still alive, then who would have made the best commander? Indra. 

18. How would you act if you ate the hallucinogenic nuts like Jasper and Monty? I’d probably either get supremely paranoid like Jasper does or cry to my mum the way Clarke talks to her dad. 

19. How would you have dealt with Charlotte’s crime? A more John Murphy approach or Bellamy Blake approach? I am the Bellamy Blake of my own life, so 

20. Who should have been the Chancellor, if anyone? No chancellors, in this house we have a round table where every member of the government is on equal standing and there is a speaker of the house, but that person isn’t given extra power, just the ability to control the meetings. 

21. Would you have been on Pike’s side like Bellamy or on Kane’s side? Or Clarke in Polis? I would have been on Kane’s, or I would have left, probably to find Clarke. 

22. Mount Weather had a lot of modern commodities. (example: Maya’s Ipod) What is the one thing you would snatch while there? iPod, speakers, anything to play music on. I truly can’t live without it. 

23. What would your Grounder tattoos look like? Hairstyle? War paint? No war paint, red hair in a bi-bob, tattoos would probably have words on them.

24. Favorite quote? “Your life can be more than just impossible decisions and a tragic end. You can choose to live.” - Wells Jaha

25. If all of the characters were in the Hunger Games, who would have the best shot at winning? All of them??? Shit... probably Anya or Luna?

26. Least favorite ship? Favorite canon ship? Favorite non canon ship? NOT INCLUDING CL OR BC OR BE Least favourite canon ship is Becho, but non-canon I feel it’s important to mention that I loathe JORDAN WITH OCTAVIA. Or, Jordan with anyone at the moment, really - let him learn to be a whole person before he gets a love interest, I’m begging you. 

Favourite canon ship: Marper

Favourite non-canon: Ice Jaha (Wells/Roan) or Wells and anyone really. I miss my soft son. 

27. A song that should be included in the next season? If there had to be another guest star like Shawn Mendes on the show, who would you want to make a cameo? Any song by Faouzia would be fabulous, or Florence and the Machine. And if there was going to be a guest star I’d probably want a niche british actor that I love, like Andrew Scott or OH FUCK, Robert Sheehan would be AMAZING.

28. What would you do if you were stuck in the bunker with Murphy for all that time? Probably the same as Murphy - sing, go through everything, slowly devolve into depression and madness. Pull each other out of it by making bets about how long it would take blarke to get together.

29. You’re an extra that gets killed off. How do you die? Shot in the head, probably? That seems fast. 

30. A character you’d like to learn more about and get flashbacks of? DIYOZA DIYOZA DIYOZA

31. A character you’d bang? Probably Murphy? He seems like he’d be fun. Or Monty because he’d be sweet. (listen, i wanna fuck clarke and bellamy as much as the next bisexual, but i am WAY more invested in them fucking each other, so)

32. Would you stay in the Bunker? Go up to Space? Or live on your own in Eden? Live on my own in Eden, because I, like Clarke, enjoy isolation as my main unhealthy coping mechanism.

33. In the Bunker, would you follow Octavia? What would you do to pass the time underground? Probably? Path of least resistance and all that. And I’d write, maybe document the events as well as writing stories. 

34. What crime would you commit in the Bunker that lands you in the fighting pits? Writing something negative about Blodreina, I suppose;

35. Up in Space, who would you bond with first? Who would be the most difficult for you to get along with? I’d bond with Murphy first, we’d both isolate ourselves to one side of the ship to avoid the love-in. I’d probably never get on with Echo. 

36. How long do you think you would last on Earth by yourself? Not sure. Depends how bad my depression is versus my anxiety. 

37. When the Eligius ship lands what do you do? Run and hide, boys - run and hide. I’ve always been the sniper type more than the attack type: get the high ground. 

38. Favorite Eligius character? Least favorite? Fave: MY GOOD BITCH DIYOZA. 

Least fave: McCreary, that slimy fuck. 

39. Would you Spacewalk? Maybe... depends on if my anxiety would kick in really hard. Probably not???

40. Would you prefer to eat Windshield Bugs, Space Algae, or Bunker Meat? Windshield bugs.

41. Would you start a war for the last spot of green on earth? What would your solution be to avoid it? I’d try to avoid war at all costs. I’d probably try and broker a way for the eligius people to help rebuild Polis, and then create a city there and have trade routes built between them - the farmers would move to the valley and the warriors and other types would stay in Polis. 

42. Would you rather dig out flesh-eating worms or stick thumb drives into bullet holes? Dig out flesh-eating worms - that way I’m saving someone, not killing them. 

43. Are you willing to poison your sister for the Traitor Who You Love? What would you do to stop Octavia? Depends how bad my sister was behaving - if it was Octavia bad?? Yeah, but I’d be Peak Bellamy Levels Of Stress about it. And I would honestly do my best to discredit her before I took any physical action - spreading dissent works, surprisingly well: look at politics. 

44. Would you go to sleep in cryo or stay awake like Marper? Sleep? Depends who else was awake, but probably sleep. 

45. Who are you waking up first to explore the new planet? Clarke and Bellamy, as Marper decreed, followed by Murphy, Emori, Raven, Shaw, Diyoza, Jackson, Miller, and probably even Echo, because every mission needs a redcoat and it shouldn’t have been Shaw. 

I’m tagging some faves @clarkgriffon @hostagetakerandhistraitor @nvermindiseeyou @anne-shirley-blythe @foreverandalwayscrysis @chase-the-windandtouch-the-sky and anyone else who wants to do it!!

#the 100 #tag game #the 100 tag game #mutuals tag #favourite bitches tag #this was HARRRRRRD #but it was pretty fun

[eyessharpweaponshot]

Fun Q&A based on The 100

Tagged by @carrieeve <3

1. What station on the Ark would you be from?

Maybe Farm?

2. What would you get arrested for on the Ark?

Stealing medicine for a family member - there’s pretty much nothing I wouldn’t do for them.

3. Would you take off your wristband when you landed on the ground?

No - I definitely would have kept it on. They all deserved a chance.

4. What would the necklace Finn would make for you look like? (Clarke: deer/Raven: a raven duh..)

A half moon. I’m obsessed with them. Although I’d probably tell a boy like Finn not to bother, lol.

5. If you could resurrect any MINOR character who would it be?

Illian. I liked him.

6. Create a squad of 5 characters to go on missions with. Who are they?

Clarke, Bellamy, Diyoza, Raven, Echo.

7. What Grounder Clan would you belong to you?

Probably Trikru, I love the woods.

8. What would your name be in Trigedasleng? (example: Octavia=Okteivia…just make it up!)

Hmm, it’s hard because it’s a three letter word. Probably just Jen.

9. Thoughts on Finn? Some people hate him, and others love him, so I’m curious

When I look back on the seasons, I don’t mind him at all. I think he had good intentions and even though he acted a little rash at times, he meant well. I could always see his side. But when I think of him now, I automatically think ‘asshole’ because he normally is one in everyone’s fics, lol.

10. Be honest. How willing would you have been to take the chip without knowing all the horrible things it does?

I would never have taken it. I struggle to take painkillers because I feel like ‘I need to battle it myself’ even if it’s just a headache. I don’t like putting anything artificial like that in my body.

11. What character do you relate to most?

Clarke.

12. What character do you like the least?

I honestly don’t know? I like them all. I guess things would be easier for my ship if Echo wasn’t in that exact picture but her as a character? Adore her.

13. Describe your delinquent outfit. (Would you wear something like Murphy’s jacket with the spikey red shoulder patch or have a trademark like Jasper’s goggles? Be creative, yet practical)

Combat boots, the pants Raven always wears, Bellamy’s ark issued guard jacket and just a long sleeve t-shirt underneath.

14. Favorite type of mutant animal?

Two headed deer always stands out.

15. What would your job be on the Ark?

Something involving caring for people, or a teacher.

16. Would you have willingly pumped Ontari’s heart if Abby asked?

Probably not. I’m fine with blood, not so much with stretching skin.

17. If Lexa wasn’t Heda, but she was still alive then who would have made the best commander?

I guess Madi would be pretty good, considering Clarke raised her.

18. How would you act if you ate the hallucinogenic nuts like Jasper and Monty?

I have no idea. I’ve never done drugs so I can’t even imagine.

19. How would you have dealt with Charlotte’s crime? A more John Murphy approach or Bellamy Blake approach?

Bellamy. She needed to be helped, not outcast or killed.

20. Who should have been the Chancellor, if anyone?

Jake Griffin seems like a good man, from what we knew of him.

21. Would you have been on Pike’s side like Bellamy or on Kane’s side? Or Clarke in Polis?

Kane’s, 100%. Saying that, it’s easy to say that knowing the whole picture. Bellamy only knew what was happening in Arkadia, he didn’t have the opinion of the Grounders that we did and he didn’t see the things we seen.

22. Mount Weather had a lot of modern commodities. (example: Maya’s Ipod) What is the one thing you would snatch while there?

Real books and her iPod. For sure.

23. What would your Grounder tattoos look like? Hairstyle? War paint?

Little symbols, just like I have in real life. Hairstyle - loved Octavia’s look in season 3 with pieces braided and pulled back. No war paint.

24. Favorite quote?

Ooh, hard one. I LOVE the entire ‘I got you for that’ scene. Melts me.

25. If all of the characters were in the Hunger Games, who would have the best shot at winning?

Octavia for sure.

26. Least favorite ship? Favorite canon ship? Favorite non canon ship? NOT INCLUDING CL OR BC OR BE

Least favourite ship: kabby. Like, they’re fine together. I just don’t care that much about them?

Favourite canon: that isn’t Bellarke, probably Memori.

Favourite non canon: going to contradict myself with the last point and say Murven. I love the thoughts of them being together just as much as I love Memori.

27. A song that should be included in the next season? If there had to be another guest star like Shawn Mendes on the show, who would you want to make a cameo?

Lewis Capaldi’s ‘Lost on You’ or ANY of his songs would be perfect. As for a cameo appearance, maybe Landon Austin?

28. What would you do if you were stuck in the bunker with Murphy for all that time?

Drink and have the laugh.

29. You’re an extra that gets killed off. How do you die?

Sacrificing myself?

30. A character you’d like to learn more about and get flashbacks of?

Echo, for sure.

31. A character you’d bang?

Bellamy. Always.

32. Would you stay in the Bunker? Go up to Space? Or live on your own in Eden?

I’d go up to Space, depending on where my love is going - ha.

33. In the Bunker, would you follow Octavia? What would you do to pass the time underground?

I would to a point, but really it’s fight or die isn’t it? Just keep myself, write as much as I can.

34. What crime would you commit in the Bunker that lands you in the fighting pits?

I have no idea, seriously.

35. Up in Space, who would you bond with first? Who would be the most difficult for you to get along with?

I’d definitely bond with Bellamy and Raven. Obviously Harper and Monty. Think it would take some time to warm up to Echo because I’d have to forgive her past mistakes and let her open up more.

36. How long do you think you would last on Earth by yourself?

I’d fight till the end.

37. When the Eligius ship lands what do you do?

Observe.

38. Favorite Eligius character? Least favorite?

Favourite: Diyoza. She’s a bad ass!

Least: Vinson. Creepy af.

39. Would you Spacewalk?

No, I’m a chicken shit.

40. Would you prefer to eat Windshield Bugs, Space Algae, or Bunker Meat?

Algae.

41. Would you start a war for the last spot of green on earth? What would your solution be to avoid it?

I wouldn’t start a war, I’d try to negotiate terms.

42. Would you rather dig out flesh-eating worms or stick thumb drives into bullet holes?

Thumb drives all the way.

43. Are you willing to poison your sister for the Traitor Who You Love? What would you do to stop Octavia?

If my sister turned the way Octavia did and she needed to be stopped, possibly. Goes to show how much Bellamy loves Clarke.

44. Would you go to sleep in cryo or stay awake like Marper?

I’d sleep.

45. Who are you waking up first to explore the new planet?

The ones with their heads screwed on. Diyoza, Shaw, Raven, Bellamy, Clarke.

I’m not tagging anyone but if you want to do this, definitely feel free.

#personal #about me #fun

[loveisalwayswise]

The 100 Ask Game

I was tagged by @foreverandalwayscrysis! Thank you ;)

1. What Station on the Ark would you be from? Probably Factory station because my parents both work in insurance and there’s nothing like it on the ark, but since I’m training to be a chemical engineer, I’d probably transfer to Mecha or Hydra.

2. What would you get arrested for on the Ark? Stealing medecine/supplies to help someone.

3. Would you take off your wristband when you landed on the ground? No, I’d keep it because I’d probably follow Clarke everywhere haha.

4. What would the necklace Finn would make for you look like? (Clarke: deer/Raven: a raven duh..) A lynx

5. If you could resurrect any MINOR character who would it be? Wells, without hesitation. Or Roan. My boys.

6. Create a squad of 5 characters to go on missions with. Who are they? Clarke, Bellamy, Murphy, Wells and Roan

7. What Grounder Clan would you belong to? Floukru

8. What would your name be in Trigedasleng? I have no idea how my name would be changed (it’s Ariane so? maybe add an h? or an apostrophe somewhere?)

9. Thoughts on Finn? Some people hate him, and others love him, so I’m curious. I never liked him. I disliked him from the moment he got the kids killed in the pilot. It was obviously a bad idea to go floating around in a falling space shuttle.

10. Be honest. How willing would you have been to take the chip without knowing all the horrible things it does? I would’ve been completely unwilling. I don’t even drink alcohol, the chip would horrify me.

11. What character do you relate to most? 100% Clarke and it always will be. I’m the kind of person who looks at the pragmatic solution first and foremost.

12. What character do you like the least? Is this even a question? E/cho. Always E/cho. The best moment of my life was when Roan banished her, and the worst was when they decided to bring her to space so that she could survive. Fuck that.

13. Describe your delinquent outfit. (Would you wear something like Murphy’s jacket with the spikey red shoulder patch or have a trademark like Jasper’s goggles? Be creative, yet practical) Jeans, sneakers, a warm shirt and a blue pastel rain coat (with many hidden pockets)

14. Favorite type of mutant animal? I loved the underwater animal they encountered in the pilot even if we never really saw it, and I would love to see more, even if I wouldn’t want to see it in real life.

15. What would your job be on the Ark? Chemical engineer

16. Would you have willingly pumped Ontari’s heart if Abby asked? Yes, and I probably would’ve volunteered before she asked.

17. If Lexa wasn’t Heda, but she was still alive, then who would have made the best commander? I really love Roan, but maybe Indra or Luna (before she went “let everyone die”)

18. How would you act if you ate the hallucinogenic nuts like Jasper and Monty? I’d probably go hide in a corner until it was over

19. How would you have dealt with Charlotte’s crime? A more John Murphy approach or Bellamy Blake approach? More like Bellamy.

20. Who should have been the Chancellor, if anyone? The political system on the ark seems a little bit broken (which political system isn’t?), but if I had to choose, I’d prefer either s1 Abby or s2 Kane.

21. Would you have been on Pike’s side like Bellamy or on Kane’s side? Or Clarke in Polis? Kane. I wouldn’t have been on Pike’s side at all, but even after all this time, I still dislike the Grounder society, so I wouldn’t want abide by their rules in Polis.

22. Mount Weather had a lot of modern commodities. (example: Maya’s iPod) What is the one thing you would snatch while there? Anything that could be used to play music and/or play games and/or read a lot of books. 

23. What would your Grounder tattoos look like? Hairstyle? War paint? I wouldn’t have any war paint, but I would probably get tattoos on both my arms, I’d want them to be really intricate, and abstract. I’d probably wear my hair loose or in a French braid.

24. Favorite quote? I have so many! It’s either "You may be the chancellor, but I'm in charge” (Clarke), "Maybe life should be about more than just surviving." (Clarke) or "Who we are and who we need to be to survive are very different things" (Bellamy)

25. If all of the characters were in the Hunger Games, who would have the best shot at winning? It depends on the season of the show. In s1, I’d said probably a grounder (Roan, Indra, Luna and Lexa would definitely be in the finals). By the end of s2, I’d say Clarke or Bellamy might have a chance. By s3, Clarke would be the clear winner for me.

26. Least favorite ship? Favorite canon ship? Favorite non-canon ship? 

Least favorite: B/echo 

Favorite canon ship: Marper

Favorite non-canon: Bellarke. Always.

27. A song that should be included in the next season? If there had to be another guest star like Shawn Mendes on the show, who would you want to make a cameo? My swiftie side is showing, but anything involving Taylor Swift would make me very happy.

28. What would you do if you were stuck in the bunker with Murphy for all that time? I’d probably spend all my time trying to figure out how to get out of there? Because since we’d be two in the bunker, the food supply would go out twice as fast and we’d probably starve if we stayed as long as Murphy did.

29. You’re an extra that gets killed off. How do you die? In an epic duel (that I almost won, if only my opponent hadn’t cheated) with the villain of the season, a sword through the heart. It makes the delinquents want revenge for my death. ;) ;) ;)

30. A character you’d like to learn more about and get flashbacks of? I know he’s dead, but Roan. I really wanted to learn more about his past.

31. A character you’d bang? Bellamy or Roan or Wells.

32. Would you stay in the Bunker? Go up to Space? Or live on your own in Eden? Before s5 I would’ve said space, but now I want to stay with Clarke and Madi on the ground, and never have to worry about other people ever again (or at least until 6 years later)

33. In the Bunker, would you follow Octavia? What would you do to pass the time underground? Yes, but after the cannibal thing, I probably would’ve made myself as small as possible so that she wouldn’t notice me. Ever. I’d go in complete stealth mode.

34. What crime would you commit in the Bunker that lands you in the fighting pits? Trying to cover for someone who spoke up against Bloreina or did something that would get them in the pits (like stealing).

35. Up in Space, who would you bond with first? Who would be the most difficult for you to get along with? I’d bond with Monty for sure, and I wouldn’t get along with E/cho at all.

36. How long do you think you would last on Earth by yourself? I’d die within 3 days. Because water. And not being able to find it.

37. When the Eligius ship lands what do you do? I’d probably watch from a distance, hidden, to see who they are and what they’re doing. I’d probably realize that they outnumber me, so I’d show myself because there is nowhere else to go on the planet. 

38. Favorite Eligius character? Least favorite? DIYOZA!!! SHE’S THE BEST!!! And my least favourite is McCreary (obviously).

39. Would you Spacewalk? Not if it used up vital oxygen, but if I could, I would. I love space.

40. Would you prefer to eat Windshield Bugs, Space Algae, or Bunker Meat? Algea

41. Would you start a war for the last spot of green on earth? What would your solution be to avoid it? No, which is why I would show myself to Eligius in the first place. I don’t want to go to war, and I since I’d be alone against them, I prefer following their rules than trying to take them out.

42. Would you rather dig out flesh-eating worms or stick thumb drives into bullet holes? Neither? Neither? Neither? Please can I do neither?

43. Are you willing to poison your sister for the Traitor Who You Love? What would you do to stop Octavia? I have a brother, and if my brother tried to do what Octavia did to Bellamy, I would poison him. And hope it wouldn’t kill him. But even if I needed to stop him, I would never intentionally be able to kill him. I’d probably even try to stop attempts on his life. So really... don’t count me in to try and stop Octavia if she’s my sister.

44. Would you go to sleep in cryo or stay awake like Marper? Cryo. 

45. Who are you waking up first to explore the new planet? Clarke, Bellamy, Murphy and Diyoza. The rest can stay asleep, but I would try to eject E/cho into space at some point.

tagging @hopewolves, @anne-shirley-blythe, @talistheintrovert, @goddess-clarke, @aainiouu, @goosexdanvers, @clarkgriffon, @chants-de-lune, @chase-the-windandtouch-the-sky and @prophecy-gurl 

#tag game

[buttered-rice1]

The 100 Tag Game

Tagged by @historyandships

1. What station on the Ark would you be from? Mecha, probably. My entire family is made of mechanics, so I'd imagine that's where they'd live.

2. What would you get arrested for on the Ark? Stealing/giving too much medicine

3. Would you take your wristband off when you landed on the ground? No. I am what one might call, a yellow bellied coward, and I don't think Bellamy's slicked back hair is going to change my mind.

4. What would the necklace Finn would make for you look like? (Clarke: deer/ Raven: a raven duh..) A flower maybe?

5. If you could resurrect any MINOR character who would it be? Sinclair. His death hurt me more than any other.

6. Create a squad of 5 characters to go on missions with. Who are they? Bellamy, Clarke, Murphy, Miller, and Raven

7. What Grounder Clan would you belong to? I looked up a map and based on my location, Rock Line.

8. What would your name be in Trigedasleng? Carei

9. Thoughts on Finn? Some people hate him, and others love him, so I’m curious. Finn was actually the reason I almost stopped watching The 100. He seemed like that typical "bad boy" character trying to get the cute blonde and would eventually be successful, because that's television, baby. I'm not a fan of that storyline, and when he called her princess, that drew the line for me. I wasn't going to watch a show with such an overdone trope. But then Clarke said, "They dropped us on the wrong damn mountain", and that interested me, so I decided to just watch a little longer. I'm so glad I did! I liked Finn a little better as his character developed more. Now, I'd categorize my opnion of him as neutral.

10. Be honest. How willing would you have been to take the chip without knowing all the horrible things it does? I've got a lot of health problems, so the idea of not being in pain? Hand it over NOW

11. What character do you relate to the most? Raven. When she said she was used to being picked first for everything and now she suddenly can't do anything, I felt that in my bones. Thankfully we've both found ways to adapt with our disabilities and learned to love our new lives!

12. What character do you like the least? Oh boy, here we go. I know some people going to hate me, but Wells. I felt like once he revealed that it was Clarke's mom who got her dad killed, his character felt empty, like there was nothing else to him. So him dying when he did felt right to me, and helped move the story forward.

13. Describe your delinquent outfit. (Would you wear something like Murphy’s jacket with the spikey red shoulder patch or have a trademark like Jasper’s goggles?) Be creative, yet practical. I loved Raven's bomber jacket because it was colorful yet simple, so I'd pick something similar for my jacket. I own like 15 black t-shirts, so no doubt one of those, and some kind of lace up boots.

14. Favorite type of mutant animal? Those glow in the dark butterflies

15. What would your job be on the Ark? Maybe a doctor? I've always been interetsed in medical stuff.

16. Would you have willingly pumped Ontari’s heart if Abby asked? Yes

17. If Lexa wasn’t Heda, but she was still alive, who would’ve made the best Commander? I really wanted to see Luna become Commander, but to be fair, Aden would've probably been more level headed and patient.

18. How would you act if you ate the hallucinogenic nuts? My body tends to react to drugs it doesn't like with aggression or crying, so probably one of those

19. How would you have dealt with Charlotte’s crime? A more John Murphy approach or a more Bellamy Blake approach? I thought Bellamy was in the right at the time, so my reaction would probably be closer aligned with his.

20. Who should’ve been the Chancellor, if anyone? I feel like Bellamy and Clarke had a good handle on things before the adults came down and ruined everything. So I'd make them co-Chancellors.

21. Would you have been on Pike’s side or Kane’s side? Or Clarke in Polis? Clarke's side

22. Mount Weather had a lot of modern commodities. (example: Maya’s iPod) Wat is one thing you would snatch while there? SOAP

23. What would your Grounder tattoos look like? Hairstyle? War paint? I love wearing my hair in braids, so it'd be something ridiculously elaborate like Lexa's. I'd pick Octavia's 4x10 warpaint, and my tattoos would probably delicate lines making some kind of design.

24. Favorite quote?

Diyoza: "Tell me how the world ended."

Clarke: "Which time?"

25. If all of the characters were in the Hunger Games, who would have the best shot at winning? Echo. She's skilled with multiple weapons (bow, sword, staff, I'm pretty sure I saw her use a knife), she's sneaky, and she'd do anything to help her district/clan.

26. Least favorite ship? Favorite canon ship? Favorite non canon ship? NOT INCLUDING CL, BC, OR BE. Least favorite- Kabby, Favorite canon- Marper, Favorite non canon- Jasptavia

27. A song that should be included in the next season? If there had to be another guest star like Shawn Mendes on the show, who would you want to make a cameo? Can I just say pass on this one? I don't really know any celebrities and really only listen to one artist, and none of his songs really fit. The only one that might fit is Earth (by Sleeping at Last, ofc) in season 4.

28. What would you do if you were stuck in that bunker with Murphy all that time? Let's be honest, there'd probably be a baby Murphy at the end of those three months. What else was there to do?

29. You’re an extra that gets killed off. How do you die? Probably in the culling. I'd rather die softly in space than potentially violently on Earth.

30. A character you’d like to learn more about and get flashbacks of? Let me see child Murphy, darn it.

31. A character you’d bang? Honestly? All of them. Raven, Bellamy, Murphy, Harper, and Clarke would probably be my top 5. Plus Luna and Lexa.

32. Would you stay in the bunker, go to space, or live on your own in Eden? I'd live with my space pals

33. In the bunker, would you follow Octavia? What would you do to pass the time underground? I think I'd follow anyone who I thought was going to keep me alive. I'd pass time by learning new skills from other people. The hydroponic farm really interested me.

34. What crime would you commit in the bunker that lands you in the fighting pits? Not being a cannibal

35. Up in space, who would you bond with first? Who would be the most difficult for you to get along with? Raven, but it'd be because I'd be an annoying little sister to her and follow her around everywhere until she taught me how to do the things she's doing. The most difficult would probably be Echo.

36. How long do you think you would last on Earth by yourself? I don't think I'd last longer than a month by myself once I realized I'm not getting in that bunker

37. When the Eligius ship lands, what do you do? Get outta Dodge

38. Favorite Eligius character? Least favorite? Favorite- Dioyza. Least favorite- Vinson.

39. Would you spacewalk? Absolutely

40. Would you prefer to eat windshield bugs, space algae, or bunker meat? Space algae

41. Would you start a war for the last spot of green on Earth? What would your solution be to avoid it? No, because that's monumentally stupid. Ideally, I'd like to assimilate with the Eligius crew and combine our people, but if they weren't down with that, I'd want to divide the land.

42. Would you rather dig out flesh-eating worms or stick thumb drives into bullet holes? Thumb drives into bullet holes. Parasites give me the heebie jeebies.

43. Are you willing to poison your sister for the Traitor Who You Love? What would you do to stop Octavia? I don't have a sister, but if either of my brothers were pulling a stunt like that, they're going down.

44. Would you go to sleep in cryo or stay awake like Marper? If I had someone I loved to stay awake with me, I'd want to stay awake. If not, I'd go into cryo.

45. Who are you waking up first to explore the new planet? Mom and Dad, first off. Then Raven, Murphy, Echo, Diyoza, and Jackson.

Tagging: @katersann, @bellameblake, @nvm-illustration, @nightbleeder, @lovethyblakes

#the 100 tag game #tag game

[evolutionsvoid]

"Good morning, children! What a truly special day it is today, which makes me think of some of my favorite stories! Do you like stories children? Of course! Would you like to hear about the origin of the Myriapoda? The Myriapoda. It's my-ri-a- the millipedes and centipedes! Those things! Do you want to know how they came to be? Well gather round and gather close, for here is a tale to hear! It happened long, long ago, well before any of us were around. It was a time before time, a world of primordial forces and primitive gods. The sea was sludge and the landmasses were born fresh from its curdled tides, life had yet to be truly awakened. And in that ancient, lost land was a rather special being, one whose mass teemed and seethed with tubular lifeforms. She was the Mother of Worms, the great entity who brought forth the slithering creatures of the world. No, not snakes, you fools! Worms! Snakes aren't worms! Anyways, she walked this ancient land, spreading her kin and gaining new knowledge through meditation and night classes. Days were hot, so it was best to stay underground at that time. Night was much better for learning and what not, easier to read when you aren't desiccating. But she did not walk this path alone, no no! It was there that she found another entity who traveled the primordial earth, and it was the Father of Bugs! All things creepy and crawly came from him and he- no, not snakes! Snakes don't crawl! They slither! Yes, I know worms slither but they aren't the same thing! Snakes came from the Uncle of Serpents, okay? Now no more interruptions! Now where was I? Ah yes! Mother of Worms met the Father of Bugs during one of their night classes, right before one of their big exams. He was quite nervous about the upcoming test, and she offered to help him study. It was organic chemistry, and we all know how fun that is! So the two met together for several nights, going over all their notes and books, and that is where the spark happened! The two grew close to one another, and soon they began to date. Many happy days and nights followed after that test (despite the fact that both got only about 80% on the exam, but that worked) and they knew that their future belonged together. It was during their trip to New Zealand when Father of Bugs finally proposed to her, and she happily said yes. Soon after, they found themselves a wonderful little home in suburbia, complete with picket fence and a two car garage. With decent jobs and good paychecks, they settled themselves down in a nice, quiet life, but things were not yet complete! The primitive land hungered for new life and the primordial forces that brought forth the effluvial grime of existence could not be abated! The amalgamated moon shone bright that night, and its haunting light beckoned the things from beyond! And a few months later, Mother of Worms gave birth to their first child, whom they named Millie. Millie was a curious little girl with a lot of legs, like a thousand of them or something. She was a quiet and shy child, and her parents nearly burst with pride and love when she came into their lives. So much joy came from this occasion, that the two decided they should add one more child to the family. And that is where Cedric came in! He was much like Millie, but a bit more outgoing and precocious. He also had venomous legs he used as fangs, which was troublesome, but boys will be boys! With two happy children and two loving parents, the family lived for many joyful years. As time went on, their children spread themselves across the earth, as well as their children and their children's children! And now our world is just teeming with the many-legged little critters! Centipedes and millipedes as far as the eye can see! So many wonderful children coating this planet that we foolishly believe to be ours! How long can such a false reign last? How long until the throne crumbles beneath our feet and our blasphemous flesh is swallowed by the rightful, squirming heirs? Who knows, but it won't be after 10pm! Father of Bugs is quite strict with curfew! Ha ha! And that is that! The origin of Myriapoda! Wasn't that a lovely story? Now does anyone have any questions- oh my, would you just look at the time?!"    

#monster #creature #centipede #millipede #worm #art #drawing

[natsuhikoshidou]

A Tale Of Six Trillion Years And A Night: Chapter 2 - The Warmth of A Stranger’s Hand (Part 2)

Part 1  |  Chapter 3

4. The Girl for the Boy, The Boy for the Girl

 When the evening came closer, I began to get nervous.

Ai will probably come again today.

But lately, it’s not just that I look forward to that.

If Ai didn’t come, what would I do?

The nights when Ai is gone, the mornings, and the times of punishment.

I’m always thinking about those times.

Especially, when the evening begins and Ai hasn’t come yet, a day like today.

--- Maybe Ai isn’t coming.

Maybe she just won’t come.

“…..A, i.”

I tried to call out.

I tried use my unused voice.

“-----Ai”

Using my voice, I tried to call out.

The more I called out, the deeper I felt my chest tighten.

No matter how much I’m kicked and beaten, I’ve never felt this before.

Even just calling out Ai’s name, became painful.

I wonder what this feeling is.

Ever since I tried to use my voice, Ai listened to all the things I wanted to ask her.

『Whad, is, gind? 』

『Gind? Oh, kind? ---Hmm, kindness, that means being kind to people… ah, that’s no good. ……How should I say it….』

After she pondered for a short while, 『I’ve got it! 』 Ai said, her eyes gleaming.

『A person like Riku to me. A person that thinks about other people more than themselves. Someone who’s thoughtful. 』

『Thou…..?』

Thoughtful, she said, but I really didn’t understand.

『Calling out to people who are in pain, and trying to heal them. Saving people who are worried. That’s what ‘kind’ is. 』

『…..? Th, en, Ai, is, gind. 』

『---!!』

Ai is kind. The person who’s kind to me is Ai.

When I said what I thought, Ai’s eyes widened.

Before long, she smiled like she was worried.

『I’m… not kind at all. I’m dirty, and ugly. I’m not kind. …..I’m just lonely. 』

Lonely.

The feelings of kind and lonely. I didn’t understand them at all.

But, now.

Now, where my arms and legs shake if Ai doesn’t come, now that that’s happening, I’m ‘lonely’.

“---Sorry to keep you waiting, Riku---….”

It was Ai.

Carrying worse wounds than normal, Ai ran up to the vent.

“A, i-----…..”

You came. You came. You came.

I’m so glad, you came.

Ai smiled with her lips, where traces of blood remained.

“Sorry I’m late. But I’ve come every day like we promised, thank you for waiting.”

It’s Ai.

Kind, Ai.

“………..”

I’m scared.

That’s the first time I thought that.

The words that child’s ‘Mother’ said before.

Even though, I don’t understand the feeling of ‘I don’t want you to die’.

--- Ai being gone, is scary.

Ai not coming, is scary.

Losing Ai, is scary.

…….. Scary.

 “What’s wrong?”

Ai smiled.

But I didn’t know how to convey that fear.

I looked at Ai with fearful eyes.

Ai gasped.

“…Did something scare you? Is there something scary?”

!   How did she know?

“Don’t be surprised. I understand. Because I’m always scared by my father. ----…….Every day, I’m also scared of losing Riku.”

Huh?

Ai said passionately.

“Is it strange? Or do you think it’s weird? But hey, that’s how I feel lately. There’s no place where I can breathe comfortably apart from here. Nowhere other than next to Riku. Places where I can see my father are scary and suffocating, places where nobody is friends with me are cold, thinking nobody loves me makes me feel like I’m freezing. So---“

So, Ai muttered.

“Riku disappearing, the only person who gave me a place where I belong, that’s the thing I’m now most scared of.”

Ai feels the same as me? Really?

Ai looked away like she was trying to hide something.

“I’m weird, saying stuff like that. I come to meet you here every day, but for some reason I’ve even become scared of meeting you. Even when we meet imagining losing Riku makes me feel scared. -----….. I’m really, too scared of it.”

A wry smile like she tried to hide her pitifulness.

But I saw Ai’s fingers shaking more and more.

“………”

Gyu, my gaze travelled to Ai as she bit her lip.

“I under,stand.”

“… You understand me? I’m not weird?”

You’re not weird. There’s nothing weird about you at all.

In order to demonstrate that, I showed Ai my shaking hand, from just imagining losing her.

Ai’s pupils widened.

“Riku, you’re the same too---?”

Right.

I’m the same as you.

“…That’s, right…….!”

I squeezed Ai’s hand.

I reached out my shaking hand, and squeezed her.

Strongly, strongly, strongly.

Like I begged, like I prayed.

“We… really are the same…”

Ai’s pupils wavered loosely.

Like a thin layer formed over them, Ai’s beautiful eyes.

The meaning of those tears is the same as the hot thing within my chest.

But I can’t understand why that makes Ai want to cry.

Even though I don’t understand why, I dislike Ai’s tears.

When Ai’s here, I overflow with lots of strange feelings.

Ai smiled slightly to the hand I held out.

“…Riku, you’re always trying to stop my tears. …Really, you always are.”

A frail voice. I knew it wasn’t just because she was sad.

“Hey, can we promise something? I never want to let go of you, Riku. I want to be with you every day. No matter where you are, I’ll always be your friend, Riku. Even if it might kill me, every day.”

What?

---Right. Come to think of it, you might be killed if you come close to me.

Suddenly, impatience welled up.

Ai continued without knowing those feelings of mine.

“So will you promise too, Riku? You mustn’t leave me. Despite anything, no matter what happens, will you always be my friend? Always, be near me---“

Ai spoke with a voice that echoed seriously.

Even though she didn’t have to wish for that. Even though there’s no reason I would let go of Ai.

Ai smiled.

“Never mind. Sorry, the truth is I was just scared.”

Ai’s thin arms held her legs, because of her bruises there.

“Honestly, we don’t need to promise. Because apart from next to Riku, I don’t have anywhere else I belong. I won’t let go of Riku.”

In a voice so small I couldn’t hear it, she whispered gently.

“…I won’t let go.”

Ai’s face as she looked down, telling herself.

The marks of the violence she received from her father.

I wonder when that Ai will disappear from beside me.

…When Ai will be killed, because she got close to me?

Ai says she doesn’t care.

Ai says she comes not knowing she might be killed.

But, but, but.

-------------- I’m scared of everything.

I don’t want to lose Ai.

 I didn’t know, I would be scared of losing her.

Maybe.

 『I was really scared…..』

 Maybe that ‘Mother’ also felt the same as me right now.

Maybe she was scared, of losing just one person.

That’s the first time, I thought that.

I thought.

 Without even remembering, that was a sin.

   5. The Boy with a Name

 Daytime without Ai here.

The time of the usual 【Punishment】.

The men finally came to my room today again and beat me.

They kicked my stomach with a dull sound.

“For God sake…were you getting cocky ‘cause we were a little busy today?” “Really. What did he think would happen from exercising around the room like that.”

While the men weren’t here, I exercised a little.

Because Ai was worried about me.

It was just walking and running around the room, but it seemed to use the thin muscle on my legs, which were only skin and bones, a little bit.

“You should just be a puppet for beating, without thinking or walking or moving!!”

---Bakin!!

A strange light noise.

My knees twisting in the opposite direction, it was a sound that required a lot of effort to make.

“……”

Without thinking anything, without moving a step, a puppet just for beating.

Nothing.

I must not, feel.

“…What’s that face. One portion wasn’t enough?”

One of the men whispered.

“He’d never give us a good enough reaction until now, no matter what, what’s up with him.”

“Now that you mention it, it’s weird that he started exercising too. He doesn’t go anywhere, so he’s got no reason to exercise.” “Maybe he’s in a rebellious period? Hah, that’s funny.”

The man snorted, he took his cigarette and pressed the end on the nape of my neck.

The smell of flesh burning shrouded around.

“Shit, something really pisses me off about his face. We should drown it.”

“In the underground reservoir or something? Haha, don’t, the water’ll get dirty.”

The other man’s expression changed, he said “Oi!” to the man that laughed as he spoke.

“Don’t talk about the reservoir.”

The man went back to laughing, at the man that spoke with a serious face.

“What are you worried about. You think this guy’s gonna tell anyone?”

“You’re right, I guess I was worrying too much. Thanks to what we taught him he can’t talk anyway.”

“He isn’t able to talk in the first place. After all---“

The men laughed lowly.

“---He’s a nameless Imiko.”

Click, my vision turned red.

  “….Wr, ong----….”

In a shaky voice, I spoke.

I saw the men’s expressions change in shock.

An expression like they saw something unbelievable.

“Just now, did he---“

“No way.  I didn’t just hear that.”

Several of them speaking. Without caring, I repeated.

“…Wrong.”

While stepping forward, the men’s gazes bounced back to me.

“!?”

Unease.

Now, the men’s expressions changed.

But I didn’t care.

I’m not a nameless Imiko.

I am---

 “-------I am, Riku……”

 Ai named me.

I don’t want you to say, I don’t have a name.

  “-----Huh?”

One of the men looked really confused.

“Did he say something just now?...... Riku?”

Another man nodded.

“Is that supposed to be a name? No way.”

“A name?”

The villagers exchanged glances.

Immediately after.

 “HAHAHAHAHA!!”

 A roar of laughter filled the room.

 “I don’t believe it! What is that, that’s super funny”

“A name, even though he’s an Imiko, are you stupid!?”

“What’s with that, ‘I am Riku’. You don’t have a name!”

“He seriously is rebelling. This idiot, kept trapped up his whole life!”

Guffawing.

The laughing didn’t stop.

My fingers shook at their behaviour, clearly looking down on me.

Rebel?

---Right, I rebelled, for the first time.

“What should we do? Should we hurt him some more?”

“Hey, now that he’s started to talk, we can beat some more obedience into him.”

“Yeah, repeat after me~. I’m a worthless worm, and stuff.”

“Not ‘I am Riku’, ‘I’m a worm’! Haha, that’s great.”

 …I’m scared.

My arms and legs shook.

The villagers, that overwhelmingly believed they were better than me.

The villagers, that always ruled over me.

Like they said, I can’t do anything.

It’s no good, it’s no good, it’s no good.

Everything is no good.

But.

“Anyway, why can he talk even though we taught him he doesn’t have a tongue.”

“Maybe he wanted to copy us? What was it, Shiku-chan?”

(*死苦 (shiku) means ‘agonising death’ & is one of the Buddhist teachings of the four kinds of suffering. It also rhymes with Riku, that’s the joke. Good one)

“C’mon, stop it, we want him to hurry up and die that much. He must be, Riku…. Rikuzu-kun”

(*This joke’s better. クズ (kuzu) means ‘trash’)

“Gyahahaha, you’re just as bad!!”

“Well, from now on we’ll call the Imiko Kuzu-kun, ok?”

“Then I think he should introduce himself!”

“Go on, Rikuzu-kun. Repeat yourself like earlier, ‘I am kuzu’.”

“……….”

I must not think anything. I must not wish for anything.

I understand that, but.

But, this name.

Just the name Riku.

 『Your name is Riku. 』

『If it’s the land, then wherever I go, we’ll always be together. 』

 I don’t want it to be defiled.

 “---…. I am, Riku….”

“Wha------“

The smiles gradually fell from the men’s faces.

“Is he honestly….?”

“Is he seriously going against us? Is he crazy?”

This isn’t funny.

The room was filled with that atmosphere.

“…We’ll forgive you this time. From now on, correct yourself as ‘I’m kuzu’.”

The man’s voice echoed.

A voice that aimed to threaten.

But, I…

 “…….But, I’m, still Riku…..!!”

 Not an Imiko, not a thing, not trash.

Riku.

 “What are you saying!!”

Thud!

“A name!? You’ve gotta be joking.”

Gokyun.

“It’s because of you that we live like this!”

Much more force than normal. Lots of power.

They wielded merciless violence.

“Right? A name? That’s stupid---“

“Understand your place!!”

“You! Shut up! We’ll hit you! Won’t that be nice!!”

“Anyone got any suggestions!? I say we spit on him.”

“Stupid, nobody should get close to this Imiko. He’ll copy us, I’m sure of it. …I say we really do take his tongue out!!”

“This thing that’s only useful for getting beaten’s going against us!”

“Talking like a human even though you’re an Imiko---….”

Beaten beaten beaten beaten beaten beaten.

Beaten until I couldn’t see anything.

But, but, but still.

“I, am , Ri, ku-----!” I was determined on that.

Now.

In any case, I thought it’d be bad if I didn’t speak now.

Despite what happens after this.

Despite what will happen.

“I am, Riku….”

I’ll shout it over and over again.

Shouting, my unfamiliar throat shaking.

Shouting shouting shouting shouting shouting.

-------I’m telling you.

The villagers that came to beat me, I told them.

It’s not just because Ai gave it to me.

It’s so that I myself can become Riku.

So I can become me.

So I can obtain it.

Surely, this is now necessary.

“Stop joking around-----!!” Thump.

A man standing next to me, knocked down a man standing over me.

 “You talked to us with your Imiko status!?

You rebelled against us with your Imiko status!? You asserted against us with your Imiko status!?”

 Snap

From the wooden handle the man held, something glittering with silver stood out. What is that?

“Oi, is that---“

“A knife? This could be bad.”

It seemed like the whispers of the men around him, couldn’t be heard by the man in front of me.

He glared at me with bloodshot eyes.

“Stop joking around! Stop joking around! Stop joking around!! You don’t have the right! You’re just a pet dog that we use to kick and beat, all you do is bleed!! You’re just an Imiko!!”

Slash, slash, slash.

The sharp metal, stabbed both my arms, cheek and shoulder.

What is this? This must be a blade.

Slash, slash, slash, slash, slash, slash, slash.

My flesh tore, the blade touched by bone.

An unbelievably large amount of blood overflowed from my wounds.

“A, ah….?”

This is dangerous.

I was attacked with a sense of danger from the amount of hits I’d never had until this point.

It doesn’t hurt.

Though I felt the sensations of the heat and the blade piercing my flesh, apart from that.

-----This is bad.

Though I really don’t understand, this is bad.

“I’ll kill you, I’m going to kill you. We won’t forgive you for rebelling against us, I’ll kill you I’ll kill you I’ll kill you I’ll kill you I’ll kill you.”

Right, I’ll die.

At this rate, I’ll die.

“Hey, stop!” “Are you crazy? If you kill him, then what will----“

The amount of blood soaking the floor panicked the men.

 ------ I don’t want to die.

 It’s the first time, I thought that.

 『I always thought I had to hurry up and die.

I had no other hope than to die.

So I wouldn’t feel the pain of being tormented every day, I pretended not to see how my heart was being worn down.

I thought if I died I would be released from this pain.

I dreamt only about dying, but---

… Since I’ve been with you, who’s the same as me, I now feel glad that I didn’t die.』

 I recalled Ai’s words.

Now I think I might understand the meaning what Ai said a little bit.

At least thinking about wanting to hurry up and die.

I knew I couldn’t even expect to die, now that I finally realised I’m alive.

 But now.

 Ai is with me now. I won’t die and leave Ai.

Ai won’t be alone again, by herself.

Even though I finally found Ai.

Even though Ai finally found me.

---- Even though, we finally became together.

 The flowing blood.

My arms and legs becoming cold.

My hazy vision.

I’m close to death. It’s creeping up.

Slash slash slash slash.

The blade still hasn’t stopped.

 In my consciousness, invaded with darkness, I heard the voice of a woman who shouldn’t be there.

Not from a person, but from a hole in the ceiling.

 『-------Stop right there.

Killing that boy will be betraying us as a breach of contract. 』

 The woman spoke in a low voice.

 『You know, with the 【City】----------』

Chapter 3 -->

#Six Trillion Years and Overnight Story #六兆年と一夜物語 #kemu #kemu voxx #pandora voxx #oh riku.. :(