#self edits

First off, Titans #5 (2008)

It's 7.45am, and I have just finished the self edits on my Changeling manuscript.

It's officially ready to be sent off to my editor next week.

It's a very surreal, nerve wracking feeling handing the bookbaby off to someone else lol!

But now, it's time for me to pass out.

And when I wake up, I've got Christmas prep, and then some writing for Darkling to get on with ^_^

Because I wanted to make something for both my Marvel Universe and @zoesmama2024‘s Weapon X:New Age fics.

(All gifs found, text added by me; lyrics from In the Shadows by The Rasmus.  Song and inspiration vid here.)

“Old McDonald had a farm...”  Arturo sang as he checked ammo.  “...And on that farm he...” loaded clips, clicked them into place, “shot some guys, E-I E-I O!”

Owen glanced over warily, then turned back to Ana.  “We’re seriously bringing this bloody freak with us?”

“Don’t call him that,” she glared out.

“I’m not referring to that, the bloke’s a sodding nutcase all on his own.”

"You makin’ fun of me, ya Limey fruit?” Art chuckled out as he handed over the weapons for the truck, except for the handgun he took for himself.

“I’m raising a genuine bloody concern.”

“Concerned about me, are ya?”  He pulled a cigarette from his pack.  “Awww, I’m touched.”

Ana smirked.  “Promise me and Owen you won’t lose control on this mission.”

“I promise.”

“I feel better,” Owen scoffed.

“I always keep my promises.”  Because Art never made ones he couldn’t keep.

Because it popped in my head and @zoesmama2024 graciously let me use her Owen Shaw from Weapon X: New Age ...and I thought it’d be funny while giving another look at my new guy, Arturo aka Art!  I believe, in the end, these little asides will be tied into my and @zoesmama2024​‘s (and possibly @wadeyourebarelyalive‘s ) pieces so...stay tuned an hope you’re reading everyone’s, hahaha!!! 

@wadeyourebarelyalive​‘s piece is here!! 

(My other Arturo piece is here!!  And, if curios, Art is “played” by Rhys Coiro)

((Top gif was given to me by @zoesmama2024​, bottom I edited from a Goggle gif.))

Gabe watched her take in the sight with a smile as the wolves laid at the base of the tree like sentries.  He’d tried turning the whole tree red, but it didn’t look right.  This looked much better, he thought...hoped.  “You like it?”

“It’s so cool!”  Maya declared as she set herself up in the midst of all the ribbons.  From those she could reach spread others along the length of every branch. It was like something out of a fairy tale; a magical red tree.  “You did all this?”

His smile turned almost shy.  “You said you liked red so, ya know, I thought you’d like a red tree.”

She looked back over the tree, then started to frown.  “You did this all for me?”

“Yeah,” his smile dropped with hers.  “We’re friends, it...it’s what friends do...right?”  That was his understanding, they did nice things for one another.  “Did I do it wrong?”

“Can I get down?” Maya requested, to which Gabe opened his arms to collect and carefully set her on the ground.  “Thank you.”  She looked down with a sigh, “I don’t know if...um...”  She looked back up.  “We can be friends.”  It wasn’t that she didn’t want that, she liked Gabe a lot - he was funny and really nice, way cooler than most adults - but it sounded like a bad idea.

Gabe’s face fell completely, Wolvie and Furball shifted and whimpered.  “Why not?”  They liked the same things, they had fun when they met up, and both even sang when they got scared of the dark.

“‘Cause you’re too old,” she stated plainly.  “I don’t think people your age are supposed to be friends with kids.  It’d be different if you were my age or we were family or something.”  No one questioned when adults were nice and all with family.

He plopped in the dirt, completely dejected.  “Oh.”  Outside Hellfire Maya was his only friend; she was his escape from all that...someone who was nice to him because they were friends, not because she wanted stuff.  “I can’t get that little.”

Maya frowned more as she sat next to him; Wolvie curled in Gabe’s lap, Furball took over Maya’s.  “Yeah...”  People didn’t grow backwards.  She ran fingers through the wolf’s fur, thinking, before she looked over.  “My friends say they’re cousins, that might work.”

“Yeah?” Gabe gave a hopeful smile.

“Maybe...”  Maya’s nose scrunched in thought.  “If you were younger though, I bet I got older cousins, but not that old.”

Gabe almost giggled.  “I can get younger.”

Maya giggled back.  “That’d be cool.”  She didn’t believe him, not really, but she liked that he thought he could.  She liked that he’d try really hard to...and she knew it.

I’m thinking that it’s been a few weeks since they first met and they’ve hung out at the park almost everyday during that time.  This is probably the first big thing Gabe’s done for anyone where it wasn’t expected or requested by the other...which I also thought was a good time to acknowledge that their friendship isn’t “normal”, even though there’s no ill-intent on either side, haha!  (And show that Maya knows all this while Gabe is, haha, pretty unaware due to their respective maturity levels.)

Main Story: Part 1, Part 2,  Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12, Part 13, Part 14, Part 15, Part 16  Part 17  Part 18  Part 19  Part 20  Part 21  Part 22  Part 23  Part 24  Part 25  Part 26  Part 27  Part 28  Part 29  Part 30  Part 31  Part 32  Part 33 (NSFW)  Part 34  Part 35  Part 36  Part 37  Part 38  Part 39  Part 40  Part 41  Part 42 (NSFW)  Part 43  Part 44  Part 45  Part 46  Part 47  Part 48  Part 49  Part 50  Part 51  Part 52  Part 53  Part 54  Part 55  Part 56  Part 57  Part 58  Part 59  Part 60  Part 61 

(Ash NSFW Prequel Piece, St Patrick’s Day Prequel, Dusty’s Trauma Extra)

(Totally just found these gifs on Google, but I did resize the top one.)