actually like. obsessed w the idea of sidney seeing sam for the first time and not being able to stop herself seeing the similarities between her and billy loomis
anon. anon i am So with you on this.
it started with a quick glance at the hospital, when sam was pushing tara's wheelchair out of the elevator. sidney's head was all over the place, never one to be accommodated by the thought of loss, even with how much she was used to it at this point. and it was dewey, of all people. she lost dewey, her big brother, one of her best friends.
gale had told her beforehand. even dewey texted her said fact. she knew this was, in fact, billy's estranged daughter, one conceived by cheating and lying. that doesn't affect her – love and billy were two words that hadn't mixed in her head for over 25 years. but she can't lie that walking up to her and seeing her up close made her feel something creeping up her chest, a sharp pain that made her grimace slightly.
because samantha – sam, she said that sidney should call her sam – had something painfully familiar in her.
she could see christina ramirez written all over her; the tanned skin and thick eyebrows, full lips and long, dark hair. her voice sounded similar to her mother's, too, or at least as much as sidney could remember from someone she hasn't seen in more than two decades.
but her eyes were definitely not christina's.
she felt coldness in them, the kind of cold that penetrates your own eyeballs and leaves chills down your spine. though sam's pained expression could never match billy's poise, this similarity was enough to throw her off her balance, enough to make sidney cautious – way more cautious than she should be, considering she is talking to a victim, just like her.
and then, in stu's house, she sees her.
sees sam taking revenge on the man that hurt her. sees her attacking him not only as a means to survival, but as an exercise of brutality that sidney hadn't seen from many people before.
she sees as sam takes a stance, arms at her side, blood on her arms and knife in hands, and sidney can't help but see flashes of pale skin and short hair, flashes of a white shirt covered in fake blood and we all go a little mad sometimes and hello sidney, surprise sidney, surprise, surprise, surprise.
it pains her, scares her, terrifies her as she limps towards the girl. makes her hands shake as she continuously eyes the knife still clutched by her hand.
it all fades away when gunshots make her wake up from her trance, when an also limping – poor girl, she's been through enough – frail girl drops her gun and tries to suck a breath in. all of sidney's fears melt into a puddle on the floor when samantha (sam, sam, sam) drops the knife, runs up to that fighter, that small fighter, and embraces her tight, asking over and over if she's okay, if her body isn't aching too much, apologizing and telling her that it's over, that they will be fine, to not take her eyes off of her.
because as much as looks can deceive, she realizes that billy's soul (or lack of) could never be compared to this girl's protective and caring nature. because billy is dead for good, and karma is coming back to bite him and tear his legacy down in the hands of his own blood.
hey. hey. do you think vanessa bragged to her friends about how her dad was the one in the suit and that's why he was so cool. do you think that's why the kids trusted him. because they trusted her. do you think vanessa thinks about that a lot
hey! i totally do, that would be devastating and also make all of her (apparent) guilt and debt to the missing kids make so much sense! :D
i mean. even if she didn't have anything to do with it in particular and even if she didn't like witness the murders (which we can assume she did by the scene where she's staring at the drawings, since the laughters turn to screams in her head, and the rumours that there are deleted scenes of her witnessing the murders or its aftermath), you can totally see why she would feel "obligated" to make sure they are okay and visit the animatronics from time to time. it's bigger than her father's influence on her, the affectionate way she talks about them and how comfortable she is inside freddy's shows that she truly cares about them. and about everyone else, in fact.
but she loves her dad. no matter how dark and twisted he is, no matter how abusive their father-daughter relationship is. we don't know if he was always like this, what made movie william do what he did, if vanessa clutches the good memories close to her chest or if he was always two-faced, caring and violent at the same time.
but in the scenario where baby vanessa has just so much love for her daddy, who loves to be around the pizzeria and dance to fredbear's singing and twirl around with her dad (who's wearing the spring bonnie suit, he always did, he always walked around and talked to kids in them), in the idea that baby vanessa was just so innocent and wanted to share the same enthusiasm and passion for her dad's creations as she did have, she would absolutely brag about william's awesomeness to other children.
daddy's made all of them, she would say, pointing to the animatronics on stage, then to spring bonnie, who is dancing along with a few children around him. he's the smartest and coolest and nicest dad ever, and the best bonnie, too!
the idea that the missing children are childhood friends of her, that maybe they knew william personally and not only spring bonnie and that's why they trusted it would be fine to take his hand and walk away from other people, and the idea that this could justify why there were no parents watching over them while he did so makes her guilt for everything even more painful.
what if the night they died was her birthday party? william could've told them he needs help in the back to organize a very special and secret surprise for vanny that fredbear and him were organizing, and only her closest friends could be there, so they needed to leave without anyone noticing!
vanessa missing her father, confused by why none of the animatronics were around, and seeing cassidy walking to the back doors clutching her dad's hand? of course she would be curious! what are they doing without her? daddy never left her out when they played!
so she follows them on her tip-toes, peeks the corner to see her dad and cassidy, hand in hand, walking inside one of the rooms. the music inside the pizzeria is loud, so she can't spy on them without getting closer, so she approaches the door and leans forward to try and listen.
she hears cassidy's laugh, and then a scream. the door opens.
it was her birthday, she was just a child, and her friends were all dead in front of her.
robin has the same routine before every concert; she always talks to steve, then eddie (her producer!), then dustin (her manager!), then isolates herself for a few minutes to warm up, listen to fleetwood mac and think. she also cracks her knuckles and taps it on the same beat as the intro before going on stage, and once she's on stage, she has to wrap her left hand around the microphone cable and jump to the beat of sweet tooth (her opening song) as it begins
kissing nancy's entire face in a sequence also becomes a part of her pre-concert routine; she kisses her forehead first, then her right cheek, her nose, her left cheek, chin and then lips. nancy always waits for her outside her dressing room to give her good luck smooches
as i said before, nancy fell first, but robin fell harder
nancy is a baby lesbian that just came to terms w her sexuality after years of comphet but she always confides on her ex-boyfriend/coworker jonathan cause he's rly good at giving advices okay
steve and robin share the same apartment in nyc since they've moved there and they have no plans in moving! its cheap but cozy and actually private cause no one expects to find two famous singers living there
^ they started off posting covers and original songs together on soundcloud so people think they're dating since then or something cause well no one believes in a male x female friendship apparently
robin listens to a lot of hozier, bon iver, mumford & sons. nancy is 100% a mitski/phoebe bridgers lesbian. they have a collaborative playlist on spotify to send their favourite songs to each other
they also freak out together a lot talking about taylor swift and scream the lyrics to all too well in the car whenever they go out
(once robin meets taylor swift she's like hey my girlfriend and i are really into your stuff wait hold on let me call her- and when she facetimes nancy and her girlfriend sees who's with her she drops her phone and almost passes out)
"nancy?! honey are you okay?!!!!" (nancy's getting up, blushing, wide-eyed and with her hair all over the place) "sure thing babe, i'm doing great, hello miss swift sorry i didn't see you there-"
for your consideration: tara, who has almost certainly never interacted with a pet before, and nina, the cat who loves traumatized people
tara, who's never had a pet, both because of her fragile health and her mother's overall hatred for them.
who had never pet chad and mindy's childhood dog, because she was so scared of it they had to keep him outside the room whenever tara visited them. who only heard stories about amber's old cat, who passed away when her ex best friend was six.
who's startled when kirby first releases nina in the apartment, watching, with amazed eyes, as the small, black cat passes by them and runs into the agent's new bedroom.
she thought it was cute. but from a safe distance.
it was certainly calmer than when she had to worry about the meeks-martin's dog, though, because whenever they went to kirby's place, nina was nowhere to be found. tara would always wonder where she went; sometimes, she'd find her hiding in the closet, or taking a nap under the table.
one time, she went into the kitchen to grab a cup of water and found nina lying on the counter, tail gently wagging, and watched as the cat's head peeked up with the new presence.
tara ran out of the room right after.
it was always like this, though – she'd keep her distance, just like the kitten, watching as she existed in their presence. sometimes, when they arrived, the agent would call out her name and nina would respond with the smallest squeak. sam would pass by her and give her a gentle pat in the head, and tara would watch as the cat closed its eyes and purred contently. she'd see her rubbing up against kirby's leg when it was time for dinner and it would make her smile.
once, tara and kirby were on the couch while sam, mindy and chad went out to grab their pizza (safety in numbers, or something), and tara flinched slightly as she noticed nina jumping on the center table.
"you're not really a cat person, are you?" kirby chuckled, chugging a bit of her beer.
"i'm not the biggest fan of pets," tara said, fascinated eyes watching as the cat licked her paw and rubbed it on her face repeatedly. "i had never seen a cat up close before i met nina, actually."
"oh?"
tara nodded, pursing her lips in a tight smile as she looked up to the woman beside her. "never had animals. my mom wasn't a big fan of them, and she thought if we had one it could trigger my asthma. she didn't wanna waste her money on any more hospital bills. i seem to be doing just fine with your cat around, though. and nina seems pretty calm."
"she likes you." kirby's words made tara tilt her head slightly in confusion, looking back at the cat, that was now licking her own stomach. the woman shrugged. "she was a dumpster cat before i found her. probably got abandoned, and then she had her kittens pretty early on, and, well, nina's not really fond of people. not besides me, since, well, i'm her caretaker and stuff. but you see how she acts around gale. i guess since you never insisted, she liked that. i'm not saying you should run up to her, carry her around and become best friends with my cat. but i'm just saying that there's nothing to be afraid of, as well."
tara still watched. questioned, as she absorbed kirby's words, if this meant she could give it a try.
wondered if she would like to try.
——
sometimes, when kirby and mindy talked about movies, it reminded tara of her old best friend.
mindy and amber had lots of similar discussions before. the meeks twin would start an argument about the latest horror film she'd watched, specially when amber expressed a different opinion than hers — teasing her, daring her to prove them wrong. and amber would respond with such enthusiasm they'd get lost inside their own horror-centric universe.
whenever their group had a movie night and they settled for horror, the controller always fell on their hands. either kirby or mindy would give them insight into different options, so they could vote on the one that would be chosen.
before they pressed play, one of them would comment on something of the movie they were excited to watch — or rewatch — and it sparked a discussion that lasted for at least an hour, when someone finally managed to steal the remote from their hands and start the dvd.
this first hour always made tara kind of black out; she'd pull her knees close to her chest, staring at the distance as she blocked out all of the noise. her mind would wander elsewhere, away from movie dates she's once had, from get-togethers with her high school group where they laughed and acted like real teenagers. she'd avoid thinking of everything she once had and longing for those that she lost.
it always left her with a sort of melancholy, one that carried throughout at least half of the movie. but it was always best to not think at all than to face the things she felt constantly.
she was so lost in herself she didn't notice a presence settling beside her. nina walked in small steps, passing by kirby in front of the dvd player, jumping on the center table and stopping in front of where tara was positioned on the ground. then, she moved again, slowly pushing herself towards the girl, before she decided to sit right by her side, watching the group interact.
tara got back to her senses as a tail brushed her side, blinking rapidly and shaking her head as she adjusted her hazy vision. then, she notices it. nina, sitting there, tail gently wagging and eyes focused on the group interaction.
first, tara felt the initial panic; the thought of losing her breath, of having to claw at her throat and take her medicine as soon as possible. her hands searched for her inhaler, right then, finding it securely stored on her pocket. she didn't feel any chest pain, nor shortness of breath. everything was fine. she was fine.
(but i'm just saying that there's nothing to be afraid of, as well.)
she reached out hesitantly, watching as nina side-eyed her movement. seeing the cat didn't shift or run away from the idea of being touched, tara brushed her fingers through the fur in curiosity, choosing to pet her just like sam did the other day.
nina closed her eyes, lying down, seeming content with the gentle head massage she was receiving.
she retreated her hand, watching as nina leaned to rub her head against her leg, before she returned to the same spot by her side. she lied down again, both her front and back paws hidden by her tiny body.
"you're a good kitty, nina." she whispered. mirroring each other, tara and nina looked ahead, observing the rest of the group interacting, mindy leaning her body back with the remote raised above her head as chad impatiently pushed her, fighting for it.
tara felt happy, simply existing in the presence of this new but somehow familiar presence, and nina apparently felt the same way, quietly purring beside her.
sam swears she'll never leave when they're little, after a fight with their parents.
they're inside a pillow fort, dim lights around them. after their dad left, tara had been feeling down and so guilty, and opens up to her sister about it. everything makes her so afraid of ending up alone — afraid of her mom leaving, fearing that sam would do the same.
sam pinky promises she's not going anywhere.
(five years later, she leaves before dawn, tip-toeing into tara's room to give her forehead one last kiss.)
tara never even asks amber. she's crying in her arms after her mother misses another one of her birthdays, feeling the guilt and loneliness of the absence of her family weighting on her shoulders.
i'll never leave, she whispers into tara's ear, fingers gently caressing her hair, a protective arm wrapped around her. i promise. you're mine. i won't leave you like they did. they don't deserve you.
(and then amber's using her, hurting her, stabbing her multiple times. she's leaving scars that would haunt her forever.)
they always leave, tara, she tells herself in the darkness, curled up in a ball under her blanket. they always do. you're not good enough to make them stay.
thinking about little sam singing lullabies every night when she tucks tara in.
thinking about her caressing her hair, pushing strands behind her ear as she always sings the same melody, one christina used to sing to her years ago, back when the love for her daughters was genuine.
thinking about when she started distancing herself, still sneaking into tara's room to give her a kiss on her forehead and sing at least one verse, no matter what trouble she got into that night, no matter the drugs and alcohol and the fights and the people she went out with.
thinking about tara always imagining maybe, just maybe, this was a sign things would get better, that she'd get her sister back.
thinking about how she'd stay awake for hours after sam moved out, tossing and turning in bed as she tries to fall asleep on her own. how tara would whisper the melody, trying to soothe herself, frustrated because it's just not the same, and sam's not here, and sam promised she'd never leave but she left her, she left her alone and is never coming back.
thinking about when sam is back in woodsboro after tara's initial attack, tucking her sister in for the first time in five years, pressing a kiss to her forehead like she used to. she planned to sleep on the couch beside tara's hospital bed, so she could keep an eye on her sister and on the door at the same time.
thinking about tara holding her arm before she gets to the couch. puffy eyes staring at the older carpenter, a firm, shaky grip keeping sam on her spot.
"sam," her voice, raspy from all of her screaming and slightly groggy from the medication, is barely above a whisper as she tries to pull sam close to her once again. "can you sing for me, please?"
sam tears up as she nods, pursing her lips as she approaches her sister. she sits on the bed, tara doing her best to scooch over to give her more space to settle herself. sam leans on one of her elbows as she caresses tara's hair, pushing a few strands behind her ear just like she did back in the day. tara closes her eyes, sleep coming easy to her as she hears sam singing the first few verses.
(sam falls asleep next to her right then, head on tara's shoulder, an arm protectively around her waist.
this was the moment she decided she would never, ever want to be out of tara's life again.)
rockstar!au ronance is definitely a case of nancy fell first but robin fell harder and ik people usually write the contrary but.
- nancy never believed the steve x robin rumours (in fact she thinks it's pretty stupid that the hawkins post decided to spend most of their time talking about a fake couple between the two only hawkinsites that became known worldwide) and she actually defends robin every time people try to invalidate her sexuality (cause bigots will never accept one of the top artists of the year is a lesbian)
- even if robin's type of music wasn't exactly her cup of tea (not until she had to listen to it on a loop cause first of all thérèse is a really good song and also she has to at least have heard all of them before going on the moss tour), she had to admit: robin buckley is hot
- and when she realizes she's even hotter in person???!! god she's down bad
- but robin hates her guts (actually hates the idea of her cause she works for the post and robin hates the post) and it makes her act all rude and cold and stuff around nancy at first!!! and it's even worse that the other journalist with her is fred benson and he is a nosy nightmare
- and like. she sees nancy is trying to be nice when they sit down for their post-concert talks but she just can't trust her!!
- but then with time and patience she sees nancy is actually respectul. and pretty. and has a nice smile. and smells good. and oh is that nancy blushing when she cracks a joke? is that her tucking her hair behind her ear and looking down when robin compliments her?? oh. oh.
(say thank u to my sister for sending it to me and telling me to make it ronance)
OHH SO CUTE 😭😭 DEFINITELY
i got inspired and had to write a lil something so under the cut
i am so sorry
robin discovers nancy can sing after they get together; they're sitting together, sharing earpods in the tour bus and nancy is singing taylor swift's seven and robin can't stop staring at her, and her soft tone, and the way she bops her head and smiles as she finishes the song and starts the next one–
it ignites something, kinda.
music has always been everything to robin — her safe place, her heaven. nancy, now, is also music. more than the love songs robin sings to herself from time to time: she's the tune that adorns her mind, floating around the heaven and gracing her with the sweetest voice robin has ever heard.
they start making silly little duets here and there after that. of course, nancy always thinks it's super silly cause she thinks she's not that good of a singer, but robin is always starstruck. heart eyes, a dumbfounded smile, dancing along as nancy sings her verse. she can't stop listening to it. she can't stop listening to her.
and she knows she's not the only one that thinks that way – steve hears them, once, and comments how nancy has a lovely voice when they're alone later. chrissy sings along with them as she does robin's makeup, bopping her head and grinning whenever it's nancy's verse. eddie jokes about how he'd produce an EP with nancy if she ever desires.
"sing with me," robin says, once, as they sway together in the dressing room after one of her concerts. a soft love song is playing in the background, and their eyes are closed, whispering the lyrics to each other with their foreheads pressed.
she can see the way nancy frowns, "rob, we are singing."
"no, nance. i mean," she smiles oh so softly, her head leaning back to stare into nancy's eyes. "sing with me. on stage."
nancy's eyes grow twice in size, her mouth opening and closing multiple times as she tries to find the right answer. her mind wanders off to a crowd full of people, watching her, recording her, and her head sways side to side in denial.
robin doesn't press it – she knows how hard it is to overcome a stage fright. but the thought is always on the back of both of their minds; robin admires her quiet singing, imagining playing a guitar for her on stage, microphone separating them as they stare into each other's eyes. nancy imagines the distant possibility of doing things right, not making a fool of herself, and being face to face with robin in all her superstar glory.
nancy is the one to bring up the idea again after a few weeks.
when they do it, it's exactly how they've imagined: robin welcomes her beautiful girlfriend, reporter nancy wheeler, on stage for a special performance. the crowd cheers as she arrives, heart beating hard against her chest, a shy smile as she approaches robin and wraps an arm around hers. the production crew brings robin's guitar and she hangs it around her body. the microphone is positioned between them and robin adjusts it to her girlfriend's height.
she plays it gently, starts the song, the melody slipping effortlessly from her lips, nodding her head to the rhythm. fluttering eyes looking at nancy's, a lovesick gaze always fixated on hers. finishes her turn with a grin, winking, taking a step back to play the guitar.
"eyes on me, nancy. you'll be fine," robin whispers as she strokes the instrument, nodding reassuringly.
nancy sighs. licks her lips, taking a deep breath before her verse begins. the crowd's cheers fading away as she focuses on the girl in front of her, on the way she switches between guitar notes and taps her feet, on the way her eyes shine as nancy does as much as open her mouth.
and then, she sings. like the rest of the world isn't there. like it's just them, slow dancing in the dressing room as they sing love songs together. waltzing around each other, pacing back and forth between their verses and harmonizing so naturally.
when the music ends, and the sounds return, her fears seems insignificant compared to the happy tears filling robin's eyes.
