#but also. also i need to hear aventurine say here's looking at you kid

[somethingsomethingstarward]

casablanca ip3 au when

[hazelmariewrites]

The Witch’s Burden: Chapter One

I’ve edited chapter one for draft two and I decided to share this snippet with you guys! Of course this might not be the same as the final product, but I’m happy enough with where it stands now to put it out into the world.

***

This fairy is being a huge pain in my ass. I know she did it—I can feel her guilt undoubtedly burning through my senses. I can also feel her trying her hardest to charm me, but the interrogation room had has prepped with iron in anticipation of this. There was a law passed years ago prohibiting the use of iron handcuffs on fey, but nothing saying that we couldn’t keep it in the room to weaken their resolve.

To anyone else she would seem harmless. Her petite body, blonde curls, and big brown eyes give off no hints of danger. Unfortunately for her, she reeks of fey. I had recognized it before I even laid eyes on her. The euphoric sensation, smell of lilac, and glittery haze had enveloped me as soon as I stepped foot into the coffee shop where she had been working in an attempt to pass as human.

My intuition is a unique ability that has fostered success as a detective at the Chicago Supernatural Police Department. Most witches have a specific skill that they are more gifted with than others, but a few—myself included—find themselves further equipped. I’m able to recognize other supernaturals, and different breeds present themselves to me in different ways. 

“I know you’re just doing your job,” the fairy says, “but I didn’t do it. I loved him, and my heart is broken by what happened to him.”

Her eyebrows pull together, and her eyes immediately begin to fill with false tears. A man had been found dead of apparent suicide on the upper East side, but the CSPD had reason to believe that there was supernatural involvement. When I discovered that his girlfriend was a fairy, it made sense. Fey are notorious for jealous violence.

“What did he do to deserve it?” I ask, leaning forward in my seat. “Was he seeing someone else on the side? Forget your anniversary?”

She shakes her head solemnly, but I can feel her anger boiling, so I continue. “Maybe he just got bored, then. Human men have the shortest attention spans, don’t they?”

I felt a shift, and her tears immediately stop. I push harder. “Maybe he never even loved you. Maybe he was just using you.”

Her face twists into a horrible expression as she begins to scream furiously. “He brought it on himself! I did everything for him. I broke laws to give him his dreams, and he repaid me by leaving! He thought he could do better! He’s better off dead!”

I sit back and let my shoulders slump in exhausted relief. She continues to scream as the door to the interrogation room opens and two uniformed officers unchain her to escort her to a cell. Jack comes over the intercom, “Good job Rebecca. Meet me in my office.”

Jack is my captain and mentor. When I first joined the CSPD seven years ago I was a meek, self-conscious girl with little knowledge about Chicago’s supernatural population. I knew only that there was a side of myself that I needed to attend to, and Jack helped me do just that. Jack himself was a warlock, so he took me under his wing. He helped me fine tune my abilities and grow into a half-decent witch and detective. 

When I get to Jack’s office the door is cracked open, so I knock lightly as I push it open further. He’s sitting at his desk, his head bent over a scattering of paperwork. As I enter his head shoots up. “Rebecca,” he greets, pushing the papers aside. “Congratulations on cracking that fairy. I was starting to worry, but I don’t know why. Doubting you never seems to do me any good.”

I smile with pride at his comment. Jack and I have butted heads a few times as I’ve been working to find my place at the department, but ultimately I’ve earned his trust. He stands and motions to the door, shoving the paperwork into his bag.

“Let’s go to Len’s,” he says, referring to our usual bar. I nod in agreement and follow him out. It’s well into fall, which means that it’s cold as hell outside. I zip up my puffy coat as we step out onto the street, but it does little against the biting wind.

“It’s a damn good thing Len’s is only a block away,” I grumble, earning a laugh from Jack. Jack’s best skill is fire, and as a result he’s able to warm himself with little trouble. I feel a wave of heat as he extends his magic to me. “Thank you,” I sigh in relief.

When we reach Len’s I’m glad to see that it’s namesake is nowhere to be found. The owner of the bar runs a tight ship, but when he’s gone our favorite bartenders sometimes give us special deals for being easy customers. We slide into our favorite booth just as a leggy brunette comes up to greet us.

“Hey there you two,” she says, grinning down at me. Shit. Bailey. I was supposed to call her after our date last week. I try to give her a genuine smile, but I’m worried that it comes across as more of a grimace. I’m not good at awkward situations, or at hiding my true emotions. 

Jack and I both order the same beer, as tall as we can get them. When Bailey walks away, Jack glares at me. “I see the tension, kid. Don’t you dare ruin this bar for me.”

I wave him off. “It’s not a big deal, I’ll call her later.” Jack rolls his eyes but doesn’t push me further. We talk about the fairy case for a while until Bailey brings us our beer. She hovers for a moment, but when she realizes that I’m not going to explain myself—at least, not in front of Jack—she finally leaves.

“Here’s the thing, Rebecca,” Jack says after a long drink. “I didn’t just ask you here because you did a good job today, although you did. A damn good one, actually.”

I raise my eyebrow at him. “There’s another case, and I’d like you to take charge on this one.”

Color me interested. “Go on,” I prompt, taking a drink from my own beer.

“There was a vampire attack in Logan Square last week,” he explains. “There had been several disappearances in the area, so now we’re starting to wonder if there’s a connection. If there is, we need to follow it and find the missing people.”

“You had me at vampire,” I say darkly. Jack knows my thoughts about vampires, as well as the reasoning, which I’m sure is why he’s chosen me for the case. He knows I’ll do just about anything to take down a bad vampire.

“That’s my girl,” Jack says, holding out his glass. I touch mine to his and we both take a long drink. “Aaron, the rookie, is the one who came across the vampire on a patrol. Maybe talk to him, and of course interview the vampire.”

I press my lips together. I don’t love the idea of being in such close quarters with a vampire, but I’ve done it before. In fact, the last time I checked I had the highest number of vampire arrests at the precinct. Not that I discriminate—I’ve never arrested one who didn’t wholly deserve it. My ranking is purely due to the fact that I’m one of the only ones in our department who has the guts to face off to a vampire in the first place.

Jack and I finish our beers and order another round as we discuss other things. I talk about a concert I went to see a few days ago, and Jack tells me about his great-great-grandson’s first spell casting. Family is important to Jack, especially as he’s getting older. At three-hundred and sixty-two years old he only has about another century and a half left in him. 

I’m the first to leave, citing Mike, my dog, as an excuse. I do have to get home to feed him, but I’m also ready to crawl into bed and process everything that’s gone on today. Jack gives me the stack of papers he was reading when I got to his office. They’re all articles about the disappearances. I take them eagerly and leave the bar. I barely make it a few hundred feet outside before I hear Bailey calling my name.

I stop, curse to myself, and turn around. Great, she’s chasing after me. I was really hoping she would just give up so we wouldn’t have to have this conversation. The smile on her face makes my chest constrict.

“You didn’t even say goodbye,” she says, shoving her hands into the pockets of her coat. She looks adorable, her nose just starting to turn pink from the cool air.

“Yeah, sorry, it’s just been a long day.”

“Is that why you haven’t called me?” she asks. “Lots of long days?”

I sigh and shift on my feet. “Look, Bailey, I’m sorry I didn’t call you but I’m just not good at this, okay? I’m not good at relationships. I should have told you that sooner.”

Her smile starts to fade. “Oh,” is all she says.

“You’re amazing,” I assure her. “It’s nothing to do with you. I just have a lot going on and I should have known better than to start something I couldn’t follow through on.”

Bailey’s face pinches, like she’s holding back whatever emotion really wants to show through her features. “Yeah, you should have,” she says before turning to walk back to Len’s. I think about calling out to her, but I don’t. What’s the use? Instead I turn the opposite way and start back off toward my apartment.

Before I can even fully open the door to the one-bedroom where I live, Mike shoves his nose through the opening and pushes it the rest of the way. He jumps up, hovering on his hind legs in greeting. I smatter him with scratches, kisses, and sweet names before pushing past him to enter the living room.

My apartment isn’t fancy, but the fact that I’m able to even afford anything in a safe neighborhood on my CSPD salary is nothing short of a miracle. It took a lot of research, negotiation, and meditating with my green aventurine gemstones.

I microwave leftovers, because I don’t have the same affinity for heat that Jack does, and settle in the floor in front of my coffee table to dig into the food as well as the stack of papers that Jack gave me. The articles are all similar. Since crime isn’t at all unusual in Chicago, the first article details three people—two women, one man—missing from the area. If gives the basic run down of who they are and why they were in the area, and goes on to pose theories about what could have happened. They propose that maybe this is the product of gang initiation, or that maybe the disappearances are drug related. As the count rises, however, the articles gradually steer toward the conclusion that this is a case of serial kidnapping.

The disappearances span over only three months, making them hard to ignore. The Chicago Police Department—the vanilla one—has continually insisted that they cannot make any statements at this time without putting the case in jeopardy. That’s code for they don’t have shit. They only advise that people be cautious, travel in groups, and don’t spend time in the area if they don’t have to.

The kidnappings only take place at night. Of course they do, because vampires are burned by sunlight. It’s one of the classic myths about them that actually turns out to be true. They can eat all the garlic they wish and have no aversion to silver, but one step into the daylight and that’s it.

I take a too-big bite of an egg roll before standing and going to my book shelf. I run my index finger across the many spines until I land on a book that Jack gave me when I was still in training. Vampyrica: A History of the Living Dead.

I sit on my couch with my back against an arm and open the book as Mike jumps up and settles in at my feet. I thumb through the various chapters, looking for anything that might give me an idea of how the vampires are managing the kidnappings. Vampires don’t age, vampires have no reflection, vampires do not turn into bats…

Certain vampires, though few in number, have the ability to compel their victims into following their commands. These vampires are often high leaders, as their ability makes it easier for them to feed and become stronger.

I dog ear this page and slip the book into my work bag, planning to question our vampire about his coven’s leader and their abilities. Not that I can be sure he’ll share much.

It’s not that I’ve never partnered with double-crossers. In fact, I’d done so fairly recently when we were tracking a werewolf pack in the suburbs. It’s that I have a deep-rooted distrust and hatred toward vampires that’s been fermenting for twenty-three years. Something that I’ve never even considered budging on.

I’m the one who found my parents afterward. I knew something was wrong, but was too young to realize how exactly I knew. Looking back, I recognize that my intuition began at an early age. I felt wrong, and I wanted my parents’ comfort, so I went looking for them. They were in the kitchen. Their bodies were sprawled across the floor.

I called out to them. They didn’t answer. I approached them, and I’ll never stop wishing I hadn’t. I screamed before running upstairs to my room. I hid for what must have been hours, then remembered what they had told me to do if they were ever hurt or if someone broke into the house. It took a while to build up the courage, but eventually I sprinted to the wall phone in the hallway and called 9-1-1.

I lived with my grandmother after that. Before, I hadn’t gotten to see her much. I know now that it’s because my father wanted to keep me sheltered from our heritage. He himself was not a warlock, because in our family it’s only women who have the gift. He knew enough, however, that he and my mother had decided before I was born that they didn’t want my grandmother’s influence around me. I can’t imagine the life I would have lived if they hadn’t died.

I open my eyes and groan, frustrated that I can’t seem to clear my negative thoughts. Mike lifts his head and gives me a concerned expression. I lean over to give him a reassuring pat, then force myself off the couch to clear up my mess. In the kitchen I brew a sleeping potion, knowing that I’ll need quality sleep to prepare for the day ahead.

Tag list: @clarissalopeswriter@cloudyskycloudymind @snowdropwrites @writerfromthesea@vhum @blueinkblot 

[toast-connoisseur]

All the "weird asks"

1. coffee mugs, teacups, wine glasses, water bottles, or soda cans? -I’m actually obsessed with coffee mugs and tea cups even though I don’t drink coffee nor tea.

2. chocolate bars or lollipops? -Chocolate bars

3. bubblegum or cotton candy? -Cotton Candy!

4. how did your elementary school teachers describe you? -It’s funny because I actually found some of my old report cards recently... they range from “a pleasure to have in class!” to “danger of failing the course” even though my grade for both of those would be an “A” ?

5. do you prefer to drink soda from soda cans, soda bottles, plastic cups or glass cups? -The soda from a bottle from Mexico hits completely different.

6. pastel, boho, tomboy, preppy, goth, grunge, formal or sportswear? -Personally, I don’t dress like any of those but I am attracted to tomboys.

7. earbuds or headphones? -Depends. Mostly, earbuds.

8. movies or tv shows? -Movies.

9. favorite smell in the summer? -All the seasonal smells from the stores!

10. game you were best at in p.e.? -Softball or tennis.

11. what you have for breakfast on an average day? -One slice of toast and one egg.

12. name of your favorite playlist? -I made my friend a playlist called “Emo Turn Up” and I like that one a lot.

13. lanyard or key ring? -Key ring, but I have a lanyard because I tend to leave my purse in the car and that way I can just carry my keys around my neck. Also, my lanyard is Nightmare Before Christmas themed, so she’s beautiful.

14. favorite non-chocolate candy? -Lollipops, actually lol

15. favorite book you read as a school assignment? -Rosemary’s Baby. Although, I kind of got to pick the book for my assignment.

16. most comfortable position to sit in? -One leg is usually elevated while the other has my foot flat on the ground.

17. most frequently worn pair of shoes? -My Chuck Taylor’s!

18. ideal weather? -I have two technically. I love blue skies with a slight breeze but I also love windy rainy weather.

19. sleeping position? -On my side, on leg curled up and the other straight (kind of like how I sit) while I hold a pillow to my chest.

20. preferred place to write (i.e., in a note book, on your laptop, sketchpad, post-it notes, etc.)? -Notebook and post its!

21. obsession from childhood? -Stickers!! Although I never actually stuck them anywhere except on other papers or just left them on their page. I collected them so I didn’t like them getting ugly.

22. role model? -Dita Von Teese!

23. strange habits? -I guess if it’s habit, I probably wouldn’t consider it strange. I do write everything down. Like, everything. I have a list of every movie I’ve ever watched (I had to stop updating it because it was giving me anxiety due to how many movies I watch), I make post it notes that I eventually compile into notebook pages. Any information I never want to lose gets written down somewhere.

24. favorite crystal? Aventurine

25. first song you remember hearing? -It would’ve been something in Spanish. Most likely one of the many songs my mom used to sing to me.

26. favorite activity to do in warm weather? -Although I rarely get to do it: sitting in the sun/going to the beach or a pool. If it’s warm with a breeze I can lay outside for quite some time.

27. favorite activity to do in cold weather? -Watch movies on the couch with a blanket over me.

28. five songs to describe you? -Brown Eyed Girl (the original is nice but I love the Reel Big Fish version), Because I’m Awesome (The Dollyrots), Hot Mess (Cobra Starship), I’m Just a Kid (even though I’m almost 25. Simple Plan), Independent (Webbie)

29. best way to bond with you? -Be open and honest. I love talking about books, movies, and music but talk to me about conspiracy theories and ghost stories and you’ll have my heart. I love when people have stories revolving around their culture. I’m Mexican and we have lots of myths and stories to swap so it’s awesome.

30. places that you find sacred? -A person’s bedroom can be sacred. Call me silly but Disneyland is kind of sacred to me. It hold so many wonderful memories. I only like to share certain spots with certain people sometimes.

31. what outfit do you wear to kick ass and take names? -Probably whatever outfit I have on at the moment. I don’t really plan to kick anyone’s ass let alone want to plan a whole outfit for it. I assume leggings and a t shirt will do?

32. top five favorite vines? -omg I miss vine! I was actually going through vines on YouTube recently... The “Miss Keisha” vine always kills me, any vine with Sarah Baska, anything that Zane and Heath ever made, Jay Versace has really funny vines too, and I still quote the “welcome to Chilis” vine constantly. Picking 5 is way too hard.

33. most used phrase in your phone? -“it be like that sometimes” or “yaaaaaaas”

34. advertisements you have stuck in your head? -The Red Robin commercial and the O’Riley Auto Parts one play in my head on loop at the worst times.

35. average time you fall asleep? -I lay down around 9ish but don’t actually fall asleep until 10PM

36. what is the first meme you remember ever seeing? -That’s way too hard to remember. Probably something I would consider really stupid now.

37. suitcase or duffel bag? -Depends on how long I’ll be away/how many clothes I’ll need. Usually, a suitcase.

38. lemonade or tea? -Lemonade.

39. lemon cake or lemon meringue pie? -omg why would you make me pick?! Lemon meringue pie though...

40. weirdest thing to ever happen at your school? -I went to a public high school in LA. We mostly had riots and fights and I stayed away from all of that.

41. last person you texted? -Jayla. I need her to wake up so I can tell her about my dream about Beyoncé.

42. jacket pockets or pants pockets? -Por que no los dos?! I like buying men’s jean jackets because they have pockets inside though...

43. hoodie, leather jacket, cardigan, jean jacket or bomber jacket? -Depends. I tend to get cold easily so I usually start with a cardigan but I love jean jackets.

44. favorite scent for soap? -just plain ol clean??

45. which genre: sci-fi, fantasy or superhero? -Fantasy

46. most comfortable outfit to sleep in? -Depends on the weather but usually just shorts and a t shirt.

47. favorite type of cheese? -Mozzarella

48. if you were a fruit, what kind would you be? -Grapes. Sweet and sometimes a little sour lol

49. what saying or quote do you live by? -“Let your imaginarlo run free”. I actually have it tattooed on my right bicep.

50. what made you laugh the hardest you ever have? -My friends always get me to laugh really hard. I think the hardest I’ve ever laughed was when my friend tried to say something and she completely botched the sentence so it was pure gibberish and yet I understood her? We just looked at each other and burst into laughter.

51. current stresses? -Work, school, life... the usual??

52. favorite font? -Arial

53. what is the current state of your hands? -I am typing my answers to these questions on my phone...

54. what did you learn from your first job? -I only have infinite patience for kids, not adults.

55. favorite fairy tale? -Used to be Cinderella, but I was never really one for fairy tales tbh

56. favorite tradition? -I don’t actually have any. Never really had anyone to have traditions with.

57. the three biggest struggles you’ve overcome? -2018 was an entire struggle, car crashes because idiot drivers crashed into mine and totaled mine (TWICE), my entire life as a whole has been a struggle tbh. Every day is one that I try my hardest to overcome.

58. four talents you’re proud of having? -I don’t really consider myself as someone with any talent, let alone four, but... A mathematician once taught me how to divide any number by five in my head, I’m pretty good at mimicking certain accents, idk of this counts as a talent but I can drink quite a bit before I actually feel anything, I can recite certain movies down to what song will play during certain scenes, and I would consider myself the ultimate Disneyland tour guide. That’s five but it’s all I can think of so if one doesn’t sound like one, we have an extra.

59. if you were a video game character, what would your catchphrase be? -“Oh shit, here we go again...”

60. if you were a character in an anime, what kind of anime would you want it to be? -I know nothing about anime so I wouldn’t even know. I would want to make a joke about being in the ones that are essentially pornos but I’m probably wrong with that too.

61. favorite line you heard from a book/movie/tv show/etc.? -“The greatest thing you will ever learn is just to love and be loved in return.” Idk if the line comes from elsewhere but I first heard it in the movie Moulin Rouge and it has stuck with me since.

62. seven characters you relate to? -Oh geez, I don’t really relate to any tbh but seven characters I like: Princess Tiana, Shane from The L Word, Theo from the Netflix version of A Haunting of Hill House, Satine from Moulin Rouge, Wall-E, Cassandra from Saved!, and The Grinch (as wonderfully played by Jim Carrey)

63. five songs that would play in your club? -Act Up (City Girls), Motivation (Normani), LGBT (Cupcakke), Alcohol (Millionaires, lol), My Type (Saweetie)

64. favorite website from your childhood? -Neopets!

65. any permanent scars? -I have one from when I stuck my hand in a garbage can because I was looking for something and wound up cutting myself on all the glass that had been thrown in. The scar is super tiny and on my pinkie lol

66. favorite flower(s)? -Roses and carnations

67. good luck charms? -I don’t have any anymore.

68. worst flavor of any food or drink you’ve ever tried? -I tried sea urchin once and I swear I can still taste it.

69. a fun fact that you don’t know how you learned? -All leaves have symmetry (unless tampered with)

70. left or right handed? -I’m right handed but I use my left hand as dominant for a lot of stuff? It’s weird.

71. least favorite pattern? One that isn’t symmetrical.

72. worst subject? -I was once good at math and now I’m horrible.

73. favorite weird flavor combo? -Some think syrup on bacon is gross but I love when the syrup from my pancakes falls on it!

74. at what pain level out of ten (1 through 10) do you have to be at before you take an advil or ibuprofen? -10

75. when did you lose your first tooth? -I have no idea. I lost all my baby teeth early on. I’ll go with 5 or 6...

76. what’s your favorite potato food (i.e. tater tots, baked potatoes, fries, chips, etc.)? -Can’t go wrong with French Fries!

77. best plant to grow on a windowsill? -I recently revived the orchid my boss has on his windowsill and I’m quite proud of that.

78. coffee from a gas station or sushi from a grocery store? -I don’t drink coffee but I love sushi...

79. which looks better, your school id photo or your driver’s license photo? -Now, my driver’s license photo. I retook it recently lol

80. earth tones or jewel tones? -Jewel (with a mix of earth?)

81. fireflies or lightning bugs? -There’s a difference? Fireflies, I guess?

82. pc or console? -Console, though I love PC games.

83. writing or drawing? -I’m shit at drawing but I love to doodle. Writing is my favorite though.

84. podcasts or talk radio? -Podcasts

84. barbie or polly pocket? -My childhood nickname is Barbie (my middle name is Barbara) so I only played with Barbies even though I only dressed them because I liked their clothes and then then threw them to the side to play other games.

85. fairy tales or mythology? -Mythology

86. cookies or cupcakes? -Cookies

87. your greatest fear? -Being buried alive.

88. your greatest wish? -To be truly happy.

89. who would you put before everyone else? -My family/close friends.

90. luckiest mistake? -My entire life? I guess it would be taking a job in a field I knew nothing about which led me to learn about said field. I’m now somewhat successful in that field.

91. boxes or bags? -Depends on what I’m carrying but I love boxes. Bags are much easier though... I guess I’ll go with bags.

92. lamps, overhead lights, sunlight or fairy lights? -Sunlight/sunset.

93. nicknames? -Barbie, a friend in high school used to call me West Side Story because my first name is Maria, Barbz...

94. favorite season? -Fall

95. favorite app on your phone? -I like IG

96. desktop background? -Wildflowers

97. how many phone numbers do you have memorized? -5? My friends have changed their numbers before so I remember their old numbers only lol

98. favorite historical era? -I love the fashion of the fashion and cars of the 1940s but I would never want to go back. We’re barely making any progress towards equality as is so going back would not be an option for me.

Thanks for the questions, Anon!💞