#but i felt keeping it in the shadows in the meantime was an absolute crime so here goes nothing | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

shepherds-of-haven · 3 years

Note

In an alternate Blest where the Endarkened never returned thus there was never a need for the shepherds to form, what would the main cast be doing?🧐 Would any of their paths have crossed otherwise? For those who are not from Haven would they have any other reason to travel there?

Holy shit anon, this is such a great question that I've literally sat on it for six weeks thinking about it... Let's give this a try! 🤔💭

Beware! Heavy alpha build and overall spoilers below! Read at your own risk, or do not read if you haven't played the alpha fully!

Blade: well, if things had gone exactly the way they had, just without the need for the Shepherds in the mix, he'd be dead! But if we ignore that particular detail, he'd still be working as an assassin for the Ket Rebellion, and he'd probably be a colder, crueler person as a result of it. He would still be a frequent visitor to Haven, plotting you-know-what and taking on various jobs and assignments in the meantime; and he and Trouble were friends before the Shepherds were formed, so they'd still be merc buddies and occasional partners on bigger jobs where they'd need someone to watch their back! But they probably wouldn't be as close. He'd probably spend the rest of his life working as the tip of the spear for the Ket rebellion, the left hand and living weapon of his brother. It'd be an okay life, but he'd never truly be independent!

Trouble: he'd likely still be a mercenary or soldier-for-hire, sort of wandering around the Continent with Haven as his home base. For some reason, I could see him being talked into joining the Army of the Sun and becoming a military man once he was older and tired of the merc life; he'd probably like the order and structure and camaraderie of it for a time, but he'd clash with his superiors and the culture so much that he'd probably eventually wind up discharged! At that point, he'd probably leave it all behind and go West to start a new life... maybe he'd become the sheriff of some small town out there, or a farmer, or an airship mechanic in Lindell!

Tallys: she'd probably work as a hunter for hire, usually working for the farms out in the Sun's Embrace or guarding their livestock from wolves and predators, or possibly as a 'van guard for Elvish caravans. She volunteered at poorhouses and Elvish clinics in Ashtown before joining the Shepherds, so she'd probably still be doing that. I think her life would be a sort of haze of just... existing, looking for a purpose or some way to help people but feeling like it's all a bit futile. She'd probably do some self-destructive things to make her forget the emptiness inside of her, and if things reached a boiling point, perhaps she'd simply disappear into the wind one day...

Shery: hmmmm, this is an interesting question! Shery met up with the Shepherds because her parents sold her into an apprenticeship that she didn't want and she ran away, and by coincidence she happened to come across the group and Blade offered her a job as quartermaster because she was good at book-keeping. If that didn't happen, I don't know what would have happened to her?! She alludes in the game that she saw how prostitutes by the docks were living and was scared that that was the only option open to her if no one would hire her, but I like to think she would have found a job as like, a librarian or a bookshop clerk or a merchant's assistant. I almost feel like she could have somehow run into Riel and joined Merchants Guild as one of his assistants alongside Aerin! So I feel like she would have been okay, though her life would have been very quiet and domestic and humble, and unless she worked for Riel, she likely would have never earned enough to have more than a little dingy apartment all to herself (and some cats).

If things hadn't worked out so well, she likely would have returned home and faced her terrible parents, and probably would have lived under their thumbs for the rest of her life as atonement! :(

Riel: he'd still be master of Merchants Guild, and doing just fine! I think he'd just continue to garner wealth, power, and influence, and likely would have been made a minister or some sort of politician within the Consortium when he was older! Not sure yet if he would have taken that offer, though! If the Endarkened didn't exist, I wonder if Merchants Guild and Thieves Guild would have had any particular bone to pick with each other, as they largely ignored each other's existence... Chase's thieves typically targeted the aristocracy and the obscenely wealthy before the whole Black Sun thing, so they might never have crossed paths!

Chase: he'd still be master of Thieves Guild, also doing just fine! I can't really imagine anything about his life changing that much; he would have continued to steal, nettle, and harangue the denizens and criminal underworld of Haven until the ecosystem could no longer sustain it and the Thieves Guild would have to pack up and move elsewhere to elude capture (probably to Conte); or he would have developed such a monopoly on crime in Haven that he would have gotten bored of the power, handed control off to Ari and Kato, and peaced out to parts unknown... realistically, in that scenario, his luck would have to run out at some point, and he'd probably sleep with or double-cross the wrong person (probably both) and get himself into a corner he couldn't back out of alone...

Red: he'd still be Archmage of the Veiled Circle, and they probably would have remained at Capra for longer, since there wouldn't have been the Endarkened to draw attention to their activities as pointedly as Quiial did. Still, they would have had to leave to evade the Inquisitors eventually, and probably would have settled somewhere else; and Red probably would have passed off leadership of the Circle to someone else, maybe a promising instructor who joined later or Pan or someone. Basically when he'd felt he'd put in the time and wasn't abandoning the Circle to its fate, he'd leave and go off and do his Traveler stuff he'd always wanted to. But it'd be a lonelier, more solitary life, and his letters home or his jaunts back to the Circle would drop off as he became more and more engrossed in his research, and people would worry about him or his health, not having anyone to watch his back on the road. He has a 50/50 chance of marrying someone nice that his family set him up with after like a concerned intervention on their part, or he'd probably drop off the face of the earth and no one would know where he went!

Ayla: she'd still be working as a wilderness guide, taking rich people around on tours and guiding parties and caravans through dangerous stretches of wilderness. She would have gone to Haven to visit as a tourist, but probably wouldn't have stayed long; a handful of weeks, at the most. She'd spend her life scrapping, fighting to stay alive, and watching her own back, but it would be an empty life, pretty much devoid of meaningful connection or meaning. At some point she'd probably get fed up, return to Jalis, and launch a single-woman campaign against the warlords there, just because she could!

Briony: hmmm... okay, she'd still be in that shipwreck, but would slavers have found her if there was no gladiator arena, since there would be no Endarkened to have created it?? I feel like she would have woken up, still an amnesiac, and staggered to the nearest town eventually (which I think would have been Courtshore or one of its outlying, smaller towns/villages). After recovering a little, she probably would have put herself to work as a mercenary or as a street-fighter working for bets (so like a gladiator... but on the street!). She probably would have been taken in by a kind innkeeper or family and allowed to rent a small room with her bizarre story of not having a memory. Or she could have taken up something simpler, like working as a barmaid in the inn or something like that! She probably would have had a relatively happy, peaceful life once she got used to things and it all settled down... but given her proximity to the shipwreck, her past would have caught up to her way faster, and the fallout would have been... intense...

Lavinet: she'd still be in Lockwood, and the Elementals would still be an issue, since that wasn't tied to demonwork! What probably would have happened: things would have deteriorated, and the families of the besieged nobles in Lockwood would have grown impatient and would sent in their personal armies to deal with the situation, most likely without Lavinet's consent. The ensuing conflict would have been devastating, with the Elementals most likely winning. In response, the Autarchy would have mobilized the Army of the Sun and absolutely annihilated the Elementals--but Lockwood would have likely burned, caught in the crossfire. Lavinet would have to spend the rest of her life with that shadow looming over her, and while she'd still harbor ambitions to attend the Sun Court and rise in the ranks as a Sun Courtier, there would always be that stain on her reputation, or she wouldn't have been able to leave Lockwood, having to help it rebuild after its destruction. Or she would have gotten kidnapped by the Elementals far earlier and might have been killed then!

Halek: he would have stayed sol of the Reach, and I have no idea what would have happened... he probably would have married Moonsilk and just have been absolutely miserable... probably would have popped out a few kids and just... existed! Or maybe he might have run away and left Naolin holding the bag and become like a guilty drunkard in some random town, though it's hard to believe they wouldn't have tracked him down eventually...

#Shepherds of Haven #AU #no endarkened AU #idk how to tag this lol #long #long post #spoilers #heavy #extremely heavy #alpha build #alpha preview #all characters

115 notes · View notes

dom--minnie · 3 years

Text

Ready

Content: historical fantasy au (eh???), non-graphic death, injuries, violence, lemme know anything else?

Word count: 1494

Unofficial sequel to ease by @fizzydrink698 ! I was just inspired by Fi’s big brain, as usual really. And read hers first of course

You stand beside the king, anticipating the next few minutes of your life. It has all been coming to this, the last few years of hard work finally coming to fruition. The king turns his head slightly in your direction, to where he knows you are standing and waiting in the shadows.

"Come forward. I want them to see the cause of their undoing."

The request doesn’t surprise you, but it does make you sigh and take an extra second before doing as you were told. A few more minutes, seconds even, by now, and then… and then you would be free. Your family would be free, finally free from the debt that had bound you here.

The last 2 years have admittedly been easier, fun even, if you will. Being around the Thunderous camps was easier than being in the tense atmosphere of the castle. With the Thunderous soldiers everything had felt more like camaraderie, and less like anyone and everyone wanted you to fail. That didn't matter. It didn't matter how badly you craved attention and friendship like that, this was what your life was like now.

The harsh kicking in of the door startles you from your thoughts. Almost reflexively, you step back before a harsh glare from the advisor stops you. Right, you are a sign of what Thunderous had lost and would lose.

Two soldiers drag Chan in and you almost wince at how bad he looks. A black eye, puffy cheeks, and a good number of cuts on his arms. Still, he doesn't look up or make a sound as they scrape his knees across the rough carpet. Not too kindly, the guards toss him onto his knees at the bottom of the throne steps. When he doesn't look up one of them kicked his side and the heavy wince told you there’s at least bruising there, knowing those two, likely much more.

His eyes, the warm, brown eyes that you got so used to looking at. Now, when they land on you it is only with disdain and betrayal. You know it’s deserved, but that doesn't stop the hurt that comes along and tugs at your heart. Still, you preserve your features in passivity, not betraying how much you still care. Caring can't put Chan back in his untouchable leader position, and caring would never free your family from that prison.

"Bang Chan. Or Chris, whatever it is you go by now."

Chan's nose wrinkles at the way the king spat out his name, not seeming to know or care about the danger he is in.

"I'd rather you keep your name out of your dirty mouth entirely, honestly."

The same guard kicks Chan's side again and the gasp followed by heavy breathing is heard by the whole room.

"Now, now, Seb. Be nice to our guest. Even if I wish that filthy dogs like him didn't have tongues to speak."

Chan scowls and rolls his eyes, keeping his head up for the king to see.

"Am I just here so you can insult me or is there a reason I was kicked about 17 times on the journey?"

You instantly know that Seb was responsible for many of his visible injuries then. Some of them may have been from the initial capturing but the bruises are an extra gift from Seb for sure. Despite that, Chan still looks strong. He has a set to his shoulders that showed his strength, and his constant back talk shows no fear. You’re impressed, honestly. Usually, by the time people get back to the castle they are silent and resigned, beaten mentally and physically.

"Of course. You are to be put to trial for many things. Would you like to know the full list or shall we just get on with throwing you into your cell? I'm sure your fellow rats will be happy to see you."

The amount of comparisons to dirty animals, this is getting boring. You may think that such a famed speaker would have more creative insults, but alas, here you are having to listen to the same thing again and again.

"I'm sure most of them are garbage so I'll pass. Though, I do wonder how many of them are your crimes just passed on to me?"

You raise an eyebrow at Chan's boldness. He has never said it outright but most people in the castle know that the king is doing less than savoury activities to try and turn people against Thunderous.

"Soldier."

Despite the number of soldiers in the room, you know he means you. With an inward sigh you step forward and kneel in front of him.

"My liege, what can I do for you?"

Your head is down and that's why you don't see the same 2 guards stepping away from Chan and grabbing hold of your shoulders.

"Now that you've done such a wonderful job completing this quest, I think you're due a reward."

They pull you up and the shock freezes your body. The king looks down upon you as they drag you away.

"Into the dungeon. That way you can be with your family again! Isn't that what you wanted after all?"

Before you can even think again the room explodes with light. When your eyes and mind recover there are stones falling from the walls and the edges of fabric are singed. Hurriedly, you put out the embers on your clothes, the flames burning with the slightest touch. Chan isn't as weak as he had appeared before and is now standing at the centre of the flames. He is untouched and you’re slightly awed by the demonstration of his power. Not full out, he isn't well enough for that, but it’s telling as to how much you should be fearing for your life right now.

A single glance to the throne tells you that the court warlock had appeared and stolen the king away before too much damage could be done. Heavy steps start towards you and you fall to your knees, praying only that he will make it quick.

The footsteps stop and you look up at Chan when he says and does nothing. The look on his face is indecipherable to you, even with how long you've spent with him.

"Everything you did, and he still threw you to the dogs like that?"

It takes your brain a moment to catch up. The king was absolutely preparing to throw you in the dungeons. After the years of endless work that you did for him, and he was just never planning to follow through on it. The thought nearly makes you sick to your stomach. That, and what he may have told your family in the meantime. At this point, they might think you're dead or have abandoned them and moved on.

"I... Please, just don't kill me before I get them out. After that, I am yours to deal with. I wouldn't blame you for anything you do."

The words are hard to choke out and your voice ends in a whisper. Knowing that you're signing yourself off to the mercy of someone you betrayed is practically a death sentence.

You seem to forget it's Bang Chan you're dealing with.

"Do you want to come back to the Thunderous camp with me?"

What? Your confusion is more than obvious on your face and Chan laughs a little before speaking again.

"After we get your family out of those gross dungeons, of course. Do you want to come join Thunderous with me? Officially this time, not so you can plan for my kidnapping again."

You wince at his carefree way of speaking about the horrible actions that have certainly happened to him over the last week or so. The last year if you’re counting all your spying.

"So... wait. You're not killing me?" Chan shakes his head once. "And you want me to actually join you? Even though the last time that happened..." Chan nods his head twice.

"Bang Chan. You're either very kind or very stupid. I hope I'm right about which one it is."

You take one more look around the room at the people who you were often with over the last few years. It's strange to see them completely unmoving, and it'll take a while to sink in that you'll never see them again.

"Okay," you breathe out heavily. Starting to stand up your knees wobble a little, even if you thought you got over the adrenaline from before. Chan's hand shoots out to your shoulder to steady you. When you don't stop him he grabs one of your hands to help pull you up as well.

He's warm, so warm, and you immediately miss it as soon as he steps away.

"Ready?" He asks, a small smile on his face.

"Ready." You say, mirroring the smile.

You've said it to your captains a thousand times, but this time, you really mean it.

#stray kids drabbles #stray kids scenario #stray kids oneshot #bang chan imagines #bang chan x reader #bang chan scenarios #chan scenario #chan drabble #chan x reader #stray kids x reader #my writing #skz scenario #skz oneshot #skz imagine

33 notes · View notes

patchesthegothictramp · 3 years

Text

Feather Seeker and the Okinawa Jail

So anyone who’s been talking to me knows Feather Seeker is a game that’s perked my interest from the get-go, and I’ve been thinking of talking about it for a while. Now that I’ve been able to replay Royal and play Strikers, some other things have come out in the meantime and I’ve been paying more attention to additional media, I want to make a meta post about Feather Seeker, the Okinawa jail from Strikers and it’s connection to Akechi specifically. Be warned, this ended up being a very long post.

Let’s start with just getting a few questions out of the way:

Isn’t it just a mini game made to raise your stats?

Yes, absolutely, it’s optional and honestly if you don’t care for playing the video games it’s easy to miss. I don’t think it was honestly intended to be some massive breakthrough on a character’s backstory but rather an Easter egg that gets you to think about it.

It’s just about Neo-Featherman, there’s references to it in all persona games, so why is this one different?

It’s not different. There’s been plenty of times when Easter eggs have led to something bigger in this game, even specifically featherman ones. There’s an episode of Featherman that describes exactly what happens in the 3rd semester, where a character loves another so strongly it brings them back to life. Now whether you want to apply that to Futaba and her mum, Ren and Akechi or whoever it still fits- there’s an entire semester where at least one character loves another one and wishes them back to life through Maruki’s power. So having another piece of media, like the Feather Seeker game, be another allusion to something else isn’t entirely unjustified.

Feather Seeker is just detailed cos it’s about Featherman, why are you comparing it to other games?

See, here’s the thing and why I needed a second playthrough to make sure I was right about it. Feather Seeker is the odd one out. All of the games have some kind of plot or something going on (except for Golf sim but y’know... it’s a golf sim), but they’re all very, very basic things. Train of Life is just board game with very simple characters, the Goemon game has you just walking through hell but doesn’t really go more in depth with characterisation. Whereas you find out so much about what’s going on with Gray Pigeon and Osagiri in Feather Seeker that it feels a little… weird to simply ignore it. Do I think that the simplest answer, that they just wanted some plot in there for fun, is the right answer? Honestly I think that’s highly likely. But it’s the boring explanation too, it’s easy enough to just write any kind of intrigue like that, so whether what I’m writing about was intentional or not, I still want to discuss Feather Seeker and see people’s own thoughts on the possibility that it could be more than just a basic game.

So with that out of the way… let’s get into it.

First, there’s establishing who’s who. I can pretty confidently say that Gray Pigeon is Akechi in this entire metaphor. This one is the most obvious for multiple reasons, first of which being that it’s the exact same costume Akechi gets in the featherman outfits DLC so there’s the direct correlation there. Beyond that, Gray Pigeon is a character who awakens to a new power and wants to become a hero of justice, just like the feathermen, the hero’s he’s heard about before. Ring any bells?

Also the final revelation of Feather Seeker is that actually the Feathermen see Gray Pigeon as their enemy, who ends up sacrificing himself so they can keep fighting.

Which brings me to discussing who Osagiri and the Feathermen are. Given the timeline presented, I don’t think it’s possible for them to be one specific character or even group of characters. I think these aren’t supposed to be characters, but rather the major influences in Akechi’s life. Osagiri is a scientist (possibly Wakaba, I’ll get into that later), but also the one who pushes him to do bad things. Osagiri starts by training Gray Pigeon to become one of the Feathermen, the good guys, but eventually ends up manipulating Gray Pigeon into trying to kill them. Osaigir at the bare minimum has to be two people- the cognitive scientists who were able to uncover more thanks to Akechi’s escapades in the metaverse and the people who pushed him to commit crimes- the conspiracy.

The Feathermen, at the end of the game, have to be the Phantom Thieves- they’re the ones Gray Pigeon/Akechi ends up sacrificing himself to save but… that can’t be possible. Gray Pigeon’s journey starts with him gaining a new power and wanting to use it for good like the Feathermen do and of course the Phantom Thieves weren’t an inspiration for Akechi to do what he did. I think then the Feathermen are what Akechi aspired to be- the heroes of justice who fought the bad guys.

I can’t lead myself to believe that at 15, Akechi thought of this overly convoluted plan where he would help Shido to become prime minister only to then ruin him, there’s way too many factors in this that could change. I think originally Akechi wanted to avenge what happened to him and his mother, make sure that the man who wronged him would face justice. That’s what the Feathermen would do, right? They fight bad guys. Translating it from Feather Seeker, Akechi was angry, furious even and that rebellion woke hm up to Robin Hood, the embodiment of justice for him.

There’s plenty things that point to Robin Hood being first, his placement when Akechi awakens to Hereward on 2/2 being in the same spot as everyone else’s, the fact that for all of the other Thieves their third tier personas are different versions of their initials personas and that applies to Hereward/Robin Hood and that the trend of initial/second awakening personas is that the first is a fictional who was considered a criminal (Robin Hood) and the second is described in game as a ‘mythological trickster’ (Loki).

Here is where I want to get to the Okinawa jail and why I didn’t post this theory/metapost sooner.

I mentioned earlier that Osagiri could have been in some part Wakaba, Futaba’s mother, and when I initially wrote this I didn’t have all that much to go off of. There’s concept art in the original p5 artbook of Wakaba experimenting on someone. There’s no context given and it’s sort of the odd-one-out. Of course, human subjects would have been necessary to study the cognitive world but this research is so under wraps it seems it’s almost impossible to get. There’s no military connotations anywhere so why is it such a secret? Well, illegal human experimentation would certainly be a good reason to keep this away from the public. They must have figured out somehow that killing a shadow can cause a lot of damage, even death, to a person, we know that from the research notes, but Wakaba was a scientist, working in a lab, she must’ve done experiments that weren’t entirely legal.

Here I wasn’t sure because accusing Wakaba or anyone of illegal human experimentation was a pretty big reach but the Okinawa jail in Strikers shows us that illegal human experimentation is something that was used for cognitive research. I don’t think that Akechi was experimented on there or that was where Wakaba worked, there’s no indication of it but… Konoe and Owada seemed to build on the work that Shido and his scientists began. That being said, I think the Okinawa lab is a continuation of that human experimentation, with whatever lab Wakaba worked in being its predecessor before Shido probably shut it down to prevent it from ever being discovered. Which is also why he had Wakaba killed- the research was only meant for him and no one else.

Beyond what we see in Feather Seeker of Osagiri/sometimes Wakaba experimenting on Gray Pigeon/Akechi, we’re also told (albeit this is of course biased information), that he only targeted people he deemed deserved it but… Wakaba is the odd one out here for the most part. Okumura was hardly a good person and the principal decided covered for a sexual abuser, most of the others were survivors except for accidents which are mostly uncontrollable and unpredictable. Wakaba however, like Kobayakawa and Okumura, were targets that were supposed to die, Akechi intended to kill them. How then was Wakaba a bad person? Illegal human experimentation would explain that, especially if it was done on Akechi himself.

So then, Akechi was experimented on by Wakaba. I don’t think he was fully informed about what he was doing either. Gray Pigeon certainly wasn’t. Akechi was still trying to be a good person, using his power for his own vengeance yeah but I don’t think murdering random people was part of his initial plan at all. I think that Feather Seeker also emphasises just how little he knew about what his actions were doing. How would he know what his effects of shadows are on the real world? He could only know that from the scientists, from Shido. Of course he did find out, eventually, and that rage he must have felt about being used and lied to gave him the power to awaken to Loki, as Futaba puts it, the representation of his anger. It’s only then that he forms his plan, to get back at Shido for all of this, not just him abandoning him and his mother but for using him for his own means as well.

And we know how the rest of the story goes.

The overall story presented in Feather Seeker, as I see it, is this: Akechi awakens to Robin Hood, and realises that his anger is no longer a hopeless endeavour, he can use it, show that he’s useful and get acknowledged by his father. Shido sees this, sees that he can use this power and subjects him to experimentation, as someone who can actually survive the cognitive world and even have an impact on it. Wakaba sees what he can do, tests him but he’s never told what he’s done. He’s manipulated through praise and lack of information. One day he does find out, he realises this wasn’t getting him any closer to vengeance or getting acknowledged by Shido, he’s just another test subject being used by them. He’s angry, he awakens to Loki and now with the unique power of psychotic breakdowns, Shido recognises him and hires him as his assassin.

Granted this is all just my own theory, I think there is a lot pointing us to at least something similar but of course I also think this is wishful thinking as well. At this moment, my biggest wish is that Atlus makes a game that actually delves into what happened to Akechi. All the explicit information we have is given to us from biased sources, ie. Akechi himself, and it’s really the only question I have left for persona 5’s continuity.

#p5r spoilers #p5s spoilers #p5r #p5s #akechi goro #goro akechi #metapost #theory #p5a #proof of justice #persona 5 #persona 5 strikers #persona 5 royal

71 notes · View notes

hazbinextgeneration · 3 years

Text

Down The Rabbithole Ch15

(Disclaimer: The songs the Queen sings is White Rabbit by Egypt Central and Hey Alice by Rachell Rose Mitchell and in no way mine. The songs Allison sings are Alice by Avril Lavigne and Human by Christina Perri and are in no way mine.)

It was a short hour. During that time she just sat on the bed and rubbed her head, trying to figure out what to do about this. Sometime during that hour she had been a sandwitch and she eargerly gobbled it down but not before checking it for anything...It was a regular one with just one piece of meat and a lettece leaf. Was pretty plain but she wasn't complaining about free food especially when she was really hungry so she gobbled that down. She was still a little hungry after that but it'll work for now. Allison was feeling a lot of things. Guilt, for this being her fault even if she didn't do anything wrong. Worry for her friend if he was ok and what might happen to her. Angry for all this work just wanting to go home! Annoyance she had to go this! And Sadness she Didn't know about Chesire's past. Did he really turn someone into dust? If they wiped out his family then she'd kinda understand, but why didn't he tell her? She sighed and continued to sit there until a guard opened the door and looked at her. Allison was told to stand up and follow them which she did, not like she had a choice anyways. She was marched like a prisoner down the checkered halls and she felt her hope and worry grow and grow as she was wedged between the two guards and marched down the halls. Servants and other guards stopped what they were doing to peer at her from where they were. People of all different characters. She saw a goose in a butler shirt give her the stink eye, and a walking man with the head of a clock seem to give her a sorry look. But that didn't matter. She was marched along past all the expensive furniture and further and further to-.....to.....Who knows where?! To A prison? To her doom? To the Queen? And she didn't ask the guards marching her along in her of the answer. It seemed she got her answers soon enough. Allison was lead around towards what she assumed was the other side of the castle to two giant double doors where a lot of loud muffled, far away cheers were coming from it and before she could ask, she was forced towards them. Two other guards by the door opened them and they forced her through without stopping or letting her get her bearings from it.

It was too bright. Way too bright for her eyes. She blinked and held up her hands away from the bright sun shining down on her as she was taken out of the hallways and into the light. The cheers of an on watching crowd rang her ears raw. Where was she taken? When she had blinked her shock of the light away she gaped in aw at what really was surrounding her. Oh. My. GOD!!!...It was a giant arena. She didn't know how else to call it. It was about as big as a football field and there must've been hundreds of people faintly around her cheering for entertainment as Allison was marched along by two guards as her now red eyes looked around nervously at the watching crowd and felt really, REALLY small. Especially since the guards were all easily taller than her. She was marched towards the middle of the field where about ten feet away from her was the Queen. Her hands tightened tighter around the umbrella she carried and she gulped, the food in her stomach threatening to upchuck from the stress and fear she was now feeling. The tall woman was staring at her like a hawk watches a mouse as horns did some fancy salute music which got the crowd going more.

"LADIES AND GENTLEMEN!!," a man announced from somewhere and Allison looked around her. The guards were already retreating back to the doors which left her to look onwards around her at the cheering crowd. "BY ROYAL DECREE THE TRAITOROUS HUMAN SHALL FACE THE TRIAL OF HEARTS DESIRE AGAINST HER MAJESTY!! AS PER AGREEMENT, THE HUMAN SHALL BE EXILED FROM THE OUTSIDE WORLD AS PUNISHMENT FOR THE CRIMES COMITTED BY THOSE IN THE PAST!! TRIAL!!......BEGIN!!"

As if one cue Allison looked at the Queen. Those red and white eyes stared at her with barely any emotion in them. The staff in her hands twirled around for a moment before she got into an almost fighting stance as she stared at Allison. The Human girl was shaking and clutched the umbrella tighter to her chest as she stared at the Queen with a Deer in headlight look.....It was silent. TOO SILENT. Not a single cheer from the crowd or word from the woman literally a few yards away from her. Only the thumping of her heart in her ears and the heavy nearvous breaths Allison was taking. The wind blew around them making the ladies' hair swish about, as the ground slightly shook-...Wait. Why was the ground shaking? Allison slowly looked down to her legs expecting her legs to just be shaking but no. The whole ground was. Loud gasps and a few frightened yells came from the watching audience as a shadow suddenly loomed over them. Allison looked up and her jaw dropped at the absolute MASSIVE piller suddenly appearing next to the queen. Followed by more rumbling and seven more thick dirt pillars appeared on either side of her. These things were GIGANTIC!! At least two stories tall and three feet thing thick...Oh boy. What were those for?

"Your magic white rabbit-" The queen sang and Allison snapped out of her stupor and gazed at her instantly. Queen Hearts was staring at her and singing just enough for her to hear but just barely. "-has left it's writing on the wall.~ We follow like Alice ....And just keep diving down the HOLE!!"

Her arm holding the staff suddenly pointed up towards Allison and no sooner than it did than the first pillar scraped quickly right towards her. Allison stood there completely frozen as eight giant solid pillar of dirt headed right for her that probably would hurt if the did hit her...Before yelping and on instinct turning around and runninh away from it. She ran a few steps as the shadow loomed bigger above her, her adrenaline was pumping now and her panicked brain made her dive to the right. Wind and dirt whipped past her making her hair move as the thing swooped past her- Only for poor Allison to yelp again and basically run on tip toes as she jumped out of the way of another moving pillar right behind the first and start running towards the fair side of the battlefield as two more past behind her barely dodging her legs- all the while through this the Queen Kept singing and kept her staff laser pointed right on Allison. And ...Rock music was playing from somewhere in stands? What was with these people and singing all the time!?

"YOU CAN'T FIX YOUR BROKEN PROMISE!!~ OUR TIES HAVE COME UNDONE!!~ I WILL NOT BE USED TO BE BATTERED AND BRUISED!!~ THE REASON WHY I CHOOSE TO CUT MY LOSES!!~ YOUR LIES FOOL NO ONE!!~," she sang with the beauty of a swan and the feircness of a lion as she watched Allison dodge the first four but just barely. For a human she was fast on her feet. Allison's heart was pumping in her throat and against her chest as she ran- She squealed as another pillar cut her off from running right, just barely stopping before hitting it. Flawing her arms about and turning to run back where she came- Only for another one to stop her again. "YOUR MAGIC WHITE RABBIT!!~ YOUR ROOM, STRAIGHT JACKET!!~ YOUR MAGIC WHITE RABBIT HAS LEFT IT'S WRITING ON THE WALL!!~" Allison again stopped and stared behind her as another pillar made it's way towards her. She screamed and picked up her dress, running back towards the queen to escape it with a fearful expression. "WE FOLLOW LIKE ALICE AND JUST KEEP DIVING DOWN THE HOLE!! WE'RE FALLING AND WE'RE LOOSING CONTROL!!~ YOU'RE PULLING US AND DRAGGING US DOWN THIS DEAD END ROAD!!~ WE FOLLOW LIKE ALICE AND JUST KEEP DIVING DOWN THE HOLE!!~"

A winning smile came over her as Allison still ran away from the pillar as it rumbled after her. Eventually forcing herself to the side again and standing still as it blew past her- Only for yet ANOTHER to start going after her and she screamed again, before looking at it...and the queen....Scowling, she made her way back to running past her. The Queen's smile vanished as she did, placing a hand on her hip as she lazily watched Allison direct her path closer and closer to her until she was almost directly in front of the queen to where she could've hit her entire front.

"You know you could always give up and yeild now. It would be easier for the both of us."

Allison huffed and gritted her teeth as she ran past, knocking into her arm she was that close running past her. "I DIDNT GET THIS FAR BY QUITTING!!", she yelled as she ran past her.

The Queen rose a brow but a rumbling sound got her attention as she snapped forward and gasped at her own pillar coming towards her. SHe was barely able to step aside as it rumbled past still after Allison and the audience gasped. In the meantime, Allison had to freeze and let three more pillars pass her(two in front and one behind) before she could continue running across the field to gain distance from the thing to make a turn for herself. Two of the eight pillars crashed into each other when the Queen wasn't looking to control them. Making only six left. The queen yelled 'UGH!!' before directing her angry scowl at the girl. Allison gave her own scowl back as she ran her own way face to face with the pillar. And the Queen smirked, before pointing her staff again at her.

"YOU CAN'T OFFER YOUR POISON TO ME!!~ IN YOUR KINGDOM OF FILTH!!~ WHITE RABBIT!!~ STRAIGHT JACKET-" She stopped singing momentarily to raise a brow at Allison's head on collision, at the very last second Allison leaned on her ankle to lean her body left and 'fall' to dodge the entire pillar, her hand came down to push her body back up as she continued running at the Queen stumbling a bit, but back on track. "...YOUR MAGIC WHITE RABBIT HAS LEFT IT'S WRITING ON THE WALL!!~ WE FOLLOW LIKE ALICE AND JUST KEEP DIVING DOWN THE HOLE!!~" The pillar from before changed directions and was still following fast after Allison, and by estention HER since Allison was running towards her as well. Her eyes widened at this and she pointed right towards her direction of path. "WE'RE FALLING IN AND WE'RE LOOSING CONTROL!!~" Her red hair whipped wildly around her as she sent another pillar right for Allison and smiled. There was no way Allison could get that Pillar to hit her if she countered it. "WE FOLLOW LIKE ALICE AND JUST KEEP DIVING DOWN THE HOLE!!~" All the while still singing that beautiful victory song of hers.

Allison seemed to notice that too as she stared wide eyed at being wedged between two pillars headed right for her and she kept running blankly....until she dove right and the two pillars collided with each other with a crash. Crumbling to nothing but piles of dirt on the ground. The queen stood there in shock for a moment, before gritting her teeth and harshly swinging her staff up and down pointing at her again. This time two of the remaining four pillars came after her and soon Allison found herself trapped between two faster pillars circling around her like they were sharks. Spinning and spinning faster and faster and Allison looked scared. Like they would crush her any moment...The Human stopped and looked forward as a THIRD pillar was headed right for her. She was trapped between two and a third one was headed right for her and she couldn't stop it!...Allison blinked and looked back down to the umbrella she was holding...She had an idea. Oh god please let this work. She opened the umbrella and put it above her head like to keep the rain off. The third one rumbled closer and she slammed her eyes shut! A crash was heard as the third pillar smashed into one of the two pillars circling her and the other one circling her slammed into the two in it's path. Effectively destroying three pillars and sending a wave of air and dust everywhere. The queen's fiery red hair whipped around her wildly as she closed her eyes and grabbed her hat until it past...She opened one eye and then the other staring at what just happened. There was a decent pile of dirt, but no Allison. Was she buried under the dirt?

"...*GASP* LOOK UP THERE!!,'' a woman from the stands yelled and pointed up.

The queen did and stared in shock. Up there floating down slowly to the ground. Was Allison. The umbrella she had bee carrying around opened and she clung to it for dear life looking around her nervously. ....Quick thinking. The Queen gritted her teeth again and pointed at her. The last pillar rumbled forward and Allison could only watch in horror as it rumbled towards her and with a smack she collided with the top of it, she scrambled her purchase at the top of it and hung on for dear life despite having the wind knocked out of her.

"I won't be pushed aside.~ I will be heard.~ I will get what I want.~ What I deserve.~" She swung her staff left and the thing lurched left making Allison yelp and her grip slightly loosen, the queen did it again but in the other direction making her grip with her one hand further loosen as she was barely hanging onto the thing now. "I WON'T BE PUSHED AISIDE!!~ I WILL BE HEARD!!~ I WILL GET WHAT I WANT!!~ WHAT I DESERVE!!~"

She swung her staff again and this time Allison's gripped let go. She screamed as she fell all the way down and landed hard onto the ground with a thud, kicking up dirt around her. She coughed and wheezed from having the air knocked out of her twice. Groaning and rolling onto her side. Forcing her jello body to stand up and shake her head as her vision cleared and she was staring at the frowning face of the queen again as she pointed her staff at her. A familiar rumble sound was heard and Allison turned and yelped when that last pillar came after her. She frowned and began to once again run away from it.

"WE'RE FALLING AND WE'RE LOOSING CONTOL!!~ YOU'RE PULLING US AND DRAGGING US DOWN THIS DEAD END ROAD!!~ YOUR MAGIC WHITE RABBIT HAS LEFT IT'S WRITING ON THE WALL!!~ WE FOLLOW LIKE ALICE AND JUST KEEP DIVING DOWN THE HOLE!!" Allison stupidly ran towards a wall and looked at it before turning around in wide eyed fear as the Queen cornered her and smiled. Pushing the pillar towards her. It was all over now. "WE'RE FALLING AND WE'RE LOOSING CONTROL!!~ YOU'RE PULLING US AND DRAGGING US DOWN THIS DEAD END ROAD!!~ ....YOUR MAGIC WHITE RABBIT HAS LEFT IT'S WRITING ON THE WALL!!~ WE FOLLOW LIKE ALICE AND JUST KEEP DIVING DOWN THE HOLE!! DIVING DOWN THE HOLE!!"

Everyone gaped in upcoming doom as the pillar would eventually crush her- Allison at the last second dove hard left and hit the ground with a thud as the thing crashed into the tall wall of the arena. The stands shook and some of the spectators gasped and screamed in fright, but everyone was ok. The pillar turned into a giant pile of dirt like the ones before it and Allison sat on her knees and elbows, breathing heavily and looking at the pile of dirt before looking at the shocked Queen...Still breathing heavily she scowled and shakily pushed herself up to her feet. Pointing her umbrella at her and challenging her future. Murmers and mumbles came from the audience and the queen hesitatntly looked around for a moment before her calm stare came back.

"Not bad," She spoke loud enough for Allison to hear her from their distance apart, "You know only a handful of people actually make it past one round with me. You're quicker than I thought."

"S-Spending...*gasp* y-years as a kid growing up running around in the w-w-woods and track helped."

"You know you can still yield now. No one would blame you if you did, and I do mean it when I say I'd hate to put you through more."

Allison's scowled further. "I-I said I d-d-didn't come this far by q-quitting! Im never going t-to give up!"

The Queen smiled. "If you insist.....TRIAL BY CLOSE COMBAT!!"

The horns sounded again and Allison looked up at the stands where the Queen shouted to. "TRIAL BY CLOSE COMBAT!!", the same man from before shouted and the crowd roared with excitement again.

Allison didn't have time to question it before something rose from the ground behind her, she gasped and spun around ready to run away from another pillar but no pillar came. Instead it was a giant piece of a stone wall and she looked confused before it began to move forward towards her and the queen. She backed away as others came forward too. She watched as they all came slowly together and boxed them in, each one giving a loud thud noise as they came together and soon they were essentially standing in a space that was as big as the bedroom she woke up in. A much smaller space than the entire field but still room enough for a close combat fight.

"Don't worry." She jumped and backed away from the queen who twirled her staff in her hands, ruby heart shining. "There's no magic in this test, just similar to a sword fight."

She pointed the staff at Allison again and the human gulped. Shakingly holding up her umbrella at her. It's ok. It's ok. Just....Remember all the times you played pirates as a kid and swordfighted with sticks with Chesire....Chesire? Some where deep down, a spark ignited in her and she gritted her teeth and her eyes narrowed. That woman hurt her only friend. She WOULDN'T GET AWAY with it!! Even if Allison was forever stuck here that Queen was gonna be taught a lesson. A silence once again was shared between the two ladies as they stared each other down, before something broke that silence. Allison couldn't see the stands from the walls, but she could hear them playing a softer music. Not rock at least. As the music played the queen still just stood there for the better half of a minute doing nothing but staring at Allison and pointing at her.

"...Hey Alli, where's your Wonderland now that you're back on earth?~" She sang at her while she began to step ever slowly to her. "How does it look now that you've left it behind across the stepping stones?~" The queen smirked and Allison had a feeling she was deliberately using the song's lyrics to taunt her. ..She had left everything behind being here didn't she? "Hey Alli, is it greener here?~ Does it feel the same?~ Can you say that you are happy to be home?~"...No.This...This wasn't her home! Allison shook her head and pointed her umbrella at the smiling queen. "The rabbit seems to call your name.~ You're late so it's time to move.~ OH Alli.~ You know your fate.~ Tick tock, no time to loose.~"

The queen stopped about half way between them still pointing her staff at Allison as the poor girl shook and darted her red eyes up and down this smiling queen as she just stood there- Before without warning she charged. Allison wasn't prepared for that and so didn't move away in time before the queen was on her. She yelled as a stinging sensation exploded from her forearm as she was whacked by the queen's staff and another when the Queen effortlessly pushed her forward and she stumbled a few feet clutching her stinging arm. Before yelping and starting to run as the Queen swung at her back still singing.

"Did the mushrooms make you grow?~ Did the flowers say hello?~ Would Tweedle-Dum and Tweedle-Dee care to sing a song for me?~ Did you like your un-birthday?~" ....She smirked as she sang the next sentence. "Did the Chesire cat smile your way?~" Allison scowled back at her as the continued to run. "Can you tell a raven from a writing disk?~ Was the Hatter's tea the best?~" The Queen stopped chasing and watched amused as Allison stared back at her and ran. "Did you do as the queen asked?~ Did you see through the looking glass?~"

There was a thud sound as Allison painfully ran into the stone walls and the audience immediately roared with laughter at the fact Allison wasn't looking where she was going. Allison hissed from the pain and stumbled back, reaching a hand to clutch at her right cheek but stopped when it stung. She had scraped her cheek from the hit, her head throbbing and her forearm too. She scowled back to the queen showing her teeth but the Queen still just stood there amused. Allison growled under her breath and charged, swinging the umbrella above her head and around wildly towards the amuzed queen but the taller woman just easily deflected the oncoming attacks.

"Hey Alli, do you want to play?~ The Queen's great-"

"Or so it's been said!," Allison retorted back as a swing to the queen's hip was deflected.

The queen scowled. "Hey Alli, can you play croquet?~"

"If I'm good then I can keep my head!~," Allison retorted back and for a moment the queen froze at what Allison just implied.

...Her mother and father. Countless victims. Their heads- A pain shot out in the Queen's middle as she stumbled back one arm going to her stomach as her own wind was knocked outta her. Allison had used that moment to take advantage and aimed a good hit to her middle. The audience gasped again and Allison charged aiming for her shoulder- Which was deflected again when her staff swung up knocking Allison a few feet away skidding across the dirt, getting herself more dirty and the Queen slowly stood back up and looked at her.

"Did the mushrooms make you grow?~" She lightly stomped with every step and Allison scrambled back on the ground. As she got closer. Forgetting her umbrella in her scramble. "Did flowers say hello?~ Would Tweedle-Dum and Tweedle-Dee care to sing a song for me?~ Did you like your un-birthday?~....Did the Chesire cat smile your way?~" Again Allison paused..before her red eyes glanced to the umbrella. "Can you tell a raven from a writing disk?~ Was the Hatter's tea the best?~" She stopped her shadow looming over her, and she raised her staff up. "Did you do as the queen asked?~ Did you see through the looking glass?~"

She slammed her arms down and the staff and Allison dove under her, between her legs, and frantically crawled towards her umbrella. The Queen looked behind her as Allison frantically grabbed the umbrella and pointed it at the queen shaking to her feet.

"...Hey Alli, are you here or there or somewhere in-between?~" The queen slowly turned around to face her. "Hey Alli, would you ever dare to go back through where you came?~"

"Yes! I would!"

Another silence as the stared at each other, before the queen walked towards the scowling girl again. "HEY ALLI!!~ TIME IS RUNNING SHORT!!~," She sang louder, "THIS CAN'T TAKE TOO LONG!!~ MAKE A CHOICE NOW!!~ ON WHICH SIDE OF THE DOOR DO YOU FEEL LIKE YOU BELONG?!~" Was that the Queen giving her another chance to give up? Allison scowled and braced for impact. "THE RABBIT SEEMS TO CALL YOUR NAME!!~ YOU'RE LATE SO IT'S TIME TO MOVE!!~ OH, ALLI!!~ YOU KNOW IT'S YOUR FATE!!~ TICK TOCK, NO TIME TO LOSE!!~" She ran forward again and Allison came up to block it only for her leg to come up and kick her. Allison wheezed and fell to the ground from the very powerful kick...but there was no time to lose as she rolled and scrambled away on the ground as the queen stomped on the ground barely missing her each time. "DID THE MUSHROOMS MAKE YOU GROW?~ DID THE FLOWERS SAY HELLO?~ WOULD TWEEDLE-DUM AND TWEEDLE-DEE CARE TO SING A SONG FOR ME?~ DID YOU LIKE YOUR UN-BIRTHDAY?~ DID THE CHESIRE CAT SMILE YOUR WAY?~" Another scowl from the scrambling dirty girl. "CAN YOU TELL A RAVEN FROM A WRITING DISK?~ WAS THE HATTER'S TEA THE BEST?~ DID YOU DO AS THE QUEEN ASKED?~ DID YOU SEE THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS?~" Allison kept backing up until her back hit the wall and she yelled out in slight pain when one of the Queen's feet was slammed against her shoulder, pinning her and trapping her against the wall. Allison struggled but she couldn't move her arm and the taller woman was too heavy for her to push off her. "The rabbit seems to call your name.~ You're late so it's time to move.~ Oh Alli, you know it's your fate.~ Tick tock, no time to lose.~"

The music faded away and Allison continued to struggle underneath her weight as the Queen calmly watched her struggle under her. Rolling her eyes just as Allison got an idea. She stopped struggling and scowled up at her capturer, breathing heavily as the Queen rose a brow. Unknowst to her highness Allison shifted her pinned arm painfully and currently slipping the umbrella into her free hand as she was doing so.

"Do you yield now?"

"...L-Let me ask you a question. H-Have you ever heard of a surprise attack!?"

The queen never got a chance to answer before something hit the side of her head. She had leaned down to talk to Allison which put her in the perfect position of Allison's umbrella. It hit her with a thud and with all her strength, Allison pushed against the side of the Queen's leg as she clutched her head which sent the monarch to the ground with a thud. But Allison wasn't done, she spotted the scepter the queen used by her and grabbed it. Her arm still hurt like crazy but she just gritted her teeth and yanked it away from the Queen. Scrambling to her feet and staring down at the taller woman. The queen of hearts looked back up to her and seemed to pause as Allison pointed her umbrella at her and hold her scepter in her other hand.

"S-See?! I got your magic wand! YOU LOSE!! Now l-let me go!"

The queen ever calm just looked at her before she chuckled and got to her feet. Straightening herself and looking down at Allison. "I won't lie. That was an impressive move, I didn't see it coming. But Im afraid you're mistaken. You see, the scepter isn't magic at all." The Queen snapped her fingers and effortlessly the scepter was yanked by Allison and went flying into the Queen's hand. "I AM MAGIC. The scepter is just for show silly girl. If my magic was just contained in my scepter, I would've been defeated long ago."

Allison could only stare wide eyed in shock and continue to breath heavily as she stared at this taller woman in shock, even when the walls fell away behind them exposing them back to the rest of the arena and Allison closed her eyes and threw her hands over her head to shield her face from the flying dust. But froze when she felt the queen press the edge of the staff to her head.

"Sworros nwo reh emoc revo nac ehs sselnu esaeler tnod dna tsaf dloh. Dloh rouy ni lrig siht parw worros fo sniahc.", the queen spoke in some kind of foreign gibberish language and Allison was so confused.

Until somethig clamped around her neck and she yelped. Hands reaching up to grab at her throat but soon her wrists were clamped around too and pulled down. She yelled as she was forced to her knees and dropped the umbrella. Looking down to her hands Allison froze....There was-....Magical handcuffs on her wrists. The chains were blue and see through, obviously made out of some kind of magic and a sudden feeling of panic and sorrow overwhelmed her, she struggled and tried to rip the chains clamped around her off.

"You got something useless! Of course you did!!" Allison stopped at the voice and looked up. And her jaw dropped in shock at the scene playing out before her. It was....Her. LITTLE HER. Standing there crying with red cheeks while her aunt looked down at her furious. "I asked you get something for grandmother while you were out with Robert and he got her a book. She can read a book! Over and over again if needed. What is she supposed to do with a doll? You wasted my money on a child's toy!"

....NO! She NEVER wasted that money. Cinderella was her granny's favorite fairytale. She would've loved having something like that, she just knew it.

"Auntie? Can I have a puppy too?"

Allsion looked back to litte her and her aunt giving her a bored look as her two cousins played with their two new pups that rolled around innocent as can be. And scoffed at her. "Well, maybe if you were more responsible and got your grades up like a good girl, you'd be getting one." Making little Allison cry again.

Shaking with tears now in her eyes, she looked back up to the queen who was giving her a sorry look and Allison hiccuped. "W-What did you do?"

"A spell. The Chains of Sorrow. But the spell only works if you say it backwards. 'Chains of sorrow wrap this girl in your hold. Hold fast and don't release unless she can over come her own sorrows.'" She shrugged. "It's my last and final test that no one has ever defeated, it shows the person chained in them their deepest sorrows over and over until I remove them or they overcome them, which never happened.....I actually only used this one other time ever but you can still yield and I'll remove them."

Allison could only blink at her as she watched more and more scenes came to her. There was a scene of the little girl with strawberry blonde hair falling into a lake and ruining her new dress, her aunt yelling at her for ruining it and her cousins making fun of her. A scene of her class snickering as her fourth grade science teacher scolded her for doodling in her notebook. Another one of her loosing her favorite ball because her cousin kicked it over the fence where the neighbor's dog chewed it up. Another one when she was slightler older. She just got dumped by her boyfriend. ANother one when she was older, she was forced to attend summer school to make up for lost grades. Another even older Allison getting rejected by the colleges she sent an appilication to. Her aunt telling her she had to move out of her house and handing her a bag of her things. A twenty year old her staying up all night looking through all the overdue bills and college textbooks she had to pay. The day she found the eviction notice on her door....The day her granny died. She couldn't stop. Too horrified to look away. The day of the funeral. It was raining, she was staring at the gravestone- Allison slammed her eyes shut and bowed her head down as the voices of her various memories continued to play around her.

"You know I can't see anything you are. Only you can choose to end this, just give up. After all, it seems you could take a lot, but Im not sure."

.....It seemed everyone said that. Expected big things of her and at the same time expected her to give up. So many expectations. So many failures. She couldn't do anything. Couldn't get graduate from college. Couldn't hold a job. Couldn't get a home on her own. Heck. Even Chesire saw how useless she was and cleaned and fed her like a poor person. And then she got herself thrown into this whole new world without even trying not too. Running around like a labrat in a maze trying to get home, and Chesire spent all that energy getting here. Then she got herself kidnapped and got Chesire hurt. Because they were after HER. ...Because of what?! Because she was only human and past humans stole history from them!?....Human....That's right...She was only human. She still didn't look up but her gritted teeth untensed.

".....I-I...can hold my breath," her voice cracked under pressure as she forced the words out. The Queen's smile disappearing and staring at her. "I c-can bite my tongue. I can stay awake for days I-if that's what you want." She was saying all this barely over a whisper. The Queen right in front of her could barely even hear her. "Be y-y-your number one. ....*hic* I c-can force a smile. I c-can force a laugh." Allison was...singing. All be it very quietly and broken but sorrowfully none the less. "I c-can dance and play the p-part *hic* if that's what you ask. Give you all I can....I can do it...*hic* I can do it. I-I c-c-can do it. B-but Im only human...A-And I bleed when I fall d-d-down." She was still barely audable with only the shocked Queen staring down at her as she softly sang. "I-I'm only human a-and I crash *hic* and I break down. Your words in my head. Knives in my heart. Y-You build me up then I fall apart cause I'm only humaaaaa-ha-haaaaan."

Those red eyes opened and shakingly her head looked up at the Queen. Red faced, frowning, shaking, crying, and half her hair covering that sorrowful face to match the voice that was singing.

"I-I c-c-can turn it on!~", she hiccuped and forced out, "Be a good machine!~ I-I can hold the weight of worlds, if that's w-w-what *hic* you need.~ B-Be your everything.~....." Her eyes narrowed seeing another memory behind the Queen of another younger her, and a bully taking her notebook showing off the doodles she did of her crush to the class. And her teeth gritted into an almost snarl. "...I can do it!~" She sang louder now being heard by more people. "I can do it!~ I'll get through it!~ BUT I'M ONLY HUMAN!!!~ AND I BLEED WHEN I FALL DOWN!!~ I'M ONLY HUMAN!!~ AND I CRASH AND I BREAK DOWN!!~" She opened those angry red eyes and stared directly at the Queen as she spoke the next verse. "YOUR WORDS IN MY HEAD!!~ KNIVES IN MY HEART!!~ YOU BUILD ME UP AND I FALL APART CAUSE I'M ONLY HUMAAAAAAAANN!!!~" She stopped for a moment letting her shaking body and heave and she stared her gaze up at the shocked monarch of Wonderland. "YOU ARE UNFAIR AND EVEN IF YOU DO WHAT YOU DO FOR GOOD REASONS IT STILL HURTS PEOPLE!! YOU STILL PEOPLE THROUGH UNNEEDED STRESS AND PAIN!! IF YOU REALLY SEE YOUSELF AS THE FAIR RULER YOU WANT TO PROVE TO BE, THEN STOP THIS NOW!!"

She shrieked up at the Queen as she just stood there, just staring and breathing heavily at the smaller human who called her out in front of everyone in the crowd. Everyone silent and even the members of the band playing turning to look at her. The small human daring to stand up to the terrorfying queen of hearts that nobody ever questioned.

"....I-....I can't-"

Allison narrowed her eyes and growled giving her an actual snarl this time with her eyes. Her eyes seeming to almost glow in frustration. "...I'M ONLY HUMAN!! I'M ONLY HUMAN!! JUST A LITTLE HUMMMMAAAAAAAAAANNNN!!!~" Her head leaned back as she yelled the last verses. Everyone still remaining silent as Allison stared angrily at her. "....I can take so much til I've had enough." She couldn't tell if Allison was singing that or telling her how she felt, or both. "CAUSE I'M ONLY HUMAAAAANN!!~ AND I BLEED WHEN I FALL DOWN!!~ I'M ONLY HUMAN!!~ AND I CRASH AND I BREAK DOWN!!~ YOUR WORDS IN MY HEAD!!~ KNIVES IN MY HEART!!~ YOU BUILD ME UP AND THEN I FALL APART!!~ CAUSE I'M ONLY HUMMMMAAAAAAAANNN!!!~"

Allison's voice echoed throughout the whole quiet place and she heaved, staring down this queen challengingly. Daring her to say anything against what she had just voiced. But no words came out of the Queen's mouth as she just stared down at Allison like she was death herself. And Allison continued to cry. She was feeling really bad seeing all her past mistakes coming to face her head on like this but to heck with it. She had enough of this and if it meant facing every single one of them then so be it!! She had enough of getting the short end of the stick. The chains, though just magic, still rattled as she moved and she hissed with the pain her body had.

"You THINK what you're doing is the best you can do! But the truth you refuse to face is that it's doing more harm than g-good. Even if it's for a good purpose, you're going about this the wrong way!" She locked eyes with her. "Y-You used these chains.....Why?"

".....Y-You would've possibly beaten me if I didn't-"

"WHY?!" Allison demanded, "Why is beating me so important?! To punish me for something I DIDN'T even know happened?! I only want to go home and if you really wanted me to go away sending me back would've been the easiest way out for both of us instead of this happening! Are you that insecure you have to prove to everyone that I'm already no match for you?!"

Allison stopped. Looking to the right where no one could see it but her....But her present self was sitting there. Looking tired and exhausted, and staring up at the memory of a happy bouncing blue cat making her smile. Before a bowling pin hit the cat at incredible speed and the small blue cat landed a few feet away from past her. ..Her red eyes widened seeing the four men knock her out and the biggest pick her up off the tent floor as her friend laid unconscious on the ground- Her anger deep down flared up again and this time worse than ever, enough to make her tremble and her red eyes to glow with anger...Literally! Her red eyes shown a brighter red all of a sudden and the Queen actually backed away a few steps from those angry tears. ....Music suddenly started to play. The band people yelped and stepped away from the intruments that began to play as Allison shakingly stood on wobbling legs, refusing to loos eye contact. She WAS NOT weak! It wasn't HER fault her aunt and cousins were terrible! It wasn't her fault she couldn't keep her job or apartment! It wasn't her fault she couldn't go to college!! And is certainly wasn't her fault she accidentally fell through a mirror and crashlanded here! And it wasn't her fault Chesire got hurt!! It was HER men that did that and kidnapped her!! The queen felt something bubble up from her gut she hadn't felt since she was a little girl....Fear. And it showed on her face when facing this Human's red eyes. How was music playing if no band members were playing it?!

"Trippin' out.~ Spinning around.~ I'm underground.~ I fell down.~ Yeah, I fell dooo-o-own.~", Allison sang. Despite still crying hard, she had anything but a sad face. Her face was red with anger and determination and her voice held a fiery passion as she stared down this Queen. "I'm freaking out!~ Where am I now?~ Upside down and I can't stop it now!~ CAN'T STOP ME NOOOO-Ooo-OOOOOWWW!!~ OOOOOHHHHH!!!" She stopped her trembling and flipped her hair out of her face to look around better. "IIIIIIII!!~ I'LL GET BYYYY!!~ IIIIII!!~ I'LL SURVIIIIIVE!!~ WHEN THE WORLD'S CRASHING DOWN!!~ WHEN I FALL AND HIT THE GROUND!!~ I WILL TURN MYSELF AROUND!!~ DON'T YOU TRY TO STOP ME!!~ IIIIIIIII!!~ I WON'T CRYYYYY!!~"

Allison eyed her up and down as the haunted intruments continued to play and began to stomp her way towards this Queen. The chain fading in and out for just a few moments, making the Queen gulp and start to take steps back. Allison ignored the crying of past hers in memories still showing beside her as she marched on. Eyes only focusing on the frightened Queen.

"I'll play the game but I can't stay!!~ I've got my head on straight and I'm not gonna change!!~ I'M NOT GONNA CHANGE!!~ I'LL WIN THE RACE!!~ KEEP UP WITH THE PACE!!~ TODAY IS THE DAY THAT I START TO PRAY!!~ YOU CAN'T GET IN MY WAAAAAYYY!!~ NNNNOOOOO!!~ IIIIIIII!!~ I'LL GET BYYY!!~ IIIII!!~ I'LL SURVIIIVE!!~ WHEN THE WORLD'S CRASHING DOWN!!~ WHEN I FALL AND HIT THE GROUND!!~ I WILL TURN MYSELF AROUND!!~ DON'T YOU TRY TO STOP ME!!~ IIIII!!~ I WON'T CRY!!~"

The Queen tripped and landed on her bottom and if the audience and her weren't so shocked at what was happening, she would've gotten mad at their assumed laughter. But instead found herself scooting back and away from Allison just like she had before her and Allison only continued marching hard and determined never taking those red eyes off her. Almost as if the Queen couldn't look away. Allison barely registered the chains loosening and fading in and out more now. Her hands balled into fists so hard her knuckles turned white at the sensation.

"I found myself in Wonderland.~ Get back on my feet again.~ Is this real?~ Is this pretend?~ I'll take a stand until the EEEENNNNDDDD!~ ....IIIIII!!~ I'LL GET BYYY!!~ IIIIII!!~ I'LL SURVIIIIIVE!!~ WHEN THE WORLD'S CRASHING DOWN!!~ WHEN I FALL AND HIT THE GROUND!!~ I WILL TURN MYSELF AROUND!!~ DON'T YOU TRY TO STOP ME!!~ IIIII!!~ I WON'T CRY!!".....Allison stopped and watched as Velveteen continued to scramble away from her as if she was death herself. ".IIIIII!!~ I'LL GET BYYY!!~ IIIIII!!~ I'LL SURVIIIIIVE!!~ WHEN THE WORLD'S CRASHING DOWN!!~ WHEN I FALL AND HIT THE GROUND!!~ I WILL TURN MYSELF AROUND!!~ DON'T YOU TRY TO STOP ME!!~ IIIII!!~......And I won't cryyy.~"

The music continued for a little longer as Allison seemed to deflate a little and the intruments crashed down the floor and chairs of the band stand and the band memebers looked at one another and back to their un-posessed intruments now. Allison heaved as she still stared dow at the Queen who was also heavy. Their hearts hammered heavily in their chest. The Queen's from fear. Allison's from hard work and running around a lot but as tired and sore as she was, she was still standing. A crackling noise suddenly sounded out as cracks formed across the magic clamps and chains on Allison but she didn't look at them. Just the Queen, she didn't even notice. Her eye contact with the Queen never giving up.

"No matter how hard you push! No matter what's true about me, I will never STOP fighting for what I love! I LOVE art! And will never give that up!" The Queen looked confused by what she meant by that but didn't try to question her. "And you made a mistake. You hurt my friend and I care about him!! AND NOTHING WAS MY FAULT!! I AM NOT WEAK!! I DID ALL THIS BY MYSELF AND I COULDN'T BE MORE PROUDER THAN I AM RIGHT NOW!!" More cracks and fading. "We all make mistakes. My mistake was taking myself forgranted all this time and thinking it was all my fault. Your mistake was not thinking about how your actions affect others...And Chesire...He m-made his own mistakes that Im definitely going to ask him about. But right now. As of today. YOU STOP!! You lost! And you can't make anyone else suffer....Which is why I'm going to do something no one has probably done before."

"...W-What are you going to do?"

"Forgive you."

There was a pause as the Queen's mind completely went blank as she stared at Allison. The dirty, sore n tired, scratched up human stared back at her with a sorry face. ".....What?"

....Allison smiled despite the pain from her scraped cheek. "I said I forgive you. For everything that happened."

".....But why? I hurt you. I-I wasn't going to let you go home."

Allison shrugged. "You were only doing what you thought was best for everyone. You grew up under pretty strict situations, I know how growing up with high expectations feels. And...You didn't really mean any harm. You never actually hurt anyone, and I-....I feel like you're telling the truth." She smiled wider anger completely gone from those shining beautiful red eyes. "No one should judge you for your parents mistakes. I forgive you....Will you accept my forgiveness?"

She still stared at Allison and looked down....All her mistakes. All her progress was....WRONG!! SO WRONG!! She was doing this all wrong but-....What should she do now? Everyone was watching her. Not sure if anyone could hear her other than Allison but...She looked back to the human. ".....I d-do."

There was silence as they still stared at each other and Allison finally looked down at the chains than were completely covered in cracks. They broke with a glass sound and faded into thin air, any memories disappearing behind her and she smiled. Flexing her hands out and smiling wider at her freedom fromher prison but gasped as a shadow fell over them and the sound of someone clapping entered their ears. The Queen looked up from her spot on the ground and also froze as the sweet scent filled their noses.

"Fortune?"

There, to everyone's disbeleif, was the Forune Teller. The giant mothman chuckled pink smoke swirling around him as his first pair of hands held his smoke device, while the other pair was clapping as he smiled down at his beloved. "Greetings, Veleteen. And you too Miss Allison. I must say the show you put on tonight was in my opinion the best you could've given.~ You learnt what you needed too finally."

Velveteen immediately scrambled to her feet and brushed herself off and straightening herself out. A red blush rushing to her cheeks as he chuckled. "How long were you-....W-WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?!"

"I arrived a few minutes before your two's battle began. And I came out of curiousity to see how it would end...And another reason." ...He suddenly reached over to suck on the small smoke machine's pipe before exhaling the sweet smelling pink smoke with a frown. "My crystal ball told me you would be in danger but it didn't say what. I thought it'd be best to come and investigate myself."

Both women looked confused. "Danger? Why would I be in danger? The fight is over now."

BAM!!

The ground shook from under them as the audience screamed and gasped from the earthquake that shook everything. Velveteen was grabbed by the Fortune Teller who steadied her and Allison wobbled and fell onto her bum. The doors from where Allison had first entered through was literally blown off their hendges and sprawled across the arena. Two guards laid there too. Groaning much to everyone's relief. Thank goodness they were ok. But they stared at the smoke pouring out the door and a small shadow was starting to walking it's way through.

"I do beleive we're about to find out."

1 note · View note

hellogoodbye741 · 5 years

Text

All the book reviews I should have been doing in real time, but imma piece of garbage(tm)

Please ignore this second (or possibly more if i don’t have enough space) long ass post

Reading Lolita in Tehran:

I really enjoyed this book. I’m not a huge fan of a lot of nonfiction writing because of how monotonous they can be, but this wasn’t like that. She really told a story about her (the author) and a bunch of young woman in Tehran reading Lolita and other banned books, and it really resonated with me.

Hidden Figures:

I had been told several times that this book was not going to be what I expected and that I should read the children’s version of it instead because that was more like the movie. Should have listened. I enjoyed the book, but it focused way more on the scientific side of things instead of the more story-line aspect of history. Not saying that it wasn’t great and a fascinating read into such pivotal people in America’s timeline, it just wasn’t my thing.

Virals:

I had been putting off reading this series by Kathy Reichs because it wasn’t the Tempe Brennan character, and therefore I did not care. BOY WAS THAT A WRONG OPINION. This book (and the subsequent ones I have since read) are amazing! They were written with teens in mind, but you can enjoy them at any level. They are chocked full of sci-fi fun that keeps you begging for more and more. I say this about very few novels, but I would totally read again.

Noir:

I absolutely adore Christopher Moore books. I have read several of his, and have never found any at fault. This one, however, wasn’t up to par. It was okay, but not like his other works. I couldn’t get into as much, and it wasn’t as funny. The story is written very much like a noir-style movie, so I could find no fault in that, but the twist at the middle/end was very unexpected and left me confused. I think I would have to give it a read and more pay attention to more finite details to make sense of it.

Number One Chinese Restaurant:

I was expecting to really enjoy this book, but honestly, it kinda sucked. I didn’t really like any of the characters, and never felt any sympathy for any of them even when they were going through struggles. The writing was a little choppy, and the constant POV change was jarring. It was a little bit of a struggle to get through, not gonna lie.

The House That Lou Built:

I know this book is meant for younger audiences, but I absolutely adored it. Like I have nothing else to say, it was adorable and I will protect it with my life.

Crazy Rich Asians:

I enjoyed this book. I’m not a huge fan of multiple POVs, but the way they did it in this book wasn’t bad at all. I really want to see the movie and see how it compares.

Da Vinci Code:

Tis a classic I have read several times over. Dan Brown got it going on.

Post Mordem:

I love the Kathy Reichs books and have read several of them (unfortunately not in order). This is the first book in the series, and I really liked seeing how it all got started. Kathy Reichs tries to make sure to make the science aspect of the book both for the idiots and the people who know their shit, which is great. Gotta represent my North Carolina ladiesss

77 Shadow Street:

This book was all kinds of fucked up. Every time I thought I got the plot and what was going on, they fucked me over again. I said “what the fuck” at least once every chapter.

Raisin in the Sun:

Don’t know how it took me so long to read this play. Absolutely adored the characters and the storyline, and the resolution at the end was bittersweet. Would love to see it performed and get the true experience and emotion.

House on Mango Street:

I have read this book a handful of times too, and I enjoy it every single time. The book is short and sweet, and the poetry graceful and moving. Will probably read again and again in the future.

Whipping Boy:

I first read this in the 4th grade and it has resonated with me ever since. It takes like an hour to read, but it is filled with so much in the meantime. All about dat bourgeoise bullshitttttt and how it can be rectified.

In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson:

Haven’t read this since elementary school, and had forgotten how sweet this story is. The trials the young girl goes through and how she triumphs, in the end, leaves me with the biggest smile on my face.

Red Scarf Girl:

Also been a while since last reading this book. It’s a beautiful and tragic story about the rise of communism and the struggles that everyone in their country faced. I think it was based on a true story but honestly can’t remember. Would definitely read again.

Journey of Little Charles:

This was an endearing ‘growing up’ historical novel. I enjoyed it.

Ivy Aberdeen’s Letters to the World:

This was absolutely GREAT. Such a beautiful way to explore and introduce the LGBTQIA+ community to younger audiences.

Children of Blood and Bone:

I really enjoyed this book, and want to read the rest of the series too. It was a very immersive story that kept me on the edge of my seat throughout the whole story.

Chaos/Code/Exposure:

I’m just going to do these three as one since they’re all part of the same series. I really enjoy the Virals series, and each time you think there’s nowhere else to go, Reichs and her son introduce something you would have never expected.

Sing, unburied, sing:

Thought I was gonna like this one more than I did. It just kinda lagged for me and was hard to get into.

Lucky Broken Girl:

I thought this was a beautiful and heartbreaking book (and true story) about a girl who is confined to her bed practically paralyzed. It was nice to watch her get through her struggles and come out on top in the end.

Finding Langston:

This was a very cute story about a poc country boy going to the city and discovering himself through a love of books, and though it is meant for younger audiences, I enjoyed it immensely.

The Dollar Kids:

Another cute story meant for kids about finding one's self and working through trauma in a way that children can understand.

Winnie’s Great War:

It’s the absolutely true story of the English army adopting a bear in the 40s told through the POV of the bear. I do not need to say more.

Ballet Shoes:

I’m a sucker for three young girls following their dreams and one of them being ballet. Yaas queen.

Song for a Whale:

An absolutely stunning tale of following your dreams and fighting through all adversities to get there. Also, the main character is deaf, and being HOH myself, loved having the representation (even if the story if for younger children).

It’s Not a Perfect World, but I’ll take It:

Told from the perspective and real-life story of a girl living with autism, and some things that can help others learn how to accept that they are just like anyone else, and some things on how to make life a bit easier. Loved seeing life through that perspective, even if it was only for a little while.

Rapunzel’s Revenge:

Loved this comic’s twist on the classic tale of Rapunzel. Rapunzel takes her life into her own hands and kicks ass

Ghost Doll and Jasper:

This was a perfect mix between cute and creepy. A combination most would find weird, but I loved it!

Color Purple:

I’ve been hearing about this book for as long as I could remember, but never at any point had anyone ever talked about the plot?? It wasn’t what I expected at all, but it really made me feel something,

We Will Not Be Silent:

NEVER AGAIN MEANS NOW, NEVER AGAIN MEANS NOW

The Woman Who Smashed Codes:

A fascinating read, but on par with Hidden Figures where there was a lot that I just didn’t understand.

The Lowlands:

It took me almost 3/4 of the way into the book to actually get into the plot and understand what was going on. Maybe another read-through might help, but eh.

1776:

I love history, but the sheer length of this book and the unending quality about it was #strugglebus

Born a Crime:

Nobody should be born illegal, nobody should be illegal period. Trevor Noah, I’m sorry a rude ass country did that to you.

Stalking Jack the Ripper:

Yooooooo, read this shit!

Winnie the Pooh:

You already know who it is

Eragon:

It has been so long since I have read this series. I had forgotten how long the books were, but #worthit

Titus Andronicus:

Did not understand it while I was reading it. Saw it performed the next day and was like “ohhhhhhh, i get it now”

How to Train Your Dragon:

Nothing like the movie, at all. Still cute tho.

Howl’s Moving Castle:

Was just like the movie, except even more. There was a whole other plot point that just added to the concept of Howl that made it even better.

Other Words from Home:

Beautiful story of a young girl moving halfway across the world and dealing with the hardships that come with it.

Hunting Prince Dracula:

Do you like UST between two dork scientist badasses??? READ DAT SHIT

Sweep:

This was both incredibly sweet, and absolutely sad, while also throwing in some kill the capitalist bourgeoise and I loved it.

Errant Prince:

Four words-

Gay.

Trans.

Wizard.

Knight.

Diary of Anne Frank:

You get so enamored with the girl she was, that you forget that she never got to the be the girl she could have been.

:’(

The Help:

EAT

SHIT

Black Leopard, Red Wolf:

Not a big fan of the random and multiple rape scenes, and the plot was hard to follow.

Hunger Makes me a Modern Girl:

It was a good, short read.

In Another time:

I got straight and happy couple baited and I was denied but in a beautiful way so #allowed.

A Place For Us:

Another one where the plot was a little hard to follow, but I actually enjoyed it nonetheless.

Sun is Also a Star:

Thought I was gonna be denied my happy ending, turned it around on the last page. Hell yuss.

Prodigal Summer:

Thought I was gonna enjoy it more since I too am from rural Appalachia. Nah

Zombie:

Alright, okay, a little fucked up, okay, okay, WHAT THE FUCK JUST HAPPENED, the end.

Fox8:

I cried at work reading this????

Fire and Fury:

Not my thing, nice to see what’s up tho

Song of Achilles:

GAAAAAAY

and

TRAGGGGIICCC

Genesis Begins Again:

No matter what anyone says, you’re beautiful

#book review challenge #hawkybarton

2 notes · View notes

thorne93 · 6 years

Text

Curious Conundrum (Part 25)

Prompt: You’re John Watson’s sister. One day you decide to visit your brother for lunch, only to meet the infamous Mr. Holmes…

Word Count: 3032

Warnings: language, flirtation, sexual innuendos (maybe? idfk), murder/crime/case related stuff, angst, jealousy…

Notes: Beta’d by @carryonmyswansong Not only did she beta, but I literally couldn’t have written half these scenes without her help. She contributed majorly, even wrote some parts of scenes. I am forever in her debt.

Also, this starts AFTER Season 2, episode 1. I don’t follow all the episodes, but it does follow the timeline and hit some major events : )

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Reservations made, vendors paid, outfits picked up, certificates ready, and it was the day of the wedding, finally. Sherlock had gotten up before you, shockingly.

He’d been composing a song on violin for them and you had absolutely loved the way it’d sounded. Secretly, you hoped and prayed if you two ever got married he would do something similar but you would never bring up the idea of marriage to him.

You were busy texting Mary, grabbing your dress, heels, makeup, and accessories, and box of wedding goods while he had his recorded violin music going.

“Y/N, will you come here?” he called from the living room.

“What is it?” you asked as you stepped in.

“Dance with me?” he requested, his dreamy eyes alluring as he held his hand out. Even though he was in his pajamas and robe, he still looked like the best dance partner you could ever ask for.

“I--Sure,” you breathed, gliding over to him and taking his hand. Without much warning, his other hand snapped over your waist. The sensation awoke feelings in you you hadn’t felt in a long time.

You and Sherlock had been living together, sure, and the touching was slowly but surely coming back. Holding hands was more frequent, and you kissed nearly every day, but the sex had yet to come. That was something you’d been really scared of.

Being this close, smelling his aftershave, your chests pressed together… It was hard to resist him before, and growing even harder right this second. The two of you began dancing, twirling, and he dipped you just as Mrs. Hudson walked in, making you blush.

“Shut up, Mrs. Hudson,” he snapped casually as she stepped in.

“Sherlock,” you chided, still holding on to him.

“I haven’t said a word.”

“You were formulating a question. It’s physically painful watching you think,” he remarked.

“I thought it was you playing.”

“It was me playing.” He let you go and paused the music. “I am composing.”

“You were dancing,” she noted, walking in with a tray, smiling.

You blushed and nodded. “He’s road testing his new song,” you informed.

“Oh, you two look so cute together. I’m so glad you finally moved in, darling. Sherlock really missed your company--”

“Why are you here?’ he suddenly demanded, turning to face her.

“I’m bringing you your morning tea, you’re not usually awake,” she noted.

“You bring me tea in the morning?” he asked before plopping into his chair and you went to stand behind him.

She giggled. “Where do you think it came from?”

“I don’t know. Just thought it sort of happened.”

“Your mum has a lot to answer for.”

“Mmm, I know. I have a list. Mycroft has a file.”

She sat across from the two of you, grinning ear to ear. “So! It’s the big day then!”

“What big day?” Sherlock asked before you playfully tapped him.

“The wedding!” she stressed. “John and Mary are getting married!”

“Two people who are currently living together are about to attend church, have a big party, go on a short holiday, then carry on living together. What’s big about that?” he asked.

“Marriage changes people.”

“No it doesn’t,” you and Sherlock said in unison. He looked up at you with a half-smile.

“Well you two wouldn’t understand because you’re not married.”

“No, but we live together. Just because the government doesn’t recognize it and I haven’t taken Sherlock’s last name..” you insinuated slowly, “doesn’t mean we don’t understand.”

Mrs. Hudson continued to talk about her friend and their wedding day, about how marriage changes you but you personally couldn’t imagine it. So two people who love each other make it legal, what could it possibly change? In the meantime, Sherlock had nearly thrown Mrs. Hudson out of the flat. His nerves were just a jumbled up mess. You had half a mind to offer him a cigarette, but thought better of it.

Sherlock looked over at John’s chair, a solemn expression touching his face. It didn’t take a genius to see what had suddenly bothered him.

“He’s still your friend, Sherlock, just like he’s still my brother. He’ll have time for all of us,” you assured softly.

“Right,” he said, his tone making it clear he was changing the subject. “You need to take all of those things to Mary and I need to finish this song.”

“You’re in the mood for kicking people out today,” you noted with a smile.

“I’m in the mood to do our jobs,” he remarked lowly, his tone making you quiver.

--------------------------

The day went off almost without a hitch -- well the first part. Getting Mary into her gown, getting the veil on, the makeup and hair artist helping her. You and Sherlock walking down the aisle when it was your time, trying to keep your eyes off him in a tux.

He looked good in pajamas, great in his business casual, but god damn did he look delicious in a tuxedo.

The lot of you were getting your pictures taken, when you noticed one of the bridesmaids, Janine, had leaned over to Sherlock during the photo session to whisper and talk. He nodded for a moment, and then gestured to some guests. For some reason, this action went up your spine.

After the photos, you were shown over to the garden room where John and Mary greeted the guests one by one. Once you got inside, everyone started to mingle. You stayed by Mary’s side, as your duty was practically written law to be there. She assured you to go off and have fun, but you felt it would be best if she needed help that you were right there.

While you stood there however and tuned her and John out, your eyes washed over the crowd, searching for your boyfriend. There he was again with Janine. The two were huddled closely, talking lowly as their eyes moved about the room. The more they talked, the more they seemed to grow fond of each other. He turned to her and gave a small look of satisfaction, and she gave him a look of adoration.

The sight alone sent flames to the top of your head.

Time drug on as you tried to stay by Mary’s side, but it kept getting harder as you watched Janine practically like a shadow on Sherlock. Every time, you wanted to nearly rip your heel off and beat her with it.

Normally, you wouldn’t have had this sort of reaction, this level of jealousy. But those awful words Sherlock had spoken to you before… well, they still resonated. He’d assured you time and time again they weren’t real, but how could you be sure? Maybe Irene Adler had given up on him? Maybe he’d settled for you? Maybe now that he had a taste of a real romance and relationship, he was ready to move on from you. As if you were training wheels - the first set, just the thing to get him broken in, ready for the real thing, then as soon as you weren’t needed, off you went.

You tried to reason, think logically, tell yourself they were just talking. People could do that after all, just talk… But this was your boyfriend, this was the man who had put you through hell and back, this was the man that was supposedly hard to woo, anti-social person. Yet here he was fraternizing.

You shook your head as all of you had taken a seat at the wedding party table, Sherlock next to you, Janine on your left. If she even looked at him funny, you’d break a glass over her face.

They commanded attention for the Best Man and Sherlock realized that was him. A slight look of panic shadowed his face before you squeezed his hand and he stood up, ready to speak. The room was still applauding as he got things ready.

“Ladies and gentlemen, family and friends… and… um, others,” he stammered, looking out onto the quiet and awkward crowd. “A--a--also…”

Your insides twisted for him. It was your job to stand before people and talk nearly every day, but not his. He never had to talk to a lot of people at once, and if he did, it was usually to brag about himself.

“Telegrams,” you suddenly whisper, hoping to push him along and help.

“What? Oh, oh right,” he noted. He picked up the cards and said, “First things first. Telegrams. Well, they’re not actually telegrams. We just call them telegrams. I don’t know why. Wedding tradition. ... because we don’t have enough of that already, apparently.”

You cringed at his words. You knew he loathed weddings, marriages, all of it, but he needed to keep in check his negativity on John and Mary’s day.

He read off the cards. He got through about three before he started to sum up their intentions and toss them onto the table.

“Bit of a theme – you get the general gist. People are basically fond.”

You adjusted nervously in your seat next to him.

“John Watson. My friend, John Watson. When John first broached the subject of being best man, I was confused.”

He then went on to recall the humorous conversation, one that you had not been present for, but now wish you had been.

“I confess at first I didn’t realize he was asking me. When finally I understood, I expressed to him that I was both flattered and ... surprised. I explained to him that I’d never expected this request and I was a little daunted in the face of it. I nonetheless promised that I would do my very best to accomplish a task which was – for me – as demanding and difficult as any I had ever contemplated. Additionally, I thanked him for the trust he’d placed in me ... and indicated that I was, in some ways, very close to being ... moved by it. It later transpired that I had said none of this out loud.”

To this, you and your brother gave a laugh, granting an opening for others to do so as well. After this anecdote, Sherlock pulled out the index cards that you had suggested and then he began leafing them out onto the table. All the while muttering “Done that bit.”

Finally, he set on with the speech. “I’m afraid, John, I can’t congratulate you.”

You stilled, remembering that you had helped him with the speech and that was not in there.

“All emotions, and in particular love, stand opposed to the pure, cold reason I hold above all things. A wedding is, in my considered opinion, nothing short of a celebration of all that is false and specious and irrational and sentimental in this ailing and morally compromised world. Today we honour the death-watch beetle that is the doom of our society and, in time – one feels certain – our entire species. But anyway ... let’s talk about John.”

“Please,” your brother urged gently.

"If I burden myself with a little help-mate during my adventures, it is not out of sentiment or caprice – it is that he has many fine qualities of his own that he has overlooked in his obsession with me."

You couldn't help but smile and look down at your lap at that one.

"Indeed, any reputation I have for mental acuity and sharpness comes, in truth, from the extraordinary contrast John so selflessly provides. It is a fact, I believe, that brides tend to favour exceptionally plain bridesmaids for their big day. There is a certain analogy there, I feel, and contrast is, after all, God’s own plan to enhance the beauty of his creation."

At this, you grinned to, cocking your head slightly, wondering where on earth he summoned talks of God.

"...or it would be if God were not a ludicrous fantasy designed to provide a career opportunity for the family idiot."

Ah, there it is.

"The point I’m trying to make is that I am the most unpleasant, rude, ignorant and all-round obnoxious arsehole that anyone could possibly have the misfortune to meet. I am dismissive of the virtuous, unaware of the beautiful, and uncomprehending in the face of the happy."

A sad look shadowed your expression for a moment.

"So if I didn’t understand I was being asked to be best man, it is because I never expected to be anybody’s best friend. Certainly not the best friend of the bravest and kindest and wisest human being I have ever had the good fortune of knowing."

A round of awws went around the room and you wanted to join them.

"John, I am a ridiculous man redeemed only by the warmth and constancy of your friendship. But, as I’m apparently your best friend, I cannot congratulate you on your choice of companion."

For a moment, you wondered if he'd shattered the somewhat beautiful speech he had just built. But before you could assess the damage, he spoke again.

"Actually, now I can. Mary, when I say you deserve this man, it is the highest compliment of which I am capable. John, you have endured war, and injury, and tragic loss ...so sorry again about that last one. So know this: today you sit between the woman you have made your wife and the man you have saved – in short, the two people who love you most in all this world. And I know I speak for Mary as well when I say we will never let you down, and we have a lifetime ahead to prove that."

To your surprise, you were tearing up. Sherlock had somehow managed to insult everyone in the room, even himself, and yet say the most eloquent and loving thing. And that is why you loved him.

“Ah, yes. Now on to some funny stories about John…” but he looked up and realized everyone was misty eyed and quiet. “What’s wrong? What happened? Why are you all doing that? John? Y/N?"

You couldn't say much so Sherlock turned back to John.

"Did I do it wrong?"

"No, you didn't. Come here." He embraced Sherlock warmly , your heart glowing with love at the sight before you.

After that, Sherlock started to go into some of their cases together, all of the noteworthy ones. Then he moved on to the bachelor night. The recollection of it tickled you, even with Molly in the story. It was a rather hilarious night, while Sherlock had tried to control their party, you’d treated Mary to a night of drinking, clubs, dancing, and then back at their house, loads of gifts.

He finally reeled in the speech to an almost close, as he said, "Ladies and gentlemen, pray charge your glasses and be upstanding. Today begin the adventures of Mary Elizabeth Watson and John Hamish Watson. The two reasons why every single one of us is ..."

But suddenly, he stopped, frozen. He stared forward a moment and you looked over at him, worried. Before you could react, he’d let go of his glass and it fell to the ground around your feet, shattering. You should’ve jumped back to protect your exposed feet, but your worry for Sherlock kicked into overdrive.

“Here today,” he finished. A waiter offered him another glass but you could tell, his demeanor had changed. It’d been subtle at first, but with every growing second it was more evident. Something was wrong.

“Ladies and gentlemen, people tell you not to milk a good speech – get off early, leave ’em laughing. Wise advice I’ll certainly try to bear in mind. But for now--" he put a hand on the table and launched over it. If you weren't so concerned for whatever was going wrong, it would've aroused you, that level of agility. “Part two! Part two is more acton-based. I’m gonna ... walk around, shake things up a bit. Who’d go to a wedding? That’s the question. Who would bother to go to any lengths to get themselves to a wedding? Well, everyone. Weddings are great! Love a wedding.”

Meanwhile, he was pacing up and down the tables, eyeing everyone.

You leaned over to John. “What’s wrong?”

“I don’t know, but something,” he acknowledged, both of you having your eyes on him. The two of you watched on in worried anticipation as he continued to pace. He muttered, mumbled, ranted, and rambled. He got Lestrade to leave to go to he bathroom.

You gasped. Someone was here. Something was going to happen. Something...fatal.

Just as you worked it out, Sherlock confirmed your fear by saying, “Oh! Ladies and gentlemen, can’t stand it when I finally get the chance to speak for once, Vatican Cameos.”

Those two words sent chills down your back. You knew very well what they meant, and John did too. He informed Mary and Sherlock seemed as if he was going to snap. In fact, he kind of did. He slapped himself twice and you couldn’t help but stand up, ready to go see if you could help him.

He continued to work out his theory aloud as he walked all over the room until he finally came up to the table and said, “Major Sholto is going to be killed. I don’t know how or why, but it’s going to happen.”

John kissed Mary, told her to stay there, then followed Sherlock. You and Mary looked at each other, speaking with your eyes for a brief moment before the two of you jumped up and traced their steps.

The four of you ran to the Major’s room as Sherlock explained that the man was in grave danger. However, he wouldn’t open the door for them. He demanded Sherlock solve it, but Sherlock claimed he couldn’t back then so he couldn’t now. John accused him of being a drama queen, and that unless ‘the game is on’ Sherlock can’t work properly. With this information, he was able to start sorting through possibilities, until he finally realized how he’d a murder had already been attempted on Major Sholto.

After reasoning with the Major, he finally opened the door and all of you rushed in to help him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Forever Tag:

@cocosierra94

@essie1876

@magpiegirl80

@letsgetfuckingsuperwholocked

@iamwarrenspeace

@marvel-imagines-yes-please

@superwholocked527

@missinstantgratification

@thejemersoninferno

@rda1989

@munlis

@thefridgeismybestie

@bubblyanarocks3

@igiveupicantthinkofausername

@kaliforniacoastalteens

@feelmyroarrrr

@kaeling

@friendlyneighbourhoodweirdo

@damalseer

@heyitscam99

@yknott81

@sorryimacrapwriter

@glitterquadricorn

@xxqueenofisolationxx

@little-dis-kaalista-pythonissama

@bittersweetunicorm

@alyssaj23

CC tag: @disneyoncerlover815 @ultrarebelheart @tngrayson @clairese1980 @ladyblablabla @molethemollie

#curious conundrum #sherlock x reader #sherlock holmes x reader #sherlock fic #sherlock holmes fic #sherlock holmes #sherlock bbc

41 notes · View notes

jarienn972 · 7 years

Text

Only a Little Superstitious - Chapter Eight

Finally getting my Tumblr posts caught up to the most current chapters of both of my WIPs so that they’re in line with what’s showing on both FF.net and AO3.

The big word for this chapter is going to be TRUST as Emma gets faced with a big decision to make here and her choice might be surprising... Lots of angst building here for @killian-whump and much more to come as our heroes try to stay below the radar now that they know what their pursuer is up to.

Earlier chapters here: One Two Three Four Five Six Seven

Emma sat alone in the waiting room for a few minutes, not really sure what she should do. How long would it take to remove a broken piece of dagger and repair all the damage the miserable thing had caused? A couple of hours? She thought about calling home – it'd be about lunchtime there, but while she felt so alone right now, it didn't exactly mean that she was the only person present in the waiting room. There were at least a dozen others here in the room with her, all waiting for updates on their loved ones – far too many people to have within earshot of the conversation she needed to have.

So, she started wandering the hallways, not wanting to venture too far away that they wouldn't be able to locate her when there was news to share, but seeking a bit of privacy that wouldn't be found in any of the rooms she'd visited so far. She stopped briefly in the cafeteria to grab some coffee hoping the caffeine would help keep her alert during what promised to be a long wait, asking the cashier if there were any quiet areas on the hospital campus that would allow her to make a private phone call. The young man told her about an outdoor lounge area off of the main lobby that had one time been the smoker's retreat before that vice was banned from the campus. It was now more of a little xeriscape garden area with some native plants and cacti on display but he said it was normally fairly secluded.

Thanking the cashier, she sought out the rock garden refuge that was hidden away between the hospital's two wings. There wasn't a lot of shade to escape the Arizona heat, but she found a bench that had a little bit of shelter under the shadow of a huge yucca plant. There was one other person out here with her, but there was sufficient distance between them that if she kept her voice down, her side of the conversation wasn't likely to be overheard. She had a lot of questions that needed answering and definitely needed a distraction from worrying about her husband…

She sat the Styrofoam coffee cup onto the bench beside her before retrieving her phone from the outer pocket of the backpack Carlos had brought her earlier, thankful that she'd had the presence of mind to grab it since neither the tee shirt or leggings she was wearing had pockets. She tapped her father's number from her contact list and waited for the call to connect.

"Emma, I'm so glad you called," David answered. "We've had a few breakthroughs today and I was getting ready to call you. Do you have a few minutes?"

"I was hoping you'd say that and yeah, I've got probably a few hours while I'm sitting here waiting, so what have you found out?"

"Waiting for what?" he wondered, becoming concerned upon hearing his daughters long, distraught sigh before answering his question.

"Killian took a turn for the worse this morning so our new Park Ranger friend had to call an ambulance. He's in surgery right now to try to fix all of the damage that dagger caused – oh, yeah, and to remove the broken tip of it that's sitting next to his spine…"

"What?!" David exclaimed, momentarily dumbfounded at the revelation his daughter had just dropped. He'd seen the dagger was missing its point when he'd picked it up from the street yesterday, but he'd simply assumed that the ancient looking blade broke when it was dropped. The thought had never crossed his mind that…

"Why didn't you tell me that the dagger's tip was broken off?"

"At the time it didn't seem at all important…," he sighed. "I would never have thought it broke like that…" He fell silent for a moment but she realized that he was actually whispering something to someone else nearby – someone she quickly realized was her mother when she heard a startled gasp in the background. "Emma, I'm so sorry…" he told her as he returned to the line. "The rest of this can wait if you want…"

"No, Dad. I'd rather try to keep my mind occupied right now and if you've got information on the two strangers who started this – spill."

"Well, we don't have a lot from her yet, but Regina managed to get a couple of names. The witch's name is Yzma and it seems like she was brought over from the Land of Untold Stories with Hyde and she has apparently been waiting months to open that portal. Regina said she keeps going on about the blood moon and how you're stealing her golden city…"

"Yzma? Really? Let me guess, her partner's name is Kronk?" she deadpanned, no longer surprised by any fairytale characters who popped up.

"How'd you know that?" David asked. "Yeah – his name is Nehemiah Kronk and from what we've found out about him, he's basically a soldier for hire. Loyalty pledged to whoever's paying him that day."

"I've seen the movie," she replied in the same unimpressed tone at yet another story book connection, but with a disturbing twist to the story she knew. "Although this Kronk doesn't sound like the loveable idiot from that story…"

"From what Belle turned up, there's absolutely nothing loveable about this guy. He's a nasty piece of work - wanted in several realms for crimes ranging from thievery to murder so it's not too surprising that he ran for the Land of Untold Stories to escape. Not sure if that's where he and Yzma met or if they knew each other before that. I really hope you and Hook are able to stay clear of him out there where you don't have magic."

"My thoughts exactly," she replied. "I just don't get why this Yzma person keeps saying we stole her gold. There's nothing gold here except the sun and the sand. It's not exactly El Dorado…"

"El Dorado?"

"The legendary city of gold? Guess they don't have that legend in your realm…?" She wasn't really interested in discussing fictional places right now though. She just wanted to know who she was dealing with and find a way to get home. "It doesn't really matter… Has Regina figured out how Yzma managed to open that portal anyway? Maybe there's a way to reverse it to get us home quicker?"

"Regina said she tried to get the scepter to work after we took it from Yzma, but so far, she hasn't had any luck. She's trying to figure out what she's doing wrong, but it might take a while."

"I don't know… Maybe it has to be at a certain time of day or could it have something to do with that blood moon you mentioned? A lot of magic spells require specific lunar timing. I can't imagine that Yzma would be the only one able to make it work…"

"Anything is possible, but I know Regina is still trying. We'll let you know if we can get it to work. In the meantime, you have to keep us updated on Hook. And how are you explaining all of this to the local authorities?"

"We've pieced together a semi-believable story – enough to keep the wolves at bay, but I'll have to work on some of the finer details. Oh, and I'll also need Regina to magically update a medical insurance file."

"So, no one has asked about why your husband has a hook instead of a left hand?"

"No one would know to ask. I had him remove it and I hid it before we left the cabin. They know he's missing a hand, but that's as far as it goes."

"Okay – that was a good idea. No use drawing any extra attention." David's thought was exactly what had gone through Emma's mind before they'd climbed into Carlos Littlecreek's SUV.

"I'm just hoping that we didn't wait too long…," her voice audibly cracking as her façade began to break. "Maybe we should have gone straight to a hospital anyway…"

"Emma – you made the decision you thought was best at the time based on your assessment of the situation. I'm quite sure your husband would have made his opinion known if he'd disagreed."

"It wasn't like I gave him much choice in the matter."

"Don't beat yourself up over it. He's made it this far. Second guessing yourself won't change anything that's already been done."

"I know, Dad," she sighed. "Doesn't make it any easier…"

"Promise you'll let us know as soon as you have an update?"

"I will – as long as you promise me that you'll let me know as soon as Regina figures out how to activate that scepter."

"That's a promise," he assured her.

Collecting the backpack and slinging it over her shoulder, she wandered back to the crowded waiting area, at least able to enjoy the air conditioning although she never even had a moment to sit down before the woman in lavender scrubs was standing before her once more.

"Mrs. Jones?" the woman asked tentatively. "I've been trying to find you…"

"Find me?" Emma said, allowing a little gasp to escape her lips as her mind reeled with unimaginable thoughts. "Is everything alright? My husband – is he okay?" She knew she sounded like a blubbering idiot, but she couldn't stop herself.

"Your husband is still in surgery. I don't have anything to report yet, but there's a man looking for you – a Ranger Littlecreek? He was just here asking about you a few minutes ago, but this waiting area is for immediate family only so I sent him back to the main lobby."

"He's the Park Ranger who rescued us this morning," Emma explained, sighing in relief that it wasn't anything to do with Killian. For now, no news had to be good news. "Was he going to wait for me?"

"It sounded like it," the woman replied. "I'm sorry – I didn't realize there was a connection."

"It's fine. I just came from that way so I must have just missed him. Thank you. I'm going to go see if I can locate him but if there's any news regarding my husband, please page me or something. I'll be back in a few minutes…"

She found Carlos Littlecreek seated on a leather sofa in the hospital's spacious main lobby, merely steps away from the desert hideaway garden where she'd been earlier. He saw her approaching, but the expression on his face wasn't exactly the welcoming one she'd expected but rather a mix of confusion and anger.

"Ranger Littlecreek," Emma greeted him with his professional title, smiling politely as she walked up to him, feeling slightly ill at ease by his conflicted visage. "You were looking for me?"

"Sheriff," he returned the businesslike greeting, his brown eyes darkened with distrust. "We need to talk and I didn't have a phone number to call you."

"Okay…," she responded, not understanding this change in attitude. Less than two hours ago, he was eagerly proposing a cover story and doing all he could to help them and now – now, it was as though he'd been betrayed and she had no inkling why. "You can ask me anything… What's wrong? Is someone questioning our story?" Had he gotten into some kind of trouble for aiding them?

"No – the story is holding for now, but something is really bothering me…"

"Bothering you? How so?" This was getting more confusing by the second.

"After you left in the ambulance, I went back to the bedroom to help Grandmother clean things up a bit – the broken pottery and all – and obviously, you didn't have time to gather up all of your things so she started to pick up your jackets from the floor…" Now it clicked. They'd found the one item that she'd wanted to keep hidden. "Imagine our surprise when something tumbled out of a red leather jacket - something that had us completely stumped…" Carlos pulled back a corner of his cargo vest to reveal just a glint of shiny steel and Emma's gaze immediately dropped to the floor. "Why the hell are you carrying this around and why does it look like it fits into that leather contraption your husband was wearing where his left hand used to be?"

"I'm not sure you'd understand my explanation," she sighed, still unable to look back up at him as her brain raced for something to say – anything to make him less suspicious as to why a sharpened metal hook was secreted away inside her jacket. "I honestly don't know what I could say that would make much sense…"

"How about the truth?" he demanded. "I want to help you, I really do, but can you just be honest with me?"

"Not here," she relented. "Can we go somewhere not so public? I'd really rather keep this confidential."

"How about my truck? It's out in the parking lot and will probably be the most privacy you're going to get around here."

"Works for me," she replied, trying not to let him see the anxiety brewing beneath her calm exterior. She had no idea what she was going to say – what she could say that wouldn't make her sound insane? So, she just remained quiet and pensive as they walked together out to the parking garage and took the elevator up to the 3rd level. Once they reached the SUV, they both climbed inside and he started the engine – partially so the noise would help prevent eavesdroppers and partially so the air conditioning would operate.

"Okay – it's just the two of us here, Sheriff," he began. "Law enforcer to law enforcer…"

"This isn't going to be easy to grasp," she stammered, "and up until a few years ago, I would have thought this story was just as crazy as it's going to sound to you…"

"As long as it includes a logical reason that you'd be carrying around a huge steel hook…"

"It belongs to my husband," she stated flatly. "And how did you manage to get it inside the building anyway? Didn't it set off the metal detectors?"

"Like I told you before, I know the head of Security here. I came in with him. But let's get back to your little tale – this thing belongs to your husband?"

"Yes. He's been wearing it as a prosthetic in place of his left hand since it was severed a very long time ago…"

"He wears a hook for a prosthetic hand?" Carlos asked skeptically.

"He does – and for a good portion of his life, it was part of the image he used to define himself – well, define who he thought he was back when all he could think of was getting vengeance against the man who'd cut off his hand. Back then, he used it to strike fear in those around him, but now it's just a part of who he is. It doesn't speak for him any longer…"

"You never said how your husband lost his hand."

"You never asked," she replied defensively. "He got into a skirmish with a jealous ex-husband while serving as Captain of a ship a long time ago."

"Ship Captain? He was Navy?"

"He did serve in the Royal Navy for a while, but this occurred while he was Captain of a very different type of ship…"

"Come on…," he scoffed. "You sound like you're describing Captain Hook…" He chuckled a little, but his humor was tempered when he saw the dead-serious look on Emma's face and she responded with just two words:

"I am."

"Oh, come on… You expect me to believe that?"

"Ranger, Killian is – er, was Captain Hook. He's put those pirating days behind him and while there are still people who refer to him by the name Hook, he's trying hard to just be Killian Jones now."

"Your husband is Captain Hook?" The Ranger wasn't about to be easily convinced . "I've read Peter Pan… I've seen the movies… How the hell can he be Captain Hook?"

"It's really a very long story, but it's who he is. You wanted the truth and you're getting it." She wasn't really certain this was the best path to take, but she'd unloaded part of her secret life already, so there was no going back now. "Your grandmother sensed something was different about Killian after she treated him. She told me she sensed he had an old soul and she was right…"

"An old soul?" he chuckled. "Exactly how old?"

"Honestly, I don't know the exact number for sure. A lot of curses and cursed places had an effect on how his body aged, but it's somewhere around three hundred."

"Three hundred years old? You've got to be kidding me…"

"Why am I bothering to tell you this then? You're not going to believe a word I say…"

"So, who does that make you? Tinkerbell?"

"No. Tinkerbell is a fairy, I'm not – although in the right setting, I have magic powers just like her." She didn't care anymore if Carlos was believing this or not. He could think she just escaped from an insane asylum for all she cared. "I'm actually the daughter of Snow White and Prince David – Prince Charming…"

The Ranger choked back another chortle, fully believing that this woman sitting beside him – a woman he'd known for barely a day – had lost her mind.

"Snow White and Prince Charming, huh?"

"I knew you'd never believe us, that's why I didn't tell you any of this yesterday," Emma spat, throwing open the passenger door of the SUV intending to exit before he had her committed. "I shouldn't have bothered."

"Wait!" Carlos reached across the front seat to grab ahold of her bicep before she could climb out of the vehicle, stopping her from leaving. "Are you really serious about all of this?" Grandmother had sent him to find this couple yesterday and while he had reacted strongly to the discovery of the hook, she had simply set it aside and continued about her business as if she'd already known it would be there. He'd been the one who'd found it awkward and disturbing.

"Of course, I'm serious about it," she stated angrily. "Do you honestly think I could make up a story like this? As story as bizarre as being the daughter of Snow While and being married to Captain Hook? Would it help if I told you that we were married by Jiminy Cricket and our wedding guest list included a whole lot of dwarves, the Evil Queen and the Wicked Witch of the West?"

The Ranger's head was spinning by now. Her story was so incredibly unbelievable that it almost made sense and now he couldn't stop wondering how much Grandmother might have known about them. Her premonition had directed him right to this couple – right to the exact trail and seldom utilized way station at the summit. Would she believe this tale? She'd opened her home to these strangers – welcomed them in with few questions asked so, had she known that there was something different about these out-of-town visitors?

"How exactly did you end up on the mountain? I know you didn't hike up there…" He momentarily changed the subject, but secretly hoped her answer would help clarify what he was beginning to believe.

"A magical portal," Emma answered straightforwardly knowing he likely already considered her a nutcase. Why back away now? "Basically - a swirling vortex that opened up on Main Street yesterday morning, right after Killian was stabbed by the man we're trying to avoid. He stumbled and fell in so I had to jump in after him. I knew he was wounded so I couldn't let him go alone and while typically these things are designed to take you wherever – or whenever – you're thinking of, this one was different. It brought us straight to a mountainside that I promise you, neither of us would ever had thought of!"

"Are these portals a regular occurrence where you're from?"

"They've definitely become an increasing problem for my family. This wasn't our first…" She paused a moment to gauge the Ranger's expression trying to determine exactly how skeptical he was of all of this, but in truth, the look in his eyes was more one of confusion than anything. "Okay – admit it… You think I'm insane, don't you?"

"I've got to admit, Sheriff, yours is one of the strangest tales I've ever heard," he replied while massaging his temples with his thumb and middle finger, an exasperated snicker escaping his mouth. "But I've spent a lifetime growing up hearing Navajo and Yavapai history – tales of magical places and creations, of gods and men who would be gods so I really can't say if your story is any more or less fantastical than my own. I tell tales to tourists about sacred places in these mountains and of the Native people who have long believed these mountains hold secrets like gateways to other worlds - including one to the underworld of the dead if you believe in things like that…"

"That's one I'd rather avoid. Not a place I really want to visit again," Emma said without realizing how absurd it sounded.

"Wait – did you say again?"

"That's a story for another day," she replied, cringing that she'd even brought it up.

"I think that's one I'd like to hear," he laughed.

"Probably not, but the question is now – do you believe me?"

"I'm not sure what I believe, but if you could come up with a whopper of a fairytale like that on a whim, I'm duly impressed. There's just one thing I have to know…"

"What's that?" she wondered, not sure how much else she could tell him if he wasn't yet convinced.

"Did your husband actually wear a big floppy feathered hat and a waxed moustache?" Carlos asked with a playful grin.

"Thankfully – no," she chuckled, finally breathing a sigh of relief that the tone of their conversation had reversed. "He was much more partial to long, dramatic black leather dusters and meticulously groomed scruff – along with a generous application of black kohl lining his eyes."

"Black leather and eyeliner? That's quite a drastic deviation from the storybook character…"

"You'd better believe it!" she giggled, remembering the first time she'd shown Killian an image of how this world had depicted Captain Hook. He'd been horrified and absolutely livid at the inaccuracies saying that no self-respecting pirate would ever create such an embarrassing persona, referring to his literary counterpart as the prissy pompadour. "Now, if you don't mind, I really should be getting back to my husband…"

"Before you go back, there's something you need to know," he began, his demeanor instantly morphing into a frighteningly serious one. "The man who came through the portal with you, he showed up at a hospital in Scottsdale this morning, pretending to be a US Marshal. He told the clerk at the Admissions desk that his name was Llamas and he was looking for a couple with your descriptions. I've already checked with the Marshal Service and there's no one with that name working in this area. Who the hell is this guy?"

"According to what my family has turned up back home, he's really a mercenary by the name of Nehemiah Kronk. They're working to dig up more information on him and his partner, but this is an interesting development. He's impersonating a US Marshal? That's an odd choice…"

"Most people don't know much about the Marshal Service and how they operate. They probably wouldn't even know what their badges looked like, so it's a pretty good choice for a cover if you want to pretend to be law enforcement."

"Oh, that I know, but he's from my world. They don't have US Marshals in the fairytale world which has me wondering how he came up with that ruse? Makes me think he's been in this realm before. I just don't know how…"

"Our world isn't easy for fairytales to get to – even with these portal things?"

"This world isn't difficult to get to, but it's not easy to return from. They call your world The Land Without Magic where we're from. Finding a way back to the fairytale realms from here would require a little more creativity."

"Land Without Magic? You believe that?"

"I know mine doesn't work here or my husband wouldn't be laying on an operating room table right now," Emma sighed. "If we were still in Storybrooke, I could have instantly healed his wound."

"You have healing powers?" he asked incredulously.

"Amongst others," she grinned through the painful reminder that her powers were useless here. "None that I can show you here though."

"If you believe Grandmother, this land wasn't always without magic. She's one of many among our people who believe that magic might still be out there – we've just forgotten how to recognize it – how to feel it. I guess I've always been a skeptic, but your convoluted tale almost makes me want to believe."

"Supposedly, there's magic everywhere we look, but not all of it can be harnessed. I was told a long time ago that magic is a feeling. You can't wield it if you can't feel it and mine is definitely tied to my emotions. I just wish I could feel it right now…"

"I'm sure…," he replied empathetically, understanding how awful it had to be for her to not be able to heal her husband if she indeed had that capability. "I had better let you get back in there now…"

"So, we're good?"

"Yes – we're good. Do you want the hook back now?"

"Why don't you keep it safe for us for a while? I'd rather not have a nurse find it and have to go through all of this again."

"I'll be happy to keep it safe for you. Oh, and Sheriff – how about you give me your phone number so I don't have to send a nurse to track you down again?"

"Gladly. Right now, having nurses hunting me down is a little nerve-wracking…"

"Sorry. I'll try not to do that again."

"Appreciate it," she replied as he handed her his phone so she could enter her number into the contacts. "And please – keep our secret safe too. It's bad enough that Killian's attacker is out there, but if our real identities were to get out, it'd put us in even more danger because I doubt others would likely believe us. People will just think we're crazy and we already have enough to deal with…"

"The only person I need to tell is Grandmother, but I have my suspicions that she already knows that you aren't from around here – and I don't mean Arizona… She probably already thinks you dropped out of the sky from Maine or whatever…"

"Not exactly from the sky, but I know what you mean."

"I've got to head back to work now, but I'll drop by after my shift. I'm going to pull in a few favors with the Sheriff's department here to see if we can track down this Mr. Kronk. I'll keep you posted. Now – get out of here and go be with your husband."

Emma smiled as she climbed down from the SUV, both surprised and relieved that her revelation had gone as well as it had. Confiding the truth in the Ranger had been a risky decision, but it was better than piling on more lies. Even here, far from Storybrooke, she at least had one superpower that still worked and it was telling her that she could trust Carlos Littlecreek and his family and they certainly needed allies right now.

#cs ff #cs fan fic #cs fanfics #captain swan ff #captain swan fan fiction #only a little superstitious

6 notes · View notes