JATP Sci-Fi Week

Chapters: 2/2 Fandom: Julie and The Phantoms (TV 2020) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Major Character Death Relationships: Rose Molina & Reggie Peters, Ray Molina/Rose Molina, Julie Molina/Reggie Peters Characters: Rose Molina, Reggie Peters (Julie and The Phantoms), Ray Molina, Julie Molina Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Black Mirror Episode: s03e04 San Junipero, major character death as in Rose is dead but also uploaded into the cloud, so she’s fine!, she’s dead but she’s fine!, Alternate Universe - Science Fiction, Hurt Reggie Peters (Julie and The Phantoms), Sunset Curve as Found Family (Julie and The Phantoms), an old lady knitting circle, Mistaken Identity, make Reggie a Molina Summary:

Before her death, Rose made the decision to be uploaded into San Junipero so she could still be there for her children. One day, she meets Reggie, who is there temporarily after an accident, as nanobots fix his body.

They become fast friends, and Rose is determined to make him part of the Molina family one way or another.

Willie wins The Hunger Games when he is eleven. He wishes he could say it was bad luck, that his single name was pulled out of the jar in his first year. He wishes he didn’t know that the head of his group home had put all the children’s names in at least ten times. He tries to look surprised when they call his name, instead of resigned. He’s pretty sure it worked. People love a young, innocent-looking tribute, and Cesar Flickerman seemed touched when they played the footage back.

He wishes he could say he wins by keeping out of sight and outsmarting the others. He tries not to think of that time too much, or the Victory Tour afterwards. The Victor’s Village is lonely, even though there are people in the other houses. They’re all much older than him, and nobody wants to hang out with a traumatised eleven year old. Sometimes Old Lady Mags gives him a sweet and pinches his cheek, though. She doesn’t talk, but she teaches him how to braid, then later how to weave.

He spends a lot of time in his big empty house, building a ramp out of the grand staircase, perfecting his jumps over expensive, ornate furniture. The sound of skateboard wheels on marble becomes comforting.

After he wins, Dante and Fuego wash their hands of him, saying they did their duty and got him through alive. When they go to the Games next year, they tell Willie to stay out of the way while they focus on the two new tributes. He tries to help in his own way, though, offering hugs (the 16-year-old girl takes him up on it, the 14-year-old boy does not) and whispering which food is really gross and which is good. He does his best to charm people of the Capitol into becoming patrons for his Tributes, bragging about how smart their Tributes are, letting his cheek be pinched by older ladies.

He just wishes Dante or Fuego would have warned him about what was waiting for him at the Capitol. He thought that the worst was going to be over. That yes, he’d have to go through the trauma of watching his friends die every year even though he did his best to help them, but that would be it.

He wasn’t prepared for the auction.

He wasn’t prepared for President Covington.

Dystopian AU + Blind Date

Anon I am so sorry but I cannot not make this pun. This is a Day of the Triffids AU. Basically, everyone who saw a mysterious asteroid shower woke up blind the next day (which is a huge portion of the population since everyone was really hyped about it). Also there’s walking plants who will murder you with their tongues and then feast on your corpse.

Considering the chaotic mess the world was, they’d done alright for themselves, really. It probably helped that the band had been super tight beforehand, and that Carlos and Reggie had been super into zombie apocalypse movies. It was really not that big of a stretch to turn a zombie apocalypse plan into a ‘my entire family and the whole world is blinded’ plan.

In the beginning, Reggie had been the only one in their group who could see, and that was pure dumb luck. He’d forgotten what day it was, worked a full shift at the coffee shop, worked on the song he’d wanted to show Luke later, and then crashed like thirty minutes before the meteor shower was supposed to start, sleeping through all of it.

So yeah, in the beginning, it had been rough. Terrifying. Getting around as a sighted person had its own perils. Plenty of people were willing to get really violent for their chance at a sighted person to lead them around. They’d quickly worked out a system: Luke up front, Reggie subtly steering his shoulders through squeezes. That way, they moved like the others, didn’t attract unwanted attention.

It was better when they’d linked up with Flynn’s family. Flynn’s mom was blind, had been most of her life. She’d helped the others, taught them how to get around. She’s started teaching them braille. Alex’ little sister, Stevie, and Carlos were picking it up quick as anything. She also loved to garden, so over the summer they’d turned a lot of the available front yard space into edible plants. Reggie’s job was to do the morning patrols, finding and burning any triffid podlings that had taken root before they could become dangerous.

That’s how he’d found Willie, who had been crouched in front of one of the tomato plants, shoving them in his mouth. He’d spoken before he could think about it, scolding him about not waiting until they were ripe, and Willie had shrugged and said 'they’re red aren’t they’. Both had realised their mistake almost immediately, but before Willie could run - or skate - away, Reggie had offered him a place to stay.

Willie fit in with their little group perfectly. He was friendly, funny, and just the right amount of chaotic. He was also beautiful, and kind, and great with kids. His laugh was the prettiest sound in the world and he knew how to get pretty much anyone out of a funk. So yeah, Reggie was smitten.

But when he’d seen Alex and Willie grow closer, of course Reggie had taken a step back. Alex deserved the world. Besides, Reggie had other responsibilities, he shouldn’t waste time mooning over some boy. He’d done it before, pushed down his crush on Alex even before the whole world fell apart, and now that was just a dull ache. In time, the same would happen with Willie, and he could move on and be happy for them.

It would be easy to hide his feelings, he figured, since only one person was around to see him. But one day Julie had followed him out during his morning patrol and confronted him about it in the most gentle way she could, and he’d spent an hour just crying in her arms. She’d urged him to talk to Willie and Alex, hinting that there might be feelings there as well, but he’d blown her off, taking her hand and describing the gardens to her while he weeded out any problems. They’d only gone back when Julie had promised his voice didn’t sound all wobbly and hoarse.

He’d forgotten to check if his eyes were still red and puffy. Because of course he had. He hadn’t had to worry about what he looked like in literal years. Which Willie of course noticed. Which had lead to the whole thing coming out anyway, Julie dragging Luke out of the studio by his ear so they could have some privacy.

They’d been dating ever since. And it was perfect. Except dates in the post apocalypse were really more ‘having dinner in the garage alone’ or ‘going to pick the tomatoes together’. It was dangerous to go outside of their little fenced off corner of the neighbourhood. It was hard for Alex to get around in the empty houses on the street, because he hadn’t memorised where everything was.

Still, on the nights the spent together on the pull-out sofa in the garage, the privacy was heaven. Curling up against Alex, playing with Willie’s hair, kissing them both without fear of being interrupted by his little brother or Luke who had an amazing song idea, it was bliss. Tonight, they were discussing things they missed from before the apocalypse. Willie missed skating competitions, and the internet. Reggie was sad they’d never make the next season of his favourite show. Alex sighed, and said he missed the beach.

Which was totally a fixable thing. It had taken them a few weeks, talking to the others behind Alex’ back, making sure everyone was okay with their day trip, preparing the safest route. Willie was the one who usually went outside their neighbourhood, scavenging and skating around. He’d mapped the safest route to the safest beach, getting rid of as many triffids as he could along the way.

But then the day had come. Ray had waited for them at the door, giving him a hug. Reggie had clung to him, nervous. He didn’t want to leave them alone. He’d been responsible for their safety for so long, it felt wrong to leave. Which was exactly why he should, Flynn’s mother had told him firmly, the week before. “Are you sure you’ll be okay?” he asked.

“I’m sure,” Ray said. “You boys deserve this. Go have fun. And Reggie…” He paused, and Reggie tensed. “Remember to wear sunscreen.” Ray winked at him, squeezing his arms before ushering him out of the door. 

The walk to the beach was long, and slightly tense. Willie had a make-shift molotov cocktail in one hand, and Alex’ hand in the other. Reggie was on Alex’ other side, quietly leading them around debris and muttering a running commentary of what he saw around them.

They set off at first light, so they didn’t really run into many people, and they were mostly able to avoid the ones who were out, only stopping to make polite conversation with a group of women lead by an old lady with a guide dog. They told them that the beach seemed to be clear today, as Rover hadn’t alerted once while they heard the waves. They even let Reggie give Rover a quick pet, and Alex joked that whatever happened, Reggie’s day was already made.

When they could hear the waves, Willie climbed one of the palm trees to scout the area, declaring Rover was right and it seemed to be all clear. As soon as they hit the sand, Alex laughed, stopping. He yanked his shoes off, and Reggie smiled, shoving them in his backpack while Willie pulled Alex towards the waves.

They played in the sand and the water for hours, taking turns floating on their backs, splashing at each other, just sitting in the surf and letting the waves crash over them. Kissing each other with salty lips. Eating the lunch that Flynn’s mom had packed them. Laying on their backs and soaking up the sun. Maybe even spreading out the big towel they’d packed and… taking advantage of the privacy they had (after they checked and reassured Alex there was nobody around, of course).

“No, see, if those three stars are the head, and then you draw a line over there, and then that bright one is the tip of the tail, it’s totally a Three Legged Dog!” Reggie said, pointing eagerly with his finger. They were flat on their back in the tall purple grass, their herd of giant bunnies sleeping nearby, the sentry bots ready to alert them if any wandered off.

There weren’t any real predators on this planet that hunted them, but the giant bunnies, while the size of a small cow, seemed to have brains the size of a regular bunny’s. Which was a nice way of saying they were dumb as anything and mostly needed herding to keep them from jumping off a cliff or drowning in a shallow puddle. Reggie kind of loved them, though, naming each and every one of them.

Luke snorted, nearly dislodging Reggie’s head from where it was pillowed on his chest. “Alright, fine. But in that case, my constellation of Wonky Guitar should also be made official. Right, Jules?”

Julie rolled her eyes from her place snuggled up to Reggie, her head on Luke’s stomach. “I can picture the three legged dog much easier than your wonky guitar,” she said, and Reggie pumped his fist in victory while Luke pouted. “Reggie wins, which means he gets to pick what we do tonight.”

“So no working on our new song?” Luke pouted dramatically. Reggie grinned, leaning up on one arm and kissing him soundly.

“Maybe a little,” he conceded. “But I can think of more fun things to do on a deserted planet with nobody around for another fifteen cycles.” He waggled his eyebrows until Luke got his point, and the pout quickly turned into a smirk.

For @jatp-sci-fi-week, Day 3: space! Reggie’s room on the space station is decorated with all his favourite things: plants, pictures of his loved ones, a poster of Laika the space dog, a drawing of his favourite Giant Space Bunny from their summer job… and glow-in-the-dark stars.

Moodboard and summary for a hypothetical fic I haven't actually written yet for @jatp-sci-fi-week , Free Day

My contribution for the Sci-Fi Media AU day from @jatp-sci-fi-week !

This is Part 1 of my Push AU, inspired by the Chris Evans 2009 movie.

Lots of Willie feels in this one.

You can read it over at AO3!!

JATP Sci-Fi Week Day 5 | Sci-fi Media AU | A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine

Day Seven; Willie as Terra

chapter 16 of All That Remains is here!

(It also lines up with @jatp-sci-fi-week Sci-Fi Media AU day! Happy JATP Sci Fi week, all!)

julie thought the world was ending when the burning house collapses around her. she certainly didn’t expect to wake up in the lab of a spaceship filled with immortal pirates who like to sing about the tragedies they observe within all corners of the universe. but hey, it at least beats dying. and the pirates aren’t so bad, once she gets used to the fact that they made her immortal as well. 

“It was getting boring around here, it’s good to have somebody new to work on.” The second sentence is punctuated with a look at Luke, who rolls his eyes. Julie takes the moment to look closer at her rescuers. Both look like they could be from any of the many New Earth colonies that her father liked to talk about whenever he came home from jobs. Reggie’s pale face is littered with red splotches and his smile is full of pointed teeth. Luke’s eyes are just a little too dark. Then Julie blinks. 

“Where is here?” 

Reggie grins and spreads his arms, the red on his face slowly disappearing and making his paleness feel less intense. “Welcome aboard the Sunset, the best starship in this galaxy, currently drifting in the Angelis quadrant.” 

Julie freezes. “You- what- what about my home?” 

Reggie winces. “Uh.” 

“There’s not much left. The rebel fire got a little out of control. Sorry.” Luke’s voice is a mix between genuine regret and an odd distance. His facial expression is an exaggeration of sympathy, similar to how Julie’s teacher would coach them on emotional displays in interplanetary communication. It feels strangely comforting, even as her world collapses inside her mind.

“Oh,” she whispers, pressing her palms flat against the metal underneath her. 

“We came just in time to pull you out, and brought you back on board so Reggie could get to work.” 

Just then heavy steps approach before a new person shows up at the door. Strawberry blonde hair falls in perfect curls around a delicate face. “Alex told me you picked up a stray,” said the new person, their voice high and melodic. Their eyes looked over Julie with clear disinterest. “He didn’t tell me you mechanised her already.” There’s a clipped annoyance in the words and Julie frowns. 

“Carrie,” Luke greets the person with a sigh. “Her spine was completely smashed, what else were we supposed to do?” 

Carrie scoffs, folding her arms. “And have you told- I’m sorry, what’s your name?” 

Both Luke and Reggie turn to face her, looking incredibly sheepish. Julie realised they never asked her name. “Julie,” she says, raising her chin under Carrie’s unimpressed gaze. 

“Right, Julie. Have you two impulsive idiots thought to tell Julie here about the side effects of being mechanised?” 

Julie swallows, quickly turning to face the two men more fully. “Side effects?” 

Luke scuffs his shoe, rubbing at his neck. Reggie looks back at her with an apologetic smile. “We uh, we didn’t get to that yet.” 

“Of course not,” Carrie says. “Welcome to the Sunset, Julie. You’re immortal now, so you better get used to it.” With that, Carrie turns and walks away. 

Julie really thinks her mind can’t take anymore new information. “She said immortal,” she whispers, half-convinced she didn’t hear right. 

Reggie nods, rubbing his now glove-free hands over his pants. “Surprise?”

Day Six; Caleb Covington as Slade