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wowbright · 2 years

Text

Fic: Mysteries & Contradictions

Tan Hands and Tan Lines Sophisticated Word Challenge 2021: hubris

Words: ~1900 words

Rating: Teen and up

Summary: Elder Anderson has an embarrassing miscommunication.

I’m belatedly going through the prompts for The Tan Hands and Tan Lines Summer Event 2021 to flesh out my Mormon!Klaine universe. This one takes place after Spontaneous Combustion and before Indispensable.

My Mormon!Klaine Masterpost.

Notes: If you have any questions or typo corrections, feel free to use my ask box!

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"I don't have the time right now,” said the doe-eyed woman at the door. She was wearing a terrycloth robe and had a towel wrapped around her head. “I'm changing my clothes."

Kurt and his new companion were tracting a neighborhood after an investigator had failed to answer the door for his afternoon appointment. Kurt was disappointed—he strongly preferred the intimacy of gospel lessons to tracting—but Elder Anderson's enthusiasm for meeting new people was making the afternoon more tolerable than it might otherwise have turned out. His face lit up every time anyone answered a door, and it was lit up now, despite the distracted expression on the woman’s face. Kurt nodded at him to speak.

"That's wonderful," Elder Anderson said. "Perhaps we could help you?”

The door slammed before Kurt could fully take in the woman's reaction, but he’d caught her doe eyes growing to full-on anime hugeness and some shocked muttering about "Americans!" under her breath.

"Well," Elder Anderson said, looking dejectedly at the Book of Mormon in his hands. "I guess it's true what they say about not everyone wanting help."

Despite Kurt's new discovery that Elder Anderson was a perv, he felt the urge to place a hand on his companion’s shoulder and rub it comfortingly like it was one of the brass lions in front of the Munich Residenz and Kurt was working off the green patina until only brilliant metal shone through. Kurt shoved them in his pockets and switched to English as they let themselves out through the garden gate. "You didn't really expect that woman to let us help her change her clothes, did you? Unless ... you thought she'd like our fashion advice?" His companion had mentioned being a fan of Project Runway, but even so, Kurt knew he was grasping at straws.

Elder Anderson's eyes went round as saucers, and his mouth echoed their shape in a perfect, tiny ‘O’. "That's not ... did I ... Wait. What did she say when she answered the door?"

"What did you hear?"

"'Ich ziehe um,'" Elder Anderson answered in German. "'I'm moving to a new place.’ It’s not that weird to offer to help with packing, is it? Especially in Bavaria. I thought people were supposed to be more gregarious here.”

Kurt gave into the temptation to rub his companion’s shoulder as they crossed the street toward the next house. He needed to prepare him for the heavy blow to come. “Sorry, elder. That’s not what she said. You’re missing a word.”

Elder Anderson’s eyes went impossibly wider. His cheekbones flushed a becoming shade of apricot. “No. No no no no no.” He covered his eyes with his hands, as if trying to shade himself from the blinding brightness of his own humiliation. “’Mich’? Did she say, 'Ich ziehe mich um'?”

How unfortunate that such a tiny word could make such a monumental difference, transforming the meaning of a short little sentence from ‘I’m moving’ to ‘I’m changing my clothes.’ “I’m sorry,” Kurt said.

Elder Anderson dropped his hand to his side. His eyebrows were scrunched up in worried tildes. "Maybe I should go back and apologize?"

"Nah. Emotions are too high. Write down her address, and we'll send her an apology."

"Good. Good idea."

Elder Hummel had Preach My Gospel open to the chapter about the first lesson, adding stars to passages he’d already underlined heavily in preparation for their meeting with the investigator who had ghosted them—unintentionally, they now knew after receiving some panicked text messages about a dog eating chocolate and an emergency vet visit, and could they reschedule?

(The dog was fine. High as a kite on valium, but fine.)

Blaine should have been studying, too, but he couldn’t stop seeing the horror in that woman’s eyes and hearing the door slamming in his face. It was bad enough that he’d offended somebody. But it was also humiliating, making such a rookie grammar mistake in front of Elder Hummel. His new companion was so incredibly amazing, and Blaine desperately wanted Elder Hummel to think well of him. To admire him, even.

Which was dumb. Elder Hummel was Elder Hummel, and Blaine was just … Blaine. What kind of hubris did Blaine possess that he thought he might be capable of impressing Elder Hummel, who knew half the scriptures by heart and could sing like a cello and had sewn most of his mission wardrobe from scratch and made it look like something out of a bespoke men’s tailor shop?

Instead, Blaine had unintentionally propositioned a non-member and probably scarred her so much that she would never, ever crack open the Book of Mormon—not just in this life, but all the way through her time in spirit paradise.

Well, the only way out of this predicament was to wade through it. “Elder Hummel,” he said, “would you like me to review the first discussion with you? Or should I work on my apology to that woman whose clothes I offered to help change?”

“Perv,” Elder Hummel deadpanned, not even looking up from his book.

Something about Elder Hummel’s delivery of the line struck Blaine right in the funny bone. It was so unlike the humor of other Mormons that Blaine knew. It was biting and casual and easy to confuse with sincerity if you weren't paying attention. He giggled.

“What are you laughing about?”

Was Elder Hummel serious? “You’re funny.”

“Really?”

“You weren’t trying to be?” Blaine said. “You were serious about me being a perv?”

“No, but …” Elder Hummel let out a flustered sigh. “I’m not used to people responding to my sarcasm with …” He gestured vaguely at Blaine. “Effervescence.”

“But it’s so witty!” said Blaine. “How can they not?”

Elder Hummel shook his head. “If people laughed every time I said something sarcastic, I'd never be able to carry on a conversation.”

Blaine laughed again, then cleared his throat. “Should I stop?”

“No. It’s … refreshing.” Elder Hummel cocked his head and added haughtily, “Nice to be appreciated for my talents.”

“That’s my job as junior companion. To buoy you up,” Blaine said only half-jokingly.

Elder Hummel rolled his eyes. It was the kind of expression that should put Blaine off, but instead it gave him a wonderfully fluttery feeling inside his stomach. It made Blaine feel like Elder Hummel was pulling him in closer, rather than pushing him away. “What were we talking about, anyway?”

“Oh.” Blaine had to think back. His eyes scanned the table for clues. The first discussion. “Did you want me to practice the first discussion with you, or should I work on that apology?”

“Oh, right,” said Elder Hummel. “I think reaching out to her is more important than going over the first discussion again. You're already amazing at the first discussion.”

“Really?”

Elder Hummel’s expression was that of one who thought he had only stated the obvious. “Of course. I don't hand out compliments. If I say it, I mean it.”

The flutter returned to Blaine’s stomach. “Well, thank you, anyway. It’s nice to hear.”

Blaine scratched out a draft of his apology, doing his best to be straightforward and not flowery. Hello, I am the young man who knocked on your door today. I am writing to apologize ... He kept the summary of the misunderstanding short and factual. He reiterated his apology. It was only two paragraphs, which seemed too short for such an egregious error.

“Can you look over it, Elder Hummel?” Blaine tilted the page toward his companion. “I need your critical eye. And for you to make sure I wasn’t accidentally lascivious again.”

Elder Hummel smirked. He read over the note. “I think it's great. Totally free of perversion. And you didn't forget any of your participles or reflexive pronouns this time.”

“Not too short?”

“No. It’s to the point. And you want to keep it short so that she’ll actually read it and not toss it in the recycling bin in anger after the first sentence. I suppose you could always add a little note of thanks for giving you a grammar lesson you'll never forget.” He gave Blaine a teasing wink as he handed the paper back.

Blaine’s stomach did a somersault. “I'm never going to live this one down, am I?”

“You shouldn't even try. That's the kind of story that makes for a lifetime of sacrament meeting talks. You could use it to talk about the importance of clearly communicating the gospel, or chastity, or forgiveness, or using the right words when you pray. And imagine, what if she’s so charmed by your apology that she ends up becoming an investigator?”

“That would be wild. But I wouldn’t want to get my hopes up.”

“Why not?” Elder Hummel asked.

“Well, because …” Because you had to be realistic. Blaine’s parents had told him that often enough. When Blaine had talked about becoming a musician or teaching theater or following Cooper's footsteps into acting, they had told him time and time again: It was great to have hobbies. It was wonderful to enjoy art. Maybe he could try his hand at writing hymns or primary songs, or teach seminary for a few years before his family grew. But those things couldn't support a family. Once he had his first child, he wouldn't want to stop there, and if his wife was blessed with the health to give him more, Blaine would want that. He would want to give bodies to more and more spirit children. And he’d need a way to feed and clothe and shelter them. So he had to be realistic. Study business or law or medicine. Make money. He couldn’t fetter away his life on the hope that someone would actually pay him for doing what he loved.

Blaine couldn't say this, of course. It might come off as disrespectful to his parents. And as much as it felt like he had known Elder Hummel forever, he hadn't. He had to be careful with the things he said.

So he tried to condense it into something safe and inarguable. “You have to be realistic.”

“But the gospel isn't realistic,” Elder Hummel said with a small, mysterious smile. “Is it ‘realistic’ to think a man can be raised from the dead? To think that we’ll see our dead loved ones again? That God has a plan for each and every one of us?”

Close to nineteen years in this church, and somehow Blaine had never thought about how wild all these claims sounded. How inconceivable when evaluated through a logical lens. The idea that someone could rise from the dead was way more fantastical than the idea that Blaine could make a living as a piano teacher—and yet, Christ and Lazarus both had risen from the dead. And everyone would, one day.

‘How is it that ye can attain unto faith, save ye shall have hope?’” Elder Hummel seemed to glow as he contemplated this verse, like the Holy Spirit who dwelled within him was pouring out.

Elder Hummel was so cynical in so many ways, but then at unexpected moments, he radiated faith and surety—a deep-rooted hope in the things that counted. Blaine had never met anyone quite like him. He was full of mysteries and contradictions, and Blaine wanted to understand all of them.

#mormon!klaine #wowbright writes fic #spaceorphan's sophisticated challenge: hubris #klaine fic #klaine fanfic #thatl #my thatl

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iconicharry · 3 years

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It’s saturday morning and during breakfast H is like "wanna do a challenge. we only speak german today, yeah?". then he really tries to say everything in german and has to remind you to not switch to english out of habit cause he really wants to do this mini challenge!!! 🥺🥺🥺 (sorry I‘m having so many thoughts)

he stills, toast laid in front of him and his hands resting left and right from his plate. his gaze is lowered but she can make out a light furrow.

“what’s wrong, hmm? is it not burnt enough?” her small smile disappears when he still hasn’t reached out to the marmalade. lifting her hand, she tangles her fingers into the shirt urls at his neck and scratches. “didn’t get enough sleep?”

then his yes fall on her, the boyish glint in them that she’s now familiar with.

“we only speak german today, okay?”

her hand falls from his neck, raising one of her eyebrows teasingly. “is it a challenge?”

“well... do you want it to be?” he arches his brows too at her in pure amusement.

“that’s fine by me.”

harry sits back in the chair, crossing his arms over his chest and breathing a chuckle, “sieht aus als würdest du schon verlieren, babe.”

her jaw falls at his mocked arrogance. “ich gib dir gleich ‘babe’.” she mutters in disbelief how he laughs and searches over the table for something to put onto his toast

following his hopeless gaze, she sees what he wants is cream cheese. she sees the temptation on his face to just take the bitter instead.

he sighs, an adorable heat blooming his cheekbones, “kannst du mir bitte der frisch—”

she practically melt right then and there. “you can say—” he shoots her a glare, “du kannst es auch auf englisch sagen. ich will nicht, dass du einen knoten in der zunge hast.”

sucking his bottom lip between his teeth, it looks like he thinks it over but he just shakes his head and starts again. “kannst du mir der frischkäse und die marmelade reichen? bitte?”

she nods, grinning at the use of the false article, and reaches over to hand him everything. “sehr gerne. irgendwas anderes? saft?”

with a fond expression, she watches as he takes the first bite, feeling incredibly proud of him wanting to try so hard.

he hesitates, looking around and halting the chewing before swallowing and smiling shyly. “er... ja, kannst du mir vielleicht ein glas orangensaft einschütten?”

she shakes her head, standing up nonetheless, laughing and squeezing his shoulders on her way to the refrigerator.

“ich weiß jetzt schon, dass ich nicht mehr der erste platz bei meiner oma sein werde, wenn du so weiter machst.”

#concepts #bilingual reader

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beyondconfessor · 4 years

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Principle Decisions [1/24]

Rating: Explicit

Pairing: Lilith/Zelda Spellman

Summary: Zelda couldn’t look away from the words as she touched over the embossed typography.

Lilith

Dominatrix

N.B.: Also posted on AO3. This is pure fantasy, please suspend your disbelief.

She fingered the card, drawing her nail over its edges. It had an entirely over the top design, with a bright red background and black lettering. Despite how over-the-top she felt the graphic design was, Zelda couldn’t look away from the words as she touched over the embossed typography.

Lilith

Dominatrix

As if it had burned her, she dropped the card on her desk. On its back, the card presented the phone number and email address of the woman. Terribly gauche: [email protected].

The business card––if you could even call it that––had been slipped out of the jacket of a new book she’d purchased, and since her discovery of it, Zelda’s eyes had been drawn to it, a strange temptation pulling at her.

She’d only bought the book as a way to offer an olive branch to Hilda. If her sister weren’t so terribly awkward around any mention of sex, she would have wondered if she had been the one to slip the card into the book. No, likely the so-called dominatrix had wandered through the shop and decided that the newest bestseller would be an excellent place to advertise her business.

The sheer gall of the woman.

It had been some time since she’d engaged in any sexual relationship. Since Edward’s passing, Zelda’s world had been entirely taken up with raising Sabrina. Hilda had helped, of course, given that she was the original caretaker of Ambrose––but the bulk of Sabrina’s raising rested on her shoulders. Between that and balancing her work at the Academy, Zelda had little time to date.

And in the few times, she did date she would inevitably end up exhausted by the need to care for someone’s emotional needs on top of her family and usually wound up requesting that they never see each other again.

At least if she engaged with a sex worker, she wouldn’t have that issue.

A knock came at the door of her office, pulling her from her thoughts.

“One moment,” Zelda said, before taking the card and hastily set in the drawer of her desk. She should throw it away into the wastepaper bin, tear it up into pieces, and yet she found herself pushing the drawer shut, feeling a strange temptation dim but not entirely die away. “Come in,” she called.

The door pushed open, and her niece stood in the doorframe, bag slung over her shoulder as she stepped into the room. “How was work?”

“Busy,” Zelda sighed, rising from her chair. “How was school?”

“Fine.”

“Nothing happened, today?” Zelda inquired.

“Well,” Sabrina began, bouncing on the heels of her shoes. “Principle Wardwell did go on a warpath against Coach Craven. That was pretty cool.”

“Wardwell? Isn’t Hawthorne the principle there?”

“No, he left over Summer. It was in the news bulletin.”

Zelda rolled her eyes as if she cared to read that. The PTA and Parent-Teacher nights had always been Hilda’s realm of experience. There were limited choices of schooling in the area, and Baxter High had more students going off college than Riverdale. And like hell, she was sending Sabrina off to some boarding school as her parents had done with her, Edward and Hilda.

Collecting her day planner and unmarked essays, she began sliding them into her bag as she asked, “so why did your new Principle go on an alleged war party?”

“Craven said that Theo couldn’t join the men’s football team. So Roz and I complained to Wardwell, and she stormed off and immediately told him off in the middle of try-outs. It was…pretty awesome actually.”

“It’s definitely a way to make enemies,” Zelda said. “Take it from me, Sabrina. Public humiliation may force someone to obey for the moment, but they’ll look for any opportunity to enact their revenge.”

Sabrina’s lips pressed shut, her excitement dying. “I thought it was pretty great, actually. He should be called out for his actions.”

“And the best place to do that is in a formal setting,” Zelda said as she switched off the office light. Stepping into the hall, she drew the door shut and locked the door. “In a position of leadership, especially one so newly forged, it’s better to think about the long term effects of a stable work environment. Sowing discord will only turn the other teachers against her.”

“Well, the students love her,” Sabrina pointed out defiantly, missing the point.

With a sigh, Zelda drew up and rolled her shoulders. Her niece was sixteen, thinking the whole world revolved around her. Students came and went, but the teachers would remain, and if Principle Wardwell wanted to keep her job, it would be in her interest to make friends with the staff.

“How did your classes go?” she asked, deferring to a safe topic as they walked out of the university’s grounds to the parking lot. Sabrina began babbling beside her, discussing her recent marks in English and History, the study group she’d formed and then quietly toeing away from discussion of one particular class.

“Didn’t you have an exam for French today?”

Sabrina flushed, fiddling with her bag. “I…passed.”

Zelda paused, turning to look at her niece directly. “Define a pass.”

“C plus?”

Zelda bit back the flared anger as she pressed her lips together, watching as Sabrina squirmed under her scrutiny. “Perhaps I should switch to speaking French at home, then?”

“No, I hate it when you do that. Look, it barely makes up my grade, I’ll fix it up with the essay at the end of the month, and then I’ll be back to being an A-minus student.”

“Yes, well, unless you want your allowance to drop—“

“Come on! That’s hardly fair. It’s not like we live in France. I don’t even see the point in why I have to take this stupid class. ”

“Language is important, Sabrina. When you travel, you can’t just go around assuming everyone speaks English. By your age, I already spoke Italian and French fluently. By my twenties, I’d learnt Mandarin, German and Latin. Now, there are few languages that I don’t speak in one dialect or another.”

“I know, but…I don’t even know if I want to travel.”

“Of course you do,” Zelda said. “Everyone travels, or you’ll end up like your Aunt Hilda, working in a bookshop with no idea of how the world works.”

Sabrina went quiet as they arrived at the car. She climbed into the passenger seat, drawing her bag into her lap and buckled her seatbelt with a stony face.

Zelda drew in a breath, setting her own bag on the backseat before sitting down into the driver’s seat. Sabrina had always been soft for Hilda, defending her against Zelda any time she made a sniping comment towards her.

Perhaps the comment had been a little harsh. Only last night had the three of them broke out in an argument after Hilda advised that she would be permanently working at Cerberus Books and not just ‘helping out’ as she initially advised. Honestly, a retail assistant? Hilda had as fine an education as she had, and now Zelda was an academic, teaching at Greendale University, and Hilda…worked in a bookshop.

Not to mention the sudden talks of her moving out. Ambrose was still at university, in his final year of his masters, and Sabrina still had another year and a half before she was off, flying around the world before she settled on a college.

Leave? Unlikely. It was an empty threat Hilda proposed to hurt her.

They drove home in silence, with Sabrina’s growing bad mood taking up the space of the car. By the time that they arrived home. Sabrina didn’t even wait for the engine to switch off before she was unbuckling her seatbelt and running up the steps of the house.

Zelda paused, watching her niece push open the front door, likely to remain hidden in her room until summoned for dinner. She considered following up the stairs to Sabrina’s room and advising of how unacceptable her actions were, and yet the day felt heavy on her shoulders. She didn’t want another argument with Sabrina.

She didn’t want another argument. If Hilda would stop being so selfish, they could actually take the time to raise the children.

Stepping out of the car, she pulled out her bag from the backseat and then locked the doors behind her––not that it really mattered, they were so far out from any neighbours that there was a more pressing concern for a bear to get into the car, rather than a burglar.

She passed Ambrose sitting on the veranda, a book of poetry in grip and a glass of wine sitting next to him (in a tumbler, which she did take offence to, they owned perfectly suitable wine glasses).

“Auntie,” he greeted, looking up from the book. “How fairs the undergrads?”

“Fine,” she remarked. “I had the pleasure of seeing Prudence today.”

“Oh?” he remarked casually. “I had thought she’d have dropped out by now.”

“She asked about you.”

Ambrose seemed to pause, biting on the inside of his cheek before he gave a strained smile. “And should I go running into her arms again because she inquired as to how I was going?”

Zelda stared at him and watched as his face flushed with embarrassment.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean for it to come out like that.”

“Don’t apologise when you don’t mean it, or learn to lie better.” She paused, watching guilt wash over his face. “You should speak to her. At the very least it might bring you the much-needed closure you require to move on.” Before he could say anything further, she brushed past him, entering into the foyer of the home.

A door slammed upstairs, signalling her niece’s growing foul mood. But unlike Ambrose, who often drowned the house with music to signal his moods, a stillness followed the slammed door.

Her eyes drew up to the stairs, a part of her wanted to seek out Sabrina and apologise before she snuffed out the very desire to do so. Instead, she drew to her home office and set her bag down, drawing out her computer and essays, preparing herself for evening work to be completed after dinner.

Drawing into the kitchen, she noticed that Hilda was already at the stove, stirring around what looked to be onion and mince. At the same time, she had an assortment of diced vegetables running on another element beside it.

“Evening, sister.”

“Oh! Zelds. I thought it was you.”

“Who else would it be?” she asked, going to the cupboards to pull out the dishes. Usually, it was Sabrina’s job to set the table for dinner, but she could wash up and dry the dishes after dinner, given her impetuous mood.

“Oh, well…” Hilda spluttered, before turning to look over her shoulder. “So, what did you think of Doctor Cee’s little shop? Quite the business, hm? And the café has been busy of late!”

Zelda bit her tongue to stop the first thoughts she had from coming out. She set down the plates before looking at her sister and catching the hesitation.

“It’s…good that you’re happy,” she said, feeling other words rise in the back of her throat. She swallowed them back and smiled at her sister, hoping it came across genuine enough.

Hilda returned the smile, and it was enough to unknot the growing anxiety in her chest. Perhaps they could make it through dinner without another argument. “And have you given the book a look, yet? It’s flying out of the store lately. A real page-turner.”

Zelda gave a small nod. She’d got as far as the first page before the card had slid out onto her desk.

Swallowing, she tucked a wayward curl behind her ear, trying to not think of the words.

Dominatrix. She shivered, remembering what it was like to feel rope twist around her hands.

In her early twenties, she’d engaged in an assortment of different forms of BDSM with different partners, both on the receiving and giving end. And yet something about that embossed lettering brought a flicker to a long lost flame inside of her.

It had been…a long time—at least two years since she’d engaged in anything other than masturbation. The dating pool in Greendale and Riverdale was small enough that, inevitably, everyone knew everyone––and given her position, casual sex would only lead to complications. The last thing she needed was another man at her office, begging for a date.

Or a woman leading insistent voicemails on the landline.

But a dominatrix would be discreet. And it would just be an itch, after all.

A part of her worried. It could be a student she’d taught, trying to make extra money to pay for their education. Or it could be a number of acquaintances––someone from the board?

It could be Shirley. That thought sent a cold feeling down her spine.

“Zelds?”

She looked up, realising her sister had asked her a question. “Pardon?”

“I was just asking if you started the book.”

“Oh, just the first few pages. I’ll get to it on the weekend.”

Hilda squinted at her before stepping forward. “You’re looking a little flushed. You’re not coming down with the flu, are you? You’re always working yourself sick.”

“I’m fine,” she said, stepping away from her sister. “I’ll go tell Ambrose and Sabrina to wash-up, shall I?”

“Oh, yes, I suppose dinner will be made in a moment.”

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#zelda spellman #lilith #zelith #madam spellman #caos fanfic #morgan writes #morgans fics

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ash-etherwood · 3 years

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Top 5: writing memories, songs, characters that are not blank rune, runes, food

♡

Linda I love you but are you trying to kill me … that’s so many Top 5’s! But alright, I’ll do my best! (Answers will probably switch between German and English RIP to every non-German-speaker who follows me and wants to read this for some reason I swear I’m normal)

WRITING MEMORIES

5.) The entire time I spent finishing my first (second?) longer writing project It was the year 2012 and it was a cyberpunk story about my friends’ and my edgy self inserts riding dinosaurs, fighting aliens and being badass. The plot twist in the end was that my character was secretly evil and wanted to kill everyone. (Things to show your therapist) The final boss fight made zero sense and also everything was incredibly weird and stupid. But sometimes I still think about those times when I sat in my grandma’s living room at night, eating chips and listening to Vocaloid covers while thinking this story was the coolest shit ever. Truly simpler times.

4.) Researching something about universities in Texas for OvF on a rainy Saturday afternoon I have no idea why this memory is still sticking with me to this day (I think it was around 2016 or something?), but I remember that it was just a really nice day and I felt really at peace at that moment?

3.) The entire writing process of Bathroom Blues It was such a spontaneous project and I still have no idea how I managed to power though it in just a little under two months! Also it was just incredibly fun seeing you getting excited over new drafts and I loved coming up with new plot points and Halloween costumes for everyone with you. :-D Truly a summer worth remembering.

2.) FINALLY uploading the prologue and intro chapter of WWBL Not really a writing memory, but that moment was … so sexy and magical. Seriously, you have no idea how long I had been waiting to finally start that story, waiting for the Steckbriefe to roll in and see people react to the prologue and generally the idea … I even made one of those countdown graphic thingies for the designated upload date! 8D At that point I had planned that story for about six months and just … yeah, that felt powerful to me.

1.) Writing the prologue for WWBL When I first started the draft for that prologue I was sitting at the window in my favourite hotel in Winterberg, Sauerland, wore my dark green flannel, had the window wide open breathing in the cool mountain air and allowed myself to listen to my WWBL playlist for the very first time. God, that felt so amazing. I even have a photo of it (which somehow makes it look like I have the biggest football shoulders in the universe) my sister took that night. God I miss Sauerland. )’:

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SONGS

My apologies to every favourite song of mine that I forgot about, I have a whole playlist of them, but I think these are some of my oldest faves … (Honorable mentions for Don’t Mess With Me and Not That Big by Temposhark, Goodbye by Apparat, Me And The Devil by Soap&Skin, Heart Heart Head by Meg Myers, Pain and Animal I Have Become by Three Days Grace, Beautiful Crime by Tamer, Gravity Of Love by Enigma, In Flames by Digital Daggers [thanks Phi u_u] and Murder Cries by Snow Ghosts AHHH FUCK IT I could’ve just made a playlist,,,)

5.) Vater Unser by E Nomine Starting off with some weird shit, won’t we? I’ve been in love with this song since fifth or sixth grade, when I was just starting to develop an actual music taste and although I have many favourite songs by E Nomine, this one has to be my absolute fave. Every time I can relate it to a character it makes me love said character even more. (Also I think about it every time my mom forces me to go to church for Christmas so … yay? I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t even be able to remember the Vater Unser if it wasn’t for this song. 8D)

4.) Wires by The Neighbourhood I think this is the newest all-time fave on this list, I found it in … 2015? Thank you, Youtube AMVs. Yeah man, this one is just … on so many playlists it’s not even funny anymore.

3.) Heathens by Twenty One Pilots An edgelord classic but like … it’s on EVERY playlist of mine. Every single one. It’s just so good. The first time I heard it was on the radio tho, when I was having breakfast with Jessie and I forced her to shazam it because it immediately stuck with me,,,

2.) Imaginary by Evanescence My first Evanescence song ever and the first step towards becoming who I am today I think. This song has like … such a big history for me, man. It single-handedly turned me goth in 2008 and I have never really thanked it for that.

1.) Eternal by Evanescence Might be my favourite song of all time. The number of dramatic RP scenes I have written with this in the background … man. Oh, also this song is the reason for one of my oldest internet nicknames, ‘eternala’, which subsequently shortened into Etschuh and then Tschuh, my main nickname until 2017, when I came out as trans and finally found an actual name for myself I was comfortable with!

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NON BLANK RUNE CHARACTERS

I know this was probably supposed to be about fandom characters but I can literally not come up with a single character right now that I love with a special burning passion and that is not my or one of my friends’ OCs so you’re getting OCs now. u_u And boy do I have a lot of those.

5.) Jackson Tracey from atroCITY (mine) This little piece of shit kept me company for a pretty long time and is still very close to my heart for some reason, although I haven’t drawn him or really thought about him in detail for a while now. My favourite thing is how I only realized what a horrible person he was after I stopped regularly working with him but honestly good for me. 8D His storyline and personality is kinda convoluted and tbh I’m not really sure how much of it is canon anyway (atrc was always a little weird about canon rip) but yeah. He’s an obsessive stalker piece of shit who pities himself way too much and he is also a semi-immortal demigod who likes knives. I hate him but he also helped me a lot with some gender and sexuality stuff so thanks I guess.

4.) Mayoko Imai from Century Riders DXPrototype (Maus’ and mine) Mayoko is a magical girl protagonist with a cool cyborg arm prosthetic and her main character trait was that she was basically a reverse weeaboo, a Japanese girl who was obsessed with American media, culture and comic book heroes! I actually love her concept a lot and she also had a pretty cool character arc in her story (which Maus and I wrote together and actually finished btw!), although it could use a lot more … polishing from today’s point of view. But I love her anyway. She always wanted to do the right thing and be a hero and got broken pretty cruelly and her ending is kinda bittersweet I guess? Ahh there’s just so much nuance to it … anyways, CR3 also stuck with me for a very long time and I enjoyed the time with her a lot. :3 (Her name had a cameo in Another Incident btw heehee)

3.) Tessa *insert extremely long chain of unnecessary first names here* von Lean from Nobody Is Perfect and Infernal Temptation (belongs to one of my old school friends) Tessa is just … a hand full. I love to hate her. She is badly written and developed and just OOZES mentally ill teenage girl’s idealized self-insert power fantasy, but she just … man, she was a big part of one of my most drama-filled high school friendships which I love looking back at so much. Tessa has fucked so many of my characters … good for her tbh! There are actually two versions of her, one is just a ‘normal’ teenage girl and one can shapeshift into a cheetah, but both of them are very close to my heart. I should really adopt and redesign her some day.

2.) Judy Khayat from Original vs. Final (mine) Look, I love all my OvF-characters and every single one of them is special to me in their own way, but Judy is just … the most complex of them all I think? Man, she went through so much … she is actually one of my oldest (semi)-active characters (I created her in 2009) and her latest version is from 2016 but I should really, REALLY revise her again tbh. She has a very complicated backstory that I didn’t handle as carefully as I should have, and anger issues and religious conflict and depression and PTSD and then Vance of all people becomes obsessed with her for no reason and decides to traumatize her even more … yeah. God I really love her but I seriously need to work on her. A LOT. I should also finally rename her tbh … let’s just see where she takes me next.

1.) Okami (I don’t even remember if she has a proper last name rn lol) from Split Realm (mine) Yeah, that bitch is just my favourite OC. She’s also very old, probably from around 2009, and initially was a magical girl with fire powers who I played in an RP with my friend Flauch but boy did she grow up! Holy fuck. Okami is a horrible person but I love her so much. She is so violent and full of anger and pain and sadness and treats everyone around her like shit and she is in love and she is a demon but also apparently the personification of the concept of Chaos but she just wants to be a teenager again and run away with the love of her life and ahhh it’s all so hopeless for her … also she turned out gnc af with time passing and pretty much went through a gender/sexuality crisis in real time with me, her creator, which is always fun. :^D I haven’t drawn her in a while tbh. Should really do that.

- - - - -

RUNES IN BLANK RUNE

I’m just gonna go with the arcs here, okay? Also this entire answer might look completely different if you asked me again tomorrow, you know how indecisive I am with Blank Rune shit ahha,,,

5.) Jera Look. I know I’m boring and stupid. But I just love Tave and Liam having their disgusting little foreshadowing talk, okay? I can read it over and over. I just love my horrible little shit crime boys. Also Rhy and Phillip are there. (’:

4.) Isa This one is here because it was the first arc I witnessed in real time which gives it a very special place in my heart and it also … hit pretty hard at the time. But having read Fehu it’s become even better now! It’s just such a wonderful, tragic romance between two horrible, ruthless boys and I … I’m not immune to Rhy, sadly. :-/ Just like Phillip.

3.) Wunjo We still haven’t seen everything that leads up to Wunjo yet, but we DO know more than we did initially (wow shocker) and it’s just always a fucking blast. Also, it has the first mention of Ash’s real name … the first Rhy POV (which what the fuck!! I always feel like we had one before but we didn’t!! Wild) and it has crazy blood-soaked murder Tave, my beloved. :///3

2.) Eiwaz You guys have heard me fanboy about Eiwaz so many times already. Eiwaz-OT3 (and Kain) my beloved!!! It’s just SUCH an amazing starting point and there are so, so many things that tie back to it and every time we find out about a new one my heart makes a little jump … und es beginnt von Neuem indeed.

1.) Gebo One of the most painful but also the most beautiful arcs yet in my opinion. It’s been hyped up for so long and boy did it deliver. God, my heart still hurts when I think about that last scene. Also all the dialogue … the golden lines we got … and it’s an arc without Rhy! Crazy!! :-D I just love the relationship between Ash, Astrid and Jakob so much. God fuck I want what they have. Just maybe without the murder suicide,,,

- - - - -

FOOD

5.) Diese Sonntagsbrötchen wo die Verpackung so plopp macht, wenn man die Folie abzieht Better than normale Brötchen for some reason. Most of the time. See 2.) Look man, I just really love a good breakfast …

4.) Chocolate cupcakes with cream cheese topping One of the first things from a certain baking book I tried when I was getting into baking back in 2019. God they are so tasty. I don’t make them often so I don’t get used to them too much and eating them still feels special but ahhhh I love them so much!

3.) Grünkohl mit Kartoffelbrei und Mettendchen One of my favourite things about autumn/winter and one of my biggest comfort foods. God I love this shit so much. I just put … mountains of Grünkohl and Kartoffelbrei on my plate every time and I will just warm it up for four days straight until there’s no more left. It turns me into a fucking caveman. I’m not even big on eating meat but … yeah. Everything is different when there’s Grünkohl.

2.) Normales Brötchen mit Butter und Scheibenkäse aber ich bin beim Frühstücksbuffet im Hotel Oddly specific but that’s just how it is. Sorry. Nichts geht über Brötchen mit Käse.

1.) Chilli-Knoblauch-Nudelauflauf My beloved. My comfort food. I eat it literally every second day. At least one hour in the kitchen every time. Fresh ingredients. My only vegetable intake. And I’ve been doing that for three years. I just love it so much, man. I cook it for everyone who visits me. Chilli-Knoblauch-Auflauf cured my depression.

#ask #crimsondaisy #2.4k works of me talking about myself under the cut rip #thank you tho!!!

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thecursedhellblazer · 4 years

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BASICS.

full name. John Constantine pronunciation. Con-stan-TINE (comics) / Con-stan-TEEN ( TV adaptations) nickname(s). Hellblazer, ConJob, The Laughing Magician, The World’s Greatest Con Man, El Diablo, Johnny boy (& all the possible variation of the latter) gender. Male height. 5′11″ age. 35-40 years old (verse dependent) zodiac. Taurus spoken languages. English, some Spanish, some German, some Italian, Latin, Sanskrit, Egyptian language, Ancient Greek, Old Persian, some Enochian.

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS.

hair color. Dirty blond eye color. Blue (comics) / Brown (TV show) [I tend to go for the blue ones] skin tone. Fair. body type. Built. accent. Heavy British accent (from the area of Liverpool specifically) voice. Often hoarse, the kind of voice you expect from a chain smoker. It goes from being really expressive to emotionless and cold, when he wants it to be. Also, accent. dominant hand. Ambidextrous posture. Mostly slouched, with shoulders falling slightly inwards. scars. Plenty. John’s body is littered with scars, both gained during his sparring with the hellish and the supernatural and self-inflicted (for spells, for the most, but not always). He has some marks gained in more “normal” circumstances, like bar/street fights or accidents. Some are light enough that will most likely disappear given the right time, but other are so deep and large that will remain as permanent mementos of the events that have firstly carved them on his skin. tattoos. Several, spread all over his body (arms, chest, back, some of his legs too). They are almost (if not) all seals and symbols used in spells, protections, or at least have a magical meaning. birthmarks. None most noticeable feature(s). The first things people tend to notice about him is how he dresses. His appearance is always messy. Clothes in a general state of disarray, mostly creased. Shirt half untucked and with the top buttons always popped open, tie never properly tied, dirty trench coat, cigarette tucked over his ear or somewhere else. However, the physical details tend to be quickly forgotten as soon as he opens his mouth and his flamboyant, pushy attitude comes out.

CHILDHOOD.

place of birth. Liverpool, England hometown. Liverpool, England first words. Either some random curse or ‘killer’, since that’s how his father has always addressed him. siblings. One stillborn twin, older sister (Cheryl) parents. Thomas Constantine (deceased) and Mary Anne Constantine (née Quinn, deceased) parental involvement. His mother died of childbirth, so he never met him. As for his father, he blamed Mary Anne’s death on John and quickly became an alcoholist and an abuser, towards both his children, even if John took most of it.

ADULT LIFE.

occupation. Occult detective, Exorcist, Demonologist, Master of the Dark Arts, Magician, Conman, Gambler. Member of the Legends (verse dependant) close friends / family. Chas Chandler. All the other people in John’s life come and go without ever truly staying. In LoT verse, the members of the crew. relationship status. Single / verse dependant. financial status. Depends on how much he has got out of others’ pockets through gambling, for the most. He manages, in general. driver’s license. Never got one. He still knows how to drive, even if he prefers not to. criminal record. John has ended up in prison several times, mostly for trespassing, stalking, violation of private properties, theft, possession of illegal substances/weapons, disturbing the peace, and so on. None of the accusations ever stuck, because he always found a way to get himself out of them (or someone to pay the bail for him). He has been accused of murder a few times too, but has never been condemned for it. Of course his earthly record pales compared to his “magical” one and to what Hell and a lot of demons consider him responsible for. He is fated to end up in the Pit for more than one reason.

MISCELLANEOUS.

character’s theme song. “Endless War” by Within Temptation or “Whisper” by Evanescence hobbies to pass time. John’s hobbies often connected to his chosen profession. He spends plenty of time researching the Occult or learning, creating and testing new spells. Aside from that, drinking can be considered a consistent part of his routine and he goes to clubs (when he is feeling like being among people), to drink and flirt (whether for fun or to find someone he can take home…or to any available place that can assure the necessary privacy for a sexual encounter). He also practises yoga and meditation with regularity. mental illnesses. PTSD, Persistent Depressive Disorder, Guilt complex, Alcohol Use Disorder, Sleep Disorder of Arousal (Sleep Terrors), Tobacco Use Disorder. physical illnesses. Does being destined to develop lung cancer counts? left or right-brained. Right-brained (mostly) self-confidence level. Very confident of his abilities and knowledge, sometimes far too much, which leads him to make mistakes and miscalculate risks and dangers. All in all, however, he is conscious of his level of expertise and knows how to use it at the best of his capability. Things changes when it comes to be confident in himself as a person. With trauma and past mistakes he can’t forgive to himself, he mostly thinks of himself as worthless of anything good. His vision of the world and of himself is marked with a strong pessimism, which leads him to constantly see only the shadows, only the half empty glass, to constantly expect for the other shoe to drop. As much as he is trying to get himself out of Hell’s clutches, deep down he almost hopes that he will eventually fail, because he deserves an eternity of the worst torments and more.

SEX & ROMANCE.

sexual orientation. Pansexual. romantic orientation. Demiromantic. preferred emotional role. submissive | dominant | switch preferred sexual role. submissive | dominant | switch libido. Fluctuating. At times he’s literally screw everything that moves (within certain limits) because it’s just another unhealthy coping mechanism, like drinking, and others he just isn’t in the mood, no matter who might threw themselves at him. turn on’s. Heated make out sessions, sharp humour, sarcasm, biting / scratching, quickness of mind, bantering, creative thinking, shows of power / strength (done without boasting), fighting (only with specific people). turn off’s. Know-it-all attitude, dull / boring / pushy / clingy / controlling people, discussing long-term relationships, too many questions about his past, anything connected to religion (God and Heaven in particular), lack of humour. love language. Acts of Service, Quality Time relationship tendencies. Getting attached is often not an option for John. When it comes to sex and romance, he more often goes for casual, because it’s safer and less complicated, and he isn’t one to fall fast for people. Most of his past relationships, especially the long-term ones, ended up badly. John’s lifestyle and choices more often than not make it impossible to stay that close to him. And he doesn’t make it any easier, as persuaded as he is that the relationship is doomed from the start. At times, however, it’s hard for him to push people away, both because, at the end of the day, he does need someone by his side, and because he ends up running into people who are quite stubborn when it comes to stick around him.

tagged by: @imthebatman tagging: (idk who likes to do super ass long memes, so don’t feel obliged to do it even if I tagged you! For multi-muses, feel free to pick whatever muse inspires you the most since this is a lot!) @perfectedingbadideas @exanxmo @theclownprnc @areswriites @protectxthem @mythsxndlegends @dwarfstaralloy @angelluxi @smoakinn - & anyone who wants to steal this !

#* Exorcist Demonologist and Master of the Dark Arts * ::about::#* My reality is eleven tenths perception. * ::headcanons::#(( good think I had a lot of this already written down in my muse page xD ))#(( I remember doing a lot of researches to build it up >.> ))

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storyweaverofgondor · 4 years

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rules: answer 21 questions and then tag 21 people you want to get to know better.

tagged by @uppastthejelliclemoon

nicknames: Huh, i don’t think i have any. unless going by your middle name for your entire life counts. if so then Ocean.

zodiac:Capricorn

height:5′10″

hogwarts house: Ravenclaw with a side of Hufflepuff.

last thing i googled: crawling reference(i was looking up poses for a Cats fanart)

do you get asks: I’ve gotten a couple and i love it! would definitely like more!

amount of sleep: I go to bed almost as soon as it gets dark(I tend to get loopy if i stay up too late) and wake up between 5:30 - 8:00. so it varies usually but a lot.

lucky number: I don’t think i have one? maybe 3? Also i love saying 222 in a goofy tone ;)

what i’m wearing: a brown caftan(comfort is the most important factor in my day to day life:)

Dream trip: England, India, New Zealand and Japan.

instruments: I play the recorder vary badly.

languages: English mainly. though i can speak a couple words of German, Manderin, Spanish and Urdu. But it’s basically just ‘yes, hello and thank you’

Favorite song: I Like It Heavy(Halestorm) Dark in My Imagination(Of Verona) The Magical Mr. Mistoffelees(’98 Cats) Memories(Within Temptation) Where Do We Draw the Line(Poets of the Fall)

random fact: I love Bollywood romantic comedies. I am also obsessed with books

aesthetic: I switch between Sexy Gothic Space Witch, Mabel Pines Color Explosion and Comfy Pillowcase

I Tag @dell-delta @thenamelessdoll @theguywhoreallylikescats @star-freckled-kitten @timetravelingcacti @emmilicious and @unusual-ly And i really can’t think of anyone else off the top of my head!

#fun facts #q and a #q and a time #questions and answers #this is me

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waterlinkedgirl · 5 years

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NPoT chapter 270-272 summary

I wonder if I can catch up! Since we don’t have chapters this month, maybe I can!

“There’s no choice but to give up one of the doubles...”

The atmosphere at the front is heavy...

The coaches discuss the lineup for the upcoming matches against Germany, but with Germany’s overwhelming power they’re having a lot of trouble.

“Dankmar and Bertie... The probability of winning against those two German pros is zero,” Kurobe says. Mifune looks rather unamused. Saitou, however, has a different idea. “Supervisor, how about pairing up Byoudouin and Duke?” “Don’t say stupid things!” Mifune says, “If it ain’t Byoudouin then who’s gonna go up against the pro Volk?” “Supervisor... Aside from that, we also have the matter of the one who had participated in the Japanese representatives camp, who departed to Germany aiming to become a pro, Tezuka Kunimitsu... There’s evidence that suggests that in the upcoming matches against us, he will be playing in singles.”

“There’s many that want to fight against that guy,” Tsuge says.

Mifune takes his bottle and takes a few good swigs. “Right now there ain’t anyone of the brats that can beat Tezuka!”

”Well~, we and Germany really have way different cards in our hand,” Saitou says. “That speaks for itself. Our opponents are the representatives of the world champion Germany, after all...” Kurobe says.

“What’s gonna come of you bastard coaches givin’ up, coach Saitou?!” Mifune has his back to the others, looking out the window.

“That’s right. None of that scum has given up!!”

We cut to: Kirihara being horribly lost.

He was following Atobe because he was being all sneaky and suspicious, but lost sight of him and now he’s in the German representatives village.

This is where he spots!

(this is where I went Konomi what the actual fluck is your anatomy doing but that aside--)

He wonder what the hell they have for a business with each other, when he notices Tezuka handing a CD to Atobe... Of course this means they’re

SPIES! (right?)

He received something like a super-confidential file on the German representatives...! Hiiie!

I see! So Tezuka just pretended to have gone to Germany to do an infiltration investigation as a double-spy! Putting his life on the line for Japan’s victory... Huh?! If the truth got out won’t it be really bad?!

(this is of course a very, very logical conclusion to come to, Akaya, and I love you to bits for that.)

...which is when he gets caught by security.

“Was machts du hier?!”

So of course, when it comes down to this...

he makes a big effing run for it.

Meanwhile, Amadeus and Ralph are still duking it out, with the first set score being 6-5 for now.

“You play a nice style of tennis...” Amadeus says, “However, I will teach you all the decisive difference between you and me!”

Taste the baptism of a pro!!

(Amadeus using baptism here when Volk has his Wirbel Taufe (lit. Whirl Baptism) technique is a fun detail I want to point out.)

With Dark Side, Amadeus scores off of Ralph, and it becomes set point for the Swiss.

“Our commander has switched gears...” Henri says. “How scary...” Peter whispers.

Amadeus’ Dark Side exposes the opponent’s greatest weaknesses and draws them out. The mental power he displays as he mercilessly and relentlessly attacks them...

“Your greatest weakness is the response delay of the opposite site of your pivot foot after your shot!”

However, Ralph manages to return it.

“Ralph’s scariness is his ability to fix and overcome his weaknesses,” Ryoma says. “Make him miss once, and the next time it’ll be an easy course for him.”

(so like, Shiraishi but faster?)

6-6.

“Thanks to you I’ve become fond of that weakness, Amadeus.”

And now for something completely different--

Zeus vs the temptation of fluffy fur feat. Tanegashima!

A whole line of men of statu(r)e is lined up to hug the koala! Heracles, Hermes, Vulcan, Davide...

Davide?!

He makes a pun about being startled now featuring koala’s, and of course if he makes a pun, you can guess who’s near to drop-kick him?

Bane!

Zeus addresses Tanegashima. “In the semifinals tomorrow against the German team, we, the Greek representatives, will come to cheer for you.” “Thanks☆”

“Game, set.” We cut back to the match between Ralph and Amadeus.

“Won by...

The American representative, Ralph Rheinhart!”

Cheers erupt from the American team. “Ohhhhhh! We won against a pro!” And with 3 wins and two losses, America advances to the semifinals!

“You could immediately become active as a pro player,” Amadeus says as they reach out to shake hands. “No...” Ralph says, “Participating as soon as the pro tour ended, the skill of unifying your team as a commander to come this far is something that deserves much more respect.”

“Let’s meet again on the court.”

“At least, the veil’s been lifted on the American representatives... This’s become really interesting.”

Spain moves on to the semis with a 3-0 against Russia. (the fun thing about NPoT is that we literally have no idea how the other matches are going to turn out and who the finals opponent will be... currently, Spain seems to be in favour.)

Amadeus closes his eyes and lifts his head to the skies. This year... we didn’t make it either.

“Commander... Nice game.” When he opens his eyes--

All of his teammates, saluting him. He smiles, and closes them again. “Thank you very much.”

Meanwhile, the American team has noticed Ryoma and are shouting elatedly about how he came to watch. Ryoma tells them they’re making too much of a fuss... but that he’s happy to see everyone doing well.

“By the way, where’s my brother?” “Ah, Ryoga, huh,” Dudu starts.

“He’s always had that wanderlust, you know,” Kiko says. “Who knows where his feet led him♪”

“You’ll be able to fight him somewhere... for sure,” Ralph reassures him.

“Let’s meet in the finals, Ryoma!”

(y’all you have audience right below don’t you feel awkward shouting that drthdcrt6uyjcftguyj)

“We gotta beat Germany first!”

Yeah, about that...

Kirihara’s finally been apprehended by the guards.

“Th- That’s why said! I didn’t see anything!” And, in his best attempt at English, “No spy! No spy! I was searching for a friend and I got all dizzy dizzy lost...

Th- This is bad! They don’t understand anything-- Help me!!” (Kirihara you idiot onomatopoeia don’t translate at ALL xdfhcxftghcgh)

“Che che che~” (this is Bismarck’s trademark laugh, more like ‘chi chi chi’ in the original but this conveys the sound better in the English accent imo, don’t question it)

“You can let him go, that guy’s my Kumpan.”

Bismarck leads Kirihara out of there, to one of the courts.

“Thank you... very...” “Heh. Japanese is fine. Just don’t get lost in the enemy’s athlete village again. If you were caught by Volk he’d beat you up like a punching bag (lie)

If it were QP you’d have a court-martial (lie), and if it were Frankensteiner you’d be turned into a cyborg (lie)” (I love what this says about how these guys on the German team are perceived)

Kirihara lets out a yelp.

“Um.. You’re the guy who went against Fuji in the exhibition matches, right?”

“Yeah, I’m Michael Bismarck!

But you Japanese middle schoolers sure are strong, huh!”

Kirihara laughs nervously. "That so? Those guys still got a long way to go.”

(cin game on point)

“However, the German middle schoolers also have a bunch of guys who hate to lose. I’m looking forward to tomorrow. See you then, Kumpan!” “Thanks”

Right when he finishes waving, our attention is drawn to one of those hate-to-lose types. It’s Siegfried, and he looks exactly like he’s unlocked ten’imuhou.

(meanwhile Frankensteiner looks like he’s nnnot gonna be in the tournament anytime soon htxcftgcyhzsg poor guy)

A park, lined with trees and skyscrapers in the background. “Mon amour... It was a bitter decision I made so they would be loved in the future...”

Camus wistfully reaches for his racket as he laments that he had to stop Oswal.

But... If you talked about what I really wanted, fighting with him...

The person who he’d been thinking about, Duke, pops up.

“Camus... Would you like to have a game?” “Even though you appeared just now, you say some funny things, Duke.

Well, it’s not unthinkable that you wouldn’t have understood my tennis in just our mental match.”

“Will you have a game with me?”

“Are you planning on appearing in the Germany matches as well?”

In yet another meanwhile, Tokugawa is going 1 vs 2 against Oni and Irie.

“Should we take a break?” Irie asks, smiling, when Oni notices someone. “Oi Tokugawa... He showed up today as well.”

(it’s him!!!! :D) "Sorry for interrupting your practice! Tokugawa-san... Can I count on you today too?"

Tokugawa nods, and the two of them take off.

“That guy...” Oni looks over them with a certain pride in his eyes. “It seems that ever since they lost against Germany he’s been having practice with Tokugawa every day.

Though they may have been defeated, they are the only pair that has attained a Howling between their skills!”

Highschoolers and middle schoolers alike are preparing for the big day tomorrow, from watching matches of Volk,

(spotted!) to running until the sun sets. It is already late when Atobe knocks on one of the room’s doors. Fuji opens.

“Hey, Fuji. Tezuka’s told me to return the CD he borrowed from you.”

“Thank you, Atobe. Was Tezuka doing well?” “Yeah, much more than usual.”

“Hey, Fuji. Don’t make me run errands for you again.”

It’s the night before the semis. Everyone is gathered in the hall to listen to the head coach. “You bastards! Tomorrow finally is the Big Match! Go take revenge on Germany and shake the world!”

A roar erupts from the gathered players.

“I’ll announce the order for tomorrow!”

(spotted! haha)

“Huh? Koshimae ain’t here.” “Mm. Akaya isn’t here either,” Sanada remarks.

“Can you believe those guys?”

Of course, they’re playing off against each other. Or, well, it looks rather one-sided on Ryoma’s half, with his ten’imuhou.

“Sht... Why?!”

Tezuka-san... and Atobe-san... For the sake of Japan they put their life on the line and cross all kinds of dangerous bridges... I, too...!

“So how about giving up already?”

(I’m yelling because being on top of the game and then telling their opponent to give up is something much more Yukimura than Ryoma in my book... But here we are!)

“Even if I die I won’t give up.”

He, who can’t be called an angel or a devil, when that single man surpasses that wall--

[One day left until the semis against Germany.]

#prince of tennis #shinteni spoilers #long post

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runedwhip-archived · 5 years

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𝑪𝑯𝑨𝑹𝑨𝑪𝑻𝑬𝑹 𝑺𝑯𝑬𝑬𝑻

repost, don’t reblog !

𝐛𝐚𝐬𝐢𝐜𝐬 !

FULL NAME. isabelle sophia lightwood NICKNAME. izzy, iz. others might be character dependent GENDER. female HEIGHT. 5′5 (165.09cm) AGE. verse dependent, but standard, she’s in her mid to late 20s ZODIAC. scorpio SPOKEN LANGUAGES. fluently she speaks english and spanish, and is pretty decent with italian. she can also speak some french, some latin and a tad of greek and german. enough to get through a conversation, but nothing too in depth.

𝐩𝐡𝐲𝐬𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐬 !

HAIR COLOR. dark brown, black EYE COLOR. dark brown SKIN TONE. tan, BODY TYPE. curvy and athletic VOICE. kind, usually with a note of teasing or laughter in it DOMINANT HAND. right handed POSTURE. she stands straight, head held high, as shadowhunters are trained, but far less rigid than a soldier does SCARS. in her canon verse, she’s got some from faded runes, but not really any other than that, thanks to iratzes. in other verses, she’s got some from every day activities, like wrestling with her brothers and general scuffles TATTOOS. None, outside of runes. BIRTHMARKS. none, unless you count the beauty mark on the upper left side of her lip MOST NOTICEABLE FEATURE(S). her hair color, as well as gentle eyes, most likely?

𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐝 !

PLACE OF BIRTH. new york city, new york. HOMETOWN. new york city, though she’ll always consider idris her home away from home and hometown, like most shadowhunters SIBLINGS. alec lightwood, jace herondale and max lightwood PARENTS. robert lightwood and maryse lightwood, though given her father’s infidelity and the fact that she’s known about the secret for years before any of her siblings, he’s a touchy subject for a while. eventually she’ll learn to accept her father’s choice, and move past it, though she’ll never forgive or forget it.

𝐚𝐝𝐮𝐥𝐭 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞 !

OCCUPATION. shadowhunter in the new york Institute. if in a post canon verse, she’s the head of the institute CURRENT RESIDENCE. the new york institute CLOSE FRIENDS. her siblings and clary fray as well as magnus bane are all considered her best friends. she’s also quite close to raphael santiago in most cases, as well as meliorn and a fair amount of the downworlders like maia roberts. RELATIONSHIP STATUS. single. FINANCIAL STATUS. pretty well off, since the lightwoods seem to have built up their family name after some generations of the tarnish that was brought on it with their ancestor, and are once more considered an influential family, leading to assume they’re definitely wealthy in terms of what mundanes would consider when it comes to money DRIVER’S LICENSE. no, and i don’t think she should be trusted behind the wheel of a mundane car CRIMINAL RECORD. the charges were dropped, but she was once tried for treason against the clave for helping meliorn escape from where he would have been tortured for information VICES. yin fen was definitely the biggest vice, if you want to call it that, but it’s a substance that was introduced to her by someone who was in a position of power over her, and something she never plans on touching again. otherwise, it’s definitely champange, though she’ll be happy with any sort of wine or cocktail

𝐬𝐞𝐱 & 𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 !

SEXUAL ORIENTATION. bisexual / biromantic / polyamorous PREFERRED EMOTIONAL ROLE. submissive | dominant | switch PREFERRED SEXUAL ROLE. submissive | dominant | switch LIBIDO. she’s definitely got a high sexual drive, and is no stranger to giving into desires, but as it generally is, it’ll depend on her mood and partner. she’s very sexual, but she’s also learning to adapt to others own desires and needs, and since she’s had mostly very sex possitive partners, she’s learning to understand others who don’t have the same interest in sex TURN ON’S. light bdsm, roleplay, semi public sex. sensation play TURN OFF’S. humiliation or degredation, airway restriction, lack of communication LOVE LANGUAGE. physical touch RELATIONSHIP TENDENCIES. izzy’s very physically affectionate, whether it’s with gentle touches or close contact, and will always be touching her partner in even the smallest of ways. whether it’s a hug, a hand on a shoulder, cheek kiss or anything else, she’s almost always touching her partner. saying the words, however, definitely don’t come as easily. her parents marriage falling apart and knowing about her father’s affair long before anyone else did and keeping it to herself for years until it came out really affected her view on love, and while she certainly feels love, and has been comfortable in open relationships with downworlders (specifically meliorn, though i doubt he’s the first, just the longest), it’s not exclusive

𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐞𝐨𝐮𝐬 !

CHARACTER’S THEME SONG. just about anything by dua lipa or marina and the diamonds HOBBIES TO PASS TIME. training, attempted cooking, shopping LEFT OR RIGHT BRAINED. right PHOBIAS. a small case of musophobia SELF CONFIDENCE LEVEL. very high VULNERABILITIES. her strained relationship with her father after being so close to him, and in early canon, her strained relationship with her mother. vampire venom and being near the temptation of a vampire feeding. some other things i’m likely forgetting bc it’s late

TAGGED BY: @idumean, thank you love! TAGGING: @pulchrousati, @hxdonist, @cxpt, @melliwell, @immcrtuos, @imboldadjacent, @cursedfray, @slayfatale, @sxgitta

#╰ ❦ ethos.#╰ ❦ ooc.

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adalhied-prime · 5 years

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22 About Me Questions

Rules: Answer 22 questions & tag 22 people you would like to get to know better.

Tagged by Stealing from: @hi-pot-and-news

Nicknames: My most common one is Ro, which I use for my online persona, and is short for my real name. Others are more exaggerated variations of it (like “Ro-Ro-Ro-Your-Boat, which my second grade teacher sometimes called me).

Zodiac Sign: Scorpio, Sagittarius moon, Pisces ascending

Height: 5′4″

Hogwarts House: Gryffindor

Sexuality: Bisexual

Last thing I Googled: How to calculate my moon and ascending signs

Favorite Musician(s)/Band(s): Poets of the Fall, Within Temptation, Jonathan Young, Caleb Hyles, Peter Hollens, Celtic Woman (the original members),

Song Stuck In My Head: “Welcome to the Family” by Avenged Sevenfold

Following Now: Fandom blogs, some aesthetic blogs, some fashion blogs, a few personals I like. Mostly fandom though.

Followers: 73

Do I get asks: No not really. There was a bit where I was getting a bunch in a row, but that was a while back and not happening now. I’d love to get some though!

Amount of sleep I get: This wildly varies. On an average day, when I follow my desired sleep schedule (9 or 10 am, cause I work 3rd shift), I’ll get either 2 or 3 hour of sleep, or 7 or eight, with little in between, and usually I gotta take sleep drugs to get long sleep. But if I fall asleep at night, I’m near garunteed at least 5 or 6 hours. I’ve also had days where I’ll stay up for over 24 hours and crash hard.

Lucky number: IDK, 6? or 2? I’ve never really paid attention to dates or times or whatever to see if there was a number when good things happen.

What I’m Wearing: Raspberry pink tank top under blue plaid shirt and no pants, cause I’m in bed (I was wearing blue jeans earlier though).

Dream Job: Probably Librarian/Author, cause I love book and writing and organizing. I don’t got money to go for a degree in library sciences though.

Favorite Food: I love oranges and clementines, chicken & pasta Alfredo, pepperoni pizza, snack cracker sandwiches (especially peanut butter ones), and McDonald’s hashbrowns and Sasuage McGriddles.

Instruments: Lol I wish! I vaguely want to learn to play guitar or piano, but that’s not likely to happen soon. I do like singing though, even if my voice isn’t as good as it was when I did choir.

Languages: Just English, cause I am white bread (and I thought journalism would be a better class than German 1, but I sucked at it instead.)

Favorite Songs:

“Dance With The Dragon”, “Tresspasser”, and “Sky Sailing” by Dark Sarah

“False Kings”, “Dancing On Broken Glass” and “

“Believer” and “Natural” by Imagine Dragons

“Back To Life” by Hailee Steinfeld (for Bumblebee (2018))

“I Like It Loud” by Cash Cash

“Arsonist’s Lullaby”, “Moment’s Silence (Common Tongue)” and “Take Me To Church” by Hozier

“The Reckoning” by Within Temptation

“Rewrite the Stars” from The Greatest Showman (the whole album really)

“Friends on the Other Side (Disney Villains Mash-Up)” by Thomas Sanders

“Night Surgeon”, “Zydrate Anatomy” and “Let The Monster Rise” from REPO! The Genetic Opera

“Memory” from Cats

Random Fact: Yesterday, our kitten saw something on my wall and jump up twice trying to get it, hitting my light switch on the way down, and then bolted down the hall, all while I’m chilling in my bed.

Aesthetic: Eh, country-punk-princess? Bi disaster? IDK I switch it up, some days I’m dark clothes and layers and stuff, others I’m plaid shirt over tank top, and others I’m all fancy. Most days it’s just a t-shirt I don’t mind potentially staining, jeans, a hoodie and sneakers for work.

Tagging: @not-special-rlly, @crazyfanatic97, @galpalaven, @attentiondeficitstarscream, @cyraniadebergerac, @kuno-chan, @kcrra, @against-stars, @visenyastargaryen, @paintedfirelady, @rewritting-the-stars, @sadfishkid, @thenamelessdoll, @weyoun, @catsafari25 , @mommabearsdayoff and I don’t really know anyone else, so anyone who wants to do the meme, do it!

#about ro #dashboard games

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wordsturnintostories · 7 years

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8/ Remnants of Time

Chapter 7 | ... | Chapter 9

Masterlist

Word Count: 8.870 Song Choice: Vengeance - Zack Hemsey (plus three other songs, check out my playlist) Special a/n: Tags are still broken. Please reblog. I don’t want people to miss out on this chapter. Thanks, guys :)

Steve and the others stomped through the darkness, keeping away from the Autobahn and sticking to the line of shrubs next to it. Of course, they were exposed, but Augsburg was just a little over 10 kilometers away. Luckily, Sam was fine and able to walk, so they didn’t have to carry him. But while they were not talking, paranoia grew with every car that passed, every car that could’ve been CIA or Hydra. Two cars had stopped already in emergency bays, offering a ride, but the four of them had just stayed away, not given in to the temptation. Maybe people were nicer here, Steve thought for a moment, but realized how much damage he’d left behind in Berlin and decided that every offer they denied meant a little more safety for himself. Hydra could come in any size and shape and a fight would crash them right now. Apparently, he wasn’t the only one exhausted. Nat started to limp, maybe the car crash had done more damage than they’d thought. Bucky supported her, an arm wrapped around her waist, but this was no solution. And this was all that stood between the world’s safety and a resurrected Zola. They’d need one hell of a plan.

So, when the next car stopped to offer a ride, Steve wasn’t that fast in declining the opportunity. Had there been a radio note about them yet? Would the CIA put an official warrant into public media? This was a gamble and Steve had no idea about the odds. His heart was beating fast when he stepped towards the car, watching the passenger’s window open. They would’ve shot us already if they were CIA, right? But no shots were fired. A young man stuck his head out with a curious smile. Steve thanked T’Challa for his stealth uniform that was in dark blue. Nothing like the stars and stripes, fewer chances of being recognized. But as soon as they’d all climbed in, there was no chance of not being recognized anymore anyways. Nevertheless, the man didn’t mention it, just nodded and started driving after asking where they were headed. All Steve discerned in that stranger’s face was genuine concern. “Augsburg“, was the simple answer that the driver was not satisfied with. “Wohin nach Augsburg? Die Stadt ist nicht gerade klein.“ (Where to in Augsburg? The city isn’t exactly small.) Natasha, in the front seat, replied in German, and Steve let her handle this. In secret, he wondered, however, if this was the guy she’d talked to on the phone. If he and Bucky and Sam were being delivered now. If this was some kind of trick. “What are you doing, exactly?“, Bucky furrowed his brows when he’d finally found a halfway comfortable position. Steve was surprised he’d found a comfortable position at all, being squished between Sam and him. Bucky mustered him. “Saving time, saving strength. Look at Sam and Nat - they need to rest.“ Bucky grunted. “We all need to rest.“ He mustered the man, who was checking the rearview mirror, smiling kindly. Bucky wondered if the blonde driver or if maybe there was the possibility that he actually hadn’t recog- “Thank you for what you did in Stuttgart. And New York, I guess. Never been there, but well. Thank you.“ Yeah no, Bucky hadn’t thought so. The man’s words had been directed at Steve and Natasha and surprised them both equally. Stuttgart. That had been a long time ago. The beginning. Their first mission together. “Yeah, I - uh. Thanks“, Steve whispered. This was strange. The man wasn’t an annoyed politician, or a pissed off Senator, throwing complaints and whiny profanities at him, just a civilian expressing his gratefulness, but Steve wasn’t sure how to deal with that. “But, uh, why? Why do you care for New York and-“ “Many of our soldiers here in Augsburg come from New York.“ “Are you part of the stationed US forces?“, Sam asked, because the man’s English sounded American, but one could definitely hear a hunch of German thrown in there. It wasn’t like Zola’s or Zemo’s German, though. It sounded nice. “No. Does it matter?“ “Why are you thanking me then?“ The man eyed him through the rearview mirror, probably astounded by this version of Captain America sitting in his car. Not the wonderful war- hero anymore, huh? Great. Just another one to add to the long line of disappointed citizens. Bet he wants to take his thank you back. “Because I see no one else doing it.“ Steve swallowed. When had been the last time that someone noticed that he needed something, even if it was just a word? Peggy? No, Natasha, on the way to Belgium. Maybe family wasn’t that far after all. Bucky patted him on the shoulder. “Hey“, the man said, looking at the brunette, “sorry for what happened to you. Good thing you’re back.“ “Thanks. It’s appreciated.“ “Okay, we’re getting closer to the city. Are you visiting someone? Maybe some old fella in the barracks? I can drop you off there if you’d like that.“ Steve hesitated but answered after a second, throat thick and voice clouded. “A friend of mine was from here. The barracks are fine, thank you.“

A few streets were closed, which led the driver to just drop the superheroes off in the center of the city. They thanked him and stood in the darkness, unsure whether to just head into one direction or maybe try to figure out a strategy first. Who knew if Hydra was awaiting them, who knew how many mercenaries they had positioned throughout the city. Of course, they had been supplied with directions, but to be honest, even with the yellow street lights, all streets pretty much looked the same. Asking pedestrians wasn’t really an option - no one was out at all, thanks to the rain and the storminess of this night. Nat looked pretty grateful for the jacket she’d grabbed in Cologne and Steve pulled the hood of his, no, Clint’s hoodie, up to cover his ears. It was easier to listen to the others with some protection from the wind. Bucky stood stiffly in his tactical gear, looking all Winter Soldier with his hair hanging down in wet strands. Sam, next to him, wore a jacket, but he just looked tired and completely done. At least his arm had stopped bleeding. Steve cursed. He shouldn’t have taken Sam on the mission, should’ve left him in Wakanda. As the leader, he was supposed to be responsible for them and now? He had no idea and no plan and every single one of them felt miserable. Except for Nat, maybe, who looked like she was intrigued by their upcoming invasion of military property during heavy rainfall. Steve furrowed his brows. Or was it something else she had in mind? There was no chance of reading her. At least nothing had happened in the car. They decided to start marching towards the big church placed on the wide plaza. This was a tourist attraction, so maybe they’d find a city map there.

Just then, something moved in the corner of Steve’s eye. He looked back, seeing only an empty street, but Bucky pointed to a roof. Someone was running up there and he followed right away. “Come on! We gotta catch this one“, he shouted and ran down a street. “Hold on! What if it’s a trap?“, Sam answered while ignoring the pain shooting through his limbs. “Of course it’s a trap. The question is who we’ll find. That’s why you brought your gun.“ “Oh great. I remember now why I hated this guy.“ They ran, through three streets and four lanes until even Steve was breathing heavier than usual and Bucky, who had climbed up to pursue that Hydra agent, came back, signaling that he’d lost the guy.

Looking a little hazy through the thick rain, another remnant of the past appeared in front of Steve, Bucky, Natasha and Sam. The former US army barracks. Several windows showed light, but those were the minority. Most people were asleep. Good. If Natasha was right about this building, that the US Forces had been released after decades of service and now, the old barracks built of red bricks were mostly inhabited by young civilians accepting the process of gentrification Augsburg went through. Some of the bigger barracks also provided office spaces to local businesses, but this was not an industrial area, therefore Steve hoped that his friends and he would stay unnoticed. However, Hydra was here, a fact proved by the lookout’s placed on the roofs in this area, so chances of a silent battle were low.

They walked closer to their destination, a house at the side of the street. A brewery inhabited the lower part of the building, but its gates were closed and several delivery vans parked in the street, blocking some of the sight on the main entrance. It was a strategic precaution, no question, it would provide Hydra’s agents with cover from gunfire and options for a surprise attack as soon as unwelcome visitors entered the street. But so far, everything was quiet. Steve’s eyes wandered around, analyzing the environment for their mission. Then, he looked at his friends - all of them exhausted but clenching their teeth bravely. He wished he didn’t have to take them through this, heck, he didn’t want to be here either, but they were running out of options and time. To find Zola, they’d have to invade Hydra and squeeze them for information. If they found Zola’s brain here, even better. Bucky seemed nervous, his eyes were switching back and forth constantly. In this light, Steve couldn’t say if he saw sweat on his friend’s features, or if that was just leftover rain. Bucky leaned against a wall, arm above his head. Was he alright? Steve was sure he would be. If not, well, they could use a post outside of the building who could warn them if Hydra called for backup.

“You all know what we’re here for. Dr. Vreis mentioned Hydra was gonna resurrect Zola. I have no idea how that works, but we should expect anything. If you see him, kill him.“ Steve noticed the look Bucky sent towards him, one with raised eyebrows, but the blonde continued. “Make sure not a single Hydra worm leaves this building. Kill them, if you have to. Don’t think about it. If they manage to get backup, we’re not gonna witness dawn.“ Sure, killing was not his style, but in this weak condition, they couldn’t afford an unnoticed person stabbing their backs. Also, this was Hydra. These people had chosen to be here, to destroy and to kill. They were Hydra cannon fodder and no mercy could save them. It hadn’t been any different in the past when the fighters surrounding Steve and Bucky were praised as the Howling Commandos. Natasha nodded. “Don’t think that’s gonna be an issue. Still have some scars from New Jersey that scream for payback. How do we get in?“ That was gonna be hard. Either they could - Steve’s head whipped around. He mentioned for everyone to get into the shadows. He’d heard something. The blonde was hiding behind a van right now, keeping eye contact with Bucky across the street. Bucky pointed down and forward. Steve understood, kneeled down and checked out what moved behind the car. It was dark and with normal eyes, he wouldn’t have seen much at all. But thanks to Erskine, he spotted three pairs of feet. Quickly, he supplied Bucky with the number of opponents, then listened into the darkness.

All he heard was water hitting the ground in drops. It was running down his body, too, made him uncomfortable and added risk to the prospect of a fight. He hoped he wouldn’t slip too much. A mercenary walked past the van, his eyes suddenly turning towards Bucky. That moment, Steve grabbed the man, pulled him back and with a deep breath, pushed him into the ground. Blood mixed with rainwater and ran down the asphalt in thin streams. Bucky clenched his teeth on the other side, but Steve couldn’t figure out what was happening. The sound had alarmed the other Hydra guards and suddenly, shouts filled the air and one could hear steps everywhere.

After a few seconds, Steve was involved in close combat, just like all his friends. From the corner of his eye, he made sure no one was alone or outnumbered. His vigilant eyes didn’t notice the dark figure on the roof of the brewery, however. It stood unmoving, one with the night’s black mantle, eyes carefully studying the four intruders. When Natasha jumped behind an armed agent, she hit the sidewalk’s edge and twisted her ankle. She slipped and went behind a few boxes, out of Steve’s sight. He sent a look to Sam, who had his wings on. He constantly shielded himself from the bullets and handed out a beating with the metal appendages. The edge of those, matched with precision and some force, could definitely knock a guy out. Bucky was fighting near the opposite wall. He was surrounded by mercs, but he held one on the collar. Another one came from the side, but Bucky saw him. With his strong left first, he punched him into the dark. The other was still hanging helplessly and got thrown far away. The Hydra goon crashed into the gate of the brewery and Steve could see a dent along with a crack. Steve himself found himself under attack. He paid for the few seconds he observed the others. One of the men swung around a knife, but Steve kicked his legs away. The man struck himself. Another tried to shoot him, but Steve moved fast. The agent with the gun hit a comrade, leaving Steve with less work. The blonde did a fast number of steps before knocking out the last two with a mean kick. The field was clearing. He rushed to Natasha, still on her back, almost killing Steve with her guns. Despite her injury, she was surrounded by bodies, more than one of them strangled. Blood was all over her figure and her straight hair looked straggly.

“She’s here“, Nat whispered and Steve realized only then that he had no idea what Bucky was doing. Had she gotten to him again, finishing what she couldn’t in Wakanda? As soon as his eyes landed on the metal arm, he was relieved. But the brunet didn’t look so good. Bucky’s eyes were red and he was breathing hard. Sam was looking at him, too, gun still in his hand. Steve could feel his heart beating fast. “Buck? You alright?“ Bucky didn’t look up. Worry started to gnaw on Steve’s mind. What if this was too much? Zola was here, or at least, that’s what they assumed. The same Zola who had experimented on Bucky. Sam’s words echoed in his mind, He’ll need therapeutic sessions. A lot of them. Suddenly, the wind turned and a strange smell wafted through the air. Steve was on alert, expecting some serious poison. Hydra would do anything, no matter how cruel. Nat was back on her legs, Sam helped her, putting a stabilizing tape around her ankle. The two of them didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary. But Steve did. It was a faint scent, but it was there. Chemical and becoming more pungent with every second, but whatever it was, Steve knew it couldn’t affect him or his best friend, at least not physically. Thanks to the Serum, they were immune to biochemicals. Bucky, however, seemed to move now, to grow even more agitated. He was scratching his wrist, over and over and his eyes widened. Steve couldn’t see any blue in the brunette’s eyes; his pupils were blown. Oh crap. Was Hydra brewing up anything? What if it affected Bucky psychologically?

Steve walked over to his friend, gently placing his hand on his shoulder. Bucky grabbed it immediately with his metal hand. He twisted it, applying pressure which pulled Steve closer and had him stumble to his knees. Bucky towered over him, grimly watching the blond’s shock. After a second, he released Steve’s hand, eyes widening when he escaped the haze of his mind. When he spoke, his voice sounded foreign. It was rougher than ever and had a lilt that Steve had never heard before. “Give me orders. I can’t - just to be on the safe side.“ Just so I won’t kill you. Shivers claimed Steve’s skin, suddenly he felt the lingering doom that the presence of Hydra implied. He needed to protect his friends, or they’d all go down, probably even by the hand of the brunet. Bucky was in no way stable, he shouldn’t be here at all; Steve had actually done Hydra a favor by bringing him right to their doorstep. “Protect us, kill Hydra.“ Guilt crept over the blond like a shadow. If something happened, if people died, it would all be his fault. Maybe that had been what Zola meant in New Jersey, Steve dying had been a metaphor. To save Bucky meant losing the world. He’d be running forever, he would have lost everything else. The man who sacrificed everything. Steve’s fists balled, but he lifted his eyes now, looking at his friend. He couldn’t just abandon him. Not even if it cost everything else. Bucky was all he had. “This was just distraction. We’ll go in. If Zola’s really in here, we can end Hydra today. Cut the brain off and they can grow all the heads they want; it will still be over. That’s a chance we can’t ignore. We’ll need to split up, though, to be faster.“ His gaze fell onto Natasha, who leaned against a wall, staring into the darkness they were about to enter. Another person who probably shouldn’t be here. I have them. I will deliver. Maybe this was it, who knew? Would she really make deals with Hydra? No. But was she really free of Hydra’s influence? Or was she just pretending? Steve knew she’d gone through brainwashing as well. He’d definitely keep an eye on her. That would mean leaving Bucky with Sam. For a moment, Steve tried to count all the reasons why he couldn’t do that. Because Sam was ready to hurt Bucky. But the latter was way too slow. Too weak to hold Bucky down. But then, Steve realized that he himself wouldn’t be able to do these things at all. Sam had told him that. You’re reckless when it comes to Bucky. I can’t have you dying on me again.

The decision on how to split up was taken out of Steve’s hands when another house’s door opened and new agents approached with their guns set on their group. Natasha jumped into the fight and Steve right after her. Together, they sent a metal trash container rolling into the enemy. In the meantime, Sam noticed Bucky was rushing over to the big brewery gate, climbing over it swiftly. He quickly set his mind on following the brunette into the hellhole that was supposed to be a Hydra facility.

Sam had seen the silent plea Steve’s eyes had transmitted to him when he started to run after Natasha. Take care of him. And Sam would, he promised to himself. He clambered up the gate of the brewery, but his body was tired. It was pleading for a pause. His arm was burning and fresh blood ripped open the half healed cut from hours ago. Sam could feel nausea pooling inside of him again. Visibly struggling, he realized how physically superior Steve and Bucky were to him. If Hydra messed with Barnes again, turning him into a brainwashed killer, Sam would pay with his life trying to stop him. Sam cursed at that prospect. He wasn’t ready to die, not here, not by Hydra. He’d promised Clint to watch his “grand Disney Movie Collection“ first thing when they’d be free to go home. But they’d have to get through this first. Sam wondered if the scent Steve had smelled really was something to worry about. He didn’t smell anything. Did Bucky? Was it a weapon Hydra aimed at him on purpose? Sam followed the brunet around, he’d taken a secure path. Bucky was peeking around a corner and now turned towards Sam with a scowl. “What do you think you’re doing here, birdbrain?“ “Having your back, Mr. I’m-fine-on-my-own.“ Bucky snorted, but let him. Jerk. Sam wondered if this was what Barnes had been like before the war. Sassy. Annoying. Fun, even. The two men were quiet and slipped through a door that led them into a brewery. Big containers stood across the warehouse-like hall, storing beer. Hiding places, advantage positions. Luckily for them, the hall seemed empty and they could move around in there. On the other end, the gate to the outside was visible; the two of them could’ve gone in through there as well. A second escape route. Sam’s thoughts were still swirling around, he wasn’t sure what to expect from inside the building, but he noticed how agitated Bucky seemed to be, constantly looking at his wrist as if he was missing something there. His blown pupils and the way his metal fingers curled and uncurled weren’t reassuring. Sam had a suspicion. “What was Steve talking about? You smell it too, don’t you?“ There was a moment of silence before Bucky stopped walking, right in front of a door that had a small glass insert to see through. Suddenly, the brunette pulled Sam down, on high alert, and the Falcon could feel his heart pounding. They sat crouched against a wall, waiting for inside patrols to pass by the door. “Benzodiazepine.“ “You’re not serious. Why would they-?“ Bucky didn’t answer that and Sam, suddenly overwhelmed by the feeling that he’d never really left his counseling office, realized that these people he was surrounded with all needed more than just a friend - their lives were the biggest messes he’d ever seen and still, they managed to keep their heads above the roaring waves. But did they really?

Slowly, his eyes focused on Barnes, who only returned an icy glance. His body was tense, seemed ready for an outburst of energy, but the assassin moved with extreme control, like he was slipping into a succession of movements and settings his body was trained for. They still sat against the stone wall. Sam’s mind exploded with fear when the metal arm pulled a gun out. To his surprise, it was handed to him. “Don’t need it“, Bucky rasped, but Sam didn’t know if he could believe that. If his suspicions were right, he’d stand abandoned in that facility in a few minutes. Barnes’ wrist was red from all the scratching, proving the credibility of the pararescue’s theory. The Soldier’s leg twitched, for a second and very rapidly, he stood up, opening the door for them both to descend the stairs. Sam understood the signs, a suspicion formed, based on blood analysis results and old Russian files in Romanoff’s shaky hands. Barnes was on withdrawal. Benzodiazepine was highly addictive, he’d seen it with some of his army buddies, even Riley had struggled with it when officials had decided that extreme measures had to be taken. Sam was pretty sure Hydra didn’t care for the recommended three-month limitation on the drug. It was odorless, but if Hydra had managed to condition Bucky to scents... So, he’d have to expect anything. Drug addicts did crazy things. Oh well, this was gonna be fun. Sam took the stairs and reached the hallway behind the door. It was long, wide enough for the two men to walk beside each other, and lit by tubes emitting a cold, blueish-white light. Sam was cold. Bucky started walking, hesitantly and with worry etched to his forehead, and looked at the different cards that stuck to the doors as information plates. Not a word was spoken and the whole place felt eerie. Sam hated this kind of silence, he’d actually prefer the rumbling of the brewery hall from before, even if it meant not hearing every footstep. Now, he was worried about who would hear his footsteps. Then, Bucky just chose one door on the right and walked in, not caring much about Sam. Was this still Barnes? Or the Winter Soldier already? Or even worse, something in between?

Sam followed him into the room that stood empty. Empty in terms of Hydra personnel. While the left side wall held several cabinets and even a sink, the right side was occupied by desks and a few monitors above them. A screensaver ran through there and Sam decided to take a look at the loads of papers and files hoarded on the wooden desks. Maybe they’d actually find some useful information in here. Sam did an inner fist bump at how messy Hydra was in here, how they’d just left everything on the tables, even confidential materials. How arrogant, he thought. They didn’t even think anyone would ever get in here. “They should’ve invested in a folder system, don’t you think?“, Sam turned towards Bucky, who was still going through the cabinets. Suddenly, Sam froze. What was he doing!? “Barnes…“, Sam said, a warning, hopefully, or a stop sign. The Soldier stood before a safe, typing in a code. The safe opened. The Asset pulled out a syringe full of liquid. The little cap was in between his teeth and his metal hand pulled his sleeve up. Oh, come on! You gotta be kidding me. This is bullshit. “Barnes, what is in that syringe?“ The brunet looked up, slowly, and completely calm. No signs of aggression, unlike Sam knew from addicts mentally preparing to fight for their drug. But this wasn’t just an addict, this was one who knew he’d win this fight. Sam would have to be extremely smart about this. “A benzodiazepine enhancement.“ Shit. Sam had expected it and sighed deeply. He was too tired to start an inner rant for being so stupid, not noticing the signs earlier, for all this crap he could’ve stopped. He mustered Barnes, who stood straight in this silence like it was his natural habitat. He knew why the assassin was so calm about it; because Sam didn’t pose a serious threat to him. He stood no chance against the man who could tap into the raw power the Winter Soldier possessed at any moment. The man who looked like he was in pain. “Put it away. I didn’t sign up for this shit. I thought we were done doing what Hydra wants.“ “I need it, Sam. My brain is exploding without it.“ Sam considered all the steps he usually used with drug addicts. None of them would work. Not with stupid Bucky Barnes. Not with even-more-stupid Steven Rogers, whose only drug was stupid Bucky Barnes. Sam groaned. Suddenly, a thought shot through his mind. “You knew this stuff was here, prepped for you, didn’t you!? And you told us to come here instead of following the trail we had, just so you could have your damn shot!“ “You didn’t have a trail.“ While Sam was running hot with his words, Barnes still leaned against the cabinets, calm and peaceful, which fueled the rage in Sam even more. Bucky was still Hydra’s puppet. And he couldn’t even see it. “We could’ve worked one out! But instead, you told us Zola was here. We - Steve trusted you!“ “Maybe you should go. Find Zola, kill him, you heard Steve. I didn’t lie about this stuff, Hydra is stationed here and judging by how big their unit is, I’m sure you’ll find direct ties to Zola at least. Might even come up with a… meet and greet.“ “I’m not going anywhere. Not as long as I can prevent you from getting high off that potion.“ “Face it, Sam, you can’t. I’m no hero, no matter how much you’d hope for…“ “No, you aren’t.“ Sam’s fingers had touched his gun. He’d do it. One, two, three. One shot. Sam’s ears were ringing. The repel’s familiar aching crawled through his arm. Sam looked up. Barnes still stood, a gun casing rolled over the floor. The metal hand had shielded the bullet off. The face behind the hand looked hard like stone. And that was when it started, the real fight, Sam against the Winter Soldier. The gun shot had only been the beginning, a risk, and a loss.

Now, the Asset broke the surface, reappeared, right in front of Sam, right around his throat. He could feel the brunet vibrating with strength. His feet moved faster than Sam’s, just like his fists. Sam was bleeding, his hip crashed into a desk’s edge. Dammit. He couldn’t breathe for a second, then it felt like he was on fire. The Winter Soldier had his throat. Sam felt his calm breath against his face. He pressed his eyes shut. And got punished in an instant. Hard shove against a door. Sam gasped for air, it hurt, his back, his head, everything. The wings on his back were getting heavier. But the Winter Soldier was merciless. Shook him. Another shove, same door. He’d die. Sam knew it. No one really survived the Winter Soldier. Only Steve would. A deep punch into his stomach. Sam’s eyes were watering. The Soldier gazed at him harshly, ice in his gaze. He was a predator playing with his kill. His eyes turned glossy and Sam couldn’t tell what that meant. A third shove, more powerful and Sam screamed. The door behind him flew open, he fell backwards, needed air, but gained two steps of distance to the metal arm. Sam huffed, couldn’t escape, but he’d- The Asset before him grabbed his own ears, panic in his eyes, sending looks all through the room. It took only seconds until the brunette howled, pain evident. What the hell-? “Stop! Stop! Stop it!“ A yelp came from his throat. Sam sat up, could find air again, he sent the flashing lights before his eyes away. His vision was clearing. But his hearing? Over and over, a strangled mewl sounded from Bucky’s throat, he was in pain. His body was twisting and turning. Not the Winter Soldier. “Barnes, are you - tell me what’s happening!“ Protect us, Steve had told Bucky. Well, that plan had failed. More like Protect Bucky. “Are you alright?“ “It’s- I- ugh, I can’t… think, something is buzzing in my head.“ Buzzing? Like, flies, bees, nasty little insects? Or like electricity? Buzzing can’t be good. “Is it your arm, does it - can it give you electric impulses or something? Can they steer you remotely?“ “What is wrong with you, birdbrain!? I’m not a… a freakin’ robot!“ Sam huffed. “What’s wrong, my ass. I’m no robot either; I’m dangerously exhausted, on what feels like the edge of starving and…“ Bucky whimpered. “S-ssam…make it go away! I can’t-“ Sam didn’t understand, but the assassin’s distress seemed to get worse. Was he in pain? The assassin was writhing on the ground. The metal arm scratched over the cement floor and Sam could’ve killed Bucky for that sound alone. Suddenly, Bucky’s hands smeared blood over his face. He was bleeding! Where did that blood com-? Bucky screamed. “Barnes! Make what go away?“ “The…noise! S’ so shrill!“ Bucky’s voice faded and suddenly, he just dropped. Until now, Sam hadn’t dared to come closer to the man, but he rushed to his side now. Unconscious. Blood ran over Barnes’ neck. It came from his ears. But he had a pulse, that was good. Just unconscious. Sam’s heart was pounding from all the shock, even from the fight. Blood rushed through his head, he felt dizzy for a second. Noise? Sam hadn’t heard a peep. This was a new problem and it felt like a slap in the face. Because Sam had no idea what to do. Who had knocked Barnes out? Without even touching him? Was there even anything he could do for him right now? Sam looked back to the room. Nothing. It was empty. Dark. Maybe he should check out the room again. Search the desks for intel. And hide that stupid syringe. At least Bucky hadn’t injected it yet. Who knew what Hydra had brewed together? They wanted the Winter Soldier back, that was for sure.

Sam just wanted to walk towards that door when it was closed by the other side. A second later, the lights were switched on - electricity buzzed through the air. Sam quickly jumped around. “Good evening, Mr. Wilson“, a male voice stated from further in the room. German accent, it sounded terribly stereotypical. Like in old war movies. Zola? A bigger table stood there, with a screen showing a face. “What an honor to finally meet you in person.“ Zola. Sam stepped a little closer, holding onto something. The weight of his wings almost pulled him down. His legs felt shaky. But now, he could see the old fashioned computers standing in the back. “What did you do to him!? He’s bleeding!“ “Sergeant Barnes will be fine soon. Yet you won’t be here to witness that. But I ought to thank you for taking so much care of my masterpiece.“ “You won’t take him back. I won’t let you.“ “Ah. I see you haven’t changed. But you also could not prevent Riley’s death, now could you?“ Sam couldn’t move. Riley? No one knew about Riley. People didn’t remember the fallen soldiers. Not Riley. Negligence and disregard of the fallen. The burden every veteran carried. “Although you had promised to ever stand beside him. Now, you are afraid it will all happen again. Steven Rogers will die, Mr. Wilson.“ “Maybe. But you won’t come alive ever again.“ Sam bit his teeth. The pain was still shooting through his muscles, now more than before with the adrenaline fading. He just wanted to sit down. “Oh, but you can’t hold me down. We’re already in the final stage, Mr. Wilson. At last, the museums will provide the real cornerstone of history. Hydra will find new ways, we always have. Riley was just a tiny part of the big puzzle, he died-“ “Stop talking about him like that! You don’t know anything about his death!“ “Ah, Mr. Wilson. Do you?“ Sam almost staggered backwards at the accusation. The words just kept repeating in his head. Do you? Don’t listen to him. I knew Riley. He was one of the good guys and definitely not Hydra. He died a few meters away from me. There was nothing I could do to save him.

A series of images showed up on the screen, the day their rescue squadron had pulled up the tents to hide in the desert of Afghanistan for a week. A special commando to apprehend Khalid Khandil, hiding somewhere with his pockets full of RPGs. The photo had been taken from closer than Sam liked. Who-? A photo of him and Riley cleaning their wings, Sam remembered that. The day they’d exchanged their dog tags. More photos, too close. A mole!? “Your superior, Col. Walker insisted on keeping confidential reports from us, quite invaluable intelligence. We could not let him reach Khandil. He needed a warning, to remember where his loyalties lied. Immediate action was required. He favored Riley. We could not let him set foot on the ground again.“ “You’re full of bullshit. He was killed in action. I saw him crash, saw him fall and watched him wind up dead. Had he not been dead at impact, the fall would’ve snapped his neck.“ “Yet you never noticed the delicate bullet wound between his ribs. A shot of ultimate precision, only possible with a skill mastered over years, more likely decades. It’s unique. Look into the file.“ Sam gasped when a photo appeared on the second side of the file that was on the desk before him, grainy and not sharp at all, but clearly showing a person with a long rifle hiding. A file about Riley. With all his data. “Bullshit. My heat signals would’ve…” “Do they now?“ Zola’s voice echoed through the room.

At first, Sam wasn’t sure that was supposed to mean. His heat monitors worked fine…? Then he realized. Bucky. He turned around so fast he almost fell. But Bucky was still passed out. Someone was bent over him, however, working on the metal arm’s plates. Sam’s eyes widened, he grabbed his gun. Ice-cold shock. It was gone. The knife! He grabbed air. Gone too. What the-? He was unarmed. Harmless. Shit. What do I do? The person stood up, eyes flicking towards Sam. He realized then how much this one looked like Bucky himself. The Remnant. Steve had mentioned it. Crap. As soon as he began to move, she moved, fast, something shiny moving with her. It flew, then, digging right into Sam’s shoulder. A knife. His own knife. Something banged against a door, but Sam couldn’t think. His brain was clouded with all the pain. He couldn’t use the wings. It would tear him apart.

The Remnant grabbed Bucky under the arms, just dragging him with her. No! Sam swore to himself he wouldn’t let her take him. They would never get the Winter Soldier again. Sam staggered over to them, as fast as he could. He winced with every step, could feel the sweat running over his body, joined by burning blood. He’d stop the Remnant. Protect Bucky. The least he could do. More pounding came from the door. Shit. If more Hydra guys get in here… I need to bring him to safety. But the door was still closed. That meant she wouldn’t get out either, right? Sam looked around. He grabbed a fire extinguisher with his good left arm. Maybe he could- throw it? No chance. His arm protested immediately. Sam rolled it, with more force than he could sacrifice. He heard something crack, but it was the door. The Remnant stopped, ignoring the makeshift weapon. Suddenly, she reached down, where something glinted. The syringe! She emptied it into Bucky’s veins and threw it away. Just then, the door gave in with a mighty burst. With a powerful jump, she reached into the ceiling and pulled herself up, disappearing through a skylight. Sam gasped, he’d - Steve and Nat ran in, Sam just pointed at the ceiling and his vision went dark. Soft arms caught him before he could crash into the floor.

Steve had followed Natasha and together, they’d massacred the hordes of Hydra getting in their way. After the fifth room, finally, they’d found an official guy, who’d started shaking when Steve had grabbed his collar and pulled him into the hallway, the graveyard of his commando. The Black Widow had taken over then, purring torture of the mind into his ear, very sweetly, while tying him to a chair. Steve held it, upside down, they simply didn’t have the time for half-assed threats this time. Natasha promised the super soldier would let the chair fall, but the man behaved. It took a minute until his head turned red and heavy and another until he was close to suffocating, but until then, they had every piece of information they needed. Zola was in Munich, there wasn’t much intel on that, but they’d been instructed to build a trap for the Winter Soldier and even Mr. Wilson. The grand plan was to basically kill Steve Rogers at sight. Natasha hit Steve’s arm when the man started coughing and the chair fell. A penetrating crack sounded at the impact; the wooden chair remained completely intact. Steve sent the Russian a dirty look, she was enjoying this too much. They ran after that, following the noise and arriving just in time to rush after the Remnant.

Steve’s shoulders were almost too wide to fit through the narrow skylight. He caught the foot that kicked at him and pulled the Remnant towards him. She flew, wasn’t much heavier than Nat, but rolled forwards just to stem herself up on her hands and kick Steve in the ribs. He held on - even grabbed one of her knives while her fingers wandered over to his neck. He slashed her, once, twice. By now, he was working so fast, there was nothing else he saw, only her, the moves, the eyes. He cut her sleeve, right at the shoulder. The moon came through, sending a light upon the exposed skin. Steve gasped, he was thrown off. There was a mark on her shoulder, dark, burned flesh. An eagle, the eagle. The SSR insignia. Letters underneath. 1946, M.P. Carter. The Remnant angled her foot to kick his jaw and Steve blinked. She was strong and agile. Able to crack his bones. Now, she was running, over the roofs, Nat right after her. Rebecca would have to stop soon, the roof was endin- nevermind, she jumped right into the barrack apartments. “Nat! Stay behind!“, Steve yelled. It was a very quick decision, but the woman didn’t send him a kind look. She shook her head and prepared to jump after the assassin. “Stay behind!“, Steve repeated, more need in his voice now. He was the leader, he made the decisions and right now, he needed her with Sam and Bucky. “And what are you gonna do?“, she questioned. “Rollin’ over there, breaking your bones and hoping for Bucky 2.0 to listen to you? There’s no way you’re going alone.“ With that, she turned around, determined and ready to push herself to her limits. Steve wondered whether this was part of her mysterious backstory deal. To be everywhere and relay intelligence back to whoever paid her. Steve clenched his fist. This was not the time for trust issues. But what if he sent her back and she’d deliver Bucky? To Hydra? What if he took her with him and that was exactly when Hydra was gonna take him? Because there was no one to look after him right now. Steve hated this. But he decided to stick with his plan. He grabbed her arm. “I mean it. Go back, take care of Sam and Bucky. You wouldn’t dare leave them without protection.“ Natasha gave him a challenging look, one of those expressions Steve couldn’t read. Her face resembled a stone wall and her right eyebrow stood high above her eye. Steve’s heart pounded loudly and for a moment, he didn’t care about the Remnant getting away. More importantly, he needed to know if he could trust the Russian spy in front of him. “Are you sure that’s the right choice, Steve?“ “Sometimes, you gotta make a right choice, not the right one.“ “Fine, Rogers. Hurry up.“ Steve nodded and took his chances by entering the building before him through the same window Rebecca had taken before him.

Steve carefully rolled to the side and came up to his feet. The Room around him was mockingly quiet, only the glass shards beneath his feet crunched a little. This time, unlike a few days ago, back in Cologne, where he just hadn’t known better, Steve had left all his weapons with the others. Rebecca wouldn’t be able to steal them this way. And when she’d try, Steve would turn it around and grab hers. He was prepared.

After a few seconds, however, Steve questioned himself for still standing in the room. She was probably gone, long gone even, if her mission was to kill Natasha. The super soldier was sure that if he had been a target, he’d be fighting for his life already. He remembered how Buck had explained how commands had to be obeyed. and how. He’d stated that deviations from the mission's objectives weren’t an option if Hydra had fiddled with your mind. Their assets were programmed that way, it was just how they functioned. So Steve dared to use the little flashlight on his wrist. The living room he stood in was silent and looked untouched. On the opposite side, he made out a door that probably led to another room, hopefully with unharmed and sleeping people. Next to it was another door with a little peephole. The door to the hallway. Steve tiptoed towards it. Locked from the inside. A new wave of adrenaline went through his tired body. She was still here. The blonde sent a rushed ray of light through the room, checking for movement, for any concerning detail he could’ve overseen before. Nothing. Suddenly, something caught his attention. A pair of cat eyes glowed back at him in the corner of his eye. When a faint noise rose from one of the other rooms, Steve averted his eyes for a second. When he turned back, the cat was gone.

Air shifted around him. All of the sudden, something crashed into Steve. He huffed, losing all the air in his lungs. The force sent him backwards, right into a wall and against a light switch. The flashing brightness made his attacker stumble. He took advantage of it. Steve seized Rebecca by the arm. He applied more force than he thought necessary and pushed the limb behind her back. With another movement, she was sandwiched between his body and the wall. The young woman hissed at the impact. Steve knew she wasn��t hurt. She wore a damn tac suit. But he got her irritated. Was that good or bad? “Rebecca! Snap out of it!“, Steve yelled. “I know you don’t remember, but just listen, okay? Your brother is here, Bucky, and we need you to just hold still and look at him, that’s all.“ She struggled and it took the super soldier a lot of self-restraint to not just punch her out of consciousness. Just to make sure she couldn’t do any more harm in the name of Hydra. “Rebecca. Your name. Do you recognize it?“ She still tried to squirm out of his grasp, but Steve held her tight. He wasn’t sure how long he’d be able to hold her like this, though. He felt her strength, every muscle of her body was tense and full of power. He needed to be fast. Sending a quick prayer to the heavens, he continued trying to pull her back by calling to her memories. “Rebecca Barnes. Bucky is your brother. Do you remember your little sist…“ He didn’t get any further. She headbutted him, hard. Steve’s nose cracked and he felt blood on his rough lips. Next, an elbow crashed into his exposed throat and breathing turned into a real struggle. He needed his hands to protect himself, he couldn’t hold her. “Stop it, just focus!“ A glass vase hit his chest and shattered. A burning sensation almost overwhelmed him, with stinging cuts starting little fires on his skin. Steve couldn’t contain a rough groan. She kicked him, but the soldier held his fists up. He was fast enough to defend himself. The assassin twisted his wrist. The flashlight went straight into his eyes now. Steve struggled, tried to move his arm away. Suddenly, she let him have his way. He crashed his arm against the wall. It broke the flashlight. Great. Steve heard a click. She’d switched the light back off. He was blind in the darkness, unable to see anything thanks to the bright flares of light in his vision. It left him with his other senses. Steve hated it.

He smelled only sweat and blood and it was most likely his own. While he tried to stagger somewhere else, a thought crossed his mind. Maybe he could hide. It was dark, after all. So he decided to go into a crouch and find some sofa to take cover behind. Steve really hoped to escape Rebecca’s eyes. Rebecca. Still in her in a tac suit, brainwashed by Hydra, that was a concept Steve still couldn't grasp. Bucky, yes, he’d been a soldier, but her? Why her? Sweet Rebecca who loved to talk about having kids one day. Who read the newspapers to Grandma Barnes every morning. Who’d bake the best cranberry muffins he knew. Whose trade mark stance was with a baby cradled in her arms and a lullaby on her lips, unendingly gentle. Was trying to kill him. Steve wasn’t sure where he was right now, but at least his eyes had recovered from that blinding reverb of light. Still, he couldn’t hear anything. Not even a breath. Had she taken off? Had she considered him slow enough to not follow? The blonde’s fingers touched something soft. The couch. A hiding pla- Suddenly, something dug into his throat. Right above the Adam’s apple. Steve gasped for air. His fingers shot up. It proved impossible to free his throat. A tight rope restricted it. Rope? It was a cable to press all his oxygen off. A cable, now an instrument of fate. Able to take his life. Rebecca stood behind the super soldier and dug her knee into his back, forcing him to arch his back and expose his throat even more. Steve knelt, grasping for any wisp of air he could reach. Whines escaped him. His body started to quiver. Rebecca was strong. Even when he tried to punch her, she just tightened to cable around his neck, kneed him in the back, eliciting groan after groan from the tall man. His eyes watered. He wondered how strong she really was, if she could take Bucky. But he wouldn’t come. Not to the rescue, not to watch. Steve just hoped the others would run. Would they be fine without him? Hopefully, Nat would take care of them.

Steve couldn’t free himself from Rebecca’s merciless grasp. But it would be over in a few minutes, maybe only seconds. She wouldn’t give way to his pleading taps on her arm, a last attempt of communication. When his vision started to blur around the edges, his mind half-noticed her fingers tapping against his neck in an arrhythmic pattern, almost like a telegrapher’s tapping. He wasn’t sure if it was real. For a moment, Steve thought he got a little mouthful of air again. That’s when he noticed the soft material crumpled up in his cramping fists wasn’t the sofa. It was a curtain. Okay. Irrelevant now. Steve felt the energy leave his body like steam over boiling water. Images started to appear in front of his inner eye. His Ma. Bucky. New York. Cabbage soup. Asthma attacks. The war. Bucky in Azzano, on the lab table. Steve pulling him out of that hellhole. Whether it was filled with tragic purpose or just a physical reaction to his memories Steve couldn’t tell. He thought he’d kneed there for an eternity, the cable around his neck a promise. The woman behind him a witness to Hydra’s cruelty. Steve had stopped struggling long ago. But then, it happened. Steve’s arm jerked forward at the memory of rescuing Bucky. When the image hit him again, he felt the strain of his best friend’s body in his arms. How he pulled him. The super soldier’s hearing was almost gone, but he heard a loud clattering. All the pressure was released from his neck. Was he dead? Something hit his head. He fell. Collapsed. Layers of soft curtains buried him. The world was dull and dark, but Steve was on the ground, gasping for air like a fish out of water. Like an asthmatic. That was exactly how it felt. Steve knew. How no matter how much you air you tried swallow, you could never fill your lungs with it. Like the cable was still there. Something happened behind him. Steve couldn’t see. Couldn’t turn around. He’d never felt this helpless. His sense of smell and taste returned. Blood was everywhere in his mouth. His tongue felt like a dead, flabby thing. Steve wanted to vomit, but he couldn’t. His hands went up, shaky like a grandfather’s, ridiculously slow in taking the loose cable off his shoulders completely.

Shots screamed through the air and Steve thought his ears were gonna burst. Would he go deaf? Disillusioned, maybe? He coughed blood. All he could do was wait. It took another eternity until hands touched Steve’s face. He must’ve faded in and out of consciousness because he was sweating and felt pain he hadn’t before. He flinched back, feeling how his body rebelled against him. The hands followed him. When Steve managed to open his crusty eyes, Natasha looked at him, desperately checking for his pulse. He tried to ask her where Rebecca went, if the Russian had gotten her, how the others were, but all he managed to produce was a pathetic croak. His teammate shushed him immediately, visibly relieved that he was alive and getting back to himself. “You’ll be fine. I got you, sweetstuff. Don’t move. I’ll be right back.“ And with that, Steve took in another round of darkness. He didn’t notice when the redheaded spy returned together with a stocky Hydra operative to carry the super soldier out of the room that had become his very own trap.

Masterlist

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offbeatmusicuk · 4 years

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Albums Of 2019

Here we go again. Another pretty strong year. Full disclosure I haven’t had as much time to listen to these albums this year as usual so my mind may be changed (possibly immediately) but here’s my list as it stands at the mo.

Before that though... an honourable mention of an album which I decided wasn’t eligible for the list because technically it’s a soundtrack album, even though it sounds like a new album from the band, and a strong addition to their discography....

Biffy Clyro “Balance, Not Symmetry”

And now the bonus 30 albums that didn’t quite make the top 50 but couldn’t go unmentioned.

Lindsay Schoolcraft / Sigrid / Talla 2XLC / Ladytron / The Anix / While She Sleeps / Calva Louise / HANA / Ivy Crown / Lacuna Coil / Hante. / Puppy / Stanton Warriors / Moonlight Haze / Perfect Son

Idiot Pilot / Port Noir / Above & Beyond / Eat Your Heart Out / Potty Mouth / Lupa J / Papa Roach / Starkill / IAMWARFACE / The Anix / MC Lars & Mega Ran / Snow Ghosts / J Majik / Estiva / GIRLI

And now the big five-oh

50.

Dinosaur Pile-Up “Celebrity Mansions”

Dinosaur Pile-Up have been gaining praise for their 4th album, and it’s not hard to see why. Spikey, catchy rock and punk, about touring the USA, some sounding like Foo Fighters’ heavier moments. Fun stuff.

49. Foals “Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost Part 1″

The experimental indie band released 2 albums in 2019, both parts of the same project, and though Part 2 certainly has merit, and a few cracking tracks, Part 1 is the more consistent, full of varied and surprising music.

48. Forever Still “Breathe In Colours”

The Danish hard rockers fronted by Maja Shining, deliver their 2nd album of aggressive, melodic rock and alternative metal.

https://foreverstill.bandcamp.com/album/breathe-in-colours

47. Cold Kingdom “Into The Black Sky”

Debut album from the Minneapolis hard rockers, their first release with new singer Elissa Pearson.

https://coldkingdom.bandcamp.com/album/into-the-black-sky

46. Hatchie “Keepsake”

Aussie Hatchie brings us her debut album of shoegaze-y, shimmery, dreamy, electronic indie-pop. One to float away with.

https://hatchie.bandcamp.com/album/keepsake

45. UNKLE “The Road Part II / Lost Highway”

A serious case of double album syndrome with this one. Disc 1, aside from a weak cover of a terrible song as its last track, is absolutely amazing, and if it was released like that it would be top 10 for sure. But the whole thing has to be considered and disc 2, though far from bad, is just a bit dull, especially comparatively.

44. Doll Skin “Love Is Dead And We Killed Her”

The ladies from Phoenix are back with their new album, once again a great collection of catchy, upbeat, alternative rock and punk.

43.

Only Shadows “Brothers”

Epic, catchy indie rock. They are very American sounding but they come from Nuneaton. Good stuff though.

42. Driftmoon “Remember The Night”

Though it is a live recording of a DJ set, Driftmoon insists that this is his third artist album. Fair enough - it is all his music, though there are many collabs and his remix of John O’Callaghan & Audrey Gallagher’s classic “Big Sky”, but aside from an instrumental version of a track that featured on his last album “Invictus” it’s all previously unreleased. He wanted to switch it up and make the ‘live performance’ the first way these tracks were heard. And like many a DJ set, more often than an album, the biggest and best tracks are in the last third of the album, and there are some mammoth tunes here.

41.

The High Priest “Dream American”

Formerly of excellent bands Diphonia, Global Police Force and Dark Science, The High Priest continues his solo journey with his new album. And it’s a good ‘un. His website describes it best - “Dark brooding sonic rock music and atmospheric soundscapes”. Class.

40. Feeder “Tallulah”

Feeder’s tenth album continues their run of quality records. It’s no wild departure, but you’ll like it if you’re a fan. “Fear Of Flying” stands up against many of their classic tunes.

39. Furious Monkey House “Love, Scum & Dust”

Spanish indie-rock young-uns Furious Monkey House release their 2nd album. And it’s an excellent collection of catchy upbeat tunes, mostly in English but with some native Spanish in there too. Great stuff.

38. Nemesea “White Flag”

5th album from the Dutch band. They’ve moved through symphonic metal and gothic rock in their career, and this album includes a handful of the best songs they’ve ever done.

https://nemesea.bandcamp.com/album/white-flag

37. Fever 333 “Strength In Numb333rs”

Agressive rap-metal, with massive riffs and huge melodic choruses. Touches of electronics and Trap are dotted throughout. Sounds like the middle ground between Rage Against The Machine and early Linkin Park.

36.

The Dark Element “Songs The Night Sings”

Former Nightwish vocalist Anette Olzon and her Dark Element partner Jani Liimatainen deliver their second album, and it’s another quality, catchy collection of symphonic metal tunes.

35. New Years Day “Unbreakable”

Huge, jittery riffage, paired with pop style songwriting and melodies, with powerful vocals. Reminiscent of “Blood” era In This Moment, but less sleazy.

34. Blood Red Shoes “Get Tragic”

Blood Red Shoes bring a new sound with their 5th album. More electronic, almost synth-pop, but still with a rock band at the core. Some of their most original and catchy tunes yet are included here.

33. Maraton “Meta”

The Bandcamp page describes this album perfectly - “MARATON pushes the boundaries between pop music and progressive rock, mixing machine like drums and roaring bass groundwork with shimmering guitars, ethereal keys and sacral vocal performance. The band has sought to create a style of music which combines the rhythmic heaviness from bands such as Mars Volta with the pop aesthetics of Muse.” Check them out.

https://maratonofnorway.bandcamp.com/releases

32. Ankor “White Dragon”

Accessible metal with a prog sensibility, the melodies are catchy, but musically it will keep you guessing throughout.

31.

Liquid “Spacemonkey”

Old school hardcore rave stylings from scene legend Liquid on his 3rd artist album. A breakbeat bounty.

30. As December Falls “As December Falls”

Straight to the point, catchy pop-punk from this Nottingham four-piece on their debut album. Fans of early Paramore, early Tonight Alive or We Are The In Crowd etc would do well to check this lot out.

29. Blink-182 “Nine”

2016′s “California”, the first album to feature Alkaline Trio’s Matt Skiba replacing original member Tom DeLonge, was a huge return to form for the band, and “Nine” continues the revitalised Blink with another massive collection of pop-punk tunes. They broaden their sound palette here too with sampled drum loops and heavier riffs in places.

28. Rebecca Lou “Bleed”

There’s a shoegaze-esque vibe to the production on this collection of raw, catchy, rock ‘n’ roll tunes from Denmark, and it gives just the edge of uniqueness that makes this album special.

https://rebeccalou.bandcamp.com/album/bleed

27. Sleep Token “Sundowning”

On paper Sleep Token, a mysterious, masked unit of unnamed musicians, who worship an ancient deity called “Sleep”, would make you think they made incredibly sinister black or doom metal. But that isn’t the case. There is a metal heaviness and some mountainous riffs, but only in parts - often kicking in as songs build to their climax. For the most part though they are bewitching soundscapes, often minimal, with huge melodic vocals, and electronic touches. Worship.

26. Within Temptation “Resist”

Less orchestras, more electronic touches and more influence from other styles of modern music, but still unmistakably a Within Temptation album, “Resist” brings the band back from the brink after some serious writers’ block almost ended them. Bombastic and revitalised.

25. Solarstone “...--”

The final part of Solarstone’s “One” album trilogy is once again an epic journey through his ‘pure trance’ sound.

24. We Are The Catalyst “Ephemeral”

Third album from the alternative-metal Swedes, full of huge choruses. Fans of accessible metal with melodic female vocals should check this out.

https://watcofficial.bandcamp.com/album/ephemeral

23. Lamb “The Secret Of Letting Go”

Five years on from their last, Lamb unleash their 7th album. Ethereal, magical, and special, as they do so well.

22. Polynation “Igneous”

A cinematic, sweeping, atmospheric album, blending many facets of dance music, ambient, techno, IDM. A wordless, groove laden, goosebump inducing journey.

21. Grum “Deep State”

Grum’s much delayed second album finally lands on Anjunabeats. It’s a kinetic mix of sounds incorporating trance, progressive and deep house elements, and creates some huge anthems. In particular the incredible “Stay”.

20. False Advertising “Brainfreeze”

Mancunian grunge / noise-pop trio deliver a fizzing album of 90s influenced rock. Cracking, energetic tunes throughout.

https://falseadvertising.bandcamp.com/album/brainfreeze

19. Cold Blue “Winter”

Slowly but surely building his status and honing his craft over the last decade or so, and in recent years gaining a reputation as one of the best producers in the trance scene, German Tobias Schuh finally unleashes his debut album. It is an epic, progressive journey through uplifting trance, slowly building and revealing its treasures, avoiding being too formulaic and predictable. One to get lost in.

18. R+ “The Last Summer”

Rollo returns, with a little help from his sister Dido, and long time production partner and Faithless teammate Sister Bliss, giving us a blissful, Balearic sounding album. The whole thing sounds like a love letter to Ibiza. Lovely.

17. Pumarosa “Devastation”

Pumarosa deliver their moody second album. A bit more electronic (with elements of trip-hop and drum & bass seeping in), a bit darker, still brilliantly adventurous. A very exciting band.

16. Luttrell “Into Clouds”

I’ve been following Eric Luttrell’s superb, progressive blend of deep house and melodic techno for a couple of years, and now he unleashes his debut album. It doesn’t disappoint. Widescreen, beautiful, upbeat, catchy and excellently produced.

15. The Beautiful Monument “I’m The Reaper”

The Aussie quartet deliver their second impressive long player. Huge riffs, huge drums, huge melodies, in their blend of post-hardcore, pop-punk and metal.

https://tbmofficial.bandcamp.com/album/im-the-reaper

14. The Thrillseekers present Hydra “Altered State”

Despite releasing his first music in 1999, and releasing a steady stream of singles since, Steve Helstrip only delivered his debut album as The Thrillseekers in 2016. For this, his 2nd opus, he's decided to release under his Hydra alias. And what a beauty it is. Mostly instrumental, apart from a new reworking of The Thrillseekers classic "The Last Time" with vocals from Fisher, it is a masterclass in sublime, chilled, Balearic trance. Reminiscent of the first couple of Chicane albums, and makes you feel like you are blissed out on a beautiful, sunny beach.

https://thethrillseekers.bandcamp.com/album/altered-state

13. Jimmy Eat World “Surviving”

"Surviving" is Jimmy Eat World's 10th album. There are little touches of an expansion to their sound, but if you are familiar with their brand of American rock, then you'll know pretty much what to expect. This is undoubtedly a Jimmy Eat World album. It is, however, a very, very good one. One of the strongest they've ever done in my opinion, probably only with "Bleed American" as any kind of competition.

12. Age Of Rampage “Empire City”

Age Of Rampage deliver a plethora of breakbeat stompers on their debut album. Their love for acts like The Prodigy would be evident even without the first track sampling a Keith Flint interview, but the old school is delivered with relish here. If you love 90s breakbeat acts such as The Prodigy, The Chemical Brothers, The Crystal Method, Freestylers etc, this is a very worthy listen. Such a shame Russian breakbeat label Criminal Tribe don't do physical releases.

https://criminaltribeltd.bandcamp.com/album/age-of-rampage-empire-city-ctr035-18032019

11. Hands Off Gretel “I Want The World”

Hands Off Gretel are an effervescent blend of punk and grunge, led by the fierce Lauren Tate. A love of 90s rock is evident. "I Want The World", their 2nd album, is packed full of killer tunes.

10. Dido “Still On My Mind”

I’ve loved Dido’s voice since the early days of Faithless, so when she started releasing her own music I’ve always liked it to varying degrees (loved some of it, some of it a bit meh). This is her best album since “No Angel” in my opinion. It’s chilled, ethereal, and rather beautiful, and has been one of my most listened to albums in 2019. The title track is absolutely one of my favourite tracks of the year. I’m surprised it is top 10, but it had to be.

9. Wislov “Madness From Paradise”

Kniteforce Records and their sister labels have been a driving force in the old-school hardcore (or ‘rave’ as many early 90s compilations would call it) revival. Most of their releases are new music, just done in the old style, with fresh touches. Wislov is one of, if not the, greatest talent in this scene, and after a bunch of EPs and a slew of great tunes, this debut album is unleashed. And it’s a cracker. If you love that old-school sound you will find much to love here.

8. HÆLOS “Any Random Kindness”

Mesmerising, utterly beautiful, electronic tunes, with lush vocals. Picking up where their 2016 debut album “Full Circle” left off, but stepping up a notch. There is a heavy rave influence, but this is definitely made for the post-party, the comedown, the chill out time, the blissed out euphoria after the full on euphoria. Every time I hear this album I discover something new, and love it more. Wonderful.

7. Yonaka “Don’t Wait ‘Til Tomorrow”

Yonaka may veer to the poppier end of alternative-rock, but they know how to write a hell of a tune. Many of them in fact. 11 feature here on their debut album, released after a string of quality EPs and singles got them some exposure over the last couple of years. Hooks aplenty, huge choruses, riffs and electronics.

6. Anavae “45″

Fans of Anavae have been waiting a long time for this. The debut album many thought may never come. 8 years on from their debut single and 7 years after their debut EP “Into The Aether”, and following a bunch of EPs and singles in the interim, it is finally here. And I’m sure very few will be left disappointed. Rebecca Need-Menear and Jamie Finch deliver a typically varied alternative-rock album, veering at times into poppier territory, and others into moody trip-hop-esque tracks. Other times they stick to simple, yet epic, rock tunes like on the massive “High”. If you don’t know this band, check them out.

5. Dream State “Primrose Path”

Dream State progress in sound and technical ability with each release. From 2015′s debut EP “Consequences”, through last year’s excellent “Recovery” EP to this, their debut album. And it’s a pretty epic affair. Chunky riffs, pounding drumming, powerful vocals (both in aggressive and melodic turns from CJ Gilpin) with a massive, widescreen feel to the production. The Welsh 4-piece are often classed as post-hardcore, but that is far too limiting a description for a band with such obvious ambition. Class.

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4. Machineheart “People Change”

Lush, shimmery, ethereal alt pop from this L.A. quartet fronted by the fabulous vocals of Stevie Scott. A cracking album from start to finish but a particular mention goes to upbeat (almost breakbeat styled) track "Overgrown" which is one of the best tracks I've heard all year. If you like bands like London Grammar or HÆLOS, give this album a spin.

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3. Black Futures “Never Not Nothing”

Black Futures are a genre meshing riot. They've been called "Anarchic Electro Psych Punk Noise", "industrial noise-punk" and label themselves as "Future Punk". They have the sensibilities of a punk band and a dance band simultaneously. There's Bobby Gillespie from Primal Scream guesting, as is rapper P.O.S. More than once have they been described as a mix of Death From Above 1979 & The Chemical Brothers. It's a future party, a post-apocalyptic riot. Give it a listen.

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2. Dallas Kalevala “Dallas Kalevala”

Dallas Kalevala hail from Finland and have been called fierce subarctic pop music. Whether they called themselves this I'm not sure. What it sounds like to me is a brilliant, varied pop album, slightly camp, with fantastic electronic production and some full on pounding dance beats. 9 brilliantly written tracks, that all sound different, but somehow sound like they come from the same band and belong together. There is a feeling Dallas Kalevala would be somewhat polarising. There's no way they'll be everyone's cup of tea (which suggests they are doing something right), but those that get them will love them a whole lot.

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1. The Chemical Brothers “No Geography”

To make their 9th album The Chemical Brothers returned to the equipment they used to make their first two albums. And though "No Geography" doesn't sound like "Exit Planet Dust" or "Dig Your Own Hole", it feels like them. Consequently it is arguably their best album since them, but it is definitely their best since 2002's "Come With Us". It feels a bit old school, but also fresh and new. Tracks flow into each other seamlessly making the album feel like a complete body of work rather than a collection of tracks, and it is utterly brilliant throughout. Joyous.

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Well there you go. I’ll leave you with the following, for your listening pleasure:

Spotify playlist - a countdown of the top 50 (50-1), minus a couple of things that aren’t on Spotify.

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/05F3PPwKO7NkwpD4eTJBiP?si=O8bO2JYDSqa3Kz-SzQ8D4Q

And a YouTube playlist counting down 50-1, but a completely different tracklist to the Spotify playlist (and different vids for the top 5 than are embedded here).

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLSWMYBJKcPo0tJGbPDFw8QAdZlb1BWj3H

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