#amelia ghost wrote this

[cod-dump]

What would happen if Price got contacted to say his mother or father had died? Would he care? Would he go to the funeral? Would he simply pretend he never saw the letter?

Even worse if someone else found the letter first.

previous

more richborn Price? hell yea

___

Price getting mysterious letter in a PO box he had long forgotten about. It had a hand written name on it, it was familiar, an upon opening it he spotted a name t the bottom, signed off elegantly. One that made his heart almost stop.

Amelia Victoria.

She left out the surname, certainly knowing he would throw it the letter out upon sight of it alongside a name that wasn't his own. He would've crumpled it up by now, but he didn't. All previous attempts at contacting him was from his parents, his siblings had never reached out. Never.

His brother simply didn't care to, he had everything to gain from Price not being present. Of course it had to be Amelia, she was the only person Price would ever considering listening to. It had to be her.

Price stuffed the letter back into the envelope, not bothering to read anything beyond his sister's name. He didn't have the energy for those people, his sister included. It was his own fault, leaving himself open to their attempts at communication, cruel enough to never answer and cowardly enough to never have it in him to respond.

He could disappear, they never would be able to find him. But he never did it.

He threw the letter in the trash as he walked out of his office. If the janitor didn't have the trash dumped by morning then he'd consider reading it.

Of course it wasn't left in the trash.

Price was nursing a morning cup of tea, still waking up when Ghost walked into the lounge. He had a look in his eyes, guilty but also a bit miffed. He looked at Price before he walked over and sat across from him. No words were spoken as he took out the letter and dropped it on the table.

Price felt his eye twitch at the sight. This wouldn't be the first time Ghost had poked around in his trash, Price knew he should've shredded it upon discovering who sent it. It was his own fault for being weak, for being open to reading it.

"Your mum's dead."

Price felt his heart drop, almost dropping his mug. He shakingly put down his tea, breathing as he looked away. Ghost's eyes widened and he looked even more guilty.

"You didn't know."

Ghost spoke upon the assumption he had read it. Of course, he wouldn't have said anything otherwise.

"She's-"

"I'm sorry."

Price took the letter, trying to not rip and tear as he opened it. He skimmed over the words until he found the passage mentioning his mother's death. He was supposed to feel something more than a numbed dread. He was a child who learned his mother was gone, why wasn't he feeling more than this? The shake in his hands wasn't enough, there should be more emotion.

Price honestly didn’t feel much as he read his sister's letter, describing their mother's last moments and the funeral they would have. She wrote as if she already knew he would never attend, and there wasn't any blame. Just sorrow and understanding. Sorrow, it didn't feel enough.

His dear mother, might as well have not been there at all. He vividly remembered her faraway stare, like her spirit wasn't even present. She used to be much more alive when he was much younger, while she was pregnant with his brother. She argued with his father with determination, no fear. Then... it just went away. She never showed much emotion after she became pregnant with his sister. Their father had full reign of the household, of their children.

He wondered if she died that way, numb and absent minded, allowing their father to have his way until the bitter end.

"John?"

Ghost didn't like his silence, probably didn't like the lack of a more earnest reaction. Price never told him about his family or upbringing. Never told him he joined the military to get away from them. Any judgement he was receiving was deserved. Ghost clung to his family when he had them, he loved them fiercely.

"I probably should tell you a few things about me... and keep all of this between us, yea?"

Ghost nodded while watching him carefully. Price really didn't want the others to learn about this, learn everything about him he frankly didn't want them to know.

[rebelrayne]

Each Islander's Answer to: "Would You Be Willing to Return for All-Stars?"

under the cut (endgames included for fun)

➥ YES YES A THOUSAND TIMES YES!

Emel Ivy Kat Kelly Lily Johnny (with a dramatic flair) R!Hannah Summer Uma

➥ Yes, I would be.

Bianca* (S8 CA) Blake Cassius* (S7 Bombshell) Erikah Felicity* (S8 CA) Hazel Meera Nicolas Rachel* (S8 OG) Stephen* (S7 Bombshell) Toby Valentina

➥ The show wouldn't be complete without me.

Allegra Arlo Brad* (S8 Bombshell) Bryson Christy* (S8 Bombshell) Eddie Elisa Finn Iona Jamal (I'm sorry he is pure chaos) Lexi Marshall Mason Rafi (sorry, he's there for the fame) Reese Ryan Sienna

➥ Doesn't wait for a call, just shows up.

Hamish Liam (he's told to go home)

➥ Depends...Do I get a hot tub date?

Roberto

➥ Pretends they're busy for flair, then says yes.

Rocco

➥ I don't know...Look what happened last time.

Grace Hazeem Hope Jo Lucy Kobi Priya Rohan

➥ Maybe? Let me think about it.

Cherry Daphne Estelle Flo Genevieve Geri Harry (Sorry Mo, he'd just feel bad to say no LOL) Jasper Jen Luna Nicky Sammi Vicky Willow

➥ If I don't have anything better to do, sure.

Jakub Miles Shannon

➥ Lol! This reminds me of a throw pillow!

Chelsea

➥ My Nan would kill me, mate.

Gary Lewie

➥ *Rambles until the producer just hangs up*.

Bill (because he can't shut up) Bruno (because he can't figure out how to say no) Juliet (because she has advice for them) Rahim (because he starts talking about Violet Man)

➥ Tries to say no, tricked into saying yes.

Ciaran Tom Rafael

➥ No thank you.

AJ Alex Andy Arjun Bea Bella Bobby Carl Chloe Claudia Elijah Elladine Evan Gabi Hari Henrik Jack Jake Jin Jo Kyle Levi Logan Lucas Lulu Max Oakley Oliver Ozzy Shawn Tai Talia Thabi Theo Yasmin

➥ Hah. I'm still waiting for the punchline.

Elliot

➥ I wrote enough fanfic about it.

Talia

➥ No thanks, Mamacita.

Camilo

➥ Full offense-no.

Angie Lottie

➥ Non.

Youcef

➥ "Oh, sorry! We forgot you exist."

Tiffany Tyler

➥ Ghosted and/or ignored the call.

Joyo Kassam Noah Seb

➥ Ghosted the call, but by accident.

Cora Najuma Will

➥ Production didn't even bother inviting them.

Alfie Bonnie Dana Felix Francis James Miki Travis

➥ Calls & complains they weren't invited.

Dylan Graham Pete Sophie Suresh

➥ Ghosted & Ignored...by Production.

Amelia

[ofstoriesandstardust]

when she loved me

or: Rebel asks Maverick a question about her mother he can’t answer 

like father, like daughter masterlist

warnings: this is hinted around but Natalie struggled with postpartum depression, i’ve got this whole head canon that Rebel thinks Penny doesn’t like her for the longest time, i wrote this on a whim in like half an hour so i have no idea if this is good, unedited

word count: 943

"Do you think she regretted having me?”

Your Dad hums, glancing up from the newspaper he’s holding. “What was that?” 

Your spring break had lined up with your Dad’s leave and he’d taken you out to the hangar, wanting to spend some quality time with his daughter as he called it before you graduated from UCSD in just a matter of weeks. 

“Do you think she regretted having me? Mom?”

He startles, making eye contact with you. “I don’t know.” He tells you honestly. “Where is this coming from?” 

You shrug, pulling your knees up to your chest as you curl up into the couch. “Do you regret having me?” 

“No.” He says firmly, standing up from his seat on the couch and moving over to the couch, sliding in next to you and wrapping his arm around you. 

“Yeah, but your life would’ve been a lot easier without me in it.” You say, with a half-shrug, before pulling away, laying down against the other side of the couch. 

He’s silent for a minute as your eyes stare off into the side of the hangar your Dad kept spare parts for the plane, where the pictures the ghost’s of your Dad’s past live, including the ones of your mother. 

Ones he didn’t know you had found. 

“Honey.” He says, swallowing. “I have never regretted having you. You’re my pride and joy.” 

“Yeah, but you and Penny would still be together if it wasn’t for me.” 

He scoffs at that. “Absolutely not.” 

“Penny and I never had a good relationship. Fact. You and Penny broke up and less than two years later she had Amelia and got married. Fact. She wouldn’t get married to you because I was in the picture. Fact.” 

“That’s not a fact-”

“I heard her. I heard her that night the two of you broke up that last time. About how you had a kid you needed to focus on and how she wasn’t cut out to be a step-mom. How it would never work because the two of you would always want different things.” 

He sighs and you hear him leaning against the back of the couch. “Honey, I-” 

“Why didn’t you leave? Dump me at Ice and Sarah’s and run while you had the chance? I was a kid, I would’ve barley remembered you.” 

“Carole would have killed me before I got halfway out that door.” 

You move up slightly, shooting him a look. He sighs in response. 

“Because the night your Mom gave birth, I stood there in that nursery in the hospital and looked at you and everything made sense. I was afraid of failing you, of being the worst parent. I didn’t know how to be a good parent. Kids weren’t in the mix for your Mom and I, or so we had thought, until you came along. But you did, and I’m so glad for it. Your Mom and I would’ve burned out, but here you were, tiny and perfect, and you were my responsibility. I’ve loved you from the moment you were born and I could never imagine not getting to raise you, especially not when I have gotten the privilege to watch you grow up and become the amazing person you are.” 

You wrap your arms around yourself, feeling tears sting at your eyes. “Why did Mom leave?” You whisper. 

You could guess. 

You had seen those pictures. 

God, was your mother beautiful. Always a smile on her face and full of light. She always looked happy to be there, happy to be with your father. 

But seeing the ones after, the ones from when you were around and a babbling baby, she looked a lot quieter. Still beautiful, but more sad. Less full of life. In some photos, if you looked long enough, you could see the regret in her eyes. 

You knew what that regret was. 

Pictures could only tell you so much, but lucky for you, you were really good at filling in the blanks where the pictures failed. 

“I don’t know.” Your Dad mutters after a minute of silence. “I wish I had an answer for you.” 

“I want to be angry at her.” You mutter, wrapping your arms around yourself tighter. “But mostly I just feel sad. I guess it’s easier to be angry at her for leaving than being sad I never got a mother.”

“You’re allowed to be both. She should’ve been here and that’s not on you.” You shrug, not making eye-contact with him. His hands falls on your shoulder, shaking you. “Hey, do you understand me? It is not your fault she left.” 

You shrug, again, feeling the burn of a tear slip down your face. 

It’s not that you didn’t want to believe him, because you did, but you didn’t know how. For so long it had felt like your fault that she had left, that maybe your Dad’s life would’ve been better not having you at all.

“Hey.” He whispers, shaking your shoulder again. You finally tilt your head up to look at him. “I am so proud to call you my daughter. Every single damn day. I am so grateful I got to watch you grow up. There’s no where else I’d rather be.”

That’s what sends you over the edge as you sit up, your Dad’s arms reaching out for you as he brings you into his chest. 

“I wish she would’ve stayed.” You say into his chest between sobs, clutching him tighter. “Why didn’t she stay?” 

He squeezes you, tucking his chin on to the top of your head. “I don’t know honey.” He whispers. “I don’t know.” 

[princess-peregrine]

10 Most Read Authors

Thanks for tagging me @godzilla-reads

"what are your ten most most read authors? and how many books have you read by them? also tag someone who you would like to do this!

instructions: scroll to the bottom of your goodreads shelves and most read authors is listed underneath."

I don't use goodreads but here's what ibknow from my personal collection

1. Seanan McGuire (21 books) Seanan McGuire is an amazing writer and one of the hardest things to do is put down one of her books once you start, it's always a captivating adventure to read one of her books

2. Kay Hooper (16 books) I'm not done with her Bishop/Special Crimes Unit books but oh my gosh, she writes good. If i had to give a short and sweet summary of what she writes, it would come off as a trashy genre. But she writes possibly my favorite romances I have ever read. Once a Thief and Always a Thief are my favorite romace books of all time, and the reason I read them was because of a ML fanfic called Once a thief Always a Thief by, I believe, Saijispellhart, I think that's right, if you read that fic and liked it then you will love Kay Hooper

3. CJ Cherryh (12) this is possibly my favorite writer of science fiction full stop and i can't even get into it here because i would talk for ages, the message here is to read CJ Cherryh's books, for the love of Goddess read them

4. Jimmy Gownley (8 books) Amelia Rules is my favorite comic of all time with a close secomd being the planet Sakaar arc in the hulk comics

5. Diana Rowland (7 books) people just love her white trash zombie books, and foe good reason, but personally i loved her Mark/Blood of the Demon books a whole lot more

6. Victoria Laurie (7 books) i loved the first book in her ghost hunter mystery books, then 2 and 3 were a slog, and then the rest were good again, not sure what happened to the second and third book

7. Marrion Zimmer Bradley (7 books) ew ew ew ew ew ew ew ew ew ew what the fuck is up with her ew ew ew ew ew ew this is what passed for feminist writing back then?! I've read incel rants with more respect for women than some of the stuff she writes!

Anyway she's an ok science fiction writer with a way of writing really engaging stories with a strong narrative voice, don't read her books, they really are not kind to women

8. Michelle Tea (5 books) go read mermaid in chelsea creek, go do it, right now, this is a demand, read mermaid in chelsea creek, cry about it and then come back to me and tell me what you thought about it, do it now

My favorite book from her is Valencia btw, an excellent memoir

9. Kim Harrison (4 books) don't ask me anything about her books, i could not tell you, i know what happened because i read them but the memories are jumbled up with details from the October Day novels

10. Stephen king (4 books) Stephen King is, ehhhh, i read him more for the status that he was a prolific writer and had a lot of popular books, the first one i read, which is still my favorite by the way, is The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon

Honorable mentions that i just recommend you go read because i love their books

Eileen Myles shouldn't need and introduction and if she does then you are living a worse life for it

Rob Reger who wrote the Emily The Strange books

Clive Barker who i have read quite a bit but excluded him for the same of smaller names (but you included stephen king) shut up

Wendy Holden, she didn't write many books but the ones she wrote were good

Dana Fredsti, her plague books are like brownies

Jeanien Frost, imagine if Kim Harrison was more memorable

Now i'll tag @scham-wcan @vivaciousarcanist @zerm2v0hg @far-side-skies @grimm-the-6th @overlordneon @transgressivepistoleer @mx-kit

[bethanydelleman]

Hi there! My wifi is down so I’m on my porch listening to S&S (as one does) and we’ve reached Willoughby’s letter. You know, the one ghost written by Ms Grey. I suspect I’m missing some subtext. Marianne and Elenor are both so outraged by some of the lines, especially “the lock of hair, which you so obligingly bestowed on me”, and I have to wonder: is W implying Marianne was doing the modern equivalent of giving him her panties? Or nude pics? By pretending she thrust the “unwanted” hair onto him instead of acknowledging that he asked her for it, is he essentially slut shaming her? Where on the scale of “the kind of girl you don’t bring home to mother” do his insults to her fall? Or am I infusing too much modern perspective into it and they’re just outraged that he led her on and then dumped her? As always, thank you for your insightful Austen commentary and I hope you have a nice evening.

Looking at these lines:

nor could she have supposed Willoughby capable of departing so far from the appearance of every honourable and delicate feeling—so far from the common decorum of a gentleman, as to send a letter so impudently cruel: a letter which, instead of bringing with his desire of a release any professions of regret, acknowledged no breach of faith, denied all peculiar affection whatever—a letter of which every line was an insult, and which proclaimed its writer to be deep in hardened villainy.

And this:

 ‘The lock of hair, (repeating it from the letter,) which you so obligingly bestowed on me’—That is unpardonable. Willoughby, where was your heart when you wrote those words? Oh, barbarously insolent!—Elinor, can he be justified?”

It seems to me that the problem is that Willoughby is re-writing history, shoving all the blame on Marianne when his actions clearly led her on. After all, we all know what actually happened:

"...and he seemed to be begging something of her, and presently he took up her scissors and cut off a long lock of her hair, for it was all tumbled down her back; and he kissed it, and folded it up in a piece of white paper; and put it into his pocket-book.”

I don't think this has to do with slut shaming per se, though hair was a common gift between lovers/engaged people, it has more to do with him making her look like she's been the one pursuing him. Like she was stalking him and forcing love tokens on him against his will. It feels almost like setting up his denial at a breach of promise trial, "No, I didn't do anything, she liked me but I was just friendly."

However, women are supposed to kind of follow a man's lead when it comes to love, never declaring themselves first (that is the problem with Amelia in Lovers' Vows as shown in Mansfield Park). So setting Marianne up as the pursuer and himself as an unwilling persuee probably is an attack or insult of some kind. I don't think it would be as bad as unsolicited nudes, it may just make her sound desperate or too flirty.

That's my read at least. Maybe @an-extraordinary-fate would have some thoughts. She is a Sense & Sensibility expert.

Also, thank you!

[wildelydawn]

You had final thoughts for I’ll Ignite for You. Do you have any for Your Look Through this Lens?

Hi there; you asked this in August, and now it’s October. I waited so long because I didn't have an answer for you. And I still don’t know if I have an answer for you, but I think I’ll try anyway.

I want to first say that having final thoughts on II4Y was infinitely easier because of the nature of the story. Nothing happens in II4Y besides a conversation over the span of three days; and it’s a story that brings Kim and Porchay together and makes them part and then brings them back together when Kim is ready. (Even though II4Y is technically canon divergence, it could very well still take place after canon because I don’t believe Porchay needs to respond to the video. They just need to see each other, and that same spark/intensity from episode 4 would reignite, and that’s still up to Kim to do, in my opinion.)

Thoughts on YLTTL are different. One, I wrote from Porchay’s point of view, and while he’s not innocent or oblivious, he chooses to remain blissfully passive about the many inconsistencies with WIK. Porchay knows there’s something more to WIK, but he never asks because he knows that he’s not going to be WIK’s photographer forever. He knows he’s on a time limit. He has always known that; he’s ready to leave from the beginning of the story. @emberfaye asked me what the first part of Chapter 1 means and when it takes place. In that section, Porchay thinks about how unlucky he is to have the perfect subject because there's nothing to perfect. There is an ending; Porchay assumes the ending to all of this is WIK gets famous and moves on from him. So he's prepared (and maybe, in a meta way, this was my warning to readers to also prepare for the ending of YLTTL.)

The person who’s unprepared is Kim, and that’s borrowed from canon when Kim is looking at the polaroids of KimChay. And in YLTTL, I capitalized on that. He’s wildly unprepared for the fact that even the nicest feelings or moments don’t last forever. He's also unprepared in regards to the lies he tells, both in canon and in YLTTL. But he should be. He’s in the mafia. He knows nothing is permanent. But in YLTTL, he’s not ready for his music career to take off or even to leave the mafia. Chay is ready for the ending, though; he counts down the days every chapter. So, I guess the first thought is this idea of time: how much do you have of it? When will you be ready? When is the right time for whatever is it that you want to do?

Two, even if they were ready, circumstance isn’t on their side. This is just a fact of life. Kim asks Chay if things would have been different if they met at a grocery store. YLTTL was based on the idea that even in an AU, Kim and Chay don’t end up together. But that doesn’t mean they don’t love each other. I personally don’t think the canon ending of KimChay means they don’t love each other, and I think I wrote YLTTL to explore that idea a bit more deeply.

Three: And like I said in this post about Amelia, there’s a (potentially harmful) narrative that you should stop loving someone once you’re not with them. Oddly, I think I love Amelia more than ever; I can safely say she still cares about me too! But we know it’s better to move forward and to accept that there’s no love lost. She’s not this ghost in my life. I talk about her with my current partner. I dedicate IRL works and fandom works to her. This surprises people, but she’s not just a muse. Similarly, Chay is not just a muse for Kim. They are always going to be tangled with one another. Their story doesn’t end just because things like marriage, distance, time, circumstance, exist. Kim is going to find Chay in every crowd, every hotel room, he’s going to hope that every person behind every camera is Chay, and Chay will take everything he learned about photography and apply it to every subject that comes after WIK, he’ll admit to people that he wishes he could photograph WIK some more, he’s going to hold his breath every time he opens his camera bag and then sigh in relief when he doesn’t see anything from Kim there because that means Kim is doing what Chay asked him to do. And even when they can’t see each other, they don’t have to go very far to see each other. The photographs will always be there. You don’t have to see love to feel love, in my opinion. Just because you feel lonely doesn’t mean you’re alone.

Anyways. I don’t think this answered your question at all tbh because YLTTL is a KimChay story and also, in a very twisted way, a story about time and loneliness. But I’ve left you sitting in my inbox for too long, and I hope this was somewhat satisfactory for you. Thank you for reading YLTTL! And thank you for being interested in my thoughts beyond the story! 🖤

[monstrousproductions]

Loved the ask game, here I go:

* Nero, my favorite roman emperor

* Alan Turing

I'm pretty sure you COULD beat Turing ass but the real question here is: you would?

* Amelia Earhart

* Brazilian historical mention: Maria Quitéria!!

Oooh these are fun!

Nero I think I could take. I actually don't know very much about Nero, but my friend Emma - the Roman historian who voiced the Roman historian in the bonus episode Teeny Tiny Tentacles! - wrote a fabulous book about his mum called Agrippina: Empress, Exile, Hustler Whore. It's marvellous and I recommend it, but it's also the source of everything I know about Nero outside of cartoon depictions and popular legend lol But he comes across as kind of an incompetent douche?? So I think I've got a good chance.

Alan Turing you're right I think I could easily take him but I absolutely would not. I might insist on buying him a new bicycle chain though.

Amelia Earhart would absolutely deck me. No question about it. That woman has GUMPTION she has GET UP AND GO she would set her mind to wiping the floor with me and then DO IT. Also, if this is post-disappearance, there's a strong possibility she'd have an army of ghost crabs on her side.

And I didn't know about Maria Quitéria before this ask, thank you for giving me the chance to learn something new today! I mean, soldiering was her whole entire thing, I wouldn't stand a chance lol

[practically-an-x-man]

9, 14, 15, 19, 27 for the group ask game for Quinn and Co

Ooh thank you! The Ghosts are a fun crew :D

9. A moment that was never shown in canon, but I think they had together

So the team clearly has a lot of questions about One (they have a bet running about his family, they wonder about his backstory) and his name is never actually revealed in the movie, but I think the others have absolutely pestered him about what it is as soon as the rest of their names are revealed.

(Fun fact: in my first 6 Underground fic, not Desert Song, I headcanoned One's real name as Logan specifically for a reference at the Hugh Jackman/Ryan Reynolds rivalry. I don't have a name for him in Desert Song, but I want to come up with something different for this one)

14. If they watch a TV show together, what would they watch?

NO OKAY THIS IS FUNNY bc in the movie, they actually make a ton of references to Leave it the Beaver and it's One's favorite show, so I DO actually have an answer for this lol

But for my own answer, I think they'd bond over something like Criminal Minds. Camille is trying to solve it along with the characters on the screen, Billy and Javier just like all the quips and action, One watches it for Garcia and Morgan's fun dynamic, Blaine likes watching them work together as a crew and particularly likes Hotch, and Amelia both finds the psychology interesting and has a big crush on Reid.

15. If they watch a movie together, what would they watch?

I'm tempted to say one of the X-Men movies, just for the irony of it (the cast includes both Ryan Reynolds and Ben Hardy, there are a few superhero references already, and the writers of 6 Underground wrote all three Deadpool movies) but I think they probably have movie nights and swap out on choices. Javier and Billy pick a lot of action flicks, Camille always picks French dramas (that nobody else on the team can understand without subtitles), Blaine likes comedies, One picks classic cinema like Citizen Kane, and Five is a bit of a wild card.

19. Who I think is the most likely to save their friends in danger

Out of the canon crew, Blaine (since he actually does stop everything to save Billy in the movie). But if we're including Quinn like you said, it's got to be her - she's just as daring and twice as willing to defy authority.

27. The most chaotic person in the group?

I want to say Billy, but he's less chaotic and more just ADHD. Out on missions and things, he's actually pretty focused and capable. I think the real answer is Three - who's goofy and chaotic both in and out of the field

Fictional Group Asks

[longbobmckenzie]

20 questions for fic writers

Thanks for the tag, @rebelrayne!

How many works do you have on ao3?

I've got 40 which is still wild to me

What's your total ao3 word count?

970,161 - I'm inching closer to the million word mark (and have the remaining 30k needed in my drafts just waiting to be published)

What fandoms do you write for?

Love Island the Game, and I'm working on my first oneshot for the Romance Club fandom (Song of the Crimson Nile)

Top five fics by kudos:

Whiskey & Scotch (it'll never be surpassed)

it's just a crush

Amelia Can't Win (the S6 effect, I still can't believe this one is top 3 already ahead of a few of my other chaptered fics)

not the only one

Convince Me (the only oneshot in my top 5, the effect of writing a smutty oneshot while season it's about is still ongoing)

Do you respond to comments?

Absolutely!

What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

I have a few contenders here but I'm gonna go with anatomy of a heartbreak. it's literally in the title, so you were warned

What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

erm, most of them? some of them even end with a happy ending, if you know what I mean 😏

Serious answer though, probably it's just a crush, because not only did it end the misery I put my readers through (it's a slow, slow, slow burn, folks), but I think it's the only one of my fics that ends with a proposal (I think. I've written 40 of them, you can't expect me to remember them all, can you?)

Do you get hate on fics?

Yep, every time @mrsbsmooth reads one of my unfinished drafts and gets mad that it's not finished yet /j

But actually, surprisingly, no. Either I'm not relevant enough for the haters to notice me, or everyone's scared of me.

That or I don't write anything controversial enough to warrant strong opinions 🙃

Do you write smut?

Yes, although I hate myself every time because I suck at metaphors and pretty words and all the stuff that really elevates other writers' smut

Craziest crossover:

When the Dead Come Knocking is LITG x The Walking Dead

Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not that I'm aware of, but I'd probably be more flattered than anything (nah probably not, I'd come after you with guns blazing)

Have you ever had a fic translated?

Nope

Have you ever co-written a fic before?

*sigh* I started a collab on a oneshot before but my cowriter ghosted the fandom. It was a Kassam x Felix undercover spy ETL with Chelsea as a crime boss and it would have been hilarious

All time favourite ship?

I mean, obviously Henrik/me. I mean, Henrik/MC. But if we're talking 2 LITG characters, then Henrik/Lucas is OTP

What's a wip you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

Technically this is not applicable - I have every intention of finishing my 3 active WIPs (Whiskey & Wildflowers, Amelia Can't Win, and Luc & Hen's Sexcellent Kinkventure), and I prefer not to start new chaptered fics until I finish other ones (which often means my fics are in the idea stage for literally years before I even start writing them).

That said, I have a few chaptered fic ideas in various stages of production that I'm not sure I'll end up writing. idk if those count as WIPs (one of them is half-outlined and I've jotted down a few paragraphs, but I have to rework it)

What are your writing strengths?

Honestly, I'm not entirely sure. I've been told I'm good at pacing, and I've been told I'm good at angst - but what strengths make me good at those things are, I don't really know.

Oh, wait. Spelling, grammar, and punctuation. I rock at those.

What are your writing weaknesses?

Dialogue, for one. My biggest struggle in all of my fics (and what I find extremely daunting when starting something new) is dialogue. I never know what my characters should talk about when it's not distinctly plot-related, especially group scenes. Some people are so good at writing fresh dialogue that just breathes so much life into the characters and displays their personality and keeps the reader engaged, and that's something I'd love to do better (both in fics and in real life, tbh - I'm a wallflower)

Secondly, character development. I've literally written over 500k words for one of my OCs, yet I hardly know who she is outside of the villa. I know her struggles and much of her backstory, but I don't know what her hobbies are, what gets her up in the morning, what she likes to eat, what she listens to, etc. I think this also plays a part in my dialogue struggles - it's hard to write characters if I don't know them

Third, and related to number two, is character arcs/relationship arcs. Sure, I can come up with a storyline and write it in such a way that it's enjoyable. But what makes a story extra compelling is the character arcs, watching the characters grow and learn things about themselves and seeing how that meshes with another character and their flaws/strengths and it all comes together like puzzle pieces. I'm not good at that, but I want to be

tl;dr - my biggest weakness is that I'm not Emily Henry

Thoughts on dialogue in another language?

My favourite love interests are Swedish and Portuguese 🤣 and yes, I love having them slip into their native tongues every once in awhile, or use terms of endearments, etc. I try to be as accurate as possible and give the readers a glossary (though sometimes I'm lazy with that), but it's also usually just little things that you can kind of tell what they're saying from the context

First fandom you wrote in?

Love Island the Game. Other than RC, it might be my last, too

Favourite fic you've written?

I hate this question 🤣 I have 40 fics and I love them all in their own way. It's like asking someone to pick their favourite child

tagging @eskiix, @lucas-koh, @squirrel-fund, mymindalwaysgoesblankwhentaggingpeople, sojustdoitifyoureinterested

[enddaysengine]

Masked Emotions

Wrote this last year when my sister's dog passed. Shared it with my patrons then, sharing it with you all now. 

Masked Emotions Amelia Carver never asked to be special. She would have been fine with a happy but quiet life with a woman who loved dogs and an adopted kid. They could have settled down, she’d eventually get her Ph.D. and publish a few ecology papers, and together they would have been family.

Mother Luna, in her cruelty, does not care for her children’s wants.

Amelia’s First Change was traumatic, but she is at least grateful she didn’t hurt anyone. The Hillside Pack, a group made of Hunters in Darkness and Bone Shadows, approached her shortly after, hoping their environmental approach to the Hunt would draw Amelia into the fold. Instead, she was horrified to learn that other werewolves were not only out there but also at war with each other. She wanted nothing to do with it and chose to remain a Ghost Wolf.

Before leaving, the Pack warned Amelia of the Pure and advised her to have a pack of her own, even if they weren’t Uratha. Amelia, unwilling to risk spreading her curse (or understanding its nature for that matter), adopted a dog from the local shelter. Murphy wasn’t a puppy, but he was still spry and joyful. They were a pack together for three years, and Murphy helped Amelia open up to humanity. Then Amelia woke up and Murphy didn’t.

It wasn’t foul play, uncontrolled rage, or spiritual vendetta, but sheer bad luck. A blood clot where it shouldn’t have been. There was nothing Amelia could do, no foe to fight, no prey to tear to pieces. She was heartbroken at losing her boy. It was then that Grim Mask came to her.

Grim is a Stone Face, a spirit of repressed sorrow that feeds on buried emotions. It offered to help Amelia hide her emotions so she wouldn’t have to deal with the world’s awkward questions and pitying eyes. To Amelia, it seemed like a good bargain, but she didn’t understand that Grim Mask had no intention of allowing her to resolve her hidden despair. The Grim Mask, for its part, knows that it is taking advantage of Amelia’s suffering but does not understand why humans consider that wrong. In its mind, it is a predator seeking food and has generously traded for it. Of course, it is going to ensure Amelia stays raw and distraught internally; that’s what makes the Essence it needs. Such is the way of the Shadow.

Amelia, Grief-Ridden

Auspice: Rahu Tribe: Ghost Wolf Blood: Monster Bone: Lone Wolf Touchstones: none (Flesh), Grim Mask (Spirit) Attributes: Intelligence 3 Wits 3 Resolve 2 Strength 2 (3/5/4/2) Dexterity 2 (2/3/4/4) Stamina 3 (4/5/4/4) Presence 3 Manipulation 2 (1/2/1/1) Composure 1 Skills: Academics 2, Computers 2, Investigation 2, Medicine 1, Politics 1, Occult 1, Science (Ecology) 2; Athletics 1 (Sprinting), Brawl 1, Drive 1, Survival 1; Animal Ken (Dogs) 2, Expression 1, Intimidation 1, Persuasion 1, Socialize 2, Streetwise 1 Merits: Area of Expertise (Ecology), Barfly, Fleet of Foot 3, Inspiring, Status (University) 1 Primal Urge: 1 Willpower: 3 Harmony: 5 Size: 5 (6/7/6/4) Health: 9 (11/13/12/9) Initiative: +3 (3/4/5/5) Defence: 3 (3/4/4/4) Speed: 12 (13/16/19/17) Renown: Honour 1, Purity 1 Gifts: Full Moon, Hunting (Honour), Strength (Honour, Purity) Rites: Sacred Hunt Active Conditions: Open (Grief), Urged (Grim Mask), Shaken

Note: Amelia’s stats are appropriate for a player character made in character creation with 0 extra Experiences.

Stone Faces are spirits of grief, although they do not look the part. The Spirits commonly possess an incorporeal humanoid form with three heads. Each face wears a grinning stone mask with trails of water erosion weeping down from its eye holes. As they grow stronger, the spirits grow additional heads and limbs. The Uthsa-Damin can take other forms - replacing stone with tragedy-comedy masks, appearing as multi-headed mannequins, or even as sentient text messages showing only positive emojis. No matter what form they take, Stone Faces always present ossified, unchanging happiness. In reality, these spirits are born of and feed upon anguish. They represent the compartmentalized, hidden emotional pain people try to hide from the world. Stone Faces thrive in the modern world, where your brand is everything and society frowns on being open with your pain. They trap the herd in feelings of hidden misery, content in knowing that their larders will hide among the smiling flock.

Stone Faces (Smiling Grief, Uthsu-Damin)

Rank 1 Grief Spirit Power 2 Finesse 2 Resistance 3 Willpower: 5 Initiative: +5 Defence: 3 Speed: 11 Size: 4 Corpus: 7 Influences: Grief 1 Numina: Dement, Hidden Face, Innocuous Manifestations: Twilight Form, Fetter Ban: Let no one see your true face. Bane: A moment of pure joy.

New Numen - Hidden Face: By spending two Essence, the spirit can disguise a character’s emotions. Any mundane attempts to discern the target’s emotional state or any related Conditions instead interprets an emotion and/or Condition of the spirit's choice.

[alciefromwonderland]

Hey, so uh!

I wrote a little one act play sort of thing. I'll have it under the cut if anyone wants to read!

Amelia - a woman in her mid 20's

Danny - a man in his mid-late 20's

[The scene opens on Amelia standing before a gravestone, a small bundle of flowers on top. The stage is almost completely bare otherwise. It is a cold winter's day in a cemetery. Amelia stares down at the grave, a look of sadness and contemplation on her face. She is wearing a sleeveless dress and rubs her arms absentmindedly.]

[Danny enters. He is dressed in a black suit and white button up shirt. Neither of them is dressed for the weather, but Danny seems far less bothered by it. He approaches Amelia who glances at him before turning back to the grave.]

Danny: Did you know him?

[Pause.]

Amelia, shaking her head: ...I don't think so.

Danny: (laughs) Don't think so? You're not sure?

[Pause. Amelia shifts uncomfortably.]

Amelia: ...I don't think I knew him.

[Beat. They both look quietly at the grave.]

Amelia: Did you?

Danny: Mm... [Pause. He contemplates his answer for a moment.] Not really. Heard about him, though.

Amelia: Yeah?

Danny: Yeah. Nothing too special or impressive or big, exciting news or anything. I mean, you can find it in the papers, but it's just because you know...they gotta report on all the deaths and everything.

Amelia: Nothing special? He was...what? Didn't even make it to 30. How does someone die that young and it's just discounted as "nothing special"?

Danny: Well, no, I just mean like...he wasn't involved in anything crazy. Just...one of those stupid kids who tried to go swimming before they should've.

[Pause. Amelia nods slowly. It's getting cold. She bunches her shoulders for a moment. Danny looks her over, realizing that she doesn't have a jacket.]

Danny: Here... [Reaches for the buttons on his suit jacket, hesitates, and drops his hands back to his sides.] Uh...listen. You should probably get back home soon. It's way too cold out here for something like that. [He gestures to her dress.] I mean...look, if you're here to see someone in particular, I can maybe help you find them.

Amelia: No, I'm... [Pause. She shakes her head.] I don't know why I'm here.

[Danny looks at her for a moment, a mix of concern and pity on his face.]

Danny: Okay...well...people don't usually come here without reason. I mean...you know, they come to see someone. They come to just enjoy the quiet. They come to learn or pay respects or to mourn. I mean...did something happen or...?

[Amelia shifts uncomfortably. She doesn't look up at him. He's a stranger and she's not sure what she should tell him, if anything. But he seems willing to listen and that's enough for her to start.]

Amelia: ...everyone I know is gone.

Danny, shocked: G...gone? Like...?

Amelia: No! No, they're not dead. They're just... [Pause.] I don't know who they are anymore.

[During this speech, Amelia slowly turns to Danny without realizing, only coming to her attention when she's looking into his eyes.]

Amelia: I don't...talk to them as often anymore. You know, we...we get busy. We all do. And that's fine. But it's...I mean, whenever I do try to catch up with them, it's like...like they're slowly fading away. Emmy...Emily...wants to be called her actual name now because nicknames are silly and childish. Chris has changed majors five times now and I just...I can't keep up. I thought Sarah and Cindy were engaged - but now she's seeing Gary? I - I haven't even spoken to Gary since we were kids, so I can't even imagine what he is doing, what he likes, who he is - but the...the people they used to be...the people I am friends with, they just...they don't exist anymore. I'm just friends with a bunch of ghosts.

[She realizes she's been staring at him, rambling. She looks down at the ground, pulling her arms in closer.]

Amelia: I'm sorry. [She shakes her head, muttering] So dramatic...

Danny: Hey... don't say that. It's not dramatic.

Amelia: But it is. I mean...I don't know why I'm so upset. They're still around. They're not *dead*, they're just... different.

Danny: Really different, sounds like.

Amelia, nodding slightly and gesturing to the grave: ...feel like I know Daniel here as much as I know...whoever Emily is.

Danny: Well...I dunno about that.

Amelia, shaking her head: (Speaking quickly and shakily) Well, I do. I thought it was just little things at first, but I... there's nothing left. We don't work in the same place. We're not part of the same clubs. Most of us don't live anywhere near each other anymore. I try to invite them over for things that it turns out they don't even enjoy anymore. I...I don't...know them anymore. I don't know if I ever did. I... they're gone. The people I loved are all gone.

[Danny nods. He has things he wants to say, but he doesn't want to burden her more. She's shivering.]

Danny: Tell you what...I'll be here tomorrow. We can talk more...when you come back with a coat and maybe some mittens, okay? I don't want you to freeze out here.

Amelia: ...maybe I do.

[Pause.]

Danny: Sorry, maybe...?

Amelia: Maybe I do. Want to freeze. I live with ghosts anyway. Maybe...maybe I should just join them. [laughs bitterly] I still...still try to bond with them sometimes. Even when they aren't there? I just...pretend they are. I watch our old favorite shows and play the games and keep up with our old bookclub series and I tell myself that I'm not alone, but...

[Danny pauses. He starts to reach out for her. She turns to look at him. She looks desperate and terrified. He drops his hand.]

Danny: My brother died when we were kids. Stayed out in the cold too long. Mom didn't know he was out there. Everyone kinda figured...you know...neglectful mom, couldn't be bothered to take care of her kid... (shrugs) She wouldn't be bothered. But she was.

[He gestures into the distance.]

Danny: The one with the flowers and the little toy car is his. She comes down and replaces the flowers every couple weeks and brings a new car when the one there already gets broken or rusted or lost. She keeps up with birthdays and Christmas and...hell, she went to all the soccer games he would've been in. Cheered for his team and...hung the victory pictures on the fridge as if he were in 'em.

[Pause.]

Danny: I think more people live with ghosts than we realize sometimes.

Amelia: It's different when they're still alive. I can't come here to mourn or...bring gifts.

Danny: No, but...

[He hesitates. He's not sure if he's about to say the right thing.]

Danny: What if you come here to make new friends?

Amelia, laughing: In a graveyard?

Danny, shrugging: You met me here, didn't you?

[Amelia smiles.]

Amelia: ...you said you'll be here tomorrow?

Danny: I will.

[Amelia looks up from the grave to Danny. After a moment, she looks over to the side where Danny had pointed out his brother's grave.]

Amelia, turning back to Danny: Same time?

Danny, smiling: With a jacket next time.

Amelia, smiling: And mittens. I'm Amelia.

Danny: Danny.

[Amelia smiles and briefly looks down at the grave with a curious look. She turns back to Danny.]

Amelia: Well...I'll see you tomorrow, Danny.

Danny: See you tomorrow.

[Exit Amelia.]

[Danny looks at the grave and approaches it. He rests his hand on the slide, sliding it up towards the flowers. His hand stops just before he touches them. He sighs.]

[Lights down. End scene.]

[dallasurr]

Hi sorry i accidently sended you a anon without finishing it my hand slipped i am sorry

What i tried to mean was the butterfly landed on simon's face can be readen as his upcoming healing too because when i researched about butterflies most of the time they mean change,hope and growth..

i know i am problaly looking into too much but still good to think about l

Anyway again i'm sorry for sending half finished writing i hope didn't confuse you that much

(First part of the Question for context)

No bother at all, I've been there myself xD

I don't see a future version of Infinity Train where Simon comes back alive, and there's a couple of scenarios where I imagine he could come up organically like when we hear more of Samantha's backstory or if we were to get a Grace episode or Apex Kid focused episode/season. I find it highly unlikely that Amelia's season doesn't have Hazel in at least some of it, so maybe he and Grace would be mentioned there.

But I also wouldn't put it past the writers to have parts that focus on Grace or an Apex kid or Hazel bring up the Apex in general and not mention Simon. I know sometimes it's just them picking fun at him, maybe i'm too sensitive, but it's pretty clear that some of the writers and storyboard artists didn't care for him by the way they talk about him on twitter.

However I love where you're going with this, I've had story ideas where he gets reincarnated as a denizen, i wrote a one shot kind of teasing his train journey as a groundhog day from samantha's perspective, my friend wrote an awesome little one shot where he comes back as a ghost, another friend and i kick around the idea of him being reincarnated/resurrected as a ghom, and i love the idea of Grace finding her way to samantha, amelia or one one and them working together to resurrect him.

Google has a lot of different descriptions of this concept and it really made my mind run wild with ideas, like the second one above makes me think about Ghost simon trying to warn him about what's to come. I also kind of feel like if a groundhog day-esque sequence were to happen to him, it probably would have been in the mall car shortly before they first see signs of tuba in the jungle car (I didn't realize until I was typing that out how much I need self-aware groundhog day simon trying to keep it cool even tho he keeps getting reset to day one, dude would be so stressed and mad about it /affectionate)

[statecryptids]

YULETIDE BOOK REVIEW

The Wimbourne Book of Victorian Ghost Stories, Volume 1

Edited and with an Introduction by Alastair Gunn

Winter is the season of ghosts. As the nights grow longer and the days colder, as the trees turn to twisted skeletons and the land itself goes to sleep, it is said that the walls between worlds grow thin, allowing the dead- and other, stranger spirits- to step into our world. If you look at Yule traditions outside of America, you’ll find hordes of ghosts, witches, trolls, household spirits, and other things creeping around the outside walls or hiding behind the stove.

This Yuletide spookiness underlies the British tradition of telling ghost stories around Christmas. When you hear “Christmas ghosts” you probably think of Charles Dickens’s “A Christmas Carol” (and maybe also the line about how “there’ll be scary ghost stories” from the song “It’s The Most Wonderful Time of the Year”).  But this was just one among many in a long history of tales. And indeed, it was only one among man Christmas ghost story Dickens wrote.  

Winter ghost stories have been told in Europe for centuries, but in Britain the tradition really took off in the Victorian period. These tended to be what you might call “cozy” stories. The protagonists were often well-to-do or at least comfortably off. The hauntings frequently took place in or around a stately manor or otherwise well-furnished dwelling. These were tales meant to spook, but not horrify. Something to create a little creepy fun on a cold winter’s night. What M.R. James called “a pleasing terror”.

The Wimbourne Book of Victorian Ghost Stories is actually a series of anthologies collecting dozens of ghostly tales from the late 19th and early 20th centuries.  Each volume has a theme for the included authors, and this first volume focuses on women writers of British ghost stories.

Though many of these tales ae meant to be light, there are still plenty with a gothic sense of dread such as Elizabeth Gaskell’s “The Old Nurse’s Story”, or Isabella Banks “Wraith-Haunted”. Others are quieter, moody encounters such as Amelia B. Edwards “How the Third Floor Knew the Potteries”, or Louisa Baldwin’s “How He Left the Hotel” (I’m particularly fond of the latter tale because I find the thought of being an elevator-operator in a haunted hotel oddly quaint and charming).

Some stories are just short descriptions of ghostly encounters, such as Mary Louisa Molesworth’s “The Story of the Rippling Train”, or Ellen Wood’s “Seen in the Moonlight”. Then there are tales that are phantasmagoric enigmas such as Rhoda Broughton’s “The Man With the Nose” which has lots of Freudian and even feminist themes to it.

Many of the stories are written as if they were transcriptions of a narrator relating a story to friends- likely because they were meant to be read out loud to an audience gathered around the fireplace. The effect gives the tales a distinct feel that can take some getting used to. Also, some of the cultural attitudes can be dissonant or off-putting at times coming as they do from a society and time period obsessed with class and maintaining social mores. Though the only story that really falls flat is Lilian Giffen’s “The Ghost of the Belle-Alliance Plantation” which relies on a weird racist trope for its big jump-scare moment.

Overall, however, there is enough variety in the tones and themes of these stories that a reader will likely find several favorites. You can get a copy of the Wimbourne Book of Victorian Ghost Stories: Volume One right here.

[sparatus]

Hounds Bay for the WIP tag game 👀

like 3 years late cause my brain stopped functioning for askbox answering hdflshfks

wip tag game

hounds bay is my original urban fantasy!! "urban fantasy" being a term which here means "modern urban fantasy mostly but also there's high fantasy elements because i'm the author and i decide how many dragons there are and the correct number is Yes." i use the name for both the actual Book and for the verse in general, mostly out of habit. hounds bay is the name of the setting, and for the first couple years it existed it was mostly concept and character work before it got a true plot.

the Main Storyline follows auberon "ben" corbin, a necromancer living in seclusion out in the woods who is framed for a crime he didn't commit - well, not this specific crime, necromancy's illegal and he's definitely been doing that, but not this necromancy. he's found by two black dog ghosts (stuttgart and glasgow, who are in fact the very very ancient ghosts of two murder victims found in a bog from a late pleistocene settlement of early humans, the oldest known and most powerful spirits in the area), a werewolf (argus cotton, deposed werewolf king), and a young adult dragon (sand, disabled and can't fly but taught himself to Tunnel through solid fucking rock instead and is no less terrifying) and dragged before the fae courts to answer for his alleged crimes. when both argus and the ghosts vouch that they believe he's telling the truth, the local fae lord halwn agrees to let him try to find the real culprit, bringing the ghosts, argus, and argus's loyal shadow briar along for the ride (sand is too big to move around the city and hasn't mastered shapeshifting magic yet, but we do get to encounter his parents moss and sapphire, who are not friendly <3).

eventually, they manage to sniff out the real culprit and his plot to tear down the veil between life and death using murders in specific places with specific rituals to weaken it until it snaps. a race against time ensues, sand's dad moss is attacked as part of the final stage of the plan which risks a war with the dragons, lots of good shit.

i don't have a lot written for it, it's still in the plotting stage and most of what i've done is backstory and setting, but here's a lil bit i wrote for a big writing server i used to be in, from a larger piece on the backstory for moss and his brother stone and why the local dragons are on good terms with the fae:

They were lucky.

The mushroom hunter who’d been killed two days after Hyacinth, not so much. But their little killer-hunting party would take anything they could get.

The trail, according to Argus, was fading, but still clear and present as they trotted brusquely through the woods. Amelia had decided to come along, mostly for her own reassurance, though Halwn certainly wouldn’t have said no to the extra magical firepower regardless of whose idea it was; for “merely” a human hedgewitch granted immortality by Fae favor, she packed a punch comparable to any of Halwn’s own kind. Argus, as expected, had insisted on bringing the ever-present Briar to follow in his footsteps and provide an extra nose to push through the brush and debris covering the trail. They raced along ahead, occasionally looping back to be sure Halwn and Amelia were still following, their whuffs of discussion sometimes interspersed with annoyed barking at the faint specters weaving along after them.

Stuttgart and Glasgow were only barely visible if Halwn squinted, but frankly, he preferred that. The city’s resident death omens were unnerving enough to begin with, but these two made it worse, usually on purpose. The darker it got as time ran out to find their hunters, the more likely they were to occasionally catch a glimpse of the mummified, late Pleistocene-era corpses they actually were whenever they passed a trace of a kill, and Halwn had seen those damn things sitting up and looking at him plenty enough for one lifetime.

It had only been once, but still.

It’s not far now, Glasgow offered helpfully as he looped himself around branches up above. Black dog ghosts were not beholden to the same laws of physics as wolfed-out werewolves, a fact the brothers were more than happy to exploit, assuming they were aware of it at all. The only condition was that it be dark enough for them to manifest at all. It’s easier to pinpoint when it’s fresh.

“Far for a ghost, or far for something with a physical body that has to go over and through obstacles?” Amelia grumbled. The runes and magic circles she’d tattooed down her forearm had all taken turns glowing throughout their trek as she cleared their path or repaired the damage the wolves left with a wave of her hand. Halwn had almost reminded her that, as the local Fae Lord, the forest would respond easily to his commands without the use of his own energy, but after a decade or so of working with her and occasionally waking up beside her, he knew better than to argue. She liked being able to do things herself, especially if it proved she could keep up with the Fae and their associates around her, and if it kept her happy, he was more than willing to indulge her.

The wolves paused at the hollow under a large tree, sniffing the leaf litter intently. “Here,” Argus finally grunted, lifting his head and pawing at a suspiciously dark and crunchy spot. “This is the spot.”

Halwn looked around, sizing up the area. The trail to get here had plenty of issues, but wasn’t altogether impassable; a standard overgrown forest trail, really, the type any experienced hiker wouldn’t blink at. This was a younger section of the forest, the canopy thick with summer leaves and interwoven branches, but not so thick the sun couldn’t reach the floor in a pleasant dapple. “Can you smell any other victims besides the most recent?”

Argus and Briar both stuck their heads back down to snuffle the leaves, then Argus reported, “Faintly, sir. There hasn’t been enough rain to wash it away.”

“So this is a favorite place,” Amelia commented, looking around with her hands on her hips. “I see why.”

Halwn nodded, scanning the trees. A squirrel scolded them before sprinting across a bridge formed between two branches. A bird’s nest cheeped overhead. A dragonfly flitted past a blackberry bush with broken branches and smears of dried blood on its thorns. An owl-

Oh, great.

“Over there,” he said, gesturing to the thicket. “Looks like the bodies were dragged off.”

Briar whined softly, and Argus bobbed his head. “He has a point,” he grunted. As pack leader, Argus was the only one able to shift entirely at will without special charms and speak in a fully canine form, so translation was up to him. “An animal hunting for itself would have eaten its kills where they landed. Dragging them away means this is either something intelligent enough to hide the remains, or something hunting to feed others.”

Or both, Stuttgart whispered. There was just enough sunlight peeking through the leaves that Halwn couldn’t make out much more than a pair of glowing eyes and the faintest outline of a shadowy dog. There was no hint of teeth, as there would have been if Stuttgart was trying to disturb them, and Halwn wasn’t sure whether to be relieved or worried.

After a bit of back and forth, Briar reluctantly took the lead, crouching down to squeeze through the tunnel left by the killer. Argus, being bigger, followed him, leaving Amelia and Halwn to pick their way around the edge of the thicket. As they went, Argus occasionally barked out traces they’d found – bloodstains here, bits of clothing there, deep furrows where the killer’s apparent claws had dug into the ground for better leverage.

The blood, according to Briar, wasn’t all human, though what the other source was, neither wolf could say.

Gradually, the thicket and the trees around them thinned out, intermingling with and replaced by scrub and rocks as they approached the edge of the wood. The sun was kissing the side of the mountain when he looked up, staining the sky a lovely lilac. Stuttgart and Glasgow were visible trotting alongside them now, but not yet fully defined, wisps of shadow flaking off them like ash off a burning log.

Halwn’s skin prickled. He tried to soothe himself with assurances that the killer wouldn’t strike until it was darker, the sky a bloody red or dusky gray or even black, if nobody came out soon enough, but that just made him wonder what would happen if nobody came at all – if it was hungry enough to strike at a dryad, what was to stop it from coming closer to the city? If it was smart enough to hide the bodies, it would certainly be able to adapt to living among humans, and then it would be near impossible to find in the convoluted mess that passed for city planning.

His ruminating was interrupted by almost tripping over Argus emerging from the thicket and immediately veering to the right to block his path. The rebuke on his tongue died as he lifted his head, and he swayed on his feet, hands curling into fists in Argus’s thick, wiry fur for support.

Bones and body parts were strewn around the clearing before them. Femurs snapped cleanly in half and the marrow messily eaten out, rib cages with bits of half-rotted flesh still hanging from them, scraps of skulls that had had all the soft parts pried out and eaten – the visuals alone were enough to turn Halwn’s stomach, and that didn’t even account for the putrid smell rising out of the clearing. “Oh, God,” Amelia said, putting her wrist up to her mouth, “I think I’m gonna be sick.”

Halwn very nearly joined her, trying valiantly to fight back the bile rising in his throat. The ghosts twined between his legs, then slipped out further into the mass grave. Look at what’s missing, Stuttgart hissed, his white eyelights bobbing up and down as he investigated. No small bones. No soft bits.

Briar, emboldened slightly, crept forward with his belly to the trampled grass. He sniffed at a skull, then flicked his tail and barked. “Hasty tooth marks,” Argus translated. “They were scraped, but not very well. Desperate. Probably starving.”

“Left a lot of meat, for something starving,” Amelia pointed out, still looking a bit green around the gills.

Maybe it’s too big to be delicate, Glasgow suggested, conspicuously swishing his wispy tail over a rake of claw marks in the dirt. Or there’s a different problem.

Halwn regarded the dogs carefully. As ghosts, and millennia-old death omens in particular, they were uniquely tuned into the pulse of the world around them. Nothing so much as tripped over an upraised root in the forest without them being aware of it. Right then, they were ambling lazily but pointedly towards a massive, ancient tree stubbornly dug into the rocks around it so that its upraised roots formed a shallow cave. If he squinted, he could just barely make out scratches of newly-exposed wood on some of the roots, and a spray of dirt and pebbles dug out from beneath.

His brow creased. “Stuttgart,” he began slowly, “what’s under that tree?”

The smaller of the two dogs flicked an ear and let his tongue loll out. The sun had disappeared behind the peak of the mountain by now, and the growing shadows of dusk lent his form even more eerie definition, with tufts of fur and lips that peeled back in a canine grin. Think about it. There were scraps of transparent peat clinging to his smoky fur. An ambush predator targeting humans, with a specific favored area and a den it drags the victims back to, where it eats all the soft, squishy bits; bites clean through bone; and swallows all the tiny parts it’s too big to notice. It has big claws that dig into the earth, strong jaws, and a blood-scent that isn’t familiar to werewolves that practically live out here.

Halwn’s blood ran cold as he spotted the faintest trace of movement under the tree roots. You already know what you’re going to find, don’t you?

[magical-grrrl-mavis]

Sure I'll take this as an excuse to infodump.

The beta designs were unused designs for several Owl House characters from early in the pre-production process. (presumable before disney decided to stomp in and change everything they don't like) The show's creator @/danaterrace showed them off in a twitch stream after the first season wrapped up.

the fans immediately latched onto them and started creating new personalities and ideas for them. They were similar to the characters from the show but older (Dana Terrace said she saw them as either late high school or college age) and angstier. Amity wasn't just cold and rude she had a fiery temper and a violent streak and big chompers, Luz was tougher with more teen angst and her weirdness was changed a bit into being a delinquent. Their rivalry evolved from being similar to Diakko to them straight up brawling in a Denny's parking lot at 2 am.

People also came up with a sibling AU where these characters were the older siblings of the canon Luz and Amity, named Lucia and Amelia.

The designs ended up being used in a lot of different fanfics and fanart, their characterizations varied but all had the same vibe. @ordinaryschmuck wrote a stellar fanfic called It All Started With a Jacket that feels like the standard model of how the fandom views the characters, although it started out being based on earlier work by @drabbles-of-writing.

The designs were also used in a horribly horribly depressing but beautifully written fanfic called The Ghost of You that traumatized the entire fandom.

Dana Terrace actually acknowledged the fandom's love of the beta designs with this awesome piece

Which gave us a design for beta Willow. Her characterizations were more varied than the other two since she came so late but I feel like the general consensus was that she can and probably has gotten away with murder. I mean just look at her...

If you want some recommendations for good fics using the beta characterizations/designs I suggest

It all Started With a Jacket

Beta AU

Where Do We Start

Painted Green, Covered in Red

Sharing the Same Space

Curse Me Goodbye

You Make Me Mean

Also The Ghost of You if you wanna be really fucking sad for a really long time.

And here's a song about them

I also drew beta Amity as a hot 20-something Vampire one time

Wow. My art style has progressed a LOT.

I have followers now that don't know about the Owl House beta designs so I can only assume when I reblog things with "beta!amity" in them they assume it's an omegaverse thing.

[trinrose3]

Obligatory mention of Lorenzo's massive milkers and how much I wanna use them as a stress toy

Amelia ghost wrote this

also MOOD