#She literally only became a vampire in the first place to stop a woman from drinking her daughters blood
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damnicantcontroltheweather · 3 months ago
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Thousand Year Old Vampire is so good so far. My character is a jewish woman from Rome who was expelled with her family during Claudius' reign.
She's so tragic already. Out here killing her husband and turning her father into a vampire after her evil eye necklace was broken (which is just so fjdfbfb I'm foaming at the mouth). Her father hates her now, so her and her daughter Sabbatia are living in the lower area of the Italian alps in a hut by themselves. She feasts off her daughters blood (Ohh Sabbatia, I'm sorry for giving you Mommy issues) because the deer aren't enough to satiate her hunger.
Anyway, she just got a mortal woman to clean her hut and cook for her daughter, so we'll see how that goes.
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barbiegirldream · 1 year ago
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Hello! Happy June! It's Pride and I have another question (4/30)
Today we are talking about queer representation in media. In 1894 "The Dickson Experimental Sound Film" is released, becoming the first "gay film". It was also known as "The Gay Brothers", it feature two men dancing together and it reportedly "shocked audiences with its subversion of conventional male behaviour". Unfortunately, in 1934 the USA introduced the Hays Code, which, while it didn't explicitly ban queerness, banned queerness in effect. This resulted in three decades of queer-coded villains, such as Joel Cairo in "The Maltese Falcon" (1941) and Jack Favell in "Rebecca" (1940).
The Hays Code was lifted in 1968, and the queer cult classic "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" was released in 1975, and gave a much-needed positive and FUN representation of queer people and queerness. Unfortunately, this was short-lived, as the rising AIDs crisis worsened the stigma around the gay community. This didn't stop everyone though, and in 1985 "Desert Hearts" was released; regarded as the first mainstream lesbian film with a happy ending.
Further on, the first gay kiss on TV in the UK was on "EastEnders" in 1989, "Ellen" became the first American tv show with an openly gay lead in 1997, and other show such as "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" started to add recurring LGBTQ+ characters. An important show in the UK was "Queer as Folk" (1999) which was one of the first shows to depict the queer community as vibrant and alive.
Even further forward, and "Moonlight" (2017) became the first LGBTQ+ film (and the first all-black cast) to win Best Picture at the Oscars. GLAAD publishes an annual report showing how representation is changing. 2005-2006 1.4% of regular characters vs 2020-2021 the figure is at 9.1%. So, there is still a long way to go obviously, especially because media is often the main or only place that young people have an insight into the community at all.
Because of this, I want to ask you for a recommendation: What is a piece of queer media that you think more people should see? (it can be literally anything, big/small, funny/sad, smart/stupid <- just anything you think deserves to be watched!:))
(I'll go first: "Eu Não Quero Voltar Sozinho" (or "I Don't Want to Go Back Alone) is a really really cute Brazillian short film available on Youtube! (if you enjoy it, there is also a full-length film version called "Hoje Eu Quero Voltar Sozinho" (or "The Way He Looks"))
Happy Pride 🌈 🎉
The Queer Media I recommend everyone watches is Pandora's Box (1929) it is a German silent film. It was censored heavily for it's Lesbian characters and heavily sexual themes with a woman being featured up front as dealing with her sexual liberation via prostitution and learning she is not being liberated from a man's power at all. It's like really good IMO.
Another one is Wings (1927) which goes into the concept of homosocial relationships in a world before the Hayes code as well what it meant for small town men to go to war in Europe and discover being near one another instead of women.
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duskkodesh · 2 years ago
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Dusk Reviews 5: Adventures Into Fear
Welcome back! We’re up to Morb’s next appearance which for our purposes is Adventure Into Fear #20. AIF was a series which started as just “Fear” and a way for them to sell some reprinted 50′s and 60′s pre-hero Marvel comics. Think Monster and Scifi stories written by Stan Lee. Stuff from comics like Tales of Suspense, Strange Tales, or Tales to Astonish. Now after issue nine the comic became titled as we know it now and feature stories with Man-Thing. Fun fact, issue nineteen features the first ever Howard the Duck who was supposed to be a bit of throwaway satire but proved popular. Speaking of popular look at the billing they gave our boy on this cover!
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Morb was actually pretty damn popular after his debut, one of the major reasons they turned him from a pretty straight antagonist to a somewhat wobbly Greek tragedy. God, I have to apologize ahead of time because I will abuse that joke.
Our writer here is Mike Friedrich, art by Paul Gulacy. In the history of classic Morb Paul is... not my fave artist. You’ll see why. The comic opens as expected. Morb is hungry, he finds a woman headed home from a party. Nom nom nom, annnnnd then guilt. 
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“If she lives”? Morb, you are a freaking doctor. Is the lady alive or not? I swear he shares one brain cell with the other Marvel villains and it is often not his turn to use it. So, he turns in for a nap to give us a conveniently placed flashback of his origin story and the two Marvel team-up issues. We even get to see his very anti-climactic escape from the X-men’s lair and a bit from Vampire Tales 1 which.... again I want to do ALL of Vampire Tales together so AIF first, VT later even though VT was published alongside AIF the stories kind of run separate. 
So, a reverend and a rabbi go into a lab that has a napping vampire in it. What? There’s no punchline, this is literally what happens in our story!
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Don’t worry, it’ll only get weirder from here. Morb threatens them but the cool-headed rabbi calms him and talks. Seems he knows Michael’s name and rep being a man of science himself. The pair sets out studying and trying to help Morb but time drags on and Morb gets hungry. Morb attacks but Daemond  uses a spell to control Morb and stop him long enough to reveal he’s actually dabbling in darrrrk magic. Big surprise! 
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He uses one of his spells to control Morb to eat the poor rabbi. RIP. Morb at least eating kosher. Okay, I’m at LEAST sorry for that joke! Morb, having eaten at least gains sentience but not control and laments killing such a kind man who tried to help him. Daemond has uses for our vampire tho and off he is sent on a mission to kill someone. This of course is giving him anxiety (More than usual) because he has no idea WHO he’s been sent to kill. We end with him finding his target... a kid? Awwww heck. Stay tuned!
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Yep! We end on a cliffhanger! Gotta get you hooked! So, there’s a lot of retread and plot framing in this issue but it’s understandable, just doesn’t really go anywhere. The art is all over the place. Some panels look great! Some not so much, overall this one is a 6/10 from me but I gave a bonus point for sudden evil sorcerer Daemond whipping out his cult robes before he proudly announces he was evil the whole time. Snappy dresser, terrible haircut!
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jostepherjoestar · 4 years ago
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👑Hewwu Queen 👑 is it alright if I request DIO in part 3 meeting his descendant?. Like he basically had a kid accidentally in part 1 and now he’s meeting their great grandkid who looks allot like him and seems to not be fully human. Maybe he meets them at night since their family was traveling around the world and stopped off in Egypt where he found them maybe listening to music?
Since you write for DIO, is it alright if I request that he somehow meets one of his kid after they get into some time travel shenanigans. Maybe his kid has a stand that is kinda similar to his but they aren’t confident in using it
DIO aiding his helpless descendant 
sfw / gn reader 
notes/warnings: implied assault (on your great-great grandmother)
Another case of two anons thinking alike!! It was really fun to think about this and sorry for taking so much time to get to it :o I hope you’ll still enjoy 💖✨also the pacing is strange/fast (to me), but i felt it fit with how frantic i imagine meeting Dio is
Somewhere between irking Jonathan and wishing to destroy any respectful sliver of the Joestar bloodline, Dio had his own way of indulging and spending his time. Men, women; any creature he could manipulate to his will and suck the life out of to join his dark army was welcome in his dimly lit hideout to meet their fate. The self proclaimed god that had surmounted humanity took pleasure in playing with his food; leaving them in complete darkness, literally. He’d let them suffer in silence, hearing them whimper and regret their choice to ever step foot inside the wicked monster’s palace. But it was always too late.
Except for the very night Jonathan had decided to come spoil the fun and ruin Dio’s playtime. The woman hadn’t meant anything to him, just a toy to play with and to later discard on the pile of other bodies strewn about. Was she glad to have been saved by the burly Joestar? At first yes; brought back to her senses, out of that monster’s grasp but left terribly violated. Left to carry and care for the offspring Dio would never know or care about, too busy being left to slumber in the ocean and gaining a new form from his hated ‘brother’.
Dio rose again, skulking in the shadows of dimly lit cities, looking for any and all petty humans and stand users to claim for his side. It took time and patience he didn’t know he possessed to get fully comfortable in his new body. There was always this inkling, a nagging sonar that kept getting louder and louder, not much unlike his connection to the new generation of Joestars. It grasped at his thoughts, kept him from any semblance of peace of mind -as much as he could acquire it- and there seemed to be no way of silencing it. He couldn’t see a clear picture; it was just nothing but an annoying sense of something being near.
He had searched for weeks like a bloodhound hot on a trail, irritated that he of all people, nay creations, was being made to follow and be obedient to the terrible nagging. It angered him greatly and only when he found a mere youngster sitting on a bench, you, a simple looking human, did it boil over. Sat with your walkman resting next to you on the wooden seating, head bopping along to your newest cassette in the middle of the night. Completely lost in the song you’d been drumming along to with your fingers. Dio was furious but knew better than to strike before investigating, he needed answers and he needed them now.
As he got closer to you, sneaking from behind, he noticed an immediate shift. You were no longer alone. An image, a blur that became clearer and steadier and more live-like as each second passed; posing defensively, staring down Dio with a fire in your eyes not much unlike the tall blonde’s. Not for a moment does he fear for his safety. Even though The World is a newly acquired power it could easily wipe out a scrawny kid without even hitching a breath. He smirks, eyes cast over in shadow by the dim street light as he hears you pause your cassette player.
“Oh? Was I disturbing you?’ he mocks in a smirk, catching the way your eyes glint and the vaguely familiar image you awaken in him. Just like before he’s left to figure out who this annoying hazy memory is. His voice shivers down your very being, goosebumps taking over your skin; not sure if you had already missed your chance to run. It was like his glare fixated you in place, finger still resting on the pause button of your player while the other reached up to remove the flimsy headphones.
“You…” you barely get out the word. The accusatory tone you had tried to convey had watered down to a whimper. You had felt the connection too, something nagging at your soul and stringing you along until you’d finally found the source. “Me? Hah! No, you.” Dio slid closer, his steps so quiet and calculated that even though you couldn’t take your eyes off of him you swore it seemed like he floated. You swallowed thickly, the huge figure that excluded an aura so menacing only a meter away from you.
“So. Who are you and why was it so disgustingly annoying to find you?” he joked impertinently, amused by the way you clenched your jaw at his remark. “I could ask you the same.” a brave little spark still smouldering inside. “DIO. Now don’t make me ask again, you’re making me dreadfully inpatient.” He hadn’t felt the need to kill you, at least not yet. Dio was truly curious about your answer but by the looks of it you really didn’t seem to know all that much.
You begrudgingly gave him your name, in need of some answers yourself. The sound of your name didn’t ring a single bell, not a tick, not a clank. Nothing. Not a single step further to knowing anything. “Well it seems like you do have a stand. Maybe you possess a great power that might be useful to me.” that wicked grin on his face told you a little too much of his motivations. He reminded you of those Saturday morning cartoon villains. But still you felt compelled to listen, ignoring every single red flag.  
Deciding to humour him you give out your stand’s name. “Trust me, we can’t really do much.” you huffed. You’ve only obtained your stand recently and honestly, it has been pretty shitty so far. You didn’t know exactly what it could do, it was just there. Any time you felt stressed or in danger it did come to your aid but it remained awfully docile. Their presence comforted you but you just knew it was capable of so much more.
“Are you a vampire?” The sudden question came out more surprised than Dio had hoped to let on. He regained his posture, opting to slide next to you on the bench with a swift move. There was something… off about the way you carried yourself that reminded him of himself and the other vampires he’d created. The question stunned you, your eyes that had already been widened in shock only growing more so. The way he had changed the entire conversation that had barely earned its start urged you to think quickly. “I don’t know.” you mumbled demurely. You really didn’t know. So many weird things had been happening to you lately that you being a vampire would explain a lot.
Your answer seemed to change the imposing man’s gaze and expression. It hardened a bit, his grin now slowly diminishing into a straighter line and his pointed brows resting down at a more natural angle. Even in this low light his image felt so familiar, like you were already supposed to know who he was but the memory remained hidden. Locked away for your safety. “You should feed. And don’t go out in daylight anymore.” Dio paused for a second. “Strange...” He pondered to himself out loud. He’s only seen a few cases like this, vampiric genes passed down through generations. For some reason he pitied you, as much as he could muster it. The unknown bond you shared felt too unusual to write off.
“What am I supposed to do?” you felt tears prick your eyes, trying your best to remain strong but you’ve been so tired. You couldn't confide in anyone, not about this. Tears started rolling, falling in thick streams down your cheeks and dropping onto your lap. Here you were, crying to a stranger named Dio about being a vampire and having weird powers. A bizarre twist of fate.
“First of all, stop crying. Then, widen your stance when you’re about to fight someone. I could have easily knocked you down with that flimsy imitation. Fix your posture while you’re at it. Call out your stand again.” He rattled off his demands quickly and flatly. Was he helping you? They were barbed complaints but it seemed like he actually wanted to aid you in whatever it was you were going through. You sniffled, wiping at your cheeks. You felt like a kid again; asking your parent for any reassurance when life knocked you down.
Dio actually offered a lot of viable advice, telling you about techniques to silence your steps, how to take someone down easily, to feed on humans within an inch of their life. You had asked him, just in case. You weren’t planning on killing anyone; a comment which made him scoff. That intimidating impression and overall feeling of having to bend to his will had lessened the more you talked to the blonde. He casually sat with you for what felt like hours. He hadn’t divulged into his own history, instead asking you about yours. He was still trying to figure out what this weird pull was.
“No one in your family has experienced anything like this before? Hmph. It seems to have skipped multiple generations then.” he was asking about your great grandmother and all the others that came before you. It could have occurred to them but you would have never known. “My family did come from England, though. My great-great grandmother fled in a hurry. We don’t really know why, Windknight’s Lot seems like an unusual place to frantically run from.” As soon as the small town’s name left your lips everything fell into place for Dio. His grin grew again, satisfied to finally know your connection to him.
Family.
One he made for himself, by accident, by a relation created on his own devious whim. Not that horrible Joestar bunch that kept ruining his fun or his horrible father that was but a faint minuscule memory. Something he did. It brought him even more satisfaction to know how perfectly in place it felt for you to be the one to develop these powers at the perfect time. His mind could have exploded with possibilities; a thousand ways to make you join his side. But it didn’t, he wasn’t sure that’s what he wanted yet. And he surely wasn’t going to tell you of your bond either, lest you get attached too quickly.
As you finished up and the early signs of a rising sun were starting to make itself known on the horizon, you were saying your goodbye’s. “Thank you for helping me. Truly, I- I don’t know how I-” you weren’t allowed to finish your earnest thanks. Dio knew you meant it, one of the only few truly grateful acknowledgements he’s ever received. “I’ll be taking over the world in a few months. If you feel so inclined to join, you know where to find me.” His lips curled into a smirk and he was making his move to leave you behind, alone on the bench again. Left to scramble for your stuff to try and stop him but he was already out of sight. “WAIT! I don’t know where to find you! You never told me!” you yelled into the empty streets, heart thumping out of your chest, hoping this wasn’t just a very elaborate dream you were caught in.
“Trust your instincts.” The voice felt incredibly close but so far away, like catching a falling snowflake; as soon as you grasped it, it just melted away.
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novawrights · 4 years ago
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When Home Finds You
Plot- Reader remembers a darker time in her life before coming to Lady Dimitrescu's castle, Lady Dimitrescu shows her the home she's been searching for.
TRIGGER WARNING FOR PAST SELF HARM/DEPRESSION.
I sat in the library looking at the calendar on the wall. You would think a timeless vampire wouldn't need one but from what her daughters said, it was a recent thing when you had arrived a few months ago because they hadn't seen one before. So you took advantage of keeping track of each important date. Birthdays, special things they celebrated or treasured, even your birthday, all written in with flowing cursive writing. But one specific day was just a dot. They all shrugged when they saw it thinking it meant nothing but to you, it meant everything. My thumb subconsciously stroked my upper left thigh where thin scars crisscrossed across the fair skin. Most of my life I have felt alone, an apartment in the States that only held the essentials like clothes; basically a place to eat and sleep while I went to my job as a waitress and came home with no one to tell my day to, gossip with or have girls or friends nights. Early on I drifted apart from friends and the moment my so called accepting  family figured out I was were more into women they swiftly and cruelly disowned me. That's when I became best friends with a silver razor blade. Four years of cutting any piece of skin that could be hidden, becoming an expert in covering and tending to wounds, but three years ago, I forced myself to stop. I was then pulled from my thoughts when the big, oak doors opened and revealed Lady Dimitrescu. Or as I somehow got away with calling her, Alcina. Neither of you knew how it started or why she let's it be when the first moment a maid says it, her golden eyes flash with the fury of lightening in a thunderstorm.
"What are you doing in here all by your lonesome?" She asked, voice laced with concern that her eyes mirrored. I shrugged not taking my eyes off the calendar with today's date being the anniversary when you stopped cutting.
"Thinking about how I got here." I murmured. It wasn't a lie. Had I been left to my thoughts any longer I would have eventually made it to the day I showed up on her doorstep soaking wet and damn near hypothermic. She hummed as she sat in the chair next to me and placed a tray with two tea cups on it. Probably the one drink I had ever seen her drink without any blood in it.
"A strange day indeed. My daughter's usually devour any intruders immediately but for some reason they were definitely part of the argument to keep you alive." Her voice smooth with agreement with a hint of a smile and I chuckled in response.
"Oh yeah?" I teased as I looked over in her direction. While she was this tall, incredible and powerful woman, the soft spot she only had for her daughters, now extended to me. She met my gaze, golden irises meeting my steel gray with the softness only so few saw.
"I'm not one to believe in fate. I've lived far too long to really give it credit should anything good, or bad, come my way. But you took that belief and stomped all over it." She sighed as she turned her gaze into the fire I had long forgotten I lit. "Now I know I promised to give you privacy with your thoughts, but something is bothering you enough I can feel the storm cloud from my chambers across the castle." I sighed knowing she wasn't going to let this go. It was weird she had offered me who ended up agreeing to be a maid, privacy. Especially so soon.
"Several years ago things kind of fell apart. Family disowned me and friends drifted apart so I was literally coming home to an empty apartment every day after work." I started as I took the teacup from her hand and took a sip, letting the apple cinnamon flavor warm me. I could feel her eyes fall on me as she mirrored my action with her own tea. "When you get lonely, you don't always have the best coping mechanisms. Mine, was self destructive. Easy to conceal and no one would know since I never wore shorts or went out to the beach or wore dresses when I went to a club." I snorted before taking another sip. "Extremely glad I hadn't known you or the girls then." I added as a whisper as I turned my gaze to her. Her eyes darted across my face as if she was trying find the answer without me saying it. It was only until her eyes widened a moment later that I knew she figured it out. "You would have eaten me alive." She coughed. Not the best time to throw a suggestive joke like that but the line we danced across between attraction and a degree of softness reserved for lovers, was always front and center of my mind.
"We would have." She agreed softly. I looked at the calendar and gestured with my chin.
"That dot next to today's date, is the day I forced myself not to cut myself anymore. The day I threw out my razor blades."
"How long?"
"Three years self harm free." She didn't say anything and I heard the rustle of her white dress as she moved. I felt a twinge of fear squeeze my heart. Would she kick me out? Mock me? Strip me of my clothes and humiliate me that I wasn't strong enough? But to my surprise, a black glove and white sleeve entered my peripheral vision. I looked up and blinked away the tears that I hadn't realize were popping up.
"Come, my dear." She whispered. I wiped my eyes and took her hand as she led me from the library. It didn't take me long to realize she was leading me to her chambers.
"Al..." I murmured. She sent me a small smile as she opened the doors to her room, before leading me to the room where her bath was held. It always reminded me of a in ground pool for how big it was but also since it was indeed, in the ground surrounded by black tile.
"Get in." She gestured. I looked and saw it was already filled, the room smelled of lavender and the water still warm by the steam rising from it. I was thankful she turned away so I could have some modesty left since this was a boundary we hadn't come close to breaching. I stepped into the water and nearly moaned at the warm feel of it on my skin. When I got completely in I sat on the little ledge as she walked towards it.
"Tonight is about you. Because not only am I glad you had some impulse to travel, and travel here of all places and your car to break down in the middle of a storm, I'm also glad you've gotten over whatever life has thrown you. Even if there were a couple roadblocks in the way." I nearly teared up as she knelt on the tile and grabbed a purple bottle. She tapped my head as a non verbal cue to wet my hair, which I complied with, before resurfacing where my head my her hands with shampoo already lathered and ready to be coaxed into my brown hair. My eyes fluttered shut and a moan escaped me as I let myself relax and surrender to her fingers. Even when I felt like it was enough, she kept going.
"Times like this I wish I had my music. Even if you guy don't have electronics, most of my bands do vinyls still so a turntable would work." I sighed.
"I'll see what I can do, my sweet." The pet names were becoming more frequent these days, not that I was complaining. Another tap a few moments later for me to rinse out my hair of the sweet smelling shampoo and I couldn't help but enjoy the domestic intimacy between us. After rinsing my hair and feeling more relaxed than I had that day, I felt like my head was a little clearer and the storm cloud had gone away. She reached around and stroked my cheek.
"Dry off and meet me in my room." She whispered. I blinked as she practically glided out of the room before standing. I took one of the big fluffy towels she used and towel dried my hair as much as I could, and dried my body off. I noticed a pair of my old running shorts and a tank top waiting for me to change into. I ignored the blush creeping up my neck seeing a pair of underwear laying with it.
After changing I walked out of the room to see her in front of her fireplace with a silver goblet with her blood laced wine with another with plain red wine that I liked. I took a seat on the sinfully comfortable, crimson red couch next to her.
"I've felt this draw to you since you arrived. It's why the tasks I gave you kept you closer to me and report to me instead of anyone else. It's why I've done so much more for you as a maid compared to everyone else that has walked through these halls." She started. "If my instincts are correct, you feel the same or follow the same trail of thouught." Lady Alcina, the one who seems impossible to fluster or look unsure, cast this vulnerable air around her; and it surprised me. I swallowed knowing there was no way out of this conversation.
"I-I-I do." I stammered. I looked up at her and met teary eyes filled with love, adoration, compassion and genuine happiness.
"Fate does seem to come into play sometimes." She murmured before she leaned in where her wine red lips met mine. I'm not one to use cheesy movie clichés, but this kiss felt like I was home and complete in a way I thought was just a cruel joke for me. I felt her hand softly touch my thigh where the spandex had ridden up and a few scars where revealed. Pale lines that were almost invisible gleamed in the fire light. When she pulled away from the gentle kiss, her eyes flickered toward them, almost as if she knew my panicked trail of thought was going.
"You are so beautiful, my love. No scar, bruise, wound or anything will ever make me think otherwise." She assured me as her thumb caressed them much like mine had done just a while ago.
"But most of all," she continued, "You're home.
With me and my daughters. " I hadn't realized how much her words would mean to me until I felt tears falling in rapid succession that she brushed them away before pulling me towards her chest. There was one thing I had been hoping to find and I found it in the arms of Lady Alcina.
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erricdraven · 3 years ago
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Blood and Bone Didn't Make Our Home
Chapter 1 of 3
Pairings: Tara Maclay & Spike, Spike/Buffy Summers
Rating: Teen & Up
Death indeed does not distinguish between the sinners and the saints, and who knows that better than Spike, the master vampire formerly known as Slayer of Slayers and Tara Maclay, the witch who finds death at the end of many paths traveled for love? After meeting for the first time at a generic Sunnydale-apocalypse Scooby gathering, the beginnings of an unspoken comradery flowers, and through a myriad of catastrophes of varying sizes, lucky happenstances, and potential world-endages, the two find that sometimes family is found in the most unlikely places.
Usually, Spike thrived on chaos and awkward scenarios that he was only tangentially part of, but for some reason, he wasn’t getting the same joy in this one.
It was the stupid bloody chip in his head, finding new ways to ruin his fun every day, it seemed.
Being all but useless and tied up in a way he couldn’t even enjoy left him without any leverage, literally and figuratively, and it made him squirm uncomfortably. He’d spent over a century cultivating the power of first impressions into armor, but now…this was the first time since getting fangs that he couldn’t. He dug his nails into his palm, and reveled in the slow ooze of blood that it lifted. The only draw he’d been able to make in so long that he ached.
“Will, are you sure about this?” Buffy murmured softly into Willow’s ear, her hand resting in a comforting gesture on her wrist. “Bringing Tara into our circle means major baggage. I know she’s important to you, and we’ll all look after her as best we can, of course, but it’s a risk.”
Willow glanced over at where the rest of the Scoobies were lounging in forced casual positions as they waited for the sound of the doorbell. “Buffy, you’re my best friend, so my place is always with you, and if I want Tara to be able to actually get to know me, I think that means she needs the chance to be here too.”
Begrudgingly, Spike had to admit she had nerve.
Buffy gave her a nod and a small smile of understanding. “Then we’ll make her feel welcome.” Abruptly turning on her heel to face Spike with her hands on her hips petulantly, she snapped “Won’t we?”
“Oi, I didn’t ask to be here as your little pet, Slayer. Feel free to let me slip into something more comfortable.”
Her eyes turned steely and her frown turned into a cold smirk. “Oh, by all means! I figure you’ll be dust in, oh…” Buffy glanced theatrically down at her watch, “two minutes?”
He didn’t dignify that with a response. She knew she’d called his bluff, and he wasn’t going to give her any more satisfaction than that.
“You need us way more than we need you, Spike, so shut up, or else we’ll be throwing you out in an ashtray.”
If he were still a fledge, he wouldn’t have been able to stop himself from sticking his tongue out at Buffy. As it were, he rolled his eyes and looked away. “Please. I don’t give two shits about your little club. New girl’s nothing to me.”
At that, Willow turned a glare on him too.
“Oh, for fuck’s—I’m sayin’ she’s got nothing to worry about from me.” Looking over at Giles who had turned in his chair to watch as their altercation unfolded, Spike jerked his chin up towards the row of cabinets. “I need a sodding drink. You got anything stronger than a nice Chardonnay in there?”
In lieu of a response, Giles acquiesced by disappearing into the kitchen to return with two clean glasses and a bottle of something exceptionally dark that smelled old. “I suppose I’ll join,” he muttered under his breath, likely not meant for Spike at all, and poured. With the edge of his glass, Giles pushed Spike’s across the coffee table in his direction.
Spike couldn’t help the little scoff that slipped out. “Unless someone wants to play nursemaid, I’ll need a little wiggle room.”
It wasn’t lost on him that Buffy looked sidelong at Giles and only moved to untie him after she received a small assenting nod. She roughly loosened the knots enough that he could free himself the rest of the way then shoved his drink into his hand. “Here. Now drink your juice and be quiet while the grownups are talking.”
Snapping his teeth at her in an empty gesture, Spike suddenly became aware of a new heartbeat nearby, fluttering anxiously as it grew closer. “Time to make like a good hostess and straighten your pearls, Donna Reed,” he sing-songed just before there was a gentle knock on the front door.
Willow’s eyes went wide and she started fidgeting with the edges of her sweater. “Holy crap. She’s here. Okayokayokay, okay this is going to be fine.” Looking pointedly at the others, she implored them, “Please be nice, in a non-weird way. Ease her into the whole Hellmouth thing, but…don’t exclude her. Maybe—”
“Answer the door, Will,” Xander interrupted, not unkindly. “She’s waiting for you.”
“Right!”
As soon as the young woman stepped inside, Spike carefully scented the change in the air and dissected the new and unfamiliar fragrance from the others he was becoming infuriatingly accustomed to. Already he caught something unusual—it was sharp like ozone and made his nose tingle similarly to the liquor in his hand.
Bollocks. No one had told him that she was a witch.
Braced for unpleasant, he was caught off guard immediately when his gaze met hers; there was a soft, fragile vulnerability in her eyes that reinforced her youthfulness. In the broadest sense, everything about her that Spike was privy to with his adaptive senses was tinged with what he could only describe as pure like light. Just as darkness had a weight to it, light had a tangible feel of its own, and oddly, he wasn’t afraid to be near it like he would usually. It was warm like the sun but…welcoming and hopeful as it hadn’t been in so long.
Fucking weird, he thought to himself, returning to his drink with a shrug.
“Um, hi. I’m Tara. It’s r-really nice to meet you all.” Her smile was guarded but authentic.
CONTINUE ON AO3
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samnyangie · 4 years ago
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Personal reviews on RSL filmography
Rsl, iI thought it’d be a good idea to record my thought on each films rsl was in, it was something I always wanted to do...
Rsl in total, was starred in (excluding tv series etc) 27-ish films, to be honest, considering his years as an actor(approximately more than 30 years) he wasn’t starred in that many. We all know why lol
Just saying I’m not a film expert, therefore the list is very subjective.
The reviews with trigger warning (r*pe, g*re etc): Tape, Killer: Journal of Murder, A glimpse of hell. Tho in the writing I’ve censored them with * since I don’t feel comfortable saying them here
There isn’t particular spoilers except for dps, tape, and ground control
The favourites (literally my life time films)
Dead Poets Society
I assume many would agree, and as many would have, it was my first ever rsl film, like I was on the plane and it was one of the films they offered, and I was like, oh I think i heard of this, so I watched and instantly loved it. The message is very relevant to this day, the cinematography is very beautiful and somehow nostalgic. I was horrified with Neil’s death. Tbh now I’ve seen too many memes and all kind of things from the fandom (which I’m grateful for!) I thought the heartfelt I once had would deluded a bit, however when I watched it again last April with my family at the cinema and it still moved me very deeply.
The age of Innocence
Okay, unpopular opinion here, I love this so much. It’s my all time favourite rsl film. It even outruns dps tiny winy bit haha. Aside from how he had tiny winy screen time, appearing at the end but the fact that he played quite an important role and him being gorgeous in it just<33 I couldn’t help but smiling! It just the whole film was so much of my cup of tea? The melodrama and the hypocrisy hidden by elegance among the upper social classes in 19th century is just what I needed. The more I watch it, the more I understand the characters and their emotions, it’s one of those films you should keep visit to discover the things you weren’t aware of before. I watched it again this morning and i couldn’t stop thinking about it. However, I know some people find it boring and I understand why, my sister is one of them lol(except for a bit where rsl was in) but i think it’s more complex than what it appears to be at a first glance haha. In conclusion, it became one of my comfort film to watch time to time. 
The ones I like<33
Swing kids
At first viewing, I didn’t expected much because it had underwhelming reviews but when I actually saw it, I thought it was quite decent and more and more I watched it, I felt like it was underrated. Yes, I think some directing choices were bit old fashioned and cheesy especially the ending, I’m not saying it was a perfect masterpiece but it deserves more recognition than it has now. Also in spite that there’re some parts being too simplified, it touched on something other films about ww2 normally don’t. It was interesting to see the German perspective on it than Jewish or the allies perspective like many of them does, but of course the latter perspectives matter, it could be argued that they more valid than the former, which partly was where sk criticised for, however, the portrayal of the varied reactions of the German people (in this one particular the teenagers) has its value in their on way. Anyway along side with it, the music and the dance scenes were great, without exaggeration, though Swing kids isn’t my fav, peter’s solo dance scene is my favourite scene in any movies I’ve ever watched. I mean that scene had both visuals and meaning as it demonstrated Peter’s determination as well as resentment with a hitch of unsureness. Rsl acting in that scene was just phenomenal, it’s not about showing off the dancing skills but he portrayed every mixed emotions peter has from his expression and the moves, I just can’t talk about this enough especially this scene was the reason I started fallen for him. lol
Much ado about nothing
Much ado is something I never seen anything like so it was a refreshing exprience. I barely watched Shakespeare on screen kind of thing. Though I felt there were some bits too cheesy for me but they are also the charms in the same time, and the cinematography was pretty also Claudio aka rsl, it was like an official announcement of declaring my worship on this man. Especially it was after SWING KIDSSSS so I couldn’t help it now everyone knows how I fallen for him but no one can blame meeeeee Anyway, it’s a really good film to watch when you want be relaxed with cup of tea maybe hehe
In the gloaming
I heard about it before I watched it, that it’s a heart wrenching, tearful piece, though I didn’t managed to cry, it’s just.... painful and in a way heartfelt. I liked that story telling was calm and collected rather than forcing you to join the sob party, just showing the characters to carry on. And thanks to the great acting from the cast, the characters could be emphasised and understood, personally the older sister was the most relatable character for me, well, eldest complex lol. In short I liked it but it’s not something I would watch it often.
Last days of Disco
As a person who looks at aesthetic in films, I simply enjoyed this for that tbh. I don’t know, I just liked the feeling. But I don’t think it’d be everyone’s cup of tea. I love the day time clothes the girls wore in the film. Tbh I love the music too, I think I love all the films of rsl with music in it. Speaking about rsl, oh rsl, he’s.... His character might be bit unlikable but he was just.... This is why I can’t unlove his characters even the debatable ones<33
They were decent! (I would recommend it)
Married to it
This is the first and last ever attempt of rsl of romcomssss The film itself is cliche to be frank it’s like love actually but it’s about marriage life + it’s not christmas but I like heartfelt cliche stories like this, if anyone also loves this type of story, it’s really worth watching, it’s one of my comfort films, also, rsl is so pretty I mean he always is but to see him being a office man with a baby face made me go awww my baby grew up heheh I wish he did another romcom like this or more preferably, melodramatic romance, I’d have made a shrine of it and worship it every morning lol
The boys next door
I kind of smiled while watching it throughout, if you want something that is heartfelt and touch on some serious topic about social workers and the people with mental disorder, Rsl plays a character who has (I think it was) Schizophrenia and troubled relationship with his father(Deja vu I know) but general atmosphere tend to be quite humourous. I don’t get me wrong, though it’s light hearted, it doesn’t mean they treat the topic in the same way. There’s a scene where the protagonist imagining the one of the characters with the disorder talking eloquently and honourably at the court on the rights and the dignity of the people with mental disorders deserve to/should have and they’re just the same people as the people without mental disorders. It was a powerful scene.
My two loves
Rsl’s first ever screen debut film! Hehe it’s about a woman who is discovering her sexual identity and the conflicts within I personally thought it was fairly sensible depiction but I can’t say for sure whether it was accurate or else, since I don’t think it’s my place to say it:) But if you’re interested, it’s on YouTube, you can just search for it or go to this post I made. Fun fact: since it was his debut film, it credits him as he’s real name, Robert L. Leonard, I just find it amusing haha
Tape
It’s another type of film I don’t encounter that often, I enjoyed it, especially with Neil and Todd’s reunion lol. Rsl mentioned how he enjoyed it because it felt like doing a play, my first impression was that the structure is like a play, though the camera work made me quite dizzy haha. But the dialogues, the acting, I think it was quite spot on. Especially the human contradictions and hypocrisy side of it. The most people assume the baddie in the film is Jon the character rsl played and has a distaste for him. I mean how can anyone love a character who is accused of r*pe but to be honest, Vincent for me seemed just as problematic, both of them are hypocrites for sure in their own different ways but in the end we can’t be sure what’s really the truth or not. It’s about the vagueness, and phychology and the uncertainty from the audience on who to believe(well, myself included, most would trust on Amy’s claims since she’s the victim in the accusation, but by her denying the claims, making everything way unclear,) so I don’t know. I don’t really have an opinion haha tho I don’t believe nothing happened because Amy denied so, even Umma Thurman who played her, said that her interpretation was that Amy lied. I felt it’s endless rabbit hole this film. Sorry I couldn’t worded it better.
My best friend is a Vampire
It’s cringey and weird but there’re odd charm to it. Vampire rsl’s so cute as well.... and I think it’s the only film, he acted kind of flirty ? So for that itself I’d like to appreciate itttt And it’s so 80s/90s, like it has general odd nostalgia like all films from that age has. I saw a Korean blog about rsl films and this was mentioned, that- they said- it’s a bible of rsl’s adorableness and I think that sum up the film perfectly.
Mr&Mrs Bridge
Before this was in ‘I mean it was fine” category, but I watched it again and now I want to retract my statement lol Still isn’t my fav but I noticed how delicately depicted each characters are, Mr and Mrs Bridge in particular. This film is alternatively about the changes in the young generation regarding liberty, feminism, free expression especially on sex. It’s in the perspective of the bridges, the mother and father who is old fashioned and conservative (as it was normal in their previous generation) and the children who are the young generation, and the misunderstanding and conflicts between them. After all it all happened not only because of the difference but also the lack of communication, which rsl emphasised in his interviews. I found it interesting that they made it seems like the Bridges truly existed with the video footage and (with the ending) describing what happened to each family member in text with photos. When I watched it at first I was really confused if it was based on a real life. I think what they wanted to suggest was that the Bridges every typical American family at the time. It was something everyone was going through. I said previously I didn’t get why Rsl’s character (the youngest in the Bridges) treated his mother so coldly. Honestly I do get why, but I guess I felt so bad so the mother haha
I mean it was fine
The safe passage
It was okay but to be honest it didn’t stood out to me. It was okay. The story, the characters weren’t that interesting. I wish they extended it longer to go depth with their family relationship or something.
A painted house
I find it likeable, it has a chill, old folk story vibe, but same as previous one. it didn’t really stand out except for shirtless rsl, do close ups you cowards
Bluffing it
I was really fond of the premise of this film and I think it has great intention. It was specifically made to promote the awareness of illiteracy and how to get support. However, I don’t get the reason of Jack the protagonist’s illiteracy. Unless, it was common occurrence in America at the time, I feel like it’d have been more convincing if he was in poor family hood, so there was no time to learn at school due to working at young age...? I mean, just finding it hard to believe he passed the high school just like that, I mean the teachers or anyone should have noticed it, maybe I’m missing something here but it seemed unlikely to me.
Ground control
Again, I liked the message, as it depicted how frightening and difficult job the ground controller is, by one mistake could take away the lives of hundreds, especially as someone who goes on planes a lot... But it was quite cliche throughout, I just couldn’t get engaged to it. But I do admit at the end when the protagonist runs off to the landing zone see the pilot who he had just saved, they acknowledged each other and have eye contacts was truly wholesome. Rsl as cocky, bad boy was such a icing on the cake, I loved it so much. Chewing gum in every scene lol I hope he plays these sort of characters more often. I saw someone criticising him saying he has narrow spectrum of just playing nice boy roles like Neil but I really wanted to debunk the narrative and this could be one of the examples! 
Chelsea walls
I knew that this has split reviews but nonetheless I think worth to watch it, 1. Ethan and rsl re union, 2. Ethan is the directer of the film and rsl sing in it. But I have to say, it’s one of those hard to follow art indie film so I couldn’t finish it on one go. I feel like I have to devour it over and over again. Maybe later on I grow fond of it more lol But his character, I loved him so much. He’s just has everyone don’t touch me, I’m a cocky artist vibe, there’s a scene where his annoying friend annoying him and he looks up and says: ‘Fck off’. Absolute golddddd not to mention he sings and plays guitar so beautifully<333
Well... it’s not my cup of tea
The Manhattan project
I don’t think the film it self was that bad, it’s about high school boy who find out the existence of some nuclear energy research lab and stole the energy to make his own nuclear bomb. I just don’t get the thinking process of the protagonist. It really frustrated me. He seemed apathetic and unlikable I disliked him throughout and that’s why I didn’t really enjoyed it. I mean it has humour and ridiculous storyline might be humorous to some. But more importantly there was such little screen time for rsl!! LIKE WHY? WHY PEOPLE?? HE LOOKS LIKE A FRESH HUMAN MOCHI!!! It makes me soooo mad to think about it
Killer: Journal of Murder
Well, first of all, it had a lot of graphic things than I imagined, brutally murd*red bodies, execution, and r*pe scene, gosh I was strucken by it when I saw that, I had to skipped that scene. It’s based on a real event and a real criminal called Carl Panzram, so if you’re aware of it, it might be more intriguiging to see. But personally for me... meh, I don’t think directing was good as it failed to portray it enough for me to comprehend fully.
A Glimpse of Hell
This is also based on a true event of a tragic accident in the us battleship in Iowa in 1989. They shows tragedy lin a blunt, brutal way by showing horribly damaged bodies of the soldiers torn into pieces, all the horrid things directly so be warned about that. I was quite alarmed because i didn’t expect to see it haha there’s no much to say. The film quality was so so for me. I feel their approach wasn’t appropriate, they were clearly trying to make it dramatic which is fine but in a melodramatic emotional way. It didn’t work because first, there aren’t enough portrayal of the characters for me to get attached, secondly it added the unnecessary exaggeration it prevented me from being emotionally involved or even to think about it. In my opinion, I think it’d have been better if they made it more restrained, dry, focus on the accuracy. For example like 1987 or Zodiac, I mean both of them has dramatic elements since they’re not a documentary but they were not overdone, in a contrary added emphasis to their message/conclusion. I know it’s easier said than done but it was something I consistently felt during it.
Sir.... I’m sorry but-
Standoff
Haha... it’s very peculiar... the directing is off and it just weird. I knew it was bad already but I watched it because rsl as a cop with gunssssssss just... so rare and just.... something else. There’s no way of me missing that seriously. Tbh him doing an action stunt isn’t what I imagine when it comes to him and there’s really any actions scenes anyway but it really was something. Like the character he played here really became my soft spot Hehehehe he was pretty and plus, tbh it’s kind of film I’d make fun of while watching so everything was (alomst) forgivable. There is a recent thing I think about, since this is about a cult, I kind of hope he’d at some day play a role like Eli Sunday from There will be blood: a manipulative, deceitful and maddened priest with twisted faith. Though Paul Dano did a grand job, the idea was in my head the whole time. Well, it’s a shame he wasn’t any of those here lol
Driven
From what I seen, the majority of people seem to unanimously hate this film, and after watching it I became one of those ppl. At least Standoff could be make fun of and rsl held gunssss but this...... I want to say so many things... I feel like they should have chose either fancy, fast paced, thrilling racing film or detailed depiction of emotions/relationships with the racers and people involved in it, I know both can be done, but I think that was outside of their ability, but since they tried to do that at once, it became a mess that doesn’t go either way. And the characters, any of them, including rsl’s are narrow or impossible to understand. I mean rsl did great himself, it was not about acting, the problem lies on the script and editing in my opinion. Also there were so many unnecessary characters made me question of their existence. Luckily rsl’s character isn’t one of them, however because of them, he had to squeeze in and unable to elaborate, which is a shame as he was an interesting character and someone rsl rarely plays; a arrogant and opportunist agent/brother of the protagonist, who would do anything for success... ha.... whyyyyy
This is it. If I watch other stuff I might add to it in the future. Overall, I know I’m biased but I do like His filmography, I do have appreciations in every one of them in different way to the good ones to bad. He may have disagree, but I love his acting on screen, well, I barely seen him on stage (crying)
Edit: as some of you could see, I’ve edited this over and over again haha elaborating on thing or the contrary. I can say with a glimpse of hell I practically managed to watch every rsl films out there lol except for the i inside and the short film he did called a dog race in Alaska. But with the former I’m not interested and already know the storyline, and the latter is just impossible to find, trust me I did my best;; 
So to sum up: I HAVE MASTERED THE RSL FILMOGRAPHY!
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since0202 · 4 years ago
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Chapter 43: Patience
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Jacob was finishing his rounds when Embry crashed into his consciousness. 
She recast! I think she went to the Cullen’s place. 
Jacob’s heart dropped and he snapped to attention. 
Did you tail her to Ti’Hal’s?!
Yes! And she definitely went there, but when she saw me she freaked! And then she was leaving and I tried to tell her to stop, but she just disappeared. 
Jacob let out a snapping noise and turned his body to hurdle towards the Cullen’s place. He was right to have Embry tail her after all. But he didn’t want to be right. Grace was the most infuriating woman he’d ever met. Every time he tried to pull her in a direction, she’d push in the opposite. She’d tell them to go and then they’d stop. He literally had to order her to stay put just to keep her away from her sister now turned potentially bloodthirsty newborn. She careened toward danger like it was an amusement park. And when he’d catch her around the waist as she tried to jump off a cliff into the arms of yet another conflict, she’d kick and scream as he pulled her back from the edge. 
Do you want me to check and see if she’s there Jake? I’m close! Seth offered after listening to Jacob’s raging thoughts about Grace. 
No, stay put, I don’t want you near the Cullen’s place right now in case Bella’s awake. 
Edward had only somewhat been keeping Jacob in the loop as it seemed like things were touch and go for Bella. She was definitely transitioning into a vampire but it was taking longer than they had anticipated. Carlisle thought it might be the fact that they pulled her back from the brink of death at the last minute. But still, there were no definitive answers. He knew Grace had been having nightmares about it and he knew half the time she wasn’t sleeping anyway. He’d find her awake sometimes, downstairs, on the couch, arms threaded through her legs as she stared out the door over the moonlit cove. 
It broke him to see her so torn up but he kept the words Ti’Hal had told him at the forefront of his mind: 
“She is the protector. And as her alpha, let her lead with her heart. She will know how to guide you….but as her imprint you must keep her safe. She is the Spirit Bird, strong-willed and connected to the sky and sea. But she is also just Grace Alo, a woman finding her way into love and life with you. You must find the balance.” 
Balance wasn’t easy. Ti’Hal had a knack for providing answers but never actually giving you the clear way forward. As Jacob crashed through the clearing of the Cullen’s property, he scanned his eyes quickly over the quiet facade of the home. No movement. He sniffed the air tentatively. No trace of her. That was odd. He knew her scent anywhere, but it was nowhere to be found here. Could Embry have been mistaken? 
Grace? He called out to her. No response. Weird. 
Did you find her? Leah broke through. 
No, not yet. Embry, you’re sure she came here? 
I don’t know man. One minute she was going to the truck and the next she’s walking past me toward the woods. Where else would she go? 
Is the truck still at Ti’Hal’s? 
Yeah, she left the keys in the driver seat. 
Jake backed into the trees, but not before he saw Rosalie step out onto the front porch with the swaddled Renesmee in her arms. Jake tensed. This was the reason Bella was gone from them forever, never to be her true human self again. He had mixed feelings to say the least, but mostly, he just wanted to get the hell away from here. It frustrated him that Grace was so adamant about wanting to be here. They were supposed to be totally in sync as imprints, right? 
So then why did he feel like they were on opposite sides of the field? 
Jake turned and bolted back through the trees toward the house. 
Maybe she went to Charlie’s. Seth go swing by and see if you can pick up a scent. I’m going back to the house real quick. 
You think she went home? Embry said skeptically. 
Maybe… Jacob wasn’t too sure, but it didn’t hurt to check. 
As he came to the treeline just outside of the cove, he quickly phased and pulled on his shorts jogging up to the front door. He heard the sound of movement in the house, a clattering of dishes as if someone was pulling out pots and pans. He strode through the front door. 
“Grace?” he called out. A head peeked up from behind the kitchen island. Jake let out a sigh of relief. “Jesus, I’ve been looking for you.” 
“Hey.” Grace said nonchalantly. 
“Embry said you recast outside of Ti’Hal’s and left the truck there. I thought you….went to see Bella,” he said. 
Grace paused, setting a pan on the stovetop and deciding her next words carefully. 
“Yeah, I was going to. But then...I thought about what you said,” she paused, looking at him, “And I realized that what you were asking for was as much for me as it was for you. And…” Grace looked down at her hands, “And I’m sorry. I can be patient.” 
Jake’s face had broken into a smile, “You? Be patient?” he joked. Grace laughed as she rolled her eyes. 
“Yeah, well, only for you, I guess,” she replied, still wary that he might be upset with her.
“Come here,” he said confidently from his place across the living room. Grace walked out from behind the counter and then sprinted toward him, crashing her body into his. He caught her easily and planted a kiss on her. “Thank you.” 
“That’s how this works, right? Compromise? Listening...Trust.” Grace offered in between his peppered kisses across her lips, down her cheek and neck. Jacob made a soft noise of agreement as he continued to press his lips to her. “I need to apologize to Embry, I was kind of a jerk.” she murmured. 
She hadn’t even realized Jacob was steering her toward the couch until the back of her knees collided with the arm of the sofa. She sat down on the arm as Jacob brought his hands to either side of her face to kiss her softly. Grace placed her hands on either side of his scorching torso and tried to keep her head clear. This was the danger with Jake—it was always easy to slip into this euphoria with him, one where if she just let herself go, she could get lost. And she so desperately wanted to get lost with him. 
She brought her hands up to circle his wrists and gently tugged at his hands so she could pull her face away from his. 
“Are you hungry?” Grace asked in a quiet voice her eyes were heavy with desire and he looked across her face. 
“Starving,” he breathed. Her breath hitched in her throat and Jacob took it upon himself to lean his head down again to hers pressing harder against her. Grace’s body responded of its own accord this time as she arched her back into him and pressed her hips to meet his. Jake’s arm instinctively wrapped down around her back pulling her closer as their mouths became more frenzied moving over one another. Everything in Grace pulled her toward Jacob and inside she was rejoicing. But, annoyingly for Grace, something made her stop. 
“Wait,” she said, as his hands pushed up under her shirt spreading wide across her bare back. 
“You okay?” He said, perturbed. Jake couldn’t put his finger on why she always made him stop. It couldn’t be that she wanted to move slow, that had backfired per their last go at a relationship. And they lived together, they were in a clearly defined relationship. He was ready to take the next step but she always stopped him. 
“Yes, I—” Grace hesitated, a blush clearly forming on her cheeks. He placed a hand under her chin and pulled her face up to look at him.  
“What’s wrong?” He said, concern clear in his eyes. Grace shook her head. 
“Nothing it’s...it’s me. I just...Oh god this is kind of embarrassing,” Grace said closing her eyes tightly. The right side of Jake’s mouth pulled up in a lopsided grin that made Grace weak. 
“Tell me,” he said easily. Grace let out an exasperated huff and a laugh. 
“It’s dumb, it’s so dumb, you’re gonna laugh.” 
“Good thing I like it when you make me laugh,” he said, bringing the hand that was cupping her chin to her jaw and stroking his thumb across her cheek. Grace’s blush deepened. “I like that too,” he said softly as he let his thumb glide across her reddened cheek. 
“How do you do that?” 
“Don’t change the subject now,” he laughed. “Tell me what’s wrong. Why do you always stop me?” 
“I just—” Grace shook with frustration, “I just want it to be perfect!” she blurted out. She turned her head into his wide hand and cringed. 
“What?” Jacob said not connecting yet. 
“With you, I mean. I want it to be perfect. Everything.” She looked up at him, standing up and placing her hands on his chest. “I want it to be...special,” she cringed again, “God it sounds so lame but I do. I messed everything up so bad the first time and I don’t want us to be bogged down with all this….stuff.” She locked eyes with his and she saw the laughter twinkling in his eyes as he tried to take her seriously. 
“You don’t want to have sex yet because you want it to be perfect when our lives aren’t a tangled mess fit with other people’s problems?” Jake said to sum it up. Grace looked at him, mouth agape. 
“Uhh, yeah.” She said feeling stupid. “When you put it like that though,” Grace shifted uncomfortably and he placed both of his hands on either of her arms holding her in place. 
“I get it. We don’t have to take it to the next level right now. But Grace, I gotta be honest with you,” he paused running a hand through his shaggy hair. Grace couldn’t help but adore it. She missed his long hair and hoped he never cut it again. Still, she braced for the worst of what he was about to say next and bit her lower lip in anticipation, “I don’t know if there will ever be a time where we’re not ‘bogged down’ by all this ‘stuff’,” he used air quotes around her words and Grace looked at the ground dejectedly. 
“I know it’s stupid, but...I just want our first time to not be on the couch, or in the back of the Rabbit, or in our bed after you’ve had an exhausting night of running rounds, while I’m worried that my sister is lost forever, and yo’re worrying about everyone else. I want it to be...World Series Level stuff,” she concluded as she looked back up at him. He had an eyebrow raised and sarcastically said:
“Have you and Embry been binging 90’s movies again?” 
“Jake, come on,” she groaned, but she couldn’t help a smile playing on her face, “Just a couple..” He laughed and took her hands in his. 
“Okay. We’ll shoot for perfect,” he pushed a piece of hair behind her ear, “But I’m telling you right now, it’s not going to be easy.” 
“Why? Cos you wanna jump my bones so bad?” she joked. He shrugged. 
“Basically, yeah. Even if it’s not just the imprint, everything in me wants you all of the time.” He said a little lick of desire hung on the edge of his words. Grace watched him carefully, as her heart fluttered uncontrollably. Everything in her wanted him all the time too. 
“So...no more seeing me naked for awhile then?” 
“Probably for the best, just for now until we find our moment.” He brought his hand up and rubbed his thumb across her lower lip. 
“We won’t have to wait long...promise,” Grace said as she turned her head and bit at his thumb playfully. Jake laughed at that. 
“Deal. Thank you for not going rogue today. Now if you’ll excuse me, I still have rounds to do,” he leaned down and kissed the top of her forehead. “I love you.” 
“And I love you,” she nodded. She turned toward the kitchen and Jake took the opportunity to swat at her butt with the back of his hand before jogging out the front door before he could be volleyed with too many protests.
Later that night, Grace was startled awake by the same nightmare—the hand that reached for her was just skin and bones now, and Bella didn’t even look like Bella anymore, she was just skeletal remains and decayed dripping skin. Jake had become used to the nightmares at this point and squeezed her gently into his body before falling back asleep. Grace laid there for a second, getting her bearings as she bit the tip of her thumb. When Grace heard her phone buzz on the nightstand, she carefully pulled out of Jacob’s arms and rolled to her side of the bed, that she rarely slept on when Jake was home, and flipped it open. 
Carlisle. 
Grace sucked in a sharp breath and answered. 
“Hello?” she said quietly. Jake was awake again, now rubbing his hand sleepily across his face. 
“Grace. I’m sorry for calling so late, did I wake you?” Carlisle’s smooth tone was comforting but that didn’t stop Grace from searching for any kind of worry there. 
“No, no. How’s Bella? Is she—” Grace didn’t know how to continue. Jake had pulled himself up at the mention of Bella’s name and rolled over to be behind Grace, putting a hand on her lower back. 
“That’s why I was calling,” Carlisle continued. “I thought you’d want to know as soon as possible, since we knew how worried you’ve been. The transformation was successful. She woke up a few days ago and is still getting the lay of the land, but…” Carlisle stopped. 
“But?” Three days ago!? They couldn’t call and tell her that Bella had made it three days ago? 
“She’s asking for you, and she seems to have some cadence of control. If you feel comfortable, you should come by tomorrow.” Carlisle said, “When you’re ready, of course.” he tacked on quickly at the end. 
“Yes! Thank you!” the excitement filled Grace to the brim, “I’ll be there in the morning.” Grace glanced at the clock: 4 a.m. She could make it to 7. Vampires don’t really keep time anyway, this was just a formality. 
“See you then,” Carlisle said confidently before hanging up. Grace clutched the phone to her chest. 
“Grace,” Jacob said slowly, the concern clear in his voice. 
“He said she was okay. She’s okay. Oh god,” the flood of emotions was coming now. She had missed her so much, and while she hadn’t realized it, Grace had started to resign herself to Bella’s death. The relief at her just being...alive was overwhelming. Jake was off the bed and kneeling in front of her, his hands on either side of her thighs as Grace let tears of joy fall from her face. “Jake,” she said through a smile, “She’s okay.” Jake watched her carefully and Grace suddenly realized that he didn’t look happy. “What?” she said, almost annoyed. Jake’s grip on her thighs tightened. 
“I’m happy she’s okay...but Grace,” he paused. 
“Jacob, no. No ‘But Grace!’ Carlisle said she was fine and that she’s been asking for me!” 
“I know, I just...need you to be careful. She’s still a newborn and I think if we just gave her some more time to ...even out,” he said softly. 
“This is bullshit,” Grace huffed, the tears of joy evaporated and now all she was was frustrated. 
“You said you were going to be patient,” Jake said. 
“Carlisle said it was okay!” Grace held the phone up as proof and then faltered. “But you don’t?” 
“I just...need you to be safe. And I don’t think this is the best idea right now. Why don’t we start with calling her tomorrow morning and then we can go from there? That way we don’t walk into the lion’s den unprepared.” 
Grace’s eyes darted around his face, he was calm, his voice filled with concern, and his eyes were pleading. She closed her eyes tightly and heard the echo of words from teacher’s long ago that she had had as a child describing her to her mother: Impulsive, bratty, hot-headed, doesn’t think things through. 
Grace let out a hard breath and narrowed her eyes while looking at Jacob. A twitch of a smile was itching at his lips as he watched her. “Okay...we’ll call her first.” She said, her hands gripping the phone tightly. 
“Thank you,” he said leaning up to plant a kiss on her nearly pouted lips. “Let’s go back to sleep.” He said, the exhaustion returning to his eyes as he moved around her and collapsed on the bed again. 
“I’m not tired.” 
“Of course not,” he yawned. 
“I’m going to take a shower, you sleep,” she said as she crawled over him, making sure to press a knee into his abdomen as she made her way over his side of the bed to the bathroom instead of getting up and walking around. He humored her and made a loud groaning noise as she did this, but she knew it didn’t actually faze him. 
Grace shook out the pain in her hands as she tried to quell her frustration. He was right, she knew he was right, but she just wanted to see Bella...and Renesmee again. She needed to know they were alright. 
She’d stay put for now, but Jacob couldn’t hold her in place too long. She felt like she might burst apart at any moment. 
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rhetoricalrogue · 3 years ago
Text
Five More Minutes
Inspired by all the talk about various detectives turning and knowing that Astrid needs to be Dramatic™️ at times, here she is, giving her boyfriend (and mother, and honorary mother figure, and best friends, and...) grief post-turning. This most likely would take place a couple of years into a relationship with Adam, and she’s had a while to decide that this is the path she wants to take for the rest of her (hopefully long) life.
As always, Fiona belongs to @asaucyginger. I borrow her from time to time for shenanigans and to antagonize Adam. Astrid also has Chris Hemsworth giving out complements as her alarm clock on her phone, but only has that alarm on when Adam’s not around since while she may appreciate waking up to the sound of her celebrity crush, she knows the feeling is most definitely not mutual for Adam.
She slept for a solid week after making the transition from human to vampire. It’s wasn’t even a typical for her type of slumber - eyes twitching behind closed eyelids, breath soft and limbs relaxed - she slept as if she were literally dead, stiff, no movement whatsoever. If it weren’t for the sluggish single beat of her heart every ten seconds (Adam knew, every count of ten had been absolute torture until he heard it beat again,) Agency doctors would have deemed the procedure a failure.
One of the few positives for her being unresponsive after her change - a change that had been fairly uneventful, boring even, blessedly peaceful in it’s own way with a minimum of pain - was that she hadn’t been awake to witness the doctors perform surgery on her leg to extract the various screws and plates that she had lived with since she had been nineteen. Adam wondered how their absence would change the way she fought, seeing that she and Fiona had worked to design a swordfighting style to accommodate for a weaker knee and to protect her ankle.
The scar would remain, the doctors told them both, fairy and vampire momentarily setting aside their differences for the person they both loved as they had both paced the waiting room in worry. There was a slight tone of apology to that announcement, but both of them had breathed a sigh of relief.
One of the things Astrid had worried about was losing her scars, voicing a fear that everything her body had gone through in her short thirty-three years of existence would be wiped clean and rendered meaningless. Adam hoped she would be pleased when she discovered it hadn’t, even though the last traces of the scar Murphy had inflicted upon her had vanished, her new nature taking care of what Agency magic and medicine had started. He wondered if she would be relieved to have it gone, seeing as its presence had always bothered her and she took pains to hide it, even though it hadn’t been that visible to the ordinary eye.
Since she’d still been unresponsive after the first hour, her first feeding, and every other feeding since, had been done intravenously. Adam watched through the security cameras as Elidor had carefully set her up for the transfusion. No one had voiced it out loud, but everyone knew about how she had bitten Murphy in a similar situation. If she had bitten off a piece of his face as a human, there was no telling what she could do as a vampire if she suddenly woke up and had a negative flashback response. To his credit, Elidor had been unafraid, patting her limp hand and holding a cheerful, one-sided conversation with her the entire time.
A day passed and visitors arrived at the observation room. Markus and Tony became fixtures, both refusing to leave even after Tony almost got into a fight with security about not being allowed into Astrid’s room. She was too unstable, they said. There was no way to know how she would react if she woke up: she might be fine, she might decide to make a snack out of one of her oldest and dearest friends. It took both Fiona and Markus to talk him down and lead him back down the hall before he got kicked out of the facility.
Adam and the rest of Unit Bravo learned a lot of goofy stories about Astrid from the other three. Markus tended to stick with anecdotes from battle re-enactments and drunken post-fighting party hijinks while Tony went on tangents about their many annual Fancy New Year’s Eve parties in the City. Fiona’s voice grew soft as she recounted Astrid’s childhood and what it had been like to be a caretaker turned honorary mother figure to her since Astrid was two. Rebecca, who hadn’t budged from looking at her daughter through the monitor, thanked her for being there for Astrid when she couldn’t.
On the sixth day, the doctors allowed Cashew in, thinking that a familiar pet would bring her out of her catatonic state. Cashew, Adam was relieved to see, was unfazed by his mistress’s transformation. He merely gave her chin a few headbutts while honking plaintively before curling up at her side, his head resting in her elbow and his feet fitting into the palm of her hand. After an hour of no response, Cashew was put back into his crate and taken back to Adam’s room in the Facility. Adam knew that he wouldn’t stray far from the place until Astrid could go home, so prior to her turning, the two of them made sure Cashew would be comfortable there. Aside from a few honks to let them know he would have rather preferred his own home instead of the temporary setup, the cat had seemed fine.
Adam broke rank on the seventh day. He didn’t know if it was his fear that the woman he loved would never wake, agony at being so close yet so incredibly far from her for an entire week, the fact that he desperately needed to sleep - Nate had begged him to rest, promising that he would wake him at the slightest hint of change. Adam had refused; how could he sleep with Astrid in this state? - or a combination of the three, but in the early hours of the morning, he silently made his way out of the observation room, moving past everyone dozing in chairs and cots that had been set up for them, and walking purposely down the hall. The lone security guard only made the barest of attempts to stop him before standing down, most likely because the look on Adam’s face had stopped them in their tracks.
Astrid’s room held a faint antiseptic scent to it, most likely from the wipes used on her arm for her daily transfusions. The monitor she was hooked up to beeped in time with the slow beating of her heart and now that he was there with her in person, he could see the shallow, barely there rise and fall of her chest as she drew breath. Adam sat at the edge of the bed and counted: ten beats for her heart, twenty for her breath.
“Must you be so dramatic?” he asked, his hand reaching out to bring hers up, his lips pressed against her knuckles before turning her hand over and leaving a lingering kiss to her palm. “This has gone on long enough, don’t you think?”
The video in the observation room, no matter how crisp, had failed to capture the almost luminous quality of her skin correctly. She’d always had a healthy glow to her pale skin, but now it was highlighted even more. The freckles that dusted the tops of her cheeks and across her nose were still there as well, but they were subdued, like constellations obscured by a cloudy sky. Adam winced at the thought, knowing Nate could come up with a better metaphor.
He pressed a second kiss to her palm, then another to her wrist. Aside from the barest of changes to her complexion and a brighter, healthier sheen to her copper hair, Astrid had not changed. It wouldn’t have mattered to him one way or another: Astrid was Astrid no matter what she looked like and he would love her in any form she took, but he knew it would matter to her. Adjusting to whatever new preternatural abilities she gained would be an ordeal in itself, adjusting while feeling like a stranger in her own body would have added a level of difficulty to the process.
“I know you hate to wake on time, but please.” Adam reached out with his other hand and tenderly cupped her cheek. “Wake up. For me.”
Moments passed. Three heartbeats, two exhales. Adam hunched down and pressed his face against her chest, silently hoping to feel her fingers comb through his hair. “You’re forcing my hand,” he told her, gathering her close. Moving until his mouth brushed against the shell of her ear, he closed his eyes and grimaced. “The things I do for you.”
“Hey you. Yes, yes, yes you. Today is your day. You’ve got this. You’re absolutely crushing it at everything you do.” He leaned back when the familiar sound of her heart sounded at eight seconds, then another at seven. “You’re more than capable of taking on the world, the whole world, by storm.”
It was faint, but he swore he saw her eyelid twitch. “Speaking of the world, did you know that it’s a better place with you in it?” He brushed the backs of his fingers against her cheek. “You’re strong, you’re confident. You’re intelligent, you’re charismatic. On a scale of one to ten, you are an eleven.” He held his breath, desperately trying to find a change as he continued to recite words from a video she’d set as her usual alarm clock. The heart rate monitor next to the bed gave one beep, then two, the long, flat line on the screen making more regular jumps.
It would figure your blasted favorite actor would cause a reaction, he thought, pressing his forehead to hers. “You make me want to be a better man. Astrid, please. Open your eyes.”
One heartbeat, then two, then more until Astrid’s heart gained a cadence that was oh so familiar to him. Her breathing patterns reminded him of lazy Sunday mornings, of her asleep in his arms and half-mumbling about five more minutes. You’ve had longer than five minutes, he thought, hand tilting her face up. He didn’t have long, even if people woke to cause a diversion, until Agency doctors burst in with protests about how unsafe it was to be in such close proximity to a newly made vampire, no matter how well-fed they ensured her to be.
Astrid would never intentionally harm him, he knew that fact down to his bones. His faith in her was the reason he held no fear as he kissed her, hoping that the wishes he held back for her safe return to him would take root.
There was a twitch, the barest feeling of being kissed back that had Adam slowly sitting up straight so he could better look at her face. Ever so slowly, Astrid’s eyelashes fluttered until she blinked up at him.
“Hi.”
Adam let out a relieved laugh, heart soaring at the sound of her voice, cracked and groggy from sleep as it was. “Hello.”
She took a deep breath and blinked again, looking as if she were taking a mental inventory of her surroundings and wincing at every sound. “It worked?”
He nodded. “It did.” Reaching over, he turned off the monitor so it wouldn’t continue to irritate Astrid’s sharper hearing. “How do you feel?”
She peeled off the sticky sensor from her chest and made a move to sit up, Adam standing and offering his hands to assist. “I feel…” she looked around, her hands squeezing his. “Different, but sort of the same? I can’t describe it. I’m me, but…”
“Take your time.”
She grinned as she swung her legs over the side of the bed, eyes instantly locking onto her leg and shoulders sagging in relief at the sight of a familiar scar. “Sort of have all the time in the world now, don’t we?”
Adam pulled her to her feet and held her close, fingers sinking into her hair. “That we do.”
“So, how long was I out? Did we miss that special on the History Channel we were going to watch while sipping on blood bags and eating a cheese board?”
He held her closer, the side of his face buried against hers. “Astrid, you’ve been asleep for a week. We most certainly missed the show, but I recorded it for you to watch when you’re ready.”
She jerked up, the top of her head banging against his chin. “What?” her voice was louder than normal and she winced at the sound. “A whole week?”
“Trust me, it was troubling for us all too.”
Her eyes widened. “Cashew! Who’s been taking care of my cat?”
Suppressing the urge to roll his eyes, Adam settled for raising an eyebrow instead. “Our cat. Don’t worry, I made sure he didn’t starve.”
She froze, head cocking to the side. “There’s someone coming down the hall.” Her nose crinkled a bit. “This is so weird, how the hell do I know that’s Tony by smell alone?” She sniffed again. “And why does he smell like the cotton candy from that boardwalk we always go to on his birthday?”
“You’ll get used to it. I don’t think you’ll have a lack of vampires ready to help you answer any questions you may have.”
Astrid’s arms tightened around his waist and he felt the barest of trembles. Knowing her as he did, he knew she was trying to put on a strong front as she attempted to center herself in her new reality, acute senses and all. “I do have one question,” she stated, head against his shoulder.
“What is it?”
“Would it be possible to get a few minutes to myself? Markus is coming down the hall with like five other people and…” She looked up at him, the barest hint of fangs peeking out from behind her lips. It was maddeningly endearing. “I love them all, but it’s a little much?”
He nodded, kissing the crown of her head as he did so. “I’ll see what I can do.”
He had his hand on the doorknob when she called back to him. “Once you stall them, will you come back? I don’t really want to be alone-alone, and you…”
He understood the look she gave him, the unspoken sentiment that hovered between them. There would be time later to express it - and how light he felt, knowing they had today and tomorrow and a million other tomorrows after together! - but he knew what she meant. The noise and the presence of others may be a bit much, but just being around her was a balm to his senses, the sound of her voice soothing, the feel of her hand in his right, clicking into place as if he had been made to be at her side.
She was his home, and it still astounded him (and most likely would forever astound him) that she regarded him as hers.
Adam nodded, his mouth curving into a smile that matched the one Astrid gave him. “Always.”
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duhragonball · 4 years ago
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Hellsing Ch. 70-76
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I guess anything I say here is a spoiler, so yeah, this is “Heart of Dreams”, “Relics”, “Heart of Iron”, and the arc “Finest Hour”.  Oh, and “Lunatic Dawn”.   Gotta lotta ground to cover.    Treacherous ground.
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Not a whole lot to say about Anderson’s death.  He tried to become a monster using one of the Holy Nails from the True Cross, and then Alucard defeated him anyway, once Seras gave him a little help and a reason to go on living.   Alucard was pretty upset about Anderson’s demise, but Anderson says a few soothing words, and reminds him that Al only became a vampire because he couldn’t stand being a human, so it doesn’t make a lot of sense for him to cry now.  
So yeah, as determined as Anderson was to kill Alucard, he’s a pretty good sport about losing this fight, and he seems to genuinely pity the man.   He wonders how long Alucard will go on living with his regrets, and Al replies “Until my expansive future shatters my expansive past.”  So, if we want to take that literally, I guess he’s trying to find redemption by being a good guy to make up for his years as a bad guy.   Well, he’s been a vampire for 523 years, and a servant of Hellsing for 101 of those years, so I guess maybe he figures if he trucks along for another 321 years that’d balance the scales?  
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And maybe I’m finally starting to appreciate some of the complexities of Alucard’s character.   The Team Four Star Abridged series spent some time on his desire for redemption, but I couldn’t tell if it was based on the original material or something they came up with for their own version.   For instance, the Abridged!Alucard rejected the forgiveness offered by God himself, but later Anderson spoke of his desire for redemption and Alucard didn’t dispute that.    It seemed contradictory to me at the time, but the manga does seem to support that.    As Vlad Tepes, he refused to ask God for anything, preferring instead to fight and drive himself and his followers to the limits of endurance and decency as proof of their faith.   
I find that idea heretical, because it suggests that a person can “earn” God’s favor, or God’s forgiveness, or a place in heaven.    Arguably, Anderson tried to do the same thing, but I think he was coming more from a place of doing zealous deeds out of gratitude for the Lord’s grace, rather than trying to earn anything he didn’t already have.  
The difference with Alucard is that he seemed to be really wrongheaded about his faith, trying to use violence to become a good person.   Then it didn’t work, and he became a vampire, devoted entirely to his own selfish desires, and I guess he’s spent the 20th Century realizing that he’s back where he started, trying to fight his way to redemption, only now he has centuries of red in his ledger instead of mere decades.   
Oh, anyway, while this is going on, Integra takes a sword and stands it upright so it looks like a cross to mark Anderson’s death.   It’s like this quiet sign of respect.   I’m not sure whose sword that is, but it looks like the one Alucard was using in his Dracula persona.   
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Anyway, fuck all that, because Walter finally shows up and stomps the ashes of Anderson just as everyone was having their final farewell with the guy.  Rude.
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Young Walter just looks kind of stupid to me.  Why is he still wearing the monocle?  He’s trying to be 14 and 69 at the same time and failing at both.
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Seras asks what Millennium did to him, but Walter makes it clear that this isn’t some brainwashing trope.   He’s doing this of his own free will.
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He also doesn’t consider himself loyal to Millennium.    They turned him into a vampire, but he’s doing this for himself, and he’s only cooperating with them because their goals are in alignment.  
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Yumiko Takagi tries to kill Walter for... Was she mad at him for stomping on Anderson’s remains?    I mean, Alucard’s the one who actually killed Anderson, so shouldn’t she be mad at that guy? 
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It doesn’t matter, because Walt just slices her into pieces with his magic filaments.    Now Heinkel Wolfe wants revenge, because she was her long-time partner in assassin stuff.   The TFS Abridged series implied that they were lovers, too, which seemed authentic at the time, but I’m not sure there’s any confirmation to be found in the manga itself. 
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But before she can take the shot, the Captain shows up and shoots Heinkel in the face.    Like, through one cheek  and out the other, and the only thing saving her from serious injury was that she happened to have her mouth open at the time.  
Side note: I caught myself referring to Heinkel as “him”, which frustrates me because I’ve known she was a woman for like five years now.    When I first watched the OVA, I was confused, becuase I could tell it was a female voice actor, but maybe that just meant he was really young, like with Schrodinger.   But the Hellsing Wiki set me straight, or so I thought.    I didn’t think I’d still be making this mistake. 
On the other hand, Yumiko sometimes looks a lot like Goemon from Lupin III, so her wearing a nun’s habit isn’t as heteronormative as it might seem.  I’m getting off-track.
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You’d think this would be leading up to some big double-team on the Hellsing group, now that the Iscariots are out of the picture, but the Captain’s only stopping Heinkel so Walter can have a clear shot at Alucard.    That’s the sole reason Walter turned traitor, you see.   He wants to fight Alucard and win, and for the last 55 years they’ve been on the same side.  
But is that all it is?   I never got to read or watch “Hellsing: The Dawn”, the prequel manga Kouta Hirano created after Hellsing.  I’ve heard that it never got finished, but also an anime adaptation was released with the home video release of Hellsing Ultimate Episode VIII.  All I really know about it was that there was this time where Alucard and Walter were fighting the Nazis, and the Captain showed up, and Alucard ran away because he didn’t think he could beat that dude. Presumably, he left Walter to fend for himself?   But all three of them survived until 1999, so I’m not sure what the outcome of that was.   I always wondered if Walter held a grudge over that.   But maybe I’m reaching. 
There’s also a suggestion of professional jealousy.  Walter was a rockstar vampire hunter in his youth, but he’s been overshadowed by Alucard, who is--let’s face it-- a living legend.  This would be doubly true in the 90′s, when Integra reawakened Alucard, and Walter having to step back even further from the spotlight.  The only way for him to reclaim his former glory would be to challenge the greatest of all vampires and win.    He’d go down in history as a traitor, but at least he’d be cemented as the absolute best.  
Or... or, you can go with the TFS version, where Walter hints at his motives, only for Alucard to take the wind out of his sails and announce “because you wanna fuck me!”   And I love that theory more than any other explanation, because it just brings everything together a lot more neatly.   I guess you don’t need Walter to have had a crush on Alucard for 55 years, but it’s a lot more compelling than revenge or professional jealousy.    Those things have weight, sure, but they work better as distractions, the things Walter might admit to because they hide the deeper reason that he can’t bring himself to say out loud.   
And it’s not entirely rejected by the manga.  Alucard remarks on how much more beautiful Walter looked in his old age, compared to this treasonous knockoff vampire look he’s sporting now.   The last time he spoke this way, it was when he flirted with Queen Elizabeth II.   The next time he does it, it’ll be with Sir Integra when she’s in her early 50′s.
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Speaking of QE2, she’s safe and sound, because the Secret Service evacuated her to a fortified location in Dover before Millennium attacked.   If things get really hairy, they’re prepared to send her to Canada, and if London can’t be secured, they’ll nuke the whole city, though the Queen is certain that Integra and Alucard will win the day.  The vampires acting as Millennium agents outside of London are being contained and destroyed, so things seem to be getting under some semblance of control.  
However, the Royal Order of Protestant Knights, also known as the “Round Table” is down to just three surviving members.   Integra’s in London, but here we have Rob Walsh and Hugh Irons, reflecting on the death of their fellow Round Tabler, Penwood.  
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This whole scene struck me as a complete non sequitur when I first saw it in the anime.  Walter’s betrayal seemed to sudden and poorly explained that it felt like the author was just winging it by this point, and now we have these two dudes struggling to provide some justification for the twist.    But reading this manga in 2021, I find that it makes a lot more sense.    We’ve already seen tons of Britons in rather lofty positions, all willing to sell out their principles for a chance to become a vampire.   Walter is no different from any of them.   It’s just more personal when he does it because we actually know the guy.  
But as Walsh discusses the utter debacle of this Millennium invasion, he deduces what we’ve just learned back in London.   There must have been a traitor in their ranks, because that’s the only way Millennium could have made it this far.   I mean, they just flew a bunch of giant blimps full of rockets right into British airspace.   That only worked because they had traitors sabotaging the U.K.’s defenses and communications, and Hellsing was especially vulnerable at the same time.  
The only thing Walsh can’t figure out is who the traitor was, since it had to be someone at the Round Table, but they’re all dead now, except for Integra, Irons, and himself. 
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But Irons fills in the missing pieces.   It doesn’t have to have been one of the Round Table’s members, but someone close to one of the members.   Years ago, Irons warned Walter about Richard Hellsing.   Irons knew that when Arthur died, Richard would try to make a play for the Hellsing estate.   But when Irons’ fears came to pass, Walter wasn’t there.   It’s like he wanted things to play out the way they did.  
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But why would Walter want events to play out that way?   On her own, Integra had no choice but to unseal Alucard to defend herself, and she’s kept Alucard active ever since.   And now, lo and behold, Walter reveals that he turned traitor just so he could take on Alucard.   It’s like he arranged for all of this to happen years in advance.   But how many years?    Fifty-five, Irons wonders.   
It’s never explicitly confirmed, but Irons’ reasoning makes too much sense to ignore.    Earlier, the Major said that he decided back in ‘44 that Walter “Angel of Death” Dornez would have been a good “get” for his side.    Now, Irons is suggesting that Walter might have agreed in the same year.   So maybe Walter and the Major made a secret agreement even then.   It’s possible that they might have done it later, but why not in 1944?
I mean, the whole backstory here is that Millennium is a continuation of a secret Nazi Vampire project that Walter and Alucard destroyed in 1944.   Except they didn’t destroy it at all, which sure makes Walter and Al seem very bad at their jobs, unless Walter let them escape and covered it up.
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Meanwhile, the Captain tosses a first aid kit to Heinkel, kind of like he’s saying that he doesn’t want to kill Heinkel, but he can’t let her interfere either.   We’ll talk about the Captain later.
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As for Alucard vs. Walter, Al wants to check with Integra before he goes through with it.   He asks for orders, repeating his big speech from when he killed all those cops in Brazil.    Yeah, Walter’s a traitor, but he’s been a close mentor and advisor to Integra for all these years.   Does she really want Alucard to killerize his ass?
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Yes, she does.   If Walter stands against them, then he’s the enemy, and Integra has already ordered Alucard to destroy the enemy, no matter who (snif!) they may be.  Integra doesn’t relish this command, but she refuses to compromise over sentimental feelings.
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Man, fuck you, Walter.  
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Then the Major lands his airship near the battlefield and invites Integra to come aboard and fight all of his remaining guys.    Alucard orders Seras to join her while he deals with Walter.   I can appreciate Seras’ concern here, because the last time she watched Alucard fight alone, he took a flaming bayonet to the face.   She probably doesn’t care for Integra and Alucard splitting up like this.
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Before she goes, she thanks Walter for all of his support, which disarms Walter for just a moment.   Man, fuck you, Walter.   Seras is so nice and grateful and polite and cool and you just go right ahead with your 55-years-in-the-making Nazi Vampire Jilted Lover scheme.  Fuck you, Walter.   You don’t deserve to be in Seras’ life.
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So the gals go on board the airship and Schrodinger’s there and Integra just shoots him right between the eyes without bothering to slow down.    This is maybe my favorite Integra moment in this thing.    I sort of wish Kouta Hirano had done a spin-off of Integra and Seras doing cool shit like this for 30 years.
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Alucard taunts Walter with the fact that he no longer gets to be a part of Inegra or Seras’ lives anymore.   It sounds kind of petty, but when you think about it, it’s a pretty sick burn.    Walter may have been planning this for 55 years, but he still had to live that double life, and it’s not like he can just say he was faking it the entire time.  
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So they fight.   Walter’s magic wire powers seem to be amplified, either because of his restored youth or maybe the boost offered by vampire powers, or maybe he’s always been this strong but now he no longer needs to hold back anymore.  For instance, he can make mesh screens with his wires to deflect Alucard’s bullets.   And when Alucard summons that dog creature he used to dispatch Luke Valentine....
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... Walter just bisects it with a flick of the wrist.   You really begin to see why he was “The Angel of Death” back in his heyday.  
I never understood what this dog familiar was supposed to be.   Walter refers to the Hound of the Baskervilles, but as far as I know that’s just a legend confined to the Sherlock Holmes novel of the same name.   But apparently that concept was based upon “black dog” folklore of the same region.  There’s a whole laundry list of “black dog” apparitions in Britain alone.   Black Shuck, Padfoot, Hairy Jack, Bizarro Snoopy, and so on.   So I’m not sure if Hirano is saying that Alucard was the source of these legends, or if they were all based on a single creature which Alucard eventually defeated and absorbed into himself.   
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Al tries to use the Jackal to kill Walter, but that’s kind of stupid, since Walter designed the gun in the first place.   In the anime, I thought Walter somehow triggered a bomb he had planted inside it, but maybe he used his wires to make this happen.   It doesn’t really matter, because we already saw that the Casull was useless against Walter’s defenses, and not because it had smaller ammunition.  
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Then Luke Valentine emerges from the black dog’s body.   This part never made any sense to me, but I loved how the Major recognized him, but barely.  “Oh yeah, it’s that guy from Volume 2!    The guy with the brother.”
The doctor suggests that when the dog was killed, this allowed Luke to reassert himself from inside the dog.   Something about a “control ratio”, whatever that is.  Like, he was absorbed into the dog’s mass, but now that the dog is no longer conscious, he can think for himself again.    Notably, only half of Luke actually makes it out .   It’s like he’s half-Luke, half dead dog monster. 
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But before he can do anything else, Walter puts his wires into Luke and starts controlling him like a puppet, mostly so he can use the dog half to attack Alucard.
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Alucard seems more impressed than threatened.   Keep in mind, Walter was doing pretty damn well against him early on.   You’ll notice Alucard’s missing his right arm along with one of his guns.   This is better than Anderson managed to do.   So why does Walter even need this Luke-dog puppet thing in the first place?
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Well, it’s because Walter’s body is giving out on him.   Earlier, when the Doctor was performing the procedure to turn Walter into a vampire, he spoke about how rushed the operation was.  I mean, he had to finish the whole thing in one night, after all.   And Walter’s a lot more powerful than Dandyman, whom the Doctor considered his finest artificial vampire work.    So maybe Walter’s just too powerful for this, and he can’t sustain this form.   The Luke-dog-thing is just to keep Alucard busy while he coughs up blood.
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The Major sees this development, and likens Walter to a high stakes gambler who’s mortgaged everything for a single hand at a high stakes table.   Walter’s risked everything just to tangle with Alucard, and it still isn’t enough.
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Alucard does manage to finish off the dog-Luke thing, and this sets him up for Walter’s next attack, and then he goes to finish him off, so things seem to be going Walter’s way...
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But Alucard used a decoy, disguising Luke’s severed torso as his own, all so he could sucker-punch Walter in the face.   As it turns out, Walter’s physical breakdown is making him younger, which amuses Al to no end.
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So Alucard follow suits and assumes the form he once used when they fought the Nazis in 1944.   Yeah, say hello to “Girlycard”.   I’m not sure why Alucard looked like a 14-year-old girl during World War II.   I’ve heard this form described as a Japanese 14-year-old girl, and I can’t dispute it, but it also makes Girlycard seem even more random somehow.   
I mean, I guess the idea here was for Walter and Alucard to be able to move inconspicuously through enemy territory.  No one would suspect a couple of kids until it was too late.   I’m imagining a similar scenario to the ones presented in “Cross Fire”.   Heinkel and Yumi would play innocent bystanders, then whip out their guns and swords and go ham on the bad guys.    Knowing Hirano’s style, maybe Girlycard and Young Walter operated the same way.  
And this further supports the Walter-had-an-unrequited-crush-on-Alucard theory.   He might have understood that Girlycard was a disguise.  On an intellectual level he might have known, but maybe he still carried a torch, and told himself that there was some way that they could be together.   Was he just in love with this disguise, or does he love the real thing?  Alucard says that he told Walter the truth decades ago, and claims that this is the reason Walter turned traitor, so yeah, it sure feels like Walter couldn’t handle Alucard’s true nature, one way or another.   
I mean, let’s assume that this isn’t just about Alucard not being a cute girl.  Maybe Walter fell in love with Alucard in all his forms, whatever that means for his sexuality.    The bigger issue is that Alucard’s a vampire, and he’s just fundamentally different from Walter, and maybe that was the problem all along.   It’s interesting to think about, but the point here would be that there was some kind of problem, and Walter couldn’t let it go.
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Meanwhile, Seras and Integra are busy looking like total BMFs.   Just HBIC’s.   What’s better than this?   Two gals bein’ pals.   
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Hell yeah!
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Bad ass!
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The vampires on board this airship are happy to meet their doom, and Integra recalls what her father once told her about how vampires want to die on their own terms.   Seras doesn’t get it, because if they want to die so badly, they could have just died in the war they were already in fifty-odd years ago.  
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So the Major gets on the PA system and explains to her that they want more than just a glorious death.   They want bigger, better, more perfect battlefield, so as to make their deaths as meaningful as possible.  That’s why I don’t understand that airship captain from a while back.   Everyone else in Millennium seemed to understand that they weren’t necessarily fighting to win.   Britain is prepared to nuke London if they have to, so it’s hard to imagine anyone in Millennium surviving past today, even if they won.  
Anyway, as the Major explains all of this, the Captain appears before the gals.  It looks like he’s here to stop them, or is he?
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alonely-dreamer · 4 years ago
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Dangerous Creatures | Chapter 35: Dangerous Opportunities
Summary: Mackenzie, Elijah and Klaus keep busy in New-Orleans...
Pairing: Elijah x OC
Words: 2856
A/N: Please, note that I am French so there might be some mistakes here and there.
Masterlist
Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Chapter 4 | Chapter 5 | Chapter 6 | Chapter 7 | Chapter 8 | Chapter 9 | Chapter 10 | Chapter 11 | Chapter 12 | Chapter 13 | Chapter 14 | Chapter 15 | Chapter 16 | Chapter 17 | Chapter 18 | Chapter 19 | Chapter 20 | Chapter 21 | Chapter 22 | Chapter 23: Part 1 | Chapter 23: Part 2 | Chapter 23: Part 3 | Chapter 24 | Chapter 25 (Part 1) | Chapter 25 (Part 2) | Chapter 25 (Part 3) | Chapter 26 (Part 1) | Chapter 26 (Part 2 & 3) | Chapter 27 | Chapter 28 | Chapter 29 | Chapter 30 | Chapter 31 | Chapter 32  | Chapter 33 | Chapter 34
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I made Marcel everything that he is.
I treated him like a son.
And when my father chased me and my family from New-Orleans a hundred years ago we believed Marcel was killed.
We each mourned him in our own way.
Yet, when I returned, I found not only had he survived… he had thrived.
Instead of seeking us out, instead of sticking together as one, he made a choice, to take everything my family had built and make it his own.
Now he is living in our home.
He is sleeping in our beds.
The letter ‘M’ he stamps everywhere… it’s not for Marcel.
It’s for Mikaelson.
I want it all back.
And if I have to push him out to get it, then that’s exactly what I’ll do.
 ***
 Mackenzie’s giggles filled the room. “Stop it,” she kept repeating, but she didn’t mean it, and he knew that. They had started new games together, some even new to Elijah, as if Mackenzie was his muse inspiring him dirty little games he’d only play with her. It was innocent, at first, but soon, Mackenzie became more comfortable with him, more confident, and the stains of blood on the white bed sheets were so common now the compelled staff knew to change them almost every day. The implications of their activities only made them want each other more. Mackenzie, because she knew the effect her blood had on him, and Elijah, because he would never experience anything like this with anyone else other than her. Sure, he knew he would never love anyone the way he loved Mackenzie, but it wasn’t just about love. And that was something that made Mackenzie feel powerful. That was the reason why, sometimes, she refused to take his blood after they were done. So that she’d keep the marks. So that he knew they were there. His marks on her body. Claiming her. And she loved the way it made him feel when he saw them too.
While Mackenzie and Elijah were enjoying what both Katherine and Rebekah had called their ‘honeymoon period’, Hayley wished for death. Well, maybe not literally. But she did pretty much hate her life, and she didn’t have faith that it would get better in the next eighteen years. She was uncomfortable in every way. Not only was she pregnant with the world’s most hated supernatural creature, but her future baby’s father also was a total psychopath who didn’t see her as anything more than an incubator for his miracle baby. He had forbidden her from leaving the house where he left her to rot every day. Every day, she was left with a couple acting not unlike two hormonal teenagers around the house, in other words, alone, alone with dusty books she had no intention of reading, and a TV remote giving her access to hundreds of channels she wasn’t interested in watching at all. In other words, days passed and stayed the same, aside from the rising heat, and growing belly.
To make matters worse, when Elijah wasn’t busy eating his girlfriend (in every sense of the word), he turned into an over-protective grandpa, building the nursery from scratch, making sure she had vitamin, protein, everything a pregnant woman needs according to What To Expect When You’re Expecting, which she wouldn’t be surprised to find on his nightstand. Not only did it make her uncomfortable, and even more irritable, but it made Mackenzie self-conscious and sad, not matter how hard she was trying to hide it.
At first, Hayley thought it was jealousy. But Mackenzie was better than that. And she had no bad intentions towards Hayley, or feelings, on the contrary. After they had made sure Marcel’s secret weapon, whatever it was, could not detect Mackenzie’s powers, they had unlinked Hayley to Sophie, making the witches regret their whole plan to bring the Originals back in town, giving them enormous doubts about whether they would still go on with the plan to dethrone Marcel or not. Of course, Klaus was a threat to them now, after all they had done. Kidnapping Hayley, using his child to blackmail him… The witches were scared, and now, they had bigger problems than Marcel, and the witch community of New-Orleans was starting to turn against Sophie, who had insisted her sister’s plan would work. But Klaus didn’t attack the witches. No, Klaus was still in a suspiciously good mood. Aside from keeping Hayley locked up in the house, he was pleasant with his brother, he was pleasant with Mackenzie, and he was pleasant with Hayley, to whom his nickname little wolf had stuck. He wasn’t acting like a future father, by any means. He didn’t check on Hayley’s health, never asked how she felt or if she needed anything. He didn’t spend any time in the nursery, helping Elijah, or didn’t even talk baby names with his future baby’s mother, not that anyone had expected that from him. No. Klaus spent all his time with Marcel, and they were seemingly getting along great, greater than great, in fact, as if they were the best of friends who weren’t hiding deadly secrets from each other.
Hayley had started to worry about his behavior. What if he really enjoyed spending time with Marcel? What if he just wanted to get back at the witches? What if he didn’t care? What if… all the bad things Klaus could do, that she could think of, or even scarier, that she couldn’t even imagine. However, her worries were put to rest one day, as Klaus came back home one night with a newly made vampire named Josh.
“Josh here,” he had told them, “will be my eyes and ears. My joker, my…”
“Yeah, yeah, we get it,” Hayley had interrupted him. “He’s your spy.”
Klaus had gotten to Josh before Marcel even had the chance to put him under vervain. The vampire was compelled thoroughly by the Original hybrid and will be the key to taking Marcel down.
Though the existence of Josh was a relief for everyone, neither his brother nor his girlfriend trusted him in any way. Not when he was in such a good mood. He was plotting something, and they had a feeling it was nothing good, for anyone.
 ***
 Mackenzie caressed Elijah’s hair, her thoughts wandering back to earlier that day, when he had taken her to one of his favorite places in New-Orleans, a once peaceful beautiful park that was now a crowded and loud playground. She sighed, moving slightly but enough for Elijah to let a drop of blood slide down on Mackenzie’s neck. It drew a red line on her slightly tanned skin and the drop came to rest down her cleavage. She ignored it, she knew he’d take care of it later. Though the maids would have to change the sheets again in the morning.
She had almost forgotten his mouth buried in her neck, his free hand moving up and down her arm, as they were lying naked in their bed, resting from their long day of exploring the city Elijah had missed so much for the past century. He drank from her, her blood, the most delicious in the entire world, like she was the Fountain of Youth herself and he was the only one who got to drink from her, the only one who had that privilege, because he was the one who had discovered her. He had been there first, explored and found her and now she was his and only his and that thought would never cease to amaze him, to make him feel like the luckiest man in the world. But right now, Mackenzie felt everything but lucky, as she was haunted by a picture that would not leave her mind. A picture of his face in that park. And the look that said it all, even though he would never say it aloud, perhaps because he didn’t know it himself. A look she knew well now as it kept coming back, every time he looked at Hayley, every time he talked about the baby, about what Klaus should be doing but wasn’t, about everything he was doing in his brother’s place. It saddened him, perhaps unknowingly, and it saddened her as she knew she could never give that to him. In truth, no one could give that to him. But as powerful as she was, she felt she should be able to do anything, and everything she could do, but that.
He was content, lying in her arms, her hand in his hair, her blood in his throat, just enjoying the moment, enjoying her. But that was not the only reason why the question took him by surprise.
“Do you want kids?”
He froze, puzzled by the question. It surprised him, not only because it seemingly came out of nowhere, but mostly because he had buried that question and that answer a long time ago deep inside of him. So deep, in fact, that it was a hidden part of him, like an obvious take away of his very existence, of every single one of his actions. So deep, that the answer was practically engraved on his bones, carved onto his heart, like an invisible dormant pain that he would never let himself feel or remember. An immortal curse that could not be enchanted away and that will torment him for the rest of his eternity. Why that question? Why here, why now?
He slowly and gently retracted his teeth from her vein, licked the blood that escaped from the wound, though he knew he wouldn’t be able to stop it from bleeding as he moved away and looked up at her. She had asked the question so quietly, like a whisper, like a spell echoing in his head, losing itself in time, making his bones quiver like an earthquake would make a house shake. That question had been asked and answered centuries ago. That choice had been made for him centuries ago. That choice had been taken away from him centuries ago.
She was looking away but turned towards him as he sat up and pulled the duvet to cover them. Not because they were cold, but because the time for their adult activities was obviously over. Now, they had to have another kind of adult conversation.
“I can’t have children, you know that.”
“That’s not what I asked.”
“Mackenzie…”
“Do you? Want children of your own?”
“It doesn’t matter if I do. I can’t.”
“I know you do,” she said quietly, once again looking away, staring at that spot that didn’t exist.
“Where is this coming from?”
She shrugged. “Same place your regret is coming from…”
“I have no regret,” he replied, confused.
“You regret not being able to have children.”
“That is hardly anyone’s fault but my parents, and they are dead. There is no one to blame, though blame wouldn’t lead us anywhere.”
Her hand found his arm and her fingers caressed his skin as if touching him would fix everything.
“Why do you ask?”
“I don’t know… I just thought… it’s unfair Klaus gets to have a child and you don’t. He clearly has no interest in it. But you do.”
“My interest in Hayley’s pregnancy doesn’t go beyond anything an uncle wouldn’t do. Though, I am no ordinary uncle.”
“This is no ordinary family.”
“And that is why your question has no answer, my love.”
She looked back at him. He rarely used such words in front of other people, but when they were alone, when they were being intimate, he called her all sorts of sweet words. ‘My love’ being the sweetest. ‘My love’ was the answer. It meant ‘don’t ask’, ‘it’s okay’, ‘I get it’, ‘I love you too’.
 ***
 Klaus’ face tired of his never-ending smiling. However, he was motivated. Nothing would stop him from reaching his goal. Nothing ever could. And certainly not a stupid smile.
He couldn’t tell which was louder, the screams or the music, however, he had stopped caring. He was tired and annoyed, and he wanted to leave this wretched court of amateurs as soon as possible. Marcel called himself a King and had forged himself a throne, but he was just some tyrant wannabe, a little boy in a paper crown running around with his friends, bullying the weakest kids on the playground. Though he would never reproach Marcel from banishing the werewolves from the Quarter or stopping the witches from doing magic, everything that had allowed him to get to that point he had stolen from him, and that fact was like wood to a fireplace, it kept his immortal rage burning.
Perch on the balcony above the party, Klaus and Marcel stood like Kings in a court of horrors, watching their nobles feast on the buffet. Though Klaus was too old to enjoy such an obvious and basic vampire party, he had to give Marcel a nod of approval every once in a while, to keep things civil. He was bored out of his mind and had run out of things to talk about with his ‘friend’. Fortunately, Marcel had a surprise for his sire.
“I’m hosting a party.”
“Yes, you are,” the hybrid nodded, making the vampire laugh.
“No. I mean, I’m planning a party, in two days. It’s a charity dinner for some… I don’t know, charitable organization for the city.”
“I didn’t take you for the charitable type,” Klaus teased.
“Well, I got a reputation to uphold,” he replied with an amused smile. “It’s mostly an excuse to see Camille again, though.”
“Who? Ah, the bartender.”
“Yeah, the bartender,” he chuckled. “It’s a fancy dinner, just your brother’s type of things.”
“You’re inviting Elijah?” Klaus raised an eyebrow, surprised Marcel would want to be anywhere near his brother.
“Right, and his witch girlfriend, you know, what’s her name…”
“Mackenzie.”
“That’s right. She’s a funny little thing,” he said as he smiled at his sire accusatorily. “She’s not afraid of you.”
“Ah, she’s been through a lot.”
“Do you mean you?”
They laughed.
“I admit, I may have been less than cordial to her… more than once.”
“It’s a miracle Elijah lets you go anywhere near her.”
Klaus knew what Marcel was doing, where this was going. He had been working at it slowly, but not as subtly, for a while now. Marcel wanted Elijah gone, out of his city, no matter how, no matter what it took. He figured Klaus was his best shot, and usually he would have been correct, but not now, not anymore. If anything happened to Elijah, Mackenzie would destroy the whole city, hell, the entire state. No, Klaus had one goal, and he wasn’t going to let Marcel distract him from it.
“It’s different with her. If I kill her, he’ll stop at nothing to take me down, and I’ve tired of our little wars. The last one lasted a century and almost killed me.”
“Ah, let him have his fun. She’s mortal, they’re fleeting little things.”
Klaus chuckled, though not because he found the obvious threat funny, but the mere thought of Marcel going after Mackenzie made him want to laugh. He’d pay to see it, if only it wouldn’t result in Marcel’s certain death.
“Not this one. This one is here to stay.”
Marcel frowned and looked at the hybrid with curiosity. “You actually mean that.”
“She’s a Mikaelson, Marcel,” he nodded as he put his hand on the King’s shoulder. “You know what happens when you go after a Mikaelson.”
Marcel laughed. “Hey, I’m just talking, no harm meant, no harm meant.”
“She’d kill you before you even had a chance to see it coming.”
“See, that’s my problem,” Marcel grimaced. “Witches aren’t allowed to do magic here, and I don’t think she’s understood that.”
“What? Your secret weapon’s been shining bright recently?”
Marcel laughed as he shook his head. “No, nothing like that. It’s the attitude, Klaus. Elijah… he doesn’t respect my authority here. And neither does she.”
“Then why invite them, then? They’re happy enough on their own. Trust me, they’re unbearable to be around right now. They’re so… in love,” he said, disgust visible all over his face, making Marcel laugh whole-heartedly.
“You were never one for sentiment.”
“Right then,” Klaus sighed. “I’ll let them know.”
“I appreciate that, brother.”
Marcel tapped him twice on the shoulder before he moved towards the middle of the balcony, where he’d be best seen from downstairs, to make his usual speech. The words never changed. “Have fun”, “don’t kill too many of them”, and last but not least:
“And no matter what you do, no matter how good she smells or how pretty she looks, leave the barefoot blonde alone!”
That last part they all said together like a chant, like it was a joke. But when Marcel explained the meaning to Klaus the first night, he learnt he wasn’t joking in the least. He had puzzled out all the tiny bits of information Marcel could give him, and the hybrid knew it was no joke indeed.
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youarejesting · 4 years ago
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Pandemonium - NJ x reader
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Pairing: Demon!Namjoon x Reader Beta: @bubblebunnylia​ Genre: Romance, Angst, Fluff, SFW  Rating: 16+ (slight mature themes like night clubs, alcohol) Words: 3.5k Warnings: Mentions roofie’s and men with bad intentions (but namjoon saves you), talk about reader being a virgin. Implied murder. This is safe for work.
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If you search the word Pandemonium it literally translates to ‘abode of all demons (or hell)’. Which in basic terms meant the home of demons, a name quite fitting for the place of residence for Kim Namjoon as he was, in fact, a demon. He appeared human, of course and very handsome. Aman must attract his food.
Tonights meal was you. Unbeknownst to this fact you danced to the music, feeling it pulsing through your body. Each heavy bass note shook your heart in such a way it felt dangerous. You had only been to the club a handful of times but you loved it. Sipping your lemonade and dancing to the music. 
It was always a wonderful experience. Even the nights where things didn’t exactly go as planned were still enjoyable. You could ignore other peoples’ decisions, you were here for one thing and one thing alone and that was to dance. You saw him every night and watched him dance with everyone until he took someone home.
You remember the first time you saw him dancing, his hands on another man's waist as a sinful feeling passed through you. But you pushed the thoughts away as you made your way through the crowd. Splashing your face with cold water in the bathroom you listened to a gaggle of women chatting through the door to their friend who was vomiting.
For weeks whenever you closed your eyes you could see his gaze from across the dance floor. You were scared to go back. His first and only attempt to dance with you ended quickly when you turned to face him. He almost seemed disgusted, pulling his hands from your body and apologizing before leaving.
Were you not his type? Did he not like what he saw when he came close to you? You were confused and a little hurt but that feeling passed and you soon got used to the odd man. He would sometimes catch your gaze and you grew braver and braver to look him in the eyes. Taking a break from your dancing to order a lemonade, you noticed him dancing with a woman very intimately. His hands wandering over her curves.
As if he could feel your gaze on him he looked up and gave you a sly grin. In the multi-colored strobe lights he looked horrific. Teeth appearing sharp and his eyes reflecting light strangely, similar to what you might see an animal's eyes reflect. You coughed up your drink and turned away, a hand on your chest trying to clear the liquid you had inhaled.
You saw him in the reflection of the bar as he walked the woman out. You felt a sort of longing, what would happen if you followed him out? Again you reprimanded yourself for such thoughts, you knew he wouldn’t even be interested in you, it was obvious because you saw him almost every night and he never approached you.
“Stay away from that Namjoon,” the bartender said softly. “Those who go with him never return.”
Things started to get weird when the paper published an article about people turning up dead. You didn’t know what possessed you to look, perhaps just morbid curiosity. But you looked anyway. It struck you through the chest, each of them was a face you recognized because of him. 
You shivered and stayed away from the club for a while after that, too scared to find out if it was true. Did the bartender know? It was a month or two later on a friend's birthday and you were in the club once more. There was no sign of him so perhaps everything was going to be okay. Everyone drank and danced while you sat and minded drinks and purses with your lemonade. 
You saw him dancing and sat up, how did you not notice him walk in? That wasn’t important, what was important was he was dancing with your best friend Yoonji. She was smiling while he whispered in her ear and his eyes met yours. You could see the surprise in his eyes. He froze and you contemplated taking your friends home. You picked up the bags and raced over, “Hey guys? Yoonji I think we should all head home.” You said, turning from your friend’s group to look over your best friend’s shoulder at him.
“We would like to stay a little while longer, if you really want to go you can get a taxi home?” Yoonji smiled, looking confused and kind of annoyed that you broke the atmosphere. You nodded, feeling deflated and unable to form a sentence before heading back to your table and downing your lemonade in an attempt to relieve the dryness in your mouth.
“What is a pretty girl doing all on her lonesome?” A young man sat beside you, he smelt like cigarettes and you tried to ignore him, watching Namjoon who was watching you. You were glaring at him and he looked confused as to why you looked so mad. Did he not know he was dancing with your best friend and you didn’t want him to do anything to her?
You felt a kind of weight grow on you, your muscles felt tired and your eyes drooped. Namjoon’s eyes squinted, watching you, almost a hint of concern brushing his features. You felt an arm drape over your shoulders and you tried to talk but found it was a lot of effort. It took everything in you to stand, purses in your hand while crossing the bar. You looked at the man who ran it and he looked alarmed.
“What happened?” he said, looking around as if trying to find hints to how you became like this, placing the purses behind the bar knowing you and your friends well enough to catch them before they left. “Stay here, I will get you some water and a cab.”
“Mmm,” you whined sitting on the stool.
“She is okay, she just drank too much,” a voice said to the other bartender, one who didn’t know you didn’t drink at all.
You heard the man on the phone, “I got one, bit plain but we can make do, right fellas?”
You moaned and slid off of the stool and moved as best you could to the bathroom. You slammed into a table filled with empty bottles and looked up across the dance floor. In the haze his piercing eyes hit you and you pleaded to him to help you.
You knew you had been drugged and the sedative was kicking in, you used all your strength to speak but all you did was mouth his name. The man was walking towards you and you turned heading to the bathrooms, maybe you could lock yourself in a stall. You got into the bathroom and it was empty, it was almost three in the morning so that would make sense.
“Hey love, where did you go?” there were more of them.
You reached for the stall door, fumbling for the lock when your body felt weak and you slipped onto the dirty floor. You struggled to keep your eyes open while watching them, one reached out and you whined shaking your head.
“I think the lady said no.” A deep voice spoke, you had never heard his voice before but it was just as cold as you expected. He knelt in front of you and smiled, “Close your eyes little one and rest.” you did as he said. You heard noises but you couldn’t explain what they were, it was just noise. You opened your eyes briefly, seeing Namjoon surrounded by bodies and blood.
He tsked and walked over, “I will take you home, I have told the bartender to look after your friends. I just have to not touch you.” He scooped you up in his coat making sure you didn’t touch him and went out the back door. He was clean once more like it was all your imagination.
You moaned, feeling sick from the car ride. You couldn’t control yourself and were not lucid enough to lean forward, speak, or stop it. So here you were vomiting across the dash, he leaned over patting your back through his coat and frowning softly. “Sorry.” You whined.
“Relax and remember to breathe, you are safe now I promise,” He said, wishing he could absorb vomit the same way he could blood, it must have been a bad reaction to the sedative.
He saw you looking pitiful and it hurt his chest cavity, right where one's heart would be. Some people believed he didn’t have a heart. Even he was skeptical. “Perhaps I might take you to the hospital for the night, you shouldn’t be alone.”
“No!” you grabbed his hand and he felt the slight burn against his skin, it wasn’t like he would melt, he was no wicked witch of the west, he didn’t fry like vampires in films. But it was a severe cramp or like pins and needles that burnt a static feeling under his skin. The longer he felt it the more bearable it became.
“I won’t leave you little one, rest.”
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He sighed and drove you to his home as he knew it would be impossible for him to touch anything in your house. You were barely able to speak, so he decided to save time and carry your limp form into his apartment. He started the shower and looked at you half asleep leaning on the counter, face pressed against the cool glass of the mirror.
“Little one are you able to shower on your own or do you need help?” He asked, taking your face in his hands so he could look into your eyes. You had trouble keeping your eyes and head from rolling back. With a sigh he took a deep breath, this wasn’t going to work. “Little one listen to me, really try to listen to my voice and my words, okay? Concentrate.”
You moaned and tried to open your eyes but he got no response. Picking you up like a child he held you to his chest and walked out of his apartment to the next-door neighbor. He knocked and smiled, “Good evening sir, I am sorry to bother you, I was wondering if I could get some help? You see my friend was accidentally drugged tonight and, well I respect her greatly. So, I do not wish to look at her body without permission. I was wondering if your wife might be able to help her wash and dress for bed.”
“Oh, the poor girl,” the woman said, frowning at the stench and the vomit pressed between Namjoon and yourself. “She must have had a rough night.”
“There were just some bad men, she never drinks so I knew something was wrong.” He sighed as the husband followed his wife into the apartment and Namjoon sighed walking you to the bathroom. “Where would you like me to place her?”
The woman took you from his arms and smiled, “She is light, I have her thank you, carrying my toddler and children around gave me some strength.”
“Please call if you need anything, I will leave some clothes for her on the bed”
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You were in his bed and he watched you stretch out, clutching the sheets and burying your face into his pillows, inhaling. He was used to this, especially when he would watch you dance. You were very seductive and you didn’t even know how much it affected him and other males. 
You saw nothing wrong with what you were doing, just smiling and having fun. But the way you rolled your hips to the music had caught him out of breath many times. He wasn’t lying when he said he had fantasized about you before. Hell, he did it quite often.
He fell asleep, waking time and time again when you would wiggle closer and he would feel the burn. He eventually just let you get comfortable and willed himself to sleep through the uncomfortable buzz. 
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When you woke it was dark, you looked around feeling dry and nauseous. Sitting up you swallowed stomach acid that threatened to come back up. You walked through the apartment searching for something to quench your thirst. Not knowing nor wanting to disturb the cupboards you turned on the tap and cupped some water into your hand and drank slowly. The water was cold and seemed to ease the burn in your throat.
Midst drinking you looked around for any sign of him. You were on edge, your memories askew but your dream had him with a shadow around him and covered in blood in the club bathroom. Whatever happened it didn’t leave a good impression on him, especially considering his dance partners always turned up missing.
“You are awake?” His breath was on your neck, signaling he was behind you. You turned quickly and knocked a vase by the sink over. It rolled and fell to the ground, smashing. The shards flying and cutting anything in their path which happened to be your ankle.
Trying to step away, he grabbed you. “Don’t move, that’s glass.” He scooped you up by the waist and placed you on the bench, seeing the glass had cut your delicate ankle. He lifted your foot and licked your ankle bone, wincing, but the cut stopped bleeding and had healed perfectly without a trace. Maybe that's why he hadn’t been found, he was magical or a vampire or something. “God that burns.”
“Did you kill them?” You had no idea what came over you to ask but you needed to know.
“Yes.” he didn’t hesitate and you were left baffled. How did he admit to it so easily? Was it because you were going to die?
“Are you going to kill me?” you mumbled, the memories of last night washing back.
“I am a demon, I kill bad people.”
“How do you know they are bad?” You asked as he massaged your ankle leisurely, the feeling was surprisingly calming.
“If I can touch them they are bad,” He said, “They are people who lie, cheat, steal. Your so-called best friend did nothing but bad mouth you all night, I almost ripped her head off.”
“That doesn’t make her bad, that just means I am not her preference and that's okay. Don’t kill people.” You protested, trying to protect your best friend even though it hurt a little.
“I am a demon, that’s how I survive,” He said, “If I don’t feed, I could die.”
“Is there no other way?” You asked.
“There are plenty of other ways, just as there are many types of food in the world. But killing someone is like having a coffee in the morning, it wakes you up and feeds the addiction.”
“I don’t drink coffee.”
“Of course you don’t, you are practically a saint.” He laughed .
“Why did you save me then if you were going to kill me anyway?”
“I can’t even touch you,” he laughed, “The day I first tried to dance with you, I realized I couldn’t get close without being in pain so I let you be.”
“Why?” you said, stunned by being a strange exception for Namjoon.
“Well there could be plenty of options, you are secretly a deity,” You shook your head but stopped as it caused severe nausea, “Or more likely you are a virgin.”
Your cheeks grew hot and you refused to look at him, turning to the window. “Ah, so you are a virgin.”
“Not by choice! No one wants to be with me, that’s all. I am not like Yoonji and the others, I am average.”
“You have more personality than those women.” His eyes were locked on the road outside the window, “If it means anything to you, I have fantasized about you, a forbidden fruit that you are, biting you would be a sweet treasure.” 
He glanced at you to see you looking at him with innocent eyes and remembered exactly why he hadn’t acted on his evil thoughts. Rubbing at the ache in your stomach you felt nauseous. “My tummy hurts.” You frowned as he cleaned the glass off the floor. “Wait, how long have I been out and where is my phone?”
“Three days,” He stated with little emotion, “You drifted in and out of consciousness enough to vomit and fall asleep again.”
“Ah, I haven’t eaten?” You hummed, realizing the reason your stomach hurt so much. Namjoon’s head whipped up to see you and he stood up, walking over, taking your face in his hands.
“I am sorry, are you okay? How often should humans eat?” He looked upset, “What do humans like to eat?” 
He pulled out his phone and began downloading a food delivery app. “Pick whatever you want, I also texted your friends and family and said you were okay, I will return you home tonight.”
“Why are you so nice?” tilting your head as you selected the nearest restaurant and added something to eat. He took it back, adding his credit card details and laughing at your question.
“Would you rather I tried to kill you?” He snapped his teeth playfully, “also, demons were once angels, we still have the same morales they are just implemented differently.”
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He kept his word, taking you home and telling you to take care of yourself. You went out and bought yourself a small firearm, earning your license to carry a weapon. But as you mulled it over and the weekend drew near your perspective changed. 
Was it weird that you thought of him as a friend? That you were excited to see him again? You dressed up with a lot of effort and headed back to the nightclub. What had thrown you off was how he blatantly ignored you, dancing with another woman. You watched them leaving together in the mirror behind the bar and started to cry, not realizing Namjoon could see you.
You went home and cried, sitting on your bed when there was a knock on the front door. You dried your eyes and went to check who it was when you saw Namjoon through the peephole. “Go away.” You mumbled.
“Please talk to me?”
“Talk to that other woman, Namjoon, I can’t be friends with a murderer.”
“Do you want me to die?” He scoffed, “If I don’t eat I die. I already limit myself to once a month and that is pushing it.” You ripped open the door.
“Would you actually die?” The words were spoken in a small voice and a little pout.
“I don’t do it because I want to, it is such a chore to find someone every month and I mostly go for the dirty rich ones who do evil, evil things. There are other ways I feed and so I try to keep it diverse so I am not always killing. But it truly is the best sure-fire way for me to be healthy.”
“What is the other way?” You asked watching him and he rubbed the back of his neck. You realized what he was insinuating and blushed a bright crimson, you didn’t know which method was better, frankly, you hated them both.
“Look I will try to stop killing people.”
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As the month went on you pushed the thoughts of Namjoon being a demon to the back of your mind and decided instead to focus on Namjoon being your friend. It was one night at the club that he looked particularly weak, he had been trying to avoid killing anyone as he promised. He grabbed a young woman and headed out of the club. You were calling his name but he continued, leading the woman out and she gave you the finger as she went.
Racing out and hailing a cab you were on your way to his apartment, you ripped open the door. Namjoon had actually given you a key a while back. You wrenched open the bedroom door to see him looking like he was about to pass out and the woman looking a little pissed.
You told her to get out and when she didn’t move, you drew the gun from your handbag. “Leave!” she moved quickly, calling you a psycho and you turned back to the weak Namjoon, trying to remember all the different ways he could feed. There were murder and blood absorption, sex, terror, and pain. You could cut your hand and he could absorb some blood but what if he accidentally killed you? You made your decision.
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Waking up feeling lethargic, you were alone in the bed. You had slept over a number of times so it was no surprise that you fell asleep. You looked at your hands and wondered if Namjoon had bandaged them sometime in the night. You went to the dresser and grabbed some tracksuit pants and a shirt to change into. Borrowing his shower you made sure you were squeaky clean.
Dressed and emerging to the silent and empty apartment was eerie. It honestly felt like something was wrong. It was too quiet and Namjoon was nowhere to be found. You walked through the house and felt arms wrap around your waist and scoop you up. “I love that I can touch you all I want now without feeling like I am going to go crazy from that static buzz under my skin. You are my not so innocent girl now.”
“Do you want to kill me now?” You enquired, a little curious. But all you got was a sharp-toothed smile.
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askintothevoids · 3 years ago
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The Epilogue:
Roman and Virgil:
They never did get married, because they didn’t want to. Virgil believes it to be a british social construct to control women and the lower class, and Roman believes marriage to be bad luck.
They did get into that huge funky war that we were talking about, and had to put Babe with Protection. After weeks of convincing, Valentine, Mac-Kenzie, and Junius fought by Virgil and Roman’s side, and they won after 5 years of fighting.
Virgil fulfilled his lifelong dream of making Bonner regret his words, and plunged his mother’s dagger into his chest. Something about Bonner that Virgil never mentioned was the fact that the man often shared the same words as his former husband, so perhaps that fueled his anger. After a lot of crying, Virgil came to the conclusion that maybe he’d leave the fighting to Angie, and hire a royal therapist.
There was more to Virgil’s story than that though, he did raise Babe with his beloved partner, Roman, after the war. He made an excellent father. Anne even came back and apologized, earning her role back into Virgil’s and his son’s life. He even got to see his nephews more often.
Seeing that his son is now only 12 years away from being a full fledged adult (to him that isn’t very long), Virgil now has to see that Babe is very different from other children. Honestly, he never thought his own very very dead mother would be assisting in the parenting of his child, but hey, Virgil has to remember that he isn’t always right, even if he can see the future.
Meanwhile Roman pursued his love for music and theatre, he even opened a music program for Oteriphanne, showing the lovely folks the beauty of music that isn’t just only about killing the French and Brits in order to stop deculturalization of their land (though that’s not a bad topic, Roman literally just wanted 14th century vampires to enjoy Spice Girls and it worked).
He obviously, but admittedly very awkwardly, learned how to parent a child. Roman wasn’t as picture perfect as he would’ve liked to be, he did after all accidentally make his son cry many times. Like Virgil, he now sees that their kid is different. His son’s ears are full of words that he can’t understand, but hopes to try his best to ease Babe’s worries and hardships in life.
Through five years of virgous studying, Roman became a quarter fluent in Pterannan. With even more studying and training, he finally became a fully trained Knight and earned his spot next to Virgil with his forementioned music program (turns out teaching a population several new skills, means he bettered the population which is a requirement to become a king when you're not blood related to royalty).
Still there’s somethings that Roman still regrets, he never did come to an understanding with his stepfather, who was his namesake. Nor does he see Remus and his husband as often as he wishes he did. And he kinda wants to buy a cow.
Even after being together for almost 10 years, they still love each other, and yes, Virgil still calls a phone, a magic box because some things never change.
Patton:
After he and Logan adopted the children from the Dragonwitch au that they accidently orphaned, Patton certainly was trying his best to keep going, and he did a pretty alright job.
Patton single handedly traveled across the country from Florida to Indiana with four small children whose identities he had to hide along his.
Once he had made it to the David-Dase residence, he explained what had happened and asked for help, and here’s what happened.
Nicholas and James owned property in rural Saskatchewan, which they had inherited from Jane Phoebe David (James’ deceased mother) and never really knew what to do with it. So in order to keep their son’s husband and their new grandchildren safe, James and Nicholas let Patton and their grandchildren live there. It was a good spot for them, it kept the reporters away from Patton and kept people away from Daniel, Jane, Harper and Buddy.
After receiving help from James and Nicholas, Patton had to figure out how to explain his disappearance to the police so that he could gain some form of normality, and a good enough job to support his growing family.
Stuff didn’t exactly go well at first. Still grieving over his separation from Logan, he did often find it hard to smile for his children, nor did he find it easy to explain to them that they couldn’t out in public without being hidden from the world’s view. It didn’t help when his O’Pa (Janus Van Den Bosch-Brzozowski) passed away from a deteriorating body, it was for the best, but it hurt to lose another parent.
He kept going though. His brother, Patton Reyes-Baker, moved in with him and got a job helping a local beekeeper. It wasn’t so bad, grief can strengthen some bonds. His step father, Remus, visited every so often, it was clear that he probably wouldn’t be around much longer either.
He’s doing a pretty good job raising those kids. Still it doesn’t help that Patton wishes he did it with his beloved. There have been many long nights of waiting and crying. There’s a good chance that Patton won’t move on until old age, which could be a good thing for a certain someone. Overall, if he were to describe it, it’s like the worst nightmare and the best dream ever at the same time.
Patton did get to open that diner, he did get to take his puppies home with him, and he did teach his kids how to ride bikes (except Buddy), but it still wasn’t the same. For all he cares, he’s still a married man.
Hymnthian:
Being one of the oldest motherfuckers ever, Hymnthian is still kicking it. Under Virgil and Roman’s rule, he’s pretty happy. He does find some common ground with his great (times a couple hundreds) grandchild though. Babe’s remarkable ability to hear the dead often comes in handy for a grieving widower. In return for hearing what his dead wife has to say, he teaches Babe how to play To-Ouch, an Oterian instrument.
Janus and Remus:
As you might've heard earlier, Janus passed away. It’s important to remember that death is an important part of life. In Janus’ case, they were fine with it. After an aspiring career as a ballerina and potter, not being able to use your hands or foot can often be depressing. When their body finally gave out, Janus figured it best if their sister took their place. Janus died comfortably and happily. What else can I say that will convince you? Death isn’t always a bad thing.
Remus O’Malley-Gator was a different story. After the death of Janus, he found himself once again lost. He visited Patton, Patton, and his step-grandkids every so often. Remus spent most of time adventuring, looking for some kind of fulfillment. I suppose that sounds bad, but I always write a bittersweet ending.
Camila and Lotte:
After spending most of her adult life in the void, Camila was beginning to feel hopeless. Her sons were already grown and had found their soulmates, while she had still had nothing. Camila wandered for a while, universe after universe, she turned up with nothing once again.
With Janus having passed, their replacement would soon have to come in. And well, she was certainly surprised. Camila had no idea Janus had a younger sister! Lotte had been frozen for over 200 years, and arrived fresh from the fridge at the ripe old age of 48.
Camila had her fair share of trying to tell this beautiful, intelligent, strong woman that she was from a soulmate universe and that Lotte was her long awaited soulmate. Let’s just say, it took her a couple years.
Lotte had her share of pining as well. I mean, Camila is an equally beautiful, intelligent, strong woman who was tall (every short lesbian’s weakness).
She found her footing as her sibling’s replacement eventually, while she didn’t wield a shepherd's crook but having arms of pure steel sure did come handy when dealing with the dangers of the void.
Eventually, you know that their had to be an equally cute lesbian void wedding, where Patton and Roman became cousins, so that’s cool.
Logan:
As the only void dweller that actually only lives in the void, his life, honestly, sucks.
As the years go by, Logan’s hair only gets grayer and his yearning only grows stronger. He builds his tough exterior up once more, with some dull hope still intact. Logan knows the probability of never seeing his husband and kids again, and lets the gnawing feeling eat away at him.
But you know what? He did get to be cool Uncle Logan (his Ultra Secret Oterian Code Name was Protection) for about five years. He loved the shit out of Babe, even taught that boy some french and how to clear his mind even when people’s thoughts are louder than all shit.
Then he had to give Babe back to Virgil and Roman, knowing he should take the offer to live in Oteriphanne, he did.
Nothing became of it, he’s just a guy in a country full of vampires. There’s nothing there for him after all. Logan knows Babe isn’t his to parent, and chooses to keep his distance so he doesn’t crowd Roman and Virgil. Maybe in a few years, he’ll risk his life. For now, he’ll just become a grizzled middle aged man.
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kkeidawrites · 4 years ago
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Betrayed
It had been a month or two since Dracula’s reign of terror castrated half the country. It had been within those months that she had last seen Alucard, her cheeks grew warm at the thought of the long-haired man and thought how it would be nice to see him again.
After her stay with Alucard at the castle for a couple of weeks, Esmé received a message from her former nanny to come see her father immediately and she knew that it his illness was getting worse.
Esmé didn’t want to leave Alucard, god knows she didn’t but, the golden haired man knew how much her father meant to her and made the decision to let her go. No matter how much his heart was breaking. Esmé wanted him to come with her but, Alucard refused, claiming that this should be something she should do alone. To get closure.
Her final day at the castle was a tough one, Alucard had escorted her to Gresit and saw her off at the port, where Esmé broke down in tears begging him to come with her. Alucard again refused and the two shared a kiss as a parting gift, promising to return as soon as she could.
She watched from the boat, to wave goodbye to him sobbing in anguish as Alucard did the same, he too releasing tears.
Once she had arrived in Jova, Esmé couldn’t stop thinking about Trevor and Sypha and most importantly Alucard but, she knew that she had to see him and to be with him in his final moments.
During this grotesque war his illness had become even worse and Esmé wanted to be with him until the very end. Her father, Aidan, was a man with muscles upon muscles, she would often picture him to be a gladiator and had the most luxurious silky hair, seeing him so sick in his final days made Esmé’s heart shatter.
It looked like he had lost his muscles when she was away at school and he couldn’t keep standing long enough to fall over. The illness targeted his strength first, then his once dark brown skin became pale, and finally his eyesight was taken as well.
In the end, Aiden told his daughter that she shouldn’t stay in Jova to live, but to find a place where she thought would make her feel at home. Esmé could only think of one place that her heart laid and it was with Alucard at his castle. After burying her father, Esmé grieved his death and clutched his notebook where he wrote his final memoirs.
Her father made her promise that she would find a life outside of Jova and that’s what she was going to do. She had fulfilled one promise not it was time to fulfill another. She prayed she wasn’t too late.
And with that thought, she made the arrangements to go and find the infamous castle to visit the son of Dracul. From each town she passed through, the whispers of the castle being located in Wallachia and that’s where she was headed. She was warned by the people to stay away, some criticizing that she may be a witch, that was apart of Dracula’s court. Esmé rolled her eyes at the idea, she knew her possessing powers made her different but, to go as far as saying she was a witch was ridiculous. 
Arriving in the town of Wallachia, or rather what was left of it, the smell of rotting flesh immediately entered her nose. Groaning, she put a hand over her nose to block the smell and continued her trek through the town. Everywhere her eyes looked, dead bodies littered the streets, young, old, animals, you name it. The idea that the people here were suffering so horribly after the war made Esmé’s heart sink. She couldn’t imagine what was going through people’s minds as their towns were ransacked and destroyed by creatures of the night. How the children, who at one time had parents but, they were killed n front of them must be thinking. Wrapping her cloak closer around her body, she was finally out of the small town and was now walking through the deep woods that led to the magnificent castle.
Esmé marveled at the scenery as she walked, there was a small river flowing down the creek with bushes with different berries. Taking a few blueberries off the bush, she popped some in her waiting mouth and proceeded her trek through the forest. Finally arriving at a clearing, the smell of rotting flesh invaded her nose again. Putting a hand over her nose, Esmé looked around for the location of the smell and her eyes landed on two wooden stakes that protruded from the ground. Her eyes followed the length of the poles and she saw two people, one male, one female, both wearing nightgowns and impaled on the wooden stakes. Esmé gasped at the sight and almost fell back on her bottom.
Her heart was beating against her chest as she stared at the two dead people, they looked like they have been here a while and Esmé didn’t know whether to run or look for Alucard. Whoever had done this had a grudge, these two were properly clothed but, the way they were killed unsettled Esmé. Finding the strength to get back on her feet, Esmé quickly rushed inside the castle, she was surprised to see that the doors were unlocked and realized how dark it was in the castle. 
“Alucard?!” She called, her voice echoes and it sent an unsettling chill down her back.
Heading over to the double stairwell, Esmé saw how damaged the castle looked, the paintings on the walls were all ripped, the decorative vases were smashed, and there was fresh blood on the ground and stairwell. Esmé knew that Alucard could handle himself but, he was not invincible, the idea that he could be seriously hurt made Esmé worried. What if he really is hurt? Rushing up the steps, the familiar route to his room was engraved in her mind. The sharp turns and long hallways guided her through the large interior. Stopping in front of a wooden door, Esmé took a deep breath, this was his bedroom. The only time that she was here was the last time they had seen one another. And the first and last time they had made love. Shaking her head, this was not the time to reminisce she needed to find out what had happened here.
Raising a fist to knock, she heard the creak of the front doors open and Esmé had just turned her head when she felt the air shift, something rush her and a tight grip around her neck. The grip squeezed as Esmé tried to breathe and clawed at what she supposed was a hand.
“You are not welcomed here, human.” the dark voice spoke. 
The door to the bedroom swiftly opened and closed behind her and Esmé found herself pressed against the wall. Her eyes were tightly closed ever since her assailant had her in their grasp. Raising a hand, she charged up the little energy she had and blasted the person away from her. Their body flew into the dresser a few feet away from her and Esmé began to cough to regain some of her breath. After her breathing was together, Esmé raised her glowing fists, ready for the next attack.
“Who the hell are you?” she asks. 
The person got up from the destroyed dresser, the wooden planks falling off of their shoulders. Pale skin was the first thing she saw and golden locs framing the person’s shoulders. Her eyes widened in shock and she powered down her fists to stare at the tall man. 
“A-Alucard...what...” she looked him over and saw the clear distraught on his features. His white shirt was opened and wrinkled, his hair looked rough and unkempt and his eyes...his golden eyes that she came to love were void of any other emotion than anger were present.
Esmé didn’t come close to him in fear that he would try and hurt her again. He clearly was not in the right mind and Esmé feared he did not know who she was right now. 
“You came here to betray me too? Just like them?” he asked as he began to stalk towards her. Esmé knew how to subdue Alucard but, how could she bring herself to hurt the man she loved? Her hands were held up by her head in a way to show that she would not harm him but, Alucard could care less. Another human was in his home. Someone else was here to kill him again, just like the last two. They had buttered him down with their sob story, had him teach them how to take down a vampire and even...he couldn’t bring himself to go on because just, that thought made him grow angrier than he already was.
“Didn’t you see the example outside? What happens when humans enter Dracula’s castle? MY castle?!” he pointed to himself as he said this and Esmé jumped at the booming of his voice.
“Alucard, please, just listen-”
“NO!” he roared, suddenly phasing in front of her and grabbing her shoulders. He was literally holding her by the shoulders, her feet swayed from the sudden lift from the ground. The strength of his grip was beginning to hurt her and Esmé grunted from the pain.
“I won’t listen to anymore human lies! No more!” he yelled at her. Esmé felt his nails begin to penetrate through her clothes and she wiggled to be free of his grasp. 
“Don’t you worry,” he said darkly. His head came by her right ear to continue to speak so sinister in her ear. 
“I will take good care of you just like I did the last two.” He promised as Esmé looked in his glowing golden irises. 
“Please...don’t do this...” she whimpered. Alucard set her down on her feet, immediately grabbing both her wrists and using his powers to open the door. Immediately pulling her out of his bedroom, Alucard pretty much dragged Esmé down the hallway.
She tried to pull her wrists out of his tremendous grip but, Alucard would just yank her closer to his person so that she would stop. The quick turns and different doors they took were unfamiliar to Esmé, and every time they entered a different room the atmosphere would grow colder.
“Where...Where are we going?” she hesitantly asked. All she received was silence. This scared her, wherever he was taking her, he was making sure that no one would hear her or even know that she existed.
“You stay here.” He suddenly threw her in a cell, where she fell on her right shoulder. Pain shot through her, and Esmé hissed in pain. The sound of the cell door closing behind her made the woman look up at him.
“I will deal with you later.” he spoke as he locked the cell door then phased away.
“Alucard, wait!” Esmé called to him but, grunted when she felt pain in her shoulder. She rushed to the cell door, but, it made her bounce off due to the cell being spelled. Esmé used the little power she had and tried to blow down the cell but, it ricochets off and almost hit her. She tries three more times and the same results happen again and again. Esmé slumped down onto the cold ground and began to weep, what had caused Alucard so much turmoil to turn into a heartless man.
He couldn’t even recognize her with all the anger he was brewing. And Esmé feared that she has finally lost him.
End of Part 1 
Hey everyone! I know it’s been a while since I’ve last been up here writing but, I have thought about what would happen if Esmé went to find Alucard after season 3 ended, I have really thought about writing this and honestly the idea that I had to remember how season 3 ended really made me upset the first time I watched it and I had to stop a couple of times to get myself together. But, anyway, expect to see the next chapter on Tumblr soon I just thought I would give you guys a taste of the continued story between Esmé and Alucard.
And guys please start using the black!reader x anime tag in your stories when you write! It really does show that there are more black writers and authors out there who needs to be seen and appreciated as well. Thanks for everything you guys, like, reblog and share with your friends! And Happy Blacktober! And make sure to check out my other stories that I have written on my masterlist!
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sunshinejihyun · 4 years ago
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The Night I’ve Been Waiting For || Zen Ryu
Author’s note: I wrote this for @mysmessengerdiscord​‘s Apple-y Ever After event. I didn’t use a prompt from it, but it’s still fall/halloween themed and I have another fic coming out that will be using a prompt supplied. 
The costume choices were heavily inspired by Bonnie and Clyde the Musical and I stole this title from a line in the song How ‘Bout a Dance.
Summary: A costumed Halloween fundraiser throws Zen and MC into some emotional turmoil
Word Count: 2,255
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When Jumin Han announced that he was going to be throwing a Halloween fundraiser, you and your best friend, Zen started planning your costumes. For as long as you had known him, you and Zen had always dressed up together for Halloween, you guys shared a favorite holiday after all, why wouldn’t you? When you both first met, you went as countless pairs: Mr. and Mrs. Incredible, Woody and Buzz, Eric and Ariel, ect. As you became closer, you both still dressed in pairs but made them more creative. All your friends loved to bring up the time you guys went as Peter Pan and his shadow, Zen being the shadow since he was so much taller than you.
“So I was thinking this year that we went as a silent movie couple? Wear all black and white and paint our faces and hands white as well?” You caught up with Zen one night before walking into a get together at Saeyoung’s house.
“Or maybe Ant-Man and The Wasp? I think that would be really cool and I’d look amazing in that costume.” Zen said, swagger dripping from his words. He turned his phone towards you to show you costumes that you both could order off of Amazon.
Sighing, you both stopped outside of the bunker’s front door and texted Yoosung asking to be  let in. “I don’t know, Zen. Money’s tight for the both of us right now. At least with my idea you and I could wear stuff we already own and just buy the body paint.”
“We always do what you want to do, MC. Can’t we do what I want to do for one year? I’ll even buy your costume and you can pay me back when you want.” Zen was rubbing his upper arm, something he did when he was anxious, which wasn’t often.
Grabbing his hand, you smiled softly at him. “I don’t think I want to do that. I’d feel really bad.”
“Then maybe I can just ask Jaehee if she’ll match with me instead.” Zen said, glancing at the dark haired woman as the door swung open. You felt your insides clench slightly. You’ve been picking up lately that Zen might be interested in Jaehee and every time you thought of that, you felt a pang of jealousy in your stomach. You were sure it was only because if Zen started dating Jaehee, he wouldn’t have as much time to hang out with you. Although, the rest of your friends knew the real reason you were jealous: you loved Zen and couldn’t bear the thought of him seeing someone else.
“Uh yeah..” you trailed off spotting Saeyoung sprawled across the couch. “I think I will ask Saeyoung if you don’t mind then.”
Zen looked taken aback for a moment before plastering a smile on his face. “Good idea. I’m gonna go catch up with Jaehee but I’ll see you later?” It wasn’t a question that Zen usually asked. You and him were always together. But with the halloween costume debacle, he didn’t know what to expect.
“Um, sure. Maybe. I’ll text you!” You said, anxious to get away. You felt like you were going to pass out, your head was swimming and it was getting harder to concentrate on what you were doing.
Zen cast his eyes down and turned to your shared group of friends milling about, smiling softly as he saw Jaehee waiving him over. You watched him walk away and ignored how you felt like a piece of you was leaving with him. Sitting down next to Saeyoung, you put on a forced smile as he greeted you. “How’s your day been so far?”
“It’s been okay. Hey, so Jumin’s halloween fundraiser? Have you thought about matching costumes with anyone yet?” Saeyoung looked startled and you weren’t surprised. You and him have always been a part of the RFA but were never super close; it has always been you and Zen.
“I mean, not really. Yoosung and I will probably put something together last minute if I can’t find someone else.” When he said that, Saeyoung coughed nervously. “I assume you and Zen are matching this year?”
Shaking your head you looked pointedly at your math partner. “Nah, he’s asking Jaehee to do a Marvel themed costume with him since we couldn’t agree on what to do. I was uh, wondering if maybe you wanted to do a couples costume with me?”
Saeyoung nodded his head eagerly. “I’d love to but I’ll warn you, I’m not super creative so we can really do what you want and I’ll just be happy to be paired with you.”
Blushing you swept a piece of hair away from your face. “What do you mean you’re not creative?  You literally cosplay for fun?” You questioned the man sitting next to you and he shrugged nonchalantly.  “But… Well I was thinking of a couple from an old black and white silent film?”
“That’d be so cool! We’d wear our nicest black and white clothing and then paint our faces and hands with white paint and line our lips with black or grey coloring!”
“That’s exactly what I was going for, this is gonna be great!” You exclaimed turning to the worksheet that was just placed in front of you. “We can meet up later this week before halloween to go buy the paint.”
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After work on Friday, Saeyoung picked you up in his fancy car and drove to the nearest costume shop. “Hey I was thinking maybe we could do something other than silent film actors? Maybe something like a classic couple? Maybe Bonnie and Clyde?” Saeyoung said, shifting through some of the costumes. “We could go to the thrift store and get the costumes from there. I’m just not sure I’m feeling a silent film couple.”
You considered Saeyoung’s idea for a moment before agreeing. “Sure, as long as you’re Clyde, I know how you like to dress up sometimes.”
Grinning, Saeyoung grabbed your hand and led you out of the costume shop. “I’d look good as either, but I’ll put you out of the misery of being Clyde since I don’t think you can pull it off.”
“Hey! I’ll let you know that I could be a damn good Clyde if I chose to be! You’d just look really good in a fedora.” Even though he was teasing, you felt your chest ache. Zen wouldn’t have said something like that and you found yourself missing him a little bit more than normal.
Ever since you couldn’t agree on a costume pair, you two had grown apart, he was busy planning a costume with Jaehee and you with Saeyoung, there was nothing to talk about other than your days, but even that only left you with a few short minutes of conversation. So you pushed that pain to the side and focused on where you were currently, trying on long pencil skirts and old fashioned blouses until Saeyoung approved of one of the ones you had picked.
Once he dropped you off at your apartment, you grinned at him through the passenger’s window. “I’m so excited to see how you’ll make the bloodstains look real. I can’t wait. Thanks again for doing this!”
With a faraway look in his eye, Saeyoung waived you off before driving away and you found yourself glancing at your phone to see if there was anything interesting you had missed. No text from Zen. Sighing, you pushed your phone back  in your pocket and headed up the stairs to your apartment, already planning on making some halloween cookies once you got settled.
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Saturday night was the night of Jumin’s halloween fundraiser and you were buzzing with excitement, picking nervously at an invisible thread on your costume. Saeyoung had helped you pick out a costume, made some alterations to make it look like there was blood spatter and bullet holes on it and you looked amazing in it but you hadn’t seen his costume at all. He said you’d be surprised though.
When a knock sounded on your front door, you jumped up and opened it to meet Saeyoung in all black. “Hey, uh. Where’s your costume?” Saeyoung escorted you to the car and you were surprised when you looked in the back and saw a cardboard PacMan. “That doesn’t look like Clyde. Saeyoung, what’s going on?”
Saeyoung had a soft smile on his face as he backed out of your driveway and headed towards Jumin’s house. “You’ll see when we get there.”
The rest of the car ride was quiet, leaving you very confused. You had no idea what was going on and you couldn’t be Bonnie without a Clyde, no one would understand.
When you arrived at Jumin’s you got out of the car and patiently waited as Saeyoung put on his cardboard version of PacMan and you both walked into the fundraiser together. “MC!” You were pulled away from Saeyoung as soon as you walked in, Jumin pushing a drink into your hand. “I thought you and Zen weren’t going as a pair this year?”
You furrowed your brow as you took a sip of the punch that had yet to be spiked, most likely by Zen. “We aren’t. I was supposed to match with Saeyoung but he showed up at my door with a PacMan costume today. Now I look like a fool.”
“Evening, Bonnie. Don’t you look wonderful tonight.” You turned around and saw Zen standing in a Clyde Barrow costume, tipping his hat towards you charmingly. Jumin laughed lightly at the blush spreading on your cheeks.
“Mr. Barrow,” you responded, playing along with Zen’s introduction. “Fancy seeing you here in that.”
“Jaehee persuaded me to go as Clyde and said she’d be Bonnie. Much to my surprise, she showed up on my doorstep in a vampire costume.”
“It seems that Saeyoung and Jaehee planned this,” you noted. “Hey look I’m sor-”
“MC, I should apologize. I was a jerk and didn’t take into consideration your feelings about your money situation and what you wanted to do for halloween. Ditching you wasn’t cool.” Zen was rubbing at his arm again and you grabbed his hand, rubbing soothing circles into the palm of it with your thumb.
“Forgotten and forgiven. All that matters is that we’re here now and we ended up matching in damn good costumes, if I do say so myself.” Zen started leaning closer to you, his breath starting to brush over your lips and you felt your heartbeat pick up.
“MC! Zen! They’re about to announce the couple costume winners! You guys should go over because I heard that you two have a good shot. The winners get to choose which charity the money goes to this time!” Yoosung pushed his way through the crowd to get your attention, his purple PacMan costume slightly bent out of shape, and Zen leaned back and cleared his throat, gesturing towards the semi-tipsy blond.
“You heard the man, we should head over there.” Zen grabbed your hand and led you through the crowd, your heart feeling like it was floating over your head as the steady grip of his hand never left yours.
“The winners were voted by the crowd for the couples costume,” Jaehee paused as she pulled out her phone and Zen’s hand squeezed yours a little harder for that second. “Is MC and Zen as Bonnie and Clyde!” Zen pulled you to the front of the crowd so that you both could accept the envelope with the card in it, explaining all the charities that the money you won could go to.
“I suppose I owe you a congratulations, although everyone else’s costumes are boring compared to yours.” Jumin, who was dressed as Doctor Frankenstein, shook both of your hands and you couldn’t wipe the goofy grin off your face. “Did you want to make a speech?”
Zen was notorious for speeches, all of the RFA joked that the only reason he gave them was because he liked to hear his own voice and you weren’t entirely convinced that wasn’t true. “I don’t think so. I think this’ll speak for itself,”
Zen pulled you closer to him and you looked up questioningly at him. “Zen, what are you-”
Your best friend cut you off by placing his lips on yours. Shocked at first, you didn’t know how to react but once you realized what was happening, your arms wound around his neck, accidentally knocking his hat off in the process, and your eyes closed, you fully melted into the kiss. “I’ve been wanting to do that for about as long as I could remember.”
Pressing another kiss to his lips, you played with his hair that was put into a bun to hide under his hat. “I’m glad you did.”
Pulling away from Zen, you turned to all your friends who were watching this interaction quitely. Once they saw you both were done with your small moment, they erupted into cheers. “Finally!” Someone exclaimed and you laughed, bending down to pick up Zen’s fedora off the ground.
Placing it back on his head, he leaned down and kissed your lips again and brushed his fingers across your tinted pink cheeks. “If I haven’t told you already tonight, you look amazing, Bonnie.”
Putting your head in the crook of his neck you smiled, breathing in the scent that was so incredibly Zen that you had no other way to describe it. “You look pretty charming yourself, Clyde.”
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salvatoreschool · 4 years ago
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Vampire Diaries Universe: The 25 Best Characters, Ranked
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For the first time since 2009, we’re entering a fall season devoid of any new offerings from the Vampire Diaries universe. And like Stefan Salvatore without his daily diet of forest friends, we’re insatiable.
Like so many longtime TVD enthusiasts (those of us to whom the word “thesmatos” really means something!), we’ve spent much of quarantine revisiting the weird, wonderful universe — from Mystic Falls to New Orleans and back again. We’re suddenly spending a lot of time with characters we haven’t seen in years. And we’re having a lot of feelings about them.
In celebration of the franchise’s 11th anniversary, TVLine has assembled another totally non-controversial ranking, this time of the 25 best characters from the Vampire Diaries universe — a category that also includes familiar faces from The Originals and Legacies. (In Legacies‘ defense, the franchise’s latest offshoot hasn’t been around as long to endear itself to us, but that didn’t stop four Salvatore School students from making their way onto our list.)
In lieu of new content from the TVD universe this fall, TVLine is looking back at our 25 favorite characters from the entire franchise, including stand-out favorites from its two spinoffs.
SPOILER ALERT: This ranking discusses major plot points from all three shows. If you haven’t finished The Vampire Diaries (Season 1-8), The Originals (Season 1-5) or Legacies (Season 1-2), proceed at your own risk. Don’t say we didn’t warn you!
25. VINCENT GRIFFITH
Thanks to the magic of body swapping, the Mikaelson siblings have inhabited multiple physical vessels throughout the years, but none have remained in the family’s orbit quite like this Southern gentleman. Powerful, thoughtful and downright Shakespearean in his delivery (Yusuf Gatewood, ladies and gentlemen!), Vincent always has the greater good in mind. And as we learned in The Originals’ series finale, he helped Freya and Keelan pass that good along to the next generation.
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24. LANDON KIRBY
Even though we’re still getting to know him, there’s already so much to like about this pure-hearted Mystic Falls townie. Not only is he the franchise’s first-ever phoenix, but he also looks like he could pass for Damon and Elena’s offspring — and that’s never a bad thing. We could tell he had a long future in this universe the moment he danced with Hope in The Originals’ final season. (So far, so good!)
23. JENNA SOMMERS
Like so many paved paradises, we didn’t fully appreciate what we had with Jenna until she was gone. Her death marked the end of Elena’s innocence — which is saying a lot, considering she was still mourning her own parents when The Vampire Diaries began. And if we’re being honest, Jenna was the ghost we were most excited to see again in the series finale. (For the record, Joseph Morgan has apologized on Klaus’ behalf for killing Jenna several times.)
22. TYLER LOCKWOOD
The First Son of Mystic Falls was kind of a jerk when we met him in The Vampire Diaries‘ first season. He was arrogant, aggressive and reckless — so it actually made perfect sense when he was revealed to be a werewolf. Fortunately, Michael Trevino’s character developed a little more nuance from that point on, especially via his Romeo and Juliet romance with Caroline. (After everything that’s happened since 2013, can you believe that they were once in a love triangle with Klaus?)
21. JEREMY GILBERT
Elena’s little brother (er, cousin?) went through a number of different, wonderful phases during his tenure in Mystic Falls. We loved him in The Vampire Diaries’ earlier seasons as the human embodiment of all things emo (he literally dated a ghost!), and we… um… appreciated his unexpected evolution into a shirt-ripping, wood-chopping vampire hunter.
20. CAMILLE ‘CAMI’ O’CONNELL
The Clarice Starling to Klaus’ Hannibal Lecter, this brave bartender was able to tap into the show’s darkest, most complicated character’s psyche in ways that no one named Mikaelson (or even Forbes) ever could. She helped him conquer a number of his demons in the few short years they spent together on The Originals, and like most people who play a significant role in Klaus’ life, she suffered the consequences. (Side note: Are we the only ones who really dug Cami as a vampire? Justice for that short-lived story arc.)
19. SHERIFF ELIZABETH FORBES
Of The Vampire Diaries’ many maternal figures, none put us through the emotional ringer quite like Caroline’s mother. We weren’t her biggest fans in the show’s early seasons, given her penchant for hunting the undead (including her own daughter), but hey, what was this show if not an endless series of redemption arcs? Also, if you don’t get a little choked up when Caroline felt her mom’s presence in the series finale, you don’t have a soul.
18. FREYA MIKAELSON
The long-lost fifth Mikaelson sibling was a little rough around the edges when we first encountered her on The Originals, but the poor woman was in the midst of escaping a centuries-long imprisonment, so we cut her a little slack. And we’re glad we did, because Freya has since become one of the strongest, most inspiring and all-around likable characters in the Vampire Diaries canon. #FreelinForever
17. MARCEL GERARD
While it’s easy to get swept up in Marcel’s charm and swagger (we were robbed of a second karaoke number, by the way!), it’s important to remember just how far back his time with the Mikaelson family goes. When you consider that Klaus literally freed Marcel from slavery and raised him to lead New Orleans as his right-hand vampire, it adds a whole other layer of tension to their passionate power struggle on The Originals. Though he’s treated like an unofficial Mikaelson sibling, Marcel often feels like more of a Mikaelson than Kol — and definitely more than Finn.
16. REBEKAH MIKAELSON
Arguably the funniest (and most glamorous) member of the Mikaelson family, the woman Damon once referred to as “Barbie Klaus” never fai to tell it exactly like it was, beginning with her thoughts on then-lovebirds Stefan and Elena. (“Honestly, I don’t get you two as a couple.”) And Bex only became more complex as the years went on, from her desperate desire for humanity to her undeniable love for Marcel. Just don’t call her insane — she prefers “spontaneous.”
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15. ALARIC SALTZMAN
In hindsight, Alaric’s journey from hot history teacher to hot headmaster of a supernatural school makes perfect sense. Still, it was impossible to predict back in The Vampire Diaries’ first season just how much of an impact the man formerly known as Warner Huntington III would have on this franchise. A drinking buddy to some, a father figure to others and a literal father to a lucky pair, Alaric has truly woven himself into the fabric of this universe like few others. (That said, we still wouldn’t recommend dating him if you value your life.)
14. SHERIFF MATT DONOVAN
Only one full-blooded human survived all eight seasons of The Vampire Diaries, and you’re looking at him. The pinnacle of mortal goodness, this blue-eyed patriot hasn’t always been on the same page as his vampire brethren, but that’s only because he didn’t want to see any more his friends and family get eaten. And we can sympathize with that!
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12-13. LIZZIE AND JOSIE SALTZMAN
Asking us to choose between Jo (by way of Caroline) and Alaric’s daughters is an impossible task, which is ironic, considering the Gemini twins are literally destined for a fight to the death on their 22nd birthday. Besides, these sisters have always felt like a package deal, from the moment we witnessed their birth on The Vampire Diaries to the day we reunited with them as teenagers on Legacies. (They also popped up in The Originals’ penultimate episode, putting them in the prestigious category of characters who have appeared in all three series.) Despite their inherent connection, Lizzie and Josie really have grown into two very different people, a journey we hope will continue for years (and shows) to come.
11. MALACHAI ‘KAI’ PARKER
The fact that this remorseless, pork rind-loving psychopath ranks so high on our list speaks volumes about actor Chris Wood, who brought a refreshingly sassy vibe to The Vampire Diaries’ sixth season. The guy was so likable, fans were even ‘shipping him with Bonnie… as if that poor girl hadn’t been through enough already! You also have to give Kai points for longevity — even after his head got knocked off, he managed to make two encore appearances on TVD (Season 8) and Legacies (Season 2).
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10. HOPE MIKAELSON
As we mentioned with Lizzie and Josie earlier, we feel like we’ve watched Hope grow up before our eyes… because we have. Given the epic circumstances surrounding her conception, birth and upbringing, an adult version of this character had a lot of hype to live up to, and Danielle Rose Russell has proven herself more than up to the challenge. Imbued with her parents’ best qualities, Hope’s power and passion make her both a formidable foe and an invaluable ally. Besides, Legacies showed us what the world would be like without Hope, and it was not a good place.
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9. HAYLEY MARSHALL
We can’t even think about this fierce, fearless mama wolf without shedding a single tear. Hayley’s story was basically one long tragedy, from her complicated marriage with Jackson to her tumultuous relationship with Elijah. And then there was her untimely demise in The Originals’ final season, which… actually, let’s not talk about that. From the moment she gave birth, Hayley’s heart belonged to Hope, and it was in her most extreme maternal moments that Hayley’s true strength was on display. That’s how we’ll remember her.
8. ELIJAH MIKAELSON
Suits? Pressed. Hair? Immaculate. Vocabulary? Thicc. With his smooth moves and cunning intellect, Klaus’ extremely respectful brother could do it all — well, except keep the people he loved from meeting horrific ends. (Seriously, this guy’s track record for dead lovers is right up there with Alaric’s.)
7. BONNIE BENNETT
Simply put, this is the witch you want in your corner when things go south. Endlessly powerful and selfless to a fault, Kat Graham’s character spent eight agonizing seasons sacrificing herself — often literally, hence her multiple deaths — in order to keep her friends and family safe. No amount of bloody noses or dead boyfriends could stop this badass from crushing her enemies.
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6. CAROLINE FORBES
Getting smothered to death was honestly the best thing that could have happened to Caroline, who evolved from a basic, boy-crazy cheerleader into a bad-ass vampire overnight. And that was just the first phase of her franchise-long evolution into the empowered, globe-trotting mother of two she is today. She’s also responsible for all of The Vampire Diaries’ memorable musical moments, from her sweet song for Matt to her devastating performance at Sheriff Forbes’ funeral. (Now if only she’d pay her old pals at Legacies a visit…)
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5. ELENA SALVATORE
She may not have Katherine’s chaotic flare, but Elena deserves credit for carrying much of The Vampire Diaries’ dramatic and romantic weight for six years. And for that pink hair she experimented with in Season 4. On top of that, Elena also rolled with the punches better than almost anyone. (You’re vampires? I’m a doppelgänger? Now I’m a vampire? Now I’m human again? Now I’m in a coma? Sure, let’s do this.)
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3-4. DAMON AND STEFAN SALVATORE
Two sides of the same brooding coin, these brothers were as proficient at breaking hearts as they were at breaking necks. And while their love triangle with Elena will remain the stuff of TV legend, their relationship as brothers was revealed to be the real heart of The Vampire Diaries in its final two seasons. Honestly, it’s too hard to choose between them, so we’re not going to.
2. KATHERINE PIERCE
Come on, when were you not excited to see this leather-clad lunatic on your screen? Deliciously twisted and infinitely more interesting than her human doppelgänger, Katherine was behind many of The Vampire Diaries’ most jaw-dropping twists, from her iconic encounter with John(’s bloody fingers) to her long-awaited return in the series finale. Honestly, putting Katherine on hell’s throne in Season 8 was merely a formality — she was always a queen.
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1. KLAUS MIKAELSON
The man, the myth, the legend. To think that the monster who slaughtered poor, defenseless Aunt Jenna on The Vampire Diaries is the same person who gave it all up to save his daughter on The Originals… well, there isn’t a clap slow enough to commend that kind of growth. (Again, Joseph Morgan is very sorry about the whole Jenna thing!) By the time Klaus evaporated on the streets of New Orleans, it felt like we had explored every conceivable nook and cranny of his existence, from his traumatic childhood to his fatal romances — and we relished every second of it.
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