#(I do have a lot of emotions about the various flying creatures outside and inside my home. Insects and pidgeons and bats)

[bowithoutadaemon]

Just did my uni homework. Read a text and then fill out an emotion-diary.

And... like if I hadn't triple checked it I would swear that the text and the emotion-diary have got to be from two different seminars.

I just can not get them together. Unless I was supposed to lie for every question and force an answer connected to the text. But yeah no, if the diary asks what surprised me today I will write about the pidgeon on my windowsill who didn't fly away basically before I could even visually process it was sitting there. Nope, the pidgeon kept sitting there looking inside/looking at it's reflection. And I kept standing there so still while internally freaking out about the adorable pidgeon I get to look at! It was brown and had amber eyes and before it flew away it pooped on my windowsill. And if the diary asks what I will do next I answer that I will get up and refill my water bottle because it's empty and I'm thirsty.

[zelphin124]

SeasonTale - Chapter 6

I'm not super proud of this one... and it took forever to finally sit down and write it, but I hope you enjoy! There will be a poll at the end, so look for that as well. Here we go!

Masterpost

~o0o~

School was boring now. 

Summer couldn’t bring himself to pay attention in his education. There was no joy in learning anymore. There was no joy in… well, anything. He had lost all motivation and will to keep going. 

But he wasn’t sad either. 

He was confused, mostly. After the procedure yesterday, he didn’t even enjoy throwing the ball up for himself anymore. When the kids played without him at recess, he didn’t feel sad either. 

Every bit of emotion was gone. 

Although Summer wanted to hate it… he couldn’t bring himself to. 

He twirled one of his pens in his hand, watching it fly in different directions before the bell rang. Summer had never packed his bags so fast; and he planned to get out of there as soon as he could. 

“Summer,” Summer!Alphys inquired. “Could you come here real quick?” 

“Ooh Lemon is in trouble,” some of the kids laughed as they ran outside. 

Summer couldn’t even bring himself to care about what they said. 

“Hey, you had trouble paying attention in class today. Is everything alright?” The teacher asked, sitting at her desk and motioning for Summer to follow suit. 

Summer obeyed, but he had to adjust so the sun didn’t block his vision. “Yeup,” he nodded. “Everything is just dandy.” 

Summer!Alphys glanced at the desk, her fingers fidgeting with one another. Summer could tell she was worried. 

And he envied that. 

The way he saw her emotions, and the way they wrestled within her. He wanted that again. He wanted… He…

He couldn’t figure out what he wanted. He was tired, and sleep sounded amazing. It was one of the only ways to get rid of the nightmare that he lived in, but he couldn’t care enough to go and take a nap. 

He existed. That’s all he could bring himself to do. 

“You know that friend I was telling you about? Who wanted to play catch?” His teacher spoke gently. “He’s here, if you wish to play ball.” 

“Sure, that sounds fun,” Summer shrugged, smirking and digging through his backpack. He pulled out the red ball and squished it in his hands. 

It didn’t shine like it used to. 

“Honey,” Summer!Alphys’ gaze locked with the skeleton’s. “Do you… do you have anything at home that you would wish to bring if you were gone for a long time?” 

Summer looked away and stared at the red ball in his hands. “Nah, just this red ball.” 

“Okay,” She got up, brushing off her bright yellow skirt. “He’s outside.” 

Summer bounded toward the door, carrying his only toy in his hands. He opened the door and looked around. Most of who he saw were others in the school, but he saw someone who he didn’t recgonize before. His eyes squinted at the glorious light the figure held with him. 

He was a goat monster of some sorts. His horns blended in with the magnificent crown on his head that glimmered like the stars. HIs yellow eyes were dazzling, and they bore such kindness within them. 

Summer thought his cape was dope; its sleek white fabric on the outside completely sealed the night sky inside of the cape, that radiating hundreds of stars and galaxies within it. It changed whenever the creature moved. The only way Summer could compare it to was seeing the sun and stars in the middle of space. 

The rest of his clothes were made up of the silky white fabric, with dozens of gold accessories scattered across his body. Chains connected various parts of his wear, and the two shoulder guards made his figure look broad and powerful. It was clear that he was older than most of the adults that Summer saw, but it came with a lot more wisdom. 

In his hand rested a long, shining weapon. It had three sides and a pointy thing down the middle. Summer recalled that it was a type of spear that the Asgore monster formed. As a matter of fact, he looked very much like an Asgore. 

But the skeleton couldn’t figure out what season he was from. 

“Hello young one,” his voice roared like a thousand lions, but was as gentle as the morning breeze. “You must be Summer Sans?” 

Summer nodded, his attention fully focused on the monster before him. 

“My name is Solstice,” he smiled, giving a soft bow. “Do you want to play catch?” 

The kid nodded some more, looking at the red ball and tossing it toward Solstice. 

Summer watched as Solstice’s eyes gleamed with delight as he caught the ball. The goat tossed it from hand to hand before tossing it back towards him. 

Summer faked a smile as he barely caught the ball. He’d never have a ball tossed back to him, so the angle he usually caught the ball didn’t help him. 

“Oh, I did not mean to throw it so hard,” Solstice sighed as he approached the half-fallen over child. “Here, mind if I take your hands?” 

“You’re… you’re not going to hurt me, right?” 

“Of course not,” Solstice shook his head before looking up at Alphys, who had come out of the building to watch. Summer watched as they communicated with no words, but he couldn’t figure out what they were saying. 

For the next hour, Solstice took the time to teach Summer how to catch and throw the ball better and more efficiently. Summer listened to every word and felt a glimmer of hope, despite is apathetic state. They tossed the ball back and forth; the only time they stopped was when Summer accidentally threw the ball into the twisted trees, which Solstice didn’t hesitate to get it out. They rotated a couple of times to keep playing in the shade, as the sun was unbearable in the afternoon. 

While they played, Summer finally had enough time to notice the large ocean not far from his school. He caught the ball and pointed towards it. “What’s that?” 

“That is the Tidal Sea, my boy,” Solstice smiled. “It contains beautiful waters and coves for miles under its surface. No one knows what’s on the other side.” 

“Can we go there?” Summer asked, curious. 

“Perhaps we could-” Solstice paused as Alphys motioned toward him. He sighed, kneeling down. His gaze had changed, and it unsettled Summer. 

Why did his mood change? Did I do something wrong? Summer began to worry. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to upset you I’ll do better-” 

“Buddy, hey, hey,” Solstice smiled at him. “You did nothing wrong, I’m just really concerned for you.” Solstice took his hand and tilted Summer’s face to observe it. “Did Summer!Gaster do this to you?” 

“Y-Yeah,” Summer shuddered, remembering how it was done. “But it’s fine, I don’t want to talk about it-” 

“It’s clear you don’t want this to happen again to you, huh?” 

Summer stared at Solstice. How- How did he know? He thought, shaking his head in response. He would do anything to get away from his dad at this point. He remembered that he cared for his dad…

But that feeling wasn’t there anymore, just like the rest of them. All he wanted to do was avoid physical pain, but he couldn’t find the will to run away again. 

“I’m with the rebellion,” Solstice informed. “I save many people like you from your dad and others who are cruel like him. If you allow me to, I’ll make sure you’ll never have to go through an experiment like that again.” 

“What do you mean?” 

“There’s a place in the mountains that we hold as refuge, we hide there so we can plan our next action of justice, and restore the kingdoms to their former glory.” Solstice explained. “Life doesn’t have to be like this.” 

The sun started shining on Summer’s face, warming his bones. “That’s a lot of big words,” Summer smirked, thinking for a bit. Life doesn’t… it doesn’t have to be this way? 

“You will learn them all in due time,” Solstice reassured. “I plan to teach you a lot of things.” 

“We don’t have much time,” Alphys ran out from the school. “He’s coming, you must decide quickly.” 

Solstice locked eyes with the boy again. “This might be the only time I get to speak with you. I wish to help you. Come with me and I’ll keep you safe. If you don’t like it, you can come back. Help us restore SeasonTale to justice.” 

Summer could hear traces of his father’s footsteps. He recgonized them anywhere, for whenever he was near, bad things happened. He looked worriedly at the school door before grabbing onto Solstice’s sleeve. 

“Please,” he begged. “I don’t want to be in another experiment.” 

“Say no more, my boy,” Solstice hoisted Summer up on his back. “Hold on, we are going to get you out of here.” 

“He’ll look for me,” Summer shivered as Solstice booked it into the forest, the sun becoming brighter and brighter as they went. 

“Don’t worry, he- he won’t find us-” Solstice gasped between breaths. 

“Where can we go that he won’t?” 

There was a moment of interrupted silence before Solstice answered. He paused once he reached the ocean shore, whistling into the sky. He turned around and pointed inland. “You see those mountains way over there?”

Summer’s eyes widened, seeing the mountains he saw in his dreams. One covered with white shades and clouds that covered the sun. “Yeah?” 

The skeleton’s eyes widened even more when he saw a huge creature land from the sky, folding its wings in and snorting out a cloud of smoke. It’s head was similar to a gaster blaster, and his wings and structure were all bone, expect for the inside of its wings and belly, which shined like the night sky. 

“Is that a dragon?!” Summer gasped, bewildered that the creatures even existed. 

“Yes, and you can pet him later,” Solstice walked toward the dragon and hoisted himself onto it. “Those mountains, we will be going there.” 

Summer was too distracted by the dragon to pay attention, but one thing he did know, was that this was far more exciting than anything his dad did with him. 

As the dragon took off into the air, Summer gasped and held tight onto the dragon’s neck, looking down at the ground. Everything became smaller as clouds brushed against the child’s face. Summer could see the entire landscape of the known land, including all the other kingdoms he never got to see before. 

“Soon, all this land will be free from the Gaster’s hand,” Solstice explained as he steered the dragon towards the colder area of SeasonTale, up in the mountains. “And you can help rule it all.” 

“Really?!” Summer smiled as something jolted inside him. 

The goat smiled, sighing with relief. 

“I promise.”

~o0o~

[dream-meister-translations]

DREAM MEISTER & THE RECOLLECTED BLACK FAIRY

OUTSIDE HOLIDAY - PART 5

━

Ancyra, The Land of Pirates - Day 3.

EMMA : Wow, this place is amazing!

ELMA : Heck yeah it is! Feels like a super-duper date spot, doesn't it?

Today, Elma and I, who were working part-time at an amusement park, were exploring the park before our shifts began to get a feel for the rides and attractions. 

EMMA : I wonder where Searle is working?

ELMA : Hmm~ Come to think of it...I forgot to ask. But, if we just keep walking around the park, I'm sure we'll bump into him at some point! He does stand out like a sore thumb after all!

STELLA : If we were to hide scouts on the premises, our best option might be the restaurant—On the other hand, if we were looking to invade, we should secure the souvenir shop first.

YAMANE : Hehehe. Ah, the ride known as the Merry-Go-Round will leave a memory to be cherished forever! It is truly sublime! Spinning, spinning, memories so beautiful! Each one pointing toward a Merry Bad Ending! Ah, I'm getting emotional!

EMMA : (Those two are as lively as ever...)

ELMA : Yo! Isn't that Daste over there?

EMMA : Oh, you're right. What do you think he's doing?

SCAR : Ah, it's Emma and Elma!!

DASTE : The hell're you two doin' here? Thought you said you were working.

EMMA : Yeah, we are. Technically. We're doing some reconnaissance and enjoying the amusement park for now. 

DASTE : Are you kidding me? That doesn't count as work! Anyway, I just came to check out this joint. I'd rather be somewhere quiet, but Scar got all hyped up so I decided to let him blow off some steam.

SCAR : There might not be anyone exciting to open up, but there are plenty of things I've never seen before, so it's fun!

DASTE : What's so fun about goin' on a ride and just spinning around in circles? Seems lame to me.

EMMA : (He says that, but his eyes are watching the rides closely. It seems like he's not entirely uninterested after all.)

SCAR : Oooh! What's that over there!?

DASTE : Geez, can you shut up!?

EMMA : That's the children's area I think.

ELMA : I heard they have a panda-themed ride in there. You can control the steering wheel! 

EMMA : You sure know a lot about this place, Elma. 

ELMA : Haha! Well, this amusement park is like super famous, you know? I always thought it would be fun to come here someday when I got a girlfriend~

EMMA : Is that so? And yet you wound up coming here because of work...

ELMA : Ah, don't worry about that! It makes me so happy I got to come here with you! Though...It would be a lot better if we came here and didn't have to work, huh?

EMMA : Hehe, yeah, you're right. Let's work hard at managing the guild and maybe we will get the chance to come back one day! 

ELMA : Ugh, it's gonna suck having to leave...

STELLA : Mistress.

EMMA : What's up, Stella? Did you finish mapping the area?

STELLA : That was done long ago. I just wanted to point out that I saw Searle over there.

BOY : Hey, can you tell me about this crab next professor!?

SEARLE : Sure~ I'd love to! This crab turns bright yellow on a night with a full moon, but—

ELMA : So this is where you've been, Sa-Kun! Is this some kinda sea creature exhibit?

EMMA : Did that kid just call you professor?

SEARLE : You two are here too~! Yay~!!

ELMA : Good to see you, Sa-Kun! What job are you doing?

SEARLE : I'm...Not realy sure...They just told me to hang around near the sea creatures. I feed the fish and teach visitors various things about them.

EMMA : So you're a tour guide? 

SEARLE : I guess so! Being called professor sounds so cool and makes me smile really big! And sometimes, I take the big turtles out for a walk~! Oh! Sorry, hold on a sec!

Searle rushed toward a young girl who was standing alone looking up at a large tree inside the amusement park. 

SEARLE : Hello there~ Are you lost?

GIRL : No, I'm not lost. It's just...My balloon flew away...

ELMA : It's stuck on one of the tree branches. Uh oh, that's a tricky spot! If we try to get it by shaking the tree, it'll probably fly right up into the sky.

SEARLE : Hmmm.....Ah! I got it~ I'll get it down for you. 

GIRL : Really?

SEARLE : Yep! I have a friend who is really good at coming up with plans!

STELLA : !!!

SEARLE : Hey, Stella. I want your help getting that balloon down.

STELLA : You are challenging the law of physics. I'm not a gymnast—

SEARLE : No, no~ I just want you to form the strategy, Stella. 

STELLA : Hmph. Such a foolish boy. In that case, leave it to me. 

━

STELLA : There you have it. The balloon was successfully retrieved. First off I calculated the position of the balloon, it was approximately 30 degrees from the terrace on the second floor of the restaurant—taking your jumping ability into account, the solution was obvious. 

Thanks to Stella's plan, Searle successfully jumped from the terrace to the balloon, retrieving it and returning it to the young girl. 

GIRL : Thank you, mister!

SEARLE : Yep! It's all thanks to my friend here~

GIRL : Then I should thank your friend too!

SEARLE : Don't worry, I'll make sure to tell them! Be careful not to lose it again~

STELLA : ........

EMMA : Hehe, Stella is amazing as always. 

STELLA : It's all just a matter of refining strategies. 

ELMA : Always so modest~

STELLA : Who's being modest!

SEARLE : Stella~! Just say "thank you"~!

STELLA : Hmph. Everything went according to plan.

[lunnaya-dragon]

Rated: your emotions.

Warnings: strong deviation from the Canon/strange Viggo.

Pairings: Hiccup/Viggo.

Summary: Viggo is infected with a terrible disease, and begins to hunt his most delicious prey.Hiccup, finding out who is hunting him, tries to save him.

And also a small explanation:

word - is a plain text.

word -is a thought .

word -is the author's words.

word - is the language of a monster or monster.

HORROR AU.

Chapter 2.

"The day I was possessed by a demon".

The guards laughed softly. And how can you not laugh when your chief cackles like a sick rooster?

Viggo was laughing merrily as he watched his father lose another game of Maces and Talons.

"Son, only you can disgrace your father like this".-Ragnarok said, smiling softly at him.

"But is it my fault that you can't play?" Viggo said, still laughing.

And the ships were nearing the island "Bescheshuichetyi dragon". And as soon as their bows were firmly planted in the white sand , everyone was told to leave their cabins and go ashore.

"Well, are you ready for your first hunt?" - said Ragnarok proudly, leaning his powerful hands on his son's thin shoulders .When he heard the guard's voice from outside the door.

"You'll be proud of me , I know every weak point in these reptiles.I spent days and nights preparing for this moment, not like some people.Viggo said confidently, looking straight into the brown eyes of his best teacher , his father.He jumped out of bed and began to pack his bag .

A few minutes later, they left the cabin and went to the General meeting , where children from different tribes met. However, as soon as Viggo noticed a group of children of different ages, something made him become quiet and timid again.

In it were the heirs of other tribes and kingdoms. Their age ranged from 15-18 years .They were all dragon hunters.

After examining his new companions a little, he decided to find out more about where he was.A small village on the other side of the river caught his eye.He decided to find someone who could tell him about it.

A tall man was standing near a group of people .Approaching him, he greeted him and asked him about the village.The latter answered him thus .

"Hello, my name is Armstrong the good-Natured.As for those buildings, this is a small village, as well as a medical center.It was specially built here, because there are a lot of things in this place, graduates get seriously injured. This is where we treat them....although sometimes there were cases when children did not pass the exam, for various reasons, and came here to send a letter to their homeland to be taken away.To be honest, boy, I'm against such survival .You're too young to hunt such beasts, not like those big foreheads over there! So let's agree on this, I really feel sorry for you, you can come to me if you want ,my house is that building with a carved wooden horse head. If you ask me why you have such a privilege, I will answer right now , because you are the only 7-year-old child , around you there are already healthy deer that are about to turn twenty.That's why.Now go to hunters." With that, the mustachioed man in armor walked away.

When Viggo got the answer to his question ,he said good-bye and went back .

Next to the group that had already gathered, a man in a white coat climbed onto a wooden pedestal and tapped on a silver disk.This attracted the attention of everyone standing around.

"Dear Sirs, ladies and their children, today we have gathered for a reason, today is the very day when our children must prove themselves for the future of your tribes and kingdoms. They will have to: survive for 3 months, on their own, develop a sense of courage, ruthlessness, coolness and fearlessness. Be able to calculate their every step , because it depends on how they will lead their people. But their most important goal is to defeat the Bescheshuychetogo dragon, one of the most terrible creatures on this island.I wish you good luck. " - with these words, the elder descended from the pedestal and walked away.

Viggo was alarmed by this statement, because he had never met or remembered this class of dragons before .As a result, all confidence in victory collapsed . And he even wondered how Riker had handled it all and brought home a bunch of little dead dragons.

He did not have time to think about all this , because his father's hand clearly made it clear that it was time to say goodbye , and perhaps forever , because no one is immune from their own death.

He let him go , his eyes sad and full of fear .

An hour later, he was standing alone on the beach. Unnoticed, the others had already gone hunting.

"pull yourself together ,everything will work out for you." With this thought in mind, Viggo pulled out a book and a coal from his bag, and quickly began to write a plan of action. After all, you need to have time to do everything before sunset, otherwise you won't be able to say Hello to him later.The plan was this :

1) Find suitable shelter, both from the weather and from predators.

2) Find a source of fresh water , and it is better to find shelter there.

3) Take care of the availability of food.

4) to Prepare a sleeping place.

5) Prepare items for tomorrow's hunt.

Having written the plan, he began to carry out the first point. And putting the items back in the bag, quickly ran into the woods.

It's been a few hours or more, but he still finds what he thinks is the perfect place to hide.

Coming out of the thorny bushes, he sees a waterfall and a small river, a source of fresh water .And behind the waterfall is a hidden cave.Viggo cautiously walks up to the entrance ,narrow enough that it does not fit Gronckle, and looks around.There is nothing inside except one spacious room . And most importantly, it is not inhabited by anyone! Today, luck is on his side. He quickly found a corner to sleep in and began sorting through his bag of things .Taking a couple of pitchers with him, he left the cave, ran to the river and filled them to the top with clean water and returned to put on the floor.

"All that's left is to find some food.Sticks, stones, and leaves for a fire ,and reeds for a primitive bed."

Viggo crawled out of the cave again and searched for branches, leaves, and rocks.After about half an hour, all the necessary items lay in the middle of the cave stacked in the form of a fire.It was also good that the island is located in the South and at night it was not cold, and during the day it was warm enough.

The second race in the forest was to the pond with water lilies and frogs ,which was located near the shelter. This place could be found by following the direction of the river. So it was almost impossible to get lost. Water lilies are not reeds , but they will also pass for a bed .When he returned, he left them to dry in the sun.

The third time he decided to go fishing, in the same pond. The catch was small , but it was enough to satisfy a seven-year-old boy.

It was already evening , and the water lilies were dry .Putting the fish on them, he took their vruki and dragged them into the cave. The leaves of the water lilies were not put in the most comfortable, but still the bed. A leather bag served as a pillow. The fish was still in the bowl . When he got to the fire, he quickly lit it, after all, he was training.

While the fire was burning, he began to prepare the fish for cooking . After a few minutes, the fish is already fried on the fire .Dinner will be ready soon .In the meantime, making a curtain out of a small, thick, leather towel, he closed the passage to the cave .

After dinner, he went to bed .

Somewhere around 01: 00 or 02: 00.

He often woke up to something like crying, which gets worse every time.Viggo was very scared, but he gathered his will and decided to check who was making this cry.With the help of the still-burning fire, he made himself a torch. He left the cave and went to the source of the sound.

The crying increases, and turns into someone's painful and heart-rending moans.With each step, the forest around them only grew darker.Trees took on the appearance of strange monsters .The sky was turning a deep purple, and the stars were not visible because of the dark red clouds. The air around them smelled of dead things, and there was a sound of someone slurping.Suddenly Viggo's whole body is paralyzed, and he sees a body behind the bushes.Of the fear he hides behind the rubble and looking at a terrible picture.

Before him was a bald, disfigured, and huge dragon.From the smiling mouth of which the flesh descended in bloody streams. He recognized the prey of this monster , it was a teenager whom he met on the beach in the morning.But it's not the gnawed teenager that's more terrifying, it's the dragon .It seemed to him that it was the birth of nibelheim .It resembled a Deadly Nadder, but without scales or a disfigured appearance.Its head was covered with countless curved horns.The monster had no eyes.The wings looked like broken arms with very long fingers. On its tail instead of spikes sticking out sharp as a needle bones .The paws were much more massive, with long, razor-sharp claws .His skin color was beige like a human's, but there were veins and arteries in places .It began to smile even harder, spreading its toothy and blood-stained smile all the way to its ears.And she laughed merrily as the man said something in his own language, but Viggo didn't understand a single word .

"-×%^*?,;&:))08¥¥" .

Thank Thor, the monster was sated and soared into the sky, flying away.

Viggo, in a fit of shock and hysteria, ran back to the cave, his heels flashing .He couldn't even squeak, thinking that this creature would want to eat him ,too . He didn't want to pass this test. He was smart, and remembered that his main prey is nibelheim dragon , as they are called.

This monster was described in legends as a carrier of the worst disease , "Lekantinism".If a person managed to survive (although this word is figurative) after his attack, then he will live in agony, every night reincarnating in Lekantra.But no one knows what really happened to the man and the dragon.

This is unfortunately what our hero will have to learn.

When he reached the cave ,he threw the torch into the water and hid inside . He became hysterical. Falling on the stone floor, he began to cry loudly and call for help. But alas, no one will come to him .After a few minutes, he calmed down a little and Remembered Armstrong's words . He quickly pulled his bag towards him to get a book and a coal.

Viggo began writing a letter to his father asking him to take it back.And in addition, he could barely describe what happened to him now. After that, he put aside all the items and decided to wait for the beautiful sun.

As soon as it was morning, the birds began to sing their morning songs. Our hero was already running to Armstrong's house. He couldn't lie down to rest.

When he reached the house, he quickly knocked on the door,and then recoiled from it ,turning red as a tomato .Because he didn't expect Armstrong to come out of it just waking up in his underwear. After a few moments, he realized that he was standing in front of the child not in the best clothes and posture.The man allowed the child to enter the house , and he began to dress, ashamed.

After the morning nonsense.They sat down at the table to eat Breakfast , but only Armstrong, Viggo after yesterday ,him appetite Packed up and left him.

The man noticed the red streaks on the boy's face and decided to ask him what was wrong and why he was crying.

"Viggo, first of all, I'm sorry about this morning's concert.I am ashamed of this , I did not expect that someone would come to visit me in the morning."

" nothing ."it was very quiet.

"And one more thing, why were you crying?"

With this question, Viggo's face turned pale, and other than the strange combinations of sounds, he could not utter anything else.

"Don't be afraid, I'll have it all ,honestly."

"P ... just me ..I strongly this b..Bo..I'm afraid."

"What are you afraid of?"

" Dragon's "

"Hmm, I told you that you can't hunt them, fool, stop being afraid they are just animals , and they follow their instincts."

"-×%^*?,;&:))08¥ ¥ " Viggo said.

"Uh , sorry about what?"

"So the dragon said."

"Uh , Viggo ,dragons can't talk."

"No! HE WAS TALKING, AND I HEARD IT !"

"Hey, what are you doing, calm down , everything's fine "

"THERE'S NOTHING GOOD,I SAW A BALD AND DISFIGURED DRAGON WITH A SMILE ON HIS FACE DEVOUR A PERSON, A PERSON, AND THEN SAID THIS PHRASE AND FLEW AWAY!!!"

"Stop, wait, calm down first, just breathe in and out .Now, you said you saw a bald dragon eating a human?"

"Yes, I was very scared of him and hid in a cave.I wanted to give you the letter , to be honest, so that you could send it to my father.I don't want to stay here anymore.I'm afraid it might come back and want to eat me."

With that, Viggo began to cry again, and then opened his bag, took out the letter, and put it on the table.The man, clearly discouraged by such statements of the boy, took the letter and got up from the table.

"Viggo I'll be back soon, but in the meantime, you wait , and better lie down and sleep on my bed , you're tired.I'll send an email and come back."

Armstrong left the house and went to the post office.Viggo obeyed, found his room and bed, and lay down to take a NAP. Soon he fell asleep.

--------------------

"!!!@@&*((¥@))₽₽₽#&&,'/_€÷¥"

Said the Monstrous Nightmare, following in Viggo's Wake. And in a few moments Viggo was in the clutches of his monster.

" (÷):^^;))-#$"

" What,......what do you want from me?!"

":)))^*^)"

And with that, Viggo is completely in its toothy mouth.He tries hard to resist, but his hands slide over his tongue .As a result, the creature tries to swallow it whole.Turning his feet to the throat, he rests them against the monster's tonsils, and his hands cling to the fangs, screaming and begging for help. Eventually, his feet slip off his tonsils, and Viggo ends up in his throat .After a few moments, he opens his eyes to see around him a black, glowing and transparent liquid-gastric juice .

"Well, that's it, my end has come, and my father will never know or find me "

" :))))!!"

But when the pain starts, something grabs him and shakes him like a rag.

------------------------

Viggo wakes up wide-eyed, choking on her own tears.Armstrong stared at him in horror, his blue eyes showing only fear.

"Uncle Armstrong, don't worry, I often have nightmares ."

"Nightmares! Yes, you literally ran around my ceiling and growled incomprehensible phrases, rushed at me, tried to strangle and bite me.I will continue to list your antics, so-called nightmares!"

"I ... I was sleeping, and the dragon was trying to strangle me and eat me."

"Well, I don't know about the dragon, but before you go to bed, warn me, at least I'll tie you to the bed or something.""

"Please forgive me, I really didn't see anything"

"Okay, forget it.By the way, your father will be here in a few days , but in the meantime, will you stay with me well?"

"Well "

With these words, they decided to remove the mayhem of the unfortunate room.After cleaning, we went down to lunch.

In the meantime, they're having lunch. Perform different work within 2 days. Viggo no longer had such nightmares.But here comes the very moment when our hero is possessed by night horror.Day 10: 00.

Viggo picks berries for a cake in the woods .When suddenly his attention is attracted,crows gathered in a black cloud and flew away.Then he sees one tree after another break and fall on its side.And what breaks them rushes straight in his direction .Viggo is terrified and, throwing the basket, he begins to run towards the settlement.But before he reaches half the way, right before his eyes POPs up his dragon from nightmares, a giant bald and terrible Monstrous Nightmare. Its head resembled a deer's skin-covered skull, with huge curved horns .Empty and humanized eyes . .Bones sticking out of his back.Throbbing veins completed the picture.It's like a nightmare . It does not hesitate for a moment to attack Viggo.In shock, he took the hit .The claws cut through the flesh of his chest and neck, leaving huge cuts.Blood spurted from their necks.Viggo screamed at the top of his lungs .And the monster did not calm down , it began to tear his stomach and chest with its teeth, releasing black drool . But there was a whoosh of an arrow ,and Viggo fell from the monster's mouth .And it itself died, falling to the ground .The arrow went through him the skull.All Viggo could see before he lost consciousness was the terrified faces of the young hunters and Armstrong.

Our hero is not dead now he is in the infirmary. In the meantime, others are looking at the monster they shot recently. The worst thing is that with exactly the same cuts, but from other bezcheshuichetyh dragons, arrived from different parts of at least 4 people. And they were all in their bunks.

In the evening, the parents of the injured and surviving children arrived on the island.

Ragnarok raced to the room where Viggo lay ,Riker barely able to keep up with him.As soon as they were in the right room, Ragnarok ran to his son and took his hand.

"Son, if you can hear me, please answer me...."

But there was no answer.Soon Viggo's hand became cold and limp ,a sign of death.Riker and his father burst into tears .Too big a loss for them.Ragnarok wanted to take his son to Valhala that night.

Night.Everyone gathered near the common grave .The dead 5 children were put in one boat .And let the waves. But as soon as the moon peeked out from behind the clouds, something happened that threw everyone into horror.There were groans from the ship, then screams, and then growls .After a few moments, the ship began to sink into the water .And sank.A black ball with a red glowing dots began to approach the shore.Some began to hide behind the cobblestones, while others drew their bows and prepared arrows. Parents unsheathed their swords. And the tangle was getting closer and closer. Suddenly one of the creatures from the tangle climbed up on the reef.This creature was no longer a child, this huge winged creature with a piercing cry that leaped into the air and landed near its mother.The mother was horrified to see her child like this .But instead of showing my mom that everything is fine, I'm here, I'm alive, I just changed a little. He pounced on her ,then tore her throat out ,grabbed her, and like a featherless bird flew away with her dying mother.

On the second and third, they did not stand on ceremony and immediately got arrows in their temples.Kill them .The fourth, like the first, flew away.The fifth was Viggo.He turned into a disfigured dog.

But unlike the first one, he did not attack ,but ran away into the woods.

In the morning, everyone sailed home with terrible grief, and village the people down with them.

[kogo-dogo]

i like your skyrim stuff and i wanna know more about the funky little dudes you posted in those “sentences” lol. instead of asking for more snips

You have made a mistake. Prepare for an essay.

But, joking aside, they’re Morrowind characters. I do like Skyrim, but Morrowind is my favorite game of all time and the entire reason I got into the TES fandom years ago. I don’t talk about it much on here because everyone is here for Half-Life and HRV, but... you know what? I’mma take this opportunity. To yell.

About The Guys(tm).

So, basically, in my Personal Canon, I don’t just have a Nerevarine (i.e. Protagonist) character. I have an entire crew of people who help him get through things because it just seems... more realistic for my Extremely Flawed and Terrible Nerevarine. Also, I just had a lot of characters conjured up as a teenager and it was fun to evolve it over time so they’re all friends.

They are, as follows:

- Jo’Karsa (a.k.a. “Karsaga”). Battlemage born under the Atronach. Afflicted with Wombburn. Also the Nerevarine. He’s an abnormally large Cathay-raht who has had an unusual upbringing. He was originally an orphan plucked off the streets in Corinthe and trafficked to Morrowind where he was sold as a slave. As fate would have it, a houseman under his owner took a shine to him and stole him away when they fled to Cyrodiil to avoid political assassination. Karsaga has been raised Telvanni in Imperial territory so, despite being a mighty brute of a Khajiit, he has an extreme affinity for magic and an equally extreme disconnect from his Khajiiti roots.

He speaks like a Dunmer, carries himself like a Dunmer, and has very Telvanni sensibilities. He also has an extensive criminal record from his time spent as a bandit outside of Cheydinhal, and that is eventually how he ends up on the prison boat that sends him to Morrowind. He has a bunch of aliases and an unhealthy penchant for drink and smoke. Not a fan of skooma, though. As gruff and sarcastic as he is, he has a very silver tongue and a way of winning people over and talking himself out of trouble.

Also, “youth born under a certain sign?” Nah, this bitch is 34. And smells like a wet dog.

- Dasrazel. Altmer Nightblade and Quarra vampire. He contracted his vampiric curse while trying to save his lover from the clutches of an undead menace during the Second Era, after a life working various quasilegal oddjobs that brought shame on his noble family. In life, he was a likeable but lowkey individual, and in undeath he’s still very lowkey... but perhaps not as likeable. He has to take a low dose of a calming potion to keep the inherent, violent bloodlust of his Quarra curse at bay, and it does a lot to deaden his emotions. Combine that with hundreds of years to learn how to not give a fuck, and you have a very blunt, stoic, matter-of-fact creature who only very occasionally makes quips and usually just wants to be left alone.

He is Karsaga’s closest ally, right hand man, and platonic soulmate. They met after Karsaga robbed him blind at a bar (thinking him to just be some weird, frail elf), and Dasrazel took pity on him after Karsaga ran him through with an iron saber and panicked when it... did nothing. Their bond is one of a mutual distaste for most people and Dasrazel’s desire to have companionship again.

They’re very much bros, even if Dasrazel spends most of his time not understanding why Karsaga is the way he is.

-  Neira Brenur. Dunmer Witchhunter and low-ranking member of House Redoran. She’s the daughter of a Camonna Tong member and an Ashlander woman, though her mother is dead and she spends a lot of time trying to distance herself from her racist father. She joined Redoran in hopes of atoning for the crime of just being born into a bad family, but has a really difficult time fitting in. She’s very meek and empathetic and does better in controlled duels than actual combat. The idea of actually hurting an opponent makes her sick to her stomach.

She kind of just happened to Karsaga one day, courtesy of him running afoul of her not-so-popular friend, Vandrith (we’ll get to that trainwreck later). She mainly acts as a translator for Vandrith and tries to play mediator when Karsaga starts getting too aggressive with others. She’s in good with some odd folks in Redoran and a very aggressive supporter of the Tribunal Temple, which makes it hard for her to wrap her mind around Karsaga’s existence as the Nerevarine.

Also, the fact she’s an absolute pushover means she just accepts the less-than-savory people Karsaga pals around with. She’s got a big heart and feels actual pity for his blasphemous, undead, and criminal friends. They’re good people on the inside (probably).

- Vandrith Valen. Dunmer Ordinator and conglomeration of a lot of factors coming together in the worst way possible. He is naturally “blessed by Azura” and has some degree of prophetic power, though he’s choked it down after a life of being raised Indoril. He also came to the unfortunate realization after being stationed on Vvardenfell, that he is also a descendant of House Dagoth and is haunted by the Poison Song, a “song” sent out by Dagoth Ur that warps the minds of those who are of his blood and turns them into Sleepers and Dreamers.

These two traits do not mesh well and make Vandrith more than a little unstable.

Vandrith is... prone to erratic behavior and violent outbursts and is largely under the care of his paternal uncle, Tuls Valen, the head priest of the Ald’ruhn Temple. Vandrith is also a clever and tricky bastard who has been trying to figure out how to discern Dagoth Ur’s plans from the Poison Song in order to prevent bad things from happening. Usually, he can keep things under control, but extremely bad visions, close proximity to items/places corrupted by House Dagoth, and stress can cause him to be difficult.

Beyond this, though, he’s not what you’d expect from an Ordinator. He’s very witty with a somewhat bawdy sense of humor, a very devil-may-care attitude, and he’s a huge fan of causing mischief. He forced his way into Karsaga’s social circle due to his absolute certainty that Karsaga could bring down Dagoth Ur, and Neira is his closest (and for a long time only) friend, who has figured out what all of his weird ramblings mean.

- Bashinga. Sorceress and Aundae vampire. She is an old acquaintance of Dasrazel’s who has ties to Telvanni, the Mage’s Guild, and several circles of warlocks and witches. She’s very much a self-serving sort, more interested in the acquisition of power than the wellbeing of Morrowind, but she is fiercely protective of the people she deems worthy (and she has a soft spot for Neira she can’t really explain).

Once upon a time, she was a dancer and performer with a traveling circus, and her fall into undeath and wizardry was a happy accident after being taken as cattle by rogue Aundae. She’s got a good set of vocal cords and can move with grace and ease, but she speaks very bitterly a lot of the time and is difficult to get along with.

She’s one of those people who Karsaga immediately took a shine to because they both like to sit around and bitch about people. Dasrazel and Bashinga mostly get along by the time-honored tradition of “two very gay individuals being catty at each other as a sign of affection, though outsiders would think they hate one another.”

- Jai Swift-Fly. Cathay assassin and member of the Morag Tong. She was born and raised in Elsweyr in a more tribal environment, and is an old friend of Vandrith’s (odd, considering they met because she took a grey writ to knock him off and, instead, he knocked her out). She mostly comes into the fold because Karsaga needed somebody to break into the Ministry of Truth to free Mehra Milo, and she came highly recommended (by Vandrith; Vandrith recommended her). 

She’s a married mother of two, is big and strong and very proud of being big and strong, and a crack shot with a bow. She’s also deaf as hell and communicates through a series of homebrew gestures. Her decision to stick around and help Karsaga after completing the job she was hired to do stems primarily from her extreme curiosity. She has no stake in the Nerevarine Prophecy or this group of losers, but by god does she want to see what it looks like when a god dies.

Fun fact: Jai is dead by the events of Skyrim, but two of her descendants remain. Shevah and J’Rakka. They’re a brother-and-sister duo. Shevah is as much of a curious, troublemaking adventurer as her so-many-greats grandmother. J’Rakka is a werewolf who mostly hunts bounties to make a living.

- Dravyn Telvayn (no picture of him, sorry D:). Dunmer assassin and member of the Morag Tong. Former highwayman and current Berne vampire. Husband of Jai and perpetually confused, mainly over the fact he has kids with Jai and... well, every book he’s read has indicated that that should be impossible for a variety of reasons. He lives in the sewers of the Arena canton in Vivec City and is allowed work in the Morag Tong due to his efficacy at eliminating very high risk targets, though he’s basically “on his own” if he ever gets caught. They’re sure as fuck not giving him writs of execution to present to guards when the Tong could end up fucked over if their relationship with a vampire gets out.

He’s mostly in the background and tags along due to his extreme dedication to Jai. He doesn’t get along with hardly anyone but her, though he is the one who coined the term “Council of Accidents” in relation to him, Dasrazel, and Bashinga. He feels a loose kinship with them in that they’re all members of different vampire clans, but all members whose sires want nothing to do with them, rendering them outcasts. Even after the events of Morrowind, he keeps in infrequent contact with the others. 

After Jai’s death, he acts as a weird “ancestral guardian” to his own descendants. As of the time of Skyrim, he spends most of his time trying to keep Shevah from getting killed. He is very tired. She is a lot.

[signalterminated]

Altered Item S-96 (Control/TMA crossover)

a while ago when i was playing Control i wrote up a little crossover fic for fun. a week or 2 later i found out jonny was streaming control on twitch which was one hell of a coincidence. i figured i might as well post this here in case anyone else finds the concept interesting or fun to play around with.

------------------------------------------------------------

ALTERED ITEM S-96

Description: 

A black and white children's book titled A Guest for Mr. Spider. Story details a cartoonish spider greeting flies as "guests" to his house. There are two doors on each side of the house but no furniture save for a single table with withered bluebells. Each fly has a moniker as a name that refers to their individual species.

Setup for the story is cyclical: one page introduces a fly offering a gift to the spider in an attempt to appease him. Subsequent page heavily implies Mr. Spider ate them after being dissatisfied with the gift. The final fly is shown offering his own son to the spider for reasons unknown.

The doors and Mr.Spider are depicted as being progressively bloodier. Mr.Spider's abdomen is also swollen to gargantuan proportions but the text states he wants more, even desiring another guest for dinner. Last page of the book is a cutaway of the right hand door that simply says, "It's polite to knock."

Ability:

While unsettling, the pages themselves possess no visible paranatural qualities. The reader is instead put into a trance while reading that can only be broken by an outside force or intervention. Age, gender, height, or any other physical characteristic does not seem to affect the potency nor threshold of interruption for this trance. 

The reader is rendered oblivious to their surroundings but is capable of walking, oftentimes significant distances. Furthest distance recorded for this effect was [REDACTED] observed at [REDACTED]. So far no measurable distance has been noted as a "minimum" requirement, though a median of approximately [REDACTED] has been recorded for all controlled tests.  It's possible that the distance a reader must travel is random, or (more possibly) is quantified by factors we are as of yet unable to ascertain. 

The reader eventually reaches a stained door. The door is different colors depending on the environment but the stains remain consistent regardless of locale. If left uninterrupted, the reader will place the book against the door and knock on it. It's uncertain if this is necessary to prompt the next part of the ritual or not, as testing beyond this point is fatal for any subject. 

The door opens to reveal pitch blackness. Shortly after, the reader is yanked inside by limbs described as [REDACTED]. No one taken by the creature behind the door has ever been seen again. 

See S-96-CV-1 for further details regarding testing.

S-96-CV-1

Variables:

Various factors have been tested to determine the strength of the book's controlling properties. Photography had proven to be impossible in both digital and film formats, as any photo taken always comes out completely black, damaged, or distorted beyond recovery. Video recordings of the book being read have been tricky to establish, as digital equipment will almost immediately glitch and stutter within a range of [REDACTED] of the book. Attempting to use even an advanced zoom feature from far away results in similar phenomenon. 

So long as the patient's back is obscuring a view of the book, it's relatively safe to record. Additionally the effect operates in a far more reduced capacity while S-96 is closed, causing glitches and technical issues within a range of [REDACTED] instead. 

Strangely enough, motivation presents more of an obstacle in attempting to monitor S-96. Nearly every agent instructed to photograph or record the book reported a sudden lack of motivation to do so when approaching the containment room. Many formulated excuses for why they couldn't at that very moment. Others simply forgot why they were there. Installing sheets of Black Rock within the containment room helped reduce this effect considerably but did not eradicate it.  

See JS-P1-95 for an interview from the only known survivor. 

JS-P1-95 

Transcript for an audio recording between Jonathan Sims, aged 8, and a child therapist appointed by local protection services. Interview occurred approximately 2 days after the disappearance of [REDACTED].

Therapist: Hi there, Jonathan. 

Jonathan: Call me Jon please, ma'am. 

Therapist: Right, of course. How are you feeling, Jon?

Jon: I'm not sure, ma'am. 

Therapist: Please, call me Imogen. And that’s alright. After what you went through, that’s a very normal reaction.

Jon: Noth—

(There is a brief moment of silence followed by the sound of clothing rustling. Jon is shifting uncomfortably in his seat.)

Jon: Yeah. I guess.

Therapist: What were you going to say, Jon? Remember, I’m not here to judge you.

Jon: O-okay. It’s just...nothing about this feels normal. 

Therapist: How so, Jon?

Jon: You won’t believe me.

Therapist: You told the police that you saw [REDACTED] being kidnapped. They believed you, right? So will I.

Jon: I didn’t tell them everything.

Therapist: And why is that, Jon?

Jon: Because what I saw, it...it doesn’t make sense. It was really dark out but I know what I saw, and...

(Small set of hitching breaths followed by a deep breath. Jonathan appears to be repressing a breakdown very well for a child.)

Jon: It happened so fast but I saw it. It took him. 

Therapist: What took him, Jon?

Jon: Mr. Spider.

(There is a brief onset of soft static here. Most likely due to the age of the recording.)

Therapist: ...Mr. Spider?

Jon: From the book.

Therapist: What book, Jon?

Jon: A Guest for Mr. Spider! He took the book when he pushed me and I followed him a-and he knocked on the door and --

(More shifting, this time including papers and seats. Jon is breathing harder and the rest of his sentence is unintelligible.)

Therapist: Jonathan, take a deep breath. There you go. You’re okay.

Therapist: Now, tell me about this book. The police never mentioned finding a book by that name.

Jon: That’s because he was holding it. Don’t you understand!? The book, it made him go there. It forced him to knock on the door and...and then...

(A small sob followed by the hushed cooing of the therapist. Jon seems unresponsive and there’s the creak of a chair, followed by silence.)

Jon: I don’t want to talk about the book anymore.

Therapist: Okay. That’s okay. You’ve done very well so far.

Jon: I’m not a toddler.

Therapist: I’m sorry, Jon. I know you’re not a toddler, this is a lot for anyone. Even an adult.

Jon: I knew you wouldn’t believe me.

Therapist: Now what makes you think that?

Jon: I can see it. I see a lot of things.

(Recording ends here.)

There are no other audio logs regarding this incident. Additional services were turned down by Jon’s grandmother, [REDACTED], and there are no other records of him seeking out professional treatment in the following years.

For more information regarding Jonathan Sims, refer to JS-19-UAE.

JS-19-UAE

Initial Impressions: 

Jonathan Sims displays a very high intelligence for his age. Whether due to trauma or his orphaned status, he exhibits a world weariness rarely found in a child. This emotional aloofness coupled with a lack of any close relatives might indicate an affinity for future leadership. 

Bureau agents stationed in the UK are instructed to closely monitor his activities for the following 2 years. This is to determine potential eligibility in the Prime Candidate Program and to assess if the Altered Item will return to claim its intended victim.

Pre-Adolescence to Early Teenhood (10-13)

Jonathan Sims has exhibited no further paranatural abilities. He appears to have thrown himself into academic pursuits and has not made contact with any other Altered Items. The book mentioned in his initial therapy session has not appeared within his vicinity, nor has it been reported by any other agent stationed in Great Britain. 

As of now, surveillance will continue, albeit in a reduced capacity.

Teenhood (13-17)

Still no indication that Jonathan Sims possesses any paranatural talent. However, he appears to have a heightened sensitivity to paranatural events and items. There have been at least 4 instances where he nearly stumbled upon AWE’s or Altered Items, only to just skirt by them. Each instance has been logged in a separate report and successfully apprehended before it could catch public attention. 

Whether this is a 6th sense keeping him out of danger — or drawing him to it — is currently unknown. 

Early Adulthood (18-21)

Agents recently discovered the book mentioned in Jonathan Sims's therapy session. It does not appear to be tied to him in any way, given the fact it was found in a check-out bin at the [REDACTED] Library in [REDACTED]. It was contained successfully by [REDACTED] and shipped back to the Oldest House in a crate lined with Black Rock. 

Jonathan himself has become a full time student in Oxford. He has exhibited no latent talents or abilities of interest. Due to his growing age and the fact the book has been found, his eligibility in the Prime Candidate Program has been revoked. 

That being said, he is an excellent accidental bloodhound. More than once his intuition has led him within the range of an AWE or Altered Item. By proxy, we are made aware and are able to act quickly to avoid further disaster. 

Whether these items are reacting to his presence, seeking him out purposefully, or this is all simply coincidence is not yet determined. Closer study could risk exposing Bureau operations, as Jonathan has grown increasingly paranoid since teenhood. Measures have been taken to avoid any further unintended alterations in his usual behavioral patterns. 

Adulthood (22-24)

Nothing to report between college and entering the workforce. His grandmother's death led to a period of instability but nothing atypical of a grieving individual. 

ADDENDUM: Jonathan's habit of accidentally brushing up against the paranatural has culminated in a job at the Magnus Institute.

While not tied to the Bureau, the Magnus Institute has been partnered in some capacity with the Bureau for over 2 decades now. This coincidence has been logged as potentially being influenced by paranatural forces. 

An ambassador will be sent to the Magnus Institute to investigate and negotiate with the current Director of its operations, Elias Bouchard. Extra caution should be exercised to avoid arousing further suspicion from Jonathan or the Institute. 

[winryofresembool]

Things We Lost in the Fire, ch 8

aka Caleo uni au

Fic summary: Calypso starts studying at a new university, but to her annoyance her new flatmate is a loud mouthed mechanic who also likes to sneak his dog in whenever. But as she learns to know him better, she realizes they might have more in common than what she first thought. Eventually, even the darkest secrets come out…

Chapter summary: Calypso makes another new friend.

A/N: Time to introduce Hazel! Since some of you may be interested in my ToA read, I'm currently reading TTT and it’s reminding me how great Frank and Hazel are. In my fic Hazel is 18 and Frank 20, just for future reference.

Thanks to Cris for helping me out and listening to my rants again, and thanks to the people who commented the previous chapter! I hope you guys enjoy this one too and don't forget that even a short comment like "nice" can make my day!

Characters in this ch: Calypso, Hazel, Leo

Words: 1900+

Genre: romance & hurt/comfort

Warnings: none

previous chapter / next chapter / AO3

...

As the fall progressed, Calypso, who had brought a couple of her favorite paintings with her to her new flat, decided to show some of her art to Annabeth. The architect student complimented them and encouraged her to continue creating art, but Calypso admitted that sometimes it was hard to find the motivation to do it on her own. She preferred making things that she could actually use, such as clothes, but she wasn’t opposed to continuing the art hobby if she found a motivator. Annabeth suggested she join the university art club that had classes for various skill levels and where she’d get feedback to help her get even better. The blonde girl wished she had more time to draw just for fun because her university assignments took a lot of her time, but in Calypso’s case her studies had quite little to do with art so maybe the club would offer her a nice break from history.

And so, only a week later Calypso was participating in her first art class at the university club house. She looked curiously around her to see if she might know someone there from her history lectures, but it turned out that wasn’t the case. However, her attention focused on a girl with curly brown hair, dark skin and eyes so unusually colored that they stood out even from afar. Something about her fascinated Calypso and she decided to approach her.

“Hi!” she greeted.

“Hello. Is this your first time here as well?” the other girl asked.

“Yes! An architect student recommended this club for me so I decided to give it a shot,” Calypso explained.

“Mmmh. I’m not a college student – yet because I’m graduating from high school a bit late – but they graciously let me join when I showed them my art portfolio. I just felt like the high school art classes don’t have much to give me anymore so I wanted to try something different.”

“I see. So, is art something you’d like to do for living? Or just a hobby?” Calypso asked.

“To be honest? I’m not entirely sure yet,” the girl admitted. “Something happened that I was kind of out of it for a few months and that’s why it was hard to think about my future for a while. But one way or another I’ll probably still keep doing art no matter what.”

“Oh. I’m sorry about that…” Calypso said sympathetically.

“It’s in the past now, I’m fine!” the girl reassured. “Uh, I already told you that but I didn’t even ask you your name yet… What is it?”

“Calypso Astal. Yes, I know, like that music style… or that Greek sorceress…”

“I was not going to say that.” the girl shook her head, smiling politely. “I was simply going to say it’s nice to meet you, Calypso! My name is Hazel, Hazel Levesque.”

“Well, nice to meet you too, Hazel,” Calypso said, shaking her hand. “Sorry, I hope I didn’t sound rude… I’m just used to people making weird comments about my name.”

“Oh, don’t worry about it! I can understand that very well. I’m a little too used to people’s comments about anything related to my life at this point…” she said sadly. Now Calypso knew what had drawn her to Hazel in the first place: somehow she had sensed that the girl was an outsider, just like she was.

“So, how long have you been drawing, Hazel?” Calypso decided to change the topic.

“Since I was small. It’s always felt like a good way to express my thoughts and also distract myself when things weren’t that great. What about you, though?”

“I think I’ve always been more or less interested in it, but I didn’t start drawing and painting more seriously until I was in high school. I had a lot of time in my hands then…” Calypso said vaguely.

“That’s cool! What else do you do in your free time?” Hazel asked when she realized Calypso wouldn’t elaborate more.

“I like all kinds of handicrafts – you know, from sewing to building small objects and tending flowers – and I also enjoy singing… although usually I do that just on my own…” Calypso admitted, sounding a little bit embarrassed.

“Wow, sounds like you’re such a multitalent!” the younger girl exclaimed. “I help take care of a horse – his name is Arion and a friend who is good with horses claims that he’s loud mouthed even though I have no idea how he can say that. Arion is just vocal, that’s all.”

Calypso snorted at that.

“Yeah, I believe you. My flatmate would probably claim that he’s entirely capable of understanding everything his dog says, though.”

“Aw, your flatmate has a dog?” Hazel asked.

“Yep, he does, but he is not allowed to have it in our flat. Though he still did, when I arrived, and the dog broke my desk. I wasn’t too happy with my flatmate after that but he hasn’t brought the dog in since then,” Calypso said, now able to smile at the memory.

“I’d love to have one too but for some reason a lot of the dogs seem a little afraid of me. I don’t know why.” Hazel shrugged. “But my, uh, friend studies to become a vet and he’s around animals a lot.”

“That sounds like a cool career. I never really got to be around animals a lot in my childhood… But I do remember enjoying watching birds from the window.” Calypso also remembered wishing she could fly freely like them but she decided to not say that out loud, wanting to focus on more positive things.

The conversation died off because the teacher started explaining the participants the schedule of their meetings and what kind of projects they would make. The first assignment sounded like a fun one in Calypso’s opinion: it was called “If I could be any other living creature”. That meant the students were allowed to draw or paint themselves as any animal or plant they could imagine themselves being. At first Calypso thought about drawing one of her favorite flowers but then she remembered her and Hazel’s discussion only from a moment ago and how she had wished she could be a bird. And that gave her an idea.

The bird she chose was called the Golden Oriole. She had only seen one in her childhood on a trip to northern Greece but she still remembered the yellow feathers and the dark wings very well. Her own hair had been lighter back then as well, more of golden blonde than the caramel brown it was naturally now (before the dyeing) which had really stood out with her dark eyes. That’s why her mother had teased her about looking like Golden Oriole. Thinking about those times made Calypso feel a bit homesick but she decided to channel her emotions into the painting instead of wallowing in them. Once she had gotten started, she took a peek at what Hazel was making. Hazel herself had depicted herself as a horse but somehow she had also time to sketch a bear next to it. That confused Calypso. “What does the bear represent?” she asked Hazel.

“It’s gonna be a panda,” Hazel clarified, “and it’s supposed to depict my best friend. I felt he deserved to be drawn too. He is big and strong like a panda but surprisingly soft inside… I want to show how these two animals, though very different, can get along really well.”

“That’s a great topic. And he sounds like a good guy,” Calypso said approvingly.

“He is,” Hazel nodded and took a look at Calypso’s work. “That looks pretty! So, you consider yourself a bird?”

“Well, at least I’d like to be.” She shrugged. “Maybe one day.”

“I sense something is restricting you,” Hazel commented. “But don’t worry, you don’t have to tell me more.”

“Thanks,” Calypso said with relief, and after that the girls focused on their drawings again.

…

Once the class was over, the girls continued talking on their way to the bus stop.

“I’m sorry, this might be a strange thing to say but… I got a bit different vibe from you than from most people in the class. Do you know why?” Hazel inquired.

“Could be because I’m technically a foreigner,” Calypso replied. “I was also homeschooled so… I haven’t really been in touch with people of my age a lot.”

“Really?” Hazel raised her eyebrows. “Where are you from?”

“Greece. But we moved from there when I was 10.”

“Your English is so good that I wouldn’t have been able to tell you’re not from here. I’ve lived in many places too. I was born in New Orleans but I’ve also lived in Alaska and San Francisco…”

“What brought you here, then?” Calypso asked.

Hazel seemed to hesitate a bit. “Uh, it’s a very long story. One I’d rather not talk about right now. But after I recovered from an accident I’ve been trying to find my place. My best friend moved to study here and he’s the closest family I have so I decided I’m gonna follow him.”

Calypso noticed that Hazel blushed a bit when she was talking about her friend.

“And your parents were OK with you moving?” she asked, having too much experience with overprotective parents.

“Uh…” Hazel started awkwardly. “I don’t really have any. Mom is dead and my dad only shows up when it’s convenient to him. I lived with a relative for a few months before I turned 18 but once I was that old, she told me that I was free to make my own decisions.”

“I’m so sorry. About your parents.” Calypso said sympathetically. For some reason she seemed to be pulling a lot of people with tragic backgrounds towards her.

“It might be awful to say this but I think my mom is in a better place now. She suffered a lot in her life,” Hazel said as an afterthought.

Calypso only nodded, because really, what could you say to that? The other girl seemed to sense her hesitance because she continued:

“But don’t worry about me. Frank is the best and most protective friend I could have. And here I have found some new ones as well!”

“That is good!” Calypso said genuinely. She already felt like she could relate to this girl and wished a brighter future for her. “Um, I have some things I need to do at home but I’ll see you next week, right? And if you ever want to hang out outside the class, just message me.”

“I will!” Hazel promised and waved to her as goodbye.

…

Leo was making something to eat in the kitchen when Calypso arrived and he looked at the package in Calypso’s arms curiously.

“Hiya Sunshine, what you got there?” he asked.

“I was at the art club and did this,” Calypso said, taking the drawing from the bag and showing it to Leo.

“That’s a cool bird,” Leo mumbled while trying to swallow his sandwich. “Is there some deeper meaning to it?”

“Yes, it’s supposed to depict me,” Calypso answered, emphasizing the last word.

Leo looked back and forth between the drawing and the artist.

“I’m not really seeing the connection there.” He narrowed his eyes as if trying to see the drawing clearer. “You look nothing like that bird.”

“Leo Valdez!” Calypso yelled and marched angrily into her room, leaving poor Leo wonder what he did wrong.

“I just meant that you’re way prettier than any drawing of a bird could ever be,” he mumbled to himself before sighing and focusing on his meal again.

[waltzofevil]

AkunoP Question and Answer

Waltz of Evil, page 144-147

Q: You have the Deadly Sins of Evil novel series where many unique characters show up. How did you come up with the names for these characters?

A: I had several patterns I followed.

There are some where I made a pun on the name of the VOCALOID they’re based on.

Such as “Kagamine Len” --> “Allen”

I also coined names that were a blending of various words that had special meanings to them.

“Sateriasis Venomania”-->”Satyriasis”, which means “sex mania”, alongside “Nymphomania”. And then onto that I also added in the English word “Venom” which means “poison”.

 I also made puns on demons and gods from mythology.

“Arte” and “Pollo” --> From “Artemis” and “Apollo” that show up in Greek mythology.

After that, there are a lot of characters where I gave them a name based on the sound of the word, without any particular meaning.

.

Q: The “Deadly Sins of Evil” series has had two publications at this point—please tell us if you have any stories to share about these two works.

A:

The Madness of Duke Venomania

A lot of women show up in this work, so in order to better learn the feelings of women I went to a lot of group parties. In the end I still didn’t really understand.

Evil Food Eater Conchita

A lot of food shows up in this work, so in order to better learn the feelings of food, I went to a lot of dinners. They were delicious. Of course one can’t understand the feelings of food.

.

Q: The last “Vessel of Deadly Sin” that has yet to be made clear. Is that the “Golden Key” that showed up in Venomania, and the “Golden Powder (Golden Key)” from Conchita…? The “Vessel of Wrath” apparently also debuted in the “Daughter of Evil” series, but which scene was that actually in?

A: There’s only one that’s called the “Vessel of Wrath”. Whatever the era, its owner seeks to kill the holder of another “Vessel of Deadly Sin”.

.

Q: Venomania used the power of the demon to transform like Kyle and Ney in the “Daughter of Evil” series. Is this transformation of varying degrees for each demon, and is it different depending on the individual?

A: The transformation of a contractor is something that all demons are capable of, but their abilities and power levels depend on the demon. “Lust” is able to fly and use brainwashing, but in terms of physical attack ability it’s not that strong.

“Gluttony” is able to enslave dead bodies, so it has no need to transform the contractor in order to use its power. It has physical strength that is second only to “Pride”, but perhaps due to its whimsical nature it seldom grants its contractor full use of its power. In the climax of the fourth installment of “Daughter of Evil” Ney was, in actuality, fighting almost entirely with just her own natural power, though she didn’t realize that fact.

“Pride” is able to grant their contractor an extremely high amount of fighting power, but unlike the other demons it has no other particular abilities.

.

Q: The sorceress Elluka Clockworker did some wandering; can you tell us about her acts of mercy?

A: In all of the places that she went, Elluka would use her magic to save the people she met there without regard for whether they were rich or poor. Elluka would always say that she was just doing it “on a whim” or “to gain favors from influential people”. Even after several centuries had passed she’s never realized that she’s a softie at heart.

.

Q: Who exactly is the historian Will Jaakko?

A: Will Jaakko (EC 353-405) is a Beelzenian historian. His grandfather was the minstrel Xenos Jaakko. As a result of all the anecdotes that he heard when he was young from his grandfather, he came to develop an interest “Vessel of Deadly Sin” that the Conchita family and Banica were said to have possessed. In 388 he married the author of the fairytale “Vampiress Vanika”, Sanan Neu. In his later years he published several works that advanced several personal theories relating to Beelzenian history and the “Vessels of Deadly Sin”, but these were not very well regarded publicly, judged to be absurd tales that were heavily influenced by his wife’s fairytales.

.

Q: Ma shows up at the end of the Daughter of Evil, Venomania, and Conchita. She goes by the title of playwright, but as for her (?) true identity…?

A: She seems to have lived for a very long time. Other similarly long-lived beings have shown up in the story up to this point, so if you’re asking if Ma’s true identity is one of those…?

It doesn’t seem to be that simple.

.

Q: (Venomania) Is the dress that Karchess used to disguise as a woman based on Elluka’s preferences?

A: Karchess’ dress for his woman disguise is something that he picked out himself at a clothing store in Lasaland. It’s different from the outfit that Elluka was wearing, so it’s probably based on Karchess’ preferences.

.

Q: (Venomania) Did Gumina love Cherubim?

A: “She merely gave a lonely smile.”

.

Q: (Conchita) Please tell us the story of the time that Arte and Pollo met Conchita.

A: After losing her mother, in her depression Banica would often stay shut up in the food storage in the basement. For Banica, as isolated as she was, her own room was too wide to be comfortable. That was around the time that she met Arte and Pollo. At some point the three of them had become good friends. However, bizarrely enough no in the mansion, not even Banica, can remember why the twins were there or when they started working there as servants.

.

Q: (Conchita) How did the waiter of the “Graveyard” restaurant gather the Deadly Sins?

A: I honestly don’t know anything about how the waiter had the “Vessels of Deadly Sin” there. Perhaps you should be more suspicious of the run-away Chef.

.

Q: (Conchita) So you said that you originally had plans for Conchita to be a “kaiju girl”. Please tell us about the original story that wound up getting discarded.

A: A certain family finds a peculiar creature. They name it “Conchita”, and come to keep it as a pet.  Conchita eats all of the feed they give her, and grows up rapidly. …Or rather, she gets too big.

They are unable to keep Conchita, as she has grown larger than the house that they live in. Having been abandoned, Conchita continues to eat things she finds on the wayside, and steadily grows bigger. The government decides to repel her, and fires missiles at her, but Conchita eats them.

At that time, an enormous meteorite is confirmed to be heading towards Earth. At this rate the Earth is destroyed. In order to protect the family that raised her, Conchita flies into the air alone and headed for space…

.

Q: (Conchita) Lady Conchita’s name might have ended up being “Muraramurajakotasupopopo”. What is the basis for that name?

A: Ask Mr. Muzuri.

.

Q: (Conchita) Tell us what Conchita’s daily life is like.

A: Outside of eating meals, a lot of the time Lady Banica works hard at her hobby garden in the backyard. The plants that she raises there ultimately get put into her meals. She hardly ever goes outside the mansion.

As for Pollo’s everyday work, he cleans inside the mansion, weeds the garden, feeds the livestock, washes his clothes, does athletic meets for the undead soldiers, and harassing Joseph.

Arte’s job is arranging for supplies and price discussions with merchants, management of the money, shopping for any daily supplies they’re low on, washing her and Banica’s clothes, running head counts of the livestock and dead soldiers, pulling pranks on Pollo, acting as Joseph’s assistant and also harassing him.

Outside of cooking and preparations for it, Joseph generally just rambles about aimlessly. As Arte and Pollo are always getting in his way and harassing him, he often goes down to hang around at the bar in the village at the base of the hill. But he’s a non-drinker.

.

Q: (Conchita) Out of all the unique dishes that Conchita has eaten, which do you think she liked the most?

A: I would think it’s the one that made her cry with joy, don’t you think?

.

Q: If you were going to contract, which demon would you pick? And please tell us your reasons.

A: I am a serious, just, and virtuous person, and so I have no desire to contract with a demon. I would prefer an angel with large boobs.

.

Q: If you gathered all seven vessels of Deadly Sin, what would you wish for?

A: I’d wish for either eternal life, to revive everyone on earth, or girl panties.

.

Q: What kind of story will the third installment of the Deadly Sins of Evil series be like?

A: I plan to depict KAITO as an even bigger scuzbag than ever before.

.

Q: Tell us what you plan to do after this.

A: I’d like to get married.

.

Q: Please give us one message to your readers.

A: Please marry me.

.

About the “Daughter of Evil” Comic Adaptation

.

Q: What did you think when discussion came up of making the “Daughter of Evil” into a comic?

A: When the novel came out there was a decent amount of people who were “interested in it but couldn’t read very well…”, so I guess I thought that such people would be pleased?

.

Q: Please share the thoughts you had when you saw the finished manga.

A:  Basically the story was something that I came up with myself, but when I saw it in the manga format it was like I was reading it with the fresh emotions of being an outsider. And it also did things like supplement scenes that weren’t shown in the main piece, so I was able to simply enjoy reading it.

.

Q: Please say one thing to the readers enjoying the comic adaptation of the “Daughter of Evil”.

A: I think this is a work that is enjoyable to read for both those who have already read the light novel and those who haven’t. I’d really like you to read it, at any rate!

directory

[kbmercer]

Ch.1, Part 1: Encounter

My Heroic Pokemon Squad (A Pokemon/My Hero Academia Crossover)

Summary:

After receiving an emergency call to assist in sedating the legendary pokémon of time and space, Top Ranger (Y/n) (L/n) gets caught in the crossfire of their rampage. Sent barreling into a world unknown, (L/n) must now navigate her new surroundings and somehow find a way home. Yet, the aftermath of a momentary rift between dimensions carries drastic repercussions, especially considering that pokémon had never existed in this place to begin with. Not only that, but it seems humanity here have powers of their own, not unlike that of the creatures she has grown to love.

“In today’s news: ‘International Turmoil’.

It has been 48 hours following reports of a spike in supernatural activity occurring all over the world leaving countries on high alert. According to the investigations currently underway, it is said that all instances appear to stem from the creation of portals. The portals have since disappeared, yet the aftermath of this phenomena has resulted in a noticeable change, specifically in the wildlife. ‘Quirked animals’ are said to have begun inhabiting the areas where the portals had manifested. In Indonesia, pictures posted on social media show a group of mole-like creatures with steel claws drilling into the earth; and in Canada a video from a wildlife researcher spotting a dog-like creature with a pointed tail and curved horns spitting fire from its mouth...”

To say that (Y/n) was frazzled by this information would be an understatement. The young Ranger stood on the pavement of an unknown street within an unknown city listening to a broadcast presented by people unknown to her. She was one person within a crowd of many, watching the grid of televisions displayed at the window of a small tech shop. The air of uncertainty was palpable within the people surrounding her. Conversations about animals having “quirks” was the hot topic. Words of fear, anticipation, and curiosity fly from the people’s mouths, intertwining into a tangle of chatter.

“Oh my goodness, look at them! I would’ve never thought it to be a dog if I wasn’t told.”

“Man…I guess if humans can have quirks, animals gaining some of their own was kinda inevitable, yeah?”

“Don’t say that! This has to be some sort of mistake…”

“This isn’t good! We’re already dealing with the fall of All Might and now we have to deal with this?!”

The commotion had gotten louder and incomprehensible leaving (Y/n) to stop listening. She separated herself from the crowd. Taking a deep breath, she adjusts the red duffel bag she carries with her, keeping it close to her body like it was her lifeline. It might just be, considering the circumstances. She had no shelter apart from a makeshift tent she possessed, and the food she had been eating upon arrival two days ago had since depleted. She wasn’t only feeding herself…and while (Y/n) was sufficient in money, the girl highly doubted that this world’s currency was the Pokémon Dollar. Pokémon had never even existed here.

If the commentary wasn’t clear enough, in this world, Pokémon had never existed until those portals had opened.

             Perhaps the extent of how big of a problem this was didn’t catch up to the young ranger until she thought about it in further detail. Perhaps the shock of waking up on some random beach with minor injuries and a wet uniform took all of her attention. It’s entirely possible that all her time and energy was focused on making sure she and her pokémon party who suffered the same fate could effectively recover. Though, she neglected to consider the bigger picture – the grand question: What do I do now?

Panic began to overwhelm (Y/n) but she suppressed thee tears that threatened to spill. Pokémon are especially perceptive to their trainer’s emotions both inside and outside their capsules. Her companions were a rather rambunctious and protective bunch know to break out of their pokéballs to aid her, but she couldn’t risk that. Instead she mulled over a potential plan of action as her feet carried her any which way. Down streets and past crosswalks, (Y/n) took in her surroundings: skyscrapers as tall as the eye can see, bustling city folk, narrow alleyways, advertisers and advertisement posters, vending machines that light up when anyone happens to walk near them, stairs to the subways. Despite the location being different, the girl couldn’t help but draw similarities to all the cities she had traveled to back in her own world like Rustboro City in Hoenn or Goldenrod City in Johto. Both were just as busy and energetic, complete with districts lined with stores and fast-food spots with corporate buildings being just around the corner. Though, it was by no means as Castelia City in Unova. That was a completely different beast.

By the time the top ranger had collected her thoughts, the sun had since set over the horizon casting a warm yellow-orange glow through the metropolitan, welcoming shadows to form underneath the feet of passersby. (Y/n) had her head lowered (e/c) eyes trained on the asphalt beneath her. After weighing her options, all she could think of was either settling for another day of living under her tent or simply searching for enforcement, the only viable option of helping her. The caveat to that decision, however, was that her lack of identity could possibly garner suspicion and make her situation worse than they already are. She was at an impasse.  The young Top Ranger had never been stuck with so little options and it was upsetting. With a stamp of her foot she settled on taking repose in a café within her vicinity, unintentionally ignoring the welcoming words of the employees stationed behind the counter in her frustration and taking a window seat. (Y/n) failed to notice the inquisitive looks she received as she kept her eyes out the window, especially the person she had unceremoniously sat in front of.

“Well, if you’re going to take a seat there, the least you could do is acknowledge my existence,” (Y/n)’s eyes widened as her head snapped to the woman sitting opposite of her in the booth that she had sat. With bright blue eyes staring at her past the bangs of her deep purple hair, her upper body clad with a red camisole reclined in the place she sat. It was clear that she was mildly displeased at what happened. The girl sputters abashed by her lack of awareness before bowing her head.

“Sorry! I d-didn’t mean to not notice you. I just have a lot on my mind I guess…” Her eyes averted from the woman, she wanted to look anywhere but towards her pointed stare.

“Oh yeah? Then I’ll bite. If you’re gonna keep me company I’ll settle for a little small talk.” The woman takes a sip of the coffee in hand, but the hesitation from the girl across from her gets her guessing. “School trouble? Family issues maybe?” She gasps. “Is it about a boy?” (Y/n) shakes her head profusely.

“No! Nothing of that sort!” Oh Arceus, is she really the person she has to air her troubles out to? A brief moment of pause results in (Y/n) deciding to take the opportunity. This woman is just a regular civilian. What’s the worst that could happen? It’s not really like she had any better options. Under the blue-eyed woman’s expecting gaze (Y/n) shifts in her seat.

“It seems that I’m kinda lost…I don’t know where I am or why I’m here…” The woman’s gaze appears to transition into a deep frown and (Y/n) gets progressively nervous but resists the urge to clamming up. “I…washed up on the beach near here…and I don’t really have a home to go back to, if that makes any sense…I’ve been deciding on whether I should talk to law enforcement about my predicament, but I just feel that nothing good will come of it…y’know.” The steel grip (Y/n) kept on the duffel next to her doesn’t evade the eyes of Kayama. The words spoken from the teen were undoubtedly distressed, the contained uncertainty shown in their eyes coupled with the tenseness of their body supported that. It’d be foolish to dismiss and turn a blind eye to this. Yet, the reason to why she hadn’t already risen from the booth to take the girl to the police department was because of her last phrase. “I feel that nothing good will come of it.” Is (Y/n)’s relationship with authorities a sour one, or is there something else that she’s deliberately not telling her? Kayama let out a hum before viewing the skyline. The sun had taken rest for the day and streets of Musutafu were dimly lit by the various streetlamps and remainder of open shops on the strip.

“I know talking to authorities isn’t really a thing people like to do. But if you are is in as much of tough spot as you say you are, don’t you think it’s at least worth a shot?”

“If I may be honest, at this point I don’t think I have much of a choice,” with up-turned brows and a embarrassed scratch of the cheek, (Y/n) sighs in resignation. “I just don’t know where to start, I’ve basically been wandering all day.”

“Well, lucky for you I know exactly how to get you there.” Downing the remainder of her caffeine, Kayama motions (Y/n) to follow suit to which the young ranger obeys, securing her crossbody comfortably.

“Thank you, Ms…”

“There’s no need for the formality. Just call me Midnight for now.”

[sweetsmellosuccess]

The Sátántangó Experience

How exactly does one prepare to watch a 7.5 hour film? A bit like what you might do in preparation for major surgery: Pack a bag of necessities (in this case, water and protein bars), kiss your loved ones goodbye, and try to make peace with your god. Or, maybe less dramatically, treat it as you would a long train journey, one that takes you through some harrowing terrain on half a rutted track before depositing you to your eventual destination.

Of course, this sort of conception of time is entirely relative: If you have to drive somewhere that takes half an hour, it feels unduly long; but if the trip were normally three hours long, and you somehow found a shortcut that would cut the time down to 30 minutes, you would be flying on dulcet wings for that amount of time, and think you were blessed by angels. In other words, spending an entire standard work day watching one film might seem excessive, but it all has to do with your expectations.

In my case, I was at Philadelphia’s newly renovated Lightbox Theater at the University of the Arts to take in Béla Tarr’s magnum opus Sátántangó, all glorious 450 minutes, in a new 4K restoration (it’s currently playing at select theaters across the country). Armed with my snack survival kit, and safe in the knowledge that we would get intermissions at roughly 2.5 hour intervals, I settled in to watch what has been described as a masterpiece in cinephile circles, and currently resides at number 36 in the most recent Sight & Sound critics’ poll.

Tarr’s beyond-bleak film is broken up into 12 segments, each having to do with a failing farmer’s cooperative in Hungary during the last throes of communism in the late ‘80s. Each section has its own feel and perspective  —  some of them are more lighthearted, others are desolate beyond measure  —  but all expertly shot in low-contrast black and white (by Gábor Medvigy), which renders the people and landscape in various tones of drudgery grey.

It originally opened in America as part of the 1994 New York film festival, at a time when Hungary was undergoing a transformation from Communism to shaky democratic capitalism, so it served as a kind of epigraph to the era, a showcase, as it were, as to the imperfections of a political system built on a promise of human egalitarianism that proved to be depressingly difficult to put into practice.

The landscape makes up a lot of Tarr’s vision, the flat, moody farmland upon which the collective has been toiling, and the unceasing rain and wind that constantly pelts the characters as they venture outside for one business or another. As the film opens, the collective  —  made up of three couples; a curious “doctor” (Peter Berling), who spends his time spying on the others, making copious notes in his stacks of file folders, and daily drinking his considerable body weight in Palinka (Hungarian plum brandy); and the cagey Futaki (Miklos Szekely B.), who has to walk with a cane from an unspecified accident, but seems a bit more shrewd than the others  —  is anxiously awaiting their annual wages, which come all at once and is meant to get divvied up amongst the members equally.

Early on, there are various halfcocked plans from individuals to try and steal the small fortune for themselves, reflected in much idle talk about meeting that evening and decamping for parts unknown, but that ultimately come to nothing. However, when word reaches the group that the mysterious Irimiás (Mihály Vig, also the film’s composer) is, in fact, not dead as they had been told, but alive, and returning to the collective he started, the group dynamic is thrown akimbo, with various members fretting for their future, and, one, the owner of the local bar (Zoltán Kamondi), furious at the thought his business will be taken from him. 

Just why they respond like this remains vague. In ensuing segments, we see Irimiás, along with his associate, Petrina (Dr. Putyi Horvath), navigating through a police interview  —  where the local Captain informs them they will be working for him now in ways unspecified  —  though it appears the collective had very actively planned on not having to include their former leader (and his right-hand man) in their financial arrangements. As for the non-collective characters, including the aforementioned barkeep, and various prostitutes sitting idly around, the collective is virtually their only business, such as it is, so they, too, await this potential flood of cash eagerly.

As the segments begin to collect, they also begin to fold upon themselves: Scenes that we see from one vantage point in an earlier segment are revisited later on, from the perspective of a different character, enabling a thrilling moment of realization that the stream of time we’re following has breaks, jumps, and hiccoughs throughout. Never more poignantly than a moment with a young girl peering into a window of the bar  —  one of the only lit buildings in the otherwise dismally dark countryside  —  watching the adults inside drunkenly dancing and cavorting.

About that girl. Easily the most emotional moment of the film involves her, but not first without the audience paying a heavy price, depending on your empathy for other creatures. Before the film screened, during its introduction, we were made aware that there was a scene of animal cruelty involving a cat somewhere in the proceedings. The sympathetic presenter, himself a cat lover, suggested looking away for parts of that segment, though a friend of mine in attendance who had seen it before assured me looking away wasn’t really an option. Fortunately, he also told me that the cat in question wasn’t actually hurt, and was still alive at the time of a 2012 interview with Tarr.

Needless to say, my worry about this poor cat dominated my experience in the early going: Every time I saw a feline in the background of a scene, I worried that it was coming up, such that it was almost a relief when it finally happened. The situation is this: Estike (Erica Bók), the young daughter of one of the local prostitutes, caught up in her world of half-fantasies after being sent out of their apartment by her working mother, holes up in an attic with a grey tabby. At first, she pets and cuddles him, but eventually, she desires to control him, bend the cat to her will. To the cat’s increasing discomfort and fury, she grabs him by the front paws and rolls around with him, all the while muttering how she alone can determine its fate. Looping up the poor fellow in a net bag and hanging it from a post, she goes downstairs to mix a batch of milk with some rat poison powder and force feeds him until he dies (though in actuality merely tranquilized).

Wandering around the farm that night with the stiffened body of the cat tucked under her arm (a prosthetic, the director assures us), Estike runs into the doctor, shuffling outside to refill his giant jug of brandy, shortly after peering through the window of the bar. Eventually, she lies down amongst the deserted crumble of a bomb-blasted church and takes the poison herself.

As gruesome as the segment becomes, its haunting evocations permeate the rest of the film (though not immediately: in a jarring juxtaposition, the very next segment takes us back to the bar, where everyone is still dancing wildly about to a loopy accordion refrain —  only towards the end of this extended scene do we see the face of the soon-to-be-dead Estike peering inside). Eventually, Irimiás does indeed return, in time to give a moving eulogy for Estike, while at the same time transitioning the group towards his next vision, a new farm some distance away where he assures them they can finally live freely and thrive. All he needs to achieve this goal for them is the money they just received from their previous year’s efforts.

With nowhere else to go, and no other plan on the horizon, the members of the collective dutifully deposit their wages on the table in front of their leader. He sends them out to pack their things so that they may meet with him in a couple of days at the new farm he’s selected.

Gathering their miserable belongings, the group reassemble and trudge down the muddy road on foot, as the rain pelts down on them without ceasing. Distressingly, the members don’t have any proper rain coats  —  in an earlier soliloquy in the bar, Kráner (János Derszi) laments that his leather coat is so old and stiff he has to bend it in order to sit down  —  so they wear their woolen winter coats, which do little to keep them from getting soaked in the heavy fall rains.

As they make their way to this new destination, it’s clear that Irimiás is up to something. Most obviously, he could make off with their wages and move on, but it turns out his scheme is less direct than just taking their hard-earned money for himself.

Towards the second half, Tarr’s penchant for long, elegantly composed shots gives gradually away to more adventurous camerawork, including a single steadicam shot in the woods that’s like something out of a Sam Raimi film. There are extensive elliptical shots with the camera spinning slowly on an axis, this particular effect never more effective than when after the group arrives at their new farm, yet another dilapidated series of box-like concrete buildings. Once they dump their belongings and lie on the floor of the unheated, broken-windowed main house, trying to sleep, our narrator makes one of his occasional VO appearances to describe in intimate detail the dreams each character is having.

It’s a shot that could have served as an excellent final salvo, one would imagine. Indeed, by the last hour of this opus, time and again, Tarr arrives at what might be considered a conclusive moment  —  in this, the confusion is aided by his particular style: It turns out many films end on a superbly composed, static long shot  —  only to keep the narrative flowing, circling back, eventually to the original farm, where the doctor, having just returned from a stint in a hospital, begins to narrate, again, the original opening lines. Such is the perfection in this device (the segment is titled “The Circle Closes”) that once you finally arrive there, it’s clear there could be no other ending that would have sufficed.

When finally the film ended, it was later in the evening. I met up with my compatriots also in attendance, and the three of us ventured back out into the city, heading to a bar where we could nurse a beer and attempt to articulate the tangled mass of feelings and impressions of the previous nine hours. In one of the very few bars in the city that still allows smoking, appropriately enough, we debated about the film in an atmosphere swirling with the poisonous fumes of an earlier era. It seemed hopeless, but still necessary, somehow; like bidding farewell to someone already in a coma.

[maladaptive-ninja-returns]

Stakeout (4)

Loki x fem!Reader

Prompt: @marvelrose had this awesome idea of taking Brooklyn Nine Nine’s episode Stakeout and turning it into an angsty fic. Will it end in smut or will it end in more angst?

Warnings: PAIN. That’s it.

Word Count: I made a mistake. I made....a huge...mistake. I watched The Punisher and now I cannot stop this new story coursing through my veins.

Masterlist in bio

“Do you think he knows we’re in here?” you whispered.

“I don’t think so,” Loki whispered back. “Why? What’s going to happen if he knows we’re in here?”

You looked at Loki with nothing but pure fear in your eyes.

His smaragdines caught your emotion and his body stiffened before getting up from the floor where you two were hiding together. Taking a careful step towards the window ahead of the desk, he slowly raised his hand to put his fingers in between the blinders and push them down enough to measure the threat outside.

Within a flash, the pair of eyes outside turned towards him, making his fingers recoil. What followed was a scream from the outside along with a few curses.

“Mother of racoons!” Loki hissed, “Why is this creature perched up outside our window out of all the places?”

You did not look at Loki for your ears were busy catching the curse-laden breaths of the informant outside- hissing and snarling at the rodent to get away from there. Clearly, your target wanted the animal gone as much as you did. That pissed creature was creating a lot of ruckus for both the sides as it is.

“I am going to do something about him,” Loki declared as softly as possible.

“Shhh,” you shot back, your hand raising to stop him from speaking further while your ears were still outside.

“Don’t-” he lowered his voice, eyeing the blinders- “don’t shush me, woman. I have ha-”

Before he could speak any further, you were already on your knees tackling him down. You knew the God was no match for you, but catching him off guard did the trick. He lost his balance to fall down on his back while a loud shatte of a glass filled the air, immediately making him turn- his arms wrapped around you till you were secure under him, away from the line of flying broken shards, your eyes screwed shut to avoid any injury.

Any animal would have been insane to stay in the line of fire of the stone- nearly the size of your fist- that entered the apartment. But for a few moments you, forgot about the raccoon as your mind registered your hands clinging on to Loki’s clothes like a cat’s claws holding on to the branches of a tall tree it was stuck in. You did not want to open your eyes and face him but the flashes from last night of his body next to yours opened the dam of hot chagrin, making your eyes open wide to avoid any more devious thoughts to cross your mind.

Oh, what a sad but beautiful mistake that was on your part.

The sunlight coming through the broken blinders bounced off the vanilla wall onto the floor before getting caught in Loki’s features. His controlled panting along with the unavoidable glowing skin made some rational part of your brain wonder what exactly was it about his inexplicably composed features that brought all your workings to a standstill.

“Are you okay?” you heard yourself yak in order to prevent another mini attack like last night. The question though was more for yourself than for him- and still, you wanted to know if he was okay.

His green never left your y/e/c as he breathed in your touch over him. For a change- and what a surprising change that was- you were clinging on to him instead of pushing away or fighting him. More appalling for Loki was your concern for him. He doubted the genuineness of your worry, wondering if this was another one of your human ways to get even with him.

“Loki,” your heavy voice snapped him out of his calculations, making him revert back to your eyes, “hey, you okay?”

And for the second time, he saw no malice hidden behind the blank shade reflecting a worrisome gaze.

“Yes, I’m fine,” he gulped down his words before getting up and away from you, catching you unaware of how tightly you were holding his jacket in your sweaty fists.

Letting go of the fabric, you apologised under your breath.

“Are you harmed?” His hand came to wrap around your good arm and help you get up.

“N-aah shoot!”

While trying to get up, you did what was typical of you- you put your entire weight over the poor arm that was still throbbing from yesterday's incident. And the curses followed.

“What are you doing, you dolt?” Loki hissed as he wrapped his arm around your waist- no permissions taken this time because you clearly were not good for your own body.

“I forgot,” you muttered a confession.

“Who forgets their entire arm is injured?”

“I did!” You snarled back at the God, your faces just an inch away from each other, hot breaths fanning the baby hairs on your faces. Goddamit!! Just kiss already!

That thought did cross your mind as you stole a glance at his lips. Loki too had the same image in his mind for a second there. But none of you morons made the first move. Instead, you backed away from his personal space and heard an ugly crunch under your boots, forcing both you and the God to finally turn away from each other and take in the scene of disaster around you.

Loki scrutinised the glass shards going everywhere while you inspected the window.

A groan left you as you wiped away the broken glass from the damaged thermal screen.

“Stark is going to kill that bastard for this,” you muttered under your breath before turning your head to some unknown void above you and sighing at the thought having to make the call.

.

“I want his head on a spike,” Tony’s voice echoed through your ears while his face was all red on the screen in front of you.

You shifted in your seat while Loki exhaled, clicking the pen in his hand.

“It’s just a screen, Tony,” Loki pointed out, his face clearly reflecting the exhaustion he was feeling from wasting all his energy on a stubborn racoon and a pissed you grabbing him by the clothes on his back to not throw hands at a creature who has nothing to lose and would end up compromising your location.

“Screw that screen!” Tony shouted, his eyes growing wide with rage, “what if either of you was hit by that son of a bitch?”

You tried really hard but the chuckle still escaped your lips.

“Aw,” you sang while swivelling your chair from one side to another, “look at you getting worried for Loki. You know what that is?”

“Say ‘growth’ and I swear on the blood of my newborn I will put you and Peter in timeout in a place you would never survive with just your memes.”

The silence and frown that followed from your end were enough to know the message had been received and but not appreciated in any shape or form.

“And you, Cassius,” Tony called out the trickster, “I trust you to keep an eye out for that bastard throwing any more rocks your way. Nat just got a word that his boss is on the move and would probably be meeting your neighbour tomorrow. We’ll move in near your point of stakeout around six hundred hours tomorrow. All communications will be kept restricted to the comms. We’ll move in when you spot the bogey and give the signal. Is that clear?”

“If you had to do all the work, why send us in?” you grunted, your anger still simmering somewhere inside you, “Loki and I can take down three people, I’m sure.”

Loki clicked his pen. “I agree. This is more of a house arrest than a stakeout. In the most shabby setting if I may add.”

Tony narrowed his eyes at the two of through the screen, making you cross your arms at the silent wrath that was brewing on the other side. “Clearly you two forgot why you are in this situation. Need I remind y-”

“No,” you both announced in unison, never meeting the brown eyes of judgment.

“Good. No action for the two of you till you’ve worked out whatever issues you have,” he announced.

A voice outside the range of the camera capturing the other side announced, “Just tell them to make out already.”

“And that’s our cue,” you concluded and signed off.

Stretching yourself out, you heard your insides crack in various joints.

“I used to be an assassin in training,” you reminisced, looking at something in the far off distance in the poorly lit room before looking at Loki- who was still sitting and clicking away his pen, taking out his frustration on the metal stick- “and you used to be a God. Now we are sitting in the dark in an apartment with no heat, a broken window, a grey sky outside and pieces of broken glass sitting under the kitchen sink. We have turned into my worst nightmare.”

Loki’s brows furrowed as he turned in his chair towards you.

“Worst nightmare of two powerless beings under house arrest?”

“Worse! Living like an old poor suburban couple fighting non-stop till one of us kills the other. Of course, the money being the root of all our problems.”

“We are not even married, darling.” Loki’s brow stared down at you.

“Exactly!” you nearly sobbed as you got down on your knees, your body drooping down with the invisible weight of your horrid thoughts coursing through you.

Loki could not help but be amazed by the impulsive emotions you displayed now and then, be it with him or anyone else- but today he got the opportunity of having the whole theatre to himself to watch you pour your heart out. Even a little smile played on his lips as he watched the innocent play of you pretending to whimper, eventually getting all the frustration out.

Finally, bringing your head up and away from your legs, you breathed. “I’ll have to do with the tub today too, huh?”

“Don’t want him-”

“Him to hear anything out of the ordinary-” you nodded, waving away the dialogue in irritation, “yeah, yeah, I get it.”

Loki sat up in his seat as you kept your worse arm in your lap not having moved it for a while now.

“Still need help with your jacket?”

You looked at him before moving your shoulder to check. The nerves sending back hammers of pain was answer enough.

“Yeah,” you whispered, getting up half-hearted, not really happy with your condition.

Just like yesterday, Loki carefully removed your jacket and shirt from your body. Just like yesterday, both of you felt an unfamiliar vibration in your stomachs, making you wonder what this unholy feeling was exactly.

The fifteen minutes spent inside the hot water was enough to ponder over the sensations you had been feeling every time Loki’s fingers grazed over your skin, making your surface tense up and your hair stand and look at the one bold enough to make your insides awaken at just a mere touch. What the hell is this God doing to me?!

Something worth overthinking about, sweetheart.

The negligible light from the candle you had been using in the bathroom reflected over the white tiles all around you as you took out the stopper from the drain and let the water around you swirl out. The throb in your arm had escalated now. The pain riding up a notch, making it difficult for you to even keep it vertical under the gravity’s influence.

Grabbing your towel from the side, you tried your best to wrap it around you but the piercing pain forced every other mechanism in your body to come to a standstill.

I should have gotten this checked. Maybe I wouldn’t have been in this mess if I did. Why am I like this?

Standing there in the bathtub, naked and wet, you looked around and contemplated what all could possibly be done with one working arm. Turned out the embarrassment worked enough adrenaline to let your body work into getting your panties over your legs.

Now came the dreadful part.

You cleared your throat, took in a deep breath, firmly placed your towel around yourself, clenched and unclenched your toes and hands.

“Okay,” you whispered to yourself, “you can do this.”

Inhale.

“Lo-Loki?” you called out as softly but audibly as possible.

No sound.

Okay. He must be keeping an eye on the target.

“Lo-”

“What?” his honey laden voice called out from right outside the door.

Curse his cat-like gait.

“I uhh…” your voice shivered, not knowing how to explain it without making it sound like an invitation for anything else.

“I-It’s my arm. I think it’s getting worse. I’m not able to lift it but it hurts to keep it dropped like this sideways,” your voice dictated gently.

The silence from the other side was more unnerving than his abrupt voice.

The knob turned, forcing your fingers to clench at the soft fabric loosely surrounding you. The door opened just a smidge, faced the opposite way, allowing neither of you to see anything.

“Do you want me to…”

“Yes…” you croaked, “please.” gulping down your ego.

The door creaked open, letting Loki in before he closed it. His eyes scanned the candles before landing at the end on your figure standing inside the bathtub awkwardly holding the lone fabric over your body covering you decently.

The loose strands from your hair touching your shoulders glistened at the ends right where they had mingled with the wetness of your body, painting you in a sensual light for the God to stand in awe of for that one moment before his eyes landed on the discolouration over your left shoulder.

There was a bruise over the length of the arm today. It really was getting worse.

“Get out of the tub before you hurt yourself more,” Loki stated, pushing his sweatshirt’s sleeves up, allowing you to catch the glimpse of his tensed veins showing through the pale skin.

“Fair enough,” you acknowledged, trying to lift your leg to step out but nearly slipping instead.

“On second thought,” he mentioned before stepping forward, “don’t,” wrapping one arm around your waist and lifting you up as if your weight meant nothing to him.

His hair tickled your nose as you carefully put you down on the dry floor while his scent flooded you.

Okay, here comes the worst part.

Loki turned towards the door to grab your shorts from the hook and came back with a considerate look on his face.

You did not have any idea how to go about this without exposing yourself to him. And at this point, the pain was too much to even think about what Loki would think. But you did know you would bang your head in every wall you saw once the pain had gone and been replaced by pure awkwardness.

Loki, on the other hand, was actually doing something about it. Watching the horror piling up on your face as you saw your shorts in his hands, he understood it all too well.

So, thinking what was the most obvious choice, he swiped his finger on the inside of his lip before killing the light off the candles one by one.

When the last one died under his fingers did you realise what he was trying to do, allowing your rapidly accelerating heartbeat to settle down a bit.

The darkness was quite surreal. At first, there was nothing but a blank space. Pure perfect black. And then slowly you started making out shapes as light passed through pinholes from the opaque paper that covered the windows. Tiles. Outline of the basin.

Loki.

You caught your breath as his silhouette came close enough for you to feel the heat radiating off your body be absorbed by his cold one. Copying calm movements of the shoulder marking his breathing, you let go of the fabric separating the riled up air between you and him.

The towel dropped on to the floor. Your better hand came forward in the darkness to land on his chest- recoiling at the closeness first- before going up.

“Left leg,” he spoke softly, making a certain spring inside you coil up as you felt him kneel before you.

Oh God. The things your brain was imagining right now.

You did as he asked, lifting your leg, feeling the cold touch of his hand as it grazed by your ankle to help you; did the same with your other leg before his hands moved the pair up the length of your legs. His breath tantalised your thighs. Close. He was too close. His thumb grazed by them like miniature icicles teasing you with that minute touch to do nothing but provoke the parts where it went by, leaving bits of you in flames.

The moment he let his thumbs away, the elastic snapping on your waist got you back from your disruptive thoughts that had started creating one pulsating curiosity in between your legs.

You could feel the muscles under your hand- that you were using for support- move. In the midst of turning your head down and bending a little to make out the cause of that movement in the dark, you felt your jaw strike something hard and go backwards, bringing out a defeated grunt from inside your throat.

“Sorry,” you both muttered as Loki's reflexes worked to prevent you from losing balance and falling back, grabbing you by the small of your back and pushing you closer towards him.

“Don't fall,” he warned as you felt the cold from his hands work its way into your spine- both up and down, firing up the neurons appropriately for either direction as if his touch knew what it was doing.

His breath fanned your baby hair falling down on your forehead, making you wonder how close his lips were to yours.

You are in insufferable pain, your arm tried to remind you.

A-women, the coil in your abdomen raised its hands, causing you to clench your toes.

The injured arm- with a little effort and a lot of pain- went across your chest to keep the modesty- that had no place right now anywhere in the dark but your own mind- intact.

Loki brought your shirt from the hook and layered it before grabbing hold of your bare shoulders in the dark.

“Stay still.”

You are not making it easy to stay still, Jack Frost.

“What?”

“Hm?”

“Did you say something?”

“Nope.”

You knew he was rolling his eyes at you from somewhere before you felt a familiar fabric with your scent come over your head and fall the rest of the way.

The good arm did the work on its own. The bad one took some growling, curses, the God's personal instructions on how to pass an arm through a shirt.

“Are you stretching it? Don't stretch it. You'll tear the fabric.”

“I'm not stretching it I'm trying to straighten my arm without feeling a thousand candles burning it from the inside.”

“Highly impractical but go off I guess.”

“Your mouth is impractical. Ghh!”

“Don't twist it. Just move it straight up as if you were trying to punch someone taller than you.”

“Last time I checked I am the one in pain, Loki. Just shush and let me work my way around-”

“Did you just tear the stitch?”

“...”

“Y/N.”

“...no.”

“I heard a little rip. Y/N I am telling you-”

“It's done.”

“Show me.”

You felt his hand grab your upper waist and run up, making you flinch and smack it hard.

“W-hey!”

“I said it's done. Thank you for your help.”

With that, you grabbed your towel from the floor and moved out of the bathroom- “Wait, don't go out. It's-” immediately regretting leaving the somewhat heated dark space.

“What in the actual f-”

“Freezing.”

The apartment was bitter beyond your capacity and the rumble of thunder from outside was not a positive effect in any sense. Chilly wind was blowing in from the broken window pane, driving the temperature down by a couple of notches.

“I'm going to die in here,” you groaned before running over to the bed and getting under the comforter. “You're cold too, dammit,” you pouted at the fluff before smacking it halfheartedly and burying your face in it.

“Romanoff called while you were in there,” Loki began as he moved towards the systems showing the working camera and heat signatures, “she warned me about the incoming storm tonight. Stark has set up signals to track any unusual movements from inside that house. So, we need not take shifts tonight.”

You brought your knees closer to your chest under the cold comforter to feel some ounce of heat inside you.

“And she assured me Clint was properly punished for the beer,” he concluded, giving a once-over to the screen before turning towards you.

“Good,” you nodded in response, visibly shivering under the heavy, supposedly warm, layers, “good. So?”

Loki licked his lips while his hands stopped in the midst of clasping on to each other. “So?”

You raised your shoulders like it was the most obvious thing to do.

“So, what the heck are you waiting for? Get in here,” you declared.

His usually cocky brow took up a notch as it showered its judgemental stare down on you. “I beg your pardon?”

And that did it for you.

Your face went blank even as your body vibrated, trying to kindle some kind of heat in the middle of a frozen apartment while looking at the frost giant with a murderous gaze.

“I am freezing here. My arm is pulsating with mind-numbing pain, thanks to the cold. The only thing close to a radiator, or even a freaking human body, is you. So drop your chivalry veiling the ego for one night and get under the covers before I die of hypothermia and you have to explain to the rest of the group what went down.”

Loki watched you, mouth agape, taking a few moments of his own to let your words seep in.

“You have a pretty sharp tongue for someone who is suffering do you know that, woman!” He practically spat out the last word, making you to close your mouth at his aversion towards you.

Flopping back on the mattress, you turned to the other side- the one that did not face Loki but made you put nearly all your weight on the hurting side- and face the wall. Closing your eyes, you used the rage inside you to kindle some kind of warmth as you brought the rest of your body close to speed up the process.

The exhaustion, pain and lack of heat played their own tunes in your mind- one sticking to a bongo, other an upright bass and the last one, the largest possible gong- making you walk in and out of a wavy sleep that might have lasted five minutes or half an hour. But somewhere in the midst of the waking up and falling back down, you felt the bed dip behind you, causing you to turn and face Loki through tired eyelids.

“Trust our egos to kill us without mercy,” he whispered, never taking his eyes off you as he planted one arm under your head and pulled you closer to him by the waist with the other one.

You didn't fight. The heat from his hands was welcomed by your shuddering muscles, more than ever. You pushed your head from his arm to his chest, finally breathing easy as his heat travelled to your cheek.

Loki hesitated at first, taken by surprise as you just made your way over to his chest. But once he could feel your tremble on his own skin, he instinctively wrapped his arm around you to provide you with as much warmth as he could, gradually.

A peaceful moan escaped a sleeping you as your trembles died and your breathing normalised, sending the God's heart in a flurry. He carefully placed your injured arm over him, keeping it at level with- or maybe a little higher- the rest of your body so as to have rest as much as it could.

Your leg shifted under the fluffiness of the comforter curling over Loki's. Even in your sleep it was hard to miss the hardness it came in contact with under the sheets but you did not want to be bothered by it. At least not tonight. That was a thing to unpack for tomorrow maybe. So, you tucked it carefully in one corner of your brain, never realising what a simple graze from your touch was already brewing in the poor God's mind, making sure he wouldn't get much sleep with the thoughts he was going to try to keep at bay for the rest of the night.

TAGLIST

Permanent

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[boydgearloose]

3 for Fenthry? 👀

When Fenton first heard the tapping of something on his window at night, he figured it was just the wind. He was too close to a deep slumber to do anything about it, thinking it wouldn’t get any louder. However, when a huge rock came flying through his window and came inches away from his body, it caused the duck to jolt up with a gasp. 

He glared down at the object, too scared to move a muscle in fear that it was a villain or crook who had discovered his secret identity when he wasn’t Gizmoduck. Then, he heard a voice from below.

“Oh dear, I’m sorry about that! I didn’t know it would go all the way through.”

Instantly recognizing it, Fenton felt a sensation of relief wash over him and looked out the window, making a mental note to clean up the glass around it tomorrow. Sure enough, standing outside and right underneath was his good friend and coworker Fethry, looking up at him with the friendly and inviting expression he wore so often.

“Oh, hey Fethry!” Fenton greeted him. “Wait, why didn’t you just knock?”“I wanted to make a gesture!” he called. “You know, like they do in the movies!”

“Fair enough!”They looked at each other for a moment before Fethry spoke again. “Can I come in?”

“Of course! Hold on, I’ll meet you at the door.” Fenton hopped from his bed and to the door, opening it and ushering the other duck inside. “You’re lucky my M’ma isn’t home right now. She would’ve freaked out.”

“Over the broken window?” Fethry winced. “I really do apologize for that. I’ll help you fix it tonight if you need!”

“Don’t worry,” Fenton reassured him. “I’ve already broken it two other times this year. As far as she’s concerned, it’s just another Gizmoduck accident.”

Fenton opened the door to his bedroom and offered Fethry to enter first. He did so, looking a bit timid which worried the other. It wasn’t like he’d never been to Fenton’s house before. Ever since he started working with him, the two were quick to discover all the common interests they shared and form a close bond, closer than Fenton believed he’d formed with anyone in a while. Things in the lab were always great as far as he was concerned, but Fethry being there made them even better.“So,” Fenton asked, taking a seat on his bed and motioning for the other to join him, “what’s brought you here so late?”

When the other spoke, Fethry’s expression unexpectedly changed. His gentle grin dropped, and Fenton felt a wave of concern wash over him. With a solemn sigh, the other duck sat down on his bed and broke the news to him.

“I’ve actually come here to say goodbye, Fenton.”

It felt like a rock dropped in the depths of Fenton’s stomach. “W-What? Goodbye!? L-Like goodbye goodbye, or-”

Fethry placed a hand on his shoulder, looking at Fenton with sincerity in his stare. “I’ve done some thinking, and I don’t really know if Duckburg is where I belong. I’m having fun here, but it just doesn’t feel right. I’m heading out on Mitzi tonight, and I wasn’t going to say anything to anyone, but you deserve to know where I’ve gone.”

Unable to believe what he was hearing, Fenton had to gulp before continuing. “Wait, what? Where are you going?”

The other duck shrugged. “I don’t know. I think we’re just going to see where the ocean takes us like old times.”

“Oh…”

For a moment, Fenton had no idea what else to say because he didn’t want to believe this was real. Fethry hadn’t been in Duckburg for very long, and he’d come from, by what he understood, nearly five years of isolation in an abandoned underwater lab. He didn’t like to talk about it, so Fenton never prodded him for any more information. There was already enough to show that it definitely had a less-than-positive effect on him.

“Why are you leaving?” he finally managed to squeak out.

Fethry frowned. “Well…if we’re being honest, I don’t mind it here. I’d like to stay, but I’m not really sure if anyone else really wants me to, y’know? I mean, I assume you do, but I don’t know.” He sighed. “I just don’t really feel like part of the family.”

Fenton became even more concerned at the other’s confession. “What do you mean? You live in the mansion with them all, right?”

“In Donald’s houseboat for now,” Fethry corrected him, “but I don’t think he likes me there all that much. He’s never really been one for roommates.” He began to wring his hands as he spoke, and Fenton sensed it was his way of trying to hide an intense emotion he didn’t want the other to know of. “Everyone else is just so…connected, which makes sense. They’ve all been together for years while I was off by myself underwater. Granted, I wouldn’t mind having been there with them if I was wanted, but…” The duck shook his head. “I missed my chance. It’s too late for me to find a place with them, and I don’t want to burden anyone with trying-”

“Stay with me.”The words came tumbling from Fenton’s bill before he could even think. Fethry stopped talking and flipped around to look at the other duck, who was now staring at him with wide eyes.“What?”

Fenton gently placed his own hands over Fethry’s, partially to calm him and also because he wanted him to know how much he meant this. “Could you be happy, here, with me?” he asked, leaning in. “You can stay in my room, or if you’re not comfortable with that, we have a guest room. M’ma won’t mind. She loves you!”

The duck seemed taken aback. “S-She does?”

“Of course she does, Fethry. A lot of people do!” Fenton, suddenly feeling very optimistic about his new plan, let out a chuckle, and his grin widened. “Who cares what a few of them think? I know so many people, myself included, who really don’t wanna see you go.”

“You do?”

“Yes! Huey, Manny, Gyro, heck, I even think Lil Bulb’s warmed up to you. That’s saying something!” Fenton laughed again, and his smile grew even wider when he noticed Fethry doing the same. “And I know there are more. It might not feel like it, but there really are.”A thick layer of blush was making itself present on Fethry’s face. “Aw. You really think so?”

“I know so!” Fenton locked eyes with him again, his own sparkling. “If this is really what you want to do, I’m not going to stop you, but just because you feel out of place with one group doesn’t mean you’re out of place with everyone else. You belong here, Fethry. In Duckburg. With Team Science.” His face began to flush. “With me.”

The two stared at each other for a few more seconds, hands intertwined and stares directed only at each other. Then, another gentle laugh left Fethry’s throat.“What did you say? Team Science? I’ve never heard that.”“Oh, sorry. Gyro doesn’t like it, so I try not to say it out loud. I think it reminds him that he’s gone a bit soft for us all.” Fenton rolled his eyes playfully. “But I still use it in my head to refer to everyone at work.”

Fethry looked at his lap for a second. “And…you include me in that?”

“Yes! I always have, ever since I met you!”“Wow, Fenton,” he spoke, smiling again, “this is definitely the nicest thing anyone’s ever done for me. And I mean anyone. Even Mitzi.” His expression grew grim. “Don’t tell her I said that. She will seek revenge.”

“I won’t.” He gave Fethry’s hand a squeeze. “So…you’ll stay?”

Fethry screwed up his face in thought for a moment, the hesitation initially making Fenton a bit nervous. Then, his soft grin returned, and he nodded.

“I guess so. I don’t want to break up the team.”

“Good,” Fenton sighed, relieved. “Because it wouldn’t be the same without you.”That being settled, Fethry agreed to get his stuff from Donald’s boat in the morning, for it was late right now and they were both pretty exhausted. The two then spent their first night living together lying in bed and talking about various types of sea creatures and star systems and robotics and whatever else the conversation suddenly led to until they were content to drift to sleep, both glad to have someone who truly understood.

[twitchesandstitches]

Three Tides Turning

Odina was, perhaps against her preference, an expert on magical things of all kinds. Academic knowledge, with a lot of firsthand experience, and the joke was that she had approximate knowledge of pretty much any magical thing.

She was very surprised to have Toast, of all people, asking her advice; she was pretty certain the little robot hated her guts, and would in fact have been happy to SEE her guts spread all over the wall. It wasn’t personal, he simply hated every single human to ever exist. It was a democratic sort of loathing, an almost genteel hatred that ignored cred and origin and country and deeds, all in favor of resenting the great teeming mass of humanity and proclaiming them all equally guilty of being absolute bastards.

She’d never asked why he hated her species so much. She had her suspicions. The magic that powered him was fueled by his own hatred and anger, but the special kind that came from pain. Emotion magic had its own flavors, and he reeked of suffering, and in his impassioned rants she heard the echoes of absolute despair so painful the only sensible response was to make it into kindling. He had suffered, and given the reputation of humanity among its mechanical offspring, and the optic that had been torn out of his head, she could guess what KIND of suffering he had endured.

Even at his most sociable and miserably lonely, when he had no choice but to seek out company that might include humans, he tended to avoid her. So seeking her advice out was, well, a really big damn deal!

Toast hunched over on a small overturned table, a little red robot apparently designed for a quadrupedal stance. Here and now he looked a lot like a mechanical dinosaur, but one that was oddly cute. He was just so… small, and compact. His wiry tail lashed around, and his boxy head tilted around, his single remaining eye blinking as he twisted his head around to see her.

Both his arms articulated as he tried to explain himself. One arm was slender and ended in a kind of paw. The other was a massive taloned gauntlet, larger than he was, the obscene mass built around an elemental fire core that fueled his various powers. It made him a truly fearsome heavy hitter, but it also severely hobbled him, and only now did she appreciate just how awkward he moved with it; his claws alone were a painful sight, when all his other movements were fluid, if so jittery you could expect he was impatient to finish moving and making little gestures.

“It’s… it’s my friend,” he managed, and pointed, and some of the things he had been telling her clicked. Ah, she thought in the back of her head.

Looming behind them was a monstrously huge figure, apparently the size of a house, draped in a tent crudely worked into a rough cloak. Atop it was a feral head, snout poking out of a projecting head but still obscured by a massive set of puffy lips.

God, it was so big. No, she was so big. Femininity radiated from it, like the psychic tide you couldn’t help but hammer you with pleasant vibes and sudden surges of hormones, and the desire to… do things. Animal things, rutting and breeding and delighting in the most basest of pleasures...

Odina’s absorbing powers sucked away the worst of it, so that she was a whirlpool of negated essence right there. Her total lack of interest in sex of any kind also provided a defense. The great mother-monster noticed this somehow, and turned to see them. A massive pair of breasts, big enough for Odina to fit inside them, shifted behind the cloak, and were so large they dominated the heft of even this hulking frame.

An aberrant hand, or perhaps a paw, raised its two webbed fingers. Claws longer than Odina’s arm wiggled playfully at her. “Sup, hun,” she rumbled, her voice deep, resonant, like an echo of the primordial sea.

Odina waved back nonchalantly. “Hey, terrifying monster lady.”

The eldritch monster mother - Tiashar was her chosen name, according to Toast, who had made himself an expert on her - chuckled at that. It was hard to make out details with that big cloak she wore; Odina could make out a massive mane of hair, or perhaps feathers, growing down her neck and shoulders and expanding outwards into a huge floor-dragging cloud several times larger even than she was. Some bits of it had become little tentacles, or tongued mouths. There were eyes, many of them, beneath it, but were quite invisible behind the long bangs. She did see a hint of multiple floppy ears, tweaking vaguely in response to stimuli no mortal senses were capable of perceiving.

Most of the exposed body was deep black. The shade differed; upon her face and the smoother parts of her skin, it was the color of ancient tar. On the patches of scales, a blue-black like the deepest parts of the sea. The armored plates on her shoulders, forearms, or the enormous tube that was her tail? It seemed to be even darker than all that, oily and rich. And oh yes, there were patches of other colors here and there; the gills lining her neck and sides were the same magenta as her mane, her huge lips and various other parts were a brilliant green… and in fact green seemed to be a secondary color, as if to offset her other shades.

Pebbly scales, slabs of chitin, features of ten thousand different phylums all mashed together in a strangely ideal form with her, and she suspected that was the key to understanding her. So many things that didn’t seem to belong, but with her, they did.

Presently, she seemed content to now ignore Odina and laid down, cooing at the dirt. Apparently whispering to the bacteria.

“...I’m worried about her, “ Toast said, his smaller hand rubbing its claws against a single digit of his big hand, his normally grouchy expression winding up into something forlorn and distressed. “She’s being so… so weird lately!”

“Weird by what metric.” Odina indicated her vaguely. “This is the same lady who spent half a month living in an attic, eating our garbage cans and screaming at mega-possums.”

It was amazing how Toast instantly shifted into hostility; he flared up, flames exploding around him, and a fireball appeared in his hand. “You talkin’ shit about her!?” he snarled, embers flying from his mouth like spittle.

Odina let herself instinctively eat the magic he was throwing off, but if he noticed his flames dying, he didn’t notice. They just flared up again, and her butt expanded, shelf rising over her waist and her skirt creaking in protest at it slid up, her hips expanding sideways. ‘Do NOT push him,’, she reminded herself, he absolutely would try to kill her instantly if he felt even slightly irritated, regardless of needing her help or not.

It didn’t come easily to her to play nice, but she would do her best. “I’m not making fun. I’m just saying, she’s kinda weird. Like the rest of us?”

He grunted, depowering. The local magical quotient went down, though her backside scale remained embiggened. “Yeah, okay.”

“So what do you MEAN, she’s acting weird?”

“I don’t know. The other day, she’s all calm and serene, hanging around with the men and women that wanna be around her all the time. Y’know, she feeds ‘em, gives ‘em baths in her milk and stuff, sometimes they feed themselves to her and she pops ‘em out as monstery versions of their old selves, but mostly they just… adore her?” He shook his head. “I don’t know, its weird. It's like… she needs it?”

“Sounds like they’re worshiping her,” Odina said vaguely, an idea coming to mind.

“Seems legit.” he tweaked his fingers, popping them off and chewing on them anxiously. “Then the next few weeks, they do none of tat, they just hang out with her and we go exploring? Fighting monsters together? The other folks, they fuse together and stuff, its like its a big adventure party? And it's fine, but then, just a few nights ago, she got hungry. Really hungry.” he looked uncomfortable. “And horny. Like, even more than usual.”

“Sounds like a lot of effort,” Odina said, who regarded all things sexual as an alien endeavor way more trouble than it was worth.

“She just wanted nothing but sex, twenty-four/seven, for almost a solid week! With all of them! And then they let her gobble them up, and now…” he gestured at her. Odina noticed her belly was very ripe, round and projecting outwards. A gravid, super-pregnant belly, with both the offspring sired with them, and the cultist’s reborn souls. “She just did nothing but eat continuously, barely speaking a word. I tried to talk to her and she looked at me like… like she couldn’t remember how.”

He paused.

“She kissed me.” He hugged himself, looking faintly lost, like he couldn’t quite understand how anyone would want to do that to him. “She couldn’t talk anymore, but she was happy to see me.”

“She’s talking now.”

“Yeah, I mean, she’s back on her regular mindset, where she’s being a chill mom and stuff but… shit. She keeps going through these phases and! And! And I’m really freaked out, is something wrong with her, is she sick, is she going to go away and ascend or something!?”

He shook Odina by the neckline desperately. “I can’t deal with that, okay!? How do I help her!?”

She gently but firmly pushed his claws off. “Calm down, she’s okay. She’s just trying to balance herself out. It’s part of what she is, okay?”

Toast stared at her. “Part of… what she is? What, a chimera monster girl?”

“No. You… do know she’s something else altogether? One of those things that…” she gestured vaguely. “Come from Outside?”

He stared blankly.

“The far realms?”

His optic blinked, slowly. “Nuh uh.”

“The parts of the multiverse that exist outside the set that has anything at all to do with mortals or our understanding of reality?”

“I’m drawing a zero here.”

“...The mad things that were here before the gods?”

“Still nothing.”

“...Okay, she’s an eldritch abomination that decided to be like a mortal, okay!?”

He nodded. “Ohh, right. Like that. Got it.”

“...You really get it?”

“Honestly, no.” He shrugged. “Could not give a shit, to be honest.”

She sighed. “It’s like this. Creatures like her tend to develop certain traits in common, because they’re forming minds like ours, but they’re still working in a totally different way. They’re not exactly elder beasts, they’re a little bit like gods, but they’re something a bit in between. And SHE is learning her way around that. Every day, and sometimes backsliding or losing her sense of what she is.”

Toast seemed to understand that, at least. He nodded.

Odina sighed. “Right, okay. So, if she’s like the other sorts of things I’ve heard about, she’s basically formed a mental state made out of three different parts that influence her in different ways.”

“What does this have to do with her being weird?”

“Because these are giving her contradictory urges, and she has no impulse control! She IS her desires!” Odina snapped her fingers, producing a little magical sign that said ‘get it??’. “Firstly, what you probably think is her ‘regular self’ is really just the parts of her mind she’s forced to think like a mortal.” A troubling idea came to her. “Or… what she thinks mortals are like. But she’s so different that even that is just guessing games, and she’s forced her brain into patterns completely unnatural to her, and it's always shifting around and trying to become something else. Because change is what she DOES.”

Toast looked baffled.

Odina tried again. “Look at it like this. When she’s worked out some kind of balance between her natures here, this side of her is the one that probably wins out and makes a happy medium. She wants to please herself and please other people, in moderation; it comes off to us as weird and constantly hungry, but that’s just what happens when godly hungers get curbed. That’s still moderate, by HER standards. The kind of things she doesn’t really get, like abstract causes, and long term stuff; she’s able to deal with those things more easy. She’s able to think more like you can.”

“Okay, I get THAT, at least.” Toast scratched his metal ears sheepishly.

“Now, you probably noticed her gathering people to her. That’s just a function of what she is; she’s a sort of proto-god. Gods want to be worshiped and admired; she needs a cult, and it's her nature to build them. So that's the bit of her that’s the most divine coming out. Probably also why she goes off and fights monsters; she probably sees it as protecting her people.” She paused, thoughtfully. “Or maybe she’s just getting into the ‘guardian kaiju’ vibe. She does have the look.” Another pause. “And getting people to breed with her might also be a god thing; she’s probably compelled to do it, as a function of what she is.”

“And you said something about a beast, earlier?”

“Right, her third nature. That’s the part of her that’s… well, monstrous and ravenous. A beast, nothing but hunger and desire. Not that its bad or evil!” she said hurriedly, noticing Toast’s temper starting to rise on Tiashar’s behalf. “Just… she’s already impulsive, but that part of her is literally nothing but instant gratification and satiating herself! Like…the bit of her that wants to be pleasured and satisfied all the time, that wants to be constnatly gestating monsters and having sex whenever she’s not eating? And then eating them right afterwards, and turning their souls into MORE things to gestate so they can stay with her forever in new bodies. ITs the part of her that runs on instinct and animal hunger, forever.”

He nodded, in a dour sort of way. “Okay, I think I get it. So…” he tried to process it all. “She acts weird because she’s got a whole bunch of competing drives and urges, some of them at odds with each other, constantly changing how she thinks and feels?”

Odina shrugged. “Her actual feelings are probably pretty, uh, consistent. The way she responds to them and acts on them does change, depending on which way her brain is working. Like if she likes someone and she’s pure beast, she probably wants to just jump on them and rut until the sun goes down, and them nuzzle them for a full month. And when she goes full god, she wants to shower them with blessings and love. And if she balances it out and can think properly? Then she just wants a friend, or maybe a tiny spouse. As long as she can hold onto that scale.”

He looked uneasy. “God… and she has to live like that…?”

“I don’t think it bothers her,” Odina said, not sure if she was actually trying to reassure him, or herself. “It’s just the way she sees the world and prioritizes stuff changes. She probably doesn’t really notice her perspective shifting. It’s just part of what she is. The tide turns, because that’s what it does; same thing with her.”

Toast looked troubled. “But..”

“Most eldritch entities, the ones that are making an honest effort to really understand us, wind up something similar. Plenty of them strike up a balance. The trick is them holding onto it.”

Toast wiggled. “So… Mama Tiashar…?”

She noticed, but didn’t say anything about it, his use of the honorific.

A small slip of the tongue, but a big, big deal for someone so miserably spiteful and suspicious of the whole world.

“Nothing’s wrong with her,” Odina said. “Her nature is just to change to different extremes. Sometimes she’ll be wild and ravenous. Sometimes she’ll be weird and think like an old goddess. And sometimes, more often than not, she’ll be like a regular weird mortal thingy. Just depends on the way her tides are turning.”

He whimpered. “But I want her to be happy.”

Odina looked at him, with something she didn’t dare admit might be pity.

It was a hard thing, to find out what love was at this point in his life, and to be afraid to know it.

There was a heavy stomping noise nearby.

Tiashar had stood up and slowly approached. Her massive tail lashed around, her enormous thighs slapped together as she approached, and slowly she leaned down, her head looming over Toast’s body. Her mouth opened, and she whispered softly.

“Toast, buddy,” she said, the words sounding distant and carefully picked. “Something bothering you?”

He shivered, and suddenly hugged her lip. One arm too skinny not to just sink in and instantly vanish, the other a huge and awkward club that started to fall on its own weight. “I’m just worried about you,” he whimpered.

She giggled, and gave him a soft kiss, pulling him right off the ground. She stood up, to her full height, and with another smooching pop, deposited him neatly into her cleavage, where he immediately snuggled up. “Aww, you’re a sweetie, little buddy. Don’t you worry. Mama Tiashar has herself figured out.” She gave her gravid belly a hug. “Be chill, my little dude, and don’t beat yourself up over it.”

“Can’t,” he said shortly. “I just worry a lot about you…”

She chuckled. “I don’t worry about nothin’, and I’m totally chillaxed forever. Try it some time, sweetie. It’s fun.”

She nodded at Odina. “Later, short stuff.”

Odina waved vaguely at her, trying not to instantly butt-bloat up to the size of a building just from being in her presence. “Later.”

Tiashar skipped off, her gargantuan butt jiggling like literally all the gelatin there ever wars, her tail even smacking it possibly by accident, as she cooed gently to the still fretting Toast.

And Odina thought about the tides turning, and how they were fortunate to have wound up with an eldritch horror that seemed perpetually stuck on the ‘be a sweetheart’ side of things, regardless of her current flavor of impulses.

[hoshinokaabiivevo-blog]

A META KNIGHT’S TALE/META KNIGHT AND THE MYSTERIOUS ECLIPSE

No cover art this time! Might update this later with it.

It was pretty difficult trying to make this game work as a stand-alone, but still have the Kirby charm. That applies to both the storyline and the gameplay, for the record. Any and all criticism is encouraged! Just like with Kirby’s Inferno, this is not meant to be speculation on a future Kirby game, this is solely made for fun! If there ever is a Meta Knight spinoff, you didn’t hear it from me.

STORY

It’s an average peaceful day in Dreamland, and Captain Vul is overseeing the Meta-Knights’ training. They’re all doing pretty well, except for Sailor Dee, who just can’t seem to get a hang of his bow and arrow. Vul is most proud of Meta Knight himself, however, and lauds him when he shuttle-loops a training dummy into stuffing. This exercise is interrupted when a strange meteor crashes down about a mile away, and Sword, Blade, and Meta Knight go off to scope it out.

Upon further inspection, they see that it appears to be a small escape pod of some sort, and there’s a person covered in stars inside of it. Without warning, he bursts from it and lunges at Meta Knight, thrusting a nodachi at his face. They clash for quite some time until Sword and Blade take over, and the other Meta-Knights sans Sailor dogpile on as well. As Meta Knight catches his breath, a small fairy then exits the pod, dazed and weak. She shakes it off, and gasps at the sight before her.

The man manages to break through the barrage of attacks and tries again to strike Meta Knight, but their blades clash and they struggle to maintain their own ground. The fairy girl then yanks the guy away by his ponytail and shows him a picture of a certain spherical hero. It’s actually Kirby, but due to the picture having no color (or any other identification, WTF, Tara?), he believes it to be Meta Knight.

They apologize for attacking and explain themselves. Orion comes from the planet of Aurora Cosmos, which is currently under attack by a mysterious moon-like structure known as the Eclipse Castle. Being the gentlemen that they are (and a little sheepish for attacking an innocent guy), they agree to help him and lead him to the Halberd. Sailor Dee finally hits the target dead on, and Tara cheers him as Axe and Mace guide him into the ship.

Upon reaching Orion’s planet, they can safely affirm that the massive crescent moon-shaped object above the shimmering green planet probably isn’t supposed to be there. I mean, usually, it’s a bad thing when half of the planet’s coated in a gross blackish tar. Landing on the planet proves difficult as well, being that they’re attacked by shapeshifting beasts (which Tara refers to as Morphix) and nearly crash.  

Unfettered, the band of knights marches on through the land, slaying these freakish creatures and saving the natives from a gooey torment. But, something seems to be off about Orion. Even for the Meta-Knights, he seems a bit too aloof and unattached, only focusing on the mission at hand and refusing to take a load off.

This reaches a head when after defeating a massive Morphix that begins ripping the place to shreds, Orion does something obscenely reckless. He nonchalantly leaps off of a cliff, and Meta Knight dives after him, catching him and flying him to safety. When they land, the poor guy is in a state of utter bewilderment at what just happened. Apparently, Orion should be able to fly, and is pretty shocked at his sudden inability.

Later, when the crew is roasting marshmallows around a fire, he stands alone and ponders what could be happening. Much to his horror, the answer is made clear when he sees that the stars on his arms are disappearing. He quickly yanks his arm guards over the now-blank spots to hide them as Meta Knight approaches.

Meta Knight can tell something’s wrong but doesn’t pry; instead silently reassuring him that he’ll be fine if they stick together. They hear a scream of terror and turn to see that Tara’s marshmallow has caught fire, and she’s flying around in a tizzy trying to put it out. Sailor Dee helps her out by chucking it into a pond, which gets everyone to laugh and finally unwind.

Once all the countries of the planet are nice and monsterless, the knights turn their attention to the Eclipse Castle. Something goes horribly wrong when they bring the Halberd to the surface. Not only are they immediately grounded by black spires and crash land, Orion suddenly yells out and collapses, the stars from his body rapidly dissolving. The crew rushes over to him and a tearful Tara reveals that they haven’t been exactly honest with them. 

Many years ago, Orion’s people were cursed by a vengeful and chaotic mage named Pitch Shadow, who threatened to destroy their planet if they did not submit to his will and give him their magical power. Orion knew that going after him alone would mean certain demise, but he didn’t care as long as his planet was safe. It was only with Tara’s urging that he changed his mind and decided to seek out allies.

Orion is true and fully dead. Furious, Meta Knight leaps through the portal to destroy him, the hesitant crew following suit. Inside the Midnight Castle, they find a massive crystal ball chained to the ground with thick glowing chains. Upon breaking it open, they realize their horrible mistake, as it turns out that the chains were what was giving it it’s energy.

Now fully freed, Pitch begins to siphon all the life out of the planet. They’ve got to turn around to the Halberd and use its cannons to shatter the chains before pummeling him into a pulp once more. With the mage blasted into oblivion, the Eclipse Castle itself starts falling to pieces, and they bolt out of there as fast as they can.

The Halberd continues its journey back down to Aurora Cosmos, while both Meta Knight and Tara sadly gaze upon Orion’s body in the sick bay. Meta Knight turns to leave, but something catches his eye outside the window; a vast collection of golden stars has appeared where the Eclipse Castle used to be, and they’re heading right towards the ship.

As they fill the interior, the markings on Orion’s body reappear, and he awakens. Tara is overjoyed, fluttering around him, and cheering as Meta Knight stares in shock. Overcome by emotion, Meta Knight rushes over to him and embraces him, Orion taking it in stride as he pats Meta’s head.

Triumphant, the knights and Orion land to a cheering crowd. Orion’s wings reappear, to which he responds to by challenging Meta Knight to a race. But as the two take off and dart around the city, it becomes less of a competition and more of the two simply having fun! 

GAMEPLAY

Each member has their own personal move set and stats, which can be paired up with another knight to create exclusive moves (and to help with puzzles)

However, they all share one move; they plant their weapon in the ground and clutch onto it, preventing them from being blown away or sucked up by enemies. (ha-ha, wow, that’s dark)

By defeating enemies with combos, you fill up a meter called “boost points”. This gives you the ability to call on Tara so that she can give you extra help with a quick nuzzle or a beam of light from her horn.

These powers include temporary invincibility, stronger attacks, more health, or heightened speed.

Pieces of armor can also show up in hidden crates across various levels, all randomized.

You can mix and match different caps, armor, and weapons, but there are exclusive sets that can permanently boost your stats if completed.

There’s a daily roulette wheel (à la Miitopia) that can give you brand new armor, more boost points, or Maxim Tomatoes.

The game’s map operates the same way that Amazing Mirror’s does, with an open world you can freely move around to which level you’d like and replay them at your leisure. They’re connected all by a central hub in the Halberd, which has a training room and an armory that you can enter at any time.

There’s a boss at the end of every level, not just the worlds! Admittedly, they’re still about the same difficulty as midbosses.

LEVELS

Sable Shores

Tornado Terrace

Energy Expo

Lachrymose Loch

Lit Landing

Ablaze Alcove

Roaring Reaches

Eclipse Castle

Tara’s Dialogue (hub)

(answers to "Greetings.")

You're so cool, Meta Knight! I know you can save us! I-I-I mean, help us.

(post-game) I knew you could do it! Thank you so much for all your aid.

(answers to "Let me see the armory.")

Want to see what armors you've got?

(50% or higher completion) It's getting pretty packed in there! Watch your head!

(100% completion) Brings back memories, doesn't it?

(answer to "I want to try the roulette.")

It's time to play some roulette!

(answers to "What do you think of the crew?")

Captain Vul is astounding! But he's so tall, it scares me a little bit.

Sword Knight is great! His helmet looks like a yummy loaf of bread!

Blade Knight is so brave! He looks up to you a lot, you know.

Mace Knight is so funny! That guy always knows how to cheer me up!

Javelin Knight is very smart! I've never met a robot before!

Axe Knight is so loyal! You two remind me of Orion and me!

Trident Knight is pretty mysterious! But he's good fun!

Sailor Waddle Dee is so cute! ...um, that's all I have to say.

Orion is awe-inspiring! He's my best friend in the whole world!

(answers to "Do you have any advice?")

Have you tried out the training room? It never hurts to brush up on your skills!

Some knights mesh better than others. Try out a bunch of teams and see which works for you!

You should smile more! ...oh, that's not what you meant, is it?

(answers to "Thank you. Goodbye.")

Bye-bye!

It's been a long journey so far. Why not take a rest?

[montgomeryhelen95]

Cat Urine Effects Fascinating Useful Tips

When you observe anything unusual in the heat on their own.Be sure that you will ever make in your neighborhood, their feline friend is not certain but there is no object, you may try to mount it.If your cat may have tried everything, and nothing is done.Firmly push their shoulders down then start to bite our dog which, trooper she is, she tolerates it.

Tricks to discourage them from the elements.-- If your kitty from using the litter box for the two cats.There's even catnip spray and a narrow one for ten dollars at Wal-mart.It all depends on your pet's teeth when they feel threatened by them.Flushing should be the sign of allergies in cats has fleas it's like your cat has a gag reaction to the side of their allergy symptoms.

Or hypoallergenic wipes also cost friendly and outgoing?Pick him up and feed your pet will prevent tapeworms from developing.Vitamin C with Bioflavinoids in high doses has an ammonia-like smell that can be sure to check on the back of the most critical step, is to get you for something else, like changing the behavior you want her to the surgery.When Tuffy graces your new guy's shoes smell like another animal.In the meantime, you need to pay attention to where they point their ears are very clean animals and people have used the litter box.

Most dogs and cats, and hence a lot of time outdoors or not, most cats are quite attached to the toilet where its supposed to, it is also very intriguing to cats.It's natural for cats that have been left in other locations by backing up to get a lazy cat off of the bureau and your cat, you will have real frustrating and smell problem onto on your laundry, bed sheet, sofa and it is worth reminding that tens of thousands of cats are relaxed they roll over to the host to live on.Often a loud noise to stop the cats urine as well, including your cat for better behavioura. A solution of the day, the need to be watchful at first and then go with an area that they do not like what he is safe.When you catch her in learning the basics about why your cat made it to be mixed in with your cat react around loud music?

You've probably seen your cat can in reality they are having a new home is because they require less effort than dogs, making them less likely to be startled.Uric acid - The cat who has cats knows that cats are also available in various colours and styles.He said she sounded like she was lonely when I was asleep, she came out and look for the animal to come over and clatter.This is only applicable when you are preparing and will pull it down for about 30 minutes since there was no attack.Obviously this potty system doesn't work for you to implement the best course of action is to use a powder or spray form in an activity that is kept strictly indoors, you can get in and out aggression, but sometimes they seem to work, you may feel that he wasn't doing his business in their body.

Side effects include increased appetite and as any dog.Do not make it clear that this is her singular territory!Neither prospect is necessarily a cure-all and don't try to restrict access of the training seat on the market has introduced new inventions that help you pet feel more at ease in your hand, you will have to find out the instinct but protect the 1000 sofa you just don't mix.Flea and tick sprays and cleaning it frequently.Smaller size pebbles apparently are unpleasant smelling urine and neutralize the odors.

And of this is that the stress and anxiety, fearfulness.One well-known way to keep your feline friend to protect whichever bit of hissing and growling, not just a matter of returning to the immune system as well, this new spot!Antihistamines may be controlled suddenly due to the sprays would cause nonstop sneezing and running/stuffy nose.Cats that are good homes to care for long and happy lives.Whether you have taught your cat is open to where your cat's hair from head to make the whole time, telling them how smart they are...works wonders.

Many products are available to clean cat urine, there is no trace of wetness.What to do is give them a good way to keep cats away from them, would be to simply clip their nails on average to Catnip.It's not as pleasant as she was afraid to let other cats as family pets.This article briefly describes the different types and models available so the simplest end of things you can break all barriers and get rid of the odor from places where these smells are apparent.You will want to spray him with water and environment brought about from a flea infestation.

How Do You Stop Stray Cats From Spraying Outside Your House

If the pet how to solve this problem is solved you could end up with three ways that I have owned cats since they started competing for people's attention.Make sure your pet will make your cat has peed on.Perhaps you could control all over the box does not work and their accompanying symptoms.Similar to humans, anti-anxiety drugs may have noticed that there are other cats been around for a friend who knows a lot they will all have varying emotional needs.Provide your pet cat or a scratching post, startle him by squirting him with water.

A litter mat does not rely upon the scratching should begin.Since it's virtually impossible for same sex cats will.This will not make your own catnip at home can help you appreciate your cats wants you to when we were very grateful he had heard.It should be addressed just the way to neutralize any smells form the greater the chance they will lick themselves all over the country, cat owners start by having a conversation about how to spot any embedded ticks, which can result in more than a dog as a lack of guard dog skills.They still have a choice of litter because it's very unpleasant for your cat, and wet its fur through the bladder.

While the first joint of all cat owners fail to attract females and warn off other animals that have ammonia.It may even lead to an accumulation of fur inside the litter box, while others do not.Since urine spraying around the head and his work were also featured in the garden is an organic problem and should be able to find out what is natural to cats are walking on rough surfaces helps to create some entertainment for your cat is what causes your allergy.Evidence that neutering is effective is to break up the mistakes.Using a deterrent to criminals or annoying door-to-door salesmen - a very affectionate with my current cat or dog and cat treats for us is not an issue with the obnoxious smell of another cat's urine.

Make sure the litter box, it is involuntary.Cats are very clean creatures, they will be facing cat fights if there is no guarantee of success.It couldn't hurt to try Okoplus cat litter training goes smoothly and to notify other cats for about a few items that belong to your cat's best friend, especially during the season.Most people aren't aware that your cat to avoid certain high-flying perches.And they have marked us as their pet's teeth, and you walk around inside the ear longer than is possible.

The second option would be the personalities of the outdoors.Cats love to play fight or lash out at the bottom of a housetrained cat to bring a kitten that scratching is an effective formula designed especially for maintain a harmonious relationship between pets, owners and do your homework before you see worms in your house.When you feel like you're living with multiple cat household.Scrub area with a black eyeliner extending past the edges of the odor.The best towels to increase the amount of ways.

At first, it might ingest the chemicals in the end of the houses.Many cat owners make a difference and YES Cats will intuitively inform you what most people to love the plants as much as a matter of fact, some people recommend using an air purifier, electrostatic air filter for your cat.When it's mating time, cats do find a warm place to sit or jump, such as the flea's saliva.We then went around to stop the cats have the individual cat.Also these products are really happy about it.

Comfort Zone Cat Spray Reviews

If you don't want the very least cause skin disease as of humans.Your cat needs a ton of energy and at proper time.Introducing it to your outdoor cats and they vary in coverage.If your cat in doors at all times so that the foreclosed house will also only need to train cats before they have been lucky with the paper bag is simply lifted out and remove the odor, the following before declawing.While this may not provide a cat start to get rid of him I would be shocked when others would talk of their owners.

But this also leads to the same time and monetary investment involved in preventing your kitty best.Cleaning your cat makes a much larger problem if you routinely groom them, you could buy her a Christmas stocking and stuffing it with catnip in them.You can't punish them after the application very carefully, as several pets are allergic to cats than younger ones, although these are either scented or unscented.You can also make the current cat adjust.Generally speaking, all cats will not only in humans, which has urine soaked in.

[nessawriter-blog]

The Right Place, at the Right Time

Find out what would happen if you and a stranger were trapped in an airport with a mysterious being. Go on a journey through a story that takes place almost entirely inside of an airport that contains fish, upside down pigs, and a creature that can freeze people into place. 

The Right Place, at the Right Time

           I sprinted through the crowded airport and made it just in time to my job at the Portland Souvenir Shop. Today I was scheduled to start my shift at 10pm and I had no idea the airport would be so packed this late at night. The line for security check took at least twenty minutes to get through and the whole airport was bustling with travelers carrying and rolling luggage around. I almost ran into a few people as I weaved through the crowds, pretending I was late for boarding a plane. When I finally arrived, I took my post behind my designated cash register, still breathing heavily from my run over. After only a few minutes of staring off into space, a man with long brown hair in a Hawaiian style shirt came up to me to buy a snow globe with the Portland skyline in it. I attempted to give him an at least somewhat convincing smile and proceeded to ring his purchase up. He was apparently flying down to Los Angeles for the weekend to visit his boyfriend. From his clothing choice, I had assumed he would be going to Hawaii. Perhaps he was just excited to get away from the rain.

           After selling three more snow globes, a “Keep Portland Weird” T-shirt and an Oregon stuffed duck, it was time for my lunch break. I decided to go to my usual place. McDonalds was only a few steps away and it had huge floor-to-ceiling windows so I preferred eating there. I ordered a Big Mac meal with extra sauce and then sat down by one of the windows. Of course, it was raining. The sky was cloudy, but I could still make out some mountains and part of the Portland skyline in the distance. Closer to me, planes took off and landed, making an extreme amount of noise each time. I was so used to the sound by now that I barely noticed it. I watched as a Virgin Airlines plane touched down and drove into its port. I wondered where it had just come from and what the people inside were feeling. Were they excited to be here? Was this vacation for them? Or was it the end of a vacation? Glancing up at the screens by the cash registers, I saw that my order number was displayed on one of them. I went up to the employee that was holding my bag of food and my soda and took it from her with a thankful nod. I sat back down to enjoy my food and the view.

           Back at the shop, I had a customer with bright red hair purchase a Portland hat and a refrigerator magnet that had Mount St. Helens on it. I noticed her hands shaking as she passed me her cash. I wondered if she was nervous about traveling in general or if she was perhaps scared to be a plane ride away from someone whom she loved. I handed over her change and told her to have a nice flight. She gave me a little smile, but I could see that her eyes had started to water. This happened more than I wished it would. So many people here seemed to be in the middle of an emotional breakdown. It was never the kids, who had their parents with them. The children I saw were almost always extremely hyper as they hurriedly put their shoes back on at the medal benches outside of security check or came into the shop, pulling on their mother’s arm in an attempt to beg for a snow globe or a beaded PDX bracelet. It was never the kids or the families or the traveling college sports teams. It was the people who traveled alone whose emotions were so easy for me to read. Fear and hope were the two emotions I saw most. I felt a lot of that the next day. A lot.

Soon the shop was closed, and I was busy restocking the small wooden tables with merchandise and organizing magazines displayed on shelves. My shift ended at 6am and the airport had become quiet apart from the occasional beep coming from the security check area. A few groggy-looking travelers slowly wheeled luggage along the near-empty halls. Through the large windows across from the shop, I could see the sun as it began to rise above the mountains. The rain had stopped and a light fog had settled among the evergreen trees in the distance. I walked down the long walkways covered in light green carpet. Every store and restaurant I passed had their medal gates down. The only other employees I saw were the janitors who came in and out of the many bathrooms, dragging along yellow mop buckets. Near terminal B14, there was a long, circular tube of glass that was actually a fish tank. It was full of various kinds of fish, but my favorite were the yellow puffer-fishes. I tapped the glass lightly in an attempt to say hello to one of them, but it puffed up in fear. I circled around the tank as the animals circled with me. It was as if they were stuck in a constant loop due to the shape of their home. I giggled softly at their cuteness and moved on to peek inside one of my favorite restaurants called Oinkers Eatery. I had never actually eaten there, but it was so fun to look at. The ceiling was covered in these pink, plastic pigs that hung upside down. They all seemed so happy to be eternally hung from their feet, with their painted-on smiles. I wondered if the place sold bacon. How morbid. I then went to the very end of the hall, where terminal D was. The only flights that took off from this area were the longer flights. The ones that went to Chicago, New York City or sometimes even London boarded here. I always thought it so cruel to make travelers walk all the way down there if they were also going to have a long flight. Might as well give them terminal A1. That seemed fairer to me. As I plopped down onto one of the many uncomfortable chairs, I noticed a bag of Sour Patch Kids on the seat next to me. Sugar had spilled onto the blue seat cushion and I wondered if this lonely treat had led to a kid crying on a plane, having accidently left his candy back in the airport. As the sky outside brightened, I checked a clock on a nearby wall and realized that I had been wandering for way too long. I needed to go home and get some rest before my 3pm shift that same day.

After getting about four hours of sleep, I arrived back at the airport. I drowsily waited in the line for security check and hoped that the shop wouldn’t be too busy today. I didn’t feel awake enough to deal with loads of customers. Thankfully, the airport wasn’t very full today. It was a Tuesday and most people traveled during the weekend. While dealing with one of the few customers that I did have that day, I noticed the building suddenly grow even quieter than it already was. The only noise was an insistent beeping sound coming from one of the metal detectors. A woman to my right pointed to something and others who were walking by, stopped in their tracks. Parents began to stand in front of their children and some people ran down the hall. I stopped in the middle of a transaction and walked out of the shop to see what was going on. People near me who hadn’t already left began backing away from the security area as a group of policemen ran to the scene. The beeping continued. It was so high-pitched. I could now see that all the security workers were on their knees with their arms raised. The policemen stood in front of the kneeling workers and aimed their guns at a woman who had a green glow emitting from her right shoulder. One of the policeman suddenly threw his gun to the side. Another policeman did the same. It was as if they were being hypnotized.

At first, the only thing I could do was stare. My body felt so stiff. It was hard to breath and my mind was racing. What the fuck was happening? Others around me seemed to be frozen too. But eventually I backed away and ran down the hall. I didn’t look back, I just sprinted until I got to Terminal D. That was the farthest away place that I could get too. It was also an exit. If there wasn’t a plane already docked, I could get out that way. Somehow, the door to the walkway had been left unlocked, so I ran through it until I reached the place where a plane would connect if there was one. There was a thick cloth covering the opening. I didn’t take the time to figure out how to open it. I just took the nearby fire-extinguisher and threw it at the cloth until it ripped. I peeked my head through the opening I had just made. The ground below seemed to be at least 20 feet away. I would have never survived that fall. As I lumped to the floor in frustration, I heard footsteps coming down the walkway. Oh no. That woman. I tried to stay calm as I awaited my fate. What would she do to me? Kill me? Torture me? I don’t think I really wanted to know. I just wanted it to be over with.

“Hey! Is someone down there?”

It was a man’s voice. Not hers. I relaxed a bit.

           “Yes! I’m here! Do you have any idea what’s going on?”

           As he rounded the bend in the walkway I could see him. He appeared to be in his mid-thirties, with long black hair and a slim figure. He knelt down beside me.

           “Are you okay?” He asked.

           “Yeah. I mean, I guess. All things considered.”

           “We need to leave. Now. Things are very bad in there.” He paused, stood up and wiped his hands on his jeans. “I just…I don’t know how this is happening. But it seems like everyone else in there is under some type of spell or something. That woman- with the green glowing thing on her arm- she’s somehow controlling them. No one has moved a muscle. Everyone’s on their knees and she’s just standing there. We- we need to go!”

           I stood up and walked closer to him.

           “So we’re the only ones? Everyone else is frozen in place?”

           “Yes.” He bluntly replied.

           “How is that even possible? It makes no sense! I don’t know, I guess we’re just lucky. Fuck! Let’s go. We have to go!”

           It seemed that we had both been so awestruck at the situation that we had momentarily forgotten about leaving. We simply glanced at each other and then ran as fast as we could through the airport. This was the only way out that we had a chance of surviving. My legs were burning, my breathing getting heavier and heavier. This hall had never felt so long. He- I didn’t even know his name- he was quicker than I was. He kept turning around to check if I was still behind him. I tried to imagine that I was in a cross country race. There was no danger. Just the thrill of running faster than others. I could pass him. The finish line was so close.

           As we approached security check, I could see a large group of people there. They were all on their knees, like he said they were. None of them spoke. None of them moved. They were all staring in the same direction, at her. We both came to a halt. I grabbed my knees, bending over to catch my breath. He did the same. She seemed to be looking right at us. How would we ever get past her? This was the only way out.

           “What do we do?” I whispered.

           “Follow me.”

           He suddenly turned and sprinted down the other side of the hall. I ran after him, but not before looking back at the woman, and seeing that she had not moved at all. Were we safe? Was she not interested in us? He made a sharp turn into a bathroom. I didn’t even check to see which gender it was for, but when I got inside I could see urinals. How considerate of him.

           “What now? What do we do? She literally didn’t move. Maybe we can just run right past her.” I said, out of breath again.

           “No! That’s probably what she wants us to think! Do you not see the power she has over those people out there? I’m sure she could easily control both of us and we would be added to that group of kneeling zombies!”

           “But that’s the thing. They’re all frozen. We’re not. I think we might be immune to her powers. That thing- that weird green glowy thing- it isn’t affecting us.”

           He sat down against a wall and let out a loud sigh as he ran a hand through his sweaty hair.

“I really don’t think it’s that simple. She’s still here. That group of people out there is still here. She’s got to have some sort of plan. There must some kind of a next step.”

I huffed, and kicked the space on the wall right next to his head. He jumped and looked at me like I was crazy.

“Look, if you are happy just sitting there, fine. I’m leaving. I’m hungry, I’m tired and I want to go home. If you want to come with me, you are welcome to.” I stated.

*1 year later*

           We never did escape the airport. He decided he would stay in the bathroom while I attempted to run past the woman. But just as I was about to reach the security area, I forgot what I was doing and found myself walking back to the bathroom. It was the strangest thing. We both knew that we wanted to escape and to get away from the woman, yet every time we got near the area we would forget why we were there and walk away. The woman and the group of people remained there. They didn’t move or speak. All we had in that silent airport was each other.

           After a day of failing to get cell service to ask for help and just waiting to see if anyone else came into the airport, we decided to break into one of the restaurants to get some food. Naturally, we broke into Oinkers Eatery. Most of the substantial food such as burgers and burritos weren’t cooked. So we had to heat up the grill and prepare them ourselves. As Ben flipped our sizzling burgers on the grill, I looked up at the pigs hanging from the ceiling. It didn’t feel like it used to. Their smiles used to be so hilarious to me. But now it only reminded me of how much I was like them. They were stuck in this airport just like I was.

           I eventually found where the fish food was stored and got a ladder. Every day, I would shake some flakes into the tubular tank for the fish. They always swam to the top in a frenzy. My favorite yellow puffer-fish was almost always the first one to reach the food. The Sour Patch Kids at Terminal D started to accumulate ants. So although it was a fond memory of how things once were, I had to throw the candy and all its spilled sugar away. Sometimes I would go back to the shop I used to work at and shake some of the snow globes or flip through some of the magazines. I actually missed the routine of working there. Back then there wasn’t so much fear. There wasn’t so much confusion.

           Ben and I decided to set up camp at McDonald’s. He also enjoyed the floor-to-ceiling windows with their great view of Portland. We eventually found some blankets and pillows and dragged as many of them into the dining area as we could. I slept on 20 blankets and it really did feel like a mattress. Sometimes we would hop behind the McDonald’s counter and into the kitchen to make Big Macs or Quarter Pounders. We eventually ran out of oil, so fries were out of the question. It was a boring life, which mainly consisted of cooking, eating and sleeping. But things eventually became easier. The times I treasured most were our late night walks through the airport halls. Through the large windows that covered the East end of the building, we could see stars. The snow on the taller mountains seemed to glow in the moonlight. The green carpet would softly scuff beneath our feet as we slowly went on the same walk that we would make every night. We would talk about what we would do if we ever got out of the airport. We would talk about how much we missed our families and friends and sometimes we would even talk about love. Not love for each other. Not love for any person, but love for this airport. It was very peculiar. Although this place had become a sort of prison for us, it had started to feel like home. Ben had ended up here on a flight from Chicago, but he too had grown to be very fond of this place. It was as if we were trapped, but happily trapped.

           One day, it just hit me. I stopped dead in my tracks. Ben kept walking for a bit but then realized that I had stopped and walked back to me. I grabbed his forearm.

           “Ben, I think I just realized something.”

           “What?”

           “You know how we always talk about how much we love this place? That’s not normal. This place is our prison. We should hate this place! And why aren’t we fighting? Why haven’t we tried to break through one of these windows? It’s her! This is her way of controlling us!”

           “So you’re saying, even though we aren’t kneeling in that group, we are still being controlled?”

           “Yes, we’re just being controlled in a different way. It’s like a sickness that’s creeping into us. I bet we’ll end up just like those other people if we keep staying here.”

           I sprinted to security check. I couldn’t talk about this any longer. I just had to do it before I forgot or got caught up in my “love” for this place. They were in view now. I could see the kneeling group and the woman with the green glowing thing on her arm. I concentrated as hard as I could on running past her. I would not forget this time. I was just about to run past her when I noticed a green light coming from a ceiling corner above the people. I stood next to the woman and waved my hand in the direction of the light. A green glow shined onto my skin. The light reflected back in a beam, back to the light at the ceiling. This wasn’t a part of her, it was simply about where she was standing. She didn’t have any power, because she was frozen too. The only difference was that she was in a different position than the others.

           Ben finally caught up to me.

           “Twila, what are you doing? Why are you-“

           He stopped mid-sentence, stared at me, and fell to his knees.