#(fingers pinching closed and color moving to silver as the hand moves in various directions)

[jerichomere]

So after watching a youtube video with bad audio for class, I have come to the conclusion that I can, in fact, see sounds.

[chipper9906]

A New Type Of Normal

Pairings: Castiel/ Dean Winchester

Rating: General Audiences

Word Count: 2,124

Status: One Shot - Complete

Just a little fic I wanted to write based on a prompt I saw on OTP Prompt Generator. 

Summary:

Dean grumbled quietly to himself, adding another item to the ever-increasing list of supplies they’ll need to stock up on. “The supplies are getting depressingly low in here. I’m nearly out of beers, the meat-man needs to stock up on his meats-,”

“No more of the meat man!”

Prompt: Person A is about to leave to go to work. Person B asks Person A if they’ve forgotten anything, and Person A gives them a kiss. Person B turns red and opens their hand to reveal Person A’s keys/wallets etc, saying “I meant this, but thanks…”

 * * *

Dean blames it all on Sam.

He was perfectly content with showing Cas the classics: Tombstone, The Shining, Star Wars, Star Trek, Back To The Future, Ghost Busters. You know, classics. But Sammy wasn’t happy with that. No, he just had to go and put on all those crappy, cheesy rom-com’s and romances. And yeah, Dean could leave the room, but that’s just rude, right? It’s not like he wants to watch them or anything…

Honestly, Dean thought the romance films would go over terribly with Cas. Dean - and he’s sure Sam was too- was preparing for a multitude of questions from Cas about every damn scene. He’d already had a taste of that fun experience with ‘The Pizza Man’, so he was certain that Cas watching people try to flirt with each other would only confuse the poor guy even more.

But Cas didn’t ask questions.

In fact, Cas didn’t say one word throughout every one of them. Unless you counted his pleas for Dean to stay quiet (personally, Dean thought his jokes added a much needed comedic break). Cas would be glued to the tv, only blinking about three or four times a minute (not that Dean was watching or anything, just something he had noticed), making sure every bit of his attention was directed towards whatever couple was on the screen that night.

It must have been that. Watching ‘human courtship’, as Cas would put it, seeing the domesticity that comes to people who don’t know what’s really out there. That can be the only thing Cas got it from, surely.

“For a health nut, he sure does love stealing my beers…” Dean muttered into the cold air of the open refrigerator, bent down and peering into its fluorescent-lit interior. “Won’t eat real bacon, but he’s happy to chow down on the meat-mans burgers…”

“Dude, I’m like, right here. I can hear you, you know.” Sam called from behind the lid of his laptop, sat at the bunker’s kitchen table. Jack happily munched on his ‘Krunch Cookie Crunch’ opposite Sam, amused eyes flickering between the two brothers.

“That’s coz’ you were meant to.” Dean slammed the refrigerator door shut behind him, turning and leaning against the gleaming silver door- thanks to a recent clean by yours truly, thank you very much.

“And for the last time,” Sam said with just a hint of defeat in his voice. “You’ve really got to stop calling yourself the meat man.”

“Listen, Sammy - you can say it means what you say it means, but I’m just gonna go on blissfully unaware, going by what I think it means.”

“That’s… that’s not how it works.” Sam tried to argue.

Jack’s entertained smile had turned to a perplexed frown at their conversation. “What does ‘meat-man’ mean?”

“Alright, that's-” Sam cleared his throat awkwardly, slowly closing the lid of his laptop down. “That’s a conversation I’m not ready for.” Sam shot a strained smile at Jack before turning his pointed gaze to Dean. “For neither of you.”

“Well someone’s gotta give the poor kid the birds and the bees talk.” Dean shot his own pointed glare back at Sam. “Or, we can just do it my way – give the kid a laptop, go to the internet and load up some good ol’ fashioned por-”

“From my own experience, I can tell you that’s a very poor way of learning such a topic.” Castiel’s voice filtered in from the doorway to the kitchen, the ends of his trenchcoat billowing behind him as he entered the room and descended the few steps to reach the kitchen table.  

“Eh, well, he’s your kid, Cas. ‘The talk’ is your job.” Dean turned back to the various cupboards behind him, trifling through the depleted looking pantry in search of something to eat. “Hey Sam, you seen where those little cheese cracker thingies went?”

“I think we might have finished those off last night. Or the night before?”

Dean grumbled quietly to himself, adding another item to the ever-increasing list of supplies they’ll need to stock up on. “The supplies are getting depressingly low in here. I’m nearly out of beers, the meat-man needs to stock up on his meats-,”

“No more of the meat man!”

Dean cut Sam off by pointing a finger at the colorful box of  ‘Krunch Cookie Crunch’ next to Jack’s half-eaten bowl of said sugary cereal. “-And I’m pretty damn sure that’s the last box of that stuff. And I bet you’ll be out by tomorrow morning, right?”

Jack’s eyes darted down towards the few soggy pieces of cereal floating in his bowl, eying up the amount of milk that remains before pulling the box of cereal closer and peering into its contents. “…Maybe…”

Castiel had opened his mouth to add something to Dean’s list, but Dean cut him off before he could get it out with a click of his fingers and a pointed finger directed at him. “And Cas needs more of that weird grape jelly stuff.”

Castiel watched Dean with a frown as he pulled a small notepad out of a drawer, scribbling down the loosely formed list he had in his mind. “What’s wrong with grape jelly?”

“Nothing wrong per se… it’s just a terrible flavor that tastes nothing like grape.”

“I like peanut butter and grape jelly sandwiches…” Castiel sounded so genuinely disheartened by Dean’s opinion of his flavor choice that Dean couldn’t even find it within himself to keep making fun of the poor guy.

“I know, Cas.” Dean told him with a soft smile. “That’s why I buy it for you.”

“You mean that’s why random credit card companies buy it for him.” Sam leaned back on the crickety wooden chair, stretching his arms behind his back until it made a satisfying ‘pop’.

“The day I get paid an honest day’s wages for the honest day’s work I do is the day I no longer rip off multi-billionaire companies and Uncle Sam.” Dean roughly folded up the shopping list and stuffed it into the back of his jeans pocket. “You wanna come with, Cas?”

“Me?” Cas asked, his brows pinched together as if he couldn’t fathom why Dean would ever want for him to tag along.

“Yeah, you.” Dean confirmed with a sharp, short chuckle. “Sammy makes me buy all the healthy crap that tastes equally crap whenever he comes along, and Jack throws so much stuff in the cart that he wants to try that I’m honestly worried it’s gonna max out the card every damn time we go grocery shopping.”

“Sorry…” Jack muttered sheepishly.

“Don’t worry about it.” Cas said to Jack, shooting him a wink. “Teasing is one of the only ways Dean knows how to show affection.”

Dean narrowed his eyes dangerously at Castiel, pushing himself off the counter and brushing his hands together. “You coming or what?”

“If you’ll have me.”

Dean rolled his eyes and shook his head at Castiel's wording, steadily ignoring the red flush that he could feel creeping up the side of his neck. “Let’s get going, then. Come on, I’ll even let you drive Baby.”

Even Jack’s head whipped up, scarily in sync with Sam as they stared up at Dean in disbelief. “What?” Dean asked them. “Why are you guys looking at me like that?”

“You just asked Cas if he wanted to drive the Impala.” Sam said slowly, like Dean hadn’t heard and understood his own words.

“Yeah? So what? I let Jack drive Baby before, and he was only, what, a year and a half old?”

“I was dying.” Jack stated. “I assumed that had something to do with it?”

“Well, yeah, but…”

“I promise I’ll be careful with her.” Castiel interrupted Dean’s scramble to find an answer. Dean glanced up, seeing the conviction on his face that matched the tone of his voice, and knew Castiel meant that. Cas knew how important Baby was to him. Dean knew Cas would treat her right.

“See?” Dean gestured a hand towards Cas. “Besides, it’s about time Cas got to drive a real car, and not that vomit-beige colored monstrosity of his.” Dean caught sight of Cas’s affronted face out of the corner of his eye. This would quickly turn into another argument if he wasn’t careful. “C’mon, Cas. Let’s get going.”

Dean dug his hands into his front jeans pockets, clasping Baby’s keys in his fist, only to look up and see Castiel already partway out of the door. Cas wasn’t going to get very far in the Impala without her keys…

“Hey, Cas!” Dean yelled after Cas, who came to a somewhat stumbling halt in his steps. Cas turned on the spot once he had stopped, tilting his head and raising an eyebrow in question. “You forgetting something?”

Cas’s curious look only grew more intense. Dean could practically see the gears turning in the angel's head, trying to figure out what Dean was suggesting. There was a split second shift to his expression, one Dean could only describe as disbelief before Cas had schooled his expression back to neutral. Castiel had apparently figured out what he had forgotten as he moved towards him, and Dean pulled his hand out of his pocket, ready to pass the keys over to Cas.

Except, instead of stopping and holding out his hands for the keys, Castiel just kept getting closer to him. Dean didn’t even get a chance to remind Cas about personal space before ‘holy crap blue eyes super close’, and then Dean’s mind all but short-circuits when it registers Castiel’s chapped lips pressed against his. It didn’t last very long – or maybe it did, Dean might have blacked out for a bit – but it was long enough that Dean couldn’t brush this off as a funny case of ‘I tripped and my lips fell on yours’.

By the time Castiel had pulled away, Dean was sure his eyes were going to pop right out of his skull. A quick glance over to Sam confirmed he had seen the whole thing – at least, that’s going by the incredibly thinned straight-faced smile on his brother's face as he chokes down his laughter. Jack was smiling like this was completely normal, but then again, the kids always smiling – he might not have even noticed the show of affection right in front of him.

“Um…” Is the only word that came to Dean’s mind once it had restarted. Castiel’s face didn’t show any signs that he had realized how weird this whole situation was, and was waiting patiently for Dean to find his words. Dean slowly lifted his hand until it was sat between the two of them, uncurling his fingers to reveal the keys in his grasp. “I, uh… I meant these, but… thanks?”

Dean watched as Castiel's eyes focused in on the keys. To Cas’s credit, he didn’t seem in the least bit embarrassed by what he had done. He simply swept the keys out of Dean’s palms and pocketed them in his trench-coat with a soft smile. “I assumed you would pass them over once we were in the car, but thank you.” And then, to add insult to injury, Castiel leaned up and planted a kiss on Dean’s cheek like it was no big deal. He had done it so casually - as if it had been a part of their routine for years.

Dean could only stand there like an idiot and watch Castiel as he walked out of the room, beige trench-coat fluttering out of sight. After a few seconds of the most awkward silence Dean thinks he’s ever had to live through, Dean blurts out what’s on his mind. “What just happened?”

Sam’s chair scraped obnoxiously loudly as he stood, tucking it back under the table with that annoying strained smile of his still in place. “I’m not entirely sure but uh…” Sam stopped in front of Dean on his way out of the kitchen, giving his big brother a friendly pat on the shoulder. “I think Cas is dropping hints he wants a little more. Maybe. Possibly.”

Sam left the room, not after his words had completely thrown Dean for a loop. Now Jack was the only one left in the room with Dean, his customary gentle smile having been replaced with a contemplating frown, staring down at the bowl of milk in front of him like it held all the answers.

“What's wrong with you?” Dean asked, trying to get back to some sense of normality.

Jack looked up from his bowl, tilting his head in a way that was so very Cas. “I don’t get what Sam meant.”

“Oh.” Oh no…. “Uh, well, it’s-”

“I thought you and Cas were already married?”

[magicatnip]

Chapter 1

Lyra examined the bracelet on her upper arm. It was made up of intricate whorls, like waves, or wild grass, and the gold shone like new against her tanned skin. A ruby, with a bloodred center and crimson edges, caught the sun. There were tiny facets and imperfections in the stone, and they kindled in the light like fire. But she found her eye inexorably drawn to the ruby’s heart. It was so dark and vibrant, it almost appeared to flow with lifeblood. This was a piece of jewelry worth more than a house. The deep red stone it contained was a Blood Ruby, and any fool worth their salt would recognize it for the unnatural glow, which many stories still spoke of. 

Normally, Lyra hid the piece under long sleeves. Today, the weather was much too hot to bother. But she would not remove it. It bolstered her spirits, strengthened her, grounded her. On her forehead was a much more natural yet still valuable stone, the light green color of wave caps, which held light like an opal. Three small, perfect pearls rested to either side, all fused to a strand of White Silver thin as a hair. It was the sort of thing that any monied lady might wear, except that there was a spell wrought on it. It was from her mother. 

Lyra drew her eyes back to the trail, to the sand and rocks and the greenery that increased with each step. There were evergreen trees as far as she could see, now that she’d reached inland. You’d never expect such, for the shore had the usual palm trees found on tropical islands such as this. The air also continued to grow cooler, though the sun was bright and golden as ever. Lyra inhaled deeply: pine needles, spices reminiscent of cinnamon and chai, sun-warmed wood, peat, and the ever-present salt from the sea, still not so very far. This was an ideal place to rest. Lyra walked a little ways off-trail. All that she saw was soft moss, however, fluffy and covered in tiny sprouts that looked likely to flower. She heard the occasional calls of birds, from high above in the branches, and, barely, the gentle chiming of running water. This piqued her curiosity, and she turned her feet in the direction of the sound, hoping for fresh spring water. 

She was not disappointed. There was a small river, hidden amidst river grass growing so wildly that she could see barely see its glimmer. Looking back to keep the trail in-sight, and the direction of the sea, she followed along the bank until she found a spot where the grasses opened up. Half in shadow, a picturesque river flowed by, the ripples catching a ray of sunlight, and losing it again. Evergreen trees still stood round like pillars, and when she looked up, she could not see the tops, only a streaky expanse of shadow and sunlight. The needles of the trees closest to the bank were shaggy and gray as if covered in years of dust. The bark was red, curling like paper, and oozing sap that was a bloody red-amber. Lyra had never seen trees of the sort. They were beautiful, though the feeling that they gave her… As she examined the branches, twisting over each other like snakes, she wondered what they were. Some sort of pine, of cedar, or fir, if the needles were anything to go off of. Yet, the needles grew in pairs of 6, and up close, they looked not just gray; the young, growing tips were silver. 

A cool, gentle breeze passed through, carrying the wintery scent of crushed pine needles, and a hint of frost, amidst green grasses, hidden woodland flowers, pure water. The needles shook in its passing, shimmering, and dust fell. Like a fine powder, it sprinkled atop the water and was carried away. Lyra turned her eyes lower, to the roots of the trees, and saw that some ventured past the water, into it, burying themselves deep. Sap rolled down the exposed roots, cooling and stopping as it reached the water. But as Lyra watched, a piece of it fell from far above, entering the surface with hardly a sound. 

Lyra stared for a moment in mute wonder. Glancing around her to make sure she was alone, she sat on some cushiony, clean moss a couple of feet from the river. She removed her pack and bow, stretching her shoulders and feeling the sweat on her back. Her dark hair was in a braid, but strands were coming loose, and on her skin, she could feel an unpleasant grit of dirt and oil. So, choosing a place sheltered by the lowest of the branches, Lyra removed her shoes and stepped into the water, still clothed.

The water was bracingly cold, with warmer spots where the sun touched the slow current. It was only 4 or so feet deep, so she hunched over to submerge her entire body as the waves rippled past her. The water smelled of pine sap and snowmelt, so refreshing that she lowered her head to the surface to drink. It was cold enough to hurt her teeth, but she greedily swallowed a few gasping gulps. It tasted incredible, like life itself. She would fill her bottles with it, and make sure to come here again in her travels. How had she never heard of such a place before? You could sell such water. Not that she ever would. She didn’t want this place to become ruined. She’d keep its secret. 

Lyra undid her hair, and it drifted like seaweed alongside her. In the sun, floating locks turned auburn, the color of an autumn leaf.

Her eyes widened as she gazed into the water. Among various-hued mosses, there were hundreds of droplets of water-cooled and hardened amber-red sap. Some were large and misshapen, others were tiny and shaped like perfect raindrops. The sun was beginning to angle through the needles, turning them also to amber. Soon it would be dark. Lyra tore her eyes from the breathtaking scenery, reaching for the soap she’d brought from her pack. It was of her own making and would not taint the water. Quickly and efficiently, she removed her shirt, pants, and smallclothes, and scrubbed off. She raised foam in her hair and rinsed it.  

Her head breaking the surface, Lyra scanned the surrounding forest. Her knife was near, but she saw no cause to use it. As fast as she could move, she climbed from the water, grabbed a cloak, and wrapped it around herself. The sun was becoming darker and richer, and the air was perceptibly beginning to chill. She ought to make camp sooner rather than later.

Once she’d dried off and dressed in her usual practical but inordinately fine attire, she looked around the small clearing appraisingly. Animals would come to the water to drink. That didn’t seem safe to her. At least, not from the ground. Lyra smiled slightly, eyeing the lowest branches on the trunk. They were enormous, easily wide enough for multiple people to walk across. And they were 20 feet up. A challenge. Reaching again into her pack, Lyra brought out a rainbow-colored rope she had purchased from a merchant who claimed the feather-light material was strong as steel. He’d allowed her to hack at the rope to see for herself; not a nick. 

So, she wasn’t worried it would break as she tied it to an arrow and sent it arcing into a branch with a well-aimed shot from her bow. The bark was at least a couple of inches thick; it wouldn’t harm the tree itself. But the arrow was sharp enough that she knew it would strike true, and stick. 

Without further ado, she tied the rope to her waist, slung her bow and pack on her back, gathered her damp clothing and shoes, and began to climb. It was easy enough, with the rope to support her. The bark was also quite pitted, providing plenty of handholds for a canny climber. The sun grew brighter and less obstructed as she made her way up. Once she reached the branch, she climbed it like she had the rest, and stood. Around her, all she could see were needles, except for a patch that looked over some hills to the West, where the sun was descending now. The distant leaves glittered as if they were beaten from bronze. 

Lyra sat and took a blanket from her pack, rolling the end up for a pillow. She laid this out along the branch, then contemplated a fire. If any time called for Feyrin’s Flame, it was this, she thought. She’d just have to stop by her procurer’s shop for more sometime in the near future. Lyra fished a small box from her pack, a simple golden coffer about the size of the palm of her hand. Inside was an innocuous brown powder. Lyra took a pinch of the powder - a few pinches still left for later - and snapped her fingers. An unearthly violet flame jumped to life, and she held it for a moment, watching it bob and glow, creating only a gentle, hot-but-not-too-hot feather-like sensation on her skin. She set it down on the tree. It enlarged slightly and continued to flicker happily. It was not very bright, only illuminating a few feet around, and the warmth was as if it were her own, personal little sun. She felt it saturate her. 

Feeling camp was properly set up, and peering down every so often to watch for unwanted visitors, Lyra set about making herself a tisane, and dinner. Her pack had a few near-bursting bags hanging from the sides of it, and these were full of mushrooms, herbs, berries, and other woodland bounties she had gathered as she passed through the forest. No one could starve in the woods at this time of year, right before the harvest. 

She set about warming a simple foraged mushroom and garlic soup in a pot, and then a tisane made from rose hips, violets, lavender, marshmallow roots, and the pine-flavored spring water. She poured carefully, from a tiny, one-serving pot. The water’s surface created its own mist, a rising vapor that she inhaled deep into herself. She took a sip, burying her face in the fog, eyes closed, and felt like she could taste the whole forest harvest in that one cup. For a moment, she felt that she was a part of the forest, as surely as any leaf, branch, or root.

Lyra slept well that night. She had always loved sleeping in trees, far above any of the world’s danger or trouble’s. Up here, there were only air, wind, leaves, birdsong, and glimpses of sky amidst gray-and-silver needles forming a stained glass work of art. Still, she unraveled bells and draped them down the trunk. If anyone or any animal tried to climb it, the sound would wake her. So she slept without fear.

And when she roused during the night, she hardly knew if she was truly conscious. It was not the bells that woke her. The world seemed to have turned foreign and dream-like. She had slept to a world of bronze and gold; she had awoken to a land of white and silver. 

Moonlight touched the needles, the bark, transforming them to precious metal, and the river below became a thing of even greater wonder. Its surface was dazzling moonlight and a backdrop of the indigo night sky, sprayed with stars, all rushing and shifting with the water. As she watched, moonstruck, a figure rose up in the water. Lyra saw only her silhouette, and she seemed to shine like the moon, then change into darkness. Her white hair fell down her shoulders like a waterfall, barely visible as it turned to a white halo around her. She looked over the water. And then unerringly up, looking right at her with eyes the color of pearls. As Lyra froze, the spectral figure bent to pick something up out of the water. She held it in her hand, and it caught the moonlight, became a little moon itself. As it winked, she was gone, like a star at dawn, and indeed, the sky began to lighten and the moonlight to fade as Lyra found herself drifting into sleep. She lay down, pulling her blanket’s warmth over her. She forgot.

[pb1138]

Fictober Day 1: Ring, feat Genevieve and Isabela

Day 1 of Fictober and my prompt is 12 minutes late. Fuck me. Fluff story, Genevieve Hawke and Isabela. 

It’s busy in the marketplace. Sounds surround them, a cacophony of sources to interpret. Market vendors hawk their wares, people barter, couples talk of plans, parents yell after children, livestock cluck and moo and honk, coin purses jingle. Frankly, it’s a lot. That’s to say nothing of the smells—the smells of body odor, of powdered spices disturbed and entering the air, of fruits and meats and breads, of the livestock, of the smells that accompany city life. People bump against her nearly constantly, and more than once they open their mouths to scold her and cut themselves short, presumably when they realize their folly.

It’s difficult to maneuver, this new city. Fenris had given her very clear and precise instructions how to make her way into the town, had told her of important landmarks she would be able to recognize—the tavern that smells of refuse and is always roaring with drunks and gamblers, the rug vendor whose shrill voice shrieks higher than the others around them, the wobbly stairs that lead down into the alley that smells of chickens.

It had taken her all of half an hour to get lost. And that had been an hour ago.

With a heavy, defeated sigh, she stops and rubs her face. To her near right, she can hear a woman’s voice, pleasant and warm, a fabric merchant advertising her wares. Nev carefully makes her way towards the voice, only managing to jostle two people despite the crowds.

“Pardon me,” she calls above the din.

“—finest silks in—Oh! Hello there. How can I help you?” Nev can hear the smile in the woman’s voice.

Pulling her gauntlets off and tucking them under her arms, Nev puts a smile on her own face. “I’m afraid I need some assistance. I’m dreadfully lost.”

The woman is quiet for a short moment, and when she speaks again, it’s with that familiar tone of realization. “Of course.”

“I’m trying to get to the Siren’s Call. Could you give me directions?”

“Oh… That um. I’m afraid the Siren’s Call is on the far side of town.”

Nev sighs and pinches the bridge of her nose. “I was afraid of that.” Isabela will be furious. “Well. No matter. Did you say you sell silks?”

“Oh! Yes! I’ve got a fine collection here. I’ve got fabrics of all types, but my silks are especially lovely.”

Nev smiles and gently reaches down to where the table should be, and her fingers meet fabrics. She runs her hand across the various bolts and feels the way the fabrics glide against her skin. She finds one that’s particularly smooth and cool to the touch. “This one. What color is it?”

The woman coos. “Oohh, an excellent choice, milady. This is one of my favorites. It’s a lovely warm, soft rosy color and sheer. If you’re interested, I have a shawl made from the same material.”

Nev nods. “Might I hold it?”

“Of course, milady.” The merchant shuffles for a moment before a lightweight, smooth fabric is placed in her hands.

Nev runs her hands along the edges of it, feeling the intricate embroidery along the edges, inspects the gentle knotting in the corners. “This feels lovely.”

“The color looks good on you.”

“Oh, it’s not for me.” The feel of Isabela’s hand in hers comes to mind, fills her with warmth. “It’s for my girlfriend. How much?”

The woman coos again. “Girlfriend, huh? A lucky woman. 20 copper.”

Nev nods and reaches into her inner pocket for her purse. “I’m the lucky one.” She chuckles and shakes her head, counting the coins out. “Could you direct me to the nearest tavern, please?”

“Oh, course. It’s a straight shot to your left, about a 10 minutes’ walk. If you reach the guy with the parrots, you’ve gone too far.”

Nev smiles and passes the coin over, tucking the scarf into her coat. “Thank you.” She and Isabela know each other well enough to know that taverns are the best place to reunite. Isabela will find her eventually.

She manages to make it a good 10 steps without attracting anybody’s attention. When she does, they’re a little too insistent for her liking. “You there, scary buff lady! Yes, you, with the white hair, you look like a woman who enjoys fine things in life!”

Nev snorts but meanders over to the sound of his voice. “And what fine things might you have?”

“Ah, even without sight, milady can surely appreciate my fine baubles!” He doesn’t even sound ashamed. “Many things, I’ve got. I’ve got many fine jewels, necklaces that would make any noblewoman the envy of you!”

Nev snorts, memories of her own stint as a noblewoman coming back to mind. “I strike you as the gaudy type, then?”

“Maker, no! My deepest apologies, milady, I mean not to offend!”

His discomfort is funny enough that she waves him off. “I’m not interested in jewelry.” She turns to leave, but his hand catches hers. Resisting the urge to pummel him, she tilts her chin up defensively. “Unhand me.”

“Apologies once more, milady, but… Did I not overhear that you’ve got a… lady love?”

Of course. Merchants, always sticking their noses into everyone else’s business. “What of it?”

“Perhaps this special lady deserves a special bauble? Many fine jewels, I have, many. I’ve got a necklace here with a jewel big as your eye and blue as the sea, or I’ve got a pair of earrings shiny as starlight.” He pauses and leans in, his voice lowered. “Or perhaps… a ring?”

“A ring?” Nev raises a brow at him.

“I’ve got quite a few, milady. This one here—” a ring is pressed into her hand, and she brings it into herself to feel the band. “Seven diamonds across the band. You feel there? Middle one is a heart, raised above the others. Band is gold.”

Nev shakes her head, moves to hand it back. “No, thank you.”

“Or this one!” Another ring in her hand. “Antivan silver! A lovely inset emerald!”

“Maker’s hairy balls, there you are!” An arm snakes about her waist, making her jump, and she passes the ring back to the merchant. Isabela sighs, hugging her close. “I’ve been looking everywhere for you, pet.”

Nev chuckles, her face warming. “Sorry, love. I got turned around.”

“Ah, this is the lady love?”

Nev sighs and pinches the bridge of her nose. Isabela’s hand tightens around her waist. “What of it?”

“A pair of lovely rings for two lovely ladies, perhaps with marriage on the mind?”

Nev bristles a little and frowns. “No, marriage is not on the mind.” Turning into Isabela’s warmth, she gestures over her shoulder. “Come on, Bela, let’s leave.”

“But—but—”

Nev shoots a scowl in the man’s general direction and puts her arm around Isabela’s shoulders. Isabela seems unperturbed by the interaction, already launching into a full-blown story about her day, but Nev’s mind wanders. ‘With marriage on the mind.’ Genevieve would be a liar if she said she’d never thought about asking Isabela to marry her, but she knows her hard stance against it, and though it is more difficult than she’d expected, she respects it. Isabela is a free spirit. Like the sea, she has no master, no owner, no claim to her. But still, the thought lingers. No. Stop that. Nev scolds herself her selfishness. Marriage makes no difference.

“Genevieve.” Isabela’s voice cuts through her thoughts, pulls her attention to her. “Are you listening?”

“Oh… Sorry, love, no. I was miles away. What were you saying?”

She can feel Isabela’s eyes trailing across her face. “…It’s not important. What were you thinking about?”

Ah, shit. Genevieve is good at many things, but lying is not one of them. She scrambles, reaching for something, anything she can say. With a sudden grin, she squeezes the arm around Isabela’s shoulders. “Just thinking about how to give you your present.”

“Ooh, a present? Let’s have it then.”

Nev chuckles and reaches into her coat. She had planned to wait, give it to her later that night, but oh well. Isabela coos when Nev presents the scarf to her. “The lady said it was a rosy color? I dunno. It just feels so nice, I thought you might like it.”

Isabela practically purrs, and there’s a shuffling as she steps away. When she comes back to Nev’s side, she moves Nev’s hand to her waist where the scarf has been tied. “I do indeed, my love. Thank you.”

They make their way back to the ship, carrying carefree and comfortable conversation, their hands on one another’s hips. The rest of the evening passes in easy companionship—drinking, dinner, more drinking, a night spent holding one another, with hands drifting listlessly across bodies and stolen kisses.

Nev wakes late in the day, the cabin filled with warmth. When she reaches across to pull Isabela to her, she finds the bed empty which draws a frown upon her face. Isabela never rises before her. They take it as personal challenges to see who can sleep in the longest.

“Bela?” Nev mumbles. When there is no response, she sighs and sits up. Her hair sticks out at strange angles, but she can’t be bothered to try to flatten it back down. Instead, she reaches for one of Isabela’s scarves kept tied to the headboard and wraps it deftly about her hair.

“Well, don’t you look lovely this morning.”

Nev chuckles, face warming. “Do I? I feel as though a raven has nested in my hair.”

The bed dips under Isabela’s weight as she crawls over towards Nev, and without warning, she straddles her hips. “You always look lovely, my sweet.”

“Flatterer.”

“It’s the truth. And that’s partly why I…” Isabela sighs, bringing a concerned frown to Nev’s face. “Oh, no, don’t do that. This isn’t… Piss. I hoped this would go better.”

Nev puts a hand on Isabela’s hip, the other going to her cheek, the movement easy from years of practice. “What is it?”

“I got you something.”

Her brow quirks and she tilts her head. “Oh?”

“It um… Oh. Damn it all.” Isabela takes Nev’s hand and slips something onto her finger. A ring. “Now—don’t get carried away. This isn’t—we’re not—Shit.” She sighs and starts again. “I’m not saying I’m marrying you, Hawke, but… I don’t know. Think of it as a promise? This is me. Telling you I’m always going to be here by your side. I don’t know. It’s stupid.”

Tears prick at Nev’s eyes and her heart swells in her chest. “I…” Why does her face hurt? Oh… She’s grinning. With an elated giggle, she buries her face in Isabela’s neck, her arms snaking around Isabela’s waist tightly. Isabela squeaks against it but doesn’t resist, her own hands going to Nev’s back. “Thank you,” Nev whispers.

Isabela chuckles softly, placing a kiss to Nev’s bare shoulder. “For better or worse, I love your stupid face.”

“You’re so eloquent, my love.”

They both laugh. After a moment, Isabela pulls Nev’s face from her neck and places a warm, languid kiss against her lips. Once they part, foreheads touching, Nev reaches up to brush her knuckles against Isabela’s chin. “I love you, too.”

[goodnessgatsby]

Nightmares Are My Wonderland

((Heavily based on the universe in the movie “Push” with undertones of the anime/manga/game corpse party and my hero academia. TRIGGER WARNING; DOMESTIC ABUSE AND ALCOHOLISM IS HEAVILY IMPLIED WITH UNDERTONES OF SEXUAL ASSUALT AND MENTAL ABUSE))

((Looking for a partner to either ally with my villain and prime her to become something either truly evil or virtuous (meaning you can be a hero that saves her from a dark life if you’d like, I encourage this.) Or you can meet with her a decade after she’s become a villain, being more well-known and feared among the community and either ally her as a villain or fight her as a hero (meaning you would have to fight to defeat her as a hero, saving her soul would no longer be an option unless you’re creative) Please be very clear as to what you quirk is and how you use it))

((If you wish to play a Cannon character than this character is strictly made for a hero/villain environment as long as they belong to the comic book, manga, movie range then you are free to use them))

Sun glistens through the dark murky motel room as Valerie grips her long smooth locks, a soft tan to her skin despite living like a vampire most of her life, as her eyes flutter impatiently about the room. Dad didn't come home again, looks like he'll be home later today. Suddenly the neighbor and his weird cosplay girlfriend begin talking way too fucking loud for 6 a.m. before Valerie pinches the bridge of her nose, whining softly as the hangover settles over her small boxy frame "Fuuuuck! Shut Up!" she screams, throwing a pillow at the wall before sitting up at the edge of the bed. The walls are a dark smoke gray, with brown stains scattered about the room like carefully hung photos and a pitch colored trim between the concrete floor and ceiling “God, could we have picked a cheaper motel…” she huffs as if she hadn’t spent all her savings on a few months in this crappy place, it was easier than trying to find an apartment without a reliable source of income. At this point, she’d only been taking odd jobs in different towns with hopes of someday landing a job and settling down in a real home, but that was entirely impossible with her father’s drunken misdeeds in every town she had attempted to build a nest. Speaking of which, was it possible he sent her a text or tried to call her last night when she was drinking? Like Father, like daughter…Valerie stares at the bottle of 1800 Tequila Silver on the nightstand, it never tasted good but the feeling of floating was something worth chasing “I really ought to let him go drink himself to death far away from me…” but the truth is like the high liquor gives, she continues to chase what her father used to be…before…She dives for the bottle before the thought can bubble to the surface taking a massive swig, filling her mouth entirely before swallowing. She runs her fingers through the length of her hair as the liquor silences any chance of tears before she opens the app on her phone to check for any paying jobs. Please, something that pays more than 35 dollars!!! Browsing the list carefully her eyes flutter over something odd, but for 1,000 dollars…how could she pass this up? Imagine all the food, maybe even a motel upgrade…even for a few weeks would be better than breathing in mold for a day longer. The description reads ‘Social experiment; One-time visit required for payment. We are inviting 7 people to a night of fun and fright!(Each person will receive their own time and date to arrive, only one person will be selected to receive a permanent job and living quarters) You and 6 others will be suited up in gear that will analyze your vitals and brain functions while giving a boost in physical abilities so you can defend against ‘monsters’. This will require all 7 participants in different sessions to work alongside me to complete simulated courses, like a Virtual Reality Video Game! No Danger! No Risk! Just 23 hours of free food, socializing and a whole lot of exercise! Better message quickly or you’ll miss your chance!’ below was an email and phone number with the letters X.O.E signed below. Social experiment, huh? The young maiden smiles nervously at the idea of anything social, but quickly decides the money would clearly be worth it, although it could be a scam…on the off chance it is real “Suppose I just message them and see how it goes…”

Several Days Later; Monday

As the night of the experiment arrives, Valerie finds herself standing outside the most beautiful little house she’d ever seen in her 19-year life, it was white and plain colored with vines covered in tiny blossomed flowers scattered about its length and surrounded by a garden that must’ve come right out of a fairytale. Her brain wept at such beauty, unaware of the man hollowing out her soul with his eyes until the final time his eyes rushed over her, Valerie gasps gripping onto her sides with her arms across her abdomen

“Y-you must be Xavier Everts…” she blurts out, trying not to appear terrified to no avail “I...I’m Valerie Bonna-velt…I’m here for the…social…experiment…” she was beginning to wonder if there was such a thing, now that she stood in his unblinking presence. Had anyone messaged this man? “Excuse me…Could you please tell me what’s going on…I’m really confused” the man moves closer, and without a word takes her wrist dragging the trembling teen through the gate and into a poorly lit kitchen.  

The man’s frail old voice booms “Master Everts!” Valerie stares numbly at the floor, her brain rushing over every possible scenario in which she’d never see the light of day again. Suddenly a warm voice coos back, in the sweetest most soothing manner an anxiety-stricken woman could hope for “Ah yes, back here Ms. Bonna-velt, I’ve awaited your arrival” she eagerly grips onto the velvet sheets draped over the door frame replacing a door, pulling them apart as she stepped into a large open Victorian style living room. She grips her chest as her brows dip and pull together in rhythm with the melting of her soul, the walls were deep pitch with roses painted all over that were framed two-fourths of the way down with a light brown border. This appeared to have an almost red glaze deepening in opacity as it met the floor unlike the lusterless tan trim. This matched the drapes and couches perfectly; Valerie could not help but stand in awe as her honey colored eyes polished the place over. From the floral-patterned wood below her feet to the glowing candle chandelier above her head it was truly a picture taken right from her dreams. A soft chuckle ripples through the air before her eyes meet with the tall thin man with paper white skin and long raven colored hair

“I see you appreciate the beauty in times far before you and I, but I’m afraid we haven’t the time to give you a tour.” His apologetic smile, spreads energy through her body like a surge of electricity as she nods, rushing to close the distance between herself and the much taller employer

“It is alright, really I’m sure we could do that another time”

In response to this he laughs “Confident one, aren’t we?”

His features were strong and well pronounced, it was like talking to a portrait in an art museum only this one was responding. He explained the way that the suits would have small needles placed in various areas to properly study Valerie’s vitals and chemical balances in response to the simulations around her.  Truth be told she didn’t understand half of it, but the way his arms wrapped around her front and hands fumbled with the attachments kept her calm, unable to focus on the suspicious liquids behind each needle or the metallic scent coming from his clothing. The only thing on her mind was the way his lips would part for each breath as if breathing through his nose was not good enough, and the squinted glances he’d gift her with a calm cold grin

“My, you really enjoy being in my presence, don’t you?” Valerie felt her shoulders pull back as her spine straightened and she nodded softly, there was something…about this place, this man that felt too close to her heart…as if plucked right from her mind. She bites her lower lip, leaning into him to take in the rough metal odor as he roughly grips her waist with his right hand and slammed down onto a large orange button with his left

“I hope you continue to feel this way after your first trial.” His voice quickly escaping her mind as 5 needles inject strange liquids into various parts of her body simultaneously. Had her gut instinct been correct? Had no one else messaged this man? Did she sign up to be a lab rat? His fingers squeeze her skin roughly before releasing

“Don’t worry, it’s the power boost you were promised in the post, I hope you did not forget the terms of our agreement dear girl” all her muscles tense in response to the liquids.

This triggers the beginning of the first simulation titled “Of All the Things You Love” the words stretched across a beautiful Japanese garden, cherry blossoms swaying over the bold white words that slowly began to fade as Mr. Everts booms through the headphones covering her ears

“Now, you should be able to move normally about the world, you will need to find a clue in this world to escape. If you perform well enough, we will discuss having you over for the next trial. For now, all you need to know is your brain controls and develops this game as you play, I have zero control of what you see or what the clues are. I can only give you directions on where to find these clues, beyond that it will be up to you whether you escape or not.”

Valerie was stumped by this, her mind trying desperately to find a solution “My brain created this place? From a memory? Or a dream?” she thought, wrapping her arms around herself as always. Nothing felt different, her arms and legs were the same appendages she used every day. Truthfully it had appeared the only difference was a scenery and climate change. She takes in the warmth of the sun’s rays before he speaks again, somehow watching her stretch and twirl in the summer’s heat

“I see you prefer warmer climates, are you ready to begin?” his soft words felt as though they were placed there for a reason, as though they were meant to calm her uneasy state. “The clue is at the center of this garden, but beware, although your mind has created a calming environment that your cognizance can handle, there are still threats guarding each clue.” He sounded quite sure of himself, but the idea that her mind could have created something harmful in a place like this, it felt impossible. Nevertheless, Valerie forced herself forward deeper into the garden, trying to focus on the flowers, the sun and the warm floral smells that were fashioned by the two intertwining

“Are you sure there are fiends in this game? I know I watch a lot of horror movies, but it doesn’t seem like there could be anything like that… here…” even she sounded unsure of her conclusion, worried it was her brain trying to cope with the idea of treading unknown terrain. “What do I do if there is something trying to attack me anyway?” these seemed like questions she should have asked before starting the simulation, but it seemed she was purposefully placed in this place without knowledge of what was to come. This would force her to rely on the help of Mr. Everts or her own reflexes, making this far more challenging than she had first envisioned.

“Onee-chan!!!” A familiar tiny voice calls towards her from somewhere far ahead, followed by soft weak sobs “Onee-Chan!” the voice cries once again causing my feet to move towards it.

“This is such a bad idea, what if it isn’t really a little girl!” Valerie would scream at her body, but it continued to sprint towards a small terrified scream, until that scream had a face. Before her stood a little girl, not much older than 4 years old with soft black hair that framed her warm rosy skin “Hello there…little one…Do you need help?” Valerie whimpers, keeping her distance from this small child as the girl began to appear more and more familiar the longer, she stared.

“Onee-chan” Yuka cried, looking over her shoulder with the one side of her face that still had an eye, immediately being recognized by the Valerie as one of the victims in her favorite anime.

“No. No no no, this is impossible. You’re not real!” she cried, taking a step back from the child before it revealed its entire face. Blood dripping from the hollow socket that used to house Yuka’s eye as the ghoulish kid closed the distance between herself and Valerie. It was like lightspeed one second Yuka was staring at her and the next she was crying to be saved with tiny hands wrapped tightly around her throat.

“You have to fight, if you want to survive you must fight” Everts calls, reminding her this was merely a simulation. Valerie groans loudly, slamming her elbow into the child’s skull and with a loud crack the girl’s skull fragments spray about the smooth dirt path leading to the center. The corpse began to shrivel like a salted snail until there was nothing left of the falsified child. Needing to remind herself this was just a game, despite the years that torture scene had terrorized her memory.

“It’s Okay Bonna-velt, you can do this. You can do this! You need to breathe and remember your goal” this seemed to do the trick, as Valerie got to her feet once more and began on the path to the center of the world which appeared to have a large pine tree more massive than a skyscraper, the point nearly pierced the sky. “Looks as though my awareness was kind enough to give me a marker. Better return the favor and move swiftly” with this the young girl closed the distance between herself and the wooded forest housing her first clue. The wind whistled an alluring tune as she cautiously stepped into the shaded lot, each tree huddled closely together to deny the rays of sunlight any access while below was an unkept brush that slicked over towards the center, all signs pointed forward. What lied behind this damp cloaked brush? Valerie ties back her long brown hair in a loose poorly constructed bun before entering with a nervous whine, as she passed the threshold the world around her began to change. Although the foliage remained trees, the leaves had grown much larger and pronounced than pines with long limbs that stretched out to the similar trees surrounding it. The terrain matching that of a rainforest, with the sounds of life flooding the air.

“What did you do!?” Everts chimes suddenly, making her body jolt and tense. “How did you change your surroundings? None of the other subjects were able to change their environment without finding a clue” his tone sounded agitated, but for what reason? Had she done something wrong?

“I’m not sure, I just thought I was done with that world…Did I do something wrong?” her voice sounding so terribly unsure of her accidental decision to change the world, unaware that was even something she was able to do.

“No, my apologies. I was merely annoyed with myself for having my attention elsewhere…. You are a wonderful specimen Valerie. I’ve never found a human who’s suited my fancy so immensely, please continue” He chirped, suddenly she feels him grip her waist with both hands and squeeze roughly forcing a moan from her trembling lips. It was embarrassing, but he achieved his goal as she decided not to ask any more questions before getting closer to the first clue. All along her path we’re dried and torn snake skins that grew larger the closer she managed to get, as though there was a large snake that had been shedding in this area over the span of its life. This Idea alone was not enough to scare her, but thinking back she remembered one snake that made her skin crawl. Kaa from the jungle book, no beast should have the ability to manipulate living beings’ minds. A shiver ran up her spine

“Oh god Bonna-velt…tell me you didn’t do that to us…tell me you were thinking snakes on a plane or something harmless like that” but there was no undoing what had already been done, hissing suddenly filled the air.

HISSSSSSS

HISSSSSSSSS

HISSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

She screamed, running forward frantically, unaware that she was headed towards the snake instead of away from it until her body slams against a large, thick and scaly body before falling onto her behind “No no no no! Close your eyes, close your eyes!” Valerie screams afraid of anything sentient invading her mind as her heels dig into the dirt in front of her, pushing her body away as quickly as her behind will scoot. Woefully she does not scoot fast enough, as soon she can feel that same meaty, scaly body slithering around her and crushing her ribs tighter and snugger by the minute. With her eyes closed the maiden begins shouting at the beast through constricted breaths “I’m not looking into your eyes! You’re not real! And You cannot control me!” it felt like her lungs would pop after this declaration, her eyes threatening to evacuate from her skull as a result of so much pressure. It was not only terrifying to see these characters come to life, but to witness them behaving so different than the characters they represented from shows, movies and books. Memory has a funny way of warping reality, although Yuka was no villain in her stunning debut the memories of her revolve around a nightmare that visited young Valerie from time to time. This made Yuka the perfect first trial according to her brain, and this brainwashing beast was no different.

“There is no need for you to fight me now. You’ve given me all I need” the beastress hisses, as her cold scaly body loosens its grip letting the young girl breathe for a moment. “Open those beautiful eyes, and see for yourself” Her eyes fluttering open to see the snake is no where near her body, and yet it felt as though the thick meaty body began to constrict around her again

“Gah! How are you-…you doing this?” she gasps, unable to breathe the tighter this invisible body squeezes around her small frame. What is going on?! Valerie stares at the serpent as it moves in from the brush

“Why would I waste my time crushing you, when you’ll do it for me?” Kaa smugly hisses towards her, leaving the young girl choking and confused before it eases up allowing her to breathe again “Why waste my time on something as helpless as you? Or Someone so selfish?” the sound of the viper’s harsh words makes each gasped breath that much more painful.

“SHUT UP! YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT!” Valerie cries out, feeling a sharp pinch in her left lung before erupting into a fit of coughs, blood oozing from her chest and out her mouth along with mucus from smoking habitually. Her eyes closed tightly as it pools all over directly below Valerie’s trembling body, it felt like lava was pouring from her lungs and out her throat

“Poor thing, it’s really eating you up inside isn’t it?” the serpent cackles, closing the distance between the young human and herself, quickly jerking the young girls chin upward with the end of it’s tail “You should have spoken out, before you could no longer speak at all”. Suddenly Valerie feels the large scaly body starting to coil around her again “Oh dear, I’d never imagined you’d make yourself suffer so much” The young girl spits the last bit of blood onto the floor before looking up at the temptress and yelling

“Don’t get so smug, thinking you’ve won!” the roar of her voice makes the snake stumble and the hypnosis break, knocking the terrified girl to the ground as her surroundings are returned to that garden from the beginning of the game. Kaa had control of her since the moment she stepped into the forest, warping her surroundings to toy with the scared girl. “What?! Why are we here? What did you do?!” these questions swirl around the thick cold air for seconds before Valerie launches at the small snake, gripping the back of its head and the third fourth of it’s body. ‘You have to kill it, it will take over your mind again if you don’t kill it’ her mind screams as she pulls the beast apart in once swift motion, spraying its blood all over herself and the surrounding trees as her knuckles clack together behind her.

“Mhhhm, what a good look for you.” He groans, finally releasing her hips from his hands, wait…Was He holding onto her this entire time? No, his hands started at her waist, now they’re on the sides of her hips. Has he been petting her this whole time?! A blush overcomes her face as an item within the world suddenly begins to glow “That is the clue for the next trial Ms. Bonna-velt…Take it and read its contents carefully, for it can only be deciphered by you.”

The small slab was glistening so brightly it’s shape could not be interpreted from this distance, and as the young adventuress closed the distance she had to use her arms to cover her eyes “I always wondered what the highlighted items looked like inside the game, but this is insane” she whimpered in regards to the blinding light emitting off the clay slab, as her hands gripped the bottom end it ceased  floating and glowing, resting in her tiny palms as a normal chiseled slab “What you’ve found is what you fear, but what you seek is gone my dear” the words flowing from her lips like unsteady breaths “What you’ve found is what you fear…Do they mean Yuka and Kaa? But what you seek is gone my dear? Gone? Like disappeared or like dead?” she puzzled over this for a moment before the words became clear. The young maiden held the slab tightly to her chest, it was all so clear. Yuka was mother, begging to be saved by a simple phone call to the police department and Kaa was the guilt crushing her insides for leaving her mother in the hands of her father, she had only wanted to get away from the fighting for a few hours, a day at most, but the family she’d left behind that day was no longer there upon her arrival. As tears rolled down her heated cheeks like water off a melting icicle, she hugged herself tightly and cried out “The Clue is Mother” before the device suddenly releases her from the simulation.

“Welcome back Young Bonna-velt…” Everts cooed, catching her body as gravity gave way to her tired limbs. Despite physically never moving, her body felt heavy and exhausted as though she’d been running marathons all night “Do not worry, the serum will heal all your aches by the morning. As well as reform some of your least performing organ systems to a new undamaged state.” Almost certain he meant her liver and lungs, but would not directly say these as to not pry too deep into her personal life. Suppose he’s seen too much already? Her eyes begin to grow heavy against his warm frame until the world around her fades into darkness.

The Morning of Mourning

The following morning, Valerie wakes to the dark dank hotel she’d left her unconscious father resting in, wait…How did she get here?! She rubs her temples, sitting up at the middle of the same lumpy mattress she’s slept on for nearly a month now. A sharp pain jolts up her spine, followed by the need to vomit with her head spinning like a dreidel as she plops back down across the mattress watching the small warped ceiling fan weakly wobble in a circle. “uhhh” she groans, this was like a hangover, morning sickness and fever chills had a baby leaving it in the young girl’s skull “Small price to pay for a healthy body, right?” wanting to believe that the strange man from the internet was telling her the truth. Should she see a doctor? A better question is…Does she have the money to visit a doctor? Oh right, the thousand dollars. Rolling onto her side, Valerie looks around both sides of the bed to see if her wallet was on the nightstand, but instead of the torn, leather wallet her mother had gifted Valerie…there was a wave of deep crimson covering the night stand, wall and right half of her bed. Her eyes widen ‘Mr. Everts no!’ her mind sobbed as she pushed herself onto her belly, kicking herself forward to find Victor Dean Bonna-velt with the upper half of his skull removed, as though whomever did this cut from the middle of the eye sockets around. She gagged, pushing herself upward in a rush to get away, but her palm slips on the blood covered wood slamming her body forward and into the corpse where her skull would bounce off the concrete a couple times with the weight of her body sliding her under the second bed with ease. The entire front half of her body smothered in hot, sticky blood as her breathing grows heavier “Someone, please help me…” she whispers, before fading out of consciousness

Hours later the young girl stirs from beneath her father’s bed, unaware of her surroundings beyond a foul smell and the suffocating, cramped space she finds herself crammed in.

Buzz Buzz,

Buzz Buzz,

Buzz Buzz!

Valerie’s phone erupts with life, vibrating on the nightstand closest to the door, she scrambles forward kicking at the guts behind her with loud disgusting squishing sounds as she squirms from under the bed’s grip. She whines softly, trying to rub the filth from her face as her eyes adjust to the darkness

“Dad? Can you get that!” she groans, wiping her hands on her shirt before rubbing the sleep from her eyes. The phone once again springs to life and danced about the nightstand, glossing over the bedroom with a bright blue light as Valerie is reminded of the scene that coated her in…blood…This is blood…A soft chuckle leaves her cowering lips as the phone erupts with a call, the letters X.O.E displayed in bold letters on the tiny screen, slowly she inches past the bed as she tries desperately to keep her from seeing her disemboweled parent again “Block it out Valerie, you have to stay focused, try to remember” she whispers softly. This seemed to ease her nerves as she answered the phone with a monotone “Hello.”

“MS. BONNA-VELT! My gracious dove, how are you this fine eve?” He booms, a cheery whimsy to his words as though he was utterly pleased to speak to the young girl once again. She takes a deep breath before trying to speak again, so much had happened, so much that she needed to know about the events leading up to…to…She swallows hard, holding herself loosely with one arm as the other helps her hand hold up the phone

“N-not very good Mr. Everts… I’m having trouble remembering…some things…” to this he responded with a deep sigh that melted into a groan, she could feel his smile fade with her words, but he had needed to know. “Please Mr. Everts, I don’t mean to annoy you, I had only hoped you’d fill in some gaps…” an insecurity to her tone, feeling the tension slowly start to dissolve before he replies again with a soft hearty laugh

“I see young girl; your brain must be suppressing some things in an attempt to protect you. Could I come get you from your motel and take you elsewhere to clear your mind? I’m sure the smell is getting to you” Somehow his words made it sound like he knew her father’s corpse was only feet away from her beginning to pucker and bloat. How long had she been out? How long had the body been there? It had to have been a few days for the smell and appearance to be this bad, right?

“Yes please, please come get me!” she cries, not wanting to think about how old the blood on her body was or how she’d come to be covered in it to begin with. Today was beginning to be much worse than she’d ever planned when suddenly there’s a knocking at the door

“Then come outside my love, daddy’s here” he hums through the phone, making her pause and stare at the door…He…He did this…Is he…Is he going to kill her too? “Don’t be shy my sweet flower, come say hello” he coos once more, trying to lure her from her nest, but Valerie is unable to move despite standing only a few feet from the unlocked door. She watches as the handle turns left all the way “Hello?! Are you alright?!” his tone drowning with worry as the handle twists all the way to the right “Say something” he once again cries, throwing the door open to the vision of his beautiful little girl, the fruit of his labor and the love of his life. Their eyes lock, making him visibly swoon “You look so beautiful all painted up for daddy” He closes the distance between them, taking hold of her sides as his thumbs softly rub her love-handles and he washes her over with his gaze once more “I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone more beautiful” he whispers before his lips press to her jawline, making her body tremble “Valerie, it’s okay. I stayed by your side for these last 4 days, but I didn’t want to scare you…I couldn’t be here when you woke, I’m so terribly sorry…” what had he meant by that? He’s been here with her? What had she done with him on those days and why could she not remember…?

“What are you talking about!” she screams, shoving him to the ground before plopping down onto the bed with an ugly sob “What would you have been doing here for the last four days if I wasn’t awake! Why are you doing this to me!” she wails, slamming her fists into her own stomach a few times “Or am I right to believe I was involved somehow?”

“Involved?” he repeats, as though the word is foreign to him before he erupts with laughter “Such a shame, we’ll have to fix that broken memory of yours right away” with this he pushed himself upward and onto his feet in one swift motion, who the hell is this dude? “But first, I will need you to listen little girl. Come here” he snips, curling his finger in towards himself to direct her.

‘Do I have a choice? What will happen if I don’t? And why didn’t he answer my question’ these were the thoughts that plagued her mind as she obediently hoisted herself upward to her feet and under the arm of the man that obviously murdered her father.

“Atta Girl” He chirps, walking her out the deep green door towards a short maroon 2004 Mercury Marauder with smoky gray leather seats and interior, upon closer inspection she finds the windshield cracked and the radio removed. He let go of her long enough to toss the door open and shove her into the vehicle, but rather than go around the car he scoots along the front of the seats to the driver’s side, pulling the passenger door closed behind him. He starts the car as his eyes lock with hers intently “Please smile little one, you’re going to remember everything soon” somehow, she knew this was meant to calm her, but those words had an effect neither of them could have predicted. As the car backs up, jolting her body forward she grips the car door and the dash as a flash of the days that lead to these events fills her head.

An image of Valerie covered with blood, wearing a crazed grin as a camera films “My, my, such a beautiful girl painted up for daddy…Do you enjoy this? Does it feel good when you remember how it feels to be happy? Such a gorgeous smile you have little one” the man behind it booms, that strange familiar voice. Who is that? It felt as though she was looking through a smudged lens at the world surrounding her “I will be the protector of your memories my love, never again will you feel isolated or trapped. Never again will I allow anything to harm you, my sweet dove. That sick bastard didn’t deserve a daughter as perfect as you, therefore I will take you myself. And through experimentation you will be reborn as my daughter” the camera moves as he draws closer to my face, Everts!!!! He cups her cheek softly, why does his voice sound so melodic right now compared to real life and what does this memory mean? Valerie snaps back to reality as suddenly as she had left it, staring down at the rubber mat place below her feet

“Where are we going?” she mumbles, feeling her palms and hairline begin to sweat “And how much longer? I’m…I’m tired…” a soft tremble to her words, showing that same insecurity that drew him towards her to begin with. He quickly takes her hand in his, resting the two on her thigh as he spoke

“Back to our nest my little dove, it will be quite a while I’m afraid. If you wish to sleep, you can lean on daddy. I promise you’ll be safe” he softly coos, something that once was so comforting felt like a death sentence

“That’s okay…I’ll be alright…daddy” the word felt like vomit leaving her mouth, nothing could be more revolting, but a smile rested comfortably on his face after she had knighted him with his self-proclaimed title “Could you tell me more about our nest?” she hums softly, looking out her window onto the horizon as she buckles herself in the seat more securely not wanting to look towards him.

“It’s out of state I’m afraid, so that beautiful home you wished to tour will be left to collect dust. I have many homes I’ve strategically purchased around the united states and a few in Italy, but we won’t be leaving the country anytime soon. It is in a small town just outside of Bozeman, Montana. It is a very beautiful place, you can see the mountains so that’s a plus, but there’s also a lot of eyes, it is a heavily populated town and for good reason. The home itself is rather cheery and wooden, far from the town for good reason and it overlooks a lake.” The way he spoke made him almost seem normal to her, like he felt panicked for being ‘put on the spot’ and was trying to push past the feeling. Why did he feel so eerie before? She leans closer to the window, feeling the vibration of the car rock her into a deep sleep with an uncertainty towards the days to come.

Sunlight pours in through the windows like an estuary the rays penetrated the glass with ease as it lacked any form of tinting, the light was blinding to sleep covered eyes making life just a little harder for the teen girl “Mhhh!” she groaned, stretching as she sat up off the lap of her captor, it felt so good to sleep after processing so much, but immediately she is reminded of her situation

“Did you sleep well my little dove?” He coos, eyes focused on the road as he awaits her response. It had taken a moment for her to realize, but Valerie remembered falling asleep on the door against the window…Although she had avoided it before her eyes locked on the face that she once found so charming

“Did you…move me?” Irritation tainted each syllable of this question as her eyes burned holes into his soul as she waited for him to confirm what she already knew; it was a way of telling herself she wasn’t crazy.

“Yes, you looked so uncomfortable away from daddy…” he pouted, pushing his lower lip out as though it would influence her response at all. Why did he need to move her onto his lap?! So close to his…Her face turns bright red as she looks away from him, no telling what he could have done to her whilst she slept. Valerie was known to be able to sleep through a hurricane, her mother used to have to carry her sleeping body to the shower and drench her just to get her to school on time because standing her up stopped working after she’d gotten used to it. “I’ve seen that look before; you needn’t worry… I would never taint your purity without permission. I may have my warts, but things of that nature don’t suit my fancy…” meaning he did want her, but is it possible he expects her to want him in time? Rubbing her eyes, the girl yawns softly

“Well good…I don’t think I’d handle something like that very well…” there was truth to her words, but the way she phrased it was incorrect. She was relieved to find out he was not a self-proclaimed rapist, but this brought another question to her attention. He has his warts, but not of that nature…What nature does suit his fancy? She’d hoped it was her paranoia telling her what he fancied was far worse, and turned to her captor sleepily “Just…don’t touch me when I’m sleeping” she huffs, why was this something that needed to be said? It felt like common sense to Valerie, but not all monsters are cut from the same tattered cloth. “How close are we?” her soft quaking voice whispered as the young girl pulled her knees towards her chest and wrapped her slightly muscular arms around them before resting her chin on her knees.

“Only a few miles now. Did you want to stop and get something to eat? Stretch? Use the Bathroom? You know…Normal Human Road-trip activities…”It was clear he felt a little less comfortable with her after being reprimanded “Suppose I can hardly remember what other humans do anymore” he nervously chuckles, slowing the car a bit as his eyes wash Valerie over “I know…I can be a bit much, but I only have your best intentions in mind. I hate to admit I’ve been insensitive…I had time to think on this whilst you slept. I was not sure, but it felt like you were scared of me yesterday…and well, you’ve confirmed that today… with your response to something I’d hoped to be a kind gesture, I will admit I have not had much interaction with other people since college.” He pauses and looks away from her, back to the road, returning to normal speed in one smooth motion. Taking a deep breath Xavier continues in an unsteady tone “What I am hoping to convey is that, I am no threat to you Valerie Amerai Bonna-velt. I may be terrible with social skills and it’s possible my attempts at affection are more…creepy…than…romantic.”

“But?” She hums, leaning back in her chair so her spine is straight as her eyes look expectantly at him. She’d only had him in her life for a few days and already she expected so much of him. Was she starting to care? “But you killed my father?” suddenly the car screeches to a halt skidding towards the side of the road before he turns to face Valerie; the nineteen-year-old Mongolian American whose forehead is resting on the dash thanks to such an abrupt stop.

“I am not the one who killed that man Valerie, you are” the words clap against her ear drums like a gunshot, echoing all the way down her spine as he gripped her wrists “I was hoping to show you the video…but you went and made me spoil the cinematic reveal” he giggles, sounding pleased with himself as Xavier jerks the young girl closer, he was in his late sixties despite not looking a day over twenty-two and much stronger than Valerie despite his nerdy weakling façade “I know this is a lot, and although I love to watch a mind deteriorate…” He pauses, dragging his tongue over his upper lip as though thinking about changing his mind “…I want you to ease into these memories…You had to know the truth, but sometimes these things can be easier if you don’t try to rush it and force my hand. You could have remembered on your own in a few weeks, days or hours, but I wanted to at least wait until you were able to isolate yourself in a room away from me.” What was that? Did his personality start to act up, but he brought it back down to a normal level? What is this guy’s deal? “Suppose now that you know it’s inside the car, I’ll have to ask you to be patience an-”

“That’s okay… I’d rather put off…knowing all the details for now…If what you say is true, then this is probably my last happy day…funny because yesterday was probably one of the worst days of my life…” Valerie forces a laugh, wanting to conceal the shattering pieces leftover from her crumbling sanity. “Food does sound nice…” she whimpers softly, wanting to sway the conversation elsewhere as quickly as possible, to this Xavier swoons letting out a deep hum towards her

“This is why I love you, you really get me” he lets go of her, turning to start the car back up with little trouble “We should learn to focus on the good and a full tummy sounds brilliant!” he coos, pulling away from the shoulder and back onto the highway “What sorts of foods suit your fancy?” he hums, using that phrase again

But things of that nature don’t suit my fancy

What sorts of foods suit your fancy?

“I prefer something salty or savory, sweet things don’t suit my fancy” She hums, being nonspecific as always “I will admit I am being vague because I don’t want to displease you, it’s such a pain to deal with going back and forth over and over….” Her father had a funny way of convincing her to pick whilst rejecting every option she chose until she suggested what he originally wanted to begin with. The entire mess was frustrating for Valerie, she could hardly imagine a person who could stand a situation like that, but she was never a girl of patience.

“Aw how cute, you used my favorite phrasing! Hmmm…Salty or Savory? What a shame you don’t like sweets, there are lots of bakeries on the map. Well what about pizza?” he chimes, trying to cover everything she’s said to him, to prove his willingness to listen “It’s only sweet depending on your toppings and cheese is normally pretty sodium heavy”

“Fantastic idea!” She booms, leaning against the door as she watches him juggle driver and navigating. Something about this struggle was amusing to her, it was in no where near the suffering she’d endured as well as apparently creating it. Her smug grin fades, what an odd thing to find amusing…

The Arrival; Life’s gift

The cabin was a warm sandy tan, the outside looking as though full logs were stacked on top of each other to form the walls despite having such large full windows and crystal doors that slide open like a window laying on it’s side. What a beautiful home! Valerie forces a sweet smile as she rushes to the entrance running her fingers over the smooth glass of the door as her eyes wash over the pitch steel borders that kept the crystal in place. On either side of the door are golden dragons carved into the light wood, she can hardly stop herself from running her fingers over the glistening design “How much does a place like go for anyway?” she slurs, her eyes bouncing from her new shelter to Xavier

“To be perfectly candid, I do not remember. It may have been a gift from one of my admirers or one of the homes purchased by my parents…The décor will most certainly remind me where this cabin came from.” He closes the distance between himself and the young girl before nudging her with his hip “Open the door for me, my sweet dove” the sounds of pleasure rippling in throughout his voice as he watched a shiver jolt up the young girl’s spine.

“What did I tell you? That makes me so uncomfortable…” Valerie groans, sliding the door open for the lengthy man as he stumbled inside holding several boxes and bags, he had clearly prepared for this trip. Had he known they’d need to flee Premont, Texas? She felt deep inside herself that those videos contained a truth beyond that of her father’s demise. Valerie rubs her arms softly before entering the home, inside was dozens of family photos, anchors, and sea shells as if the entire home had been decorated with an ocean side theme “So? Parents? Or lovers?” she calls into the house. Quickly she follows behind her voice deeper into the cabin, where her feet meet the animal skin rugs stacked on top of one another about the room, nearly covering all the cherry-wood that made up the floor. The room was small compared to the rest of the house, with a large “L” shaped couch in the center of the room with many colorful pillows with words like “Live, Laugh, Love” written in cursive “God it’s so cozy I can literally feel the sea of big fluffy blankets and fuzzy socks beginning to smother me” she calls, fake dying as her body plops onto the plush coffee sofa

“Oh, don’t complain, we won’t be staying here long.” He huffs, sitting down near the young maiden’s feet as he leans deep into the couch as a sigh of relief blooms from his pouty lips “You could have assisted me in moving our luggage”

“Assist my kidnapper in moving his luggage and my stolen stuff? Do you ever listen to yourself when you speak?” she snips back quickly, hearing the smile on his face as he sits up, hunching over as his elbows rest on his knees and his finger intertwine

“I hardly kidnapped you, you walked with me to the car with no resistance and you didn’t try to run at Luigi’s Haunted Pizza, so I could very easily disagree with you. The same as any jury would, evidence makes a case young Bonna-velt and I’m afraid the proof is not on your side” Valerie could not stand his smugness, although this was only the case because Xavier was exposing the truth, although her terror served as a mental block she’d shown no sign of trying to escape this man’s clutches. Why was that? Was it the information he had about the four nights escaping her memory? Or the fear of starting over fresh with an unfamiliar face? She’d spent so many years living with her father, with no friends or family members to lean on her father was truly all she had left in this world and the moment he was gone, she latched onto this parasite as though it was a host. “Are you ready for tonight’s examination?” he hums, looking her over with an intense gaze “There’s been no resurface of your abilities during our trip, this leads me to believe you have a specific trigger that allows you to use those gifts” did he mean the body enhancers he injected into me the first night we met?

“Not now…I want to nap first, it’s been a long day of really bad news…I really just want to sleep…” suddenly the couch depresses, like something is crawling over her body, she feels warm thighs pushing her knees into her stomach by raising her thighs. She looks up to see him pressing his manhood to her crotch as he leans over her small frame, beginning to kiss her neck and collar bone as his arm slides under the back of her left shoulder. He cups the nape of her neck, looking deep into her eyes with a burning desire

“Tell me you’ll let me hold you whilst you sleep?” He whimpers, resting his chin on the tops of her breasts “It would be an honor to protect you throughout the night” she felt there was more to this than what he gave away, but whether she wanted to or not he quickly flipped the two so his body was below her on the opposite side of the couch “Cuddle into me and christen me yours forever” these words were so intense, what had he wanted her to say? Gripping onto his shirt, she stares down at him like a deer in the headlights very obviously afraid of such a sudden advance towards her.

“I don’t think so…You really ought to go…” She whispers, climbing of his body with great struggle as he tries to hold her close to him, Valerie disliked this pressure and although she wanted so badly to be held until all her problems could melt into the sound of two hearts beating. “Goodnight Everts…” She hums, wandering off into the home to find a bed to sleep in, when the sound of a vhs tape playing floods the air as a light flickered through a cracked door at the end of the hall. Valerie held her breath as she heard her own voice whine “I don’t wanna do this, I wanna sleep!” it was very clearly her, but it sounded much more intoxicated than she was.

“Val? What are you doing?! Who is this guy?! Val?! VALERIE!”

Daddy! Her eyes swarm with tears as she runs to the room, knocking the door open with such great force that the metal door makes a depression where it met the wall as her eyes meet with a flickering light. When her eyes finally adjust to the monitor’s blinding blue light, Valerie recognizes herself standing next to a liquified blur of reds, pinks, browns and grays, what on earth is that? She leans into the screen trying to take a better look at blob when suddenly it solidifies reforming the man she called father gasping for air, suppose lungs don’t work in liquid form.

“Valerie…Valerie please”

Tears swell in the young girl’s eyes as she watches her father plead with a dead-eyed version of herself, the mindless woman one screen crouches down looking him deep into his eyes “Solid, Gaseous, Liquid…Let us see if we can do all at once” the girl whispers forcing his mouth open as her fingers glow a bright white, making the saliva in his mouth and throat a solid. As her father chokes, trying to pull the brittle saliva from his throat as the beastress cackles

“Such a beautiful girl, are you enjoying your new powers? Show me more, show daddy what you can do” a voice off camera cheers, as Valerie’s father looks at the man behind the voice with terror as the dead eyed Valerie grips his body at a couple different areas and with a flash of light she changes his body into a mess of liquids, colored gases and hardened flesh.

“Just like ice” the girl cries slamming her fist into the upper half of his skull, watching the ice-like matter shatter and scatter about the room like red shards of glass. Valerie looks away from the screen, unable to watch herself rage like a brat being denied of something it wants as she vomits into the hall “h-how could I do this?” she trembles through rough gags, the world around her beginning to twirl like a ballerina. You did it Valerie, you did it without hesitation and you put this on mom. “YOU MONSTER! HOW COULD YOU?” Valerie cries at herself, feeling the ground quake below her, as her brain swells with memories of abuse, years of mental and physical abuse. NO, IT’S NOT HIS FAULT! HE WAS TOO DRUNK TO UNDERSTAND! IT WAS NOT FAIR! NO! He did this! He did this to me… She slams her fists into the sides of her skull as tears stream down her face, why did he do this to her? What has she become? These feelings bring upon an unknown feeling that boils up inside her bringing forward the quirk named Matter Manipulation; the name is suddenly all she can think about, but where had it come from?

“Valerie! Valerie!” Xavier cries, rounding the corner as the world around him suddenly begins to mold and change “Valerie no!” He cries as his body freezes in place, standing frozen like stone as he stared into her eyes. His legs beginning to change color and collapse below him as the blood in his legs solidifies “Please! STOP IT VALERIE! PLEASE I LOVE YOU!” he sobs in terror, but his wails fall upon deaf ears as Valerie closes the distance between the two of them and grip his neck tightly turning it into a floating blur of flesh colored liquids. The sounds of the tape rewinding replacing a theme song, the vhs tape beginning once again as her hands grip his shoulders

“Wait Gorgeous! I have something to tell you, darling. That dress is so snug, it really suits my fancy” Xavier calls through the screen, putting more emphasis on his favorite phrase when it suddenly becomes clear to Valerie. She’d noticed every time he used that phrasing her brain became fuzzy and she felt more inclined to listen to him, it was clear he’d kept her under this state when the effects of his serum were most potent.

“Your ability…what is it?” she snips, reforming his throat to its solid form. He stumbles forward gripping onto her, his head spinning as she watches him gasp and choke on the very air he has been deprived of. How cute! Look at him struggle! A smile plays on her lips as she steps back watching him fall onto his hands and knees

“My sweet dove, please, I’ve done nothing to deserve this treatment and being tortured doesn’t suit my fancy” He whines, trying once again to strain her consciousness to no avail, she pushes her power hard against him once more watching him squirm in agony before gasping for air once again “Fine…It’s called Deception;  it’s the ability to change what a person feels or sees, I can only maintain this ability for 6 days and my strength over a person’s mind varies on the amount of trust I have between myself and that person….the less a person trusts me the harder it is to maintain the false reality… and your power is a chemical mixture of my own ability and several others….those samples were extracted through forcible autopsy…”Forcible autopsy? Does that mean he’s made a name for himself? He’d never been direct with her before, but she knew immediately this was the standard, a form of expectation for future acquaintances.  A smile spreads across her face as she grips his throat from behind pushing him deep into the wood as she twirls planting her behind onto the arch of his back before her palms glow sliding from his neck down his spine liquifying his essence

The Heroes’ Arrival; Save Me

Had either of them thought this through?! Had she even considered repercussions for her actions? Although she’d hardly had time to adapt to these new memories, there was no time to watch the puppeteer draw his last breath. She releases him from her hold, exposing herself for the monster she is as the thick black smoke that makes us her body is wavered by someone busting in the front door, the glass shattering and bouncing off various areas around the entrance.

“Doctor Everts” a strong woman’s voice calls, as the sound of footsteps advancing towards the pair fills the silence. Damn it! Unable to hold him and continuously restructure the liquid formation of his throat as her time limit was 30 seconds without contact, but luckily his throat would likely reform with some sort of mutation as she didn’t maintain it’s shape up until it’s reforming. She leaps up from his body, rushing for a window in the back room behind the stack of screens and vhs players, Valerie tosses the rack holding the monitors down onto the door jamming it shut. She pushes off the toppled metal rack she grips onto the windowsill pulling herself through the window and onto slick dew-covered grass that leads into a forest of some kind, pushing off the ground with her hands she takes off into full sprint, no sense in trying to save energy if she has no idea how to control this stupid ability! She tries snapping her fingers and focusing as she builds the distance between herself and the heroes who would never understand the ever-growing hollowness inside her, she’d become a murder, there was no other path for her.

((This is where the road forks, for those of you who wish to save this pitiful hate-birthed beast then this is where your character will enter as either a hero or villain, either way you must play an ally))

((For those of you who wish to have a more matured/seasoned villain you will continue from here and reply to the end of this post))

 A Decade to Fester; They Do Not Dare Defy Me

Many years have past since the day Matter Manipulation was gifted to young Valerie, a decade to be quite precise and as the temptress neared her thirties a broiling need to be acknowledged by the world grew in its wake. She’d wasted enough time training, scheming, and waiting for a day when the world would be forced to face pain beyond their feeble little dreams.

“Aqua Regia!” Darius booms, entering her chambers with a concerned expression rest on his glowing ocean eyes as they lock onto the voluptuous Valerie, he was her second in command and most trusted ally, the one who saved her from the cruelty of those who held the title of Heroes. Those who would brand her very soul with a bible of law; a law book sewn together by the suffering and consumption of it’s own people, written in the blood of every less than fair pigment or disobedient civilian by sadists and hypocrites. “Val, please we must speak of the mission to come. If either you or I were to misstep we would lose the very foundation of all that we have built, quickly dear girl we mustn’t waste time” with this he waved me towards the door as his soft poetic mannerisms lull her senses into a calm

“Yes, Of course, but please Avalon do not fret, you are the key to my throne and with you I will forge a Camelot that would put Tartarus to shame” Aqua Regia coos, slipping from her solid form into a smoke like cloud to enhance her speed as she moves towards the villain Elusion with the quirk Escape Artist or the ability to find an escape plan for any situation, the back lash is sometimes there really is no escape although he has yet to stumble upon this problem. Valerie is able to return to solid form by keeping hands, heart and lungs solid inside the smoke form otherwise her body would remain gaseous until reaching the limited amount of time. This time gap started at thirty seconds, but after nearly a decade of training she can hold most things in any of the three forms for a whole hour, sadly no human can hold their breath for an hour so the gift has become rather tricky to maneuver without sparing a few insignificant lives. As her body slowly reforms Darius takes this time to go over some of our earlier successes

“Indeed, Queen Arthur” He would start, wanting to begin on her good side “The first two steps of our plan have come to fruition with very minor mishaps, the pot has been stirred as you say. Drug Families are at each other’s throats trying to find the rat amongst them, unaware it was the clients who sold them to the pros. Secondly, all of the bombs went off without a hitch, except the last hospital apparently a hero arrived in time to stop both with seconds to spare.” His face remained calm and hard like a statue, he knew this would make her erupt furious that anyone was able to catch onto her scheme “But we’ve reached the results you hoped for Ms. Regia, the pros have all eyes on you for the show tonight.” Despite the second step having a few misfires everything was going according to plan.

“Well…At least things are still moving forward, are the boys reaching out to the head of each family as we speak?” She groans, clearly annoyed with the lack of security in her strategy, nothing is guaranteed and yet she’d hoped this would as close to guaranteed as physically possible. The two descend the stairs her warm honey eyes scan the crumbling lot for any sign of you, surely you knew she would be here awaiting your arrival, her lower lip presses out in a pout as she looks to her partner “Suppose they didn’t understand the clues that we left with each body?”

“Nonsense Mistress, you were very careful to be as obvious as possible” He assures her as she pauses, lingering at the window from the second floor. She was much taller now due to the various hormones and chemical injected into her body all those years ago, her hair was a long chocolate stream of shiny wavy locks and her once ashen tan skin soon became a warm mocha. Her once boxy frame had smoothed over into a more feminine look, being replaced with an hourglass figure. “Forgive my sentiment, but you’ve come too far Valerie to ever be made a fool of again.” Her heart sang at his sweet words, a smile resting comfortably on her lips.

“Thank you” she whispers, reaching for the illusion of her dear friend when the door flies off it’s hinges into the stairs. It would appear that they’ve arrived and so abruptly. Valerie growls under her breath, trying to maintain her composure as the hero/villain enters “I’m relieved you decided to show your face, this will feel all the sweeter” her palms glowing a golden color as she stands in an offensive position

((Comment Alpha1 if you want to save her as a child and change her fate as a hero or comment Alpha2 if you want to be a villain that assists her as a child. If you wanted to fight older Valerie as a hero comment Beta1 or if you want to be a villain that recruits older Valerie comment Beta2))

Name: Valerie Amerai Bonna-Velt

Villain name; Aqua Regia

Age: 19 or 29

Ability: Matter Manipulation; the ability to change and mold the shape/state of matter for limited amounts of time (Overuse of this ability results in a loss of free will; becoming an obedient zombie)

Appearance; Valerie is a 5’2 tall girl who weighs one-hundred-twenty-five pounds, she has a large behind and C cup breasts with warm thick thighs that meet at a waist that appears to be smaller due to wide hips and broad shoulders. When she was 19 her hair was a raven black, but now it resembles a dark chocolate brown with a healthy shine that she’s most definitely proud of! Her eyes are slanted, narrow and a light honey colored with short lashes that thick around the outer corner of her eyes on the top and bottom. Her eyebrows are thick and well groomed, but sparse with a very high arch. (Very bottom-heavy frame!)

Blood type: O negative

Height; 5’2

Weight; 125 lbs.

Weaknesses; Valerie’s powers cannot break the law of conservation (matter cannot be created or destroyed. Therefore, there must be the same number of atoms of each element on each side of a chemical equation.) She is also unable to hold an object in a state foreign to its nature for longer than her time limit (Starts at 30 seconds and ends with 1 hour) The heart, lungs and hands are exposed in gaseous form. Her circulatory system slowly shuts down in solid form and she runs the risk of losing limbs if she over uses it, not to mention solid form is as fragile as ice. Finally, in liquid form she cannot reform herself and must wait for the time limit to pass (She doesn’t really use it)

[i-llbedammned]

I ended up writing the Good Omens noir fic I talked about about before.  I am excited and nervous as this is a hard pairing for me to feel like I am doing them justice.  You can read it on Ao3 here : https://archiveofourown.org/works/19854631 I will also post it down here:

Light practically sparkled on the grey suit and fedora of one kindly Aziraphale, private eye. It was different being on this side of the pond. Yes, he knew that he could go anywhere in the universe but there was just something so comforting about London that kept him coming back to it. Instead he was here in New York City and even though it was better than dealing with the bombs and the Nazis directly there was something still colder in this city. The roving packs of gangs and the brusk way that everyone talked was just something so unsettling.

He wouldn’t even be here if it was not for a very important mission. Someone had stolen one of his books, you see and it was a first edition of a Charles Dickens novel that he just couldn’t bear to part with. Crowley had given that edition to him shortly after it was published, telling him that reading Dickens was akin to torture so he was really trying to plague him rather than give him a kind gift. The angel was grateful for it all the same.

“What’re’ you looking at?” snapped a man in a flat cap standing near a stoop.

“Oh, ah. Nothing.” Aziraphale gave him a small, brittle smile and quickly looked away.

“Oh I’m nothin’ then?” the man started following the angel, a sour look upon his face.

“I’m just looking for a book shop, I will be right out of your way. My apologies.” He said, looking aside at the man, who had moved to block his path.

“I think you owe me a bit of reparations for the insult sir.”

Oh no. Barely here and it was already leading to a fight. What did he ever do to this man?

“Sir, please just leave me alone and I will be on my way.” Aziraphale tried to move around him and the man stayed with him, blocking his path forward.

“I don’t think I will.” The sharp click of knife sounded from the man and Aziraphale held up his hands as the man brandished a knife.

“The man said he is done with you. Piss off.” Came a deep growl from beside him. A figure with long red hair and a slinky black dress strolled up beside Aziraphale with a swagger that was unmistakable.

“Listen lady, this ain’t none of you-“ the man’s cries were cut off in terror as he beheld the flash of yellow snake eyes and the sharp smell of smoke as his hat began to catch alight. Beating the flames out, the man dropped his knife and began to run in the opposite direction. Cat-eyed sunglasses were placed on her lovely eyes once more.

“Crowley, what are you doing here?” Aziraphale asked as the man fled, looking at his fellow immortal with gratitude. He could have solved the problem easily enough, but he hated having to evoke terror and do violent things. It just made him uncomfortable.

“Saving you, angel.” She drawled, with her eyebrows raised like it was a fairly obvious question.

“Oh of course." The angel grinned in an embarassed way, "Nice dress.” Aziraphale complimented sincerely, taking in her lovely red lipstick and the golden slither of the snake along her back. It really suited her hips and showed off her legs with the long slit up the side.

“Don’t stare too long, I’ll start to think you’re interested.” Crowley laughed as Aziraphale looked up, a small tinge of color staining his cheeks pink.

“I’m not-Not that you aren’t lovely, but it wouldn’t be right.” The white haired man stumbled over his words a bit before finally changing direction entirely, ”What I mean to say is have you seen a first edition Dickens book around?”

“First edition Dickens? You lost the first edition Dickens book?” Crowley backed up, looking hurt. The look almost broke Aziraphale’s heart on the spot.

“No! I didn’t lose it. It was stolen.” Aziraphale extended his arm and Crowley rested long black taloned fingers on the crook of his arm as they walked side by side, now returning to her default moody look. “The shop was broken into and I found a jacket made by an American tailor in New York with some dollars in it so I assumed it would be here.”

Crowley began to laugh, “So you just miracled yourself over here to look for a book?”

“Well there’s also a lovely Vaudeville show in town that I thought I might pop by and see once I found the book.” Aziraphale wove his way through the city streets, arm in arm with his companion following the strange sort of gut instinct that usually was divine providence at work. He was supposed to be going in this direction, he just knew it.

“Care for a little company for the show? I’m bored and could use something to excite me.” Crowley smirked as Aziraphale’s heart did an instinctual flutter and she laughed.

“Well I can’t promise it will be exciting but-“Aziraphale paused, looking at the window of a bookshop in an alleyway. There it was, his Dickens book on display.

Without a further word he strode into the bookshop. A nasally voice answered his as a tall man with glasses glare at him, “I’m sorry, sir. We are closed.”

“Where did you get that book in the front window?” He demanded.

“It’s from our international shipments, but I told you it’s not for sale. Now scram!” The man spoke in pinched tones, exchanging glances with the other men in the room. All of them looked far too scarred and muscled to be book dealers.

“But that’s my book!” He protested loudly, indignant that these mortals would have the gall to both take his book and then refuse to give it back.

“Yeah, yeah. I’m sure it is.” A large man with shoulders twice Aziraphale’s width started shouldering him through the door, flinging him to the opposing wall. He could have resisted, but he chose not to. Really. “And don’t come back!” the man yelled after him.

“Oh bother!” he mumbled, picking up his silver fedora and looking ruefully at the door he had just been flung out of. Wait a second, Crowley never followed him out of the door!

Through the glass he could see Crowley slink forward, with all of the men’s eyes upon her hips and chest. He could not make out the words that were being said, but they appeared to be getting into an argument over it, bickering amongst each other as Crowley made flirtatious facial expressions at the big man who had thrown the angel out.

Wait! From behind the counter Aziraphale could see a man raising a gun towards Crowley’s back. The other men appeared to also be drawing up their various weapons as the conversation got more and more heated. Oh no, if that his her she would most certainly be discoporated for a period of time. That would never do. Aziraphale channeled his energies towards Crowley and with a small miracle, the bullets missed her as they flew about the shop knocking the other men dead.

As the various tough guys fell over from their various wounds, Crowley grabbed the book and walked out. “Was all that violence your doing?” Aziraphale tried to look away from all the death and violence, cringing at the thought of it.

“I wish. It certainly would boost my hellish numbers." Crowley looked mock disappointed, "Alas it was just a bunch of normal human violence though.”

“A pity on all accounts then.” Aziraphale sincerely mourned.

“Now what about that show?” Crowley asked, snapping her long black nails as a ripple of power waved over the City that Never Sleeps. “I think a private box just opened up for us.”

The box seat was lovely with red velvet seats and curtain to close them off from the world should they so choose. It just so happened that everyone who was supposed to have those seats got food poisoning and would be quite unable to attend that night. Poor things.

Aziraphale and Crowley sat next to each other, their arms barely touching.

“Angel, I do believe I owe you something,” Crowley whispered into his companion’s ear as on stage they did some sort of clown act.

“Whatever do you mean?” He responded, turning away from the act to face Crowley. Her face was very close to his all of a sudden, her heavy grey shadowed eye lids and full red lips standing out against the pale of her face in the darkness.

“You saved my life back there, don’t think I didn’t notice.” She grinned at him, “If I didn’t know better, I’d say you were falling a bit for me.”

“Oh not falling. Never that. But I didn’t want to see you discorporated.” Aziraphale smiled.

“You’re not falling, not even a little?” Crowley’s hands stroked Aziraphale’s arm, tracing patterns on his suit jacket.

The angel swallowed hard as his nerves began to pound, “I’m not sure this is a good idea, my dear. They could be watching us you know.”

“You know, no one can see us here.” Crowley whispered into the angel’s ear, nipping at his lobes with her teeth sending a shiver through his body. He made no effort to pull away from her actions, “And if someone was going to stop us from above, they damn well would have by now. What’s say we really enjoy the show?” “What do you have in mind?” Even though angels were not supposed to enjoy this type of behavior, Aziraphale had allowed himself to be drawn into Crowley’s actions time and time again. After all, he could just blame it on the demon should he ever be brought up by his superiors and claim that he had some sort of magic used on him.

“I ride you til neither of us can move in this dark little box while the clowns play below.” Crowley’s lips had moved to his neck and were beginning to kiss it slowly, licking along the path of the neck. Her fingers loosened his tie so she could better reach his neck.

Aziraphale cast an eye at the show below. It didn’t appear that this show was exactly the type of high art that he was going to truly enjoy as they did yet another slapstick routine. With one hand he lifted Crowley’s face to meet his, pressing his lips gently to hers as he undid his tie fully with his other hand. She moaned softly, abandoning her seat to sit on his lap.

With a flick of his fingers Aziraphale closed the curtains, throwing his hat to the ground. He ran his hands along the black satin of the demon’s dress, tracing soft swirls along her back. Crowley snapped her fingers and suddenly there was a change in her and Aziraphale’s bodies. The angel felt a quivering starting in his loins where previous to that he had been just as sexless as the day he was born.

Instincts took over as Crowley straddled Aziraphale, now kissing him deeply and letting her forked tongue explore his mouth. He responded back in kind, running his hands over every bit of skin he could reach along her back. The angel wondered which set of human sexes they had been granted this time, excited to try something new. This was all so public, even though no one was watching them from the darkness. He felt his own begin to rise as Crowley rolled her hips aggressively over him. Biting his neck rough enough to bruise. Pain, just the right amount sent a wonderful shudder through him. His hands wound underneath her skirt, feeling the garters and silk panties that were beyond her stockings.

Nothing was there to rise, feeling over the mound there. Good to know. Aziraphale unhooked her garters to let her stockings fall to the wayside and unclipped the belt they were attached to.

“Oh angel, the things I will do to you. Tell me, how much do you want me?” Crowley whispered furtively, her breath becoming thick with lust. Her forked tongue flickered out of her mouth.

“I want you more than I want to actually read the Dickens book that we saved today. More than an actor wants attention.” The grinding was doing its job and Aziraphale could feel his cock stiff against the suit pants. White hot need burned in the pit of his gut. He covered the demons mouth with his, reaching under her skirts to stroke at her clit through the underwear.

He needed release and he needed it soon. The pressure that was building up within him was going to be too intense and soon he would be able to bear it no longer. Crowley was relentless, unbuttoning the fly of Aziraphale’s pants and pulling them down just enough that the long length of his newfound cock could be released from within after a quick tug took down the underwear. With a decisive hand, Crowley reached under her skirt to peel the high waistband downward on her own underwear. A flick of the wrist sent it flying.

“How much do you want me again, angel?” She purred, as his fingers worked a steady pulsing rhythm on her clit.

“I swear, I will explode right here if I don’t get a chance to bed you immediately,” Aziraphale moaned as the demon’s fingers slowly ran up and down his shaft, his cock twitching in her hands helplessly.

“Oh but what is in it for me?” She guided his fingers towards her opening, putting in one of his fingers, followed by a second.

“I will make you feel…pleasant?” Aziraphale blanked, the length of his dirty talk coming to an end and just knowing that he wanted to feel her upon his lap riding him right now. To feel her breath on his neck hitch and her whimper as she struggled not to scream in the middle of the theater. “Please, I don’t have words for it, but I’ll show you.”

“Oh close enough, angel.” Crowley conceded, climbing on top of him once more and thrusting his length roughly into her. Her hips rolled and it was Aziraphale who had to fight back the urge to scream. To muffle himself he flew forward, pressing his lips into her neck and his hands into her hips. He felt her rump as she moved and undulated for a moment before she moved one of his hands to move down her dress. Soft breasts met his hands and the angel moved his fingers underneath the bra to massage them as they rolled together.

Crowley’s breath became more strained as she moaned, “Teeth. Bite me angel. On the neck. As hard as you can.”

“But won’t I hurt you?” Concern flashed across Aziraphale’s face.

“Yes, that is the point.” She growled, her hips moving faster and faster til he felt like he was about to explode.

Aziraphale obeyed the orders gratefully, biting her hard enough to bruise on the right side of her neck as he felt the sharp wave of an orgasm wash over him. Crowley’s body tensed him as he bit and she whimpered into his ear as she rode him hard.

That was not to be the end, mind you. The cycle continued three more times, til both of them felt exhausted and were very done being human and messy. With a flick of her talons, Crowley dismissed the sexual organs. Aziraphale focused very hard and they were both in a bedroom, a familiar bedroom that was draped in black.

“All the way in London, angel?” Crowley mumbled into Aziraphale’s neck as the angel laid down next to her on the bed. They could have miracled off their clothes, but even that felt like too much of an effort after the show they had just put on. They were cleaned up and that was really what mattered. And he had his book, which was promptly placed

“Well I wasn’t going to sleep in New York. It’s the City that Never Sleeps after all.” Aziraphale joked, feeling his eyelids be awful and heavy. With drowsy hands he moved the covers over both of them, glad that Crowley had invested in soft blankets despite the fact that both of them only slept as a hobby.

“Remind me to yell at you for that joke when we wake up,” mumbled Crowley, nesting closer to his angel. Aziraphale certainly didn’t mind considering how warm he was.

“I still wonder how they got my book.” Aziraphale queried as he draped his arms around the lovely demon in front of him.

“Oh that. Right. I arranged it. Figured it would be a good way to get you in the Vaudeville show and actually in New York. You’d never go to New York otherwise.” Crowley mumbled as Aziraphale nuzzled her ginger hair.

“Oh that’s wicked.” Aziraphale answered, but without any venom to his voice.

Crowley smirked, lazy and satisfied, “It worked didn’t it?”

The angel demurred softly as they both drifted off to sleep, the sound of bombs echoing in the London skies.

[therhythminwriting-blog]

Nightmares Are My Wonderland

((Heavily based on the universe in the movie “Push” with undertones of the anime/manga/game corpse party and my hero academia. TRIGGER WARNING; DOMESTIC ABUSE AND ALCOHOLISM IS HEAVILY IMPLIED WITH UNDERTONES OF SEXUAL ASSUALT AND MENTAL ABUSE))

((Looking for a partner to either ally with my villain and prime her to become something either truly evil or virtuous (meaning you can be a hero that saves her from a dark life if you’d like, I encourage this.) Or you can meet with her a decade after she’s become a villain, being more well-known and feared among the community and either ally her as a villain or fight her as a hero (meaning you would have to fight to defeat her as a hero, saving her soul would no longer be an option unless you’re creative) Please be very clear as to what you quirk is and how you use it))

((If you wish to play a Cannon character than this character is strictly made for a hero/villain environment as long as they belong to the comic book, manga, movie range then you are free to use them))

Sun glistens through the dark murky motel room as Valerie grips her long smooth locks, a soft tan to her skin despite living like a vampire most of her life, as her eyes flutter impatiently about the room. Dad didn't come home again, looks like he'll be home later today. Suddenly the neighbor and his weird cosplay girlfriend begin talking way too fucking loud for 6 a.m. before Valerie pinches the bridge of her nose, whining softly as the hangover settles over her small boxy frame "Fuuuuck! Shut Up!" she screams, throwing a pillow at the wall before sitting up at the edge of the bed. The walls are a dark smoke gray, with brown stains scattered about the room like carefully hung photos and a pitch colored trim between the concrete floor and ceiling “God, could we have picked a cheaper motel…” she huffs as if she hadn’t spent all her savings on a few months in this crappy place, it was easier than trying to find an apartment without a reliable source of income. At this point, she’d only been taking odd jobs in different towns with hopes of someday landing a job and settling down in a real home, but that was entirely impossible with her father’s drunken misdeeds in every town she had attempted to build a nest. Speaking of which, was it possible he sent her a text or tried to call her last night when she was drinking? Like Father, like daughter…Valerie stares at the bottle of 1800 Tequila Silver on the nightstand, it never tasted good but the feeling of floating was something worth chasing “I really ought to let him go drink himself to death far away from me…” but the truth is like the high liquor gives, she continues to chase what her father used to be…before…She dives for the bottle before the thought can bubble to the surface taking a massive swig, filling her mouth entirely before swallowing. She runs her fingers through the length of her hair as the liquor silences any chance of tears before she opens the app on her phone to check for any paying jobs. Please, something that pays more than 35 dollars!!! Browsing the list carefully her eyes flutter over something odd, but for 1,000 dollars…how could she pass this up? Imagine all the food, maybe even a motel upgrade…even for a few weeks would be better than breathing in mold for a day longer. The description reads ‘Social experiment; One-time visit required for payment. We are inviting 7 people to a night of fun and fright!(Each person will receive their own time and date to arrive, only one person will be selected to receive a permanent job and living quarters) You and 6 others will be suited up in gear that will analyze your vitals and brain functions while giving a boost in physical abilities so you can defend against ‘monsters’. This will require all 7 participants in different sessions to work alongside me to complete simulated courses, like a Virtual Reality Video Game! No Danger! No Risk! Just 23 hours of free food, socializing and a whole lot of exercise! Better message quickly or you’ll miss your chance!’ below was an email and phone number with the letters X.O.E signed below. Social experiment, huh? The young maiden smiles nervously at the idea of anything social, but quickly decides the money would clearly be worth it, although it could be a scam…on the off chance it is real “Suppose I just message them and see how it goes…”

Several Days Later; Monday

As the night of the experiment arrives, Valerie finds herself standing outside the most beautiful little house she’d ever seen in her 19-year life, it was white and plain colored with vines covered in tiny blossomed flowers scattered about its length and surrounded by a garden that must’ve come right out of a fairytale. Her brain wept at such beauty, unaware of the man hollowing out her soul with his eyes until the final time his eyes rushed over her, Valerie gasps gripping onto her sides with her arms across her abdomen

“Y-you must be Xavier Everts…” she blurts out, trying not to appear terrified to no avail “I...I’m Valerie Bonna-velt…I’m here for the…social…experiment…” she was beginning to wonder if there was such a thing, now that she stood in his unblinking presence. Had anyone messaged this man? “Excuse me…Could you please tell me what’s going on…I’m really confused” the man moves closer, and without a word takes her wrist dragging the trembling teen through the gate and into a poorly lit kitchen.  

The man’s frail old voice booms “Master Everts!” Valerie stares numbly at the floor, her brain rushing over every possible scenario in which she’d never see the light of day again. Suddenly a warm voice coos back, in the sweetest most soothing manner an anxiety-stricken woman could hope for “Ah yes, back here Ms. Bonna-velt, I’ve awaited your arrival” she eagerly grips onto the velvet sheets draped over the door frame replacing a door, pulling them apart as she stepped into a large open Victorian style living room. She grips her chest as her brows dip and pull together in rhythm with the melting of her soul, the walls were deep pitch with roses painted all over that were framed two-fourths of the way down with a light brown border. This appeared to have an almost red glaze deepening in opacity as it met the floor unlike the lusterless tan trim. This matched the drapes and couches perfectly; Valerie could not help but stand in awe as her honey colored eyes polished the place over. From the floral-patterned wood below her feet to the glowing candle chandelier above her head it was truly a picture taken right from her dreams. A soft chuckle ripples through the air before her eyes meet with the tall thin man with paper white skin and long raven colored hair

“I see you appreciate the beauty in times far before you and I, but I’m afraid we haven’t the time to give you a tour.” His apologetic smile, spreads energy through her body like a surge of electricity as she nods, rushing to close the distance between herself and the much taller employer

“It is alright, really I’m sure we could do that another time”

In response to this he laughs “Confident one, aren’t we?”

His features were strong and well pronounced, it was like talking to a portrait in an art museum only this one was responding. He explained the way that the suits would have small needles placed in various areas to properly study Valerie’s vitals and chemical balances in response to the simulations around her.  Truth be told she didn’t understand half of it, but the way his arms wrapped around her front and hands fumbled with the attachments kept her calm, unable to focus on the suspicious liquids behind each needle or the metallic scent coming from his clothing. The only thing on her mind was the way his lips would part for each breath as if breathing through his nose was not good enough, and the squinted glances he’d gift her with a calm cold grin

“My, you really enjoy being in my presence, don’t you?” Valerie felt her shoulders pull back as her spine straightened and she nodded softly, there was something…about this place, this man that felt too close to her heart…as if plucked right from her mind. She bites her lower lip, leaning into him to take in the rough metal odor as he roughly grips her waist with his right hand and slammed down onto a large orange button with his left

“I hope you continue to feel this way after your first trial.” His voice quickly escaping her mind as 5 needles inject strange liquids into various parts of her body simultaneously. Had her gut instinct been correct? Had no one else messaged this man? Did she sign up to be a lab rat? His fingers squeeze her skin roughly before releasing

“Don’t worry, it’s the power boost you were promised in the post, I hope you did not forget the terms of our agreement dear girl” all her muscles tense in response to the liquids.

This triggers the beginning of the first simulation titled “Of All the Things You Love” the words stretched across a beautiful Japanese garden, cherry blossoms swaying over the bold white words that slowly began to fade as Mr. Everts booms through the headphones covering her ears

“Now, you should be able to move normally about the world, you will need to find a clue in this world to escape. If you perform well enough, we will discuss having you over for the next trial. For now, all you need to know is your brain controls and develops this game as you play, I have zero control of what you see or what the clues are. I can only give you directions on where to find these clues, beyond that it will be up to you whether you escape or not.”

Valerie was stumped by this, her mind trying desperately to find a solution “My brain created this place? From a memory? Or a dream?” she thought, wrapping her arms around herself as always. Nothing felt different, her arms and legs were the same appendages she used every day. Truthfully it had appeared the only difference was a scenery and climate change. She takes in the warmth of the sun’s rays before he speaks again, somehow watching her stretch and twirl in the summer’s heat

“I see you prefer warmer climates, are you ready to begin?” his soft words felt as though they were placed there for a reason, as though they were meant to calm her uneasy state. “The clue is at the center of this garden, but beware, although your mind has created a calming environment that your cognizance can handle, there are still threats guarding each clue.” He sounded quite sure of himself, but the idea that her mind could have created something harmful in a place like this, it felt impossible. Nevertheless, Valerie forced herself forward deeper into the garden, trying to focus on the flowers, the sun and the warm floral smells that were fashioned by the two intertwining

“Are you sure there are fiends in this game? I know I watch a lot of horror movies, but it doesn’t seem like there could be anything like that… here…” even she sounded unsure of her conclusion, worried it was her brain trying to cope with the idea of treading unknown terrain. “What do I do if there is something trying to attack me anyway?” these seemed like questions she should have asked before starting the simulation, but it seemed she was purposefully placed in this place without knowledge of what was to come. This would force her to rely on the help of Mr. Everts or her own reflexes, making this far more challenging than she had first envisioned.

“Onee-chan!!!” A familiar tiny voice calls towards her from somewhere far ahead, followed by soft weak sobs “Onee-Chan!” the voice cries once again causing my feet to move towards it.

“This is such a bad idea, what if it isn’t really a little girl!” Valerie would scream at her body, but it continued to sprint towards a small terrified scream, until that scream had a face. Before her stood a little girl, not much older than 4 years old with soft black hair that framed her warm rosy skin “Hello there…little one…Do you need help?” Valerie whimpers, keeping her distance from this small child as the girl began to appear more and more familiar the longer, she stared.

“Onee-chan” Yuka cried, looking over her shoulder with the one side of her face that still had an eye, immediately being recognized by the Valerie as one of the victims in her favorite anime.

“No. No no no, this is impossible. You’re not real!” she cried, taking a step back from the child before it revealed its entire face. Blood dripping from the hollow socket that used to house Yuka’s eye as the ghoulish kid closed the distance between herself and Valerie. It was like lightspeed one second Yuka was staring at her and the next she was crying to be saved with tiny hands wrapped tightly around her throat.

“You have to fight, if you want to survive you must fight” Everts calls, reminding her this was merely a simulation. Valerie groans loudly, slamming her elbow into the child’s skull and with a loud crack the girl’s skull fragments spray about the smooth dirt path leading to the center. The corpse began to shrivel like a salted snail until there was nothing left of the falsified child. Needing to remind herself this was just a game, despite the years that torture scene had terrorized her memory.

“It’s Okay Bonna-velt, you can do this. You can do this! You need to breathe and remember your goal” this seemed to do the trick, as Valerie got to her feet once more and began on the path to the center of the world which appeared to have a large pine tree more massive than a skyscraper, the point nearly pierced the sky. “Looks as though my awareness was kind enough to give me a marker. Better return the favor and move swiftly” with this the young girl closed the distance between herself and the wooded forest housing her first clue. The wind whistled an alluring tune as she cautiously stepped into the shaded lot, each tree huddled closely together to deny the rays of sunlight any access while below was an unkept brush that slicked over towards the center, all signs pointed forward. What lied behind this damp cloaked brush? Valerie ties back her long brown hair in a loose poorly constructed bun before entering with a nervous whine, as she passed the threshold the world around her began to change. Although the foliage remained trees, the leaves had grown much larger and pronounced than pines with long limbs that stretched out to the similar trees surrounding it. The terrain matching that of a rainforest, with the sounds of life flooding the air.

“What did you do!?” Everts chimes suddenly, making her body jolt and tense. “How did you change your surroundings? None of the other subjects were able to change their environment without finding a clue” his tone sounded agitated, but for what reason? Had she done something wrong?

“I’m not sure, I just thought I was done with that world…Did I do something wrong?” her voice sounding so terribly unsure of her accidental decision to change the world, unaware that was even something she was able to do.

“No, my apologies. I was merely annoyed with myself for having my attention elsewhere…. You are a wonderful specimen Valerie. I’ve never found a human who’s suited my fancy so immensely, please continue” He chirped, suddenly she feels him grip her waist with both hands and squeeze roughly forcing a moan from her trembling lips. It was embarrassing, but he achieved his goal as she decided not to ask any more questions before getting closer to the first clue. All along her path we’re dried and torn snake skins that grew larger the closer she managed to get, as though there was a large snake that had been shedding in this area over the span of its life. This Idea alone was not enough to scare her, but thinking back she remembered one snake that made her skin crawl. Kaa from the jungle book, no beast should have the ability to manipulate living beings’ minds. A shiver ran up her spine

“Oh god Bonna-velt…tell me you didn’t do that to us…tell me you were thinking snakes on a plane or something harmless like that” but there was no undoing what had already been done, hissing suddenly filled the air.

HISSSSSSS

HISSSSSSSSS

HISSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

She screamed, running forward frantically, unaware that she was headed towards the snake instead of away from it until her body slams against a large, thick and scaly body before falling onto her behind “No no no no! Close your eyes, close your eyes!” Valerie screams afraid of anything sentient invading her mind as her heels dig into the dirt in front of her, pushing her body away as quickly as her behind will scoot. Woefully she does not scoot fast enough, as soon she can feel that same meaty, scaly body slithering around her and crushing her ribs tighter and snugger by the minute. With her eyes closed the maiden begins shouting at the beast through constricted breaths “I’m not looking into your eyes! You’re not real! And You cannot control me!” it felt like her lungs would pop after this declaration, her eyes threatening to evacuate from her skull as a result of so much pressure. It was not only terrifying to see these characters come to life, but to witness them behaving so different than the characters they represented from shows, movies and books. Memory has a funny way of warping reality, although Yuka was no villain in her stunning debut the memories of her revolve around a nightmare that visited young Valerie from time to time. This made Yuka the perfect first trial according to her brain, and this brainwashing beast was no different.

“There is no need for you to fight me now. You’ve given me all I need” the beastress hisses, as her cold scaly body loosens its grip letting the young girl breathe for a moment. “Open those beautiful eyes, and see for yourself” Her eyes fluttering open to see the snake is no where near her body, and yet it felt as though the thick meaty body began to constrict around her again

“Gah! How are you-…you doing this?” she gasps, unable to breathe the tighter this invisible body squeezes around her small frame. What is going on?! Valerie stares at the serpent as it moves in from the brush

“Why would I waste my time crushing you, when you’ll do it for me?” Kaa smugly hisses towards her, leaving the young girl choking and confused before it eases up allowing her to breathe again “Why waste my time on something as helpless as you? Or Someone so selfish?” the sound of the viper’s harsh words makes each gasped breath that much more painful.

“SHUT UP! YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT!” Valerie cries out, feeling a sharp pinch in her left lung before erupting into a fit of coughs, blood oozing from her chest and out her mouth along with mucus from smoking habitually. Her eyes closed tightly as it pools all over directly below Valerie’s trembling body, it felt like lava was pouring from her lungs and out her throat

“Poor thing, it’s really eating you up inside isn’t it?” the serpent cackles, closing the distance between the young human and herself, quickly jerking the young girls chin upward with the end of it’s tail “You should have spoken out, before you could no longer speak at all”. Suddenly Valerie feels the large scaly body starting to coil around her again “Oh dear, I’d never imagined you’d make yourself suffer so much” The young girl spits the last bit of blood onto the floor before looking up at the temptress and yelling

“Don’t get so smug, thinking you’ve won!” the roar of her voice makes the snake stumble and the hypnosis break, knocking the terrified girl to the ground as her surroundings are returned to that garden from the beginning of the game. Kaa had control of her since the moment she stepped into the forest, warping her surroundings to toy with the scared girl. “What?! Why are we here? What did you do?!” these questions swirl around the thick cold air for seconds before Valerie launches at the small snake, gripping the back of its head and the third fourth of it’s body. ‘You have to kill it, it will take over your mind again if you don’t kill it’ her mind screams as she pulls the beast apart in once swift motion, spraying its blood all over herself and the surrounding trees as her knuckles clack together behind her.

“Mhhhm, what a good look for you.” He groans, finally releasing her hips from his hands, wait…Was He holding onto her this entire time? No, his hands started at her waist, now they’re on the sides of her hips. Has he been petting her this whole time?! A blush overcomes her face as an item within the world suddenly begins to glow “That is the clue for the next trial Ms. Bonna-velt…Take it and read its contents carefully, for it can only be deciphered by you.”

The small slab was glistening so brightly it’s shape could not be interpreted from this distance, and as the young adventuress closed the distance she had to use her arms to cover her eyes “I always wondered what the highlighted items looked like inside the game, but this is insane” she whimpered in regards to the blinding light emitting off the clay slab, as her hands gripped the bottom end it ceased  floating and glowing, resting in her tiny palms as a normal chiseled slab “What you’ve found is what you fear, but what you seek is gone my dear” the words flowing from her lips like unsteady breaths “What you’ve found is what you fear…Do they mean Yuka and Kaa? But what you seek is gone my dear? Gone? Like disappeared or like dead?” she puzzled over this for a moment before the words became clear. The young maiden held the slab tightly to her chest, it was all so clear. Yuka was mother, begging to be saved by a simple phone call to the police department and Kaa was the guilt crushing her insides for leaving her mother in the hands of her father, she had only wanted to get away from the fighting for a few hours, a day at most, but the family she’d left behind that day was no longer there upon her arrival. As tears rolled down her heated cheeks like water off a melting icicle, she hugged herself tightly and cried out “The Clue is Mother” before the device suddenly releases her from the simulation.

“Welcome back Young Bonna-velt…” Everts cooed, catching her body as gravity gave way to her tired limbs. Despite physically never moving, her body felt heavy and exhausted as though she’d been running marathons all night “Do not worry, the serum will heal all your aches by the morning. As well as reform some of your least performing organ systems to a new undamaged state.” Almost certain he meant her liver and lungs, but would not directly say these as to not pry too deep into her personal life. Suppose he’s seen too much already? Her eyes begin to grow heavy against his warm frame until the world around her fades into darkness.

The Morning of Mourning

The following morning, Valerie wakes to the dark dank hotel she’d left her unconscious father resting in, wait…How did she get here?! She rubs her temples, sitting up at the middle of the same lumpy mattress she’s slept on for nearly a month now. A sharp pain jolts up her spine, followed by the need to vomit with her head spinning like a dreidel as she plops back down across the mattress watching the small warped ceiling fan weakly wobble in a circle. “uhhh” she groans, this was like a hangover, morning sickness and fever chills had a baby leaving it in the young girl’s skull “Small price to pay for a healthy body, right?” wanting to believe that the strange man from the internet was telling her the truth. Should she see a doctor? A better question is…Does she have the money to visit a doctor? Oh right, the thousand dollars. Rolling onto her side, Valerie looks around both sides of the bed to see if her wallet was on the nightstand, but instead of the torn, leather wallet her mother had gifted Valerie…there was a wave of deep crimson covering the night stand, wall and right half of her bed. Her eyes widen ‘Mr. Everts no!’ her mind sobbed as she pushed herself onto her belly, kicking herself forward to find Victor Dean Bonna-velt with the upper half of his skull removed, as though whomever did this cut from the middle of the eye sockets around. She gagged, pushing herself upward in a rush to get away, but her palm slips on the blood covered wood slamming her body forward and into the corpse where her skull would bounce off the concrete a couple times with the weight of her body sliding her under the second bed with ease. The entire front half of her body smothered in hot, sticky blood as her breathing grows heavier “Someone, please help me…” she whispers, before fading out of consciousness

Hours later the young girl stirs from beneath her father’s bed, unaware of her surroundings beyond a foul smell and the suffocating, cramped space she finds herself crammed in.

Buzz Buzz,

Buzz Buzz,

Buzz Buzz!

Valerie’s phone erupts with life, vibrating on the nightstand closest to the door, she scrambles forward kicking at the guts behind her with loud disgusting squishing sounds as she squirms from under the bed’s grip. She whines softly, trying to rub the filth from her face as her eyes adjust to the darkness

“Dad? Can you get that!” she groans, wiping her hands on her shirt before rubbing the sleep from her eyes. The phone once again springs to life and danced about the nightstand, glossing over the bedroom with a bright blue light as Valerie is reminded of the scene that coated her in…blood…This is blood…A soft chuckle leaves her cowering lips as the phone erupts with a call, the letters X.O.E displayed in bold letters on the tiny screen, slowly she inches past the bed as she tries desperately to keep her from seeing her disemboweled parent again “Block it out Valerie, you have to stay focused, try to remember” she whispers softly. This seemed to ease her nerves as she answered the phone with a monotone “Hello.”

“MS. BONNA-VELT! My gracious dove, how are you this fine eve?” He booms, a cheery whimsy to his words as though he was utterly pleased to speak to the young girl once again. She takes a deep breath before trying to speak again, so much had happened, so much that she needed to know about the events leading up to…to…She swallows hard, holding herself loosely with one arm as the other helps her hand hold up the phone

“N-not very good Mr. Everts… I’m having trouble remembering…some things…” to this he responded with a deep sigh that melted into a groan, she could feel his smile fade with her words, but he had needed to know. “Please Mr. Everts, I don’t mean to annoy you, I had only hoped you’d fill in some gaps…” an insecurity to her tone, feeling the tension slowly start to dissolve before he replies again with a soft hearty laugh

“I see young girl; your brain must be suppressing some things in an attempt to protect you. Could I come get you from your motel and take you elsewhere to clear your mind? I’m sure the smell is getting to you” Somehow his words made it sound like he knew her father’s corpse was only feet away from her beginning to pucker and bloat. How long had she been out? How long had the body been there? It had to have been a few days for the smell and appearance to be this bad, right?

“Yes please, please come get me!” she cries, not wanting to think about how old the blood on her body was or how she’d come to be covered in it to begin with. Today was beginning to be much worse than she’d ever planned when suddenly there’s a knocking at the door

“Then come outside my love, daddy’s here” he hums through the phone, making her pause and stare at the door…He…He did this…Is he…Is he going to kill her too? “Don’t be shy my sweet flower, come say hello” he coos once more, trying to lure her from her nest, but Valerie is unable to move despite standing only a few feet from the unlocked door. She watches as the handle turns left all the way “Hello?! Are you alright?!” his tone drowning with worry as the handle twists all the way to the right “Say something” he once again cries, throwing the door open to the vision of his beautiful little girl, the fruit of his labor and the love of his life. Their eyes lock, making him visibly swoon “You look so beautiful all painted up for daddy” He closes the distance between them, taking hold of her sides as his thumbs softly rub her love-handles and he washes her over with his gaze once more “I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone more beautiful” he whispers before his lips press to her jawline, making her body tremble “Valerie, it’s okay. I stayed by your side for these last 4 days, but I didn’t want to scare you…I couldn’t be here when you woke, I’m so terribly sorry…” what had he meant by that? He’s been here with her? What had she done with him on those days and why could she not remember…?

“What are you talking about!” she screams, shoving him to the ground before plopping down onto the bed with an ugly sob “What would you have been doing here for the last four days if I wasn’t awake! Why are you doing this to me!” she wails, slamming her fists into her own stomach a few times “Or am I right to believe I was involved somehow?”

“Involved?” he repeats, as though the word is foreign to him before he erupts with laughter “Such a shame, we’ll have to fix that broken memory of yours right away” with this he pushed himself upward and onto his feet in one swift motion, who the hell is this dude? “But first, I will need you to listen little girl. Come here” he snips, curling his finger in towards himself to direct her.

‘Do I have a choice? What will happen if I don’t? And why didn’t he answer my question’ these were the thoughts that plagued her mind as she obediently hoisted herself upward to her feet and under the arm of the man that obviously murdered her father.

“Atta Girl” He chirps, walking her out the deep green door towards a short maroon 2004 Mercury Marauder with smoky gray leather seats and interior, upon closer inspection she finds the windshield cracked and the radio removed. He let go of her long enough to toss the door open and shove her into the vehicle, but rather than go around the car he scoots along the front of the seats to the driver’s side, pulling the passenger door closed behind him. He starts the car as his eyes lock with hers intently “Please smile little one, you’re going to remember everything soon” somehow, she knew this was meant to calm her, but those words had an effect neither of them could have predicted. As the car backs up, jolting her body forward she grips the car door and the dash as a flash of the days that lead to these events fills her head.

An image of Valerie covered with blood, wearing a crazed grin as a camera films “My, my, such a beautiful girl painted up for daddy…Do you enjoy this? Does it feel good when you remember how it feels to be happy? Such a gorgeous smile you have little one” the man behind it booms, that strange familiar voice. Who is that? It felt as though she was looking through a smudged lens at the world surrounding her “I will be the protector of your memories my love, never again will you feel isolated or trapped. Never again will I allow anything to harm you, my sweet dove. That sick bastard didn’t deserve a daughter as perfect as you, therefore I will take you myself. And through experimentation you will be reborn as my daughter” the camera moves as he draws closer to my face, Everts!!!! He cups her cheek softly, why does his voice sound so melodic right now compared to real life and what does this memory mean? Valerie snaps back to reality as suddenly as she had left it, staring down at the rubber mat place below her feet

“Where are we going?” she mumbles, feeling her palms and hairline begin to sweat “And how much longer? I’m…I’m tired…” a soft tremble to her words, showing that same insecurity that drew him towards her to begin with. He quickly takes her hand in his, resting the two on her thigh as he spoke

“Back to our nest my little dove, it will be quite a while I’m afraid. If you wish to sleep, you can lean on daddy. I promise you’ll be safe” he softly coos, something that once was so comforting felt like a death sentence

“That’s okay…I’ll be alright…daddy” the word felt like vomit leaving her mouth, nothing could be more revolting, but a smile rested comfortably on his face after she had knighted him with his self-proclaimed title “Could you tell me more about our nest?” she hums softly, looking out her window onto the horizon as she buckles herself in the seat more securely not wanting to look towards him.

“It’s out of state I’m afraid, so that beautiful home you wished to tour will be left to collect dust. I have many homes I’ve strategically purchased around the united states and a few in Italy, but we won’t be leaving the country anytime soon. It is in a small town just outside of Bozeman, Montana. It is a very beautiful place, you can see the mountains so that’s a plus, but there’s also a lot of eyes, it is a heavily populated town and for good reason. The home itself is rather cheery and wooden, far from the town for good reason and it overlooks a lake.” The way he spoke made him almost seem normal to her, like he felt panicked for being ‘put on the spot’ and was trying to push past the feeling. Why did he feel so eerie before? She leans closer to the window, feeling the vibration of the car rock her into a deep sleep with an uncertainty towards the days to come.

Sunlight pours in through the windows like an estuary the rays penetrated the glass with ease as it lacked any form of tinting, the light was blinding to sleep covered eyes making life just a little harder for the teen girl “Mhhh!” she groaned, stretching as she sat up off the lap of her captor, it felt so good to sleep after processing so much, but immediately she is reminded of her situation

“Did you sleep well my little dove?” He coos, eyes focused on the road as he awaits her response. It had taken a moment for her to realize, but Valerie remembered falling asleep on the door against the window…Although she had avoided it before her eyes locked on the face that she once found so charming

“Did you…move me?” Irritation tainted each syllable of this question as her eyes burned holes into his soul as she waited for him to confirm what she already knew; it was a way of telling herself she wasn’t crazy.

“Yes, you looked so uncomfortable away from daddy…” he pouted, pushing his lower lip out as though it would influence her response at all. Why did he need to move her onto his lap?! So close to his…Her face turns bright red as she looks away from him, no telling what he could have done to her whilst she slept. Valerie was known to be able to sleep through a hurricane, her mother used to have to carry her sleeping body to the shower and drench her just to get her to school on time because standing her up stopped working after she’d gotten used to it. “I’ve seen that look before; you needn’t worry… I would never taint your purity without permission. I may have my warts, but things of that nature don’t suit my fancy…” meaning he did want her, but is it possible he expects her to want him in time? Rubbing her eyes, the girl yawns softly

“Well good…I don’t think I’d handle something like that very well…” there was truth to her words, but the way she phrased it was incorrect. She was relieved to find out he was not a self-proclaimed rapist, but this brought another question to her attention. He has his warts, but not of that nature…What nature does suit his fancy? She’d hoped it was her paranoia telling her what he fancied was far worse, and turned to her captor sleepily “Just…don’t touch me when I’m sleeping” she huffs, why was this something that needed to be said? It felt like common sense to Valerie, but not all monsters are cut from the same tattered cloth. “How close are we?” her soft quaking voice whispered as the young girl pulled her knees towards her chest and wrapped her slightly muscular arms around them before resting her chin on her knees.

“Only a few miles now. Did you want to stop and get something to eat? Stretch? Use the Bathroom? You know…Normal Human Road-trip activities…”It was clear he felt a little less comfortable with her after being reprimanded “Suppose I can hardly remember what other humans do anymore” he nervously chuckles, slowing the car a bit as his eyes wash Valerie over “I know…I can be a bit much, but I only have your best intentions in mind. I hate to admit I’ve been insensitive…I had time to think on this whilst you slept. I was not sure, but it felt like you were scared of me yesterday…and well, you’ve confirmed that today… with your response to something I’d hoped to be a kind gesture, I will admit I have not had much interaction with other people since college.” He pauses and looks away from her, back to the road, returning to normal speed in one smooth motion. Taking a deep breath Xavier continues in an unsteady tone “What I am hoping to convey is that, I am no threat to you Valerie Amerai Bonna-velt. I may be terrible with social skills and it’s possible my attempts at affection are more…creepy…than…romantic.”

“But?” She hums, leaning back in her chair so her spine is straight as her eyes look expectantly at him. She’d only had him in her life for a few days and already she expected so much of him. Was she starting to care? “But you killed my father?” suddenly the car screeches to a halt skidding towards the side of the road before he turns to face Valerie; the nineteen-year-old Mongolian American whose forehead is resting on the dash thanks to such an abrupt stop.

“I am not the one who killed that man Valerie, you are” the words clap against her ear drums like a gunshot, echoing all the way down her spine as he gripped her wrists “I was hoping to show you the video…but you went and made me spoil the cinematic reveal” he giggles, sounding pleased with himself as Xavier jerks the young girl closer, he was in his late sixties despite not looking a day over twenty-two and much stronger than Valerie despite his nerdy weakling façade “I know this is a lot, and although I love to watch a mind deteriorate…” He pauses, dragging his tongue over his upper lip as though thinking about changing his mind “…I want you to ease into these memories…You had to know the truth, but sometimes these things can be easier if you don’t try to rush it and force my hand. You could have remembered on your own in a few weeks, days or hours, but I wanted to at least wait until you were able to isolate yourself in a room away from me.” What was that? Did his personality start to act up, but he brought it back down to a normal level? What is this guy’s deal? “Suppose now that you know it’s inside the car, I’ll have to ask you to be patience an-”

“That’s okay… I’d rather put off…knowing all the details for now…If what you say is true, then this is probably my last happy day…funny because yesterday was probably one of the worst days of my life…” Valerie forces a laugh, wanting to conceal the shattering pieces leftover from her crumbling sanity. “Food does sound nice…” she whimpers softly, wanting to sway the conversation elsewhere as quickly as possible, to this Xavier swoons letting out a deep hum towards her

“This is why I love you, you really get me” he lets go of her, turning to start the car back up with little trouble “We should learn to focus on the good and a full tummy sounds brilliant!” he coos, pulling away from the shoulder and back onto the highway “What sorts of foods suit your fancy?” he hums, using that phrase again

But things of that nature don’t suit my fancy

What sorts of foods suit your fancy?

“I prefer something salty or savory, sweet things don’t suit my fancy” She hums, being nonspecific as always “I will admit I am being vague because I don’t want to displease you, it’s such a pain to deal with going back and forth over and over….” Her father had a funny way of convincing her to pick whilst rejecting every option she chose until she suggested what he originally wanted to begin with. The entire mess was frustrating for Valerie, she could hardly imagine a person who could stand a situation like that, but she was never a girl of patience.

“Aw how cute, you used my favorite phrasing! Hmmm…Salty or Savory? What a shame you don’t like sweets, there are lots of bakeries on the map. Well what about pizza?” he chimes, trying to cover everything she’s said to him, to prove his willingness to listen “It’s only sweet depending on your toppings and cheese is normally pretty sodium heavy”

“Fantastic idea!” She booms, leaning against the door as she watches him juggle driver and navigating. Something about this struggle was amusing to her, it was in no where near the suffering she’d endured as well as apparently creating it. Her smug grin fades, what an odd thing to find amusing…

The Arrival; Life’s gift

The cabin was a warm sandy tan, the outside looking as though full logs were stacked on top of each other to form the walls despite having such large full windows and crystal doors that slide open like a window laying on it’s side. What a beautiful home! Valerie forces a sweet smile as she rushes to the entrance running her fingers over the smooth glass of the door as her eyes wash over the pitch steel borders that kept the crystal in place. On either side of the door are golden dragons carved into the light wood, she can hardly stop herself from running her fingers over the glistening design “How much does a place like go for anyway?” she slurs, her eyes bouncing from her new shelter to Xavier

“To be perfectly candid, I do not remember. It may have been a gift from one of my admirers or one of the homes purchased by my parents…The décor will most certainly remind me where this cabin came from.” He closes the distance between himself and the young girl before nudging her with his hip “Open the door for me, my sweet dove” the sounds of pleasure rippling in throughout his voice as he watched a shiver jolt up the young girl’s spine.

“What did I tell you? That makes me so uncomfortable…” Valerie groans, sliding the door open for the lengthy man as he stumbled inside holding several boxes and bags, he had clearly prepared for this trip. Had he known they’d need to flee Premont, Texas? She felt deep inside herself that those videos contained a truth beyond that of her father’s demise. Valerie rubs her arms softly before entering the home, inside was dozens of family photos, anchors, and sea shells as if the entire home had been decorated with an ocean side theme “So? Parents? Or lovers?” she calls into the house. Quickly she follows behind her voice deeper into the cabin, where her feet meet the animal skin rugs stacked on top of one another about the room, nearly covering all the cherry-wood that made up the floor. The room was small compared to the rest of the house, with a large “L” shaped couch in the center of the room with many colorful pillows with words like “Live, Laugh, Love” written in cursive “God it’s so cozy I can literally feel the sea of big fluffy blankets and fuzzy socks beginning to smother me” she calls, fake dying as her body plops onto the plush coffee sofa

“Oh, don’t complain, we won’t be staying here long.” He huffs, sitting down near the young maiden’s feet as he leans deep into the couch as a sigh of relief blooms from his pouty lips “You could have assisted me in moving our luggage”

“Assist my kidnapper in moving his luggage and my stolen stuff? Do you ever listen to yourself when you speak?” she snips back quickly, hearing the smile on his face as he sits up, hunching over as his elbows rest on his knees and his finger intertwine

“I hardly kidnapped you, you walked with me to the car with no resistance and you didn’t try to run at Luigi’s Haunted Pizza, so I could very easily disagree with you. The same as any jury would, evidence makes a case young Bonna-velt and I’m afraid the proof is not on your side” Valerie could not stand his smugness, although this was only the case because Xavier was exposing the truth, although her terror served as a mental block she’d shown no sign of trying to escape this man’s clutches. Why was that? Was it the information he had about the four nights escaping her memory? Or the fear of starting over fresh with an unfamiliar face? She’d spent so many years living with her father, with no friends or family members to lean on her father was truly all she had left in this world and the moment he was gone, she latched onto this parasite as though it was a host. “Are you ready for tonight’s examination?” he hums, looking her over with an intense gaze “There’s been no resurface of your abilities during our trip, this leads me to believe you have a specific trigger that allows you to use those gifts” did he mean the body enhancers he injected into me the first night we met?

“Not now…I want to nap first, it’s been a long day of really bad news…I really just want to sleep…” suddenly the couch depresses, like something is crawling over her body, she feels warm thighs pushing her knees into her stomach by raising her thighs. She looks up to see him pressing his manhood to her crotch as he leans over her small frame, beginning to kiss her neck and collar bone as his arm slides under the back of her left shoulder. He cups the nape of her neck, looking deep into her eyes with a burning desire

“Tell me you’ll let me hold you whilst you sleep?” He whimpers, resting his chin on the tops of her breasts “It would be an honor to protect you throughout the night” she felt there was more to this than what he gave away, but whether she wanted to or not he quickly flipped the two so his body was below her on the opposite side of the couch “Cuddle into me and christen me yours forever” these words were so intense, what had he wanted her to say? Gripping onto his shirt, she stares down at him like a deer in the headlights very obviously afraid of such a sudden advance towards her.

“I don’t think so…You really ought to go…” She whispers, climbing of his body with great struggle as he tries to hold her close to him, Valerie disliked this pressure and although she wanted so badly to be held until all her problems could melt into the sound of two hearts beating. “Goodnight Everts…” She hums, wandering off into the home to find a bed to sleep in, when the sound of a vhs tape playing floods the air as a light flickered through a cracked door at the end of the hall. Valerie held her breath as she heard her own voice whine “I don’t wanna do this, I wanna sleep!” it was very clearly her, but it sounded much more intoxicated than she was.

“Val? What are you doing?! Who is this guy?! Val?! VALERIE!”

Daddy! Her eyes swarm with tears as she runs to the room, knocking the door open with such great force that the metal door makes a depression where it met the wall as her eyes meet with a flickering light. When her eyes finally adjust to the monitor’s blinding blue light, Valerie recognizes herself standing next to a liquified blur of reds, pinks, browns and grays, what on earth is that? She leans into the screen trying to take a better look at blob when suddenly it solidifies reforming the man she called father gasping for air, suppose lungs don’t work in liquid form.

“Valerie…Valerie please”

Tears swell in the young girl’s eyes as she watches her father plead with a dead-eyed version of herself, the mindless woman one screen crouches down looking him deep into his eyes “Solid, Gaseous, Liquid…Let us see if we can do all at once” the girl whispers forcing his mouth open as her fingers glow a bright white, making the saliva in his mouth and throat a solid. As her father chokes, trying to pull the brittle saliva from his throat as the beastress cackles

“Such a beautiful girl, are you enjoying your new powers? Show me more, show daddy what you can do” a voice off camera cheers, as Valerie’s father looks at the man behind the voice with terror as the dead eyed Valerie grips his body at a couple different areas and with a flash of light she changes his body into a mess of liquids, colored gases and hardened flesh.

“Just like ice” the girl cries slamming her fist into the upper half of his skull, watching the ice-like matter shatter and scatter about the room like red shards of glass. Valerie looks away from the screen, unable to watch herself rage like a brat being denied of something it wants as she vomits into the hall “h-how could I do this?” she trembles through rough gags, the world around her beginning to twirl like a ballerina. You did it Valerie, you did it without hesitation and you put this on mom. “YOU MONSTER! HOW COULD YOU?” Valerie cries at herself, feeling the ground quake below her, as her brain swells with memories of abuse, years of mental and physical abuse. NO, IT’S NOT HIS FAULT! HE WAS TOO DRUNK TO UNDERSTAND! IT WAS NOT FAIR! NO! He did this! He did this to me… She slams her fists into the sides of her skull as tears stream down her face, why did he do this to her? What has she become? These feelings bring upon an unknown feeling that boils up inside her bringing forward the quirk named Matter Manipulation; the name is suddenly all she can think about, but where had it come from?

“Valerie! Valerie!” Xavier cries, rounding the corner as the world around him suddenly begins to mold and change “Valerie no!” He cries as his body freezes in place, standing frozen like stone as he stared into her eyes. His legs beginning to change color and collapse below him as the blood in his legs solidifies “Please! STOP IT VALERIE! PLEASE I LOVE YOU!” he sobs in terror, but his wails fall upon deaf ears as Valerie closes the distance between the two of them and grip his neck tightly turning it into a floating blur of flesh colored liquids. The sounds of the tape rewinding replacing a theme song, the vhs tape beginning once again as her hands grip his shoulders

“Wait Gorgeous! I have something to tell you, darling. That dress is so snug, it really suits my fancy” Xavier calls through the screen, putting more emphasis on his favorite phrase when it suddenly becomes clear to Valerie. She’d noticed every time he used that phrasing her brain became fuzzy and she felt more inclined to listen to him, it was clear he’d kept her under this state when the effects of his serum were most potent.

“Your ability…what is it?” she snips, reforming his throat to its solid form. He stumbles forward gripping onto her, his head spinning as she watches him gasp and choke on the very air he has been deprived of. How cute! Look at him struggle! A smile plays on her lips as she steps back watching him fall onto his hands and knees

“My sweet dove, please, I’ve done nothing to deserve this treatment and being tortured doesn’t suit my fancy” He whines, trying once again to strain her consciousness to no avail, she pushes her power hard against him once more watching him squirm in agony before gasping for air once again “Fine…It’s called Deception;  it’s the ability to change what a person feels or sees, I can only maintain this ability for 6 days and my strength over a person’s mind varies on the amount of trust I have between myself and that person….the less a person trusts me the harder it is to maintain the false reality… and your power is a chemical mixture of my own ability and several others….those samples were extracted through forcible autopsy…”Forcible autopsy? Does that mean he’s made a name for himself? He’d never been direct with her before, but she knew immediately this was the standard, a form of expectation for future acquaintances.  A smile spreads across her face as she grips his throat from behind pushing him deep into the wood as she twirls planting her behind onto the arch of his back before her palms glow sliding from his neck down his spine liquifying his essence

The Heroes’ Arrival; Save Me

Had either of them thought this through?! Had she even considered repercussions for her actions? Although she’d hardly had time to adapt to these new memories, there was no time to watch the puppeteer draw his last breath. She releases him from her hold, exposing herself for the monster she is as the thick black smoke that makes us her body is wavered by someone busting in the front door, the glass shattering and bouncing off various areas around the entrance.

“Doctor Everts” a strong woman’s voice calls, as the sound of footsteps advancing towards the pair fills the silence. Damn it! Unable to hold him and continuously restructure the liquid formation of his throat as her time limit was 30 seconds without contact, but luckily his throat would likely reform with some sort of mutation as she didn’t maintain it’s shape up until it’s reforming. She leaps up from his body, rushing for a window in the back room behind the stack of screens and vhs players, Valerie tosses the rack holding the monitors down onto the door jamming it shut. She pushes off the toppled metal rack she grips onto the windowsill pulling herself through the window and onto slick dew-covered grass that leads into a forest of some kind, pushing off the ground with her hands she takes off into full sprint, no sense in trying to save energy if she has no idea how to control this stupid ability! She tries snapping her fingers and focusing as she builds the distance between herself and the heroes who would never understand the ever-growing hollowness inside her, she’d become a murder, there was no other path for her.

((This is where the road forks, for those of you who wish to save this pitiful hate-birthed beast then this is where your character will enter as either a hero or villain, either way you must play an ally))

((For those of you who wish to have a more matured/seasoned villain you will continue from here and reply to the end of this post))

 A Decade to Fester; They Do Not Dare Defy Me

Many years have past since the day Matter Manipulation was gifted to young Valerie, a decade to be quite precise and as the temptress neared her thirties a broiling need to be acknowledged by the world grew in its wake. She’d wasted enough time training, scheming, and waiting for a day when the world would be forced to face pain beyond their feeble little dreams.

“Aqua Regia!” Darius booms, entering her chambers with a concerned expression rest on his glowing ocean eyes as they lock onto the voluptuous Valerie, he was her second in command and most trusted ally, the one who saved her from the cruelty of those who held the title of Heroes. Those who would brand her very soul with a bible of law; a law book sewn together by the suffering and consumption of it’s own people, written in the blood of every less than fair pigment or disobedient civilian by sadists and hypocrites. “Val, please we must speak of the mission to come. If either you or I were to misstep we would lose the very foundation of all that we have built, quickly dear girl we mustn’t waste time” with this he waved me towards the door as his soft poetic mannerisms lull her senses into a calm

“Yes, Of course, but please Avalon do not fret, you are the key to my throne and with you I will forge a Camelot that would put Tartarus to shame” Aqua Regia coos, slipping from her solid form into a smoke like cloud to enhance her speed as she moves towards the villain Elusion with the quirk Escape Artist or the ability to find an escape plan for any situation, the back lash is sometimes there really is no escape although he has yet to stumble upon this problem. Valerie is able to return to solid form by keeping hands, heart and lungs solid inside the smoke form otherwise her body would remain gaseous until reaching the limited amount of time. This time gap started at thirty seconds, but after nearly a decade of training she can hold most things in any of the three forms for a whole hour, sadly no human can hold their breath for an hour so the gift has become rather tricky to maneuver without sparing a few insignificant lives. As her body slowly reforms Darius takes this time to go over some of our earlier successes

“Indeed, Queen Arthur” He would start, wanting to begin on her good side “The first two steps of our plan have come to fruition with very minor mishaps, the pot has been stirred as you say. Drug Families are at each other’s throats trying to find the rat amongst them, unaware it was the clients who sold them to the pros. Secondly, all of the bombs went off without a hitch, except the last hospital apparently a hero arrived in time to stop both with seconds to spare.” His face remained calm and hard like a statue, he knew this would make her erupt furious that anyone was able to catch onto her scheme “But we’ve reached the results you hoped for Ms. Regia, the pros have all eyes on you for the show tonight.” Despite the second step having a few misfires everything was going according to plan.

“Well…At least things are still moving forward, are the boys reaching out to the head of each family as we speak?” She groans, clearly annoyed with the lack of security in her strategy, nothing is guaranteed and yet she’d hoped this would as close to guaranteed as physically possible. The two descend the stairs her warm honey eyes scan the crumbling lot for any sign of you, surely you knew she would be here awaiting your arrival, her lower lip presses out in a pout as she looks to her partner “Suppose they didn’t understand the clues that we left with each body?”

“Nonsense Mistress, you were very careful to be as obvious as possible” He assures her as she pauses, lingering at the window from the second floor. She was much taller now due to the various hormones and chemical injected into her body all those years ago, her hair was a long chocolate stream of shiny wavy locks and her once ashen tan skin soon became a warm mocha. Her once boxy frame had smoothed over into a more feminine look, being replaced with an hourglass figure. “Forgive my sentiment, but you’ve come too far Valerie to ever be made a fool of again.” Her heart sang at his sweet words, a smile resting comfortably on her lips.

“Thank you” she whispers, reaching for the illusion of her dear friend when the door flies off it’s hinges into the stairs. It would appear that they’ve arrived and so abruptly. Valerie growls under her breath, trying to maintain her composure as the hero/villain enters “I’m relieved you decided to show your face, this will feel all the sweeter” her palms glowing a golden color as she stands in an offensive position

((Comment Alpha1 if you want to save her as a child and change her fate as a hero or comment Alpha2 if you want to be a villain that assists her as a child. If you wanted to fight older Valerie as a hero comment Beta1 or if you want to be a villain that recruits older Valerie comment Beta2))

Name: Valerie Amerai Bonna-Velt

Villain name; Aqua Regia

Age: 19 or 29

Ability: Matter Manipulation; the ability to change and mold the shape/state of matter for limited amounts of time (Overuse of this ability results in a loss of free will; becoming an obedient zombie)

Appearance; Valerie is a 5’2 tall girl who weighs one-hundred-twenty-five pounds, she has a large behind and C cup breasts with warm thick thighs that meet at a waist that appears to be smaller due to wide hips and broad shoulders. When she was 19 her hair was a raven black, but now it resembles a dark chocolate brown with a healthy shine that she’s most definitely proud of! Her eyes are slanted, narrow and a light honey colored with short lashes that thick around the outer corner of her eyes on the top and bottom. Her eyebrows are thick and well groomed, but sparse with a very high arch. (Very bottom-heavy frame!)

Blood type: O negative

Height; 5’2

Weight; 125 lbs.

Weaknesses; Valerie’s powers cannot break the law of conservation (matter cannot be created or destroyed. Therefore, there must be the same number of atoms of each element on each side of a chemical equation.) She is also unable to hold an object in a state foreign to its nature for longer than her time limit (Starts at 30 seconds and ends with 1 hour) The heart, lungs and hands are exposed in gaseous form. Her circulatory system slowly shuts down in solid form and she runs the risk of losing limbs if she over uses it, not to mention solid form is as fragile as ice. Finally, in liquid form she cannot reform herself and must wait for the time limit to pass (She doesn’t really use it)

[diddlesanddoodles]

Salty Lemonade

Authors notes: Trying really hard to get more chapters of this story out. Still working on Dumpling, but I was finally granted the drive to work on this and I dove for it. Y’know how that goes. Hope y’all enjoy and feel welcomed to comment or ask any questions about this world or the characters. 

Read Ch 1 here!

Ch 2: In A Familiar Fashion.

“How’re you doing, Squeaks?” Bastian’s face peeked down at her briefly as they strolled the length of the avenue. Or rather, Bastian walked and Astrid was carried. His long legs and towering height made it an absolute assurance that had she wished to walk under he own power, she was far too much at a disadvantage for it to be any way close to possible. Or practical.  

And in any case, she had no shoes.

“M’okay...” She replied, huddling closer to the thicker plush material of her owner’s coat. It was a dusty brown windbreaker with a few sewn on badges. It seemed a barely adequate jacket for the temperature, though. Most of the other giants she saw wore longer, thicker coats. But it did not seem to bother nor even register to Bastian. The Feirgian smiled, the large arms around her tightening minutely in a gesture of assurance, and the he continued along the pavement.

Astrid had been to a big city before. Her home town was just thirty miles away from the largest city in the state, so she was not unaccustomed to the aspects indicative of big cities. Things such as the large crowds, tall buildings, and overall lack of space. However, it was not to be compared to experiencing the same things but on a scale several times as big. And the Feirgian city of Raudenstein was very big.

And cold.

There were giants everywhere, speaking a language she did not understand, and wearing clothes that , while appearing quite normal in their general shape, were different just enough so as to remind her that she was no longer home. The city smells were foreign and odd as well, a stale sort of smell mixed with gasoline and frying foods originating from the plethora of stalls lining the avenue. One of which caught Bastian’s attention and the giant took on a sudden burst of speed, slipping between people, and within moments Astrid found herself staring through acrylic glass at piles of fried foods. Some were on sticks, others were in small piles and topped with brightly colored sauces and herbs and weird crunchy brown bits. There was a collection of bubbling vats behind the vendor and stacks of paper containers, ready to be filled with foodstuffs for future patrons. She recognized none of the food, but the smells wafting from it all was intoxicating and the warmth radiating from the fryers was more than welcome.

Bastian was enthusiastically babbling at the vendor and pointing at various types of food for sale. Having only eaten one of the crumbly biscuit things that seemed to be the staple food for humans in this world, Astrid joined her new owner at longingly staring at the steaming goodies.

“Ah! Advest das Kichtein?” Astrid looked up to see the vendor craning his neck over the bulk of his cart and wares to glimpse at her, the dark tuffs of hair upon his lips twitching up as he smiled.

“Ja’, vet kit,” Bastian replied. The arm around her shifted and he gripped her around her middle, lifting her up and towards the vendor as though to show her off. Astrid gripped Bastian’s fingers, very much distressed at the height and the very hot oil not far from her dangling feet.

She whined, staring at the vat.

“Tsk, dirtaus forgeir mon kechtein?” The vendor cooed at her and greasy fingers pinched her face playfully. Looking to Bastian, he said, “Paumpa ker rect? Ver Kit?”

“Ah, Jan! Vank saden!” Bastian replied with alacrity. Astrid was gratefully pulled back down from the towering heights, and away from bubbling oil, to be secured once more in the crook of Bastian’s arm. His free hand held several coined the size of car hubcaps and handed them to the vendor who returned with his part of the exchange consisting of a paper tray with a stack of the fried round balls topped with bright green sauce and sprinkled liberally with shining, translucent yellow shards. Nestled beside the fried balls was a single lumpy yellow disk not larger than the coins used to pay for them.

“What a good luck charm you turned out to be, eh?” Bastian asked, walking briskly down the rows of food carts to a small grouping of chairs and tables. He claimed one, placing the tray of food and Astrid onto the metal, and therefore very cold, table top before slipping into the chair.

“Huh?” she asked.

“He gave me a discount and even threw in a free paumpa for you. All ‘cause you’re cute,” he said and plucked up the round disk. He observed it for a moment and then eyed Astrid, looking suddenly unsure. “Are humans allowed to eat paumpa?”

“I don’t know what it is,” Astrid replied. “But I don’t think I’m not supposed to. What it is?”

“It’s pancake stuffed with sweet lemon jelly. Kind of a little kid’s food, but I guess that’s fine since yer a kid and all. Here,” he said, pulling the small pancake apart into a more Astrid manageable size. She could see the bright yellow filling. It was not unlike the lemon paczkis her grandfather adored and would bring around for their Mardi Gras party and complain that everyone was too excited about the king cake.  

When Astrid took a bite, smearing a good portion of jelly onto her chin in the process, she was struck with the familiar taste of her grandpa’s beloved paczkis. Despite the pancake being completely the wrong texture, she could not help but feel a pang in her chest. Instead of giving into the downward pull of emotions, she stuffed another bite into her mouth in an almost vindictive manner. Above her, Bastian laughed.

“I guess that answers that!” He said, flashing his bright disarming smile, before turning his attention to his own snack and popping one of the fried balls into his mouth.

………………………………………

“What about that one?” Astrid asked from her spot on the counter, pointing to the neon green coat on a display wrack a few feet away. Bastian glanced to where she had pointed, momentarily abandoning his searching for the correct size from a large bin of straps and laughed.

“Well, that would cover the high visible requirement. Good luck getting lost wearing that!”

“What? Green’s a good color,” she protested, feeling mocked. “I like green.”

Bastian left the bin and walked over to the display, taking the tiny sleeve of the human sized garmet and studying it. “I dunno, kiddo. That’s a whole lot of green. Hoping to message satellites?”

Among the things given to Bastian when he picked Astrid up was a list of required supplies and suggestions on where to get them. One thing being a high visibility harness. As they munched on their snacks, Bastian studied the list and announced to her that they would be stopping at Cairo’s.

“They have a whole pet section,” he said, more to himself than Astrid before popping the last fried ball into his mouth, chewing thoughtfully. In any case, she was not able to answer him as she had stuffed her face with more paumpa. The filling was perhaps a bit more tart than she was use to, but not by much. “They’ll have everything.”

Upon glancing her way, Bastian blinked and choked on a laugh. “You’re all over jelly, kiddo.”

Astrid swallowed and touched her chin, feeling the goopey jelly clinging to her face. She looked up Bastian, blushing a little at how much of a mess she had made. “May I have a napkin, please?”

“Here,” he chuckled, pulling out a handkerchief from within his coat. Astrid held still while he cleaned the jelly from her face and hand.  

One requirement on the list was a city ordinance requiring all pets in public to be wearing both a harness, lead, and ID tag. So once the food had been demolished and all sticky parties were ‘un-stickified’, off to Cairo’s they went.

The building was merely a block or so away from the food vendors and it was a large square building made of white alabaster. The name of the establishment written in gold set against an ebony stone marquee. It stood out in stark contrast to the other shops nearby that seemed older and much more homley.

Almost as soon as they entered, another giant approached them. Wearing a sharply tailored suit with straight lapels, a single button securing the coat near the bottom, crisp white collar, and pinned to his chest was a silver bar with his name. Upon his face he wore a displeased frown that he tried to force into placis neautrality, but the sour twist of his mouth betrayed him.

“Kier dast comffrent mon heis?” he said,

“Ja’,” Bastian answered jovially. “Vast kit ver weurkshum.”

The sour faced giant’s gaze jerked down to Astrid and narrowed his brow. She gripped Bastian’s sleeve, looking away from him. No giant had ever shown here a bit of anger and it was very unsettling to feel hate in the eyes of a being so big and know it was directed at you.

“Vorbottin,” the man quipped snootily and made a general shooing motion at them. But Bastian made no move to obey the command and remained where he was, eyeing the man in shock.

“Vorbottin? Deu ka?” Bastian demanded.

“Deu jetz. Erch vast mon kit an schlush an...”

“Bastian!” Both Feirgians stopped as another giant appeared behind them. Like the first, this giant wore a straight label suit and shinning name tag. However, rather than silver, this giant’s name tag was gold. He was younger than the silver pinned giant, closer to what Astrid thought Bastian would be.

“Ah? Luka!” Bastian beamed, freeing one arm and holding it out to shakes hands with the new giant. “Vank gruen.”

“Mier vank gruen!”

Astrid couldn’t keep track of the conversation very well once the giant Luka had appeared. But what she could gather was that he and Bastian knew each other and seemed quite amiable with one another while sour faced Ferigian was looking more queasy than sour at the moment and was babbling something that might have been an apology. Or excuse. Luka did not seemed pleased with him in the least. Sour face then pointed to Astrid in a hostile and accusatory fashion, as though to say ‘but sir, look here’.

Luka looked at her and with a high pitched sound that Astrid could only describe as a ‘squee’, reached out to pet her head. There was a moment where she wanted to duck away, having had enough of random people patting her head for one day, but stayed still. She reminded herself that she was a pet now. And pets were petted. So she ignored the weight of that thought and the sad pull in her chest. At least this giant wasn’t scowling at her.

“Are we in trouble?” Astrid asked Bastian timidly.

“Nah,” Bastian replied. “Luka’s not gonna bust me for looking shabby in his shop, are ya Luk’? Buddy old pal a’ mine?”

“Oh yeah,” replied Luka regarding Bastian with a sly smile, seamlessly switching to English. “For that jacket? Absolutely. But I won’t throw you out of the store for it. Geez, Baz. It looks just like the one you wore in secondary school.”

“It is the one I wore in secondary school.” Bastian grinned knowingly.

“It is not.” Luka replied flatly.

“It is.”

Luka mumbled something, shaking his head. “Well, clearly Cyrus didn’t choose you for your fashion sense.”

“Thank the stars for that!” Bastian said and then shrugged. “No, I’m just endlessly charming.”

“Mm-hm. Charming,” Luka replied sardonically. “Well then, what brings you in today?”

“Need some supplies for the little squeaker here,” he replied as he tilted his head towards Astrid. “They come with a whole shopping list and I know how excited you get about those.”

“Well, come on, let’s get you and...what’s its name?”

“This is Astrid. And she’s a girl.”

“Astrid. Wonderful. Let’s get you set up then huh?”

The pet section of the department store was...a weird experience. All the clothes were so much smaller than the displays they were placed upon, looking more like doll clothes. Wholly out of place, they perfectly summarized the surreal and disconnected way that Astrid felt regarding most of her experiences thus far.

She was left on one of the large display tables, laden with human sized winter coats, while Luka pointed out the various things on the list and started a pile for Bastian. Most of the items were in boxes and bags with writing she did could not read, but a few things she could recognize. Such as the round plush pillow like bed and blankets that looked like hand towels in the hands of the Ferigians.    

There was one box that Luka handed to Bastian saying, “This one is the one you want. Best on the market. Completely hands off. Doesn’t need cleaning or nothing. Top of the line.”

“Probably top of my budget too, huh?”

“Laziness has a price tag, Baz. No need for your human to suffer because you’re too lazy to clean its box.”

“Hey now! I just got her and I’m already being accused of neglect?”

“Not with this you won’t be.”

Bastian sighed, grabbing the box and adding it to the pile. “Anyone ever tell you you’re a bit too good at this?”

“All the time,” Luka grinned. “And that’s all the things on your list save for the harness and lead. The harnesses are over in a bin there and the leads are beside them. An adjustable one would probably be best.”

“What about the ID tag?”

“You’ll get that after she’s registered with the city.”

“Oh, okay.”

“And then some clothes,” Luka added thoughtfully looking away from the pet supplies to the clothes. “She might be a bit small for our stock sizes, but we might have some things.”

Bastian looked puzzled. “What’s wrong with clothes she came with?”

Luka leveled an unimpressed stare at Bastian. “You’re kidding.”

Bastian, lost and confused, just shrugged.

“What happens when you need to launder them? What’re they gonna change into in the meantime?”

“Uh...”

“You didn’t even think about washing it did you?”

“I wouldn’t say that. I’m just...”

Luka patted Bastian’s shoulder as though he were a student in desperate need of direction and then steered him back to the clothes and Astrid. “Let me handle things from here, Baz. Go find her a harness that fits. I’ll be back.”

Astrid had to admit that she felt excited about wearing real clothes again. Not that the black flannel pajama getup was uncomfortable, but she’d been wearing it for nearly a week and it was getting itchy. Maybe she would be able to convince them she needed shoes too.  

That was when she saw the green coat. It was a long lime green pea coat and it didn’t look too big, she thought. Luka returned not long after carrying an assortment of clothes, a wide white board, and a long yellow measuring tape.

“Let’s try these on for size,” he said and proceeded to take Astrid measurements. Her height, her waist size, leg length, arm length. He was muttering as he did not. “You’re such a tiny thing. Well, lets see if any of these will work.”

Luka began to pull a few articles of clothing out of his collection, piecing tops and bottoms together, and Astrid was suddenly struck with a thought. How was she gonna try on the clothes without a place to change? They didn’t want her to do it out in the open did they? She felt her face flush with mortification. Remembering when Faro has taken her and Tommy’s clothes, she felt a dread that it was entirely possible that they expected her to do just that.

“Um...” she tried, but found her voice lacking. “I...uh...”

“Hm?” Luka asked. “Did you say something?”

“I just...do I have to...uh...” Astrid could not seem to find the proper order to her words and her face felt hot. Luka studied her for a moment before a spark of understanding struck him.

“Are you worried about changing?”

She nodded meekly, rubbing her arms and unable to make eye contact.

“Aw,” Luka smiled in a warm pitying way and petted her on the head. “No worries kechtein. I’ve got you covered. Literally.”

He reach down and pulled out the broad white board and pulled one of the sides. The flat piece opened up onto a sort of pop up box with a small doorway cut out. Just big enough for a human to stand comfortably in and presumably try on clothes. The walls were frosted plastic so as to allow light through. Under Luka’s direction, Astrid tried on various clothes. They were all made of the same kind of material, a soft sort of jersey knit. Luka explained that sort of material was best for kid’s clothes, both human and Feirgian, as it was stretchy and more durable.

Most of the clothes however, turned out to be too small.

“Baz, you need to feed this thing more. She’s too small,” Luka laughed when Astrid stepped out of the changing room in a shirt that was almost a dress and pants that she had to hold up.

“She ate half a paumpa all by herself,” replied Bastian, trying to keep his own laughter down.

“Are paumpa’s safe for humans to eat?” Luka asked.

“Well, she’s not dead yet.”

“I hope that phrase doesn’t constitute your entire philosophy of pet ownership...”

Bastian shrugged. “Well, I’ve never owned a human before so...yeah. Kind of.”

Luka looked at Astrid. “I’m so sorry this idiot picked you.”

Astrid couldn’t help but smile, shifting her grip on the pants. “I think he’s nice.”

“Let me know how you feel after he forgets to feed you for a week,” he replied dryly and then sighed. “Well, there’s a few pieces here that’ll do for you in the meantime. Not as much variety as I had hoped, but beggars can’t be choosers.”

“Your employee made it very clear vagabonds were not permitted in your fancy store,” Bastian teased, pointing to the not insignificant stack of items behind him.

“You’re not a vagabond. You’re just a bum.”

“A bum whose spending a handsome stack of cash in your store.”

“My favorite kind of bum.”

As the two of them good naturally bickered, Astrid looked to the green coat. It was flashy and fun and she could not help but to stare at it longingly. Bastian had noticed the way she stared at it, glancing over in its direction as Luka fussed over the clothes and he could not help the smile it brought to his face.

“Hey Luk’,” he said and pointed to the coat. “What about that? Think it’d fit her?”

“Hm?” Luka looked at the coat and tilted his head. “Well... Korshe tends to run small. Let’s see.”

Astrid stared at her owner, her eyes lighting up. “I can try it on?”

“Sure, what’s the harm?” he replied before adding, “Says the idiot before seeing the price tag.”

In her excitement to finally try the coat on, Astrid released her hold on the pants and no sooner had she slipped her arms into the coat did they fall into a pile on the floor. Which resulted in both Luka and Bastian laughing. Oddly enough, Astrid did not care all that much. The top were wore was very long, more like a dress than a shirt. And the coat…

...was glorious. It had a soft flannel lining, a denim exterior, and hard brass buttons. And it swung open in a very pleasing way when she twirled. And it was only a bit big on her. She pulled the coat closed, doing up the buttons. The hem rested just shy of her knee caps with a few inches of the shirt showing beneath.  

“I would not have picked that color,” Luka admitted, sounding pleased. “But it does look good. Not many people can pull of that color.”

“You like it, Squeaks?” Bastian asked.

With a wide, excited grin, Astrid nodded. “It’s monster green!”

“I guess that makes you a monster then, huh?” Bastian asked. “A very small, very squeaky, and very expensive monster.”

“Oh,” Astrid said, disappointed. Looking over the large pile of supplies and then at the coat, she met Bastian’s confused expression meekly. “It’s probably not on sale, huh?”

Bastian laughed at that.

“Nothing here is ever on sale, kiddo. I think Luka here would die first,” he said and tilting his head, he regarded the small anxious human curiously. “Why would you worry about that? All that before was just a joke, y’know?”

“No, I mean...when Mom bought me clothes,” Astrid explained. “They’d have to be on sale or we couldn’t get it because it was too expensive. Unless we were at the thrift store or something.”

Luka was staring at her oddly and after a moment, turned to Bastian and asked in an incredulous voice, “Baz. Is she wild?”

“Hm? Yeah. Why?”

“But she’s so well behaved!”

“Were you expecting her to bite?” Luka did not answer right away and before he could formulate a coherent reply, Bastian chuckled and slapped him on the shoulder. “Luk’, not all wild humans are...well, wild! We’ve been speaking English this entrie time!”

“I just thought you were being quirky,” Luka said. “We spoke English all the time in secondary.”

“We don’t bite,” Astrid protested and then paused, recalling that in fact Tommy had bitten Faro when they first met. “Well, only if we’re really scared. Or if someone’s trying to hurt us.”

“Well, all I know is the human exhibit at the zoo is covered with plenty of warnings not to try and touch them because they can and will bite.”

Astrid wanted to protest the accusation, to add in what Jarden had told her about zoos. They were not nice places, that many humans there were miserable, and she was sure that if she ever ended up in one, she would not last long. It held the mythical place in her mind normally occupied with places such as Hell and Narnia. Horror and fantasy in equal measure.

“But I don’t bite,” Astrid assured Luka. “That’d be rude. Especially because you’re nice.”

Luka’s surprise, and perhaps a little fear, faltered and was gone. Replaced then with a warm kind of amusement and in a clear demonstration of trust that surprised Astrid, he reached out and petted her head without any hesitation. “Well, I’m sure most wild humans are perfectly pleasant. So long as you’re nice to them.”

“Who wouldn’t want to bite rude people?” Bastian added.

“Just you Baz. Just you.”

Astrid, despite herself, giggled.

[fandom-hell-ferrylass]

A/N: Can’t remember if I bumped this one, so here’s the second installation in my Path of the Fang series

Summary:

While waiting to rehearse with the band, Thackery gauges the pros and cons of interacting with the band's newest, most unwanted member

The Jabberwock girl sat against a wall of the Mad T Party’s space in the rehearsal warehouse, various paraphernalia scattered about her as she had pulled things out of her bag. Thackery noted the plastic box with a picture on it sitting next to her foot. As he worked on re-tuning his bass, he watched her slide the box in front of her and flip the lid open. From that angle, he could make out various small plastic bags with bright colors inside. She began pulling the bags out and arranging them on her lap.

Green grapes.

Orange … fishes?

Tiny twigs? What the—

That’s a sandwich. Looks weird though.

Two silver … pouch … things. That she’s stabbing. Oh! It must be some kind of drink.

The Hare’s eyebrow rose at each reveal, and he realized he was watching the Jabberwock girl prepping to eat lunch.

READ MORE ON AO3

“Huh. Wish I’d thought of that.”

He’d been watching her methodically take tidbits out of the bags without looking and pop them into her mouth between bites of sandwich. Thack still couldn’t tell exactly what kind it was but there was a slightly sweet smell wafting faintly from her direction.

He glanced at his watch. Everyone still had at least half an hour before they’d even head that direction. Thackery sighed and grumbled at himself under his breath. By the time he was set for rehearsal, it’d be too late to run and get something.

He cast a slow look in the girl’s direction. Her rate of consumption had slowed to a crawl and she was now on her phone.

I wonder … maybe she might have something left over. She hasn’t given us any trouble, almost the exact opposite actually.

The Hare stood from his stool, walking over to settle his bass back on its stand. Unrestricted, his full gaze meandered to rest on the Jabberwock.

Mally’s gonna pitch a fit if he catches me being nice to the girl. Abs too, probably. Tarrant … no idea. Too many variables. But gosh darn it, I need food! And I really want to know what’s in that sandwich.

Before he could talk himself into another go-around, Thackery spun on his heel and strolled towards the dark figure.

Eirian felt the other Underlandian presence grow stronger as it approached. Her eyes flicked up imperceptibly to watch the March Hare - Thackery Earwicket, Thack … to his friends - wander towards her. Her thumb never stopped scrolling on her phone screen, but she kept the man in her sights as he came up on her.

She couldn’t help the jerky glance she shot him when he turned and settled himself against the wall next to her. Not right next to her but closer than she figured any one of them would have been voluntarily.

Immediately Eirian mentally clamped down on her insides, willing herself to remain the picture of cool calm aloofness. She didn’t even think about the fact her fingers had stopped moving altogether.

A minute passed.

Three.

Six.

Thackery decided this was a dumb idea after all. As soon as he’d settled on the ground, getting his legs bent at comfortable angles, everything in his head had gone blank. He tried to surreptitiously take inventory of the food the girl - Eirian. Her name is Eirian - hadn’t devoured yet, noticing there was a second sandwich beneath the half-eaten crusts of the first. The sweet smell was stronger here, an odd mix of familiar scents that he couldn’t quite identify when they were put together.

After a few moments of tense silence, he found his thoughts had hit a snag and were starting to loop around “this was dumb” and “what IS that smell??”

He was a few seconds away from getting back up when Thackery’s own body betrayed him. A very audible gurgle of demand sounded from his stomach.

Slowly the Hare’s eyes rolled skyward and he closed them in disbelief. Outed by my own organs. Typical.

He hazarded a sideways glance. The girl hadn’t seemed to notice. Maybe he’d gotten lucky.

With her head angled like it was, Eirian was confident the March Hare couldn’t see the smile twisting the far corner of her mouth. She knew that sound well, hence the food things around her while they waited. She also knew he didn’t know it was her habit to pack more than she needed, just in case she found someone who could use a bite or ten.

Who’d’ve thought that might include the March Hare one day. What even is my life, I ask ya.

She didn’t react to anything Thackery did after that, but she could feel her own body relaxing in slight increments. Maybe it was the reminder this person next to her was mortal too, in need to the same things she was.

In any case, she carefully schooled her motions into nonchalant ease as she pinched the mouth of the bag of goldfish on her knee and held it in the Hare’s general direction. She didn’t even spare a glance as she kept tapping away at her phone.

Thackery sat blinking at the outstretched hand and it’s held contents. At this range, he could clearly make out the bright orange fish-shaped objects. He sniffed softly at the air - a new cheesy smell was starting to mix with the strange one, coming from the bag.

Having watched her continuously pop them into her mouth, he didn’t figure they would be too odd for his palate to handle. Trying his best to not knock her hand about, Thack reached into the bag and took a small handful of the fishes before quickly withdrawing, keeping his eyes on the girl’s face just in case.

She didn’t do anything but retract her own hand and set the baggie back on her knee.

He studied one of the fish for a moment. Definitely cheese-based. A bit coarse to the touch. And it had a slightly disconcerting smile stamped onto its face.

Honestly, why are humans like this?

His stomach gurgled again, galvanizing the Hare to quickly toss three fish into his mouth. Instantly they crunched nicely between his teeth. Thackery looked down at the rest in his hand and smiled - the golden fish were baked crackers.

Eirian didn’t have to turn her head to watch the Hare’s movements. The tale-tell crunching sounds were enough to make a soft smile flit unbidden across her lips. She waited until the chewing sounds dissipated before moving again. This time, she snagged the uneaten sandwich, shaking her half-eaten crusts off, and held it out towards the Hare.

He didn’t take it immediately. Her arm started to shake a little, making the sandwich bag rustle.

Another moment passed before Eirian canted her head around to finally look directly at the Hare.

His mismatched eyes were narrowed as they roved over her face. Her own expression morphed into slight confusion at the scrutiny and only deepened when his stare lightened and he took the proffered food.

“Thank you.”

Her face shifted back to its neutral setting. “No problem.” She blinked, processing, and slowly turned back to her phone.

“Um. Uh. If I could ask … what exactly is this …?”

She crunched another pretzel stick as she glanced over. The Hare was holding the half-unwrapped sandwich to his nose and taking big whiffs. She smiled.

“Peanut butter and banana. Tastes better than it sounds, I promise.”

She didn’t miss the wary tinge to his next glance but she also didn’t miss his lack of hesitation to take a substantial bite. Thackery chewed thoughtfully for a moment before swallowing.

“You’re right. That’s not half bad at all.”

Her smile widened slightly. Deliberately setting the grapes and fish crackers back in her lunchbox, she casually slid it more between them.

“I’ll keep that in mind. For next time.”

Without thinking, Thackery reached for more goldfish. “I’m Thackery.”

“Eirian.”

“Nice to meet you, Jabberwocky.”

“Same to you, March Hare.”

[fandom-hell-ferrylass]

One Good Turn (Deserves Lunch)

A/N: I was considering posting stuff containing my OC as chronologically as possible, but as so often is the want of the writing muse, she just wants to throw whatever she feels like onto a page and toss it into the void 😅 maybe one day I’ll make up a links timeline for reading ease, but that day is not today and today we have just a smol drabble for your viewing pleasure

The Jabberwock girl sat against a wall of the Mad T Party’s space in the rehearsal warehouse, various paraphernalia scattered about her as she had pulled things out of her bag. Thackery noted the plastic box with a picture on it sitting next to her foot. As he worked on re-tuning his bass, he watched her slide the box in front of her and flip the lid open. From that angle, he could make out various small plastic bags with bright colors inside. She began pulling the bags out and arranging them on her lap.

Green grapes.

Orange ... fishes?

Tiny twigs? What the—

That’s a sandwich. Looks weird though.

Two silver ... pouch ... things. That she’s stabbing. Oh! It must be some kind of drink.

The Hare’s eyebrow rose at each reveal, and he realized he was watching the Jabberwock girl prepping to eat lunch.

“Huh. Wish I’d thought of that.”

He’d been watching her methodically take tidbits out of the bags without looking and pop them into her mouth between bites of sandwich. Thack still couldn’t tell exactly what kind it was but there was a slightly sweet smell wafting faintly from her direction.

He glanced at his watch. Everyone still had at least half an hour before they’d even head that direction. Thackery sighed and grumbled at himself under his breath. By the time he was set for rehearsal, it’d be too late to run and get something.

He cast a slow look in the girl’s direction. Her rate of consumption had slowed to a crawl and she was now on her phone.

I wonder ... maybe she might have something left over. She hasn’t given us any trouble, almost the exact opposite actually.

The Hare stood from his stool, walking over to settle his bass back on its stand. Unrestricted, his full gaze meandered to rest on the Jabberwock.

Mally’s gonna pitch a fit if he catches me being nice to the girl. Abs too, probably. Tarrant ... no idea. Too many variables. But gosh darn it, I need food! And I really want to know what’s in that sandwich.

Before he could talk himself into another go-around, Thackery spun on his heel and strolled towards the dark figure.

Eirian felt the other Underlandian presence grow stronger as it approached. Her eyes flicked up imperceptibly to watch the March Hare - Thackery Earwicket, Thack ... to his friends - wander towards her. Her thumb never stopped scrolling on her phone screen, but she kept the man in her sights as he came up on her.

She couldn’t help the jerky glance she shot him when he turned and settled himself against the wall next to her. Not right next to her but closer than she figured any one of them would have been voluntarily.

Immediately Eirian mentally clamped down on her insides, willing herself to remain the picture of cool calm aloofness. She didn’t even think about the fact her fingers had stopped moving altogether.

A minute passed.

Three.

Six.

Thackery decided this was a dumb idea after all. As soon as he’d settled on the ground, getting his legs bent at comfortable angles, everything in his head had gone blank. He tried to surreptitiously take inventory of the food the girl - Eirian. Her name is Eirian - hadn’t devoured yet, noticing there was a second sandwich beneath the half-eaten crusts of the first. The sweet smell was stronger here, an odd mix of familiar scents that he couldn’t quite identify when they were put together.

After a few moments of tense silence, he found his thoughts had hit a snag and were starting to loop around “this was dumb” and “what IS that smell??”

He was a few seconds away from getting back up when Thackery’s own body betrayed him. A very audible gurgle of demand sounded from his stomach.

Slowly the Hare’s eyes rolled skyward and he closed them in disbelief. Outed by my own organs. Typical.

He hazarded a sideways glance. The girl hadn’t seemed to notice. Maybe he’d gotten lucky.

With her head angled like it was, Eirian was confident the March Hare couldn’t see the smile twisting the far corner of her mouth. She knew that sound well, hence the food things around her while they waited. She also knew he didn’t know it was her habit to pack more than she needed, just in case she found someone who could use a bite or ten.

Who’d’ve thought that might include the March Hare one day. What even is my life, I ask ya.

She didn’t react to anything Thackery did after that, but she could feel her own body relaxing in slight increments. Maybe it was the reminder this person next to her was mortal too, in need to the same things she was.

In any case, she carefully schooled her motions into nonchalant ease as she pinched the mouth of the bag of goldfish on her knee and held it in the Hare’s general direction. She didn’t even spare a glance as she kept tapping away at her phone.

Thackery sat blinking at the outstretched hand and it’s held contents. At this range, he could clearly make out the bright orange fish-shaped objects. He sniffed softly at the air - a new cheesy smell was starting to mix with the strange one, coming from the bag.

Having watched her continuously pop them into her mouth, he didn’t figure they would be too odd for his palate to handle. Trying his best to not knock her hand about, Thack reached into the bag and took a small handful of the fishes before quickly withdrawing, keeping his eyes on the girl’s face just in case.

She didn’t do anything but retract her own hand and set the baggie back on her knee.

He studied one of the fish for a moment. Definitely cheese-based. A bit coarse to the touch. And it had a slightly disconcerting smile stamped onto its face.

Honestly, why are humans like this?

His stomach gurgled again, galvanizing the Hare to quickly toss three fish into his mouth. Instantly they crunched nicely between his teeth. Thackery looked down at the rest in his hand and smiled - the golden fish were baked crackers.

Eirian didn’t have to turn her head to watch the Hare’s movements. The tale-tell crunching sounds were enough to make a soft smile flit unbidden across her lips. She waited until the chewing sounds dissipated before moving again. This time, she snagged the uneaten sandwich, shaking her half-eaten crusts off, and held it out towards the Hare.

He didn’t take it immediately. Her arm started to shake a little, making the sandwich bag rustle.

Another moment passed before Eirian canted her head around to finally look directly at the Hare.

His mismatched eyes were narrowed as they roved over her face. Her own expression morphed into slight confusion at the scrutiny and only deepened when his stare lightened and he took the proffered food.

“Thank you.”

Her face shifted back to its neutral setting. “No problem.” She blinked, processing, and slowly turned back to her phone.

“Um. Uh. If I could ask ... what exactly is this ...?”

She crunched another pretzel stick as she glanced over. The Hare was holding the half-unwrapped sandwich to his nose and taking big whiffs. She smiled.

“Peanut butter and banana. Tastes better than it sounds, I promise.”

She didn’t miss the wary tinge to his next glance but she also didn’t miss his lack of hesitation to take a substantial bite. Thackery chewed thoughtfully for a moment before swallowing.

“You’re right. That’s not half bad at all.”

Her smile widened slightly. Deliberately setting the grapes and fish crackers back in her lunchbox, she casually slid it more between them.

“I’ll keep that in mind. For next time.”

Without thinking, Thackery reached for more goldfish.

“I’m Thackery.”

“Eirian.”

“Nice to meet you, Jabberwocky.”

“Same to you, March Hare.”