#aisley & jesse

[angstfactory]

I'm sorry.

Jesse's jaw clenched, and he hung his head forward again to stare back at the ground than her. As ridiculous as it was, the simple apology did actually soothe some of that ire and discontent. It reminded him, too, that she was just as much a person as he was. Any old person with thoughts and feelings and a moral compass (regardless whatever way it spun).

This helped to alleviate some of that anxiety inside. It was easier, to view her as a person than a witch. A witch came off more threatening. A witch wasn't anything he knew about. Maybe if he did, Jesse could figure some of this stuff out and chill. But right now, he wasn't ready for all of that and he needed to get away, even if only for a chance to clear his head.

Jesse exhaled, looking back up at her. "Yeah," he said, quietly, "so am I." There wasn't anything else to talk about, though. Right then, she wasn't someone he could be around. Jesse figured he probably wasn't her most favorite person either, at the moment. So he turned and kept on.

Sorry would have to do for now.

When he turned to face her, Aisley could admit to herself that she’d been surprised. Somehow, she almost expected him to ignore her. It would have been well within his rights to keep walking and avoid anything to do with Aisley and her world. She felt grateful that he hadn’t; thankful that he’d turned back, but . . .

Now what?

How did she make it right?

Nothing she could say or do would take away from those terrible moments when she lost control of her magic, and nothing would erase his memories of the demon. How did she explain the reality of Raven’s Peak, with its covens and packs and vampires? What comfort or support could she offer as the truth of the Peak forced itself to be seen?

Jesse Cowen was human. He was so very human, and she’d often wondered if that had given him a certain protection against the odd happenings of the Peak. Somehow he’d never blinked as far as she’d seen, and she’d thought he’d understood the dangerous world he’d been living in so blithely, but some of his words and actions at the bar during the festival made her question her assumptions. Finally, she decided she would offer the only thing she could – a simple apology. Then she would have to see what he did next. Would he attack? Walk away? Question her? Accept it? She didn’t know, but she had to make the offer.

Her hands carefully folded in front of her, Aisley met his gaze head on. “I’m sorry.”

[occasional-ghost]

thoughts/headcanons/vibes for any of the sapphic ship ideas on my list?

Head empty not doing whole list random thoughts below the cut

Mauve

Addie - don’t know much about her from her tag but from vibes alone yes please

Gilly - vibes. Just vibes.

Harmony - don’t meet until the VK’s arrive, if Aria exists maybe Mauve knows a little from her about what happened when she disappeared/swam through the barrier? (Definitely Mauve would be crushing hard on her so fast sorry not sorry Mal.)

Maisie Cameron

Abbey - like you said timelines make this one messy but yes

Calpurnia (Cicero can be in the background it’s fine)

Amor - not sure on how it starts but yes

Elissa - know eachother from being victors, maybe there’s been feelings but neither has admitted because their afraid of Snow?

Mercia - again not sure how but yes

Elphie Jones

Billie - absolutely chaotic energy so here for it. (Consider Hayden and Carla existing, Elphie’s stress panicking because she thinks she likes her best friends cousin’s *straight* girlfriend not knowing about the beard situation Billie has with Hayden?)

Dolly - kinda had a rivalry going in ND, get less intense when Elphie transfers, Elphie roasts the shit out of Jesse when he starts dating Rachel to get answers because she’s trying to figure out how he can go from Dolly to *Rachel*, slow burn vibes?

Hillary - non Hayden & Carla crossover, Elphie absolutely would have a crush on her right away I just know it.

Pierre - Elphie a bi disaster she’d definitely like Perrie from the get go (Perrie’s band also has the exact non-showtunes/Broadway vibe Elphie gravitates to btw)(also I just know Pierre would be teasing Finn for Elphie being one day older then him.)

Tiffany

Amelie & Lindsay - can’t remember any of Tiffany’s lore except she’s no longer an Alma ship but yes. 😅

Addie

Antoinette - maybe where friends before Addie had to move to Paris, dormmates at Yale?

Eileen

Lili - they meet at Stars Hallow when Eileen starts, flirty vibes but they take it slow because Lili is worried about Richard and Emily finding out?

McKenna - bond over being the new girls in Stars Hallow?

Grace

Delilah - met when she and her mom move/whenn lane starts practicing at the shop Grace get’s Lily’s permission hang out there while lane practices so get to know eachother through a combination of that + school?

Kaitlyn - very similar vibes with always having to be perfect, childhood friends, first person besides their sisters they came out too, slow-burn vibes to when their both more adjusted to being out? (Also Kaitlyn being the one to get Grace to take ballet lessons please. 🥺)

Paige - not at all sure how this one works now that Grace doesn’t go to Yale but yes please

Mercy - (🥺)

Annabel - Become friends when Annabel comes back to school via Mercy having been invited into the LDB, slow-ish burn or quick turn around could see either?

Bridget - roommates roommates roommates, Bridget eventually is the one who helps Mercy get into the LDB, maybe not dating until the boys come back?

Cherry - Meet at Chilton once Cherry moves back with Richard and Emily, hit it off immediately but slow vibes to Yale?

Tallulah

Bree - Tallulah sticks around for a while because it’s still summer and she doesn’t need to go back to New York yet, they meet and there’s vibes but they don’t get together until their in New York?

Paprika

Bree - no thoughts just vibes and Paprika would shamelessly be trying to flirt. (Sorry Seamus)

Genesis

Ariana - not sure on logistics but pirate that rescues Ariana from Pan?

Moria - yes just yes

Betsy

Eileen - yes

Beth

Aisley - I mean if she’s fine with Beth’s son being her nephew low-key they’re a vibe.

Kat - Beth doesn’t show up in canon until All Hell Breaks Loose so depending on how Kat’s timeline with Dean is affected could impact them but could absolutely see it?

Katia - Half Demon/Witch GF and Vampire GF.

Virginia

Kat - Same with Beth and how kat’s timeline with Dean works but also we have content

Katia - yes please ( Physcic/Vampire combo)

[angstfactory]

FOR: OPEN

Since the weekend of the festival, Jesse was on the fast track out of there. The man already put the junkyard and its plot up for sale with a realty company in town-- he didn't care when it got sold, or for how much, they were given free reign to do whatever deal they felt was appropriate at this point. Just call him when the papers needed to get signed.

Packing wasn't an issue. He'd never unpacked, even a year out from when he first stepped foot in this godforsaken place. The guy already kept everything he owned -- which wasn't much -- in a couple of duffle bags and those were in the shitty travel trailer, which would obviously be coming with him.

No, his problem was the truck. Aisley's burst of magic a couple weeks ago had sent vines and weeds all throughout the junky property. Which included his truck, the one thing he relied on. At first, Jesse hadn't been too concerned about it. He figured-- bummer, but hey, he had time to figure out its issues and get it fixed, there was no rush. He might as well fix up the mint green 1960s truck while he was at it, like he'd always planned to, and make a real decent piece out of it. Then fucking demons came around and everything changed. Now, he was in a rush. Now, he wanted to go. And the truck's engine looked to be completely shot to hell.

"Fuckin'.. stupid.. shit.." Each curse was punctuated with a vicious yank-- he'd been working to remove the vegetation under the hood for a good half hour already, and it just seemed never-ending. As he grabbed one section that actually had roses growing out of it and tugged on it, thorns pierced through his grip painfully.

"FUCK!" Jesse screamed at the truck, at the vines, the thorny rose bush. It didn't matter that his hands bled, his back hurt, or that he hadn't gotten a restful night since. The man's frustrations and fear flared up into this emotional moment that saw him grab the nearby tire iron and viciously start beating any part of the truck that got in his way. He didn't care if that was counter-productive. He just need to break something.

[angstfactory]

"Well lemme tell you something, k?" Jesse said this as he shuffled in closer to her, his face looming in close to hers as his eyes went a bit wider and turned serious. "All that you just said? Lies," he claimed again, mimicking with his hands as if a bomb exploded, "'cause, you remember that thing which happened, mm? Mmmmm? Where ya damn near blew me up!? Twice!" His finger came up to point at her, nearly poking the tip of it. "Granted, that second time.. that wasn't really you you, but like.. still! I've seen some uncivilizedishness."

The male leaned his hip in against the table, to keep himself upright and the ground from meeting his face again. "Human is.. human. I dunno.. just.. someone like me," he muttered, gesturing at himself and looking miserable. "Average.. no powers.. no crazy strength.. no shape-shifting.. not undead." If there was anything else to humanness, Jesse wasn't sure.

"Not uh," his mouth parted and brows sank together in a pathetic look. "I can handle my liquor," the bold claim was made as he leaned to the other side and had to course correct himself before he lost balance entirely. Did Jesse drink too much? Perhaps. But never this much. The last time he got like this, he ended up getting hitched to that poor girl Ria and they were still dealing with the ramifications of it. "C'mon, Ais," he said, reaching to hold her hands and swing their arms back and forth, "one more? You owe me after tryin'a kill me a couple times."

This time, Aisley did roll her eyes at him. “Number one, we don’t go throwing our power around willy-nilly. It’s wasteful and rude. Number two, we are actually civilized beings, not wild animals.” Her brow flicked up. “Define average?” she challenged before giving a soft laugh. “For that matter, define human?”

She held herself steady, allowing him to find his balance, though she did lean back a bit as his breath hit her. “Goddess bless, Jesse, you are drunk as a skunk,” she corrected, trying to correct his lean. “And one more drink will probably cause you to pass out entirely.” She shook her head and did her best to steer him towards a seat. “I recommend avoiding cigarettes until you dry out or you’ll set the place on fire again. It wouldn't do you any good either."

[angstfactory]

"Sounds like a good friend." The way Bianca lit up about her friend and gushed over Mollie so genuinely, brought a small smile to Jesse's lips. It made him like the older woman even more. She so obviously cared about the people in her life, and well... Jesse felt that wasn't as common as folks wanted to believe.

"Trust me," the man said, taking a deep breath as he rubbed a hand over his stubbled chin, "I'm tryin'." Jesse had been at this for so long already though, and as the days wore into weeks, months, then years... It didn't get any easier to keep positive about any of it. "When I first came in, I asked around," as he always did when he got to a new place. "N' recently, my buddy Kai.. think he was tryin' to help me, too. But.." Now, some further embarrassment and a sense of uncomfortableness went through him, as he shifted weight and cleared his throat. This confession, it felt silly to make and who knew what Bianca would think of it? The man wasn't even aware she was a witch, either. That was a bad habit of Jesse's, actually-- it was too easy for him to pretend everyone else was just human and average like himself. "I dunno, I wasn't too comfortable with the idea," he admitted. "Just.. there's some special people in town n' I dunno how to take any of it anymore," he went on, referring to the supernatural. "Like, I know my sister ran off with one of 'em n' my neighbor.." Here, he gestured the way towards Aisley's home. "She caused all of this," now the male looked pointedly at the evidence of all the vines and overgrown vegetation that had taken over his junkyard after she blew up at him-- literally. "N' I ran into her at the festival that night, too.. which, wasn't fun.. N' now I've got a few more bumps n' bruises over me for it.. I know it wasn't her fault," he mumbled these words as he didn't look at Bianca, "but it ain't less scary to know there's folks out here that can just.. do whatever they gonna do to me n' I can't do nothin' about it." Jesse shrugged. "At this point, I dunno if I shouldn't just mind my own business.. the further I get involved with people, the more dangerous this all gets, it seems."

Jesse finally did look back at her. "Yeah, makes sense," he agreed, able to relate to something like that. Just about anyone could, he'd wager. Hell, the other day he had gone off on several of his friends. Kara had gotten the worst of it, actually, and Jesse still felt terrible for the things he'd said. Now, here he was, with her sister right in front of him and she was being so damned nice... Was Bianca even aware of what happened with Kara? Or her brother? Suddenly, Raven's Peak felt a bit smaller than usual. "I don't think anyone that knows you would ever think you'd have a mean bone in your body," he told the woman. Shit, he wasn't about to tell on himself on either of those fronts right now. He was already lucky not to get his ass handed to him over the gnome. "Says a lot that you're out here feelin' as bad as you do, too," he pointed out. "You're a nice lady, Bianca. Maybe it ain't my place to say so but ah, I think you need'a go a lil' easier on yourself."

"Oh she's great! Literally one of the nicest people you could ever meet." Bianca quickly said, always quick to compliment her friends and loved ones. "She did, she knew I would love him. It was a few years ago? I really don't remember, it feels like he's been in our family forever though."

"I'm sure she is. You just have to keep a positive attitude. Have you tried asking anyone here for help? There's a lot of people in town that are good at finding other people." She never had to use those particular skill sets herself but she knew people who did.

Bianca could barely look at him in the eye when she admitted that she was possessed. It was hard for her, still hard for her, and she hated showing just how shook up she was about all of it. "Yeah very much so. I've been trying to apologize to people and I know they get it but that doesn't mean I forgive myself for all of it." Which that was one of the biggest problems, wasn't it? Bianca was beating herself up more than anyone else could have.

[angstfactory]

He'd almost forgotten... Wasn't he supposed to be protected right now? That one fucking guy-- Luka, whatever-- had gone on and on about how important it was to draw pictures on each other and the floor, and throw salt all over the place. Jesse rolled onto his side gingerly, still struggling to catch his breath from the fall and get over the gnarly feel of liquid soaking into his clothes and all the uncomfortable debris underneath him. He yanked the cuff of his jacket sleeve back, seeing that the symbol Luka had markered onto his skin had become smudged.

"Figures," Jesse's head dropped back, ready to just give up right then and there. What the hell did any of it matter, anyway? He could disappear entirely and it wouldn't make any difference. There were like what, three, maybe four, people in this town that would even notice in the first place and they would get over it quickly, too. Avery, Willow, Kai, Liam-- they were all thick-skinned, tough people, and they all had others that would step in place. They would be fine. They were fine before him, they'd be fine after him.

Jerky movements in his peripheral brought on his attention, only to find that Aisley seemed to be fighting with herself -- physically. Pulling at her own hair, doing that wordless scream she'd done just before she damn near blew him up the other week.

Her distraction was enough to have Jesse stop feeling sorry for himself and know that, if he didn't do something, then this was all going to end badly. For the both of them. Things felt way more serious than when he first came upon the woman and now, his mind felt like it was going a mile a minute. Gotta do something.. Gotta.. As Jesse looked around himself wildly, trying to come up with anything as quickly as he could until he spotted -- oh, holy shit, yes! -- salt. It was the salt they used for some of the drinks, like margaritas.

He flinched when Aisley started screaming. Jesse army crawled through wet and dangerous material across the floor, disappearing further behind the counter. He picked up the shaker, an ear open to whatever was going on with the woman as he tried to think back to what Luka had hastily shown him. Christ.. he wasn't sure.. was this right? The guy claimed it was a trap of some kind but.. it was just salt. Salt and some weird symbol he wasn't even sure the meaning of. And somehow, she was supposed to get in it. Then she couldn't leave it? Right? Hell if he knew if any of that was real, but at this point, Jesse would have thrown teddy bears if he had to.

Wiping sweat from his brow, he made a couple last minute hasty corrections to the trap made from salt. That looked similar to what Luka had done earlier, but who knew if it was right or not. Only way to know was to get her over there and see. He carefully arranged some debris over the area, covering the view of it as much as possible so it didn't look so open and obvious there was a salted symbol on the ground. Jesse then used the bar to pull himself back to his feet, clothes and glass sticking to his person all over the place.

"Hey," Jesse grunted, resting in against the bar counter as he glared over at Aisley. "You gotta try a lot harder to get rid of me," the man spat, taunting the demon and hoping she come behind the bar and step foot in it. "Is that all you got, huh?" He struggled to keep himself on two feet. "I thought demons were supposed to be all big n' bad things.. but you're fuckin' pussies," Jesse backed up from the trap on the floor. "Can't even take out a measly human like me... fuckin' pathetic.. Why don't you just go straight back to hell where you belong, huh? Before I really fuck you up!"

Ah shit. He hoped this worked. Because the man had no backup plan other than the broken baseball bat he picked back up-- not that it'd be useful here. Inside, he was terrified. He didn't want to die for this damn woman.

Aisley watched, pain ripping through her, as the demon stalked Jesse across the bar. No matter how irritated she got with him, she didn’t mean him any pain, and now this creature was going to use her to hurt him. And she couldn’t stop it. Not with its own emotions and desire for pain at a high point. Her eyes burned, no doubt a void of black as it stared at him, and every attempt she made to claw at it got her slapped back with disdain. The demon hunted him down with every intention of killing him.

Eventually.

First, however, it wanted to see what kind of pain it could cause . . .

How long would the human last?

Not even a week ago, she’d emptied herself out to protect this same man, and now she had to watch as the creature which had hijacked her body, using it without any consent or desire of hers, would treat him as some kind of toy to be broken. It let her see, made her watch, as Jesse flew into the backwall, glass from bottles and mirror shattering down over him.

The tears made the demon smile, but they sent a knife through Aisley.

An ye harm none, do as ye will.

Not all witches held to the Wiccan code, but she’d always considered it the foundation of her own code, her own devotion to the circle of life. The demon was breaking every one of her personal laws, and she needed it to stop. Her magic revolted within her, every fiber of her being going into full fledged rebellion at the pain being caused. It ripped through her, tearing at the demon with as much of nature’s power as she could call up inside this building.

It wouldn’t stop the damn thing, she knew that. She just didn’t have enough of her strength back after the situation at the scrapyard, and she didn’t have enough nature around her to draw upon, but she might be able to buy a little time, a little space . . .

Anything to give Jesse a chance to try and get away. Get out.

Please, Goddess, let him get out before she had to watch the demon kill him.

Aisley felt her body rear back, hands coming up to clutch at her own hair as she fought with the demon. She stumbled around, probably looking like some kind of . . . of . . . Goddess, but she didn’t know what kind of picture she must be making!

And right this moment, she really didn’t care.

She fell to her feet, pressing her forehead to the ground as she felt the demon beginning to regain the ground she’d managed to claw free for all of a single breath. Before she lost that moment, she gave vent to her frustration with a scream that tore free of her throat.

[angstfactory]

[ TEXT to Aisley. ]

Right. 'Cause plants.

[ TEXT to Jesse ]

Jackass.

[ TEXT to Jesse ]

And no. I don't have that kind of tie to air & water.

[angstfactory]

At first, Jesse had planned just to head home and keep to himself as he had been doing for the last several weeks. Work through his life and his thoughts, as there was a lot still to get through. But with winter kicking into full gear and things being so damn cold, he made the last minute decision to stop to grab himself a bottle to warm up.

He intended to pick up and go. But then caught sight of a familiar head of blonde hair.

Aisley and he, surprisingly, had been getting along as neighbors in the past two months. Or rather, they had simply stopped bothering each other after everything that happened. Jesse was still rather wary of the woman, as the last couple times they interacted hadn't exactly worked out too well for him... She was a witch, and he was afraid she'd curse him again. That could explain why the man had gone quiet at the junkyard and no longer gave her any trouble, certainly.

Not all of it was her fault, though. He definitely deserved some of it, even. And Jesse these days felt a little more prepared to handle the supernatural now that he was studying the journal Luka left him. Least he could do was go and see how she was doing, since it'd been some time since the last time they spoke and apologized to each other.

Jesse carried his beer to her table and took it upon himself to plop down in one of the chairs there. "You think I'm capable of excellent conversation?" he joked lightly, uncapping the bottle to take a healthy swig as he looked over her. "You've been quiet, Shaw." He had been too, but that was besides the point. "No music or nothin' comin' from your way."

Open to all of Raven’s Peak (0/3) Location: The Lone Wolf

Not usually Aisley’s spot, but she’d promised Micah she’d come see his place, and since she had to come into the university on a ridiculously cold day, she decided she would drop by for something to drink before heading home. Sitting at one of the small tables, she sipped on her whiskey as she watched the people wander in off the street or shrug into coats to head back out into the weather. They seemed an eclectic bunch, though she could sense the underlying thread of wildness in several that spoke of wolf or fae heritage.

Sensing more than seeing someone drop into a chair at her table, Aisley calmly took another sip of her drink without looking around. “I certainly hope you’ve come to provide some excellent conversation.”

[angstfactory]

At least that seemed to have shut her up. For a good few seconds, Jesse absolutely relished the way in which the woman seemingly began to short circuit. All kinds of emotions passed on that expressive face-- disbelief, hurt, anger. But then... things got weird.

A sensation of rumbles came up from under his feet, like there was something -- or maybe several somethings -- clawing their way out of the ground. And, Jesse wasn't even sure how to describe it, but energy... Pure energy, just suddenly pulsating around the two of them like they were in a bubble. Aisley, herself, seemed about ready to.. explode? There was some innate instinct within the human that said he should probably get the hell out of there, since plants and vines were sprouting every which way the eye could see and the woman obviously responsible for this chaos was only a couple feet before him. "What the hell are you--" his confusion morphed into alarm caused by the open-mouth silent scream, that was scary. Something out of a movie almost, this whole experience was damn near unbelievable.

If he wasn't seeing it with his own eyes, if a vine hadn't just crept over his shoe...

Everything happened so fast -- it all reached some crescendo -- Jesse barely having a chance for both arms to come up in an act of self-preservation, to protect his face and head from a sudden burst. The sheer force of it blew in and whipped around the man roughly, causing loose clothing to flap and tug and rip. Those curls he was always joking about going through a wild wind tunnel of a ride. Within seconds, it was over as quickly as it started. And somehow, Jesse still stood there, arms braced over his head, only a tear in his shirt causing the fabric to hang off him and maybe a few insignificant scrapes of flying debris the only damage done to the human.

Eyes tightly shut, the male remained in this position a moment longer, to calm the rapid beating inside his chest and just in case she wasn't done yet. Unaware that the woman's sheer willpower in wishing and hoping that her magic wouldn't harm him, was probably the only thing that had saved him.

It felt like forever -- only seconds, really -- before Jesse lower his arms some and peek out, to survey the damage and wonder if he had been blasted to hell or something. But no, still on earth, still fine... Still at the crappy junkyard, or what used to be his junkyard... The whole damn place looked as if it'd been abandoned for so long, years of overgrowth and vegetation had taken over. Great. Where did Aisley go, though? At first, he didn't see the woman anymore until he took a hesitant step or two forward, and saw her collapsed body in a bed of lush grass where there should have been rocky earth.

"Oh shit," this curse came as Jesse rushed forward and dropped next to the woman's body. "Hey, c'mon now, Shaw," the man encouraged, giving her cheeks several smart slaps -- not enough to hurt, but to jolt -- as he tried to get her to wake up. "Open your eyes, alright, let's not fuck around here.. Aisley -- Aisley." Okay, okay... She wasn't responding. Aware this could be bad, real bad, Jesse moved to scoop the woman up bridal-style, grunting to himself as he struggled back to his feet-- the movies made it look easier than it was carrying someone, especially when said someone was passed out and completely limp, so basically dead weight. Damn it, she'd better not be dead, or he was going to bring her back somehow just to shake her. As quick as he could, he carried Aisley through and over the maze of plants covering the ground, and towards the old rusted 1960's truck he had every intention of restoring to its former glory, once he got around to it. "Ah, fuck me!" Jesse cursed again, this time much louder, as he could already see the truck was victim to the vegetation. Plants were visibly poking out from every crevice, including the hood. "You're paying for that, Shaw, I swear to fuckin' GOD," the man raved, now changing course and heading back towards the trailer. He needed to get the phone, to call for someone to come help him get this damned woman to the hospital or something.

She clung to the last of her control with teeth and nails, all but shaking with her fierce fight to keep her temper and her magic under control. What the hell was it about Jesse Cowen that somehow slid along her nerves like a papercut?

The saddest part about the whole damn thing is that Aisley would have liked to have some kind of . . . hell, cordial relationship with her neighbor. It's not as though she wanted to constantly be at odds with him! That wasn't her nature at all. It didn't have to be friendly, though she'd have preferred it, but was cordial too much to ask? She preferred a peaceful coexistence. It was part of her entire outlook on life, part of her very magical core for that matter. All life matter. All life had value. Everyone deserved their peace, their life, their love. Whatever form that took. Aisley could see the need for predator and prey. She could accept the circle of life in all its forms. Human, witch, vampire, werewolf . . . Plant, animal . . . Herbivore, omnivore, carnivore . . . Everything had a place in the makeup of nature - even Jesse. Though she still maintained he clearly had more brains and abilities than he bothered to use half the time.

So why did everything about him seem to be custom-made to get under her skin?

Trying to hold onto her control kept her from hearing part of his rant - though she'd no doubt heard all of the words before. And yes, some of them had a legitimate foundation - Aisley wasn't the type to lie to herself. She knew she'd gone over a line or two in the past couple of months as discussion didn't seem to factor into any form of communication that he seemed willing to have with her. How had she let it get to this point? Goddess only knew, she usually managed to find some kind of detente with everyone else, but somehow it just didn't work with Jesse. A small wriggle of doubt teased through her mind - why did she find it so hard to talk to this man? What part of chaos did he represent that it sometimes felt like fingernails against glass. Even now, the irritation played merry havoc with her control, and she . . . She really needed to tune back into his words . . . and damned if she didn't pick the worst possible moment. Because she heard his last words loud and clear.

*Oh, finally someone has taken care of that crap? Good.*

At that last cruel dismissal, the absolute disregard for the violent destruction of life, her temper just snapped.

And with it, her control.

Panic and fear swelled like the crescendo of music as Aisley felt her magic burst loose with an almost mischievous shout of glee. She tried to choke out a warning but couldn't manage to do more than a simple - "Get ba-!" - before everything spiraled and she felt the burn of magic slice through her, rushing out to run wild. She slammed her eyes closed and dropped to her knees as she began to try and claw it back under control as it erupted. Swirling and fountaining, it reached for everything living around her to explode in an outburst of joyful, terrifying life. For the moment, all she could do was pray whatever it did, the damage to Jesse himself would be as minor as possible as she poured herself into containing it.

Don't let me kill him. Goddess, please don't let me kill him.

The words raced through her mind on repeat as a wordless scream tore from her throat while she fought the magic. Everyone thought of magic as a tool, but it was more like energy, the energy of a lightning bolt, that barely rested under the witch's control. It wanted to be used. It wanted to be set free to work. Only the control and borders placed by the witch kept it focused and safe. Otherwise, it went wild like a toddler with free rein and an endless supply of fingerpaints. Energy didn't care who used it for what . . . it just wanted to be used, to go from point A to point B. Some witches didn't give a damn, happily tossing magic around like a child's play toy. Others possessed wide pools of magic that had more breadth than depth, and she didn't know how they managed theirs. But people whose magic ran clear, strong, and deep like hers in one focused channel? Oh, that meant a battle and a fight and a constant hold of their control to make sure it didn't go out of control like this.

Now, her magic burned and flared, all but speeding across the entire area like a wildfire.

Aisley had to get control back before it killed both of them. So, still on her knees with her eyes closed tight, Aisley began to drag the magic back to her. It resisted. Oh, Goddess, but did it resist! Seeds resting under the earth began to sprout too early, their roots digging deep even as they shot towards the surface and the light. Who knew what the hell it might be doing to the scrap yard? Who knew what the hell it might do to Jesse or herself?

She . . . had . . . to . . . drag . . .it . . . back . . .

Screaming as she dragged it all back in, crying as she locked it down, Aisley tried to get up, tried to find her feet so she could check on what had happened to Jesse, but she went back down. Hard. The last thought as darkness overtook her . . .

Goddess, don’t let me have killed him.

[angstfactory]

There was a small person, completely missed by him, until they were all face-to-face, that's how bad this fog played tricks. But even then, Jesse's eyes were locked on the mother, wide and upset. Because this had to be some kind of trick... Aisley had said something about fairies coming out in this crap..

Her hair was a bit different, but it was her. Just older, more mature. Right on down to the voice.

If this was some trick, why would there be changes? Wouldn't they pull her from memory somehow? An exact copy of young Talia, same as the day she left? None of it made any sense.

Fuck.

Jesse, too, looked down at the child hugging onto her legs. Barely comprehending the short exchange past the word 'mama' that got mumbled a couple of times-- he hadn't even noticed her name yet, honestly. The blood was all rushing straight to his head, where things pounded heavily and made the world spin a bit.

Jesse, it's really me.

He dropped like a sack of potatoes. Jesse hit the concrete, ungracefully. Was the man normally a fainter? No, not at all. But this was an extreme circumstance that came after other extremes, each one slowly building in on itself until this crescendo of a moment. It was like his body wasn't able to handle another shock and just shut itself off to reboot.

It had been a wonderful busy day at the ice cream parlor, and Talia almost buzzed with the excitement of it. She’d begun to build up a loyal clientele, people she knew by name and knew about some of their family and history. It seemed like she had begun to really set down some roots, making a place for her and Jessi to build a real home.

Now, she fought to lock up the parlor so she could run by the store before coming home to handle the evening chores. It would be a lot better if she’d gotten close enough to someone to have a babysitter for her daughter, but she still didn’t have that much trust in anyone as yet. Oh, she didn’t mind some folks being around Jessi. Especially Amelia and James - and she hoped to add more. But to leave Jessi alone with someone? She was still working up to that.

“Okay, sweetheart,” Talia smiled down at Jessi. “We’re just running in and out, right? It’s almost bedtime, and we’ve got plans tomorrow.”

“The library!” Jessi cheered.

“That’s right,” she laughed. “The library.”

With that agreement, they turned away from the parlor and headed down the street. If they had a little luck on their side, they would be back in less than thirty minutes. She almost laughed as she glanced down at her daughter. Maybe if she had a little luck . . .

Hey, lady, you dropped this.

That voice.

Talia’s heart almost stopped at that voice, and she hesitated to turn around. It terrified her – as if by turning around, it would prove to be a mirage, a false hope after all the dead ends. But she had to look. She had too . . . what if it was Jesse? Could it be? Keeping hold of her little girl’s hand, Talia turned a little slow, her breath caught in her throat as a small prayer ran through her mind.

And there he stood.

“Jesse.”

At that, her little girl looked up; Talia could feel it without looking. Then Jessi leaned against her legs, and she released her hand to wrap and arm around her daughter’s shoulders as she could only stare for a long moment.

At her little brother.

Her long-lost little brother.

Standing in front of her as if he’d materialized out of the fog.

Talia swayed a bit, not certain if she could keep her balance, but then his face darkened with defensive disbelief, and his words came out with that familiar grit and determination. She blinked back the sudden tears that suddenly filled her eyes. But even as she opened her mouth to say something . . . anything . . . Her daughter beat her to it.

“Fuck.”

The word came out, clear and high in Jessi’s little voice, dragging Talia out of her fog. “Jessica Lynn Cowen,” she scolded, pausing to clear her throat. “Language, young lady.”

“But Mama,” Jessi began.

“No, no ‘but Mama’.” She shook her head. “You know not to repeat that kind of language. Now, be Mama’s good girl and hand me my pocketbook?” As Jessi bent down to pick it up, Talia turned her attention back to her brother.

With the spell broken, she could see the pain there. Talia’s free hand came up as if to reach out, but she froze in the same moment. Would he accept her touch? She’d vanished on him in the middle of the night. Did he think she’d abandoned him? God, but she hoped he remembered her better than that. Her lips trembling, she blinked back the renewed glaze of tears and tried to speak. It required her to clear her throat a time or two.

“Jesse . . . I . . .” She took a deep breath. “Jesse, it’s really me.”

[vampireliamhernandez]

A few days ago, Jesse had asked Liam to meet him here, but, of course, that asshole was nowhere to be found when Liam showed up. He sighed, glancing at the door as he knocked once again, hoping maybe Jesse had just fallen asleep. Or maybe he had forgotten about their plans—again. It definitely wouldn't be the first time, and it probably wouldn't be the last. Liam stood there, debating whether he should keep waiting or just leave, until he heard a familiar voice.

"Hey."

Liam turned around to see Aisley standing there. Seeing her brought back memories of that impulsive kiss they’d shared. He didn’t regret it, he rarely did anything he didn't want to do, but he didn't know how he was supposed to act now.

"I can see that," he replied, rolling his eyes. ''Do you know when he should be back home?'' he asked, clearly wondering if he should give up and find something else to do with his day.

For: Liam - @vampireliamhernandez Location: Deadman Acres

Seeing movement at Jesse’s place didn’t usually get Aisley’s attention.  He often had customers or friends over, but lately he’d seemed to be trying to just get away from the place.  She grimaced at that little pinch of guilt.  Hopefully she could finish balancing the scales soon, and they could get back to their usual irritating sarcasm.

Granted, she’d prefer to find some kind of détente, a way for them to get along, but if he needed to have some kind of antagonism going on, then so be it.

Still, she knew he wasn’t home right now, and she figured she could go see if it was a friend wanting to check on him.  If it was, she’d send them to town.  If it turned out to be a customer, then she’d advise them on better hours.

Walking over in that direction, her steps faltered and stopped when she spotted the man who’d come to visit Jesse.  Liam Hernandez.

Oh, good goddess, why?

Okay, sure, she would have faced him again sooner or later, but now?

This is when she might wish she couldn’t remember the night of the festival like some of the survivors. It would be a lot better than remembering the demon using her body to initiate one hell of a kiss.

Aisley wouldn’t have admitted to anyone how long it had been since she’d been in a relationship, and she wasn’t the type for one-night stands.  But the demon who’d taken over her body during the festival had absolutely no qualms about playing games and seeing if it could seduce him. They’d been interrupted before it had been able to go beyond a couple of kisses, but . . .

Damn, the man could kiss.

She needed a vacation. Squaring her shoulders and lifting her chin, Aisley walked over to greet him.  “Liam,” she called out, hoping she wasn’t blushing. “Jesse’s not home.”

[angstfactory]

He was ready to be done with this place. Honestly, it was long overdue. Raven's Peak had been the longest time he stayed somewhere since beginning his search for Talia. Jesse couldn't recount how many cities and towns he passed through, maybe three or four months at a time over the last fifteen years or so.. Ravens was meant to be the same, too. And yet, somehow, the guy had dropped an anchor and started forming connections.. Attachments, even.

He should have never done that. He should have kept looking, not sitting there, waiting. Like Talia would just stroll through the damn door one day.

Lately, though, Jesse struggled to have the same hope and faith he would be able to find her. The demons had allowed those bad thoughts, the ones buried deep down that he tried to ignore and pretend didn't exist, to come straight up to the surface. They made him wonder if he had been wasting his time all these years, looking for someone already gone. And that wasn't anything the man ever wanted to let himself entertain before. No way in hell! But now? The guilt wore on him, because it was like he somehow let it all happen. If she was gone... It was because he should have looked harder.

Jesse, wait. Please.

Jesse sighed as he paused, hanging his head forward briefly as he considered just flat out ignoring the witch. He ought to. It was better for the both of him that he did, because they couldn't seem to get along. Before, their feuding had been so much more innocent and childish. Now, not so much. In spite of his better judgmental -- cause when did he ever really follow that??? -- Jesse turned around to face her. He stayed where he was, though. A good, safe distance away but close enough they were able to hear each other. "Yeah?" The question came out warily, more than antagonistic.

For a long moment, Aisley simply remained still, watching him with both physical and magical sight. Every living being connected to nature in some way – they took, transformed, and returned energy to the very interconnected web of life. Reading the connections could tell her a great deal about people, thus the reason she preferred meeting people outdoors, in nature. It gave her extra insights . . . sometimes. People like Jessie always seemed contrary to the world, and yet they fit into the cycle of nature as well. However, their connection to chaos could throw her off.

Not to mention give her a headache.

She felt a great temptation to go back to her work, trying to put things back to rights, regardless of his input. It would need to be done, whether either of them liked it or not. However, he’d also been thrown into a world that he could barely comprehend. And he didn’t have much of an ability to fight it.

And he was hurt.

That came across to her magical sight like a neon light cutting through the darkness.

Sighing, she rose and followed him, her bare feet not making much noise on the grass. Even when she reached the property line, she didn’t worry about it too much. Her attention had been focused on the larger plants and vines, so enough greenery remained to cushion the scrapyard.

Her only question . . . what the hell could she say?

But she had to try. Whether or not he answered . . . well, that would be up to him.

“Jesse, wait. Please."

[angstfactory]

"Hmm, nothing, you heard me," Jesse spoke up louder again, as that heavy frown across his features persisted. "I don't need your help," the male told her again regardless, firmly. "I don't want it. You've already fuckin' done enough."

Now, Jesse wasn't an idiot. It wasn't entirely fair to lay blame on Aisley for much of what's happened. Especially not when she wasn't in her right mind for at least half of it. But that didn't matter to him. What was her excuse the weeks before that, then? When she damn near blew him apart? She could have, if she'd wanted to. He had little doubt in that. And that was the problem.

"Do me a favor, and just leave me alone, alright? You'll have the whole fuckin' property to take over n' do whatever the hell you want with here, soon enough. You got what you wanted -- I'll be outta your hair n' you'll get another fuckin' neighbor to menace." Jesse gave her a mocking two-fingered salute, as he stalked back towards his trailer, doing his best to hide a faint limp caused from being flung into a whole mirrored shelf wall of liquor and subsequent explosion that damn near took out a corner of Jukebox Junction. His whole body was still store and bruised up, especially the small of his back where he'd only barely recovered from a creature attack not three months prior to all this bullshit. And losing his shit to beat the crap out of his truck didn't exactly help these injuries any.

None of that mattered, though. He'd heal over, in time. All he cared about, was getting out of Raven's Peak and away from these people that could squash him like a bug.

Did she hear something?

It was difficult to hear over the grumbling of the plants she pulled back to their rightful spot. They’d created dissonance in the natural song and didn’t exactly feel happy about being pulled back into their rightful place in the music. If she compared nature to a great symphony, then the out of control growth at the salvage yard sounded like a marching band – and one that wasn’t in harmony with itself, let alone the music of the world around it.

KNOCK IT OFF!

Okay, that time she definitely heard something, and honestly, she felt a great temptation to ignore Jesse’s shout. If it had only been anger, she might have kept on going, trusting in her protections to keep him out of trouble. It didn’t hurt that he’d proven to have a strong moral core in there under all the abrasive surfaces. She didn’t fear he would hurt her and could have kept going. His chaos had its own place in the circle of life, and she would have to figure out how to deal with it and him.

However, she couldn’t ignore the fear in his voice. She’d been the one to lose control of her magic, which no doubt led to that very terror.

In response to that fear, to the need to settle it, she began to pull herself back from the music, drawing her magic out of the earth. No doubt she had a hint of a green glow around her hands and winding up her arm like vines, but that was beyond her control. It took several long minutes before she blinked open hazy eyes to look in his direction. “Hmm?” she hummed, trying to focus. “Jesse?”

[angstfactory]

"What?!-- No, I didn't fuckin' say that--" Jesse hesitated then, as the person -- or thing?? -- inside Aisley claimed he meant to murder the woman to save her. "Fuckin' hell, that's extreme, alright? I'm not gonna--" The man was no stranger to fighting and sometimes those fights had gotten pretty damn bad, but killing someone? There'd never been a time in his life anything like that crossed his mind-- he was no killer. Reckless and idiotic, sure, ready to push for stupid brawls... Absolutely. But that was the extent of whatever damage he wanted to be responsible for.

Maybe people might think he would go that far-- they certainly thought the worst of him everywhere else.

"I'm just gonna... beat you out of her.." Now to have to say it out loud, it sounded so damn stupid. Jesse's conviction in the matter had clearly been swayed, too, as the baseball bat lowered and he merely looked uncertain in the moment. Because quite honestly... She still looked like Aisley to him, and as frustrating as the woman was, it wasn't like he wished actual harm to her. Her garden was one thing-- the person was a whole other business. Jesse wouldn't even have those thoughts against his worst enemy... Like even that Cassidy prick.

So how the hell was he planning to beat this -- whatever it was -- out of Aisley if he couldn't even work up the nerve to strike her? Fuck me, man. Obviously his threat hadn't even made any different, as the woman stalked forward without pause. His eyes widened as the table and chairs got flung aside without any seen force behind it. God damn these fuckin' creatures... It sent chills right down his spine, every time, to witness something that just shouldn't be possible. The man shifted weight anxiously from foot-to-foot, a bit rooted to the spot as the woman came forward. Jesse had never been in a situation like this before, he wasn't sure how to respond. And, dumbly so, that human part inside said that surely she wasn't going to do anything too crazy. Slap him? Push him? Maybe try to kick him in the balls or something?! The usual stuff that women would typically come with, despite the fact she had literally just tossed aside furniture like it was nothing.

"Shit--" this curse was bit out as Aisley grabbed the bat and yanked him in close like a ragdoll. Just as his mouth opened to respond, the man felt his body being lifted like nothing, and get flung backwards. "OH SHIT!" The words were screeched as he flew backwards and his body crashed into the bottles of alcohol and mirrored backdrop, amongst a crescendo of shattering glass.

Jesse dropped like a ton of bricks as glass and shelves and spirits crashed down on top of him, both hands instinctively covered over his head. Fortunately for the human, he often preferred to wear pants and a jeans jacket his sister left behind years ago-- so aside from his face, neck, and hands, most of his body was protected and shielded by the fabric of thick clothes. But that doesn't mean all of that didn't hurt. Because it did. A lot.

"Fuck," he coughed, gasping in a heavy breath as the wind was knocked clean out of him. Jesse groaned as he gingerly rolled over shattered glass and alcohol onto his back, still struggling to take in some breaths of air-- body somewhat arched as if he was doing his best to avoid a particularly uncomfortable spot. It was because not three months ago, he'd suffered from another attack that nearly had this creature trying to scratch out his spine. It'd taken a month to get over the infection from it and for the wound to finally heal over, though the ugly scratches had since scarred over and the man continued to deal with lingering bouts of pain on days he stood around or worked too long. Now, it was like someone might as well have taken that bat straight to his back all over again.

"I gotta.." he wheezed, coughing again, adams apple bobbing as he struggled to swallow through a suddenly dry mouth, "I gotta get out of this place.." It'd be a lie to say a couple of fat tears from pain -- and fear -- had squeezed out and leaked back behind his ears. His entire body was completely soaked from the spirits and that alcohol was a serious assault to the senses-- damn near made the human lightheaded from that alone.

He meant Raven's Peak, though. He needed to leave, get out of there. It was too dangerous for someone like him. Stupid as he was, no, he didn't have a death wish. His sister wasn't even here, she'd probably never been there. If he managed to get out of whatever the fuck was going on right now, Jesse planned to skip town by the weekend. Because fuck this. Fuck everyone here. Fuck all of it.

She was going to kill him.

Provided they both survived whatever was going on, Aisley fully intended to kill Jesse. Honestly, if she survived and he didn’t, she would petition the powers of the universe to bring him back just so she could have the honor. She didn’t know how she’d manage it, but she would figure it out. Somehow, someway, she was going to kill him. How many more times could she gain enough control to give him time to escape?

Stubborn, idiotic, overconfident . . . man!

Why wouldn’t he just go?

Instead, his temper seemed to ignite, and he looked like he was digging in his heels. If she’d been able to say anything, Aisley would have started fussing. Then he brought out a baseball bat.

Laughter, high and almost cackling, poured from her throat as the demon expressed its amusement at Jesse’s defiant stance. Confidence oozed from every pore as it stalked towards him. It didn’t bother going around the table. No, it simply tossed the furniture and everything on it out of the way. It neither sped up nor slowed down as it prowled towards Jesse.

“Kill the patient to cure the disease, hmm?” it chuckled. “Is that your style? Better to kill her than leave her to me?”

Better dead than imprisoned.

Granted, Aisley would prefer if given a choice, but she would never have wanted anyone else to take that kind of burden onto their shoulders. Worse, Jesse had no idea how to fight or repel a demon. He’d get hurt . . . or killed, damn it . . . taking this stance and it wouldn’t do any damn good!

She tried to claw her way into control, wanting to do something . . . anything . . . that might help, warn, something!

But she felt herself thrust back before she could even manage a single word. “Now, now, little witch,” the demon sniffed. “No more secrets from you.” It tossed her head and rolled her eyes. “But all this talking is getting a bit boring.” The smile turned mischievous once again. Aisley could only watch as her hand shot out to grab the bat, twisting and tugging him forward.

“About that game, I wanted to play,” the demon hissed into his face. “I’ve chosen a new one.” Then it shoved him with a strength far beyond her own to send him flying towards the wall behind the bar.

And all the glass . . .

No!

[angstfactory]

The man fully planned to beat the crap out of his truck until he simply had no strength left in him to swing the tire iron anymore. That, however, got cut short as the vegetation within the confines of the engine moved.

Jesse jumped back from the truck, startled into dropping the tire iron. It was like his heart went straight to his throat, where he struggled to swallow over the nervous lump there and give a wild stare around. All of it was slowly easing away. Retracting. And none of that made him feel any better because it was just another action of what he had no control over-- another display of magic, that's all it could be. Dangerous magic. He'd already been plenty privy to just how much damage and harm this stuff could cause.

He knew where it must be coming from, too. There was only one person around the area right then that would bother with these vines and that was the person who caused them in the first place.

Momentarily distracted from his meltdown, Jesse started swiftly forward, towards her side of things. He went right up to the chain link face, spotting the woman sitting on the ground like she was in some kind of trance all over again. "WILL YOU FUCKIN' STOP?" he screamed over at her, the alarm and fear in his voice and he couldn't stop that. "I don't want your fuckin' help alright? Just leave me alone! KNOCK IT OFF!" Maybe it wasn't a good idea to push her, after all the stuff she'd already shown she was capable of doing. And who knew if she was even Aisley again, either? But right then, seeing the magic in action outweighed the sensible side.

Aisley had been hiding.

She knew that, admitted that, and only just felt strong enough to stir outside of her door. Emptying herself of magic, then fighting the demon who’d possessed her . . . she’d felt exhausted and unclean. In the days which had passed, she’d stayed within her well-protected home, feeling a desperate need to remain isolated until she felt like her body was her own again.

Now, at last, she felt ready to be outside.

Not quite up to going into town, of course, but she needed to reconnect with nature and breathe the open air. It should be safe enough, though she would see about setting up protections around her property as a whole.

For the moment, however, she had another job to do.

The magical storm before the festival which left her so weak had also done quite a bit of damage to Jesse’s property. It had been her doing, and so she needed to fix it. That meant working with nature to encourage the plants to retreat back into the earth, finding somewhere else to grow and stretch for the sun. They didn’t belong there, having only grown because her magic went wild. Not something she usually allowed because of the danger it could cause – for all living things.

Walking barefoot through the grass, Aisley made her way to a shady spot where she could sit and bury her fingers in the dirt. She closed her eyes and set up her shields before opening herself to nature and letting the green magic swell within her. A little shadow still remained from the festival, though she didn’t know what had caused it – the demon, her trauma, or even something Kai left behind.

Speaking of which, she needed to make time to speak with him as soon as she felt comfortable being in town.

Right now, however, she pushed that off and focused. Sound faded away as she allowed the song of the natural world to wrap around her. Then she began to let her magic sing back, slowly drawing the green folk to her and away from Jesse’s scrapyard.

Hopefully it would do some good for both of them.

[angstfactory]

"Now that's a fuckin' lie," he pointed at the woman, scoffing. "I don't see y'all out here suckin' on people.. bitin' people.. castin' little fuckin' spells.." His fingers wiggled and danced through the air in a spooky fashion. "Y'all played human n' average very well."

What was wrong? Plenty of stuff. He could go through a laundry list of items. But what good would any of that do? Even drunk off his ass, Jesse understood the futility of the situation.

Jesse grabbed onto the hands for help and leveraged himself back to his feet, nearly falling forward in against her. "Oop, my bad," he grabbed her by the shoulders as he situated himself straight and tall once more, even though that telltale lean started up once more. "I'm just tired," he sighed heavily then, his breath full of whiskey, and patted her on the shoulder. "N' could use another drink. Ya want one?"

“You look ridiculous.” Aisley sighed as she stared down at him, tempted to roll her eyes at the sheer absurd image in front of her. However, she did have to wonder exactly how much he’d had to drink, and why? She knew he didn’t take the whole situation with the demons well – and great goddess, neither had she – but this seemed to be something else. Or maybe something in addition to the situation.

“Jesse, you’re drunk off your ass and going to get hurt,” she pointed out. “We never pretended to be human,” she corrected, reaching behind her to grab a bottle of water. “You simply never looked beyond the surface to see the truth in front of you.” Taking a sip of the water, she watched him for a long moment, then nudged his ankle with her toe. “What’s wrong, Jesse? Has something else happened?”

“I didn’t push you, you drunken fool,” she corrected. “You weren’t paying attention to what you were doing.” This time she did roll her eyes as she put the water down. “I am not dressed for this.” Holding out her hands, she placed herself so she could assist him in rising and balancing without allowing him to pull her down.