#and the one next to it being all black and dark and gloomy and goth

[tiny-chubby-bird]

trying to play through arkham knight because the game is awesome and fun and i wanna know how the story plays out but also hurting from all the Depression and Death

[redstarwriting]

the clash | iv. london calling

hobie brown x goth!reader

word count: 2.8k

genre: enemies to lovers

warnings: language, insults, hobie hating you, you hating hobie, smoking weed, alcohol, mentions of a gwen canon event, mentions of death, lil angst

a/n: nother long one! i can’t wait to make it crazy angsty bc when i tell u i have THOUGHTS 👀 thank you to everyone who’s reading, i’m trying to update it every day, so hopefully i can stick with that schedule! enjoy this chapter, friends :)

now reading: iv. london calling

previous chapter: iii. black planet

next chapter: v. ever fallen in love

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He fixes his watch to open a portal to his world. Gwen, Miles, and Pavitr basically run to get to it. He motions for you to go ahead, and you walk through. Immediately when you step into his room, you’re hit with the smell of weed and incense. You’d be lying if you said you hated it. You glance around. You see drums, another electric and acoustic guitar, empty spray paint cans, spray paint on the walls, stacks of newspapers (all defaced in some way)… it feels very Hobie to say the least. “Now this. This is a livin’ area,” he says, appearing behind you. You shake your head. “So loud, both figuratively and literally. How do you ever get anything done?”

“By being louder than everyone else, obviously,” he responds, and you roll your eyes. “What a way to live,” you remark. “Better than that quiet, dark, and gloomy, way,” he retorts, and you shrug. “If you say so.”

“Hey, Hobie, do you still have the roof all decorated?” Gwen asks and he nods. “Course I do. I own the place, head on up,” he jerks his head upwards, and Gwen turns to Miles and Pavitr with a smirk. “Race ya!”

“Hey no fair! You have been here so many times!” Pavitr yells as Gwen takes off. “Come on, Miles!” you hear her yell. Miles smiles gently and shakes his head before going after the two of them. “He’s so obsessed with her it’s making me sick,” you mumble, and Hobie snorts. “What? Miles and Gwen’s relationship too much for you? You hate love?”

“Love has never done anything but cause me pain. And not the good kind,” you glance at him with a frown, and he raises his eyebrow. Suddenly his eyes get wide. “Oh shit… you had a Gwen canon event.”

“I don’t want to talk about it,” you respond, and he frowns. “You know, actually talkin’ about that kinda shit is a good way to not sit on it and let it build. You could face some serious problems if you keep doin’ that.”

“Who said I gave a fuck what you think? I didn’t ask for the unneeded advice, alright?” you say, and he narrows his eyes at you. “Oh, right. Forgot I was dealing with a bloody doughnut,” he mumbles and point to the window. “Care to go to the roof and get out of my sight?”

“Sound like the best thing you’ve said since I got here,” you say, leaping out of his window and climbing up the side of the building. While clinging to the wall, you glance out at Hobie’s world. His city looks almost exactly like Night of Yore City, except for the fact that there are a shit ton of fires burning, over half of the buildings look abandoned, the sky is a reddish-orangish hue, and it is so much louder. The name is also vastly different, as his version of NYC is New London. Universal differences get weird and confusing. Nonetheless, you’re intrigued, you turn around, putting your back against the wall and supporting yourself with your hands and feet. The graffitied buildings are a nice touch, you must admit. You snort to yourself when you see a mural of Hobie. If only they knew the asshole behind the mask.

“Now why the hell aren’t you up there with everyone else?” you hear his voice pull you out of your thoughts as he crawls up next to you. You shrug. “I’m a sucker for views, I guess.”

“Well, believe it or not, view is a lot better from the top of the buildin’,” he says, and you roll your eyes. “Can I please just be secluded and observe in peace?”

“Absolutely fuckin’ not. Come on,” he says, starting to walk up the wall. You sigh and lazily roll backwards and up the wall to come to standing and follow him up. When you get to the top of the roof, you see a boombox (blaring punk music, of course) and blankets surrounding a barrel with a fire going in it. Multiple coolers decorate the roof which all look stockpiled full of different beers. “Hey, Hobie, you know that they’re all kids, right?”

“New universe, new rules, love. Drinking age is 16 and up ‘round here, not that I’d give a fuck if it wasn’t anyway. So, sit down, shut up, and drink a damn beer. Maybe you’ll loosen up,” he says, tossing you a random bottle. You roll your eyes and sit down but put the beer to the side.

“Hey, Hobie, do you have any of that–” Miles gets cut off by Hobie tossing him another bottle. “Nice. Thanks, dude,” he says excitedly, cracking the top and taking a drink. Gwen gets her beer of choice, and Pavitr does the same. Hobie, you notice, doesn’t drink anything. “So, what were you guys talking about?” Gwen asks, pointing between the two of you with her bottle. “What?” you ask, and she shrugs. “You guys were alone in Hobie’s for a while and no one died, soooo did you guys finally talk about something you could agree on?”

“We can’t agree on nothin’, Gwen. They were just bein’ their usual self and annoyin’ the shit out of me at any chance they could get,” Hobie says, and you shake your head. “Good to know it worked, mate”

“Stop imitatin’ me, poser.”

“No, I don’t think I will.”

“I’ll make you.”

“Try me, Hobart.”

“Alright, that’s enough of that. What were you guys talking about?” Miles asks, and you and Hobie look at each other. “Just asked where the bathroom was,” you say, and he nods. “Yeah. That’s it.”

You weren’t necessarily ready to reveal you faced the Gwen canon event. Especially not to another Gwen. At least Hobie isn’t enough of a dick to bring it up in front of them. “Oh, yeah, you did change into your everyday clothes. Don’t know how I didn’t notice that,” Gwen states, taking another swig of her beer. You had changed in your apartment after cleaning your wound, but you don’t say anything. Hobie nods at you, and you nod back.

“Why aren’t you drinking anything (Y/n)? Here, try this it’s so good,” Pavitr pushes his bottle toward you, and you shake your head. “I don’t want to drink, but thanks Pavitr,” you say, and he frowns. “Awww.” You smile slightly at how disappointed he sounds. “Well, I want to remember everything you all tell me without it being fuzzy because I was hoping you could let me know a little bit more about all the spider people in Spider Society. I’m still new, you four, Peter B. Parker, and Miguel are the only ones I’ve really met.”

With that, Gwen, Miles, and Pavitr start telling you everything they know. You learn about Jessica Drew, Spider-Man Noir, Peni Parker, and so many more. Gwen, Miles, and Pavitr talk for hours, and since they’re kids, they do not know when to stop drinking. Eventually, the three of them are passed out. Miles is cradling Gwen’s side with his head on her chest as she wraps one of her arms around him, and Pavitr is laying straight on his back, lightly snoring. You giggle softly at the sight. Suddenly the punk music you’ve been listening to for the past however many hours gets softer. You glance over to where it is and see Hobie bent over and turning it down. “Don’t wanna wake ‘em,” he mumbles, walking over to you. The volume of the city has decreased quite a bit, and with the low hum of music coming from the boombox now, his world is actually kind of enjoyable. Though you’d never tell him that. He motions to the skyline, and you turn and look. He was right, as much as you hate to admit it. The view is a lot better from up here.

“Why didn’t you drink anythin’?” he asks, and you shrug. “Didn’t feel like it. Why didn’t you drink anything?” He shrugs and pulls out a rolled cigarette from his vest pocket. “Got somethin’ better.”

“And you didn’t offer any to them?”

“Hey, they can drink here, they don’t need to mess with this shit. ‘Sides I knew they’d be pissed. Gonna have a god-awful hangover tomorrow,” he says, pulling out a lighter. You shake your head. “They can’t mess with your shit, but I can?”

“The two of us are the same age. We’re ‘adults’ or whatever the fuck that means. Are you too stuck up to be ‘round some grass or somethin’?”

“No, Hobie, I don’t give a fuck if you smoke weed. Building manager might, though.”

“Love, I am the building manager. This place is abandoned, so it belongs to me. And you’re not tellin’ me I’m supposed to smoke this myself?” he asks with a sly smirk on his face. You raise your eyebrow at him. “Actually I am.” He groans, putting the joint to his lips and lighting the end of it.

“Do you know how to have any fun?”

“Do you know how to have any–” Before you can finish, he puts his finger over your mouth, and raises the joint to his lips again. He takes a deep breath in, blowing out the excess smoke and glancing at you. “No.”

“You don’t even know what I was gonna say.”

“Don’t care. The answer is no.”

“Have you ever actually tried listening to anything anyone says?” “Nah. I don’t listen to no one. I’m me, and if people don’t like that, good,” he says, taking another drag. He glances over at you and holds the joint out. “Y’sure you don’t want some?”

“You actually want to share with me?”

“I want you to not be as much as a ragin’ fuckwit, so yes,” he blows smoke in your face, and you glare at him. “If I take one hit, will you shut the fuck up about it?”

“Probably not, but it would sure make me happier.” You roll your eyes, and take the joint from him, taking a drag. He watches you. He’d never admit it, but he wishes you weren’t such an asshole. The way you look doing that in the moonlight? Stunning. You pass the joint back to him, some of the smoke coming out of your nose. “Stop staring at me.”

“Just makin’ sure you did it right and didn’t waste my shit,” he says, taking another drag. “I know how to hit a joint, Hobie.”

“Really? Never would have guessed you’d do anything remotely excitin’.”

“Oh, please. You barely know me,” you say, angrier than you probably should be. “Then tell me about yourself, love.”

“Hard pass,” you say, and he groans. “I get the desire to stay anonymous and mysterious, obviously, but come on. Chances are we’re gonna be seein’ each other more than either of us wants to, so just open up a bit,” he says, and you frown. “There’s nothing you need to know.”

“Bullshit.”

“Oh yeah? Then tell me something about you.”

“I killed Norman Osborn with my guitar after defeatin’ him and all of his V.E.N.O.M. forces and successfully led a rebellion against fascism,” he says smugly, “Until those other fuckin’ Nazis showed up, but one day I promise you this world? Will be capitalist and fascist free.”

“No, it won’t. Am I supposed to be impressed?” you ask with a deadpan face. He scoffs. “Damn, you’re a wanker. I’d like to see you try and defeat the V.E.N.O.M. forces. From what I seen your world’s villains are rubbish,” he says and to his surprise, and yours, you laugh. A hint of a smile plays on his features, but you shake your head. “Green Goblin is, you’re right, but... there are others who are much worse. And what the fuck is a venom force? You’re saying that like I should just know what it is.”

“It was a symbiote that– wait, you sayin’ you don’t know what venom is? That’s something every spider-person deals with at some point,” he says, and you shrug. “Guess I haven’t dealt with it yet.”

“Yeah, well, when you do, call me cause you’ll need my help,” he says and you roll your eyes. “I’d rather die than get help from you.”

“I helped you today, love.”

“I could have done that myself,” you retort, and he shakes his head, taking another drag. “I guess I should thank you though.”

“Hmm?”

“For not telling them what we were really talking about,” you say, and he hums. “What they won’t know won’t kill ‘em. But just so you know I was being so serious. Not talkin’ about that shit is more harmful than good,” he says, and you frown. “I’m not much of a talker.”

“Coulda fooled me.”

“Do you ever shut the fuck up,” you groan, and he laughs. He loves pissing you off, might be his favorite thing to do now. But the conversation might actually need to get serious. He may hate you, but he’s Spider-Punk for the people, and you’re apart of that people. He’s there to help, so he may as well try with you.

“Why not?”

“What?”

“Why not? Why won’t you talk about it?” he asks, and you huff. “Because it was my fault, and I don’t want to think about it.”

“Nah, I bet it wasn’t your fault,” he mumbles, taking another drag. You glare at him. “Oh, right, I forgot you were there when their neck snapped after I tried to save them,” you spit, and he glances at you. You can feel that hit starting to affect you, that’s the only reason you said anything about… the incident. Of course, Hobie has good shit, why wouldn’t he. “What were you trying to save them from?” he asks, his voice oddly calm. “The Prowler,” you reply, “He’s the worst of the worst in my universe.” He hums and nods. “Well then, reckon it’s the Prowler’s fault then, innit?”

“What? But I’m the one who couldn’t get to them in time after he–”

“He did it, (Y/n). You did your best, but it ain’t your fault what happened there. That’s what they want you to think. Try and get that through your thick skull, would you?” he says, and you scoff, “They?”

He nods, and you go quiet. He glances over at you as you just sit and stare out at the city. “Stop doin’ ‘at.”

“Doing what?”

“Blamin’ yourself,” he says, taking another long drag. You sigh. “I can’t help it,” you mumble, and he shakes his head. “You can. Just takes time,” he responds. You scoff, “You’d think three years would be enough time.” You look out at his city. It’s so different from yours, but you can still see the beauty in it. And you can see the stars. None of the constellations of your world are here, but the sky is still beautiful. “If you need a place to crash, my couch is very comfortable and has your name written all over it,” Hobie says, and you shake your head. “I should probably just go back to my universe–”

“No way. No dimension hopping under the influence,” he says, and you roll your eyes. “I had one hit,” you say, and he shrugs. “And one hit is enough for you to think you’re goin’ home only to end up in Peter Porker’s shower. You’re stayin’ here tonight.” You roll your eyes. “You’re insufferable.”

“I’m insufferable for watchin’ out for your well-bein’? Okay, sure.”

“I don’t need you to watch out for me. I don’t need anyone,” you hiss, and he scoffs. “Of course you don’t. Too good for everyone else.”

“I didn’t say that.”

“It was implied.”

“You’re an asshole.”

“Look who’s talking.”

“Like you wouldn’t say the same thing,” you say, and he shrugs. “You’re right. I would say I don’t need anyone, because I don’t. Especially not a miserable thing like you,” he says, and you frown. “Good.”

“Great.”

“Fuck you.”

“Fuck you.”

The two of you just glare at each other for a bit before he flicks the butt of his joint off the building. “Goin’ to bed. See you tomorrow.”

“Unfortunately.”

“Shut up and follow me back to my place,” he says, getting up and walking down the building. You follow, yawning as you realize just how tired you are. When you get back inside Hobie’s place, he points at the couch. “Lay there, and don’t move until mornin’, got it?”

“I’ll do what I want.”

“Amazin’. Just don’t wake me up, and I won’t give a fuck,” he says, walking into his bedroom and kicking his door shut. You roll your eyes and lay down on his couch. It’s actually surprisingly comfortable, and you find yourself actually dozing off faster than you anticipated. Hobie walks out of his room to get a drink of water and ready to fight you verbally again, only to see you passed out on his couch with literally no blanket or pillow.

He sighs, grabbing a throw blanket off his bed and gently placing it on top of you. In the morning, you wake up before everyone else. You notice the blanket, and know only one person could have done that, but you don’t feel like sticking around to say anything. You just go home. But before you do, you leave a little note saying, ‘didn’t need your sympathy, thanks but no thanks,’ and draw a little middle finger.

He’ll get the hint you appreciated it.

───────────────────────────────

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[eolewyn1010]

Downton Abbey Fashion 46 - evening dresses in 1922

Honestly, I’m not impressed with a lot of Mary’s evening wardrobe this season. Now, she does start out in mourning and general world-hating. Let’s see what we have.

Though if I look at it from another perspective, Mary could make for an awesome 1920s goth queen in these. Dark purple with black beading that even looks a little like a spiderweb or gloomy bare twigs in the nightly forest? Mary, if you tap into your Susan Sto Helit potential, I might like you a little more.

This dress gets a repeat next season, and although I’m not a great fan of these straight chest cutoff lines under the chiffon layer (which it loses later on as Mary replaces the under layer), this is not the worst execution of the concept. These scallops of black beading that seem to drip down toward the grey of the dress and then frame these little bundles of flowers or grapes? Nice. I think the dress is better off without the velvet sash around the drop waist, but that’s just me.

Half a dress that’ll make a comeback in season 5, this completely see-through layer with the black embroidery is apparently not attached to the purple dress at all because Mary later wears it over a black one (although backward) with the necklines matching better. With the purple one and the necklines not lining up, it honestly looks a little too modern for my taste.

I’m not sure if this is red in the right light or brown. The flowy shiny satin is still nice, and I’m not opposed to this deep V wrap top style. But for the sake of getting to write something about her outfits, I’m glad when Mary comes out of her Queen Gloom phase.

And one for the apron style, light grey and dark grey get combined to this colorful, novel look with black beading because black beading is just Mary’s thing now. The flower motif looks a little isolated there; could’ve spread further. Where did Mary put all her bling?

See? She does have bling; she even has tiaras and can wear them now that she’s a Mrs. The red dress is the one she puts on for her father’s birthday, and finally I’m getting a bit of light in this darkness. For one, the lace is very pretty. And then the under layer is finally cutting off in a more charming shape than a straight line. Serving a look worth mentioning!

The way they treated this poor dress, it definitely wasn’t an original, but I still think it didn’t deserve the mess. Look at the darling flower embroidery! It’s almost enough for me to call this a favorite, despite the cut being pretty well-trodden territory. The color is lovely, and the drop waist sash even has a silver ornament to it that has the exact shape of the embroidered flowers.

Once again silver on black, although it may be easy to miss from afar that this dress is almost entirely covered in sequins. So now her vibe shifts from gloom and doom to “would probably look spectacular under a night club’s lighting”, not that I expect Mary to ever set foot in a night club. I wish I could see what’s going on with that skirt hem – is that just fluttery or is that a fringe?

Uhm. It’s purple, I guess. It has a bit of embroidery above her chest. And that’s it. I resent this dress. Mary, it’s London season; go all fancy, will you? Why isn’t she wearing a necklace to that much plain backdrop?

My taste is very fickle. This dress doesn’t do a lot different than the last one, being one long sheath of color with the embroidery restricted to the top, but this one I love. It must be the neckline; Mary’s red dress last season did this draping over the throat and it completely got me. Granted, I also think the silver embroidery and beading is a lot more charming than the last. And Mary has finally found her jewelry box.

This doesn’t seem to be quite Mary’s typical shade of red; it’s playing a little at coral. I don’t know what this black wedge embroidery is inspired by (cuneiform?), but hey, at least it’s lively and colorful and gets combined with a pretty little pendant.

Oh, I finally have a favorite again! This does so well with the golden glitter ornaments all over the salmon, pulling its weight via the fabric alone again while sticking to the very basic shape that Mary’s dresses have settled into. She keeps this for season 5, and although she doesn’t wear the beautiful tassel necklace and one of the prettiest tiaras on the whole show then, she does allow me a look at the raised hem of the uper layer and the ruffle in the front. Very lovely.

[themovieblogonline]

Top 12 Movies And Series To Watch This Fall

Crisp autumn air has taken over, the roads are covered with golden leaves, and you're snuggling in the blankets in your favorite cardigan. Now all that is missing is a heavy mug of hot cocoa and a good movie that is enough to sweep away all your stress.  After the chill, vibrant, and upbeat summer season, fall sneaks into our lives with its warm, cozy, and feel-good rage. To some people, it's the time to savor sadness, others may give in to the spooky spirits of Halloween, and some just want to embrace the rust and mustard color palette to enjoy a new version of nature. Whichever mood you find yourself in, here are the top 12 movies to enjoy autumn in its full bloom. Let's get started! The Harry Potter Series Starting this list with the classic tales of magic, filled with spells, wizardry, and the exotic gothic castle of Hogwarts. Enjoy the 'dark academia' settings with mysterious characters in eerie corridors. Because during the fall season a uniform robe, dorm room fireplaces, and broomsticks can be enough to brighten up your evenings. Just say 'Lumos'! The Addams Family Fall in love with this weird, dramatic, and the most adorable family. The Addams are no normal neighbors next door but they sure are fun and mysterious. The thrilling goth elements of this movie never fail to revive the Halloween rush. Plus the gorgeous black attires of the characters in this movie always serve as costume inspiration get through Halloween in style.  Coco Coco is a heartwarming tale of a young Spanish boy who wants to become a musician but struggles to gain support from his family. Miguel sets out on an extraordinary journey to the land of the dead to discover his family secrets and ends up finding out something that changes his life forever. The traditions, folklore, and charm of Dia de Los Muertos fiesta will convince you that nothing's more real than the purple-orange shades of Disney magic. When Harry Met Sally Belonging to two different worlds, both Harry and Sally have different ideologies about love and friendship. However, they can't seem to avoid each other due to the sweet and complex circumstances surrounding them. So sit back, relax, and enjoy the comfort of a rom-com on a chilly evening. Dead Poets Society Another dark academic classic that is perfect for fall with its gloomy vibes and a plot that touches your soul. Discover how the boys at a prestigious institution are deeply impacted by a professor who changes their perspective on life by showing them how it can be seen through a poetic lens.  Twilight Dark gray clouds, freezing weather, vampires, mystery, murders, romance, and werewolves - name a more hauntingly stunning movie. This epic tale follows Bella Swan who moves into a new town named "Forks'' where she finds herself surrounded by supernatural beings. The unusual yet mesmerizing love story between Edward and Bella will give the best hangover that could last until winter. Little Women Greta Gerwig's movie adaptation of the literary classic book by the same name offers a mix of nostalgia, dreams, aspirations, and an exploration of femininity. What makes it best for autumn are the cottage core visuals and the American countryside settings that are nothing but soothing to the eyes. Good Will Hunting One of the critically acclaimed 90s movies might be just what you need. Get ready for an emotional roller coaster with Robbie Williams' charm as a brilliant therapist and Matt Damon's powerful performance as a young boy with a high IQ working as a janitor. A comfortable watch for a comfortable season! The Devil Wears Prada If you like to step out in style, then Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, and Emily Blunt are here to save your day. From the offices of a fashion magazine to the guild and glamor of the red carpet, The Devil Wears Prada features some of the most luxurious and high-fashion moments happening in New York and Paris. In addition to that, there are so many fall outfit inspirations to make you live your autumn dream. October Sky The name of this movie surely captivates one's attention and establishes itself as a perfect fall watch. Nevertheless, the movie is based on true events and revolves around an ambitious miner who loves his job and wants his sons to join him one day. The children, however, have different plans for their futures. This time of the year when it's all about transitioning, a movie about ambitions, dreams, and motivation cannot be a bad idea. Knives Out How can we end this list without a good murder mystery? Starring some of the biggest names in Hollywood, Knives Out will keep you hooked till the end while you are befuddled thinking about who is the killer. Lose yourself in the haze of suspicion and crime lurking in the walls of the giant mansion with shady characters Autumn in New York An unexpected meeting between a 50-year-old playboy and a young 21-year-old woman who's terminally ill changes the man's perceptions about life forever. This heartbreaking story captures the most exquisite vibe of autumn. It also serves us some of the most breathtaking scenery backed by a poignant theme. Overall Fall has a different meaning for everyone. To some it is the season of change, some welcome it's melancholia, and some people (like me) just succumb to its warmth and the dreamscape it draws. Doesn't matter how you see it, it should be romanticized and a good movie is the right way to do it. So go check your watchlist right now. Happy Fall!   Read the full article

[husbandohunter]

You want Vitamin F, then let me supply you one;

Genshin boys transform into cats.

A Furry Predicatment [Cat Genshin Impact x Gn!Reader]

♤♡◇♧☆

Synopsis: Venturing to Springvale the boys inhale the fairy dust that turns people into cats, now they must endure the consequences.

Characters: Diluc, Kaeya, Xiao, Albedo, Zhongli, Childe, Venti

(A/n): My student just sent me a video of her cat. I think thats a sign anon. This was meant to be written. part 2 here :P

=======================

[Diluc]

The grumpy cat (to no one's surprise) who wears the same iconic frown with the same matching gloomy eyes. He's grumpy about this outcome in particular, plus the fact he can't even voice his frustrations except for meowing noises and the endless craving for raw fish. RAW, how despicable.

The maids were looking for Master Diluc except that he was already there...in your arms. Just like his hair, his fur is the fluffiest as if he were a gigantic ball of hilichurl hair. You would nuzzle your face into it because he just feels so warm!

Absolutely will NOT live like a cat. The uncrowned king of Mondstadt refuses to drink water from a bowl. He cannot eat anything unless you feed him with utensils. NO, no he will not shove his mouth into the plate, its uncultured and unsanitary.

He never though taking baths would be so nerve-wracking (cat instincts). It was terrible, choosing between the feeling of water against his body or licking his paws to clean himself (a much more comfortable choice). This kind of lifestyle was miserable.

~xx~

[Kaeya]

The mischievious cat (oh no) cue pink panther music, he's the Tom with Jerry's brains. Unlike Diluc, Kaeya will ultimately fall into his cat instincts and somehow uses it to his advantage.

You bet he's gonna spy on people. At night he would jump upon the rooftops to peek through Goth Grand Hotel's windows (watching closely at the Fatui), until the Darknight Hero comes in. Diluc knows it's Kaeya, it's rather uncanny how he does it, hence the cat runs away immediately.

The type to lick you upon contact. You think this was a quirk that came with the spell but he was actually doing it on purpose. Usually targets the neck because he could get a reaction out of you (ohoho you're tickilish there eh?)

As he is roaming out on the streets, always manages to escape the dogs. Kaeya knows his way around the city like the back of his hand, he enjoys watching them bark endlessly while he licks his paws in a mocking manner. Until one of them hopped up, now things got tricky. Basically Kaeya gets himself to alot of trouble as a cat, the worst part was when a bunch of kids started to join in too.

~xx~

[Xiao]

The fiesty cat (he was always a fiesty cat) who hisses alot. Even his fur stands up like a porcupine when expressing his distastefulness. The way he meows almost sounds like a low growl, bares his fangs as if he were a thirsty vampire. Will scare alot of people away with his behaviour, even dogs.

But damn he would make a pretty cat. Golden eyes, dark green stripes and teal fur, the purple diamond still tattooed between where his eyebrows once were, it didn't take long for Verr Goldet to realize that was Xiao.

And the worst nightmare of all, while Cat Xiao roams around the city at night he happened to attract alot of other stray cats who lived in the streets. They were very attracted to his beauty, cornering him until there was no where to run, that was the only situation where Xiao was scared enough to run away.

His ears are the most sensitive. He can't help but purr whenever you pet between them. Though if anyone were to grab his tail, the outcome would not be very pleasant...

~xx~

[Albedo]

The curious cat (who does not die) that will appear from every corner, silently, mysteriously as if he teleported. Once Lisa found him between the bookshelves of her Library while seeing a pile of books stacked upon the floor. Before she could shoo him out, she realized that the cat was way too smart to be a mere cat and quickly deciphered that it was the Chief Alchemist.

Of course no one else in Mondstadt knew it was Albedo, they thought you just had a very talented pet. Margaret even decided to put him against Prince to see who's cat was the best. It wasn't even a competition. Catbedo could paint a picture just by using his paws.

But Klee found out eventually (she deserved to know). She would open her drawer, take out her bow and stick them upon his fur. It seems that Albedo can never get a break when it was against his little sister, she will find indulging activities to do without consent.

Astounded by the sheer talent your cat possessed, the Knights of Favonius offered to hire your cat to be trained as a Knight Cat because animals are very good at deciphering clues for investigation. Oh how unaware they were.

[Zhongli]

The type of cat for crazy cat ladies. It's the vibe he gives being an old man ranging to a thousand years. Zhongli is very behaving, very considerate and very calm in his cat form. His favourite activity is to snuggle upon your lap while you quietly read a book.

He is indeed a tall black cat. Has incredible and refined posture and if he were to stand up on his hind legs, he can even reach as far as the kitchen counter! Though he does not like the fact that he sheds so much fur, it leaves a huge mess behind him (in which you had to clean up)

Zhongli decided to venture into Liyue's streets and see what it's like to be a cat. He starts communicating with some of them, speaking his cat language (meow meowmewomewo? meeoooow). Needless to say, the cats had no idea what he was saying.

If there were any cat-related dish he eats, it has to be sushi. Raw sashimis if possible. You worry if the choice was even healthy for a cat but you remembered that he was still a god. He'll be fine, right?

[Childe]

The annoying cat (that you must take care of, remember) whos a little too impulsive for his own good. Childe finds the excitement running through him whenever he spots a mouse, a squirrel or even a bird. One moment he's in your arms, the next he just leapt high into the air and running into the streets.

Adventurous as always. You take him to the pond to get some fresh air. Childe is not afraid of water, at all. He plays a game with the fishes, trying to see how much he can catch in one swipe. You had to keep a close eye on him otherwise he'd fall in and drown.

Loves climbing trees but shortly realizes that he can't get down. You tell him to jump but he feels hesitant so you had to climb up and get him. However, now the two of you were stuck and Zhongli had to get you both down one at a time.

Childe has the prettiest blue eyes as a cat. They were big and bright, almost feminine. But you knew that look was the look of upcoming trouble.

[Venti]

Oh God Barbatos.

Venti can't stop sneezing. His own fur is all over the place and he just couldn't catch a break (or a breath). Every second he will hiss-sneeze, they sounded like dying noises.

You had to get him to Lisa as fast as possible otherwise the death of Barbatos would have been caused by his own self.

[waifuholic]

Wednesday "Meltina" Addams from The Addams Family + Long Hair Version

We start yet another Chapter of The Waifu List, this time it's the the 9th Chapter and this one only has it's seats reserved for ladies of the Survivor/Nightmarish variety! and of course we had to start strong, that means a classic waifu, please welcome the always lovely and always gloomy, Ms. Addams!

I was really excited when I saw Wednesday Addams being suggested several times, because a couple of years ago I made an OC based on her (in fact I made OCs based on the whole Addams family) of course she was aged up, thiccened up given some background story, buuuuuut... I wasn't quite happy with the first design I made of her and when I saw several people suggesting her, I just couldn't resist giving this lady a spot on this chapter, it was the perfect chance to mix business with pleasure and redo her design, gotta say I'm quite pleased how she came out this time!

Now if you're wondering (if you're not, just skip this part) why I'm adding the name "Meltina" for her, it's because when I make an OC based on a character that already exist I like to rename them, not just use their names as they are because said character is based on/a tribute to the original, not the original character per se, you already have seen an example of this with my OCs based on the Wicked Witch of the West, "Ella 'Phana the Wicked Witch Queen" same for the Jack-o'-lantern based "Hollee the Pumpkin Grenadier " or Cheshire the Cat "Cheshire Nia Whisperia the Whimsical Shapeshifter", now... why "Meltina"? simple... the first time I ever watched one of the Addams Family movies (was a long time ago, VHS were still around then...) I watched it in spanish and her name in spanish is not Wednesday, she is called "Merlina" which I found quite strange and cool at the same time, so... Meltina is a tribute to the name Merlina, as simple as that!

Now on the lady herself... some people have told me they don't think of Morticia or Wednesday Addams as goth ladies and everyone can have their own opinion on that, that is perfectly fine, but the same goes for me so... I DO think they're not only goth ladies but daaaamn! 2 of the BEST goth ladies, oh! and talking about that, mommy Addams is the next waifu on the list *triumph fist raised for all gothicc lovers*, where was I? *ahem* yes on the lady herself...

Wednesday could appear to many as gloomy, devoid of life and soulless even since her younger days and sure, she does look gloomy, but hey, it's part of her dark charm anyways!, but make no mistake, she is full of life... life which she extracts directly from the souls of her fallen enemies, see? she cannot be soulless if she is full of souls from the fallen! Mmm! this is one delicious, vicious, soul reaper waifu!

Let's move on to the changes/adaptations.

First and most obvious, her age, she is around 21 years old here, her hair is a little longer and her hairstyle is a bit more mature but just enough, her dress is basically the same just a tad sexier and gave her some classy lingerie with black family jewels included on her garter belt clips and choker, of course had to give her a thicc weapon and the Giga Cleaver felt like a fitting choice (my previous design had a giant Axe) and last but not least... yep you guessed it, thicc spices! thiccness all around! hips, legs, boobs and keeping that mesmerizing tiny waist (those gothic corsets Morticia gave to her sure work wonders on that waist!).

But enough said, if this gothicc lady is the waifu for you, remember to leave some dark love for her on the comments and I'll see you on the next one, cheers!

[lexosaurus]

Happy

A fic for dp side hoes week 2021!

Character: Sam Theme: Happiness

This fic was made especially with my good friend @ghostgothgeek in mind. Happy birthday, Steph! Thank you so much for everything you've done for me from helping me get into grad school, to helping me with my DST homework at 2am. You're such an amazing friend and I am SO so lucky to have you in my life. Love ya! Have a good one!

---

There was a lot that made Sam happy.

Rainy days where she could curl up with a good book, her weekly slam poetry meetup group, horror movies, that one hole in the wall coffee joint run by a woman who reminded Sam of her grandmother. Sam had so many little moments in her week that made her happy.

She knew some people—especially her mom—would be surprised by this. After all, Sam was the gloomy goth. The “dark and mysterious” teenage girl. The one who was constantly at rallies fighting for animals rights or renewable energy plans from the government. She knew how she came off, she wasn’t stupid.

But at the end of the day, she was still a teenager. And even with all that was wrong with the world, there was still so much that was right.

Like right now, sitting here with Danny. Well...sitting might have been too strong of a word. She was sitting, that much was accurate, but Danny had long since fallen asleep, having given up on math after an hour of struggling. Sam was going to wake him, but he just looked so peaceful, with his black hair brushing down on his face, his hand resting under his cheek.

So cute. 

She wasn’t exactly sure when their relationship had taken a turn from “just friends” to something more. If she had to pinpoint it, it might have been soon after the “fake out make out” session. Sure, she’d had feelings for him before, but that day just changed something between them. Something that neither of them could explain, neither could admit, but she knew that both of them felt.

It didn’t take too long after then for the study sessions to start. Just the two of them, alone, in one of their rooms, pouring over notes as Danny desperately tried to salvage his GPA. More than once, Sam had caught him sneaking glancing over to her when he thought she was utterly focused on her assignments. But Sam never said anything.

After all, she had been sneaking glances over at him too.

Eventually, it reached a point where Tucker called them lovebirds—as he always teased—but instead of the defensive, “We’re not lovebirds!” exclamation they reflexively shouted, Sam and Danny just blushed and looked away.

Sam would never forget the light of recognition in Tucker’s eyes, followed by a cheshire grin trained pointedly at Sam. If she hadn’t been so tomato-faced in the moment, she might have kicked his shin.

After that, the atmosphere around their study sessions changed. There was a new tension in the air that both of them could feel, but neither would acknowledge. 

Sam knew that in the end, she would have to be the one to make the first move. Danny was...well, he was Danny. He was an insecure, teenage boy. Sam could put up a neon sign shouting, “I LIKE YOU” above her head, and Danny would still doubt her.

But, as forward and outgoing as Sam was, she was still...Sam. The passionate, vegan goth of the grade. She wasn’t popular, she wasn’t surrounded by loads of other girls all the time. She wasn’t invited to the parties, girls didn’t come up to her to talk about their weekends or their crushes or anything else that could be interpreted as a budding friendship.

Danny and Tucker were her only friends. If Sam pursued Danny, and things didn’t end well, then she would have no one.

It was too much of a risk.

So Sam held off.

Anytime they were studying, and she saw Danny glancing her way, Sam wouldn’t meet his gaze. If it was movie night, Sam started sitting next to Tucker instead of Danny. After a big ghost fight, when Danny looked to her with adrenalin-filled, electric green eyes, Sam would walk away.

It hurt—it hurt so bad—but she couldn’t risk ruining their friendship. As much as she prided herself on her independence, she still was just a teen girl. 

She wanted to be liked. She wanted friends. 

But the crush wasn’t going away, the energy between them refused to dissipate. If anything, it was more obvious than before.

It was Sam’s mother of all people who finally, at one awkwardly silent dinner table conversation, was the one to talk some sense into Sam.

“So...you and that Fenton boy,” Pam had said, stirring her fork around her plate. “When were you going to tell me about that?”

Sam felt the blood drain from her face. She tried to play it off. “What do you mean?”

“Sammykins, I may be an adult now, but I was a teenage girl once. I’m not stupid. I may not...approve of that boy and his family. But seeing as you two are obviously an item now, and I want to support you as my daughter, I would expect you to invite him over to dinner to formally meet me and your father please.”

“We’re not—”

“Don’t be silly!” Grandma Ida piped up from across the table. “I’ve seen the way you two look at each other. You kids aren’t the sly foxes you think you are!”

There was a certain level of embarrassment at being called out by parents that Sam presumed came in the territory of being a teenager. But after the initial shock wore off, she realized something crucial:

Sam really really liked Danny Fenton.

Perhaps more than she thought she did.

So it was during another study session that it finally happened. The awkward energy was palpable, and she knew that Danny felt it too. Even if he would never say anything.

But when Danny glanced up at Sam, Sam finally looked back.

She saw the slight flush enter his cheeks as his eyes started to dart back down at his paper. But before he could retreat back in his metaphorical shell too much, Sam blurted out, “I like you.”

The pink dusting on his cheeks had spread across his face. His eyebrows shot up, and his mouth hung open like a fish. “I—uh—I think—what?”

She put her pencil down and hid her shaking hands inside the sleeves of her oversized black hoodie. “I like you. A lot.”

“Oh. I...”

Their eyes were locked, violet against blue. Sam wanted to look away, but she was never one to back down from a challenge.

“Oh.” Danny blinked, a grin slowly spreading across his lips. “I like you. Too, I mean. I like you too.”

Sam blinked. Once, then twice. But whatever she was waiting for—the “psych!” that her insecurities were sure he would say—never came. Relief spread across her body, followed by something else. Something warm, something bright.

Something like joy.

She didn’t think about anything after. She just leaned in and kissed him, allowing her body to take over. Danny reciprocated, his lips soft and gentle, as if he were worried about hurting Sam.

That much about him still hadn’t changed, not even months later. Danny still was gentle, sometimes too gentle. He still was often afraid to grab her hand, or reach out and hug her.

But, slowly, a level of comfort was beginning to settle between the duo, and with that followed confidence. It was small, it was subtle, but Sam could see Danny’s progression over the last few months. Slowly he was starting to lean over and kiss her first, or he would text her first, or he would reach over and take her hand just because. Slowly he was getting there.

And she could see her own progression too. The “what-ifs” that had plagued her life before were slowly diminishing. She was more confident now—not just on the outside, but the inside too.

And she’d even made a friend outside of Danny and Tucker. Mia, a girl who hung just outside of Paulina’s clique, had slowly become an unlikely friend, the two hitting it off after they realized that they listened to the same bands one day in class.

Sam was happy. Even if her dorky half-ghost boyfriend was sleeping instead of doing his homework, which meant Sam now had to wake him up and re-explain all the concepts. Even if sometimes Tucker teased them in that immature way he did, or if she felt at constant odds with the city about its lack of environmental awareness, or if Sam’s parents still made snide comments about the “wacky, lunatic Fenton boy’s parents.”

Sam was happy.

Which is why she leaned over and shook said dorky boyfriend awake. “Wake up, Danny. You’ve slept enough.”

Danny groaned, lazily shoo-ing her hand off his shoulder. “Come on, Sam, don’t be a party pooper.”

“What, gonna leave me to do all this by myself? Not even gonna help me a little?” Sam teased.

“Ugh, fine.” Danny pushed himself upright and rubbed the fatigue from his eyes. 

“My knight in shining armor.” 

Grinning, Danny closed the distance between them, pressing his soft lips onto hers. He was cold to the touch, but Sam thrived in the cold.

She broke the kiss, leaning back ever so slightly to gaze into his icy blue eyes. Up close, she could even see little freckles dotting his skin.

“Cute, but we still have homework,” she said.

Danny rolled his eyes and with a dramatic, “I can’t believe you’re doing this to me,” grabbed his notebook and pencil off the ground and readied himself for another hour of math.

Even with another treacherous hour of math ahead of them, when Sam looked at her dorky half-ghost boyfriend, his slightly crooked smile, his slightly too long black hair that was styled in such a way that could only be achieved through a high-speed flight, she couldn’t help but feel content.

Happy.

---

Thanks for reading!

[jjk-anime-horray]

Call of Spirits

Megumi Fushiguro x Reader

Spirited Away Au

Previous

Chapter four:

The most interesting smell that ever has invaded your nostrils is probably the musk that the radish spirit that was currently taking up 90% of the elevator was giving off right now. The odor itself was a weird mix of unwashed vegetables and a sopping mop making you the perfect amount of uncomfortable as you currently were squished against the wall of the lifting box with Kugisaki. Who was just as uncomfortable as you were, and by the sheer look of disgust and discomfort on her face contemplating all of her life's decisions at the current moment.

While you could clearly hear Nobara bickering under her breath phrases like 'of course it's always customer first' and 'stupid radish could have had his own ride but nooooo'; she could clearly hear your heart beating faster than the fingers of a pianist playing Rimsky-Korsakov's flight of the bumblebee. Or to put it quite simply fast enough where your heart might actually pound a hole into your ribcage.

"Psk, hey you." The fiery orange haired girl whisper quips at you to get your attention.

"What?" You whisper quip back at her in response.

"Is it the raddish man invading your space that's making you nervous, or are you nervous to meet the boss?"

"It's a bit of both honestly."

"Alright, well, I would try to calm those nerves because quite frankly your stop is next."

"Oh okay."

Right on schedule in alinement with the end of your conversation the mystical but iconic ding of the wooden metallic elevator marked the arrival and ascension to your desired floor. The distinctive rise then fall under your feet confirming the notification.

With another iconic ding you swiftly exited the elevator by shoving your way through a couple of limbs and a whole lot of radish flesh to meet the boss who you knew absolutely nothing about, other than that they seemed scary.

Finally with one last push off of the white rough stomach of the radish man, the elevator doors finally came to a close just as you stumbled into the supposed office of the person you are meeting.

To start off, to you, it seemed like this person never got out of their goth phase in high school because the majority of the coloration for the room was purple and black with the last five or so percent being navy. Gloomy would a an understatement considering the only thing lighting the room was short wicked candles.

Interestingly enough, the one place in the room that was supposed to be the most vibrant and teeming with light, and or the fire place, was actually the darkest and the most ominous about of all of the office's nooks and crannies. In fact, you couldn't even see the back of it which was very peculiar.

With the curiosity enough to kill a cat filling your mind you quickly waltz over to the place in the rooming daunting on your mind. Letting your self inspect the wood burner your eyes traced around the cold stone trim of the mechanism, ultimately leading your leading your full blown pupils to let in more light at the darkness of the cut out box in the wall the a chimney.

The uncomfort you felt in the tiny elevator was nothing compared to the events that happened next. Instantly your eyes contracted into little slits as you forcefully have to stumble back from the fire place as it burst into flames along with every light giving instrument bursting into vivid life all the while you try to adjust your in pain eyes to the new life reverberation happening around you.

Then suddenly with the burst of light illuminating the room a short old man walked in. Grey haired, stalky, and grumpy in stature he wore traditional robes over some sort of jeans that couldn't be seen, only the outline, and he used a guitar as a cane.

"There have been rumors swindling around in the hotel, honestly I was a little disappointed to find out that they were true, yet here you are making the effort to see me, but why?" He gruffed out in an old gravely voice.

"I'm here to find a job."

"A job huh? You have spirit i'll give you that but you're human."

"I may be human, but I can still work."

"Your diligence isn't the problem, you're smell is, it's horrendous, no one is going to want to smell it."

"Well I can work in the boiler room were no one else will be there!"

"There only needs to be one boiler person, are you suggesting you take yaga's job?"

"Well......no."

"My thought exactly, so leave."

"What?! Why I really need a job."

Then out of the blue a rushing breeze swifted across all of the surfaces in the room leaving a wake of flying papers, only then to reveal the new presence of black haired spirit Megumi that you've come to know.

"Well if it isn't my usual little problem." The older man scoffs at the younger spirit. "What do you want?"

"You requested to see me sir, I have" He gestured to the lump in his pocket with is hand lifting it up "what you asked for."

"A right that, just go put in the back and leave i'm dealing with something right now." Which he clearly meant you.

"Sorry to intrude sir." The younger spirit quips, but he wasn't done speaking. "I couldn't help but over hear the last bit of the conversation between the two of you. Even though they're a human we both know their smell is already fading, and it will continue to fade as they keep eating our food. Just a thought."

The young spirit then swooshed out of the office room as quickly as he came, leaving the small package behind out of your. Also leaving the older spirit in reconsidering though that was clearly displayed on his face as turned back to meet your face. Then with pulling out a piece of paper and a pen he gestured to you.

"Come and right your name."

Doing as he said you just over and snagged the paper and pen from his wrinkly hand. Tightening your grip, trying to make your pen-men ship as neat as possible when gliding your hand in strokes across the scrap. Writing your name, (Y/N). Right after the man in front of you magically whipped the paper into his hand once for the read the piece's contents.

"(Y/N), lovely name." With that notion the ink on the paper started to change, more specifically the blackness started to lift of the paper and into the man's hand. "But from now on you'll be known as Sen, kugisaki will meet at the door and give you directions again.

"Wait that it's! I-

You couldn't finish your sentence because as soon as he stopped speaking he flew you back into the shaft in which you came, shutting the elevator's doors the second you entered the contraption, not even giving you a single second to do a double take on what just happened.

[bard-of-worlds]

Truth Between Worlds Ch1 /It Begins

A black background, Danny is in the rubble of a building on his hands and knees as he seems to be struggling with pain as to his right Tucker is trying to get to him as to his left a giant stone Dragon is rearing its head back with its mouth open as the GIWS watch from behind Tucker wounded as Sam is behind them, a shadow with bat wings behind her.  

 OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

 A white hared teen in a black jumpsuit with a black tail in place of his legs flew through the air over the town of Amity Park.   Another slow night, nice.  But I can’t help but fell something is coming, something that will change me.  Danny thought as he flew.  He shivered suddenly released a breath of cold air.  He looked around and saw a ghost octopus flying towards the far right side of town and smirked.  “Hello misplaced aggression!”

 Danny flew after the ghost and smirked as he charged up a blast when suddenly the octopus dodged and fired back at him, hitting him and sending him falling before he caught himself and stabilized his flight.  

 “That’s new, they never did that before.” Danny said as he shot after the ghost, seeing it at the edge of his sight. He fired a few blasts and the ghost fired back and they flew downwards towards the ground and it reached down with its tentacles and grabbed a rock it threw at Danny who blasted it into dust but some of it got into his eyes.  He rubbed it away but when he looked up he saw that the ghost had used his distraction to slip away.

 He flew in the direction that it had gone and after a few moments he had reached a decrepit construction site that had been left abandon.  This is great, a ghost octopus able to fire blasts and smart enough to find a way to distract me so it could get away, just wonderful!  He thought as he looked around for a few more moments before scoffing and letting his legs reform and drop to the ground.

 “I can’t believe that it got away from me, this is perfect Phantom, real good.” Danny muttered to himself as he looked around and looked around the site, down into the foundation and frowned, he took a step towards it when he suddenly went to a knee as his head started pounding.  After a few moments he got back up and shook his head as the pain in his head lessened and he got his bearings.  That was something, I mean I’ve been getting headaches for the last few weeks but that was even stronger than normal.  I gotta get something

 as he was about to investigate farther he heard what sounded like a car coming towards him.  Not wanting to scare anyone or give any would be ‘groupies’ a chance to see him he went invisible and flew away, not bothering to stick around.  A car drove by moments later and a light from a flashlight went around the construction site.

 “Nothing, thought I saw something, must have been a my eyes playing tricks on me, well once tomorrow’s done I can either get some help or I can say goodbye to this place.”  The drive said as he panned the light over the site and after a few passes back and forth he drove the car away and the site was left as it was before Danny and found it.

 Within the foundation the ghost octopus had slipped into a cave and looked out into the darkness as the light panned over the darkness and grinned as it moved out of the cave and bounced off the opening.  It looked confused before it went still as heat came from behind it.

 “IT HAS BEEN SOME TIME SINCE FOOD HAS COME OF ITS OWN ACCORD.”  A voice boomed behind it and the ghost turned around and screeched as it saw what was there.

 Outside above around the construction site the screech died out and the few animals that were still around looked at the

 OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

  Danny sighed as he walked into Casper High, his head still bothering him. what the hell is wrong with me, I mean I haven’t felt like this since just after the accident!  Danny thought before he looked around and spotted the busses were dropping kids off and heading towards the back of the school.  “Of course that half day and trip, they must be waiting until it’s time to leave, hope they’ve got a book to read.”  

 Danny sighed before he walked in, hoping his headache would go down.  As he moved through the school towards his locker, he dodged the other students and paid them no more mind then they did him.  After dodging Dash and his fellow football jocks bothering a band member Danny reached his locker and had just finished getting ready for class when suddenly….

 “Hey Danny.” A voice from behind him caused him to turn and see a girl his age with light skin, black hair, purple lips and violet eyes with a black choker around her neck, a black tank top that exposed her midriff with a purple oval in the center, black striped skirt with a green crosshatch design, purple leggings, and black combat boots. She had on a pair of black bracelets around both of her wrists.  She looked tired and her eyes looked like she had been crying and Danny felt his heart break a little as he looked at her. I can’t believe this, she doesn’t deserve any of this!  Her parents are slime and only care about appearances and now this, her only alley in the family?  I don’t care what I will after to do I will help her however I can! Danny thought as he fought to keep his feelings from showing and kept his face kind.

 “Hey Sam, I guess the news is bad.”  Danny said as Sam nodded as she tried to gather herself back together and sighed.

 “Grandma has maybe a few days left according to her, the doctors think it will be longer and then there’s the fact that she wants to talk to me today after school.”  Sam said and Danny looked at her and Sam looked away. “Strange as it is, she’s at peace with it.”

 Danny looked at her concerned and worried about just what was else bothering her, knowing that she wouldn’t look away because of what was happening to her grandmother.  “Sam what is it? You know you can tell me if anything is bother you.”

 “Yeah….. is it bad that I’m so scared that my parents might send me away to a boarding school to turn me into a 60’s housewife once she’s dead? ” Sam asked and Danny shook his head.

 “No Sam, it’s not.” Danny said and put a hand on her face and smiled at her.  “People are complicated, that’s a truth I’ve learned over my life and about my other secret."

 “Thanks Danny.”  Sam said as she looked at him and sighed. “I…. can you come with me after school, Grandma asked me to bring someone I trusted with me.”

 Danny looked away and blushed.  “I’m honored that you trust me.”

 Sam looked away with a blush and smirked, trying to play it off.  “Why shouldn’t I?  And what’s wrong with that you?”

 “Headache since my run last night and the kalamari I had for a snack almost went down the wrong pipe.” Danny said with a scowl and Sam sighed.

 “Again?  That’s a bad sign.” Sam said and Danny chuckled and grinned at her.

 “Hey Guys!” A cheerful voice caused them to turn and see Tucker, an African-American teen with turquoise eyes, black hair, and black glasses. He had on a long-sleeve yellow shirt and green cargo pants with a black belt and brown boots along with a red beret and a backpack.   “Isn’t it great that we have a half day, and because of Vlad of all people!  And there’s a sale at the Tech-Shack that starts after lunch so life is good!”

 “Tucker, get real.” Sam scoffed and Tucker frowned and looked at Danny who stared stonily back. They didn’t notice the new school janitor move closer to them, close enough that he could hear what they were saying.

 “What I miss?” Tucker asked in total confusion and Danny sighed as Sam face palmed at his obviousness.

 “Why would Vlad give us a half day?” Danny asked and Tucker frowned and looked from Danny to Sam

 “I don’t know, why?” Tucker asked in total confusion.  “Is he trying to score points with Danny or some other reason?”

 “So Danny could be there if something happens.” Sam answered with her arms crossed and Tucker’s mouth dropped open.

 “Oh, I did not see that. Okay let’s see if I can find anything about the building they’re taking down.”  Tucker said with a shrug as he brought out a PDA and started to type. “Done!  By the time the bus leaves I should have something about what’s being destroyed.”

 “That’s the best we can do, we just have to hope this is just another business thing and not an other thing.” Danny said with a scowl as Sam sighed.

 “Why do you think he’s trying to score points with Danny?” Sam asked and Tucker grinned.

 “Well there is the weekend cruise next week remember?”  Tucker asked and Sam sighed as Tucker started to stare into space, knowing exactly what he was thinking about.  “The ship has free wifi, the best food and a two pools, one inside and outside!  I can’t wait until I can see the girls in their suites!”  

 Sam snorted and was about to say something however before she could speak some called out from behind them

  “Ahh miss Samantha, there you are on this gloomy day.”  The voice caused the three friends to turn to see three teens their age walk towards them, a boy leading two girls. Each of them was what most people would consider ‘goths’, pale and a somber air about them but Danny wasn’t too sure about that, something about that wasn’t ringing true to him.  The boy was Bob ‘Belphegor’ Jonson, a tall teen with black hair and eyes and always dressed in black cloths with a black coat that went to his knees.  To his right was a red head girl with a curvy body in a black shirt and skirt that was only one inch longer then regulations and she hair in a bun while in school but they had seen her about town with her hair down to her waist and she seemed to always have red painted bedroom eyes above blood red lips and talked with a sensual purr to her voice and while she had been named Helen but preferred the name Hecate. To Belhegor’s left was a blond haired girl with blue eyes, black lips and the same figure as Hecate who wore a red shirt and tight black pants and her hair short and was named Lyla, but only answered to Lamashtu.

 “Wonderful, Bobby and his bimbos, just what this day needed to start it!” Sam said as she glared at the three other ‘goths’ as Paulina always called them.  The three had been trying to get her to join their ‘coven’ for years, ever since puberty they had been after her with more fever.  

 “Oh Sam, why won’t you come and embrace your true self?” Lamashtu asked as Sam glared at them and snorted.

 “Your way, is not mine.” Sam said and Belphegor smiled in what he felt was inviting but made Sam shudder and caused Danny to glare at him.

 “But it could be your way my dear, all it takes is to but take a single step and invite the change in.” Belphegor said with a smirk and reached out with a hand towards her but dropped it when Sam glared at him.

 “I think I know my path better then you.” Sam said and Lamasthu giggled.

 “But then they say no fool is like the fool who’s lost their way.” Lamasthu said as Hecate laughed as Belphegor sighed and shook his head.

 “Well this time my dear I will let you go without showing you the truth, but you will learn it one day.” Belphegor said and Danny looked at him with a hard look.

 “Sam is allowed her own choices, and I’ll be helping her make them, every step.” Danny said and Sam looked at him with a smile that Hecate saw and scowled.

 “Come Belphegor, let’s leave the poser with the normals.” Hecate said with a sensual purr and as she turned away, a scoel on her face.  That one has always been different since that accident a year ago, but this is pto much!  Will we have to break their relationship before we can finally gain a fourth? She thought as she add a swing in her step that drew the eyes of the other boys beside Danny as the blond laughed musically as she walked away.

  “Your right, Hecate, Lamashtu. We have better things to do with our time before 2nd period.”   Belphegor said as he turned

 “What about 1st?” Tucker asked and Belphegor snickered as they walked away.

 “Study hall.”  Hecate called out as the three walked away as she and Lamasthu laughed.

 As soon as they were out of hearing Lamasthu scowled and it kept all her voice low.  “Why can’t that girl understand we are the people she should be with, she looks so sexy I so want to see her after we’re through rocking her world!”

 “And she’s a brunet, we so need one in the group!”  Hecate said with a pout and Belphor laughed a little.

 “Don’t worry my pets.” Belephor said as he put an arm around both of the girls and started to smirk. “I have a feeling that soon that will happen.”

  Back with Danny, Sam and Tucker Sam stared at them as they walked off before scowling and slamming her locker closed.

 “I don’t know why I don’t slug that bastard and his bitches!” Sam snarled as she clenched her fists.  “Or better yet, send the GIW after them!  There has to be a way to send them!”

 “Calm down Sam, I get it.” Danny said smoothly.  “I hate Joseph too, have for years.  And ever since he ‘realized who he is’ I’ve always felt he was slim, but let’s not give the teachers a chance to actually do something to us, and we have a half day because of that Vlad thing.”

“There’s that at least, all we have to do is see a speech and then I can get to the hospital.” Sam said as she smirked and Tucker chuckled a little.  “What is it Tucker?”

 “Nothing, it’s what Danny said.  The teachers probably punish the rest of the school because they have to do something to control the school after being up the A-List’s assess, I wonder what Dash’s smells like?” Tucker said with a laugh as they walked to class, none of the three noticing the new janitor had overheard them and was scowling at what he had heard.

 OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

 A black limo pulled up to a building on the edge of town and as soon as it stopped a man with short white hair and a goatee got out and wearing a black suit with a scowl on his face got out and walked towards a foreman before three Bulldozers and two backhoes and a standing before a gate connected to a stone wall, a four story house painted brown could be seen through it, the building had black stone gargoyles on it, at least ten a story with a large one on the roof with a few stone heads pointed over the wall here and there.

 “Mayor Masters, hey. Look I know we should have gotten the wall down but.” The foreman began when the black suited man exploded

 “Why haven’t you started yet?!  This place is part of the new industrial park and we need to break ground within weeks!” Vlad Masters barked and the foreman looked over his shoulder behind him and Vlad looked and was able to see an old man standing between the machines and the wall holding onto a grey walker.   “Of course, him!”

 The old man huffed and puffed as Vlad walked towards him and glared at him.  “I don’t care what you say, this land is mine!  As long as I breath I will protect this place!”  

 “I offered you a perfect settlement and then I had to pass a motion that forced the issue, you don’t even live in there!” Vlad said as he looked at the man who glared back.

 “I’m not supposed to live in it, I’m supposed to protect!  As long as I live I will protect the……..” The man began before he went still and fell backwards.  Vlad looked at the man laying down before he dropped to his side and felt  for a pulse.  Finding none he tried to get the man’s heart beating but after a few moments he stopped and sighed and shook his head.

 “Mayor Masters?” The Foreman aksed as Vlad walked away and looked tired.  

 “Call an ambiance, this man was right, as long as she drew breath she protected this place.” Vlad said solemnly before he stopped and looked around as he thought he heard a roar from a long distance away.  Looking around Vlad saw the other workers were spooked as well, and given how the town was that was saying something on its own.

 “Did you hear something sir?” The foreman asked and Vlad shook his head.

 “No, I didn’t hear anything.” Vlad said as he reached out with his senses and didn’t feel anything at all like a ghost beyond the few traces that he had left for the law he had made to have this place fall under his new law.  I never thought that the old man would die like this, but all in all good for me!  I’ll use a quarter of the money to give him a nice funeral and then……….why am I having a problem believing that this will be something simple, why do I think that this will cause more problems than I know?  Vlad thought as he looked around and moved towards the podium being set up. “Why do I have the feeling that I should contact the GIWS sooner or later?”

 OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

 “Move it people, calm and orderly, first ones go to the back, we full up a bus we go to the next, we’ve got all of them so don’t worry there’s room for all.” Mr. Lancer , a bald man in a blue shirt and black pants and a goatee said loudly and as Danny came out of the school with his backpack on and looked around the yard and saw that the A-Listers, were staying towards the school’s front doors, waiting until they could sit up front and the new janitor watching them.  

 “Of course they do the something they always do, use the system against us.” Sam muttered as she stood there with her own backpack and Danny laughed a little.  “Hey where’s Tucker?”

 “Said something about grabbing a book, his search bot should be finished and there he is.”  Danny said as he looked around and saw Tucker walking towards them with his backpack in one of his hands.  “Hey Tuck, got by without Dash seeing you?”

 “Guys, I found something on a blog about the city’s myths and history, it’s something.” Tucker said ignoring what Danny had said, something that caused looks of concern to be shared between Sam and Danny.

 “Hey guys, want to sit together?” A voice caused them to turn and see Valarie Grey, an African-American girl with long, curly hair and dark green eyes and a little curvy figure and was wearing yellow sleeveless shirt and orange skirt with white tennis shoes and had two bracelets on each wrist, one yellow and the other orange. She had been an A-Lister until her dad lost his security company when a ghost dog that his one of his customers had trained and used as a security system until Valarie’s dad had a more high tech replacement and the whole pack had been put down.  The dogs spirits had merged together into the ghost dog, Cujo as Danny called and it had rampaged until it recovered it’s favorite toy.  Unfortunately Vlad had found out about how Valarie blamed everything on ghosts and given her a high tech suit and she had been on a one woman crusade against all the ghosts in the world, until Danny had to destroy it but it had been upgraded by Technus.  Since then she been a terror for any ghost that fell into Amity Park, from accidents to attackers all were her enemy and subject to destruction, Danny couldn’t count the number of times he had to save ‘good’ ghosts from her, but recently it had spike to once every other day, and he didn’t want to know if she delivered some to Vlad he never heard about.

 “Hey Val, didn’t think you weren’t going?” Sam asked and Valarie shrugged.

 “Yeah well my dad might become the head of security to the complex while it’s being worked on so I might as well go and see what it is.” Valarie

 “Miss Valarie, with my please!” Lancer called out . “Next Bus!”

 “And Lancer is on my case lately.” Valarie said as she walked off and Danny frowned.

 “Think Lancer and the others are stepping up protecting the A-Listers more than normal?” Sam asked and scoffed when Danny looked at her.  “Come on, this has to be because she defended that girl a few days ago from Paulina.”

 “The new girl, Kimiko right?” Danny asked as the three friends moved towards one of the buses, hoping to keep Lancer or any of the teachers from noticing them.

 “Yeah, I mean I always thought they were just bad teachers, but maybe they’re just sell outs.” Sam said as she eyed the few teachers around them and Danny felt his headache spike and kept a sigh in as he realized that Sam might be onto something.  “But what’d you find Tucker?”

 “Come on, I’ll tell you the bus.” Tucker said and moved towards the bus and they were soon in the back and noticed that they had the fewest students as the A-Listers claimed a bus for themselves and Danny shook his head as the convoy of buses started.

  “Okay, this was…..interesting.”  Tucker said as the bus moved off.  “The demolition is in the area of the city that was called, Rich Clan Road, a kind of gated community that was proposed about one hundred years ago.”  Tucker said and looked at Danny and Sam.  “But after the first three buildings were finished the development fell through and the company went under, the three houses did have residents lined up but all three families died and then the houses were in limbo beyond a single caretaker.  But until about twenty years ago people would always report seeing lights from the buildings, and the one that Vlad is flattening was the first finished.”

 “Anything else?” Sam asked and Tucker looked concerned.  “Tucker……”

 “Okay, okay.”  Tucker said and released a deep breath.  “A while back I wanted to look into old town legends, there’s a story about how people would hear a strange roar once or twice a year that started about thirty-five years ago but stopped twenty years ago.  The tale goes that it started after a circus came through town burned down, and they never found all the animals or attractions; among them was a supposed lion; a lion cub that responded to orders otherworldly if you know what I mean  and what’s worse is that the records of missing pets dropped drematicly around here twenty years ago to .”

 “Oh hell.” Danny said and Sam winced; once or twice they had seen some of the Zone’s ‘animals’ feeding on each other and self-aware ghosts.  And what was worse was he had found a few ghost ‘Animal’ eating from garbage or dead birds in Amity Park .  From what Frostbite said that was normal and a reason for Kingdoms to gather to gather, to protect themselves as Lairs could be broken into if the ‘animal’ was strong enough.

 “And Freakshow proved that people can control ghosts.”  Sam said and then went still.   “Twenty years, both stopped twenty years ago?”

 “Right after the Fenton family moved in with their ghost tech, yeah.” Tucker said and Danny winced.

 “Okay, so what about after they made their greatest invention?” Danny asked and Tucker shook his head knowing what Danny meant.

 “No sightings at all, not surprising really.  Only person even went there, until about three months ago when Vlad passed a law that any abandoned house that hasn’t been lived in where ghosts are detected is to be demolished to ‘chase away any spectres’.”  Tucker said and Sam sighed. “Yeah, those are my thoughts exactly.”

 “So Vlad wants to do something with the land, any ideas?” Sam asked and Tucker looked down.  

 “It’s supposed to be a new industrial park.” Tucker said and held up a hand to cut Sam off.  “And before you say anything about it, while only the first three buildings were finished, the other lots were cleared of all plants and they all have at most half-finished buildings and were left to grow wild.”

 “Anything about that circus?”  Danny asked as he looked out the window and frowned.  Wait, I’ve seen some of these structures before….. Danny thought as he started to feel worried.

 “Nothing, it was long ago but I checked the Index of Circus, government agency to keep an eye on those things, don’t ask why, but nothing.” Tucker said and shook his head.   “But something about that name……. I don’t know.”

 “What name?” Danny asked as he looked ahead and frowned as his mind was recognizing the general location but he wasn’t exactly sure how.

 “The name of the circus, I don’t know……. “  Tucker said with a shrug.  “I’ll look over the name and see what my database back home has.”

 “You have a database?” Sam asked and Danny turned his head and looked at Tucker who grinned.

 “Custom built, got the parts from the salvage lard, I head there once a week and get a few pieces to sell online, built up a good offline system.” Tucker said with a smirk.  Danny listened with one ear as he felt that strange feeling he had last night and then as the bus turned a corner he realized where they were going.

 “Oh hell.” Danny breathed and Sam and Tucker turned to him in concern.  “This is….”

 “Danny?” Sam asked as she put a hand on his shoulder and Tucker looked at him.

 “This is where I started to get sick last night on my walk.” Danny said and Sam eye’s widened and Tucker looked between them

 “How’s you get sick?” Tucker said and Danny looked around before he spoke.

 “Calamari that I had for a snack last night.” Danny answered and Tucker winced and looked around the street as the buses stopped and looked at the construction machines.  As the buses stopped Danny could see a news van with a reporter setting up and he wondered if the school was here for a publicity stunt for Vlad.

 “Well maybe this won’t be so bad.”  Tucker said as they got out of the buses and looked towards Vlad standing before a podium. Danny said nothing, he just looked around before going still, causing Tucker to walk into him.  Following Danny’s eyes Sam and Tucker found what Danny had, an ambulance that was driving away and without its lights on, the sign that whoever it was carrying was dead.

 “Hey Fen-turd, you and your losers have a fun time so far?”  A nasal voice caused Danny to scowl as he turned and saw the A-Listers coming towards them in their usual arrogant swagger.  Leading the way was Dash Baxter the quarterback of the football team, a musical blond teen with blue eyes in a red-and-white letterman jacket, with a black t-shirt underneath and dark blue jeans and white shoes.  Next to him was Paulina, the captain of the cheerleaders; a tan skinned Latino girl with curly black hair that went to her waist had a seductive figure. She was wearing her usual cloths, a pink shirt that reveals her midriff, light denim capri pants and white flats.

 “You know I expected them to be up front you know?” Kwan said.  Kwan was an Asian teen with black hair and eyes and was wearing the same clothing as Dash and next to him was Star, another cheerleader with a figure like Paulina and had hips-length golden blonde hair with spiky bangs and turquoise eyes and was wearing a white T-shirt with a thin orange collar, orange cuffs, and a backwards P in the middle, dark orange jeans, and white flats.

 “Just ignore them guys, they don’t matter at all.”  Danny said as he started to move and ignored them, after the last year he had finally wised up and thrown the ideas about the school social hierarchy was nothing but trash.

 “What was that Fen-turd!” Dash growled and Danny just waved him off.  “Running away with your tail between your legs like that sister of yours, always running her mouth!”

 Paulina giggled a little but stopped when she saw Star had paled and turned and saw Danny slowly turn, a hard edge in his eyes that scared and shocked her.

 “If it isn’t the Asshole-Listers I didn’t hear you, how have you been lately, forced some students to do your homework or something?” Danny asked sarcastically and Dash actually looked shocked and Sam smirked.  

 “Now Danny; don’t taunt the stupid.” Sam said with a cold edge to her smile as she looked at them, glad that Danny had finally decided to let loose.  “After all this is the best they will ever have it, once they’re out of school it’s all downhill.”

 Paulina looked at Sam and Danny as they seemed to exclude a sense of rage and danger as she tried to catch her breath and suddenly Star was in front of her.

 “Guys, I know Dash went a little far with that, but let’s not give the teachers something alright?” Star asked with big eyes and Danny calmed down and looked at Sam who nodded and they walked away.  

 Vlad looked over the students and then he saw Danny and his friends move away from the A-Listers and he smirked as he caught enough of the reaction between Danny and the so called popular crowd that he could only smile, Danny was so much like him that once he tour him away from Jack and Maddie was his it wouldn’t be too long that he’d have a perfect heir.

 “Everyone can hear me, this is on?” Vlad asked into the mike and as he heard his magnified voice he smirked. “Excellent.  This place has been a blight on Amity Park for years, a gaping wound on our city that time has finally caused to be healed, and it’s going to be a major part of our future!  This is the site of the new technology park, a development that will bring in new jobs and new members of our family once construction is finished! I don’t have to tell you that chance can be terrifying, but it can also be a good thing!”  

 Vlad looked at the students as they looked at him, a smirk threatening to break out on his face as he saw Danny and Sam both trying to figure out what he was after.  Poor little badger, you wouldn’t understand my plan until it’s done.  After all this is chess, and I am just making my opening moves.  Vlad thought with a grin.  “This place was never finished, the people these houses were meant for died before they even stepped into them, so let us watch as we return this place to history!  Start the construction of the newest part of Amity Park!”

 At Vlad’s scream the bulldozers started and as the students cheered they crashed into the wall and revealed an overgrown garden with over twenty black stone statues of gargoyles at least five feet tall here and there, some on stands of white rock.  Each gargoyle had bat wings on their backs, clawed three fingered hands and two clawed feet and mouths barred in grins of savage looking teeth.

  Danny looked at the statues as the bulldozers moved towards them and frowned.  

 “You think Vlad would want to recover the statues at least, maybe sell them at an auction or something.” Sam said and then Danny went still and paled.  “Danny?”

 “Dude?” Tucker asked and Danny shook his head.

 “Guys, move slowly towards one of the buses, now.” Danny said calmly.  “I think I saw one of those statues move its head.”

 Sam and Tucker looked at each other and moved backwards slowly, hoping that Danny was wrong this once but knowing differently.  As one of the bulldozers speed up and charged at one of the statues it suddenly came to an abrupt stop as soon as it hit the gargoyle.  The drive could only look on in confusion that turned to horror as the statue turned its head to look at him before it roared and flared its wings.

 As soon as the first gargoyle roared the others started to screech and move, some taking flight and flying at the crowed who screamed and ran towards the buses.  

 “Keep moving, get to the buses!” Lancer roared and looked around when he realized that Valarie was gone from his sight.  Danny was lost in the rush, pulled away from Sam and Tucker who had gotten onto a bus and as Dash, Paulina and Kwan piled onto a bus and Dash closed the doors, locking it in place As one of the teens pounded on the door a gargoyle came towards them but as it reared back a blast of red energy hit it and sent it flying away.

 “GET AWAY FROM THEM!!” A voice roared as the Valarie in her Red Huntress guise, her black and red armored form riding her hoverboard appeared from above the bus and started to fire away at the gargoyles and the teens cheered, especially when Valarie shot the locked door and it fell inward. The other teens climbed into the bus, most of them glaring at Dash, Paulina and Kwan, Star amongst them. As the drive climbed into his seat he looked at the kids and saw that he was over capacity and cursed himself for what he was about to do.  

 “EVERYONE HOLD ON!!” As the words died down the bus drive started to drive, the other bus following him as the other teens who couldn’t get on ran after them, some cars the construction crews and the single news van following behind them, the back doors open and full of teens who grabbed those who couldn’t get on

 Danny saw the bus’s carrying his friends away from the battle from the side ally where he had ducked into when he had gotten to the back of the pack and willed a white ring that spilt in two and transformed him into his Phantom form and shot into the air and blasted a gargoyle that had attacked Valarie’s back.  Valarie heard the explosion and scowled when she saw Danny hover there firing at the other ghosts as far as she was concerned.

 “Phantom!  I knew you had to be behind this!” Valarie snarled as Danny looked at her with an exasperated look.

 “Of course, because I’m blasting what I control, sure it’s all part of my plan!” Danny said sacristy and went intaglable to avoid a gargoyle but it shoulderslammed him anyway and carried him to the ground.  He looked up as it reared back but Valarie shot it’s head off.

 “I’m the only one who gets to destroy you spook!” Valarie spat as she flew at another gargoyle and used the energy blade between it to cut off its head and as the head roared at her the body decomposed.  The head is still ‘alive’ but the body was destroyed., so headshots! Valarie thought as she started to fire at the heads of the gargoyles but only two went down.  “What the hell?!”

 A roar caused Danny to look towards it and see thirty more gargoyles coming towards them, ten of them hovering in front of the mansion as the other twenty charged at them.  “What, are they protecting that place, why?!”

 OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

 Vlad meanwhile had gotten to his limo drove off, setting in the back as he watched from a drone he had launched as he had left, scowling as he watched the feed.  “Oh I do hate it when I’m right about this, I can only hope that the area won’t be too damaged once this is done.”

 Vlad looked upwards as he heard the sound of jet engines and smirk.  “Well let’s see what will happen when the GIWs come out to play!”

 OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

 Danny dodged another blow from one of the flying Gargoyles and stole a look at Valarie and saw twelve GIW skysleds with four loaded out for bombardment and cursed.  “HUNTRESS, UP NOW GIW BOMBARBMENT INCOMEING!”

 Danny shot skyward and Valarie looked at him for a second before willing her board to climb skyward as well and moments before that happened missiles hit the gargoyles and the mansion, covering all of them and the mansion in an explosion that almost caused Valarie to be blown from her board.

 “What the hell?” Valarie breathed and looked and saw the mansion had been destroyed but the gargoyles had gone still and they had turned towards the mansion, the missiles having turned it into rubble, the stone creatures not moving.  Those stone things are still, was the mansion the source of their life?  What the hell are they, they can’t be ghosts but what?  Valarie asked as she moved her board forward an inch before a bolt of blue energy flew past her.

 “FREEZE!!!” A voice barked from the direction of the other skysleds and Valarie turned and saw four skysleds face her and she stared as she saw that their weapons were pointed at her and she grew angry as she tried to comprehend

 “What the hell are you doing, I’m not a ghost!!”  Valarie said as she looked at the GIWs who only looked at her and tried to figure out what they were doing.

 “Red Huntress by order of the Federal Anti-Ecto Control Act, Article 4, Section 2, subsection B you are under arrest!” Operative K, a brown skinned bald man in the uniform of the GIWs, a white suite with black tie, black gloves, boots and black sunglasses said as others GIWs aimed at her as four skysleds aimed at Danny as he hovered there and formed two blasts with his hands.

 “What the hell are you doing?!” Valarie demanded as she prepared herself to react to whatever the GIWs did next.

“The Anti-Ecto Control Acts also limits what hunters can use.” Danny said as he looked at the GIWs and scowled.  “Maybe even how many ghosts one can capture, it’s all about control with them.”

 “Quite ghost. Surrender for experiments, lots of painful experiments.” Operative K said and Valarie went pale as she heard that.

 “Experiments?” Valarie said pale and her eyes dilated and then she gritted her teeth as parts of her family history flashed through her eyes and she prepared herself to go down fighting at least when suddenly…..

 “RROOOOAAAR!!” A savage roar came from the mansion and as the rubble was flung away and a dust cloud covered the land.  As they watched two large wings made of black stone suddenly burst out of the clouds, a black stone serpentine head on a long neck connected to a body with a crest and four long legs with that ended in four clawed hands and a tail that ended in a spiked ball, a black stone dragon as long as the mansion was that roared and fired a blast of black energy from its mouth at the bombardment skysleds as twenty of the gargoyles screeched and shot towards the GIWs while the rest of them charged after the buses.  

 “Procedure Omega operatives!”  Operative K barked and the GIWS began firing against the charging gargoyles that swarmed closer and started to claw at their foes and destroyed a few of the sky sleds sending GIWs falling to the ground.  Danny could only look at the carnage and swallow.  This is beyond anything I could have imagined happening today!  Wait those others are going into town! Danny thought as he looked around and then looked towards the center of town.

 “Huntress, go after the gargoyles heading into town, go and protect the people!  I’ll try and handle this but just go!” Danny called to Valarie who looked at him and readied her gun as she looked at him as the GIWs tried to handle the Gargoyles.

 “And why should I listen to a ghost?” Valarie barked and looked at the gargoyles as they moved into town.  But he’s right damn it!  if regular people are hurt and I could have stopped it from happening!  She thought as she grimaced before scowling at Danny.  “Fine! But not because I agree with you ghost!”

 As Valarie flew away Operative K saw and overheard everything and notice the treason of the Red Huntress before a gargoyle roared and charged at him but he dodged it and saw that he had lost all of his bombardment sleds and two of the others. “All forces fall back, contact base and request all operatives to sortie!”

 As the GIWs fell back, Danny stayed and fought on, blasting apart ten of the gargoyles before the Stone Dragon took notice and roared, taking flight and charging at him. Danny dodged to the left and three gargoyles slammed him to the ground.  As he struggled to get free he looked up and saw the Stone Dragon hovering, its head pointed at him and its mouth open as it built up a charge.

 Danny tried to struggle free but after a few moments he realized he couldn’t and tried to figure out how to survive.  Think Phantom, think!  How can you get out of this how can you…….Danny went still as he realized just what he had to do.  

 “One chance!”  he called out as the Dragon released its blast as he went intangible moments before it hit and the blast destroyed the Gargoyles and sent him down and into the ground, but Vlad’s drone didn’t see him as the explosion kept what was happening from its sight.

  OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Smash.  A glass dropped from Vlad’s hand as he watched with widened eyes as the Dragon took flight and the Gargoyles followed after it. I can’t believe this, so that thing was able to best him.  and it’s coming into town!  Vlad thought as he quickly pressed a button and sighed when he heard a siren in the distance and saw people look up and start running towards the nearest safe location, cars all moving in the same direction as they abandoned everything else to get to safety.

 “Well at least the public safety announcements worked.” Vlad muttered as the limo entered into a garage attached to town hall and he moved towards his office to handle this, smiling as the security guards the GIWs had trained moved to prepare to defend the seat of government.  “Maybe I should look into getting a station set up near the school……….. in a weak they’ll probably have enough on the teachers there to blackmail and get those people blacklisted.”

 Vlad walked into his office and looked at his secretary who was waiting for him.

 “The shields are up at all shelters sir, the GIWs just contacted us, all operatives have been deployed and the police are getting whoever remains to the safe zones.”  She said as she walked into the office after Vlad, the glow of the shield visible through the windows.

 “And them?” Vlad asked as he sat down and called up a holographic screen with a map of the town showing the shelters and the Gargoyles path into the city.  He frowned as he looked at the screen and frowned.

 “The Fenton’s contacted us and that they’re taking their Assault Vehicle to backup the GIWs.” She said and she looked out the window and took a step back, Vlad frowned before he heard the sound of blasters firing and he realized the stone creatures had reached the town hall.

 “Do activate the secondary defenses, and call me if something changes.”  Vlad said as the woman nodded before running away and the doors closed automatically.  The ringing of his phone caused him to look at it and sigh when he saw the number.

 “Ahh Amy!  It’s a little bit of a problem, you missed something when you looked over the property, it seems the town is under attack by a flock of stone Gargoyles led by a Dragon of all things!” Vlad said and listened to the reply.  “Yes I’m sure the town can survive the problem, the GIWS are out in force and I expect him to handle this the second time.”

 OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

 Danny shook his head as he got up from where he had fallen.  “Okay Phantom, that wasn’t the worst thing that you’ve ever been hit by, so walk it off! Now where am I?”

 Danny looked around and beyond a few slivers of light from above it was completely dark.  Danny formed a ball of energy and as the light from it chased away the darkness he saw he was in a natural cavern with a large mass at least five feet tall at least twenty feet away from him that Danny saw move up and down slowly and rhythmically. Yikes, that’s something.  If it didn’t react to me then and the chaos above its sleeping deep! And speaking of upstairs I need to get back to it!  Danny thought as he silently flew upwards and hit a barrier as he reached the celling. “What the hell?!”

 “This is?” Danny muttered to himself as he felt along a strange barrier that kept him from moving through the stone.  Okay, this is acting like the ‘Zone, but this is the human world, so how do I get around this?  I mean how on earth could someone make this place impassable for ghosts one way but not the other…….. that’s a mouse trap or a prison……wait prisons have prisoners….. Danny’s thoughts trailed off as realized just where he was.

 “YOU CAN NOT LEAVE THIS PLACE HALFLING, ONE ONLY MAY LEAVE.”  A rumbling voice caused Danny to turn and stare.  The mass was unrolling into a large brown lion at least ten feet tall with a mane of crimson flames and claws of black obsidian, two tails that ended in rubies that blazed with a crimson light and it had two eyes of jade flames and saber fangs of obsidian. “THIS PLACE HAS BEEN MY PRISON FOR MANY YEARS NOW, BUT WITH YOU I MIGHT FINALLY HAVE ENOUGH ENERGY TO ESCAPE!”

 “Okay, so how can I help you get us out of here?” Danny asked causing the lion to chuckle. “What’s so funny?”

 “YOU MAY WILL HELP ME BY BEING MY FOOD HALFLING, AS ALL OF YOU HALFLINGS ARE SUPPOSED TO  BE.” The brown lion said bluntly and Danny pales more and looked at the creature as it slowly padded towards him, moving away from it.

 “With me, wait you want to eat me?!” Danny said as the creature nodded its head as it stalked towards him.  Wonderful, first a stone dragon and now a giant lion wants to eat me!  he thought as he looked around, trying to find any hint of a way to escape.

 “YES, SINCE I ESCAPED FROM MY FORMER CAPTIVES I HUNTED THE FLESH OF THE LOW BORN HERE AND GREW STRONGER AND THEN HUNTED THE HIGHBORN UNTIL A MIDDLE BORN TRAPPED ME HERE AND SIPHONED OFF MY POWER TO CREATE THOSE THAT ATTACK THE MIDDLE BORN ABOVE US.” The lion rumbled and Danny prepared himself for a fight, the lion only looked resigned.  “THEN YOU WILL NOT LET ME SLAY YOU SWIFTLY THEN.”

 “Sorry but I have a real problem with helping those who try and kill me!” Danny said as he took flight and the lion looked at him with what Danny thought might have been respect.  

 “THEN SO BE IT.   KNOW THAT I AM VOLEO! LET US DO THE ONLY DANCE THAT MATERS, THE DANCE OF BATTLE AND EVOLUTION!!!” Voleo called ut and charged at Danny, throwing two orbs of fire from its tails that he shot and dodged as he flew about the top of the cavern, taking shots that didn’t faze his foe.  Voleo looked at Danny and flicked its tails until it had formed twenty fireballs that it sent at him.

 Danny scowled as he sped up and dodged the fireballs as he tried to figure out a way to defeat this thing. My running blasts aren’t doing anything, if I can charge a shot then maybe but I’ve never really tried to charge it while I was moving!  Still first time for anything!  Danny thought as he flew and cupped a hand, forcing a blast but letting his energy build up instead of releasing as it reach the maximum he fired it, hitting Voleo’s right hind leg and blasting it off, causing the ‘lion’ to stumble and fall to the ground.

 “YES!” Danny called out with a smirk that fell when the leg flew back towards Voleo body and remerged with it as it got back to its feet.  “No.”

 It looked at him with a tense air for a few seconds before it reared back and slammed it’s front legs down and four spears of rock flew at Danny, one of them scoring a cut on his right side, the wound oozing greenish red blood.

 Danny held back a snarl and fired a few bolts at the Voleo and the lion slammed a paw down and shot stone arrows that intercepted the bolts.  As Danny flew around the chamber the lion looked at him and roared, sending a flash of heat that almost sent Danny to the ground.

 “An Ice powered Halfling, then this is over.” Voleo rumbled as Danny tried to struggle to his feet and as the lion moved closer.  This can’t be the end, I won’t let it! I have to fight back I can’t let this thing eat me, if it does then who will protect Amity?!  Who will protect Sam……SAM!!  Danny thought as he reached beyond what he knew and grasped something that had always been within him and it exploded in a wave of black energy that sent Voleo flying away from Danny.

 Voleo looked up and saw Danny standing there, a cloak of black energy surrounding him as he got up and a black energy scythe formed in his hands and as his eyes blazed red.  

 “What is this, wait you’re not a!” Voleo bellowed and roared as it fired a blast of lava at Danny who disappeared and sliced down with his scythe taking off Voleo’s right foreleg and as the lion moved away Danny appeared and sliced down and Voleo sent a stone pillar at him that he sliced through and tore through it and Voleo moved away and looked at Danny, two fangs showing from his upper mouth as he grinned at Voleo.

 “So that is what you are, then this is not as easy as I thought it would be.  But I took the battle dance seriously, so may evolution favor one of us!” Voleo said as it roared and charged at Danny but Danny disappeared and bisected Voleo and it roared as it condensed into a spark of brown energy that hovered as Danny collapsed to the floor, his eyes closing as the energy scythe and aura died down.

 A few moments later Danny woke back up and held his head, his transformation dropping as he woke up. “What happened…..wait where’s that Lion and how’d I detransform?”

 Danny looked around and saw the hovering spark and looked at it as he saw what color it was.  That has to be the lion, but what happened to it?  And why am I dawn to it? Danny thought as he approached the spark and touched it, going still and screaming as a well of energy blasted upwards, breaking the ceiling as the energy well climbed high into the atmosphere.

 OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

 Sam looked around the gym as everyone huddled in small groups as she leaned against the wall as Tucker tried to get a signal through the barrier as the teachers tried to keep the students under control.  Of course they act like they care about everyone when a crisis happens, otherwise it’s only the A-Listers who matter!  Sam thought in disgust as she looked at the teachers as Tucker typed away at his phone.  “Any luck?”

 “Nothing, I can’t even get a single channel or update and the net’s down!” Tucker said and shook his head with a disgusted expression.  “I thought these things Vlad donated let wireless signals through.”

 “That’s what the specs we read at the Fenton’s said……. But give a guess why that is here; think about where we are.” Sam said with a snort and Tucker looked at the teachers and nodded.

 “Yeah, I can see that.” Tucker muttered and looked back at his phone and tried to work around the blockage.  

 “Yeah, that’s for sure.” Sam muttered as she looked around and caught sight of Belphegor leaning against the wall of the far side of the gym with Hecate and Lamashtu around him, a strange and smug look on his face.  And then there’s them.  I’ve always thought that those three are wrong somehow but how they’re reacting to this is not right……… maybe I can get the guys to see what I’m talking about with them, maybe we should look into them. Sam thought before she heard Tucker cough a little.  “What is it?”

 “That.”  Tucker said point towards the teachers.  “Look alive, the only good A is coming towards us.”

 Sam sniffed, spelling the familiar scent of cat and looked up and saw Star walking towards them and frowned.  What does she want?  She’s the only one of the A-Listers that I don’t hate but she follows Paulina around and…..well that’s enough really.  Sam thought with a slight scowl as Star walked towards them.

 “Sorry to bother you, but have you seen Valarie?  I know she was on Lancer’s bus but I couldn’t see her anywhere and…….” Star began but Tucker interrupted her.

 “GOT IT!  I’ve got signal!  Let’s see what’s on the news, oh hell.” Tucker said causing Star and Sam to look at the screen and pale.  As kids around them heard and gathered they looked down as well and as the gathering was noticed and Lancer started to walk towards them.

 “  to those just turning in, again this is Lance Thunder, so far reports from all shelters show that the shields are only holding the creatures partially back but there’s reports of something bigger…….Oh god!  Folks I’m at Main Street and the Fentons, the Red Hunter and the GIWs are fighting the gargoyles but there’s a black stone Dragon flying towards us!  The people are evacuating to nearby shelters and this reporter is joining them!” Lance Thunder’s voice came over Tucker’s phone as

 Sam looked at Tucker as the kids around them heard and started to talk to the others as Lancer made it to them with a scowl, but Sam was only paying attention to the fact that Danny wasn’t fighting, that meant something had happened to him.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

 Vlad looked at the battle that had spilled into Main street and scowled.  This shouldn’t have happened, everything was perfect!  I can’t believe this, but at least those evacuation plans from when the town was taken into the Ghost Zone works.  Vlad thought as he watched a screen in the mayor’s office and looked up as his secretary came into the room with a look of fear.  “What is it?”

 “Sir, the GIWs called, they want authorization to prepare something called ‘Operation Exodus’?” She said and after a few moments of silence she looked up and saw that Vlad was looking at her in shock, his pupils dilated.

 “Exodus?!?  Call them back and tell them that if they even call me back with that propsual then I will send everything to Washington!” Vlad barked as he shot up from his chair and she fled from the room with Vlad’s glare following her.

 “Exodus, of all things!” Vlad said as he leaned back into his chair.  I thought I told them not to even think about making that thing!  Once we survive this, I need to find out just what those idiots have been doing! Vlad thought as he glared at the holo map and wondered how Amity Park would survive this day.

  OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

 Valarie strafed the Dragon and it roared as she blasted away at it; the evacuation of people from this part of town had almost been but when the Gargoyles had reached the area and attacked, the GIWs had made it and were only attacking the stone creatures and the and the Fentons had rolled up in their Ghost Assault Vehicle and started to blast away, saving some of the GIWs who had lost their skysleds and had used it as a rallying point as they escorted the civilians from the area as they all fell back towards the nearest shelter and she thought they could handle it but then the Dragon had appeared and the other gargoyles had surged forward, somehow stronger then before

 “Come on Mads, we can get this thing down!” Valarie looked down and saw Jack Fenton trying to charge the nearest Gargyole but Maddie Fenton held him back.

 “Stay there Jack, we need to protect the people, once their safe we can come back for samples!” Maddie said and Valarie hid a shudder as she blasted at a Gargoyle.

 “Of course those two are like that.” She muttered as she surfed on her board and dodged another Gargoyle as she fired a few blasts as she looked tried to figure out what was happening.  I really need something to see what’s happening around me, maybe I should try and make a drone or something!  Valarie thought as she flew around the battle and tried to figure out something and smirked as she saw the Assault Vehicle destroy one of the Gargoyles, blasting its body apart and destroying its wings and arms. YES!  If we take out the smaller ones first then we can gang up on the bigger…… wait. What’s that thing doing? Valarie thought as she looked on in horror as she surfed around and could only look on, shocked at what she was seeing.  As Valarie could only watch with horror as the Stone Dragon charged up and fired a blast of black energy at the Gargoyle that the Fenton’s had destroyed, and within moments the gargoyle got back to its feet, fully recovered. “FUCK!”

 The Gargoyles roared and charged at the Assault Vehicle as the GIWs started to fire away as the Fenton’s activated their vehicles weapons to meet the horde as Valarie surfed down shooting, thinking the last thoughts that she ever thought she would ever.  Where are you Phantom?!  Valarie thought as she tried to surf past a Gargoyle only one from below her struck and destroyed part of her board, sending her falling and it retracted into her suit as she landed on the Assault Vehicle and started to lend her blasts as the Gargoyles.

 “You okay Huntress, when can you get airborn again?” A voice caused her to look down for a second and saw that it had come from one of the GIWs.  Valarie saw an update on her mask about her board, it would need a few minutes to recover and then she could get back into the sky and strafed the dragon

 “Soon!” Valarie said as she looked at the Dragon as it stood there and seemed to just look at them as the Gargoyles ran into their fire.

 “How long?” The Agent asked as he battered down a Gargoyle and shot its head off

 “Just Soon!” Valarie called out as she started to fire blasts from bother her arms at a Gargoyle that tried to get around them to attack the civilians running away from the battle.

 “Not detecting a lot of trust lady!”

 “You did try and arrest me earlier, so don’t expect me to give you my tech-specs!” Valarie spat and she heard the Agent

 “Wait, What?!?” The Agent asked in shock.

 Farther back Lance Thunder and his camera man were standing far enough behind them to see but not hear the byplay but Lance winced with each Gargoyle that the GIWs sent down.

 “I so don’t get paid enough for this!” Lance said as he covered and saw the spit take the GIW agent had done.  “There’s a story in that I think.”

 “ROOOOOAAAARRRRR!”  

 They all turned as the roar echoed around them and they saw the Gargoyles break contact and move towards the Dragon as it reared back its neck as energy started to spill out it’s mouth and they realized what it was going to do.

 “hell, Everyone get to cover!  If you Fentons have anything that can block it’s blast then now’s the time to use it!” The agent barked and Valarie willed her suit’s shielding systems to form an energy wall just in front of the Assault Vehicle moments before the Stone Dragon released a large energy blast that she barely held back.  She panted as the GIWs kept shooting as the Gargoyles as the Dragon looked right at her causing her blood to freeze as she looked at the stone thing as it flared its wings.  It leap at her, and she tried to form another shield wall but her suit showed that she was too weak and she winced as she prepared to jump off the Assault Vehicle when a wall of brown stone suddenly shot up twenty feet and the Stone Dragon slammed into it.

 “Hey, I’m getting a big energy reading!” Jack called out and before they all heard the roars of the Gargoyles and the slice of something and a roar from the Dragon as the wall broke apart. Valarie stared in awe as from the dust Phantom appeared swinging a brown long sword with magma veins on it.  He had on gauntlets of brown metal that went from his hand to his elbows.  As a Gargoyle charged at him Danny slashed in in two down the middle and stood there, slowly raising his sword and pointing at the Dragon who roared as the Gargoyles charged at him.

 Danny raised his sword and stone pillars rose from the street and shot at the Gargoyles like arrows and the flying ones were destroyed as the others could only watch.  The Stone Dragon reared its head back and roared, moments later the Agent who had been talking to Valarie’s free hand went to his earbud.  

 “What…. Oh hell! Listen up!  All the Gargoyles are leaving the shelters!” The Agent barked out and started to recheck his riffle.  “I want everyone to rearm themselves and get ready, if they’re leaving the other shelters alone because that thing roared then they’ll be coming here! Before that happens we need to get the civilians out of here!  You staying or coming Huntress?”

 Valarie looked at him and tried to figure out what to do when her suit detected motion come from all around them.  “Too late, we’ve got incoming!”

 The Agent and the others looked around at the rooftops and saw Gargoyles all around them snarling and looking at the cowering civilians and swallowed before he made a choice.  

“Okay, fighting time! Fentons, move this thing backwards and use every weapon, everyone else protect the civilians!”

 “Got it, if I see a shot I’ll take Phantom down!” Jack said and the Agent looked at him before paling and grabbing Jack through the open window.  “Hey, what’s the deal?”

 “Leave Phantom alone, that stone things are the threat!” The Agent barked at Jack and he felt the stares of the others on his back.

 “Agent Z, are you sure sir?” One of the other GIWs asked as they fired at the Gargoyles as they tried to protect the civilians.

 “Directive 1; Protect the People above all else.” Agent Z said and kept firing with his riffle as he backed up and the Ghost Assault Vehicle moved backwards as Jack used the inbuilt weapons to blast away the Gargoyles.

 Valarie jumped off the roof of the Ghost Assault Vehicle and formed up her board and started to fly upwards, blasting away at the Gargoyles as they flew at the people, the GIWs and the Fentons adding their fire to hers.

 Danny meanwhile had finished off the last Gargoyle and pointed the sword at the Stone Dragon with one hand and a pillar of black and red stone sprouted from the ground and tore away the Stone Dragon’s left wing as it tried and almost succeeded in dodging what Danny caused to form under it.  It roared and flexed it’s other wing and the Gargoyles broke off from attacking the civilians and flew at Danny.  He looked up and jumped at them, spinning around and slicing with the sword and he destroyed one Gargoyle with each blow, landing one handed he pushed off and spun around in the air and landed looking at the Stone Dragon and shot at it.  The Stone Dragon opened it’s mouth and shot balls of black energy that Stone Danny dodged or sliced apart until he sliced off the Stone Dragon’s right back leg.  As it tried to balance itself as Danny ran around beneath it and sliced off it’s left foreleg, as it tried to balance itself Danny jumped upwards, his sword glowing red and he cut through its head.  The rest of the Gargoyles flew towards him when he jumped and trust his sword into the base of the neck and red veins raced up the neck before it roared and melted away, revealing a gemstone where the head had been that glowed black.  Danny pointed his free hand at the gemstone and fired a sphere of red energy that hit the gemstone and exploded, the Gargoyles eyes stopped glowing and fell to the ground as the dust settled and the gemstone was revealed to have been destroyed.  

 Danny blinked and looked around.  What the hell?  The last thing I remember I touched that spark and then……. wait what!  Danny thought as the last half hour coming back to him and he looked down at the sword in his hand as it disappeared along with the gauntlets.  

 He looked around, noting the GIWs and his parents as they aimed at him and decided to freak out later before going transparent and flew away, a frown on his face.  Somehow when he formed his legs into a tail; it felt weird.

 The people cowering behind the GIWs and Fentons stayed where they were before they started to scream and roar in happiness as they realized they were safe!  Lance Thunders looked at his cameraman with a shocked look on his face. “Tell me you got that, tell me you’re still broadcasting?”

 “You saw and heard it here folks!” Lance said with a smirk as his cameraman gave him a thumbs up. “The threat of the Stone Gargoyles and the Dragon is gone, thanks to Amity Park’s Phantom!”

 Valarie saw a squadron of GIW skysleds coming and speed off, not willing to risk that these GIWs wouldn’t attack her, a strange feeling going through her.  What happened today, I think I need to look into the Ecto-Act a bit.  And the next time Vlad sends me out after a ghost I’m going to ask Phantom about it.  She thought as she flew away.

 On the ground Agent Z removed his sunglasses and looked at the Red Huntress as she flew away, a frown on his face as he tried to figure out just why his agency had decided to go after the girl, one thing was sure, there was something very wrong with the local branch.  

 OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

 “WOOHOOO!”

 “PHANTOM KILLED THE DRAGON, YESSSS!”   Dash exclaimed and smiled.

 “Where’d you think he got that sword from?!” Paulina asked with stars in her eyes.  “Do you think he has matching armor?”

 “It was a broadsword, the kind of sword Excalibur was said to be, the old weapon of knights!” one of the nerds said and a few of them got strange looks on their faces.  Sam smirked and Tucker slammed a fist into his palm and grinned.  A siren from outside caused Sam to smile as she looked at the doors as one of the teachers opened it and Sam moved off, the usual habit of the school closing after a major ghost attack was a godsend since now she could go and visit her grandmother at the hospital.  

 Tucker moved to follow her when someone dropped a hand on his shoulder.  Looking back he saw Mr. Lancer looking down at him with a frown.

 “Let’s talk about how you got around the blocks we put in place Mr. Tucker.” Mr. Lancer said frostily and Tucker winced as he tried to figure out how he would get around this.

 “Isn’t that illegal under the town’s laws?” Tucker asked weakly and Mr. Lancer just looked at him stone-faced.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

 Danny flew back towards the construction site and saw a bulldozer blocking a building and went through the walls and saw nobody was in it smirking he transformed back to human form. He leaned against the wall and panted. What was that, where’d that sword come from………  Danny’s thoughts died as he saw a door in his mind, it opened and the sword and gauntlets were there, waiting to be called upon.  As Danny focused on the armory he saw something beyond the sword and gauntlets but her couldn’t see it clearly, but the sword and gauntlets were as clear as day and he knew what they were .  “Volcanic Arms!”

 As he cried out he held out his hand and his lava surged up to his elbows and formed the gauntlets, the sword formed in his right hand.  Looking at the hilt he saw a ruby on one side of the pummel and a brown gemstone on the other.  He looked at the veins of magma on the blade and saw them pulse with light as he held it.

 “Amazing, but how do I?” Danny muttered as he looked at the weapon in his hands and the gauntlets on his arms.  Strange, it’s like I know what I can do with these things…… he thought as he started to swing the blade around for a few moments before he raised his free hand and a column of red crystal grew to his palm.  He looked at it and grabbed the top and broke off the top and put it down on the ground and willed the column to drop back into the earth, a little bit of dirt messed up the only sign something had been there.

 “Amazing!” Danny breathed as he pocketed the shard and walked off.  Maybe I can use this to make something from this……..any way I wonder why I’m so thirsty, and what was that? He thought as he walked back towards his home.  His phone buzzed and he pulled it out and saw a message from Jazz and he smiled.

 SkyBoy; Hey sis, heading home.  Will tell how I survived if asked, see you there.

 OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

  Sam walked into the hospital and stared as she looked around and saw a lot of people waiting or being helped as doctors and nurses moved around.  

 “Do you need help?” Sam looked to the side and saw a tall Japanese woman with her black hair in a bun and a sensual figure in a white lab coat over black slacks and jeans walk towards her rubbing her eyes with glasses on her forehead.  She squinted at Sam and then brought her glasses down and then winced. “Oh it’s you Sam, hear to see her.”

 “Hey doctor Kobayashi, how’s the hospital handling this?” Sam asked and Maiko Kobayashi laughed bitterly.

 “With those government hacks commandeering the other entrance because of ‘security concerns’ we’ve had to get everyone through admissions.  Thank god we set up the emergency entrance seperatly after the first time this happened.”  Maiko said bitterly and Sam winced.

  I can’t believe what happened, the GIWs are terrible fighters but to have actually stood their ground instead of running, I might have misjudged them a little.  Sam thought as she walked and stopped when she noticed Operative K was talking on a phone near the bathroom and moved closer to listen in.

 “…..Yes, we’ve got no choice anymore.  The others will hear about this, we have to purge the labs of all our research and what we were able to get from the Fenton’s.”  Operative K said and nodded.  He started to turn and Sam slipped into a nearby room and closed the door, leaving it open slightly so she could hear him as he walked past the room.

 “Yes, we need to send copies of all the research to the secondary base……We can’t let those fools in Washington stop us now, once we have the tech right we’ll show them the truth. No the creatures weren’t ghosts, they were based on the secondary power, also Phantom was detected wielding the same power.  Yes we have to prepare Exodus no matter what Masters says.” Agent K voice came and stopped and Sam felt the door twitch as Agent K slammed his free hand against the door.  “Agent Z did what?!  I suppose the directives do say that…….. keep an eye on him, we need to be sure that he never finds out about Exodus, he wouldn’t understand.”

 Sam left the room a few moments later, worried about what she had overheard and moved to the elevator and quickly was carried to the floor she wanted.  After a few minutes walking she entered a room and saw her Ida Mansion laying on a hospital bed connected to a heart monitor.

 “Sammy, with what happened at our unhonorable mayor’s ceremony I was worried that you wouldn’t come today.” Ida said as she reached over and grabbed Sam’s hand.  Sam smiled back at her and looked at her with a look of concern.

 “I couldn’t stay aware grandma.” Sam said as she looked at Ida looked away.  “Grandma?”

 “I’m not.” Ida whispered and Sam looked down at Ida with a look of concern and confusion.

 “What are you saying?” Sam asked and Ida looked at her and sighed

 “I’m not your grandmother, I’m your godmother and guardian.” Ida said and Sam gasped as Ida looked down and away from her.  “I’m sorry that I never told ya, I wanted to before this all happened but I couldn’t every find the time or figure out the way.”

 “what?” Sam asked and Ida smiled at her and rubbed her check.

 “I took you in you because your mother, your birth mother was a friend of mine.”  Ida said with a laugh that turned into a cough and she reached for a glass of water that Sam grabbed and hurriedly handed it over.  As Ida took a drink Sam looked at her, shocked and confused.

 “What….. why didn’t you tell me?” Sam asked as she stared at her…. God-mother?  It doesn’t matter, this woman raised me more than Pamela and her husband did and this explains everything about why I’m so different from them. Sam thought as she looked at Ida who looked back.

 “I let that idiot son of mine convince me to let him and his wife take the lead, but whenever there was a decision that needed to be made to take care of you I made it.”  Ida said and gripped Sam’s waist.  “Never doubt I love ya Sammy, I kept secrets that’s true, but they were to protect you and never doubt that I love you.”

 “Grammy.” Sam whispered as tears came from her eyes.

 “No tears Sammy, this isn’t the end just yet, this is just see you later.”  Ida said forcibly.  “Now listen, I set it up so you’ll be emancipated, and with what I know you’ll be fine once you’re out of their hands.  I left a book that will explain everything you need to know, it’s in that language that you and your friends needed to talk to Big Bad.”

 “Big Bad……that’s!  You knew.” Sammy breathed in shock as Ida laughed.

 “I knew from day one Sammy, I had been watching you all and when it happened at school the first time I knew it.”  Ida asked and Sammy could only stare at her.

 “How….” Sam asked as she tried to understand the roller-coaster of events, tried to make sense of what Ida was saying and she could only look at her shocked.

 “I’ll explain next time we see each other Sammy, I promise.” Ida said before she looked out beyond Sam’s shoulder and smirked.  “But my lawyer is here to talk to you so go on.”

 Sam looked behind her and saw a woman in a business suite looking into the room and smiled slightly at her.

 “Miss Samantha, I’m the lawyer that Ida hired.  My name is Rachel Lortong, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”  Rachel said as they shook hands. “There are a few papers that you need to sign, a few I’s to dot and well it won’t take long.”

 “Go Sammy, no matter what happens we will see each other again.” Ida said and waved her off.   As Sam left Ida looked at the ring on her finger, and called up all the efforts of strength she had left.  “Come on Ida, just ten minutes more than you can rest until your back.”

 OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

 Belphegor walked around the destroyed battle site with a wide grin with a backpack in his hands as the sky darkened.  Oh this was wonderful, I can’t believe that my grade had to miss this wonderful carnage!  But I always thought that this place was something, but to think I never found the time, what I could have done.  Belphegor thought as he wondered through the ruins towards the building that had been destroyed by the GIWs.  “This is amazing, I mean I knew that my beliefs were true with the ghosts but this, this is proof!”

 He bent down and picked up a piece of the stone gargoyles, moving his thumb over it and smiled.  Oh what I can do with you my pretty!  All those old books I bought over the years said there needed to be a spark to give the power, being around ghosts wasn’t enough, a few of these each and then we’ll really be cooking with true power!  And if I can gain enough to craft a few items or even just alchemy, then I might be able to rule this town!  He thought as he took off his backpack and started to put as many of the stones as he could fit into it.  As he reached the limit of what he could carry and move quickly he grinned as he stood up and looked around.  “Oh, this is perfect; I don’t know who made these wonderful toys but I am sorry that they were dealt with so easily, my own plans have to reflect that.”

 “Hey, don’t hog all the good ones Belphegor!” Hecate’s voice caused him to turn and see both of the girls walking towards him with bags around their shoulders, each one having taken some of the stones from the destroyed gargoyles.

 “Don’t worry sis, we’ll share everything.  And this is only until we can find out where they’ll move the rest of these things.”  Lamashtu said with a giggle.

 “Yeah, but if we can’t get anything else then we should grab what we can and leave before anyone comes and confiscates this stuff!” Hecate said with a pout.

 “I wouldn’t worry me dears.” Belphegor said as he moved ever closer to the ruins of the building the gargoyles had come from subconsciously as he looked at the girls. “With the pounding the GIWs took, it will be a while before anyone will be back here, but I suppose you’re right, we should leave once I look over the this place.”

 As he turned around and walked into the ruins he heard a crack and within moments fell through the floor.  He dropped ten feet and hit the dirt with his feet and started to look around, wondering what he had found.   The chamber he that fallen into was lined with glowing crystals and at the far end was a tome bound in chains with an open door way behind it.  He stared at it hungrily as his meager senses could tell that it was something special.

 “Master Belphegor, are you okay?!”  Looking up he saw Hecate and Lamashtu looking down at him from the edge of the hole. He grinned back at them and looked around the chamber and saw a small corridor

 “Perfectly fine girls, I found something that I think will help us.”  Belphegor said as he walked towards the book and as he touched it the chains shot off and he felt something connect with him, something that told him that his life was forever changed moments before a unseen wave of something went out from the stand.  He picked up the book and felt a rumbling.  Looking around he saw the cavern start to collapse and ran for the door he ran up stone stairs and behind him he heard the sounds of falling rocks, all he could do was hope the girls were safe.  He saw a door and bashed into it, breaking through it into a wooden hallway in a Victorian style.  Before he could take what it looked like the grounds started to shake and he looked around and saw what he hoped was a door to the outside and he ran towards it, ramming his shoulder into and he ran into the yard, the girls seeing him waved and they ran towards where they had parked Belphegor’s car, hoping to get away.

 “What’d you find down there?” Hecate demanded as they drove away, Belphegor ducking the car into a side street as civic vehicles and Belphegor handed her a book as he drove.  She looked down at it and frowned as she read the text.  “This is Greek…… Mageía av petra…. That means Magic of Stone!”

 “Could this have anything to do with those wonderful, wonderful things Master Belphegor?!” Lamashtu asked and Belphegor started to cackle.

 “Girls we might have finally made it.” Belphegor said as they drove towards the main part of town.

[carrollstreetstation]

blood: a level-by-level breakdown

episode 1: the way of all flesh

the first episode, and the one included in the shareware version. like a lot of shareware episodes, it's generally a sort of mishmash of themes and ideas to provide a reasonable cross section of what a potential buyer could expect from the full game, introducing a small selection of enemies (zombies, the basic cultist and his tommygun counterpart, gargoyles, as well as minor menaces such as rats, the zombie fish, bats and a single grasping hand) as well as about half of the arsenal (up to and including the napalm launcher.) the name is a euphemism (actually a mistranslation from hebrew) for dying.

E1M1: cradle to grave (james wilson) almost every classic FPS game's first level is iconic and the subject of many remakes in other games. let's face it, there's few things a mapper covets more than the E1M1 slot. so here we are with caleb RISING FROM HIS GRAVE. the level is a cemetary and associated funeral home, rather short compared to the immediate next level, but twisting nicely in on itself. the opening room is surprisingly non-descript, just a simple, small crypt. duke nukem 3D in contrast might have dumped you on a fairly blank rooftop but it was a much more dynamic introduction to the game.

after a short couple of encounters in a cemetary you enter the funeral home proper. the chapel is where you get your first taste of the game's tendency to have enemies ambush you from above. up the stairs, past the organ, and through the mortuary, eventually winding up in a small crypt behind the building that leads to the exit. short and simple, but introducing some of the basics -- combat, enemies, secrets, while also showcasing a bit of the game's blackly morbid humor. by 1997 standards it's a gorgeously realized opener, with excellent use of texturing to create a gloomy, creepy setting to shoot zombies in.

E1M2: wrong side of the tracks (craig hubbard) this is where the game really starts to pick up. flowing smartly from the first level -- you start in the same spot you ended the last level, only now the way you came in is sealed off -- you start the level working your way down some train tracks; zombies and cultists stand in your way, and they've been offloading barrels with corpses in them, visible through the glass pane in the side (a reference to the classic zombie film "return of the living dead.") eventually you wind your way around to the front of 'miskatonic station' (heh) and it's lousy with tchernobog troops. they're not just gunning for you either, the zombies are swarming the nameless sadsack innocents that the cult has enslaved.

shoot your way through the station to the incoherent sound of announcements over the PA speaker, answer obscene calls on the public phones, check out pickman's bookshop and stop in for a bit at cask of amontillado. some really good moments here, such as the swarm of zombies breaking through the walls in the foreman's office and the bats flying out of the access tunnel leading off the tracks. it's also one of the best examples of the build engine era's attempts at creating realistic, every-day places to shoot things in.

E1M3: phantom express (james wilson) you've boarded a train and now you have to find a way to get into the engine car. a great opener as the train runs over some hapless folk stuck on the tracks. while the level is literally linear by necessity, it's still a rip-roaring good time as you clear out the cars one by one, culminating in an all-out shootout in the dining car in the back. for 1997 this level was extremely technically impressive; using a conveyor belt effect, they've created the impressive illusion that you're on a fast-moving train across the country. if you fall off, you die, so don't fall off. the conclusion of the level is quite dynamic, as you overload the engine and it explodes, ending the level.

E1M4: dark carnival (kevin kilstrom with revisions by james wilson) blood's pitch black sense of humor is on full display here. after the train derails you pick your way through the ruins until you reach a dark carnival full of wonders. a ghastly ticket collector sics zombies on you after you jump the line, and more zombies and cultists (and mimes) crowd the carnival from end to end. the midway has games of chance -- a shooting gallery, or the opportunity to field goal some severed heads for a prize. in the big tent is the tightrope over a pit of snakes, the big act of everyone's favorite circus freak, jojo the idiot boy. this is also where you meet your first gargoyles, when the carousel comes to life -- a good scare, there. on the way out, you have your options of where to go, even though the bridge collapsed: take a dive and swim to the exit, or cross the remains of the bridge to the secret level, provided you've found and remember the passcode. also: a delightfully vicious secret duke nukem cameo.

E1M8: house of horrors (james wilson) in case you weren't done with the carnival theme, E1M8 provides you with the ultimate carnival ride. the opener is pretty great, with a big horrible clown mouth you have to climb through; the walls are fleshy and gross, giving you the sense that maybe this might be more than just a carnival ride... it's an extremely linear affair as the water ride ferries you down a long winding tunnel, complete with ambushes and a few hilariously ineffectual jumpscares. the finale has you jumping out a window into a back lot for a big showdown before finding your way back to the regular ending of E1M4.

E1M5: hallowed grounds (nick newhard, craig hubbard, terry hamel) a major thematic change, one taking more after doom or quake than the usual "duke nukem for goths" that this game is. on rare occasion (well, half of episode four does it) the game decides music isn't necessary and turns it off for a level. deep, gutteral chanting, wind and thunder are your only soundtrack as you blast your way through a creepy temple. the cult's armies are out in full force here, lurking around every corner and coming at you in packs, with lots of ambushes from above and below. it's a long, winding nightmare that repeatedly loops in on itself. there are a few hints on how to complete the level, and you'd better heed them, because choosing the wrong door at the finale means fiery death. it's all burning torches and glowing candles, making this level a dark, moody affair, and one of the best-looking in the game.

E1M6: the great temple (terry hamel with revisions by james wilson) the climax of the episode is a big quake-style temple in the mountain, initially a linear affair as you work your way through some caverns up into the temple proper, only to switch back on itself several times. zombies, cultists and gargoyles are absolutely freaking everywhere. the level is highly reminiscent of quake in both layout and aesthetic, though as you near the upper areas and get a good look at just how high up you are it takes on a different vibe. plenty of traps, indiana jones style; plenty of firefights too, the best one being a huge shitshow in a room with a ramp that lines the walls, every inch of it covered in assholes to blow up -- and there's a dual akimbo powerup right there for you to grab.

E1M7: altar of stone (james wilson) the grand finale is just a simple boss level, though it'd make a good bloodbath level with its round shape, height variations and small dimensions. other than a couple of trash mobs nothing much happens until you step onto the central platform, at which point the biggest enemy you've seen yet, the huge stone gargoyle cheogh, comes after you. he doesn't have much in the way of attacks -- mostly just flies around and shoots electric blasts out of his eyes -- but he takes an enormous amount of punishment, shrugging off even your napalm launcher. upon prevailing, you're treated to a CGI cutscene that's far darker than its goofy early-90s models give it credit for.

final thoughts: for a shareware episode this is a fairly eclectic offering. the cemetary level sets the tone for the rest of the episode, but it's the train station that most ties in with the game's roots as a horror-themed response to duke3D. the train level is a technical marvel by 1997 standards, but it's probably the carnival levels (which are a clear reference to "something wicked this way comes") that give the episode its most iconic images, as carnival themes keep popping up. the back half of the episode with its sprawling temples really drive home the gothic horror vibe that the game goes for, as well as showcasing some of the more creative level design. if you're in 1997 and you're trying to decide if this game is right for you, this grab bag of a shareware episode should give you a good idea of what you're in for.

episode two: even death may die

while E1M1 is iconic, the entirety of episode 2 is equally so. set in the frigid north, with whole-level references to some of the most iconic horror tales ever written ("frankenstein," "the shining,") it's a departure from the first episode in that the theming is consistent throughout. even the haunted house level is surrounded by snow and cold. it also introduces several new enemies: the bloated zombie, the giant fish monsters, spiders, and most notably, the phantasm, a terrifying ghost that's only able to be hurt when it's about to attack you. the arsenal gets filled out a bit as well -- you now can use the special dynamite types as well as the ever-popular aerosol can flamethrower, plus the voodoo doll.

E2M1: shipwrecked (craig hubbard) the frozen north theme hits you like cold wind in the face, starting you out on a tiny boat heading towards a big wooden ship, locked in the ice (and named the HMS victor, in keeping with the obvious frankenstein ref.) while there's a few treats in the water, most of the level is spent exploring the relatively small ship, moving from fore to aft and back again as you collect keys and open up new rooms. your first encounter with gillbeasts will probably be in the small, flooded room at the fore, a nasty place to meet such a dangerous enemy. the finale is nonsensical, but kinda cool, and a quick swim later you're at the entrance to the next level.

E2M2: the lumber mill (craig hubbard) a quick little romp around a lumber mill, as the title suggests. mostly a small compound of small buildings, you'll be working your way around and through them, visiting each one in turn and clearing them out. first introduction of "bloated butchers" -- fat zombies with toxic puke and big cleavers that they throw at you. these guys can take a hell of a beating before going down. fun, short little level that exemplifies the exploratory focus a lot of these older FPS games had. good bit of humor to be had by the outhouses.

E2M3: rest for the wicked (kevin kilstrom and craig hubbard) it took me a long time to figure out what the hell this was supposed to be. essentially it's a prelude to the next level, a small hedge maze and resort complete with pool, hot tub, and the like -- all frozen over, of course. it's very restful with between 43 to 105 enemies running around. the hedge maze makes up most of the first part of the level, before switching over to the resort area, and then looping back around, finally sending you back to the start of the level, where you unlock a gate that leads to the exit. looming in the distance is a big old house, with one light on upstairs, and something in the window watching you...

E2M4: the overlooked hotel (kevin kilstrom with revisions by craig hubbard) zero points for guessing what this level is a reference to -- especially with that frozen guy in the hedge maze. the hedges aren't all that interesting otherwise, but once you get into the hotel proper the level really opens up, with an extremely non-linear layout for you to explore. not only that, but a series of very obvious secret passages basically connect the entire hotel, making it possible to duck in and out of rooms at will. this is also another example of the game making secret exits require a little bit of thought -- you need to find five tomes hidden around the hotel to unlock a portal. some good scares and creepy moments in this level, mostly based on "the shining," but my favorite is the library, the stacks illuminated by suspended lanterns, except for one in the far back, the chain swinging uselessly, with phantasms lurking in the shadow.

E2M9: thin ice (james wilson) if you liked the frozen sea from E2M1, you'll like this level, a big twisting network of caverns and cliffs overlooking a frozen lake. not much in the way of civilization here, but plenty of goons to shoot through. not a very visually interesting level, but it's fun to throw a dynamite plunger and watch chunks of ice break off and float to the other side of the lake. towards the end things get treacherous as you have to make some daring jumps from one jagged ice peak to the next.

E2M5: the haunting (james wilson and kevin kilstrom) while blood is primarily an action game, the developers did not at all forget that this is a loving pastiche of the horror genre, and as such have crafted one of the creepiest levels in the game, and my personal favorite of this episode. a sprawling old manor with a detached guest house, the enemy count is surprisingly low for the most part, allowing for a slow buildup of tension as you first work your way through a creepy hedgemaze, past the guest house (the same house you saw at the end of E2M3 in fact) and eventually into the mansion proper. it's all dark tunnels and cobwebs everywhere, most of the windows boarded up. phantasms lurk about upstairs, you can hear what sounds like hundreds of rats in the walls of the basement, and when you finally access that mysterious guest house...

if there's a level that most exemplifies what a creative mapper can do to scare people with the limited technology of the mid-90s, this is it.

E2M6: the cold rush (james wilson) after the open-ended nightmare that was E2M5, E2M6's little mining compound nestled in the cliffs is a refreshingly short little jaunt that's somewhat reminiscent of E2M9. at first the camp building (the sole structure) is inaccessible, requiring an extended detour of hopping from ledge to ledge around some perilously steep cliffs, eventually finding the key in a cave, which allows you to access the building proper. lots of gargoyles flying about to irritate you, along with the usual zombie/cultist trash. fun little surprise flamethrower trap when you go to look in a mirror, complete with crawling hands coming out of the walls to choke the life out of you. opening up the locked gate to the mine proper offers a real sense of forboding for such a simple effect -- but we're nearing the end, now.

E2M7: bowels of the earth (james wilson) the penultimate level of the episode is appropriately epic in scope: a long, mostly linear journey through a dark, seemingly abandoned mine that's already partially collapsed. while abandoned mining equipment has been left lying around here and there, for the most part this is a generally featureless series of tunnels and chambers, though towards the end it starts taking on a more concrete identity with a big underground waterfall as a major setpiece and some long-abandoned temple ruins. trash mobs are everywhere, including a great ambush early on where the tunnel collapses and zombies break out of the walls to surround you. at the end of your journey you're rewarded with what looks like a huge temple, with a swarm of spiders (and a stone gargoyle) crawling out of the darkened entryway. the lair of shial is near...

E2M8: the lair of shial (james wilson) like E1M7, the final level of the episode is just a small arena, though in this case it's a much more convoluted knot of twisting tunnels and chambers, with a huge spider nest in a small chamber that overlooks the bigger starting room. in that nest is shial, mother of spiders, and your boss for this episode. compared to cheogh she's much easier to deal with -- she moves slower and mostly sends swarms of spiders after you. and unlike cheogh, it's much easier to send her bouncing around with napalm launcher fire, thanks to her much smaller size. once she's been squashed, you're treated to another CGI cutscene, caleb cracking wise with an andrew dice clay reference of all things.

final thoughts: episode 2 is probably my favorite of the four original episodes. it's a gorgeously realized trek through varied settings that fit very well into the far north/winter theme. while craig and kevin's early levels are all great, it's james' later levels where the episode truly shines. hinting at the guest house of E2M5 as far back as E2M3 with two, if not three levels in between, was a great touch, and the way it teases you throughout E2M5 until you finally find the house key adds a little bit of power to a scene that otherwise might have been just another grisly moment in a game full of them.

episode 3: farewell to arms

episode 2 might have been cold and dark, but episode 3, in contrast, is positively explosive. this is probably where the game comes closest to its roots as a horror take on duke nukem 3D. set predominantly in a town somewhere in france, you'll spend a lot of time fighting in and around the streets, working your way through commercial businesses and other things you would expect to find in a small city. the cabal have come for war, and with them they've brought a dangerous new enemy: hellhounds, whose flaming breath can sap your health in seconds. fortunately, you also get to use the tesla cannon for the first time, and it puts them down right quick.

E3M1: ghost town (james wilson) right off the bat you know this isn't the typical blood level. you're dumped unceremoniously in a small section of the city, with a number of the shirtless innocents running away from you in the distance. tall buildings surround you, and the streets seem clear of cabal. this all changes once you start poking around in buildings, as cultists and zombies start coming out of the woodwork and stuff starts blowing up. in true duke3D style, after surviving a shootout in a small office room, you get to watch from the window as the building across the street is reduced to rubble in an impressive explosion. the biggest challenge, however, is clearing the hotel lobby, which is just lousy with armed cultists, who've put up couches as barricades. if you're savvy and quick, a reflecting shots powerup will make this encounter a breeze. some other neat moments are the elevator that collapses with a super secret at the top of the shaft if you can climb to it, and the secret room modeled after the sloth murder scene from the film se7en, complete with air fresheners.

E3M2: the seige (craig hubbard with additional work by terry hamel) craig hubbard has pulled out all the stops for what's one of the most creative and brilliant levels ever devised. judging by the development notes, craig really enjoyed himself with this level, and it shows. right off the bat you get to watch as literal actual airplanes bomb the streets below (using some cool design tricks to make it look good,) followed by room-to-room fighting, shooting your way through the city as air raid sirens scream non-stop and explosions and gunfire ring out in the distance. it's a brilliant piece of work, atmospheric as hell and fitting right in with blood's overall theme as caleb's all-out war on the cabal escalates into full-scale mayhem. probably my single favorite level in the whole game.

E3M3: raw sewage (james wilson) obligatory sewer level. seems like almost every early FPS game had to have one, going at least as far back as doom 2's second level in 1994. in any case, this is a fairly linear but twisting shootout through a rather modern sewer system. the usual trash mobs are here, including plenty of zombies, but little in the way of higher-level enemies save a few bloated butchers and a poorly placed mother spider. not a lot to really write home about, though some neat build engine tricks like opening the machine that protects the eye key provide some nice visuals to an otherwise non-descript series of tunnels.

E3M4: the sick ward (craig hubbard and james wilson) probably the very first use of a hospital in an FPS game (or second, if you count system shock's medical deck) and it continues with episode 3's rip-roaring urban warfare setting. it's a sprawling, thoroughly modern (and anachronistic) medical facility, filled with the usual goons and ghouls for you to gun down. most encounters aren't too tough, though a surprise pair of hellhounds can catch you off guard as you round a corner. some good laughs with the "assisted suicide ward" being a torture room and some good creepy moments with zombies rising from their beds to come after you, among others. eagle-eyed players (or just anyone who played duke nukem 3D) can spot the button in the chapel that opens up the secret exit. all in all, a solid, well-rounded level that offers a decent challenge and takes a setting that's already kind of creepy and ramps it up.

E3M8: catacombs (james wilson and craig hubbard) normally you would expect a secret level to have some kind of gimmick or whatever, but unfortunately E3M8 offers very little of interest save for a few cool encounters (mostly tons of zombies crowding some of the back corridors, and a prominently-placed guns akimbo powerup to mow them down with.) it doesn't even really look like much of a catacomb, just a series of poorly-lit, underground corridors filled with enemies to mow down. feeling more like a doom level, it's the kind of abstract nowhere that games like duke 3D were intended to move away from with their focus on realism. a fairly weak outing, all the more annoying that it's a secret level. the end has some neat rotating sector tricks to lead into the far more industrial E3M5.

E3M5: spare parts (james wilson and craig hubbard) and now for something completely different. wilson and hubbard have crafted a convincing industrial nightmare here, some sort of foundry perhaps -- it's hard to tell as it seems to be generally a series of big rooms full of molten material, and most of your time will be spent traversing the catwalks and side passages surrounding it. good use of textures enforces a consistent theme, and there's a subtle style to the architectural detailing that makes it more than just a series of boxes. some fun encounters here, especially the security scanner which detects you as an intruder and first sets flamethrowers on you, then some zombies.

E3M6: monster bait (james wilson and terry hamel) continuing in the industrial theme of E3M5 we have a sprawling dam complex reminiscent of duke 3D's water treatment plant level. it's a little anachronistic, but it works within the context of the episode. like E3M3 and E3M5 it's a mostly linear affair with you blasting your way through a horde of trash mobs (including a ton of cultists) and the occasional hellhound or butcher. the turbine room isn't the most intense encounter, but it's certainly the most visually arresting. though you do get a cool vista from the dam.

E3M7: the pit of cerberus (james wilson and craig hubbard) it's fitting that an episode so focused on fire and explosions should end in an underground temple crumbling under lava flows. it's a bit less interesting, design-wise, than shial's lair; first you have to find four switches to start the battle against cerberus, who announces his arrival with cool collapsing walls and explosions. cerby is dangerous when his AI works, spitting fireballs at you that do incredible damage (and set you on fire.) when he gets stuck on architecture is when he's most vulnerable. other than that, it's a pretty straightforward fight, especially since he's relatively slow, so it's easy to lure him down one of the side paths for a breather.

final thoughts: episode three is, if nothing else, a showcase for the build engine. all kinds of little tricks are at work here to give the episode its look and feel; take a look at how the airstrike in E3M2 works sometime. while it's a bit more varied in its theming -- moving from urban warfare to industrial carnage, with a decidedly out-of-place secret level -- it's still a generally coherent trip, moving away from the grotesqueries of the first episode and the frigid nightmares of the second towards a modernist city setting. with a little creativity one could run with this theme for some interesting horror-noir stuff, but the all-out action we get for this outing is perfectly fine too.

episode 4: dead reckoning

the final episode of the original retail version, "dead reckoning" is like episode 1 in that it's a bit of a grab bag of themes, feeling overall like where the leftover levels and dregs of the design team's ideas went. the first half is a weird mix of mad science and a few whole-level references to classic slasher flicks, only to switch to a hellish setting out of doom for the back half. the hellstaff makes its appearance at last in this episode, proving itself a devastating top-tier weapon.

E4M1: butchery loves company (james wilson) starting episode 4 off right with a classic frankenstein-style mad scientist's castle. based on development notes this was one of the very earliest maps to be created, and it shows, as it's very small and doesn't really come up to the standards of, say, E2M5. at best we can see a few sights like what might be frankenstein's main lab, brain storage (no zombies allowed), a ritual and/or book club meeting in the front hall, and a lot of timing-based secrets that reveal themselves without the player even trying. despite its short length, you'll have to manage your ammo carefully, as the level is a bit stingy with weaponry while throwing a few high-level enemies at you like hellhounds. eventually you find your way into a back room and the exit, all too soon.

E4M2: breeding grounds (james wilson, craig hubbard, terry hamel) but wait! there's more! apparently not satisfied with the tiny mad scientist level, wilson et al. went on to create a much larger level that, thanks to the level transition, is very clearly part of the castle proper, despite its much more modern look. oriented around a pair of huge flooded fish tanks full of angry gillbeasts and bone eels, the level is a mostly linear affair that loops in on itself, with locked gates and doors eventually being reached from the other side. it's a visually striking level at times, with scenes such as the curved observation hallway with a view into the big round tank, or the forboding gate to the spider habitat that you must clear. combat is a steady drip with occasional hellhound encounters as well as a mother spider and stone gargoyle to block your way.

E4M3: charnel house (craig hubbard and james wilson) of course, if you're running an evil mad scientist lab and you're going through a lot of bodies you're going to need a place to deal with the leftover cadavers, right? the actual corpse-disposal facility is but a small part of the overall level, and much of your time is spent blasting your way through the tunnels and corridors of an aqueduct system the charnel house sits atop. fairly low-key for the most part, save for a few intense moments where gillbeasts come after you when you're in the water, though there is a moment where part of the map is repopulated by a troop of zombies. a decent little maze but nothing to write home about.

E4M4: crystal lake (kevin kilstrom and james wilson) ki ki ki ma ma ma

i mean, what else do you want me to say about an obvious friday the 13th reference? you can even find jason's mask and knife in a barn. in any case, this is one of those build-cute type levels that's mostly a series of tunnels and corridors where all the walls are plastered with a forest texture to give the impression that you're in an actual forest, punctuated by a disjointed collection of buildings to give the impression of camp grounds. it's largely very linear, your path through the woods eventually terminating at an outhouse, beneath which is a flooded tunnel that leads to the exit as well as to the infamous crystal lake, which is home to a school of gillbeasts. the lake itself has very little to distinguish itself from any big water-filled hole, though there's a hellstaff on a raft if you need it. also, though the secret exits of the first two episodes required a little thinking to work out, in this case they don't even make you look for a button. you basically have to know exactly what wall to blow up, because the classic cracked-wall sprite that indicates a destructable wall is almost invisible against the cave texture it's on, and the chamber is dark anyway. it's worth it, though...

E4M9: mall of the dead (craig hubbard) craig's solo act returns for a level that's easily as memorable as E3M2, if only for that goofy-ass mall music. no prize for guessing what movie *this* is based on... though there's curiously not as many zombies as you'd expect. it's not super huge, but there's some good encounters (including a twofer stone gargoyle bout in the fountain room) and there's a few laughs with the store names. a sudden swarm of zombies as you turn a corner reminds you of this level's inspiration, and to escape the mall you climb up onto the roof. it's anachronistic, but who cares?

E4M5: fire and brimstone (james wilson) the back half of the episode begins in earnest with james wilson offering a taste of hell in this jarring thematic departure from the early levels. (there's a possibility the regular ending of E4M4 naturally leads to this level, but it's not the cleanest transition.) essentially a big volcanic pit honeycombed by cavern tunnels and ancient ruins, your path winds through the caves, hopping over lava flows, through the upper rooms of a central tower and finally on to an underground temple of sorts. pretty steady drip of combat, though lots of hellhounds and an inordinate amount of gargoyles to blow up. not a long level, nor particularly intense, but thematically stands out a bit from the other ancient ruins of evil this game features.

E4M6: the ganglion depths (james wilson and terry hamel) while it's not the penultimate level before the final boss, it very much feels like one, reminiscent of E1M6 with its mostly linear traversal, high-above-the-clouds setting and sinister ancient ruins set into steep cliffs. lots of tough encounters here, including several spider mommas (notably a twofer in a tomb) and a nasty fight right at the start with gargoyles (including a stone one) and some goons with only a bridge and some ledges to fight on. lots of generic evil chambers as sinister chanting fills the air, but some creative encounters and setpieces help salvage what's largely a lot of narrow corridors.

E4M7: in the flesh (craig hubbard and james wilson) the penultimate level is by far the weirdest one, thematically. no ancient temples, no crumbling cities. just a huge cavern of flesh, filled with the sound of slow breathing. a shockingly low enemy count for the final non-boss level, but devoid of the usual trash mobs, instead throwing gargoyles and gillbeasts and hellhounds at you. a few distinct areas evoke actual internal organs, such as the heart, lungs, and, amusingly enough, the stomach. combat is either trivial or a pain, the latter especially when dealing with the stone gargoyle in the stomach area.

E4M8: the hall of the epiphany (kevin kilstrom) the game's finale, and the place you've been trying to get back to since E1M1. after a brief cutscene, you're treated to a tiny map that opens up in sections as you first have to fight another stone gargoyle, another mother spider, and another cerberus, in order, before finally confronting tchernobog himself. the battle is not as straightforward as you'd expect; aside from a hitscan attack that sets you on fire, he also shoots out devastating fireballs akin to a cyberdemon rocket in doom. it's largely down to who kills who first, though utilizing the high-level weaponry such as the hellstaff will help. a bit of a disappointing fight altogether.

final thoughts: for what's essentially the finale of the game, episode four is dissapointingly the weakest part of the game. while the final few levels have a coherent theme and transition among them, the first half feels like the design team had too many ideas they really wanted to put into the game and had nowhere else to put them. it's not to say they're bad, but E4M1 especially feels like a wasted opportunity and probably deserved to have been cut, or at the very least merged with E4M2. the mall level is truly great, though. the final boss was also disappointing, with a poorly-designed arena making matters worse. as a whole it's simply not as memorable as the rest of the game.

h/t to the blood wiki for the screenscreamshots

[timetravelhouse]

My fellow useless lesbians, can we take a moment to appreciate Raquel Cassidy's stunning performance as Hecate Hardbroom? The fact that we're all here for HB attests to the rich queer coding of this character, and moreover, to the continuing vitality of lesbian decoding practices. I can't stop thinking about how Cassidy masterfully deploys tropes with a deep history of queer connotation, so I wanted to situate Hecate in this genealogy. I'm proposing three longstanding lesbian motifs that resonate with Cassidy's interpretation of Miss Hardbroom, hopefully helping to illuminate why everyone is reading it as hella gay. This is written in the style of a grumpy old teacher, so each section includes an example from film history with a corresponding academic citation (Tumblr blocks posts with outside links; I recommend searching Google Books). :D?

1. lesbian gothic Judith Anderson as Mrs. Danvers in Rebecca (Alfred Hitchcock, 1940)

It may be counterintuitive to link this cotton candy show to the gothic, but try shifting your point of view from the students to the teachers. The adults are dealing with family secrets, spectral paintings, authoritarian patriarchs, and of course, magical peril. Gothic references coalesce in Hecate Harbroom, the literally and figuratively dark presence with an uncanny ability to materialize at the moment of peak disobedience (she usually says "Mildred Hubble" but she might as well be saying "boo").

Patricia White, "Female Spectator, Lesbian Specter" from UnInvited: Classical Hollywood Cinema and Lesbian Representability (Indiana University Press, 1999)

A genealogy of The Haunting–and of the haunting of classical cinema by lesbianism–leads us to Alfred Hitchcock's Rebecca (1940), a key example of the female gothic, a genre that as a whole is concerned with heterosexuality as an institution of terror for women (64)... [In this film,] the heroine's desire is channeled toward Rebecca as a powerful presence-in-absence by [Mrs. Danvers], who enjoys a peculiar and intense relation to her former mistress and who functions as a sort of regent of Rebecca's reign at Manderly (65)... In the gothic narrative, the heroine's look is central yet unreliable, precisely because the female object sought by her gaze is withheld. This narrative can be seen to encode the dramas of desire and identification at stake in female spectatorship and the lesbian excess that haunts them, to remind us that we can't always believe our eyes (72).

The severe domestics and governesses of gothic mysteries harbor the story's secrets under their grim austerity, and these secrets always seem to have the flavor of sexual deviance. Hecate Hardbroom's reserved and gloomy vibe – and indeed, her "goth" style – evoke characters like Mrs. Danvers (a little too obsessed with an inappropriate crush from her past). This resonance "haunts" The Worst Witch with "lesbian excess" that can only be seen obliquely, and may even suggest "heterosexuality... as terror" (see s2e11 "Love at First Sight"). Thus the heritage of genre cues us to suspect that whatever repressed feelings animate Hecate's stern control must be tinged with forbidden desire, a queer allusion that is irresistibly seductive.

2. lesbian witch Margaret Hamilton as The Wicked Witch of the West in The Wizard of Oz (Victor Fleming, 1939)

I'm sure I don't have to convince you that witches are the most obvious gay element in The Worst Witch. We're offered a spectrum of witchy genders (headcanon: Mr. Rowan-Webb is trans), and I ask you to bear with me through a theory. I would never call Hecate butch in today's terms – she's so glamorous with her sensuous fabrics and heavy eyeliner – but think 1930s notions of butch. Standing imperiously in head-to-toe black next to the brightly colored and approachable looks of other magical adults, Hecate inhabits the classic witch stereotype. This quintessential witch is threatening in her otherness because she has power that refuses and exceeds the standards of femininity.

Alexander Doty, "'My Beautiful Wickedness': The Wizard of Oz as Lesbian Fantasy" from Flaming Classics: Queering the Film Canon (Routledge, 2002)

It was probably during gay director George Cukor’s stint as production consultant on Oz that the Wicked Witch got her final look: a sharp nose and jawline, green face and body makeup, a scraggly broom, clawlike fingernails, and a tailored black gown and cape. This is the witch as creature, as alien, as monster, and as what straight, and sometimes gay, culture has often equated with these—butch dyke (58)... And let’s not forget that while Glinda may look like a fairy godmother, she is a witch, and is therefore connected to the Wicked Witch and to centuries-long Western cultural associations between witchcraft and lesbianism. So what we have set before us in The Wizard of Oz is the division of lesbianism into the good femme-inine and the bad butch, or the model potentially 'invisible' femme and the threateningly obvious butch (59)... The butch witch is both the potential source of fulfilled desires as well as the potential source of physical danger (68).

Hecate Hardbroom's "obvious" witchyness is frightening in a way that's delectable, because it whispers to us of a land "over the rainbow" where normative rules of gender and sexuality might be unbound. HB both threatens the kids with exposure through the potency of her magic and encourages them into the sisterhood of this forceful female energy. She links the forbidding/forbidden with the desire to adore and become it. When high femme Pippa Pentangle stands alongside Hecate, they echo Glinda's contrast with the Wicked Witch of the West as the light and dark sides of a queer paradigm: the coming-of-age fantasy of escaping from "Kansas" to "Oz" (or Cackle's Academy for girls only).

3. lesbian camp Emilia Unda as Fräulein von Nordeck in Mädchen in Uniform (Leontine Sagan, Germany, 1931)

Camp is probably my #1 axis of delight in Raquel Cassidy's approach to Hecate. In Susan Sontag's formative 1964 essay "Notes on 'Camp'" (easily Googled), she defines camp as "the love of the exaggerated" and "the spirit of extravagance"; as "a mode of seduction–one which employs flamboyant mannerisms susceptible of a double interpretation"; as "a new, more complex relation to 'the serious'" that "identifies with what it is enjoying... a tender feeling." I can think of no better way to capture the superb balance of excessively theatrical gestures and glimpses of genuine emotion that I see in this character. Historically, camp is primarily associated with gay and effeminate men, but there has always been a place for women in camp's gender play. Katrin Horn locates the emergence of a visible lesbian camp in the New Queer Cinema moment of the 1990s, with films that took up a referential dialogue with the subtextual queer language of an earlier era.

Katrin Horn, "The Great Dyke Rewrite: Lesbian Camp on the Big Screen" from Women, Camp, and Serious Excess (Springer, 2017)

As a cinematic trope the boarding school setting dates back to at least 1931, when a nearly all-female crew produced Mädchen in Uniform... the associated story – emotional turmoil at all-girls boarding schools resulting in female bonding, homoerotic moments, and declarations of love between women – and its symbolism have been carried from Hollywood's classical era... But I'm a Cheerleader points to the heavily censored history of female-female desire onscreen [and] mocks the absurd and dark one-dimensionality of the boarding school trope (35-36)... [B]y consciously engaging with the cinematic history of lesbian representation, [camp films] reinscribe (pleasurable) lesbian presences into themes and tropes that had hitherto been connected to doomed and/or subtextual lesbian desire... Furthermore, they represent new forms of cinematic pleasure, as they infuse stereotypes which have historically as well as more recently been used mainly to disavow lesbian identity and sexuality with a sincerity of affect that recodes them as objects of identification and desire (37).

Mädchen in Uniform and related films (including the 1958 remake and 2006 reinterpretation Loving Annabelle) are lesbian tragedies, stories where forbidden desire between a teacher and student (or, in the case of 1961's The Children's Hour, two teachers) leads to heartbreak and ruin. The strict headmistress subjects the more romantic teacher to an all-knowing and judgmental gaze – but her relentless pursuit of perversion can always reverberate back to camp up this dour figure. Like the satirical lesbian comedy But I'm a Cheerleader (Jamie Babbit, 1999), The Worst Witch returns to the queer scene of the girls' boarding school in a more playful mode. As a camp performance, Cassidy's Hardbroom is a homage to Fräulein von Nordeck and her ilk, but one that transposes this archetype's threatening quality into a celebration of the deviance she originally stood against. Precisely by being over-the-top, Hecate's expressiveness embraces the stern teachers of yore with tenderness and a "sincerity of affect" that invites possibilities for pleasure and identification into this stereotype. By revisiting and reconfiguring the terms of queer representation, camp can effectively rewrite history – we may take more glee in earlier portrayals of the tragic lesbian or repressed disciplinarian today because she has been retroactively camped. Camp is reappropriation – its affection for extremes is simultaneously ridiculous and erotic (boosted here by liberal use of dramatic low-angle shots to frame Hecate as deliciously imposing). Children's television has always been a welcoming field for camp, which revels in its capacity to signal queerness through the seeming innocence of zany shenanigans. Cassidy described The Worst Witch as "a massive invitation to play" – her total commitment to this opportunity with a joyous camp sensibility enables a really dazzling modulation of lesbian cultural touchstones.

It would be worthwhile to read Hecate Hardbroom intertexually in relation to Raquel Cassidy's previous queer comedic roles... but that's a story for another day. I just wanted to explain why I think what she's given us in The Worst Witch is quite remarkable (and justify why I am utter trash right now). It's meaningful to me to connect the soup of digital ephemera and intemperate feels we're all swimming in now to a lineage of lesbian representation and spectatorship. Maybe this lofty outpouring is totally inappropriate to Tumblr [EDIT: so pleased it is appropriate <3], but I don't seem to be able to help myself – thank you truly for reading if you made it this far. Grumpy gay teacher signing off!

GIFs Hecate: all-we-must-be | dismantledrose | andforgotten Mrs. Danvers: Old Hollywood Films on giphy Wicked Witch: gifswithkriz Fräulein von Nordeck: mine

[acrobaticcatfeline]

Summerville Nights chapter 1!

ok so this is the fanfic based on the prompt by @romantichopelessly.

summary: It was a sunny day in august when the school opened its doors for its first day that school year. 4 kids so terribly different walked into the doors, gazing in awe before getting shoved aside by kids eager to get to class and meet up with friends. Everyone who goes to this school has one heck of a story about it and it’s always legendary. So let’s get into it.

warnings: cursing, piningness? i don’t really think there’s anything else, let me know if there if though.

ships: pre logince, pre moxiety

taglist: @anyay666 @emocinamonroll @noahlovescoffee @voices-and-stardust @treechildoffical if anyone wants to be added to the taglist let me know!

more below the cut

Summerville high school is known as one of the best schools in the US in athletics, curriculum, and even the arts. Its giant too, the size of an average community college campus and many amenities provided are free to any student or alumni. The school has a lot of luxuries by being in a wealthier neighborhood and still being a free access public school. Everyone who goes to this school has one heck of a story about it and it’s always legendary. So, let’s get into it.

It was a sunny day in august when the school opened its doors for its first day that school year. 4 kids so terribly different walked into the doors, gazing in awe before getting shoved aside by kids eager to get to class and meet up with friends. The 4 of them hadn’t been able to tour the campus and the giant pristine halls set them all in shock at the beauty of it all; who knew a high school campus could be actively gorgeous. Virgil Lee was the first to come back to the present, mostly because his older brother Remy was quick to drag him over to freshman orientation. The smaller kid quickly turned and ran forward to the open doors of the huge auditorium. He gave his brother a punch to the arm as a farewell before meeting up with some of his friends in the audience. They spent quite a while just talking about the different sports the school offered; of course, Virgil was the epitome of the high school jock. (not really but don’t tell him that). He wore his jeans hung slightly low, and a purple muscle tee with his middle schools’ mascot across the front, and his jet-black hair fell across his violet eyes gorgeously; his family always did say they were the best thing about him. He had to pause his conversation when he saw a really fucking cute goth boy walk in, he made a mental note to introduce himself later before jumping right back into the midst of his previous conversation.

The next to come to his senses was a tiny frail kid named Logan Sanders. That was because he had been shoved into a wall already, probably for his choice of outfit; a deep blue knee length skirt, a black button up and a matching blue tie, as well as a little teal butterfly hairclip. He scurried away and into the auditorium searching for anyone he knew and running straight for Virgil, his longtime best friend. He was always grateful for Virgil’s awareness, because he could run straight into the other and be lifted up instead of falling over; something extremely important he thinks as he’s barreling toward the jock full speed. Virgil’s grin was wide when he caught the feeling that his nerd was running toward him and spun around to lift the tiny thing up before he bulldozed them both over.

“sup Lo? Haven’t heard from you in like a month, everything been alright?” Virgil questioned softly with a small smirk.

“oh yeah, uh, anxiety hit like a metaphorical truck again, sorry about that. Hey, I already got shoved into a wall today! It is a new record!” Logan’s small smile was quick to fall when Virgil’s face fell, and his hands turned to fists. Maybe he said a bit too much?

“who? Where? I’m gonna kill them how dare they? They need to grow the f-” Logan covered his mouth before he spouted more incriminating words. He gave another weak smile as he pulled his hands away again.

“it is fine! Calm down, I don’t even know if it was on purpose or not, it is okay. Lets just sit down and wait this thing out” Virgil slouched before nodding.

“only for you nerdling”

The next to come to was the same goth boy Virgil saw, the bad boy Patton Fernandez. He had to snap out of it, if anyone saw him smile for long, they’d start asking questions that he was unprepared for and people were already staring. He sauntered into the auditorium with his hood pulled down showing off his dirty blonde hair that faded into pastel blue and his eyebags that were only partially eyeshadow He was surprised he even made it on time today, usually when he’s actually able to sleep, his alarms can’t do shit to wake him from a week of sleep, but here he is, at 7 am on a Monday regretting his decision to not bring his headphones. Granted his mom dropped them off at the office for him, but he couldn’t get them until after orientation and its really loud in there. He’s supposed to meet his best friend though, and he’d suffer far worse for him and to be honest, he already had. All he had to do was wait for his service human and he would be fine. Speaking of which.

Roman Washington was the last to refocus, mostly because he was so tiny no one noticed he was there. He ran into the assembly and made a beeline to his goth friend. He ran into him for a big hug and Patton didn’t even stumble. The boy started jumping in excitement and his giant circle glasses were bouncing just as much. The two of them couldn’t be more dissimilar, Roman was tiny, colorful, and loud but introverted where Patton was tall, dark and gloomy, and quiet but extroverted. When Roman spoke everyone heard, but he didn’t talk much. Patton was rarely heard, but never stopped talking, mostly for his own sanity. Even so, these two have been inseparable since they met.

Roman was about to start ranting to Patton about his weekend but the lights in the room dimmed and the orientation started. Oh well, Roman would be able to tell Patton all about everything when they go home to Patton’s. I mean its his super epic birthday extravaganza and Patton was… pretty much the only one who was invited. It’s not his fault people are scary! Although he once shouted at someone for calling Patton a broody emo because excuse??? Patton isn’t BROODY he’s d e p r e s s e d, and he’s not EMO he’s g o t h and if anybody has an issue, they’re gonna have to get through him first. And his tiny frail body that knows nothing about how to protect himself. Yeah lucky for him most people are scared of the look Patton gives to anyone who thinks it’s a good idea to mess with his friend. In other words, there’s two guys walking over to them and-oh. Roman sees a boy walking towards him and he’s wearing a really cute skirt and a tie? Oh, geez Roman was always a hopeless romantic but geez. He not-so-subtly starts fussing with his bright red sweater vest and fixes the button up underneath it. He pats at his green slacks and is suddenly very aware of how nerdy and awful he looks and wants to disappear. He steps behind Patton and hyperventilates while fussing with his glasses that are far too big for his head suddenly and oh geez oh geez. Patton was having a similar freak out because there’s a really cute guy but he’s obviously a jock and jocks like to torture him and he’s not keen on this happening right now, so he just sits down. He was not ready to punch his poor heart yet.

Virgil had grabbed Logan as soon as the lights dimmed and dragged him over to the cute goth boy because cute boy? Possible friend? Possible more than friend? Yes please. Also, the little nerdy boy with him looked like he was totally Logan’s type and we all know its bros first, so yeah, that’s how he made his way over to the two. Logan was maybe possibly slightly enamored with the boy Virgil pointed out to him. He shouldn’t be, he doesn’t get it, although he’s always been one to fall for darker skinned guys, and holy crap he was so pretty-aesthetically of course-it’s not like Logan finds him attractive or anything, just aesthetically pleasing. His darker skin matched with a white button up and a blood red sweater vest beautifully is all. And him fiddling with his hair and tie was just a fidget he did, not him trying to look nice for the cu-the boy over there. Of course not.

When they got over, they simply sat in the row behind them and chatted quietly together until it was over. Patton was gearing up, getting ready to tell them off as they were leaving, but the jock was offering him a hand up? He took it suspiciously and went reeling at the smirk the guy wore, thinking he was about to be pranked. He drew back quickly before looking around him. All he saw was Roman and this little nerdy kid exchanging shy nerd glances of pining. He immediately fixed the jock with a glare.

“do you have an issue with me kid? What could I have possibly done to heed you waltzing your happy ass all the way over here out of your way?” oh he felt bad for that. He didn’t like being mean, but he has to protect himself. Maybe if he’s intimidating enough, he’ll just leave? Oh, nope he’s smiling now, did he set himself up? Oh, is there a supervisor that just heard him curse out this dude? He didn’t even swear that badly! Shit.

“wow wasn’t expecting that. I do have an issue with you in fact, you are illegally cute, and I was hoping I could possibly befriend you?” oh. Oh no this is worse, gosh his cheeks are bright red now he’s sure of it. He scowls at him before shoving his hands in the pocket of his hoodie.

“yeah sure thanks for the joke dude real funny I gotta get to class I don’t have time for people poking fun at me right now.” He pulls one arm back out and grabs Roman’s hand and heads off.

“hey, wait!” he pauses for a moment, the voice being new. “um, mr person, my friend isn’t joking with you, I promise. He’s not like that. He’s really nice actually um, and I would also be pleased in befriending you and your friend. If that’s ok with you. Uh, I’m Logan and his name is Virgil.” Patton smirks slightly and turns around. He analyzes the look on the smaller boys’ face before nodding.

“hm. Ok. I’ll believe you for now. Names Patton. This one is Roman. See ya round later, I guess. Virgil, Logan.” And he turned back and continued to class with Roman.

Logan and Virgil were left in awe for a moment before rushing to their class too. Logan kept spouting about how dare he introduce him to a pleasing person and make him feel… things!!! He didn’t even talk at all, but he was figuratively falling for this, this… dark skinned beauty!!! Its not allowed and Virgil was definitely buying him dinner tonight to make up for this entire ordeal thank you very much! Meanwhile Virgil was in stunned silence because geez that Patton guy, oh he’s so cute and feisty and he wants to see that cursed smirk every day now. He hadn’t ever had such fierce desire to know someone, he hadn’t had such a fierce desire to do anything other than sleep. And maybe run on a good day. But he has a goal now at least. He was gonna woo the goth.

The 4 didn’t reunite until after school that day. Logan was seated in the field across from the football practice and was studying already, hoping to get to a comfortable week ahead. He nearly threw his book out of his arms when someone tapped him on the shoulder, but he settled for snapping it shut…on his tie. Great job. He opens it and sets it down before turning to see the two he met earlier. He adjusted his glasses and gives a small smile. Patton was squatting next to him, and Roman was standing a foot or so behind him. Logan went back to his textbook when it seemed like the two weren’t about to start talking. He was paying enough attention to hear the sounds of two backpacks thudding to the ground as well as some footsteps and two people sitting down. As long as they didn’t try to hurt him everything would be fine. They didn’t seem like they had any malice directed at him, so maybe he could focus a bit more on his studies, maybe he could trust them? No definitely not, no way, even Virgil would say it’s a bad idea he bets. Plus, it seems like they’re talking now Logan you might want to listen.

“so, what’re you doing hanging out here dude? You don’t have any extra crap like Vee does?” Logan tilts his head over at Patton who is the one talking, very quietly in fact.

“oh uh, not that start yet. I plan on joining gsa and maybe the debate team? I do not know quite yet, Virgil usually helps me make decisions as I am quite indecisive. Also, he owes me dinner tonight, and as much as I would usually let him off, he said he would take me to Olive Garden and while I logically know its objectively bad Italian food, it is a guilty pleasure of mine that I have been craving. Thus, why I am sitting here studying and waiting for him to be done with practice.” He says rather easily. There’s a beat of silence before Patton speaks again.

“so how long have you two been a thing?” Logan squints in confusion.

“um, I am not quite sure as to what you are talking about? If you are inquiring about our relationship, I cannot quite remember. I think I was about 3?” there is sputtering, and Logan is only even more confused.

“you’ve been dating since you were 3!?!?! Please tell me you’re joking?!” ohhh. Oh, that makes more sense now.

“oh no, I seem to have misunderstood you. Virgil and I are in a completely platonic relationship. We have been friends for that long.” There was a sigh of relief as well as a small giggle that sounded, and the giggle set Logan’s chest into overdrive, gosh that must have been Roman and that was the literal sound that happens when you ascend past this mortal world; pure and hopeful and did Logan just actually die? That’s the only reasonable explanation. Welp he said he platonically loved Virgil before he went to practice so no reason to regret. Wait what’s that voice.

“Pat you should have known, he literally walked over and said you were cute while dragging him along. You’d have to be really silly to drag your boyfriend along to call someone cute! I mean unless you’re poly but most teenagers don’t mess around with polygamy in high school and I dunno, but I told you!” the giggle sounded again, and Logan managed to turn to him in time to see the large toothy smile that broke out on the near charcoal skinned beauty. And yup, Logan was so gone. Virgil owes him dinner for a week now yup that’s what’s happening.

“um, are you ok Logan? Logan? Do you need to go to the nurse’s office?” that pulled him right back.

“what?! No! um, I mean, I’m fine it’s just uh, it’s a bit warm don’t you think, I mean it’s august and I’ve worn dark colors all day its fine I just need to cool down for a sec sorry.” Oh no there went his metaphorical chill. He used contractions! Gosh how could he have done this it’s embarrassing he wanted to be cool and calm and now he looks like a complete imbecile. Of course it was just then that the whistle ending practice sounded. There was shouting and running and suddenly Logan grabbed his bag and started packing hurriedly before standing.

“I uh, I am sorry, but I must be leaving, I hope to see you both tomorrow?” he rushed while trying to remain calm. Of course, the two others stood, and Patton gave a smirk.

“well we might bump into each other tonight. I was actually taking Roman to OG for his birthday dinner tonight as well. Maybe we can hang there, god knows with sports for him and theatre for Ro, it’ll be hard to chill anywhere else. I’ll be sure to book a table for 4.” Oh shit. That cheeky goth just winked. Oh god what does that mean what is he planning what did he just sign up for??? He nods, and waves then bolts to the locker room.

Logan was a regular there, as he had accompanied Virgil to every tryout for the team, so when the guys saw him, they paid no mind. He walked to the hallway directly next to where he knew Virgil was and slid to the floor, covering his face and pushing his glasses up to rest on his head. Virgil peeked his head around and snickered softly as he rushed to finish getting ready. When he was finished, he tapped Logan on the shoulder and they started on their way.

“I might have accidentally signed us up for something and I need you to promise not to yell because its freaking me out too and you yelling would make it worse ok? And I know you don’t yell at me but yelling in general might cause a panic attack right now” Logan blurted out while they were walking. He is acutely ware of the fact that he’s fidgeting with his tie but he’s nervous ok? Cut him some slack! Virgil glances over to him with a curious look as well as a promise in his eyes. They’ve learned to communicate without words after as long as they’ve been friends.

“well uh, you know how we are going to Olive Garden? Well apparently Patton and Roman were going too and Patton said he was going to get us a table for 4 and I sort of want to just go home and curl up in a ball but also like Roman’s voice is so nice and his giggle is like literal angel bells Virgil, his giggle is the sound that you hear after you die and I cannot handle it Virgil what have you done I knew I was gay but this is a lot and I don’t know what to do Virgil what do I do?” Virgil had to set his hand on Logan’s shoulder to help ground the now panicking boy. After taking a deep breath and calming down a bit he looks over to see Virgil with a small smile on his face. He takes his hand off his shoulder as he speaks.

“first off dude, I wouldn’t yell at you or near you if I have the choice, you know me I hate losing my temper. Secondly, that’s pretty cool! I did wanna hang out with them more they seem really interesting. Thirdly, it seems like you’ve found your dream guy lo. I’m glad I could drag you headfirst into your destiny. Just be yourself and everything will be fine. Plus, the kid looks like head over heels for you too. So just relax and go with the flow. You’ve got this.”

They both gave each other a look of confidence and a nod as they headed to the dreaded Olive Garden meet up. Will they survive? Maybe. Will they realize just how totally gay they are for the goth and the nerd? Most definitely. But the only way to know is to stay tuned!

thank you for reading!!!

[anjelica-grey]

Fictober Day 30: “Do we really have to do this again?”

From the Fictober 2018 Prompt List.

Fandom: Dragon Age

Rating: T

In which the Theirins and their tenants make Halloween plans.

The residents of Vigil House were arguing, as usual.

It was a crisp Saturday in late October, and Elissa Cousland-Theirin surveyed her young tenants fondly. Not so long ago, she remembered sitting in the huge foyer of the estate she’d inherited, and thinking only of how the gloomy place reminded her of loved ones lost and dreams relinquished. She’d been hesitant when Alistair suggested renting out rooms to students from nearby Amaranthine University, but had ultimately given into his characteristic enthusiasm ... and she was glad. They’d never been able to have children of their own, but somehow, living among their offbeat collection of renters had soothed a bit of that old pain and restored a sense of family she’d almost forgotten.

And like many families, they disagreed on a wide variety of subjects. Today, it was Halloween planning.

“Ugh, do we really have to do this again? Why do I even bother trying to plan anything with you guys? If we’re not going to get out and see the fall colors, what is the point?”

Elissa hid a grin behind her hand. The complaint came from Velanna, a lovely blond history major with a minor, oddly enough, in botany. “The girl cracks me up,” she’d told Alistair one evening. “She looks like she should call herself Leaf while introducing you to her boyfriend Pinecone at the Peace-and-Love Tree-Hugging Festival of Mud. But if so, she either missed out on what the other hippies were smoking, or ended on a bad trip, because she’s always about three words away from being pissed right off.” His chuckle had faded into concern, and he’d worried that Velanna was trapped in some dangerous situation. Elissa had kissed him with a smile. “Immediately wanting to help everyone is so you, my love. But no, I think she’ll be fine. She’s hinted at some family issues, and I expect she’ll open up eventually.” It hadn’t happened yet, but luckily the others were more inclined to roll their eyes than get offended.

“Ooh, we could carve pumpkins! That would be outdoorsy, plus we could use them to decorate! It would be so much fun!”

If Velanna was the angriest hippie, Sigrun was the cheeriest goth. Even shorter than the willowy blond, she was rounded and perky, wearing her dark hair in pigtails, but the girl-next-door look was offset by bold makeup and an angular symbol tattooed on her face. Today, she wore black leggings and motorcycle boots beneath a fluffy orange skirt covered in glittery silver bats, and a hoodie embellished with the words, “Sometimes I wrestle with my demons but sometimes we just snuggle.” Unlike Velanna, the geology major had been breezily open about her past, and she’d been through hardships Elissa could scarcely comprehend. When asked how she got through it all with such a positive attitude, she’d shrugged. “The worst has already happened, so there’s nowhere to go but up, right?” Sigrun reminded her of Alistair in some ways; she’d come through darkness unspoiled, and she was always quick with a smile or a hug.

“If pumpkin-carving parties have beer, I’m in.”

Oghren reacted to their disapproving glares with a smirk and a belch, showing his usual class. Of all the residents, he was the one Elissa had the toughest time making up her mind about. He was in the criminal justice program, but she couldn’t say whether he wanted to stop crime or learn how to get away with it, and she’d never seen him with a book. On the other hand, he valued his spot on the rugby team, and never missed a practice or a workout—though it was a mystery how, given his seemingly constant partying. She wondered yet again if his crass, off-putting behavior was a cover for emotions he lacked the capacity to process, if it was a sign of borderline alcoholism, or if he was just that shallow. It seemed she might never know.

“Mixing big knives and alcohol? Sure, I can’t imagine how that could possibly go wrong.”

The sandy-haired nursing major was the next to chime in. Anders lay on the floor playing with their cat, Urth (short for Urthemeow; one day she’d learn to stop letting her husband name the pets). Alistair had taken Barkspawn along when he left to run errands, so the dainty black Tevene long-hair was making the most of the undivided attention. Anders caught her looking, and grinned at her with the easy charm that explained how he’d spent the previous semester on friends’ couches. It would doubtless give him phenomenal bedside manner when he finished his schooling, but at present seemed more geared toward being in beds than out of them. She had to admit his flirtatious teasing fluttered her pulse now and then, a fact which had caused Alistair to vacillate between a glare and a pout whenever the young man was around—until she’d set out to convince him no one else could steal her heart. Elissa smirked, remembering. The dinner she’d made him, with his favorite cheesecake for dessert, had been nice. But the second dessert course lasted much longer. And involved lingerie. They may also have found additional uses for the leftover chocolate syrup and whipped cream. After that, Alistair declared himself thoroughly convinced, and was rather more kindly disposed to their resident cat lover.

“If we decorate, we’ll have to give out candy. It wouldn’t be fair to raise kids’ hopes with a big festive display and then have nothing for them.”

It always amused her that, despite Oghren’s major, the one who was most concerned with justice was Kristoff. She found it interesting he’d become friends with Anders; other than their mutual compassion for humanity, two more different people could hardly be imagined. Where Anders wore his golden hair long, with a flirty smile in his warm brown eyes and a joke at the ready, Kristoff’s dark hair was shaved to the skull, and he often reacted to humor with a distant silver stare of incomprehension. Nonetheless, Elissa was fond of the awkward young man, and impressed by his commitment to his studies in investigative journalism, a field he’d pursued as long as he could remember. Careful to ensure everyone got their chance to speak, he turned to the final member of the group. “What do you think we should do?” he asked.

“We ... we used to put up a ton of decorations at home; I highly doubt anyone’s using them now. I could ask my sister where they are, I guess. If you want.”

Elissa’s heart went out to the pain in Nathaniel Howe’s voice, despite the spiky stare that challenged anyone to mock him. Sadly, he had good reason for it. He was the son of the former governor of Amaranthine, a well-known business tycoon. Until a year ago, he’d had his own expensive loft in a trendy part of town along with anything else he wanted. But then his dad was charged with embezzlement and sent to prison after an extremely public trial. All their assets were seized. Nate’s sister was married and cushioned from the worst deprivations, but the pale, dark-haired young man with the wounded grey eyes had lost his apartment, his car, and all his more shallow friends. The defeat in his posture when he’d asked the price of the room stuck with her, but he’d persevered, and continued to work toward his degree in finance. She wondered though, without the influence of his demanding father, how long it would be before he reconsidered his interests in life.

“That’s a great idea, Nate,” Elissa said, giving him a warm smile. “More decorations would be lovely. So I guess our next step is to shop for pumpkins—which we will not be carving while drunk, thank you very much—and, what else? Oh, yes, candy.”

“Did someone say candy?” Alistair’s voice preceded him into the sitting room, until he appeared a moment later looking like a refugee from a grocery bag factory.

Elissa blinked. “Alistair? Exactly how many of those bags are filled with Halloween candy?”

“... a few?” he dissembled, setting down his haul. At her stern glare, he broke. “All right, so I may have gone a little overboard on supplies. But ... but ‘Liss, I never got to do Halloween as a kid. You can’t blame me for being excited ... can you?” He looked down at her with those bottomless golden puppy-dog eyes, and she sighed in defeat.

“You’re lucky I love you, Mr. Theirin,” she grumbled.

“Most definitely, Mrs. Theirin,” he said, pulling her out of her seat to enfold her in sweet kisses.

“Ugh, get a room, you two,” Anders teased, and they laughed.

For a collection of all my Fictober 2018 one-shots, check out Windows in Autumn on AO3.

[dantediscoversfic]

Chapter 40: The Crap Cave

“Dante! You found us!” Clio said as I hovered awkwardly in the doorway of the art room that first day of school during lunch period.

She bounded over and grabbed my elbow to draw me into the oddly dark classroom. The overhead lights were all off, the window shades partially drawn down and gloomy pop music I vaguely recognized as The Cure droned from a cassette player. About ten kids were sprawled out around the room, most of them sporting various degrees of punk/goth/New Waver style. Two corset-clad girls in billowy skirts drew intricate designs on each other’s arms in black pen; a couple dressed in “normal” clothes was making out with gusto in the corner by the potter wheels; a boy wearing all black continually skimmed his pointer finger over the top of a Bic lighter flame; and the rest were eating lunch, chatting, scribbling in notepads or singing along to the music. Clio flicked the overhead lights a few times to get everyone’s attention, eliciting a few winces and hisses and boos from the group.

“Everyone, listen up, this is Dante. He’s new. He’s from Texas, but try not to hold that against him. He’s a brilliant artist. Dante, this is everyone. That’s Raija, Jane, Sachi, Fletch and Kelly back there sucking face, Joseph, Ann, Dave, Forest and Vee.”

I was greeted with a few head nods and finger waves, except for the couple making out who kept at it with sloppy yet admirable enthusiasm. Everyone went back to their conversations as Clio led me closer to the girls she’d pointed out as being named Jane and Sachi.

“So, Dante from Texas, welcome to 'The Crap Cave’”, Clio said using air quotes. “We have lit mag meetings here and also make our own ‘zines and stuff. Raija’s mom Ms. B is the art teacher—she just stepped out for a minute—so she doesn’t care if we hang out here as long as we don’t you know, perform ritual animal sacrifices or set anything on fire. Again.” She coughed pointedly in the direction of the boy with the lighter seated a few desks down from us and the girls chuckled. Seeing my apparent confusion she said, “See, Joseph’s a bit of a pyro and went through a destruction of property phase last year, didn’t you, Jo-Jo?” The boy in question grinned slyly up at us. “But he’s got it under control now,” Clio continued. “He channels his urges into sculptures where he can use an actual blowtorch from woodshop.”

“Blowtorches rule,” he said and cast me one more glance before focusing all his attention back to his lighter and intrepid pointer finger. I couldn’t help but notice that all his fingernails were painted black and he was wearing eyeliner and dark lipstick like the girls.

I pulled my gaze away from him, not wanting to stare too hard and be rude. “What did you call this room? The ‘crap cave’?” I asked Clio. “Did I hear that right?”

“Oh yeah, you heard me right.”

“Do I even want to know?”

Clio laughed. “Don’t look so scared, we know how to use the bathrooms like everyone else. It’s a sort of long story. You ever hear of The Batcave?”

“You mean like from Bat Man comics?”

“No. Well yes, but no. Same but different. The Batcave is this famous club in London for people like us. Bauhaus, Robert Smith, Siouxie, Nick Cave, Specimen all hang out and play there. Jane actually got to go there this summer, that lucky bitch,” Clio knocked Jane’s shoulder with friendly admiration. “So we kind of started calling it that in homage to the club like a year ago. But then the school had this gross mouse problem and their little poops were, like, this constant presence in our lives, so somewhere along the line we started calling it ‘The Crap Cave’ instead. Because that's how we roll.”

“The mice were perfect and adorable, not gross,” Sachi said.

“Sachi, no. Just no. The mice themselves might have been cute but their poops definitely weren’t.”

The two girls bantered about whether the mice should have been saved and kept as pets or if they were indeed an icky health hazard while I took everyone in, trying not to gawk, and sat down to eat my packed lunch. I was fascinated by the group’s collective style: a motley assortment of teased and spiked dyed hair, leather jackets, ripped band t-shirts, corsets and lace, fishnets, heavy boots, winged eyeliner, black lipstick and nail polish, powdered white faces, spiky hardware chain jewelry mixed with rosaries, crosses and pentagram necklaces. Some of the boys were even wearing makeup, which was something you hardly ever saw in El Paso. Joseph, the pyro boy, was particularly fascinating to me. His raven hair was teased out as much as Clio’s and his dramatic eye makeup accentuated his blue eyes and delicate, almost pretty features. The flame from his Bic lighter cast a warm glow on his ghostly pale skin.

Clio must have caught me staring because she leaned in close to my ear and said, “Don’t worry, Dante, we might look at little scary but we don’t bite. At least most of us don’t. Forest over there is saving up to get his teeth filed, but it’s not for blood sucking purposes. It’s because it’ll look badass.”

“Wow. My old school in El Paso was a Catholic private school so we all had to wear uniforms. It’s so cool you can wear whatever you want here. And be whoever you want. Do you all make your own clothes? I love your corsets,” I said to Jane and Sachi.

The girls grinned at me with approval and Clio said, “I knew you were a good egg, Dante. Jane made the corsets. She’s an amazing designer and sewer. I think the rest of us get by with thrift stores, hot glue and a crapload of paperclips.”

“I’ve never really thought about my clothes before,” I said. “But now I feel so boring compared to you all.”

“Aw, there’s nothing wrong with being a normie,” Clio said and patted me on the back. “It doesn’t make you boring.”

“Well, if you want to try something new, let me know,” Jane said. “Jo-Jo’s my twin brother. I make stuff for him all the time. Cravats, vests, things like that. I’m sure he’d let you borrow something.”

“Wow, thanks. You think I’d look good?”

“Yeah, for sure. But don’t let us pressure you. We dress like this because it feels right, right? But it’s not for everyone.”

The girls nodded.

“How did you all know you wanted to get into goth stuff?” I asked.

Jane said, “Well, for me, growing up I loved making clothes and dressing up since forever. Halloween was my always my favorite holiday. I was obsessed, like obsessed. Like I’d start planning my costume and how to decorate the house six months in advance. And after it was over each year, the next day I’d get so sad and cry for days and beg my mom to keep the decorations up and let me keep wearing a cape or whatever to school every day. So when I figured out that I could dress however I wanted whenever I wanted and basically have Halloween all year round and have my clothes express how I feel inside all the time, it was like a big weight was lifted.”

“Do people make fun of you?”

“I mean, sure, dicks are dicks,” Jane said.

“We get all sorts of ignorant comments at school, on the street, wherever. Like…‘Hey Morticia, Halloween is over,’” Clio lowered her voice to a dopey male grumble.

“Or ‘Errr….Do you sleep in a coffin?’” Jane said.

“Or ‘You look pretty hot for a dead girl!’” Sachi said.

“Or my personal favorite, the classic ‘Going to a funeral?’” Clio said with an epic eyeroll. “Yeah, your funeral if you don’t shut up about it. Please. But there are lots of people who aren’t asshats and you can just ignore the losers.”

“Yeah,” Sachi said. “People say things like ‘Oh, you’d look so pretty if you didn’t dress like that’ but this is how I feel pretty and beautiful. I didn’t feel right before. Now I feel good. Right. Like myself.”

“Raija’s mom is super cool because she’s an old hippie and gets it,” Clio said. “But my mom is still waiting and praying for the day when I let her dress me all in pink pouffy dresses again. Sorry Anita, not gonna happen.” There was an edge to Clio’s voice when she talked about her mom that I hadn’t heard from her yet. It made me wonder what her home life was like.

Sachi said, “Yeah, my parents were all worried at first that I was depressed and wanting to kill myself. They tried to have an intervention with all my aunties and cousins. ‘We’re worried about you, Sachi.’ ‘This isn’t the real you.’ Um, first off, yes it is. And second off, I’m so much happier now than before when I felt like a fake.”

“Yeah, people think that we do this for attention or as a cry for help or because we’re suicidal or worship Satan or are in a cult, but that’s not true at all,” Jane said. “I started making clothes for myself when I was ten. This isn’t a ‘phase’. I’m not going to just grow out of it.”

“And finding people who are into the same bands and fashion and movies and everything makes putting up with all the weird looks and comments easier. We’re here for each other, ” Sachi said.

“And sure, we get attention,” Clio said, “because we stand out with our awesome amazingness. But it’s not like we do it for attention.”

“Yeah, I totally get it.” I said. “I think it’s great.”

The girls smiled at me and I wondered how it would feel to dress like them, if that would feel ‘right’ for me or not. I understood what Sachi had said about feeling like a fake, though, and not liking how that made me feel. I felt that way when I used to tell people my name was Dan and not Dante. I felt that way still, a little. Because I didn’t quite know what it meant to be totally free and open with myself and the world and the universe. Not when it came to the biggest secret I had. In El Paso, I felt like I already stood out by not looking Mexican enough, by liking art and poetry and books and astronomy too much. It was enough to blend in and not get teased or bullied for being a little strange. Now I wondered if I flipped the script and really tried to stand out—if I dressed all in black and put on makeup and spiked my hair and embraced my innate weirdness—if that would make me feel more like me. It might make me feel tough and cool and badass for a little while, but I doubted it would make me feel more like myself the way it did for this group. How did I know, though? I’d never tried it before.

I wondered what Ari would think of my new friends. I bet he’d like them. And then I wondered what Ari would look like in black nail polish and eyeliner. I bet he’d look like a dark glamorous rock star. The thought did funny things to my insides.

Then the art teacher, Ms. Baldwin a.k.a. Raija’s mom, came in. She had gray hair in a long braid all the way down her back and wore a long flowy dress and bangle bracelets. She turned the overhead lights on and said, “Hey darklings, the cruel daylight beckons. Gotta get ready for the next class. Lunch is over in five. And you two, yoo-hoo, Earth to Fletch and Kelly! Please rein in your raging hormones during lunch if at all humanly possible? I can’t have anyone getting pregnant on school grounds.” Everyone cracked up at that and Fletch and Kelly turned beet red but finally disentangled their entwined limbs (and tongues).

I had an art class with Ms. Baldwin later in the day so I introduced myself.

“Hi, I’m Dante Quintana, I’m in your painting class during sixth period.”

“Dante, it’s so nice to meet you. You’re new, yes? This lot showing you the ropes?”

“Yes, Clio invited me to eat lunch with her and be part of lit mag.”

“That would be lovely. I’m the advisor, so I’m sure I’ll be seeing a lot of you. How are you finding Chicago? Settling in all right?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Ma’am! Please, call me Ms. B. Where are you from?”

“El Paso.”

“Ah. I’ve only been there once. EPMA is a lovely museum. Have you been to the Art Institute yet?”

“No, I haven’t.”

“We’ll be doing a field trip later in the year, but if you are a lover of art you must go. It’s one of the prides of Chicago.”

“Thanks, Ms. B, I will.”

"Now if you’ll excuse me, Dante, I have to prep for next period. See you in a few hours!”

Ms. B went over to her daughter Raija, who had been sitting off to herself drawing in a sketchpad for most of lunch, and gave her a quick side hug before disappearing into a supply closet. Since everyone else was getting packed up I ate the rest of my lunch quickly and consulted my schedule to see where I was headed next.

“You’re in sixth period drawing?” I looked up and saw it was Joseph who had asked me the question. Standing up instead of hunched over the desk I saw how truly long and lanky he was. He was about a foot taller than me.

I nodded up at him and tried to smile but had a hard time keeping eye contact.

“Cool. Me too.”

He flicked his lighter a few times in his right hand and then grinned a lopsided grin at me before heading out into the hallway right as the bell rang.

This was shaping up to be a much different first day of school than I had expected.

[q-cumb2r]

 The Fool and The Phony

Cw: sympathetic Deceit 

Chapter 2 - Reflection

1 2 3 4 5 6

He traverses past green hills and purple fields. He roams over giggling rivers and sleeping mountains. And at the depths of the whispering forest he finds a cottage. He has yet to meet any monsters or devils and he doubts he will but he clutches his sword either way. The door opens with a whimper and he walks in silently as he listens and looks around him in the dark. Nothing. Nothing but dust, mold and rotten wood. He gently puts down his sword and lights a candle. As light fills the room the old cottage seems to sigh. He walks around, inspecting his surroundings. There are old books in a nonsense language and a variety of plants and herbs from the forest scattered around on the floor and the table at the center of the room. A broom is leaning against the wall in the corner. What is this place? It's the kind of house that seems as if it always has looked old even when it wasn’t.

In a different room stands a worn vanity with a broken mirror front of the farthest wall. He puts the candle on it surface and inspects the mirror. It wasn't broken by falling or by someone punching it, it seemed to have cracked by itself. Maybe by a high-pitched scream. Maybe by a witch who saw herself in the mirror and discovered she was turning into a dragon. Who knows. He looks at himself in the mirror. The different shards of the glass there seem to reflect different people even though they all share the same face. One shard shows an eye of a snake. It blinks kindly at him even though he didn't blink himself. He reaches towards the mirror and suddenly he’s-

“Roman, were you even listening?”

“Wha- ...hmm? No, not really to be honest.”

Roman realizes that he’s been sitting here on the couch staring blankly at the living room wall for a tad too long. Logan looks sharply at him.

“We have to turn in this project tomorrow and you're just going to zone out?”

Roman instinctively clings himself to the couch as if he might fall.

“Wh-, why am I supposed to do it? Isn't school work your business?”

“Correct, but this is an art project and I consider that your expertise.”

“Well consider this brainboy, I have better things to do!”

The door suddenly violently flings open. Anxiety barges into the room with nothing but anger and panic written on his face.

“Can you guys like stop fighting for like two minutes, you're stressing me out!”

“Oh fantastic, Gloomy Night by Van Goth has arrived.”

Logan rolls his eyes at Roman.

“We can keep our voices down Anxiety, don't worry.” he says while adjusting his glasses.

“Thanks. Now if you don't mind, I'm going to go back to my room and stare at a wall while contemplating existence.”

“I'd never thought I'd say this but I'd rather stare at a wall with Finding Emo over here than do that art project” Roman says lifting an eyebrow.

“Well tough luck Princey, I'm not letting you.” Anxiety says with a sneer, then he turns his heel and walks out.

Logan clicks a pen in his hand and glares at Roman.

“What?” says Roman being a bit annoyed.

“The project is not going to finish itself, you know.”

Logan starts walking towards the door.

“The project is not going to finish itself you know” Roman repeats to himself in a mocking voice.

“Hm, what's that?”

Logan turns his head.

“Nothing! Go away!”

Logan raises his eyebrows to himself and walks out the room firmly closing the door behind him.

Twenty minutes pass and all Roman has in front of him is a cardboard box, papers in a variety of funky colors and a jar of glitter, none of which have been assembled in any meaningful way. He’s sitting on the carpet with his head lying sideways on the coffee table as he rolls the jar back and forth.

“You're giving me creative block, you mellow submarine!” he shouts towards the ceiling.

“Not my problem, buddy!” Anxiety shouts back from his room right above.

Roman groans in annoyance. He’s not getting anything done. And also, what was he thinking with this glitter anyway? He doesn't like glitter at all. He's fifteen and Very Straight so why would he ever think to use glitter? This whole thing feels meaningless. There’s places to be and things to see and here he sits with a cardboard box. He doesn’t even know what the art project is about. Logan told him about it when he was zoning out and was too annoyed to tell him again. It’s not his fault that you can’t listen to Logan talk more than two minutes without dozing off! He rolls the jar all the way to the edge of the table until it falls and lands on the carpet with a thump. Two black shoes appear next to the jar. Roman looks up and sees a side that looks a bit familiar. He wears a yellow button-up shirt, black suspenders, white gloves and a bowtie, his hair is short and the left side of his face resembles that of a reptile. Roman has seen him before but he isn’t too sure of who he was or is what he represents.

“I’ve been told to stay away from you. The others find you a bit kooky.” Roman says.

“Well they don’t know me, do they?” the other side responds.

“I’m not sure. I certainly don’t.”

The other side gives him a warm smile.

“I’m Honesty. My name is Candor.”

taglist: @5am-the-foxing-hour @axyzel @tatorqueen @bluenailedicebear @bosmeri-alyd @elusivefalsehoods @shadra220 @sevencrashing @royallyanxious @pailettehazel

[miphastudies]

17 Questions for 17 People

Thanks @its-bianca​ for tagging me in this! Sorry it’s taken so long, we’re in a third lockdown and I’m pretty sure my body thinks that time no longer exists.

Nicknames: Kim, Kimbo, Kimberlim, Kimothy, Kimberley Dibberley (For some reason my family thought that a nickname based off Cat’s other personality from Red Dwarf, Dwayne Dibberley, was funny and it’s stuck with me my whole life), as well as KIIII (shouted by my sister when she was about 2 and couldn’t pronounce my name, my best friend now yells it when she wants my attention) and Kim-Kim by my Dad who refuses to believe I’ve grown up (beats Kimberley Dibberley any day) 

Height: 5'9 - towering over most men is fun, I suggest it to all of you, I’d rather round it up to six foot, but I probs stopped growing at 20.

Hogwarts House: Well I got Gryffindor when I first went on that site, but being my goth self I had to take the test again until I got Slytherin - as far as I remember I had unicorn hair (or horn?) or something of the like in my wand but I’m not gonna fuel JK’s anti-trans pockets by visiting Pottermore ever again. 

Last thing I googled: The soundtrack for Futurama’s Luck of the Fryrish episode, I knew Simple Minds were on it but I could’ve sworn Baker Street by Gerry Rafferty was on it, but apparently not. I spent a good half hour trying to sing it into google with their new song-analysis thing to no avail, so I ended up siphoning through all the songs Lisa Simpson has ever played on her Sax to find out what it was (I should be doing my dissertation proposal but my tutors haven’t got back to me yet so what can ye do).

Song stuck in my head: yknow wha I’m just gonna list the songs that have been stuck in my head so far today because it’s too many to be just one as I keep cycling through them (also gonna link them so you can see how garbo weird my music taste is)

Run - Joji Alive - Pearl Jam Clinging On For Life - The Hoosiers Tension - Avenged Sevenfold  Boots of Spanish Leather - Bob Dylan Nutshell - Alice in Chains Jaded - Aerosmith  The Sea of Tragic Beasts - Fit For an Autopsy 

I’ll add my current favourite at the bottom too for good measure (Honestly I spend way too much time listening to music and I regret nothing)

Number of followers: Currently 85. I’ve got about 2k on my main blog but I’ve not touched that since July 2017.

Amount of sleep: Good lord, so I aim for 8 hours, sometimes I only get 5.5 or something along those lines, other times I depression nap during the day and can’t sleep at all, sometimes (like this morning) I’ll go to get up at a normal person time such as 9am when my body naturally wakes me up, but it’s so dark and gloomy outside and cold in my room that I just stay in bed and end up accidentally falling back asleep. 12pm gang rise up xo 

Lucky number: 7

Dream Job: Hopefully I get somewhat successful in monetising my hobbies, I’m working on it all atm (I don’t know why but I really hate telling people about my plans because I’m deathly afraid they’ll mock me or do whatever they can to ensure it doesn’t happen, I’ve got this list of things I need to do for my own mental health sellotaped to my laptop stand that had things like when to clean the house, do my laundry, shower, exercise etc, and my old flatmate/friend saw it the other week and mocked me, so I haven’t followed it since and need to find some sort of other way of organising my life instead). But yeah, hopefully hobby based, I don’t want to be stuck in an office job all my life, and I want to leave the UK (although I don’t want to leave my family) so hopefully I’ll be successful enough to bring em all with me.

Wearing: Well I was gonna wear jeans and my Unus Annus longsleeve but I decided to go full kitchen witch and wear this black milkmaid looking dress with long sleeves that I’d bought for work when I got my thigh tattoo started (all the old men appreciated the legs but I didn’t make any more tips, oops)

Favourite song: My favourite song of all time would be The Verve’s Bittersweet Symphony , the band formed at my college, has great meaning and has resonated with me since I first saw the music video after it was played at my Stepdad’s funeral in 2002. Weirdly enough on my last day of college, right after my last exam, I went to get the bus home - put my Spotify on shuffle (bearing in mind I’ve got 805 songs on this playlist) and this came on straight away. That’s probably not important to most people, but being pagan, I like to think that small things like these are signs from loved ones that have since passed. Not too happy that it’s used as the England Rugby theme because it gives me anxiety every time as though I feel like everyone hearing it doesn’t have the same emotional connection with the song as I do, but idk. I saw Richard Ashcroft live and he played this and I legit bawled my eyes out in public, safe to say I’ll try and hold it in next time. I suggest you all have a listen to the song or even watch the music video for it, it’s the most simple but most meaningful music video to me. 

Favourite Instrument: I’m left handed and I had this Yamaha acoustic guitar that my stepdad gave me - and taught me to play when I was about 5, a few months before he died (it’s still weird to me that I had no idea he had cancer at that point and instead spent his last few months teaching me his favourite hobbies) all he had was right handed guitars, so he taught me to play Metallica’s Nothing Else Matters upside down on this 20 odd year old right handed acoustic. He hadn’t played upside down himself before but did it so I could see what he was doing. I remember sitting in our green living room on the couch with him moving my hands to the right position (I don’t know where my mum was in this scenario, probably in the kitchen). He’d brought this guitar with him the first day I met him, it was probably like 11pm but I was 4 and thought it was 3am or something, but I heard voices coming from the living room and had gone to investigate - there sat my mum and my stepdad having Chinese on the living room floor, laughing together, my stepdad saw me and had brought sweets for me and my brother for when we woke up, but he beckoned me over, gave me a lollipop, stuck a two litre bottle of tizer in front of me and told me to dip the lollipop in the drink and lick it (not a good idea as I would’ve been bouncing off the walls, but I think I must’ve had a sugar crash and fallen asleep). My mum had no idea he was coming as he’d sneakily been texting her, asking what her favourite drink was, her favourite food and flowers etc, after they met in a pub when my mum was at a hostel with my brother after my Dad had taken me. My mum told him that the council had given her a place and he decided to show up and surprise her with all her favourite things and play guitar for her after my brother and I had gone to bed, I don’t remember much time passing before we’d moved into his house (where my mum and her new husband live to this day), but they got married a few months later and I still can’t play that Metallica song (I did try to teach myself more of it though). I also had this black left handed Ibanez prestige that my Dad got me for Christmas about 9 years ago, I could play quite a lot on it but eventually just stopped. Very good at piano though. 

Aesthetic: I’m not sure what this entails but I’m a sucker for neon/RGB/cityscapes and that type of malarkey. Also space. Love da space.  Also whatever Cornwall would be considered as. Cottagecore? I think that’s only an animal crossing related aesthetic but I’m claiming it nonetheless. 

Favourite Author: I’m a big goth so it has to be Stephen King by default. I’ve got copious first editions of his books from the 70′s and 80′s that my Mum bought when she was a teen. At my flat I’ve got Carrie, Christine, Salem’s Lot, Misery and The Shining first editions and the others are in my room at my Mum’s house. I don’t tend to read for joy like I used to, or write for fun either but I’m hoping I do more in 2021. Currently reading The Outsider by King, it sounds eerily familiar to a novel I wrote for coursework in college in 2014 and I’m half pressed to think he’s stole my brain ideas. I’m watching you Stephen. Always watching. Always. 

Favourite animal sounds: I don’t have favourite sounds, but my husky Nanook is my favourite animal because he’s dumb and I love him. Also Kookaburra sounds are terrifying and you all should go listen to what a koala sounds like. When I go to Adelaide (hopefully this year, if not next) I am NOT stepping foot in a nature reserve unless I’ve got an anti-kookaburra noise suit on. They obviously don’t exist so I’m gonna have to make one.

Random: I’m part of a viking reenactment group where they use actual swords and fight each other, and we have to basically sign our lives away when we join, to say that if we die, it’s not the groups fault. I don’t actually do the fighting though, I’m part of the villager group, so I do all the crafting and food making and most of the teaching when we do shows. I’ve not yet been to a show as I’ve had uni to go to, but my parents, sister and brother do - They stayed within Whitby Abbey last year during the Viking festival where everyone did the show and the adults got drunk round campfires in the castle grounds. Zacky Vengeance once complimented my shirt if that’s something. I’m also colourblind, got glared at by Liam Gallagher in the Liverpool Echo Arena parking lot and have too accurate a sense of smell.

Sorry this was so long, obviously I felt like word-dumping and my brain has a lot to say as I find too much meaning in these things.  Thanks again for tagging me! I’ve not got 17 people to tag as I don’t interact with anyone at the moment but I’ll come back to this and add people as the week progresses :)