#yeah sure via jacob

[milfjuulpod]

Guidance, Ch III

A/N: hiii sorry this took so long, all the chapters are posted on my AO3, same username. hopefully the next update will be better, i’m not too proud of this one :,(

previous chapters are on AO3 and my master list, here

You and Melissa had agreed on meeting after school for coffee on Thursday, giving you each time to prepare some work. One of her students was showing signs of dyslexia, and after a one-on-one meeting with the student, the redhead decided to take action. Via email, she gave you some information to get started and make an IEP for her. It was quite early in the year, and with it being your first year doing this job, you were quite nervous. Nonetheless, you put your best foot forward and got to work nearly immediately. 

Of course, your habit of drowning yourself in work caught the attention of others. A knock at your door pulled you away from the research in front of you. “Hey you! I feel like you’ve been here for weeks and we’ve barely bonded,” Janine announced herself, entering the room. The younger teacher was sweet, and even though her overzealous personality could be a bit much, you knew it was coming from a good heart. 

“Sorry, Janine. I get wrapped up in work pretty easily. How’s your Tuesday going? Kids treating you right?” You asked, minimizing the tabs on your computer. 

“Oh my students are great, right now we’re working on fractions and it’s actually going good!” She said enthusiastically. “I’m glad to hear, can I help you with anything?” You continued. 

“Uh, yeah! Jacob and I are going out for trivia on Thursday, you should totally join us! I heard you went to a great university and we would love to spend some time together after school. Have you met Jacob? He’s so sweet you’ll love him, you know actually-” You cut off Janine before she could start one of her infamous rants, which you heard lots about and we’re lucky to avoid until this point. 

“Actually, I can’t Thursday. Don’t get me wrong, I would love to get to know you guys but, I’m actually meeting with Ms. Schemmenti to help one of her students out.”

Janine’s face dropped, and just as quick as it did, she returned to her peppy demeanor. It reminded you of what she previously said about Melissa, and you silently wondered if there was any truth to it. “Oh, no worries. I’m sure we’ll figure something out soon,” Seemingly wanting to avoid more rejection, Janine gathered her things. “Wait, Friday is our half day, right? Maybe we could go grab lunch or something after school? Make up for me missing trivia?” You offered, not wanting to make her feel bad. 

It seemed like you made the right choice, as Janine immediately bounced back. “That would be awesome! I’ll tell Jacob right now, see you around!” 

-

The rest of the week passed by rather quickly, filled with new paperwork and projects that you continued to work on. Thursday came before you knew it, and with the final bell, the plans you had put most of your attention to were gathered, on their way with you to meet Melissa for coffee. 

Opus was gorgeous inside, filled with neutral colors and artwork from the team and local artists. Plants covered the walls and even decorated some tables. It was nice, you were happy to meet the redhead in a place like this. Upon seeing her, you felt your breath catch and couldn’t take your eyes away. Sure, it was right after school so she was wearing the same pink sweater and tight jeans, but something about seeing her more relaxed, outside of the school walls, it made your heart beat a little bit faster. 

“Hey hon, thanks for meeting with me after school. I brought some stuff to brainstorm with…” She trailed off, picking a table for the two of you and immediately covering it with papers and binders. Janine’s voice rang in your head again, and you began to feel insecure about where you stood with Melissa. Maybe even stupid, for thinking she would find a friend in you. 

“That’s fine, I’m gonna grab our coffees, macchiato?” You asked, but Melissa was quick to turn down the offer. “Absolutely not, you buy me coffee all the time. It’s my turn,” she walked past you, gently pushing you to the side with a hand on your back. Just as quickly as you remembered the infamous words about the older teacher, you forgot them. 

The rest of the afternoon was that way. One moment, completely entranced by the woman across the table from you, unable to pull your attention away. The next, avoiding eye contact and feeling uncomfortable and used. Something told you Melissa noticed your switch in behaviors almost every time, the way she would mimic your actions. It was impossible to read her. Maybe she wanted it that way, maybe you just couldn’t read her. 

After a couple of hours of this back and forth, the two of you decided to call it. “Thank you, again, for helping me. It means a lot,” Melissa said outside of the cafe, wind blowing her hair ever so slightly. “Oh…It’s no problem, I’ll see you tomorrow,” You smiled and turned to take your leave, anxiety bubbling at the surface, until a hand grabbed your wrist to face its owner yet again. “Hey, what’s goin’ on with you today? Usually you’re more…I don’t know…upbeat and engaged. Is everything okay?” 

“Yeah, I’m fine, sorry. I just…I mentioned to Janine the lunch you shared with me earlier and she said something that made me a little nervous,” You answered. As much as you didn’t want to tell the truth, you figured lying would be even worse. Instead of replying, Melissa motioned for you to continue. “She said she hoped you weren’t buttering me up for something and why else would you be nice to me?” 

Wrong choice. Melissa’s eyes widened and you could see all the rage she had in her expression. “Oh, so I can’t be nice to the newbie for one day? I gotta get somethin’ out of it? And you believed her…This whole time? Whole time you’ve been buying me coffee and offering to help, what are you trying to get out of it?” She yelled, and didn’t give you any time to retaliate as she got in her car and left you on the steps. 

Defeated, you stood alone for a moment, trying to collect your thoughts. You felt like an idiot, again. For believing what Janine said, and for treating Melissa poorly. You threw your work into the passenger seat of the car and drove to trivia. 

-

“Oh my god! I thought you weren’t coming? Weren’t you going to meet Melissa today?” Janine nearly yelled as she ran from her booth of friends up to you. “Yeah…I did. It didn’t go too well actually so I wanted to come here and at least have a good night. I hope that’s okay?” 

“Of course it is, here come sit with all of us.” Janine led you back to the booth with Jacob and Gregory, happy to be in the company of new friends. “Alright, trivia doesn’t start for another thirty minutes, what happened?” Janine asked, which was followed by Jacob interrogating you as well, and Gregory listening attentively. You explained the entire afternoon to the three of them, hoping to at least get it out of your system. All three of them had something different to say, but you took Gregory’s advice to heart. 

“Listen, Melissa’s a bit tough on the outside, but she always means well. Just apologize to her for reacting that way and, with time, I’m sure things will be fine.”

Thankfully, trivia started shortly after the advice dump you received, and you were happy to be done talking about it. Hopefully tomorrow morning, with a macchiato and an apology, you could make it up to Melissa. 

#abbott elementary fics #abbott elementary #lisa ann walter #wlw #melissa schemmenti x reader #melissa schemmenti x you #melissa schemmenti

[rosewaterandivy]

Everyone But You - a Life as We Know It au

Ch. 2 - I've Got That Lefty Curse

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Summary: hey, you know what a funeral is decidedly not for? gettin' your dick wet. | OR eddie munson's no good, very bad lay. Pairing: e.m. x f!oc w.c.: 4.9K warnings: NSFW / MDNI, immersive second person narration w/ a name and background but no physical description mentioned, grief, character death, funeral, jason carver mention, badly repressed emotions, poor emotional regulation skills, bathroom antics inspired by the moves of Paris Geller and that one scene from Catch & Release tagging: @powderblueblood for coming up with Eddie's nickname for the rover 😘

The garage door trundles open as Eddie twirls the keys in a flourish. You squint behind your sunglasses, bringing your phone closer to avoid the sun’s glare as you triple-check the directions to CPS.

“You’ve gotta be shitting me.” Eddie grouses as the car comes into view. It’s big, some kind of SUV, a Range Rover apparently, if his grumbling is to go by, one that is impeccably clean.

“What’s the problem?” You walk toward the car as it chirps to unlock, “Keys,” You point to his outstretched hand, “Driver,” You point to him and finally gesture to the car, “Vehicle.”

He scoffs and rolls his eyes, “Right, sure. Lemme drive this car that’s worth more than my life, that’ll go real swell!” He choruses in false cheer before his face falls, “Yeah, no. Think fast,” He lobs the keys toward you which you step to avoid, and the pair of you watch as they rattle to the floor.

“Well shit, Sherlock, y’know you’re supposed to catch things as they’re thrown at you.”

You roll your lips between your teeth and raise a brow, “I don’t drive.”

“Riiiight,” Eddie says, scooping down to collect the keys. “Of course you don’t, your majesty. Wouldn’t want to sully ourselves with something so pedestrian.” He yanks the driver’s side door open and hauls himself inside.

Settled in the passenger seat, you buckle your seatbelt and pair your phone to the bluetooth in the car. Eddie adjusts the seat and mirror before deciding on a Sirius station for the fifteen minute journey to downtown.

“For the record,” He says, pulling out onto the residential street, “I have a driver’s license, not a boating one. This thing is a goddamn behemoth.”

The car lurches forward as he navigates toward the stop sign at the end of the block, the seatbelt seizes against your chest, jerking you backward into the seat.

“Munson, sort your shit out! There’s going to be an actual baby whose well-being we’re responsible for in here, you know.”

He kisses his teeth and huffs in exasperation, “Sorryyy, I can’t figure out the damn clutch on the S.S. Fuck The Planet, princess. Jesus H. Christ.” 

You make a mental note to have the insurance policy switched over and update the title on the cars as well. Swiping over to the notes app, you tap out a reminder and add a trip to the grocery store for good measure. The list is titled: HOW TO SURVIVE IN HAWKINS and has such gems as: whole foods - where?, research moving co.’s NYC, check out brownstone, contact attorney & set up will, utilities & electric??, and baby books!!!

While you prepped for the impending arrival of Zoë and a prolonged stay in the Midwest, Eddie prattled through the house like Jacob Marley’s ghost shuffling from one vacant room to the next. He’d sent something off to his agent and editor via email about pushing the deadline back for his current novel, and had thrown his duffle in one of the spare bedrooms upstairs, the one furthest from Chrissy and Jason’s room, naturally.

You’d settled in a room close to the nursery and across the way from Eddie. The guest bath was conveniently at the end of the hall just before the staircase. Neither of you bothered unpacking after Max left, just threw your bags upstairs and scrambled to the garage to pick up Zoë as soon as possible.

The ride smooths out, eventually, Eddie seeming to get a hang of the clutch or whatever it was, and soon enough you’re being escorted back to the caseworker’s office at CPS. 

She instructs you to sign the form with your intention of temporary custody just until the court can set a date with the judge to award full custody. Until that time, a caseworker would be checking up on Zoë and your care of her, the findings of which would be presented to the judge at a later date.

“And if you’ll sign here as well, Mr. Munson.” 

Eddie scribbles off his disaster of a signature just as Zoe is brought in.

“Oh,” You sigh, relieved as you rise from the chair. “There she is.” You adjust the strap of your tote on your shoulder and leave the room, gently taking her from a woman with a nod of thanks. Keeping your voice soft and low, you greet Zoë. “Hi, sweetheart. Hi sweet girl!”

It’s rare that Eddie ever hears you like this, voice pitched just so as not to hint at any sadness you may be grappling with currently. And Zoë, she looks so pink and cute— footsie pajamas decorated in little hearts. 

“Oh, honey. It’s so good to see you.” You brush back her downy blonde hair just as she begins to fuss, blue eyes falling to Eddie, who is rendered speechless in the office. He sniffs to clear any welling tears and quietly thanks the caseworker before joining you in the waiting room.

“I know, I know,” You soothe, rocking her back and forth, watching as Eddie steps beside you. 

Zoë continues her soft cries, not nearing meltdown territory yet, but rather expressing her confusion or discomfort. Eddie’s hand cards through her wisps of blonde hair as you turn and say, “Hey, look. Hey, look – it’s Uncle Eddie!” Which seems to placate her somewhat, as chubby arm reaches toward him.

Lifting her from your hip, you continue to narrate: “Wanna go see him? Good, he’s right here.” And place her squarely against his chest, his hands coming to grip her sides as she tucks herself against him, little fingers gripping the worn fabric of his shirt.

You watch as he holds his goddaughter, her soft cries falling away to nothing as she nuzzles into his neck. “Okay,” You breathe, “We should really get her home.”

The car seat, however, proves difficult. Eddie has grimaced and groused his way through various belt to lock combinations, determining all of them to be useless.

“Who designed this thing, a fuckin’ Space X engineer?”

Leaning against the car with Zoë, you decide fifteen minutes is more than enough time for Eddie to dick around with the car seat. “Shove over Elon, this is getting ridiculous.” 

Seamlessly, you set Zoë in the car seat and buckle her in. “See?” You ask, a taunting lilt to your voice, “Was that so difficult?”

“Well, that’s because I eliminated all other possibilities, so obviously you—”

“Shut it, Munson. And drive.”

You’re nearly back to Loch Nora when a cop lights up behind the rover. “Really, today? C’mon man!” Eddie pulls off to the side of the road, going for his wallet before stopping short. “Oh, shit.”

“Oh shit? What do you mean oh shit?!” You whisper frantically, “This isn’t really on ‘oh shit’ type of moment, if you hadn’t noticed!”

“God, would you shut up for, like, two seconds so I can think?!”

“Please, let’s not pretend you think.”

An intentional elbow jabs into his ribs with enough force for him to hiss. He’s about to snarl something not fit for tiny ears back at you when two raps on the window shocks you both into silence.

Eddie reluctantly rolls down the window with a pained smile. 

“Morning officer, what seems to be the problem?”

There’s a pause before a bellowing laugh. “Munson!? Well, of all the gin joints in all the world—”

Eddie’s face flushes pink, “Uh, right. Hi there, Hop.” He clears his throat, “How are… things.”

“Bout to ask you the same thing, kid.” He pockets his aviator glasses and leans against the door, propping one arm to rest on the roof. “D’you know you rolled through that light down on Main before turning onto Pinebow?”

“Uh, no. Sorry, must’ve been distracted.”

“I’ll say,” The officer peers into the car, gaze falling on you. “Morning ma’am. Mind getting me the registration from the glove box?”

“I, uh,” You supply, uselessly. Eddie leans over to do it himself before you can ask what a registration would even look like. Your eyes dart back to Zoë still sleeping soundly. 

“I need to level with you Hop,” Eddie says, handing the paper over to him. “This is not my car, this is not my beautiful wife, and my license is expired.”

“It is!?” You ask, furious. How could he be so irresponsible? There is a child riding in the backseat! Before you can rip him a new asshole, the officer chuckles.

“Can’t say I’m surprised Ed. Shame about the wife bit though.” He reads the registration and passes it back to Eddie. “But considering the circumstances … I’ll let this one slide.”

“The circumstances?” You prompt, wondering how the hell a traffic cop would know about Chrissy and Jason’s accident.

“My condolences,” He says with a frown and furrowed brow, as if the very idea of their absence unsettles him. “It’s a small town, I’m sure everyone’ll know by day’s end.”

Hop puts his glasses back on and steps back from the vehicle. He nods to you with a small smile, before his eyes narrow on Eddie. “You need to get this taken care of, Munson.” Slapping the roof of the car, he turns on his heel and walks back to the cruiser, “See you Friday!”

Eddie waves him off and pulls back onto the road. Offering positively zero explanations as to why this man you’d never met before today would be showing up to the house later this week.

“Munson, why does that cop think he's coming by the house later?”

“Hmm, oh, Hop? He’s not just a cop, he’s the Sheriff.” 

As if that made it any better.

“Do I want to know why you’re friendly with the boys in blue, er, khaki? Thought you were the commander and chief of ACAB.”

“That,” He says, punching the button to open the garage as the house comes back into view, “Is a story for another time. But for now, just chalk it up to the fact that Hawkins is a verrrry small town, princess.”

By Friday, your bags still remain unpacked by the door to the guest room. It would be so easy to call a car, book a flight and just leave, like it had never happened in the first place.

You’re pretty sure that’s what Munson is expecting you to do. He doesn’t trust you, nor you him. How can you? It’s not like you were ever friends. And it’s not like you’ve seen him in that way since—

A soft knock from the door has you turning to find him holding Zoë in the crook of his arm. She’s smiling and sleepy, fresh from her bath. One that had left you positively drenched, prompting a hasty retreat to find a change of clothes.

“They’re, uh, driving up now.” Eddie mumbles, and though he hasn’t said it, hasn’t complained one bit, you can see how exhausted he is. Essentially dead on your feet from your first night with Zoë. 

She’d cried and wailed all night, or so it felt, and you were sure you’d wake up to a noise complaint or violation of the HOA’s quiet hours or some such shit. Eddie had volunteered to stay with her that night, elected to sleep on the couch in the nursery because he’s “slept on worse.”

He’s said it as if he didn’t already have dark circles under his eyes, as if they hadn’t been awake for over 24 hours, and you want to refute it, to say you can keep the baby monitor on you instead, but the look in Eddie’s eyes tells you this isn’t just about staying the night with Zoë. 

It’s that he wants to make sure Chrissy’s daughter is safe, to protect her daughter in the way he wasn’t able to protect his best friend last night.

“Could you just sleep in—” You tilt your head toward Chrissy and Jason’s room, it’s closer to the nursery anyway. But you don’t get to finish your thought before he’s swept in to the room and settled Zoë in her crib for the night. The conversation effectively over.

“Right,” You say, peeling off the door frame to leave, “Forget I asked.”

But that was last night, and you’d be remiss to say that you’d made it much longer on your own. The room was far too quiet, the sheets too stiff, and you couldn’t find your sound machine to save your life.

It’s two o’clock when you stumble into the nursery, nearly tripping over Eddie’s prone leg because he’s too tall for the small couch, but he doesn’t wake. You make yourself comfortable on the plush white rug, the one Chrissy had sworn felt like a cloud and rest your head on the pillow you’d snuck in from the guest room.

Maybe it’s the white noise machine looped to Zoë’s crib, or maybe it’s the proximity of being close to her that brings a sense of calm that’s enough to lull you into sleep. And maybe, it’s the soft snores and snuffles that fall from the tangle of limbs precariously close to slipping off of the couch.

Regardless, you and Eddie had somewhat survived your first day as guardians. Had struggled through feedings and diaper changes, nap time, and seemingly endless loads of laundry. You’d read Chrissy’s parenting books and ordered more to be delivered tomorrow. Eddie had returned victorious from a Target run and you’d each set about slapping sticky notes and scribbling furiously on a huge tear away calendar— you’d even assigned colors: you were purple, Eddie was neon green, Zoë was pink, naturally.

Max, Eddie’s friend and the estate attorney, had apparently rallied the troops for a family dinner for that evening. You and Eddie were to do nothing, under strict instructions from someone named Nancy to relax and focus on Zoë. You could hear the front door opening as people made their way inside for dinner. 

Gently, Eddie passes Zoë off to you and helps you wrap the sling around your torso. After watching several tutorials on YouTube, you felt confident that everyone would feel more comfortable this way. Plus, your arms were killing you— who knew carrying a baby around could be so tiring?

Once downstairs, introductions are made. Eddie names off everyone in attendance as they stare at you like a new exhibit at the MoMa, or maybe the zoo is more accurate. Immediately, you can see that you don’t belong. Everyone is dressed down casually in jeans and t-shirts, their shoes kicked off by the door.

Whereas you, on the other hand, announce your presence with the click-clack of your heels on the floorboards. Swan into rooms with impeccable posture and sport dresses never more than a season old, unless they’re archival vintage, of course. A bold lip and manicured nails, not a hair out of place.

To the assembled people of Hawkins, you sure cut the figure of a Stepford wife.

“Hi,” A voice pipes up from the man to your right, “I’m Ste—”

A metallic clang sounds out, muffling whatever he had to say. Quickly followed by an exasperated, “Oh, goddamit!”

You smile at him, “The pleasure is all mine. Dean, you said it was?” 

“I, uh,” He stammers out, unable to land his gaze anywhere on your person.

“Right,” You say primly, hearing more cursing from the kitchen, “If you’ll excuse me.”

And, of course, the source of the cacophony is none other than Munson himself. He’s got the hood fan going on the stovetop, and there’s smoke pluming from the oven. Company has been here all of ten minutes and he’s already going to burn the house down.

You grab the sheet pan he’s using to dissipate the smoke from the alarms on the ceiling and narrowly avoid smacking him upside the head.

“I never took you for an arsonist, but hey, there’s a first time for everything.”

He coughs into his shoulder, his hand waving through the air uselessly. But before you can tell him to shove over and let you handle things, people stream into the kitchen. Eddie is shuffled from the stove by a kind woman named Joyce, only to be pulled away by an older man, his uncle Wayne, while Hopper takes over in the kitchen.

Windows are opened by Max and Lucas, allowing the smoke to dissipate. And eventually, Joyce offers to take Zoë and put her to bed after her dinner of mashed peas and carrots. Begrudgingly you let her, dropping a kiss to her downy blonde curls before she’s whisked away.

Dinner is nice as is the company, even if conversation is a bit stilted and awkward given the circumstances. You don’t say much and no one expects you to, but every so often Wayne will catch you gaze and offer a small smile. It’s easy to appreciate his silence, to see it as a comfort because god knows his nephew is normally anything but.

You’re on your second glass of wine for the evening, listening to Robin as she details the various hijinks of what she refers to as the Scoops Troop. But she keeps mentioning someone named Steve and you have half a mind to ask her who that could possibly be. Dean, for all his lack of being mentioned in these stories, laughs along good-naturedly.

It’s when you yawn for the second time in five minutes, that Eddie suggests: “Hey, you should go up and get some sleep.”

You scowl, confused and pleasantly buzzed but stand up all the same. “Fine, but no promises, Munson.”

It had been decided that you’d give the eulogy for the service today. Eddie sits with Zoë in his lap – she's dozing off and you’re thankful – and when Eddie stares up at you, you can feel your heart in your throat. Initially, it seemed that Eddie would deliver the eulogy, this was, after all, his hometown and this church was full of people he’d known most of his life.

But when he’d come to you two nights ago after Zoë had finally fallen asleep, shaking like a leaf with crescent hollows beneath his eyes that the moon would envy, and he’d said in a voice so broken and empty: “I just can’t do it. Please don’t make me.”

And so you didn’t.

Halfway through, while the crowd is chuckling sadly, politely, at your anecdotes about Chrissy and Jason. Things are going well until Zoë begins to hiccup and throws a tantrum. Ellie, Chrissy’s mom, scoops her up into her arms easily and carries her out of the church. Over her shoulder, Zoë’s arms stretch out toward the front of the church, her face crumpled as she cries for her mommy and daddy.

Me too baby girl, me too.

You force yourself to look back at Eddie, and his eyes meet yours. It's a moment of understanding that goes straight to your gut and steals the breath from your lungs; Chrissy wasn’t ever coming back.

The wake is held at the house, a tasteful catered affair courtesy of Jason’s parents. Everyone thought it best for Zoë to be in a familiar setting to try and stick to her routine. People mill about downstairs stopping every so often to shake your hand and offer their condolences, thoughts and prayers, or claim that their hearts are with you during this difficult time.

It’s all you can do not to scream as you hold Zoë like a life raft. So, instead of snapping something at someone’s handsy uncle who has had you cornered for the last five minutes or so, you talk to Chrissy in your head.

What were you thinking Chris? This wasn’t the plan at all, in fact, you’ve jumped the gun by about sixty-odd years y’know. If you care to recall, we said we’d outlive our husbands and buy a place on the Cape. Descend into spinsterhood in style, and then haunt the shit out of that property, as is our right.

Ellie checks in on you with a soft touch to the arm, ushering pervy uncle toward the hors d’oeuvres. Small miracles. You can feel the tears gathering on your lashes, and you know that your tolerance for these platitudes is quickly dwindling. You haven’t seen Eddie since he fed and changed Zoë an hour or so ago.

He’s been distant since that night, the one where you’d refused him and drawn your line in the sand.

Catching sight of Robin, you tell her that Zoë is going for her nap and she promises to make your excuses. She latches on to that guy she seems permanently attached to, (Dean, you wanna say?) and they begin to spread the word in an attempt to clear everyone out.

You take the stairs slowly, not wanting to shift the dozing girl in your arms too much, as you step onto the second floor landing. Turning into the nursery, you set her down on the changing table and rid her of her funeral dress.

No little girl should ever have one, much less be given the opportunity to wear it.

Back in her comfy pjs, you sit on the rocking chair and kick off your heels. Zoë nuzzles against your neck as you hum softly. Sooner than you’d anticipated, the rhythmic rocking to and fro has eased her into sleep. Rising as gently as you’re able, you lay her down in the crib, turn on her sound machine, and step out of the room with baby monitor in hand.

Downstairs, you can hear rumblings of conversation overridden by a male voice: “You don’t have to go home, but you can’t stay here!” 

Chuckling, you duck into the guest bathroom before any of the hangers on can spot you as they take their leave. Back hitting the door, you allow yourself a moment or two to breathe. Surrounded by people all day on what has arguably been the worst day of your life to date. Smoothing down the skirt of your dress, you pull the shower curtain aside and step into the basin of the bathtub. Once settled, you draw the curtain closed again and let your head rest against the tile wall.

“Why did you leave me alone like this, Chrissy?” You say, voice ricocheting off the bathroom tiles. “You know I can’t handle anything without you.”

Not two minutes later, and someone comes barreling in. Huh, guess you never did lock that door. 

Before you can alert them of your presence, a high-pitched giggle sounds out followed by the scuffling of feet. The door is shut, and the lock is thrown as the giggle turns into a high, breathy gasp. They sound closer now, if the wet sounds of tongues battling for dominance is anything to go by.

Rearing back, you sink into the corner of the tub and will it all to go away. The noxious, ringing laughter continues unabated only punctuated by the sounds of a belt buckle clinking against the sink, a zipper being pulled down.

If you were so inclined (which you are decidedly not), you could simply turn your head to the left and feast your eyes on the shadow sexual escapades of one—

“Oh, Eddie.”

For fuck’s sake! As if this day could get any worse.

But, oh wait, it does.

“Sock it to me!” 

Biting the heel of your hand to quell the rising laughter, your eyes blow wide at her litany of ‘sock it to me’s’ – it’s as if that’s the only thing her poorly wired brain will allow her to say mid-coitus. Eddie’s laughter, understandable given the circumstances, devolves into an attempt to shush his conquest from what has got to be the most unimaginative dirty talk you’ve had the misfortune to be privy to.

When she finally reaches her peak (“Yeah! That’s so good!”), you’ve already mentally catalogued the ways in which you could have a) killed yourself in the interim, b) killed Eddie, and c) killed this poor woman, in all likelihood saving her from a life of mediocre sex at funerals.

“Thanks.”

Well, at least she’s polite.

“Uh, you’re welcome.”

Eddie sounds embarrassed, voice tight and you can imagine he’s doing that thing where he drums his fingers against his thigh, impatiently waiting for this all to be over. His lips are probably tucked between his teeth while she washes her hands, eyes anywhere but on her.

There’s the sound of the door being unlocked and the throw away line of “Call me,” and with that, she’s gone.

The sink runs again, Eddie muttering to himself under his breath, and for the briefest of seconds when you dramatically pull the shower curtain open, you could’ve sworn you saw something akin to regret (or was it disgust?) as he looked at himself in the mirror.

“Fuck!” 

He jumps back, startled at your Houdini-esque appearance. All too calmly, you step out from the bathtub, gaze fixed on him all the while. You pluck the joint from his fingers and stow it in your pocket. 

And you haven’t launched into him yet, so maybe this isn’t the verbal crucifixion that Eddie thinks it’ll be. There’s a curl to his lips that says he’s going to be a problem, that he’s going to make a joke out of this, as if he hadn’t buried his best friend earlier today and then gone and screwed a cater waiter in the bathroom of her house during the wake.

“Well, well, well, if it isn't my Lady Disdain,” He drawls, arms loosely crossed against his chest, “Are you yet living?”

It is only in deference to Zoë that you don’t go scorched earth on his ass right then and there. There’s a soft squawk from your other pocket where the baby monitor is as she likely rolls over in her sleep.

“I am only going to say this once, Munson, so you better get it through that abomination you call a skull.”

Briefly, someone attempts to enter the bathroom, the door nudging open only to be forcefully shut as you, in an impressive feat of balance, slam one Manolo Blahnik clad heel against the door and shove it closed.

“Occupied!”

You wait a beat or two, leg slotted against the door to be sure that whomever was on the opposite side did not attempt further entry. 

If only your yoga instructor could see you now.

Releasing your hold on the door, you flip the lock and take measured steps back to Eddie who is now crowded back against the pedestal sink.

“Did ya have some fun? Get you rocks off? Add another notch to the bedpost?” You seethe, and he knows better than to interrupt when you’re like this. “What a fitting way to send off Chrissy, huh? By defiling her home because you lack something called self-restraint.”

“Hey, that’s not—”

“What, is that not accurate Munson? Because from where I was sitting, it sounded like you couldn’t wait bust your nut into the next woman who batted her lashes at you, who maybe, juuuust maybe,” You take one step closer, a mere breath away from him. “Suffers form an undiagnosed brain injury and lowers herself to slum it with the likes of you.”

“Tell me how you really feel, sweetheart,” He sneers, “All those years of therapy seem to be doin’ wonders for your self-esteem. Because you’re too high and mighty to count yourself one of the crowd, right?”

“You have no right—”

“I have no right? Are you kidding me? I'm not the one who shuts down at the first opportunity, who would rather run away than stay here and deal with this!"

"It's not like I’ve left! I'm here, aren't I?"

"How the fuck am I supposed to know that?" He demands. "We are not just playing house here! And you can’t pretend that we’re not partners in this. If you’re so scared, why didn't you say anything?”

You storm toward the door, unlocking it as you turn the knob to leave. To get away from him and his pitying looks, his judgment.

"Because I don't need you!"

Eddie’s hand covers yours, “Maybe I need you!" He snaps, almost shouting. "Maybe I need you to work with me instead of against me. Maybe I need you to stop doubting yourself, because there's already so much to worry about and I can't help worrying about you. Maybe I need you to stop being so damn independent and self-absorbed. Maybe I need you to realize that you're not the only person here who lost a best friend."

The heartbreak on his face is so painfully clear that you can feel it in your chest; you can't believe you didn't noticed it before.

The door creaks open.

"Hey, are you guys – oh, sorry."

You turn from Eddie to see Robin on the stairs, hesitating. You clear your throat and blink away any tears, as you step through the door. "Can I help you?"

"I didn't mean to interrupt."

"You're not interrupting," You say, turning toward her and smoothing down your dress.

"Okaaaay." She looks doubtful. "Everyone’s cleared out, leftovers are in the fridge. I checked on Zo and she’s still zonked out."

You nod, “Thanks, for everything.”

“Happy to help.”

You wait until her footsteps fade away, and the front door shuts. Gritting your teeth, you watch as Eddie steps away from you and avoids making eye contact, your jaw clenched tightly enough to hurt.

There's something empty and aching at the base of your throat, and no matter how much you swallow, it won't go away.

#eddie munson x reader #eddie munson x you #eddie munson fafic #eddie munson x oc #stranger things fanfic #modern!eddie #fic: eby

[hoodharlow]

The Nightmare on the Upper East Side

AN: alexa play Just a Dream by Nelly

Requested? Everyone who said to fix it

Warnings: Jack being unserious and almost smut at the end

Word Count: 1.4k words

•••

Jack via Instagram Stories

•••

Miriam via Instagram Stories

•••

Jack woke up abruptly in cold sweat. He reached for his phone and checked his social media. His dream felt way too vivid. He instantly regretted eating all those bagels when he went to drop off Miriam at NYU for her 8am lecture. In his defense he was hungry as hell because he flew in an hour before Miriam's show started and barely made it to the theater. After her performance they went home because they were tired. Jack from being holed up in the studio in Nashville for over twenty-four hours the day before he flew out and Miriam because she was on campus since the morning and barely had time to get to the theater for makeup which took three hours.

For some reason bagels upsetted his stomach, causing him to have nightmares. He dreamt very realistic social media posts and news articles about him and Miriam breaking up. There were posts from their fan pages spewing drama between them because there was no explanation on why they broke up and their fans blamed the other. He even imagined potential dating rumors between her co-star Jacob Elordi and one of Miriam's classmates' boyfriends, Andrei Iosivas. Miriam was in Martin Scorsese's cinema studies program at NYU and met the NFL player's girlfriend there. Though Miriam and Andrei knew each other because Miriam took a summer class at Princeton. They made it clear they were solely classmates. 

Jack wasn't even sure how his subconscious came up with all of that in the three hours he napped. He tapped through some Instagram Stories and saw Miriam had finally gone to pick up her costume for her Hamilton themed birthday party that was in two weeks. Ever since she began rehearsal for the Nightmare Before Christmas, she'd been on a Hamilton phase and she sang one song from the musical each day on repeat. 

She was going as Angelica Schuyler. Jack didn't know what he was going on but Miriam reassured him he wasn't going as the man in the ten dollar bill or as the man Angelica Schuyler settled for. All he knew was Miriam wanted to take advantage of his new hairstyle.

He hopped in the shower and a few minutes later he got out and did his routine, changing into some grey sweats and a matching t-shirt. He made his way to the kitchen of their rental. They agreed it would be best if they just rented out a penthouse on the Upper East Side, near the Met Museum, instead of living with Katalina. They eantrd their own space, but that didn't stop Miriam from going over for sister sleepovers. They leased the apartment for two years, the length of Miriam's program at NYU. 

Jack found Miriam making herself matcha while she sang along to Satisfied as it played through the speaker. He was caught off guard by the fact that she was wearing her costume but in reality it wasn't the strangest thing he'd walk in on Miriam wearing. He leaned against the wall and enjoyed her performance. 

Miriam held up three fingers, "Number three. I know my sister like I know my own mind. You will never find anyone as trusting or as kind. If I tell her that I love him, she'd be silently resigned. He'd be mine. She would say, "I'm fine". She'd be lying. But when I fantasize at night, it's Alexander's eyes. As I romanticize what might have been if I hadn't sized him up so quickly. At least my dear Eliza's his wife. At least I keep his eyes in my life. To the groom. To the–AH!" Miriam let out a high pitch scream. "Don't do that."

"C'mere." He said, pulling her into a hug. 

He enveloped her into his arms. He held her curls and nuzzled his face in the crook of her neck. 

"Did the bagels I told you not to eat give you nightmares?" She asked, knowing it did.

"Yeah." He smiled sheepishly.

"No se puede contigo." Miriam giggled. She pushed herself up on the counter and Jack sat in front of her, using the huge billowing skirt as a pillow while Miriam played with his curls.

She reached over to her Mac and iPad to save her work and turn off her Lin Manuel Miranda playlist.

"What was your dream about?" She asked, twirling one of his curls.

“We broke up.” He murmured against her lap. 

“Wow, living without me is really the worst thing imaginable for you, I love that for me.” she said in a playful tone. “I’m kidding but how did that happen? The bagels couldn’t have triggered all that. ” 

“Before my nap, I was scrolling through tiktok and I saw a few videos of me at the Louisville game. Some of the comments were dragging me for being too excited at the game while the rest were calling me a piece of shit for not going to opening night and supporting you.” Jack said quietly as he played with the lace ends of Miriam’s dress sleeves.

“Wait, get me out of this dress so we can have a serious conversation.” she said getting off the counter.

“I don’t think I can have a serious conversation with you naked.” He joked. He held her hips and turned her so her back was to him. “Though this practice for when I take off your wedding dress.”

“Don’t worry, my wedding dress has a zipper in the back.” Miriam reassured him. 

“Good because I’m struggling with this shit.” He grumbled under his breath. 

“Just loosen up the ribbons.” 

“Oh.”

Jack undid the buttons and tugged the ribbons. Miriam shimmed out of the dress, revealing she was wearing one of her short workout rompers she wore to pilates. She quickly rushed to store it in her hallway closet with Jack’s costume. She grabbed one of Jack’s flannels and went to the living room where he was laying on the bisexual velvet green couch he bought her. She laid on his chest. Jack kissed her head and squeezed her tight.

“So what’s this about people giving you shit for not going to opening night? I literally had to beg you not to go.” she giggled.

“I know you asked me not to go, but I still felt guilty for not going. It was your big night and I should've been there lurking in the shadows at least.”

“That means a lot but I would have shit myself if I figured out you were there.” she said truthfully.

Like every theater girlie, Miriam was as superstitious as they came. She had this weird tradition where she couldn’t have her family and other loved ones on opening night. According to her, she needed a feel for the audience and how they interacted with her performance without knowing anyone she knew was sitting there. That allowed her to do her thing without the fear of someone she knew was perceiving her as Miriam and not as the character she was portraying. It was something she’d been doing for years and the one time her parents went to opening night, spring 2012, she got stage fright and ruined the play with her projectile vomiting. Since then they have been skipping opening night.  

It didn’t make sense to Jack but he was not one to mess with anyone’s pre-show rituals. He had a of his own and knew if one didn’t go as planned it ruined the video for one of his concerts. He knew it was serious business when her parents and siblings sent out a message reminding him not to show up. Though he had forgotten to relay that to his parents and Clay. They ended up going, but they were sitting far enough for Miriam to not recognize them until the curtain call when the show was over. 

“I’m making a notes-app post telling people not to bully you.” She reached for her NYU tote bag. 

Jack pushed her hand down. “It’s fine. I just wanted some reassurance from you.” 

“Wouldn’t you prefer some head from me?” Miriam smirked, straddling him.

“Always, just take off your ring. The jeweler gave me a weird look when I took it to get it cleaned.” He said before gently pulling her head down to kiss her.

“I love you.” Miriam mumbled against his lips.

“I love you too.” 

Soon the kiss grew intense and Jack was pushing down the straps of Miriam’s romper. Jack flipped them over so he was on top of her. In one swift movement he tugged off her romper, leaving her in her panties. Jack stood up and pulled off his shirt. He was met with Daisy jumping on his back.

“Oh shit I forgot I promised Daisy we’d make tiktoks with my new song. Rain check?” He asked, unserious.

“Are you serious telling me you rather make tiktoks with my dog than fuck me?” 

“When you put it like that…”

•••

@'jackharlowsource: Jack via Instagram Stories

@'jackstan: he's soooo 😭

@'mdmxjh: I just know Miriam yelled at him for posting this lol

@'miriamxjack: it's miriam's world and jack is just living in it lmao jackfan: he's her biggest fan i'm hear for it

@'miriamhater: i bet she forced him to take that second picture

-> @'mackshipper: you sound like a bitter sg fan when justin posts a picture of hailey lol

View all comments

•••

@'macksource: Jack and Miriam after Miriam’s sold-out show

@'mackshipper: New York really suits them

@'mdmxjh: their height differences always get me 🥴🥴🥴

@'mdmfan: Miriam is always gonna serve and I love this for me

@'jackfan: don't let new balance see this or they'll end their deal with Jack like Phocus did

-> @'jackstan: I thought it was a short contract, what are you going on about 😭

View all comments

•••

Jack on tiktok

@'missionaryjack: uh oh

@'miriamdominguez: we didn't fuck for this 😭

@'twittergirlie: this better not be a First Class

@'jackharlowtt: need this NOW

@'jackhater: mid

@'btsgirlie: imagine if he did this for 3d lmao

View all comments

Taglist: @heavyhitterheaux @cherry4everrr ​ @carma-fanficaddict ​ @youngharleezy @youngharleezyxo ​ @babyharleezy @that-90s-girllll  ​ @alinaharlow @harlowcomehome  @nattinatalia @webinurcloset @gassyandsassy1 @jackharloww  @awhore4moree  @noescapricho-essentimiento  @neon-lights-and-glitter  @purecinnamonextract  @whywontyoulovemecami @camificrecs  @itsyagirljaz

#jack harlow #jack and miriam #jack harlow fanfic #jack harlow angst #jack harlow fluff #jack harlow smut #jack harlow one shot #jackharlow #jack harlow imagine

[ghostradiodylan]

What type of music would the counselors listen to?

I know some of my mutuals have answered this question before and I'm sure my headcanons will be influenced by theirs, AND I'm also significantly older than the counselors so they're probably listening to gen z stuff my late millennial ass doesn't even know about but here goes nothing!

Laura So much SIØBHAN! Just kidding. Laura feels like two completely different characters in the game so I have a hard time deciding what I think spunky but straight-laced, ‘this is my first cop,’ over-achieving pre-vet student Laura Kearney would listen to vs badass avenging murder spree Laura Kearney (but maybe she always had that inside her). Part of me wants to say, like, 80’s pop (Prince, Blondie, Tiffany, Michael Jackson, Pat Benetar, etc.) and part of me wants to put her in the hard rock/metal zone with Ryan. Maybe she’s a bit of both.

Max I believe it was Addie (@insertlovelyperson) who said Max would listen to country music where women murder their cheating or abusive husbands. That tracks to me. Maybe it's the use of Alma Cogan's version of 'Fly Me to the Moon' in the game, but I also tend to associate him with crooner type singers of the 40's and 50's (Frank Sinatra, Perry Como, Dean Martin, etc), which is what I said he'd choose for karaoke. And because of this fanart I have no choice but to HC him as a major Ariana Grande fan, he's probably the one who chose the music for the drive to camp. So. Max has range.

Abi is the K-Pop/J-Pop stan to me but I know so little about that music beyond the crossover bands like BTS that I can't speak to it a whole lot. I think she'd also like some emo, pop-punk and moodier alt/pop. Avril Lavigne, Paramore, Melanie Martinez, Florence and the Machine, Metric, Lorde, Halsey, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Billie Eilish, Phoebe Bridgers/boygenius, etc. I feel like she's really into female fronted bands for some reason.

Jacob likes pretty much whatever is on the radio. He's a top 40 guy and has no shame about his enjoyment of Ed Sheeran and Justin Beiber, or about ugly crying to Taylor Swift and Coldplay. He rarely listens closely to the actual lyrics (and often gets them humorously wrong), he just goes on vibes. He discovers half the music he listens to via TikTok (not that there's anything wrong with that).

Emma is a theater kid through and through and loves broadway musicals. She goes through phases with each popular one. She's had a Waitress phase, a Mamma Mia phase, a Wicked phase, and a Hamilton phase, of course, and now she's into Mean Girls, Heathers, and Hadestown. Beyond that, I think she'd be a dedicated Swiftie, big Adele fan, and a lover of Britney Spears's entire body of work from the 90's through today.

Nick probably listens to stoner bro music. Like jam bands and psychedelic rock and stuff. He probably likes Dave Matthews Band and the Grateful Dead/Dark Star Orchestra, Sublime, Widespread Panic, Tame Impala, and O.A.R. Googling jam bands to remind myself which ones exist led me to the knowledge that there's an Australian psychedelic rock band called King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard and that name is so bonkers that I've decided without listening to more than a few bars that it has to be Nick's favorite band.

Ryan is a little bit emo and a little bit goth and a little bit old school punk. He needs music that's loud and moody to help sort out his feelings about life and drown out all the excess noise inside his head. He's into metal, the harder side of emo/screamo, goth rock, hard rock, punk, and post-punk. He definitely listens to Nightwish, GOJIRA, Mastodon, Lacuna Coil, Linkin Park, Rage Against the Machine, Bauhaus, Joy Division, Nine Inch Nails, Deftones, Thursday, Alkaline Trio, My Chemical Romance, AFI, Bad Religion, Black Flag, Minor Threat, The Misfits, Ramones, etc. He doesn't hate more accessible pop and rock music, but the closest he gets to choosing it for himself is probably something like The Cure or The Smashing Pumpkins or Depeche Mode, maybe some of the creepier Weeknd songs and Muse tracks too heavy to go on the Twilight soundtracks. He and Abi listen to Babymetal together.

Kaitlyn classic rock and 90's alternative. This girl likes the Stones more than the Beatles, though she'll listen to both. Led Zeppelin, Joan Jett, Pink Floyd, The Doors, Black Sabbath, the occasional hair band. She especially loves the 90's girl rockers like Alanis Morisette, Garbage, Hole, Veruca Salt, and No Doubt (Kaitlyn can't believe Gwen Stefani is married to pop-country dork Blake Shelton who sings that song about being your honey bee, because Gwen used to be so cool [I'm definitely not projecting]). I feel like she'd also love Bikini Kill and Sleater Kinney, Le Tigre, and The Donnas.

Dylan is the Music Guy ™ (and my personal bias/url namesake), so I've admittedly thought about his musical tastes more than most of the others'. The official Quarry website mentions his 'deep musical knowledge' and I imagine he has pretty broad views on what constitutes good music. He's got kind of a vintage vibe to him, maybe it's the reproduction band shirt from 1988, or the fact that he's into analog technology, or both, but I've noticed he's often depicted playing Queen or Bowie or something of that era in fics, which I think is realistic. This kid goes to the used record store and just buys whatever looks cool.

Fun Fact: According to the datamine, the chapters originally had literary or musical quotes at the beginning of each, and Chapter 5: White Noise (the radio hut chapter) was originally headed by the opening lyrics from Queen's 'Radio Ga Ga':

He's also the only character we see play music in canon, so we know he likes... songs from random compilation albums with inexpensive royalties. XD Just kidding, but these are the diegetic (in-universe) songs we get to hear from Dylan's playlist at the bonfire party:

All pop music of varying subtypes, so we know he appreciates a well-crafted pop song. I honestly am a fan of all of these. I think Dylan genuinely listens to everything but he seems like the type to especially like alt and indie pop, classic rock, garage rock, a bit of the more melodic side of punk, emo, and pop-punk, new wave, synth pop, electronic, and a little bit of hip hop that’s sufficiently nerdy white boy friendly (probably Beastie Boys, Run the Jewels, Post Malone, emo rap like Blackbear, etc). I also tend to gravitate towards early-mid aughts indie for him, like MGMT, Arctic Monkeys, The Strokes, OK Go, LCD Soundsystem, etc. Just seems to match his vibe. I think he'd really like BØRNS, Hozier, COIN, Mitski, and K.Flay and probably have a fair amount of overlap with Ryan's more melodic picks (MCR, Muse, The Cure, etc). Dylan probably hates Morrissey but begrudgingly loves The Smiths and definitely cranks up The Killers in his car. He’s also listening to bands right now that you’ve never heard of but will be huge in a couple years. He can probably tell you the difference between subgenres like chillwave, dream pop, and shoegaze but don’t ask me about it because I have no fucking clue.

Since we’re on the subject, here’s my absurdly long and ever-growing Rylan/Radioheads playlist because I have a problem.

And my Sweet Summer Jams playlist, that’s just a bunch of random songs I think would be clean enough to play at a summer camp as long as the kids/your boss don’t ask too many questions.

#the quarry #I just really love music okay #one of the many reasons I relate so much to Dylan #I don't actually listen to every artist mentioned but... a lot of them yes #I spent way too long on this #hacketteer headcanons #Hackett’s quarry radio hut #dylan lenivy #ryan erzahler #kaitlyn ka #abigail blyg #jacob custos #emma mountebank #laura kearney #max brinly #nick furcillo #ask bunny #hello beautiful anon #bunny blathers

[socially-awkward-skeleton]

Tagged by: @corvosattano @solstheimtxt @kyber-infinitygems @nightbloodbix @adelaidedrubman and @simplegenius042 this week thank you all so much!!

Tagging: @shallow-gravy @cassietrn @strangefable @stacispratt @eclecticwildflowers @poetikat @florbelles @direwombat @v0idbuggy @josephseedismyfather @theelderhazelnut @marivenah @josephslittledeputy @peppertheferalraccoon @neverthesameneveranother @strafethesesinners @clicheantagonist @inafieldofdaisies @voidika @roofgeese @confidentandgood @derelictheretic @trench-rot (no pressure) and anyone else with something to share :)

So now that I've spoiled the plot point of the scar on Jacob's chest via art work, guess I might as well share the scene where it happens (warnings for knifeplay and a scene where cutting someone sounds more like smut...if this ain't your jam, i'm sorry, feel free to ignore)

Saint Francis was utterly silent, so quiet only the sounds of the boughs of the trees rustling with the wind and the few calls of nocturnal animals outside could be heard. Deep in the darkness of the night there was only one light left on in the entirety of the building (as it was on most nights) and while Kit and Jacob would normally be busy at work, planning and preparing as any good soldier was known to do, tonight that was not the case.

Jacob lay sprawled out on the too small cot in the corner of the room, his arms folded behind his head, and eyes gently shut as Kit lay curled up beside him, her head resting on his shoulder. Whatever formal agreement had been made between them had just been consummated for what would certainly not be the last time that evening. 

Her fingers trailed through the red hair on his chest, caressing gently over the scars and raised skin that tracked over and marred his flesh, her warm breath fanning against him until  she sat up on her elbow, his dog tags jingling together against her chest as she moved and brushed flowing waves of copper hair over to one shoulder.

“I was thinking, I still need to give you something too.”

He cocked his brow but didn’t open his eyes. “Oh yeah, like what?” he asked, voice thick with the heady fog that came as he relaxed during his refractory period. 

The bed creaked and her weight shifted from the cot, the springs relaxing back into shape only to squeak once more as she returned and straddled herself over his thighs, her weight pressing down upon him like an iron anvil of muscle.  

Opening his eyes he was met by her smirk and the blade of her hunting knife twisting between her fingers. “Just what d’you think you’re doing with that, kitten?” He asked with a cock of his brow and a too smug grin on his face.

Bringing the knife down against his skin, she dragged the point of it down from his throat to the breast bone, a long red scratch left in its wake and it was sure to welt. Scoring the skin across his peck, Kit rested the tip of the knife just above where his heart beat below. With a coy grin, her lower lip pulling between her teeth, she husked, “Marking what’s mine.”

Jacob shifted, sitting up on his forearms, his eyes widening as she pressed down with the sharpened edge of her knife, cutting through layers of skin. Hissing as his blood bubbled up to the surface, he bared his teeth as she slit through old scar tissue to carve her initials into his chest. 

Kit’s pale eyes stayed focused on him and the reactions he gave more than on her penmanship, her stare tracking every flinch and curling of his lip, every tightening of his jaw and flaring of his nostrils like she was trying to commit it all to memory. 

Looking down at his chest, between the streams of scarlet that flowed from him, he could make out the letters KC cut into him. There was no going back now, she already had his number and knew exactly who his heart belonged to. 

With a toss of the knife to the floor, she leaned down and kept her eyes on him as she braced her hands on his shoulders, licking up the blood that had spilled down the curves of his peck.  The way the light hit her, making shadows around her eyes, her icy stare peering out from the dark made her look more animalistic than human as her tongue lapped at him, collecting the warmth from within his veins upon it and then devouring it like a lioness at a watering hole. She had that same bestial quality to her that she had after tearing out a man’s throat and consuming him in her cage, that moment when he knew she was just like him.

Swallowing heavily, his throat bobbing at the intensity of the way she scrutinized him, he was captivated entirely by her and the way her tongue dragged across her lips staining them with reddened saliva until they were the same shade they became when she was under his thumb. His hand quickly flew to the back of her head, and collecting a handful of her hair in his grip, pulled her towards his mouth to kiss her. The salty, metal tang mixed in their mouths as he drove his tongue in past her lips and nearly lost his mind, willing to suffocate himself to taste more of her. 

Prying herself free of him, she smiled against his mouth and peppered his lips with gentle kisses. “You’re mine,” she whispered.

“Goes both ways, Kitty.”

“I know.” 

#wip whenever #wip wednesday #tagged #american beasts #jacob seed #oc: kit cross #ship: the wolf and the wildcat #kit x jacob #tw knives #tw blood #also let it be known this is the way these two decide to get engaged

[daveysjackie]

Masterlist of all the Kelly-Jacobs kids I have made for my numerous AUs

Honestly, this is mostly so I can keep track of these scamps and my AUs. But I'm putting them here so enjoy

(Also, if you have any questions about the characters or the AUs, please ask, i love talking about my AUs)

My New Dream (single Dad Jack AU)

Faith Cecelia Kelly (Later Kelly-Jacobs)

The only child in this AU

She commonly goes by Fae

Named because of Jack's dream of Santa Fe (yeah Jack really sprained a brain muscle naming his kid)

She also gains the moniker of his "little fairy"

When Davey finds out her full name, he calls her Cece.

(He is the only person that is allowed to call her that. Not even Jack is allowed)

She was born soon after Jack moved to Santa Fe for college and he had a one night stand

She doesn't remember much of her life before meeting Davey when the move to NYC when she's 3

Discovers she's a lesbian when she's 7 and brings her first girlfriend home at age 10

Davey introduces her to baking when she's 5 and by the time she's 20, she is a pro baker on the cusp of owning her own little bakery

The Intricate Chaos Of You (Davey's band AU)

Stella Kelly-Jacobs

She was born via surrogate. Unlike both her dads having dark hair, she is blonde

Because of her blonde hair (and Jack and Davey always using the stars as endearments towards each other (because of Davey's song)) they name her Stella

Unlike her dads, her musical talent is limited to playing the recorder (badly)

She does have Jack's artistic talent

She either wants be a fashion designer or an inventor. There is no in-between and she changes her mind every other day

She is not very fond of the reporters and fans they deal with constantly so she loves it whenever they go back to Santa Fe because it's much more peaceful there

That being said, she has used her dads' fame to get out of trouble in school multiple times.

David Jacobs Guide To Dealing With A Bad Roommate (AKA my roommate AU)

Oliver Kelly Jacobs

He's told the story of how his dads started dating when he was 12

Jack never hears the end of it

What do you mean Aba had to get SHOT for you to confess you like him?

I was going to but the burglers got to him first

He's a little daredevil. He does flips on roller-skates, skateboards and bikes

(His dads dread when he starts learning to drive)

His dream occupation changes about twice a year

Unfortunately for his dads, he never chooses a safe job

(Jack's first grey hair is before he even hits 30 and he 100% blames Ollie)

Even In Silence

Connie Kelly-Jacobs

The oldest of her siblings

In the last chapter of EIS, she's 14

She's named after Connie Francis (who her grandfather (Jack's dad (Francis Sullivan) was named after)

She's loud all of the time (something picked up from all the time spent with Uncle Race)

She loves her siblings but is always in a competition with her brother.

It could be anything: homework, eating, brushing their teeth, she turns it into a competition

She could win everytime if she wants but she makes sure her brother wins just as many times (keeps a tally per week on her phone)

Fitz Kelly-Jacobs

His name comes from JFK's middle name (because his dad's (Jack's) aunt was named after Jackie Kennedy)

He is the middle child and only boy

In the last chapter of EIS he's 12

Almost the complete opposite of his older sister, he's very quiet.

Not that he doesn't talk. More like Ferb from Phineas and Ferb. Only speaks when he feels it's very necessary.

So he normally just uses ASL and is very close to Davey as a result

But he takes after Jack in his love for the drums

If he's sitting down at home, there's a 80% chance his youngest sister is in his lap

Meadow "Mimi" Kelly-Jacobs

The youngest of the siblings

Davey insisted on naming her after Medda somehow

But since she's young, everyone calls her Mimi to simplify it

She's 3 in the last chapter of EIS

A Jack Kelly carbon copy but with all the David Jacobs sass.

Ergo, the best of both her dads

Loves candy (as any child does)

Loves her siblings but has torn both of their hair at least twice when they ignored her in favour of literally anything else

Ice Skater AU

Maariyah "Maari" Kelly-Jacobs

She was adopted when she was 4

She's Punjabi (because I have to project SOMEWHERE)

Oldest by just a few months

Jack teaches all their kids to ice skate and she loves it so much, she decides to persue it as her career

just like dad

Wins her first competiton at 11 and Jack is a blubbering mess over her. She has a screenshot of it as Jack's picture on her phone.

She's a lesbian and meets her future wife at a rink while they're both just practising

Isaac Kelly Jacobs

He was 2 when Jack and Davey adopted him

He's African American. Jack immediately clicked with him because Isaac was orphaned when his mom died of cancer, the same as Jack.

He is normally the target of his siblings' pranks

When he becomes an astronaut, he often jokes in interviews that it was just to get as far as physically possible from them

He's the same age as Maari, just younger by a few months

He is pansexual and meets his partner in high school physics but they don't get together till they meet again years later

Sky Kelly Jacobs

The youngest of the siblings, adopted when they were only a few months old

They were born in Greece and are mixed race

Comes out as non-binary and ace when they're in their last year of middle school

(Jack's reaction to this is screaming "GOTTA CATCH 'EM ALL" and Davey rolls his eyes at that)

They're younger than their siblings by 3 years

They use the fame they get from being in a famous family to become a climate change activist (and dabbles in many other big social movements)

(This entire AU is just so >>>>)

Trans Davey AU

Francis "Frankie" Jacobs (later Kelly-Jacobs)

He was born before Davey starts the proper transition

He clicks with Jack immediately when they finally meet (he's 8)

Frankie is super close with his Aunt Sarah because she practically co-parented him up until he was 1

When Jack and Davey run into financial problems and meet Medda who gives them jobs, he becomes the "theatre's little nuisance (affectionate)"

Between the people at the theatre, Davey's family and all their friends, he is the apple of everyone's eyes

#newsies #davey jacobs #92sies #david jacobs #newsies broadway #jack kelly #1992sies #west endsies #livesies #uksies #javid newsies #javid #javey newsies #javey #AU masterlist #i love all of them #every single one

[abbottgiftexchange]

a gift from a person who asked to stay anonymous for @thehours2002 <3

Author's note: First Off, Happy Holidays everyone, and especially to my giftee. Hope yall had a great new year! I hope you like this little ficlet :) Writing in a male pov was a fun challenge, and I hope Barbara isn’t too OOC. Hope you enjoy it! Lastly, I don’t know when this fic would take place. Maybe in the abyss of time, idk. I think it's a couple years after the current season.

Jacob doesn’t know when he first noticed precisely.  Melissa being part of the community was always kind of an open secret, one that she not so subtly threatened him to never speak about- something about privacy and it being her own business. And Ava once set a school-wide memo that if you implied she was hetero was grounds to get canceled via her Twitter followers. 

 But Barbara? Barbara? The woman who he struggled to admit to being gay in his first-year teaching? (For the record, he did sorely misjudge her on that front but still.) Like sure, she divorced her husband a year prior, but that didn’t point to Barbara Howard being into women.

So one day, when they were all sitting in the teacher's lounge complaining about the cold outside, he saw out of the corner of his eye that one of Barbara’s hands gripped Melissa’s hand under the table.  Like…the other woman would leave at any moment. He didn’t mean to stare, really, but Gregory and Janine were talking to each other, and they kinda made it obvious they didn’t want him to butt in.

“You got to be kidding me,” Melissa muttered as she peered at her phone through her glasses. The hand-holding stopped. 

“What’s wrong?” Jacob asked, his eyes glancing between the two older women. 

“I have to go out in this weather; I’ll be back in a second.” The redhead muttered, shrugging on a winter jacket. 

He noticed that Barbara scowled as Melissa left the room in a rush. 

Janine and Gregory started to argue about the optics of How Nice Snow Is, so Jacob grabbed his mug and sat down next to Barbara. 

“So…How do you feel about snow?”

“It's fine, Jacob.” He could tell she wasn’t paying attention to his questions. 

“Yeah, yeah. I don’t love it either.” They sipped their drinks in unison. 

She looked over at the window and frowned. Jacob watched as the older woman got up and peered out the window. He followed her up to the window, and they watched as Melissa talked to some…Woman. 

“Who is that?”

“I don’t know.” She did not seem happy about that. Oof.

And then Melissa kissed the other woman on the cheek. 

“I didn’t know Melissa was dating someone.” He said, squinting through the snow that was falling. “Nice she met someone, though, right?” He looked over to his window-peeking companion. 

Barbara was gripping the windowsill. 

That's when part of it clicked in Jacobs's mind, and his eyes went back and forth between Barbara and the scene playing below. It put a lot of things into perspective. Many moments that he just wrote off as them being friends in a different light.  *

From there on, he kept a watchful eye on her. Part of him wanted to reach out and tell her he knew exactly what she was going through. But then he thought about it some more. His experiences were more about falling in love with straight men, and she was in love with a taken bisexual. Not really apples to apples there. And then it also dawned on him. 

Jacob didn’t know if she knew what she was feeling. He was able to come to terms with it. He had boy bands to focus heavily on as a young kid while he ignored everything around him. He had moments to explore. Barbara Howard might never have had anything to help her with these…feelings if she even acknowledged them. 

He didn’t really mean to pry. That was the last thing he wanted to do. But it felt like his calling to help her. Guide her like she guided him in the past. He repeated that phrase in his head on his way to the Kindergarten classroom. Jacob hoped she would still be here - the school bell did just ring, but it was Friday and people liked to bolt. 

He knocked a couple times on the doorframe, and what he got in response was a muttered, “I’m busy, Melissa.” She didn’t even look up from the papers on her desk. 

“Uh, it's Jacob?” 

“Oh, Jacob. Do you need something?” She gave him a smile but then looked past him, and her eyes darted around to see if anyone else was there. Okay…weird…Anyway, how was he going to word this? Don’t be too forward-

“Are you mad at Melissa? I noticed you didn’t sit with her today.”

Okay, Too Forward., maybe even the wrong approach. 

Barbara took a deep breath and sighed. 

“Speaking for both of us, I think Melissa and I would appreciate it if you and Janine stopped trying to intervene with our personal problems.”

Confirmed. 

“So you ARE mad at her.”  Full Send it, Jacob! He moved into her classroom, looked around for a place to sit, and then decided to stand rather than stoop to sitting in a five-year-olds chair. 

She sighed again. 

“I am not mad at Melissa; I am just…not the biggest fan of her current life choices.”

“That shes dating a…woman?”

Barbara's eyes widened. “No! Oh, Heavens, no. I just feel like her girlfriend isn’t the best. She could do better.”

It's like he was transported right back to the sixth grade, where his one guy friend started dating a girl, and he couldn’t do anything than just get mad at him.

“What's wrong with her? Melissa seems happier than when she was with that other guy, uhh, the one who stocked the vending machines. Didn’t she date him like a year or two ago?” 

“I know, I know. It’s just-” Barbara put her hand over her eyes. “I just have a feeling. I just don’t like her. Simple as that.”

Jacob tried really hard not to let his mouth fall open. 

“You are not speaking to Melissa because you have a gut feeling about her girlfriend, and correct me if I’m wrong, whom you have never met?” 

She closed her eyes. Then nodded. 

“To me, it sounds like you are jealous.” Jacob shrugged. 

The older woman looked away when the word “jealous” left his lips, refusing to meet his eyes. 

“Jealousy isn’t Godly. And what would I be jealous of? Really, Jacob.” Barbara forced out a laugh.

Should he really lay this on her? Right now? He took a deep breath. You are Full Sending This, Jacob, helping to make this the Gayest School in Philadelphia. 

“I think you love her. Maybe as a friend, maybe something more.” It was only when he heard the words leave his own lips did it fully set in what he said.

He didn’t wait for her reaction. He assumed it was something scandalized. Jacob booked it out of there faster than the speed of light. There were consequences to one's actions, and then there were consequences for speaking out of line to Barbara Howard, the best Kindergarten teacher in the whole city. 

He was TOO forward.  Why does he do this to himself? *

It was Janine who broke the ice. She visited his room on their break and interrupted his grading. He was trying to not be in the same room as Barbara as much as possible, but Barbara wasn’t interacting with Melissa at all, so Melissa was apparently pissed that everyone was ignoring everyone, so Janine finally cornered him and asked what happened. 

“Jacob, why?”

“I thought I was helping?”

“You don’t share a hallway with them! Me and Gregory do! Do you know what it's like to have Melissa interrogating you on why her best friend isn’t speaking to her?” She took a deep breath. “This is- This is like ten times worse than anything I have ever done.”

“I know.” He pulled his hand over his face, dragging it down. “I messed up a ton.”

His friend came over and side-hugged him. A minute after the hug, Janine giggled.

“What?”

“I still can’t believe you told Barbara she might be gay.” “Me neither.” He moaned.  *

It all came down to their garden. 

They both simultaneously noticed that despite both of them ignoring it (in hopes to not run into each other) that it seemed to be doing quite alright in the winter months. Jacob came out one Monday morning after letting it sit for a week or two to find Barbara doing the exact same thing. It was freezing and quite dark from the clouds overhead. 

“It’s still doing okay.” He said out loud, not really directing it to her, but more in amazement. 

“It is.” Barbara paused. “I haven’t worked on it, have-” He cuts her off with a shake of his head. “Hm.”

They step down into their little garden together. They’re both quiet as move around the plants. It seemed like minutes pass with no more words uttered. Jacob looked at the tiny pea pods below him and sighed. 

“I- Barbara, I was really out of line. I shouldn’t have assumed. I feel really awful for stepping in.” Jacob kicked a pebble into a corner. He willed himself to look up at the older woman. “I hope I didn’t make things worse for you and Melissa.”

Barbara looked at him with uncertainty. She then exhaled and fiddled with her long necklace. 

“Jacob, Jacob. I was making things worse with Melissa. You just said what was happening out loud. You noticed.”

He nodded, a bit unsure where this was going. 

“I do love Melissa. I’ve known her for many years. Maybe I do feel for her in the..the ways you said.” She paused and took a deep breath. “I don’t know. I think I have to think about a lot of things going forward, especially if it's obvious to everyone. And if it's gonna affect those around me.”

“Are you saying I helped you?” He was grinning, and he knew he really shouldn’t be, but sue him!

Barbara laughed.

“I’m giving you a maybe, Jacob, a maybe.”

They resumed their gardening with only a small interruption from Gregory, when he walked by and stared at them for a bit. (Why did he do that only when they were gardening?)

“How did you know?” She asked as she watered some vegetables. 

“I fell in love with my best friend. His name was Scott. I had never felt love like it before. It surpassed the love I felt for my friends, which at the time were mainly girls.” Jacob laughed. “Well, Scott met Maddy, and he soon forgot about me and my Pokemon card collection.”

She hummed in response. 

“When you first told me I was jealous, I couldn’t believe it. Me? Really? But then I went okay, yes, I was a little mad Melissa didn’t tell me about her new girlfriend. But then it went to: ‘I was mad Melissa wasn’t spending as much time with me.’ And then I just accepted I was jealous.” Jacob took note she was fiddling with her necklaces again. “I don’t think I loved anyone as much as I love Melissa. I don’t think I ever realized that until recently.”

“Thank you, Barbara, you didn’t have to share that with me. I- I feel honored.” Jacob felt tears spring up in his eyes; maybe he was finally cementing his place into their little work family, as Janine put it. 

She gave him the ‘you are laying it on a little thick’ look, and he shut up. 

“Well! If you ever want to visit one of my queer film nights going forward, you have an invitation.”

Her eyes widen. “Uh, Thank You, Jacob. I’ll have to, uh, think about that.” 

It was then that a beam of sunlight finally broke through the clouds, and Jacob smiled as it perfectly illuminated the woman in front of him. Saint Barbara Howard, Indeed.

#abbott elementary gift exchange #abbott elementary #barbara howard #melissa schemmenti #jacob hill #work wives #melissa x barbara #barbara x melissa

[politelymenacing]

I have a few crack predictions, some realistic and some not:

-The whole team comes out as some kind of queer person and Colin's dream has come true

-We get Michael this episode (and if they win Colin gets to kiss him, maybe not in front of the cameras but surrounded by his friends)

-Totally ripped off another person's post but the team finds out Ted's leaving and they all run to the airport to stop him rom-communism style

-Trent will once again be serving cunt

-I am a TedTrent girly so I desperately want another interaction

-Bex and Rupert break up and she gets the club :)))

-Say Ted does leave to Kansas and we see him there, I want him to mention his boys are coming for a visit soon 🥺🥺

-Roy and Keeley back together, and they're in a throuple with Jamie

-I kinda wanna see Henry again this episode??? Like maybe even if it's just via FaceTime and Henry is the one that convinces Ted to stay in London (because if the whole reason Ted is leaving London is for his son, then I think his son should be the one to convince him to stay)

-I WANT TED TO CALL THE TEAM HIS BOYS AND TELL THEM HOW PROUD HE IS OF THEM OKAY IS THAT SO MUCH TO ASK FOR?????

-I want Richard and Jan to have some more screen time I love them so much 🥺🥺

This went off the rails a bit but yeah 👍 this is my list what do you think???

Ahhhh thank you!!

Gonna take these one by one.

1. I think there are a few token straights in there, but definitely few and far between! Someone call Oprah, stat!

2. Yes yes yes. Before Amsterdam I was convinced that Colin was going to kiss Michael after a match or something and prove Nate wrong when he told Colin he doesn't inspire people. Notably, I thought he would inspire Baz to introduce his West Ham boyfriend to the pub gang. But then Colin said he didn't want to be a spokesperson, so I think maybe at a post-season or leaving party. Having said that I think that Colin and Will are adorable and should date.

3. YES. I saw this post too! Absolutely love this idea and want it to be true more than any other theory. He has won them over (even Roy!) with the Romcommunism. And the absolute chaos of all of them running through the airport would be a thing of beauty.

4. When is Trent not?

5. I too have fallen prey to the Tedependent brain rot. They have to talk about the book surely? And Ted HAS to ask Trent what he is doing next, right?? I mean, in a world where the ship became canon there are a million different scenarios I would be happy with. Trent doing the airport dash (maybe with the himbos as support), Trent saying nothing and Ted realising when he read the book which is just a long love letter, Trent turning up on the plane to Kansas, something in the press room, they go out for a meal to relive their first date interview... the list goes on.

6. Yes. 100% think this will actually happen. Slightly more on the cracky side: Rebecca and Bex are slowly going to get all the Premier League owners' wives to take over the clubs 🤣

7. Beard and Rebecca are going to arrange some friendly matches for Richmond to play against US Teams so everyone will visit.

8. Wouldn't be mad about Roy/Jamie/Keeley if it happened. It would certainly make sense after the last few episodes! Phoebe would be over the fucking moon. She is gonna be one rich niece! 🤣

9. I think Henry will play a big part for sure. Either he stops Ted from leaving, convinces him to go back to London because he's unhappy, or he moves to London. I am sort of half convinced it's the last one because they have been laying the ground work for it with the bullying and the failing science and the fact he doesn't seem to care too much for Dr. Jacob.

10. There will for sure be one last locker room speech, but I am kinda holding out for him winning Manager of the Season and saying something like that then and making everyone (especially me) cry.

11. Richard and Jan both crack me up. I am so grateful that we have gotten more of the team this series, but there's never enough time 😩

#answered #queenswearpurple #ted lasso speculation #ted lasso

[noperopesaredope]

So, I’ve been working on the Steven Universe crossover episodes for Jacob & Coco Across the Universe (my post canon Collector-centric AU), and during the initial planning, I had an interesting idea. For a bit of context, each planet that the pair visits is meant to teach at least one of them a lesson, typically via meeting a character whom they might be able to learn from or relate to. 

In the case of the Steven Universe crossover, Coco was originally just gonna connect with and relate to Spinel (though Lapis could also work a tiny bit). This is still the case, as they gonna become friends in the second part where I give them a pretty touching scene. However, before that, there is an episode in which Coco connects with another character. I’m not sure how I’ll make this happen exactly, as the two won’t truly meet, but Coco will relate to this character. They will relate to her almost as much, if not moreso, than they relate to Spinel.

We have been comparing Spinel and the Collector a lot, but there’s one character that we’ve been overlooking in terms of parallels. And that character is......

Pink Diamond/Rose Quartz

.

.

Hear me out!

Let’s start from the beginning. I know she gets a lot of hate, but Pink did actually have a pretty rough childhood, the kind that would mess with one’s sense of right and wrong. Pink was raised by three older sisters, the Diamonds, ancient powerful beings who committed genocide and war for many years. Sound familiar? On top of that, they weren’t always the best to Pink, and never took her seriously. As far as we can tell, this may have been the case for our dear Collector.

Pink had a tendency to treat other people like toys, and it was likely because she legitimately didn’t know better. It can be hard for young immortals to learn that others have feelings, especially when you’re taught otherwise.

And despite that, when she was sent down to another planet, she discovered other lifeforms, and she loved it there. She discovered how wrong the others were, and she hated the destruction her own species brought upon the world and beings she had begun to love. So she fought back. She became Rose.

This is where the stories diverge.

Even after thousands of years, Rose was still learning new things about kindness and love and people. Sure she wasn’t a very good person, but she wanted to be. She tried to be. Even when she kept fucking it up over and over and over again, she tried. She learned how to love and care for other beings, something that went directly against everything she had ever been told growing up.

And eventually, it seems that Rose had a realization of sorts. “There is something about be that is inherently unable to be a truly compassionate being. I was born a Diamond, and I’m not sure I’ll ever really stop being the way I was raised to be. I want to become a human.” And so she did. She likely believed that she wasn’t good enough, kind enough, to be worthy of such love her friends gave her. They didn’t deserve all her flaws.

So she chose to become a being that she believed wouldn’t have those flaws.

Something better.

Someone better.

If only Coco could do that too.

~~~~

So yeah, I realized there are an unhinged amount of parallels between the Collector and Pink Diamond. Yes, I am part of the Pink Diamond Apologist Squad. That is mainly because of the parallels between the two gave me realizations. Also, I like Rose and think her arc is actually kinda inspiring when you tell it in order. Also, her being a bad person was probably a retcon. 

But anyways, yeah, that is my mini-essay comparing these two very interesting characters.

#toh spoilers #toh collector #jacob & coco across the universe #toh #the owl house #the owl house collector #the owl house fandom #toh fandom #steven universe #pink diamond #rose quartz #rose quartz steven universe #su rose quartz #su pink diamond #character analysis #character study #parallels #no but actually these two match more than we thought #pink diamond apologist #su spoilers #su future #steven universe future

[storiesofsvu]

Fortuitous Reunion Ch 5

Rita Calhoun x reader Warnings: language, alcohol consumption, minor emotional content.

Olivia had gotten to Hogan Place earlier than she’d expected, settling into Rafael’s office as she waited for him to return with a warrant. They’d been communicating via text throughout the morning, and while she knew he probably wouldn’t be back yet, she was in the neighborhood with an extra cup of coffee so where else would she go?

“Sorry!” He huffed as he practically raced in the door, tossing his coat and briefcase aside, “Judge Jacobs would not stop talking about his grandkids, it was nearly impossible to get out of there.”

“Don’t worry about it.” She replied, “gave me a little bit of downtime.”

“And you don’t often get much of that.” He teased back, thanking her for the coffee, knowing it was his go to blend and much better than the crap in the office.

“As much as I’d love to stay and socialize… the warrant?”

“One condition.” Rafael smirked and she knew it wasn’t a work related condition, “what’re you doing on Saturday?”

“Aside from constantly being on call, nothing.”

“Perfect, I need a plus one to this event, it’s in the afternoon.”

“Raf….come on. Why can’t you just go to things by yourself? You’re a grown man.” She half teased.

“It’s an open bar..” he offered, “food’s all covered too. Come on, it’s Calhoun you know there won’t be any expense left out.”

“Calhoun?” Olivia felt her heart jump a beat.

“Yeah, her engagement party or whatever?”

“I’ll have to double check my schedule.”

“You just said you were free! Come on, free meal and drinks, we can poke fun of everything together.”

“Won’t my being there hinder you from meeting a potential date?” Rafael laughed at that,

“Defence attorney’s and people ten years my junior? That may be Rita’s style but no thank you.” He teased handing the warrant over.

“Fine.” She snatched the paper out of his hand, “but I do still need to check on something. I’ll call you later?”

“Thank you.” He smirked. Olivia shook her head at the man as she left his office. She knew that considering the circumstances, she might be intruding a little bit if she accompanied Rafael. But it was just a party, there’d probably be a lot of mutual friends and intermingling. It’d be fine, right?

*

The second person to grace Rafael’s office that afternoon was Rita. She’d come to strike a deal on her most recent case, the two of them battled back and fourth for a little bit before Rafael teasingly shot out one and she nearly immediately agreed, letting out a heavy sigh as she dropped back against the chair.

“This case really got you down that much?” He cocked a brow at her as he flipped the case file shut.

“No, it’s nothing.”

“Rita…I’ve known you longer than anyone else that I’m still friends with. Is it wedding stress? You guys know you don’t have to set a date right away, unless Y/N’s pushing for it?”

“No.” Rita smiled softly, “y/n’s perfect. I couldn’t ask for someone more wonderful.”

“Then what’s going on?”

“Raf.. I’m fine. Everything’s great.”

“Really? Because even a first year Harvard student wouldn’t have taken that deal. I didn’t even actually mean it, it was a joke.” As they’d been spitballing back and fourth he’d shot out one that sure, majorly favoured him, but someone like Rita would normally have rolled her eyes, picked up her things and said she’d see him in court.

“I honestly don’t care. Let him go down.”

“What has gotten into you?” Rafael was suddenly even more concerned, his voice incredibly soft now. The defeated look in his friend’s eyes had him worried, “I haven’t seen you like this since college.” Rita groaned, leaning forward in the chair as she ran her hands over her face.

“What I’m about to tell you does not leave the two of us, no matter how much you want to spill it. And if you end up finding out from someone else later on, it is the first time you’re hearing it. Understood?”

“Of course.” He meant it, she had his utmost honesty. Rita was one of his oldest friends and he wasn’t about to break her trust this far along.

“You know that Y/N’s adopted?”

“Yes.” He nodded, “oh God! You didn’t find out she was related to you or something?” Rita chuckled,

“You need to stop watching so many telenovela’s.”

“Okay well you can spend next weekend with Mami then.”

“I’m sure she’d enjoy it more than seeing you for once.” Rafael scoffed, even amidst a somewhat emotional conversation she was able to throw a few jabs in.

“Okay, back to the topic. What’s going on with y/n?”

“I found out who her birth mother is.”

“Did it come up on a case?” His brow furrowed,

“Not exactly…” Rita huffed, deciding to just bite the bullet, “her birth mother’s Liv.”

“Olivia…Benson…?” She nodded, “are you sure?”

“Olivia told me herself last week. Y/N came into the precinct to drop something off, Liv recognized her, but y/n has no idea who she is. I was worried something happened in her past, or with her birth parents that maybe she didn’t know about, so I pressed Benson until she gave it up.”

“Oh…” Rafael paused to process before he suddenly remembered the condition he’d made earlier, “I..should probably tell you I just asked Liv to be my plus one for Saturday.”

“I know.” Rita waved it off, “I ran into her in the elevator. It’ll be fine, the more the merrier. Maybe give them some time to talk or something.”

“Y/n has no idea?”

“None in the slightest.” She sighed, “I feel like I should tell her but Liv wants to try and wrap her head around everything before they talk about it.”

“At least give it some time, you’re all wrapped up in the honeymoon phase of your engagement. Enjoy it while you can, let the glow ware off on its own instead of breaking it yourself.”

“You’re right.” Rita pushed up to standing, pausing briefly as she glanced at Rafael, “that tie clashes horribly with your shirt.”

“There she is…” Rafael teased at the return of the quick witted sass filled friend he knew.

“And I’m taking back that deal.”

“I figured as much.” He called after her as she left the office. No doubtedly leaving the door open on purpose just so he’d have to get up and close it himself.

*

It was no surprise that your engagement party was at The River Café. The semi private back half of the restaurant and the back terrace had been rented out for the party, you’d chosen to leave the decorations to what they normally would be, nothing special considering you knew the reception was going to be in the same place. Some might have found that idea to be a little tacky, but this place was a special part of your relationship and it meant a lot to both you and Rita.

It was a smaller event than normal, the closest friends from both of your lives scattered throughout the space, the ones that you wanted to celebrate with the most. The bar was flowing the free champagne and mimosas throughout the early afternoon, an array of the brunch menu mixed in with some of the appetizers from the dinner menu laid out on an open buffet. It started out a little on the slow side, as people popped in and out throughout their otherwise occupied day, but it was perfect.

Rita forgot all of her worries as you caught her eye from across the room, you were animatedly talking with one of your college best friends, the sparkle in your eye ever so evident as you caught each other up on your lives. You looked absolutely astonishing, your hair swooped off your neck, the top of your dress glittering away in the sun while the white of the skirt came to just your knees, you’d finished it off with a teal pair of Manolo’s. For someone who spent the majority of her time in scrubs, you certainly knew how to fancy it up.

Over at the entrance, with both of you distracted inside was where things were getting more intermingled without you realizing it.

“Barba?” Carisi stalled in the doorway next to Sophie at the sight of the A.D.A in the café, though maybe he was just here for lunch? He suddenly felt super awkward as if he’d caught him on a date with his Captain.

“Carisi?” Honestly, Rafael was just as confused at the situation, “Calhoun really invited you to this?”

“Calhoun?” Sonny quirked, following Rafael’s nod into the restaurant, seeing the attorney talking with someone else from his firm. The question of both men was promptly answered as you came launching at Sophie into a hug with a shriek.

“There’s my maid of honour!” You greeted, a wide smile on both your faces as you kissed cheeks.

“Ah…you’re a plus one. That makes much more sense.” Barba teased. Your hand whapped him in the chest.

“Oh play nice Mr Barba.”

“Cap…didn’t realize you’d be here…” Carisi was doing his best to not stumble through the situation, and you had to hand it to Sophie, he was pretty adorable.

“She’s here because Mr Barba can’t go places unsupervised. Always have to have an adult chaperone, isn’t that right?” You winked. Olivia let out a bark of a laugh,

“You certainly are Rita’s girl.”

“We’re glad you here Olivia, the more the merrier.” You gave her a warm smile, squeezing her arm to double assure her that you were only coming after Barba before you drug Sophie off to get her a drink.

Rita caught up with you at the bar as your champagne was being refilled, taking a moment to wrap around your back, placing a kiss against your exposed neck. Turning in her arms you greeted her with a smile of a kiss, wrapping your free arm around her waist. You reacquainted her with Sophie, they’d met a small handful of times before but never spent an overwhelmingly long time together, usually just in passing. It didn’t take long for Sonny to join you, eager to escape the teasing from Barba, congratulating Rita.

As the afternoon wearied on, you and Rita were both glad you’d kept things small for today, it became very apparent how exhausting a large wedding would end up. Everyone wanted to talk to you, those you hadn’t seen in a while wanting to catch up and know literally everything. You were thankful you were able to have as much time in Rita’s arms as you did, nuzzling against her every opportunity you got. The day was absolutely surrounded by love, it so easily wove itself through the café and around everyone inside. The moments you absolutely adored the most were the ones that you’d glance up and catch Rita watching you with that incredible smile, love filling her eyes as she was talking with someone else (likewise, Rita caught you staring on multiple occasions and it always made your cheeks heat when she caught you).

As you approached the bar for another top up as the afternoon began to fade you settled in beside Olivia, giving her a warm smile as she glanced your way.

“I really hope I didn’t offend you with that comment, we really are happy to have you here, I just can’t resist taking a jab at Rafael when the opportunity presents itself.”

“None was taken.” She laughed lightly, thankful for the champagne making things at least slightly less awkward on her end, “this place is really beautiful.”

“I know!” You gazed out across the café, “it’s been a pretty big staple in our relationship, it’s like our own little special place.”

“How…did you two meet?”

“Oh..” you giggled, “she’ll probably kill me for telling you this but, at the hospital. She passed out mid work day outside the court house cause she was over caffeinated and underfed.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah.” You thanked the bartender for the fresh glass, taking a sip of the bubbly, “which according to Sophie is a bad habit for you cops too. I don’t wanna see anyone from your squad turning up for something like that.”

“I’ll keep an eye on them.”

“Good.” You paused with a smile, taking another sip, “can I ask something?”

“Uh- of course.”

“What made you want to get into special victims? It sounds intense but also, kinda piqued my interest. I didn’t even know it existed until I met Rita.”

“A lot of life experience.” Olivia smiled, “I’d seen what those kind of crimes could do to a person and wanted to do everything I could to help.”

“Makes sense.”

“Isn’t that why you went into nursing?”

“No. I just really like science and math.” You deadpanned before laughing, “of course is it! No one likes the boring parts of it. I dunno…I just always felt like I needed to help people, it was like, in my genes or something.” Olivia huffed a small laugh at that, watching as your gaze was caught by Rita across the room, an absolutely dreamy look taking over your face as you watched her talk with Rafael. You knew just by the smirk on her face that they were quipping back and fourth as usual. She felt your eyes on her, pausing to glance up, giving you a bright smile that you returned.

“You guys really do love each other.” Liv commented.

“Yeah…” you wistfully replied before managing to tear your gaze away, turning your attention back to Olivia, “I couldn’t be happier.”

“I’m glad.” She smiled. As awkward as this day, this conversation, could have been, she was glad to be getting to know you a bit, and even more glad to watch just how totally in love with each other you and Rita were. “Does…her work ever put a strain on anything?”

“We’ve learnt not to talk about it,” you shrugged, glancing down at the bar top.“Pretty early on I treated a nine year old for attack wounds and she outcry’d about a sexual assault to me. I had to testify, and the girl wanted me in court with her, naturally it was Rita’s case.” You suddenly turned your head  up to the brunette, “I’m surprised I didn’t meet you then? Some guy Sergeant took my statement.”

“I was on leave for a bit.”

“Hmm.” You took another sip of champagne, “getting crossed by her wasn’t so bad, but…she ended up winning and that didn’t exactly help the home life.”

“Sometimes it’s just best to leave work at work.”

“Exactly.”

“But a love like what I know you two have, probably makes it worth it.”

“A hundred percent.” The mega watt smile was back on your face as you glanced up at her, the gleam bright in your eyes.

*

Rita had just moved off from Barba, picking up a fresh glass of champagne from a server closer to the entrance as she walked a friend out right as a new guest popped in.

“Alice!” Rita greeted, pulling your Mom in for a quick hug, “I’m so glad you made it! Is Tom with you?”

“No, he’s out of town for work. I’m so sorry I’m so late, I was at a volunteer thing and traffic getting into the city was horrible.”

“Oh don’t worry about, that’s why we made it an all day thing.”

“Where’s y/n?”

“Up at the bar last I saw.” Rita replied, the gaze of both women moving over to where you were happily chatting with Liv.

“Oh…I..didn’t realize she’d connected with Olivia.” Your Mom paused suddenly as Rita’s hand wrapped around her wrist, freezing her movement.

“Uhm…okay this may sound bad…but Y/N doesn’t know exactly who Olivia is…I only found out last week. I sometimes work with her and things came up, but she asked me to not say anything yet.”

“Does she have any idea?”

“I highly doubt it.”

“Well I’m glad you were at the door to give me the heads up.”

Across the room you felt eyes on you again, turning, not surprised to see Rita’s gaze on you once again. A smile burst out on your cheeks when you saw your Mom with her.

“Come on, I’ve got someone I want you to meet!” Your hand clasped at Olivia’s wrist while you lead her through the crowd.

Her eyes caught Alice’s and her heart suddenly hammered in her chest, this could go any variety of ways and one of them was utterly a disaster, especially on a special day like today. You dropped her arm as you approached, wrapping your Mom in a tight hug, a quick kiss on the cheek.

“Mom, this is Oliva, she…kind of..works with Rita.”

“It’s so nice to meet you.” Alice greeted with a warm handshake.

“Likewise. You’ve raised a truly incredible daughter.” The unspoken words flowed between them. Rita felt the tension break a few moments later when Rafael popped up asking if Liv had a minute and she mouthed a silent thank you at him as he dragged the woman off.

Minor crisis averted thanks to very well timed coincidences, who knew what could possibly have blown up otherwise.

The rest of the day passed easily, Olivia made an excuse saying she was needed at work and gave you a quick goodbye on the way out. Before you knew it, the sun was sinking over the city and the guests were gone. You were now more than ever glad that you hadn’t hosted at home, leaving the clean up to the staff (along with a very well deserved tip).

The car ride back to the apartment was near silent, you passed it off as exhaustion for the both of you, but there was something lingering in the air that you couldn’t quite put your finger on. Once home, the near silence continued, you pecked at Rita’s cheek before she headed down the hall to start the shower.

You grabbed water for both of you, carefully stepping out of your heels before entering the bedroom. The glasses found home on the bedside tables, you plugged your phone in and tugged off your dress, hanging it to be dry cleaned the next time an order went in. Pulling on soft pyjamas you opted for a make up wipe to clean your face, you’d counter by exfoliating the next morning instead. The silence gave you time to get lost in your thoughts, which wasn’t the best idea right now, but you couldn’t help it.

When Rita emerged from the shower in pj’s she found you cross legged in the middle of the bed, a whistful look in your eyes. You glanced up at her, noticing the distance in her own,

“Are you okay?” You asked softly, breaking her thoughts and pulling her gaze to you.

“Yeah. It was just a long day, I’m tired is all.”

“But it hasn’t been just today…”

“What?” The wavering in your voice had her full attention now.

“Something’s been…off recently…it was fine until a few days after you gave me the ring…are..are you having second thoughts? Cause, if you are, then that’s fine.” You wiped away a stray tear that you weren’t even sure where it came from, “we don’t have to do the whole wedding thing, just the ring’s enough.”

“Darling…” she dropped down onto the bed, your words nearly shattering her heart, she’d never meant to hurt you like this, “no. I absolutely am not.” Her hand reached out to stroke your face, the other one clasping at your left, “when I said I wanted to marry you I meant it. Nothing would make me happier than being your wife. Oh my love…” She pulled you to her chest, cradling you gently against her body while she kissed your hair, “I love you more than anything in the entire universe.”

“I just don’t want you getting cold feet when the day comes. I know you said you weren’t really the wedding type, and I don’t care about all that fancy shit as long as I get to spend my life with you.”

“My love, I’ve told you once and I’ll tell you a million times more, I would do anything you asked for. I’m so incredibly sorry I’ve been distant recently, things have just been weird with work and I didn’t want to bring that home to you. You deserve the utmost happiness. I’m so sorry that I tried to keep you out of it, I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

“I know…” you sat up, wiping a few more tears away, “maybe, like you said, it was a long day, maybe it’s the exhaustion talking. I just..got scared..that you’d changed your mind.”

“I could never change my mind.” She kissed the tip of your nose, “I’ve never made an easier decision in my life, okay?” Rita wrapped her arms around you in a tight hug, “you mean everything to me. I love you my sweet.”

“I love you too.” You murmured against her shoulder, letting the worries melt off you as you sank into the hug. She only pulled away softly when she felt you sigh heavily, knowing that you were okay. Cupping your face she kissed you softly, holding her forehead against yours in a moment of intimacy after such a public day.

It was only when you dropped down into the pillows that she shifted the covers over the two of you, curling her body around yours in the bed, making sure you were securely in her arms. She lay a featherlight trail of kisses across your shoulder and neck, murmuring just how much she loved you as you fell asleep.

Rita honestly felt kind of like an idiot, she knew she’d been acting a little weird since finding out about Olivia, but she thought she’d covered it well enough. Then again, any kind of strange behaviour in the days following an engagement was probably a red flag. She felt even more terrible for hurting you on a day like today, if it was going to end in tears she’d only hoped they’d be happy ones. She made a very important mental note to do whatever she could to make it up to you. After all, you were literally all that mattered in her life, and she clearly needed to remind you that.

#rita calhoun #rita calhoun x reader #law and order svu #rita calhoun fanfiction #fortuitous reunion

[ramblings-of-a-mad-cat]

If people don’t age in the portraits then is Beatrice little younger than she should be? Like she wasn’t in it for as long as Jacob was, since she was only trapped for a number of months while he’d probably been there for years. Jacob was most likely got trapped at 18 and if portrait victims don’t age, he was still 18 when he got out, and Bea got trapped at 11 so she was still 11 when she was freed. So it’s not as severe for Bea because she’d only be younger than she’s meant to be by almost a year. She’s still in the school year she would have been if she hadn’t got cursed though.

You know, I think she must be. At least if we're assuming that people don't age in the Portraits. Which isn't really totally confirmed, I don't think. Jacob and Peregrine make comments that do imply as much, but nothing that really establishes new facts about the Vaults. It could just as easily be an angry remark or joke, or it could mean something else. It's very possible that The Portraits act as a kind of suspended animation (and that would make the most sense, in my opinion) but it's just as possible that there's something else going on. Maybe there's no magical effect going on, but being imprisoned for so long still took it's toll on Jacob? No, that doesn't make sense...if anything it would have aged him, right? Not the other way around.

Yeah, I'm pretty sure that the Portraits are a form of suspended animation. I mean, think about it. You don't die of starvation, dehydration, etc. Your bodily functions must be put into some kind of pause-lock. And the thing is, we know that's possible. We know it's possible to do the #JulietCapulet style of coma via magic, where death is simulated or if nothing else, your need for basic things like oxygen are temporarily suspended. If nothing else, we know this because The Triwizard Tournament put Ron, Hermione, Cho, and Gabrielle into an enchanted sleep where they were apparently fine to remain underwater for over an hour. (They also did this without consent, make of that what you will...) So I think it's perfectly possible, likely, even, that such a thing befell Jacob, Beatrice, and all the other Portrait victims.

Either way, I'm realizing now how severe Beatrice's situation actually is. Or at least, I'm reminded of it. Like, I'm not sure if Beatrice having to cram an entire year's worth of lessons into her schedule while also taking her regular second year classes...was really the best way to handle this. I understand if she didn't want to be held back a year, but that would have been the most obvious solution and, frankly, the best one. Yes, it would suck for Beatrice (and the other victims of the Portrait Curse, for that matter) but it's not as though it's anyone's fault. It just is what it is. Can you imagine what students who were in fifth or seventh year had to go through?

#Beatrice Haywood #HPHM Jacob #HPHM Datamines

[thehealingheart95]

Untitled

Kat woke in a hotel room the morning after her best friend’s birthday party feeling like she got hit by a truck. It couldn’t be she drank too much, she had one drink… She wondered what on earth could have made her feel so awful. She honestly didn’t remember a lot about the end of the night. She remembered the party dying down and her feeling like she was about to pass out on the bed, but after that; nothing. She felt a cold breeze, lifted the covers, and noticed she was completely naked. What was going on?

“Good morning beautiful.”

Kat looked over to find a strange man lying in bed next to her, calling her beautiful. Who was this guy and why was he talking to her that way? Oh my god did she sleep with him? Kat’s mind raced and she felt an overwhelming amount of shame and guilt almost making it impossible to move or speak. She had never done anything like this… she wasn’t a virgin, but she knew sex wasn’t supposed to make you feel like this the next day; not any kind she was interested in having, as she was only seventeen.

“Uh…hey.” Kat looked around for her clothes, but they were nowhere in sight. “Do you know where my clothes are?”

The nameless man rose out of bed and proceeded to get dressed himself. “Yeah, they’re over here,” throwing Kat her bra, panties, and sundress. She too got dressed but stayed covered by the comforter. Then the guilt came back; she wanted to look nice for her friends' party, but now she felt a tremendous amount of shame due to her outfit. Was the dress too short? Did she put herself out there too much? How did this happen? The fact he knew exactly where her clothes were was very disturbing, and he felt comfortable just dressing in front of her, what was that? Who is he?

“Did you drive here?” Asked the man.

“Yeah,” Kat whispered.

“I’ll walk you to your car.”

“Sure.”

And so, he did and when they reached her Ford escort ZX2 he insisted on putting his number in her phone and said he hoped they’d see each other again soon. Kat got in her car and felt sick, she pulled out her phone to call Ginger, but she noticed she was already hauling ass to the car via the rearview mirror.

“Whew, hey man, sorry I was saying goodbye to Cain.”

“Hey dude, no worries. I wasn’t going to leave you.”

“I think the guys said they wanted to go swimming today if you’re up for it.”

Fuck seriously? Can’t she just go die in a hole instead?

“Yeah sure, sounds good.” Kat couldn’t hide the melancholy in her voice.

“You sure man? We can do something else. Cain just wants to hang out.” Ginger was instantly concerned; Kat was normally so cheerful and just a naturally happy person.

“Yeah, I know, and no, no that’s fine we can go swimming; sounds fun!” And just like that the mask went on, the one that held a deep dark secret. One she wouldn’t share with anyone for at least the next five years. Kat was assaulted and she would never report it or even confront the man in question. She couldn’t see the point; women don’t usually get justice anyway.

She could not place exactly what happened but there would be times when she’d least expect it, she would experience flashbacks, taking her back to the night, showing her clips of what Jacob did to her. Nasty and disturbing images that would take her breath away; he took something from her that night. Something that would take a long time to come back, something she would have to heal from without an apology and that was her voice and her right to choose.

The worst part is, later she would find out that her assault was premeditated, meaning the guy that raped her was brought to the party by someone Kat and Ginger thought were their friends. The man, who later identified himself as, Jacob sought Kat and Ginger out and drugged them both, planning to do what he did to Kat to Ginger too. Luckily Ginger’s ‘boyfriend’ was there and pulled her out of the room but that was all part of the plan. The plan was to leave Kat alone, completely unconscious and unwilling to fight back. The boys even mocked her claiming she sounded like she had a good time the night before while at the pool. The betrayal and disturbance that flowed through these so-called friends made, Kat feel completely isolated and frankly like a moving target. Thank God it didn’t happen to, Ginger though. There was a light at the end of the tunnel, it would just take years to find it.

Eleven years have gone by and still not a day goes by where even the thought of a man touching Kat sends chills up her spine. The difference though is she’s not full of shame and guilt and “why me’s?” she’s full of wisdom and compassion. Instead of the vulnerable young lady, she was a force of a woman and on top of that, a best-selling author. Her book, ‘Why You, Kat?’ hit the top of the charts only three days after putting copies out in stores. She was able to put her trauma into words fitting for an audience and because the book was so amazing, it’s being made into a movie. Sure, she may experience a little anxiety when triggered into a state of remembering how it felt at that time; but mostly she was okay, she was happy and content with her life. She worked hard for it, and it took years of therapy and shadow work for her to get to this point but finally, oh finally it can be shared and not shamed.

#original writing #writeblr #trauma

[ghostradiodylan]

Hey I’m the anon that sent in the ask about Nick getting his leg cut off! Thank you for answering it and I’m glad you think it’s an interesting idea!

I wanted to expand on it a little if that’s okay….

Who do you think would end up doing it? Maybe one of the counselors in the poolroom with him would ask Dylan about his hand being gone and then suggest the idea for Nick?

Or maybe, sometime during the night after Abi shoots him and he runs away, Nick is back in human form. He’s just sitting there, thinking, then he remembers Dylan’s hand being gone and puts two and two together. He ends up finding something sharp in the woods (like a machete or some razor wire) and cutting the leg off himself. Maybe there would have to be some QTEs the player has to catch in order for him to do it right. Maybe in this scenario, his survival is dependent on Jacob or Emma. If Jacob and/or Emma are alive and/or uninfected, one of them will find him and help him back to the main camp house where he can take refuge in the storm shelter with Abi and/or Emma. If neither of them are alive, however, he would be alone in the woods and bleed out, making another possible death for him.

In either scenario, there could also be a cute scene with Nick and Emma in the storm shelter where he apologizes to her and they reconcile.

Sorry for rambling! I just think this would be a cool alternative idea for Nick so he is shown more in the game!

Hey anon, sorry for taking so long to get to this (and to my other asks, I swear I will answer them all eventually!)

Here’s part 1 of this ask

Adding what @fullmoonhijinks said in a reblog here too to keep it all in the conversation:

"I suddenly super need to know if the lycanthrope is more curse or more infection. Like, it operates a bit as both, obviously, but is it like venom? We know people have different tolerances for it, some take longer to change - is that a constitution thing? Jacob does take the longest time to change, but Nick is one of the shortest. Emma takes a different amount of time depending if she was bitten by Max or Caleb, so are different werewolves different levels of toxic? Is it about the location of the bite? Does it travel via the bloodstream or the lymphatic system? Would a tourniquet or pressure immobilisation bandaging help stave it off? In Australia we're taught how to treat snake bites in infants school, if Nick had insisted on that kind of first aid would he have made it long enough for Laura to explain and for a choice about amputation to be made? Would they have believed Laura's story without seeing Nick transform?

Juicy, juicy alternate realities..."

So I think this is super relevant to anon's question as far as: how soon do we need to cut to stop the spread, and how do we know where to cut to stop the spread?

My instinct is that even by the time Dylan suggests amputation for Nick, it would already be too late (not that anyone is going for it anyway), but I don't know that for sure. We see the black branching up Dylan's arm pretty quickly after he gets bitten, but cutting off his hand still takes care of it, so it's like the physical bite itself is somehow continuing to spread the infection for some unknown amount of time.

So, yeah, no idea how much time we'd have to do it. You definitely wouldn't want to risk doing it too late and ending up limbless AND infected, unless you're pretty darn sure that transforming would cause the limb to grow back. I don't know that I think entire limbs would grow back, I tend to hc that the amputation wound would heal if you were infected, but that's it. But, as with many parts of the lore in this game, it's unclear! We don't see if Laura's eye is actually just badly damaged or if that's a truly empty socket, it's just a dark void in her face.

Anyway, Nick cutting his own leg off with razor wire would be metal as fuck, but I can't imagine him actually doing that!

Part of me wants to say Abi should have to be the one to cut Nick's leg off so we get couples maiming each other symmetry with Dylan and Ryan, but I don't think she'd be able to do it, she's so mild-mannered and I hc her as not being good with blood at all. She does manage to shoot Nick with a shotgun if you choose that though, so maybe I'm not giving her enough credit!

You know who probably would be willing to do it, though? Jacob. Jacob might actually be impulsive enough to cut Nick's leg off with a hacksaw or something if he's around at the right time.

We were just talking in the Discord about needing a 'stop the bleeding' qte for Dylan, something like that would be fun for Nick too. Go find a tourniquet! (I love the possibility of a tourniquet actually slowing the infection too, even without amputating, that's such a good thought!)

Lots to chew on about infections and amputations, for sure!

#the quarry #hello beautiful anon #chewing on lore #brainrot with bunny #cut it off cut it off cut it off

[dawllick]

How I would remake Twilight:

1. First and foremost, there will be no imprinting on babies here. Not even a no but HELL NO

2. The 5 Cullen “kids” are not already in relationships when the story starts. Emmett and Rosalie are on the verge but angst keeps them apart. Alice can’t see who she falls in love with. Jasper is in the closet. Edward is still pretty but bitchy.

3. Bella isn’t the bestest most specialish girl when she arrives. She is observed for the shiny new thing she is but is quickly forgotten as she is not sociable and has weird fascinations.

4. Jacob is there, but he is older (like by two years or smth) and gives off more big brother vibes to the audience, but Bella is smitten with him.

5. Carlisle and Esme are married, but tend to lead a more open marriage life style (consensually from both parties and neither feel like full commitment to the other), but have no plans to introduce another into the relationship. They do see Alice, Jasper, Emmett, Rosalie, and Edward as their own.

6. Carlisle is less nice and more strict but not in a dickhole way. Like…could you imagine being a vampire dad to 5 fully grown monster toddlers…

7. Charlie is there and single still. But after Bella and Edward start dating, he begins to see the good doctor more. I think it would be hilarious for Charlie and Bella to both know about vampires but try to keep it secret from each other.

Charlie finds out via his budding friendship with Carlisle and his lovely wife Esme somehow idk maybe Carlisle saves him bc he is a cop. Charlie 10/10 develops a crush and gets to have all the internal dilemma that has nothing to do with sexuality but “but he’s married” kind of thing

Idk what the resolution needs to be here but yeah

8. Bella meets Edward who reacts the same but mainly due to his thirst. He misses one day of school, and returns but acts stiff and uncomfortable around her.

MEANWHILE Alice introduces herself to Bella and they become friends. Alice spending time with Bella draws in Angela and Jessica, very heavy implications that Angela is not straight.

9. Jacob shows up from time to time and there is weird tension between him and Alice. It’s where he is a werewolf and doesn’t know, but Alice has a hunch as he reeks of them. Since this is my silly AU, Jacob x Alice are long game, insane slow burn, ETL. You get forbidden romance, they can fight each other and not die, but also have so much chemistry and tension to drive people crazy. They won’t even kiss till like the final arc, won’t even be nice until like…season 3.

10. Btw in my head, each season covers 1 book, and the final battle/epilogue will be a mini series (4 seasons, and a few episodes to make up a “movie”)

11. Season one finale ends like the movie, BUT it ends with Carlisle being summoned to the Volturi.

12. The werewolf thing will be treated more as a family thing as opposed to a spiritual animal thing. And oh yeah, after Bella is like for sure about vampires being real she totally asks Edward “hey what else is real that I don’t know about” but he lies (bc he thinks that it’s protecting her)

#long post #I will add more to this later #later

[penwrythepersonal]

here's a PSA on Researching stuff and discourse shit

While researching any kind of information, you might stumble upon various articles, studies, and other materials on the topic you are interested in. But, here's the thing, it is important to look up the most recently reviewed or understood research on that topic.

Like, using an article from 2006 about how autism works might be useful...except it might have out-of-date data compared to more recent research done in the past few years (2020-2023). I would trust an article done in 2021 over an article done in 2006 because it would be more up-to-date with a more recent understanding of the autistic spectrum. Relying on the older article will risk me spreading misinformation.

This is a very simplified explanation of the broad topic of "how to research", but it's really important to know if you are doing research.

// Okay so, this is on a certain discourse, I'm not on either side of it (I have concerns about this but I prefer to keep it to myself at most) but I'm a bit annoyed by this thing. I kind of had to comment on this cause people should not be using old outdated research to prove their arguments, especially when there's still current research being done on this topic. Also, considering where "video games cause violence" comes from (usually conservative groups and the like), it's especially important to be careful about who you get this information from.

// articles mention mass shootings and gun violence

What prompted this was a Tumblr post I saw via search where a user was using an article on how video games encourage violence. I don't want to link to the user, nor want to directly discuss the topic that prompted them to discuss this. Instead, I will link to this Pacific Standard article here: Behavior Link Between Violent Video Games and Children originally written in 2011 by Tom Jacobs (updated in 2017)

This article claims that video games contribute to childhood violence, disrespect, and dehumanization. Note that one of the studies mentioned in the article, Denying Humanness to Others: A Newly Discovered Mechanism by Which Violent Video Games Increase Aggressive Behavior, was written in 2011.

(Quick note: some of the article's links are blocked by my antivirus due to suspicious activity. I'm not sure if they are bad or not, but considering how old this article is, they might be inactive or have bad/invalid certificates)

So...there's that. But what about the last few years...

Well, just by searching "violence video games 2023" in Bing I found:

Let’s ditch the tired tropes about video games – and research their impact properly by Pete Etchells - Aug 2023- The Guardian - Article discuss how much of the research on violence in video games were often mixed, usually due to ideological conflicts, outdated methods to measure aggression during and after play, and so on. There's mention of new and improved research to better focus on how people engage with video games.

Stanford researchers scoured every reputable study for the link between video games and gun violence that politicians point to. Here’s what the review found by David Dupee, Varun Thvar, and Nina Vasan - May 2023 - Fortune - article discusses how current research and studies do not find any link between video games and gun violence, how video games aid mental health, and mentioned how conservative groups often used video games as a scapegoat to blame gun violence and school shootings. The article also concluded that the best way to reduce gun violence is through gun control.

Just a game? by Chris Lines - City University London - Nov 2021 - found via this ScienceDaily article - articles discuss how a study found that while participants were more likely to destroy things, they did not carry out violence against other people. The article also says that "policies that place restrictions on video game sales to minors are unlikely to reduce violence" (quoting from Dr. Suziedelyte in the article).

So yeah, keep up with what is being discussed about these things. It is okay to look into old articles and research to see what was being discussed at the time, but it's important to keep up-to-date, too.

Oh and uhhhh, from Pacific Standard:

There are a few articles that went over if video games cause violence or not, but their most (what I could find thus far) recent article was:

Stop Associating Video Games With Youth Gun Violence - by Besty Rajala - Pacific Standard - Apr 2019 - discussing how there's a need to be better research on video games, how they affect people, and how they do not contribute to youth violence.

I am very tired. Sorry for typos and shit.

#mystuff #yo don't use this to justify problematic shit assholes; you know who you are #please don't discourse this #leaving the discourse untagged because fuck #watch people get weird under this #media literacy #tw shooting mention #game violence debate

[brianedner]

13 – Back Alley Vet and nurse

13 – Back Alley Vet and nurse

 Luz and Gus flew into the alley near the diner for another meeting with the mob boss.

 “Are you sure you can do this Luz?”

 Luz got off of the staff and tried to walk around on the small stilts she was wearing, and also trying to pick up a can on the ground with the grabbers she was holding.

 “We don’t have a lot of options right now. Amity and Willow both have a cold, and the Mob Boss was quite insistent on meeting Jacob tonight. I’ll just tell them that I have a small cold if they ask why I don’t want to shack hands, but for now this will have to do.”

 She then successfully picked up the can and threw it into the dumpster. “Alright! Time to do your magic Gus.”

 He just nodded before twirling his fingers and making her look just like Jacob. He then nodded at Jacob and walked towards the dinner, nodding to the guard on his way in before seating across from the boss at the table.

 This time, the boss looked like he hadn’t slept or showered recently.

 “Hay, are you ok?”

 “Hm, oh yeah. I’m fine. My Lulu is just sick and my usual vet is visiting family in California and can’t get back soon. Unless you know any vets that are willing to look at an illegal exotic bird, we should probably talk about the upcoming fight next week, the drug delivery, and the new plants you asked for.”

 Jacob just blinked. “Actually, I might know someone that could help.”

 “Really?”

 Jacob deflated a little. “It’s less of a actual vet and more of the daughter of a vet that learned a lot via osmosis and would be willing to come over and help out a sick or injured animal. She is also only 14.”

 The boss just gave Jacob a dead-pan look. “You want me to trust the health and wellbeing of the second or third most important person in my life to a teenager?”

 “Who is numbers 1 and 2?”

 “My wife and kid. The orders of which of the three are which verry day to day.”

 Jacob could only nod at that. “Makes sense. Anyway, the kid might not actually be a vet, but she has actually done some vet like work. Also, she is dirt cheap and will keep her mouth shut. She only needs to make sure Lulu will do well until your regular vet comes back, so you don’t have to be that worried.

 “How does that sound?”

 The boss just sat there thinking for a bit before nodding.

 “Ok, I will give her a shot.” He then started to write down something on a napkin. “Here is my usual vet’s clinic. We can do the examination there.”

 Jacob took the paper and nodded. “I’ll have her call you later to confirm price and time. Now, lets get down to the real reason you called this meeting.”

 Over the next 30 minutes the two hammered out further details before Luz went back to Gus.

 “Great news, I just got a in with the illegal pet businesses as a vet. All I have to do is figure out what is wrong with the a mob bosses pet bird.”

 Gus was just giving Luz ‘the look.’ “Looks like Mrs. Cordell was right after all.”

 She just looked at him quickly. “What do you mean?”

 “When Adrian was getting her on board with the money laundering, she actually asked if you were doing vet work without a license.”

 Luz just shrugged. “What can I say? I am my mother’s daughter.”

 2 days later, 2 PM

 Luz, Gus, and Willow flew into a alley behind the vet clinic where the three dismounted.

 “Ok guys, are you ready?”

 Gus and Willow both nodded before Willow put on her Jacob disguise and Gus made himself invisible. The three then walked to the clinic door. In front was a figure Jacob knew well.

 “Hay Jeremy! How’s the rib healing up?”

 He smiled back at him. “Hay Jacob, it doing well. Should be back in the ring next week. I wish I had your ability to take a beating and keep on going.”

 He just shrugged at that. “What can I say, Willows bend but never break.”

 He and Luz just laughed together at that while Jeremy just stared at both of them.

 “I don’t get it.” He then just opened the door and waved them both in. “They are in room 1. Past the front desk and first door on the left.”

 The two then walked in and pushed open the door to said room. Within was the boss, a monk parakeet in a cage, and a body guard who was backing away from the open door while holding onto his nose and screaming in pain.

 “Oh, my goodness, I am so sorry!” cried Luz. “How is your nose?”

 He moved his hand away from it, revealing that it had bent due to the hit. Luz grimaced at it before getting to work.

 “Sit down for a second, I need to check a few things.” She then started looking through the cabinets before finding a Otoscope. After finding one she pressed lightly on the sides of the nose while asking if it hurt. After determine that the nose was in fact broken, she looked up both nostrils to check if either were blocked. Luckily, both were clear.

 “Good news is that there doesn’t seem to be any blockage. Bad news is that it is defiantly broken. We need to realign the bone.”

 She then turned to the Boss. “Do you know a doctor he can go to or would you prefer for me to do it?”

 The boss was just staring at her. “I thought you were a vet?”

 “I have experience treating multiple injuries on multiple species. Who do you think patches Jacob up after each fight?”

 The man with the broken nose just gave Jacob a look of shock. “You would rather be treated by a 14-year-old than a professional?”

 “I have things I would prefer to keep on the down low medically about myself that she already knows.”

 He and the Boss just looked at each other for a bit before shrugging. “Let’s give it a shot. Luckily for us the vet also treats my men off the books so there should be people medicine here as well. What do you need?”

 Luz then stated questioning the man about his medical history before giving a list of supplies. After a little searching the requested medication and a splint. All that was left was applying the numbing agent, realigning the bone, applying the splint and dressing, and then finished up with some antibiotics to prevent infection.

 “That should do it. Be sure to have it followed up with the actual doctor/vet when they return next week in case I messed something up.”

 She then turned to the Boss. “Now that the result of my clumsiness is all fixed up, lets talk about your bird.”

 She then walked over to the monk parakeet in the cage. “5 days ago, she started getting specks of red in her poop, droopy posture, and excessive thirst.”

 Luz looked up at him. “What change happened before the symptoms started?”

 “I got a new cage for her a week ago. She only started having the poop stuff happened recently, but I thought it was the biggest thing that could help diagnose her so I started with that.”

 Luz nodded. “Well, you’re right about that. Is there a x-ray machine here and blood work equipment?”

 The two men looked at each other before shrugging. Luz just sighed.

 “Ok then, how about this? I will take Lulu back home with me and use my mom’s clinic to see what I can do and get back to you. In the meantime, get a different brand of cage because the big thing I can think of at the moment is that the current cage might have led in it. It lines up with the symptoms and isn’t harmful or expensive to do anyway if I’m wrong.”

 The boss looked nervous before nodding. “Ok, but if she dies-“

 “Me and my mom will be face down in the harbor with two bullets in the back of both our heads. Despite what it may appear, you are not in the top ten scariest people I have ever met or the first to try and kill me.”

 She them picked up the bird cage and walked to the door. “I’ll call you as soon as I get a conformation on what is wrong.”

 Jacob and Luz then walked out of the vet and into the alley before they all mounted up and flew back home.

 The Clinic

 Willow, Gus, and Amity held their hands over Lulu with spell circles around their wrists as Luz talked them through the lessons, she had in Beast Keeping Class while reading her notes. Of them, Willow was having the most luck in doing it.

 “It’s honestly not the different from diagnosing how plants are sick. The biology is different enough that it hard to diagnose, but the magic is similar enough for me to do.”

 “I’ll take what I can get. What do you see?”

 “So far, its dose seems like it is lead poisoning. Luckily for us, plants can get it too and we learn how to heal it. What do your notes say on doing it for animals?”

 She then flipped the pages until she reached the specific lesson. “Ok, here it is.” She then scrunched up her face before diving back to her back pack and pulling out another set of notes labeled ‘plant track’ and started flipping pages. After finding the corresponding page, she then compared the two sets of notes.

 “Great news, according to my notes, the magic to flush out lead poisoning is only slightly different between plants and animals.”

 Willow smiled before getting to work, with Luz mentioning what exactly the differences between the two were. After a few minutes and a lot of white and pasty poop under Lulu later, all the lead was cleared out.

 “That should do it. All she needs to do is drink lots of water and she should be ok.”

 Luz nodded. “We should probably keep her for a bit to sell the illusion that we are treating her normally. It usually takes a while for the non-magical treatment to help, so I will give him a call and have her returned in about a week.”

 One Week Later

 “Lulu! I missed you so much!”

 It was heartwarming to see the mob boss reunited with his beloved bird. The normal vet had returned and given her a once over, confirming that Luz did a great job patching her up.

 “How much do I owe you?”

 Luz brought up a list she had of all the supplies she had would have used if she was treating Lulu the normal way and handed it over to him.

 “That’s it?”

 “This is my first time actually doing off the books vet work for money. I was just going to do this at cost and then talk to your vet to figure out how much I should charge for future patients in the Gravesfield area. I don’t think we have any illegal pet owners there, but if either of you know of a few that could be sent my way I would appreciate it.”

 The vet just nodded. “I can do that easily. I actually do have a patient or two in that area. They probably won’t feel confirmable with a teenager doing more than check ups at the moments, but it can help you get your foot in the door and free me up a little. If you get anything you don’t feel comfortable with or can’t do anything about, send them to me. Ok?

 Luz just smiled. “I can do that.”

 The boss then spoke up. “I actually have a different idea on how to pay you instead of just handing you money or drugs for this.”

 Luz just turned to look at him. “What?”

 HE then lifted up a brief case with some paperwork in it. “I did some digging and found out that the head of the clinic where your mom works is actually having some financial trouble due to the current owner skimming a lot off the top-“

 “¡QUÉ! ¡Eso bastó! ¡Le negó a mamá un aumento porque dijo que estaban recibiendo menos negocios! Voy a-"

 “Calm down their kid! I already have a plan to deal with him.

 She just gave him a glare that sent shivers down the spine of the hardened criminal. “If you plan to kill him, don’t bother. I am more than capable of doing that and hiding the body myself.”

 “Um, my idea was more just getting him arrested and putting your mom in charge of the clinic. Even if you don’t keep her in the loop with what you are doing, it can be a useful front for your off the books vet work, money laundering, and maybe some off the books human medical work.”

 Luz just blinked at that. “What was that last one?”

 “A lot of the same supplies and techniques for treating animals are the same as those for people. If you are as good at that as you are for my Lulu and Bob last week, you can probably do well as a back-alley doctor. Probably won’t get much business in that area, but diversification is always good to have.”

 “And with the Cop and Feds figuring out that the Plant Coven is coming from that area, it is only a matter of time before that kind of business starts heating up.”

 He just shrugged. “That too. So, do you think your mom can handle running the clinic?”

 Luz just smiled. “She has been complaining about her boss for years and pointing out all the things she could do to improve it. She will jump at the chance.”

 In the Shack

 Luz stood in front of a chalkboard with the rest of the Hexsquad sitting in front of her.

 “Ok, so this is how we are going to do this.”

 She then pointed to a picture of the clinic. “The clinic only has 4 vets working in it now, and are responsible for all the pets in Gravesfield.”

 She then pointed to a picture of her mom. “Mami is going to be juggling doing vet work, running the business, and taking care of us. The good news is that between all that and us living with her, we can most easily slip the small number of illegal pet owners into the books as people owning legal pets that she treated.”

 Next were pictures of the two pets, a monkey and a venomous snake.

 “As far as the books are aware, these two are a cat and a black rat snake. I will be treating them either after hours or on home calls. If we need to do something beyond what is within my abilities, I will call Willow to work her magic.”

 Willow just smiled. “With Luz’s notes and my experience healing plants, I should be able of patching them up.”

 At that, Hunter’s eyes widened and he suddenly stood up. “I had an idea!”

 Everyone turned to him as he walked up to the board.

 “You plan on charging them for the medication that you aren’t using thanks to Willow and writing down in the books that it was used, right?”

 She nodded.

 “So what would happen when they do a inventory and figure out that they have more of the drug then they should?”

 Luz sighed. “I was going to subtly donate it to a charity from a anonymous source. Figured it would help some pet owners who were not as well off.”

 Hunter frowned a little at that. “Don’t these kinds of medications have serial numbers or something on them? the charities could easily back track them to here and bring up suspicion.”

 Luz grimaced at that. “Damn it! Any other ideas beyond just throwing medicine away?”

 He smiled. “We can sell if off the books to the vet/back-alley doctor you met, or even to the ones that work at Willow’s fights. It’s like she said, certain medicines can easily be used on humans just as much as animals. It would help both out with keeping their activities hidden from the cops and we can get more money.”

 He then looked thoughtful for a moment. “We would either need to launder it through the Society or put a few fake clients on the clinic list to launder it there.”

 Luz just smiled. “I was already going to do that anyway. Hunter, you are a genius!”

 The vet and medical stuff was taken off of Goggle. If anyone with actual knowledge on the two can let me know how to make them better, PLEASE let me know and I will do so.

 I got this idea from 8 – Money Laundering, where I just put in the off the work vet stuff and immediately realized that it could actually be something they would do. Luz would know enough about it to be able of helping with the simple stuff, and could probably coach her friends though their use of magic with her Beast Keeping Class notes to help with the rest.

 A nice bonus is that since they wouldn’t need to use certain supplies when using magic, they could just put them on the receipt, say they used them, and charge at what seems like only a little over cost. The customer would be incredibly happy, the kids would have money, and both would be happy.

 Add in selling the excess medication they said they used in the books to other back ally doctors and vets to be used on off the book clients, and they can get a fairly large chunk of change. All laundered though fake clients that Camilla would be put down as seeing that don’t actually exist.

 I am doing “Fanfic info dumps” on multiple series to help other fanfic writers with their works. They are on DevientArt here (https://www.deviantart.com/1228248) because Fanfiction and AO3 both said I couldn’t post them there.

 Fanfiction: https://www.fanfiction.net/u/5646512/

Tumbler: https://at.tumblr.com/brianedner/luzs-crime-list-masterpost/dia848df51z4

AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BrianEdner1/works