#[ 'what do you mean she's too young to fly with me??? i wouldn't let anything happen to her???' ]

[worthyheir]

In a No Dance world, Visenya would have been the most spoiled and over-protected Princess in Westeros. In this essay ---

[fandomworld9728]

Team Free Will - Chapter 2:

Hiding behind a tree, Lucifer watched as Adam was playing with the ducks. He looked so happy; it made the angel smile. Could you believe it? The first man was brought joy by one of Lucifer's own creations! He even liked the name that Lucifer had given them enough to keep it! 

"Oh, Lucifer! There you are! Come over here!" That smile got bigger once he saw him. It made something warm bloom in his chest. The same warmth that had appeared when they had first met.

"Adam." Flying over, he took a seat next to the first man. "How have you been?"

"Good. Though, it's a little lonely since Lilith doesn't wanna be around me?"

What? That didn't make any sense. Why wouldn't anyone want to be around Adam? He was so curious and full of life. So confident but still so sweet. He was so much fun and never failed to make Lucifer laugh. Maybe he could help them get closer? He didn't want poor Adam to feel lonely. Especially since he couldn't always come to the garden.

"But that's okay, because you're here."

Oh. If that didn't make Lucifer's heart melt, he didn't know what could. "You are such a sweetheart. I wish I could be around more."

~

"There you are Lilith. What are you doing here? You know you aren't supposed to go near this tree."

Surprised, Lilith turned to see her favorite little angel. She had just managed to pluck one of the apples when he showed up. If she wanted this to work, she had to be careful. Lucifer was a lot smarter than he acted. Smart, but also young and naive for an angel of his rank.

"Lucifer, I know you and your mother believe in free will for us humans. I wanted to gift Adam's new wife with this fruit of knowledge. Is that so bad?"

"Lilith. You know it's against the rules- wait... did you says Adam's new wife?" 

Oh. That was her way in. As much as she hated the angel's love for the first man, Lilith could use his feelings to her advantage. "You haven't heard yet? That is surprising. I thought he would have told you first. I mean, you two are so close."

"I-I have been gone longer than planned. And I saw you here first, so I haven't seen him yet. Maybe he planned to tell me when I saw him next. I should..." Should what? He wanted to see Adam so badly. But he didn't want to get in the way of him and his new wife. Why did it hurt?

"If you are set on visiting him, I must warn you that you may not like what you see. They are meant to populate the garden."

~

He should have listened. He shouldn't have gone looking for Adam. If he hadn't gone looking, he would have seen it. Adam laying on top of his beautiful wife, making her experience such pleasure Lucifer could only dream of having a chance of feeling. The man who usually made his chest bloom with warmth felt him feeling cold. Like someone ripped out his heart. He couldn't stop the tears that fell.

"Lucifer...?"

He could hear someone call for him. Was it Adam? He was looking at him so maybe...? However, the angel was too far gone in his own misery to really register anything aside from the pain and hallow feeling. Without a word or second though, he flew back off to Heaven as fast he could.

He just wanted to be alone. To get rid of this horrid feeling. Wanted to do anything to make it go away or at the very least lessen. As soon as his bedroom door was locked, Lucifer let out screams and wails that shocked all of Heaven. 

When his mother was finally able to snap him out of it, she told him about happened. He felt so bad for all the sorrow he ended up filling the other angels with when they heard his cries. 

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[randomperson99sworld]

Hope

~ Chapter 2 ~

Summary: Dean and Sam Winchester save a young woman —Natalie Johnson, from a coven of witches who are after her deceased grandmothers spell book. At first Dean doesn’t trust her, will he ever? Natalie is just simply a woman who gets roped up in the supernatural world from a mistake her grandmother made.

Paring: Dean x OC

Warning: Age gap, slow burn, smut (during later chapters), language, gore.

Word Count: 1,278

A/N: Hope you’re like the story! Happy reading! ♥️

Natalie had been restless in the bunker for over a week. At first, she was just trying to wrap her head around the world she had been thrown into—hunters, witches, spell books, and actual supernatural monsters—but eventually, she started getting bored. The Winchester brothers were always going off on hunts or researching the next big supernatural threat, and Natalie was just... there. She hated feeling useless.

So, one morning, after Sam returned from one of his endless trips to the bunker's archives, she made a decision.

"You know," Natalie began, leaning over the table in the war room where Sam had spread out a bunch of lore books, "I could help with this."

Dean, sitting nearby and cleaning one of his guns, snorted. "Help? How? Gonna knit us some monster repellent?"

Sam shot him a warning look, then turned back to Natalie, curious. "What do you mean? How can you help?"

Natalie took a breath, bracing herself for more of Dean's sarcasm. "Well, before I was kidnapped by a bunch of witches and thrown into the twilight zone, I was actually doing something pretty useful with my life. I work as a cybersecurity analyst. You know, hacking, tracking digital trails, all that stuff. I'm good at research, too."

Sam raised an eyebrow, intrigued. "Really?"

"Yeah," Natalie nodded. "I went to school for computer engineering, and now I help companies lock down their networks. Finding obscure information and hacking into databases is kind of my thing. I figured if you're dealing with monsters and lore all the time, maybe I can dig up stuff online, hack into things you can't."

Dean looked up from his gun, raising an eyebrow. "So, you're a geek."

Natalie's mouth twitched in annoyance. "You say that like it's a bad thing."

"It is when you're dealing with real-world stuff, like decapitating vampires and blowing up demons," Dean muttered, his voice gruff. "Not everything's about computers."

Sam gave him a sideways glance. "Dean. We're always doing research. You and I spend hours looking through archives and databases when we're not hunting. Hacking could be really useful, especially for tracking down things we can't normally get access to."

Dean grunted, clearly not thrilled with the idea of relying on Natalie for anything. "Fine. But don't expect me to hand over the keys to the Impala or anything."

Natalie rolled her eyes. "Don't worry, I wouldn't want to touch that fossil anyway."

Sam hid a smile, glancing back at his notes. "Okay, Natalie. Let's see what you've got."

It didn't take long for Natalie to prove she was more than capable. After that first offer to help, she dove headfirst into researching the latest case—a series of strange deaths involving men being burned alive in the middle of seemingly normal activities. The police reports were baffling, and there was no obvious supernatural connection at first glance.

Natalie hacked into local police databases, pulling up witness statements and security camera footage that wasn't available to the public. Within hours, she'd found patterns that had eluded both the police and the brothers.

"It's not spontaneous combustion," she said, leaning over her laptop, her fingers flying over the keys. "Each victim was seen just before their death with a strange symbol carved into their skin. I've enhanced the footage, and I'm pretty sure it's witchcraft."

Sam leaned in, impressed. "That's incredible work. How did you—?"

"IT degree, remember?" Natalie smirked. "I can analyze digital footage faster than you can look through your lore books."

Dean, who had been watching silently from across the room, crossed his arms. "Great. So now we know it's witches. That still doesn't mean we can stop them with a keyboard."

Natalie shot him a look. "No, but it helps knowing what we're up against, doesn't it?"

Dean opened his mouth to argue, but Sam cut in. "She's right, Dean. We needed this lead, and now we have it. Thanks, Natalie."

Natalie gave Sam a small, satisfied smile, ignoring the grumbling coming from Dean. "Happy to help."

Their latest hunt took them to a small town outside of Wichita. Dean, Sam, and now Natalie had tracked down the source of the deaths—a witch coven disguised as a small-town charity group. The witches were powerful, but they needed to carve the symbols into their victims to complete their rituals, which gave the trio a small window of opportunity.

Natalie stayed back in the bunker at Sam's request, continuing to monitor communications and hacking into the witches' emails and security feeds as they tried to locate the next potential victim.

While Sam and Dean were out chasing down leads, Natalie sent them real-time updates, directing them to potential sites where the witches were likely to strike next.

"This is insane," Natalie muttered to herself, eyes glued to her multiple screens. "I'm literally tracking witches in real time. How did my life turn into this?"

She sent a message to Sam's phone: Found something. They're targeting a city council member. Check the courthouse—they're holding a fundraiser tonight.

Dean's voice crackled through the walkie-talkie. "Courthouse? How the hell do you know that?"

"I hacked into their event calendar and cross-referenced with their emails," Natalie replied, her tone clipped. "One of the witches is scheduled to attend tonight. If I'm right, they'll strike during the event."

Dean didn't respond for a moment, but when he did, his tone was begrudging. "Fine. We're heading there now."

When they arrived at the courthouse, everything was just as Natalie predicted. The witches were already in place, their next victim unaware of the danger. Sam and Dean made quick work of two of the witches, and the third tried to flee. But Natalie, still monitoring from the bunker, was one step ahead. She hacked into the security system, locking all the exits remotely and trapping the witch inside the building.

The brothers cornered her, Dean delivering the final blow with a blade etched in runes designed to kill witches. The threat was over.

As they drove back to the bunker, Dean stared out the window, silent. Sam glanced over at him. "You know, Natalie was a big help tonight."

Dean grumbled under his breath. "Yeah, well, doesn't mean I have to like it."

"You don't like it because she's good at something you're not," Sam said with a smirk.

Dean shot him a glare. "I'm good at plenty of things. Like... I don't know, everything else that keeps us alive. But sure, let the geek take care of the computers."

When they returned to the bunker, Natalie was still sitting at her laptop, tapping away. When she heard the heavy footsteps, she looked up, her eyes meeting Dean's.

"So," she said, crossing her arms. "Did my geek skills help or not?"

Dean opened his mouth, ready to throw out another snarky retort, but the words stuck in his throat. He hated to admit it, but she had been useful. Hell, they wouldn't have cornered that last witch without her.

"Yeah," Dean said, finally grunting. "You helped."

Natalie raised an eyebrow, surprised by the acknowledgment. "That's the nicest thing you've said to me since I got here."

"Don't get used to it," Dean muttered, moving past her toward the kitchen. "I still don't trust you."

Natalie rolled her eyes, smiling as Sam gave her a thumbs-up from behind Dean's back.

Dean might never admit it, but Natalie was becoming more useful by the day. And while he wasn't ready to start handing out trust like candy, he couldn't deny she was starting to feel less like a liability—and more like part of the team.

[be-the-glenn-to-my-maggie]

Here is part two of our expanded headcanons:

-Tuk is every parents worst nightmare. Her siblings are so much older than her, she has been desensitized to everything. When Lo’ak and Kiri were Tuk’s age they were fighting over a toy, but Tuk is pretty sure she’s ready for an Ikran. She is the ringleader of all her friendgroups and she can manipulate anyone into anything. She was the youngest to do everything in her family just to keep up with her siblings, and that means she knows so much more than all her friends her age. She taught them all the swear words they know, and she definitely told every child in the clan how babies are made as soon as Lo’ak told her and they were ALL way too young to know. 

-When Tuk was born Lo'ak and Spider were literally so upset she couldn't play with them for a while. You would think it wouldn't be them who'd want her around, but they just want her to be able to do more than crawl already. Therefore Tuk learns to walk the fastest out of all the Sully kids, because Spider and Lo'ak keep losing patience. They stand her up with Spider holding her hands and Lo'ak hovering with his hands at her sides at least once a day until she learns to stand on her own.

-Tuk also learns to speak the fastest. It's to get the attention of her siblings and to get a word in when they all talk over each other at the same time. This is not to say she's somehow smarter, she is simply adapting to her surroundings.

-One time when Tuk was around two Jake stubbed his toe and said "fuck" in English. He was alone with her, and didn't give it much thought until she whispered "I know what that means," also in English.

-Tuk is a why child, just like Lo'ak was. There has to be a reason for literally everything and she will not let it go. She is then the most educated toddler ever, because her siblings aren't quite old enough to get fully frustrated with her yet and usually just answer her endless questions.

-Tuk teaches every other toddler in the village everything she knows, answering endless why questions that no one else is asking, teaching an audience that is paying varying amounts of attention.

-As much as the other kids call her the baby, they spend a lot of time letting her join them doing things that they did not do at her age. They are enablers as much as they are co-conspirators.

-Who do you think taught Tuk to threaten to tell Neytiri, because she didn't think of it herself.

-Lo'ak: Tuk, go with Kiri, me and Spider are going flying.

Tuk: Kiri says I can't go to that part of the forest.

Lo'ak, unknowingly releasing the beast: Just tell her you'll tell mom where she's going if she doesn't bring you.

[sleepywinchesters]

"Go for Kinard."

"What exactly are you doing with my daughter?" Maddie's voice was a low growl.

Tommy slapped his hand over the microphone, as if Maddie could hear his sharp inhale over the static. He turned to glare at the young woman in the co-pilot seat.

"You didn't tell your mother we were going up today?"

"Dad said it was fine."

"Chim said it was- oh my god."

If Tommy didn't need both his hands to keep them steady, he'd pinch the bridge of his nose. Someday one of the Buckleys were going to kill him and he was starting to suspect it might be Maddie.

"You know what I said-"

"That both of them had to agree."

"Tommy," Maddie's voice crackled through the headset again. "Is Jee flying a helicopter right now?"

"Technically, no."

"He won't let me touch anything yet, Mom."

"And he's not going to."

"Dad said it was fine!"

"And I'll be talking to him later too. Get back safe."

"We will." Tommy ended the communication.

He'd learned a long time ago to wait it out and he would get an explanation. It probably wouldn't be a good explanation, but it would be one. Jee remained uncharacteristically quiet as they flew over LA, Tommy narrating the controls and what a standard flight plan should look like.

"I'm sorry I lied about telling my mom."

Tommy waited, knowing more was coming.

"Just after the fires last year. I could have helped, there would have been fewer casualties. Dad's fire thing- being able to control it. I'm more powerful than he is, Tommy."

"Because it feeds you."

It shouldn't have been unexpected. Haechis were known for their ability to prevent fire, and hybrids weren't rare. When combined with Maddie's vampirism, the way she fueled herself in a way that also helped people, Jee-Yun was always going to be something special. Ever since Jee had figured out she could control fire, could gain her energy from it, there was only ever going to be one path for her. They had all known it, and Tommy hadn't thought twice when she had approached him for flying lessons.

"I mean, yeah. But I could have saved people. That whole neighborhood-"

"I know."

"I'm 18 in 3 months. Once I graduate in May I can head right into the academy. If I already have a provisional pilot's license by the time I graduate-"

"I get it. I do. But-" Tommy cut himself off with a sigh. "It's not just the technical skills. They're important. But, Jee, you also have to learn where the limits are. When you have to turn back, no matter how many people you think you can save."

"Then what's the point of knowing all this, of having this, if I can't save everyone."

"Because you can't. You can't save everyone every time. You can try like hell, but losing people is part of the job. You need to know that now and really think about if you can live with that."

"Ok." Jee was subdued, chastised in a way Tommy hadn't been intending.

"You call it when there's no chance left. You always try. But you have to come home, not just so you can try again on the next call. Because there's people who love you, who understand the risks you take, and still need you to come home."

"This is what I want. But, if I tell you something, can you not tell Uncle Buck?"

"Go for it."

"It's a lot of pressure. I mean how many times has Mom won dispatcher of the year? And Dad's done almost everything there is to do in the department- and every probie from the last 5 years is ready to marry him. Uncle Buck is-" Jee hesitated. "I don't know if I could even imagine half the stuff he's supposed to have done."

"He did it all right," Tommy said. "And half the time he shouldn't have."

Jee laughed a little. That was the common refrain that followed any story about her favorite uncle.

"How can I live up to that though?"

"You don't. Even when we're on the ground, it's different for us up here. We're involved, but we see the bigger picture." Tommy angled the helicopter, knowing they were almost to the burn scar from the previous year. "Look at it. You know what it looked like then, how the ground crews were managing the fire lines. But up here, we can see the whole neighborhood. What would you have done, if you had enough to drop one more round of supressant before having to go back?"

"Well, they-"

"I know what was done. What would you do?"

"The main street. The ground crews were so focused on the fire line they didn't notice it had jumped until there were already structures on fire while evacuations were still ongoing. No one could get out from how fast it was moving. I'd try to push the fire back over the line and do my last drop on the main street instead of the main fire."

"Good. You have the instincts for it. The benefit of hindsight sure, but yeah. You can do this, you can move the fire where you want it to go. You get the other part of it too. You gotta give yourself time, kid."

Jee smiled. "I just don't want to disappoint anyone."

"Well, you definitely disappointed your mom today. But I don't think you're going to disappoint any of them when you do this job."

"So you'll take me up again and tell Mom that it's ok."

Tommy pointed at her. "I didn't say that. You're gonna face her and take whatever punishment she doles out as an adult."

"Ok."

"I'll talk to her though. Because you need a bird's eyes view to be great. If, and only if, she agrees, then I'll teach you for real."

"Thanks. Let's head back. Better not give her time to stew."

"Good call."

[nicklesbam]

some ethan fluff? I wanna say. idk I'll just write some stuff and keep going with that

"Oh my god, I don't wanna die before I become a famous pornstar!" Y/n joked. Right now they were all seated in front of Mindy as she was listing off the suspects

"Not the time for jokes right now y/n" Sam pointed out. Y/n smirked

"Who said I was joking?" She raised her brows

Ethan coughed and started blushing pink, y/n just laughed and let Mindy continue on. The truth is she's scared, scared of dying at such a young age before she's gotten to do anything. She already lost her v-card so she didn't care about that, she wanted to make something meaningful of her life before she goes

"Y/n are you listening?" Anika asked while nudging her a little. She nodded her head quickly

"Yeah, yeah I'm fine" she took a breath. Anika looked to everyone worriedly. She turned back to y/n

"Y/n it's ok if you're scared, we're all scared-" Anika tried to help but y/n just couldn't

"No, please. I'm ok. I have to go, see you guys at home" She's been living with Chad and Ethan after she got kicked out of her parents

Y/n walked off fast trying to organize and make sense of her thoughts. A killer was coming after her and her friends, what else could she do besides get on with her day until the killer shows up

She walked home and went directly to her room. She didn't mean to but as soon as she got to her room she broke down. She's usually the one that's always making a joke out of everything but she couldn't do it right now. She started crying hard to the point where she had to clutch her chest and heave very quick breaths

"Y/n!" She didn't know which one it was but she didn't care. Ethan and Chad are her best friends. Chad's like a brother and ethan well, she likes him

They ran to her room and saw her. Her eyes had tears in them, she couldn't see. They rand and hugged her, laying her head on their chest

"It's ok, its ok y/n. I got you" she held on tightly to their arm as if they'll fly away. Slowly as he stroked her hair she calmed down

Now they were just standing there while he stroked her hair and she sniffles every once in a while. She lifted her head and wiped her tears

She looked up and saw ethan, he looked very worried. She smiled at him

"Ethan the knight here for the rescue" she joked. He couldn't stop the worried look on his face from showing. Her smile faltered

"Yeah I wouldn't be so convinced either" she sniffles again chuckling again. She sits on her bed and he follows

"You can talk to me y/n. We were worried about you earlier" she sighed and stared at the floor until she looked him in the eyes

"I don't want to die yet. I haven't done anything, I haven't lived. I've never had a vacation, I've never had an actual career, I've never done something important. I've never made an impact" y/n was overwhelmed. She heard how their last group of friends had died and they were just in high school.

Y/n wasn't ready for her life to cone to an end when she hasn't done things she wanted to achieve

"Y/n were all here for you, I'm here for you. I won't let anything happen to you, I promise" he turned his body to her. She gave a weak smile

"And I would love that gesture if it didn't mean the killer getting to you too. I don't want anything to happen to you ethan" she started tearing up again. He gave her a loving smile

"Nothings gonna happen to me y/n" he chuckled and hugged her

"It better not or I'll haunt your ghost" she mumbled into his chest. She felt the vibrations of his laughter

"I'm sure you will"

She pulled back from the hug and looked to his face. She looked from his eyes to his lips before going back to his eyes. She started to lean in and so did he. They leaned in so close they can feels each other's breaths. Ethan hesitated but leaned in and closed the gap

Their lips moved together in sync. The kiss was filled with love. She held his cheek as she deepened the kiss, bringing him closer. Eventually they pulled apart for air, looking each other in the eyes

"I really like you ethan" y/n whispered to him. He smiled

"I really like you too y/n" she smiled

[dyns33]

Shielded by the moon - Part 2

I had NO IDEA how to end this properly…

Tag : @lotrefcp (I thought about it !)

Y/N had a habit of lying. Of hiding things.

Between her job for SHIELD and her special abilities, she had to learn early on how to modify the truth to avoid trouble. That didn't mean she liked it.

It was perfectly normal for Steven to be a little upset that she hadn't told him she was an agent on a mission, even though he said he understood and wasn't angry.

It was even more normal that Marc and Jake didn't trust her.

The first because she had hidden things, the other because he knew that she continued to hide things, even if it was also somewhat his fault.

“Mentirosa.” he muttered as he followed her to her hotel, because his God had ordered him to protect her, or at least to watch over her.

"You're one to talk. The others don't know you exist, or what you do."

“And it will stay that way !”

"You're calling me a liar, while asking me to lie. Make a choice."

"You, make a choice. Leave them alone. Leave. You have the answers you wanted, so leave."

The Moon Knight wasn't wrong. Y/N had gotten all the answers SHIELD was looking for, she knew who the mummy was, how he got his powers, and his motivations.

Although Jake wasn't very talkative, she understood that he wasn't a danger, even if he was dangerous. He only took on people who deserved it, criminals, so there was no need to constantly follow him, or try to stop him.

There were two problems.

Y/N couldn't give these answers to her superiors, because Jake didn't want anyone to know about him. It was already too much that she knew.

It also risked putting Marc and Steven in danger, when they didn't even know that another alter was using the body when they slept to jump on roofs and beat up people.

And Y/N didn’t want to leave Steven. She really liked Steven.

SHIELD wouldn't be that hard to trick. She just had to pretend that she had to stay in London longer to track down the mummy, while giving a few new elements to satisfy them.

The problem was that she didn't want to lie to Steven, or to Marc, who both seemed to have suffered enough because of the secrets and lies.

They already knew about her work, but not about her abilities. Y/N was afraid they wouldn’t understand. That they would judge her, look at her like her parents and the doctors. It seemed stupid, but the idea was eating her inside.

There was also Jake.

“If you talk about me, you’re dead.” he said before flying away.

“I couldn’t find anything on this Jake.” Marc had said the next day, continuing to look everywhere for the new Moon Knight, and not understanding why their paths never crossed.

Jake was the real problem. Because as long as she didn't talk about him, he considered her a dangerous liar, and if she talked about him, she became an enemy to be defeated.

Probably because of his past, the mercenary could sense that Y/N was still hiding something, and he didn't trust the young woman either.

There was only Steven, who agreed to believe her.

"Excuse him, he had some issues, if I can say that. I know you're a nice person. I mean, SHIELD hasn't always done good things, but with good intentions, and I think it’s the same for you.”

“If anyone is nice here, it’s you Steven.”

"Thank you, love. Dove ! I mean…Thank you !"

Their relationship was unclear. It wasn't really easy, between her job, Marc who was staring at them in the mirror with a dark look, Jake who came to threaten her during the night when they were sleeping, and the shadow of Khonshu who hovered over her constantly.

Wanting to be with Steven was normal, and dangerous and loud and stressful.

"You'll never really be with him, mentirosa. He doesn't know who you are. He doesn't know that you're hiding things from him. He hates that, you know ? Marc made him suffer a lot."

"And not you ?"

“No, I’m not here for that.” growled the Moon Knight as he approached dangerously. "And I won't let anything happen to them. Why these lies anyway ? Little prophet. Khonshu has nothing but compliments and sweet words for you, like he worships you. He says you're special. I think that you are nothing, and you must leave.”

It could have been simple if she had listened. Y/N would have returned to her small apartment, telling her bosses that she didn't know the identity of the mummy, but that she could determine that he was not a threat, and everything would be stopped there.

But she stayed, and Marc called Layla.

Their marriage, their divorce and Steven's crush did not affect her. Layla was a nice woman. The large hippo that followed her was another story.

The cries between the hippopotamus and Khonshu especially.

Y/N remembered the screams of the creatures when she was a child, when she entered a sacred place, always followed by her father's screams because he didn't understand why she was crying.

"… Y/N ? Is everything okay? "

She didn't hear the question. The gods were shouting too loudly, attracting other things, and suddenly she was on the ground, hands over her ears, desperately trying to shut herself out from the world. There were too many voices, too many noises, too much of everything.

“Make them stop, make them stop.” she begged, sobbing.

"Sal de aquí. ¡ Mierda, lárgate ahora !"

It took a long time for her to realize that silence had returned, and that there was someone near her on the floor, holding her close, rocking her and whispering incomprehensible things. Things in Spanish.

“… Jake ?”

"Shh. Breathe, mi pequeña mentirosa. Breathe."

"I… I'm sorry… I…"

“Breathe.”

There was almost no air left in her lungs. The advice was quite wise. Y/N didn’t understand why he was giving it to her. Jake didn't like her, he didn't trust her. He would probably be happy if she disappeared.

But his God would not. Neither would Steven.

"Love, talk to me, please. Please. Less noise. No, Marc, not now. We'll see later, you two stop. Y/N ? Tell me what I can do."

"I'm sorry. Sorry." she cried, clinging to him. "Don't call the doctors. I don't want to go back. I'm sorry. I won't lie again… Sorry."

She had said that often when she was younger. A sentence that made no sense, because her parents asked her to stop talking about the monsters she pretended to see and the visions she claimed to receive. Lies, according to them. As time went on, Y/N sometimes had trouble knowing what to say.

"I'm sorry." she continued to repeat, afraid of what was going to happen to her.

"It's okay. You didn't do anything wrong, babe. Nothing at all."

It was Marc who happened.

Undoubtedly the one of the three who could understand her the most, and he decided that she only deserved kisses, hugs and massages on the back, to reassure and protect her. Everything he would have wanted to have in his childhood and that Steven, and Jake in secret, offered him.

They stayed like that until Y/N felt better. The rest could wait, even the annoyed moon god, who had been ordered to leave the room by his own avatar. But it was for the sake of a prophet, so he accepted.

"… You want to talk about it ?" Marc asked almost shyly.

"No."

"Fine. Me neither."

Later, it was Steven who decided to talk about it. Because Steven had no problem speaking, and he considered communication to be important in a couple, if they were a couple. They still had to talk about this.

He didn't force her to speak though. He respected her need for privacy, and he didn't see it as a lie.

Either way, they had a more pressing concern.

“So… Jake?”

“I couldn’t tell you about him.”

"Oh, I'm not mad at you, love. Neither is Marc. In fact, they're the ones I'm talking to." he said, pointing at the mirror.

"Jake isn't too upset that I talked about him ?"

"He says you didn't talk about him, he was the one who showed himself, so no. Why does he call you 'my little liar' ? I don't like that. Marc, stop calling her 'babe', I don't like that either."

"My avatars and a prophet are a sign. The moon is brighter since you met, and my powers greater."

"Shut up, you big pigeon ! Why can I see the big pigeon again ?! Why are you still working for him, Jake ?!"

There were still several arguments and misunderstandings, especially with Jake who had even more difficulty than Marc in communicating, but no more lying.

The only ones Y/N said were sent to SHIELD, with a transfer letter to stay in England, in order to keep an eye on the Moon Knight who only agreed to collaborate if she was the intermediary. Not that it was really a lie.

[mysteryshoptls]

SSR Vil Schoenheit Bloom Birthday Personal Story: Part 1

"Happy Birthday"

Part 1 (Part 2) (Part 3)

[Pomefiore Dorm – Birthday Party Venue]

Vil: My make-up is all set, now. I wonder what kind of interview this will be today.

Vil: Instead of discussions about my work, it may delve more into my private life.

???: ―Pardon me.

Jade: Happy Birthday, Vil-san. I am looking forward to this so very much.

Vil: Thank you for your kind words, Jade. So it seems you're my presenter today.

Vil: Whether this is will be a good interview will be determined by the questions you ask. I have high expectations from you.

Jade: What a tremendous responsibility. I shall do my utmost.

Jade: Well then, I shall begin the interview. The first question is…

Jade: “Are you good or bad at flying?”

Vil: I don't think I'm incapable, but I also wouldn't say I excel at it. I'd say my grades are about average.

Vil: I would be lying if I said I was satisfied by my current abilities… But I'm also not in any desperate rush to compare myself to others.

Vil: A majority of the top students received specialized magical education even before enrolling here, after all.

Jade: Oh? Are you telling me that your magical education actually began only after coming to this school?

Vil: That's right. When I was young, I would travel everywhere alongside my father for his performances, and I myself was a child actor...

Vil: Just because I ended up manifesting magic doesn't mean that we thought to enroll me in any kind of mage training school immediately, or anything.

Vil: Even if I tried to have someone I knew teach me, my father was far too busy, and isn't able to use magic in the first place.

Jade: So your father is not a mage, I see. Then, does that mean your magic was inherited by…

Vil: Inherited by my mother? Who knows.

Vil: I don't even know who she is, let alone whether she's a mage or not. Personally, I don't want to know, either.

Jade: Is that so. Well, that is rather surprising. I completely thought that you had been studying magic since childhood.

Vil: Oh, why is that?

Jade: Well... simply because you are an exceptionally competent person who was chosen to be Pomefiore's Dorm Leader.

Vil: If I were to consider crafting cosmetics to be related to potionology, then I suppose I could say I had been doing my own studies before enrolling here.

Vil: But of course, I've learned much more here at Night Raven College.

Vil: If I think of it in that sense, then I suppose flight skills would be more useful than not. Not for my grades, you see, but for work.

Jade: When you say work, are you talking about your modeling job? …Or perhaps your acting job?

Vil: The latter. When filming scenes in the air, I usually use CGI, or wires, so…

Vil: If I use flight instead, it may broaden my horizons even more. It would not only be useful for my acting abilities, but would definitely be a boon to the cinematography.

Jade: I must say, I'm very interested at the thought of a film that would come to life using flight magic like that… I would love to see that.

Vil: Perhaps one day I will be able to debut it. You should look forward to it.

Part 1 (Part 2) (Part 3)

Requested by @seimeinotaka.

[chloe-spade]

The Glass Slipper Chapter 2: Sweet, Sweet Nightgale

It took Cater a while to get everything from purses to shoes to the girls' separate rooms. He was still very sore from the many bags that he carried, but it was nothing to him as he daydreamed about Malleus, about anything about him.

But it wasn't all silence for him as he could hear his step sisters speak with such venom when they returned. Complaining to Lady Rosalind as soon as they entered the door about a mysterious man talking with dirty, worthless Cater. It had grown annoying for the mice, but Cater couldn't care less, as he hums and danced to himself as he put everything away.

"He's still in love," Ruggie noted, "It must be contagious, I bet!"

"He's just in love," Deuce sighs, "It's not a disease it can be spread around, Ruggie."

"Not yet." Ruggie blurted, "I heard about what love can do to you."

"The good or the bad?" Riddle questioned.

"Does that matter?" Cater snapped out of his trance as he heard the girls' argument grow louder and louder. He quickly continued his work, trying to hide the fact he was daydreaming.

"And he just talked to Cater, Mother," complained Astrid, "he barely acknowlged us! And by us, I mean me! He should've paid attention to me!"

"No way," Elise huffed, "she means me, Mother! He's too princely to talk to her."

"He's barely princely if he's talking to Cater of all people!" Astrid scoffed, "I don't think any prince would even speak to him because..look at him! Dirty and such a stammerer. No prince would want that."

Cater gulped as he walked down the stairs so he can announce his completed job, but considering how they continued to mock and belittle him, he couldn't speak up. It then became an argument between the two girls, discussing who's the prettier one worth of the prince's love, which both kept losing somehow.

"My sweet daughters," Rosalind spoke, "both are you are just as gorgeous as the stars above us. There is no need for useless competition, my dears," Rosalind's eyes drifted towards Cater and grins at him, "Oh! Hello, Cater, I see that you are finished with your chores?"

"Yes. ma'am," Cater spoke, "am I interupting something?"

"Oh, no,no. Nothing of your concern, Cater." Roselind giggles, "but since you are done, you need to cook lunch for us. Then sweep the floors, and scrub them! Then sweep the entrance, so no dust is in the house. My sweet Pom-Pom's fur can't handle the dust, it'll ruin her pefect fur. You wouldn't want that, my dear Cater."

"No, ma'am."

"Now, girls, to the music room! We shall begins to our music lesson." Roselind ordered, leading the girls to the music room, leaving Cater all alone in the foyer.

"Now, not to break the mood," Ruggie spoke, "but I heard lunch and that reminds me that we should be eating something right now!"

"Is food just what you think about?" Deuce sighed.

"He is right," Cater hums. "We should make lunch, and besides, I got so much bread and I'm not letting those waste."

Cater walks into the kitchen and looks around, checking to see if they're any ingredients for what he planned to cook. Much to his relief, he found many to use, but knowing that the girls are in the music room, he puts the food on the counter.

"You know," Cater laughs, "I can just stay here and no one would tell me what to do in here."

✨

I’m as mild and as meek as a mouse

When I hear a command I obey

But I know of a spot in my house

Where no one can stand in my way

✨

"Where?" Kalim asked.

Cater picks up the mice and showed them a small corner, accompanied by a fireplace and a small cozy chair, covered in a nice blanket. He puts them on the table to give them a better view.

✨

In my own little corner

In my own little chair I can be whatever

I want to be

On the wing of my fancy

I can fly anywhere

And the world will open its arms to me

✨

Cater stood before the mice, before grabbing his broom, ready to reenact his imagination.

✨

I’m a young Norwegian prince or a milkmaid

I’m the greatest prima donna in Milan

I’m an heir who has always had his silk made

By his own flock of silkworms in Japan!

✨

"Silkworms? That's new!" Ace chuckled.

"But it is true," Cater beamed, "My father was a traveler, and one day he went over to Japan and gave me the most beautiful silk I have seen and felt. I would like that again."

✨

I’m a boy men go mad for, love’s a game

I can play

With a cool and confident kind of air

Just as long as I stay In my own little corner

All alone In my own

Little chair

✨

"Such a small but cozy place to be in," Deuce complimented, "You mean, I can be anyone I can be here?"

Cater nods, "Yes, anything you can be, you can be here. I've always done this to escape reality for just a small while. It's helped me a lot over the years."

✨

I can be whatever I want to be

I’m a thief in Calcutta

I’m a king in Peru

I’m a merman dancing upon the sea

I’m a hunter on an African safari –

It’s a dangerous kind of sport and yet it’s fun In the night

I sally forth to seek my quarry

And I find I forgot to bring my gun!

✨

"Oh no!" Kalim gasps.

"How does a hunter forget a gun?" Riddle mumbled, confused by it all.

✨

I am lost in the jungle

All alone and unarmed

When I meet a lioness in her lair!

Then I’m glad to be back In my own little corner

All alone In my own

Little chair

✨

Cater sits down on his chair and sighs as he rested on it. "That's what happens when my imaginations go while, huh? I scared myself with that one if I am honest." Cater laughs and gets up to start lunch.

"You do have a wild imagination," Riddle gulped, "I am now worried about it."

"Yeah, but look at Cater. After a well-deserved break, he's back up and kicking!" Ace convinced.

✨

An hour passed, Cater collected all the dust, leaving the dustpan by the door, and began scrubbing the floors.

"I can't believe it," Cater hummed, "I met the prince himself…he looked nothing as I imagined him to. But he's full of mystery…his eyes were so beautiful…" The mice watched from the ledge of the stair rail, talking among themselves.

"Cater's in love!" Kalim smiles. "That's so cute."

"That guy was the prince?…he looked different than I thought a prince would look like in books." Ace remarked, "but he is mysterious, I'll say that."

"It's nice to see Cater…so happy." Riddle spoke, looking at Cater, "it's a fresh sight to see."

The mice nod in agreement. What made things worse was Astrid's singing, which sounded like nails on a chalkboard.

"That's awful!" Deuce remarked, covering his ears, "what is that?"

"Evil stepsister Astrid's voice. Once you hear it, you wish it was from Pom-Pom instead." Ace answered.

Pom-Pom hissed as she heard the noise, finding it impossible to rest when something so horrible was in her ears.

✨

The pair-shaped tool

Oh sing sweet Nightingale

Sing sweet nightingale

High above me

✨

But as Pom-Pom strolled over to the stairs, a more melodic melody calmed her down. Her eyes gazed towards Cater, singing, as he was now in his little world.

✨

Oh sing sweet

Nightingale

Sing sweet

High above

Oh sing sweet

Nightingale

Sing sweet nightingale

High

✨

As he scrubs, he slowly began to imagine the prince, or he should say Malleus. He remembered his kindness towards him and the gentle touch when he holds on to Cater when he fell. Cater never felt so in love before, but he welcomed the feeling, a feeling that gave him happiness.

✨

Oh sing sweet

Nightingale

Sing sweet nightingale

Oh sing sweet

Nightingale

Sing sweet

Oh sing sweet

Nightingale Sing

Oh sing sweet

Nightingale

Oh sing sweet

Oh sing

✨

Cater stopped as he smell the dust, he turned to see Pom-Pom messing with it, leaving small footprints behind her. Cater could only groan as he cleaned her mess, keeping an eye on her in the process.

Cater quickly went to the bathroom and cleaned Pom-Pom to perfection before getting rid of the collected dust outside, feeding the chickens and cooking dinner, and finally, cleaning the dishes and washing the clothes. The day ended with Cater closing his bedroom door and sighing.

"You never cease to amaze me, Pom-Pom," Cater sighed, "to try to get me in trouble by making you messy. I get the others by why you must hate me too?"

Pom-Pom licked her palm and lets out a meow.

"Ah…come on, let's get you cleaned before Rosalind finds you."

"Well,well,well," laugh Lilia, "Has a rough day?"

Cater jumped in his place and eyes charted back to Lilia, instantly glaring at him. Lilia was porched upon his only room's window, grinning like a menacing cat, with excitement in his eyes.

"Tsk tsk, a fairy Godfather never reveals secrets, Cater. Now, speak of your day." Lilia asked, getting up from the window, "I heard that you had an exciting one."

"uh..how did you get here?" Cater questioned, "I know that my window's always locked when no one's in here."

Cater then grinned, laying down on his bed. "I met someone. He's so kind and sweet, and I should mention, very, very handsome? I mean, he is!" He laughs to himself, blushing.

"He's been in love ever since he met with the prince today," Riddle explained to Lilia, "Its all that he thinks about now."

"I still think it's super cute," Kalim commented.

"It is," Lilia agreed, "but I am mostly here to get a check on Kalim's magic while I was away. To see if there was a funny magic mishap I missed?"

"Oh! There was this time where Cater was tasked to paint the music room and Kalim used his magic," Ace started, "and then all the paint spilled all over Pom-Pom! It was still amazing."

"Oh, that's one I defiently missed," Lilia laughed, "I would adore that pompus cat getting what she deserved. Anything else?"

"Nothing that bad," Kalim mumbled, "just some accidental magical mishaps but I've done great this past year! I think it's a perfect improvement from last year."

"A big improvement from last year." "Riddle.."

"Well, I guess I don't have to worry about Kalim since you are are doing a good job keeping an eye on him for me." Lilia smiles, "but that's not the only reason I am here."

"It's not?" Cater got up from his bed.

"I heard that someone has a letter from a certain prince," Lilia teased, taking the letter from Cater's pocket, "that he hasn't opened yet?"

Cater blushes madly and just chuckles, "I was waiting until I was alone and when everyone else was asleep."

"Unfair," Ace pouted, "come on! What does it say? Now I'm actually curious."

"Yeah, same here," Deuce agreed, "You seem so in love when you saw him. I mean, you're still giggling about him."

"It was not that obvious," Cater defended, "no, it wasn't."

"Just read it!" Ace urges. Cater takes the letter from Lilia and opens the envelope, taking the papers out.

"It says:

Dear Special Guest

If you received this, that means I have personally given you my invitation. The invitation is for a royal ball that, by the time you read this, is two days. There could only be one reason why I gave it to you. And that is because I've fallen in love with you, and can't get you out of my head. Though, I apologize if I do seem sudden in my approach. But I do beg of you to attend so I can proclaim you as my one-to-be.

It'll brighten my day/night to see you there. I'd like to dance under the stars. I'm getting sidetracked, but my offer still stands.

From The Prince, Malleus Draconia."

"Ah, I can even imagine him saying it." Cater swoons, "Him? Falling for me? Such an odd thing for him to do. But I can't stop being happy."

"Then you shouldn't stop," Lilia grinned, "you should be delighted that someone has become smittened by you and look at you, Cater, gushing and swooning over Prince Malleus's means so much to him as much as that letter means to you."

"What does that mean?"

"I'm saying that you should see him tomorrow! Same place, same time." Lilia cheered.

"Yeah!" Kalim agreed, "If he sees you again, who knows how many butterflies you've spread." Cater blushes and sinks onto his bed.

"I should be writing a letter to him! But everything is downstairs." Cater gasped, "How am I going to write to him?"

"Have you forgotten that you have two fairy godfathers?" Lilia sang, grabbing his wand, "now, you said pen and paper right?" With a wave of his wand, a pen, and a piece of paper are now floating in the air. "Now, tell me what you are thinking?"

"God, I let me think." Cater laughed, "Let's me see."

✨

Lilla appeared back in his room, dusting himself off.

"Ah, a fairy godfather's work is always so rewarding. Now, where's Malleus, might as well tell him that his beloved made such a beautiful note for him."

He left the room, searching for Malleus's room and when he did, he sees Malleus on his desk, trying to write on a blank sheet of paper, Sebek was awake next to him and Silver was asleep ever so peacefully. "Oh my, what's this all about?"

"Master Malleus wants to send a letter to a boy named Cater, but he doesn't know what to say. Silver and I offered to help but Silver slept immediately!"

"Now, now, Sebek." Lilia walks over to Malleus, "trying to make a good impression?"

"I am having more trouble than I initially thought. When I made the first letter," Malleus explained, "I didn't have anyone in mind, but now since Cater entered my mind, he's all I could ever think about and is a blessing…but can be a curse. Now I struggle with a simple letter for him."

Lilia smiles.

"That's how love is, my dear Malleus, but allow me to help you. Just relax and listen to me."

Malleus nods and looks out the window, "My love, wait for me, will you? Wait for the night that we dance underneath a beautiful array of stars…"

[stesierra]

Find the Word tag game!

@isabellebissonrouthier tagged me! My Words: Blue, Sunrise, Hope, Feel, Fly. I'm drawing from Triangle Park.

I'm going to tag @squarebracket-trick and @avrablake! Your words are demon, habit, erase and slaughter.

Blue and Sunrise

The next morning, Adam woke before dawn and went out to look at the swirling stars overhead.

And he wondered if Madeline was awake. And what she would think of his decisions, caught between Queen Lía's oaths and Millicent's. He had saved a child. He had killed their friend.

Rabbit was too young to ask any knight to take oaths, except, probably, the impossible 'be nice.'

He stayed out there past sunrise, thinking, and past breakfast, too. It wasn't as if there was anything to eat. He was completely alone until Rabbit barreled out of the trailer straight towards him. He caught her right before she collided.

Rabbit didn't run off in another direction as expected. She wrapped herself around his waist. She said, her face muffled against his chest, "The mean lady called me names."

"Oh, did she?" Adam said. It was time to have a talk with Sybil.

Sybil was where he'd left her, lying tied up in a corner. He hadn't talked to her more than what was necessary to help her relieve herself and to feed her what little they could afford. She probably thought he was starving her on purpose.

This wouldn't work very well standing over her. So he sat down on the floor beside her after both Gardener and Sniffer left to follow Rabbit about her day.

Sybil glared at him. The blanket had fallen partway off, exposing her in her bra and leather pants. Under her bandages, her shoulder was coming along well. No pus or swelling marked the wound. With her enhanced rate of healing, she could probably get up and walk now as long as she didn't try to use the arm too much.

"Leave, traitor," she snarled.

He rested his hands on his crossed legs. "No, I don't think I will. I hear you've been yelling at children."

Sybil snorted. "I called her a stupid little brat, and that blue-winged bitch threatened to punch me in the throat if I did it again. What are you going to do, cut off my knees?"

"I'm going to ask you to yell at me instead. Rabbit hasn't done anything."

Sybil frowned mightily. She said, abruptly, "How long are you going to do this?"

"How long am I going to do what?"

Sybil strained against the ropes. "Hold me here."

Adam sighed. "I don't know. I won't let you go back to Millicent and tell her how many faeries defend Rabbit, and how many knights she should send next."

"So kill me."

"I'm not going to kill you, Sybil. We've known each other for two hundred and ten years." And been friends for most of them.

"That didn't stop you from murdering Rose and Marion."

He exhaled. "Rose... was my fault. I hit her harder than I intended. I meant only to knock her out."

"Liar."

"As for Marion, the panther downed her before I could do anything."

"Liar," she said again, more softly.

"I said last call for both of them. The Spirit answered."

Sybil stared at him. "I should have been there for that."

"Yes, I know." He sighed. "So. You're stuck here. But it is ungentlemanly of me to leave you on the floor all day. Do you feel well enough to sit up?"

Her eyes narrowed. "What are you playing at, traitor?"

"I merely thought that you would prefer to be tied to a chair, outside. And if you're thinking of escaping, don't. The panther is very aggressive."

Hope

"Where are we?" Rabbit piped from the back seat.

"A 'natural area,'" Adam replied. "How would you like to go and see it?" He turned to look at her, throwing the emergency brake on. They'd be here a while.

"Is it far away?"

"Right here."

She tilted her head. "Will it be fun?"

Fun. Fun for Millicent. For Rabbit...

Rabbit gazed at him from the backseat, her eyes wide and trusting.

Adam stared at her. And released the brake.

He couldn't go through with it. He couldn't. Millicent would kill Rabbit, and any thoughts otherwise were merely comforting lies.

"Maybe we'll go find a natural area somewhere else," Adam said.

And six faeries melted out of the trees.

They were knights, all of them, and they approached like wolves swooping down on an injured deer.

"Don't say anything," Adam said softly to Rabbit. "Pull a blanket over yourself and lie small and still."

"Why?" Rabbit asked, halfway under a blanket already.

"It's a game," he lied. And then he rolled down the window.

He recognized all of them. Rauf, the leader of the conroi, could have been Adam's blonde and pale brother, except Adam had a fencer's frame and Rauf ran more toward bulky muscle. Waulter was a fox-like faerie, golden skinned and golden haired, with sweeping ears that belied his small size. Elinor, tall and lithe, was uniform nut-brown and lacking ears altogether. Her reptilian eyes flashed forest green. Piers was notable for his averageness; average size, average face, skin neither dark nor light. He was still more beautiful than a human. Gyles had the furred face of a greyhound, the body and clothes of a courtier. And Bridget's bulk was all bone, but her delicate face was as beautiful as the queen herself. Their lovely clothes were from a scattering of styles and eras, but Waulter and Rauf and Elinor were adorned in Queen Millicent's yellow. And Bridget, Piers and Gyles in the queen's red.

They clearly knew him. Elinor and Walter grimaced and frowned, but the others gazed at him from emotionless cold faces. They didn't draw their swords, but their hands fell to their hilts. Adam had left his sword under his mattress again, because he was an idiot.

Rauf swaggered up to his window and leaned down to stare Adam in the face. He smiled with colorless lips and said, "You're not welcome, traitor. The queen has spoken."

The words stung, especially since until a minute ago, he hadn't been a traitor, not to Millicent. But leaving his birth court behind, abandoning Queen Lía for another, meant the faeries born of Millicent would never see him as anything else.

"I have done nothing to betray Queen Millicent," he protested, as if the blanket-covered lump in the backseat didn't exist. "I have served her loyally for centuries."

"And she tired of you, traitor, and sent you away. You are not of her get. How could you think anything else would happen?"

Because he'd been young and stupid, and Millicent had lured him to her court with promises of riches and glory. He said, "If I am unwanted, I will leave, and you need not even bother the queen with news that you saw me."

Rauf snorted and stepped back. But Gyles stalked closer to the car.

"What?" Rauf snapped.

The dog knight took a deep breath. Let it out slowly. "He smells like a queen."

Well. He'd spent the night sleeping beside one, because Rabbit was a snuggler. And the blanket would hardly drown out her scent.

Rauf spun back towards Adam. He snarled, "What?"

"Is there a problem, gentle knights? If I encountered a queen, I don't see how it would concern you. Queen Millicent cares nothing for my wellbeing, as you say."

Rauf drew his sword with the hiss of leather against steel. "Get out of the car. You're coming with us, and you can tell Queen Millicent personally what usurper you've allied yourself with."

Adam threw the locks on the door. "If I were going to turn on Queen Millicent, why would I come here? There isn't any usurper. The queen was only passing through."

"Liar," Rauf said.

And then Rabbit sat up in the backseat.

No one moved for a second. And then Rauf lunged for the door handle. Adam stepped on the acceleration, and the rest of the knights barely dodged out of the way. Adam lurched away from Glory Woods so fast he almost fishtailed off the road.

Rabbit was thrown into the side of the car, but she bounced off as if she'd planned to do acrobatics that day. She scrambled to grab the back of Adam's seat and said, "I got tired of the game. Who were those angry people?"

"Rabbit," Adam said, "Please let me drive."

And miracles of miracles, she went quiet.

He sped through the forest, passing a few cars dangerously fast. He had no intention of stopping until he was back in Triangle Park. And then he had to skid to a halt to let a party of hikers pass. But they didn't pass. One man practically threw himself in front of Adam's car. Blocking his way. Now. When a hunt would soon be after him. He'd nearly stepped back on the acceleration before he remembered the man was human. He snarled, "¡Joder!" And then hoped Rabbit hadn't been listening.

Feel

Rabbit and Sniffer joined them as they shoveled the last bit of dirt onto the grave.

"Where did the hole go?" Rabbit asked.

Gardener said, "I told Adam that it was a tripping hazard and that he had to fill it in."

"Oh," said Rabbit.

"So we're done here now," Gardener said. "Let's--"

"Not quite," Adam said.

"Oh, sun and stars, what is it now?"

"I need to do a ceremony." For Rose, a friend he had killed. And for Marion, a friend he hadn't saved. Last night he had been too tired to do it.

Last night, only one of his friends had died.

Sniffer's growl was a clear warning.

Rabbit flicked him on the nose. "Be nice," she demanded.

The panther flinched back. And he stopped growling.

Gardener looked dubious, but she nodded and stepped back. "Do what you've got to do, I guess. Just don't ask us to join in."

"I won't. You didn't know them." Sybil should be here. But Adam was uncertain that she could be moved without reopening her shoulder. So he would do his best alone.

He stepped forward. Knelt between the graves and laid his hands where the sisters' faces lay, six feet down. With Sniffer and Gardener watching, he felt judged. How dare he know these people and want to ease them into the afterlife? How dare he indeed.

He spoke. "Spirit."

The words seemed to hang in the air. The trees above the grave were listening.

He focused on those trees. Forgot Gardener and Sniffer and Rabbit. Spoke words he'd spoken too many times in only two hundred and sixty four years. "Spirit of life. Spirit from which all queens are born, and all faeries. I invoke you, not to beg for good fortune and favors, but to ask for succor. Please listen to me, your child, on this sorrowful day."

Something came. He couldn't see it, or feel it, or hear it. But the trees responded to it, their leaves and branches reverberating with song. And the forest seemed taller and older, the grass greener. He felt stronger, and the wounds of his body were nothing. He could still feel them, but they did not matter.

"Spirit," he said, acknowledging the arrival of something far greater than he. He was already kneeling, but he bowed his head to the trees. "These two, your daughters, have stopped laughing. The bodies you gave them can hold life no longer. Violence has taken them from us."

The trees sang their sadness. The wind smelled, deeply and intensely, of green.

He took a deep breath. Let it out slowly. "In a fairer world, I would tell you how my court would avenge them. But those that killed them did so honorably, in defense of a child. Which leaves us with no vengeance. Only grief. So take them. Take them and let them become one with you again. Let them be part of every living thing until some queen dreams. And in those dreams, in a new shape, let them awaken to another day."

When he finished speaking, nothing happened. Not at first. But Adam stayed kneeling, waiting, for the forest was still too old and the air too alive. And then the wind blew freshly fallen leaves to cover the graves. They mounded over Adam's hands and feet, still green and living. The smell faded, the trees shrank down to their normal dimensions. The grass was patchy. It was his grass, not the grass of dreams.

Fly

They were nearly to the trail. It would be watched, of course. It always was. Adam's muscles tensed more and more as they approached. His senses felt heightened, as if the smallest fly or whiff of scent would capture his attention before any of his companions could notice it.

Of course, when the attack came, he didn't anticipate it at all.

A massive dog, black as Sniffer, crashed out from behind a fat red oak. A Gytrash, its red mouth opened to bite and rend, drool dripping from its lower lips. And its eyes glowed white like the sun. It hurt to look in them. But it didn't hurt as much as those inch-long teeth would. Awë:iyo:h shrieked and let go of Adam's pants.

Sniffer met the Gytrash's charge with outstretched claws. They raked deep furrows in the dog's shoulders. The hound bit down on the side of his neck, and blood splattered the forest floor. Adam couldn't tell which animal had lost it.

"Holy crap!" Lizzy jerked her gun towards a second Gytrash that appeared behind them. A third lunged out between the trees in front of Adam. He drew his sword and stabbed for its eyes. It shook its head and the sword glanced off its cheekbone, gashing open its cheek all the way back to its ear. It threw itself forward and he had to retreat before it. Sybil was at his shoulder then, her own sword held out before her like a spear. The Gytrash ran up against it and fell back, snarling. Gardener swiped at it from the other side, but she missed completely.

A shot echoed through the forest. Adam twitched his head to the side. The Gytrash charging Lizzy fell with a hole the size of an apple punched through its neck. It landed a few feet from her shoes.

Sybil stabbed Adam's hound in the side. "Well, now they know we're here!"

Lizzy pumped the gun. "They already know we're here!"

The Gytrash pulled itself off Sybil's sword and circled them, snapping the air and shaking drops of blood off of its face.

Adam slashed out across the dog's throat. "Shoot another one, then!"

"I can't! You guys are in the way!"

He and Sybil fell back in unison. Lizzy set her feet and fired. The shot caught the Gytrash in the shoulder, ripping through its fur and flesh. It barked, spun on its three functioning legs and fled. The third Gytrash, its throat torn up by Sniffer's fangs, followed. They transformed into black horses and ran so fleetly that Adam would not have taken a shot even with the enchanted bow.

Tag list for everything

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Just chapters and snippets

@da-na-hae

[danwhobrowses]

One Piece Chapter 1087 - Initial Thoughts

And We Are Back!

5 long looooong weeks for Oda to acquire his eye surgery laser vision but now we can resume the Egghead arc well...everything but the Egghead arc it seems

Still we finally get a manga dose of One Piece so let's see what we have

Spoilers for the chapter, support the official release also

An Ace cover page this time, shame we didn't do anything with the laser eyes but Ace and Capybaras make up for it

In the G1 shipyard there are two navy ships whose hulls are dented, apparently known as 'battleship bags' which Garp trains with

Jango and Fullbody are surprised that this is Garp's daily routine, but also that the second ship was Aokiji's!

Also these dents are caused by brute strength, no fruit or haki

Reminder too that Navy ship hulls nowadays are layered with Sea Prism, so I think this is the first instance we've seen of Sea Prism being weathered

I get that this dude has been present in the post TS Navy exposition but where's my man Bogard?

Back to Fullalead and Wolf is already in the drink

I mean Garp just tossed the mega-giant into the water like Thames Water dropping sewage

Vasco's next for the attack with a fireball

That's cold Garp, using the lesser pirates as a shield, but I guess since they're not your allies it's not morally ambiguous

Garp ain't even fazed either

Garp's fighting has managed to get all the slaves and marines back on the ship to escape

Oda my man, why did you bring Tashigi if you're not letting her do anything???

Coby, Helmeppo and Grus are fighting with Garp still, but the plan is to fall back

Aokiji's back and he didn't hear no bell

Garp gives the orders for the trio to leave while he holds ground, but Coby spots a woman in danger and jumps in to help

But Grus senses it's a trap, and he's right

Garp steps in but eats a stab from Shiryu!

Garp says the wound is nothing but Coby's still on the guilt

I wonder how Shiryu is bypassing haki? because Coby is known to have great Observation Haki, even sensing enemies below surface level

Cross Guild were foolish enough to bounty Garp? Seems that Crowns are worth 1 billion berry (how does Buggy, Crocodile or Mihawk have that kinda cash?) and Garp has 3, on par with an Admiral...and his otherwise absent grandson

The redshirts try to swarm Garp but Aokiji tells them they still wouldn't stand a chance

Mini flashback of how Aokiji became Garp's protege, turns out Aokiji insisted him into it

Young Garp definitely looks a lot like Luffy

So Kuzan was like 'I've learned everything the marines told me' but didn't know Haki? I thought all Vice Admirals knew it

Joint training led to Garp just venting at Kuzan about his family

"You have a habit of raising enemies" - well 'raising' is used loosely

Double punches from master and student sends both men flying

Now Pizarro starts gloating, taking aim at the escape ship

Pizarro's fruit does just feel like an advanced form of Pica's fruit

Pizarro being annoyed with Blackbeard being on the news is interesting, wonder if there's like a slight bit of dissent among the crew

Hibari, much like Coby, is annoyed that she couldn't help, but gets some reassurance from Kujaku

Garp is hopeful justice will prevail though, as we're left on a cliffhanger

It's good to be back

This chapter could've been a lot more action packed I feel, but I'm happy with what we got. Glad Aokiji showed more fight too, because making him look strong works for both Blackbeard and Akainu as well. Also kinda glad that the other Blackbeard members got involved, seemed weird that they would just spectate.

This is a point where Oda could easily move on to another plot section though, which I hope doesn't happen. But I'd also like Tashigi to do something impressive and if she can do something similar to Zoro's feat against Pica to save the ship that'd do pretty nicely. Realistically thinking there may be some navy backup, but we also can't rule out Perona and Moria getting involved, since Coby only escaped because Perona gave him the keys.

It's been 5 weeks but Oda has us leaned back in

[deathdxnces]

tell me what u think 1shot irelia would be like ...

— @windchaser

rubbing my little fly hands together

i hope you're prepared because this will be very long iasudhfihasdf

ok ok i think a lot of it would depend on like. the group dynamics/how the group was formed/what everyone else is like. but, if i had to just take the idea and run with it, what i think would be important for irelia in terms of story/characterization would be:

i think her being put on a pedestal as a hero and not handling the pressure well but still forcing herself to meet people's expectations and standards and trying to shoulder everything alone could easily be translated to a scenario where that was more fame-related. especially if we're talking idols there is a lot of pressure, and many of them begin training to be idols when they're still very young. i think it could be the case for her in this verse (first as a dancer, when she was very little, then training to be an idol, when she was a bit older), and that she'd still be very harsh on herself trying to not let anyone down, inevitably letting people down because it's impossible some people won't be disappointed, and still feeling responsible for it.

but yeah going from that i think, like with ahri and kda, irelia in 1shot would've been an idol in solo career before the group was formed.

i also think she still can come across as cold/haughty at first, like in base verse, even though she'd be very warm and attentive towards fans and stuff. around the group itself she'd likely be a lot more open and warm (maybe not at first, or not toward all of them, but given time and working together probably)

on that note though i really don't know how well she'd get along with someone like vayne. like. they are in the sentinel event working together but they? don't even really interact and honestly i don't think vayne's usual attitude goes well with irelia's aksjfnsjknf i think they'd either be super efficient together or clash and that might just always continue to happen regardless of how long they've been working together

in part that's also because i think she'd still be very prone to take the lead. for all the pressure she puts on herself and how much she doesn't want it, in every verse irelia just continues to take the lead nonetheless lmao and i think in this verse she'd be far less reluctant to do it. and i don't think it'd be purposeful, or that she'd mean to take the center or anything of the sort, just that she can be a bit commanding and take charge without that being a conscious decision and more because she gets carried away. but i can see it not going well sometimes (and vayne seems to me the kind of person who wouldn't take very well to that?)

i can see her being fine with talon actually. again, it depends on how he'd be in that scenario? but even if he's still broody and edgy and not very friendly i can see irelia being ok with him. maybe not at first, but eventually? not sure. she doesn't really have a reason to hate all noxians so she'd be a lot less aggressive regardless.

same thing for phel in that depends on how he'd be. i honestly don't know much about his personality? but i feel they'd get along. and that alune is always around even if she's not part of the group, and that irelia would like her too

i might be biased because of your yone also but i always think irelia would love him kajdfkan i said that to you before but it's the big brother vibes. if ocean song was also in the same universe, i imagine the group would've been formed fairly recently/after they're all already adults, and that it was after yone first started to share his work as a lyricist (and maybe now is singing his own songs?) which i think it's nice and that she'd be supportive of. they could even have met before 1shot was formed, considering yone's involvement with music and her own. either way, i think irelia would love to be around him and they could talk about music and lyrics and dance routines and choreographies and that even when it isn't work related she'd enjoy his company. just chilling in silence is good too. and i also think yone seems like one of the few sensible people she'd easily listen to? so there's that. (actually..... with vayne, irelia, kayn and talon in the same group i feel yone might. have to be the voice of reason there sometimes kjdfnkjsandf)

and then. there's kayn. they of course end up dating. kayn might be a little too supportive of her being mean, but i also think the idea of him being someone with whom she doesn't feel pressured to be perfect (which is very important for how her feelings for him developed, i think) would still be present. i like to think no one expected they would get along well because they have significantly different personalities but they surprisingly work well together from the start.

i think she always needs to go through the traumatizing event of having her entire family murdered so she can't have nice things here either. idk how (maybe i could take a page from what i already have in my modern verse for it but idk). either way. they're all dead. or maybe one of her brothers is alive so at least she had. someone looking after her...... i think i like that idea better so either kai or zelos survive to raise her c':

she'd be ridiculously attached to whichever brother survived, but i think it's fair to say her brother would also be very protective of her because they did lose all of their family, so.

and without getting into specifics it's also always fundamental irelia made swain lose his arm somehow (she could have cut if off depending on how/when it happened, or just damaged it enough he lost it anyway). in every universe. every single one of them. this one included. she has to do it it's mandatory it's a canon event askdfnksajdfn

but yeah either way i think she keeps the Tragic (and Violent) Backstory, that's probably not widely known. i could say her family is fine, like, kai'sa is w kassadin and everything in kda lore but. i don't want to, i think she needs to be a little tragic and violent actually. at least a little bit. as a treat.

hmmmm like i said at the beginning she started dancing when she was very little (very very little. like. 5 years old or something). but with her solo career and training i think she can do everything well, including singing and acting.

strict training and management also mean there's a lot she didn't have the chance to experience as a teen. i think the group would also give her a bit more freedom that she'd greatly enjoy.

don't let the tragic backstory and seriousness and insane pressure she puts on herself fool you, she can still be silly and often will be around the people she's comfortable with. she's also very caring and very kind and very protective towards the people she loves, that doesn't change. more than a little willing to excuse their Not Good behavior though

there you have every 1shot thought i've had, all of which were developed as i wrote this akjdnksajfdn

[odeummagazine]

Roald Dahl's Matilda The Musical: A Odeum Review.

Matilda has and will always be one of my comfort stories. Growing up with the film and being a huge fan of the musical, the news of this new Matilda musical into film adaptation was incredibly exhilarating for me.

So, what can one do other than immediately buy tickets and take yourself on a little self-care date?

For those of you who do not know about the little legend that is Matilda Wormwood, let me introduce you to her: Despite the neglect from her parents, Matilda, a young girl, grows up to teach herself all the knowledge and fun that life can offer. When the only school in town sends two of their teachers over to Matilda’s house, after hearing that a neglected six-year-old hasn’t been to school once, it is Matilda’s chance to receive the education she is so desperately craving. Ms Honey promises Matilda she would even learn how to write her own stories and takes her under her wing. If only, the incredibly smart Matilda wouldn’t be a thorn in the eye of cruel headmistress Ms Trunchbull. Soon, Matilda realises that the Trunchbull is not to be trusted and her own intelligence might expand to something she never thought would be possible. With her new-found powers and the help of her classmates, Matilda leads a revolution for justice.

Now, it's been a while since I left the cinema but I still can't decide whether I am happy and proud or quite frankly a little disappointed. Matthew Warchus, who also directed the original stage adaptation of Matilda on the West End and its Broadway transfer, certainly did a great job keeping its original appeal.

This new version of Matilda feels like it combines the original 1996 film with the musical in so many different aspects. A great success in that way! On the other hand, it felt as though the attempt to strive away from the stagey feel was going too far.

For instance, the 'When I Grow Up' Sequence wouldn't need to have the children driving motorbikes and flying planes, in order to maintain its emotional value. If anything, it achieved the contrary. In my opinion, at last. 'Quiet' is another great example. However, in this case it rather felt like they were trying to oppose reality. But once again, very over the top and along with that the greenscreen and animation was very clear to see and took that illusion of dreamy reality.

They certainly tried to establish a feeling of reality and turn it into a rather immersive experience for the audience through playing with diagetic sound during the musical numbers. A great way to keep people engaged, in some moments, however, once again over the top. Hearing individual voices within the ensembles louder than others whenever the camera got closer is a great idea, but in this case felt unsuccessfully executed and rather felt like a poorly mixed song. Additionally, some of the songs were sped up which felt as though they were in a hurry to tell the story.

Despite all of these negative notes on the songs, I do have to add that it was generally astounding. Mixing the themes into the score worked incredibly well, added the needed suspense and underlined the emotional storytelling through music. 

But by no means do these negative notes affect the quality of storytelling in this film in any way. Warchus did a great job at bringing Matilda's story to screen, once again.

The partly original choreographies - mainly performed by the children - absolutely blew my mind and the talent that was shown on screen sometimes made me rethink my own success and talent in life.

For a film that heavily relies on children’s actors, this one was incredibly well cast with astounding actors and mind-blowing triple-threads. Leading this wonderful army of young performers is Alisha Weir as Matilda.

This new production also gives us a chance to engage more with side characters such as Nigel, Lavender, and Bruce. Through distinguishing them more from the rest of the class, their characters blossom and their bond to our protagonist Matilda becomes clearer - more screentime for successful character development. To mention is also the relationship between Miss Honey (Lashana Lynch) and Matilda herself - I can’t quite put my finger on what it is that made this friendship in this film so raw and real. A beautifully crafted relationship between them that simply works and warms hearts in contrast to Emma Thompson’s Miss Trunchbull, who appears even crueller and colder than in any production of Matilda before. A great way to establish greater emotional gaps between characters and story strings and astounding work by Emma Thompson herself.

One of the biggest positives, however, is the representation in this film. Sure, Matilda herself remains the smart white girl she has also been in Roald Dahl’s original books - but casting PoC for most of the characters, such as Lashana Lynch as Miss Honey and Sindhu Vee as Mrs. Phelps but also many of the Ensemble kids and adults, made me indescribably happy. Especially, seeing the reaction of kids in the audience who are people of colour themselves, warmed my heart but at the same time shows that we need more and more of this. This new version of Matilda is definitely taking the right steps.

All in all, a brilliant execution that ties two past productions together, but would have benefited from the advice of 'less is more'.

A great watch for all ages - Matilda will forever remain a timeless classic.

[sanvirtheobserver]

Taking Flight, Chapter 46: Residence Of Evil

A cacophony of crow's songs echoes above as Saturday and Ragatha arrive before the Manor.

Ragatha: Weird. This place was pretty calm the other day.

Saturday: Did you actually look inside?

Ragatha: A little bit. Didn't sense anything off back then, but now........

The stranger descends from the sky and lands behind the two, followed by Tari and Saiko. Ragatha was rather surprised to see Tari out here while Saturday was focusing on the stranger.

Saturday: Shiro. I was wondering why you were late.

Shiro: Apologies, captain. I got a little....... preoccupied. Heh...... eh.

Tari: We just had a bit of a misunderstanding.

Ragatha: So, what brings you guys here?

Saiko: Apparently Tari had a "vision" that convinced her to rocket off.

Saturday: A vision, you say.

Tari: It's a bit weird, but........ I saw something back in the Castle while meditating. There was this dark hallway and-

Clench: A FRICKING DEMON LUNGED OUT AT US! I kept telling her coming here was a bad idea but she wouldn't listen!

Tari: Yeah..... that.......

Saturday makes her way to the front door.

Saturday: We've wasted enough time with this. Let's just find out what's going-

A set of razor sharp claws lunges out at her the moment she opens the front door, narrowly missing her shoulder. She draws a lance and swiftly perforates a monstrous figure before kicking it away. It's body twitches and writhes back onto its feet, with two more creatures seen shambling out of the adjacent halls.

Saturday: Bloody hell on a pike.

Roars and gunfire echo through the cellar halls as Pomni, Uzi, and Bob flee from a pursuing horde of molded beasts. One squeezes through a hole in the wall in front of them, but is swiftly dispatched with a blast from Uzi's shotgun while Bob opens fire into the pursuing horde with his SMGs. Another drops from the ceiling and Pomni skewers it through the head with a prismatic spike as she keeps running.

Pomni: Come on, let's go!

The three finally make it to the stairs and begin their ascent. As they are running, Bob's guns give off that dreadful "click." He's out of ammo. He switches to his claw shot and fires it into the doorframe above, but a creature grabs onto his leg as he struggles to pull himself forward.

Bob: Oh balls, no! I'm too young and sexy to die!

Uzi hops onto Bob's painfully outstretched back and draws the sword from her belt.

Uzi: Hey bozo! CUT IT OUT!

One fell swing severs the creature's arm like butter. The tension of the hookshot sends the two flying, scooping up Pomni as the three rocket out of the stairway and back onto the ground floor. Ragatha hears the crash and rushes into the room to find the three all sprawled out in the hall. She hears the horde within the cellar and readies her cleavers, but the door suddenly slams shut on its own and a nearby drawer flies over landing right on the door, forming a barricade. Uzi sits there with her hand outstretched for a moment as the purple glow fades from the mark on her hand. She lets out a sigh before meeting Ragatha's gaze. Pomni gets to her feat and subsequently pukes her gut out for a moment. Ragatha immediately rushes to her aid.

Ragatha: Pomni! Are you okay?

Pomni: Eugh...... Ra......Ragatha? What are you doing here!?

Ragatha: I was wondering the same about you.

Bob: Oh my aching ovaries.

Uzi shouts in pain as a sharp sensation shoots through her fractured shoulder.

Uzi: FINLAND!!!! ........That's not good.

Pomni: Oh my god! Uzi, you're hurt!

Uzi: Yeah....... I noticed.

Ragatha: Okay, let's walk it back a bit. What are you guys even doing here?

Bob: Ask her! She's the one who knows the most about this place. Or did those forums forget to mention the pubes of Satan's asscrack in the cellar?

Uzi: Excuse me, but you're the one who decided to go venturing into the depths of hell to make a quick buck. Also, you mean to tell me that not a SINGLE alarm bell went off when that TV guy handed you those keys?

Pomni: Is now really a good time for this!?

Bob: Oh get off my balls!

Uzi: Bite me, trash man!

Bob: I would if you wouldn't taste like s***!

Uzi: Says the guy who probably hasn't showered since Jesus was in preschool!

Ragatha: ENOUGH. BOTH OF YOU.

The authority in Ragatha's voice puts a swift end to their argument. She takes a deep breath as she tries to regain her composure.

Pomni: Look. Clearly, this place isn't as safe or as abandoned as we thought, and God knows how many more of those things are creeping around. Can we please save the melodrama for later so we can get back home in one piece?

The two exchange glances for a moment. Bob let's out a sigh as he helps Uzi back to her feet. Ragatha turns to Pomni.

Pomni: I'm so sorry about this.

Ragatha: It's fine. Just make sure they get back home safe, okay?

Pomni: You got it.

And so the trio take their leave as Pomni leads them to the front door. A sense of dread still weighs upon Uzi's heart as she looks back at Ragatha. The look of concern in her eye gave it away. She saw what Uzi did.

Ragatha: Get that shoulder looked at, first. We can talk later if you want.

Saturday and Saiko are currently cleaning house in the Ballroom. One creature tries to get the jump on Saturday before getting its head smashed in with a hamner.

Saiko: I got your back, princess.

Saturday hurls a lance right over Saiko's shoulder and nails another Molded straight in the head.

Saturday: Chat later. Mission first. Keep up.

Upstairs, Tari and Shiro carve their way through another pack of Molded. One lashes at Shiro, seemingly ripping him in half before the body explodes into white smoke. The creature is then cleaved into quarters by his arm blades. Despite being made of paper, they prove to be exceptionally sharp. Tari shields herself as a bloated beast vomits a stream of acidic bile at her, the purulence sizzling as it makes contact with her barrier. She brings out her Mace and swings into the barrier, sending it flying into the beast along witn several others as they are all reduced to stains on the walls.

Shiro: Ugh, it's times like this where I'm glad I don't have a nose.

Tari covers her nose as she examines one of the carcasses. The writhing bone-riddled mass slowly turns white and rigid before crumbling at the slightest touch, leaving behind a frame of twisted bone. Tari notices something solid within the remains. Something solid. With some deliberation, she reaches inside the exposed ribcage. Spindly black roots peel away from the surrounding bone as she pulls a spherical device from the detritus. A rectangular window on its face reveals a pulsing mass within the sphere, it's faint pulse growing slower and softer until it goes still. The roots turning pale before crumbling away.

Shiro: I guess that's what makes these things tick.

She heads into the lounge where she finds the safe Bob had opened earlier. All 17 journals were still present, including the one Bob had dropped when he first met Mr. Puzzles.

Tari: Maybe these will shed a little light on this place.

It was then that a familiar voice from outside echoes throughout the Manor.

Swag: Attention all bitches!

Saturday, Ragatha, and Saiko all come outside to see a massive tank parked outside the Manor, with Chris manning the wheel and Swag shouting over the megaphone. SMG3's Airship also hung in the air above the treeline with the rest of the Anti Crew manning its guns.

SMG3: Expresso, this is Mocha. We are in position and loading our guns as we speak, over.

Chris: Roger that, Mocha. Stand by for further instructions.

Swag: This is Swagmaster6969696969 speaking! We have received word of unregistered BOWs within the area! All present personnel are advised to haul ass and vacate the area before we blow it to Hell and 3/4, over and out!

Tari: Shiro, help me with this!

She and Shiro hurriedly gather all the journals and make their way to the exit, cutting a swath into whatever stands in their way.

Chris: Commencing bombardment in three........

The crew scatters away from the mansion and take cover.

Chris: Two........

By the time Shiro and Tari reach the front courtyard, both the tank and the Airship are locked, loaded, and ready to fire.

Chris: One.........

They swiftly join the others as a massive horde of monsters spills through the front door and windows.

Chris: Weapons free.

SMG3: KIDS GONNA DIE TONIGHT.

The tank fires the first shell, ripping through the horde like tissue paper before demolishing the front foyer. A hail of artillery fire rains down upon the mansion. Heavy hwachas pepper the estate as the Autocannons perforate and eviscerate any creatures caught within their sights as the Mansion's walls come crumbling down.

Belle: HAVE SOME!

Kaizo: MOERO, BEIBĪ! MOERO!

Jub Jub: JUB JUB!

SMG3: And last but not least.

The Airship hovers above the Mansion. A hatch beneath the stern opens and we see Rob saddling one of the biggest bombs as it rolls out and drops down.

Rob: WITNESS ME!

With a thunderous crash, the bomb breaks through the roof and lands right in the Ballroom. The payload detonates, consuming the entire manner and all within it in a colossal fireball visible all the way from the Showgrounds. Meggy and Mario sit atop the roof of the castle as they watch the fireworks. She takes a swig from a bottle of rootbeer and gives Tari a call on the phone.

Meggy: Hey guys, you still alive?

Tari: Alive and well. You see the fireworks?

Meggy: Pretty sure Auri can see it.

Tari: Well, we're on our way home. Let Aybel know we got some things for him to look at when we get there.

Meggy: Will do. Stay fresh.

Mario: Can you pass me another bottle?

Meggy obliges. The two toast as the sun sets over the Mushroom cloud, with a burning Rob landing beside the two on the roof. Eh, I'm sure he'll be fine.

Rob: THAT WAS AWESTACULAR! *bleh*

[huntershowl]

WHY DO I FEEL LIKE I MIGHT not see you again, he asks, and persephone doesn't have the heart to tell him the truth: you won't. not after a point. she'll come back from this mission, sure — but how long will it be before the boss decides to pull the plug? no way in hell they'll give persephone the grace of a goodbye when it's finally time to go.

not now. they wouldn't do that in the middle of a mission. worry about it later — there are too many words left unsaid between them, too many recipes left unmade, too many questions left unasked. she has done an absolutely shit job at keeping the people she was supposed to be spying on at arm's length. this kind of exchange foreshadows the consequences of such a failure.

❝ don't worry about me. ❞ with the slightest squeeze of his hand, they let go and rest their palm atop the rippling wing of the manta ray. suguru is lucky that seph's cursed energy howls too loudly for her to notice the barely-there curses he's sent to follow them — and they're far too preoccupied with thoughts of orion to look behind them, anyway. ❝ and don't get yourself killed, special-grade. ❞

with that, she's hefting the sniper rifle over her shoulders and twisting it apart into hand cannon and baton, giving him one last look, and sprinting off toward the side of the studio with broken windows and a familiar silhouette darting across the third floor.

the path toward the two voices floating through the art studio's corridors is ... eerie. she has to step close to the walls to avoid louder footsteps in the syrupy puddles of blood cooling on the floors. they sidestep broken bodies, all human, and pick up speed as the voices escalate into shouts, audible even over her own panicked breathing — he'll kill him he'll kill him — until they're shutting the door behind them in a portrait lab and skidding to a stop.

orion is the spitting image of his twin sister. their identical genes almost make it off-putting to see both of them at once, but orion's short-cropped hair, comparative scrawniness, and the patch over his left eye differentiate him well enough. he's twisting and thrashing in the grip of a much larger young man, a veritable living mountain with a wild mane of curls held back in a bloodsoaked mohawk-ponytail. he bears down on orion with a grin that is anything but friendly. she's on him before he can even turn his head to register her presence. a whip-fast roundhouse kick directly to the front of the face, the satisfaction of his nose crunching under the force of her foot, and he's flying back against the wall with a loud crash.

❝ you idiot, ❞ they snarl, rounding on him after giving orion a quick once-over to make sure he's okay. ❝ you fucking asshole, you piece of shit — do you have any idea what you just did? ❞

hector groans, low in his throat, but he's still grinning when he finally gains the wherewithal to glance up at her. "heeeey, if it isn't our little spy. still playing house with the wizards?"

❝ sorcerers. ❞

"that's what i said."

her heel comes down on his hand. except it's not under her foot, it's around her ankle, yanking her off her feet and she's on the ground staring down the barrel of a gun. her gun. when did he take her gun? "i'll admit," he says, his voice as joyful and carefree as ever, "didn't mean to get into it with ori. he's just soooo fuckin' annoying. ah —" the gun clicks as soon as persephone tries to jolt forward. she growls at him, furious and inhuman. then: ❝ what the fuck was your goal here? what were your orders? ❞

"oh! i carried 'em out already. man was debt-skipping the tower, man liked drawing, man hid in silly little art class, which —" his laugh emphasizes the inhale, a sort of sucking-in sound that calls to mind a mocking teenager — "turns out to be a cover op for his little baby drug business! ori likes art, so i took him along! then everyone else decided to be a hero and. well. look where that got 'em." he kicks at a dead man's head, grinning as it flops to the side with a wet thunk.

so it was hector's assignment that called the curses here. fucking fantastic.

seph has stopped trying to escape by now, so hector drops the gun at her side — though he keeps his foot on their chest, presses down and presses down until something cracks, but persephone doesn't make a move against him because she's too busy having a silent conversation with orion. get out. what about you? i'll be fine. go out the back. i'm not leaving — go before he turns around, idiot. all facial expressions, gestures, half-noticed by hector but not important enough for him to turn his focus away from crushing persephone's ribs.

to their credit, they hold it together, even though they can't fucking breathe and their chest groans with sharp pops of pain. only when orion has ghosted out of the room do they point the gun directly at his crotch. ❝ off, ❞ she rasps, ❝ or you lose your balls. ❞ hector respects strength over all else: he fights for fun, causes harm just to see how you'll react, and he doesn't back down until you make him back down.

thankfully, the threat is enough to send him skipping back with a crowing laugh. "don't threaten me with a good time—"

❝ shut up. ❞

there's a distant boom from the other wing of the building and she snaps to attention, but hector commands it before she can think too hard about what's going on with suguru and the curse. "hey, when are you done there?" hector asks. "i mean, you're not actually there for wizard school. you're a spy, pup. you don't actually think you can wear a cute little uniform and make cute little friends and think you're free, yeah?"

it's so sudden and direct that it has her staring at him, completely speechless. where the hell is this coming from?

as if reading her mind, hector's eyebrows shoot up. "aww... you've been thinking about it, huh? gonna miss your wittle fwiends? grow up, seph. we belong to the unseen, remember? or have you forgotten? if you want, i can kill him to remind you—"

the bullet sinks into the corded muscle at his shoulder. hector yelps, stumbles back, gives her a mock-offended look with a hand clutching the seeping wound. "persephone! you're so rude—"

❝ touch him and you die. i don't care how much it adds to my debt. you die. got it? ❞

a long, razor-sharp silence.

"fine." he sighs, licks the blood off of one finger. "better go! sage is waiting for me, and i'm fuuucking starving."

even when his hulking footsteps have long faded from the edges of her hearing range, persephone stands in the classroom and stares down at the broken bodies around her. every strangled breath aches like holy hell. outside the window where she bid it to stay, the manta ray curse flutters, wings rippling as calm as waves under a still sky.

phone pressed to her ear as she leans against the wall, seph waits for geto to pick up — she considered texting him, but that'd fuck his attention up if he's still fighting.

no greeting, voice a little strained: ❝ done here. what's your status? need backup? ❞

despite the severity of the situation, despite the desperate need to get in there, exorcise the curse, get out-

he couldn't help but pause, standing still when he really should have been running.

but something about their plea to him, their promise of information later, it wasn't sitting right with him. nothing about this was right. but what else could he do.

his teeth clenched tight, not missing her's doing the same.

"seph- why do i feel like i might not see you again if i let you face them alone?" because that's exactly what it felt like to him. like this was a goodbye, and that terrified him.

something churned in his stomach, worse than even the most disgusting of curses swallowed, and he considered his options. he could force them to stay by his side, or force them to let him join. either of these options felt liked they'd end badly, but then again, so did the option of just letting her go alone.

making up his mind, he raised his free hand, a portal opening. from it, his manta ray curse flew out, hovering by persephone's side.

"take it with you. use it to get out quickly if need be. i'll send rainbow dragon around the building as well; people can climb out the windows onto it. that should be sufficient for evacuations."

he paused, though, his hand not pulling from hers. the amplified cursed energy continued to thrum through him, making his skin tingle. he focused on that, reassuring himself that they'd be okay alone.

and he hoped she hadn't noticed the surveillance curses he'd summoned too, planning on keeping them a ways behind her, hoping to figure out what she wasn't telling him.

[balladeerssong]

;; ｏｕｒ ｎｅｗ ｆａｍｉｌｙ

ｍｅｍｂｅｒ ;;

ᵍᵉⁿˢʰⁱⁿ ᶜʰᵃʳᵃᶜᵗᵉʳˢ' ʳᵉᵃᶜᵗⁱᵒⁿ ᵗᵒ ʸᵒᵘ ᵇʳⁱⁿᵍⁱⁿᵍ ʰᵒᵐᵉ ᵃ ˢᵗʳᵃʸ ᵃⁿⁱᵐᵃˡ!

ʷᵃʳⁿⁱⁿᵍˢ: ---

ᶜʰᵃʳᵃᶜᵗᵉʳˢ ⁱⁿᶜˡᵘᵈᵉᵈ: ᴰⁱˡᵘᶜ, ᴴᵘ ᵀᵃᵒ, ˢᶜᵃʳᵃᵐᵒᵘᶜʰᵉ, ˣⁱᵃᵒ

𝔻𝕚𝕝𝕦𝕔 - 🐶

He would be uh.. surprised? I mean who wouldn't be when their partner enters their house with a dirty puppy in hand?

Don't misunderstand, he wouldn't have a problem with it! He just lacks the instinct to rush over and take care of it. If you need help with bathing it, he would be there for you of course. Adeline is already notified to get some food suitable for such a young animal.

Once the dog is all clean and fed, it's time to make the enviroment comfortable for him too. A soft blanket for him to sleep on and maybe some toys he can play with! Diluc would never admit, but he grew fond of your new buddy rather quickly. You can tell by how much he cares for his comfort - be it the top quality dog food he ordered, the whole box of toys for him to enjoy, or just genuinely the way he looks at the fella. The bond between them is already showing.

After a few weeks he might even let him sleep on the bed with you. If the puppy is calm and isn't messy, it might turn into an everyday thing.

ℍ𝕦 𝕋𝕒𝕠 - 🐦

OH ARCHONS WHAT DID YOU DO

She would try to bury the poor injured bird. Please do NOT leave it alone with her under ANY circumstance until that poor animal is fully recovered.. She means no harm! It's just.. an instinct!!?

I'm so sorry but you have to take care of it alone. No matter how much you love Hu Tao, you just can't trust her with these things. Sure, she can accompany you to Bubu Pharmacy while you purchase some medicine and herbs to heal the bird, but the responsibility of actually taking care of it falls into your hands alone. Trust me, it's for the best.

Once the bird recovers, it would only take them a few days to become absolute best buddies. Your original plan was to let it go after it was healthy and able to fly, but no. The bird will not leave no matter what you do.

You now have a bird living on your balcony. Hu Tao named it Fanhui (返回 - meaning 'return' in chinese)! It's just so thankful for your help and love that it refuses to leave, which is cute! And Hu Tao loves it too!!

𝕊𝕔𝕒𝕣𝕒𝕞𝕠𝕦𝕔𝕙𝕖 - 🦝

Do not let him see it. I am not kidding. Do NOT let him see it.

If he happens to notice it.. archons please protect that poor animal. He will call it all sorts of names, such as 'stinky', 'useless', 'ugly'.. if that raccoon would know human language she would be crying in shame.

Please protect her from him. Don't trust him with any business regarding her. Not even buying stuff for her. In the first few weeks he would do ANYTHING to ruin her life.

Listen, at some point you just have to sit him down, look deep in his eyes and lecture him about the animal you brought home. She's not a pest, she's injured and needs help, she also has feelings. If he won't stop being grumpy about it, take away his kiss and cuddle privileges until he stops (it will work 100%, don't worry).

Congratulations, you can now trust him to buy food for her. He still calls her names sometimes, but it's not that bad anymore. Sometimes, on rare occasions, you can even catch him call her by the name you gave her. How adorable.

𝕏𝕚𝕒𝕠 - 🐱

In a nutshell: acts like he doesn't care, secretly adores her and pets her for hours while you sleep.

You will often notice her feasting on something when you arrive at home. You're sure she finished eating before you left, how is her bowl full again? It's not hard to figure the culprit out though. But please warn him not to feed her too much, you don't want that cat to roll around the house like a ball.

More often than not, he takes her to Wangshu Inn with him. He sits her down next to him to watch the sunset. So cute.

Don't worry he isn't forgetting about you either! He just treats her like his child, and of course, you as the other parent! You definitely have bracelets that match with the cat's collar, nobody can ever change my mind.

Overall, despite his efforts to hide it at first, he treats her like family. No, he treats the two of you like family<3