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b1ksh88p · 4 years

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Be Mine ⛏

Plot Plot: You’ve been in a few relationships, unfortunately all ending in tragedy. You had a reputation for being a bad omen. Truly you were a sweet girl but it seemed like every single one of your lovers ended up dead or horrendously disfigured in the long run. This Valentine’s Day your boyfriend decides to jump ship for some blonde crushing the little hope you had left for your love life. In a slightly drunken haze you sneak into the mines for a rant about the cursed corporate holiday and to drown your sorrows in the solitude of the mines. But it seems like you’ve got a listener.

Tags/Warnings: Lots of cursing | Sprinkle of angst | Fluff

The cold air of the abandoned labyrinth did nothing to cool you down as you ventured further into its clutches. To put it lightly you were on fire. Every part of you wanted to tear someone apart. The auburn liquid sloshed around as you clumsily stomped past heaps of forgotten debris. If not for your drunken stupor you would’ve turned back. Everyone knew the horrific tale of the pickaxe cannibal murder. Although you were sure the story was somewhat embellished you’ve heard worse. Poor fuck did what he had to do to survive. Anyone else would’ve done the same, it’s human nature to do anything no matter how gruesome to survive.

“Give a girl a box of cheap chocolates and a fucking bouquet of withering roses and she’s supposed to repay ya by sucking your fucking dick and acting like yer the best thing since sliced bread.” You grumble.

The deeper you go the darker it gets. Stone walls become suffocating and everything looks like the enemy. A fight or flight response may have kicked in but you were in no place to think rationally. When your heel broke you fucking snapped.

“Stupid Roses, fuck ass chocolates, fake relationships for fake people who wouldn’t know love if it fucking stabbed them in the face!” You yell throwing the broken heel piece deep into the darkness. “A corporate holiday with no fucking insignificance! Just a money plot and a excuse to fuck and act like you like that worthless pathetic fuck you’re dating that you like them. When all 364 days you’ve been with em ya fucking loathe them!” You continue on tearing up the damned holiday in partially incoherent babbling until you hear glass break.

Despite your conditions you aren’t stupid. “Fuck is that?” You call out whilst backing up. At first you’re sure it’s a group of horny teenagers but through the gritty lights you see a single foreboding silhouette. This was where you run. Or at least you should’ve. Instead you squint your eyes like some tourist taking in the sights and step forward. “Bud y’know the mines are abandoned cuz of the poor guy who had to eat his friends right?” You call out. “I mean do you if this is your thing I support it but it’s kinda weird since you look exactly like the serial killer guy. Spot on cosplay.” You compliment. The figure doesn’t move. It doesn’t even look like he’s breathing. You feel your hairs start to stand up and goosebumps pepper you skin. It seems your liquid courage was fading.

“Welp I’ll leave you be, don’t wanna bore you with the details of this fucked up holiday.” You let out a wry laugh before turning your back on the figure. You get about 12 good steps in before the stride of death crescendos behind you. Now you were running. Your broken heels doing wonders at making this chase the easiest for your attacker. In the midst of running you take them off and throw them off behind you. Now look you weren’t aiming for the guy but when you heard the hit connect and a surprised grunt you got the feeling you were fucked. Instead of running in a straight line you dip into a little crawl space. Maybe he’d give up and fuck off you. To your horror the man crouches down and starts to crawl his way inside.

Without thinking you take the whiskey bottle and crash it on his head. “Leave me alone I don’t even like this fuckass holiday you fucking weirdo!” You cry. He looks up at you and stops trying to fit.

“Why not.” His voice was eerily calm. As if he weren’t some insane pickaxe murderer but a man.

“Well because it’s stupid and to lovy dovy. And because it feels wrong to celebrate it when such a tragedy had occurred.” You explain. “And...and I got dumped today so there’s that.” You huff.

“...You pity me?”

You shake your head. Words weren’t really your strong point and you didn’t need him thinking you were coddling him or anything. Instead you just stare into the glossy eyeholes with your own praying he’d just fuck off. You practically shit yourself when he continued to scramble through and stand up. You grab a rock and stand ready to knock him upside the head with it only have your wrist harshly grabbed mid throw.

“I don’t want your pity.”

This was it. You were gonna die. And it was gonna be painful and super fucking lame. On your headstone it would say:

“Loser girl no one cares about got dumped on Valentine’s Day...also got murdered lol”

Even though you wanted to sob and cry your eyes out you were way to stubborn to go out pleading and begging. “I was being empathetic you weirdo! We do what we gotta do to survive, and you did just that. You aren’t some crazy murderer. You’re just angry and traumatized and that’s ok!” The grip on your wrist only tightened. “Gah! Th-the system failed you dude. The whole fucking city failed you and still is failing you! You ha-have a right to be mad! I’m not excusing what you’ve done b-but shit I would’ve done the same!” You squeal feeling the blood flow completely cease as he tightened his grip.

Suddenly the pain stopped. You open your eyes and rub your poor wrist hoping the feeling would return. He seemed more docile. It was as if his entire aura had changed. The man sat down on a hunk of rubble, his weapon clenched in his grip. If you didn’t know better you could’ve sworn he was crying. It was a silent sob. Nothing overtly dramatic, kind of how like you’d expect a man who’s rarely cried to cry. It was unnerving. The only man you’ve ever seen cry was your dad and that was when he laughed to hard. This...this was gut wrenching.

This monster that was hellbent on killing you seconds ago was now a sad man huddled up in a corner like a child. You could never feel the pain he’s felt, relive the days of utter darkness and skewed rations. Never could you imagine the gritty taste of human flesh. The depravity one must have for themselves. The survivors guilt. The nightmares he must relive. He kept muttering something about the dark and the how he wasn’t a monster. How he just wanted to see the light again.

“It’s ok.”

You weren’t sure you could touch him so you just sat in front of him. He was still shaken up but the sound of your voice seemed to get through to him. “It’s ok and you’re safe. I’m here. I won’t go anywhere I’d you don’t want me to...” You could bare the cold for a night. You’d rather be frozen to death then brutally murdered.

Both of you sat there for what seemed like ages until he moved. You were on the edge of slumber before seeing a gloved hand slither towards yours. You wanted to move it. Make haste and dip but your body had become heavy. Your eyes seemingly weighed down by stones. Before you knew it he was oddly holding your hand. You saw him looking at you intently. Probably waiting for you to scream or pull away but you stayed put. One hand held up your head whilst the other was his to experience. It had probably been awhile since he’s been so vulnerable so you let him have this. It wasn’t like you had anything else to do tonight but sleep and pray that the hang over didn’t beat your ass in the morning. Before you could fall asleep he pulls you into a really awkward half ass embrace against the cold stained suit. It was far more comfortable than the back straining position you were in a second ago but man this guy was bad at ‘snuggling’. You felt like he was gonna smother you! When he found a comfortable position he rested that stupid ass mask on top of your head with a satisfied grunt before you gave up on protesting and fell asleep. How the hell were you gonna get home

When you wake there’s no cold embraces or odd masked men. Instead you find yourself wrapped in some dusty old quilt at the entrance of the mine. For a moment you think everything that occurred was a mere fever dream. A whiskey fueled hallucination. You scramble to your feet and notice a little note that had fallen from the tattered cloth. The paper, or what you hoped was paper and not dried human skin, had fairly neat handwriting. It was short and morbidly sweet.

Thank you.

There was a part of you that was absolutely mortified. The note solidified your suspicions of what had taken place last night. But the other part of you was strangely elated. You turn to the mine and put your hands to your mouth to amplify your words. “THANKS FOR NOT KILLING ME ILL MAKE IT UP TO YOU!!!!!!” You yell happily before heading back into town. You were pretty sure he didn’t hear you but it calmed you to know that he not only spared you but someone actually appreciated your presence.

This was definitely not your final encounter ⛏

#⛏

#slasher #horror #slashers #harry warden #my bloody valentine #slasher x s/o #slasher x reader #im not good at writing lmao #potential series maybe idk #i really loved writing this 🙈#harry warden x reader

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freebooter4ever · 3 years

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Hello I just finished the Pacific and I'm dying. So it's time for me to delve into the fandom and try and fulfil my poor sledgefu heart. Have any recommendations on who's blog to look at or tags? Other than yourself because I most certainly will spend a solid 5 hours going through your tags. I've already seen a lot of your art and I think it's beautiful, just an FYI.

Oh boy do I ever have recs! It was only about a year ago that I was new to the fandom myself and slowly going through @aboutthatmelancholystorm and @persipneiwrites tumblr sledgefu tags every night, reading all of it, and being totally sucked in! ^_^ (I especially suggest Persipnei’s 3:16 AU where Sledge and Snafu are rock stars!) As for art, I think the biggest collection I know of is the blog @marines-r-gay. Some of my favorite sledgefu artist blogs include @skelesocks (Ace Eugene will hold a special place in my heart forever!) @badgerms and my old favorite the-heebiejeebies who sadly disappeared and deleted their blog :( but you can still find their old art in my ‘sledgefu’ tag on my blog like here. There’s no really ‘exculsively’ sledgefu artists out there right now, but there is a LOT of amazing older stuff to be found mixed into people’s blogs! My own art/writing sledgefu masterlist can be found here.

More specific fanfic recs under the cut! I’m focusing on oldies, because I think it’s fairly easy to find the newer ones on AO3 that are still being updated ^_^

Not Quite Home by Seabright - A fix it fic that really fixes things. Post war set in New Orleans with Eugene showing up on Snafu’s doorstep. Snafu is cantankerous and very in character and he /claims/ he can’t ‘fix’ Sledge, but let’s face it that’s why they need to fix each other. Snafu has a lot of walls up and Eugene breaks all of them down in his steadfast way. This fic captures Snafu perfectly - even in little things like in the way he fidgets and moves. Also the last kiss is just...SO good.

Canon Compliant

Roadverse by Seabright - There are a few authors exclusively on AO3 that like...if you haven’t read their entire sledgefu collection yet, you gotta! Seabright is one of them. Roadverse is set after the war and Snafu takes Eugene on a roadtrip to Florida, there’s a lot of introspection, they fall in love, definitely a happy ending! The writing here is what really shines.

After The Happy Ending by Handdaddyhoosier - Another author it’s worth reading their entire sledgefu collection. This one is also set after the war and is more domestic. A lot of fluff, a lot of slice of life, a lot of Sledge and Snafu dealing with homophobia and overcoming it (!!). Through it all Snafu and Eugene remain sooooo much in love that they’re stronger together and...yeah...it’s good.

Christmas Even Will Find Me by SOMETHINREAL - My favorite canon compliant Sledgefu Christmas fic! It’s just perfect! Everybody is all together again after the war for Christmas and Eugene and Snafu are playing their own little dance between each other in the corner...they’re adorable. Plus there’s a happy ending!

Maybe You’ll Think Of Me When You’re All Alone by SOMETHINREAL - A very very good fix it fic for after the war. They’re both broken but they’re together and falling in love all over again, yay! I live for first pining and emotional kiss scenes and this is one of the best!

These Foolish Things Remind Me of You by Spoondragon - Merriell is quirky and weird and collects things and his last line in the fic is gOLD. Basically them being cute, with a first kiss. I highly rec ALL of spoondragon’s sledgefu fics!

To Make Much of Time by Hueligan - FIX THE TRAIN SCENE. I will read almost any variation of that train scene where Snafu makes it right, and this one does! AND THEN RUINS IT. So fair warning, you will fall in love with this fic but then it will break your heart. Kinda like Snafu. But it’s ok cause then you can go read one of the OTHER many fix it fics and mend it again.

Tilled Earth by Killerqueenie - Okay, this is one of my absolute FAVORITES. Snafu finds Eugene playing farmer boy in a small town outside of Mobile ten years after the war and Snafu signs himself on as a ranch hand. This one ACTUALLY fixes the train scene. Eugene is prickly and untrusting and Snafu has to earn his right to waltz back into his life. And oh gosh the love each other so so much!

The Magic Helmet by jspringsteen - Cute adorable and totally in character, canon compliant and not actually sledgefu except for some delightful hints that they are into each other more than they let on. It’s just such a great moment for Snafu’s character that I’ve reread this on multiple occasions.

All You Got by ssstrychnine - Another fix it fic (I know, I love these). This follows canon so well it’s seamless and only adds subtle touches of love between Gene and Snafu - so very believable as a part of the actual show. This author has four fics on AO3 for sledgefu and I suggest reading them all!

The Jazz Lights of New Orleans by Gracefully - Yet ANOTHER fix it fic! Give me them all!!!

Like It’s Only You And Me by SJTrinity - Snafu is an artist in this so of course I’m going to biased, but this is one of my absolute favorite college AU’s. All our favorite characters are there, including Bill, Burgie, Andy, and Eddie (and even Pops! as a fatherly figure to Snafu though he’s only referenced). Snafu is as chaotic as ever. The romance is hot! There are parts where I almost bust a gut laughing. Also anytime Eugene gets all haughty and bossy with his little furrowed brow over Snafu that’s like A+ for me.

Learning Curve by Seabright - ok THIS fic defines ultimate pining over Gene for me. I have never related to Snafu more. There’s a description of Eugene swimming in a pool that just..yeah...I have feelings. Anyway, it’s a college AU that is tragically UNFINISHED and will rip your heart out, BUT the same author also has a whole bunch of more canon related fic where the two of them do get together, so that eases the sting a little.

F.M.L by @badgerms - I maybe have a thing for swimmers, but I love this swimming college AU especially because it’s in Gene’s POV but done so well that it feels real. This fic also delves into mental illness and mental self flagellation (there are some moments that hit REAL hard if you’ve ever had eating disorders). But on top of all that, I feel like lollki really captured what is so magnetic about Snafu, and by having Gene put him on this impossible pedestal it kinda reflects what a lot of us in the fandom do with his character. Snafu makes his existence look effortless and thoughtless, Gene is incredibly jealous of how Snafu just lives, their competition is ENTHRALLING.

The Kind Of Stuff That Only Prince Would Sing About by @stolperzunge A coffee shop AU that has Sledge and Snafu just slowly and sweetly falling in love. This one is from Snaf’s pov and since I identify with him more you know I’m gonna love it lol! There are some GREAT funny lines, Snafu has personality in spades. Eugene is a grandad hipster type who also writes erotica....I dunno it’s all amazing go read it.

There Will Be Better Days by SydneyCarton - High school AU. As someone who had a fairly shitty high school experience and many bad holidays, this is...cathartic. Gene is definitely more the caretaker here, he saves Snafu in a way that’s just as strong as when he picked him up on the battlefield. But it’s all emotional, and Snafu is this scared prickly kid. And Gene is the honor roll kid who has to play the role of best friend secretly in love with the one person who matters most to them. This author never wrote anything else for Sledgefu and I wish they had!

Okay, that’s a whole bunch! There’s even more in my aO3 bookmarks! This list is just me going through my bookmarks and selecting the ones that I especially remembered and is by no means exhaustive of all my favorites in this fandom. Joining the Pacific train late means there’s a whole lot to choose from and explore...but it also means the list of active blogs is short and not a lot of new content gets posted every day :( I think the Sledgefu community is still going pretty strong, though! Welcome!

#sledgefu #Anonymous

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authorized-trash · 4 years

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To Tie a Knot: Chapter 5: Important Meetings in a Coffee Shop Bathroom

Ao3

Chapter One | Chapter Two | Chapter Three | Chapter Four

Content Warnings:

Self harm, self deprecation, making out, stress, emotional turmoil, elusion to character death, (If anything else needs mentioned tell me)

Chapter Summary:

Damian should know better than to walk into coffee shops when he’s the protagonist of a romance fanfiction smh

Word Count:

3,600+

Note: I posted the last chapter on Ao3 a day or two ago, and it got so many comments so fast I was inspired to write another on. So here is nearly 4k words of >:]. Chapter six is halfway done as well, so please, keep the comments up, I’ve never written so much so fast in my life asdf

By the time noon had come and gone and Logan had left, the others were restless. Patton was stress baking and Roman was practicing his lines a bit louder than normal. Virgil was nowhere to be seen, most likely hiding in their shared room listening to too-loud music.

Patton kneaded dough between his hands, planning on making bread. One would think he would make cookies or something while stressed, but he found the process of homemade bread and the smell of it baking was much better for calming.

Over the years he had gotten pretty good actually, won a few dumb little neighborhood competitions with his baking. His soulmates all adored his cooking, Roman had stated one of his favorite things to wake up to was the smell of pie or bread.

Patton let his mind wander while he worked, thinking about his new soulmate. He couldn’t help the wave of anticipation and impatience that hit him when he thought about their meeting. He was just so excited! A large smile stretched across his face, and he did a few happy stomps with his feet.

Roman stopped repeating his lines and looked over to him, a soft smile on his face.

“You okay over there, dear? You’re lucky that bread isn’t alive, you’re beating it quite thoroughly,” Roman said with a teasing tone.

Patton looked up at him, blushing a bit at being caught, “Oh! Yeah of course I’m fine! I’m just overwhelmingly giddy, I guess.”

Roman laughed and crossed the room with a few long strides, grabbing Patton around the waist and setting his chin to rest on the other’s head. He gave a kiss to Patton’s scalp, and Patton giggled and swatted playfully at him.

“Ro stop, I’m trying to cook,” Patton whined, placing the kneaded dough into a bread pan. He leaned back into Roman’s hold either way, looking up at him through his eyelashes.

“Sorry Sweetheart, I simply couldn’t resist,” Roman winked, laughing softly. They stood there for a few moments in silence, swaying slightly.

“Do you think they’ll like my bread?” Patton asked quietly.

“What? Of course! If they don’t I will have to fight them,” Roman said dramatically. Patton chuckled.

“No fighting Roman, everyone has their own tastes.”

“If someone’s taste doesn’t like your bread, they’re wrong. Sorry, I don’t make the rules,” Roman spun Patton and gave him a peck to the lips.

The oven beeped a few times behind them, and Patton started to squirm in Roman’s hold.

“Babe, you gotta let me go so I can cook!” Patton said, squealing as Roman held steadfast, unmoving.

“Nuh uh, you are in the Princey Dungeon of snuggles and cuddles, I’m very sorry Padre, but I simply cannot let go unless you pay bail.”

“Which is?”

“Kiss me.”

Patton didn’t protest as he pressed their lips together. Roman hummed and smiled into the kiss, trailing his hands up Patton’s back and threading his fingers into Patton’s hair. After a few long seconds they parted for air, but Roman didn’t seem to want to stop, and at this point neither did Patton.

Before long Patton was up against the counter, kissing back with fervor as Roman picked his legs up and sat him on the counter. Patton made a small noise into the kiss, arms draped around Roman’s shoulders.

Just as Roman was teasing his hand up and under Patton’s shirt, a gagging noise came from the door.

“Eugh, can ya’ll like, not be horny in the kitchen please? I don’t want you contaminating my bread.”

Roman nearly fell to his ass with how fast he jumped off of Patton, and Patton buried his head in his hands and grumbled something under his breath.

Virgil laughed all the way to the kitchen’s island, wheezing and wiping tears from his eyes.

“You two should see your faces, you would think your parent’s just caught you or somethin’. Calm thyselves.”

Patton just stood silently and went to put the bread in the oven.

“Wait, excuse you. Your bread? No, sorry sis, it’s mine,” Roman said as he brushed himself off.

“Oh god, please don’t call me sis, I’m your boyfriend, that’s weird,” Virgil said, moving to sit himself up onto the counter on the other side of the room.

“Oh,” Patton spoke up suddenly, “Roman, I meant to ask, how’s Remus? You haven’t talked about him in awhile.”

Roman’s brother Remus visited them every holiday. It was getting close to thanksgiving at this point, and they were all looking forward to seeing him.

Roman shrugged, “Don’t know, haven’t talked to him in… a little over a month now?”

“How come?” Patton asked.

“Normally I’m not the one who reaches out to talk, I just haven’t thought about it. And since, ya know, I don’t talk to my parents, it’s easy to lose contact for larger periods of time,” Roman explained, slumping into a chair at the kitchen table. Patton nodded in understanding.

They went back to their routines, this time with both Roman and Virgil on their phones while Patton baked a few more things.

Half an hour went by with little words, just a comfortable silence as they all enjoyed the company.

A sharp and hard tug caught their attention.

“Ow, damnit,” Virgil said, shaking his hand roughly as if it were burned. The other two looking down at their hands in confusion, wincing as their yellow strings gave another sharp and painful tug.

“Language,” Patton chided absentmindedly, then, “Do they want something?”

“I don’t think people yank on their strings that hard in order to get someone’s attention, Dearest,” Roman said, flinching as he bent his finger. It was already sore.

“They’re not trying to take the string off or something, right? That’s impossible, they should know that,” Virgil said shakily, curling in on himself and his hoodie.

“It is. Maybe they’re not thinking clearly?” Roman said, trying to offer an explanation.

Patton pouted,

“I hope they’re okay.”

Damian was not okay.

You wouldn’t be able to tell it, though, with the way he was carrying himself.

His strides were confident, and he held his head high. He tipped his hat at the people who walked by and offered polite hellos. He looked like every bit of a man who was sure of himself.

But he was far from it, really.

If you knew him personally and were looking closely, you could see the way he sometimes fidgeted with his jacket sleeves. You’d notice the slight tremble in his hands, or the way he seemed to run his fingers through his hair too many times. He honestly probably had his hat off more than he had it on, lifting it off of his head as much as he was.

Damian was a nervous wreck, but a nervous wreck who was good at hiding it.

His classes that day were ridiculously stressful, and it didn’t help when every other person exclaimed suddenly when they noticed the shadows of his soulstrings. He would wave them off, or excuse himself. Hell, a few times he even made up what his soulmates were like. He wove tales of wonderful people who had swept him off his feet, if only to appease the asker and get them to stop bugging him.

He had watched earlier that day as the indigo string seemed to detach from the others, just barely heading in a different direction. It was a very slow process, meaning they were probably decently far, but it still scared him.

Were they going to work? Coming to find him? Oh god, what if indigo left the other three because he couldn’t deal with another string showing up? What if Damian was the reason why they broke up?

No, Damian thought to himself with a shake of his head, no that was ridiculous. Really, he needed to stop letting his head go off in random directions, the self deprecation was getting old.

Damian walked up the steps of his apartment building, entering with a nod towards the doorman. The man smiled and waved.

“Heya, DJ,” He greeted.

“Hello, Larry. How’s the wife?”

“Oh you know her, same old. She’s missed you, you know. You should really come over for some tea sometime soon,” Larry said, opening the door for Damian.

“Sure thing, how does Thursday sound?”

“That would be awesome, see you then, Damian.”

Damian smiled to himself as he entered the elevator to his floor. He let out a shuddery breath. Small talk came to him easily, he was never really introverted to be honest, but that didn’t stop it from being taxing on the days when he really didn’t want to have to see people.

As soon as he crossed the threshold to his apartment, he checked the time.

Okay, it was a little past five in the afternoon, cool. He figured Remy would be up to go somewhere, if he wasn’t already out with Emile.

He shot him a text, which he got an immediate reply on.

Girl course i wanna hang. Ill be there in half hour, see ya hot stuff xoxo

Damian chuckled to himself. Of course Remy would be the kind of person to still unironically use X’s and O’s.

He double tapped the message to like it, and took off for the restroom. He needed to freshen up before he left for the outside world.

He went ahead and re-brushed his teeth, combed his hair, and washed his face. He really needed some moisturizer for his burns, they were getting a little scratchy around the edges, the sensitive skin looking a little red and agitated.

By the time he was done toweling himself off, his eyes fell from his face in the mirror to the strings tied neatly around his fingers. He had spent most of the day ignoring them, other than the occasional check-in on Indigo’s progress.

He looked at them for a long while, feeling how they moved. He always found it so fascinating, how sometimes they would be pulled tight and sensitive to any slight movement, and how other times they seemed to pool onto the floor in piles of color. He figured it depended on some kind of need or something, it was always when someone’s emotions were high that the strings seemed to tighten, maybe as a way to aid communication.

Damian just figured it was some weird magicky shit, and didn’t let it bother him too much. He had gotten over the trying to explain the strings stage back in middle school, back when it was just him and green.

Nausea and guilt ate at his insides even thinking about the green string. It hung loosely to the fingers on the hand opposite the new strings, its once brilliant earthy color now a faded grey.

It was so pale and sad looking in comparison to the other brighter strings, and Damian couldn’t help but want to cry again. It was such a lovely color, and he was sure they would have been such a lovely person.

He didn’t even have a name to mourn, a funeral to attend to. Only a sad little frayed string to cry pitifully over.

And that brings up another question, why frayed? Damian hadn’t met anyone who had a dead soulmate that had a frayed string. Sure, others had their colors dulled, but the end looked clipped with scissors. Damian’s looked as if someone had pulled it apart with their teeth.

It wasn’t fair, Damian thought. It wasn’t fair that he got all these questions. It wasn’t even a simple, “oh no, my soulmate is dead, I’m doomed to be lonely and soulless.” No, he had to deal with all these mysteries. Why frayed? Why four others? Why add him to an already complete group? Why not someone else? Why had it been a month, when the average wait on the reassigning was a week? Were the other’s even able to love him like they loved each other? Damian wasn’t paired with someone equally as heartbroken and lonely, he was paired with an already complete soulmate relationship. Was he doomed to be an outcast?

Damian didn’t want this, he didn’t ask for this.

His emotions were all over the place, but he steeled himself, and with an angry huffed, he grabbed his four strings, and yanked.

White hot, dizzying pain lanced up his arm, and he gave a shout. His vision blanked, and a throbbing headache pounded behind his eyes.

His vision cleared after a while, stars and dots still dancing across his eyes. The pain was so bad, it was nearly incapacitating.

And in a mix of morbid curiosity and the horrible feeling of self loathing, he yanked again, harder.

He stumbled to the ground, sweat beginning to drip from his forehead. His heart was pounding in his ears, and what sounded like a dull roar caused his eardrums to hurt. Every bone in his body ached, and his arm hurt to move.

Well, he thought, guess they were pretty authentic then, at the very least.

He heard a knock at the door and tripped over himself to get up. He dabbed his face with the towel once again, wincing at the pain in his arms.

By the time he left the bathroom, Remy was already standing inside.

“What on earth were you doing in there, you look awful,” Remy asked, before going a bit pale, “You know what? Don’t answer that.”

“Oh shut it,” Damian snapped, taking his hat off the counter and fitting it back into place.

“So, wanna head out to that coffee shop you like downtown?”

Damian shrugged, “Why not.”

“Sweet, let’s blow this popsicle stand.”

Damian sighed but laughed at his friend's antics, following him out the door with a fond shake of his head.

The coffee shop was nice. It was small, cozy, and had a nice arrangement of potted plants scattered about. The barista was kind, and pretty cute. They had a cute grungy-emo thing going on.

Damian had a thing for emos.

He, like normal, had ordered some black coffee with two creams and a sugar, much to Remy’s dismay. Remy had then proceeded to buy some ridiculously over sweetened drink with a stupid name and two muffins to share, much to Damian’s dismay.

“You have got to stop buying food for me Remy, I’m a grown man, I can pay for myself.”

“I offered. Besides, you need your money for your hobbies.”

“What hobbies?” Damian laughed, smiling despite himself.

“I don’t know, your music. You play the clarinet, right?”

“Flute, actually,” Said Damian, rolling his eyes, “And it’s not a hobby. Band was the only reason I managed to get into college. You know this, why are you asking?”

It was Remy’s turn to roll his eyes, “Small talk, babes.”

Damian was so caught up in their conversation he missed as the indigo string tied to his finger moved at a rate much, much faster than earlier that day.

“Mhmm, small talk about something we are both familiar with?”

“I don’t know, you band nerds seem to like to talk about band, despite making sure it is known that it is hell on earth,” Remy laughed, “Why don’t you, I don’t know, tell one of those ‘this one time at band camp-’ stories, babes?”

“Uh huh, and which one haven’t you heard?” Damian did in fact have a lot of stories, as every band kid tended to, but he was almost certain Remy had heard every one three times. It was obviously his best friend was just trying to cheer him up, and honestly? Damian really appreciated it.

“I don’t know, what about the one time you passed out on field and went to the hospital for a broken rib after being stepped on?” Remy’s grin was shit-eating, and Damian felt his face turn a deep crimson.

“We agreed not to talk about that,” he hissed, attempting to hide his face behind his coffee as he took a sip.

Remy shook his head as he laughed, before standing up.

“I’m heading to the restroom babes, try not to miss me too much.”

Damian sighed and sat back in his chair as Remy left, closing his eyes and smiling to himself. He was enjoying himself, this was nice. Remy was an awesome friend and really helped Damian to forget all about his stupid soulmates.

If all went Damian’s way, he wouldn’t have to deal with soulmates for the rest of the day.

Of course, knowing how fate liked to fuck him over, that isn’t what happened.

Logan had had an exhausting day, and he was ready to get it over with. He wanted nothing more than to go home to his soulmates and curl up against them, but he knew he couldn’t. He had been sentenced to sleeping in a cold hotel bed, alone.

The day had started well, with breakfast with his beloveds and a few kisses to his cheek, and a few kisses he returned. He had left with a small smile on his face.

But his good mood had slowly disappeared as the day wore on, as no sign of his other soulmate was to be found. The string slowly started to move more and more as he was sure he was getting closer, but the direction it was in was so vague, he could only hope he was going the right way as he drove.

Honestly, he didn’t know why some machine to find them hadn’t been invented yet. Surely there was some way to get some magnetic something or other to pick up on soulstrings, and then lead you there with a convenient little GPS voice.

But nope, the stupid strings were too stubborn to be beat. Everyone had just accepted them as immovable magic and was done with it.

Everyone including Logan, but he still felt like he was allowed to complain about that fact.

It was a little past six in the evening at this point, and the sky was beginning to darken considerably. Logan could feel his body getting heavier, but wasn’t quite tired enough to stop yet.

He didn’t think his perception skills were too bad, surely he had a few more hours left in him.

That was probably a bad judgement call, as they were apparently bad enough to not notice how fast the string on his finger moved as he turned the corner into coffee shop parking lot.

He locked his car as he stepped away from it, and entered the building. He took a right to the restroom, wanting to wash his hands before doing anything else, not enjoying the feeling of sweaty driving palms.

He heard the door behind him open, and looked up to see a man wearing sunglasses (indoors?) walk in.

“‘Sup Babes,” the man said, and Logan lifted an eyebrow in confusion.

“Babes? I’m sorry, do I know you?”

The man laughed, “Nope, you just look like someone who would be fun to piss off by calling them babes. For real though, why are you wearing a necktie in a coffee shop?”

“Plenty of people wear neckties in a coffee shop,” Logan answered, fixing his tie with an affronted look. The other man just laughed, running a hand through his hair.

“The name’s Remy,” The man said, offering his hand to shake. Logan took it, if with a little hesitance and confusion.

“Logan.” Logan responded. Remy nodded, going to turn around and leave, probably deterred from using the restroom in what would now be an awkward situation. He stopped suddenly, eyes going wide from behind his sunglasses.

“You have four soulmates?” He said, looking at the slight shadow cast on the tiled floor.

“Yes,” Logan answered, easily. Remy was not the first one to ask that today. There was the woman at the gas station, and the man walking his dog outside of the Ihop. It was a little disorienting hearing four instead of three, but whatever.

“You here with someone? One of your strings seems to be pointing in a weird direction,” Remy commented, nodding down at the shadow heading straight out the bathroom door. Logan looked down hurriedly, just now noticing the yellow string that was pulled tight.

“I- no I’m not. I’ve actually been looking for our fourth soulmate all day,” Logan didn’t take his eyes off the string, “In fact, it only appeared recently. Me and my other soulmates decided it best to find them as soon as possible.

After a few more minutes of staring wide eyed at his yellow string, he looked up at Remy. He, once again, looked confused at the wide smile that had spread across Remy’s face. The sunglasses clad man grabbed Logan by the hand and tugged him towards the door.

“Come on, there’s someone you need to meet.”

Logan allowed himself to be pulled back into the main part of the coffee shop and led in the direction of a booth in the back. He opened his mouth to protest, but stopped when he caught sight of the man seated at the table.

“Damian, babes, you will not fucking believe who I just ran into,” Remy exclaimed. The man, Damian, turned around to face them.

The two men locked eyes, and Logan felt his heart hammering in his chest, that familiar yet foreign feeling of something clicking into place in his chest was present for the fourth time in his life, and he was almost certain he had never been happier.

Logan was at a loss for words for one of the few times in his life.

“Uhm, hello?”

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clintbartonswife · 4 years

Text

singing softly

Pairings: Steve Rogers x Bucky Barnes Summary: 5 times Bucky sang to Steve + one time Steve returned the favour Notes: (minor) character death, mentions of illness, Made for @panicfob anniversary challenge, with the prompt “Tell me how to breathe in and feel no hurt.” List of songs at the end:) masterlist

1. (1925)

Wet coughs were muffled with small, pale hands.

Bucky had been there since early morning, ever since the news had spread that the Roger’s boy was sick again, only ever letting go of Steve’s hand to wet the rag that he gently wiped across the blond’s sweaty forehead.

Sarah looked in on the two silently from the doorway, eyes creasing in concern for her only child. He had caught the flu again, the cold weather outside grating on his fragile lungs more than he could handle.

But Bucky, the boy was a mystery to Sarah. Ever since they had met two years ago, the eight-year-olds had been inseparable, much to her surprise. Bucky was a tall, strong boy, and most like him had shunned Steve for his small and sickly nature. Not Bucky. No, that seemed to make the brunet almost more protective of Steve than he was his sisters, always saving his from playground fights.

“Of all the money that e'er I spent, I spent it in good company”

Sarah blinked out of her thoughts as Bucky’s soft voice broke the silence, the boy focusing solely on Steve as he stroked his hair out of his face, one pale hand moving to rest over Bucky’s chest.

“And all the harm that ever I did, Alas it was to none but me”

He was feeling the vibrations, Sarah figured, a small smile pulling at her lips as she watched them. A bond that close was all she could ever wish for her child. It would outlast her, that she was sure of.

2. (1933)

The funeral was a quiet affair.

Sarah Roger’s friends from church attended the ceremony, along with a few of the nurses who shared her shift and - of course - the Barnes family. Steve was sure they had been giving him their regards, but he heard none of them.

He just stood there, staring as the coffin was lowered gently into the grave, yearning to hold Bucky’s hand.

Later that night, back in the too-empty apartment, Bucky held him to his chest as they lay together in bed, running a soothing hand up and down the smaller man’s back.

“She’s gone”

He sounded so desolate, so hopeless, that it almost made Bucky cry. The brunet just murmured his acknowledgement, tightening his hold even more.

“It hurts. I - Tell me how to breathe in and feel no hurt”

Bucky’s heart squeezed painfully, his hand moving to cup the back of Steve’s neck, “Just keep breathing” he eventually said, “It doesn't ever go away but I’ll be here to help lessen it every day - I promise”

Steve just nodded, letting silence fall over them again for a few more minutes.

“Buck” Steve whispered, forehead resting against his collarbone, “sing for me?”

Bucky huffed a laugh, pressing a kiss to the top of his head before clearing his throat,

“Oh Danny boy, the pipes the pipes are calling-”

As Bucky’s soothing voice filled the room, Steve began to gently sob, the Irish melody easing the pain in his chest, even if only for a moment. He stayed wrapped in strong arms the whole time, the feeling of safety and protection only growing as his crying began to fade out.

Bucky watched him with soft eyes, hands moving upwards to stroke through his hair as the younger boy began to doze off to the sound of his voice.

“For you shall bend and tell me that you love me, And I shall sleep in peace until you come to me”

The tell-tale sounds of Steve’s relaxed breathing made Bucky smile, glad that the distraught boy had finally managed to fall asleep.

3. (1937)

“C’mon Stevie” Bucky groaned, collapsing onto the sofa, “it’s your birthday, we gotta do something!”

Steve smirked at the bratty behaviour, crossing his arms, “We don't gotta do anything, Buck”

“But it’s your 21st!” Bucky said, waving his arms around as if the notion was ridiculous, “It’s a special one! Anything you want - just say it and we’ll do it”

Steve raised an eyebrow, steeping in-between Bucky’s legs, gaining the brunet’s attention.

“Anything?”

Bucky nodded hesitantly, eyes darkening as he watched Steve lean down so that their faces were mere inches apart.

“Dance with me. Just us, in this apartment” he said simply, “That’s what I want”

“You’re a tease Steven Rogers” Bucky grinned, jumping up off of the sofa with joyful exuberance before offering the shorter boy his hand, “Would you do m the honour of dancin’ with me?”

Steve chuckled, quickly walking over to set the needle on the bust-up grammar phone before heading back to Bucky, accepting his hand.

The two swayed gently to the soft tones of Billie Holiday ‘If You Were Mine’, Steve’s head moving to rest gently on the dip of Bucky’s collar bone, a place Bucky had secretly reserved for him.

Roughly halfway through the song, Steve closed his eyes, the vibrations of Bucky singing along to the music creating a unique comforting sensation that he wished he could save forever.

“If you were mine, I would live for your love alone”

The atmosphere changed as Bucky’s cheek moved to rest against the top of Steve’s head, the words resonating with the two young men more than they thought was possible.

“To kneel at your shrine, I would give up all that I own”

Steve moved then, tilting his head up so that their noses were only a breaths-width away from touching.

“Buck-”

Before he could voice his thoughts, Bucky’s lips were connecting with his, soft and slow, their bodies still swaying slowly in time to the music.

“Even my life, I’d trade it all for you, And think I was lucky too, If you were mine”

4. (1940)

“Buck?”

The apartment was quiet - too quiet for Steve’s liking - especially as Bucky should’ve come home from the docks an hour ago. Frowning, Steve carried on walking to the kitchen, only to find an ashen-faced Bucky clutching a letter in his hand.

“Buck?” Steve repeated, his voice seemingly snapping the brunet out of his stupor.

“Oh - sorry, doll. I didn't hear you come in” Bucky said, shoving the letter in his pocket and standing up to pull Steve into a hug, hands still shaking slightly, “Must’ve overworked myself today at the docks”

Steve accepted the hug, trying his best to soothe his boyfriend, before pulling back just enough to see his face.

“What’s this really about?”

The older man’s face dropped, releasing a wavering sigh before sitting down heavily on one of the dining chairs, gesturing for Steve to do the same. He pulled out the letter from before and passed it to Steve, eyes full of barely-restrained dread.

“I don't understand -” Steve said, looking over the letter, before a icy dagger of fear went through his chest, “Oh Bucky”

“I’ve been drafted” he said, voice tight, “Sargent Barnes of the 107th”

“I - I’ve got to - to sign up. I’ll come with you”

“Steve no-”

“I’ll go to the pop-up, down by the bakers - tomorrow. We can - we can figure this out”

By now he was sounding hysterical even to himself, Bucky moving out of his chair to kneel in front of Steve, taking his hands in his own.

“No, Steve. No. I need you to be safe. Please. At least when I have to go I’ll do it knowing I’ll be keeping you safe”

That finally ripped a sob from Steve, who shook his head madly and gripped onto his hands even tighter.

“How long?”

“Two weeks and I’m off to England”

Another sob was torn from Steve’s throat, Bucky quickly moving to wrap Steve in up his arms, cradling his small body and rocking back and forth. At a loss of what else to do, Bucky wiped his own tears from his eyes before shakily beginning to sing one of their favourite songs.

“Till the end of time, long as stars are in the blue, long as there’s a spring, a bird to sing, I’ll go on loving you”

Steve shifted in his lap, pressing his cheek firmly to Bucky’s chest as his sobbing died down slightly, moving his arms to wrap around Bucky’s waist.

“You promise?”

His voice was quiet, almost reluctant, muffled against the scratchy material of Bucky’s work shirt. Nevertheless, Bucky caught it, immediately halting his singing and moving Steve so that they were looking into each other’s eyes.

“Promise Stevie, no one’s ever gonna replace you”

“And you’ll come home?”

“I’ll fight like hell to”

5. (1941)

“We can take a break here for a few hours, tend to the wounded” Steve announced, “We should be far away enough by now”

Bucky felt like he was going insane. He should be dead, strapped to that medical table, yet here he is, following Steve - his Stevie - out of hell, while he looks like he’s been pumped with a thousand different kinds of steroids.

A light pressure on his back moved him away from the mass of soldier’s, the smell reassuring him that he was safe, that it was just Steve.

“You okay Buck?”

He scoffed, looking up - he had to look up - to meet his eyes, “I don't think I’m the one who should be answering that question right now”

“Buck-”

“You promised me you’d stay home, Stevie”

“If I had you could’ve died in there -”

“At least you would’ve been safe!”

The blond dropped his head in defeat, his whole body radiating his silent apology.

“I couldn’t live with myself knowing you were fighting out here while I was just sat at home”

A bitter chuckle, hand reaching up to cup the side of his neck, “You’ve never been able to do that, huh”

“I knew I couldn't let you fight alone, Buck” Steve admitted quietly, still looking down, “And I’m glad I didn't. Seeing you on that table-”

“I know” Bucky breathed, pulling the blond into a firm hug - the most he could do while they were this much in the open, “we’ll talk more when we get back to base, okay?”

Steve just nodded, straightening his posture before stepping out of the hug, his Captain persona firmly back on.

“I can wait”

Roughly 12 hours later, the rag-tag group arrived back to camp to cheers of ‘Captain America!’, a very pretty brunette (that Bucky was not jealous of at all) greeting Steve with a proud smile.

By the time they were allowed to go to the barracks - ‘Bucky’s staying with me, sir, he was in bad shape and I’d like to keep an eye on him’ - the older man was well and truly exhausted.

“So - Peggy”

Steve sighed, running his hands over his face dramatically, “It’s not like that”

“Sure pal”

“No. Really” Steve insisted, grabbing Bucky’s chin, forcing their eyes to meet, “It’s not like that”

Bucky hummed, climbing into the bed with a well-practice air of blasé.

“Buck, I swear it” Steve said, voice quiet, “I missed you so much”

“You wouldn’t have to hide with her”

“What?”

“Peggy. You wouldn't have to hide with Peggy”

A small sad sound came from behind him, followed by a sudden shoot of movement as Steve climbed on to the bed with Bucky, his newly-enlarged form swamping the man with his hug as he was pulled into a strong chest.

“But I don't love her. I love you, you know this”

As soon as the first tear escaped Bucky’s eye he knew he was fucked, his hand reaching up to gran on to Steve’s arm.

“I don't know what they did to me Steve. I don't - I don't know what they did and I don't know if I can protect you anymore”

“You don't need to protect me anymore” the blond said, truthfulness radiating from every pore, “I can help myself now. We can protect each other”

Another muffled sob. Bucky wiggled around in Steve’s arms so that they were face-to-face, his hand resting on his cheek.

“I love you so much”

“I love you too”

“Punk”

“Jerk”

The two of them lied there, entwined in each other’s arms as Bucky’s cries slowly died down.

“Buck?”

“Yeah?”

“I missed your singing” Steve admitted, “the apartment was too quiet without it”

Bucky huffed a laugh, readjusting himself so that he was facing Steve head-on.

“If you wanted me to sing all you had to do was ask, you punk”

Steve let out a soft giggle, tears welling in his eyes as Bucky began to sing, his voice softer than normal.

“How much do I love you? I'll tell you no lie, How deep is the ocean? How high is the sky?”

+1 (2015)

Steve had finally found him. Bucky was home.

Well - not home - both of them had lost their homes years ago, but together, as bruised and broken as they might be. And for now? That was enough.

“Steve?”

Bucky’s monotone voice broke the heavy silence that had fallen over the apartment, the blond’s head whipping around to face him. Seeing he had his attention, Bucky continued.

“Did you ever sing to me?”

The question sent Steve’s stomach plunging, a small flicker of hope blooming in his chest at the slightly wrong memory.

“No, but you used to sing to me all the time” Steve said, shuffling slightly closer to Bucky, watching as his eyes lit up with the confirmation, “you used to do it to calm me down when I was stressed or upset”

Bucky nodded, biting his lip thoughtfully.

“Could you - could you sing something for me?”

His voice was soft and unsure, the timid expression something Steve was reluctant to say he was now used to seeing on Bucky’s face.

“If you really want me to I will - but I’m nowhere near as good as you”

“I’m sure that's not true” Bucky said, smiling as he relaxed marginally into his seat.

Steve fidgeted in his seat as he wondered what to sing, his mind going back to the first time Bucky sang to him. A small smile flitted across his face at the memory, deciding the on the old melody.

“Of all the money that e'er I spent, I spent it in good company“

Bucky let out a soft noise, peacefulness oozing from him as he completely relaxed in his seat, letting Steve’s voice drown out the rest of his thoughts.

“And all the harm that ever I did, Alas it was to none but me”

Steve watched Bucky raptly, searching for any spark of recognition.

“And all I've done for want of wit, To memory now I can't recall”

Steve’s next words died in his throat as Bucky opened his mouth, the smooth voice he had been yearning to hear suddenly filling the room.

“So fill to me the parting glass, Good night and joy be with you all”

The two men fell silent, seemingly at a standstill while Bucky digested the new memories. Steve held his breath, hope now beating ceaselessly against his ribs.

“Stevie”

It was just a breath, no louder than an feather falling to the ground, but Steve knew.

Bucky remembered.

_______________________________________________________________

@patzammit @geeksareunique @xxloki81xx @bangtan-serendipity

Songs:

1. The Parting Glass

2. Danny Boy by Frederic Weatherly

3. If You Were Mine by Billie Holiday

4. Til the end of time by Les Brown

5. How Deep Is The Ocean by Irving Berlin

+1 The Parting Glass

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saikagerights · 4 years

Text

A New Possession- Entry #11

THIS JOURNAL LIVES!

After nearly 3 weeks, I finally have a new entry just for you! And it's a juicy one. I kind of went all over the place with this one, but on the bright side, it's over 1k words. Perfect for my comeback.

Work has been kicking my ass lately, and so has my inspiration from the Newlyweds one shot. Unfortunately for this fic, there may be another time where I switch gears to work on something else, so it's not as if I don't want to continue this fic, it's just that other ideas overtake this one.

But do not fear, because I plan on prioritizing this fic in the near future. Thanks for the support as always

LONG LIVE THE JOURNAL!

Also available on AO3

February 14

It’s Valentine’s day.

I find myself kilometers away from the village on another search assignment from the Rokudaime. Lately the highest ranked missions available are to lead search groups for the ranks that were discovered missing after the war’s end.

There were multiple scenarios to describe these cases. There were some that went rogue like the shinobi that were amassed by Gengo in the land of Silence, but that was a small minority of the ones that disappeared. Many of these search groups had discovered that the supposedly “rogue” targets had simply wandered away from the village without notice as some sort of backwards resignation just to conceal themselves in smaller villages outside of Konoha.

Regardless of the intent, it was our responsibility to return them to the village for interrogation out of suspicion for not following standard resignation protocol.

Although I disagree with their actions, I do understand their motive. Many shinobi had resigned as soon as they could. Both the young and inexperienced, as well as the old and hardened had reached their threshold of tolerance for combat.

Resignations are still very common 2 years later, as more and more realize the sudden decline in available work due to the truth that is peace. While I’ve also seen a decrease in my work load, I couldn’t ever see myself being anything other than a shinobi; It’s the only thing I know… I don’t know if I could even adjust to doing something different.

It’s not that I find any specific enjoyment in my work. Work is work, but I can’t help but find a specific fulfillment when I complete a task. I guess that’s just a result of my training. Naruto is usually quite enthusiastic when a job has been “well done” but I mostly assume that’s because he is working towards a higher position. Shikamaru’s demeanor suggests indifference,however he has revealed to me that his main determination lies in supporting Naruto’s rise to the level of Hokage.

In contrast, Sakura and Ino have only found more work after peace fell upon Konoha. It could arguably be the most important work of all; Healing and revitalizing the village.

Meanwhile, here I am leading search missions rather than the assassination missions I was executing less than 2 years prior.

The Choujuu Giga itself was a very essential tool that was best utilized for communication and reconnaissance, but all ROOT agents were highly skilled in assasination. As long as the target was disposed of in an efficient manner, it was enough to fulfill the will of Danzo-sama. And while Konoha’s will of fire has engulfed his will, Danzo-sama’s influence still leaves its remnants in the village’s deep underground networks and we are still far from finished in uprooting that.

For some reason however, the Rokudaime has placed me in charge of this mission instead of allowing me to chase a new lead. And I’m missing Valentine’s day on top of that.

I find Valentine’s day to be a strange, yet rather enjoyable holiday. The idea of girls giving me chocolates is a strange concept to me, but getting gifts from friends isn’t inherently a bad thing, right?

However, there have been occurrences that now require me to be extra vigilant when celebrating.

Sakura has always been incredibly um… generous? She never fails to hand deliver her own chocolates to Naruto and I every year since becoming teammates. And while I am flattered by the gesture, I can only accept the gift with a smile and a thank you before swiftly tossing them out.

Despite her good intentions, she has had quite the history of poisoning me and Naruto with her generosity. One year, I expressed my concerns, and what I received in return was a quick dose of lethal retribution for my honesty

“I cannot accept this. The last time you offered something like this I ended up ill for days.”

I was expecting some kind of rage to come from Sakura, but instead she seemed calm and collected as she slowly stepped towards me. I turned my head to see Naruto back away, his hands raised in surrender.

“Sakura-chan…”

“Naruto, I need your support on thi-”

My plea was cut off by a punch. In my attempt to dodge, a powerful strike landed onto my trachea, completely cutting off my ability to breathe. It was immensely painful, my hands clutching my neck with strained wheezing breaths and dry coughs. Sakura swiftly yanked me by the collar to apply her healing hands to my throat.

“Geez, stop moving around so much and next time I won’t accidentally hit something vital.”

Naruto didn’t laugh for once, but he also never backed me up on my statement. Probably because he didn’t want to get punched. And despite Sakura’s numerous apologies over the incident,I’ve humbly accepted the gift with a thank you to avoid a repeat.

I don’t fear for my life every Valentine’s day, however. Ino had given me a much different gift for three years now. She had even been kind enough to ask me what I preferred.

“I do this for my boys every year.”

I remember that she didn’t meet my eyes when she said that.

“Shikamaru is a weirdo who likes white chocolate,and while Choji would eat anything I gave him, he prefers his chocolate with nuts…”

She trailed off, perhaps realizing the awkwardness of the situation. I know for certain I hardly had anything to say to respond to that.

“But I wanted to know what you like…”

I responded in the only way I knew how at the time, with utter honesty

“I don’t like the taste of chocolate. It’s too sweet for me.”

I was too used to the bland and flavorless meals and food pills to have a sense of taste like anyone else of the group. Naruto has set out to “broaden my flavor horizons” by taking me out to various eating establishments around the village with the rest of the guys. I was delightfully surprised how little ramen had fit into his plans, but I know that the others probably have some say in where we go. I have yet to have a bad experience with these outings, but I still prefer tofu above all else and tend to stray away from sweets.

But my statement never would deter Ino.

“There is such a thing as bittersweet chocolate…”

She said this more to herself, but determination set into her eyes as I could now clearly see the fire in them

You’d be willing to try that if I gave it to you, right?”

At the time, it seemed like she had disregarded what I said, but soon after, I realized that she was actually trying to include me in the tradition. I had no other choice but to accept this condition.

And nearly 3 years later I still look forward to her figuratively “sweet” gesture. Looking back on it reminds me that she can be pretty cute when she’s embarrassed like that. But I think it’s the sheer force of her will that makes her truly beautiful…

I don’t know if I’m using those descriptors well, but I have decided to use them in the manner I did.

Upon more thought and observation, I’ve concluded that I am able to find points of attraction in women, or at least in Ino I can.

When I look into her bright eyes, all I am reminded of is how they were the only things I could focus on when I drew her. Or how her immense kindness had shone through them when she saved my life. Not to mention the sheer determination that flows through her when up against a daunting task. I guess that’s in her blood as an interrogator, but it seems like it is all hers to take control of.

The same could be said about her smile.

I’ve analyzed many smiles over the past few years, tirelessly trying to find what gives them life and meaning so I could someday replicate them, but all I can muster is a poor imitation. In Ino’s smile, I can see so much emotion emanating from it, outlined by cherry red lips. And I like that.

I like that quite a bit, actually.

I should probably stop thinking about this while I’m on a mission. My team is already trying to get my attention about a new lead.

I guess now I have something to look forward to when I get home.

Bittersweet chocolate coming from a beautiful girl.

_________________________________________________________

God I'm getting really sappy with my writing. Newlyweds was full of it, but now that energy is seeping into this fic. It might not be a bad thing though.

I also found enjoyment in writing Sai getting throat punched

I mentioned work kicking my ass, but next week I will be away visiting my sister out of state. I am kind of worried about the second wave of Rona slamming the country, but I gotta be as careful as I can while traveling. I hope to get some writing done while I'm away.

Anyway, comments and critiques are always appreciated. See you next time!

-Saikage

#saiino #sai yamanaka #Ino Yamanaka #Sai Journal #si fanfic

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peace-coast-island · 3 years

Text

Diary of a Junebug

A lesson in knowing your limits

Gyroid hunting, magic spells, mountain climbing, hanging with friends - all the makings of a fun campsite event! But as with all events, there's also the stress of getting things done in time.

Let's say that what happened earlier today served as a reminder to us that sometimes life gets too stressful and that there will be times where we don't have everything under control. That's not to say that this gyroid adventure hasn't been fun, but on top of all the other stuff that's been going on, it's hard to enjoy yourself when your mind is elsewhere.

Since opening the camp, I have developed a love/hate relationship with the holidays. And with this being a holiday event, we're in a bigger time crunch if we want to get everything set for Toy Day. There's also the fact that Daisy Jane and I are going back home to Rosevine for Emmaline and Minnie's wedding right after the festivities so that puts even more pressure on ourselves to finish things fast.

Joining us for our toy gyroid escapades are Almie, Pippa, and a new friend - Mariposa Silva! Her name means butterfly - isn't that pretty! Almie and Pippa talked about her a lot last time and I'm glad to finally meet her! The three are staying with us until Toy Day, which is in a couple days, so Daisy Jane and I will be leaving with them for home.

I can see why Pippa's all starry eyed over Mariposa and after what happened today, I think the two of them being friends is the best thing to ever happen to her in light of everything she's been through this year. Almie's been a good big brother to her but Pippa really needs someone who can understand her and Mariposa's the kind of friend who fits right in.

So Mariposa is a newcomer who's been living with Rosevine's notorious troublemaker witch Luna as her apprentice. Luna may act all tough but we all know she has a soft spot for us kids like Almie and Emmaline. Pippa's been training with Luna too as witchcraft and wizardry kinda overlap in some areas. I don't know what surprises me more - Luna taking in a teenage girl she randomly bumped into (literally) with no questions and teaching her magic or Luna agreeing to help Pippa (a wizard of all beings - in short, bad association with wizards) with her magic as well as teaching some witchcraft as well. Then again, for the latter, Luna and Almie are partners in crime so it makes sense that she has a soft spot for Pippa as well.

What makes Mariposa unique is that she's able to conjure magic despite not being magical herself, which takes a lot of work. It's not an easy feat for us ordinary people - believe me, I've tried (and tried)! Maybe there's hope for me but at this point I shouldn't get my hopes up too high. Because of life circumstances she has to bear since birth (she really has a way with words), Mariposa has mastered the art of improvisation.

Since she can't summon magic naturally like Luna and Pippa, Mariposa developed her own way of conjuring glyphs and such. So she has to do a little bit of extra work to cast a spell, which can complicate things a bit. There's a lot of things that can slow Mariposa down, however there's two that can't. First is the conjuring of spells - she's resourceful, creative, and super imaginative - when you can't make magic the traditional way, you gotta get crafty. Second is her right arm - or lack of.

In short, Mariposa was born with a bunch of health problems, a nonexistent right arm is one of them. At this point it's all just "blah, blah, blah" to her. She's spent sixteen years with one arm - her entire life - so whatever pitying thing someone wants to say to her, she's heard it all. Sure it might complicate conjuring magic in some situations but she just rolls with it. That's why she's so good at improvising, problem solving, and thinking way outside the box - something she believes is the universe's way of compensating for what she's been given.

For the past few days we've been hiking around the camp looking for gyroids. Mariposa and Pippa showed off some cool spells they learned from Luna while Almie told us about their latest shenanigans. Highlights include Pippa one-upping a frenemy of Luna's with a scalding hot burn, Almie offering to fix up Luna's car with some "embellishments" which may or may not have caused a wingbat uprising, and Mariposa accidentally awakening an ancient spirit while trying to impress Willow and Angie. And of course, we've been talking about the upcoming wedding.

Since I last saw Pippa, she's been getting her strength back. From being diagnosed with leukemia to suffering from complications as well as a near relapse, the past several months have been hard on her. Almie said that outside of family, Mariposa and Angie, and later Willow, were a great deal of help - especially Mariposa. It's so good to see Pippa out and about, almost like how she was before she got sick.

I guess sometimes we're so focused on trying to get things back to normal after getting thrown off that we don't always realize that in many cases, there's no going back. With Pippa keeping up with her studies, practicing her magic, and helping out with the wedding, it seems like everything's back to normal. Aside from having to keep up with meds and appointments and such, Pippa's well on her way to recovery.

Of course, looks can be deceiving. While Pippa is doing well, she still has to be careful not to wear herself out too much. The wedding's been a bit of an incentive for her to stay healthy, especially since she's a bridesmaid - so she's been keeping busy helping Soph with planning the reception and everything. Pippa's a hard worker but she has a bad habit of putting herself last.

The main reason why Almie wanted to come back to the camp was to give Pippa a chance to relax. He's been protective of Pippa since her hospitalization due to other people's carelessness regarding her health. So he wasn't too happy when Pippa admitted to him a couple days ago that she slipped up by missing her meds a couple times over the past few weeks. He said she'd tell him if something was wrong but seeing that she's been trying to keep on schedule for the most part, she should be okay.

While the past couple days were fun, it was clear that the cracks were starting to show. A combined mess of stress from personal life stuff, holidays, the gyroid event, and the upcoming wedding hit us all at once. My mind was elsewhere, worrying about getting stuff done - it can be draining.

Mariposa was the one who helped us refocus by sitting Pippa down and setting some hard truths for her. Almie was right to be concerned about Pippa overworking herself. I get that she's been feeling stuck in a rut so anything to break her out of that monotony is a welcome change. It's good to try to get back on track but you can't force it. From the way she was jumping up and down and climbing all over the place, you'd think we were being timed on finding gyroids.

Exhaustion has a way of wearing you down, physical and mental. If we had health bars hanging over our heads, Pippa's would be almost depleted. And if I'm being honest, mine's probably in the red zone too. Almie and Daisy Jane are likely in red too while Mariposa's probably in yellow. To be honest, I think everyone in the camp's either a red or yellow - it's just one of these days.

So Pippa overestimated herself and eventually reached a point where she couldn't just get back up and act like everything's fine. As in, she fell off a tree, landing hard on her back and was unable to move for a few seconds, scaring the hell out of everyone. Thankfully she doesn't have a concussion or broken bones but she'll be really sore and bruised tomorrow. By then I figured that we collected enough gyroids for the day so we headed back to the camp despite Pippa's protests.

Almie's usually a pretty chill guy so seeing him go off on Pippa was... let's just say I'm glad we all cleared out when they both started raising their voices. When things started getting out of hand, Mariposa decided to step in for a bit. What she said to Pippa had me thinking about accepting your limits.

Basically what Mariposa's saying is that we can't measure our worth by our productivity. If anyone knows how Pippa feels about stagnating due to circumstances out of control, it's Mariposa.

She got it through to Pippa that it's okay to fall short of expectations. I get that it's frustrating when you try to set goals for yourself, only to fail - but you just gotta accept that sometimes things don't work out and it's not your fault. I know that Pippa can be hard on herself, especially since this year has been turned upside down for her.

Mariposa also brought up a good point about the whole don't let your disabilities and illnesses stop you from being accomplished. It's one of those things that's supposed to be encouraging but does more harm than good. Because there will be days when your disabilities will stop you from achieving what you want. There will be times when you're forced to put your life on hold while the world is unsympathetic to your battles. You have to learn how to accept that it's okay to step back and accept that there are things beyond your capability - and that you shouldn't be shamed for that.

In other words, it's important to know your limits. Wise words from the witch in training, something we all need to be reminded of.

Once it seemed like Mariposa's words got through to Pippa, we stepped aside so the siblings can have a moment alone. To keep ourselves busy, I took Mariposa to the Marketplace to craft Toy Day stuff with Reese, Cyrus, and Jingle, which she had a blast doing. After making a bunch of toys we headed to the cabin and put together gift boxes.

It was nice getting to know Mariposa on a one on one basis during that time. Almie and Pippa weren't exaggerating with her wild, creative, and daring imagination. Who knew that there could be so many ways to wrap gift boxes? We got to talking about a lot of stuff, like how she's enjoying staying with Luna, Skully, and Owly, her magic training, Willow and Angie - she's only been in town for a short time and it feels like she's been part of the Rosevine gang since forever!

Also, she has met Emmaline and Minnie so she's definitely on the guest list. Actually she's coming as Luna's plus one since she met the couple after the list was finalized. Though knowing how Emmaline makes friends like bees to honey, Soph made extra sure to accommodate for a growing guest list - which I'm pretty sure has doubled since the invitations went out!

Once we finished with the gift boxes, we headed back to the campsite. Pippa and Almie finally worked things out and were back to their old, playful, bickering ways. They surprised us with desserts - Toy Day themed cookies and mochi! After having a busy couple days hunting gyroids, we decided to take it easy with a cozy bonfire dinner.

Nothing like freshly baked cookies and mulled cider to unwind after a stressful week!

#animal crossing #animal crossing pocket camp #Diary of a Junebug #headcanon ramble

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splat-dragon · 4 years

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Your hands upon A deadman's gun, and you're Lookin' down the sights

“No matter what happens,” John said, cupping his hands and boosting Abigail up into the saddle behind Jack, “you gotta keep riding and don’t look back.” He closed his eyes, willing his voice to be steady. “And don’t be worrying about me, you hear?”

“Listen to me. When the time comes, you gotta run and don’t look back. This is over.”

Unbidden, Arthur’s voice echoed in his ear. That was what the man had said to him, wasn’t it? And he found himself, suddenly, knowing how he must have felt. Watching as those he loved rode away, knowing that he would never see them again, and that he was walking to his own grave.

He had tried, tried to not have let Arthur die in vain. His brother had died so that John and his family might live in peace, and so John had done all he could to keep from following in his footsteps. And yet, now, as he moved to peer between the barn doors, he found himself putting his feet in prints that weren’t his own. Hadn’t been his own, he realized, in quite a long time. How long had it been, he wondered as he looked at the lawmen, since he started to repeat history?

He had been a fool to think he’d be left in peace. They had used him, made him kill what was left of the Van Der Linde Gang. Javier—the man had been hanged, and he was sorry for it. They had been good friends, once. Bill—he had killed him himself, and felt no great sorrow. He had never been a great man, or even a good one, and the world was better off without him. And Dutch—dead by his own hand, jumping off a cliff. Why?

He thought, perhaps, that somewhere inside of Dutch Van Der Linde was Dutch. The man that had taken him in, raised him, given him a home. Had called him Son, taught him to read and write although he would have made a perfectly good soldier while unable to do either. Despite what the man had done, John liked to think that there had been good in him, once. Before Micah had joined the Gang, before Dutch had fallen apart. There was no way Dutch could have pretended, could have acted in the way he cared for them. No way he could have faked the worry in the way he had sat by his bedside when he was down with a fever; the terror on his face when Art had collapsed after being shot when they were young and stupid. Perhaps, he thought—hoped?, the Dutch that was buried deep inside had not wanted to make his Son go through the pain of turning a gun on him.

John was glad that it was only those three he had been sent after. He would never have been able to find it in himself to kill Pearson—running his store in Rhodes—or Tilly, or Sadie, Mary-Beth or Charles. None of them had drawn attention to themselves, he supposed, as Bill or Javier or Dutch had. Well, Sadie had, but it would be nigh impossible to track her down in South America, the same with Charles in Canada.

And so the only known living member of the Van Der Linde Gang was John Marston. The man who had spent the last couple of months robbing and slaughtering his way across the states and down through Mexico.

John hoped they would get rid of his body after they killed him. He doubted they would have the decency to, he was little more than a dog to be put down. But he didn’t want to put Jack or Abigail through the trauma of having to find him, or bury him for that matter. Let him be gone, nothing more than bloodstained dirt and spent bullets to mark his last stand.

John looked down at his gun, checking the chamber. He had six bullets, and he intended to make every one of them count. There would be no changing his fate; perhaps if he had more bullets, or a gun with a larger magazine he might have been able to steal a few more months, a few more years. But he intended on going down fighting.

Ross wouldn’t care, of course. He was another Colm, a man who cared more about numbers than anything. Every man that John shot—that had been shot over the last half hour—would be replaced by the next day, if not sooner. The paperwork might inconvenience Ross, but he would feel no great sorrow over his men’s passing. John would never understand leaders like that, how they could send men to die without even caring.

For all of his faults, Dutch had cared. When they were ill, any of them, even those who had been with the Gang for a short time, he would stay with them. Make sure they had what they needed, made sure they were grounded if they were lost to fever dreams. If they needed to, they could go to him for anything. A worry, a fear, even if they just needed someone to sit with after spending a week hunting alone, he would be there. He knew everything about them—who they had been before, their hopes, their fears, their dreams. Everything, down to their favorite foods (he would never admit it, but John and Arthur always found it suspicious that Pearson would make their favorites around the holidays) and their favorite colors (every year, everyone got a handkerchief in that color for Christmas—the box was unsigned, but they knew). When Gang members died, Dutch himself helped to engrave their headstones.

And yet these men were sending people to their deaths without knowing their names.

The lantern's light caught on the barrel of the gun, and he couldn’t help but to grin. It was a pistol that Arthur had given him when he sent him off. He rolled it over in his palm, looking at the carefully etched carving of a stag on the grip. Arthur had taken it off the corpse of an old gunslinger, and it was a fitting gun for his end. The weapon had a blood-soaked past—Arthur had killed the man who wielded it, and that man had killed a great many of his opponents. What was six more lives to the gun?

Even now, Arthur was protecting him. Twelve years gone, and he still found himself beneath the man’s wing. They had had their fair share of differences, had spent the better part of the last few years of their lives at each other's throats, but in the end Arthur was, and always would be, his big brother. The kind who would do anything to keep his hare-brained fool of a younger brother from being killed, not allowing even death itself stop him.

He felt like a damned fool.

He should never have let his guard down. It had been twelve years since he had run with the Gang, but he had only started keeping his head down four years ago. And even then, he had still gone by John Marston, the well-known name of a wanted gunslinger nine times out of ten, instead of Jim Milton, a pseudonym he had used for years. Hell, he had even bought Beecher's Hope in his real name!

Shit, Beecher's Hope. What had he been thinking? Right next to Blackwater of all places! It had been years, sure, but people don't forget! His Bounty Poster had been hung up there for years, for Christ's sake! Sure, Abigail had wanted the place. But she hadn't even seen a picture, he could have bought a farm, any farm, and she would have been happy. He should have thought for once in his life, taken them all someplace far away. Moved up to Canada, like Charles, or followed Sadie to South America.

As John cracked the door to the barn open, peering out for only a moment to count how many Pinkertons waited for him outside, a figure crossed the threshold that, only moments before, his family had ridden across. Hay didn't give beneath their boots, didn't crunch to betray their presence. The sun nearly shone through them, making them glow in an ethereal way.

They approached John, and yet he remained unaware of their presence. If he were to turn around, however, he would have come face to face with Arthur Morgan.

The man looked hale, and whole, and healthy, as though he had never grown sick, the Gang never splintered. As though he weren't, at that moment, little more than dust six feet under a long rotted headstone. His blue eyes were mournful, lips upturned in a morose, yet somehow proud smile. His blond hair was silhouetted by the sun, angelic in a way that didn't fit someone who had lived as he had.

He had tried, in the end, he had. Arthur had been desperate to use what time he had left to give John and his family—Arthur's family—a chance to live. Not to survive, but to truly live. And he was so proud of them: of Abigail, for standing by John’s side through it all, of Jack, for being such a smart kid, having such high aspirations. The kid would make a fantastic lawyer someday, an incredible author; he had come so far. Of John, for going straight despite how hard it had been, for finally stepping up and being a father to his boy, for being a loving husband to Abigail, for never raising his gun against another man except in self-defense, until his hand had been forced.

John shivered, and closed the door. Anxiety knotted, low in his stomach, and despite himself he contemplated, just for a moment, running. Slipping out the open barn door and bolting for the fence line, relying on the barn to obscure him from the Pinkerton's sight until he was in the tall golden grass, able to steal a horse and make his escape.

The knot in his stomach released, suddenly, and he was filled with warmth, a sudden courage. He could never do that, had only contemplated doing so for a heartbeat. Even if he did manage to escape, he would spend the rest of his life on the run. The Pinkertons wouldn't allow him to live, would hunt him down as a pack of hounds relentlessly harry a stag. He would never be able to return to Jack and Abigail, would have to let them think he was dead, but even then they would still be in danger. The Pinkertons would forever be watching them, expecting him to return; even if Abigail remarried (and a part of him revolted at the thought) they would still watch her for the slim chance he showed up at their doorstep. If he faced them, allowed himself to be struck down, then Abigail and Jack would be safe. No longer would they have ties to the Van der Linde Gang, no longer would need to be under the Pinkertons' eye.

Arthur squeezed John's shoulder, trying to convey that he was there for him, even though he knew his brother couldn't feel his touch. He had always been there for him, following him as a stag after his death. Had been there when he struck down Bill, had collected The Bear and sent him on his way. Was there when John watched Javier hang; had waited for the Coyote to wake before sending him after The Bear. Had watched as Dutch spared him the pain of shooting the man he still considered a father, and had laid beside The Lion until it opened its eyes, and watched it greet The Fox. There were so many things he wished to do; he wished to grab his pistol that no longer hung at his hip, to tell John to wait at the other side of the barn door while he counted down, before they kicked it open like they had so long ago, striking down the entirety of the gathered Pinkertons with ease. But he couldn't; he was little more than air, now, able only to watch John's story unfold, and hope that, somehow, he knew he was there.

John rolled his shoulders back, straightened his spine. He checked his gun a final time, making certain that it would fire when he pressed the trigger. He had made a great many mistakes in his life, but he refused to make even one now. When Ross returned, he wanted him to have to say that a single man had taken down six of his men in the time it took them to strike him down.

With Arthur at his side, hand on his shoulder, John brought his hands up. The barn doors swung open, and the Pinkertons raised their guns.

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paperclipninja · 5 years

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Younger post-ep ramble 6x10

Ok, so this week’s episode, ‘It’s All About The Money, Honey’ delivered two of my season 6 wish list items: Kelsey and Charles working together as a supportive team and really getting to see their dynamic and relationship (I sometimes forget that they have a whole history BL - Before Liza) and Liza and Charles getting drunk and handsy at a bar. I’m not even kidding, when I wrote my season 6 wish list I word for word wrote that. So thank you for those Alison Brown, I am simple folk and I am happy. I would also like to show my appreciation for a number of throwbacks that were nice little nuggets from previous seasons.

I don’t know whether it was deliberate or not, but this ep seemed to really play very obvious set ups, where you could see what was coming and kind of hoped it’d play out differently because eek! but then nope. I have no idea if this approach has a name in screenwriting, it was sort of like set-up slapstick, for absolute lack of any better description (I’m sure ‘eek!’ is a technical term somewhere…). I am writing much of this on a plane on my way to holiday time (yay), which may mean nothing or something but I think my point is that I may miss a few bits and pieces here and there. There’s much to discuss so let’s do this!

After their declarations of love last week, this episode opens with Zane, a towel, his abs and Kelsey chatting about her trip to Chicago to ‘beg for money’, which nicely sets up a few themes for the ep. The issue of not being taken seriously as a woman in business is quickly flagged, along with the appropriate foreshadowing of future faux pas with Zane’s reassurance that Kelsey will get their attention being the only woman in the room (as he very unsubtly opens her shirt while staring at her chest) and Kelsey’s quip that ‘I guess I have more assets than you’ (boobs, she means her boobs ICYMI).

Liza and Charles are also saying their farewells, with Charles continuing to be supportive boyfriend no. 1 as he tells Liza to stop feeling guilty before reassuring her that everything is going to be fine, which we all know means it absolutely will not be. I’d like to officially welcome back the ‘miss you’ texts because a) they’re adorable and b) I do love a good text distraction as a giant poster of a woman and her ex goes past on the side of a bus just when that woman is floating along blissfully thinking of her current bf. As she passes another poster, it’s only a matter of time until Liza comes face to face with, well, her face. On the side of a building. Eek! indeed.

Naturally Liza’s first instinct is to call Kelsey, who is at the airport with Charles, to ask her to stop him from seeing the ad until she has the chance to speak to him. I feel like a phone call to Charles instead in that moment would’ve sorted it all pretty quickly, but then we would’ve missed out on his smile at the pic of Liza that comes up on Kelsey’s phone and the funniest moment of the episode, Kelsey’s sudden onset escalator phobia (‘I don’t like them, they’re weird’ LOL). The absolute highlight of this episode for me was seeing Kelsey and Charles working together. From the moment she’s filling him in on the investors they’re meeting with because she’s done her research to Charles saying that she can do the job without investors sticking their noses in (Bryce reference noted, what a dud) to Kelsey redirecting him to the elevator and him confused but obliging without question, their dynamic from the get go was fab and a lovely build on last week’s ep.

Meanwhile, luckily for Liza Lauren is at work, which is really lucky for all of us because Lauren now only referring to Diana as Diva and Diana clearly very ok with it is all I’ve ever wanted and my mind is filling in all the blanks about what the two of them would have been sitting there talking about while waiting to see if the people they sent to catch their food return (this line = yes Diva). I loved Lauren’s 'here?’ when Liza asks if she can talk to her (then 'so here, ok’ as she sits down lol) because it certainly feels as though Lauren is trying to keep the moment about Diana and the excitement of getting the appointment at Kleinfeld and is reluctant to let Liza make it all about her (which she of course does and Diana calls her out on it and I am here for it every day of the week).

Liza’s obsessive focus on the ad campaign and the need to speak to Charles about it really consumes her for the entire episode and blinds her to the needs of any other characters in way that seems uncharacteristic, but is also quite on brand considering some of the self-absorbed moments we’ve seen from her throughout the series. I guess it just seems uncharacteristic for season 6 Liza (or at least my understanding and construction of this character at this point), with a lie no longer in play and able to live her life honestly, as she’s been hoping to do since season one. I’m unsure whether this fixation and her consequent behaviour was meant to be funny or highlight the point that clearly there is more to the poster than it just being about clothes (we get it, there are FEELINGS), but I have to say that I really struggled with it considering Liza’s journey to where she is now and also this show’s usual tendency to be more nuanced.

Despite Liza’s persistence with Lauren re: Infinitely 21 at Kleinfeld (my concern that Lauren was harbouring some ill feeling towards Liza following the lie reveal was quashed when she revealed that she’d phoned Shelly to say Liza was uncomfortable with the ad. I mean, ‘I left a voicemail for you!’ is as ‘I’ve got your back’ as it comes), we were given a delightful moment between Diana and Liza as they reminisced about their first weddings and it’s conversations like this that I would like to see many more of. These two talking as women who have shared life experience is everything. It is then revealed that Infinitely 21’s campaign is going national which leads Liza to bail on the bride to frantically make a dash to Chicago, but my main takeaway from this scene is that Diana is going to have the wedding celebration she damn well deserves and quite frankly, this Trout/DeLuca “event of the year” cannot come fast enough.

Turns out Liza is not the only one getting on a big jet plane, as Claire fills Josh in on the amazing promotion to Senior Project Manager she’s been offered at Google, which will set Gemma up nicely. The only catch is, it’s in LA. Josh is understandably upset and as Claire assures him they’ll figure it out, he also spots the Infinitely 21 poster for the first time, because the only thing better than finding out your daughter might be moving across the country is being plastered all over the city in a pic with your ex who you’re still in love with. One of my favourite friendships on this show is that between Maggie and Josh, so I enjoyed seeing him go to Maggie to talk over the revelations of the morning (what a morning!). You’ve gotta love Maggie’s, ‘it’s not a sign’ to snap Josh out of the wallowing (and Josh’s ‘it’s literally a sign’, ha), her encouraging him to fight for Gemma and use the Infinitely 21 success to his advantage was a solid suggestion (though I am a little disappointed that Maggie didn’t ask if he’d consider moving to LA as one possible option to keep Gemma in his life or at least throw it out there on one of her famous Maggie ‘these are your options’ lists).

Josh meets with Shelly, who makes zero attempt to hide her thirst and it’s pretty darn hilarious and I actually love this entire interaction. Josh’s idea of franchising Inkburg, mentioned at the retreat in episode 6, remerges in the form of a collaboration with Infinitely 21 (Retail-tainment). Inkburg Midtown would offer a set of flash pieces exclusive to Infinitely 21, it is all very well pitched and I like seeing Josh in business mode because he’s clearly pretty decent at it after all these years, but not as much as Shelly likes it and him and everything which leads to her basically groping him in store (‘I’m a hugger’, yeah sure Shel). I have to believe that Josh’s move to establish the partnership with Infinitely 21 is so that he has clout to replicate the idea in LA and establish a national presence if he wants, rather than to try and keep Claire in New York by saying he can support her financially (unless we discover that is what Claire actually wants). Josh has been written as way too woke to do something to sabotage the career of the mother of his child, especially considering his experience with Liza and knowing what she went through. I, for one, will watch this space.

Another space I have watched closely is Kelsey’s, especially as she’s grappled with the role of publisher and really found her feet in the last couple of episodes. Her brilliant boss mode continued this week and seeing Kelsey so nervous before the pitch meeting, but still keeping her level head even after discovering Jacobs was the only shot at keeping the company alive, demonstrated again how much she has grown. From the moment Jeffrey and Ennis greet Kelsey and Charles, and by greet I mean look straight through Kelsey at Charles, you just know that this is going to be a tough gig for Kels. The men very obviously talk only to Charles, patronise Kelsey asking 'do you even know what those [precious metals] are?’, ugh it’s all so gross but also a bit too real and familiar. I love that Charles makes a point of saying 'we’ and emphasising that they are a team and it is obvious he is not comfortable that even when Kelsey is speaking they still look at and talk to him. Seeing Kelsey interject confidently and intelligently (although when she tells that room of suits to follow her on Insta it was a definite Eek! moment) was so satisfying, she read the room, commanded it pay attention and it did. Charles is proud and impressed and lets her hold the floor (as he should but it was great to see) and I could legit watch a whole series with these two as kick-ass business partners.

Just when I thought my new fave dynamic duo couldn’t have any more golden moments, Kelsey and Charles getting celebratory drinks happened. After last season saw a lot of tension between these two characters, seeing this relationship shift to one of mentor/mentee that is truly symbiotic (I have no doubt that Charles is learning as much from Kelsey as she is from him), where Kelsey still needs reassurance about how the business world works and Charles expresses his eternal gratitude for her amazing work…seriously, did I mention how much I love this? It is an actual dream.

Of course it is just after a commemorative glass clinking moment that Liza arrives, much to the elation of Charles (‘this day just keeps getting better and better’, ugh) and wariness of Kelsey, who immediately questions Liza’s real reason for being there. Upon hearing that the Infinitely 21 campaign (yes, we’re still talking about that) has gone national so Liza came to speak to Charles, Kelsey looks at her with the same ‘you have lost the plot’ look I had on my face, before telling her, ‘not now…we are celebrating’. Liza agrees as smitten, happy Charles looks over but this high school drama-esque carry on is really a bit much at this point. All I can say is thank goodness for the scene that followed, because it very quickly made me forget that I was getting annoyed.

First we get the revelation that Liza made out with Chrissie Hart on Shelter Island, which was also the last time we saw Charles and Liza drunk together but they were also not actually together, so it was very much that moment that sparked my need to see them out and drinking again some time. So yes, sharing great stories as they all sit around, check, they are all so carefree and jovial and then Charles and Liza just start making out in front of third wheel Kelsey and I cannot and this is 100% the quality content that my trashbag heart lives for. But it is Liza and Charles bidding Kelsey goodnight when she says she’s heading back to her room, and Charles saying, ‘bye’ before turning to Liza with a soft, ‘hi’ that completely undoes me. Seriously, project this entire scene on loop on my tombstone for I. am. deceased.

Drunk Kelsey back in her room responding to Zane’s message with a boob shot = I am DYING again but for different reasons. Kelsey Lorraine indeed, Lauren seeing it on Insta stories is every kind of second hand mortification and poor Kelsey waking up and realising what she’s done is yikes (but lbh it’s also a little bit hilarious, special thanks to the messages left on her story: A tale of two titties, Nippy longstockings and my personal fave, Did you mean to post this? It’s Liz from the gym). Kelsey’s waking nightmare is contrasted by Liza waking up to her fantasy of her, Charles, coffee and paper (you and me both sista), but my fantasy is quickly shattered when Liza spots that pesky ad on the back of the newspaper and grabs it from Charles in a totally normal way, which he interprets to be playful and suggestive, until he realises it is not.

Liza’s reveal makes it pretty obvious that she’s feeling guilty but that is quickly interrupted by the frantic knocking of Kelsey, the bearer of more bad news. Liza greeting her with ‘he’s seen it’, countered by Kelsey’s horrified, ‘Charles saw my boobs?’ before Liza corrects her with, ‘no, the Infinitely 21 ad’ is just so mind boggling, I mean, what person in their right mind opens the door to their best friend’s incessant knocking and thinks ‘they must be beside themselves to find out if I told Charles yet?’ I get it, it’s consuming Liza because it’s dredging up feelings so that the triangle can be revived after lying dormant (presumed dead) the past two seasons, but Charles having to hear about Kelsey’s mistake (though Liza’s ‘you look good’ is v. funny), as well as process that Liza didn’t come to Chicago to surprise him and Kelsey at all just makes me pretty sad.

Kelsey continues to be impressive as she owns her screw up and humbly explains herself to the room full of gross men. I do love how they’ve been cast, so much brown fabric. Charles’, 'it’s just too much of a good thing…I mean Kelsey’s internet presence’, is awks af but he’s really trying to throw his support behind her. Ennis Jacobs asking Kelsey if she’s considered distancing herself from the Millennial brand (dude, she IS the Millennial brand) and saying they are still interested in investing if Charles is publisher made me want to scream for her, Charles’ assertion that 'she is a woman who has made nothing but smart decisions since she’s been in a position to make decisions’ met with the biggest decision Kelsey has made yet; stepping down as publisher.

I do see it, the juxtaposition of how a man embroiled in a scandal (publisher having an affair with a 28 year old assistant) is treated vs. a woman whose potentially scandalous error was accidental, that the ultimate ramifications for him are minimal because look, he’s now back where he was not that long ago (though I also see the mirroring of Charles having to step down due to the scandal and now Kelsey having to do the same…so maybe they’re just the ultimate tag team?). I am going to wait to see how the rest of this season plays out (on all fronts), but if at seasons end, Charles is publisher again, and it’s all basically as it once was, then what was the point of any of this beyond making that statement? I mean, there are a number of ways it could go, so I am interested to see what this means. I am just really heartbroken for Kelsey because in that moment, she put the need of the company ahead of her own ambition and I am also heartbroken because she really had FINALLY come into her own as publisher and I was excited to see what she would do next.

After the horrendous meeting, Liza is waiting for Charles to finish the conversation about the ad and Charles suggests that she fly back to NY with Kelsey, because ‘she needs you now’ (seriously, if Charles is in your corner he is IN your corner). I love that Charles knows what Liza flying to Chicago really means and calls her out on it, that he is not bothered by her past or relationship with Josh, it’s the fact she felt she had to get on a plane that makes him wonder if there is something to be worried about. Call me boring but I have always appreciated that these two have actual proper adult conversations and don’t avoid issues and this was no exception.

Charles puts it to Liza that ‘everyone has a past, but in order to have a future, you move on from it’, to which she responds that ‘other people live in the past in order to have a future’. Yes, Liza had to live a younger life in order to build a new future for herself but now that she has re-established her career and her real age is no longer a secret, is that what she wants to keep doing? I do believe Liza realises she isn’t being fair to Charles but I think we all know that even if her pledge not to see Josh anymore was genuine at the time, it is not going to be upheld and was probably a bit of an over-promise. But I do appreciate that Liza really is choosing Charles in that moment.

It’s the escalator ride (which is weirdly relatable for some reason) once Kelsey and Liza are back in New York, but neither want to go home, that shows that even if Liza does want to move forward, she is still stuck between these two worlds. I have to say, Kelsey losing her job and being publicly humiliated somehow being on par with a 42 year old woman feeling sad that she can’t be friends with an ex because she’s confused about her feelings is ridiculous and I personally feel like the final moments of this ep should have been focused squarely on Kelsey. I do agree with Liza that Kelsey will get it back though, that was the correct response.

The painfully longing glances at the giant poster of her and Josh can be taken as a letting go of the past and moving forward (time will tell) but it also undoubtedly indicates that Liza’s days of once again oscillating between these two men are very much on the horizon which is, to be frank, really disappointing at this point in a series. My biggest issue is the fact that we keep being told that this show is not about the triangle, it’s about the women and the friendships yet it’s constantly being made about the triangle. In always pulling the focus to the triangle this show is making it about the men, which is the very thing it so brilliantly admonishes society for doing.

While I am absolutely reserving all judgement until I see how the rest of this season unfolds, I have to believe that if the triangle does make a comeback, it is being dredged up again to bring it to a head once and for all, so that we can all move on and focus on the many far more compelling aspects that make up this wonderful show.

#youngertv #younger tv #ramble #review #younger season 6 #6x01 #liza miller #kelsey peters #charles brooks #diana trout #liza x charles #team charles

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reesewestonarchive · 5 years

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EASTHALLOW | Masterpost | Project Page | Project Preview | ko-fi, if you like my work :p

tag list - ask to be added or removed || @forlornraven @infinitelyblankpage @writingmyassoff @theforgottencoolkid @indecentpause @moonlesbi4n @wordsbyagremlin @reining-in-the-fire-writing @chaos-reign @maximillianvalentine @kly-writes

The car trunk sounds too final to Elijah's ears as he closes it, the last of his bags tucked in haphazard amongst his books, music. Sean stands nearby, shifting his weight from foot to foot. He's followed Elijah around like a lost puppy all night, and now that Elijah's packed, seems at a loss.

"I'm sorry--"

Elijah holds up a hand, shakes his head. "Spare me the bullshit, all right? Just..." He looks around the parking lot, at the apartment he couldn't've afforded if it weren't for Sean's income, anywhere but at Sean. "You had plenty of chances to show you gave a shit about me."

A time in the past, Elijah doesn't doubt Sean did care; you don't spend this long with someone, six years of your life, without getting a little attached. Just... he has a shitty way of showing it, and Elijah's really not interested in hearing scripted apologies from a guy that's been cheating on him for the better part of a year.

"I'll be in touch for the rest of my things."

And that's that. Sean doesn't look upset; just... resigned. Like he's been waiting for this.

Fucker. Rage boils under his skin, and Elijah grips his keys in hand. Steps to the driver's door, wrenches it open, and, as Sean says, "Elijah--", his voice edged with desperation, slams the door behind him.

The drive home is a good fifteen hours, but Elijah straight shots it, running on iced coffee and espresso shots from gas stations. His bank account's barely prepared for the trip, and for the last stretch of a hundred miles he watches his gas gauge with anxiety gnawing at a pot in his stomach, but when Elijah sees the rusted EASTHALLOW, POPULATION: 203 sign swinging from it's pole off the road, tension ebbs from his every nerve.

Fog, thick and mystical, covers the entire town, and the chill to the air has him turning up his heat for the first time all trip. Trees have already shed their leaves for the season, and the place looks entirely too fucking barren. He thinks about the bustling city he just came from, the constant chatter and noise, but if he opened his window right now, he's certain the engine of his car would be the only sound for miles.

Peaceful. Fuck, Elijah didn't know he'd missed it this much. His chest feels tight, his throat dry, as he drives through the city towards his parent's home.

The farm hasn't changed, besides a fresh coat of off-white paint and a few new shrubs lining the wrap around porch. The roof needs work, some of the shutters flap in the wind, but it's home. Sturdy and stable and standing, and Elijah, suddenly exhausted, shuts his car off, rubs his hands against his face, and just... is.

Thoughts and memories of the last six years surface in Elijah's head. How many times did he call his parents to tell them he couldn't come home for the holidays? How many times did he put Sean before his family, and for what? For Sean to bring some twink home and throw it all away, proving everyone in Elijah's life right that Sean never was going to settle down.

He pounds his fist on the wheel, honking the horn in passing, and sighs when he sees his mother standing out on the porch, no hesitation.

She waves, tugs her robe tighter around her, and rushes out across the muddied grass to his car. She bounces on her heels while he unbuckles, and launches herself into his arms, her embrace tight and loving, once he stands.

The air crushed from his lungs makes him grunt, but he says nothing, just reaches around his mother's shoulders for a hug, resting his head on top of hers.

He'd missed her. So much. "Hi, Mama," he says.

Amanda's voice is tight when she says, "Don't 'Hi, Mama,' me, Elijah Andrew. You haven't been home in five years, and you show up out of the blue like this..." She pulls back. Her eyes water as she takes him in. "Oh, you're too thin. Have you even been eating? What's city life done to you?"

Elijah offers a tight smile. "Been busy. I'm sorry I haven't been home sooner."

With a smack to his arm, she says, "That's right. You're gonna make it up to me, too." Then, she peers around him, into the car, and raises an eyebrow. Elijah's heart speeds up in his chest. "And the boy?"

He knew he'd have to tell her when he got here, but... shit, he'd rather not. The longer he can avoid the pity, the better. "About that..."

But before he can continue, movement out of the corner of his eye catches his attention. He grips his mother's arm in hand and tugs her close, starts to say, "Someone's over there," because he doesn't recognize them--not his father, not one of the farmhands--when his mother gives a little wave to the figure limping around the side of the house.

"Josh," she says, calling to the figure, and Elijah's not sure if he feels too hot with rage or too cold with dread, "come say hello!"

"Mama," he says, under his breath as Josh makes his way across the yard, "you didn't tell me Josh was here."

Raising an eyebrow, Amanda says, "And you didn't tell me you were coming home. Don't play games with me. I'm your mother. I'll always win."

While the rest of the town stayed the same, Josh is nothing like Elijah remembers. He's changed his hair, a bright, platinum blond so unlike the black hair of his parents. His eyes are bruised, his face gaunt. His jacket looks like it went twelve rounds with a box cutter, and Josh is, inexplicably, taller. How is he taller?

Still, he steps forward, into Elijah's space, and rests a hand on Elijah's shoulder, grips him tight, and Elijah wants nothing more than to jerk out of his grasp and punch him.

A crow caws in the distance, and Josh offers a smile--not enough and too late and Elijah shakes under the weight, the expectation of it--and Josh says, "Welcome home, bro."

///

“Is it broken?” Josh asks, his voice thick and nasally, as Amanda pokes and prods at his nose. Blood oozes down the front of his shirt.

Behind them, Elijah opens the freezer, digs out a bag of peas, and rests it against his knuckles. Amanda scowls at him.

“What a nice fucking way to greet your brother,” Josh says. “Haven’t seen you in ten years. Least you could do is not punch me in the face.”

Still, Elijah says nothing. Flexes his fingers under the peas, shaking, and exhales with relief. Not broken. It’s been a while since he last decked someone. He definitely made some fucking mistakes. “Rich, coming from you.”

“Will you two stop it?”

Josh points Elijah’s way, then says, his voice taking on an amusing whine as he says, “He started it!”

Opening his mouth to retort, Elijah pauses as he hears the back screen door creak open. “Thought I heard yelling,” someone says, and—

Oh. Elijah drops his gaze to the floor, because—he’d meant to call his father. Text him, something. But the farther west he got, the more anxiety that pooled in his stomach at the idea of his father’s disappointed gaze.

Elijah’s not good with disappointment.

“Get into another fight with a bull, Josh?” his father asks; he still hasn’t noticed Elijah, leaning against the counter next to the fridge, shrinking in on himself. Amanda, at least, called. Elijah hasn’t spoken to his father since the day he left.

Josh scoffs. “Yeah fucking right,” and silence falls over the room. Elijah’s heart thumps in his throat, his ears, and he lifts his gaze, looks right into his father’s eyes.

“I’ll be damned,” Allan says, his voice soft as he shrugs his jacket off at the dining table. “Elijah."

His mouth opens on an apology, but Allan steps forward, with such intensity that Elijah'd back up, if he had anywhere to go. His tongue trips on words he should've said years ago, his fingers twitch, and he can see Josh and Amanda watching with wide eyes. Allan isn't scary, and there's no reason to be, but Elijah still shakes in his sneakers like he's bracing for impact.

But when Allan touches him, it's not with a fist, how Elijah had greeted his estranged brother, but with arms around his shoulders. Allan holds him tighter than Amanda had, and the bag of peas clatter to the floor as Elijah reaches up to grab at his father's overshirt.

Behind them, Josh mutters, "You've gotta be fucking kidding me. Dad welcomes him home with open arms?"

"You came home sick with withdrawal, Joshua," Amanda says, finally stepping back from her son. Quiet, Allan pulls away, wipes his eyes with the careful practice of a man who cries, and tries not to show it, and claps a hand on Elijah's shoulder before stepping back to the entry way to take his boots off.

He can't know, but Elijah's not convinced he doesn't know, somehow. Why he's here. Why he didn't call.

While Amanda and Josh argue, Elijah pocks the peas up and sets them back in the freezer, and heads upstairs.

His room sits at the end of the hall--or it did, when he left for the city. The floorboards creak under his feet, and the joints in his hand protest as he carries his bag, but he goes through, admiring the photographs on the wall as he goes. The year his soccer team made it to semi-finals. The year he and Josh were in boy scouts. Josh and his junior prom date.

They still looked identical, then, before Josh hit heroin hard, before he got his girlfriend pregnant and skipped town. Before he started bleaching his hair, before the piercings and the scars from tattoos and laser removal. Before rehab, and relapse.

The years have been kinder to Elijah that they've been to Josh. Elijah might've worked ten hour shifts on his feet four nights a week, but stress found ways to gain weight where being a druggie turned Josh into skin and bones.

He rubs his forehead. Things used to be so much fucking easier.

"Walk down memory lane?" Josh says, grinning, as he meets Elijah at the end of the hallway. A nice, purple bruise grows on the bridge of his nose. Pride swells in Elijah's chest, seeing his handiwork. Another punch might break it. Elijah's got the muscle memory for it fresh in his mind, now.

"Fuck off," Elijah says, his voice more tired than he'd intended. If luck sides with him, Allan will save grilling him for tomorrow morning, and Elijah can spend the night tossing and turning, anxious about it.

"You don't have to be so mean," Josh says.

Elijah pushes past him, into his bedroom, and...

It's different. Not entirely, but his once overly-large room has been crammed to one side, his twin bed sitting against one wall, his desk at the end of it. Across the room, under the window, there's another bed. Messy, clothes piled on it from the closet, and--

"No." Elijah's voice goes hard, edged with anger. He just wants to sleep, and if Josh is doing fuck all across the room, there's no way he'll get any rest. He'd rather sleep in his car. "No fucking way."

"Come on, bro," Josh says, but his eyes are twinkling. Bastard knows just how to get under Elijah's skin. "It'll be just like old times. We can stay up all night watching horror movies and eating junk food!"

Elijah rubs his free hand over his face. Contemplates actually sleeping in his car, just for a second, before his neck starts to ache. Sharing his childhood room with his twin--honestly. "I'll sleep on the couch."

"You wanna explain that to mom?"

"Mom already knows we hate each other," Elijah says, surprised to see the quick flinch that passes Josh's face. "Would she really be so surprised to hear I can't stand to look at you, much less sleep in the same room?"

A beat passes, and Elijah knows he should apologize, but Josh shrugs and backs into his room. "Fine, little brother," he says, and oh, fuck him. "Sleep well."

The lock clicks into place as he shuts the door, and Elijah means to make his way back downstairs when a chill runs down his arms, either side. A quick glance at the window shows it's open, but--

There's... something out there. Elijah squints down at it, opens his mouth and takes a deep breath. He means to call for his father, let him know one of the cattle got loose, when he looks closer, and--

It's not cattle. It's not--hell, Elijah doesn't know what it is. He blinks his eyes a few times, watching the black figure make its way across the yard, slow, slow step by slow step. It pauses, about halfway to the treeline, and peers around the yard, but Elijah ducks back into the shadows to watch, and it continues on its way in short, jerky, inhuman movements towards the trees. Twice the size of a human, hunched over, and Elijah can't make out features, not well, but...

What the fuck? He blinks, once, twice, three times. Closes his eyes tight and opens them and--oh.

It's gone. No trace of it. Elijah turns the crank on the window, presses his ear to the screen, but... not a sound. Just the wind rustling leaves across the ground.

A chill spreads across Elijah's back. He's exhausted. He's got seventeen hours of car on him, and ten hours of packing before then, interspersed with arguing with Sean, and..

"Shut the window, Elijah, what're you thinking?"

Amanda stands at the top of the stairs, her head cocked to the side. Elijah closes and locks the crank, clearing his throat.

"Sorry, just..." He makes a vague gesture. How does he even begin to explain what he saw? "Thought I saw one of the cows wandering the yard."

Scowling, Amanda starts to head back downstairs. "I told your father he needed to repair that fence. We'll go out and check on it, make sure. You just get some rest."

Elijah's arm shoots out, though, and grabs her wrist. She raises her eyebrows and says, "Elijah, what has gotten into you?"

"Sorry, Mama," he says, and turns back to the window. Still clear. "Just... my eyes playing tricks on me, is all."

"You sure you don't want Dad to check?"

Elijah shakes his head. No. Fuck no. Assuming, for a second, that thing was real, Elijah doesn't want his father anywhere near it.

His mother's gaze is piercing, right through his soul, and for the first time, Elijah's relief at being home turns sour. "No. Look, Mama, I'm sure it's the drive. I'm just tired, is all." He presses a quick kiss to the side of her head. Ice crawls down his neck, with his back to the window, but he can't do much about it. He says, "Josh has my room?"

"Oh, right. Sorry, sweetie. We turned the other into a craft room." She at least looks a little ashamed. "You're welcome to the air mattress."

It sounds pretty good, but the idea of a couch, ready to go, sounds even better. So much for sleeping in his car--he'd rather not awaken with nightmares of that... thing scraping at his window.

His car. That's what he should've done. Hit the panic button on his keys, scare the thing. Elijah could've really found out if he was just making shit up.

"Can I sleep on the couch?" He shrugs, tries not to crumple under his mother's gaze. "Just... prefer sleeping alone."

The moment Amanda finally rolls her eyes seems to come too slow, and Elijah exhales a shaky breath. "Fine. Don't come crying to me when Josh wakes you up at five in the morning to go running, though." Her expression softens, and she reaches out to brush her fingers against Elijah's cheek. "I'm so glad you're home."

He smiles, small and sad, and grabs her wrist in hand. "Me too, Mama."

"How long will you be staying?"

With a laugh, Elijah says, "How long will you have me?"

"You weren't laid off, were you?"

Ouch. It shouldn't hurt, but it does. "No, no, I just had to cash in on some PTO before year end." The lie burns his tongue, a sharp spark against his teeth. If Amanda catches him, she doesn't show it.

"Hm. Maybe through the holidays, then."

He nods. "Yeah, 'course."

She stands on her tiptoes to plant a kiss on the top of his head. "I missed you so much, Elijah. It's just not the same without you here." Her voice is sad, but when she pulls back, she's smiling. "Farmer's market in the morning. Eight thirty."

He grimaces. Knows he should agree, but what comes out of his mouth is, "Mom, I hate farmer's markets. Isn't there--"

"No buts about it, Elijah. You owe your mother how many years of day trips and quality time?" She turns on her heel. "Eight thirty. Good night."

His father's asleep in the front room, downstairs, the television blaring late night talk shows. A low rumble sounds from the chair, probably the massage function, and there are ice packs on Allan's shoulder. Still, he looks comfortable, so Elijah only turns down the television a few notches, drapes a blanket over his father's lap, and makes his way toward the family room.

The family room houses the biggest window in the house, too. Elijah makes up the couch with blankets from the storage trunk, one eye on the window, but all he can see are dog slobbers on the outside. No dog, either, no bed, no bowl.

The neighbor's then, or his father's insistence on no animals in the house still applies to man's best friend.

His joints crack as he crawls onto the couch and buries his head into the pillows. Exhaustion burrows into his bones and he sighs, pulling the blanket up around his shoulders. His clothes smell like the fried food he'd picked up on his trip home, like gasoline from when he'd spilled it, and Amanda had been kind enough not to mention it.

Twenty four hours ago, he was sleeping curled up under Sean's arm, stressed but happy, and look at him now. Homeless, unemployed.

Hell. If that thing out there wanted to eat him, Elijah'd welcome it with open arms.

#easthallow #my writing #excited vibrating #sorry mobile

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flightlogmcu · 5 years

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Oh, But It’s Cold Outside

Happy New Year! Here’s a ficlet about Tony being soft for his newest child, Jackson

Tony is a lot more observant than he’d like to be. Adding on that his brain moves 10 miles per millisecond and his ability to lose focus quickly, and he end’s up penning a new blueprint for the compound in an hour. So it wasn’t long before Tony figured out what was wrong with Jackson. The younger wasn’t physically ill, his past few missions with both SHIELD and Natasha went perfectly, and he has less promotions or recording sessions because it's close to the holiday season. Yet, the slight shift in his mood was noticeable to the Avenger. It raised a red flag to Natasha.

“He’s only had 3 random outbursts of noise today. Something’s not right.” She says the moment she flies into Tony’s workshop.

Tony, who was already skimming through his recent health scans, hummed at her remark, “I know. He’s had a steady sleep pattern, so it’s not like he’s tired.”

“Any significant events happened during this time? Might affect his mood.”

“Not really. You would think that since we’re gearing towards Christmas he might...huh.” Tony pauses at the thought.

“What?” Natasha asks.

Tony doesn’t respond; instead he’s pulling up interviews and Vlives from the past two years and his brain starts concluding before he’s even blinked.

“I’ll talk to him.” Tony swivels his chair to face Natasha, “He’ll be back to 10 random outbursts in about 48 hours.”

“Let’s hope so.”

Tony calls Jackson moments later asking if he’d like to go on a field op; simple reconnaissance that should only last half a day. Jackson agrees, teleports into the workshop (he barely chuckles at the prospect of scaring Tony), and the two are on a quinjet. Tony watches as the idol mindlessly scrolls through his phone or gazes out the window forlornly throughout the entire plane ride. The older tries to start up conversation, but Jackson’s answers are short and distracted. They reach their destination in a little over 3 hours, as Tony pops open the back door and strolls out the quinjet. Jackson walks with more purpose; shoulders straightened and somewhat tense, his face pinched with focus.

“So what’s the-wait this is a beach house.” Jackson is immediately confronted by a thin layer of grass that transforms into sand a few meters out. The sunlight hits the sea as it glistens to the right of him and a boxy compact house nestled to the left. The floral white wrap around porch welcomes him as well as the calm chestnut and blue colors that cover the house.

“Yup.” Tony shoves his hands in his pockets.

Jackson turns to him in confusion, “So we’re spying on this-”

“It’s mine. And I fibbed a bit. We’re gonna do some defense training here.”

Jackson blinked, “And we’re not doing this at the compound because,”

“Gotta get you used to different places. You never know, extremists could attack while you’re sipping mimosas. C’mon, let’s get going.” Tony pats Jackson’s back.

The Avenger can still spot the uncertainty on the younger’s face, but Jackson complies anyway. Hours after, it's reflex and response practice; Tony sending repulsor blasts at record speed while Jackson does his best to deflect or dodge the attacks. When Tony slips a joke in about Jackson’s height in one of his attacks, Jackson gapes at the elder and starts his own counter attacks with magic.

“You’re one to talk about height Mister ‘I wear 5 inch platforms to make me look tall’.” Jackson shoots back with a smile on his face.

The whole training session eventually ends with Jackson being flung into the water after underestimating a shot. The idol pops his head up from the sea with a wicked grin on his face. Tony watches as Jackson wobbles up from the water and trots over to the front porch before laying down.

Tony chuckles, “Tapping out already superstar?”

“Hey, this is my day off. My body is set to relax.” Jackson points at him in defense.

“Uh huh.” Tony eases down next Jackson, “That means still means you're woefully unprepared.”

Jackson shrugs it off with a smile.

The two rest like that for a bit; watching the waves in a comfortable silence. Tony sneaks a peek at the younger. Jackson's shoulders are less tense than before. Yet Tony can see the smallest glimmer of stress in his eyes.

“Why did you bring me here Tony?” Jackson speaks up after a while, “For real this time.”

Tony is more observant than he'd like to be.

So is Jackson.

“How cold does it get in Hong Kong?” Tony asks.

Jackson scoffs, “Cold by our standards is about 16 degrees Celsius. For the longest time I thought that was freezing.”

“And then you moved to Korea and felt real cold.”

“Yup.” Jackson says popping the ‘'p’ sound.

“How well do you manage that?”

“I wear a lot of layers. Or cling to the nearest member.”

“You do that on a regular.” Tony smirked at the glare Jackson sent his way.

“It's not all the time. And plus I'm used to the cold now.”

“Mm. And what about mentally?”

Jackson frowns, “What do you mean?”

“When it gets cold...do you feel off? Just in you're head I mean.”

Jackson opens and closes his mouth a few times. But his face scrunches into a deep frown when he can't find the words.

“It's like...it's like I can't function when it gets colder.” Jackson says slowly, “I mean I can but not as well. I always thought it was homesickness though. Or that I was just craving touch or whatever.”

“It can go hand in hand with that. But this the part where I tell you that that feeling isn't rare, a lot of people manage it, and that you'll survive. Maybe. I don't know, I'm not a doctor.”

“Says the man with a doctorate.” Jackson teases.

“Its 3 doctorates and you know that.” Tony points accusingly.

Jackson lets out a high pitched laugh and it brings a smile too big to fit on Tony's face.

“In all seriousness, the best way to kinda combat that is to visit warmer climates.”

“Hence the beach.”

Tony nods.

Jackson nods back in understanding. The sky is showing early signs of sunset with a gold and pink hue. Jackson makes an exaggerated effort to stretch out. He ends up rolling on his stomach; face planted in the wood.

“Thank you.” Jackson's voice comes out muffled.

Tony pats Jackson's shoulder, “No problem.”

Tony's a lot more observant than he'd like to be.

Sometimes it works in his favor.

#flight log: mcu #flmcu #tony stark #jackson wang #got7 #avengers #marvel #kpop #natasha romanoff #crossover fanfic #ao3 #fanfic #GOT7 fanfiction

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fuckin-circles · 6 years

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Control p.t 5

A soft one. Chase’s time at the hospital with Jack.. and what’s that? I lost control of Chase and the nurse from PART ONE and now they are flirting?? CHASE IS HAPPY!?... not if I can help it => --__--__--__--__--__--__--__--__--__--__--__--__--__--

Chase had rushed out as fast as he could after Henrik told him that Jack was in a coma. Henrik had been too rattled on the phone to give Chase details on what happened, but that didn't matter. He just knew he just had to get there. It wasn't until he was on the road that the situation really sank in. White knuckles gripping the steering wheel, Chase tried to keep his body from shaking. He tried to focus on the road through the tears forming in his eyes as his mind played a game of guilt tripping with him.

He had been too tied up in his new life as a divorced father to reach out to either of his oldest friends in months. Time just flew by faster than he realized. He was kept thoroughly distracted between working a "regular" job on the weekdays to make up for the lack of revenue from his channel, spending the weekends with his kids, and continuing to follow his passions by to make videos in his spare time. But, now that Jack was in trouble, Chase felt the weight of his selfishness.

It was almost dawn when Chase pulled into a parking spot outside the hospital. He opened his car door and fumbled to take his phone out of his pocket to text Henrik that he had arrived. Locking his car behind him, Chase starting quickly walking to the front entrance of the hospital. As he got closer he could see Henrik coming out to meet him, and Chase began sprinting towards him. The doctor was in his blue scrubs and white coat, looking just as stressed as he did on the phone.

"Doc," Chase called out as he got in arms reach of Henrik, throwing his arms around his friend's shoulders in a tight hug. Henrik was hesitant to embrace him back, but Chase could feel Henrik trembling when he slowly wrapped his arms around his waist. A lump started to grow in Chase's throat as he realized just how hopeless and shaken up Henrik must have been feeling. Pulling back from their embrace, Chase tried to comfort his friend by rubbing Henrik's shoulder. "What happened? Is he ok?"

" Y-yes, Jack is stable now. But-" Henrik paused with a painful look as he thought back to what happened. "It- He came to me some time ago talking about feeling ill. Then showed here up a few days ago. He just kept getting worse and worse. Everything I did just made things worse!" His thick German accent was made worse by the stress.

Henrik stopped and looked into Chase's eyes with a level of distress that worried Chase. His eyes were red and puffy, and Chase knew Henrik had been torn up inside from everything. "But he wasn't himself!" Chase felt himself shift away a bit as Henrik's tone changed. His brows frowned as he didn't understand what Henrik meant by that.

"What-What are you talking about?"

"It was Anti!" The conviction in Henrik's voice startled Chase. He didn't have a clue what his friend was talking about, and his expression only grew more concerned as Henrik went on. "He-He must have messed with our systems, making me give Jack treatments to make him worse. He tried to get me to kill Jack for him!... And- And I almost did. Dear God, I almost killed him..." Henrik crossed one of his arms over his chest and covered his mouth with the other, the tears in the corners of his eyes started to roll down his cheek.

The fear in Henrik's eyes was so real that Chase could feel it too, but he was scared for a different reason. Obviously, whatever happened effected Henrik more than Chase understood. He didn't believe the story about 'Anti', and he had a good idea about what happened. Misdiagnoses happen all the time.

"Doc, It's ok. Mistakes...they happen."

"It wasn't a mistake!" Henrik snapped at Chase, looking back at him with crazed desperation to be understood. "He came back to try and get me to kill him! He must have thought it 'funny' if I killed him this time... There was nothing else I could do. I had to stop him from hurting Jack again. I had to stop him, but I don't know how to get him out!"

"Wait," Chase shook his head as tried to understand what Henrik was saying. His stomach twisted at the thought of Henrik doing something to hurt Jack. "So.. you put him in a coma?" Chase stressed his words carefully, looking at Henrik with a hope that he just misunderstood what the doctor had said.

"What else was I supposed to do? Anti, he was-"

"'Anti' isn't real!" Chase shouted trying to talk some sense into him, but his blood was starting to churn at the thought of Henrik almost killing their friend over some crazy delusion. "You misdiagnosed him, Henrik! That shit happens all the fucking time. Now, go wake him up!" Henrik's eyes focused in on Chase slowly. He stood up taller ready to defend himself, calmer than he had just been.

"He is real, but you wouldn't know, would you? You've been off living your new life, trying to win back that cheating bitch. You haven't even tried calling in months." His cold words stung Chase's heart. Chase took a slow breath to calm himself, but there was even a sly smirk on Herik's lips like knew what he has said hurt Chase. Taking a step towards the hospital doors, Chase's glare deepened into Henrik. He knew the doctor was upset over what had happened, but it didn't excuse trying to hurt a friend.

"At least I didn't try to kill him." He made sure in intent to hurt Henrik back was clear before he sharply turned and entered the hospital, leaving Henrik alone outside.

A few days later, the board of directors forced Henrik into a mandatory vacation, after word of his delusions spread. A mental holiday to clear his head after nearly killing a close friend seemed to break his mind. Jack's new doctors tried their best to wake him up, and Chase spent every day by Jack's side. He had called into work to explain what had happened, and they were understanding. Nothing really seemed to get better with Jack though. For reasons that the doctors didn't understand, Jack wasn't waking up.

Through it all, Chase did feel lucky enough to make good conversation with some of the staff over the time he was there, but felt blessed when the sweet nurse that once watched over him stopped by. He had learned her name, Kassidy, and she even helped him feel less awkward for not remembering it from before. She wasn't ever scheduled as Jack's nurse, yet she always made the effort to stop in to check how they both were doing. While she would check on Jack, they would talk about how things had been going since Chase had left the hospital. She even offered to buy him lunch down in the cafe every now-and-then when Chase forgot to go eat. She genuinely cared and Chase could sense it.

"You know, if you give me your number I can call you when he wakes up?" Kassidy had said with a shy smile during one of their 'lunch dates'. Chase felt the blood lightly flushing his cheeks. It had been almost a week since he started staying at the hospital, and talking during her breaks were some of the best moments. She was just trying to be nice though.

"Isn't that, like...against the rules or something?"

"Are you going to snitch on me?" Her smile was warm and flirtatious as she leaned in from across the table, slipping her phone over to him. Chase's heart fluttered as he realized she was being more than just nice, and suddenly their 'lunch dates' felt more like date dates. No one had really shown an interest in him since the divorce, but he also hadn't felt interested in anyone since then either.

Chase was flustered at the feelings rushing through him, but he played it off ...well? With a short laugh he grabbed the phone and smile he said the first thing that came to mind.

"Snitches get stitches?" It was silent for a moment and he instantly cringed at himself. Kassidy tried to hold it in but found herself busting with laughter. Chase looked up at her with an embarrassed smile as she pressed her palm to her face.

"Chase." She cooed, playfully distraught. Her kind laughter had him chuckling too. When she looked up at him, Chase could see how flushed her cheeks were and it made him smile wider. His heart was beating in his chest as he put his contact information in and handed the phone back.

With her elbows on the table, she bit her tongue and messed with her phone for a minute. When she was finished she set it down and smiled at him, tapping her finger as she waited.

"What did you do?" She thinned her lips with an innocent shrug and smile. Chase was only half surprised when his phone went off. Pulling it out he could see he had received a picture file from a number without a name, obviously her. Opening it he immediately started laughing again as the image of Kassidy with her middle finger up in fame loaded in.

"Oh, I love it!" Chase said turning his screen off and setting his phone down again to watch her. Even with a messy bun, Kassidy was a very attractive woman. He loved the way her hazel green eyes sparkled when she smiled, but most of all he was falling for her heart. She loved listening to his stories about his kids, and he could tell she meant it when she said noting having any hurt her.

"You can send me a good contact picture later if you want." Kassidy looked so proud of herself as she started to pick up her stuff. "I gotta get back to work though." Chase nodded and wished her a good shift.

As she left he flipped his phone back over, filled with a warm heart as he saved her contact and photo. Picking at the rest of his fries, Chase figured he'd take her advice and head out after saying bye to Jack. He could always stop by again to check on him later. Chase wanted to stay close by though, and he knew Jack's house needed to be taken care of too. Part of him knew Jack wouldn't mind if he stayed to watch over his place for a little while, and the spare key should still be hidden by the front door.

Tags @watermelonsinmyattic

#jacksepticeye #jse fanfiction #chase brody #dr schneeplestein

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tomeandflickcorner · 6 years

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Caravan of Courage: An Ewok Adventure

I’m actually approaching these next two reviews with a sense of trepidation. While I remember loving the Ewok movies as a kid, it’s been years since I last saw them. I think the last time I watched them prior to this moment was in the early 90s when they’d air on television. So I have absolutely no idea how they’re going to hold up now, or how they’ll come across to my adult brain. Before I begin, I am aware that the Wiki page states this movie is supposed to take place before Return of the Jedi. But something happens in the movie that makes me feel as if it makes more sense for the events in this film to have occurred after Return of the Jedi rather than before. I’ll explain what I mean when we get to the scene in question.

The movie begins with a prologue of sorts, with a mother and father searching for their missing children. Throughout the movie, it becomes apparent that this family of four, the Towani family, were traveling somewhere in their star cruiser, but something went wrong and they crash landed on the moon of Endor. Because they didn’t know where they were, they could hardly send a transmission for help, so they were pretty much stuck there until they could get the ship repaired. But on the night the movie opens, the two children, 14-year-old Mace and 5-year-old Cindel, have apparently wandered off, despite their parents’ instructions to stay near the star cruiser. While the parents, Catarine and Jeremitt, are out looking for them, they are ambushed by a giant troll-like being called the Gorax. The Gorax ends up capturing Catarine and Jeremitt for reasons that are not made clear. Did the Gorax plan on eating them? Did he just want to keep them as human pets? It’s never really addressed.

But anyway, the movie then cuts to the star players of the movie- the Ewoks. Specifically Wicket and his family, which consists of his father, Deej, his mother, Shoudu, his two older brothers, Weechee and Widdle, and his baby sister, Winda. (Incidentally, you might recognize Widdle as one of the two Ewoks who hijacked the Walker with Chewbacca during the Battle of Endor in Return of the Jedi.) On this day, Weechee and Widdle have also gone missing. So Deej decides to go off looking for them, utilizing a hang glider to search the forest.

So, remember how one of the biggest issues with The Star Wars Holiday Special (not the only issue, but one of the biggest) was the fact that they were mostly focusing on a family of Wookiees and didn’t give us any subtitles, expecting us to just figure out what was happening on our own? Well, in this TV movie, they did learn their lesson. Sort of. While they don’t give us subtitles in this one, either, we did get a narrator. Yeah, they got Burl Ives, who you might remember from the Rankin Bass version of Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer (among other things), to narrate this movie. Unfortunately, this really doesn’t work to the movie’s advantage. There are times when it feels as if the Narrator is talking down to the audience. And at first, the use of a narrator makes the movie seem more like a nature documentary on Ewoks rather than a plot-driven movie.

Deej eventually locates his wayward sons. They were apparently climbing a rocky cliff but got stuck halfway up. After Deej helps them get out of their predicament, the three Ewoks start making their way back to their village. But first, they have to make a detour. While he was gliding over the forest on his hang glider, Deej saw something glittering in the sunlight through the forest canopy, so he decides to take his sons with him to investigate what it was. And that’s how they discover the crashed star cruiser. They step inside to investigate their discovery, and thus end up finding Cindel hiding behind a panel. Not sure if we’re supposed to conclude she made it back to the star cruiser after her parents ran into the Gorax or if she’d been there all along and the parents just didn’t look hard enough. Either way, Cindel, being 5-years-old, instantly decides the Ewoks are friends based on how cute they were. Her brother, Mace, on the other hand, is less trusting of the little teddy bear Aliens. Instead, he charges in and aims his blaster at them, stating that they might be the beings who took their parents. I’m guessing it’s been a few days since the events of the movie prologue. Eventually, the Ewoks take the two kids back with them to their village. Though they take Mace back by tying him up and carrying him. Rather similar to how they initially treated Han, Luke, Chewbacca and R2 in Return of the Jedi. The Ewoks must really not like human males. That, or they just don’t like the hostile ones.

Now, I gotta pause to talk about the two kids. There’s no sense in denying that neither of these two give a good performance, even by child actor standards. In fact, with the kid who plays Cindel, Aubree Miller, this was her first acting role. And believe me, it shows. But I can forgive her for that because, again, she’s only 5-years-old. Mace, on the other hand? I don’t think he’s even trying sometimes. There are some points in his performance when he seems to think all you need to do to convey emotion is to shout your lines. Also, I sometimes get the feeling that the movie was trying to make Mace a discount Luke Skywalker. Sure, he shows no indication of being Force Sensitive, but his costume throughout the movie bears a strong resemblance to Luke’s X-Wing pilot outfit. Even his haircut seems similar to Luke’s.

When they get back to the Ewok Village, it soon becomes apparent that Cindel is sick with a fever. Fortunately, Deej and his wife, Shoudu, are able to give Cindel some medicine that helps her, but when Cindel is still ill in the morning, they have to go out and gather more medicine for her. To get the key ingredient for the medicine, they have to travel to this tree in the middle of the forest. Because this specific tree emits a special kind of fluid that the Ewoks have used to treat their ailments for eons. (I wonder if this is the Tree of Life they mentioned in The Star Wars Holiday Special.)

It’s at this point where we first start to see how much of a dingbat Mace is. While the Ewoks are harvesting the tree’s curative sap for Cindel’s medicine, Mace spots a large hole in a nearby hollow tree. And there appears to be some kind of cute little fuzzy critter inside this hole. For some reason, Mace decides to go over and stick his hand into the hole in order to get this critter. Yes, I know Mace is supposed to be 14 in this movie, but at the same time, he’s presumably grown up in the Star Wars universe. You’d think he’d know better than to go about touching random fauna like this. The moment he reaches inside, a larger creature ends up biting down, latching onto his hand. Apparently this creature is a predatory animal called a Temptor. The fuzzy creature Mace saw was part of the creature’s tongue. I guess this creature is a bit like an alligator snapping turtle, in the sense that it lures prey to come closer with their tongue. So the Ewoks have to drop what they’re doing to come to his rescue.

Despite Mace’s stupidity, the Ewoks are able to gather up enough tree fluid to manufacture more medicine for Cindel. The following morning, the medicine seems to have done the trick, as Cindel is feeling all better. And right away, she develops an instant friendship with Wicket, possibly because they’re supposedly around the same age.

Also, it’s here that I noticed something a bit off-putting about the movie. This is supposed to take place in the Star Wars universe, in a galaxy far, far away. So can someone please explain to me how the Ewoks share their home with animals commonly seen on Earth? I’m not kidding, here. By this point in the movie, we’ve seen the Ewoks have ponies, goats, rabbits and ferrets. Is this movie is suggesting that those particular species are actually native to the moon of Endor and somehow ended up on Earth as an invasive species? I mean, the events of the Star Wars films are supposed to have happened a long, long time ago. So maybe, by the time then became now, the native people of the Star Wars universe somehow found their way here to the Milky Way and ended up colonizing Earth, bringing with them an assortment of critters that we now associate with our planet. I guess that’s as good of an explanation as any.

Anyway, Cindel starts trying to communicate with Wicket about how they ended up on the moon of Endor, explaining how their star cruiser crashed. Out of nowhere, Wicket starts repeating Cindel’s statements in comprehensible English. Or Basic, to use the Star Wars terminology. Yep, this movie shows Wicket starting to develop the ability to speak Basic. By the time the sequel, The Battle for Endor, comes along, he is able to speak Basic fluently. And that is why I take issue with this movie supposedly taking place before Return of the Jedi and therefore think it makes more sense to set this movie after the Original Trilogy ends. Because if this did take place before Episode 6, then there is no reason why Wicket wouldn’t have been able to actually engage in a conversation with Leia. Or why the other Ewoks seemed to be so hostile to Luke and Han upon seeing them. If they’d already met Mace and Cindel by that point, then they must have noticed the fact that Han, Luke and Leia were from the same species.

Because of her newfound friendship with Wicket, Cindel suggests to Mace that the Ewoks could help them find their parents. Mace, however, isn’t convinced, dismissing the Ewoks as animals. Which is weird, because he must have realized by this point that the Ewoks are sentient beings. And, being from the Star Wars universe, he should be at least somewhat familiar with non-humanoid Aliens. Regardless, Mace decides to take Cindel and sneak away in the middle of the night so they could continue the search for their parents. Which was really stupid on his part. Once again, they’re on a planetary moon they’re not familiar with and therefore don’t know what nocturnal fauna there might be. But that’s what Mace decides to do.

After traveling for a bit, Cindel insists that they’re lost and she can’t walk any further, so Mace sets up camp, building a campfire to keep warm. As they’re sitting around, they start to discuss their parents, and whether or not they’re dead. Mace then starts to confide in Cindel how he wishes he’d been a better son. I guess the implication is that Mace sometimes misbehaved. And it’s possible that this is basically him saying that he shouldn’t have wandered off the night Jeremitt and Catarine went missing.

At that moment, this wolf-boar creature suddenly appears and starts to chase the two kids, forcing them to take refuge inside a hollow tree for the night. When morning comes, we see the Ewok family had managed to track them down, as they are trying to fight off the wolf-boar. And there’s no denying the stop-motion effect they used with the wolf-boar did not stand up against the test of time, as it looks really dated. Nowhere near as good as the Rancor. Yes, I know this movie was made on a considerably smaller budget, but even so. Eventually, the wolf-boar is brought down by a well-aimed poison dart from Wicket. And, when they get a close look at the dead wolf-boar, they see he’s wearing a collar. Meaning he belonged to someone. But what really catches Mace and Cindel’s attention is the fact that their father’s Life Monitor is stuck to the collar. Life Monitors, from what I gather, are a type of bracelet that you can wear, which is used by groups of people to keep track on the life status of everyone else wearing the bracelet. Since Jeremitt’s Life Monitor states he’s alive, the children have a renewed hope that they’ll find their mother and father.

But before they can hope to reunite with their parents, Mace and Cindel have to figure out where the wolf-boar came from. Because knowing that would most likely help determine where the parents are. To help Mace and Cindel, the Ewok family take them to Logray, the village shaman, in the hopes that he could help determine the parents’ location. Thankfully, Logray can help them. Because he has some kind of magical spinning top thing that can enable you to observe things in other locations. That’s right, magic now exists in the Star Wars universe. Even though it’s never mentioned at any other point in the Star Wars media. Though I guess it’s possible what the Ewoks call magic is actually the Force. Does this mean Ewoks can be Force Sensitive, too? Anyway, Logrey’s magic top helps them learn that the missing parents are prisoners of the Gorax. Upon seeing the danger her parents are in, Cindel begs Deej to help them rescue them. After some hesitation, on account of the fact that the Gorax lives in a Forbidden Fortress that no Ewok has ever returned from, Deej ultimately decides to accompany Mace and Cindel on their quest to rescue their parents. And his three sons, Weechee, Widdle and Wicket also volunteer to go along.

Here, we do get a rather nicely acted scene, considering the actors are wearing Ewok costumes. During the night, we see Shodu mournfully looking around at her family while everyone is sleeping. It is clear that she is fearful about the safety of her family and is terrified that she might not see her husband or sons again. After all, the Gorax is suppoed to be very dangerous. Eventually, Deej wakes up to comfort her, even though he is probably equally as scared. I don’t know why, but there’s just something about this scene that I really appreciated.

When morning comes, we finally get to the whole caravan thing this movie’s title promised us, as Deej, Weechee, Widdle, Wicket, Mace and Cindel prepare to leave on their journey to the Gorax’s lair in order to rescue Mace and Cindel’s parents. And it only took four days in the show’s timeline for the actual plot to begin. Before they leave, Logrey performs some sacred Ewok ritual, in which each of the travelers are given a special totem. According to the Narrator, these totems were all once owned by the Legendary Ewok Warriors. (Shame we couldn’t get more clarification on who these Legendary Warriors were.) The first three totems are all basically feathered headdresses, with each one supposedly representing a different attribute. Deej gets the White Wings of Hope, Weechee, the oldest son, gets the Red Wings of Courage and Widdle gets the Blue Wings of Strength. The other totems have a bit more variety, however. For instance, Wicket is presented with a magical walking stick and Cindel receives a candle that’s called the Candle of Pure Light. As for Mace, his totem is a rock. But because Mace is a twat, he dismisses the rock as useless and purposely drops it as they leave Logrey’s hut. While I understand why he might not see the significance of a rock on this journey, it’s not as if Cindel’s candle or Wicket’s walking stick had an obvious significance at this point. And at least a rock is somewhat useful. What did Deej and the two oldest Ewok sons get? Feathered headdresses. While I’m sure they are ceremonially significant to the Ewok culture, they’re not going to be of much use in a fight with the Gorax. Anyway, the last two totems in the ceremony that Logrey performs are an ivory tooth and a crystal. Deej brings these last two totems with them in order to present them to two other Ewoks, in the hopes that they will join them on their quest. With the totems all gathered up, they all set off. Though, since Cindel and Wicket are the youngest ones there, they are allowed to ride in a special tent-like compartment strapped to a horse’s back.

The first Ewok the group end up seeking out is Chukha-Trok, who I gather is a renowned Ewok warrior who works as a woodcutter, considering how the movie introduces him. He ends up felling a tree that just narrowly misses Cindel. Which immediately puts Chukha-Trok on Mace’s bad side. So Mace isn’t pleased when Deej offers Chujha-Trok the Ivory Tooth, offering the Ewok woodcutter a place in their company. At first, however, Chukha-Trok doesn’t seem willing to go, until Mace starts insinuating that he’s not a real warrior. Which obviously is a huge insult to Chukha-Trok’s pride. This leads to Mace challenging Chukha-Trok to an ax-throwing contest. A contest that Chukha-Trok quickly wins. As a result, Mace begins to respect Chukha-Trok, and he asks him to help them find their parents. This time, Chukha-Trok decides to join the caravan. I do have to give Mace a bit of credit here, to be honest. While his transition from being dismissive of Chukha-Trok to respecting him as a brave warrior might have occurred a bit too quickly, this was obviously the movie’s attempt at giving him some character development.

Next, they visit Kaink, an Ewok Priestess and the only female apart from Cindel. Her totem is, of course, the Crystal. Kaink agrees to join, on one condition- the children have to pass some kind of magical test. But this test is not exactly clear. Kaink places the Crystal totem in Mace’s hands and it transforms into a lizard, which he drops in shock. Then, when Cindel picks the lizard up, it transforms into a mouse. Apparently, this is enough to convince Kaink to join the rescue mission. But it’s not clear what this magic test was. The crystal becomes a lizard and then the lizard turns into a mouse? So what? What was this supposed to convey? The all-knowing Narrator is completely silent on the matter, offering no explanation. So if anyone from the die-hard Star Wars fan base can offer any insight on what this was, I would love to hear it.

Of course, that’s not the only time the Narrator fails to explain things. At some point, the group stops to rest and Mace notices a nearby lake. For some reason, the sight of his reflection in the water makes him curious and he tries to touch the lake. The moment his finger makes contact with the surface of the lake, he’s instantly trapped beneath the water. When Cindel sees her brother is in trouble, she calls the other Ewoks to help. They try to extend a rope or a tree branch for Mace to grab so they could pull him out, but the rope and branch are also zapped into the lake the instant they touch the water. But Wicket has the magic Walking Stick he got from Logrey. Only that is able to successfully penetrate the surface of the water, enabling them to successfully pull Mace out. Like with the magic test Kaink performed, we’re not given any clarification on what this lake was, or why it trapped anyone and anything that came in contact with the surface of the lake beneath the water. It’s just something the movie included to add some tension. And to give Wicket’s Walking Stick some significance.

Speaking of scenes that only exist to provide tension, we then get a scene when the Ewoks are getting ready to continue on. Wicket is swinging around on a tree branch, but when he’s told the others are about to leave, he abruptly lets go, which ends up scaring the horse carrying Cindel, prompting the horse to bolt. So Chukha-Trok has to chase after the runaway horse and keep Cindel from getting hurt. Once that crisis is averted, they can continue on their way.

When night falls, the Ewoks end up setting up camp. Out of nowhere, there are a bunch of fairy like creatures flitting around. These creatures are apparently called Wisties, and I guess they were featured in the animated TV show, Ewoks, at some point, but since I only remember watching one episode of that show, I couldn’t say for certain. The Wisties end up catching the attention of Mace and the other Ewoks. Well, all except for Widdle, who steps outside his tent, looks around for a second and then decides to go back to bed. Needless to say, it’s at this point that I found myself really liking Widdle. Anyway, when Cindel comes out of her tent to see what’s going on, the Wisties start to flit around the Candle of Pure Light, which she just happened to be carrying at the time. Noticing their interest in the candle, Cindel places it on the ground, and the Wisties, I guess, get absorbed into the candle and merge into Izrina, the Queen of the Wisties. Once again, we get no explanation as to what just happened, but Queen Izrina ends up joining Mace, Cindel and the Ewoks on their quest.

At long last, after crossing the Desert of Salma (because there’s now a desert on this forest moon), they reach the mountains where the Gorax is supposed to live. But the entrance is hidden from view. That’s when Kaink gestures to Mace, pantomiming him to use the rock he got from Logray. Mace sheepishly admits he threw the rock away, much to Chukha-Trok’s exasperation. Fortunately, Wicket then reveals he’d picked up the rock after Mace dropped it. When Mace thankfully takes his rock back, he finds out that it’s actually hollow and that something is inside the rock. He throws it to the ground, revealing this arrowhead. The arrowhead, as if pulled by a magnet, slides across the ground and slips under a particular stone on the base of the mountain. Which indicates that this is where the entrance is. Mace ends up using his blaster to blow up the stone blocking the entrance. Okay, who gave this 14-year-old kid a blaster so powerful, it can blow up a stone? And if they had blasters with this much capability, why didn’t they ever utilize it during the Original Trilogy?

So they enter the cave, and it’s decided that Widdle, Wicket and Cindel should hang back, on account of them being the youngest members of the caravan. Widdle in particular isn’t happy about being left behind, but he still abides by the group’s decision. As such, Deej, Weechee, Chukha-Trok, Kaink and Mace continue on while Widdle and Wicket keep Cindel company.

Deej’s group soon come to this seemingly bottomless chasm. Taking note of what is so obviously a spider web stretching across the crevasse, Mace decides to use the web as a bridge, and they start to cross. But as they neglected to observe, where there’s a spider web, there’s most likely a spider. Sure enough, a spider attacks them. Mace strikes back at the spider with a knife, and the spider falls into the abyss. But as Mace and the Ewoks are crossing the divide on the spider web, another spider appears and stars to attack Deej. This time, it’s Kaink who comes to the rescue, as she uses her Crystal totem to hypnotize the spider, resulting in that one to fall into the pit as well. Meanwhile, we see a third spider has found his way to where Cindel, Wicket and Widdle were waiting. This third spider is quickly dealt with thanks to Wicket and Widdle, though.

Eventually, Mace and the Ewoks find the lair of the Gorax, where they see the parents trapped in a cage suspended from the ceiling. But the Gorax is also there, currently eating something. Weechee, partially inadvertently, ends up luring the Gorax out of his lair, allowing the others the chance to free Catarine and Jeremitt. The rescue attempt involves using the Gorax’s ax as a catapult and providing the parents a rope to climb down on. But while the rescue is still being carried out, the Gorax, having lost interest in Weechee, returns. So everyone has to make a run for it. But Chukha-Trok stays behind to face the Gorax, repeatedly striking at the Gorax’s leg with his ax, despite Mace’s attempts at urging him away.

At that moment, Queen Izrina remembers she’s involved in the movie. She’s been hanging out in Mace’s pocket this whole time. At Mace’s request, she flies at the Gorax and disorients the giant by darting around his head. As the Gorax is flaying around, he ends up hitting the sides of his lair, causing a bunch of rocks to fall. Chukha-Trok ends up getting hit by the falling rocks, much to Mace’s shock and horror. Mace runs out to try and help the fallen Ewok, but Chukha-Trok was too gravely injured by the falling rocks and ends up dying in Mace’s arms. Before he dies, Chukha-Trok ends up giving his ax to Mace, which was probably meant to indicate that the two have come full-circle in their relationship and now consider each other as friends. Mace momentarily grieves his friend’s death, but, due in part to the sub-par acting, he gets over it relatively quickly, and he hurries off to rejoin the others.

Meanwhile, the Gorax is trying to go after the other Ewoks, but Catarine and Jeremitt and the Ewoks team up to create a makeshift trip-wire that they use against the Gorax. This almost results in the Gorax to fall into the bottomless pit, but he lands just short of the edge, so he doesn’t fall. It takes the combined efforts of Kaink, who uses her Crystal totem to drop a stalactite onto the Gorax’s head, and Catarine, wielding Mace’s blaster, before the Gorax falls into the crevice to his apparent death.

At this point, the movie seems to be wrapping up. Mace, rejoining the others at this moment, embraces his parents before showing Deej Chukha-Trok’s ax, explaining the warrior’s sacrifice. And then, Cindel appears on the other side of the chasm with Wicket and Widdle. And she’s overjoyed to see her parents safe, and vice versa. However, it turns out the Gorax still has a few hit points left, as he reappears at this point, trying to climb back out of the pit, right in front of Cindel. When the Gorax tries to grab Cindel, Mace jumps into action and throws Chukha-Trok’s ax at the Gorax. The ax lands home in the Gorax’s back, forcing him to fall into the abyss once again. This time, the Gorax is defeated for real. So Cindel is safe, and the Towani family can be properly reunited at last.

The Towani family then travels back the Ewok village with the Ewoks. After Mace bids goodbye to Queen Izrina, thanking her for her help, he rejoins the celebration going on. Because it’s not just the Towani family that’s been safely reunited, but the Ewok family as well. And because of the friendship between the two families, I guess, Deej gives the White Wings of Hope to Cindel. The movie ends with the Narrator delivering one of the cheesiest closing lines ever. About how the movie’s protagonists all learned what they already knew- that courage, loyalty and love were the strongest forces in the universe.

So that was the first Ewok movie. While I can see why I liked it as a kid, now that I’m an adult, I realize that a lot of this movie didn’t make a lot of sense. Obviously, Kid Me was a lot more accepting of stuff. Not only that, it dawned on me how this movie might actually be seen as boring. For the most part, it’s just these two kids interacting and walking around with some Ewoks. In fact, I think it’s safe to say that if you threw Lord of the Rings and Care Bears into a blender and mixed them together, this is pretty much what you’d end up with. But at the same time, this movie is clearly meant for kids. And it must have kept enough kids entertained back in the 80s, because a sequel was released the following year. Check back next week for my review on that one.

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#star wars ewoks #caravan of courage #star wars franchise #star wars review

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chailatterambles · 6 years

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Rightful Heir to the Serpent Throne// Sweet Pea Imagine// Ch. 4

A/N: Here is Ch.4 loves! I really enjoyed writing this chapter and i made it a little longer then previous ones. Enjoy and have a wonderful holiday season! <3

Warnings: Language, Slight Violence, Mentions of Alcoholism, Mentions of Abuse, Mentions of Abandonment, Underage Drinking.

Word Count: 3k

Part 1 ��/ Part 2 / Part 3

Synopsis: Serena is 16 years old and daughter to Rascal Jones, FP’s deceased older brother and fellow Serpent. She grew up on the Southside until her father died in a motorcycle accident. Her mother remarried a doctor and Serena was moved to the Northside at just 11 years old. 5 years and a messy divorce have passed and she is back on the Southside with her mom and younger sister. Can Serena pick up where her life left off? Will she be accepted back by her friends? And how will a certain tall dark and handsome serpent change her life?

FP’s eyes studied my face. I could tell he was trying to decide the best way to approach the situation. Even when we lived on the Northside I never told him about mom’s drinking habits. Since we moved back, the only person I told about my mom’s frequent disappearances was Sweet Pea. He had offered to help but I assured him she would be home permanently soon, she just needed time on her own. I hadn’t seen her since we had been moved back to the Southside, besides the first day we had moved back. I had only found traces that she had stopped by the house, such as new dirty clothes lying askew on her bedroom floor. I had been keeping Sawyer and I afloat with the money I had left over from my summer job, but it was running out.

FP’s hands came up to rub his face, he looked older and more tired. I knew he was facing some heat from the accusations around Jason Blossom’s murder, but I never pushed him for information. Finally, he spoke,

“Kid, why didn’t you tell me?” he looked concerned. I smiled weakly,

“I figured I was doing alright taking care of Sawyer. I’ve dropped her off at school everyday and been making dinners and stuff.” I mumbled, not meeting his eyes. I heard him sigh.

“That’s not the point Serena. It isn’t safe for you two on your own, especially not on the Southside.” He placed Sawyer on the ground and told her to go play in the other room. She glanced between the two of us and disappeared into the other room. FP looked me directly in the eyes and rested his arms on the table.

“You need to tell me everything that has happened over the past few years Serena, because I feel like you haven’t been honest with me.” He said stoned faced. I fell back into my chair and shrunk down slightly. Then, I told him everything. I told him about Derrick’s abuse, Mom’s constant drinking since Sawyer was just a baby, how I had practically raised Sawyer since then and how the past few weeks on the Southside had been. By the time I was done, he was looking down at his lap. His hands were tightly clasped together, and his mouth was in a tight line.

“I am so sorry Chickadee.” He said barely above a whisper. I flinched slightly at the use of my dad’s old nickname. It felt weird hearing it come form someone’s else’s lips. He continued to stare at his lap,

“You and Sawyer need to be under adult supervision.” He leaned back in his chair,

“You two can stay in your house, but there will be someone checking in daily. At least until I can find your damn mother.” He spat the last part of the sentence. I could tell he was angry. His eyebrows were knit tightly together, and his eyes were narrowed. I didn’t protest, only nodded. He finally looked at me,

“Do you have any idea where she would be?” he questioned. I shrugged,

“Wherever there is a club or a bar, she will be there.” I said nonchalantly.

“I would try New York first. Big city, lots of places for her to run to.” I added. I didn’t hate my mom, I never could. I was upset that she had all but abandoned us. She had never gotten over my dad’s death, and remarrying Derrick was never about love. It was always about security and financial stability, that’s why she stayed despite the abuse. Even, after all that, I still couldn’t understand how she just left us. I realized I hadn’t spoken in awhile and realized FP was studying me, probably waiting for me to cry. I never cry, not since dad. I gave FP a small smile,

“What should Sawyer and I do about money and stuff? I’m running out.” I said shyly. He gave me a reassuring smile,

“Serpents always take care of their own kid. We will help you out.” I went to protest, but he put his hand up.

“You know the laws.” He said. I nodded, but added,

“At least let me get a part-time job or something.” My face lit up,

“What if I worked at the Whyte Wyrm with Toni?” I said slightly excited. FP thought about it for a second and then nodded,

“Fine, but don’t let it interfere with school.” He said sternly. I rolled my eyes but agreed. Finally, things were looking up for Sawyer and me. I smiled to myself.

A few days passed, and I decided to spend some time down at the quarry with Sweet Pea, Toni and Fangs. Some other Serpents were mulling around, but the four of us were off by ourselves. Toni and Fangs were skipping rocks across the lake. Fangs kept pushing Toni whenever she went to throw. This ended in them wrestling on the rocks. I watched them with a smile on my face,

“Don’t mess up his face too bad T.” I called. She looked up from where she had Fangs pinned against the ground,

“I make no promises!” she grinned. I laughed and went back to sketching in my sketchbook as, Toni held Fangs’s arm behind his back yelling at him to concede. Sweet Pea shook his head and leaned back against the picnic table, closing his eyes. The sun was shining through the trees, despite the cold weather. I glanced at him and the sun was hitting his face just right. I turned to him and crossed my legs on the bench.

“Don’t move!” I instructed. He opened one eye and smirked.

“Do I looked that good?” he asked sarcastically. I rolled my eyes.

“There is just really good lighting right now, so don’t move.” I said. My fingers gripped the pencil tightly as my hand flew across the page. I threw him quick glances to compare the growing sketch. He closed his eye and I continued to draw. Soon, I had what I considered a very rough sketch of Sweet Pea’s face tilted back, one eye open, smirking.

“Okay-“I flipped the book to face him, propped on my knee, “What do you think?” I asked hopefully. Sweet Pea opened his eyes and tilted his head down to look at the drawing. He was silent for a moment and peeked at me from behind the book,

“You got a real talent there Northside.” He gave me a cocky grin, “Although, it isn’t hard to make me look good.” I rolled my eyes.

“Yes of course. My drawing ability has nothing to do with it.” I mocked sarcastically.

“Maybe, you’re so good at drawing me because you stare at me all the time.” He said smiling slyly. My cheeks instantly felt warm and I put my book back in my lap pretending to busy myself with the drawing. Sweet Pea laughed and put his hand over mine to stop its movement. I looked at him from underneath my eyelashes,

“I’m just bugging you.” He said still chuckling. I gave him a weak smile and tried to look anywhere but his face. He lifted his hand to my chin and tilted my face towards him. I was suddenly aware of how close his face was to mine. He cocked his head slightly and gave me a teasing smile,

“What, don’t wanna look at me anymore?” I could hear my heart beating in my ears and my blood was racing through my veins. It was like every nerve in my body was alive instantly with just one simple touch.

“I- “I was cut off by my phone buzzing on the table. Sweet Pea dropped his hand suddenly and moved away from me.

“Better get that.” He mumbled and got up to go over to Toni and Fangs. My whole body ached from the loss of his touch. I picked up my phone and noticed it was FP. I tapped the answer button and put the phone to my ear,

“Hey FP, what’s up?” I asked trying to hide the annoyance in my voice.

“You coming to get your sister soon, I have a dinner with Jug and his new girlfriend tonight.” I blinked in surprise.

“Uh, yeah I can come grab her now. Ill see if Pea can bring me over.” I replied.

“Okay kid, just hurry. I don’t want to mess this up for Jug.” The line went dead and I stared at my phone in shock. I didn’t even know Jughead had a girlfriend and FP was going to dinner with them? Well, at least he was making an effort with his son. I was happy for him. I glanced up at my friends,

“Hey Pea, I gotta pick up Sawyer from FP’s. Can you take me over?” he looked in my direction and just nodded. Toni looked at me too,

“What about your shift tonight?” she asked. I groaned. I had completely forgot I had to work tonight. I put my hands in my head trying to think, then I heard Sweet Pea’s voice,

“Why don’t you just bring her to the Whyte Wyrm?” I snorted and then looked at him. He was wearing a serious expression,

“You’re kidding? I’m not bringing a five-year-old to a bar Pea.”

“Why not? She will be surrounded with tons of babysitters then.” Fangs said chiming in. Boys were impossible. Toni rolled her eyes at both of them. This was going nowhere. I needed someone that could watch Sawyer, preferably not a random drunk middle-aged man in a gang bar.

“I could ask Rose.” I heard Sweet Pea say. I played dumb,

“Who’s Rose?” I asked innocently. Toni scowled at me, knowing full well I already knew.

“She’s my grandma, she is good with kids. Sawyer would probably like her. You guys could meet her tonight before your shift.” I smiled at him. He was so sweet when he wanted to be. I stood up from the picnic bench, dusting the dirt of my ripped jeans. I walked over to my friends and stood in front of Sweet Pea with a smile plastered to my face,

“That would be wonderful. Thanks Pea!” he shrugged.

“It’s nothing. I’m sure Rose would love the company anyways.”

Sweet Pea and I picked Sawyer up from FP’s and drove back to Pea’s place in his truck. It wasn’t to far of a drive since it was only a few blocks over in another trailer park. Sawyer hopped out of the truck and skipped to the front door. As she got the door it swung open.

“Aren’t you the cutest thing ever!” a woman, I assumed to be Rose exclaimed. Sawyer smiled up at her and nodded. I walked around the truck to the front door and put my hand out,

“Hi, I’m Serena. You must be Rose.” She looked up from Sawyer and smiled at me,

“I sure am darling. Oh, I knew who you were. Sweet Pea talks about you all the time. Sweet Pea scoffed from beside me,

“Yeah, alright Rose. Let’s go inside.” I gave Sweet Pea a cocky smirk and he rolled his eyes at me, ushering us all inside. Sawyer immediately sat down in front of the TV and found the cartoons. I followed Rose into the kitchen and she motioned for me to sit down. Finally, I was able to get a good look at her. Her hair was long and black, the same color as Sweet Peas. She had a single grey streak that ran through the front section of her hair. She was a few inches taller then me, but was slightly hunched over due to age, I assumed. Her face did not make her look more then 50 years old. I smiled when I noticed she was wearing all black and I could just make out a very faded serpent tattoo peeking out from underneath her jacket sleeve.

She set down a glass of what smelled like whiskey at her spot, a beer for Sweet Pea and then she looked at me,

“What’re you having hun?”

“Just water thanks. I have to go to work soon.” She raised an eyebrow, but nodded filling a glass from the tap and setting down the water in front of me. She sat down in her chair and propped her legs up on the table. I watched her down the brown liquid and focus her attention back on me,

“So, Sweet Pea tells me you need a babysitter?” my head snapped to look at Sweet Pea who gave half a shrug,

“I texted her before we left the Quarry.” I nodded knowingly. I looked back at Rose,

“Um, yeah. FP usually babysits for me when he isn’t busy or sometimes Sweet Pea, or Toni, but im kinda stuck right now.” I babbled. She put her hand up and nodded,

“Not a problem hun. I would gladly watch her.” She gestured towards Sweet Pea with her head,

“This little shit is never home, so it would be nice to have some company.” Sweet Pea sighed.

“I have stuff to do.” Rose rolled her eyes and looked at me,

“When he says stuff he really means drinking and playing pool.” I laughed and nodded. She tilted her head and studied me,

“How do you know FP?” she questioned. I smiled,

“He was just a friend of the family growing up.” I said coolly. She nodded and dropped the subject thankfully.

We all continued talking for a bit before Sweet Pea and I got ready to leave. Sawyer seemed happy enough in front of the TV, but then Rose called her form the kitchen,

“Hey, cartoons addict! Wanna come help me with dinner?” Sawyer peeked around the corner into the kitchen,

“What’s for dinner?” she asked skeptically. Rose grinned at her and leaned down, so she was looking her in the eyes,

“What do you want for dinner?” Sawyer paused and thought about it,

“Hotdogs and mac’n cheese.” Rose clapped her hands together,

“Hotdogs and mac’n cheese it is!” She pushed herself from her chair and went over to the fridge. Sawyer squealed with excitement and pulled a chair over to the counter to stand with Rose. Sweet Pea and I laughed and headed out to the Whyte Wyrm.

“Bye little Sparrow!” I called as I was leaving. She didn’t respond, I just laughed to myself.

It was nearing the end of my shift and I was exhausted. The bar had been packed all night and it was just Toni and I. Lucky for us, the tips were pouring in. I looked at my phone and it read 10:30pm. At least I was off in half an hour. I was cleaning up at the bar when I heard a voice from in front of me,

“Shot of tequila please hot stuff.” I looked up from my task and was met with a drunk stare from a Serpent I did not recognize. I put one hand on my hip and had the other resting on the counter,

“I think you have had enough.” I said firmly. He shook his head lazily at me,

“As long as a fine piece of ass like yourself is working the bar, ill keep coming back.” He slurred. I grimaced at him and continued cleaning. He kept yelling comments at me, but I kept on ignoring him. Finally, he got mad. Suddenly, he reached across the bar and grabbed my wrist tightly,

“Hey Bitch, I am fucking talking to you.” He said angrily. I tried to wriggle free from his grasp but it kept getting tighter,

“Get your fucking hand off me before I break it off.” I growled. He leaned over the bar and tried to reach for my other hand but then suddenly, I was free. He had disappeared, and I peeked over the counter to see him sprawled out across the floor. I looked up and Sweet Pea was standing in front of me shaking his hand,

“Fucking dick is wasted.” His eyes lifted to meet mine,

“You okay?” I nodded.

“Thanks Pea.” I said quietly looking down. Sweet Pea reached for my hand and I let him take it willingly. He turned my wrist over in his hand examining it. My skin was warm where he was gently holding it. He let go of my hand and I put it back to my side,

“You might have some bruising there, but you should be good.” I smiled at him and he returned it. He called over some Serpents and they gladly collected the guy off the floor, throwing him out of the bar in the process. I watched Sweet Pea walk back over to his pool game with Fangs. Fangs high fived him and they went back to their game.

I sighed with happiness as I exited the Whyte Wyrm with my friends. Toni yawned and stretched out her arms,

“Fuck, tonight was crazy.” I nodded in agreement. My phone buzzed in my pocket it and I whipped it out looking at the name. It was unknown. I scrunched up my face in confusion. I slowly put the phone to my ear,

“Hello?” I phrased it as more of a question.

“Serena?” I heard his voice say on the other line. I hadn’t spoken to him in so long, I had almost forgotten what his voice sounded like. I turned away from my friends and brought my voice down to a whisper,

“Jug?” I questioned.

“Yeah.” He replied.

“Why are you calling me from an unknown number?” I asked worried.

“I’m calling from the police station.” He responded. I felt my pulse quicken,

“What happened? Are you okay?” I asked not whispering anymore. My friends were looking at me in confusion.

“I’m fine.” He assured me. I let out a breath, but it was too soon, he continued,

“But my dad isn’t. He was just arrested for Jason Blossom’s murder.” I felt all the blood drain from my face and my heartbeat was thumping in my ears. Suddenly, I could not breathe properly and a feeling I had not felt since my dad died came rushing back.

#sweet pea imagine #sweet pea fanfic #sweet pea #fp jones imagine #fp jones #riverdale imagine #riverdale fanfiction #riverdale #chaitealatteramblings #chaittealatteramblingsimagines

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sweetescape01748 · 3 years

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Mimi’s Home Bakery

Kate O’Connor| Review | April 1, 2021

Whether it's cookies, pies, cakes, cupcakes, muffins, brownies...you name it- Mimi can make it. While in the kitchen with Mary Daniels Nahley Jones, or “Mimi”, you would never guess that this lean, energetic, eighty-four year old home baker, has zero professional culinary training. Mimi’s kitchen is not large by any measure, but it has a warm and cozy feel, with its own unique scent of freshly baked cookies whisked from the oven. Whenever we baked with Mimi there seemed to be flour, and mixing bowls all over the counter. However, the ingredients always seemed to be organized in perfect order. Her pantry is also stocked with at least three packages of King Arthur's flour, two large cans of Crisco, several canisters of White Granulated Sugar, and bags of Ghirardelli Chocolate Chips. Also, her refrigerator always holds a jug of homemade, Sweet Tea. However, no visit to Mimi’s kitchen is complete without squirting some of her homemade Simple Syrup in a glass of her Sweet Tea while indulging in her famous brownies. Mimi currently lives in Southport, North Carolina, which has been home to her for more than twenty years.

Mimi raised three children in Danbury, Connecticut (in order of birth); Sue, Jeffrey, and Ann who now have children of their own. While her children were growing up, Mimi carried on her mother’s tradition of always having freshly baked desserts in the kitchen for the house to munch on. From a young age, Mimi was inspired by her own mother’s baking, and wanted to “follow in her footsteps''. She is now an active grandmother, and according to her grandchildren, the best baker they know. When she’s not baking, Mimi is either golfing, playing tennis, swimming, selling handcrafted baby knick-knacks to a local store, doing yoga, volunteering at church, or simply watching Netflix. However, Mimi’s passion for baking didn’t evolve until she started a family, and needed recipes to make for her household.

(Mimi on Thanksgiving Eve in 2011, holding one of her daughter’s favorites, Banana Cream Pie)

Tell me a little bit about yourself and how you got into baking?

I grew up in Pawling, New York which is about 65 miles north of New York City. I lived with my mom, dad, brother, and grandparents. We went to live with my grandparents, because my grandfather was very ill at one point and needed people to take care of him. So I always lived at my grandmother’s house. My mother always had something freshly baked, practically everyday. She was the one who inspired me. She was a wonderful pie maker, a wonderful cake maker, cookies, muffins...You name it. She could do it. My mother’s name was Helen Green Daniels and she was a teacher. She taught elementary school, got married, and of course women back then didn’t work after they got married because nobody would hire them and therefore she always had something whipped up in the evening. My grandmother was such a wonderful baker, and she inspired me as a grown-up to follow in her footsteps. I didn’t grow up with a culinary background, and I didn’t do a lot of baking when I was little, but I certainly watched my mother bake a lot of stuff. When I got married the first time, I certainly wanted recipes, so I got into it more after I got married. And now I try to bake at least once a week. I try to switch up what I make...Every night, I need to have a cupcake, a brownie, a cookie, or something around 8 o’clock at night, which is probably the worst time in the world to eat.

What was a household favorite dessert that you can recall baking, that your kids loved?

I think my brownies, Chocolate Chip Cookies, and Christmas Cookies were a house favorite. I still make chocolate chip cookies, and I still make brownies, but now, since I’m retired, don’t tell anyone..I use a box. But sometimes I’ll make them from scratch. But I think every one of my kids loved my brownies...The kids also used to like my Whopper cookies. Remember the Whoppers? They’re the cookies where you have to smash the Whopper milk balls.

What is one of YOUR favorite go-to treats to whip up at home? Or for the holidays?

Well, I think for the holidays, Banana Cream pie, Pumpkin pie, pecan pie, cookies, and dessert sauces. I have to keep them [dessert sauces] in the refrigerator at all times. Those include a hot fudge sauce, and a butterscotch sauce. Isn’t that awful?

What are some skills or tricks that you have learned throughout your at-home baking career?

Definitely get all ingredients together before you start the baking process...Then you always have what you need. I think my favorite part about baking is actually putting all the ingredients together and then of course, the results. I love getting everything together, getting it all measured out, and enjoying the finished product.

Out of the wide variety of baked goods, what would you classify as being the most fun to make? And why?

Well I’ll tell you, this is the complete opposite. It’s the Frosty Toffee Bits Pie. It is so fast and easy to make, and people love it. You buy a 9 inch graham cracker crust, then you take a package of cream cheese, sugar, half & half, frozen whipped topping like Cool Whip, and then a package of Toffee bits. I’m telling you Kate, it is absolutely delicious..bad for you, but delicious! I bumped into a couple whom I haven’t seen in awhile, and they go “oh we have that pie under your name in our recipe file. We just got it out and just made it”.

What has been one of the hardest things you have ever had to bake and why?

I would not have been able to tell you a month ago, but a month ago, I found a recipe for a German Chocolate Cake. A three layered, German Chocolate Cake. Well I’ll tell you, it probably took over three hours to put the damn thing together. Pardon my french. And then the frosting contains coconut..and it’s absolutely delicious! It takes forever to put it together...and it just takes forever because you have to melt the chocolate bar, you have to make half a cup of strong brewed hot coffee, and then aside from the flour, the baking powder, and the sugar, you have to separate the eggs, and then bake it for about twenty eight minutes. But then you have to make the frosting, which requires six egg yolks, two cups of coconut, and then the two cups of pecans are optional. It’s a delicious cake but I think it must have taken almost three hours to put together. It wasn’t even made for a special occasion, just because I wanted to. I found the recipe in Southern Living Magazine and thought, “ooo I gotta make that”. Of course it took forever but when it was done, boy was it spectacular!

Every baker has a weakness, in your opinion, what would you say is your greatest weakness?

I don’t make pies quite as often as I used to, but my one weakness is making a pie crust. It drives me crazy because you have to roll it out, and make sure it’s round..they’re just so much work. Anyways, I don’t make a whole lot of pies anymore. However, per request, I do them for the holidays.

What are some of your secret go-to ingredients to use as a substitute in a particular recipe?

I don't have any. Usually, if I get a recipe out, I’ve saved it because I like everything in it. If I’m going to use a recipe, you want to follow it pretty closely. Especially when baking, you need to comply with what the recipe tells you. I figure, they know what they’re doing.

Being such a talented baker, have you ever been tempted to open up a bakery or cafe of your own? (why or why not)

No it’s too much work!! I enjoy other things in addition to baking!!

How would you describe a typical day in your life today?

Three days a week, I start my day with Yoga for an hour, I love it.We all wear masks and it’s a great social event. Then, I do a lot of sewing and knitting because there’s a little shop downtown in Southport where we live, and I sell my stuff there. So I sell my puppets, sweaters for children, blankets, bibs, and mainly things for babies. I have to work inside the shop at least once a month for a whole day. And then I eat out a lot, I attend church a few days a week because I’m on a few committees, so that’s pretty much my life now….*chuckling*

Which would you say you prefer more, cooking or baking?

Baking- I think. People love homemade desserts and breads, usually more than their meal. It ends the course the way you want it to end. I think people love desserts. Well-I think everyone loves certain meals but they remember the dessert...it came last, it’s sweet...And I think that’s important.

I’m dying to know, have you ever made a “boxed” dessert?

Yes, almost always, I don’t make brownies from scratch anymore. I just get the box...Ghirardelli and Betty Crocker are the best, in my opinion...Although baking is much more rewarding when you do it from scratch and oftentimes it even tastes better!

What sweet treat did you whip up this week?

The other day, I got a recipe for Chocolate, Chocolate Chip Muffins. They are loaded with chocolate, and then you add a bunch of chocolate chips in them. And you got to have a scoop of ice cream with them. So those have been recent creations of mine.

Mimi’s Famous Brownie recipe:

2 sq . Unsweetened Ghirardelli chocolate (2 oz.)

1/3 cup shortening

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

3/4 cup flour

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 cup broken nuts (optional)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Melt together chocolate and shortening in the microwave; beat in sugar & eggs. Add flour, baking powder & salt. Mix in nuts. Spread in well greased 8” square pan & bake until top has dull crust, about 30-35 minutes. A slight imprint will be left when the top is touched lightly with a finger. Cool slightly; then cut into squares (16 2” squares). Enjoy!!

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