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#I got Davis too!!!
cucumberteapot · 11 months
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The first thing I noticed was the bodies of Spider-people the Spot has either killed or exhausted. You can even see Spider-Plushie in the left-hand corner was a casualty.
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Then we see a few frames of Miles fighting the Spot, which I feel is self-explanatory.
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But then we get into the interesting part of the vision with Inspector Singh saving the little girl in the red dress, and while we're told these events are of the future. What we see with Jefferson saving the child wouldn't be the first time the Spot's visions show past events, i.e. when he reveals his origins.
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I say this because I don't think the vision of Jefferson saving the little boy who is also wearing a red (Spider-man) top - the only time we see colour besides black and white in this scene - is foreshadowing the future.
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Because this is the past. And what we're seeing is E-42 Jefferson saving Miles G Morales as a child.
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justcommander · 5 months
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And that's why Michael got cool shades in this AU.
That feeling when you're just a teenager and already got cataract. Amongst the other things that damn possession and truck accident caused you But John is doing his best all on his own...!
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empressofmankind · 5 months
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You ever think about Crocodile's pre midlife crisis disillusionment-with-piracy look? I think about it a lot.
I am completely normal about this.
EDIT: Hey, hey you, psst. I did some more work on this!
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luck-of-the-drawings · 2 months
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OH ARTHUR BENNETT.. such a gorgeous and intriguing character. terribly burdened by a GRUESOME set of crimes, his light suffocated by a HEAVY century of GUILT. so tragic, so dark and broody, and yet PAINFULLY awkward in any social setting ever
#jrwi fanart#cw blood#jrwi show#jrwi suckening#arthur bennett#OUHH THIS ONE WAS SITTING IN MY WIPS FOR SO LOOOONGwhen i took it out there was mould on it :sob:#BUT i think i was able to fix it up okay#i keep seeing SO MANY MISTAKES RRAAAHHH BUT YOU DONT SEE THEM RIGHT?? THATS ONLY ME. RIGHT?? EXACTLY.#THE KEY IS TO SAY. AND REPEAT AFTER ME. 'FUUUCK IT WE BALL#so anyway. arthur bennett huh? grizzly says that arthur is reaal fuckin difficult to play. and i SUPER get that. i mean LOOK AT HIM..#grizz often needs a minute to think abt what hes gonna say in a way that matches w that Stoic Personality. which is FAIR but also that#ends up making way for awkward confrontations like: the lady in the parky lot. he took too long to answer and scared her away.& I LOVE THAT#arthur is tragic and sad and cool and stoic but hes ALSO awkward and silly and kinda dumb and short sighted. HE HAS COMPLEXITIES#I LOVE WHEN TTRPG CHARACTERS HAVE A GOOD SET OF SHORTCOMINGS. ESPECIALLY WHEN U FIND THEM ONLY AS U PLAY THEM.#I COULd go on and on saying the same things w different words abt arthurs intriguing and entertaining character but i shall spare u. for no#ILL ALSO MENTION HOW MUCH I LOVE HIS FLAVOR THO.. I LOVE TALL HOT BOY WHOS ONE W THE DARKNESS.. I REMEMBER WHEN HE FIRST MENTIONED THE#BADLUCK. N I WAS LIKE OOOHH THATS WHY HIS DESIGN IS SO COOL N CHAOTIC N ASYMMETRICAL. HES UNLUCKY!!! i love love love his design so much...#GRaaauruguguraguhhghghgh what else what else is there for me to spew on abt...i think im reachin a limit here..OH MAGNUS. i hope that#we get to know more abt how magnus and arthur met.. like How they became besties... ouuhh... I ALSO WANNA KNOW MORE ABT MARY DAVIS. LIKEHOW#he also apparently spent alotta time in a zone dominated by edward twilight? all he remembers is constant partying? I WANNA KNOW MORE..#i think i got room 4 one more ramble SO. THE ART PIECE.as i said its gone a lil stale BUT. im still very proud o the bits where hes allScar#I WANNA SEE HIM GET SCARYMORE. I like the idea of shadows solidifying to make him strange and eerie.like TEETH n CLAWS n SPINES n YESS#also the SILVER EYES.no1 does silver eyes like the show Claymore. they make em look so striking and eerie...i also like to think that#human arthur had deep beautiful brown eyes.just in my beaitufl heart.i mean look at him..i wanna cook him n eat him.ANYWAY#i think thats all my ramblin for this piece. now i gotta go cancel a single day i had ata hotel bc my work schedule change last minute FUCK#feel free to ramble in my tags aswell tho i read all of them and i chew on thenm and i love them so sos os mcuh
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dadcred · 2 months
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life is so rough when u and ur bestie are the hottest members of ur pirate crew :/
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nadiawritessomething · 2 months
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Listen, can we ever (especially if you count TikTok) stop joking that on Earth 42 Aaron "took" Rio for himself? Because it's not fucking funny and it doesn't fit the character of either of them.
Does 42Rio look like a person who would look for someone after her husband's death? I mean, yeah, things happen and everything takes time, but did you see HOW she reacted to every mention of Jeff from Miles' mouth with or without context (the "Miles, please" scene)? She's clearly not handling Jeff's death any better than Miles G is, and so it's very unreasonable to think that she would really find a new man in such a short time, especially when it's her dead husband's BROTHER.
With Aaron, things are even simpler. In the scene where they talk, he clearly presents himself as Rio's "family," a kind of family friend who will help out in a difficult situation and help whenever possible. Plus, on his part (because even though he had a difficult relationship with his brother, he really loved and appreciated Jefferson), dating his dead brother's widow is at least strange, at most not very ethical. Believe it or not, despite all of Aaron's dark past, he (and especially his 42 version) is a GOOD MAN with certain principles and morals.
"But this is just a joke-". Yes, it is. And that's the worst part. You can't reduce the characters' grief to "haha, they're together now". You see the characters solely as sexualized objects and that is NOT a reason for jokes or pride. One more joke about how "I'm hitting on 42Rio because she doesn't have a man anymore" and I'll go bang my head against the wall.
Please see characters a little further than pretty figures with nice faces.
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tbf “didn’t have to do it, only did it for fun” was basically Keith’s mantra for 90% of everything he ever did.
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maybemoonbeams · 7 months
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I just keep thinking about like. The parallel between Ed being left on the dock to wait for Stede in 01x09 to Stede asking him to wait (again) in the jungle in 02x04 and that little anxiety inducing feeling like oh no this is familiar somehow... just to be met with Stede coming back around and being like "hey actually why dont we go together instead" and for Ed to wipe his brow and look a little relieved and actually smile and it feels so good!!!! to have been holding that thought watching it in the moment and for it to be returned in sincerity like I don't have anything incredibly pertinent to say on the matter I just cant stop thinking about it the way they said "its going to be different this time!!" and then it was and i kind of just cry :')
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kyuoki · 16 days
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Have you ever wondered how human Davy Jones would look like with corpse paint? Because I have.
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moongothic · 5 months
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Since on of the chapters had the marines talking about how crocodile was seen on emptee bluffs along with the panels showing the remaining seraphim do you think cross guild will end up fighting them
See this is interesting because like
Basic Storytelling 101 would tell us that yes, because we see the remaining Seraphim along with the mention of Crocodile arriving at Emptee Bluffs, it would make sense if the Seraphim have been deployed to go there. This is just how one tells stories.
That said, that was when Crocodile and Daz arrived at EB, we don't know when Mihawk got there and Cross Guild was formally formed, but I'd assume he might've arrived sometime later since Mihawk did have to travel there all the way from Paradise. (Also we know Crocodile contacted Mihawk sometime after the Reverie when the Shichibukai were disbanded, and that was what, before Luffy and co got to Wano, right? And Cross Guild was formally announced sometime around/slightly before the Strawhats liberated Wano, right? So yeah, there should be some passage of time there)
The point being, while the Government may have been willing to spend resources on the individual former Warlords and even send Seraphim after them, when they now have THREE gathered together, the Government COULD see that as too big of a threat to spend resources on, potentially
And I think the key deciding factor here is going to be what's going to go down on Egghead, because depending on what happens there after the flashback wraps up, I could see the Marines deciding to change course with the remaining Seraphim and send them after Luffy and co instead, because they could become a more important target to take down than Cross Guild
Another thing is that we don't know how Buggy's mutiny is going to go from here; he has riled up his men, they have a ship and we don't know how Crocodile and Mihawk are dealing with the situation they're in
I would discuss how killing Buggy could roll out for Croc&Hawk but really, all things considdered, I don't think Oda is going to have the two kill Buggy. Like in-universe it'd be an option, but on a meta level, I don't think it'd actually happen in the narrative, so discussing the option feels like a waste of time.
So really, I think the options for Croc and Hawk on how to deal with Buggy's mutiny would be to
SOMEHOW shut the clown up and get him to calm his men down. IDK how (violence only helps so much) but SOMEHOW
Let the clown leave with his men and stay on Emptee Bluffs by themselves (and maybe whoever else might want to stay (Galdino, perhaps?)
Join Buggy on the Quest for One Piece??? Reluctantly???
And this is where the Seraphim come back into the discussion. Because like. Due to the Seraphim having Lunarian Blood, they're pretty much invunerable in most circumstances, and neither Crocodile or Mihawk should have an understanding on how to fight them. The two are powerful for sure, but if they don't even know the trick to beating the Seraphim/Lunarians, then they could very much be in trouble
So if we were looking at Scenario 2, if there's no ship for Croc and Hawk to escape on, unless they steal a ship from the Marines they're gonna be in real trouble actually. Again, narratively speaking I doubt Oda would kill Crocodile and Mihawk like that, but IDK if the Marines would even want to grab the two and bring them in back to Impel Down or anything if they did catch the two?
Which brings us to the other two Scenarios, where, it doesn't even matter which we're looking at really, if the Seraphim come to Emptee Bluffs the entirety of Cross Guild might just have to flee on Buggy's ship (if they can) (and at that point CrocHawk might actually end up stuck on Buggy's One Piece Quest)
Regardless, since Oda does want to focus on the Strawhats I don't think we're going to get to see A Big Fun Showdown between Crocodile and S-Croc (nor S-Mingo, fun as that would be), but if the Seraphim don't change course from where they're (probably) headed right now, then they might have an unavoidable, brief fight in coming, yeah
In anycase, I can not fucking wait to see what the hell kind of ability Vegapunk gave S-Croc, I need to see that little shit in action
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britneyshakespeare · 4 months
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if i were a british rockstar dude from the 1960s id be your favorite right
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hauntingblue · 23 days
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making a collection
making another collection with a threatening aura
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#davy back fightbpart 3 letsgo#HOW do the three big guns get wasted on the eating contest... horrible plan.... luffy is fine bc well... but not sanji and zoro like damn.#luffy DOESNT WANNA EAT??? CALL THE NAVY!!!!#what was i saying.... bad idea putting the three beasts there#FRANKY FRANKY FRANKY!!!! they captured the two princesses :(#one sided beef squashed between luffy and foxy. friendship ended with random ex marine guy. now luffy is my best friend#usopp and franky bonding time hell yeah. throw usopp by the head once more pelase#nami with zoros swords just like holding them looks so cool like she should get a few swords too... nami three sword style oda drawing pls#i think this man underestimates nami and luffys power together he doesnt know about shiki#luffy saying he knows its a trap and sorry for being late.... lets go on an adventure all nine of us.... usopp yes anding his lie..... omg#cant believe nami isnt there yet. she could take this guy. oh there she is!!!!! she does look cool with the swords and jumping to get luffy#zoro screaming in agony from luffy getting shot omg THIS FUCKING GUY OF COURSE!!! this looks like its so over#zoro and sanji must feel so useless rn. they didnt even get the chance to fight like damn#komei-kakka??? more like come caca. boom#luffy face down dead on the floor akdjkaa chopper have you tried looking at the wound to see if it harmed him idk#it hit the face akdjskn usopp that was coom also#was robin flirting with the other guy and zoro caught her and she told hum to shut up???#'your friends got the best of me but you are still in my arms an-' 'HEAT EGG!! ALSO YOU'RE ON FIRE!'#flare maneauver that was so slay also luffy and nami in the same frame so twins of them. my children. birthed them one right after the othe#zoro and sanji fighting back to back. back to back to back to you i dont wanna fall right back to us maybe you should run right back to her#that is such a bop song. also post wano zosan. and post wci. see the recurrent theme#fighting in water.... being on top of the sword that was a slay... red hawk ace i will never forget you it seems#foxy liking his jolly roger omg nami fooled him ahdhsjs i think they should have pirate game event every year they yearn for contests#now since this experience foxy should make monthly multitudinary pirate games olympics hoping the strawhats join them a la gatsby#the faces at the mushroom akdhaksjs#talking tag#watching one piece#watching one piece movies#kinda loved how robin betted on franky against usopp.... i will take the crumbs
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fictionadventurer · 9 months
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We talk about Lincoln as a good man often (for good reason) but I think we've come to underrate what a brilliant politician he was. You don't lead the country through THAT in the most cutthroat city in the nation without a ton of cunning and guile.
Also on your humility point: Lincoln never held grudges. Jeff Davis evidently never forgot a slight, while Lincoln got snubbed by McClellen while waiting in his parlor and told the outraged aid "I'll hold his horse as long as he brings me victory."
Honestly, the more I learn about Lincoln, the more I think that "good politician" outweighs "good man". He was good, but his religion was the Constitution, and that could make legalities outweigh moralities. But the nation needed a good politician at the time, and Lincoln was a great one.
Politics, at its heart, is just knowing how to handle people, and that was Lincoln's superpower. He had no executive experience, but he wound up being a strong executive who could keep his unruly Cabinet in line. He had no military experience, but he was a far better military president than West Point graduate, long-term Army officer, Mexican War hero, and former Secretary of War Jefferson Davis. And that's because Lincoln had the soft skills--the personality, the people skills, the adaptability, the instincts--to navigate the political minefield of Civil War Washington in a way pretty much no other man would have been able to. Washington society was brutal to Lincoln. His Cabinet was insubordinate. His generals--like you mentioned--were blatantly rude (nobody but Lincoln would have put up with McClellan's personality for as long as he did). But his good humor and humility kept his personal pride from making things worse--he could navigate the minefield because he didn't cause any new explosions. He was moderate and reasonable enough to work with everybody, even if nobody totally agreed with him. It's such a decent, kind, common-sense approach to politics that seems naive but is actually deeply cunning and very difficult for anyone less skilled than Lincoln to pull off.
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to3b3ans · 6 months
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every day i fight against being a squishmallow collector because they can be expensive and every day they tempt me
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elisedonut · 1 year
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i was reading a Percy fic where the author was unsure who they wanted Percy to be with because 
“for gay Percy fics Oliver is a bit overplayed”  or something like that i don’t remember the exact wording
but that had me thinking 
like this was a fic taking place when Percy is like 15 or so 
which means that boy that is some limited options if you want to be real
not counting OC’s obv but you know I don't care for oc’s much 
but like you can’t quite pair him with the older people yet because he is very much too young for them 
but anyone in the main age group is also off the table for the opposite reason aka they be babies 
so your options are like 
Oliver Wood (obv), Marcus Flint (obv in my heart), Cedric Diggory, Roger Davies, Stan Shunpike? 
kinda? 
he’s mentioned as looking to be 18/19 by Harry in POA and then again mentioned as 21 in HBP by an article in the paper which would put him at the right age since Percy would of been 17/18 in POA and 20/21 in HBP
and since i only just now realized that Cedric and the twins are actually in the same year and this whole time I've just been under the impression Cedric was only a year under Percy like an idiot I'll also add in 
Adrian Pucey, Lee Jordan, Cassius Warrington
and then if you really want to be spicy you could make an argument for Viktor Krum if you could create the right situation for it 
that’s 9 options total but ofc that’s not going into if you actually think they would work and stuff 
i don’t remember if i had an actual point with this but hey if you were trying to think of a canon character to ship a younger Percy with uh there you go 
some options i guess
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kanerallels · 6 months
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Trick or treat!
Hehehe so I'm gonna take you up on your offer to share more about those OCs I mentioned. Specifically the romantic couple (the best context I can offer you for now is that it's a marriage of convenience and I love them your honor)
“You want to know my middle name?” Kyle stared so blankly that Kate had to laugh at him.
“Hey, you’re the one who suggested getting to know each other,” she pointed out, leaning back against the couch cushions. “These are the important things in a relationship now, you know. First base is getting into a brawl at a crime scene, second base is marriage, and third base is finding out your middle name.”
He laughed, which she still wasn’t totally used to. “I’m almost positive that that’s not true, but okay. It’s Wilfred, but I’m pretty sure you heard it at the ceremony— what?”
Striving to hold back another laugh, Kate cleared her throat. “Nothing. Just, um. Wilfred?”
The expression on his face was so long suffering that she couldn’t prevent her laughter any longer as he said, “There is nothing wrong with the name Wilfred— why did I know this was going to be your reaction?”
Gasping for breath, Kate managed, “Because your middle name sounds like you’re a British archbishop.”
Kyle shook his head, the corners of his mouth curling up into a reluctant smile as he told her, “It’s really not that funny.”
“It really, really is,” Kate told him, grinning at him. He let out a half laugh, looking ruefully amused.
His gaze drifted past her, to the wide picture window behind them— and then his smile dropped away. Before Kate could even properly think to ask him what was wrong, he was moving towards her. 
Crashing into her, he grabbed her and rolled them both off the couch. In the same moment, a gunshot rang out, and the window behind them shattered.
Kate hit the ground a heartbeat later, landing on her side with Kyle on top of her. He didn’t move, and she felt a spike of panic go through her. “Chambers?” He didn’t respond, and she swallowed down the fear creeping in her chest. “Kyle!”
“I’m okay,” he said, rolling off of her and landing next to her with a grunt. “Are you? And the baby—”
“Both fine,” Kate told him, praying with all her might that it was true. Nothing felt wrong, and she hoped she’d realize it if there was.
“Good,” Kyle said, his expression going from worried to serious in a heartbeat. “Stay there.”
Kate opened her mouth to argue, but he was already moving— or rather, army crawling across the living room. Reaching the coffee table, he slid under it. A few seconds later, he rolled back out, carrying a gun.
“Wha— how long has that been under there?” Kate demanded as he checked the magazine with an easy, practiced motion.
“The whole time,” he said. “I wanted to be prepared, in case of, well, this.” 
As he locked it back into place, Kate caught sight of a dark stain on his arm— blood, she realized with a lurch. “You told me you were fine,” she said.
“What— I am, Kate. It just grazed me,” he assured her. “I’ll clean it later.”
Flipping onto his stomach, he crawled back over to her, and cautiously slid into a sitting position. “You stay down there.”
“I am not enjoying this,” Kate grumbled.
“I know. Pass me that pillow?”
Looking around, Kate spotted a cushion behind her. Grabbing it, she pushed it towards Kyle, who took it by the edge. “Time to see what we’re up against,” he muttered, and lobbed it into the air.
It hadn’t even reached the top of its arc when there were two sharp cracks, and the pillow exploded into a cloud of stuffing and bright fabric. Kate choked back a gasp of shock, and Kyle’s expression tightened slightly.
“We’ve got a professional out there,” he said, his tone even. “Don’t go near the windows.”
“Easier said than done,” Kate muttered, shocked by the steadiness of her own voice. Sarcasm helped, she supposed. “What are we going to do?”
Kyle didn’t answer right away, and Kate’s stomach tightened. Oh. So it’s that bad. Slowly, he said, “If the sniper out front is that good, there’s money involved. So if too much time passes without him being able to get to us, they’ll send a crew inside to get us. We can last a while against that.”
“But not long?” Kate persisted. She needed to know what they were looking at. The last thing she needed was Kyle going all chivalrous on her.
“Not long,” he said. “Hopefully long enough. I left my phone in my jacket— if we can get a hold of that, I can call work, and we’ll get backup headed our way. That’ll make our chances a lot better.”
“Okay,” Kate said, taking a deep breath. “Where’s your jacket?”
“Dining room.” Kyle frowned, and Kate could all but see him working through the variables. If he went and someone broke in, that would leave her defenseless. But if she went… there were far too many things that could go wrong. Things he couldn’t control.
But we don’t have time to spare worrying about that. “I’ll go,” she told him. “You can cover me. You’re the better shot anyways.”
“Kate—”
“Just shut up and cover me, Chambers.”
She could see he didn’t like it. But all he did was set his jaw, flip the safety off, and say, “Be careful.”
Kate didn’t dignify that with a response. 
Crawling across a room while four months pregnant was fairly awkward, but she found her rhythm quickly enough. As a thief, making her way through uncomfortable situations like this one was her expertise. Most of the time, she wasn’t being shot at, though. Or pregnant.
That said, she usually didn’t have someone watching her back, either.
She’d made it halfway to the doorway leading into the dining room when she heard a creak. A familiar one, in fact. The kind that the hinges on the back door usually made.
Kate’s heart nearly stopped, and she looked at Kyle. Rolling towards it, he flipped the coffee table on its side, sending a few books and a (thankfully unlit) candle clattering to the ground. Shoving the table towards her, he mouthed, Stay down.
For once, Kate listened to him. Hiding behind the table, she watched the partially open door that the intruder would most likely come through, heart pounding so hard she felt like it would burst. Kyle didn’t move, his weapon leveled towards the doorway as footsteps echoed through the house, coming closer with every agonizing second.
And then they stopped short. Kate counted thirty heart wrenchingly breathless seconds before a familiar, accented voice came through the door.
“Chambers, I’d rather like to leave the building intact, if you don’t mind.”
Kyle blinked, looking startled. “Andersen? Don’t come in, there’s a—”
“Sniper, yes. I know.”
“How?”
Andersen’s voice was wryly amused as he said, “One of the few benefits of a corrupt police department is that you can pay them off, too. And it makes it easier to get access to their radios. Ivan was monitoring their channel, and he saw there was a call about a suspicious car in your neighborhood that wasn’t followed up on. I connected the dots quickly enough.”
“I’ve never been so grateful for a nosy government,” Kate muttered, and she heard the soft sound of Andersen’s laugh.
Kyle grinned, too, but it faded away a few seconds later. “Sir, if you’re here, does that mean that—”
“It’s not Alban,” Andersen said. “Nothing points to it being him. Which means that, unfortunately, it’s most likely one of your enemies, Chambers.”
“Don’t rule out my enemies so quickly,” Kate offered. “Plenty of people hate me.”
“Oh, we know,” Andersen said amusedly. “But not many would order a hit on you. Kyle, on the other hand—”
“I have plenty of people who would do that, if provoked,” Kyle finished. “Sir, we need a plan to get Kate out of here as fast as possible.”
“We have a plan,” Andersen assured him, “to get both of you out of here. You’ll go out the back door, staying low. There are less windows back here, and we cleared it to make sure no one’s waiting. I’ll remain here to make sure they don’t think you’ve left until you’re well clear.”
Kyle’s brows drew together into a deep frown. “With respect, I don’t like that idea, sir.”
“Nothing you haven’t done for me.”
“But sir—”
“No buts.” Andersen sounded stern, which wasn’t a tone Kate often associated with him. “You have bigger responsibilities than just your work now. And I’ll be just fine.”
Kyle wanted to argue— Kate could see it. But instead, he nodded. “Okay. Let’s do it.”
Without another word, the door swung a little farther open— just far enough that Kate could see Andersen waiting there. His eyes were alert and he held a weapon at the ready. “Kate, you first,” he said quietly. “Move as quickly as you can without drawing attention. Kyle, stay on her heels.”
While Kate generally preferred to ignore or at least bicker with authority figures, she could tell this wasn’t the time for it. So, keeping her mouth shut, she crawled over to the door, sliding through the half open gap without another word. 
As she scrambled away from it, leaving Kyle room to follow, Andersen helped her to her feet. “There’s a car out back with an agent I trust driving it,” he told them. “Get straight in and tell him to go. Don’t stop for anything. When you’ve made it clear, message me and I’ll meet you back at the office.”
“Understood,” Kyle said as Kate moved to one of the nearest cupboards and pulled it open. Inside were stashed two backpacks— emergency bags in case of a situation exactly like this one. Whatever else she and Kyle might have disagreed on, they were both in favor of being prepared. Especially while being hunted by dangerous criminals.
Slinging hers over her shoulder, she passed Kyle his as he got to his feet. “Should we go back for your phone?” she asked, but he shook his head.
“I have a burner in here. And we don’t have time to waste.” He paused, glancing at Andersen. “Sir…”
“Stop looking at me as if you’ll never see me again,” Andersen said. “I told you, I’ll be there as soon as I can. I’ve no intention of letting a two-bit sniper be the one to do me in.”
“Yes, sir.” Kyle only looked marginally reassured. But that didn’t stop him from taking Kate’s hand and leading her towards the back door.
She let him take the lead on the way out, checking to make sure there was no one waiting for them other than the gray car idling in the alleyway. He was better at it, and truth be told, she was in no position to fight off assailants— physically or mentally. As she slid into the back seat of the car, it was slowly starting to hit her what had just happened.
Kate barely heard Kyle talking to the agent in the front seat, or the sound of the car moving forward. We just almost died. She wasn’t exactly unfamiliar with the sensation. She’d risked her life more times than she could count. So why was it hitting so hard this time?
Maybe it was the fact that she’d nearly been shot, but Kyle had taken the bullet— again. Maybe it was the fact that Andersen had volunteered to stay behind and risk his life for the two of them, without prompting. Or maybe it was the fact that it hadn’t just been her who was at risk.
I could have lost the baby. A shudder of fear and panic went through her, and suddenly she couldn’t stop shaking.
“Kate?” Kyle’s concerned voice cut through the haze, and she managed to glance up to where he was frowning at her, with the little furrows between his eyebrows that meant he was worried, not upset. “Are you okay?”
Don’t lose it. Not here, not now. Kate opened her mouth to say she was fine, that nothing was wrong, to make some kind of sarcastic comment like she always did. Instead, to her horror and embarrassment, she burst into tears.
For a moment, it was just her sobbing and trying desperately not to look at him. And then Kyle put his arms around her in such an unpretentious and kind way that all Kate could really do was bury her face in his shirt and cry.
It should have been strange. It was Chambers, for crying out loud. But these days, that meant something very different than it used to. So she just cried into his shirt while he rubbed her back gently, not saying anything.
Finally— she wasn’t sure how long it was— her sobs dwindled to the last few tears, and Kate realized that she had more than a few reasons to be embarrassed. She’d cried all over Chambers with no explanation, and while he’d handled it well enough… I have two choices. Just never move again, or move right now and never make eye contact with him again.
Before she could decide which, Kyle spoke. “Feeling better?” he asked quietly.
“A bit,” Kate mumbled, not lifting her head. She thought avoiding eye contact might be her best move for now. “I— I’m sorry, I don’t know why— usually I’m fine. It wasn’t that big of a deal, I’m just—”
“Pregnant?” Kyle suggested with a hint of amusement that Kate did not appreciate. Pulling away from him, she opened her mouth to tell him exactly what she thought— and then saw the sympathy in his eyes outweighed the humor.
“You know most normal people would have freaked out even earlier than that,” he pointed out. “You’re allowed to be scared.”
“I’m not scared,” Kate snapped, knowing she sounded foolish, that he wouldn’t believe her. Because it was a lie, really. She just hated that it wasn’t.
Kyle didn’t respond right away, and for a moment the two of them sat in silence, Kate wiping away the last of her tears. As she took a deep breath, steadying herself a little, Kyle said, “When my mom had my half sisters, she cried almost every day. Over the littlest things. And she’s one of the strongest people I know.”
Shooting a glance at him, Kate saw him watching her steadily. “Crying doesn’t make you weak, any more than fear does.”
“I said I wasn’t afraid,” Kate insisted.
“I was.”
Kate stared at him, taken aback. “You— is this some kind of reverse psychology to convince me to admit I’m afraid?”
“It’s to show you there’s nothing wrong with being afraid when you’re being shot at,” Kyle said with a hint of exasperation. “Or any time, for that matter. It doesn’t make you a coward, or weak, or whatever it is you think it makes you. All it makes you is human.”
For a moment, Kate didn’t speak. Then, tentatively, she ventured, “You didn’t seem scared.”
“Because I’m used to being shot at,” Kyle said tiredly. “That’s part of life for me, and I’ve learned to shut down the panicked side of it and focus on the solution. But also… I’ve never been in that situation when I had to protect you, and…”
“Our baby,” Kate murmured. It felt strange to say it, but it was true. Mostly.
“Yeah. It terrified me. If Andersen hadn’t shown up, I… I’m not sure what I would have done. Everything I could have to get you out of there, I guess.”
His expression was somber, but filled with a steady resolve. Huh. Not what I expected. Though this man rarely was. Kate opened her mouth to respond, but the agent in the front seat spoke first.
“Agent Chambers? We’ve left the radius Agent Andersen dictated. You can message him at any time.”
Nodding his thanks, Kyle dug through his backpack until he found the burner phone. As he focused on keying in the message, Kate said quietly, “Thank you.”
He looked up briefly, surprise crossing his face as he said, “You’re welcome.”
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