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happilychee · 5 months

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fairy tail dragon slayer headcanons pt. 1

♡ what the first gen and second gen dragon slayers eat is pretty self-explanatory. all of their elements are... somewhat tangible. sting and rogue though? they're still figuring it out. rogue wonders if he can eat someone else's shadow, and sting immediately volunteers himself. "for science!" he says. the result is that sting almost passes out. oops. he insists they try on their friends, much to rogue's displeasure. the results are that sting is the most susceptible, then yukino, rufus, orga, and minerva is the least susceptible to magic drainage. sting insists rogue tries to eat an inanimate object's shadow, and nothing happens to it, so they decide that's the way to go.

♡ when wendy eats air, the oxygen levels thin. she has to be careful or she'll cause her allies and enemies alike to pass out. when sting eats light, the area gets darker and darker. this is great for rogue, who starts eating the shadows, and they manage to balance each other out.

♡ sting insists that different types of light taste differently. his favorite is light from golden hour, right when the sun is dipping below the horizon. moonlight will do in a pinch, but it's so diluted that it takes way more of it to recover sting's magic. he also gets sick if he eats too much moonlight.

♡ pantherlily already has transformation magic and enhanced strength, and carla learns to transform so she can help wendy fight. the other three exceeds feel... a little left out. happy learns how to fly faster and for longer (though he still complains about lucy being heavy). lector goes to porlyusica and wendy to learn some stamina regeneration spells for sting. everyone is surprised when frosch, completely on their own, manages to learn an adorable light spell that creates floating pink bubbles. rogue can consume the shadows from them without worrying about draining frosch's magic, and he spends the entire afternoon crying about it.

♡ dragon slayers are a bit like crows. their way of bonding with someone is through gifting trinkets. natsu will bring lucy, erza, and even gray pretty rocks or seashells that he's found on jobs. wendy picks up a new craft or hobby every week, so the members of fairy tail are constantly recieving handmade accessories from her (gajeel helps during the metalsmithing phase). gajeel does not buy cute things for people. he is like a dad in the fact that, when juvia mentions she wants watermelon, he buys her 20 watermelons. walking math problem fr.

♡ laxus has mixed feelings about his more draconic features and habits. he's never loved his magic because of the way he got it, and the memory of his father basically torturing him as he inserted the lacrima will stay with him forever. he tends to suppress dragon instincts more than anyone else in the group, and they all scold him for it. on a rare occasion, laxus will give in and buy something shiny (like a hairclip) for wendy. she has a little jewelry box for them that she guards fiercely.

♡ cobra considers himself more of a flying snake than a dragon. he once drew a picture that sent everyone into a laughing fit. he prefers to stick with the old oración seis crew, but the guild dragon slayers are always happy to see him when he stops by with crime sorcière.

♡ sting, because of his heightened senses and his affinity for light, prefers nighttime. the day can often be overwhelming, and overexposure to bright settings and lots of people leaves his skin buzzing. he likes to sit in the dim guild hall, leaning against the cool stone wall, as the chatter of the crowd quiets down with the setting sun.

♡ dragon slayers all have the Bite instinct. some exercise a degree of control about it, and others go crazy with it. wendy will very gently nibble on erza or mira's arm when she's in the mood, and sometimes she does it absentmindedly. natsu, on the other hand, is an absolute menace. multiple of erza's armor sets have natsu-shaped bite marks on them. he tends to go after her the most because he knows he won't hurt her with the armor. when natsu's more calmed down, he will chomp on lucy's shoulder. gajaeel copes by eating all of fairy tail's silverware (mira starts buying ceramic spoons), but when levy offers her wrist to him he can't help it.

♡ rogue is another one who doesn't really bite people. he, very rarely, nips at frosch's ears, which causes the exceed to giggle. sting is a Biter like natsu, but with slightly more decorum. he really wants to go at it but will restrain himself because most people aren't willing to be treated like a chew toy. luckily for him, gray and cana aren't most people! because they both wear pretty exposing clothing, gray and cana have no qualms about showing off sting's bite marks on their skin. sting always turns bright red when they tease him about it.

♡ laxus and cobra don't really feel the Bite instinct due to being second gen, but cobra is a little shit and bites people for the fun of it. laxus is completely unbothered when natsu clings to him like a koala and gnaws at him.

#lychee writes #gray and cana are best friends with sting. loke too. this is canon mashima told me #minerva taught frosch the spell btw but she'll take that secret to her grave #genuinely how does one eat light or shadow though #I can't even visualize it😭#fairy tail #fairy tail headcanons #natsu dragneel #wendy marvell #gajeel redfox #laxus dreyar #sting eucliffe #rogue cheney #cobra #sabertooth #dragon slayer #gajevy #if u squint

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fastcardotmp3 · 1 year

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thinking about various versions of Chrissy Comes Back Wrong again and Chrissy, whose mutilated body was buried 6 feet under, who was given a funeral in the local church, a whole mountain of flowers in her memory.

Chrissy, whose body is dead but whose mind is just trapped in Vecna's grasp, trapped where he has control of it, trapped in whatever memory or nightmare he wants to keep her in until she becomes useful.

Until there's reason to release her mind, send it crawling back to a body reanimated with the snapping of bones back into place, breath coming back in choking heaves and embalming fluid still cold in her veins.

And then she's alive again. Alive and 6 feet underground with her name on a placard awaiting a stone yet to be carved.

Alive but different.

Her chest is tight with heaving, sobbing, panicked breaths, but it's like she instinctually knows that it doesn't matter, that she won't run out of air in this pitch-dark box because she doesn't need it.

Chrissy doesn't need air anymore, doesn't need blood in her veins, doesn't need the beat of a heart in her chest despite the way she can still feel the motionless weight of it there.

Chrissy doesn't need any of it, as she scrabbles hands across the lid of her first and final resting place looking for a latch, but she needs something.

She needs to do something.

She needs.

Chrissy has been hungry before, is the thing. Chrissy has trained herself to ignore hunger, as much as a person can do such a thing, but this is unlike any of that.

It's not telling her friends she ate before she left and watching them sip on milkshakes at the diner with a lightness in her head; it's not eating only the meal portioned out for her by her mother and laying in bed with a growling stomach later that night.

It's uncontrollable, this hunger. It's vast and thick and all-consuming to the point where she hardly even realizes when she pushes hard enough against the lid to hear a crack!

She's hardly cognizant of her own frantic movements, doesn't have the wherewithal to acknowledge that she's stronger now, that something about the hunger makes her feel like once she's fed it she'll surpass even this desperation-fueled power.

Soil and insects rain down upon her as she pushes up and up and up; it gets under her nails as she claws towards the surface, in her mouth and up her nose and all over the pretty dress her mother had chosen for her to be buried in.

It was one which made her look particularly petite. It's been torn at the sleeves and the hem is hanging in rags by the time she realizes that in the impulse decision to dig she had locked herself into a singular fate.

Eventually she's going to resurface.

Eventually she's going to have to face the hunger.

---

Nancy Wheeler shouldn't be here.

They have so much work to do, so much to grapple with in the wake of their undeniable loss.

So many lives gone and so much destruction overtaking this town she has called home her entire life and Nancy should really be doing anything but being here.

The sun is setting and the others are having dinner at the Henderson house, one of the few with zero damage caused by the rifts opening in the earth, but Nancy just needs a moment.

She just needs a breath.

She just needs.

"We just keep failing you," she says to a girl's name carved in stone, forever sixteen and forever undeserving of the fate that had befallen her.

Nancy doesn't sit down, just stands on Barb's plot with her shoes sinking into deadened earth, greyed-out grass, and chokes on the feelings she can't have in front of the others.

Not when they're still in this fight, not when there's so much work left to do. She should be doing it. She shouldn't be here.

Fuck, Max still isn't awake and Eddie is on his way to very well losing one of his legs if they can't get his infection under control and Erica is the quietest she's ever been and the Byers boys are attached at the hip like they're scared to let each other out of their sight and Steve is carrying that damn bat around like it's the solution to all their problems and Mike is so much older than he was when he left for California and what is Nancy doing?

"I'm sorry. I'm so..."

She's crying at a dead girl like she's the one who's got it rough. Like she hadn't failed Barb and keeps failing all of them. Like she's not the one who said they should go to the Upside Down in the first place and now Max won't wake up and Eddie might lose a leg and--

The cemetery is empty, this time of day, because the people still sticking it out in Hawkins know that if the sun is setting you should get somewhere safe.

Nancy's stupider, more reckless than they are on paper, just by being here, but really she's just smart enough to know that there's no such thing as safe.

So when she hears a sound like-- like a person choking. Vomiting. Sobbing.

She has her hand on her revolver in the same whirl of motion as she looks behind her.

Nothing.

To the north, nothing.

To the west, nothing.

No one is out this time of day, as the short and hazy sunlight they do get fades into an even hazier orange and then black. But someone is here.

Nancy creeps towards the sound, because if a person is hurt then there's likely a creature nearby too-- a demo-something or other ready to rear back and wield its teeth and claws.

It takes a moment longer than she would like it to for her brain to catch up to her eyes when she sees what she sees. All the input is there, all the information needed to draw a conclusion, but even in Nancy's vast experience of the unexpected, she doesn't know how she could have expected this.

Pink dress gone muddy brown, shredded in places and slashed in others.

Bare feet and blonde hair changed almost entirely in color by the damp of the soil.

Heaving. Choking. Sobbing.

She hasn't been dead long enough for her to have a proper headstone, but the ground torn up all around the plot offers Nancy the final piece to a puzzle she hadn't known she was trying to solve.

Her jaw hinges open and she lowers her gun to clutch it one handed down by her side instead and she breathes--

"Chrissy."

Not a question, because there are a lot of questions here but that's not one of them.

Well.

It wouldn't be, except Nancy's quiet exclamation makes her presence known.

Except, even though Chrissy's chest is still heaving, she stills right there, collapsed on her knees.

Except, when she looks up. When she looks up, it's--

"Shit," Nancy whips her gun back up and trains it on the gleaming red eyes in front of her because maybe it's still a bit of a question.

She really shouldn't have come here.

#I JUST THINK THAT THEY OKAY #nancy wheeler #chrissy cunningham #nancy x chrissy #wheelingham #(is that the ship name help have we decided on one yet)#stranger things #stranger things fic #dot post #dot fic #what if I crawled out of my own grave and you pointed a gun at me and we were both girls (:#tw body horror #tw buried alive #tw implied disordered eating #kas!chrissy #<that will become a tag even if I'm the only one using it

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gareleia · 2 years

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FMA plot-heavy royed AU with Lust!Ed going undercover to influence Roy and make him commit human transmutation.

• Homunculi come to Resembool to check out Hohenheim's house and find his son, short on two limbs and a brother. They decide to just take him in to lure out his father and make sure their sacrifice doesn't kill himself - that's how bad off he is.

• Ed is basically catatonic from trauma and guilt, so he doesn't even try to fight or correct them on Al's situation - he might as well have killed him, after all. Besides he's pretty sure these guys are a threat, and though he doesn't care about himself he still wants to protect his brother.

• Lust is tasked with looking after him as the only one who somewhat understands humans (because Greed ran off and Envy only does quick impersonations).

• Her motherly disposition resonates with Ed and he starts to get attached. Lust uses it to gain his trust and manipulate him into becoming her apprentice, since she still has work to do.

• She teaches him to blend in, disguise/flaunt his age and features, and basically uses him as a bait for predators/whores him out to important government figures.

• Except... She does get attached. Maybe not as a friend or family or a mentor, but at least as a pet owner (or that's what she tells herself). So when a mission goes south and Ed ends up gravely injured far away from anyone who could help, she gives him her stone to save his life.

• Without her stone Lust dies and Ed is now a homunculus (which makes his limbs grow back at least). Father is furious, but lets it slide, since he at least didn't lose both a sacrifice and a stone; Sloth doesn't give a damn; and the rest of the homunculi hate Ed and blame him for everything. Especially Gluttony.

• Ed steps up to become the new Lust. He is, like Bradley, a former human, so he ages. Since the ouroboros gang is now down a sacrifice, it's up to him to find a new one, and to do that he's ordered to keep an eye on their most promising candidate: Colonel Roy Mustang.

• With military's assistance Ed creates a life for himself complete with a fake name, documents and personal history, gets a job and sets up a 'mugging' so Roy can 'rescue' him - except Ed is really crappy at the whole 'damsel in distress' thing, but it somehow works out???

• Instead of Cornello Ed gives the stone to Rose and convinces her that she's a saintess and that if she 'helps' enough people with it she'll get her boyfriend back. After the stone runs out the rebound kills the person Rose was trying to heal, people lose faith and start rioting. She gets burned at the stake as a witch.

• Ed and Gluttony aim to kill Scar before he gets to Mustang. Scar survives, but he loses a leg and has to get automail.

• Ed is the one who gets Envy to kill Hughes, because 1) he knows too much (his secret lab 5 investigation), 2) it would hurt Roy and it would make him more susceptible to manipulation, 3) to commit human transmutation one needs a loved one to resurrect. Except afterwards he for the first time feels guilty for what he does. Before dying Maes asks whether or not Ed is with Envy, because he has suspected him all along.

• Ed opposes using Ross as a scapegoat because Roy is way too smart to fall for that. That's when Ed realizes that he genuinely respects (and is offended on behalf of) his target. But it's not like he likes him or anything.

• Instead of Lust, Roy fights Envy who, while wearing Hughes' face says that he only killed Maes because of Roy. Havoc dies and Riza is in critical condition. Ed is supposed to play on Roy's guilt and self-loathing to plant the idea of committing Taboo into his head, but he hesitates. He realizes how easy it would be to break Roy right now, and the fact that he doesn't want to scares the shit out of him.

• Both Ed and Roy start to avoid each other for their own reasons and the ouroboros gang grows impatient. Ed leaves to check out two other potential candidates, the Tringham brothers, and finds out that while he was focused on Mustang Fletcher died and Russell lost half of his body trying to bring him back. He takes their new sacrifice to Father and gets praised, but that only makes it all so much worse.

• The whole thing reminds Ed of Al, so he breaks down as soon as he comes to their house. Roy's been waiting to tell him they're breaking up (for Ed's protection), but ends up trying to calm him down. Ed realizes that Mustang is probably the only person alive who actually cares about him and that he's going to die because of it. Because he followed his asshole dad's evil twin and forgot what it was really all about: protecting Al. Protecting his loved ones. And holy fuck, does he love Roy.

• They split up, officially - because of Roy's work and Ed's crazy family's bullshit, and Ed deflects. The last thing that Lust has ever taught him, right before shoving her stone in him, was that if he was ever in trouble with the family he should visit that one bar in Dublith.

• Ed meets Greed and offers his stone in exchange for help in stopping Father. He also decides that it's finally time to check up on Teacher, Winry, Pinako and Al.

• Izumi doesn't recognize him in disguise, but feels that there's something wrong with him, so she's reasonably hostile. It hurts to see what grief has done to her, but at least she's alive. For now.

• Winry is in Rush Valley studying under Dominic, who took her in after his daughter-in-law and grandson died. She seems okay, but she's just pretending. Ed also meets Ling, who starts following him around because he's obviously not human. It's the first friend he's ever made besides Winry.

• While stalking Pinako and Al Ed meets Hohenheim. The latter thinks he's with Father, treats him like a monster in his son's skin and threatens that if Ed so much as comes near Al again he'd die a horrible death.

• Meanwhile Bradley threatens Team Mustang, so Roy rushes to check on Ed but can't find him. While digging, he finds some small inconsistencies in his cover story and realizes that something is wrong. Envy gets torched and before dying reveals that Ed was a spy and that he orchestrated Hughes' murder.

• Ed goes to Briggs to prevent the bloodshed, but fails. He kills Kimbley and Gluttony, but his stone takes a hit and Ling gets impaled.

• Greed makes contact with Curtis and Mustang, telling Izumi that Ed isn't dead and Roy that he's risking his life to protect him.

• When the four sacrifices (Izumi, Hohenheim, Russell and Roy) get dragged into Father's den Ed, Greed, Ling and their minions follow. Ed throws himself at Roy to protect him, and Pride drags Ling through the Gate instead, which costs him his tongue.

• There are now four sacrifices without Roy, but before they can do anything Sloth comes back from his latest mission with unconcious Al. Turns out, Father knew about him all along, but deemed him useless as an agent and non-threatening.

• Roy and Ed face down Pride, the alchemists face Sloth and Greed engages Wrath, but fails horribly.

• Al is the one to finish off Sloth while using alchemy for the first time in years.

• Greed, Scar and Riza manage to finish off Bradley, but Greed's stone almost runs out of souls - it's not enough to sustain him, but can still be used, so he gives it to Ling.

• Ed is also running low on souls, but keeps protecting Roy. When it gets so bad he thinks he's going to die, Ed confesses that it was his idea to kill Hughes, so Roy doesn't mourn him and fights harder in his rage. Except Roy already knows and it's just a confirmation that Ed both actually cares and still tries to manipulate him - which, to be fair, Mustang is exactly the same.

• They manage to kill Pride, but Father still grabs the souls from Amestris. They manage to reverse it and engage Father.

• Father tries to take Hohenheim's stone, but Al sacrifices himself to protect him. Enraged, Ed beats Father to a pulp but then loses. His stone is taken and he's back to being human again.

• Hohenheim finishes Father off and makes a move to restore Al, except his stone is down as well and he only has his own soul. Ed tries to stop him, saying that he's the only family Al has left, but Hohenheim disagrees. He's finally admitted that Ed is his son and how proud he is of that. Besides, his soul, like Greed's, is too old and isn't going to last long, so he might as well use his life for something worthwhile.

• When Al comes back he already knows what their father did. He's angry and sad, because he thinks he's alone now - since he never had a good look at Lust. Ed just stands there awkwardly and says something really dumb to alleviate the tension, and that's what makes Al and Izumi finally recognize him. And his disguise is trashed (make up washed off, glasses broken, golden roots visible, etc.) so he can't even deny it.

• The Rockbells have found his wheelchair near the river and all this time everyone thought that Ed had drowned himself, unable to deal with the guilt for his brother's condition. That's what made Al swear off alchemy and why he didn't even try to get his original body back, instead staying in Resembool and later joining his father on the road.

• Al is confused but happy, Izumi is that and angry and Roy is like "Edward, huh?" Tearful reunion ensues.

• In the end Ed and Roy make out, then agree to take a pause (for Ed to spend time with his family and for Roy to clean up the military mess) and then try and start from scratch, this time for real.

#fullmetal alchemist #edward elric #roy mustang #royed #homunculus ed #lust!ed #angst #greed/ling on the side #I actually only remember like half of both shows #so there are probably plot holes #oh well

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fuesch · 2 years

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Obi-Wan Kenobi 1x05

A flashback, fuck yeah! So nice to actually see Hayden's face.

Totally irresponsible to let a kid crawl around cables when you know something is broken. I mean, how do you know there hasn't been a space marten in there, gnawing and leaving the wires exposed?! I was about to say "good thing she's smart and put on her gloves", but then I noticed they're fingerless. And there's still the problem with that pile of cables on the floor, she might have just sat on a broken one and zapped herself!

Because of the shadow it's hard to tell how many notches there are in Tala's holster, but it seems to be more than 14, so if she wanted to be exact about it, she already had redeemed herself. Though I guess she'll never feel it's enough, because she can never bring back the people she's gotten killed.

Holy shit, Reva was indeed a Jedi youngling! I can't believe she's seriously doing this job because she hates Vader! She's hunting down members of her adoptive extended family to get revenge! On one hand I like her because she's after Vader, but on the other she's not much better than him. Does she feel the same about other Jedi as she does about Obi-Wan ("Why didn't you stop him, why didn't you save us?")? If so that's really childish of her, so again very Anakin-like. Don't get me wrong, at the time those were very understandable feelings, but she grew up and now she's working for the Empire, so presumably she learned what happened back than. Of course people who are far away and unsuspecting of the coming betrayal couldn't be there to help. Not to mention how busy everyone was getting murdered or trying to avoid it. Girl, please!

NED-B protecting wounded Tala! He died to help her ;_;! Although at that point there might have been a chance to bring him back. But then stuff happened and made me even sadder. Tala! Dammit, it's that stupid redemption-death trope again.

Jedi fanboy Haja gets a lightsaber and a mission! Just temporarily, but still!

Conspiring with the Grand Inquisitor is so sexy of Obi-Wan! And honestly very practical thinking. He might not want Anakin dead, but it would be selfish to keep a murderous guy alive just because they used to be friends. And isn't that very in line with the Jedi teachings too? To let go of your attachments.

Ha, Leia finding Lola's restraining bolt within seconds.

Fuuu, Vader holding the ship! Pretty cool of him to not need a tractor beam, though. It was a decoy ship, niiiiice!

What a shame that Reva doesn't stand a chance against Vader.

And there's the old Grand Inquisitor again. Really didn't need him back, but what can you do, his return was set in stone.

So cold of Vader to repeat what he did to Reva before, just leave her there to die. Good for her though, because once again she appears to survive, because what else would be the point of her finding the communicator. Ohhhh shit. So what's next for her? I assume she's done with Vader and the Inquisitors, so that info won't reach them (If it had, things would have been difference in Episode IV, right?). Will she continue to be irrational and use this info for revenge that she had to fight Vader alone, although that is what she expressly wanted Obi-Wan not to help?

#obi-wan kenobi #obi-wan kenobi series #star wars

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caranfindel · 3 years

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Fic: You don’t know how it feels (to be me)

gen, s6 | about 3600 words | pg for language | characters: soulless sam winchester, dean winchester

synopsis: Soulless Sam tries to deal with his brother's feelings about, well, everything. Including his hair. Set in season 6, before "You Can't Handle the Truth."

An idea I had a long time ago, resuscitated by Jared's Walker haircut. The title is from "You Don't Know How It Feels" by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.

. . . . . .

It's a stupid case.

The manager of the county fairgrounds is a stooped, gnarled old man wearing one of those ball caps veterans wear sometimes. Gold embroidery on the dark blue hat proudly displays the name of his ship or submarine or whatever. Sam doesn't care about his ship or submarine or whatever. He doesn't care about this guy's service at all. Most days, old Blue Hat here got three meals a day and a warm, dry place to sleep in exchange for whatever he gave up. He got a pension when he was done fighting. Sam gets to scrounge for cheap food and sleep in crappy hotels when he's lucky enough to actually land someplace other than the back seat of the Impala. Sam's service to his country earned him a trip to Hell. Sam will get to stop fighting when he's dead. His only pension will be a pyre.

Sam doesn't even get to sleep any more.

(This should bother him. But the truth is, it doesn't.)

Blue Hat frowns at Sam's ID and snorts derisively. "You don't look like a Fed. You look like a goddamn hippie."

He rolls his eyes at the old man, even though he knows Dean hates it when he does that. It's something he didn't do Before, no matter how annoying or insipid the witness. Sam doesn't give a good goddamn what this guy thinks about his hair, but apparently his brother does. "He's been doing some undercover work," Dean says. "Sometimes you've got to look like a goddamn hippie to blend in."

Blue Hat sniffs his disapproval and ignores Sam for the rest of the interview, directing all of his answers to Dean. Which is fine. The old guy doesn't seem to have anything useful to add anyway. Sam leaves his brother to the pointless interview about the stupid case and wanders around the building, taking pictures of the unexplained runes that brought them here. He's bored. The sudden appearance of mysterious runes on the bland metal exterior of a county fairgrounds building feels witchy, and Sam really doesn't care about witches. Two measly deaths, quite possibly from natural causes, and now he's out here standing in cow shit. Or goat shit or pig shit. This entire day has been shit, literally and figuratively.

Dean joins him after a couple of minutes, apparently done with Blue Hat. "What do you think?" he asks.

Sam shrugs. "Too early to tell. If these runes are what Bobby thinks they are, they'll change under moonlight, but moonrise isn't until 9:05 pm."

“Jesus," Dean moans. "I can't stay awake that long. I've already gone almost two days. Let's go back to the motel and crash, and we'll hit this place again tonight."

Or not, Sam wants to say. I think you jumped on this paper-thin excuse for a job just because the alternative was sitting in a motel room with me waiting for an actual case to come up, Sam wants to say. But neither of these are things he would have said Before, and Dean is so goddamn twitchy about Sam being different than Before.

As they turn back to the Impala, Dean glances at Sam with a slight smile. "Dude's not wrong, you know."

“What?"

“You do look like a goddamn hippie." Dean's hand twitches toward Sam, like he's going to smack him on the back of the head or ruffle his hair, but he pulls back without touching him. Because they don't do that now. Casual, good-natured, brotherly contact isn't a thing now. Dean doesn't touch him unless there are injuries involved.

(This is another thing that should bother Sam. It would have, Before.)

. . .

Dean hangs his suit in the closet, sets an alarm, and collapses on top of the covers. Sam stares at his own bed. The threat of spending hours pretending to be asleep makes his skin crawl. If Dean falls asleep quickly enough, he can skip the whole charade.

“Hey, I think I'm gonna shower first," he says.

Dean doesn't open his eyes. "Just don't wake me up when you get out."

In the bathroom, Sam turns on the water but doesn't get undressed. He stands at the mirror, staring at his too-long hair. Why has he bothered to hold onto it? He remembers caring about his hair. He remembers it being a small fuck you to John, the one area in his life where he was able to cling to some autonomy. It's not that he's forgotten about that; he just doesn't give a shit any more.

And like Dean said, Blue Hat wasn't wrong. He does look like a hippie. The hair is a hazard, and it does clash with any kind of law enforcement disguise. Maybe it's time to do something about it. He has time to kill anyway, while Dean sleeps.

(Sam should care that he doesn't need to sleep any more. Dean would definitely care, if he found out. Dean cares so much about any aspect of Sam that is less normal than he thinks it ought to be. Even if it's something that makes him a better hunter. Dean didn't appreciate it when Sam could exorcise demons without killing the host, and Dean wouldn't appreciate that Sam can get so much done when he's not sleeping. He could never understand why this version of Sam is so much better than the way he was Before. It's a shame Dean hasn't discovered the option of Not Caring.)

(Sometimes Sam wonders if getting back with Dean is worth the trouble.)

(And that should bother him too.)

Sam shuts off the shower and pulls out his phone. He needs to find a barber shop in walking distance. Dean will get all pissy if he wakes up and the car is gone; less so if only Sam is missing. Luckily, there's a shop that might still be open. It's one of those ridiculous sports-themed places that presumes men are fussy toddlers who need to be distracted from the ignominy of a hair cut. At least they tend to be staffed by women, and those women tend to be prettier than average. With any luck, he can kill two birds with one stone.

When he opens the bathroom door, Dean is either asleep, or pretending to be. Sam scrawls couldn't sleep, back soon on the motel notepad and closes the door behind him as silently as possible.

(He misses his car. He didn't have an emotional attachment to it, like Dean and the Impala, but it was convenient and it suited him.)

(He doesn't actually have an emotional attachment to anything. That should bother him.)

. . .

Two stylists, both predictably prettier than average, look up when he walks in. The redhead says "sorry, sir, we're just about to close up," and continues sweeping up hair trimmings. But the brunette looks him up and down and smiles. And Sam's partial to brunettes anyway.

He gives her a once-over in return and smiles back. "Do you have time for just a quick cut? I'd be eternally grateful."

She stares at him for a minute, appraising. "Well, how could I turn down an offer of eternal gratefulness?" she says with a wink. She turns to the redhead. "Why don't you go on home. I've got this."

The redhead dumps her clippings into a trash can. "You sure?"

"I'm sure. You mind locking the door behind you? I don't want any more last-minute customers walking in."

The redhead raises her eyebrows, but gathers her purse and jacket and makes her escape as Sam settles into the brunette's chair.

“I'm Marianne," she says, as she starts to drape a cape over his shoulders.

“I'm Sam. But listen. I get too hot under those capes. Would it be okay if we skip it? And I just take my shirt off so I don't get hair all over it?"

Marianne smiles like the cat who caught the canary. "Not a problem, sweetheart."

Sam slips out of his dress shirt and drapes it over the empty chair next to him. Marianne watches him the whole time, eyes roving over the muscles exposed by his snug white undershirt. It's like shooting fish in a barrel.

He sits back in the chair and Marianne stands behind him. Her chest brushes against his shoulders. "So," she asks, "what are we doing today?"

“Shorter. Off my collar, above my ears."

She slips her fingers through his hair, measuring its length. "You sure? This length looks pretty good on you. Just needs to be cleaned up a bit."

“It's for a job. The long hair doesn't fly any more."

“Aw, that's a shame." Marianne's still running her fingers through his hair. "If you've got a lady in your life, I bet she'll miss it. A girl likes something to hold onto."

Well. The best lies are based on a kernel of truth. Sam looks into his lap and lets his smile go sad and soft. "That's kind of why I'm here. My girlfriend died and I thought I'd try to start over. New place, new job, new life. But yeah, that's always been one of my favorite things. A girl grabbing my hair in the heat of the moment. I should have tried to find someone to do that one more time before I had to cut it off."

Marianne leans forward, pressing her breasts harder against him. When he looks up, she meets his eyes in the mirror, then flicks a glance toward a door marked Employees Only. “You know," she says, "that could probably be arranged."

Seriously. Fish in a goddamn barrel.

. . .

Dean's awake when Sam gets back to the motel room, but he doesn't look up from the laptop. "Couldn't sleep?"

“I guess I napped a little in the car on the way down here," Sam lies. "And then, you know, a lot of caffeine this morning."

“Whatever. I'm not the sleep police. I hope you brought food, cause I could —" Dean looks at Sam and stops mid-sentence, mouth still open. "You cut your hair?"

“Yeah."

“Why?"

“What do you mean, why? Like old what's-his-face said, I looked like a hippie, not an FBI agent. And you've been telling me to cut it for years."

“Yeah, I have. I've been saying that for years and you've been ignoring me for years. Now some random witness calls you a hippie and you go running to Supercuts?"

Sam sighs. Dean may not be the sleep police, but he's awfully eager to step in as the hair police, enforcing his own set of laws about Sam's hair. "Why does it matter? You wanted me to cut it. Everyone wanted me to cut it. And I cut it. Can we move on now?"

It's a statement almost guaranteed to make Dean bow up in anger, but instead, he deflates. "It's just… nothing. Fine. Moving on." He closes the laptop and pulls his keys out of his coat pocket. "We've still got an hour or so before moonrise. I'm gonna go run through McDonald's. You want a chicken sandwich, or is that something else you're not interested in any more?"

Jesus Christ. This is what passes for moving on. But Sam needs that shower now, and none of this is worth arguing about.

(Few things are any more. That seems like it should matter.)

“Yeah, that sounds great, thanks."

By the time Dean gets back, the sandwich is cold and the ice in Sam's drink is mostly melted. He pretends to enjoy it anyway.

. . .

Their drive back to the fairgrounds is quiet. Dean occasionally steals an unhappy glance at Sam's hair, but doesn't say anything. Sam ignores it.

They pull into the parking lot in front of the marked building. Without even getting out of the car, they can see that the runes have changed. The broad strokes are softly luminescent, glowing a pale blue in the moonlight.

“Okay, so that answers that question," Sam says. Thank God. Now they can leave without wandering around the grounds, soaking up the barnyard smell again. Wrap this up and start working on something more important. But Dean gets out of the car and looks at Sam expectantly. Well, crap. Sam dutifully follows him closer to the building and tries to think of how he would have felt about this development Before.

“Cool," he says. Dean narrows his eyes at him. "I mean, cool that our theory was right. Not, you know, cool that someone is using this kind of spellwork to make sure their pig wins a blue ribbon at the fair. That part's… pretty awful." But Dean's still looking at him funny, so he probably overcorrected on that one. It's just hard, any more.

Dean rubs the back of his neck as he examines the glowing runes. "If that's all they're doing, more power to them. I couldn't care less. But we need to make sure that's all they're doing. I mean, people died, Sam. We need to figure out if this is why." He pulls out his phone. "Gonna take some pictures to send Bobby." There's no reason to remind him they already have pictures. If Dean thinks additional pictures are more effective and efficient than "just like this, but glowing blue," that's up to him. Sam will most likely solve the damn case later tonight anyway, while Dean sleeps.

And he almost does. Dean knocks back a couple of glasses of whiskey when they get back to the motel, and falls asleep pretty soon after that. Sam doesn't bother to feign sleep — Dean doesn't seem to care, right now, whether his brother gets any sleep or not. But when Sam realizes his own photos missed a crucial corner of the building, he opens his brother's phone and finds his last text to Bobby. There's only one picture, and it's not glowing runes. It's him. Just a dark, slightly blurry picture of Sam, obviously taken earlier that night at the fairgrounds. And a text conversation.

See, I told you, it's short. I don't know what's going on. I swear he's just different.

Yeah, I get it. It's different. He's different. But what'd you expect? Of course he's not the same as he was. Hell changed him.

It didn't change me this much.

His Hell wasn't the same as yours. I know it didn't last very long, but remember, he was in the cage with the devil. We don't know what happened to him in there. Give him some time.

Well. Fuck. Dean's talking about him behind his back. Dean doesn't trust him. Dean thinks, once again, that something is wrong with him.

(That would have hurt, Before. Now it's just an annoyance. A distraction. Something to be dealt with.)

Yes, Hell changed him. Hell burned away all the crap, all the useless feelings, the guilt and shame and fear of failure. Hell purified him. Hell carved out the weakness and left nothing but pure, strong hunter. Dean, of all people, should appreciate the result. But Dean does not, and now Sam has to cater to his tiresome attachment to everything Sam was Before.

Fine. He can make that work.

Sam quietly puts Dean's phone back on the nightstand. He strips down to boxers and his t-shirt, sets an alarm, and crawls into bed. Pretending to sleep is tedious, but a couple of hours of boredom right now might spare him weeks of Dean's moodiness about him being different.

(As if Hell could leave you untouched. As if anyone in their right mind would expect that. As if Dean himself didn't know this first hand, for fuck's sake.)

. . .

Sam spends the next day focusing on acting the way he did Before. When his alarm goes off he stretches, yawns, and pretends he had a good night's sleep. He goes for a run, brings back coffee, showers quickly, and rolls his eyes when Dean makes a crack about him being able to spend less time in the shower now. At breakfast, he smiles at the (cute, definitely worth a bang) waitress, but doesn't flirt or even check her out as she walks away. He's figured out that Dean wants Sam to want to get laid (but not too much; he's definitely not supposed to want it as much as Dean wants it) but for some reason doesn't want him to actually get lucky. And he definitely would have gotten lucky. He spends the day looking empathetic, acting like this whole thing hasn't been a colossal waste of time. Like he cares about everything. About anything.

(God, it's exhausting.)

It turns out the deaths probably don't have anything to do with the witch at all. They return to the fairgrounds one last time, where Sam plants hex bags and paints runes on the corners of the building that will block the witch's simple spells - not that he cares whether the witch achieves anything or not, just on principle. His own runes are small and subtle enough that this novice witch (they must be a novice; no one with any experience would be naive enough to make their work so noticeable) won't even know they're in place. And if the witch escalates, well, that's not exactly Sam's problem.

When he's finished, he wipes his hands on his jeans and says "We should get Chinese for dinner. When's the last time you ate a vegetable?" Because monitoring everyone's vegetable intake is something he did Before.

They're finishing Chinese takeout in their motel room (beef with broccoli for Dean, eggplant in garlic sauce for Sam, because occasional bouts of vegetarianism were also a thing he did Before) when he catches Dean looking at his hair, very clearly wanting to say something.

So. It's go time.

Sam tries to make his eyes big and sad. The puppy dog look, Dean always called it. It was never intentional Before, but now he has to work at it. "Listen," he says. "I owe you an apology. I haven't been telling you the whole truth."

“No shit," Dean says. He's trying to sound nonchalant, but his body language screams that he's bracing for something. "So, spill it. What's your big confession?"

(That I don't care about any of this. This piddly little case. My hair. You. Nothing. And you can't imagine, Dean, you cannot even begin to imagine the incredible freedom of not caring. I wish you could, but you just can't.)

No, he can't say any of that. But the best lies are built on a kernel of truth.

Sam takes a deep, anxious breath and looks at Dean. No, wait. Look away. "You know, I told you I don't remember Hell. And I really don't. Not consciously, anyway. But when we were fighting those demons a couple of weeks ago, one of them grabbed me by the hair, and I felt something… it was a sense memory, I guess. It felt like Hell, for some reason. Like it was something that happened to me in Hell, someone grabbing my hair and pulling my head back and getting ready to cut my throat or… whatever."

He doesn't have to elaborate on whatever. Dean knows the whatevers of Hell better than anyone. He's probably dealing with a little sense memory of his own right now, of clutching someone's hair and pulling their head back in preparation for whatever. And now Sam does look at his brother, who is staring at him with wide, horrified eyes.

“Ever since then," Sam continues, "I just feel like I've been on the verge of remembering something. Something I don't want to remember. And I'm tired of worrying that I'm gonna have a Hell flashback every time I wash my hair."

Dean looks like he's going to vomit. Perfect.

“I'm sorry," Sam says. "It threw me, and I just didn't want to talk about it. But I shouldn't have kept it from you."

For a second, he's sure he has gone too far. Dean is going to say what's this bullshit, Sam, you would never apologize for something like that, so tell me what's really going on. But he doesn't. He stares at Sam for a minute, then looks away and wipes a hand down his face.

“Yeah, okay. Okay. You, ah. You good now? Is it working?"

Sam shrugs. "Hard to say. It hasn't been very long. But yeah, I feel a little more… stable, I guess."

And then it’s time to go for the kill.

Sam gives him the sad smile. (He never used to think of it as a sad smile; never used to think of it as anything at all. It was just what his face did. Every expression requires so much thought now.) "Listen. I know things are weird. I know I'm weird. Different. I know it's hard for you. If this is all more than you want to deal with right now, I understand."

Dean frowns. "What are you saying?"

“Just, I can go back with Samuel and his crew if you don't want to do this any more. You and me, I mean. No hard feelings, I promise."

Dean's face crumples. "What? No, fuck, no, Sam. I don't. You and me, we're good. I'm just getting used to things. That's all."

“Okay." Sam gives his best approximation of a grateful smile.

“So. Uh." Dean looks around the room nervously, like he's waiting for the other shoe to fall, then stands. "I think I'm gonna go get a drink. You wanna come with, or…"

Even if Sam believed Dean really wanted him to come along — and he doesn't; this is obviously Dean's way of retreating from a situation he doesn't want to think about — pretending to sleep when Dean's gone is one of the easier ways of making it look like he actually does sleep sometimes. "No. I'm beat," he says. "I think I'll just go to bed."

“Okay. Yeah. That sounds like a good idea." Dean takes his keys out of his pocket and anxiously tosses them in his hand. When he finally does turn to Sam, he looks at his hair, not his eyes. "Hey, you know, it does. It does look good on you."

Sam ducks his head shyly, like someone who's not used to praise. Who doesn't think he deserves it. "Thanks." When he looks up, Dean is already halfway out the door, putting as much space between himself and his little brother's hellscape as possible.

(Seriously. Fish in a fucking barrel.)

#my fic #sam winchester #dean winchester #soulless sam is my spirit animal #spn #season 6

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itsbenedict · 3 years

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Two-Faced Jewel: Session 2

Zero and @eternalfarnham are Looseleaf and Saelhen du Fishercrown, a mothfolk animist and a half-elf conwoman. A botched heist forces Saelhen to keep up her fake identity and embark on a quest to places unknown, with Looseleaf to keep a watchful compound eye on her. This time, they prepare to set out for the jungle city of Thunderbrush.

[Campaign log]

It's less than a week after the incident with the pit under Yoshimimoto Plaza. Looseleaf returns to school with Saelhen in tow, and Looseleaf's roommate Oyobi spends some time training them up in basic monster self-defense- the two of them are now level 2! Saelhen gains a Cunning Action, and Looseleaf embarks on the Path of the Mutable Spirit. (There's no combat this session, so more on that later.)

In spending some time with Looseleaf's roommate, Saelhen picks up on... certain nuances.

looseleaf: what you know about your roommate is that she is very friendly and outgoing. the reason she's barely home most of the time is that she's always out partying or fighting or otherwise living it up on campus, and she's pretty well-known and popular amongst the student body. she's technically Martial Arts but takes a few Natural Arts classes, including your archaeology class. she wants to be an adventurer and join the Deathseekers' Guild, and she's taking multiple periods of Severe Zoology to learn to fight monsters. she thinks you in particular are adorable and has probably invited you to various social gatherings. she seems kind of spacey and unreliable, though, and doesn't seem to take you seriously.

saelhen, what you know about looseleaf's roommate is that she a freak nobody else seems to pick up on this, since there's not a lot of other elves at Blacksky, but you can tell from the way she wears her clothes and how she interacts with strangers to the uninformed observer, her fashion sense is sort of rugged and sporty and normal to an elf, her usual outfits are the equivalent of going around dressed in torn booty shorts, a spiked choker, and an ahegao t-shirt she is very obviously making a statement, and that statement is "i can do whatever i want, and if you have a problem with that you can [insert grossly offensive euphemism here]" her super-smiley friendly attitude is clearly part of this- she is breaking every single rule in the elf book, going right for the friendship throat in every social interaction and ignoring every single nicety that's supposed to precede friendly contact she acts a little different around you- like, she expects you to be in on the joke she's playing on everyone around her. she'll say something seemingly innocuous that's a actually a horrendous boundary violation in Kanzentokai, and then look at you with an expectant smile, to see if you appreciated the hilarious prank she just pulled. being around her is like being in the studio audience for a cringe comedy sitcom

Why are we learning so much about Oyobi? Well, partially because I can't help but overthink every single bit character, but also for reasons that'll become clear shortly.

After a few days, Saelhen and Looseleaf are invited to the Provost's office, up at the top of Blacksky Tower. (Ominous sort of place, for a faculty building- hewn out of a single chunk of sparkling black stone, oldest building on campus.) They are not invited to sit- the office contains no chairs.

Provost Hamori Los has good news for them! The people she's had secretly monitoring Saelhen for the past few days- did she forget to mention that?- have determined, by triangulation, that the arrow on Saelhen's bracer is currently pointing in the direction of Thunderbrush, deep in the giant-spider-infested jungle. So that where they'll be going, on a fun field trip!

Looseleaf could not be happier about this. Or less happy. She's really got precisely the amount of unhappiness that she's obligated to feel about giant spiders, being a giant moth.

Luckily, they won't have to trek through the jungle- Hamori has arranged for transportation via the ferry at the town of Cauterdale, which should allow them to bypass a treacherous trek into the depths of the Remoline Rainforest. They'll each be provided 100gp as funding for this academic enterprise- and Headmaster Goodcrest of Thunderbrush Metropolitan University has agreed to provide lodging for them on arrival. Everything is handled for them- so there shouldn't be any problems!

There is one more thing, though- all the different schools want in on this trip, so one school doesn't get all the credit. They're required to bring along a representative from the School of Arcane Arts and the School of Martial Arts, on top of Looseleaf from Natural Arts. And on top of... the representative from the School of Restricted Arts.

This dude is named Vayen, and he's not much for conversation. Or explaining what he's even doing here. Or doing anything besides skulking a careful distance away from the party, staring and listening. What does the School of Restricted Arts even study, again?

Anyway, Looseleaf has someone in mind from Martial Arts, so she leads the party to the School of Arcane Arts to do some recruiting! After being chewed out by Two-Brains for trying to post notices outside the official student notice board, she puts up her ad:

It's not long before she gets a bite!

Orluthe Chokorov is a cleric-in-training, under Diamode, the Goddess of Family. He's been enrolled in Arcane Arts at the insistence of his family... but he seems to think he's a "fake", and is desperate to go somewhere, anywhere, as long as it means he passes his classes without having to actually... be able to do whatever it is he's taking classes in. He says he can fight, though- in fact, he's eager to fight! He once beat Bud Chestplate, did you know?

There are perhaps less delinquent candidates they could go with, but there's something nice about a party member with secrets Saelhen could use as blackmail.

Saelhen du Fishercrown: "...rest assured that I shall be the soul of discretion. As will Looseleaf." "Though I fear that deception of this sort does not come easily to me..." Looseleaf: "Noeru, if he doesn't want to get into it, he doesn't have to- oh my god."

Having recruited Orluthe, the party heads back to Looseleaf's dorm to ask Oyobi about the Martial Arts students- maybe she has some idea as to who would make a good candidate for the trip!

(This isn't me foisting her on the players, though I did suggest it- after the party of two squishies got wiped in the first encounter, I offered them the chance to put together two NPCs who they'd get to control in combat. Their character sheets were more or less created by the players, and I matched their mechanical requirements to NPCs. We may end up having multiple characters per PC, later- this is sort of a trial run.)

With a cleric(?) and a ranger on the team, plus whatever Vayen is that he won't tell them, they're feeling ready to hit the road- right after a shopping trip.

Saelhen buys...

1x bag of 1000 ball bearings

1x traveler's clothes

1x hooded lantern

15x doses of insect repellent salve (much to Looseleaf's great offense)

2x uses of sealing wax

1x tinderbox

fuck it, 4x more bags of 1000 ball bearings

Zero: 'what are you going to do with five thousand ball bearings' 'when the time comes, i'll know'

Looseleaf buys...

1x pint of oil

1x bag of 1000 ball bearings also

5x healer's kits, to distribute to the party

1x pouch of various plant seeds

1x map

Notably absent is any food, since they have Oyobi in their party- she's a ranger with the Goodberry spell. (I've reflavored it to just mean she's good at foraging and always has rations on hand, because holy crap, Goodberry rules-as-written is totally worldbreaking- why would farms exist?)

During their shopping trip, Saelhen manages to get Oyobi alone, without the rest of the party. Oyobi's shtick has been fun, for her, as someone with very little regard for elven rules of politeness, but... it's still a little much. She asks Oyobi to tone it down.

Oyobi Yamatake: "I mean, I thought you had to no-sell it to keep up the fake noble act- I didn't think it was actually getting you!" "That's priceless, oh my god." "What's there to take a 'break' from, anyway? What's wrong with just living?" Saelhen du Fishercrown: "Primarily, the fact that I really need not to twitch in front of the Provost's silent murder goon." Saelhen jerks a thumb over her shoulder, then belatedly checks to make sure that Vayen is not in fact literally right behind her. Benedict I. (GM): Make a Perception roll? Saelhen du Fishercrown: aw, hell, he definitely is, isn't he

She rolls a 13, and no one in particular rolls a 17. So, everything is fine. They keep their voices down, anyway.

Oyobi Yamatake: "I mean, is it really a problem? Can you really not keep a straight face?" Saelhen du Fishercrown: "I mean, I can." Saelhen sweeps a hand over her face and is the picture of serenity. "Why should the lady Noeru de la Surplus concern herself with small lapses such as these?" "Surely someone shall find it in their hearts to forgive all trespasses." Oyobi Yamatake: She snorts. "Okay, I get your point." "But really, don't you think it's weirder for an elven noblewoman not to react?" "You don't think he thinks it's suspicious that you take it all in stride?" Saelhen du Fishercrown: "The character is admittedly kind of a freak. I'm making allowances. I mean, this is fun and all, but if no one sees through the bit at all and I'm stuck in it long-term, which it seems like I am, it's like..." "Just being back in Kanzentokai, except worse, because no one is making me." "And drow catch a lot of crap anyway. They don't need me to teach them that elves can be assholes." Oyobi Yamatake: She frowns. "You can't make me try to keep up with the rules, y'know. I'm not going to put up with that garbage ever again." "But I can tone it down with the..." "Y'know, the stuff I'm going out of my way to do, if that helps." Saelhen du Fishercrown: "The wink-and-nudge, yeah. That would help." Oyobi Yamatake: She sighs. She seems a little put out by all this, but pretty quickly puts her happy face back on.

Meanwhile, Looseleaf and Orluthe seem to have lost track of Vayen. It doesn't take them long to find out where he went (well, after Looseleaf rolls a nat 1 on investigation and accidentally pisses off an old lady she mistook for Vayen). Turns out... he's hiding behind a statue of Ccorde, spying on Saelhen and Oyobi.

Looseleaf doesn't buy his crappy excuses, but also... she isn't altogether opposed to the concept of spying on "Lady Noeru de la Surplus", who really ought to have someone keeping an eye on her. So, she just hands him a medical kit- a kit she happens to have used her animist class feature Soul Link on, so she knows where it is at all times. (She's done the same to the bracer.)

Now, with the shopping done, it's time to hit the road! They have a couple options: go on foot, or requisition some giraffes.

(In this world, they domesticated giraffes instead of horses. Why? Because it's a fantasy world and why not?)

The city's main giraffe rental is run by the Ecumene of Understanding, based out of the Temple of Andra. You can rent giraffes for free, as long as you're willing to serve as a courier for the Ecumene- their convoluted legal system requires them to send mail between cities frequently, and they've only got so many clerics on hand. So, anyone wanting to travel the roads can receive a delivery quest from the Ecumene, and rent mounts for free in exchange!

They meet with the Bishop of Understanding of Oyashio, Sarat Aerens.

Aerens has a simple request for them: in addition to visiting Thunderbrush's Temple of Andra with a mail delivery, they're to bring back a report from said temple on the whereabouts of the Siren's Arraignment, a ship that departed from Oyashio and never arrived at its next destination, Snowhold. There's suspicion that the Siren's Arraignment never departed from its supposed origin of Thunderbrush to begin with, either- so the Ecumene put some clerics on the job to investigate, and the party's job is just to relay their message.

With that, they're given giraffe passes, and directed down to the stables, where they find the stablehand, Updraft, having some difficulties.

Benedict I. (GM):There's no one at the pickup window, but there's a sparrow aarakocra just behind, trying to get a giraffe several times her height to get up and out of the damn water trough. Updraft: "...not a bath, ye stubborn git!" "Ye drink from that, lackbrains!" "Y'really want t'be tastin' yer arse?" Looseleaf: OH I CAN HELP WITH THIS FINALLY, A PLACE WHERE I CAN APPLY MY ADVANTAGE ON ANIMAL HANDLING

Looseleaf uses her Soul Read ability to tune in to the giraffe's feelings and recent history, and discovers that someone fed it a hot pepper and it's in, um, anal distress.

Orluthe volunteers to do some healing to the giraffe, with his Lay On Hands ability. Is... that a cleric thing? Do clerics do that? Probably. In this world, clerics perform magic by inviting their god directly into their mind to borrow their brainpower and work miracles directly, and it sure looks like he does that when he does his healing. He channels a god, for sure!

Benedict I. (GM): As he touches the giraffe, you see his body begin to glow, and his facial features are overlaid with another face. "...A giraffe?" "A waste, I suppose, but... perhaps it'll win us some favor." The voice he speaks in sounds more feminine, somehow.

Some religion checks reveal that this doesn't seem quite right for a cleric of Diamode, the goddess of Family. But hey, healing's healing, right?

With that, they're able to get their giraffes no problem- and next time, they'll be on the road to Thunderbrush!

#tfj log #twofaced jewel

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charmers-kpop · 5 years

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✨🌱🌲🍃

{ Basics }

• Birth Name // Han Seol-hyun {한설현}

↪From Sino-Korean 雪 meaning "snow; wipe away shame, avenge" and 炫 meaning "shine, glitter; show off, flaunt."

• Other Name(s) // Leola Madeline Han

• Stage Name // Leola

↪"Loyal. Loyalty. Faithful"

↪'Leo unnie', 'Lala', 'Ola ola', 'Crackhead OG', 'Sully', 'Plant Mom', 'Sleep Queen'

• Birth Date // 5:31PM. December 19, 1998

↪Sagittarius, the Archer

• Birth Place // St. Petersburg, Florida

• Heritage // ¾ Korean, ¼ American

↪Father is Korean-American, and Mother is Korean. However she takes full Korean citizenship. She's currently residing in Seoul.

{ Career }

• Profession // Vocalist, singer-songwriter, actress

• Band/Group // CHARMERS (매혹하는)

• Position // Leader, Main Vocalist

• Agency // HeartEater Events & Artist Management

• Training Period // 4 years, 7 months

{ Personality }

{+} Uplifting | Understanding | Goofy

• Leola is a gentle and kind young lady, complete with a heart on her sleeve and an energy that radiates love and positivity. She and Inhye are CHARMERS' happy pills and never seem to fail at making the other members smile and laugh at their cute quirks and antics. Always willing to give to others, Leola is a very charitable character and has been since youth.

• She knows she is lucky to be born into a loving family and knows that some other people aren't in the best situations so she tries her best to listen to them and give them moral advice and support. She's also willing to listen to, presumably, the 'meaner' types of people as she wishes to learn about them, why they act the way they do and understand them like the back of her hand (or at least feel that way). She strongly believes that no matter the individual or what their past was like, empathy, love and forgiveness will always be first in her books and she has proven time and time again that the best cure in the world is happiness.

• But when times are exceptionally tough, she'll be first to crack a joke to lighten the mood. Leola is her group's leader of the crackheads and, as mentioned, happy pill, but she also poses quite the annoyance to some members of the group, as she often appears a little too immature than needed for being the group leader. She'll just make jokes and be goofy even if she didn't mean for it to happen. Though this, she somehow manages to keep things neat and running smoothly whilst being silly at the same time, so it's a win-win for the more orderly members and the more care-free members of the group.

{<} Bold | Adventurous | Protective

• Leola loves to keep herself physically clean, but she is never afraid to get down and dirty when she has to. She's daring and can stand up to any challenge without hesitation. Being a victim of bullying and countless toxic relationships, Leola has realized that she has to stand up for herself when someone snitches on her, but her forgiving and understanding nature still meant she treated her bullies and fake friends somewhat nicely towards the end. But if any of her members ever get into a fight she'll be first to dart to her aid and save the day with the power of friendship!

• When it came to nature and wildlife, Leola dives head first into the dirt. She is constantly playing in mud puddles and piles of leaves like a 5 year old when she has a chance but on the other hand is very vocal about cleaning up afterwards [however her members get where the contradiction comes from]. She is brave and adventurous, always the first to climb trees and adventuring when she can. When she travels to a different part of her town she acts like she's never even been in that place before even if she's been there a million times before. She's a major travel bug and whenever she gets a chance to see the world in person, she'll take it in a heartbeat.

• Leola makes it clear that she is very protective of those she cares for and is very well known to go above and beyond for them and even break the laws for them if she felt like she needed to. This makes her rebellious and reckless, but in her mind she's just doing it so her loved ones can reap the benefits. Though this, she still respects boundaries and places she should never lead herself into when it came to rules and always promises to never cross that line, but being a sagittarius, don't expect her to give up on dreaming.

{–} Stubborn | Self-conscious | Lazy

• When her mind is set, it is set in stone. It's very hard to get Leola to change her mind when she is set on something. Many, including her parents, have tried to break her spirit but the wild centauress within her will keep shouting in her ear, 'keep pushing and don't stop until we make the trip!' This stubborn trait often gets her into more trouble than what it is worth, and it shows no matter how much or hard she tries to hide it.

• The young lady is extremely forgiving and sometimes a little too much so. It's easy to walk all over Leola as she is far too trusting of others and always willing to forgive. Mainly because her biggest flaw is her self image problem. She is much 'chunkier' than the other members and because her shorter height, it’s much more noticeable. She can't help that she is that way, but being teased relentlessly in her childhood has made her very self-conscious about how she looks. Sometimes she would even degrade herself to a point where it no longer becomes the humorous self-deprecating remark and becomes an actual issue that everyone has to deal with. Leola certainly has a hard time loving herself but has more than enough heart and love for everyone else.

• Although Leola is devoted to her group, she can be extremely lazy and sometimes she won’t spend her time wisely. Rather than producing songs in the studio or practicing her dance moves and vocal chords like she supposed to, she can be napping in her room and sticking her nose in things that isn't even worth paying attention to. She always says that she needs a quick power nap but ends up taking 20 minutes just to wake herself up after. She claims to just love the feeling of sleeping and lucid dreaming as that is when her body really relaxes but an idol's responsibility comes first before naps. [And somehow Leola has yet to understand that]

{ Trivia }

• She was the first ever trainee to be scouted and join HeartEater, though one can't say she was scouted since the CEO knew her father personally and it just so happened that HeartEater was going to open another facet of themselves that related to singing and performing so the stars sort of aligned from there.

• She knows how to speak English and Korean fluently, and knows basic Spanish, French and German.

• With her shenanigans and quirks, the CEO even questioned if the title of 'Leader' is appropriate for her but when she does focus and get work done, she proves him time and time again that she's talented and a great all-round representative of CHARMERS.

• She has 2 siblings, an older brother named Seung-jun (b.1996) and a younger sister named Ah-rin (b.2003)

• She cares for 3 'pet' plants, a couple month old Parodia magnifica (one that she's 'adopted'), a 10 year old Mammillaria bocasana/Powder puff cactus and an 11 year old Banyan sumo bonzai tree.

• She gets protective and a bit too in love with her plant bbs, hence the nickname 'Plant Mom'

• She is also well-versed in plant terminology and the caring of her plants. She gets pretty nerdy and sometimes when she has a chance she'll just be talking to her plants instead of the other members.

• She is also put on a diet and workout routine from her company to 'thin her out' but she is also prone to throwing up if she's worked too hard or if her stomach isn't used to the food she's given, yet.

• She can sleep through anything and everything. Her members joked that she can sleep through an arson, an earthquake or even a terrorist bomb attack and she'd still be sleeping.

• Favorite food: Potatoes

• Favorite drink: Passionfruit tea

• Her current concern: how to make food for the girls without blowing up the dorm.

• Her future goals: to be successful enough for Bindi and Robert Irwin to notice her.

#charmers #kumokocnet #lofikocnet #tokyokocnet #woopkocnet #kpop icons #kpop girl groups #kpop #kpopidol #kpop oc

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fidgetnano19 · 4 years

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Day 7, Part 1: Eyes to the Grave

I guess you could say that this is what happens when Fidget is scolding herself for focusing too heavily on dialogue on Day 5? I wanted to work more Einnet parts in, but it just didn't come out that way...

Griaria, 13 years ago

[[MORE]]

Marek stood quietly, eyes to the grave in front of him, careful not to bother mama during the service. She had already explained that his father wouldn't come back again, not like the times he went on long trips and gave him gifts when he returned. As for why they wouldn't see each other anymore, Marek was still a little confused about that part... something about souls, or his father being with Kea now.

When he'd asked if he could go there, too, just to visit, mama only wept harder, squeezing him so hard to her chest that he could hardly breathe. He didn't ask that question again, or any others. Today, he was just glad she was out of bed, with her beautiful purple hair brushed and swept up on top of her head by the servants. He gripped her hand tighter every time she sniffled, silently begging her not to cry again.

Across from them, on the other side of the big, stone box, Egom Cillian stood with his family. He'd met them before, he vaguely remembered, when the new Eika was announced – Reidory. She was there, too, though she looked more like one of the children than a wife. She'd given him treats at her wedding, and told him he was pretty.

He shook his head, reminding himself to pay attention to what the man in robes was saying, even if he didn't really understand the words. He had wondered why they weren't being said in his language, but mama told him it was because of something called tradition. He had no idea what that was, but again, he was trying not to bother her with questions.

He watched Brexton's mouth move silently, mimicking the robed man's words. Did he speak tradition? His eyes – silver, like the ring on mama's hand – lifted, meeting Marek's. His mouth stopped moving, formed a soft smile.

Marek smiled back, because Brexton was nice to him at the wedding, too, taking him outside to play when he didn't want to sit still anymore. In exchange, he'd shared some of the candy Reidory had given him.

The man in robes stopped talking, and everyone took turns walking up to the large box, rubbing their hands over the smooth stone, or leaving flowers on top. Marek eyed the flowers greedily, wondering if he could take a few for himself, but he forgot all about them when mama's hands started shaking, fat tears falling from behind the black veil that covered her face.

...

"Marek!" Brexton called out to him as soon as he and mama stepped out of the coach.

Mama let go of his hand, nodding that it was alright for him to go off on his own. He watched her head inside the palace with some of his father's men, while Brexton approached him, carrying a small child in his arms. She had thick hair that looked like Marek's, and big blue eyes.

"We're going to play in the gardens." Brexton explained, nodding behind him – toward Reidory. "Do you want to come?"

He brightened, his mood lifting as he accepted Brexton's outstretched hand. It was cold, much colder than mama's, but he didn't mind it too much. "What are we playing?"

"Hmm... how about hide-away?"

"I'm really, really good at that game!"

Brexton laughed, leading him to the side of the palace.

"Brexton! If you don't put Finnoula down once in a while, she'll never learn to walk!" Reidory scolded them when they got near, wrangling the child out of his hold and setting her down on the ground. "I swear, you spoil her too much."

"It can't be helped, Kiga." Brexton shrugged his large shoulders. "She is my bond, after all. Plus, I like spoiling her." He stopped, his fingers loosening as he glanced around the garden. "Where did Torin go?"

Reidory's face clouded for a moment, reminding Marek of mama's. Her smile, when it came, was tight-lipped – like the smiles his father's men had been giving him for days.

"He said he didn't want to play." She turned to Marek, bending down to stroke her fingers through his long hair. "If it isn't my sweet little nephew! Are you going to join in?"

"He's going to be my special helper", Brexton announced, giving him a quick nudge. "How about boys against girls? We'll be 'it', first."

The other girl, who Brexton introduced as Einnet, ran off to hide along with Reidory and Finnoula. Brexton and Marek covered their eyes, counting out loud until they reached twenty-five.

They had already found Einnet, curled up under a bench, and were off looking for Reidory when a loud voice disrupted their game.

"Reidory! Where are you?!"

Brexton's eyes widened, and he tugged Marek behind a row of nearby hedges, pressing against the top of his head in a silent command to duck. "New game, Marek. We're hiding from that man, okay?"

"Why?"

Brexton placed a finger over his mouth, shushing him instead of giving him an answer.

"Reidory! Come out here, now!"

He heard a rustling sound somewhere nearby, and the sound of running feet.

"I'm right here, Lazzari. There's no need to shout."

"What are you doing out here? Look at your hair, it's a mess." There were a few moments of quiet, followed by, "We're going inside, try to behave yourself."

"But we're still play–"

There was a loud sound – like hands clapping – then quiet crying.

"Enough nonsense. You are an Eika, and you should be inside with the adults... Unless you'd rather go back home, hmm?"

"N–no, sir."

"Good, then give that thing back to Einnet and follow me."

"Who was that?" Marek asked, once Brexton stood up again, peeking carefully over the hedges.

"Reidory's egomija... and my father. Come on, let's go back to Einnet."

Marek thought Brexton would offer his hand again, but he didn't. Instead, he held his hands at his side – curled into fists, with a thin layer of ice covering them.

The frost vanished as they approached the benches, meeting up with Einnet.

"Lazzari just–"

"We heard. Aww, did he scare you, Finny?" Brexton scooped Finnoula out of her arms, cradling the small girl to his chest. "I've got you now, so don't worry." He turned his attention back to Einnet, his expression growing more serious. "You should find Torin, tell him what happened. Whatever you do, don't let Lazzari see you, got it?"

Einnet promised that she'd be careful and ran off in search of the other boy, leaving the three of them alone in the garden.

For a long while, Brexton didn't say anything, just watched her leave until they couldn't see her anymore. Finnoula squirmed in his arms, and this snapped him out of whatever he was thinking about. He shifted her weight up on his shoulder and turned back to Marek.

"We don't have enough people for hide-away, anymore, but would you like to throw some snowballs?"

Marek scrunched his face, sure that Brexton was teasing him. It wasn't anywhere near time for snow. The leaves weren't even gold yet.

Before he could point that out, Brexton set the baby on the ground. He pulled a small stick out of his pocket, and waved it through the air. Marek could hardly believe his eyes. Snow! All over the ground at their feet, and it was the perfect sort for building or throwing.

"Can you really make snow, just like that?" Marek asked, staring up at him with the most intense admiration he'd ever felt in his young life.

"It's not a big deal, really. I have an ice mija, so I can do things like this." He bent down, encouraging Finnoula to touch the fluffy white snow. "Someday, I'll use it to protect Finny, here. Your mother has a bond, doesn't she?"

Marek thought hard, but he couldn't recall knowing anybody like that. Here in the palace, there were only the servants, and father's men. "I don't think so."

"Brex!" The other boy, the one with the fiery red hair – just like Reidory's, skidded to a stop right at the edge of the snow, frowning down at them. "He'll catch you, you know."

"We're just having a little fun. Besides, he already went in."

"Did he– he took Dory in with him?"

Brexton tucked the wand away, busying himself with collecting snow in his big hands. "Yeah, a little bit ago. Scolded her for playing with us, then dragged her away to be with the adults. Didn't Einnet tell you as much?"

"She did." He nudged a small pile of snow with the toe of his boot, staring down at the pattern his sole left behind. "It's fine, isn't it? She's one of them now."

Brexton frowned, standing to hurl the snowball at the older boy's face. "I hate it when you sound like him."

Marek tried to ignore their bickering, gathering up snow to form something resembling a brick. It was hard to do, especially with Finnoula trying to 'help', but he managed it. After that, he made another, and another, creating a ring with them.

"Do what you want..." Torin said, eventually, storming away.

"Idiot." Brexton mumbled it, but Marek heard it well enough. "How about that snowball fight, now?"

Marek nodded enthusiastically, crushing one of his bricks to make the first ball, his sad attempt at building a castle completely forgotton.

They played outside until the servants called them in for dinner. Brexton made all of the snow vanish with just a snap of his fingers, which Marek thought was an even better trick than when he'd made it appear in the first place.

"Brexton?"

"You can just call me Brex. Almost everyone does."

"Brex..." He tried it out, deciding he liked it much better. "How come Reidory doesn't want to go home?" He walked alongside Brexton, hopping over the cracks in the cobblestone.

"She's afraid of the dogs."

"Oh..." He didn't really understand why anyone would be afraid of dogs, or what that had to do with going home, but he pretended to. There were lots of things he was afraid of, so it made a little sense.

They were sat around a big table, with more food than Marek thought he'd ever seen before in his life being served on the good, silver dishes. Marek picked a seat between Brexton and Einnet, and the two of them snuck their vegetables onto his plate, saying he'd get big if he ate them. He could tell it was a trick, but he ate them anyway.

"Getting tired?" Brexton cocked his head to peek down at him, letting Marek lean against his arm.

"A little. Are you staying here tonight?"

"Yup. It's a long way back to Terracia, so we're not leaving until morning."

"Will you sleep in my room? I used to sleep with mama, but she won't let me anymore."

Brexton looked around the table, like he wanted to ask someone about it, but didn't know who. "Sure."

#fidgenano #ogam marek #eika reidory #mijako brexton #onai einnet #onai finnoula #egomija torin #gomija lazzari #eika amelka #nano 2k19 #day 7 #nano day 7

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punkscowardschampions · 5 years

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Rio & Buster

Rio: So, I'm having a hard time getting her to move but Rio: Quinn's being pretty decent considering Rio: Saving her from total embarrassment Buster: Well, that's something Buster: Do you want me to come help? Buster: I can always carry her out Rio: Nah, you're okay Rio: She'll clock it ain't working in a few and don't reckon either of you wants you to be there for that Buster: True Buster: And I don't need her trying to fight me Buster: She already knows I lied about why I trashed my room even if she can't catch me in it Buster: Things are weird enough, like Rio: Exactly Rio: Best to avoid unless you want your truths coming into question 'cos she's outed herself Buster: At least this does answer our question of whether she really did like the girl or not Buster: Type not so set in stone Buster: And if nothing else you've earned yourself yet more fruit Rio: Least she does now Rio: Even if she reckons the teach was her first love, Quinn was other firsts so, shit matters too Rio: Just trying to get my five a day, obviously Buster: I'll feed you grapes later, no need to go so hard with the heroics, babe Rio: What can I say? Rio: You inspire it in me, clearly Buster: 'Course Buster: How is she really though? Rio: Drunk, jealous and sad Rio: but she'll be fine Rio: No need to worry, honest Buster: She's had plenty of practice at wanting someone she can't have Buster: Honestly same Buster: Shame we can't bond over it, but Buster: I don't reckon she'd appreciate my success story at the moment anyway Rio: Yeah, somehow not seeing that as what she wants to hear rn 😏 Rio: Don't worry babe, always the fam to fall back on Rio: 😬 Buster: That just sounds like you wanna set Nance up with another cousin Buster: Good try, but I don't reckon she'd go for it Rio: I mean it's Billie or nothing really Rio: slim pickings Buster: Rude Buster: Don't worry I won't tell her you said that Rio: Good luck explaining if you did, babe Buster: 😂 Buster: Are you going home or staying out? Rio: We moving, compromise Rio: I'll probably bring her back with me when we leave Rio: or throw her at nan and granddad, like 👋 enjoy Buster: As long as she ain't on her own Buster: Take her phone too, that girl don't need to be all the texts too Rio: 'Course Rio: she's gonna have enough morning after regret to contend with Rio: this is so awkward Rio: this pub too quiet for this tension Buster: I'll take her breakfast 'cause there's no way she'll be going to school Buster: Imagine Rio: That'll be good Rio: This place [Insert] does a good veggie equivalent of a fry-up Rio: Gonna need it Buster: 'Course you know that Buster: Cheers, babe Rio: In this fam? Duh Rio: Just don't tell my Da I'm sending business away, like Buster: Your secret's safe Rio: Cheers, babe Buster: I miss you Buster: Not a secret, but Rio: Same 😔 Rio: If I gotta be dragged away, wish it was for something a bit more fun Buster: I appreciate it though, even if Nance can't right now Buster: So I'll make it up to you Rio: I don't mind really, aside from aforementioned awks and not being with you Rio: but not gonna pass up on the offer Buster: Don't, I've got nothing but time to think of ways Buster: Do you reckon I should talk to this girl, can I be that twin, like? Rio: Oh no, babe Rio: Nance would die Rio: Noble and cute but no Rio: Save that 🧠 power to thinking of all the ways Buster: I know you're right it's just like me and Nance are in a contest of who can fuck up the most right now or some shit Buster: It's such a mess Buster: I actually almost feel bad for mum and dad Rio: Not a 🏆 they want in the cabinet Rio: But really, it's bad but like, nothing REALLY bad happened Rio: Once she goes to Uni this will be so forgotton, like Buster: You reckon? Buster: I don't know, I'm not gonna forget about you when I go Rio: Bitch, like I'd let that happen 😤 Nah 😂 Rio: There'll be new girls and so much new shit in general, she'll be loving life, trust Buster: Maybe Buster: At least there's nothing stopping her from going anywhere she wants Rio: Yeah Rio: World's still your oyster, baby Buster: Don't worry, I'm not trying to swap with her Buster: I'd rather have you Rio: Good Rio: 'Cos can't say I'd be above a bit of slight stalking Rio: even though I'm seeing how well this is going, like Buster: Good 'cause I ain't been above it before either Rio: Should I be concerned or? 😉 Buster: Please, you've shown yourself right up, loving that 50 shades bloke Rio: If you're gonna buy me an Audi you can do what you like Buster: Well, if that's what you want for your birthday, I'll take everything I've bought back Rio: You're a fool Buster: You love it Rio: Yeah Rio: You better not have gone crazy with the gifts though forreal Buster: Shhh Rio: 😑 Rio: Babe Buster: I'm giving you them in secret so they don't count Buster: Besides, it's your 18th I'm not just gonna buy you a drink, am I? Come on Rio: Is that what we're saying now? Rio: Convenient if none of this counts isn't it 😏 Rio: But I didn't do a good job don't out-do me 😖 Buster: Yes you did Buster: You know I had the best birthday with you Rio: I just wanna treat you like you treat me Rio: like you deserve Buster: Baby Buster: You do Buster: Look where you are and what you're doing right now. You're so good to me all the time Buster: Above and beyond Rio: I just love you Buster: I love you too Buster: If it was about what you could buy me I'd be with Chlo like she wants Rio: Don't Rio: If you wanna motivate me to get my 💰 right, there's SO many better ways to do it Buster: I'm just saying Buster: It's not about that Buster: She wishes Rio: Least mine's my own 😒 Buster: You're doing better than me on that score Rio: Not being a bitch about you Rio: just her Buster: That's welcome any time Rio: Have you spoke to her since the last time? Buster: Nah, she must be complaining to one of her friends instead Rio: That's something Rio: She accidentally liked one of my pics the other day Rio: Hey babe 👋 Buster: I doubt that was an accident Buster: She's all about you Rio: You wish Rio: Get her off your hands, like Buster: Don't Buster: I never need that mental image Rio: 😷 Eurgh Buster: Besides, it's your family that she's changed her mind about, you've got hers made up Rio: What? Buster: Your parents are alright, shit ton of kids and all, 'cause they've got that clout of their jobs and cash Buster: You're letting the side down though, babe Rio: Why were you even talking about my fam Buster: She loves talking about you Buster: But I had to tell her your mum got her figure back 🙄 Rio: 🙄 Of course Rio: She better get my name out her mouth though Rio: She don't know me Buster: I don't think she's ever said your name Buster: You're always like THAT cousin or whatever Rio: Not the point Rio: that's even worse, like Buster: Don't worry, babe I'd never let her bad mouth you Rio: Whatever Rio: not like you can defend me Buster: Of course I can Buster: I always do Rio: Does that not get a bit Rio: risky, like Rio: I'm always so paranoid when anyway starts talking about you Buster: It's fine, I'm not an amateur and I swear she barely listens to me anyway so Rio: I hope so Rio: don't be chatting to her so much yeah Buster: Trust me, it's not something I wanna do Rio: I know, I know Rio: Ugh, can't even blame current company and drama but I will to save face, like Buster: You don't have to worry about Nance, she ain't gonna remember much of this, surely Buster: Feel how you feel Rio: I don't wanna Rio: I'm not used to being jealous Buster: Then don't be Buster: Not of her Buster: It's stupid Rio: Don't call me stupid Buster: I'm not Buster: I'm saying you're acting stupid if you think Chlo's anything to be jealous of Rio: Ugh forget it Rio: You don't get it Buster: Then explain it to me Rio: It doesn't matter Buster: Yes it does Buster: Just tell me Rio: I don't know it's just Rio: she's got something over you and it's fucked that she does and I'm not saying I want something as well but Rio: fucked or not, it's still true and there Rio: you know Buster: Babe, she's clutching at straws Buster: That's how much she doesn't have Buster: You're the only one who's got me Rio: I know it's stupid Buster: It's not, really Buster: I shouldn't have said that Buster: I just don't want you feeling any kind of way 'cause of her Rio: It's alright Rio: Not trying to make this about me when you're the one really getting fucked over Buster: It still affects you though Buster: I'm not gonna be that selfish Rio: I'm sorry Rio: Sometimes I'm alright and I feel like we know what we're doing Rio: then others, my head is just fuck Buster: Don't ever say sorry for this Buster: You're handling it better than I could've asked, not that I can or would Buster: I don't deserve you Rio: What am I gonna do? Rio: Not letting you go Buster: I really want you to mean that Rio: I do mean it Buster: Yeah now, but you're always saying things are gonna be different when the kid's born Rio: 'Cos your priorities are gonna be different Rio: they just will Rio: that doesn't mean I don't mean it Buster: Maybe your priorities will be different Buster: If I'm not around as much or whatever Rio: You saying I'm going to get bored? Buster: You could Buster: If I'm up all night not sleeping but not with you, like Rio: What are you saying? Buster: I'm just saying if we reckon I'm a moody cunt now wait until I'm trying to juggle school with keeping a kid alive Buster: Only so many fruit baskets I can order, babe Rio: Yeah Rio: 'cos I'm that much of a bitch Rio: Tah Buster: Shut up Buster: That's not what I'm saying Rio: Yeah, it is though Rio: It's fine, if that's what you reckon Buster: Fuck that Rio: I'm not that much of a slag Buster: Stop Rio: Seriously Buster: Seriously, stop Buster: I don't know how we got here but you're stressing me the fuck out Rio: I'll leave then Buster: Don't Buster: Fuck's sake Buster: I'm not calling you a slag and I don't want you to go anywhere, I can't believe I have to spell that out right now Rio: What else would saying I'm gonna get bored possibly fucking mean Buster: I just meant it's gonna be hard for both of us, not just me Buster: Christ Rio: The real concern here is you clearly think you're gonna be doing night shifts so that clearly leaves me out the picture Buster: What are you talking about? Rio: You've so obviously got an idea in your head of how it's going to be Rio: and I'm not a part of that Buster: Bullshit Buster: How are you getting that from literally anything I've said? Rio: You said you're not gonna be with me Rio: so where are you gonna be? Rio: With your kid, and her Rio: and that's okay Buster: It's not fucking okay that you'd say that to me Buster: I'm obviously not gonna be with her, am I? Rio: I know you Rio: you're going to want to be with your kid, to look after it and the only way you can have it all the time is to be with her Buster: Fuck off Buster: I'll tell you like I've already told her, I don't need to be her boyfriend to be a dad to my kid Buster: What century are we in? Rio: Don't chat to me like I'm her Rio: so you're gonna be a weekend dad then, yeah? Rio: and that'll be fine Buster: How is it not? Tommy's kids from before didn't become serial killers, like Rio: You don't do anything by half Buster: Yeah well I don't have a choice this time Rio: You're not going to like it Rio: it'd be so much easier for you Buster: I don't know how you can say that Buster: I wouldn't like being with her and neither would the kid growing up in that Buster: Be real Rio: I'm not saying it'd be true love Buster: It'd be another mistake Buster: And I'm not doing that Buster: So shut up Rio: You can't say your brain hasn't gone there Rio: all I can think about is all the different ways to make this work Buster: It's gone there in her dreams and my nightmares Rio: I know Buster: Then stop Rio: I want to Rio: it's not that easy Buster: Yeah it is Rio: Bullshit, babe Buster: Why isn't it enough that I want to be with you? Buster: Why do we have to keep doing this? Rio: It is Rio: but it doesn't make the rest of this shit disappear does it Buster: Well, I can't do that so what else do you want from me? Rio: Don't make it sound like I asked Buster: I'm so fucking tired of this Buster: I don't even know if its my kid yet and I'm tired Rio: I know Rio: Just forget I said anything alright Buster: I can't Rio: Sorry Buster: Don't Buster: Just come back, yeah? Rio: Okay Rio: Might take a while to sort Nance but then I'll be there Buster: Okay Buster: Bring her if you have to, I don't care Rio: Really? Rio: Alright Buster: Not that much of a slag myself, babe Rio: Shut up Buster: No Buster: I just need you here, that's what matters Rio: I didn't mean it Rio: pretend I'm drunker than I am Buster: Babe Buster: We have to keep talking, even if it goes to shit sometimes like Rio: I don't wanna make shit harder for you Rio: I really don't Rio: even though I keep doing it Buster: Well, I don't want you not to tell me things Rio: sometimes I don't know what I'm saying though Rio: or how to say it Buster: And I do? Buster: You thought I was calling you a slag for the longest time Buster: Just keep trying for me Rio: Okay Rio: I promise Rio: we're in the cab Buster: I love you Buster: Just so you know Buster: In case I don't get to say it with Nance around Rio: No telling Rio: gone from not being in the talking mood to telling the cabbie her life story so Rio: love you too, pray for me, like Buster: Fucking hell Buster: I'll give him a tip when you get here then Buster: And get on my knees for you, of course Rio: You really had to phrase it like that Rio: when we gotta be good 😒 Buster: We never have to be that good babe Buster: She'll crash and we'll be quiet Rio: Promise Rio: 'cos I really need to unwind Buster: I know Buster: me too Rio: Yeah Rio: owe you that, like Buster: You don't owe me anything, but I still want it Rio: Good 'cos I still wanna give it Buster: Yeah? Rio: You know I do Buster: Shit, hang on Rio: ? Buster: Proof yet again there isn't a god Buster: Getting a call from satan Buster: Hold up Rio: Seriously? Rio: Ignore it, it'll be nothing but a booty call at this o'clock Buster: But what if it's not? Rio: Then she'd call someone in the country Rio: or go to the hospital Rio: Don't be stupid Buster: Don't call me stupid Buster: So much for trying to unwind with this hanging over my head, like Buster: Come on Rio: Whatever Rio: Do what you want Buster: Don't be like that Rio: Nah Rio: this actually takes the piss Rio: I'm going home Buster: Don't Buster: Whatever it is I'll have it sorted by the time you get here Rio: It's nothing, Buster Rio: it'll be nothing Rio: Jesus Rio: really got you trained already though Buster: If it's nothing it doesn't have to ruin anything, does it? Buster: Just give me a second Rio: Take as many as you like Buster: Fucking hell, Rio Buster: What happened to not wanting to make things harder for me? Rio: I'm letting you deal with the most pressing issue here Buster: Fuck you Buster: Don't do that Buster: If this is how its gonna be every time you don't get your own way Rio: Then what? Buster: I can't do this right now Buster: Forget it Rio: Of course not Rio: Chloe's on the phone Buster: Why do you have to be such a bitch when I already can't win? Jesus Buster: Go where you want. Do what you want Rio: Yeah, that's what you like about me Rio: So easy Buster: Give me one break Buster: Please Rio: Done Buster: It doesn't have to be THIS difficult Rio: No, it really doesn't Rio: any chance to play the hero though Buster: Fuck off Rio: Going

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