See, part of the problem was that it started out as Brad/Ray in my head, with Ray as the Rick character and Brad as the Ilsa equivalent (from my original flailing at why_me_why_not: Where Ray runs a bar, and is a stop on the underground railroad and involved in spying on the South (in MD, of course, which never actually seceded but still remains southern in many ways). Brad and he had a thing a while back when Ray was based in DC, but the area got too hot and Ray had to leave, but Brad wouldn't give up his official position at the Marine Barracks, as SNCO to Captain Fick. It probably can't end well, but I want alllll the angsty Brad/Ray where they are on the same side but in different ways, and Ray likes Nate, knows that nothing is going on between him and Brad, but sort of hates him too, because he knows that if Brad didn't believe unreservedly that Nate will make a difference and finally end this endless war, he'd still be with Ray.), but somehow it morphed into Brad/Nate, because that is just HOW MY BRAIN WORKS. And since the exchange was supposed to be Ray-based, making an entire AR that was Brad/Nate was really not appropriate, right? Except now I WANT this fic to exist.

BOOKS. I seriously had moments of wanting to throw The Nine against a wall. Hard. The author kept talking about how the Court shifted leftwards after Bush v. Gore, and I was like, BZUH? I DO NOT THINK YOU UNDERSTAND WHAT LEFT MEANS.