𝓁𝑜𝓋𝑒 𝓈𝑜𝓃𝑔

[mcggielin]

𓈒 𖥔 ۫ 𝐦𝐜𝐠𝐠𝐢𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐧  is a dependent muse blog for 𝐜𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐥𝐞𝐟𝐦 , written by lizzie ( 30 , she/her , pst . )

maggie lin ( the defector in the andromeda watch ) , 29 , nurse at saint peter's hospital .

intro , pinterest , spotify , interactions , plots blog .

[yuyuuyuyuu-deactivated20230726]

stop asking me how everything is going, i don’t know i’ve been ignoring it

[memoryangers-deactivated2026050]

status: closed for @mcggielin ! where: farmer's market.

the absence of maggie affected darla greatly. no longer she was able to see her gorgerous face daily or lean in to so casually inhale the sweet scent of her satin skin, so distinctively not andromedan. the worst part was that maggie lingered around redford like a ghost stuck in a place, haunting and laughing in darla's face. darla adjusts the wrinkles on her crimson-red coveralls as she standa behind the table. the farmer's market is buzzing with life — familiar faces come and go around her, but only one face truly catches her eye. she leaves her spot without announcing it to anyone and with confident steps follow maggie who is headed god-knows-where. first, she keeps her distance, then closes in on her like a predator. then maggie abruptly stops, making darla smash into her back. " why'd you stop? " a genuine confusion lingers in her voice.

[mcggielin]

ever since the incident, you would never find maggie at the farmer's market. it was only recently that she had finally gotten up the courage to go again, maybe things would be okay, maybe nothing would happen, maybe it'd just be a boring farmer's market. blame the weed that morning but maggie was walking her usual path when it had almost taken her straight into the andromedan watch, where all of her family stood & hung around. nope, she couldn't do that, not yet. making a big u-turn to go grab some breakfast. or some fruit. whatever, anything. realizing she had no clue where she's going or what she's even doing anymore, she's probably nothing without her people, they're all in her head, he's in her head, she stops immediately. "holy shit," turning around to see darla behind her, any sense of confusion or anger washed away instantly. "darla, what the? why didn't you just walk with me? oh my god, darla! baby love!" instantly wrapping her arms around her tightly, maggie didn't care about anything else, about having to leave, about how it affected either of them, nothing, all that mattered was that they were together again. "i missed you! how are you? tell me everything!"

[ofturmoil]

The soft thumping of his fingers flipping through a crate of new stock is the only sound in the corner of the shop, keeping time with the low-fi jazz humming through the speakers. It’s only interrupted by the bell above the door when it jingles. “Hi, welcome to Criminal Records. I’m here if you need any help,” he says without turning to face the customer – not super professional, but it’s the kind of low-effort greeting expected of a record store clerk.

He keeps his focus on the vinyl in his hands, his thumb tracing the edge of a sleeve with precision. To Yanis, the store is a sanctuary of predictable. He doesn't need to see the customer; he can tell by the uneven, wandering scuff of their shoes that they aren’t here with a specific list. They’re just drifting.

He slides a record into a protective plastic film, his mind already calculating the next ten minutes of his shift: finish this crate, check the pre-orders, maybe grab a coffee across the street. 

Then, the drifting stops. The scuff of shoes silences right behind him.

Zaid.

The name feels like a sword to his back. He counts to three, then scans the shop through the reflection in the glass of a framed poster on the wall — checking the aisles, the front door, the shadows. Only then does he turn. And recognizes her face. Immediately.

"You shouldn't use that name," he says. His voice is low, a raspy friction that barely carries over the soft hum of the speakers. He doesn't move toward her; he stays behind the counter, the wooden barrier acting as a shield.

"Maggie," he breathes, the word sounding foreign in his own mouth. He grips the edge of the counter until his knuckles turn white. "It’s Yanis now. Just Yanis. And you need to be very, very quiet, Maggie. Because if you found me... then they can, too."

[mcggielin]

"why not, that's your name?" she asks, confused, maybe she didn't have the correct person, it had been years at that point. but even then, she was sure it was him, it had to be.

crossing the store to the counter ever so slowly, she listened closely to his warning, looking around the store as if his father or adam were going to jump out at any second. "hey, it's just me," her hand slowly reaching to place ontop of his, noticing his grip on the counter, "just me."

although her own frustration with zaid were bubbling back up to the surface, remembering how he just disappeared and obviously still didn't care that he just left, she knew she couldn't let it show. he was obviously dealing with way more demons than she was, all she wanted was her friend back now that she had finally found him.

"i also didn't go out looking for you," she pointed out, trying her hardest to find his gaze, "i looked for you once and got fucked over, but whatever you say, yanis."

[abxvewater]

It was funny; in the least funny way possible, it was funny. The people who grew up in the cult community -- Darla, Maggie, et al -- had to force themselves to stop believing; Adam, on the contrary, had to force themself to believe. Because it was outlandish -- it was righteously outlandish. The concept of living among a certain kind of body snatcher that longed to destroy humanity (and, oh yeah, the world) was outlandish. To any person with a modicum of sanity who had not been brought up believing it -- had not been brought up forced to believe it -- it made no goddamn sense. There was nothing to support it, no damning evidence and nothing to give it merit, except a charismatic man and a beautiful plot of land. And order. For Adam, there was order. There was hierarchy and order and Model Citizen and Every Man and dress code and Image-Not-Image and- It was worth forcing themself to believe in the outlandish. They reached a hand out to Maggie, carefully placing it upon her shoulder, ever hesitant to scare her off. What she had been told by the Outsiders, by likely Andromedans, had the potential to spike if they moved too quickly -- approached the situation with too much confidence. She seemed to be holding onto her lack of belief by a thread, but they would not -- could not -- act as if that assumption was undeniably true. But they missed her presence -- a woman now, a child still. Flowers and braids when they had met her, lost and confused. But they had order now. They had order and she could have belief again. "I'm sorry." A simple statement, a steady and melancholic tone. I'm sorry. That was all there was to it. I'm sorry -- that this is how you must live. I'm sorry -- that no one came for you sooner. I'm sorry -- that you've grown up lacking autonomy. I'm sorry -- that I will take you back if I am capable. "You don't have to explain yourself to me," they assured her, although the rest of the cult community would be a different story. But she would undergo The Process, and if you cleared The Process, then you had nothing to explain. "We'll take care of it, okay? We'll take care of it."

[mcggielin]

any normal person, someone that didn't grow up as she had, would probably run away, but as soon as their hand touched her shoulder it felt like she could breathe again. it felt as if everything she had been holding onto, almost every inch of guilt, was slowly disolving once that physical connection had been made. everything would be okay, maybe. and then came the apology. who knew if he even meant it, they could've just been feeding her whatever she needed to hear, just like she used to do with whichever new soul had found themselves onto their compound, but in that moment, she couldn't help but believe him. "i know..." she began, "i just want you to know," her eyes pleading with his, she needed him to know that she hadn't left by choice. "i was trying to save someone and then they just took me away..i honestly didn't know what to do or where to go." even now, maggie had no idea what she waned to do, but hearing that everyone would be taken care of sounded right, it sounded like someone was finally taking care of her again, maybe she wouldn't be such a fuck up and things would finally be back to how they were supposed to be. she just had a decision she needed to make. wrapping her arms around them, she finally said, "thank you, i missed you."

[possessedhearts]

Keller bit the inside of his cheek, fighting the urge to laugh as he watched Maggie effortlessly manipulate the doctor with her fake concern. He grimaced when the doctor peered his way, continuing to play the part of a stoic and suffering patient.

As soon as they were in the clear, he snatched the crutches from her, holding one up to his mouth in a makeshift microphone. "And the Oscar goes to..." A beat..."Maggie Lin! For best supporting actress in a medical drama!" Keller raises the 'microphone' to her. "Any words for the Academy? Speech speech speech!" He cheers in a theatrical whisper that's far too loud to be discreet.

[mcggielin]

thankfully she had closed the door ever so slightly so when she gave her best wave, no one could even see the two of them fucking around. "thank you," trying to hold back fake tears as she held onto the crutch, "i want to thank my co-star, kelly, he always has my back and i couldn't have done it without him. oh and his couch cecause i plan to be melting into it in about an hour!"

maggie grabbed the wheelchair that was placed near the wall, placing it near the bed he was still laying on, "c'mon, hospital rules, gotta roll you out of here. i'm off in another like, five minutes though, and we can get the fuck out of here."

[abxvewater]

It would mean something. They slipped the mask on as she acknowledged them, as she recognized them -- the mask of Recruiter. Not the mask of Model Cultist Community Member, nor the mask of Every Man, but the mask of Recruiter. Friendly, warm, eyes a little brighter, always smiling -- but not in a creepy way, heaven forbid! -- so on and so forth... All of this would mean something if he could bring her back. And it was a sight to behold -- he had said all he needed to say to earn a confession that she missed them... far simpler than he had anticipated... Always smiling -- but not in a creepy way, heaven forbid! -- but this smile, this charade he offered Maggie, was tinged with a shade of sorrow. Always smiling, but not always so happily -- always smiling, sometimes only half-cocked. Always smiling, but it was wont to disappear. "You can... come back, you know. Come home." Come back. Start the process all over (would it be the very first time she underwent the process? -- he couldn't quite recall). The cleansing, the questioning. The assurance that she was not one of them before she became, once again, one of Them. "The people you're with now..." ('People' was used so loosely these days!) "How can you be sure they aren't trying to trick you? Even the strongest can fall prey."

[mcggielin]

could she go home? was that even allowed? what did she even have over here in her new life? just a job that she barely even liked, some new friends that came from it. she missed her mom, her friends, she wanted to go home and live a much simpler life again. fuck..why did she let her 'aunt & uncle' get in her head and even leave in the first place? he was right, anyone could be tricking her, all she could do was raise her shoulders in a shrug, she didn't have an answer. hell, those were the same things the deprogrammer said to her, that they were tricking her. but how could they? how could she be tricked when it was all she ever knew? "i don't know," trying her hardest not to shut down, this was someone she had missed, a connection to back home, but she still felt hurt & betrayed in a sense. taking a deep breath, maggie gathered her thoughts, he needed to know everything, right? and then it clicked. "they did....to get me away from everyone, from you & darla, they tricked me. i thought i was going to go see someone, to rescue someone, and they tricked me."

[mcggielin]

closed starter for @dangerousdispositions

and just like always, maggie had timed her last tiny break just right, falling back onto the couch right next to art. the past couple days had honestly been a whirlwind with run ins and big decisions and she couldn't have been more grateful that her week was coming to an end. as much as she knew it was probably best to keep herself busy, she really just wanted to relax and have some fun, that's where one of her closest friends came in. well, she hoped. "god, please tell me you're off the next couple days?" she asked with a sigh, cracking open her diet coke as, anxiously awaiting his answer. "or at least, like, 16 hours after we get off?"

[possessedhearts]

closed starter for @mcggielin!

Keller waited until the doctor was just out of view, keeping his voice loud enough to carry through the door...just in case. "I’m telling you, it just popped. I can’t even put weight on it, must be a terrible sprain!" Keller looked up at Maggie, dropping the act for a split second. "You should probably tell him I'm in unbearable pain, you know? I need something strong but none of that oxy shit. Tell him I need Nexodone instead."

[mcggielin]

maggie's gaze met with keller's as he lowered his voice to deliver the message, trying her best to hide the smirk that was growing on her face. god, she needed just a night where they could escape after the past twenty-four hours. "i know, now shut up or i'll drop your foot and it'll really be broken," she insisted with a smile. as soon as the doctor came back in, she began as if they were mid conversation, "-it's okay, no one's judging you." with a look of concern, the woman headed over the doctor to tell them in a hushed tone, "he's in the worst pain, he said it's a ten without even putting weight on it, he was just embarrassed earlier. he doesn't want an opioid like oxycodone or anything though, should we try nexodone?" and just like, they were in, prescription & crutches in hand.

[abxvewater]

who: @mcggielinwhat: i spy with my little eye :\ where: your choice, bestie! adam bops all around!

A familiar face. A dreadfully familiar face. Adam knew that they were not exactly unlikely to eventually stumble upon some of the defectors betrayers, that the more time they spent in the town with their eyes out for the poor and downtrodden, the more time they spent with the possibility of finding one of the few who had dared turn their back on their cult community but had the gall to stay in Redford, however accidental it was likely to be. And they had seen some of them before. And they had turned a blind eye. And it was only with the knowledge that her whereabouts had been discussed, that if they were seen within her proximity and dared to ignore her, they would be rightfully deemed a failure. Potential punishment. "Maggie..." They kept their tone gentle and calm, better to not scare her out of her wits, but reached out all the same. "Your family -- they want you to know that they miss you. We all do."

[mcggielin]

hearing her name, a twinge of anxiety rang deep into her chest, she knew that voice. it was someone she hadn't seen in years, someone she had missed, yet someone that she thought would come & save her from her fake family that took her away yet never showed up. she always knew that he might be able to find her around town, randomly show up, he was one of the few that was able to wander off the compound, she just had no idea how she was going to react when that day came.

"adam?" god, she couldn't do this, she was too weak. biting the inside of her cheek to keep herself in check, she was constantly reminding herself to fight every instinct in her body, not to cry, not to run over & beg to come home, and not to run away. the word family is what tugged at her the most because that's what they were, they were her family, her real family. "i miss you all too, more than you could ever know. i wish-..." her soft voice trailing off mid thought.

[annabelledexterjones]

[dangerousdispositions]

@mcggielin

[mcggielin]

closed starter for @ofturmoil

having a day off meant maggie was restless and bored, usually high off her ass, but mostly bored. needing to keep busy she found herself downtown and she ducking into criminal records, maybe she could find something in there, right? aimlessly wandering around, her eyes glazed over everything, casually picking up a random record, maggie's eyes scanned up to see a store clerk. a clerk she had seen before. but it couldn't be, could it? his hair was different, hell, everything was different, but she could swear it was him. her heart felt like it was in her stomach out of excitement, after all this time, had she finally found him? "zaid?" she asked, her voice ever so quiet in fear of anyone else that could be around as she slipped the record back in its spot and slowly walked over to where he was standing. "zaid? is that you, it's maggie.."

[aqvarcgia]

old town, pnw's | no cap

the night still felt almost too young to belong truly to itself. something that was now stretching out with every hour that was yet to burn in absence, or presence. maddie stepped out from her break and slipped back behind the bar as though she had never left, settling into the role she wore perhaps too easily. the feline curve of her smile wound its way back into place, her eyes brightening just enough to catch and keep the necessary attention, and an open ear that remained offered to whatever strange confessions or fleeting little amount of joy came her way.

there was still time before close, plenty of it honestly, and she moved as she needed. shoulders brushing past the other bartenders in an easy form of familiarity whilst her hands worked on instinct alone, barely needing to register the orders as they met her. her laughter broke through the haze of the process where it mattered, even almost something real at the right moments, whilst her gaze skimmed the room in a quiet form of awareness, ensuring the space remained as it should.

eventually, the night softened just for a moment. the crowd thinned, and the noise dipped into something quieter as if the hush had been called upon by will alone.

and maddie tipped the bottle in her hand, topping off the glass of one of the last stragglers still by the bar without a draw of attention to it. her hip rested lazily against the counter now, posturing loosening now that it was possible. a brow arched in an invitation, subtle at best, but still there, and her voice followed easily.

“penny for your thoughts, love?” maddie reached for another glass, pulling it towards herself without a second thought. “last call on charity.”

[mcggielin]

after what felt like the longest back to back twelve hour shifts of her life, all maggie wanted to do was crash. instead of heading home towards the beach, the woman found herself sitting at the bar top, relaxing with her tequila soda, not ready to go home just yet. she knew that if she went home, she'd have to face the rest of her demons mixed with the stress of another day at the hospital and that was too much to carry without the help of a little extra help. not yet.

lost in her thoughts, she was quickly brought back to reality when maddie's voice filled her head, "huh? oh, just thinking about work, the past few days were crazy," a lie easily falling from her lips. finishing off what was left off in her glass, she asked, "how about you, how's it been around here? i miss anything exciting lately?"

maggie knew maddie well enough, well, as well as she could for her only being there for a few months, so as soon as she saw her pour herself a drink, a smirk began growing on her own face.

"let's take a shot."

[jah-love]

[heustons]

Odessa A'zion as Riley McKendry Hellraiser (2022) dir. David Bruckner

[virginiewoolf]

Carrie Fisher, from The Princess Diarist.

[hel7l7]

I drive myself fucking crazy