#adult (darkly): he can turn all to evil

[anghraine]

I headcanon that Dúnedain of both the North and Gondor have a considerable number of ... like, low-grade magic trinkets that they often don't know the provenance of.

This stuff isn't at all on the scale of the palantíri, though some were definitely brought from Númenor (mostly because people would carry them around for luck). There's some stuff that they got from Elves, especially in Dol Amroth and Eriador. There's some they crafted all on their own, like Merry's dagger or Boromir's horn. There's some they make and then place virtues on (whatever that means).

But even the jewels of this kind aren't like mini-Silmarils, they're more like mini-Elendilmíri—there's definitely something going on and they seem just a little too bright at times, but a lot of the inheritors of those kinds of gems have never been able to figure out what they're supposed to do beyond that. And sometimes the answer is "nothing," some of these things were just crafted to be nightlights for scared children that would also look nice when they got older. Sometimes this stuff helps with tracking in a minor way, or things like that.

Gondorian Dúnedain also seem to know about the One Ring, but in my headcanon, their understanding starts out with: "oh, so like Grandfather's ring that shines when he gets lost? but evil."

[daenystheedreamer]

the hotd fandom on twitter (and ao3) is actually making me go insane.

i have no idea why the poor boy who plays Bastard #2 son of rhaenyra was targeted like that by adult fans of the show but it genuinely feels like a fever dream.

the casting announcement for alicent’s brother was announced yesterday i think and immediately you can see people shipping him with luke which is ???

like at this point they have to admit they just have a weird fascination with this 16-year-old actor and are obsessed with shipping him with conventionally attractive adult men but the fact that it’s so spread and normalized in this fandom makes me feel like i’m being gaslighted like is this not wrong? guys?? idk? what gets me is that they specifically use the child actor. they saw a kid hanging out and having no personality and turned him into the Uke Supreme i just don’t get it

i feel like it all boils down to the got fandom generally being so male obsessed because the same people who bash alicent and the actress who plays her then turn around and write fanfic about idfk aegon and daemon being their self-insert’s malewives which i think is fine but when you look at the whole picture it’s soo telling. lmao.

yeah its vile. im mostly live and let live, i cultivate what i see online and avoid what i know will make me upset + when i wanna be a hater im choosing to look at that stuff. but like the line is drawn when youre just being weird to a minor. there's this movie, death in venice, about a man becoming obsessed with this pretty male youth. and ironically, or perhaps darkly fittingly, the 15yo actor for tadzio (the youth, the actor's name is bjorn andresen) was made deeply uncomfortable with the experience due to continued sexual harassment because people could not fucking leave him alone. and it's terrible, it's horrible! there's a documentary (haven't seen it though) about his experiences called The Most Beautiful Boy in the World. also if you're into japanese pop culture, you'll see he's an influence on shoujo/yaoi/bishounen/sh*ta which should tell u everything u need to know.

essentially what I'm getting at is no matter what people say about fiction vs reality, i personally believe the line should be drawn at depictions of real life children. its the tadzio thing again plus i have no doubts if they were doing this to an underage actress it would be frowned upon by the exact same people being gross.

you're into the character/dynamic, you like yaoifying it, okay! it's not my place to judge if its okay to take pleasure in it either. live and let live but i can still think its gross. youre very clearly drawing this minor sensually/sexually and are oddly fixated on him. it's uncomfortable but sometimes you just have to take a look at yourself and recognise you're doing something kinda fucked up. its okay and sometimes necessary to recognise that you are a selfish being with selfish desires that are wrong sometimes, youre not evil but you can engage with it maturely. like idk i just dont think its 'neopuritan' or whatever the fuck to think the cp, even drawn, is gross.

ALSO EDIT: i am not cancelling death in venice the book or the film for being problematic. it is fiction. i hear theyre great actually. bjorn andresen and the kid from hotd however, are real life people. thats the part i think is gross. just before anyone calls me puritan and homophobic or whatever the fuck

[slashingdisneypasta]

Total Drama Villains x Reader || Drabble Set

Plot: You forget to take a towel to the shower and only realise after the shower, so you open the window to stick your head out and ask whoever's out there (Hoping someone is out there) to grab you one but to your chagrin- there's just a villain.

Includes: Chris, Heather, Mal and Scott.

Warnings: Mmmm, I dont think so. Swearing? A kiss?

~~~

All:

You slowly look around the room, very very aware of the fact that you're naked and cold in a room that does not have a great lock on it. "Ohhhhhh no." The words come out low and steady... but are just brimming with panic.

No. Towel.

No towel!!

Finally you gasp, covering the bottom half of your face with your hands and looking at the benches and the sinks in dread. You accidentally came in here without a towel!!

The sudden sound of footsteps out the back of the cabin rips a gasp from your throat and you lunge at the window, unlatching the lock and opening it to see who it is. Before you even stick your head out, you're calling for whoever it to stop. Please. Hold on! I need your help!

Chris McLean:

*You are an adult camper.

When you actually see who's standing out there, you groan. Chris McLean stands outside on the grass, hands in his pockets and an intrigued look in his eyes. He know's he's about to be amused, or he's going to amuse himself depending on what kind of trouble you're in- or what kind of help you apparently need.

"What's up?~"

"Nevermind."

"Oh no no no! Come on, you can confide in Uncle Chris, cant you?"

A whine tumbles out of you. Uncle Chris?? Grooooooooss. He see's and acknowledges your disgusted reaction to him calling himself that, but just giggles. He doesn't leave, to your utter annoyance.

What other choice do you have?? Rolling your eyes, you look down at your feet instead of meeting his beady eyes and wiggle your toes. And mutter suuuuper quietly, half hoping he doesn't hear you. "I forgot to bring a towel... and I really need one... " And, this part you say especially quietly. For seriously asking Chris fucking McLean for a hand would be akin to letting your dignity pack its bags and fly the coop. "... and would you please get one for me... "

"... Sorry, I didn't catch that. What didja say?"

Oh god. A little louder, you say shortly. "... I forgot a towel... "

Chris smirks at that, rolling back on the feels of his feet. "And? What would you like from me, Y/N?"

Finally too frustrated to keep playing this stupid game with the show's host, you snap your eyes up to his and cross your arms. "Fine! Damnit. Get me a towel, please."

Immediately, a cat like grin slowly spreads across Chris' face. Its the most evil thing you have ever seen.

"Now why would I do that when I could get Chef here to send in a buncha rabid bats with you and flush you out?" Christ teases - no, threatens. But then again, does he know the difference in the first place? - , that famous, alabaster white, terror instilling grin on his face as usual. "Now that's, good TV!"

You groan, head falling back on your neck, in frustration. "Chrr-ris!!"

"Ha ha! Well? What do you expect?" You cant argue with that, but you cans till groan again. "Okay, fine. I'll get you a towel! But what will you do for me, heh? Nothing comes for free."

"Oh, don't I know it. I've been on this show for 3 seasons now." For some reason.

"Heh heh."

"Fine, I'll... " Ugh, something for Chris... You blow air out of your cheeks slowly, in thought. What would Chris like? Well, he'd sure get kick out of you getting one of your friends hurt but that's sure as hell not happening. Finally, after a few moments, you get an idea. And scowl. "I'll be sure to drum up some drama for you. Good TV, right?"

"For sure! Promise?~"

Sighing, you lean tiredly on the window sill. "Oh, I cross my heart and hope to die." You promise him like he's a child, which he basically is. Chris McLean has got the maturity level and the intelligence package of a 7 year old on crack.

"Wicked! Heh heh, this'll be good. Okay, hang tight. I'll be back."

You smirk at his retreating back.

~

When he finally gets back and hands you a towel - a much nicer towel then what you and the other campers have been using. Which is nice? But also, you cant help but worry about what kind of strings might be attached to it, - through a crack in the door, you carefully wrap it around your body and tightly tuck it in.

"I'll want that towel back" He snaps, cranky. Why?? He could've just gone and gotten you your towel! "I imported that from Fiji!"

Of course he did.

Now you take a deeeeeeep breath, gathering all your courage, and killing the butterflies reeking havoc in your stomach. Then open the door again and grab hold of the front of Chris' signature teal shirt and wrench him close before he can walk too far off.

And you smash your lips together and slam your eyes tightly closed.

When you pull back from the kiss - a horrible, unpleasant, bad kiss, - you immediately wipe your mouth with your arm and let him go. But when you reveal your mouth again, you're for damn sure smirking at the stunned man. "Is that dramatic enough for you, Chris? A camper and the host? Scandalous- I bet we'll be front page news."

Then quickly you lock yourself inside the bathroom again, not really caring for his reaction- which only comes, finally, minutes later when you're half way dressed.

"DAMN IT Y/N!!"

Heather:

"Hm." Heather crosses her arms, an evil smirk on her lips- opportunity has knocked on her door. Or, the inside of the shower cabin. "You need something from me. Well! What will you do for me return? Hm?"

As expected. "I will vote for whoever you want me to at 2 different instances of your choice going forward. Except for myself, I wont vote myself out."

She thinks for a moment, but definitely looks pleased. "Three, different instances of my choice."

Fucks sake- "Fine! Just- please! I'm getting cold and one of the boys could come in here at any time and see me butt ass naked!!"

Uncrossing her arms and setting her hands on her hips instead, Heather laughs. "Oh- one of these boys? Shower? Haha. Have you smelled them??"

You blush darkly at her joking with you; At your worry but not your expense, before shaking your head of silly feelings and usher the pretty girl Heather, forward. "Go! Go! Get my towel already."

"Be right back." She rolls her eyes, heading off.

~

When she gets back, she reaches up to the window with the towel and you gratefully take it, beginning to dry off any drips from your body and get dressed as quickly as possible. "Thank you Heather!!"

"Mhm, yeah. Sure."

A few minutes later when you leave the door, Heather's waiting for you on the porch and you basically have a small stroke- jesus christ, why is she there!? STILL!?

"Oh, relax. I'm just cashing in some of your part of the bargain." She sneers, walking closer to you and pressing a sharp fingernail into your chest. "Dont forget, you owe me now."

"I remember Heather, we did this like 10 minutes ago."

"Good." She smiles, a tint of evil to it still. Pleasantly surprised that you're being so obedient. She leans back. "Okay, so Gwen's got to go. You got that? She's out. Vote for her and you're third done with your debt to me."

"Yes ma'am." You smirk, brushing by her and stalking off back to your cabin to put away your things.

Heather watches, hands on her hips and her own smirk on her lips. You might just be useful out of this bunch of losers. Not quite a diamond in the rough, but... better, at least. For sure. "Hm."

Mal:

"Oh- Mike!" You exclaim excitedly as soon as you see the lanky, dark haired boy. What luck!!

But then he slowly turns around; A dark, sinister grin on his face and hair over one eye. And your heart immediately drops.

This is not Mike. Neither is it Chester, Svetlana, Vito or Manitoba- any of which would have been just fine alternatives for this moment.

This has to be fucking Mal. You've met him before, and absolutely nevermind on the luck front.

"Nope." Yep- the grizzly, deep voice that responds to you can belong to no one other then Mike's chaotic evil alter. Shit. Shit, shit, shit. You continue to chant curses in your head as he turns around fully and comes forward, looking up with evil glinting in his eyes at you like a twisted Flynn Rider to your Rapunzel.

The kind that makes you rather stay inside your tower- its safer here then out there with him. You don't go out to meet the rabid pit bull!!

"Ummm, nevermind! Go about your business, I'm fine here. See ya!"

"Oh no. What'd you want from little Mikey?" He asks, crossing his arms and tilting his head to the side, cruelly inquisitive. You chew on your bottom lip. Damn it; You've peaked his interest. Fuck.

"Um... " The sound comes out quiet and insure as you look down at the grass before his feet instead of his face. You're so nervous. "Well, I... I forgot my towel before I took my shower, and uh... I was just gonna ask him if he could go get me one."

For a moment, he's silent. Your gaze flickers up to his face to see an utterly wolfish look on his face, eyes gleaming with mischief before averting your eyes again to the grass.

Then a loud puff of hard, unpleasant laughter escapes him. He doubles over, holding his stomach as he guffaws at your embarrassing situation. You roll your eyes and cross your arms.

"Oh shut up," You snap, bravely- making him cut off his laughter immediately and look at you. You dare to fucking talk to him like that? "Come on, go get me a towel, please!! I'll owe you one."

After a moment, he stands up straight again and crosses his arms. Yes, he could do something horrible to you right now to teach you not to talk back to him; but it looks like you're going to struggle without his help. All he has to do is watch! "Hmm, nope!"

"Come on!"

"Not gonna happen."

"Ugh." You groan, leaving the window and Mal and plopping down on a bench. Fucking bastard.

This is so awkward. Especially since you know he's still out there!! And he could send someone in at any time.

... Minutes later, and you're still dripping wet but now freezing fricken cold, a towel is flung in through the still open window and lands on the wet floor near your feet. Your eyebrows fly up your forehead, as you look from it in surprise and to the window.

Mal's voice calls through it. "There! Its no fun if you just sit and bear your punishment." Huff. You can just imagine the cute boy - the look works for Mike, but is just very odd on Mal, - crossing his arms and setting his jaw, or even pouting. His voice just sound sooo frustrated. "I'll get you another time, anyway. Everyone will go down, eventually."

"Oh... mhm, oh sure." I mean, I can at least listen to his evil babble since he got me a towel, you think as you start drying yourself down and getting dressed.

A moment after you've got your shirt on, the door is kicked open and Mal stands on the threshold, making you jump. "Jesus christ!- "

"Kiss thank you?"

"Get outta here!" Absolutely not!

Scott:

Peering out from the window, you nearly miss the boy leant up against the cabin beneath you, in fact you would have- if it weren't for his bright orange hair. You gasp, unintentionally getting his attention and smiling brightly when he looks up to find you. "Scott!"

A confused, yet somehow still evil expression paints his face. "Y/N?? What are you doing?"

"Well farm-boy, how do you feel about giving a lady a hand??"

Scott snorts, getting off the wall and stepping back to see you properly. "Lady? I don't see any lady here."

Oh- Bastard. You look back into the bathroom before disappearing from the window for a moment before returning, and promptly clobbering him with an empty shampoo bottle. "You see her now!?"

"Ugh... yeah." He grumbles more malleably now, much more open to suggestion as he rubs his forehead. "Sure, now I see her... ow."

Now you feel a little bad. He looks so pitiful when he's in pain... and yes he's a rat but... its still not okay to hurt someone. You aren't Chris. And also you're getting colder and colder as the water drips unimpeded down your skin and maybe its making you soft. "Ohh... okay, I'm sorry."

He glances up at you, surprised at your apology. "Ahh, no problem, I guess... " Did someone just apologise for whacking him on this show? He crosses his arms, raising a curious look to your disembodied head. "Uhh, what'd you need a hand, with?"

"I... kinda... forgot a towel... could you please go get one for me??"

For a moment you watch his eyes narrow and a wicked grin flicker at the corners of his mouth and get anxious that he's going to ask for something in return- before he rolls his eyes and just shrugs, turning and heading off to the cabin. "Yeah, sure, whatever. Be right back- try not to gather too much attention, haha."

As he walks off, you duck under the window again, sighing in so much relief. "Thanks, Scott!"

~

When he returns, you're waiting at the door and crack it open just enough to get the towel from him immediately- which you quickly wrap around yourself comfortably and sigh. "Thank you so much!"

"Hm. No problem." He huffs, wondering why the hell he did this for you anyway and crossing his arms again.

From inside, you carefully ask: "Are you gonna get weird if I hug you now?"

Immediately Scott's ears go bright red and he quickly loses every little bit of cool-guy vibe from a moment ago. "I-In your towel?? N-No!! I mean- yes!" He rubs the back of his neck, looking away from the door like its you, or he'll accidentally spontaneously develop x-ray vision and damnit, he's a gentleman. "I mean... " Or at least he tries to be.

Grinning, because Scott's unexpectedly cute now that you've flustered him, you quickly open the door, hug him quick, then close the door again and shout 'BYE'.

[marauderundercover]

This Side of Normal Chapter Two

AO3

Jason glances down at his watch with a small frown. 12:15am. Maybe they’d decided they didn’t need the help. Not that he could blame them. They may be kids, but they were smart kids. And strangers don’t always have the best intentions. A soft thud behind him makes him whirl around, an easy smile on his face when he notices the two figures. 

“Ladybug.” He says with a nod, turning to the other hero. “And you must be her partner.”

“Chat Noir.” The boy says with a small nod of his head. “Nice to meet you. My name’s Jason.” He says, trying hard to push down the anger and guilt as he looks between the two. They couldn’t be older than Demon Spawn, and if they’d been at this since the beginning…

“Sorry we were late. There were a couple of issues on patrol, thank you for waiting.” Ladybug says, frowning. 

“No big deal, I know you guys kinda have your hands full. What else can you tell me about the whole akuma situation?” Jason asks, crossing his arms over his chest. 

“There’s not much else. No one knows where Hawkmoth came from. His Miraculous had been missing for years before he appeared here. He has a partner, Mayura. She showed up about a year after Hawkmoth. Neither one of them make public appearances often, we’ve only seen them twice. They prefer to use akumas and sentimonsters to fight their battles for them. They want the ladybug and black cat Miraculous. We don’t know why, but we do know that if they had it, it would be catastrophic.” Ladybug explains, and Jason frowns. “Miraculous? Sentimonsters?” He asks, and Chat Noir nods. “Miraculous are pieces of jewelry that hold our powers. They’re supposed to be used for good, but when someone like Hawkmoth gets ahold of them…” He trails off, glancing at Ladybug. “When someone like Hawkmoth, who doesn’t take balance into account, gets ahold of a Miraculous we end up with situations like this. An emotional terrorist holding a city hostage for years. And if he gets our Miraculous, it won’t just be Paris in trouble. The power he would have if he held both could be world ending. He could literally rewrite the universe to be whatever he wanted it to be, but it would come at a horrific price. There has to be balance.” Ladybug laughs darkly, taking in a deep breath and clenching her fists. Jason watches carefully as she opens her fists and her eyes. He frowns as he watches her slowly push away all of the negativity he saw covering her face. 

“And sentimonsters?” Jason asks, clearing his throat. “Mayura’s special trick. She can put a feather into an inanimate object and it becomes sentient. It’s usually emotionally attached to an akuma and can help them in their fight to retrieve the Miraculous.” Ladybug explains and Jason nods. “Magic feathers and evil butterflies. Seems normal enough. What about you guys?” He asks and Ladybug frowns. “What do you mean?” She asks, a cautious look on her face. “I mean, do you guys have a team? Or a mentor? Someone to help train you and keep you on your toes?” He asks, ignoring the bitter taste in his mouth when he asks. He’s not sure if he’d be more disgusted to find out another adult was training a bunch of kids to fight for him, or if, somehow, the kids had managed to get involved with this without any outside help. “There was a man who gave us our Miraculous, but we didn’t train with him. And he’s not….he’s not around anymore.” Ladybug says, biting her lip. “There were a few times that we had temporary help, but they’re retired now.” She adds. “Not by choice.” Chat Noir mumbles under his breath. Ladybug huffs and Jason raises an eyebrow. “Chat, we’ve been through this. We can’t- I can’t ask them to help us anymore. It’s too dangerous. Too many of them were compromised and even if we asked them to use a different Miraculous, it’s not right. They shouldn’t have to fight this.” She says, and Chat Noir shakes his head. “I know, Bug, trust me, I know.” He says tiredly. Jason clears his throat and the two glance at him, almost as if they forgot he was there. “So what you’re telling me is not only has the Justice League ignored you, but you’re also untrained and have no other backup in this entire city?” He asks, trying hard to keep his breathing under control. Don’t get angry. Don’t make these kids fight you. Breathe. “Uh, that’s well- I mean-” Ladybug stumbles through her words, sighing when Chat Noir places a hand on her shoulder. “Yeah, that’s the basics.” He says, and Jason nods. “And you’re willing to accept help from me?” He asks, and the two nod immediately. “I want this over. I want to be able to leave Paris without worrying about if it’ll still be here when I come back.” Ladybug says. “Then I’ll help you. We’ll train, go through the basics, and we’ll try to track down this son of a bitch. I have some contacts back at home that should be able to help us with the detective side of this whole thing.” Jason explains and Chat Noir raises an eyebrow and tilts his head. “Why should we train? The suits are magic, I don’t-” He starts to say, but Jason cuts him off. “I’m gonna stop ya there kid. No matter how much magic you have, it’s always good to train. Especially if you have magic. What happens if your suit stops working, or you get caught in a situation where you can’t put the suit on? You need to be able to protect yourselves outside of the suit as well as inside the suit.” Jason says and Ladybug’s eyes widen. “Are you talking about training as civilians?” She asks, and he quickly recognizes the panic in her eyes. “Not exactly. I don’t want to know your identities, I understand how important that secret is. I do think you need to know how to fight without the suits though. If you wear something nondescript, I have some masks you could wear to help hide your identity.” Jason explains calmly. Ladybug shakes her head. “I don’t- I don’t know. What if you recognize our eyes-” Jason cuts her off. “The masks have a white layer over the eyes. Doesn’t affect your eyesight, but we won’t be able to see your eyes.” He says, and Chat Noir’s eyes narrow. “Why do you have masks like that?” He asks and Jason snorts. “I’ve worked security in some pretty unsavory places, kid. I don’t exactly need some asshole with a vengeance coming after me outside of work hours.” He explains. “When would be a good time for training? I’m assuming you have prior engagements during the day.” Jason adds, not saying anything about school, though he’s perfectly aware that’s where the kids would be. “What about nine? We can meet here again tomorrow, and then come up with a different spot so that no one gets used to us being here.” Ladybug suggests and Jason nods, glancing down at his watch. 1:30am. “You guys should get going, it’s late. I’ll bring the masks tomorrow.” He says, and the two nod, turning to leave, but Jason stops them. “Before you go, do you have any leads on Hawkmoth? Anyone I should look into tomorrow?” Chat Noir’s face falls immediately and Ladybug purses her lips. “We have suspected one man before, but we don’t have any concrete evidence. We know that with the frequency of akumas that Hawkmoth has to be well off, otherwise he’d lose his job. He’s also probably very isolated in order to constantly be on the lookout for negative emotions. Besides that, we don’t have much.” Ladybug says. Jason frowns. “But you did have one suspect?” He asks and Ladybug nods. “Who?” 

“Gabriel Agreste.”

Next

[kendochick-moor]

October 2010 - Naruto - Team Seven Undercover

 Team 7 were renowned for many things.

Their teamwork, first and foremost.

Their loyalty, to their village and each other.

Their strengths, versatility, and sheer power.

But perhaps most of all, the epic scale of their arguments.

Due to the rather explosive tempers and hubris of certain members of their group, as skilled as they were, sometimes they weren’t the most subtle, and thus, perhaps weren’t the best suited to specific types of missions.

Like undercover subterfuge and recon.

…Well, hindsight’s 20-20.

*****************

“Sakur—I mean, Mom, you can wait for us at home,” grumbled Naruto awkwardly as his team-mate, clad in a flirty, short summer dress, patted him adoringly on the head.

“I missed you so much today, my little Naru-kun,” she cooed, and deliberately rubbed his head harder, bordering on a noogie. “And how did you and your brother get on today in your new school? No more fights, right?” She turned a hard glare on her other ‘son’. “Right?” she said darkly.

In his own pre-pubescent henge, Sasuke hmph’d at her inquiry and pretended to ignore her, walking past her more quickly than usual in the direction of their ‘home’(base).

“The idiot’s right, you don’t need to come get us,” muttered the dark-haired jounin—though it was drowned out by the cat-calls and whistles of some of their classmates.

“Hi Naruto and Sasuke’s mom!”

“Hi boys,” Sakura called cheerfully back with a smile and wave.

Sasuke glared back at them, daring them to do more; and the boys backed off a bit, waving and moving along a bit faster than before.

“They seem nice,” she remarked, oblivious to her ‘son’s’ evil eye.

“Says the one who gave herself a pneumatic chest with her henge,” muttered the Uchiha as he continued on his way, Naruto scrambling to catch up to him.

“What was that, darling?” she growled, grabbing him by the ear.

“Nothing, Goodyear-Bust,” he choked out, his aloofness suffering slightly from lack of oxygen as she held him in a loving embrace—around his throat.

“Didn’t I ever teach you, darling, that if you have nothing good to say, then shutthehellup?!”

“Uh, guys—I mean, mom--,” began Naruto, noticing the stares of his fellow students and a few adults that had turned in their direction. “Cover, being blown away right now…”

The arguing pair stilled, their eyes flicking back to note the curious—and outright concerned—looks of those around them at the edge of the school property.

The murderous embrace turned more loving—if still aggressive—as Sakura and Sasuke squeezed each other tightly to ‘make up’, Sasuke’s face buried in Sakura’s newfound, ample cleavage.

“I love you sooooo much, Sasu-darling!” she exclaimed, her voice tight from effort.

“Hn.”

A rib cracked.

“You too, mom,” gasped the young-looking man, visibly wincing. With love.

The stares continued, making a bead of sweat trickle down the ninjas’ backs for a moment, but thank goodness a dog ran out in the road and was nearly hit by a cart, distracting everyone so they could slip away.

“You owe me,” Pakkun later growled to his master.

“She’ll make you cookies tonight, I promise.”

***********************

The fighting at school made the two young ‘boys’ quite popular, however, and ended up aiding the team in their mission.

In a way.

Not that the police officer in their living room was of that opinion as he took down notes and scowled condescendingly at the two mischief-makers he was writing up.

“Now, the next time that either one of you two little hooligans accidentally lights one of your friends on fire--.”

Sasuke sniggered.

“Sasuke-darling, listen to the nice policeman,” growled Sakura in a saccharine threat.

“—whether it’s his hair or any other part of him--.”

Naruto choke-coughed, behind his hand. With particularly bright eyes.

The officer’s eyes narrowed.

“—and that includes his backside--.”

Naruto fell clear off his chair, gasping and clutching at his middle as the laughter erupted from his belly.

“NARUTO, YOU STOP THAT THIS INSTANT, DO YOU HEAR ME!? That poor civili—er, boy’s ass will never be the same!”

“—there will be more serious consequences…”

The lawman turned a baleful look on the pink-haired, lovely young mother, and his eyes slowly widened. His jaw went slack, his shoulders slumped as he gazed at her, his mouth hung open at the vision before him…

“Aaaand…. That should do it,” Sakura dusted off her hands as the genjutsu took effect.

“Good work boys – just remember, no ‘one thousand years of death’ on that kid. When I said ‘create a distraction’, I didn’t mean, ‘light a little friend on fire’. Dumbasses.”

“If we wanted a distraction, we would have just called you and your ‘friends’ over to volunteer in the class for a day,” retorted Sasuke as his ‘mother’ carried the thoroughly useless officer effortlessly to the door. She gave him a quick pat on the back and sent him on his way, ingraining in him the thought that he’d had a long day and needed a good nap when he got home—and that he’d been caught in traffic for the past 4 hours, not on a home-call.

“My ‘friends’ make it possible for me to walk in and out of any establishment in this city with no one ever able to give a description of my face or any other part of me, thank you!”

“Why not just use another henge, though?” asked Naruto, and Sasuke rubbed a hand over his face at his ‘brother’s’ flawed grasp of the feminine mystique.

When he picked himself up off the floor, later that night, Naruto groaned when ordered to do his homework.

“Just remember,” Sakura called from the kitchen where she was preparing their supper, “we have parent-teacher coming up, and your ‘father’ and I will be coming to visit your teachers – it’ll be a good time to check the employment records at the school. Our contact was sure there was a smuggling ring working out of there.”

“Yeah, yeah,” both boys trudged upstairs, jostling and elbowing each other irritably with each step.

“And no fighting up there, do you hear me!”

“Yes, mom!”

********************************

“What have I said about using the Sharingan in school?”

Sasuke looked at the wall behind Sakura’s shoulder.

“Sasuke….”

“No Sharingan on the playground.”

“And?”

“In class.”

“And?”

“Anywhere else while on this mission.”

“So, when did using it in the mirror in the little boy’s room qualify as ‘not on this mission’?”

“When the jerky gym teacher told me I looked like a little girl, and tried to grab my ass.”

The hard gleam in Sakura’s eyes sent a shiver down Sasuke’s spine.

“Point him out on teacher’s night.”

**************************

It had been a difficult mission for Kakashi.

He hadn’t minded that Sasuke and Naruto had reverted back into pre-genin brats – honestly, there wasn’t much change than when they were their usual adult selves.

And the cooking, laundry and cleaning were done regularly, along with the daily maintenance of their weapons. (Sakura had complained of boredom after sending her clones to do the housework while she did her own recon.)

Even living together as a family unit hadn’t been as arduous to adjust to as he’d been expecting. Mostly.

The warm, soft, pliant form at his side drew a deep breath in her slumber, cuddling closer to his own warmth.

But some things were outright torture.

“Touch me and die, sensei…” she murmured in her sleep, and like any sane man when faced with a sleeping tiger, he sensibly withdrew his wandering hands back to his lap.

“Oh, just go to the bathroom, Kakashi, geez,” she mumbled tiredly. “I’m too tired tonight.”

“You’d just need to lie there.”

“The boys are right next door, and I know they’re still awake. No.”

“I can be quiet.”

“The couch is yours. Go be quiet down there.”

“Aw…”

[dorothyaeone]

𝗦𝗜𝗥 𝗦𝗪𝗔𝗡 [𝗺𝗶𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘂𝗹𝗼𝘂𝘀 𝗹𝗮𝗱𝘆𝗯𝘂𝗴]

𝗹𝗮𝗱𝘆𝗯𝘂𝗴, 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗻𝗼𝗶𝗿, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝗶𝗿 𝘀𝘄𝗮𝗻 [𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝟭]

The man veiled in the shadows marched into the dark unseen room with a small levitating creature following behind and speaking in a serious voice.

"Many centuries ago, magic jewels bestowing extraordinary powers were created. These were… the Miraculous. Throughout history, heroes have used these jewels for the good of the human race."

"Three of these Miraculous are more powerful than the others; the earrings of the Ladybug, which provide the power of creation; the ring of the Black Cat, which grants the power of destruction; and the choker of the white swan, which bestows the power of persuasion. According to legend, whoever controls these three jewels at the same time, will achieve absolute power."

The mysterious man growled at the strange creature and seethed, "I want that absolute power, Nooroo. I must have those Miraculous!"

The small creature, Nooroo, whimpered in fear, "But nobody knows where these Miraculous are!" he reasoned.

The man chuckled darkly, "I found you though, my little Nooroo. Your Miraculous... remind me of its powers again."

Nooroo gazed at the man then looked down, "The Moth Brooch allows you to give someone their own superpowers and to make that person your devoted follower," he explained.

"And when it comes to luring superheroes, what could be better than creating supervillains?"

The lavender-coloured creature looked up at his master in raised alarm, "But master, the Miraculous are not meant to be used for evil purposes!"

The unknown man glared sharply at the small creature, making it back away slightly, "I must have this absolute power!"

He pointed at Nooroo, a menacing aura surrounding him, "Your Miraculous is in my control! I am your master now, and you must obey me!" he commanded.

Nooroo looked down, dejected and defeated, "Yes, master." he muttered.

"Nooroo, dark wings! Rise!"

A blinding light lit up the shadowed room and from the light emerged the mysterious man, in a dark purple suit and a mask that covers his face.

"From this day on, I shall be known as... Hawk Moth!"

He laughed in triumph, his voice echoing throughout the large and desolate room, creating a chilling atmosphere.

Another creature, one similar to Nooroo but shown to be a bright colour of green, gasped as he sensed something new.

He rushed inside a room with an old man offering treatment to a young adult customer.

"Master! Master!" the green-coloured creature started yelling in alarm.

The client raised his head in confusion, hearing the small voice of the floating creature. The old man panicked and started chanting, "Master, master... chanting, it's all part of the treatment. Master, master..." he quickly reasons.

After a few seconds, he stops the treatment and quickly rushes the customer out of the massage shop, "Thank you for coming, see you again next week!" he rushed out to the confused young adult.

He slams the door and turns to look at the floating creature that interrupted his schedule with his client, "Master, the Moth Miraculous, I felt its aura," it continued.

The old man widened his eyes in shock at the surprising news, "I thought it had been lost forever!" he exclaimed.

The green creature's gaze suddenly turned solemn as he proceeded, "But Master, it's a negative aura. I fear it may have gotten into the hands of a dark power!" he said.

The man furrowed his brow in worry and determination, "We must find Nooroo and his Miraculous. If it has gotten into the wrong hands, there's no telling what evil will come upon the world!"

He raised up his arm and revealed a small bracelet, Time to transform! Wayzz..." he tries to start but then doubles over in pain.

The floating creature, Wayzz, approached the man in worry, "Please, Master. Be reasonable. You are–"

"Still young! I'm only 186," the man interrupted heatedly. Wayzz sighed disapprovingly.

"But you're right, Wayzz. I can no longer do it alone. We'll need some help." he approaches a large gramophone and starts punching in a secret password on its base.

After he enters the code, the gramophone opens up and reveals a large jewelry box with a strange logo on top.

Soleil Lavigne was awakened by being aggressively shaken by his annoying blonde friend, Adrien Agreste.

He sat up, his silver hair a large mess and his eyes tiredly glaring at the green-eyed model, who innocently blinked his eyes. "Adrien, what do you want?" he scowled.

Adrien looked down then quickly back up with pleading eyes, "Please help me, Sol. I want to go to a real school so bad. Please Please Please," he chanted.

Sol hesitated and looked at his friend in hidden pity, "You know Uncle Gabriel forbade you, right?" he asked.

Adrien frowned at the mention of his father, "He doesn't know what I want! I just want to go to school for once, please Sol. I already told Chloé I would be there, anyway!"

Sol sighed in defeat, "I'm going to be late this morning, aren't I?" Adrien smiled guiltily, "Nevermind about that, let me get ready and I'll accompany you to school," he stood up.

Adrien cheered and wrapped his arm around his silver-haired friend, "I knew I could count on you!" he yelled excitedly.

Sol chuckled warmly, "Okay! Okay! Now let me go so I can get ready, I don't want to go back to school in my pyjamas."

The two fourteen-year-olds managed to convince Adrien's chauffeur to drive them to Collège Françoise Dupont, although it took them around an hour for him to finally give in.

In the end, they were caught by Nathalie Sancoeur, Gabriel Agreste's assistant. But instead of reporting them immediately to Gabriel, she followed them to try to convince Adrien to go home, knowing that she won't be able to stop the young Agreste.

Adrien and Soleil rushed out of the limousine once they reached the entrance of Collège Françoise Dupont, closely followed by Nathalie, "Adrien, please reconsider! You know what your father wants! Soleil, please convince Adrien to go back home!"

Adrien stopped in his tracks and looked back at the older woman, "This is what I want to do!" he yelled back.

Soleil froze as his purple irises spotted a pitiful old man on the ground, trying to reach his walker but it was too far. His instincts kicked in and he quickly rushed toward the unknown man.

"Sol?" Adrien noticed the sudden rush of his closest friend and turned around just to spot the old man as well, he rushed just as quickly as Soleil did.

Adrien picked up the old man's walker while Soleil helped the man stand up. "Are you okay, sir?" the young Lavigne asked politely.

The old man shook his head and chuckled, "I'm fine. Thank you, to both of you," he said. Sol gave the kind man a soft smile while Adrien turned to look at Nathalie with a proud gaze, but frowned when she looked at him disapprovingly.

The two boys made eye contact and Adrien sighed dejectedly and turned to walk back to the car with Sol's eyes following his figure sympathetically, "I just wanna go to school like everybody else. What's so wrong with that? Please don't tell my father about all this."

As Adrien sat back in the limousine, Nathalie turned to Sol, "You can proceed to classes now Sol, I'll be taking Adrien back to the estate." The silver-haired boy only gave her a tight-lipped smile and a small nod.

He turned back to the man and smiled, "I have to go now, sir. You should be careful," he bid farewell to the old man and then rushed inside the school.

The old man stood in place, a knowing glint in his eyes.

"I'm so sorry I'm late!" Soleil rushed into his classroom, frazzled and panicked. The ginger-haired teacher stopped her lecture and turned to the young teen at the door.

"Solekins! You're finally here!" Chloé squealed joyously

"Oh, Soleil. It's fine for now, you're only twenty minutes late and it's the first day. I can be lenient this once, just make sure to not do it again," she said.

Soleil grinned in relief, "Thanks Miss Bustier, I swear it won't happen again," he said, fixing his dishevelled hair.

Miss Bustier nodded her head, "Good, you can sit next to Nathaniel in the back this school year," she pointed to the last table on the right side, where a boy with vermilion hair flinched at the mention of his name.

Soleil looked up to gaze at Nathaniel, who avoided his stare and buried his head in a notebook. He nodded his head and then walked up to get to his seat.

He shuffled quietly next to the cyan-eyed boy as their teacher resumed her lecture. He turned to his seatmate and was dispirited when he still refused to look at him.

"Hey, 'Niel..." he tried to start. The young teen froze at Soleil's voice, shivering at how comforting and gentle his tone was. He missed that voice during the summer break.

Soleil had grown slightly taller, his hair was fluffier, and his voice had deepened, but other than that, Nathaniel thought that Sol hadn't changed at all since the last year when he first came into his life.

Sol pouted miserably when Nathaniel still ignored his presence. After half a year, he would have thought that everything would have been sorted out after that media incident but he guessed he was wrong.

His dad was a lot scarier and more powerful than he anticipated. After that picture of him and Nathaniel spread through the media, there was a lot of backlash against the Lavigne family for apparently raising a 'queer'.

Soleil found that utterly ridiculous and was furious when crowds of people would gang up on Nathaniel on the internet, calling him different slurs and yelling at him for stealing their 'Perfect Prince'.

At that point, Soleil had been furious. How dare they! This was the 21st Century for crying out loud! And if they ever actually asked, they would know that Soleil and Nathaniel were nothing more than just friends!

He was normally quite kind and lenient with his paparazzi, but when they start attacking the people he loves, he was ready to destroy them.

He had received a call from his parents about the incident and was bombarded with worried lectures from his mother and father. In the end, his father came to the solution of cutting Nathaniel from his life.

Of course, Sol refused. There was no way he was just going to make Niel leave his life when he already has become a huge part of it. But in the end, his father went behind his back and threatened Nathaniel.

After that, his friendship with Nathaniel strained until they weren't even speaking anymore during the last few months in school. Soleil was positively furious at both his parents and refused to go home that summer break.

But his heart had also shattered because his friendship with a person that he held dear to his heart was ruined after just one single photo was posted. The media and the internet could ruin a person's life so quickly in a blink of an eye.

He spent his summer break cooped up in the Agreste Estate and only went out when going to photoshoots with Adrien or attending important fashion shows.

He hoped and prayed that after the summer break, everything would be okay and everything would be fine between them and the world would seem right again. But after his interaction with Nathaniel, he figured that it wasn't the case at all.

He gazed at Nathaniel wistfully, looking at his long, soft vermilion hair, and the soothing feeling of running his hand through it when he comforted him.

Those cyan eyes that shone so brightly whenever Sol bought him new sketchbooks and materials, the cyan eyes that would light up whenever Sol was around to encourage him.

And those hands that were so small compared to Sol's, those hands that he held in his whenever he would pull Nathaniel along on small hangouts. He missed the warmth of those hands. And he missed the presence of the person all those belonged to.

"I miss you."

He missed his best friend.

He turned away to listen to the rest of Miss Bustier's lecture, defeated and miserable, a contrast to his once usual personality, confident and joyful.

Cyan-coloured irises looked up for once to gaze at the pretty features on the young silver-haired boy's face, already missing the familiar soothing voice that loved to listen to every day.

He would watch interviews and look at photographs from magazines, but it would never be the same as the feeling whenever he was actually around.

Because whenever Soleil was actually around, he would be able to smell his fragrant cologne, he would be able to fiddle with his long fingers whenever he was nervous, and he would be able to actually feel that comforting warmth that he had whenever he held him close.

Yeah.

He missed his best friend too.

AUTHORS NOTE:

I aged them up to fourteen for the first season because I can, and I never did see them as thirteen-year-olds in the first season. 

[waywardrose13]

Deliverance From Evil

Pairing: DARK!Dean Winchester x Reader (?), Sam x Reader (platonic)

Word Count: 11,054

Warnings: TRIGGER WARNING: Non-con, rape, physical and mental/emotional abuse. Ages 18+, virgin!reader, language, mentions of depression/anxiety, curse, purgatory, purgatory!Dean, hateful remarks, negative self image, mentions of suicidal thoughts, not enough editing to satisfy me. Please let me know if I missed any triggers/warnings.

Rating: Mature- 18+!! If I find that you are under 18, you will be blocked. Go read some of my minor friendly stories.

Summary: Dean Winchester had two sides; the selfless, caring man who loved his baby brother, car, and pie; and the cruel, sadistic man who was hell bent on making Y/n’s life a living hell. When Dean, Cas, and Y/n are sucked into Purgatory, things take a turn for the worse. Two years later, Y/n finds herself face to face with the man who broke her. A new discovery leads to Y/n finding out the truth, yet sometimes, the truth is better left unsaid.

A/N- This story is very dark and can be triggering to some readers. Please do not read if any of the above warnings are triggering to you. I have also listed some resources below if you are in need of help. I love you all!

Bingo squares: @spndarkbingo​ (Purgatory!Dean) // @badthingshappenbingo​ (This is for your own good) // @spndeanbingo​ (Soulmates AU)

U.S. National Sexual Violence Hotline:  800.656.4673

U.S. National Domestic Abuse Hotline: 800.799.7233

The idea of Purgatory wasn’t what put me on edge. It wasn’t the monsters constantly down your throat, or the blood, sweat, and tears that somehow never seemed to stop. It was Dean Winchester’s sinister stare and cruel remarks that put me on edge.

I didn’t hate the man. If I was being honest, I felt quite the opposite, but it was more of a feeling of distress. Ever since meeting him, something about me had made him loathe me. I wasn’t sure what it was, nor have I ever asked, but whatever it is, I have never been able to make him at least tolerate me. 

Sam and I had met in college. I was a freshman when he was a senior, and he tutored me for a while. We became friends, and soon we found out the both of us had gone to college to escape the hunting life. We grew apart for years, naturally coming back together on a hunt. 

I had been at the bunker with the Winchesters ever since, much to the elder brother’s dismay. And ever since then, Dean had made it his job to make my life a living hell.

It started out as small jabs at me; little comments that had an underlying, cruel meaning to them. Or forgetting to pick me up from police stations, houses, etc, or not bringing back food for me. But slowly, it evolved into something more. He began openly being cruel towards me, saying things that made me cry in bed at night. He’d shove me when Sam wasn’t looking, he’d purposely break my things, bleach my clothes, point out my insecurities for a laugh. 

I honestly thought the bullying ended in high school. 

I hadn’t fallen in love with the person he was towards me. I had fallen in love with the person he was to others. He was selfless and caring. He was brave, intelligent, and had a killer sense of humor. And the simple sight of him made me weak at the knees. But whenever his words were spoken to me, or his glare was pointed at me, I sometimes forgot who he was when he wasn’t hating me.

Something must have been wrong with me. How could I love a man who was so ruthlessly callous to me? Although I had tried to stop the feelings, it was like an inexplicable pull vehemently caused me to fall into a confusing love with this man. It was unstoppable, and however much I prayed or wished for it to leave, the feeling never ceased.

“Hey, Y/N!” I jumped as Dean barked at me, and I snapped myself out of it, looking towards him. “Get your head out of the damn clouds and move your ass.”

I sighed, hoisting my makeshift bag onto my shoulder, trudging after him and Benny. 

After Dean killed Dick Roman, he, Cas and I were swallowed into Purgatory along with the Leviathan, too close to the impact sight, apparently. I immediately knew I was fucked when Dean looked at me dead in the eyes when we landed and told me he’d rather go to hell than be stuck with me in a place like this. 

“We need her, Dean,” Cas had said. Dean had rolled his eyes, scoffing.

“We need her like we need the plague, Cas,” he snarled. I flinched at his words, and I closed my eyes for a moment to keep the tears at bay. “I mean for fucks sake.”

“Look, the way I see it, I don’t care if you hate her, but we need all the help we can get. And she’s a good hunter despite everything else you, for some reason, hate about her.” 

It was the first time someone had stood up for me. It wasn’t long, however, before Dean and I were on our own, Cas seemingly taking off after a particularly rough fight. He ignored me the whole time, not saying any words to me, but using his shoulder to roughly shove me out of his way from time to time. The way I saw it, he wasn’t verbally abusing me anymore. I could manage a few shoves.

When Benny joined our team of two, Dean began speaking again, and we continued the search for Cas.

So here we were now, walking through the dense forest of Purgatory, eyes and ears constantly alert. It was like the start of a bad joke; two hunters and a vampire walk through purgatory…

“Don’t mind him, Cher,” Benny murmured to me. “He’s in a mood.”

“He’s always in a mood around me, Benny,” I said. “Nothing I do will ever change that.”

“Benny, quit gossiping with her and get over here,” Dean said, voice hushed. He was crouched down over the edge of a cliff, Benny and I making our way to crouch on either side of him. Dean shot me a dirty look, and he turned slightly towards Benny.

“What is it?” The vampire asked. Dean nodded his head to the valley at the bottom of the ridge.

“Leviathans,” Dean said. “Took out a small pack of wolves a few minutes ago.”

I shivered, watching as one of the leviathans picked up a severed limb, inspecting it before tossing it to the side. 

“Shit. That was our path, wasn’t it?” Benny asked. Dean nodded.

“Yeah, and I’m not really in the mood to get into a fight with a bunch of leviathans right now,” he said. 

“I don’t blame you, chief,” Benny agreed. “But what are we going to do now?”

I glanced to the left, eyes roaming the cliff side. It was high above the creatures below, and it fed to another cliff edge on the other side. It would be above our path, but most likely would run parallel alongside it. There seemed to be good footwells along the cliffside, and I struggled to get the courage up to speak.

“I have an idea,” I said. Both men looked over at me, interest on Benny’s face and annoyance on Dean’s.

“The adults are talking,” Dean said. 

“Let her talk, chief,” Benny said, patting his friend on the back. “Go ‘head, cher.”

I swallowed. “The side of the cliff: it’s hidden by the tops of the trees. But-” I pointed to the other edge- “if we are careful enough, we could climb across and get to the other landing. I’m guessing the otherside runs parallel to our original path, it’ll just be higher.”

“Smart,” Benny said, giving me a smile. “Real good.”

“How the hell are you going to climb across the side of a damn cliff?” Dean asked, raising a brow. “You can barely hold up your axe.”

I bit my lip. “I’ll manage. And I can, too, hold up my axe. I’m not weak.”

Suddenly I was being shoved onto my back, my hands being pressed into the dirt as Dean held my wrists. He straddled my waist, his face inches from mine.

“Push me off,” he hissed, eyes furiously burning through my skull. I struggled beneath his hold. I was strong, but Dean was stronger, and no matter how much I bucked and pushed and pulled, he wouldn’t budge. 

He let go of me for a moment, and I shoved at his chest, quickly being held down again with one hand while his other held a knife to my throat. 

“You know, it would be so easy to end you right now,” he growled. My eyes widened in fear. “I wouldn’t have to hear your whiny, sniveling voice anymore and see your pathetically hideous face.” 

I couldn’t stop the tears from pooling in my eyes.

“It would put us all out of our misery.”

“That’s enough, Dean,” Benny said, now on his feet. 

“The bitch needs to be taught a lesson,” Dean said, pressing harder. I whimpered, fear clutching my heart in its grasp as he smirked darkly at me. “Don’t you… bitch?” 

“Get off me, Dean,” I said, bucking beneath him again. He laughed, hand squeezing my wrists tighter. “Stop it.”

In a blink of an eye, he had reared the blade back, bringing it shooting back down until it stabbed into the ground beside my head. I flinched away from it, eyes squeezing shut as he was being pulled off me.

“What the hell is your problem?” Benny asked, pushing Dean against a tree. “What the fuck has she ever done to you?”

“What do you mean? Just look at her,” Dean said.

“Give me a reason, chief,” Benny snarled. “Give me one good reason why you terrorize that poor woman.”

Dean hesitated, his mouth agape as he thought for a moment. I was sitting up, hand on my throat as I watched carefully as he closed his mouth and set his jaw, eyes casting downwards.

“That’s what I thought,” Benny muttered, letting him go. Dean took a deep breath, looking up at me for a moment.

“Fine. We’ll do it your way.” He bent down to pick up his sword, slinging it over his shoulder onto his back before making his way to the cliff side.

Benny helped me to my feet, hands cradling my head as he inspected my neck. There was a small nick from Dean’s blade, but I was relatively unscathed.

“Alright, cher,” Benny began, hands gently resting on my shoulders. “You stick with me, okay? I won’t let Dean touch you again.”

I swallowed thickly, nodding my head as he patted my back. He pulled me in for a quick hug before following after Dean.

***

The next three days had gone by in a blur. We had yet to find Cas, and Dean was getting impatient. It was a constant surge of monsters and a constant physical battle with ourselves as we pushed through the fights, trying to swallow back our bile at the blood and guts that inevitably found itself onto our clothes.

I was washing up in the river, a little way through the trees from a camp we had set up for the night. I had carefully peeled off my bloodstained clothes, washing my body as best I could with the river’s water before attempting to clean my jeans and shirt. I scrubbed at them until the blood was simply an ugly stain, tossing the garments onto a nearby rock to dry. I was midway running water over my hair when suddenly arms were lifting me up, eliciting a squeal from my lips. A hand clamped over my mouth and I was dragged back behind the rocks. I struggled in the arms of my captor, rearing my head back and bashing it into their nose. They grunted, and they let go.

I spun around, fists raised, eyes widening.

“Dean? What the hell?” I asked, covering my stomach. My chest was still covered by my bra, and the water was deep enough to cover the bottom half of me, but I felt naked under Dean’s intense gaze. I glance around, spotting my clothes on the boulder. I grabbed at them, pulling the shirt over my head before my jeans were ripped away from me and thrown to the side. “Hey!”

His lips crashed against mine in a bruising force, hand tangling in my hair as he snaked an arm around my waist, crushing my body against his. My hands flew to his chest and I tried to push him away, confusion and fear coursing through my veins as he wouldn’t let go.

I bit down on his lip, and he reared back with a small yelp, touching where blood began to seep from the bite. I pulled my shirt on as he was distracted and backed away from him, arms curling around my torso.

“What the fuck was that?” He asked, wiping away the blood. I stared at him, mouth dropping.

“What the fuck was that?” I yelled. He raised a brow. “You don’t just come onto a girl like that! Especially after treating her like you treat me!”

“I… huh?”

“Are you seriously playing dumb right now?” I asked, brows drawing together. “You can’t be that fucking idiotic.”

“Look, I’m sorry, okay? For everything. But here’s the thing,” he said, moving closer to me. I moved back until I was pressed against the rock. “We’ve been here for almost a year, right? Neither of us have gotten any within that time. You just looked hot down here in the water, and I see the way you look at me sometimes so I just thought, ‘hey, why not?’” 

How long had I dreamed a moment like this would happen? Too many times. More than I’d care to admit. But did I really want to be with Dean for the first time like this? With him hating my guts, simply wanting a quick fuck in Purgatory pf all places? Fuck no.

I scoffed, shaking my head. “You’re shitting me.”

“No.”

I ran a hand through my damp hair. “I… I can’t believe a word that’s coming out of your mouth right now. You think I’m hideous! You’ve said so multiple times, so you’re full of shit! And just so you know, you don’t just jump onto a girl and assume she wants the same thing you do. Besides, who wouldn’t be attracted to you, for fuck’s sake? It doesn’t mean I want to fuck you! God, Dean! You hate me!”

“I don’t hate you…”

“Yes, you do! You’ve bullied me like a damn middle schooler since the moment you met me!”

He sighed, jaw clenching. “Fine. You know what? Forget it.” He moved past me, stopping for a second. “And all have you know, it’s not that I hate you. It’s just that I can’t stand to be around you for more than ten minutes without wanting to put a gun in my mouth. And you’re right, I do think you’re hideous, and my god does your personality make you fucking ugly inside and out. If you don’t want work done on your face, at least work on that. Maybe then you could find someone willing to put up with you.”

He left then, leaving me speechless. I collapsed against the rock, silent sobs racking my body. I hated myself, and Dean thrived on that fact. I had no idea what I had ever done to him, nor did I understand how someone could be so cruel. But there was one thing I did know for sure; Dean Winchester was absolutely hell bent on breaking me.

***

I combed my hair out with my fingers, eyes staring out over the water. 

It was nearly a week after my confrontation with Dean, and he had gone back to ignoring me. I was okay with it, not minding the silence after the cruel words. I always relied on my friendship with Benny to get me through, but it seemed as though he was pulling away from me, too.

I sighed, my hands finding themselves on the dirt beneath me. They were filthy, no matter how many times I scrubbed at them with moss and water, the blood and mud wouldn’t rid itself from my skin.

Suddenly, something went soaring through the air in front of my face, a blade lodging itself in the tree beside me. I fell back, flattening myself on the ground as I looked to the side, seeing Dean standing twenty feet from me, a dark smirk on his face, Benny shaking his head behind him.

“What the hell, Dean!” I shouted, scrambling to my feet. “You could’ve killed me!”

“But I didn’t,” he said, walking towards me. He reached past me, eyes locked on mine as he retrieved the knife from the bark. “Don’t be so dramatic.”

“Don’t be so… are you fucking with me?” I asked, watching as he turned around and shrugged off his jacket. 

“Just drop it, cher,” Benny said, rolling his eyes. I set my jaw and turned away, swallowing back the anger brewing inside my chest. I folded my arms over each other, biting down on my tongue until I drew blood. “I’m going to scout the area. See if I can’t find a better place to set up camp.”

I inwardly groaned at the thought of being alone with Dean, and watched from the corner of my eye as Benny made his way through the trees, Dean leaning against one to stare at me. He was twirling his blade around in his fingers, his smirk not fading from his face. I shifted uncomfortably.

“So, I’ve been thinking,” Dean began.

“Don’t hurt yourself,” I muttered. He stopped twirling the knife, smirk fading to replace his expression with a stoic, hard one. 

“I’ll give you one more chance at this, Y/N,” he said. He walked toward me slowly, and I backed away a bit. 

“At what?” I asked, now pressed against a tree. Dean didn’t stop moving until he could press his palm against the tree, leaning into it as he bent down until he was eye level with me.

“I think you know.” His eyes flickered down to my lips, his tongue running out to wet his own. I shivered as he lowered his face to the side of my head, nose pressing into my hair to take a deep breath in. 

“Dean, please, I don’t-”

“You know, I bet you’re still a virgin,” he interrupted, ignoring my words. I tried pushing against his chest but he took my hands in his, bringing them behind my back and crushing me further into the tree. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you with anyone. Although, I’m not surprised.”

“Dean, stop it,” I said harshly, but once again my words went unheard, and he nipped my collarbone.

“Fuck, a virgin pussy sounds so good right now.”

“I said stop, Dean!” I cried, pushing harder against him. He retaliated, quickly holding both of my hands in one of his in order to press against my throat with the other.

“I don’t give a fuck about what you said,” he hissed. “The only reason you’re alive is because of me. Face it, you wouldn’t have made it on your own, and the only reason that I haven’t killed you myself yet is because Sam would kill me when we get back.” He crushed his lips to mine, all teeth and rough pressure as he shoved his tongue into my mouth. He rolled his hips against me, and my stomach churned. “I haven’t had any in a long time, Y/N. I need to let off some steam, and you owe me.” He pulled back to look into my teary eyes. “Answer me this… are you a virgin?”

I clenched my jaw. “Let go of me.”

He growled and slapped me, a yelp escaping my lips as he gripped my chin, bashing my head back against the bark. “I will find out one way or another, I’m just curious.”

I swallowed, teeth sinking into my tongue. I’ve had two boyfriends in the past, if I could even call them that. I had only gone on a few dates with both of them, but never went further than second base. I was twenty-four and never worried about still being a virgin. 

Until now.

I didn’t want my first time being like this; raped in purgatory by the man who hates me, and who I was utterly afraid of; raped by a man I had unwillingly fallen in love with.

I gave a short nod, and he smiled darkly. “Not surprising, but definitely exciting.” 

“Dean, please don’t do this,” I said, struggling against his hold. “Please.”

“Benny will be back soon, so we need to make this quick,” he said. And suddenly, his hand was off my throat and on the button of my jeans. 

“No!” I snarled, trying to kick at him, but he wedged his knee between my legs, and I was completely trapped. 

His hand was inside my pants and down the front of my panties without hesitation, and I cringed at the thought of the dirt and blood that coated both of our skin. His fingers ran through my folds, thumb finding my clit quickly. I squeezed my eyes shut as nausea washed over me, and my body went rigid at the alien feeling of someone else’s hands down there. A tear trickled down my cheek, and Dean bent forward to lick it up.

“Come on, baby,” he cooed mockingly. “Just go with it. There’s nothing you can do to stop it anyway.”

I reared back as far as I could to spit in his face. He flinched back in surprise, his face morphing from cocky and dark to menacing, and I was thrown to the ground roughly within a second, Dean quickly hovering over me and holding me down before I could move away.

“I was trying to make this better for you, I truly was,” he said, beginning to undo his belt. I shuddered and squirmed beneath him. “But now, you’ve just pissed me off. So I don’t give a fuck if you’re ready or not.”

He shoved his jeans down far enough to free his cock from his boxers, moving back to tear at my own jeans and panties and drag them down my legs. I flipped around and began crawling away, but he gripped my ankle and turned me around onto my back.

“I want to see you,” he grunted, hands spreading my legs enough for him to fit between them. I looked down at his prick, eyes widening as I saw the size of him, and he laughed. “You’re in for it now, sweetheart.”

He stroked himself a few times before lining up with my entrance. I didn’t stop struggling, hands trying to claw at his face, my eyes blurring from my tears. He gripped both of my wrists in one of his hands while the other held himself until the tip was resting against me, and then he moved his hand to grip my waist harshly. 

He forced himself inside me in one painful thrust, and a scream of pain was ripped from my throat. Dean smirked, relishing in the fact he had just torn through my virginity with such cruelty and violence. He groaned as he began to move. My hands slumped against him, knowing it was no use. He was much stronger than me, and he had already gotten what he wanted.

“I knew you’d like this,” he hissed in my ear, pulling out just to snap back in. “A bitch born to take a cock. My cock.”

The last shred of my innocence was taken within a second, and each time he shoved himself inside me, it took everything in me not to burst into tears. I turned my face away from him, eyes squeezed as tight as I could in order to try and disassociate myself, praying that this was simply but a dream. 

But as he hiked up my leg around his waist to angle himself deeper inside me, I knew it wasn’t a dream, but a nightmare, one born to tear down my walls and shatter the last of my will. I knew Dean Winchester was intent on breaking me, but I didn’t know he’d take it to such extremes.

“Shit,” he cursed, plunging himself deeper and deeper with each thrust until he couldn’t go any further. I bit my lip to keep in my cries of pain, nails sinking into the palms of my hand.

His hips began to stutter, his movements choppy and I knew he was close. I dug my nails in deeper until I felt blood trickle from my fingers. His hand gripped my jaw, turning my head.

“Look at me,” he growled, holding himself to the hilt inside me until I complied. He smirked at the tears that trickled from my eyes, and slammed himself home once, twice, three more times before he came. He held his hips flush to my pelvis, eyes still locked with mine as he spilled himself inside me. 

He gave a few more lazy humps, making sure he didn’t waste a single drop of his come before slipping out, sitting back on his haunches and taking a deep breath. “Wow.”

I sniffled, scooting as far away as possible as I pulled up my panties and jeans with shaky hands, trying to hold back the sobs and failing. I brought my hand up to my mouth, biting my sleeve to stifle the cries threatening to echo off the trees, and brought my knees up to my chest.

“Shit, sweetheart,” Dean said smiling. He laughed, shaking his head. “You felt better than I thought.” He sighed, standing up then and looked down at me. “Benny will be back soon. So pull yourself together before then. Say one word to him about this, I’ll kill you.”

I nodded in understanding, and he grunted.

He grabbed his axe and turned away, trudging off into the woods for his usual search for firewood.

In the five minutes he was gone, I took the time to pack up the few belongings I had, and without turning back, I ran for the hills.

Two Years Later

The nightmares never faded.

They had become less frequent, yet every few days or so, I’d run from the images inside my own head, battling demons within me instead of on the battlefield. Being scared of someone or something is one thing, but being scared of your own mind, your own dreams, was an entirely different thing, and it took strength to lay down and risk the possibility of reliving old trauma.

Yet, it was inevitable, after everything that had happened. Therapy helped, so did the anti-depressants and anxiety pills I took each night. But the truth of the matter was, the memories of Purgatory were always there, and the guilt and shame never faded, it simply turned into a dull ache that never truly went away.

Running from Dean, I was sore and bleeding, and all I cared about was keeping as much distance between him and I as possible. I listened to the whispers of the monsters, making sure I was never too close. 

Dean got out before I did, just two months after I ran, and it was only a few days later that I found the portal. I didn’t even try to contact Sam, because where Sam went, Dean went. 

Instead, I changed my name and set up a life for myself in a small town up in the mountains of West Virginia. I got a job at a police station as a victim advocate, got an apartment, and never once looked back. 

Quitting hunting wasn’t easy, and every once in a while I’d take a case close to home. But I typically stayed within the state, not wanting to risk running into the brothers on a hunt. 

Over those two years, I slowly began to rebuild my walls. However, in a split second, it all came crumbling down again.

It was a Monday afternoon in October. A cool front had washed over the Virginias and Maryland, finally carrying a crisp, sweet wind to cool our skin from the sweltering heat of the summer.

I was walking back to the station from lunch, having ran to a sandwich shop a block away. I was chewing on my lip and thinking about a particular case when I saw it; the sleek black coat of the Impala.

I felt my stomach drop, and I felt like I would be sick. Surely it couldn’t be the brothers. Other people had this particular car, too. But my fears were confirmed when the door to the station opened, and Sam walked out into the wind, leaves scattering around his feet, Dean right behind him. 

I was frozen with fear. All the progress I had made had diminished in a second. I wanted to turn and run the other way. I wanted to duck into the alley and wait until they were gone. But I couldn’t move. My limbs were suddenly planted and my body lost the ability to move as the man who had made my life hell for years and haunted my dreams stepped into the sun. 

Sam looked around as Dean led the way to the Impala. There was nothing I could do as his eyes landed on me, the surprised look on his face making me wince, the fearful one on mine catching him off guard.

“Y/N?” He asked. I saw Dean stiffen at the sound of my name, and I suddenly regained the ability to move. I spun on my heel and rushed into the alley, hoping to make it around to the back of the station and slip inside unseen. But Sam’s long legs made it so he was faster than me, and no amount of sprinting could keep me far enough away. He stepped in front of me, and my eyes widened. “Y/N… I… You’re alive.”

I swallowed thickly, looking over my shoulder. I tensed as I saw Dean at the end of the alley, his face hard and jaw clenched as he met my eyes. I looked back at Sam, shaking my head and stepping around him.

“I have to get back to work,” I said, trying to push past him.

“Wait!” He said, gripping my arm. I flinched, and he let go immediately.

“Sam,” I said, looking up at him. He tilted his head in confusion at the look of defeat on my face. “Please.”

“I don’t understand,” he muttered. “Dean said you were dead. That you died when you were in Purgatory.”

“A part of me did,” I admitted. Sam’s face darkened at my words, and I looked away. “And if you love me, you’d stay away from me. For good.”

“I thought I lost my best friend, Y/N,” Sam said. “I can’t just let you go now, knowing you’re alive.”

“Sam, please,” I begged. “Please.”

“Why?” He demanded.

“Just let her be, Sam.”

My breath hitched in my throat, and I looked back over towards Sam. Dean had caught up to us and was standing beside his brother now, a dark look on his face. His stare was icy, and it sent shivers down my spine. I shivered when he licked his lips, eyes raking up and down my body and suddenly I was back in Purgatory, his predatory gaze sending me reeling to a time of pain and misery.

“Y/N!” 

I jumped, realizing Sam had been trying to get my attention for some time now. I looked up at him, worrying my lip, tears filling my eyes. “Sam, I can’t do this.”

“Can’t do what? Why did Dean lie? What the hell happened in Purgatory?” He asked.

“Dean didn’t…” I trailed off, rolling my eyes with a scoff. “No, I guess he wouldn’t tell you what happened.”

“Y/N,” Dean warned, stare turning deadly.

“Shut up, Dean,” Sam snapped. “Y/N, you can tell me anything.”

“No, I can’t,” I said, shaking my head. “Your brother will kill me.”

“No, he won’t. I won’t let him,” Sam said. “Now please, I miss my best friend. Let me help you.”

“You can’t help me,” I said. “Not anymore. Purgatory was shitty in itself, but Dean…”

I was suddenly pushed up against the brick wall, a yelp escaping me as Dean’s hand wrapped around my throat, his body pressed against mine. I shivered in fear, visibly shaking as his lips curled into a snarl.

“Dean!” Sam exclaimed, trying to pry his brother off me.

“What did I tell you would happen if you told anyone?” Dean hissed. I beat at his hands, trying to kick out at him. 

“Dean…”

“I’ll kill ‘ya,” he said. “I’ll do it right now. Don’t. Say. A. Word.”

Tears trickled down my cheeks, and Sam was able to tear Dean off me, pushing him up against the opposite wall.

“What the fuck?” He yelled. He pushed off his brother, turning towards me, placing his hands gently on my shoulders. His voice softened then. “Are you okay?”

“I really need to… to get back to work,” I whispered. I was still shaking, and Sam’s fingers tightened slightly, almost as if he was trying to steady me.

“Can I come see you after work? I’ll meet you here and walk you home?” 

I glanced over Sam’s shoulder towards Dean. His jaw was set, and he gave a shake of his head.

“I don’t think that’s such a good idea,” I murmured. I watched a smirk grow on Dean’s face, and I shivered.

“I’m sorry. But I don’t care. I’ll meet you here, okay? At five?”

I nodded.

“Okay. See you then.” He turned slightly. “He won’t be coming, don’t worry.”

The brothers stared at each other intently, and I scurried off as quick as I could, clutching the brown bag in my hand to my chest, not trusting my hands not to shake.

It was my luck that they would end up here, out of all the towns and all the cases in the continental U.S., they had to end up here. There was one thing I was sure about; I wouldn’t be meeting Sam, nor would I be going back to work. I forgot all about my few belongings in the office, beelining to my car, readying myself to pack and be out of town by tonight.

***

I didn’t have much in terms of belongings. It didn’t take long to pack, and I had no set destination. If I had a set destination, I could be found. 

I was taping up the few boxes I had, picking up a few odds and ends, figuring I would leave the furniture and have the building owner sell it. Just as I was finishing, three sound knocks were rapped on my door.

I froze. 

I wasn’t expecting anyone, and I hadn’t made any friends since moving to town. No one would be coming here unannounced. No one except the Winchesters. They had their ways of finding where I lived. Sam probably asked around the station.

“Fucking Sam,” I muttered to myself. I pushed myself up off the floor, stalking to my front door. “So not cool.”

I unlocked the door, keeping the deadbolt in, before opening it.

My heart jumped to my throat.

“Dean?” I asked. “What the hell are you doing here?”

“You didn’t show up to your meet-up with Sammy,” he said. He glanced around my door, stuffing his hands in his pockets, nodding. “Simple and plain. It suits you.”

“Go away, Dean,” I said. “I have cop friends and I’m not afraid to call them. Just go.”

Dean laughed. “Please. We both know you’re not friends with any of them. Besides, what would you tell them? You know what will happen if you say anything.”

“Fuck off, Dean,” I hissed. I went to close the door, but Dean was quick to stick his foot out, wedging it between the door and the frame.

“Nuh uh uh,” he tsked. “Won’t you invite me in, little pig?”

I swallowed. “No.”

“Oh, but why?” He asked, smirking. “You scared?”

I lifted my chin, standing up straighter. “No.”

He chuckled darkly, bending slightly to meet my eye level. “I think we both know that’s a lie, little pig.”

“Get the fuck away from me, Dean,” I hissed. I kicked at his foot sharply, unwedging it, promptly slamming my door shut in the process, turning the lock. I backed away from the door, feeling under the small table near the front door for my gun.

I screamed as my door was kicked in, wood splintering off the frame. Dean laughed, stepping past the threshold, kicking the door closed behind him. It didn’t quite close all the way, but enough so Dean could slip the chain into its lock.

“Here’s Johnny,” he teased, smiling. My eyes widened, and I gripped the gun, ripping it from its confinement, lifting my arm to shoot. Dean moved quickly, knocking the gun from my hand, pushing me back against the wall. He thrusted forward, crashing his lips to mine in a sloppy kiss.

“Miss me?”

“Get away from me!” I screeched. “Help! Somebody please help me!”

I sobbed as he fisted his hand in my hair, bashing my head back against the wall.

“You fucking bitch,” he hissed. “Almost telling Sammy about our little roll around. What did I tell you, hmm? Have you told anyone else?”

My eyes were blurred from the tears. Somehow my nightmares were coming true. Somehow hell had shown up at my front door, rearing its ugly head and laughing as fear twisted my insides and made my head spin. What had I done to deserve this?

“No,” I said. “I haven’t told anyone. I won’t tell anyone. Please just leave me alone.”

He ran a hand down my face, thumb smearing my tears across my skin. “Oh, but I can’t do that. You disobeyed me. You made Sam skeptical. You must be punished.”

“No,” I cried. “Please, Dean. Please don’t do this.”

He gripped my hair tighter, jerking me down the hall, my fists beating against him the whole time, fighting, kicking, screaming. He simply bent down, picking me up, and carried me into my room. He threw me onto my bed, hands gripping my thighs as he flipped me over onto my stomach.

“Now, bad girls must be punished,” he said. He reached underneath me, fingers unbuttoning my jeans. I kicked back at him, my heel meeting the fleshy part of his thigh. He grunted, and I clawed away from him, but he simply pulled me back down. “Well, that just made things so much worse for you.”

He yanked my jeans down, throwing them somewhere in the room, hands tearing at my simple cotton panties. Tears blurred my vision, and I desperately tried to crawl away. I fisted my hands on the mattress, trying to somehow escape from his hold. 

I cried out as his palm collided with my ass.

“Tell me, have you been with anyone else since me?” He asked. I sobbed, screeching behind clenched teeth as he hit me again. “Answer me, bitch.”

“No,” I said. He laughed. I hadn’t heard him take off his belt, but I heard the snap as he pulled it taut. “No, no, no.”

“Oh, yes,” he laughed. He brought the belt down, letting it smack against my bare skin. The sting radiated through my back. Dean was strong, and each time his arm was brought down, the belt would send another striking shot of fire through my body. I was frozen with pain and fear. Dean didn’t have to hold me down after a while. I couldn’t move. “This is for your own good, Y/n.”

I didn’t know how long he struck me. Over, and over, and over he striked, and I lost count after twenty. My hands were clenched in the mattress cover, tears soaking the fabric beneath me, clouding my vision.

I finally heard him throw the belt aside, and his hands curled around my hips, lifting my bottom into the air gently. He softly caressed my skin, and I jumped when I felt his lips touch the welts. 

“I’m sorry,” he whispered. He rubbed my lower back slowly. “I’m so sorry.”

I sunk my teeth into my lower lip. I froze, not sure what I was supposed to do. I knew moving was out of the question. I was in too much pain to move. Confusion sunk into my bones as he slowly kissed up my back, until he was hovering over me.

He turned me slowly, gently placing me on my back, eyes looking down at me. He tilted his head, thumb wiping away my tears. “Hey, I’m sorry. Please don’t cry.”

“Don’t cry?” I whispered. “How do you expect me to be okay with all of this, Dean? You broke me in Purgatory. You’ve haunted my dreams for the past two years. Then you do this? Just kill me and get it over with. Please.”

He shook his head, furrowing his brows. “I’m not here to kill you. I actually, believe it or not, came to apologize. But as soon as you opened the door I just… I don’t know what came over me.”

“Like I believe that,” I hissed. “Just get the fuck out.”

His jaw ticked, and suddenly his resolve faded. For a second I saw remorse, and now? Fire raged behind his leaf green eyes. I felt his whole body tense against me. I felt him… grow… beneath me.

“Fuck no,” I said. A rush of adrenaline coursed through me. I rolled away from him, landing on my back on the wood floor. I cried out as my raw skin made impact, but I pushed myself up quickly. Dean was up now, his eyes hard and piercing. 

“Come here, little pig,” he snarled. I spun and dashed towards the bathroom. He leaped over the bed after me, but I was already inside, locking the door quickly. I heard shuffling, and I knew I needed to think fast. I spotted the window and yanked my robe off the hook, slipping it on. I stepped onto the toilet, pushed the window open, and peered down the three flights my apartment was up. I swallowed thickly, glancing back at the bathroom door. The doorknob was jiggling, and I knew he was picking the lock. Mustering up the courage, I hoisted myself up and swung my legs over. The door suddenly burst open, our eyes locking.

“Don’t you dare,” he said. I took a deep breath and looked down again. Just as he lunged forward, I let go, feeling the rush of air and my heart plummet to my stomach. My eyes were wide as I watched the ground rush up on me all too quickly. I tried ducking my shoulder to attempt to roll, hopefully saving my legs and head in the process, but I couldn’t quite get there. I felt something snap as I hit the ground, a sickening crunch sounding in my ears as I landed on my side. 

“Y/n!”

That voice was different. That voice was angelic... kind. Sam.

“Oh my god,” he said. He bent down, hands cradling my face as he looked into my eyes. “Hey, stay with me. Are you alright? Jesus- of course you’re not alright, you jumped from a fucking window to get away from my brother. God, Y/n I’m so sorry. I’m so, so sorry.”

“Why does he hate me so?” I whimpered before everything went dark.

***

“Should she be asleep this long?”

“Her body is healing. It’s up to her now.”

***

“Get the fuck out.”

“Sam… I don’t know what happened.”

“Don’t you dare say that. Don’t come up with these-these lame ass excuses. I saw what you did, and I have an idea about purgatory. Now, for the last time, get the fuck out.”

***

“She will stay with me.”

“And you are?”

“Her brother.”

***

I jolted awake. My body was on fire, my head pounding with a dull ache. I opened my eyes slowly, adjusting to the bright light above my head. A beeping sound came from my right, and a quick glance showed an EKG meter. A fucking hospital.

My shoulder was bandaged and arm in a sling. My knee had a brace on it. My behind felt raw as shit.

“Fuck,” I muttered as I tried to sit up.

“Y/n! Thank God.”

I jumped at the sound of a voice. 

“Sam.”

“God, Y/n… I’m so sorry. So, so, so sorry.”

“It’s not your fault,” I told him.

“No, but I should have known. I should have done something. God, I can’t believe it.”

I sighed, fiddling with a loose thread on the scratchy blanket that was laid over me. I furrowed my brows.

“Sam… did Dean tell you what happened in purgatory?”

Sam swallowed thickly. “No. But I can guess.”

I nodded slowly. “He told me he’d kill me if I ever told anyone.”

“Have you?” Sam asked.

“My therapist,” I replied.

“A therapist?”

“Yeah. I needed one,” I said. “I was… broken when I got out. I was getting so much better, Sam. I felt like me again. Sure, I still had the nightmares sometimes but… I wasn’t always looking over my shoulder.” My lip wobbled as I fought back tears. “Damn him.”

“God, Y/n/n. I can’t believe it. It just seems so… not Dean,” he said. “I’m so sorry.”

“Sam, I know you mean well, but please stop saying sorry,” I said. He smiled and blushed.

“Sorry.” He cringed. I laughed.

“Stop it,” I told him, pushing his shoulder lightly. He laughed too, grabbing my hand. He kissed my knuckles.

“I’ve missed you,” he said. 

“I’ve missed you, too,” I told him. “But I knew that where you went, Dean went.”

“I understand,” he said.

“Oh good, you’re awake!”

Sam and I both looked at the door, a plump woman in a white lab coat standing in the doorway. Her dark hair was piled high on her head, glasses pristinely balanced on her nose, lips lined with deep red lipstick. She looked like a T.V. doctor, not a doctor in middle-of-nowhere West Virginia.

“How are you feeling?” She asked. She checked my vitals and IV bag.

“Sore,” I replied.

“Your brother here has offered to take you home,” she said. I looked pointedly at Sam who shrugged sheepishly. “Look here.”

She shined a light into my eyes, checked my bandages, and determined that I could go home as long as I was supervised for 48 hours. I silently wondered where Dean was, hoping I wasn’t going to see him. If Sam was taking me home, who knows what would happen? Dean knew where I lived. But if Sam was there, perhaps he wouldn’t be stupid enough to try anything.

***

“Are you alright?”

Sam gently placed me onto the motel bed, careful not to hurt me. His brows were furrowed in worry and his lips were pursed into a frown. I let out a shaky laugh.

“No,” I said. “But I’ll get there.”

“Y/n, I’m so-”

“Stop it!” I scolded. “What did I say?”

“Not to apologize anymore?” He said slowly.

“That’s correct,” I said. I laid back onto the pillows, which were worn, but on my sore shoulder and back, they honestly didn’t feel too bad. “Now, mama needs to rest.”

Sam snorted. “Okay… mama.”

I narrowed my eyes at him. “Don’t mock me, Samuel.” He raised his hands in defense.

“Okay, okay. Sorry, mama,” he said. “I’ll call Cas. He can heal you.”

I perked up at Castiel’s name. The gentle angel and I had been good friends. I heard whispers about him too, while in purgatory that is. I shivered at the thought of that place and…

No. I wouldn’t think about that now. I was safe with Sam. Surely Dean couldn’t find us here. Right? Sam would have taken measures to keep him from doing so.

“Hey, Cas. It’s Sam. Listen…”

Sam’s voice trailed off as he stepped outside the room, closing the door softly behind him. Suddenly, the room turned eerie. The air conditioner hummed loudly under the window, producing some sound in the empty room. It was confining. I shifted on the bed, wincing as my shoulder moved in an odd way. I adjusted my sling to a more comfortable position. I hated these things.

I sighed deeply, glancing towards the door again. I blew a piece of hair out of my eyes. Alone. It wasn’t an odd sensation to me. I had been alone for the last two years. But I had slipped so easily back into the comfortable familiarity that was once me and Sam. I had missed him so much. He was my best friend, my confidant. Being around him again was liberating. It lifted a weight off my shoulders.

Telling someone what had happened in purgatory, besides a therapist, lifted a weight off my shoulders.

Of course, Dean would kill me if he knew. But it felt good to get it out, not have it bottled up. Dr. Ramirez was great, of course. But she wasn’t Sam. Wasn’t a friend. 

However, now that the room was empty apart from me, the only sounds of the air unit and the springs of the old bed creaking, I was left alone with my thoughts. Vivid images of Dean flashed before my eyes. Of purgatory, across the street at work, the alley, my apartment. Damn him. Damn him for abusing me so. Damn him for not caring. Damn him for giving me a false sense of hope when he spared a silver of remorse. And damn me for loving him.

Did I still? No, I didn’t think so. Not the Dean who hates me. Who hurt me and raped me and tormented me. Not that Dean. Perhaps the Dean who loved his little brother beyond comprehension. The Dean who would throw himself in the line of fire for a stranger. The Dean who sacrificed everything for the world, the world that was so cruel to him. 

Fuck. Of course I still loved that Dean. It was like two separate fucking people. A Dean who would light up at the sight of pie and tell you everything about a band he liked simply because he wanted to share something he loved with you. A Dean who was so selfless, you would need to make sure he wouldn’t go off and get himself killed for absolutely no reason but to save a fucking dog. He would have one look on his face, and then turn to me. That look would turn cold. Those eyes, those beautiful eyes, would turn to ice in a split second. That voice that dripped of rum and sticky honey tore through my heart like daggers in ice. How could someone be so cruel? 

A sob escaped my lips. I was so tired of crying. I hated crying. I wiped my nose with the back of my hand from my good arm. I didn’t want to cry anymore. I didn’t want to think anymore. 

Luckily, Sam opened the door then. It made me jump slightly. Castiel was behind him. I grinned.

“Cas.”

“Y/n,” he said warmly. He walked over to the bedside. He rested a hand on my good shoulder. Cas wasn’t one for touchy-feely shit. But with me, he was always more comfortable with it.

“I’m going to heal you,” he said matter-of-factly. I gave him a nod, a light shining from his hand. A warmth filled me, starting from my head and reaching to the tips of my toes, and suddenly I felt better. I gave him a grin, which faltered at the look on his face. 

“Cas?” I asked. “What is it?”

He gave a small shake of his head. “It’s… it’s a curse.”

“What is?” Sam questioned. He stood up from his seat at the small table by the window. I glanced at him.

“You have had a curse placed on you. An old one. I’ve seen it before, though. In heaven,” Castiel said. “I’m not sure why I hadn’t seen it before now. Perhaps since I hadn’t had to heal you before.”

“A curse in heaven?” I asked.

“It was designed by the archangels. It was to keep soulmates apart.”

“What?” Sam said. “Soulmates? Surely you’re joking.”

“No, I’m not joking,” Cas said. “And don’t call me Shirley.”

Sam furrowed his brows at that. I had to bite my lip to keep from laughing.

“Okay, so a curse. What kind of curse?” I asked. “Who’s my soulmate?”

“The curse is complicated. It can only be placed on one soulmate, and the cursed mate would need to be an interference with a plan from heaven or God himself. ”

“What sort of interference?” Sam asked. Cas hummed.

“Y/n must have stood in the way of her soulmate’s destiny. Her path must cross with them, meaning that she would have altered the path chosen for her mate by heaven. The curse makes it so one of the soulmates hates the other for no particular reason. They can be downright evil towards them. Y/n’s soulmate, if she ever comes across them, may even want to kill her. The curse causes one of the soulmates to do terrible things to the other. They can act one way, and their soulmate walks into the room, suddenly they are filled with an unexplainable rage. There are times where the soulmate can feel remorse or even come to love the one who was cursed. However, the second they lie eyes on the cursed soulmate, their hatred returns.”

Holy fuck.

“If you don’t mind, Y/n,” Cas continued. “Would you mind letting me touch your soul? It should tell me who your soulmate is. I know every path for every human soul. I should be able to see.”

“I… I think I may know who it is,” I said softly. Suddenly my blood ran cold. It felt as if the temperature in the room dropped twenty degrees in a single second. Soulmate may want to kill me. They will hate me. Do terrible things to me. They are suddenly remorseful, but once again turn evil once they lie eyes on me. Fucking hell.

“Who?” Castiel asked. I looked to Sam, who was staring at the ground. I saw it dawn on him, saw the realization flash across his face. His head snapped up to mine.

“Dean.”

***

“Are you fucking joking?”

I flinched at his words. Dean stared- no, glared- at me from his chair. He was chained to a chair in the dungeon. “Precaution” Sam had said. Dean wasn’t too happy with it. I sat in a chair about six feet from him, right outside the devil’s trap. His lip curled into a snarl.

“I’ll fucking kill myself if this bitch is my so called soulmate.”

“I’ve already touched her soul, Dean,” Castiel said. “Just to be sure.”

“Okay? And?” Dean prompted.

“Not only is she cursed, but she’s your soulmate.”

“Fucking hell,” he groaned.

“The archangels placed the curse on her at birth. When they found out she was to be your soulmate, they cursed her in order to keep her from interfering with their plan to have you as Michael’s vessel. If she wasn’t cursed, they foresaw the two of you already together; married and two children.”

My heart ached. I could have had that? Instead, my soulmate had abused, raped, and threatened to kill me on multiple occasions. Great.

“Gag,” Dean said. He spit at the ground towards me. “You told them. You know what would happen if you did. You’re fucking dead.”

“Sam,” I said quietly. I looked up at him. He gently placed a hand at the back of my head in a comforting gesture.

“It’s alright,” he said.

“Now, there is a way to remove the curse. It is painful, and tedious, but it may allow you two to venture forth into a soulmate’s relationship.”

“Fuck that.”

“I can’t.”

Although said at the same time, all eyes turned to me.

“What do you mean you can’t?” Cas asked. Sam sighed.

“Cas, not now.”

“I mean I can’t be with someone who-who was so cruel to me. You don’t know the specifics of purgatory,” I muttered. I squeezed my eyes shut at the thought. My lip threatened to wobble. I sunk my teeth into it. “When this is done, I don’t know if I can be here anymore.”

“Y/n,” Sam said. “When this curse is lifted, the Dean who did those things to you will not exist.”

“It’s true,” Cas said. “The curse alters your soulmate in a way that they’re unrecognizable. It turns their personality completely sour, turning them into a new person. The Dean that will be shown to you when this is over will be the real Dean, the Dean you saw when you weren’t near him. When you’re cursed, it’s like he’s possessed by an alien body.”

“But it’s still his face. His hands. His… everything.” I shuddered. 

“That was fun, wasn’t sweetheart?” Dean said. “I still remember how you felt. Tight virgin… Mmmm. Once I’m free of these chains, I may take you again. Maybe I’ll claim your ass this time.

“Enough, Dean!” Sam barked loudly. “Cas.”

“You ready, Y/n?” Castiel asked. I looked up at him, to Dean, and back again.

“Yeah, just one thing first-” I looked at Dean, right in the eye- “Go to hell you son of a bitch.”

Then Castiel’s hands were on the sides of my head, a blinding pain searing behind my eyes, and all I saw was black.

***

“Sam, how am I supposed to live with it?”

“You just do. It wasn’t you. It was the fucking archangels. They did this to her. Not you.”

“It was still… me. I just couldn’t stop it. God, I can’t believe I…”

“Hey. Stop it. I mean it, okay? You beating yourself up with it will not help you in the end. When she wakes up, she’s going to need us. Okay? She’s going to have to re-learn trust and-and love and learn to trust you.”

“If she wants to leave, we need to let her leave. I don’t blame her if she hates me. You heard what she said, Sam. She said she can’t. And I get it. I understand. I don’t want to put her through anymore pain, okay? She needs to live without fear and without pain and suffering. She’s a good, beautiful person inside and out. She didn’t deserve anything I did to her.”

“It wasn’t you!”

“It was, dammit! It was my hands, my body, my fucking words. God, Sam. We may have been cursed, but it was still me. Okay?”

“You heard Cas. It’s like you were possessed. It wasn’t you. Fucking get it through your thick skull.”

“Tell that to her then. If she believes it, I will. This is about her. Not me.”

I could register their conversation. Feel the dull ache in my head. Smell the faint smell of the lavender incense I used to like to burn. The issue was getting my eyes to open.

With heavy lids, I opened my eyes slowly, struggling to keep them open. The brothers stopped talking and I could feel them staring at me. I groaned as I sat up, rubbing at my temple.

“Hey, sleeping beauty,” Sam said slowly. “You feeling okay?”

“If you consider feeling like you’ve been hit by a train ‘okay,’” I said. “Fuck.”

I looked up at them both, Sam’s eyes warm and lips curled into a sympathetic smile. I forced myself to look at Dean. His eyes were focused intently on his hands, but I could see his jaw clenched and chest moving quickly as he took rapid breaths. His leg bounced repeatedly. He was nervous?.

He looked up at me finally, taking a deep breath, holding it a moment, before letting it back out. “Hi.”

“Hi,” I replied lowly. 

“Should I leave you two alone?” Sam asked.

“No,” I said quickly. Dean winced, but I ignored it. Like hell I would be left alone with him. “Cas did it? The curse is gone?”

Sam nodded. “Yeah, yeah it’s gone. Dean um… Dean’s fixed, I guess you could say.”

“Is he?” I asked bitterly. 

“Y/n,” he said hesitantly. “I don’t have words. I can’t express how sorry I am.” I looked down at my hands. “There aren’t words to describe the guilt I have. I don’t know what to say or do. I’m just so, so sorry.”

I took a deep breath before responding. “At least I know why I loved you for so long.”

That clearly was not what he was expecting to hear. “W-what?”

“Before purgatory, when things didn’t… escalate… I loved you. I loved the you that wasn’t around me. I thought I was fucked up, loving someone who was so cruel to me. But now I know I couldn’t help it. You’re my soulmate. What are the fucking odds?”

His lip quirked slightly. “I… I loved you too. The me that wasn’t around you. It honestly was like two different… me’s essentially. I loved you, and every time I wasn’t around you, I told myself to apologize and fucking fix myself. But then I’d see you and… this anger just consumed me. I couldn’t understand why. And then in purgatory, being around you 24/7, it’s like everything was heightened. I just wanted to make you hurt.”

I flinched and his face softened. 

“Shit, I’m sorry, Y/n.”

“No, I want to hear this. I want to understand what you were feeling,” I said. “Maybe it will help me… differentiate you from, you know… cursed you.”

He nodded before continuing. “Like I said, being around you constantly made everything worse. It was like the anger and hatred all heightened. So the night that I… hurt you… I wanted to cause you such profound pain. But I didn’t want to kill you. I think deep down, even cursed, I couldn’t bring myself to kill you. Although the curse hated you, I loved you. You were always so gentle and kind. You’re easily one of the smartest people I know. You’re beautiful and funny and innocent. I fell in love with you, and the curse despised that. It wanted to hurt you. And it did. And for that, I can not apologize enough. What I did… it’s unimaginable. I am so sorry, Y/n.”

We simply sat looking at each other for a moment. Sam sat uncomfortably beside Dean. He glanced between the two of us.

“You’re stressing me out, Sam,” I said finally. 

“Sorry,” he muttered, looking anywhere but Dean and me.

I cleared my throat and fiddled with the edge of the blanket laid over me. “I… I don’t know what to say, Dean. I really don’t.” 

“Don’t say anything, then,” he murmured.

“I want to forgive and forget. Lord do I want to forget. But this isn’t something you can overcome so easily,” I said. “I was so close to being fixed. I was so much better, but you showing up at my apartment and beating the shit out of me like that… it tore down the foundation I had built back up.”

“I had come to apologize,” he said. “And then I saw you and it all went away.”

“I know,” I told him. “It confused the fuck out of me, your fucking mood swing.”

He whistled. “No shit. It confused me.”

We sat in silence for another moment. I wasn’t scared per se, just uncomfortable. If he was “fixed,” I had nothing to fear. I knew I had nothing to fear from Dean now. However, I would never forget the malice and callousness he showed me for years. That night in purgatory was forever seared into my brain. That trauma and heartache and pain would live with me forever. It didn’t matter if he was fixed or cured or whatever the fuck you want to call it. It still happened. It was still at his hands. That’s not something to simply get over.

“I’m not asking for your forgiveness,” he said softly. “If someday you somehow find it in your heart to forgive me, then that’s your business. I don’t deserve it and I’m not expecting it. But maybe, if you’ll let us try, to start over, someday we could become friends.”

I swallowed thickly. “I don’t know, Dean.”

I watched his face flash with an emotion I couldn’t quite explain, before masking his emotions. “I understand.”

“Maybe,” I told him. “Don’t bank on it.”

Dean gave me a small smile. “I’m in your hands, Y/n. I’ll be here if you want. And if not, then I respect that.”

I yawned then and Sam stood slowly. “Let’s give her some rest, Dean. She’s had a long week.”

Dean nodded at his brother and gave one last look at me.

“I really am sorry, Y/n. I’ll live with this guilt until the day I die. I hope… I hope you find the happiness and peace you deserve.” He gave me a tight lipped smile and closed the door behind him, evidently taking all weight in the room with him. I let out a deep breath that I had been holding and rubbed at my temples. I laid back onto the pillows, letting my eyes trace designs on the ceiling in the dark of the room.

Sleep found me not long after, and no matter what knowledge I had now, or the safety that was Sam across the hall, I had no control of the nightmares that plagued my dreams and danced behind my eyes. Dean Winchester may have been cured. He may be himself around me now. However, what he did will forever live with me, and no angel cure or spell undoing will ever change that. 

And so, I walked through the valley of darkness that were my dreams, and I battled the demons caused by the man who stayed down the hall from me. Yet I slept, knowing that what tormented me behind closed eyes was no longer alive, and the man who had broken through the chains around my heart all those years ago was back and in the foreground. Though I wasn’t sure what my feelings were towards him now, knowing that what he did to me was the result of an archangel curse, I did know that perhaps someday, once we tread through the tumultuous ground that was fear and contradiction, we may learn to live in peace with one another, even if he had loved me and hated me; even if I had loved him and hated him. Yet the most important thing, the thing that allowed me to rest, if not soundly, but at all, was the fact that he no longer wanted me dead, nor did he want my blood on his hands. 

So though nothing was back to normal, and I didn’t plan on being around Dean anytime soon, perhaps I wouldn’t have to look over my shoulder anymore. Maybe I could finally find the solace and peace that I deserved. I think the world at least owes me that.

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[ask-anti-cosmo]

The Return of Anti-Cosmo part 3

Part 1 Part 2

You hung the girly costume in your closet, thinking you’d give it away or modify it for Halloween. Small arms wrapped around you, making you try to swat at the owner.

“Aw, you missed me!” Anti-Cosmo grinned. “I’ve repaid my debt and can now roam as I please!” he said, sounding a little too pleased with himself.

“Good for you. Now how does that ‘We’ll go our separate ways' thing sound?” you huffed.

“Aw, come now! Surely you've come to like me a little.” He poked at you with his wand.

“Knock it off! You’re more like an annoying little brother!” you said and walked from him.

“I can be big if I want to!” he said as his body morphed into the shape of an adult human male. You tried not to look impressed and went to the fridge for some blood. “See? More like a hot step-brother.” He said and winked.

You glanced back and sighed. “Fine, I’ll give you that.”

“So…you know what it’s like to have a brother I take it? Did you have one?” Anti-Cosmo asked.

You shot him a mild glare.

“Come now, I’ve been open with you, now it’s you’re turn!” he insisted.

“Fine, yes I had a brother. Lost him to Polio.” You huffed.

“Polio huh? Let’s see, the vaccine was made in 1954, so your brother passed away before then~?” he asked.

“What’s with that tone?” you glared.

“Just trying to figure out your age~ not simply ‘decades’ old are you?” he teased.

“Neither are you Mr. Centuries!” you huffed.

“Want to know a secret? I’m the youngest Anti-fairy in existence.” He stated proudly.

“What?? Are you serious?” you frowned.

“Indeed, an Anti-fairy can only be born when a fairy is born. Ever since my counterpart was born and destroyed countless cities and lives, the fairies ban themselves from having anymore children. We’re all immortal anyways so it’s not like having more offspring is too terribly important.”

“So you’ll never have kids?”

“Never.” He concluded firmly. “Even if I did want children, it’s not up to me. And my counterpart would be the last fairy alive they’d choose to have the first baby in centuries.”

“Huh…that’s sad.”

“If you knew him you’d know it’d be for the best.”

“I know you, and I can tell you certainly don’t deserve children.”

“Sticks and stones darling. Now then, it’s time to go find the one who put me in that safe.” Anti-Cosmo said and cracked his knuckles.

“You’re going to find her?” you asked eagerly.

“One turn deserves another “ he said and poofed up a spinning grindstone wheel and sharpened his wand against it for a minute.

“…I’m going with you.” You said.

He looked at you surprised. “I thought you didn’t care about me.”

“Well maybe I want to congratulate her.” You said sarcastically. “or learn her secrets.”

“Perfect, so do I. There is no way she could have known all of that information of my weaknesses just from what her grandmother knew. I never even told my doll about butterfly nets! Ooh, and maybe if she’s still alive, I’d see her too…” he grinned wickedly.

“She’d be an old lady.” You told him.

“No doubt, I’m used to that fact.” He shrugged. “I could easily make her much younger in an instant anyhow, so either way it doesn’t matter to me.” He said, swinging his wand slightly.

“That easy huh?” you asked in surprise.

“It would be easier to have an extra drink of blood.” He said, looking at you expectantly.

“No way bozo, you’re as dumb as your counterpart if you think I’d agree to that.” You folded his arms. His eye twitches at the insult.

“I need some kind of payment for you coming along to my revenge plan, it takes magic to teleport things to other places you know. Think of it as gas money.” He said and held his hand out to you.

You glared at his hand then at him again.

“Let me have some blood or you get to stay here while I go after the *beep* who locked me away.” He glared back, now looking impatient.

“Well look who got all entitled after I saved you from said safe.” You snarled. “for someone who preached about equal exchange, I haven’t received much thanks other than unwarranted touching and mocking.”

“Oh sweet summer child…” he said and your blood suddenly went cold. Not just a shivering feeling, your blood literally felt cold, as if it was freezing, slowing and hardening. Anti-Cosmo’s wand glowed with a vicious darkness. “What makes you think I owe you anything after you bit me?” he asked.

“I-if you hold you o-own b-blood in such high reg-gard…” you shivered before leaning forward and biting his arm, breaking the skin through his sleeve. The black shimmering blood escaped his flesh and tingled in your mouth, soaking his clothing.

He stared at you with amusement. “Well, you can’t deny now that we’re even. But if this is what it takes to avoid hurting your pride…” he shrugged and pulled his arm and your face closer before biting your shoulder. You grunted, unused to the sensation and started to feel light headed as your blood warmed and ran into his mouth. You started to struggle and bite harder, but he only laughed at you.

He took one last swallow before letting you go. “There now, I have my payment and you didn’t have to agree to it.” He smirked.

You let go of his arm. “That is not how deals work!!”

“You bit me, so I assumed it was fine to bite you back. What else was I supposed to assume?”

“Listen here you-“

“Magic for blood is my deal you asked for magic, so I took my payment.” He frowned and folded his arms. “You took my blood for releasing me. That made us even. Now that you’ve asked me to use my magic to help you come with me, it’s a deal.”

“Then hurry and finish up your end!” you growled, rubbing your bite mark.

“Nobody likes a whiner.” He huffed and waved his wand, making it glow darkly like it did before.

You felt your feet remove themselves from the ground and fell in a fancy old house. You stumbled from the strange Sensation of being picked up and set down magically. The house looked as though it was starting to be neglected, as if there was a single maid to do everything and wasn’t keeping up. The fact it was night didn’t help with how scary it was looking either.

“My my it has been quite some time~” Anti-Cosmo mused and began to walk around. “Looking a bit more haunted than I remember, but it no doubt belongs to my doll.”

“Does she still live here?” you frowned.

“Hmm…” Anti-Cosmo grinned and started to walk across the floor towards the stairs. He began to step upwards with a rhythmic sway and started to hum for a minute before beginning to sing.

“Places, places, get in your places~ throw on your dress and put on your doll faces…” he chimed, dancing up the stairs in a dancing manor. “Everyone, thinks that you’re perfect, please don’t let them look through the surface.”

He made it to the top of the stairs. He kept stepping to the beat of the song he sang so creepily, his voice echoing through the haunted halls. “Picture, picture, smile for the picture~ Pose with your brother, won’t you be a good SISTER?!” He yelled the last word and you heard a loud shriek echo through the house. You both could hear a set of footprint run from upstairs.

Anti-Cosmo giggled softly and motioned you to follow him. You swallowed and followed him up to a hallway with a room at the end. Inside the room, you could hear a woman crying and another comforting her. Anti-Cosmo grinned cruelly and became to sing again as he walked down the hall slowly.

“D-o-l-l h-o-u-s-e, I see things that nobody else sees. D-o-l-l h-o-u-s-e, I see things that nobody else sees.” He sang creepily before opening the door. Inside was a grown woman, comforting an old lady with hair curlers and lots of scars on her neck. They looked like bite marks, from a child sized mouth. “Hello again, my little doll.” Anti-Cosmo grinned wickedly.

The old lady whimpered at the sight of him, shrinking away and trying to hide behind the younger one.

“You…I buried you in the ocean, how are you here?!” the younger woman said.

“Ah yes, well this lovely dear freed me. We have a lot in common you see~” he said as he touched your face. You slapped his hand away.

“Knock it off you creep.” You huffed.

“I have never called you back…go away, I don’t want anything from you…” the old woman sobbed.

“Yet you send your lovely grand daughter to hunt me down and disengage my interaction with human lives?” he frowned.

“I did not send her…”

“I went on my own! Grandmother told the stories of everything awful you did! Creating worst problems than what she had before you came! You are an evil creature that doesn’t deserve life!” the younger woman yelled at him.

“She knew the price when making a deal with the devil.” Anti-Cosmo yawned. “What do you think, does granny deserves another life? I certainly think so, she used to have the most perfect porcelain face…” he said before waving his wand.

The grandma suddenly began to grow younger, but not just that, you noticed her skin began to shine and her eyes gloss over, looking more and more like a real ceramic doll.

“No! Leave her alone!! I’m the one you want!” the younger woman insisted. “I trapped you!”

“Indeed you did.” He glared and waved his wand at her. Her arms were suddenly chained down to the floor. Walls of a safe began to enclose around her, making her panic. They suddenly stopped.

Anti-Cosmo stepped closer to her. He waved away the safe wall that was in front of him so he could look her in the eye. “How did you know my weaknesses?” he glared. “You knew with too much exactness, and I never told your granny such things. Not even most fairies know as much as you did.” He glared and pointed his wand at her.

“I…I tried to Summon you.” She admitted. “Granny said you were everything opposite to Fairies, so I looked up ways to Summon fairies and…did the opposite of them. I even did it on a Friday the 13th…”

Anti-Cosmo narrowed his eyes. “Clever, but obviously you didn’t succeed.”

“Actually I did, just not in summoning you.” She said and hissed in pain as the chains around her arms tightened. You felt pity for these two women the Anti-fairy tormented and tried to think of a way to get AC off their backs.

“Who did you summon?” Anti-Cosmo hissed. “NAME THEM.”

“Ah…Anti-Binky…” she whimpered.

You almost laughed at the silly sounding name, but seeing the rage in Anti-Cosmo’s face got ride of that feeling. “He told you how to imprison me?!” he asked angrily.

“H-he said to pick a Sunday the 7th…that you’d be the most weak on that day, and to be sure I was your only target…to have the safe lined with butterfly netting and to keep your wand far from you…”

You started making mental notes of said weaknesses just in case. Especially with the plan you decided to put in place to save these two.

“I see…” Anti-Cosmo said before stepping back. “Well then, I know who to go for next. That little boil have been seeking my crown for centuries.” He huffed. The walls of the safe around the younger woman began to close in around her again.

You decided to start your plan.

[akimmito]

Heroes are made by the path they choose

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Master List

Chapter 10

Richard Grayson never expected to meet someone who had an aura similar to Alfred's, but when he approached them after leaving the hotel and almost killed them with fright, he found that the existence of other like that was possible.

Hugo, as he presented himself, did them the favor of leading them to a house on the outskirts of Paris. Unlike Wayne Manor which is amazing to see, Lenoir Country House is like stepping into a magical garden worthy of being part of a movie set. Vines tangle in the wooden frames and arches forming a natural roof from which grapes hang, plus the rose bushes that cluster around. As they walk through what would be the totally green front garden, they begin to hear barking and, according to what they were seeing on social networks, Marie Lenoir's son has six dogs, two puppies and four adults, in addition to two cats (yes, they did their little research on the family and were able to see the only photograph of the boy, who has green eyes and a haunting resemblance to Bruce).

At the entrance of the house they are greeted by a gray-haired woman with a motherly gaze. She guides them through the small mansion to her employer's study, telling them some stories of the place's reform and how kind her boss is, letting the employees live in the house, in addition to informing them to be careful with the Animals that roam the house, can be very wild and are capable of knocking down adult men (he told the anecdote of Agatha rolling through the mud to Felix Graham de Vanily and Adrien Agreste at the same time).

Tim looks with interest at the scenery, everything is so… soft, warm and homey. The place is decently large, but it doesn't feel empty, not the way the mansion, even with everyone gathered, feels cold and lonely. In that house only three people are part of the Lenoir (if their observations are correct regarding Hugo).

As they walk down a hallway, they hear two different types of barking, but soon more join… until a black-haired boy pushes them aside as he runs, behind him come the four adult dogs and they manage to knock down Dick who had the unfortunate luck of not being moving in time, the two cubs pass over him.

A little subtly they hear the boyish childish laugh before crossing another hallway (although for Tim, it was more of an evil laugh).

"That boy, always doing his thing." The lady denies with a loving expression. "When I met him, he was very grumpy, he only gave us suspicious looks and observed us in everything we did, especially when we cooked. The first time he refused to eat something that had not been prepared by Miss Lenoir or Hugo, it was hard for him to trust us..."

"Looks like they had a rough start." Dick mentions curiously, wanting me to explain a little more about the boy. Marie has done a better job than Bruce keeping her son away from the media.

"I was, but I think it was worth it, he's a very special boy." She smiles and starts walking again, straight to the shrill noise of the dogs. They barely manage to hear the murmurs.

They enter the studio, a rather large and very elegant room in cream white and black. As they walk through the door, Marie looks up and drops the conversation she was having with her son, Damian turns and gives them a look of contempt, as if he really has something against them. Dick is openly confused by the boy's gaze.

"Welcome, Mr. Grayson and Mr. Drake." She smiles kindly and invites them to settle into the room, the dogs have already taken over a large part of the space. "Honey, why don't you take your friends out to play in the backyard?"

"They are very comfortable here, mother, besides, we have played all morning. We deserve a break. ”He responds politely and giving them another poisonous look, he sits on the black leather sofa (synthetic leather, of course) rising above them as the owner of the place.

Now Richard is much more confused, did they do something to offend the boy?

Tim is restless, the boy deliberately ran past his pack of dogs capable of taking down a Dick-sized man (maybe they could even knock someone like Jason or Bruce to the ground) and now he's subtly threatening them, maybe his older brother isn't I feel it as such, but Damian is drawing a line that if they cross, it will have consequences, and he doesn't want to imagine what that murderous-looking boy is capable of doing to them.

"Weren't you going to take measurements and ask what they want, mother?" Damian questions from her place, seeing that the three adults stood uneasily. Tim tries not to look in his direction, he has the feeling that he would smile darkly at him like a whole evil being.

"Sure..." She says and takes the tape measure from the desk and putting it on her shoulders, then picks up a pencil and her sketchbook. "So is it for an event or for everyday use?"

"Daily use, in my case". Dick responds as casually as he can, feeling the boy's gaze awkward. "Tim wants his suit for work."

"Comfort and elegance, I feel most of the time, but I need to be more than decent when executives decide to improvise a meeting." Tim looks around awkwardly. "It happens very frequently... and most are organized by Bruce"

Marie is aware of what Damian is doing, but doesn't understand the reasons, she has never had that behavior with a client and doubts that it's only because they are two men who border her age, there is something else and she's going to find out, these two men they mean something, her child only reacts to extremes when it comes to... his birth family. Well, mystery solved. Now, she will discover how to approach the issue.

She couldn't see the boy's reaction to his biological father's name, but ho gaze only intensified by throwing mental daggers at the younger of the two men, causing chills. Dick gives Damian a small look, yes, it's unsettling, but he's worried about the amount of contempt he has for them, he cannot even think about how sweet and pretty the designer is, because he's not blind and she's beautiful.

Damian takes out his phone and takes a subtle photograph that he sends to the chat he has with Felix, asking him to come help him intimidate those two men. She only receives a vague reply, but it's enough for him. Although his attention is slightly taken by the group chat, where he has the misfortune of being for being of all the members of the MT (official and unofficial) .. with a very subtle name and nobody don't want to tell him who was the genius who put it on, Although if he must guess, it must have been Kim. Between that and the ridiculous names, he's completely sure that it is his doing.

Marie spends the entire morning chatting with her two clients, Damian and her pack of dogs hang around the entire time. The two German Shepherds are very intimidating, especially Agatha whenever Richard leaned too closed to his mother.

Damian is not allowing his supposed brother to have even the slightest chance of becoming his alleged father. No, he prefers his mother's lover (whoever he is) a thousand times to anyone who is in any way related to his biological family.

----------

It's not the MT

The Antibiotic: Why wasn't told me the butterfly it was active?

Perfect Crime: Because, dear cousin, enough suffering is being married to the shrew.

Plasticine: Don’t invoke her, she’s worse than Satan.

Almost pretty: At least Satan is a good guy, he invited me for a few drinks when I went to Los Angeles with my mother.

Three balls: I signed him a comic, it's great.

Needle: I remember that day, he invited us to a trio

Dragon Tamer: I remind you that there is a child here.

Olive: Agreste, none warned you because they have the concentration capacity of a stick, that is, none.

Plasticine: And you?

Olive: I don't care enough to remember his existence.

The Antibiotic: At least you are sincere...

----------

At lunchtime, Felix arrives at the country house. The two clients are still there, after Damian left the room to go to the bathroom (he's still mad at his physiology for betraying him), Tim was more open about the details. Dick was also more relaxed and they even got into a little conversation around the stunts... until the boy returned.

Two things became clear to Dick: first, the boy has something against them, and second, he has a very heavy and intimidating presence. Very creepy if asked.

So, with everyone gathered in the dining room, it's almost a surprise to see Felix arrive carrying another puppy, Dick looks bitterly as the boy gets another dog, at least hde will not be there for when the puppy turns into a giant dog.

"Felix, what does this mean?"Marinette questions in dismay, none of her friends had given an animal to her son, most against her beacause allowing him to have so many pets (even though only Daphne lives in the apartment).

“A few nights ago I had an epiphany when I saw how a ridiculous suit was the solution to all our problems, so I decided to give Damian a Great Dane because… things can only be strange to a certain extent. "

"You're delusional." She wants to laugh at his logic, especially since he always seemed incredulous every time he saw a Lucky Charm, he always ended up talking to Tikki about it and ended the discussions regretting the loss of all logic (he gave up long ago time, but it seems that the last Akuma made him remember the strange things that it delivers).

"Anybody raves after that." Damian, take. ”The boy stands up to receive his new pet, showing a small and subtle smile when he takes the puppy in his arms. "I had a hard time getting it, I had to blackmail this friend of my mother who tried to sell it at exaggerated prices. "

Marinette gives him a warning look, refraining from saying what he did in front of her guests, can still save her family's reputation a bit after Damian nearly threatened them with kitchen knives (because the real weapons don't come out of the headquarters of the MT).

"Of course not, I made a deal, I can't reveal the circumstances of the deal." He smirks and  his gaze on Marinette's clients. "I'm sorry for my rudeness, I'm Felix Graham de Vanily."

"No problem, Richard Grayson." He gets up to shake hands and shake them, giving him a nice smile, Tim stays in his place and just introduces himself, looking at the blond man without being able to avoid that many expressions of the boy are reflected in him. Does Damian see him as his father figure? He's pleasant around him, although he has not seen how he acts in front of other people.

"Do you have lunch with us?" Marinette already knows the answer, but still asks for the employees to prepare another dish.

"Of course. "

"Does he have a name?" Damian asks after he has been stroking the puppy whose fur is completely black, who is happy to be cared for.

"No, you can put whatever you want and, for the love of all that is good, never ask my cousin about it again." Mariette smiles with amusement and settles again, although she knows that Damian will take a little longer to return to sit down.

"Pictso seems happy with his name." Damian says amused to see Felix's face contract, he enjoys teasing the adults around him (except his mother).

"It just shows that any creature that comes from my cousin has the same lousy taste as him."

"I thought that was established since he didn't accept that Chloe will start the divorce process." Marinette says simply as Margaret, Hugo's equivalent in the country house, comes in with the extra plate and places it right in front of Tim, at Damian's side of the seat.

Felix only teases and adjusts himself in his seat, Damian imitates him without releasing the puppy, ignoring Marinette's gaze.

"Damian."

"Only this time, mother, then he will be with his brothers." He responds, facing his mother, feeling Richard's gaze on him, making him uncomfortable because it's too soft for his taste.

What does he need to does to get those people out of his life forever?

--------

Damian @DamianLenoir

Titus is added to the family, his brothers adore him.

[Attached photo]

Chloe B. @BourgeoisQueen

@DamianLenoir Another one? Where do you get dogs so fast?

Marie L. @MarieLenoir

@DamianLenoir @BourgeoisQueen It was a gift from Felix.

Chloe B. @BourgeoisQueen

@DamianLenoir @MarieLenoir Tell me it's not related to the bottle of Château Cheval Blanc that he gave us all

Marc @MarcAC_twt

@DamianLenoir @BourgeoisQueen @MarieLenoir I think it is.

Nath @NathanielKC_twt

@DamianLenoir @BourgeoisQueen @MarieLenoir @MarcAC_twt I don't even dare to touch the bottle, why did he give us a damn 5,000 euros wine? I shouldn't have investigated...

Felix @GrahamV_Felix

@BourgeoisQueen @MarieLenoir @MarcAC_twt @NathanielKC_twt Say thanks, or didn't they teach you manners?

Nath @NathanielKC_twt

@BourgeoisQueen @MarieLenoir @MarcAC_twt @GrahamV_Felix I would be more grateful if I didn't feel that wine is worth more than all my art supplies

[imnotwolverine]

The Monster’s Lair - Thorns and Thistles

Vampire!Henry x Belle - multi-chapter

< Chap 2 | Chapter 3 - Thorns and Thistles | Chap 4 >

Disclaimer: Dark adult fairytale - injury, references of stalking, possessiveness, kidnapping

Author’s note: I just want to let you know that I won’t be posting next week since I’ll be out on a (much deserved and long overdue) holiday. It’s going to be one week of good food, sleeping in and long, long walks. UGH..I just can’t wait! In the meantime, one more chapter to keep you entertained. Take care dear readers!

Word count: 2.923

Reading music: Le Quintet à Claques - Le diable aux fesses rouges  (“the devil with the red buttocks”)

(Link to my Masterlist)

--

Violins, hurdy gurdy’s and drums strung another delightful tune through the dancing hall, new dance partners quickly rushing to the centre to join in.

‘Sweet Belle, would you care for a dance?’ Tomlin, the baker’s boy stepped in, making Belle nervously look around herself in hope she’d find a good excuse.

‘Oh ..eh..’ Her eye fell on her father who stood but a few feet away, his head bandaged but his spirits high as he discussed some horse-related stuff with his stable boy.

‘..I am afraid not. You see, my father..’ She bit her lip as Tomlin nodded in understanding, hurrying to find himself a new dance partner.

The little interaction didn’t go unnoticed, Arthur pausing mid-story to give Belle a warning look. She quickly looked away, knowing full well what he was thinking; “Go have fun silly girl!”

But it just didn't sit right with Belle. All this. This dance. The party. The happy people. It had been just two weeks since half the town’s centre had burned down, leaving naught but ash where families used to keep their shops, lived their lives.

The mere fact that the beast had been chased off, had been deemed enough of a reason to celebrate. People had pulled out their Sunday best, their joy not lessened by the sight of those who had been harmed that night. The butcher’s wife and their children - minor burns. The clergyman - serious burns, though mostly because he had climbed back in the fire to save his fineries. And papa.

With a somber eye Belle watched her father, his face looking even older now as half of it was bandaged up. He had brushed it off as just a silly incident, but Belle couldn’t help but feel bitter. Bitter about the foolishness that blinded the people here. The beast had become another tool that the Le Comtes used to manipulate the people into dancing to their strings - literally.

The many buildings that had burned down were partially or entirely owned by them, and they would surely raise the taxes to pay for it all, even if the country-wide tax payments already swallowed most of the people their incomes. The Les Comtes held such power over the towns folk that if they said left, all would go..

‘Your dancing partner left?’ A familiar voice awoke Belle from her pensive stare, her eyes meeting those of a smirking Ismael le Comte.

‘Sir.’ Belle curtsied, then looked back at the dancing crowd, not feeling like conversing with the handsome but obnoxious man. Ismael followed her gaze and shrugged. ‘I do understand. The boy’s barely a capable dancing partner, dare I say.’

‘Oh no. No no. Tomlin’s a fine dancing partner, Sir le Comte.’ Belle corrected before quickly lowering her lashes. ‘It’s just that I wish to not leave my fa..’ She looked to her side and noted that her father and the stable boy had disappeared into the crowd, leaving her alone with Ismael.

Oh darn..

She bit her lip and looked back at an amused Ismael.

‘Now Belle.’ He stepped closer, making her step back, closer to the wall where heavy curtains hung before high windows, the fabric gathered and tied to a hook with rope and a thorny wild flower bouquet. Ismael grinned, squaring his shoulders to make himself look even more imposing and broad.

‘I dare say I could make a fine match..’

The dance in the hall ended and with an exaggerated bow he offered his hand, making sure that all were there to see.

‘..for a dance.’ He smiled near devilishly, the spark in his eyes falling in distaste with Belle.

Swallowing harshly she stumbled even further back, her hands catching herself before she bumped into a bench she had not seen, her fall broken on the snarling edges of that same thorny bouquet.

Whimpering in shock and pain, Belle flopped down to the bench, her eyes blinking away tears as she looked at her palms, red and scratched with pillowing drops of blood.

In that foolish tumble into the flower bouquet she had not noticed how Ismael had made no effort to “save her”, as he had so often promised, his head only twitching slightly, as if bewitched, before blinkingly returning to the land of the living, his mouth turning out in a dramatic little gasp.

‘Oh dear! Sweet Belle. Your hands!’ He wrapped his large hands around her shaking wrists and pulled her up without so much as a question. ‘You are bleeding!’ He exclaimed, watching with fascination as the blood started to drip down from her palms. Looking up into her eyes, his next words were resolute; ‘Come now. We must see to that at once!’

And before Belle could stammer a protest she was all but dragged out of the hall, Ismael’s hand pushing at the back of her corset, her feet hastily following his large strides.

‘Wait..where..SIR..where are you taking me?’ She whispered nervously, watching people step aside, their heads dutifully bowing at the sight of the dark haired, handsome Le Comte.

‘Don’t fret.’ He chuckled darkly, his deep brown eyes looking like pools of evil lust.

There was something about Ismael Le Comte that made Belle’s neck hair rise. No matter how kind and handsome and wonderful everyone thought him to be..there was just something..off about him. Belle couldn’t quite place her finger on it, but she wasn’t often wrong about people.

Besides. It was a bit weird that a man of his position was so committed to her well-being, right? Didn’t he have more important matters to attend to? Ladies to woo? Dances to dance? Belle looked over her shoulder, seeing some people follow her and Ismael with their gossip-glistening lips. Oh, stories were abound to be told, she knew that much.

--

‘I can..see to this myself. Truly. I thank you for your..OH.’ The hand that rested on her lower back eagerly pulled her closer now they were alone in a long and spacious hallway. On the walls more prickly bouquets adorned deep blue curtains that reached ceiling high, a watery moon light trickling through the clear glass panes behind them.

‘Oh Belle. Do you not see?’ Ismael purred, his mead heavy breath warming the shell of her ear. He chuckled, amused by his own thoughts, Belle swallowing harshly again as she clenched her bleeding hands before her. Oh she was making a mess of the carpet!

Ismael didn’t seem to see her discomfort.

‘In fact. Do you see all this?’ He used his free hand to point at the gardens, the meadows, the village in the far distance, little lanterns flickering behind the windows of the cots and barns, dusk falling. Slowly Belle nodded, looking back at Ismael with a sense of worry.

Why was he so..so close to her. What was it with this..beast..no not beast..he was far too handsome for that..no..a..an evil excuse for a man!

Ismael smirked and returned his attention to Belle, his arm still keeping her close to his chest. ‘You want your father to keep his job, keep the safety we provide? Hmm…?’ He hummed. ‘You are in no position to deny him a nice life, are you now?’ He raised a wicked eyebrow, making worried tingles run up Belle’s spine, his lips now moving so very close to her neck.

And before she knew it herself, realised it herself, she had started to run. Away, away from this spiteful, hideous man.

Had he no decency?!

With great haste in her long skirts Belle ran and ran, further down the long hallway, her ears pricking as she heard Ismael’s amused laugh.

‘I DO LIKE TO HUNT!’ He roared, his hands playfully clawing at her speeding off silhouette. And with that he started the chase, his attire far less restricting and his strides far stronger and longer, making it an uneven match from the get go.

--

Where to go next? Belle looked around, not knowing the estate quite well enough, whereas her predatorial suitor most definitely knew every nook and corner.

And then she noticed a door, leading out to the terraces.

Without a second thought she ran out, into the light trickle of another rain shower, the blood from her scratched open hands mingling with the clear heaven water as she ran and ran, blue skirts soaking.

The gardens of the Les Comtes were immaculate. Sharp shorn bushes, straight lines, everything neatly trimmed to angular perfection - following courtly fashions to a tee. But the problems with such a garden was that hiding there was just about impossible. And thus Belle continued to run, her heart thundering in her chest and the ache in her hands near forgotten as she made a beeline for the forest.

Ever her safe hide-out when she so needed, she knew the forest paths so well that the low light of the evening fall caused her no trouble.

Unfortunately for her though, the chase didn’t end there, her eye catching the silhouette of Ismael behind her as she had made it to the tree line. And from the looks of it he wasn’t stopping, his gruesome laughter hackling in the rainy wind.

Why was this idiot of a man laughing so?

Belle continued to run. Further, deeper, faster, her breath tight in her corseted chest. Her hands were bleeding so profusely that she sure was leaving a perfect track for any true predator, her blood staining the leaves and branches she swept aside in her flight. But she couldn’t care. She didn’t even dare to think of what the forest had to hide at this late hour of the day, the daylight faded away and her eyes barely managing to see a thing now.

It was then she felt her skirts snag into something, her bleeding hands instinctively pulling at the fabric, making it rip to shreds.

And.. on she ran, the sound of Ismael’s laughter slowly dying away in the ink black darkness, her skirts continuing to brush against invisible bushes and branches.

Was he still there? Oh, how could she always get into such trouble?!

Scolding herself she refused to slow down, her feet stumbling over tree roots, hands skinned open from the rough bark of the trees, her breath panicked and short. She couldn’t see a thing, but she surely must have looked a mess.

And then she got stuck again, this time much worse, her ankle crunching angrily as she sank through a rabbit hole of sorts, falling sideways in another thorny bush. The prickly plant cut like angry knives into her skin, her hands, arms, legs and face fighting in bitter despair to get out. But like a drowning sailor at sea, she simply didn’t know what was up and down anymore, her wild thrashing only making things worse, getting her more stuck.

It was then the tears finally came. Hot and angry in the veil of night.

Belle was a tough cookie, but this? This was just too much.

As she slowly halted her attempts to free herself, she came to the bitter conclusion that this may very well be it. Stuck in a dark forest, bleeding profusely and with a dull pain wrecking her terrified, trembling body.

This may just be it. Her end. Perhaps she would become a snack for that evil monster, or, as she suspected to be far more likely; a pack of wolves or a bear.  

Quiet sobs escaped her rosy lips as she tugged a few more times, her body not managing to move, her torn skirts evilly twisted like a cocoon around her limbs and her arms caught in the embrace of the brambles.

Yes. This was it. Run from one problem..and get into an even bigger one. Classic Belle.

‘Forgive me papa.’ She trembled, angry tears billowing down her cheeks. OH she was such a fool! How could she leave him alone like that?! She should have never left his side. She should have never trusted that Ismael. She had known it! ARGHH!

--

He could have known.

Watching himself in the tall gilded mirror he watched the flurry of scars that marred his porcelain skin. All healed. And within a few months they would be completely gone again. It was always like that. But before then he tended to watch those tiny lines and ripples in his perfect skin, reminding himself of what a fool he had been.

Again.

Could he do any good at all? It was a question that rang in the back of his skull like a tolling bell. Bell. Belle. Hmm. And there was the second thing he couldn’t stop thinking about. That night, seeing Belle so up close, had awoken something in him. And seeing that she saw him - albeit in the lingering dark - made the hungry thoughts in his mind even wilder. His still heart was once again beating with a certain excitement. Life resetting anew in his veins.

In fact. That night the hunt for his hide had been but an afterthought, the burn of his skin but an inconvenience and the sorrow for the villagers’ rejection but another mild disappointment.

She had seen him.

And no, she had not screamed, or chased him off. She had just stood there. As if she knew who he was. As if she had known all along. It was that mere idea that made his empty stomach flutter with a certain giddy excitement.

Argh yes. The empty stomach. It was time to hunt, his beastly belly growling with a need for getting his fill. And as always, blood was on the menu.

Taking his sweet time he dressed himself, hiding every bit of his pale, marred skin. A long sleeved white blouse with high neck, dark high waisted pants and, last but not least, a slightly worn but ever his favourite, burgundy red velvet vest.

Walking down the grand staircase he busied himself with buttoning his cuffs, the small coppery roses pricking awkwardly in his claw-like finger tips. The cuffs had once belonged to his father. Centuries ago, that is. But now they were slowly decaying beneath his fingertips until at some point they would break.

It was like most discomforts in life; they proved terribly hard to die easily. And his rose-shaped cuffs? They were definitely one of them.

Arriving in the main hall he picked a long coat with a hooded mantle on top. A gentleman’s getup for a gentleman that was long past his due date. Centuries past his due date. The monster peered in the mirror next to the heavy doors, his lips curling up to show two pearly white fangs, the clearest reminder of what he was.

No gentleman indeed.

--

The winds were picking up again, sweltering summer nights but a distant memory now as new rain clouds drifted in on the starless sky.

Walking through the unruly path of the unkempt castle garden he sniffed his nose, pricked his ears, peered into the dark. The first drops were starting to fall into his dark chocolate curls when he felt a tremor not far from the castle gardens. A strange tremor. Not like the mice that were hiding in their hollows. Not like the squirrels that were hamstering their winter’s stashes.

No, this was not an animal. But a man. Or woman in fact. Yes. A woman. Pricking his ears even more, the wind making it slightly difficult to discern what he heard, he listened closely.

Indeed, a woman, agonised whimpers escaping her trembling lips, branches crunching as she despaired.

Should he...go?

Frowning at the very idea that he was contemplating whether or not this woman deserved his attention, made him shiver. He was a monster indeed! How could he even think of leaving the poor woman out here in this stormy weather, left to her own devices and obviously being no match to the many predators that loomed in the thicket of the forest.

With his cape flying out behind him he speeded with great haste to the tiny tremor he picked up, following its echo until he could hear her whimpers more clearly. Blinking in the stark darkness he could define her body as it lay there, entrapped in an evil looking bramble. Wild roses.

Those darn roses again. How could something so beautiful be so painful, too?

Stepping in closer he studied the pale limbs, the...blue..dress. Oh no, oh no. Panicking ever so slightly he started to use his beastly strength to rip away the thorny branches, finding beneath them a bloody body.

Belle.

Her breath was shallow, but finally calm. Most probably she had lost consciousness only moments ago, her fight with the thicket having exhausted her. The monster swallowed at the sight. The pretty woman all scratched and bruised, blood crusting on her pale skin. Her blood. Her sweet, sweet blood.

His nostrils flared at the intoxicating smell, but he quickly pushed the temptation aside, his eyes flitting out to watch the darkness around him, seeing and hearing if anyone was there. If anyone was following her perhaps. But for miles he couldn’t find a single soul, all townsfolk dancing at the Les Comtes, or safe in their beds.

Oh, sweet Belle, why are you here? Alone?

Looking back at the disheveled mess of brown locks, rosy lips and snowwhite skin, he came to the fast, though uneasy conclusion that he couldn’t leave her here. Pulling the rest of the branches aside he got an even better look at the state she was in. No state to just be dropped off at home.

She needed care.

And thus he picked her up, her weight light like a feather in his log-sized arms, his cold blue eyes taking in her face now she was here, so close to him, his legs carrying them back to the castle without a slip of the foot.

For years he had watched Belle from a distance. Growing up from this quiet little girl to a caring, curious young woman, her large brown eyes taking in the world around her with such marvel that he couldn’t help but marvel at it all the same.

Here she was. Belle.

His Belle.

--

Chap 4 >

--

General Tagsquad: @harrysthiccthighss​ @tumblnewby @magdelen69​ @thereisa8ella​ @mary-ann84​ @darkbooksarwin​ @summersong69 @madbaddic7ed @luclittlepond @maroonmolly​

Vampire!Henry Tagsquad: @elinesama​ @i-cant-remember-my-old-login

If you want to be added to or removed from my tag lists, shoot me a message!

[monstaxvibes]

Nicotine (3)

pairing: changkyun x reader

genre: teenage angst, bad boy au, drama

count: 1.7K

warnings: underage substance abuse, slight addiction, toxic relationship, violence, ADULT LANGUAGE

Inspired by the lyrics to the song Nicotine by Panic! At The Disco and the UK tv show, Skins.

******TRIGGER WARNING******

Includes drug abuse, underage intoxication, addiction, violence, and cursing. If you are triggered or not comfortable with these subjects, please DO NOT READ!

Also includes toxic relationships! If you or anyone you know is in a dangerous and toxic relationship, please reach out for professional help!

—————————————————————

Your mind rushes through the memories of the time you first met JB. It was only a few months ago, during the beginning of senior year. Changkyun dragged you out to one of Jooheon’s underground rap battles. He was there to pick up and deal, and he left you alone for a while so he can maneuver through the crowd. Jooheon was in the middle of his verse, and you were watching and listening in amazement. Damn, he was talented.

“Hey, you a friend of Jooheon?” a low voice asked near your ear.

You jumped up and snapped your head around to see whom the owner of the voice belonged to. His face seemed familiar, but you don’t think you’ve met him before. He was strikingly handsome, and his sharp eyes make your heart flutter. He appeared cold and unapproachable, but his warm smirk said otherwise. He has two anti-brow piercings near his right cheekbone, just above the hoop in his nose, that mirrored his unique birthmarks above his left eye. He was gorgeous, and you couldn’t help but stare in amazement.

“So…. Are you?” he questioned.

“Uhm, yeah. I am.” you stumbled.

“Oh, cool. Jooheon and I use to b-boy together before he started rapping. Wait, you’re Im Changkyun’s girl, right?”

“Huh? How did you know that?” you belted over the heavy beat.

“I’ve seen you around before,” he smirked.

That night, you and JB got to know each other over some stolen alcohol and a pack of cigarettes. And since then, he became someone that you considered a friend. He always responded to your text messages and gave you attention which Changkyun never seemed to provide. You vented to him about everything, and he told you that you should dump Changkyun. But you never listened to him. JB always flirted with you and tried to make you go out alone with him, which you never did due to your blinded loyalty to Changkyun. Whenever you did invite him to a party that Changkyun dragged you to, he always had an excuse and never showed up. It was as if he was avoiding Changkyun.

After months of talking, you depended on JB as not only a friend but also someone that gives you the attention you craved. But it was never enough since it’s Changkyun’s attention you wanted the most.

Tonight, Changkyun took you to Jooheon’s rave, and despite showing up together, he was quickly surrounded by girls that were desperately trying to get his attention. You drowned your anger in alcohol and pills, but you couldn’t tame your jealousy. One pill became two which easily turned into 4 or 5. You downed every drink handed to you. You complained to your friends, and with them egging you on, you decided to invite JB to the rave to try to get Changkyun just as jealous. A simple message to JB ended up with his quick reply, which confirmed that he would be there soon with his friends. While waiting, you started to feel the effects of the drugs, and you danced along to the music that blared throughout the house.

You felt a pair of hands grip your waist, and the smell of JB’s cologne burn into your nose, which intoxicated your thoughts. You glanced over to where Changkyun was sitting with Jooheon and started to whisper in JB’s ear in an attempt to grab Changkyun’s attention. You thought JB would do what he always did and let you tease him because you knew he would never make a move on you while in a relationship. That was the ”good” friend you thought of him to be. But when JB suddenly spun you towards him and grabbed your ass through your leather skirt, you gasped in shock.

“Jaebum, what are you doing!?” you yelped.

He wore an evil grin and darkly replied, “I’m tempting the devil, baby. And it seems like he finally wants to play.”

—

The sound of shattering glass snaps you back to reality. Your head is spinning, and you can’t think straight. You don’t know if it’s from the alcohol and MDMA or the fear building it’s way up to lump in your throat, but you did know that you’re going to be sick. You open your mouth to scream, but your screams go unheard.

“Stop!! Stop it! Please!!!!!”

No one is listening. No one wants to listen. You shake your head to try to clear your intoxicated brain and focus on what’s going on around you.

People. So many people. Some are recording the fight on their phones, and others are cheering. Jooheon. He is holding back one of JB’s friends by his throat. All of Changkyun’s friends were holding another boy back. Your friends. Dramatically gasping and scurrying away to the other side of the living room. The speakers are still blaring by the bass of heavy EDM music. A mixture of glass and blood littered the floor. Painful groans and curses words flood your ears. Changkyun is bleeding heavily from his lip, overflowing his mouth with crimson, and there's a gash above his eyebrow piercing, which is leaking into his eye. JB’s nose is gushing all of his grey sweatshirt, and the right side of his face has scrapes from Changkyun’s rings.

No! This has to stop. What if they kill each other?! Crap, y/n DO SOMETHING. STOP THEM.

“Changkyun, stop!!” you screech.

He doesn’t acknowledge your pleads, and you feel yourself getting sick.

“JB! Please!” you beg the other boy.

WHY IS NO ONE LISTENING TO ME?! You feel yourself getting lightheaded. Your chest hurts so badly. Are you even breathing? Why is it so fucking hot in here? Is this a panic attack. No, this is different. Something’s wrong.

But wait, they are still fighting! You have to stop them! There’s only one thing you can do, and you wanted to avoid it for your safety, but your security is no longer important. These boys are fighting to the death. And you can’t watch them tear each order apart.

You take a deep breath, and without hesitation, you fling yourself in front of JB in an attempt to stop Changkyun’s next swing. Everything feels like it’s going in slow motion. You watch JB’s eyes widen in fear while watching you try to protect him. You see the look of pain in Changkyun’s face as he realizes he is going to hit you. You also hear JB call out your name in horror. What you didn’t hear or see was Jooheon pushing you out of harm's way and taking the blow for you. He was watching your every move like a hawk, and when he saw the look of determination in your eye, he abandoned his job of blocking the other boys from joining the fight and chose to protect you. You fall unto the hardwood floor and wince as you feel the shards of broken glass pierce the side left side of your body. You pick yourself up quickly and watch Jooheon crumble to the ground in pain. You jump in front of JB again in another attempt to stop the brawl taking place.

“CHANGKYUN, I SAID STOP!”

Changkyun glances down to his best friend and then back at you. “Fuck, Y/N! Get the fuck out of my way!” he spits out.

“No! I refuse to let you hurt him anymore! Stop hurting people! What are you doing!?” you belt over the music.

Changkyun gritted his teeth, and you never felt more terrified of the boy you painfully love. His eyes are like daggers, and his face is bloody and bruised. He looks like the monster everyone thinks of him to be. The monster you know isn’t real because you’ve seen small glimpses of a warm, broken boy he is hiding. Seeing him like this doesn’t fill your heart with hate but with pity and pain. But, as much as you try to fight it off, the hatred is seeping through to your heart, and it’s getting harder to look at him. Your vision is getting blurry.

“Y/N. Move,” he repeats, no longer staring at you but the boy you’re protecting him from.

“Yeah, Y/N, move,” Jaebum chimes in, “Let him try to finish what he started,” he growls.

You glare at JB in shock. “No! Cut it out! Are you both trying to kill each other?! What the fuck is going on?!” you seethe.

They don’t look at you but at each other, and their glares are full of hate. What the hell is going on? How do they even know each other? Does Changkyun think I’m cheating? No, this has to be way more profound than that.

“DAMMIT Y/N STOP PROTECTING HIM” Changkyun scolds.

JB responds to him before you have a chance to.

“Aw, what’s the matter, Kyun? Butt-hurt that your girlfriend cares for me more than you? That she wants to protect me from you? How does that bitter pill taste, huh? Is it tough to swallow? Does it fucking hurt that the girl you love might want someone else?!”

Your head keeps spinning. You are so confused. You’re beginning to feel numb at the ends of your fingertips, and you knew you’re moments away from collapsing. Whatever drugs you took are not sitting well with you, and your heartbeats quicken from fear. What’s happening right now?

You stumble over, and you feel a pair of hands grab at your body. Your vision is going blurry, but you see that its Jooheon who’s trying very hard not to get his blood on you while holding you up.

“Is she alright?!” you hear Changkyun’s voice echo as though he’s a mile away.

“Are you happy, Kyun? Another girl’s life you’ve ruined.”

“Shut the fuck up, Jaebum!”

“First Seungyeon and now her! You should rot in hell! You’ve killed them both!”

“Everyone shut up! Minhyuk, get the truck ready!” you hear Jooheon’s voice from a distance. “Changkyun, get everyone out of here! JB, get lost! Or I call the cops, and we’re all fucked!”

“Y/N! Y/N!!!!!”

You can’t feel yourself breathe. Everything hurts. You desperately try to cling onto Jooheon, afraid that you are slipping away from his grasp and falling into nothingness. You scream, but no sounds leave your mouth. You try to move around to feel something or someone, but all you feel is numbness. You see all the colors around you swirl together before fading into black.

Suddenly, you no longer hear the voices calling out to you. You no longer feel the sharp pains that were once shooting through your body. You no longer suffer from the panic that was previously consuming you. There’s only darkness. And your brain shuts off.

[sometimeseffable]

the night comes down (and it's dark again)

Adam shows up at their door at 9pm on a Tuesday.

The shop has been closed for hours at this point, its owner having decide the weather was far too mucky for a respectable place of business to be open (respectable, his companion had snickered, earning him a copy of Hamlet to the head).

“We’re closed!” Aziraphale calls as several loud knocks reverberate through the store to the back room, where he’s thoroughly enjoying his novel. It’s the perfect setting for a rainstorm; a warm, cozy room filled with golden light, a mug of cocoa by his elbow, and a wily old serpent tucked up against him.

The knocking continues. Crowley raises his head and peers in its direction with sleep-bleary eyes.

“Should we get that?” He frowns. “Sort of late for a customer, isn’t it?”

“They’ll give up eventually,” Aziraphale dismisses, turning a page. From the front, the knocking only gets more insistent, turning into a desperate sort of pounding. 

It’s hard to ignore. And whoever’s doing it doesn’t seem to want to give up.

Whatever it is, it had to be more interesting than Dickinson. At least, that’s what Crowley reasons as he levers himself up to check, despite Aziraphale’s protests. He’s not worried about someone needing help. Definitely not.

So Crowley wiggles on sleepy limbs that already have poor motor control to the door and swings it open. He’s not exactly prepared for what he finds.

“Adam?”

The young former-antichrist is shivering on the front step, soaked to the bone, curls dripping from where they’re matted to his head. Stiff fingers white-knuckle the bars of his racing bike. He’s all of fourteen now, but the lost expression on his face reminds the demon of when he was eleven, burning with recently discovered powers and terrified of it.

“I didn’t know where else to go,” he croaks, and fuck if Crowley doesn’t feel something twist in his chest.

“Get inside, you’ll catch your death,” he scolds as he ushers Adam in. Miracles him dry, gets the bike to a relatively uncluttered corner upstairs,  and conjures up a blanket to toss over his cold shoulders (it’s black, but it’s also tartan, for Satan’s sake - )

“Did you solve the case dear - oh, Adam!” Aziraphale’s sarcasm dissipates as he pokes out from the back room. Crowley lets him take charge, fussing over the boy, ruffling his curls with a tea towel despite that they’re dry now. “Whatever are you doing here alone so late at night? Where are your parents?”

Adam doesn’t answer beyond a vague shrug; his Godfathers, as they’d dubbed themselves at his twelfth birthday party, share a glance.

They sit him on the previously occupied couch in the backroom.  A fresh mug of steaming cocoa appears with a bell-like tinkle, pressed into Adam’s blue-tipped fingers as Aziraphale sits to his one side with an arm around his shoulders.

Aziraphale’s good with the comforting touches, Crowley thinks, watching the once Destroyer of Kings lean into the angel’s warmth. Has to be a Heaven thing. People in need gravitate to him like...like...whatever. Metaphors aren’t his strong suit.

“I ran away,” Adam explains after a few sips of cocoa. Aziraphale hums appropriately; Crowley raises a brow behind dark glasses, arms crossed.

“You biked all the way here?”

Which gets him a look, the kind that reads, Darling, is this really the time to be worrying about his powers? To which he responds with an eyebrow raise that says, Come on, tell me you’re not curious about what he can still do. And then that gets a slight headshake of, Yes alright fine, I’m curious but that’s not what we’re focusing on now. You can ask later.

This all takes place in the span of half a second (they’ve gotten rather good at nonverbal communication), so Adam doesn’t notice.

“We got in a row,” he says, all sad and bitter and righteously angry, “I don’t even remember what started it, just that they – they don’t understand! I keep trying to tell them, and they just won’t listen! And then I start thinking about how – how they’re not my parents, not really, and that they wouldn’t know about how to deal with all the Hell in me, and then I just get more angry but they don’t know why.”

It’s a lot to unpack all at once. Aziraphale is quick to soothe.

“They are your parents, dear. You made it that way.”

“But they’re not really.”

“Yes, they are. Even if you hadn’t made it so they always were, they’re still the ones who raised you. They love you no matter what,” Aziraphale reassures. But Crowley watches Adam shrink away from that, shoulders rising up to his ears. He knows how fourteen-year-olds work (they’re basically demons on their own) and chooses now to step in.

“Angel, I think you’ve left the kettle on,” Crowley says, as diplomatic as he ever gets. He gets a blank look, a puzzled half-frown, before Aziraphale’s eyes widen and he blusters away, mumbling about ‘putting on a fresh pot’.

Adam has curled a little more into himself, tight against the arm of the couch, face pinched. He doesn’t react as Crowley crouches carefully next to him. Fuck, but it’s not like he ever had to deal with Warlock at this age. So he starts off easy.

“You talk to Pepper or Brian or Wensley about it?”

A headshake negative. “They wouldn’t understand,” Adam mutters darkly. And – yeah, he gets that. How can three human children know how to deal with a hormone-addled, depression-sensitive, one-wrong-word-from-a-fight former Son of Satan when there hasn’t ever been one before? How can anyone know how someone who once held inordinate powers of Darkness feels when they’re also navigating the tribulations of being a normal teenager?

“Look,” Crowley says. Hesitates, then bulldozes on, “I know what you mean when you say no one gets it. I get that, trust me. What sucks is that there’s no one else in the universe who’s ever gonna get how it feels to have been the antichrist. Yeah? Just like there’s no one else in the world who understand being a demon who’s not really keen on evil, or an angel who doesn’t like the Sound of Music. Sometimes it’s just like that.”

“I hate that it’s like that.”

“Me too,” Crowley agrees. And that has a pair of damp blue eyes looking up at him in earnest.

“I thought adults don’t like when people hate things because it’s too strong.”

“Bugger that.” It earns him a giggle; Crowley lets his lips twitch up in a smile.

“Life sucks sometimes. But it only gets worse when you push away the people who care. I’m not saying they’re right,” Crowley interrupts the building protest, “You’re allowed to think they’re wrong and you’re allowed to not like how people treat you, even if they do it out of love, and fuck, you’re allowed to run away to bloody London if that’s what’s gonna make you feel better. And maybe no one does understand, but you’ve got me, and Aziraphale, and the Them. You’ve even got your parents when they feel like being reasonable. Okay?”

The kid considers it a moment. His shoulders relax a fraction. “Okay.”

“Okay. You want to talk any more about it? Because I might have to get Aziraphale back in for that.”

“No, that’s okay.” It really does seem okay, too, that’s the kicker. Adam yawns; kid’s had a rough day, he could tell. Crowley basically invented rough days.

He gives the kid’s shoulder a light squeeze. Never been good with physical contact, him. “You can stay here tonight if you like. I’ll drive you back to Tadfield tomorrow.”

“Won’t my parents be worried?”

“We’ll give ‘em a call.” Even now, in the background, Crowley can pick up the faint, angelic tones of Aziraphale soothing a worried Mrs. Young over the phone. He knows they’ll end up not having a problem with it. “Miraculously, I don’t think they’ll mind.”

Adam gives him a shaky smile. The metaphorical clouds are lifting (despite that outside it’s still a deluge) and a bit of the sun pokes through.

Fourteen-year-old boys are notoriously hard to get to sleep; it’s even harder to get them to submit to any sort of physical affection. All the same, when Aziraphale comes back into the room, he’s greeted by the sight of Adam half-laying on his demonic Godfather, sound asleep with one jet wing wrapped protectively around him.

“Not a word,” Crowley threatens. It’s fairly empty, given the hand tangled in the former-antichrist’s curls.

Aziraphale picks his book back up and settles in next to them. The hand not resting on Adam’s head finds itself dangling over the angel’s shoulder, Crowley’s arm firm around his shoulders. It fits, somehow, like three pieces of different puzzles that don’t look at all wonky when put together.

“I didn’t say anything, my dear.”

--

Cross-posted on AO3

My Ko-Fi

Open for writing prompts if you got ‘em!

[erekiosuncreativeideas]

Reliving An Old Nightmare - Chapter 24

<= Chapter 23

Summary : Things don't go as planned. Also available on AO3 : https://archiveofourown.org/works/22337299/chapters/59020252

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New chapter, yay ! [WARNING: the third and last drawing is gory]

THIS CHAPTER HAS AN AUDIO FILE ! I commissioned Puyo-Proto again, and he did an AMAZING JOB ! Please check his Twitter, he's so talented !! (Here : https://twitter.com/Puyo_Proto) Thank you so much for voicing a part of this dialogue !

YOU CAN LISTEN TO IT HERE !

I hope you'll like this chapter :) Happy reading !

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Chapter 24

-“Oh, it’s so good to be back!” The voice coming from their enemy brought back Snatcher to reality: this was it. The moment he had been waiting for so long. The evil spirit was almost out of the breach as Vanessa launched another one of her ice attacks in his direction. The stranger avoided it by very little and managed to enter the rift, cackling threateningly as he did so.

Something felt very wrong about the way this guy laughed, thought Snatcher couldn’t put his finger on it. And it certainly wasn’t the time for this kind of thoughts.

Vanessa didn’t wait long to throw another attack, defiantly adopting an aggressive attitude against their common enemy, who kept dodging all of her attempts at hurting him. The stranger floated around, avoiding each ice pillar coming out of the floor with grace, all while laughing maniacally at the trio.

This Moonjumper guy was mocking them and certainly didn’t see them as a serious threat to his existence. Normally, this would enrage the shade more than enough, but in this particular scenario… This was extremely dangerous, because it meant their opponent was much more powerful than them. Plus, the latter had a Time Piece in his possession, which would definitely play a part in their fight.

What would happen if this guy used it to his advantage? The kid probably knew the answer, but the time wasn’t appropriate for questions. Now was the time to fight.

The other snickered, while Vanessa’s frustration intensified. She always missed her attacks and the ghost could see her powers corrupting her body more and more. Her attacks were becoming messier, meddled and less coordinated. If she continued like that, not only was she going to get consumed again by her powers, but she would most likely wear herself out. Considering the fact that she was the only one able to pit herself against this Moonjumper, this was not a good thing. The Queen needed to snap out of it and to stop letting herself be taunted by this guy. This was exactly what this spirit was trying to do!

Apparently, the kid on his side came to the same conclusion as him, though she reacted in a completely different way than Snatcher would. Without his powers, the ghost felt useless and quite literally harmless against an enemy able to resist Vanessa’s attacks. Trying to hurt this monster would likely result in him being thrown away or, in the worst-case scenario, getting killed. Thus, charging this opponent in that meat sack of a body was not something strategic, at least not if he wanted to attack the other physically. He didn’t even have a weapon!

But, of course, the hatted brat didn’t think. No, she just rushed into things without thinking about all the possible outcomes!

The little girl exchanged her dweller mask for her alchemist hat and then started to run to the crate she had broken earlier, grabbing one of the damaged planks on the ground. She took a good hold of it as she charged this Moonjumper while the latter was still busy dealing with Vanessa.

Fuelled by a feeling of panic, the ghost extended his hand towards the child, letting a “no!” out of his lips. But the moment his voice came out of his mouth, he deeply regretted it: their enemy hadn’t actually seen the kid approaching him but, now that Snatcher had voiced his worry aloud, the other spirit looked in the child’s direction and spotted her attempts at hurting him.

The shade wished he could have kept his mouth shut. Vanessa abruptly realizing how close the kid was to their enemy and was stopped in her tracks, as she was about to throw another attack. She had already risked hurting the hatted child before and surely didn’t want to do it again, but this had been a mistake too.

It simply gave the other a chance to attack as well.

A sickening smile appeared on their opponent’s strange face, as his crazed stare was fixed on the little girl, who had lifted her weapon above her head to hit him. Red strings suddenly appeared from the tips of the other spirit’s fingers and launched themselves in the kid’s direction. They moved in the air quickly, almost too quickly for Snatcher’s stare to follow them. However, before the child was able to dodge or defend herself, the red strings tied themselves around her small body, immediately immobilizing her and bringing her attack to an abrupt stop. The plank she was holding fell back on the ground.

-“Well, well, well, what do we have here?” cooed the evil spirit with a dark smile.

Vanessa frowned at his tone and tried to attack him once again before stopping herself almost instantly when this Moonjumper pulled the child just in front of him, where the spikes would have hurt him if the Queen hadn’t hold herself back. The child let out a shriek and closed her eyes as the ice pillars almost hit her. She was unable to do anything else, much too tied up to move. Fear had suddenly replaced her determination as she was now completely harmless and powerless.

This guy was using the brat as a hostage. The thought made the shade absolutely livid. No one could dare to hurt that hatted brat, he was the only one. The ghost felt heat radiating from his body as he gave the other spirit a death glare.

-“You let go of her right now,” he started with a dark and threatening tone, “and maybe I’ll consider giving you a merciful death.”

The threat only made the other giggle cruelly. He pulled on the red strings with one hand, making them squeeze the brat tighter, as if he was taunting him. His victim winced from the sudden pain, not without struggling. But no matter how hard she was trying to get free, the strings only seemed to squeeze her more.

-“Is that so?” bragged Moonjumper: “And how are you going to attack me? You may look like your old form, though you are just as harmless to me than a regular and common human.”

He used his free hand to tie more strings around the hatted brat, this time around her neck. Terror appeared on the kid’s face as breathing was getting difficult for her.

Apart from Vanessa, the shade had never wanted to kill someone so badly. However, seeing how much in danger the kid was, he remained motionless and silent as their opponent started talking again, turning towards Vanessa:

-“As for you… I would not try to do anything if I were in your shoes,” he paused and continued, much more serious: “Unless you want another child to die because of you.”

The remark made the woman grow pale instantly and she lowered her black hands back to her hips, unable to do anything else. The ghost saw her glancing in his direction, probably wondering if she should try to attack the other and ignore the latter’s threat, but Snatcher glared at her in response. They would not take a risk like this one. Hurting the kid was not part of his plan of the day.

-“Good, good,” cooed this Moonjumper, sarcastically, sending more red strings in Vanessa’s direction. The strings tied her up before she was able to dodge them, keeping her in place: “Now, kneel,” ordered the evil spirit.

The woman hesitated, glaring at him fiercely. However, when the latter started to pull on the red strings on the little girl’s neck, Snatcher’s voice echoed in the room:

-“Do as he says!”

There was too much despair in his intonation for his taste but he couldn’t care less at the moment. The kid’s life was in danger and if Vanessa had to kneel to save her, then he would scream at her to do so. The Queen glanced at him and eventually complied, while the shade let out a sigh of relief when their enemy gave the child more slack.

Why would anyone want to murder them anyway? This made no sense! They didn’t know that guy!

-“Why are you doing this?” interrogated Snatcher, trying his best to sound calm, even if he definitely wasn’t.

The question seemed to take the other spirit aback as he simply stared at Snatcher in bewilderment for a few seconds. Why? This was a perfectly legitimate question! Who in their right mind would not ask that if they were in this particular situation?

Their enemy tilted his head in pure confusion and then a smile appeared on his lips. Slowly, his expression started to change, going from surprise to hilarity, and he then started to laugh. If his hands weren’t busy to keep the child in place, the other would have certainly clenched his sides from how much he was laughing.

This laugh, why did this laugh bother Snatcher so much?

It was now his turn to be confused and the trio couldn’t help but watch the scene before them, completely powerless. The child was glancing between the monster holding her as a hostage and her two adult companions, not knowing what to do or what to think at all.

The other spirit’s laugh ended darkly as he stared back at Snatcher, eyes full of hatred:

-“Oh, of course, you wouldn’t recognize me, how silly of me,” he growled as he squeezed the strings around the child even more, making her whine and close her eyes from the pain. The ghost was so going to murder this guy, slowly, making him suffer as long as possible.

However, the words took Snatcher aback: what did the other mean? Snatcher had never met another spirit like this so-called Moonjumper before! His frustration intensified, though he managed to keep his mouth shut, not forgetting that his interlocutor could very well snap the child’s neck if he wanted to.

-“Well, it is not really surprising, I suppose,” continued the monster, his cruel smile widening: “Using the Time Piece had some…Special effects on my vessel. It seems now that I am both dead and alive at the same time,” he explained, in the same tone someone would use to talk about the weather: “My appearance is quite different now because of that. A shame, truly.”

-“Listen,” protested the shade, careful not to sound too aggressive and kept going: “I have no idea who you are.” It certainly couldn’t be someone who died after one of his contracts, since he always ate their soul afterwards. Maybe an acquaintance of one of his victims? Yet, it didn’t make much sense as his interlocutor seemed to know him personally.

The ghost was not lying when he said he didn’t know this guy.

-“Oh, I know you don’t,” replied the latter cynically: “You never even knew I existed in the first place.”

-“So who are you?!” snapped the shade, unable to stay quiet anymore. He just wanted answers! He glared at his opponent as he kept talking, still watching the child carefully, hoping nothing would happen to her because of his attitude: “Why would you go through the trouble of recreating a whole version of our past just to kill us in the end? We don’t even know you!”

The evil spirit glared back at him but didn’t hurt the brat again, thankfully. Instead, he just smiled wickedly and tilted his head as he finally gave an answer to the question the trio waited for:

-“I am you.”

This was definitely not the answer Snatcher was expecting. From the look on his companions’ face, they didn’t expect that kind of answer either. Apparently, their reaction must have been pretty visible because this Moonjumper giggled and corrected himself:

-“Or, well, I used to,” he explained, then continued with a darker intonation: “Fortunately, I have nothing to do with you anymore.”

And when he said those last words, the stranger showed his left hand, as if to prove a point. For a few seconds, Snatcher didn’t know what to look at exactly, until he spotted something very special: a ring on his ring finger, a golden jewel on which could be seen a damaged ruby. Immediately, Snatcher’s heart sunk in his chest: he knew that ring. Even from afar, the shade could recognize what this ring was.

This was his old engagement ring. The one he used to have when he was alive. The one he had when he woke up in that forest. The same one he died with, so many years ago.

The shade’s eyes widened as everything started to make sense: the clothes this “Moonjumper” was wearing, his claims, the way he laughed, his corpse-looking like appearance, this ring… But this couldn’t be! Snatcher was here! And this guy was over there! If they were the same person, how could they be at two different places at the same time?

There had to be an explanation for all of this, and what this spirit had told him certainly wasn’t it.

The others must have perceived his scepticism because his smile widened as he spoke again:

-“You don’t believe me, do you? That is fine. I did not expect you to. It does not matter anymore,” he said, darkly: “Nothing matters anymore, because you are all going to die,” then, patting the little girl’s head in a very disturbingly slow manner, he added: “Well, not you, little one. I used to want you dead as well, but I changed my mind. This does not concern you in any way, after all. Furthermore…”

The evil spirit gave Vanessa a death glare as he continued :

-“If I did kill an innocent child, I wouldn’t be any better than you,” his smile returned as he turned back to the trembling victim in his hold: “Besides, if I do come back to the Horizon after this, I will have someone to keep me company!”

He chuckled at the sight of the brat’s confused and afraid expression. In the meantime, Snatcher’s anger and frustration kept growing. He didn’t understand a single word this guy was saying! The Horizon? What was that? What was he even talking about?

-“You’re crazy,” mumbled the shade, astonished. He couldn’t believe what was happening: this was the only explanation! There was no way this monster was right, it was simply and physically impossible!

The word caught the other’s attention, though in a very bad way. He frowned and threw a glance full of hatred at Snatcher:

-“Me, ‘crazy’?” he repeated, in a voice that was much too calm to be normal. The shade should have kept his mouth shut. His interlocutor kept going: “You know, this is quite ironic. You are the one who caused me so much trouble, who abandoned me… And I am the ‘crazy’ one?”

-“I have no idea what you are talking about,” insisted Snatcher, putting an emphasis on each syllable as he answered. But the other was not having it:

-“You left me in there to rot, literally! You left me, your other half, to be stuck in a hellish dimension for hundreds of years!” yelled their opponent, absolutely livid: “I spent all this time, alone, having to watch you, of all people, being this pathetic while I couldn’t even leave this place!”

Snatcher’s eyes widened as he was listening to the other, astounded. “Other half”? “To rot”? This guy couldn’t mean…

The latter guessed his thoughts and finished them for him:

-“I am the part you left behind, that night,” he explained with a low voice: “You are the coward part of us that fled because you were just too afraid to face her!” he accused, pointing at Vanessa as he kept going: “And you abandoned me in there, with her! You left me in this pathetic body while you buried your head in the sand, not even considering the possibility I existed!”

He laughed bitterly, tilting his head on his side:

-“You know, I have thought a lot about why I was stuck in this place, the Horizon as I like to call it now. And I think I know. I can’t believe it took me so long to understand why!”

He squinted, looking daggers at Snatcher:

-“I am incomplete. That’s why I can’t dwell in the mortal plane like a dweller or go to Heaven if it even exists! You are the reason I got stuck in this dimension, forced to watch people living happily while I was alone for years! I have no idea how you even exist, why I was the one to suffer because of this… But I will definitely fix what you did to me.”

He paused, smiling in a horrifying way as he revealed his plan:

-“I will not be incomplete once you just stop existing. I will not be missing any part of myself anymore. As soon as I stop maintaining the stability of the rift… You will both perish and I will finally be free.”

A cruel laugh came out of his lips as he watched in delight Snatcher and Vanessa’s reaction to his plan. This guy was absolutely mad. They had to act now!

The shade was trying to find something, anything to help the kid and get them out of a situation like this one. However, when his eyes fell on the brat’s, he noticed her expression had changed from fear to determination. With her eyes, she instructed him to look at her right hand. When the spirit’s glanced down, his ghostly face grew pale immediately.

The kid had materialized a potion in his hand and was cautiously and gently shaking it to activate it.

Instantly, Snatcher’s body became weak at what she was planning to do. She couldn’t seriously think this was a good idea! There were so many other ways involving her not hurting herself in the process of getting away from this monster!

Said monster let his laugh die slowly and started to talk again:

-“Well… I guess this is time for us to say goodbye,” he said, before turning to Vanessa, who was shaking from rage: “I really must thank you, Vanessa. Without you, I would have never been able to go this far. You were so easy to manipulate! Getting the opportunity to finally kill you is the best gift you could have ever given to me.”

He was about to add something when a strong-willed voice interrupted him:

-“Not so fast, you crazy peck neck!”

The little girl’s voice echoed in the room, forcing the other to look at her, surprised. However, when his eyes fell on the little vial in the kid’s hand, his face crumpled in distress. Everything after that happened so fast. The monster immediately released her, trying to get away from her before the potion exploded. Once she was free again, the hat-wearing child managed to throw the potion in his direction while she was sent flying to the other side of the room. Red strings had caught her arms and were taking her as far as possible, but it was too late. The vial had been thrown and the kid had managed to get away from their enemy without getting harmed!

But as Moonjumper was blinded with the explosion, he lost the control of his strings, not seeing where they were taking the brat anymore. But Snatcher was seeing what was about to happen, but he was far too slow to prevent any of it. A deafening and horrifying scream left his lips as he witnessed the little girl being impaled on one of Vanessa’s previous ice pillars.

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

:)

=> Chapter 25

[imaginesforallkindoflove]

A lil piece of writing for me and Felix :3 hope you guys will enjoy it!

Warning: mention of torture

"Let me go you rat!" I yelled with my french accent as the infamous Captain Hook put me over his shoulders. "Unhand me now connard!"

I continued to punch his back, but the black haired man didn't let go of me for a good five minutes. I tried to bite him, kicking him in his private parts but nothing seemed to hurt him enough. 

I gasped as he threw on the dirty ground of the Dark Jungle, in front of a blond haired woman with a sword, a man, a woman with short hair who looked at me almost in pity, and another woman with black hair who seemed very angry at me. I growled and tried to stand up but the angry woman forced me down with the help of magic, earning a "Regina!" from the other black haired woman.

"Who the fuck are you?" I growled. "What do you want? Hook, what is the meaning of this? Again you kidnapped me? Haven't you learn your lesson by now?" 

"Come on, girlie, it's not for that I am here. You see, the boy who allows you to live here, Pan-"

"He took my son Henry and the captain guyliner told us you might have an idea where his camp is at." Regina cut him as she glared at me.

"I won't tell you anything." I said, knowing damn well the location of the camp. 

The adults didn't seem surprised by my animosity toward them. They turned and started whispering among themselves, leaving me alone with the pirate again. It would be easy. 

I suddenly stood up and turned to leave. I really wanted to escape them, who knows what they will do to me? Hook knows that I know where the lost boys are at, and I know that he will torture me to get answers. He was a pirate after all. 

Unfortunately, my breathing stopped and I felt choked. Regina appeared next to me, her hand raised as she was choking me. The short black haired woman ran toward her.

"Regina let her go!" 

"She tried to escape." 

"Listen, violence won't solve anything! There must be a reason why she is on this island, and she must be afraid of Pan. Maybe if we treat her nicely she won't try to run away from us and she could help us!" The woman pleaded.

"Snow, it's not like that things seems to work around here." 

"So what do we do now?" The man said as he approached us and tied my hands behind my back. 

"Let's bring her to our camp. Maybe she will talk when she will be hungry." Regina suggested.

A lot of hours passed and I couldn't find any sleep. I was in a very uncomfortable situation, and those adults… why do they care. I don't have a lot of memories from my past lives because here, happy memories fade away quickly. I always shared the disdain for adults with the lost ones. 

I thought of Felix then. What will he do if he finds my cottage empty? Will he search for me? He told me once that if anyone would dare to take me away from him, he will wage a war against the person, with the lost boys. I smiled thinking of him.

"Why are you smiling?" A voice asked.

I turned my head to see Emma Swan, the pretentious saviour. She was very annoying, always babbling about her past, always saying things that didn't make sense. 

"It's none of your business." I snapped. 

"I know why she is: thinking of her lover." Hook smirked as he approached me.

I stopped breathing and turned my head at him, with wide eyes. How could he know? Our relationship was secret… No, he must be bluffing.

"What are you talking about? I have no lover, it's forbidden when you live on Neverland. Stop with your  nonsense old man." 

"If you think Felix will come running to save you, it's not the case, sweetheart." The pirate announced mockingly as Emma watched him carefully.

"Felix?" She asked.

"The boy I was fighting when Pan disguised himself as Henry. The two have a very very close friendship then. I never seen a lost boy running so fast when I was holding that poor dear little healer over the sea, as sharks circled the ship. I know her fears Miss Swan, we could use them at our advantage." 

I was breathing heavily at the mention of sea and sharks. Sharks in Neverland were born bigger and they were true monsters, attacking anything that came too close to them. The sea terrified me too. Emma Swan showed a more sympathetic face toward me when Hook mentioned my fears.

"You know nothing about me pirate." I growled.

"Hook, leave her alone." Snow White said, she must have heard us. "I will talk with her." 

I rolled my eyes. What does she want with me? Why is everyone asking me questions? Why don't they skip directly to the torture session? Snow White knelt besides me, with a kind smile. 

"So is Hook saying the truth?" 

I knew what she was speaking about so I nodded my head a little, my hair falling over my face. It was humiliating. 

"Listen, we don't want to hurt you. We just want my son, Henry." Emma voices quietly. "Do you know where he is?" 

Oh god I hated them. I closed my eyes. I couldn't tell them. It would mean betraying Felix, betraying my friends that I have in the lost boys. Even if I hated Pan with every fiber of my being I couldn't tell them.

"I can't tell you." I whispered, tears forming in my eyes.

Why was I crying? Why? 

"Are you afraid of Pan? We can protect you." Snow said worriedly.

"No… I am not scared of him. I don't… I will not tell you." I firmly told them. 

Felix will come save me. He always comes for me. Right? 

"It is leading us no where, Snow." The man, David, exclaimed as he walked toward me with Regina at his side. "I hate to say this but maybe… we could… forcefully take information from her?" 

"Touch her and I cut your hand." A monotonous and a little creepy voice said. 

We all turned our heads to see a small group of lost boys, led by Felix. I tried not to smile or to sound too relieved, no one didn't need to know. They stopped in front of the adults, the Evil Queen using her magic already.

"Give her back our healer. Now." Felix ordered.

"Why should we do that?" Emma asked.

Felix smirked. It was one of his smiles, when he knows something that no one does, the one which say "I won loser". I stared at him.

"We love games. Pan wants you to play a second one." He had a paper in his hands. "With this you will find the location of our camp. But, you will have it once she will be free." He finished darkly.

The adults looked at each other, weighing their options. Couldn't they decide quicker? 

"Fine." Emma breathed out as the captain cut my bonds. "You're free to go." She announced. 

I rose up to my feet and jogged over the side of the lost boys. Felix looked at me relieved, but his stare turned emotionless and cold once again as he handed the map to Emma. 

We turned to disappear in the jungle. I hoped they didn't follow us, would be a shame really. They would die faster in that way. We inhabitants of Neverland know all the way around here. The lost boys all went back to the camp but as Felix went to walk me up to my cottage. When we arrive there and as he turned to leave, I grabbed him by his cloak. He bent over by surprise and I kissed him. I could feel him smile against my lips and his hands traveled to my hair and head, bringing me closer.

"What was that for?" He asked quietly.

"For saving me." I smiled. "My hero~." I purred as I hugged him.

"I have to go." He kissed my nose. "I love you." And then my lips. 

I watched him go, already missing his presence. I held on the necklace he gifted me, when he promised he will never let anyone hurt me. And he did accomplish his promise.

[aurora077]

The Guardian - Chapter 1

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13743693/1/The-Guardian

Summary: Harry Potter has been left in charge of Teddy Lupin after the death of his beloved grandmother, Andromeda Tonks. But how does someone with no parents to use as a model even begin to raise a toddler? Especially since he was just barely out of childhood himself. Cue an intervention by one of his best friends, Hermione Granger, and maybe he could make this work after all. 

Disclaimer: I own nothing but the plot.

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

It was a bright, sunny day. The wind was blowing gently, and somewhere up ahead there were birds singing a cheerful tune. It did not match the occasion.

Harry scowled, and squinted as he watched the gleaming casket be transported wandlessly into the Black family tomb. He hadn't even known there was such a thing as the Black family tomb. (Not as though Sirius had any body left to be buried, he thought darkly.) He was sure Andromeda would hate her final resting place. He had wanted her buried together with Ted. Except, Narcissa had made the unfortunate but accurate assessment that he would not be able to remember where Ted Tonks had been buried after his murder at the hands of those snatchers. His protests that Andromeda would want to be buried with the one she loved fell on deaf ears and in the end Narcissa's will had won. Her dearly departed sister would be laid to rest with the other members of her family.

He bitterly wondered if maybe it would have been better had Andromeda and Narcissa not reunited after the war. He immediately regretted the thought. She had had no family left other than Teddy and the Malfoys. Andromeda's last days before her untimely death were filled with a lightness that she had not had for many years. The loss of her daughter and son-in-law so soon after her husband's death had taken an enormous toll on the woman. The reunion with her sister had been a blessing for her -- helped along by Harry himself, who had spoken up for Narcissa and Draco at their trials, leaving them both with a slap on the wrist rather than in a cell in Azkaban alongside Lucius.

A sniffle broke him out of his dark thoughts.

How could he forget?

"Oh Teddy," he said mournfully. He knelt in front of the child, whose normally bright hair was now an ashy grey, and opened his arms. The two-year old ran into his arms and began to sob openly. He had been so brave, but the moment he saw his grandmother being carried away he broke.

Harry had to scold himself. Now was not the time to think about Narcissa or the new responsibilities that Andromeda's death had thrust upon him. This would be a lot harder on Teddy than it would be on him. It was his job to be there for the child. To be the godfather he wished he had. (He forced away thoughts of Sirius who never even got the chance to try.)

He got up slowly, cradling the sobbing toddler and made eye-contact with Hermione. She shot him a sad smile. He returned it and turned back in time to see the heavy stone doors close behind the casket. So this was it then. The beginning of a whole new, depressing chapter in his life.

"Mr. Potter," came a thin voice behind him, making him leave his thoughts again.

"Mrs. Malfoy," he replied evenly. She pursed her lips. She had told him to call her Narcissa but he wasn't feeling quite so charitable at the moment.

"Give him to me," she said, holding out her arms.

Teddy grabbed on to his shirt suddenly and Harry unconsciously tightened his grip around him, "I'd rather he stay right here for the moment, thank you."

Her eyes narrowed. "Well," she said after some consideration, "I suppose I'll let you enjoy the time you have left with him." She turned to her son, who was awkwardly standing next to Hermione, "Come Draco. It is time we took our leave." Draco looked eager to escape and he looped his arm around hers and promptly apparated away.

Harry sighed wearily.

"What is it?" asked Hermione as he approached her.

He passed a gentle hand down Teddy's back and he relaxed, though the tears were yet to disappear. 

"I was just wondering if to take Teddy back to Andromeda's or to Grimmauld Place. Though I think if Narcissa had her way he'd be in Malfoy Manor by now." 

As if he knew what the adults were talking about the toddler squirmed in his arms, his grip as tight as before. 

"It's okay buddy, you're not going anywhere if I can help it," said Harry soothingly. Being The Chosen One had to count for something didn't it? Even if all it did was help him delay things.

“Of course he isn’t. I’ll start looking into magical custody laws as soon as I get back. I know how much he means to you Harry. Narcissa has her own son to worry about right about now, she should let you handle Teddy,” she pursed her lips, “besides as much as she might have helped you, she can’t deny that her family’s reputation is in tatters. It would certainly be better for Teddy to stay with you.” 

She didn’t mention that she didn’t think it was a good idea for Teddy to be brought up around the people who were partially responsible for his parents having to risk their lives in the first place. They may have redeemed themselves, and Hermione wouldn’t lie to herself about the fact that the Malfoys certainly did get thrust into a situation out of their control, but she also couldn’t deny that she was still a bit apprehensive to be around them any longer than necessary. Forgiveness did not come easily to her. It would take her some time to come around to being anything more than civil to the people who thought for years that people like her weren’t worth living, and who acted upon those thoughts by tormenting her and the others like her. 

"Thanks Hermione," Harry said, oblivious to her thoughts, "I knew I could count on you." 

He always could. She was the one person who never let him down, even when he was being an idiot. Teddy's cries were slowing now and Harry could tell the toddler was exhausted.

"I think I'll take him to Andromeda's," he decided finally, "I'd rather he be somewhere familiar tonight but I'll have to take him with me to Grimmauld tomorrow. I don't know who Andromeda left the house to and I certainly don't want Narcissa to have free access to him. Might wake up and find him gone. I'll see you around Hermione." He smiled tiredly at her and apparated with Teddy to Andromeda's house.

He truly was worried. He trusted that Narcissa wasn't evil or even really all that bad anymore, really he did. However the woman had lost most of her family to the war, both sides of it, and she seemed to be clinging to what little she had left. Except, Teddy was all that Harry had left as well. Narcissa would have to be content with Draco, and sharing Teddy.

He couldn't help but see the parallels between himself and Teddy, both orphaned by the war at such tender ages. He didn’t want Teddy to end up with a (great) aunt the way he did. That didn’t work out in his favour. Granted he wasn’t wanted by Petunia, who had never reconnected with the sister that she would now never get the chance to, whereas Narcissa had mended those broken bridges and actively wanted Teddy. He was determined to be there for Teddy the way he would have liked someone to be there for him though. 

The only problem?

He had no idea how to take care of a child.

As he tucked Teddy into bed his thoughts turned to his own godfather. The idea of Sirius having to change his diaper and being totally confounded brought the first chuckle out of him since Andy died. 

He sank into his own bed and blissfully slipped into oblivion. 

[aion-rsa]

Top New Horror Books in November 2020

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

There’s so much to look forward to in our speculative fiction future. Here are some of the horror books we’re most excited about and/or are currently consuming…

Join the Den of Geek Book Club!

Top New Horror Books in November 2020

Thirteen Storeys by Jonathan Sims

Type: Novel Publisher: Gollancz Release Date: 11/26/2020

Den of Geek says: This debut from Jonathan Sims is an excellent portmanteau novel – a selection of very creepy horror stories told by the residents of a property development that houses both the very richest and some of the poorest of London. It’s an ultra modern take on the haunted house story while each tale mixes in different subgenre flavours from techno-fear and shifting architecture to creepy kids and beyond, all building to a joined up climax that’s pleasingly violent and gross.

Publisher’s Summary: A dinner party is held in the penthouse of a multimillion-pound development. All the guests are strangers – even to their host, the billionaire owner of the building

None of them know why they were selected to receive his invitation. Whether privileged or deprived, they share only one thing in common – they’ve all experienced a shocking disturbance within the building’s walls.

By the end of the night, their host is dead, and none of the guests will say what happened. His death has remained one of the biggest unsolved mysteries – until now.

But are you ready for their stories?

Jonathan Sims’ debut is a darkly twisted, genre-bending journey through one of the most innovative haunted houses you’ll ever dare to enter.

Bone Harvest by James Brodgen

Type: Novel Publisher: Titan Books Release Date: 11/17/2020

Den of Geek says: A folk horror spanning a century, Brogden’s tale of a strange community who worship an ancient god takes us right up to the present day and to the parochial backdrop of a small set of allotments where residents bicker and secrets are kept, not realising that the new tenants are hiding something much bigger than any of them could imagine. A sprawling and evocative novel with plenty of ikky bits.

Publisher’s Summary: From the critically acclaimed author of Hekla’s Children comes a dark and haunting tale of an ancient cult wreaking bloody havoc on the modern world.

YOU SHALL REAP WHAT YOU SOW

Struggling with the effects of early-onset Alzheimer’s, Dennie Keeling leads a quiet life. Her husband is dead, her children are grown, and her best friend, Sarah, was convicted of murdering her abusive husband. All Dennie wants now is to be left to work her allotment in peace.

But when three strangers take the allotment next to hers, Dennie starts to notice strange things. Plants are flowering well before their time, shadowy figures prowl at night, and she hears strange noises coming from the newcomers’ shed. Dennie soon realises that she is face to face with an ancient evil – but with her Alzheimer’s steadily getting worse, who is going to believe her?

Secret Santa by Andrew Shaffer

Type: Novel Publisher: Quirk Books Release Date: 11/10/2020

Den of Geek says: A short snappy read which would no doubt make an excellent Secret Santa gift for the festive season, Secret Santa is a horror comedy set in the 80s in the book publishing heyday, where a new editor is tormented by her co-workers and accidentally gets her revenge via a freaky gnome doll. Shaffer is a comedy writer, critic and satirist so expect shivery fun.

Publisher’s summary: After half a decade editing some of the biggest names in horror, Lussi Meyer joins prestigious Blackwood-Patterson to kickstart their new horror imprint. Her new co-workers seem less than thrilled. Ever since the illustrious Xavier Blackwood died and his party-boy son took over, things have been changing around the office. When Lussi receives a creepy gnome doll as part of the company’s annual holiday gift exchange, it verifies what she’s long suspected: her co-workers think she’s a joke. No one there takes her seriously, even if she’s the one whose books are keeping the company afloat. What happens after the doll s arrival is no joke. With no explanation, Lussi s co-workers begin to drop like flies. A heart attack here; a food poisoning there. One of her authors and closest friends, the fabulous but underrated Fabien Nightingale, sees the tell-tale signs of supernatural forces at play, stemming from the gnome sitting quietly on Lussi s shelf. The only question is does Lussi want to stop it from working its magic?

Top New Horror Books in October 2020

The Hollow Places by T. Kingfisher

Type: Sequel Novel Publisher: Gallery/Saga Release date: 10/6/2020

Den of Geek says: Did you ever wish The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe had a bit more horror in it? You might want to try T. Kingfisher The Hollow Places, which follows a recent divorcée who, penniless and depressed, moves in with her uncle only to find a portal to countless, often nightmare-inducing realities in his wall. The Hollow Places is a character-driven romp that combines a romcom setup with genuine horror for a tale that is as unexpected as it is creepy.

Publisher’s Summary: A young woman discovers a strange portal in her uncle’s house, leading to madness and terror in this gripping new novel from the author of the “innovative, unexpected, and absolutely chilling” (Mira Grant, Nebula Award–winning author) The Twisted Ones.

Ring Shout by P. Djèlí Clark

Type: Novella Publisher: Tor.com Release date: 10/13/2020

Den of Geek says: What if, in addition to your garden-variety human racists (known as “Klans”), the Ku Klux Klan also included literal monsters, demonic carnivores (known as “Ku Kluxes”). This is the premise for Ring Shout, a supernatural horror that follows three Black women—a sharpshooter, a soldier, and a master swordswoman with the ability to talk to spirits—as they hunt down Ku Kluxes. Their job turns even higher-stake when they discover that the Klans and Ku Kluxes are gathering for a large-scale attack. If you’re bemoaning the end of Lovecraft Country season one, this is the story for you.

Publisher’s summary: Nebula, Locus, and Alex Award-winner P. Djèlí Clark returns with Ring Shout, a dark fantasy historical novella that gives a supernatural twist to the Ku Klux Klan’s reign of terror.

Plain Bad Heroines by Emily M. Danforth

Type: Novel Publisher: HarperCollins Release date: 10/20/2020

Den of Geek says: This horror-comedy begins in 1902 when two friends at The Brookhants School for Girls start a private club called The Plain Bad Heroine Society that will shortly lead to their deaths. More than a century later, the bestselling book about the queer, feminist history of the school is being adapted into a film, but when the three actresses arrive at Brookhants to begin filming, horror strikes again.

Publisher’s summary: The award-winning author of The Miseducation of Cameron Post makes her adult debut with this highly imaginative and original horror-comedy centered around a cursed New England boarding school for girls—a wickedly whimsical celebration of the art of storytelling, sapphic love, and the rebellious female spirit.

Top New Horror Books in September 2020

Night Of The Mannequins by Stephen Graham Jones

Type: Novella Publisher: Tor.com Release date: 09/01/2020

Den of Geek says: The second book by Stephen Graham Jones this year after The Only Good Indians, this zippy horror sees a bunch of teens pull a prank in a movie theater involving a dressed up mannequin which turns tragic. Now our protagonist Sawyer needs to put things right. Funny, camp and gory, this is a quick read, a coming of age story with a b-movie feel that’s full of surprises.

Publisher’s summary: Award-winning author Stephen Graham Jones returns with Night of the Mannequins, a contemporary horror story where a teen prank goes very wrong and all hell breaks loose: is there a supernatural cause, a psychopath on the loose, or both?

Clown in a Cornfield by Adam Cesare 

Type: Novel Publisher: HarperCollins Release date: 09/17/2020

Den of Geek says: You might be tempted in by the title alone (or indeed the cover art which is pleasingly cheeky) but this YA novel from author and horror nut Adam Cesare sounds like it should be also be a fun romp as a clown mascot goes nuts and starts offing the kids of a run down town. This is Cesare’s first foray into YA, though he has a rich background in genre.

Publisher’s summary: In Adam Cesare’s terrifying young adult debut, Quinn Maybrook finds herself caught in a battle between old and new, tradition and progress—that just may cost her life.

Quinn Maybrook and her father have moved to tiny, boring Kettle Springs, to find a fresh start. But what they don’t know is that ever since the Baypen Corn Syrup Factory shut down, Kettle Springs has cracked in half. 

On one side are the adults, who are desperate to make Kettle Springs great again, and on the other are the kids, who want to have fun, make prank videos, and get out of Kettle Springs as quick as they can.

Kettle Springs is caught in a battle between old and new, tradition and progress. It’s a fight that looks like it will destroy the town. Until Frendo, the Baypen mascot, a creepy clown in a pork-pie hat, goes homicidal and decides that the only way for Kettle Springs to grow back is to cull the rotten crop of kids who live there now. 

The Loop by Jeremy Robert Johnson

Type: Novel Publisher: Gallery / Saga Press  Release date: 09/29/2020

Den of Geek says: An evil corporation conducting nefarious experiments on unsuspecting teenagers in a small town, a violent outbreak which sounds zombie-adjacent and a group of plucky outsiders trying to survive and even save the day, this should be a sci-fi horror page turner for lovers of this particular sub-genre. Despite the slightly generic sounding plot, Johnson is known for his ‘bizarro’ work so we’d expect this to have hidden flair.

Publisher’s summary: Stranger Things meets World War Z in this heart-racing conspiracy thriller as a lonely young woman teams up with a group of fellow outcasts to survive the night in a town overcome by a science experiment gone wrong.

Turner Falls is a small tourist town nestled in the hills of western Oregon, the kind of town you escape to for a vacation. When an inexplicable outbreak rapidly develops, this idyllic town becomes the epicenter of an epidemic of violence as the teenaged children of several executives from the local biotech firm become ill and aggressively murderous. Suddenly the town is on edge, and Lucy and her friends must do everything it takes just to fight through the night.

The Ghost Tree by Christina Henry

Type: Novel Publisher: Titan Books/Ace Berkeley Release date: 09/08/2020

Den of Geek says: A very dark coming of age tale from Christina Henry whose novels Alice and Lost Boys were reimagining of classic tales. The Ghost Tree is a standalone story which sees a teenage girl become her own hero in the face of terrible circumstances. Though it’s about young adults, this isn’t a YA novel, more, says Henry, it’s “an homage to all the coming-of-age horror novels I read when I was younger – except all those books featured boys as the protagonists when I longed for more stories about girls.”

Publisher’s summary: A brand-new chilling horror novel from the bestselling author of Alice and Lost Boy

When the bodies of two girls are found torn apart in her hometown, Lauren is surprised, but she also expects that the police won’t find the killer. After all, the year before her father’s body was found with his heart missing, and since then everyone has moved on. Even her best friend, Miranda, has become more interested in boys than in spending time at the old ghost tree, the way they used to when they were kids. So when Lauren has a vision of a monster dragging the remains of the girls through the woods, she knows she can’t just do nothing. Not like the rest of her town.

But as she draws closer to answers, she realizes that the foundation of her seemingly normal town might be rotten at the centre. And that if nobody else stands for the missing, she will.

Dracula’s Child by J. S. Barnes

Type: Novel Publisher: Titan Books Release Date: 09/22/2020

Den of Geek says: A long and thorough tribute to Bram Stoker’s original, written in the style of Stoker’s prose and imagining a continuation of the story this is a must-read for Dracula fans. It follows on directly from the original novel and imagines the Harkers’ lives some years after their ordeal at the hands of the Count.

Publisher’s summary: Evil never truly dies… and some legends live forever. In Dracula’s Child, the dark heart of Bram Stoker’s classic is reborn. Capturing the voice, tone, style and characters of the original yet with a modern sensibility this novel is perfect for fans of Dracula and contemporary horror.

It has been some years since Jonathan and Mina Harker survived their ordeal in Transylvania and, vanquishing Count Dracula, returned to England to try and live ordinary lives.

But shadows linger long in this world of blood feud and superstition – and, the older their son Quincey gets, the deeper the shadows that lengthen at the heart of the Harkers’ marriage. Jonathan has turned back to drink; Mina finds herself isolated inside the confines of her own family; Quincey himself struggles to live up to a family of such high renown.

And when a gathering of old friends leads to unexpected tragedy, the very particular wounds in the heart of the Harkers’ marriage are about to be exposed…

There is darkness both within the marriage and without – for new evil is arising on the Continent. A naturalist is bringing a new species of bat back to London; two English gentlemen, on their separate tours of the continent, find a strange quixotic love for each other, and stumble into a calamity far worse than either has imagined; and the vestiges of something forgotten long ago is finally beginning to stir…

Top New Horror Books in August 2020

The Hollow Ones by Chuck Hogan and Guillermo del Toro

Type: Novel Publisher: Del Rey Release Date: 08/04/2020

Den Of Geek says: Master of horror Guillermo del Toro reunites with Chuck Hogan, who collaborated with del Toro on The Strain for the start of a new horror series. It’s a paranormal tale that begins in the world of crime as a young FBI agent experiences an otherworld evil on the job. Del Toro is a master of world building and Hogan is a well respected literary voice so this should be a corker.

Publisher summary: A horrific crime that defies explanation, a rookie FBI agent in uncharted, otherworldly territory, and an extraordinary hero for the ages.                                                                                                                              

Rookie FBI agent Odessa Hardwicke’s life is derailed when she’s forced to turn her gun on her partner, who turns suddenly, inexplicably violent while apprehending a rampaging murderer.

The shooting, justified by self-defence, shakes Odessa to her core and she is placed on desk leave pending a full investigation. But what haunts Odessa is the shadowy presence she saw fleeing her partner’s body after his death. 

Determined to uncover the secrets of her partner’s death, Hardwicke finds herself on the trail of a mysterious figure named John Silence: a man of enormous means who claims to have been alive for centuries, and who is either an unhinged lunatic, or humanity’s best and only defence against an unspeakable evil.

Night Train by David Quantick

Type: Novel Publisher: Titan Books Release date: 08/25/2020

Den of Geek says: Quantick is a former journalist and screenwriter for shows including Veep, The Thick of It and The Day Today. His latest novel is a high concept horror with an intriguing premise – a woman wakes up on a mysterious train full of the dead with no idea of where she is or how she got there. His books have been likened to David Wong and M.R. Carey which is incentive enough for us to pick this up. 

Publisher’s summary: A woman wakes up, frightened and alone – with no idea where she is. She’s in a room but it’s shaking and jumping like it’s alive. Stumbling through a door, she realizes she is in a train carriage. A carriage full of the dead. This is the Night Train. A bizarre ride on a terrifying locomotive, heading somewhere into the endless night. How did the woman get here? Who is she? And who are the dead? As she struggles to reach the front of the train, through strange and horrifying creatures with stranger stories, each step takes her closer to finding out the train’s hideous secret. Next stop: unknown. 

In Night Train David Quantick takes his readers on a twisting, turning ride through his own brand of horror, both terrifying and darkly funny. With echoes of Chuck Palahniuk, David Wong and M.R. Carey, Quantick’s unique and highly entertaining voice sings out in a page-turning adventure through a hellscape only he could imagine. If you haven’t discovered this rising star of the genre it’s time to step on board and have your mind melted. 

Nicnevin and the Bloody Queen by Helen Mullane, Dom Reardon, Matthew Dow Smith and Jock

Type: Graphic Novel Publisher:  Humanoids Inc. Release date: 08/20/2020

Den of Geek says: This is a great looking new graphic novel written by film distributor and documentarian turned sled dog racer Helen Mullane. It’s a British folk horror in the classic tradition with a modern twist, featuring a young female protagonist and gorgeous art. A proper page turner from an exciting new voice, illustrated by industry heavyweights. 

Publisher’s summary: Something strange has been unleashed in the north of England. A modern-day druid commits a series of ghastly murders in an attempt to unleash the awesome power of the ancient gods of Great Britain. But all hell really breaks loose when his latest would-be victim, Nicnevin ‘Nissy’ Oswald, turns out to be more than she seems. A British tale mixing black magic and horror, godfathered by Jock, one of the new masters of comic book suspense.

The Living Dead by George A Romero and Daniel Kraus

Type: Novel Publisher: Tor Books Release date: 08/04/2020

Den of Geek says: This is the book that zombie king George A Romero left unfinished when he passed away in 2017. It’s now been finished by Kraus who collaborated on the books of The Shape Of Water with Guillermo del Toro – this an multi-threaded origin story charting the start of the dead walking the Earth from the man who created the modern zombie genre this is pretty essential reading.

Publisher’s summary: It begins with one body. A pair of medical examiners find themselves facing a dead man who won’t stay dead.

It spreads quickly. In a Midwestern trailer park, an African American teenage girl and a Muslim immigrant battle newly-risen friends and family.

On a US aircraft carrier, living sailors hide from dead ones while a fanatic preaches the gospel of a new religion of death.

At a cable news station, a surviving anchor keeps broadcasting, not knowing if anyone is watching, while his undead colleagues try to devour him.

In DC, an autistic federal employee charts the outbreak, preserving data for a future that may never come.

Everywhere, people are targeted by both the living and the dead.

We think we know how this story ends. We. Are. Wrong.

Top New Horror Books In July 2020

Survivor Song by Paul Tremblay 

Type: Novel Publisher: William Morrow/Titan Books Release Date: July 7

Den of Geek says: The latest from the master of sad horror Paul Tremblay is one of his best yet. It is however, disturbingly prescient. Following an outbreak of fast acting rabies, hospitals are short of PPE and citizens are on lockdown. But when Doctor Ramola’s heavily pregnant best friend Natalie is bitten, the two must go on a perilous journey to save her unborn child. It’s gorgeously written, very moving and a little bit disturbing during a pandemic.

Publisher’s summary: A riveting novel of suspense and terror from the Bram Stoker award-winning author of The Cabin at the End of the World and A Head Full of Ghosts.

When it happens, it happens quickly.

New England is locked down, a strict curfew the only way to stem the wildfire spread of a rabies-like virus. The hospitals cannot cope with the infected, as the pathogen’s ferociously quick incubation period overwhelms the state. The veneer of civilization is breaking down as people live in fear of everyone around them. Staying inside is the only way to keep safe.

But paediatrician Ramola Sherman can’t stay safe, when her friend Natalie calls, her husband is dead, she’s eight months pregnant, and she’s been bitten. She is thrust into a desperate race to bring Natalie and her unborn child to a hospital, to try and save both their lives.

Their once familiar home has become a violent and strange place, twisted into a barely recognisable landscape. What should have been a simple, joyous journey becomes a brutal trial.

The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones

Type: Novel Publisher: Gallery/Titan Books Release date: July 21

Den of Geek says: Stephen Graham Jones is being touted as the next big thing in horror circles and while he’s had more than 20 books published it’s likely this will be his big breakout hit. The Only Good Indians follows a group of Blackfeet Native Americans who are paying the price for an incident during an Elk hunt a decade ago. Social commentary, a supernatural revenge plot and an intimate character study mix in this literary horror with something to say which brings genuine chills.

Publisher’s summary: Adam Nevill’s The Ritual meets Liane Moriarty’s Big Little Lies in this atmospheric gothic literary horror.

Ricky, Gabe, Lewis and Cassidy are men bound to their heritage, bound by society, and trapped in the endless expanses of the landscape. Now, ten years after a fateful elk hunt, which remains a closely guarded secret between them, these men and their children must face a ferocious spirit that is coming for them, one at a time. A spirit which wears the faces of the ones they love, tearing a path into their homes, their families and their most sacred moments of faith.

The Only Good Indians, charts Nature’s revenge on a lost generation that maybe never had a chance. Cleaved to their heritage, these parents, husbands, sons and Indians, these men must fight their demons on the fringes of a society that has no place for them.

Malorie by Josh Malerman

Type: Novel Publisher: Del Rey/Orion Release date: July 21

Den of Geek says: This is the sequel to Bird Box, the brilliant horror-thriller which spawned a not-that-great Netflix movie that was nonetheless extraordinarily successful. The original imagines a world populated by monsters – if you look at them you instantly lose your mind and harm yourself or others. The sequel finds Malorie and the two children years later – the kids are now teens who’ve never known a world other than the one behind the blindfold while Malorie still remembers the world before it went mad. A character study as well as a tense, paranoid horror story, this is one of the most anticipated horrors of the year.

Publisher’s summary: The much-anticipated Bird Box sequel

In the seventeen years since the ‘creatures’ appeared, many people have broken that rule. Many have looked. Many have lost their minds, their lives, their loved ones.

In that time, Malorie has raised her two children – Olympia and Tom – on the run or in hiding. Now nearly teenagers, survival is no longer enough. They want freedom.

When a census-taker stops by their refuge, he is not welcome. But he leaves a list of names – of survivors building a future beyond the darkness – and on that list are two names Malorie knows.

Two names for whom she’ll break every rule, and take her children across the wilderness, in the hope of becoming a family again.

Top New Horror Books In June 2020

Devolution by Max Brooks 

Type: Novel Publisher: Century  Release date: 06/16/2020

Den of Geek says: If anyone’s going to make a book about Bigfoots (Bigfeet?) not only genuinely very scary but also entirely believable it’s Max Brooks. The author of widely acclaimed World War Z weaves a found journal, snippets of interviews and the odd real life example together to tell the story of the remote eco-community of Greenloop who is isolated after a volcanic eruption and faces a deadly new threat brought on by changes in the ecosystem. It’s a cautionary tale, and a sometimes satirical fable of the dangers of underestimating nature.

Publisher’s summary: As the ash and chaos from Mount Rainier’s eruption swirled and finally settled, the story of the Greenloop massacre has passed unnoticed, unexamined . . . until now.

But the journals of resident Kate Holland, recovered from the town’s bloody wreckage, capture a tale too harrowing – and too earth-shattering in its implications – to be forgotten.

In these pages, Max Brooks brings Kate’s extraordinary account to light for the first time, faithfully reproducing her words alongside his own extensive investigations into the massacre and the beasts behind it, once thought legendary but now known to be terrifyingly real.

Kate’s is a tale of unexpected strength and resilience, of humanity’s defiance in the face of a terrible predator’s gaze, and inevitably, of savagery and death.

Yet it is also far more than that.

Because if what Kate Holland saw in those days is real, then we must accept the impossible. We must accept that the creature known as Bigfoot walks among us – and that it is a beast of terrible strength and ferocity.

Part survival narrative, part bloody horror tale, part scientific journey into the boundaries between truth and fiction, this is a Bigfoot story as only Max Brooks could chronicle it – and like none you’ve ever read before.

The Secret of Cold Hill by Peter James  

Type: Novel (paperback) Publisher: Pan; Main Market edition Release date: 06/25/2020

Den of Geek says: This is the follow up to 2015’s The House on Cold Hill, a supernatural thriller from multi-award winning British crime writer Peter James. It’s a modern take on a classic ghost story set in the Sussex countryside – the sequel sees the haunted Georgian mansion of the first book destroyed and new houses built in its place, where new families face malevolent forces from the past. 

Publisher’s summary: From the number one bestselling author, Peter James, comes The Secret of Cold Hill. The spine-chilling follow-up to The House on Cold Hill. Now a smash-hit stage play.

Cold Hill House has been razed to the ground by fire, replaced with a development of ultra-modern homes. Gone with the flames are the violent memories of the house’s history, and a new era has begun.

Although much of Cold Hill Park is still a construction site, the first two families move into their new houses. For Jason and Emily Danes, this is their forever home, and for Maurice and Claudette Penze-Weedell, it’s the perfect place to live out retirement. Despite the ever present rumble of cement mixers and diggers, Cold Hill Park appears to be the ideal place to live. But looks are deceptive and it’s only a matter of days before both couples start to feel they are not alone in their new homes.

There is one thing that never appears in the estate agent brochures: nobody has ever survived beyond forty in Cold Hill House and no one has ever truly left…

Top New Horror Books In April 2020

The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires

Type: Novel Publisher: Quirk Books Release Date: 04/07/2020

Den Of Geek says: The latest novel from Grady Hendrix is set in the same world as his masterful horror My Best Friend’s Exorcism, this time focusing on the wives and mothers of Charleston, South Carolina. Occupied with looking after their families and keeping up appearances, one group of women have to step up and fight when a charismatic stranger comes to town. A modern vampire novel packed with heart (and gore) this is another hit from one of the most exciting horror writers around.

Publisher’s summary: Steel Magnolias meets Dracula. A haunting, hair-raising, and ultimately heartwarming story set in the 1990s, the novel follows a women’s true-crime book club that takes it upon themselves to protect their community when they detect a monster in their midst. Deftly pitting Dracula against a seemingly prim and proper group of moms, Hendrix delivers his most complex, chilling, and exhilarating novel yet. 

With Grady’s unique comedic timing and adoration of the horror genre, The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires is a pure homage to his upbringing, the most famous horror book of all, and something we can all relate to – the joy of reading. 

Eden By Tim Lebbon

Type: Novel Publisher: Titan Books Release Date: 04/07/2020

Den of Geek says: From the author of The Silence (which is basically A Quiet Place, published several years before A Quiet Place came out) comes another eco-horror which sees pollution and climate change force humanity to create locked off zones which are off-limits to people. Eden follows a group of adventurers who break the rules and enter one of the zones where nature has taken hold and begun to rebel. Should appeal to fans of Bird Box and Annihilation.

Publisher’s summary: In a time when Earth’s rising oceans contain enormous islands of refuse, the Amazon rainforest is all-but destroyed, and countless species edge towards extinction, the Virgin Zones were established in an attempt to combat the change. Off-limits to humanity and given back to nature, these thirteen vast areas of land were intended to become the lungs of the world. 

Dylan leads a clandestine team of adventurers into Eden, the oldest of the Zones. Attracted by the challenges and dangers posed by the primal lands, extreme competitors seek to cross them with a minimum of equipment, depending only on their raw skills and courage. Not all survive. 

Also in Dylan’s team is his daughter Jenn, and she carries a secret – Kat, his wife who abandoned them both years ago, has entered Eden ahead of them. Jenn is determined to find her mother, but neither she nor the rest of their tight-knit team are prepared for what confronts them. Nature has returned to Eden in an elemental, primeval way. And here, nature is no longer humanity’s friend. 

Eden is a triumphant return to the genre by one of horror’s most exciting contemporary voices, as Tim Lebbon offers up a page-turning and adrenaline-fuelled race through the deadly world of Eden, poignantly balanced with observations on humanity’s relationship with nature, and each other. Timely and suspenseful, Eden will seed itself in the imagination of the reader and continue to bloom long after the last page. 

The Wise Friend By Ramsey Campbell

Type: Novel Publisher: Flame Tree Press Release date: 04/23/2020

Den Of Geek says: The latest from British horror legend is a mystical tale of the occult which hints at the monstrous. Campbell is regarded by many as one of the most important horror writers of his generation. Influenced by H P Lovecraft and M R James, and influencing many horror writers who came after him, he’s published more than 30 novels. His latest sounds like a treat.

Publisher’s Summary: Patrick Torrington’s aunt Thelma was a successful artist whose late work turned to- wards the occult. While staying with her in his teens he found evidence that she used to visit magical sites. As an adult he discovers her journal of her explorations, and his teenage son Roy becomes fascinated too. 

His experiences at the sites scare Patrick away from them, but Roy carries on the search, together with his new girlfriend. Can Patrick convince his son that his increasingly terrible suspicions are real, or will what they’ve helped to rouse take a new hold on the world?

The Book of Koli – The Rampart Trilogy, Book 1, By M.R. Carey

Type: Novel Publisher: Orbit Release date: 04/14/2020

Den of Geek says: This is the first book in a new trilogy by M.R. Carey who wrote excellent zombie novel The Girl With All The Gifts. This is an eco-horror/sci-fi which sounds like Tim Lebbon’s Eden in reverse – in Carey’s book it’s everything outside a small village that’s a threat – and both books are aimed at fans of Jeff Vandermeer’s Southern Reach trilogy. Little surprise that horror writers are turning their attention to the environment in these frightening times and in Carey’s careful hands (there was an element of nature evolving in Girl With All The Gifts) this should be a new world worth visiting.

Publisher’s summary: EVERYTHING THAT LIVES HATES US . . . Beyond the walls of the small village of Mythen Rood lies an unrecognisable landscape. A place where overgrown forests are filled with choker trees and deadly seeds that will kill you where you stand. And if they don’t get you, the Shunned men will. Koli has lived in Mythen Rood his entire life. He believes the first rule of survival is that you don’t venture too far beyond the walls.

He’s wrong.

The Book of Koli begins a breathtakingly original new trilogy set in a strange and deadly world of our own making.

Top New Horror Books In March 2020

The Deep by Alma Katsu

Type: Novel Publisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons Release date: 03/10/2020

Den Of Geek says: A ghost story set against the backdrop of the sinking of the Titanic is a strong premise to set out with, from a writer who has good form with mixing horror with history after The Hunger which centres around The Donner Party, a group of pioneers in the middle of the 19th century, some of who resorted to cannibalism when their group got stranded. Alma Katsu is an author who “Makes the supernatural seem possible” according to Publishers Weekly, and the weaving in of real people with this creepy sounding tale of a nurse who survives the Titanic only to meet another passenger who couldn’t possibly have made it out is highly appealing.

Publisher’s summary: This is the only way to explain the series of misfortunes that have plagued the passengers of the ship from the moment they set sail: mysterious disappearances, sudden deaths. Now suspended in an eerie, unsettling twilight zone during the four days of the liner’s illustrious maiden voyage, a number of the passengers – including millionaires Madeleine Astor and Benjamin Guggenheim, the maid Annie Hebbley and Mark Fletcher – are convinced that something sinister is going on . . . And then, as the world knows, disaster strikes.

Years later and the world is at war. And a survivor of that fateful night, Annie, is working as a nurse on the sixth voyage of the Titanic’s sister ship, the Britannic, now refitted as a hospital ship. Plagued by the demons of her doomed first and near fatal journey across the Atlantic, Annie comes across an unconscious soldier she recognises while doing her rounds. It is the young man Mark. And she is convinced that he did not – could not – have survived the sinking of the Titanic…

The Faceless Old Woman Who Secretly Lives in Your Home: A Welcome to Night Vale Novel By Joseph Fink and Jeffrey Cranor

Type: Novel Publisher: Harper Perennial Release date: 03/24/2020

Den Of Geek says: The third novel in the Welcome To Night Vale series, which spun-off the wildly popular podcast of the same name promises more eerie, weird, wistful but wonderful musings delving into the enigmatic character of The Faceless Old Woman and exploring Night Vale’s history. It’s written by Fink and Cranor, the creators of the podcast, and has already garnered widespread acclaim. Fans of Twin Peaks should definitely check out Night Vale.

Publisher’s summary: From the New York Times bestselling authors of Welcome to Night Vale and It Devours! and the creators of the #1 podcast, comes a new novel set in the world of Night Vale and beyond.

In the town of Night Vale, there’s a faceless old woman who secretly lives in everyone’s home, but no one knows how she got there or where she came from . . . until now. Told in a series of eerie flashbacks, the story of The Woman is revealed, as she guides, haunts and sabotages an unfortunate Night Vale resident named Craig. In the end, her dealings with Craig and her history in nineteenth century Europe will come together in the most unexpected and horrifying way.

Part The Haunting of Hill House, part The Count of Monte Cristo, and 100% about a faceless old woman who secretly lives in your home.

Cursed: An Anthology edited by Marie O’Regan and Paul Kane

Type: Anthology Publisher: Titan books Release date: 03/03/2020

Den Of Geek says: some of our favourite horror writers assemble for this collection of stories surrounding the concept of the curse. Some are updates of well known fairy tales, some are brand new mythologies and all come together in a magical, mythical, mystical collection that should appeal to fans of dark fables and traditional folk horror. Authors include Neil Gaiman, M R Carey, Christina Henry and Tim Lebbon.

Publisher’s Summary: It’s a prick of blood, the bite of an apple, the evil eye, a wedding ring or a pair of red shoes. Curses come in all shapes and sizes, and they can happen to anyone, not just those of us with unpopular stepparents…

Here you’ll find unique twists on curses, from fairy tale classics to brand-new hexes of the modern world – expect new monsters and mythologies as well as twists on well-loved fables. Stories to shock and stories of warning, stories of monsters and stories of magic. Twenty timeless folktales old and new

Top New Horror Books in February 2020

Deathless Divide by Justina Ireland

Type: Novel Publisher: Balzer + Bray Release date: 2/4/20

Den of Geek says: Justina Ireland’s Dread Nation was one of the most-talked-about YA debuts of 2018, and for good reason! The story of Black zombie hunters in an alternate Reconstruction-era America is already one of the best premises of all time, and Ireland more than follows through on the promise of kickass, sociopolitically cathartic potential—with Dread Nation, and now with Deathless Divide. (We love this one so much, it’s also on our Top New YA Books of February 2020 list.)

Publisher’s summary: The sequel to the New York Times bestselling epic Dread Nation is an unforgettable journey of revenge and salvation across a divided America.

After the fall of Summerland, Jane McKeene hoped her life would get simpler: Get out of town, stay alive, and head west to California to find her mother.

But nothing is easy when you’re a girl trained in putting down the restless dead, and a devastating loss on the road to a protected village called Nicodemus has Jane questioning everything she thought she knew about surviving in 1880s America.

What’s more, this safe haven is not what it appears—as Jane discovers when she sees familiar faces from Summerland amid this new society. Caught between mysteries and lies, the undead, and her own inner demons, Jane soon finds herself on a dark path of blood and violence that threatens to consume her.

But she won’t be in it alone.

Katherine Deveraux never expected to be allied with Jane McKeene. But after the hell she has endured, she knows friends are hard to come by—and that Jane needs her too, whether Jane wants to admit it or not.

Watching Jane’s back, however, is more than she bargained for, and when they both reach a breaking point, it’s up to Katherine to keep hope alive—even as she begins to fear that there is no happily-ever-after for girls like her.

Buy Deathless Divide by Justina Ireland on Amazon.

The Boatman’s Daughter by Andy Davidson

Type: Novel Publisher: MCD x FSG Release date: 2/11/20

Den of Geek says: If it’s good enough for Paul Tremblay, it’s good enough for us! We love a good atmospheric horror read, and The Boatman’s Daughter sounds like it has more atmosphere in one page than most books do in their entirety.

Publisher’s summary:  A “lush nightmare” (Paul Tremblay) of a supernatural thriller about a young woman facing down ancient forces in the depths of the bayou.

Ever since her father was killed when she was just a child, Miranda Crabtree has kept her head down and her eyes up, ferrying contraband for a mad preacher and his declining band of followers to make ends meet and to protect an old witch and a secret child from harm.

But dark forces are at work in the bayou, both human and supernatural, conspiring to disrupt the rhythms of Miranda’s peculiar and precarious life. And when the preacher makes an unthinkable demand, it sets Miranda on a desperate, dangerous path, forcing her to consider what she is willing to sacrifice to keep her loved ones safe.

With the heady mythmaking of Neil Gaiman and the heartrending pacing of Joe Hill, Andy Davidson spins a thrilling tale of love and duty, of loss and discovery. The Boatman’s Daughter is a gorgeous, horrifying novel, a journey into the dark corners of human nature, drawing our worst fears and temptations out into the light.

Read The Boatman’s Daughter by Andy Davidson on Amazon.

The Sun Down Motel by Simone St. James

Type: Novel Publisher: Berkley Release date: 2/18/20

Den of Geek says: Who doesn’t love a good creepy motel story? From the author who brought us The Broken Girls, comes another female-driven foray into horror mystery. If you’ve been digging Nancy Drew or love Sharp Objects, there’s more where that came from.

Publisher’s summary: Something hasn’t been right at the roadside Sun Down Motel for a very long time, and Carly Kirk is about to find out why in this chilling new novel from the USA Today bestselling and award-winning author of The Broken Girls.

Upstate New York, 1982. Viv Delaney wants to move to New York City, and to help pay for it she takes a job as the night clerk at the Sun Down Motel in Fell, New York. But something isnʼt right at the motel, something haunting and scary.

Upstate New York, 2017. Carly Kirk has never been able to let go of the story of her aunt Viv, who mysteriously disappeared from the Sun Down before she was born. She decides to move to Fell and visit the motel, where she quickly learns that nothing has changed since 1982. And she soon finds herself ensnared in the same mysteries that claimed her aunt.

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Read The Sun Down Motel by Simone St. James on Amazon.

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