about to fight thunderblight, wish me luck <3

Okay, so vampire Eddie is a pretty standard trope at this point, but may I offer...Twilight vampire Eddie who is absolutely pissed off about his sparkly existence?

Eddie actually isn't that old, he was turned in the 80s when he was around 20. He lives with his small and not only vampire family. There's patriarch Wayne, his partner Scott who always becomes a teacher no matter where they move, Claudia Henderson and her son that have been with them ever since Scott noticed Dustin being unusually quiet in his class and soon after, Wayne kicked out his abusive father.

The problem with living with a smart man who loves educating people and a man who never received the education he deserved is - they take school really, really seriously. Whenever they move, Eddie usually has to re-join high school, it's all "just so that you have some socialization! Also we need to be able to blend in, so look around and see what's normal with young people! Also I'm pretty sure some of the stuff we know is now obsolete or disproven, so make sure to tell us!". And Eddie loves Wayne and Scott, he really does, but he had trouble blending in even when he was alive, so now? Impossible. As for gathering information, Eddie has been trying for decades to explain to Wayne that even if becoming a vampire healed the wounds from the lynching mob, it didn't do shit for his ADHD, so there. Wayne finds Eddie banging his head into a desk one day and chanting "WHAT-THE-FUCK-IS-TIK-TOK?!"

So yes, Eddie hates being a forever highschooler, but it also means he can run DnD clubs everywhere he joins and he's not even lynched for it like in the 80s, so hey, progress! He gets mostly content with his existence, except that he's fucking sparkly and can't turn into a bat, so what's the point?!

But then a huge group of people moves from the close town of Hawkins, they had a really fucked up earthquake - Wayne told him all about it, he often volunteered in rescue and high risk works, and he's never seen anything like it - and their little town becomes way more crowded. There are high school freshmen just begging to be introduced to his club, Hellfire, although one of them is scary observant and Eddie is really sure that Jane knows he's a vampire.

And then there's Steve Harrington. A young man with the prettiest hair ever who joined Eddie's class, apparently he needs to repeat the last year too because if your school burns down, you can't take final exams. He's stupidly pretty, snarky, bitchy, and even though he could be partying day and night and spending the rest of his time on dates, he prefers to hang around with the freshmen. Lucas tells him one day that Steve got badly hurt when he was digging through the collapsed middle school, finding and rescuing their whole group, and well...Eddie respects that. Dustin absolutely loves Steve and maybe Eddie feels a bit jealous, but he has to admit - the guy is cool.

The problem with Steve Harrington is this - he's seen so much shit that nothing really fazes him. Eddie loves shocking people. Steve is unshockable. It becomes their little game, they get close, Eddie realizes he has an embarrassing crush, all that jazz. He tries dropping hints, he slurps his bloody lunch from a bottle that has a "THIS IS DEFINITELY TOMATO JUICE AND NOTHING ELSE". He wears a cape. He adopts a horrible Dracula accent. Nothing works. Steve always just laughs and tells him that he's weird and that's why he likes him.

Finally, Eddie has enough. They walk in the woods to get high, Eddie decides to break the ice, he scoops up Steve, does his whole dashing-through-the-woods thing, and he hopes that he can finally share his secret with Steve.

Except Steve just pats his back and says "Wow, that was cool, man! You'd be amazing at track. Great core strength too," and Eddie's head implodes.

"Okay, Steve. Don't you think there's something rotten here?" he tries.

"I mean, it's the woods. Of course there's something rotting all the time."

Eddie tries again. "You've noticed something strange, haven't you. I'm inhumanly fast and strong."

"I sure didn't expect that! You must be secretly training. I didn't know this town had a gym."

Again. "My skin is pale white and ice cold."

Steve is watching a nearby squirrel instead of looking horrified. "Yeah, not all people tan great, Robin is like that too. And I told you, man. Your circulation is shit, you need better socks and some gloves too."

"My eyes change color."

"Yeah, I know, I do envy you that you can wear those cool contact lenses. My eyes are too dry for that."

Eddie is growing desperate, he's gesturing at the trees because Steve doesn't listen. "I speak like I'm from a different time."

"80s slashers will do that to you. You basically live on those. But I gotta admit that they're pretty fun. Oh look, she's got an acorn! Clever girl!"

"Very clever. Also I never eat or drink anything."

"Hey, I'm not judging. Some people prefer one or two meals in a day instead of the whole five meal thing."

Eddie feels like howling and he isn't even a werewolf. "I. DON'T. GO. INTO. THE. SUNLIGHT."

Steve's eyes finally leave the squirrel. "Duh. We've already established you can't tan."

And Eddie's had enough. He tears off his t-shirt, marches directly into the sunlight and throws the biggest tantrum of his life. "STEVEN HARRINGTON. PAY ATTENTION. I am 20. I have been 20 for a while now. You know what I am, right? I am a vampire. So ask me the question, what do we eat? That wasn't a fucking tomato juice Steven!!!"

Steve just watches him with quiet amusement, as if he's waiting for something.

Eddie doesn't notice. His monologue is reaching its most dramatic part. "I've killed people before! I'm the world's most dangerous predator!"

Steve snorts. "I saw you trip over your own feet in the cafeteria."

"Not the point!"

"You told a waitress "you too" when she told you to enjoy your meal."

Eddie actually howls now. "THE POINT IS." He spins in the sunlight and sees the reflections of light off his skin. "I wouldn't have minded becoming a vampire, but let me tell you. Being stuck in high school forever? Sucks. Craving chips and throwing them up whenever you try them? SUCKS. And thinking you've become the legendary creature of the night when you're a glorified glitter mascot?! And you can't even fly?! DOUBLE SUCKS."

He points at his bare glittering chest. "THIS THE SKIN OF A FUCKING DISCO BALL, STEVE!"

Steve just laughs and gets up from the tree stump he was sitting on. "Thanks for sharing. I was kinda hoping you'd finally ask me out since this is the first time we've had some privacy, but this was interesting too."

Eddie's sharing mania suddenly stops. He realizes he's shirtless in the middle of the forest, and his yelling has scared off the squirrel. He promptly grabs his shirt and puts in on. "Um. You...you wanted me to ask you out? Because I totally want to do that. Yep. But I thought it would have been unfair to ask you before I told you-"

"That you're a vampire? Dude, I know."

Eddie blinks once. Then again. "Excusemewhat?"

Steve smiles at him and touches his hand. "Look. After what happened in Hawkins, I know the smell of blood. I knew it wasn't tomato juice. Also I've accompanied the kids to enough monster flicks to know."

"Oh." Eddie licks his lips and doesn't really know what to say. "Um. What...does that mean for us?"

Laughing, Steve grabs his other hand too. "Definitely two things. One - you can and should kiss me. Two - you can stop wearing that cape. I got your point."

"Oh okay. Cool. Will do. Both."

And since Eddie Munson is a vampire of his word, he does.

(Wayne is absolutely delighted that Eddie is dating, he watches sports with Steve and discusses the pros and cons of Steve becoming a paramedic. Scott helps Steve with some of the subjects he's struggling with. In return, Steve works with Robin to find a makeup brand that is fully sparkleproof, giving the vampires a chance to walk in the sunlight again. And sometimes, he helps them answer the questions that have been plaguing the Munson-Clarke-Henderson household for years...such as: what is TikTok?)

(oh and also. Turns out Steve really thought Eddie was wearing creepy contact lenses. That one aspect of vampyrism he found very cool)

By Jessica Corbett

Common Dreams

April 15, 2024

The journalist says Zeteo will feature "hard-hitting interviews and unsparing analysis" in op-eds, podcasts, and streaming shows.

After a few weeks of "soft launch" mode, journalist Mehdi Hasan on Monday officially debuted his new media platform, Zeteo, and declared that "this is not a one-man band."

The former MSNBC and Peacock host—whose show was canceled in November and wrapped up in January, after his incisive criticism of Israel's assault on the Gaza Strip—revealed nine of the contributors he has lined up so far, calling them "some of the biggest, boldest, and best names from media, activism, entertainment, and beyond."

They are Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Spencer Ackerman, comedian and podcaster W. Kamau Bell, Palestinian Canadian lawyer Diana Buttu, former CNBC and CNN correspondent John Harwood, foreign policy analyst Rula Jebreal, author Naomi Klein, novelist Viet Thanh Nguyen, actor and activist Cynthia Nixon, and Swedish climate campaigner Greta Thunberg.

"The tough interviews and knowledgeable analysis are all coming back, along with a global cast of contributors," Klein said on social media Monday. "I was honored when Mehdi asked me to be one of them, along with Rula Jebreal and Greta Thunberg and many others yet announced."

"Mehdi and I will be having a regular conversation called 'Unshocked,'" noted Klein, who authored The Shock Doctrine.

Hasan—who has also produced content for Al Jazeera, The Guardian, and The Intercept—has saidZeteo will feature "hard-hitting interviews and unsparing analysis" in a variety of forms, from op-eds and podcasts to streaming shows, beginning with "Mehdi Unfiltered."

"To keep Zeteo's journalism independent and free of advertiser and corporate influence," Hasan explained ahead of the formal launch, "and to allow us to continue investing in the future, we have to rely on our individual paid subscribers."

U already KNOW what time it is baybee!!!! WIP WEDNESDAY!

Been riding the Gaz high and this has been in the works recently (I wrote 2k words yesterday) so here's this!

Director!Gaz x Actress!Reader

Summary: It’s the mid-1970’s and you’ve recently made the unshocking discovery that it’s difficult to find good work acting. Lucky you stumble on the wrong opportunity at the right time!

You’re not dumb enough to fall for the advertisements in the papers looking for actors in ‘up and coming independent films.’ Not anymore.

After being burned so many times by ‘pay to audition’ schemes and sleazy directors only looking to collect videotapes of girls doing porno auditions, you gave up on that front.

But what’s the stipulation on extenuating circumstances? Like when you’re working at a bar a few blocks away from the community theater and a man comes up and sits at the counter all by himself.

He’s gorgeous and a sweet talker. Seems intent on chatting with you even though you really should be polishing glassware. And once he’s finally caught you in his snare, he drops a bomb that up until this point you’d only ever heard stories about.

He says he’s a small-time director and he saw you in the last production the theatre put on. He laughs and makes a lighthearted self-deprecating joke about being “one of those wankers in the paper” to which you wrinkle your nose and give him a weary smile.

But, Jesus, if he can’t make a bad thing good. He’s got all the makings of a politician the way he’s able to talk circles around you until you agree to show up to an audition for his latest project. ‘Trouble in paradise’ or something to that tune.

He tips you twenty pounds and his business card on a coke he barely touches. Uses your pen to write your audition time on the back of the card.

Wednesday at 11a. x

He doesn’t give back the pen.

Your roommates do no good talking you out of it. Hushing your half-arsed arguments about scams and serial killers and all kinds of things. It ends with the four of you in a pile on the couch, wine-drunk and giggling yourselves into hysterics.

So two days later you go. Forcing your roommates to promise no less than five times that if you’re not heard from in an hour that they’ll send in the authorities.

You find your way to the address on the card that now looks tired in comparison to when you first got it. The edges are fussy and dog-eared from your worrying with it and passing it around to prove its legitimacy.

It doesn’t look like any studio or office you’ve seen. Far from. And that should have been the final nail in the coffin. Should have been the reason you turned tail and went back home. But something pulled you up the worn steps of the house. That same something, now cowering a bit at the looming possibility, brought you to rap your knuckles sharply on the part of the door with a few different layers of paint chipped away to expose the cheap metal underneath.

You’re left standing on the stoop for a few moments too long with no answer. And just as you were about to come to your senses and return home with some sliver of your dignity still intact; the door swung inward and exposed the same man from the bar - Kyle - with his horrible, beautiful, toothy smile.

“Thought you were going to stand me up. Wouldn’t have known what to do with myself.”

You catch yourself thinking it’s a shame that he’s directing and not starring in movies. His devastating good-looks and all. Must be a terrible read.

There’s a card table set up in the living room. Two folding chairs behind it that look flimsy at best. Three thick packets that have been three-hole punched on the side, but held together by a binder clip in the top center.

The rest of the furniture is pushed up against the wall. A hodge-podge of mismatched chairs and a sofa that very well could have been your grandmothers and a few banged-up side tables.

He offers water. Offers to take your purse. You decline both. Opt to stand a bit stiffly on the faded rug in the center of the room with your bag tucked snugly under your arm.

Maybe you should make a run for it. Maybe you were stupid to come at all. He’s a total stranger for Christ sake.

Before you can will your feet to move, there’s s bang from behind you. A screen door slamming shut and rattling on its hinges. It startles you almost a foot into the air.

“Nervous?”

Kyle is cool as ever, sliding into one of the chairs, waggling his eyebrows at you. It whines under his weight and you’re suddenly very aware of just how bulky he is. Doesn’t look it on passing glance, but when all you’ve got to look at is the way his shirt fits it becomes glaringly obvious.

“Easily startled.”

You correct, trying to decide whether or not it’s passé to turn over your shoulder to find the source of the heavy footsteps behind you.

He hums and grabs one of the packets, taking off the clip and leafing through it. Pulling out a few odd pages and setting them on the table.

The footsteps reveal their maker when he rounds the corner into the room and shuffles behind the table. If you thought Kyle was big, this man is properly a behemoth. A bit taller, broader in the shoulders, a layer of fat packed on over his muscles. He looks to be older by a few years. He gets crows feet when he nods and smiles at you before taking his seat.

The chair looks as though it would be happier pulling its own legs out from underneath itself.

“Cap’.”

Kyle doesn’t look up from his papers when he addresses the man.

You get no formal introduction to ‘Cap’ though he doesn’t seem to be truly involved in the audition process. He barely glances up from his packet. Content to nurse a fresh cigar and lean further back in the chair than you think should be plausible.

You read from the stack of pulled-out papers with sloppily highlighted lines and try not to shy away from meeting Kyle’s watchful eye.

The audition goes normally, all things considered. You’re instructed to read three different scenes. Without the time to read the blurb on the project, you draw the conclusion that “Trouble in Paradise” is some sort of short suspense film centered around a woman living, shockingly, in paradise.

The writing isn’t first-rate, but you suppose that’s to be expected. You have a hard time piecing together how the scenes flow, but that’s not your largest concern.

“Lovely. Really, darl’.”

Kyle stands when he talks. Commands the attention even of such a small audience. Takes up space in the room like he’s owed it.

You smile, feeling a bit more at-ease now that things seem to be wrapping up.

“N’ how do you look in a bathing suit?”

The question takes you entirely off-guard. It makes your jaw fall far enough open that you’re left looking like a fish out of water.

“I- sorry?”

Kyle’s face doesn’t change. Fantastic at keeping up appearances. He’s still casting that warm smile over you. The focus of it makes you feel like you’re sunbathing.

“Bathing suit, love. How d’you look?”

Disappointment drops like a stone in your belly. Heavy and fast. It’s another scam. Of course it is.

“Oh. I don’t- I don’t do dirty movies.”

It must be palpable on your face even more than it is in your voice.

‘Cap’ glances up at Kyle when he ashes his cigar. The smell is nauseating. He seems to be chewing on a smile. Kyle meets his eye for only a moment, amusement painfully evident on his face.

“You’ve just read the pool scene. Hardly anything dirty about costuming.”

𝐛𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐲 𝐛𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐝

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

vampire!dave mustaine x reader | word count: 4120 | ao3 link

It was inebriating, how completely surrendered to him you were. How fragile, and warm, and wanting.  How human.

✦ on this fic: NSFW!!!, dave mustaine x female!reader, +18, language, romance, mxf sex, unprotected sex, oral sex, blood mention, blood drinking

✦ a/n: It's October! And in honor of spooky month I came up with this one-shot. It's my first time writing directly in English (I usually write in my language and translate it) so I hope it's written okay. Hope you like it, feedbacks are welcome! ❤

You and Dave had an agreement.

You were close, but not too close. You both knew you could rely on each other no matter what, but you also knew there was something deeper, something you never had the guts to admit. You held onto the hope that one day the stars would align and things would magically fall into place. 

But then came the incident.

You'd always prided yourself on being unshockable, even in the wild streets of '89 LA. So when he showed up at your door looking like he'd been through a meat grinder, your first thought was that he’d probably gone and overdone it with the drugs again. It was becoming a familiar routine, taking care of him when nobody else cared. With a heavy sigh, you let him in, helping him stay on his feet and noticing how cold his skin felt.

"Dave, seriously, this time we might need to call a doctor."

"Nah," he grunted, voice strained. "No doctors. I'm good."

"What the hell happened to you?" You grabbed his hand and plopped down beside him. Whatever he'd taken this time, it was way gnarlier than his usual drug trips, and that's saying something. Dave looked like he was on the verge of sweating bullets even though it was a hot LA night. He was feverish, beads of sweat popping up on his forehead while he shook like a leaf. It should've been balmy, but if you judged by his icy-cold skin, you'd think it was the middle of winter.

"I got goddamn turned, that’s what happened" he hissed through clenched teeth, his whole body convulsing with pain. You took a step back, heart pounding like crazy. Well, that was one curveball you hadn't seen coming. Vampire attacks had become rarer than a sober rock star in the last few decades, but they still happened. You had a cousin who got bit a few years back, but luckily, the doctors managed to suck out the venom in the nick of time. That memory kicked you into high gear as you scrambled to find your damn keys.

"Dave, seriously, we gotta get you to the hospital. Maybe there's still a chance..."

"No, man, there's no damn time!" He yelled, desperate, and you just stared at him, totally stunned. "They made me drink their fucking blood. It's a done deal, I'm a fucking monster now, no way back from this!"

Your heart plummeted. Real-life vampire transformations weren't as simple as the movies and comics made them out to be. You had to get jabbed with vampire venom and guzzle some vampire blood almost right after to make it work. Plus, those bloodsuckers could choose whether to shoot their venom or just chow down on their victims.

So that meant the turnings were pretty much always on purpose.

Once it was done, it was game over.

You inched closer to Dave, your heart heavy as you gazed at the man you'd been secretly crushing on for ages. It was too painful, watching him suffer like this. You'd always held onto that hope that the stolen glances, the way you looked out for each other, and the sheer joy you found in each other's company would someday turn into something more than just friendship.

But right now, it felt like you were on the verge of losing him. Vampires weren't exactly welcome in human society; they were straight-up predators, destined to lurk in the shadows and strike when the night fell. If Dave had gone down that dark path, maybe it was time to say goodbye to the days of you two being together.

But you couldn't let that happen. You couldn't let him suffer, wounded, scared, and all alone.

Because you had an agreement.

You knew you could rely on him; he knew he could always count on you.

Dave's eyes widened as you got closer, extending your wrist toward him. He stared at you, confusion and hunger swirling in his dilated pupils. 

"Drink," you whispered, your voice trembling. He shook his head, looking horrified by the suggestion, but you closed the gap even more. "Please. You need this, Dave. You need me."

You shut your eyes and turned your head away as his hunger took over, and he sank his teeth into your skin.

It was one of those nights, the usual routine. You'd roll in from work, and there was Dave, chilling on your bed in the pitch-black room. You hadn't laid eyes on him for days, but you knew the drill. He hated having to feed, hated hurting people, but he couldn't seem to find any other way around it. Except for one option: you.

Dave had initially refused to feed on your blood ever since he had almost killed you, that night many months ago. You'd tried helping him find some alternative, but turns out, it was a way tougher gig than you'd thought. Animal blood did nothing for his thirst, and he wasn't skilled enough yet to drink from people without going overboard and killing them — or getting dangerously close to it.

The best you could come up with was nabbing a sip from folks who'd just kicked the bucket, but that meant finding fresh corpses without drawing any heat, and that was easier said than done. Maybe for him, it was a walk in the park, but for you, a regular human, helping him sneak into hospitals and morgues after dark was a recipe for disaster. Dave didn't want you caught up in the mess, or worse, in jail, because of him.

In the end, offering up your blood was the easier fix if he didn't want to go full-on vampire and start killing people. It was the one way he could hold onto a tiny shred of his former human self. At the beginning, it was rough on him, no doubt about it. You watched him suffer, saw how terrified he was of losing control.

But with time, he toughened up. After the initial shock wore off, his thirst started to chill out. Nowadays, he only needed a sip every week. You knew that if he was doing things the "old-school" vampire way, he'd be guzzling down a whole human's worth of blood every couple of months, but this was the sanest workaround you could come up with to keep the body count at zero.

You were cool with it, as long as he stuck around. As long as you knew he was okay.

At first, he used to nibble on your wrist for a meal. But after just a few weeks, he upgraded to the neck. It was smoother for him and more comfortable for you, too. Better access, and if you ever got woozy from the blood loss, he could keep you steady. But having him that close? Well, that was... let's say, unsettling. Sure, maybe he wasn't human anymore, but it didn't mean your feelings for him had just vanished. In fact, being the only tie he had to his old human self just made those feelings kick it up a notch.

"Your heart's pounding," he murmured, his eyes locking onto yours. You gulped hard, cursing how damn close you were, and how he could practically read your body like a book. After drinking your blood, his lips and cheeks had acquired a subtle pinkish tint, and his once warm, brown eyes had turned into this oddly beautiful shade of red.

"You freak me out," you fibbed, the excuse tumbling out in a rush but full of stubbornness. He grinned at your words, a playful glint in his eye.

"Do I now?" he teased, giving your hip a gentle squeeze as he pulled you closer. His chilly skin pressed against yours, sending shivers up your spine. He nuzzled your neck, his tongue brushing against your tender skin, making you whimper. "You know, they never spill this secret before they turn you – you can smell fear. And the scent of fear... it's something else. But you, you're not afraid of me, even though you probably should be."

"Why?" you breathed out, doing your best to shove aside the way your heart was practically doing a drum solo now. In the good old days, back when he was just human, you'd daydreamed about this like there was no tomorrow. To be this close to him, to feel his lips upon your skin. But now, with him all changed up, being this near wasn't anything like what you'd pictured.

"I could kill you right here, drain you dry," he growled, and you let out a little whimper as he bit down again, pulling you close and setting you down on the bed. His bite gradually turned into a sloppy, passionate kiss. You had to muffle a moan with your hand when he started sipping from your neck, taking even more of your blood. He backed off, fingers gripping your chin, making you meet his gaze. He studied your flushed face, lips slightly parted, eyes bleary. "And yet you like this. Why?"

"I dunno," you breathed out, shakily. You let out another whimper as he pressed his body against yours, his grip on your hair firm as he locked eyes with you, a fiery intensity in his gaze that revved up your heartbeat. You gasped in shock when he kissed you, his tongue diving into your mouth, the taste of your own blood making your head spin. You tugged at the collar of his shirt, pulling him closer like it was out of your control, and he let out a soft laugh against your lips.

"I can smell desire, too, you know?" he mentioned, his hand sneaking under your pants and tracing along the edge of your panties, sending shivers down your spine. You opened your mouth, caught off guard, your face turning all shades of red, suddenly feeling more exposed than ever with him. How could he read you like a book? You hated this new side of him, the side you didn't know how to deal with, the side that fully understood the power he had over you.

The side of him that enjoyed it.  

"Dave, we shouldn't be crossing this line," you managed to whisper, and he let out a grunt.

"We've already crossed so many lines," he argued. "Plus, I owe you. Tell me what you want, and I'll give it to you."

"I don't want us doing this just because you think you owe me," you frowned, and he huffed in response. You licked your lower lip, a fresh tension building between your legs. Even though you were still pissed at how he could see right through you, it wasn't like you didn't want this. "You can have whatever you want from me, no need to ask. As long as it's you..."

"No," he grumbled. "Don't say it like that, like I mean something to you. I'm a damn monst—"

"Oh, shut up," you whispered, cutting him off, and he gave you a puzzled look. Sure, he might be a whole new version of Dave from the one you used to know, but did it even matter? "You're not a monster. You got turned, yeah, but you're still you . And I'd give you anything, Dave, even if you were still human. That's how it's always been. I just..."

Your words trailed off as his lips crashed into yours again, his chilly hands gripping your waist firmly, and you couldn't help but let out a muffled moan.

"I wanna eat you whole," he groaned. "If you only knew how your heart races when I lay my eyes on you. It's driving me wild. If I'd known you felt like this sooner..."

"You know now," you whispered. His gaze locked onto yours, carrying a mix of anger, sadness, and something else. Something intense and deep that made your stomach twist and your skin tingle. Something that made you feel like he could have his way with you — and you'd let him.

"You're not exactly making this easy," he muttered, his voice low. You let out a nervous chuckle. You'd always pictured this — his body and yours, tangled up in your bed. In your fantasies, he was still human and madly in love with you. Was he in love with you now? Or did he only love how human you still were? How you stood by him even after his life had taken a nosedive and changed forever?

Did any of that really matter?

"I don't want easy," you replied, trailing your fingertips along his collarbone, slow and deliberate. You pulled him closer, your lips nearly brushing against his. You could feel his breath on your skin as he held you, making your heart race faster. "Everything's already a damn mess. If you wanna eat me whole, then just go ahead and do it."

He let out a deep groan as he yanked you closer, urgently, his hands roaming your body eagerly as you both stripped off your clothes. The room was dark, with only moonlight to guide you; his pale skin was smooth, soft against your naked form as his lips trailed all over you. You couldn't help but let out a throaty moan as he peppered you with kisses, drawing you closer and closer to him.

"Dave..." you hid your face in his hair as he teased your breast, biting down gently and leaving a trail of purple marks across your skin. He let out a low groan in response, grinding his hips against yours before pulling back slightly, looking deep into your eyes. He looked beautiful, supernatural; otherworldly strange, and that only made you love him even more. You wrapped your hand around his cock, using his precum as lubricant as you swiped your thumb over the tip in a slow, circular motion. He closed his eyes, grinding his hips against you as he let out your name in a strained moan. “Please, Dave, let me make you feel good.” you whispered. It was all you'd ever wanted, really — to serve him, to give him everything he craved and needed.

To be his, forever.

Dave moaned your name again, his strong arms pulling you close. You tangled your hands in his hair and locked your lips with his once more. His tongue dove into your mouth, kissing you with a fiery intensity. You wondered if it felt different for him now that he could sense the warmth of your blood, hear your heart racing, and smell how he was setting your body on fire.

He sat on the bed, leaning against the headboard as he kept kissing you. He let out a grunt when your lips traveled to his ear and then down his neck. You bit and sucked on his exposed skin while he dug his fingers into your hair, your lips and tongue exploring his chest, his stomach, his thighs.

And then his cock.

You started on his tip, your tongue slowly licking on it, pressing and rubbing it against your lips, tasting him leisurely. You raised your eyes to look at Dave; he looked back at you, his eyes bleary and out of focus as one of his hands grabbed a fistful of your hair. He wrapped his hand around his cock’s base, pressing it against your lips, and you opened your mouth obediently, welcoming him into your mouth.

“You’re so warm.” he whispered, his voice hoarse, his body tensing up as you moved your head slowly, up and down, the taste of his skin invading your mouth. He panted, bucking his hips forward. “You feel so good. Wanna cum inside your pretty mouth, oh fuck…” 

You whimpered as he started moving his hips, tears filling your eyes as he pushed your head down on his cock. He groaned, his grip on your hair growing tighter as he took control of you, pushing it slowly until you had all his length inside your mouth. He then pulled it out, rubbing the tip against your lips before he pushed again, and again, until he was moving in a steady rhythm inside your mouth. 

“Look at me.” he grunted, and you tried your best to raise your teary eyes and look at him. He groaned when his eyes met yours. You were trying your best to keep breathing while allowing him to fuck your mouth harder and harder. Your throat was growing sore as your pussy throbbed. You were such a mess. You were so happy. He needed you. You loved him. He was yours then, his lips parted as he moaned your name and his cock ravaged your throat, all control you both could have had in that moment forgotten as he arched his hips forward and moved faster, and harder, and… “Fuck, fuck, fuck, I’m gonna-Oh, shit!” he cried out as he came inside your mouth. You did your best to swallow it, the bitter taste lingering on your mouth as he let go of your hair, his breath uneven as his eyes closed. 

You sat down in front of him, trying your best to clean up the mix of semen and drool that ran down your chin. He gazed at you, his red eyes shining in the dim room, his breath coming in shallow gasps. His ginger hair was like copper against his pale, bare skin; you were never gonna grow tired of how stunning he looked.

"Get over here," he murmured, pulling you closer. You settled onto his lap, legs wrapped around his waist as he nuzzled into the curve of your neck, his breath tickling your skin. He kissed your neck slowly, then moved up to give your earlobe a gentle nip, and you let out a sigh, shutting your eyes.

"Dave..." you whispered, a hint of pleading in your tone. He gripped your hips, his fingers digging into your flesh as he continued to lavish your neck, jaw, and collarbones with kisses.You were miserably wet, your pussy aching as you felt his cock grow hard once more against your thigh.

“Tell me what you want and I’ll give it to you.”he whispered in your ear, and a soft moan escaped your lips as he grabbed your ass firmly. You pressed your body against his, burying your hands in his hair as you ground your hips together.

“Oh, fuck.” you whispered, tears pooling in your eyes again. Your whole body was aflame against his cold skin, fire and ice melting together. Your heart was pounding as he pressed the tip of his cock against your entrance, holding your ass firmly. He grunted when you moved your hips eagerly, holding you into place and preventing you from sitting on his cock. “Dave…”

"You're gonna have to ask nicely," he whispered, his voice deep and alluring, like a predator who knew his prey couldn't escape. He whispered your name, his tone surprisingly tender, and you let out a sigh, your cheeks growing warm as he gripped your neck, his fingers urging your face to meet his gaze. "Tell me what you want."

“I want you to fuck me.” you pleaded, and he laughed at how easily he could command you. He was having fun, drunk in his power and in you, the sweet smell of your hair, of your blood, the warmth of your skin. It was inebriating, how completely surrendered to him you were. How fragile, and warm, and wanting. 

How human.

"Say please," he teased, a sly grin playing on his lips. You let out an exasperated groan.

"You're messing with me."

"Am I?" he pressed the tip of his cock harder against your entrance, and you whimpered when he penetrated you with his tip for just a bit before pulling out. “Tell me what you want.” he commanded, and you couldn't muster the strength to resist him any longer.

“Please, fuck me.” you pleaded, and he laughed before pulling you closer. You moaned as you felt his cock enter you, adjusting to his size as he pushed slowly. You gasped when he put it all inside, the tip of his cock hitting the sweetest spot inside of you. It felt so, so good. He was going so, so slow. It was maddening, you were on fire, you felt whole for the first time in forever. 

You started moving, slowly at first, but then setting into a steady pace as he held you close, burying your face in his hair. You were sure you were dying, drunk on the smell of his body and the feel of his cold skin against yours, but you couldn’t care less. It was like poison, feeling his cock thrusting deep inside of you as you moved up and down and he whispered your name, his voice strained as he moaned with you and held you so tight it felt almost as if he would break you. 

You didn’t care; you were his now. You were bonded to him. You were his.

You moaned his name as he started rubbing your clit, your pace growing faster as he pushed harder inside you. You were shaking, your legs were burning as you rode his cock; it felt like heaven. You whimpered when he slapped your ass, burying his nose on your neck and then biting on your skin, tasting your blood once again as you bounced on him. 

You knew he was close, too; his grip on your skin tightened as he pulled away, blood trickling down his chin as he looked deep into your eyes and you moaned louder and louder, your tits bouncing up and down as you chased your high, holding on to him like your life depended on it. 

“Dave, you feel so good. Dave, oh fuck, you’re gonna make me cum. Dave… ” you moaned, words growing irrational and senseless as your pussy started contracting slowly. He moaned, praising you, whispering sweet nothings in your ear — how you were such a good girl. How you tasted so good, how you felt so tight around his cock, how good it felt to be inside of you. You cried out as your orgasm took every little bit of control you had left, making your whole body contract and shake. 

Dave grunted, holding you close as he kept fucking you through your orgasm, sweet, lovely words leaving his lips like honey, taking you over the edge again, and again, and again, and now he was coming too, his thick semen filling you to the brim as his thrusts grew sloppier. You buried your face in his hair, allowing him to take his cock out of you, your pussy still throbbing with pleasure, feeling suddenly faint. 

"Oh, God," you whispered, and you could feel Dave's quiet laughter beneath you more than you could hear it as he held you close. "I think I might pass out."

"Fuck, I'm sorry," he whispered, panting, and you weakly chuckled. "You lost a lot of blood. I shouldn't have taken so much."

“I think I’d be okay if you weren’t fucking me while doing it.” you grumbled, and he laughed again. His fingers traced along your back, and you sighed contentedly as he lifted you effortlessly, placing you on the bed and lying down beside you. You opened your eyes, studying his face, taking in everything that made him who he was. He looked more like the old, human Dave than ever before, with the vulnerability he showed, that old beautiful smile on his lips, and a touch of cockiness that only made him more endearing. “What’s making you smile?”

"I love you," he said. You blinked, your lips parting slowly. For someone who prided yourself on not being easily surprised, you found yourself caught off guard by him quite often.

"I love you too," you managed to whisper with a giggle. He smiled and pulled you closer.

"I know. I've known for a while," he said, pressing his index finger against your chest. You blushed when you realized how fast your heart was beating. "See? It's so loud I'm surprised you can't hear it."

"Oh, shut up, you freak," you whispered, and he laughed. You studied his face, running your fingertips softly along his lower lip. "I'm kidding. You're not a freak. But I am. I'm in love with a damn vampire."

"Do you care?" he asked, a slight hint of worry in his voice. You smiled and shook your head.

"Hell no, Mustaine."

"Then it's all good."

"Yeah."

"As long as we're together," he whispered, and you smiled, knowing that nothing had changed after all. You knew you could always count on him; he knew he could always count on you.

You were bonded.

You were his.

Robyn Anderson's letters and emails to former Columbine student and friend, Chris Kirk.

Robyn testified that Eric and Dylan told her they “weren’t that stupid” when she inquired about them using the guns to hurt people. She also testified that she knew Eric and Dylan’s parents were not to be told about the purchase of the guns. According to her narrative report from [date]: “...She stated that they asked her not to tell anyone and they in return would not mention her name regarding the gun purchase. She further stated this was not a two way blackmail sort of thing or a threat but rather just an understanding amongst them that this transaction for the guns would not get around to anyone else.”

She explained that this did not raise her suspicions as “there are some things that you don’t want other people to know about.” 

Robyn’s relationship with Eric and Dylan intrigues me as she appeared to exist on the margins of the friend group and is not often mentioned in writings or encounters with other friends. In fact, she is hardly mentioned at all in both Sue and Brooks’s books, merely described as a nice girl who had a crush on Dylan. Her significance as Dylan’s prom date was truly sensationalized after the fact, as she was the girl who was prom dates with a killer. 

I believe Robyn may have struggled with feeling close to many people. Robyn’s emails become desperate as she fears Chris Kirk pulling away due to her involvement with Dylan. She takes a lot of pride in taking Dylan to the prom and mentions that she believed Dylan would do anything for her if it made her happy. I previously mentioned the 1999 senior class photo in which Dylan and Eric encouraged the friends sitting with them to aim fake guns at the camera. Robyn was one of these friends. Based on the evidence we do have, Robyn seemed as though she would go along with whatever Dylan wanted her to as she was almost desperate for his attention and approval. This is not to say that there is anything wrong with Robyn – this is a very normal behavior for a teenage girl. It is important to remember exactly that: Robyn was a teenage girl. 

While Robyn gave clear indicators that she knew the gun transaction was wrong (The secrecy, the fact they were underage), I also do not feel it’s accurate to say there was no way she couldn’t have known what they were up to. Robyn, and many others, described it as "unshocking" that Dylan and Eric were interested in guns based on their personalities and interests. 

5/6/1999 chat between Robyn and Chris:

Chris: some interesting events so i hear huh

Robyn: …what have you heard?

Chris: basically about the shooting and victims

Robyn: hmm…were you out at sea when it happened? 

Chis: yes i was

Robyn: I was in my car coming back from lunch…i pulled into the parking lot and didn’t know what was going on – i sat in my car in the parking lot for about 2 and a half hours… I didn’t know who it was until later. 

Chris: it’s quite a shock to hear

Robyn: it was – very shocking because Dylan was never like that… he would do stuph [sic] just because he knew it would make me happy – like going to prom – he didn’t really want to go but he went to make me happy. who did you know?

Chris: dont tell me that shooting all those people would have made you happy

Robyn: no

Chris: ok just making sure

Robyn: he never talked about anything like that

Chris: how long did you know him for

Robyn: about 3 years

Chris: i heard that they had the idea for like ayear. they never said anything[?]

Robyn: nope – I think it was mostly eric’s idea. not that I am defending what Dylan did – cuz he was part of it – but I don’t think he came up with the idea

Chris: hmmm interesting. i think they had help in all of it

Robyn: I’m not sure about that because if they didn’t want other people to know something they didn’t tell them. best way to keep a secret. If they were really planning it for a year – they probably didn’t have help. 

Chris: i mean that’s a lot of bombs to be placed, and especially in the cafeteria

Robyn: yeah it is – but they may have planted some before hand – I heard that they might have at afterprom – i took dylan home at about 3:45 that morning and he and Eric could have gone back and put some down there if they had keys

Chris: how would they get the keys though. did they work in the school store or something

Robyn: Dylan did sound for the plays with Zack Heckler and I know that Zack had keys so Dylan might have, too.

As I mentioned, her demeanor is fascinating. She appeared to be concerned about Chris’s perception of her after the shooting occurred more than anything else. It’s a conclusion that seems incredibly obvious – but I think there are many moving parts to Robyn’s psyche that can explain her blase attitude. 

First, I see an eighteen year old that has been recently traumatized. Robyn had a direct hand in the murders that occurred on 4/20/99. Her close friend was the one who pulled the trigger and then turned the gun on himself. She was pursued by law enforcement after witnessing and experiencing a traumatizing event, therefore most likely unable to have an appropriate mourning and processing period. Robyn clearly deeply cherished her relationship with Chris, which would have been an oasis in the endless desert of grief she was quickly thrust into. 

It’s important to note that Robyn’s only media appearance since the shooting was alongside Diane Sawyer, in which she reiterated her narrative statement given to police. In 2001, she appeared before a Colorado court and settled with nearly a dozen families, agreeing to pay $300,000 in restitution for her connection to the shootings. At this court appearance, she recorded a statement for any future lawsuits. Robyn’s experience is truly very unknown aside from what has been released to the public. 

I try not to pass judgement on her behavior too harshly.

Moving in and Moving On Chapter 7

Chapter summary: Eddie learns something new about Buck, and himself.

“There’s more than one flag?” Eddie muttered, having had no idea, then his brow furrowed again. “What do you mean it’s yours? Like, you bought it?” “Like … it represents me? Because I’m bisexual,” Buck said as though it should be obvious. “Oh.” Eddie straightened and stuttered, suddenly wide-eyed and nervous. “That’s … that’s great Buck. I … congratulations.” Buck squinted at Eddie for a long moment, trying to figure out if he was joking. “Eddie, that wasn’t me coming out, everyone knows I’m bisexual,” Buck said, motioning towards the unshocked faces of the rest of the team. Eddie fidgeted awkwardly and replied quietly. “I didn’t.” Buck dropped his shoulders and huffed. This was just ridiculous. “Come on, I came out to everyone years ago.” “And was that particular year one before Eddie joined the team?” Chim asked smugly, knowing the answer even before Buck’s face fell. Buck looked shell shocked and Eddie looked apologetic. “Sorry, you’ve just only dated women since I met you.” “Oh my god. My best friend didn’t know I was bisexual,” Buck muttered then looked down sadly at the purple and pink fabric in his hand. “I don’t deserve this bisexual pride flag.”

The burn continues to be SO SLOW but progress is being made.

Read it on AO3

To be fair CF is just as much about found family than VW

Hi anon! I'm gonna link the post I talked about the Golden Deer here for clarity's sake lol.

I think when discussing themes of found family in different three houses routes, it's important to talk about Byleth. In a game where the single, main variable between possible futures is Byleth's interference, it means the story has to be written in a particular way--I mentioned this before when talking about character supports and endings; each character needs to be able to have a romantic ending with Byleth, which affects how their supports are written. In the case of the Lord's, this means you're given tangible reasons why you should've chosen them.

I mean. Let's be real here. Claude has the highest survivability rate of any character in the base game. He can't die if you're completing Verdant Wind (for obvious reasons), or Blue Lions. He's heavily implied to live to see another day in Silver Snow, and you can spare him in Crimson Flower! Edelgard and Dimitri die without the professor's stabilizing influence--but Claude? What does he lose without the professor.

That's sort of how I determine subtler themes of each route in a way--by comparing what you get with and without Byleth.

So when I argue that Verdant Wind is the most about found family, I mean it thematically; the other routes don't have tangible less found family, but without Byleth members of the Golden Deer just blatantly disappear unrecruited post time skip in several routes!

Without Byleth, the option for found family is removed for Claude in a big way, I personally feel, and not just by full recruitment runs lol. Not completely, of course--even in Crimson Flower a recruited Lorenz laments having to face off against Claude and Hilda is willing to die in defense of him and the city--but enough that it was blatantly shocking to me that if you don't recruit Marianne, she does not appear at all post time skip, no exceptions.

In a narrative sense, perhaps slightly unshocking; but in a practical sense? This leaves Claude without a healer.

Claude can't hold onto all his Deer even if you don't recruit any of them in the Academy phase. Silver Snow, Azure Moon, Crimson Flower--Marianne will always be gone; consistent, non variable. Depending on the route other characters like Lorenz might disappear as well.

The themes of found family are prevalent in all the routes, but since each route is pretty much defined by the Lord who leads it, I feel as though their personal relationship with the found family is most defining, if that makes sense.

People stand by Edelgard, Dimitri, and even Rhea for better, or for worse. Even recruited, characters like Felix make it abundantly clear that switching sides doesn't change the immense emotional attachment they have to their original lord.

This just. Isn't true for Claude.

Without Byleth, he doesn't get to keep everyone together. Without Byleth Hilda is recruitable in two routes. The idea that you could ever do the same with Hubert or Dedue is blatantly laughable.

Byleth's presence is what enables Edelgard, Dimitri, and Rhea to remain the most of themselves, if that makes sense. Edelgard's war strategy in Crimson Flower is a lot less aggressive and scorched earth then it is in the other two routes because she's had the professor as an emotional rock. Similarly for Dimitri, he's able to recover because Byleth is there to keep him alive and safe. And then Rhea will blatantly die in the Verdant Wind route where she doesn't in Silver Snow. Byleth, in every sense of the word, keeps these three characters alive and well.

But without her? They still inspire loyalty and devotion--unquestionable, again, if no recruitment takes place. Dimitri, Edelgard, and Rhea can all face up against you as enemies with the full force of their houses/allies (save for, oddly, Annette).

Claude does not.

Claude's whole route is about learning to trust others in a way that allows them to trust him. The Deer are devoted to Claude in Verdant Wind in a way they just, textually aren't otherwise, and that's due to Byleth's influence, both as a Professor to these individual students, and to Claude.

When I say that Verdant Wind is the most found family thematically to me, I mean it at a very base level. Claude knows he doesn't have what Dimitri and Edelgard seem to take for granted. It seems almost effortless, in Verdant Wind, the loyalty and devotion he inspires in his friends despite how often you, as Byleth, are told that Claude appears to be an untrustworthy and sneaky individual.

But it's easy to see in routes where you don't chose him that without Byleth, that image mantains. Claude is an outsider. And maybe he doesn't need Byleth in the way the other lords do to survive or achieve his dream (after all, there's nothing saying he can't open diplomacy with his former classmates after he goes back to Almyra so long as he lives to do so), but just as Byleth is uniquely able to be a peer to the Golden Deer, so can Claude uniquely trust and gain the trust of his house in full.

It's not as dramatic as the other two houses, and I think it's the point. Edelgard and Dimitri have already built a solid foundation of devotion and loyalty. Ferdinand and Felix (your "rival" characters in those houses) are loyal without Byleth, even if Ferdinand claims it's to guide her or if Felix complains every step of the way. Lorenz isn't. In Verdant Wind, you sort of take it for granted that everyone will be there at the reunion if they survived the Academy phase. Of course they will--they promised, didn't they?

But outside Verdant Wind, it's clear to see that you as the player took it for granted. And that's why I think Verdant Wind is thematically the most found family. It's not because the other routes don't love each other as much or aren't as complex or there isn't devotion. It's because fundamentally Verdant Wind is about Claude, for the first time in his life, having a group of people he can rely on and who will rely on him without hesitation. It's about the formation of found family, and how Claude doesn't need it to achieve his dreams, but man, does it give him something to achieve those dreams for.

Hold my hand | p.m.m

paring: maverick x gn!reader

summary: You never doubted what you felt for Pete ever. But maybe he has. After a strange conversation you begin to worry it might be all over.

warnings: swearing, whole lot of angst, spoilers for the second film and fluff

word count: 1.3k

a/n: im honestly not even sorry im full on in love with maverick now and I blame my friend. anyway enjoy this mess. You can tell this has been a slow writing year for me cause this has been a WIP since June.

Readers call sign is willow i have no reason other than I like it

MASTERLIST REQUEST

It was official you were running late.

Rooster’s birthday party had started half an hour ago and you weren’t even ready.

You were shocked by how little you knew your own apartment. Your organisation skills had gotten worse since Maverick had moved in with all his things. Before that you had a somewhat idea of where things were.

Like the grey top you liked to wear during training, when it was clean it would be thrown over your least favourite chair in the kitchen (along with all the other clean laundry) and when it was dirty it would be rounded up in the left corner of the bathroom.

But an unshocking fact about Maverick was he liked things clean and in order. And you couldn’t even say it was the navy training because you had the same training and still you like things how they were.

“Christ” you muttered heading to the bedroom, stopping to pet your old tabby cat that lay on the bed. Just out on the balcony sat Maverick. The balcony looked over the sea, The sky was a mix of gold and pink, his tanned skin shining in the light. At this time of day the beach was nearly empty, but you knew he was watching the sea.

It was strange the way he felt about the sea, it was a friend and a thief all at once.

You paused in the doorway and watched him, he was wearing this funny look.

“What’s with the face?” You questioned.

He smiled and looked down to his feet. “What face?”.

You straighten your back, “it’s your thinking face but not the fun one” you told him. Kneeling on the floor so you could see eye to eye . “You gonna tell me what’s going on in that mind of yours”.

He was silent, which worried you more.

“Mav? You’re starting to scare me” you stated.

He broke eye contact with you, straight away you could see his body language change and morph into a more relaxed shape. You frowned as he stood up, his head turning away from the sea and his worries.

“We better get going,” he said with a smile, then he left you kneeling on the floor. Turning your body you watched as he walked into your shared bedroom picking up the jacket you had been looking for. And left it on the bed for you.

Damn Maverick

xox

Maverick was a shockingly great actor, as soon as you walked through the doors of the hard deck he grinned to the other aviators, pressed his lips to your temple, then went over to Penny.

Still watching him you made your way to your friends. Wished Rooster a happy birthday and tried to laugh along with whatever joke Hangman made but you couldn’t stay present when you were worried about Mav.

“You good, Willow” Hangman asked, clapping a hand on your back.

You nodded, looking away from Mav. Hangman waiting for you to speak. “Yeah” you smiled.

You tried to enjoy yourself, you had a few drinks, laughed at everyone’s jokes and answered any questions that were thrown your way. But every now and then you would look over to the bar where Mav sat. Sometimes he’d be talking to Penny and other times he’d be on his phone, being very careful not to put it down on the bar.

Hangman pulled you away from your spot to question what you thought about the gift he had brought Rooster, after assuring him he did a good job and not to worry. You went back to your original spot and searched for maverick.

He wasn’t where you had seen him last, turning around in a circle you still couldn’t find him. You were about to call out for him when you spotted him sat on the deck watching the sea again.

After making sure no one was watching you opened the doors to the outer deck, pausing as the salty air blew against your skin, Maverick head tilted slightly hearing your footsteps.

“Will you please talk to me?” you begged him, lowing down to sit besides him.

His jaw clicked, the tell tell sign he couldn’t hold something back. “You sure you’re not making a mistake with me?”.

You frowned at his question. “Why would you think something like that?”.

He brought his face up, the setting sun hitting his dark brown eyes you could never get enough of. He reached out and held your hand, callus hand in callus hand. You frowned harder, confused by what he was doing.

He swallowed, gearing himself up, like he was braving himself for a fight. “I love you, you know that right”.

“I’d hope so cap” you tried to joke, letting your old pet name for him fall off your tongue. The name had an odd effect, his eyes flashed almost like he was remembering something.

Then he smiles through an exhale, his rough thumb drawing a line along your hand. He somewhat dropped his grip. “What do you see in me, Willow? I’ve seen you with the other and you could have your pick”.

You took his one hand in both of yours, even with the years that separated the two of you, you never felt a gap until now. But it was like he was making the gap. “I don’t want any of them. I want you”.

Breathing in the salty air and the leather smell that belonged to Maverick. “Where’s this all come from baby, if you want out just tell me that, don’t question why I picked you” your voice went wobbly.

“Of course I don’t want that” he said with some force, that he jumped to his feet. He ran a hand through his short black hair. “I think about you so damn much it drives me crazy, I worry about you all about, I wonder what you're doing. I-“ he stopped himself.

You felt your eyes well up, “no. Go on. What else?” You asked.

“I can’t bear to lose you, honey. I know it would end me, I can’t-“ he sniffed, then shook his head. “I can’t lose you too”.

You stared at him, knowing who the other person was. Goose. Iceman. Two wounds, one years old and still as fresh and the other. But that was grief, that wound never healed, not really. It was like a bad leg, some days it didn’t bother you at all, other days it would hurt all day long and wouldn’t stop for days and other times that pain would hit you from nowhere and the whole time you’d feel like you couldn’t breathe.

“Don’t you think I feel the same way? Not matter how many times you come back to me, for half a second every time your plane takes off i think I’ll never see you again” you told him.

He nodded and swallowed.

“But” you started, “I can take that pain and worry and whatever comes with it as long as I’m with you”. You stood up, dusting the sand off your legs, “you think you can do the same?”.

He walked up to you, closing the distance both physically and emotionally. This time he took one of your hands in both of his, his gaze locked on them. The waves crashing against the beach and the soft beat of music from the party were nothing to the hard beating of your heart.

Neither of you could speak, you couldn’t bring yourself to say anything else, trying to guard your heart. You could tell what he was thinking, over head the sky turned grey, an unexpected turn.

But the whole night had been unexpected.

All he had to do was talk. To tell you he needed you, just once and you would never let go. Ever.

He inhaled, hope pricked through you.

“I can do anything if you stand by my side”.

With the Dark Royal SBI thing, it reminded me of the practice of Noble Hostages. Like, as part of a peace treaty, a member of the losing side's royal family has to stay at the Winning side's Court. Not necessarily as family, but the hostages are treated well as long as their home doesn't start shit. I think this might just be a fantasy fiction/webcomic trope, but oh well, still fun.

So, imagine. Emperor Phil soundly defeats some dinky little country and negotiates their surrender. They have to send one of the Princes/Princesses as a hostage.

Well, they aren't going to send the Crown Prince, that's a given. Too important, that's the future of the country (which they stubbornly believe will someday escape Emperor Phil's grasp). And the younger princes/princess are too young.

So Techno gets sent. Technically second in line for the Dinky Country's throne, but no one really paid much attention to him politically. He's quiet, doing his own thing without bothering others. His older brother is always busy with learning all the crown prince things. His younger siblings are cute, but they are small. So so small. His parents are busy running a country, a country that just lost a WAR. He's not interested in politics or power, so the nobility ignore him. No interest in the throne, just wants to read, and ride horses, and study swordplay.

Maybe he's a little lonely, but he isn't completely alone at home.

He had friends at his home: his teachers, the librarian, the sous-chef who made the best potato dishes. At Emperor Phil's Court, he has no one. And while he is NOT a people person, it's still very nervewracking to be completely alone.

Especially scary because everyone at Emperor Phil's court is trying to get the guy's favor. Dude has destroyed a lot of countries. And a lot of countries want a little more power under his rule.

Technically speaking, Technoblade should be trying to do that. That's what his parents encouraged. But it's just-he can't. He's just a little guy who likes books, horses, and swords. He doesn't DO politics and making alliances. And he feels guilty about not doing more, but he is well aware that he can make things SO MUCH WORSE for his people if he fucks it up. And the pressure is too much so he just- does what he normally does.

He reads, he practices swordplay, he visits the stables.

Or he tries to.

The moment he sets foot in the palace, Prince Wilbur latches on and seemingly never lets go. When Technoblade is in the library, suddenly Wilbur is there. When he is sparring, Wilbur is on the sidelines glaring when his partner gets a little too rough. And Wilbur tells Technoblade all the horses very odd names.

He thinks that Wilbur looks sort of familiar? Like a kid he had played with at a foreign event before the war? That had been fun. It was a very nice memory. But that kid had been FURIOUS when Technoblade's parents had called him back. That kid had been WRATHFUL when Technoblade's parents had looked down on the kid. And Technoblade can't imagine Wilbur, always smiling looking like he had been given a gift Wilbur, ever having such a furious expression. Can't be the same kid.

Because Techno is always dragged beside Wilbur, he inevitably sees a lot of Phil and Tommy. Phil is kind, which is shocking because of his reputation. And Tommy is a menace, which is unshocking because he's, like, 5.

And like, Techno starts to just always be around them. They go out of their way to include him. And the first time he accidentally fell asleep on Wilbur's bed, Wilbur never lets him sleep anywhere else.

And it all goes to shit when Technoblade's dad dies.

He gets the news and he is upset, obviously. Wilbur seems pretty unbothered by it, but Technoblade assumes that that is normal. Its not like it was Wilbur's Dad that died. Whatsmore, Technoblade wants to go to the funeral. His family is begging him to come home for the funeral, if not also the coronation.

Wilbur is coldly against it, and won't listen to Technoblade’s begging. When Technoblade threatens to run away if he has to, Wilbur is furious and rushes off to grab Phil.

Phil enters and sees an incredibly upset Technoblade and an angry Wilbur and reaches a compromise.

It wouldn't be odd for the whole imperial family to go to the funeral. And while the invitation had really only been meant for Technoblade, Phil was sure they wouldn't be stupid enough to refuse.

Technoblade is so very grateful. And all of them go to the funeral. And Technoblade arrives back home to a... colder welcome than he had anticipated.

Like, no one would really look him in the eye. They didn't seem MAD, more guilty than anything. Sad, but not really about the dead kind. Which is confusing. When his Mother sees him, she grabs him into a hug and sobs, no thoughts on decorum. Technoblade has no clue what is happening. His older brother seems even more guilty, sneaking glances at the Emperor.

The funeral is a sad, and very confusing event.

A week after the funeral, Technoblade's home country declares war.

Which, as a political hostage, Technoblade's life is forfeit. He should be executed for his family's treason.

He's locked into his room for a day, a week, a month. Food is brought to him but not seeing a single person.

Well, besides the imperial family. They reassure him that they are doing everything they can, tons of really boring paperwork, Wilbur practically constricting him with how tight he holds.

And then something changes. Wilbur rushes in the door, early in the morning when Technoblade was still asleep and urges Techno to get dressed. Techno does, and Wilbur tows him along, a massive amount of guards around them that no one will explain, and then they get to the courtyard and Technoblade stops breathing at seeing an executioner on a scaffold.

But Wilbur isn't pulling Technoblade that way, he pulls him to where Tommy and Phil are seated comfortably. A raised box with a cloth overhang. Wilbur pushes Technoblade into his seat and Phil pats Technoblade's head fondly. Technoblade's confusion turns quickly to horror.

He sees his mother. His older brother. And a large group of nobility led through the courtyard in chains and burlap. Technoblade pleads with Phil to stop, begs for their lives. But Phil ignores him.

When his pleas turn to threats, Phil holds him too close, too tightly, and claims that Technoblade belonged to them now. That it was official. According to Imperial Law, Technoblade was now a part of the Imperial Family.

And as Technoblade watches his family die, his new family grips him all the tighter.

I was going to make some joke about wanting to read this full fic ASAP but honestly the ask is so detailed and good it feels like I already read a whole fic (wouldn't complain about more though)

hi!!! i was wondering if you could write a bit of a caregiver wally taking care of a regressed reader? my brain goes to them doodling while laying on the floor and other arts n crafts activities, maybe also wally singing the reader to sleep for a nap? much thanks if this is something you can do!!!

Delivery for you! I hope you enjoy.

Wally's crayons scratch against paper pleasantly, the soft sound filling the room as you both draw. You're always so glad to come over, and not to brag, but he does always say you're his favourite neighbor. You glance across at him to look at his art, and smile at how utterly unshocking it is that he's drawing an apple.

"Neighbor, please do not peek," he scolds lightly, smiling as he wraps his arms around his paper.

"Sorry!" you squeak, turning your head away as you go pink with the embarrassment of being caught. You roll over from where you're laying on your stomach, looking up at the ceiling. Green stars line the expanse, not yet glowing as it's only around noon. A door creaks somewhere down the hall, before banging itself three times.

"Oh!" Wally claps and sits up to his knees. "Home is talking to you."

"You sure it's not you?"

"Oh dear, do you suppose?"

Before you can continue, a table bumps itself until crafting paper slides off onto the floor. Wally tries to catch it, but being paper and tending to fly in every direction, he only successfully nabs one. He stares at it, deciphering.

"I think Home would like to draw with us." He tilts his head, gazing at Home's wall. He sets the piece he caught and some blue crayons next to the wall. You gaze at him, never sure how exactly Home plans to take part in everything Wally does. If he feels included that's good, though.

"I think Home is going to draw..." Wally pauses, "A bird."

"I think he'll draw um," you consider for a long moment of silence. Wally waits patiently. "A horse?"

Wally's face slowly but surely brightens, until he laughs softly. "Ha ha ha, Reader I don't think Home has seen a horse."

"Well neither have you."

"Maybe he will just imagine," Wally says matter-of-factly. "I think an imaginary horse will be nice."

"Give it wings and a sword, Home!"

"Do horses have those?"

"No, but an imaginary one could!"

Wally pauses, touching his chin as he considers. "Okay. Give it wings, Home." He crawls back to his paper, which you were distracted from peeking at, and covers it again.

"Why won't you let me see, bubba!" you pout at him.

"Because I am drawing it for Y - O - U," he smiles, tapping your nose.

"Wally, you've already drawn me so many apples."

His crayon scratches a large, wide circle along the paper, then he inspects it carefully. He holds it up, showing you. "You are just the apple of my eye! See? It is special."

A shining red apple sits as the pupil of a paper-wide black eye outline. It has eyelashes, and the apple inside is one of the best he's created.

"Woah... special apple," you nod reverently, looking far too serious.

Wally pats his palm on your face - a gesture picked up from Barnaby - and hands you the paper. He sits back and yawns, which makes you yawn twice as hard. "Are you tired, neighbor?"

"Nooooo," you lie.

"The sun is very high. When the sun is high, that is usually when I take you to lay down."

"Noooo!" you say more insistently.

He shakes his head slowly, fingers tapping his chin. "Yeeees," he draws out very slowly. "You should listen to me, neighbor."

"Why?"

"Because I am bubba," he nods decisively.

Beaten, you give in and help him put your drawing supplies away. As you clean though, you do start to get rather sleepy. You rub your eyes as Wally neatly puts away the last of his crayon boxes. You're so drowsy you barely notice his hand held out to you. You look up to his charming smile, and smile back as you take his hand and stand.

The shorter puppet leads you through the hallway, Home shaking picture frames to wave as you go. Wally always has the guest room set up nicely. A soft, fluffy quilt and an even softer pillow make it hard to resist nap time as he helps you lay down.

"Wally?"

"Yes, Reader?"

"Can I have a lullabye?"

"Hum..." Wally touches his cheek thoughtfully. "I don't think Barnaby has taught me any new songs."

"I don't mind an old one."

Wally sits himself on the bed beside your tucked in body, placing a hand on your hand. He starts humming different notes, testing for a song that feels right.

"Listen listen, now that you've got me made," he begins in a rhythm perhaps not intended. "Goodness but I'm afraid, something is going to happen to you∼ Listen listen, you got to be hooked and how I would die if something happened to you now..." The tune is upbeat, soft. He rubs his thumb on your hand gently as he sings.

"Button up your overcoat, when the wind is free - take good care of yourself, you belong to me!" He watches your face as you rest, smiling more than even his usual one. "Eat an apple every day, get to bed by three - oh, take good care of yourself, you belong to me."

You giggle sleepily, snuggling into your blankets. He closes his eyes, rocking to and fro as he sings to you. Even Home is silently listening.

"Be careful crossing streets, ooh oh. Don't eat meats, ooh oh. Cut out sweets, ooh oh. You'll get a pain and ruin your tum tum∼ Take good care of yourself, you belong to me!" He punctuates himself with a kiss to your forehead. "Ha ha, I'm sorry neighbor, that's all I remember."

"It's so pretty, Wally," you yawn.

"That's good! Did I help you sleep?"

"Well, I'm not asleep yet, but I do feel tired..."

"Why do you sound nervous, Reader?" He sets his hand on your forehead and brushes your hair back.

"I'm okay, bubba. I just don't... really want to be alone."

"Ahh, dear," he nods sympathetically. He looks around the room, seemingly in thought. "I don't exactly have all that and some to do right now. I can stay in here with you."

"Really?"

"Really," he says as he lays down beside you. He runs his hands across your hair repeatedly, still humming, though none of the notes seem to belong together.

With him watching over you and a gentle hand on your head, it becomes almost too easy to drift to sleep. And knowing him, he'll be exactly here when you wake up too, still singing to you.

Hi it me!!! Thank you so much again! 9 to 15, astarion being the receiver? 😏

Hiya! I only fit the eyelid kiss in because this got away from me but I hope you enjoy regardless! Thank you for the prompt!

***

Gortash's scrying screen is cut off mid-threat by Elizia's fist slamming into the glass. It shatters with a satisfying crunch and whilst it isn't enough to be visible from where he's stood across the ship, the faint scent of her blood itches his jaw. Silence overtakes the submersible even as the first of the explosions reverberate through the water and jolt them slightly. Astarion, having recieved prompting looks from the rest of their small party, clears his throat, not entirely confident in what he's going to say but it turns out not to be necessary. Elizia snaps herself together and leads them smoothly into docking, having been instructed by the dwarf who, in an unshocking display of cowardice, refused to accompany them, lowering their chances of success that much more. Shadowheart starts handing out dimension door scrolls. To make himself useful Astarion crouches down to Elizia's pack pushed out of the way and rummages around for the fire protection potions he watched her brew the night before in preparation for storming the Steel Watch Foundry.

"Things are going to happen fast," Elizia says, calm and unwavering as stone, reassuring in her cool determination. "We are not going to waste a single second. I don't care if they are annoying, if they swear at you, threaten you, anything, okay?"

"That feels a little pointed, love," Astarion can't help but grumble, Shadowheart shrugs a shoulder at him as if to say 'yes, but true'. He deliberately leaves her until last to get an elixir.

Elizia ignores him and continues as if he hadn't spoken which has him setting his shoulders, the gravity of what she's asking of them settling in with icey numbness. "You see a cell door with people behind it, you open it. You move on to the next. If it's locks and not levers or buttons then Astarion you prioritise any children and go from there. I-" the Iron Throne rumbles as another shockwave explodes, "Shit, okay. Shadowheart, cover us and dimension door where you see us needing to go. Hatch is safe to open in- three...two...now! Go!"

It's chaos. Pure and simple. Nonsensical and horrifying. The water rushing into the prison behind the automatically locked doors along with the echoing of every voice off the walls and floors ruins any chance of verbal communication. So Elizia, with a succinct mental prod to make them aware of what she's about to do all of half a second before she does it uses their last resort. The tadpoles have not been something Astarion has played with, not even had a passing fancy to. He knows Elizia has utilised her one, and the extra she actually ate out of pure curiosity one insomnia-ravaged night when she hadn't realised he was watching, from time to time to get them desperately needed information or safe passage. She has not used them to creep into their minds though. Let alone force her way past any mental protections they had standing, obliterating any resistance with ease. Not until now.

Continue Reading on AO3 or under the cut!

Creeping is not quite what she's doing. Bombarding them. Assimilating them. Bringing them so fully into her thoughts that her directions, her orders, are mere feeling, basic instinct, shared understanding of the situation as she sees it. Changing every millisecond as she takes in new information like she's been starving for it. For what feels like hours they race against the explosions and the deep ocean pressure to get every Gondian they can, and apparently Wyll's father, out of the prison and up the ladders to the ship. Astarion is beyond relieved when the prison works on mechanicisms rather than traditional locks and he can feel that relief bounched back twofold by Elizia in his head. He clears his area first, shutting the doors in the corridor behind him, and he goes to help Shadowheart with her side. Lae'zel is the one to tell Mizora where she can go shove her petty interference and slash down the spiders in one foul dance across the room. The Duke, to give him due credit, does follow the Gith's orders and go straight for the ladders rather than trying to join in the fight.

Elizia is the last to safety. She crawls up through the hatch, rolls to the side to clear the way for Lae'zel to slam it shut. At the same time she withdraws from their minds. Astarion reels in the sudden silence of being alone again, of not seeing and hearing and experiencing double. He looks to see if the others are as affected and whilst they do well to hide it as they go about sorting the prisoners into seats and out of the way, the pinched brow Lae'zel is sporting and the stiff movements from Shadowheart give them away. He turns to check on Elizia, ready to steady her after all of that, but she's already undocking them from the Iron Throne and starting to steer them back to the city. One of the Gondian's is bleeding enough to make his stomach roil so he scowls and goes to hand out health potions.

It is a testament to their leader's exhaustion that she tries to intimidate the fish cult woman only once before letting her start a fight. Astarion truly cannot be fucked remembering who it is they help or don't anymore unless they pop up at least a second time in their journey, preferably a third to learn their name. These have not left a lasting impression so he lets himself take in the thrill of ending them with limited efficiency. All of them are sluggish and Lae'zel's damned boots accidentally electrocuting them all does not help. By the time the fish women are lying dead in puddles of the salt water they so adored, Elizia is clearly exhausted. He watches her struggle through, accept the gold handed over from the dwarf, and give the direction to head back to the Elfsong.

It's when he wanders over to her side, knuckles of his fingers casually grazing against the back of her hand in an offer, that he realises the extent of her distress. As soon as he touches her she flinches away, startling away like she hadn't noticed him approach, and there's a mental shove at his mind as if Elizia is using what hold she has on her two hitchhikers to repel him. He apologises quietly and gives her the space she so dearly needs. She doesn't even thank him, becoming lost in herself again immediately.

Back at camp, Astarion packs a bag before even washing the bloody grit of the day away. He hesitates over shoving in one of his own blankets but ultimately decides that Elizia is exactly the sentimental sort to appreciate the offer of having something of his with her. He still hides it at the bottom just in case she isn't the one to unpack. Backpack ready, he drops it at Halsin's feet without a greeting.

The burly druid looks down at the bag then back up at him quizzically.

"Is this your way of telling me to get lost?" He asks, that damnably kind twinkle in his eyes to ease any contention his words may provoke.

It's not necessary, Astarion knows where he stands with Elizia, and she with him. She's got him, and he's got her. This is part of having her back.

"No, though it is sweet of you to be so amenable if it were. But no. You need to take Tav out of the city for the night. The forest or the coast or... I don't know. Somewhere quiet. You aren't tadpoled right?"

Halsin's smile has drifted away, concern clouding his expression as he looks over to where Elizia is curled up with the owlbear near the door.

"Is she okay?"

"It has...been a tough day. She needs to be away from people for a bit, get some peace and quiet away from this noisy lot."

"Why aren't you going with her?" He questions, picking up the bag to sling it over one shoulder.

Astarion taps the side of his forehead. "The tadpoles got a taste of each other today, let's say, and they're greedy for more. It's uncomfortable and I expect more so for her right now."

Halsin nods solemnly. "Understood. I'll keep her safe, Astarion. I promise you."

"You had better. The end of the world will not be your biggest problem if she doesn't come back safe. And mind you don't give her any blackberries, she's allergic."

He hangs back as Halsin crosses the room to offer Elizia a hand up from the ground. He can't quite hear what the druid is saying but Elizia's glance over at him suggests that the credit is being given to him, she smiles, a small tremulous thing, before turning back to Halsin who somehow already has her travelling coat ready for her.

The first of dawn's misty light is sneaking into the upper floor of the Elfsong when Astarion slips out of meditation. The weight above, and sort of on him in an uncomfortable misidentification of where his legs were under the blanket, stills.

"Sorry," Elizia whispers, pressing a kiss to his forehead, "and thank you."

He tilts his chin up for a sleepy kiss which she grants chastely before giving a featherlight kiss to his stubbornly still closed eyelids. Satisfied, she finishes crawling inbetween him and the wall and fights her way under the blanket. Once settled he rolls onto his side to curl up around her as she lies on her front. He's never understood her favouring sleeping on her chest, neck craned so she doesn't suffocate herself. But she does and so he provides the weight she enjoys when relaxing, lying carefully half on top of her, arm around her waist and face buried in her neck, her braids tickling his skin only slightly. He dozes whilst she sleeps until Gale starts up on breakfast later in the morning.

take me back to the start

Scream post-6 fic - part 1 of this is how the story ends

This is it.

There's nowhere left to run.

They're finally cornered.

Ghostface is hers.

- - -

It had taken two weeks of watching and waiting for this opportunity to arise. She had almost certainly lost one of her jobs to stake out the derelict building. The Ghostface had disappeared in this area several times, and an investigation had led her to this building in particular.

It was clearly the right place: the disturbed dust, the shiny new padlock on the door, the bottled water and the half-eaten packet of protein bars stacked neatly on a cracked table. Oh, and the blood. There was a lot of blood.

And tonight… tonight there was even a body.

And if that body had still been crying out as she watched Ghostface drive the knife into its chest over and over, hushing the crying boy all the while, well, who's to know that Sam waited to alert the Ghostface to her presence. The world was better off without ‘date-rape’ Frankie anyway, Sam justifies to herself, remembering when he sought to take advantage of her drunk little sister. It’s the thought of all the girls without stalker sisters and over-protective friends that keep her body frozen and mouth shut, listening to his gurgled begging.

She watches, morbidly curious, as Ghostface runs the knife over the now-silent body. Over his eyes, between his fingers, down his belly. A final stab to the crotch has Sam wincing on Frankie’s behalf. Eh. He probably had it coming.

Steeling herself, Sam clears her throat and thumps on the wall beside the open doorway. “Knock knock, anyone home,” she calls.

The Ghostface doesn’t flinch, unshocked by Sam’s entrance, it seems. They slowly raise their head to meet her gaze in a quiet staring contest.

They're a lot less intimidating than Sam expected, even covered with blood splatter and hunched over a dead body. Maybe it's because Sam is the hunter for once. Maybe it's because, despite their several run-ins over the past four weeks, this Ghostface had only ever fled when faced with Sam Carpenter.

Were they scared? They should be.

Sam watches with a smirk as her trap is sprung. Ghostface moves into a crouch and throws themself in the direction of the only other doorway, just as intended.

Sam may have decided to confront a serial killer empty-handed and alone, but she wasn’t entirely stupid. She had scouted the inside of the building just the day before, memorised the layout, and blocked off the only other exit to the building.

There was only one way for Ghostface to run.

With that knowledge in hand, Sam made her way deeper into the building, unhurried. The bloody footprints and occasional handprint made it an easy trail to follow, all the way to the end of the line.

- - -

The Ghostface keeps their back to the wall, head twitching side to side as they survey the room. A useless endeavour. Sam stands between them and the only exit, just as she planned.

"Well," Sam taunts, "what's next?"

The Ghostface looks at her, head tilting.

"What's next indeed," they murmur.

The voice modulator ensures they speak with the echo of past Ghostface’s, and yet Sam thinks this Ghostface might be something... different. There's no anger in their voice, no simmering rage, or desperation, not even fear. Just a calm and collected tone. Even their bloodied knife sits loosely in their fist, relaxed and pointing to the floor.

"Why are you doing this, Sam? I'm not after you, so why did you come looking for me?" Ghostface asks softly. They almost sound... No. This is just mind games, it must be. They want her to let her guard down.

"You're a killer," Sam spits. She can't let Ghostface control her emotions, she has to stay angry and ready to act. Sam has someone to go home to, she won’t underestimate this enemy.

"So are you," Ghostface replies, taking a few steps forward. "We're not so different, quite alike I would say."

Sam snarls back, "we are nothing alike. I killed in self-defence, to protect myself and my family. You... you choose to kill people. You're a murderer."

Sam finds herself surprised at her outburst, at the vitriol in her words. Then again, it is a bit of a touchy subject for her. A... trigger, as her therapist might say.

Ghostface sighs, and Sam struggles not to react to it. Those in the Ghostface costume have always had an inhuman aura while donning it, one that sparks fear and dread. But this one... this one seems so small by comparison.

Literally, actually.

It wasn't obvious before, but with the rising sun infiltrating the room through poorly boarded windows and cracks in the ceiling, it's clear that without the darkness to hide in and a bluster this Ghostface hasn't seen fit to display for Sam, what's left behind is just a person in a mask and a robe. Not a threat. Not even a monster. Just a person in a shitty Halloween costume.

They're shorter than Sam, and skinnier too. She could take them, end this here and now, before it escalates any further.

"Well," the Ghostface asks, repeating her own words back to her, "what's next."

Sam stares at the Ghostface before her and finds that she can't just end it. Without the adrenaline and fury of an immediate life or death situation, she doesn't feel the need to attack first, to snatch the knife from their hand and dig it into their hidden flesh over and over. How funny, that it is standing before her father's legacy that she's never felt more distant from it.

Sam reaches behind her, fishing her phone from the pocket of her jeans. "I'm calling the police."

That gets a reaction.

The Ghostface tightens their grip on the knife, its tip flipping upwards. "I can't let you do that Sam." There's an edge to their voice now. "I don't want to fight you," they begin to leap forward before they've even finished speaking, "but I will."

Sam dodges to the side as the Ghostface slashes out at her, aiming for the phone in her hand. The knife misses, but the sudden motion has the device slipping from her fingers.

Shit.

The Ghostface rests their boot on the screen. Sam prepares herself for the crack of her very expensive phone, which she quite frankly cannot afford to replace right now, being crushed. Priorities, Sam.

It doesn't happen.

Ghostface slides their foot backwards, sending the device skidding to the other side of the room.

So much for the peaceful option.

They lash out again, forcing Sam to take another step backwards. Then another.

In a matter of seconds, Ghostface had managed to quickly take control of the situation, Sam realised. Smart.

Now nothing stood between the masked figure and the door. Should have seen that coming, she thinks, as Ghostface tries to bolt through the now open exit.

Sam manages to throw herself forward just in time to grab at the billowing robe. Her feet slide forward but the halt in momentum allows her to yank the figure back into the room. Ghostface falls into Sam in a bruising collision.

Ghostface reaches down and drops the knife to grab her arm instead. Kicking off the floor to move forward, they spin mid-movement, twisting Sam's arm painfully. Despite this, she refuses to let go, the robe ripping as she's propelled forward, back towards the doorway.

Sam drops the ripped robe to the floor and turns back to face the killer.

Ghostface shrugs away the rest of the damaged cloth, kicking it to the side. Without the robe, her adversary seems even smaller. But no one could say they hadn't been prepared for the possibility they may be revealed. An all-black outfit of cargo pants tucked into blood-soaked combat boots, and a fitted leather jacket with a hood of its own. Combined with the reinforced leather gloves and mask, they cut an impressive figure, Sam can begrudgingly admit.

She flings herself forward, hoping to use her size advantage to topple the smaller figure, but they resist, feet planted solidly. Ghostface endures against the motion, pushing back in the grapple with surprising strength. She tries to get an arm around their neck, but that only leaves her open to take an elbow to the chest.

It’s an accidental kick to the ankle during their tussle that gives Sam what she needs to gain the upper hand. Ghostface grunts and flinches back, losing their grip on Sam. She takes the opportunity to throw the masked figure to the floor, their head bouncing off the bare concrete with a crack.

She doesn't give Ghostface the time to recover, immediately throwing herself onto their back and straddling them. Sam pins the figure down, holding their gloved and bloody hands in her own. Hard plastic knuckles dig into her palms from the force.

Sam breathes heavily as she recovers her breath, but not as heavy as the figure below her as they attempt to throw her off. She wonders how this could be the most dangerous Ghostface of them all, going by the bodies they've left behind. Did they have a partner? Partners? No, that doesn't feel right.

This Ghostface worked alone. She doesn't know how, but somehow Sam knows it to be true.

They've stopped trying to escape, and Sam can't stop the grin that forms. She won. She's beaten Ghostface. They're alive and able to face the consequences of their actions. After so long of feeling like a villain, being treated like a villain, Sam wonders if someone other than her sister might finally consider her a hero.

She relinquishes her grip on their left hand and pauses, waiting for her downed foe to try and take advantage of this opening. They remain still below her, breathing laboured.

Sam reaches out for the mask, only to find her hand slapped away.

"Don't!" the Ghostface gasps out, voice desperate.

Sam finds her smile give way to a frown. Shit, had she broken their ribs? She really wanted to take this Ghostface alive.

Oh well.

Confident that they aren't in a position to cause any more trouble, Sam releases the other hand and sits up on her knees. She grabs at their jacket and flips them over with ease.

Reaching back for the mask, Sam ignores the weak hands pawing at her wrist, silently begging her to stop.

She wishes she had.

She wishes she had stayed home, had never gotten herself involved. She wishes she didn't recognise the face below her, even with it half hidden behind a gaiter. She wishes she didn't recognise those big brown eyes staring up at her.

She wishes it wasn't her little sister lying between her legs, wheezing, in bloodstained gloves. Sam pulls the cloth away and looks down at the tearful face of her baby sister.

Another choked gasp from the girl has Sam moving on instinct. She drops the Ghostface mask and reaches into her jacket pocket to retrieve Tara's spare inhaler; she never goes anywhere without it these days.

Sam shakes the inhaler, flips off the cap, and brings it to her sister's face; a familiar motion ingrained into her soul from days when Tara was too young to monitor her own health, from just 3 days ago when she once again woke in Sam's arms screaming from a nightmare she refused to talk about.

Tara turns her head away and it washes the shock of the situation away with a tidal wave of frustration.

Sam grabs Tara's chin, with more force than necessary she can admit, and forces the inhaler into her mouth.

"Deep breathes," Sam coos, pressing down on the cannister, voice gentle despite the tsunami raging hell inside her.

There's something soothing, almost meditative, about taking care of her sister, even now, as Sam struggles to comprehend what this all means. Her hand slips up to cup Tara’s cheek, and the hiccupping sob beneath her fingers has her forcing her sister to take another puff from the inhaler. She pulls it back and Tara closes her eyes with a shuddering breath.

“Oh babygirl,” Sam whispers, blinking back tears, “what have you done?”

It doesn’t feel real. How can it be real? This is her sweet baby sister beneath her hands. Not some… killer. This is a girl with a smile that could outshine the sun. A girl who forgave her big sister for running away and bringing hell with her when she returned. A girl with nothing but kindness in her heart. How could this be the same dark figure she watched butcher a man? Tara isn’t… she isn’t like that. She’s good. She’s not… she’s not Sam.

“I’m sorry,” Tara whispers, opening her eyes. “I’m so sorry.” Tara brings a still-gloved hand up to rest on Sam’s. “I never meant for you to find out, this was the last thing I wanted.”

“Find out? Tara- what-” Sam’s face scrunches in confusion. “Please tell me what’s going on.” Sam has had to face so many nightmares in her life, in her dreams and in reality, but this one really takes the cake.

“I never meant to hurt you,” Tara sighs. The girl turns her face into Sam’s palm, savouring the feeling, as if it might be the last gentle touch she ever receives. Were Sam anyone else, if this was anyone other than Tara, maybe that would be true.

Her words are sincere, Sam knows, but they bring a chill to her spine all the same. She’s sorry she’s been caught. “It’s not me you’ve hurt, Tara. You killed people.” Sam feels like she’s fallen into another dimension, one where she doesn’t understand anything, one where she doesn’t know her sister at all. “You… this wasn’t, this isn’t like… the others. This wasn’t your life or theirs, it was just… murder.” Sam doesn’t even recognise her own voice.

“Do you hate me?”

Tara’s voice is so small, the image is so incongruent with the path laid out behind them, Sam doesn’t know what to think. But she does know one thing.

“I could never hate you, never.”

Sam pulls Tara upright and drags her into her lap. She’s never been good with words, so she settles for squeezing Tara tight. Maybe if she hugs her hard enough, she’ll never ask her that question again. Maybe if she hugs her hard enough things will be ok.

She holds the back of her sister’s head, pressing her into her shoulder. The sensation of blood trickling over her fingers threatens to overwhelm her with panic, but she finds control in focusing instead on Tara’s steady breathing against her neck and her strong grip on Sam’s back. Sam takes a deep breath.

“I just… I just want to understand. Please, Tara, explain it to me.”

So she does. Her words start off quiet and uncertain, but gain unwarranted enthusiasm as she continues to speak. Every new sentence feels like a stab straight into Sam’s heart.

“It was an accident, at first.” Oh god.

“I just wanted to fight back.” No.

“I didn’t want to be scared anymore.” No.

“I wanted them to be scared of me.” No.

“I couldn’t help it.” Please.

“They deserved it.” This can’t be happening.

“It just… it felt so… right.” STOP.

Sam wrenches Tara back. She holds her by the jacket collar and stares at her through blurry eyes dripping with tears. “Don’t say that!” she demands. The sound of her own words being echoed by her baby sister leaves Sam’s mind racing. This can’t be happening. Is this her fault? Did she ruin Tara by bringing this darkness into her life? Or maybe it was already there, a small part of her wonders hopes acknowledges. ���You can’t say that.” She can’t talk about killing with a joyful expression, she can’t talk about it feeling right. Not Tara. Not her little sister. She was supposed to be the normal one. She’s Sam’s light.

Tara’s face, previously open and frantic, turns terrifyingly blank. “I thought you of all people would understand,” she says, voice flat. Her eyes slide away from Sam’s, head tilting down to stare at her own hands. “She should understand,” she begins to mumble to herself.

Sam feels like she’s looking in a mirror.

It breaks her.

Sam calls her name and tilts Tara’s face back up; she looks at her softly. “I do understand.” She has to choose her next words carefully; she’s walking a tightrope and one wrong move will leave them both tumbling to their doom. “Why didn’t you come to me? Don’t you trust me?”

Tara startles, face turning sad. “Of course I trust you!” she hurries to explain, “I just didn’t want you to worry. You’re always worrying about me and you were doing so well with therapy and everything and you looked so happy all the time and I couldn’t… I couldn’t ruin that, Sam.” Tara’s hands clench into fists in her lap. “I have to deal with my own problems.”

Guilt wraps its harsh hand around her throat. Sam feels newly 14 again, yelling at her sister to deal with her own problems when the still-eight-year-old Tara begged her for help with her homework, their mother absent once again. She feels 15 again, learning that her sister is being bullied but didn’t tell her because she has to deal with her own problems. She feels the “you’re not dealing with your problems!” from 6 months ago rear its head once again.

Sam sighs and reaches down to take Tara’s hands in hers; she begins to remove the gloves. “Tara, you make me happy.” She throws the bloody garments to the side. “And so long as I’m around, you will never have to deal with your problems alone.” For the first time in a while, Sam feels steady. She knows what she has to do. Tara just needs guidance, a firm hand. She can fix this.

“But-” “No.”

Sam stands and pulls her sister up with her. “Here’s what’s going to happen,” Sam declares. “We’re going to remove any sign you were ever here. Then we’re going home, and you’re going to tell me everything.”

“…Everything?”

Tara looks anxious and it sets alarm bells ringing in Sam’s head. What else could there possibly be left to hide, what comes after killing people and enjoying it?

“Everything. There will be no more hiding, no more lies.” Sam ducks her head to meet her sister’s eyes, “we’re a team, right?” Tara nods and looks at her with an expression Sam lives for. The one that says you’re my hero and I love you and I trust you implicitly.

“Ok, you ready?”

“I’m ready.”

I've been thinking a lot recently (which is never a good thing!) about who would be the MC's "besties" or first friends if they didn't meet Ace and Deuce first at Night Raven College. And since you are one of my favorite people for TWST stuff and I enjoy hearing your thoughts, I wanted to share it with you like I normally do. 😁

I'll go in order of dorms and start with Heartsabyul because it may actually keep me on track. I can't imagine anyone else from Heartsabyul aside from Ace and Deuce, but if I *had* to pick someone I could see being MC's first friend at NRC, I think I would be Riddle, honestly. He'd see this pitiful, lost, magic-less student and view it as a challenge to prove how capable he is. He'd not only educate you about NRC, but about Twisted Wonderland itself too. He'd tutor you in classes (for extra credit or maybe just for his own pride) and make sure you abide by all rules. You're basically an honorary Heartsabyul student by the end of the first semester and Grim has been collared four times a week since ya'll first started. You never have a problem with bullies because if someone so much as looks at you wrong, it's off with their head. You are invited to every Unbirthday party and expected at all croquet matches. Ace and Deuce still wind up taking a liking to you and you're able to convince Riddle not to punish them. Trey is used to your presence by now and whenever he sees you in the halls and you appear lonely, he'll come over and tell you Riddle could use some company and you're sent on your way to him.

For Savanaclaw I was a little torn on who to pick. I like the idea of you started to hang out with Ruggie because you run into him all the time when he's handling errands for Leona. But Jack just barely beats Ruggie out for title of "first friend". I think with you both being first years and you being totally lost, this lone wolf would feel bad and you'd essentially become part of his pack. Of course, Grim stresses him out severely... but you accompany him on an occasional run and he sees you in the bleachers at every game. He's over at Ramshackle more than he's at his own dorm.

Next up, my favorite Octatrio. You can't tell me that Floyd wouldn't start picking on you for his own amusement. A magicless human from another world- definitely a novelty. You'd get so used to Floyd's antics and how he'd track you down wherever you were, that eventually you just started looking for him in between classes and would call out to him. And that is how you meet Jade; after confusing the two (since you didn't even know there were two), Jade asks how you know Floyd and you're just like "he's me friend :)" which shocks the usully unshocked eel because from what Floyd has told his brother about you, you basically never have a moment of rest. Jade then takes an interest and from that point on, anyone who has a bone to pick you has to answer to the Leech twins. Azul however, misses his hench-fish. Please hang out at the lounge so Floyd will at least pretend to work.

For Scarabia, it's 100% Kalim who befriends you first, but Jamil comes later (and reluctantly). I think Kalim would find you shortly after the opening/orientation ceremony (whatever it's called- Swimmy is drawing blanks) and introduce himself and immediately declare yourselves best buddies- and Grim. He adores Grim. You're basically at Scarabia every day after classes (sometimes against your will because you can't so no to Kalim's puppy dog eyes), and this is how Jamil grows to tolerate you. You pay attention to him separately from Kalim and he's not used to it. Ramshackle also gets updated with some nicer furniture and decorations because Kalim wants to make sure your dorm is comfortable too. It is not uncommon for Kalim to come bursting through the door of Ramshackle with Jamil in tow and drag you and Grim to another celebration at Scarabia. Jamil- not that he'd ever admit it -finds himself looking for you whenever you're not with him and Kalim. He feels at peace when things grow quiet and he notices that you and Kalim have both fallen asleep on the cushions in the dorm.

Pomefiore was also difficult. I believe Epel would be the first one you bonded with. He feels like he can be himself with you. Surprisingly, you're allowed to sleep over at the dorms pretty often, although Vil often threatens to separate you two because you're up all night and YOU NEED BEAUTY SLEEP YOU POTATOES- anyways... somehow or another, Rook winds up hanging out with you two a lot. Nobody knows why. But it isn't uncommon for Vil to walk into a room while the three of you are getting into to something and getting instantly suspicious. Vil basically adopts you and treats you and Epel like his babies... which basically means Vil is a pageant mom.

For Ignihyde, you're only getting Ortho. He'll force Idia to meet you later on, but you and Ortho meet while he's handling something for Ignihyde and you just think he's so cute and adorable. You'd steal him as your own brother if you could. It's a strange sight to see the three of you; the robot, the magicless human, and a cat monster. But you three get along well- mainly because Ortho always bring treats for Grim. Idia watches through a Webcam sometimes and finds himself considering you a "friend" even though ya'll probably don't even meet until almost a year into you being in Twisted Wonderland.

And lastly, Diasomnia. It's Malleus- I bet nobody saw that one coming *sarcasm*. 😂 You meet him the same way you do in thr storyline, just much earlier. You two remain secret friends and meet nightly until he finally invites you to Diasomnia for dinner or something. From that night on, you're an honary Diasomnia member. Sebek starts hanging around you to "make sure you're not a threat to the young master!!!" but finds himself enjoying your conversations- and no he isn't blushing!!! Silver seeks you out and naps while you're doing homework or reading. You always wake him when it's time to go and he appreciates it a lot. Lilia adores you and is so excited his boys have made a friend. And I know I said that basically nobody would mess with you if Riddle or the twins were you friends... but having these 4 as your first friends... yeah, you probably won't even make other friends. 😂 You're well protected. Not even Grim can piss anyone off anymore, he's protected too.

Now I wanna ask! Who do you think would be the MC's first friends if not Ace and Deuce? And/or who would you want to meet first in Twisted Wonderland??? Personally, I'd enjoy meeting Malleus first or the twins.

- Swimmy (I need to get a life) 🏊‍♀️

SWIMMY YOUR MIND IS A CAVE OF WONDERS DON'T BE AFRAID OF THINKING TOO MUCH AND SHARING IT WITH ME <333

well, that's being said... I loved all your takes <3 as always, really lovely, funny and wholesome! Idk what would be the best friends options for MC if wasn't Ace and Deuce so, I'll talk about me personally. Maybe some of our points get in agreements lol

I - Heartslabyul

starting in a interesting point of view, I would probably stumble into Cater and/or Trey first. I'm a huge introvert and I have this power of attracting extroverts so, I feel like Cater would be super interested about my situation + my introversion. Kinda like Idia lol he would try and make plans for me to socialize and befriend Heartslabyul before anyone

weird statement ahead: Trey have so much "my dad" vibes to him, sometimes too literally. I can imagine me being lost at some place in the castle, running into him and having the biggest "pls, help me" eyes someone ever gave him. Trey would inform me the right way to go and in these small meet ups, he invites me to Heartslabyul to eat something. I'm the absolute stan of his bakery skills~

Riddle, Deuce and Ace would come with time and the follow ups of the main story, I think

II - Savanaclaw

as much I love Jack, we are two introvert idiots and wouldn't talk to each other until someone present us or some mild accident happen and we sort of interact. We have different "lone wolf" vibes. So I feel like, I would befriend Ruggie first

probably I saw him during a errand and offered some help, which he appreciate tons. Ruggie seems easy to talk to, he would laugh at how surprised I look at anything and how I'm so quiet in the beginning. Best case scenario, Jack saw Ruggie struggling with a basket of Leona's dirty clothes and we both run into him at the same time. Ruggie make the presentations and drops the basket so we both carry it while he can relax his arms for a while. Awkwardness arises but we start talking about Ruggie and... oh look at that, a friend?!

Leona took sometime to get used to me coming and going to Savanaclaw. He was the one who looked at me (and based about what Ruggie told him) and pointed, kinda mindlessly "so this is the little kitty-cat you two, bug brains, adopted?"

III - Octavinelle

Floyd as a best friend was a good take! So him! I fully agree. But... what if was Azul instead? He would be very curious about my situation, a poor unfortunate girl living in a abandoned dorm. Maybe she needs a good hand? that can trick her into a contract

but I'm like Jamil 2.0 with him. I love Azul tons but I don't like people going straight to me, especially appearing out of nowhere and scaring me (which is very easy to do and do horrible things with my overall humor). So, he would try to find things to make a organic interaction happen. Do you need new glasses? Medicine for your rhinitis? Mind to try fancy food? Maybe work at Mostro Lounge for money?

I think with the right words and acts, he would win me over. Not for a contract tho, I'll terrible afraid to sign any compromisse idk much of. The tweels are like a McDonald's double gift. The perks of having me as a friend is that, I would protect Azul's integrity from Jade and Floyd... just to mess with him myself sometimes. We are both members of "adjusting your glasses omniously anime-style" (Idia's words)

IV - Scarabia

Kalim. There's no other way. And yes, it's opening ceremony! He would see me walking around the halls, all alone and lost, and invite me for four different banquets in a row just in case. He's very friendly and his smile is something difficult to deny. I'm doomed in this sunshine boy's hands <3

befriending Jamil is only a matter of time. I feel like we relate a lot so, as much fun I would have with Kalim, I would almost pass out next to Jamil and mumble, more to myself than him, "oh God, I hate parties so much" and this picks his interest, just a bit

we all definitely talk a lot in all own ways, having each one of them by my side is a different experience but I manage to stay true to myself all the time and in which Kalim thinks I'm very unique to hang out with, Jamil reassures himself that maybe we're more similar than he first thought

Jamil would have one of those "wait, are we friends???" when I give him a gift and I'm like "yea? uh, if you're too uncomfortable with that, I'll understand..." "NO! I- I mean, sure. friends..." Kalim just jumping in the background "YAY~!"

V - Pomefiore

Epel too in my notes. It's a specially horrible day for him, he is at the apple trees area almost next to Ramshackle, almost crying, I awkwardly goes to him and offer some support. We try not to worry one another in this and Epel is like "no... its okay" when I offer him a cup of coffee (hospitality 100 points!). Meanwhile, I'm thinking how I want to find whoever made this poor boy cry and kick this person into a hill

I would go into a big experience of wanting to adopt Epel as my son and as I get to know him better, looking at him as a equal. We absolutely bond over shit-talking Vil and some of Pomefiore's extreme ideals (once in a while, talking about some good things too some times). The best part? We both are the most feral creatures deep down so when one has a anger attack, the other has one too and there's this... connection between us. Epel offers to always cut apples to me bc my knife abilities are for stabbing people, not fruits (he gets overly concerned about I cut apples and honestly? i don't blame him)

Rook will introduce himself uninvited and gets along with me before I even understands. One of my weak points is that I like weirdly funny people... he uses this weakness against me.

Vil and me have a mutual bond of disliking each other, but if he's in a good humor, he may not look too much at my dry skin and refrain himself of trying to bring me to the "skincare side of the Force". Maybe I'm too much like Leona and that another annoying thing about me lol

VI - Ignihyde

if isn't Ortho going out of his way to befriend me, I don't think anyone from Ignihyde would dare go near me (is the disadvantage of all us being introverts, we don't talk to each other). Maybe was accidentally, maybe is bc I was in front of Ignihyde's mirror thinking if I should take a look at them or not... I don't want to bother anyone... then Ortho comes up like "oh, you want to see my dorm? Come, I'll show you!" and drags me in

TOTALLY shows me to Idia and is the voice of the talk for good long weeks until Idia mumbles his first complete sentence to me and I reply a complete sentence as well, getting more used to this new ambience. I hunt down for Grim the moment Ortho talks about how Idia likes cats (girl needs to have a subject to talk about)

we all grow into one big alliance with game nights, anime marathons and manga reading time. Grim only likes the first one (bc its more interesting)

VII - Diasomnia

the biggest chance is that I befriend both Malleus and Lilia first in my humble opinion. Malleus are this creepy guy with horns that appears sometimes at night and I try at least to offer him coffee but we talk more each time; Lilia scared me off by accident one day. He wanted to prank Sebek but I came in instead. Since my reaction was very amusing, he started to talk more with me... then I discovered that Malleus and Lilia not only know each other but for the longest time, and I'm like "I should had seeing that coming"

Lilia is that kind of dad who would try to set me up either with Malleus or Silver. Sebek maybe for the comedy potential lol I feel like my personality fits more the Diasomnia crew so I'll would feel at home

imagine, spending nights talking about gargoyles with Malleus, Silver's sleeping at my shoulder, Lilia made dangerous inedible cookies and Sebek is at my other side, grumpy as he can be (and Silver and me occasionally tease him a little, the first not knowing it and me most of the time on purpose)

[special addition of mine~]

VIII - RSA

in terms of story and possibilities, Chenya would be the first one to befriend me. Maybe I was walking around Heartslabyul and saw his head floating around, our eyes meet and I'm split between "oh God, a cat boy" and "OMG A HEAD"

either way, he smiles and starts talking more with me. Definitely shows more at NRC for me and to see Riddle and Trey. If we are all together, even better! I love cats oh so much <333

Neige would also be instant friendship, most like Kalim. He's like a angel I just ran into and we share apples, smiles and the world feels like a cottagecore, I'm spinning around the school with him by my side. I don't even look like my gloomy self anymore, he fills me with so much joy and wholesome feelings~ Gran is my favorite dwarf, he get each other like anyone would

[...]

Thank you again for these interesting headcanons, Swimmy! I had a lot of fun imagining all of them <3 pls if you have something more to share, you're always welcomed in my inbox! we talked so much that I practically feel like we're friends too~

me everytime someone talks to me more than three times and we have fun:

if you are reading this and you have your own First Best Friend type of headcanons, pls feel free to share with us too <3

Went to the local comic shop for the first time, was asking for recommendations and chatting with the clerk and he asked what I’ve read so far, which is only Under the Red Hood. And this man goes “oh you’re a Jason Todd kinda gal” and completely changed his line of recommendations. Idk if I should be upset or unshocked that he just absolutely read me for what I was there for

Veronica Mars: A blog as I watch the film post seasons 1-3 *Spoilers*

No way veronica is with Piz is the first thing I have to say. It is majorly alluding to never escaped a small town, but the intro was incredibly endearing. Veronica and her dad’s relationship has always been my favorite in the show. The reunion is very adorable and raw, awkward, and clunky just like real life. Being in my early I current live in rabid fear of my ten-year high school reunion, but this movie captures the habits you fall into when you reunite with old friends. The movie knows what its viewers are expecting, and even throw in a few extra stars amongst the fully returned cast, including Mac, Dick, and Wallace. I love that the film is reflecting on the youthful days of high school with love and longing, but not returning to them. Choosing a more mature color palette and camera angles is doing everything it hoped for it, and it looks great on Kristen Bell and how she’s perfectly stepping back into the role. Still, I was hoping that Logan would have grown up and stopped messing around, yet it makes perfect sense he was always still just holding himself together, after everything he’s been through. It is odd to me that Mac took a job at Kane software, but only being in the exposition I’m assuming it’ll be a key element to proving Logan’s innocence. Veronica just slipped on her leather jacket and has declared this her “farewell tour.” It is classic Veronica to end up in her suspects apartment under false pretenses, and to eventually get arrested… and bailed out by an old ‘friend’ who wants to blackmail her. Logan and Veronica’s chemistry is palpable even after all these years, and Logan’s sarcasm [and Veronica’s] has grown charming with age. Wow… I can’t believe Madison is here… my least favorite character. I love the interesting awkward interaction with Gia, and adorable one with Weevil. I adore Weevil’s growth and excitement to show off his new life to Veronica. I am surprised that Veronica’s sex tape continues to be used against her and brought up time and time again, as that literally is revenge porn, yet not surprising Madison is using it against her. This ending in a fight I saw, but not Veronica punching Madison in the face. It is satisfying seeing the growth in the gathering of evidence, especially because rather than gossip it’s translated to reflecting on memories. The film truly sat down and thought “where would these characters be in ten years.” I am insanely shocked Weevil got shot by Celeste Kane scared, in her broken down car. I love the choice to make this film as the consistent storylines that stack is crucial to the Veronica Mars feel, especially the original first season, as the overlapping storylines make the mystery solving satisfying. The fun cameos keep returning! I am endeared that Max Greenfield returned for this film! He is adoring, and the call backs to the TV show are short and sweet. Unfortunately, I do think the show had to choose to write off the original Sheriff Lamb for allegedly ‘ego’ reasons, I wish they had him around for this movie, because the call backs don’t work as well with a new sheriff who hates the Mars for no reason. I continue to be shocked by the cameos in this movie, or not so cameo by James Franco and Sue Heck, or Eden Rebecca Sher. I don’t think I’ve ever seen this many original cast members return to a movie before since the High School Musical movie series, including Vinny. Veronica ditching Piz’s family, to me, is exactly why they shouldn’t have been together for this long, but I suppose as Veronica missed her job opportunity the point is that she’s over dedicated to this case. I don’t know if she’s truly overcommitted to this case, or if she just wants justice. I’m unshocked that the plot is surfacing to be a corrupt cop plotline, but shocked that Mr. Mars and the uncorrupt cop were in a continuous hit and run! This movie keeps me guessing. Part of me feels like it’s the big bubble of Neptune that was waiting to burst or could be the CW’s effect on drama shows. Logan never stops being adorably caring exactly when he needs to be, but I am tired of them reuniting with a passionate kiss… although classic and would have preferred Artic Monkeys instead of the Hozier-esque music they chose, and since when is the movie more PG than the show?! The relationships are always so obviously painted in front of us, Cobb and Gia I saw coming from a mile away. I also can’t believe that [Congressmen Boyfriend] is now listening to Veronica and Gia’s conversation… this could go in all directions. I am ultimately disappointed the ‘friend died at a bad party situation’ of the high school reunion but appreciate the blackmail storyline… cannot believe Gia got shot!! [Currently terrified while Cobb...? searches for Veronica] Ending on the news stories and Veronica asleep at her dad’s bedside, and of course on how days separated between Veronica and Logan don’t mater. “Come back to me” Veronica says. “Always” Logan replies. Absolutely adorable. Although I don’t necessarily agree that Veronica Mars returning to Neptune to solve crimes is her getting back to the ring that she always needed to be in, but I understand this all was a big promotion for the return of the television show, the fourth season that is. I am dying to read the Veronica Mars novels; I enjoyed the pacing and quick wit/self-awareness the show plays into. I originally started the show because I saw some clips on Tik Tok, and noticed how many rising stars were in the original cut of the show. Now to begrudgingly watch the fourth season, although I haven’t heard amazing things. Thank you, Veronica Mars, for all you’ve granted me and I look forward to the rewatch.