#i guess i just keep comparing this to everything i feel about daniel and mr miyagi and all those movies that portray a more tender version | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

imagines-by-a-typical-fangirl · 3 years

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White Lies (Pt. 13 of 21)

Pairing: Keanu Reeves X Reader

Word count: 2.7 K

Summary: Keanu found the girl almost dead, in the wrecks of what was once her car. While she was in surgery, stuck in a coma, he gathered the best doctors of New York to attend to her. They told him she is likely to have some kind of brain damage, what may lead to memory loss. And this possibility added up wit the fact that she's pregnant, made the council come up with an odd idea. They asked Keanu to pretend to be her husband, since the stress of finding out everything that happened could put the baby in danger. He reluctantly agreed, but only if she does has some kind of memory loss. He still goes she'll wake up soon, with her memories intact.

But when you finally wake up, there's nothing inside. You're quick to find your head is empty, void, like a blank canvas. The only thing that brings you some relief, that makes you feel less lonely is the mention of a husband. And you can't wait to meet him, because you know you can't deal with this by yourself.

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{Keanu Reeves Masterlist}

{John Wick Masterlist}

Change Of Heart

“You and Daniel were in a relationship that ended sometime before we met,” Keanu says, gathering his stuff as you do the same, both starting to take the baggage to the living room. “He is Mrs. Davis' son, and I guess she didn't like much when you two broke apart.”

“And where is this Daniel now? I'd like to meet him if he's part of my past.” You stop by the door, as Keanu checks on his phone for the car he just called.

But he puts his phone away, eyes on you. “Daniel passed away a week before your accident.”

“Oh...” You whisper, looking down. “So that's why Lucia got so sad when I said we weren't considering the name.”

“Yeah.”

Furrowing your eyebrows at his weird expression, you step forward and tiptoe, placing a kiss on his lips. “Let's go home, babe.”

•••

Going back home happened without any incidents. But the next days were filled with medical appointments. You assure him you're fine, but Keanu seems to be in an urge to make sure you're completely fine. You try not to complain about it, but things get weird when you notice a strange expression on his face. For too many times to count you caught him looking like he was just about to say something, but for some reason, he gives up. It makes you confront him a couple of times, but he assures you he's just worried as the pregnancy goes on.

Some weeks go by, and you're getting impatient to find out the baby's sex. On your many ultrasounds, they're always on a position that makes it impossible to see it. But you're hopeful for today, and, as you lie on the bed with Keanu, your back against his chest, you take in the soft morning light.

Keanu has an arm around her waist, a hand caressing her belly. Her bare back keeps his body warm, and despite the constant feeling that time is running short, he places kisses on her neck.

He was supposed to tell her the truth weeks ago, the moment they got back from Miami, but he just couldn't. This went too far, he went too far. In every possible aspect. Keanu didn't only fell for her, but he was intimate with (Y/N) too many times to count, and that makes him feel more guilt than anything else.

Her second trimester is just about to end, and now, he's caught in between. Again, for the millionth time, Keanu is caught in between two feelings. His love and his morals.

In his defense, Keanu did try to break the news several times. The words, the destructive, dangerous words were at the tip of his tongue, ready to desolate his life. But they got stuck, and he was too weak at the thought of losing her. Of losing the baby that he loves so much. It doesn't matter how many times he reminds himself the kid isn't his, he's failing to get this fact to grow roots in his heart. Keanu loves the child as if it's his own.

Guilt threatens to devour him entirely sometimes, but right now, in this moment, happiness suppresses everything else. This is his personal paradise, with her, the baby, healthily growing inside her.

Keanu always wanted a family. Settle down, take less and smaller roles. But nobody ever made him feel like he could. Of all the women he dated, nobody ever made him feel like he would give up everything. He thought he knew what love was, and he thought it wasn't as strong as people say... But now, life proved him wrong. This is love, a wrecking ball that came and destroyed his walls, his heart, his wrong perceptions. If only it happened some other way. If he wasn't caught up in this web of lies.

Dr. Harris wasn't happy to know he was sleeping with her. (Y/N) told her, of course, and even though it was in her usual shy and reserved way, the psychologist got the meaning behind the words. And she confronted him, very harshly, and Keanu could do nothing but listen and agree. Because this is wrong. This is the worst kind of betrayal.

(Y/N) moves a little, breathing deeply as she wakes up. A hand finds his, pulling it to her chest, placing a soft kiss on his fingers. “Morning.” She whispers, voice still clouded by sleep. She's used to it now, Keanu is always awake first.

“Good morning, beautiful.” He replies, fingers caressing her chin. “Did you sleep well?”

“Yes, but I miss lying on my stomach.” She complains, turning around and snuggling into his chest. “What time is it? We have an ultrasound.”

“I know. And we should probably start getting ready.”

“Alright.” (Y/N) mutters, but doesn't give any signs she'll move anytime soon.

But he knows what today is all about, and it will certainly make her excited. “Hopefully we'll finally find out if this little one is Sophie or Liam.”

“Yes!” Immediately, she pushes herself up, an arm sustaining her weight as she looks down at Keanu. And he tries not to stare at her nude figure, even though this is silly compared to everything they're done. Still, he thinks he should at least try. “The baby must be in a good position today. I can't wait anymore.” With that, she's up, smiling as she makes her way to the bathroom.

And Keanu is left behind on the bed, surrounded by his bad decisions. Maybe this is the right time. Maybe, being this happy, she won't hate him so much.

With a lump in his throat, he goes on with his routine, until they're almost ready to go. Keanu waits by the bedroom door frame as she fixes her hair, the bathroom door half open. This is way too sudden, but if he doesn't do that now, if he waits any longer, he'll never be ready. He'll never be brave or strong enough to do this. He took too long already. Now, he can only hope, pray, that this will somehow end up the way he wants.

That he won't lose her.

The moment he sees (Y/N) walking out of the bathroom, Keanu gives a step forward, arms crossed, heart beating so fast it threatens to jump off his chest. The words are at the top of his tongue when his eyes take in her posture. (Y/N) holds the skirt of her blue dress up, all the way to the top of her thigh with one hand, and on the other, there's blood. Bright and red, staining her fingers and the palm of her hand. His eyes turn to her face, blank, scared as she looks at him.

Without thinking too much, his mind on the verge of collapsing, he forces himself to move, quickly making his way over her.

You hate the smell of the soap they have here. You hate this hospital and what it means when you're brought here. It's only far worse now. You're still trying not to burst into tears, trying not to break down again. There's no pain, so that's good. And no more bleeding, which is even better. The feeling you got when you found blood on your underwear was the worst thing in the world. For a moment, a desperate moment, you thought you were going to lose the baby. You wanted to yell, but you didn't have it in you.

If it wasn't for Keanu, you don't know what you'd do.

Now, still walking terribly slow out of nervousness, you leave the hospital bathroom, finding Keanu seated on the edge of your bed, already looking at you.

“Hi, beautiful.” He says, and you remember this was one of the first things he said to you. “Come and lie down. Why did you put the dress on again?”

“Because it's clean and I don't want to stay here.” Instead of doing as he said, you stand before him, your forehead on his chest. “I thought I was going to lose our baby.” Your voice cracks as some tears roll down, arms around his midsection.

“I already spoke to the doctor.” Immediately, you pull away, just enough to look into his eyes. “He assured me you're both alright.”

“Are you sure, Ke?” You plead, wrapping your arms around his neck. “I almost lost my mind.”

“He wants you to rest and that's all. He–” He's cut short by the door being open, and you see Dr. Wright and your obstetrician.

“First of all, you must know the baby is alright.” Dr. Williams says as she comes closer, a tablet on her hands. “Sometimes, such discharges happen, mostly as you progress from the second to the third trimester.” She kindly smiles. “Everything you two need to do is keep up the good job. Make sure to rest, eat healthily, and exercise. But I'll recommend you to lie down for the rest of the day, ok?”

“Ok.” You quickly agree.

“It would be good to avoid surprises. The bad ones at least.” Dr. Wright adds, oddly staring at Keanu. But that's normal, he still needs to look after you, so some things are directed to him. “But we have good news today, right, Dr. Williams?”

“Yes.” From under the tablet, she takes a picture from the ultrasound and hands over to you. “The baby was in a good position and we already know the sex.”

“Oh my God.” You exclaim, smiling for the first time since the incident. “What is it?”

Dr. Williams smiles, exchanging a glance with Dr. Wright. “Mr. and Mrs. Reeves, you'll be having a baby boy.”

“It's Liam!” You yell, throwing your arms around Keanu again. “I was right!”

“You were right.” He agrees, a second before you kiss him, not minding the audience.

“Well, you're free to go home. And call me if you need anything.” Dr. Wright says and the obstetrician agrees before they both leave.

At least something good happened today. You'll finally be able to paint the blank white walls of the baby's bedroom, and buy what you still need.

“I was right.” You repeat, smirking at Keanu. “But we can try again and maybe it'll be a girl. I mean, if we ever spoke about having more than one kid.” Blushing a little, you bite your lip. There are still a lot of things you need to be updated on, and you still get a little sad when it happens.

“I'd love to have more kids if that's what you want, sweetheart,” Keanu says and you smile, kissing him again. “But now let's go home. You need to lie down for the day.”

“Can we stop and buy the paint for Liam's room? We already know the color so it'll only take a minute.” You know you have to rest, but you can't help but feel excited for finally being able to finish off the baby's bedroom. “Please? I'll stay in the car.”

Keanu gives you a look because sometimes you don't always do as you said you would. “Fine, but you won't be painting anything. I can do it myself.”

Nodding, you watch as he takes your bag and guides you out of the hospital room you hate so much. Hopefully, there will be a day you won't have to keep coming here, not because of some incident and not for any appointments.

You did wait in the car this time, and as much as you wanted to hit the mall and buy everything blue and green, Keanu forces you to give up the idea and head straight home. And when you get there, you have his undivided attention. He doesn't only make an incredible lunch, and an incredible dinner, he gives your legs a massage, and it takes a lot of effort to just lie down instead of jumping on him. But this is peaceful, slow, and sweet.

In the weeks that follow, nothing bad happens. You feel great, but you also heavier. Liam is growing fast, and you can't wait any longer to meet him. And neither can Keanu. He gets even more protective with time if that's even possible. And after you almost slipped in the shower, you're not even allowed to shower by yourself. Of course you pretend you're annoyed, but the truth is that you love it.

Despite feeling uncomfortable during this period, Keanu makes everything perfect. There are still no signs you'll get the memories back, and that's a fact now, but you'll follow your psychologist's advice. And Laura's advice, since they're pretty much the same. Living in the past will only get in the way of what's happening now. You have an amazing husband, who loves you deeply, and a child on the way. The present is wonderful, and you won't let anything ruin it.

You're around week 37 now, marking it on the calendar on the fridge door, a hand on your back as you make your way to the kitchen table. Keanu is still upstairs, and you take this chance to pour some honey on your plate. You're still eating the awkward combination when he comes to the kitchen, and you try not to let him see. But Keanu sees everything, and when he takes his place across from you, you feel his eyes burning.

“What?” You innocently ask, shrugging your shoulders.

“Are you eating bacon with honey?”

Biting your lip, you raise an eyebrow at him. “I happen to love honey. And bacon. So it makes sense.” He giggles and you kick his leg under the table. “Don't mess with the pregnant lady.” Warning him, you push the plate away. “I'm done anyway. I'll move to the couch if you don't mind, my back really hurts.”

“Sure. I'll join you in a bit.”

“Ok.” Dragging yourself to the living room, you lie down, hands on your swollen belly. You're almost drifting off to sleep when you feel Keanu sitting down, lifting your legs so he can move closer, caressing your thighs. “Ke, I'm huge.” You complain, eyes on the bump.

“You're beautiful.” Bending down, he places a kiss on your exposed belly, since you have the shirt pulled up. “Absolutely gorgeous.”

“Yeah, I doubt that.” Pouting a little, you try to hold back the giggle when you see his eyebrow raised.

“I would love to show how beautiful I think you are, but Dr. Williams told us to give it a little break.”

“Don't even remind me.” You never complained about anything with your obstetrician, but when she told you and Keanu should probably avoid sleeping together, you had to speak up. Even though your cheeks were burning. But in the end, you did comply. And you wouldn't have much of a choice anyway, since Keanu does everything the doctors say. “I heard your phone beeping. Everything alright in Arch?”

“Yes. That was just Lucia.” He says, obviously a little annoyed. “She just moved here. She's renting an apartment not so far away.”

“What the hell.” Sighing, you roll your eyes. This woman won't leave you alone, it doesn't matter what you say. “Why is she doing that? Isn't it obvious we don't want her around?” A couple of weeks ago she showed up again, and another argument happened. Keanu had to kick her out because the recommendations were that you shouldn't be put under any kind of stress.

“She loves you and the baby. That's why she wants to be around.” You don't get it. Keanu doesn't like her either, so why does he still speak like this?

“I know you can't stand her, you don't have to fake it with me.”

“But this isn't about me, sweetheart, it's about you and the people who were in your life before.”

The kindness in his voice makes you sit up, wrapping your arms around his neck. “You're amazing, did you know that?” Placing kisses on his face, you smile. “I love you. I'm worried to death and I'm trying not to get anxious with the labor, but you're making everything perfect. You're the best husband I could ever have.”

“I'm just trying to be the husband you deserve.” With a hand caressing your cheek, Keanu kisses you full on the lips, and you take no time before kissing him back. You don't know what you'd do without him, but luckily, you won't ever have to find out.

@multific @inumorph @aestheticallywinchester @bvbwestfall @liviiii98 @allie1804-fan @gian-giannina @playboygeniusphilanthropist @partypoison00 @mariafetamina @fortheloveoffanfic @trin303

#keanu reeves x reader #keanu reeves imagine #keanu reeves fanfiction #keanu reeves fanfic #keanu reeves #john wick imagine #john wick fanfiction #john wick #john wick x reader

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goldenchan-fx2thepeacock · 3 years

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Don’t Go Running Off Into Danger, Even If I Do pt 2

So, I have no clue what a publishing schedule is. So here, have more of this dumb fic at 11 pm. FUCK SLEEP! SLEEP IS FOR THE WEAK!

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Chapter 2

Danny and Jazz managed to finish just in time to put everything away before their parents got home. He’d actually managed to have a ghost free night. But the peace wasn’t going to last. And this wasn’t about ghosts. He got slammed into his locker. “Hey look, it’s Fenturd. What’s with the dumb picture of Phantom? You’ll never be on his level,” Dash said and laughter broke out. Danny groaned. At least they didn’t know he was trans. He’d be beaten twice as much if they knew. The locker door closed and locked. “Seriously Dash? I have to get to class!” He yelled through the metal. “Whatever Fentina. No one cares! Oh hey, it’s fresh meat!” Dash went away from Danny’s locker. Danny had found out a way to make it so he could open his locker from the inside without it being outerwardly compromised. He jumped out. It was those kids from last night. “Leave them alone Dash. They haven’t even been here for a day yet. The rules are that newbies get a probation period,” Danny crossed his arms. “I don’t know Fentoenail. Would you like to take their beating?” Dash mocked him. Danny sighed. He’d have to do this. “Any day,”

Danny regretted everything. Dash had hit him twice as hard as normal and his locker trick wasn’t working. Everything hurt. He was going to miss Lancer’s class. At least his ghost sense wasn’t going off or something. Lancer wouldn’t miss him. Suddenly, his locker opened and he tumbled out. He yelped. “Are you okay?” The girl twin said. “No worse than what I’m used to,” Danny brushed himself off. “You didn’t have to do that,” The boy twin told Danny. “Yeah, I kinda did. The probation period is sacred. Dash knows that,” “Probation period?” The boy said. “A rule we made up last year. If Dash really wants to break it, I take the beating instead. Fenton gets to take the beating so the new kids don’t have to,” “That’s not fair. You should report him,” “Nah, he threw like four perfect throws last night and is exempt from punishment,” “Football?” The boy gave Danny a knowing look. “Danielle- I mean Daniel Fenton to the main office,” The loud speaker said. “Oh come on! At least it was probably just a misread,” Danny was fuming. The beating plus being deadnamed was getting on his nerves. “We have to head there too,” The girl said. Danny shrugged and let them follow him.

Lancer called them all in at once. “Sup Lancer. Can I help you?” Danny leaned against the wall. “Mr Fenton. You and I both know that you need to show me more respect. W-what happened to you?” Lancer looked up from his papers. “Just a certain football star. Nothing I can’t handle. He broke the probation period,” “That’s a rule between students. I have no need to enforce it,” Lancer sighed. “I have no clue why you of all people were chosen for this, but you are too be Mr and Ms Pines guide around the school,” “Jazz not good enough for you? Had to pick the ‘slacker’ Fenton?” “Daniel, mind your tone. Jazz is our top student,” “We all know I’m destined to fail in life. Can I get their timetables?” “Yes of course. Listen Danny, both you and I know you’re capable of better grades. I don’t understand why you don’t try,” Danny wasn’t in the mood for Lancer’s pep talks. “I’ve got more important things to worry about,” Danny grabbed the papers and stalked off with the Pines Twins on his heels. “Why didn’t he do anything about Dash?” the boy asked. “He has no reason to. Not like I’m about to ask,” Danny handed them their timetables. He’d seen that the girl was named Mabel and the boy Mason. “We’ll start with your classes Mason,” “I prefer Dipper,” “I’m not calling you by a dumb nickname. Let’s go,” Danny growled.

Just as he was about to lead Mason to his first class, a royal pain in his ass showed up. “Daniel! I require your assistance, little badger,” “It’s bound to be another plan to get in my mom’s pants. Go away,” “Now, don’t be like that. I’m the mayor after all. You should be honored,” “Plasmius, shut your goddamn mouth. I. Don’t. Give. A. Fuck,” Danny said so that only Vlad could hear. “Well, something’s got you in a tizzy. I’ll ask later. I should tell you though, it’s about Danielle,” “What did you do to Dani?” Fury. Wait, he had to get the kids to class. “Nothing. It wasn’t me. You should ask your ghost hunter girlfriend,” Vlad grinned. Fucking Valerie. “Come on kids. You’ve got to get to class,” Danny ignored Plasmius. Valerie was going to die.

At lunch, he purposefully turned into Phantom and waited for Valerie on top of the school. She took no time at all. “What. Did. You. Do. To. Dani,” He glared at her. “I didn’t do anything to her! You’re going down ghost!” “Am I really?” Danny was pissed. She wasn’t getting any mercy today. He teleported behind her. “What the... HOW?” “Where is she?!” He growled. “What do you care? She’s always off on her own,” “Does it look like I care Valerie?!” “How did you know?!” “I know more than you seem to think. Tell me where Dani is. NOW!” He froze her feet. She looked terrified. “What’s wrong with you!? Why do you care so much about her? Ghosts don’t have feelings,” Danny lost it at that point. The laughter was dark. Hollow. Horrible. Val’s terror was visible. “Don’t have feelings? DON’T HAVE FEELINGS? FUCK YOU! I’M SO TIRED OF ALL THIS!” “Phantom, calm down,” Val was terrified. Danny wasn’t done. The rings were threatening to come down and expose him to her. “So you admit this is real? Would you like to know how it feels to die Val? How it feels to live on the line between life and death? Wait, I can’t do that! You don’t have a deactivated portal in your basement that I can make you turn on while your inside. I don’t have a stupid jumpsuit with your dad’s face on it so I can take off the that sticker. You don’t have parents that threaten to rip you apart molecule by molecule for just exsisting! You don’t have to see a future where you become evil because you cheated on one test and your family all died! Can you even begin to comprehend what I go through? Ever been cloned? And forced to do something incredibly painful so that one clone can get fixed and watch another get lied too? And that’s just the brunt of it Valerie. Keep telling me how I don’t feel. How I’m nothing!” Danny screamed at ice engulfed their feet. Val’s eyes went wide. “D-Danny?” She said quietly. “Congratulations! You aren’t as niave as the rest of Amity Park! How does it feel?” He’d snapped. “Calm down! I’ll tell you where Dani is!” She shrieked. That hollow laugh came back. But instead of an angry rant afterwards, he just sunk to his knees and screamed. It wasn’t a wail. It was a scream of pain. Of being done with the world. “I can’t do this anymore,” He sobbed and the rings went down. All that was left now was a beaten, broken Danny Fenton. “You should change back. I’ll take you to Dani,” Danny nodded and followed her. “Sorry I broke down. I’m just sick of people telling me that I can’t feel. That all ghosts can’t feel. You don’t even bother talking to us, ya know?” “Ghosts lie,” “And so do people! I’ve talked to the ghosts. Listened to them. Heard their stories. I protect people, but I protect them too!” “How do you know those aren’t just acts?” “Cause they make sense. I’d have the same response if it was me. If my parents burned down the place I was in because I got caught being gay,” “I’m confused,” “Ember. I told her I wouldn’t tell anyone. But you need to know that they all have reasons for being the way they are. Skulker’s family was hunted, so now he hunts to prove his strength,” “Maybe we should talk to you more,” “Maybe you should. No one asks to die,” “But your parents say that ghosts don’t remember their lives. They’re the leading experts,” “That’s like putting a ten year old in a room of babies. They’re the expert by default in that situation, but an adult would be the expert the moment they walked in,” “Why don’t we know about that,” “Dying is traumatizing. Even half dying is traumatizing. It’s taboo to mention it unless you’re told. No one explains it until they’re ready. And talking about a life before that is almost wrong,” “How did you learn?” “Skulker told me during the Christmas Truce. Ember told me one day when she just wanted to be left alone, but I did too. I guess things end up working out in weird ways,” “The Christmas Truce?” “On Christmas Eve and Christmas, ghosts have a truce. No one is allowed to fight anyone that day. The Ghost Writer broke the truce and Walker got to haul him off in just means,” “We really know nothing about ghosts, do we?” “No, you don’t. They even have a party. I got invited last year. Skulker let me make the star! It took me weeks to get it right,” Danny smiled at the memory. He’d made a scale model of a blue giant that went through it’s life stages. “So there’s a whole society?” “A government. Systems. Main rules. Taboos. Just cause we’re ghosts, doesn’t mean we don’t have a system,” “I’m sorry,” “What?” Danny nearly froze. “I’m sorry that I made so many assumptions. I never should’ve chased you or any ghost like that,” “Keep them out of Amity Park and send them back to the Zone. Most ghosts forget that living is dangerous, so they just rampage. I keep trying to talk sense into them, but they’re pretty stubborn,” “What about the dog?” “Dog? You mean Cujo? I was trying to stop him from trashing Axiom. He was trying to get a toy. I’m sorry that recked your life Val,” “My life? Wrecked? When compared to you, my life is a dream. It’s not like I died,” “I guess you’ve got a point,”

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Thanks for reading. I just like fics where Val finds out, and this one seemed like an okay place to stick it. Dani is fine. I’ll fill you in on that next chapter, but I should get some sleep.

#danny phantom #danny fenton #trans!danny #trans!dipper #danielle (dani) phantom #valerie gray #mr lancer #red huntress #cujo #skulker #ember #ghost writer #christmas truce #gravity falls #dipper pines #mabel pines #I know Dipper's real name because I learned about the series through journal three #ocs

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benedictsvestcollection · 4 years

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Ever Ever After- A Whiskey x reader Modern Cinderella Fic

Rating: T for now!

Warnings: Ummmm.... Some swearing. Whiskey being a sweetheart.

Word count: 1.7k

A/N: Basically I love Cinderella and Whiskey so here we are. Secret Agent Whiskey is investigating your stepmom’s company and there’s a spark there. This will be a multi chapter fic so more to come!

Chapter 1

Whiskey looked up from his large, oak desk in his Manhattan high rise office. “Well hello Ginger, to what do I owe the pleasure of an in person visit?” He grinned at her.

“Champ sent me to help on this next mission. Wanted you to have an extra pair of hands.” She smiled back at him and sat in one of the empty chairs across from his desk.

“He didn’t say anythin’ about a mission to me.” He frowned at this news, not that he minded Ginger briefing him. He was simply surprised.

“Yes well, he thought it would save time if I just debriefed you myself when I got here.” She explained as she pulled out a tablet and pulled up what she needed.

Whiskey nodded at her. “Fair enough.” He gestured for her to go ahead.

“This is Miranda Cox. She’s the CEO of UrbanEdge. An environmental company that specializes in making environmentally friendly clothing, houseware, you name it… They make it.”

“I’ve heard of it. A lot of controversy surrounding their company in the news lately.” He mused with a nod of his head as he waited for Ginger to continue.

“Yes. Shareholders recently accused her company of not being as environmentally friendly. But that’s not the worst of their problems it seems. Once the shareholders brought that up, we suspected Ms. Cox of insider trading that was linked to everything from oil spills and forest fires. That her and her company only seemed to benefit from.”

Whiskey snorted at that. “Of course. The rich get richer at the expense of others.”

She shook her head at that. “Yup. Anyhow, the company used to belong to her husband but when he died, control went to her. Despite the biological daughter who couldn’t afford to contest the company passing over her in court.”

“How is that relevant?” He asked her, curious.

“Our sources say that she treats the step daughter like shit. She’s basically a personal assistant-slave to her evil step mom and her step sisters. Champ thinks she might be a possible asset for you once you get in the company.”

“Good to know.” He nodded. “What’s my in here?”

“Potential hands-on investor in the company. Despite the money she has, her company is bleeding money and will need an investor. You can bargain for more of a say to get an inside track and information we need.”

“Other than gatherin’ information, is there another goal here?” He asked her.

“As of now, no. Unless we feel she might be a dangerous threat. We’re just going to gather information and bring it to Champ. And he’ll deal with contacting the necessary authorities. I’ll be here to help you sift through any tech or emails. And if you need another person undercover.” She explained.

“Perfect. I have a feelin’ I’ll need another face on this mission at some point.” He admitted.

“We’re keeping you as you on this mission. The premise being that Statesman Reserve is environmentally friendly and wants to expand its partners.” Ginger told him. “And you, CEO and the face of the company… Wants to invest in UrbanEdge.”

Jack loved when Ginger worked on missions with him, she was efficient and always thought ahead. “I take it, you already called and made an appointment for me?” He smirked at her.

Ginger smirked back. “Tomorrow morning. Miranda was very interested in meeting you and potentially investing with her company. You’ll get a full company tour and meet with the shareholders as well so they can pitch to you.”

“Perfect. Guess I’ll need a suit for this. And an assistant. Wanna go?” He asked her. “You can hack into their systems easier if you’re in the building.”

“Sure thing, partner.” She told him with a grin.

~~~~~~~~~~

“Ugh.” You moaned as soon as you shut the door to your loft apartment. Compared to your stepmom and sisters who lived on Fifth Avenue, your apartment was a shithole. But it was your home and you loved it.

Today had been a long day. Your stepmother had you prepping all day for a potential investor coming in the next day. And you had put together a powerpoint presentation, made copies of all the numbers from finance and put all of those in folders. And that was just for work. You then spent the day helping your stepmother deciding what to wear to impress this CEO, followed by your sisters who were simply hoping to ‘land a husband’ and meet him. They didn’t know jackshit about the company, or care about like you always had.

You missed your father dearly and wished the company had passed to you. You strongly suspected your stepmother was doing some shady shit with his beloved company. But you had no proof unfortunately. So, you were stuck watching her destroy the company and your spirit at the same time.

Kicking off your heels and setting your purse down, you now had just enough time to shower, eat a quick meal and crash for bed. Tomorrow was yet another long day of pretty much doing all the work and your stepmother taking all the credit. Not to mention her and your step sisters talking shit about you, directly to your face. It was exhausting.

You awoke early the next morning. You had to get to the office early to prep for Jack Daniels, CEO of Statemsan Distillery to arrive and his tour. You arrived at the office in a high waisted gray tweed skirt, a blue sweater and black suede Mary Jane pumps. Once there, you made sure the breakfast spread was being set up. Bagels, croissants, fruits, coffee and juice. Your stepmother was certainly making a big deal out of this CEO’s arrival.

After making sure the cars were on the way to pick up your stepmother and stepsisters, you finally sat at your desk to respond to some emails until everyone started to arrive at the office. With the exception of the one person she doesn’t read emails from, Miranda didn’t allow you to read emails from her investor for whatever reason. But you just shrugged that off.

You were so absorbed in your emails you didn’t hear the elevator doors open to announce your step mother and sisters arrival.

“You weren’t downstairs to meet us, so now your sisters are soaking wet.” Miranda announced and you looked up from your laptop on your desk. Blinking at your step sisters who looked bone dry.

“I… Don’t understand.” You sighed out.

“My makeup to meet Jack Daniels is ruined!” Madison screeched out. “He’s New York’s most eligible bachelor.” She told you, as if you were an idiot who didn’t know anything about the man. “And I’m going to marry him.” She added confidently.

“You both look fine. I was busy getting work done for today.” You told them calmly as you rose to take all their coats and hang them up.

“See that it doesn’t happen again.” Miranda warned you as you hung up their coats and sighed.

“Yes ma’am.” You told her quietly as your desk phone rang. “Yes?” You spoke into it. “Thank you. Send them up.” She hung up and looked at them “They’re here.”

Your step sisters squealed. “Oh my god, I can’t believe I’m about to meet my future husband!”

“Girls. This is a business meeting first and foremost.” Your stepmother warned them. “Husband hunting is for after hours.” She winked at them and then looked at you. “Not for you. Jack Daniels is not for your eyes.”

You internally rolled your eyes. “Yes ma’am.”

“Like Jack Daniels would want to date her. She’s an assistant.” Madison sneered at you.

Soon, the elevator doors opened and revealed the CEO of Statesman and who, you could only assume was his assistant. “Ladies, it’s an absolute pleasure to meet you.” He drawled out as he stepped into the office and took his time greeting each one of them charmingly.

“Oh, Mr. Daniels. I’m absolutely thrilled that you are interested in investing with our company.” Your stepmother told him. “These are my daughters, Madison and Jade.” She gestured to your stepsisters.

Jack nodded to both of them and then turned to you. “And who, may I ask, is this charming creature?” He asked, studying you intently with a soft smile on his lips.

“Her?” Madison asked with a laugh. “She’s unimportant.”

“That’s no one. Just my stepdaughter.” Your stepmother waved at you dismissively. “Go get everyone coffee and be useful for once.” She told you. Completely missing the looks Jack and his assistant shared as you blushed and walked away silently.

“I’ll help you.” Jack’s assistant chimed up as she hustled to your side. “I’m Ginger.” She told you with a smile.

You introduced yourself and smiled back at her. “Thank you.”

“So… Working for your stepmother. That seems… Interesting.” Ginger told her as they prepped all the coffees.

You snorted. “If by interesting, you mean hell… Then sure.” You told her.

“She does seem like a bitch.” She smirked at you.

You smiled at her and chuckled. “That’s putting it nicely.”

“Your boss seems to at least not treat you like shit in front of other people.”

“Jack? Oh, he’s the best boss. Kind and treats the whole company with respect.” Ginger nodded.

You blushed at the way you remembered Jack complimenting you. “He seems very sweet.”

Ginger didn’t miss the way you blushed, but chose not to say anything.

You brought out the coffee and nearly collided with none other than Jack Daniels himself. “Oh my god! I’m so sorry!” You told him, frantically looking around for your stepmother or sisters so they didn’t yell at you. “I-I was distracted. Did I get any coffee on you?”

“Hey darlin’... It’s alright.” He soothed you, large hands coming to your arms to steady you. “I got you. And no, not a drop of coffee on me.” He reassured you.

You shivered at his hands on your arm, despite the sweater. “I-Thank you.” You stammered at him.

“I’m not gonna get you in trouble with your family. I promise. You deserve better than that.” He murmured in your ear before promptly going to Ginger where she held his coffee and then entered the conference room for the presentation.

Leaving you to contemplate what he meant by that as you quietly brought in the coffees and sat down. Very much aware of Jack Daniels’ gaze almost always drifting to you when there was a lull in conversation.

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imagineaworlds · 3 years

Text

I Love You (Part Forty-Two) -- Aaron Hotchner

Written By: @desperately-bisexual

Request: None.

Warnings: Cursing. Mentions of kidnapping. Mentions of death, torture, sexual assault, panic attack, PTSD-- everything Criminal Minds. Talk of sex, BDSM, Dom/sub relationship, etc.

Pairing: Aaron Hotchner x Greenaway!Reader

Word Count: 12469

Timeline: Season 6 Episode 09. A month after part forty-one.

A/N: Hi, my loves. I might be taking a very short break. School is..... it's a lot right now. I think that between school and the way my friends have been getting into my head about Criminal Minsd/Hotch/Thomas, I've just kind of fallen out of love temporarily. I'm finishing up Sense8 rn, and then I'm going to start watching Tales of the City to help revamp my love for Thomas, and in turn Hotch and Criminal Minds. Chapter 43 is going to be a long one, so I just need ya'll to bear with me for a bit as I get to writing it. I love you guys! <3

A week stuck in the house after getting back from Hawai’i was a week too long. All I wanted to do was get back to work and act like nothing happened, because, really, nothing did happen. Yeah, something happened, but it could have been way worse. I handled the situation before it could get bad, and the team found me. As for the only surviving Unsub who took me, Morgan and Emily went to question him after he got out of surgery. They asked him about this website that Foyet had supposedly set up for his fans, but by the time they got the name of it, it was gone, and Garcia couldn’t find anything about it. She searched far and wide, even trying to recover the site itself, but whoever really set it up was good, and they knew how to cover their tracks.

All we knew was how the site operated. According to the Unsub, there were levels of the “membership”. Those who wanted to join Foyet’s little minion club, or whatever the fuck it was, had to start at level one with a misdemeanor. The higher up they wanted to move through the levels, the more intense the crimes got. The third to last level, the one the Unsub and his friends were on, was killing me. Throughout the whole ordeal— from the moment they bid on the task in the level, up until I managed to shoot two of them, they were in contact with the person in charge. He told them where to find me, when to take me, how to do it, where to take me, what to do about the call, but they came to a screeching halt when they were told that they needed to send a piece of me, one at a time, to Hotch and Jack. For a group of criminals who worked through the levels of robbery, rape, child abductions, and animal murder, it was surprising to me that they wouldn’t even try to follow their orders. I mean, they could have at least— Maybe that wasn’t anything to ponder on.

When asked what the last two levels were, however, the Unsub told us that he didn’t know because the bids were hidden from anyone on the lower levels. They had been the first group to make it to the “my” level, no one knew what the last two were. If I had to guess, though, based on what I knew about Foyet and his mission to ruin Hotch’s life, I was going to take a wild guess that the second one was likely hurting Jack— which was already unthinkable— and the first… the first was Hotch.

Foyet liked torturing Hotch. From the stabbings to killing Haley, Foyet enjoyed making Hotch’s life a living hell. Even from the grave, Foyet was doing his best to break down Hotch. He wanted Hotch’s life to fall apart around him, to have him lose everything before he would finally be targeted, too. From what we knew, the only task the Unsubs had with me was sending me off in pieces. That was it. The consideration to do more, the conversations I had overheard, was of their own volition; but it also happened to be their downfall. With Hotch, the task was probably to make it as painful as possible. Honestly, I didn’t want to consider the options after knowing what Foyet had already done.

After the Unsub was out of the hospital, our questioning completed, he was processed, and it was finally out of our hands. When we got home, I practically collapsed in the doorway, catching Jack in my arms as he ran to me for a Superman hug. I had never been more relieved to see him in my life since Foyet took him. I held him in my arms for as long as I could, even when he tried to protest that I was hugging him too tight. I never wanted to let him go. Even when he started asking questions about what happened on our vacation, because something was clearly wrong, I just stayed as still and quiet as possible because I just wanted to hold my son in my arms.

Hotch made me stay home for the week following that while he practically catered to my ever want and need. In a way, I suppose, I was under house arrest. All I was missing was the ankle monitor; and, honestly, it wouldn’t have surprised me if I would have woken up with one on. Hotch was being a little too protective since it happened. While I tried to not blame him because he was obviously still trying to get over the fact that he could have lost me, I just wanted to get back out there and live my life. I wanted to get back into the field; I wanted to see our friends; I wanted to mess around with Morgan and Emily all the time. I didn’t want to feel like a wounded, little lamb.

What happened to me wasn’t even that bad, as I said. All I had were a few cuts and bruises, yet Hotch was acting like my entire body was broken and he needed to do everything for me. He didn’t go to work, he hardly even let me out of my sight. It was like the days following Haley’s death where I watched Hotch and Jack like a hawk because I was afraid that if I let them out of my sight for even a moment, I would never see them again. Hotch probably felt the same way about me this time around… But I really just needed him to take a step back and let me breathe.

When I did get back to work about a month after Hawai’i, it wasn’t an easy transition. All the way to the office, Hotch tried to convince me into reconsidering going back. If it were up to him, I would have been at home for the next nine months or so. But I didn’t want that. I didn’t want to be locked up for months on end, sitting around, worrying about Hotch and the rest of the team as they went out to work on hundreds of cases without me. That wasn’t going to happen. I had a life to get back to. I could deal with my trauma outside of work— just like Hotch, who was still going to therapy because of what happened with Foyet while still going to work, too. And if he was just worried about me being pregnant, which I was sure was a factor, then he had to understand that it wasn’t a big deal yet. It was a miracle, of course, but it wasn’t impeding my ability to work just yet.

I just had to keep reminding Hotch that I had been to hell and back a thousand times, and this was just one more thing to add to the shit list. If I could get through all of that, I could get through this. But if Hotch started blowing this all out of proportion and made a big deal out of it, we were going to have problems. I compared it to when he found out the truth about those photos the Fisher King had taken out of my jewelry box, and he promised that he wouldn’t treat me any differently knowing what he knew now. I needed that understanding back. He always told me that he trusted my judgement—if he didn’t, he would have never let me go near that train Elle was being held hostage on in Texas a few years back—so I just needed him to trust me now. I was going to be fine. I was fine.

On Tuesday, after driving into work and getting some reports done, the team gathered in the roundtable room to discuss potential cases. Only, JJ already had a case in mind. Daniel Lanham, a ten year old boy, was reported missing on a camping trip by his father last November… Over a year ago… He was never found. In fact, the case had run so cold, that the police were initially grasping at straws by trying to pin the whole disappearance on the father. However, with no forensic evidence tying him to a crime, they couldn’t arrest him; but now that Daniel’s body had just appeared on the Appalachian Trail, questions were starting to stir and fingers were being pointed again.

I stared at the photo of that boy’s decayed body. He was only ten. How could someone do this to a child—How could someone do this to their own child, if that were really the case. I mean, there were signs of care and remorse with the body that indicated personal attachment that a father could potentially have. Daniel’s body had been wrapped in a plastic bag that was buried underground and covered by elements, all in the name of preserving and protecting the body from weather, animals, natural accelerated decay, etc. But this was an opportunistic crime. Our Unsub, if he was hunting for a victim on the Appalachian Trail, had to sit and wait for the perfect boy to come along. Or if Daniel’s father was responsible, he had to wait until his son was alone with him. Either way, it was an opportunity that arose, not a sophisticated, targeted attack. That was… unless…

“JJ, are there any more missing persons or mysterious deaths on the trail that could be connected to this?” I asked.

“The Rangers contacted me with this case, and they claimed that they’ve never seen anything like it. So, I’m going to assume not. But I’ll check with them when we get on the jet, just in case.”

“It says here that Daniel’s father went back to the trail every month in search for his son?” Hotch questioned, looking through the file. “And then he stopped in March.” He stopped in his tracks as a realization hit him. “Which is about the same time the M.E. estimates Daniel was killed.” He closed his case file. “Y/N, we’ll talk to Mr. Lanham when we arrive at the Park Ranger’s office. JJ, can you have them organize that while we’re on the jet and you’re contacting them about similar cases?”

“Sure,” she answered.

“Prentiss and Morgan, when we get to the trail, you guys should head out to where Daniel Lanham’s body was found in order to get an understanding of this Unsub’s level of mental stability.”

By that, he was alluding to the fact that we weren’t sure if our Unsub was Mr. Lanham or not. If this presented as organized or disorganized, it would help us conclude on way or another, and if there was anything else important out there that they Rangers missed, it might help us build our profile. So, it truly made sense that we would send someone out there. But I wished that it were me. Hotch usually teamed me up with Morgan—or, at times, Morgan and Emily. I wanted to go on the trail with them so bad. But Hotch wanted me to stay back in the Ranger’s office with him in order to question Mr. Lanham, even though that was a small enough task for one of us to do alone.

----

The Park Ranger’s office was more like a large cabin. Actually, that was exactly what it was—and it was similar to Gideon’s cabin, but perhaps twice that size. There was one main office where all of the Rangers had been waiting for our arrival, then there was the lead Ranger’s office to the left, and, lastly, set ahead was a boardroom where we could meet privately if need be. As we walked in, we were immediately told that Mr. Lanham was waiting for us in said boardroom.

While Emily and Morgan turned on their heels to head straight out to the trail as Hotch ordered, Rossi, Reid, and JJ moved to the table in the middle of the room that had a large map taped down to it for us to get our bearings. Reid immediately started building the geographical profile. So, while he was busy with that, and JJ and Rossi were getting caught up with the Ranger’s investigation, Hotch and I headed into the boardroom.

Hotch held the door open for me. I silently thanked him as I headed inside to see Mr. Lanham sitting at a desk, never looking up to acknowledge us. We carefully approached.

“Mr. Lanham, I’m Agent Hotchner, this is Agent Greenaway, and we’re with the Behavior Analysis Unit at the FBI. We’ve been called in to investigate your son’s death.” Hotch pulled a chair out for me. “We need to ask you some questions.” After I sat down, Hotch moved to take a seat in the chair next to me.

Mr. Lanham shrugged, keeping his eyes lowered, his hands in his lap, his leg shaking nervously under the table. All signs that he had issues with authority. Some of them were signs of guilt, but they could also be attributed to his frustration with the FBI questioning him when he thought that everyone had forgotten him as a suspect. I understood why he felt that way. However, it was necessary to ask him these questions in order to confirm or deny if he had any involvement in his son’s death. So far, it was inconclusive.

“You went almost twice a month out to the site where your son disappeared from November to March. And then you stopped going.”

He nodded. “That’s correct.”

“Why? Why stop at the same time he died? Because that looks awfully suspicious to us, Mr. Lanham.”

“I don’t know. Alright? I just—” He let out a heavy sigh as his body slumped in his seat. A sign of defeat rather than guilt. “I had this… feeling that he was gone. And it was taking too much out of me to keep searching. You probably don’t know what that feels like.”

I glanced over at Hotch. When Foyet took Haley and Jack, I had this feeling in the pit of my stomach that something terrible was going to happen, and no one was going to be able to stop it. And then Haley died. My suspicions had been confirmed, my heart shattered in my chest, and yet… the anxiety dialed back. I could remember still being hysterical and worried out of my mind because I wasn’t sure if Hotch and Jack were dead; but… Now that we were sitting there and Mr. Lanham had brought up this “feeling” he had, I realized that some part of me that day knew that they were still alive. I still had a sliver of hope that Jack was just hiding, safe and sound in his secret spot, and I had a feeling that Hotch was alright. And I was correct. Hotch was beaten and broken, of course, but he was alive. And my little man was alive. So, I understood that “feeling” Mr. Lanham had referred to.

Hotch moved on. “Correct me if I’m wrong, but you used to take Daniel camping every weekend.”

“Yes. His mother had full custody, but she allowed me to see him on the weekends.”

Hotch and I knew that feeling all too well. Haley practically had full custody, but she allowed us to see Jack whenever we were in town; but it was still hard. Co-parenting was hard. I couldn’t imagine how Hotch did it alone all those years.

“So, the night he disappeared, what happened?” I asked. Mr. Lanham didn’t respond because he seemed at a loss for words. Even though he had recited his story a thousand times for local police, state police, Park Rangers, and so on, he couldn’t find the right words anymore. I really couldn’t blame him.

“You set up camp…” Hotch began egging him on once he noticed Mr. Lanham’s hesitancy. “You fell asleep… And then… A man came into your tent?”

“No. No one came into the tent. Daniel got up because he had to use the bathroom. He didn’t wake me up because he was in that phase where he was convinced that he didn’t need his dad protecting him all the time…” He sniffled. “So, I rolled over and I went back to sleep. I should’ve—” His voice cracked behind a sob. “I should’ve gone after him. But I didn’t.”

“Mr—” I began, but he interrupted me.

“I was his hero, and I failed,” Mr. Lanham cried before hiding his face in his hands out of shame.

I recognized the look on his face as he had said it, though. It was the same look Hotch wore for months after Haley died. He was ashamed that he couldn’t have done more to save her, and he failed at being Jack’s superhero when he needed it most.

“I don’t care that you all think I’m guilty. Because I am! I am guilty! I didn’t protect my son when he needed me most.” He looked up at us. “If I could go to prison for that, I would.”

Without a doubt, I knew that there was no way Mr. Lanham hurt his son. That kind of thinking—that sort of regret couldn’t be replicated by any kind of sociopath. No. Only a true grieving father who had been through hell could possibly feel that way. And since I had seen Hotch go through the exact same motions after Haley’s death, I knew that Mr. Lanham was innocent, and that he wasn’t putting any kind of show on for us. He genuinely regretted that night.

But I just couldn’t sit there and keep listening to his distraught cries. The way he was sobbing while blaming himself for something he had no control over only took me back to over a year ago where Hotch practically collapsed in my arms after Haley’s wake, and he pleaded with me about moving houses because he couldn’t stand being in that house anymore. The cries were eerily similar. And the worst part was, that parental regret that Mr. Lanham was starting to rub off on me when it came to Jack, and now the regret was turning into panic with our baby. Fuck.

I stood and saw myself out of the boardroom. Hotch was hot on my heels, likely because he didn’t want to listen to it any longer, either. The superhero thing hit too hard. We were Jack’s superheroes—we always had been—and the day that Foyet killed Haley, we failed him. We couldn’t protect him and his mom practically the one time it mattered most. Before, I used to regret that deeply, of course, but now that there were… other factors involved… I felt all of that ten times harder now, and it made me reflect on what the hell Hotch and I were actually going to do to prevent something like that from happening ever again. I didn’t want it to be Jack or our baby that we would lose next time—No. There would be no next time… This was exactly why I had to get away from Mr. Lanham while he was like that.

Apparently, Emily and Morgan had gotten back from the trail while we were talking to Daniel’s dad. They were standing around the map table in the middle of the office, a marker in Emily’s hand as they told Rossi and Reid everything they found out there. More bodies. And by more, I mean a lot more. Where they went to find Daniel’s burial ground, they ended up finding at least a dozen other bodies that Rangers were working to dig up currently so that they could be identified. So, this just turned serial.

“His name is Tyler Dale. He was the same age as Daniel when he went missing, and he was on a family trip when it happened,” Morgan explained, catching me and Hotch up to date with what everyone else knew.

Reid immediately scurried off with this new information to work on something that was churning in his mind, something that he couldn’t explain to us quite yet or it would ruin his thought process. We all turned to watch him silently work. We knew that whatever it was, it was likely important, and likely to help us. Honestly, if I were to guess, now that I was watching him scan through both Daniel and Tyler’s files a mile a minute, he was probably working on victimology. If he wasn’t, I was going to start. He was the fast reader, but I was the quick spotter. I almost wanted to challenge him one day into seeing who could solve a cold or closed case first—like the Foothpath Killer. Considering I solved that one the fastest, and Gideon was incredibly impressed, I was sure I could win against Spencer Reid.

And then he jumped to his feet with a thought. Okay… So, maybe he would put up a good fight. But I liked a challenge. I kept considering it as Reid set the files out on the map table and started dialing Garcia’s number on the conference phone. I cocked a brow at him. What was it that he found? Or, actually, what was it that he thought he had found?

“Garcia—” Reid began.

“Oh, it’s the boy wonder!” she cheered. “You never call me. It’s so isolating…”

Reid smiled lightly in response. “Sorry. We’ve been a bit busy.”

“I forgive you. I guess.”

Those of us who were standing around chuckled somewhat. Reid immediately turned back to his work when he shook it off, though, so that he could get back to what it was he called her for. “Can you look up the missing persons reports on the trail, specifically young boys between the ages of nine to thirteen.”

“I’m gonna need more than that.”

“The Unsub’s probably in his late thirties to forties, so disregard any cases older than twenty years.”

“What are you doing?” Rossi asked, utterly confused.

Reid hardly acknowledged Rossi when he answered with, “Speeding up the process of identifying those kids.” He grabbed a pen. “Garcia, narrow it down to boys with dark hair only. How many do we have now?”

“Twelve.”

Emily’s eyes widened. “They’ve only found ten bodies so far.”

Reid stood tall. “Yeah, but they’re still looking. It’s entirely possible those other two boys are out there. Garcia, which of those is the oldest case?”

“Um… Victor Dane disappeared when he was ten… and that was…” Garcia paused and gulped. “Oh. Fifteen years ago. They never found out what happened to him, but Rangers at the time suspected that he just happened to get lost.” That was usually their excuse when people went missing out there.

“What time of year was that?”

“October 20th.”

Reid was scribbling notes down on a piece of paper in one of the kids’ files. “What about the other boys? Did they all disappear around that time?”

“Yeah… How did you…”

“Thanks, Garcia.” Reid hung up on her without any consideration, and he stood to face all of us.

As we all huddled around, Reid began explaining how the cogs turning in his head had just come up with a dozen different answers to the problems we were facing. For our profile of the Unsub, we were missing any kind of link between how, when, and why the victims were taken. But Reid figured it out. Now that we had the identity of another kid, he was able to connect some of the dots, but what Garcia told him explained it all clearly to him. Our Unsub was crossing stateliness, which was why no one connected the dots—and he was spending months doing so. To hike the entire trail would take about six months. He was taking his victims in the fall, and we knew from Tyler and Daniel, he was killing the boys in the winter…

He was torturing them for months on end… He got away with it because no one knew that he existed.

I cringed and took a step back and away from the group. I felt Hotch’s eyes following me, so I didn’t let any emotion show that would give away the panic building in my chest. What if Hotch had thought that I just wandered off in Hawai’i? What if he had really been convinced that I left to go back to the Mainland—that I had left him… No one knew that those men who took me existed. No one knew that there were people out there who were so loyal to The Reaper. No one knew that I was a target. I could have died if Hotch didn’t know me so well. I could have died if the team didn’t have enough trust in him and I to know that something was wrong. I could have ended up like those boys that were being dug up in the forest.

I swallowed all of my pain.

----

That night, Hotch forced me to go back to the hotel with him while the team stayed at the Ranger’s office to have a long night of working. I think this move of his had more to do with Hawai’i than anything else. He was worried that I wasn’t better. He thought that I was suppressing any memories or PTSD in order to trick him into thinking that I was alright. And maybe I was. Maybe I wasn’t at all okay because every time I closed my eyes, I was terrified that someone else who had seen “Foyet’s website” would come to kill me, Jack, or Hotch. I was dreading a call from home while we were gone on this case that would tell us that someone took our little man from us. Foyet was always cruel. There was no doubt about it. But I never thought that it would get this far after death, after Hotch had bashed his face in to the point he was unrecognizable.

I needed rest desperately. For once, I wasn’t going to argue with Hotch about something related to dictating my life. Because I clearly needed to sleep, but Hotch didn’t, he decided to set up shop at the desk while I rolled into bed, which meant that I could afford to at least close my eyes because someone was keeping watch. Usually, Hotch fell asleep without struggle. If I were wrapped in his arms, it would take only a few minutes before he would completely crash and start snoring in my ear—but I could never fell asleep. If I did, there was a chance someone could take him from me. Something like Hawai’i could happen to him if I weren’t careful. So, I stayed up nearly every night just to ensure no one would come in and take him—or even to make sure that no one was lurking in the house to hurt Jack. But Hotch was staying up now. He was sitting at the desk, looking over the case, facing the door and the window, which was a reassurance to me that meant that no one could sneak up on him now.

So, I relaxed.

After a few minutes, I heard Hotch get up to grab his pajamas and toiletries from his go-bag and head into the bathroom. My eyes followed him until he closed the door.

I curled up on the bed, bringing my knees up ever so slightly towards my chest, and I laid my hands over my stomach. It was so odd… Everything felt normal, but it clearly wasn’t. Between the fact that Hotch was being overprotective and that I was subconsciously protecting my stomach more, it was obvious that I was pregnant; but I wasn’t showing yet, and I technically couldn’t even feel anything yet. It was just knowledge and an unconscious drive to protect something we couldn’t even see or feel. But the strangest part of it all was that I couldn’t wait to have more than that. I couldn’t wait to hold our baby, to see if they got mine or Hotch’s eyes, or what color hair they would end up with. Every second that we wasted just knowing and not seeing was torture. I was just excited to skip the next few months and finally have them in my arms.

Hotch came out of the bathroom, his face washed, teeth brushed, hair combed out of his face, and his suit switched out for his pajamas. When he saw my curled on the bed, he smiled. I smiled back at him. Despite how tense I had been about his protective behavior, I could find myself relaxing and falling in love with him over and over again every time he looked at me like that. It was this sparkle in his eyes that spoke volumes about how much he eternally loved me. And that smile… It was this slight curl at the corner of his lips that ever so slowly turned into a wide, toothy grin the longer he stared at me. It was pure joy. And it was absolutely contagious. I found that every time I spotted that smile growing on his face, I’d start smiling ear to ear, laughing at how cute and silly he was.

Aaron Hotchner… Cute and silly… It was strange to think about that sometimes—how I knew him in that capacity when no one else even got a hint of that side of him. In fact, most people didn’t know that he was capable of smiling. But he was. He was capable of so much, and he was deserving of every happiness in the world. After everything he had been through, I could confidently say he earned eternal bliss.

“You okay?” he asked quietly. He always whispered when he was afraid of disturbing me because he was taken by the way I was just… existing. I wasn’t doing anything special, yet he didn’t want me to move. I could tell that he wanted to remember me like that for a little longer.

I nodded. “Yeah. Just thinking.”

“About?” He moved to sit down at the end of the bed, bringing my feet onto his lap so that he could massage them lightly. I relaxed immediately. When he started rubbing his thumb into the arch of my foot, I rotated somewhat so that I was laying on my back and looking at him.

“What Mr. Lanham said about his son,” I answered. “I’m terrified that something is going to happen to our kid, Aaron. Terrified. We know what’s out there—We know who’s out there. How can we possibly protect them from all the evils out there?”

“We just try our best.”

“Mr. Lanham tried his best. You tried your best. What if I can’t try my best?”

Hotch moved his thumbs to the pads of my feet. “It’s hard, Y/N. I’m not going to lie. All that pain and panic you feel on behalf of Jack is going to be ten times worse now with your own flesh and blood. That doesn’t mean that you love Jack any less—please don’t take it that way. But it is different when they’re your own. So, this anxiety you’re feeling now is entirely valid. Trust me. But it’s a day by day thing. You do your best one day, and then you try even harder the next. That’s all you can do. There’s no point in dwelling on what you could have done better or what horribly thing can potentially happen.”

“And if we fail?”

“We won’t.”

“How do—”

“We won’t,” he said more sternly.

I reached out to squeeze his bicep, since that was all I could reach and reaffirm. Maybe I did understand why he wanted to protect me. Maybe he was just doing his best with me, and he felt that his day to day best wasn’t enough. But it was. Actually, it was more than enough.

“I love you.”

He kissed his way up from my ankle to my hip, slowly moving around until he was hovering over me and I was giggling at the way his kisses tickled to me. I punched at his pecks lightly in a playful attempt to make him stop. But he didn’t. He only smirked and moved to kiss my stomach. I ran my fingers through his hair, encouraging him to stay there because I loved how it felt. I loved thinking to myself that we knew something was there, though we couldn’t see it, yet he had an instinct to still show me every bit of love. Especially there.

“I love you,” he whispered against my stomach.

----

In the morning. Hotch and I woke to a call from the Park Rangers that two kids had just been reported missing on the trail. A boy and a girl. Robert and Ana Copeland. That didn’t match our Unsub’s M.O. at all, but we simply couldn’t take the chance. Knowing that the body count out in the forest was only increasing with every knew hole Rangers were digging out there, it was entirely possible that the Unsub was spiraling. It wasn’t worth ignoring. If it meant potentially saving those kids, we were going to at least look into it. If it turned out that it had nothing to do with our case, it would be passed on to the Rangers and local PD, who could hopefully help the parents seek closure.

Until then, we had to try our best. So, we hurried out of bed and raced to the Ranger’s office. When we got there, JJ was already setting up a search party with the Rangers and local volunteers who found out that the kids went missing and wanted to help. Hotch pulled me to the side before we stepped in.

“You should stay here with Reid, give us some outside geographical help,” he offered.

I cocked a brow at him, scoffed, then walked away. There was no fucking way I was doing that. Fucking ridiculous. “JJ,” I said, tapping her shoulder. She turned to face me. “I’ll take the far East quadrant.” I pointed to her map, signaling to the area of the forest that I was referring to. It happened to be the smallest with the least amount of volunteers to oversee, so I figured that Hotch would at least compromise on that. “And I’ll check out the—"

Hotch suddenly grabbed my bicep a little harder than expected and started pulling me to the board room to talk to me privately. He let go of my arm as I stumbled inside, catching my balance quickly before turning to face him. He was frowning like he was angry with me. My eyes followed him as he locked the door then proceeded to turn all of the blinds up so that they were closed, making it so that no one could see into the room.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” he asked me, crossing his arms over his chest once the room was made private and dark.

I shrugged. “I’m going to go help those kids.”

He shook his head. “I’m benching you.”

“Hotch—”

“I don’t want to hear it.”

He was oddly calm. Usually, if I gave him push back like this, he’d try to be a little more demanding— whether it be with his boss or Sir tone. Either would have worked on me, but he was still holding back. Asshole. Just fucking crack. Please. Give me something in response to my pushback. Recognize that I’m fucking with you because I want you back, and just do something! Please!

“You can’t bench me—”

Hotch’s eyes narrowed. “I’m pulling you from the field. You shouldn’t have come back this early. And I don’t want you to get hurt, especially since there are new factors involved.”

I chuckled. So that was what this was about. I wasn’t even showing, and he was already losing his shit. This was exactly why I was scared to tell him I was pregnant in the first place. I knew that this would fucking happen. “That’s bullshit,” I snapped. I just wanted him to fight with me. Was that too much to ask? “You didn’t pull JJ out of the field until she was too pregnant to even walk.”

“That was different.”

“It really fucking isn’t, Aaron! I’m going to go out there and I’m going to help find those kids and our Unsub, and there’s really nothing you can do to stop me right now. If you want to pull me out of the field, then you’re going to have to wait until we get back to the office and tell Strauss exactly why.” I started making my way towards the door. “Until then, I’m going—"

Hotch stepped in my way, making me crash into him slightly, but he didn’t waver. “Sit down and shut up,” Hotch demanded gruffly.

I gulped and instinctively took an obedient seat on the couch. There was the Hotch I knew. I found him in there somehow, which meant that I was right about him holding back on my behalf. He still wanted to be rough with me, I could see it in his eyes; but he was doing everything in his power to not do it because he thought I was fragile. I wasn’t fragile. He knew better than anyone that I wasn’t fragile. Hopefully, all it would take was this one snap and we’d be back in business.

Hotch paced the room for a moment before stopping just in front of me. He roughly pinched my face with one hand to make me look up at him. “You want things to be normal? Fine. Stop being a brat and listen to my orders. You’re staying here with Reid, and that’s the end of it.” He let go of my face.

“Yes, Sir.” I nodded.

His chest fell as he let out a relieved sigh, “Good girl.” He ran his fingers through his hair as he caught his breath, trying to come to terms with what he had just done, and how he thought it was entirely out of line. “Sorry,” he whispered under his breath, ashamed.

I shook my head while standing. “I love you.” I took his face in my hands and kissed him gingerly. “I’m sorry for pushing your buttons.”

He kissed me back. “It’s okay.” He let go of me, and I let go of him, then, within an instant, Hotch was storming off towards the door. “Call me if you and Reid find anything.”

I hesitantly agreed, watching him leave the board room and head out with the team, the Rangers, and all of the volunteers. It was just me and Reid in the Park Ranger’s office now. He glanced over at me, confusion written all over his face, but I just shrugged it off. I didn’t need him asking questions when I was still coming to terms with it myself.

I shook my head, unfolded my arms, and headed to the map table to search it with my eyes and fingers to find anywhere that stood out to me as a good place to hide out for the winter and to keep hostages. Reid was hovering over it with a pen in hand in order to help him pinpoint certain areas. When he saw something, he circled it. The only time I spotted something, I asked him to circle it, too.

Yet, all I could think about was Hotch while I should have been thinking about those kids that were out there, scared out of their wits as a monster did who knew what with them. I should have been focused. We weren’t supposed to let our emotions get in the way, which was a main concern Hotch and I had when we initially started dating. We couldn’t forget our work. We couldn’t let our relationship get in the way of saving lives. And I was trying to remind myself of that while staring at that map, attempting to force my eyes to focus in on something, but I just couldn’t. My mind was elsewhere.

“He’s probably hiding them in a cave,” he continued. I hummed a thoughtless agreement. “Somewhere near water so that he can live off the land.” I agreed again. “And then aliens came down and took them.” I hummed again. “What’s wrong with you?” Reid asked, circling a waterfall on the map. I cocked a brow, knowing that he could sense my confusion without having to look up. “I mean… I don’t want to pry, but something’s off.”

“It’s nothing,” I insisted. I knew that he was referring to how Hotch and I were practically dancing around each other, which wasn’t like us at all— especially since we just went through something which should have only brought us closer.

Reid looked up at me through his eyelashes for a brief moment to get a profile on me. He looked back down. “It makes sense, you know,” he commented while still scribbling on the map. I raised a brow, and he sensed my confusion again, so he continued, “Hotch has lost a lot. More than anyone should have to lose. It’s no surprise that he’s being more careful with you than he ever was with anyone else. He’s had to learn and evolve based on his experiences, and that evolution has brought him to being— for a lack of a better term— a helicopter parent. I don't think he’s necessarily trying to suffocate you, like you think he is. In his mind, he’s reminding himself of everything he could have done differently with Haley that could have saved their relationship and her life, and he’s testing out these new behaviors with you.

They say that a mother’s bond with her child is the strongest connection any two humans can have; but we’re still primal creatures, and the fathers have a tendency to become overbearingly protective once they are aware that their mates are carrying their child. Think of it like a wolf marking its territory. The wolf becomes hostile towards anything or anyone that tries to come near its territory because it’s their safe space and they have an instinct to protect it with their life. Fathers of most species are the same way with the mothers of their children, and humans happen to be the worst about it because we’re more advanced creatures—”

“Reid,” I spoke up, catching his attention, “you’re rambling.”

He chuckled self-consciously. “Sorry… I’m just trying to say that… things aren’t going to go back to normal— for a while, at least. He’s trying to make up for his past mistakes. And after what happened in Hawai’i, you can understand why he’s a little uneasy and a little more protective than you’d like. It might help if both of you, I don’t know… set some rules and boundaries.”

I smirked. “Is that the doctor’s advice?”

He shook his head and looked back down at the map. “It’s your friend’s advice.”

“Thank you, Spencer.” I put a hand on his shoulder.

Suddenly, the walkie talkie on the table started buzzing with static. Mine and Reid’s attention to turn to it just before we heard Morgan’s voice echo through the room with an update from the trail, a really good update, actually. They found the daughter. She was safe with him and Emily, and they were sending her back to the office with a Ranger so that I could question her because they couldn’t find her brother anywhere yet. I picked up the walkie to acknowledge his report.

We waited about thirty minutes after the call from Morgan to see the Copelands come in with JJ from the trail while looking around for their daughter who hadn’t arrived yet. JJ showed them to the boardroom so that they could wait there. When they were sitting down and holding each other anxiously, JJ came over to me and Reid and asked if we would be fine with waiting with the Copelands while she headed back out to the trail to work with the other volunteers who had a million questions for her. I shrugged and insisted that she go. I could handle this while Reid kept looking at the map.

On her way out, JJ ran into Ana and the Ranger that had brought her back. Ana was covered in dirt, her jacket torn up, her hair knotted, her eyes sunken out of exhaustion. I didn’t see any bruises on her, though. In fact, from where I was standing, I didn’t see any sign of any kind of abuse—sexual or otherwise. It made sense. Unfortunately, our Unsub’s type was kids, but he preferred boys. Whatever happened out there in the woods, there was probably a reason that Ana was with us and not Robert. Hopefully, she could give us some answers.

After sitting around for a few minutes, watching as the Copelands held their daughter close and let her cry against them, I decided to go in. Sitting there and watching them was just breaking my heart. All it did was remind me of all the times after Haley’s death when Jack would cling to me for dear life, crying into my shoulder until my shirt was soaked and I needed to change. I had never heard anyone sob in pain like that until that dreadful day when Hotch broke down, and then Jack started having nightmares. The two of them were in pain… They just couldn’t stop sobbing and whimpering. Ana was the same way.

I couldn’t cry like that when they found me in Hawai’i. Part of me knew that if I broke down and sobbed like that, then Hotch would have been in even worse shape than he already was. Besides, I had happy news that offset how I was really feeling. We had this little miracle in our lives now, and all of my focus was being drilled into that instead of remembering the panic I felt when I saw Gene standing just behind Hotch on the beach. I had to remember that in just a few months, there would be another little Hotchner running around—just as we had always joked about—and it distracted me from waking up with nightmares of sitting in that cabin, anticipating the moment they would finally decide to get rid of me.

I couldn’t keep thinking about it. I was sick of sitting around and waiting for something to happen. So, I carefully pushed into the room that the Copelands were sitting in, and I entered with a welcoming, kind smile that would help the scared little girl warm up to me. A thought occurred to me. I was never going to let my children be that terrified. Ever. I dreaded being an overbearing parent, but I knew what was out there, and I knew what I needed to do in order to protect my family. I was going to do whatever it would take. Neither of my kids would ever have to be in Ana or Robert’s shoes. No matter what.

“Hi, Ana.” I held my hand out for her to shake, just a simple way of me building rapport with her while also making her feel more adult and brave than she really was. “My name’s Y/N Greenaway, and I’m with the FBI. I’ve been looking for you and your brother, Robert.” She shook my hand warily. As she let go, I sat down in the seat across from her and crossed my ankles over each other. “Are you up for a few questions?”

Ana nodded shyly, tucking under her mother’s arm as much as possible.

“Cool.” I smiled at her. “What do you remember?”

“I shouldn’t’ve left Robert, but he told me to run. He made me promise to go when he distracted the man.”

“You did the right thing, Ana,” I reassured her, playing along with the dodge of my original question.

“But he still has my brother.”

“You being here because you listened to your brother is going to help us, though. I promise. I need you to tell me about the man who took you if we’re going to find Robert. Can you do that?”

She nodded. “We were in a cave…” she began slowly, pondering her words carefully as she tried to push through the nightmares running through her. I knew what that felt like. “He kept us in a cage with toys. Lots and lots of toys. There were no lights, and he stole Robert’s flashlight to make sure we couldn’t see anything.”

“What about the man, Ana?”

It was great that she was already being so open and talkative, but we knew all of this because Morgan and Emily were already searching for a cave, and the Unsub was probably long gone by now if he knew that Ana had escaped. We needed to know about him specifically in order to build the profile and find him.

“He was dirty,” she answered, “and scary. He was tall and fat. He walked funny and didn’t like to talk—”

“What do you mean by ‘he walked funny’?”

“Like, with a limp…”

“So, he was hurt?”

“I think so. That was why he couldn’t catch me, but he could catch Robert. He always took Robert. Never me. He took Robert at one point, and when he came back, he was crying and shaking, and that was when he told me that I needed to run the next time the man came for him. So, Robert pretended like he had to use the bathroom, and the man left the cage unlocked… Robert pushed him over long enough for me to run.” She started to sob. “I shouldn’t have left him!” She hid her face against her mother’s chest. “I shouldn’t’ve left him!”

I rubbed my hand over her back soothingly. “You did really good, Ana. Thank you.”

There was a knock at the door from Reid, a signal that he needed to talk to me privately. I nodded to him. I had gotten everything I could get out of Ana—at least for right now—and it was probably best just to let her relax and be with her family. I knew that after Hawai’i, all I wanted was to be with our family. I wanted Hotch, Jack, Morgan, Emily, Rossi, Reid, and JJ. I needed their support. I needed to know that they were okay, because if they were, then it gave me every reason—or excuse, depending on how you looked at it—to be okay, too. Ana probably needed that right now, too.

So, I silently stepped out of the room, letting the door fall shut quietly. I crossed my arms over my chest as I looked at Reid. He lifted his phone and turned the screen to face me, at which point I saw an image of a flower I was not at all familiar with, and I really had zero clue as to why he was showing it to me. I shrugged.

Reid looked at the photo again. “Emily and Morgan found his cave.”

“Robert?”

“They’re both gone. But Emily sent me this picture.”

“What is it?”

“It’s called Devil’s Claw.”

“Which is…”

“It helps heal swollen joints. Without it, our Unsub will be in a lot of pain.”

I glanced over my shoulder back into the room where Ana was hugging her parents as tight as she could—the same way Jack would always hug me and Hotch whenever he was upset. A superman hug. I looked back at Reid. “She told me that our Unsub walks with a limp. It’s probably connected.”

“If it’s really that bad that he still walks with a limp while taking this, it means he’s going to need more of it. And fast.”

“Where can you get it?”

“I mean, the flower version, like this, is all over the forest out there. But you can get it in pill or powder form on the black market, if you know where to look.”

“He’s going to head into town with Robert,” I realized. “And if he’s spending all of his time out on the trail, not working… That means he doesn’t have any money.”

“He’s going to sell Robert for drugs.”

I hesitated. “He wouldn’t give Robert away entirely. It goes against his M.O. You’re right, he’s going to sell Robert; but not the way you would think.” I hurried over to the walkie talkie sitting on the table and lifted it towards my mouth, pressing the TALK button as fast as I could. “Hotch.” I let go of the button and waited.

“I’m here,” he answered momentarily.

“Everyone needs to come back. Our Unsub isn’t out there anymore. He’s heading into town.”

And they did come back. It took a bit, but the entire team raced to get back to the Ranger’s office, at which point, we started discussing where the Unsub could have possibly gone, using our extremely loose profile we had. It really wasn’t enough to present to the Rangers or PD, but it was barely enough for us to use to our advantage. Knowing that he would have to get his medicine as fast as possible, we knew that he was going to turn to the black market—but in order to know who was possibly selling anything similar to Devil’s Claw, he had to already have connections in that world. Since we had previously deduced that he had been operating on the trail for at least fifteen years, that meant that he probably hadn’t met many criminals since then, so it had to be beforehand. But how did this pattern not appear sooner? Why hadn’t he started kidnapping children or abusing them sooner?

The simple answer was prison. It would explain why he was stagnant for a while, and why he was so fond of hiding in isolation. Not to mention, he probably met other pedophiles in there. And drug dealers. If he was desperate, he was going to meet with someone he knew and could trust to understand his medical condition, and also someone who would be willing to take time with a child as payment.

So, we called Garcia. We asked her to look for a man with a sexual assault history who was released from prison about sixteen years ago, then missed parole meetings fifteen years ago by going entirely off the grid. One would be shocked by how many men matched that description. So, we asked her to look for someone who had originally been housed near other registered sex offenders before going missing. That did the trick.

His name was Shane Wyland, and he had a long medical history when he was in prison. I mean, sex offenders were top targets inside, but he went to the infirmary more than the average pedophile. When I asked if it had to do with swollen joints, she agreed. She told us that Shane had a condition that made it increasingly difficult to keep moving around, even with the medication he was getting. But, in prison, they didn’t have what he needed. So, he had to get it from his bunk mate, another pedophile who was released around the same time as Shane.

“We need an address for his bunk mate,” Hotch insisted.

“That’s the thing,” Garcia began while still typing in order to get the address to us ASAP, “there are a handful of registered sex offenders who all share the same address.”

“What?” I questioned.

“It’s a cluster,” Emily said. When we all cocked a brow at her, she continued, “Since sex offenders can’t be near parks or school zones, their housing options are limited. Usually, they’ll reach out to their buddies from prison and ask if they know anywhere that will house them. That’s how they all end up with each other.”

Hotch shook his head. He hissed, “Garcia, the address, please.”

“Right. Sorry, sir.” She pressed the ENTER key of her computer as hard as she could, and we all felt our phones buzz.

As they all looked at their phones to take note of the building number and street name, I watched Hotch to see if there was any way he would let me go. They had a whole building to clear. I could be an asset. My time was better spent clearing the building with them than sitting around in the Park Ranger’s office, counting the minutes until the team would return. I really fucking hated feeling useless.

The team started collecting their gear, throwing on vests as fast as they could and putting comms in their ears. I waited for Hotch to tell me one way or the other. But, when I didn’t do anything, he didn’t seem to argue. I figured that if I were to move towards them and start gearing up, too, that was when things would have spiraled. All I could do was shake my head in disappointment and move to take a seat at the table with Reid. He was staying behind in case that lead didn’t pan out, which wasn’t very likely, but it was still a good idea to have back up. But he didn’t need me there. That was a one person job, and we all fucking knew it.

“Hey—” JJ called out, hurrying over to me. She slowed as I turned to face her. “Are you and Hotch alright?”

I peered over her shoulder to see Hotch talking to Morgan about how they were going to narrow down where the Unsub was and how we were going to get to him without letting the kid get hurt or die. I looked back at her. “Hotch is trying to pull me out of the field after this case, and we had a fight about it.”

“Oh…” She looked at her feet, almost like she regretted asking in the first place.

Ever since the bombing case in New York, I stopped opening up to JJ about my relationship with Hotch. She had insisted that she thought that Hotch and I were taking things to fast, and she almost seemed to doubt us. It really wasn’t until our wedding that I saw that she had changed her mind. But that was a little too late. By that point, I didn’t necessarily care about any opinion she had on my relationship. I valued her as a friend and a team member, of course; but… this… I just…

“Well,” she began hesitantly, “I know that you’ll figure it out. The two of you always get through it. I hardly hear about you guys fighting, so I wouldn’t stress over it too much.”

I nodded and shrugged. I mean, she was right, actually—kind of throwing what I just thought back in my face. But still. Hotch and I had always been honest and open with each other, which was why we were so successful. If I just listened to Spence, used my words and tried to level with Hotch, then we could sort all of this out and come to a better conclusion than pulling me out of the field entirely.

When they left without a word to me or Reid, I sat down across from Reid. We sat in silence for nearly thirty minutes as we waited around uselessly. The team let us know when they arrived in the city; and they let us know how they were splitting up. Rossi and Hotch were going to stay outside while Emily and Morgan were going to head inside, and JJ was going to coordinate with the local PD that had just appeared on site. A few minutes later, the comms started buzzing with back-and-forths.

“Hey, Hotch,” Emily said into the comms. “It looks like Robert was in the apartment, and there was a struggle. There’s a chance he could have escaped, which means that Shane and his bunk mate are probably chasing him around right now.”

Hotch responded, “Alright. You and Morgan continue to search the building, I’ll start a perimeter set up out here.”

“Got it.”

The comms went quiet again. I pouted and slumped forward, resting my elbows on my knees. Reid watched me through his lashes like he was trying not to stare at me. I glanced back at him. When our eyes met, he cleared his throat and shuffled around in his seat to make it look like he was keeping busy with the files in front of him. I rolled my eyes.

“You remember when you were shot in the leg and Hotch made you stay at the office during cases?” I asked quietly, moving to pick at the wood table in an attempt to cure my boredom. Reid hummed an agreement. “How did you not go crazy?”

Perhaps that wasn’t the right wording I should have used around him… He was always nervous about his dilaudid problem and the fear that his mother’s schizophrenia could be passed onto him. “Crazy” wasn’t exactly the right term for Spencer Reid. He was our resident genius, and that put a lot of pressure on him, and I wished that he knew that he wasn’t crazy, but I could tell that he thought he was. So, I almost felt bad for the slip up. But Reid genuinely didn’t seem to notice, which was a relief.

Reid crossed his legs, getting himself comfortable, and he looked back up at me with a little more confidence this time around. “I’m not gonna lie, Y/N, it wasn’t fun. None of us are used to sitting at Quantico all day like Garcia is. When Hotch officially benched me after Hankle and getting shot, there were times when I thought I was going crazy. I was extremely anxious while just sitting around all day. And I was killing myself with worry that one of you—or maybe all of you—wouldn’t come home one day… But I had to suck it up and just go with it until I got better because I knew that, ultimately, Hotch was just trying to protect me. Now, he’s just trying to protect you, too. He’d do it for any one of us for any number of reasons. My advice is the same as before. Talk to him, Y/N. And, if that doesn’t work, then just… suck it up and get through the next few months, because no matter how often you argue with him, you’re not going to win. Trust me. I tried.”

“I hate arguing with him, Spencer…”

He nodded. “I know. That’s why it might just be best to let him win this one.”

I lowered my head and leaned back again to focus on kicking the carpet. “Yeah.” Maybe he was right. I mean, maybe I shouldn’t have been taking advice from Spencer Reid, the guy who never had a girlfriend in his life… but his advice was surprisingly nice and welcoming.

“Hotch, we’ve got Robert, but Shane’s gone. We think he might be in the immediate vicinity,” Emily said over the comm again.

I smiled. They got him. They found Ana, and now they had found Robert. Knowing how many cops were crawling around that neighborhood now that Hotch had created that a perimeter, Shane Wyland was probably long gone. There was no way in hell he stuck around long enough to see if he could get Robert back. He likely knew as well as I did that if he managed to escape, he could keep taking other boys like Robert, and he could keep getting away with it. Even now that we knew who we were looking for, the trail was too long for us to track him. He was a ghost in the wind. But none of that necessarily mattered right now. This was technically a win for us. We saved two kids from a monster, and we discovered who that monster was. At least we could keep an eye out for Wyland in the future.

I stood and walked to the boardroom to tell the Courtlands the news. When I told them that their son was alive and well, they jumped to their feet while letting out breaths of relieve, and demanded to see him immediately. I told them that a Ranger would be driving them to the hospital in the city. Within an instant, they were pushing past me, racing to go seek out a Ranger that could take them as soon as possible. I didn’t take offense to that, though. I knew that they were overwhelmed by their joy of knowing that their son was alive, and all they wanted now was to hold him in their arms. It reminded me of Hotch when he found me in Hawai’i.

Hotch…

I sat down on the couch in silence and reflected on what just happened, and what I was inevitably going to say to him. I loved him. I would protect him to every end. In fact, we said as much to each other in our wedding vows a month ago. Maybe Reid was right about not trying to fight all of this, and instead just let Hotch win this time around because it was easier than making a big deal out of it. Inevitably, I was going to get back to work. Probably in about a year or so. And as shitty as that seemed, at least it meant I got to go back. Hotch could have totally insisted that I quit the FBI—though I knew he would never ask me to do that; so, at least he was giving me the chance to still work out of the field. I could live with that for the time being. However, what I needed to discuss with Hotch more than anything was his behavior and how he was going about protecting me, because I really didn’t need him to stifle me through all of this. After being trapped in that cabin in Hawai’i, I never wanted to be trapped anywhere ever again.

When I saw him turn the corner into the office a few hours later after they gave up on looking for Shane Wyland, I nodded sideways towards the doorway I was standing in, letting him know that I needed him to join me. He silently noticed. As the team patted each other on the back and celebrated getting the kid back safe and sound, Hotch quietly and politely excused himself from everyone. They didn’t seem to stop him. Reid saw what was going on, though, and he sent me a supportive smile that let me know I was doing the right thing.

Hotch walked past me into the room, and I closed the door behind him. “Aaron, we need to talk.” I sat down on the couch, but he leaned back against the table with his arms crossed over his chest. He was listening. “I understand that you’re just trying to do what you think is best for me. I know that you think that keeping me locked up in the tower will keep me safe. And I appreciate all of that. I really do. In fact, I love that you want to protect me and take care of me, but you need to realize that at some point, you need to take a step back. That I can’t be babied, Aaron. It’s not in my nature, and we both know that. I can’t have you hovering over my shoulder every second of every day while telling me that I can and can’t do my job. I can do this. It wasn’t unreasonable for me to go out and look for those kids, but it was unreasonable for me to ask to go looking for the Unsub in the city—I know that. I know myself and I know my limits. I’m not going to suddenly break just because I’m pregnant. I’m okay right now.

“When I need to take a step back from the field, I will do so without hesitation or argument; but until then, you need to keep letting me do my job the way I’m supposed to. I just need you to believe in me—"

“If I didn’t believe in you, we wouldn’t have gotten this far.”

“If you believe in me, then just… act like it! Why is it that I always have to go above and beyond to support you and your dreams, but I’m stifled because you’re scared? You believe in me, but you don’t—”

“You have always been able to do what you wanted, Y/N! I have done everything I can to restrain myself from being controlling in every aspect of our lives, despite the fact that it’s all I know. I grew up in a household where my father was controlling, manipulative, and abusive. That was how I learned to become a man, and I always thought that would work because I was young and naïve; but Haley left, and you came along— and you…” He took in a deep breath. “You have always been this wild and free spirit that I knew I couldn’t control, so I wanted to step back and let you thrive because I know you’re capable of so much, Y/N. Do you remember that I wouldn’t even fucking look at you when you joined the team because I was so fucking in love with you that I didn’t know how to stop myself from letting my feelings trump your dreams? But you came waltzing into my office, demanding answers, and the next thing I knew, you were meeting Jack and telling me that you love me. I have had to fight an inner battle every single day since meeting you between screaming from the top of my lungs how much I love you and want to hide you away from the cruelness of this world, and letting you spread your wings and flourish as an agent. You deserve every bit of happiness, and I know that a lot of that comes from your work, so I never want to step on your toes. But you’re my wife, Y/N. I made a vow to you that I would protect you, no matter what. And, you’re right… maybe I’m being more protective with you than I have with anyone in the past, but can you blame me? Dammit, with everything I’ve been through, can you blame me for not wanting to lose you, too?”

His eyes wandered to my stomach as he sat back down. “We’re having a baby, Y/N. I’m not just protecting you anymore, and you’re not just taking care of yourself anymore. What happens if you get shot, hmm? What happens if you get stabbed like Foyet did to me? What happens if you get taken again like in Hawai’i? What happens if I lose you like I lost Kate and Haley? Am I just supposed to pretend like I wouldn’t die without you here? Am I supposed to forget about you and the best few years of my life? Why do I have to pretend like I don’t care just to make you feel better about yourself? Since meeting you, I could never bear the thought of losing you, but now I can’t bear the thought of losing either of you,” he pressed a palm to my stomach. “Aren’t my feelings valid, too? Don’t I get a say in the safety of our child?” He cupped my face with his other hand. “Please don’t make me lose you, too. I won’t live if I lose you.” He sniffled as a tear slid down his cheek. I reached up and carefully wiped it away with my thumb. “I believe in you, Y/N, more than I even believe in myself…” He screwed his eyes shut as the tears started to fall faster. “But I don’t want to lose you because you’re too damn stubborn to just sit out of the field for a few months.” He sniffled again. “Why is it so hard for you to just understand that I love you so much that it hurts to even think about being away from you? Can’t you just accept that I want what’s best for you— I always have— and right now that means keeping you safe from any harm.”

I rested my forehead against his. “I’m sorry.”

“You don’t have to be sorry, Y/N. I just need you to understand that I love you. More than anything.”

I kissed away a tear running down his cheek. “I know, baby.”

“If I didn’t believe in you… I couldn’t have stood before all of our friends and family a month ago, and said, ‘This is the person I can’t bear to lose. This is the one thing in my life I can’t lose.’ That’s what I thought we agreed on…”

He reached out and wrapped his arms around me, pulling me in for a hug so that he could hide his face in the crook of my neck. I tangled my fingers in his hair. I hadn’t meant to upset him, but I just needed him to know how I was feeling—but I had never stopped to ask myself how he was feeling, which was incredibly selfish of me.

“How about this,” I began offering carefully, waiting to see if he would stop me, but he didn’t, “when I start to show, I’ll stay back at the office with Garcia.” It wasn’t what I wanted, but if it made him feel better, I was willing to make that compromise.

He sniffled and sat up. We held each other’s faces, searching each other’s eyes, trying to find a reason that we shouldn’t agree to that. But there was no reason not to. If it were up to him, I would be sitting at home for the next few months, but that wasn’t reasonable for me; and if it were up to me, I would be in the field up until the day I was giving birth, but Hotch would never let that happen in a million years. At least, being at Quantico meant that I could still help with the cases and the profiles.

“The office or the house at any given moment,” he negotiated.

I shrugged and nodded.

“Okay.” He leaned in to kiss me before hugging me again, our chins tucked over each other’s shoulders. “I love you.”

I grabbed onto the fabric of his shirt on his back, feeling the way his broad shoulders tensed, and his breathing had slowed. I smiled lightly against him. We were going to be okay. “I love you, too.”

---------

criminal minds family: @peggy1999 @gorgeousdarkangel @alex--awesome--22 @oceaneblu @desperately-bisexual @brithedemonspawn @absolutemarveltrash @bshelley322 @rousethemouse @sunshinepower17 @weexinling @pettttyyyc @Braty-angel

#Criminal Minds #criminal minds fanfic #Criminal Minds Fanfiction #criminal minds smut #criminal minds imagine #aaron hotchner #Aaron Hotch Hotchner #aaron hotchner fanfic #aaron hotchner fanfiction #aaron hotchner imagine #aaron hotchner x reader

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chinuppoppins · 4 years

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Dani and Jamie: Revolutionary War AU

(so this is about six pages long and my first fic in 2 years. It was six pages long so I will be posting a part 2 to my AO3 later)

The air outside was crisp and cool, a perfect autumn night. It was nice out on the balcony compared to the stuffy and noisy air in the ballroom behind her. It was not like she hated parties, she just did not like being around a lot of people. It was the looks of pity that she was still given after all this time, the whispers from the patrons how she was too young, too pretty, too delicate to be a widow. It was the ones that were a bit cruel, how he died foolishly and wickedly with no gravestone.

Duels, according to some was compared to suicided. Rumors went around why her late husband, a private in the ongoing revolution, dueled a fellow man, but she new the truth. A rumor, no, a truth about her, how she allowed a woman’s touch to linger and how her husband had to defend her- no, his honor. His pistol backfired after she begged him to raise it to the sky and he laid dead in the mud in Jersey of all places. She had been in their small Philadelphia home before an errand boy came for her. Her husband was already dead by the time she arrived at the doctor’s home and she wept of course and shakily took his cracked spectacles from his greying face. He died for her selfishness and she reminded about that every time she looked in a mirror, he was always behind her, haunting her memories.

“Dani,” She turns around to see her aunt standing at the doorway. “Come inside, you’ll catch a chill from being out here.” The older women smiled. “Besides a group of Washington’s men have just arrived and they are pretty easy on the eyes.” She added with a wink. “And you look like you could use a drink.”

She allows a small laugh to escape her lips before she nods her head and allows her aunt to take her arm and drag her back into the busy room. Sure enough men in blue coats now added themselves to the festivities. Women surrounded them, faces flushed and full of giggles, wine for sure helped give them their glow. She took a glass for herself as she scanned the room, finding a lone solider standing beside a potted plant, inspecting the drooping leaves. Dani sighed as she downed her glasses before pulling the server over to grab another one, she had to keep up an appearance. Though as she made her way over to the lone solider, a friend stopped her for a second. “Careful, Dani.” She slurs just a bit. “That ones a bit odd, a mute apparently.”

Dani raises a brow, even better. She did not have to fake a laugh at terrible jokes. “Odd, just my type.” She jokes as her friend shrugs. So, she makes her way across the room to the odd solider in the blue coat with red and white trim. “I’m guessing that plant is a better conversation than the people in her.” She laughs a bit awkwardly. “Probably better than the night sky.”

The solider turns around and Dani is surprised by his feminine features, she had to blink to make sure that she was seeing delicate features on this man. If she did not know any better- no, masquerading around as a man was a crime that was punishable by death. She knew the story of Joan of Arc. “My name is Danielle, I wanted to thank you for your service.”

The solider smiles softly and nods, not speaking.

“I’m sorry if this seems odd, but could I keep your company for the rest of the night?” Dani asks. “I’m a bit of an outcast myself and I’d rather not be here but being that this is my aunt’s home and I still have to social climb, I have to. So?”

The solider nods and keeps her company. They do not move from the wilting plant, but every time a waiter passes them, either she or the solider grabs them another glass of wine. Dani finds herself a bit drunk as she talks to the solider, well more talks at rather than too. The solider listens and Dani cannot help but to let almost everything off her shoulders. The solider seems intrigued though, their own brow raising when she speaks about the rumor that got his husband killed, while adding with a whisper that maybe it was not just a rumor. Dani’s eyes widen in horror after realizing what she let slip, that rumor, that lie could get her committed or worse. So, she stands up and excuses herself, turning in horror when she realizes the solider is following her. A cool rush of fear washes over her as she picks up her pace, trying to find a lone balcony and when she is unable to find one, she settles to the empty gardens. For a moment, Dani thinks she is alone and lets out a shaky breath before she feels a hand on her arm.

Dani jumps back and lets out a jumble of words. “I- I’m drunk and I just, I don’t- I.”

“It’s alright.” The solider finally speaks, a soft and womanly voice to match their feminine features. “I’m not going to say anything.”

Dani’s eyes widen in awe, because her intuition was right, this solider was a woman and perhaps she was braver than her male counterparts. “You’re- you, do you realize what they would do if they found out?”

The other woman rolls her eyes. “Do you have any idea what they would do to you if they found out about you?” She questions back. “You need to be careful who you tell your truth too, you’re a pretty face, they wouldn’t kill you. They would just try to fix you and I don’t think you want that.”

Dani frantically looks around as she struggles to process this. “I don’t understand.” She finally whispers. “Why would you risk your life to fight in the war?”

The woman sighs. “It’s complicated- family is complicated.” Her eyes narrow. “Why would you tell me your truth?”

“I- I don’t know, I’ve had a lot to drink and I just felt that you were- are,” Dani stumbles, finding herself flushing at the woman’s smile.

“Different?” She finishes and Dani nods. “I am different, and I want you to know that there is nothing wrong with being different.” She shucks her hands in her pockets and toes the grass. “I’m Jamie, but the men in there, they think I’m Michael the Mute, you think you can go along with that one?” She grins when Dani nods. “Good and how about after this party is over and we part ways, you write to me? I’d love to have someone to talk to.”

“Of course.” Dani agrees. It is a nice feeling to have a friend in all of this after all and a friend with a secret that was almost as dangerous as her own.

By the time Dani hears from her dear friend again, a fresh blanket of snow covers the ground, and she took a job as a governess for a prominent patriot family. She is walking the grounds with the two children, reading aloud a story to them as the snow crunches beneath their feet. Their lesson is interrupted when the housekeeper, Mrs. Grose, a tender and devote woman comes out to her with a letter. The older woman raises a brow and of course Dani loses the children to the fresh snow at their feet. “A letter from a suitor?” Mrs. Grose asks while a snowball speeds past their heads, missing them by a mere inch. Despite the chilly air, Dani blushes. She never once thought of Jamie as a suitor. After all, being with another woman was frowned upon. Part of her, however, did not care. She breaks the wax seal and settles down on a bench as she reads the letter with a mile-wide smile on her face. Jamie was brave, very brave with what she was doing. True, Dani didn’t her motives, why she was parading around as a solider. As she reads, little Flora joins her on the bench, peering over her shoulder as she reads about Jamie’s adventures, she was in Jersey now. She spoke about how the men were becoming weary and sick of battle. So many good men lost due to freeing this country and Jamie spoke about the sympathy she felt towards the dead and their families. However, she pauses for a moment when she reads how excited she is to come home and see her. She had hoped to be home around Christmas, however rumors about a new plan to push back the British was in the works. So maybe, just maybe she would be home after Christmas and that she would be honored to be able to celebrate with her. “Miss. Clayton?” Flora’s little voice breaks her trance. “Who is the letter from? Do you have someone special?”

Dani laughs a bit and then nods. “Something like that, it’s from a friend.”

“Just a friend?” Miles asks coyly.

Flora giggles. “Yes, Miss. Clayton. You are blushing.”

Dani folds the letter up and sticks it into her pocket. “This has nothing to do with your lessons today. Now come along, your parents expect you to be fluent in French by the end of this year and my personal life has nothing to do with that.”

Letters come frequently now and Dani always writes back quickly always ending each letter with ‘Yours, Dani’ while every letter to her starts with a ‘My Dearest, Dani’ She is in her room when she reads that and she giggles and giggles and giggles with a flushed face. It was an odd feeling; she never felt this way about her own husband. There was a different feeling with Eddie, almost how friend loves another friend. Reading letter from Jamie made her heart race, her palms sweat and cause her stomach to flutter. Dani felt giddy, like a child on Christmas morning and she becomes even more excited when she reads that Jamie would be visiting her soon, about how they were victorious in Trenton and how she earned this break. It would be after Christmas, possibly after the new year.

Jamie keeps her promise and manages to arrive a few days after the new year to the mansion she was staying in. The children spot her first and perk up from their books. “Miss. Clayton! Miss Clayton, look! It’s the solider you’ve been writing to!”

In her last letter, Dani told Jamie it was okay to be herself. Mr. and Mrs. Wingrave were a different breed of people. They knew about Dani’s truth and never spoke a word about it, they were kind and had open hearts. They understood her and accepted her, and she knew they would do the same for Jamie.

Dani walks from the blackboard to the window to peer out the frost covered glass, forcing it up when she realized that it was Jamie pushing herself through the snow. “Jamie!” Dani shouts, voice full of joy into the winter air. Jamie looks up, using her hand to block out the sun. “You’re early!”

Jamie scoffs. “Yes, well, I wanted to surprise you.” She shouts back. “But it looks like my plans was thwarted by two little imps.” She points towards the children.

Laughing, Dani pushes herself from the window while Flora and Miles watch from the window. “Miss. Clayton was telling the truth, the solider is a girl.” Miles points out as their governess rushes out of the classroom and down the stairs. The large doors fling open and Flora sighs when Dani rushes into her arms while their laughter fills the morning air. “It’s romantic, isn’t it, Miles?” Flora leans on her hand. “To see Miss. Clayton smile like that, it’s perfectly-”

“Splendid, yes, yes.” The older boy finishes as he fixes his jacket. “Come along, Flora, we should introduce ourselves properly.”

“Oh, how exciting!” Flora exclaims. “I have so many questions for the lady solider, how scandalous.” She adds with a giggle.

Miles turns quickly and puts a finger to his lips. “Flora remember that we mustn’t tell anyone about Miss. Clayton and her friend. Remember what mother and father said, if people find out- they won’t be kind.”

When the children enter the foyer, they see their governess taking the blue coat off of her- well the children were smart, they quickly picked up that perhaps that Jamie was more than just a friend even if the adults were too shy to admit it. “This is full of holes.” Dani seems to tease, poking her finger through one of the tears. “Did anyone teach you how to sew?”

The woman shrugs. “Oh yes, fixing the holes is number one on my list, right under evading British gunfire.”

“I can patch that up for you.” Mrs. Grose says as she comes out of the parlor and takes that coat from Dani. “This one here is terrible at it, I’ve seen her attempt it on the children’s clothes. It is her fingers that need the patching up when she’s finished. I am Mrs. Grose, the Wingrave’s housekeeper,” She looks at Dani, smiling. “It’s nice to finally be able to meet you. We have heard so much about you, the children and I light a candle for you every morning, we are just so taken with your bravery.”

“Oh, the children!” Dani had almost forgotten about them; she was just too entranced by Jamie being here. While only meeting in person once, it was the letters that brought them close. The playful nicknames and the plans for the future, hints here there about their past. The little tidbits of information that was passed only between the two, things that she would leave out when she had read them out loud to the children. She spots them though, standing by the staircase and ushers them over. “This young man right here is Miles, and this little lady is Flora.”

Flora pushes herself in front of her brother and curtseys. “Oh, it is such a pleasure to meet you. Miss. Clayton told us about your adventures, why, we didn’t even know you were a woman until- well until a few days ago.” She took Jamie’s hand and gave it a squeeze. “Father says we are fighting for,” She pauses as she recalls her lessons. “Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness and he says that Miss. Clayton and you both have a right to be happy.” Flora beams as she clapped her hands together. “He and mother have a wonderful offer for you at dinner. It’s perfectly splendid.”

Jamie blinks while impressed with the little girl’s vocabulary. She raises an eyebrow towards Dani as she knelt in front of her. “Well aren’t you an intelligent little thing, how old are you?”

“She’s eight and I’m ten.” Miles speaks up, stepping forward. “And our intelligence is all thanks to our wonderful teacher. Lessons can be boring, but Miss. Clayton makes it fun for us. She says, sometimes it’s better to learn with you hands rather than being in a book all day.”

Jamie smirks while Dani blushes. Jamie once stated in a letter that she learned almost everything she knew today with her hands. It is how she learned to farm and to paint after all. “Well, Miss. Clayton sure knows what she is doing.” She grins over toward Dani. “She is very bright, after all.”

Mrs. Grose looks between the two and then walks over towards the children, standing between them. “Well, I think we’ve bothered you long enough and I think the children deserve the rest of the day off, wouldn’t you agree Miss. Clayton. That way you and Jamie can catch up, maybe show her where she is staying?”

Dani brightens and nods her head. “Yes, of course. I’m sure you two can busy yourselves and stay out of trouble?” The children both nod, Flora exclaiming that she does need some time with her dolls while Miles takes his book into the parlor. “They are only being this well behaved because they are dying to hear your stories.” Dani whispers, as she leads Jamie up the stairs. As they wander into one of the halls, Jamie stops, causing Dani to turn to her in concern.

“Are you sure that it’s safe?” Jamie asks. “You trust these people enough?”

Using both of her hands, Dani cups her face, a serene smile on her face. “I promise you; we’ll be safe here. They actually want you to work here after the war, they want to give us a small plot of land on the Manor to build a home.”

Jamie chuckled as she covered her hand over hers, pressing her forehead against Dani’s with her eyes closed. She felt at peace for the first time in a long time, like this woman was her home. “How did you even find these people?”

“They found me,” Dani sighs. “But that is a story for later, you look exhausted. When was the last time you had a good sleep?”

Pulling back, Jamie shrugs. “I have no idea really.”

Dani takes her hand and leads her to her room. “Well, lucky for you, there are some pretty comfortable beds here.”

Once she gets settle, Dani wants to be courteous and give her some time alone. However, Jamie stops her asking her to stay. So, she does, and they lay into bed together, Jamie reaching out to run her fingers through her blonde hair. Her eyes flutter and she breathed a sigh of relief. “Can I tell you something? Just please don’t start thinking I’m strange.”

Jamie scoffs. “I already think you’re a bit strange, Dani, but that’s what I adore about you.” She adds with a wink. “What it is?”

Dani reaches and takes Jamie’s free hand, caressing her rough knuckles. “Before you came along, I always saw him, my late husband. He was my childhood friend, everyone expected us to marry so, we did. I never loved him, not the way he loved me and that and my attraction to women is what got him killed in the end. Sometimes I would feel him over my shoulder, catch him out of the corner of my eye. I guess the guilt was driving me mad, but then, I read your letters and I just felt- different. I stopped seeing him, he no longer haunts me. I just wish things were different.”

“His pride killed him, darling, not you.” Jamie assures her. “How do you mean though, with wishing things were different?”

Dani smirks, bringing Jamie’s hand towards her lips, gently kissing her knuckles. “I wish I met you earlier. Then we could just be two spinsters, living in a cabin with two cats- maybe a dog too.”

Jamie snorts and rolls her eyes. “Yes, spinsters wouldn’t raise eyebrows. We all know what they are doing in their life of celibacy.” She adds with raised brows, laughing at her own joke before Dani moves in, taking her- hell maybe herself by surprise and kisses her softly and slowly. She pulls away just an inch, a soft laugh escapes her lips. “Never done that with another woman before, hm?

Dani shakes her head and Jamie grins. “No I- you’re the first.”

“Well,” She runs both hands into her hair. “We should keep at it practice makes perfect, after all.” Jamie points out, pressing her lips against Dani’s smiling against her lips when she felt her relax in her arms. They had all afternoon alone and Jamie planned to make it a memorable one.

#dani x jamie #the haunting of bly manor #dani clayton #my edits #sorry the moodboard is kinda blah #finding good pictures of Amelia is rough

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simply-not-an-egg · 3 years

Text

The Next Karate Kid - A Probably Very Opinionated Commentary by Yours Truly

I really am trying to go into this with an open mind; let’s see how this goes.

Starting off with a military band? K sure, you do you sweetie, and I don’t hate it yet so that’s a positive

Aha, a military REUNION, I see. And look at Miyagi with his medal!! Sweet!

So I think if I remember from reading the plot on wikipedia that Miyagi new this guy who was married to the woman he just said hello to

Y’all they got Miyagi’s name wrong. His first name is Nariyoshi not Kesuke. That is his middle name. Although in saying that, I feel like that was more or less revealed in Cobra Kai so idk, anyway, for future reference, Miyagi’s first name is Nariyoshi

Also Louisa Pierce? I assume grandmother of Julie? That would make sense

Ooh we’re in Boston for this, and look at that big white house

Yes, Louisa is grandmother, oh and hello Julie!

Julie is unhappy, a little moody, sweetie are you okay?

Alright so Julie’s an orphan! Why does Miyagi keep picking up either somewhat or completely orphaned children?? I mean, I guess that’s good but also, why?

Ooh yay Miyagi advice about losing parents and grief!

Alright so now Louisa’s gonna fuck off to California while Miyagi takes care of the child

Said child who has now snuck into some place - OH THAT”S RIGHT THE SCHOOL AND THE BIRD

Yes I remember this from wikipedia plot

I like birdy, birdy is nice, and yes Julie talk to birdy, birdy is unjudgemental friend

Now time for the Animal Studies me to take over, that wing is NOT bandaged securly at all. Wing bandages should be wrapped around the wing and on the body, to keep the damaged wing still, thank you very much

Police have come! Julie gonna get arrested, maybe? Unless girl escapes, although that’s evading police then, and now she threw a torch, that’s attempted assault. Idk what it’s like in the USA, but in my state (Queensland, AUS) that’s a $5,500 fine and 50 days in jail (evasion), and a $5,338 - $8,007 fine and 6 - 12 months in jail (police assault, depends on severity)

Have fun in prison, Julie! Oop, nevermind she’s home again

Anyway, I wonder what Daniel’s doing at this time. Wiki says Julie was born in 1977, which is a whole ten years after Daniel, and considering she’s in high school I’d say she’s about 16/17 in this movie, which brings us to like 1993/1994. Perhaps this was around the time he met Amanda, maybe even started dating her? They got married in 1998 (I believe), so it would make sense for that to happen

Bonding moment for Louisa and Julie? No, nevermind

Miyagi’s happy! Love that! He’s going to make special birthday dinner!

Straight of the bat though like the dynamics are so different. Like the moment Daniel ever so much as raises his voice at Miyagi, the dude’s a little disheartened whereas Julie talks shit here and Miyagi’s like “haha, you’re funny, anyway, let’s talk about Japanese cuisine, yes?”

Okay but I LOVE the fucking ‘sayonara’ and dissapointed headshake like, man, Miyagi, legend

This school’s nothing compared to West Valley imo

Alos that little gang? Those coordinated outfits? Do y’all not have a personality? Feel like the Cobras get a win on being comfortable with their own skin whilst also maintaining such a well-formed group

You can see I’m biased, and I’ll probably remain biased, because, two seconds into seeing this Boston group and I’m already dissappointed by the lack of personality. Again, two seconds of Cobras and y’all know you’re in for a ride, and a good one at that

I like the little garden corner that Julie’s at it’s very nice and peaceful

Back to the group, they look like real dickheads. Also, Ned? Shit name for a ‘bad boy’. Also, please stop trying to coerce Julie

I’ve seen this fucker for, what, a minute, if that? And I absolutely hate everything about him. I also don’t like how he sorta just, enters?? Like, at least with the Cobras we knew what their intentions were right off the bat. Here, well, what does Ned want Julie for? Why does he want her with him and his friends? Like, please establish that before anything else

Also why he standing like a Roblox character

The Alpha League? Really? Y’all really tryna be cool with that aren’t ya? Do I smell some toxic masculinity? I think I do?

WHY DOES THAT HIGH SCHOOL DUDE LOOK LIKE HE’S 30 DUDE

Ew I hate that school bell

Please get out of the girl’s bathroom sir

Not the fucking wing bandage again, jesus christ. And shot in the wing?? Y’all really gotta have that shit strapped then, STOP LETTING THE BIRD MOVE HER WING THAT IS GOING TO DAMAGE IT MORE

“I’ll call Dominos Pizza and have them deliver 48 pizzas to your house in the middle of the night” ma’am that is a dream come true, first of all, and second of all, please work on your threats, thank you

Okay but is this military training or phys ed??

Miyagi looks so nice in his checkered shirt! Anyway, I swear that’s like the only thing I love about this movie, Mr Miyagi that is

Teacher just slapped a kid and choked him, alrighty then

Oop and here comes Miyagi, defending kids since 1984!!

Love that. “Boy, you okay?” like just the delivery of this line it’s so neutral I love it

Ah yes, threatening a bastard with a story about a bull, the best

Honestly stan how passive-aggressive Miyagi is at any given time

Yeah okay but honestly it would be better for that bird to be taken away considering that god awful bandaging job

“It’s just a car” EXCUSE YOU JULIE, as a car person myself I take PERSONAL offence to that. That’s not just a car, that’s his child, his other half, his soulmate, his everything, thank you very much

That’s right tell her off for saying that, good lad

On a sidenote; my video quality is shit, like super shit, because I’m streaming on Netflix and there’s a few other people in the house using internet so like, :(

“For a while he was sending money and then one day he just stopped” ah yes, every child of divorced parents can relate to this statement very well

i’m sorry but the music is so cheesy

anyway, i was gonna say that this movie lacks something, and i remembered what it is, and that is love. Like with KK1, 2, and 3, you can tell a lot of love and heart and soul went into making those movies (maybe not as much with 2 and 3, but it was still there and in good amounts). Meanwhile, this just feels like a cashgrab (which it is, and a very failed one at that)

Like, when will people learn that well-crafted media will get you better reviews/more money/whatever?

I hate this fucking background music so much jesus christ please kill it

Please tell someone about the hawk i am worried for its health

The fact that Miyagi has lived with Daniel so long to a point where he’s forgotten he has to actually knock on doors (because you bet your ass Daniel was and still is the type of person who really just doesn’t give a single fuck about who sees him doing what)

This poor man tbh. So ashamed of himself

FUCKING I WAS RIGHT I LITERALLY JUST SAID THAT WHOLE SHIT ABOUT MIYAGI AND DANIEL NOT GIVING TWO SHITS ABOUT SEEING EACH OTHER DO WHATEVER AND NOW MIYAGI’S JUST OUTRIGHT CONFIRMED THAT

“Boy is easier” 100% I will agree, hence the reason I’d like sons in the future. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I’d like at least 1 daughter as well but holy hell are females complicated (and I should know because I am one)

“Don’t order me around” sweetie, he isn’t ordering you, he’s making a helpful suggestion. Please stop the Miyagi slander, my man does NOT deserve this treatment

Miyagi, love you bb, but please don’t waste your advice on Julie at the moment

Speaking of, I greatly dislike Julie, but you know why that is? Because she’s really not been fleshed out as a charater, unlike the others we see in the KKU. Like her one redeeming quality is that she looks after a bird, but even that isn’t redeeming to me because she isn’t caring for it properly, like please take it to a fucking veterinarian

I feel like I’d enjoy Julie more if she was actually fleshed out but like, no, no, she’s just a whole “I’m an orphan so I’m always angsty grr” character and I just - I’m disappointed

Same goes for the other characters; again, the only thing/person I love about this movie so far is Miyagi, and with the way it’s been in these first 25 minutes, I doubt that’ll change

Yeah no I really fucking hate Julie. “You can’t even speak English” she says, even though she has understood every single word Miyagi has said thus far

Ah yes because people can definitely jump on cars and cars can definitely go unnoticed for such a long period of time in a quiet neighbourhood

I honestly feel like giving up on this movie like it’s so bad

But I want to see more Miyagi so 😬

No offence to Hilary Swank but her line delivery could do a bit more work during the ‘emotional scen’ with her and Miyagi

And again, music, hate it

I am literally willing to turn this movie off even if it means I don’t get to see more Miyagi content

Like I can not express my displeasure for this movie enough

Yes, Miyagi, same, I hate the 12am rock concert in Julie’s bedroom to. Like please, gurl, some of us have sleep schedules

Okay so now Julie’s worried about her appearance?? Y’all just made my hatred for her character rise again. When was she ever worried about that? imo this is just put in there to make people remember that she’s still “girl uwu 😙✌”

Haha, yes, pay Miyagi with the homework that’s right

Bet he did that with Daniel after the tournament like “you do homework, I teach karate”

“Boys easier” AGAIN I AGREE SO MUCH MIYAGI

Okay so I’ve sat through 33 minutes of this bullshit and I am going to quit for today. I’m sorry to anyone that does like this movie, but like I really don’t, it sucks in so many ways. Words cannot describe the sheer amount of dissapointment I have for this. Like, it could have been good! The idea is solid and the base of the characters is somewhat okay! And yet they made this shit instead of something actually worthwhile!

I will continue tomorrow, but for now I just need a break from this before I hit something.

#karate kid #the next karate kid #julie pierce #mr miyagi

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wonderfulworldofmichaelford · 4 years

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Michael in the Mainstream: The Chris Columbus Harry Potter Films

Here’s a bold stance to take these days: I actually still really love the Harry Potter franchise.

Yes, this series hasn’t had a huge impact on my own writing; my stories I’m working on draw far more from JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure and the Percy Jackson series than they do Harry Potter. And yes, the author of the franchise has outed herself as a transphobic scumbag whose every post-script addition to her franchise has been an unprecedented bad move (save, perhaps, for allowing Johnny Depp the opportunity to work during a very trying time in his life). But while the author is a horrendous person and the story hasn’t exactly given me as much to work with as other stories have, there are so many great themes, ideas, and characters that even now I’d still say this is one of my favorite series of all time. The world of Harry Potter is just so fascinating, the usage of folklore is interesting, and it has one of the most menacing and disturbing villains in young adult literature and manages to play the whole “love prevails over evil” cliché in such a way that it actually works.

And, of course, then we get into what I’m really here to talk about: the adaptations. The movies are not entirely better than the books; while I do think most of the films are on par with their novel counterparts, and they certainly do a good job of scrubbing out some of the iffier elements in Rowling’s writing, I still think there’s a certain, ahem, magic that the books have that gives them a slight edge. But, look, I’m a movie reviewer, and these films are some of my favorites of all time, and as much as I love the books I’m not going to sit around and say the books surpass them in every single way. There’s a lot to love in these films, and hopefully I’ll be able to convey that as I review the series.

Of course, the only place to truly start is the Chris Columbus duology. Columbus is not the most impressive director out there – this is the man who gave us Rent, Pixels, and that abominable adaptation of Percy Jackson after all – but early on in his career he made a name for himself directing whimsical classics such as the first two Home Alone movies and Mrs. Doubtfire. Those films are wonderfully cast and have a lot of charm, and thankfully this is the Columbus we got to bring us the first two entries in Harry’s story.

One of the greatest strengths of the first two Harry Potter movies is just the sheer, unrelenting magic and wonder they invoke. They’re so whimsical, so enchanting, so fun; they fully suck you into the world Rowling created and utilize every tool they can to keep you believing. Everything in these films serves to heighten the magic; practical effects and CGI come together with fantastic costuming and set design to make the world of wizards and Hogwarts school feel oh so real. And of course, none of this would be even remotely as effective if not for the legendary score by John Williams, who crafted some of the most iconic and memorable compositions of the 21st century for these films. In short: the tone of these films is pretty perfect for what they are, and every element in them works to make sure you are buying into this tone at every moment.

The other massively important element is the casting, and by god, the casting in these films is simply perfect. Of course, the title characters and his peers have to be unknowns, and thankfully they managed to pluck out some brilliant talent. I don’t need to tell you how good Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson are, even back in these films, but I do feel the need to say that Rupert Grint is vastly underappreciated; I really don’t think the films would work quite as well without his presence, because he does bring that goofy charm Harry’s friend group needs to balance it out. Matthew Lewis is the adorable coward Neville Longbottom and Tom Felton is the snotty brat Draco Malfoy, and though both of their roles are fairly minor in the first two films they manage to make their mark. The second movie pulls in Bonnie Wright as Ginny, and again, I’m gonna say she’s rather underrated; I think she did quite a fine job in her role.

But of course, the real draw of these films is the sheer amount of star power they have in terms of U.K. actors. You’ve got Maggie Smith (McGonagall), Robbie Coltrane (Hagrid), Warwick Davis (Flitwick and, bafflingly, only the voice of Griphook, who was played by the American Verne Troyer in the first film for… some reason), John Hurt (Ollivander), Toby Jones (Dobby), John Cleese (Nearly Headless Nick)… and this is only the first two films. The movies would continue pulling in stars like it was Smash Ultimate, determined to tell you that “EVERYONE IS HERE” and be the ultimate culmination of U.K. culture.

Of course, even in the first few movies there are those who truly stand out as perfect. Smith and Coltrane are most certainly the perfect embodiment of their characters, but I think a great deal of praise should be given to Richard Griffiths as Uncle Vernon; the man is a volatile, raging bastard the likes of which you rarely see, and he is at once repulsive and comical. He’s pretty much the British answer to J.K. Simmons as J. Jonah Jameson. Then we have Jason Isaacs as Lucius Malfoy in the second film, and he is just delightfully, deliciously devilish and dastardly. Isaacs actually came up with a lot of Mr. Malfoy’s quirks himself, such as the long blonde hair, the cane wand, and the part where he tries to murder a small child in cold blood for releasing his house elf (which came about because he forgot literally every other spell and had just read Goblet of Fire, so...). Then of course there is Kenneth Branagh as Gilderoy Lockhart, and… well, it’s Kenneth Branagh as Gilderoy Lockhart. I don’t think you could find a more perfect casting choice (except perhaps Hugh Grant, who was originally cast but had to drop out). He just really hams it up as the obnoxious blowhard and helps make him much more tolerable than his book counterpart, though he does unfortunately have the lack of plot relevance Lockhart did in the book, which is a problem unique to Lockhart. Fun fact, he is the ONLY Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher in the series to not ultimately matter in regards to the main story.

Of course, the greatest casting choice of them all is most certainly The late, great Alan Rickman as everyone’s favorite greasy potions professor, Severus Snape. I think Rickman goes a long way towards helping make Snape one of the greatest characters of all time, with everything about his performance just being perfect, and what makes it even better is how it would ultimately subvert his typical roles (though that’s a story for a different review). I don’t think either of the first films is really his best outing, butt he first one definitely sets him up splendidly. Snape barely has a role in the second film – something that greatly irritated Rickman during the movie’s production apparently – but he still does a good job with what limited screentime he has. Then we have Richard Harris as Dumbledore. Due to his untimely death, he only played Dumbledore in the first two films, but he really did give a wonderful performance that had all the charm, whimsy, and wonder the Dumbledore of the first few books was full of. The thing is, I don’t know if he would have been able to make the transition into the more serious and darker aspects of Dumbledore that popped up in the later books. I guess we’ll never know, which is truly a shame, but at the very least he gave us a good showing with what little time he had.

My only problems with the first two films are extremely minor, though there is at least one somewhat big issue I have. You see, while I do like everything about these films, I feel like they’re a bit too loyal to the books, not doing enough to distinguish themselves as their own thing like films such as Prisoner of Azkaban would do. But if I’m being honest, this is seriously nitpicky; it’s not like this really makes me think less of the films, because they have way more going for than against them. Stuff like this and the cornier early performances from the kid actors are to be expected when a franchise is still finding its legs. It really is more of a personal thing for me; I prefer when creators allow their own vision to affect an adaptation so that I can see how they perceive and interpret the work, but at the same time the first two Harry Potter books are all about setting up and the main plot doesn’t really kick off until the third and fourth books, so… I guess everything balances out?

It is a bit odd looking back at these first two films and noting how relatively self-contained they are compared to the denser films that were to come; you could much more easily jump into either one of these films and really get what’s going on compared to later movies, where you would almost definitely be lost if you tried to leap in without an inkling of the plot. But that is something I do like, since the first two films have really strong plots that focus more on the magical worldbuilding and developing the characters, setting up an incredibly strong foundation for the series to come. There are a few trims of the plot here and there, but it’s not nearly as major as some things that would end up cut later.

But, really, what’s there to cut? Like I said, these movies are more about the worldbuilding and setting up for later plotlines. They’re relatively simple stories here, and I think that’s kind of their big strengths, because it lets the characters and world shine through. The first film honestly is just Harry experiencing the wizarding world for the first time, with him going from scene to scene and just taking in all of the magical sights. Most of the big plot stuff really happens towards the end, when they make the journey down to the Philosopher’s Stone. The second movie is where things get a lot more plot-heavy, with the film focusing on the mystery of the Chamber of Secrets and all of the troubles that the basilisk within causes. Despite how grim the stories can get, especially the second one, these films never really lose that whimsical, adventurous tone, which is incredibly impressive all things considered.

It’s not really criticisms, but there are a few things that make me a bit sad didn’t happen in the first couple of films, or at the very least offer up some interesting “what could have been” scenarios. I think the most notable missed opportunity is the decision to axe Peeves, despite him being planned and having Rik Mayall film scenes with him only to have said scenes left on the cutting room floor, never to see the light of day; Mayall had some rather colorful words to say about the film after it came out. Sean Connery passing up on playing Dumbledore is another missed opportunity, but Connery has always been awful at picking roles and hates fantasy, so this isn’t shocking to me in the slightest. Terry Gilliam being straight-up told by Rowling she didn’t want him directing is another sad but necessary decision, as was Spielberg dropping out; neither guy would have been a very good fit for the franchise, honestly. Alan Cumming turning down the role of Lockhart because Grint and Watson were going to be paid more than him is a bit… lame, but also I don’t think he’d have been as good as Branagh in the role; as much as I love Cumming, Branagh has this grandiose stage actor hamminess that Lockhart desperately needs. There’s a lot of fascinating trivia facts I learned writing this review, and a lot of it paints some pretty weird pictures of how this franchise could have turned out in another world.

Chamber of Secrets and Sorcerer's Stone are both absolutely fantastic, whimsical fantasy movies, and I’d definitely recommend both of them to anyone who likes the fantasy genre. It’s a great jumping off point for younger people who may not be able to handle something as intense or heavy as, say, The Lord of the Rings making it a very useful gateway drug into fantasy, though it still manages to work perfectly as fun, engaging fantasy on its own. I’m personally more of a fan of the third and eighth movies but I can definitely hear arguments for either of these two being someone’s favorites or even the best in the franchise, because they invoke a lot of nostalgia and charm just thinking about them, good memories of seeing them with my family when I was a kid.

Some have come to view Chamber of Secrets less positively over the years, seeing it as an awkward transitional phase between the lighter, more whimsical adventures and the darker plot-driven ones, but honestly, Between the Columbus films, Chamber is definitely the superior one. It takes everything that was great about the first film and builds on it, and also gives us Lucius Malfoy, Dobby, Gilderoy Lockhart, and way better special effects and a more consistent narrative. The first film is still a classic, of course, but it’s almost episodic in nature and a lot more focused on showing Hogwarts to us than delivering a story. Still, it definitely has the plus of having way more Snape than the second film did, and there’s no arguments against that from me! Both films are very good at what they do, and both definitely deserve a watch.

#Michael in the Mainstream #Harry Potter #Christopher Columbus #fantasy #fantasy film #Daniel Radcliffe #Emma Watson #Rupert Grint #Alan Rickman

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wolfpawn · 5 years

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I Hate You, I Love You, Chapter 13

Chapter Summary - Tom tries to call Danielle but reaches Paul. Then he breaks up with Taylor but is that as easy as it seems.

Previous Chapter

Rating - Mature (some chapters contain smut)

Triggers - references to Tom Hiddleston’s work with the #MeToo Movement. That chapter will be tagged accordingly.

authors Note - I have been working on this for the last 3 years, it is currently 180+ chapters long. This will be updated daily, so long as I can get time to do so, obviously.

If you wish to be tagged, please let me know.

tags: @sweetkingdomstarlight-blog @jessibelle-nerdy-mum @nonsensicalobsessions @damalseer @hiddlesbitch1

“Hello?” Tom was about to speak until he heard the man’s voice on the other side of the line. “Hello?”

“Is this Elle’s phone?”

“Yes, she’s just in the shower at the moment. Is it important, I can get her if it is?” The man offered.

“No, it’s not important, well it can wait.”

“I see.” The other man did not sound overly convinced. “Will I tell her who called?”

“Please.”

“Right, so perhaps a name would be a place to start.” The man chuckled.

“Is my number not in her phone anymore?”

“It’s Tom, Diana’s son?” the voice seemed to realise then who he was.

“Yes, it is.”

“With all due respect Mr Hiddleston, Danni needs time, she is grateful for your statement, but you know, she’s a lot more vulnerable than she admits to being. What you exposed her to, it has caused her to be very upset, the kind that is not instantly fixed.”

“I know, I just want to make it better.”

“Then perhaps wait for her to contact you. I will tell her you called, but please do not do so again without her permission, if she wants to talk to you, can she call this number?”

“Yes.” Tom’s voice became and defeated. “Yes, she can.”

“I promise, I’ll tell her when she comes out.”

“You’re the doctor.”

“Paul, my name is Paul.” Paul corrected.

“I…I’m sorry for my rudeness the last time we met, for interrupting your day.”

“Somehow I do not think it was your intention to do so.” There seemed to be understanding in the other man's tone. “One moment.”

“Who are you talking to?” Tom heard as a hand went over the mouthpiece, having just heard a female voice muffled in the background, he recognised it as Elle’s, followed by a response and a small noise that could be accused of being a door closing.

“Sorry, I told her it was you, but she just walked away again.” Paul apologised. “When she is ready, I’m sure she’ll want to talk again.”

“Thank you.”

“No problem, and thank you for trying to fix things.”

“It took me long enough.”

“As the saying goes, better late than never,” Paul commented. “Goodbye, Mr. Hiddleston.”

When Tom hung up the phone, he sighed. He wanted to apologise to Danielle, she had said that when he had righted things when he was the Tom she knew, she would talk with him again, but she had actively left the room when she knew it was him on the phone. He felt somewhat angry at her for that.

“So no instant fawning at your feet then? She’ll bide her time, make it seem real.” He turned to see Taylor taking her boots off behind him.

“I don’t want to hear it. She is with someone, he seems to know her enough to be in the adjoining room to where she is showering, so clearly they are serious, so whatever bullshit you keep trying to fill my head with can stop.”

Taylor studied him for a moment. “Wow,” she laughed. “You are so pathetic.”

“We’re done Taylor, I’m done.”

The smile fell from her face. “What?”

“This relationship is over, I am going home, to London, to my family and friends and I am going to pretend the last few months of humiliation and ridicule never happened and get on with my life.” He stated plainly.

“So you,” she pointed to him “are breaking up with me?” she pointed to herself; Tom nodded. “I did what you asked.”

“Because you lied about my friend.”

She looked at him and erupted in laughter causing Tom to frown. “Fine, shoo, off with you so.” She made an ushering motion with her hand. “I can have any guy I want, why would I want you and your receding hairline anyway?” That caused Tom to flinch slightly. His hairline was something he had tried to not let bother him, but as fans compared set pictures from the four Marvel films, Tom was forced to acknowledge the timeline of his hairline's receding. “The most pathetic thing about this is that she has someone else now, so you end up with no one.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I was wrong before,” Taylor admitted. “I thought the attraction was one way, but clearly, it’s not. I really should be more insulted, but when I think about it, she is short, plain and in serious need of a personal trainer, I am none of those things, and I never am going to be, so if that is what gets you hard, then clearly it is not my fault.” She shrugged.

“I…”

“Oh please, you are so blind.” She scoffed. “Did talking to her boyfriend, knowing she is probably only showering because they were at it get you annoyed? I mean, he could still have been sitting on the bed, naked after screwing her when he picked up her phone, telling you to get stuffed when he was stuffing her a few minutes before.”

Tom swallowed hard, the idea causing him to feel nauseous, had he not noticed before, when his mother mentioned Paul, and after seeing him in his mother’s house, he had become shorter tempered. Had Taylor actually figured out why? “You need to get yourself together Taylor and grow up.”

“You mean turn old before my time like you Tommy?” she gave him a disgusted look as she eyed him up and down. “No thanks.”

Grabbing his wallet, phone, and his bag, he walked out of the room, turning to look at Taylor one last time as he did. “I really did not think you were the person the tabloids wrote about.”

“I really thought you had a decent sized dick from your photo’s, guess we were both sorely disappointed.” She dismissed. “Don’t bother coming back to me when she doesn’t leave Doctor Low Standards for you straight away, even she seems to be grateful to not have to deal with you, he’s better looking, and he may actually still have hair in ten years, and I never take an ex back.” She started to play on her phone.

Even though it was Tom’s hotel suite, he checked out immediately, before getting into the nearest cab and requesting JFK airport. He rather a night waiting in a departure lounge than staying around Taylor any longer. Her words circled his mind a few times as he sat in the VIP section of the departure area, having paid extortionately to get back to London, via Berlin just to get in the air quicker. In truth, he realised the reason she never was seen again with her ex’s, was probably because they were usually avoiding her, grateful to get away. There was one thing that concerned him, however, her PR spin, she would use the whole debacle to spin her again as a victim, he was sure of it. Taking out his phone, he scrolled to Luke’s number immediately.

“Well, you did it, but she still made it about her, she’s good,” Luke commented, the sounds around him telling Tom he was in public.

“I ended it.”

“Thank you, Jesus.” Luke declared loudly.

“You’re not holy.”

“I might be after this. So, what was the reception?”

“Scoffing, not to mention a couple of dick and hairline blows.”

“Nice classy lady then.”

“Luke, why did I do it?” Tom rubbed his face in his hands.

“I think it had something to do with dicks and blowing as you just stated.”

“Really, jokes?”

“I can’t say, I never saw her as anything but a Siren, beautiful, but all she wants is your doom. Her next album will be interesting; ‘Why British Men Are All Pigs’ or something to that effect.”

“You don’t think she will write about this?”

Luke scoffed. “Tom, she writes about everyone that has even been accused of sticking their dicks in her, it is all she does. Find a victim, fuck him a few times, get her ass kicked to the nearest proverbial curb, and bitch about it for five songs straight. Except with you, she will have hideous humiliating pictures to boot.”

“Jesus.”

“Well I have Cathy, Tia, and Jonathon all keeping an eye on all online media sources, social media included, we are also going to have to run an explanation ourselves.”

“Nothing cruel.”

“Are you actually joking?”

“Nothing on her level.”

“Tom, I would need to get onto the planning authority and hire a fracking company to get to her level,” Luke argued. “She will run you through the dirt, you are aware of that.”

“We are not her, Luke.”

“And that is why she is worth a quarter billion, and you have, well, less than she pays in tax a year.”

“But every penny I earned with hard work.”

“I dunno, it seems to be an awful lot of work to piss off the amount of people she does, her level of dedication to her actions is commendable,” Luke commented.

“Luke?”

“I have something done, effectively you are not willing to let any too close, the exposure was too much and that you are not ready to dedicate as much time as a woman deserves to a relationship yet, meaning you want to wait until you are to get serious.” Luke rattled off.

“Makes me sound distant.”

“It does, in a way, but caring also, not wanting to tag someone along, no false promises,” Luke explained.

“And Danielle?”

“What about her, you did everything you could, and trust me, that is the closest you are going to get out of Swift.”

“Will she go for her again now?”

“Why should she?”

“She thinks I have a thing for Elle.”

“Oh well, this is going to get interesting.” Luke barked sarcastically. “I am going to go grey from you, Tom, I really am.”

#I Hate you I Love You #chapter 13 #tom hiddleston #tom hiddleston fic

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oceanwriter · 6 years

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Excerpt (tag)

I was tagged by @raevenlywrites -- thanks so much!! I love this idea!

So this isn’t really the last thing I wrote but it’s the most recent chapter of my wip. Most of this story (even though it’s only ten chapters) is about to be re-written for NaNo so I’ll share a good portion.

I refused to tell Mrs. Reynard what happened. She hounded me but I wouldn’t budge. On the way home I let myself have a good cry. By the time I was back at the farm, my voice was steady. Anger took over, but the sadness lingered. I’d never felt more homesick and I wanted nothing more than a hug from my parents. Particularly my father at this moment. Today it was made clear there would be no reasoning with Beatrice. I’d now become a plaything for her ego. I’m sure by running away I’d raised the stakes higher than ever but I wasn’t sure I cared. Whether she assumed I was after anything or not I didn’t know. All I wanted was to get by until Mrs. Barrow or George took me home. Funny to think I’d started to miss the old woman.

Laura was happy to see me. I felt bad that I wasn’t in the mood to play. While she might have helped keep my mind off things I was too tired. My original plan was to go upstairs and take a nap. Once I realized the time I decided against it. If I fell asleep, Beatrice would likely be home soon after. I knew there was no avoiding her but I was going to put it off as long as I could. Instead, I asked to go for a walk. Again I was made guilty as Laura wanted to come along. Mrs. Reynard told her to stay and help her with dinner which she didn’t take well. At this point I gave in and said she could come, however, Mrs. Reynard wouldn’t hear of it. I suppose she sensed how badly I needed time for myself.

I took a similar route as I had my last venture alone. Given the hour, I trusted myself to wander into the woods this time. I went beyond where Laura had taken me. My feet kept moving forward even when I knew I was starting to go too far. I couldn’t stop. The forest was beautiful and away from everyone. I wished to spend my days here instead of at school. I wished to sleep here instead of across from Beatrice. I wanted nothing to do with the girl. Her words to me today were unforgivable. My father gave his life to stop the Nazi regime and would be sick to hear someone accusing me of working for them. I couldn’t tell if she really believed this about me or if she was just showing off. Whatever the case, I knew I would forever resent her.

I felt bad, only for Mr. Reynard and Daniel, for my last words to her. I wasn’t supposed to know about his military life. Daniel told me in attempts to comfort and I nearly let it slip. No matter how strange I found it that Beatrice, at her age, did not know her father served in a war it was none of my business to be the one bringing it to her attention. In any case, I meant those words as much as she meant to hurt me with hers. I imagine Mr. Reynard would be furious, which is why I didn’t want him to find out. Beatrice’s attitude shouldn’t be his concern. He needed to focus on his work to support his family. Mrs. Reynard likely suspected something happened with Beatrice and I hoped no one would tell her. I wasn’t sure how much the other’s knew. My only hope was that my confrontation with Tommy might be assumed first.

I found a clearing what I could only figure was a half an hour in. The view I stumbled across could almost make the trials of the day worth it. I knew we were in the mountains but I hadn’t realized just how high and all that surrounded. In the middle of them all, far off in distance, was a lake. The sun was beginning to fall and hit the water just enough that it shined in its reflection. I climbed onto a boulder wedged in the ground leaving the forest behind me. Here I sat, watching the sun continue to sink behind the hills. I tried to focus on the colors of the sky rather than my conversations from the day. It felt good to be away from other people. As lovely as the Reynard family was, Beatrice aside, I was used to my own space. It's different with your own family but even still mine was small compared to theirs. At home I had my own room. George was about the same age as Eleanor so he was out of the house more often than not. My father was rarely home after the start of the war. Once he passed my mother took to her bed more days than not. Part of me enjoyed being part of a family again, much like it'd been for me when I was young. But I didn't belong here. This wasn't my family. And as long as Beatrice continued her nasty ways, there wasn’t any room.

My initial plan was to keep walking once I caught my breath. Yet, I felt better than I had in days here. I decided to stay longer. How could I leave this view? It was so different from home. I’d been to Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France (though I was too small to remember) and many places in England. Somehow American mountains were different. Not quite as massive but still beautiful. Best of all they were peaceful. I didn’t question what was going on in their valleys — if there were people hiding or preparing to invade. I guessed there might be houses or more farms. Hunters, too, most likely. Daniel and Mr. Reynard liked their game. Mostly because it put food on the table. At least that’s what I told myself. Then I started to wonder how long these woods stretched and if other people lived here as well. It was so empty, this town, it was unbelievable for someone so used to living near or in the city. Even the countryside had more hustle and bustle. Right now I didn’t miss the commotion. If I could, I would have stayed here until I was sent for back home.

I wished I brought my journal. It was the first time I really felt inspired to write anything down. I wanted to collect a couple of leaves I’d found lying around and keep them pressed. In my head, I started a story that went with my musings about who lived in the mountains so far off. I couldn’t remember the last time an idea hit me. Not a pleasant one, anyway.

My peace was disturbed when I heard rustling coming from the woods behind me. I rushed to my feet, almost losing my balance and tumbling over the side of the rock. I kept my eyes cast to the ground, expecting to see an animal of some sort. To my dismay, it was feet I saw emerge from the shadows. Of course, they belonged to Daniel.

Letting out an audible sigh, I asked, “Must you always come after me?”

“Yeah,” he said, “when you wander off into strange woods for hours at a time.”

“How can it be strange if it surrounds your property? And hours? Has it really been that long?”

“It will be dark soon. We’ve been worried sick.”

“I apologize…” I said, feeling guilty. “I didn't mean to cause worry. I lost track of time. It's beautiful out here.”

“It is but you should have waited for me or Eleanor to take you around. It's easy to get lost.”

“I know how to get home from here.”

“At night? We won't make it back before the sun fully sets.” There was an irritation in his voice I hadn't heard before.

“I said I'm sorry. I do wish you all wouldn't think of me as a helpless child. I'm used to being on my own. I'm not sure out to respond to all of this attention and concern.”

“You're gonna have to get used to it in my family. My mother gets nervous when we don’t show up on time.”

He reached his hand out to help me climb down from the boulder. I accepted, but let go as soon as my feet were back on the ground. “I don't know what more to say. I'll accept whatever punishment I receive.”

“You're not going to be punished. At least not after the day you've had,” Daniel said as we started walking into the forest.

“Who told you?” I asked, afraid Beatrice had said something after all.

“My mother.”

“Oh…”

“You don't look sick.”

“I needed the air.”

“Something happened at school,” he continued. “What was it?”

“Nothing,” I said.

“You have to tell someone.”

“And why is that?”

“Because,” Daniel said, “we all have a pretty good idea of who was behind it.”

I kept my eyes forward, hoping my lack of response would let the matter drop.

“Come on, Marjorie. You can tell me if Beatrice is giving you trouble. Any of us. At least my parents, me, and Ellie. We aren't going to be offended or angry.”

I stopped walking, turning to him again. “I am capable of fighting my own battles. Maybe I made the wrong decision leaving school today. I'm sure tomorrow will even more of a mess. But I will handle it be they Beatrice or Tommy or those other girls from my class. It's pointless for me to be there for the end of the year anyway. I wish I could have started next term where I wouldn't stick out so much. But even then I would be miserable because unless the war ends within a year I am stuck in school for four more when I would've been through in one at home. I wasn't going on to college. I was supposed to travel with my brother. He and I spoke of visiting America on our own. And now I'm here without him and I haven't heard a word from him even though he promised. He promised he would have a letter waiting for me when I arrived.”

I don't know what it was about Daniel. This was the second time I'd ranted to him, telling him more than I wished to let on to anyone. All I could figure was that he, in a way, reminded me of George. They were close in age and had a certain ruggedness about him. And they were both tall, George more still. Other than that their outward appearance was different. George had dark brown hair like my own while Daniel's was on the lighter side. As far as personality, Daniel was much more reserved, but I'd seen his wit. With Laura and Franklin, he joked as George would with me.

“Really?” was all he said in response.

“Really to what?” I asked, picking up an irritated tone of my own.

“The school thing,” he said.

“Yes, school is much different. I suspect if I hadn’t fallen behind at home I’d have learned everything being taught already. Maybe not in history as it’s more focused on America but you understand what I’m saying.”

“I never realized.”

“It’s not something you think about until you’re faced with it,” I said, beginning to walk again.

“If you’re really unhappy there I’m sure my parents can work something out. Finish your last year and then stay here and help out around the farm. We need as many hands as we can get.”

“I don’t mind the lessons, it’s…”

Daniel finished for me. “Beatrice.”

“It doesn’t matter. I anticipated as much. All of them.”

“Her friends are awful. I swear Beatrice would have turned out differently if she’d been in the class ahead or behind them.”

“Like I said, it doesn’t matter. Their fascination will die down.”

“Why won’t you tell any of us what happened? Not even my mother?”

“Because I don’t want to. It’s as plain as that.”

“But maybe my parents can do something about your arrangement? Fix the rooms so you had least get a break from her at night.”

“I'm tired of being an imposition. You don't have the room for me and I feel terrible about it. I know I never asked you all to take me in but I can't help feeling guilty. It's going to take a while for me to feel otherwise. I'm sure I'll keep singing the same song in the meantime. Everything in my life as changed. I'm not caught up yet.”

“I don't know how to convince you that the majority of us wants you here. When I got home Laura was pouting because she missed you. Eleanor is waiting to see how you're liking the book she lent you. My parents are genuinely worried that you got lost and that you're hurt. Not because you're their responsibility. They care.”

I kept my arms tight to my stomach. I appreciated the sentiment but he didn't understand that I could only take them as words right now.

Daniel nudged my arm when I failed to acknowledge him. “You okay?”

I shook my head. I was far from okay. This had been established and I wasn't about to pretend a small chat turned everything around. Was I better off than I had been when I left the house? Perhaps. Definitely better than when I left school. Still, I wished I were walking by myself. I didn't want the company even if it was good. Being around people made me feel strange. In New York, I noticed people from all around the world. No one looked at me funny when I spoke even though I'd only had conversations with Americans. It wasn't the teasing that bothered me. I really did find their insults childish and meaningless. It was the looks that got to me. I wasn't like the rest of this tight-knit town.

I tag (if you’d like) @throughwordsiescape @indecentpause and @firewritten

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sunflowerseedsandscience · 6 years

Text

By the Dim and Flaring Lamps: Part Two, Chapter Four

AUGUST 3, 1863 FREDERICKSBURG, VIRGINIA

Downstairs, two new arrivals are standing in the entrance hall, waiting for them. Standing in the parlor doorway is a grey-haired man about the same age as William Mulder, puffing away on a cigar that's filling the entire room with its stench. Across the hall from him, closer to the bottom of the stairs, is a tall, buxom young woman with shining dark hair, wearing an expensive, fashionable gown- and the exact sort of ridiculous little hat that Mulder had mentioned only moments ago. This, Scully surmises, must be Diana, a guess that's confirmed when Mulder breaks into a wide smile at the sight of her.

"Diana!" he exclaims, almost jogging down the last few stairs. Diana smiles warmly.

"Fox, Darling," she says, taking his hand and allowing him to kiss her cheek. "It's so wonderful to see you! I'm sorry that we weren't here when you arrived, but we had an urgent errand that just couldn't wait."

"That's all right, you're here now," says Mulder, and Scully resists the urge to gag. Mulder seems to remember her at that moment, and he turns back, motioning for her to come forward. "Diana, this is my good friend, Lieutenant Daniel Scully, my aide-de-camp." Diana looks down at Scully, proffering a limp hand to be kissed.

"Good to meet you," Scully says, hoping that she sounds something approaching sincere. "Mulder has been talking my ear off about you for months." Diana smiles thinly.

"Has he, now?" she asks. "I believe I remember him mentioning you, too, in one of his letters." Mulder chuckles nervously.

"More like all of them, I think," he says. Diana raises her eyebrows, looking at him with gentle reproach.

"Fox, I had no idea that you were bringing someone along with you," she chastises him. "Why on earth didn't you say anything?"

"It was sort of last-minute," Mulder explains.

"Come now, Diana," says the man with the cigar, crossing the entrance hall to them. "It's not as though we're short on space. There's always plenty of room in our house for guests. And besides, you know as well as the rest of us that Fox prefers to do everything spur-of-the-moment." Mulder doesn't look nearly as happy to greet the man as he was to see Diana, but nonetheless, he's perfectly cordial when he shakes hands with him.

"Scully, this is my father's friend, Charles Spender," he tells Scully. “This is his house.” Spender shakes hands with her, and Scully finds it difficult to keep from shuddering at the clammy, sweaty feel of the man's grip.

"Thank you very much for having me at your home, Mr. Spender. I'm very sorry about the short notice." Spender looks at her appraisingly, just long enough to make her uncomfortable.

"And are you a Virginia runaway, as well, Mr. Scully?" Spender asks her. "A rebel against the rebels, as it were, like our Fox here?"

"Father, stop," says Diana, but there's not much conviction in her voice. Scully notices Mulder clenching his jaw.

"No, my family is from Pennsylvania," Scully replies. "From West Chester."

"Near Philadelphia," Spender says. "I know it well."

"I visited Philadelphia with you once, didn't I, Father?" recollects Diana, curling her lip. "I found it such an awful, smelly place. So dirty, compared to Washington, and especially compared to Fredricksburg." Sully grits her teeth.

"I suppose I should be glad that I'm not actually from Philadelphia, then," she says, putting extra effort into keeping her smile on her face.

"Why don't we all go sit down and have some lunch?" suggests Mulder hastily, taking Diana's arm and steering her across the entrance hall. Scully follows, hoping very hard that she will not be required to sit next to Diana. She's been looking forward to a real meal for a very long time, and somehow, she suspects that relaxing enough around this woman to be able to enjoy eating will be difficult enough without being forced into closer proximity to her.

Scully needn't have worried, however; she's seated next to Mulder at the long dining room table. Samantha is quick to take the seat at his other side, and Diana is forced to settle for sitting across the table from him. She doesn't look happy about it, and even though Scully knows that she's being petty, she can't help but be at least a little bit pleased by this.

As soon as everyone is seated around the table, a veritable army of smartly-dressed, dark-skinned servants appear and begin laying out the noon repast. Scully does her best to keep her eyes from bugging out of her head, to keep herself from drooling, as dishes of foods she's long forgotten the taste of are placed before her. There's chicken, its crisped skin braised with fragrant herbs, and a bounty of vegetables, and loaves of thick-crusted bread still hot from the oven, and even butter, real butter, something that hadn't always been on the Scully table even in the days before the war. Whatever the wartime food shortages for civilians in Virginia may be- and Scully has heard that they're fairly severe- Charles Spender has clearly found a way around them. Scully loads her plate to capacity, not turning down a single thing that's offered to her.

"So, tell us about yourself, Daniel," asks Teena Mulder, as she holds up her goblet for a waiting servant to fill with wine. "Did you attend West Point? Bill so badly wanted Fox to attend, but Fox, of course, was dead-set on Harvard."

"No, Ma'am," says Scully. "I wasn't quite old enough to be attending college when the war began. I enlisted as a private about five months ago."

"Goodness, you must be quite young indeed," says Teena.

"Eighteen years old in February, Ma'am," Scully replies. That much isn't a lie; her age and date of birth had been the only part of her enlistment paperwork that had been fully accurate.

"And what does your father do?" Teena asks.

"He can't be more than a tradesman, if you only entered the army as a private," interjects Diana. "Even Fox managed to start out as a sergeant, didn't you, Darling?" Mulder looks distinctly uncomfortable at Diana's rudeness, and busies himself with spreading a thick layer of butter onto his bread.

"My father has been in the Navy since he was fifteen," answers Scully, determined not to give Diana the satisfaction of seeing her offended. "He's now a captain."

"And he couldn't secure you a better position than being a private?" asks Diana. "How strange. I would think that being the son of an officer with an honorable reputation would have helped pave the way to a better rank for you."

"Diana," says Mulder, a quiet warning in his voice. She bats her eyes at him, all innocence.

"What, Fox?" she asks. "I'm only curious. For all I know, the Yankee army does things differently than we do in the South. In our army, a father who has already advanced in rank could write a letter of introduction for his son, to help him along."

"I suppose that I could have asked my father to do something like that for me," says Scully, "but I preferred to make my own way. I would much know that rather any progress I make has come about as a result of my own hard work and determination, rather than rely on my father's reputation. I prefer to earn all promotions myself."

"And believe me, Scully has earned the one that he's just gotten," Mulder puts in, before Diana can interrupt again. The pride in his voice makes Scully smile. "I wouldn't be here right now, at this table, if it hadn't been for him."

"Is that so?" asks Teena, eyes wide. Mulder nods emphatically.

"He saved my skin more than once in July, at Gettysburg," he says. And Mulder relates the story of Scully calling for the men to stop shooting when he had ventured beyond the wall in search of ammunition, and of how Scully had shot the Confederate officer who had aimed his pistol at Mulder's head right at the end of the fight. By the time he's finished, all eyes at the table (with the exception of Diana's and her father's) have gone from suspicious to grateful, as they look back at Scully.

"It appears that we all owe you a debt of gratitude, Lieutenant Scully," says Bill Mulder gruffly, speaking for the first time since sitting down to lunch. "It's been hard enough for us to lose our son to your army. It would have been far harder to lose him for good."

"Fox, you've never told me in your letters that it's that dangerous out there," says Samantha, staring accusingly at her older brother.

"It's a war, Samantha," says Diana dismissively. "Of course it's dangerous." Samantha glares at Diana, but says nothing. Mulder reaches over and pats his little sister's shoulder reassuringly.

"I wouldn't worry too much, Sam," he tells her. "Scully does a pretty good job of keeping me in check. I don't think that anyone or anything is ever going to get by him."

"Still, Fox, you shouldn't take such chances," Samantha chastises Mulder.

"Sometimes I have to, Samantha," says Mulder gently. "It's all part of being an officer, part of looking out for the men under my command."

"But I promise you, Samantha," Scully interjects, "the more risks he takes, the tighter I'll be holding his reins. I see it as my solemn duty to get your brother home in one piece when all of this is over." Samantha smiles warmly at Scully. At the edge of her gaze, she catches Diana rolling her eyes, but Mulder, unfortunately, is looking at his sister, and doesn't notice.

When the meal is finished, the servants re-appear to clear away the empty dishes and the leftover food. It feels odd to Scully not to jump up and help- at home, clearing the table after dinner had always been her responsibility. Her mother had cooked every meal, with her daughters' help, and when it was finished, Scully had cleared the table, Melissa had washed the dishes, and Scully had then dried them and put them away. She realizes that it's likely that none of the people sitting at this table have ever washed a dish in their life.

"I think," says Diana with a weary sigh, "that I'm going to go upstairs and have a nap." Mulder is surprised.

"Diana, I just got here," he protests. "I thought that maybe we'd have some time to sit and talk."

"You'll be with us for a week, won't you, Fox?" she asks. "We'll have plenty of time to catch up. I was hoping you would take me to the theater a time or two while you're here. Father never has any interest in going with me, and he never allows me to go on my own."

"I should think not," says Teena. "A young, unmarried lady, out in the town, unchaperoned?" She shudders. "People would talk, and you know how I abhor gossip."

"Unless it's gossip about other people, that you get to pass along," grumbles Bill, and Samantha and Mulder both snicker. Teena pretends not to have heard anything her husband has said.

"Bill, dear, I think a nap sounds good to me, as well. I'm sure you and Charles have plenty to do this afternoon."

"There are some matters in town that need seeing to," agrees Charles Spender, whom, Scully suddenly realizes, has not said a word since taking his seat at the head of the table when they had all sat down to lunch. "Will you accompany me, William?"

"Of course," says Bill, pushing back his chair from the head of the table and standing. Mulder stands, as well.

"Would you like Scully and me to come with you?" he asks hopefully. Bill and Charles exchange glances, eyebrows raised, and the atmosphere in the room abruptly shifts, a definite feeling of awkwardness settling over everyone.

"No, Fox, that's all right," says Bill, with an air of forced joviality. "It's nothing that would interest you, and anyway, I'm sure you and Lieutenant Scully are tired from your ride here this morning. Charles and I will be back in time for supper tonight."

"Oh," says Mulder, deflating visibly. "All right, then." Bill and Charles leave, the latter withdrawing a fresh cigar from his coat pocket and lighting it before they've even left the room, leaving a whiff of smoke behind them as they close the dining room door.

"Come, Diana," says Teena, standing as well, and taking Diana's arm. "It's the perfect warm afternoon for a nap." She and Diana follow the men to the door. As they reach it, Teena stops and turns. "Samantha, dear, will you be joining us?" Samantha Mulder, still seated defiantly in her chair, tilts her chin up obstinately.

"I'm going to stay with Fox and Daniel," she says. "They've come all this way to see us, and it certainly doesn't seem right to leave them sitting down here by themselves." Teena chooses not to respond to this, and a moment later, she and Diana are gone. Scully can hear their footsteps on the staircase out in the entrance hall. Next to her, Mulder heaves a sigh.

"Clearly they're all overjoyed to see me," he says, shaking his head. "Why did they even agree for me to come and spend a week here, if none of them can even stand to be in the same room with me?" Samantha lays a hand on his arm.

"Forget about them, Fox," she says. "Let's you and me take your friend Daniel on a walk around the neighborhood, all right?" Mulder smiles at her, and Scully says a silent thank-you to God that her friend has at least one good, kind person in his family to come home to. She can't imagine receiving a welcome this cold at her own house, not even after disobeying her parents and running away. Certainly, they'll be angry when she finally shows up again, and there will be plenty of raised voices, to be sure, but Scully knows that there will also be joyful tears and embraces, things she's yet to see any of in this cold Fredericksburg mansion.

Samantha goes upstairs to her room to fetch her parasol, and Mulder and Scully wait for her in by the front door.

"I wonder why Father didn't want us to come along with him?" Mulder wonders aloud. "Usually, my father likes me to shadow him in all of his business dealings, so I can learn how to manage his holdings and be ready to take everything over smoothly when the time comes."

"Maybe the business he and Mr. Spender need to see to isn't related to your family's plantation," suggests Scully. "You said that Mr. Spender is active in politics. Is it possible they're attending a political meeting? Because if that's the case- if they're on their way to meet with a bunch of Southern politicians- they couldn't very well come strolling in with two Union officers trailing behind them, could they?" Mulder appears to be mulling this over.

"I suppose that could be it," he concedes. "Not to mention...." He scowls darkly. "It would be one hell of an embarrassment for Father, to be sure, to have to introduce me to all of his Confederate cronies as his son, colonel of a regiment in the Army of the Potomac."

"It's his loss, Fox," Samantha reassures him, coming back down the stairs to join them. "And your gain, really. Now, instead of spending this lovely day in a dark, stuffy room somewhere, choking on Mr. Spender's disgusting cigar smoke, you and your Lieutenant Scully get to enjoy the sunshine while escorting a bright, lovely young lady around the neighborhood." Mulder grins down at his little sister as she takes his arm.

"You clearly haven't learned all that much more about humility than you knew six months ago," Mulder observes, and Samantha's cheeky smile only widens. She pulls her brother toward the front door, and Scully follows them out onto the porch, down the brick front path, and through the gate, out onto the sidewalk. Once there, Samantha extends the arm not held by her brother, and Scully readily takes it.

The early afternoon is sunny and warm, but enough of a cool breeze is blowing to keep the day from turning truly oppressive. Even so, Scully doesn't envy Samantha Mulder her corset and heavy dress. Scully herself might be wearing a wool jacket, not to mention several layers of tightly-wound linen around her chest, but she would still wager she's more comfortable right now than any other woman out walking the streets of Fredericksburg today.

"So tell me what it's been like at home, since I left," says Mulder, as they reach the end of the block and turn right. "Have Mother and Father been complaining about me the entire time, or only during Sunday dinners?"

"They don't talk about you at all, for the most part," sighs Samantha. "I don't know if it's because they're still too angry, or if it's because they're afraid for you and they don't like to think about it any more than they absolutely have to."

"My money's on the first one," grumbles Mulder. "It took three letters home before they would even agree for me to come and visit them this week. I'm still surprised that Father didn't just retreat back to the plantation on his own and have you and Mother visit with me, without him."

"He doesn't seem that angry," ventures Scully hesitantly. She doesn't know William Mulder, but there have been none of the cold silences and cutting words that she'd thought she might end up having to sit through.

"It's early yet," says Mulder. "And also, he's just met you. He won't want to behave like too much of a bastard in front of a perfect stranger... at least, not yet."

"Fox, language," Samantha chides him.

"'Bastard' isn't a swear, Sam," Mulder says.

"No, it's not, but it's not a particularly nice word, either. And plus, it's not even accurate. Our father knows who his father was. If you want to call Father something uncouth, call him a blowhard, instead." Scully lets out a snort of surprised laughter before she can stop herself, and Mulder looks down at his sister, eyes popping out of his skull.

"Samantha!" he exclaims. "Where did you hear a word like that?"

"Eavesdropping on some of the officers that Father has had to dinner, back at the plantation house," says Samantha. "That's not the worst I've heard, believe me."

"Oh, I believe it," Mulder says, shaking his head. "Father would lock you in your room for the next twenty years, though, if he heard you using words like that, so you'd better watch yourself." The trio continues in silence a bit longer.

"Do you prefer staying here in town, Samantha, or in the country, at the plantation?" asks Scully, casting about for something to talk about.

"The plantation, to be sure," says Samantha. "It's much quieter. Whenever we're in Fredericksburg, people are constantly coming and going... and Mr. Spender is always here, with his stupid cigars. And Diana is always with him."

"It’s his house, Samantha. And what's wrong with Diana being around?" asks Mulder, clearly offended. Scully, on the other hand, suddenly wants to throw her arms around Samantha.

"She's different when you're away, Fox," Samantha tells him. "She talks to me like I'm eight years old, like I'm too stupid to understand anything that's going on."

"I'm sure you're exaggerating, Sam," says Mulder dismissively, but Samantha shakes her head.

"I'm not, Fox, I promise," she says. "Diana keeps telling me that I'm far too young to have any political views of my own, that I only say the things that I say because I've heard you say them, and you're my big brother, so I'll always believe everything that you tell me."

"Fifteen is plenty old to have formed your own opinions, I think," says Scully. "Especially when it comes to issues like slavery. Mulder, didn't you say that you were uncomfortable with the idea when you were much younger than your sister is now?"

"That's exactly what I've tried to tell Diana," Samantha says, smiling gratefully at Scully. "I've told her that even a child can distinguish right from wrong, and fifteen is plenty old enough to know how I feel about this. But she always just says that I'm being tiresome, and that I should go and find something to occupy my time, and to leave her alone."

"Sam, Diana doesn't care about politics at all, she never has. You already know that. You probably were being tiresome, going on and on about a subject that's not interesting to her when she just wants to relax and enjoy some time in the city."

"Slavery isn't a political issue, Fox! It's a moral issue and you know it! How can anyone not be interested in treating other human beings with respect and dignity?" Samantha angrily jerks her arm away from her brother's. "I don't see how you could want to marry someone like that, someone who can see a human being whipped and worked to death, and just shrug it off and go back to her needlepoint."

"Enough, Sam," says Mulder sternly. "Nobody's saying that you have to like her, but you do need to respect my choice... and if it's not too much trouble, it would be nice if you could respect Diana, as well."

"Oh, I will," says Samantha coldly. "Just as soon as she learns to respect me in return. I'm not a little child anymore, and I would like to see her recognize that." She glares at Mulder. "And it would be nice if you would stick up for me just a little bit here, Fox. Is it really all right with you for someone to talk down to me the way that she does, or is it just all right because it's her?" Mulder heaves a sigh and runs a hand through his hair.

"I'll talk to her, all right?" he asks. "I'll remind her that I was just as opinionated as you are, when I was fifteen, and I'll ask her to be a bit kinder."

"You can ask her," Samantha sighs, "but I doubt she'll listen. Not once you're gone again, at any rate." Mulder clenches his jaw, but says nothing. And as much as Scully's less noble side is enjoying this, she senses it's time to change the subject.

"Listen, Samantha," she says, "I was hoping that you could do me a small favor." Mulder cocks an eyebrow at Scully, confused, and she smiles wickedly at him. "I've been hoping that maybe you might be able to furnish me with one or two embarrassing stories about your brother when he was younger. You know, something that I can pass around the ranks, just to make sure that our new colonel isn't taking himself too seriously." Samantha's eyes immediately begin to sparkle with mischief, and Mulder pales considerably.

"Scully, please remember that when we get back to camp," he warns her, "I could very easily have you assigned to chopping down trees, or digging ditches, or clearing brush, or whatever other unpleasant and back-breaking labor detail I can come up with." Scully grins.

"I know that, Mulder," she says. "Which is precisely why I'm going to need ammunition on hand, just in case." Samantha, being the quintessential little sister, is only too happy to oblige, and by the time the trio has returned to the house, Scully is equipped with enough mortifying tales of a younger and more impulsive Mulder to guarantee that, if she so chooses, she'll be able to blackmail her way into all of the easiest assignments until the end of the war.

#X-Files Fanfic #my fic #By the Dim and Flaring Lamps

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patrick-donovan · 4 years

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BIRTHDAY BASH | DIANTRICK

WHEN: May 27th, 2020

WHERE: Hummel family’s birthday bash, Riley Hummel’s backyard

WHO: Diana Hummel & Patrick Donovan

EVENT: Patrick meets Diana. TW: Mentions of abuse

DIANA: Diana had been quite upset by the happenings earlier. During the commotion, she had disappeared to cry. It wasn’t the birthday party she envisioned. Finally, she had emerged from where she was hiding, with a smile on her face. Though it was quite evident that she had been crying, she curled up in her throne and tried to appear happy even though she was shaken to her very core.

PATRICK: Patrick walked around, drink in hand as he watched people dance and swim around. Who was this all for? It couldn't just be a regular party, there had been a table with gifts and everything. Looking around, he finally spotted three thrones; was this some kind of weird Game of Thrones-themed party? Should he expect King Joffrey to step out at any moment now to order someone to be beheaded? Walking up to it, he saw the girl sat on one of them and he gave her a small smile, instantly noticing that she might have been crying. "Hey, are you okay?"

DIANA: Long eyelashes fluttered. Makeup went from her face and had been for quite some time. Diana was very receptive l to the world around her, perhaps overly sensitive. The incident with the unknown dominant had shaken her to her core. For a moment, she rubbed her eyes but managed a smile. "I guess my family protects me too much...I didn't realize how scary some people can be here." Cause even if she didn't care if people treated her poorly, she cared about how they treated her family. And she hated herself for being too weak to do anything about it."I'm Diana Hummel, " she straightened her, tiara, "It is a pleasure to meet you."

PATRICK: Patrick listened as the girl in front of him talked. He had noticed earlier that everyone had gathered around some men, but Patrick didn't know what it had been about; and if it wasn't Patrick's business, then he wasn't going to pay attention to it. "People are scary here?" Patrick asked, eyebrows raised as he walked further up to the throne to get a better look at the girl's face. She was pretty. Beautiful, even. "It's a pleasure to meet you too, Diana Hummel. I'm Patrick Donovan," He gave her a soft smile. "I apologize if I'm rude, but I take it it's your party, since you're on the throne and everything." He motioned towards the tiara, when he said 'everything'.

DIANA: The Hummel/Hudson clan always made sure to keep Diana in a protective bubble, which was fair. Diana didn't have the most healthy coping mechanism. "I am surprised myself, you see. I thought everyone was lovely. At least everyone I had met so far was. It was just an upsetting reality to face. Especially on today of all days. I just wish I didn't feel so useless."

When he introduced himself, she managed a genuine smile."You are not rude at all, Mr.Donovan. I think you are quite amazing and good at astute observation." A sweet twitter escaped plump lips."Yes, I am the birthday girl."

PATRICK: He furrowed his eyebrows, growing more and more interested in what had happened that had upset the girl so much. It couldn't have been that bad, because the party hadn't been broken up because of it, and as far as Patrick was concerned, no one had died. "I'm sure you're not useless at all. Look," Patrick turned around and motioned for all of the people still partying. "They're having a good time. That's most likely because you're still here, and looking great. You're definitely not useless."

A chuckle escaped his lips as he heard her compliments. His head fell and he closed his eyes. What was this place? Raising his head again, he moved closer so he could lower his voice and still have Diana hear him. "Don't tell anyone this, but I think the glowsticks gave it away," He smiled. "Oh, it's your birthday? Well, happy birthday Diana Hummel! Now I wish I had brought a birthday present, but..." Patrick put his drink down on the ground and started searching through his pockets to see if he could find anything. "I didn't know that this was happening. In fact, I don't really know anything about this place..." He continued to mumble, before he found something and he pulled it out. "I'm sorry, but the only thing that I can give you is a stick of gum."

DIANA: Eyelashes fluttered in confusion. Because she didn't see anything about herself that would bring a party. Diana didn't have a lot of self-worth. "Most people are here for my brothers. Were triplets, you see. They are very popular and beloved, .and they should be because they are perfect. But I am still new...perhaps one day I will have as many friends as they do. But thank you ever so much for your kind words, sir." She leaned forward and pressed a kiss into his cheek.

His little joke made her laugh. What an amusing man.to be honest, she had never met anyone quite like him. "I'm still learning too...Don't fret; you seem clever. I'm sure you'll figure it out." At the offer of the gum, she smiled. "It is okay, sir...The best gift someone can give me is their time. I'm not quite used to getting attention. But I do enjoy it quite a lot. So perhaps we could get a drink?"

PATRICK: "I'm aware that siblings tend to compare themselves with each other, but I'm also pretty sure you shouldn't do it, because you're not them," Patrick said, giving the girl a small reassuring smile, before continuing to offer her his philosophy of life. "I don't really think it matters if they're popular and have a lot of friends, y'know? As long as you're not surrounding yourself with toxic people, then you're good." He couldn't help the slight blush that came over his cheeks as he felt her press her lips against his cheek. During all of this, it was unexpected. Maybe this nightmare was turning into a dream.

He wanted to ask what she meant when she said that he'd figure it out. He was still confused about it all, but he decided to drop it instead. It didn't seem like the thing the girl needed right now, and Patrick decided to instead focus on cheering her up. He leant back down to pick up his almost-empty drink and stuck the gum back into his pocket. "You don't have to call me 'sir', y'know? You can just call me Patrick," Licking his lips, he tasted the sweet Jack Daniels. "You're not used to getting attention? That's how I know this is a dream..." He mumbled. "A drink sounds good. Lead the way?" Holding his arm out, he offered Diana his hand to get up from her seat.

DIANA: "I could never compare myself to them. I could never be so bold. My big brothers are my idols. I adore them. But thank you so much for your kind words." When he blushed, she giggled. It was rare for her to make someone blush. Normally it was the other way around.

A small pour on full lips; when he said not to call him sir. Delicate finger pointed to the cuff on his wrist."While in public I must refer to you with honorifics. For you are a Switch and above me in social status. " When he inspired about the attention, she smiled."I'm kind of shy when I'm not dancing." Happily she took his arm and lead him to the drink table. "What would you like me to make you Mr.Patrick?"

PATRICK: "You don't hear that a lot, especially not from siblings," Patrick nodded, impressed. "It's nice for a change." He was so used to always hearing siblings bicker about silly little things. He didn't know Diana at all, so he wasn't sure if that was a thing that they did, but from the sounds of it, it seemed like it wasn't.

Patrick had noticed the cuff earlier, but figured that it was to unlock the door to his room or something. Apparently not. He knew he'd chosen 'switch' because that was what he was, but why did that have anything to do with the titles that he should be given? He was so confused. "I'm above you?" He furrowed his eyebrows. He was not getting it at all. "Wait, is this like a dom/sub thing?" He knew what it was, he practiced it, but...was this just a world of it? "Oh, so you dance? What kind of dancing? And why aren't you out there doing it now?" Patrick asked Diana, growing curious about the girl. He wanted to get to know her better. He hummed lightly as his eyes scanned over the many options. "How about you surprise me with your favorite drink?" He gave her a grin, hoping that it would encourage her.

DIANA: The Hummel Triplets were far from ordinary; all things considered. Probably too close for the comfort of most. But the love between them was solid. One would be pressed to find one to say something negative about the others. The love between them was solid. “I love them more than I love myself. I’d do anything for them. I’d die for them…” Eyelashes fluttered as she looked down at the floor bashfully.

“Yes, I must show you reverence.” Diana’s free hand found it’s way to her collar. “Because you are a Switch, which comes above a Submissive. The collar indicates that I am a submissive. What we are in is a Caste System.” When he questioned if it was a dom/sub thing, Diana nodded..”I hope I am explaining this okay….I am entirely new myself. But again, I have my brothers to lead me. And I want to make them proud. So I must be a good girl.”

When Patrick inquired about what dance; Her face lit up. “I was a Prima Ballerina. My Big Brother Riley is going to request a studio for me. But until then…I am just concentrating on working and being the best submissive I can be. And there aren’t jobs for Prima Ballerina’s here.” There was a nod when Patrick said to surprise him. Diana always liked fruit things. So quickly, she made them both screwdrivers and handed him over the glass with a smile. “Cheers, Mr. Donovan?” A giggle escaped her.

PATRICK: Patrick was kinda of amazed with the adoration that Diana had for her brothers. It was wonderful to see, and it intrigued him. What were her brothers like, since she loved them so much? He bit down on his lip as he thought of his next question, not knowing whether he should ask it or not, but feeling brave, he went for it. "You love them more than you love yourself?" He started out, not really knowing how to word the next sentence. "I'm sorry, but I should probably make it more clear...I'm an only child, I don't really know what it's like to have siblings. I mean, I have friends that I'm really close with and I consider brothers and sisters, but I don't think I love them more than I love myself. I don't know...I feel like you should come before anyone else, in terms of who you love, y'know?" Patrick wasn't sure if he was making himself clear, but he hoped that he wasn't crossing any lines. It was quite a deep conversation with someone he'd only just met.

His eyes followed her hand up to her neck. He'd wondered what they were; he'd figured that they were just some sort of local, cultural thing that people wore, but it turned out to not be. At all. Diana was providing more information about this whole thing than he'd been able to get out of the secretary at the place where had to make a decision. It was nice for a change. "No no, you're doing great!" He assured her. He wanted to give her a smile to make sure that she knew he meant it, but a pained and confused expression lingered, and he couldn't shake it off. It was just so much to take in, all at once. "So, I'm a switch. Does that mean I'm below the Dominants?"

It was wonderful to see how happy she got, after he'd asked about the dancing. It was a welcomed change from before when it had been clear that she had cried. "Oh wow, that's amazing! I hope you get that studio, I'd love to see you perform at some point!"

Patrick accepted the drink with a smile on his face and clinked his glass with hers. "Cheers, Diana!"

DIANA: When Patrick wished to confirm that Diana loved her brothers more than herself, she nodded. There was a small, sad smile on her face. “Oh, yes, they mean everything to me.” Head tilted, and confusion read on her face, as he continued. Diana’s family was big. Once upon a time, she had felt it was too big. Though since she had come here, she had begun to appreciate her step-siblings. “I do not mean to disagree, sir. But I don’t think that is the point of love. I think the point of love is it is bigger than yourself. Loving is the only thing I’m good at, other than dancing. Oh, I think when you love someone, it’s supposed to be all-encompassing and big!” Arms spread out wide to emphasize her point.

The information that she was doing great; made the prima ballerina beam from ear to ear. “Thank you! I am happy to serve you, Mr. Donovan.” When he inquired if it means he was below Dominants, Diana nodded. “Yes, Dominants are the highest in this society, switches are the middle, and submissives are the lowest. So, anyone that is a Dominant, you would have to show reverence. But your fellow and Switches and Submissives you can call by name, and treat normally.”

“Oh, I definitely will get the Studio. Big Brother Riley, always keeps his promises. And he loves me so. He’d never break his word.” When they clink glasses, Diana moved in closer. “You are quite lovely sir. I know this place can be scary. And I am sorry if you find here a discomfort. But the circumstances being what they are, I am glad we met. I would like to get to know you more. Would you like to join me in the cabanas? They are very comfortable.?”

PATRICK: "Huh..." Diana's explanation of the love thing wasn't exactly what he'd expected. He was pleasantly surprised by it. "Don't say that you're only good at loving and dancing, I'm sure you're good at millions of other things! Like, smiling. You're really good at that, if I may say so myself," Patrick said, a hand coming up to scratch the scruff on his cheek before motioning to her. "And, I mean, you're great company, and you're really good at explaining how you feel - not a lot of people can say the same. That's just my observation after having hung out with you for, what, 5 minutes?"

It was all starting to somewhat make sense to Patrick, although he still couldn't quite wrap his head around the fact that he'd been chosen to come here. It was all very weird to him, but he kept quiet for now about it. "So, I can call you Diana then, yes? Or would you prefer I call you something else?" It felt weird to Patrick. He wasn't exactly new to this; this was normal for him - but back in New York, not on some island that he apparently couldn't escape from. He wanted to make sure that he was being respectful, even if he was supposed to be the one dominating the girl.

Patrick nodded, listening to the girl. He wasn't sure who Riley was, but if he was staying on the island, he's most likely run into him at some point, he didn't doubt that. He took a sip of his drink, before noticing that Diana moved closer to him. His eyes traveled from hers down to her lips and back up again, before he was able to send signals from his brain to his mouth, so he could respond. "Yeah...yeah, I'd love to get to know you better. You're one of the first people here who have made me feel comfortable, so I won't pass on that opportunity," He gave her a toothy smile, something that was rare for Patrick, and he took her hand into his and started walking through the crowd and towards the cabana.

DIANA: Patrick was quite dreamy, and she wasn’t talking about his immaculate facial features. It was his personality that captured her attention. Even in his confusion, he spared time to be kind to her. That was not something she’d soon forget. No, this was a kindness she’d remember and cherish. “You are so very kind, sir,” her head shook, but she couldn’t wipe the smile from her face. One that only increased when he told her, she was good at smiling. “I was quite sad but being around you as cheered me up exponentially. “My family is so proficient and amazing. I always feel like the odd one out. The useless one, all I offer to a situation, is positive words and fruit baskets. Thank you for being so kind….It has brightened up my birthday.” All the word Puck had put into cheering her up, sadly, had been dashed by the meany dom. “You are amazing, Mr. Donovan; I do hope we can become friends…”

When he inquired if he could call her Diana, he nodded. “You can call me Diana. I’d like that quite a bit. Most people either call me Diana or Princess…But you don’t have to call me that.” The blush increased on the already rosy cheeks. “Is there a title you’d like me to call you, Mr. Donovan? Something special? I would be more than happy to comply.” Hazelnut hues cast downward, nervously. Curious if he liked to be called something else.

Nervously Diana bit her bottom lip as she noticed Patrick looking at her. “I’m glad…Before I came here when I wasn’t dancing…I kind of faded into the background. I’m glad that I could make you feel comfortable. I know sometimes things can be scary….But I always feel like the unknown is less scary when we have friends. You know?” Happily, she took the other’s hand as they made their way to the cabana. The girl sat down with her drink and took a small sip. While her other hand didn’t let go of his. “So, tell me about yourself. What makes Mr. Patrick Dovovan, Mr. Patrick Donovan?”

PATRICK: "You know what though? Sometimes being the positive one in the family means that you're the most important one. I mean, you can have the funny one who always delivers the jokes at the dinner table, or the one that you call when you've gotten yourself in trouble and they'll come and get you at 3 in the morning. But to be the one who offers kindness and love is so valuable, especially in families," Patrick told the girl, shrugging his shoulders. Perhaps it didn't "seem" as exciting as being the party person, or the rebel of the family, but it was still so incredibly important. "I say we're definitely already friends. I'm glad I could help turn that frown upside down."

Patrick's paranoia and weird feeling about being on the island was starting to go away, and he felt more at ease, thanks to Diana. He chuckled and shook his head, holding a hand up. "No, you don't have to call me anything. I'd prefer Patrick, but if there's a formality thing in public that we gotta keep up with, then Mr Donovan is just fine," He told her, smiling sincerely at her. She was being way too sweet for her own good. "I like 'Diana' - it's a lovely name, and it fits perfectly."

His eyes caught her biting her lip, just seeing her perfectly white teeth cling onto it softly. Was it getting hot? "I'm sorry, but I don't really believe that. Have you seen yourself? There's no way in hell someone as gorgeous as you just "fades into the background," Patrick said and took a sip of his drink. Sitting down next to her, he smiled at her question. "Well..." He started, making himself more comfortable on the bed as he leaned back against the rest. "My dad's Irish and my mom's Italian. Together they had me and we lived a quiet life in suburban Long Island. I'm a painter, an Aquarius and there's a common myth going on within my mom's family that we're all somewhat related to Julius Caesar," He told her and gave her a small smile. "How about you? Besides dancing, what else is there to Diana?"

DIANA: “I believe in everyone so much with all my heart. I just wish I could find in myself with the same zeal. People here seem to get upset when I talk poorly about myself. Thank you for making me feel important and good. I guess the past five years, and I got used to being a bad girl…” Eyes cast downward as she thought of Mr.Ludwig. People here did not seem to react to him well. It was hard for her to comprehend. For the longest time, she just thought he was in the right, that he just wanted her to be perfect because she wanted to be accurate.

For a moment, she was lost in thought, but she shook her head and smiled. Especially when he said they were already friends. For a moment, she set the drink down. Arms wrapped around his neck, and she gave him the biggest hug. Soft full lips pressed up against his cheek. Supple barely clad body pressed up against his.“Oh, thank you so much, sir! I will try my best to be a good friend to you!” It was evident she was excited at the prospect.

“Okay! I will happily call you, Mr. Donovan. Perhaps in private if I am brave enough, I can call you, your first name. “ Eyelashes fluttered up at him as she finally let go of him. “Sorry….I can get a bit over-excited at times, sir.” It was evident she was slightly embarrassed. “I apologize if that was too forward. You are just so kind…You make me feel lovely. Even about something as silly as my name.” Nervously she began to play with the chestnut hair before she picked up her drink again. A longer sip of the beverage taken, it hopes of calming her nerves.

“You think I’m gorgeous?” Diana is all smiling; she finds it hard to contain herself. “You are a painter? That’s so interesting. What style of art do you paint?” When he mentioned Julius Caesar, she began to laugh. “Et Tu Mr. Donovan?” she said in a cute teasing tone. “I performed the Ballet Rendition of Julius Cesear before. I was Calphurnia….” For a moment, she paused and wondered what she did other than dancing. “Since I left my family five years ago…My whole life has been dancing. I lived, breathed, ate, my art…It’s really only since I got here that I have had time to explore other things. It’s nice to have time to explore myself…Even if it’s a tough adjustment.”

PATRICK: Nodding, Patrick listened intently. It did sound like there were some self-esteem issues, but it wasn't his place to say anything. He'd only just met the girl, he didn't want her to feel uncomfortable with herself. "I think everyone has those periods of time where they pour more love and affection into other people than themselves. I mean, it's only human, especially to be your own worst critic, right?" He knew that all too well, especially when it came to his art; he could be very harsh on himself if he didn't like what he was making. "You need to give yourself some credit though. The love that you have for them clearly comes from the best place; you've only got yourself to thank for having such a big heart." It felt like Diana needed to hear something positive about herself, and Patrick was trying. He wanted to get to know the girl better, so he could tell her about the positives that he saw in her.

Suddenly he felt a pair of arms sneak around his neck and he almost fell backwards at the impact. With a small "oomf" escaping his lips, one arm moved to the side so he wouldn't spill any of his drink on her, and the other moved around her, his palm flattening on her back. He couldn't help but chuckle at how excited she was. "That's okay," He started out, his voice coming out in a laughter. "I don't doubt you for a second." He could feel her breasts press against his chest, the smoothness of the skin on her arms grace against the nape of his neck, the lips on his cheek again, causing a low but quiet moan to escape his lips. She pulled away, and Patrick's smile had turned into him licking his lips and taking a step backwards, composing himself. He cleared his throat before he spoke up again. "Yeah, I'd really like if you could call me 'Patrick'. Or 'Patty', if you want?" He offered, and managed a to present a small smile, still trying to get over what just happened. "Don't apologize, please. It's perfectly fine if you want to hug me, I'm not going to say no to that."

"Mhm-hmm," He hummed and took a sip of his drink. "And I don't think I'm the only one who thinks you're gorgeous. I mean, it's pretty obvious," The sweetness of the apple juice from the Screwdriver lingered on his tongue. "Um...mostly just oils on canvas, small sketches; life studies and such," He told her before cracking another wide smile and a shrug at her little joking comment about Caesar. "I highly doubt that we are related, but it sounds cool to say, so I tell people the story and they usually enjoy it." Listening, it was clear to Patrick that there was such a big passion for dancing, for the girl. She lit up in a way, when she spoke about it. "Oh yeah? What have you discovered about yourself?"

DIANA: Diana had ridiculously low self-esteem. It seemed from various things that built up over time. “I was timid, I still can’t be shy. I am trying to work on being less shy here. It has been difficult, though. I always fear I am annoying, people will get sick of me, or will overstep my bounds.” The people here were so kind, however, which was a great help. “It is people like you who show me such kindness…That makes things easier for me. So far, tonight is the only time I’ve seen cruelty. It wasn’t directed towards me, but I could see the pain my brother was in. I just wish I could be more help….” She sighed softly but then shook her head. “But let’s not think of sad things. Not when we are having such a pleasant time.”

The feeling of his hand against the small of her back was pleasant. It was firm, secure, and warm. “Okay, I’ll call you Mr. Patty, I like that name. It’s so happy. It is a happy-sounding name. In private, I shall call you by just your name.” Even at her birthday party, she was naturally obedient. When he said he could hug her, the girl slipped her arms slipped around him again. Her body snuggled up to his side, head rested upon his shoulder. “Then, I would be more than happy to oblige, sir….”And she was, he had a very calming aura about him. It made her feel extremely comfortable.

For a moment, Diana thinks of all the people who said she was pretty since she got here. Maybe her sisters were right. She was her own worst enemy. “If you’d ever required a dancer to pose for you, I’d be more than happy to oblige. I can be a good girl and stay still.” For a moment, her eyelashes flutter and tickled against his neck. “It’s a good story; you are very much a skilled orator.” For a moment, she paused and blushed.

“Due to circumstances before I got here, my sexcapades were often dictated by others. For the first time, I am trying to figure out what I like…Not what other people like for me. But I’m afraid I might have some naughty desires…I know most people think I’m naïve and dumb…But I do know things! People made fun of me when I first got here because I didn’t know what cream pies were….But whom I was with before wouldn’t ever allow such a thing. And it never came up.…. But I do know other things…I like to dress for up….” Out of slight embarrassment, she buried her face into the nape of his neck. “I like when my movement and senses are deprived and/or restricted…I like impact play…Everyone treats me like I’m so delicate I’m going to break….But I’m stronger and can handle more than they think.”

PATRICK: "Unless you explicitly go out of your way to push someone's buttons, then I can't imagine you'd annoy anyone," The thought of it was kind of strange to the guy; as far as he could tell, Diana was a lovely, sweet girl. He got a feeling that she was the type of person who wanted to please everyone and make everyone happy. He was the exact opposite. He liked to rile people up so much that they got frustrated with him, because he thought their reaction was funny. He furrowed his eyebrows in confusion, not knowing what the girl was talking about. He wanted to ask her what had happened, not having seen it, but she wanted to move on, and Patrick was happy to do that. It took his mind off of being new on the island and not knowing anything.

He hummed lightly and smiled softly at the girl. "I can get down with that, Diana," He emphasized on her name, wanting her to know that he did really like it. The second hug didn't come as such a big surprise as the first one had, but feeling her settle in was a new feeling. It was nice. He arm snuck back around her, holding her there against his side. He wasn't unfamiliar with getting friendly with someone this fast, so he didn't have anything against it. It was a good sign that he was doing something right.

"Oh yeah? You'd pose for me?" He asked her, taking a moment to act like he was thinking about it. He wasn't really. The girl was hot, she had a great body, and he was pretty sure that she'd make for a great model - he made a mental note of getting some art supplies, if he were to stay on the island. "I think we could sort something out. I'm probably not going to leave this place anytime soon, and it'd be good to keep drawing. But only if you promise you'll show me some of your dances." He said, raising a finger to emphasize on that promise.

Patrick listened as she started telling him about the things she'd done, during her stay. She was absolutely adorable when he felt her face in the crook of his neck, and he couldn't help but laugh. "I think it's because you move so elegantly; even when you walk," He started out, moving his head slightly to look at her. "It sounds like you've got a lot of living to do still. That's good. I'm kinda happy that you're not with those other people anymore. It's healthy to be on your own and figure yourself out." His hand started running slowly up and down her arm, his finger light on the silk-like skin. He was hoping it would comfort her.

DIANA: “Really?” Honestly, she knew she could annoy her sisters at times. She was annoyed by her self doubt and self-deprecation. It was one of the reasons why she left in the first place. It made her ever so self-conscious. The affirmation that she wasn’t annoying helped. It made her heart feel warm. Like perhaps her greatest fears were not valid. There were so many people since she got here, that tried to assuage her. Maybe she had to try her best to get out of her own head. “I’m hoping here…I could gain some confidence…I’m only really confident when I’m dancing. Like that’s me, I wish everyone could see all the time.”

It had been some time since Diana had been held like this. When she was a perfect girl, Mr. Ludwig would. It made her feel safe and warm. Mr. Dovovan was nothing like her former director. There was kindness and warmth to him, Mr.Ludwig lacked. That made her feel exceptionally safe. For Diana, she craved attention to be validated. Therefore she quickly molded to whomever she interacted. Forever naïve and trusting of all those who crossed her path. Happily, she snuggled into the warmth of him. It was a simple thing, but it honestly did bring her joy.

When Patty asked for confirmation that she’d pose for him, she nodded excitedly. “I know you don’t wish to be here…But as long as you’re here, I will try to make your stay easier. You have shown me such kindness. All you have to do is name something within my power, and it’s yours.” When he requested to see her dances, she smiled so brightly it made the sun look dim. “Of course. I would be happy to put on a special performance for you.” It was nice to speak to someone who appreciated art; appreciated her skill.

“Thank you….I will cherish that compliment. “ Diana’s head moved up, and her eyes met his. The beautiful full lips only inches away from his own. “Thank you…I did stuff, but it’s complicated. I think I was in a bad relationship before I got here….And we did a lot of stuff because I trusted him. But he often tried to keep me in the dark of the truth of what we were doing. It’s like he wanted me to stay naïve and uneducated. But since I’ve gotten here, I started reading up on stuff….I’m learning a lot. And I’ve met so many wonderful people who wish to teach me the right way to do things. Are you well versed in this lifestyle, sir???”

PATRICK: Patrick nodded, shrugging his shoulders. "Yeah, I don't really think anyone's presence just annoys someone. You gotta do something to get that reaction out of people," He couldn't see what she meant when she'd said that she was scared of annoying people. Unless she was a bit like Patrick and liked provoking people - but she didn't come across as the sort of person who'd do that. No, Diana was more timid and shy, but also incredibly sweet and gentle it seemed. She wouldn't do something like it. "What do you feel, when you dance? Like, emotionally?"

At the mention of him not wanting to be there, he swallowed hard. It made him think about his family again, wondering what they were thinking, if they were worrying why he wasn't there to help his mom out with whatever she needed him to do. Images started flying through his head of what his funeral would be like, who would be there to mourn him. He needed to get out of this place, because he didn't want that to be a reality that his parents should deal with. For now though, while he tried to figure out how to get home, it was comforting to know that he'd made a friend in Diana, and that she wanted to make it nice for him there. "Wow, you're a regular Genie, aren't you?" A grin appeared on his lips after the joke.

Growing concerned, Patrick's eyebrows knitted together, revealing the perturbed expression on his face. "He's not here, is he? Like, he couldn't possibly come and do you anymore harm, right?" He asked her, not wanting the girl to fall back into that kind of lifestyle again. It didn't sound healthy. At her question, Patrick took a moment to think. Was he well-versed? "Um...sort of, I guess?" He started out. "I'm not inexperienced, if that's what you think. I'm just gonna say that I know a thing or two about it. Why do you ask? Do I appear uninformed about it to you?" A teasing little smile hid on his lips as he waited for her answer.

DIANA: It didn’t seem that way with Diana’s sisters. Sometimes she felt that her mere breath annoyed them. It was one of the reasons she ran off ever so long ago. “You think it’s that simple?” Head cocked to the side in slight confusion. That is not how things had transpired in her life. The next question got Diana thinking of something else. Which she was happy for the reprieve. “I feel perfect. I feel like I can do anything.” She said in a dreamy tone. “But when I’m not dancing, I feel like I’m perpetually the third wheel…The odd one out…”

A giggle escaped the pretty lips, as Patty called her a Genie. “Oh, I would love that. Like I Dream of Jeannie, I loved that show as a child. I am aware of how culturally inappropriate it is now…..,” she pouted a bit and sighed. “Is it terrible for me to still love that outfit, though? It was so cute…” Honestly, she was easily confused by such things. “I think I’d look cute in it…” Nervously she buried herself into his neck against like an ostrich, hiding in the sand. “I committed a faux pas, didn’t it?”

When Patrick inquired about Mr. Ludwig, Diana shook her head. “No, he isn’t here…..” For a moment, she looked perplexed, at the mention of harm. But she didn’t bring it up. It was hard for her to understand she had been in an abusive relationship. In some ways, she wasn’t ready to come to terms with it. So instead, she just smiles, “Already protective of me? Like a Knight in Shining Armor.” She nuzzled his neck softly. “No, I didn’t think that. I’m sorry…I am just curious. What a guy like you would be into…. You are like handsome, cool, and strong Oh gosh I’m so embarrassing.” Her face turned to beat red.

PATRICK: Taking a sip of his drink, Patrick heard Diana's question and it made him shake his head. He swallowed before answering. "I think people are that complicated," He started. "No one's the same, you know? Sure, someone grew up watching the same movies as you or eating the same branded cereal, but something different's happened to everyone that makes them unique - and, therefore, react differently to things. I don't know, but to me, the thought of someone just existing being annoying is kind of extreme." He took another sip of his drink, finishing it and putting the glass down beside him. Patrick listened on as Diana described how she felt. "Well...we can't have you dancing 24/7 because I'm pretty sure that's not healthy, but it sounds like it should be some sort of goal, to feel that way even when you're not dancing."

He let out a chuckle as she started to talk about the TV show. She was being really cute. "No, I don't think so. I think it's completely valid. I mean, her outfit was more shocking back then than it is now. But that's just looking at the wardrobe choices in that show, let's not get into the content, because phew, there'd be a lot to cover there," Patrick said, smiling. "Although, I'm sure you'd look very cute in her costume."

"Good..." He started out, his voice low. He hated knowing if his friends were having trouble, and he generally felt protective of people, wanting to help as much as possible, if he could. Sometimes, that had resulted in him getting a busted lip or a black eye, but mostly, it could be resolved over a conversation, something that Patrick was grateful for. He shrugged his shoulders, smiling coyly. "I just don't want anything to happen to my friends, that's all." He explained. "I was just kidding, Diana, don't worry," Patrick chuckled. "If you do want to know, then yes, I'm quite familiar with the whole d/s lifestyle. I've mostly acted as the Dominant one, but I also quite enjoy being Submissive. Which, makes me a Switch, obviously."

DIANA: Diana liked listening to him talk, but she often felt that way about artists. They had such a beautiful way of expressing themselves and the world around them. If she were, to be honest, she could listen to him talk all day. “You are brilliant, Mr. Donovan.” The Prima Ballerina smiled up at him ever so sweetly. “You think everyone has something that makes them unique? I think that’s kind of beautiful….I guess that’s why I always wanted to be the perfect Prima Ballerina. Because I felt like I’m so blind…” The joke he made had her all a titter. “I’ve been working on it. Trying to be more confident. I’ve worked on talking and meeting people….Before I came here, I was painfully shy. Plus, I wasn’t allowed out much the past few years. But because of trying, I’m not lying here with you.”

“A belly button? On my Television? Scandalous.” Diana made a funny face at him and moved. In the new position, she was on top of him slightly. The long slender but muscular leg slid around him.“Right? That is a whole mess. But I like things that are pink and cute. I know how stereotypical, right? I just…They make me feel good. So it only makes sense that I like the outfit.” At the compliment, she gave him a little squeeze. “I do love playing dress….”

Hand reached up to his cheek; her thumb stroked it gently. “You have a good heart.” She leaned in and placed another kiss on his cheek. But this time, it was lower, closer to his mouth. “I think we shall be excellent friends.” She grows even more relaxed as he states that he’s kidding. “What do you like to do when it comes to d/s? If I may ask? You don’t have to tell me, of course….I’m just curious and eager to learn.”

PATRICK: Hearing Diana's compliment, Patrick sucked in a deep breath, his eyebrows raising before he let go of the air in his lungs with a chuckle mixed in. His hand went to the back of his head to scratch. He wasn't really sure how to take that. Sure, Patrick could be cocky, and he knew that he was good-looking and talented when it came to his art, but when it came to himself as a person, he wasn't really the best at taking compliments. He felt a slight blush creep up on his cheeks again, before he cleared his throat and gave a thanking nod. "Why did you feel blind?" He asked her, genuinely curious what the reason was. "You know, I'm really happy to hear that, because I feel truly lucky to be here with you right now," He gave her a bright smile. "I think, by the sounds of it, and seeing you here with me right now, you've done a great job of trying."

Patrick was about to make another joke when he saw and felt Diana move. She was suddenly closer to him; pressed up against him. He swallowed hard. He wanted to listen to what she was saying, but the feeling of her body on his, her legs moving around him, her lips right there in front of him. He zoned out completely as he took in her features. She was absolutely gorgeous. Humming, he just nodded, hoping that it was the right answer to what she was saying. "Yeah, me too..."

The feeling of her hand on his cheek caught him off guard. Where was this going? It was definite flirting, that was for sure. But what did that mean? "You can thank my mom for that," Patrick let out, his voice coming out full of air as if it had been knocked out of him. The kiss near his mouth had been the reason for that. He had to take a moment to think before he could answer her next question. He cleared his throat. "Um...I like a lot of things. Voyeurism, public sex, rough sex, edging, BDSM...I mean, hell, even vanilla sex is great, y'know?"

DIANA: Diana was running on liquid courage. Surprised, such a handsome and charming man would want to be entangled with her in a cabana. She was in absolute awe of him, his confidence. The one thing that always attracted her to people. The blush on his cheeks catches her by surprise. For it is her usually that is the blushing mess. Not that he was a mess. But it was rare for her to have that effect on people. “I’m sorry, I misspoke. I meant bland. Like in comparison to others, I don’t shine as brightly. It’s stupid, I know…” Fingers danced along his jawline. “Good. I want to make you feel nice. Because that is how you make me feel, I could stay like this all night.”

Long brown curls fell into his face as she adjusted herself on top of him. A darling laugh escaped her as she looked down on him. Eyes locked onto his, there was a forlorn look in her eyes. She noticed he wasn’t listening to her. “I know I’m boring; I’m sorry for boring you. I can be quiet if you’d like. I’ll do whatever you want of me…I’m sorry.”

Gently Diana continued to stroke his cheek as he spoke. “If I could, I would. She did an excellent job raising you.” As Patrick spoke, she heard Eyelashes fluttered as a blush crept against her cheek. “No, I don’t know. I’m not sure if I ever had vanilla sex…I don’t even think I’d know-how. I don’t even know how to cum without permission….” Honest words spoke sweetly, even if the truth behind them was dark.

PATRICK: "What? I'm sorry, I'm confused, did you say that you don't shine as brightly as others?" Patrick asked rhetorically, before continuing. "Now that's a big fat lie if I've ever heard one. There's no way that you can go unnoticed anywhere," He scoffed and shook his head. Did she really think that she was bland? She was so beautiful, Patrick didn't understand it. "Yeah? I wouldn't have anything against that, I'm quite comfortable like this. And I've got amazing company." He smirked, before moving a hand up to run his thumb over her bottom lip softly before cupping her cheek.

Hearing what she said, Patrick snapped out of it. "No! No. You're not boring. It's just..." He sucked in a deep breath. "You're beautiful," He told her, not knowing how to continue on from that and explain that he'd stopped listening because he was focusing on her lips, which probably wasn't the best way to get to know a girl. He looked up at her. "I just couldn't help but admire you for a moment there."

The sudden thought of not being able to tell his mom that someone praised her way of raising her son hit him. He didn't want to think about his parents again, he wanted to just get home to them. There was definitely a way, he was sure of it. The good thing about the conversation that he was having with Diana, was that he didn't want to think about his mom at all, and it was a good distraction from what was going on. "You don't-" Shocked to hear that, Patrick moved slightly under the girl, his hands finding her hips. "That's...I don't even know what to say. So when you masturbate, how do you reach your climax?"

DIANA: It was something that Diana always felt. Crippling insecurity. In many ways, it controlled her entire life. To have someone call her a liar to her face was ever quite shocking. But she was thankful. “Perhaps I have been kept away too long. I am so happy you think so kindly of me. “ Her breath hitched as she ran his thumb over her bottom lip, and cupped her cheek. This was an excellent way to spend a birthday.

“You think I’m beautiful?” The worry in her face went to bashful. Eyes looked down as she rested her head on his chest, nervously. With all the courage the submissive could muster, she leaned up and pressed her lips against the man. Immediately almost pulling back. “Oh my gosh! I’m so sorry….I just let the moment take over. I’ve never done that before. I’m so embarrassed.”

Trying to work through her embarrassment, the next questioned helped because she could be a matter of fact about it. “I only have cum once without permission, and someone talked me through it. I only masturbate when people tell me I can. If not, I just don’t touch myself. I do not want to be a bad girl and disappoint anyone……I’m weird, aren’t I?” She looked up at him innocently and sighed.

PATRICK: “You don’t deserve to walk around, thinking that no one’s gonna notice you,” Patrick spoke up, not wanting her to feel like she was no one, or that no one would notice her. It was fairly obvious to Patrick that that wasn’t the case at all, based on her beauty. “It’s not being kind, it’s being honest,” He shrugged his shoulder. He wasn’t lying. Kindness had nothing to do with it, it all came down to the truth.

He couldn’t quite believe what he was hearing. She really had to ask him? How could this girl not see her own beauty? Nodding, he licked his lips. “Have you ever looked at yourself in a mirror? I’m surprised that a mirror hasn’t begged you to just stand in front of it, so it could look at you. I mean, that sounds very Disney-like, but seriously, you’re really beaut-” He was cut off by the sudden feeling of here lips on his. And as sudden as it was that she was kissing him, it was also really sudden when she pulled away again.

Patrick wasn’t sure what to say or do, or how to react. It had all happened so fast. But he did know that she shouldn’t be apologizing. His hand moved up so he could put a finger on her lips to shush her gently. Then, he leaned in to replace his finger with his own lips, in a soft and delicate kiss.

#f2f005 #diana #tw: abuse #f2f

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reminiscent-bells · 6 years

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best-ofs, 2017

putting in a break here, this is real long

best book I read: The Handmaid’s Tale, Margaret Atwood

It seems trite to pick this in a year where every Tom, Dick, and Harry was comparing the Trump administration to Atwood’s novel and when Amazon was putting on a big-budget adaptation (which, for the record, I have not seen). The effect that this had on me, though, cannot be understated. Sad, wry, and all-too-familiar in places, this is a masterpiece that deserves to be up there with 1984 and the rest of the great nightmares.

honorable mention: The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet, David Mitchell

I’m not much of a historical fiction person, but this masterfully wrought story of a Dutch clerk and a Japanese midwife in early-1800s Japan is well worth your time.

best comic: Batman, Volume 1: I Am Gotham, Tom King, Mikel Janin, et al.

King and his collaborators’ work on Batman since DC’s most recent relaunch seems to be on a trajectory to match or even surpass the Grant Morrison era in the pre-New 52 era, a reshuffling of the core cast that will pay huge dividends down the line (if DC actually makes a wise long-term decision for once, which, who knows). Despite his tendency to learn a little too hard on certain stylistic tics, I think King might be the best writer working in superhero comics today.

honorable mention: Detective Comics, Volume 1: Rise of the Batmen, James Tynion IV, Eddy Barrows, et al.

Yes, two Batman titles in one year is a bit of a cheat, but this is so fun that it’s hard to pick something else. Tynion turned up on a panel discussion on the great comics podcast Jay and Miles X-Plain the X-Men where he was introduced as the writer of “DC’s new X-Men title, Detective Comics”, which is exactly what this is - a team of misfits and outcasts cobbled together by a reticent, demanding mentor...who in this case is Batman. This is easy to miss out on with all the fireworks over King’s work, but give it a shot.

best comic (non-2017): MIND MGMT, Volume 2: The Futurist, Matt Kindt

Kindt’s work on the beginning of his psychic-X-Files saga MIND MGMT was good, but the second collection reveals it as a ship-in-a-bottle in the middle of a much weirder, wilder museum - there are few volume 2s that build on the success of the first as much as this one does.

honorable mention: BPRD, Volume 3: Plague of Frogs, Mike Mignola, Guy Davis, et al.

The first few collections of this series, following Hellboy’s teammates after he quits the secret BPRD organization, kind of flounder, but Davis and Mignola really hit their stride here with this sequel to an earlier Hellboy story that grows into a hybridization of Mignola’s earlier work and a Stephen King novel.

best movie: Blade Runner 2049

This also feels like kind of a cheat given my love for the original, but there was simply no other movie that had my gears turning after I walked out of the theater like this one did. The plot elements of this, of course, have been speculated on endlessly since Ridley Scott released the Final Cut of the original film, but My Guy Dennis Villeneuve manages to introduce enough new elements and uncertainty in the mix to keep you guessing - I found myself continually questioning what I really knew about anything that had happened or was happening. It was always going to be impossible to make a movie as good as Blade Runner, but Villeneuve came closer than anyone could dare.

honorable mention: Star Wars: The Last Jedi

I have my misgivings about the Finn and Poe portions of this, which feel like they mishandled the two more than a little, but the Rey/Luke Skywalker storyline is, as a whole, a barn-burner, building on both Rey and Luke’s characters in extremely satisfying ways. It was easy to imagine where they might go from Rey and Luke on the island at the end of The Force Awakens, but I don’t know if I imagined they’d go here, which is what makes this so great.

best album: I See You, The xx

I gave this a pretty casual listen on Spotify when it came out as I was kind of a marginal xx fan - I enjoyed their first album but didn’t really care for Coexist. I was totally blown away and listened to it all the way through several times (this is something I rarely, if ever, do with big pop/pop-ish releases). Virtually every track on here except for the extremely forgettable closer is perfectly performed and produced, from the playful, somewhat taunting “Dangerous” to the self-doubt-as-anthem “On Hold”. Should go down as their best album to date.

honorable mentions: Piety of Ashes, The Flashbulb / Sleep Well, Beast, The National

I couldn’t decide between these two, so here’s a twofer for you. Benn Jordan’s style as The Flashbulb has shifted along a spectrum of sweet spots between acoustic music and electronic music, and he seems to have somehow found the sweetest one yet in Piety of Ashes, which alternates between intimate material you might have expected on Arboreal or Love as a Dark Hallway (”Starlight”, “Goodbye Bastion”) and big, broad electronic pieces that feel like Jordan uncovered something he could always do that was just off-camera (”Hypothesis”, “As Water”).

When I first heard Sleep Well, Beast my comment to a coworker was “I only like some of it now, but I think I’ll like it more as time goes on”. This was a rare example of me actually showing some predictive ability, because this has really grown on me with time (maybe its intent as commentary on life in the Trump world as something to do with this). Highlights are the sad, sweet “Nobody Else Will Be There”, also-sad-and-sweet, but in a different way “Carin at the Liquor Store”, and the driving dark heart of the entire thing, “The System Only Dreams In Total Darkness”, which has been a constant play for me this fall/winter.

best TV show: Twin Peaks/Twin Peaks: The Return

A triumph for David Lynch and Mark Frost in every sense of the word. The era of “prestige TV” feels like a cheap trick by HBO, AMC, et al. to get us to watch the same old stuff with a slightly higher budget after 18 hours(!!!!!) in, around, and beyond (and I mean beyond) Lynch’s little town in the Pacific Northwest. Kyle MacLachlan deserves about 400 awards for his triple (quadruple?) role here.

honorable mention: Mr. Robot

I think Sam Esmail failed to stick the landing again (I wasn’t a fan of season 2), but the earlier parts of this season are maybe the highest highs the show has ever hit - Elliott and Mr. Robot fighting over his body in the bowels of the ECorp fortress from the end of season 2, Darlene struggling to extricate herself from the FBI, and the terrifying-yet-awe-inspiring scene of Angela laying out her plans to Mr. Robot as New York comes back to life at the end of the first episode. This isn’t always the best show, but boy, can it ever be good.

best video game: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

This is to video games as Lynch’s third season of Twin Peaks was to television: a throwing of the gauntlet to every competitor to dare and match this. Where other games would put physics puzzles in their own little sandboxes, BOTW applies its physics to just about everything and lets you see how far your tools can take you. Where other games would put everything on the map in perfectly zoomable, filterable control for you, BOTW challenges you to build the map yourself and actually get out there and explore. I’ve gone back to this in the harder Master Mode with the release of the last DLC, and there’s still nothing that can touch this. This is destined to be a touchstone for decades to come.

honorable mentions: The Talos Principle/Batman: The Telltale Series

The Talos Principle is everything I wanted The Witness to be that The Witness wasn’t: thoughtful without being heavy, clever without being impossible (well, mostly not impossible, there are a few of those puzzles I don’t think I could have cracked on my own). The writing is sharp as a tack, featuring a variety of philosophical discussions between your character and a whip-smart AI. A really excellent puzzler.

Batman: The Telltale Series marks yet another appearance of the Batman on this list, but what an appearance! Telltale throws out several sacred cows of the Batman behemoth, but instead of making something malformed and uninteresting, it feels like the freshest Batman has been in ages. I eagerly await every new episode of this, because I never know where they will go next.

best podcast: Important If True

This is yet another “feels like I cheated” entry, but the Idle Thumbs guys’ work on Important If True deserves to be recognized. They could have simply recycled the Robot News segments from Idle Thumbs for this, but instead they went for something much wilder, taking people’s advice on what wishes to ask for from a genie, going through breakdown procedures for old Chuck E. Cheese competitor restaurants, and speculating on a Jessica Fletcher vs. Jaws matchup (as in the shark). The most wildly funny podcast going now. Recommended episodes: “Fight Garbage With Garbage”, “Ghosts ‘n’ Goblins”, “A Wish Upon a Star”

honorable mention: Waypoint Radio

With the Idle Thumbs guys winding down to a monthly schedule (sorta), Vice’s Waypoint staff’s podcast has readily stepped into the hole left behind by the Thumbs for regular doses of industry coverage. It’s great to see Danielle Riendeau and Rob Zacny getting more exposure outside of the Thumbs ecosystem, and Austin Walker, Patrick Klepek, and Danika Harrod are this sort of perfect perpetual motion machine at the heart of everything. Recommended episodes: “The Orange Casket”, “R.I.P. A.I.M.”, “Someone Explain To Me The Alien Alloys Before I F'ing Explode”

#best-of #2017

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apvxoxo · 7 years

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The Proper kidnapping. pt. 1 (kinda)

Ah, alright. So the only reason I ever had any inspiration to write this was because of @firethatgrewsolow, so I just wanted to thank you for all your hard work on the fics, we love them so much. But I wrote this all in good fun and if anyone enjoys it I do have the second part but you know I kinda want to see what kind of reaction this will get :) ANNOYING I KNOW BUT: just disclaimers- its veryyyy loosely based, its just made up shit (i hope that doesn’t offend anyone because I know people like accuracy with references but yeah.) there was no real time or date when this is set I figured that’s more fun to leave up to the readers imagination :) Also if you have any suggestions on how I could improve please tell me, because I really would like an outsiders opinion on it (go easy im new at this lol) BUT YES I hope this is fun to read in the least enjoy!

I stood front row. Front fucking row, it wasn’t a dream I was here. it was dark and humid everyone was yelling, people were pushing and shoving me in excitement. It was everything I wanted a led zeppelin concert to be. I knew every song I memorized every line and moan Robert sang. My only wish was that he would make eye contact with me, just once. I remember reading an interview in creem magazine about him that he said, “some nights I could fuck the whole front row..” That always stuck with me. Especially because I was there. “hey don’t I know you form some where?” a dirty man who smelled like pot barked at me, and no he did not know me from somewhere. But I paid him no mind. My mind was in another universe, another galaxy. It was the loudest it had been all night until a flash of red light. Everything went silent and smoke exploded from Johns drums, Robert appeared through the hazy cloud holding the microphone and nodding his head, moving his hips along with the chords.. They started with heartbreaker. It sounded so dirty and heavy live I couldn’t believe it. Jimmy made his way toward the front of the stage kicking his leg up in that little dance he does. Then Robert, oh Robert his jeans looked particularly low and tight tonight. I stood corner to the stage, so when he started working his way into the middle I feared he wouldn’t ever come over to my side. He hit every note, improvising as they went. A normal 6 minute song went on for 30 minutes. It was magical. They took a 15 minute break to go back stage, something with the amps was going wrong, Robert blew the crowd a kiss with both hands and said “don’t worry now, we’ll be back. You can blame Mr. Page for the intermission” Jimmy smiled shrugging his shoulders and then yelled something at Robert. They laughed, still cant make out what It was he said. The crowd cried out for a second until becoming boisterous again. The same dirtbag made his way over to me, he handed me a joint stuttering “hey take a hit of this and ill trade seats with you” "where are you even sitting? If its not better than my seat than fuck off" “naw naw right over there” he pointed up at the ceiling. What a moron. I followed his finger as he pointed up and told him, “you just go back to your uh, seat alright?” “ alright your loss man ill be coolin and you can be droolinnnn” he dragged out his sentence and stumbled away. I fluffed my fingers through my hair one more time before they were going to come out. I was still set on that one on one moment with the golden god. Jonsey and Jimmy ran back on stage getting into position, the lights were barley on but you could still see them, then Robert picked up the mic and said “are you ready now, were back! and we wont leave until you’ve all had enough, how does that sound?” the crowd cheered and yelled. I could hear the girls behind me yelling “fuck me Robert Robert!!” I couldn’t believe how bold they were. I mean sure I wanted nothing more than to be with him, but show a little subtlety. Robert looked back at John and said" ready?“ they began to play and it was so much louder. Which I didn’t think could be all possible. I guess the amp really did make a difference. They moved into since I’ve been loving you, and I thought for sure, this is my chance. It was such a slow sensual song I figured this was prime time to get my eye contact with Robert. But alas, he stayed right in the middle of the stage Where I could only see his side profile towering over me. I began looking around to see if I could push in with someone closer to the center. I was determined. Then I saw the pot head guy from earlier, standing right dab in the middle! What a joke, he did have a good seat. I started pushing through the crowd to him, people shoved and pinched at me "sit down you asshole, we cant see” I just kept going. I was not leaving tonight without looking into those stormy blue eyes. Finally I made my way over to the guy, I fell down onto the steps right on my arm, “ah fuck” I squealed. He grabbed my arm and pulled me up, “hey you made it, you still want a hit?” “you said your seat was in the ceiling, what the fuck?” I said. I couldn’t tell if he was high, stupid, or both. “ yeah man I pointed to the sky, when zeppelin plays its like your on clouds” I laughed looking up at the ceiling, “ hey your alright, sorry I was mean to you earlier I thought you were just some idiot” . He was a nice guy, with an even nicer spot that I was going to take. I pointed at the floor where he was standing. The unsaid rule of, move over type of thing. He opened his arms inviting me over “thankyou you’ve made my night” he just smiled and shut his eyes. Now, finally he stood in front of my very eyes. I could see it all, every curve muscle and shape of Robert, I swear I could see the blood moving through his veins.He started getting more intense and raspy with his voice, he stepped closer to the edge of the stage, I put my hand out in front of me to see if I could touch him. Crazy I know, but there is this unexplainable feeling that takes over you as your that close to a god. My hand brushed against the leg of his pants. I looked up to see if he could feel it. He didn’t seem to notice so I did it once more, this time I felt his calf. Then he stood still, right in front of me. Shook his hair back, exhaled and looked down. His eyes were shut, I studied him in awe. The lights dimmed and one focused subtlety on him, then he snapped his eyes open, my hand was still near the stage. Idiot, he looked at my hand and followed it back into my eyes. He at me with such intensity, I felt my legs shake. Even though the music was still loud it felt quiet, it felt like we were the only two people in the world. He was looking at me. He smirked and stepped back puckering his lips. Once he broke eye contact I stumbled almost completely falling over in my spot. My new friend grabbed me helping me stand,“woah you okay man, I know id fall over if Robert looked at me like that” “yeah yeah ill be fine thanks” was i fine? I was more than fine. Over the moon. He looked into my soul with his pool of blue eyes and I still couldn’t believe it. The show went on for another 2 hours and each second was bliss. He glared at me a few more times but nothing like that one time. Nothing could compare to that, nothing. When they finally ended Robert did his usual blowing a big open kiss to the crowd bowing down “Good night San Fran Cisco! ” They walked off stage slapping and shoving one another playfully, they knew they had just put on an amazing show. My friend made his way over to what I thought was the exit, “hey come on with me I heard you can see their dressing rooms from there” I was in no position to turn down seeing Robert undressed so, I followed. I grabbed his hand as he lead me through a dark hallway, there was band equipment and wires everywhere. “you sure you know where your going?” “yeah man for sure. I’ve seen the stones here before I know my way around” We finally made our way to a dimly lit room that had drinks on marble tables and mirrors lining the walls, “we are not supposed to be back here. I thought you knew your way around? Where are you taking me” He put both his hands on either of my shoulders, “just relax man we are on our way to the stair way” “the stairway?! your blasted! get off me, lets go were gonna get in trouble!” We heard the door open from behind us, and heard a loud voice “and if i see one more fucking bootlegger, ill have their leg” it was the band manager, the ever terrifying Peter Grant. We hid behind the mirror propped against the wall,my heart has never raced so fast.“ what are we going to do” “just keep calm don’t talk” he put is fingers up to his mouth. Then I heard jimmy “where the bloody hell is my..ah there you are” he said picking up his jack daniels. He kissed the bottle and they made their way out. We scurried out from the mirror and ran to the door , “come on this way” We ran into doors, and tripped over cords, until we eventually ran into.. Peter Grant “what the fuck have we got ‘ere a bunch of fans or bootleggers?” I just stared at this massive man in shock, "well which is it?” The band started to crowd up behind him, Jimmy was rubbing his eyes and smiling, a sort of awe how cute smile. John and Jonsey just laughed it seemed the only one truly mad was, Peter. Really it was innocent I suppose. Sure I was trying to see Robert naked but who isn’t! Then Robert came up behind Peter putting his hand on his shoulders,“ have you seen my..” he stopped to look at us. I looked right into his eyes, god I couldn’t believe how close we were. He smiled after scoping us both out and looked back to Peter who was still furious. “well go on answer so I can figure what to do with you two. I could 'ave you arrested you know” he reached out to grab my arm when Robert spoke up “no no shes uh, shes with me. Love I told you not to go the back way! you should have came right back stage to my dressing room” he looked down at me and winked putting his arms around my shoulders. Peter looked at Robert and shook his head, “well fuck lets get on then, the jet is leaving”. All the boys were still excited and rambunctious from the show. Robert spun me around, arms still wrapped around me. He waited for everyone to walk a bit ahead until he lead the way, what was I doing. “ Now now, just a minute.You’re the one from the front row aren’t you little one?” he remembered me ?? "Me? the one you looked at, um yeah that was me I’m surprised you remember I mean.. I bet you look at all the girls that way" He looked ahead and smiled, “well, I don’t look at them all and remember them they way I did with you my love.” What. Was. Happening. We finally made our way to the steps entering the jet. It was larger than I had seen in magazines and on T.V, before. Just as I stepped on,reality sunk in. I’m going on the Starship with Led Zeppelin and what was even crazier was how normal it felt. Why did Robert protect me? He must have other groupies that he could bring with him. Why just some girl from the crowd? He grabbed my hand leading me in front of him up the stairs, “are you sure ?” I said looking at him wearily. He slowly shook his head ,“but of course, if I hadn’t of wanted you aboard then I would have let Peter rip you in two”. I smiled and walked up the steps. Robert followed and kept hold of my hand. He had this weird comforting nature about him, making me feel safe. Like no one could touch me. Before I even entered the doorway I could hear the yelling and laughing, John Paul Jones had went on the organ playing some song I had never heard before, Jimmy sat by the window with his arms around what I think was groupie. She had big brown eyes and looked younger than any of the other ones I had ever seen before. Although I hadn’t seen many, so what were they supposed to look like. I looked back at Robert once more to lead the way. All the girls on the plane were yelling and ran up to him as he entered, “Robert so nice of you to finally join us, what’s your drink?” said one of them. She was definitely more of the assistant type then the sleep with the boys type. “none for me yet anyway, I’ve got to get settled in.” he pointed ahead to the room straight down the hall. “the one all the way on the end?” he raised both eyebrows and smirked, “that’s the one, big bed huh” BIG BED?! IS THAT WHAT HE JUST SAID. My heart fluttered, I held his hand tighter and walked straight down to the room. It was only lit by a small light in the corner. The decor was dark yellow and green. The carpet felt soft and expensive. He threw down the bag he was holding on the bed and flopped onto it. “ahh its been a long night, long long night.” he really focused on the word long. He spread his legs further apart and stretched his arms over his head, I just stood there in awe. His muscles contracted on his arms and his chest lowered when he inhaled. “this room is beautiful Robert, I really like the.. uh the carpet” I was trying to distract from my obvious discomfort of his presence. But saying something stupid wasn’t exactly the best distraction. He laughed while sitting up, “your a nervous thing aren’t you? tell me whats your name nervous girl” tell him your god damn name. “its Paige like you know a page in a book, but with an I right after the a” when would I learn to keep my mouth shut. “Paige what an innocent name. My lovely innocent girl.” He stood up and put his hand on my cheek while his other lightly grasped my waist. “just a little innocent girl, tell me why were you backstage innocent angle” because I wanted to see you naked. “ well actually I was looking for my friend he was the one trying to get backstage and I didn’t want him to get in any trouble. Really a big misunderstanding. I would never sneak back stage at one of your shows, I respect you guys too much” I scrunched my face putting my hand up at my forehead. I was a nervous wreck blurting out nonsense. He laughed again louder grabbing at my waist with both hands, “well what a lucky misunderstanding,” “lucky? how so?” “well if you hadn’t snuck backstage I would have been thinking of the girl in the crowd all night”. He really did feel it too. The same shock wave I felt when I looked deep into his eyes. “and you grabbed at my leg didn’t you? Ill tell you I was afraid I was going to trip off the stage! you nearly ruined the show” he actually felt that..shit. “I didn’t mean to..i just you were so close to me. I almost didn’t believe it so I thought If I could just..” If you could just touch me, you would know it was real" How did he.. “yes! Exactly! how did you know?” “well because, that’s precisely what I’m doing right now” he grabbed harder at my sides trailing down to my bottom. He slightly lifted my skirt with his hands and leaned into me. He pressed his lips into mine with such a delicate force. It felt so natural. I kissed him back and put my hand behind his neck into his hair. I opened my eyes to see my hand touching his golden locks, I wanted that as a mental picture for ever. Then he opened his eyes and pulled away laughing. Was I that funny ? “you are a funny one aren’t you?” he pinched at my cheek, “I love a good laugh I’m going to keep you around for a while Paige” a while? how longs awhile. All this time I thought he throws girls away after each night. Would he keep me for a few nights? Spend time with me during the day? “well funny girl, how about a drink?” I nodded eagerly. We walked out into the central area and made our way over to the bar, the same women was handing out drinks and looked at me and Robert and smiled, “ready for a drink now love birds?” Robert looked down at me and smiled, “yeah you know we are, give me my usual. And for the beautiful Paige?” I had never had an ounce of alcohol in my life. To be quite honest I thought it smelled bad, so what is my drink. “I’ll have whatever Roberts having.” she looked at me with wide eyes and laughed, “you’re a little thing how much does it take to get you drunk sweetie?” as if I had any sort of clue. Robert even looked down at me laughing, “you sure you can take it Paige? I don’t mess around” “I can take it, I’m cool” they bursted out laughing. Were they laughing at me or with me? With my awkward charm, it was most likely at me. Robert shook his head and kissed my cheek, he whispered in my ear “don’t be so nervous they wont bite” I just nodded and straightened my back. She handed Robert the drinks and he signaled with his head to the seats in the most secluded area. We finally sat down, but a flow of girls rushed over “Robert you were incredible tonight really, I was absolutely moved.” I couldn’t believe how close they were getting to him. Rubbing his legs and chest. He raised both his arms in the air still holding the drinks, “girls could you lay off me please. Your here for Mr. Page over there” Jimmy still sat with the same girl from earlier. “he’s busy with some baby groupie, and besides we know how to take care of you..” take care of you? God I could feel my face turn red and eyes tear. don’t you fucking cry. The girls were all tall with long legs and big boobs, probably more suited for Robert anyway. “for chrissake I’m with someone important right now, would you bloody piss off!” I’d never heard him angry, well I’d never really heard him anything before tonight. But this was pure anger. The girls shot their eyes at me and looked me up and down,“fine have fun with your little virgin, hell if she knows what to do with it” My face flushed again. My eyes filling up with tears. I quickly wiped my eyes and Robert looked at me “ I’m so sorry Paige their like vultures really, I cant stand when..” he notice me wiping away tears. “oh no my love, don’t let them get to you. Their simply jealous. I promise. I want to be here with you right now, that’s why I saved you.” I felt much more comfortable after hearing that , “can I be honest Robert” “why of course my love, anything,” He wants to be here with me right, so I should be as honest as possible. “I don’t drink. I don’t even like alcohol. I just took it to seem mature. I’m afraid I really don’t fit in with the girls here.” I feared for his reaction. It’s not easy to fake confidence around Robert Plant “But Paige my dear, that’s the reason I like you so much. You’re different from them. Do you think I like being with a girl who knows exactly what she is doing all the time? I like how unsure you are. Its refreshing” he enjoyed being with me? I let that sink in before I said anything else. “you musnt worry my dear I wont let them bother you again.” I nodded and fixed my eyes,“you shouldn’t wear any makeup at all Paige your eyes are too beautiful to hide behind it.” He pushed the hair out of my face and held my cheeks, “that’s what everyone says” "Well their right you know? Now, enough tears come here so I can hold you.” he patted his lap motioning me over. I stood up and sat down my back facing him. Putting my hands on his thighs, they were so thick and lean. He put his hands at my hips and started pulling at me, “spin around so I can look at you love,” I lifted my legs and spun around, I straddled him and put my hands at his shoulders. “now that’s better, you do have a lovely back but id much rather be looking at the front of you.” I laughed and ran my hands down onto his chest. I was taking as many mental pictures as I feasibly could. His broad chest encased with hair, he was slightly tanned. The Golden God. He wasrubbing at my hips and bottom as he pulled me closer. I could feel how hard he was. My hands had made their way down to his abdomen. Oh my god he felt so statuesque and trim. Still slightly sweaty from the concert. “how about a lap dance Paigey girl” I stopped rubbing at him and smirked, now this I knew how to do. Id given lap dances before and haven’t had any complaints. I pushed my hair behind my shoulders and arched my back before standing up. He re-positioned himself spreading his legs and putting his hands behind his head. I turned around back facing him and bent over, I made sure my dress lifted. He put his hand on my back guiding me into him. I grinded painfully slow and rubbed both of his thighs moving progressively closer into the center with each stroke. I stood up so I could lower my top, he looked at me intently and rubbed at his chest. “now don’t make me suffer, finish the dance baby” I flipped my hair once more and straddled him, facing forward. I put my arm onto his shoulders and began grinding again. My other hand on his thigh. He grabbed my hips pulling me hard into him. He looked down between the space between us and let out a breathy moan, “ahh you feel so good” Enough to make me loose it, god don’t make me lose it. He pulled me in and kissed at my neck and chest. I wrapped my hands in his hair once more, He stopped to look up at me, “would you like to wait for me in the bedroom or can I have you right here?” I felt my heart flutter, “the bedroom sounds lovely Robert”

#robert plant fanfiction #robert plant fanfic

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boycottphil · 6 years

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Blue Neighbourhood (My Youth Is Yours) - Chapter 2

Summary: Dan and Phil come from two different worlds. Dan’s family is poor and fighting to survive each day, while Phil was born with a silver spoon in his mouth. They do have one thing in common that keeps them together for many years to come: they’ve both been neglected and left to fend for themselves.

In this alternative universe, Dan and Phil are going through the joys, pains and confusions of childhood and teenage years; in which they discover themselves, their families and the people around them.

Rating: Teen and up (for now)

Word count: 3159 Chapter: 03/?

Read on AO3!

<- Last chapter | Beginning | Next chapter ->

Chapter Two: Together

Dan’s home was small. It was an average-looking house with a beige exterior and hardly anything else to go for it. The front door looked as if it would fall off its hinges at any given moment. One of the windows on the top floor was obviously broken, with grey plastic covering it from the inside to keep out rain. The only thing on the whole property that was prettier than anything else was a large oak tree in the backyard that towered over the house, making it look tiny in comparison.

Even with its falling exterior and junk in both the front and the back of the house, Dan never thought that it wasn’t homey. He was used to the clutter and the mess, he was used to squeaky doors and windows, to wooden floors that threatened to cause splintered feet. He never thought that he had it worse than any other kid. He had all that he needed, even if he recognised that he sometimes wanted that new toy everyone had, or that new video game everyone was playing.

It was a Sunday, but even on a Sunday, the Howell house was empty. Dan’s mother worked two jobs, and working Sundays paid better than working any other day of the week. Dan’s father sometimes left for days at a time. Dan never knew where he went, why he left or when he would be coming back. When he wasn’t out of town, he was sitting in the living room, a husk of a man, looking blankly at the turned on TV with a can of beer in his hands.

His parents weren’t perfect. Dan was aware. He knew his mother struggled with juggling two jobs, two kids. Two kids who were nowhere near ready to go out into the world, and wouldn’t be for years to come.

But everything was good. Even if Dan was left home alone, left to cook himself a meal and clean up after everyone, as he was the only one with the time to do so, he thought that everything was good. His family wasn’t perfect. But it was a good family.

On Sunday, Dan had a whole plan. He woke up whenever he wanted, since his mum wasn’t around to drag him out of bed for school or other responsibilities. He had his favourite cereal for breakfast, and sometimes even some extra sweets if he found any. He then sat in front of the TV until at least 2 or 3 in the afternoon, cleaning between shows and during ads. When he got bored of television, he cooked his mother and little brother a meal, then set it aside for when they would come home.

It was 4 in the afternoon on that cloudy Sunday when Dan remembered that he promised his new friend that he would be coming around again. He picked up his backpack, noting that there was a small hole in the bottom of it that he should patch up later. Band-aids, some water and a snack were carefully packed into the backpack, this time a flashlight as well. Dan grabbed his house key to lock the house up before he hopped on his bike.

He had fun, the previous day. Phil was a good boy. He knew how to have fun, even if he was a bit strange at first. Even if his family was a bit strange.

Whose family wasn’t strange?

The brown-haired boy was in the “rich” part of town within half an hour, panting a bit as he hopped off his bike and looked up at the by now familiar house. Compared to his own, this pristine-looking house, built probably not too long ago, or renovated at least, looked like a proper mansion for royalty. Dan wondered if they had a huge foyer with a chandelier made out of beautiful crystals… Or perhaps an indoor pool, with a slide?

Like the previous day, Dan scanned all the windows, hoping that this time he would see a pair of blue eyes peeking from one of the white curtains. He gave it a minute, then walked between the houses and looked into the backyard.

Phil was sitting on the porch, Lion positioned so he sat on Phil’s lap. The boy was looking out toward the forest, his blue eyes reflecting the woods in a way that made them appear to almost be green. A deep green-blue. Dan didn’t make his presence known yet. He noticed that the boxes were gone and that a swing set was set up in the opposite corner, and most of the flowers that were previously in pots had been planted.

“Hello, Phil,” he greeted, keeping his voice rather meek. He was afraid that he would startle the other.

“Dan,” Phil smiled, getting up and taking Lion by the paw as he walked over to the fence. “Hey. How are you?” The ginger-haired boy asked, probably to be polite.

Dan couldn’t help but notice the suit he was wearing. His tie was a bit crooked, but its pretty azure colour caught Dan’s attention. “Are you going somewhere?” He asked, some disappointment evident in his voice.

“No, we just came back from church a while ago.” Phil looked over his shoulder. He was glad that his mother seemed to already be too busy with work to pay attention to where he was. “I was actually waiting for you.” He admitted, looking back at Dan.

“Oh,” Dan breathed out, then he, too, glance at the open door leading into the house. “Can you come play?” He asked, knowing that the previous day, the other boy was forced to cut the time they spent together short.

Phil shook his head, and it was all Dan needed to feel defeated. He was hoping they could continue their game. He had been up late the previous night, thinking of strategies to get some of Phil’s “treasure.” They were ninja pirates, after all, and they needed to protect their territory and steal what isn’t rightfully theirs. Dan had hoped that they could build some more stuff together, maybe even explore the other end of the woods.

“But-!” Phil started, as soon as he saw the disappointment wash over Dan’s face. “We can play here.” He said, biting his lips. He didn’t seem too sure if that was true.

“Really?”

“I-I can ask…” he added softly, then took a step back from the fence.

“Wait. What if I can’t stay?” Dan looked down at the ground again. He didn’t want to go home. He really didn’t.

Phil shrugged, then finally stepped back and turned to climb up onto the porch. He was gone for a few minutes, and Dan began to wonder if the other boy would even becoming back. He was just about to take his bike again and leave when Phil reemerged from within his home and smile at Dan brightly.

“You can stay to play!” Dan saw that Phil had changed out of the suit he was wearing and was now dressed in a tee with a cartoonish purple T-rex on it as well as some simple black sweats.

“Awesome.” Dan grinned back and put his bike away, then walked around to the gate, which Phil opened for him and let him into his backyard.

Dan saw Phil’s mother poke her head out briefly. He frowned when she saw who her son was going to play with, but she did not say a word.

The two boys spend hours playing. Phil brought out his toys, making Dan feel just a little bit envious. But that feeling wasn’t about to ruin anything for him. They each picked their own action figure and were soon “battling” against each other.

It was late in the afternoon, the sun would begin to set anytime soon. Phil’s mother came out of the house, watching for a few minutes before she spoke up.

“I think that’s enough for today.” She said coldly, and even as the smiles fell from both of the boys’ faces, she remained stone cold.

“But mum-” Phil began.

“No. I’m sorry, love. Your friend has to go.”

Dan put down the figure he had been playing with and stood up. He grabbed his backpack off the ground and dusted it off. It was still dirty, but that’s just how it was.

“That’s okay, Phil. I had fun.” Dan said and smiled down at his new friend. Phil soon stood up as well and nodded, though he was not happy at all. Dan thought he could guess what the reason behind the frowning was.

“I’ll see you... “ Phil didn’t finish that sentence on purpose.

“Tomorrow?” The other boy perked up a bit as Dan suggested.

“Yeah, tomorrow.” He then leaned closer to Dan and whispered. “Mum and dad are gone until 4. We can go to the forest again.” He then pulled back and smiled brightly.

Dan briefly wondered how Phil could be both so full of sunshine and rain all at once.

“Okay, bye, Phil. Goodbye, Mrs….” He looked at Phil, as if asking for his surname.

“Lester.”

“Goodbye Mrs. Lester. Thank you for letting me stay.” He then walked out the gate, not looking at the woman as he grabbed his bike and slowly drove off.

Dan didn’t go home right away. He decided to drive around for a while. He had time. His mother and brother wouldn’t be home until very late, and he had nothing to do. Nothing good was on TV and he had no chores he wanted or had to do. He felt the weight of being alone. It felt as if someone had put rocks into his backpack and was forcing him to ride up a steep hill. He didn’t like the feeling.

With Phil around, it felt as if that weight didn’t ever exist.

He came across a park, not too far away from his home. He could see a group of boys, older than him by at least a couple of years, playing basketball.

The urge to run over and ask if he could play, too, was strong with Dan, but he merely sat down on one of the benches and took out the bottle of water and the snack he packed for himself. The sun was slowly beginning to dip under the horizon, casting long shadows on the ground, the light around the whole park turning a gentle orange. Dan wished he could have spent that time with a friend.

“Daniel, where have you been?” Dan heard his mother ask, no real concern in her voice. She knew that the 11 year old could take care of himself well enough. He was mature for his age.

“I was playing with Phil.” He answered simply, putting his backpack down on the ground and heading into the kitchen. His mother was sat down at the table, a lit cigarette held loosely between her pale fingers. Dan’s nose scrunched up at the familiar scent of tobacco. He was used to it by now, but after spending a day outside in the fresh air, he did not appreciate the foul scent.

“Phil?” He heard his mother ask, an eyebrow cocked in curiosity. Despite the bags under her eyes and the tired paleness of her skin, her chocolate brown eyes were still warm as she looked at her son.

“Yeah!” Dan said with enthusiasm, sitting down at the kitchen table and starting to animatedly describe Phil and all the fun he had had with the boy in the short time he had known him. From their games at the garbage dump to their rather quiet hours spent playing with Phil’s toys. Dan’s mum had a soft smile on her lips as she listened intently to her son.

“I’m happy that you found a friend like Phil, love.” He extinguished her cigarette and then put the food Dan had made for her and Adrian into the microwave. “Does he go to your school?”

“I don’t know. He moved in not too long ago.”

“So he’s new in town.”

“I guess so. They moved into a huge house.”

Dan’s mum hummed to let Dan know that she was listening.

“His mum doesn’t like me.”

She looked over at Dan, her smile falling. “Why do you think that?”

“She doesn’t like it that I play with Phil.” He thought back on the looks she was sending in Dan’s direction. The judging way she scrunched up her nose in what must be disgust whenever he touched anything that belong to Phil- or even Phil himself.

“...Some people are like that, honey. As long as Phil is nice to you, I don’t see a reason why it should matter whether his mum likes you or not.” Dan could only nod at that. He knew he shouldn’t care. But he saw how Phil reacted. How his head hung a bit lower every time he noticed his mum looking over at them.

“I guess. I’m gonna go read.” Dan pushed his chair away from the table. He hear his mum say a soft ‘okay, have fun’ before he closed the kitchen door and went to the bathroom. He took a shower and brushed his teeth before slipping into the room he shared with Adrian.

His brother was in the living room, judging by the sounds of some cartoon coming from said room. Dan sighed, climbing into his own bed and taking out a book to read. He could hardly concentrate. It was a strange day. But at least it felt like summer.

Dan kept meeting up with Phil every day. They would either go to the forest or explore the neighbourhood. They were inseparable. They spent every minute of every day together, as much as they could and were allowed to. Dan learnt that Phil’s parents weren’t home much, and even when they were, they were working. Usually, there was a nanny to take care of Phil. An older woman who had apparently been a family friend for a long time.

He also learnt that Phil has a brother who is three years older than him. Dan did ask why he had never seen Martyn. But Phil just shrugged and avoided the question for a few days, until he said that Martyn went to a boarding school, and was in America with some school friends on a summer-long trip.

Perhaps it was envy or maybe melancholy that he saw in Phil’s eyes. Whatever it was, it told him not to talk about Martyn too much.

Summer was slowly coming to an end. Dan had been so busy with just being around Phil that he didn’t even notice that in less than 3 weeks, they would be going right back to school. To hell, as Dan loved to call it.

“Phil?” They were sitting on a bench in a park near Phil’s home. Phil had sneaked out once again, because he always did that with Dan. Even if he got in trouble at least a few times when his mum noticed that his shoes were muddier than they were supposed to be.

“Yes?” The blue-eyed boy asked, turning his gaze away from some pigeon that had gathered around a woman who was feeding them some crumbs.

“What school do you go to?”

Phil thought for a moment. He had to remember the name. “St. Willow Secondary School.” He said after almost a full minute of thinking.

“That’s the same school I go to!” He wasn’t too keen to go to that school. Although it was a new school, as he is starting year 7, the change will be minimal. Teachers and a new building aside, not much changes. He’s going to be with the same kids. Their town isn’t exactly large. He’s happier this time around though.

Phil will be there, too.

“That’s great!” Phil chuckled, nudging Dan with his shoulder. They were sat rather closely together. It felt nice, comfortable. Just being in close proximity. They didn’t yet officially declare that they are best friends, but both of them knew it.

“I will finally have someone to spend lunch with!” Dan laughed, and Phil joined in after saying a small ‘me too’.

They fell into comfortable silence, both boys happy.

The first day of school was always difficult. Not only did it mean that he had to wear a uniform again, but it also meant that he had to get used to studying and listening and just waking up every morning. The only thing he was looking forward to was the fact that now he could be with Phil, every day. Maybe not as much as they were during summer, but he could at the very least look forward to something.

The beginning of a new school year meant something else, as well. It meant that Dan’s mum spent a lot of money on his uniform, his books, his supplies… And while she said that it was fine (she didn’t even have a choice, anyway), it was obvious that there was some stress around spending so much money all of a sudden. Dan couldn’t help but think a bit bitterly how Phil does not have such a problem.

After the welcoming ceremony, they were all told to find their classes and start the day. Dan had yet to see Phil, but he had gone through two classes already, both of which didn’t start on anything important yet. The usual get-to-know the teacher and students spiel was going on, and Dan already knew 99% of everyone in his classes. He was eager for lunch to come around so he could maybe, hopefully, find Phil.

Ten minutes into lunch break and Dan finally stumbled upon Phil. They shared stories of their days so far as they made their way to the canteen. Dan got his free lunch, and Phil had one packed from home. They sat down in a secluded corner, not wanting to be bothered by anyone at all. Dan used to hang out with some boys from his old school, but he didn’t find them. He knew that they were somewhere.

Lunch passed in what felt like seconds, and the two had to get up and continue their day. Dan was less than eager. He could only really see Phil during breaks and what’s about it. At the very least, he figured, he had the older boy’s schedule and they could meet up between classes, even if it was for only a minute or two to say hello.

Dan didn’t mind. He was okay with it. At least he had someone to be around. With Phil around, there would be no problems. With Phil around, even the bullies wouldn’t matter too much. Because at the end of the day, he didn’t have to go home and hope that the following day would be better.

He could go to his friend who would tell him that the following day would be better.

#phan #phanfiction #phanfic #daniel howell #amazingphil #danisnotonfire #phil lester #dnp #dan and phil #mine #fanfiction

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survivormuxloe · 5 years

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Episode #8: “hoebi hears ALL things shady...” - Tobi

Ok I’m super excited because we finally got a challenge involving something I’m good at which is aesthetics. I fucking love moodboards and I really wanna win a challenge so I’m hoping I can win this.

So I am absolutely not creative at all so this challenge is gonna be a struggle for me so love that

So Wes was just voted out. Im neutural about it. Yes wes was a number, but it wouldve done too much drama to try and save him. Im playing my game not his. He didnt do himself any favours.

This round my target is david. He seems like someone who isnt central to everyone. So therefore I think he would easier to get votes on. Plus scott has mentioned david annoys him. So im hoping that now i can managed to pull 2 people our way to vote our david.

people sure gettin feisty..

lets start off with missus dani and mr michael the obvious f2.. like bitch if ur gonna leak things i tell u dont make it obvious!! LAMFJHFG and now dani wants to flip the script on felix bc She Doesnt Want To Do What Shes Told. like gtfo :) ugh im sick of them both i wanna blindside them so bad..

and then i might get caught leakin if this shit gets out more.. hope the vote stays at felix vs david tho bc its bye bye david :)

uhm idk wha t more to say. im done with these mercia people..

Today... the tea... is absolutely STEAMING!! so initially the plan was for david to leave bc felix also wanted to blindside him... but scott's told michael who TOLD david about it and now david knows about it so the target is switched rn... Also more tea is that dani thought she was slick and told scott that she wanted to blindside felix along with scott, david, michael, some sweyn, and said ahrre would do whatever she said... what she said also insinuated that me, mo, and felix were on the bottom of our og tribe... guess she doesn't know that hoebi hears ALL things shady... looks like im flipping off of my og tribe for a 3rd org in a row ladies

im such a fucking mess.... but thank god i have rhys/jones/ryan pickin up the pieces and we still blindsidin.. ALMFJBG

GOD I HOPE ITS DANI THO IM DESPERATE FOR HER TO GO. and i wanna show michael u dont fucking throw me utb n get away with it.. i may be inbred but im not completely dumb n i have the social bonds to stay aMJFHBG

im so dumb like i deserve nothing good after this.

pleaseletmewinpleaseletmewinpleaseletmewinpleaseletmewinpleaseletmewin i w a n t t h i s

SO MUCH HAS BEEN GOING DOWN GUYS this tea is HOT SO since before the Wes vote, Felix, Mo, Tobi, Scooty, Ryan, Rhys and myself were planning on voting for David for the F11 vote - because he's a comp threat and seems pretty set on not flipping on OG Mercia BUT when Scooty was chit chatting with his Canute bff Michael, MICHAEL SPILLED THE BEANS and basically threw Scooty under the bus, so David found out about the plan! I had to play dumb when David asked me about it, and I told him I had no idea (and he totally fell for it >:3c), BUT Felix heard about it and went to Ryan and it became A [clap emoji] CLUSTER [clap emoji] FUCK [clap emoji x3] Scooty also got tea from Dani that she wants to flip the script on Felix with Scooty, me, David, Michael, and Ahrre (she said Ahrre would follow along with anything bc they're paranoid asf) - SO she basically layed out the Mercia tribe Dynamics and indirectly said that Mo, Felix, and Tobi were on the bottom. Which honestly we knew, but that works perfectly for us Sweyn ;) So after I cleared everything up with Felix that Scooty never spilled the beans to David and that Michael is a total snake, we were thinking about what to do next -And because David knows his name's been mentioned, we had to tread carefully. So then we thought,, why not use this paranoia to our advantage? We can make David feel like he's a target so they can possibly play an idol on him (which is a HUGE possibility) but in actuality,,, we're voting for Dani or Michael. It's pretty obvious to everyone that they're a really tight duo and it would be great if we could split them up now before they go far. Right now everyone would definitely prefer to vote Dani (and so would I) because apparently she's a possible comp threat, and also she's v messy so there's that. but if she possibly wins immunity then the vote's changing to Michael. As long as that duo breaks up then we're solid. BUT THAT'S THE TEA FOR NOW I'll try to make another confessional if my dumbass remembers to <3

So I didn’t win, which makes me sad but I did come in second place. Another good thing is that Jones won and I’m allies with Jones so I’m very happy about this. Overall I’m happy.

Hey ya boy is back now I'm gonna recap last week cause my flop ass forgot to do it as it happened. Basically I didn't win immunity which is good. Then I went take a poopoo and when I come back everyone is saying Wes, so hey guess I don't work this week, a nice change compared to the week jose went home.

As for Wes well he hadn't been the most active and I really didn't had a bond with him so that seemed as a convenient vote to me. Aparently he was also targetted cause he was one point away from winning immunity? idk how much of a factor that was but hey kids all the more of a reason to throw them early challenges.

Now talking about tribe lines I'm doing my job talking with the other guys and letting them know I'm willing to work with them. However I'm keeping my eyes on them, specially Scott who seemed to have charmed Michael and Dani in after having flipped on Malik. Add to that the connections he probably has with his OG tribe and make no mistake he could very well be in the best position in this game, which means I will probably have to take a shoot on him sooner or later.

Tobi could also be in a similar postion since the other guys saved him when they had a 4-1 tribe divition advantage, but idk how much was up to Tobi chatting them up instead of Madison being a liability, but I will also keep an eye in him.

Additionally Michael is def not fully in with the idea of staying og tribe strong, which is fair enough. But he also told me Felix told him last week he wanted david out next week, so that would basically be this week. So I'm gonna have to learn more about that, also I never knew who originally threw Wes's name out and no one seemed to know but something tells me Michael had something to do with that as well.

So all in all that's a bunch of stuff I'm gonna have to act upon while keeping a low profile, but hey lazy week was last week so it's not time to get confortable and sit around without doing anything.

sooo i came online today to some messiness lmao. apparently danielle/michael/david all found out about felix's plan, and michael went to Felix and basically threw Scott under the bus about it lmfao. and they want to pull in Ahrre + some Sweyns to flip it on Felix and uh.... yeah no afkdsf. i was able to get felix back on the right page and i think we're good to go him/Mo + Sweyns and blindside Danielle or Michael hehe, because felix thinks an idol could pop up or something idk

so the new plan is blindside miss dani.. thank god LMAOAOAA i been wantin her ass out forever and i wanna have michael stay shook bc if he thinks im gonna be loyal to him after this.. lmao

SHE SHOULDA JUST SAT THERE AND ATE HER FOOD INSTEAD OF SITTIN THERE SAYIN ‘OH I DONT WANNA DO WHAT IM TOLD’ LIKE BITCH. YES U WILL. OTHERWISE UR ASS IS GRASS. THANK U, NEXT.

Okay, so Jones won immunity. Great! Sweyn on the immunity train.

So David was the original plan. However scott went around trying to swing it to david to people who cant keep their gob shut. Michael went to tell David, and david has come full circle and started asking everyone if they had heard my name. So now The sweynians have tried to swing the vote on Dani. As its seen that her and Michael are a pair & Tobi finds Dani annoying.

So we are going to keep the facade that its still David and try to keep telling Michael its David etc and get votes on David. When in reality thats a big fat lie. And Dani should be getting votes.

So tonight the vote is very simple. To vote Ryan however the complication comes from whether or not I go with the og sweyns to blindside David in an attempt to really open the game up and have less of a tribe vs tribe dynamic. Also complicating matters is the fact scott wants me dani and David to form a voting block with Ahrre and someone else to really control this game. It seems to me that I need to really think about my decision.

they better make up their minds whether its me or ryan bc i aint agreeing to a 5th name this tribal LAMFJHFG

So all this is messy and I just start thinking, why don’t I flip like David’s a threat and it would open up the game 100% and also if it was just a case of David vs Ryan id vote ryan but I like Rhys so.

So a lot happened and now it’s rhys but I don’t want rhys I want ryan and with my crazy coo coo plan I hope that i get what I want bc that would be cute and like so unexpected and it would get the game to be opened up

im gunna fucking piss myself why are mercia SO DUMB!!! THEY WANNA SPLIT BETWEEN RYAN AND RHYS LMAOAOAOA LIKE HOW.. KILL ALL UR BONDS IDC!! ME AND JONES ARE BUSY CRYING LAUGHING BC THEYRE JUST SO FUCKING BAD AAAAAAAA

So I wake up to hear my name being throw around by my own og tribe... I love this tea soooo much... like in the end they settled for ryan but the fact that they have the audacity to put me up as an option AND THEN ask me for my vote... I have to laugh LKJHDFLJ I guess its time to flip the script!! Dani and Michael are coming up with this "genius" plan of splitting the votes between ryan and rhys because they think scott, jones, and I are with them... oh honey... they have a big storm comin... we're using this to our advantage to do a clean vote on Dani and take out one of them mofos... miss piggy gets revenge tonight

soo i came online to a whollllllle big ass mess lmao. Dani & Michael been scrambling to get out me or Rhys to save David and they have no idea they've dug themselves so far into a ditch.... it's scary knowing i'm gonna get votes but i feel confident that ppl have my back... i feel good that the Sweyns + Tobi + Felix will vote together to get Dani, and I just hope we've done a good job at making them not see it coming... but even if they do and an idol is played correctly by them, my idol 10000% is going to make an appearance hehehe

Hello here I am,, coming in clutch as the moodboard QUEEN. um,, thank god honestly. bc rn it seems like og Mercia wanted to just pick off Sweyn and I know for a fact David would've wanted to go for me first bc of Ko Chang (which btw, if you target people for past games, choke, it's a new game get over it sweaty c:) but yeah I'm glad I have immunity <3 thank god I ran a moodboard account over the summer teehee So yeah rn the Mercia group is a clusterfuck and I love it,,, I love watching the world burn yk? They really just,,, have no idea what they're doing. first they want to go for Scott, but apparenlty that's a cover and they're going for Ryan, THEN SCOTT KNOWS and they change the vote to Rhys, then they're splitting??? like??? hello????? y'all gotta make up your minds we've been planning on voting Dani out since before immunity came out. this couldn't have been easier honestly. I love this. THEN MICHAEL bless his heart I love him so fucking much but he really told me that David doesn't trust any of Sweyn and wants them out,, like,,, does he not realize,,,,,,,,,,,,,I'm from Sweyn. like,,, that makes me want to take you guys out even more. PLUS he's really digging his own grave when he says that Mo and Ahrre can do whatever they want and they don't matter like,, you don't give the people on the bottom leg room. that's really dumb I love Michael to death but he's doing this to himself rn but heres the rundown on what everyone on that side THINKS is happening - Michael, myself, Scooty, Dani and David vote for Ryan - Ryan and Rhys vote for David - and Mo, Ahrre Tobi and Felix do whatever the fuck they want/Rhys apparently. so that would be a 5/4/2 vote for Ryan. HERE'S WHAT'S ACTUALLY HAPPENING (or what I think is happening based on my sleuthing) - David Dani and Michael are voting for Ryan - Ahrre is voting for Rhys - and myself, Scooty, Ryan, Rhys, Tobi, Mo, and Felix are all voting for Dani. making it a 7/3/1 split. I really hate how cocky I sound rn but holy fuck Mercia really crumbled and I barely did anything except for keeping Sweyn/Felix/Mo/Tobi on my side. Thank god. plus with all of this info we gathered now it'll be a lot easier to pull in Ahrre so we can take out the rest of Mercia. see y'all at F10 <3

everyone in this game can stay shook sweyn is runnin this shit..

this is legit my gameplan. be a crazy ass bitch and be a mess and people will never vote ur ass cus they think ull lose in ftc LAMJFBFG

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OKAY. So lets catch up on the vote.

Originally sweyn was going for David. So Scotty was trying to get on it early and get people to swing to him. He told Michael. Michael tells David. David asks all of Sweyn if we heard his name.

We all regroup, and decide Michael or Dani is the best bet. As you know, snitches get stiches. Dani is Michaels ally and I have heard some people have been annoyed with her. So Dani is our new target. We have Tobi, Felix and Mo on board supposedly.

I continue the facade and talk to Michael and Dani about the vote with David. Inorder to keep David thinking its him. Going over whos voting who and blah blah.

Apprently the others, were going to go for Ryan. However Michael told Scotty about it being Ryan, when he was supposed to. This lead to Scotty telling Dani, who told David. So now *apprently* they think Ahrre told Scotty. So now I've been told the vote has been switched to me. But it may be split between me and Ryan.

So right now, I think Dani is going home, with a few votes on me or Ryan. However keyword being THINK. This could be completly a blindside on my half. Just gotta keep fingers crossed.

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Man, so tonight's tribal is gonna be crazy. I got my alliance of Felix, Michael, Danielle and myself voting for Rhys. And I'm gonna use my vote steal to steal Ahrre's vote since he considered himself the swing vote and I'm gonna vote Rhys again with it. If this plan works, Rhys goes home.

We've been telling everyone else that the vote is Ryan, so in case there's an idol being played on either Rhys or Ryan, the other one will hopefully go home.

Ok so a lot has been going on and I've got a big headache so lets just sum it all up.

1. Scott is a dangerous little fella aparently the entire Felix throwing David under the bus last week story was bs. 2. OG Sweyn are going after David. 3. David is going after rhys but he's telling me to vote ryan for some reason, I assume that's because someone leaked the ryan vote to Scott and for some reason he thinks it was me? Either way he's really risking it considering I'm not sure he even has majority, plus he's alienating my ass so I have no real reason to keep him if I survive this round.

Anyhow I'm paranoid now so wish me gl.

Danielle is voted out 7-2-2.

#episode #royallyyours

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