#also pretty sure hes wearing a shirt that says Bela

[tipsywench]

Bela Lugosi with his son Bela Jr

I love photos of not so glam just a dad Bela. He's got his coffee, his newspaper, his pipe, maybe a bag of snacks for him and the kiddo...he is ready to go.

[the-little-shadow]

Why must you make me cry

I sincerely apologize, but i like to cry so— i'll make it up to you:)

A Dare is a Dare.

"WHY DON'T WE PLAY SOMETHING, I'M SO BORED!!!" Angie was the first to scream speak up. You groans while munching on the chips, Cassandra is grinning and laughing at her youngest sister and her awful impressions she had to do for losing a bet against Bela. That was quite entertaining.

"Then What are we playing?" you sounded raspy and a lil sleepy. Maybe you should stay in your mansion and not joining this "lords gathering". Donna looked over to you with a small smile behind her long black veil and were pondering when Karl announced loudly that you guys will be playing the typical "truth or dare" game and no backing out during the entire gameplay. You can only sighs and groaning again while the others are following you.

Yeah, maybe you should not join this gathering. Oh wait— you were forced by the will never married lovely angie. Or maybe Donna since she's the one eho controlled her and give her life.

"Sure, as long as the game is not going to danger any of us. Also, what about the rules?" Alcina asked after taking a seat beside you. They're talking and laughing happily but the only thing you can hear is the crackle of the woods that burned and your heartbeat. Everything seems to be going slowly.

"Oh come one lady, we're not kids no more especially ME. SO— NO RULES! Let out the beast!" Karl spontaneusly threw his arms up in the air and laughed. Their mouth were moving but you can't process what they are saying. The only thing you were focusing on is your imagination and the person in front of you who is still quite as usual.

"Cool! I got two boxes here. One is dare and the other is names. I'll pass the name box clockwise and you will choose either truth or dare and of it's dare, i'll draw from this box!" Karl shook into the box and mixed around before taking out a piece of paper. You opened it just to see your name on it. You squinted your eyes on it to make sure since you're sleepy and announced to everypne that it was your turn.

"Truth or dare, (Y/N)!" Karl asked excitedly and everyone were staring at you, probably at your soul too.

"I'm not a kid, no more. So i'll take a dare instead." you said calmly and folded the paper again before tossing it into the box again. The Dimitresu Daughters are thrilled to hear this and then Karl immediately dunk his hand into the other box. It felt forever for him to open up the paper and give you the dare.

"The dare is: Take off your clothes throughout the entire game and show us what's under that shirt!" You blinked at him, "what the hell? You want to—" Karl cut you off, "Relax, just the shirt, (Y/N)."

You scoffed at him, "you're serious when you said it is intense." you said out loud and he cackled. "Of course, it's more fun y'know? Come on, we are all waiting here." sighing in defeat, you took of your shirt and place it on your lap. You scratch your neck as to cover your embarrassment. Everyone stared a little longer on your build up body than intended before turning away.

"WOAH, (Y/N)! YOU HAVE ABS!? IT'S SO COOL!!!" The Dimitrescu Daughters plus Angie squealed and you cheek was slightly dusted pink. You wish that you could saw Donna's reaction, it makes you irritated to keep being curious. So disrespectful.

Donna is really grateful to wear her veil on or her blush will get darkened if she get caught by staring at your build up body for longer than the others.

"Next!" it goes on and on, until someone drew Donna's name and she shyly choose dare. How cute. You shook your head and keep repeating 'uh oh' under your breath. She seemed pretty composed though.

"The dare is: Sit on the person's lap that in front of you and don't get up until the game is done!" You raised your head and noticed that she is shaking. But she keep her composure and walk to you. "E-excuse me.." she said shyly as you nodded and let her sit on your lap, her scent is like a calming herbs that make you feel relax. Everyone was focused on Donna, they didn't realize you were putting your head on her back and close your eyes while hugging her waist tightly.

Donna Beneviento.exe has stop working.

Few hours later, the game ended. Everyone retreated to their own home after cleaning up the mess in the gathering place. But you are now in her mansion, it's just the two of you.

You took a seat beside her and watched her sew clothes for her dolls as usual. You slowly held her hidden chin up and whispered to her ear, "why don't you be a good girl and let me pamper my love to you?"

A shiver went down to her spine as she nodded her head slowly. "Good, then you'll be my lover first." Donna hesitantly shake her head making you raised your eyebrow, "oh? Why's that?" you asked and make her turn to face you. "I-.. I'm too hideous for someone— especially.. Like you." she reply almost sobbing.

"Baby, i don't need a person who is perfect in everyones' eyes. All i need is a person who is perfect only in my eyes. And that person is you, My Donna." you whispered as you slowly take her veil away not to make her scared nor sad anymore. You never want that to happen.

When you finally see her full face, oh her beautiful face. You smiled at her and wipe her tears, "My Donna, My lovely baby Donna. I dare you to be my lover. Do you accept the dare?" you asked her while cupping her delicate cheek not caring about the cadou on her side face. No, you don't care about that. You will always praise her, forever.

She is sobbing and nod her head rapidly as she buried her face on your neck and you hug her tightly, making sure that she is safe in your arms. After a few minutes, she wipe her own tears and smiled at you. "A dare is dare." she said to you and making you grin at her, "that's My Lady, My Donna."

You cupped her cheek again and kiss her softly with full of love and gentleness, Donna is so happy to choose the dare, and so are you.

You pick her up and take her to her room then you put her on her bed as you slowly towering her, "A dare is a dare, my love."

With that, the Beneviento mansion was full of truth or dare, BOTH.

[mackeydoodledoo]

The Blacksmith Chpt. 1

Pairing: Dimitrescus x (Fem!)Reader/Daniela Dimitrescu x (Fem!)Reader

Summary: You are a human, a human who is in charge of the armory; polishing, blacksmithing you name it. You are strongly valued by the Dimitrescu family, specifically one that has strawberry-blonde hair. She’d always come visit you whenever you’d be working on a new piece of armor or weapon. 

Warnings: Fight; ends slightly bloody, Fluff at the end

A/N: So, I’m obsessed with armor n such and hearing that there’s an armory when you fight Cassandra.... So, we are making a story about a Blacksmith falling for one of the Dimitrescu daughters!

----------------------------------------------------------------

You wipe the sweat from your forehead as you dip the blade you’ve been working on that Heisenberg had requested into a barrel of water. 

“Is it just hot in here or is that just you?” A familiar voice flirts at you

You place the now cooled blade down onto a table as you turn to see Daniela standing in the doorway, checking you out. You wipe more sweat off your forehead. You notice Daniela giggling.

“What?” You ask

“You got a little something there-” Daniela says, “Here, I’ll get it.”

Daniela takes out a white handkerchief from one of her pockets and wipes your forehead, noticing the black smudge now left on it. Your eyes widen in embarrassment. However you just watch Daniela smell your sweaty scent on her handkerchief.

“You know my sweat is on there right?” You could only ask

“I know,” Daniela moans from your scent left on her handkerchief, “Your scent smells so good.”

You blush at the compliment.

“Oh the little baby is blushing,” Daniela says, “I make everyone blush.”

“Oh- it’s just because-it’s just because it’s hot in here,” You say, trying to play it off

“Sure little baby,” Daniela whispers, “Will I see you for dinner tonight love?” 

You nod, not being able to have any words come out of your mouth. She lets out another giggle and makes her exit however, Heisenberg rolls in before Daniela could make her leave.

“Uncle Heisenberg!” Daniela smiles, hugging him

“How’s my niece doing?” He asks

You watch Daniela take her leave from the armory. However, coming back to reality, you grab the blade you have been working on and present it to him.

“My liege,” You greet Heisenberg, “The end result as of right now. If this is the shape you’re going for, then I’ll hop right onto the final stages of its production.”

Heisenberg requested for a longsword. However, as it had required for you to smelt more metal for the sword itself, you had to use a full armor set to melt it down to the mold of the blade, as much as you had been against the idea. However, Alcina had given the entire armory at your disposal. However, it did not help that you had to use one of your own metals rather than Heisenberg giving you some to make the longsword with. You have made the hilt of the sword when he first commissioned the sword to be made.  

“Your work is as great as ever y/n,” He smiles, “Do what you must, but make sure to have it ready by the same time the day after tomorrow.”

He takes his leave from the armory.

Tomorrow night?! But that’ll mean- I told Lady Daniela that I-... It can’t be helped I guess...

Almost immediately you took the dull blade and went over to the sander to sharpen it and polish it from its outer crust, slowly forgetting your agreement with Daniela about joining her and her family for supper.

At the dinner table, Daniela continuously looked into the seat next to her; empty. She had told her sisters and mother she’d invite the blacksmith to supper however, you were still cooped up in your armory room.

“Dani, you haven’t touched your food at all,” Cassandra states, but quietly, “It’s gonna get cold if you don’t eat it.”

“I’ve asked y/n to join us for dinner,” Daniela sulks, “She’s always so coped up in the armory. I’m kind of getting tired of bringing her food..”

“Heisenberg is really working that poor girl,” Alcina sighs, “That fool... He’s ‘tech-savvy’ they call it? Why couldn’t he just do it himself?”

“Y/n is the best blacksmith, It kind of makes sense why he’d ask for y/n,” Bela states, “That is why we hired her personally as well mother did we not?”

“Oh you are most correct,” Alcina agrees with her eldest daughter, “It’s just she’s been cooped up in there for so long. I’d hate for someone as young as her be burning the midnight oil for one single sword...”

“I’ll go check on her after supper I guess,” Daniea says, shamefully, “I apologize for this mother...”

“There is no need for an apology my daughter,” Alcina reassures her youngest daughter

Daniela just weakly smiles and then goes to dig into the meal that had been prepped in front of her

You didn’t realize how much time has gone by until you hear knocking at the doorframe. 

“Oh, lady Daniela,” You clear your throat, removing your gloves to air out the sweat and then tearing your eyes away from your work to make eye contact with Daniela, “My apologies, I missed supper... Heisenberg needs this new blade done by-”

She puts the plate of food on a nearby table as she begins to walk toward you. You’ve truly felt bad however, you’ve been working on this item for weeks, you couldn’t just simply ‘take a break’ for it.

“There’s one reason why I wanted you to come to supper y/n,” Daniela interrupts you, “You need to get out of here and more importantly- let me see you out of this work outfit of yours..”

You felt your heart pounding in your chest, your throat go dry and your legs becoming jelly. You’ve mostly worn simple ripped skinny jeans, a short-sleeve shirt; the sleeves rolled up to your shoulders and one of those aprons blacksmiths wear while they work with molten metal. You also worn gloves whilst working in the armory, showing off your toned arms from the blacksmithing you do non-stop. 

“I’m no one special my lady,” You sigh, wiping sweat from your forehead again, “I’m just the blacksmith.”

“Whose created all of this amazing armor,” Daniela states, gesturing to the entire room full of armor and weapons

“Coming from a long line of blacksmiths is one perk,” You say, “But, I’m just a human, like every other human in the world.”

You could hear footsteps coming even closer into your direction. A pair of hands are forcefully placed on your shoulder and you’re physically turns into Daniela’s close proximity.

“You listen to me now y/n,” Daniela almost snarls, “You are an amazing Blacksmith. Otherwise my sisters and mother would have had you for supper already. I believe you are one of the greatest people to be working in this castle, consider it to be a privilege to be working so closely to us.”

She leans close to your ear, making you shiver, “To be working so closely to me.”

A shiver is sent down your spine. You needed to burn the midnight oil for this weapon for Heisenberg, should Daniela continue to tease you like this. 

“My my, your heart is beating pretty fast love,” She whispers once more, “You’re welcome...”

You feel a finger trace your jawline, however, you feel a slight pain in your jaw as you look down and felt something wet along down your neck.

“Oh-oopsies,” Daniela says, flirting heavily

“Not funny,” You groan from the pain

“Oh-oh it’s dripping,” She continues to flirt, “I’ll get it.”

You let out a small gasp as you felt the tip of Daniela’s tongue gently run along the blood trail. She traces the blood from the thin skin of your neck to the bone of your jawline. She guides her hands to wrap around her neck. You coil one hand into her hair to keep her steady as you let out yet another gasp.

“Yes, my lovely,” Daniela whispers, “Continue making that music for me...” 

Before you let out another gasp, you push her away form your neck slightly to look at her. You look down at her lips and then back up to her eyes, asking for permission. However, you stop yourself when the both of you heard the Lady Dimitrescu calling for Daniela.

“Curses,” She mumbles under her breath just as her lips were about to crash onto yours, “My my you taste divine. Until next time.”

With hast she makes her exit, turning into a swarm of flies in the process. You sit there, trying to process what just happened. However, you couldn’t linger on the thought any longer as you were just about to start the leatherwork on the hilt before Daniela began distracting you. 

I wouldn’t call it a bad thing if she distracted me though... It was only for a couple of minutes and... It was... Enjoyable...

You couldn’t believe a Dimitrescu daughter had taken a liking to you. You were a simple human from a long line of the finest blacksmiths. Why you? Of all people, you weren’t special. However, someway somehow the youngest Dimitrescu was enticing to you. 

I have no such time for a relationship... Besides... Lady Daniela has many other maidens to choose from... Am I even a choice to be one of their... What was it that they call them? ‘Plaything’? Yeah... Am I? Oh well, but it looks like I have to burn midnight oil again. Nothing that I don’t already experience though...

Your eyes are heavily concentrated on the leather work you’re doing on the handle. However, you could easily feel your eyes grow heavy. But, you knew you couldn’t waste time like you did earlier. 

“Sir Heisenberg won’t be pleased if he catches me passed out at the table,” You sigh

You take a deep breath and shake off your tiredness and continue working on the leather handle.

By the time you finally finished the handle you take a step back to admire the work you had done

“Not a bad job if I do say so myself,” You smile

 you were sketching out the design for the sheath. The sheath itself will be crafted with the thickest leather. Leather you’d normally use for sheaths; it’s so that the sheath’s won’t tear apart then the sword is sharpened. You’d also press in an intricate design you had crafted earlier when you were taking a break from the leather work.

“I guess I can close my eyes for a couple of minutes while I wait for this to ...” You tell yourself 

Oh how wrong you were.... Unfortunately you didn’t catch it fast enough. By the time you had realized you took more than a couple of minutes, you were fast asleep.

The next morning you could feel a pair of lips on the bone of your cheek. When you opened your eyes you could easily tell it was Daniela.

“Morning sleepy head,” She whispers

She puts the plate of human food right next to you. The aroma of the food gets you to feel more awake. 

“Can I ask you something?” Daniela asks, looking at you with pleading eyes

“Mhm,” You reply with food in your mouth

“I was wondering if you could make me one of those daggers you place on your thigh,” She requests, “But-but if that’s too much right now you could always do it after you finish-”

“I’ll do it,” You answer clearly, “The blade for Heisenberg isn’t due until tomorrow so I’ll be able to do it.”

She squeals of excitement and wraps her arms around you, engulfing you in a tight hug. You hug her back.

The first form of physical affection after awhile... This is nice

She lets go of you, but continues smiling.

“Design is solely up to you,” she says calmly, “I really want you to make it how you want to.”

You nod as Daniela takes the now empty plate from your hands. You watch her walk out from your armory you immediately jump into your closet and pull out a thick gauged metal sheet.

“Since when did you become so jittery in the morning?” A voice asks you

You let out a yelp and drop the sheet metal. You quickly turn your heel to see who it was.

“Lady Bela,” You sigh, re-composing yourself, “You really scared me there. Good lord...”

“I can do more than just scare you,” Bela chuckles, “But Daniela would be at my throat for that so consider yourself lucky.”

You see her forming into her swarm of flies. You couldn’t process what she was doing until she was up in your face.

“You hurt my baby sister, there will be hell to pay, got it?” She says, almost growling

Your throat catches something; thus, you couldn’t form any words. However, you only nod.

“Good,” She says

She dissipates into her swarm and leaves the armory. You just stand in your place for a second before picking the metal sheet back up.

You finally found yourself outside of the armory for once. If it weren’t for Daniela dragging your ass out of there you wouldn’t really be there. However, it was a silent supper for you. You really couldn’t find a way to strike up conversation with the Dimitrescu’s.

“I know you’ve been here a long time y/n, but how are you liking it?” Alcina asks, nervously

“You know, to be honest, It’s a lot nicer than where I used to live,” You smile slightly, “Yeah, I might be having a workload right now but- It’s nothing new to me.”

Alcina sighs in relief. Not knowing how to continue the conversation, you drop your head back down into your plate and continue eating. Alcina had made some arrangements so that the maids and yourself can have nutrients from human food.

After supper, you beeline it back for the armory to start on Daniela’s requested garter dagger. You didn’t have much experience in textiles, so you requested one of the maids who was more experienced in such do it for you. 

“Thanks Amelia,” You say, gently taking the newly sewn garter, “I got everything else. That’s all.”

“Lady Daniela really requested for this?” She asks

“Yeah,” you say, “Interesting though right?”

“That’s one way to put it,” She says, “Be careful.”

“You too.” You say

You wipe sweat off of your forehead as you finally break your concentration on the sharpening blade. Once it had reached a certain sharpness, you begin the polishing stage.

“Finished, and now..” You talk to yourself

Although you’ve never encrusted a weapon with many gems; you only had experience with one gem going on a weapon. However, it was Lady Daniela, so you wanted to make it look like the prettiest dagger in the whole castle, prettier than all the weapons and armor you have created. You take out a special cannister and begin organizing the blue-green gem from all of the other colored gems.

You found yourself outside of Daniela’s chambers however, you weren’t sure if she was even there or out somewhere in the castle. But, you place the weapon down right in front of the bottom of the door and knock as loudly but as gently as possible and you beeline it for the shadows. From a distance, you watch the door open and see Daniela; in a nightgown. It was the first time you’ve seen Daniela without her regular dark robe and hood up in her face. 

“Oh my god...” Daniela says in awe as she picks up the weapon, “Y/n...”

She tries to look around for you however doesn’t spot you on sight.

“Thank you...” She blushes as she closes the door

You blush a deep red as you turn your back to her door to head back into the armory to try and finish up Heisenberg’s weapon.

[lepusrufus]

Double edged scalpel ch.6

ch.1 ch.2 ch.3 ch.4 ch.5

Summary: It's backstory time!

Mandatory warning since this is not a usual thing on my blog so I think a separate warning would be useful, there will be talk of past abuse and alcohol abuse.

----

"Wakey wakey," came the gruff voice from just outside her bedroom door.

It was slightly muffled but more than enough to make her jolt awake, muscle memory taking over the remnants of sleep. She only had one minute to be out the door. It was more than enough though, her routine perfected over years. Get out of bed. Put socks on. Get shoes. Grab the duffel bag. She slept dressed anyways, ready to go at any time.

Or not?

Where were her clothes?

Nevermind that she had time to put something on. Just grab a shirt and pants from the dresser.

Hurried steps took her over the plush carpet. Wasn't it supposed to be a solid grey? Had her mother swapped it for one of their fancier rugs?

That didn't matter right now. Clothes. She needed clothes. When she got to her dresser she stood there, frowning at the bookshelf that now took its place. She didn't even remember acquiring the tomes in front of her, most of them old and with unfamiliar trinkets surrounding them. That's not how her bedroom was arranged. Why wasn't anything in its place? Was Alex playing a prank on her? No, he wouldn't do that.

Time was almost up and she needed some goddamn clothes and to get out and her head was starting to spin-

"Nicole?"

Her eyes snapped back to the bed she had so hastily vacated, Cassandra looking at her concerned.

From the room's entrance came another familiar voice. Bela. "I only wanted to let you know that Daniela wants to go for a hunt tomorrow." Her eyes were averted and as soon as the words left her lips, she turned and shut the door behind her, not waiting for an answer from her sister.

Confusion mixed in with dizziness, but Nicole let out a quiet oh when she fully realized where she was. Cassandra's bedroom. They came here last night and fell asleep. And she was only wearing underwear.

She went to sit on the edge of the bed, head resting in her hands to try alleviate the fog in her brain. She probably looked like hell, but that was the least of her concerns right now.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Came the uncharacteristically soft voice of Cassandra, who had moved from her spot under the blankets and was gently rubbing her back.

"Uh, nothing," Nicole replied, as if she didn't look ready to puke.

Cassandra only pursed her lips and frowned. "You looked like you simultaneously saw a ghost and were ready to fight a ghost."

She swallowed thickly and forced out a laugh. "Oh are we at "tragic backstory" relationship level now?" It was at best a pathetic attempt to change the subject and at worst annoying.

When she looked back at the brunette she was still frowning, but not in annoyance. Her golden eyes sparked with concern, scrutinizing the redhead's face and body language for any clue as to what was wrong. It sent a pang of guilt through Nicole's chest. She took a deep breath and leaned back into Cassandra's touch, trying to collect her thoughts. Where does one even begin to explain this whole mess?

"Have you ever wondered why I came here? To the village?"

"...Not really," she admitted.

Nicole took another deep breath, pulling the words from her mouth as if she were pulling out teeth with pliers.

"My dad, he…he had a bit of a weird business. We never knew the details of it, he never told any of us and we knew better than to snoop, but I do know it had something to do with drugs and was highly illegal."

Staying in one place proved itself a pesky little task, so Nicole stood up and started to collect her clothes from the floor and started dressing. Cassandra instead remained in the same spot, listening intently.

"With a job like that you make enemies by default. And that made him paranoid beyond belief. When me and Alex, my older brother, were children it wasn't that bad. Worst thing he would do was lock our bedroom doors and refuse to let us attend public school."

She narrowed her eyes at a wall, still not wanting to meet Cassandra's gaze. Now that she said it out loud, not that bad sounded pretty bad too. Whatever.

"It started going downhill when I was around…" She pursed her lips, trying to make her brain put together some semblance of a timeline. "Twelve. Yeah twelve. He came bursting into our bedrooms at 2 a.m. saying that someone with a gun had gotten into our house and wanted to kill us. We were mortified. I remember my mom holding me and Alex in the backseat crying while my dad drove us to his secluded cabin in the woods."

"And that became a habit of his. He'd have us do these drills every once in a while and then scream at us if we didn't do everything in under a minute."

"That's so fucking stupid," Cassandra spat, golden eyes gleaming with anger.

Nicole started pacing back and forth, desperate for a distraction. "Oh I know. And after a few years of this I made sure to tell him exactly how much I thought it was bullshit."

Finally coming to terms with the lack of something to do while she talked, Nicole gave up and went back to the bed. She sat down by Cassandra's side, though still avoiding her eyes.

"Do you know what getting punched in the face feels like?"

Cassandra's expression contorted into a disgusted grimace. With the hand not on Nicole's back rubbing comforting circles, she dug talons into the soft fabric of a blanket. She didn't really have an answer because frankly she didn't know. Her body reacted very differently to physical harm and the few that could hurt her wouldn't go for a stupid punch to the face. Nicole kept on talking though, not really looking for an answer.

"That shut me up for a bit. Key word a bit. When he woke me up on the night before an important test I was pissed. I just thought fuck it and went upstairs to the library. It took him around twenty minutes to find me and when he did… Well, I regretted some life choices."

"I was so done with being there in that house. Though thankfully my parents went on a business trip the next day and Alex was at a friend's for the weekend. I had the whole house to myself and decided to grab one of my mom's vintage wines and just spend the evening on the couch drinking. And that's how I became an alcoholic at the ripe old age of fifteen." She let out a humorless chuckle at the end.

That day was a blur in her mind. The only thing that she vividly remembered was Alex coming home early and finding her blackout drunk on the couch. At the end of the day though, they were both in the same boat. He just grabbed the bottle from her and started to sip away at the remaining wine. Laughing at each other's hangover the next day was the most fun they'd had in ages so it became a habit for the both of them. Every once in a while they'd go into the wine cellar, pick out a bottle and then go drink it in the attic while they pretended their problems didn't exist. It continued well into their college years. Nicole was barely able to recall doing anything during her years in med school that wasn't being drunk or studying.

She groaned, pinching the bridge of her nose. That's not where she meant to go with the story. Cassandra placing a gentle kiss on her shoulder brought her enough comfort to try and wrap it up.

"I guess in a sick ironic way my dad was right in the end though," she subconsciously shifted closer to the brunette and she wasted no time in loosely wrapping her arms around Nicole's waist.

"I was three weeks away from completing my residency when I came home from the lab, only to find my mom in a puddle of blood on the living room floor. My brother was in a similar state in his bedroom. My dad was nowhere to be found but I didn't care. It was his fault," she swallowed the lump in her throat and felt tears threatening to spill from her eyes.

"I just grabbed my documents and a duffle bag with some clothes and ran. Booked the first flight to Romania to come stay at my grandparents'. Oh except they know what my dad is all about! Told me I had an hour to get some rest and be out of their house as they didn't want any trouble with my dad's people."

"I did grab a fuck ton of my dad's cash though so at least hotels weren't an issue," her words were coming out chocked, occasionally interrupted by sniffles. She rapidly whipped a hand across her face. "Have you ever been to Braşov? Old part of the city is quite lovely."

Cassandra grimaced. She didn't want to interrupt, but seeing Nicole in such a state made something in her unbeating heart ache. She gently wiped the trail of tears from her cheeks and placed a kiss on her temple from where she was sitting half behind Nicole. Then, with the softest voice she could muster, "And how did you meet Duke?"

Nicole's eyes widened slightly, apparently having forgotten that detail.

"Oh I stumbled upon his shop one day. I thought he was selling some neat stuff and he was nice so I kept coming back. One thing led to another and when I found out about a place off the map where no one gets in or out without help I thought it would be the perfect place to hide from the people trying to put a bullet through my head." Then she winced slightly. "I was also mildly tipsy when I made that decision."

Cassandra looked a little incredulous. "And he just brought you here?"

"I paid him."

Cassandra's expression turned to what could only be described as disappointed but not surprised. Then her attention went back on the redhead, glossy eyes fixated on the floor. To say she sucked at comforting others was an understatement. Daniela was far more well versed in the art of making others not feel miserable but she was nothing if not stubborn enough to try.

"Listen," she shifted to sit in front of her, hand placed gently on a wet cheek. "If anyone ever dares come near you with the intention of harming you, I'll make them regret every life choice that led them there. You're safe here." She may not be great with her words, but if Cassandra excelled in anything, it was keeping her loved ones safe. Loved one huh.

Nicole leaned into her touch, finally meeting Cassandra's eyes. There was a gentle kind of determination in her golden gaze, accompanied by a fiery rage that, for once in her life, brought comfort as opposed to terror. It came with the knowledge that it wasn't directed at her but at whoever may want to harm her.

She didn't doubt her words. Instead she shifted closer, face nuzzled in the crook of Cassandra's neck and, barely above a whisper, said: "Thank you."

[you-cant-spell-subtext-without]

decided to cleanse my palate and rewatch 3x03: Bad Day at Black Rock because I cannot live in my season 14 now almost season 15 rewatch any longer, and -

literally wtf even was early seasons spn.  I forgot about the brain rot that is Eric Kripke with a sprinkling of Sara Gambel.

Come with me for my top 5 takes on this after the cut :)

1. J*hn Winchester’s big bad storage place (what happened to all the shit that was in there btw?? they didnt want to bring that to the bunker? just wanted to reference an IDENTICAL one in Lebanon though?)

in the big bad storage place, Sam finds his division 1 soccer trophy

Dean finds..the sawed-off shotgun he made by hand when he was in sixth grade.

please look at him stroking it sensually.  yes, J*hn Winchester A++ parenting plus a little phallic innuendo, just for a treat.

2. Dean is supposed to be this bad boy macho man here.  Unfortunately for spn they literally did something w Jackles’ makeup that makes him literally beautiful.

look at him.

LITERALLY THEY MADE HIM SO PRETTY.

Kripke this is the man you cast to play your masc macho male character.

LITERALLY YOU COULD HAVE CAST LAUREN COHAN AS SHE IS MORE MASC THAN HIM -

speaking of that-

3. Why the fuck did Bela feel the need to wear this wig?  

I guess Dean’s penchant for disguises? [since yet again SPN has, from the beginning, even before the gay angel, used narrative mirror characters]

down to the brown leather jacket -

[spn wardrobe department, as always - we are holding hands]

***when I consider Dean hooking up w Bela just being masturbation well...

ANYWAY

4. Speaking of mirrors, this episode per the usual is full of them.

Creedy - sam coded

Kubrick- dean coded (funny how pre-cas dean coded meant henley shirt..)

[bonus -]

KUBRIK Don't play with my Jesus

(Garth voice: ooooh Sara Gambel you crazy]

also - sigh. 

Grossman- sam coded (y’all see the flannel yeah?)

Wayne - dean coded

in case you weren’t sure, the other dean-coded (mirror) in the ep.

and Dean on the other side in the same blocking:

BONUS REPEAT: 

Once again, the Bela J*hn Winchester brain-rot jacket.  I will say at least hers fits.

DOUBLE BONUS-

Sara Gambel honey, you wanna talk?

5. Society if Jarpad LITERALLY only did situational sitcom comedy on spn.  He is excellent in this.

LICHERALLY gold and they should have let him do more of it.  Sam as comedic relief only lives in my super secret good spn rent-free.

Anyway.  

[supernaturallied]

Interview Meme

Tagged by: @madebyeternalwords

Tagging: @unreflectd and @devoutbrother

1. What is your name?

- “Robert Charles Wilson.”

2. Do you know why you’re named that?

- “Because my parents wanted me to be named that.”

3. Are you single or taken?

- “Single. I’m a widower.”

4. Have any abilities or powers?

- “I wish.”

5. Stop being a Mary Sue.

- “What the Hell is that?”

6. What’s your eye color?

- “Brown.”

7. How about your hair color?

- “It used to be brown too. Now it’s mostly greying out.”

8. Have any family members?

- “I have brother named William, a sister-in-law, and a niece.”

9. Oh? How about pets?

- “Nope. I do have a little bastard though.”

10. That’s cool, I guess. Now tell me something you don’t like?

- “The aforementioned little bastard.”

11. Do you have any activities/hobbies that you like to do?

- “I’m mostly into puzzles. Cross words and word searches are my favorites. I’m also big on crafting. I like to work with my hands a lot while also keeping my mind sharp.”

12. Have you ever hurt anyone in any way before?

- “Sure. Tons of people.”

13. Ever… killed anyone before?

- “Well, let me tell you something about war. Whether you want to or not, you’re gonna end up killing someone at some point, kid. It’s just part of the job.”

14. What kind of animal are you?

- “I think I’d be some sort of dog, or wolf. Maybe a fox. I don’t know.”

15. Name your worst habits?

- “My brother says I’ve got a nasty habit of not being able to let go of things. I say have a nasty habit of not being able to keep the things I have. My brother also thinks that I’m too closed-off and defensive. And to that I say, pfft. If you walked a day in my shoes you’d be too.”

16. Do you look up to anyone at all?

- “Sure. I look up to my mom for always doing her best to raise two rowdy boys. I look up to my friend Bela for staying strong in the face of a nation that takes every opportunity to kick him while he’s down. I admire my brother for staying strong through his recovery.”

17. Are you gay, straight or bisexual?

- “...Straight.”

18. Do you go to school?

- “I’ve graduated from school.”

19. Ever want to marry and have kids one day?

- “I did. Once.”

20. Do you have any fangirls/fanboys?

- “Any what?”

21. What are you most afraid of?

- “Having to see the people I care die or disappear before me and not being able to do anything to help them or comfort them.”

22. What do you usually wear?

- “Plaid shirts or polos and long pants.”

23. What’s one food that tempts you?

- “Creemee.”

24. Am I annoying to you?

- “Little bit.”

25. Well, it’s still not over!

- “Damn it...”

26. What class are you (low/middle/high)?

- “Middle.”

27. How many friends do you have?

- “Three.”

28. What are your thoughts on pie?

- “I like it. But I like certain kinds that are prepared a certain way.”

29. Favorite drink?

- “Orange juice.”

30. What’s your favorite place?

- “Some quiet little countryside town in France.”

31. Are you interested in anyone?

- “Sure.”

32. That was a stupid question…

- “Yeah, it was. And I’m someone who believes there are no stupid questions.”

33. Would you rather swim in a lake or the ocean?

- “Neither. A pool is better for me.”

34. What’s your type?

- “You mean for a partner? Kind, smart, sweet, patient, can keep up with my schedule, willing to compromise with me rather than fight. Pretty basic stuff I’d think.”

35. Any fetishes?

- “None that are any of your business.”

36. Camping or outdoors?

- “Is there such thing as indoor camping? ...Outdoors. I like being able to see nature now and again.”

[mst3kproject]

423: Bride of the Monster

 My favourite part of this episode is the ‘Favourites from Hired!’ skit Joel and the bots do in between the short and the movie.  It’s so perfect in its parody of musicals, and the songs are better than almost any of the music featured in MST3K’s movies. When I got my current job, back in 2012, I actually extemporized a career-appropriate version of I Just Got Hired to sing on the way home.

I enjoy the movie, too, though.  The ‘Old Willows Place’ is a house by a lake in the middle of some very spooky woods, with a reputation for being a home to monsters – which include the hulking Lobo and the gargantuan octopus that lives in the lake.  The monsters, however, are just the appetizer: mad Dr. Vornoff has built an evil laboratory in the basement and is trying to create a race of giants by experimenting on random passers-by.  So far all his attempts have been failures, but enough rumor about this has leaked out to get the attention of zealous reporter Janet Lawton.  She heads out to the Old Willows Place to see for herself, only to be captured by Vornoff and Lobo.  Is Janet doomed to become Vornoff’s first successful giant?

This movie is famously cheap, to the point where it becomes kind of charming.  The walls of Vornoff’s laboratory are plywood painted with big dark squares to try to look like stone.  When the monster octopus isn’t footage shot through the side of an aquarium, it’s a few immobile rubber tentacles off a prop from the 1948 movie Wake of the Red Witch (it is not true that Wood stole the octopus, by the way – Tim Burton appears to have made that up).  Vornoff growing to gigantic size is represented by him raising his arms into the air, and later by the stuntman wearing platform heels.  A scene with ‘quicksand’ is just actor Tony McCoy standing in a hole in the ground.

Also rather entertaining is the fact that while nobody in the movie is very good, they all look like they’re having a great time.  Loretta King relishes every word of her dialogue and Harvey B. Dunn as the police chief seems to enjoy the banter scenes and the interactions with his little parrot – I wonder if it were Dunn’s real-life pet.  Bela Lugosi as Vornoff chews the scenery with evident enjoyment and a surprising amount of dignity for such a silly film.

The plot mostly resembles a coherent story, and the cast’s actual dedication is enough to move Bride of the Monster past ‘bad’ and into ‘so bad it’s good’.  What really interests me about it, though, is the question of whose movie it actually is. There’s only one character who can properly be said to have an arc, to start off as one thing and evolve into another. It’s not Janet or Dick, our apparent heroes, nor is it Dr. Vornoff – it’s actually Lobo!

Lobo begins the movie as Vornoff’s unquestioning servant, doing his master’s dirty work and being beaten into submission when he refuses – which isn’t often.  We’re meant to believe he’s mentally handicapped, but he’s smarter than he lets on, and something about Janet (or perhaps her furry hat) awakens some rebellion in him.  At the climax he takes charge of his own destiny, saving Janet from Vornoff’s clutches and strapping Vornoff into his own machine.  He has become somebody capable of standing up for himself against his abuser, only for the very instrument of his revenge – the giant-making machine – to turn against him!

Think about it: who else is gonna be the hero of this movie?  Not Janet – once she reaches the Old Willows Place, Vornoff places her in his hypnotic thrall and she’s incapable of doing anything useful until Lobo unties her.  Not Dick – he’s chained up while Vornoff prepares to experiment on Janet and can’t get out until she’s free to undo his shackles! Then he tries to fight Lobo, gets his ass kicked and his shirt mostly torn off, and just lies on the floor during the climax.  Certainly not the chief of police – his bird shows more initiative than he does!  It’s Lobo all the way!  He oughtta team up with Eulabelle from The Horror of Party Beach.  There’s a pair of unappreciated heroes who could totally save the world!

On the other hand, Lobo also gets a death suitable for the villain of this movie!  Like any halfway-respectable mad scientist, Lobo is killed by his own creation, the giant Dr. Vornoff!  It’s a bit of an open question what Lobo thought the embiggening machine would do to Vornoff… he clearly fears it’ll kill Janet, since he takes the trouble to rescue her from it, and it’s likely he puts Vornoff into it hoping to see him fried.  Why he didn’t just break the man’s neck or feed him to the octopus, as he did with Dr. Strowski, I don’t know.  Perhaps he’s merely falling back on his training, although there are clearly some higher thought processes at work, since he must have learned to operate Dr. Vornoff’s machine by watching, and since this is evidently something he hasn’t done before he must have made a conscious decision to do it.

Vornoff is in turn killed by his creation, the monster octopus.  Such is the fate of all who Tamper in God’s Domain.

Another argument that this is actually Lobo’s movie is that he might be the monster referenced in the title.  Janet is clearly the bride, since she’s wearing a wedding dress at the climax – though the movie never tells us why, and the last guy Vornoff experimented on appeared to just have a sheet over him.  It’s true that Vornoff tells the two hunters Lobo is not the legendary Lake Marsh Monster, and implies that it is actually the giant octopus – but nobody comes near marrying the octopus.  Instead, it’s Lobo who appears to consider Janet a potential bride, and rescues her in the hope of winning her heart.  Then again, perhaps Vornoff is the monster.  He carries Janet off, probably intending to rebuild his laboratory and make her his giant bride, and his acts throughout the movie certainly qualify as monstrous.

I know, I know.  It’s an Ed Wood movie.  I’m thinking too hard.

Unique in Ed Wood's filmography, Bride of the Monster is rather mysterious about its message.  I’ve observed before that Wood wanted to make important movies, movies that would teach people to be better human beings, and usually this ‘moral’ is pretty obvious.  The Sinister Urge is about the horrors of pornography, Jail Bait and The Violent Years are about being involved with your children’s lives, and Plan Nine from Outer Space is about the arms race, as the aliens are determined to destroy us before we can discover the ultimate weapon.  What the heck is Bride of the Monster about?

Perhaps it, too, is about humanity’s warlike tendencies: Dr. Vornoff’s home country wants to use his work to rule the world, while Vornoff, like Dr. Zorka of The Phantom Creeps, would rather rule the world himself.  The final line, the infamous he tampered in God’s domain, suggest that the theme is scientific over-reach, which is also echoed in Plan Nine – Vornoff discovered something man wasn’t mean to know and it destroyed him, just as the Solarmanite is likely to do to all humanity in the other movie. But there’s also yet a third theme from Wood’s other works that creeps in here, and that’s the uselessness of the police.

I’m not sure if this is something Wood actually thought about, like he did his other themes, but it is a motif that runs through multiple films: the police don’t try very hard and are, ultimately, irrelevant.  It was true in Plan Nine, as well as in Jail Bait and The Sinister Urge – policemen are fairly major characters without doing anything much to further the plot.  This seems to be at the forefront of Bride of the Monster even more than the other films, as we get to know at least three of the cops fairly well and one of them, Dick, has an intimate connection with the actual plot in that he’s engaged to Janet.

As well as Dick, who tries to be a hero and fails, spectacularly, over and over, we get to know two other policemen: Kelton is eager to please but incompetent and cowardly, and Captain Robbins is far more interested in playing with his pet bird than with solving crimes.  They’re all spectators for the climax, while Lobo does interesting things and giant Vornoff fights his octopus.  Did Wood have some kind of grudge against the constabulary?  Or was all this just a side effect of bad writing and attempts to add character?

Finally, Bride of the Monster is particular fun for MSTies because it’s so full of opportunities to play The Movies Are All Coming Together.  If you feel like it, for example, you can wonder if Tor Johnson is playing the same Lobo as in The Unearthly – perhaps he came to, escaped the fire, and went to go work for Dr. Conway!  Heck, maybe he’s also the same character as in The Beast of Yucca Flats… maybe he got his scars from that nuclear test, and is able to work Vornoff’s machinery because somewhere in there is some vestige of Joseph Javorski, Noted Scientist!

You can also ponder whether this might be a sequel to The Corpse Vanishes.  In both movies, Bela Lugosi plays an evil scientist who keeps deformed henchmen and works alone in an isolated house… in The Corpse Vanishes he was interested in young brides and hormone secretions.  Maybe in Bride of the Monster he dresses Janet up in a wedding gown because he’s used to working on young brides, and any attempt to turn people into giants would probably involve human growth hormone.

Wood did make a sequel of sorts to Bride of the Monster, called Night of the Ghouls – I’ll have to find that and watch it as an Episode that Never Was.  I will not, however, be reviewing Plan Nine.  So many other internet reviewers have done so that I doubt I have anything new to say about it, and besides, I honestly don’t think MST3K would ever have featured it. As supposedly ‘the worst movie ever made’ (though we MSTies have seen way worse), it was simply too obvious.

[ohnohetaliasues]

1+2p Hetalia High {Ch.6}

(Kat)

No longer questioning it.

I’m just the blogger reviewing it.

{Kat}'s POV

It was the dreaded day. Monday, the most hated day ever. I had finished my homework when I got home yesterday. Today for school I wore a F/A t-shirt, 

Is that favorite animal?

Okay, I guess I’m wearing a walrus shirt.

a {Purple} skirt, and sneakers. I drove to school this time because I still was worried about the 2p!s. I parked in the school parking lot and walked into the front entrance. There were posters everywhere. I looked at one of them and saw that it was advertising for the upcoming dance.

 The clichés are getting to me.

I always went to the dances alone but that was alright. I usually danced like a dork and ate too much of the buffet table. 

Pretty much.

Best time ever. I couldn't look at the poster long. I had something to do before everyone got to school. I walked to my first classroom. The teacher wasn't there yet. Perfect. I took two things out of backpack. The first was a bouquet of sunflowers. The second was the most adorable Hello Kitty plushie you have ever seen. I places the sunflowers on Ivan's desk and the plushie on Yao's desk. 

I set up my phone in the back so I could get the reaction. I quickly left the room. I waited next to the classroom. Eventually students started coming in. Yao and Ivan walked in at about the same time. I followed them in. Ivan picked up the bouquet "Who put this on my desk?" Ivan asked. Some of the students got scared. I guess I couldn't hide my guiltiness very well because Ivan walked up to me. "You put this on my desk da?" Ivan asked. Yao stood next to him. "Did you put this plushie on my desk aru!?" Yao asked. "Yes I did put those things on your desks."

 I said nervously. This wasn't going how I had planned. Suddenly Ivan hugged me. "Thank you da. These are my favorite kind of flowers." Ivan said smiling. "Where did you get this plushie!? It's so cute aru! I need more of these!" Yao said pointing at the adorable plushie. I smiled. "No problem Ivan! And my Aunt makes them Yao." I said. The rest of the time before class was spent talking about the things I had given to them.

OKAY, THAT’S NICE BUT WHY?

Eventually the bell rang and we all had to get to our seats. I noticed that Matthew blushed and snuck looks at me when he thought I wasn't looking.

Why is everyone in love with me?

I’m literally nobody important.

 I wasn't sure what was up with him but I had a feeling. I also noticed that Alfred looked down. 

I knew it wasn't normal. I wrote a note and threw it at him. "Alfie what's wrong?" he took the paper and read it. He wrote something and threw the paper back at me. "Nothing {Kat} the hero is fine!" he wrote with little a drawing of superman. I giggled. 

As cute as that is, it randomly switched to your point of view in the last chapter, so I know you are in love with me.

Like everyone else in this fanfiction. 

I knew something was wrong but I also knew he wouldn't tell me. Eventually class ended and I packed up my stuff. I head to my next class. I walked into art and went to my easel. "Okay class. Pick a partner and sketch them." Mr. Percy said. Lovino and Feliciano came up to me at the same time. "Do you want to be my partner?" they asked in unison. 

I’m so close to hurling myself off a bridge.

They looked at each other then looked back at me. Lovino looked a little down. I knew he was thinking that I would choose Feliciano. I've seen the episode where he stated it perfectly that he felt in his brother's shadow. "Sure! I'd love to be your partner Lovino." I said smiling. Feliciano looked a little sad. 

By the time this chapter is over, I will have run out of screaming gifs.

While Lovino had a heart in his curl and a blush on his face. We walked over to our easels. I started sketching Lovino. This would be easy since I always drew Hetalia characters. I drew him throwing tomatoes. 

Why?

The teacher said time was up and to show our partners our drawings. I handed mine to Lovino as he handed his to me. He handed me a near perfect drawing of me. "Lovino it's amazing!" I said. Lovino blushed and turned away. "Psh. I know it is! I don't need you to tell me that!" he said. Lovino looked at my drawing. "It's pretty good for a ragazza (girl) like you."

Screw you.

 Lovino said. I knew that was how he said it was good. "Thanks Lovi! I mean Lovino." I said. Lovino looked somewhere else and said "Y-You can call me Lovi if you want."

But you hate that. It reminds you of Spain.

 he said his blush deepening. Oh my god did he just say what I thought he said? The teacher made us hand in our work when the bell rang.

(Timeskip to lunch)

You can’t just build chemistry with everyone.

It isn’t good for the story.

I decided to find Alfred before he sat down anywhere. I found him standing next to the vending machine. "Hey Alfred. I was wondering if you wanted to go to the park with me after school?" I asked him. Alfred blushed "R-Really dude?" he asked. I nodded and he smiled. "S-Sure! I-I'll see you there!" 

Yes. I pick the fave.

he said walking away smiling. Well that seemed to cheer him up. Suddenly I was picked up by someone. I turned to see Ivan. "Hey Ivan. Why are you holding me?" 

I asked. "I'm holding you because you're going to sit with me." 

Then why didn’t you just ask me?

he said carrying me somewhere. Meh I'm down with this. I let him carry me to a table where I saw two familiar people. Oh shit. Sitting at the table was Belarus and Ukraine. "This is my big sister Irunya and my little sister Natalya." he said letting me go. I could feel Natalya staring daggers at me.

Hi Bela. 

How are you today?

 "Hello Irunya and Natalya! I'm {Kat}." I said smiling. Irunya greeted me cheerfully while Natalya growled. "Natalya you are so pretty! I love the bow in your hair." I said honestly. Natalya's eyes softened a little. "Thank you." she said curtly. 

I’m so so done.

I sat next to her and Ivan. I talked to Natalya most of the time. I certainly didn't want to be on her bad side. Irunya also talked to me about how Ivan talked about me. That got some blushes from Ivan and some grunts from Natalya. Eventually lunch ended and I had to leave. Science was spent with Alfred mixing chemicals he wasn't supposed to. 

I hope I didn’t give myself burns.

Let's just say he won't be doing that again. 

Good plan.

The bell rang signaling that school was over. I drove to the park that was about a block away from the school. 

Why didn’t I walk?

That would make the most sense.

I waited for about 15 minutes for Alfred. 'Is he not coming?' I thought to myself. Just as I thought that, Alfred walked towards me. "Sorry i'm late dude! I was getting these for you." he said handing me flowers. "Oh these are so pretty! Thank you Alfie!" I said smiling. Alfred blushed and smiled.

Thanks. I like flowers.

"That's the hero's job after all!" he said. We walked through the park and talked about random things. Which video games we liked, what our favorite action movies were. "I like a lot of the marvel movies actually." 

That’s actually 100% true.

I said. Alfred smiled widely. "Really dude!? I love those movies!" he said. "My favorite's captain America!"

Mine too.

 he said posing in a hero pose. I laughed.

I could pick many screenshots from My Hero Academia to poke fun at this vague hero pose.

This:

This:

Or possibly this:

I like to imagine the first one.

 "Well looks like you're one heck of a hero Alfie!"

Oh yes.

 I said. Alfred laughed with me. We walked near a pond. "Aww look. There are ducklings!" I said looking at the water. There were two ducklings following the momma duck. The momma duck suddenly went frantic. "What's wrong with her?" Alfred asked. "I think she lost one of her babies." I said. 

Oh no!

Alfred and I looked for the baby. Then we heard laughing coming from the other side of the pond. "Stupid bird! It bit me!" an angry voice said. Alfred and I ran over there. Two guys were holding a duckling and being mean to it. 

"You two! Stop that right now!" Alfred said. "What are you gonna do about it?" one the boys threatened. Alfred punched the guy in the face knocking him out cold. The other guy dropped the baby and ran. Alfred picked it up and put it back in the water next to it's mom. The mom quacked at Alfred as if to say thanks. Alfred laughed and said "You're welcome duck dude." 

I guess Al is a Disney Princess now.

Headcanon accepted.

while they swam away. I hugged Alfred "Alfie that was amazing! You were so awesome!" I said. Alfred blushed deeply. "All in a days work!" he said. Eventually it got late and we both had to go.

Wow, way to skip the rest. I actually wanted to know what happened next.

 I waved good bye to Alfred and left in my car.

Alfred's POV

Did I mention I hate point of view changes like this?

Because I hate point of view changes like this.

A lot.

She asked me out! I pumped my fist. She hugged me and called me a hero! I know a hero should never be nervous but my tongue goes into knots when she's with me. My palms get sweaty and my heart races. I don't why but I every time I think about her I get really happy. She makes me really happy.

I love you too, favorite boi.

Okay, that appears to be it.

I still have no idea what that gift thing in the beginning was about. See you guys later!

~Kat