#we love a big brain murph moment

[sylvansleuth]

Riz, you fucking cracked it!

#fantasy high #fantasy high junior year #fhjy #fhjy spoilers #dimension 20 #d20 #dropout #brian murphy #brennan lee mulligan #emily axford #ally beardsley #riz gukgak #we love a big brain murph moment #but also emily's hearteyes @ her husband kfadkfjgnf #sylvansleuthings

[naddpod-encounter-tourney]

Broken Bonds:

for this, i will be copying the description from friend of the show tournament @chompe-diem’s comments on round one. they are as follows.

zirk and stella confrontation. ok i could go on about this for ages so let me just pull some quotes

> "when will it be enough!" (caldwell pcs yelling. mwah easy way to the heart)

> "You're stuck. i've spent so much time trying to fix things and you're the one thing that's always broken, and I, I just can't anymore; there's other people that need me, okay?"

just the move of fia's suggestion and then. man i fuckin love the way murph narrated stella in that. her just absentmindedly taking it apart as she keeps talking, it just,,, it does things to my brain

henry's obviously been a pretty shit dad so far, but the way hank/jake so genuinely and naturally acts protective of hank jr when he's chewing out stella. it's just a nice touch, it really adds

stella vervain. yes all the above points involved her but she's one of my favourite npcs and this ep is where u truly see all of her and what she is.

the reveal of big rex and little rex moxora and prophet cain

batilda's heartfelt moment with fia, the i love you

emily with the momentary stasis and pretty much saving batilda's life by incapacitating cain

zirk w the nat 1 death save

bukvar getting taken by moxora and having the form of a bookish little boy who could be fia's brother- *sobs*

and the whole philosphical/emotional ending w fia and the crew etc etc

Crown of Dreams:

The Duck Team races back to the Crick to track down the missing members of the Old Folks’ Circle!

Glen made his escape from the Time Out Tree with assistance from a grenade, which Callie assumed was the one she gifted to Cooter (Glen’s father).

After some investigating at Eloise’s (member of the OFC) stump, they see some suspicious tracks that lead them to Cooter’s stump at the edge of town.

In Cooter’s stump Frogson and Holmes find Glen’s old room, and his various journals. He had wanted to be a ranger captain by 50 and Peepaw of the crick by 100. [Fool.] He had books on Moonshine and Marabelle, and he idolized them. He had a note from Meemaw saying “we will not rain arrows down from our towers. we will always shine a light.” in response to him suggesting they go to war. They also discovered letters to Eloise and determined that she walked from her stump and was a co-conspirator.

The Duck Team was then met outside by Cooter, apologizing. He sent them into a trap, where Glen was waiting with the trapped Old Folks, the Evil Old Folks, and Meemaw (also trapped). After attempts that incapacitated most of the Duck Team, Glen attempted to wrench Ultrus from the helm while Calder was unconscious. Calder resisted.

Sol fell unconscious, and rolled a nat 1 on a death save (very on brand for caldwell). Callie got polymorphed into a nannerfly. Seeing this through a vision in his helm, Calder offered his body to Ultrus in exchange for the giant saving Callie and Sol. Calder just wanted to be useful. "Perhaps you have a giant's heart after all, Calder Kildé."

After slamming Glen against a wall, Ultrus caused the corrupt Old Folks to flee, and he, Callie, and Sol stood at an impasse. Calder apologized to his friends and Ultrus took him away, into the woods.

Glen then revealed that the only being that might be able to help with their problem of the trapped Old Folks was Mawmaw, but that was impossible, as he had sent his mind-controlled father to kill her.

But Cooter, ever the berry boy, used a goodberry to save Mawmaw, resisting the geas spell, causing him to go unconscious. Cooter's action confuse the hell out of Glen, who cannot believe his father would do that, knowing he would likely not survive it, proving his intense misunderstanding of the Crick and of his father once and for all. Callie and Sol helped revive him, and both he and Mawmaw were safe.

#naddpod episode tournament #naddpod #not another dnd podcast #eldermourne #ba2mia

[forever-rogue]

Javi or Din: You are getting propositioned by someone, but you've never been good with conflict when people get pushy with you. So our man steps in.

I had to go with Javi because...well, it’s Javi. So here we are. Enjoy some...protective Javi.

»»————-　♡　————-««

It was the sticky warmth of the Colombian morning that had prompted you to wear a dress to work. Normally, you wouldn’t opting for either a pant or skirt suit, which had been dubbed as much more professional by the ambassador. Of course, it didn’t matter to her; she had proper heating and cooling in her office. You were resigned to the sometimes working, hardly circulating monstrosity of an air conditioner that served the back of the embassy.

Working with the crime investigation team was not glamorous work by any means. It was a load of hours, early mornings that stretched into late evenings, but you liked your job. Most women would not; hell, most people would not. It was dirty work, work that often pulled at your heartstrings, but someone had to do it. You figured it might as well be you.

But you often found solace in one of the few people you considered a friend, a true friend, not just a work friend: one Javier Peña. He’d come to Colombia at the same time as you, and despite his sometimes off putting personality, and gruff world view, he was nice...kind. He didn’t treat you like just another woman like many of the others did. He treated you like an equal, and despite working your ass off every day, for years, proving yourself over and over again, he was one of the people that did. Him, and his partner Murphy. They were good men, despite their flaws.

A few beads of sweat dripping down the valley of your breasts pulled you back into reality as you grabbed a few papers and started fanning yourself. The cooling system must have gone completely rogue and decided to quit working. You were half tempted to do the same. Instead, you slumped in your chair and pulled a stack of paperwork towards, opting to do whatever required the minimal effort. It was Friday, and you were hoping, at this rate anyway, that you could maybe try and sneak out early and head to the lake to go for a swim and cool off.

Tapping your pen thoughtfully against your lip, you were so lost in thought that you didn’t even notice Javi walked in and setting something down in front of you. He waved his hand in front of your face, clearing his throat before almost snorting with laughter, “buenos días, senorita.”

“Javi,” you jumped a little bit as you turned to him; he was watching you with a bemused expression and you couldn’t fight the smile that crossed your features. If you were going to be startled and pulled out of your daydreams, it might as well be at the hands of handsome man. And Javi was no exception especially today - he’d opted for a snug fitting black button up and what were probably his tightest jeans. It was a lot to be sure and you tried not let your eyes lingers anywhere for too long. He’d catch on in a heartbeat and never let you live it down, “good morning.”

“Peso for your thoughts?” he pushed a cup of coffee and a muffin closer to you. It was a Friday tradition that you both relished; he’d come into your office at the end of the week to bring you a sweet treat. To start the weekend properly he liked to insist with a wink.

“Hmm,” you grabbed the muffin and took a bite. It was filled with poppy seeds and fresh blueberries, “just thinking about how I can sneak out early today. I was thinking about going to the lake for a swim. It’s stiffling.”

“Good luck with that,” he snorted and you shrugged, “you can always come and work in our office today. It’s much cooler...I could use the company. Murphy’s off in his own little world today.”

“As tempting as that is, I should stay here. I actually need to focus and get work done,” you insisted. If you went with Javi, you’d both end up goofing off and get little else accomplished, “but I appreciate the offer.”

“Suit yourself,” he gave your desk a small knock before turning to leave and start his down day, “you know where to find me if you change your mind.”

“Thank you, Javi,” you called after him as you grabbed the coffee and took a sip, immediately regretting your decision. It was almost scalding hot still, and didn’t help to cool you down. Maybe you could let it sit for a while before chugging it to get the little buzz that caffeine afforded you.

“Hey...ugh,” Javi turned back to you just before he stepped out. You turned to him and raised and eyebrow, urging him to go on, “do you...we’re going for a drink after work, do you want to come with us?”

“Who is we?”

“Me, Murph...some of the other guys,” he volunteered and you cringed a little bit. You’d easily have said yes if it was only going to be him and Murphy...but the rest of the crowd? That gave you a moment of hesitation; just because Javi and his partner would be decent, it didn’t mean that the rest of them would be.

“I dunno,” you shrugged, gnawing on your bottom lip, “it’s just...”

“I know,” he finished for you, “but it’ll be fine, I promise. I’ll talk to the guys...and if anything, you’ll have me and Murph.”

“Okay,” you agreed with a small nod. If nothing else, you’d be able to sneak out and head off on your own. Most of the men would probably be drunk enough after a few drinks and they probably wouldn’t even notice you sneaking away. Who knows...maybe they would even be tolerable.

“Great!” his eyes lit up as he grinned at you, “I’ll see you after work then...and in the meantime, the offer still stands.”

“Bye Javi,” you shook your head at him, turning back to your own work, a vain attempt at focusing. You knew this would be on your mind for the rest of the day; you always did love spending any time with him that you could, “get going and do some work.”

“On a Friday?!”

“Javier-”

“Fine mija,” he sighed dramatically; his use of his little pet name for you did not fall on deaf ears, “see you later....nice dress by the way. It looks good.”

“It was just so hot, the idea of pants almost killed me...”

“Either way, it’s nice,” he insisted. Was that a light blush creeping into his cheeks? You didn’t notice, too busy trying to keep the flush on your own face from being too apparent, “I mean you always look nice...pretty...it’s just different. But not in a bad way - not that I stare...it doesn’t matter what you wear, you’re always-”

“Javi?”

“Hmm?”

“Get to work,” you kept your face trained on your papers, biting the inside of your cheek so hard you were surely drawing blood. Was he nervous? Had you actually caused serial womanizer Javier Peña to get anxious and nervous around you? Cherish the thought. He nodded before disappearing for real this time, leaving just you to remain in the stuffy office. The words in front of you quickly became a blur as your attention was anywhere on work. How were you supposed to focus when the only thought in your brain was Javi, Javi, Javi?

»»————-　♡　————-««

Your evening out with the crew from work had proven to be...not nearly as unpleasant as you’d anticipated. Maybe your worries had been for nothing? Maybe it was because you remained more or less silent, offering only a few words here and there throughout the conversation. Maybe it was the fact that you were nestled between Javi and Steve, almost as if they were some of sort of buffer, silently protecting you from any unpleasantness. Maybe it was because everyone was in a decent mood and just wanted a nice evening out.

Whatever the reason was, you weren’t going to question it; instead you found yourself having a decent time, nursing a few cool beers in the balmy evening as the men around you chattered away. they were worse than women sometimes, you were sure of it, but they would never agree with you.

Eventually, after throwing back your fair share of alcohol, you’d decided it was time to make your way back home. You didn’t want to stay and risk getting too drunk; you’d hate yourself in the morning as it took the whole weekend to recover. You’d hate yourself even more if you continued to drink, lost your inhibitions and inadvertently confessed your feelings to Javi. You could live with a lot...but that? You weren’t so sure.

“Hey,” you leaned into Javi’s warm body, desperately not trying to get too lost in his scent as you clambered for his attention, “I’m going to head home, okay?”

“I’ll go with you,” it was an immediate, insistent statement. But you gave his forearm a squeeze and shook your head, “mija, let me come with you, it’s late and it’s dark.”

“I’m a big girl,” you promised, but the tension in his shoulders didn’t relent, “besides, I’m almost completely sober by now. I just want to get home to bed so I can up early and go on a run and to the lake-”

“Who the fuck does that on a weekend-”

“Good night, Javi,” you grabbed your purse and stood up, giving him a soft smile, and offering Steve the same. You wanted to stay, hells, half of you was tempting to remain anyway, but you knew the responsible thing was to leave and stay in the clear. You turned to the rest of the table and gave them a small wave, “goodnight everyone. Have a good weekend.”

You received a few replies and waves in response before heading out of the crowded bar. It was stuffy and warm again, and you were glad that the fresh air of the outside would provide some sort of relieve.

Letting out a long sigh as you reached the street, you quickly oriented yourself before starting to walk in the direction of the apartment complex you shared with Steve and Javi. You’d walked to work that morning, hoping it would somehow be cooler than driving (you had been sorely mistaken), and then gotten a ride from Javi after work. Maybe you should have let him take you home...but a quiet walk alone might be nice too. The streets were almost empty, and if worst came to absolute worst, you had a gun on you. You were a surprisingly good shot, despite how little the men you worked with thought of you.

You’d made it about halfway down the block when you heard a pair of heavy footsteps behind you, followed up a shout of your name. You stopped, turning around curiously but relaxed when you noticed that it was just Williams, one of the many men that had been on your little outing. You wondered what he could want - maybe you’d just forgotten something?

“Hey...what’s up?” you immediately regretting your decision as he closed the distance between your bodies and had you trapped between him and the dirty stone wall of the bar. Trying to remain calm, you swallowed the lump in your throat, “w-what are you doing?”

“Just came to make sure you were okay to go home,” his words were slurred as he brought his face closer to yours. His breath was laced with alcohol and he brought a hand to your face, touching your cheek, “looks like you could use a little company.”

Glancing around the street, you were annoyed now that there was no one around. Perhaps then someone would help you. You tried to square your shoulders, making yourself appear more confident, “you need to stop. I am okay to go home. But you need to get back inside and get a ride home.”

“Come on, little one,” he was so close that you turned your face, keeping your eyes squeezed shut and hoping he would go away, “you can’t come dressed like that and not want it. Look at you, you look like one of the whores that Peña’s so fond of fucking.”

“You need to stop,” you repeated firmly, trying to push him away. But he was large, and could easily overpower you if need be. He just laughed at your weak attempt, “Williams, let me go and go back inside.You don’t know what you’re saying.”

“Come on,” he slurred, trying to kiss, but you were able to dodge his lips, “just give us a kiss. Just a little one.”

“Stop.”

“Why? Don’t you want some fun?” he was getting angrier and your heart was racing rapidly. You were afraid it might leap out of your chest at this rate.

“No.”

“Why not? You fuck Peña all the time, might as well share with everyone else,” you were as angry as you were scared. You’d always figured that people might have that notion, but it had never really bothered you; you knew the truth and that was what mattered.

Before you could say anything else, he was pulled back and you were free from his entrapment. Opening your eyes, you quickly saw Javier standing there, a livid expression on his face as his chest rose and fell rapidly.

“You better get the fuck back inside before I go something you will not like,” he was glowering daggers at the man on the ground. Before he could respond, Javi quickly bent down and punched him a few times, and a sickening crack ran through the night air. The man groaned lightly but Javi didn’t care, “if I ever, ever, see you near her again, I will not hesitate to kill you. Do I make myself clear?”

The man let out a string of unintelligible sounds before dragging himself away and stumbling to his feet. He looked a sight, but you didn’t care. You were just glad to be safe.

“J-Javi,” you turned to him, noticing that his hand was already turning a few shades of blue and purple, “you’re hurt.”

“It doesn’t matter,” he insisted quietly, wiping  his bloody hand on his pants, “are you okay? Did he touch you? Hurt you?”

“No,” you hadn’t realized that a few tears had run down your cheeks. Javi didn’t hesitate to wipe them away, his touch gentle as ever. You gave him a small, weak little smile before he pulled you into his arms, “thank you, Javi. But how did you know...”

“I just had a feeling,” he wrapped his arms around you gently kissed the crown of your head, “I’m glad I did. Mija...don’t listen to him. I know you won’t but...you don’t look anything like he said. You look gorgeous, and I’d never...”

“I know,” you promised, pulling back and giving him a small nod, “he’s an idiot and he’s drunk, and I don’t know what I’d have done without you. I just...panicked.”

“It’s okay,” he promised, “you’re safe. I’ll keep you safe.”

“Thank you,” it was an almost pathetic sound, but you were glad to have him there. Who knows what would have happened if he hadn’t shown up in time, “can you...take me home? That is, unless you want to stay...”

“No,” he promised gently, reaching for his keys and leading you back towards his car, “let me take you home. I want you safe and sound.”

“Thank you, Javi,” he opened the door to the passenger and helped you inside, despite you not needing the help. In the moment you appreciated it. He got into the driver’s side and started the car, letting it roar to life. You sat there in comfortable silence for a few moments, both of you coming down from the adrenaline of the moment.

“You still planning on that run and swim tomorrow?” he asked suddenly and you shrugged. It somehow...had lost its appeal in the moment. He turned to you, putting his hand on your leg and giving it a reassuring squeeze, “if you’d like the company, I’d be happy to go with you.”

“Really?” you asked quietly, and despite everything you were feeling, a small smile worked its way onto your face, “you don’t have to come just because you’re worried and think I’m going to be this scared little girl now...”

“I want to come,” he promised. He’d be happy to watch paint dry or grass grow if it meant he got to spend time with you, “if you’ll have me.”

“Yes,” you put your hand on top of his and gave it a light squeeze. He let out a small, content exhale before lacing his fingers through yours, “I’ll always have you, Javi.”

“I don’t know how much of this rise and shine and morning run bullshit I can do,” he chuckled as he started to drive, one hand on the steering well and the other with yours, “but I figure if it’s with you, it’s worth a try.”

“Yeah?”

“Always.”

#javier pena #javier peña x reader #javier pena x reader #javier peña #pedro pascal #pedro pascal x reader #narcos

[jq37]

The Report Card – Fantasy High Sophomore Year Ep 15

Love Wins!

Welcome to an insanely chaotic episode of Fantasy High--even by the very high standards of this show.  How chaotic you may ask? Well, the first thing that happens is that Bill Seacaster point blank shoots Gilear to death for being in a relationship with Hilariel. Full dead. He is full dead. Strangely, his plan to bring him back as a janky devil does not do much to comfort Fig. Imagine that.

Bill’s pirates are looting the Bottomless Pit (Gorthalax’s domain in Hell) and Vraz orders Fig to make them stop. When she instead orders Vraz to eat her ass, Vraz nullifies all warlock deals Gorthalax made and brings none other than Johnny Spells (and his greaser pals) to join the fight!

Really, this fight is insane and it’s better served by a highlight real than a play by play so I’m just gonna give you some bullets:

All the PCs rolled super low initiative this fight which really kinda screwed them. Like Fabian was down to 16 HP one point and it was like, “Lol, this is the end of round 1.” YIKES.

A big part of this fight was just surviving long enough to get to the second level of hell and rescue Riz’s dad which I think was probably good for morale because the thought of this fight dragging on for more than a couple of rounds exhausts me. 

Fabian rolls off against Johnny right off the bat for the Hangman’s loyalty and Fabian wins with a 25 (and by coming out the gate with the word ENSLAVED which isn’t the word *I* would have used but a 25 is a 25 I guess).

He also has to contend with fighting Allistair who has a massive hole in his head filled with fire from Wicklaw eating his brain. It seems like Chungledown Bim is in hell too based on how Allistair keeps saying he’s gonna get him so he can shit in Fabian’s mouth. Of course, Fabian gets the better of him, but not before he deals out a fair bit of damage. 

Adaine uses an Arcane Hand plus her portent roll to just whole-ass throw Johnny off the ship. Like, he gets back up but it’s so funny to instead of fighting an enemy to just throw him off a set piece (see eg: Bloodkeep ep2).

Kristen Revivifies Gilear and Bill, the mercurial sunuvabitch is like, “We love the same woman! I just want her happy!” and gives him a gun. Kristen immediately is like, “Bro, you need to hide,” and Gorgug protects him while he does so (in a sarcophagus that has a 50/50 shot of being launched as ammo). 

Penelope shows up to the fight, eyes all black, wearing a shredded prom dress, and with shards of silver embedded in her forehead like a crown. Dayne and Daybreak also join the fight as messed up Harvestmen! It’s a veritable Smash Bros lineup of people the Bad Kids have killed!

Adaine and Fabian are christened the “Posh Squad” which is important to me, not to the fight. 

Adaine gets to counterspell a counterspell from Penelope, one of the sexiest things you can do in D&D.

Fabian declares toxic masculinity dead. Shortly afterward, he makes Brennan eat a die when Daybreak tries to Frighten Fabian, a condition he is immune to due to his eyepatch I gather based on the table reaction. 

Daybreak’s punishment in hell is a complete lack of self-awareness of why he’s there. He still thinks he should be sipping Mai-Tai’s in corn heaven with Helio while Kristen and Ragh are attacking him with gay spit (their words, not mine). Gay spit and, also, a ton of radiant and thunder damage.

Ragh gets some emotional catharsis by getting to body Dayne before Gorgug decapitates him. Very important step in the stages of grief. Decapitating the source of said grief. 

Penelope gets Sparta-kicked off the edge of the boat by Fabian after Ayda dispels her protective globe and Riz shoots Daybreak again for old times sake. Unfortunately, Penelope Misty Steps back up and Daybreak is hurt but not killed. Ayda does a cool Dr. Strange teleportation thing and does a bunch of damage to both of them. Fabian finishes off Penelope with a sheet/sword combo and between Booming Blade and a Psionic Blast (does she have this ability as a Bard or as a Warlock? Relatedly, when she felt something leave her was that her Warlock deal being nullified or was she feeling the deals leave her since she is sort of the temporary Gorthalax?) Fig destroys Daybreak. Johnny just falls off the ship with no PC intervention because he sucks. 

Bill also falls off the ship but Fig (with an assist from Gorgug) saves him and steals a scroll from Vraz on the way back up. By the by, earlier in the fight, she also had Baby Invisbly steal a random item from her. 

Anyway, as they reach the end of the end of the fight, Bill loads Riz into a canon (!) and shoots him into the city, hopefully towards his dad (to the distress of his party). He crashes through the window in a familiar looking building and, when he finds a hallway that he’s pretty sure leads to his dad, he goes towards it. 

He sees a familiar light coming out of a doorway (the interrogation room light) and a doorway next to it that is slightly open with steel thrones in it. There’s a two-way mirror between the two rooms and if he goes into the open one, he can see who is in with his dad. After checking for illusions and finding none, he stealthily walks in and sees, in the other room, his dad with a hulking pit fiend (30 ft tall, winged, almost dragon-y devil).

The pit fiend is questioning Pok about any regrets he had in life and Pok answers very uncharacteristically from the man we saw in the video saying he had nothing but high hopes for baby Riz. He says he had no regrets, his job was just a job, and that he only had a kid because Sklonda wanted one before going into a snarling goblin rage. The pit fiend smiles at that and says that Pok has promise so they won’t create a lemure out of him (a lemure is a weak, blobby devil). Two devils in the room with them whip him unconscious and then leave the room to go send more people to deal with Bill.

Riz Misty Steps into the room and does a self-imposed Wisdom check to steady himself after what he just heard--Nat 20 baby. Then, he opens his Briefcase of Holding, ready to scoop his dad into it when, the two lesser devils open the door and catch him in the act. But Riz persists in the scooping. They try to grapple him and he rolls a Nat 1 to avoid it. He *still* tries to get him dad. But then he notices, his gun is missing.

BLAM. The devils heads are blown clean off. He turns and he sees his dad has taken the gun--his gun originally--and shot the devils. Pok, who is amazed that Riz is there and no longer feigning apathy for the situation asks for an extraction into an earpiece, causing a halo to appear over his head and a beam of holy light to come down like a tractor beam.

“Wait,” says Riz. “You’re an undercover angel?”

“You got it, kid.”

Murph goes feral. The table goes feral. I go feral. What a way to end an episode!  

And now for an all-Dad round of superlatives:

Detention

Bill Seacaster for KILLING GILEAR 

I feel like I shouldn’t have to explain myself here. 

Honor Roll

Pok Gukgak for Officially Joining the Fantasy Fathers of the Year Club

Here either. 

I will, however, add a Hell Yeah!

Random Thoughts

If you haven’t seen it yet, the trailer for S5 of Dimension 20 just dropped and I won’t spoil it but, from the looks of it, it is gonna be a doozy.  

“Do not metagame with my freaking Dad!” Oh to have the support of an NPC Emily Axford has decided to imprint upon.

Gorgug: It’s been one year. We’re sophomores. 

“We support you as a DM and as your friend but also you’re our enemy.”

I think it’s very interesting that with just a little space and time from his dad, Fabian is finally having the proper reactions to his dad doing what I will charitably call shenanigans.

The level of distress and outrage from Emily when Gilear got shot was just *chef’s kiss*. I aspire to create an NPC that provokes that level of reaction from one of my players. Similar energy in a different direction from Ally when Daybreak attacked Tracker.    

“Adaine, the jocks are being feisty! Get out of there!”

Vraz calls Fig “the Faithless” as her devil title and she insists on instead being called, “the InFaethable”. I wanna know how long Emily’s been sitting on that one or whether she came up with it on the spot. 

Fabian upon seeing Johnny: Fuck off dude. I have too much going on right now. 

Brennan being the eternal DM mood: How do I get out of this?

Very wild how little time has passed since Leviathan. Like, Fabian’s had this whole arc and grown so much but, like, OF COURSE Allistair still wants to murder him! It’s been like two days. 

“I want to crumple up Gilear like a wrapper.”

A seven is a Murph 10.

The very specific way Brennan does foley for sword fighting (“Clang! Cling! Clang!”) is so funny to me. 

Cannot overstate how much of a power move it was for Kristen to go, “I’ve been PRAYING FOR YOU,” at Daybreak and knock him on his ass. 

I feel like I bring this up all the time but I love when Brennan is counting dice for a ton of damage and all the PCs are BSing reasons that it’s not a big deal like, “He’s just getting D4s,” or “Well I should get advantage for the reason just made up,” with everyone else fully playing along. ”

Allistair Ash, man. He is fascinating to me. I am so curious about what Brennan had planned for him originally because I feel like we barely scratched the surface before things took a TURN. He had two little moments in this ep that made my heart break for him a little: (1) When he says to Fabian, “If I die, I just come back a little bit worse but, if you die, you’re stuck down here with me.” and (2) when Fabian kills him and Bill grabs his soul and is like, “You know it’s gonna cost you X gold to revive you,” and he sighs and says, “Put it on my tab I suppose.” Like, I know he spent all ep trying to kill Fabian but I can’t help but be like, poor guy. He just has this pathos in his haplessness. I’m surprised Fabian didn’t make more of an effort to connect with him instead of being like, kind of like, “I will throw hands if I must.” Talking is a free action my dude. Anyway, I would love to see Brennan’s DM notes for this guy.   

Lou was really doing some expert D&D with all the second winding and bonus actioning and burning spell slots for extra damage he was doing. He was like, “My initiative is trash so I have to do approximately a million damage per turn.”

Lol at Ayda asking if it’s weird to talk about sex stuff in front of friends in a group that involves both Kristen and Adaine. 

Fig wishing she could do something cool in front of Ayda as if Ayda didn’t try to flood Hell on her behalf last week. My girl. You’ve already locked that down.

Not really an issue that’s we’ll run across during the run of FH but tieflings live 20-40 years longer than humans according to the official D&D lore. So lets say Fig lives to be 120 years old. And let’s say she sticks with her high school girlfriend and marries her. It’s possible they die at around the same time and then Ayda has to Deal With That in her next life but that’s not what I’m interested in. What happens if you’re a full elderly woman and your partner phoenixes into a child? What are the ethics of that? How do you deal with that? Chronomancy?

The horrified, “Love wins!” from Daybreak.

 Is there a reason the viewing room Riz was in had thrones in it or is Hell just very about the ~aesthetic~

Every time a DM asks for a HP total, my entire being clenches in prep for a Power Word Kill. 

“I’m gonna need a Dexter--”/”Counterspell.”

“You guys murdered me too but we hashed it out.”

I totally forgot that the Bad Kids lied that Ragh had shat his pants until the moment Adaine was saying it this episode. Freshman Year was WILD.

Also, just wanna take a second to talk about the elevation of Ragh from this side-note bully to a fully fledged, likeable character with depth and and an arc and gay spit. D&D is crazy. 

Summoning Boggy via Bloody Mary is such a delightful image. 

So, Kalina is the one that led Riz down the path that led to him finding out Pok is an Undercover Angel (!!!), which means one of three things: (1) She knew but miscalculated hard, (2) she didn’t know and made a different but also big miscalculation, (3) she did know and she’s doing some kind of 4-D chess thing we don’t know about yet. 

Ayda hitting Fabian with a portent and then swooping in and saving Adaine. So clutch. What a good NPC to befriend.

Speaking of, I think we all kinda figured, but Brennan officially said on Twitter or the Discord (I don’t remember which) that Ayda is autistic. Like, I was pretty sure but I didn’t wanna assume.

Lol at the absolute lack of respect Kalvaxus got in this episode. 

Pok as an Undercover Angel is SO GOOD. Like, I didn’t think he was really bad for a second but I never could have guessed he was an UNDERCOVER ANGEL. That’s such a dope combination of words. Undercover Angel (which my computer keeps trying to correct to undercover agent which isn’t wrong to be fair). Man. I love this. I love this for me and I love this for Riz. Riz deserves this. After so much crap in his life and so many mind games from Kalina and all this turmoil, he deserves to know that not only is his dad a good person who loved/loves him, he’s SO good that he’s an ANGEL and he was such a good spy in life he still is a secret agent in death. God, what a reveal. I can’t believe Riz got Spy Kids-ed TWICE by the same parent. Can’t wait to hear what exactly is going on with him.

Wait, what’s goblin heaven like? Which god is sanctioning this? Who is he working for exactly?

This episode, Kristen and Gorgug rolled 1 Nat 20 each, while Riz, Fabian, and Brennan each got 2. On the flipside, Adaine got 2 Nat 1’s, Fig and Fabian each rolled 1 that was cancelled, and Riz rolled 1 (in addition, Murph rolled two more which were lair actions and one of which was cancelled by a luck point so they don’t really count but it was very funny so I wanted to note it).

#fantasy high #fantasy high live #fantasy high spoilers #dimension 20 #dimension 20 spoilers #wow a recap that isn't a million pages for once #turns out I can do it

[whirlybirbs]

hope !!!! cant believe ur writing for hop my thic daddy im so in love w his pudding knees thank u for that

summary: part two to this fic. hopper + teacher!reader clear the air on the living, breathing, conspiracy that is hawkins, indiana and dating.pairing: hopper x reader, from my fic moonrise radio.a/n: well, here we go, down the pining idiots rabit hole    

Jim settles in while you bring the flowers into the kitchen -- he can see you through the hall, back turned as you fill a vase. He shifts, hands on his knees as he chews the inside of his cheek.

He’s, uh, a little big for the couch.

At his feet, Cannoli gives a little whine.

By now, Magnum P.I. is off and it’s a rerun of an old America Undercover episode playing on the television. It’s playing something on women who kill and Hopper can’t help but wonder if that’s some sort of omen. 

You come back into the room, sporting old, beat-up Chicago State University t-shirt that swallows you whole and stops right above your knees. Your hair is swept up, face bare, and brows ensnared in an irritated look. In the doorway to the living room, you drop your hands to your hips. 

(Your shirt hikes up your thighs a smidgen and his eyes eat it up.)

Jim swallows.

“I’m sorry --”

“You said that already.”

You move, then, dropping beside him on the couch and pulling the patterned afghan blanket from the back of the cushions and draping it across your lap. You curl up, knees to your chest, and your hips bump his. 

“Yea, but,” a long exhale, “I was a dick.”

“Jim,” you stop him, raising a single finger and leaning back against the sofa’s arm. You eye him critically, “I’m not stupid.”

“No! I didn’t -- I know you’re not --”

“So,” you pause, narrowing your eyes as he tries to make himself seem small, “What’s the deal?”

Jim drops his head, fingers pinching the bridge of his nose. “You know the shit... uh, about the fire at Starcourt Mall this past summer?”

You pull a face. “Yeah, it was all over the news. Some gas leak.”

“Yea, except it wasn’t and I can’t tell you what it was, because the CIA will pop out of the hedges in your front lawn and snap my fuckin’ neck if I do.”

You blink.

“So, okay, sure,” you wave after a second, “Sure, say, hypothetically if I believe you which I don’t, but if I did -- it’d be safe to assume you’re making sure I don’t get too hot on the trail of something I shouldn’t know about.”

Jim pulls his lips into a tight line and throws his hands -- an affirmative. 

You exhale, long and deep, and drop your head back against the cushions. 

“Jim, if you don’t want to see me anymore --”

“Woah, woah, woah! Hold on --”

“No, no, I’m serious --”

“Since when was this... was this seeing one another? I think you gotta catch me up to speed on that, first, because, uh, I think I missed something?”

“I thought -- Y’know, me inviting you over for dinner and the soup and the flirting and the whole coming over thing...” your voice trails off, eyes a little wide as you begin to piece together the Chief of Police’s seeming obliviousness to your attempts at something romantic.

Jim’s face suddenly falls. It’s guilt.

“Oh.”

Your jaw drops. “You’re kidding.”

“Oh, ohhhh, son of a bitch.”

“So... You’re not --”

“No, no, no,” he waves his hands, turning on the couch to look at you fully, “No, I am very -- uh, very everything. With you. Into you. I -- Listen, it’s been a while and I should have asked --”

You laugh, sheepish and uncomfortable. “Jim. It’s okay, I thought --”

“Dinner. I think we should do dinner.”

You blink, head reeling. “... Dinner?”

“Yea,” he swallows, digging through his pocket with a panicked face at your visible confusion, “If, uh -- if you want, I mean -- I can cook and --”

He lights a cigarette and you stumble over your words. Your brain is racing a million miles a minute, but mostly back to the beginning of this entire shit-show. The root of it. The way you met Jim in the first place. 

And then you realize it.

“Hold on -- you... you’re being serious.”

“About dinner? Psh, yeah.”

Smoke curls around his smile. It’s boyish. You sit up, hand planted on the cushion behind his head.

“No, Jim, about Starcourt.”

His face falls. “No. No, no, nope, no we are not going back to this subject --”

You lean, finger digging into his chest as you prop yourself up on your knees. Your face is split into something devilish and conniving and if Jim wasn’t so concerned about spilling top secret government information, maybe he’d relish in the touch and closeness and the way your eyes brighten like a carnival at the idea of it all. 

“We are,” you chirp, “We are -- because if I am about to get tranquilized by the CIA, then I won’t be able to make it to our little date --”

“Wait, so -- it is a date, right?”

“Jim.”

He raises his hands. “I am trying to clarify, okay, so I know if I should be buying wine or not!”

You roll your eyes. “Of course get wine, Hop, jeez -- can we focus, please, and talk about the date after?”

“I dunno, I kinda wanna talk about it now --” his voice drops low, face leaning in close to yours, and you ignore the desperate ploy to distract you from the one-sided crisis at hand, “Y’know, both of us, snuggled up on the couch --”

You snort out of your nose and swat at his shoulder. “Shut up, Detective Crockett, you can snuggle up with me after you explain -- the communicae we’re hearing, what is it?”

(He tries to ignore that blatant Miami Vice reference but stumbles.)

“Bait,” he says curtly, “It’s fake, it’s bait -- The men in suits have their eyes on this town like you wouldn’t believe, Murph, and they’re trying to flush anyone out that’s left.”

Your eyes widen a mile and Hopper realizes, in that moment, he’s said too much. You throw your hands in the air, exasperation taking a hold as you stand and toss the afghan at him. You start pacing, fingers on your chin as you fiddle with your bottom lip. 

Immediately, you ease up. 

Jim puffs his cigarette, watching you closely. “What?”

“... When are we having dinner?”

Jim bawks. 

“Uh, how’s -- how’s Thursday?” Jim asks slowly, “El and I watch Miami Vice on Friday’s... She usually goes over to Max’s for studying anyways. I can see if Billy can drop her off?”

“Yea, yea -- Thursday is good,” you say slowly, eyes glued to the broad shoulders of the man on the couch, “That explains the shirt.”

Jim cracks a wry smile. “It’s cutting edge.”

“It looks good,” you shrugs, “You look good.”

“... I had an apology rehearse, y’know.”

“I know,” you say slowly, “I heard you practicing.”

Jim just drops his head and laughs. 

“So, Thursday?”

“7pm?”

“My place?”

You crack a grin. 

“Sounds like a date, Chief.”

#moonrise radio #jim hopper x reader #chief hopper x reader #jim hopper imagine #stranger things imagine #Anonymous

[crossbows-and-moonshine]

Such a Softer Sin (Chapter twenty one)

(Chapter one)     (Chapter two)     (Chapter three)     (Chapter four)

(Chapter five)     (Chapter six)     (Chapter seven)     (Chapter eight)

(Chapter nine)     (Chapter ten)     (Chapter eleven)     (Chapter twelve)

(Chapter thirteen)     (Chapter fourteen)     (Chapter fifteen)

(Chapter sixteen)     (Chapter seventeen)     (Chapter eighteen)

(Chapter nineteen)     (Chapter twenty)

This chapter almost didn’t happen. The one after this was actually chapter 21, but then I realised that I didn't really go into Connors first kiss with Lila like I did with Murphys, since the chapter after this starts a week after Murphy kissing her. Connor wasn't impressed with me at all and kept nagging at me.

So here we are. It’s kinda short but just as sweet and according to Connor; very fuckin’ important!

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

It was weird for Lila to be at work, knowing things with the boys were dramatically different. She thought back to that very morning, when Murphy had kissed her and left her breathless, how Connor had joined them and shown her, let her feel, their intense connection. It made her head spin and she didn't really understand how she was part of it. Murphy's explanation of her being made just for them did make sense, because she had no other clue what the hell it could be. As Murphy said, they were twins, that's why they had that connection. But Lila wasn't part of that, she wasn't related at all. She had no idea how she would have such a profound and weird ass bond with the boys, but she liked it. It felt so intimate and it was strange. It would definitely take some getting used to.

She stood there drying some glasses, the boys were perched at the other side of the bar with Rocco, and Aileen was talking to them. The older woman was an angel, Lila loved her. She had been so mad at the boys and what they did on their birthday, and she tore strips off them when they walked in. Lila was amused. But Aileen could see they had worked it out, she could even just see the difference in the three. She wasn't going to intervene or cause trouble. She just wanted the boys to know that if they fucked with Lila again, they'd have her to deal with.

She'd been at work for over an hour now and there had been a niggling voice in the back of her head, making her painfully aware she hadn't kissed Connor yet. She wasn't sure how to go about it, he had the chance to kiss her when he grabbed her face at the loft that morning, doing his Jedi mind shit on her, but he hadn't taken that chance. She found herself feeling anxious, maybe he’d changed his mind? Maybe he decided he didn't want her that way after all. Or maybe he was waiting for her to go to him. She felt too unsure of herself to pull a move like that though. Connor was always harder to read than Murphy, sometimes she didn't know where she stood with him. She’d felt a little bit hesitant with him after the whole car incident, because that had thrown her for a loop and was so unexpected, to see him act like that. So instead, she opted to dry the glasses and glance over at the boys every now and again.

She had noticed the twins in a heated discussion in some other language, Murphy was scowling, looking like he was giving his brother an ear bashing, and Connor just looked sick of him. She worried a little, there was some tension there, and she hoped she wasn't the cause. She heaved a sigh and jumped when Aileen touched her arm, she didn't even notice the woman come over to her.

“Ye can take a break sweetie.” She said softly, making Lila look at her like she’d grown an extra head. Lila never took a break. She only worked from 8 till 11 so she never felt the need to, so this was new and very fucking weird.

“Uh...no I’m good, thanks Aileen.” Lila smiled, still looking a little baffled. Aileen chuckled giving her a weird knowing look and it only confused her more.

“There’s a handsome blonde Irish man after yer company outside for a moment.” She smirked, nodding her head in Connors direction. Lila quirked a brow curiously, Connor wouldn't look at her, fidgeting and fishing out his smokes.

Murphy caught her eyes though, tipping his beer to her with a lopsided grin, looking like he had won whatever argument he had with his counterpart. It made her blush and smile, remembering how intense their kiss was. His grin turned into a smirk like he could tell what she was thinking, he probably could since the assholes knew everything now.

“Alright I guess, I won't be long.” She told Aileen, setting down the towel and glass as she made her way out from the bar. Connor was stood as he glanced to her unsure of himself and Lila felt even more worried. Was this where he broke up with her? Were they even together for him to break up with her? Her brain fucking hurt at this point as she followed him outside.

He lit his smoke and he shifted as he looked at her, exhaling and looking so uncomfortable.

“What is it? You’ve changed your mind, haven't you? I should have known.” Lila sighed regretfully, leaning against the wall and crossing her arms over her chest. Connors eyebrows almost flew off his head and he let out a small laugh.

“Fuckin’ Christ lass, oh ye o’ little faith.” He snorted incredulously. Lila looked at him and relaxed just a little.

“Well, what is it then?” She asked bluntly, the anxiety was making her skin crawl and he looked about the same. He inhaled his smoke once more as he stepped towards her, stopping just a little away from her. He scratched the scruff of his chin and Lila noticed he kept glancing at the door.

“I just… I ain’t really good at this shit aye? And then there's Murph.” He sighed, looking contemplative. His eyes were flitting to the door every two seconds and he was fidgeting. It was obvious he wanted to talk to her alone for some reason, but also Murphy had something to do with how he was behaving? It clicked in her mind then, Murphy's words from that morning ringing through her brain. ‘It's why we dinnae really spend much time apart, ‘cause it sets us on edge, not bein’ able te feel each other properly…’

“Is it really bothering you that much when he’s just inside? You know he’s okay.” She said softly, her brow furrowed, she was honestly shocked. She didn't know Murphy meant it like this, being separated by a wooden door and only a few feet away. Connors' eyes widened for a moment, not really knowing what to say. He wasn't aware of just how much Murphy had told her about the whole thing, but it seemed his instructions of the bare minimum had gone unheeded.

“Fuckin’ hell, how much did he tell ye?” He frowned, looking almost accusatory, his guard up. Lila snorted at him, shaking her head, she understood why he was reluctant. It was a big deal, they hadn't ever shared this with anyone before.

“He told me enough. I’m grateful he did, it all makes sense to me. I don't know why you don't want me to know, I’m part of it now after all.” Her voice sounded so small to her own ears, like she was unsure of herself, her place with the boys. Connor untensed at her tone and flicked his smoke away, discarding it as he closed the gap. He didn't touch her though, he just stood right there.

“M’sorry sweetheart, ye know how I am. Just a little...guarded wit’ it I guess. Had some...unsavoury comments made in the past and they didn't even know about the telepathy, just didn't like the closeness.” He frowned, tugging his lower lip between his teeth.

“Well fuck them. Fuck them all. I love the bond you two have, it's so fucking special. And to be a part of that, it's overwhelming. It makes me feel fucking special.” She admitted, looking at him firmly. He couldn't help the grin that worked its way onto his face as he leaned down, kissing her forehead.

“Ye are special lass, very fuckin’ special, te the both o’ us.” He smiled, making her beam a smile up at him.

“Well then, what is it you wanted me for Mr MacManus?” She asked, feeling much more relaxed now with him. He quirked a brow at the name and huffed a laugh. He shifted where he stood once again, looking over to the door. She took his face in her hands, making him look at her. Her bright blue eyes were soft as she looked at him, no judgement there, just adoration, and it made his chest constrict.

“Connor, he’s fine. Why are we out here?” She asked softly.

He didn't answer her, instead he opted her show her what he had asked her out here for. He leant down, closing the gap, as his lips met hers. She was surprised at first, it caught her off guard, but then she melted into him and wrapped her arms around his neck. His hands pulled her close, one splayed on her hip and the other on her neck. His kiss was different from his brothers. Murphys was all fire and fury, hard and fast just like the boy himself. But Connors was intense in a different way. Each caress of his tongue seemed calculated and it was slow, but still very fucking sensual. She moaned into the kiss, and she felt him growl in response. The noise made her feel a little warm between her thighs and before she knew it, he had pulled away. He rested his forehead on hers, the pair breathing heavy and her cheeks flushed. She was glad he hadn't told her and just did it to show her, it made it less awkward.

“Hmm… I don't think I quite caught that, you wanna run it by me again?” She asked cheekily, her eyes alight with mischief. Connor snorted at her, a bright grin on his face at her teasing. He leant down and gave her another kiss, much shorter this time but still sweet. When he moved away, he took her hand, kissing it affectionately. She knew she had a stupid smile on her face like a girl that just got kissed by her high school crush but she couldn't bring herself to care. He stroked her face but she could see him tense again, looking to the door. She decided to put him out of his misery. She wasn’t surprised that Connor had asked for her to accompany him outside, he was a more reserved and private it seemed, and it was only fair he got his turn with her.

“Come on, let's go see what that hooligan brother of yours is up to, I bet he’s burnt the place down by now with him being away from you.” She snorted, making Connor bark a laugh at her as they made their way inside.

Sure enough, when they walked inside, Murphy was pacing by the bar looking like he had received the worst news of his life. But when his eyes settled on his brother, he relaxed visibly and he smiled at them. It made Lilas heart flutter that they worried so much about each other, even when they weren't even far away. When his eyes settled on Lila, he gave her a real smile. Not a smirk or his teasing grin, but his beautiful full Murphy smile that lit up the room with its radiance. She loved the brothers real genuine smiles, they seemed reserved only for her and it made butterflies bloom in her stomach. She smiled right back as they walked over and she slipped back behind the bar. She watched the boys curiously as they both sat back down and she noticed how Murphy seemed to sit even closer to his brother like he needed him more, like the tiniest amount of time being barely separated had made him needy. She smiled to herself when she saw Connor squeeze the back of Murphy's neck and they smiled at each other. ‘So when I’m upset, and Connor grabs the back o’ me neck like he does, its kinda like, he can push his calmness onte me, te help me calm down’. The twins looked over at her, beautiful smiles on their faces and she couldn't help but smile back as her cheeks flushed slightly. She had no idea why anyone would ever want them apart or make them feel shitty for their bond, it was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen, and now she was part of it.

‘It’s just like...me and Connor were fine on our own, we felt complete, we didnae know any better. But the second ye came along, we felt it. Feelin’ completely whole...like...like ye were made for us, meant te be with us all along.’

Taglist; @risingphoenix761 @daryldixonandfrogs @arlaina28

#boondock saints #boondock saints fanfic #murphy macmanus #murphy macmanus fanfic #connor macmanus #connor macmanus fanfic

[motherbuilt-blog]

Drabble for @ragingicarus 

She is older than her goodbye video and it shows in the way she looks. Hair is going grey and wrinkles starting to form showing it had been a while since their last talk. She has been in Monty’s updates and a few videos. This was the first video she’d made for Murphy since that goodbye though. 

“Hey there stranger I bet you thought that the last video was all you got but you’re special enough I figured you deserve a sequel.” She lets out a laugh at her comment though tears start to fall as she laughs. 

“I thought that video was all I was gonna give you but a few days ago I had a seizure. A few things had been happening leading up to it symptoms and shit. It’s all stuff that happened to my grandmother when she had a brain tumor. I know brain tumor big scary words but I’m okay it’s not pain it’s other stuff like my vision getting blurry or memory loss. “ She tries to explain though she stops letting out a bit of a laugh. 

“Sorry I’m rambling it’s just all scary to say. I’m not afraid of dying I miss Roma, Mbege, Peter, and all the others so much I’m ready to be with them. I’m just scared of forgetting our memories of what I wanted to say. Thinking about the things I’d lose from my mind made me realize I had things I wanted to get off my chest before I forgot it all.”

She pauses for a moment and wipes away a few tears. “I really hope you’re alone I should have said that sooner sorry. I just I need to tell you things and I don’t want my daughter or any of our space family here for it. I just want it to be the two of us I would have done it face to face but I don’t think I have it in me to do this face to face.”

She pauses again and takes in a breath. “I told you I love you and I do but I was also in love with you. I think a part of me always was even as little kids who teased and stole each others toys. I didn’t realize it for a long time not until we kissed up on the ring. Kissing you I realized I had spent a lifetime in love with you. Part of me wishes I had told you but I am happy that I didn’t tell you now that I think back to it. It didn’t feel fair to Mbege who I loved them and still love now. It didn’t feel fair to Emori even if you weren’t together at the time. She is my family my beautiful sister that I love so much.”

Lou turns her head for a moment and wipes away a few tears. It’s not as bad as she thought it would be but she has been crying though most of it. “Sometimes I like to think in some other universe in another life we had our chance. We had our little life together and our happy ending it just wasn’t this one.In this life I got my beautiful girl and of course Mbege who I am ready to see I miss him so much. You- god you have Emori she’s perfect I love her so much she’s so pretty and smart she’s so perfect for you. I hope you two live beautiful lives together and that a long long time from now you can tell me how beautiful your lives were when we meet agai

“I know that tree of eden shit was never your thing but I do believe it. I believe we will meet again and be so happy all of us. Just don’t let that be before you’ve lived a long life okay? I miss you but I don’t want you ruining your chance with this new planet and your girl because you deserve a long peaceful life like i’ve had.” 

“I’m sorry that I laid all this out on you I mean I’ve had what forty years to process it all but you didn’t even know. I just had to tell you all of it before I forget it all. It feels good to say it out loud I feel a weight lifted off my chest I feel... ready in a way. Take care of our family and my beautiful girl keep them safe- live a happy life.” 

A genuine smile forms on her lips and tears stop falling. “I love you so much John Murphy and I can’t wait to see you one day. I know this is the part where I’m supposed to say may we meet again but I know we will so I’ll say something else.” She pauses for a moment and suddenly she thinks of Jasper and a grin forms on her lips. “I’ll see you on the other side, Murph.” She tells him before the video ends screen black. It’s her final video message to John Murphy.

#{{ v;; post season 5 au }} i found peace in my family #terminal illness tw #death tw #seizure tw #tumor tw

[hornsbeforehalos]

Trouble

Pairing: Connor & Murphy Macmanus x OFC Warnings: Religion, Language, Adult Content, Older Men/ Younger Woman, Polygomy, Violence, Character Death, Use of a racial slur in regards to Romeo.

Part Two in the Boondock Saints Three series. AN: I do not own BDS or any of the characters created by Troy Duffy, I just have fun with them. Do not repost my work anywhere. I’ll find you.

Tags: @aquivercactus​ @srj1990​ @jesbakescookies​ @daddy-kink-confirmed​ @dragongirl420​ @docharleythegeekqueen​ @jodiereedus22​ @youandyourstupidrope​ @addiction-survivor25​ @reedusteinrambles​ @his-paradox​ @perseusandmedusa​ @through-thesilver-lining​ @mwesterfeld1985 @redm81 @sorenmarie87 @make-things-beautiful2

She was startled from her prayer when the loud bang of the doors closing echoed through the Cathedral. Her head instinctively jerked to the source of the sound to find the two brother’s crossing themselves with the Holy Water. She whipped her head back around quickly, just in time for them not to see her face as she bowed her head back and continued the prayer she was reciting. The rest of the great room was empty, as it was still earlier than the beginning of the first morning mass, and she could sense the brother’s breathing even with them perched in a pew rows and rows and rows away from her.

Lord, give me clarity, to decipher what I’m meant to do. Give me strength and intelligence to make the right decision. In Christ’s name.

Fiona Crossed herself and raised from her seat to step forward past the podium to the statue of the Savior. She kissed his feet and Crossed herself again before turning and focusing her attention on the door she was headed towards. The brothers both raised their heads after she’d passed them without a word and turned to face each other with a knowing expression. There was another bout of static in the air as she pushed open the doors and disappeared from their view.

Fionna was attempting to recover herself from the rush of blood throughout her body, her brain almost feeling fried. She hadn’t slept much the night before, and here she was seeking Sanctuary from her thoughts only to have the center of her anxiety find her. She’d been trying hard to forget about the spark she felt when she burst into the room, the same blush gathering blood in her cheeks again as she checked herself again and made her way down the steps to hail a cab.

“Ye mind carpoolin’, lass?” A deep Irish lilt sang behind her, and her eyes widened and face flushed again as she whipped her head around in it’s direction. Connor stood next to his brother on the bottom step and they were simultaneously lighting cigarettes.

“I do actually. You know I don’t know you, correct?” Fionna replied, her nervousness making her snappy as she observed them.

“Sure ya do, love. I’m sure ye Granda’s tol’ ye about us, surely?” Connor asked, smirk playing on his lips innocently.

She snorted, rolling her eyes and shaking her head to gaze away from them for a moment before looking back, “Enough for me to know you two are trouble.”

Both men grinned and chuckled at her in unison, the choreography of it all making Fionna’s head quirk owlishly to the side for a moment before a cab pulled up to the curb and gathered her attention. She opened the door and climbed in, only to be squished between the two brother’s who crawled in on either side of her before she had the chance to stop them.

“Jesus H. Christ.” She mumbled, wiggling her arms free from where they’d been pinned to her sides with a sigh.

“Lord’s name, Lass. Ya jus’ got out of church.” Connor tisked while grinning down playfully at her.

“Where to, guys?” The cabbie asked, Bostonian accent thicker than the mustache displayed across his face.

“Boston University, please,” Fionna answered, her eyes side-glancing back and forth at the brothers, before explaining to them, “I have to go to school, boys.”

“Of course, lass. Our mot’er would have our necks if we didn’ escort ye, though. A pretty girl like yerself shouldn’ be alone in the big streets of the city, ye know.” Connor offered coolly, his eyes moving from Fionna’s face to Murphy, who’d been his usually quiet self, save the smug smirk plastered on his face. He offered his brother a nod in agreement, earning him a wink from him and a sigh from the girl.

“I knew you two were trouble.” She murmered grumplily, sulking in her crammed place between the twins as the taxi pulled away from the curb.

“T’ink she felt it too, Murph?” Connor asked after they both waved her goodbye and began their walk down the street.

Murphy shrugged, flicking the collar of his coat up around his neck before glancing at his brother, “Dunno.”

“I t’ink she did.” Connor assumes, nodding his head with a smile creeping across his face, “Did ye see her face?”

“Aye,” Murphy replies, tilting his head in agreement.

“So what are we doin’ wit’ the first day of our freedom, bro’ter?”

“Need to call Smecker or Bloom, check on Rome.” Murphy answers, looking to his twin who nods his head in understanding.

“Hopefully they’ll know where the little spic is. Can’t believe he jus’ disappeared.”

“Prolly put under some protection, don’ ye think?” Murphy offers, digging in his pocket to find his cigarettes, “Like Smecker did wit’ everyone else.”

“Well, s’only one way ta find out.”

Part Three Released 12/09/2017

#boondock saints fanfiction #connor macmanus fanfiction #connor macmanus smut #murphy macmanus fanfiction #murphy macmanus smut #macmanus brothers x ofc

[oneweekoneband]

Why Did It Take Me So Long To Notice That The Word Is “Fury” Not “Furry”?

Hello again. While I must admit to mild surprise at Dinosaur Jr.’s absence from the constantly growing roster of artists covered on OWOB, I should also state my attempted approach to writing about a band with no lack of wordage already available on its behalf. Though potentially futile, I will be trying to write something that benefits a cross-section of readers, from the unfamiliar but curious to the currently dismissive therefore purposely detached to the self-appointed superfan. All of this being stated, please understand that “attempted” carries one hell of an implied emphasis.

As covered in the previous post, I’m an active writer with many years in the trenches, though at least a half-decade in between my first toe-dips into this endeavor and the formative teenage moment when exposure to two Dinosaur Jr. albums (1987’s You’re Living All Over Me and 1991’s Green Mind, their second and fourth, respectively) combined to transform a fervent interest in underground music into a terminal, all-consuming obsession that almost seems to have dictated, in some way, shape or form, each lifting of a finger since. 

I’ve had a fair amount of writing published on the subject of this band, but most of it appeared during the first half of my now 18 years in this racket, barring the entries about several Dinosaur Jr. albums did make it into my second (and most recent) book, which carried the subtitle of 500 Essential American Underground Rock Albums 1981 - 1996 and a title that I absolutely hate so it shall not be revisited. On that note, attacks of full-body cringe have become as reliable as Christmas upon revisiting older writings, therefore I did not in order to guarantee no points or angles reiterated. But for what it’s worth, at some point in the early-00s, I did a long and embarrassing tribute to You’re Living All Over Me for the Perfect Sound Forever website as my first piece of writing on the band. Then once the spotlight was aimed backwards and topically in 2004-2006 for that period’s two-tiered reissue and reunion activity, I wrote a bunch of features about the Homestead and SST years (plus the early run of reunion shows) for several outlets. I interviewed both Mascis and Barlow, twice each if I remember correctly, and essentially felt like I said everything there was to possibly say about this band whose music more or less put me on a personal and professional course that continues to this day. I don’t feel like that anymore.

Two things to take into account before we move on: First, none of the subsequent entries will be this long, or at least that’s the plan. Secondly, this week will feature very little writing on the four albums of new material Dinosaur Jr. has released since the original lineup of J. Mascis, Lou Barlow, and Emmett Jefferson Murphy III (almost exclusively known as “Murph” but I find his full given name to be amusing) reunited in 2005…will be of the unflattering comparative variety. However popular it might be to jump to black-and-white, definitive conclusions, do not take this to mean I consider these albums to be bad or boring or anything of the sort. But do know that they are, despite what the rest of the world seemingly believes, inferior when placed against what I will be trying to push into your ears and lives going forward. And understand that Dinosaur Jr.’s major-label era (1991 - 1997) will be explored in a nooks-and-crannies fashion (meaning, we’re going to get into Mike Johnson’s discography), as I feel there’s a nice chunk of amazing music hidden in there that has been largely overlooked or misunderstood.

I am about as obsessed with music as I am the non-fiction ghetto in which I operate.  Therefore it might or might not behoove me to do something no one outside of this little world should waste their time with, and that would be lot of overthinking about a couple of crucial elements of artistic criticism and appreciation that appear to be under constant attack these days: context and nuance. There is no such thing as good-to-great creative nonfiction or journalism that lacks or misuses either, and the most difficult to translate of the two is, of course, context. 

These days it seems every talking head (or every record-store loiterer or live show barnacle) of similar vintage to myself should be wearing a t-shirt or rocking a bumper-sticker that says, “Ask Me What It Was Like Before The Internet!”. This is something for which I harbor a visceral and distinct distaste if not great embarrassment. Any historically-precise party line of assumed profundity is going to fail at transmitting the intended impact for two reasons. First is the obvious neutering of any meaning or relevance when beating a cultural audience over the head with something, year after year, generation after generation. The second is more problematic, as I’m not certain that being present during its heyday or for a following period of linear influence is necessitated so as to provide fundamental context needed to understand how or why a band was groundbreaking or brain-rearranging or whatnot. 

For example, Dinosaur Jr. was four albums and seven years active once its music entered my life in earnest. Still, when it comes to blanket mantras of the reality-removed like, “This Was Before The Internet!” or “We Didn’t Have Cell Phones” battle stories, usually issued as some delusional badge of struggle or evidence of authenticity, we’re talking something that means far less than is assumed to a recipient without the same experiential history. I usually cringe when I witness someone else trying to get this across to a younger generation, though I have yet to figure out myself how to do it effectively. 

Conversely, there are examples of past underground rock prescience (well beyond the legendary trio of albums released by Dinosaur Jr. between 1985 and 1988) such as Mission of Burma, Black Flag, NEU!, Brian Eno’s “Third Uncle”, The Feelies, The Embarrassment, Can, This Heat, The Fall, mid-period Sonic Youth, Husker Du’s SST years, Black Sabbath, Slayer, mid-80s Swans, and Miles Davis’ 1970 - 1975 output, to name but a few, that occurred long before I developed anything close to refined taste or the ability to let music have an impact on a deep emotional and intellectual level. Or, for that matter, the ability to breath air outside of the womb in some of those cases. 

Still, once properly blown away, I could easily wrap my head around how each example was way ahead of the curve, or scared the shit out of most listeners who came in contact with it in real time. Of course, it helps if the music in question resides in the exclusive canon reserved for that which is genuinely timeless. If it falls short of timeless it sure as hell better be a high quality, well-aged specimen of music that’s nonetheless easily identifiable as being from a certain era of yore. Much of material released by Dinosaur Jr.’s during the band’s first two phases of activity, which together span 1985 until 1997, fits into one of those two categories.

My first meaningful introduction to Dinosaur Jr. essentially played out in similar a similar fashion to formative life-altering moments spun by many writers, musicians, and fans of my generation or older. I suppose a warning should now be issued that you’re about to read yet another account of someone taping episodes of MTV’s 120 Minutes. I had a habit of setting the recording time to the shittiest quality of six hours and fitting three episodes of said show onto my parents’ VHS copies of HBO and Cinemax films like The Cotton Club and Bill Cosby’s Himself. Some time after its parent album (You’re Living All Over Me) was released, on a Christmas night when I was in my early teens, the video for “Little Fury Things” ran between a Michelle Shocked number and The Cure’s infuriatingly awful “Let’s Go To Bed” (that goes for the video and the song). At first I focused on other future life-alterers like the clip for The Fall’s “New Big Prinz” and Sonic Youth’s iconic “Teenage Riot” video, as Dinosaur Jr.’s idea of a video and that song were just too fucking dark and ominous for my young teenage mind. 

But because I had to fast forward or rewind through multiple Christmas-special live-in-the-studio tomfoolery from hosts They Might Be Giants along with crap that was somehow already “not for me” like Fishbone, Camouflage, Translator, and the not-that-bad-but-long-as-hell video for Love And Rockets’ “Dog End Of A Day Gone By”, I eventually came around to the three minutes and change that was the “Little Fury Things” video….like a moth to flame. I still have the very VHS tape I used to play and rewind repeatedly while my parents were at work during the day, blasting it through the shitty speakers of our 27” Sony Trinitron and running all over the floorplans of the three houses (well, one house and two apartments, if we’re to split hairs) I lived in during my high school years. The beginning of the video goes blank for a few seconds because I accidentally hit “record” on the remote amidst some furious bouncing all over the couches and chairs.

I seriously doubt there’s a song I’ve listened to, on my own accord, more times than this one and it still delivers a palpable, albeit much different due to time passed, charge as it plays at this very moment. The sonic dichotomy that makes this track exciting- powerful noise/distortion married to a huge, highly emotive pop hook-happens to be another dragon I chase to this day and in general has been one of the crucial elements of forward movement undertaken by post-hardcore, proto and first-gen indie-rock, punk rock, shoegaze and underground metal over the last 30 years. Because I still run into music obsessives, mostly younger, who are unaware of Dinosaur Jr.’s legacy and historical place as a paramount force of innovation, influence and well-aged listening excitement, I’ll close this entry with the aforementioned video despite it visually communicating far less than it does musically. 

Much has been written (years ago by myself and more recently in Nick Atfield’s 33 ⅓ book on the album it opens) about attempting to decipher or assign one’s own meaning and words to what is probably a bunch of lyrical nonsense. I think that’s organically symptomatic of anything that hits with this kind of power and non-cheesy melancholic punch. A personal fave, however, would have to go to the one-off “Hallelujah, the sunlight brings the red out in your eyes” line that opens the gate for an instrumental mid-section of riffs (where a guitar solo might normally be).

“Little Fury Things” official video from 1987′s You’re Living All Over Me

And here’s a couple of clips that hopefully illustrate how insanely loud and air-moving Dinosaur Jr. Mach I must have been as a live band, especially considering the average age of the members was 20 to 22.

1986 at UMass…

Germany, 1988, full set. Pretty good sound given the age/era.

#dinosaur jr

[usnewsaggregator-blog]

49ers’ Dwight Clark candidly details battle with ALS

New Post has been published on http://usnewsaggregator.com/49ers-dwight-clark-candidly-details-battle-with-als/

49ers’ Dwight Clark candidly details battle with ALS

Photo: Eric Risberg, Associated Press

Image 1of/1

Caption

Close

Image 1 of 1

Former wide receiver Dwight Clark, center, speaks next to former San Francisco 49ers owner Edward DeBartolo Jr., left, during halftime of an NFL football game between the 49ers and the Dallas Cowboys in Santa Clara, Calif., Sunday, Oct. 22, 2017. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg) less

Former wide receiver Dwight Clark, center, speaks next to former San Francisco 49ers owner Edward DeBartolo Jr., left, during halftime of an NFL football game between the 49ers and the Dallas Cowboys in Santa … more

Photo: Eric Risberg, Associated Press

49ers’ Dwight Clark candidly details battle with ALS

Back to Gallery

Two days after he delivered an emotional halftime speech at Levi’s Stadium, former 49ers wide receiver Dwight Clark this morning offered his most expansive public comments since he revealed he had ALS in March.

During a 14-minute interview on KNBR’s Murph & Mac Show, Clark, 60, spoke candidly about his battle with the terminal disease that affects nerve cells in the spinal cord and brain.

“I’m just hoping that it plateaus at some point before I get all the way to the end,” Clark said. “Where I can’t move, and talk, and all that. But my wife (Kelly) has been incredible. She’s taken over the gigantic load of having to do everything because I can barely pick up a bag right now.

“I’m losing strength and I’ve lost 80 pounds, if you can believe that. But I’m still able to use my hands a little bit. Walk a little bit. But this stuff is no joke, man. They need to find a cure to this thing because it is torture. It’s just going through all the different phases. I wake up every morning and I take that first step to see if it’s going to work. And it’s ‘OK, still walking today.’”

As he did Sunday, Clark highlighted the support of former 49ers owner Eddie DeBartolo. He also termed Ronnie Lott a “saint” and said former teammates drive to his hometown of Capitola to meet him a few times a week for lunch.

“And it’s just a different group all the time,” Clark said. “It’s almost like they’ve got it organized.”

Clark’s voice sounded stronger than it did during his speech Sunday, and he said fatigue from the day’s events made him worried his voice would “give out” before he finished addressing fans on “Dwight Clark Day.” However, Clark, whose humor was present throughout the segment, made sure he finished even after his speech ended prematurely.

“I thought the 49ers did an unbelievable job of putting that together — the way it all flowed,” Clark said. “The only thing is they cut me off on my speech a little early. I hadn’t talked about Eddie yet or my wife. So I had to get back on. I said, ‘Look, I’m not done.’ They said ‘OK.’”

Clark was thrilled to see nearly 40 members of his teammates from the 1981 49ers. And he relished the opportunity to see fans, many of whom have overwhelmed him with messages of support. He said they are bonded by “The Catch.”

“I feel so honored and humbled that the fans feel the way they do,” Clark said. “And I feel the same way about them. I have a great relationship with the fans. And it’s probably mostly because we have a signature moment together that kicked Dallas’ ass and took us to the Super Bowl.”

Here’s the full interview with Clark (questions are paraphrased):

How was Sunday for you emotionally, and in every way?

DC: It was spectacular. I can’t believe how many players they flew in and how many actually wanted to come. I got to spend an hour-and-a-half seeing them and reminiscing a little bit. Having Eddie there was awesome. It was just a special day. I didn’t get to see too many fans. They kept taking me through these back hallways. So I didn’t get to see many fans. But once I got out in the stadium I could see them all. It was pretty good. It was real good. I thought the 49ers did an unbelievable job of putting that together — the way it all flowed. The only thing is they cut me off on my speech a little early. I hadn’t talked about Eddie yet or my wife. So I had to get back on. I said, ‘Look, I’m not done.’ They said ‘OK.’

Of all the players that came in, can you give us a few that really made you laugh? Or you were surprised by because you hadn’t seen them in a while?

DC: It’s probably somebody that nobody remembers, but there was a guy from Texas named Ricky Churchman. And he and I became friends those first three years. And he was on the Super Bowl team. And we were buddies. And he wasn’t on the list and I requested that they bring him in because those first few years are kind of tough. You don’t know a lot of people. So he and I hung out a lot. Not a big name, but great to see him. The other guy was – and I just love this guy. Because when I tell my story about “The Catch” – “The Catch” doesn’t happen, or it’s not as famous, without Eric Wright’s tackle, Lawrence Pillers’ strip and (Jim) Stuckey’s recovery. And Lawrence Pillers has always been one of my favorites. He’s just a crazy dude. So it was fun talking to him. I had a really good time, but I was worn out. I could tell I was tired. My voice was barely working as I started to talk. I was getting worried that it was going to give out. But it all turned out OK.

Did you feel the love from the fans? And have you felt the love?

DC: Yeah, I actually was going to say. That not only just (Sunday), but you can’t believe – and I don’t know how all these people get my e-mail and text, but I’m getting hundreds and hundreds. And I just can’t keep up with them. So I want to put a blanket thank you out there for everybody that has sent something. And I will eventually get to returning everybody’s texts and e-mails. But, yeah, man, I feel so honored and humbled that the fans feel the way they do. And I feel the same way about them. I have a great relationship with the fans. And it’s probably mostly because we have a signature moment together that kicked Dallas’ ass and took us to the Super Bowl. So there’s a lot of stories that come from that play.

Would you like to say something to the fans?

DC: Just that I appreciate all the support. And the prayers. And anything that will help me try to get through this. This is one of those tough battles that if you beat this, you’re in a very small percentage. And I’m just hoping that it plateaus at some point before I get all the way to the end. Where I can’t move, and talk, and all that. But my wife has been incredible. She’s taken over the gigantic load of having to do everything because I can barely pick up a bag right now. I’m losing strength and I’ve lost 80 pounds, if you can believe that. But I’m still able to use my hands a little bit. Walk a little bit. But this stuff is no joke, man. They need to find a cure to this thing because it is torture. It’s just going through all the different phases. I wake up every morning and I take that first step to see if it’s going to work. And it’s “OK, still walking today.” It’s kind of tough. But I’m telling you – the players on this team, we were really a family back in the 80s. And Eddie has kept that going. I have lunch with guys a couple times a week. They will drive all the way over to Capitola and we’ll go down to the beach and have lunch. And it’s just a different group all the time. It’s almost like they’ve got it organized. Ronnie Lott is just a saint, man. He and my wife are the ones that, I think, really keep my spirits up. Ronnie is always talking positive. And my wife, on top of having to do everything around here – we’re actually getting ready to get some help, it’s at that point now. But those two really keep my spirits up. Eddie, too. Eddie just calls every three days, he texts. He’s an unbelievable guy and you just can’t believe all the stuff he’s doing to try to find something to stop this thing. Like I said (Sunday), he calls all over the world looking for something. And he reads everything trying his best trying to find something to stop this thing. And this Japan drug has kind of slowed it down. So that’s pretty good.

Having ALS, has it changed your view on the world? Or people? Or life?

DC: Well, you enjoy things that you used to take for granted. I used to love to watch the beach. And that was nice. But now I take it in in a different way. There’s just a lot of things in life that people take for granted that I don’t take for granted now. My relationship with my wife and my kids. My friends. I used to look at the phone when somebody called and say ‘I just don’t feel like talking,’ but I talk to everybody now. Because I don’t know what the future holds. I’ve got kind of a different look on the world now. I’m enjoying it as much as I can. And drinking as much good wine as I can. That part hasn’t changed. That helps take the edge off. So that’s pretty good.

Hopefully you’re feeling the love and it sounds like you are.

DC: I am. I definitely am … And I’ll check in. As long as I can talk, I’ll check in with you every now and then, and keep you up to the date. Because I’m a friend of the show, man. I’m a friend of the show.

Twitter: @Eric_Branch

Original Article:

Click here

#49ers #battle #candidly #clark #details #dwight

[jq37]

The Report Card -- Fantasy High Sophomore Year Ep 1

Sophomores and Spring Break 

Note: Hey guys! I decided to try something a little bit different and slightly more structured than my usual recaps for FH: Sophomore Year. I’m hoping this will be a little easier for me and a more useful tool for keeping up to date since there will be a lot more eps to keep track of and they’ll be easier to miss. Lemme know what you think and if you want raw, unfiltered opinions on anything specific, feel free to send me an ask. I’m always down to go off about literally whatever. 

We’re back, baby! It is Sophomore Year at Aguefort and the gang is on Spring Break. A lot is going down so lemme break it down. The Bad Kids, having defeated Kalvaxus last year, are all entitled to a share of his hoard and all the red tape is finally cleared so they all get 20k gold each (which is an insane amount of money converted to USD if you use the WOTC conversion rate of a gold coin being around $145 (circa 2006 when they answered the question)--which would be close to $330 with inflation). Jawbone and Sandra-Lynn are moving in after less than a year into a profoundly haunted house and it’s kind of a Full House situation because Adaine, Fig, Kristen, and Tracker all officially live there (plus it seems that Zayn has also anchored himself to Adaine’s tower--btw, Adaine took the tower that the haunted house obviously has) and you know all the other Bad Kids are gonna be there on the regular. 

More importantly, Aguefort gives the gang their big project for the year--finding the crown of the Nightmare King which was stolen at the end of last season--which is worth 60% of their grade (Adaine does a full Hermione at this information). Each of the gang has info about the NK but the trail has mostly gone cold. Luckily, Fabian just got a hot tip about where Falinel is keeping Aelwyn and she seems like a pretty good lead to start with since she was super tied up in the bad side of all the messiness of last year. Adaine is displeased to say the least. 

Going off to find the crown is super exciting story-wise for two reasons. First of all, it means the gang gets to hire, well, hirelings to help them and temporarily join the party! They ping basically every cool NPC they can think of (except for Tracker for some reason which is BONKERS because (1) she probably would have done it for free and cutting her in would still be keeping the money in the family, (2) she’s dope as hell, (3) she’s a cleric and the party can always use more healers, (4) she’s a werewolf so presumably she has skills that would help in the woods, and (5) they’re t r a c k i n g down a crown and the girl’s name is literally T R A C K E R, but I will not backseat D&D) and eventually end up with Ragh (who has been without an adventuring party all year, poor guy), Sandra-Lynn (swayed by a nat 20 rolled by Fig), Cathilda (!?) ,and, for some reason, Gilear (which Fabian is happy about, mainly for the opportunity to maybe bump him off on the way). Second of all, if you recall, Elmville is a pretty modern town but the rest of the continent is less fantasy high, more high fantasy. Horses and lanterns and all that pseudo-medieval goodness. They are gonna stick out like a sore thumb. I am very here for it. 

Everyone goes home to rest up but, after some ominous dreams, only four of them wake up. Riz and Fig are left asleep and then Brennan mic drops and ends the episode which is a power move and I am extremely upset about it but also, respect. Right for the jugular immediately. I heard Murph and Emily are on tour in the UK next week which probably has something to do with this but, in the moment, I did not know that and I really felt the hammer drop in my heart. It was wild. Cannot wait to see where we go from here. Plus, who doesn’t love watching characters freak out because their friends are in danger?

Random Thoughts

I have no idea what the title of this episode is or if it’ll even have one and not a number but I gave it a placeholder one for now. I also don’t have access to the stream yet so I didn’t get to include some info I wanted to (like a record of nat 20s, and nat 1s so I can track their stats for the school year) and I probably missed some stuff because my brain can only hold so much info guys. I’m not Brennan. 

I mentioned this yesterday during the stream, but there will never be anything better than the pure D&D joy of everyone, in character, talking over each other to clown on each other. They get the friend-group banter that’s a hair breadth’s away from bullying so true to life and it’s so fun to watch. On the flip side, the opening scene with everyone introducing themselves and affirmatively claiming each other as their best friends was also peak D&D. Found family= best trope. 

Fig and Adaine burn spell-slots at basically the same time to try and beat each other to the best room in the (Scooby-Doo ass) house--which is exactly the kind of thing that would happen in this world. It’s such an intuitive setting. I love it so much. (BTW, Fig ends up staying in the false space under the revolving grand piano because, of course).

Fabian and Gorgug went to recruit Ragh, who assumed they were propositioning him for a three-way. In his defense, they did do it in a super proposition-y way and they were in the middle of the LGBTQ student union.

Also, Gorgug gives Ragh an inspiring speech about thinking you’re your own dad which makes him burst into tears. 

Speaking of, Jawbone offhandedly says he’s poly but, like, based on some of the stuff he’s said, I feel like that’s not really a reveal. He also gets along well with Gorthalax and would be down w/ a three-way if Sandra-Lynn wanted to which, again, totally checks out. 

Arthur Aguefort uses Chronomancy to rewind time and catch a snide comment Adaine made under her breath, which is exactly the kind of frivolous use of God-like power I’d expect from him.  

I really love Adaine’s energy coming into this season. She’s in therapy. She’s in a good home environment. She’s comfortable enough with her friend group to do stuff like prank Fig (love that they’re gonna be living together now). And she’s good friends with Zayn now which I want to see more of based on their one interaction in this ep which was very cute. I am already on record as saying I would be down with her getting a ghost boyfriend--I mean, for the aesthetic alone--but I’d be happy with just more friendship. 

Fabian is also hilarious this season because you can tell he’s gone a bit soft from having friends and leaning into that (the friendship necklace with Riz) but also he’s fully aware that it’s happening so he’s, like, ping-ponging back and forth like, “These are my friends,” and, “What am I saying? I used to be cool,” and it’s very funny. Very happy the Aelwyn storyline is happening right out of the gate, both because I think Aelwyn is a very interesting character with a lot of potential for nuance but also because Fabian reacting to her and Adaine reacting to Fabian reacting to her is always gold. 

Prompted by an offhand conversation from Fig about rock and roll, Brennan--earning another feather for his Cap of God Tier DMing--goes on an impromptu five minute long improved diatribe about a bard who played such a good concert that it instantly impregnated everyone in attendance (dudes too) who gave birth to kids with sick rocker hair and denim jackets and ascended to Rock Heaven on their 18th Birthday. You truly have to watch it to believe it. At a certain point I thought he was gonna drop it but that was the moment he doubled down and kept going. Amazing. 

Watching Murph, in real time, make up a girl/boy/whateverfriend in Fantasy Canada was a gift. 

I don’t have access to the stream yet but best quote of the night that I can remember is Kristen choosing her room: This is triggering and I’ll take it. (Her line about her lesbian starter kit and the one about wanting a horse were also bangers). 

The group talks about what they’re going to do for transportation outside of Elmsville since they don’t really use cars out there and they somehow get from “disguise Fig’s tour bus” to “commission Aguefort to create a brand new animal that can hold six people plus hirelings, one of which is Fabian who is also riding his motorbike”.

I love that Sandra-Lynn’s Mom Powers work on Tracker. 

Basrar doesn’t accept the invitation to come with on the quest, but he does give Kristen a bag of infinite ice cream sandwiches, which is basically just as good, IMO. 

Oh Gilear. The man is sleeping in the Seacaster garage, being bullied by skater kids, and now he’s stuck on this quest with his ex and Fabian who actively wants him dead.  

Speaking of, I’m psyched to see more of Sandra-Lynn. She was kind of a sleeper badass at the end of last season. 

Ragh is keeping secrets which I hope the cast doesn’t forget because it could be nothing serious (like the high school drama happening with Skrank and the 7 maidens--maybe he’s just crushing on Gorgug who did full kiss him during Promocalypse) or it could be Serious Business that will blow up if the don’t stay on top of it. We’ll see. 

Oh, almost forgot. Adaine wants an emotional support frog. Every time I think I can’t love her more.   

Detention

Fig for Not Respecting Personal Boundaries

Fig goes full Emily right out the gate and, after finding out that Skrank (nerdy bird dude who apparently can get it) was not only dating Ostentasia (rich, popular dwarf) but also dumped her in pursuit of Danielle Barkstock (one of Ostentasia’s party members, the scandal), disguises herself as him with Danielle to figure out what’s going on. And, wouldn't you know it, when she gives herself away, Danielle immediately is shocked and appalled, as you would be, obviously. We also learn that she’s still catfishing Dr. Asha which is, how you say, for sure a crime. Fig, please, I’m begging you. Cease. 

Honor Roll

Fig, Riz, and Adaine for Researching the Nightmare King

Fig made both lists, look at that. Wasn’t my plan for this to be a three-way tie (also didn’t expect to use the word “three-way” this many times in this writeup) but I think their contributions were pretty much equally valuable. Rainsolo on the Discord wrote up this summary of the lore dump Brennan gave them.

#fantasy high #fantasy high spoilers #dimension 20 #dimension 20 spoilers #the report card #report card

[jq37]

thoughts on this week's ep?

**spoilers for broadway brawl**

***Before we start, I remembered as I was typing this one of the important notes I lost from last week’s recap: Interesting that Christmas seemingly went off without a hitch. I expected Santa to come back into play somehow (like, someone would check on him to make sure Christmas was still on or he’d call them in to help or something) but he hasn’t, at least not yet.***

My guys, my guys, my guys. Was that something or was that something?

I think I am on record as saying that combat is my least favorite part of ttrpgs generally speaking because I’m here for the RP but when a combat episode shines it really freaking shines (see eg: that first combat ep of Bloodkeep where everyone went full Galaxy Brain except for Matt who couldn’t hit a single thing) and this is such a good example. This is easily a top five ep of the season for me, maybe top three so let’s get into it and break down why it was so awesome.

We start right where we left off with Titania and members of her court having come into the theater to beat the tar out of Misty mid-show.

Quick note: At the end of last ep, it was set up so that Misty was thrust on stage right after hearing the mirror was on stage which would place this fight right at the top of Act 2 but at the start of this ep, Brennan seems to indicate that it’s taking place during what would be the closing number. Which would make more sense but imagine you go see a play, the first act is super dope, and then the second act is an insane, minute long fight that’s pretty unconnected to the plot and then a buff, naked, beautiful man tells you the show is over and you should leave. Wild. Anyway.

Pixies with tommy guns in inherently funny.

So one of the things that makes this fight really great is the way it directly ties into the story in a way besides “These bad guys are in our way.” Misty is using this show as a part of her reincarnation spell so if the show is messed up, it fails and she’s on her last life. Brennan has a cool mechanic of making her roll death saves every round at a difficulty lower than her modifier (which is s/t crazy like 11) but that gets harder with damage done to her and performance checks failed by other players who decide to jump on stage. It’s a great way to make the battle feel like it has more personal stakes and it’s my fave original Brennan mechanic since the Family in Flames Sophie’s Choice situation.

(I love that the death save counter is changed for theater comedy/tragedy masks for this. Nice touch.)

Em, Esther, and Wally are also at the fight which is clutch.

Also, Sondheim is specifically here which is an insane detail to add just because.

WILD that no one knows what’s going on with the ritual initially because, as Lou almost does, getting all the civilians out is the smart move and it would COMPLETELY ruin Misty’s plans instantly.

Lou having Kingston take the stairs bc’s he’s 50+ years old and has no time for that nonsense has equal but opposite energy to him doing extra rolls for Fabian to do unnecessary parkour before a simple attack because Fabian’s Like That.

Murph fireblasts the hell out of Titania’s foot soldiers right off the bat from outside of counterspell range which is very cool.

“Give me a performance check for the cockroach.”

“You’re upstaging me bitch?”

Another great thing about this fight is that because of it’s theatrical nature, everyone’s RPing it more than a usual battle ep (or more intensely maybe is what I mean).

Titania hypnotizes Don Confetti and his goons into fighting for her.

“She doesn’t know she’s in a play but she does sing most of her dialogue which is helpful for you.” Titania is just Like That.

Pete drops an erupting earth and drops a sick 37 damage on those same minions Kug got.

I didn’t notice before but yeah, Ally does roll die like a f-ing beyblade champion.

Emily hearing Murph’s low key, offhand comments and cracking up is great.

“Get Sondheim!” (Emily and then Ally: WHAT?!)

Actual living dude Stephen Sondheim being involved in this fight is just so ridiculous and fun and crazy.

We go around to Misty’s turn and she has to beat a 28 (upped from 10) and she fails which feels worse than a normal failed death save somehow.

Lou, in a very good RP move, tells Pete to tell Misty to end the show so she can tell them not to so the group has a valid reason to not evacuate which is a thing they (or at least him and Ricky) would obviously want to do.

Sophie, the madwoman, jumps out of the balcony, grabs a costume, then runs on stage. Emily’s glee at being told that her grabbing the costume will give her advantage is great. She’s always trying to figure out how to make the most of her moves. She is the living embodiment of the concept of method to madness (which is from Hamlet since we’re talking Shakespeare today). 

Ox is constantly dying (Brennan!) but also it’s like, why was he even there before the fight started? I’ve never seen a non-service dog in a theater.

Ricky: Is this part of it?

Oh, forgot to mention that everything that happens on stage is kinda shielded by the Umbral Arcana so everyone watching thinks it’s part of the show, which is a cool plot detail.

Ricky gets fULLY NAKED (Emily, with perfect comic timing: Now do I roll with disadvantage?) and leaps into the fray. He casts Protection from Evil and Good on her which (1) He does by Magic Mike body-rolling on her while he’s naked and considering how much shorter she is that her raises some interesting questions about positioning and (2) is the most clutch use of this spell I’ve seen in a while. It’s a spell I always wanna take as a Paladin because it makes sense character-wise, but I’ve never been able to actually use it because we’re never fighting fiends, fae, or celestial.

Brennan’s dime change change reversal of the critic’s comments on Ricky’s body rolls when Zac re-rolls his 11 makes me glad I never had to face him in a debate team setting.

Ally: What’s Esther’s deal ;)/Brennan: *Esther’s Weapon Stats*

“Your only secret you’ve ever had in your life is that you have a crush on her.”

Wally has a beautiful singing voice and a working knowledge of Midsummer's which is wild.

Lou’s periodic, “My man”’s when Ally/Pete does something cool. He’s very dialed into being Kingston.

Ricky’s aura keeps everyone near him from being charmed and Misty saves everyone else w/ a nat 20 counterspell. Few things in D&D are more satisfying than a well executed counterspell.

Titania trying to get Pete to be her consort or something when he just over the super posh Priya is very funny.

“I mean between me and Sondheim, get Sondheim!”

“DO WE HAVE HOMEWORK TONIGHT?” (“We did have homework.”)

Anyway, Misty has one success now!

Misty tries to use puppet to get Titania to drop her crown and it doesn’t work. Brennan says the crown is Crown of Stars which I looked up and it’s actually a spell, not a physical crown, but I’m assuming he used the mechanical effects of the spell on a physical item.

Brennan doing all these musical/singing bits when he absolutely doesn’t have to. I love it.

I love Ricky and Sophie being the two martial fighting heavy hitters of the group. Like, the two fighters, having the spellcasters’ backs.

I hope the one kung fu fan in the back of the theater never sees another Broadway show again because he’s gonna be so disappointed. 

“I’m just so inspired by that beautiful penis.”

Murph, out of character, verbally acknowledging how insane what they’re doing is. I love when someone pauses in a game of D&D to just recite what’s currently happening out of context so everyone can appreciate how crazy it is. D&D. Gotta love it..

Emily and Siobhan have a quick conversation in the background about whether Sondheim did Les Mis or not (not, that’s Claude-Michel Schönberg) while Brennan and Murph are Ring nonsense.

I also was mildly suspicious of Alyssa so I’m glad Kingston checked her out.

The entire roast of Brennan when he’s selecting D6s is an instantly iconic D20 moment. I can’t do it justice. You kinda just have to see it.

“Someone call Wizards of the Coast!”

Em, Wally, and Alyssa go out when Titania puts out a huge spell that blinds Kug.

“Yummy, yummy, tastes like ass.”

On Misty’s next turn, she rolls a fail which makes it 2 failures to 1 success. Brennan mentions that a nat 1 counts as 2 failures and a nat 20 counts as 2 successes. I’m sure that won’t be relevant later because you can’t foreshadow things when dice rolls are completely random.

Misty fails on puppet again again and Titania goes full Wicked Witch of the West on her and starts Jonesing for those shoessss.

Emily’s Emily(tm) move of the session is doing a flying leap at Titania, hitting her with a stunning strike and having Brennan retract the Box off Doom he was pulling out because she can’t save when she’s stunned. She just plummets out of the sky.

Don Confetti respecting the sacrament of marriage as he goes full Opera ghost and tries to garrote Sophie.

Ricky (still naked) grabs the crown from Titania, tosses it to Misty, and, with some improv and a good charisma roll, makes the show suddenly make sense to the very confused but entertained audience.

I’m so glad that Murph decided to turn into a bear and that they made the Winter’s tale ref. I should have had faith in Brennan and Siobhan, the theater nerds. Exit pursued by a bear y’all.

Lou and Emily bonding over being proud of their die for rolling well when they lend it out for a big roll.

Really wish Pete had wild magic surged in this fight. Just to add that extra bit of chaos. 

With a very good turn (no damage taken, no performances failed) Misty only has to avoid snake eyes to get through this turn. She leapfrogs over that low bar and rolls a nat 20, instantly fulfilling her win condition. At this point, the play is superfluous and Titania is still down.

“Brennan lost and now he knows reddit is gonna eat his ass.”

OK, remember how I said earlier that Misty seems like the kind of character you nudge a little temptation at just to spice things up? Yeah, her killing Titania and getting the crown of the Seelie Fae makes me a liiiitle apprehensive, but we’ll see how that turns out.

“I killed my queen! This is America we don’t have royalty here.”

“Bear, I don’t know who you are, but take me on your back, let me ride on stage.” —creator of West Side Story, Stephen Sondheim

Misty charms the critic at the show to make sure they get a good review which is such a fae thing to do.

Kingston’s clearly not loving attacking Don and Co. post “real fight” what with his whole Do No Harm thing (well, that’s Dr’s but same principle applies I assume) is a good character detail. For that matter, so is Ricky just taking Titania’s crown and not beheading her which he super could have done while she was down but it would have been very incongruous with everything else about him.

Brian “This isn’t Loony Tunes” Murphy throws Sondheim as a projectile weapon at a pixie who snaps the pixie’s neck and then does a monologue at the audience.

I love it when someone rolls low on an insight check and Brennan gives them useless info and then they repeat it in their character’s voice.

4 mins from the end of the ep, Siobhan realizes there are two Perrys in this story for the first time and has a bigger reaction to that than almost everything else in this ep except her nat 20.

Ricky looks for costume faun legs to cover his fully out dick instead of costume pants or even his own pants.

Misty starts glowing with reincarnation energy and she runs into her dressing room for privacy. Also, she still super hasn’t told anyone what’s going on. (ALSO, assuming she’s gonna make the world think she died, it’s gonna be wild for the company of the show to have their leading lady put on the performance of her life and then die on opening night).

“Who am I to refuse a crown when it’s placed so deftly upon my head?”

You know that behind the scenes thing where Brennan is like, “Yeah, I knew Siobhan was gonna steal that book,”? I got some of those vibes during the crown scene.

The implications of what Misty did are gonna be left until next ep but Brennan says something about her creating her own court and it looks like she’s recruiting followers in the promo. IDK how I feel about that (these stories tend to have great power--especially tied to powerful magical items--as a corrupting force) but I am very excited to see how it goes down! See you then!

#the unsleeping city #dimension 20 #asks #galfast

[jq37]

Have you done breakdowns of the last few episodes yet? If not 👀

**spoilers for a new york wedding**

Prologue: I had a partially free day today (as in the day I started writing this which is now two days ago) so I decided to swing by Central Park and check out the Bethesda Fountain where I saw both a proposal and a man on a segway with a live snake around his neck so, yeah, New York is just Like That.

"Here's a possibly magic crown. Why don't we ask the butt stuff guy about that?"

The face Brennan makes when Emily says, "I used to do colonics at the salon," is great. Like, "We are two minutes into this ep, your sentence isn't even complete, and I already can't handle it."

So they get out of the sewers and Bethesda Fountain has been attacked (which is a shame just aesthetically because, having now seen it in person, it's a really pretty fountain). Em is devastated and explains that the fountain is like a Important magical symbol of good change and a source of divine purification magic.

Another side note about the fountain: There are these little cherub figures around it in additional to the Angel. I wonder if those are sentient too. Also-also, the promenade across from the fountain has these cool murals of the seasons. My point is, there's a lot of fodder for possible lore just in that small area of the park.

Misty finds ashes by the fountain (concerning) and wipes it on Kugrash's fur (rude).  

I love that Emily thought Pete was pouring one out (one being one bag of cocaine).

"Sophie, your magic is that you're a wonderful person and you jump really good."

"The Bread Wedding"

Kudos to Brennan for all the wide range of crazy voices he had to do in this ep. Don Confetti. The Golem. Perry the Pigeon. That can't be easy on the throat.

Sophie is fully ready to fistfight Don Confetti over their last names which is wild for a lot of reasons we're not gonna get into.

So Brennan has everyone roll a Wis save and everyone did OK except I think Ricky. Brennan never explains why he had them roll that. Concerning. I'm wondering now if it was something that would have needed a nat 20 to save from it or something where the people who saved didn't realized they saved from it and the people who didn't are just ticking time bombs or sleeper agents or something else awful.

Pete is such a dangerous friend to be around when you're emotionally compromised. His solution to everything is drugs.

"It's an off-white!" --Misty upon being called out for wearing white to a wedding.

Brennan has Perry go on a wild 39 second monologue about relationships that Pete interrupts by stuffing drugs down his gullet--see again my previous bullet about Pete.

Sophie notices that a lot of the pixies recognize her which pm confirms her brother is In This which, to use the word of the day again, *Concerning*.

Emily having Sophie get really emotional but also struggling to keep the laughter out of her face is always super funny to watch.

So Pete finds a table of vampires. Brennan spends a couple of minutes describing them before he gets to it outright but it's pretty immediately clear they're vamps. Well, vamps plus a suspicious older guy and a girl (Melissa) who seems to be playing Renfield to the vamps. Getting high so they can drink her blood and get high. Pete brilliantly confirms this by getting the suspicious guy (Rob, as far as we know) to go off on Politics and then deep mind-reading the girl. That's one of the most clever RP things I've seen a player do. Pete also sees that Rob is hanging out with the vamps but he doesn't seem to be one.

Pete fails his wild magic check but nothing happened that we know of. A lot of stuff on the wild magic table is situational though (like the reincarnate spell from Bloodkeep with the potion Sohkbarr drank).

Rob implies he knows what happened with Pete's dad. Pete goes into a tailspin, as if he isn't constantly in one.

Everyone dancing so they can talk in public instead of just, like, having a sidebar. Just that entire sequence is peak comedy.

Ricky, the good boy, is dancing with his pigeon date while everyone else is mystery solving (or, in Soph's case, crying in a closet or something).

Rob is supposedly in finance. Last time there was a character involved in finance/banking in D20 it was the whole KVX fiasco in FH.

"Did I use up my favor? I could have had anything in the world."

Sophie upon seeing anything young woman in any kind of situation immediately springs into action, ready to drag them out by any means necessary. I love her.

Robert works at a hedge fund and Kug recognizes him. Brennan explains how he knows him in a very vague way which the rest of the table clocks instantly. Murph asks if Rob knows Gabriela. He does. Who the hell is Gabriela, Misty and I wonder.

Emily goes galaxy brain and theorizes that the bad guys are laundering souls which is equal parts bonkers and brilliant. The camera unhelpfully *doesn't* cut back to Brennan so I can attempt to read his DM poker face. I am reminded of Emily wondering if [redacted] was in the sword in a recent ep of Naddpod and Murph just deciding that they were on the spot because it was cooler than what he had planned. I know you can't win at DnD but I think Emily is winning at DnD.

I mentioned this in passing I think last recap, but Pete's magic is really interesting to me because Pete doesn't know what his character sheet looks like and he's not someone like Kingston or Ricky who's been doing their thing for a while and knows that they can do and what the things he can do are called. So Ally has to get a little creative about activating abilities (like True Strike in this ep) without being too meta, if that makes sense.

Kug knows Rob from a while ago (from the 80's he later says) but he doesn't seem to have aged. The group is thinking vampire, but he wasn't drinking blood in the memory Pete saw. Suspicious. Put a pin in that with everything else on my conspiracy board.

Misty: Eyyyy Macarena!

Kug kisses the pigeon. Sure.

Misty/Siobhan also does a clever thing and suggests taking a selfie with the vamp table in the background to see who shows up. Only Melissa and Rob do, so they're not vamps for sure.

So they go back to Kingston's place and he, Pete, and Sophie cook for everyone which has basically nothing really to do with the plot but I think it was a nice character beat for them.

Kingston and Misty fought a mummy on Long Island back in the day. As you do. Sidenote, when I was in Central Park today (two days ago), I passed by a big-ass obelisk that apparently exists and that I am *certain* Brennan has lore for, even if it doesn't come up.

Misty, a very wealthy Broadway star: If you pay for the Metropolitan Museum, you're a Goddamn fool.

Sophie had not put together that Misty is a fairy before now and I was like ??? for a second but, actually, with the info she has, that's not necessarily the conclusion she would draw. She could just be a really short lady with magic. It's been that kind of week.

Kingston presses Kug on how he knows Rob and Kug reluctantly confesses that HE USED TO BE A GUY. Zac blindly guesses that he was a stockbroker which is ALSO CORRECT.

"movie horse breeder" is such a specific job to pull out of thin air.

Siobhan, making a choice: Let me tell you about my good friend, John Wilkes Booth.

Brennan's total break of composure when Zac/Ricky says, "I wasn't always a firefighter." Zac lowkey has the best comic timing of everyone on the squad. He's just really understated about it.

Anyway, there are levels to this. How long has Kug been a rat??? I feel like it must have been a while because of all the weird ass stuff that he does. Also, he excuses a lot of his behaviors due to being a rat considering he's actually a rat-MAN, emphasis on the man. The stock broker thing surprised me more considering that Kug is introduced doing some pretty altruistic, non-stockbroker-y things. Did Kug piss off a homeless witch and get Beauty and the Beast-ed? He never actually answered the question about how he knows Rob since everyone got sidetracked by the fact that he used to be a whole-ass HUMAN MAN. Did Rob curse him for less moral lesson reasons? What's going on here????

Esther and Ale have been researching. The grey baby is apparently named Nod, just like the place, and it (it specifically, not him or her) like the ruler of there.

There's this whole group bit Brennan, Ally, and Siobahn do about how you can take the L train really far and then catch a shuttle bus that can only be seen by the pure of heart to get to Nod and it's really funny but how funny would it be if they actually tried to do it in a dire moment and also Ricky could do it for sure send tweet.

Kingston is trying so-so hard to keep everyone on task all episode. Bless him.

Kug asks Esther about her mom, which surprises her. He says they used to be friends (Did *SHE* curse him????). Esther says she hasn't seen her in a long time, since she was 5 or 6. Of course, it's easy to want to connect this to the Gabriela he was asking about earlier but we'll see about that. I think I saw some people speculating that he's Esther's dad which I'm even more skeptical about considering what we learn later but wouldn't that be wild?

Ricky decides to shoot his shot with Esther. His brain is full of love, determination, civic responsibility, and absolutely nothing else, bless his golden retriever heart.

Brennan as Esther drops the best stealth joke (though, it has a very high likelihood of crossing from joke to plot point) in D20 so far with the Imperial Axiom/Sinatra's Law explanation. It was a full, "Wait. What? Oh!" Big gold star for Brennan for that one. I had to take a second and recover from that when I heard it the first time.  Beyond the joke, it also seems like a likely hook for the eventual Big Bad of the campaign. First NY, then the world, you know?

The fact that the highways go against the grain of magic leylines of NY in this world is such a good detail and it makes a lot of sense intuitively.

Zac breaks Brennan again with the, "Traffic's really bad," comment.

Please let Ricky's big dumb puppy self win over Esther. "It's really hard for me." Riiiickyyyy.

So Kingston goes to see Willy, the Williamsburg golem about Lazarus from the Bible (New Testament). Aren't golems de facto Jewish? I think. I am correct. However, as much as Willy doesn't know about the New Testament, he *does* know about the Statue of Liberty which is convenient because--shoutout to the people who figured it out in advance--Lazarus is not Lazarus from the Bible. It's Emma Lazarus who wrote the poem on the Statue of Liberty. This of course means that I need to do a close read of that poem at some point but not today baby because I need more information before I start going full Pepe Silvia. Sidenote: What a great place for Kingston to be when figuring out that info. Close enough that Willy can just point out the statue. It's cinematic. Fantastic.

(Also, I made a post about the fact that Siobahn just knew Emma's name off the top of her head, but when it cut to the other side of the table, Emily's eyes got all big too).

Emily gets a nat20 which RUINS her plans because she runs into Isabella aka the woman her husband left her for. They have an adult Means Girls stand-off where Sophie finds out they're getting married (or at least having a ceremony bc Dale didn't send her divorce papers yet). Big ups to Emily for staying in character and ditching all the sleuthing she was going to do because there is no way Sophie would be stable enough for that to be her top priority at the moment (even though I really wanted her to do all that stuff!)

Also, I'm looking forward to watching Sophie rip her to shreds when she inevitably turns out to be a succubus/demon/fiend/whatever. Honestly, she can just barfight her and I'd be satisfied.  

So Misty goes home and finds a present waiting for her. It's a big ass mirror. Correction. It's a big ass mirror that Titania immediately uses to angry Skype her. Yikes.

It seems like her shoes of Titania are literally that, stolen from Titania (love that Titania was barefoot in her character art btw). I know they let her cast a certain spell in an earlier episode but I'm wondering why she stole them. Maybe they helped her cross over from Faerie (which happened ~400 years ago we ind out)?

Titania is pissed that Misty is stealing "glamour" that should be hers (via playing her in the new show). Glamour in the fairy sense is like a disguise. Glamour in the DnD sense is a fey-based bard option (which is the class I'm guessing Titania will be if they have to fight her). Curious to get a deeper explanation on that later.  

Misty is able to cover back up the mirror but she breaks a hip in the process because of Titania's mojo and has to call Kingston. I already said this but I love their relationship.

(Sidenote, I meant to mention this earlier, but I think whiffs of the undead came up a couple of times in this ep which makes me wonder if the mummy situation Kingston mentioned is going to come back).

"Please, use any one of the guestrooms."

I FORGOT ABOUT KUG'S STUFF AT THE END

Ugh, this ep is an emotional roller coaster

"Wherever you are Rat Jesus, know that I love you. From Wally." What a good boy. 

Everyone reacting to Murph's reaction to Wally before they Find Out is like, an experience. It's like that airpods meme.

OK, I'm not going to go through a whole play by play because nothing I could say would be better than watching the scene but I guess Murph/Bren decided in for a penny, in for a pound because we find out via a conversation between Wally and his businessman brother David that he is Kug's SON. HIS SON. S O N.

Wally is convinced that their dad wouldn't have just left them. David thinks Wally is being naive. I want to die.

Everyone around the table except maybe Ally is so visibly upset at this new information and Ally goes, "FUCK!" at the end so you know we all express emotions in different ways.

God, it's so sad! And I'm not gonna say, "I knew it!" because I didn't. I super didn't. But when Wally was introduced (man that scene hits differently now) I remember thinking, this is such an oddly specific NPC. Like, you know when you're playing a game and the stuff you can click is slightly better rendered and you can kind of tell what you should focus on and what's background art? That's how he felt.

Anyway, again, I'm sad. (GMYeah!.gif)

Watching *OVER* you Murph. OVER you. That's how you make it not creepy!

Meanwhile, Pete lets a bunch of bug monsters out of his dream into real New York City which, tbh, I'm not surprised. This seems like the kind of thing that would happen. Pete is exactly the worst kind of person to be the dream avatar in terms of being responsible.

I love that Siobhan is like, “I have a broken hip” as if all but one of them don’t have literal magic powers. That’s a very fixable problem compared to other stuff they’ve dealt with that day alone. 

Anyway next time, a wasp centaur (thanks, I hate it) and a nat 20! See you then.

#dimension 20 #the unsleeping city #asks #a-salty-alto #there are for sure mistakes in this but I am on a whirlwind schedule rn #and I wanted to get this out before the next ep #so I wasn't too behind

[crossbows-and-moonshine]

Such a Softer Sin (Chapter twenty)

(Chapter one)     (Chapter two)     (Chapter three)     (Chapter four)

(Chapter five)     (Chapter six)     (Chapter seven)     (Chapter eight)

(Chapter nine)     (Chapter ten)     (Chapter eleven)     (Chapter twelve)

(Chapter thirteen)     (Chapter fourteen)     (Chapter fifteen)

(Chapter sixteen)     (Chapter seventeen)     (Chapter eighteen)

(Chapter nineteen)

Murphy tries to explain the telepathy to Lila and he gives his opinion on where he thinks their girl fits into it all.

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

Lilas consciousness came to her with a jolt as she heard a noise she couldn't quite place. Her eyes fluttered open slowly only to see Murphy sat looking at her sideways on the bed, his camera in hand. He snapped another shot of her, and her brain registered it was the noise she had heard. Murphy was pleased with the pictures. She looked so unguarded and beautiful in the mornings and now it was captured forever. He lowered the camera a little and noticed she was squinting at him.

“Did you just take pictures of me sleeping?” She asked sounding amused, her voice was a little louder than intended and Connor behind her snored louder, his hand around her waist dragging her closer to him. Murphy lowered his head with a nervous chuckle, and Lila noticed his cheeks flushed pink.

“Murphy MacManus, did you just blush?” She asked teasingly, keeping her voice softer this time so she did not wake Connor up. Murphy blushed even harder, glancing at her through his lashes as he nodded sheepishly.

“Ye just looked so beautiful, wanted te capture it.” He replied softly. Lilas' heart felt like it might burst from his words and his adorable sweet face.

She tried to sit up, but Connors' arm was a dead weight and Murphy snorted, reaching over to help her get free of his grip. When she finally sat up, she gave him a smile, taking his hand in hers and kissing his knuckles softly.

“You can take pictures of me sleeping any time, just make sure if I’m asleep that I’m not drooling.” She grinned at him, making him huff out a laugh at her. He reached out, tucking some of her wild red hair behind her ear as he just looked at her. She could feel the intensity behind his gaze and it reminded her of the night before and the strange connection they shared whilst being a tangle of limbs. As if knowing what was on her mind once again, Murphy stood, pulling her up with him.

“Guess I should try te explain some shit love. Ain't great wit’ words but I’ll try.” He said looking nervous, chewing the thumb on his spare hand. She nodded as she let go, walking over to the couch and Murphy went into the kitchen to make them some coffee. When he returned with two wonderful smelling cups, he placed them on the small coffee table. The pair sat at either end of the couch facing each other, their backs against the armrests, and Lila had taken the crocheted blanket from the back and lay it over their tangled legs.

He looked anxious and she wondered why he seemed scared almost to tell her. He was picking at his nails as he glanced at her and then his hands.

“Dinnae rightly know where te start m’girl.” He admitted, his cheeks flushing once again. Lila sat up straighter, taking his hands to stop him fidgeting. It seemed to calm him instantly.

“Why don't you start with you and Connor first, how that works. I mean I have an idea but I don't really know and you two never talk about it.” She suggested softly. He took a deep breath and nodded, hoping the words would come out right. It was a big deal for him to talk about this to her because he and Connor hadn't ever told anyone before. Everyone just knew they were so in tune with each other because they were twins and it was obvious, but they didn't really know the extent of it.

“Alright so, the uh...the telepathy. Ye picked up on it, no fuckin’ clue how, but ye did. So it works a few ways. We’re kinda in each other's heads all the time, it’s kinda like...like listenin’ te a radio station? But we can kinda have it on low volume. It's always there, like background noise, but we’re just used te it so it doesnae really bother us none.” He started, hoping he was making sense. Lila gave him an encouraging smile and squeezed his hands and he felt good to continue, it seemed like she was following.

“We can make it stronger if we need te, either pushin’ our thoughts on the other more, or like...tappin’ inte each other more. At times, we can block each other out, but it takes a lot o’ effort te do. We dinnae really need te though, so it's rare we do that...and it's like, thoughts, but also feelin’s too. So we know what we’re thinkin’, but we can also just...it's like...we can just feel what the other is feelin’ aye? It’s like yer own emotions but not as strong. Connors always been good at bein’ able to tell what's his and what's mine, but wit’ me, I always found it harder. I think it’s just ‘cause I’m so…” He trailed off, not knowing the word.

“Emotional?” Lila supplied with a knowing grin, making Murphy snort lightly at her and squeeze her hands.

“Aye m’girl. I always have a lot goin’ on inside o’ me, and I think that's why Connor tries te just fuckin’...lock it all away. ‘Cause he knows I have enough te deal wit’ on me own wit’out his shit...and like...we can just look at each other, and we dinnae need te talk, ‘cause we can just think and the other kinda hears it in their head I guess? Fuck, I feel like I’m not gettin’ it right.” He sighed frustratedly, lowering his head a little.

“Hey, I’m getting it, your doing good.” She smiled at him, making him nod and look at her again. She really wanted to know and the whole thing fascinated her.

“Ti's stronger when we’re tegether, especially if we’re touchin’ in some way. So if we’re apart, we can still do it, but its a lot fuckin’ harder and takes a shit tonne o’ effort. It's why we dinnae really spend much time apart, ‘cause it sets us on edge, not bein’ able te feel each other properly… and when we touch, its kinda like...it grounds us? I dunno if that's the right word for it, but like, its calmin’. So when I’m upset, and Conn grabs the back o’ me neck like he does, its kinda like, he can push his calmness onte me, te help me calm down. Doesnae always work, just ‘cause sometimes I’m passed the point o’ no return, but he tries. “ He explained, toying with her fingers absentmindedly.

“So how do I fit into all this?” She asked curiously, making him take a deep breath, hoping that he didn't fuck this up or say too much. Connor was already reluctant to share the information with the girl, with anyone, but he knew after they all felt the connection last night they had to tell her.

“I uh...it’s never happened before. Me and Connor havin’ this kinda shit with someone else. It wouldnae make sense really, we’re twins and that's why we have that connection. We’ve…” He shifted uncomfortably and Lila noticed his ears turning pink.

“We’ve shared lasses before, just like casual things, sex and stuff...but we’ve never really had a serious relationship or had feelin’s for someone before. In a way, it was kinda like… we had each other, and that's all we needed, so we didnae have a need for someone else. It was always just sexual wit’ lasses. But then...then you came along and things were just different. This is new te us too, last night, bein’ able te feel ye, be in yer head. It was fuckin’ weird. It doesnae feel like me and Connor, it's not as strong and I was able te tune ye out. I know ye wouldnae appreciate us in yer fuckin’ noggin’ like that, it's pretty invasive. T’is why I told Connor te get outta yer head. It wasn't like we meant te, it just kinda happened. It’s kinda like...like the radio thing I said. Like we’re all tuned inte the same station tegether, if that makes sense? Except wit’ you, we can switch the radio off, but with each other, we can’t. Came as a shock te us both really when we could hear ye like that. The only reason why I can think o’ is just ‘cause o’ how much we care about ye. I don’t want te sound like a fuckin’ girl out o’ chick flick or nothin’, but I just...I can't help but feel like…” He was so nervous, so fucking nervous to get the words to come out. Lila had watched him intently the whole time, his words melting her heart over and over as she felt the warmth spread through her body.

“Feel like what Murph?” She asked carefully, looking at him with pleading eyes, not wanting him to shut her out, not now. He inhaled deeply, trying to steel his nerves, he knew Connor was going to beat him into next week when he knew just how much he had told her. Connor wanted her to know the bare minimum so they didn't scare her off. The whole thing was fucking intense.

“I feel like...like the three o’ us, it's how it’s meant te be. From the day we laid eyes on ye, there was somethin’ there. And I cannae help but think that maybe, God put us tegether for a reason, maybe us three tegether was his plan all along. Why else would we have that same connection wit’ ye that we have wit’ each other? It isn't like we just love ye, the connections deeper than that. Ye know as I do how intense it felt, and even we were caught off guard. I just feel like maybe it means a lot more than just carin’ for someone… I mean...we love our Ma more than anythin’, and Rocco is like our brother, but we dinnae have that wit’ either o’ them, ye know? It’s just like...me and Connor were fine on our own, we felt complete, we didnae know any better. But the second ye came along, we felt it. Feelin’ completely whole...like...like ye were made for us, meant te be wit’ us all along.” He admitted shyly, looking at her like he was about to crawl out of his skin from anxiety from the weight of his words.

Lila was silent for a moment as her brain digested his words. She looked at their joined hands and even now it was as though she could feel the vibration of his energy, but on a low simmer in the background. It was how she imagined psychics felt or empaths or some other shit, being able to read energies like that. Murphy's words made sense. From the get-go she had always been able to read them well and seemed on the same wavelength as them both. She always knew when something was going on between them and she knew about the telepathy without being told. She felt for them more than she had felt for anyone before, more than she thought was even humanly possible to love someone. For him to say he thought she was made for them, it made her heart squeeze so hard she thought it might explode, the meaning behind his words, the sincerity. Murphy shifted anxiously, her silence was making him nervous and he felt like she might bolt out the door. He was pleasantly surprised when she looked at him with a bright smile.

“I know what you mean, I kinda think that too.” She admitted softly, reaching out and stroking his hair affectionately. Murphy beamed at her, relief flooding through him that he had been able to explain something so complicated and intense to her properly and the fact she agreed.

“Ye do?” He asked, giving her his shy smile under his lashes. The look always made her stomach flip around on her.

She crawled over the small distance between them, in between his legs. His breathing hitched as she brought her face close to his, her hands settling on his bare shoulders, and he brushed his nose against hers softly.

“I do.” She whispered with a small smile, her whole body tingling with being so close to him like this. One of his hands came to her neck and he could feel her rapid pulse under his fingers as he leant up and captured her lips with his own. It was different to the night before. When he kissed her then he was just overcome with primal desire for the girl. It was more intimate this time, although still demanding. His hand wound into her hair as they kissed deeply, and he fisted it, making her moan softly. The noise went straight to his cock and he took the opportunity to invade her mouth with his tongue. Murphy's kisses were hard and fiery she’d noticed. They were the kind that made your legs weak and left your panties soaked. He tugged her hair a little again, releasing another delicious moan from her lips. She felt like her body was alight with electricity, intense didn't even begin to cover it.

They parted, the two of them breathless and slightly overwhelmed by the intensity of the kiss and how it made them feel, Lila rested her forehead on Murphys.

“Startin’ the party wit’out me?” Lila squeaked and whipped her head around, looking over the back of the couch to see Connor sat up in bed, looking amused and sleepy. Her cheeks flushed bright red as she looked at him like a deer caught in the headlights. Murphy had not reacted, he’d known the second his brother had woken up and he knew he was watching. He had heard his brother in his head telling him to make her moan again because it was the best noise he’d ever fucking heard. Lila looked back to Murphy and he smiled devilishly at her.

Lila wasn't sure what to do. She'd never been in a relationship or whatever the fuck this was, with two people before, and she knew from experience just how jealous the twins could be. She was worried they might fight. They could feel her anxiety, and Murphy's thumb stroked over her pulse as Connor stood, stretching as he sauntered over to them. Lila watched him intently, blinking at him as he leaned over the back of the couch. He took her face in both of his hands, not speaking but looking into her eyes. She was confused at first, but then she felt it. The only way to possibly describe such a foreign sensation was a nudge in her mind. Like someone had managed to bottle up calmness somehow, and it was being poured over her brain. It was the weirdest thing she had ever experienced before. Her breathing hitched and her eyes widened as she stared at Connor, watching a slow smirk spread across his handsome face, knowing she was feeling it.

She turned her head back to Murphy, seeing him watching her carefully with a small smile. He knew it was one thing for him to try and explain to her about how it worked, how Connor was able to calm him down, but it was another thing entirely for her to actually fucking feel it happening to her. Connors' hands were still on her face and Murphy's hand was still on her neck. The boys glanced to each other before back to her, and Murphy reached out, grasping Connors wrist with his free hand. Lilas heart rate increased even more from the second the three of them were linked together. The energy was strong, fucking intense and she glanced from one twin to the other in absolute awe. She had never experienced anything like it before.

“Think we might o’ broke the lass.” Connor chuckled as he stared at her. She hadn't spoken and she looked in shock. Murphy snorted at him as he too watched the girl take it all in.

Lila closed her eyes, taking a deep breath, she wondered if she could do what Connor had done and she focused on her feelings and pushing them outwards. The boys tensed in unison as they felt the overwhelming rush of awe and admiration wash over them stronger than before. Murphy's hand tightened on his brother's wrist as they looked to each other, the pair feeling the intensity of the moment. They’d never shared a connection like this with anyone other than themselves. And they knew now, with what Lila had just been able to do, with them, they couldn't ever let her go, she was meant to be with them both just like Murphy had told her. Lila opened her eyes again, mischief twinkling in her eyes at the fact she had succeeded as she glanced from one to another and they gave her grins in return. The moment was broken by Lilas stomach growling so loud she would be surprised if Rocco hadn't heard it from wherever he was. She snorted loudly as the boys laughed, and in an instant, the hands on her were gone, Murphy also letting go of his brother, and the connection was back to being barely there. She could still feel it but it was no longer overwhelming.

“Guess it’s time for breakfast then.” Murphy laughed, squeezing Lilas hips playful as she blushed.  She had no idea where this thing with the guys was heading but it felt serious already, and when she really thought about it, she knew she didn't mind one bit.

Taglist; @risingphoenix761 @daryldixonandfrogs @arlaina28

#boondock saints #boondock saints fanfic #murphy macmanus #murphy macmanus fanfic #connor macmanus #connor macmanus fanfic

[crossbows-and-moonshine]

Such a Softer Sin (Chapter nine)

(Chapter one)

(Chapter two)

(Chapter three)

(Chapter four)

(Chapter five)

(Chapter six)

(Chapter seven)

(Chapter eight)

Hangovers are a bitch.

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

Lila groaned when she woke in the morning, unable to even open her eyes. Her head was pounding away from an epic hangover and she knew if she opened her eyes, the tiny amount of light in the apartment would kill her, literally. She would just die. Burst into flames and turn to dust. So she would much rather lay there with her eyes closed. She felt like she was in between two furnaces and she vaguely remembered falling into bed with the twins the night before and passing out. She might have felt a tad self-conscious about her lack of clothing in the middle of the boys, but she was too hungover to care. Her mouth was as dry as the desert and her head was beyond painful. She was lay on her stomach, facing her left. Over her shoulder to her right, one of the twins was snoring like a buzz saw. She groaned again at the noise and the twin to her left tightened their arm around her middle, the hand precariously close to her ass. But again, she couldn't find it in her to care.

“It feels like there's a tiny man in my head using a sledgehammer to escape.” She whined pitifully, eliciting a pained groan from her left.

“Christ love, do ye have te be so loud?” Murphy grumbled, sounding every bit as pitiful as she did. His head was thumping away and he was half asleep, he only just registered that the girl was in bed with him and his brother, and when he cracked open an eye, wincing at the pain that the light shot through his skull, he noticed how the blanket was kicked off them all and she was only in her underwear. His hand twitched as he glanced and saw it right above her ass and he swallowed thickly, closing his eyes. He was already sporting some impressive morning wood and this certainly didn't help matters, he didn't want Lila to think he was a fucking creep. She seemed unfazed though by the tangle of limbs and lack of underwear, and Murphy wondered if maybe there was some hope for the three after all.

“I need coffee Murphhh. Are there such things as coffee fairies? I need one right now.” She whined again, pouting even with her eyes shut. Murphy couldn't help but smile at her pretty face and huffed a small laugh. He took a chance and stroked his thumb in soothing circles on her lower back and she hummed softly, enjoying the feeling. It was nice and comforting. She tried to shift a little, laying on her stomach all night had made her ache and her hips were stiff. She tried to turn around but Connor was half lay on her and pinned her to the bed. Murphy offered no help, watching her amused as she wriggled and tried to free herself, but it was no use.

“Murph, help.” She pleaded weakly, finally opening her eyes and sticking her lower lip out at him, making him chuckle. He looked like an angel in the low light of the loft, his hair all messy and a sleepy grin on his face. It wasn't helping that his hand was still so close to her ass, it was making her head go to some pretty interesting places.

Murphy sat up, holding his head a little at the motion and waiting for the room to stay still. He reached a hand between the girl and Connor and grabbed his nipple, twisting it harshly. A very unmanly yelp left the lighter haired twin as he jumped and fell off the mattress. Murphy burst out laughing and Lila rolled onto her back propped up by the pillows, glancing at him sheepishly as she bit her lip to stifle her own laugh. She didn't know Connor was capable of making such a noise.

“The fuck was that for?!” She was also unaware Connors voice could get so high, but they all winced at the tone that made their heads ring. Connor was holding the offending nipple like he was afraid it would fall off.

“Ye were squashin’ the poor girl, she’s only a wee thing, ye wanna break her?” Murphy asked, gesturing to the very underdressed lass in their bed.

She was lay on her back and the blankets were god knows where, but she seemed not too fussed about the lack of clothes. The best bits were covered after all, she didn't need to be too shy, it wasn’t like they even thought of her that way. Connor looked at her and blinked for a moment as his half-asleep brain tried to catch up with himself. He had drank a little more than the others and he had no recollection of how they all ended up in bed together almost naked. He tore her eyes from her body, afraid he was staring as she watched him amused and then looked to Murphy. Murphy could tell he was panicking, he knew exactly what he was thinking and he decided it was an opportune moment for some fun.

“Don’t tell me ye fuckin’ forgot what happened last night Connor.” Murphy chided, trying his best to look stern, even as he felt Lila look at him confused. Realisation crossed her face and he could see the fight not to laugh all over her face.

“What...what d’ye mean? What happened?” Connor asked warily. If he’d slept with her he would kick himself for taking advantage when she was drunk, that and also for being too drunk to even remember it.

“Christ Connor, ye sleep with the poor lass and then ye forget?!” Murphy scowled, making Connors' eyes widen as his eyes flit to Lila and then back to Murphy. Lucky for Connor, Murphy wasn't very good at keeping a straight face and he was soon put out his misery as his brother burst out laughing, Lila following suit. Connor frowned for a moment before his brain clicked and then he narrowed his eyes at the pair.

“That wasn't very fuckin’ nice was it?” He huffed, glaring at the pair. Lila sat up, the boys secretly enjoying the view as she did.

“Don't worry Connor, if you’d have slept with me, you definitely wouldn't forget it.” She smirked, patting his face cheekily before standing up and going over to the toilet. There was a screen there now that she had bought to protect her modesty whilst she stayed with the twins, she had no desire to use the toilet in front of them, even with Murphy's spiel about ‘we’ve all gotta go, ain’t no sense in bein’ shy about it’. Connors jaw almost hit the floor at her bold words and Murphy looked equally stunned before he burst out laughing again. The boys and her would often flirt playfully, but Lila didn't think it meant anything since she was convinced the twins would never like her that way, she wasn't near pretty enough for either of them. She felt like she could say things that would normally come across as bold and too forward, simply because to her it wasn't meant to be taken seriously. The boys always knew she was just teasing, it was usually pretty obvious and they thought she didn't see them as more than friends so they never read anything into it, but she had never mentioned anything about sleeping with them, she had never been this bold before. Connor was a little confused but Murphy sat there with a smirk. Her words combined with how at ease she was in bed with the pair, even undressed, it had given him hope that maybe she would be up for something more than friendship. He wanted to talk to Connor alone when he got a minute. It wasn't like they could just throw her in bed and ravage her, they'd test the waters so to speak, take their flirting up a notch and see how she took it.

Lila came back from behind the screen and padded over to the kitchen, two sets of eyes watching her every move like she was the most entertaining thing to watch. Lila in her skimpy black underwear. She washed her hands before turning around and looking at them both.

“So, can we get coffee? Because I think I might die without it.” She snorted. Murphy barked out a laugh as he stood, his brother following suit.

“Bit dramatic arent ye lass?” Connor smirked at her amused, making her smile innocently at him. They all got dressed and it was almost comical how they matched. Black t-shirts and jeans. Lila threw on her hoodie whilst the boys donned their black peacoats. They made their way to the diner down the street because Connor told her ‘There's nothin’ like a big fuckin’ greasy breakfast te cure a hangover’. When they got there, they got to a booth, but Lila opted to sit opposite the twins rather than next to them and they looked almost offended at the absurdity of it, like she’d sat on another table entirely and not just across from them. After the waitress took their orders, Murphy couldn't help but ask her, he looked like he was about to burst at the seams if the words didn't leave his lips.

“The fuck ye doin’ way over there?” He grumped, looking like a child that had his favourite toy taken away. Connor snorted a little at his tone, but then glanced to her curiously. He was also wondering why she hadn't sat right next to them like she would at the bar. He just wasn’t immature enough to voice it like his little brother.

“Hmm… well, I wanted to enjoy the view.” She smirked, making the boys sit up a little, she could practically see their chests puff up with pride and she couldn't resist fucking with them.

“I mean, he’s pretty hot right?” She asked, gesturing to the man sat at the other side of the diner. The twins' faces were priceless. First shock colouring them before they glowered as they turned to look at said man, who in Murphy's eyes was as good as dead just for existing in that moment. But when they turned around, the only other guy in the diner looked about 90 and they whipped their heads to look back at her as she burst into a fit of the giggles.

“Oh my God, it's way too easy to fuck with you two.” She laughed, looking more than pleased with herself. Connor shook his head, he couldn't believe the lass got one over on him, and Murphy squinted at her.

“Lords name m’girl, wouldn't want the good Lord te come smite ye for bein’ a naughty lass.” He glared intensely at her. His voice was low but it wasn't his scary voice. It was a voice she'd never heard him use, it was commanding and honestly, incredibly fucking sexy. She blinked dumbly at him for a minute, her cheeks flushing as his tone had affected her so badly and Connor leaned back in the booth watching her with interest at how she had reacted. Her pupils were bigger and her breathing was faster. If he didn't know any better, he’d say the little lass was turned on by how his brother had spoken to her. Very fucking interesting indeed.

He knew Murphy thought the same thing as a sly smirk spread across his face as he still watched her, his gaze intense and unwavering as he looked at her through his lashes. He felt inexplicably smug at the unexpected effect he had on her, like she was unraveling before his very eyes. He wondered just how she would react if he told her all of the delicious things he wanted to do to her but Connor nudged him with his foot. Connor gave him a pointed look. The girl clearly got affected by Murphy's words but now she was looking at the table, almost embarrassed and shy. A look he'd never seen on the girl. Connor knew Murphy was pushing his luck taking this too far and Murphy just rolled his eyes and sighed. He crossed his arms as he looked back to the girl and he felt a little bad to have embarrassed her. He didn't want her to be uncomfortable, there was nothing wrong with being turned on. Hell, she worked him and Connor up every day just by existing.

“Ye in work today lass?” Connor asked, trying to get back on track and make things normal. Lila looked at him, brought out of her thoughts and smiled. It seemed like the boys were not aware of how Murphy's words had affected her and she was grateful, she was more than happy to pretend it hadn't happened.

“Yeah, I think I’m gonna go in. I can't just lay around moping every day. It’ll be good to get back there. Besides, it’s Friday and I wouldn't want Aileen on her own when it’s so busy.” She said softly, making him nod. Aileen had become a sort of mother away from home figure for her, she knew it would be busy tonight at the bar. The waitress brought the coffee and food over and Lila sipped the coffee gingerly since it was still hot.

“Does she count as yer coffee fairy?” Murphy teased, nodding over to the waitress. Lila snorted and looked at him.

“Hmm...I think she might.” She smirked.

The trio ate greedily, and Connor was indeed right. It helped immensely for the hangover, as did the coffee. The three all walked back to the apartment feeling content. Lila was still thinking about how Murphy had affected her at the diner. She wasn't stupid, she knew she was attracted to the boys, hell, she wasn't just attracted to them, she liked them. And she knew it was stupid since they would never like her that way. But no one had ever made her react that way before with just a tone of voice. She tried to push it out of her mind. She knew work would be a welcome distraction. It would be business as usual now. The boys still had until Monday before they had to go back to work and she was excited about spending so much time with them. She knew they'd be at the bar with her and walk back with her. She would pretty much spend every moment with them as she had been doing since she started staying at their place. She just couldn't wait for things to go back to normal now.

#boondock saints #boondock saints fanfic #murphy macmanus #murphy macmanus fanfic #connor macmanus #connor macmanus fanfic