bad-moon--rising

[bad-moon--rising]

"Yeah, high school, when they told me I wasn't gettin' int'any hospital because I was th'wrong sorta person t'be workin' there." He had come to terms with that, as unfair as it was, because he wasn't going to be a nurse. The laws wouldn't let him and he wasn't sure still if it was just kindness on the coven healers and hedge witches that taught him their sorta medicine with plants growing up or if they really had thought maybe by the time he was that far the world might change.

It, unfortunately, had not.

"Course it meant somethin. Meant you an' Roland had tha chance t'get there. I like singing, music; but ya knew I wasn't gonna be there forever." She had to have known, didn't she? He hadn't thought much about it when they were teenagers because there were so many stars in her eyes, but how did she think he was going to stay?

"Was m'job t'lead th'pack; I wasn't gonna be on tha stage forever. That was for you and Roland t'have." He paused, shutting his eyes for a second before he opened them and continued, "Even outside of tha I was engaged an I had t'go back for West. Ya knew those things Pepper."

Lucky lifted a hand to run through his hair, uttering a weary sound. "An maybe you're right 'bout how I shouldn't've run off, I didn't see any way else t'handle it. I didn't see any other t'keep from making it all worse."

His stomach twisted into a knot, that miserable feeling running straight through him and in the back of his mind the restless pacing got more intense like there was a cage in his brain that was holding back so many thoughts and emotions he was trying so hard to keep it all in check for her sake, because the last thing he wanted at that moment was for it all to fall apart into an argument.

"I never forgot about any of ya a single day these past five years, an ya can think th worst me otherwise but don't think tha because it ain't true." But the question hummed in his thoughts and he had to weigh it, hated himself even more for that. "M'not stayin away forever, didn't come out here lookin for this, but ya can't tell me m'wrong for wanting t'keep it. You want t'be a star, just how far from home ya think that's going to take ya?"

The way she looked at him was breaking his heart, he suddenly wanted to take it all back and just say yes, that he would do anything to make her happy and that he would find a way to be happy amid that. But some part of him couldn't.

@pepper-doyle

Hate This Distance | Plucky

[bad-moon--rising]

- Evelyn Waugh, from Brideshead Revisited (1945)

[bad-moon--rising]

"Not with me, that's th'whole thing Pepper; he doesn't want me in th' band. After we started gettin' bigger he didn't want me there anymore, an-" once again the full truth catching hard in his throat and turning out to be something he couldn't voice, "-if I'd had much sense I would've stepped back then, but how was I supposed'ta step back? I didn't want t'step in th' front t'begin with, but they weren't lettin' us play those big venues otherwise. Should've been him, never said it shouldn't've, but I thought when we got big it could be him an' folks wouldn't care if it wasn't me anymore."

That was the unfortunate side to the fact that he was a better singer than his brother, and Lucky did not want to say that, because he thought Roland was fine in his own right but their agent had pushed hard that there wasn't much alternative once the band started getting more popular. He did love the music himself, but he didn't see it as everything for him, not the way he felt like he needed to see that when he'd been eighteen.

"Course th' Court ain't th'same," Lucky agreed quietly, because he could see how that brightness in her eyes had gotten just a little duller as she really heard what he was saying. "Lost m'dream in high school, didn't see any reason why th' two of ya had t'lose yours too if I could do anythin 'bout it. Still want it for ya, really ya think I don't want that for ya? 'Course I do, an I'll help ya however I can otherwise." The last thing that he wanted was for her to think that his life had to get in the way of her reaching her dreams.

He could feel that sensation under his skin getting restless too, because this was his sister, this is the person he shared an entire life, the one that he started that life with. And he had tried to live the one where he wanted the same things his siblings did, but that felt impossible anymore.

@pepper-doyle

Hate This Distance | Plucky

[bad-moon--rising]

The word stirred an uneasy feeling in Lucky's chest, because he knew they would catch up to him sooner or later but he was really hoping that later was what they'd hold out for. As many times as he entertained the idea of maybe going home with his tail between his legs he was still too afraid of what kind of trouble he might bring back to the people that he loved there.

He was afraid of a lot of things about going home, actually.

Those months and that town had helped the fear burrow down somewhere in the back of his mind where it felt more manageable, where he was still worried about things, even more recently the scare with all the ugly business towards the wolves still reminded him that nothing was perfect, but he could at least catch his breath. He could still get up in the morning and be happy about something, look forward to the day with his friends knowing it wasn't going to be another one where he felt alone and like all he managed to do is screw things up.

But he didn't know how to say that to Pepper without hurting her, which was why he never wanted to say it at all.

"We're not all here," he suppose that was one point to make, "an I don't think Roland is gonna t'be in any mood t'be seein me for a long time." And he left it at that, because a small part of him still wanted to believe that someday he could clear the air between his brother and himself. He wanted to forgive Roland, but he was pretty sure the Roland didn't want his forgiveness.

Lucky exhaled, feeling like the walls around him got just a little closer with every word as he tried to find them, felt that tightness and his chest again. "I do anythin in th'world t'help ya get tha career you're after Pepper, anythin ya ask I'd try m'damnest an ya know it. But I was hopin' tha' was th'one thing ya wouldn't."

But he wasn't angry at her, after all, she had been chasing that dream and she hadn't reached it either, he knew his part in that too. He'd always wanted to give her that, he'd gone to Nashville to give her and Roland that support. In the end he hadn't been able to.

"Ya know I work at th'Court, been on stage there, but not th same thing; don't know if I wanna go back t'those big lights. Feels like they cost me s'much." He trailed off finally, knowing it wasn't the words that she wanted to hear and feeling even worse that he had to say them. "M'out here because of tha, cost me you an everybody back home all this time. Cost me t'much Pepper, don't think it was ever supposed t'be th'life for me."

@pepper-doyle

Hate This Distance | Plucky

[bad-moon--rising]

Since Lucky wanted to help the suggestion suited him just fine and he nodded with a glance back at the door. "No problem, already had t'move th'darn thing a few times. Folks who dropped it off left it right at th'front doors 'stead of bringin' it in." And it did make sense that it might have been a difficult job for one person to do, although it made little less sense that Ralph hadn't brought someone along but maybe Mr. Godfrey hadn't fully explained to him what the job actually was.

No matter, Lucky figured it would all work out, assuming the curse didn't make a problem of itself.

But the question of tools was a little more pressing and he wasn't really sure what was going to be needed for that. The cinema did have a lot of things tucked away in the storage beside the break room, because there was always one thing or another to fix around the place, but he didn't want to go digging when he didn't know exactly what he was looking for.

"Might have; end up doing a lot of fixing things 'round here. Probably gonna hav'ta tell me what yer lookin' for though, unless ya wanna come look for yer'self," Lucky suggested with a motion towards the open door that led into the lobby of the cinema.

"Storage is right by th'front stairwell," he offered by way of explanation as he headed that direction himself and assumed that Ralph would follow.

@ralph-wreckin-reilly

Collateral Damage || Rille

[bad-moon--rising]

GENRE SWAP: LUCKY IN A WESTERN

Lucky as a roaming cowboy in a Western who stumbles upon the small town of Swynlake, New Mexico after parting ways with his unsavory gang of outlaws… 

Co-starring Jasper Badun as the shady owner of a saloon and gambling house and Scott Richards as the Mayor’s son with big dreams and a restless spirit. 

@bad-moon--rising (also costaring @scampcomehome and @goodeveningjasper)

[bad-moon--rising]

Life didn't seem to let up lately, maybe it was to be expected but wasn't like Lucky necessarily enjoyed it. Mostly because it wasn't moving forward fast enough in the ways that he wanted and kept moving too fast in others. He didn't really feel good about the whole situation with Gaston, it was a relief when the truth came out and it took some of that suspicion off the werewolves, yes, but he wasn't the sort of person who thought it was right to be happy when things took such a bad time for someone else. Even if that someone else wasn't a great person. It wasn't like he was exactly feeling the loss of the guy, truthfully Lucky didn't even know him aside from the trouble that he had started for everyone and the terrible way he looked at Magicks, but the way the things had gone wasn't the sort of I'll will you wished on much of anybody. The idea of people getting what they deserved shouldn't have involved something like that.

He'd been mulling over it for a while, thinking some about the direct path that had changed for him because of all those problems, it was definitely the reason that he had moved into the cinema, the reason that Scott had moved in with him, but Lucky didn't try too hard to figure out how things would be if they'd gone a different path when they hadn't. Mostly he just been trying to get things done and make sure everything there at the cinema was going along smoothly as town transitioned into the holidays. Part of that was trying not to think too much himself about those holidays, home, big family Christmases that he hadn't been there to experience all that noise and drama, and laughter, for several years.

It was a sort of thought the drug a person down if they let it, so he tried not to let it.

At least he had his sister, but he hadn't been expecting to see her that day, especially not what that look on her face because that will usually meant that the conversation was not going to be a fun one. He glanced up from where he was behind the counter of the concession stand and called over to Adeline in the break room that he had to go talk to Pepper for a bit, the fairy immediately a blur of energy and wide smiles as she greeted Pepper cheerfully and then took his place behind the counter, ushering him off to go talk.

The cinema was mostly empty, so he moved to meet her in the center of the lobby before meandering back towards the office since it was a little more off to itself. "What's on her mind?"

Hate This Distance | Plucky

[bad-moon--rising]

Lucky really had no idea how to fix the door, knew how to fix some things, mostly things that have gotten broken back home and needed to be fixed so he'd trailed around behind his uncle watching and work on this and that. Big glass doors weren't a part of that though, not a single one of those at the bar. So he was well out of his league on that one, but he still wanted to help if he could.

"Great, can't say tha'a really knew wha m'doin w'that whole mess," he admitted, "figured it was better t'call somebody in who knew before I made things worse." Lucky laughed, the last thing he needed was to break the new door that was supposed to replace the one that was busted. And it wasn't a matter of picking the thing up, because he was stronger than most folks in his own right, one of the benefits of being a werewolf, but he wasn't sure how to actually set the thing in place and secure it because that door falling off on somebody was basically just a lawsuit waiting to happen.

Then Mr. Godfrey would run him straight out of the cinema, he was pretty sure about that.

"Tha new one is over-" he paused for a second thinking that the door had been moved from where it had been delivered leaning against the wall beside the busted one, but it was still there, just was also covered by a sheet, apparently, with little multicolored flowers all over it so he assumed that was Adeline's doing to try to make it more cheerful instead of just the cardboard still around the edges of the frame so that they wouldn't get damaged before the door was installed.

"Here," he confirmed with a few steps that direction before he grabbed the sheet and pulled it off, folding it up. "We're closed up for th'day so whatever ya need t'get started with, I'll be around doin' a few things though if ya need anything." He actually was curious and wanted to watch, but he wanted to be polite about it and not just say that directly in case Ralph needed some space to work.

@ralph-wreckin-reilly

Task 7 — Business Savvy Thread: Plot a thread that takes place in one of Swynlake’s businesses with a mun that you don’t currently have a thread with.

Collateral Damage || Rille

One more problem to deal with. And he expected Ms. Forrester to get back in touch with him any day, it wasn't really like he could ignore the fact that one of the outer doors of the theater was still boarded up. Thankfully it didn't affect business since there were still five other ones in the front section of the building but Lucky figured it was the sort of thing better take care of quickly. Ordering the parts, including the replacement door, had been well and good but he didn't have the tools to do the work.

It was time to call in someone with more experience, and Mr. Godfrey had informed him that he'd gotten in contact with a handyman that worked around town.

So that was that, Lucky assumed, because Mr. Godfrey had been in town a lot longer than himself and would know who the right sort of people for that job were. And all Lucky really had to do was wait around for him to show up, everybody else in the cinema was gone because the day had ended early.

"Just a sec," he called from behind the ticket counter in the small booth between the outer and the main lobbies of the cinema, closing up the ticket printer and putting it back under the shelf where it belonged before he stepped out through the door that opened into the main lobby and circled around to head back into the space with the glass doors surrounding it.

"Sorry 'bout tha," he wiped the stray ink from his palms to his jeans and looked, well, up, at the tall fella who had walked through the outer doors.

Oh, well, it certainly looked like he could hang a heavy glass door pretty easily. That was encouraging.

"Ya must be Mr. Riley?" He ventured, starting to offer his hand but he made a motion towards the traces of ink still staining it, "might not want to do that, oops. M'Lucky; Mr. Godfrey told ya I'd be th'one 'round today m'guessin, you're th'fella here t'work on th'door?"

@ralph-wreckin-reilly

[bad-moon--rising]

aesthetic: lucky doyle + swynlake cinema

@bad-moon--rising

[bad-moon--rising]

Feeling totally normal about this.

It's whatever.

[bad-moon--rising]

That was decidedly more than Lucky had been hoping for, and he was very careful to keep his expression mostly neutral, but he couldn't help just a little bit of excitement at how surprisingly simple the solution was. He was trying to reason around ways to convince Mr. Godfrey that this was something they needed to do, that it was something that they could do and still not lose what the cinema was, but once again, like with so many things, solutions only really needed to be found when there wasn't enough money to fix them quickly.

And people like the ones that Ms. Forrester worked with probably had more money than they knew what to do with. Lucky didn't feel great about that, he didn't really like just having things handed to him, so he had to remind himself that this had nothing to do with him, it was something for the cinema and his pride and view on the matter were all willing good but it was a chance that might not come again. If he didn't take it then would the cinema suffer for it?

Mr. Godfrey had told him to handle the situation, to decide what was best. And he knew this was the older man trying to extend some faith in him, he just hoped is instincts were right on this one.

"Th'cinema isn't flashy, think most folks can tell tha from th' minute they walk in here. Don't think big Hollywood parties are what most folks expect here." Lucky admitted, although he didn't say it as though it were a negative thing. "I've worked with folks like tha' before, not here, different life," he chuckled, because honestly it has begun to feel that way, the band, that history; something that still belongs to him but not the way what he had been building in that town felt like it did. "I know there's a lot of hoops t'jump through, an everybody's gonna have a lot of opinions. I think that so long as they're willing t'respect Mr. Godfrey's wishes, an th'cinema, things will be just fine."

More than fine, he hoped, he didn't want big changes to ruin that place either, but he couldn't help but think of things like the Twitter conversations and people wanting to come to the cinema but feeling like there wasn't anything there for them; small changes might have been what was needed.

"I think we can work this out just fine Ms. Forrester," he agreed, "from our side tha's a go ahead to start talkin' t'your people an let us know wha they have in mind."

@little-superstar-penny

A lot of it was considered eccentric anymore, he knew that most people that came to the cinema came because they wanted a date night that was cute and aesthetic, and sometimes that was what the staff had to lean into because if nobody came out the cinema wouldn't be there. But they were just as many people who really appreciated the life that old building still had in its walls.

"M'not gonna to be anything but honest with you Ms. Forester, this place has been 'round longer than I'ave an represents a lotta things tha none of us would ever want t'see lost." Lucky nodded, not sure how true the words sounded to someone who was a part of Hollywood because he had been a part of the music industry so very briefly himself and it was a different world when big companies got involved. "But we don't have'ta give it all away t'keep some of it. I think if we can have yee event here it's a good chance for th'cinema t'stay what it is but still reach more folks."

He hoped this particular leap of faith was going to be the right one. Just let him make the right choice once, if he was only going to get one time out of all the things that he messed up it needed to be this time.

"Ya let me know when yer production team folks sort out wha they can do an I'll handle it from this side best I can. Tha projector is gonna be our biggest problem in gettin' it, so if they have any solutions on tha side I'll be happy t'hear em." Lucky was holding out for the best case scenario that maybe people with connections in that area would know how to get that machine without the high price tag it came with new. "On our side a'things I already know our projectionist is trained in these newer machines an we can have things up an runnin' quick, once we know what we're working with."

@little-superstar-penny

[bad-moon--rising]

Task 7 — Business Savvy Thread: Plot a thread that takes place in one of Swynlake’s businesses with a mun that you don’t currently have a thread with.

Collateral Damage || Rille

One more problem to deal with. And he expected Ms. Forrester to get back in touch with him any day, it wasn't really like he could ignore the fact that one of the outer doors of the theater was still boarded up. Thankfully it didn't affect business since there were still five other ones in the front section of the building but Lucky figured it was the sort of thing better take care of quickly. Ordering the parts, including the replacement door, had been well and good but he didn't have the tools to do the work.

It was time to call in someone with more experience, and Mr. Godfrey had informed him that he'd gotten in contact with a handyman that worked around town.

So that was that, Lucky assumed, because Mr. Godfrey had been in town a lot longer than himself and would know who the right sort of people for that job were. And all Lucky really had to do was wait around for him to show up, everybody else in the cinema was gone because the day had ended early.

"Just a sec," he called from behind the ticket counter in the small booth between the outer and the main lobbies of the cinema, closing up the ticket printer and putting it back under the shelf where it belonged before he stepped out through the door that opened into the main lobby and circled around to head back into the space with the glass doors surrounding it.

"Sorry 'bout tha," he wiped the stray ink from his palms to his jeans and looked, well, up, at the tall fella who had walked through the outer doors.

Oh, well, it certainly looked like he could hang a heavy glass door pretty easily. That was encouraging.

"Ya must be Mr. Riley?" He ventured, starting to offer his hand but he made a motion towards the traces of ink still staining it, "might not want to do that, oops. M'Lucky; Mr. Godfrey told ya I'd be th'one 'round today m'guessin, you're th'fella here t'work on th'door?"

@ralph-wreckin-reilly

[bad-moon--rising]

Task 1 — Visual Poem: A visual poem! You can make these in Canva, draw them, or format them in a doc (and screenshot).

Pages from Nye's journal.

Poem used is excerpts from The Goblin Market by Christina Rossetti

[bad-moon--rising]

A lot of it was considered eccentric anymore, he knew that most people that came to the cinema came because they wanted a date night that was cute and aesthetic, and sometimes that was what the staff had to lean into because if nobody came out the cinema wouldn't be there. But they were just as many people who really appreciated the life that old building still had in its walls.

"M'not gonna to be anything but honest with you Ms. Forester, this place has been 'round longer than I'ave an represents a lotta things tha none of us would ever want t'see lost." Lucky nodded, not sure how true the words sounded to someone who was a part of Hollywood because he had been a part of the music industry so very briefly himself and it was a different world when big companies got involved. "But we don't have'ta give it all away t'keep some of it. I think if we can have yee event here it's a good chance for th'cinema t'stay what it is but still reach more folks."

He hoped this particular leap of faith was going to be the right one. Just let him make the right choice once, if he was only going to get one time out of all the things that he messed up it needed to be this time.

"Ya let me know when yer production team folks sort out wha they can do an I'll handle it from this side best I can. Tha projector is gonna be our biggest problem in gettin' it, so if they have any solutions on tha side I'll be happy t'hear em." Lucky was holding out for the best case scenario that maybe people with connections in that area would know how to get that machine without the high price tag it came with new. "On our side a'things I already know our projectionist is trained in these newer machines an we can have things up an runnin' quick, once we know what we're working with."

@little-superstar-penny

Ah, okay, okay.

That... could be an issue. But Penny's wheels were already spinning on how to solve it. She didn't want to stampede in here and take away what made the Swynlake Cinema special, of course. She loved the historical elements and it was rare to find a place that still used film instead of digital. Penny herself didn't have any real experience with those technical aspects-- she was a Gen Z, so it all seemed pretty old to her. But in theory, she knew it was special. It deserved to be preserved.

...at the same time though, if she could modernize the theater juuuust a little to help her own cause...

"Ah, I see! Well-- I'm sure one room is fine," said Penny, though she really shouldn't say that.

She'd just insist to Clark it was fine. Lol!

"And if there's anything we can help with, or even, that I can help with--" Penny did have her own money if the production team wasn't into it-- "then let me know! I just think the premiere makes sense here. It will make the entire thing more special!"

And then I won't have to fly off to LA or London....

@bad-moon--rising

[bad-moon--rising]

Task 4 — Instagram Stories: Post five IG stories from a single day of your character’s life. This can be photos of their activities and their friends, but also memes, news, funny videos, and other types of posts!

Featuring: Lucky, Adaline, Nye's pet toad, @goodeveningjasper & @scampcomehome and told from the PoV of our cinema fairy.

[bad-moon--rising]

Task 9 — Background NPC: Write about a moment of your character’s life from the perspective of an NPC character.

Missing You Like an Old Love Song || Lucky & West

[bad-moon--rising]

"Not for lack of wantin't, but Pepper an' I still don't spend as much time t'gether as we used'ta. Bein' solitary for a few years, still a habit I haven't shaken yet I guess." It was an awkward sort of honest, since the main reason he didn't spend the full moons with his sister was because he was pretty sure she didn't want him to, but family business wasn't really part of the question so he left it at that.

She probably would have taken the suggestion as him trying to keep an eye on her, and Pepper didn't appreciate that much, he still hadn't yet proven he wasn't going to just leave her behind again by her opinion.

"Wish I could tell ya what happened, make it easier on th' wolves because folks opinions aren't th' kindest in some cases. Don't think any of us are enjoyin' tha. But I can't tell ya wha' happened when I don't rightfully know m'self." Lucky added, because even in the things that he knew were possible he only had speculation, and speculation could be dangerous so it wasn't something to share.

@trackedbymaximus

My, What a Deep Voice You Have || Horseshoe