#Jack is unaware of human customs

[annmariethrush]

Suptober day 3: inspired

Dean gets excited about making breakfast after morning-sex only for it to go embarrassingly awry. On AO3 or below the cut :)

Dean sighed contentedly as Cas rolled onto the bed beside him, dropping the towel onto the floor next to the bed. Dean adjusted his sweaty body, which was quickly becoming clammy in the cool air, to press against the soft, warm skin of Cas’s upper body that always radiated a gentle heat.

Now that Jack was god and no longer living in the Bunker, Sam being out on a case meant that Dean and Cas had the whole place to themselves. As much as Dean loved living with his brother, he knew better than to waste privacy when he got it, and he had passed that tenet along to Cas over the months after Sam had given him enough bitch face to last a life time.

Pressing a thoughtless kiss against Dean’s hairline, Cas grunted, “You need to eat breakfast. Do you want to go shower while I make it?”

Dean laughed gently, “Sunshine, after last time, I’m not sure that’s a good idea.”

Dean’s mind drifted back to several weeks ago when Cas had attempted to make French toast before Dean got out of bed. He had awoken to the smell of smoke drifting from the kitchen and Sam loudly admonishing Cas for trying to burn the place down.

Cas frowned and began to protest before a sudden thought made Dean cut him off excitedly. “Wait!! I’ll make pancakes! It’s been forever since I got to make pancakes, but we have fresh eggs from the store finally so I should have all the ingredients and we can—“ Dean trailed off, “What?”

Cas’s frown had morphed into a bemused grin at Dean’s ramblings and he was staring at Dean as though nothing else in the world could be funnier or cuter. Cas gave Dean a kiss, firm and a little sloppy, and entirely drawn out, with a comical “mmmmwah” sound, before making a show of shoving Dean out of bed unceremoniously.

“Hey!” Dean rolled off the bed, giggling as he caught himself. “Fine, no more post-coital cuddling for you!”

Dean gathered up some combination of clothes from the floor where they had been scattered, quickly finding himself dressed in a pair of light blue flannel pajama pants (adorned with clouds wearing sun glasses) and a dark pink t-shirt from Cas’s closet that said “SWEET CHEEKS” on it, which Dean had acquired from a restaurant’s gift shop in Kentucky several hunts ago. He gave Cas a grin and a wink before grabbing his dead-guy robe from the back of the door and heading to the kitchen.

Dean’s mind wandered while he gathered ingredients for the pancakes, frequently going back to check the recipe— a torn out magazine page from an issue of Southern Lady that he had been thumbing through in a motel room while Sam was showering. As he dug through the pantry he came across a fresh squirt bottle from a pack he had gotten to store cooking oil in and had an idea.

—

Dean was proudly drawing the outline for his fifth penis shaped pancake into the pan, carefully adding veins to the curved length, when he heard a sound behind him in the kitchen. He turned to greet Cas, a huge grin on his face, only to have his expression turn to horror as his eyes settled on the person before him. He instinctively moved to put his body in front of the plate full of pancakes before slowly greeting the person before him.

“Morning, Jack.” Dean felt his whole face flushing bright red and he considered just asking Jack to smite him right then and there. “I can make you other pancakes, sorry. I didn’t realize you’d be in this morning…”

Jack looked entirely unfazed, as per usual, and was about to respond when Cas came around the corner saying “Smells good sweethea— Jack!!“

Dean’s eyes flicked over to Cas and he doubled down on his wish for Jack to smite him as he noticed Cas’s attire. Unaffected by the chilly winter air in the Bunker, Cas had opted for only a pair of pajama pants, leaving the broad expanse of his chest and his toned arms on full display. With a big smile, he strode towards his son, greeting him with a hug. Jack squeezed back, the two of them entirely unbothered by Cas’s lack of clothes, and paying no attention to Dean’s bright red face.

Just smite me…

Pulling back, Jack pointed past Dean and told Cas confidently, “Dean made pancakes that look like you!”

PLEASE FUCKING SMITE ME!!

“Oh did he? Well you know how inspiring I am…” Cas smirked as he moved to glance behind Dean’s back at the plate of pancakes.

Dean’s eyes stayed wide open even as his brain begged to shut them, watching as the metaphorical vehicles piled up and spontaneously combusted in this seemingly endless car wreck he couldn’t peel his eyes away from. He felt the moment that Cas made eye contact with the carefully crafted penis pancakes, seeing them in their veiny glory, and the air in the room went utterly still. Cas’s smirk dropped for a moment, causing Dean to simultaneously rejoice at not being the only one embarrassed and to redden further as Cas grasped the situation, but then Cas was suddenly doubled over laughing.

This was more than Dean could cope with.

Before he knew it though, he was doubled over too, laughing so hard that his ribs hurt, his eyes leaked, and he was hardly even making a sound as his lungs tried in vain to fill back up. They laughed and laughing, leaning against each other, and nearly collapsing onto the floor. Only minutes later when Dean had wiped away the tears streaming down his cheeks and mostly caught his breath did he think to look at Jack again, finding him with an eyebrow quirked and a slight smile, but otherwise entirely unmoved.

Dean turned around to revel in his work now that the tension had left his shoulders and, with a jolt of panic, realized he had completely neglected the pancake outline still on the pan. “Shit!”

He cringed as he attempted to pry it off the pan, listening to it crack and shatter into small burnt shards. Accepting his loss, he scraped it off of the pan with force and piled the soot into a small bowl to cool down before going in the trash can. Finally, he turned around to face the music once more.

“So, I’m the one who is too irresponsible to make breakfast…” Cas stated, giving Dean a smug look.

“I don’t wanna hear a goddamn thing, it’s not the same and you know it.” Dean defended, though he was already beginning to think that Cas might be right. He sighed, “What shape pancakes would you like Jack?”

Jack’s brow furrowed for a moment, thinking about it very deeply, before stating, resolutely, “Trapezoid.” He nodded as though confident in his answer before adding, “Please.”

Dean shook his head gently before putting a hand on Jack’s shoulder reassuringly, “You got it kid. Now go put the syrup and orange juice on the table while your dad goes to get a shirt.”

Jack hops over to the fridge happily and begins digging out the juice. Cas gives Dean another smug look before turning to go, but Dean grabs him by the wrist and pulls him in for a hug. Cas, surprised, wraps his hands around Dean’s waist before Dean whispers harshly in his ear, “I’m gonna enjoy these pancakes and then I am never going to hear another word about this, understood?”

Cas leans back and plants a quick kiss on Dean’s cheek, “Of course. Because Sam wouldn’t find this funny at all…”

With that, Cas turned and ran out of the kitchen laughing. “Oh you’re gonna get it now, buddy!” Dean hollered after him.

He turned back towards the stove with a shake of his head and a lingering smile before thinking to himself, what the fuck is a trapezoid???

[thetorturedmusesdept]

Plotting Call - Renaissance Event

Below the cut is a plotting/starter call for the Renaissance Event! I will be capping everyone at 3 starters max. Below I have outlined my muses jobs and specifics (subject to change if we plot something different) and plot ideas, so like this/react to my post of this in the discord to plot, and reply to this post with any starters you want!

Starting with muses that are unaware and think they've been in this era since arriving/their whole life:

Abigail (Starters: 1/3 lucy gray/drvcxrys)

Human. Musician / Piper (pipe player) and Nakerer (small steel drum player.) Thinks it's been like this her whole life. Open to fellow musicians, and people who hire her to play at taverns/businesses/events. 

Alice Kingsleigh (Starters: 3/3 sella/mcrcki, cheshire/strawbrryrush, ally/devilsmenu)

Human. Artist (painter.) Thinks it's been like this since she arrived in this world. Open to people who buy her art/commission her for paintings, fellow tavern buddies, and people to adventure with in search of magical creatures.

Bean (Starters: 1/3 rosamund/ofsvnlightt)

Human. Princess from a foreign land. Thinks it's been like this her whole life so it's almost like she's Aware but not quite. Open to other nobles and fellow tavern drinking buddies.

Caitlin Snow (Starters: 0/3)

Meta-human (though Unaware of it.) Bartap (bartender at a tavern.) Thinks it's been like this her whole life. Open to regulars at the tavern, someone who sees her accidentally use her powers for the first time and accuses her of witchcraft, and coworkers at the tavern.

Chiaki Nanami (Starters: 1/3 mu qing/masqce)

Human. Messenger. Thinks it's been like this her whole life. Open to people to give her messages to deliver and people to deliver messages to.

Connor RK800 (Starters: 2/3 serena/vcndetta, astrid/ofsvnlightt)

Human. Knight. Thinks it's been like this his whole life. Open to people to protect, criminals to stop/capture/attempt to stop or capture, and fellow knights!

Evelyn Serpeni (Starters: 0/3)

Vampire. Stewswoman (brothel owner.) Thinks it's been like this since she arrived. Open to employees (harlots - she treats them very well,) customers of her employees, and people to feed on (they would die.)

Gareth Parry (Starters: 0/3)

Human. Lawyer. Thinks it's been like this since he arrived. Open to people who he has represented in court, opposing sides in cases that have gone to court, judges, and coworkers.

Gillian Owens (Starters: 0/3)

Witch. Merchant at an herbalist's shop. Thinks it's been like this since arriving. Open to being accused of witchcraft, fellow witches/maybe a coven she's a part of, and customers at the shop.

Hans Westergaard (Starters: 1/3 anna/drvcxrys)

Human. Stable Owner/Horse Trainer. Thinks it's been like this his whole life. Open to people who's horses he's trained, riders at his stable, coworkers, and fellow tavern goers.

Hiccup (Starters: 1/3 sgaeyl/wvsteria)

Human. Hermit and Protector of Dragons. Thinks it's been like this since he arrived. Open to dragon slayers, and people who want to understand and protect dragons.

Jack Frost (Starters: 1/3 sha hualing/mvsicinthedvrk)

Spirit of Winter. Guardian of Fun. Thinks it's been like this since he arrived. Open to being accused of witchcraft, people who know about his powers/status as spirit of winter and keep his secret, people to inspire with fun, and people to have fun/adventures with.

Jane Bennet (Starters: 0/3)

Human. Nursery Maid (child caregiver.) Thinks it's been like this since she arrived. Open to people with children that she's cared for, and fellow nursery maids.

Jennifer Check (Starters: 2/3 satana/devilsmenu, cass/wvsteria)

Succubus. Harlot. Thinks it's been like this her whole life. Open to brothel owner, customers, fellow harlots, being accused of witchcraft, and people she either eats as meals or attempts to eat.

Jud Zire (Starters: 1/3 juliette/mcrcki)

Human. Tax Collector. Thinks it's been like this since he arrived. Open to coworkers, people he can complain about his job to, people to collect taxes from, people who he tracks down to pay their tax debts they're avoiding, and fellow tavern drinkers.

Kim Possible (Starters: 1/3 veronica/vcndetta)

Human. Spy. Thinks it's been like this since she arrived. Open to someone to spy for like a noble or diplomat etc, someone to spy on, and fellow spies.

Lara Croft (Starters: 0/3)

Human. Cartographer. Thinks it's been like this since she arrived. Open to fellow cartographers or those in similar fields, people she would make or study maps for, and people to go on adventures with.

Lilo Pelekai (Starters: 1/3 ashley/vcndetta)

Human. Barmaid (waitress at a tavern.) Thinks it's been like this her whole life. Open to customers, tavern owner, coworkers, and magical beings she'd keep the secret of.

Louise Belcher (Starters: 1/3 nathan/blxxdycherryblossoms)

Human. Jester. Thinks it's been like this her whole life. Open to people to work for/entertain, and fellow jesters.

Marie (Starters: 1/3 jester/ofsvnlightt)

Human. Troubadour (minstrel who specializes in romance.) Thinks it's been like this her whole life. Open to employers she sings for, musicians who accompany her with an instrument, and people who have heard her sing/fans.

Mary Jane Watson (Starters: 1/3 felicia/devilsmenu)

Human. Thespian (actress.) Thinks it's been like this since she arrived. Open to fellow actors, playwrights/etc, and audience members/fans.

Melody (Starters: 1/3 lucy/devilsmenu)

Half-mermaid. Jeweler. Thinks it's been like this since she arrived. Open to people who have bought her jewelry or commissioned her for pieces, fellow jewelers or crafters, and someone to accuse her of witchcraft.

Millie (Starters: 2/3 loona/drvcxrys, moxxie/strawbrryrush)

Human. Assassin/Mercenary. Thinks it's been like this since she arrived. Open to people who have hired/hire her to target someone or shake them down, targets to try and kill/shake down, and fellow assassins/mercenaries.

Mittens (Starters: 1/3 jabba/vcndetta)

Human. Diver (pick-pocket) and Fence (stolen goods saleswoman.) Thinks it's been like this her whole life. Open to people she can steal from, people she can sell to, and fellow thieves.

Pam Beesly (Starters: 1/3 romeo/devilsmenu)

Human. Artist (painter.) Thinks it's been like this since she arrived. Open to a mentor that can help her improve her painting skills, people who make fun of her art, people who enjoy her art and maybe even purchase it, and fellow artists.

Persephone (Starters: 0/3)

Goddess. Gardener. Thinks it's been like this her whole life. Open to fellow gardeners, people she can garden for, people to worship her, and someone to accuse her of witchcraft.

Rosie (Starters: 0/3)

Human. Cantor (church choir leader.) Thinks it's been this way since she arrived. Open to choir members, church employees, churchgoers, and someone to accuse her of being a demon or of witchcraft.

Vanessa Shelly (Starters: 1/3 chiye/mvsicinthedvrk)

Human. Guardswoman. Thinks it's been like this since she arrived. Open to someone to work for as a Guard, and criminals to catch or attempt to catch.

Woody Pride (Starters: 1/3 dongfang qingcang/mvsicinthedvrk)

Human. Sherriff. Thinks it's been like this his whole life. Open to coworkers, criminals to catch or attempt to catch, people that have been in his jail before, and people to protect.

Muses that are aware of the change in era and are confused and alarmed:

Catra (Starters: 0/3)

Cat-human hybrid. Rat catcher. Noticed that the modern DC she believes she's always lived in is now, well, not modern and is freaked about it and hiding her non-human status as best she can. Open to people who hire her to catch rats, and someone to accuse her of witchcraft.

Cecilia Anderson (Starters: 0/3)

Vampire. Librarian. Noticed the change right away and is trying her best not to freak out too much. Open to fellow librarians, people who use the library often, and people to feed on (they would die.)

Dash Parr (Starters: 1/3 violet/drvcxrys)

Super-human. Mason (bricklayer.) Was a little slow on the uptake but now he's just really weirded out. Trying to live as normally as possible. Open to coworkers, and people to work for building homes or buildings.

Eryx Droagon (Starters: 0/3)

Human. Mule driver. Adjusted pretty quickly surprisingly. Open to people he drives around, and fellow mule drivers.

Hades (Starters: 1/3 harry/hiddenpxpercuts)

God. Tavern Owner. Finds this whole thing pretty amusing to tell the truth. Open to tavern-goers, employees, people to worship him, and people to mess with.

Inuyasha (Starters: 0/3)

Half-dog-demon. Hunter. Is kind of feeling more at home but also not and he's just weirded out by everything being so odd - also hiding his dog ears. Open to people he hunts for/people who buy his kills, and people he gives his kills to for free because they can't afford food and are going hungry.

Jim Hawkins (Starters: 0/3)

Human. Astronomer. Is wondering what the hell is going on but trying to adjust. Open to fellow astronomers, and people who share his love of the stars in general.

Marcus (Starters: 0/3)

Vampire. Scribe. Was confused at first but is adjusting. Open to an employer(s), and fellow scribes.

Megara (Starters: 0/3)

Human. Famulus (attendant to a wizard/witch.) Finds this whole thing odd and frustrating and just wants DC to stop, please. Open to an employer (PLEASE), and being accused of witchcraft (for working with a wizard/witch.)

Meredith Grey (Starters: 1/3 soren/wvsteria)

Human. Plague Doctor. Is seriously freaked out to be honest. Open to patients, fellow doctors, and people to freak out with.

Sibella Dracula (Starters: 1/3 sara/vcndetta)

Vampire. Tailor/Clothesmaker. Is honestly amused with the change of pace and is enjoying herself. Open to people she's made clothing for, fellow tailors, and people to feed on (they would not die or be turned.)

Violet Bridgerton (Starters: 1/3 edwina/hiddenpxpercuts)

Human. Nursery Maid (child caregiver.) She's really trying not to freak out about the change, but luckily this is closer to what she's used to so there's not much adjusting. Open to a family or two whose children she takes care of, and fellow nursery maids.

Zachary Peterson (Starters: 0/3)

Vampire. Carpenter. Finds this whole thing incredibly fucking weird and doesn't really know what to do but is trying to not freak out too much? Open to people he's built things for or fixed things for, and people to feed from (they would die.)

[multiplicationdivision]

Two Heads are Better Than One

Honestly it was barely a big deal

Sure, his father had been banking on the treatment. Finally get his version of a son he dould accept, rid his mind of any of those little ideas he’d gotten in his year and a half outside of their small-minded hometown. The man had been so scared of all the normal things he thought were deviant, it was deeply ironic how much money he was willing to shove into this trendy medical arrangement.

16 separate pills made legal only by the way their effect was coveted by the rich and famous. Something something controlled mitosis something something human duplication.

Jake was hardly a genius at the whole process. Neither was other Jake, who would loudly proclaim that it wasn’t their fault they’d forgotten to take the following 9 pills after the first 5. To be fair, the first 5 gave them a pretty good bud to chill with. They’d taken to it quite nicely the day they’d woken up with two heads on their shoulders and it hadn’t taken their absent brains to go wild with the potentials. Jacking off was a whole different ball game and they were becoming all-star players home alone. Either could fantasize or watch porn and two brains worth of stimulation would pulse back and forth from their dick. It was feeling someone’s hand on your cock only for it to be yours and the whole experience was a mindfuck.

It wasn’t his fault he barely had the mind left to remember the other pills when days were spent between playing around with his new partner and crime and sharing every one of his hobbies with a person who cared about them just as passionately as he did.

They’d play a couple hours of any old game they’d always loved, seamlessly trading back and forth between the controls until they weren’t even sure which of them was the one pressing the buttons. Exercising and lacrosse felt the same, the only odd thing out being the way people typically stared these days. It was likely just folks getting caught unaware at his now doubled handsome mugs.

It was only after the pont at which continuing the replication was medically impossibe that they’d actually remembered being two-headed wasn’t the goal. It was crazy considering they’d gotten as far as a couple pairs of custom shirts. Hell, they’d even had plans for a podcast with just the two of them, although a well meaning friend had shown them an example of another pair of clones who’d done the same and it was understandably terrible audibly and almost full blown narcissism. Which his podcast would’ve likely been, considering he found he loved to hear himself talk.

All things to say, his father was resoundingly disappointed but unable to be surprised by it at all. The Jakes had happily given the man the rest of the pills, they’d been expensive, he was sure. It was the first time in forever that he’d actually been grateful to his father and two Jakes saying so surely twisted the knife. All the worse when Jake’s lay rounded the corner of Jake’s living room, a multi-headed bear with full ass on display, leaving his father a jabbering pathetic mess.

His dad was a weird nutjob anyways, banking on a crazy experimental treatment to fix his relationship with his son.

Not that Jake was much better in the ideas department.

He thinks he keeps himself pretty in line these days though.

Two heads, from his experience, is far better than one.

[sonicasura]

Transformers Prime: Toonsanity

Yes, I'm going back to the Weretoons with Transformers idea well specifically the Prime version. Rescue Bots will have it's respective post so don't you worry! Let's get started.

Miko lives in Jasper with her Weretoon foster father instead of canon's host family. She is already Jack and Raf's friend but they don't know about her Weretoon nature. A common rule that's not just for the safety of other Weres but people close to them. Every werecreature has a respective hunter and those for Weretoons are extremely dangerous to put it simply.

The two boys would've been left unaware if wasn't for the fateful encounter with the Autobots. (Miko is still a chaos agent and being a Weretoon just amps it up.) It doesn't really take long for everyone to find out either.

Weretoons tend to carry a small bottle of ink on them as it triggers the Toon transformation instantly. An emergency tool to be precise. What better time to use it than on a hostile alien spaceship full of trigger happy robots?

Like any other Toon, Miko has a hammer space with her preferred cartoony weapon being a giant mallet. Jack pretty much felt like he was going insane at this upon seeing his friend flatten a Vehicon into a metal pancake. Raf is taking it a bit better than him. The bots however...

Ratchet: What in the pits is this?!!! *Points at Toon!Miko*

Miko: *eating a carrot she pulled from her hammerspace* What's up, Doc? Never met a Weretoon before? Congrats on being not only the first non-Weretoon aligned doctor but the first 'normal' doctor I done this joke with!

Jack: *notices everyone staring at him* Hey, don't look at me! I didn't know about this until now!

Ratchet obviously grilled Miko for answers as he barely knows how to treat humans! Now he has to worry about an unknown subspecies getting injured or ill. Miko explaining the whole 'Weretoons' thing so nonchalantly didn't help either. (Optimus wrote everything in stride as the unknown reawakens the archivist within.)

Ratchet shuddered knowing others can be infected and rather not find out if Cybertronians are susceptible. (They are Ratty. It's another reason why Miko wears a mouth guard. A simple bite with their actual teeth is all a Weretoon needs to turn someone even if they don't penetrate skin or metal.)

No one purposely tries to test Miko's squash and stretch capabilities whenever she's in toon form. Doesn't stop a cartoony shenanigan from occuring. Or the fact every single bot on the team has fallen for the inherent gag trying to get Miko outta harm's way like in every other cartoon.

Examples:

Bulkhead got whacked in the face by his own lob ball as it preceded to roll off the shelf after Miko.

Optimus somehow slipped on a banana peel and accidentally falls on Bumblebee from trying not to squish the Weretoon.

Ratchet crashes into the ceiling when Jack's knife set is hurtled at Miko with the medic taking said blades to the aft. (Toon law: Anyone struck by a pointy object always launches upwards.)

Miko reveals her beast form during the Scrapheap episode. She gotten pissed when some Scraplets had munch on a metal custom road plate her dad made for her room. Never anger a toon who can turn into a serpentine dragon like mole cause Miko chased the little pests everywhere with a vengeance.

Jack already resigned to the insanity after this little reveal. He's just glad they got a heavy hitter that the Scraplets couldn't munch on. Optimus and Arcee were really confused about this new development but let Miko help warm them up. (She runs hot as a mole dragon plus long enough to coil around someone OP's size.)

Hostage situations with Miko will always go wrong for the kidnapper. She either slips out their grasp like a snake or go beast mode on their ass. Makeshift learns that moles bite especially if they're half dragon.

Knockout and Starscream doesn't have fun with Miko during their respective encounter either(TMI/Rock Bottom.) Her claws can do more than just dig through dirt as she left behind pretty larges gashes on their frames. Starscream and Knockout constantly about still finding sand in their frame.

The ugliest confrontation between Miko with a Decepticon is Predaking. Dragons aren't exactly friendly towards each other as they are territorial as fuck. (Moles are even moreso.) Especially if it involves a claim. Her friends and the Autobots' can be considered Miko's plus considering Predaking is more dragonlike...

She fucking mauls the Predacon with their respective breath attacks leaving freshly made glass everywhere. Ultra Magnus had to hold Miko like an angry extra long ferret so she didn't fly after the retreating Decepticons. Our girl may be strong but not invincible.

Toons can have their own rules turned against them plus Miko can't sustain her toon form for long. She's got an hour to an 1 hr 30 minutes before reverting back. Then there's the threat born from the film 'Who Framed Rodger Rabbit': The Dip.

It can burn a Weretoon in their human form but becomes truly lethal if they are a toon. Dip is their wolfsbane and is the main tool in a Cartoon Hunter's arsenal. Two things Miko wasn't happy to explain to the bots when movie night came around.(Bumblebee apologized btw.)

It's gonna take awhile for the Decepticons to find out. Sadly a certain mechanical based organization knows about Weretoons...and most are hunters. Or that one particular spider bot might add Miko to her list of targets too.

For Miko's father, he'll remain mostly anonymous. This is because I want to keep the main ides separate from any extra doses of insanity should it peak my interest. Like making her foster father Dynamite Anton from Antonball/Antonblast.

What better way to do the 'Meet the Father' bit than this fucker throwing hands with a bunch of moles, called BALLBUSTERS, because their boss Satan stole his booze. (The literal plot for Antonblast.) It would obviously have the fandom wide headcanon of Anton being a demon and his demon form being usually portrayed like this. (Can't resist the sheer irony when you consider the fact Optimus is basically robot jesus in most iterations of the series.)

Things are gonna be chaotic with Ratchet wanting a drink either way it goes.

[vampireinterview]

It has come to my attention that some of you have not been made aware of the fact that Plato was well known for being a Destiel shipper, in addition to the fact that he also wrote some philosophical works on the side. Let me explain.

Plato was an Athenian thinker whose real name was Aristocles (Plato most likely comes from the Greek word for ‘broad”, he might have been so jacked that people nicknamed him for his wide shoulders, which is irrelevant to the topic at hand but I’m collecting receipts on my hypothesis that all hellers are physical beheamoths). His work regarding the philosophy of love can be interpreted through the lens of the Deancas love story, which can potentially lead us to discover the very essence of what makes Destiel so impactful and universal, so bear with me, I’ll make it as introductory as possible.

Plato’s Symposium is a dialogue which contains the philosopher’s basic view on what love can be. The influence of the aforementioned text has been so strong that even those of us who are blissfully unaware of its contents have heard of the concept of “platonic love”. It is with great disappointment that I have to inform you about the fact that the way in which the term is colloquially used can be considered quite removed from the core idea of what Plato’s love is supposed to be about. Commonly people utilize it to refer to a non-romantic and non-sexual emotion towards an individual. However, even though the extrasensory love was the end goal, it was never too far distanced from the earthly, carnal desire that was supposed to lay the foundation for greater experiences.

One of the most illustrative elements of the Symposium is no doubt the Love Ladder metaphor (also known as Diotima’s Ladder of Love, the Scala Amoris); Plato believes the act of loving to be a part of the process of initiation into the non-material world of ideas. Every step of the ladder helps one approach the transcendence of one’s soul, and so we can single out six steps to immortal absolutes:

1. The first step is developing an appreciation for a particular person. It’s a very much carnal (though not necessarily conventionally sexual) desire for beauty of a specific individual. According to Plato only through the love of the physical can one love the non material. The visceral infatuation with another’s body is often strongly rooted with the self-hatred of one’s own aesthetical poverty: within the carnal love we seek to find that which our own body lacks. The desire between Dean and Cas doesn’t have to be seen as strictly sexual, as the appreciation of beauty does not warrant a conventionally erotic subtext. This sort of fascination with the flesh is most noticeably highlighted in the many “eye sex” scenes in seasons 4-5, and is later brought up by Hester:

The very touch of you corrupts. When Castiel first laid a hand on you in Hell, he was lost. 

2. The second step stems from the appreciation for all physicality derived directly from the love one has for the lover’s form. It’s fleshed out any time Dean finds beauty in the dark times, where he would have never found it before or when Cas sees humanity through the lens of the love he has for the beauty within Dean Winchester. This step is all about finding the allure in everybody, not in spite of but rather because of having fallen for a specific person’s material form.

3. The next step is a love which transcends the physical and teaches an individual to feel affection towards the souls. The attraction one can experience in relation to that which is non material is precisely what takes the function of the driving force behind both Castiel’s and Dean’s decisions in season 6 and onward (arguably even much earlier for Cas? or even Dean? Maybe we’re talking about season 4?). As evidenced by the apparent lack of attraction Dean experiences towards Jimmy himself, he must have already moved on to this stage (the Cas he loves is not just the vessel he inhabits). Castiel on the other hand feels heavily infatueted with Dean’s spiritual allure (even when he’s physically on the verge of a breakdown, he’s still beautiful, still Dean Winchester). 

4. It is only then that one can find love for the institution. If one worships souls, then one also has to worship the product of those souls: and, sure enough, loving humanity led Castiel to love its structures and ethical systems and be willing to die fighting for them. In the later seasons he exhibits fascination over all the little rules that guide an average human’s life (which is especially fleshed out in his season 7 dialogues, where he contemplates all the small details of the societal structure, ie: how important is lipstick to you?, maybe the human institutions should ban its production). Same can be said of Dean: the customs and traditions of other people are subject to his affectionate protection in the later seasons, which sets s6 and onwards Dean apart from the early seasons Dean who cared mostly about his blood relatives. The found family arc was for him a process of growing attached to the order of life which was previously foreign to him, and him learning to navigate functioning within a big family structure and an organization (the last one is physically manifested by his move from a chaotic life spent at random motels to living at the bunker, property of the institution of Men Of Letters).

5. Then comes the deep appreciation of knowledge. Now, it is widely disputed whether what Plato meant should be strictly narrowed down to just one kind of knowledge (in many English translations you might encounter the word ‘science’, though used in the ancient sense). The process of gaining knowledge is often equated with the understanding of ideas in Plato’s work, therefore we’re going to stick with that. The act of loving the process of discovering both the external and the internal world is a strong factor which pushes Dean to self examination, or the examination of the inner psyche. It is that pursuit of knowledge that is the very coronation of his entire character arc: the realization of his role within the story (”I’m not the ultimate killer”) which was directly derived from the act of loving Cas.

6. The final stage of platonic love is reaching the love of the very concept of Love. Once again, interpretations vary, but for the sake of the argument, I’ll clarify that: the discussed kind of love transcends both the body and the soul. An individual is in love with Beauty, not just one of it’s physical or spiritual manifestations. In my opinion, this stage is extremely well depicted during the 15x18 confession scene, for it is a kind of love achieved by Castiel. He is no longer just in love with the body or soul of Dean, he’s also in love with the sole idea of loving him. He quite literally states that he’s fallen in love with the idea of just being, just saying it, just falling in love. 

Upon achieving this state, he transcends his material conditions both by leaving the human world (his move to another dimension - the Empty - could be just an illustrative manifestation of the transcendental move of his essence) and giving birth to a new world order. The way in which he later on goes to rebuild Heaven and give birth to a completely new, structure of the universe is in line with a concept that Plato ties into the finale step of the Ladder - pregnancy of the soul. At one point in Symposium he describes Diotima saying that:

That in that life alone, when he looks at Beauty in the only way that Beauty can be seen--only then will it become possible for him to give birth not to images or virtue (Because he’s in touch with no images), but to true virtue (Because he is in touch with the true Beauty).

What is the christian equivalent and personification of the true idea of Virtue if not the abstract concept of Heaven? The moment Cas creates a new portrayal of Virtue he finishes the Ladder. It could also be argued that the true pregnancy of the soul was actually finished when Jack ascended to the status of God: an entity which belongs to the realm of ideas and is perfect by its very nature is birthed through Castiel’s love (which can be traced back to the feelings he has for Dean Winchester).

And it is the fact that Dean’s arc got stuck on the fifth stage of the Ladder that causes me so much pain. He dies before transcending and experiencing the non-temporal and non-relative feeling of love that one can gain only through the admiration of beauty itself. His life was cut short and his soul has already left the mortal, physical world, therefore he is forever unable to experience the feeling of loving Love and Virtue so much that his soul gives birth to an unbreakable idea.

In conclusion: if you ever see somebody say that Dean and Castiel’s relationship is platonic, just agree. It is very much so platonic in the sense that through their carnal and spiritual desires they’ve manged to (nearly, in Dean’s case) transcend their material conditions and reached the divine aspect of ideal Beauty and Virtue, rooted in a love that’s so deep that it’s perfectly able to redefine the structure of one’s existence.

tagging some people who have vaguely expressed interest in acquiring the third eye:

@cryptcas​ @futureheadnerd​ @doctorprofessorsong​ @sinnabonka​ @theangelwiththewormstache​ @absoluteheller​ @fivefeetfangirl​ 

[bookwyrminspiration]

Imagine a kotlc rainbow fairies au. Imagine.

I do not need to imagine, nonsie. I am already there with you. I am 100% invested in this merging of the two worlds. Actually, I was in a bookstore earlier today (yes I went to a bookstore two days in a row shh) and this is the place where they do buy-backs, meaning customers can sell them their books and then the bookstore will offer them used to other people. And I looked at the rainbow fairies shelf and so many of the rainbow magic books were used and being sold and I am 100% certain that several of those were mine. Not all of them, but I am certain multiple were mine. So if anyone wants a rainbow magic book the used ones are 2 dollars at my local bookstore

but!! that is off topic. I'm wondering what exactly a rainbow fairies au would entail. Because in the rainbow magic books we follow Rachel and Kirsty, who are best friends, but if we make the comparison of the two girls discovering/being introduced to a new world and then living sort of half between it, Sophie fits that description best. But! She doesn't have any friends that could fill the other role--Amy might be the closest thing, but she's not someone in the elven world or between it in the way Sophie is, so would we just get rid of the friendship and its only Sophie?

Would each of her friends be one of the seven--given that we're going off of a typical series style here. Okay wait a minute hear me out. We go with the typical style of seven fairies in a group/a series: Fitz, Keefe, Biana, Dex, Marella, Maruca, Wylie. And then Tam and Linh are each special fairies, like the three stories in one kind. Because they aren't part of the group in the same way but are of the same world.

The Neverseen would be the goblins, I'm assuming, as they're the ones actively trying to take over Fairyland or something like that. Does this make Fintan into Jack Frost like we were talking about earlier? The goblins live in the cold, so would we have to alter it to be like a blaing desert with a palace made of sand for the Neverseen, Fintan rocking a beard of fire like Endeavor to match the icicle Beard Jack Frost has.

If we go through with this au we'd essentially be dumbing down the Neverseen a lot, as the goblins are incredibly dumb and that's how they're always defeated. But! They'd be an absolute pain in the ass all of the time.

This au also implies that Sophie would still be living in the human world, her family completely unaware of an unsuspecting that she sneaks away to elf world to fight bad guys and regain magic items. OO! Idea. In this world, there are no abilities in the way kotlc has them, instead that's what their magical objects are!

What would each of them be the fairies of though, that's the real question here..

[9worldstales]

MCU: Loki and Midgardian clothes

So, I’ve seen some fans wondering how could Loki fix Mobius’ tie since Asgardians clearly do not wear ties…

…and it made me wonder ‘is this a mistake or Loki was actually familiar with Midgardians clothes?’

So let’s start with the sources at our disposition to answer this question.

SOURCES MENTIONED:

Movies: “Thor” (2011), “The Avengers” (2012), “Thor – Ragnark” (2017)

Series: “Loki” [More exactly a scene from: “Marvel Studios' Loki | Official Trailer | Disney+”] (2021)

Comics: None mentioned

Direct-to-video animated film: None mentioned

Motion comics: None mentioned

Books: “The Art of Thor” (2011), “The art of The Avengers” (2012), “The Art of Thor: Ragnarok” (2017), “Marvel Studios: All your questions answered” (2018)

Novels: “Thor: Ragnarok - The Junior novel” by Jim McCann (2017)

Webs: None mentioned

Others: “Thor” old movie script

Okay, now we can start.

So, as weird as it might seem at first, the second answer, which is that Loki is familiar with Midgardian modern attires, might be the intended one, right from “Thor”.

Let’s go back to that movie.

Thor is clearly unfamiliar with present day Midgard as a whole, and so are his friends.

We’ve various moments in which Thor shows he’s unaware of present day Midgardians customs, like when he can’t realize he’s in doctors’ care and thinks they’re attacking him (in a deleted bit, when they tell him they’re trying to help him, he demands they bring him healing stones, showing he has no idea how Earth’s healing system work), or when he breaks a glass asking another believing he’s showing appreciation for the drink, or when he enters in a pet shop, demands a horse and when they tell him they’ve only dogs, cats, birds, demands one of them big enough to ride.

It doesn’t mean he never went to Midgard, in the movie there’s the implication he had been on Midgard before...

Thor: We're going to Jotunheim. Fandral: What? This isn't like a journey to Earth where you summon a little lightning and thunder, and the mortals worship you as a god. This is Jotunheim.

...and there was a cut scene in which he recognized being on Midgard and even calling it ‘Earth’.

Thor: Blue sky... one sun... This is Earth, isn't it?

And there’s another cut scene that says that yes, Sif and the Warriors Three had been on Earth… but a thousand years ago.

Volstagg: Is it just me, or does Earth look a little different to you? Sif: It has been a thousand years... Volstagg: Things change so fast here. You leave for a millennium, and it's like the whole neighborhood's gone.

Now, Loki was a babe in 965 AD and “Thor” takes place in 2011. Sif likely doesn’t mean exactly 1000 years but, what’s more, we don’t know how exactly Asgardians age in the MCU.

Does their childhood last as much as ours and then their aging process slow down so as to allow them to live 5000 years? Or their aging process is proportionately all slowed down and they remains babes for years?

I tend to think their childhood is fast and then they have a slower aging process once they reach a certain age, but anyway this is irrelevant. Even if Loki visited Midgard 1000 years before and was familiar with its customs back then, well, things, as Volstagg points out, are changed a lot.

So… where do we can get an idea if Loki is familiar with Midgard or not?

When Loki goes to see Thor, he shows up dressed up in 21st century Midgardian attire.

In “The Art of Thor” is said:

Said Craig Kyle, “Loki wants to look good, he’s a man of style… Loki actually has three looks, Thor has one.” In addition to the three costumes he wears in the otherworldy realm of Asgard, Loki also makes a brief appearance in a suit and tie. Said Tom Hiddleston, “When he turns up on Earth in the movie, [he’s] very GQ.”

(For who, like me, is not familiar with the term GQ, it is used to describe a guy who is dressed nicely, very sleek, or very sexy to the ladies, The term comes from the men's fashion magazine named GQ (=Gentlemen's Quarterly).)

They don’t really explains why Loki decided to dress up like that, but the fact he chose to is meaningful.

Loki was going to see Thor, and he only let Thor see him.

He appears in the room Thor was, presumably after waiting for a while inside it but invisible since he complains about how he thought Coulson would never leave. When Coulson is back, Loki has magically disappeared again.

People doesn’t see Loki, not even when he tries to lift up Mjolnir.

Long story short, Loki’s attire is not to disguise himself as a human among humans and walk among them unnoticed, as he just doesn’t let them see him at all, and if he were, his very fashionable outfit would likely draw more gazes than anything else (compare it with Coulson’s plain suit), especially when he tries to lift Mjolnir while all around it there are scientists dresses in scientist garbs and guards dressed in guard uniforms.

So we can see Loki didn’t need to dress as a human to see Thor, he could have very well gone there in his normal Asgardians clothes, like he does when he goes to visit Laufey...

...though he could have forsaken the armour when visiting Thor, and just show up in his normal attire.

Instead Loki picked up a stylish Midgardian outfit to go meet his brother. Be it an illusion (more likely) or real clothes, Loki knew how a fashionable 21st century Midgardian would dress and decided to dress as such even though there was no need for it. This implies a familiarity with Midgard, or at least with its dressing style, which I genuinely doubt could have been a topic of study for Asgardians... even though Odin too was familiar with Midgardians attires as, when he bans Thor to Earth, he changes his clothes into modern, ordinary, definitely not fashionable Midgardian ones.

Loki knows the secret paths between words, it can be he travelled to Midgard and, once there, grew to like the elegant style we have.

But yes, this doesn’t necessarily mean he could learn how to fix a tie, as his clothes might be an illusion.

The final bit of “Thor” is a bit of a confusing thing as it shows Loki (dressed in Asgardian clothes) invisible to other people’s eyes controlling Selvig...

...which is confirmed by “Marvel Studios: All your questions answered” which describes that scene as:

Loki controls Selvig as he examines the Tesseract.

If Loki had controlled Selvig for an extensive period he might have learnt to tie ties as Selvig wears one.

However, although this scene was created and directed by Joss Whedon, this scene is kind of forgotten when “The Avengers” rolls around.

In it Selvig is free from Loki’s control until Loki uses the sceptre with the mind stone to turn him into his servant.

Now… “The Avengers”.

The story starts by night, with Loki arriving in the S.H.I.E.L.D. research center in which Selvig is studying the Tesseract.

Natasha Romanov, Bruce Banner, Steve Roger and Tony Stark are all warned during night. It’s possible it’s the same night, maybe it’s the night after.

It’s full day when Steve Roger travels with Coulson. The following scene shows Loki remembering his talk with the Other and then we’ve Steve reaching the Helicarrier and meeting up with Natasha and Bruce.

Then Loki shows up at Stuttgart Museum again dressed up in 21st Century attire with his sceptre disguised as a cane. This time Loki is sort of disguising himself, as he’s actually planning to draw attention on himself but, at first, in a subtle manner so it makes sense he dressed up as a Midgardian to move among Midgardians so as not to alert common people but end up being tracked by SHIELD because they can see him on monitors and recognize him… something they wouldn’t be able to do had he been invisible.

Loki drops his disguise only later, after he has sent a holographic image of Dr. Heinrich Schafer’s eye to Barton. He confront with Steve and Tony and vanish his armour… remaining in Asgardian clothes. He’s short after taken by Thor, who then argues with Steve and Tony until Thor decides to get along with them and Loki is carried on the Helicarrier all in the same night.

Natasha takes care to inform us Loki killed 80 people in 2 days. This should mean Loki is on Midgard by two days.

Why all this is relevant?

Again Loki dressed up as a stylish Midgardian,

...his clothes similar to the ones he had in “Thor” yet vaguely different (in “Thor” the coat is green, in “The Avengers” black and the scarf motive is slightly different) and even knew that, in order to disguise the sceptre, he can’t mask it as, let’s say, a pitchfork but a cane. It’s true, since he’s been on Earth by 2 days, this time he could have gotten that knowledge by Barton or Selvig.

“The art of The Avengers” again doesn’t tell us much apart that:

“Joss and Kevin both wanted a different look for Loki in The Avengers, in part for the fans and in part to serve the story,” Visual Development Supervisor Charlie Wen said.” For Loki, his costumes evolved from the super-clean look of the Asgard from Thor to a much grittier and more lived-in look to show the changes he’s gone through since then.” “For Thor and Loki, much of our inspiration came from Jack Kirby’s original character designs,” Wen said. “Loki represent mischief. He is a cultured traveller.”

But, if we put clothes aside, Loki is also aware of how:

Loki: The humans slaughter each other in droves, while you idly threat. I mean to rule them. And why should I not?

It’s something Thor didn’t seem to know/realize.

This seems to imply Loki knows about Earth’s history or, at least, of its present situation. Yes, he might have had a crash course in history of Earth courtesy by Clint or Selvig, but he might have also learnt it by himself in trips on Earth since Odin didn’t seem interested in Earth beyond protecting it from some attacks from creatures from other realms (he helps against the Frost Giants, however he doesn’t seem aware of the Skrulls and Krees walking on its surface nor he cares to check what humans do with the Tesseract doing nothing when Red Skull uses it to produce weapons) so he might not have bothered having his son learning about Midgard’s history and situation.

The last time we see Loki dressed as a human is in “Thor: Ragnarok”.

In it his clothes are much more simple than usual as he only wears a black suit, no scarf, no coat.

In “The Art of Thor: Ragnarok” there’s actually not one but 2 arts for more elaborate suits with coat but they were clearly discharged as Loki never wears them in the movie.

“Thor: Ragnarok The Junior novel” which is based on an earlier script says:

They were dressed in regular Earth street wear – shirt and slacks – and Thor carried an umbrella. His hair was swept back into a ponytail. Loki’s magic was projecting an illusion onto the duo.

...which seems to imply the scriptwriter originally didn’t even think dressing Loki stylish… and anyway mostly focused on Thor... so it’s possible Loki’s attire in the movie is a compromise between the scriptwriter, who though to dress Loki in shirt and slacks, and "Thor: Ragnarok” Visual Development Supervisor Andy Park who wanted to put him in an elegant and stylish suit as the other Visual Development Supervisors had done.

Still, the scriptwriter too thinks Loki is aware of how, if Thor wants to keep an object in his hands, it has to look like something ordinary and how an umbrella can fit the bill. As it didn’t rain during Loki’s short permanence on Earth, the fact he knows umbrellas exist and is acceptable to carry them around seems to imply Loki has an idea of how Earth works.

So all this to say… yes, Loki might be more familiar with Earth than it looked like and he might have learnt how to make a tie or, at least, how to fix it since this is more what he seems to do in that scene in “Marvel Studios' Loki | Official Trailer | Disney+”

We can only wait and see if “Loki” will give us more explanations about this scene or it will just toss it in and not bother to explain it at all.

Meanwhile I’ll have fun thinking before things went wrong Loki used to come on Earth and look up on fashion magazines and love the idea of how good he would look in such clothes that he began to dress up according to Midgard fashion style each time he got to set a feet on it.

[ar-knightinsourarmor]

takemetochrch asked:

🎁 - a new trench coat for castiel.

holiday inbox memes

[ 🎁 ]    to give my muse a gift  -  bonus if you include what the gift is 

Humans had incredible ways to escape the hopelessness to surround the human nature. Inventive, fascinating creatures, never giving up on hope even when the times are dark. Even when it seems as if there's no God watching over them, they'd find faith not even the ones knowing the truth behind the secrets of this world had. Traditions would be lost in time or altered to different ones, yet the meaning behind the most grand celebrations — the meaning behind Christmas — was indistinguishable: the importance of family. Bound by blood or not, family was the greatest achievement of the human heart. Loving unconditionally, unlimitedly, selflessly in a world where nothing could last forever.

He'd never expect Jack to consider buying him a gift. The Nephilim was still new to humanity ( his own humanity ) and its customs and traditions. Castiel, only the last few years of his life had the chance to celebrate Christmas and this year, would be the first time they'd spend it together in the bunker. Usually, one or all three of them would be working on a case or trying to find a way to prevent another catastrophe. There was little time for rest. And even less for the angel, that paid little to no mind to human holidays. For Sam and Dean, such days continued to hold significance. Tied with memories from their childhood and the inner wish of normalcy, whenever they could, they'd try to take some time off hunting, in order not to lose the little connection they still had to their human nature. Castiel would usually receive a belated gift and would attempt returning it. But never before had they planned Christmas. Jack had made things different for all of them.

Surprise was evident on the angel's face, when he stared at the offered gift. Doubting for a moment this was meant for him. But how could he not? When having lost so much over the years — himself, his wings, his hope — how could he ever ask for more ? For more than being together with the people he cared the most on a day like this. One would settle with little only after having lost everything. Yet, Jack was there, offering him more than he could have imagined. A gesture as if he belonged somewhere. As if he belonged to the family he longed them to be. Peaceful times wouldn't last forever yet these brief moments of happiness were enough to make Castiel feel a tiny piece of it. Of their purpose. As if he was being human, even for a day. As if his dream of having a home to return to — a family — had become true.

A new trenchcoat was his gift to him. Many memories were brought back to Castiel's mind. His old trenchcoat. The coat he'd wear from the first day he stepped on earth after many years, and the day when his course of life would change. The one Dean had kept at the trunk of his car for as long as he had been dead. He came to realize in time that objects could hold special meaning, when linked with certain memories. When his grace was stolen by Metatron, he was left with no choice but to leave it behind. A decision that hadn't been easy. None he'd wear from that point on would be the same. Yet, Jack had given him a gift, unaware of how important it actually was. “ Jack, ” he called his name, a crooked smile appearing on his face for a second. “ Thank you. ” His hand rested on the younger's shoulder, as if to emphasize his last words. “ I'll-I'll be wearing that now. ” Uncertainty still hung on his voice. Was he really worth it? The sentiment behind it?

@takemetochrch

[waifstarion]

I don’t think there is any harm in the baby Jack posts as he is in canon a baby, we only ever see him from age 0-3, it’s his 4th birthday next month. Never in canon has it stated Jack is autistic or coded as such, those quirks we see are canon as an angel not fitting in on earth, Castiel does it all the time. I believe it’s only really Gabriel who doesn’t have this issue as he’s been on earth for a very long time. I have quite a few traits in common with Jack from another condition that is not autism but overlaps, along with others (my condition sadly is very hard to diagnose for this reason, so a lot of people are often misdiagnosed as something else) I don’t post how angry that makes me as people are appropriating my condition and babying my traits (even if I do need help sometimes dressing myself right) If people are happy making Jack a baby then they should be allowed to post that. Jack only aged himself up after Kelly told him the world was unsafe, now Chuck has gone there’s no reason why Jack wouldn’t deage himself back to a toddler to finally experience playing on swings, slides and all the fun things with Castiel and Amara by his side. In a way too, the baby Jack is also a coping mechanism, in canon Jack left and Sam and Dean never seen him again, Sam lived at least 40 years without seeing Jack ever again and even in heaven, Jack wasn’t there 😭😭😭 so to draw or headcanon a small child who may need Sam to cut off the crust on his bread sandwiches, or Dean to read him a story and it be Game of Thrones or something... then that’s how that fan is coping with the true sad ending of Jack’s arc. We know he is with Castiel, he’s happy but Sam and Dean never learned that until after they died.

we would consider him a baby age-wise, as he is never older than three. however, seeing as he was born in a body roughly the age of eighteen, give or take a couple years (based on sam giving 2000 as his fake birth year when he was in the hospital and the cut line from 13x06). jack is never mentally an infant. he may have had the mentality of a younger child in his early episodes, but it doesn’t take too long for him to reach the mindset of a teenager. even at the end of the show, his mental age is probably around late adolescence or early adulthood (though that is up for interpretation). while he may be a baby in a very literal sense of the word (ie age-wise), he is not a baby in his mental state or appearance, which is what truly matters.

jack’s autism coding is all up to interpretation, however, i very intentionally use the term coding due to the fact that it is never outright stated in canon. coding typically isn’t confirmed within the actual show, otherwise i would have simply called it canon. another prominent character with autism coding (which was confirmed by ben edlund in the s6 commentary) is castiel, who just so happens to be a strong basis for jack’s character. many of the other angels are seen exhibiting neurotypical behaviours. angels such as naomi, balthazar, metatron, and many more do not display the traits that cas does. significantly, misha has said in numerous interviews that while his initial intention was to portray cas as something unhuman and unaware of human customs, not a single other actor did the same. as a result, this left cas as the odd one out, firmly establishing that this behaviour is just cas being himself, not an inherent side effect of being an angel. furthermore, the angels frequently make comments about cas being an outlier who doesn’t fit in, and make comments about it being a fundamental difference (eg. coming off the line with a crack in his chassis) rather than a learned behaviour. circling back to the autistic coding of cas and jack, it is never outright stated that either one is autistic, however there are traits that lead people to believe they are. this post does a good job of illustrating some potential autistic coding in jack. while it may not be intentional, it is certainly there, and a very prevalent interpretation within fandom. i'm sorry to hear that people infantilize your condition. i respect the fact that you make the personal decision not to make angry posts about it, as that is your prerogative. however, it is also mine to make a post about a pattern of behaviour i (and others) have noticed in fandom. the intention of my post is to encourage people to notice such patterns, and to draw their attention to it as there could be many people who never considered it from this point of view.

i never said they aren’t allowed to post it. on the contrary, i reblog posts about it on a semi-frequent basis. that being said, i find that there is a difference between sometimes posting about it versus exclusively portraying him as a baby and never talking about him as a person. in my post, i very clearly stated that it was about people posting it constantly and exclusively portraying him as an infant, which was my phrasing verbatim. it can be fun to portray characters in different ways, but in my opinion it becomes a problem when you constantly erase his character and backstory just to be a prop for a ship or your favourite character.

as for him wanting to deage himself, he has never indicated that. quite the contrary, he has been bothered when he is not taken seriously or seen as incapable. he wants to be capable and independent. it doesn’t make sense for him to want to limit himself mentally and physically so he becomes entirely reliant on those around him. he would lose essentially all of his autonomy, and i doubt that would be enjoyable for him. if he wants to go on a swing or a slide, no one’s stopping him in his current state. he can do plenty of the typical fun things while still being in his current form.

as it is, i don’t think that jack would be yearning for the stereotypical ideal childhood. no one jack has been around has had a normal, stable childhood. the bros, cas, rowena, etc all had abnormal and unstable childhoods. he was very briefly in his mother’s childhood heaven and that’s about the extent of it. even then, her heaven just consisted of her house with her dog. jack had a house and a pet, which he could easily view it as similar. even the tv shows we know he watches (clone wars, the walking dead, and riverdale) all seem to deal with people who do not get to experience real childhoods. he may not even be aware of the extent he is missing out on. even if he is aware, he may be perfectly fine with that and content with the memories he has already.

citing sam and dean’s preferences in and of itself is endemic to the issue of the constant baby jack posting. to be blunt, i don’t really care about what sam and dean want him to present himself as. they made little to no attempt to care for him as it was, so why should jack sacrifice his autonomy just so they can get some enjoyment out of it? in the finale, they barely even noticed his absence. you mention sam living forty years without him, yet he couldn’t be bothered to include a single photo of him in his house. jack shouldn’t have to change himself to make people happy. he should be himself, with complete autonomy, and loved for that. there is no true sad ending of jack’s arc. he’s happy with cas, just as you said. cas loved him unconditionally and was the only one who believed in him the entire time. cas wasn’t fazed when jack was an adult instead of the baby he had anticipated. he was happy to be with his son, regardless of what form that took.

the way cas and jack operate heaven is also left largely up to interpretation. all we know is that sam and dean are now there in the same place of them. it can easily be interpreted that they are all spending time together if that’s what you so please. it could very well be amara, cas, or another character that runs heaven. we don’t even know if there is anyone who needs to be in charge. it may run autonomously at this point and allow for jack to go off on whatever little hijinks he pleases

there are ways to write about tfw and jack post finale without erasing his personality and turning him into a prop. the entire issue is the fact that jack keeps getting used as a prop, and his tag consists almost exclusively of content where he is used as an accessory for other characters. all i’m asking is for people to stop constantly infantilizing him and to take the time to portray him as a fleshed out character sometimes.

[wickedsrest-rp-archive]

NAME: Rag and Bone Man

RARITY: ★★★★☆

THREAT LEVEL: ★★★☆☆ | Occasionally kills but at low frequency. Considered by most to be an urban legend; accurate information is scarce.

ORIGIN: Like most towns, White Crest has its own share of folklore and urban legends. Rag and Bone Man is one such legend that has more than an element of truth. There are several variants of its origin, one of which is the legend of Stingy Jack, a wandering soul doomed to walk the earth with a hollowed-out pumpkin or gourd, accounting for descriptions of a scarecrow with the head of a pumpkin. Another more sinister story pins him as a travelling salesman from decades ago, collecting unwanted clothing and food waste to sell on again during his travels. It is believed at some point he was then robbed by unknown townspeople, murdered, and left in a cornfield under the guise of a scarecrow where his restless soul seeks revenge on those that wronged him.

DESCRIPTION: With the head of a sunken-eyed decaying pumpkin the Rag and Bone man is hard to mistake or forget. Taking the form of a leather-bound and sackcloth scarecrow hiding its true face, it hides in grasslands and cornfields where it lies in wait. At night, it comes down from its perch to hunt humans and uses their skin as clothing or fabric for itself.

ABILITIES: In its resting state this creature is able to remain perfectly still for long periods of time between feedings to catch people unawares if they wander too close. The Rag and Bone Man hides its face behind a sackcloth covering which conceals its hollow eyes and emaciated jaundiced features, closely resembling a decaying pumpkin. Identifying one is easy to do from the noticeable birthmarks and tattoos on its new custom sewn body. While supernaturally strong -- enough to wrestle those it ambushes to death -- it’s not as powerful as many other creatures.

WEAKNESSES: Much like its more docile Wizard of Oz counterpart, this scarecrow is hostile and fearful towards fire. Get yourself some pitchforks and an angry mob and you’ll have yourselves a time.

[cakeandcrows]

I remember this one time I was watching some documentary about a white actress, I can’t recall who. One of her first roles was something like... a German lesbian with some kind of drug addiction (I think cocaine?). Point is, in her interview segment about it, she said something like, “When my mother heard about the role, she said, ‘if I were you, I would have told the director to pick just one of those things, not all of them at once.’” And all I can think about is how like... so many of us on here are more than one kind of minority or ‘invisible’ identity, or neurodivergent, or in some level of recovery from one thing or another. 

Like, this isn’t huge news, y’know? Yeah, privilege is a thing. And people are so absolutely unaware of it when they have it that it makes me want to scream. I’m even unaware of my own privilege a lot of the time and I won’t go into a moment of how I feel when I realize I’ve forgotten, because my guilt on the matter is irrelevant. I just need to get better at keeping myself in check and that’s that. 

Yeah I’d love to be cis some days because of how much easier it would make my life (and honestly for not many other reasons, I’m pretty happy being trans... if it just... y’know, weren’t for how people react to it). Sometimes I think, “Man, straight people are fucking insane; how on earth do they function,” while looking back on the days when I thought I was straight and realizing that even back then I was lost as hell, but some days I’m just like, “If I were straight, would life really be so much easier?” And it would. It really would. If I were also cis at the same time. Etc. 

And I don’t want to make this into an us vs them sort of thing for even a minute, either, because everyone has common ground somewhere. Does that common ground always matter as much to one person as it does to another? Probably not. Jeff Be/os probably shares a home town with a fuck ton of people but I’ll bet he doesn’t give a shit about a single one of them, or that commonality, while you could see a popular rock band and never hear them shut up about how proud they are to be from the West Coast. Sometimes it just doesn’t fucking matter to other people what you have in common with them, because to them, what’s different is so much more volatile. And it goes both ways. 

There’s people from my home town, my graduating class, and even old friend groups that I could never see myself talking to again because of how we’ve split paths in beliefs and lifestyles. Or, maybe they’ve stayed the same and I’ve changed, or the opposite... and I’ll bet they’d see how I’ve changed and think the same things of me. “Wow, I want nothing to do with that person.” 

I’m just... constantly having little wake-up calls over and over again of how some people seriously think that I’d choose a harder life on purpose. And I’m not ashamed of living as I am; I’m very proud of who I am and what I’ve overcome to get here. 

Customers at work, where I feel like I live 2/3rds of my life these days, are always just like... a window into the world for me sometimes. Most people don’t mention my pronoun button. Some people don’t notice it outright and misgender me because they’re looking at my face; entirely being polite and engaged, and not at all aware of how they’re upsetting me. I let it go a lot of the time. It’s not worth it.

There’s the few good folks who listen carefully and patiently and are seemingly brought to a new awareness by my gentle explanations. They’re polite and they honestly revive part of my faith. Like the guy who opened his coffee order saying, “yes, miss,” and left the store tipping his hat to me saying, “thank you very much, sir.” God or whoever does things fucking bless that guy.

Then there’s the people who decide to look at my pin, and ask about it. So far, it’s either people who are just reading it aloud for the sake of it, and then becoming confused but not actually wanting to understand so much as they’re just desperate to make some kind of conversation with a Youth (which is wild because I’m 25??). They don’t actually care, so I don’t really put effort into explaining. They either cut me off mid-explanation, or listen and don’t say anything further. 

Then there’s the people who look at it and laugh at me. Or the woman who decided it was a good idea to read it, listen to my explanation, and say, “You know, my daughter tried to explain that to me. I just don’t get it. I think it’s silly and too complicated. People should just stick to the old ways.” Like... lady. What the fuck do you want me to do about it. Why the fuck do you think telling me this will make me happy or even... want to engage further. I straight up just don’t understand where these people get off. They’re just as rude and uninterested in me as a human being as the people who start rattling off their order and refuse to wait for me to get it all down before shoving their credit card at my face. They do not care. They do. Not. Care. And my patience is starting to wear extremely thin. 

I had a new coworker, who knows I’m trans, the other day stop mid-sentence to say, “Oh, you know, sister? Oh! Also, I call everyone ‘sis’, boys or girls.” “Not me, you don’t.” “...oh?” “You don’t call me that. Ever.” 

“ >:/ tch. Glad we got that out of the way.”

It’s not cute. I don’t think it’s endearing. I don’t think it’s funny. And I don’t give a shit if you call other people that. If you thought about it for five seconds you’d realize how insensitive and fucked up it is. If anyone, anywhere, I swear to god, just thought about ANYTHING for five fucking seconds... I wish... I hope, that they’d be better human beings than they are. 

Like, god, what a horrible inconvenience it is for you to have to stop and think about what to call another human being. To use their name. To use the right pronouns. To avoid nicknames or pet names that would be inappropriate for such a person. Heaven forbid you have to do that for anyone, right? Why am I different? Why are you trying to step on my toes and see if I’ll just sit here and take it? I know why. Everyone knows why. And I’m so sick of being the dog under the table who gets kicked every time it whines about having no escape or being surrounded by the feet of people sitting around the table. 

I don’t hate being trans. I don’t hate being pansexual. I don’t hate being poly. I don’t hate myself. I hate the people who hate me for being myself and intentionally or ignorantly go out of their way to make my life an extra level of hell Just Because They Can. , 

I have been bullied and abused all my fucking life by one kind of person or another and not a single excuse I’ve been given justifies it. Humans are better than this. I want to have faith in humans. And there are good humans; I surround myself with them. But if I have to pry yet another motherfucker’s eyes open to yet another goddamn social issue they were too thick-minded to notice, and then have them turn around and bless me and hail me for some kind of... Joan of Arc bullshit, calling my suffering and my existence some kind of blessing, like my life had to be this hard to spread words and messages across time and space to reach their Oh So Important Ears, I’m gonna choke. Or... even the people who mean well that just straight up make me think that they actually believe that the queer people in their lives are some sort of Manic Pixie Dream (gender) who’s come into their lives to teach them something new and advance their own character development. That’s what it fucking feels like! Being reduced to someone else’s educator and being placed as a Background Character in their own fucking Growth Arc. 

If there’s some sick destiny where I’m lined up to be some kind of flogged messenger to idiots for the rest of my life I want a motherfucking refund. Ship me off to the next incarnation. I don��t care if I come back as a ladybug for two days and die under somebody’s shoe. 

And I’m not somebody’s teacher. I’m not somebody’s martyr or savior. I’m not somebody’s free fucking Queer Almanac and Seasonal Guide to the Experiences of Not Their Own. I’m so fucking tired of explaining myself. 

I’m so fucking tired of People ™ But I also want to have so much faith in People ™ that I think I’m just setting myself up for disappointment. 

Sometimes people prove me wrong and it’s okay. Other times I write a several paragraph long rant at one in the morning. Fuck me honestly, just, fuck me and boy howdy do I wish I could pluck one or two things off my list of identities if only for the sake of not having to Explain Shit To People ™

And at the same time, I very clearly care about people. I want people to understand because fuck, I was there! I used to be some Jacked Levels of Crazy and I was hugely homophobic when i was a teenager. I look back on the way I used to be and I can’t feel proud of who I was and what I believed. I know a lot of it was internalized hatred and disgust. I know all of that shit now. But I see myself in some people and that’s the mistake I make sometimes. Most of the time, I’m fine; I help other folks learn something new and it’s good and I feel fine about it. I just hate feeling like other people assume it’s my motherfucking duty to tell them and speak on behalf of all non-cis, non-straight people everywhere. I sound like a goddamn Gender and Women’s Studies textbook. 

Fuck, I’m going to bed... 

[fightevilandthengetblownup]

My Design V

---

“INSIDE THE MIND OF A HUNTER-KILLER: A profile of the unprofilable. By Freddie Lounds

I met her at a coffee shop in a small town in Missouri. There were normal, every day people all around us going about their business. Ordering coffee. Wiping their children’s hands. Typing a novel that will never come to pass. All without knowing they were within killing distance of the most enigmatic murderess in the United States of America.

Her name is Joanna Beth Harvelle. She is a blonde, 5″4 and 117lbs. She grew up in a small town in Nebraska as an only child, her father passing away when she was a child and her mother both caring and over-protective. On paper, her last known location was at the University of Nebraska where she flunked out of her arts course within six months.

On very special paper, deep within the confines of the criminal behavioural profiling unit at the FBI, her last known location - at least according to her - was in Massachusetts where she left three bodies decapitated and the heads subsequently burnt. Such description is in her own words, and said with a smile…”

Will did not get the chance to continue the article as a meaty hand slammed the top of his laptop down. Following the arm up, he was unsurprised to find the enraged face of Jack Crawford staring back at him.

“How is it that Freddie Lounds can get a face to face with that monster, and you, my prize profiler, can’t even tell me where to start looking for her?” Jack practically growled the words out, snarl upon his lips more animal than human.

Will rolled back in his chair away from the desk, hands dropping to between his knees as he dropped his gaze. It was hard to be impassive when he had been interrupted from reading about her, reading someone else’s take on the woman that followed him everywhere in the last year. He had been able to distract Jack for months with other cases, other profiles, other murderers. He had been able to pretend that her words didn’t haunt his mind the same as Garrett Hobbs when walking through a scene beside the other man. He had been able to hide her from the other - all the bits of her that followed him around, that twisted him about, and seduced his very senses from him. He had even been able to conceal her from Jack’s spy in Hannibal. Of that, Will was exceptionally proud.

“Freddie Lounds is an easier person for someone to reach out to.” He found his voice falling into a soft contemplation, as if mulling the words over in his mind rather than having rehearsed them the moment he saw the interview go live. It was true though, Freddie Lounds would have been the easiest person for her to contact if she simply wanted to speak with someone. Easier than having made her way into Will’s home, easier than having followed Will to crime scenes, than having convinced him to appear and speak with her. Easier by far than infiltrating Quantico and entering his classroom. “And you know Freddie, she would have been gnawing at the bit to publicise something like this.”

“Ah yes, Freddie and her love for a good story.” Will barely batted an eye at the tone from the other man, as Jack seemed to talk himself out of the fury towards Will himself and redirected towards the writer of the article. It barely bothered Will as he stood to leave, headed for the lab for the most recent case, that he was able to manipulate the other man as efficiently as he did. “Any leads on the new case?”

“Not just yet.” His reply was left behind with the other man as Will left the room.

—

“ ‘She orders another round of drinks for us both, and leaves a 25% tip for the waitress who brings them over. “I used to work in hospitality,” She says, the affectionate smile on her face that of someone who knows the hatred of customer service, “I know how much that work sucks.” I find myself nodding in agreement at that idea. “ Brian recited across the labratory as the trio worked over the most recent body. “Sounds like a woman after my own heart…”

“A woman who will rip your heart out of your chest cavity, you mean.” Beverly responded, hand currently working to clean off a cut across the throat of their current case body. “Definitely someone you should try to meet, Brian.”

“She has a boyfriend, or a husband perhaps by now. Regardless, she wouldn’t be interested in you Brian.” The words announced his entrance into the workspace, Will barely surpressing the desire to turn around and leave at the three sets of eyes turning to look at him. Before Beverly could open her mouth to ask, he held up a hand and moved towards the group. “She’s not that hard to read into, and if you’ve ever seen her crime scene photos theres always some sentimental jewellery on. Joanna Harvelle isn’t on the market.”

“You sound a bit dejected there, Will. You been profiling her and got beat to the punch?” Jimmy’s quip cut through the slightly awkward silence that Will’s observations had brought up, and got a laugh from the other two investigators as he moved to sit down on the edge of one of the metal desks. “Freddie Lounds really is cold hearted to take that interview, and expose others to that psychopath.”

“Pretty sure she’s not counted as a psychopath, Jimmy, that bit about family clearly meaning that there is human connections in her life.” Beverly corrected, eyes focussed on determining the depth of the wound on their current victim.

The three men fell into a contemplative silence as two of them refocussed upon their tasks and the third thought over the other man’s words. It didn’t need much thinking though, Will knew that he was dejected at the idea his bloody angel wasn’t something he could attain. That she was only for looking, but not for touching. She reminded him of Alana in that way, however the restriction was much harder to follow through with as he thought over when he would next be free to dive into Freddie Lounds’ website.

As he removed debris from the fingertips, Jimmy broke the silence. “ “I wouldn’t call them murders,” the woman said, a hand rubbing at the back of her neck, “I would call it a civic duty. Perplexing as that may sound. I mean, I love Batman but he’s wrong - if you kill murderers, the number of killers does change with enough gone”. The fact a lot of those victims of hers are unidentifiable… Makes you wonder who they are, doesn’t it?”

“Makes you wonder that a murderer is quoting a comic book like it validates her actions.” Beverly shot back, brow raised before asking, “Is there any perp tissue under those nails?”

“Nah, this is just dirt-gunk from the look of it.” The other replied, wiping the contents into a tube before starting on the next nail. “Batman is an interesting choice to pick though - a murderer quoting the hero who refuses to kill.”

“She doesn’t quote him because they are different, she quotes him because they are the same. She sees herself ridding her world, or rather her country, of those that intend to hurt it.” Will finds himself speaking aloud as much as speaking to himself. His eyes glaze as the pendulumn wipes for him, unaware of the pause of the other three in their work. He rarely empathised in front of others, and the trio had not seen him ever perform the task in front of them or about something other than crime scenes. “Jo is a fighter, she’s a vigilante driven to save those both knowing and unknowing of her work to do so. Like Batman. And like him, she has a secret identity, a secret life, a normal life…”

His voice trailed off, eyes raised to look across the labratory as he saw her approaching him this time - her coming to him, rather than him always chasing her - bare feet padding across the cold concrete of the floor. Her hair was mussed, pulled back into a pony tail but tendrils draping around her face which smiled warmly at him. She was dressed to sleep, he knew that, somehow, from the white man’s shirt that swallowed her frame and the bare legs that showed beneath it. His bloody angel left a trail of bloody footprints behind her as she moved her way to him.

She was in the midst of another of her killing sprees - on a hunt - and met Lounds just that morning. She had spoken with the redhead at length, laughed at the right times and made the right jokes to come off as approachable, and shared her psyche for the world in a way she would refuse to with anyone of a psychiatric profession. His lure shone brightly under the other woman’s light, and she had read the early edition of the story that night before she planned to sleep. She knew it would reach the person it was intended for, she knew he would see her. That through Freddie Lounds, she would be able to reach out and touch him after going silent from his waking life for three months.

The thought reached him as she did, hand outstretched to his cheek, and as Will leant into it the vision disappeared - the trio of investigators staring at him from over the body of their current case - he wished that it had been real.

---

The clock read 2:37 in the dark room when he woke with a start. There was the sweat that his nightmares always brought, but it was cold on his skin as the breeze blew through the room.

His family were still at rest, not disturbed by the disturbance that had woke him, and he could see them laying sleeping, dozing or relaxing before the fireplace. They were not what had woken him.

As he turned to the other side, the disturbance became clear - hair glowing white in the pale illumination of the room from his laptop, doe eyes staring back at him. The screen lighting her face still showed the article that had summarised her in all ways but the truth. He had poured over it all day, and fell alseep to the warm glow of it - before the truth he had been searching for it in had woken him to the reality again.

“Hi again.” Her voice cut through the quiet night noises, one hand tucked under her head as she looked back at him. It had been her arrival, her presence in his bed, that had woken him from slumber but it was her voice that woke him from his dreams. “How did you like my interview?”

“Freddie Lounds is a hack.” Will thought his voice sounded rough to his ear, crackled from sleep but harsh in intent as well. “She wrote you all wrong. Too sweet, too friendly, too normal.”

“Am I not sweet, or friendly, or normal, Will?” It was the question for the ages, and he rotated to lie facing her. Seeing her like this was almost like a dream, like he would wake up drenched in real sweat this time, longing for it to have been real. 

He shook his head at her question, mimicking her position as he whispered back, “You are, but not like she protrayed you. Her words were fake, making it out that you are not how you are. She didn’t want you to be dangerous, so she removed the danger from you.” His fingers twitched to reach out for her, fearing the moment they touched that she would disappear in smoke or blood like his nightmares. “Freddie Lounds was afraid of the real you, so pretended that it wasn’t there.”

“And are you afraid of me? I’ve told you who I am, what I do, why I do it...” Jo’s eyes blazed back at him, dark as the dark night around them, as she raised a pale brow back at him. “You’ve seen me as I am. But are you afraid?”

“You are not a monster...”

His words got one of those bourbon rich laughs from her, the scent of vanilla, metal and chocolate wafting over him as she rolled onto her back laughing. The smell clogged his senses, reminding him of the first time he found her in his home, on the very same bed. And that had been real. His dreams never quite managed to include the essential scent of her, and he found himself moving towards it, drowning in the intoxicating safety and danger that rolled off of her. 

“But you are mean...” Will found the words coming to his head as he caught sight of the laptop screen, her words written in pixels staring back at him, over the top of her profile. “That article was mean. You did it to poke Jack and the bureau - that you could speak to them but they couldn’t reach you.”

“I must be pickin’ up some bad habits from some friends of mine then.” Jo’s voice softened, the humor still evident as she glanced to him out of the corner of her eye. “But really I was meanin’ it for you. To remind you of what we discussed.”

“Those friends of yours who aren’t real - aren’t human - and those that you claim aren’t people at all that you kill.” He raised himself up on one elbow, eyes flickering between her face half in darkness and half in light - so like her being - and the screen. ‘ “People are afraid of what they don’t know. Of what they can’t explain. I live without that fear cause I know what’s really out ther” ‘ is in bold on the screen, highlighted by his mouse as he had drifted off.

The woman rolled to her side again to face him, those eyes beaming up at him as if they were staring straight into his soul and trying to split him apart. “You still don’t believe me, do you?” He wishes she had never said the words, squeezing his eyes shut at the hurt tone and the ache it stabbed into his chest. She believed him about Hannibal, and Abigail, and everything, but he couldn’t believe her about her world. His mind was cruel to dream this up tonight of all nights.

As he felt the bed dip slightly, as if she was moving to stand up, he found himself reaching out. Grasping. Tugging and pinning. His palms pressing her shoulders back into the bed as he hovered above her. Blonde hair spread across the spare pillow, spilling about her as she blinked up at him - the fear and uncertainty in other’s eyes when they looked at him missing. He could feel the cold breeze on his back again, where his shirt stuck to his skin, like icy knives but that melted as Will leant down to press against her and her lips.

There was a gasp, whether his or hers he couldn’t say, and then hands pushing to move him back, confusion on her face to match his that she was solid and didn’t disappear. That the smell of chocolate and vanilla and danger was still flooding his senses. “Will, what-”

He cut her off again, tugging at her, probing at her lips with his tongue and a hand sliding into the golden tendrils around her. She wasn’t disappearing like the figment in the lab. She wasn’t taunting him with bloody hands like the nightmares he would wake screaming from. She wasn’t even pulling away from him like Alanna had. She was pliable and warm and leaning back up into him like a vine into sunlight. 

“Shh, let me keep dreaming. Don’t let me wake up...”

He couldn’t let her ask her questions, break the foggy dream he was finding himself in with the reality that this wasn’t allowed. That he wouldn’t trust her like she trusted him, that he couldn’t do this, that she couldn’t be this for him. That they couldn’t be anything outside his dreams. He couldn’t wake up from the dream and have nothing to grasp onto again. 

All he could do was sink into her lips, her arms, her scent and pray that he wouldn’t wake up this time.

---

The alarm clock was screeching when he rolled over, the sounds of grunting and yips from his family at the disruption making him roll over to turn it off. The clock said 6:25.

Will blinked his eyes open blearily, sleep crust caught and rubbing at his eyes as he slumped back against his pillow thinking of the dream from the night before.

Normally his dreams were not so grounded - there had been no oninous stag-man outside the window, no twisted lighting, no blood seeping from behind her hands - yet so far out of the realm of reality for him. He was always driven to the line of insanity by the plague of dreams he had, but that one had thrown him far over the cliff and into the oblivion of madness chasing after her. 

Like he would if she was really in his grasp again, he thought. Will rubbed a hand across his face, before he rolled onto his otherside towards where she had laid in his dreams. Towards the laptop screen still angled straight at him.

His hand drifted across to where she had been, before pulling back like an electric shock at the warmth still on the side of the bed. Frowning, Will shifted over before being assualted by the scent of danger and safety, chocolate, vanilla and metal rust, as he sat upright swallowing down the lump in his throat at the reminder.

Will leant down to the pillow, finding several long, blonde hairs upon the pillow case before his eyes drew up to the computer screen.

Highlighted by the mouse, disjointed across the article but all able to be seen in order, were the words - “don’t” “Trust” “me” “we” “Can’t” “do this”.

[redwine-house]

Golden Years Ch.1 (Negan x Reader)

Charlie Hustle

(Ao3) (Wattdpad)

(Masterlist)

Words: 1,616

Summary: As you comfort a dying man through his transformation, he speaks of a survivalist colony unlike any other. Intrigued by the promises of modern amenities and unaware of their politics, you leave in search of the Sanctuary.You hear their leader before you see him.Negan is unpredictable, violent, and impressed by your cajones. After learning about the peculiar way you make ends meet, he proposes a business deal that you can’t pass up. But from a little spark bursts a flame, and your relationship escalates into a passionate wildfire. However, you’ve been keeping your past secret, unaware of just how relevant it is. Wildfires are merciless, but old flames can burn just as hot.

Heaps of rotten flesh clung to Negan’s shoulders as he leisurely strolled through the Savior’s home base. The smell was putrid and made his eyes burn. His pristine leather jacket was shot to shit from the coagulated blood and guts - however, the state of his clothing was the least of the man’s problem. His entire compound was currently surrounded by a hoard of moaning, flesh eating, pain-in-the-ass Night of the Living Dead assholes. They were already out of electricity and would surely run out of food and water before the end of the week, but he couldn’t wipe that shit eating grin off his face.

Chaos. Negan was at the end of the hallway and he could already hear the sound of the Savior’s social structure collapsing – and all because he had gone missing for a few hours. They were his flock and he was their Shepard. Negan chuckled.

No.

He was their god.

At the sound of a gunshot, he let out a lazy whistle. He was met with silence. God, he almost gave himself goose bumps.

Rounding the corner, he gazed upon his kneeling subjects. The room had gone deathly quiet as Negan shot the crowd a crooked grin. He threw Lucille over his shoulder.

“And just where is my sweet girl?” he demanded loudly. The group exchanged nervous glances and shuffled anxiously on the floor. Negan raised a bemused eyebrow at their response. “I think,” he began slowly, “I asked you a question.” Although his tone was pleasant, his words were laced with an unsaid threat.

Simon lifted his head. Adverting his gaze, he confessed. “She left. With Rick.”

Negan licked his lips. “Did that self-righteous, podunk cop take her by force?” Just the thought of the limp dick cop putting his hands on you made his grip on Lucille tighten.

Simon’s usual show boating, smartass air was nowhere to be seen as he admitted the dismal truth. He looked like a dog who had been caught pissing on the carpet. With a wince, he answered, “No. She decided on her own.”

Negan wasn’t sure whose head he bashed in, but he knew the next skull he’d pulverize would be Rick Grimes’.

Your boots squelched as they sunk down into the mud. A hiss escaped your lips as a flood of freezing muck drenched your sock. You flipped the hood of your jacket over your head and looked at the sky. You could just see the rolling storm clouds through the forest’s leafy canopy.

“Will it ever stop raining?” you asked yourself.

You weren’t quite sure how long you had been doing this – surviving. The world seemed to have gone up in flames in a matter of seconds. They thought they could contain it. It was the folly of man – believing that they were evolved enough to have control over everything.  You chuckled humorlessly. You had never felt so helpless in your life.

As the years ticked by, people had started to accept their new reality. Almost the entire population lost all semblance of humanity and had become vicious, man-eating monstrosities that lumbered and wheezed right out of a B horror film. Every day was a fight to survive. You no longer lived. Understandably, it took a long time for most to get used to their loved ones being decaying cannibals, but it happened eventually.

You were different. In an instance of obscene stubbornness, you decided to deny what was around you. Logically you knew your reality – you weren’t an idiot, but you would put a bullet through your head if you lost hope in a cure. So you danced in willful ignorance, pretending that someone somewhere was getting something done. As long as you kept telling yourself that, you could wake up in the morning.

Your father had been a very wise man, now a dead man, but a wise man nonetheless. He had offered you a bit of wisdom that you never forgot, and it was what kept you alive today.

“There are two sure fire ways that will keep you off the streets,” your dad said as he turned the page of his newspaper. “Either open a grocery or liquor store. People always have to eat, and people always need a good, stiff drink.”

17 year old you eyed your dad over your glass of orange juice. “I don’t think anyone technically needs a drink, dad.”

Your dad shook his head. “What I mean is, people drink when they’re happy, and people drink when they’re depressed.” He shrugged. “You’ll never run out of customers if you’re in the right place.”

“Better not be near a Wal Mart,” you chided before scooping up a spoonful of Captain Crunch.

After everyone was wiped out, you took your dad’s words to heart. Many would be shocked to hear how many would be willing to trade their food for alcohol, but people were willing to do anything for just a few hours - hell, even a few minutes, of numbness. It offered them an escape from the wretched reality that was now planet Earth. You traded all of the alcohol you could find for supplies and you had yet to go hungry.

Like your father said, people wanted liquor when they were depressed.

Your hiker’s backpack was packed with an array of booze, from light beer to low quality moonshine you were forced to make when you weren’t able to find a good place to raid. For quick access you had several bottles secured in a tool belt fastened around your waist, but the fabric had worn, and a bottle slipped.

It shattered, its shards glistening with raindrops. You winced as the crash reverberated off of the trees.

Panic shot through you like wildfire. A lump caught in your throat and goose bumps blanketed your skin. It was when you heard the first guttural groan that a shiver went up your spine.

Its stench was putrid. As the woman –thing, lurched forward, a hunk of skin slid down its calf, exposing a nest of writhing maggots. You ignored its filthy pink tea dress and matted blonde hair and reached for your gun. Without hesitation, you shot it between the eyes. The corpse collapsed and hit the ground. Although it lay motionless, your heart continued to flutter.

You would never get used to this.

“You’re a good shot.”

You whipped around, your gun held firmly in your hand, only to slowly lower it.

A man sat, slumped against the base of a tree. You must have been so high on adrenalin that you missed him. His skin was ashen grey and he had yellow-purple circles under his eyes. His hair was the color of straw and he wore a faded red flannel and a white t-shirt. Thick ropes were stretched across his chest and stomach, binding him to the trunk.

Without thought, you started forward.

“No!” the man croaked, stopping you in your tracks. “I was…” the man had to stop and catch his breath. “I was bit…had my friend tie me up. Too scared to be shot. Didn’t want to go walking around and-and bite people…” his head dropped to his chest and he let out a long sigh. “I made him leave. Just didn’t want him to see me turn into a…” his voice faded. When he remained quiet, you tiptoed over to him. Lolling his head back, you watched as his eyelids fluttered open.

“Do you want a stiff one before you go?” You pulled out a bottle of Jack Daniels and the tiniest of smiles graced the man’s lips.

“If someone were to ask me what was the best way to turn into a monster, this would be it.”

You returned the smile and sat down. Your shoulder brushed against his as you opened the bottle.

“Don’t you want to…move a little further?”

You shook your head. “Not at all. Tell me when to stop.” You held the bottle to his lips and let him take a sip.

The stranger hissed and gave a violent shake of the head. “Shit. That…that is good stuff.”

From this distance you could see that he was glistening with sweat. “What’s your name?” you asked after he took another drink.

After a bout of dry coughing, the man answered “N-,” he snorted. “Fuck it. I’m about to…die anyway. Charlie.”

“It’s nice to me you, Charlie.” You gave him your name and he nodded.

“It’s nice to meet you, too,” he managed. For a moment he was quiet, a pensive look on his face. Finally, he spoke. “Are you…are you alone or with…a…” his head nodded again.

You snapped your fingers. “Come on, Charlie. Not yet.”

Charlie burst awake with a snort. “Are you with a colony?”

You licked your lips. “I’ve been alone since the beginning.”

With a tiny nod, Charlie continued. “There’s a place a couple miles up…food, water, electricity…”

Your eyebrows shot up. Over the years you had heard whispers of survival camps, but never had you heard of modern amenities. As far as you knew, the modern world was a thing of the past.

“Just-just keep your head down. Do as they…as he says. Be humble.” Charlie’s voice began to lose strength. “You’re strong. Take the knife. They’ll know.”

You pressed the cold bottle to Charlie’s lips. “Okay, bud. I’ll do that. Thank you.”  When Charlie didn’t respond, you turned. A pair of cloudy eye stared back at you.

You shot him before he could make a sound.

The knife had been on his thigh. Engraved on its handle was “Charlie Hustle.” With a sigh and a final lingering look at Charlie, you began your trek to the mysterious colony.

[halfabreath]

electing strange perfections

part one. part of “after the raven has had his say,” or the bittyrans/jackholtz eventual OT4 au. read it on ao3.

Bitty has a complicated relationship with mornings. He likes beginnings, fresh starts, new opportunities. He's good at starting over - it's the ending that's harder. He knows how to finish some things: tweets, recipes, vlogs, days, pies. Most times, though, the middle gets muddled up and overly complicated until the thought of taking another step towards a conclusion is too overwhelming. When mornings fall in the middle of difficult projects it's difficult to find the energy to get the day started. Today is one of those days.

He can't really complain. The project he's entrenched in is his long awaited cookbook, the one his followers have been clamoring about since his bunny-shaped cinnamon roll video went viral. He has another three weeks before the chapter he's working on is done and he has just a few more recipe variations to test. Unfortunately, each iteration has been more time-consuming and difficult than the last and he's not looking forward to another week of development. Ransom, at least, has all his previous attempts collected in an expansive Excel sheet, complete with "Ease of Consumption," "Stress Generated During Baking," and "Enjoyment Fluctuation" categories.

Bitty never thought baklava would be the death of him, but that's what he gets for straying from his comfort zone. He's tempted to cut the recipe altogether but it's one of the top requests from his fans so he has to stay the course. He can't let them down, now then he owes all his success to their support. There's a weight on his chest just thinking about it - or maybe that's just Ransom, who's currently using Bitty's sternum as a pillow. 

Bitty sweeps his palm over Ransom's broad shoulders, hoping to wake him as gently as possible. They're a few years out from his school-induced panic attacks he'd had when they attended Brown, but his job as the social media coordinator at a PR firm isn't exactly relaxing. He'd fallen asleep in a little ball last night after brainstorming for a pitch meeting he has on Monday and the last thing Bitty wants is to shock him into awareness. 

Ransom stirs beneath his hand and groggily raises his head, blinking up at Bitty slowly. He lets out a bleary groan and drops his head down to Bitty's shoulder, curling around him a little tighter. He mumbles something that might be a morning greeting or a curse - Bitty honestly can't tell - but doesn't go back to sleep. It takes him a while to get his thoughts in order after a period of rest allows him to slip towards mental entropy. Bitty just unlocks his phone and scrolls through Twitter for a while, switching to Instagram when Ransom shifts beside him.

It takes seventeen cake frosting videos but eventually they manage to get up and trudge to the Providence Green Market.

They arrive late in the day but they still manage to find almost everything on their list. Bitty's halfway through a tweet about the peaches he'd snapped too many pictures of after buying them when Ransom stops suddenly.

"Oh fuck me." Ransom gasps. Bitty looks up from his phone in alarm, tweet forgotten, as he follows Ransom's wide-eyed gaze. He's staring down the aisle, directly at the stand from Holtzmann Creamery. It's staffed by two people - The Holtzmenn, as Bitty calls them - both of whom terrify Ransom. Bitty grins.

"I'm going to talk to them," he announces, and manages to take a half step before Ransom wraps an arm around his waist and hoists him back.

"Bitty, no!" Ransom's lifting him off the ground now, holding Bitty as easily as the literal sack of potatoes he has tucked underneath his other arm. "Bro, please, I'll die if you talk to them, I seriously will. That's Jack Zimmermann and Adam Birkholtz. Literal junior hockey legends!"

Bitty wiggles in Ransom's grip and manages to slide down until his feet are back on the pavement. "They didn't actually play in the NHL, sweetheart," he says, patting Ransom's arm soothingly. "I'd understand your reaction if Beyonce was over there selling beets, but they're just two guys who almost played hockey." He manages to turn in Ransom's grip, passing his tote bag of produce from one shoulder to the other.

"So? Birkholtz was the best defenseman in the draft before his concussions and Jack's a prodigy! It's in his blood." Ransom's worrying his bottom lip, finally tearing his gaze away to stare down a the pavement.

"I know, sugar, you've told me. But they're selling cheese now and I really want to try it so you have to let me go over and buy some." Bitty reasons. Ransom doesn't let go, though. Sighing, Bitty places his palm on Ransom's side, sweeping over his rips in a slow, soothing motion. The Holtzmenn (Bitty's not sure which one is which yet), unaware of Ransom's crisis, continue with their work. The blonde one hands out samples to the customers gathered around the booth, reserving the last one for his companion, a slightly shorter man with dark hair and floppy bangs. He takes it with a small smile and the taller man hip-checks him gently before turning his attention back to the customers.

It's cute, but it's nothing compared to how the dark haired man looks at his partner when he's not paying attention. He gazes up at him fondly, watching as he charms the customers with a toothy grin and wild gesticulations.

"When did they start dating?" Bitty asks, finally looking back up at Ransom. His boyfriend's grip loosens just enough for him to twist away, but he doesn't go far.

Ransom's lips are turned down in a confused pout; he's adorable when he's confused. "Dating? What?" He asks incredulously. "They're not dating, Bits. God, you're so gay sometimes."

"Justin, we've been dating for three years." Bitty shoots back, hands flying to his hips. Ransom just laughs and reels him in by the strap of his tote bag. He presses a kiss to Bitty's forehead, then turns him so they can both see the booth.

"I'm telling you, they're not dating. Look at them!" Bitty crosses his arms, about to point out how fondly the dark haired one looks at his companion, but now his eyes are narrowed. His handsome face is pulled in a tight frown. The taller one is in the middle of a particularly dramatic eye-roll, and when he finally looks back at the brunette he's wearing a flat, annoyed expression. It's a shocking change, especially given that the time between looks was all of one minute. "They played for rival teams," Ransom explains. "I went to one of their games and they almost came to blows, even though it's super discouraged in Juniors. Seriously, I thought they were going to kill each other."

The customers in front of the Holtzmann booth have wandered away, and Bitty knows now is his chance. "They obviously got over it since they own a business together." Bitty counters. Ransom flounders, making that same cute, confused expression. "You need to get over it, too, because I'm going over there right now." He announces, bolting away before Ransom can stop him. When he turns around his boyfriend is nervously watching him but he's heading over to the antiques booth, no doubt to pretend to read an old book. 

When Bitty reaches the booth the dark haired man is bent over a cooler in the back. Bitty doesn't mean to stare but how is an ass like that even possible? He quickly drops his gaze to the table, quickly reading every cheese name and descriptive card while the heat on his cheeks dissipates. All of the cheese titles are puns or pop culture references but the descriptions are actually informative, listing the details and flavor profiles in a neat, blocky print.

"Any questions?" A deep voice asks. When Bitty looks up the tall blonde man is smiling down at him, big hands settled on his hips. His t-shirt stretches over his broad chest, and seriously, is there some kind of physical attractiveness prerequisite for working at this farm? None of the farmers in Georgia look like this.

"Uh," Bitty squeaks, unprepared for the interaction. Ransom's nerves must have transferred to him somehow. "What kind of milk is in this one?" He asks, pointing to the cheese in front of him. The man's smile broadens and he launches into a description of his cows. After two samples and several anecdotes about a cow named Liz Lemon, Bitty's buying the last of it, already forming a list of recipes he can build around it in his mind. 

The blonde man hums softly as he transfers the cheese to the cutting board. His hands move deftly as he positions it carefully and slices it with a thin wire; it's difficult to imagine him decked out in hockey gear, slamming someone into the boards. Just after he removes the wire the dark haired man appears beside him, entering his space easily. The blonde immediately leans into him, even as he continues with his work. The brunet murmurs something and then hurries away, long legs carrying him to the aisle before the taller man can respond.

"You can't just leave me here!" He calls out, but the other man doesn't turn back. "You see what I have to put up with?" The tall man asks, annoyed expression shifting to a warm smile before Bitty's eyes. They talk for a while, and soon Bitty has his name, some blue cheese, and an invitation for next week. He cuts through the thinning crowd, making his way back to Ransom's side. He slips an arm around his waist, rocking up so his lips are closer to his boyfriend's ear.

"I told Adam you're in love with him." He whispers, laughing joyfully when Ransom lets out a strangled gasp and drops the book. He stares at Adam for a moment before bolting, and Bitty cackles as he follows him.

Ransom pretends to be upset for the rest of the night but by the time next Saturday rolls around he's prepared for the interaction to come. Sure, Bitty's had to listen to Adam's stats and minute-by-minute recaps of Jack's greatest goals, but after Ransom gets all the gushing out of his system he's prepared for actual human interactions.

That's what Ransom's banking on, at least. He'll just be a human person, talking to another human person he happened to idolize for a few years. There’s only, like, a 2% chance of certain death.

"Are you going to survive this?" Bitty asks on Saturday afternoon as they slowly walk towards the Holtzmann booth. "If you get overwhelmed, just bolt and I'll cover for you, I promise." Ransom takes a deep breath and then lets it out, relieved he's managed to remember both parts of the breathing process.

"I got this." He says, then repeats it so he'll believe it. Bitty squeezes his hand and they walk up to the booth together.

Adam's with a customer, nodding along as she describes the research she's done on the dangers of unpasteurized cheese. Ransom stares at him, trying to reconcile the person before him with the larger-than-life figure he's built up in his mind. This guy's still pretty large, though, and Ransom can see the tension he's holding in his shoulders and the way his jaw clenches when the woman's rambling turns to a bacterial outbreak four states over. 

Bitty squeezes his hand and when Ransom turns he comes face to face with Jack Zimmermann. He's wearing a Providence Falconer's baseball cap and a t-shirt with the farm's logo on it, and Ransom's brain has to take a minute to make sense of it all. Luckily Bitty's with him, and Bitty can fill any silence, no matter how awkward or long. He idly hears Bitty chattering away as he slowly process the fact that he’s about to talk to Jack Zimmermann and Adam Birkholtz. 

"So, I'm hoping to find something that will balance well with pistachios, you know?” Is the first thing Ransom hears when he finally manages to tune back in to what Bitty is saying. “Do you have something that's floral but not too overpowering that can withstand baking?" Bitty asks, and Jack’s expression hasn’t changed at all. His brows are drawn together and the anchors of his lips are slipping down but he doesn’t look angry, per se. He looks between them, gaze shifting back and forth, and then his brow unfurls and his lips settle back into a more neutral expression.

"You're Bitty. Adam said you'd come." He says, but ducks beneath the table before either of them can respond. Bitty looks up at him questioningly, but Ransom just shrugs. Jack pops up a moment later, an assortment of jars cradled in his arms. He lays them out neatly, taking his time despite the long silence, and Bitty opens his mouth to say something but Jack cuts in just before he can get the words out. "Do you know anything about crystallized honey?" Jack asks, setting his intense gaze directly on Bitty. Ransom's relieved he gets to be on the periphery of the interaction, and the moment his boyfriend responds, clearly able to hold his own, Ransom lets go of his hand. He doesn't go far; Ransom takes his time as he inspects the cheeses and products spread out over the table, searching for the one Bitty had brought back last week. His fingertips glide idly along the tablecloth-covered edge of the table, sweeping back and forth as he reads the descriptions.

The One With The Coffee: A sharp, pasteurized, cow's milk cheddar cheese hand rubbed with espresso. Butterscotch and caramel notes, full bodied with a smooth, creamy texture.

Dumpster Baby: The smelliest of the smelly, funkiest of the funky. Semisoft washed rind cheese with a fruity tang. Cow's milk, pasteurized, and not recommended for first dates.

Ewe Calf to be Kidding Me: Sheep, goat, and cow milk come together to form a creamy, tangy, nutty blue cheese. Aged 4 months, pasteurized.

Good God, Lemon: A triple-cream, bloomy rind cheese made with milk from one cow, Liz Lemon. Named for Tina Fey's character in 30 Rock, this cow has it all. Now you, too, can work on your night cheese.

"Let me know if you want to try anything." A voice says, and Ransom almost brushes it off before he realizes who's speaking. He looks up and there's Adam Birkholtz again.

He swallows once, twice, and then blurts out, "Did you really name a cow after a character on a TV show?" Adam laughs, the sound cutting through the background of the crowd surrounding them easily. He reaches for a knife and cuts off a sliver, holding it out for Ransom to take.

"I did, and I'd do it again. Totally worth it." Once Ransom's holding the cheese he slices off a second piece and taps it against Ransom's. "Cheers, dude." He says, and pops it into his mouth. Ransom follows suit, eyes going wide when the cheese settles on his tongue. It melts almost instantly, thick and creamy without being overwhelming. The rind is just mushroomy enough to provide some backbone and the cheese itself is smooth and almost delicately mild. It's perfect. He looks up at Adam in surprise, who's looking at him intently. "Do you like it?" He asks, and all Ransom can do is nod. Adam smiles again, toothy and bright, and after he swallows Ransom matches it.

"Holy shit, dude." He says, and Adam laughs again. "We tried the blue last week and I thought that was good, but this is - damn. Really fucking good."

"Thanks, bro. I appreciate it, and I'll send Liz Lemon your regards. Do you want to see her?" He asks, and before Ransom can agree he's waving his phone in Ransom's face. Ransom grabs his wrist to steady the screen, taking in the image of Adam sitting peacefully in a pasture, Liz Lemon's huge head resting in his lap. Her eyes are closed but Adam's looking down at her with a small, gentle smile.

"Cute," Ransom says, referring to both subjects of the picture, releasing Adam's wrist. Adam beams down at him and immediately hands him another piece of cheese. "Is this, like, Pavlovian training?" Ransom asks even as he takes the next sample. It's the coffee cheddar now, and the sharp espresso shouldn't work with the salty cheese but it's perfect nevertheless, somehow balanced despite the strong flavors.

"Okay, you got me." Adam admits, leaning over the table. "But honestly, the more I get rid of now the less I have to pack up later, and I have a feeling they'll be there a while." He glances over at their partners. Jack's speaking, blue eyes narrowed and arms crossed, as Bitty examines the label on one of the jars of honey. "Don't worry," Adam says, standing back up to his full height. "He's not mad; that's just his face. I think it's a Canadian thing." Adam shrugs.

"Excuse you, I'm Canadian too and I don't make that face!" Ransom protests, and then Adam's leaning in again to examine his features up close. It's dramatic but Ransom just plays along, turning his chin this way and that like the makeup gurus he's seen on Instagram.

After a long look, Adam leans back. "You kind of are now, bro." He says, and hands over another piece of cheese. Ransom takes it with a shrug; he can't argue with the man giving him free samples. He's chewing on the funkiest cheese he's ever tasted - it must be Dumpster Baby - when Adam speaks again. He's staring down at the cutting board, idly cleaning a knife. "Hey, uh, this is weird, but you're Justin, right? Bitty told me your name last week." Adam glances at him, unsure and strangely vulnerable.

"He did?" Ransom asks, swallowing the cheese down quickly. "Everyone calls me Rans or Ransom, though." He explains. He'd played hockey at Brown and luckily the team had settled on Ransom after a long period of deliberation.

Adam hums and straightens his cutting board before tucking his hands in his pockets. "He said you're a hockey fan. I have a question for you, though." Ransom freezes. This is it. Adam's going to ask why he's so obsessed or if he's been stalking them. Maybe he knows about his old Tumblr. His heart is pounding in his hears as his anxiety, once limited to tests and papers, kicks in, sending his thoughts racing. "Why the fuck hasn't Chris Chow signed anywhere yet?" Adam asks, and Ransom lets out the breath he'd been holding in a relieved gust. The tension drains from his shoulders as he launches into his theory.

Adam's shockingly easy to talk to. They're constantly on the same page, referencing the same articles and recognizing every pop culture reference dropped. They've developed a solid hypothesis that Chow is going to sign with either the Falconers or the Capitals and have eaten almost all the samples by the time Bitty and Jack migrate to their sides. He drapes an arm over Bitty's shoulders, still laughing at Adam's Don Cherry impersonation and Adam leans over to bump his shoulder against Jack's, who actually smiles.

"Bitty! What did you end up with?" Adam asks, sliding his knife through the last bit of Liz Lemon's cheese. He hands one to Bitty and the other to Jack.

"We decided the blueberry-wildflower honey will go best with the pistachios in the recipe I'm working on." Bitty relays before taking a bite. His response is instantaneous: he groans, burying his face in Ransom's shoulder as he process the flavors, clearly enjoying himself. Adam just grins and looks expectantly at Jack, who eats the whole sample in one bite, chewing quickly.

"It's good." Jack says simply. "But it's always good." It doesn't sound like much of a compliment to Ransom, but Adam's cheeks flush red and he smiles down at the table, almost bashful from the praise. They end up buying a piece of the triple cream along with the honey Jack and Bitty had picked out, and when they continue down the aisle to the next booth Ransom feels completely at ease. He takes Bitty's hand and hikes the tote bag higher up on his shoulder, content to walk slowly through the rest of the market until they find what they need.

"I told you it would be fine." Bitty says smugly, tugging on Ransom's hand as they meander through the crowd.

Ransom shakes his head. "No, you told me I could bolt if I wanted." He looks down at Bitty with one perfect eyebrow arched. Bitty just laughs and presses closer.

"Still, it wasn't as bad as you thought it would be. And now you'll agree with me - they're totally dating." He pulls up short at a booth to examine some strawberries, releasing Ransom's hand to turn the cartons back and forth as he searches for the best batch. Ransom scoffs, looking back over the interaction for evidence of romance.

"Just because Adam gave Jack some cheese doesn't mean they're dating. He gave me like, a million samples. By that logic I'm his boyfriend." He reasons, pulling out his phone to take a picture of the berry display. If he happens to snap of few of Bitty's incredulous face, well, that's neither here nor there.

"You think it comes down to cheese?" Bitty asks. "Did you see how they were in each other's space? How comfortable they were with each other? They're definitely together. I'd bet money on it." He picks up a carton of berries and pays for them quickly, only to hand them to Ransom to carry though the market. He's off to the next stall before Ransom can respond. He follows slowly, taking his time, and lingers by Bitty's side as he examines bunches of spinach. Bitty's engrossed in his task but Ransom scans the market, idly searching for anything else they might need. When his gaze lingers on the Holtzmann booth, and he just manages to catch a glimpse of Adam wrapping an arm around Jack's waist.

It might not mean anything - hockey guys are known to be physical, and they're clearly good friends and - oh. Adam's pressing a kiss to Jack's forehead. That might not mean anythi - and now Jack's moving closer to cup Adam's cheek to pull him down for a quick kiss on the lips and yup, mhm, yes, yeah, they're definitely dating. They're dating and out, apparently, and an hour ago the information would have made Ransom's world tilt on its axis but now it just feels right, like the puzzle piece he'd been trying to jam into different ill-fitting configurations has finally slipped into its natural place.

Bitty tugs on the tote bag to slip the spinach inside, and together they make their way through the market and back home, Ransom holding the carton of berries all the way.

[scaplivingtogether]

Seven Crimes and Punishments- Living Together: The Oujia Demon

Chapter 13

The Ouija Demon

The house they're residing in had been restored to it's natural glory as promised by Held, but the sinners are now precautions about the basement since the "Black Widow Incident" and had decided to leave it alone...however the only sinner brave enough to go down there was Kayo Sudou of Envy, who suggested in turning it into her personal tailor shop, the sinners agreed, now the basement belongs to her. The sinners had returned to their box after being discharged from the Hospital, their wounds have been fully healed thus allowing them to remove their bandages, they've spent the whole afternoon and evening just relaxing and not getting on each others throats like they normally do, well the only ruckus that most of them made are about Margarita's new engagement to Jun. Margarita was sitting at the dining room table with Banica and Kayo, talking about it.

"Ooooh I'm so nervous! I'm getting remarried and here I am getting chills." Margarita said, she can fell her pigtails moving with excitement, but then she started to feel sad. "But what if it doesn't go well like with...you know."

"Come now, Jun seems like a nice young boy." Kayo said. "Even better than that worthless playboy of a noble, forget about Kasper." She smiled.

"Yeah, plus his food is wonderful." Banica said, liking her lips.

"True but that's not a good reason to marry someone."

"Oh well, speaking of food, I'm hungry."

"Where was I? Oh yes, Maybe I can tailor you a wedding dress, Margarita, I got the best material for it."

"You're too kind Kayo, but you don't need to put yourself through all that work." Margarita responded.

"Think of it as a kind gesture." Just then, she saw Allen coming in the dinning room with a large pumpkin in his arms "Oh Allen, do you need help with it?"

"Ugh, no thanks." Allen said while showing signs of struggle. "I'm almost at the kitchen anyways. " Allen walks to the kitchen, he tries his best to not drop the pumpkin on the ground.

"Are we having a giant pumpkin pie?" Banica asked with an excited look on his face. "Maybe even pumpkin soup?"

"Riliane is cooking dinner, she can't make those two things in one night." Margarita said.

"Can't I dream?"

"You can but still." Kayo replied.

"Oooh you're no fun, Sudou."

"DINNEEEEEEEEEER!" Riliane called from the Kitchen, a triangle can be heard to, Sateriasis, Gallerian, and Nemesis soon walked into the dinning room once they heard her.

"Finally, I was starving." Banica said.

"And you'll soon be hungry in an hour." Sateriasis joked.

"Oh hush." She sees Allen coming into the dining room. "So what are we having tonight Allen?"

"I don't know, I was too busy bringing the pumpkin inside."

"I doubt Riliane can make dinner very well." Sateriasis smirked.

"She made pancakes on the first day." Gallerian said.

"Yes, but that's breakfast, this is dinner and it's more complex, I bet she comes out with disastrous results.

"I wouldn't be too sure, Sateriasis." Allen said smiling. "Look."

"Here it is guys." Riliane came in with a platter of food. "I made Grilled chicken breasts, homemade mashed potatoes, green beans with sliced carrots, and last but not least: buttermilk biscuits with a side of trauben jam." Sateriasis can mentally feel multiple wash pans landing on his head after seeing how well Riliane did in preparing supper.

"Told you."

"You brat, how did you do all this?!" Sateriasis asked with an angry tone in his voice.

"I learned it from Clarith while residing in the Held Monastery, age 15, brioche, and was a natural on the first try." Riliane said with pride in her voice, causing the Duke to feel even more wash pans falling on his his head mentally.

"Settle down you two, this ain't a popularity contest." Kayo said, Riliane then took her seat at the table.

"Now everyone hold hands, because we're gonna say grace." Allen said as the sinners did what he tells them, he began his grace: "Dearest Levia, we give our thanks and ask for your blessings for the meal we're about to partake in, Amen."

"Amen." They proclaimed and began digging into their meals.

"So Allen, what's with the giant pumpkin?" Banica asked while stuffing her face.

"Please don't talk with your mouth full." Allen said in disgust. "Also I'm planning on having it carved into a jack-o-lantern, tomorrow is "Hallows' Evening" after all."

"That time of the year already?" Nemesis asked, visibly excited. "Awesome!"

"I beg your pardon but what is Hallows' Evening?" Sateriasis asked.

"It's a holiday first constructed by the natives of Lioness and Marlon during the late-Magic Kingdom era." Gallerian explained. "It was celebrated on the 31st of October, a time of year that was often associated with human death. The Followers of the Levin faith believed that on the night before November 1st, the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead become blurred. On the night of the 31st they celebrated Hallows' Evening, when it was believed that the ghosts of the dead returned to earth. In these days however before Margarita was born, many Levin followers began to detest the holiday as a ritual associated with demon worship currency of the Behemo Sect due to having a undead theme."

"Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaawn." Riliane said sarcastically.

"So it's like a Behemo sect ritual?" Sateriasis asked.

"Sort of but no, fortunately there's still some followers and people outside of Levin Faith who celebrate it up till this very day." Gallerian continued. "How can you not know that?"

"I've been indoors most of my life."

"Figures, *cough* pervert *cough*!"

"Anywaaaaaaaays, what are the customs?"

"Back then: it would be just bonfires and offering sacrifices to their gods." Banica said. "Though in recent years they removed the sacrificing and included trick-or-treating, costume parties, decorating, carving pumpkins into jack-o'-lanterns, apple bobbing, divination games, playing pranks, visiting haunted attractions, telling scary stories, and watching horror films instead."

Nemesis started making scary faces at the Duke. "Y'know anything scary related and filled with pure terror?" Sateriasis started shivering from looking at her, but then stopped when something hit him.

"Oh right, I saw some dwellers of hell viewing it, I thought it was just demon worship or a masquerade party."

"Nope, it's the very same holiday. Though trick-or-treating was a thing to satiate the ghouls or ghost's hunger, it now became more of a child thing." Nemesis drank some water.

"What do you mean?"

"It involves children dressing up and going door to door getting candy or fruit by saying "trick-or-treat"." Margarita said. "I heard It also became more mandatory in Gallerian's time because of the Witch Trials."

"That's correct." Gallerian said. "The fools believed that the witches would eat the children if they don't dress up as monsters."

"Pfft, please not at the table." Kayo said, holding her neck to prevent vomiting.

"Sorry."

"Ok, I see your point, If that were the case: what I should dress up as?" Sateriasis was brushing his chin with his forefinger.

"Now we're talking!" Riliane said patting his back vigorously. "I think we may have something in the attic...do we?"

"Yes, I checked." Allen said.

"Wait wait wait wait!" Kayo called out. "Aren't we just gonna stay in the box though? We can't leave the box and no one but Behemo and the Demons come here." The sinners sighed in a bummed out way, drooping their heads down.

"Not to worry, I have made a deal with Sickle for tomorrow night."

"What?"

"I asked Sickle to allow the children residing in the Heavenly Yard to visit the box to trick-or-treat tomorrow and extend us their good wishes." The sinners became relieved when Allen proclaimed it. "All I need now is help getting these bags into the living room for tomorrow night." He pointed at the bags by the door, they're five in total and are just around the same size as Allen and Riliane.

"What's in them?" Gallerian asked.

"Lollipops, each child participating gets one, no more, no less." The sinners were surprised by what Allen told them, who knows how many lollipops are in those bags, or better yet: how many children are coming?

After dinner

The sinners were browsing through the attic to see what they can find for tomorrow night, so far they found white bed sheets, black and orange fabrics, old masks, old clothes, and a stuffed black cat. While searching for more things to do for Hallows' Evening, Nemesis heard a thud from behind her, she saw a game board covered in dust, she picked it up and blew the dust off, the title of the box reads "Ouija".

"Oh! an Ouija board!" Nemesis said with a smile. "Mom and I used to talk to spirits with it when Friday the 13th is around."

"How you do it?" Kayo asked from behind her.

"You'll know while the others aren't around."

"Why?"

"Because I don't want my father getting involved and screwing everything up!"

"Don't be so negative."

"Oi! What are you two doing?" Riliane said, Nemesis hid the box behind her back. "This ain't a vacation now helps us out!" The two nodded, Nemesis hid the box under the shelf.

"We'll use it while the others are asleep." Nemesis whispered.

"Ok." Kayo agreed.

Later that night

The sinners eventually gotten ready for bed. Showers, teeth, pajamas, and all, after which they went to sleep...except for Margarita who sadly cannot sleep and can only lay down in the living room so she won't disturb her roommates with her chronic insomnia, and is unaware of the events that are about to occur tonight. At 11:30 at night, Nemesis woke up, she made sure that the people around her are asleep, she got out of bed and proceeds to wake Kayo up.

"Hey." Nemesis whispered as she shakes Kayo, Kayo slowly wakes up and sees Nemesis standing over her. "Ready?"

"Yeah." Kayo yawns and gets out of bed, the Sudous proceed to head into the attic, trying their best not to catch Margarita's attention. Once there, Nemesis got the board ready and lit the candles around her. Kayo has gotten slightly anxious from the site of the fire.

"What's wrong?" Nemesis asked.

"It's the fire...are they...?"

"No they won't catch anything on fire, I moved the furniture and put stands under them so they won't fall over. Now turn off the lights." Nemesis said, Kayo did and sat on the floor across from where Nemesis is sitting.

"So you and your mother can talk to spirits with this thing?"

"Yes, so far me and mother were able to contact a mischievous ghost from the spirit world, always telling us jokes and riddles, even the ones I'm not supposed to read."

"Read?"

"Yes, this planchette here with the open glass tells us what the spirit is saying by pointing at the letters and numbers, that's how they communicate."

"I see, I would like to know about my family with it."

"You sure?" Nemesis was concerned about what Kayo was seeking.

"Yes."

"Oh right, put your hand on the planchette." They both put their hands on it, they both clear their minds and took deep breaths. "Spirits living between heaven or hell, come forth and speak." Nemesis said, they waited for a response for at least a minute or two until..."Ah!" Nemesis gasped.

"What?" Kayo asked, she felt something moving under her fingers, her heart began pounding when she saw the planchette moving. "I-it works."

"Don't be afraid or shocked, demons from Ouija boards are attracted to fear." Nemesis instructed her, Kayo took deep breaths as the planchette moves, all the while the fire from the candles turn into an eerie red-violet, which could only mean one thing: "...It's here."

"WHAT GOES ON MORTAL?" Was the board's response, supposedly by a ghost.

"I'm Nemesis Sudou, this is my friend Kayo Sudou...no relations."

"THAT'S RIGHT, YOU'RE THE SINNER OF WRATH."

"So you know of my sins?" Nemesis asked, she was quite calm about this.

"WE BEINGS OF THE SPIRIT WORLD SEE MANY THINGS."

"C-can I ask?" Kayo asked Nemesis.

"Sure, remember don't stress yourself and don't show fear."

"Ok...Do you know me or my family?" Kayo asked, she tried her best not to show fear.

"WE KNOW NOT OF YOUR FAMILY." The being replied, "BUT WE KNOW OF THE SINS YOU'VE BESTOWED UPON ENBIZAKA."

"Ah!" Kayo gasped in surprise.

"Stay calm." Nemesis snapped.

"Sorry."

"ARE YOU TWO RELATED?" The ghost asked.

"No, I mention that already." Nemesis said.

"YES BUT THERE'S ANOTHER WAY THAT SHOWS THAT YOU TWO ARE RELATED." The ghost said. "BUT IT'S NOT THE SURNAMES, IT'S SOMETHING ELSE."

"Uhhhhhhhhhhh..." The two got confused by what the ghost had asked.

"TOO SOON?"

"Wait, aren't we the ones asking questions?" Nemesis asked.

"ASK YOUR QUESTIONS THEN."

"Um, ok...Wow you stumped us." Kayo said.

"IT'S QUITE ALRIGHT, THEN I HAVE A QUESTION FOR YOU."

"Oh, what is it?"

"I HEARD THAT TOMORROW IS HALLOWS' EVENING...IS IT TRUE?"

"Uhhh yes...why?" Kayo was sounding anxious.

"JUST WONDERING, WE SPIRITS DON'T NORMALLY COUNT THE DAYS OF THE HUMAN WORLD."

"Ok?"

"THE WITCHING HOUR IS ARRIVING, YOU MORTALS MUST GET TO BED SOON."

"Oh, your right." Nemesis said. "It's a pleasure talking to you." She then moved the planchette to the word "goodbye" under the numbers and letters, the planchette stops moving and the candles went back to normal.

"Wow, just...wow." Kayo breathed out finally, her heart was pounding really hard and fast.

"Awesome, huh?" Nemesis asked.

"Well actually to be honest, I thought it wasn't gonna work, but we actually talked to someone from the spirit realm."

"Well it did work, Mother and I are professionals." Nemesis puts the board in the box.

"Have you find it odd that the spirit asked if tomorrow is Hallows' Evening?"

"Well yeah but not to worry, I made sure the board is put back properly, so the spirits won't get out."

"Oh good." Kayo sighed in relief, the two Sudous blew the candles and left the attic...however, the bottom part of the shelf that was holding the box broke, causing the board to fall out, it glowed in an eerie red-violet just like the candles, then a red-violet silhouette came out of it, appearing like a young woman with long draped hair and no clothes on. In the bedroom, Kayo was about to fall asleep in her bed when she heard something, she left her bed to see what's going on. In the hallway, Kayo saw that everything was just the way it was, just as she was about to head back to bed, she heard a slow creaky noise that made the hairs on the back of her head stand on end. She turned around and saw that the attic was slowly opening and a ladder coming out, Kayo walked over to try to close it...but, she then saw a red-violet foot on the step, that surprised Kayo. "Wh-whose there!?"

Kayo breathed out in fear. There was no response from the person in the attic, but instead jumped down to the ground and began staring at Kayo with a sinister grin that signifies dread. The area around her and the strange being in front of Kayo was turning into a deep shade of red. Kayo ran back to her bedroom to warn Nemesis but as she runs, the hallway starts to get longer and narrower until the doors disappear and she was just running in complete nothingness. She turned around to find that the being behind her is gone, she stopped for a moment or two before letting out a sigh in relief, but as she turned around, the strange red-violet being was standing in her way. Making a very frightening demon like face and letting out a scream that is loud as a banshee.

"RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGHHHHHHHH!"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Kayo screamed out in horror as she began flaying her arms around, she stopped and found that it's already morning and that she was still in bed, she looked around and saw the girls in the room were laughing and the being in front of her was only Riliane wearing a Red Hannya Mask. "Y-you little brat! How dare you scare me with that thing!?" Kayo berated the Princess as she snatched the Hannya Mask away from her.

"HAPPY HALLOWS' EVENIIIIING!" Riliane proclaimed as she made a v-sign hand gesture.

"I GET YOU FOR THIS!" Kayo was about to chase her before being held down by Banica.

"Geez calm down, Kayo it's only a harmless trick." Banica said as she was eating a black and orange swirl lollipop. "Though to be honest, I kinda expected that type of reaction from Nemesis." She pointed at Nemesis who is face planted on the ground, possibly from Riliane's prank.

"Hm, your right...where did you get the lollipop?"

"Allen lets us have one each." She gave her one.

"Good." Just then, the door opened up, slowly revealing a strange cylinder shaped creature with black holed eyes completely void of any light, this surprised Kayo to which caused her to let out another scream. "AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" And grabbed her scissors to attack it, but Banica stopped her.

"Oh, did I really scared you?" The creature said as "she" removed the white sheets from her head. "Good Morning!"

"Phew, it's just Margarita." Kayo calmed down. "Why are you wearing a bed sheet on your head?"

"I'm a ghost!" She said with a smile.

"Ha! I knew it was you the whole time." Nemesis said as she was standing up.

"Could you girls be any louder?" Gallerian asked with a cranky tone in his voice from being woken up by Kayo's screaming. "One of us wants to sleep more." Margarita, not pleased with what he said due to not being able to sleep herself pinched his nose, startling him.

"How do you think I feel, old man?" Margarita said to the Judge with a dark tone in her voice, she pulls on his nose before letting go of him, he covers his nose after that, she then smiles. "Sateriasis is making croissants and omelets for breakfast!"

"I hope he doesn't contaminate it." Riliane said as she and the others left the room. "Who knows what disease he maybe carrying?" After everyone left, Kayo grabbed Nemesis by her arm and pulled her back in the room.

"Hey!" Nemesis called out before being slammed into the wall.

"Have you closed the box properly?" Kayo asked with an angry tone in her voice.

"The Ouija box? Yes I have!"

"Are you sure? Because I had a dream about a demonic being attacking me because the box wasn't closed properly!" Kayo for years possessed an ability that once belonged to her ancestor Lukana Octo, the prophetic dream ability, which allows her to see the past and future via dreams based on a specific color. If colored purple, the future will happen and cannot be changed, No one in the box knows about her ability except for Allen and Nemesis.

"What color was it?" Nemesis asked, sounding scared.

"The dream was red." Kayo replied, which calmed the former dictator down.

"Then there's a chance that it won't happen."

"Yes, but still, we have to make sure." The two Sudous went to the attic to see if the box was properly close, much to their chagrin however, the box was tipped over because of the broken shelf, glowing in an eerie red-violet. "Oh no! Oh no! NO! NO! NO! NOOOO!" Kayo was now in a state of panic. "THE DEMON IS OUT! THE DEMON IS OUT!" She screamed on the top of her lungs before being slapped across the face by Nemesis.

"GET A HOLD OF YOURSELF KAYO!" Nemesis yelled at her. "Ok so a demon is out, but it's not like it has the will to kill anyone here right?" She finished with a smile before she began to frown. "Right?"

"We're dealing with a being who was haunting me in my sleep! Can you send it back to the box?"

"I don't know how."

"But you and your mother used this thing right?"

"Yes but the being we had was well-behaved, it had no malicious intentions on escaping the Ouija board, I never learned how to seal it back as a result."

"OOoooooh this is bad! this is oh so bad!" Kayo was pacing back and forth.

"Heeeeey! Nemesis! Kayo!" Sateriasis called from down stairs "What are you doing up there? Your breakfast is getting cold!" The girls let out a huge sigh.

"Ok, let's just calm down, we'll deal with it soon." They went down from the attic and down the stairs into the kitchen, Sateriasis was by the stove placing an omelette on a plate with a croissant and a couple of strawberries and blue berries on the side. "There you two are, don't you know how long I've been waiting?" He berated the Sudous, but then he smiled.

"Sorry we're late, Kayo accidentally knocked over her tailoring supplies so I was helping her out." Nemesis nervously smiled while receiving a plate from him.

"I thought you broke your toe up there." Gallerian sneered as he ate his breakfast, he received a middle finger from her, Gallerian threaten to bite it off.

"Where's Allen?" Kayo asked, playing with her blueberries.

"He went back to the heavenly yard to make preparations for tonight." Riliane answered, as she talked, Kayo was too distracted to hear her words because behind her was a hallway, but what caught Kayo's attention was the red-violet spirit standing in the halls, the tailor was petrified bu the site of it as it stared right into her soul through her eyes with it's black ones. "Kayo? Hey! What are you looking at?" Kayo snapped back into reality when Riliane said her name.

"Huh? Oh it's nothing." She lied, trying her best to not cause a panic in the box.

"Anyways, should we dress up for tonight?" Margarita asked. "I got my ghost costume ready!"

"We could actually!" Banica said as she licked her plate clean. "It's Hallows' Evening after all." She then took a bite off her plate.

"HEY HEY HEY! DON'T BITE IT!" Riliane exclaimed, she looked at the plate's bite mark. "Hm, actually I'll let this slide, makes a great edition for tonight." She gave the plate to Margarita, as she walked to the counter, she nearly felt limp, almost falling over. "Oh! Are you ok, Margy?"

"Y-Yeah, just almost tripped." She smiled as her arm shook a little.

~After breakfast~

Kayo was digging through Nemesis's box under her bed, she found a dark green book with the title "Bible of Held", indicating that the bible is from the Held sect, and inside is a necklace with a silver cross on it. "I just hope these work." She said.

"What are you doing?" Nemesis asked.

"I'm gonna try to bless the others, hoping that the demon won't posses them."

"Don't bless the sinners, it'll make the demon worse for us."

"What about exorcising?"

"Hmm...We could, actually. But we have no idea where that ghost went!"

"Where what went?" Riliane asked as she entered the bedroom.

"Uuuuuh Makeup! Yeah! Makeup for tonight!" Kayo answered.

"It's right here." Riliane said as she took out the box. "What are you guys gonna dress up as?"

"I'm planning on going as Kaguya-Hime, the protagonist of my country's folklore: "The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter"." Kayo said.

"And I'm going as a Shinigami, the Death Gods of Jakokunese mythology." Nemesis said with a devilish smirk on her face.

"But there hasn't been any official depictions on them, other than the fact that they're rumored to be hideous." Riliane said, apparently she's aware of Jakokunese folklore and myths.

"That's why I'm Improvising through literary works." Nemesis pushed a stack of black books under her bed with her foot. "I just need some red contact lens...what about you?"

"I'm thinking of going as the Queen of Hearts."

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!" They heard a scream coming from the men's bedroom, it sounded like Gallerian.

"Heh heh heh, looks like he's afraid of the queen." Riliane chuckled at Gallerian's scream, just then they heard a thumping noise.

"No, something is wrong." Kayo said with a worried tone in her voice, she walked out to the men's room, only to find only a judge's coat on the floor. "Gallerian's coat."

"Oh great, is dad running around naked again?" Nemesis said.

"He wouldn't leave his coat like this."

"What's going on?" Riliane asked.

"It's nothing, where is he though?" Just then, they heard a loud thumping noise from the floor. On ground floor, the only people there are Margarita who is making candied apples while wearing her ghost costume, and Banica and Sateriasis were in the living room, possibly working on their costumes. They then heard another thumping noise, but under their feet. "The basement." Kayo whispered to herself. They went down the stairs to the basement in order to confirm their speculations of Gallerian being in the basement, once they open the basement door, they heard muffling noises, indicating that Gallerian is down there, they went down the stairs, preparing for the worst to come. Riliane turned on the light to find Gallerian being tied up in a chair with the same red rope used on Sateriasis the other day, gagged with a handkerchief, struggling, and wearing a maid's dress. He gave Nemesis a death glare upon seeing her. While Kayo and Riliane are stunned, Nemesis burst out laughing at her father's situation.

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Hey! hey! Riliane! Take a picture!" Nemesis said as she passed the camera to the Princess, Nemesis smiled for the camera while doing a peace sign in front of her bonded father, Riliane took the picture, Gallerian made a angered muffle from that.

"NEMESIS!" Kayo called out irritably.

"Riiight right." She began to untie Gallerian's gag, he began panting

"WHY THE BLOODY HELL WOULD YOU BOND ME LIKE THIS, YOU SLUT!?" Gallerian cursed her off loudly.

"What?!" Nemesis was baffled by what he told her.

"DON'T BE OBLIVIOUS! YOU CAME IN THE BEDROOM, DRESSED ME UP! TIED ME UP LIKE AN WILD ANIMAL, AND LEFT ME HERE TO ROT!"

"I DIDN'T DO ANYTHING! I WAS WITH THESE TWO THE WHOLE TIME!" Nemesis was so enraged by this wild accusation that she was fixing to clock him in the jaw, Kayo got in between the two conflicting family members.

"Desist you two!" She said. "Nemesis would never use bondage rope on you! Even if she wanted to."

"That bitch obviously wants to try something new to torment me with." Gallerian sneered.

"Don't make me kick you again." Nemesis growled.

"Enough!" Kayo untied the red rope. leaving red marks on his wrists and arms, he stood up saying saying to Nemesis:

"You'll pay for this, bitch." He stormed off from the basement to change, they can hear Sateriasis laughing upstairs. "SHUT UP!"

"What the hell?" Nemesis muttered to herself.

"Ok, what is really going on?" Riliane asked again "I demand an explanation so no more excuses." Met with no other choice, Kayo sighed.

"Fine, but you can't tell anyone." Kayo said, she began explaining about the Ouija board to the former princess, from using it to contact spirits to how it was improperly closed. At first she thought that the Tailor was joking, but the more she hears, the more Riliane's smile goes away, now becoming aware of the dreadful curse that's now in the sinner's black box.

"If that's the case, then the one that attacked Gallerian was the ghost." Riliane said, fully aware of the situation.

"Yeah, who knows what it'll do next." Nemesis said as they walked back upstairs. As Kayo and Nemesis talked about the ghost, Riliane walked back into the hallway...that's when she felt a disturbing aura in the area, she looked and saw the same ghost with her very eyes, it caused her to be frozen in place that she can't even scream out. The red-violet being floated all the way to the bathroom upstairsbackwards, Riliane traversed up to the second floor and walked to the bathroom door, she stopped once she heard noises in there.

"Don't be afraid, Riliane." She thought to herself. "You have to be bold like father was." She slowly opened the door to find steam coming from behind the shower curtain, is the ghost taking a shower in there? She grabbed a shower brush and slowly walked to the shower, her heart was beating out of her chest, but was ready to punish the ghost for what's it done. Riliane took hold of the shower curtain with her left hand and thrashed it open to reveal the person inside the shower who unknowingly to her looks suspiciously like her...it was her brother.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Allen let out a scream in horror as Riliane began to whack him silly with a shower brush. "NO STOP! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!" But Riliane didn't stop, the ghost haunting the box clouded her judgment and continued to whack the daylights out of her twin brother before she began tiring out. At the same time, Allen, on his last legs desperately grabbed hold of the shower curtain and pulled it down with him to the floor. Riliane panted for a bit before straightening her dress, it was then that her expression turned from exhaustion into horror when she realized what she had done.

"A-A-Allen!?" She stuttered. "I-I-I-I-I'm sorry! I didn't know it was you!" Allen began to crawl on her dress with his hands.

"...E-e-every moment I live...is agony." Allen said weakly as he fell on the ground again.

Few Minutes Later

Margarita was putting an Ice pack on Allen's head, Sateriasis was in the background laughing his head off over what Riliane had done to her brother.

"I'm so sorry, Allen." Riliane apologized. "I didn't know it was you! I thought you were a ghost!"

"What Ghost? Is this a joke?" Allen groaned in pain.

"Yeaaaaah." Nemesis lied. "I was pulling a prank on Riliane, making her think there's a ghost here."

"Bu-" Kayo was about to say something, but was silenced by Nemesis. "I see, you should be ashamed of yourself, tricking his sister like that."

"Enough you two." Allen said, holding onto the Ice pack. "I know it's Halloween but like Kayo said, someone could've gotten seriously hurt, I know I had, Ow. So no more pulling dangerous pranks, especially on me!"

"Yes Allen." Nemesis said.

"And Riliane, please knock on the door next time, it's rude to enter without knocking."

"Ok." Riliane said.

"Now if you excuse me I'm gonna take some painkillers, finish taking a shower, and bring the kids over here."

"But it's not even night yet." Gallerian said, now dressed in his usual suit, sans the judge's cloak.

"I mean the ones who don't celebrate Hallows' Evening."

"Oh right, the religious ones." Banica said.

"So please, behave yourselves." Allen heads back into the bathroom. "Owwww, she whacked me hard." He said under his breath.

A half hour later

The sinners are setting up their chairs on the front porch, they're waiting for the children of religion to arrive and give the sinners their blessings in hopes of redemption, Nemesis was pacing around the porch with a nervous look on her face.

"Oh dear, I just hope that ghost doesn't get aggressive." She said to herself, "Considering that blessing us would make the it worst."

"I hope so too." Kayo said to the dictator.

"KIDS HOOOOO!" Banica exclaimed as she pointed at the distance, a bunch of tiny lights began falling from the keyhole shaped sun, coming down on different colors and sizes much to the sinners's amazement. Once they've reached the ground, the lights formed into many, many children, each of different ages, era, and nationality, and every single one wearing red church gowns and holding song books. The last one to appear was Allen Avadonia holding a conductor's baton. "Oh look how adorable they are! I just wanna eat them up!"

"That better be a figure of speech." Sateriasis said as he took his seat, "We cannot afford to be dragged back to hell because of your cannibalism.". After the sinners sat down in their seats, Allen readies his baton to conduct the children in front of him, the children began humming a tune, and soon began singing a lovely hymn.

"O our lord of old"

"From the heavens with this hymn I call to thee"

"To these souls damned by sin and blasphemy"

"Your light shall still be shown"

"To purify their sins"

"and return signs of hope to their heart and souls"

"Please allow these sinners to go hand and hand with thee once again"

The sinners quietly listened to every word coming from the hymn sung by the children of god, meanwhile in the house, the demon that was tormenting the household earlier was sitting by the window listening to the hymn. As Nemesis said earlier: the blessings would cause the demon to get worse...But something else had happened, the demon instead just laid by the windowsill listening to the children, nodding as a shear sign of fatigue before falling asleep there. Kayo looked by the window to see the red-violet being slumbering, much to the tailor's delight, Kayo tapped Nemesis's shoulder and pointed at the sleeping demon, to which confuses Nemesis but at least she can calm down a little.

"Lulila la lulila la la"

"Sinners and Saints, though differ"

"They're both our lord's dear children"

"And so are seven of thee"

Their song ends, the sinners gave a full round of applause to them.

"BRAVA LITTLE DARLINGS! BRAVA!" Banica exclaimed in happiness as she clapped vigorously, the children bowed to them.

"Thank you so much everyone!" Margarita said as she threw a bouquet of roses. "You're too kind."

After a few more hymns, the children bowed once again and said: "God bless you, and we wish you the best of luck." The sinners thanked them for their wishes and their performances. After the children left, Kayo, Riliane, and Nemesis returned to the attic to see the ghost, the said being was still asleep by the windowsill much to their confusion.

"I don't get it, mother told me that blessing the household would make the demon worse, but it's asleep instead." Nemesis whispered.

"Maybe there's a reason, either the hymn was a lullaby or it's a child." Riliane whispered back.

"Oh well, at least we won't have to deal with it anymore." Kayo sighed.

"I found my Mom's old journal." She said. "It also has the spell to put the ghost back". Nemesis then opened the Ouija box and began quietly chanting the words from her journal:

"Spirit from the hellish yard, desiring innocents to be maimed, return to the pit from whence you came." And like that, the ghost was sent back into it's box while it was still slumbering, the box closed by it's self, both of the Sudous and Riliane let out a sigh in relief, finally they can be at peace away from the demon within the box. Nemesis put the box under the broken shelf and put a book on top of it to increase the weight and chances of it not escaping, the trio left the attic soon after.

Sundown

Allen, dressed as a purple wizard with a fake beard carried the large jack-o-lantern he carved to the front porch and lit a candle inside of it. Inside the house, Banica was in the kitchen dress as an "attractive" chef with fishnet leggings, a mini skirt, a chef's hat, and high heals, she wants to try some of the cookies Margarita made for the sinners, but Margarita, dressed as a ghost again slaps her hand with her sheet covered hand.

"No! Bad chef!" Margarita said.

"Oh come on!" Banica complained. "I just want some of the treats."

"Why don't you snack on a ice cream pint in the freezer?"

"Oh very well." Banica walked over the freezer and found a few pints in there, Banica picked out a mint flavored one. Banica remove the lid, takes out the spoon, and happily devours it.

"What flavor did you get?"

"Mint chocolate." That answer caused Margarita to freeze in place, she knew full well of who likes that particular flavor.

"MINT CHOCOLATE!?"

"Yes, Mint Chocolate, why?"

"TH-THAT'S GALLERIAN'S FAVORITE FLAVOR! HE'LL KILL YOU FOR IT!"

"Ah bologny."

"Oookay, it's your funeral." Margarita said sheepishly as she left the room, possibly to avoid the judge's wrath. Banica blissfully enjoys the ice cream pint, completely unaware of her surroundings let alone another visitor in the room, she stopped when she felt a cutlass sword near her neck, scared, she slowly looked up and found that it was Gallerian, dressed like a pirate with a dark blue coat, white blouse, black gloves, black boots, brown pants, red sash, and a black hat with golden rims. He also has an enraged look on his face.

"The ice cream, give it back." Galleran said coldly, Banica frightfully complied, giving the pirate back his frozen treat. Gallerian causally bonked the chef on the head with a cutlass sword revealing it to be plastic. Gallerian took a bite out of his ice cream, forming an expression of happiness and pleasure.

"You scared me Judge!" Banica exclaimed irritably, "Who do you think you are?!"

"A pirate who loves his ice cream."

"Geez Dad, you've could've just said "please"." Nemesis came in dress in a biker chick-esque attire with platform boots, ripped thigh high socks, fishnets, one biker glove, a dark grey jacket with holes secured by baby pins, a black tank top with matching skirt, a cross with a choker, red eye contacts, and a black notebook in toll.

"What are you? an urban slut?" Gallerian asked, changing the subject.

"Screw off trash-beard-the-pirate, I'm a Shinigami...my interpretation that is."

"Whatever." He takes another bite of his ice cream.

"Oof!" Banica exclaimed when someone grabbed her from behind, she looked and saw the one responsible was Sateriasis, dressed in a nice black suit, black cape, and a white mask that's covering only the right half of his face. "Sa-Sati! We're related you nimrod!" She exclaimed embarrassingly.

"Sati? Who is Sati?" He teased as he picked up and tilted Banica's body back as is he was gonna tango with her. "I'm the phantom of the opera." He leaned in "Now, sing for me, my Angel of Music." He was then smacked in the back of the head by Nemesis's black notebook, dropping Banica in the process. "OW!"

"Knock it off pervert, we got kids coming over."

DING DONG

"Speak of the devil." She saw Riliane going to the door, dressed in a black and red version of one her dresses and holding a stuffed flamingo, going as the queen of hearts liked she promised. She opens the door to see several kids dressed up for Hallows' Evening, quoting:

"TRICK OR TREAT!"

"Oooh! Great costumes!" Riliane cheered as she gave the children their own lollipops.

"Thank you!" They thank her before being on their way.

"HAPPY HALLOWS' EVENING!" She shuts the door.

"I'll take it from here." Margarita said as she grabbed a bowl, the two sinners see Kayo going down the stairs dressed in a layered kimono called a junihitoe, pink, red, orange, and fuchsia colored layers of them. She was also wearing a black hime cut wig with parted bangs and a golden crown. "Oh my goodness Kayo, you look beautiful!"

"Thank you, I'm Kaguya-Hime." She said with a smile, "It's a little hard walking around in this though." She and Riliane enter the kitchen where the sinners are, she sees Banica messing with the radio.

"What are you doing?" Riliane asked.

"Jun gave me a radio channel before we life the hospital, he said something about "K-Pop"." Banica said as she was turning the nob on the radio, just then music started, it was loud and thumping and was speaking in a language that sounded like Makokunese but different, there were ounces of English in it though.

"What the hell is this racket?" Sateriasis asked, covering his ears. "Can you even make out the lyrics?"

"I'm not familiar with this language, it does have a catchy beat though." Banica was shaking her hips to the beat, but then the noise stopped, finding that Nemesis had pulled the plug.

"That is the most annoying thing ever, next to dad's crying." Nemesis said.

In the attic

The box under the shelf was glowing in an eerie red-violet color and convulsing, indicating that the ghost from earlier is now awakened from it's slumber once again. The box tipped the shelf and book over, allowing it to escape it's box again, it stretched before looking out the window in the attic. Seeing a bunch of children arriving to the box, the ghost smiled creepily.

In the kitchen

Allen had made homemade pizza, made with pepperonis, tomato, and basil, and had sliced them into slender pieces for each sinner, Gallerian was removing tomatoes from his slice with a fork and putting them on Banica's plate. "Giving me more tomatoes?" She asked while eating her slices.

"Well yeah, I don't like them so here."

"Huh, how generous of you, Father." Nemesis said, that comment made Gallerian blush a little.

"Don't get the wrong idea, everyone knows I hate tomatoes but I can't just waste them either." Puffing his cheeks.

"Looks like someone's has a little warm side to them, don't you agree, Riliane?" Sateriasis smiled, Riliane giggled.

"Sh-shut up!" He exclaimed. Just then, the lights went off, startling everyone and scaring the children trick or treating.

"Oh no, did we blow a fuse?" Allen groaned, he went to the cabinet and found a wax candle and lit it, he went out of the room to fix the fuse box.

"I-it's ok children! There's nothing to be afraid of!" Margarita said as she tried calming the children down, while saying that, she felt faint, "There's...nothing...to be..." She fell on her back, startling the children.

"HEY! G-GUYS!" A young boy exclaimed, "YOUR FRIEND FELL OVER!" Overhearing it, Sateriasis and Riliane ran over to Margarita and checked her pulse.

"Her pulse is normal, but what caused her to faint?" Sateriasis asked.

"I don't know, but she never slept either, maybe it's fatigue?" Riliane asked, they heard some of the children screaming outside, causing the kids present to run inside the house. "Wh-what's going!?"

"MONSTERS!" A young girl screamed.

"THEY'RE HEADING THIS WAY!" Another boy yelled, just then Allen came out of the basement.

"The fuse box isn't blown but I don't understand why the power we-...Why are the children here!?"

"Th-they're monsters coming this way!" One of the kids said.

"Monsters?" Allen moved through the sea of children to look out through the window, it was dark with the only exception of the keyhole shaped moon, he looked for a bit until he saw that there's several red-violet balls of light slowly coming towards the Marlon flat, and in those lights are strange looking creatures, each having a dark grey skirt and crown like appearances with red faces and arms, and large glowing yellow eyes. The site of them has made Allen's spine shiver and his hair stiff.

"WHOA!" He exclaimed. "WHAT ARE THOSE THINGS!?"

Banica looked out from the kitchen window. "Cripes, they're Flatwoods Monsters." Banica said in astonishment.

"What?" Sateriasis asked.

"Flatwoods Monsters, very common in Mastia's Alien folklore, they terrorize people until dawn, but how are they here?"

"Red-violet lights?" Kayo whispered to herself, that's when she realized something was wrong. "The ghost!"

"Kayo, now's not the time for ghost pranks!" Allen said, recalling the shower incident from earlier.

"N-no, I'm being serious! The ghost is real!

"What are you saying?"

"It's my fault." Nemesis said. "There was an oujia board in the attic and I brought the ghost who is possibly controlling those things upon ourselves." The sinners were both baffled and confused from what Nemesis said.

"YOU WHAT!?" Allen yelled.

"I'm sorry! I never meant for it to happen, I just wanted to show Kayo how it works! I closed the box properly! Honest!"

"Honest nothing! That thing tied me to a chair!" Gallerian yelled angrily. "I've could've rotted in there because of your friend, you sl-!"

"Hey hey hey! Not in front of the children." Riliane said, cutting him off from swearing.

"I'm so very sorry." Nemesis said with her head down.

"We'll deal with it later but now we have to take care of those monsters here." Allen said irritably as he pointed at the window, "They're getting closer."

"We need guns to shoo them off." Banica said.

"We don't have any, Held confiscated the weaponry."

"I found a BB Gun in the basement." Banica said while holding up a hand held BB Gun with a container.

"How did-".

"I guess the gods forgot about it when they made our house."

"Mine." Gallerian takes it and runs outside.

"Alright, but remember to give it back when your done, It counts as weaponry." Allen said, he then saw Riliane running up into her room, a few seconds later she comes back with a slingshot. "Where did you get that?"

"From my toy chest." Riliane stood next to Gallerian, took out an acorn from a small bag and aimed it at the monster coming towards the front door.

"Just a little closer." Gallerian said quietly, he shot the monster and it disintegrated, Riliane shot the other one coming from the right, Gallerian did the same to the one on the left, and so on. The children cheered for the their aim.

"Excellent! You two!" Kayo said.

"We're not through yet." Banica said, there's three near the kitchen's door, and the ones that were shot will just keep coming back til dawn."

"We'll either need to fight them off, or shut the oujia demon away!" Riliane said as she shot another one heading towards the kitchen door.

"Nemesis, this is a chance to redeem yourself for this mess." Allen said, "You need to properly seal the oujia demon away before we run out of ammo."

"Why don't we just attack them with brooms or rakes?" Sateriasis asked while holding a broom, he was about the exit the flat when Banica pulled him back by the arm.

"NO SATI! It's too dangerous to attack them at close range." Banica said, "There have been people getting pneumonia and swelling throats from making physical contact, you have to shoot those buggers from a distance."

"How? We only have plastic weaponry."

"It will have to do for now." She turned to Nemesis and said: "Seal the demon, Nemesis."

She nodded upon hearing the Epicurean's words and went to the bedroom, there she grabbed her cross and bible. Nemesis then returned to the attic with the things in hand and found the demon, fully awake, and floating. the Ghost turned around and saw Nemesis. The demon smiled wickedly at the former dictator. "I didn't want to do this..." She takes out the cross. "...But you left me with no other choice..."In the name of the great millennium tree, I command thy evil spirit: back to the depths of hell"!" As she was holding up the cross, the demon let out a wicked cackle, the cross didn't work. "Alright then, maybe a passage from the bible will do the trick then." She opens the bible and says:

"When the unclean spirit has gone out of a person

It passes through waterless places seeking rest

but finds none.

Then it says, 'I will return to my house from which I came.'"

Downstairs

meanwhile, the children are hiding in the living room with Kayo treating a comatose Margarita, she was confused to why Margarita fell unconscious when she could never sleep herself.

"Is she going to be ok?" A little boy dressed like a vampire asked.

"I hope so little one." Kayo said, "It's just weird though, what made her faint? Did something happened to her demon?"

"THERE'S TOO MANY OF THEM!" Sateriasis yelled from the front yard. He was throwing rocks at the monsters slowly gliding to them, each sinner present were shooting or throwing their own ammo at them, Riliane with a slingshot and acorns, Banica with a plastic bow with suction cup arrows, and Gallerian with a hand held BB gun. But every time they get hit they revert back to their original spot they first appear in and continue coming for them.

Soon Sateriasis and Banica ran out of their own ammo and ran back inside. "You can't be out of ammo now!" Gallerian yelled as he was shooting at the Flatwoods Monsters, he soon ran out of his round, he tried refiling the gun but accidentally dropped his bag of ammo, forever lost in the vast darkness, even finding them would be futile because they gotten too close. "SHOOT!" He dropped his gun and ran back.

Riliane and Allen were the only ones to stand up to them, Allen soon ran out of rocks.

"Oh no! Riliane we have to get back!"

"No! I can take care of these savages!" Riliane said as she kept on shooting acorns.

In the attic

"...And whenever the unclean spirits saw him

They fell down before him and cried out:

"You are the Son of God."

Nemesis finishes reading a few passages, only to fine that the demon is still there, mocking a yawn and wicking at Nemesis. "HURRY UP NEMESIS! WE'RE ALMOST OUT OF AMMO!" She heard Allen calling from downstairs.

"DAMMIT!" Out of sheer frustration, she kicked a tower of boxes which caused a chain reaction to occur, the boxes landed on the red-violet being, rendering it useless. Seizing the opportunity, Nemesis jumped on the demon and began to bash the ghost's head with the bible and yelled: "THE POWER OF HELD COMPELS YOU! THE POWER OF HELD COMPELS YOU! THE POWER OF HELD COMPELS YOU!" Over and over.

"O-O-OK! UNCLE! UNCLE! YOU WIN!" The demon said, it sounded feminine yet childish.

"Huh?...That voice...who are you?"

Downstairs

Riliane was out numbered by the Flatwoods Monsters surrounding the house, just then they all disintegrated into nothingness. "I-Is it over?" Riliane asked as the lights came back on and the kids cheered, Margarita began to stir, waking up.

"Oh your awake, Margarita!" Kayo exclaimed, relieved.

"Wha? What happened?" Margarita asked tiredly while rubbing her eyes.

"You've passed out."

"I have? That means Eve must be doing something."

"Eve? As in Eve Moonlit?"

"She's right." Nemesis said suddenly, over her shoulder was the bonded ouija demon that was terrorizing the household. ""She" told me everything." She began walking down the stairs as she continues. "This so called ouija demon had set the whole thing up, the oujia board that I used turned out to be a fake just to lure me and Kayo into a false sense of security thus starting a chain of events, why? Just for her own twisted amusement."

"Oh come on! I was just bored that's all!" The demon said. Nemesis threw her on the couch next to Margarita.

"Allen, remove her wig."

"Wig?" He asked.

"Just remove it." Nemesis said, Allen complied, he stepped forward and removed her wig, long strains of teal green hair fell out, much to their surprise and confusion. "The false Demon of Sloth; Eve Moonlit, I've should've known...how did you get out of the doll?" He asked.

"The Demon of Wrath let me out." Eve answered. "He wanted me to do him a favor, I only agreed because I was bored."

"That would explain why Margarita fainted." Sateriasis said. "By using your powers, Margarita temporarily went out of existence due to just being a persona."

"Now I get it, I fainted because her powers were on overdrive." Margarita said.

"What favor did the Demon of Wrath want with you?" Allen asked.

"I'm not saying, if I did you all be dead by now." Eve answered with a sadistic grin on her face, enjoying the view of the sinner's frightened expression.

"And why was Dad tied up while wearing a maid's dress?" Nemesis asked.

"I thought it be funny, plus I want to see if he looked cute in it, and he is."

"I AM NOT ANYONE'S DRESS UP DOLL!" Gallerian yelled. Just then the doorbell ringed, Gallerian answered the door, it was Behemo, wearing a black gothic dress with skeleton makeup on. "Behemo?"

"That's my name, don't wear it out." He joked. "I believe I have misplaced some children in this here residents...there they are." He stepped inside. "Where have you all been? Your parents are worried sick." He then saw Eve. "And what do we have here? An escaped fugitive?" Eve raspberries him.

"Eve was summoning those Flatwoods Monsters at us!" Riliane said.

"Is that right? Well then we'll make sure she doesn't do that again." Behemo then walked over to Eve and threw her over his shoulder much to her disdain, "Come kids! Back to the Heavenly Yard!" Just as the children are leaving, one little girl stayed behind, she smiled and said:

"Thank you for protecting us, Sinners."

"You're very welcome dear." Banica said, smiling. The girl ran back with the others to the Heavenly Yard, they saw as many partials of light flew into the keyhole shaped hole. Just as things are finally calming down, a piece of parchment flew down onto the porch. Kayo picked it up and saw that it was written, it said:

~Dear Sinners,

You've think I'm through with you yet? I think not. In fact: I've enjoyed my time terrorizing you eight with my Flatwoods Monsters that I've decided to make it a new tradition. "Every year on Hallows' Evening night, at 2:30 AM, my Flatwoods Monsters shall attack your home until 5:45 AM, if you can fiend them off till then you win! If not...well you'll just have to find out yourselves." Be sure to stock up on plenty of ammo! Happy Hallows' Evening!

Love, Eve Moonlit! XXX~

This news had gave Allen and the sinners a look of horror, now they're forever cursed with having to deal with Eve's new "Holiday Tradition". "I'm so sorry about this, I never attended it to happen." Nemesis said quietly.

"It's fine, Nemesis, it wasn't really your fault to begin with anyways." Allen said.

"Yeah but now we got an invasion coming after us next year."

"That's true, but we'll be ready when it happens...Come on, let's just enjoy the rest of the evening before it gets any later, we got to get up early tomorrow." They all headed inside.

"Get up early? For what?" Riliane asked.

"We'll be returning to Capriccio Academy tomorrow." The sinners stopped when they heard the name of that place, their first day of course was pretty rocky so it was highly understandable to why they hanged their heads down in utter disappointment.

END CHAPTER

[the-meddling-kids]

Test

Test post

Chapter 1

“Back it up, Slim!” Eddy yelled as Rolf put his tractor in reverse.Ed, Edd, and Eddy had convinced Rolf to help them drag the old busted up van out of the junkyard. The Eds had pooled the money they received that summer working odd jobs to repair the van, or at least get it in running condition. It was the summer before their senior year, and as far as they were concerned, they needed a set of wheels. What better car could they ask for than the van they spent many a day in when they were younger?

“Eddy, there was one thing we overlooked.” Edd said as he observed Rolf hook the van up to the tractor.

“What’s that, Double D?” Eddy asked.

“Where are we going to keep the van while we repair it?”

Eddy looked toward Ed, who waved his hands in the negative.

“No way guys. My mom would kill me.” Ed said.

“Well we can’t keep it at my place. It’s gotta be yours, Sockhead.” Eddy said.

“Now hold on, gentlemen, we never discussed this. While I’m not against the idea, I would need to get the confirmation from my parents.”

The Eds were interrupted by the loud noise of the tractor’s engine revving as it tried to get the van rolling.

“Are we even sure it’s even gonna roll?” Eddy asked, disrupting Edd’s protests.

“Not for long,” Edd replied, “The air will hopefully last until we reach the cul de sac.”

“Well you better hurry and get your garage ready, no telling what this thing is still leaking. I’m pretty sure something lived in there at one point.” Eddy said.

Edd hung his head in defeat and followed as Rolf guided the tractor through the side streets to avoid traffic.  The van was carefully maneuvered into the driveway and Edd thanked Rolf for his help.

“It is no worries, Ed boys. I am glad to help out.” Rolf said jovially as he roughly patted Edd on the back. He was much taller and more muscular than Edd, so he was staggered by the raw strength Rolf put into his friendly expression. Edd also noticed that Rolf had picked up more on English phrases, though his accent was still thick. “Good luck, Ed boys, you are going to need it for this hunk of junk.”

“Thanks Rolf, you’re probably right, but we might as well try. See you later.” Edd waved goodbye to Rolf as Eddy walked up with Ed in tow. Ed was holding a rather large toolbox on his shoulder.

“Are those the automotive tools Ed?” Edd asked.

“Yeah, I grabbed what you wrote down.” Ed said as he produced a crumpled note from his pocket.

“Go ahead and set it over there.” Edd pointed to the garage. He already had most of the tools needed, but his tool collection was more for tinkering with appliances and his inventions, not for cars.

“There was some stuff I couldn’t get Double D.”

Edd grabbed the list and could see that most of the items were crossed off.

“We still need an engine lift and we need some heavy duty jacks so we can get under it.” Edd said as he began to think of where they could acquire the items.

“Can you think of anyone who’s got that? I don’t want to spend our cash buying it unless we have to. We have a budget to stick to.” Eddy said as he crawled under the car.

Edd racked his brain but couldn’t think of anyone who could lend them the specialized equipment. It seemed that they would have to go out and purchase it.

“We have to go out and buy it.” Eddy said, voicing what Edd was thinking, “How much will that set us back Double D?”

Edd pulled out his notepad and began doing some basic calculations.

“Well we need to get the heavy duty jacks since the van is a large vehicle, that should be under a hundred dollars, but the engine lift is another story. The lift will cost more, and the prices vary in the hundreds.” Edd said.

“Well shit,” Eddy said as he kicked the now deflated tire, “We barely got the cash for replacement parts. Well go ahead and get it, I’ll see if I can get my parents to cover some of this. Ed, go schmooze your folks too. Sockhead, you can go to the store and get it ordered. We don’t have that much time before school is back in session and I’m tired of hearing Kevin bragging about his set of wheels.” Eddy said.

“You want me to go now? I was planning on inspecting the vehicle further.” Edd said.

“Yeah, now. We’re going to need it one way or another and I want it sooner, rather than later. Come on Ed, let’s get to our houses and start working our parents.” Eddy said as he motioned to Ed and started walking towards his house.

“Catch ya later Double D” Ed said as he entered his own house.

Edd was left by the van.

‘I guess there’s no point in arguing. It is probably for the best anyway. I don’t think I would trust Ed or Eddy to purchase something of this importance.’ He thought.

He checked his watch and it read just after  2 pm. He started the walk that would lead him to the main road. There was an auto shop that should be able to provide him with the equipment he needed, or at least point him in the right direction.

--------Break--------

The bell over the door chimed as Edd entered the office of the automotive repair shop on Main Street. It was a short walk, but with the July sun beating down on him, Edd was starting to sweat under his beanie. He walked through the aisles of tools and parts up to the unmanned desk. He looked for anyone to help him, but there was no one in the immediate vicinity. He rang the small bell on the counter and waited. Still there was no response.

“Hello” He said, leaning over the counter to peer into the repair shop. He could hear noises coming from that area, obviously human, but none that were getting louder to indicate they were coming to help him. Annoyed with the lack of customer service, Edd walked behind the counter into the shop area. It was a typical automotive repair shop. There were some cars lifted into the air on lifts and parked into the lanes where mechanics could work on it many parts and tools line the walls. The noises he heard were from only one person underneath a dingy red truck. He could hear the cranking of tools and muffled expletives followed by a deluge of oil. Edd saw the persons legs flail as they tried to scoot out from under the car as it spewed oil. Thinking quickly, Edd bent down and grabbed the person’s legs and dragged them out from under the car. The body glided easily since it was on a wheeled platform, but Edd was shocked at who the person was.

“Man, I just got these,” Marie Kanker exclaimed as she tried to brush the excess oil off of her clothing, “Thanks for pulling me out, I only got a bit on me.” She still hadn’t looked up at Edd.

Edd was debating on whether or not he should just run now, or stay and try to get the parts. Over the years since Jr. High, the Kankers had not lost interest in the Eds. Although their fervor decreased as they got older; they still favored the Eds as targets for their affections. They had a shaky truce with each other. There was no more kidnapping, or impromptu make out sessions, but that didn’t stop the Kankers from cornering the Eds every now and then and giving them a hard time.

‘This is the only major automotive repair shop in the town. I’ll just have to deal with it. Eddy is going to owe me, big time.’ Edd thought.

“I guess today just isn’t my day,” Marie said as she finished wiping her face free of oil. She looked up at Edd, a wide smile appearing on her face, “or maybe it is. Hey there, sweetie.”

She stood and kissed Edd on the cheek. He didn’t fight it, just blushed heavily. He knew that if he let her have this, she would be less likely to harass him further.

“H-hello Marie, I was unaware that you worked here.” Edd said as Marie pushed an oil pan underneath the car. He followed her over to a workbench where she began cleaning herself more thoroughly.

“Yup, just started a couple of months ago. Turns out I’m pretty handy around a car. Mostly been doing oil changes and minor repairs, mostly being the office bitch. Did you come to visit your girlfriend?”

She began to take off her coveralls, being careful to avoid the oil. Edd couldn’t help but notice as she unzipped the front and he began to blush anew. Marie caught this and started to do it more slowly, hoping to get a reaction out of him. She chuckled when he began to stutter as he spoke, she felt happy that she had this effect on him.

“N-no I’m just here t-to order some parts,” Edd said, trying to keep his gaze on her face. He wouldn’t deny that Marie was attractive, from an objective point of view, he told himself.

“Oh really, what for? I didn’t know you got a car.” She said.

“We are attempting to resurrect the old van from the junkyard.” Edd said.

Marie began to laugh at the thought of the van.

“That old junker? The one with the flames on it? I remember me and my sisters chasing you guys into it a couple of times. I could have sworn that it rusted itself into the ground.” She said trying to stop the giggles escape form her mouth.

“Actually, the frame appears quite sound, and any rust is mostly superficial. The engine, however, is completely shot, which is why I’m here.”

“Oh, I see,” Marie turned to Edd and pouted, sticking out her bottom lip in an exaggerated frown, “You didn’t come here to see little old me?”

Edd just looked at her, waiting for her to break. Marie quivered her bottom lip and sniffled. They had played this game before, many times in fact. Marie was unwavering in her hurt facade. Edd just sighed and admitted defeat.

“No Marie, but it is nice to see that you've become gainfully employed.”

Marie smirked. She always won that game. She finished removing her coveralls and kicked them to the side. She picked at her sleeveless tee shirt, trying to pick the oil apart from the black of the fabric and assessing the damage. She made a show of it, glancing at Edd hoping to catch him staring. He was too respectful to ogle, but she knew he'd slip eventually.

“It's okay that you're glad to see me, I won't tell anyone. Except I will tell everyone. Now stop flirting with me and let's talk cars.”

She put a finger to her chin and cocked her head to the side.

“Or keep flirting with me. Can't say no to more of that.”

Edd sighed, wondering why all of their conversations ended up this way. He'd say he was exasperated, but he'd become used to it. They began walking back to the designated customer area.

“I'll choose to talk cars, thank you. Now I am here to inquire about obtaining a set of heavy duty jacks and an engine hoist. Those are the only other tools we need, everything else has already been acquired.” Edd said as  he pulled out the notepad, double checking that they wouldn't need anything else. While reading, he didn't notice Marie walking around the table to stand behind him until she rested her chin on his shoulder. He flinched at the contact, but shifted the paper so she could read it better.

“Hmmm. This is a pretty thorough list, no surprise there. The jacks are pretty cheap but the hoist is pricey.” She continued to read through the list, wrapping her arms around Edd's waist and pulling him close. She could feel him tense up, recognizing this as his boundary for personal contact.

'Just a couple more minutes,' she thought to herself.

Edd tucked the list back into his pocket.

“This wasn't planned in our budget, but it is a necessity for repairs. We will find some way to acquire the money, but I need to know a price so I can keep track of expenditures.” Edd said, shifting his body away from Marie's, however slightly he could.

“Why not just rent one?” Marie said, letting go of Edd and returning the the other side of the counter. “It'd be cheaper and then you won't have to worry about having to store it forever.”

Edd thought for a second.

“I had considered the possibility, but I researched on the internet of all local establishments and found none nearby that would rent to teenagers.”

Marie reached under the counter, shuffling through some binders until she found the one she wanted.

“Guess it's both our lucky day, because we could rent it to you. You'd have to meet some conditions first.” she said.

“This establishment was not listed as renting equipment, although I suppose I shouldn't be surprised since their website was outdated.” Edd murmured to himself, making a note to contact stores directly. “Wait, what conditions?”

“Well first you'd need a parent or guardian to fill out this form. “she said as she began sliding various papers across the desk. “Then we'd both inspect the hoist to ensure no mechanical problems and sign a liability release form. You'd have to take me out to dinner this Thursday. Fill out this form stating intended purpose and repairs needed. Then we would determine how long you'd be renting for and adjust rates based off of that.” Marie shut the binder and pulled out a folder and handed it to Edd, “Use this to keep track of you paperwork.” Edd began mentally taking notes, comparing his and his parents' schedules and when they intersect. Looking through the papers he noticed a piece of receipt paper with number written on it. He then fully realized what she had said. He glanced at her.

“One of those steps doesn't sound like standard operating procedure for renting equipment, Marie.” he said, recognizing that it was a phone number she had written down.

“Aw come on. Everyone knows schmoozing the employees makes everything go faster. If it's somewhere nice, I could convince my boss to fast track this. Having me vouch for you would only make things easier for you. And we haven't been on a date in forever.” Marie said, resuming her pout.

Edd met Marie's gaze. He was at war with himself. An ingrained fear of Marie, cultivated by years of torment versus the allure of being able to drive. Dinner wasn't too expensive and they would be able to affect repairs faster. But on the other hand, he'd have to deal with Marie and her advances.

“Suppose I agree to this, how would you guarantee that my request would be expedited?” Edd said.

Marie put her hand to her chest, pretending to be shocked.

“Honey, have I ever lied to you?” she said

“Yes, on multiple occasions” Edd said

“I haven't lied to you since we were kids, I'm offended”

“Last week you told me my shoe was untied, then jumped on my back yelling 'piggyback' when I bent down to fix it.”

“That's a fib at best. Besides I'm at work and I can't lie to customers. At least not anymore.” Marie crossed her arms across her chest.

Edd sighed for what felt like the hundredth time.

“We can talk about why you can't lie at work anymore on Thursday. I'll meet you at the Sushi place on main street at 7. No funny business or I walk.” Edd said, crossing his arms as well.

The two stared at each other, Edd managing to maintain eye contact. The Kanker's didn't intimidate him as much as they used to. Granted they still did, but he found out that the more he caved, the worse they got.

“We both know you wouldn't walk out on me” Marie said after a moment.

“Try me.” Edd retorted,

Marie leaned across the counter, pushing her face as close to Edd's as possible.

“I love it when you get all aggressive like that. Really revs my engine.” Marie purred, walking her fingers up Edd's chest and coming to rest at his shoulder. As she leaned in, Edd leaned back

“M-marie, please. F-f-fine, you win. Now please return to your side of the counter so you don't fall.” Edd blurted out, almost overbalancing.

Marie lingered for a moment, both savoring their close proximity and proving to Edd that she could push back too. She leaned back to her side of the counter and began typing into the computer next to her.

“Fine,” she said, typing away at the keyboard. “But you need to give me your number so I can call you when the paperwork goes through.” She slid a contact form across the counter along with a pen. “Fill that out and you'll be in the system. One last thing, we need a deposit on the hoist. Minimum rent time is a week and the deposit is a two hundred dollars. If you return the hoist early, we can prorate it and give you money back.”

Edd filled the paperwork out, hesitating at the phone number field. Marie glanced over and saw him pause.

“I promise I won't use it to contact you other than rental related purposes. At least until you give me your phone number yourself.” Marie said

“Forgive me for not being immediately trusting.” Edd murmured, albeit a little too loudly

“That's harsh. Fair, given our history, but harsh Double D.” Marie said

Edd flushed, meaning not to be heard. Usually he wouldn't be so snide but the ordeal had tired him in a way that made him flippant.

“I'm sorry, that was cruel of me. Here,” he said, sliding the form over fully completed,” I suppose I can trust you this much at least.”

“Alrighty sweetie, I'll be in touch.” Marie said, punctuating her sentence by blowing a kiss at Edd.

“Farewell Marie, have a pleasant day.” Edd said as he began hurrying out of the establishment. Eddy owed him big time.

--------Break--------

The walk back to the cul-de-sac felt like a breath of fresh air compared to what he had just been through. Despite the heat, Edd hurried. It wasn't long until he returned to his house. He saw Ed and Eddy in the back of the van, ripping out the shag carpeting

“Guys, you really should be wearing some protective gear. Some gloves, goggles, and a facemask wouldn't hurt. Who knows what mildew and other bacteria could have been fermenting in there.” Edd said as he reached the garage, already going to the toolbox to retrieve said items. “Honestly that vehicle is ancient. Safety precautions need to be followed.”

Eddy groaned, patting Ed on the back to get him to stop.

“Come on sockhead, we both know Ed's room is worse than this hunk of junk.”

Edd held out the gear to his friends.

“We had an agreement gentlemen. My garage, my rules.”

Eddy and Ed took the gear and began putting them on. Ed picked up the pieces of carpeting they had torn out and put them into a nearby trash can.

“Jeez guys, my room isn't that bad.” Ed said. Eddy and Edd gave him a pointed look. “Well, not anymore.”

“Yeah cuz we almost had to call the CDC on that disaster. It was a chemical warzone in there. But that's beside the point. You get what you need at the shop Double D?” Eddy said, turning his attention to Edd. “Looks like you forgot something there genius. Where's the jacks?”

Edd started, realizing that he hadn't purchase the jacks. He had been too distracted by Marie. It was enough for him at the time to  get out of there unscathed.

“About that.” Edd began, donning a set of coveralls and protective gear himself, “It appears a friend of ours has begun working at the automotive shop I went to acquire tools from. They distracted me enough that I didn't remember to get the jacks.”

“Well didja at least get the hoist? And who works there? Did they at least give you a discount?” Eddy asked.

“I didn't get the hoist. The employee explained that it would be a better idea to rent one rather than own one.” Edd replied.

“Well who works there then?” Ed chimed in.

“Marie Kanker” Edd said

“What?!” Ed and Eddy shouted

Ed ducked back into the van and shut the doors behind him. Eddy continued.

“I'm surprised you even made it back here. Spill it Double D. I want to know how you survived that and why we don't have our equipment.”

Edd reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone.

“I will explain in just a moment my particular predicament. But first, let me call and ask about the jacks.” Edd deftly entered the number for the store, having memorized it that morning during his research. He didn't wait long until it was answered.

“Yeah, what can I do for you?” said a gruff and unrecognized voice.

Edd had expected Marie, but then realized that other people must work there obviously.

“Um, hello, my name is Eddward and I was in your establishment earlier inquiring about renting an engine hoist. During the process I forgot to order a set of heavy duty jacks. I wanted to make sure that I could still order them. I can return to the establishment today if necessary.” Edd said, adopting a respectful tone.

“So you're Edd, huh? I'll go get Marie.” said the voice.

“Wait, that won't be necessary.” Edd said. There was no response, he must have been too late. It wasn't long until he heard the other end get picked up.

“Miss me already? Knew you couldn't stay away for long.” Marie said, voice slightly muffled by the poor connection.

“Hello Marie. I'm calling because I forgot to order the jacks we discussed earlier.”

“Oh those? Don't worry about it, I got a set you can borrow. I'll bring em over when I deliver the hoist. It's gonna be at your house right?”

Edd was surprised, but quickly recovered.

“Thank you Marie, that's very kind of you. Yes the vehicle is at my house.”

“All I'm saying is Thursday better be rad or I might take em back.” She said, playful tone obvious even to Edd.

“Of course Marie, I'll see you then. Thank you again.”

“Later cutie.” Marie said, hanging up the phone.

Edd put his phone in his pocket and turned to face Eddy who looked genuinely confused.

“Since when can you talk with a Kanker and not freak out? And what do you mean by see you then?” Eddy said, opening the van doors and pulling Ed out.

“Well, I'm not sure how to put this.” Edd said wringing his hand together.

“Spit it out, we ain't got all day.” Eddy said. “I gotta get back to my place. I have my own chores to ignore.”

“Marie is going to let us borrow a set of jacks from her. She is also going to expedite the rental process and deliver the hoist and jacks once her manager approves.” Eddy said

“Damn dude, how'd you pull that off. She usually wears the pants in your relationship.” Eddy said, elbowing him lightly in the ribs.

“We're having dinner this Thursday. She made a convincing argument about 'schmoozing', as she put it, the employees to grease the wheels, so to speak.”

Eddy froze for a second, then burst out laughing.

“Good one dork, but I don't believe that for a minute. There's no way you'd agree to that. We don't deal with Kankers. They are to be avoided and scorned.”

“Eddy please, we're going to be seniors. We should handle this more maturely. And yes I did agree to it. It was the easiest way to placate her and provided us with what we needed. I'm not happy with the situation either.” Edd said

“There are other parts stores in town sockhead. You could have always gone there.” Eddy said, turning back to the van and climbing in the back. Muffled swears and the sound of ripping carpet signaling the end of the conversation. Eddy always got surly whenever one of the Kanker sisters got the upper hand on them, however slight. Edd sighed, knowing better than to push the issue.

He moved over to the hood of the car and began inspecting the damage. They had inspected it previously, but now that it was in his garage, he could more accurately list the repairs necessary. Edd began to become dismayed as the list grew ever longer. Some of the more extensive repairs would require significant research. He was confident he could do it, but it would extend the time table considerably. He didn't even want to think about the condition of the motor.

An hour had passed when Eddy and Ed bid their farewells, citing chores. Edd continued to catalog repairs needed for the van to even run. The list was daunting, but after some calculations, he figured they would be able to afford all of them. He glanced at the clock on the wall and decided to call it quits for the day. He needed to do more research and make multiple phone calls. Ed and Eddy had made it clear that they wanted Edd to handle repairs. They would provide whatever help needed and pay a higher share of the costs in return.

'School doesn't start for another month. In a perfect world we would be able to finish this project before school, but we don't. I am sure there are major problems with the motor. Hopefully nothing too expensive.' Edd thought as he peeled of his gloves and coveralls.

A quick shower later and Edd was in his room typing away at the computer, filling out a spreadsheet and combing through automotive repair forums. Some of the obvious repairs, like new spark plugs, new filters, new fluids, those were simple. They'd need to flush the system to clear any debris and clean the carburetor as well. It was easy enough to find a manual online for their particular vehicle. The list of repairs and needed components for the repairs only grew as he continued reading online. He wanted to make sure he did everything correctly.

He took a break from looking up vehicle repairs and began searching for a place for his date. He shuddered at the thought. Marie wasn't so bad, she just knew how to push his boundaries. It was as if making him uncomfortable was a game to her. There were a few new restaurants he wanted to try.

'Maybe I should ask her where she would like to go.” Edd thought, picking up his phone. 'On second thought, I won't. She cornered me into this date so at least I can pick the location.' He dialed the number for the new Mediterranean restaurant by main street. He made the reservation and reached for the folder with the paperwork and Marie's number in it. He dialed the number and took a moment to realize the absurdity of the situation. He was going on a date with a Kanker. He may have been coerced into doing it, but it was still a one on one social interaction. He smiled ruefully at the fact that despite attempting to avoid Marie at all costs, here he was planning a dinner date with her.

'She must be so smug right now,' Edd thought as he hit the call button. It was only a few rings when she picked up.

“Hey, what's up? Who's this?” he heard Marie say.

“Hello Marie, it's Eddward. I called to discuss dinner plans for Thursday.” Edd said, beginning to plan the conversation in his head. She would tease him at first. He would ignore her advances and inform her of the time and place to meet. He would then politely, but firmly insist he had to go back to research and end the call. It was foolproof.

“Oh hey sweetie. You should check out the package on your doorstep.” Marie said.

Edd was confused

“What package? I didn't order anything recently.” Edd got up from his seat and walked to the front door, curiosity derailing his planned conversation. He opened the door to Marie standing on his doorstep, tucking her cell phone in her pocket.

“Pretty sure you ordered about a dozen smooches. Got the order right here.” Marie said, handing a piece of folded paper. Edd unfolded the paper and it just said 'TRICKED U'. He should have known. He dropped the paper as Marie grabbed the side of his face and began pecking it, counting between each one. She got to twelve and stood there, grinning from ear to ear.

“You know I'm surprised you haven't fainted from fear yet.” She said backing away from Edd.

Edd was blushing, as he usually does when Marie gets affectionate. He realized he was getting used to this sort of attention from her and that scared him a little bit. He took time to recollect himself so he wouldn't stutter. It would only give her more ammo against him.

“I haven't fainted since we were thirteen and you know that.” Edd said as firmly as possible.

“Yeah and I'll never forget it.” she said looking to the side as if in rememberance.

Edd rubbed the bridge of his nose. He had a conversation planned with her and it was all for naught. He should have remembered that no battle plan survives contact with the enemy. A lesson he should have realized years ago.

“What are you doing at my house Marie. I distinctly remembering 'no house calls' being part of the truce.”

“First of all, I was delivering your order. Second of all I was delivering your order. Thirdly I wanted to see the van and the state its in. I thought you'd appreciate an experienced eye taking a look at it.” Marie said, counting along her fingers.

“You said delivering my order twice and I will shut this door if its for more smooches, I swear.”

“Why don't you look down Double D and you'll see I actually did bring something for you.”

Edd hesitated, expecting a trick. He glanced down and saw two large metal objects off to the side in a small wagon.

“Are those the jacks? I thought you were going to wait to deliver it with the hoist.”

“Yeah I was gonna wait, but figured since I was still in work clothes I could lug em here. Now open up that garage and lemme take a peek.” She grabbed the handle of the wagon and began wheeling it around the corner to the garage door.

Edd walked back inside the house, then into the garage and opened the door for Marie. She wheeled the wagon in and then walked over to the van. The hood was already propped open so she began inspecting it. Edd began removing the jacks from the wagon. And placing them near the van. He heard Marie humming a tune as she looked at the engine. He waited patiently for a bit until she backed away from the hood and approached him.

“It's just as I thought. I'm so sorry Double D,” Marie said, putting her hand on Edd's shoulder and looking very serious. “It's a piece of shit.”

Edd couldn't help but chuckle at the joke.

“Very astute Marie, how could I have missed that.”

She smiled.

“No problem, honey, it's what i'm here for. Laying down harsh truths and swearing. But seriously, that thing is pretty beat up. You know what you're getting into? For how much you're gonna dump in that pile could be a decent used car.” Marie moved to lean against the counter Edd was near. He leaned alongside her.

“We explored that option, but the van has a lot of sentimental value. It was the van or bust.”

Marie turned toward Edd.

“Well it's your wallet's funeral. Now about Thursday, is there any chance we can reschedule. Covering a friend's shift that night. They called in a favor so I can't really say no.”

“I had already made a reservation, but I suppose we could reschedule. What day did you have in mind?” Edd said

“Well I don't have anything else planned for the evening. What about you?”

“I had planned to organize the garage tonight as well as triple check our supplies and list of necessary purchases. It should keep me busy for the rest of the night.” Edd said, already making his way over to the toolbox. He began placing tools back in their proper place.

Marie moved to stand next to him, closing the drawer.

“So nothin special then? How about a night on the town?” Marie asked

Edd considered her proposal. It would be better to get it out of the way quickly.

“Sure Marie. I can postpone this until tomorrow morning.