colorful;

marlene mckinnon. 24. take a deep breath, make the world a little colorful

[marlenemckinno-n]

officerrevans‌:

Lily was usually to still be at the precinct now, pouring over files even though most of her peers had gone home, or perhaps writing up reports that others had been too lazy to complete properly. Now, she was sitting at a bar alone, with no intention of investigation and nowhere else to go. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d been in this situation; she wasn’t sure if it had ever happened before at all. 

“Not at all,” Lily smiled at Marlene when she approached, moving her to drink to the side to allow the woman the space to sit. Her drink was delicious, but far from doing what she wanted it to do. Her initial elation after quitting her job had passed quickly into sadness; she’d give anything to feel nothing at all now. After years of prohibition, Lily couldn’t believe that she actually wanted a drink. At least company could be somewhat of a distraction. 

“It is good to see you Marlene.” Her tone was as genuine as Lily could manage, as cheerful as she thought possible. 

Marlene took a seat next to Lily, comforted in the fact that their previous meeting at her house hadn’t tainted the woman’s idea of her. She was honestly surprised to see LIly here, with a drink in her hands that certainly wasn’t water, after being horrified at what happened at the Black’s gala. But she smiled through the confusion, saying, “It’s nice to see you too, Lily.” She didn’t know the woman well just yet, but she couldn’t shake the feeling that she should keep trying. Lily seemed like a good soul, something that seemed to be in short supply around New York nowadays. 

She couldn’t remember if she’d seen Lily at the Boulevardier before, as she had been spending quite a bit more time there lately. “I didn’t think that this would be your scene. You do know that most of the drinks here have alcohol in them, right?” she teased, though her smile only grew. She wanted to keep their conversation light, with no mention of investigations or cops or anything of the sort. The less she knew about the woman’s job, the better, or so she figured. 

[marlenemckinno-n]

frxnklxng‌:

date: july 24th, 1925. location: union square park. status: open.

The moon was brighter, higher in the sky, than he would have cared for tonight. Hanging low, illuminating every blade of grass that he crunched beneath his boot while the smell of stale bread hung in the air. He checked his watch. Nearly two a.m. “God damnit,” he muttered beneath his breath, anger flaring at the thought of being ditched. They were supposed to meet him here at one. Not two. Not quarter to two. Not half past. Just one. Still, Frank leaned against a tree, cigarette hanging limply from his hand, appearing to be no more than a straggler–home after a late night of drinking, maybe the wife was still awake, kids asleep if he had’em–but Frank knew he couldn’t hang around much longer. 

The Longbottom didn’t make it a habit of disappearing very often. Not when he was needed. Not when there were more important things at stake. Still, prison had turned him into something of a ghost–often caught pacing like a ghost over grass and concrete and pavement until he wore his shoe print into the ground, deep into the earth, where even the worms couldn’t get to. A month was long. A month was what he needed. A month was his prescription and God forbid he get addicted because more than once he thought about taking his car West, farther than Appalachia, until the mountains of the Rockies loomed ahead and the water smelled crisp and the treachery of New York City was left in the exhaust of his muffler…

Frank heard the footsteps approaching, the figure outlined in shadows and starlight and secrecies. “You’re late,” he said, taking another drag of his cigarette so the smoke would coat his lungs in a stinging glory. Frank kept his head down, eyes on his toes and the red scuff mark on the leather of his boot. “That’ll cost ya.”

As soon as Marlene heard whispers of Frank’s reappearance, she knew that she would be summoned. Somehow, some way, Frank would pull her back into his stupid little lessons and she’d be just as tangled up in the Prewett’s business as she had been a month ago. With Fabian’s task turning into an almost daily worry for her, reconnecting with Grizel, and whatever she was doing with Mary, she didn’t care about the man who seemed to be able to disappear at a moment’s notice. 

She had lingered far too long at the Boulevardier that night, fully missing the time on the note that had been left in Arthur’s care. She didn’t want Frank’s nonsense to pull her away from Mary too soon, though the worry of what he could do still hung in her mind. Finally, she said her goodbyes and started the walk to the park, almost feeling as if she was meeting a ghost. If he was supposed to be a mentor to her, he was doing a pretty shit job of it. 

She laughed as she heard his voice, shaking her head at the man. “You’ve been gone for how long, and now you’re saying it will cost me? Where the hell did you go?” Her voice was soft; she wasn’t that dumb. There was no reason for anyone to overhear them, though she didn’t want to be treated as if she was a dumb child today. Not when Frank could come and go as he pleased, demanding her presence with only hours notice. 

[marlenemckinno-n]

evelynrosmerta‌:

Date: June 4th, 1925 Location: The Boulevardier Closed starter for @marlenemckinno-n

Evelyn had seen the young woman around the Boulevardier more often as of late. It was obvious that all the attention would go towards Mary and it was returned as well. But now the young woman had arrived while Mary wasn’t here for the night. She had nearly expected that Marlene would know that.

The woman moved towards the part of the bar where Marlene was seated and she leaned against the bartop. “Hi, Marlene right? I’m not sure you know but Mary is not around tonight. She often has the Thursday off.” Evelyn pointed in the direction of the bottles behind the bar. “Can I get you something to drink?”

Marlene knew that Mary was a draw to the Boulevardier for many, but she found herself visiting the singer almost daily now. She enjoyed the atmosphere, the drinks were good, and Mary was always brilliant. She didn’t pay much attention to the other patrons, but of course she was aware of the owner. 

Marlene hadn’t personally spoken to Evelyn much, but Mary gushed about the woman whenever she came up. So when she approached, Marlene gave her a small smile before receiving the news. “Oh, really?” she said, though her smile didn’t leave her face. “I’ll just take a whiskey, thanks,” she said. “How’s your night been so far, Evelyn?” she asked, figuring it wouldn’t hurt to chat with the owner if she was spending so much time here already. 

[marlenemckinno-n]

fab-prxwett‌:

All the questions were starting to get a bit irritating. Fabian was never the patient brother. If Gideon were here, he would’ve handled the situation much better than Fabian ever could. Then again, if Gideon were here, there wouldn’t be so much of a rush for that damn file.

“Look, we don’t have time for questions,” he snapped, rubbing his eyelids as he tried to release some of the pressure from the headache that usually accompanied a hangover. “Now please. Frank is away doing… God knows what. He usually drives. Not only because backup is always a great idea when on a job, but also because I hate driving. So, you get to drive.”

“You’re not even going to tell me where we’re going?” Marlene said, her voice getting a bit louder as they kept walking. She wasn’t dumb; she could tell she was starting to annoy the shit out of Fabian. But she wasn’t about to walk into a bad situation without knowing what she was getting into. There were only a few jobs she had done so far with the Prewetts, and each one seemed more dangerous than the last. “I haven’t driven in years, Fabian,” she said, her arms crossing over her chest. “Are you going to tell me what’s happening?”

[marlenemckinno-n]

poisoned--lips‌:

“Scenery?” Freddie asked with a snort, “Is that what you’re calling your infatuation with that singer now?” Her tone was teasing, warmer than it usually was when she spoke. Marlene was one of the Prewetts, and therefor someone Freddie gave a shit about. The other woman was someone Freddie felt at ease around, a rarity in these days. “Frank’s always in a bad mood, don’t let him bother you,” she replied with a roll of her eyes. “But I’ve been alright-bored, if I’m honest. Hasn’t been much going on lately.”

“She’s my friend, Freddie, it’s not...an infatuation,” Marlene stammered out, knowing that her words weren’t entirely convincing as they tumbled out of her mouth. She knew the woman was teasing, but the accusations seemed to hit differently as of late. “He should be in a better mood now that he’s out, don’t you think?” she said with a laugh. “I’m not going to complain about that. I think like the quiet,” she said, a smile on her lips. 

[marlenemckinno-n]

syncopatedsongbird‌:

This moment between the two of them-electric and too intimate to be friends, just friends-sent Mary’s heart beating rapidly. Her face heated as Marlene’s hand tucked a lose curl out of the way, the other woman’s gaze avoiding her own as she offered up the compliment. “Oh, thank you,” Mary said, her voice soft and her cheeks warm. “You look lovely, Marlene, but-you always look so beautiful,” she responded, looking up to try and meet Marlene’s eyes.

She wasn’t certain of much, when it came to the woman in front of her. Mary knew three things beyond a doubt: that Marlene was mixed up in a world Mary did her best to avoid, that the other woman felt at least a sense of friendship for her, and that she was utterly, completely, irrevocably head over heels in love with Marlene and if Mary didn’t tell her she would explode.

Suddenly, Mary was nervous. Petrified because she could have been reading the signs wrong, or maybe Marlene was just toying with the poor girl with the unfortunate crush, though Mary was hard pressed to consider Marlene doing something so malicious. She bit her lip, unable to look at the woman next to her. “Marlene,” she started, voice cracking from the sudden dryness in her throat. “Marlene, I-I just-you know that I value-this-our-friendship,” Mary’s voice shook, the words coming out disjointed as she tried to keep herself from losing the little courage she had. “But I just-sometimes it seems like maybe it’s-we’re-not friends.” She blinked, rapidly, her own words coming back through her ears and sounding off. “Sometimes I think you look at me the way I know i must look at you,” she admitted, glancing up but not letting her vision rest on Marlene long enough to try and read her expression. “But Marlene, I just, I can’t keep living like this, so uncertain. I just-Marlene, what are we to you?”

“Thank you, Mary,” Marlene said, her voice soft as her hand fell back to her side. She still didn’t know why she found it so hard to look at her, to compliment her without her cheeks turning bright red. The woman was so kind to her, and always had been. She had learned that Mary would scold her if she said anything about not deserving this treatment, but Marlene still felt as if Mary was far too good for her. 

As Mary continued to speak, a small smile started to grow. She was obviously nervous, but there was no reason to be. She took both of Mary’s hands once she was done, murmuring, “Hey, look at me.” She didn’t know exactly what to say, how to explain just how she felt about the woman, but she wanted to put her at ease. “You’re right, Mary. I...I just didn’t know how to say it. I know you don’t want to be involved in all of...well, this. I thought it meant you wouldn’t want to be with me,” she said. She didn’t exactly hide her involvement with the Prewetts; they were at their bar, after all.  “I’m willing to give this a chance if you are,” she said, her smile only growing as she gently squeezed the woman’s hands. She didn’t know if she was saying the right thing, but it felt good to finally admit to herself, and to Mary, what she knew she had been feeling for a while now.

[marlenemckinno-n]

lcvehurtz‌:

“work is rarely fun, marlene, you should know that.” grizel knew for a fact that marlene wasn’t that naive. she wanted to comfort marlene, tell her that she could get out of that mess. but she couldn’t afford to help her friend, or? were they? regardless, she couldn’t afford to help her friend out of the mess she was in. “you’d find something, sometimes what you want to do just gets clouded by what you have to do.”

grizel pinched the bridge of her nose. “that sounds like it’s on fabian then.” grizel muttered, annoyed. there were very few prewetts she had been a fan of, one of them now dead, but fabian wasn’t one of them. “sometimes things aren’t about want though, marlene. a gun isn’t going to magically solve your issues.” she resisted the urge to tell the girl just just toughen up and tough it out. “you might get roughened up a bit, you know, but i’m not going to let you die out there.”

“That’s the thing, though. At least you’re good at something. What else could I do? It’s not like I can follow in my father’s footsteps,” Marlene said, though she knew she shouldn’t be so harsh. The woman was just trying to help, but sometimes it felt hopeless. “I don’t care if it’s fun, anything would be better than what I’m doing now,” she said, softer this time. 

“That’s what I’m hoping Molly says,” she said with a shrug, wondering how Molly was going to take the news at all. The man was intimidating, to say the least, and she didn’t plan on testing their leader or her brother. “Yeah, but at least I’d be better prepared, right?” she said, glancing back down at her bowl of food. “I dunno how much control you have over that anymore,” she said. Grizel had run away from the gangs for a reason, and Marlene didn’t exactly want to pull her back in. But it would be nice if someone had her back.

[marlenemckinno-n]

date: after lily quits her job location: the boulevardier availability: closed to @officerrevans

There was no chance of mistaking the flash of red hair at the end of the bar. Her eyes fell on the woman, sitting alone with a drink in front of her. A sad sight, sure, but also a curious one. Hadn’t their last conversation revealed that Lily was a cop? Judging by the near breakdown the woman had after she discovered she had been drinking, Marlene was surprised to see her in the thick of it all. 

A glance at the clock showed she had plenty of time before Mary took the stage; that meant she had plenty of time to approach Lily once more. After leaving her home in such a rush, Marlene did wonder if there was anything else to say. If there wasn’t, it did just seem like Lily needed the company. Taking her half empty glass, it didn’t take her long to reach the end of the bar and stand at the woman’s side. “Is this seat taken?” she asked, gesturing to the empty seat beside her. She wasn’t sure if the woman would want anything to do with her anymore, but there was no harm in trying, right?

[marlenemckinno-n]

lcvehurtz‌:

“i write what people want to read” grizel said, although her tone was somewhat indifferent. she found herself playing with her food more than eating it, although she was quite fond of the dish. “there’s a lot fo things that aren’t important when you’re just trying to make it through the day, you know? it’s not like i went to school or anything special.” she shrugged, feeling somewhat guilty. marlene and her had shared a lot of things, but she couldn’t quite remember everything.

“well if it wasn’t an order, why do more than you have to?” grizel did the bare minimum usually. she did it fast, had a fast turnover, but she never did anything extra. she sure as hell wasn’t getting paid any extra. “i don’t know, there’s no other lackeys looking for a roommate in those parts? and sometimes, if you don’t hurt them, then they hurt you.”

“Doesn’t sound like much fun for you,” Marlene said with a laugh, her eyes falling on the woman’s mostly uneaten food. “I suppose you’re right. I dunno if there’s anything I’d want to do if I was free from all this mess,” she said, the harsh reality sinking in that she didn’t have a life outside of the gangs anymore. She didn’t even know if she could call Grizel a friend anymore. 

“I...I didn’t know where we were going until it was too late to turn around. He made it sound important,” she said, though she knew she could have avoided all of this if she cared less about her honor or whatever Fabian had promised back. “I haven’t exactly been asking around. ‘m not sure there’s anyone I’d want to live with, anyway,” she said, though perhaps it would be safer with a roommate or two. “I know, I just...I’ll get a gun. It’ll be fine,” she said, knowing there wasn’t much at all that Grizel could do for her. Sometimes it was nice to just talk about it with someone who understood, who had been through it too.

[marlenemckinno-n]

fab-prxwett‌:

Fabian stopped in his tracks at her question. He remembered days where he barely even had to mention what he was doing and his partner was right there beside him.

Oh, joy. Another one of those ‘what if’ types. This is going to be so much fun…

He turned towards her and shrugged, his trademark look of indifference on his face. “If you’re busy, you’re busy. Nothing I can do about that.”

He turned and made his way towards the exit. “I just thought you’d be looking for a chance to redeem yourself. And with the boss’s brother, no less. But I suppose whatever you’re busy with is more important.”

Marlene hadn’t had much interaction with Fabian yet; perhaps she had even spoken to Molly more than the man who stood behind her. His words as he left to exit the bar gave her pause, however. She did need to redeem herself, so to speak, and Fabian wasn’t the worst choice in the world. As he took a few more steps away from her, she sighed and pushed herself up from her chair.

“What are we even doing?” she asked as she caught up with the man, her voice wavering only the slightest bit. “Why do you need my help, anyway?” She was sure he had others he could ask; others that he trusted more, or that were a little more capable than she was. 

[marlenemckinno-n]

lcvehurtz‌:

“oh you know what i mean,” grizel tried not to roll her eyes. “helping lovesick fools is all fine, but they tend to have the same problems. and my boss doesn’t believe in the oxford comma, so you know i am truly suffering.” it occurred to her that with all the things she had talked to marlene about in their time together, writing hadn’t been one of them.

“everything about what you do is owing favors.” grizel said. “just politics. that’s all.” she tried to think for a moment, but her eyebrows raised almost dramatically. “two counter questions: you still live alone? you don’t have a gun? at least have one, marlene, even if you don’t actually need them. it never hurts, you know, just in case.” grizel added. “although i don’t think i’d trust you with a gun in your hand.”

“You chose to respond to lovesick fools, didn’t you?” Marlene said with a laugh before taking another bite of her meal. How desperately she wanted this to be her normal; to be sitting around talking about a job other than a booze run or a dangerous deal. “You know, I didn’t know you were a writer,” she said, the words harsher than she meant them to come out. Marlene wasn’t dumb; she knew that Grizel didn’t tell her everything about her life. She just figured if the woman had a dream of working for the New York Times, Marlene would have heard about it at some point.

“Not owing favors to some crazy man. After Molly strictly ordered against it,” she said, her voice wavering for only a moment. She pushed the food around with her spoon for a few moments, before glancing back over to Grizel. “Who would I be living with, hm? I just...I don’t want to hurt anyone,” she said, her voice a little stronger now.

[marlenemckinno-n]

poisoned--lips‌:

where: swish n flick who: @marlenemckinno-n

Freddie ordered a drink for herself, adding a second to her order only as her eyes landed on Marlene across the room. Drinks in either hand, she navigated the room and it’s crowd with easy, placing a drink in front of her friend and slipping into the open seat next to her. “Thought I’d never see you here again, what with all the time you’ve been spending at the Boulevardier,” Freddie teased as she took a sip of her drink.

Marlene hadn’t come to the Swish n’ Flick with a plan that night; perhaps she just wanted to show her face so the Prewetts didn’t start to forget about her. Her nights, instead, had been spent at the Boulevardier. It wasn’t hard to catch Mary after the show, and she was fond of the neutral club’s atmosphere. However, she couldn’t help but smile as her friend sat down beside her, a drink appearing beside her. At the accusation, however, she could feel her cheeks turning pink. “It’s nice to get a change of scenery every once in a while, you know? And Frank’s not usually glaring at me from across the bar,” she said with a laugh before taking a drink. “How have you been, Freddie?”

[marlenemckinno-n]

syncopatedsongbird‌:

Mary let Marlene led the way into the bar, their arms still linked. It was a lovely place, truly, Mary could admit that as she looked around, but it couldn’t hold a candle to the Boulevardier, as far as she was concerned. Mary knew she was biased-the club was her home as much as the apartment she shared with Ted and Dora, and there was an energy in  “Marlene,” Mary said, slipping her arm out of the other woman’s in order to grab her hand, “I’m always going to worry about you, no matter what knowledge I have of what you have going on,” she explained, doing her best to keep the emotion from overtaking her voice. “I care about you.” Mary offered the woman a smile as they took a seat at the bar, hands still linked.

As they entered the bar, Marlene felt the woman pull her arm away. It worried her for a moment, before she felt the woman’s hand grasp her own. It seemed that Mary had a way of warming her heart with even the simplest of sentences, and she felt her cheeks start to warm as she glanced away. 

Settling herself on the barstool before turning back to the woman, her smile only growing. “I care about you too, Mary. More than words can say,” she whispered, her free hand coming up to brush a few curls from the woman’s eyes. She wanted to be able to see the light in Mary’s eyes, something she’d become so accustomed to in the past few weeks. “I don’t think I mentioned this yet, but you...you look absolutely stunning tonight,” she said, unable to meet Mary’s eyes as the words tumbled from her lips. 

[marlenemckinno-n]

♒

♒: my muse’s reaction to finding your muse bruised and beaten on their doorstep

Marlene would say she was friends with Ted, and perhaps had become closer to him since she started seeing Mary. When she heard the knock on her door late at night, however, she couldn’t imagine who it could be. Clutching a kitchen knife in her hand, she swung open the door and found Ted slumped against the doorframe. “What the hell happened to you?” she said, ushering him in without a second thought. After getting him settled on the couch, she murmured, “I’m going to call Mary and grab some bandages, alright?” she asked, a gentle hand patting his arm where it seemed he hadn’t been touched. She didn’t want to cause the man any more pain, but she certainly wasn’t a doctor. 

[marlenemckinno-n]

☠ for grizel !!

☠: my muse’s reaction to being told that your muse is missing, and presumed dead 

A man’s voice on the other end of the phone brought some of the worst news imaginable. Marlene managed to stammer out a response, though now she didn’t even remember what she had said. She knew it had to be Grizel’s brother, and the loss had to be much more painful for him than it ever would be for her. She wanted to know who, wanted to know why. Grizel had stayed out of the mess New York found itself in for years now, what had gone so wrong? The rest of the night was hers to mourn, to let tears fall before the job she was set to do tomorrow. She knew Grizel wouldn’t want her to get reckless, though she wasn’t sure how much longer she had if even those who weren’t involved anymore were disappearing.

[marlenemckinno-n]

lcvehurtz‌: 

weaving her way back to the couch, she set the bowl down in front of marlene on the coffee table. “she’s a character all right.” she said with a slight chuckle. she sat herself right on the floor, curling her legs up under her.

“it’s nicer than i thought it would be, although not as,” she paused to choose her next word carefully. exciting didn’t seem quite right. “thrilling.” that word didn’t seem to hit right either, but she powered through. between two bites, she opened her mouth to speak again. “you know what i’m talking about marlene.” she said, blowing on the hot food. “i can’t help you with anything if you can’t even tell me what you’ve gotten into. unless you don’t want my help anymore.”

It felt similar, in a way, to many nights they shared before. Merely sitting beside one another, sharing a meal and chatting about everything that had happened that week. Perhaps it was silly of her to wish she could have some of the familiarity back, but she did miss feeling as if everything was under control with the Prewetts. 

“You miss the excitement, hm?” Marlene said with a laugh. She picked up the bowl and took a few bites, knowing that Grizel was expecting answers. She didn’t want to pull the woman back into this mess, though she was already sitting on her couch, wasn’t she? “Fabian had me go with him to retrieve the missing police files, but now I owe BCJ a...a favor,” she said, her eyes trained on the bowl in front of her. “I don’t even know if Fabian’s told Molly yet, or if she knows what was in the file. It was...definitely the information he wanted, though,” she said, finally glancing down at the woman. “Should I get a gun or something? I live alone,” she said, still stating facts the woman already knew.

[crownedglcry-blog]

takexshelter‌:

SEND ME A SYMBOL FOR ANGST;

☔: my muses reaction to opening their front door and seeing yours drenched in rain

⚡: how my muse calms yours in a lightening storm while they’re pulled over on the side of the road

☆: my muse comforting yours while they get a tattoo

☏: my muse’s reaction to getting a phone call from the hospital about your muse

☯: what my muse says to yours after they haven’t spoken for five hours since a fight

✏: my muse’s letter to yours that they left after they passed away

⚰: my muse’s reaction to watching yours die from afar

✿: my muse’s reaction to leaving a cut on your muse’s body

♒: my muse’s reaction to finding your muse bruised and beaten on their doorstep

⚈: my muse’s reaction to finding drugs in your muse’s handbag

✺: my muse protecting yours from a sleaze at the club

☠: my muse’s reaction to being told that your muse is missing, and presumed dead

☺: my muse finding yours on the side of the road, hours away from home

✖: the last thing my muse says to yours before leaving for good

⌛: the voicemail my muse leaves on your phone when your muse hasn’t been heard from for the fifth night this week

☕: my muse comforting yours after the death of a loved one

⚱: my muse’s reaction to waking up to yours muse, beaten by mine, but my muse has no recollection of the night before

☉: my muse’s reaction to finding yours in a public bathroom, drugged and almost unconscious

SPECIFY WHICH MUSE ON MINE AND YOUR BEHALF