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sunshinecircusworld · 7 months

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story test - tom and carousel

this is the second time i tried writing a scene for this project, i wrote it last month and i've decided that i'll post it publicly :)

format, story, etc all subject to change

[Tom is a black-furred anthropomorphic tomcat. He is approaching a multicolored, primarily pink anthropomorphic zebra named Carousel.]

So your name is 'Carousel'?

𖦹 Yes. It is what I am and have always been, and thus it is what I should be called.

Why are you always walking in circles?

𖦹 The answer might be the same. It is what I am. A carousel spins in circles unendingly.

But you aren't a carousel, you're a person.

𖦹 I know that. I am a person, but I haven't always been. I think I only started 'living' recently.

...

[Tom feels an uneasy sense of understanding for what Carousel has just said.]

𖦹 Do you think there's a difference between being 'alive' and 'living'?

...Yes, I think. We're all alive, but we aren't always living. I think I've experienced something similar, maybe.

𖦹 Oh, really? I'm intrigued.

Well, I don't know what you've been through, but, for me at least, when I was at home I was definitely alive, but I don't think I was living.

𖦹 What was your home like?

I don't really wanna talk about it, sorry.

𖦹 I understand

Sorry for bringing it up pointlessly...

𖦹 No, it was valuable to hear. I do think we have some things in common, but I don't think you're the same type as I am.

What do you mean by that...?

𖦹 Being 'alive' is often juxtaposed with being 'inanimate,' right?

Yeah, like inanimate objects, like, stuff and things, and stuff... But not all of the things we refer to objects are actually inanimate or actually not alive, you know? Like plants, they're definitely alive, and somewhere in between animate and inanimate, but usually categorized as objects when compared to stuff like people and animals.

𖦹 Yes, precisely. In actuality, there is very little distinction between what is 'alive,' 'inanimate,' an 'object,' a 'thing'. All of those words have overlap with each other when arbitrarily categorizing the beings of the world.

I've always wondered why people and animals are considered more alive than plants. And besides that there's all sorts of other weird stuff that I don't even really understand. Like jellyfish and corals and all that stuff? And bacteria and viruses too. I don't really get it.

𖦹 You don't need to 'get' it. Just understand that we all exist in this world together and we all perceive and understand and value it in different ways.

Do you think things like corals, and objects can perceive and value things...? I know we were talking about animals, but I don't really know how plants feel about the world. Well, actually maybe they like the sun. Maybe they think the sun is the most beautiful thing in the world.

𖦹 Yes, exactly.

But then what about things like rocks? I can't really imagine how a rock would perceive the world.

𖦹 You don't need to. There will always be existences and perceptions that cannot be understood.

Ah... I guess that's true.

𖦹 Anyway, I forgot to get to the point. I was once an inanimate object, but I was still 'alive'. However, I had not yet begun 'living'.

What do you mean you were an inanimate object? That doesn't make any sense.

𖦹 ...I'm disappointed in you, Tom, honestly. I'd have thought you'd have noticed by now that things here don't make sense.

...Yeah I guess that's fair.

𖦹 Like I was saying, I was once an inanimate object, I was literally an animal on a carousel, a zebra spending every day galloping around in circles while not moving a single muscle.

Wait, you were like a carousel animal, like a ride? Being ridden? And able to remember all this?

𖦹 Yes, I was likely cast in a mold and installed onto the ride, although I don't remember that part. I just remember being on the carousel, pierced by the pole and ridden by the guests. Around and around and around and around.

What was it like? If that's okay to ask. Being alive but not able to move, not really 'living' yet...?

𖦹 I can't recall many emotional memories or details... I think my emotional capabilities may be abnormal or lagging behind in some ways. Maybe I didn't yet have a 'heart' when I was on the carousel.

[Tom thinks deeply about this sentiment.]

I see...

𖦹 What I do remember was galloping, and the feeling of the pole and the guests, and the sound of the music. The latter was quite beautiful but the first two were... perhaps uncomfortable. But I tolerated it. I'm strong, after all. I needed to be.

You were 'alive,' but definitely struggling, but still surviving. So...when did you start 'living' and stop being an object?

𖦹 That I can't remember.

Ah, sorry for asking.

𖦹 What I do remember is when the pole piercing my belly was finally removed. It felt like finally being freed from a restraint after being stuck for so long... and the pole then became my walking stick, allowing me once again to gallop.

Well, it's not the same as you, but I think I understand the feeling of being stuck, and then getting a bit more freedom.

𖦹 Yes, it's wonderful. It was the best thing to ever happen to me.

It is wonderful.

𖦹 I was blessed to be given this new body, the ability to be an 'animate object,' the pole that has become my walking stick. All of them were given to me so that I can continue galloping.

Is that why you just walk in circles every day...? I still don't really get it. Where are you going?

𖦹 There is nowhere to go when you gallop in a circle. It is the act itself, galloping, walking, running in a circle which holds significance.

And that significance is...?

𖦹 The strength to keep going.

Like how you kept going on the carousel despite your constant discomfort from the pole? Or do you mean it's about endurance in general, or the strength to keep living.

𖦹 Even now, although the pole no longer burdens me, it appears that the fact that I have been given a new body and the ability to move has left me with a residual eternal discomfort. And yet I keep going.

Do you mean you can still feel the discomfort from before even though you're not an object anymore?

𖦹 Sometimes I do feel the pole, yes, but that's not what I'm talking about. My joints often ache throughout the day, for seemingly no reason. It'll start in the wrists, spread to the elbows, transfer to the knees, hips, and just keeps going in it's own loop within my body. It's like the discomfort and pain are also galloping in a loop, and each stop along the circle is one of my joints. I think it is because my body was stagnant for so long, and then altered to my new form, and it isn't quite used to it yet. Maybe it never will be.

Oh, wow. I'm sorry to hear that.

𖦹 Don't be. It's how I live. I'm 'living' now, after all, even with discomfort and pain. I'm quite happy to be 'living,' even like this.

Again, it's not the same as you, but I also get aches in my back and neck pretty frequently. And I seem to get tired faster than other people... So, I know what it's like to have a day where it feels like you're not strong enough to keep going.

𖦹 I am strong enough to keep going. I know I am and I know I always will be

Ah... I didn't mean to imply otherwise...

𖦹 It's fine. I know I am strong because every day I continue to walk, to gallop, in my circles and loops as I know I must, and every time I take even one step, it hurts. But I continue to take the next step, and the next step, and the next step.

Wait, it hurts every time?! If that's the case don't you think you should take a break or something...?

𖦹 It makes no difference. Discomfort and pain persist even when sitting, when lying down, and after resting, I still feel pain.

Wow... You really are strong.

𖦹 I need to become stronger. I know this because I have begun noticing changes in my body. It seems the joints will ache for longer and longer, and the pain too, stronger and stronger.

Can't you take medicine for the pain?

𖦹 It is not so simple. The medicine that has helped relieve the pain has had the side effect of interfering with my galloping. I can't have that. I must keep galloping.

Ah, I see. That sounds tough.

𖦹 Indeed, it is. But I have been strong in the past, and endured much discomfort, so I believe I will be possible to do it again. I was blessed with this body and this ability to move. I'm certain it won't be stolen from me, and I definitely won't become an inanimate object again.

That's great that you have so much confidence and motivation.

[Tom feels somewhat jealous of Carousel's faith and drive for self improvement.]

𖦹 Yes, although I don't see it as an impressive skill or anything. I simply have no other choice than to live this way.

Right...I guess that can be said about all of us, I mean, in terms of what bodies and abilities we happen to have. It's not really something we have all that much control over, so we adapt, and we live.

𖦹 Yes, we adapt, and we live.

#announcement #story #carousel #tom

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daniarts19 · 1 month

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The Total Drama Characters if they are animals.

I’m doing a update to my animal au list, just for things

Hosts:

Chris McLean- Weasel

Chef Hatchet - Alligator

Blaineley - Fennec Fox

Josh - Labrador retriever

Don - Golden Eagle

Island/Action/World Tour Contestants:

Ezekiel: Opossum

Eva: Honey Badger

Noah: Aardwolf

Justin: Peacock

Katie: Meerkat

Tyler: Border Collie

Izzy: Red Panda

Cody: Mouse

Beth: Quinea Pig

Sadie: Chinchilla

Courtney: Jackal

Harold: Canadian Goose

Trent: Silver Fox

Bridgette: River Otter

Lindsay: English Cocker Spaniel

DJ: Deer

Geoff: Sea Lion

Leshawna: Brazilian Toucan

Duncan: Grey Wolf

Heather: Snow Leopard

Gwen: Corsac Fox

Owen: Panda

Sierra: Striped Skunk

Alehandro: Jaguar

Revenge Of The Island Contestants

Staci: Parrot

B: Elephant

Dawn: Owl

Sam: Sloth Bear

Brick: German Shepherd

Anne-Maria: Black Panther

Dakota: Flamingo

Mike: Mash Deer

Jo: Spotted Hyena

Scott: Red Fox

Zoey: Gazelle

Lightning: Zebra

Cameron: Rabbit

Pahktiew Island Contestants

Beardo: Bison

Leonard: Pangolin

Amy: Saluki

Samey: Saluki

Rodney: Moose

Ella: Squirrel

Topher: Black Footed Ferret

Dave: Abyssinian Cat

Scarlett: Rat

Max: Mole

Jasmine: Kangaroo

Sugar: Pig

Shawn: Amardillo

Sky: Cheetah

The Ridonculous Race contestants

Tammy - Tapir

Gerry - Cobra

Pete - Rattlesnake

Ellody: Mongoose

Mary: Beaver

Laurie: Alpaca

Miles: Goat

Jen: Ring Necked Parakeet

Tom: Hyacinth Macaw

Kelly: Mink

Taylor: Mink

Mickey: Chipmunk

Jay: Chipmunk

Lorenzo: Tazmanian Devil

Chet: Warthog

Rock: Striped Hyena

Spud: Sloth

Dwayne: Lion

Junior: Lion cub

Crimson: Hawk

Ennui: Vulture

Stephanie: Asian Rhinoceros

Ryan: African Rhinoceros

Carrie: Sheep

Devin: Dhole

Emma: Siamese cat

Kitty: Siamese cat

Jacques: Husky

Josee: Lyxn

Brody: Harbor Seal

Sanders: Doberman Pincher

MacArthur: Pitbull

Total Drama Island (2023) contestants

Caleb: Horse

Axel: Wolverine

Nichelle: Tiger

“Scary Girl” Lauren: Fruit Bat

Damien: Bat eared Fox

MK: Raccoon

Wayne: Reindeer

Raj: Emperor Penguin

Ripper: Spotted Skunk

Zee: Girafe

Chase: Coyote

Emma: Tabby Cat

Julia: Swan

Millie: Hippopotamus

Bowie: Crane

Priya: Indian Peafowl/Peahen

I just hope I do some fanart for their designs and maybe redraws too.

#total drama #total drama island #total drama revenge of the island #total drama pahkitew island #the ridonculous race #total drama reboot #total drama island 2023 #headcanon #animals #animal AU #my ideas #writing #my writing

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beddhead-red · 2 months

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I posted on here once like "I had sex once and immediately understood why someone would rather do legos with Tom" & like, I was being facetious, but genuinely I fucked around and incidentally discovered that I'm further on the aro/ace spectrum than I thought, which is wild to me.

I always sort of expected "when I get into a relationship, everything will just sort itself out", and then as time went on and I met more people I sorta just realized "I can't really see myself in a romantic way with these people."

I started using Tinder for like a month and had the slow realization that dating apps suck ass. Most people like to move much more quickly in a relationship than I do. Most people really are out here judging a book by their cover.

This isn't to actually shame or deride people who do that, because I have friends who do, it works for some of them, but like...it's a bit annoying to have a fully filled out bio, left swipe people who are mostly blank, and see a million "You missed a match!!!!" notifications in a row.

That was what sorta pushed me down the road of saying "hm, okay, demiromantic seems like it fits."

Like, there are people I could see myself romantically with. I know what that feels like. It's usually with people who I am attached at the hip to. It's people I'm really close to already as friends. It's people I want to spend my life with, romantic or otherwise. I may find you attractive, I might think your personality is nice to be around, but there's a long process of getting to know your character I'd have to experience before I'd know that much, and I don't see romance as an option before that.

Of course, people are still attractive to me. And yknow, based on that, as long as they're cool with not being super attached, friends with benefits isn't out of the question, right? And if I find someone into it, that'll just sort itself out...right?

Several years and some schnasty experience later, yeah I'd rather do legos with Tom. People are weird.

And people are even weirder when you want to assign a label like demisexual or demiromantic on that sort of thing, when they have no problem with people who just say the thing they mean, usually. And I think that's fuckin weird, dude. Let people live their lives how they want to. Let people make words so they can describe that they're a zebra and not a fucked up weird horse.

And if you're a zebra, that's cool dude. Fuck anyone calling you a fucked up weird horse. Unless you enjoy being a fucked up weird horse, in which case more power to you

#i just felt like sharing #I've been experimenting with a lot of different shit over the past few months and finding out a lot #about myself and the world around me #i think it's good to explore and introspect on different experiences you have in order to gain a better understanding #about yourself and especially about the world #like some people talk about drugs in a way that makes it clear they've never touched them #and a lot of people talk about sex in a way that makes it clear theyre virgins #just chill dudes #it straight up doesnt matter #live your lives and i promise it'll get better

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garthnadermemestash · 1 year

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https://twitter.com/LiarZebra

#tumblr memes #mst memes #mistaken con man #mystery sovcit theater memes #garth nader memes #dankest memes #alt account #social media censorship #liarzebra #liar zebra #tom unicorn #copbaiting cowards #pathetic3 #ricky monday #junky munday

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jodienotmedia · 2 years

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Fake Nurse Jodie Casillas harasses police officers online for youtube views. She’s a felony stalker who feels terrorized by opinions of her online.

Jodie bugs her nose into peoples business and then gets Shut DOWN.

Jodie NOT Media tells everyone online that she is a nurse. Numerous people have said she is not employed and is lying about being a nurse.

Jody like to diagnose people without a license and practices medicine without a license. Jody Casillas claims to be a nurse at a Torrance nursing home. I feel for anyone having to deal with this annoying twat.

Daniel saulmon dates this Fake Media, Fake Nurse. Thats punishment enough.

#jodie casillas #jodie not media #fake nurse jodie #jody not media #jodie fake nurse #deputy parga #jodie casillas deputy Dominguez #lasd #deputy doherty #deputy firman #lasd cyber #tom zebra #daniel saulmon vs jodie casillas #march 5 2022 #Felony Domestic Violence #hawthorne police body cams

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lial-art · 5 months

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“Self inserts are cringe!!!” Don’t care, didn’t ask. Plus, you’re just a little hater

But yeah, here’s my one piece self insert Ronan. Info and pose ref below the cut

Ronan is a shipwright at Galley-La and has a… complicated relationship with Kaku. While he wasn’t one of Tom’s apprentices, he was familiar enough with him that he was disheartened by his death. Even more so by Cutty Flam’s “death.” He has a hard time trusting people because of what happened to Tom and thought he had finally found a lifelong partner he could trust in Kaku. While the StrawHats, Franky family, and Galley-La went after CP9, Ronan stayed behind with Iceburg. He knew that seeing Kaku would be too painful again and didn’t want to subject himself to that. Ronan doesn’t see Kaku again until after the time skip and he’s (rightfully) pissed. He had trusted and loved Kaku, who ended up betraying him. For a while he wanted nothing to do with him but after about a year he began to crave closure so he began to search for him. Ronan and Kaku’s reunion was… tense. I’ll probably flesh out their story more but the gist of it is friends to lovers to enemies to frenemies to… you get the idea

Ronan is half fishman (hence why he looks more human than other fishmen in the series) and his fishy parts are VERY loosely based off the zebra shark

#my art #self insert #self ship community #oc x canon #one piece #one piece oc #Kaku x oc

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o-craven-canto · 4 months

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Words borrowed from other languages in English

Very incomplete list, based mostly on The Languages of the World (3rd ed.), Kenneth Katzner, 2002 + a heavy use of Wiktionary. some notes:

Many of these words have passed through multiple languages on their way to English (e.g. Persian -> Arabic -> Spanish -> French -> English); in that case I usually list them under the first language that used them in the same acception as English.

I generally don't include words whose ancestors already existed in Middle English, unless their origin was exotic enough to be interesting.

The vast majority of borrowings are terms very specific to their culture of origin; I generally only include those that are either very well known amng English-speakers, or of general use outside that culture.

INDO-EUROPEAN FAMILY (West and South Eurasia)

Hellenic Greek: angel, chronometer, democracy, encyclopedia, geography, graphic, hieroglyphic, homogeneous, hydraulic, meter, microscope, monarchy, philosophy, phobia, photography, telephone, and way too many other scientific or technical terms to count

Germanic Afrikaans: aardvark, apartheid, fynbos, rooibos, springbok, trek, veld, wildebeest Danish: Lego, simper Dutch: brandy, bumpkin, coleslaw, cookie, deck, dock, dollar, landscape, freight, furlough, maelstrom, noodle, Santa Claus, waffle, walrus, yacht German: aurochs, bildungsroman, blitzkrieg, cobalt, dachsund, eigenvector, ersatz, gestalt, hamburger, hinterland, kindergarten, kohlrabi, lager, poodle, quark, sauerkraut, wanderlust, yodel, zeitgeist Icelandic: eider, geyser Norwegian: auk, fjord, krill, lemming, narwhal, slalom, troll Swedish: lek, mink, ombudsman, rutabaga, smorgasbord, tungsten Yiddish: bupkis, chutzpah, kvetch, putz, schlemiel, schmaltz, schmooze, schtick, spiel, tchotchke

Slavic Czech: robot Russian: fedora, glasnost, intelligentsia, kefir, mammoth, pogrom, samizdat, steppe, sputnik, troika, tsar, vodka Serbo-Croat: cravat, paprika

Celtic [many of these words are shared between the two languages] Irish: bog, galore, gaol, geas, glen, orrery, shamrock, slob, whiskey Scottish Gaelic: bard, bunny, cairn, clan, loch, ptarmigan, ?scone, slogan

Italic-Romance †Latin: [way too many] French: [way too many] Italian: allegro, aria, balcony, bandit, bravo, calamari, casino, chiaroscuro, crescendo, contrapposto, fresco, gazette, ghetto, gusto, inferno, lava, mafia, malaria, pants, quarantine, tempo, umbrella, vendetta, volcano Portuguese: baroque, brocade, cachalot, cobra, creole, flamingo, petunia, pimento, zebra Spanish: abalone, armadillo, bolas, bonanza, canyon, cargo, chupacabra, cigar, cilantro, embargo, gaucho, guerrilla, junta, manta, mesa, mustang, patio, pueblo, rodeo, siesta, tornado, vanilla

Iranian Persian: bazaar, caravan, checkmate, chess, crimson, dervish, divan, jackal, jasmine, khaki, kiosk, lemon, lilac, musk, orange, pajama, paradise, satrap, shawl, taffeta

Indo-Aryan †Sanskrit: brahmin, Buddha, chakra, guru, karma, mantra, opal, swastika, yoga Bengali: dinghy, jute, nabob Hindi: bandana, bungalow, cheetah, chintz, chutney, coolie, cot, dungaree, juggernaut, lacquer, loot, rajah, pundit, shampoo, tom-tom, thug, veranda Marathi: mongoose Romani: hanky-panky, pal, shiv Sinhalese: anaconda, beriberi, serendipity, tourmaline

DRAVIDIAN FAMILY (Southern India)

Kannada: bamboo Malayalam: atoll, calico, copra, jackfruit, mahogany, mango, pagoda, teak Tamil: curry, mulligatawny, pariah Telugu: bandicoot

URALIC FAMILY (Northern Eurasia)

Finnic Finnish: sauna Saami: tundra

Samoyedic Nenets: parka

Ugric Hungarian: biro, coach, goulash, hussar, puszta, tokay

VASCONIC FAMILY (Northern Pirenees)

Basque: chaparral, chimichurri, silhouette

TURKIC FAMILY (Central Eurasia)

†Old Turkic: cossack, yurt Tatar: ?stramonium Turkish: baklava, balaclava, bergamot, caftan, caviar, harem, janissary, kebab, kismet, minaret, pastrami, sherbet, tulip, yoghurt Yakut: taiga

MONGOLIC FAMILY (Mongolia and surrounding areas)

Mongol: horde, khan, ?valerian

SINO-TIBETAN FAMILY (China and Southeast Asia)

Tibeto-Burman Tibetan: lama, panda, tulpa, yak, yeti

Sinitic [Chinese languages closely related, not always clear from which a borrowing comes] Hokkien: ?ketchup, sampan, tea Mandarin: chi, dao, dazibao, gung-ho, kaolin, oolong, shaolin, shanghai, yin-yang Min Nan: nunchaku Yue (Cantonese): chop suey, dim sum, kowtow, kumquat, lychee, shar-pei, ?typhoon, wok

TUNGUSIC FAMILY (Eastern Siberia)

Evenki: pika, shaman

KOREANIC FAMILY (Koreas)

Korean: bulgogi, chaebol, hantavirus, kimchi, taekwondo

JAPONIC FAMILY (Japan)

Japanese: banzai, bonsai, dojo, emoji, geisha, ginkgo, hikikomori, honcho, ikebana, kamikaze, karaoke, koi, kudzu, manga, origami, pachinko, rickshaw, sake, samurai, sensei, soy, sushi, tofu, tsunami, tycoon, zen

AUSTRONESIAN FAMILY (maritime Southeast Asia and Oceania)

Western Malayan Javanese: ?junk [ship] Malay: amok, cockatoo, compound [building], cootie, durian, kapok, orangutan, paddy, pangolin, rattan, sarong

Barito Malagasy: raffia

Phlippinic Cebuano: dugong Ilocano: yo-yo Tagalog: boondocks

Oceanic Hawai'ian: aloha, hula, luau, poi, wiki Maori: kauri, kiwi, mana, weta Marshallese: bikini Tahitian: pareo, tattoo Tongan: taboo

TRANS-NEW GUINEAN FAMILY (New Guinea)

Fore: kuru

PAMA-NYUNGAN FAMILY (Australia)

Dharug: boomerang, corroboree, dingo, koala, wallaby, wobbegong, wombat, woomera Guugu Yimithirr: kangaroo, quoll Nyungar: dunnart, gidgee, quokka Pitjantjatjara: Uluru Wathaurong: bunyip Wiradjuri: kookaburra Yagara: dilly bag

AFRO-ASIATIC FAMILY (North Africa and Near East)

Coptic: adobe

Berber Tachelhit: argan

Semitic †Punic: Africa Arabic: albatross, alchemy, alcohol, alcove, alfalfa, algebra, alkali, amber, arsenal, assassin, candy, coffee, cotton, elixir, gazebo, gazelle, ghoul, giraffe, hashish, harem, magazine, mattress, monsoon, sofa, sugar, sultan, syrup, tabby, tariff, zenith, zero Hebrew: amen, behemoth, cabal, cherub, hallelujah, kibbutz, kosher, manna, myrrh, rabbi, sabbath, Satan, seraph, shibboleth

NIGER-CONGO FAMILY (Subsaharan Africa)

unknown: cola, gorilla, tango

Senegambian Wolof: banana, fonio, ?hip, ?jigger [parasite], karite, ?jive, yam

Gur-Adamawa Ngbandi: Ebola

Kwa Ewe: voodoo

Volta-Niger Igbo: okra Yoruba: gelee [headgear], mambo, oba, orisha

Cross River Ibibio: calypso

Bantu Lingala: basenji Kikongo: ?chimpanzee, ?macaque, ?zombie Kimbundu: ?banjo, Candomblé, gumbo, macumba, tanga Swahili: askari, Jenga, kwanzaa, safari Xhosa: Ubuntu Zulu: impala, mamba, vuvuzela

KHOE-KWADI FAMILY (Southwest Africa)

Khoekhoe (Hottentot): gnu, kudu, quagga

ESKIMO-ALEUT FAMILY (Arctic America)

Greenlandic Inuit: igloo, kayak Inuktikut: nunatak

ALGIC FAMILY (Eastern Canada and northeast USA)

†Proto-Algonquin: moccasin, opossum, skunk Cree: muskeg, pemmican Mikmaq: caribou, toboggan Montagnais: husky Narragansett: ?powwow, sachem Ojibwe: chipmunk, totem, wendigo, woodchuck Powhatan: persimmon, raccoon

SALISHAN FAMILY (Pacific coast at the USA-Canada border)

Chehalis: chinook Halkomelem: sasquatch Lushootseed: geoduck

IROQUOIAN FAMILY (Eastern North America)

Cherokee: sequoia

SIOUAN FAMILY (Central USA)

Lakota: teepee

MUSKOGEAN FAMILY (Southeast USA)

Choctaw: bayou

UTO-AZTECAN FAMILY (Southwest USA and north Mexico)

Nahuatl: atlatl, avocado, chili, cocoa, coyote, chocolate, guacamole, hoazin, mesquite, ocelot, quetzal, tamale, tegu, tomato O'odham (Pima): jojoba Shoshone: chuckwalla Yaqui: ?saguaro

MAYAN FAMILY (Southern Mexico and Guatemala)

Yucatec Maya: cenote, Chicxulub

ARAWAKAN FAMILY (Caribbeans and South America)

†Taino: barbecue, cannibal, canoe, cassava, cay, guava, hammock, hurricane, iguana, maize, manatee, mangrove, maroon, potato, savanna, tobacco Arawak: papaya

CARIBAN FAMILY (Caribbean coast of South America)

unknown: curare Galibi Carib: caiman, chigger, pawpaw, peccary, yucca

QUECHUAN FAMILY (Andes)

Quechua: ?Andes, caoutchouc, coca, condor, guano, llama, mate, poncho, puma, quinine, vicuna

AYMARAN FAMILY (Andes)

Aymara: alpaca, chinchilla

TUPIAN FAMILY (Brazil)

[borrowings are often shared between these two languages] †Old Tupi: ananas, arowana, Cayenne [pepper], jaguar, manioc, piranha, tapioca Guarani: cougar, maracuja, Paraguay, petunia, toucan

CREOLE LANGUAGES (worldwide, mixed origin)

English-derived Chinese Pidgin English: chopstick, long time no see, pidgin, taipan Jamaican Creole: dreadlocks, reggae

Chinook-derived Chinook Jargon: potlatch

EDIT 08-01-24: added lots more examples, especially African, Asian, and North American languages. Still not done. EDIT 17-01-24: finished adding examples, more or less. EDIT: 18-02-24: apparently not (cheetah).

#languages #history #how beauteous mankind is #feel free to add more

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lizisshortforlizard · 9 months

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Living Dangerously - Chapter 27

Jurassic Park’s animal handlers: none of them ever mentioned by name in Michael Crichton’s original novel. Who were they? What were their lives like on Isla Nublar? Did any of them survive the disaster?

A year in the life of those responsible for the care of the dinosaurs. Many people would kill to have their jobs.

But would they die for it?

Jurassic Park novel/Jurassic Park film (1993)

Viewpoint: 3rd person female oc

Warnings: alcoholism and consequences thereof, animal abuse in a circus context

Tagging: @heresthefanfiction @ocappreciation @wordspin-shares @howlingmadlady @arrthurpendragon @themaradwrites @starryeyes2000 (please lmk if you would like informed of my sporadic updates)

Read on Ao3

Chapter 26 | Chapter 28

The King of Wishful Thinking - Go West

Lizzy still remembered the very first real elephant she ever saw. Tragically, not a majestic wild creature roaming the savannah. That particular elephant was a heavily scarred, cowering soul with a chain around her neck, from when she and her siblings had gone to visit the Kelvin Hall Circus that had descended upon Glasgow in the early 1970s.

Lizzy was still a kid, she honestly didn’t know any better, how cruel it was. The poor animal was entertainment. They all were, the lions, zebras and hyenas. And of course, the stars. The Big Attraction. The elephants.

Halfway through the act Lizzy had gotten the uneasy feeling something was wrong. The old elephant was twisting her trunk up in distress as she moved around the ring, the whites of her eyes showing. And God, the smell seeping through from the pachyderm lodgings at the back of the building was sickening, the heavy scent of ammonia and manure burning in her nostrils. They definitely hadn’t smelled like healthy animals.

The ringmaster had ignored the creatures’ discomfort and cracked his whip, the elephant mounting the step to begin her most impressive trick, walking the tightrope.

Lizzy’s heart had been in her mouth the entire time, the crowd had whooped and cheered, and then the old beast had collapsed, toppled to the sawdust-covered floor while coming off the platform at the other end of the tightrope, crashing limply to the ground and lying motionless.

The ringmaster had sworn, and struck the animal with his whip, over and over, but the elephant wouldn’t get up.

The audience had eventually been ushered out early. No money back.

She remembered covering her youngest brother’s ears as the twin bang-bang of the shotgun had risen over the jaunty pipe organ music, following them out of the door.

Lizzy lost her appetite for the circus after that.

As it turned out, a collapsing elephant and a collapsing Tyrannosaur made a very similar sound.

Isla Nublar, present day. The Rex had begun to sway drunkenly, worse by the second. Lizzy had gotten as far as pointing while stammering “T-tom…” before the dinosaur disappeared from view behind the fence with a long-drawn out grunt. There was an almighty racket of splintering wood as she crashed straight through a grove of monkey puzzle trees before she hit the deck, then ominous silence.

“Oh, Hell…I think my radio’s dead!” Lizzy clicked the call button on the side before whacking it with her open palm ineffectually. “Give me yours!”

”Dude, I haven’t got one…”

They stared at each other. The tyrannosaur groaned.

Going to have to run.

”I’m faster.” Tom took off through the trees like a hare before hounds, hurdling tree trunks and roots while Lizzy ran to the paddock fence.

***

Well, just beat my seven minute mile. Tom thought upon stumbling into the staff lodge. His calves were on fire. He began hammering on doors and yelling for the veterinarian. Someone had to be here, anyone.

Then he heard Muldoon and Baker answering him. Oh thank you Lord. Thank you Father for I have sinned.

“Really wrong?” Kathy quoted with raised eyebrows once he located the both of them. “What do you mean?”

“I dunno man, she just went down like a Goodyear blimp!” He leaned against the wall for support. “We might need the strong stuff.”

”The ‘strong’ stuff?” Muldoon raised an eyebrow.

Tom nodded. “The more permanent stuff.”

His frame of reference was old farm horses whose legs went out from underneath them, and seldom got up again. Tommy, got get the shotgun-

As far as he was concerned, the Rex was toast.

Meanwhile, Gerry Harding had emerged from his own room, blinking. “Someone call for a doc?”

“Emergency-“ Tom wheezed like an eighty-year-old asthmatic.

Gotta quit smoking.

“Exciting!” Harding instantly became more animated. “Let me go grab my kit!”

“Do you know where Lizzy is?” Kathy asked Tom quietly.

“With the Rex.”

Muldoon’s head snapped around nearly fast enough to give himself whiplash. She’s where?! “Not in the paddock with her?!” Kathy was alarmed.

”Well…huh-” Tom shrugged. “She wasn’t when I left…”

“Let’s hope that’s still the case.” Muldoon said glumly.

“What’s all this racket, then?” Richardson added to the chorus of voices in the hall.

“Mr Richardson, Rexy’s down. C’mon, help us.” Tom beckoned him out of his room.

“We clocked off at five today.” The animal supervisor didn’t seem enthused.

“Yeah, so?” He didn’t see the issue.

“Going into the park out of hours, and especially at night is not my business, Thomas.” The shorter man said irately. “It’s not yours either.”

Tom’s lip curled in irritation. He didn’t have time for this bullshit. An animal was suffering, and his boss didn’t even seem to care.

He couldn’t take it anymore.

“Hey, screw you, man.” He turned his back to leave.

”Thomas, if you go back out there with that lot tonight, I’m not giving you any more chances.”

Kathy overheard them.

Huh? What does that mean?

But her thought was forgotten quickly, gone in the flurry of activity as doors opened and yet more animal handlers flooded the corridor, all wanting to lend a hand as word spread quickly. She quickly tried to brief them all on a vague plan.

Rexy was a popular girl, it seemed.

“So be it.” Richardson muttered as he shut his door on the ruckus.

“Meet you guys out front. Hey!” Kathy snatched the car keys straight from Muldoon’s hand. She wasn’t forgetting the state he was in earlier in a hurry. “You can’t drive!”

”It’s a stick shift, neither can you, Baker!”

His voice followed her out into the night as Kathy sprinted for the garage.

***

“All right, folks. I think…-“ Gerry Harding concluded, removing the stethoscope from his ears and patting the scaly skin of the prone Tyrannosaur. “-she has a heart murmur.”

“Reptiles can have heart murmurs?” Kathy queried, extremely worried about the fate of one of her biggest charges. She’d honestly thought the big girl was a goner.

”They’re birds though, aren’t they? Dinosaurs.” Isaac nudged her.

”I presume anything with a heart can.” Harding said casually. “In the meantime, don’t be alarmed if it happens again.”

”So, if she collapses, just let her come around by herself?”

“Yep. I treated a Hyacinth Macaw for a heart murmur back in San Diego Zoo.” Harding recalled. “Sometimes he’d just fall off his perch. The keepers had to modify the enclosure for him.”

“We now have a fainting Tyrannosaur as one of our visitor attractions?” Muldoon couldn't believe it. “Oh, good. Hammond will be so very pleased.”

Harding was still mid-anecdote, undeterred. “Anyway, prescribed him beta blockers and he was still alive when I left the place, so I must have been right. Damn bird made sure to bite me on my last day, in fact.”

Muldoon made an unhappy noise.

”What’s wrong, buddy?”

“Harding, if you put the Rex on beta blockers, I’m going to have to be beyond careful if the damn thing needs tranquillised at short notice ever again.” “You aren’t beyond careful with that stuff anyway?” Harding sounded amused.

“I could end up killing it. Quite easily, in fact.”

Better not drink, then Lizzy thought bitterly. If it’s delicate work.

“We’ll weigh up the pros and cons in the morning.” Harding brushed worries aside with a huge yawn. “But, my professional diagnosis? Heart murmur. Needs meds. Got some math to do.”

“Dosage?” Lizzy asked.

”Mhhm.” He smiled at her grimly. “They’re usually in pill form, and I’m unsure if blockers come in such a thing as thousand-packs.”’

“That’s InGen’s problem to solve, not yours.”

”Yeah, but I hate having to ask the big bosses for things I might not get.”

Gerry missed his state-of-the-art veterinary clinic on the California mainland where he could send his staff out to collect obscure medications, and have them waiting on the desk in his office later that same afternoon. San Diego had the Good Drugs.

“You should know she doesn’t always eat every day either.” Lizzy pointed out. “And that, my darling, is yours and Muldoon’s problem to solve, not mine.” Harding countered sarcastically. “Maybe you can hide the pills in some peanut butter.”

And he chuckled at the thought of the small woman lobbing a soccer ball-sized lump of Jif into the Tyrannosaurus enclosure.

The team dispersed, but the vet motioned at Lizzy to help him carry his kit out of the enclosure.

Something was off, about the way she was acting around Muldoon, and she’d looked decidedly shifty when he’d left the responsibility of getting meds into Rexy up to the pair of them.

The ethologist did a double take when she noticed Harding was watching her intensely as they made their way back up the hill.

“What?” She demanded. “Why are you staring at me?”

”Did you and the big man have a falling out?” Harding asked matter-of-factly. “You haven’t said a word to him all night.”

”None of your business!” Her voice was an octave higher than usual.

Harding smiled knowledgeably. “That’s a yes. So, you’re free for dinner tomorrow?”

“I’d sooner contract malaria than be related to your daughter, Mister-Sarah’s-Dad.”

They reached the veterinarian’s Jeep.

“I am nothing if not persistent.”

”Pestilent, more like.”

“Seriously though, Liz, I’ve been thinking.”

”Well, that’s never good.”

“I did some research. You know how selective breeding for desirable characteristics in dogs can lead to certain health conditions?”

”I didn’t really, but I’ll take your word for it.” Lizzy had never owned a dog, despite desperately wanting one, especially when she’d lived in New York. She’d have been happy with a mongrel. But both Simon and their landlord had denied her. Allergies, Simon had claimed, sniffling for effect.

“Hip dysplasia in German Shepherds, dermatitis in Dalmatians, and blood clotting disorders in Bassett Hounds. Pre-disposal to cancer, leukaemia, brain tumours. Orthopaedic problems and hearing loss.”

”Jesus. Okay.” Lizzy frowned. Maybe her ex had done her a favour by refusing to become a dog owner. “Where are you heading with this?”

There was a faint cheer from the animal handlers.

“Gerry, she’s up!” Kathy called over from near the fence.

The veterinarian graced her with a nod and a wave. ”I also read that the Mesozoic had much higher concentrations of oxygen in the atmosphere than the present-day. And I got to thinking, these animals were made in the lab, right?”

“They’re poorly suited to live on a Costa Rican island in 1992? They’re all effectively asthmatic?”

“Maybe. If we consider them as birds, that animal is built all wrong. Look at her legs, the way she walks. She’s been selectively bred, like a pedigree dog. She looks like she’s skipped a few generations and gone straight to inbreeding depression. I don’t think real dinosaurs looked like that, at all.”

“Which I’m guessing is a problem, physiologically-speaking?”

”The problem is, this island is severely lacking in ethics.” Harding told her, as if the word tasted bad. “And heart murmurs are usually congenital.”

”You think Rexy has genetically-engineered hip dysplasia?”

“I think she’s in pain.” Harding said. “She doesn’t know any different, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it hurts her to exist.”

***

When the cavalry had arrived on the scene at the Tyrannosaur paddock with a screech of brakes, fortunately, Armstrong had not already scaled the fence into the paddock, Muldoon noted with relief.

Instead, she was hopping foot to foot near the gate, desperate to get inside. Yes, she was still breathing. No, she hasn’t gotten to her feet yet the ethologist confirmed. It was not more than ten minutes since Kennedy had raised the alarm. The boy was fast.

But of course, Muldoon couldn’t allow neither Armstrong nor Harding to do their jobs until he had done his.

Insurance shot. Not as dramatic, but it meant the dinosaur wouldn’t be waking up to surprise them all anytime soon.

Kathy and Lizzy had swapped glances while they were waiting for the gate to be opened, a wordless exchange. You with me? Team?

I’m with you. Team.

Guilty, tired grins and relief from both sides. Their falling out remedied with a single look.

They were going to be alright.

But Muldoon wouldn’t have her forgiveness quite so easy, Lizzy had already decided.

The Rex lay prone, blood slowly oozing out of her jaws from biting her own tongue as she’d fallen.

Flies were still buzzing in a black cloud, despite the temperature dropping and wisps of fog beginning to drift in off the sea as Harding began his examination, wrinkling his nose at the odour that followed the dinosaur around as closely as a shadow.

Now, panic over, the Rex up and on her feet again, Armstrong was still staying far away, helping Harding to pack his kit back into the Jeep, not even glancing up at him in passing.

Muldoon wasn’t a fan of the silent treatment. Not at all. The irony just made it sting more.

Now she stops talking. Of course.

“Armstrong?” She kept her head down, as if she’d heard nothing. Bloody woman was deliberately ignoring him. “Armstrong. Can we sort this out?”

Oh jeez. Here we go she thought.

“Sort what out?” Lizzy tried acting nonchalant when she finally spoke. “There’s nothing to sort. Everything’s fine.”

She still wouldn’t look at him, pottering around, mouthing numbers as she pretended to count hypodermic needles. He could tell she was faking it.

Lizzy soon realised her act wasn’t convincing enough and quickly turned to leave, hoping to slip away. But Muldoon’s arm shot out to stop her, blocking her escape route with his hand firm against the Jeep door.

“What are you doing?” She asked flatly.

”Five minutes.” He’d had just about enough of the selective muteness. “You’re being immature.”

“I am being professional.” She insisted. “I’m no longer mixing my work and my private life. They stay separate from now on. I should have done that from the start. Maybe Richardson had a point, for once.”

“Well, I don’t like it.”

“What you like is no long-…eh…none of my concern. I only want to talk about the dinosaurs while we’re at work, please.”

Her voice was getting increasingly louder. People were starting to stare.

Muldoon glanced at Kathy for help, who just shrugged and mouthed you got this.

Well, if Armstrong wasn’t above dirty tactics, neither was he.

Last resort.

“As you wish.” He paused. “Elizabeth.”

The ethologist froze.

Muldoon continued. “If you want to be professional, then it’s alright to use your full name, isn’t it?”

Kathy and Isaac, open-mouthed, began edging slowly backwards away from the epicentre.

“Oh, you-“ When Lizzy finally looked straight at him, her face was screwed up in annoyance.

Eye contact. At last.

“Five minutes. That’s all. Sort this out.” He dared her. “Come on, let’s have it.”

“On one condition.” She agreed frostily.

“Which is?”

She took a few deep breaths before she spoke, practically burning a hole in the ground with an intense stare. Most likely counting to ten, he imagined.

Good.

“My name is Lizzy. Not Elizabeth. Not Armstrong. Lizzy. Lih-zee.”

”I’m aware of that, yes.”

”Then use it.” She demanded. “Say my name.”

“Oh, snap.” Kathy breathed.

Isaac whispered “What’s going on?”

”I’ll explain later, hun. Just- shhh.”

“Alright. Lizzy-“ It’s fine. Got to compromise. It’s fine. “Can we please go somewhere else to discuss this?”

“Hm. Better.” One corner of her mouth turned up. “Okay, you’ve got five minutes.”

“Oh…my…God…” Kathy was beside herself.

”What just happened?” Isaac was stumped. “What’s the big deal?”

”Muldoon has used her actual first name, that I know of, exactly once before.” She checked side-to-side to see if anyone else had picked up on the significance. “That was the second time. Do you know how many times he’s called me Kathy?”

”Uh…never?” He hazarded.

”Correct!” Kathy pointed at the heavens triumphantly. ”Certainly never in front of the other guys. Ugh, I wish I’d snuck into the back seat. This is huge. Mega, even.”

“If you say so.” Isaac shrugged. He clearly didn’t care as much about behavioural nuances. “She kind of made him do it.”

”Mega!” Kathy announced again.

“Hey, want to go get a popsicle before we turn in?” Tom cheerfully appeared over her left shoulder. “Got a hankering for something cold.”

“I-…” Kathy nearly refused, given their shared history, but since truces seemed to be the theme of the night she decided to go along with it. And she never said no to ice cream. “Sure?”

***

“Well, I’m listening.” Lizzy stared straight ahead through the recently-mended Jeep windscreen.

“I am painfully aware of that.” Muldoon sounded anything but enthusiastic. “Makes a nice change.”

“Yeah, right. You lasted, what, four hours? Clearly missed me talking to you.”

“At me.” He corrected.

“At you.” She agreed. “Your turn.”

Just silence. Nothing happened.

Lizzy had just about had enough of him closing himself off at a time like this.

“Talk.” She prompted. “For once. Just talk. It’s me, for Christ’s sake.”

Muldoon honestly wanted to tell her everything, but where to begin? The words weren’t coming liked he’d assumed, hoped, they would, now they were alone.

Lizzy sighed, realising she was being a tad callous.

She saw how much he was struggling, and she felt bad for him. She’d been there herself. A long time ago. A mixture of too shy and too stubborn to say what was wrong.

She picked at the stitching on the Jeep’s seat covers under her legs.

God, she really didn’t want to be here, didn’t want to do this. It was so awkward. But she figured it was time. There was no point in him trying to explain his story if she wasn’t willing to share hers. She wanted him to understand why it hurt so much.

More than that, Lizzy did want to move on. She wanted him back.

She needed him.

Their relationship, professional or otherwise, could never be the same as before. But maybe it had potential to still work, somehow.

She’d have to put the effort in. They both would.

And now she had to swallow her pride and lead the way. Jeff would be so disappointed in her if she didn’t at least try.

Lizzy had been given so many second chances in life, she knew it absolutely made her a hypocrite to be unwilling to pay it forward.

“Would it help-“ she offered. “-if I went first?”

“First?” He seemed surprised at her offer. “Only if you’re sure.”

”I think I need to. I’ve been putting it off for a long time, you may have noticed.” She fidgeted in the seat, bouncing her leg. “Don’t say anything until I’m done. If I stop talking, just…give me a minute.”

Breathe. Just breathe.

Lizzy started in Govan. Not long after that fateful visit to the circus. This time around, every moment she felt the wall threatening to come up, she fought it back down, almost running out of air with how desperate she was to keep her momentum going.

As promised, Muldoon just listened.

She explained why she wanted; no, rather needed to be called Lizzy so badly. It was the name her dad had chosen for her. My wee Busy-Lizzy. All that she had left of him now except memories. Not even a photograph.

How every time she was called Elizabeth, as she elaborated with a sly glance sideways, it felt like someone was sticking a pin in her ribs.

Elizabeth, like her mother had insisted on calling her. Or the school writing home when she was in trouble. The hospital admission band on her wrist when she found out she wasn’t pregnant anymore.

She left that last part out, thinking it might have been a bit much for the park warden.

”Well?” She finished abruptly. “What’s the verdict?”

He nodded slowly. “A lot of things make sense now.”

Massive understatement. Why she had been cagey and stand-offish around her birthday. Why she shot from her right, instead of her dominant side. Why she had quite rightly wanted nothing to do with him anymore outside of work.

He understood.

She’d be well within her rights to be on a ferry bound for the mainland the following evening and never want to see him again.

Lizzy’s leg stopped bouncing, the flight or fight ebbing away with each breath. But the emotion need to go somewhere and was threatening to manifest in the form of tears.

Don’t cry. Do not cry. We’re not done yet.

Her shoulder ached.

“Now you.” Lizzy’s voice wobbled. “Come on, you were the one who wanted to sort this out.”

“I know.”

Muldoon was far from happy.

This sort of talk warranted a few measures of Scotch beforehand.

But that’s what got us in this sorry mess in the first place.

He started more than four thousand miles South-East from Govan, and not quite as many years ago. He finished with the offer that he couldn’t refuse from InGen that felt like a lifeline, and the decision to leave his daughter in Kenya with her maternal grandparents until things had settled down.

“It wasn’t supposed to be this long.” He admitted. “But I thought she might be better off without me, for a while.”

“No!” Lizzy insisted. “A girl needs her dad. I could have told you that twenty years ago.”

“I have considered bringing her out here.”

As long as it’s safe.

“You’ve got to!” Lizzy nodded excitedly. “Come on, it takes a village.”

”It’s her schoolwork that’s the issue…I’ll think about it. Maybe next summer.”

“I’d love to meet her.” She offered sincerely. “María can teach her French, Rico can teach her Spanish. I’ve got Biology covered.”

“We’ll see.” It was a nice thought, but Muldoon didn’t want to get too optimistic just yet. “So, how do we move forward from here?”

“You’re still on your own with the, uh…drinking, I’m afraid.” She smiled sadly. “That is the one thing I can’t get involved with. Just can’t. Sorry.”

Lizzy genuinely was sorry. She would have done her best to be supportive, but for the sake of her own well-being, it was beyond her.

“Not true.” Muldoon insisted. “Not on my own.”

”Oh?”

“Baker tells me she’ll help.” He paused. “Not quite sure how she’s going to manage that.”

“Oh...”

That made a rather large difference to Lizzy. Her own mother hadn’t felt the need to change. Tom’s dad didn’t either. But this was different, though foreign to her. Muldoon clearly wanted to turn matters around.

It felt a little early for hope, but still…

“If Kathy says she will, then she’ll find a way.” Lizzy agreed. “She’s the best. I’m going to miss her, if she gets that job. ”

“Makes two of us. I got very lucky with my team here, that they do as I say.” She smirked when he turned to look at her. “Most of the time.”

“It’s showing initiative!” Lizzy exclaimed. “Thinking outside the box!”

”The box is there for a reason.” He replied, completely deadpan.

She laughed, even though she was torn two ways. Instinctively wanting to trust him, but knowing there was a very good reason she couldn’t just yet.

“I appreciate how difficult this is.”

”Haven’t even started.” Muldoon grimly wondered what ideas Baker had up her sleeve.

“Not that.” She elaborated. “I meant talking about things that obviously make you very uncomfortable.”

“It’s better with you.” Lizzy noticed he seemed surprised with himself at being so forthcoming. “You’re easier to talk to.”

“Good. I’m glad.”

There was a long pause. Fifteen seconds, or five minutes. It could have been either. Lizzy didn’t feel the need to break it.

“I like having you around.” Muldoon eventually said gruffly.

“I like being around- ” She started before she could stop herself.

You. I like being around you. Or at least I did.

”What do you mean by that?”

“I mean-“ Lizzy hesitated. “Eh…I don’t know what I mean, actually.”

She deliberated, playing with the end of her braid before she answered him. “ The closest I can put into words is that…the silences are comfortable. Or maybe I’m just comfortable with the silence. That doesn’t happen very often.”

“Hm. I agree.”

“It’s loud up here, sometimes.” She tapped just above where the metal arm of her glasses sat against her temple. “I have shout to hear myself.”

Muldoon was suddenly struck with a horrible thought.

“You’re not thinking of leaving, are you?”

“Kathy did try to talk me into it.” Lizzy admitted.

“And?”

“Already booked my flight out of here.” She winked. “Nah, I’m not going anywhere. But don’t you be giving me reasons to start looking.”

“Would you go back to Africa?”

”Probably.”

“Namibia?” Would she consider Kenya?

“I…don’t know, I haven’t really thought that far-…Hey, what’s with the questions? I already told you, I’m not leaving!”

“Hm. Good.”

Baker’s words echoed. It’s just a job. You’ll get another one.

“Unless you call me the E-word again.” She said sternly. “That really is unforgivable.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it…Lizzy.”

If Kathy had been present she would have lost her shit. The third time. Twice in one night. “Uh…shoot, it’s been longer than five minutes. Way longer.” Lizzy pointed out, glancing at her watch. “Not long until we’re back at work again, actually. We should go home.” That wasn’t what Muldoon wanted. He felt like driving further into the park, into a more isolated corner where it really felt like The Wild. Staying up until the sun rose over the East side of the island. Finding out more about her. There had to be more to her story than a miserable childhood.

Why had Blacklaw decided to take her under his wing? Given this scrawny little city-slicker the benefit of the doubt in a place like Africa, that should have, quite literally, eaten her alive?

Why was she still standing, after no less than ten years of living in the wild?

She’d overcome the tremendously bad hand she’d been dealt in life. But Muldoon felt she hadn’t quite told him everything yet.

“Better get you back to the lodge.” Was what he mumbled instead.

”Yeah.” Could have been wishful thinking, but she sounded disappointed too.

When they pulled up he saw the curtains in Baker’s room twitch. Still awake. Checking they were both back safe.

Muldoon was about to let her go without another word. But he needed to know.

“Armstrong?”

“Yes?” She was already jumping down from the passenger side.

”We’re alright now? You and I?”

Back to Armstrong. Back to some kind of normality. Lizzy was honestly glad of it. Haven’t even started the difficult part yet. Her conscience reminded her.

”We’re alright. But…”

“But?” He was expecting bad news.

”We could be better than alright again.” She grinned as she slammed the door, leaning back through the open window on her forearms. “That depends on how badly you want it. Good luck!”

The she tapped the Jeep door twice, and was gone without looking back.

Muldoon leaned back in the driver’s seat, thinking for a moment.

”That bloody woman.”

***

Thanks for reading!

Yay, a Princess Bride reference!

But Muldoon saying “as you wish” to Lizzy has me wanting to skip ahead several chapters O.o

#jurassic park oc #living dangerously #welcome to jurassic park #oc: dr lizzy armstrong #jurassic park female oc #jurassic park #robert muldoon #robert muldoon x female oc #gerry harding #kathy

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