FLASH!
Gah, so blinding! Dammit, I have to get them out!
Clunking noises… Coldness… Movement…
I have to get them out.
Heavy… Tapping noises…
I have to get them out.
Shapes… Darkness…
I have to get them out.
I have to get them out.
I have to get them out.
"Urgh…"
I feel gross. My chest hurts and I feel old sweat on my back… Wait.
This isn't the basement.
Rubbing my eyes, I sigh while looking around, blurrier sight than usual. Yeah, definitely not wearing glasses.
Green, fuzzy walls… A blocky blob off to the far left… Soft sheets…
How did I get to my bedroom…?
Wait. What happened to everyone? Where are they?!
Instinctively grabbing my glasses off the bedside table, I fall out of bed and scramble out the door.
"Cora? You up?"
"Emily! The guys! They're still-"
"Corrie, Corrie! Shh shh shh! It's okay! It's okay!" Her hands firmly grasp my shoulders, her warm autumn-brown eyes filled with calm. She doesn't look… Grave, not the face she has when she's recently attended a funeral at her church. My breathing slows but panic pounds my heart.
"They-they're down there, freezing-!"
"Emily?" Laurie calls from Em's staircase, "Should I bring-"
"No, no Laur," Em shakes her head, "Let them be. But if you could get a glass of water for Cora, it'd be great."
"Okay."
Em leads towards the living room.
"Do you need a few minutes, Corrie?"
"Emmy, what's going on? This is some nightmare isn't it? Everything is just gonna- Ow! Em! Did you grow your nails out for this?"
"Hm! I should trim them down, actually…"
"Hva? Agh, mitt hode…"
A figure sits up from the couch, rubbing their head before turning to look at us. Mess blonde-brown hair fluffed into a double-quiff/spiked look. Eyes widening.
"… Cora?"
I'm almost glued to where I'm standing till he starts to get up, Em sighing and dragging me to the couch before trying to sit him back down. Keyword being trying.
"No no, Tord!" She reprimands him, "You'll make your headache worse, just rest!"
"Nej, nej," he bats her away loosely as he stands, "it's fine… Cora, you… You look like you've seen a ghost."
Yeah, no kidding.
His voice sounds a little strained, husky, even. His t-shirt and jeans hang off him a little, even though they're nearly a perfect fit. Looking at him up close, I can see tiny puncture marks on his neck and arms, and I think his hair's even a little longer than when I'd seen his hologram self from the… the Cryo-Virts.
"H-hold on," he slowly waves in front of me, his hand somewhat shaky, "You look clearer. Wh-what's-"
And then he makes contact with my shoulder.
He freezes. Then his hand reaches my cheek. Eyes widening, jaw slowly dropping.
Tord crashes into me with all the full-body force he can muster, holding tight.
I don't know what to do for a moment, but it dawns on me as I hug him back.
"Emmy," I manage, "Am I?"
"Yeah. We somehow didn't make contact all his way to the couch. I didn't want to shock him…"
I'm the first person he's held in seventy-four years.
He doesn't loosen up for a solid ten, twenty seconds. It's not until Em rests a hand on his shoulder that he flinches a little, but he lets go of me. His cheeks are freshly damp with tear streaks. He realises what we're looking at and half-heartedly wipes them away, glancing at his fingers and mumbling something. I can't make it out, but I'm certain it's in Norwegian.
"Tord," Em says softly, rubbing his back a little, "It's alright, it's alright. We're here. You're here."
He sniffles, catching his breath, not bothering to wipe away the rest of his tears. He looks at Em, opening and closing his mouth a few times, but looks away with a small huff. She catches on quicker than I do.
"Of course," Em rolls her eyes, opening up for a hug, "And you can touch my hair this time."
He falls in without a second thought after hearing this, audibly weeping into Em's turtleneck. His hands are shaking as his fingers slowly go through the tip of her ponytail. I can make out some Norwegian in his mumbling, but I don't know what he's saying. Emmy rubs his back a bit, then lets go and holds his shoulders again, tightly enough to make him wince a little.
"Everything you're feeling right now is real, alright?" She says, "Don't you forget it. And we won't let you. Right, Cora?"
"Yeah." I lay my hand on his shoulder, "We won't let it happen. It's all real here, Tord."
"It's real," Tord nods, taking in deep breaths, "It's real. It's all real…"
"Cora?" I hear Laur calling out, "You in the living room?"
"Coming," I make my way to where she'll be at the doorway, "Better brace yourself."
"For what- Tord?!"
"Laurie?!"
I manage to snatch the glass of water out of Laur's hand, just as she and Tord barrel straight for each other into a hug, almost falling over from the impact.
He's openly sobbing in Laurie's arms now, his face almost buried in her jacket. It's not long till Laurie's hiccupping cries are heard too as they both fall to their knees.
"I've never seen her," the words fall out of my mouth as Em joins my side and holds my free hand, "Run like she did to us when she was a kid. Not even to dad."
"I know," says Emmy, her grip in mine tight, "I know. C'mon Corrie. Drink your water, it'll help."
"You should get one too. Let's leave them be."
"Alright then. Maybe I might get a chance to tell my parents what's been going on…"
Looking back, I smile at my little sister and our great-great-grandfather quieting down, as he mumbles and runs his shaky hands through her hair.
The only word I can make out in his semi-coherent Norwegian as we leave the living room is 'andunge'.
Duckling.
I'm still reeling as Em and I sit down at the kitchen's tiny table.
Everything inside me is rushing through so fast, I don't know what to feel. If I should feel it at all. I've already refilled my glass of water three times and tried to offer one to Em, but she hasn't touched it since I set it down.
Her hand holding mine is an anchor I'm grateful for. I try to read her face as she texts with the other hand. Brows furrowed, lips tightly pressed.
"Your parents?"
"Mmhmm."
"… Do you want to talk about it right now, Em? Or is it distracting?"
She pauses, then turns off her phone.
"I think I could do with a chat, Cor. I… I'm trying to figure out how to tell them about what happened."
"Any luck so far?"
"I… The only thing I've said was the word of knowledge they had was right."
"It's a good start! And?"
"I… I don't know where to go from there. Do I only tell parts of the truth which makes sense," she squeezes my hand, "Or the whole ridiculous truth?"
I swallow back my thoughts. On one hand, I'm dreading the reality of the situation getting out to the wider world. On the other… Isn't it the truth which sets us free?
"I don't know, Em. Maybe start with some of the events which make the most sense? See how you go from there?"
"Perhaps…
Bump. Ka-thump. Bump.
"Goodness gracious, hello?"
"Eh-Emily? Issat you?"
"Oh my god," I stand as the tall, wobbling figure staggers into the room, "Matt, how…?"
He looks almost as gaunt as Tord, and his ginger hair is distinctly longer than I remember than when I first met him. But his blue eyes light up when he hears our voices and sees us at the table.
Huh. Didn't know he was the guy who gave mum and Laurie their type of blue eyes…
"F-found clothes on the bed when I woke," he swallows, a little huskier than Tord, "H-heard noises outside… Dunno where everything is… S-surprised these clothes fit… "
I share a glance with Emmy.
"Em, were you the one who-"
"Yes, but I'm not quite sure how I found them myself…"
"W-what are you two talking about?"
Matt's grip on the doorframe is slipping.
"Matt, hold on, you're leaning too far!"
"Emily, what d'you mean I- wh-whoa!"
"Goodness!"
"Matt!"
A clatter of chairs, footsteps and-
"Aaah! Not the f-face… Wha… How… How did I stop falling?"
"Matt," Em helps stand him back up, "Take a deep breath."
He doesn't.
A sob-scream chokes out from his throat and it takes both me and Em to hold our collective balance as he squeezes us.
We hug him back.
He's so, so cold and shivering as he cries into our shoulders. God knows he needs to hold someone after seventy-four years to realise he's alive.
For some reason, a rush of nostalgia blasts through my mind as Em and I try to keep our balance. It's almost like we're both five years old again, holding a two-year-old rain-soaked Laurie in our arms the exact same way, after she'd fallen in a puddle at kindergarten.
Everything inside collides again and I still don't know if I should feel anything at all.
"Shhh, shhhh. It's alright, Matt," Em manages to calm his cries to weeping, "Deep breaths. Deep breaths."
It's more like raggedy gasps for air before he sniffles and lets go, wiping away his tears. Still, one hand loosely clings to Em's wrist before she uses that hand to flick away her own tears, a tiny smile on her face.
"M-my throat hurts… Ow…"
Not even a split second and I know what she'll say next.
"Could you, Cor?"
"Already got it, Em."
I hand over her untouched glass of water to Matt, making sure he's careful as he grips it and first takes a sip, then gulps down the whole thing.
"You already look better," I admit while taking the glass back, "You feeling it, though?"
"I… I could probably do with a nap, I think…"
"Well, let's get you back to bed, then. Are you gonna help me out, Corrie?"
It's not long till Matt finds his balance and can walk without leaning on either me, Em or the walls, but he's still slow enough in catching up for me to realise…
"Emmy, why the antiques room?"
"D'you remember the bunk beds, Cor? I figured it'd be easier to put them there instead of… You know."
"Ohhhh. Right. Yeah, makes sense."
Wouldn't be surprised if dad planned that out.
When Matt catches up to us again, there's someone standing at the slightly ajar door to the antiques room. Dishevelled spiky hair, loose t-shirt and sweatpants, rubbing one of his black 'eyes'. (I still don't know what to make of them, honestly.)
God, the sight of Tom's motions of just trying to wake himself up reminds me so much of Laurie. (And our oldest brother, Jaxx…)
"Cora…" he yawns with a voice croaky enough to rival a toad's, "you alright? You look like you've been through hell."
No kidding.
"Goodness, I'd usually be telling you off for such language but… You aren't wrong, Tom. It's been rough for all of us. Same for me and Laurie."
"Where?" His eyes widen as he looks around quickly, "Is she alright? Is she safe? I heard some weird sh-"
"Ah ah ah, watch it Tom."
"…Sshhhriek. Yeah, I heard some weird shriek earlier which woke me up, so I figured I'd take a look."
… What?
"A shriek?" I wonder.
"Yeah. Kinda like some kaiju screaming and crying at the same time, actually."
"Oh. Well, it was Matt when he found us in the kitchen."
"Hey!"
Tom snorts while Em pinches the bridge of her nose, but I still spot her smile.
"To be fair to Matt," she fails to hold back a chuckle, "He did learn something very important to the situation at hand."
"Emily, what in the name of fresh fudge frosting are you talking about?"
"Oh, there you are Cora, Emily! Laurie was wondering where you were," a distinct, husky Norwegian voice finds its way to the halls, "Ah Matt! Good to see you're up too and- oh. Tom."
"Yeah, yeah. Good to see you too, commie."
Uh oh.
"Tom!" Laur jumps out between both of them, hands out like she's training dinosaurs, "no need to be rude! And Tord, you can't waste your new energy on picking fights!"
I find myself letting go of a breath I hadn't realised I was holding. Glancing at Matt and Em, so are they.
Tom's the first to find his words in the following confused silence.
"Laurie, I know you mean well, but you do realise I can walk straight through you to fight him, right?"
She cracks a grin and folds her arms while standing straighter, all in a very Richwells-Hartgrace way. God, she's so much like mum…
"No. And I'll prove it!"
"What are you doing? Duckling, duckling. You don't need to get any closer, you'll just walk-oof! Through!… Through…"
I have to double-take as Tom's 'eyes' turn white. (What is even going on with them?)
He doesn't blink as the first tears start to fall. Laur doesn't even notice for a moment, still hugging him even as they drip onto her shoulder. It's only then she looks up.
"Tom," her voice is soft, "are you crying?"
"N-no! No! No I'm not! I just… I just have sweat coming out of my eyes!"
It cracks a few giggles and snorts out of everyone - even I can't hold back a chuckle.
"You don't," Matt manages through his husky snickers, "you don't even have eyes!"
Wait, what?
"Still not tears!"
"I'm not letting you go," Laur says firmly, "until you hug me back, Tom!"
His tears keep spilling as he closes his… eyes.
(Ugh. I give up.)
Slowly, stubbornly, hesitantly, Tom hugs her back. Even from here, I can tell it's tight and solid. He doesn't run his hands through her hair like Tord did, but his grip on Laurie looks strained. At the same time, he refuses to loosen it.
I want to cry at the sight, but I'm still stuck in a mix of every emotion under the sun or feeling nothing at all. I'm so lost in thought, I don't even notice them letting go until Emily gently nudges me.
Somehow I find it in me to manage a smile as Laur takes hold of both Tom and Tord's hands, smiling brightly at both of their bewildered and confused faces.
"Is it me," Matt leans towards Em and I while trying to keep to a whisper, "Or am I really proud of Laurie right now?"
"Not just you, Matt," Em reaffirms, "Not just you."
"Wow. If only Edd were here to see this."
My heart sinks like a stone.
Everything tunnels into thick, slimy dread.
"Where is he?"
"Corrie, stay calm," Em rests a hand on my shoulder, "What's going-"
"Where's Edd?"
"He's still in the room I got out of," Tom points out, "But I think he's still sleeping-"
"Corrie-!"
I don't hear anything else as I throw myself through the doorway.
I don't care.
I'm going in.
There's only one thing I'm searching for: past the reduced and redecorated room of antiques, past the hoodies handing on the bunk bed posts, past the duvets and set clothes on the bottom right bunk.
My knees scrape against the carpet as I crash down and grab the hand peeking out from the sheets.
"Please," my voice chokes, "please, wake up!"
The sound of footsteps behind me are distant compared to the laboured breathing of the figure under the blankets. Looking at him now, I can see tiny puncture nicks and marks around his neck and close to his face. He looks the most gaunt and thinned than any of the others, and a shine of sweat drips from his forehead.
Resting the back of my other hand on it confirms what I'm thinking, anxiety spiking higher.
"You're burning up…"
"Tom, Matt, Tord," Em's voice cuts through, "Can you go get some water from the kitchen? For all of us?"
A moment's pause, then the sounds of footsteps and concerned muttering leaves the room.
"Corrie?"
I manage to tear away my gaze towards my best friend's face. There's a look in her eyes I haven't seen in a long time and honestly, sorely missed.
"Do you want to see him get better?"
"Is it even a question, Emmy?"
"Laurie, what about you?"
"You're kidding me, right?" My little sister grabs my shoulder as she joins me to my left side.
Em smiles, reassured.
She rests her hand on Edd's forehead.
"In the name of Jesus," she says gently, "leave him right now."
He exhales and squeezes his eyes tightly shut a few times before cracking them open. I give Em a nod to check his forehead again. She smiles and kneels with me on my right after.
My hand shakes, but… I'm not the one doing it? It's too slow and large of a shake to be from me…
"Heh," Edd croaks as he cracks a grin, "finally."
"What?"
"Finally got that… That handshake from you, Cora. Remember?"
Goddammit great-great-grandpa. Making me, Laur and Em laugh when everything inside and out is a mess.
"I'm not gonna faint this time," I point with my other hand, "I'll promise you that."
"Well, good to hear… Wait. Cora, you're…"
"Yeah?"
"You're holding my hand."
"Yeah… Yeah!"
"This…" his voice wobbles, "This isn't a new update after that… That hellscape I'd just gone through, is it?"
"No!" Laur jumps in, blonde hair bouncing up as she faces him properly, "no, this is real, it's all real! We did everything we could to get you back!"
"But it was Cora," Em continues, "who literally pulled all four of you out of the basement when Laur and I got taken temporarily out of the action.
I… I what?!
"Goodness, we were so deep in there, our only way out was a secret elevator we'd found this last winter. When she pulled you there and helped us set it off again, it was then she collapsed from exhaustion."
Wait a minute… I think I remember at least a part of doing it…
"The point is," Laur nods, "None of you are holograms any more. Tord, Matt, Tom too - all of you are human."
Edd looks at all of us in disbelief as he sits up.
But I squeeze his hand.
We say it at once.
"You're-"
"I'm-"
"-alive."
"-alive!"
Not a second after, we're crushing each other in a hug, and everything inside explodes out of me, sobbing.
I can't stop. I don't want to stop. I'm crying and crying in the arms of my own ancestor and he's doing the same to his own descendant and he has no idea. But any words I have to tell the truth here and now dissolve into tears.
Though, I'm not alone.
I soon feel Laur and Em joining the hug on my left and right respectively, then the clamour and yells of another three ancestors dive-bombing into the now-cuddle pile. (Splashes from glasses of water be damned.)
It isn't long till my sobs quiet down and I let go when I hear Laurie's weeping instead.
"It's my fault," she sniffles as she rubs her tears away, "I thought I was fine to let open communications happen for a new bit of code."
"Aw, Duckling," Tom sighs despite a croaky throat, "It's alright."
"No! No it's not! I didn't… I didn't know… It because of me you could've-"
"Laurel Dai," I wipe away my own tears and try the calmest voice I can, "It's enough. You're right in saying it, but that was then, not now. Everything's okay. A-and on top of that, I won't do what dad does - what happened between us, Phoenix and their crap down below is punishment enough. And I'll let school know you need a break for next week or two."
A collective sigh of agreement. God, mood. Still, Laur looks miserable.
"It was stupid of me to think… To think I could do it alone," she admits, "Not any more. Not till… Till I actually get better at it with the help on-hand here. From all of you and the rest of Legion. I should take a step back more often…"
"Now that," Tom points out, letting Laurie lean on his shoulder, "is a wise move, duckling."
"Wait, Tom." Tord holds up his hand, "You actually call her this?"
I have to bite back a laugh as her eyes widen in horror. Glancing at Em covering her mouth, so is she.
"Aww, it works!" Matt pipes up, clapping his hands a little, "It's so cute!"
"Fitting too," Edd nods, "Blonde hair, blue eyes - reminds me of an art piece my old neighbour did back when we were kids."
"Tom," Laur almost whines, "what have you done?!"
He starts to cackle, but the croakiness of his voice makes him cough and stop to drink whatever water he has in one of the glasses.
Ping!
"Oh, goodness me…"
"Your parents, Emmy?" I manage.
She nods, but doesn't say anything back. For a moment, I think she'll put the phone in her pocket, but she then quickly types and sends a few texts as we all watch on. Only after a final send does she put it away.
"Tomorrow at the Easter Sunday service," she announces, "I'm going to tell them everything."
Huh. Means today's Saturday.
"W-what?" Matt's jaw drops alongside the others' noises of confusion and surprise, "Everything?"
"As God as my witness, the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. Though, I'm thinking I'll write it out in a letter so I'll be more concise and not stumble over myself."
"Good planning," Tord points out, "You wouldn't know who else could be listening or watching."
"Especially after just now," Edd sighs.
"You don't say," I huff.
"Err, guys?" Laur manages, "I still feel awful inside, but… I had an idea, if you'll hear me out…"
Saturday, 12th April, 2104
Next thing I know, I'm with just Laur and Em in the living room, building a pillow-couch fort in the living room whilst Edd gets dressed and they all drink up their first full glasses of water in their room.
"I can't believe," Laur huffs while pinning up a blanket with clothesline pegs, "Tom told everyone the nickname he gave me! I… I was genuinely starting to think I could use it to make it my Legion username with some super-old leet-speak Tord taught me! I typed it out and everything!"
To prove the point, she flicks up a holo and displays it right before us.
|) |_| ( | |_ | |\| 4
"Seriously?!" I let myself laugh, "It's not a bad idea, you could still use it!"
"But it would just be embarrassing!"
"If you tell everyone else, yes," Em points out while securing the couch cushions as walls to the fort, "But you don't have to. It's all your choice!"
"Well, maybe. But when I get into Legion again, I think I'll take more of a backseat this time. I'm not gonna do all the hacking, that's for sure. Maybe some protest organising, but not so much participating. And I don't wanna tell them too much but I do wanna say why I'd been off."
"Mental health days and weeks exist for a reason, Laur," I peel off my old green hoodie and stuff it around as a makeshift cushion, "And family issues. You don't have to go too in-detail."
"Yeah. True. Also, I don't think the 'Legend of' thing is gonna stick around for Legion any more. Before last night, there was a lot of talk about them being 'too real to not be a myth' and all that. Especially with the Charing Cross incident."
That damn Man in Black…
"Goodness gracious, I can imagine." Em shakes her head while taking off her turtleneck, "Oh! Oh dear, my last hair tie broke!"
"Eh," I wave it off, "Don't get any new ones. How about you go all-natural this time? Might suit you!"
"Corrie, you say it like Laurie's not curly as well."
"You're curlier!" Laur retorts while yeeting a beanbag for her to catch, "And you should let your fringe go natural as well! Might give your hair a rest!"
"… Oh, alright. I'll give it a shot. Though, Cora?"
"Hm?"
"We'll have to reorganise the budget a little considering the situation now. There's already four more mouths to feed."
"Hmm… We should have enough money to keep it stable," I think on it while taking Em's turtleneck off her and using it as another makeshift pillow, "I'll let mum know I won't be available for the Easter Monday holiday and taking a break for the next… Three delivery dates after. I don't think I'm ready to face dad yet."
"Good idea, Corrie."
"And for food, we certainly have enough long-term non-perishable items in the pantry to help out with the guys' recovery from the Cryo-Virts."
"Goodness gracious, those four haven't eaten real food in seventy-four years! We'll have to take it slow for them to get used to it all over again!"
"Though, for the Cryo-Virts ending up as near-death machines," Laurie tugs off her red jacket and starts to unzip the detachable sleeves, "if all four of them can be walking, talking, grabbing things, looking like they're twenty-something years old and not be brain-dead after seventy-four years, Sidney and the guys at Phoenix must've done something right. Food might not be that bad of an issue."
"True. Though," I start to think, tapping my chin, "there's a lot of stuff which doesn't fully make sense. Dad's involvement, how long Phoenix has probably been around for, how it links to the Disappearances… God, it somehow all made sense when his name first popped up as the admin account down there, but now… I hate saying this but I wish I could go back in time so I knew why."
"It'll all make sense in the end, Corrie." Em sighs and pulls me into a one-armed hug, "Maybe it's just not the right time."
"About right timing," Laur pulls out the neon blue scrunchie from her hair before running her hand through it, "when are we gonna tell the guys about… You know, the thing?"
"I almost did, Laurie," I admit, my voice going soft, "But I was such a mess crying back there, I didn't have any words to say it. I… I don't know if I can say it now. I still feel like one inside."
"Me too… I don't think I'm ready to say it either."
"Gracious me, I don't feel quite the same inside, but I understand why you don't want to tell them now."
"Actually," I swallow, "I think I was an internal mess the entire time I learned each of them was actually alive…"
"It was the undoing of grief, I think," Em leads us into the finished fort, "I might be wrong but… You were still in mostly denial, but you were also going through all of the other stages at the same time, and still reeling from the revelations with your dad being involved in all this.
Not to mention those goddamn M-C0Y messages near the end…
"Goodness, are you alright, Corrie? Looks like something's on your mind."
"Cora, you looked really angry like Dad for a moment."
"... Can I tell you about it after this? I don't wanna dwell on it right now."
"I'll set a reminder for it," Em texts it out, "oh, before you go get the others, Cora - is there anything else we all should mention?"
"Yeah," Laur pulls on her now-sleeveless jacket back on, "when are we actually gonna tell these guys the truth about us?"
Good question. I tap my chin for a bit.
"When we're all in a better state - a physical state, at least," I decide, "and when they start to ask questions."
"Good idea."
"Sounds like a plan, Corrie."
I let myself smile back to Laur and Em before crawling out the pillow fort. Glancing at it again as I make my way to the antiques room - yeah, it's gonna fit all of us.
I don't open the door when I make it to the antiques room, instead trying to listen to whatever interesting conversation's going on behind it.
"Tom, you realise we don't have anything to bet on anymore…"
"I'm sure we'll find something to do it on, Commie…"
"God, I can't believe how well I look at over a hundred and…"
"Guys, please. Can I have a word with you all?"
"Awww, but we're not gonna make it to the cuddle pile!"
"Matt, hold kjeft, we'll be okay for a moment."
"Can't believe I agreed to this thing…"
"Awww, is it because of Laurie?"
"Shut up. I could say the sa-"
"Guys! Alright. Look, whatever happens beyond this door, happens. From now to the rest of our lives. But… I think we're gonna be okay. We'll stick together. We've been stuck together as teenagers and as literal dads, we've been stuck together in virtual reality cryo-whatever, we'll do life together as… Somehow hundred-plus-year-old men. Whoever those girls turn out to be, if Tom's bet is anything to go by… Well, they're still our housemates, our friends, aren't they?
Don't cry, don't cry, don't cry…
"They've helped us and we've helped them. So we'll keep doing it. I know this is like, the furthest thing from a normal life we've ever wanted…"
I can't hold back a small chuckle of my own as I hear the others' laughter.
"But let's be real. Our lives have never been normal, and honestly? When was normal ever normal?"
"That," I open the door and hold it for them, "is a question I've been asking long before you showed up. Oh, by the way? I… I'm really glad you're all here."
Edd smiles. And so do the others.
"Me too."
Though this story has Easter its parallel,
Siblings' Calamity before, will this vignere's key tell.
Qorvs fqafu mruaek. Fsopcg exmnk pvswvr selu svnl uqhapk fz xhdggvavv.
-Kmutuj, Sztg tzd Kvpkkz.
"All any of you do is yell at each other. You're not friends."
"You're right. We're family."
-Nebula and Drax, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol II.
A/N: GOOD. LORD. IT'S OVER.
I suppose now is better than never to say that from now on, I'll be on break for the rest of the year. I'll try to keep my reasons short, but the gist is:
1. Rewriting a fic is long and tiring and I'm a little spent.
I need to recuperate my energy and (eventually) work a bit harder at it before I start releasing Act Three. Advice I'd gotten and take to heart, is to release only 6 months worth of work first before continuing on, and whilst Act Three has definitely earned that time, it's still in need of a rewrite. (Some of Act Two's chapters were long enough, honestly.)
2. University is hard, man.
I'm grateful to only be doing two subjects this trimester, but this is the last lull of security and proper relaxing before I really have to kick my butt into gear for it. I'm glad I get to do what I love in my degree, don't get me wrong! But it's a lot of work! And it'll be even going INTO the second half of October! Speaking of next month...
3. I've got Eddtober to run.
If you're thinking or vaguely remembering a list of Eddsworld-based creative prompts from 2017 onwards via tumblr, that was thanks to yours truly. It's been going on since and this year I have bigger plans for it than ever (despite uni). I won't be running it alone, but I still need to keep contact with the mods on my team to help keep it going.
With all said and done, I hope I can see you all at most about early-mid 2022. Take care of yourselves, everyone, and Happy Assorted Holidays and Holy Days for the days ahead!
