#but what’s Barry gonna do on a crowded street full on people

[jerreeeeeee]

It was only a blur. A flash of a face. A familiar silhouette. The way the man moved as he walked away down the street. Barry almost hesitated, almost didn't turn around. It was hard to see in the waning evening light, and he could nearly remember someone teasing him about his bad eyes. A voice he couldn't hear. It slipped from his mind as soon as he tried to grasp it.

The man went into a tavern. Barry followed him. It was a loud and crowded place, swanky, not what he would've chosen. There was a big stone hearth with a roaring fire that lit the place warmly, a nicely polished bar, tables full of people. There was a pool table in the back, in a way that made a kind of sense to him, even though he didn't know why it felt right, like weird, comforting, and deeply unsettling deja vu. The man he was following hadn't gone back there yet, but he was eyeing it from his seat. Barry went to the bar, put down the gold for a room and a drink, and before he could think better of it, sat right next to him.

The man hardly spared him a glance, focused on tearing apart the meal in front of him. He ate like he was starving. Barry tried not to stare, but kept looking at him out of the corners of his eyes. His face was fuzzy and out of focus and almost seemed like someone Barry should know. His ears flicked back and he shot Barry a look. Caught, he tried to pretend like he'd been looking at the pool table.

The man finally looked up. He followed his gaze to the table. Looked back at him, up and down. Especially down. At his shoes. Then back at the table, and then finally met his eyes. "Hey," he said. "What's your name?"

"Barry," Barry answered. "What's yours?"

"Taako," he answered. The beginnings of a grin tugged at his face. "How's a game of pool sound?"

-

Barry wiped his mouth and set down his fifth beer. "This is it," he said. "I'm gonna- I'm gonna get this one."

"You're more fun than I gave you credit for, Bluejeans!" Taako hollered. He'd had just as much to drink as Barry, who, despite appearances, could apparently party. "But still not good at pool. Let's see it." He leaned back in his chair and smiled easily, and rested his feet on the edge of the pool table. Barry eyed his own boots enviously. He'd lost the first round. And the second. That was two chances for the two boots—no one ever said Taako was uncharitable (well, actually, many people had said that). But Barry was doing better this time, with his glasses on the line. And Taako was having fun.

There was a gaping hole where his heart should be, as long as he could remember. It wasn't filled now, certainly. It still hurt if he thought about it. But there was a small, fluttering warmth there that grew hard to ignore the longer he laughed with Barry. It had been a long time since he'd really talked to anyone. The banter between him and Barry was comfortable and easy. His laugh was rusty, but he couldn't stop it from bubbling up out of the warmth in his chest.

Barry aimed his cue, and in a rather impressive and familiar maneuver, the ball sunk. "Ha!" Barry crowed, and finished the beer. "Guess I'm not so bad!" He turned around to face Taako, who had, just a moment before, had every appearance of enjoying himself.

Taako was no longer laughing. "Who taught you how to do that?"

"Huh?" Barry asked, looking back at the table like it'd tell him what he'd done.

Taako rose angrily. "Hey, who the fuck do you think you are? Have you been following me or something?" That was his move. He'd invented it as a kid... at least, he thought so. He'd been using it for a long time, anyway. But he hadn't tonight. Now that he thought about it, Barry had been playing just like he usually did.

"What?" Barry asked stupidly.

"I'm done, man," Taako replied. "I don't—I'm leaving." Whether Barry was an overzealous fan or a family member priming him for a revenge murder, Taako didn't want anything to do with it. He'd thought he was far enough away, somewhere he'd never been before, halfway across the continent, but this just kept following him—

"Hey, what about my shoes?" Barry asked, starting to get angry as well.

"I won them, asshole!"

"We're in the middle of a game!"

"Too bad!"

"W-At least let me—look, I-I already spent all my gold on a room, but you can have it if you give me my shoes back," Barry said wretchedly. "I can't—I need shoes."

"Then you shouldn't have bet them," Taako said, but his anger dampened. The guy seemed genuinely bewildered, and anyway, Taako couldn't afford a room here. Or anywhere else. It'd been a long time since he'd slept in a bed. It wasn't nearly as good as gold, but a night's sleep... Couldn't hurt to leave it to chance. "Tell you what," he said, "we'll finish the game. If you win, I'll take the room, and you can have your shoes back."

Barry grinned. "You're on."

-

Barry eyed the ball, drinks forgotten. He kind of desperately needed a win. "So," he said, trying for conversational, "what'd you even get mad about?"

Taako, also, had given up on flippancy. "You were playing just like me. I thought you'd been watching me or something."

"I have been," Barry answered, and noticed Taako's shoulders stiffen. He blushed. "Not- not like that. We've been playing all night. And, I mean, not to say I'm giving up, but you're a lot better than me. I kinda need any pointers I can get."

"Yeah," Taako said. "That is true. Maybe that was it."

The balls clattered and the one Barry had aimed for bounced away from its pocket. "Fuck."

Taako took his place and aimed his cue. The table scattered and two balls sunk. Barry was facing down a tomorrow without shoes. The coin'd told him he only needed enough gold for the night, with extra just in case—but that was extra before all the beers, and the chicken wings, and the room at the nice, expensive inn with the pool table he'd followed Taako into on a whim. He didn't even really know why he did it. There was just something about Taako... something that made his chest ache less, just like the coin said.

The game went on late into the night. The other people in the tavern slowly trickled away, upstairs or out the door to cheaper inns, until the room was left dim and quiet. Barry's turns always took too long, but Taako never told him to hurry up. The balls clinked together and sunk into their pockets one by one, until Taako took his last shot, and his last ball disappeared. Barry stared despondently.

Taako stretched his arms above his head and yawned loudly. "Well, guess that's it," he said with finality, still wearing Barry's boots. "See ya."

"Good game," Barry said hollowly, and walked to the stairs on socked feet. He made it about halfway up before he realized Taako wasn't moving that way either, or leaving.

Taako sighed. "Hang on, Bluejeans." Barry stopped. "Alright, here. Take your shoes. I don't need them. It was enough just to kick your ass."

Surprised at the offer of mercy, Barry came back down, and Taako handed his boots back, looking away, toward the empty bar.

"Thanks," Barry said.

"Sure," Taako said. "Whatever. What the hell am I gonna do with your boots? I have to be nimble, dude, and they're clunky as hell."

Barry went to go back up the stairs, but something stopped him. Taako still didn't make to leave. His clothes were awful ragged, threadbare and patched. He was still looking out at the room, and his eyes rested on the fireplace, where the fire had burned down to warm embers. It was cold at night this time of year, wasn't it?

"You can stay in my room if you don't have anywhere else to go," Barry blurted before he could think.

Taako looked back at him. "What?"

Barry flushed. He might still be a little drunk. "I-it just seemed like you weren't leaving... If you have a room somewhere else, sorry, but I was-"

"Inviting me to your room?" Taako asked incredulously. "What, are we gonna cuddle? Or are you coming on to me?"

"No," Barry said, embarrassed, even though he could tell Taako was fucking with him. Somehow, he could tell. "I just—look, you don't have to, I just thought it'd be nice to offer. Better than nothing. And you gave me my shoes back, so fair's fair."

Taako glanced back again toward the door, and the fireplace. "Alright," he said slowly, like he was surprised at himself. "You know what, why not."

-

Taako wasn't all that impressed. For a nice inn, it wasn't much. The bed was large, but other than that the room was mostly empty, and still chilly. Drafty window. Bare wooden floors. Well, he had a decent bedroll, at least, and it wouldn't be nearly as cold in there as outside. Even so, for a moment he stared longingly at the thick blankets on the bed. Then he started unfurling his bedroll in the clear space on the floor.

"What are you doing?" Barry asked.

"Going to sleep, dude. Gotta get a full eight hours." Elves were supposed to meditate, but he wasn't able to. He didn't know why. He just knew most of them did it with other elves nearby.

"On the floor?" Barry asked. Taako looked at him quizzically and he stammered, "I-I mean, it's a nice place—the bed's pretty big, y'know? I wouldn't mind."

"Thought you said you weren't coming on to me," Taako said, half joking and half uncomfortable. Not for any reason, really. He was far more comfortable than he ought to be.

"I'm not!"

Taako opened his mouth to say, I'm not spooning with a stranger, but something deep in his subconscious told him that wouldn't be quite accurate. Some part of him felt at ease. Something about this guy had compelled him to give the shoes back. He’d never given the shoes back before. He couldn't imagine why he did this time. Someone who seemed kind wasn't to be trusted. And yet...

"God," he muttered to himself, "what the hell am I doing?" Then, out loud, "Fine!" And before he could think any more about it he crawled into bed. Well, he crossed from where the bedroll on the floor was laid out, over to the left side of the bed, against the wall. Barry sat down on the right. He was between Taako and the door. No easy escape. Why the hell had he gone to a particular side at all? It wasn't like he was used to sharing. It wasn't like he'd ever had anyone to share with, enough to have a side. Whatever. He blamed it on the alcohol. Actually, he was just gonna blame all of this weird situation on the alcohol. All this warmth spilling over inside his chest. Well, what was done was done. Even if he couldn't understand why he'd done it.

Besides, Barry was a heavy sleeper. Something made him certain of that.

"Touch me and I'll curse your ass," Taako warned.

"My ass is already cursed," Barry mumbled, face buried in a pillow. "'M lactose intolerant."

That sounded right. That sounded exactly right. He didn't know how he knew these things.

Taako laid back cautiously, more out of habit than anything. He should be expecting something. He didn't have anything worth stealing, really, but there were definitely people who'd want to kill him. He should be falling asleep expecting to have his throat cut in the night.

But Barry was already snoring, and for some reason that sound made his eyes so heavy. Barry was a solid presence at his back, between him and the door, and for some reason, that made all his tensed muscles relax for the first time in a long, lonely time. Partly from the shared blanket and partly from this other, confusing feeling, Taako felt warm. The last thing he thought before he drifted off was that there was a space between them, a space that Barry had very carefully left at his request. And he wished there wasn't.

-

When Barry woke up to midmorning sunlight streaming through the inn room's window, for a moment the weight in his chest was light, and he felt, for the first time in years, that maybe he'd finally found a piece of his shattered self. Then he looked beside him, and the space there was empty and long cold. The ache came thundering back.

But the sheets had definitely been slept in.

#sorry i'm not done. still Thinking about them #mine #fanfic #the adventure zone #taz #taz balance #taako #taz taako #barry bluejeans

[gogogobarry]

oh i love these prompts! fireworks, tomorrow, or return for it! feel free to pick any you want, or go wild and do all of 'em if you'd like! :D

ONE WORD PROMPT DRABBLES! | not accepting (planning to do one a day!)

fireworks + tomorrow + return for @volot !!

“Hey hey, come one, and come all! Tonight, Jubilife Village is the number-one party spot in all of Hisui! Yes!” Barry proclaims, grinning ear to ear as he throws his arms wide open, gesturing gleefully towards the decorated shops lining Canala Avenue. “Welcome to our first annual spring festival, presented by me--Young Oran, tonight’s Magnificent Master of Ceremonies--and the rest of the Gingko Guild! Not bad for a ragtag bunch of merchants, eh? Oh, and hey--don’t forget, there’s gonna be deals, raffles, games...all that fun stuff, all night long! Let’s just have a blast, okay? Oran out!”

The gathered villagers whoop and cheer as Barry takes a much-deserved bow, some of them already munching on assorted Honey Cakes, fresh-picked Berries, and Beni’s irresistible festival-edition mochi. The entire avenue is strung up in warm lights, with nearly every resident either happily milling about or providing games and wares from their typical wooden stalls. Anthe is all smiles as she shows off her new festival fashions, receiving choruses of oohs and ahhs from an awed audience. Even Dagero seems more energized then usual, his finger flying to the camera shutter as he snaps photos of posing Pokemon, abashed couples, and giggling friend groups against the colorful backdrop. 

For a first-time event held on this scale, everything is going amazingly well so far--and Barry just can’t stop smiling. Even the weather--evidenced by the slew of stars twinkling above his head--couldn’t be more perfect. As he strolls down the crowded village street, hands jammed into the pockets of his Gingko uniform, people pause to offer him words of thanks, maybe even a hearty clap on the back. Yes, Barry can be an absolute nuisance sometimes--his early morning hawking of goods gets old fast--but everyone knows that he’s the true mastermind behind this impulsive festival, working so hard to bring this grandiose vision into reality. Bravo.

“Hey Tules! Everything good?” he calls out, offering the passing Guild member a jaunty salute as they exchange grinning nods. Selling wares isn’t the main point of this event, but Barry still can’t wait for Tuli to crunch the numbers in the morning--the guild is out in full force tonight after all, so a massive profit is inevitable. They were all going to be rich. Maybe grumpy ol’ Ginter would even crack a smile for once...  

Barry’s smile continues to be omnipresent as he rounds on the Gingko camp’s crackling fire, his expression only brightening further once he spots the familiar figure seated at the flame’s edge. Volo had just returned from one of his mysterious regional trips--right on time--so the elder Guild figure understandably seemed a bit out of it tonight, his unwavering gaze fixed on the gaping celestial instability looming over the distant Mount Coronet. Yes, the atmosphere at the camp--somewhat removed from the main festival thoroughfare--is pensive, refreshingly peaceful...until it isn’t. Thank you, Oran.

“Hey, hey...earth to Big Bro! You in there, buddy?” Barry crows impatiently, sliding in right beside Volo and snorting as the older merchant--snapped out of his tired reverie--flinches at his sudden arrival. “C’mon, you’re the one who always tells me to...uh, keep my senses alert, or whatever--what happened to you? Maybe it’s your old age, or maybe I’ve just gotten sneakier, eh?”

“Hm! Maybe you have...” Volo responds lightly, stifling a yawn as he takes stock of the distant festival...and the restless boy who’s eagerly perched next to him, ready to drink in his every word. It’s Volo’s turn to smile now, and the de facto star of the Gingko Guild throws an arm around his wannabe protégé, giving Barry’s shoulder a supportive squeeze. ”I must say, this festival is truly impressive so far, Oran. You should feel very proud, taking the reins to lead something like this all by yourself.”

Barry’s eyes widen, his cheeks almost immediately flushing pink. “I-I had a bit of help. From Tules, Choy, y’know...” he mutters dismissively, clapping an embarrassed hand to the back of his neck. Contrary to his usual all-me attitude, the young blond seems almost flustered as he grins down at his boots, sits up a little straighter. It’s clear that Volo’s approval means so much to him--as usual--even as this rare moment of modesty inevitably fades away.

“...Man, I could’ve used your help with the sales pitch though. Do you know how hard it was to convince Boss Cyllene and Pops that this party was all worth it? Yeesh,” Barry grouses lightly, poking Volo in the ribs. “I kept reminding myself--what would Big Bro say?--and then I just kept talking until both of them rolled their eyes and said party on! Score one for Oran--I learned from the best speaker ever, right? Oh!”

Barry abruptly leaps out of his seat as if zapped by a phantom Thundershock, causing poor Volo to flinch again. “That reminds me! I gotta show you and the whole village something super cool! I know you’re probably pooped, but you don’t even have to move, okay? I’ll be right back!” The overexcited organizer takes a few steps before skidding in his tracks and whirling around. “Oh! And that also reminds me--once I’m done, wanna come down to the Ave and say hi to everybody? I know you’re probably pooped, but I promise the festival’s fun! I mean, everyone wants to see you and hear your latest stories...just think on it, yeah?” But don’t move just yet, Mr. Popular! I’ll be back in a flash--count me down, Big Bro!” 

However, Barry zips off before Volo can even open his mouth to respond (or even count), leaving a very bewildered Hisuian traveler in his wake. What is even happening right now? Perhaps it’s the spirit of the festival, but Barry seems more frenetic than normal...if that’s even possible.

BANG!

A loud sound suddenly tears through the evening air, almost causing Volo to pitch backwards off his log stool. His eyes are immediately drawn skyward, mouth dropping open as multicolored lights dazzle the celestial canvas overhead. The merchant hears oohs and cheering from the Village’s center...and then Barry all but reappears in front of him, panting with hands planted on his knees. Young Oran is positively beaming now.

“Did...did you see that, Big Bro? It worked! They actually work!” he celebrates, dancing around Volo’s log with glee. “I present you with...Hisui’s first homemade fireworks! Look, look, here comes another one!”

Another impromptu firework arcs into the sky, prompting yet another majestic flash. Barry is excitedly rambling on about working with Choy to craft the colorful explosives from the fuses of discarded Pokeballs, but Volo isn’t paying much attention, his unwavering gaze fixed on the brilliant explosions. As the dependable Anvin launches the full arsenal of custom fireworks from the farm fields (Galaxy Corps permission for this be damned!), Barry finally runs himself out of steam and and plops down next to Volo again, the two merchants gazing up at the triumphant scene in thoughtful silence.

The explosions are so bright yet so fleeting, and Barry finds himself wishing that the momentary splashes of color would stick around for just a little longer. He harbors the same feelings towards this festival--this celebration of how far Jubilife has come--and part of him selfishly wishes that tomorrow would never arrive, wishes that he could just capture this singular evening in a capsule and exist in it forever. He lets out a sigh of contentment. Perhaps the fact that he can never return to such a perfect, temporary moment...is what makes tonight so special in the first place. 

Volo’s eyes are also trained on the fireworks, though his gaze lingers on what happens after the explosion, when the discarded, burnt-out embers descend sadly to the earth. He frowns to himself--the fleetingness of this display shouldn’t disappoint him so much, but it does. Inevitably, he finds himself staring at the spacetime distortion portal looming above the Coronet Highlands, the ominous problem that this festival has tried to ignore. Unlike the fireworks, the portal’s light endures. Unlike the fireworks, the portal is only growing stronger, brighter over time. The white light sears Volo’s vision, reminding him of his greater mission. Once he makes his play, there is no returning to the Village, the Guild, anything resembling normalcy. After he’s ascended, he can finally abandon this pointless façade...and become so much more.    

On Volo’s side, Barry sighs again, his hazel eyes twinkling with innocent wonder and big dreams. For someone who’s always rushing towards something new, he is truly content to stay in this moment for once. After all, there’s always tomorrow, and--this time--tomorrow can wait, just this once.

Volo sighs too, turning away from the distortion with a pang in his chest. For someone who always acts so casual and composed, he finds himself filled with an insatiable restlessness, the need to further his own goals preoccupying his mind above all else. The mask he wears is slipping more and more every day. Soon. He is so close. 

Tomorrow can’t come fast enough.    

#volot #long post #PLA VERSE. #WHEW!!! #(hi lucian!! thanks for giving me a chance to throw myself into writing again...this verse gives me life) #(and SO sorry for taking eons. i kept pecking away at this and got carried away...this is almost a celebration of everything PLA hahah) #(i also hope you dont mind me having volo speak in here...tried my best with the characterization!) #(this post is so long that i almost feel self conscious posting it LMAO...was super fun and i hope you enjoy!!) #queued #memeZ

[phantasmagoric-acquaintance]

who said anything about marriage

[read it here or on ao3]

Barry was nervous.

That was nothing new. Barry was nervous most of the time. But Barry hadn’t been nervous around Lup in decades.

There were so many things that could go wrong. For one, he could lose the ring. For the millionth time in the past half hour, he patted the outside of his jacket pocket. He felt the little box and exhaled quietly.

He could screw up the plan. They’d already made it to the restaurant on time, thank the Gods. But what if they missed the gondola ride? He’d booked the damned thing in advance, and if the rules he’d read online were any indication, the company didn’t give latecomers a whole lot of leeway. He could pop the question on the streets next to the canal, he supposed, but that was unromantic. Plus, he’d pre-paid so much for the ride.

And what if he fell? He’d made himself sick the night before reading articles about mistakes to avoid on a gondola. He knew not to try to stand, but what if he forgot? He could tip the boat and soak them both.

“Um, babe?”

Lup’s voice brought Barry out of his anxious reverie, and he remembered he’d been pouring a glass of wine, which was now very close to overflowing. “Aah!” He hastily righted the bottle, hitting the mouth against the overfilled glass in the process and very nearly knocking it over.

Lup snickered, eyes glinting with amusement. “You are a wreck,” she said as she lifted her own wine glass to her lips. There wasn’t a hint of malice in her voice or in her expression. Barry remembered that he’d probably embarrassed himself in front of her thousands of times, and she still loved him. As the waiter came by to take their orders, Barry felt himself relaxing.

That calm moment was short-lived.

When the waiter turned away from their table, Lup propped her elbows up on the table and rested her chin on her palms. “Hey, Bear?”

“Mm-hm?” Barry vocalized, sipping from his comically full wine glass.

“When are we gonna get married?”

Barry sputtered, spitting a little wine back into his glass and trying not to choke on the rest of it. “Huh?!?” Had she figured out his plan? She was clever, and he wasn’t the best at keeping secrets, but he thought he’d done a good job of keeping it from her. He’d known better, too, than to tell anyone expect Taako. Did she get it out of him?

She raised an eyebrow. “Well, don’t freak out or anything. It’s just, you know, we’ve been together for, like, I don’t know, an entire human lifespan?” She shifted her chin so that it rested only on her left palm and reached for her glass with her free hand. “I mean, we’re pretty much already married. I just thought, I dunno, maybe we should make it official.”

If Barry had been thinking, he might’ve told her “Yes! Gods, yes!” right then and there. He might’ve pulled out the ring and said, “Funny you should ask, I was thinking the same thing!” If he had been thinking, he might have realized that this moment, right here in the restaurant, was the perfect opportunity to do what he’d set out to do this evening.

But Barry wasn’t thinking. Barry was panicking.

“M-marriage? Who said anything about marriage?”

Lup set her left arm back down on the table. “Huh? Nobody said anything about it. Or, I guess I did.” She looked down at her glass and swirled it around a bit. “Geez, Barry, I wouldn’t have brought it up if I knew it’d make you all, like, panicky and sweaty and shit.”

“I-I’m not panicky and sweaty.” He was very obviously both of these things. It was this moment that the waiter came by, awkwardly setting their plates in front of them and hurrying off, sensing that whatever was happening here, it was definitely not something he wanted to be privy to any longer than necessary. “Y-you just caught me off guard, that’s all. Marriage is, you know, a big word.”

“Well, sure.” Lup picked up a fork and began swirling it in her pasta. “But, like, haven’t you thought about it before?” She lifted the fork to her mouth.

“Thought about marrying you?” Barry was drenched in sweat now.

“Mm-hm,” Lup managed through a mouthful of linguini.

“Well, no, I mean, why would I?”

This was absolutely, positively, the wrong thing to say. It might have been the worst possible thing Barry could’ve said, and he’d said it, and he couldn't take it back.

Lup swallowed her food hard and gaped at him. “Fucking excuse me?”

“Uhh…” He took a long sip of his wine.

“What do you mean, ‘Why would I?’?”

The pressure was on now, and Barry tended to falter under pressure. “I just, I mean, marriage is, it’s such a long-term commitment, you know? It, uh, ties you down and stuff.”

Lup’s eyes went even wider. “Barry, what are you trying to say?” she asked softly.

Barry threw his hands up. “Nothing! I- nothing! Just, you’re such a, a free spirit, I, uh, wouldn’t wanna… hold you back?”

She deflated, and he knew he’d dug himself deeper. “Yeah, okay.” She put her elbow back on the table, making a fist with her left hand and resting her cheekbone on her knuckles, and looked down at her plate.

Silence. Barry cut off a bit of his salmon and ate it. “Mmm!” he hummed exaggeratedly. “The salmon is amazing! How’s your food?”

Lup pushed her noodles around on her plate, not looking up. “It’s fine. Fantastic.”

They stayed like that for a while, him slowly eating his food and watching her, her only taking small occasional bites and refusing to look anywhere but her plate.

“Um, are… are you ready for the check?” Barry asked after some time.

“Hm? Oh, yeah. Whenever.” Lup stood. “Just, like, excuse me for a minute first.” She walked quickly towards the restroom.

When the door closed behind her, Barry sighed and sunk his face into his hands. He didn’t have the slightest idea how he was going to recover. “Fuck,” he breathed into his hands.

After a minute, Barry heard the sound of footsteps, distinct from the clicking of Lup’s heels, approach the table. “Barold.”

He lifted his head to see Taako, still in his full chef’s uniform, glaring at him, arms crossed. Fuck, he was really in trouble now. “Hi, Taako.” In retrospect, maybe it was a mistake to have this dinner at Lup’s brother’s restaurant. It had seemed like a sweet idea at the time. Taako had only recently gotten comfortable cooking for large crowds again, and he and Lup made efforts to support him when they could.

Taako leveled a glare at Barry. “One of my little birdies has just informed me that she saw my sister run crying into the bathroom. Would you, dear customer, mind telling me why that is?”

Barry exhaled, long and slow. “I beefed it, Taako.”

“You beefed it? What does that mean, exactly?”

“Okay, she brought up marriage out of nowhere and it threw me off and I didn’t want to spoil the proposal and I panicked and maybe I said some things I didn’t mean.”

“Such as…?”

“Such as… ‘I’ve never thought about marrying you,’ and ‘Marriage ties people down’…”

“Oh, good Gods. All because you didn’t wanna spoil some dumb overly romantic surprise?”

Barry flushed. “Well, when you put it like that…”

Taako pinched the bridge of his nose. “Barry, I don’t know how you’re going to do it, but if you know what’s good for you, you’re going to have this fixed by the end of tonight.”

Barry grimaced. “I-I’ll try.”

“You’ve also wasted my food.” Taako nodded at Lup’s mostly-untouched plate and tossed a leather check holder onto the table. “And if I find any fire damage in my bathroom, I’m charging you for that, too.” With that, Taako turned and strode back into the kitchen.

By the time Lup came out of the bathroom, Barry’s credit card had already been returned to him and he was signing the receipt. He looked up at her and tried not to wince when he noticed the mascara tracks marking paths down her cheeks from her puffy eyes. “Ready to go?”

“Mm.” She still wouldn’t look at him. He led her outside, and she leaned against the building, hugging herself and staring into space, eyes unfocused.

Barry stood next to her uneasily. “Uh, I’m going to… call the taxi now?”

“Mm-hm.”

Barry didn’t reach for his phone. Another uncomfortable silence passed.

Then, he sighed. “Okay, I-I didn’t wanna do it like this, but…”

Barry knelt down, pulled the ring box out of his pocket, and flipped it open.

Lup finally turned to face him now, stunned. “Wh-what-?”

He blushed and began rambling. “I had this whole evening planned, and there was supposed to be a gondola ride, that’s where we were supposed to go next, and I was going to ask you there, but then you brought up marriage and I panicked and I put my fucking foot in my mouth. It was so dumb, I’m so sorry I said all that shit, I didn’t mean any of it, I just really wanted it to be a surprise. Gods, I was so fucking dumb, of course I wanna marry you, if you’ll still have m-“

Lup bent down, grabbed Barry’s face, and kissed him hard.

Barry felt all the tension in his body melt away. He shut the ring box and held it securely in one hand. He brought the other up to sweep Lup’s hair behind her ear and held it there, against her cheek.

When Lup pulled away, she rested her forehead against his. “You’re a fucking wreck, baby.”

He chuckled. She was crying again and, Barry realized, so was he. “I know.”

She beamed. “We’ll work on it together, fiancé.” She gave him a quick peck on the lips. “I can’t believe you did all that for a fucking gondola ride, though. I mean, no offense, dear, but I’m kinda glad we didn’t do that.”

He grimaced. “Well, about that, I paid a lot of money for it, and there’s still time…”

Lup pouted. “Do we have to? I’d rather go home.” She kissed the corner of his mouth. “I’ll make it up to you,” she breathed.

Barry smiled. “Yeah, okay. You’ve convinced me.”

“Perfect!” Lup stood up, smirked, and held out her left hand. “Now gimme that rock!”

Taako lifted his phone off the bedside table and squinted at his notifications.

Lulu: Missed Call

Lulu: Voicemail

Remembering the scene at his restaurant the night before, he inhaled sharply and unlocked his phone. There are two ways that situation could’ve played out, he thought. He navigated to his voicemailbox and pressed play on the most recent message.

“Ugh, it’s so annoying how you’re never awake when I have news. I have big fucking news, by the way, so I’m gonna be really pissed at you if you don’t call me back within the next, like, two hours. Okay, later.”

Taako smiled. It was a relief to hear her sound so chipper. It meant this news of hers was definitely good, and it meant that Taako didn’t have to fight Barold. He sat up, rubbed the dust out of his eyes, and called his sister.

#taz #the adventure zone #taz balance #the adventure zone balance #blupjeans #barry bluejeans #lup #lup taaco #this is a couple months old but I really liked it at the time i wrote it #i hope its still good im kinda scared to think about it too hard #reese inspired me to write this in the first place i remember #i think she asked me a very simple like ''how would they get engaged after s&s do you think'' and i wrote her like a paragraph

[astrid-goes-for-a-spin]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: The Flash (TV 2014), Supergirl (TV 2015), Superman & Lois (TV 2020) Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Lois Lane & Iris West Characters: Iris West, Lois Lane Additional Tags: Reporter! Iris West, Central City Citizen, Female Friendship, Commiseration, Women Being Awesome, Women Mentoring Women, Lois and Iris becoming friends, they have a lot in common okay, haphazard characterization of Lois Lane, unholy mix of CW Lois Lane with Smallville Lois Lane personality, Iris loves dessert, Cat Grant (mentioned) - Freeform Series: Part 3 of Iris Week 2020 Summary:

Then it all catches back up to her all at once: there’s no more Earth-1 or Earth-38, and in practice this means that it’s entirely possible she can run into Lois Lane at a national journalism conference.

On their own, Lois and Iris try to get to know one another and realize they have a lot in common.

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

for the tumblr crowd, here’s the full text: 

“Hey! West! West! EARTH TO IRIS WEST-ALLEN!”

At this, Iris turns to see who’s been shouting at her. The conference center is choked with people, and Iris would much, much rather be under the radar this weekend. But apparently she’s well-known enough now, at least in journalistic circles, that the back of her head is recognizable.

It takes Iris a moment to make out who’s calling to her. Pale skin, dark hair, an almost manic affect. The woman waving her over is so absolutely in Iris’s mental uh-oh category that all she can do is blink and stare for at least two seconds.

Then it catches back up to her, all at once: there’s no more Earth-1 or Earth-38, and in practice this means that it’s entirely possible she can run into Lois Lane at a national journalism conference.

Iris wades through the crowds to catch up to her sort-of-friend, and Lois grabs her arm and tows her out of the foot traffic and into a hug.

“It’s so nice to see you doing something normal!” Lois exclaims, patting Iris on the back. While she talks, she’s already steering Iris towards one of the courtyards in the convention center, against the flow of people. “Is it just you here?”

“Yep.” Iris taps at her badge. “I only have three people on staff, so Allegra and Kamilla are back in Central sending their work for edits this weekend.”

“Oh right!” Lois points a finger. “I forgot you were at a do-it-yourself paper. How is it, being editor-in-chief?”

Iris laughs. “I don’t have time to win Pulitzers, that’s for sure. Do you know my entire staff is on Team Flash now? Half my work is doing cover-ups.”

Lois lets out a theatrical groan and guides Iris into a wrought-iron chair at a little table for two. “Hate that. Perks of still technically being on maternity leave after I spent almost two years off-planet is that Perry lets me do whatever I want as long as I’m sending stuff in every once in a while.”

A waiter comes by. Iris didn’t even know they were at a restaurant – but apparently there are several aside from the two food courts. Lois chats him up by name while Iris covertly tries to take some weight off her feet. Her pumps are killing her. She sneaks a glance at Lois’s – she’s also wearing heels, but with the ease of one long since resigned to damaged Achilles tendons.

By the time Iris is tasting an absolutely beautiful coffee-flavored gelato, their conversation has moved away from work: Lois tells Iris about living on Argo and the trials of caring for a half-Kryptonian infant here on Earth; Iris fills Lois in on meeting and losing her adult daughter in less than a year and about the months filled with dread that her husband’s time remnant might murder her. Lois commiserates by telling her about Lex Luthor, and Iris can’t help but worry about taking care of a future West-Allen who’s sure to be a speed-force-powered toddler.

“You and me? We deserve an award,” Lois says, snorting.

Scraping to get the very last of the gelato, Iris looks up at her. “Lois, you have two Pulitzers.”

“You will in time, once that little paper picks up,” Lois says carelessly, and Iris blushes. She might not have grown up on a world where Lois Lane’s name was newspaper royalty, but her confidence still feels pretty damn good. “Which it must if it’s still leading the metahuman beat from Nora’s time.”

“I guess we’ll just have to wait and see,” Iris says. “For once, the only things I know about the future are good ones.”

“Amen,” Lois chuckles. “God, I’d go crazy with all the time travel. Other planets I can handle. Alien husband, got it. But waiting kills me every time.”

“At least there’s oxygen on earth,” Iris says flatly. “I…cannot even imagine traveling in space. It’s making my skin crawl right now.” She shudders for effect.

A phone chimes. On instinct, both she and Lois grab for theirs.  Iris laughs a little – it’s only an alarm she set last night so she would remember she wanted to go to the panel at 3.

“I have to go!” Iris blurts, pulling out a bill and putting it down on the table, gathering up her purse. “I’m gonna be late to Cat Grant’s talk on growing a media company-”

“Oh, just skip it,” Lois groans. “If you really want to meet her, I’ll introduce you. She hangs all over my husband every time she sees him and drunk texts me about how much she hates my freckles and adorable button nose. We owe each other a few punches.”

“Lois!”

Whether Cat Grant’s talk is actually going to be good, Iris does not find out. The floor beneath her shakes, shakes in a way Iris knows in her gut is not good. Needless to say, she did not pack a plasma rifle for the journalism convention.

Lois, on the other hand, looks more energetic than Iris has seen her since the end of the multiverse. She’s got an honest-to-god pen and paper out (how does she have time? Just record it!) and is already halfway across the room before Iris can stand.

“Lois! Where are you going?” Iris shouts after her.

“To find out what’s causing the earthquake,” Lois says like Iris is being an idiot.

Iris stares, and then the light comes on. They’re in a building chock-full of news media – most of whom are cowering beneath any cover they can find. They have no idea how widespread whatever this problem is, and people need information.

Iris and Lois are, perhaps, some of the only journalists in the world with the experience and chops to find out what’s going on in a (likely) unnatural disaster, and steal the scoop while they’re at it.

“I’m calling Barry,” Iris says, hurrying after Lois.

“Too slow, West,” Lois snorts. “I already pressed the emergency beacon in my watch.”

Chasing after her through the convention center towards street, Iris laughs. “You’re such a nerd.”

“A nerd who, if you’re not careful, is gonna steal your headline,” Lois points out. “And by God, your little baby newspaper needs it more than my storied career does. Go, get on the scene!”

As Iris nears the last few sets of stairs to reach the outside, she can see flashes of gold as Barry races around, presumably rescuing civilians from debris. This earthquake was so sudden – and in Metropolis, not on any major fault lines. Iris flicks back through her mental catalog of catastrophes: Geomancer? Malcom Merlyn’s earthquake machine?

There’s the edge of a cape in view now out the glass doors, and Iris notices Lois isn’t with her – there’s a young woman on the stairs, gripping the railing like she’s afraid the sky might fall. Before Iris knows it, Lois is sitting beside her, coaxing her hands off, stroking her hair, urging her to stand. She looks up and meets Iris’s eyes.

“Go get that headline and scoop all these old bags,” Lois commands. “I’ve got it here.”  

Iris huffs a laugh, then reaches down and takes off her shoes. “Yes ma’am,” she says, snapping off a quick salute and dropping her purse.

Armed only with her phone, recorder app open, and the will to prove her newspaper will last into her daughter’s time on its own merits, Iris runs.

#iwaw2020 #iris week 2020 #iris west #iris west-allen #reporter!Iris West #lois lane #iris west and lois lane #budding friendship #ladies there for ladies #mentorship #earth prime #earth prime crossover shenanigans #stealing smallville lois characterization for the undercharacterized CW Lois

[wheremytwinwatches]

[Where My Twin Watches]: Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood Episode 18

Last time, Ross was framed for the murder of Hughes, and may have been “killed” or actually killed by Roy. Hopefully we can figure out what the heck’s going on this episode, because I haven’t been this confused by how a death could be faked or not since BBC Sherlock.

Alright, looks like The Mighty Armstrong (who’s absolutely rocking his off-duty outfit) did take Ed to Resembool, supposedly to get his arm “fixed”. Oh hey, it’s the little Xing girl! May Chang, right? Wait, turn around you two! You just walked past a new character! Wait a minute, last time we saw the little girl she was traveling with- Methinks we’ll have a fight scene this episode. Ed’s demanding details from The Mighty Armstrong, who says he was just told to bring Ed here and rendevou with someone. A Lieutenant Breda? I recognize him as one of the Mustang Crew, but that’s about it. Although Ed doesn’t seem to be that happy to see him. Episode 18 - “The Arrogant Palm of a Small Human” Back in Central, Al’s wondering why Al hasn’t called to let them know he’s in Resembool. And Winry calls out the “repair” excuse when she was RIGHT THERE. Seriously, whatever’s going on they couldn’t think of something better? [Al]: “And the stuff with Lieutenant Ross… I have no idea what’s going on.” You and me both, buddy! What the heck suddenly Sword Guy’s in the room. Sitting right next to Winry? Nope nope nope shove of Princey you are not messing up my ship. Anyways, the illegal alien/lockup escapee popped in to let them know Ed’s just fine- Right as we cut to Ed dying of dehydration. What’s up now, why’s Ed in the desert? “Crossing the border”? Wait, with what Ling was saying, are they going to Xing? Why? Also TURN BACK YOU MISSED MAY! Breda asks the fourth rider, a Mr. Han, how much further it is, and the guide points out some ruins ahead. Wait, ruins? Oh hey, didn’t Ling mention some place called *checks past posts* Xerxes? Somber piano music as we look over the shattered pillars of this past civiliza- nope, Ed’s just ignoring everything to cool off in a well, complaining about how he was nearly burned by his own metal arm. Mr. Han asks why they brought a kid along, Breda complains that it was a direct order. Now that he’s sufficiently cooled off, Ed redresses and asks about his place described in a fable. The Eastern Sage, origin of alchemy? Ooh, history! An ancient kingdom destroyed in a single night, a sole survivor traveling to Amestris to spread the science of Alchemy… And Mr. Han says they have a story of a drifter from the West who lead them towards Alkahestry. Hmm, two survivors, going different directions? Makes sense that Ling would want to visit the ruins then, if Alchemy/Alkahestry originated from here. As they speculate how such an advanced society could be almost completely wiped out in a single night, Ed stops to look at some engravings on a wall. This feels familiar… wait, was this the stuff on the Door of Truth? Before Ed can say anything about that, Han yells at him to catch up. Man, this is a really big ruin, they’re heading insi- wait, what? WAIT WHAT [Lt. Ross]: “Edward!” You’re alive! You’re alive you’re alive you’re alive! How?! [Memory!Roy]: “Back east, where I was… It’s a nice place. None of the big city noise… and lots of beautiful women.” Oh boy, brace for enthusiastic shirtless Mighty Armstrong hugs, Ross. Daw. Breda says that there wasn’t anywhere in Amestris they could safely hide the “dead” Lieutenant Ross, so they spirited her out here. So Ross knew all along? Flashback! Breda’s confronting Roy about the newspaper article, how with Ross being publicly arrested and charged without a trial it’s all too showy. Then Roy gets a call from Falman- who’s quickly interrupted by Barry. Not on an official line, dude! In the park (in what I think is the same phonebooth Hughes was murdered in) Roy is confirming with Barry that a bullet was fired, but at him, not Hughes. And with that, Roy springs into action. He makes Barry promise not to kill anyone (still not sure how he got Barry to follow that), set a street, and had Breda gather supplies… oh. Right. Duh! The core theme of this show is Alchemy! Of course Roy could make a fake body! But that still doesn’t explain the dental records… Roy just says he has it under control. He has plenty of experience burning bodies. Later that night, Roy stops Ross in the alley, then throws down the fake corpse, torches it, takes her ID Cuffs and tosses her in the dumpster, to be escorted by Havoc. There’s a little wrinkle when Ed runs up, but Ross and Havoc make their escape. Back in current!Xerxes, Han’s explaining that Roy made a deal with Ling- hold up, “young lord?” Is this the old ninja working for Ling? I thought his name was Fu, not Han. Anyways, Han got orders to escort Ross east to take refuge. Ed admits that he’s impressed by Roy pulling off the trick. And then Breda twists the knife by saying Ed was sent out as well to not interfere in Phase Two. Oh, they’re gonna try and reel in the mastermind! Using Barry as bait, they want to see who comes for him and take them down. Uuuunfortunately, they’re sending Bio!Barry to do the job… Mid-show pictures of The Mighty Armstrong crying in all of his majestic shirtless glory, and the Holy-Leto-I’m-So-Happy-She’s-Alive Lt. Maria Ross. In the Central Hotel Ling’s let the other Blondes know the plan, and confirming that Ed was sent out of town so that he wouldn’t interfere in the operation. Unfortunately for Roy, Ed’s the Protagonist, so I don’t see this working out. In the meantime, Ling struck up a deal with Barry for the secret to his Soul Armor. But of course all the “science guys” who did Barry up like this are all dead, and he doesn’t know. That Alphonse kid, on the other hand… The Xerxes gang are going over their notes, sketching out the Goths and trying to figure out the methods and reasons behind the Homunculi. Ed takes a moment to think about how Hughes is gone, to which The Mighty Armstrong asks what his next move will be. [Ed]: “Al and I committed a taboo, but we still have people that help us. Some people get angry at us, and others support us silently. Each one of them has tried to help me keep my promise to my brother. So I have no choice… I can’t turn back. Which means, all I can do is move forward, right? And I’ll protect everyone I can along the way. I refuse to let another person become a victim. Not while I’m alive. I know that’s a hard promise to keep. It’s hard enough just trying to take care of myself. And to think that I’m even capable of it… maybe I’m just arrogant. But it’s the only thing I can think of. So I have to do it. I have to.” Cue approving grins from the rest of the group. You go, Protagonist. Ross gets ready to head out to Xing with a couple other people, confirming that her parents shouldn’t be told she’s still alive, otherwise they’d be in too much danger. Bleh, I can understand it, but I don’t want anyone else to feel like Gracia. She does ask they let Roy know that she is supremely grateful for what he’s done, and if there’s anything that she can do to repay the debt to just let her know. One final handshake with Ed, and she’s off to a new home, asking Mr. Fu (so wait, is it Fu or Han?) what Xing is like. As a native, Fu talks it up as a paradise. Then recommends she stop crying to save her fluids for the trek across the desert. Back in Central, Roy’s pencil-pushers are snickering at him as he talks on the phone to his “sweetheart”, who of course is Riza. But she suddenly stops and says they have a “customer”. “Kate”(Fuery) lets “Jacqueline”(Havoc) know. Hey, Falman? You might wanna get ready for a visitor. Bio!Barry is in the house! And in an interesting change of pace, Barry’s the one arguing for keeping someone alive! But then Havoc bursts in and starts trying to shoot Bio!Barry anyways? What’s going on here? Oh I get it, hidden identity in case the Goths are watching. But why try to shoot him and distract Barry? Who’s not doing so hot as he just figured out who this Human Chimera reminds him of, and lost his right arm for the trouble. Outside! Now, where did that Chimera go… broken window! Bio!Barry’s bouncing around the street now, leaps at Havoc who has a really unfortunately-timed stovepipe. Then there’s a rifle shot? Ah, so that’s why Havoc wanted to get outside, so they could get covering fire from Hawkeye. Who plays off the sound over the phone as slapping around a difficult customer. Bio!Barry’s at gunpoint clutching his perforated hand, so Havoc can ask some questions. However, the dude’s not exactly up for conversation. And Barry confirms, it’s his old body! Ok, phew. Was really worried about the evil clone possibility. This is just necromancy via sticking animal souls in corpses, then. In Xerxes, Ed’s gone back to look at that wall from earlier, identifies it as looking like the TC from the Fifth Lab. Two-headed dragon, sun… and the top part missing. No complete Human Transmutation ritual for you! What th- Ishvalan attack! Oh dear, that’s a lot of Ishvalans. [Polite!Ishvalan]: “‘Scuse me, young man. I’m afraid that we’re gonna have to take you hostage until your military returns our holy land to us.” Ed snarks that he isn’t worth that much, Polite!Ishvalan talks about how the death of a single child sparked the Ishvalan Civil War. Then an old lady in an eyepatch (Madam Shan, helped by a young Ishvalan boy who looks to have a burn scar and man there are a lot of burn injuries in the crowd, starting to get a bad feeling) orders the Leader to stand down and stop dishonoring the name of Ishvala. Ed lets his attacker go, muses that he’s always heard that Ishvalans hate Amestrians. But Madam Shan and the kid know that not Amestrians are bad, when they were injured in the civil war they were saved by two Amestrian doctors (!!!) Yeah, yeah they recognize the Rockbell name. They saved so many Ishvalans, refusing to abandon their post. Ed asks how they died- NO NONONO YOU FUCKER WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK, SCAR?! So yeah. The Rockbell’s were killed by a patient that they saved, an Ishvalan monk wrapped in bandages with a tattooed right arm. With this knowledge, Ed leaves the Ishvalans, along with a message for the resting place of the Rockbell’s: their thanks, and their apologies. In Central, Barry’s laughing at the chance to chop up his own body, whatever’s kept him from killing people is failing in the face of this otherwise-impossible-opportunity. Riza’s commenting on how a customer is mouthing off… before she hangs up, saying she has her own customer to deal withat is Gluttony. Oooooh crap. You may wanna run, Riza. Wait, that’s it?! Boooo, awful cliffhanger! Ok, so Ross is alive! Yay! Still not sure how they dealt with the dental records, but whatever, everything else was answered! And now we’ve got the Goths responding it seems, with Bio!Barry and Gluttony set loose. Onwards to fight scenes!

#wmtw #where my twin watches #ranubis #full metal alchemist #full metal alchemist brotherhood #fmab #fmab 18

[umbraastaff]

I Saw Seven Bounties: Chapter 9.5 - Fantasy Starbucks

A non-canon short chapter for ISSB (no, you don’t have to have read the rest of the fic to read this!)

--> if you’ve been following this blog the past week or two, you know Exactly What This Is.

--

“Give it up, Barry,” Kravitz calls down the alleyway.

Barry’s shake palm comes to rest on the wall behind him, fingertips grazing the hardened paste between bricks. He shouldn’t be feeling anything at all, but the spell Kravitz cast over the street stops him from passing through.

Kravitz advances. Barry knows he’s cornered. He could try teleporting, or any other amount of magical resistance, but anything that got through the nullification spell might create an explosive reaction with it. It’d hurt both of them.

“Don’t,” Barry says as Kravitz reaches him, his tone a warning. It transparently lacks any real leverage.

Kravitz raises his scythe, and Barry dives forward before he can swing. Kravitz’s chest feels ice cold. He’s suddenly so woozy, like his mind is being tucked under a fleece blanket and the static electricity whenever he moves is enough to make him numb--

And then he’s confused, glancing about the alleyway. Where’s Barry? Where’s… Kravitz? The plan was just for Barry to possess him briefly and then escape, nothing fancy.

“Are you possessing me?” He asks, but the only answer is his own echo. “Am I possessing you?”

“No,” he answers himself decisively. He’s alone. But that doesn’t make sense, because Barry didn’t escape, and Kravitz didn’t leave, he’s sure. So then…

He looks down at his hands. His viewpoint is too far from the ground, but he’s not floating. And his hands are… there are four of them. Okay.

“Ohh,” he says faintly, “Oh, the possession did work, I think? This doesn’t make any sense!” He begins to pace back and forth, agitated. He’s Barry, but he’s not. He’s Kravitz, but he’s not. Barry possessed Kravitz, or tried to, and then this happened. Whatever this is. Whatever he is.

“I’m both of us,” he says quietly to a dumpster, and it’s the first thing he’s said that feels right. But as soon as he voices the thought, everything feels terribly wrong.

He leaves the alley, keeping just enough presence of mind to cast Disguise Self. It hides his lower pair of arms and creates an opaque shadow in his hood, hiding his skull face. He gets some weird looks, but at least he looks like a suspicious goliath instead of a weird monster.

“The Raven Queen could fix this,” he mumbles to himself, arms crossed and back hunched as though trying to reattain a normal human height. “But then--no, I-I’d die. Or Barry would? But Barry’s a part of whatever I… we… are, right now, so that’s a big part of me that’d get killed.

“Seems bad to get so attached to my own existence w-when I shouldn’t exist,” he adds with a grim hint of a laugh. His pace speeds up, and people jump out of his way even as he does his best to maneuver around everyone he overtakes on the sidewalk.

He catches sight of a cafe across the street and decides to duck in. Good place to think, maybe.

He says, “I’d like to order a coffee,” and the barista says, “What kind,” and the next three minutes are an excruciatingly awkward standoff where he politely asks about every item on the menu before settling on a small black coffee.

“And what’s your name?” asks the barista with a pained smile, as though she expects him to struggle with this too.

Terrified of taking any longer than he already has, he lets the first sounds on his mind tumble out of his mouth. “Bar… itz.”

She puts a marker to the cup. “B-A-R-I-T...S?”

“Uh, Z.”

“Okay,” she says sweetly. “I’ll call your name when it’s ready, Baritz.”

“Thank you,” he says, extremely glad for the illusory shadow hiding his face. He squeezes himself into a seat in the corner, ignoring the many glances from other patrons in favor of staring down at the center of the square table he’s sitting at.

His lower pair of hands, still invisible, grip the edge of the table. He drums his fingers against the underside of the table and plants his upper hands on the sides of his face, elbows on the table. The wavy patterns in the wood take all his focus, as the least difficult thing to think about at the moment.

“Some upsides,” he whispers, carefully quiet enough to keep anyone else from overhearing, “This is… groundbreaking magic, absolutely unheard of. Could be revolutionary. An interplanar mashup of undead arcana--who could have guessed it would mix so perfectly into… well, me?”

He blinks and turns his gaze to the window. “Interplanar…?”

Something about the word hurts his head. Something he doesn’t want to think about, something he shouldn’t know. His hands clasp together and shake.

“Black coffee for Baritz,” says a voice that’s too nearby to still be behind the counter. He looks up the see the barista setting the cup directly down on his table. “You just seem like you’re having a… day. And it’s not too busy right now, so I figured I’d just make this easier for you.”

“Th-Thanks--Thank you,” he says unsteadily as she returns to the counter. He stares at the cup. Black coffee… he doesn’t want this. He doesn’t even like this.

He doesn’t like any of this. He shouldn’t be one person. He shouldn’t even… they shouldn’t…

“What if I succeeded?” The cup dents in his grip. “What would you do?”

As he stares at the cup, waiting for an answer he doesn’t have, the conversations of other patrons slowly filter into his hearing.

“That’s illegal, dude.”

“Seats are so easy to get, though.”

“That’s not the only--how are you even gonna get there?”

“What? There’s a train line that runs right through there. It’s a big station.”

“Yeah, and all the tickets are gonna be overpriced, with crowded trains. Tons of people go to Goldcliff, and they don’t exactly draw the most savory crowd…”

Baritz frowns. “Goldcliff…?”

Coffee leaks onto his hand from the top of the crushed cup, and the lid pops off the top. He can tell that the liquid is hot, but it doesn’t actually hurt his semi-corporeal hand.

He wipes it all up using napkins from the table’s dispenser, and then quickly stands up and walks out the door, dropping the still-mostly-full coffee cup and wad of wet napkins in the trash on his way out.

Goldcliff. He walks briskly down the street, paying slightly less attention to the people he’s nearly barrelling over. He shouldn’t go to Goldcliff. Barry had meant to go there, there’s something there, someone--no, no, no, he shouldn’t think about it, he can’t think about it.

His legs take him all the way out to the edge of town as his thoughts conflict with one another. He can’t go there; he doesn’t even know if his magic will work like normal, and trying to teleport would be dangerous. And he just--he shouldn’t. No matter how much he wants to know, how much he feels like the answers to all of his questions are just on the tip of his--

“I don’t want to fight!” he shouts into the open air. His disguise dissipates with it. He’s already walked far past the edge of town, beyond where anyone will notice him.

“Please,” he says, and knocks his head against a tree. Then he sits down against the trunk, lower arms crossed and upper hands clasped together. “Let’s just--I don’t want this any more than you.”

He shakes his head and stares at the sky. “How are we gonna get out of this one?” The clouds just drift lazily. He sighs. He has to stop being, so that Barry and Kravitz can keep going.

But what are they even going to do? The same thing as always? The same stupid, silly game. They both know it, and they both keep playing.

“It’s nothing against you personally,” he says. “I know you know that. I… I can’t apologize.” He leans back against the tree. “I have to do this, you know? It’s everything to me. I don’t think you’d understand.”

He closes his eyes. “Or maybe I do.”

Something feels nauseating, and he just shuts his eyes tighter. It feels like his heart dropping through his stomach, leaving an empty space in his chest, hollow and painful. He feels like so much less, now. Small, but not so small that the hole in his chest completely disappears.

His hands--just two-- drag their fingers through the grass and dirt. He opens his eyes.

Next to him, draped in a familiar bright red, a figure sits just shy of leaning on his shoulder, hands covering his face. Kravitz blanks. “Barry…?”

Barry lowers his hands, trembling. There are tears in his eyes when he turns to face Kravitz. “W-Well, that was…”

“Yeah.”

“F-Forget about everything I--We thought a-about,” Barry says, “T-Towards the end, th-there. Just s-some nonsense anxiety. D-Don’t worry about it.”

“I don’t have any bounties recently sighted near Goldcliff,” Kravitz shrugs. “Just get out of here before it’s been too long to justify not getting out my scythe.”

“R-Right, yeah,” Barry says quickly. He stands up and reaches behind his shoulder, snapping his fingers. A portal manifests behind him and he hesitates briefly. Then he gives Kravitz a tiny smile and says, “W-Well, nice to meet us.”

He steps back through the portal, and he’s gone.

#baritz #issb #the adventure zone #writes #my writing #this is an au to normal baritz canon #the first time he fuses is the lyric comic #but i thought itd be neat to see if they fused while they were still. uh. enemies #mine

[thievinghippo]

Fic Update: The Longest Distance (24/100)

Fandom: The Adventure Zone

Pairing: Barry Bluejeans/Lup

Rating: Teen

Summary: “Time is the longest distance between two places.” - Tennessee Williams. 100 cycles. 100 moments. aka how Barry and Lup’s relationship evolves over 100 years.

Chapter Summary: Davenport insists on order. Lucretia wonders about semantics. The twins deal with mistaken identity. 

(Read on Ao3!)

#

Cycle Twenty-Four

“Everyone ready?”

Lup rolls her eyes. How many times have they introduced themselves and told their story to a new town after all these years? They could do this in their sleep at this point.

Yet Cap’n Port insists on going through the checklist each and every time.

“We’re ready,” Lup says. “Let’s get this show on the road.”

From the outside, it looks like it’s gonna be a pretty decent cycle. Plenty of villages scattered around. If one doesn’t want to trade, they’ll just make their way to another one. Eventually they’ll find a place to settle.

The entire crew heads out of the Starblaster. This area of the world they’re in is warm, almost hot. Makes Lup glad she’s wearing a tank top. Might not be the classiest thing to wear when meeting a new civilization. But when the fuck has she ever care about that?

The town they’re walking towards is on the smaller size. Rows of houses and shops, all facing what Lup assumes to be the main temple in town. Considering how it towers over the rest of the buildings, she guesses that’s where the power lay.

They get more than a few stares as they start walking towards the temple. They only walk a block before Lup realizes that a small crowd has started following. them.

“Okay, this is weird,” Lup says. “Townies must be bored out of their mind if they care that much about strangers.”

“Seriously,” Magnus mutters back. “I don’t like this.”

It’s not like they haven’t gotten less than warm welcomes before. Some cycles are full of people who hate strangers. This feels different, though.

Then she hears someone mutter, “It’s the twins.”

Lup looks over at Taako. “Um. Why don’t I like the sound of that?”

“Keep walking everyone,” Davenport orders. And since he’s Cap’n Port, everyone follows.

She drifts over next to Barry as they walk. That’s something she does now. She tries not to think about why too much. Barry just gives her a grin. He’s always loved this part of a cycle, the part after they know the planet isn’t trying to kill them. Nerd.

They turn a street corner, giving them a view of the temple. There are stairs leading up to it and they’re packed. And some people in very fancy robes are standing at the top of the stairs, like they’re trying to look very important.

The crowd parts as they start walking up the stairs. More than once Lup hears the twins. Like, yeah, it’s pretty damn obvious that she and Taako are twins. But why would any of these people care?

She doesn’t think she likes this cycle and they’ve been here for a whopping day. Great.

The second she and Taako walk to the very top of the stairs, the humans in very fancy robes drop to their knees. Lup raises an eyebrow. Now she’s intrigued.

“You have returned to us,” the woman who looks like to be the person in charge says. Not only is she the eldest, she’s always wearing the most ornate robes. Double whammy. Totally in charge. “We are honored that the twin gods have come to save us yet again.”

Lup looks over at Taako and grins slowly. Oh they can have fun with this.

“Twin gods?” Barry asks, sounding confused. The rest of the crew is just standing there, looking as confused as Barry sounds. Well, except for Lucretia, who’s writing every single word down.

“Have you hidden your identities to walk with these travelers?” one of the men asks, his voice reverent. “How humble of you both, to want to protect these commoners from your greatness. We should all aspire to such humility.”

Two servants with heads bowed, each holding a tray, walk up to Taako and Lup. “For the twin gods, to help you rest after your journey.”

Hot towels, a bowl of fruit, and some sort of wine. Lup does a complete one-eighty as she pats the hot towel on her face.

She fucking loves this cycle.

“Thank you,” Lup says to the servant as she pick up the glass of wine.

The servant practically drops the tray before walking off. The leader still looks in awe. “And you deign to notice a simple servant. We have always heard of the tales of your bravery and beauty. But to learn firsthand of your kindness and compassion-”

“Yeah, I think that’s enough,” Magnus says.

“Who are we to tell them what to believe?” Taako asks, hand over his heart. He bows to the leader. “Please, continue.”

The leader looks amazed that Taako is actually speaking to her. Oh this is going to be fun. They’ll still do all the normal things. Trade and science and searching for the Light. But if these people want to worship her and Taako?

Lup’s never minded a little worshipping.

“You and your companions will want for nothing. We will have residences prepared. Banquets every night. Your time here will be nothing but bliss,” the leader says.

“I have a question,” Lucretia says, stepping forward. “Apologies. You mentioned before that the twin gods will save you. We come from another land and don’t know your ways.”

“Oh snap, good call,” Taako says, looking over at Lucretia. He turns back to the leader. “My twin sister and I, of course, are your humble servants. How can we help?”

Lup kicks Merle in the shin when the dwarf starts to chuckle. “Shut it, Merle,” she whispers.

The leader looks a bit confused, but seven strangers just came into town, so it makes sense. “Anything we can do,” Lup says with a bow, to play things up a bit. 

“Ah, of course,” the leader says, a relief passing over her face. “We’ve heard that sometimes the soul doesn’t always remember its past lives.”

“So what can we do?” Lup says, putting her forearm on the woman’s shoulder. “We are kick ass at magic.

The leader takes Lup’s arm off of her shoulder. “It’s so much simpler than that, thankfully. Our world is blessed. Our people want for nothing. And it’s all because of the twin gods.”

Lup looks over at Taako, who’s starting to look a little uncomfortable. Just like she is. It’s one thing to play at being god. It’s another to take advantage of these people. That, she doesn’t want to do.

“How do they help?” Lucretia asks.

“The ritual,” one of the robed men says. “For the next few months, we will prepare. Then once the time is right…” He throws his arm out. Behind him, far in the distance, is a huge volcano.

“The sacrifice,” the leader says, head bowed. “The twin gods willingly sacrifice themselves to the volcano and we will see another hundred years of bounty.”

Suddenly being a god doesn’t seem like such a good gig after all. Her hand finds Taako’s.

“Ooh, death by volcano,” Merle says. “I haven’t even died by volcano yet.”

Lup looks over at Barry, who looks worried. Like he does most of the time. For a moment, she wondered if he might be worried about her and not just the group but then pushes the thought away.

Taako squeezes her hand, his sign that he’ll back her up with whatever she wants to do. She bites her lip. The last thing she wants to do is piss off these folk. Not in the very beginning of a cycle.

Might be fun to live the high life for a couple of months. Not like she won’t be back next cycle, right? Decision made, she turns to the leader.

“The twin gods will perform this most sacred duty with honor,” Lup says.

The crowd around them starts to cheer and Lup smiles. One thing’s for sure. She will never let the crew forget that she and Taako were worshipped as literal gods.

#the adventure zone: balance #the adventure zone #barry bluejeans #lup taaco #blupjeans #hippo writes fanfiction

[imagineaworlds]

Caught In Your Eyes (Part Two)--Billy Hargrove

Written by @rune-of-a-writer

Part One, Part Two

Request: Hi. I love your work. I was wondering if you could do a billy imagine where the female reader is new to town and she’s a bad girl and billy instantly falls for her and tries to get with her. Thank you!!

Warnings: cursing, alcohol, drugs

Pairing: Billy Hargrove x fem!reader

Summary: You meet Billy’s sister. Then when you and the group go to a party, things go wrong.

Word Count: 3,003

A/N: The picture is of my bby Froy Gutierrez as a FC for James.

Once school had ended, you found yourself trapped by your locker. James, Vance and Chris were towering over you, desperately trying to get you to go to a party this coming weekend. It was still a few days away, but James was persistent. His body was slouched against the locker beside yours, his shoulder pinning yours down as he lay his head on your chest in order to look directly up at you.

“Come on, (Y/N/N),” he whined, throwing his arm out, “It is quite literally, the first party of the school year. I’m pretty sure everyone is going to be there. And I can’t say that if you’re not there!” you had to bite your lip harshly in order to keep back a laugh. You had already decided to go to the party five minutes ago, but watching James’ theatrical attempt to persuade you was too good to pass up.

“Then I guess everyone isn’t going to be there,” you sighed just as dramatically, pushing yourself off of your locker, causing James to nearly fall to the ground had Chris not caught him.

“Oh come on! I’ll pay you in adoration and compliments,” James yelled down the hallway as you walked off, laughing quietly to yourself.

“I’ll be expecting those tomorrow morning! You have a week to woo me over, Tullen!” you yelled back, smirking over your shoulder. Pushing open the school doors, the sun nearly blinded you by it’s brightness. It was hotter than it was this morning and the snow and ice on the ground was practically gone.

You noticed the ginger haired girl by the Camaro again, Billy’s car. They didn’t look alike in the slightest but you knew they had to be related somehow. She seemed bored, twirling her skateboard on its edge while glancing up at the doors every few minutes. It had been 15 minutes since school had ended, which meant Billy was most likely doing some other activity that you didn’t care to enlighten the girl about.

Walking over, you tossed your backpack onto the trunk of your car before heading towards her. “Hey, kid!” you called out. She looked up at you, instantly narrowing her eyes. Yup, definitely related to the Hargrove guy.

“The blond is most likely in detention right now,” you lied, standing in front of her with your arms crossed. An annoyed huffed left her lips while she threw her head back. You eyed her board and gave her a smirk. “I can chill out here with you while you wait? I know how to skateboard, and I can show you some stuff if you don’t already know them,” you offered, watching as her eyes instantly lit up.

“Yeah, that’d be cool,” she grinned, slamming the board down and instantly jumping on it. The parking lot was empty thankfully so there wasn’t much of a worry that the younger girl would get run over. Hopping onto the trunk of the Camaro, you watched her as she skated back and forth from the steps of the school’s front doors and back to the car. She showed you what she knew how to do: a couple of kick flips (she managed to do three in a row before stumbling), kneeling down on the board and coming back up smoothly, turning the board in a circle, and other things.

“Nice job, kid,” you grinned, pulling your knee onto the trunk and leaning on it, “Do you know how to do a strawberry milkshake?” you questioned.

“I’ve been practicing. I haven’t gotten the full hang of it. My step-dad got a little upset when I came home with my jeans tore up because I fell off the board,” she explained, and held up her arm to show off the scar she had along the back of it. You nodded in understanding and watched as she tried the trick.

The two of you were so focused the you didn’t hear the school doors open.

“Here, lemme show you,” you said after a few minutes. You hopped down and she handed you the skateboard, carefully watching. You explained your feet positions and slowly moved the board as if you were doing the trick. “Like that,” you told her before actually doing the trick in full motion so she could see how it was done.

“Woah, that makes more sense!” she yelled out, quickly taking the board and doing what you said. First she completed the trick in slow motion like you did so her feet would get accustomed to the motions, before attempting the full trick. Which was a success. “I did it!”

“Yeah, and you didn’t ruin your clothes this time,” a voice sudden called out, causing the both of you to jump. You quickly turned around, coming face-to-face with the idiot from earlier. The girl rolled her eyes and picked up her skateboard.

“Exactly. That’s the point,” she snapped at Billy before giving you a grin and getting into the car, leaving the two of you alone.

“So, you decided to teach my sister how to skateboard?” he questioned, a smirk playing on his face, “Trying to woo me over?”

“She already knew how to skateboard,” you scoffed, rolling your eyes, “I was just making sure she didn’t get killed while her asshole brother was off doing who knows what,” Billy took another step closer, the two of you staring at eachother.

“Well then, how can I thank you when I don’t even know your name, princess?” he growled, his tongue darting out to run across his lips rapidly.

“Sounds like something you need to figure out,” you retorted, pressing your own tongue along the points of your k9’s. “However, you seem fond of ‘princess’. Maybe that’s all you need to know,” Billy’s grinned widened at this, letting out a low chuckle.

“Hm, ‘The Princess and The Asshole’? How’s that sound?” he snickered, taking another step closer. You crossed your arms and chuckled, shaking your head.

“I already know your name, Billy Hargrove,” you watched his face fall, “So really? It’s just ‘The Princess’, isn’t it?” you hummed, tilting your head to the side, parts of your (h/c) hair falling into your face.

“I’ll be calling you plenty of other things, princess, once I figure out who the hell you are,” he growled, his hands clenching inside the pockets of his jean jacket.

“Yeah, like ‘The Bitch Who Knocked Billy Hargrove Off His Pedestal’,” you grinned before walking backwards towards your car. “I’ll be lookin’ forward to it, asshole,” you smirked before turning around, grabbing your backpack, and getting into your car.

--

James had not only managed to convince you to go to the party that Saturday night, but he also managed to convince you to pick him, Chris and Vance up from his house. You didn’t mind, you had grown close with them the past week and they had become great friends. Pulling up outside James’ house, they were already waiting outside. The three of them rushed over, quick to get in and relish in your car’s heater.

“Jesus fuck,” Vance moaned out, “It’s like 2 degrees outside!”

“Don’t worry, once you’re plastered you won’t feel the cold,” Chris snickered and the four of you laughed.

The party wasn’t too far out, only about 10 minutes or so. And once you got to the street it was obvious to tell what house the party was being held. Light streamed out from every surface, music blaring down the road and the laughter of teens echoing all around. Parking the car, you all got out and headed over. Many people yelled out for you guys, the soccer team recognizing James and Vance and the baseball team recognizing Chris. Others yelled out for you since you had become well known the past week as well. Regardless, the four of you stuck together and weaved inside the house.

“I’m gonna go grab drinks,” Vance yelled out over the music before breaking off and heading towards the refreshment table.

The rest of you migrated towards the living room, luckily finding an empty couch. None of you were into dancing until you were thoroughly fucked up, so you had all agreed to chill for the beginning of the party. You were grateful for that because as much as you enjoyed parties, you didn’t know too many people and didn’t want to risk getting stranded. You curled up in the corner of the couch, tucking your knees under you and turning your body towards James and Chris. Vance found the three of you soon, drinks in tow.

“Alright! I’ve got a Pepsi for our DD,” he yelled, handing you the drink, “A Strawberry Kinky for the kinky one,” he yelled out, handing the vodka to James and causing him to shout in embarrassment, “Fireball and coke for the boring one,” he handed the drink to Chris, “And my own specialty,” he declared finally, squishing himself between James and Chris. The three of you stared at him expectantly, waiting for him to tell you what his drink was.

“You gonna tell us how much alcohol you’re drinking? Or are we just supposed to find out when you go on an hour-long rant about classism, and end it by making out with Barry Feller preceded by throwing up in a house plant?” James questioned, taking a gulp of his drink in order to keep himself from laughing.

“Oh my god, you didn’t,” you gasped out, not being able to contain your laughter.

“Listen!” Vance yelled out, face bright red as you all laughed loudly, “I can handle my alcohol, I swear!”

“Alright baby,” Chris cooed mockingly. You guys all laughed and shared more stories from drunk and high mistakes, their drinks allowing them to get more bold with their stories.

At some point, a crowd had formed. All the couches and chairs were taken up, the floor had disappeared due to the mass of bodies and the alcohol and soda bottles had found themselves on the coffee table. The music was just as loud, but none of you noticed. By now, it wasn’t just James, Chris and Vance drunkenly sharing their stories. Everyone else had pitched in their own embarrassing moments of intoxication. The first time they drank or got high, that one time their mom caught them, that time they ended up naked in the baseball field 10 minutes before school started. Nobody was holding back. Your attention was entirely focused on the group before you. Which had been a mistake.

You had always been a hyper-vigilant person, especially after your old school. You always knew what was happening around you, just in case something went wrong and you had to step into action. But with 30+ people all laughing and sharing their stories, you had totally forgotten about your drink. You had placed the half empty cup on the stand next to you, forgetting about it almost immediately after. However, when your eyes passed over the Pepsi bottle on the coffee table, you suddenly remembered. So when you did grab it take a well needed drink, you were shocked when it tasted different.

Of course you knew what Pepsi tasted like. It was your favorite thing to drink. And it didn’t taste like this. Your first thought was that you grabbed the wrong drink. But after a second inspection, you noticed it was the only drink on the stand. Furrowing your eyebrows, you stared into the drink, swishing it around. You couldn’t see anything within the dark syrup, so you took a tentative, second gulp. You let it sit in your mouth for a few moments before swallowing. Yeah, definitely not Pepsi. Deciding that a mix up had most likely just happened, you put the cup back down and focused on the group.  You listened quietly as Talia spoke about one of her stories. But you couldn’t hear her all that well. Her speech was slow and muffled. You picked up your head to ask if she was okay, when you noticed that everything sounded like that. The music, the laughing, everything. Looking around, everything was getting blurry. It was happening slowly, not a sudden change.

‘What the fuck,’ you thought to yourself. You rubbed your eyes, blinking a few times to see if that helped anything. It didn’t. “Hey,” you whispered over to James, “I’m gonna go get some air.”

“Alright,” he nodded, looking at you briefly as you got up, making sure not to trip over anyone. Once you had successfully gotten through the crowd, you were slightly surprised to see the familiar shock of blond curls come through the front door. Instantly everyone called out for him, yelling at him for being late and telling him to join the crowd.

The two of you made brief eye contact, you attempting to send him your usual playful glare (though you're sure it came out as a grimace) and him sending you a confused, yet concerned frowned. As you brushed past him to go outside, he put a hand on your leather-clad shoulder, stopping you.

“You alright there, princess? Leavin’ just as I get here?” he joked, smirking down at you. You scoffed up at him, trying to shake the dizziness from you.

“Nah, just tryna get some fresh air. Your stench is overpowering.” you snickered, before stumbling past him and outside. Once the cool January air hit you, you felt a little better, but still not entirely there. You sat yourself on the porch steps, putting your head in your hands. Your (h/c) hair fell over your face as you tried to calm your breathing. Things were getting blurrier now, and even though you weren’t moving everything else was. You felt like you were going to fall down, and your body was getting harder to hold up. You had to lean yourself against the wall to keep from tumbling down the steps.

A sudden hand on your shoulder caused you to look up. Normally the person would’ve found an elbow in their throat, but you couldn’t even bring yourself to tell them to fuck off. You could hardly see who it was. You recognized blond hair and a leather jacket similar to your own. Hargrove.

“Fuck off,” you got out finally, shaking his hand off of your shoulder. He was saying something, you could hear the sound of his voice but not all of the words.

“What-wrong-fuck?” when you didn’t respond to him, he moved his hand to your face, grabbing your jaw and turning you to look at him. You hissed at the intrusion, not enjoying when people touch you, especially someone you barely know. “Who-come here-?”

“James,” you mumbled out, being able to put two and two together, telling him who you had come here with.

---

Billy looked down at your slumped body, barely able to keep you from falling down the steps. Your usual confident, strong demeanor was gone when he had walked through the door which had confused him. So when you hadn’t returned after 15 minutes, he decided to check on you. Billy moved you farther away from the stairs before quickly going back inside to find James. He had never talked to this kid before, so he had no idea how this was going to go.

He found him in the kitchen, washing out his solo cup. James didn’t look too sober himself. Billy groaned, rubbing his forehead. Since when did he have to end up the sober, responsible one at a party?

“Ay, you,” Billy called out, getting James attention. “You came here with that one girl right?” he still hadn’t figured out your name.

“(Y/N)?” James asked, letting the cup drop into the sink. Finally.

“Yeah. (H/c) hair, leather jacket. You know the one. Listen, she’s out front, practically dead on the steps. You should take her home,” Billy said, taking a glance over at the loud crowd. He knew the party wasn’t going to last much longer and if you were left out there, not only would you get trampled over, but your barely-started reputation would get ruined.

“Woah, what?” James asked, narrowing his eyes. “I can’t drive. I don’t have a license and I’m not sober.”

“You’ve go to be fucking kidding me.”

“I’m not. Neither does Chris or Vance,” James said, his words slightly slurred. He swung his hand, vaguely motioning towards the crowd, which wasn’t helpful to identifying the two in the crowd. Then, James’ eyes widened and he punched Billy’s shoulder. Billy grabbed his wrist immediately, glaring at the smaller kid.

“Don’t. Do. That,” he warned, causing James to step back.

“Right. Sorry. But listen, you do. We all know you do with your fucking car. You can take us home, or her home, and then she can get her car in the morning,” James grinned as if it was the brightest idea in the world.

“And why would I do that?” James stopped to think.

“Because then she’ll stop calling you ‘asshole’?” he tried, giving Billy a questioning half smile. It worked.

“Grab the other two. Come on,” Billy growled, letting go of James’ wrist finally. James quickly jogged into the living room, telling Chris and Vance what was going on. They nodded quickly, jumping over the couch (Vance falling) before stumbling behind Billy.

Billy had prepared himself to have to pick you up when he got outside, but when the four of them walked out of the house you weren’t there. Billy’s eyes widened, quickly jumping down the porch steps.

“Yo, what the hell?” Vance called out, looking over the porch. “This some kinda prank Hargrove? I’ll kick your ass!”

“You couldn’t take him on,” Chris grumbled, jogging down the steps.

“It’s not a prank,” James called out. He had gone around to the side of the house to see if you were there, but instead he had found your jacket. He came back to Chris, Vance and Billy, holding it up.

“Where the fuck did she go?”

#rune-of-a-writer #billy hargrove #billy hargrove imagine #billy hargrove fanfiction #billy hargrove fanfic #Stranger Things #stranger things imagine #stranger things fanfic #stranger things fanfiction

[secretradiobrooklyn]

HALLOWEEN RADIO | 10.31.20

Secret Radio | Halloween special 10.31.20 | Hear it here.

Artwork by Paige, Liner notes by Evan except * means Paige

1. Sam the Sham - “Little Red Riding Hood” *

I had to make the case to Evan that this was a Halloween song, but I justify with the fact that 1.) this song uses the phrase “spooky ol’ woods” and 2.) many years ago, Sleepy Kitty played a festival on Cherokee Street that wasn’t a Halloween show but it happened to be the Saturday before Halloween. Recognizing our responsibility, we scrambled to throw together costumes and realized that if we just got a wolf mask and paws we already  had everything in our wardrobes to throw together the Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs LP cover drawing of Red and the wolf. Evan says he doesn’t like Halloween but it’s only because once he commits, he commits completely. One of my favorite moments of the night was spotting Evan that night, several hours after our set in the afternoon, having a completely serious and sincere conversation with a friend – wolf nose and paws still intact. This was pre iPhone days, but I tracked down an image and I’m gonna put it on our fake radio insta. Thus, Little Red Riding Hood is in fact a Halloween song. 

2. Roky Erickson - “I Walked with a Zombie”

Every year, reliably, Paige’s dad Ned tells us we should cover “I Walked with a Zombie,” and each year we somehow don’t do it. So this live version of the song is for him, just in case this is the closest we ever get. 

Halloween tag

3. Steve Martin - Little Shop of Horrors soundtrack - “Dentist!”

Sure, an alarmingly large and hungry, sharp-toothed plant is scary. But is it as terrifying as a dentist who delights in the pain he inflicts? “I thrill when I drill a bicuspid” — shiver!

4. Hocus Pocus soundtrack - “Sarah’s Theme”

Our definition of a good Halloween movie is way less horrifying than it is lightly spooky, so “Hocus Pocus” is just about ideal for our purposes. This is the sound of Paige’s delighted Halloween youth… though we also just watched it again. Holds up! 

5. The Beatles - “Mr. Moonlight”

Paige pointed out that this is essentially a religious song to the moon — a song of praise, devotion, and submission to a greater power. 

6. Quasi - “Ghost vs. Vampire”

I know that Quasi has had a long and illustrious career, but my fandom is frozen at this pinnacle of mystical bummerness. I learned so much about being creatively sad from Sam Coomes.

7. Rocky Horror Picture Show - “Sweet Transvestite” 

8. The Velvet Underground - “The Gift”

Didn’t realize this was a Halloween song until tonight. If Hitchcock is proper Halloween, which I vote a definite yes, then “The Gift” is ultra Halloween.

9. Bauhaus - “Bela Lugosi’s Dead” 

I feel like I have to say psychic hello to my friend Joseph Grady, who first introduced me not just to the coolness of Peter Murphy but to the allure of vampires generally. I wore my nails and my coats long. We talked about what the vampires were up to that night. We had some truly perfect nights together.

10. The Bitter Tears - “Murdered at the Bar”

An invaluable prize from being in a certain scene in a certain set of years in Chicago with the School of the Art Institute crowd — grad and undergrad. We all loved this song, and 15 or so years later, “we all” turns out to be a very specific and much-loved crew of people I miss and love. Except for Chris Shea, who I love and get to hang out with here in the city. This song is for him especially. 

11. Phantom of the Opera - Korean cast - “Point of No Return”

We had this epiphany accidentally. As I recall, we watched the movie version of “Phantom,” and I was distinctly not impressed, but then Paige put on the French-Canadian version and we were both fascinated by how different it was. That led us into Phantom Internationalé, wherein we just looked up versions from all over the world. It is amazing: each version is both militantly like and distinctly unique from the others. The Korean Phantom emerges as the most singular from among the versions we heard, and “Point of No Return” an emotional height.

Meet Me in St. Louis - “Tootie the Horrible”

One of the greatest Halloween scenes in the history of cinema in our book. 

12. Donovan - “Season of the Witch”

13. “The Dweller of the Cave” * I Found this tape at my parents’ house this summer while we were delayed in Illinois between March and whenever the van got fixed and we drove back. Rediscovering this tape may be why you’re listening to this whole fake radio spooktacular tonight. Hi to Stewart and Jill. 

14. Science Fiction Double Feature *

15. Dr. Who Theme Song*

16. Red Dwarf Theme Song* 

The previous 3 songs were woven into a medley for Sleepy Kitty’s KMNR Freaker’s Ball. It’s one of life’s great pleasures for a band to play Freaker’s Ball, we literally wound around a wooded road to find some Elk’s Lodge or something full of college kids DECKED THE HECK OUT in EPIC COSTUMES ready to freakin’ get down. Never have I been closer to being the band in the prom scene of a 90s movie than at a Freaker’s Ball. We met some rad folks through the KMNR scene, and if I’ve ever told you about my custom vocal pedals, Colin of CroyTone Audio was one of those rad folks we met one of those magical nights. Also, raise your hand if your love Red Dwarf!

17. Ghostbusters 

Paige: “I had this reflector, this flat reflector that was some scrap of something that Ned got from Honeywell. I would play Ghostbusters, and I was like: ‘This is a ghost trap.’ It was SO REAL to me. It was this flat reflector, like a bike reflector, and I would like, like, set traps. And I’d be like, ‘Don’t move my ghost trap!’ I would set the ghost trap, and it was like fishing for ghosts. But that was me playing. I would, like, wait. …I don’t know if it worked or not.”

“I’m not sure if this is me imagining this or not, but I’m pretty sure there was a day where I was like, ‘I feel like this trap’s not working.’ But I also feel like I was like, ‘But how would I know? They could be all inside. This is either full — or empty.’”

Vertigo soundtrack

18. The Fall - “Frightened”

“I don’t wanna dance, I wanna go home” — Fri-dund! 

19. Goblin - “Zombi” Title Theme

20. Karen Elson - “The Ghost Who Walks”

I think we got this record at Third Man Records when we were playing in Nashville. Sean’s new residence! 

Paige: “Karen Elson is tall, beautiful, an interesting musician, AND she has red hair. That’s crazy. What are the chances that you would have all of those things? Talk about a blue moon!”

21. Eartha Kitt - “I Want to Be Evil”

“The only etchings I’ve seen have been behind glass.” 

22. Jeffrey Lewis & Los Bolts - “The Pigeon”

“Old skies you flapped through are no more.”

We would like to give a heartfelt hello to Yona Schimmel, mostly out of reach for now. We mourn every missed knish.

23. Scott Walker - “The Seventh Seal”

Paige didn’t know this was a movie, she thought this was just a cool song about a guy playing chess with death.

24. Groovie Ghoulies - “(She’s My) Vampire Girl”

I love that he puts two Bazooka Joe jokes right in the middle of the song.

25. Black Sabbath - “Paranoid”

Sometimes you need priests to summon spirits. 

26. Fantasia - “A Night on Bald Mountain”

This is a song that seriously disturbed Paige when she was young. She thought that they did this whole demon thing every single Saturday. For me, it made such an impression that, when each of my young friends and I improvised who we were — “I’m Darth Vader!” “I’m a Cylon Raider!” my take was “I’m Night on Bald Mountain”! And I would open my arms wide and pretend that I was an entire sharp mountaintop transforming into a giant demon with wings, and I would always be the biggest and baddest and scariest creature of all, no matter what they thought. Bald Mountain beats Batman every time.

29. “Jump in the Fire”

Or as I say whenever the occasion warrants: “Jump in the show-AHH!” 

28. Rogers & Hammerstein “Pore Jud Is Daid”

29. Barry Adamson - “Something Wicked This Way Comes”

I cannot recall what brought this album to my ears… I suspect it was something I got in my inbox when I worked at The Rocket. This whole album is full of heavy musical grooves and heavy mental movement. It’s a rare pleasure in 

30. Screamin’ Jay Hawkins, “I Put a Spell on You”

This is straight-up one of my favorite recordings of anyone ever. And when I eventually saw it enacted in “Stranger than Paradise,” I was blown away by how fundamentally Eastern European it sounds. Every sound he makes with his voice creates new characters. 

31. The Shining, “Midnight, the Stars & You”

Happy halloween my friends, I wish we were all at an otherwordly dance together.

[fionnfanatics]

Request: Hey baby… Can I request a imagine about George (Barry Keoghan)? where he’s in love with his best friend (the reader), but he’s afraid to explain his feelings.. But he don’t know she are in love whit him too 🙈🙈 I really love it 💕💕

A/N: GEORGE IS ALIVE AND WELL AND RETURNS HOME LIKE HE SHOULD HAVE

——————

You had been friends with George and Peter since you were a little kid. The three of you never really fit in with others in school, so you found friends in one another.

For as long as you could remember, the three of you were stuck to each other’s hips, even now.

So when the two of them disappeared for a few days, along with Mr. Dawson, you grew increasingly worried. They never would have gone somewhere and left you behind if they didn’t have to.

You were a pretty astute person, so when you heard about the call for civilian boats to go to Dunkirk, you realized what must have happened.

Ever since Peter’s older brother had died, Mr. Dawson had become increasingly more interested in the war. He felt like he didn’t have the right to just sit back and do nothing while the sons of England fought over seas. He must have taken Peter and himself to Dunkirk to help, and George, innocent sweet George, must have gone with them to help.

You were so worried as the days passed, hardly getting any sleep. Your parents tried to calm your worries, but nothing worked. Sometimes you could hear the spitfires flying over the house, and you could see the smoke from Dunkirk out of your window. You were terrified that your two best friends weren’t going to make it home.

Some shouts from outside the house caught your attention, drawing you to the front door. You stepped outside, seeing people running down the street and towards the marina.

“What’s going on?” You asked one of the woman who was running to the docks with blankets in her hand.

“Oh honey, the civilian boats are back. They’ve brought thousands of soldiers with them.” She exclaimed, her eyes wide with shock.

Once those words sank in, you were sprinting down the street towards the water. Your heart was beating erratically, hands shaking with nerves.

It was chaos at the marina, all the townspeople were running food, drinks and blankets to the obviously shaken soldiers. You pushed your way through the crowd, looking for any sight of your friends.

“Move out of the way! He’s injured.” A familiar voice spoke, making your head snap around. Standing a little ways in front of you, Peter and Mr. Dawson seemed to be carrying a stretcher of some sort. You ran towards them, shouting apologies as you pushed people out of the way.

“Peter! Mr. Dawson! Where’s-” You froze once you made it to them, eyes wide as you stared down at the figure on the stretcher. “G-George?” You whispered in shock, tears gathering in his eyes.

“He’s alright, just sleeping. We need to get him to the hospital to get his head checked.” Mr. Dawson assured you, gesturing for you to follow him.

“What happened?” You asked Peter, following alongside him as you took George’s hand.

“One of the soldiers was really freaked out on the boat. He accidentally knocked George down the stairs and he hit his head. He lost a little blood, but he’ll be fine.” Peter looked at you briefly, giving you a small smile.

“And you and your dad? You’re both okay?” You asked, worries still not completely abated.

“We’re fine Y/N! We had a few close calls, but everything’s ok. We got a few dozen boys home, not to mention all the other boats full of soldiers as well.”

“Thank god.” You sighed, body relaxing at his words. The three of you walked in silence then, and a little while later you were at the hospital.

A few nurses immediately took George, taking him to a room hidden from view. Peter and you took some seats in the waiting room, his dad going to talk to one of the doctors.

You sat around for about an hour, when a doctor came to tell you all that George had a mild concussion. He assured you that he was going to be just fine, and said he was awake.

Thanking the doctor, the three of you went in to see him. He was sitting up in bed, a cup of tea in his hands. He glanced up when Mr. Dawson called for him, and his eyes brightened when they settled on you.

“I don’t think I’ve ever been so happy to see you Y/N.” George spoke, a wide smile on his face.

“Thank god your alright.” You smiled, rushing over to give him a hug. “As much as I’m made at you for going out there, I am proud of you.” His answering smile was wide, making Peter and his dad exchange a knowing look.

“I’m going to go let your parents know what happened George. Peter, I’ll be back in a little bit.” Mr. Dawson spoke, heading for the door. He glanced back once, a smile on his face. “It’s good to see your alright.”

As soon as he was gone, you rounded on your two friends. They both cowered back slightly, eyes widening.

“What were you two even thinking?” You suddenly shouted, your fears spilling out as anger. “You could have died! George almost did die! Did you even think about what that would do to your family? To me?! I’d never have been able to tell you how I feel!” You were hysteric towards the end, all of your worries from the past couple of days coming to the surface.

“Tell me how you feel?” George spoke up, his eyes wide with shock. You froze, mouth gaping open as you registered what you had just said.

“Uh, I’m gonna go wait for my dad.” Peter stated awkwardly, backing out of the room. You continued to stand there in shock, avoiding eye contact with the boy on the bed.

“Y/N.” George spoke, trying to coax you into looking at him. When you stayed stubborn, he quietly groaned. “Y/N, please look at me.” You slowly looked at him, palms sweating nervously. He was staring back at you, a look in his eyes that you couldn’t identify. “What is it that you haven’t told me?”

“Nothing, forget I said anything.” You blurted out quickly, shrugging your shoulders. He slightly glared at you, knowing you were lying.

“Y/N.” He tried again, sitting up further in bed.

“Really George, don’t worry about it!”

“That’s a bunch of crap.”

“Drop it!”

“No, not until you tell me the truth!”

The two of you continued to bicker back and forth until you finally lost it.

“If you had died out there, I never would have been able to tell you I love you!” You covered your face as tears started streaming down your cheeks. George immediately noticed this, his expression softening.

“Come here love.” He spoke softly, heart hammering in his chest. In fact, his heart felt like it was soaring.

When you stepped towards him, he grabbed your hand and pulled you down onto the bed with him. He wrapped his arms around you, cuddling you close.

“I’m sorry I made you worry. But I’m alright, really.” He told you, resting his forehead against yours. “And I’m glad this all happened, because now I know how you feel about me. Now I can stop wondering all the time.”

“What do you mean?” You asked, wiping the tears from your cheeks. He gazed into your eyes then, a smile on his face.

“I love you too.”

#george dunkirk #george imagine #dunkirk #dunkirk imagine #barry keoghan #barry keoghan imagine #george x reader

[the-mere-queer]

Karaoke Isn’t Sexy

Oliver doesn’t think anyone can make karaoke good let alone sexy. Olivarry Week Day 5. Read on AO3 also.

“Why are we here again?” Felicity asked as they stepped into the bar. “It’s not your usual style.”

True. The bar was below Oliver’s usual standards, but he couldn’t tell her or Diggle that the reason they were here was because of a certain green-eyed CSI wannabe.

“Needed a break from finals and I figured simple would help us all just relax.” Oliver didn’t even believe the bullshit he was giving them, and his friends looked skeptical at best. He chose not to elaborate further and moved to the bar to get a drink.

He couldn’t believe he had let Barry convince him to come here on karaoke night of all nights. Oliver had made it clear he was not singing, but had agreed to come when his secret-boyfriend pulled out his best puppy dog pout. So, here he was. At a low-end bar on karaoke night.

He was really starting to regret it listening to the guy currently “singing” along to some awful pop song. He tried to listen to Felicity and Diggle’s conversation to hopefully tune out the out of tune torture.

“I swear if I have to recode everything because Gary messes up again, I’ll scream so loud, Laurel will hear me in Italy.”

Diggle and Oliver chuckled at the thought. If Laurel had been here, she would have been able to help with the bad singing, but being on tour in Europe is a valid reason to miss out.

As the song ended, Oliver sighed with relief and finally scanned the room for his boyfriend. In the corner in a small group, he laughed with his friends. Oliver couldn’t stop the smile on his face at the sight of the beautiful man. Long limbs, soft brown hair, a genuine 1000 watt smile better than the one Oliver always plastered on for paparazzi.

They had been dating for basically the whole semester. Oliver’s math professor suggested he get a tutor so that he wouldn’t fall behind like in his previous semesters. When he had met Barry in the library study room, Oliver couldn’t stop staring, and didn’t learn any math that session. He learned the curve of Barry’s long neck, the lean muscles on his arms under the maroon sweater, the way Barry talked excitedly about math. By the end, Oliver knew that Barry could see no math had really been taught. Luckily, he didn’t suggest a new tutor.

After the fifth study session, and Oliver had actually learned something and was ahead in his course work, he’d asked Barry out. The other man had been apprehensive and probably for good reason. Oliver and his past relationships were very familiar with gossip magazines, and Barry didn’t want to be hounded by paparazzi on the street want information about the famous man.

So, Oliver promised secrecy and privacy. Barry agreed to one date and would decide whether it was worth continuing after.

One date turned into two, two into four, soon Barry was staying over in Oliver’s loft and even had a drawer for his clothes there.

Oliver had to admit that it had been nice having Barry to himself, but the secrecy was wearing down on him. He didn’t suggest at least telling their friends, worried it would scare Barry away. It just made doing things like this difficult to explain.

Which is why he was bullshitting his way through the night waiting until he can get Barry alone.

“What do you think, Oliver?” Felicity asked him, pulling him from his memories.

“About what?” he asked, wrenching his gaze from Barry to the blonde next to him.

“Diggle getting up there,” Felicity gestured to the stage just as red-haired girl who had been at Barry’s table got up to sing.

Oliver barked out a laugh at the thought. Diggle singing karaoke. He might pay to see that.

Felicity joined him in laughing and Diggle just smirked, knowing full well it wasn’t going to happen.

The red-haired girl pulled off the song, even if she was a little pitchy throughout. People applauded at the end and she dramatically curtseyed for them. Oliver was so distracted that he didn’t realize Barry was at the edge of the stage waiting to take the girl’s place.

Oh no. Oliver remembered the other reason he was here. When Barry had begged Oliver to come.

“Please,” Barry asked curled into Oliver on his couch. “It could be a lot of fun.”

“Karaoke? Fun?” Oliver snorted, distractedly watching the show on the television.

“You don’t want to hear your sexy boyfriend sing?” Barry pouted.

“Even my ‘sexy boyfriend’ can’t make karaoke good,” Oliver countered.

“That sounds like a challenge,” Barry straightened up, looking Oliver in the eye. “Is it?”

“Sure, Bar,” Oliver said, pulling him back to his side.

“So, you’ll be there,” Barry responded, satisfaction clear ringing in his tone.

“What?”

“You know, to prove you’re right. How will I know if I made it good without you there to tell me so?”

Damn it.

Now here he was watching Barry as he got on stage and made his song choice.

“Hey everyone,” he greeted pointedly not looking Oliver’s direction. “So, a friend of mine recently told that no one can make karaoke sexy.”

The crowd booed, and Oliver rolled his eyes. He hadn’t said “sexy” but apparently Barry was going all out.

“Exactly, so I’m here to show ‘em that they were wrong.” Barry smirked as he finally looked at Oliver. The music started and Barry was off.

“I got a condo in Manhattan

Baby girl, what’s hatnin’?

You and your ass invited

So gon’ and get to clappin’

Go pop it for a player

Pop, pop it for me

Turn around and drop it for a player

Drop, drop it for me.”

Oliver couldn’t believe the sight. Barry pulled the microphone from its stand and was strutting around the stage, seemingly flirting with the audience. It really was a ridiculous sight. Oliver held back his laughter, but couldn’t stop the amused smirk.

“Jump in the Cadillac, girl, let’s put some miles on it

Anything you want, just to put a smile on it

You deserve it baby, you deserve it all

And I’m gonna give it to you

Gold jewelry shining so bright

Strawberry champagne on ice

Lucky for you, that’s what I like, that’s what I like

Lucky for you, that’s what I like, that’s what I like

Sex by the fire at night

Silk sheets and diamonds all white

Lucky for you, that’s what I like, that’s what I like

Lucky for you, that’s what I like, that’s what I like”

Barry was once again not looking in Oliver’s direction. Oliver followed his line of sight and saw the group he’d been sitting with. They were all laughing and mock flirting back. Oliver noticed a dark-skinned woman even blow a kiss to Barry. Oliver felt a possessive instinct rear inside of him. Even if it was pretending, no one flirted with his boyfriend.

He was so lost in his jealousy, he missed the next verse. He looked back up to Barry as he finished the second chorus, and thank God he did. Barry was finally looking at him again, and the look on his face was pure seductive need.

“If you say you want a good time

Well here I am baby, here I am baby

Talk to me, talk to me, talk to me

Tell me what’s on your mind

If you want it, boy come and get it

All this is here for you

Tell me, baby, tell me, tell me, baby

What you tryna do?”

Oliver’s breath hitched, and felt his pants tighten. He couldn’t break away from Barry’s eyes. Barry really was a good singer, but he was definitely sexy. Oliver had to stop himself from jumping onto the stage and ravishing Barry right then and there.

“Gold jewelry shining so bright

Strawberry champagne on ice

Lucky for you, that’s what I like, that’s what I like

Lucky for you, that’s what I like, that’s what I like”

Barry eyed Oliver up and down and winked to him at the next line.

“Sex by the fire at night

Silk sheets and diamonds all white

Lucky for you, that’s what I like, that’s what I like

Lucky for you, that’s what I like, that’s what I like.”

The song ended and the patrons erupted into applause. Barry just stared at Oliver, the smirk on his face oozing confidence in his win. He knew Oliver wouldn’t be able to deny it wasn’t good. Oliver’s growing problem didn’t help Oliver in the slightest.

“He was really good,” Felicity commented when the applause died down. “Whoever made that bet with him totally lost.”

“Yeah,” Oliver replied distractedly. He watched Barry walked back to his table and his friends congratulated him. “Excuse me for a second.”

Oliver stood and determinedly walked to the man on the other side of the room. The redhead noticed and gestured to Oliver. Barry turned around and surprise colored his face.

“Ollie, what are you-”

Oliver cut him off by grabbing his face and pulling him into a heated kiss. He didn’t care if the whole bar was watching, his boyfriend had won and this was Oliver letting him know how right he’d been.

After the shock wore off, Barry’s arms wrapped around Oliver’s waist and pulled him closer, reveling in the kiss until they separated for air.

Barry studied Oliver’s face. “So, does that mean I won?”

“Oh yeah,” Oliver breathed preparing to go back in for more when someone behind Barry cleared their throat.

The couple turned to look at the table. A mixture of shock and impressed cover their faces. Oliver quickly looked over his shoulder and saw the same expressions on Felicity and Diggle’s faces, though Diggle’s had less shock than the others.

“So, Barry,” a girl started. Oliver turned back and saw it was the dark-skinned girl. “Who’s this?”

Barry’s face flushed as he smiled down at his shoes before he looked up at Oliver.

“This is my boyfriend, Oliver Queen,” Barry introduced then pointed around the table. “Oliver these are my friends Iris, Caitlin, and Cisco.”

“Nice to meet you all,” Oliver nodded. “Now if you wouldn’t mind, I’m going to steal him from you.”

“We don’t mind at all,” Iris replied, trying and failing to hold back the smirk on her face.

Oliver pulled Barry out of the bar and dragged him into a taxi. He kissed all available skin the whole way back to his loft. Barry had barely been able to tell the driver the address.

Once the door to the loft closed, Oliver pushed Barry against it, pulling at clothes and attacking his lip with a desperate ferocity.

“Liked it that much, huh?” Barry hummed, pulling Oliver’s jacket off and tugging at his shirt.

“You have no idea,” Oliver answered, tugging Barry’s belt off.

“You know our friends know now,” Barry reminded as he ran his hands up and down Oliver’s chest.

“I don’t care,” Oliver asserted. “Do you?”

“Fuck no,” Barry moaned, pulling Oliver in for another kiss.

Oliver moaned in agreement, and lifted Barry by his ass. Those long legs wrapped around his waist and Barry moaned as Oliver sucked at the curve of his neck.

Oliver carefully carried his boyfriend to the bedroom and shut the door behind him for good measure.

#olivarryweek2017 #olivarry #barry allen #oliver queen #fandom weeks

[dr0wning-in-hell]

Walking Nightmare- The Flash

Summary : Team Flash comes in contact with a meta-human who was stuck in her own nightmare for three years, and when Joe tells the team that she can inflict her fears onto someone else, they take into their own hands to find out more about her abilities.

Word Count : 3.7k

Warnings : nightmares, scared!reader, angry!reader, mentions of abuse, insomnia, angst

Pairing / characters : meta!reader x flash cast, Barry Allen, Caitlyn Snow, Cisco Ramon, Julian Albert, Joe West, Wally West, Iris West

Prompt : meta-human reader vs flash

A/N : so I’ve been having some nightmares lately so I figured, why not write an imagine about a meta-human who can inflict nightmares upon others, and make them real? lol sorry, this is gonna be real angsty. Also, there’s probs gonna be a part two. message me if you want a pat two.

master list | requests | prompt list | my wattpad

Three years. Three years that Y/N had been trapped in her own personal hell, aka her nightmares. Y/N was asleep when the Particle Accelerator exploded, and after that she was never able to wake up after that. It was a constant re-run of all the nightmares she had since she was a kid up until she was an adult.

After three years of being stuck in her own mind she finally forced herself to wake up, but not in the nicest way. She awoke with a terrifying scream and glossed over eyes. Her scream seemed to echo through out the hospital, alerting all the staff members and causing them to rush to Y/N’s room. Y/N sat on her hospital bed shaking, tears rolling down her face. A nurse walked forward slowly, reaching out to Y/N.

“Miss. Y/L/N, are you alright?” Y/N’s head rose slowly, the sight of her scaring the nurses. Her eyes turning black, as she made eye contact with the nurse in front of her. The nurse’s eyes turned black as well, and her body went limp as she was now stuck in her nightmares. Security guards came into the room, pointing their guns at the girl- a girl who didn’t even know what she was doing. Her black eyes met theirs and the same thing happened to them, but instead of falling asleep they saw it as if it were real.

Y/N’s eyes went back to their normal color, and she saw what she had done to these people. Her feet moved quickly, not giving her brain enough time to process what was actually happening. Before stepping out into the hallway, Y/N looked to see if anymore guards were coming her way, but they weren’t. So the girl walked down the hall until she saw an assistant at a desk. She walked up to her slowly, not sure if she’d be recognized or not. Leaning on the desk, she tried to force a warm smile.

“Hi, there… um I was just checked out but I’m having a hard time finding my clothes? Do you have anything I could possibly wear besides this nightgown?” She asked. The assistant obviously didn’t know who Y/N was, so giving a friendly smile she nodded.

“I believe we have some sweats and sweatshirt, but I have to warn you they may not fit.” She said as she dug around in a box full of scrubs. Near the bottom of the box was exactly sweats and a sweatshirt. She handed them to Y/N, not even asking any other questions.

Y/N took them, nodding and mumbling a quick ‘than you’ before rushing off and finding a bathroom. After changing, Y/N mixed in with a crowd of people on the streets, and headed for her apartment complex.

“Hey, I think I found you guys a new meta.” Joe said as he walked into the Cortex. The team’s head twisted, all eyes looking at the cop. “Her name is Y/N Y/L/N. She was a coma patient for three years, until today.” He dropped the case file onto the desk, which Cisco grabbed quickly.

“Y/N Y/L/N. Insomniac, victim of abuse by several of her boyfriends… wow… um, how does this tell us she’s a meta, exactly?” He said, shutting the file and setting it up on the desk again.

“Pull up the footage from the hospital room she was in, 104.” Joe instructed. Cisco sighed as he pulled up the footage. The team watched the footage of Y/N put the nurse and guards into their nightmares, but were confused as to what they were actually seeing?

Julian huffed. “I still don’t understand how this shows she’s a meta-human.”

Joe looked at him sideways. “I talked to the guards, and they said that her eyes turned black when she looked at them they saw everything around them into their worst fears, they’re worst nightmares.” Barry turned to Joe, eye brows raised.

“Hey, Cisco can you pull up a photo of Y/N so we can see what her face looks like.” The speedster asked Cisco. The hacker nodded and went through CCPD files until he found a somewhat decent picture of the new meta, one that made Barry nearly choke on air itself. Everyone noticed his reaction, causing confusion.

“Barry? Honey what is it?” Iris asked, placing her hand on his arm. Sighing Barry turned around.

“Y/N… um, she was in Flashpoint, she…” His voice trailed off. “She was my sister.” The group’s eyes widened as they took in the information.

“Wow…” Caitlin breathed out. Barry nodded, rubbing the back of his  neck.

“We need to find her, fast. If she make someone see their worst fears, who knows what she’ll do.” Julian said, leaning on the desk with his palms. Lucky for Cisco, he was already on it.

He was able to track her down, using city cameras and satellites. Instead of her being at her apartment, she was in Jitters where Mayhem had already begun to happen. Cisco gave them the location, and Barry and Wally ran down to the coffee shop.

The two speedsters  stopped in Jitters, eyes landing on several cowering people in the corner of the shop, and some people laying on the floor or mumbling incoherent words. Y/N stood near the middle of the shop, tears streaming down her face. Her arms were wrapped tightly around her torso, her head hanging low.

“Barry, be careful and try not to make any eye contact with her. We don’t know what she can do!” Iris said through the microphone. Barry shook his head.

“I don’t think we’ll need to. Guys, she’s scared out of her mind, I don’t think she knows what she’s doing.” The speedster said. He took a step closer to Y/N, being carful not to spook her. “Hey there, Y/N. You’re okay now.” He said in a soft voice. Y/N only shook her head.

“I- I don’t know what I’m doing.” She mumbled, raising her head. Her eyes were glossed over like before, but then her eyes turned black. Barry stumbled backwards as he watched his world fade away, and he saw his worst nightmare; Iris dying. He started screaming out what he would be saying only months from this moment to the love of his life, which only told the team that he made eye contact with the girl.

Cisco grabbed the microphone and began to talk to Wally. “Wally, get something around her eyes, you can not make any eye contact with her okay?” Wally looked around until he saw a scarf laying on the ground. He ran over to it, and in seconds it was around Y/N’s eyes. Wally had no choice but to pick up Barry and get him and Y/N to the Lab by himself. Wally got there just before Barry blacked out and went limp. He had already put Y/N in the pipe line, and he had removed the scarf in progress.

This meta was going to be a lot harder to deal with than the team thought.

Y/N sat in the box, her heads resting against the metal, her eyes closed. She hated sleeping, she hated that all she saw were her worst fears when she closed her eyes, but for some reason all she wanted to do was sleep. With a deep breathe she went out, the outside world falling through her fingertips and her nightmare world coming back.

Y/N sat cowering in a corner as she tried to get herself away from her abusive ex-boyfriend. She thought he was okay, thought he was done beating her, but she was wrong. He -once again- thought she was cheating on him, so to let out his anger he began punching and hitting her. After getting her into a corner he stalked off, mumbling curses and words that Y/N really wished she hadn’t heard.

Slowly getting to her feet, Y/N walked to the door with the hope of getting out of this situation, but the plan didn’t go well… as planned. Her boyfriend turned her around with incredible force. He held a knife to Y/N’s stomach, the point just barley ripping her shirt and drawing blood.

“Where do you think you’re going? Huh? You belong to me, you ain’t going no where.” He removed the knife, setting it on the table. When he turned back, his eyes just held anger. “Go to the room, I’ll be there in a moment.” He growled, pushing Y/N towards the room she hated. It’s the room that she was in the night of explosion, the night she couldn’t wake up from the endless loop of pain.

Unlike before, Y/N was never able to wake up from he nightmares but now she could. Just like that morning, Y/N’s body lurched forward and a terrible scream erupted from her mouth. It was almost so loud that the glass began to shake. The team heard it, they even saw it happen through the camera. They rushed down to the pipeline, opening the main door and setting their eyes upon the broken girl in front of them.

Y/N was holding her knees to her chest, sobs and sharp breathes exiting her mouth quickly, making it hard for her to breathe. Barry whispered to Wally to get the cuffs for her, because it pained him to see her in so much pain. When Kid Flash came back with the cuffs and handed them to Barry, the group began to ask what the hell he was doing.

“Barry! You can’t let her out, you don’t know what she’ll do to you!” Iris said to him.

Barry opened her containment cell, but Y/N didn’t even move. “I don’t know what she’ll do, but Iris, look at her. Does it really look like she wants to hurt someone?” Iris kept her mouth shut and watched as he clipped the black bands around Y/N’s wrists.  The meta let out a sigh of relief, and the team could visibly see the pain leaving Y/N. She looked up her eyes no longer glossed over or black, they were just Y/E/C. Barry stood up and held out his hand to Y/N, which she gladly accepted, and stood up. He nodded towards his friends and they all began to file back to the Cortex.

Y/N stood a great distance away from the others, still feeling as if she was going to hurt someone. Barry was the first to speak out of the group.

“So Y/N.” He started off, turning his head and looking at the scared girl. “Caitlin is going to run some tests on you, and then we an talk about your powers, okay?” Y/N nodded and followed behind the red head, who she thought must have been Caitlin. She sat on the bed and avoided all eye contact and communication, because honestly she was just as scared as these people she was herself. The meta didn’t even flinch as she saw the doctor pull a needle out of her arm.

“Just taking some blood samples to analyze it.” She said. Y/N ignored her, her eyes locked to the floor.

From across the room, Julian Albert couldn’t seem to remove his gaze from her. The team knew that Julian wasn’t a very thoughtful person, but for some weird reason he felt sorry for this girl. Barry walked over to the blonde, standing beside him and following his gaze.

“I can’t imagine what she’s going through.” Julian said. “Waking up after a three year coma, finding out you have powers, and- and being studied? God, her world must be in shambles.” Julian sighed. Barry turned to him a bit stunned. “What?” The blonde asked. Barry shrugged, smiling softly.

“Nothing.”

After a few more minutes of Caitlin doing small tests on Y/N, the two walked out into the Cortex. Y/N stood by a wall, her hair covering a bit of her face.

Cisco leaned against his desk, eyeing Y/N before saying anything. “Do you know what your powers are, Y/N?” The girl shook her head.

“I- I just know that I can see other’s nightmares and make them see it.” She shook her head, biting back the tears that threatened to spring free. “Can you get rid of them? My powers, can you get rid of them?” The group’s faces fell.

“Y/N, I’m sorry but what’s happened to you can not be reversed.” Caitlin said. The tears that Y/N was fighting back let loose, and she sucked in deep breathes before walking out of the Cortex and finding another room to hide herself in.

She sat on the floor of Cisco’s workshop, her knees tucked under her Y/H/C and her elbows. The tears came free flowing, splashing on the concrete and her sweats. Since her head was tucked between her knees, she didn’t see Julian come in. His face fell as he saw just how mentally and physically destroyed Y/N was. He kneeled next to her, placing his hand o her shoulder gently. But that was a mistake.

When Y/N felt an unfamiliar hand on her shoulder, her first response was to run or hide. She scurried to her feet, going to the other side of the room. Her hands along with the rest of her body shook, as memories and nightmares came back to her. For some reason she just had a thing for men who abused her, and that seemed to be the last four guys she had dated. Julian didn’t know this of course, so the reaction he got from the girl startled him just as much her.

“I’m not going to hurt you, Y/N.” He said slowly. His voice was soft, and the British accent just made Y/N’s heart clench. She always did have a thing for men with accents. Julian stepped a bit closer to Y/N, but when he saw her do nothing he took that as his chance to get closer to the girl. Y/N stood in her place, watching as Julian was now in front of her. “I promise I won’t harm you, Y/N.” She nodded slowly, causing Julian to crack a small smile. He lead her back to the Cortex, where the team was now looking over the results from Y/N’s blood.

They all turned when they heard two sets of footsteps, and paused their conversation. Y/N’s eyes were still puffy from crying, but she seemed to be doing better.

“I’m glad to see you’re alright.” Caitlin said. Y/N gave a small  nod, but stood next to Julian, seeing as he was the only one who didn’t treat her like an experiment. “We… um, got your results back and saw that al of your vitals are normal, blood is normal, everything is fine.”

Y/N’s jaw clenched. “If everything’s fine then why am I like this?” She spit. Caitlin looked to the others for help, but got nothing. “I’m sorry, I just… don’t like being looked at as a monster.” She mumbled, her arms wrapping around her body.

Iris shook her head. “No, no, no you’re not a monster, Y/N. Okay? You’re a meta-human, like Barry, and Wally, and Cisco, and Caitlin.” The group looked at Iris with a somewhat warning look. “What? If she’s going to be here she might as well know, right?” Barry shrugged, but nodded. Y/N furrowed her eyebrows, not following along.

”Wally, and I are speedsters, we basically have super speed. Caitlin has ice powers, and Cisco can create portals to other worlds.” Barry explained. Y/N nodded slowly, her brain was working over time to try and understand all this. Iris clapped her hands together, ad grinned.

“How about me, Cait, and Y/N go out shopping? She can’t just wear sweats and sweatshirt.” She said. Y/N’s mind went back to her apartment and she remembered her boyfriend… ex-boyfriend.

“I have to get to my apartment, if he knows I’m out of the hospital and out in the open he’s going to come looking for me” Y/N’s heart rate sped up as she began to walk to the elevator. Julian reached out to grab her arm, but his fingertips just slipped past her skin. He frowned, sighing. Barry nodded his head, telling the girls to follow her to wherever she was going.

By the time Y/N had reached her apartment, she felt like throwing up. She was more afraid of her abusive boyfriend than she was of anything else. She took a deep breathe as she opened the door. Nothing had changed really, the place was still a mess, but other than that nothing dramatic changed.

Except for the sound of moans in her bedroom.

Y/N walked silently to the door, taking the cuffs off in the process. Her eyes became glossed over as she pushed open the door, her eyes landing on the sight of some chick fucking her boyfriend. Sure she hated the guy, but technically they never really broke up. Y/N’s blood boiled as she saw the two people in front of her fucking on her bed.

The girl slid off of her the man beneath her, her hands searching the floor for her clothes. Y/N’s boyfriend sat up, eyes widening when he saw his girlfriend standing in front of him.

“I was in a coma for three years, and the day I wake up I find you fucking some chick in my bed. In my apartment. Add that to list of things I hate about you.” Y/N scoffed. Her boyfriend got up, slipping sweats on before turning to Y/N.

“I- didn’t think you’d wake up, and I have needs that you couldn’t give me at the time, so I found someone who give them to me.” He said. As soon as they made eye contact Y/N’s eyes turned black, and she saw his worst nightmares. She smirked and watched as he fell back onto her bed, seeing his fears come to life in front of his eyes. Y/N’s head turned to the girl who stood frozen in her room, eyes going back and forth between Y/N and the cowering man on the bed. Y/N somehow went through the girl’s head and found her worst fear. With a flash of black going through her eyes, the girl fell to her knees as she fell into an endless loop of her own nightmares.

“You hurt me more than you know, and now I can hurt you far worse without laying a hand on you.” She said. The man shook violently as he saw what he thought was his fears, but it was all fake. Of course he didn’t know this, which just made Y/N feel better about it all.

The power Y/N was feeling was suddenly gone. Her eyes lowered to the black cuffs on her wrists, and then reality hit her like a truck. When she looked up she saw the disappointed looks of Caitlin and Iris. Tears sprung back into Y/N’s Y/E/C eyes as she saw what she had done.

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m sorry.” She mumbled, her body falling to the floor. The two girls knelt down to the meta and helped her to her feet. They bagged Y/N’s clothes and necessities she may need. Her eyes though, were glued to her now ex-boyfriend and the girl he was sleeping with. They were both asleep, and Y/N couldn’t feel their nightmares going on so she guessed that they had stopped when the girls put the cuffs on her. The three walked out of the apartment and down to their car, where they drove back to S.T.A.R. Labs.

It was a silent drive, no one spoke, no played music, it was just silent. Y/N couldn’t help but feel at peace. Her entire life she had been surrounded by screams, and talking, and sounds that left her scared, but the quietness of the car made her feel calm.

The three girls walked into the Cortex in silence, which scared the rest of the team.

Barry ran over to Iris, hugging her before asking, “What the hell happened? You guys were gone for a long time.” Iris looked at Caitlin, who nodded at her and silently told her to tell them about what happened.

Y/N stood in a corner of the room, to ashamed of herself to look at anyone in the room. Iris sighed as she crossed her arms over her chest.

“Y/N, she um… she used her powers on her ex-boyfriend and some girl who he was sleeping with.” Everyone turned and looked at Y/N, who barely looked up at the rest of them.

Barry frowned. “What were you think, Y/N? You could have hurt someone!” Y/N shook her head.

“I was thinking that after all these years of being abused, and used by that piece of shit, I could do something to him, because now I’m able to. I get it, I could have hurt them, but I didn’t. Not physically anyway.” Y/N mumbled. “And don’t you dare get after me for using my powers, for being selfish. I now damn well that you used yours for you own selfish reasons, just like I did mine.”

Barry looked taken back. “How…?” He asked slowly.

“I can see your fears, guess it’s part of what I can do now.” Y/N gripped her bag of clothes in her hand tightly. “I’ll be in my cell.” She grumbled, walking out of the Cortex and back to the pipeline.

The team sighed, shaking their heads. “What are we going to do about her? We can’t let her out in the city, she can’t control her powers.” Joe said. The team shrugged. They really didn’t know what they were going to do, they just knew they wanted to help her.

“How are we going to help her if she’s literally a walking nightmare?”

#the cw #The CW Network #The Flash #kid flash #Flash #team flash #Barry Allen #barry allen imagine #barry x reader #barry allen smut #barry allen fluff #barry allen fanfiction #the flash fanfiction #the flash smut #the flash fandom #the flash x reader #cisco ramon #cisco ramon fanfic #cisco ramon imagine #cisco ramon x reader #cisco ramon fluff #Caitlin Snow #Killer Frost #vibe #wally west #iris west #julian albert #meta-fiction #meta-human #fanfic

[womenofcolor15]

Regina King's Love Letter To Black Manhood: She's Bringing Black Icons - Malcolm X, Sam Cooke, Muhammad Ali & More - To The Big Screen

Regina King is currently in the process of making her feature film directorial debut with a bomb project about black icons from the 60s. Deets on what she’s working on behind the camera inside…

We’re not sure what we did to deserve this, but we’re ecstatic to see it.

Regina King has kicked off production in New Orleans for her feature film directorial debut. She’ll be calling the shots for the upcoming film, One Night in Miami, which will feature a cast full of YBF hotties.

   The Golden Globe winner will be directing Kingsley Ben-Adir ("The OA") who’ll play civil rights activist Malcolm X, Eli Goree ("Riverdale") who’ll star as famous boxer/activist Cassius Clay right before he became Muhammad Ali, Aldis Hodge (Straight Outta Compton) as famed football player/activist Jim Brown, and Grammy/Tony Award winner Leslie Odom Jr. (Harriet) playing iconic singer Sam Cooke.

We.Are.Here.For.This.Black.Excellence.

”’One Night in Miami is a love letter to black manhood that powerfully explores themes of race, identity and friendship,” Regina King told Deadline. “Each of them has contributed so much to culture and history. We’re so excited to have Kingsley, Eli, Aldis and Leslie in the lead roles showing a different side of these iconic men."

By the way, the Oscar winning actress will also be executive producing the film.

Deadline has the deets surrounding the film:

The film is an adaptation of the Olivier-nominated stage play by Kemp Powers, who wrote the script. Set on the night of February 25, 1964, the drama follows the brash young Cassius Clay after he shocked the world by knocking out seemingly invincible Sonny Liston to become heavyweight champion. While crowds of people swarm Miami Beach to celebrate the match, Clay – unable to stay on the island because of Jim Crow-era segregation laws – spends the evening at the Hampton House Motel in Miami’s African American Overtown neighborhood celebrating with three of his closest friends: Malcolm X, Sam Cooke, and Jim Brown. All of them were beginning to assert themselves in the Civil Rights movement and the empowerment of black people, and it was an evening to share their thoughts with each other on their responsibility to use their influence and stature to benefit the black community. By night’s end, they leave each other determined to define a new world.

The play was originally staged in 2013, taking an actual event — the meeting between the iconic figures — and imagining what transpired between them as their friendship, successes and shared struggles fueled their paths to becoming galvanizing figures of their era. Odom will perform Cooke’s songs, including A Change Is Gonna Come.

It appears Regina is making good on her Golden Globes promise. During her acceptance speech, she said she's making sure every project she produces is staffed with 50% women. There are several women attached to this project.

Jess Wu Calder of Snoot Entertainment and Jody Klein of ABKCO are producing alongside Keith Calder, Regina and Kemp.

Tami Reiker (Beyond the Lights) is the cinematographer, Francine Jamison-Tanchuck (Just Mercy) is the costume designer. Barry Robison (Hacksaw Ridge) is the production designer and Tariq Anwar (King’s Speech and American Beauty) is the editor.

After the If Beale Street Could Talk actress made her promise, journalists were hounding her about making good on her pledge even before she announced she was producing a new project. In her cover story for Marie Claire's "Ambition" issue, she talked about how people of color are always expected to do things twice as fast as their white counterparts.

“Have you seen an announcement of me producing something yet?” she constantly finds herself saying. “That speech was six months ago. Goddamn.”

Yes, the double standard that often comes up when it comes to women of color.

“I’m held to account. Not having as many of the opportunities or resources as a white man or a white woman in the industry, but now that I’m the one that’s decided to say that I’m going to use what I’ve been given to do more, it needs to have been done yesterday?”

Now, it's her time! Congrats!

Photo: Kathy Hutchins/Shuttershock.com

[Read More ...] source http://theybf.com/2020/01/08/she-got-this-regina-king-will-make-her-directorial-debut-to-bring-black-icons-to-the-big-

[junker-town]

How Mike Gundy came home and built Oklahoma State football

(with a little help from T. Boone Pickens)

STILLWATER, Okla. — “Sorry I’m late. We’re trying to figure out why we got our asses kicked on Saturday.”

Mike Gundy is only 10 minutes late for our scheduled chat, but considering this is game week, anything short of cancellation feels early.

Gundy’s Oklahoma State Cowboys just lost their first game of the year, a glitchy, unlucky 44-31 defeat to TCU. But there’s no time for wallowing: they have to get ready for a Saturday night track meet in Lubbock.

It wasn’t that long ago that a 13-point home loss to a top-15 team would be considered a sign of progress for an aggressively directionless Oklahoma State program. From the time the Cowboys joined the Big 8 in 1960 to when Gundy was hired as head coach in 2005, OSU finished the season ranked in the AP poll just five times.

Two of those finishes came with Gundy behind center.

Since Gundy’s hire, the Cowboys have risen to an entirely different level of sustainable success. They won their first Big 12 title in 2011, destroying OU and coming within an eyelash of the BCS Championship game. They have won at least nine games in seven of their last nine seasons and will probably do so again this fall.

They have found this level of success under an unrepentant Okie. And the sneaky brilliance of Gundy the Okie, along with Oklahoma State’s cultivation of another famous alum — the billionaire T. Boone Pickens — is at the heart of how the coach has led the program to new heights.

Yes, you know about the hair. You know about “I’m a man.” But focusing on one story and a hairstyle obscures the essence; Gundy is Okie to the core. That means wood grain in his office. It means hunting on the weekends. And it might mean coyote traps, too.

“He had this coyote trap,” Oklahoma State offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich says of his boss. “It was a thing that had like a squirrel’s tail on it, and it would whip around like this [makes fast, circling motion] and made this crazy noise. It made the sound of a bunny dying. It’s the worst sound you could ever hear. And he turned it on, and this thing would go crazy. He’d get a kick out of that.”

Or there was the stray dog Gundy once found. “He had him trained in a day, I think,” Yurcich says. “The dog did everything he told him to do — I’m like, ‘This guy is the head coach ... he’s a dog whisperer...’”

Gundy’s success is undeniable. So is the fact that he is always 100 percent himself.

“We have created a monster that now you have to feed.”

Oklahoma State athletics

Before.

Google Earth

After.

This is a new OSU. I grew up in Oklahoma (my parents graduated from Midwest City High School 15 years before Gundy), and I attended high school and college games at what was then Lewis Field from 1993 through the mid-2000s. I visited again recently, and it took a long time to get my bearings. This place has changed.

The harder it is to get somewhere, the harder it is to work up the motivation to leave.

Granted, the small-town vibe has not. Stillwater is still a town of under 50,000 people. It’s still structured so that virtually everything OSU-related that you need is within about two minutes of two streets — the east-west Hall of Fame Ave. and the north-south Main St. The athletic facilities are still but a short walk from the vaunted Eskimo Joe’s and the downtown area.

It’s also still a chore to get to town, about an hour’s drive north and east of Oklahoma City. The harder it is to get somewhere, the harder it is to work up the motivation to leave.

The small city means the new facilities carry even more gravitas. What is now Boone Pickens Stadium now holds close to 60,000. The football offices, housed on the west side of the stadium where only bleachers used to stand, are immense.

“It’s an unbelievable transformation,” says Dave Hunziker, the voice of Oklahoma State football and basketball. “Back when I arrived here [in 2001], a crowd of 36,000 or 37,000 was considered a nice crowd. Now it’s 56, 57,000 on a weekly basis.”

“For a long time here, we would have 32,000 faithful that would come to the games,” Gundy says. “Well, now we have 35,000 people that tailgate. This place is full. The RV lot is full. The RV parking lot used to be a gravel parking lot. There was two people in there.”

These fans certainly don’t expect to lose to TCU at home anymore.

“We have essentially created a monster that now you have to feed,” Gundy says.

“You can go just about anywhere, and it's going to be about the same.”

Gundy could have easily ended up about an hour and a half south in Norman. That was the original idea as he was wrapping up his senior year at Midwest City High in 1985.

“I eventually committed to OU,” he says, “but Jamelle Holieway was starting there and won the [1985] national championship. He had three years left, so I was smart enough to say, look, their defense is always gonna be awesome, and he just won a national championship. They only play Texas and Nebraska every year, that have the same level of talent as them. How am I ever going to break in and be the starter?

“Because of my ties to my family and not wanting to be too far away, I started looking real seriously at Oklahoma State.” It worked out pretty well for everyone involved.

Despite head coach Pat Jones’ run-heavy tendencies, and despite the presence of incredible backs like Barry Sanders and Thurman Thomas, Gundy still finished his career as the conference’s all-time leading passer. But OSU’s star power inadvertently revealed its limitations.

Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images

In the 1980s, the school employed Jimmy Johnson (who left in 1984 to take over at Miami) and Jones, fielded offenses with Gundy, Thomas, Sanders, and Hart Lee Dykes, and fielded defenses with Leslie O’Neal and Dexter Manley. Stars, all of them. But between 1977 and 1994, the Cowboys went 0-17-1 against Oklahoma, and between 1962 and 2002, they went 0-35-1 against Nebraska. Those brilliant teams of ‘87 and ‘88 went 0-4 against the Sooners and Huskers and 20-0 against everybody else. And after flying close to the sun in the late-1980s, they ended up getting burned by the NCAA and dealing with years of sanctions.

Things change. OSU won three of its last five against Nebraska before the Huskers left for the Big Ten. And while the Cowboys still lose more than they win against OU, they’ve beaten the Sooners four times since 2001.

Gundy’s return has a lot to do with it. And it was a winding road for him to come back home. He joined Jones’ staff directly out of college and was named offensive coordinator before he turned 27. But thanks in part to NCAA sanctions, Jones’ tenure ended poorly in the mid-1990s. Gundy set off on his own.

He spent one year as Baylor’s receivers coach under Chuck Reedy before a 4-7 season left everybody unemployed; he then spent four years under Ron Vanderlinden at Maryland before suffering the same fate.

“Being fired twice taught me a lot. It made me realize that having a job in coaching, it's not greener everywhere else. All the issues I thought Oklahoma State had, well, Baylor's got problems and Maryland's got problems. I realized that you can go just about anywhere, and it's going to be about the same.”

In 2001, Miles brought him back to Stillwater as offensive coordinator. And when Miles took the LSU job after four seasons, Gundy replaced him as head coach.

“Slow blinkers, hard to play the game.”

To John Smith, maybe the greatest amateur wrestler of all time, there is value in playing other sports and failing at them. “It’s humbling. You can be great at wrestling, but you can’t hit a baseball. That’s how it was for me.” He thinks it can lead to you appreciating your own gifts, and your best sport, a bit more.

That’s not necessarily something Mike Gundy would know about. “You know, Mike was good at everything,” Smith says. “I think he went with the sport he was best in, but Mike was a good basketball player, good baseball player, he won junior high state [in wrestling] when he was in junior high. Just an all-around good athlete.”

Smith is a former national champion and Olympic gold medalist. Just two years after his second Olympic gold in 1992, he was leading the OSU wrestling program to a national title as head coach. His Cowboys won four in a row from 2003 to 2006. He is the most accomplished Oklahoma State athlete of all time.

Smith was two grades ahead of Gundy and ended up attending Del City High, Midwest City’s chief rival. But the Gundy and Smith kids grew up around each other and birthed one hell of a Mid-Del dynasty.

OSU Athletics

Gundy and Hart Lee Dykes

Two of John’s brothers (Leroy and Pat) and two of his nephews (Mark and Chris Perry) all won national titles on the mat. Meanwhile, Cale Gundy succeeded Mike as quarterback at Midwest City, attended Oklahoma, and now serves as OU’s offensive co-coordinator. Every coach says he builds a family environment. Thanks to two coaches in particular, “family environment” is almost literal in Stillwater.

“The best thing my dad ever did was force me into wrestling,” Gundy says. “I’m not a very big person, but it changed my strength, changed my balance, changed my work ethic. And I was good at it. John and I grew up together and traveled around the country wrestling in difference places. That did a lot for me.”

Depending on who you ask, though, Gundy ended up sticking with either his best sport ... or his second-best sport. His first love was baseball, and he played for Gary Ward’s Cowboys as a freshman, but this was a tricky time to distinguish yourself in Stillwater on the diamond. Ward’s team was in the middle of an astounding 16-year Big 8 title run, and his primary positions, shortstop and third base, were filled by studs: Robin Ventura and Monty Fariss. “So when they started, I came back to spring [football] and never went back.”

He wishes he hadn’t. “Biggest mistake I have ever made. I finished at 6'0, 190, and I was probably big enough to play and get drafted and go take a chance if that was what I wanted to do. I wasn't big enough for football.”

And yet, football has paid off pretty well. Gundy believes, like many other coaches, that experience in many sports, instead of single-sport specialization, is a good indicator of future football success. Versatility in athleticism can be important, but versatility of the mind matters, too. “The guys who play multiple sports are almost always your best athletes,” he says.

“Besides, the game's changed so much that you're gonna need guys that are cerebral players. You've gotta think so much now, and you've gotta think fast. Slow blinkers, hard to play the game.”

“He wants you to think he’s just some country hick.”

Playing multiple sports certainly helped, but Gundy’s athletic success also came between the ears. Don’t let the hair fool you. Even if you’re smaller than everybody else on the field, you can make a lot of ground by out-thinking everybody.

“He’s unbelievably smart,” Hunziker says, “and one of the ways he’s smart is, he’s got a lot of people fooled. They just think he’s this Okie — and I say ‘Okie’ in a stereotypical way. He’s one of the most intelligent people I’ve ever met. Every decision he makes, every day, is calculated.

‘Oh, it’s all about the mullet. It’s all about rattlesnake hunting.’ In the meantime, he’s figured out four new ways to do things a lot of people haven’t even thought about yet.

“He thinks through everything he does, and he’s so innovative here. Offensively, the things they did back in 2010-11, the start of the diamond formation, that spread like wildfire. What he decided to do in terms of conditioning and deciding that hitting during the season, having full-bore scrimmages and tackling a lot, was counter-productive. People thought that was nuts! Now everybody does it.”

The list of innovative ideas is long, and Hunziker knows them all. “But again, people think, ‘Oh, it’s all about the mullet. It’s all about rattlesnake hunting.’ In the meantime, he’s figured out four new ways to do things a lot of people haven’t even thought about yet.”

Every Okie man and woman thinks they have wit and common sense just because Will Rogers lived there. Most of them are painfully incorrect. Most think only others need to heed “If you find yourself in a hole, stop digging,” or “Never let yesterday use up too much of today,” or “I never met a man I didn't like.”

That said, the OSU program was built by not one or two, but three straight-forward, common-sense Okies. And Gundy might have actually been the least important of the three.

“Man, I'm glad I wasn't very smart.”

Before this run could begin, the school first needed to make the perfect athletic director hire. It didn’t have to look very far. Mike Holder was hired to replace Harry Birdwell in September 2005, just two games into the Gundy era. Holder led the OSU men’s golf team to eight national titles in over three decades as head coach, and he showed similar prowess in a much larger role.

“I think Coach Holder’s done a great job of hiring coaches,” Smith says. “There’s been some of these sports that historically we’ve never been competitive in” — cross country, tennis — “all of a sudden, we’re competitive. I think that’s a big difference in the overall performance of our athletic program.”

Indeed, OSU has finished in the top 30 of the Learfield Cup standings for five straight years, peaking at 13th in 2016. “Those things don’t happen with 17 programs,” Smith says. “It’s gonna be hard to fall in there unless you’re running 20 or 30 programs. It’s effort on his part to ensure to some of our coaches, ‘We’re behind you, and we care as much about your sport as any sport.’

“A lot of things seemed to come together [on his watch], and that wasn’t an accident.”

Holder, a native of Ardmore, Okla., has been around Stillwater even longer than either Smith or Gundy. Nobody could have known what the OSU program needs better than him.

Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images

“When I took this thing over,” Gundy says, “I was 37, and I was just so stubborn and had so much energy and was so confident that I wasn't smart enough to know this was a damn hard job. I loved OSU, I believed in myself, and I said we could do this.

“Now, once we kind of accomplished it and I got my second contract, I started to look back and think, ‘Man, I'm glad I wasn't very smart.’ This is really hard. What I had the first three years here was, our athletic director, Mike Holder, he never wavered for one second. Any time something got brought up, he said ‘He's the right guy, he's our coach, end of story.’”

Holder is what you might call a coach’s AD. That makes sense considering he was a coach to begin with. Giving his charges room to breathe and running cover for them has paid off more often than not.

Long-term comfort allowed Gundy to avoid short-term patches. “That propelled me into not trying to cut corners and bring a bunch of JUCO kids in and get the quick fix,” he says. “There are no quick fixes at Oklahoma State. Everything that we do has to be well-thought through, the planning has to take place. We can't burn a couple of years — we'll struggle for five more. He allowed me to do that. And then we started winning, and after that there weren't any issues.”

Holder’s biggest accomplishment, however, didn’t have anything to do with his coaches. It was in turning a certain mega-booster into a master-booster.

In December 2005, he convinced alum T. Boone Pickens, who had already earned naming rights to the stadium for previous contributions — among other things, he had donated $70 million in 2003 — to drop an extra $165 million on athletic upgrades. The next year, Pickens contributed another $100 million the academic arm of the school. At this point, he’s contributed over $500 million to his alma mater.

And to think, Pickens would have been a Texas A&M alum if he hadn’t lost his basketball scholarship.

“You're not gonna get results if you don't shoot the gun.”

In the personality department, it takes quite a bit to outshine Gundy. Pickens might the only guy who can do it. A native of Holdenville, Okla., Pickens conquered the corporate world in the 1980s, perfecting the art of the hostile takeover while wearing plaid shirts on book covers and sporting a thick accent.

Pickens holed up in his Texas offices, combined the wisdom gleaned from analytics, research, patience — “Don’t rush the monkey, and you’ll see a better show,” he says in The First Billion Is the Hardest, a book in which he also says “The higher a monkey climbs a tree, the more people can see his ass.” — and decades of experience to pick his targets, then showed up on Wall Street to buy all the shares of your company. He combined an even temperament with common sense and made a metric ton of money, for both himself and shareholders, in the process.

In a way, Pickens and Gundy have gone about their business in similar ways. Neither has worried himself with conventional wisdom, and both have tried to stay a step ahead. As Pickens says in The First Billion, “My strategy [in the 1970s] was the same as today: staying current on every possible source of information, investing on the fundamentals of supply and demand, and sticking with my conviction over the long haul.” Thanks in part to Pickens’ investment and Holder’s resolve, Gundy had the time and space to do the same.

Photo by Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for Concordia Summit

T. Boone Pickens, 2016

“Mike Holder essentially got me this job,” Gundy says. “Boone essentially financed the product. And then I ran the organization. Boone is the main force — if he wouldn't have said, ‘I'm gonna build 'em a new stadium, build 'em a new facility,’ I don't think we could have attracted enough kids here to have the success that we've had.

“Holder was essentially like water dripping on a rock, year after year after year, he finally got him to say okay, here's your $300 million. That's what Holder does. He wore the guy out.”

Gundy’s favorite Booneism has quite the Will Rogers vibe: “A fool with a plan can outsmart a genius with no plan any day.”

“I use that all the time with our team, with my kids at home — and it is true,” says Gundy. “When you're in charge, when you're parenting or coaching or running an organization, if you don't have direction, nobody has direction.

“...He'll also say this: You have to aim and fire. You can just aim and aim and aim and never pull the trigger. He said you're not gonna get results if you don't shoot the gun. There's too many leaders, people in charge, that cannot make a decision based on what will happen from that decision. He said, if it's wrong, just fix it.”

Just fix it. From Pickens’ first autobiography, Boone: “There’s usually more than one way to solve a problem. When you’re in trouble, you look at your pluses, stay cool, and ask yourself how you can get your cart out of the ditch.”

Gundy might have become known for a 2007 outburst and a magical 2011 run, but his greatest ability is getting his cart out of the proverbial ditch.

In 2009, when his Cowboys finished a disappointing 9-4 after reaching as high as fifth in the country, he hired offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen and revamped his offense. Two years later, they nearly won the national title.

In 2014, in the middle of a treacherous five-game losing streak, he went with a youth movement, basically handing the offense over to two freshmen, quarterback Mason Rudolph and receiver James Washington.

And in a Saturday night track meet in Lubbock late this September, following a disappointing loss, Washington, now the second-leading receiver in school history. caught nine passes for 127 yards. Rudolph, the all-time leading passer, scored the game-winning touchdown with a minute left. Getting the cart out of a ditch in 2014 helped the Pokes to avoid one in 2017.

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Read more of the interview between Connelly and Gundy.