#Greta you are the only one who gets it anymore
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This movie is going to be a cinematic masterpiece
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this is 100% self indulgent. no one asked for this except me and I have zero excuse for how it turned out. i have no defense, no witty rebuttal, no nothing. i wrote this because i wanted to, and at the very least i hope this inspires someone to write their borderline-self-insert fic and post it publicly.
this fic is set after season 3. enjoy😂
(oh now might also be a good time to mention how much I love Man City. bc it’s a lot.)
can’t hear my thoughts (i cannot hear my thoughts)
Calling Lake Como beautiful is like saying space is big. It’s true for sure, but it feels like an understatement. It’s June and the weather is absolutely gorgeous, perfect for the wedding you’re attending. It’s for two good friends of yours, and it’s going to be a party full of football royalty. You’re mostly excited to see friends who are WAGs from other teams who you’ve connected with over the past year and a half.
Oh, and you suppose it will be a nice vacation with Jamie, too.
You’re staying at a beautiful hotel that’s been open since 1910, and you swear you’ll never stay somewhere as beautiful again.
“Getting ideas for the house?” Jamie teases, and it sends a thrill down your spine with the way he refers to his house as your collective home.
You grin as he spins you around the Suite Greta. Everything is golden, from the drapes to the pillows to the sun catching on his face.
“No,” you reply, “but maybe for a vacation home?”
Jamie laughs as he catches you up in his arms. “I could see us here in the next off-season. Not sure we’d get out much,” he muses and you wrap your arms around him as tight as they can go.
You’re here for a full week but Isaac’s wedding is only one day. You and Jamie have plans to see everyone who’s in town, as well as have some time to yourself.
“Sasha wants to go out for dinner tonight,” you tell Jamie as he unpacks his suitcase.
“Girls only, or will Jack be there?”
“Let’s see,” you hum as you scan the group chat. “Isabel said she and Erling will be there, so looks like it’s a couple’s thing. That’ll be fun, right?” you ask with just a hint of anxiety. Jamie and Jack are friends, they’ve run in the same circles for years, but you’re not sure how he’s going to feel about being outnumbered two to one, City to Richmond, at dinner.
“As long as Rodri ain’t there, I’m fucking chuffed,” he says as he lays out his suit on the bed.
“Chuffed? Is that a thing you say now?” you ask, flat on your back on the bed.
“Yep,” he replies. “I’m posh now, babe. Sorry you Americans can’t do it as well as we Brits.”
“I have it on good authority that we do it very well,” you smirk. “But I don’t think that’s something you’ll get to experience tonight. I haven’t seen Sash or Isa in ages, so we’ll probably talk for a long time and then I’ll be tired when we get back to the room.”
Jamie groans. “You’re sadistic, woman. The shit you put me through.”
You smile and remind him, “You’re the one who picked me, remember?”
—
Jamie is technically the one who picked you. You had just moved from America to London, got a temp job at a Richmond FC, and the rest is history. You don’t work at Richmond anymore, haven’t for a while, as you’ve been able to start your own thing in between attending matches and events and whatever else Jamie’s invited to. Being Jamie’s girlfriend is a full-time job on its own, and he definitely spoils you beyond what you’re used to. He’s the one who bought your dress for the wedding and it freaked you out just a little bit until you called Sasha (an angel, by the way) who laughed and talked you off the ledge.
“Comes with the territory, babe. They’re just boys with more money than they know what to do with. Jack’d buy me the moon if he could figure out how. Enjoy it. It’s been a while since anyone’s seen Tartt this happy.”
So you do. You had been living together for almost a year now so you’d think that a dress wouldn’t push you over the edge, but there you go. You’re trying to be calmer about it. It’s better ever since you met Sasha and Isabel.
You had been stuck in a room while Jamie talked to his old manager, and they had noticed your deer-in-the-headlights expression. You’re right in the middle of the two, age-wise, and from similar enough backgrounds.
“Here’s my number. Come over to my flat tomorrow for brunch. We’ll get you settled, babes,” Sasha had said. You went and it had been amazing to finally make real friends, even if they were technically on the opposing team.
You’re excited to see them, excited for Isaac to finally get married, and excited to spend a full seven days with Jamie by your side. It’s going to be the best.
—
You enter the venue arm-in-arm with Jamie, practically dancing across the grass. The sun’s shining and there are all sorts of people you know and love. It feels a little surreal to be here.
Earlier, back in the room, you had slipped into your dress carefully to avoid getting makeup stains on the front. The skirt fell just at your knees and puffed out ever so slightly, with thick straps instead of regular sleeves so you could fully enjoy the warm weather.
“Do a spin,” he had said, voice full of glee. You’d acquiesced, twirling around to let the blue tile print billow out before he caught you, kissing your shoulder so as not to ruin your makeup.
Now, you’re holding onto him and trying not to wrinkle his linen suit when you hear someone shout your name.
“Sasha!” you screech, running toward her as best you can with your shoes on the grass. You squeeze each other into a tight hug, uncaring about about the state of her hot pink dress.
“Hey man,” Jack says to Jamie, who grins and shakes his hand. “You’d think they haven’t seen each other in fucking ages.”
“It’s been twelve hours,” you say. “And before that it’s been like two months. Anyway, don’t you two have some football to discuss or something? Or headbands? Or-”
“Really short socks,” Sasha helpfully supplies.
Jamie shakes his head. “Fuck off, Attwood.”
“Fuck you, Tartt,” she replies.
“Oi, you two wouldn’t even be friends if it weren’t for me. You could be a little nicer,” Jamie says.
“Oh is that Hughes?” Jack asks before either Sasha or Jamie can escalate. Their entire friendship is based off sniping one another and neither you nor Jack are particularly in the mood for it today.
Jamie turns to look. “Oh mint, looks like things are starting. You saved us seats?”
“Yeah, with Haaland and Isabel,” Sasha returns, linking her arm through yours. “C’mon, did you get yourself a parasol?”
—
It’s the most beautiful wedding you’ve ever been to. Stella looks stunning in her gown, Isaac stoically sobs his eyes out while Colin surreptitiously hands him a tissue. Even Roy seems to be having a good time, but then again Keeley once told you that he “really fucking loves weddings.” You hadn’t believed her, but his lips are in a straight line instead of a frown so maybe she was right.
There’s a group of City and Richmond players together, and it’s a little strange to see how friendly they are off the pitch. Dani is explaining something with lots of hand gestures to Phil while the rest of the group jokes around.
Sasha sneaked you and Isabel away to get drinks for yourselves and you were about to get away unnoticed when Erling caught Isabel’s arm and asked for a drink too, so now you’re ordering for your boyfriends as well as yourselves.
You don’t really care, there’s a part of you that’s reveling in the sheer joy of being young and hot. Sue you.
“Cosmo, please,” you say while the girls order drinks of their own. Sasha raises an eyebrow so you shrug and say, “Jamie likes what he likes.”
She rolls her eyes and scoffs “Tartt,” but it’s with the affection of an older sister so you elbow her and ask, “What did Jack want?”
She makes a face. “Heineken. He also likes what he fuckin’ likes.”
You wheeze out a laugh as Isabel comes to join you. She smiles as she sips from something lavender colored in a martini glass. She cuts an elegant figure in her yellow, billowy dress. You smooth your dress and open your mouth to say something when a voice calls your name. You look to see your ex walking up, hand-in-hand with his wife. You know, the one he left you for.
“Jake,” you say in surprise. God, you need your brain to form coherent thoughts right now. “What are you doing here?”
He grins, far too wide and goofy to be real. Not like Jamie, you think.
“Oh, you know, Emma’s loosely related to the bride on her dad’s side. She asked for an invite, so here we are. Who are you here for? Bride or groom?”
“Both, actually,” you reply automatically. Jake’s words are grating, not so much in content as they are in tone. He always had a way of saying things condescendingly, like everyone else was a stupid little kid.
“Oh,” he says in what you think is supposed to be surprise, “that’s funny. I didn’t know you knew anyone out here. You’ve been living in England all alone, right?”
Emma just hovers by Jake’s shoulder. She’s not contributing anything to this conversation except a snooty little smirk.
“No,” you say. “I’m not alone. This is Isabel, by the way.” You look around for Sasha, but she’s disappeared. Smart girl.
Isa doesn’t extend her hand. “Nice to meet you,” she says and Jake takes her at her word. He puffs up his chest a little bit as he asks, “Where are you from? You don’t sound British.”
“We’re from Norway,” a voice behind her says. “I’m Erling.”
Sasha has reappeared with Jack, Erling, and Jamie in tow. You mentally congratulate her with a well done, Sash as you feel Jamie’s arm loop around your waist.
He feels like a solid wall against your back, a glimmer in an otherwise garbage moment.
Jake takes stock of the three men who are looking at him with less-than friendly stares. You’re not sure what Sasha told them, but you’re absolutely positive Jamie recognizes Jake. You can practically feel the hairs on his arm bristling.
Jake finishes his assessment and deems it appropriate to talk. “So, how do you all know each other?”
Jamie scoffs and looks away, while Jack stares at Jake like he can’t believe what he’s hearing.
You wonder what it is with your affinity for J-names.
“We’re footballers,” Erling says before anyone can take more offense.
“Premier League footballers,” Jamie adds, as if it means anything to Jake.
Jake’s American, like you, and he’s never been much for sports anyway. He wouldn’t even recognize David Beckham if the man were standing under a poster of himself.
Jake says, “Right. Hey, weren’t you on one of those trashy dating shows?” and Jamie stiffens.
Sasha mutters, “Fuck’s sake,” under her breath as Erling and Isabel take pointed interest in something in the distance.
“No,” Jamie replies shortly. “The fuck were you talking to my girl?”
Jake looks to you in surprise. “Oh! You two are together? That’s… well, that’s… I guess I just didn’t expect her to be whoring around like that. But hey, move to another country and all morals go out the window, right?”
That’s the thing about Jake. He never speaks as if he’s actually trying to be offensive. He just says what’s on his mind. And you’re a little concerned that what’s on his mind is going to land Jamie (and quite possible Jack) in jail. Neither of them are especially known for backing down from a squabble. “Cut from the same cloth,” Pep was rumored to say.
“Fuck off, mate,” Jack interjects. “Just fuck off. Everyone here loves her, and you can’t talk about her like that.”
Your ex reevaluates the situation at hand and decides the best thing to do would be to take Emma’s hand and walk away.
“Strange that his wife does not speak,” Erling remarks.
You grimace. “You could’ve stopped at ‘strange.’ No idea what I ever saw in him.”
Jamie has a crushing grip on your waist so you wiggle a bit to get him to loosen up.
“Prick,” he mutters. “How the fuck did he even get here, anyway? He’s in fucking America.”
“His wife’s loosely related to Stella. They asked for an invite,” Isabel volunteers.
Jamie rolls his eyes. “Oi, if he tries to talk to you again, I’ll grab Roy and we’ll fucking kill him.”
“Yeah, ‘cause McAdoo’s never been above a little violence at a party,” Jack grins.
You return his smile and say, “Thanks, but I’m pretty sure his mother-in-law would kill you.”
Erling huffs out a laugh. “Never a dull moment in the Premier League, is there?”
Isabel grins and loops her arm through his. “I’m tired of all this,” she says. “Let’s go dancing. There’s a band and we don’t have to think about anything other than celebrating, yes?”
“God yes,” says Sasha.
Jamie still looks murderous, but you squeeze his hand once and whisper, “I’m fine, babe. It’s fine.”
He looks like he wants to argue, but he lets you pull him along to the dance floor with the group.
—
There are so many people that you don’t even catch a glimpse of Jake and Emma. You’re not sure what they’re up to, and fairly certain they don’t know anyone else here. You on the other hand, are living your best life as Jamie sings along to “Ain’t No Mountain.” He’s swinging your arms around as he sways in time to the music. You just let him lead you however he wants. The song ends and he presses his lips to your ear so you can hear him over the sheer volume of everyone talking. “D’you want a drink? I can go get you something.”
You nod and mouth my usual, please, so he salutes and begins weaving his way through the crowd. You watch him as long as you can before spinning back around with a smile.
A smile that quickly fades when you realize Emma is right in front of you.
She says, “Cute dress,” and for a moment, you believe she’s being sincere but then she follows it up with, “Did you borrow it from your grandma’s closet? I’ve seen people do that.”
Right, because grandmas are known for wearing dresses like this.
“What? No, Jamie got it for me,” you say.
“Oh cute, is it from Walmart? I think I saw something like it there last week.”
Emma is trying to draw blood. You suppose she’s taking her shot now as opposed to back then because she thinks there’s no one around to call her out. No one who knows her.
You say, “They don’t have Walmart here,” instead of “It’s Dolce & Gabbana,” because the second phrase would make you sound like a prick. There’s a part of you that wants to be a prick, though, wants to channel that part of Jamie that’s ruthless, vicious and cruel, messing with the opposition before he cuts them down.
The first time you saw it, it was hard to believe the Jamie on the pitch was the same Jamie who played with your hair while you cooked, or put a sticky note on his fridge titled “Babe,” detailing everything you’d ever said you liked.
Emma sees she’s not getting to you, so she changes tactics. “Must be hard being here without any friends,” she remarks. “All alone. And you’ve never been especially extraverted. Are those people the only ones here you know?”
God, Jamie, where are you?
You open your mouth to respond but are cut off by someone with a distinctly midwestern twang say, “I heard one of my favorite countrywomen was here.”
You turn to see Ted Lasso grinning at you in a black suit. It’s the same smile you remember, albeit his eyes are a little sharp. You’d bet anything he knows exactly what’s going on between you and Emma.
“Ted!” you smile as a rush of relief floods your system. You step into his arms for a hug as he says, “Hey, sweetheart. How’ve you been?”
“Oh, you know,” you say. “Kind of great, actually. I wondered if you were going to be here! Have you seen Jamie yet?”
Ted shakes his head. “Y’know, I haven’t. Why don’t we find him together?” He offers you an arm and you take it gratefully, choosing not to spare Emma a glance.
“She seems like a real bucket of laughs,” Ted remarks.
“You have no idea. That’s my ex’s wife.”
Whatever Ted thought you were going to say, he certainly wasn’t prepared for that. He opens and closes his mouth a few times before settling on a short, “Well I’ll be danged.”
You laugh and stand on tiptoes to try to see Jamie. You don’t see him, but you catch a glimpse of an especially tall, blond head.
“This way,” you tell Ted. You brush past Phil who smiles at you, past Colin and Michael, and past someone you’re pretty sure is a Beckham.
You make your way to Erling and Isabel as they dance to the music in their own corner.
You frown. “Have you seen Jamie?” you shout.
Isabel shakes her head. “He was looking for you,” she calls back.
“Oh,” you say, “Ted, this is Isabel and-”
“Erling Haaland,” Ted says, hand outstretched. “Pleasure to meet you, son. Big fan of the way you play the game.”
You miss Erling’s response, startled by a hand on your shoulder. You turn to see Sam standing behind you.
“Sam!” you exclaim with a grin, “You look so handsome!”
Sam returns your grin and strikes a pose. “I’ve been sent on a very important mission. I am to retrieve you and bring you to Jamie and I am under no circumstances allowed to let a small rat man named Jake speak to you.”
You raise an eyebrow.
“Jamie’s words, not mine,” Sam clarifies. “Although I must admit, I have seen this rat man. I do not like him very much.”
“You and me both,” you agree. You wave to Isabel and pat Ted on the arm before following Sam.
He leads you away from the crowd of people to a stone path illuminated by small lights. This can’t be right, you think but Sam points down the path and says, “This is where I leave you.”
He turns to leave then changes his mind and spins back around. “It was lovely seeing you today, albeit for a short amount of time. I hope I will be seeing more of you while we are here. It is not often I meet someone who makes Jamie more tolerable.”
He speaks with a touch of humor and it’s just enough to dispel any apprehensions about what’s waiting for you in the dark.
You say, “Thanks Sam. Love ya,” which he returns before he disappears back to the main party.
You take a breath and head down the steps.
It’s dark, the light barely shining enough for each step, but as you get farther you see a shadowy figure sitting on a bench under a tree. You smile. You can tell exactly who it is by his silhouette.
Jamie stands as you get closer and pulls you into his arms.
“Thought we’d sneak away to make out a bit,” he says. “And maybe to you wouldn’t yell at me in front of all our friends.”
You groan. “What did you do? Please tell me it has nothing to do with Roy. Or Jack. Oh my god, did you two start convincing people you were separated at birth again? Because it’s really only funny one time.”
“Well…” Jamie hedges.
You pinch his back. It’s the only part of him you can reach at the moment. “Jamie Tartt, you’d better tell me what you did right now or so help me you are going to be sleeping on the couch for the rest of our lives.”
“Oi, don’t fucking do that!”
He reaches back to grab your hands and holds them flat on his chest. “We- Roy, Grealish, and me, might have gotten your prick ex kicked out.”
“You what?” you gasp.
Jamie starts speaking in a rush before you can say anything else. “Look, y’know how protective Grealish gets, especially because Sasha fucking loves you, and then Roy heard that your prick ex was here (not the twat ex) and he said it’s easier for him to get in and out of fights on account of him being a fucking manager but then Grealish said that it’s pretty much expected that fights happen so might as well and anyway, no one’s gonna fuckin’ snitch on any of us because (hate to break it to you babe), but you’re, like, everyone’s kid sister. They’d fucking kill for you so it’s possible that we channeled that into threatening to break all of his bones if he ever ended up in the same country as you again.”
You’re processing all of the things Jamie said plus the incredible speed at which he said them, so all you can manage is a single “Okay,” before he’s talking again.
“Ehm, it’s also slightly-fucking-possible that someone did break his foot.”
“What?” you all but shout.
“Coordinated effort between Isa and Haaland,” Jamie says. “Lad’s a fucking wall, don’t know if you’ve noticed.”
“Jesus, Jamie,” you groan. “I don’t know if I should kiss you or pinch you again.”
“You can do both,” he suggests.
You sigh. “I’m going to kiss you. Like, a lot. And I’m not going to worry about getting caught and after we’ve snogged like a pair of kids in high school- sorry, secondary school, then we’re going to eat a bunch more food and dance with our friends. And if you want to get sloshed, I promise I will only take funny videos for myself, and I will not send them to your mum this time.”
Jamie says, “Liar,” as he kisses the tip of your nose.
“Fine,” you concede, “I will most definitely send them to your mum. And Simon. We’re on a group chat.”
“Not even gonna fucking ask,” Jamie says as he threads a hand through your hair so he can get at a better angle to kiss you.
—
You wake up the next morning (ahem, afternoon) to Jamie’s foot in your face.
“Excuse me, sir,” you say.
He hiccups himself awake. “Yeah?” he rumbles. “What fucking time..?”
“Late, I assume,” you say.
He groans and flips himself around so your heads are on the same side of the bed. He wastes no time in tangling your limbs together.
“Oi, koala boy. Some of us have morning breath.”
“No y’don’t babe,” he mumbles.
You scratch his head and a shudder runs through his body. “I know,” you say, “my breath is perfect. I meant you. I just didn’t want to hurt your feelings.”
“Cruel woman,” he returns before lapsing into silence. The sun slips through the curtains, and you’re sure it’s going to be another gorgeous day
“Jamie,” you begin then stop.
He says, “Yeah, love?” while looking up at you with his gorgeous blue eyes and you take a moment to freeze this image in your head.
Jamie Tartt, in bed, hair tousled from sleep. Pillowy white duvet, golden freckled skin, warm body pressed to yours.
He kisses your shoulder, rousing you from your thoughts.
“Jamie,” you say again, “I wanted to say-”
“Don’t,” he interjects. “You’re not fucking allowed to say thank you for the bare fucking minimum.”
“But it’s not,” you reply, opting to skate over the fact that he apparently can read your mind. “Bare minimum is like, making sure I’m not alone with him, not getting your friends together to scare him off and break his foot.”
Jamie’s been kissing your skin wherever he can reach as you speak, so his words are interspersed with pecks. “Technically, the foot was an accident. Ask any one of our witnesses. And besides, they’re your friends too. You’re the one who got ‘em all to like ya despite the fact we’re mortal enemies on the pitch.”
“You’re the one who goes tanning with Jack,” you remind him.
“Lies told by the press,” Jamie grumbles. “This is my natural sexy glow.”
You say, “Okay little British boy,” as Jamie decides that his current position is not enough and he wants to lay on top of you.
He says something but his face is buried in the crook of your neck, so all you can feel is vibrations.
You ask, “Hm?” so he lifts his head.
“What if it were us next year?”
“Tanning or breaking feet?”
“Getting married.”
Jamie goes back to having his mouth on your neck as if the air weren’t just punched from your lungs.
You’re quiet long enough that he lifts his head again to ask, “Is that good quiet or bad quiet?”
“Good!” you hastily confirm. “Good, but, babe- you haven’t even asked me yet.”
He says, “I’m going to,” as if you should have known already.
“Okay,” you breathe, “can you give me like a little heads up or something so my nails are done?”
“Uh-huh,” he says, “At the end of the week. Been planning it. Ring’s in my bag, even asked Stella if she’d be pissed that it’s the same week she took on the most un-sexy last name in history. She said she don’t give a shit as long as it’s not at her actual wedding. So.”
“I love you,” you tell him. “Not just because of yesterday or right now. I just think you’re great.”
“I am great, babe,” he says like it’s obvious. “Picked you, didn’t I?”
You crack a smile. “Alright, that’s enough out of you. Do you want to get out of bed or go back to sleep?”
“Sleep,” he replies immediately.
“Thank God,” you groan, “I didn’t want to move. You’re like a weighted blanket.”
“It’s me sexy muscles,” Jamie says. You wiggle under him to get more comfortable.
“Uh huh,” you agree, but the words are hardly out of your mouth before you’re both back to sleep.
#jamie tartt x reader#jamie tartt fanfiction#jamie tartt imagine#jamie tartt x y/n#jamie tartt x you#jamie tartt#ted lasso
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As It Was
A/N: Hello! I know I've been MIA for a long time. Life has been crazy and going back to college while having a full time job has taken a lot of my time. But I'm hoping to get back to writing on this blog. I've missed it and I have missed everyone so much. I make no promises but I'm going to try.
Summary: Arthur and Y/n have always been super close; but when the boys get back from the war, things have change.
Characters: Arthur Shelby, Tommy Shelby, Sister!Reader
Warnings: language, mentions Arthur's attempt at suicide
Word Count: 2,698
*gif is not mine*
The rumor about the men who came back from the war are not the same men that left; It’s true. No one came back the same after the war. Not a single soul.
But it wasn’t just the soldiers who changed. Those who were stuck at home, waiting for their loved ones to return. They changed too.
Y/n couldn’t pinpoint exactly when she changed. She just remembers one day realizing she’s not the little girl who loved to draw rainbows, horses, and flowers anymore. Or the little girl who taught Finn how to aim at a moving rat, even though their Aunt Polly despised them touching guns. Not even the little girl who would take walks with her favorite brother, Arthur.
Y/n would never say she has a favorite brother aloud, but she knows her family sees how close the oldest brother and youngest sister are. There may be eighteen years difference between them, but they would sometimes act like twins.
Y/n enjoys John’s company and loves his jokes. Finn, she will always protect and care for. Ada, well they clash on fashion and boys, but they would kill for one another. And Tommy, well, the two siblings have never been able to get along. Tommy had big dreams that didn’t include his baby sister. Greta wanted to change the world and wanted Tommy to help her. Y/n wanted Tommy to help take care of the family instead of spending all his time at the docks waiting for the young woman to show up.
Even at a young age, Y/n knew it would always be Tommy who would provide for the family; be their leader. She loves Arthur, but he’s more of a follower than a leader. Tommy has always had ideas and Y/n knew those ideas would help them rise in Small Heath.
So with the boys off fighting in the war, Y/n made sure to follow her brother’s orders on how to run the shop.
Polly was the only one Y/n would let stray from Tommy’s list.
“You’re ten years old, Y/n. You are not the boss and know nothing about bets.” Her aunt admonishes.
“I know enough, Polly. I have Tommy’s list and Arthur’s notes.”
“So now you’re an expert at running betting shops?”
“I wasn’t saying that.” The ten year mumbles.
“Then you’ll do your best to remember who is in charge of the business.”
Y/n knows when to stop when it comes to her aunt. “Yes, ma’am.”
Y/n will admit, she learnt a lot from her aunt; not just business, but women’s business.
But now that the war is over, Y/n’s noticed how more involved Tommy is; how he keeps adding to the business.
Arthur is less present when it comes to his baby sister. They don’t go on walks anymore.
The fourteen year old moved into Arthur’s home when they came back. She wanted away from her very controlling brother and closer to the brother she knows best.
Except now, it seems that she understands Tommy more than she does Arthur.
The war may have changed all of her brothers, but something broke in Arthur. His nightmares keep her up at night and the one time she tried to wake him up, he almost choked her to death.
After that, she would either lay in her bed, listening to his screams or she would get John if the screams lasted longer than ten minutes.
“You shouldn’t be at Arthur’s alone.” Tommy tells his sister as he lit a cigarette.
“I’m not alone. Arthur is there.”
“You know what I mean, Y/n. Arthur is struggling and you being around isn’t helping.”
Y/n scoffs. “Actually, I think I help Arthur more than you can ever imagine trying to help him. You just hate that I’m not under your roof and you can’t boss me around.”
Tommy points his lit cigarette at her, his eyebrows raised in warning. “You will do as you're told or I will turn you over my knee.”
Y/n once again scoffs. Tommy has never disciplined her, he wasn’t ever around to take her in hand. That dirty task was left to their aunt. “Not only am I fourteen years old, but you have never raised a hand to me. Why start now?”
“Don’t push me, Y/n.”
Yeah, he’s bluffing, Y/n thinks. She stands to her feet. “Yes sir, Sergeant Major. If that’s all, Sergeant, I would like to finish my studies. Wouldn’t want to show up to school without my work now would we?”
Tommy pinches the bridge of his nose, resisting the urge to keep arguing with his sister. He, instead, waves his hand in a dismissive gesture without even glancing up.
The day Y/n dreaded came. Arthur had tried to commit suicide by hanging himself after he fell for their father’s con. She had found him at their home, raging and destroying the room. She skillfully dodged his swings and shouted at him.
“Arthur! It’s me! It’s Y/n!” She ducks when he throws an ashtray at her head. “It’s Y/n, brother!”
“Y/n?”
The broken voice has Y/n on the verge of tears. “Yes.” She nods her head. “It’s Y/n. I’m here.” She makes her way to her brother as his knees buckle and he lands on the floor. She holds him close, his chin digging into her shoulder as he sobs.
Y/n doesn’t know how long they stay in this position but she loses feeling in her left shoulder and feet.
When Arthur finally is able to compose himself, he stands to his feet, rubbing a shaking hand through his hair.
“Arthur, what happened to your neck?”
The older man covers the deep bruise around his neck. “Nothing.”
Y/n starts to shake her head, the pieces falling together. “No, no. You wouldn’t. You wouldn’t leave me here.” She stops talking but her head is still moving side to side; not wanting to accept that her brother, her hero, tried to kill himself.
“Y/n, I’m sorry, I-”
“No!” She sharply cuts him off. “Don’t apologize. I just need a moment to process.” She sits in a chair that he hadn’t flipped yet. “I need to figure out what to do. I need- no you need some of Polly’s ointment, and a drink… yeah, yeah.” She stands to her feet, ignoring the concerned look coming from her brother. “Sit down, Arthur. I’ll pour you some whiskey and get some ointment to help with the bruising.
“Y/n, I don’t- fuck.” Arthur curses when she completely ignores him and heads for the kitchen.
Only a few minutes pass until Y/n comes back. She hands the glass of whiskey to him and starts applying the ointment.
Y/n stayed with her brother until he decided to go to bed. She heads up to her room. In the morning, she’ll tell Polly. Fuck knows what Tommy will say if he hears about this. She never knows if he will help Arthur or make it worse.
In the morning. Y/n told her aunt and she should have known her aunt would tell their fearless leader. So she wasn’t surprised to see him walk in as she hands Arthur a cup of tea.
The look Tommy sends her is clear.
She smiles softly at her eldest brother. “I will be up in my room if you need me.” She tells him, her invitation not extending to the other brother.
She heads upstairs but does not go into her room. She sits on the top step, listening as Tommy belittles their brother. She rolls her eyes. She should’ve known Tommy would never express real feelings.
“Just use a fucking gun, man.”
“Are you fucking serious?” Y/n shouts as she storms down the stairs. “That’s all you have? Next time, use a gun?”
“Leave it be, Y/n.”
Y/n glares at Arthur. “No, Arthur, I can’t just leave it be.” She turns her glare back at the brother she is upset with. “I know it’s hard for you to express feelings now, but I would rather you not say anything at all than talk to our brother that way. He deserves better.”
“Y/n, that’s enough.”
“Fuck off, Thomas!” She shouts as she steps in his space. “You only care about having Arthur around so he can beat and kill people who piss you off. That’s all that matters to the all powerful Tommy Shelby.”
The slap echoes throughout the whole house, each sibling frozen in their place.
Y/n holds a hand over her now stinging cheek, staring at the man who has never raised a hand to her. Her and Tommy may not get along but she never thought he would physically harm her. Never.
She turns to Arthur, wondering how he will react. To her surprise he’s staring at her in disappointment.
“You shouldn’t have spoken to Tommy like that, Y/n. You were out of line.”
“I was out of line?” She snaps. “What am I supposed to do, Arthur, eh? Am I supposed to stand at attention and wait for the sergeant to bark orders? Huh?”
“Enough.” He doesn’t shout, but his voice still booms, causing his baby sister to flinch, preparing for another blow.
The guilt had already come, but seeing her flinch made Tommy feel sick to his stomach. “Y/n, I-” He reaches out to comfort her but stops when she steps back.
“Don’t you fucking touch me. I hate you.” She looks at Arthur. “I hate you both.”
“Let her go, Arthur.” Tommy orders when the eldest Shelby stands to follow Y/n who ran out of the house.
***
For a month, Y/n stays with John and his kids; but as much as she loves her nieces and nephews, she refuses to stay there another night.
Lizzie Stark, who’s been helping her brother with the kids, tells her to go back home, to work it out with Arthur.
“And Tommy?” The fourteen year old asks the older woman.
Lizzie smirks. “Tell him to fuck off.”
Y/n smiles at that. She hopes her brother doesn’t wait too long to give Lizzie the ring he’s been hiding.
Knowing exactly where her brother will be, Y/n heads to the Garrison. Taking a deep breath, she knocks on the locked door.
“We’re closed.” Is the muffled response from the barmaid.
“It’s Y/n Shelby.” She knows that’s all she has to say for the doors to open. Grace has been kind to her since she’s started working at the pub, and Y/n appreciates that, but she doesn’t trust the barmaid. She’s not sure why, but she has a hard time believing this Irish woman just decided to move to Birmingham without a real reason.
When the door opens, she smiles politely at Grace before squeezing past her. She heads straight to the back room, knowing her eldest brother will be attempting to balance the books.
She comes to halt mere centimeters from the entrance, her heart racing. What if he really is on Tommy’s side? What if he thinks she really did deserve to be slapped? What if she’s completely lost the only person to ever love her for her?
“Gracie, is that you? You ready to help me with these numbers yet?”
Y/n laughs quietly through the breath she was holding. Who is she kidding? Arthur is one of the kindest, loving people she knows. How could he hate her… right?
“It’s me, Arthur.” She barely gets that short sentence out above a whisper.
“Y/n?”
She steps fully into the room, her arms behind her back. “Hi.”
Arthur just stares at his baby sister, the anger, the pain of not seeing her for days, and the guilt… the guilt that has literally eaten him alive, rises to the surface. His loyalty to his brother clouded his love for his sister and he will hate himself for the rest of his life.
Being a Shelby makes it hard for them to express their emotions through words. No matter the emotion, the words usually fail to spit out, but actions, they’ve never been a problem for a Shelby.
So instead of saying the words, “I’m sorry” Arthur jumps to his feet and pulls the young girl into his arms, holding as tight as he can.
And since Y/n is not only a Shelby but also able to read her brother like a book, Y/n returns the hug and her anger disappears.
“You’re coming back home, ain’t ya?”
Y/n smiles, glad she was right. “My bag is already back in my room.”
Arthur squeezes her one more time, dropping a wet kiss on top of her head before releasing her. “Good.”
Y/n goes to ask him about how he’s been but a familiar voice stops her.
“Arthur, Tommy told me to get you. Family meeting in ten.” Finn turns to his sister, hope in his eyes. “Are you back?”
Y/n had kept in touch with Finn, having him fill her in on everything that was happening while she was gone. Finn didn’t know much, but she was able to fill in the gaps on most of what he told her.
“Yes, I’m back.”
Finn smiles. “Good. Arthur’s been too emotional and Tommy’s about to shoot him if he hears him complain one more time about you not being at the family meetings.”
Y/n laughs at Finn’s blunt statement; laughing harder when Arthur spouts profanities as he takes off after the youngest Shelby. She follows the duo, figuring it’s time for her to show her faceto the rest of the family.
Her smile stays in place as they make their way to Watery Lane, listening to her brother banter back and forth about what to tell and what to keep to yourself. So far, Finn’s winning the argument.
She can feel her smile start to get smaller the closer they get to her old home; and the smile completely disappears when Arthur opens the door for her. She comes to a halt at the threshold of the betting shop, her eyes immediately on the Peaky Blinders leader.
She’s thankful he hasn’t noticed her yet, but that little comfort quickly disappears when her aunt tells him to shut up as she makes her way to her niece.
Y/n easily accepts the hug from her aunt, the woman who practically raised her, but winces when she gets a clip to her ear.
“A month is too damn long, girl.”
“I’m sorry.” She whispers as Polly releases her; a small smile appears when her aunt gently caresses her cheek.
Knowing she needs to face the elephant in the room, or more commonly known as Thomas Shelby, Y/n peels her eyes off her aunt and stares straight into her brother’s eyes, hoping he can’t see the fear in them.
Compared to the other family members, Tommy is a mute when it comes to emotions. The only time words and emotions are mixed together is when he’s angry. He doesn’t say “I love you”, “I need you”, or anything that is remotely tied to emotions.
That said, the man is a master at showing his emotions through actions. One look can tell you so much about the gang leader. You just have to know how to read them; and Y/n is a master at this skill. She’s almost as good as their aunt.
So when she sees the barely noticeable nod of approval, and watches as Tommy pulls out a chair; she knows she has been welcomed back by their fearless leader.
And after she sits, he gently kisses her cheek, the same cheek he hurt a month ago, and she knows he’s asking for forgiveness.
She grasps his hand before he can pull away, giving it one good squeeze, so he knows he’s been forgiven.
They will never have a relationship like her and Arthur, or like him and Ada; but they can coexist together in their family; and that’s enough for them both.
Peaky Blinders: @psychkunox @theshelbyclan @lilymurphy03 @findinghisredrighthand
Forevers: @desiredposion @theseakrakence @simonsbluee
#arthur shelby x sister!reader#tommy shelby x sister!reader#shelby!reader#peaky blinders one shot#peaky blinders#tommy shelby#arthur shelby
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Lingering - Patrick Hockstetter
Summary: Rumours that Patrick is stalking Y/n. Are they true?
TWS: Vouyerism, Masterbation, Stalking.
"Y/n" A short boy shouted at the older girl, Y/n froze in her tracks and turned to face the prepubescent boy. "I heard Hockstetter is stalking you! Be careful?" Eddie told the girl. She chuckled and responded with "Why is everyone so scared of him? I'll call the cops if it's ever concerning- plus I told you not to listen to rumours anymore Eddie" Y/n disclosed.
"I know-" Eddie tried to reason with Y/n. He wanted to warn her how dangerous Patrick could be. That one time he allegedly "took" Liah Carmen's dog for not letting him play under her skirt.
"Then let it go Eddie" Y/n cut off Eddie.
Eddie was about to speak again but his friend whom Y/n didn't like too much came around. "Hey, Bunny" Richie exclaimed, standing beside Eddie. Checking Y/n out.
"Hey Sweet-cheeks" Y/n teased.
Y/n and Eddie had no clue how they became close friends. Maybe it was because Eddie gave Y/n his sweater after Greta had slapped a jam sandwich on her shirt.
"Heard Cocksucker is stalking you... every night" Richie appealed, Y/n groaned "Seriously? Have you heard that shit as well? How did that dumb rumour even start?" Y/n questioned.
"Well Linda told her mother she saw Patrick lurking around your house, So Linda's mother told your mom, your mom told the neighbours so maybe one of your neighbours has a big mouth" Eddie rambled, Playing with the hem of his shorts.
Y/n rolled her eyes "I don't think he even knows who I am. Anyways kids I got to go. See ya later" Y/n dismissed. Walking off, with an uncomfortable feeling lingering on her.
Were the rumours true or was just another one of Greta's friends being a shit-talker?
1
Y/n arrived home very late, Walking a couple of miles wasn't worth it. Just so she wouldn't get a couple of skepticalal looks.
She definitely felt a bit strange to hear people talking about Patrick like that. Creeping around her house. Apparently having a gun or something like that. It gave Y/n the chills. She thought she was an absolute nobody in this small town, now she plays a big role in a rumour.
Y/n decided a hot shower would relieve her from all this pressure and panic.
Stripping her clothes off her sticky and sweaty body that felt like it was overheating. Once she got her clothes all of she felt like she was freezing.
She grabbed a towel and placed it on her toilet. She then turned on the water for the shower.
2
Patrick was in-fact stalking Y/n, it was what he was doing right now.
Standing outside of her bedroom window. He was lucky she lived in a one-story house that wasn't very tall.
Every day she would take a shower, Walk into her room with only a towel on. Find an outfit then go back to the washroom to change. Patrick felt like it was the universe teasing him, waiting for him to make a move.
Y/n finished getting changed and walked into her room with only panties and a baggy shirt that covered most of her bottom.
Patrick felt his heart pound faster. The way the shirt would show off one of her soft-looking shoulders. She jumped into her bed, She never used the covers. but today she did.
Patrick could see her throw her underwear across the room, It was very dark in her room but Patrick could see her blanket faintly move around. Y/n gripped onto her sheets as she (Patrick assuming) played with herself.
Her mouth fell open. Patrick loved that. Her plump lips have moans and whimpers escape her mouth.
The blanket's movements now fastened. Patrick felt the blood go straight down to his dick. Unbuttoning his pants and pulling them down slightly, pulling his dick out of his pants.
Slowly pumping it, Seeing Y/n bite her bottom lip in pleasure. He stroked faster. He wanted them to climax at the same time. Although Y/n had a head start.
"Fuck Y/n" Patrick groaned, one hand on his shaft and the other attempting to pull his pants lower so it would be easier and quicker.
Y/n was clearly about to climax. One hand was now on her boob, squeezing it for more pleasure than she needed. Gosh Patrick wanted to be in both of her hands right now.
Patrick could picture Y/n underneath of him. Moaning and begging for more, His dick would fit perfectly.
Patrick saw Y/n's legs now shaking the blanket slightly, it was obvious she was about to finish. Patrick gripped onto his dick harder and stroked even faster than before.
The only time he ever felt this amount of excitement is when he was at his fridge in the middle of the woods. With a lifeless animal in his hand. Or when he "innocently" killed his little bother, Avery.
If Y/n could make him feel this excited could she really exist and not be a figment of his imagination?
Patrick felt his balls tighten, His legs and arms shiver and go numb as he came. Directly on Y/n's house, outside of her room.
If this wasn't a giveaway, Patrick didn't know what was.
He felt his crotch and spine tingle then go slightly numb. He loved whenever that happened just from a little bit of release.
Y/n was now sitting up, putting back on the underwear and wandering off to the washroom. She probably to go clean herself up
Patrick smirked. With all the rumours and gossip about Patrick stalking her, wouldn't she at least close the blinds? Yet she still left them wide open.
Even when she decided to have a fun time.
Patrick pulled up his pants and wiped his hand on his thigh. Buttoning his pants and smiling when he saw Y/n come back with a glass of water.
Sweat shimmered on her body. She looks beautiful.
Y/n sipped on the water and placed it on her bed stand. Getting back into bed with a smile. Patrick swore she looked directly at him, but maybe he was just wishing she did.
3
Patrick decided today he was going to ask Y/n out. He built up enough courage and confidence from seeing Y/n do something so secretive.
Patrick saw Y/n exit school and go to her younger friends. They seemed to be the only ones that didn't care that Patrick was stalking her. Patrick hated those fucking kids. But put on a nice act.
Approaching the group like a creep, "Hey Eddie. It's been a while, huh?" Patrick taunted, wrapping an arm around the squirming boy.
"Y-yeah" Was all Eddie let out. The biggest hypochondriac being touched by a guy who was speculated to have more diseases than hairs on his head.
Patrick let go of Eddie and turned his attention to Y/n "Hey Y/n. Heard the rumours." Patrick joked, letting out a deep chuckle.
Y/n blushed and started fidgeting with the hem of her skirt "Yeah, I- I have" Y/n stuttered. Patrick usually had that effect on people. intimidating them so much that the person he was talking to stuttered.
He adored it when Y/n did. Her voice was so soft and airy. She had the voice of a kitten, an angel didn't even speak but if it did it would sound like Y/n.
"Sucks. Hope that didn't scare you away" Patrick asked theoretically. Leaning down on his knees so he could be face-to-face with her.
"N-no of course not" Y/n giggled. Patrick felt the blood rush down to his dick. He's gonna have to ask quickly or else someone will notice and ruin his chance.
"Good. I was wondering if you wanted to watch a movie or maybe go for a drive with me and my friends" Patrick wondered. Anticipating for a response.
Y/n's eyes opened wide, quickly looking away from Patrick's stare. She felt like she was about to explode in embarrassment for no reason.
"Yeah, sure. A ride sounds fun- not like that- I meant with your friends as well... Like in a car," Y/n stammered on her words, trying to save herself from her dirty-sounding remark.
It got worse each time she added more words to her sentence. Patrick chuckled at this, and so did Richie.
"Great. Sounds like a date? I'll pick you up tonight" Patrick preached, standing back up straight "Do you need my address or my phone number?" Y/n asked softly. Doe eyes batting at him.
He tugged on his bottom lip with his teeth "I think I can manage" Patrick said slyly with a light chuckle.
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Okay I can't stop thinking about the Barbie ending. Cause like as absolutely hilarious it was (the whole theater howled) it also is the perfect button for the theme of the movie, coming out of girlhood into womanhood. (this is going to be a very cis reading because, well, Greta is cis and was clearly drawing on her own cis experiences - terfs do not interact)
The first thing Barbie experiences in the real world is being catcalled and objectified, which reminds me a lot of a passage from Tina Fey's book. She talks about how she went to this women's conference when she was working on Mean Girls and they were asked how they knew they were becoming a woman. And pretty much every single one said it was when some dude said something gross to them out of a passing car. It's such a universal experience to get catcalled at 13-14-15 year's old, when your body is only just developing. And that's what Barbie also experiences first.
Then there's the scene where the Mattel men (and they're all men of course) try to put her back in the box. The shot of her hands being strapped down was so unsettling to me and I think that was Greta's intention. Maybe this is a huge reach but it almost felt like it was a metaphor for sexual assault. And I don't think it's a universal experience to be sexual assaulted, especially as a teenager, but I do think it's unfortunately still pretty common.
Then she gets back to Barbieland and has to confront the patriarchy head on, has to learn how to deal in this world catered towards men, has to learn how to develop a sense of self even though she's become depressed by the state of things. Depressed by the fact that she's changing and she doesn't know how to stop it. The "I'm not pretty anymore" moment is played for laughs cause the narrator rightfully calls out that this is an insane line to come out of Margot Robbie's mouth. But I think it speaks to going through puberty, to not feeling like you're at home in your own body anymore (hell this is the same scene where we see the Growing Up Skipper doll, a doll who's breasts can grow and shrink at her human's will - talk about body horror).
And because this is a movie centered on the hero's journey, Barbie and friends are able to get the patriarchy out of Barbieland and work towards a more equal future, but the real next step in Barbie's individual journey is seeing her creator (and this is where the gender swapped Adam/Eve myth of creation stuff really comes into full force but that's a whole other post altogether) who in a lot of ways is just Barbie's mother ("mothers stand still so daughters can look back and see how far they come" !!!!!). It's her mother figure that gets Barbie through that transition from girlhood into womanhood, who assures her that while things might not be perfect, it's still worth experiencing. (And of course there's the theme of mortality as well, that what makes the human experience special is that it's not infinite)
So that final button of Barbie going to the gynecologist for the first time is actually just the completion of her arc. I saw some people being like "I thought she was going to a job interview!" and I think that was absolutely an intentional misdirect, but I don't think her going to a job interview would've hit as hard. (For a lot of reasons, but the main one is it's a very capitalistic idea that you become an adult when you start to generate your own wealth) It had to be her going to the gynecologist, something only adults usually experience, not children. She's no longer a girl anymore, she is a woman.
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How to fall in love twice (Time, Malon) -Part 4
Pairing : Malon x Reader x Time
Rating: T
Summary: As you and Malon have some bonding time in Kara Kara inn Time gets pissy with the boys.
Warnings: Implied/ referenced child abuse, referenced alcoholism - (Reader had a drunk father that sucked until he was forced to get better or stay gone)
Other: if I missed anything, please let me know.
-------
You spend the two weeks a version of Wild's hyrule. The land is beautiful but the problem say it's only been twenty years since the calamity.
During this, you and Malon spend time talking and doing upkeep for an adventure. You gather rupees for odd jobs and stocking on supplies. With several faries and lots of weapons, you settle for basic food supplies. You leave an adventuring tag for the boys on the off chance they come across it
At the moment, you and Malon are settled inside the in of Kara Kara Buzzar, the busseling groups outside loud.
Inside is a haven of perfect temperature ir, maintained by enchanted sapphires.
"I hope the boys are doing okay." Malon says as she inspects her bow, eyes nothing but calculating.
"Mh, they're fine... By now, they're figured out that we're not coming back and that we got the mask."
"I know. I'm just worried. "
"Can I help?"
"No... It's just weird. I'm not usually the one on an adventure. "
You nod, not quite understanding the sentiment but understanding being on an adventure you weren't expecting or really even supposed to be on.
She looks at you fully, her soft smile a little bitter in the afternoon light. "I'm just glad that it's you that I'm with and not someone else."
"Oh- thanks. I'm glad it's you here too." Yoy say, trying not to come off as the giant smitten crush haver you are.
"You're sweet. It's really no wonder Link likes you so much."
"Oh, yeah... I try."
Malon just laughs, warm and amused. "You're a good person, and I've heard you're a Greta friend."
"That means a lot. Thank you."
She just smiles, pulling her bag onto the bed so she can double-check her arrow supply.
If she's honest- she likes you too. A lot. More than a friend even if it is a fresh crush.
You're funny, kind, and very attractive. She likes how you try to help people and protect those who need it. You're good people.
You turn to the window, watching the sands roll by as chatter sounds around you. The tourists outside are all dressed in linens and silks, seeking refuge from the sun as they browse the stalls.
You can hear Time worrying, even if you aren't actually there. You've seen it enough times, overheard his muttering, he thought no one could hear. You just hope he and the others are okay.
(You can see the pacing and the glaring as he mutters about where you and his wife might possibly be. The way he gets snappy with everyone's. How he takes as many watch shifts as he physically can before royally crashing. Only to repeat the whole process.)
"Hey, (Y/n)?" Malon calls.
"Yeah?"
"What was it like for you growing up?"
You turn to face her, her curiosity evident. And usually you don't just tell people about your past but most people don't ask. To be fair.
"Well... I mean, mom was born on a ranch and grew up there with her siblings. Dad was a royal guard from a long line of them.
"I grew up in castle town, I have three siblings though. And we spent every summer at Mamaw and Papaw's ranch. I did good in school but I struggled to keep up.
"It was okay, dad wasn't home a whole lot... Drank when he was, but he just got loud and angry."
"I'm sorry to hear that."
"It's fine. The one time he hit us, mom nearly killed him." You give a shrug, "After that, he left for a year and came back better. I still don't talk to him much these days. But I don't feel like he's a danger anymore either."
"He hit you?" Malon asks, furry already filling her. How dare anyone ever mistreated children - how dare anyone mistreated you.
Oh, she'd like to kick your father's ass. That would be fun.
She can only imagine that Time would be on board.
"Once. Never again." You shrug, unphased because honestly you've faced worse on this quest with the boys.
"That's a real low thing."
"It's cool, I can kick his ass now. After learning to hold my own against the boys, I think I could take on Gannon myself." You crack a smile, hoping to distract her with a joke.
"I'm sure you could."
"Maybe that's why we got pulled away, to destroy gannon?" You snort at just the thought.
Gannon is so fucked is you or Malon meet him, but both of you- well he'd be done for. You both have a lot of rage towards him and you're both skilled at fighting.
"Ha! Maybe so."
"How would you do it?" You ask, "Defeat Gannon, I mean."
Malon tilts her head with a hum, thinking about the logistics of her ideal victory. She bites her lip as she does this.
"I think I'd just take my cast iron skillet to his head." Malon says with a shrug, "What about you?"
"Hm- I meN I'd wanna say the sword would let me weird it and go that route... but I'd probably be more likely to fight him with a baseball bat full of nails."
"That's a good choice."
"I think so!"
Malon changes the subject again, this time to the places you've been.
And you just enjoy the downtime with the redhead. You definitely are starting to fully grasp why Time likes her so much.
.......
Time can't stand can't of this, settled at a campfire in the Great plateu of Wild's hyrule is awful. Time's only thoughts are of you and Malon.
The woods are no comfort to him. Only making him more on edge because you could be anywhere in any time, and he'd never even see you if you were here.
Time is so worried. And everything is too quiet.
He's- used to not having Malon around all the time on this quest... But you've been there so long your absence is particularly felt.
The lack of your smile and laugh has been awful. Your help with cooking has been missed. The soft touches as you help him dress wounds -
Oh he's so fucked.
"I'm sure it's fine." Wind says a s he sits down by Time.
"Sailor - you don't know that. "
"I do. You have a type. Stubborn." Wind's smile at the end is a little smug.
"I- that is not my type."
"It's part of it."
"I'm just worried about them. Obviously, something happened. Neither of them would just run away. "Time says as he narrows his gaze on the ground.
"No... they wouldn't. "Sky says, "But they're together, are they're both smart."
"That doesn't mean they are in danger. I'm not even sure the mask is going to be helpful. What if they haven't even found it?"
Wind just listens, not sure how to help but wishing Time eoukd stop being so on edge.
"It will be okay, Time. Obviously you get them back. Or Twilight wouldn't exist." Sky tries to reason.
"That only means I get Malon back- what if (Y/n) dosen’t ever come back? What if It's my fault and I didn't hear them and-"
"Time." Twilight says firmly to try to stop the rambling spiral the man seems set on.
Everyone is worried about you and Malon. Everyone wants to get you all to safety-
"Hey, old man." Warriors calls out, "Come look at this."
Time stands, gaze landing on Warriors next to the largest tree in the forest, roots almost like their own tunnel.
The man was towards the knight, waiting for more instruction.
"These are (Y/n)'s initials, aren't they?"
Time looks, and maybe your hylian and his hylian are very different but you'd taught him how you tagged certain things when lost. A habit picked up from a survivalist uncle.
The tag carved into the tree reads your intials and then 'day 4'.
Unfortunately, the wood is well healed. At least fifty years have passed, probably longer. But the chain hadn't been in the plateu before, which means -
You got pulled away through a portal. With Malon at your side, probably. And you are in the past of the current time the boys are in.
That's some real shit.
"Well... at least we know what happened to them?" Wild trues, not really soundings too confident in it.
"I'm going for a walk." Time says in place of any real answer.
"Should we tag that way?" Wind suggests from behind the group.
"Maybe." Wild says, "So they can at least keep up with where we've been."
Warriors nods, deciding to tag the tree below your carving 'H.C. day 9.'
He just hopes you can figure it out.
Time can be seen going on a walk Allright, a real pissy walk.
Yikes.
#lu#linkeduniverse#misty writes#linked universe x reader#lu time#lu malon#lu malon x lu time#malon x time#time x malon x reader
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Blease. Bring Me Home. Anything. It's been so long... ;🥺🥺🥺💜💜💜
I guess we can't say that anymore after yesterday, can we?
So one of the fics I want to write between arc 2 and arc 3 that may or may not come to be has to deal with Danny and Tim's relationships with other people.
Danny will still have his short term romance with Valerie. Which will push Tim to start dating Steph.
But there's another relationship I want to write.
There's a Young Justice member called Greta Hayes, code name Secret. She's a ghost who joins the team after they rescue her from an agency called the Department of Extranormal Operations where she was being held against her will (could they be related to the GIW?????).
Greta has a crush on Tim for a while and she and Steph don't get along because of it.
Now, if you were Tim and you knew a ghost like Greta, what would your first instinct be? Obviously you bring her to the only other teen ghost you know to help train her and introduce her to other ghosts. Get her connected to ghost culture so that she doesn't fixate on not being alive so much.
So basically, I want Danny and Greta to both be hung up on Tim, but he's oblivious and tosses them at each other. They shrug and do the whole "if we can't date Tim, wanna date each other?" shtick.
It goes...okay. Like, it's fine. They get along and they like each other. But let's be real, they aren't each others first choice. It gets worse that Danny calls Tim "Secrets" when Greta's code name is "Secret." She'll get mad if she hears a plural on her name and Danny will get defensive.
Eventually they decide it's better for everyone if they break it off and go back to being friends. And they work much better as friends than romantic partners. They keep in touch after circumstances arise that bring Greta back to life and she goes on to live a normal human life.
Tim doesn't get why they broke up and has no idea both of them were crushing on him for their entire relationship.
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Thoughts about the future: now that I've decided the Young Justice crew is involved with Team Phantom, I've been focusing on what role I want all of them to play. I have the most plans for Kon because he's the character I know the best out of the bunch. But if anyone has some YJ fic they'd like to recommend, please send me the links!
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bound for n.y.c - g. van fleet
a/n: hi everybody! i’m back with a cool 3.6k fic about the one, the only, greta van fleet! i am seeing them at msg next week and am so excited that i just wanted to write a quick fic. please note that there’s no set ship and that it’s sort of implied that reader is in love with all members of the band and all the band members are into reader and NOT EACHOTHER. except maybe sammy and danny. let me know if y’all want anymore of these types of fic, idk maybe it’ll flop. also this is kind of fast paced and i am very sorry for that
warnings: kissing, physical touch, mentions of anxiety and stress, complicated love triangles, food mentions, reader has a stepdad and a good relationship with their mom, reader being from ny, i think reader is fully gender neutral with maybe a few feminine traits but no real descriptors. also reader has tattoos and mentions of a dog that is no longer with us! no use of y/n, one mention of drugs, a bunch of references to sex, and cursing :0
word count: 3.6k
summary: as tour manager, it's your job to get the boys to new york city, your home town. just don't fall in love with them, or anything.
now playing: runway blues – greta van fleet
Being tour manager for America’s favorite Led Zeplin cover band, or at least, that’s what your judgmental bitch of a landlord called them once, was surprisingly difficult.
You were constantly running around after the four of them, feeling often more like a nanny than a tour manager. Especially at first. You had started meeting with them a few weeks before their World Starcatcher tour had begun, where you wore these professional, stuffy outfits. They had been referred to you by their makeup artist, who you had known from when you were an assistant to the tour manager of Phoebe Bridgers’ 2022 reunion tour.
You had been working for a producer when you got the call. Truthfully, you missed touring. It was a great way to see different parts of the country and the world, and you thrived in the chaotic environment. And you had heard of Greta Van Fleet, mostly from your grandfather, who was a huge classic rock fan, and always exploring new music via his iPad.
But you started out rather cooperating with them, wearing these stuffy outfits—Mostly long button ups and pencil skirts, while the boys showed up in comfortable casual clothes, always joking about you having to loosen up a bit.
And one notoriously hot day in early July, you showed up in shorts and a muscle tee to meet with them to go over the final dates of the tour before you all gave your go ahead to the social media manager.
You didn’t do much talking about the tour that meeting, opting instead to answer questions about your tattoos, your taste in music, your life to this point. And in exchange, they gave you pieces of themselves.
“I’m from New York,” You had answered over some late afternoon drinks. “I haven’t been home since Christmas, So I’m excited to see my family when we’re there.”
Josh’s fingers traced your upper arm, over a tattoo of your long-gone dog. “Will we get to meet this little guy?” He asks.
You only chuckled, “No, this one died while I was in college. Best dog I ever had.” You said solemnly.
And that was it. One comment about your dog and the boys were hooked on you forever. And when the tour started, you only grew closer— Sharing with them parts of your childhood, Jake teaching you the very basics of guitar, Josh taking shots with you before shows, Danny bringing you coffee to cope with those shots the next morning, and Sam holding your hand when he’s anxious, or when you’re anxious—or both.
So, by the time you make it to the boys’ first show at the Garden, you’ve developed a routine.
The bus leaves by seven a.m. from the hotel in D.C. to get to New York by nine, nine-thirty-ish. You’re craving a sausage, egg, and cheese on a bagel from your favorite deli near where your mom lives, about an hour outside of the city.
So, you wake Jake up first, as he takes the longest to really wake up, and you’re sure you’ll have to shake him awake at least twice before he really gets up for the day. Then, you go to make sure Josh is up, and hear his shower going by the time you get to it. Good.
Then, you head to Sam, who is snoring away with Rosie. You almost don’t have the heart to wake him up. Almost. But Rosie senses your presence and stands up in bed, starting to lick his face. He groans, mumbling a soft, “I’m up, Rose, I know.” You feel good when you head over to Danny.
But thankfully, he’s already up. He’s in bed, writing in his notebook when you get there, sipping his coffee and all packed up for the road. His hair is tied up in a bun, and you’re entirely grateful that he’s so good at this whole thing.
Usually, you don’t need to wake each of them up, but every few shows, the five of you, as well as other crew members, indulge in the after party. And last night was your turn to be the D.R.O. Designated responsible one.
Eventually, you get all four of them downstairs and on the bus, no real difficulties. You all climb onto the bus and begin the drive to your home state. And you can hardly take the anticipation. Seeing your family again, visiting your favorite spots, and getting a homecooked meal was keeping you going. You had moved to California for school, before traveling on a few tours, and then settling for about a year in Nashville. But you ached for New York.
While your boys busied themselves with talk, games, and music, you stared out the window, biting your thumb and ignoring the reruns of Daredevil that played on your laptop in front of you. And apparently, you were bouncing your leg intensely, because the only thing that snapped you out of your thoughts was Rosie’s head on your thigh to relax you.
You scratched her head, sighing as you closed your computer, before glancing up to the boys, who had gone suspiciously quiet.
“What?” you asked, giving them a concerned look.
“You know we’ll make it to New York, right?” Sam asked, “You’ll be there soon.” He said, holding your hand, just like he always did when you were anxious.
“I know, I’m just—I miss home. And I love touring, and usually I’m never like this, but when I realized I’d be seeing my mom after months, I just... It made me start focusing a lot more on the fact that I miss it.”
You knew they’d get it. Michigan had been their home for years, and although they loved Nashville just like you did, you knew they left a part of themselves in Frankenmuth, just as you had in New York.
Danny tossed you a blanket, “Get some sleep, Sugar. You’ll need it.” he said softly. You nodded, too anxious and tired to argue any further than that. You cuddled up to Sam, Rosie finding her way in between your legs to further comfort you.
As you drifted off, you thought about your relationship with them. Things like Sam’s holding your hand and cuddling, Danny’s very often kisses to your forehead, Jake’s gentle hugs from behind, and Josh’s well—Josh’s everything, he’s a very affectionate young man—had been, for the most part, strictly platonic. You had thought about it. Kissing one of them, asking to break the professional lines of your relationship, however blurred those had become.
But it was more than that. Over the past few months of knowing them, it had developed from you getting them from place to place, into a softer, more tender relationship. The relationship you had formed with them was something you had been desperately lacking and needing. You had only realized that you missed it when you got it from them.
You were all real true soulmates.
You woke up to the sound of a loud series of honks and yelling from outside the bus. You peeked out of the window to see people screaming at each other, thousands of people making their way to work, and tall skyscrapers overhead.
“Jesus Christ, it smells like someone died!” Jake complained, as the rest of the boys agreed on the smell being horrid. It made you grin. You were home.
You stretched and pulled out your phone, checking the itinerary for the day that you had written out in your note’s app the night before. And you were right on schedule, since you accounted for traffic getting here. It was around noon, so you decided to head over to the hotel to get settled in before the show.
Except when you got there, the lady at the front desk informed you there were no rooms booked under the name you had given them. Which was insane, because you booked a room months ago knowing how expensive and unpredictable the city was.
So here you were, a show that night, with no hotel room, and a group of hungry twenty-something year olds. You were going to scream. And they could see it on you, your muscles tense, as you struggled to not start shaking.
Josh rested a hand on your arm, rubbing his thumb gently against it as he wrapped his other arm around your shoulders. “Deep breathes, Baby. You made that reservation; these guys are just a bunch of fucking fucks.” And it made you laugh, enough to relax you. You took another minute to think, before turning back to the rest of the guys.
“Okay, here’s the plan. We must be at the Garden for soundcheck and costumes, hair, and makeup by five thirty. We’ll go there now, drop off our bags and we can go grab pizza and garlic knots at this spot I know, good and are very cool with service dogs.” You said, unable to think of a scenario where you leave Rosie anywhere except with Sam. “While we’re there, I’ll make a call, since I think I know where we can stay if you guys don’t mind a bit of a drive after the show.” No one objected, they simply got back on the bus as instructed, and headed to enact that plan.
After dropping off your things and making it to the pizza place, you step outside for that call, telling Jake to just order you a soda. The phone rings. Once. Twice. And on the third call, your mom answers, excitedly saying your name.
“Where are you guys? Did you make it to the hotel okay?” she asks, and your face melts at the softness.
“Hey, Mom, we’re in the city, getting some lunch. Listen, the hotel messed up our reservation, and now we’re looking for a new place to stay... I know it’s last minute, but—” And before you can ask it, she cuts you off.
“Well, you five can stay here! We have the guest room, your room and your brother’s room.” She decides. “I’ll cook, do they like sausage and peppers?”
“Mom, you don’t have to, it’s gonna be late when we get in.”
“And you still need to eat. I’ll see you tonight, okay? I love you baby, break a leg tonight.” She advises, even though you aren’t the one preforming.
“Alright, I love you, mom.” You hang up and head back inside, settling into your seat next to Josh, just as the waitress comes back to take your order. “We’ll have a large cheese pizza with half mushrooms, please. And a dozen and a half garlic knots.” You say coolly, not giving the boys a chance at all. You love this restaurant. It’s best you order anyways.
They all stare at you for a few seconds before you smile. “You all get to meet my mom tonight.”
“Don’t you think we should have a couple of dates before we meet your mom?” Danny asks, and it makes you giggle.
“What do you think this is?” You tease.
Lunch goes really well, and after a bit of tourism and some drinks around the city, you make it to Madison Square Garden to get them ready for the show. For a brief few hours, you have a break. Usually, you spend it catching up on some work, having some quiet time, or anything of the sort. But this is their debut at the Madison Square Garden, in your hometown. You feel an obligation to watch the show.
Before the show begins, as Josh and Jake are getting their makeup done, you relax with Sam and Danny on a couch somewhere backstage. When Jake is done, he steals your phone off the table, and holds it up to take a photo of the three of you. Sam and Danny lean in and each kiss one of your cheeks, and it makes you roll your eyes for a second before you smile at the camera, letting them be all lovely dovey and affectionate, like a bunch of freaks. Your freaks.
When the show starts, you watch from the sidelines, cheering for them and generally enjoying the show, because you just know how important this is for them. And you eat it right up, watching your boys perform at a dream venue for so many artists.
Before they start Highway Tune, Josh starts speaking to the crowd. “This is a very special show for us. Our debut at The Garden. The Garden, how about that?” He hums. “And we’re also playing in our tour manager’s hometown... So, we have some special surprises for you in their honor.” The crowd goes wild, and your face flushes, giggling at the idea of them performing a special show just for you.
The show goes by quicker than you would like it to, because you’re enjoying it too much. And you’re really understanding suddenly why so many people are down bad for them online. They look really fucking good. When they get off stage, you just want to cling onto them or make out with them or worse, and then they go back on for the encore and it leaves you longing, wanting for more.
What the fuck is happening to you?
You get caught up in this feeling to the point where the next hour or two—Waiting for the crowds to clear out, for them to get undressed, for the bus to get there—fly by, and before you know it, you’re in the bus again, heading to your moms. Josh lays his head on your lap, and Sam has found himself cuddled up against you. Danny is leaning against Jake across from you, and Jake is just staring at you. He has a familiar look in his eyes, and you just stare back.
When you make it to your home, while all the houses are dark and quiet, the kitchen and living room light is on when you make it to your home. The bus driver has family in the area, so he’ll stay with them for the night, and pick you up early on Thursday Morning, giving you all a break from the crazy travel days.
Your mom is in the kitchen when you come in, having late night coffee and tea with your stepdad. She hears you come in and gets excited, greeting you all at the door. She pulls you in for a hug and a kiss, holding onto you for a little while, just excited to see you. When she pulls away, she grins at the boys.
“And who are these lovely young men?” she asks, teasingly.
In a deadpan voice, you respond, “The cokehead rockstars I’ve been traveling with. I’m their groupie.” You say, and she scoffs at your sarcasm.
Josh smiles, “That’s us, Baby!” He opens his arms to your mom, and she gladly hugs him as a greeting, despite this being their first meeting. And there it is again, that aching feeling you had, when you watched them perform tonight, the same feeling that followed you home. After hugs and introductions, you’re all at the dinner table, gobbling down the dinner your mom made for you. You can almost cry, enjoying the taste of her cooking after months without it.
And the boys enjoy it too, loving a filling meal after a busy show. When you have all finished eating, you make your way up to your respective rooms. You stick Danny and Sam in the guest room, Jake sleeps in your brother’s room, and Josh in your bed, with you. You could almost die.
You take out your earrings and then you lay down. Your arms are exposed, showing off the tattoos you have once more. Josh sleeps in his boxers and a tee shirt, even though your room is chilly. He lays next to you and begins tracing his fingers over your tattoos.
“What’s this one?” he asks, tracing over a ghost that’s on your forearm, right above your elbow.
“Got it during the final show of Phoebe’s tour. She has a similar one somewhere, and I guess it was my way of commemorating the tour.” You explain. He hums, and moves to a different one, asking you the origin of that one. This goes on for a while, before you kiss his palm and tell him to get some sleep.
He falls asleep quickly, and you just stare at him through the darkness. ‘Are you dreaming of me?’ You want to ask, a hand reaching out to run your hands through those vicious curls. Before you know what, you’re doing, you cuddle up to him, laying your head on his chest. When you feel his arms wrapped around you, you begin to drift off, confident that you did not overstep any boundaries.
When the morning strikes, you get up and realize Josh is still asleep. You wiggle out of his arms and leave the room. You must be lost in thought because you bump flat into someone without even noticing. It’s Danny. His hair is wrapped up in a towel, and he only wears a towel around his waist.
He reminds you of that one video of Slash from the golden age of Guns N Roses, and it stirs something deep inside of you.
But he just chuckles and kisses your forehead gently. “Hey, sweets.” he says softly, in that raspy morning voice.
“Good morning.” You respond. “Sorry for interrupting.”
“You didn’t interrupt anything; you don’t have to apologize.” He advises. “See you downstairs.” You take a cold shower just to get out of your own head before heading downstairs, where you meet your mom, Jake, Sam, and Danny laughing and eating French toast, as your stepdad cooks in the kitchen.
You love his French toast, but a pang of disappointment hits you as you think about your sausage, egg and cheese on a bagel, with hashbrowns. You quickly eat to dissipate any of those needs. But you’ve been talking about that sandwich for months, so it haunts you.
The rest of the day, you spend pretty much doing nothing. You nap, lounge, and catch up with your mom. It’s the perfect day. Just you, your mom, and your boys. And of course, Rosie. Your mom makes pulled pork sliders for lunch, and you order Chinese food for dinner. Real, good Long Island Chinese food.
And really, the day is over before you really want It to be. Sam asks you to join him on walking Rosie. You happily oblige, planning on taking him to get ice cream along the way. He has his arm wrapped around your shoulders, and you keep your head leant against his shoulder. Rosie trots in front of you happily.
“I could get used to this.” He says suddenly.
“Huh?” It catches you off guard. What does that mean?
“This. The quiet life. Walking my dog in the suburbs...” He says shyly. You get the sense there’s something on the tip of his tongue and you long for him to say it. “I love touring, but these domestic moments... You can’t beat ‘em.” He decides.
You want to kiss him so badly.
Instead, you just hum, and snuggle closer to him, wondering what the hell you’re doing. And that’s a super valid question.
The night goes the same as the last, except you kiss your mom and stepdad goodnight, not wanting them to have to get up in the morning to say goodbye. You suspect your mom will anyways. And she does. As the boys file out of the house, she’s handing them homecooked meals for the road, and you give her one more hug and kiss goodbye, before heading to the bus yourself. The others are on the bus, but Jake stands there, his hands behind his back. You narrow your eyes to him suspiciously.
“You’re an amazing tour manager, you know that?” He says gently.
“Yes, I do. What are you scheming at?” You ask, not totally trusting him.
He just grins as he reveals a brown bag he’s holding, handing it to you. Your confusion only grows as you take the bag and open it only to smell the best thing you have had in months.
A sausage, egg, and cheese on a bagel. With hashbrowns. From your favorite deli.
You almost scream.
“What?!” You gasp, “How did you—”
“I borrowed your mom’s car this morning and got it for you.”
“You didn’t have to do that...”
“Yeah, I did. I meant what I said. You hold us together, and we couldn’t be more grateful. Plus, you’ve been talking about this sandwich for months and—” You don’t let him finish. You kiss him. It’s full of all this pent-up passion you’ve held in, and Jake just wraps his arms around you, deepening the kiss. He wanted this just as much as you did, you realized. Your arms wrapped around his neck as you both lean into the kiss, fully enjoying the moment. Then, he pulls away, saying your name quietly.
You don’t know what to say. Then, the bus honks twice, scaring the shit out of you.
“C’mon you two! We got things to do, you sorry shits!” Josh yells. You can only laugh before you both climb onto the bus. Now, a new lust has overcome you. The lust for the sandwich you hold in your hands.
The lust for the four boys that surround you doesn’t dissipate either.
But as you head for Boston, your boys in tow, your shift as Greta Van Fleet’s tour manager begins once more, and you resume your position easily.
Until Sam kisses your neck. Then you melt again.
#greta van fleet#greta van fic#greta van fluff#greta van fleet x reader#greta van fleet x you#danny wagner#daniel wagner#danny wagner x reader#daniel wagner x reader#danny wagner x you#daniel wagner x you#josh kiszka x you#josh kiszka#josh kiszka x reader#josh kiszka fic#daniel wagner fic#josh gvf#josh kiszka gvf#gvf#danny gvf#danny wagner gvf#sam kiszka#sam kiszka gvf#sam gvf#sam kiszka x you#sam kiszka x reader#sam kiszka fic#sam kiszka fluff#jake kiszka#jake gvf
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the barbie movie made me want to hug my grandmother
i went to see the new Barbie movie yesterday.
honestly, despite the hype of this film, i wasn’t all that interested in seeing it. barbies were never something i played with, and i’d never seen any of the other barbie films, and i had no idea how much of a message this movie would hold - so i just kind of. . . skimmed past it anytime it showed up on my feed.
but my two best friends were ecstatic, and because i love just being in the presence of people i love and appreciate, i decided to come along too. so i bought a ticket, got my popcorn - i even wore pink! we got our seats, and the movie began.
and right from the get-go, i knew this wasn’t a film to be messed with.
it sounds so dramatic, but it was just so good. i usually hate the cinema (autism, don’t ask...), but i sat through this film like a rock, honest to god. not once did i check the time to see when i could get up and leave. not once did i think it was dragging. i was genuinely so involved with this film as i was watching it, that it was a surprise when the end credits started rolling. i wanted more. i could have sat there, living in barbieland, forever.
it’s a very feminist film, as i’m sure everybody knows by now. the way it was done was also perfect; i’m kind of getting sick of these ‘feminist films’ where the message is so. . . subtle. it’s one scene of a woman becoming CEO in a big name company, or a Mum finally getting the chance to live her life! don’t get me wrong, that’s always so lovely to see, but Barbie wasn’t subtle about the feminism in the slightest. our greta was not afraid to show the ugly truth of a woman’s world. she wasn’t afraid to hurt the feelings of men. she wasn’t being careful. in a fun and respectful way, she was able to illuminate the daily struggles of women all over the world, how desensitised we have come to the horrendous ways we have been treated over the years, the expectations set upon us that we don’t even question anymore. it showed women appreciating women, women being successful, women living for themselves. it was just fantastic, and it didn’t take itself too seriously, and it was beautiful.
i knew it was a good feminist film when my best friend reached over and held my hand for the last half of it. for no reason that i could pinpoint, she just reached over our drinks and took my hand in hers, just two women living in solidarity, struggling through the same patriarchal world. it was the type of film that made me want to go hug my grandmother. it made me want to compliment every single woman i encountered on the way back to my car. it reminded me that i am indeed a woman, and i am indeed living under the thumb of men in more ways than i was ever able to recognise, because it was just so normal. i’m so guilty of lowering my standards for men sometimes. i’m so guilty so letting them get away with things, because they’re men! they don’t know any better! i’m so guilty of giving into the patriarchal system, half my head on my own goals whilst the other half stays dead set on keeping everyone else happy. this movie reminded me that i - and everyone else - needs to find who they are without the influence of anyone else’s opinion or presence.
so, overall, this movie was ten out of ten. one of the only ten out of ten films i’ve seen this year. i was in absolute awe of how a piece of media could be so funny yet so enlightening at the same time.
thank you, greta gerwig. you created yet another masterpiece.
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lupe is right, btw.
the way the team treats her is absolutely unfair and yes, definitely inspired by (casual) racism. her role as a mexican woman in professional baseball team parallels both the (much more outright) racism max faces as a black woman in baseball, and the (much more explicitly treated by the show) casual homophobia most of the characters face, including within their own team
she's a terrific pitcher, yet she's probably - and rightfully - hyperaware that the fact that she's not white makes it entirely likely that she's going to be passed over in favour of a less talented white pitcher. in fact, given that she's probably in her early to mid thirties, this kind of shit has definitely happened to her before
and then dove sees her and picks her as his star player, sees her talent, and sure, he's super racist, but at least he gives her a chance to do what she loves and is legitimately great at. and she's loyal to him for that, despite his subpar coaching
and then the rest of the team latch onto that excuse to exclude her from the secret practices, for an entire week. is it any wonder that, when carson comes to check in about her arm, she does not believe that carson is actually concerned, and that she gets the impression that carson is only there for completely selfish reasons, bc she realised they're not good enough without lupe?
and THEN she offers to coach, with very good arguments, and the entire team (bar jess <3) unanimously and immediately rejects her? like shirley's "not the right energy" - not the right colour, you mean.
and through all of that she stays calm, collected - grumpy, sure, but she never ever has a temper or lashes out. she puts all of that aside, the exclusion and the rejection and no one recognising her value, to work together with carson, and it work for the first game, and then the second game, she tries to get Carson to listen to her about pitching again, because lupe is a coach now and a coach gets to make this kind of decision, but carson immediately shuts her down, making it obvious that she doesn't trust lupe's assessment of her own body and of the risks of the game, acting like she gets to have the last word, like she's the actual boss even though they're supposed to be working together
and then greta comes up and tells her TO HER FACE and completely unprovoked (all lupe is telling her is to butt out from coach talk, which is completely normal, greta refused to act as coach) that no one is going to pick her over carson and why is that indeed??? greta doesn't say "i side with carson" or "i think the team would agree with carson", she says "no one would pick you over carson", there is no other way Lupe can read that as anything else than racist, and even if it wasn't, the team's trust in carson over lupe is rooted entirely in the fact that carson already got to act as a coach during secret practices bc they excluded lupe, again, based at the very least on subconscious stereotypes, on a complete ignorance of lupe's position as a mexican woman in professional baseball
and then, during the fight on the pitch, carson says "i didn't ask for this but we have to - " and therein lies the problem, doesn't it? she didn't ask for it but she gets it, something lupe desperately wants and is at least as qualified for as her, bc carson is white. is it any wonder lupe snaps? and then carson accusing her of doing fuck-all when that is VERY MUCH carson's fault, because AT THE BEGINNING OF THIS VERY GAME lupe asked to be allowed to do something again and carson shut her down. of course lupe loses her shit! she is right!
and then, even though it is very much at the very least carson's shared responsibility that they got there, it's lupe who gets demoted as a coach. jfc, i'd also stay on the bench - why the fuck would lupe do anything anymore for a team that treated her this way, or step up to save carson from the mess she put herself in by being unfair to lupe?
and then she tries to get that through to the rest of the team and no one listens and carson calls her a headcase, as if lupe probably hasn't spent entirely too much time being called crazy just for being a mexican woman, and carson cries and that garners her the sympathy of everyone except jess (smth smth white fem-passing women's tears being seen as sincere and vulnerable while woc/butches are seen as hysterical or aggressive or weak when they cry)
and DESPITE ALL OF THAT, when jess comes to call her out (jess who's supposed to be on her side and yet somehow sides with the team against lupe two separate times, bc jess is white!), lupe stays relatively calm and explains it to her, despite the incredible vulnerability that must have demanded. when carson apologises, lupe immediately forgives her, immediately grants her her trust again, and immediately treats her as a friend. even greta, who has never apologised for being an outright probably racist dickhead to lupe (gay for carson or not, that was violent and completely uncalled for), we never see lupe be anything but nice to or about. she doesn't hold a grudge at all.
lupe is actually impressively in control of her anger, especially given the circumstances - the worst you can say about her is that she is grumpy and that she snapped once after swallowing the team's bullshit for months. sheis incredibly quick to forgive, incredibly trusting, incredibly generous with her friendship to everyone who shows her even the slightest bit of kindness
(except esti, who she is a dick to, but that's another angsty post about 1. lupe almost exclusively lashing out at the ppl she loves the most (esti, jess who she punches in the face) and 2. another way the team is legitimately racist, which is them refusing to learn any spanish (except, again, jess <3) and acting on the assumption that bc lupe is also a latina, esti is her responsibility, despite the fact that it's not like she, like the rest of the team, doesn't also have other stuff to do than babysitting a 16yo)
the fandom absolutely sometimes falls into the trap of the exact same subconscious bias as the Peaches, and the show does that on purpose, i'm sure, to smack us in the face with it during the convo with Jess, but there's still a surprising amount of defensiveness surrounding this, it seems. which is a pity, bc god, what a phenomenal character, and what a story she gets if you pay attention
#lupe garcia#aloto#aloto meta#lupe did NOTHING wrong#and she deserved A LOT better from the team#and YES the rest of the team are (at least casually) racist#like IT WAS THE FORTIES#why is it so easy to believe that shirley is in fact exhibiting homophobia#but impossible to believe that carson greta jo and jess exhibit (varying levels of) racist prejudice#like it's right there??? are we watching the same show???#you can be queer AND racist that's still true in the year of our lord 2022???
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~*~The Beginning~*~
*knock* *knock* *knock*
[keys jangling, fitting into lock]
[muffled voices]
Aurelio: Thank you for doing this, I really appreciate it.
Aurelio: Phoenix? You here?
Phoenix: *muffled* Go away.
Aurelio: He’s here, he’s okay. Thank you again!
Aurelio: Hey man, you gave us quite a scare. You okay?
Phoenix: ….
Aurelio: No, of course you’re not okay. I heard about Greta. I’m so sorry. I know how much you loved her.
Phoenix: …
Aurelio: Hey. Talk to me.
Phoenix: …
Aurelio: Come on. You’ll feel better if you sit up and talk about it.
Phoenix: …
Aurelio: Alright. I’ll tell you what. If you don’t talk, then I’ll have to sing.
Phoenix: …
Aurelio: I will sing to you.
Phoenix: …
Aurelio: Okay.. [clears throat and begins singing] Sometimes in our lives, we all have pain, we all have sorrow.
Phoenix: *groaning*
Aurelio: [continues singing] But if we are wise, we know that there’s always tomorrow.
Phoenix: Ok
Aurelio: [singing louder] Lean on me when you’re not strong, and I’ll be your friend, I’ll help you carry on!
Phoenix: Ok ok I’m up
Aurelio: [singing louder still] For it won’t be long, till I’m gonna need somebody to lean on!
Phoenix: I said I’m up!
Aurelio: Good… good, now talk to me.
Phoenix: [taking a breath] I fucked up! I fucked everything up! And now everything’s gone to shit. I fucking killed him. Sure, he was a monster, but what am I? I’m a fucking killer now? What am I supposed to do with that? And I lost Greta. Do you know what she said to me? She doesn’t feel safe with me. What the fuck?! I appreciate you all having my back and lying for me… but maybe you shouldn’t have. What do I even do now? I’m alone in this dump of an apartment. I have no job. I only have enough in savings to get through next month. Then what? I can’t even look at myself in the mirror. I don’t know who I am anymore, Aurelio.
He didn’t even notice he had started crying until he had to stop to wipe his nose.
Phoenix: FUCK! Why are you here?!
Aurelio: I’m here because I care about you, because you’re my best friend. I know exactly who you are. You are Phoenix fucking Realta. You are smart, resourceful, determined. All the things you moved here for, they’re all still out there waiting for you. And you’re not alone. I’m right here. And I’m not going anywhere. In fact, I got into SMMI. I’m moving into the student housing apartments in the Arts Quarter in a couple months.
Phoenix: Congratulations.
Aurelio: Thank you. Look, I know it’s been an awful year so far. Maybe you need someone to talk to, to work through the whole mess, and that’s okay. I've started seeing a therapist, only a couple sessions so far, but it's good. And I think it'd be good for you too, if you're willing. Julian and I will help.
Phoenix: Ok.
Aurelio: Yeah?
Phoenix: Yeah.
Aurelio: Good.
Phoenix: Thanks.
Aurelio: You’re welcome.
Phoenix: …
Aurelio: Y’know, we have our whole lives ahead of us. And you are going to do great things. I know it.
Aurelio: This isn’t the end, ok? This is just the beginning.
Prev // Next
Personal story under the cut:
This post is dedicated to two amazing friends I had in high school. At the time, I was suffering from a deep depression, and had stopped speaking (a trauma response that still affects me from time to time). One day my friends pulled me out of bed and took me for a walk to the park on a sunny day. While we were there, they tried to get me to talk to them. But I couldn’t. So, instead, they sang this song to me… at the top of their lungs. And it was amazing. It didn’t solve anything. I didn’t speak for another couple months, and my depression lasted years more. But that moment will forever be a bright spot in a very dark time. To this day, anytime I feel down, I think back to that day and smile.
After everything I put Phoenix through this week, I felt like he needed a moment like that… even if it’s super cheesy.
#ts4#sims 4#ts4 gameplay#sims 4 gameplay#ts4 challenge#sims 4 challenge#starsignchallenge#starsignlegacychallenge#gen1 aries#phoenix realta#aurelio robles#poses by rebouks#cw depression
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I really will never get the hate towards Greta.
Sure, I guess people didn’t take much to how late she came in and how a romance took place, but take that complaint to the studio and the writers.
There are characters that literally coerced others into sex, cold-blooded killers, and attempted genocide, but somehow a woman who puts her foot down is the one who annoys you. Oh and the “she’s mean to him” …mean to the man who was lashing insults unwarranted at Trevor, calling his family “mentally ill hoarders” just because he was uncomfortable in the Belmont hold that HE willingly stepped into?! (She’s not even mean… she didn’t trust him, which was understandable because the man was practically alcoholic and had dead corpses impaled in his front lawn. The village desperately needed help, her brother legit got killed in the process trying to seek it. He was the only option.)
and I’m not about to get into the topic of racism within this fandom because that plays the biggest role to a lot of y’all, whether you want to admit it or not.
Like why are you bitching at people who happens to like a harmless ship/character? You can block the words and people, you know. Blocking is a free feature.
She may not be interesting to you, but she’s not a bad character.
A lot of you need to fucking chill. I’m not trying to deal with people talking down on me cause I just enjoy a damn ship that’s not even problematic. Like this is why folks don’t like to heavily engage in fandom spaces anymore.
It’s tired.
#like it’s high key forced atp#there isn’t a SOLID reason for yall to hate her with the way people act#greta of danesti#greta castlevania#fandoms really do make shit unenjoyable at times#castlevania#gretacard#gretadrian#Netflixvania#misogynoir#I feel sad for any new fan coming in at times#cause they’re not coming across the cool fans#they come across ppl who reduce it to ships and racism
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v e r s t a p p e n t o r e s c u e
Summary:
A calm night walk was everything I wanted.
Apparently god had another plans for me.
From walking down the street and minding my own business, to a full rescue operation on a tree.
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After a bunch of hectic days in Monaco it was great to have a calm night like this one.
Many people were still at their yachts or boats celebrating deep into the night. A typical summer holiday night in Monaco I thought. Even though the streets and beaches were crowded, the night was still peaceful. Everyone was minding their own business. I stood there for a moment while humming a melody. Gazing through the celebrating people, it put also a smile on my face.
After watching the crowd for a few more minutes I continued to walk. The walk through the city pulled me more away from my apartment. I blinked a few times to register where I landed. I shook my head. I'd need to take the shortcut back home. I could feel a heavy tiredness taking over my body. Walking aimlessly helped me to ease my mind and body all the time and made me sleep much better but walking all the way back was not an option. I'd rather take the slightly scary shortcut.
Midway through walking down the street which was decorated by abundance of trees I heard a cat. The cat sounded stressed. I tried to listen closer. The sudden realisation hit me. It was a cat on a tree and most likely wasn't able to go down anymore. Searching a few minutes for the cat I could tell on which tree it was. Beside its yellow eyes I could barely see the black kitten. Sleep leaving my body immediately. Greta I thought.
"Well little kitty let's see how I can help you. It seems like nobody else is really passing by." I talked to the kitten. I looked around to figure out a way. It looked like there was only one way to bring him down.
"Here you are." I whispered to the kitten while trying to reach it with my one hand. More I tried to reach the kitten more the kitten got scared and moved further away from me.
"No, please do not get further away I cannot come closer I am going to fall down!" I scolded the kitten. I sight as we both clinged on a tree and looked into each others eyes. Cautiously I tried to get closer to the kitten and I slipped a little. I shrieked. Taking deep breaths I tried to tighten my grip. I really did not want to fall down a tree. Me hurting myself was my second worry. My first worry were my idiotic friends, they would tease me till the day I die.
"Hello?" I heard a familiar voice calling. I could not tell who it was but he sounded familiar.
"Oh my god, can you please help us?" I shrieked again. I couldn't hold much longer I could feel my strength slipping.
"What do you mean us and how did you even end up on a tree that high?" he questioned, he sounded amused.
"Can you please help first and question later?" I responded. "And if you did not notice there is a little kitten on the tree as well, a few inches away from me." I continued.
"Oh my, now I understand. You should have called for help you know." he said in a familiar tone. Who was this annoying but hopefully helpful man I thought.
"Well I left my phone at home mister smarty-pants." I responded back. I heard him laugh a bit. How annoying I thought.
"Okay, okay I think if you push the kitty a little more it will fall down and I can catch the naughty boy." he continued.
Since I did not have much strength left and had to trust the familiar sounding strangers judgment. So I nodded even if I did know if he could see me or not. I tried to tighten my grip once more and reached my hand out to the black kitten once more. The kitten hissed at me and stepped back a little more which caused him like the stranger told me to fall down. I hoped that the stranger really could catch the kitten.
"I got it." he announced. I let out a relieved sigh. I honestly wouldn't have the energy to bring the kitty to a veterinary.
"Now it's your turn." he cut off my thoughts.
"What do you mean exactly?" I questioned stupidly. I wanted to face palm myself.
"I'll catch you too. Just let go." he responded. Somehow I could sense his amusement. How frustrating I thought.
"I am scared." I admitted. I did not think much when I climbed up the tree I admitted to myself. The stranger did not have to know it, this much entertainment was enough for him. I didn't want to add more.
"Well you should have thought about it before you climb up a high ass tree." he responded as if he heard my thoughts. I rolled my eyes again.
"Well I panicked smart-ass." I murmured. I knew he could hear me. I couldn't care less.
"Come on, don't be scared. I got you. Just close your eyes and losen your grip." he explained like he was talking to a little kid.
"You promise to catch me?" I asked him my voice barely audible. Catching a kitten beside, catching a fully grown person was another matter. I took a deep breath.
"I promise, now come on. We cannot stand here all night, though I doubt you could hang over there any longer." he responded.
"Ha ha, very funny." I murmured. I slipped again a little and I shrieked.
"Okay, I am letting go." I panicked and closed my eyes and let go of the tree for real.
I could feel two firm arms catch me immediately. My arms find its way around his neck reflexively. For a moment I could not open my eyes. I was breathing unevenly. I did not realise how high the tree really was.
"You are safe now. You can open your eyes." he said with a calm voice. I slowly opened my eyes. I blinked for a few minutes. For a second I could not register in whose arms I was.
"Oh my god, I knew you sounded familiar." was all I said before letting him go and jump out of his firm embrace. He snickered. I was speechless for a moment. He did not hide his amusement, not even a little bit. He folded his arm in front of him and laughed a little more.
"I-, well I-, I mean I am so sorry." I fumbled around after trying to remember words. How was he real I thought.
"What for? You tried to rescue a kitten and I just helped out." Max responded nonchalant. I almost forgot about the kitten who caused all the trouble in first place. I looked around to find the black kitten.
"He is already gone. He was not amused that he was pushed out of the tree." Max laughed. I sighed dramatically.
"What an ungrateful brat." I murmured. "Oh and talking about gratefulness. Unlike the kitten I am grateful that you helped us." I said with a grin. I was still processing who actually was in front of me.
"No need to thank me. I am glad both of you are okay, though it was very dangerous what you did." he said with a smile on his face.
"I know, but seriously thank you Max." I whispered. I looked directly into his eyes. He was stunning. He looked even better in real life even in the dark! I knew that Monaco was home for many formula 1 driver, but I did not think that one of them would rescue me from a silly accident as mine.
After scanning him for an uncomfortably amount of time I cleared my throat. It was not the best moment to fangirl over the formula 1 driver.
"I don't want to cross any lines but if you don't mind I'd like to thank you properly. It's not like you get rescued by Max Verstappen on a daily basis. I asked him kindly with a hint of amusement. He did not respond for a few seconds. I looked around becoming more anxious every passing second. Maybe I shouldn't have asked him. For gods sake he was Max Verstappen. He probably had better things to do. I wanted to say something and get going but he talked first.
"Well after a rescue operation like that we both probably need something to drink to calm down. Besides you could explain me how you managed to climb up that high ass tree in first place." he grinned widely. I let out a laugh.
"I'd gladly reward you my saviour with a drink and entertain you with my heroic story." I responded cheerfully. He laughed and I joined him. His laughter felt like music in my ears.
"Great let's get going I know a great place." he responded, I nodded and we both started walking towards the place he mentioned.
With small chitchats through the streets and a lots of laughter we arrived at the place he was chanting about. That was a weird way to meet Max Verstappen I thought. I send my silent prayers above and a muted thank you to the black kitten.
After all the change of events turned the night marvellously.
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Authors note:
If anyone ready the short story thank you. I appreciate it a lot.
After a looooooong break of writing stories/ fanfics I am glad to make a comeback.
My first short story after taking a huge break.
I hope you enjoy. I'll be around for a while. xoxo
#max verstappen#max verstappen imagines#max verstappen scenarios#f1#max verstappen imagine#max verstappen scenario
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Day of the dead
Cw: mentions of death, grief, and death of an infant
Gif by @rare-occasions
For @thegreatdragonfruta who requested it
“I won’t mind if you wish to put a photograph of Greta on the altar.” Eva says softly as they both lied wide awake at night. The soft rain should be enough to let them sleep, but tonight neither can’t sleep.
She had mentioned the Day of the Dead at some point and at some point, Polly convinced her to make her little altar with offerings.
These things included skulls made out of sugar, some strange bread and colorful cut paper. It was a strange and lovely thing with marigolds, purple candles and the photographs of their dead.
She used an old side table for it, somehow it had fit in perfectly in the sitting room.
November 1st was for children, November 2nd was for the rest.
Polly had refused to give up hope and forbade them from placing the only photographs she had of Michael and Anna on it, but eventually she had put Anna’s photograph there, along with the ribbon she had been wearing that morning she was taken.
There had been more photographs than they had assumed there would be.
Polly had two, her late husband and Anna.
Arthur put a photograph of Danny Owens.
John had put a photograph of Martha and Esme had put one of her sweetheart who never came back from France.
Ada put one for Stanley Chapman and a photograph of Freddie’s parents with his explicit permission.
Finn had put a photograph of their mother, the same mother he never knew.
Eva had the most photographs there, a heart breaking thing to see. But his witch didn’t cry, not as she put the photograph of her sister and her husband on their wedding day, not when she placed the photograph of her brothers in their uniforms, and not even when she put the one of her parents.
She only cries when she drinks, once she had cried into his shoulder after he made the mistake of teaching her how to shoot, but he’s never seen her cry like at again.
Tommy’s cried more than she does, come to think of it.
Cried until he couldn’t anymore when Greta died. Cried in silence after he fucked Zelda because she wasn’t the pretty Italian girl he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.
Maybe he should put her photograph on the altar.
Except the only one he has, an old faded thing he can’t seem to get rid of, is of them in Liverpool that last time she was healthy.
Maybe he should put that photograph on the altar, he’s been dead since France.
The man he is now isn’t who he was born as. The man married to a woman he doesn’t deserve is a man who was born in those tunnels, born from grief, desperation and death.
“Maybe I will.”
And he does.
Some other people would refuse to allow such a thing, but Eva isn’t other people.
Eva knows grief, knows it almost as well as she knows her husband.
She’s made her peace with it, her first November here she had finally gotten the closure she needed. She’d finally had the time to properly grieve Alan and Gabriel then.
Grief is a bitch.
And it shows up even when you think you’ve gotten through it.
So when she sees the photographs on Monday morning, she feels it sink it’s claws into her heart.
So many lost, and yet it’s the fact that baby Feli never even had a photograph that makes her weep like a child. She only has a pink button to be remembered by.
She had only lived for twenty-eight days, something wrong with her little lungs because she was born too early. She had been so tiny, her little coffin had been the size of a shoebox.
Luis had the only photograph of her, asked to be buried with it when he died in a train accident six months later.
The only thing Eva had of her only niece was pink flower shaped button that had fallen off her onesie the morning she died. Eva had thought she had lost it, but yesterday she had found it in the bottom of her box of things.
This morning she falls to her knees in grief as she puts the tiny button in front of her sister’s photograph.
It had never occurred to her that six years later, she would cry because all that is left of her sister and her little family is a photograph and a button.
Death takes everything from her and yet it refuses to take her.
It forces her to live, to live and love and laugh with a man who is just as fucked up as her.
She doesn’t know when Tommy came in, or when she fell to her knees in agony, she just knows that she only feels safe enough to cry with him.
“It’s okay, Evie.” He holds her tightly, kneeling on the floor with her as she sobs violently into his chest.
Eva thinks he spends more time keeping her head above the water than she does keeping all his pieces together.
Grief was the price they paid for love, and both had paid for it deeply.
“Promise me you won’t leave me.” She doesn’t know why she asks him that, it wasn’t like Tommy had any power over death.
But he promises to live forever as he stares at the photograph of him and Greta Jurossi, nonetheless.
#eva smith shelby#tommy shelby x oc#thomas shelby x oc#thomas shelby fanfic#peaky blinders fanfiction#thomas shelby#thomas shelby imagine#oc fanfiction#tommy shelby fanfic#peaky blinder fanfic
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Synopsis: A young Greta Van Fleet find hope in a local battle of the bands competition to finally catch their big break.
Words: 16.4k
Notes: Here's a whopper of a chapter lmao...thank you @infinisonicosm for the fic idea!
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Day 2
The next day, the members of Greta Van Fleet walked into the competition like they owned the place. After being showered with praise the day before from friends, family, and strangers alike, they all couldn’t help but think that they were bound to win the whole thing. It felt as if nothing could get in their way.
Sam was sitting with Danny at one of the picnic benches by the hot dog stand when Jake came rushing to them, his face obviously overcome with panic.
“Have you seen my baby?” he asked them.
“You have a kid?” Danny didn’t seem to follow what he meant.
Jake pinched the bridge of his nose and huffed. “My guitar. Have you seen my guitar?”
“It was with all of our gear,” Sam told Jake. “Is it not there anymore?”
“No.” Jake’s eyes looked like saucers. “I can’t lose that guitar, it’s all I have.”
“Wow, thanks,” Sam retorted. He and Danny rose from the table to follow behind Jake, who had taken off back towards the backstage area without another word, running as fast as he could. They saw him with Josh, tearing through their cases and cables, growing more frantic by the second.
“Someone must have taken it,” Josh decided as he watched his brother. Jake snapped back upright and fumbled to brush his hair out of his face.
“Whoever did this to me,” Jake started, “I will find them and I will kill them.”
“Let’s tone it down a bit, okay?” Danny tried to get Jake to follow some breathing exercises. Jake only started to hyperventilate which made Danny stop.
“But who would take it?” Sam had to ask. “I mean, maybe someone grabbed it by mistake? We can check with the other groups.”
Josh looked between Danny and Sam. “Why don’t you both do that while I calm him down?” Sam took one look at Jake and noted that he looked like he was on the brink of foaming at the mouth he was so stressed. The guy really did need to sit down and go through a guided meditation.
Sam grabbed Danny by the arm and they wandered around the grounds, hoping to find any of their competitors to see if they could shed some light on their situation. Danny pointed out the lead singer of The Bellhoppers, who was talking with some older guys in front of their jet black Mustang.
“Hey!” Sam jumped and waved to catch her attention. She spotted him and excused herself to join their side.
“What’s up?” she asked them, crossing her arms and looking Danny and Sam down with interest. She seemed to be at least a few years older than them, probably in college, and had tattoos covering her arms. Sam felt like he had never seen someone as cool as her in his eighteen years in Frankenmuth.
“We’re missing a guitar,” Sam cleared his throat to regain his focus. “Cherry red, like the one Jimmy Page played. Have you seen it anywhere?”
“I can’t say I have,” she answered after giving it some thought. “I’ll keep an eye out for it though and let you guys know if it turns up.”
“Thanks,” Danny told her, dragging Sam on to find the other bands.
Invalid Password was pretty inebriated when they found them, despite it being 1pm, and gave answers that were barely coherent. That was more than enough for Sam and Danny to consider them innocent. Their drummer kept asking their keyboardist where they were; if that was a mystery to them, they probably had bigger fish to fry than Jake’s missing guitar.
Sam checked his wristwatch and winced when he noted that they only had thirty five minutes before they had to take the stage. He knew for a fact that Jake wasn’t going to go out there if he didn’t have his old reliable, and then it would be all over for them. Sam still wasn’t sure where the guitar could have possibly gone, but he really hoped with all of his might that it was all just a fluke, and it would turn up soon.
They couldn't find anyone from Fellowship around, so they made their way back to Jake and Josh, who were sitting cross-legged in the field behind the stage. As they came closer, Sam realized that Josh was walking Jake through one of the meditation routines he had picked up from YouTube. It seemed like it was working, because Jake’s eyes were softly shut and his breath was level. Josh was still talking him through the steps in a soothing whisper but, when he saw Sam and Danny approach, he arched an eyebrow at them, checking their progress. Sam and Danny both shook their heads, and Josh visibly looked troubled.
Sam was about to offer that he do one more loop around the perimeter when Danny smacked him in the arm.
“Ow!” Sam called out in surprise. Jake opened one eye and looked at them with a frown, but then returned back to his meditation. Danny pointed across the stage to the other side, where a few members of Fellowship were huddled around something.
“They look like they’re up to no good.” Danny whispered to Sam under his breath. Sam looked at their opponent and squinted. Even though they were a decent ways away, Sam could hear them laughing about something.
“Should we investigate?” he asked back. Danny had already turned on his heel and was stomping across the stage to them. Sam hustled after Danny, appalled by his assertiveness. Danny was usually more of the methodical one between them; Sam wasn’t used to seeing him act so brashly.
Danny jumped down in front of the band and put his hands on his hips, taking in the scene in front of him.
“Are you serious?” was all that Danny could say to the other band. Sam joined Danny’s side and saw what he was scowling at. In the middle of the five band members was Jake’s guitar, laying on the grass with all its strings snapped.
“We found it like that,” their guitarist told Danny, trying to fight back a grin.
“Why are you standing around it like you’re doing a sacrifice or something?” Sam asked. None of the band members seemed to want to answer that one.
“You’re lucky we found this and not our guitarist,” Danny told them. “You’d all be in serious trouble. I mean, you don’t go messing with someone’s guitar. That’s, like, the number one rule in music.”
“You’re a bunch of shit heads,” Sam summarized what Danny was trying to say. “Just remember that karma’s a bitch.”
“Is that supposed to be a threat?” the bassist stepped closer to Sam. He was a couple of inches taller, but Sam felt like he could take the guy.
“That’s for you to find out,” Sam balled up his hands into fists. The bassist watched him and started to get his fists ready too when Danny jumped in, grabbed Sam’s shoulders, and steered him away from the band, only taking a brief pause to retrieve Jake’s guitar from the ground.
“Go fuck yourselves,” Danny told them before leaving. Sam was happy to see that all of them were gaping and, luckily, none thought of anything to retort back.
As they walked back to Jake and Josh, they tried to assess the damage. Danny held the guitar up and scanned its polished surface, looking for any scratches or nicks.
“It looks like they just messed with the strings,” he concluded. “It shouldn’t be that hard to fix. I can put on a new set in under five minutes, we should be fine.”
“WHAT DID THEY DO TO YOU?” they heard someone holler in the distance. Danny and Sam whirled around and saw Jake sprinting towards them with his head down, Josh chasing behind him. “MY BABY!” Jake shouted louder. Sam felt like he should duck and cover from his brother (he was so panicked he almost looked feral) but instead Sam remained frozen in place. He reached Danny and forced his guitar out of his grasp, clutching it to his chest. “My sweet girl,” Jake practically sobbed into the wood finish.
“It was Fellowship,” Sam told Josh under his breath, so Jake couldn’t hear. “They took it and cut the strings.” Josh’s face folded into a frown.
“Who the hell does that?”
“A band that’s afraid of us,” Sam tried to look for the silver lining.
Jake held his guitar back out in front of him and let out a sharp gasp when he saw the condition of his strings. “Who did this?” Jake turned back to Sam and Danny. Sam felt like it would be best if he withheld that information since it really wouldn’t be good for their music career if their lead guitarist was charged with manslaughter.
Josh, unfortunately, didn’t seem to have the same concern. “Fellowship,” he replied. There was a jarring fury blazing on Jake’s face, and then it calmed. In silence, he handed his guitar back to Danny and motioned towards the strings.
“Would you mind fixing those for me?”
“Of course,” Danny said without hesitation. Jake then looked at Josh.
“Come with me.”
“Hold up, what are you gonna do?” Sam tried to stop them. Jake and Josh were notorious for taking things a little bit too far. He let out a frustrated groan when he realized that his brothers were walking away, not bothering to answer his question.
“It’ll be okay,” Danny tried to reassure Sam.
“You’re not worried?” Sam couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Danny was usually the one who was the most up in arms about keeping things civil. Danny shook his head.
“You don’t mess with someone’s guitar,” he repeated himself. “Whatever Jake and Josh do, Fellowship had it coming.”
“Dear lord,” Sam whispered. He didn’t realize how intense the music industry could get.
Jake and Josh returned back right before Danny was done adding Jake’s last string. Sam had been busy making sure that his bass was in tune (in case Fellowship tampered with that as well) but looked up when he heard his brothers’ jovial laughter. In comparison to the rage that had surged through Jake just a few minutes earlier, Jake seemed like he had entirely cleared it from his system. In a similar vein, Josh looked energized. Sam could only imagine what they had just done.
“I can take over,” Jake told Danny, motioning for him to hand him his guitar back. “Thank you so much for doing that.”
Josh took a seat in the folding chair next to Sam and let out a soft giggle to himself. Sam looked between his brothers and finally gave in.
“Okay, fess up. What did you do?”
“What do you mean?” Jake played stupid while he worked on the last string. “We took a walk.”
“You obviously didn’t,” Sam countered. He was going to press more but caught a whiff of a strange smell and took a longer, deeper inhale. “Is that smoke?” he asked. Jake and Josh exchanged a glance and tried to hide their laughter. Sam stood and scanned around the grounds. Sure enough, at the edge of the venue just past the food concourse area, one of the porta potties was set ablaze, turning into a growing fireball of melting blue plastic. Sam stared back at Jake and Josh blankly and jutted a thumb towards the fire. “How did that solve anything?” A few volunteers were running around in a panic, trying to find water to toss on the growing flames. The fire jumped to the next porta potty in line and erupted into an even bigger inferno.
“That’s our best work yet,” Josh nudged Jake in the side. Jake gave a wide grin and nodded while playing with an orange Bic lighter.
“Put that away,” Sam practically shouted at his brother. They had to hide the evidence, and fast. The way that fire was spreading, they were bound to be held liable for an unfathomable amount of damages. Jake tucked the lighter back into his pocket and took a break from tending to his guitar to lean closer to Sam and Danny.
“We stole the strings off all their guitars and basses,” Jake shared.
“Where are they now?” Danny looked confused. Jake let out a laugh and then tried to regain his composure.
“We put them all in the porta potty,” Josh finished Jake’s thought. “And then decided to partake in a little bit of fun and friendly arson.”
“There’s no such thing as fun and friendly arson,” Sam hissed.
“Sure there is,” Josh shrugged. “See?” Sam looked to see where Josh was pointing and watched as the volunteers finally got a hold of a hefty looking hose and smothered the flames with an impressive gush of water. “Only minor damages,” Josh concluded. “Fun and friendly arson.”
“You both need to be put on a watchlist,” Sam told his brothers.
Jake let out another chuckle. “You need to lighten up.”
Sam wanted to protest that it was incredibly hypocritical for Jake to even consider telling him to “lighten up,” but a stagehand stopped by before he could argue.
“Fifteen minutes before you need to take the stage,” the woman told them.
That got them to spring to action, and they rushed to their instruments. While Sam, Danny, and Jake worked hard to get everything set up, Josh hurried to find which band they were set to square up against.
“Bellhoppers,” he reported to the rest of the band, out of breath, a few minutes later. Jake pondered their matchup and then nodded his head.
“They’ll be tough to beat, but we have a stacked setlist.”
Sam had to agree with his brother there. While they had stuck to the blues and folk the day before, they made sure to prove to everyone on the second day that, at their heart, they were a rock n’ roll group. Jake, Sam, Danny, and Josh would all have time to showcase their skills in their own solos throughout their three song setlist, and that seemed to be what was feeding into Jake’s confidence.
“They’re good for covering songs,” Jake continued, “but we know how to improv, which is sure to impress the judges. That’s what the solos are for, boys. Don’t go wasting them.”
“But don’t get too carried away with them either,” Josh reminded his brother. Jake had a tendency to get lost in his music and, sometimes, it took pulling the plug on his amp to get him to stop. They didn’t have a time limit for the third round, but Sam had a feeling they could get some points docked if they played for too long.
Jake was about to make a sarcastic retort back at Josh when the guitarist from Fellowship stormed up to them, his face bright red.
“You took our strings!” he accused the band. Greta Van Fleet looked around at each other, turned back to him, and collectively shrugged. “Our bassist doesn’t have a spare set!”
“And what are we supposed to do about it?” Jake mocked the guy. Before he could argue back, Jake added, “Maybe think twice before messing with my shit next time, twerp.”
The dig didn’t really land, considering the guitarist was well over six inches taller than Jake, but it was evident that Jake had won their dispute since the guitarist let out an aggravated huff and then turned on his heel to clomp back to his band. Jake waved to the guy and then focused on his guitar, which was back in optimal shape.
“Those strings were getting old,” he shared. “If anything, those guys did me a favor by cutting them, as traumatizing as it must have been for my baby.”
“Way to look on the bright side,” Sam congratulated him.
“Oh good,” the lead singer of The Bellhoppers greeted the band. “You found your guitar.”
“The guys from Fellowship took it and cut the strings,” Danny caught her up to speed. She shook her head with disgust.
“What a bunch of cowards. You don’t do that to a guitar.”
“Exactly!” Jake and Danny both emphatically agreed with her.
“Well, I wish you all luck,” she looked around at them. “I can’t speak for the rest of my band, but I’ll be cheering you on from the wings. You guys have a spark to you that I haven’t seen in a long time. It’s really exciting.”
“We’ll be doing the same for you,” Sam assured her. He had really enjoyed watching her band play the day before. She grinned at him and then motioned for them to take the stage.
“May the best band win.”
“Hear hear,” Jake nodded.
They heard the host announce them and, just like that, they were back out in front of the growing crowd, ready to take on the third round of the Battle of the Bands competition.
Sam slipped off his boots at the back of the stage and made his way to his amp to plug in his bass. It hummed to life and, with nerves and excitement coursing through him, he made his way to center stage where Jake and Josh were facing Danny at his drum kit.
“Ready for this?” Josh asked around, wiggling his eyebrows. Danny twirled his drumsticks around a few times and gave an infectious smile.
“I’ve physically never been more ready,” Jake announced. He looked around at his bandmates with a mixture of love and joy, and turned to resume his position on the right side of the stage. Sam stood, facing the crowd that extended all the way back to the food tents over 50 yards away, and took a deep breath. They had made it to the third round. They were good, and the audience in front of him knew it. It was time for him to prove that what they thought was absolutely true.
“One, two, three, four!” Danny counted them in. Jake broke out into the opening on his old reliable, churning out a full and rich sound that Sam knew could partially be credited to his new strings. He had a feeling the Fellowship guys were probably kicking themselves for that “prank.” Sam played alongside his brother and let his head bob around to the steady beat Danny was keeping. To his left, Josh made his way in front of the microphone and took a deep breath.
“We used to say that come the day, we’d all be making songs,” he bellowed out while Jake played behind him, using his pedals and whammy bar to create a warbling effect with each chord he struck. The crowd started to cheer when they realized that they were playing a cover of the Fairport Convention song, “Meet on the Ledge.” Josh grinned at their recognition and sang louder over his bandmates, going through the rest of the first verse.
As they entered into the chorus, Sam kept his eyes trained on the neck of his bass to make sure he was playing the right notes. Then, alongside Jake, he approached his own microphone that was set in front of him and closed his eyes. He was definitely not the strongest singer in the band by a mile, but Jake had convinced him and Danny that their voices sounded strong together when they performed backing vocals. Sam was deemed the baritone of the trio, which worked to his favor since Jake and Danny’s higher vocals typically wafted above his and were easier to hear. So, while Josh sang his verse, Sam, Jake, and Danny sang behind him as they played, creating a mesmerizing wall of sound that filled the entire field.
Sam took a moment to open an eye and look across at Jake as they held their elongated notes, and saw that he was looking back at him with a twinkle in his eye. That was refreshing to see, considering Jake usually looked like he wanted to bash Sam’s head in whenever he tried to sing. Sam focused back on his vocals and listened as they folded in perfectly with Jake’s middle harmony and Danny’s high notes.
When they returned back to the second verse, Sam stepped away from the microphone to catch his breath and reopen his eyes. They were doing well, and he could see that the audience was visibly into it, swaying back and forth to their music. Josh had taken the microphone off its stand and started to work the stage, moving back and forth across it so he could wave and smile at as many people as possible. Sam chuckled when he saw Josh flash his old high school buddies a middle finger before moving back to center stage, right before the second chorus.
Without thinking, Sam plodded across the stage, right past Josh, over to Jake, who was just starting to gear up to lean into his microphone. He gave Sam a surprised glance but then let out a chuckle when Sam nodded towards the microphone and leaned into it so they could share it. The brothers crowded around the stand and let their vocals feed into the same input so it washed over the crowd. Josh seemed tickled by their theatrics and spent more time on Sam’s side of the stage, where it was empty, to sing and try out a kind of foot shuffle that got the crowd going. Sam and Jake finished their singing and Jake stepped away to take center stage for his solo. As he passed by, Sam gave his older brother a kick in the ass with his bare foot, which caused Jake to widen his eyes in shock. It was fortunate that he was on his A game and didn’t let that surprise flub his moment in the spotlight.
Sam took his position back on his side of the stage and smiled with content as Jake nailed every note of his solo, arching his back and holding his guitar vertically out in front of him, as if showing it off. Behind him, Danny was working hard as well, adding in fills that Sam had never heard before, but found to be perfect for the song. He kept beat on his bass, and Josh bumped shoulders with him after taking a chug of water.
“This is fun.”
“Yeah,” Sam laughed back.
Jake’s solo was wrapping up, so Josh hurried back to his microphone and belted out the last chorus of the song. Grinning from ear to ear, Sam returned back to his own microphone and closed out the song strongly, singing his rich harmonies while gazing out at the cheering crowd. Jake played the last note and let the feedback wash over the audience, who were clapping with all of their might.
Once again, they met at center stage. Jake was already starting to sweat through his velvet black blazer decorated in silver etchings, so he hastily tugged it off, which earned them more cheers. Josh laughed at that, and then looked back at everyone.
“Feeling good?” he asked around.
“Never better,” Danny was the one to speak for the rest of them. Sam could only nod in agreement. He wanted to keep playing; the adrenaline was intoxicating.
“Done getting naked for the fans?” Josh poked fun at Jake, who was readjusting his guitar strap.
“Go introduce the next song, shit head,” Jake looked back at him with a cheeky grin. Josh laughed back and approached the microphone.
“HOW ARE YOU ALL DOING TODAY?” he hollered so loud, Sam nearly reached his hands up to cover his ears. Cheers and applause erupted from the crowd. “We’ve got a funky one for you,” Josh continued, “Well, kinda. It’s called Motown Funk No. 4.”
Jake began the opening riff while Josh was finishing his sentence, which earned him a scowl from Josh, but it was quickly replaced by a look of concentration. Danny joined in with Jake and, soon after, Sam played in parallel with Jake, blasting the crowd with their second song. Josh channeled a more bluesy and deep tone as he let out the first verse,
“Hey, lady! Whatcha trying to do to me? Hey, lady! Please don’t give me anymore…”
As Josh sang, Sam hurried to the back of the stage, where one of the stagehands had helped him set up his keys. Danny had expressed concern that he would be doing too much by switching between instruments mid-song, but Sam assured him the night before that he was faster than Roadrunner. He proved that to Danny right there in that moment as he turned down the volume on the bass, pushed it out of the way, and leaned over his keys to pound out the chords that he had written for the chorus. It went smoothly and, at the start of the next verse, he was back at the edge of the stage, playing his bass in line with Jake, tossing his hair around and mouthing along to the words.
He scanned around and finally spotted his family in the center, a few rows from the stage, dancing and waving their arms around with glee. Next to them, their group of friends were more excited than ever, jumping around, trying to open a mosh pit. It was unfortunate that the rest of the crowd wasn’t into that idea.
Sam retreated to his keys once more and got through the second chorus, feeling the power of their music flood through his body. Standing close to Danny’s drums made him feel like he was vibrating in place, and he loved the sensation.
Like they practiced in their endless rehearsals, the chorus came to an abrupt end and the audience began to applaud, thinking the song was over. Jake remained frozen in front of them, holding his guitar out and grinning. The cheers grew, and then Jake called out before ripping into his solo. Sam tried to work his part of the stage for the crowd while he played along on his bass, and made a show of flipping his hair and lifting his leg up when it felt right. Jake closed out his solo and pointed at Sam, who made his way to the edge of center stage, getting as close as he could to the people in the front row. He let his fingers dance over the neck of his dad’s bass and bopped back and forth to Danny’s groovy beat while he created a riff on the spot, deviating away from the bassline he had written with Jake for the song. His fingers flew up and down in complex patterns to the roar of the crowd and, after giving it his all until he felt like his hands were going to fall off, he played a long note with vibrato to indicate to the rest of the band that he was finished. Jake was quick to jump back in and take them into the chorus, where Sam once again found himself on the keys, taking a breather from his moment of fame. He wasn’t sure that he could replicate whatever he had done out there, but he swelled with pride that he hadn’t played the wrong note or created pesky feedback to dissuade the crowd and judges. He had contributed to the band in a way that would hopefully propel them to the final round and beyond.
They played through the last verse and then, as planned, Danny began his own solo, giving Josh, Jake, and Sam a breather before they started their third and final song of the round. While Danny played his heart out, pounding away on his drums and creating a tidal wave of noise to wash over the crowd, the brothers joined together on the wing of the stage.
“Great solo, Sammy,” Jake congratulated him, giving him a hefty pat on the back. “I didn’t know you could play slap bass.”
“I didn’t know either,” Sam admitted as he tried to sort his hair out. It was incredible how many knots he got after every one of their performances. Danny had suggested he learn how to do a french braid, but Sam didn’t feel like that was very rock n’ roll.
Josh opened a bottle of water and started to down it when he stopped, made a confused and then disgusted face, and spat it out onto the floor.
“BLEGH!” he called out. “What the hell is this?”
Jake snatched the bottle from him and took a whiff. “That’s rubbing alcohol, dude.”
Josh’s eyes bugged. “In my Dasani water bottle?”
“Good to stay hydrated, right?” the guitarist from Fellowship smirked as he approached them from where his band was hanging out.
“That could have seriously hurt him if he drank that,” Sam stared at the guitarist in shock. Isopropyl was potent enough to cause chemical burns.
“Like how he hurt my guitar’s strings?” the guitarist shamelessly countered.
Jake wasn’t having any of that. “Like how you hurt my guitar’s strings?!” his voice raised enough that a few people at the front of the crowd were craning their necks to see what was happening backstage. Sam was disappointed that he couldn’t focus on Danny’s solo since he was really killing it, but he needed to help his brothers put the asshole in place.
Without a moment’s hesitation, he tore off his denim button up and jumped at the guitarist. Now, Sam wasn’t usually the fighting type, but giving a guy rubbing alcohol to drink was a step way too far out of line, especially for a local band competition. Jake seemed to have the same idea as Sam, because they both flew at the guy at the same time, their hands ready to pound him in. To Sam’s utter surprise, Josh squeezed himself in between his brothers and the guitarist before things could get ugly, waving his hands around in a desperate panic.
“Don’t fight!” he called out. “Danny’s solo is almost done!”
Sam cursed to himself and took a step away from the guitarist, who was laughing and calling them cowards. Even though the clock was ticking, Jake couldn’t restrain himself from reaching up to launch his balled up fist straight into the guy’s face. They watched as the guitarist dropped like a sack of bricks and then, without saying another word, marched back out to join Danny. While Danny finished out his last drum roll, Josh approached the microphone like nothing had just happened.
“This is called Edge of Darkness. It’s about… the edge of darkness.”
Sam could already tell from across the stage that Jake’s hand was blossoming with purple bruises from the contact he had made with the guitarist’s face, but it didn’t seem to bother him while he picked out the opening riff of the song. While they were building out their setlist, Jake had been adamant that Edge of Darkness be added so he could try out a new part of his solo that he had been working on, where he played his guitar behind his head. Sam felt like it was a risky move, but that had been just about everything they had done in the competition so far, so it only felt right.
Jake’s playing was intense, and Sam could feel his anger and frustration with Fellowship brewing to the surface as he tore into his guitar strings. Josh, likewise, nearly shouted the lyrics into his microphone throughout the opening verse. Sam matched their energy, plucking his strings extra hard. He made a few glances at the chaos that was unfolding on the wing of the stage, where the host and a few stagehands were trying to tend to the guitarist, who was still flopped on the ground. His stomach dropped at the thought that they would be ejected from the competition for Jake’s violent lashing out, but he tried to tuck that bad thought into the back of his mind.
He started to play his bouncy bass part for the chorus, throwing in some higher notes to stand out over Jake’s guitar and Danny’s drums, and they moved into the second verse without any issue. Sam took a deep breath and released some of the anxiety starting to ripple to the surface about the repercussions of their feud. They were playing at their top level, and technically they hadn’t started the whole thing. If anything, Fellowship should be booted for nearly killing Josh.
Sam was so deep in thought about this that he let his muscle memory take over and, soon enough, was surprised to find that they were entering into the guitar solo. Jake nearly sprinted to center stage with a loud yell, as if releasing some of his pent up emotions. Whatever he was feeling about their beef was instantly channeled into his playing, as he hit every note with perfect precision and power.
“Do it, Jakey!” Josh called to his brother.
Jake’s body folded over his guitar as his fingers danced up and down the frets, and then he straightened upright and turned his back to the crowd. Sam could feel the audience hold their breath as he hoisted his guitar up and over his head, resting it across his shoulder blades so he could play without looking. Sam couldn’t believe it, but Jake’s playing increased in difficulty while holding his guitar in that unconventional position, letting his fingers flutter through complicated patterns.
While Jake was giving quite literally everything he had to offer, Sam noticed that a few of the members of Fellowship, excluding the guitarist who was still moaning on the side stage, were sneaking closer to him. He continued playing without pause, but used his peripheral vision to make sure they didn’t try anything with him. He was relieved that their path veered away from him, but then his eyebrows furrowed when he realized that they were headed towards Jake’s amp with a pair of wire cutters. Jake was at the climax of his solo, his guitar back in front of him, and sweat poured down his face as he exerted all of his energy into playing faster than the speed of light. They couldn’t stop him while he was at his literal peak.
Sam rushed to Josh, who was honed in on his tambourine playing, and gave him a nudge.
“Help,” he managed to whisper to his brother. Josh turned and saw the Fellowship guys closing in on the amp and shook his head in anger.
“Not on my watch,” Josh grunted. Sam watched him storm to the guys, grasping onto his tambourine like he was ready to use it as a weapon. While Jake and Danny continued to throw their bodies around to the music, entirely oblivious to the scene unfolding, Sam watched Josh hustle behind Danny’s drum kit so he could confront the three guys without anyone in the audience seeing. Sam poked his head behind the drum kit to keep tabs on the situation in case Josh needed backup, but it seemed like he had it covered. The members of Fellowship hollered out as Josh sprung behind them and smacked them all in the head with his tambourine. Somehow he managed to stay in time as he did it. That distracted them enough that Jake’s amp and cables were left unscathed, and Josh forced the wire cutters from the drummer’s hands and slid them across the stage to Sam where he could keep them safe by his feet.
“Stay the FUCK away from my band!” Josh barked after them as they scampered away.
Jake closed out his solo and, for the first time, seemed to realize that something had just happened behind him. He cocked his head to the side when he saw Josh stomp back to the microphone to barrel the final chorus out. Jake made his way to the side of Danny’s drum kit, where Sam was playing, and called over the music, “What happened?”
“I’ll tell you after,” Sam yelled back. He looked behind and saw that Danny was watching them with concern, but kept smacking away at his kit like nothing was wrong. They returned to their designated spots on the stage, gave the crowd what they wanted, and finished out the song with a collective jump on the last note. After waving goodbye to the crowd and blowing kisses to their families, the members of Greta Van Fleet rushed off the stage to get as far away from Fellowship as they could.
Jake was immediately on Sam’s ass. “Tell me what happened,” he demanded to know. Sam mulled over the right way to share the information without riling him up too much and watched as Jake wiped the sweat away from his brow with the back of his hand.
“Fellowship tried to cut your cable during your solo,” he shared. Jake’s face turned red.
“They’re playing dirty,” he hissed.
“You did pop the guitarist in the schnoz,” Sam reminded him.
“You did what?!” Danny turned to Jake in horror.
“They slipped isopropyl in Josh’s water bottle!” Jake raised his voice, motioning back towards the stage. “What the hell was I supposed to do?”
“Are we gonna get tossed from the competition?” Danny looked between Josh and Sam with worry. “That seems like something that would definitely happen.”
“Maybe we can negotiate with them to only eliminate Jake and you can take over the guitar, Danny,” Sam told him. Jake scowled at the thought.
“We’re the best ones out there - they’d be crazy to take us out of the competition.”
“Don’t get too cocky,” Josh reminded him. “We’re up against some really good bands.”
“You did hear us out there, right?” Jake checked with Josh. “We sounded fucking incredible.”
Whatever confidence Jake let take over himself immediately vanished when the host of the competition approached him with a grimace stretched across his face. The members of Greta Van Fleet all paled at his appearance.
“Is it true one of you punched a member of Fellowship?” He checked with them. They all looked around at one another, trying to telepathically agree on a plan to talk themselves out of their sticky situation. Josh finally took the lead.
“Yes sir,” he replied, keeping his gaze glued to the grass. The host made an annoyed ticking sound and shook his head.
“I was hoping it wasn’t true.”
“Please don’t kick us out, we promise we’ll keep our fists to ourselves moving forward,” Danny tried to plead with the older man. He looked back at Danny with a sympathetic smile and shook his head.
“I know this is a big deal to you all,” he started.
“Monumental,” Jake corrected him.
“But I also want you to understand that AutoFest prides itself in being a safe haven for car and music enthusiasts. Fights are vehemently prohibited, even if they are in self-defense.”
“What does that mean for us?” Josh’s eyes slowly rose to land on the host.
“I really do like you guys, but this can’t go unaddressed. You have to face some kind of repercussions for your actions.”
“What about the Fellowship guys?” Jake couldn’t hide his anger. “They tried to poison my brother! That’s the only reason why I threw that punch.”
The host’s eyes widened. “Of course they didn’t tell me that,” he pinched at the bridge of his nose. “Here’s my proposal: you’ll have to pay a fine to the city. All the more incentive for you to win this competition so you can forfeit some of your earnings instead of digging into your own pockets.”
“How much?” Jake demanded to know.
“$250,” the host had obviously given it some thought, he answered so quickly.
“But can we still play?” Sam checked. The host nodded his head, and the band released a long sigh of relief.
“I’d be crazy to pull you from the stage after the show you just put on,” the host admitted. Jake leaned into Josh’s side to point out that he had been right, and Josh owed him an apology. Josh responded by pushing Jake so hard, he nearly toppled to the ground. “You just have to promise me you won’t do it again. You know what? Consider this a warning. Do it again, and you’re out.”
“Crystal clear, sir,” Danny told him. Sam felt it was only right to give him a salute.
“I’ll have a word with Fellowship as well. I think it would be best for you both to keep your distance for the rest of the competition. You know, for all of your safety.”
“I can’t argue with that,” Jake nodded. The host gave them a wave and made his way back towards the stage, where The Bellhoppers were getting ready to go out. Sam watched him go and thought about following behind him so he could watch their competitors perform, but Jake grabbed at his arm. “Can you help me find some ice?”
Sam looked down at Jake’s hand, which was starting to swell a concerning amount, and pointed towards the food court.
“I bet they have something.”
Jake led the way and Sam followed behind, leaving Danny and Josh back to unwind after their performance. Sam wasn’t quite sure why Jake wanted some alone time with him, but that confusion was quickly resolved when Jake started to rant.
“It’s bullshit that we have to come up with money to pay a fine for something that I was forced to do!”
“You technically made the decision to sock the guy,” Sam shook his head. Jake studied him, looking disappointed.
“I thought you’d understand my frustration here, you went after the guy too.”
“I’m not saying what you did is technically wrong,” Sam backtracked. “It’s just a bit hard to play it off like you’re entirely innocent. I mean, it kinda looked like you broke the guy’s nose.”
“I hope I did!” Jake exclaimed.
They came up to the slushie stand and all Jake had to do was show his hand off to the college kid running the cash register. He fixed Jake a large Ziploc bag filled with ice and joked that he didn’t want to know what the other guy looked like, which got a chuckle out of Jake. Instead of making their way back to Danny and Josh, Jake motioned for Sam to take a seat with him at one of the picnic benches on the outskirts of the festival grounds. As he iced his hand, Jake continued to ramble.
“I think the Fellowship guys should pay our fine. What do you think about me threatening them with a broken bottle?”
“Jake, no,” Sam sighed. He understood that their opponents had gone way out of bounds with him and his band mates, but Jake matching their energy wasn’t the right way to handle the situation. The host had given them a warning, and he seemed pretty serious.
“Well I’m not paying that stupid fine,” Jake spat out. “$250 my ass.”
“Why don’t we try to earn it?” Sam thought aloud. Jake snapped his good hand at Sam with a look of intrigue.
“We’ll encourage people to bring singles to our next performance and Josh can do a strip dance.”
“No,” Sam quickly shook his head. “But you’re not too far off. We’ve played enough that I feel like we’ll be pretty recognizable around the festival. All we have to do is set up shop somewhere and do it how we used to.”
Jake tried to make sense of what Sam was suggesting. Then, his face brightened in realization. “We’re gonna go back to the good old busking days?”
“If that’s what it takes,” Sam replied. Jake seemed on board, but then he looked down at his hand.
“I should probably take a break from the guitar so I’m okay to play in the next round.”
“If we make it,” Sam cut in.
“If we make it,” Jake agreed.
“You can sing, Josh can drum, and Danny will take the guitar,” Sam thought on his feet. Jake didn’t look entirely on board but, the more he considered it, the more the idea seemed to grow on him. Singing in front of people was a better option than forking over $250 of their own hard-earned money.
“On one condition,” Jake held up a finger. “I’m not taking any requests.”
Fifteen minutes later, the members of Greta Van Fleet were stationed in front of the festival entrance, serenading the guests as they filed into the venue. Sam and Danny were making use of his electric amp, and Josh was in his element, playing away on Danny’s cajon drum. Jake, although he was stiff with discomfort, was stationed in front of the group, singing along to Wonderwall. An elderly couple had requested it as they walked in and, after handing Jake a twenty, Jake was backed into a corner and forced to suck it up.
Sam was glad that they had gained so much stamina from all their practice sessions because, otherwise, he would have been entirely burnt out. But between the excitement from their last performance and the determination to get the money they needed, Sam felt he had enough energy to continue giving performances for as long as they could.
“I said maybe, you’re gonna be the one to save me…” Jake belted out in his best Liam Gallagher impression. A girl around their age stooped down in front of them to toss a $5 bill into Jake’s fishing hat that he had been wearing offstage. Jake flashed her a cheeky smile and gave a thumbs up with his good hand as he continued on with more energy. Sam was glad to see Jake get out of his comfort zone when it came to singing in public: Jake needed to realize sooner or later that he was fully capable of being a frontman too.
At the end of their song, Jake took a pause to count their earnings. “$44.39!” He announced to the group. “Not bad for being out here twenty minutes.”
Sam wasn’t sure if that really was a good sign, but he couldn’t dwell on it for long since he caught the sound of The Bellhoppers’ set. It was hard to place the song at first, but then he realized that they were playing a fast tempo version of Everybody Wants to Rule the World. From what he could hear, the crowd was pretty into it.
“Do you think we’d have more luck if we did this after the competition is done?” Danny asked around. “You know, when everyone who watched us is leaving?”
“I want to celebrate at the end of the competition, not be working my ass off for money,” Jake protested.
“Again, Jake,” Josh called up to him. “We haven’t won yet. Please stop jinxing us.”
Jake let out a soft apology and then faced back out towards the clutters of people who were entering the fairgrounds. “Welcome to AutoFest!” He greeted them with a charisma that was more characteristic for Josh. On Jake, it felt unnatural and forced. “We’re Greta Van Fleet and we take requests!”
Sam arched an eyebrow at his older brother. Apparently his standards could change when they weren’t making money fast enough.
“Do you know Ed Sheeran?” a younger boy approached them. Jake had trouble hiding a look of disgust, but opted to play stupid instead.
“Who? I can’t say I’ve ever heard of Ed Sheridan before,” Jake said. “But we’ll play some Black Keys for you!”
“Nah,” the kid waved Jake off and ran in through the front entrance. Jake stuck his tongue out at him and then shook his head.
“I still have my limits,” he muttered to himself. Then, he looked back at Josh for help. “What music do rich people like listening to? Maybe we can lure them in.”
“We’ve been busking for years now,” Josh looked back at him. “You haven’t figured that one out yet?”
“Obviously I haven’t since we’re still busking,” Jake retorted. He combed his fingers through his hair while he thought, and then snapped his fingers together. “Dean Martin.”
“Do you know any Dean Martin songs?” Sam was genuinely curious.
“Of course I do,” Jake scoffed. And then he broke into the worst rendition of That’s Amore Sam had ever heard, mostly because he only knew half of the lyrics. Josh and Danny tried to humor Jake and play along with him, but Sam shook his head and opted to watch his brother make a fool of himself instead.
“When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie, that’s amore,” Jake tried to sing in a deeper tone with an Italian accent that was bound to offend someone. “When the moon seems to shine and you chugga da wine, that’s amore,” he continued, and Sam winced. “Bells will ring, ting-a-ling-a-ling ting-a-ling-a-ling…”
Sam couldn’t help but smack his forehead when Josh and Danny joined in with Jake’s botched song, messing up the lyrics in their own unique ways as well so the song was entirely muddled. One person approached Jake’s hat and took out a $10 bill, shaking his head in disappointment.
“Hey!” Jake took a break to holler at the guy. “Give that back!”
“Maybe when you learn how to sing Dean Martin right!” the guy called back, and then hustled away.
“So now we’re at $34.39,” Danny concluded.
“Okay, I’ll admit Dean Martin wasn’t the right choice,” Jake admitted. Sam strained to hear if The Bellhoppers were still performing and took note that the live music had stopped inside the fairgrounds. That meant that Invalid Password and Fellowship were bound to go out and face off at any minute before the winners were announced. A part of him wished he hadn’t told Jake about his busking plan because the nervous anticipation was starting to feel like it was going to eat him alive. He had no clue how The Bellhoppers had done in comparison to them since he missed their entire set, and doubts started to consume him that they would make it to the final round.
“I think you need to turn up the heat, Jake,” Josh advised him. “Flaunt what you’ve got.”
Jake pondered Josh’s words, and then gave a half-assed shrug like he had nothing left to lose. He had tugged his blazer back on following their performance so he wasn’t walking around with his nipples fully out, but he started to slowly shimmy out of it while Sam, Josh, and Danny played Feel Like Makin Love.
“Baby, when I think about you, I think about love,” Jake sang slowly in a husky voice, trying to make eye contact with everyone that passed. While some people did slow down to watch them for a bit, most snapped their heads down and hurried past them. Sam felt secondhand embarrassment from the countless rejections towards Jake’s show as he joined in the backing vocals. “Feel like makin’,” Jake sang out as he fully removed his coat. “Feel like makin’ love.” The blazer whirled around his head a few times and then was flung off in the distance, where it landed in a bush. With Jake’s chest fully out on display, he noticed that more people were gathering around them to watch. This encouraged Jake to go a step farther, and he retrieved a bottle of water from the ground by his feet and proceeded to dump out the contents over his hair, soaking himself. Sam thought he looked beyond ridiculous, but people started to step forward and drop bills into his hat.
To keep it coming, Jake tried out some dance moves that closely resembled what he did on stage with his guitar, and the people seemed to eat it up. When he started to rake his hands through his hair and wiggle his hips around, Josh put his foot down.
“Too much!” he shouted to his brother, who was getting lost in the performance. “I don’t want to see your ass moving like that back here!”
“You’ve got a front row seat to the show, why are you complaining?” Jake took a pause from his singing to argue with his brother. Josh shook his head in disbelief and continued drumming.
“I created a monster,” he told Sam.
“A motivated monster, that’s for sure,” Sam agreed. He wasn’t used to seeing Jake steal the spotlight out in public, around a bunch of people. It was much more common that he was hiding behind Josh, only coming out when he was comfortable, but he was obviously motivated to earn the money to pay off their fine.
The song ended and Jake made a show of bowing to those who stuck around for the full performance, and then called for five so he could dry off and count their earnings. As he sorted through the growing pile of cash, he took a pause to look at his bandmates.
“I really do appreciate you guys helping me get the money to pay this fine,” he told them. “And I’m glad I’m the one out there making a fool of myself since I’m the one who got us in trouble in the first place.”
“I mean, I’m glad you’re fronting this too, trust me,” Josh told him. “I need to rest my vocal cords, but we’ve been at this for a while and I need to take a breather. It’s been a long ass day.”
“I think we earned that rest,” Jake agreed, shoving the money back into his hat.
“We made it to $250?” Danny asked in surprise.
“Kind of,” Jake replied. “Well, close enough that I can pay the rest out of pocket if I have to.” He took a break to squeeze the water out of his long locks and study his drenched black and white striped pants. “I need to change out of these.”
“You go and do that,” Josh told him with a laugh, waving him off.
“I want to watch the other bands,” Danny shared, and Sam agreed with him.
“I need to hear from our friends how The Bellhoppers did.”
They collected their instruments and left their busking area behind, setting back inside the fairgrounds to the competition.
“They’re definitely an 80s cover band,” Leah shared when they found their friends hanging out near the fair games. Sam hoped his relief wasn’t evident to his friends but he was glad to hear that The Bellhoppers only played covers. That was bound to earn Greta Van Fleet some bonus points.
“The crowd loved them, but I think they were louder for you guys,” Ian added. “There was an older guy next to me who looked like he was having a spiritual awakening or something when Jake put his guitar behind his head.”
“Jake has a way of doing that to people,” Danny laughed.
“Speaking of Jake,” Tom cut in, “is he icing his hand because he was playing faster than is humanly possible?” They all turned to look at Jake, who had changed clothes and was with some of his own friends, trying to use his left hand to throw baseballs at empty milk jugs while keeping the melting bag of ice on his bruised hand. The poor guy obviously wasn’t ambidextrous like Danny because he missed the bottles by a mile, nearly taking out the guy running the whack-a-mole booth.
“He punched someone,” Sam shared, shaking his head with disbelief. Everyone gaped at him, so Sam continued. “We have some beef with one of the bands.”
“That one?” Ian asked, looking back at the stage. Sam tried to make out what Ian was looking at since they were a good distance away, but he scowled when he saw that Fellowship was taking the main stage.
“Yup,” Danny confirmed. “They broke Jake’s guitar strings, tried to poison Josh, and nearly cut Jake’s power when he was doing one of his solos.”
“What the hell?” Leah called out. “Who would do that?”
“A bunch of dickheads,” Sam replied.
“I think they’re all in college,” Danny added. “They must be especially desperate to catch their big break so they don’t have to keep attending lectures and taking finals.” Sam had never thought about it that way; he thought they were just a bunch of jerks.
Tom, Leah, and Ian nodded like they could see the rationale behind that. Sam heard Fellowship begin the first song of their set and excused himself so he could move closer to the stage. Danny’s eyebrows knit at that, and he trailed closely behind Sam.
“You’re not gonna pull anything, are you?” he asked as he struggled to push through the crowd. Sam shook his head, but he wasn’t sure if Danny had seen him. As tempted as he was to fire a flare gun at them, he was mostly curious to see what they brought to the table, and if he should feel as threatened by them as they were apparently threatened by his band. Sam found a spot in the middle of the crowd, off to the left side of the stage where the guitarist was, and put on a pair of sunglasses so the guy wouldn’t recognize him. Danny joined his side, out of breath, and positioned himself close to Sam.
Fellowship was playing a cover of a Rush song and, to Sam’s dismay, they did sound pretty good. Greta Van Fleet had attempted playing Rush before and, while they almost got it down, it wasn’t something they could confidently say they had in the bag. Fellowship, on the other hand, was playing through Freewill like it was nothing. The only thing that brought Sam comfort as he watched them play was the guitarist had two black eyes forming, and his nose did look a bit crooked on his face. Jake really did know how to throw a mean punch.
The people around them whooped and hollered as Fellowship jumped straight into their second song of the set, which was an original and dark song that sounded like a mix between Metallica and Ozzy. Sam hated to admit that the guitar and bass merged together to create a rich sound that he wasn’t sure he and Jake could accomplish. The drummer was like a blur behind his kit, he was hitting so many things at once. And the lead singer knew what he was doing as well: the guy was able to let out the lyrics with an impressive range, and made a show of dancing around and pulling some moves that Jake had attempted earlier during the busking to get the crowd into it. Sam would have to tell Josh to turn it to 11 if they made it to the final round, because they would have to go against a guy who really knew how to work a crowd.
As the guitarist went through a mind-boggling solo, Sam tugged on Danny’s arm.
“I’ve seen enough,” he called into his ear. Danny looked relieved and nodded, so they took off to find Jake and Josh. After they made it back to the open space away from the stage, Danny and Sam exchanged worried looks.
“I knew they were good, but I didn’t realize they were that good,” Danny admitted as he crossed his arms over his chest. Sam was utterly puzzled by everything.
“Why are they messing with us if they could easily win this whole thing?”
“Beats me,” Danny shrugged. “They must see something in us that we’re not seeing.”
They reached Jake and Josh, and Sam deliberated whether he should tell them about Fellowship’s performance or not. He didn’t have to, though, since they had already found out. Jake was fuming at Josh when they approached them.
“We need to edit our setlist,” he planned out while pacing back and forth between Josh. “No covers, more solos, we need to find ways to get the crowd excited. We need to be memorable.”
“You need to turn up the charm and seduce the crowd more,” Sam pointed at Josh. He and Jake both whirled around to face Sam and Danny. “We saw a bit of their performance,” Sam explained. “It’s gonna be really hard to beat them.”
“There must be something we have that they don’t,” Danny tried to assure them.
“We’re better looking?” Jake guessed.
“I was thinking more in terms of our playing,” Danny tried to steer him in the right direction.
Jake’s face scrunched together, deep in thought, and then his face brightened.
“I think I have a plan.”
***
Fellowship and Invalid Password played their sets and, right at five, they were brought on stage to announce the finalists. Greta Van Fleet allowed themselves a small celebration when it was shared that they would be playing at 7pm, going against Fellowship, but then they went straight back to their preparations.
Jake’s plan was an intricate one and, while Sam wouldn’t admit it out loud, it felt like they were trying to pull off a mini-miracle. The first step of Jake’s plan was that they dress to the nines: the members of Fellowship were all going for the skinny jeans and black shirt combo, so they could outshine them in that way. The band made a quick detour to the local thrift store and, after an hour, were back at the fairgrounds looking better than ever. Josh had found a jumpsuit on the women’s rack that looked like it was a Halloween costume at one point but, when he put it on, he looked like an ethereal being. The white velvet cloth decorated in rhinestones was guaranteed to make him stand out on stage. Danny found a mesh silver top that fit perfectly and glimmered in the sunlight, so he would be hard to miss behind his kit. Jake was ecstatic to find an army green suit in his size, and made a side comment about how he was going to customize it a bit. Sam wasn’t sure exactly what look he wanted to go for, but he spotted a baby blue suit similar to Jake’s and decided that was what he needed to wear. As they paid for their clothes, Jake whispered to Sam that he was going to add something to his outfit as well.
Back at AutoFest, Josh and Danny were already suited up in their new clothes and rehearsing backstage, but Sam was with Jake. There were a lot of things that he didn’t know about his brother, and the fact that he was a seamstress was apparently one of them. Out of the back of their car, Jake was hunched over Sam’s suit, stitching fabric between the sleeve and body of his jacket. Sam was holding Jake’s suit, which he had already personalized, in awe of his brother’s craftsmanship. In under twenty minutes, Jake had managed to add a moth decal to the back and front flaps of the coat, along with some swirls of gold, explaining as he worked that he liked moths because they chased after the spotlight.
“There we go!” Jake exclaimed, holding Sam’s suit up to him. Sam took it and studied Jake’s work, his eyes widening. Jake had added a rippled piece of fabric that almost looked like a wing beneath his arm. The fabric shimmered as he moved it, and Sam was immediately entranced. “Now get that on,” he told Sam. “We need to practice a bit more.”
Once they were fully suited up, they found Josh and Danny huddled around Danny’s cajon drum. Danny was trying to explain a pattern to Josh, but stopped when he spotted Jake and Sam.
“Looking good!” he grinned at them.
“I can say the same!” Sam exclaimed back. Danny gave a shy grin and shook his head with a chuckle. His eyes were darkened with some dramatic eyeshadow and eyeliner that fit well with his outfit.
“Josh started it, but Leah helped me clean it up,” Danny explained. Josh looked proud of himself.
“If musical theater taught me anything, it’s how to put on eye makeup.”
“I’d say we look like a rock band now,” Jake looked around at them with satisfaction. “How’s the practicing going?”
“Josh has almost got it,” Danny gave an update.
“Are you feeling good?” Jake checked in with Danny.
Danny looked at ease. “I know the part like the back of my hand, it’s not gonna be a problem.”
“Let’s run through it a few more times though,” Sam told everyone. He wanted to make sure they knew exactly what they were doing so they didn’t drop the ball when it mattered most.
The swelling in Jake’s hand had lessened enough that he was able to practice with them without any trouble, and they wound up running through their updated setlist right up until they were supposed to go out on stage for the final round. That worked best for Sam because he was so caught up in his bass and keys that he couldn’t think about how monumental everything was shaping out to be. Their big break was within grasp.
The host had explained to them that they were going to take the stage at the same time as Fellowship so he could announce them to the crowd that had well over tripled since the third round, and then Fellowship would go through their five songs first. Sam wasn’t sure if it was a good idea to put them out there all together, but both bands were so focused on winning that their feud was put on hold. As the host announced both groups, Sam let the applause from the crowd wash over him. This was something they had earned. This was where they were supposed to be. The feeling made him smile wide.
He was also tickled by how his friends and family reacted to their new looks.
“God damn, Danny!” someone had shouted close to the stage when Danny first came out.
While Fellowship got ready to play, Greta Van Fleet retreated to the backstage area.
“I don’t want to hear them,” Jake was telling Josh. “It’s just gonna get in my head.”
“Wanna sit in the car?” Josh suggested.
So they piled into Danny’s car and blasted some Tchaikovsky to clear their heads. Sam was glad that they weren’t watching Fellowship’s set; the panic he had experienced after seeing their third round performance was the last thing he wanted to feel before they were supposed to take the stage. Sam leaned his head against the passenger seat and closed his eyes so he could get lost in the strings blaring from Danny’s speakers. The rest of the car was silent as well, caught in their own heads.
Sam’s mind wandered away from Swan Lake to reflect on the turmoil he had faced prior to the competition. He had wanted to throw the whole thing away because he wasn’t certain how he wanted to spend his future. Thinking about that now felt absurd. He had experienced an indescribable amount of joy while playing in front of people and showing off his skills. There were other things that he definitely wanted to do with his life, but he had put a lot of time and effort into playing his bass, and he realized that it would be a waste to throw that away before he could reap the benefits for his hard work. The Battle of the Bands competition was really the first time he felt like he was being truly recognized for those countless hours spent in the garage and at shady bars around Michigan. He was all in on trying to make it to the top. Like his brother had told him earlier, he needed to remain in the present and not dwell too much on the future. And in the present, it seemed like he could have an exciting future with his music.
A timer on Danny’s phone made them all jump and Danny turned down the music.
“Fifteen minutes until we need to take the stage,” he announced to the car.
“Let’s do this,” Josh said as he threw his door open. “Before my nerves eat me alive. Plus I really gotta piss and I know it will take me a second to get out of this thing.”
Jake made some kind of half-assed excuse about checking that his guitar was fully in tune and hustled out of the car. Danny and Sam sat in silence for a few beats, and then Danny took a deep breath.
“Josh told me what you were going through yesterday.”
Sam’s shoulders slumped. Of course Josh couldn’t keep his secret between them. “I’m feeling a lot better now,” Sam tried his best to assure Danny. He frowned when he could tell that Danny wasn’t buying it. “I swear,” he promised.
“You really want to go to college, don’t you?” Danny asked down into his lap. Sam wished they could have this conversation at a better time, but he didn’t know how to steer things into more friendly territory.
“That’s how I felt yesterday, but now it’s different,” Sam locked eyes with Danny. “I love playing with you guys. I think we could go all the way.”
“But I don’t want this to get in the way of your own dreams,” Danny stared back at Sam. “This is your life we’re talking about. You don’t have to always make sacrifices for us. I know it’s been hard for you to miss out on so much.”
“You’ve been going through the same thing with golf,” Sam pointed out. “I’m sure that’s been a hard decision for you too.”
Danny considered this. “I do love golf, but it’s something that I can always do, no matter what. Being an engineer isn’t something you can just pick up in your offtime.”
“I’ll bring a Lego set with me on the road and be content,” Sam tried to joke. Danny chuckled and shook his head in disbelief.
“I want you to be happy,” he told Sam.
“This is making me happy right now,” Sam replied. “And that’s what matters at this moment.” Danny’s frown lifted into a relieved smile and he gave Sam a pat on the back.
“I’m so glad to hear that. I was gonna offer to blow the whole competition for your sake, but thank god I don’t have to do that. Jake and Josh would probably have my head on a stake if I pulled that one off.”
Sam looked at his friend in amazement. He knew Danny would always have his back, but the thought of him offering to throw their big break like that was astonishing.
“How were you gonna do it?” he had to ask. Danny mulled it over.
“Play the wrong tempo maybe. Jake hates it when I do that and he misses notes when he gets flustered. Josh gets confused when Jake starts messing up. I know you would continue to carry, but I think that would be more than enough for us to get booed off stage.
“Well please don’t do that,” Sam said. “I really want to win this thing.”
“Me too,” Danny grinned at him. “I’ll be steady as a metronome back there, don’t worry.”
With that, they got out of the car and worked their way to the stage. Josh must have managed to get to the bathroom because he was back by their instruments, looking tranquil. When he saw Sam, he motioned for him to come to his side. Sam raised an eyebrow when he saw that Josh had decorated around his eyes with a series of rhinestones.
“Where’d you get those from?” he asked.
“The lead singer of The Bellhoppers,” Josh answered. “Now come here.”
Sam didn’t want to, but curiosity got the better of him and he cautiously approached his older brother. Before he could react, Josh was smearing silver eyeshadow with glitter over his eyelids.
“BAH!” Sam called out in surprise, wiggling his arms in retaliation.
“It’s for the aesthetic, hold still,” Josh instructed. Sam didn’t like his brother poking his fingers around his eyes, but he gave in and stood stiff while Josh continued to swipe his thumb into the palette and press it across his eyelids. “Your eyes will pop now,” Josh felt like it was important to tell Sam. Sam felt mortified that he was going to go out in front of his friends with eye makeup on, but then he remembered that Danny was wearing some too, and he looked good.
Josh finished and admired his work. “Pretty,” he commented. Sam could feel his face flush red. Danny took a look as well and whistled. Sam pulled his phone out from his pants pocket and used the reverse camera to check the damage. Josh was kind to use a lighter shade so it didn’t stand out as dramatically as Danny’s look. For what it was worth, it did look good with his baby blue suit and wing.
A stagehand told them they had two minutes until they needed to take the stage, and Jake hustled to their side shortly after. Sam did a double take when he realized that Jake’s eyes were darkened with carefully etched on black liner. He stared back at Sam and then gave Josh a cheerful pat on the back.
“You managed to get it on him! Congrats.”
“I let him do it,” Sam frowned. “Since when did you learn how to do that?” He pointed to Jake’s face. Jake gave his best blue steel and then motioned back at the crowd.
“Gabby did it,” he explained. Sam should have known that Jake needed some help from one of his friends. “We’ve got the look, we’ve got the setlist, we’ve got the extra pizzazz, we’ve got this,” Jake looked around at the group. “How are we all doing?”
“Feeling sexy and free,” Josh replied.
“Love it,” Jake pointed back at him.
“I’ve never felt more alive,” Sam said, and he wasn’t necessarily lying. Jake nodded with a smile.
“I wanna get out there,” Danny answered while twirling his drumsticks around. A stagehand nodded at them, which was their cue, and Jake pointed at the stage with the neck of his guitar.
“Onwards!” he called out. Leading the charge, Jake held his head high and made his way out in front of the crowd, making sure to wave and give thumbs up to as many people as possible. Josh trailed behind him and followed suit, blowing kisses to everyone in the front row. Sam decided it was only right for him to salute the crowd, and he wrapped an arm around Danny before he climbed behind his kit.
“Here’s to our future,” he told Danny. Danny squeezed his shoulder back.
“To our future,” he repeated.
Sam plugged his bass into the amp and closed his eyes for a brief second. It was the final round. They had proved their worth to the audience and earned their spot in the top two. All they had to do now was blow everyone away one last time to get their big break. Sam felt like they could do it.
Jake finished greeting the audience and, after getting his guitar set, he held it up to everyone to see and immediately flattened the crowd with the loud roar of his opening notes to Safari Song. Josh matched his energy with a long and powerful scream to kick things off and, just like that, they were sucked into the music. Sam didn’t allow any of his previous doubts and worries to reach him while he played along with his brothers. He felt free in front of that crowd, and bounced around on the balls of his bare feet, making sure to stay close to the front of the stage so everyone could see him.
During the chorus, Jake and Josh leaned into each other to sing into the same microphone, which was met with loud cheers. Sam caught a glimpse of Danny singing along at the top of his lungs as well while he drummed, even though he wasn’t mic’d up this time around. Josh had taken notes from Sam and Jake about how to increase his showmanship and get the crowd really into it, and made sure to dance around to the music more than he usually did. During Jake’s solo, he goofed around with some girls close to his age, flashing them his nipple before quickly covering it with a wide grin.
They sounded electric, and Sam was amazed to see that the audience was matching their energy. Even though Safari Song was a new one of theirs, the people caught on fast and sang along with Josh and Jake during the chorus, pumping their fists in the air. Josh joined in and led them so they were all in unison, creating a massive wave of fists in the air. Sam had never seen anything like it before, and found himself staring.
At the end of the song, Danny launched into the drum solo that he had been practicing in almost all of his spare time over the past year. Sam was with him for many of those hours when he was trying to figure out what solos to take inspiration from, and what moves he could use to impress. Sam hoped that the crowd appreciated what Danny was doing back there, because he was working his ass off and playing stuff that some professional drummers could only dream of accomplishing. While Danny was hard at work, Josh hurried to the side stage and retrieved a bouquet of white roses that he had picked up from a local florist after their stop at the thrift store. Jake joined Sam by his keyboard and watched Josh jump down from the stage and run across the barricade, passing out flowers to as many people as he could.
“Do you think he’s gonna need help getting back on stage?” Jake asked Sam. They watched him continue to speed around the front of the crowd and Sam shook his head.
“He’s gonna launch himself back on here, I’m sure of it.”
Josh did exactly what Sam predicted, thrusting himself up onto the stage with sheer arm strength, and carried the travel bottles of Fireball and Jameson that had been handed to him from the crowd to his brothers.
“They want us to do shots,” he told Jake and Sam.
���They know we’re underage, right?” Sam checked.
“It’s Michigan, does it really matter?” Josh shrugged back. He handed Jake a bottle of Jameson and Sam a Fireball and then booked it back to center stage so he could throw the hard alcohol back with no hands. Sam placed the small bottle on top of his amp and returned to the front of the crowd since Danny was nearing the end of his solo.
“Ahh, better the isopropyl!” Josh joked into his microphone after finishing his shot, which earned him a thunderous applause from the crowd. Jake shoved the bottle of Jameson back into Josh’s hand as he passed by to return to his spot on stage, and told Josh something that Sam couldn't hear.
“Let’s go!” Danny called behind his drum kit, and Jake took the lead, entering into their second song of the set, Black Smoke Rising. It was a crowd favorite when they played it at biker bars, and Sam felt like it truly captured the essence of Greta Van Fleet.
He was surprised to hear shouts from the crowd like they recognized the song, and even a few people outside of those they knew were singing along with Josh. Sam didn’t know what to make of that, but he liked the feeling of having the lyrics they worked so hard to compose sung back to them. Sam played through his complicated basslines and felt Danny’s drumming pounding through his feet. From his vantage point, they were all playing at their best, and the audience was eating it up.
“Yeah, Sam!” he could hear some of his friends holler from the sea of people. He scanned around for them and then flashed them a wide smile when his eyes met theirs. This made them cheer louder, and the people around them followed suit. On his side of the stage, Jake had the audience in the palm of his hand. They watched him in muted awe as he played and mouthed out his part and would scream when Jake jumped around the stage and shimmied his shoulders to the beat. Those in front of Josh were the loudest, and he egged them on by raising his hands up, indicating that they keep the calls of approval going. Sam only wished that Danny could experience the adrenaline rush he was feeling at the front of the stage, but he also knew that Danny was most comfortable in the back where people weren’t scrutinizing his every move. It had taken Sam a while to get used to being in that position.
Like he had pulled off in every other song of theirs, Jake effortlessly flew through his solo with his eyes shut and held his guitar in front of him as he shredded. The song ended with the buzzing feedback from their amps, and the audience cheered over the static. They let their applause carry them as Jake retrieved his acoustic guitar and Sam set himself up behind his keys.
“Thank you all for coming out here tonight,” Josh addressed the crowd. The sun was just starting to set, and Sam could feel the heat from the stage lights starting to reach him. “You all look beautiful out there,” Josh added. “I can’t say we’ve ever played to a crowd this big before but, well, I think I could get used to this.” Josh chuckled and then looked back at his band. “Ready?” he asked them, covering his hand over the microphone. They gave him nods and thumbs up, and Josh returned back to the crowd. “This next one is a love song to a really important movement that took place in the 60s. Some of you were around for it, and I’m jealous. It’s called Flower Power.”
Sam was the one to bring them in this time around, and he played up and down his keyboard on the organ setting, taking the crowd to church. Danny tapped his cymbals behind him, and then Jake joined in with his acoustic guitar, filling the field with their upbeat song.
“She’s a lady, comes from all around, she’s many places but she’s homeward bound,” Josh sang along. Sam looked up from his keys and grinned when he saw that people were starting to lift their lighters up and sway them to the beat. Josh reacted to the same thing and took a pause from the lyrics to call, “Light it up!”
“Like we did the porta potties,” Sam could overhear Jake call into Josh’s ear. Josh laughed, which made him miss the next part of the verse, but he quickly recovered.
“She’s a sparrow of the dawn, our love is born…”
Sam especially enjoyed playing Flower Power since his organ playing added a complex layer to the sound they already excelled at creating. He loved how the organ wafted in and out of Jake’s guitar playing, and fell in time with Danny’s drums. Plus, he could sit on his ass and take a break from making eye contact with as many people as possible. He left that to Jake and Josh, who stood together at the front of the stage and played back to back. Someone in the crowd tossed a bouquet of daisies onto the stage, and Josh leaned over to grab it as he continued to sing. He plucked out a white one and brought it back to Jake, checking with him first before tucking it behind his ear while he continued playing his guitar. Jake met the cheers with a bashful bow, and Josh brought the bouquet back to Danny and laid it by his feet, mouthing out “for you.”
The song came to a slow as Josh drew out his notes and Sam let the music take him away into his solo. He played with the chords he had used throughout the song and created a melody from scratch, blaring the sound from his keyboard and rocking his head back and forth to the beat. His hand passed up and down the keyboard and used both levels of the keys to play the bass and higher notes. He could see Danny, Josh, and Jake watching him and nodding with happy approval as he went and then Danny joined in on the cymbals, giving Josh the cue to let out his final note to close the song. Sam could feel the final note still ringing through his finger tips, and he took the pause to remove his suit jacket, exposing his bare chest to the crowd. Those stage lights really were intense.
Josh was back in front of the crowd and basked in their cheers for a while before calling over them, “We have a new one for you tonight. How does that sound?” They were met with roars of approval. Sam remained at his spot with his keyboard, buzzing with excitement while Jake strapped back on his electric guitar. It had been a part of Jake’s plan that they bust out a song they had been workshopping over the past year. It was a bold move, considering they hadn’t practiced it as much as some of their other songs, but Sam knew that they had created something special when they wrote it.
Josh pointed back at Sam and he played on his mellotron setting, serenading the swarm of people with a flow of hypnotizing notes. The vibrations from his keys rose from his fingers up into his soul, and he could feel the music taking him away. He took a pause from playing to hear the claps from the crowd, and then entered into the beginning of Age of Man. Danny softly kept the beat behind him with his cymbal, and Jake added in some ad lib playing, fluttering across his strings.
“This is about the story of us all,” Josh told the crowd over the instrumental music. “In an age of darkness light appears, and it wards away the ancient fears,” he began to sing. As Sam played along, he felt like he was transported outside of his body and soaring up into the universe, past all of the troubles of Earth. Out amongst the stars, as he played his mellotron, he felt light as a feather. He could feel the very essence of his being come to life, dancing in front of his eyes to the beat of their music.
“Ooh ooh, oooh ooh ooh,” Josh cooed into the microphone in his high register. Sam let in a deep breath and then exhaled as they entered the main part of the song, Jake’s guitar coming to life. Sam played in time with him and continued to feel the power of the music flowing through him.
“A tree of life in rain and sun, to reach the sky it’s just begun,” Josh sang with his eyes squeezed shut. The crowd seemed to be holding their breaths as the song carried them forward, and when they hit the chorus, it felt like there was a collective release. As Josh thundered out, “And as we came into the clear, to find ourselves where we are here,” Sam noticed that the people in front of them had let the music take control. Many of them had their eyes closed and their hands raised to the sky, swaying back and forth and feeling alive. Sam had never felt such a close connection with so many people at once, but he knew that they were all brought together in that moment. He looked to his right briefly and raised an eyebrow when he saw that Fellowship was standing a few yards away, watching Greta Van Fleet with their mouths hung open. Their bassist was even moving along with the crowd, like he couldn’t help it.
Sam was learning right then and there that, while engineering and going to college had its pros, he would never experience anything like what he was going through on that stage. He was bringing people together with his closest friends, and they were succeeding with flying colors. Sam began to understand the power of music and all that they could accomplish with it if they did it right, and all of his lingering doubts and concerns immediately flushed away for good.
The song finished and they were met by silence before some guy in the middle of the audience called out, “Holy shit!” People seemed to agree, because the cheers were deafening. Jake pointed back at Sam, and he stood from his stool, took a shaky breath, and bowed. He had never let a song take him so many places before. It was a good thing they decided to end things with Highway Tune, since that was one of Sam’s favorite songs to play, and he knew it by heart.
Jake teased the crowd by crouching low at center stage, looking around at everyone and wiggling his eyebrows as Danny crashed on his cymbals.
“We don’t want to go, but we’ll leave you with one for the road,” Josh spoke into his microphone. Jake nodded his head and started to churn out the Highway Tune theme as he continued to crouch lower and lower while tapping his foot. Josh, Danny, and Sam joined in and shocked the crowd out of their hypnotic state with the high energy song. Sam jumped around while he played and grinned when he saw the crowd bouncing along with him.
“Are you ready?” Sam approached Danny’s side of the kit to call to him. Danny didn’t miss a single beat as he smirked at Sam.
“I’ve been waiting for this moment my entire life,” he joked back. Josh ran back to join them and expertly swooped into Danny’s position behind the drums, swapping with him so Danny was free. Josh carried the beat forward and whooped out with glee, crashing some of the cymbals just for fun. While Josh went to town and Sam and Jake continued to play alongside him, Danny retrieved his own Fender from the side stage, plugged it in, and started an overdrive solo, playing next to Jake and surprising the crowd. Jake took over the rhythm guitar part and nodded for Danny to go out into the spotlight so he could have his moment of fame. While he at first looked hesitant, Danny made his way in front of everyone and came out of his shell, transforming into a rock god.
“Do it, Danny!” Josh hollered from the back of the stage.
Sam watched his friend go and could feel his heart swell with pride. Jake needed to be watch out for Danny.
Danny closed out his solo by jokingly tucking his own guitar over his head, but then motioned to the crowd that he was only kidding. He and Jake played a duet of the main riff and then the music opened for Sam to jump in and take his own solo. While Josh continued to bash on the drums with the power of a hundred men, Sam hustled to center stage, flipped his long hair out of his face, and let his bass take over the melody. He churned out bone rattling notes alongside Josh’s fast-paced drumming and was happy that he was playing a pretty funky line with a little stank on it.
While he continued to play, Danny took the opportunity to spend some time of his own with the crowd, and caught a bottle of Fireball that was tossed to him. Even though his parents and younger sister were in attendance, he quickly opened the bottle and downed it before returning back to his guitar part. Jake grabbed a pair of oversized Elton John-esque sunglasses that had been tossed on stage and brought them back to Josh to wear. Josh called out in glee when Jake pressed them onto his face, and then stuck his tongue out while he continued to play. For Sam, Danny placed a cowboy hat on his head, which made him laugh. It was like Jake and Danny were making all the costumes and props appear out of nowhere. Danny shoved a trucker cap onto Jake’s head and Jake retaliated by tossing a feather boa around Danny’s shoulders.
Sam’s bass solo transformed into a jam session on stage, and Jake inserted one of his favorite Black Keys riffs, which the audience approved of. Sweat was starting to plaster over Sam, so he knocked the cowboy hat off of his head and contemplated taking the shot Josh had given him earlier. Maybe not a good idea to do that, he told himself. So instead he made his way to Danny and whispered in his ear, “Do Elvis.” It was something they liked goofing around with during rehearsals. Danny looked eager to do it, and whispered the same thing to Jake. Jake passed it on to Josh and then, in a rapid transition, they slowed it down and started playing “That’s Alright.”
To everyone’s surprise, Danny stationed himself in front of the microphone.
“That’s alright mama, that’s alright with me,” he crooned in a nearly spot-on Elvis impersonation. He took a pause to laugh at what they were doing, and then tried out his best Elvis-inspired hip thrusts and wiggles. Sam heard a few girls scream in the crowd, which made him cackle. Danny fed into their energy and pouted his lips while he continued to sing the opening to the song. “Take it away, Josh!” he called, motioning back at Josh. He had a microphone set up in front of him, and started to scream the lyrics in his signature voice while flinging his drumsticks all over the place.
They made it through the chorus, and then Jake retrieved his lucky harmonica from his back pocket. He held it up for Josh to see so he would stop playing, and let his guitar lazily flop in front of him as he grabbed his microphone and held it up to the harmonica, which was practically glued to his lips.
All of the Kiszka children had been taught the harmonica by their father, since he was a pretty damn good player himself and wanted to pass it on to his kin. Of the four siblings, Jake had been the one to really feel a connection with the instrument, and spent a lot of his time on long road trips practicing, much to the protest of everyone else in the car. Jake’s incessant playing seemed to pay off though as he let out a bluesy tune which, backed with Danny’s concentrated guitar playing, sounded really good. At this point in their set, all of them were nearly drenched, they were covered in so much sweat, but Sam still felt like he had enough energy in him to light up an entire power grid. The audience was definitely into it, and their excitement was what made Sam all the more determined to give it everything he had. That, and he so desperately wanted to get Greta Van Fleet on the map. After all that they had been through, they deserved some recognition.
Jake and Josh started to do a call and response with the harmonica and Josh’s vocals which led to a hearty applause, and then Jake, satisfied with his performance, tucked his harmonica back in his pocket and turned his trucker cap backwards. He took back to center stage, bringing Danny with him, and stood with his guitar held out and ready to play. Josh, Danny, and Sam had stopped playing alongside Jake so the only sound was the on beat clapping from the audience. Jake beamed around at everyone, looked at Danny, and raised his eyebrows. Danny held his guitar out in front of him too, indicating that he was ready to go and, together, they brought everyone back into Highway Tune with the main riff.
While Jake continued on, Danny put his guitar away and switched back with Josh so he could finish singing while Danny closed out the song on his drums. Josh booked it to the front of the stage, got everyone to give a round of applause for Danny, and then belted out the last part of the song. As he let out his glass-shattering last note on “Sugar,” it felt like there wasn’t a single person at the festival who wasn’t cheering for them. Sam looked out at the sea of happy faces and tried his best to take a mental photo with his mind so he could remember how they looked for the rest of his life. It wasn’t too often that he felt like he had lived through a monumental experience, but this was definitely one of them.
The host came out onto the stage as soon as they finished, calling out, “How about that? Greta Van Fleet everyone!”
Sam dropped his arms to his sides and immediately felt the exhaustion catch up to him. He knew for a fact that they had never put on a performance like that before, and he was practically guaranteed to need a couple of weeks to recover. For that, he was grateful that Jake insisted they do their busking before the final round.
“We’ll be announcing the winner of our Battle of the Bands competition in fifteen minutes!” the host declared. “Stick around, we’ll be back soon!”
“Great job guys,” he congratulated the band once his mic was off and they were on the side of the stage. “Absolutely stellar.”
They thanked him, and then enveloped each other in a celebratory hug. Sam called out in protest when Josh started to ruffle his hair. As they released from each other, Sam was glad to see them all smiling, as spent as they looked.
“I hope someone filmed that,” Danny commented.
Jake nodded. “That shit could go in the Rock N’ Roll Hall of Fame.”
“Cocky,” Josh warned him. Jake threw up his shoulders and laughed.
“I think I have every right to act cocky after a show like that, Jesus Christ.”
They teetered down the steps to get off the stage and almost immediately were met by a small crowd, congratulating them and demanding to know how they were so good. It made Sam a bit uncomfortable since he wasn’t used to being put on a pedestal, but he did have to admit that it felt nice.
But, there was still a voice nagging at him that maybe Fellowship had managed to be better. And that was something they would find out soon.
Final part >>>
#greta van fleet#gvf#sam kiszka#danny wagner#jake kiszka#josh kiszka#greta van fleet fanfiction#greta van fleet fanfic#greta van fleet fic#gvf fanfiction#gvf fanfic#gvf fic#jake gvf#sam gvf#josh gvf#danny gvf#the battle of the bands#baby gvf
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tal's take on sacred the thread
ok now that i've listened to sacred the song, here are my thoughts that not a single person asked for:
i figured josh was joking when he said the song was about his jumpsuits and i think to an extent it is a joke but also not entirely.
lyrics on a surface level do make it seem like the song is just about their outfits, mostly josh and danny in my opinion and i'll get back to that in a second.
if we go deeper than just what's being said, and actually put it in perspective with something they've been trying to express for a while now, to me the song is more about the freedom of individuality and self expression through their physical on stage appearance as a rock band. i mean obviously there's a huge difference between the vibe of the highway tune music video and what they were wearing and the meeting the master music video and what they've been wearing for the last two ish years, again, more specifically josh and danny.
when you think of a typical rock band, one with clear influences from past bands, you expect to see what we saw with highway tune for the most part. you don't expect skin tight velvet bodysuits covered in rhinestones, rhinestones on their faces and elaborate eye makeup, vibrant feather boas, etc. i think a lot of us just expect something similar to like guns n roses. tee shirt and jeans or leather pants (like i said, highway tune) but that's not what they do anymore.
i think the way they all dress on stage now definitely goes hand in hand with their own comfort on stage as they've grown as artists. josh, who used to look up at the ceiling when he'd sing. jake, who once wasn't able to face the crowd. sam, who was shocked to find out that people cared about the instruments he played and his own talents and skills. and daniel. my sweet, incredible daniel, who still to this day gets shit for being in the band and is seen by some as being replaceable (he isn't, obviously, but that's a topic for a different post).
now they've moved past the fear of having to prove themselves. they did the work, they put in the time and effort, they made a name for themselves, and now they're playing madison square garden. they're big, they're well known, well respected not only by us as fans but by artists that came before them. they're comfortable, and in that comfort, they've reached a period where they can dress however they want and it doesn't take away from who they are as musicians, because like i said, they've proven how good they are.
this is what i was referring to at the beginning of this post where i mentioned something they've been trying to express for a while. that being, they don't need to dress a certain way because of the music they play. they aren't any less of a rock band for wearing gemstones and glitter and makeup. rock and metal artists like mötley crüe, kiss, bowie, the new york dolls, twisted sister, poison, and ratt all wore makeup and elaborate wild outfits. it didn't take away from who they were/are as musicians, and it didn't make their music any less of the genre it was.
it all comes down to self expression and it's really lovely to see greta van fleet be another band to find the look they like. bringing something inherently feminine doesn't make them less masculine, there's a balance, and i've talked about this before.
this is also why i think i'm finding it hard to not associate josh and danny with the song the most. while each of them obviously plays a part in it - and now jake and sam have branched out with their looks and are including some makeup - josh and danny are really the ones we think about when it comes to this. josh has gone from simple stones, to more elaborate designs and now actual eye makeup (the gold on his eyes was so cool I'm obsessed with it) and danny has done the same, even getting to the point of wearing more makeup than josh until a bit recently. and we've also seen danny at least wear eyeliner when he's not on stage, just when he's out with friends which i think is really cool. all of that playing into the idea that they've found comfort in a style and a look that they didn't have or maybe didn't even consider when they first got started.
on a different note (pun perhaps intended), i don't quite see where this song falls in the general idea of continuing the story and the world building we've seen since from the fires. i'm not sure if it's even meant to, but of course, that won't be fully determined until the rest of the album is released, and once it is i fully intend to pick it apart and evaluate it not just as an individual album, but as a part of the entire discography.
anyway that was a lot and if you didn't read it i don't blame you. if you did read it feel free to talk more about it with me.
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