#because i had to troll baz just a little bit

[palimpsessed]

My piece for the 2024 COAR! I chose this lovely scene by the lovely @rimeswithpurple of Snowbaz making out their wedding gift thank you cards.

Thank you @coartremix for running this event!

A few notes:

I immediately knew I had to draw the reverse scene, of Snowbaz opening their gifts, which were helpfully listed in the notes on the original artwork.

Since Baz was addressing Jamie’s card in the original, I made his gift the one being opened in my scene. (I chose the adventure set portable speakers as they seemed fitting for the whirlwind lifestyle of these newlyweds. And the wave blue color matches their walls. That’s something Jamie would think of, right?) On the topic of color names, the cake stand base is rose. Rose colored glass. Does that not scream Lady Ruth?

Simon got a little carried away trying to “place” the knives in the knife block. And Spadey got a little carried away trying to get a tail start on his reading list. (Baz had to intervene.)

For your hidden pictures hunting pleasure: crystal ball, handcuffs, cake dome, knife block, knife set, books.

[you-remind-me-of-the-babe]

Gonna start this with a little plug for @carryon-reverse-bang because posting starts today! 🙌 If you are participating, make sure you @ the blog when promoting your work on tumblr and we will be sure to reblog.

Speaking of, I’m sharing a bit from my own CORB fic that is live today titled How to Avoid a Scandal. (The fake dating, friends to lovers, Hollywood AU one.) My Penny/Shep fic Trapped will go live on AO3 on Wednesday.

On to the snippet. A little context: in this fic, Simon and Baz are costars on a show called The World of Mages. (Think angsty teen soap, but fantasy.) Although most of the fic takes place in their real lives, I thought it would be fun to intersperse some script excerpts throughout the fic. So I’m sharing one of those today.

FADE IN:

EXT. CASTLE RAMPARTS - DAY

SILAS looking pensively off a parapet.

SILAS SNOW (Voice Over)

I always thought The World of Mages was just something from my imagination.

A place I could escape to when the world became too much.

CUT TO:

INT. BEDROOM - NIGHT

We see a BOY on a bunk bed in a crowded room, dark but for a sliver of light from an open door. MUTED ARGUING offscreen.

SILAS SNOW (Voice Over)

Like when I couldn’t sleep the first night with a new foster family.

CUT TO:

EXT. BACKYARD - DAY

GROUP OF BOYS is obviously excluding BOY

SILAS SNOW (Voice Over)

Or when none of the boys wanted to let me join their football matches.

CUT BACK TO:

EXT. CASTLE RAMPARTS - DAY

SILAS swinging a sword

SILAS SNOW (Voice Over)

I could go there, in my head, and have magical adventures instead.

I could fight dragons and goblins, cast spells, and be the hero.

Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought that it was real.

PULL BACK to reveal the rest of the castle, with pixies flying past, a troll walking across a drawbridge and two young mages practicing spell work in front of the castle.

SILAS SNOW (Voice Over)

(whispers)

It was real.

Massive credit due to @whatevertheweather for helping me to format this better and for adding the background descriptions for what is happening in the shot. Originally I just had the monologue/voice over written out and I think it reads a million times better this way!

Sorry this was so long! If you read this far ily! Tags and hello to @whatevertheweather @fatalfangirl @cutestkilla @captain-aralias (can’t wait to read your own fake dating, friends to lovers CORB!) @facewithoutheart @martsonmars @angelsfalling16 @aroace-genderfluid-sheep @artsyunderstudy @forabeatofadrum @sillyunicorn @urban-sith @mrskrementz @gekkoinapeartree @excalisbury @bookish-bogwitch @moodandmist @bazzybelle @takitalks @toonysart @frjsti @aristocratic-otter @prettylightsbigcity @tea-brigade @palimpsessed @confused-bi-queer @letraspal @johnwgrey @ivelovedhimthroughworse @basiltonbutliketheherb and anyone else who wants to play 💛

[thehoneyedhufflepuff]

hey! you're one of (if not my favorite) fanfic writers, and i just love your writing style. do you have any tips? i'm struggling with writing fanfiction, and i'm currently trying to write and original novel but am having a hard time sorting out certain aspects of the plot and putting events in chronological order.

Hi there!

Apologies for taking a minute to answer this! It’s been on my mind since you sent it though. And I have to say that this is so kind of you. I think I speak for many creatives when I say that hearing your work & style is someone’s favorite is...hell, I don’t even know what to say. It means SO much, because I think we tend to be our own worst critics & beat ourselves up for the things we feel we’re lacking instead of seeing the good sometimes. So thank you so much. 💜

As far as advice...I don’t know if I’m in a position to give very good advice at the moment (I’ve just come out of a bit of a writing hiatus myself) but I will try! I actually just stopped writing for the night to come answer this ask, because words are just not working for me tonight.

So...I finished one original novel about 12 years ago (& no, it will never see the light of day LOL) (though I did get a small scene of it published in my community college’s anthology, so maybe it’s not as awful as I remember) & have considered another over the years, but I’ve gotten caught up in the hows before too. I guess the first thing I’d like to say is that getting caught up or having a hard time sorting things out is normal. (I used to think it just meant I wasn’t cut out to be a writer, that this stuff came easy to everyone else. It doesn’t mean either of those things at all.) I think that sometimes we forget how other writers struggle when all we see is their finished product, right? In reality I feel like we’re all screaming internally. Or at least most of us are. It’s not always hard, but a lot of the time it is! And that’s okay!

The closest I’ve got to writing something “original” lately is with my characterization of Dev & Niall in Between the Lines, & once BTL is done I might tinker with it to see about adapting it into a novel. We’ll see. I use this fic as an example primarily because it’s gotten so long, & I often struggle with it in terms of “what happens between this point & this one,” & because it’s challenged me a lot. I’m going to try to think up some things that have helped me as I’ve written it, & maybe they’ll be helpful for you too?

Something I think about often is how GRR Martin talks about writers in terms of architects & gardeners, which is the idea that some writers know everything that’ll happen from the start & stick to their outline (architects) while others sort of just wing it & the story grows as they write (gardener). IDK that anyone is only one vs the other, but if I had to pick I’d say I’m a gardener type. (Which is how I’ve ended up with a fic that’s nearly 200k lmao god.) I feel like sometimes not knowing what happens next keeps me from writing. Trying to “figure it out” can almost become a form of procrastination for me. So if that’s relatable to you, I’d say the best thing to do is just write. You don’t have to know everything. I’d argue that you don’t even have to know all that much. Sometimes once you start writing—& they don’t have to be good words, just words!—the story starts to weave itself. In the case of BTL, I’ve had some basic things I want to happen. We’ll call them points A — D. And while I’m trying to get from one point to the next, some stuff will happen on the side, or something wild will happen between points C & D that I wasn’t expecting, so now I have other things I need to address before moving on. Which brings me to my next point:

One of the best pieces of advice I ever saw on this site was this: a plot is a problem for the characters to solve. I’m paraphrasing. But the gist is that these solvable problems drive the story. Something I struggled with a lot when I was first starting BTL was plot. And then I realized I already had one. The plot centers around Baz’s mental health & how that affects his relationships. End goal is him & Simon living “realistically ever after” (& Dev & Niall, too!), but there are a lot of problems to solve on their way to that ending. And each problem solved leads to a new problem. (Which reminds me of that Simon quote from CO when they’re having their first kiss, lol.)

My point here is that you don’t need a big sweeping plot (unless of course that’s what you want). Everyday stuff can serve as a plot & guide you.

I hate to say this because I’m not sure it’s actually helpful, but the remedy here is just to write. I work a LOT more out by writing than I do by sitting around thinking about what to write. Sometimes the words come easy. A lot of the time it’s like pulling teeth. But they do come, & you’ll find that you’re figuring things out as you go.

Also, be kind to yourself. There was a while there where writing was ALL I was focused on. I’m currently trying to compartmentalize, because it’s almost like this story became my life. And while I do love it & want to write it & share it, I ended up overlooking other important things in my life in the name of worrying about writing. And so I am on a little journey to find balance now.

Also, it’s okay to write words that suck. Something I’ve experienced the last few days is feeling like the words I’m putting down are awful & out of character & this that or the other, BUT that’s what editing is for. It’s better to have mediocre first draft words down than no words at all. And a lot of the time, it turns out that the words I’ve written aren’t mediocre at all. I just wasn’t trusting the process while I was writing them. I was being too judgmental. Sometimes (a lot of the time) that judgment is really unnecessary. And sometimes our subconscious knows a lot more than we give it credit for.

...I feel like I’ve been rambling & I’m very unsure any of this is helpful at all, but I hope it is!

I went trolling through my blog because I know I’ve gotten asks similar to this before, but I only found one before I got tired lol (I should really put stuff like this under its own tag, whoops). I might’ve said something useful here. Also @vkelleyart shared some tips the other day that you might find helpful!

thanks so much again for the kind words!!! they really mean a lot. & i hope my answer here helps a bit. good luck with your stories!!! 💜

[diningpageantry]

Gay Vampire... Gampire?

Archive Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18215168/chapters/43207382

Chapter 5/10 of It’s A Handheld Disaster

Word Count: 1099

Chapter Summary: Joking conversations turn into genuine affection, blurring the lines of intimacy for the two boys.

SIMON

gaystrell: i'd be shocked to find out you don't look like a mountain troll

bi-sammy: t

bi-sammy: take that back

bi-sammy: coward

bi-sammy: bold words for a man who probably looks like a cryptid

gaystrell: you know i can't even argue against that

gaystrell: my friends say i look like i'm a step off from being an actual vampire, so i can't say i don't look like a cryptid

bi-sammy: wait

bi-sammy: you what

bi-sammy: im actually cackling please tell me youre kidding

gaystrell: all but the teeth, baby

bi-sammy: thats so fucking funny holy shit what

bi-sammy: your new name is vampire

bi-sammy: gay vampire

bi-sammy: gampire

gaystrell: you know how easily i can hit block, right?

bi-sammy: oh no! mr. gampire threatens me!

I keep a hand clasped over my face, snorting quietly. In attempts to be quiet, I hope the hand over my face is silencing enough that it doesn't annoy the other visitors (or get me kicked out).

The tiniest part of me wants to ask something I've wanted to know for a while, but the rational part of me is too scared to ask. How do you even bring that up? “Hey I know we're online pals, but I have no idea what you actually look like. Would you mind flipping on that little camera and snapping a pic? Just real quick? So I know I'm not mad and slightly crushing over a faceless arsehole who gets me to laugh like crazy?”

gaystrell: what, do your friends not say you look like something ridiculous?

bi-sammy: what friends?

bi-sammy: i mean penny. she says i just look stupid.

bi-sammy: i dunno i just. look like me?

Impulsively, I click on my camera app and stare into it. I look a lot of things.

I look tired. Hungry. Overworked. Constantly on the verge of a fit.

I look like a disaster, that's what I am. An unkempt, clueless disaster.

bi-sammy: i dont look at myself too often, honestly

bi-sammy: i wish i had friends to tell me shit

gaystrell: what about parents?

bi-sammy: hah

bi-sammy: you mean davy???

bi-sammy: have i really not told you this before?

gaystrell: no..?

bi-sammy: im a foster kid

bi-sammy: im in the system

bi-sammy: really don't know fuck shit about my parents

BAZ

Something in me stops, cheeks flushing as I suck my lower lip into my mouth. The text bar blinks, seemingly taunting me. I don't know what to say. I don't know how to help him.

I… want him to be okay. I want more than that. I want him happy.

Why am I such a fucking softie for him?

Why can't I solve this?

gaystrell: who's davy then?

I leave the message, and wait. And wait and wait and wait.

It's fine, though. I know he's sort of busy, and he goes around and does a good bit throughout his day. Still, I leave my vibration setting on as I turn on my telly, mute it, then work on writing.

Eventually, he pops back up.

bi-sammy: foster parent

bi-sammy: not for long though

bi-sammy: its hit the road once im 18

bi-sammy: its okay tho im gonna find a flat with penny and it'll be fine

gaystrell: does he even care for you? how long have you been with him?

bi-sammy: years

bi-sammy: he likes his foster cheques but ://///

bi-sammy: hes shit i guess but i try to ignore him

bi-sammy: he doesnt hit me so i just remind myself to be happy about that

bi-sammy: that and not being in a home

gaystrell: that's not very comforting

bi-sammy: its not bad i dont mind

bi-sammy: why whats your family like

What is my family like?

gaystrell: complicated.

gaystrell: not terrible just

gaystrell: nothing it's not as bad as your situation i have no reason to complain

bi-sammy: no wait no im serious im curious dont feel put down by me

bi-sammy: shit sorry i dont wanna be a downer shit

gaystrell: don't apologize it's fine

gaystrell: it's just…….. strange for me, that's all

gaystrell: my mum died in an accident when i was five and my dad remarried when i was seven

gaystrell: i have some half-siblings, but they're all pretty young

gaystrell: we're just ridiculously posh and have too much money

gaystrell: and life got all odd when i got diagnosed

bi-sammy: diagnosed???

gaystrell: i have hemophilia type a

gaystrell: pretty shit case too

gaystrell: i have to be careful and all that so dad just pulled me from school a few years back in case

gaystrell: i online school, you numpty. that's why i'm always online

bi-sammy: shit

bi-sammy: fuck youre right

bi-sammy: that makes a lot of sense shit

bi-sammy: fuck thats some bullshit

bi-sammy: how do you interact with people?

gaystrell: i don't.

gaystrell: i have two mates, and ones my cousin

gaystrell: the other is his “totally and completely, absolutely straight” friend

bi-sammy: you have me

gaystrell: don't be a sap, snow

bi-sammy: im serious im your mate

bi-sammy: i care about you baz

The changing pictures of the television screen flicker on my face as I stare, barely able to swallow.

I should tell him. I need to tell him. It's too much--I can barely take knowing it myself.

Opening a note file, I throw it all out. Every word I need to say.

shit, i care about you too. too fucking much. to the point it's weird, probably, and im nearly sure you don't feel the same, but shit. simon you're so bloody fantastic and i think about you a lot and you're one of my only friends. i feel so guilty never being enough for you, but just thinking of you makes me soft.

i know i've never said this, but i want us to keep this. the talking. the constant contact. i want to see your face--i know im mean, but i bet you're actually gorgeous. i want to verbally talk to you. i want to reach through my screen and hold you. i want you to know how much i care, simon, because i do care. i care too much.

My jaw sets, eyes scanning my words once. Twice. A third time.

It aches like a flame, burning my chest. It's too much to say. Not enough to hide behind. It's blunt and out there, and the truth. I don't like it being the truth, but it is.

It so unfairly is.

I look at our chat, scrolling up and back down before typing out a quick cop-out.

gaystrell: i care about you too, simon

[bazypitchandsimonsnow]

Cake With a Side of Apeirophobia

Rating: T

Genre: Fluff/Angst

Word count: 5845

Summary: Baz is turning twenty, but he doesn't want to celebrate. And he's not willing to say why.

Read on AO3

AN: Welcome to a Baz birthday fic! Creds to @carryonmylovelies for inspiring the title. Feel free to look up apeirophobia now but I'll put a definition at the end of the fic. It's angsty and fluffy, so hope you like it.

———————————————-

Baz

“No party,” I say flatly. Simon’s pout looks absolutely pathetic. He’s looking at me like I just kicked a puppy across the room. Or he’s the puppy I kicked.

“Why not?” he whines. “You’re turning twenty! You’re no longer going to be a teenager!”

I shake my head. “Birthday parties are for children, and like you just said, I’m no longer going a child. Therefore no party.”

Snow whines again, spreading himself out across the table. It’s not a very big table so he takes up a lot of space. I nudge his hand away so I can keep eating my fried dumplings.

“Baz has a point,” Bunce says, then goes into a full body shudder. “Oh that feels so wrong to say.”

“Semi thank you, Bunce.”

“Semi you’re welcome, Basilton.” She looks at Snow and points her chopsticks out. “Not everyone likes celebrating their birthday, Si.”

Snow huffs and sits up again, aggressively stabbing at his vegetables. “It’s a chance for cake, presents, and fun. What’s there not to love?”

I take a page from his playbook and shrug. “I’m just allergic to fun I suppose.”

“Seems like it,” he grumbles, taking out his frustration by stabbing a poor gyoza. (Snow eats with a fork, not chopsticks, of course.) “I just don’t get it.”

And Snow never will. Because he isn’t a possibly immortal vampire. There’s no point in celebrating birthdays when you’re going to live forever. I don’t want a reminder of how not old I’m getting. I’d rather let my birthday pass without notice, no matter how whiny my pathetically adorable boyfriend gets.

We all finish our dinner quite quickly after that, considering we don’t speak. Simon is still brewing about it though. He doesn’t need to speak to show how annoyed he is, he never has. I just ignore it. If he wants to be all pissy that’s his prerogative. I’m not budging.

“Don’t you like cake?” Simon asks as he dries the dishes. We’re doing them together as Bunce paid for most of the takeaway. It’s a fine trade off in my opinion.

“Yes, I like cake,” I sigh, “but that doesn’t mean I need a party. I can have cake without a party.”

“Yeah, but birthday cake is special. It’s a big dessert celebrating you.”

“It’s just another cake.”

Snow frowns as he dries a plastic plate clean. “But wouldn’t it be nice to have a day celebrating you? Lots of people being nice, giving you gifts, laughing and talking.”

“No, it wouldn’t,” I grumble. “Having lots of people drinking too much alcohol and spouting platitudes at me sounds stressful, not fun.” And I mean all that, not just because of the whole immortal thing. I don’t like parties. The immortality is just...the bigger thing.

“It wouldn’t have to be many people. Me, Penny, Fiona, a few of your uni friends maybe. We could have a small thing with wine and fancy cheeses and cake. There wouldn’t even have to be any presents.” He rubs a hand up and down his arm. “I-I mean, I do have something to give you, but I can give it to you later.”

For fuck’s sake, why does he have to be so adorable? Admittedly, that sort of party sounds alright. Not fun, but alright. I wouldn’t want to jump out a window at it. But...it’s still a party celebrating my age, which will stay static, while Simon gets older.

“No,” I say firmly, “no party, cake, or presents, nothing. The day will pass without incident.”

Simon’s frown turns into a full on scowl. What’s he so pissy about? Is he that desperate for cake? We can have cake any day. I hand him a plate and he snatches it from me.

“Why are you being so pushy about this?” I ask with more bite than I intended.

He shoves the plate in the cabinet so hard the cupboard rattles. “I just- I don’t get- How can you-”

“Use your words, Snow.”

He glares at me, looking me in the eye. “What the fuck is going on with you? I’m offering to throw you a nice birthday party and you’re just, being a total arsehole about it. I don’t get it!” He snatches a spatula and furiously dries it. “Some of us grew up without any parties at all, y’know. You could handle one.”

Okay, that’s it. I drop the dish I’m washing and glare right back at him. “No, you do not get to do that. It’s not my fault or anyone else’s you grew up in shitty group homes, Snow. You don’t get to use your sad childhood to make me do what you want.”

Simon’s eyes go very wide and his mouth falls open in shock. “N-No, that’s not what I- I didn’t mean-”

“Yes you did,” I hiss. “You were pulling your poor little orphan card to make me feel guilty. That’s not going to work, I still don’t want a party! And I won’t be manipulated!”

“No, I’m not-”

I drop the dish I’m washing, throw the gloves off, and stomp out of the kitchen. “I’m going back to my place.”

“Baz,” Simon almost whines.

“I’m going, Snow.”

I furiously throw on my jacket and boots, all with Simon hovering over me. I start to leave, but he grabs my hand, making me freeze in place.

“Baz,” he says, sounding even more pathetic.

It’s calloused, so warm, so him. Fuck, it’s hard to feel his skin right now. I usually kiss him goodbye before I leave. It’s become routine for us. I miss it, part of me desperately wanting to feel his mouth on mine. But I’m too angry to even look at him right now. So I just squeeze his hand once.

“Good night, Snow,” I say. And I leave, stomping away to try to get my anger out. Simon has taught me the cathartic power of stomping and hitting things. It’s bittersweet. Because I don’t want to think about Simon right now, who probably looks sad and pathetic, who I wish I could comfort right now. But I’m mad, and it’s my fault he’s upset. So I just keep stomping.

———————————————-

I slam the flat door hard, and I hear Fiona yelp. Fuck, I thought she was still out of the country. I’m not going to able to wallow in self loathing and anger in peace.

“Good evening to you too,” Fiona drawls. “Thought you would be at the Chosen One’s place.”

“Where’s the wine?” I ask instead. I don’t want to get plastered, just calm down a bit. Wine always seems to do the trick.

“Chrust, what’s go your knickers in such a twist?”

I stomp to the kitchen and pull a half empty wine bottle out of the fridge. It’s cheap shite but at least it’s something. “It's nothing,” I snap as I pour myself a glass.

“It’s not nothing if your drinking that much wine.”

She has a point. I’m pouring myself a helping glass. I take a deep swig, and when I look up again, my lovely aunt standing in the doorway with a disapproving but sympathetic expression. I look back down at the swirling dark red liquid.

“Snow and I had a fight,” I grumble.

“Oh?”

“Yeah.”

There’s a short silence, then I hear her fuzzy sock steps approach. “And?”

“And what?” I snipe.

She lightly smacks my arm. “Don’t be a smartass, just elaborate.”

I sigh, drumming my fingers on the counter. “He wants me to throw a party on my birthday. I don’t want a party or anything close to that. So we disagreed.”

“Huh.” She leans against the counter with her arms over her chest. “Well, that sounds like something he’d want. The Chosen One does like food. Why don’t you want a party?”

“I don’t like people.”

She narrows her eyes at me. “That can’t be it. You wouldn’t be so cross if that was it.”

“That’s it.

“What did I just say about elaborating, Basil?”

I glare, but her eyes are just as sharp. We’re both stubborn Pitch bastards. She’s not going to budge. Damn her. I look at the counter with clenched fists. “I simply don’t see the need to celebrate my birthday,” I say between gritted teeth. “Since I’m not going to get any older.”

Fiona lets out a long, loud, obnoxious groan. “Basil,” she says through it, “we’ve been through this. You’re not going to live forever.”

“You don’t know that,” I snap, glaring at her again. “None of us know. I could age normally, or slower, or probably not at all! So I don’t see the point in celebrating the fact that even though I’m a year older, I’m not going to change at all, while the man I love withers and dies!”

The whole flat goes silent. I squeeze my eyes shut, trying to push all the feelings deep down where they belong. I reach for my wine glass but Fiona slaps my hand away.

“No more of that,” she says. “You need a clear head to talk about this.”

“I don’t want to talk about this,” I grumble. I really, really don’t.

“Tough troll teeth, Baz, we are. And we’re sitting down because I’m old and my feet hurt.”

She goes to the door, but I don’t follow at first. But when Fiona scowls at me, I do. She’s a powerful mage. I’d rather not invoke her wrath. We go to the black leather couch. I sink into the cushions, arms still crossed. I focus on staring at one place on the wall instead of whatever expression is on my aunt’s face.

“Now,” she says, “listen to me, Baz. Yes, you’re right in a way, we don’t if you’re immortal or not. But we also won’t know for years. Until then, there’s no point agonizing over it. You can’t live assuming you’re going to outlive everyone else, because then you’re going to do shit like this.”

“Like what?” I mumble.

“Emotionally close yourself off because you’re scared of being hurt. Which is unfortunately what you’ve been doing for a good chunk of your life, love. You can’t keep it up, especially when you’re dating someone.”

I pull further into myself. I really don’t want to admit that she maybe, possibly, has a point. “Well, I’m still not having a party,” I blurt out defensively. “Snow tried to guilt me by bringing up he never had any birthday parties when he was a kid. It’s not like I personally put him in a bloody group home. It’s just manipulative as fuck and I hate that he did that. So no party, because of that too.”

Fiona sighs, head tilting back over the couch. “Well, that is shitty. He shouldn’t have done that.”

“Exactly.

“At the same time,” her hand falls on my shoulder, “did you tell him about this immortality anxiety?”

I shift uncomfortably, pulling a knee up to my chin. “No, just that I don’t like parties,” I say into the denim. “But he should’ve backed off after I said that.”

She sighs again and moves her arm over my shoulders. “Yes, he should’ve. However, he was probably confused and got frustrated. Because he thought he was doing something nice for you and you were being an arsehole for no apparent reason.”

And now she’s almost perfectly echoing Simon’s words. Hearing them again makes my dead heart twist. “I gave him reasons...”

“But not the real one. And your Chosen One knows you well enough to know when you’re hiding something, idiot.”

I bring my other knee up. I feel like a toddler, but it’s comforting. “He was still being a prick.”

“Yeah, and so were you. He got frustrated and said something dumb. You were being closed off and uncommunicative. You both made mistakes, which is alright. You’re only human.”

“Well, technically I’m not.”

She scoffs and ruffles my hair. Now I really feel like a toddler again. “You are in the ways that count, Basil. You love that boy far too much, and he loves you too. So don’t let these mistakes ruin you two.”

I lean against her, the closest we usually get to a hug. Pitches aren’t known for physical affection. “Okay. But I think I want to sleep now. I’m tired.”

“Go sleep, Baz. I’ll order us breakfast in the morning.”

I lean a bit closer. “Thank you, Aunt Fiona.”

She leans too. “Welcome, love.”

I get up, leaving Fiona to her talk show and joint rolling. I finally take my coat and boots off, but take my phone out. As I’m walking down the hall, I notice I have unread texts from Simon. My heart leaps up and lodges in my throat. I’m still looking at the notification when I sit heavily on the bed. I consider just going to sleep without opening them. But Simon doesn’t deserve to be ignored, no matter how mad I am at him. With shaky fingers, I open the messages

Snow (20:18) hey

Snow (20:20) i hope you got home okay

Snow (20:26) i’m sorry for what i said

Snow (20:27) plz text me

Snow (20:27) only if you want to tho

Snow (20:30) i’m really sorry baz

Snow (20:31) i love you

My heart retreats from my throat, I let out a long breath. Merlin, a few tears of relief even fall down my cheek. He doesn’t hate me. Realistically I know he hasn’t hated me for a long time, but it’s still a huge relief. Part of me does want to talk it out right now. But I know I’m too exhausted to discuss anything serious right now. I should respond though.

Baz (20:45) I’m sorry as well, Simon. Let’s talk more about it in the morning though, when we’re not so tired. I love you.

I move to put my phone done, but it instantly buzzes.

Snow (20:45) okay. night baz. i love you.

I smile. I can't help it.

Baz (20:46) Goodnight, Snow. I love you, too.

I turn off my phone and pad over to my dresser. I throw on my silk pyjama pants, and spot a particular shirt. It’s a bright blue LSE Football shirt. My heart warms at the sight of it. Simon bought the shirt the day I got on the team. He wears it all the time, silently showing his pride in both my academic and athletic ability. So much of his love comes without words. And in turn I love him so much for it. I put the shirt on. It smells like him, brown and sweet. Crowley, I’m such a lovesick idiot.

Going to bed isn’t easy. I was expecting to be with Snow tonight, dozing off with his body tangled with mine. When I close my eyes, I can almost see him there. He’s looking at me with half lidded blue eyes, smiling softly, his tail wrapped around my ankle and a wing covering us both. I love when he does that. Like he’s blocking out the world so it’s just the two of us. Sharing a room with Simon Snow was torture, but sharing a bed with him is heaven.

But when I reach out to where he should be, the sheets are empty and cold. The fantasy is shattered. My stomach clenches in regret. I’m still mad at him but I also miss him. So, so much. It’s not that I can’t sleep alone, it’s just that I prefer Snow next to me. His presence calms the storm in my mind, making it far easier to sleep. But I’m alone tonight. So I sniff his shirt, letting the sweet scent fill my nose, and imagine Simon in his bed right now, maybe thinking about me too.

———————————————-

I’ve been looking at my phone for awhile. It’s a bit pathetic, really. What idiot can’t just call his bloody boyfriend? This idiot apparently. I’m staring at Snow’s contact page. It has his number and a photo. I love this photo. I took it when we went to an amusement park. Simon is sitting on a ferris wheel, the bright multicoloured lights behind him, but they’re no match for his dazzling grin. My chest both soars and aches looking at right now. Fuck, I need to do this. I need to fix things with my wonderful, infuriating, amazing boyfriend.

I tap his number. I expect to get a few seconds to collect myself more, but he answers after only one ring.

“Hi,” his slightly muted voice says through my speaker. Even though I’m nervous, just hearing him is such a relief. I let out a long breath through my nose.

“Hello,” I reply, a little more wistful than I intended. There’s a long stretch of silence. Obviously neither of us know what to say. Well, I know what I want to say, but I don’t know how to start. “You were right.” “I know were just trying to be nice.” “I’m an emotionally closed off idiot.” “You are the love of my life and I cannot lose you over something this stupid.” Well, maybe it’s better to start with the basics.

“I’m sorry,” we blurt out at the exact same time. I snort, pressing a hand to my forehead. Simon giggles on the other end. It sounds like tinkling little fairy bells.

“Can I please start?” he asks weakly.

“Okay,” I reply. Truth be told, I want to start. But he asked first.

He takes a deep breath. It crackles a bit over the phone, plus I’ve got it very close to my ear.

“I’m sorry, Baz,” he says firmly, “I’m sorry I tried to push a party on you. I should’ve just let it go when you first said no. Whatever your reasons, I should’ve listened. And I’m sorry for using my past to guilt trip you. I was pissed and it slipped out by accident, which is not an excuse. I promise it won’t happen again. I-I mean, I have no idea what future me will do. But I’ll definitely try. So, yeah. You can do whatever you want for your birthday. I’m sorry for making it about what I want.” He takes a deep breath. This much speaking must’ve been like a marathon for him. “Also I love you. That never stops. Even when we’re fighting. I just, want to make sure you know that...”

I sigh dreamily. He is so adorable it’s almost unreal. He obviously practiced that whole speech, and I love it, because it shows he cares.

“I know, Snow,” I say. “I love you, too. Even when we’re fighting.” I sigh and lean back on my headboard. “Can I say what I need to now?”

“Yeah, yeah, go ahead.”

“Alright.” I take a deep breath. “I accept your apology. What you said was shitty but I forgive you. I apologize too, though. You were trying to do something nice for me and I was just a total prick. It was incredibly rude. I’ll definitely try to not do that again either, you deserve so much better. I could’ve said no in a far better, nicer way. And...I should’ve told you the real reason I was saying no.”

“You can tell me,” he blurts out. “You can tell me anything.”

I wish I could reach through the phone and hug him. “I know, love, and I will.” I close my eyes, working up the nerve to say it. “I don’t want a party because I don’t like them, sure, but it’s also because...my birthday reminds me that I may not get any older. And, I’m scared I’m going to stay young forever while you keep aging.” I press a hand to my forehead. “I don’t want to think about watching you die, Simon,” I whisper painfully. I’m not sure I’d be able to say that in person, but saying it at all is a massive leap forward.

“O-Oh,” Simon stutters. “I-I see. Well, uh, we don’t know if you’ll-”

“Don’t worry, Snow, Fiona already put me through the ringer. She reminded me that we don’t if I’m going to live forever or not. But still, that fear doesn’t go away. I should’ve just told you, I know. But we both know I’m not great at dealing with my emotions.”

Simon chuckles. “Yeah, that’s very true. I’m sorry birthdays make you think of that. They should be fun and-”

He suddenly stops. There’s a long pause on the other end. I’m suddenly worried he’s been kidnapped or stabbed or something. “Snow? Simon, are you there?”

“Come over to my flat on Saturday,” he suddenly blurts out. “Around...six. Yeah, six is good.”

My brows furrows. “Saturday is my birthday...”

“Yeah, I know. Come over around six.”

“Snow, I don’t want a party-”

“It’s not a party, it’s-” He takes a deep breath. “Just come to my place around six on Saturday. And wear something nice. Not like, too nice, but nice.”

“Simon-”

“Please, Baz, just trust me.”

I know that if I really keep pushing he’ll back off. He knows that too. But dammit, I’m so weak. I do trust Simon, more than anyone. And even though I’m scared, I want to know what he’s planning. I have to trust he’s doing something for me this time.

“Okay,” I sigh. “If it’s a surprise party, I’m going to walk out and not talk to you for a week.”

Simon snorts, the sound crackling over the phone. “Yeah, I’d expect that. But don’t worry. It’s not a party.”

I sigh again, rubbing my tired eye. “Alright, I’m trusting you. Now, I’ve got to go get some breakfast. I’ll see you in a couple days?”

“Yeah, I’ll see you then. I love you.

Slowly, I put my other hand over the one holding the phone. And because I’m pathetic, I imagine I’m holding his hand. “I love you too, Simon. Bye for now.”

“Bye bye.”

I hear the line turn off, and I lower the phone. I can’t help but linger on my lockscreen for a moment. I never thought I would be the kind of person who had a couples photo as my phone wallpaper. But there it is, a picture of Snow and I, backs to the camera as we look out over the Eiffel Tower. He’s got his arm around my waist and mine is over his shoulders. We’re all snuggled up with our heads close together. I think I was trying to teach him how to pronounce Arc De Triomphe. (His French is atrocious.) Bunce took it for us like some photo ninja. I called her a stalker for it, but asked her to send me the picture all the same.

Merlin and Morgana, I love him. And I hope my trust is well placed this time.

———————————————-

I pull down my my sleeve. Even though I have no idea what’s going on, I want to look my best. Snow said wear something nice, so I’ve got a black button down and grey slacks. I abandoned the tie and blazer. He also said not to dress too nice. It’s an annoyingly fine line to walk. Well, I’m already at his door, so it’s too late to change now. Nothing to do but knock. So I do.

“Come in!” Snow calls out.

I sigh and take out my key. I hope Bunce isn’t home. She gets pissy when I use my key. Something about me not living there and acting like an intruder. It’s not like I’m crawling in through the window though, I have a key.

Slowly, I push the door open. The entire apartment is in low light. Snow must have all the dimmers set to minimum. And surprisingly, it’s not a complete mess. Everything looks neat and clean. Did Simon actually tidy up for me? I look at the table, which sits just to the left of the pristine living room. My eyes bug out. It’s clean too, but that’s not the strange part. There are two dark green placemats, a single rose in a vase, floating candles, and white napkins, both folded into pockets with silverware in them. It’s literally the fanciest looking thing I’ve seen come near to this flat. Holy shit. What is going on?

“Hi.”

I turn to Simon, who has suddenly manifested next to me. And he looks gorgeous. Well, he always look gorgeous, but he’s really making an effort right now. He’s wearing a green button button down tucked into blue jeans, along with his cleanest sneakers. His hair is still wild, but he knows I like it that way. His wings and tail are unspelled, both relaxed behind him. Though paired with his green shirt he does look like some sort of Christmas dragon. But a very handsome Christmas dragon.

“Hi,” I practically squeak. “What’s all this?”

“It’s your birthday.” He steps forward, gently taking my hand. “Happy birthday, Baz.”

I look from the table to him, then to the table, to him again. “You...you did all this for me?

He grins and nods. “Yeah. I realised that I may like parties, but that’s not you. This,” he gestures to the table and clean flat, “is more you. A nice birthday dinner for just the two of us.”

I stare at Simon. I’m at a complete loss for words. This man, this fucking man. I don’t know how he keeps surprising me, but he does. I adore him so much. And I soon realise I’ve been staring at him for a long while. He looks concerned, and steps forward to take my other hand.

“I know you’re scared about the whole immortality thing,” he says softly. “But you shouldn’t let it keep you from celebrating your birthday. We won’t know for sure for awhile. And if you are immortal, we’ll just, deal with it when we have to. For now we can not think about it.”

I chuckle, squeezing his hands. “That’s still your solution, hm?”

He shrugs, making his wings flap a bit. “Yeah, and it works.” He steps even closer, and I’m instantly lost in his pretty eyes. “Immortal or not though, I’m still here, Baz. You’re not losing me anytime soon. So let me give you a nice birthday. I want celebrate you being, y’know, born and shit, because I’m really glad you’re here.”

Crowley, Merlin, and Morgana, why must he be so incredible? I let go of his hands, but only so I can grab his cheeks and kiss him hard. Simon immediately melts into it. He grips my forearms and moves his mouth with equal vigour. I try to push all my feelings through my lips. My gratitude, my care, my undying love, everything. And it sort of feel like he’s doing the same.

We pull apart, foreheads still together. “I love you,” I whisper, like it’s some secret. It’s not a secret though. I would shout it to the entire world if I could.

He smiles and pulls me closer. “I love you, too,” he replies. “Want to eat some birthday dinner?”

I pull back, still grinning with slightly swollen lips. “Please. I’m famished.”

“Then right this way.” He gestures grand to the table. I walk to it, but Simon gets ahead of me though so he can pull out a chair

“What a gentleman,” I drawl as I sit down.

“Damn right.” He runs around to the kitchen. “Now, let me get the food.”

I can see him racing around through the tiny window. “What is for dinner, Snow?”

He peeks through to flash me a grin. “It’s your favourite, actually. Chicken cordon bleu, asparagus, and New York cheesecake.”

I perk up immensely. That is my favourite meal. I’m glad Snow remembers. “Wonderful. Where did you order it all from?”

“I, uh, actually made it myself...” Oh no. I inhale sharply, and Simon must hear it. He looks through the window again with a little smile. “Wipe that worried look off your face, Basilton, I’m not going to give you food poisoning.”

“Again?”

He giggles. “No, not again. I spent a whole day figuring it out. Penny taste tested all my attempts and she was very harsh. I told her not to let me get away with it being half assed. It took about six tries, but she said this last try was perfect. So I hope you like it all.

My worries melt away. I lean my cheek on my palm. “Alright. I trust you. Don’t make me regret it. I would rather not spend my birthday over the toilet.”

“Now that would be a shit present,” Snow called from the kitchen.

I don’t have to wait much longer. Soon enough, he comes swanning out of the kitchen with two steaming plates and puts them down. My eyes go wide. It actually looks good. There’s perfectly shaped chicken breasts with even bread crumbs and three seasoned asparagus stalks arranged artfully. Simon races back into the kitchen, then comes back with a bottle of wine. He pours it like some sommelier, twisting off the pour. (I bet he watched YouTube videos that told him to do that. Dork.) (I love him so much.) I examine the label when he puts the bottle down.

“Crowley,” I gasp, “this is some very expensive alcohol, Snow.”

Simon picks his glass, looking like the cat who’s caught the canary. “I know. A bunch of chef’s blogs recommended it. So I decided to shell out a bit of my gold.” He pushes his glass towards me. “Cheers, to you turning 20.”

I smile softly, reach out to touch his free hand on the table, and tap our glasses together. “Cheers.”

So we have dinner. The meal is actually delicious. Snow did a very good job. The chicken’s cheese melts in my mouth, the asparagus has perfect seasoning, and the wine is just incredible. I tell Simon as such, and he looks extremely proud. Other than the actual food though, it feels like a pretty normal meal for us. We chat about school, the news, funny things we’ve seen today. It’s so typical I nearly forget that it’s supposed to be my birthday. That is, until after a very nice slice of cheesecake, when Snow pulls out a gift bag.

“Simon,” I say nervously, “you didn’t have to-”

“But I already did. So,” he pushes the bag closer, “open it.”

I sigh and take the bag. There’s a black envelope at the top. I open it with only slightly shaky fingers. I’m not scared of kind of card Simon got, not at all. But when I open it, I realise I have nothing to fear at all. I fix Snow with a deadpan look.

“Seriously?” I ask

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” he chirps, knowing exactly what I’m talking about.

I shake my head as I open the Nosferatu birthday card. “You’re ridiculous.”

In type font, the inside of the card reads, “I hope your birthday doesn’t BITE.” Snow is so lucky I love him. But I read further, and there’s something else, written in Snow’s chicken scratch handwriting.

To my favourite vampire, You’re the centre of my universe too. Always will be. Happy birthday. Love, Snow

I reach out and grab his hand. He weaves our fingers together and squeezes my palm. “Thank you,” I say softly.

He squeezes my hand again. “Open the present, then thank me.”

I carefully pull out the tissue paper. There’s quite a lot of it. Finally, I reach the bottom, and slowly lift the present out. It’s...a cork board. After a moment of confusion I turn it around. My breath suddenly goes short. Holy mother of Merlin. It’s fucking gorgeous.

Along the top and bottom are a total of six polaroid pictures, all pinned on to look like they’re hanging on strings. I recognize them. Simon has this silly instant camera and he uses it far too much. I’d find it annoying if I didn’t love the photos. He took all of these. There’s me on the couch with a book propped up on my knees; Simon kissing my cheek as I laugh at how ridiculous he is; Us sitting together at a cafe in Paris; Me with a Starbucks cup, glaring because his camera is annoying but smiling because he’s adorable; A group selfie of Simon, Bunce, Micah, and I; There’s even one of me sleeping in his bed. I flick my eyes up to him.

“Taking photos while I sleep?” I ask sarcastically. “Stalker.”

He snorts. “Yeah, well, you look angelic when you sleep so I couldn’t resist.”

That makes my cheeks go far redder than they should. I look back down at the photos. Well, he has a point. I do look very calm. I’m happy in all these photos though. It’s in different ways, but always happy with Simon. At the centre of all these beautiful memories, Simon has placed sparkly black stickers that read “Happy 20th Baz.” Fuck, I’m about to cry. Over some ridiculous, amazing handmade birthday gift my ridiculous, amazing boyfriend made for me. I sniffle slightly. Simon squeezes my hand.

“May I thank you now?” I say softly.

“I mean, you can if you want,” he chuckles.

I look him in his beautiful plain blue eyes, so he knows how serious I am, how grateful I am. For tonight and everything else in our relationship. “Thank you, Simon. It’s lovely.”

He looks back with the same unwavering gaze. “You’re very welcome. Happy birthday.”

I run my thumb over the smooth wooden frame. “It certainly is. Though,” I lift an eyebrow, “if you plan on keep celebrating my birthdays, Snow, you’ve set a pretty high bar for yourself starting out.”

Snow lets out a quiet chuckle. He usually laughs louder, but we’re being quiet right now. Everything about tonight has been quiet. His hand moves further up my arm. “Don’t worry, love, I can do it. Anything for you.”

And by Merlin’s beard, I believe him.

———————————————-

We’re laying in his bed now, bodies tangled together, his tail wrapped snugly around my ankle, both of us under his wing. He’s blocking the world so it’s just the two of us. Just how I like it. I’m dressed in Simon’s university sweatshirt and trackies. He’s in my silk pyjama bottoms with no shirt at all. I trace the freckles and moles that decorate his chest. It’s one of my favourite activities, drawing constellations out of his beautiful body. With every new pattern I find, he hums quietly. I make sure to memorise that sound. I want to, maybe even need to, remember it for every day of my possibly incredibly long life. It’ll keep me sane whenever I get too low. It’ll keep me happy.

Simon Snow is a constantly renewing marvelous miracle. I love him with every single molecule in my semi-dead body. So immortal or not, it doesn’t matter, I’ll celebrate all the damn birthdays I can with him.

———————————————-

AN: Apeirophobia: The fear of inifinity and/or living forever. The actual fear doesn't fully fit with Baz's worries, but necrophobia (the fear of people dying) sounds like a fear of zombies haha.

Awwwww they're so in love it makes you sick lol. Tbh I think Simon and Baz would be the kind of couple that's chill in public but super mushy in private. Lots of soft words and "I love you's" :) Hope you guys liked that. I wanted to show Simon and Baz fighting like a normal couple but making up well too. And I wanted explore Baz's fear about immortality. I feel like that fear would show up more around his birthday. But Simon's there to make sure he doesn't shut happiness out because he's scared <3 So yeah, hope you liked that :)

I'm working on the next request fic, and I'll be updating Black Swan tomorrow. It's gonna be a super fluffy chapter with some art so feel free to check it out. Have a happy Baz birthday everyone! :D

[trent-kunowo-blog]

Carry On, Book Report

Title of the Book: Carry On

Author: Rainbow Rowell

Copyright Date: 2015

Plot:

Simon Snow, our main character, was on his way back to Watford, A school for magicks, After some past events that happened on his last year. Last year He was kidnapped by the Insidious Humdrum, The greatest threat to the World of Mages, and was now tempted to go after him but was stopped by the mage.

He couldn't believe that the mage sent him back after knowing what the Humdrum looked like and he also couldn't believe that the Humdrum looked like him, an 11-year-old version of him.

When he got back to Watford, all had been bad except maybe for a few things. His Girlfriend, Agatha Wellbelove,dumped him and the mage wanted him to go away from Watford. He didn't agree with the Mage due to it being his last year in Watford.

Many weeks has passed and his nemesis and Roomate, Basilton Pitch or Baz (for short) hasn't comeback yet. Then a couple of nights later, the last headmistress of Watford, Natasha Pitch, came to visit his son but was angered when she saw Simon instead of Baz. Shehad no choice but to tell Simon that 'her killer still walks and Nicodemus knows' and left since the veil was lifting.

After the incident with Natasha Pitch's Ghost, a couple days after that Baz finally appears. He was kidnapped by Numpties, Troll-like beings that like heat and warmth, and was left inside a coffin for a couple months before his aunt Fiona finally found him. Ofcourse, he didn't want to tell others that he was kidnapped by Numpties no less.

Simon Snow wanted to talk to him about what happened between Agatha and Him (Baz) in the Wavering Woods last year and about what he heard from Baz's mother but Baz kept ignorring him. Turns out that Baz actually had feelings for Simon Snow and was angered by his liking to his enemy.

When Simon Snow caught Baz in the Mage's office he thought that Baz was plotting something but turns out he was actaully just asked to take something in the mage's office by his aunt. Simon Snow finally was able to ask Baz if they could talk about something, although Baz thought of Snow saying something else along the lines of "The truth is, Im desprately in love with you" but he knows that would never happen.

Baz agrees and finally they both talk. After Simon Told Baz about the incident with his mother, he wanted to do nothing else but try to bring justice to his mother. At night, Simon Promised Baz ((even though they were enemies)) that he'd help Baz find his Mother's Killer because he thought it was the right thing to do.

They Finally Start looking, along with Simon's Best friend, Penelope Bunce. They come up empty handed and was only left with minor clues as to who was Baz's Mother's killer.

After somedays, Simon and Penelope were at the cafeteria eating when suddenly they heard screaming. They asked a little girl what was wrong and she told them that the Humdrum sent a dragon to Watford.

Simon went out to kill it, too save the third years that were under the yew tree. He jumped and stabbed it on the neck and when he went for the final blow Baz stopped him. Baz jumped and lands on the other side of the moat. The dragon stops struggling against Simon and stops to stare at Baz as if it was amazed at him too.

Baz starts to chant a spell to drive the dragon back to where it came from but the dragon never did, instead it flew down on the ground near Baz and stared at him. Simon gets off the Dragon and comes over to Baz amazed at him too. He grabs Baz's shoulder and just pushed some of his magic to Baz. Baz felt a sudden great power come over him and finally summoned enough magic to make the dragon go away.

It was finally Christmas break and Simon was left to celebrate Christmas alone in Watford. He usually spent Christmas with Agatha's Family but since he and her weren't lovers anymore he didn't want to come along, although he was still welcome at the Wellbeloves.

Baz wanted Simon to come with him to Hampshire,where Baz lives, but Simon disagreed. The Grimms and the Pitches hated Simon Snow because he was the Mage's heir. Although Baz told him that they won't hurt him because he'd be invited as a guest and also because they needed to go and figure out who his mother's killer was.

Simon still disagreed and Baz finally left, but before leaving Baz told Simon that he had no real interest in Agatha and was just flirting with her to make Simon Jealous. He told him that because he thought Simon would've been happy to know and so that he can finally go back and have his 'happy ending' with Agatha again, but knowing this only made Simon angry.

Soon after that, Baz left and Simon was the only one left in Watford. He decided to go to Ebb, the school's Goatherd and a very powerful mage, for some investigating. After talking with Ebb, he now knows that Nicodemus was actually Ebb's twin brother, who turned into a vampire against them.

Knowing this, Simon quickly went back to his dorm to change into something warm and ran out. He ran and took a ride going to Hampshire and ran along the snow and dirt going to Baz's house. Baz was playing Violin when all of a sudden his maid interrupted him that a student from their school arrived.

He wasn't really expecting anyone at the moment and thought that maybe one of his friends had come by. He certainly didn't expect Simon Snow to be the one at his door, all dirty and muddy. It was a big surprise for the both of them, Baz was surprised because Simon Snow was here and Simon was surprised because .. Baz was wearing jeans.

Baz Cleaned Simon off with a spell and told him to remove his coat and boots and blushed when he saw that Simon was wearing silly short wool trousers and red stockings.

Simon told him of what he knew about Nicodemus and they after dinner, they went to go find Nicodemus. After finally finding Nicodemus they confronted him and said some stuff about their culprit but never sayig who, which angered Baz. Simon stopped him from killing Nicodemus and they left.

Baz furiously drove away and arrived at a forest. Baz stopped at the middle of the forest and exited the car, running away. Simon came out of the car and went after him. He tried to find baz and when he finally did he found him in a ring of fire. The trees near them started to burn and everything was just falling apart. Simon tried to save Baz since Baz was a vampire, he was flammable.

Simon refused to leave Baz alone and Baz thought of spelling Simon away. When He was about to tell Simon one last time to go away, Simon kissed him to make him shut up. I guess you can say that they were more than enemies OR friends now.

After the whole thing that happened in the forest, they came back to Baz's house ((or mansion i could say)) and did a bit more cuddling and snogging. The day after, Penelope and Agatha came over to have a meeting about what they knew about Baz's mother's killer, to which they finally found out that Baz was kidnapped during those couple months he was gone from school.

After their meeting Penelope and Agatha went to leave. They actually came to get Simon and Simon was having second thoughts. He looked back at Baz and saw him frown but then he saw Penelope and Agatha frown back at him too.

He agreed to come with them. Baz was a bit((a lot)) heartbroken when he heard Simon say he'd come along with them. Baz went back up to the library and sat down, holding his violin but not playing it. Baz Was trying to pretend that Simon didn't leave, he is pretending that he doesn't notice that Simon is not even there anymore.

His father came in a couple minutes later a nd told him that his schoolmates have left. They talked for a couple minutes before his dad finally left to prepare for dinner and told him to prepare for dinner.

He went back to his room to prepare and when he was about to finish, his maid suddenly barged in. He told her that he would ignore her unless she went back out and knocked and asked permission to enter so she did. She told him that one of his friends cam back and when he asked who his maid told him that it was "The Chosen One".

Baz ran out of the room and went to the door. He saw Simon all dirty and muddy again and on his doorstep. "Deja vu, Snow?" Baz joked. Snow rolled his eyes and asked if he was still able to come and join his family for dinner. Baz quickly invited him in and went to clean him up but Simon refused and told him if it was okay if he took a bath and changed instead. Baz thought that Simon Snow looked good in a grey suit.

Simon came back because he didn't want whatever happened between him and Baz to be gone unnoticed and he didn't want it to end and be forgotten so he came back.

When Night came, Simon and Baz were preparing for sleep but Baz told Simon that he needed to go hunt for blood and told Simon to go to sleep ahead of him so did. Simon awoke to the feeling of hunger but when he does fully wake up he realizes that it wasn't him that was humgry. He finally recognized the feeling and checked beside him. Baz wasn't there.

He quickly got up and ran out looking for Baz. The Humdrum was there. He looked around the forest and saw something, just not who he was looking for. The Humdrum was there looking at him and leaning on a tree.

The Humdrum greeted him and Simon says something to him about being able to talk. The Humdrum tells him that he can now do all sorts of things.

Simon asked him where Baz was and finally they heard a groaning. They both looked and there was Baz. He wasn't what he was expecting, he looked hurt and his mouth looked full((of teeth)). Baz warned him to stay away, that something was wrong with him that he was hungry, hungry for Simon, but Simon didn't want to leave Baz like this.

Simon refused to listen to Baz and came closer, Baz suddenly lost all control of himself and lunged at Simon. Simon suddenly pushed some of his magic into Baz and Baz suddenly stopped. The Humdrum looked surprised and asked when he knew he could do something like that but Simon was too busy checking on Baz.

The Humdrum finally left and Baz and Simon tried going back to Baz's house. Something felt.. really off when they got near the house. They heard screaming. Simon finally figured it out, they were inside a dead spot, a spot where magic vanishes or disappears all of a sudden.

Baz tells him to leave and so he does. Simon runs and during his running he suddenly thought of flying away but he didn't have his wand so he tried to do something, He decided to try and wish for it to happen, since it did happen once in the past, He just needed to really 'Want' it to happen.

He suddenly sprouted wings ((and a tail for some reason)) and flew away. He tried to come near Hampshire to check on Baz and his family but he couldn't because of the dead spot so he floated in the sky watching the forest he was just in burn to ashes. He flew and found himself landing in front of Penelope's House, which have Penelope and her family a fright ((they thought he had transformed himself into a demon)).

Simon passed out and Penelope and her mom and dad helped him inside and helped cure him. They did everything to make his wings and tail disappear but it wouldn't vanish, it was made out of magic.

Meanwhile, Nicodemus went to talk with his Twin sister ((even though it was forbidden)) but found out that the mage took her so he went to look for Her.

On Christmas morning, Simon woke up and Penelope was there to help him. He explained to her what happened in the woods that night and Penelope told him that the Humdrum opened up the biggest hole in Great Britain.

They thought Of having lunch but baz suddenly arrived and demanded that he needed to be inside Penelope's Father's Lab. Simon asked Penny to let him. Once there he explained about the dead spot and they finally discovered that everytime Simon Goes off or uses his magic the Humdrum grows more powerful.

Then Baz told them that the first time that Simon went off, Simon made a Simon-shaped hole and that became the Humdrum. Knowing this Simon wanted to tell the Mage immedietly but Baz told him that He promised to help Baz with finding the culprit but Simon thought otherwise so they ended up splitting up.

Baz went to talk with the numpties and almost died but Nicodemus was there to save him. Nicodemus told him that the Mage was his Mother's killer so they went to go find the mage. On the way, a normal with a dog walked by them and the dog started to talk, it was Penelope, she told them that Simon went to talk to the Mage. They took the dog and went to find Penny, driving away in Baz's car.

Meanwhile, Agatha went to Watford to tell the Mage of what Simon, Baz and, Penelope were plotting. When she got there, She saw tire tracks and figured that the Mage was at Watford. She went up to the mage's Office and saw the messy state the office was in. She went to lean near against the mage's window and there she saw the lights in the White Chapel.

Meanwhile, Simon was flying. Flying back To Watford.

Agatha went in the White Chapel and kept calling out to the mahe. She was then suddenly pinned down by the mage, a crazed and angry look on his face. He then blabbered some stuff and then suddenly, he made Agatha feel weak and then he dragged her away.

Meanwhile, Baz and the others were going as fast they can towards Watford.

Agatha was being dragged away by the Mage, she was terrified for her life. She never thought that she'd end up dying like this but as soon as she thought that there was no more hope, someone casted a spell that made the both of them drop to the ground, telling the mage to let her go.

Simon finally reaches the great lawn and sees light illuminate from the Chapel he watches as the chapel blaze with lights.

The Mage stands back up and casts a spell to let the intruder come out from their hiding place but the intruder casts a spell that shot fire in the Mage's Chest making him fall back. The fire casts a light and Agatha finally sees that the person who was trying to save her was no other than Ebb, the goatherd. Ebb told her to run away, so she did.

Ebb and the Mage battled but Ebb lost and was defeated by the mage. The mage ended up using Ebb instead for the Mage's Ritual and Ebb dies.

Simon finally walks towards the chapel and when he reaches the door, all the windows in the chapel explode. He thought of the mage and his wings took him to a trapdoor behind the chapel and flew in. He was now inside a ruined, round room.

He sees the mage, kneeling down and he also sees that there was someone lying on the floor. For a moment, he thought it was Baz but he knows that it isn't. He knows that Baz went to the Numpties.

The Mage starts to chant a spell and Simon steps forward. When he saw that the person underneath the mage was Ebb, he couldn't help but cry out.

He cried out to the mage to help her but the Mage said he couldn't anymore but he could help Simon. He finally breaks out the news that Simon wasn't actually the chosen one and Simon just froze.

He always knew that he really wasn't. That he was just a fraud all along. As quick as that came, The Insidious Humdrum appears and Simon wasn't afraid of it anymore.

Simon pushed all of his magic into the Humdrum. At first, the Humdrum hesitated but then he soon gave in and just took it. The Mage tried pulling them apart but it was too late. The Humdrum along with Simon Snow's magic was no more and the Humdrum just, vanished.

While that was happening, Baz and Penelope arrives at the scene and watches as Simon gives his magic to the Humdrum, and when that finishes Simon was just there, down on his knees looking really tired and feeling not so magickal anymore ((except that he still has wings and the tail)).

The mage kept shaking Simon and beating his wings screaming at him to give the magic to him. When Simon makes a move to push the mage, Baz quickly moved and went to them, making a move to bite the Mage by his neck with the intention to kill him but Simon stopped him.

The three of them twist and stumble and the Mage screams at Simon again to give it to him but Simon screams back at him, teling him that it was all gone.

Penelope tries to cast a spell but Simon cuts in and ended up killing the mage.

After that, they all sat there for who knows how long and finally Simon moves and covers the Mage's body with his jacket. Baz praises him for defeating the Humdrum and tries to comfort Simon.

After that, Penelope contacted her Mum and from there, things started to finish.

Penelope's mum became the new head Coven and the new headmistress of Watford. Penelope and Simon weren't framed for killing the Mage and Agatha ran away and never came back to Watford.

Baz was having his leaving ceremony and was top of their class so he had to give a speech. He told Simon not to come because he didn't want Simon to relive the trauma he went through. He was having a conversation with Mrs. Bunce but she wandered off.

Someone behind him talked about hoping that there'd be sandwiches but Baz ignored him and when they said something about cake, Baz turned around and was surprised to see Simon standing there on the other side of the table.

They end up dancing together with everyone staring at them. They had a bit of an emotional moment/fight while dancing because Simon was having doubts and Baz told him that he'd never change his mind on dating Simon Snow.

Then, as time passes, Baz was helping Simon and Penelope settle in, in their new flat. Simon was now going to University and Baz decided to continue his schooling in Watford. Even though Simon Snow wasn't The Chosen One, He was still having his Happy ending.

Setting;

Time: on the start of their last year in Watford to the last

Place: Watford

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

Characters:

1.) Simon Snow - The protagonist of the story

2.) Baz Grimm-Pitch - One of the main characters who helps Simok through out the story

3.) Penelope Bunce- Simon's Bestfriend and one of the main characters who helps Simon Snow

4.) The Mage- The Antagonist of the story and is Simon Snow's Father

Commentary;

Overall, I think the book is really fun and full of adventure. It has a great mix of mystery, fantasy, thrill, and romance to it. I think that when you read Carry on, You'll be able to learn that even your enemies can become your friends and that you can be the hero of your own story, even if you ended up not being the chosen one and even if the world has made your life miserable, you just have to carry on.

Recommendation;

I really want to recommend this book to you if you love reading fantasy with action and romance. It can really excite you and could even make you feel on edge!. It's really good book and I really think you should read this.

Commentary on the author;

I really think that Rainbow Rowell has really outdone herself. She makes me feel as if I'm in a different world whenever I read her books and she inspires me to be just as imaginative and creative.

[carry-on-kissing-snowbaz]

Werewolf Adventures (Spooky Week Day 7)

Just a fun little fic in which Baz and Simon go looking for a werewolf in the Wavering Wood. Happy Halloween everyone! @snowbazspookyweek

Word Count: 1.8k

Baz

Snow was driving Baz mad. He kept pacing the floor in their room like he was on the verge of an epiphany and gnawing at his bottom lip. Baz felt the brief urge to offer to do that part for him but quickly dismissed the idea. Much as he wanted to, offering lip-gnawing sexual services would not be a good idea.

“Snow can you place sit like a good dog and stop pacing the rug?” Baz asked, irritably.

Snow stopped, glaring at him.

“Do you not care at all about the loose werewolf?” Simon asked.

Baz shrugged.

“He’s a student. I thought you’d be on his side, what with him having magic and all that.”

Snow rolled his eyes.

“Of course I’m on his side. But it’s a full moon tonight.”

“It’s also Halloween,” Baz said, “A night when students like to have fun. He’s probably just blowing off some midterm steam in the Wavering Wood.”

Snow took an unconscious step towards Baz.

“He was dared to go in Baz. Jared has never gone in the Wavering Wood before. Even if he manages to stay, well Jared, when he transforms, he might still get lost.”

Baz sighed.

“You managed pretty well during your first Wavering Wood visit.”

Snow frowned.

“I went off and made a decent crater in the woods, I don’t think Jared and I are comparable.”

Baz studied Snow’s face, trying to figure out why Snow had allowed the conversation to go on as long as it had.

“Why not take Bunce out for an evening stroll then? I’m sure the two of you could find him,” Baz said.

“She went home to help pass out candy,” Snow said.

“And Wellbelove?” Baz asked.

Snow dropped his eyes away.

“She hates the Wavering Wood,” Snow said, “And besides, we’re not really talking right now.”

Baz frowned.

“Why not?”

“We broke up,” Snow said, flatly.

Baz felt a surge of excitement and then an instant answering feeling of guilt. Snow was obviously unhappy about the breakup and there Baz was feeling like he’d won the lottery. It was messed up and he owed Snow, even if Snow didn’t know anything about it. 

“I’ll go with you,” Baz said.

Snow blinked in surprise.

“You…you will?” 

Baz sat up and put on his shoes.

“It’s obvious you’re trying to get me to go with you. So let’s go,” Baz said.

Snow grabbed a sweatshirt and threw it over his head quickly.

“We have to be careful, Jared might be afraid and dangerous.”

Baz noticed that Snow didn’t correct him about his previous statement. Had Snow actually been trying to get Baz to go with him?

“Don’t worry,” Baz said as they left, “I’m using you as a human shield.”

Simon

Simon had been in the Wavering Wood with Baz only a handful of times and all of them had been against his best wishes. This time though, he had practically asked Baz to come with him. Whether Baz wanted to admit to it or not, Simon knew he was a vampire. He hoped that having Baz come along would help them find Jared faster.

A small part of him wanted Baz there simply because he wanted to be near him. Simon tried to ignore that part.

Simon was not worried for himself. If Jared attacked them in earnest he knew Baz’s spellwork was good enough to immobilize him. He only hoped that they could get to Jared before anyone else, or anything else, could.

“What is it that you think is out to get Jared?” Baz asked.

“Well,” Simon said, “Anything I suppose. The Wavering Wood is fucked up.”

Baz laughed.

“Truer words have never been spoken,” He said.

Simon felt his heart thump unevenly when Baz laughed. Cursing to himself, he tried to get ahold of his feelings. It was not the time to get goofy with Baz in the woods.

“So why did you and Wellbelove break up?” Baz asked.

“What?” Simon asked, suddenly panicked.

As he said this, he forgot to duck under the tree branch Baz had just pushed up and walked under. The branch smacked him in the face.

“Fuck a nine toed troll!” Simon shouted, covering his face.

Baz turned and swore.

“Can you please watch where you’re going? The plan isn’t to run face first into Jared, is it?”

Simon felt slight pressure on his arm. When he opened his eyes he found that Baz had grabbed his arm to steer him forward. He glanced at Simon’s face.

“Is something wrong?” Baz asked.

Simon shook his head, unable to speak.

Baz studied his face for a moment, and then his hair.

Simon felt his breath leave him as Baz raised a hand to touch his hair. He had barely ruffled Simon’s curls when he brought something to Simon’s face.

“You had a leaf in your hair,” Baz explained.

Simon felt his whole face go red.

“Thanks,” He said.

They continued to walk. Simon watched as every now and then Baz’s nose flared unnaturally. He knew this was his way of tracking Jared. Simon wondered if Baz knew Jared’s scent or if he was just tracking for a werewolf in general.

“So,” Baz said, “Wellbelove, break up, what happened there?”

Simon bit his lip.

“Well we’d kinda grown apart,” Simon said.

Baz sneered.

“That’s it? Three years together and you end it because of that?”

Simon felt himself get defensive.

“You’ve never been in a relationship, you don’t know. It’s enough to make you need a break.”

That made Baz quiet.

Simon softened a bit.

“There was more though,” Simon said.

“Well, don’t make me wait all night,” Baz said.

Simon looked down at his feet. As much as he hated the Wavering Wood there was something satisfying about the crunch noises his feet made as he stepped on the multicolor tree leaves. Even in the dark of night he could see the flashes of red and yellow underfoot. 

“I liked someone else,” Simon said, quietly.

Baz stayed quiet for a moment.

“And who’s the lucky girl?” He asked.

Simon felt the desire to be honest, to lay his feelings on the line. It was Halloween night, the time of year that people put on masks in order to do things they would never normally do. But they weren’t trick-or-treating and Simon didn’t have a mask to hide behind. 

“Not the lucky girl,” Simon said.

Baz was a few steps ahead of Simon. He watched as Baz’s back muscles tightened. 

“Unlucky girl then?” Baz asked.

Simon stopped walking.

“I…Baz I need to tell you something, I think that I like…” 

Baz turned to look at him, his face unreadable.

“Simon…”

Baz

Baz refused to believe it was possible. Snow was standing there, cheeks red like overripe apples and his eyes downcast. It didn’t make any sense for Snow to like him. Was this the part where Snow started to laugh and tell Baz what a good trick he’d pulled off? But no, Snow seemed rigid with real emotion.

“Simon…”

Suddenly Snow’s whole expression changed. His eyes went wide and Baz watched as his hand flickered instinctively to his side.

With a feeling of dread, Baz opened up his senses.

“There’s a werewolf behind me isn’t there?” Baz asked.

Snow nodded, eyes glazed with fear.

Baz supposed it made sense that during one of the most important moments of his life, a werewolf named Jared would come and fuck it up.

He swung around and raised his wand.

“You can’t teach an old dog new tricks,” Baz said.

The magic hit Jared before he could attack Baz. But it didn’t hold. The spell was normally meant to calm overexcited young dogs or puppies. It didn’t have much effect on a fully matured werewolf. He snarled at the both of them and charged. Simon raised his own wand, shaking.

“A wolf in sheep’s clothing,” Snow said.

Baz froze as he watched Snow’s magic hit. The spell was normally used to uncover a person’s true form as a way to counteract a glamour. It was not used to force a transformation on a werewolf. And yet, Baz watched as Jared returned to his human form. 

“Sometimes you scare me,” Baz said, eyeing Snow.

Snow shrugged.

“Happy Halloween?”

Jared groaned on the other side of them, embarrassingly naked. Baz whispered a conjuring spell and threw a robe at him wordlessly. It was likely Jared had gone into the Wavering Wood fully dressed and lost his clothing somewhere in the midst of his nighttime adventure.

The three of them walked back to their rooms, Snow eyeing Jared like a disapproving parent.

“Jared why would you go into the Wavering Wood alone? You could have been eaten!” Snow said.

“I think the chances of me eating someone else were higher,” Jared mumbled.

“Oh and that’s so much better,” Snow griped.

Baz was only half-listening. He didn’t want to discuss Jared’s idiotic choices. He wanted to go back to the conversation he’d been having with Snow in the woods. 

Finally they deposited Jared back to his room and made their way to their own.

Baz strolled over to Snow’s bed and leaned on the bedpost.

“So?” Baz said.

Snow eyed him warily.

“Yes?”

“Where were we before we were so rudely interrupted by Jared?”

Simon

Baz hadn’t forgotten about Simon’s bitten off confession in the Wavering Wood and he wasn’t letting it go. He was pretty sure Baz knew already and that denying it ever happened was a useless idea. Still, he felt like crawling under his bed and shoving his fingers in his ears.

“I like someone,” Simon said.

“Yes,” Baz said.

“I like…you,” Simon said.

Baz inhaled sharply.

“I don't expect you to do anything with that information,” Simon added quickly.

“Do you like me enough to kiss me?” Baz asked.

“I-what?” Simon said, completely flustered.

Baz crossed his arms over his chest, defensively.

“Do you like me enough to kiss me?” Baz repeated.

Simon stood there for a moment, totally uncomprehending.

“I mean…yes. But I would never do anything you didn’t want me to do.”

“Who said I didn’t want you to kiss me?” Baz asked.

Simon stared at him.

“Do you want me to?” He asked, in utter disbelief.

“Yes,” Baz said.

Simon moved without fully having decided to. He was walking across the length of the room, eyes on Baz’s suddenly vulnerable face. It felt like a moment fragmented out of time, singular in its rarity.

“Simon,” Baz said.

And then he was kissing him. It felt like an eclipse of everything they’d ever said and done to one another, overshadowed by something more luminous and powerful. Simon gasped when Baz’s breath huffed into his mouth. The feeling undid him, made him feel as if his knees were no longer reliably under him.

Baz kissed him back, his mouth soft and unpracticed in a way that made Simon’s chest hurt. He wanted this more than he’d ever wanted anything else. Everyone had told Simon he was made of magic, but he hadn’t felt like it until that moment. 

They continued to kiss, content to spend the rest of the night inside their room after a night of hunting a peer-pressured werewolf.

[keptin-indy]

Dresden Files: Salem 14

Adler makes a bad decision and everyone deals with the fallout for two sessions.  Also I put way too much detail into documenting a bluebooking session because it’s cute.

Previous installments

Sanya asked if they wanted help smiting the demon, but Adler pointed out that they had to find her first and asked for her number from Conan, saying he was going to set up a meeting via anonymous tip.  Baz suggested going to the same warehouse where they had killed the witchhunter, since they knew it was out of the way enough for murder.  Sanya did not want to know this story, but in fairness, neither did Baz and he’d been the one doing the murdering.  Sanya insisted they find another way and Adler said that if he had one, he would love to hear it and was all ears...then proceeded to make that statement literal.  Sanya asked what manner of creature he was and Adler said that he didn’t know except that he was someone who wanted to make things better and give Baz a break.  With no other viable options, Adler called the woman’s cell from a payphone, telling her he had a tip on her dead partner, then gave her the time and place for a meeting.  She very reasonably sounded terrified and asked how he got the number, etc, etc, but he gave no more information.  The group plus Sanya headed over to the warehouse early to prepare, all armed for battle, with Conan in a ski mask “just in case” and with his blessed bullets, and Sanya kitted out with his Sword, an assault rifle, and a kevlar vest with a cross painted on it.  Baz warned him that proximity to wizards tended to break more complicated guns, but Sanya said he’d chosen a Kalashnikov for precisely its ability to keep going no matter what.  Baz asked if Sanya knew any other preparations they could take in a short time, and Sanya said that he had a landmine in his checked baggage, but not much else (making Baz very happy that he would never be on a plane himself).  Ath, the living sword, brought a knife and then proceeded to arrange the boxes and crates in the warehouse to his liking.  Adler turned into a creature that at first glance would appear to be a dog, but that could unfold into one of his horrible claw monster forms.  Baz and Adler took point, standing in the middle of the warehouse, while the others hid amongst the boxes and waited for the woman to arrive.  She eventually did, armed with pepper spray and looking exactly as terrified as a lone woman in a warehouse with a large man with an equally large sword and dog would be.  Seeing this, Baz tried to backtrack, telling her he would stay back, far away from her, and just wanted to talk.  He asked if she knew her partner had been a demon, which she denied, but Evelyn, watching from where Baz could see her, gave him a thumbs down to indicate she was lying and Adler tried to get between the woman and the door, causing her to bolt for it.  Ath toppled the precarious tower of boxes he’d set up earlier, blocking the door, and the woman begged to be let out.  At her rising distress, the ground started to tremble - evidently she was a practitioner, powerful but untrained, and directing all her raw energy downward into the earth.  Evelyn came out and tried to salvage the situation and calm everyone down, but with no easy way to tell if the woman was a demon trying to lower their guard, Baz asked Sanya what would happen if someone tried to look at a Denarian with the Sight.  Sanya told him that the last guy who’d tried had run away screaming, so Evelyn - knowing that Baz was the better combatant should this provoke a fight - volunteered and opened her third eye.  The first thing she noticed was that there wasn’t a Denarian sigil on the woman, but the lack of something was an extremely unusual and slightly suspicious thing to notice so immediately, especially when the less noticeable characteristics included skin like cracked marble and a definite sense that she was both unstable and influence by the infernal.  Evelyn closed the Sight and told the others she wasn’t a demon.  Baz apologized for scaring her, but told her that the person she was looking for was very dangerous and they had to be sure.  The group asked her some questions, but didn’t find much other than that she was searching for Bennett because she loved him even though he was a demon.  Evelyn offered her professional services, Adler turned into a much less terrifying fluffy dog, and Ath snuck out to get coffee and donuts.  Baz told her that they had killed her boyfriend and that he’d been sucking away people’s happiness and killing them with despair.  She was horrified; to her, he’d been nothing but kind, teaching her how to control her magic (though Evelyn didn’t think this was the whole story).  Baz told her she could get training from the Witches in Salem, but she said she might just want to move on, since the town had nothing but bad memories for her now.  Ath came back with his comfort food, surprising Baz, who hadn’t even seen him leave.  With the tensions now soothed, the ground tremors stopped and they all headed away from the warehouse.  Baz and Evelyn gave her their and the Witches Circle’s numbers in case she needed anything, and Ath gave her some money for a hotel room in apology for the panic they’d put her through.  Seeing everything so nicely resolved, however, Adler was unable to resist adding a touch of mystery, turning to the still slightly distraught woman while still in dog form and telling her that things were not always as they seemed.  Her tenuous calm shattered, the woman ran screaming and the tremors returned as a full-blown localized earthquake.  Adler immediately realized he’d made a mistake and turned into a bird, flying around the area to alert people and direct emergency services to anyone hurt in the quake.  Thankfully, there were only minor injuries and property damage, but Adler felt responsible for all of it, and went through a lot of effort to arrange for a hippie healer witch to take care of the worst injury - a broken wrist - because he was avoiding Baz out of guilt.

The next day - New Year’s Eve - Adler showed up on Baz’s doorstep as a dog after not having come home at all the night before.  A worried Baz asked where he’d been and Adler said there was a spot under a nearby bridge that was excellent for feeling shame because bad dogs didn’t didn’t get to sleep in the bedroom (yes they do, said Baz, with much experience).  Adler continued that he was lucky there’d only been one broken bone and that he’d found someone to heal it, leaving Baz mystified as to what was even going on.  Adler didn’t think he deserved his position as Baz’s boyfriend and Baz must surely be disappointed in him.  Baz was mostly just confused and told him to maybe not creep out people who’ve just been through trauma.  Adler finally turned into a human and immediately brightened up.  He explained that he’d arranged the healer because he felt responsible for the earthquake and didn’t want his first act as Baz’s "equal partner” to be making Baz fix a mess he had caused.  Baz told him he’d hoped his first act would be going somewhere for New Year’s with him and Adler told him that’s why he’d come back when he had.  Baz suggested they get werewolf tacos and talk more, [so they relocated to the Howling Wolf Taqueria where Adler explained that when he took on animal forms, he frequently also took on some measure of how they thought, which had led his dog-brain to believe that he had been a Bad Dog and should be much more ashamed than the situation actually warranted.  Once he turned into a human, he saw things much more clearly, though he did worry that Baz would think less of him for running away and not knowing how to handle the extra relationship aspect of these kinds of problems.  With that cleared up, the conversation wandered around, first to Conan and his willful ignorance of both the supernatural and Baz’s sexual orientation, then to whether or not they wanted to be open about their relationship and if it was polite in the modern era to publicly announce one’s dating status and the difficulties in doing so when you couldn’t use a computer.  Baz realized he would have to tell his mother, who had always been a little leery of Adler, and Adler suggested that it was only fair that Baz meet his mother sometime, as well.  Baz recounted the story of when Conan had asked out Sylvia Rowland and been soundly shot down, which turned into telling Adler what the Rowlands had been like, understandably still a delicate subject for Baz.  Adler felt bad on Baz’s behalf and regretted that he was taking all three of their duties on himself, but Baz pointed out that with so few Wardens left, he was the only one around to do it.  Baz apologized for bringing the mood down on their first date, and Adler briefly panicked that he should have put more thought into what he looked like for such a momentous occasion, but Baz pointed out that he’d put a lot of effort into choosing his human face and Baz was pretty fond of that.  Adler said that even the Winters had liked his face, hence the stealing of it and Baz asked what the story had been there.  It was pretty simple, the Winter Court had cornered Adler in an alley and demanded he join them, then they ganged up on him and beat him when he refused, with the troll carving his face off to make a statement.  Carving his own face off later to make the same statement had been much less unpleasant, as he viewed that as suffering for his art rather than torture.  Adler was surprised that he didn’t mind being in constant danger for other people’s sake now that he was working with a Warden; he was just an actor, not a real hero.  Baz told him that being a “real hero” was just method acting as one until it became the truth.  Adler was thrilled by this bit of wisdom and said it validated his entire world view and if it were appropriate to glow in public, he absolutely would.  The two made plans to go to a dance party for New Year’s where Adler could glow all he wanted and no one would notice.  Baz laughed that he had his own little disco ball and Adler wrote him a napkin coupon for one emergency disco party “just in case”.]

Mid-evening, Sanya called Baz from the airport saying that his flight had been delayed again, which meant that something was still up.  Baz called up the others and they all met up with Sanya at the Estate and headed downstairs to the magical map of Boston they had set up to track cultists.  Without a sympathetic connection to anything demon-related, there wasn’t much they could do with it.  Adler’s sensitive ears picked up a strange keening or singing from outside and he told the others to stop talking.  Most of the others also caught snippets of it, so they headed upstairs, but it didn’t seem to be coming from any discernible direction.  They made a circle out toward the bay and then back toward downtown to try and find its source, but Ath and Conan realized that it was coming from multiple places, all of them patches of bare earth.  Baz drew a magic circle in the dirt and used it to pinpoint the epicenter along the banks of the North River.  As they headed in that direction, they could see that the landscape had been changed and more and more of those bare patches of dirt had grown abrupt and jagged rock outcroppings.  The quality of the music changed as they got closer to a large plateau of rock and they realized that they could now hear it through the air as well as the stone.  It was evidently coming from a dancing figure on top of the plateau, who they recognized as the woman from the warehouse - only now she had a second set of glowing eyes set in her forehead.  Sanya called up asking if she would please stop, the city was nice without all the new rocks.  She didn’t stop, so Adler flew Sanya up while Conan and Ath used their superhuman speed to climb the cliff face.  The woman responded by shooting a fist of stone at Sanya, staggering him before the rest of the part could even get to them.  Adler returned to pick Baz up, then Evelyn, and the two swordsmen engaged the demon, though she focused entirely on the Knight of the Cross, the Denarians’ traditional enemy.  Ath jumped between her and Sanya, taking a blow meant for the Knight, and so she retaliated by shaking the whole plateau violently.  Evelyn tried to push the demon off the cliffside with a gust of wind, but she was too solidly anchored to her creation.  The others used all the means at their disposal to take her down, Conan shooting her between all four eyes, Adler raking across her face with sharp claws, and Baz countering her earth magic with his own, but she was largely unconcerned and called up an even more powerful quake, knocking Baz and Evelyn off the plateau.  They landed hard on the ground and didn’t get up.  The others, enraged, redoubled their efforts until finally Conan brought her down with a well-placed shot which knocked her head against the stone spear she had created, Baz had thrown back at her, and Adler had driven further into her.  Sanya and Ath immediately searched for her coin, which turned out to be in a secret pocket against her skin.  Sanya wrapped it in the remains of his shirt and thanked Ath for protecting him, telling him that he’d noticed Ath was afraid of him and that he didn’t have to be.  Ath told him that was completely untrue but didn’t elaborate.  Conan and Adler rushed down to Baz and brought him groggily around.  Dazed, Baz asked about Evelyn and attempted to heal her, but was too injured himself to even move over to her.  He put himself into a healing trance and Adler called his hippie witch friend to look after them.  Around them, the town of Salem was riddled with outcroppings and spires.  The random rock spurs had destroyed several buildings, though they’d taken the magical path of least resistance and avoided wards and strong thresholds.  Conan asked Sanya what to do with their prisoner and Sanya expressed hope that she could be reasoned with and eventually rehabilitated, but warned him that once she was awake, she could summon the coin at will and start the fight all over again.