#but wow way to completely ruin a character in ONE MINUTE

[hanaasbananas]

TERE BIN WHAT THE FUCK WAS THOSE LAST FEW MINUTES I AM SO ANGRY

[cwritesforfun]

The Bear: Carmen 'Carmy' Berzatto x Fem!Reader: The Walk

Part One is linked here!!!

Part Two is linked here!!!

Masterlist

(YES, the plot has changed. I do not own The Bear characters.) Y/N = Your Name

Y/N’s POV

You throw on your cozy walk outfit and walk outside to meet Carmy. He should be here any minute. What he doesn’t know is that you packed a small little picnic for you both.

You wait on a bench until you see Carmy’s car pull up and he walks toward you. He’s holding two coffees and he exclaims, “I didn’t want to show up empty handed, so I brought you a coffee the way you like it.” How does he know what coffee you like?! You reply, “That was sweet of you, thank you.” He opens his arms to hug you and you hug him back. He’s so warm right now and he doesn’t smell like smoke. He smells really good. Shut up brain this is your boss that you are thinking about.

You both start walking around the park and you reach the area near the pond. You ask, “Fancy a picnic?” Carmy says, “Sure.”

You both sit on a bench and give Carmy a food haul from your tote bag. He seems excited about the burritos and after he takes a bite, he exclaims, “Holy shit. I swear if you were not employed already, I would hire you. This is so good.” You reply, “Thank you, Carmy. I don’t like cooking for more than like 4 people though. It really stresses me out. When I cook or bake, I feel more in control when I do smaller portions.” He replies, “I used to feel that way. Then I kept practicing and cooking, so it’s a way of life. If you ever want it to be yours, then it could be.” You reply, “Your way of life? Haha! I’ve always wondered, do you ever get super burnt out cooking for yourself because it’s your job every day.” He answers, “Haha wow we’re getting deep now… I do get burnt out cooking for myself. If I don’t want to cook, I will make myself a peanut butter and jelly sandwich then call it a day. I also have several quick recipes I know how to make in under 10 minutes if I am still in the mood after work. It depends on the day.” I ask, “What was yesterday?” He answers, “2 peanut butter and jelly sandwiches with milk.” I answer, “You’re getting a little crazy there.” He laughs then says, “Thank you so much for yesterday. I feel like I didn’t thank you enough for how you helped me. You really helped me not have a complete mental breakdown and ruin my relationship with my employees. I appreciated it and needed it." I reply, "I believe you said and I quote the light in the darkness of my mind. If I'm ever not at work, I'm only one call or text away. I do work and have class, but I also have time where I can be on my phone." He replies, "Thanks." You both talk about your anxieties for a while then sit in silence staring out at the pond.

You turn to Carmy and ask, "Random question, what did you tell Sydney that made her give you my address so willingly?" He asks, "She didn't tell you?" You answer, "No, she refused to answer it. She seemed really nervous about it though. I had to reassure her that it was okay that you visited and that you brought me a dessert." He nods and asks, "So it was okay that I came over? I didn't know if we were crossing some kind of boundary or if it was okay. I was also worried at what you might think, but I wanted to make sure you were okay." You reply, "And for that, I am very grateful. That caramel tart was all I ate that day besides an apple." He replies, "Then I guess let me know if you ever need a caramel tart any other night you get really bad anxiety. I can always drop it off after work." You reply, "Ok, yeah I might just take you up on that offer." He smiles. He has a cute smile and it makes you smile. You say, "You should smile more, Carmy. You have a nice smile." He smiles widely and says, "It's only for you these days, Y/N." Is he flirting with me or being nice to me?!?!??! You ask, "What do you think of the walk and the view of the pond?" He smirks and says, "I can think of a better view." OMG OMG OMG is he flirting with me again!?!!?!??! You laugh and say, "Oh... thanks." He exclaims, "I think I should tell you what I told Sydney. I told her that I cared about you and I wished I didn't because you're my employee. She gave it over once I told her that my feelings for you weren't going anywhere anytime soon... When Richie made that workplace romance joke yesterday, I was worried it would wreck anything we could've had together. I didn't want it lingering in your mind without knowing for sure. So, yes I like you. I know we just started bonding and we're both dealing with a lot of anxiety, so I'm okay if we wait to date. But, when you want to, I would like to be your first choice if you like me too." HOLY SH**!!?!??!!??!?! I'm freaking out on the inside. You say, "You're my first choice to date too. I'll admit that sometimes the thoughts of what we could be have come across my mind at work. I try to not focus on how attractive I find you while I'm working as the host or talking to Sydney in the kitchen as you cook." He smirks and says, "I find you attractive too, for the record." ok ok teehee this is it!!! LMK if I should write more of their story like the first date? first kiss? idk... also... pls be gentle with yourself and ily

Masterlist

[lolotheparagon]

Every MLP G3 Special In a Nutshell

A Charming Birthday: A bunch of ponies construct a 50 ft tall friendship bracelet for the village hermit's birthday cos she've never been surprised before. I think that would surprise anyone tbh.

Dancing in the Clouds: Two ponies ride a rollercoaster, immediately get inspired to do a dance routine and then GOD APPEARS to summon butterflies to make the ponies fly. Cos why dance in a routine when you can cheat?

Friends are Never Far Away: This is the first time I've seen in a kids cartoon where the main characters meet indigenous people with the offering of friendship and not colonisation and seizing their land. Funny how MLP G4 completely spat on that idea.

The Princess Promenade: A pony becomes princess because she was given a flower by a stinky old lizard...oh and she also has to organise a flower parade as well because a pixie couldnt do it....Nah, being a princess is boring, let's make everyone princesses!

A Very Minty Christmas: Minty's OCD caused her to break a magic candy cane and thinks she's ruined Christmas for everyone so she goes on a perilous journey to fix things when all her friends want is her to be home. Awww.

The Runaway Rainbow: A unicorn filly who's a part of The Rainbow Justice League is teleported to Ponyville, spends a day rolling around in mud and eating cake and then says im tired i wanna go home. Oh and this filly is apparently a vital element of nature because without her making rainbows, THE COLOURS OF THE WORLD ARE FADING THIS IS A SIGN OF THE END TIMES

The Ladybug Jamboree: Pinkie has a brain blast that makes all her band members play successfully for the first time...moments before they go on stage

Greetings from Unicornia: Rainbow Dash and Rarity fuck around in a castle for a few minutes

Come Back Lily Lightly: A unicorn is scared of being judged because her horn lights up when she giggles... I have no idea what kind of metaphor this is supposed to be.

Two for the Sky: A lesbian couple desperately want to fly. They get their wish but they quickly hate it cos they cant sleep together with those giant wings in the way.

Positively Pink: The ponies pink-ify the entire town for Pinkie Pie's birthday but realise they just wasted a whole day because her birthday's not until tomorrow.

Pinkie's Special Day: Oh so this is what they did for her birthday: they gave her a clipshow! Wow, that's cheap. That's like the giftcard equivalent of birthday surprises.

Rainbow Dash's Special Day: OH GOD DASH WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU WHY DO YOU SOUND SO WRONG?!

Star Song and the Magic Dance Shoes: Starsong and Pinkie try to do a dance routine without their shoes but realise its they cant dance without them. THE SHOES ARE A CRUCIAL ELEMENT IN DANCING WHERE'S THE SPARKLY PINK SHOES?!

Pinkie Pie's Party: Pinkie Pie has an anxiety attack during a trip about party and then goes to speedrun prepare for a party. Then her friends decide to make a party out of preparing for a party. Yknow Ponyville can make even paying taxes sound like a party.

Rainbow Dash's Party: Dash hosts a hat fashion show for all her friends where she likes everyones hats so much, she lets them all win. Even though one clearly should’ve won. I mean come on, Starsong’s has functioning piano notes on it. Do you know how much wiring goes into that? No, in fact Toola Roola's should win, its got the best motif and why arent easel-style berets a thing yet? Im way too into this. Lets carry on.

Cheerilee's Party: The ponies have a sleepover where they refuse to go to sleep. Hey, why dont we let Crane tell the scary stories. That'll help them stay awake.

Scootaloo's Party: Scootaloo hosts a sports day party for her friends and they decide to give her the trophy. Awww.

Starsong's Party: A pony gets stage fright about singing on stage but her friends encourage her to try anyway at a concert and whilst the pony is singing off stage, the curtains go up, revealing her talented voice to the world. And then G4 remade this plot into someone's nervous breakdown.

Toola-Roola's Party: Toola Roola spends a whole day waiting for her friends' painted plates to finish drying cos she doesnt know what a kiln is. Then she gets them mixed around cos the namecards are lost when its clearly obvious which is which. What a disaster horse.

Sweetie Belle's Party: The ponies put their own ideas for a cake into one batter, end up making something that even Buddy the Elf would have a heart attack and then Sweetie Belle suggests making them into a cake with separate layers….that’s still gonna taste like shit.

Twinkle Wish Adventure: A dragon steals a star Pokemon from the ponies because she thinks its a toy and by her logic, will help her get more friends. And then the ponies sing about how great their friendship is. Girls, she stole your property. Punch her.

Waiting for the Winter Wishes Festival: This is literally just a deleted scene from Twinkle Wish adventure. If you want to see Scootaloo fumble around doing a holiday tiktok dance, here it is.

Sweetie Belle's Gumball House Surprise: The core 7 ponies spend 5 minutes searching for Sweetie Belle in her house via scavenger hunt only to find she's just in the backyard. The little gremlin.

Pinkie Pie's Ferris Wheel Adventure: Pinkie creates/manages an entire theme park by herself just for her friends to visit. Pinkie, where did you get the money to create this theme park? Are you a rich kid? Do you have a trust fund?

So Many Different Ways To Play: Baby Scootaloo is just pure chaotic gremlin mode and drives her sister and her friend ragged. This is the content I want to see.

Over Two Rainbows: The baby ponies find out baby Sweetie Belle has god-like powers but just wants to have a dress up party. AND APPARENTLY BABIES ARE MADE WHEN TWO RAINBOWS FUCK

The World's Biggest Tea Party Live: It's weird to see me watch this without 3 ex-bronies screeching at the screen for how 'cringeworthy' it is and then go completely off the rails to talk about Tumblr memes and have nipple fights.

....Oh yeah, the plot of the show is that Pinkie and Minty have a miscommunication boo-boo and now their tea party's fucked cos they aint got a teapot. Then they ask the audience to summon a giant teapot with the Tea-necronomicon. There was much rejoicing

[genlossneg]

Okay so like. I didn’t have any interest in this, my boyfriend did. He’s been talking about it since the first streams, all of the stuff in it he finds cool, and how novel it is as a piece of media. He loves it, he’s dropped a lot of money on merch for it (which to be fair, the merch looks sick as hell I’m not even gonna lie), and he really wanted me to watch the founder’s cut when it came out. Well, I watched the founder’s cut and I just gotta say. It’s awful. I was so unbelievably bored, and when I wasn’t bored I was annoyed. Honestly I think the worst part for me is Slimecicle. He is remarkably unfunny, annoying, and obnoxious, and if his absolutely piss poor excuse for comedy was completely surgically removed (haha see what I did there?) it would make it a lot easier to tolerate all of the other badly done elements of it. Pretty much none of the attempted humor was funny to me. Maybe if I liked the streamers already I would have found it really funny, but I maybe exhaled out of my nostrils like 2 times total. I’m not sure what the consensus is with the Gen loss community about its humor but it did not hit for me in the slightest.

It feels like little of importance was happening for 65% of the runtime, the acting is terrible, the pacing is bad, and it’s just. It’s not even remotely good until the last like 45 minutes of the cut. I just could not bring myself to care, it felt like a constant barrage of “this happened, and then this happened, and then this happened, and then this happened.” Over and over. It wasn’t scary at any point, and I still, even after managing to just BARELY sit through the entire thing, don’t understand how so much money and effort went into this if this was the end product. I was not familiar with any of these streamers besides Jerma and Vinny Vinesauce, which the Founder’s Cut does woefully little with, so I had absolutely no connection to any of the characters. If there was some effort made to actually get me invested in who the characters are maybe I would have felt more positively towards it but it feels like I’m supposed to go “HOLY SHIT A STREAMER I LIKE OH MY GOD”, which might have worked if I was at all into ANY of the people here. It felt like there were no stakes and nobody was taking anything seriously until the last “act” or whatever when they’re running around the mall. I see what it’s going for, I can read into the metaphor about the dehumanizing nature of producing content for an audience and stuff, but just wow. The worst part is that I was just so bored the entire time. It feels like a “you had to be there” kind of thing, and since I wasn’t there, none of it appealed to me in any way.

I don’t know, this clearly isn’t a piece of media made for me but I spent the entire time I was watching TRYING to like it and it just was not it. Ever. At any point. The ending was okay I guess, I like it conceptually, but having Hetch (I think that’s his name, I don’t really recall and I’m not scrolling through the cut to check rn) trying to be a glorified game show host over the only bit of the end I kinda vaguely enjoyed kind of ruined it for me a little bit. Idk. Having Ranboo say “thank you” as his head was turned into a mid at best blood effect was the only bit that made me feel much of anything besides annoyance or boredom. I like the whole concept, but pretty much every part of the execution was horrifically botched, I feel like I shouldn’t have to like the people involved already to be invested in even one of the characters. Maybe the streams were better but I just don’t have any desire to watch them.

Maybe I’m being too mean here but yeah, I basically forced myself through 2 and a half hours of some of the most amateurish “horror” content I’ve ever seen and it felt like I got very little out of the entire viewing experience besides 45 minutes of content that got dangerously close to being okay at best.

this has been sitting in my inbox since the founders cut came out and i was going to respond to it once i watched it but clearly that is not happening anytime soon, so i can't speak to that specific experience but i definitely think watching it live added to the experience at least a little since the audience had a lot of chances to make decisions which kept it at least a little engaging. im not shocked the founders cut is super jumpy because they condensed a lot and the filler, while annoying, did keep the pace reasonable. i agree w a lot of your overall critiques and thanks for sharing a founder's cut take!!!

[childactress]

a list of media inspired by, about, or loosely adapted from the life of mara banks:

a number of mid-quality songs by mid-quality bands and the mid-quality ex-boyfriends/lovers of mara's. that subgenre of rock/alt/indie/knockoff fall out boy that tells one-sided stories about attractive but damaged^tm girls with daddy issues who outright ruined the guy's life. accuracy and scathingness vary from song to song. you've heard one or two on the radio before their shelf life was up.

a comedy stand-up routine from one of mara's Big Exes. he never identifies her by name, she's this actress i was with for a while. they're less insulting and more utterly damning by their truthful (sometimes exaggerated for the sake of a laugh) reports of her unstable, mara-typical behavior during their time together, and she becomes a recurring joke throughout. she snuck into a show once, sat and sipped at the far-off bar with a far-off look, and stayed for about ten minutes. when he later landed a deal with netflix to film and release a stand-up special, he didn't include the routine in the material; mara doesn't know if that makes her feel better or worse.

starstuck: the banks story. a lifetime movie released a handful of years after arthur and donna's deaths, capitalizing on the tragedy in the hasty way that lifetime movies do. cheap, gently exploitative, the bad type of campy. it made mara (and her sister) pretty angry at the time, but now on a good day she can watch it with a bottle of wine and laugh at the sheer inaccurate nerve. the character of mara isn't around very much and is laughably depicted as a docile sweetheart rather than the spitfire that even pre-end times mara was.

mr. and mrs. banks. a 2020s biopic that also features young mara only briefly, instead covering her parents' marriage and careers with a thematic focus on their tragic love story in tinseltown. it's not a bad piece of work at all, written by a highly-regarded husband and wife duo. a turning point in mara's life: she possessively pursues and wins the role of her own mother, blonde wigs and all. it's a deeply emotionally invasive experience, obviously. and weird as hell falling in fake love with her own dad('s on-camera imitator). she turns in a hell of a performance and comes out the other end with a better reputation and a renewed if slightly cautious interest in hiring her, having reminded hollywood that hey, this girl can act. her world turns inside out, a psychological reckoning. she shakes off some bad habits, picks up a couple others; she dyes her hair blonde during the press tour - a suggestion from a studio suit to emphasize her natural close resemblance to her mother and thus promote public interest in the film (the americans who still remember the complete banks family unit: that's her now? wow, she looks just like her mom.) sadly, fatefully, she lives a long time seeing her mother in every mirror she passes, which has exactly the effect on her psyche that you think. an actress who came back from the dead even deader. tragedy come full circle. meet the new mara banks. a much, much slower kind of car crash.

[inventedfangirling]

ONLY FRIENDS EPISODE 8 LIVE REACTION POST

I AM SO SO NOT READY for raymew...more like im not ready to see Sand hurt but arggghhh lets goooo

ohno ray seems to have not been a great influence on mew

okay i LOVE how protective cheum seems over mew but hello where was all this love and concern for ray all this while like whats that about !??

my gawd First is so dang good in this scene with Khao not like im surprised but gawd the hurt is hurting and it is not one bit comfy but again nobody should expect messy gays the show to be a comfort watch lmao

OHMYGOD why is everybody so good at their jobs...we barely knew anything about plug and yo's relationship but was that scene IMPACFUL or what!!!

no matter how much mental torture this may offer, its great that we also have guaranteed quality performances like wow what a pleasure it is to watch them perform

i get that top seems to be very much in love with mew but him acting all holier than thou about smoking PLS bit rich coming from somebody who literally cheated on him like WOW yes mew TELL HIM

I ADORE TF OUTTA HIM BUT PLS NO NOT FIRST SINGING

my gawd ray getting on my nerves he's so selfish wanting to have both mew and sand and using his cuteness to get his way like excuse me who allowed you outta my pocket and into the world where you can hurt sand GET BACK IN HERE!

my gawd ray using all his perusasion moves and then some but sand standing his ground multiples times im SO PROUD OF HIM 🥹

ray did not just use orphans to get sand to agree like arrest him milord its too much!!

oh damn top approaching cheum for help, man clearly serious about his concern (pretty obvious/out there prediction based on how you think but mewtop endgame methinks :3)

okay papang's character CLEARLY has just work on his mind SURE completely his excited thirsty looks giving NOTHING away

STFU did i just see boston looking at a selfie of him and nick while drinking alone in a bar WOW did not think i'd have lived to see this day lmao

is it just me being too sandray biased or did raymew not have much chemistry in that library scene...the way ray said you look delectable felt mechanical sorta like its something he just read off a script in his head and not what he thought of right then...probably also due to it being early days together but also i did NOT hear ray say that he doesnt want a band anymore...i simply didnt hear it...it makes me feel NOTHING

why the fuck have all these people been invited these two self destructive boys have evidently NO clue in life...as expected i mean lol otherwise whats the fun in a show about a bunch of well adjusted adults with entirely healthy relationships lmao

STFU did mew just try coke NOMYGAWD this is gonna be such a train wreck of a party I CANNOT

gawd pretty boy ray (SO PRETTY but also)whipped af he's gonna hurt so so bad when he realises mew has been knowingly or unknowingly using him to get over or spite top

zjnsnsjs what was that laugh mew did when ray asked if cheum invited top...book looked so HOT and MY GAWDS TOP GUN TOP AHRJMSNANSKAKA

is ray thinking what im thinking?? that mew is showing more emotion in the past 1 minute than he did the entire time they were together and it was entirely directed at top!?

ahjansnnsjsjs mew you menace that was such a badass move im gonna forgive you for using ray and making out with him for a hot second cos WOW

sand nick moving on buddies CUUUTE if only the moving on was working out for either of them 🤧🤧

wow nick has got some guts walking upto ton like that after having secretly recorded him and ruined his friend group...im dyingggg at his (desperation dressed as ) confidence

not to get distracyed but that teeny glimpse of neo's forehead through his fringe making me wanna scream...he looks so so sooo goood argh WHY DO THEY COVER IT UP HUH FOR WHAT?? FREE THE FOREHEADS!!!

2 freddie mercury's making out at a halloweeen party...woulda been such an iconic moment...ray playing spoilsport boy you better get back in my pocket (THREAT)

AABNANAN RAY DID NOT JUST SAY WHAT I THINK HE DID MY GAWD HE'S SO!?????

When tf is ray gonna learn not to kiss people without their consent he making me madder and madder!?!?!

holy fucking shit sand's expression after ray said "you love me" !?????? im so devastated at that milli second of a reaction FIRST IS SO FXKING GOOD!??

"you're mine no matter what!????" um how DARE he!????

YES SAND GOOD ON YOU IM SO PROUD OF YOU ray you better count your days im coming for you😤😤😤😤

mew breaking up with top cos he cheated on him to be with ray who has "always" been faithful to him and this always faithful guy just decides to offer himself to his "fuckbuddy" and some other random dude from the party so easily?? gawd i feel bad for mew.

i know mew is going through hell and sorta acting out...but my gawd unhinged mew is so hot????? i feel like my brain is turning to mush everytime he does something wild

pls that bgm in the topmew scene...no matter how this scene ends...they have to be the endgame i really dont see a way around it

cheum deciding to draw boundaries and blaming ray for showing no concern for her and ruining things while the police are literally checking the room for drugs after having pinned ray down is just the sorta shiz the show promised and it has delivered so good i could scream into my pillow for hours

2 seconds...thats all it took for khao to make an impact with that scene...he's MAGIC i tell you

cheum and april should just run away together just for a while give themselves some peace of mind

pls the romcom music for topmew its driving me insane.....this was supposed to be my sandray WHERE DID IT ALL GO WRONG

sandnick cuties I LOVE THEIR DYNAMIC ARGH...whether its kept as moving on partners or new found besties or even fwbs...i am full on supporting that shiz...sand deserves some fun too

cant believe boston was the least active character today...i almost have humane feelings towards him wow

sghahnsnznsjwjzjjsjsjsnjs omygod next episode preview ducking hell

Forget everything i said about sandnick and arresting ray and being mad at him...i am still mad but ahhh sandray my babies WE ARE SO BACKKKK....they better have a proper talk so ray can apologise and start off on a proper note or else imma lose it again but ahhhhhh i havent smiled at a preview in a loooong time fuckkk feeels goood😭😭😭

[scorbleeo]

Book Chat: God of Ruin

Legacy of Gods (Book 4) by Rina Kent

Source: Google Images

I’m out for revenge. After careful planning, I gave the man who messed with my family a taste of his own medicine. I thought it’d end there. It didn’t. Landon King is a genius artist, a posh rich boy, and my worst nightmare. He’s decided that I’m the new addition to his chess game. Too bad for him, I’m no pawn. If he hits, I hit back, twice as hard and with the same hostility. He says he’ll ruin me. Little does he know that ruination goes both ways.

Source: Goodreads (2023)

I'm Embarrassed

I really did not do God of Ruin justice. My only goal to reading this book was finishing it so I could get into the next book immediately. That being said, I entered the Rina Kent universe only for Brandon and Nikolai, so by default, only for God of Fury. Knowing that is the next book in the reading order, I was breezing through God of Ruin like it was unimportant. When I say I sped-read through this book, I truly meant it, I probably missed a ton of sentences and with that, some minute details.

Now, going on to the review, this is the first book in the Legacy of Gods series where I felt the first half was bad and it got better afterwards. Let me put it this way, I was bored through the first half which made speeding through it a lot easier than usual. Unlike many, I never hated Landon before God of Ruin but because of that, he was nothing fascinating here. He even annoyed me several times initially.

Thus, when his eventual and gradual character arc redemption arrived, I wasn't wow-ed by it. Just felt like it was something Kent had to write because all her characters must not be horrible at the end of the day, right? I know I sound bitter here but that's because God of Ruin really was very average.

The character arc redemption was one thing. But the trauma plot? So weak. Mia's entire character ever since she was 8 was due to the trauma she suffered but the resolution was not even half-assed, it was less than that. Why give Mia such a character, have plenty of pages to foreshadow and yet the final countdown was so pathetic? Personally, I think the biggest problem with the trauma plot was that Kent did not know when or how to foreshadow it through the book. This would have been such a kickass final countdown scene yet ultimately, it fell flat, so very flat.

One last thing, I am aware Kent might be having fatigue from writing stories in this universe now, which I completely get. Because not only do we have the same kind of characters in the same series (Killian, Creighton, Landon and since she's been hinting at it, Eli), her writing for God of Ruin was sloppy. I will just use one example: In Chapter 33, due to Mia's friendship with Jeremy, Landon said he will bump Jeremy up to the top of his shit list. You know who else who happened to be very different from Landon said a similar sentence? Nikolai, to Mia, about Brandon, earlier in this book.

I do want to justify Kent's sloppy writing to her fatigue for this world, and I will. Unfortunately, Kent's lines around all her characters are becoming muddled. Not only are so many of her characters similar, she's using very specific sayings for characters that should not have had those same kinds of sayings. This is not the first time I caught it but this series had multiple of this instances, I have had enough and need to point it out.

Despite this entire post being filled with complains, I like God of Ruin. I just think Kent should not have written them all one after another. Someone, or many, should have told her to take a break, write something else in between and clear her mind of this world for a while. Because back in her first series, all the guys and the ladies had such distinctive personalities yet in this series...

Rating: ★★★☆☆

More on the Legacy of Gods series here: God of Malice (#1) | God of Pain (#2) | God of Wrath (#3)

[lovecolibri]

SaL anon here my friend and first off these are for you (🍸🫂) X 1000. Second just wow, I clearly underestimated the depth of KR's pettiness and apparent loathing for the fanbase. I'm not one to say you have to or should cater to the fans wishes, but some things really do seem to be done out of spite since they are clearly not done because its good or even sensible storytelling. Third, it truly takes some kind of "talent" to so completely ruin the messages and storytelling of an entire show so completely in one season (and no, I am not just referring to Buddie, pretty much every character suffered from the great S6 KR retcon), it takes even more to say to yourself "yeah, this is the way it should end". I can say with some assurance that if KR is still around for S7, I won't be.

And no I'm not forgetting Tim in all this, he calls the final shots and distracted or not he still signed off on the undoing of his own storytelling. At this point I think he has a 3 season limit to his abilities, and after that get ready to be disappointed.

All the hugs, wine, and eventual hot chocolate for you bestie. I may be caught up in episodes, but I haven't spent the same amount of time and hope you and many others did on this show, to feel all that promise and watch it slowly start to fade (it was already on its way down by the time I got involved). I truly don't have words for this.

"great S6 KR retcon" please! 🤣🤣🤣 I am literally like...speechless. I was prepared for maybe some Marisol mention but not *that* and I was prepared for the couch to be about Buck making a choice for himself, but Jesus H. Roosevelt Christ even MY pessimistic ass didn't see THAT coming. I am just....WTF was that?! Legitimately, we got Bathena FINALLY getting the honeymoon, we got Henren getting a baby girl, we got Madney planning their wedding, and then Buck and Eddie got shoehorned in with random women just to make sure if the show was going off the air that everyone knew that KR would rather flush seasons of storytelling and character arcs out the window rather than allow anyone to interpret the finale as anything other than Buck and Eddie being straight and ending the show paired up with LITERALLY ANY WOMAN so long as people couldn't draw Buddie conclusions?! Even Buddie aside they knew all season this was coming but they couldn't risk fandom tuning out and not hyping up the show so they would rather tell a poorly done half-assed story rather than show their hand early that they have only ever been using fandom to hype the show up. (Also, was Ravi even in the end montage?! KR taking a parting shot in what would be the series finale to erase him again.)

ANYWAY.

I would like to send YOU a thousand drinks and hugs and a MILLION apologies for dragging you into this show only to watch it go down in flames. From the bottom of my heart, my bad. And I will not hold it against you for dipping out for season 7, and thanks for always being my inbox bestie. We'll find things to talk about and if we're all very lucky, ABC will do the right thing and make some changes. If not, it's been a fun ride with you!

Sorry to everyone else in my inbox, I am going to go read some fluffy Buddie fic while trying to block the last 10 minutes of the episode from my brain and then I'm going to sleep. I am...tired.

So one last time tonight and said with my whole entire chest, ABC FIRE KR.

[dogbertliveblogsowlhouse]

IT’S BEEN A MONTH FELLAS

and tomorrow the new episode comes out! now, i feel it’s kind of weird jumping directly from the middle of season 1 alllll the way to season 3, so let me give a brief summary of my thoughts on every episode that i didn’t blog in between adventures of the elements and thanks to them!

Backend of Season 1:

The First Day:  a pretty good episode to officially kick off luz’s actual tenure at hexside! also why couldn’t this basilisk have been as nice as the one we meet later

Really Small Problems: development: tibbles is my least favorite character in the entire show, and this episode is just a worse version of little dipper

Understanding Willow: great insight into willow and amity’s fractured friendship, and i love a good mindscape episode

Enchanting Grom Fight: gonna be real with you chief i remember very little about this episode outside of the last ten minutes. but hooh BOY those last ten minutes

Wing It Like Witches: usually i’m not the biggest fan of sports episodes, but this one was pretty good! also has some very good lumity in it, which is i think the main reason people remember this episode

Agony of a Witch: pretty good first part of the finale! even if it DID write out amity for no good reason

Young Blood, Old Souls: great capper to the first season, great official introduction for belos, just really great things all around. also fun fact: all my speculation of “who put the curse on eda” during the blog was a giant ruse, i knew it was lilith the whole time, and i was going to reveal that during the actual reveal, but YKNOW. THINGS HAPPEN.

SEASON 2A:

Separate Tides: fun pirate adventure! man this “golden guard” character is pretty neat, hope nothing bad happens to him!

Escaping Expulsion: this episode gives some nice insight into the families of the hexside kids, especially Amity. Odalia Blight is a very strong contender for my least favorite character in the show, but tibbles is staying there for now

Echoes of the Past: i feel like this is one of the most underrated episodes of season 2. it really gave such immense depth to king’s character so quickly, when, god bless him, he really was basically just a joke character in season one. it sets up its reveal so brilliantly and does it in such an interesting way, without directly giving away the massive reveal later in the season.

Keeping Up A-Fear-Ances: this episode is some really neat insight into the clawthorne family, which we previously knew very little about! also they really gave lilith’s beast form one of the scariest designs in the show only to never use it again, huh

Through The Looking Glass Ruins: wow, they made mattholomule not completely unlikable! way to go! also the little lumity kiss at the end was cute, if not a bit overshadowed by events to come

Hunting Palismen: yknow what, i don’t even care that the bat queen was in this episode! because this is the first episode where we really get to know hunter, who’s honestly probably my favorite (or at least one of my favorite) characters in the entire show. love this boy.

Eda’s Requiem: this episode introduces so many great characters! it didn’t really hit with me when i first watched it, but it’s grown on me. what i just said can also be applied to raine as a character in general

Knock, Knock, Knockin’ On Hooty’s Door: this. mother. fucking. episode. this episode has literally everything you could want as a fan of this show. it’s got KING development, it’s got insanely massive EDA development, it’s got the official solidification of LUMITY, and it’s got hooty galore. yes, yes, he ate the letter, but considering who the sender of that letter turned out to be, was that really a bad move in retrospect. love this one, definitely in my top 3.

Eclipse Lake: this episode is pretty good! it’s got pretty good doses of lumity, hunter, insane lore implications in backgroud details that soon turn out to be crucial plot points, and one of the coolest fight scenes in the entire show! what more could you want? a belos face reveal? WELL WE GOT THAT TOO

Yesterday’s Lie: this episode has a pretty otherworldly feel to it. which is funny considering it takes place on earth. after spending so much of the show on the boiling isles, just    going on a small adventure in a connecticut town is a pretty wild change of pace. vee is adorable, camilla is great, that in-between dimension is wild, and the ending, hooh mama. great way to cap off the first half of season 2. (also yes, i too think it’s funny how much they hyped up “evil luz” only for it to just be a cute little basilisk with no ill will in its body)

SEASON 2B:

Follies At The Coven Day Parade: ehh it’s alright. i don’t really like kikimora, and this episode just sort of cemented that further. also knowing the fact that raine was faking being mind controlled would probably make this episode rough to rewatch

Elsewhere and Elsewhen: now THIS is how you do a time travel episode. great origin story for phillip/belos, who’s honestly one of my favorite villains of all time now, throw in some nice luz and lilith bonding, some collector-shadowing, and some fun time travel chicanery, and you’ve got yourself a banger episode

Any Sport in a Storm: okay, the last sports episode was alright, but this one just... hits home. thank you, thank you, i’ll be here all night. really though, this episode is really great for hunter and willow’s development, starts a ship i didn’t know i wanted, and tibbles dies right along with one of the biggest fan theories! what fun!

Reaching Out: this episode is mostly just some fun wholesome wrestling shenanigans and then dear god do the last five minutes hit. as someone who’s also grown up without a father, and is “totally fine with it”, the big reveal of this episode just makes looking back on luz’s actions throughout the episode all the more tragic, and makes the ending even more heartwarming. also the blight twins are as great as ever

Them’s the Breaks, Kid: some adorable baby eda and raine shenanigans, plus it makes terra even more terrifying than she already was! not as fantastic as some of the other episodes in this half of the season, but it’s pretty dang good!

Hollow Mind: this is my favorite episode of the series. “oh it’s just restating information to the characters that the audience already knew” don’t care. this episode is everything i love about this show. such intense reveals, character moments, tension, and even some comedy thrown in. slowly piecing phillip’s entire backstory together through the events of the episode as well as minute background details is genuinely rewarding, and the episode officially introduces one of the most important scrunklos in the show, the collector! and the ending is genuinely stressful for everybody involved. this episode is just a three-course dinner of everything that makes the owl house great. mwah

Edge of the World: AND THE OWL SHOW JUST KEEPS SWINGING, WE GOT YET ANOTHER BANGER ON OUR HANDS. this is probably my favorite king episode, it has one of the best double-reveals i’ve ever seen in anything, and even though people already sort of pieced together King was a titan, I didn’t, okay. this episode masterfully takes things that were already set up, and uses them to its full advantage. love this one.

Labyrinth Runners: one last great classic hexside episode, that really pays off to gus’s little arc throughout the season. also introduces probably my least favorite coven head, but he’s not bad by any means. amity and willow’s plot does meander a bit, but the real stars here are gus and hunter. love their chemistry, love how overpowered little baby man gus is, love this episode.

O Titan, Where Art Thou?: this episode is fucked up! okay, that’s a bit of hyperbole. the main part that’s fucked up is the sheer contrast between luz and eda, which leads to the one fight in this show i never would have saw coming. eda’s sheer hopelessness vs luz’s misplaced optimism is really devastating to watch at times. but, the ending DOES leave a good taste in your mouth, which is great. also steve is funny. i like steve.

Clouds on the Horizon: yep, odalia’s my least favorite character in the show! this episode is a great prelude to the finale, and also the first and currently only full-on lumity kiss, so that’s great. it has a pretty good resolution to the blight family drama, some great character moments between... pretty much everyone, and leads into king’s tide pretty well. speaking of...

King’s Tide: alright i’m gonna come right out and say it, i love the collector. i love their vibe of “clueless little kid with the power to literally destroy anybody and anything if they want to, but they just want to play.” pre-release and post-release collector feel like two completely separate characters (especially when you factor in the collector we saw in the owl beast’s flashback), but it works i think. also i like phillip’s “i’m quitting my job, time to tie up every loose end” energy in this episode. a great finale to probably one of the best seasons of television in history. i love how dire the stakes are at the end, and i can’t wait to see them continued tomorrow.

and with that, that should bring us all up to speed with where i’m at currently with my thoughts on this show! can’t wait for tomorrow, seeya all then.

[wednesday-woeful-addams]

Woeful Reckoning 2/5

Summary: Wednesday torments Vincent Thorpe with a little help.

Masterlist

Ao3

Notes: This had hallucinations, spiders, dead crows and a character basically having a breakdown. If these things trigger you, please take care.

xxx

Wednesday finally had everything together, everything she needed to start the torment of one Vincent Thorpe.

First, a tail on the man, so she called her uncle Fester.

"You have his schedule?" she asked him

"Of course, my little fly trap,"

"I want you to tail him, but wait for my signals, alright?"

"Of course, dear,"

"I mean it," It was always good to make sure with her uncle. He could be a little too eager sometimes.

"Yes, my deadly little protege. I will be completely at your command," said her uncle, a chuckle coming over the connection, "Oh, this is going to be so much fun, the two of us working together,"

Wednesday allowed herself a smile. She never could help it with her Uncle Fester.

"Goodbye, Uncle Fester," she said and hung up.

xxx

Vincent was sitting in his study, answering emails, when the lights flickered and then gave out.

"What the hell?" he said to himself.

Lights didn't just go out in places like the ones he resided in. He paid good money for everything to be in tip-top order.

Vincent waited for a minute or so to see if they would come on on their own. Nothing happened. He let out a frustrated sigh and got up. There wasn't any staff here since it wasn't on his larger residences. He'd have to check for himself what was happening.

Except, when he rounded the desk, the lights came on again.

Glad for his luck, he shrugged and sat down.

Probably just some small fault. He would check on it in the morning.

xxx

Second, Wednesday had to cut off his connection to information on his son.

"Remember, this should not get to Xavier," she told Enid and Biance, "That would ruin the whole plan,"

"But you do plan on telling him, right?" said Bianca

"Of course," she told them. Both girls raised their eyebrows at her. Fair. "I will tell him once I have given the man a bit of a breakdown,"

More eyebrow-raising. This time it was more amused than judgemental.

"You know he deserves it," she told them.

There was nothing either of them could say to that.

Vincent did deserve it.

"We'll be discreet," said Enid, "Well, as discreet as you can be while spreading gossip,"

xxx

Sean Orlav made his way across the quad, spotting a few of the 'secret' nightshade members having a whispered discussion. From the few bits he could hear, they were gossiping. He smiled. Some of the older vampires didn't like what the nightshades had become, but Sean didn't mind it. His version of the nightshades had done good work, but not everything had to be serious. These kids would have enough shit to deal with once they hit the world outside of these walls. What was the harm in letting them play secrets?

However, as he passed by them, another one of their comments made them stop.

"Speaking of the rich parents, have you heard about some of them paying people in the school?"

"What do you mean?"

Interested, Sean quickly ducked into an adjoining hall to listen.

"Well," that was Bianca, "Rumour has it that someone's been leaking information about the students for money. Apparently, it's so parents can keep an eye on their kid, but it's still creepy,"

"Oh yeah. Definitely. The principal should do something about it,"

Sean's heart sank. Had somebody found out? He wasn't being paid, and he was only talking to one parent, but rumours started somewhere.

"It has to be one of the vampires, right," Sean thought that it might be Ajax, "I mean, some of them are older and are around the younger students a lot,"

"Wow, that makes sense,"

The group started moving. Not wanting to give his location away, Sean also slipped away.

He had a phone call to make.

xxx

Vincent finally picked up the phone the third time it started going off in ten minutes.

"You know Sean," he said, impatience seeing through. "When someone doesn't pick up their phone, it usually means you should stop calling them,"

He had been dealing with his power flicking in and out all day and couldn't find the cause of it. It wasn't even in the whole house at the same time. If he didn't know better, he would have thought there were ghosts turning his lights on and off.

"I can't talk to you about Xavier anymore," said Sean, words coming out in a rush.

Vincent raised his eyebrows in surprise. What the hell?

"Sean, where is this coming from?"

"I just heard some students talking about someone getting paid to talk and give information about the kids to their parents and-"

Oh, he had to be kidding.

"Sean-

"-I'm worried somebody might have found out and-

"Ok, Sean-"

"I have worked way too hard to now be-"

"Enough, Sean!"

Vincent heard heavy breathing as Sean got himself under control.

"So you're telling me," said Vincent, pinching his nose, "that you're worried cause you heard some kids gossiping,"

"Well-"

"Sean," said Vincent, "It's just gossip. Probably just a coincidence,"

"Yeah, okay, but what if the rumours spread and they actually start investigating and-"

Vincent took a deep breath.

"Sean, please listen to me,"

Sean stopped again. Vincent let a few moments of silence pass.

"Are you listening, Sean?"

"Yes,"

"There is a 99% chance they are just rumours," Vincent told him, "And if they do ask you anything, we aren't doing anything wrong. You're an old friend. Teenagers are unpredictable, and I wanted someone I trust to keep an eye on my son. I ask you how he's doing, and you answer. It's not a crime. You aren't doing anything wrong,"

"Right," said Sean, "Right. But they're probably just rumours, right?"

"Of course, they're just rumours,"

"But if somebody else is doing it and they investigate-

"Sean," said Vincent, exasperated

"Right. Right," Sean took a deep breath, "Right. Thanks. I have to go now,"

"Bye, Sean,"

"Bye,"

Vincent threw the phone on his desk and leaned back in his chair. He was starting to think he had been infected with some curse. The day could not get any more annoying.

Just as the thought crossed his mong, the lights flickered and went out again. Vincent groaned and resisted the urge to throw something against the wall.

There was a knock at the door, and a dark head peaked in.

"The lights seem to be out in the whole house, Mr. Thorpe," said his normie assistant turned manager Jenna, "What would you like us to do?"

Vincent sighed. Might as well throw in the towel. He could work somewhere else for once. It wouldn't hurt too much.

"Go home. Tell Darius and Shameem that they can leave too. I'm going to the penthouse,"

"Are you sure you don't want one of us with you, sir? Just in case,"

Vincent smiled. Jenna, like his outcast manager, Darius, had been with him since the start of his career. They tended to worry.

"I'll be fine, Jenna," he told her, "I didn't always have you all running circles around me,"

Jenna smiled, "Whatever you say, sir,"

She turned around, closing the door behind him. He sat up to reach for the phone when the dizziness hit.

He only had a few seconds to situate himself back in the chair before the vision hit.

Vincent was sitting on his childhood bed. His father was leaning over him, trying to tuck him in.

"Just one more time, Papa?! Please!"

His father chuckled.

"Just one more time, son,"

The walls around him rippled, and colourful butterflies started to dance around him.

"Goodnight, son,"

"Goodnight, daddy,"

The vision ended, and Vincent was back in his study.

What the hell had that been? His visions were usually in response to a question or a situation he was wondering about. It was how he served his clients. Why was he being shown his childhood? The only thing he had been thinking about these days was the flickering lights.

He tried to think harder about it, but it only worsened his post-vision headache.

Oh, hell. It was probably nothing. Most likely an odd response to Sean's unexpected phone call. He might be one of the most capable psychics around, but the visions were never going to be an exact science. It had been a nice memory anyway.

Time to head to the penthouse. A strong drink while looking over the city would most likely fix his mood.

xxx

Sean Orlav was passing the empty choir room- well, the supposedly empty choir room- when his keen ears picked up the whispers of a student and the principal. He slowed down outside the room, leaning against the wall and listening in.

Despite Vincent's reassurances, Sean had to admit he had been on high alert, and this seemed suspicious.

"I wasn't sure if I should tell, but I am pretty sure that somebody has been leaking information for money. They're saying it's one of the older vampires,"

Sean bit his lip. Shit.

"Thank you for your concerns. I will, of course, look into these claims as swiftly as possible,"

Not needing to listen to any more of the conversation, Seam slipped away and went straight to his dorm room. There was another email waiting for him from Vincent, sent just a few minutes ago.

Good, he was probably available for a call.

The man picked up on the first ring.

"That was oddly quick. You never answer with a phone call,"

"They told the principal. There will be an investigation. Vincent, I can't do this anymore,"

"Sean-"

"No, Vincent. You are putting my future in danger by insisting on this," he pleaded.

"I made an investment in that future, Sean. I really don't think it's in jeopardy," There was a bite to the other man's tone now. He was getting angry.

"Don't you understand? I just can't risk it. I know this was a friendly little favour I did for you, but now it's becoming more than that, and I can't risk myself, Gina and Deeksha like that, even if you are supporting us financially.

"And if I cut off that support?"

Sean squeezed his eyes shut and took a deep breath. He couldn't believe it. Just like that, he was going to lose one of his biggest supporters, who he had thought, had also been one of his oldest friends.

"Then I guess you're not the man I thought you were," he bit out and hung up the phone, tossing it on the bed.

He lay down and wondered how he would break the news to his partners. They were going to be devastated.

If a few tears slipped out, he was the only one there to see it.

xxx

Bianca peeked out of the choir room and then nodded her head to the other people inside.

"Do you think it worked?" asked Enid

"Thing will know soon," she told them

The two new students looked at them hopefully.

"Did we do good?" asked the boy, "I've never shifted for so long before. Still new to the whole thing,"

"You both did great," she told them, smiling warmly but being mindful not to seem too friendly, "We shall have both your nightshade ceremonies later this week,"

The girls smiled happily and hugged the shell-shocked boy. They would have to work on self-confidence for that one. The girl, though, that one already showed potential.

Bianca was quite happy with her new recruits.

Both her and Enid's phones chirped. They shared a smile at the text. It seemed like Sean had taken the bait.

xxx

As soon as Vincent got off the phone, regret set in. He hadn't meant it. The last few days, nothing seemed to be going his way. The flickering seemed to have followed him around the place. The visions of his parents had become common, and while the memories were nice, they were quickly putting him in a depressed mood.

The lack of sleep was catching up to him. His three managers and assistants were starting to notice as well.

Call him back. Set it right.

The voice sounds like Emmaline. His son's beloved godmother. It was funny how years later, he would still hear her as a voice of reason.

Vincent redialed the number, and thankfully, Sean picked up

"What do you want, Vincent?" he asked harshly, "Thought I wasn't useful anymore,"

Vincent winced. Yeah, he deserved that.

"I'm sorry," he whispered into the receiver, "I shouldn't have said it. I didn't mean it. I want to help you succeed,"

"Then why did you say it?" Sean asked, "Cause that hurt, Vince,"

The vampires' voice was hoarse with tears, and Vincent was reminded that their slower aging did not merely apply to their physical bodies. There was a reason vampires took so long to settle in clans. Many of them got stuck in their 'twenties' era.

"I'm sorry, Sean. I really am," he said, "I snapped. It's been a weird few days,"

"Everything okay?" the vampire asked

Vincent's heart constricted.

You don't deserve the concern. Now that sounded like his previous guardian.

"Everything is fine," he told his friend, "Just the usual, you know,"

"You sure?"

"Sure," he said, "I'll let you go now. We'll look at places this break, okay?"

He could almost hear the smile in Sean's voice, "Okay!"

God, he was lucky Sean was so easily forgiving.

"Bye, Sean,"

"Bye,"

He turned off the call and leaned back in his chair. Well, that was one thing that would keep him awake at night.

A knock at the door drew his attention.

"Enter," he called out.

The room to the study opened, and one of the maids came in holding a package.

"This was left to you. Seems like fan mail,"

Vincent gestured for her to set it down in front of him. Once the parcel was placed, the maid left him to it. Vincent was intrigued. he wasn't usually the kind of celebrity that got fan mail. But the ones that came from normies were sent to the office where he took clients. Only outcasts and some normies that he knew personally would send something here.

He opened the package and nearly shrieked in terror.

It was a spider.

Sure, a fluffy plush spider. But still a spider. Body made of two black balls, eight durry legs and, to beady yes, nestled among some white fur.

It would be cute if Vincent weren't deathly afraid of spiders.

Using a pen, he carefully closed the flaps of the box, picked up the box with shaking hands and placed it in the lower drawer. He would get someone to move it later.

xxx

Third on Wednesday's list was scaring the man with presents. Which, if the picture of the spider plush was to go by, Uncle Fester had already started.

"Come on, Wednesday," Xavier called out, "We're ready,"

She looked up to see the group of classmates waiting on her. They were supposed to be finding a list of plants for their botany class today. The winning team got to pick the subject of their next project.

"We've been partnered again," said Xavier, giving her a bright smile. It was good to see him feeling like himself again.

"Just don't fall behind," she told him

He chuckled and saluted her, "Yes, ma'am,"

Wednesday rolled her eyes at his antics but let him fall in step with her anyway.

"By the way, I've worked up to keeping three birds synchronized," he told her, "Wanna see after classes,"

She thought about it. Why not? She told him that much.

He grinned again, "Great!"

xxx

Vincent had barely woken up when he felt himself falling into a vision.

His parents are on the floor. Blood splattered everywhere.

A weak whimpering sound. Xandra.

His little sister was still alive but also covered in blood. Barely hanging on.

"Xandra, come on, Alexandra, stay with me!"

His sister just coughs, and more blood comes out of her mouth.

Something shifts within the vision, and suddenly there's no one in his arms. It was a bit disorienting. The blood was gone, and so were the bodies. The place looked pristine, as if everything had been cleaned up with chemicals.

Something shifted behind him, and he turned to see a little boy standing behind him in the doorway, wearing a look too serious for his little face.

A very familiar little face.

"Xavier," he said. Instead of answering, the boy ran away from him, disappearing into the hallway.

At this point, the vision was now controlling him instead of the other way around. His parents' home had never been large, but in the visions, the hallways seemed to stretch on forever, taking his child further and further until he seemed to be swallowed by them.

"Xavier!"

Vincent comes out of the vision with a jerk, years of practice keeping the screams trapped in his throat.

What the hell had that been?

His hands were still shaking, so he clenched them together to stop them. A few deep breaths later, he felt ready enough to get up and go to the kitchen. There, to his immense relief, he found Darius pouring himself juice. The man was always good at talking to him after a bad vision.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Darius asked him, "Bad vision?"

"It was about Xavier,"

"Oh?" said Darius, setting down the juice. His eyes dark eyes searched him. Whatever he found there must have been upsetting because he pursed his lips and came around the island to take Vincent by the arm.

"Come. Sit down," His friend told him. Darius led him to the couch and handed him the glass of juice. "Drink up,"

Vincent took slow sips of the beverage, allowing the taste to bring him completely back to the present.

"Describe it to me," said Darius. Despite himself, Vincent smiled. Unlike his visions, his friend would always be predictable.

"It started in the house again..."

Darius listened intently as Vincent explained the particularities of what he had seen, his arm gradually making it around his back.

"Your parents did not die like that," said Darius, frowning

"No, they did not,"

"Neither did your sister,"

"No," said Vincent, "Which is why I said it was about Xavier. The others just seemed to be characters with similar faces. I mean, in real life, my sister didn't even make it past her first birthday,"

Darius pondered for a minute.

"Listen, I'm not an expert, but that does not sound like a complete vision. It sounded like an omen. You know you can't take it too literally,"

"I know," he muttered, "Also, Xavier was a small child. I'm pretty sure he was wearing the clothes he wore to Emmaline's funeral, which is another thing that does not make sense,"

Darius pursued his lips, "I see,"

"What," said Vincent, narrowing his eyes, "What is it?"

Darius shook his head, "Nothing important. Just wondering how you know it was the outfit from the funeral?"

Vincent still felt a little suspicious but let it slide. It was probably just the leftover feelings from the vision.

"He hasn't exactly attended a lot of funerals at that age, Darius,"

"Right," said his friend, "Listen, do you want me to cancel your-"

"Oh no," said Vincent, straightening up, "I'll quickly shower, grab a bagel and go,"

"Vin-"

"I have visions all the time, Darius,"

"Not about your son," he said, looking disapproving

Vincent shrugged, "It's fine. I can't cancel last minute. I have a reputation to keep,"

Darius sighed and held up his hands, looking resigned as he got up to finish breakfast. They'd had this argument many times before, and Vincent always came up on top. He didn't know why Darius still tried.

Still, the omen had shaken him a bit. Maybe he could ask Sean-

Shit. No, he couldn't.

He'd shoot Xavier a text as he went for his appointment. It was fine.

Vincent got up, shook off the last bit of anxiety leftover from the vision and went to get himself ready for the day.

Later, bagel in his hand as he sat in the car, he got a call from Shameem, telling him about some resources she had found for Vincent's current writing project.

In his excitement, he completely forgot about texting his son.

xxx

Vincent was running late. Vincent was running very, very late. He barely stuffed a muffin into his mouth and took off. Once he got to his car, he got another rude awakening.

His tires had been slashed.

Vincent groaned. Why? This was what he got for parking outside.

No matter, he would call another car and check the security cameras later.

Once the day was over, Vincent looked at the video feed and, to his dismay, could not figure out the perpetrator. The man was hooded and hunched and very visibly wearing gloves.

"No dice?" asked Jenna.

"None," answered Vincent, "I guess from now on, I'll have to be careful about where I park the car,"

"I'll be heading back then," said Jenna, "Anything else before I go?"

"You're good," he told her, "have yourself a good night,"

"Good night,"

After she had left, Vincent opened his emails and one he was at the end of his list, and he opened up one to Sean just from force of habit. He paused before he could type anything.

Right, he couldn't do that anymore. It was the end of the week, so it was when he should have asked Sean for an update, but that was out of the question. His mind went back to the omen he had gotten earlier in the week, and his palms started to sweat.

Maybe just one quick email or text. What could it hurt?

Don't do it, Vinnie. It's disrespectful. Emmaline again. He hated it when his consciousness took her voice.

Well, Sean was out of the question. What else could he do?

Vincent thought about it. He could text his son. They didn't do it a lot. They both lived in their own worlds, but a simple question wouldn't be too odd. Just a quick 'how are you, son' wouldn't be too alarming, right?

Deciding not to overthink it too much, he sent a quick text and headed off to sleep. Xavier would probably see it in the morning.

There was a notification waiting for him when he got back. A quick 'I'm good' and a thumbs up from Xavier.

Huh. It was after midnight. Shouldn't the boy be asleep by now?

Then again, he remembered his own days as a student. Late nights were common among teenagers, especially those in boarding school. It was fine.

xxx

Xavier stared at his phone screen to see if he would get anything back, but nothing. His dad had read his response and then left it at that.

Maybe he had just wanted a quick check-in. He had realized it had been too long since he had spoken to his son and wanted to assuage his guilt.

Finally, he shrugged and put the phone away. He knew his father. There was nothing more to expect. He took another look at the crow in front of him and sighed. A part of him wanted to abandon the project. Who knew if his father would appreciate it at all? However, a bigger part of him wanted to finish what he had committed to, not to mention his friends had all been very encouraging.

First, it had only been Wednesday and her blunt-to-point critiques and encouragement, but then, eventually, there had been Ajax, Bianca, Yoko and even Enid and Eugene. Ajax had even watched his four crows take flight with Wednesday the day before. He'd kept it from the rest of them. The amazement on Ajax's face had made him want to keep the others as much in the dark as he could. All they knew was that there would be flying crows.

He couldn't wait to see their faces.

Even if Vincent Thorpe didn't appreciate his son's birthday present, he knew his friends' reaction would be more than worthwhile.

xxx

Vincent Thorpe opened the package left on his desk to find something swallowed up wrapping tissue. Intrigued, he reached in and instantly regretted it. A sharp pain went up his finger as it was trapped in something hard. He quickly pulled out his hand to find a-

-a mouse trap. What. The. Fuck.

"What the fuck?" he shouted incredulously.

His receptionist poked her head in, "Everything okay, sir?"

She looked at the trap and then at his red face and quickly shut the door. A minute later, Jenna came in to see him trying to get the trap off his finger. She assessed the situation and grinned.

"At least it's not a fluffy spider," she said

"Haha," Vincent muttered sarcastically, "Help me get it off,"

Since Jenna wasn't the one currently wincing in pain, the process of it went much smoother.

"Should we be worried?" asked Jenna

"Don't," said Vincent, "It's probably just a prank,"

"A mouse trap?" said Jenna, "I don't know, Vincent. Sounds like more than just a prank,"

"Don't worry about it," he told her, Relaxing back in his chair as he massaged his finger, "Really. It's probably nothing to worry about. Now, am I still on for the interview tonight?"

"Yes, you are," said Jenna, "Just a few more, then we'll head back to New York. You have a client waiting there,"

"Wonderful," he told her, "Tell the assistants to get the car well in time and make sure someone stays with it. I don't want another slashed tires incident. There's been two already,"

Jenna frowned, "Don't you think it's becoming a pattern, Vince,"

"Jenna, leave it," he told her, "It's probably nothing,"

"But-"

"Jenna," he said, letting a little bit of warning seep into his tone. "Just the car, please,"

Jenna pursed his lips, "As you wish, Sir,"

Vincent sighed once she left the room. Sir. She only called him that when she was upset, resorting to being overly formal. Darius did the same, except he would refer to him as Mr. Thorpe.

No matter. He had a job to do. No amount of mouse traps or slashed tires was going to stop him. He had been doing this much too long to be cowed.

xxx

That night, he was going through a box of his new printed books when pain shot up from his hand to his arm. The pain was so blinding he couldn't help the shout that he let out, nor the tears that prickled at the back of his eyes.

Darius, it seemed, was still in the residence because he popped in as vincent started to try to get the trap off.

"Hey, I heard- oh wow, that one looks bigger,"

"That is because it's a rat trap," Vincent bit out, still trying to control his functions as he got assaulted by the pain, "Help me get it off. I think the finger is broken,"

Darius fiddled with the contraption, and finally, finally, it gave out. Vincent wrapped his finger in his other hand, trying to stave off the pain. It reminded him of the time Gomez had tripped him in the forest. The other boy had profusely apologized, but it hadn't fixed his broken ankle.

This was the same type of pain.

"I definitely think it's broken," he told Darius

"Hospital?" asked Darius

"Hospital," said Vincent

Later, after Vincent's fingers had been splinted and Darius had called their assistant, his friend threw himself on the couch beside him.

"Well, she says that she was sure the package came in intact. Maybe someone who carried it-"

"I carried it myself," said Vincent, "I found it open just outside my office. Some of the staff have permission to open certain packages. I figured one of them had opened and it but hadn't wanted to enter the office itself,"

Vincent's main residence was a massive townhouse in New york. There was also a penthouse and his residence in LA. Not to mention the office spaces he rented. His agent/manager Jenna, Darius, the publicist, any lawyers, security personnel, assistants and their assistants frequently travelled between residence and offices and had access to pretty much everything that wasn't his private office or study. It had never been a problem before. On the contrary, it created a great workflow for everybody. Most of them had been with them for a while and frequently worked out of both his residences and office spaces and appreciated the trust he had in them.

It seemed, though, they had finally found a con. Someone had obviously taken advantage of the lack of set people in one place and slipped inside to plant the trap.

"Well, shit," murmured Darius

"Get one of the assistants to check the sheet," he told Darius. The sheet in question was where everyone on his payroll put down where they had been and what they had been working on. "It will at least tell us who was here. Maybe someone saw something,"

"Vincent," said Darius, taking on a serious note, "Maybe it's time to contact the police. Slashed tires and traps so close together cannot be a coincidence, which means that this person is escalating. We need to contact the police,"

Vincent sighed, "I don't want to be stuck here, Darius,"

"Vincent-"

"All of this happened in LA," he said, "We're going back to New York the day after tomorrow. I'm sure it will die down once I get there. Whoever this is will lose interest,"

"Vincent-

"I'm not letting this ridiculousness interfere with what I do," he told Darius. His manager looked like he was about to argue. "It's final. I mean it!"

Maybe he put more force behind his words than necessary, but it made Darius back off, so he didn't regret it.

"Well, in that case," said Darius while standing up, "I'll see to the last of your itinerary,"

"Thank you, Darius,"

"Your Welcome, Mr. Thorpe," said Darius, quickly walking out before Vincent could say anything else.

Great. The dreaded Mr. Thorpe.

xxx

Vincent slowly walked to the front of his house, Jenna and Darius right behind him. After the last couple of weeks in LA, he was ready to collapse in bed and maybe just sleep in the next morning. As he trudged up, passing the around the bush his friend always made fun of him for, something clamped around his leg, making him shout in pain and fall over.

"What the hell," said Darius, rushing over, "What is- is that a bear trap?"

Sitting up, Vincent looked over. Sure enough, there was his leg, clamped inside a bear trap. A fucking bear trap. Darius knelt beside him, trying to keep him from moving too much.

"Go inside, Jen. Call 911,"

Jenna nodded and turned towards the house before stopping dead in her tracks.

"Uh, guys,"

Vincent followed her line of sight and froze. For the first time since this whole thing had started, he actually felt fear.

Waiting on his doorstep was a crow.

A dead crow.

xxx

Later, after the hospital and the bear trap and sending Jenna home with security, Vincent sat at him with two detectives. A small, round friendly Detective Bernard and the taller, more serious Detective Logan.

"So the person has caused bodily harm," said Logan, "Obviously, they mean business. Though I have to admit the escalation is a bit off. Bodily harm usually comes after threats. Any thoughts on that since you are the one being targeted?"

Vincent stayed silent until Darius nudged him. He explained as shortly as he could how it might have started in New York. The flickering lights, the spider plushie. "Harmless unless you know me,"

"A plush spider?"

"I'm an arachnophobe,"

"A severe arachnophobe," added Darius, "I wouldn't be surprised if this person tries to scare you to death with them,"

Vincent shuddered. Yeah, he'd rather be skewered to death.

The slashed tires in LA pointed to the knowledge of his parents dying of a tire blowout gone very wrong almost four decades ago, and the traps pointed to him having been watched very closely, especially the bear trap.

"I have a habit, my friends laugh at me for it, but I always make sure to step around the bush. Nobody else does that since it's off the path. That's where they put the trap,"

"And the crow?"

He once again explained as simply as he would about the manifestation of his abilities and how very few people knew about it, and those who wouldn't go around telling people.

If the detectives were skeptical, they didn't show it.

"Could it be someone from your circle?" asked Logan

Vincent smiled, "Oh, trust me, they would be much more direct,"

It wasn't even a lie. They were very few outcasts that would go to this trouble, and Vincent was pretty sure he hadn't pissed them off. The others-well- the others would show up with a knife and plunge it in his throat.

xxx

"I'm cancelling your appointments for the next few days," said Darius

Like hell.

"Absolutely not," growled Vincent

"Not a negotiation," said Darius

"Dar-"

Darius sighed and pinched his nose. "Vincent, did it occur to you that, at the moment, you have a splinted finger and a pretty pronounced limp and bandages? Your PR team cannot spin this to look good for the type of appointments you have in the next few days,"

Vincent quietened. The man had a point.

"This is why I keep you around, I suppose," he told his manager.

Darius snorted and shook his head. "You're going to be at the penthouse. We'll send some extra security. Work on whatever Shameed has collected for you,"

"Okay,"

It was only for a few days. He could still type.

xxx

Vincent and Darius went to pick up some of the notes Shameem had left in the office.

"Now remember, I am allowing you to take some phone calls but if you go against any of the rules I have made for your relaxing days, so help me god, I will siren song you into-"

"Alright. Alright," said Vincent, jiggling the door open, "I hear you,"

"Good," said Darius, turning the light on, "Because let me tell you-"

The man froze as he looked into the room. Vincent followed his line of sight to find another crow lying on his desk.

He sighed. By now, the fear of finding the crow on his doorstep had worn off. This time he was just annoyed.

"This one doesn't slow down, does he?"

Darius merely shook his head and took out his phone, most likely calling one of the detectives.

xxx

Vincent had thought that a few days of quiet would do him good. He should have known better. Sitting still never suited him. It made him too anxious to do anything.

By the second day, he felt like he was going out of his mind. The pain was starting to hit him full force and was not making things better.

The visions had started again. He had just had his fourth one in three and a half days. Every one of them involved Xavier as a child. He didn't understand. He hadn't been around the boy since the break. Why was he having the visions?

Maybe because of the stress of the whole situation?

God! He hated this!

On a whim, he picked up his phone. Looking for something to do that didn't involve working, he found himself scrolling through his text conversation with his son. It was pretty sparse.

Maybe a quick check-in would assuage his mind and stop these visions.

V: Hey, Kid. How're you doing? Any ideas for Cupid's Ball yet?

The valentines dance, usually held at the end of February, was another dance the school went all out for. Xavier would definitely be going.

The reply came a few minutes later.

X: I'm good. Going to wear maroon to the ball. How are you?

Vincent went to type, but the phone slipped because of his splint. He could just answer and stop texting, but he found that he wanted to keep talking to his son. Especially after the events of the last few days and especially after all the visions of him disappearing into halls and, on one memorable occasion, being swallowed up by a tree.

He typed the next message out more slowly.

V: I'm fine. Can I call you?

The answer was instantaneous.

X: Sure

xxx

Xavier stared at his phone. Why did his father want to call him? They were text people. They texted. And even then, only when necessary.

Was something wrong?

He didn't have too long to ponder because the phone started ringing.

Xavier picked up the phone and tried to make his voice as clear as possible.

"Hey, Dad,"

"Hey, Kid," said his father, "Sorry about that. My fingers aren't up to typing at the moment,"

"What do you mean 'aren't up to typing'?" he asked, "Everything okay?"

There was a small lull, and then, "Oh yeah, definitely. Just had a bit of an accident with a door, so now I have a splint. Darius has me out of the office for various reasons,"

"Ah," Xavier was glad that there was at least one sane person his father listened to.

"Anyway, I just wanted to check in about your powers quickly. Have the exercises you learned over break been working,"

Yeah, that made more sense. Once they had realized what was actually going on with his dreams, his dad had paid good money for a soul walker Shameem had picked out. The man had been able to give him a few strategies to return to his own head while asleep.

"Oh yeah, it's been going good. I still wander at night, but it's easier to come back, and there are no murders going on, so there is nothing too terrifying around. The scariest thing I witnessed was this guy planning his dance proposal. There was a lot of pink and a lot of glitters. I stayed longer than I probably should have,"

There was a small silence.

"Is it a bad thing that I kind of want to hear about that,"

Xavier chuckled.

"Well, there was a board, of course,"

"Of course," said his father

The conversation was better than he had expected it to be. Nothing about the usual-

"And how is the new therapist?"

There it was.

"She's good. I like her. Hopefully doesn't end up dead,"

"Well-" started his father and then interrupted himself, "Wait, Xavier, why am I hearing the wind in the background?"

"Uuuuh," said Xavier, "Cause I'm in the shed?" he said slowly

Another pause.

"Wasn't good sleep on the soul walker's to-do list. You have classes at eight in the morning, Xaiver,"

And that was his disapproving tone again. Though, Xavier found he didn't mind it so much. The conversation had been good so far, and didn't every normal parent tell their kid to go to sleep before-

"Holy Shit! It's almost midnight. How did I not get caught,"

"I feel like I should say language," said his father, chuckling, "Go to sleep, Kid and remember to keep doing those exercises,"

"Bye, Dad,"

"Good night,"

Xavier ended the call and stared at his phone, a smile spreading across his face.

A good conversation with his father was a nice surprise for sure.

He turned to the sketch of the crow. Maybe there was hope for his birthday gift after all.

xxx

At breakfast, Wednesday found Xavier in a good mood.

"Apparently, my dad's been kicked out of his office because of some accident. We talked since he had the time. It was nice,"

More than nice, it seemed. Though, with how absent Vincent usually was, a small, normal conversation probably seemed like a lot.

Wednesday pondered. Maybe there was some hope for Vincent 'the idiotic father' Thrope.

xxx

"Eugene," said Wednesday, sitting down next to the boy, "You can speak to bees, correct?"

"In a sense," he answered

"Does that extend to arachnids?"

Eugene shook his head but then smiled, "But I can put you in contact with someone who can. My cousin is a fan of yours,"

Wednesday smirked, "Lovely,"

xxx

Once Darius had lifted his ban, the first thing Vincent did was head back to his townhouse. He had missed the place.

"You know, most people would like a few days off," said Darius as they made their way to his study.

"Not me," said Vincent, "I like my work,"

"Don't I know it," said Darius, "Remember, it's Jenna's birthday in a couple of weeks,"

Vincent nodded as he opened the door, "She's already asked me to pay for a girl's trip with a couple of friends,"

"Right, but I thought we could-"

The phone beeped. Vincent picked it up, quickly reading the notification. It seemed he had a lot to catch up on.

"Are you listening?" asked Darius.

Vincent was startled out of his thought process, "Uh yeah-yeah, something about Jenna's birthday,"

Darius sighed, "I know better than to talk to you when you're like this. I'm heading out. We will discuss this later,"

Vincent waved him off. With another sigh, Darius was heading toward the door. Vincent heard the door open, but it didn't close. Looking up to see, he found his friend frozen in the doorway.

"What is it?" he asked, standing up.

"Um-well, I think this person really hates you," said Darius, eyes still fixed past the doorway, "And you should stay there. There are spiders,"

Vincent's heart nearly leaped into his throat. "Spiders?" he whispered.

"Spiders,"

Maybe it was a morbid fascination, but Vincent couldn't help but walk to stand just behind Darius. The sight in front of them made his heart beat faster, and sweat broke out all over his skin.

There was an enclosed ten-pocket tank of tarantulas sitting outside the door. Each one was in its own little habitat, crawling and creeping around the edges.

Vincent tried to speak, but nothing came out, so he swallowed and tried again.

"Close the door,"

Darius closed the door and turned to him.

"That wasn't there before," he said

"No, it wasn't," said Vincent

"Vinnie, somebody was waiting here,"

Vincent had no idea what to say to that.

xxx

"I'm going to call the principal," said Darius.

Once they had dealt with the detectives, Darius had driven back to the penthouse where Vincent was now sitting, nursing a drink in his hand.

"Probably a good idea,"

"You should tell Xavier yourself,"

"We are not telling Xaiver," Vincent insisted

"But-"

Vincent slammed the glass down.

"I said no, Darius,"

Darius straightened, "Fine. I will call the principal then. Please just stay here,"

Vincent snorted and leaned back. Where else was he going to go?

xxx

The next day, Vincent picked up the phone and reconnected with the client he was supposed to see the week before. Something about a hidden key their grandmother had left behind. It had been one of the easy ones, the grief and desperation making them all give off energies and emotions. Not to mention they were all outcasts, so there was no skepticism among them. He had already spent time around them and had some of their items. He would have to spend some more time among them, stay the night, and he would have his answer.

He was returning a call from them, discussing his previous visions of their grandmother, when Darius showed up unannounced. He did not seem happy.

"I think that will be all for today, Ms. Waller. One of the assistants will email you to schedule something,"

He turned to his friend after putting the receiver down. The man looked livid.

"Why am I hearing that you're going back to work for the Wallers,"

Vincent sighed, "Because it's my job, Darius,"

"Really, Vincent? Really? There's a stalker following you around. Shouldn't you be taking it easy, staying inside,"

"For how long, huh?" he said, "I'm not going to put my life on hold,"

"And what about the rest of us, hmm? Are we supposed just to sit here and worry about somebody following you around? You never take one of us to your client calls,"

Vincent waved a hand dismissively, "You know it messes up the energies,"

"Oh, and all this isn't?"

He stayed silent.

Darius let out a frustrated breath, "Please, Vincent, Please,"

Vincent looked at him. He didn't seem to be backing off.

"Fine," Vincent told him, "But I won't stop working on my research,"

"Of course," said Darius, "Soul walkers, right?"

Vincent looked away. "Yes,"

"Hmmm," said Darius, "Have you had any more visions of little Xavier,"

"A few," he lied. There had been more than a few.

"Have you called him?"

"The principal says everything there is fine,"

Darius gave him a look that said more than his words ever could. He was good at that.

Vincent relented, "Not since that day,"

"Right," said Darius, "Should I even bother?"

Vincent stayed silent. Darius left the room.

The ensuing quiet felt more than a little suffocating.

xxx

Vincent was reading through everything Shameem had put together about soul walkers when the lights on the apartment shut off. Cursing, he stood up, hoping against hope it was a normal power surge instead of whatever the fuck his stalker had going on. Turning on the flashlight, he carefully opened the door of his study, only to be pulled into a headlock.

Vincent struggled, but the assailant had the element of surprise. There was a prick in his neck and a cloth on his mouth. Once his limbs grew heavy, he was dropped to the floor. From the light outside, he could see a figure moving around with a humming sound coming from it.

As he passed out, his last thought was that the voice and figure seemed very familiar.

Vincent woke up disoriented, wondering why he was on the floor. As his head cleared, he instantly reached for his phone. The lights were back on, and the whole house was silent.

He saw the time. He could not have been out for more than 30 mins. He needed to call someone.

As he looked at his phone, he noticed something in the reflection.

Looking up, he nearly screamed. Right on top of him, there was a circle of dead crows just hanging from there downwards, beaks open towards him.

Vincent swallowed his screams and called Darius.

"I'm gonna need you to come here,"

xxx

Vincent stayed in the hotel room for a few days but insisted on returning home. The townhouse had been one of the first purchases he had made that had been something he wanted instead of something necessary or something just to get by.

He could never bring himself to stay away from it for long.

"And anyway, what does it matter where I stay? This person is going to come in anyway," said Vincent

"Vincent, you cannot tell me you're not a bit worried about it,"

Ha. What would worry get him?

"Just let me get to the stuff Shameem brought for me,"

Darius sighed, "Fine,"

xxx

There was a text from Xavier. Vincent should answer, but he was in the middle of reading an interview Shameem had conducted, so he ignored it.

A minute later, the phone rang. Vincent absentmindedly turned it on.

"Hey, son,"

"Oh, hi, dad," said Xavier, "I wanted to talk to you about next month,"

"Next month?"

"Next month, yeah, it's this semester's parent-teacher...

Vincent's eye was caught by a particularly interesting passage, and lost what was being said over the phone.

"-and, um-dad, are you listening?"

Vincent glanced back at the phone, "Right. Sorry, Kiddo, I'm just a little busy. Another time?"

A pause, and then, "Yeah, sure,"

If Xavier's voice sounded small, Vincent didn't notice.

Wednesday, who had been eavesdropping, definitely noticed. And she was not happy.

It was time up the game.

The last thing on her list was nightmares.

xxx

Vincent was walking through the forest when he felt a peck at his head. He touched his head and looked up in time to see a crow flying away. As he watched, the crow circled back and came right for him. As the bird got closer, it seemed to multiply until Vincent felt like a wall of crows was hitting him.

He was still drowning in a whirlwind of beaks and feathers when the sky split open and-

Vincent was sitting up in bed, breathing hard.

What the fuck had that been?

Vincent was very good at telling the difference between visions and nightmares, which had definitely been a nightmare.

God, this stalker was really screwing with his head.

xxx

"I just wish I knew what they wanted," said Vincent as they got ready for Jenna's birthday party. She was going to make a girl's trip with her close friends and then see her family, but everyone at the office had decided to have a little party for her with drinks, snacks and cake.

"Maybe they just hate your shows," said Darius, but his voice lacked the usual humour that would come with a statement like that.

"Haha," Vincent played along anyway, "Very funny,"

Once they got to the place, they paid their wishes to the birthday girl. Darius went over to talk to some of the guests while Vincent took a seat in the corner, not at all feeling up to his usual social self. Most of the people there were employees anyway. They would understand.

As Vicent sat with a drink, he felt the start of a vision coming. He set the glass down and leaned back.

Hopefully, Xavier didn't get swallowed by another tree in this one.

An ancient tree.

A box.

A bed.

And just like that, it was over.

A hint. Vincent had been putting away the thing for the Waller clients before coming here. Obviously, it had caused the vision.

The box and bed he had seen before, but the tree was new. He discreetly looked around for Darius. When he found his friend immersed in a conversation with Jena, he took out his notebook and slipped away.

After writing it down, he called Ms. Waller, explaining the vision and discussing the implications.

"The tree is the answer. I can feel it. Your grandmother was a witch. Was she not connected to the earth? An ancient tree would make a great hiding place, not to mention give wood. Look through her old pictures. See if you can find it,"

He clicked off the phone and turned around to go back into the party, only to find Darius watching him disappointedly.

"You lied to me," said Darius

Vincent winced, "No, it's not like that,"

"Sure," he said, "Let's go back in,"

"Dar-"

"Not now, Mr. Thorpe," said Darius, "We'll have this conversation after the party,"

His tone was so icy that Vincent had to shrink back. They both spent the rest of the night avoiding each other.

xxx

Vincent and Darius made their way up the townhouse steps in silence. There had been no words during the carr ide over either.

Vincent could not remember the last time he had seen his friend this upset, this cold around him. If he was being honest, it was scaring him a little.

"Darius-" he said as they got inside.

Darius held up a hand as he moved into the gallery. He hadn't taken off his shoes or his coat yet.

"How little do you think of me," asked Darius. "No, really," he said as Vincent stared incredulously, "All I asked is to leave the more psychic part of your job alone unit we least know what this person wants, but no, you decide to make a call during our friends birthday party,"

"I had a vision, Darius. I can't always control them. You know-"

"So write it down!" said Darius, "Write it down and ignore it, for God's sake! Instead, you made a phone call! After you said you would drop the work!"

"Darius, come on-"

"No! No, Vincent, you're an addict," he said, waving his hands in the air. By now, they had migrated inside, and Darius was taking advantage of the space to pace around.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

Darius laughed coldly, "What do you think it means, huh? YOU. ARE. A. FUCKING. ADDICT. I mean, I can't even say workaholic. You've blown right past that. You're addicted to this"

"Darius-"

"No. No. No!" said Darius, "I told you I was worried, and you obviously didn't care enough to put the phone away for a birthday party. Don't even get me started on your son, Xavier! Your CHILD! You couldn't even make it to his jail cell,"

Now Vincent could feel himself getting angry too.

"I explained that to him,"

"And how long did it take him to believe you, hmm? Maybe he would have understood more if you didn't skip every opportunity to see him. You are so addicted to your powers and abilities that you can't even find the time to have a proper conversation with the boy,"

Darius took a deep breath.

"This needs to stop. You need fucking help, Vincent. Right after we get rid of this stalker of yours,"

Vincent laughed, the voice coming out hollow and cruel, "An addict, huh? Need help, huh? Need I remind you that this addiction is what pays for your annual vacations and the very expensive condo and vacation house you keep?"

Too far, Vinnie. Emmaline again.

Darius stopped and stared at him with wide eyes. Then he started laughing hysterically. In the back of his mind, Vincent noticed that they laughed the same when they were angry.

"You absolute asshole," said Darius, biting out every word. "You think I'm here because of the money I make, really?"

Vincent should say no, should apologize. Instead, he crossed his arms and stared.

"You know you are such an ass sometimes, Vincent. I am your friend. That's why I'm around, but God, you are a shitty person sometimes, not to mention a shitty dad. You wanna know why you keep seeing Xavier in his little funeral attire? Because that is probably one of the last times you paid proper attention to him. The day he almost died."

Darius shook his head. "Emmaline would be disgusted. Considering what you psychics and witches know about the afterlife, probably is disgusted,"

Vincent had had enough. "If I'm so horrible, why the fuck are you still here?"

Darius's shoulders slumped, all the fight going out of his stance. He smiled at Vincent sadly.

"That's a good question, Mr. Thorpe. Don't worry. After today, that changes. You can deal with all of this on your own from now on,"

The slam of the door echoed in Vincent's head for hours afterwards.

xxx

That night Vincent dreamed again.

The butterflies flew around him. He ran after them, fascinated by their impossible colours. Nature didn't create them. They only ever existed in his father's imagination.

"Not too fast, Buddy. You don't want to fall,"

"Okay, Papa,"

However, as he ran, it darkened around him. His father wasn't there anymore, and he was in his adult body again. The butterflies stopped in the air and started to morph.

Vincent screamed in terror as he recognized the shape those butterflies were taking.

Spiders. Giant spiders.

Vincent turned around and ran. Behind, he swore he could hear their legs scurrying as they went over the leaves to catch up with him.

His dread built as he ran, the woods narrowing until he could feel the spiders getting closer and closer and-

Vincent woke up in a sweat, heart pounding in his ears.

Great. Now, he was dreaming of spiders.

xxx

Still tired from the night before, Vincent nearly screamed in frustration as he felt himself falling into another vision. He plopped himself down at the breakfast table and then-

The first he noticed was Emmaline across the dark room, holding a little toddler Xavier. Vincent smiled and went over, except he hit a glass wall. He called out over and over again, but neither seemed to notice. He banged on the wall, but they didn't notice that either.

Just kept on giggling in their own little world.

Vincent came back from the vision feeling drained.

This was just getting ridiculous. He needed a distraction.

When has that ever worked, Vinnie?

He ignored Emmaline's voice in his head.

xxx

Vincent woke up to see a spider dangling over him. He screamed and swatted it away. He turned over and another spide and then another.

His whole bed was covered in spiders, crawling and creeping with their long legs.

He opened his mouth to scream but-

Vincent woke up to a scream trapped in his throat.

It seemed to be becoming a normal occurrence.

Vincent thought about the dream. He sometimes had visions in his sleep, so he had gotten very good at telling visions from dreams. This was definitely a dream, but something seemed almost deliberate about it like it was put there just for him.

Ugh, this whole stalker situation was going to drive him mad. There hadn't been anything since the day he'd been knocked out, but that didn't mean anything. These days if he wasn't working, he was waiting for something else to drop in. He had cancelled most of his appointments. The only clients he had at the moment were, thank god, the Wallers. He also worked on his research on soul walkers, having taken over some of Shameem's load as well.

God, maybe Darius had been right. Maybe he was an addict.

No. No, he would not think about that.

He would not think about Darius being gone. Or that fact that Jenna hadn't called. Or the fact that Xavier most likely-

Yeah, no. Not thinking about it.

xxx

Vincent woke up in a sweat, the nightmare still flashing behind his eyes.

Huge black legs, a large furry body, and blood-red beady eyes.

These nightmares were becoming coincidental, almost like-

-Like somebody put them there.

Shit.

Somebody was sending him nightmares.

This was more than just a simple stalker. Psychic madness was an actual ailment, and giving someone nightmares like that could mimic early symptoms. If other psychics thought that he had psychic madness, he could lose his whole livelihood.

Shit. Who hated him that much?

The only good thing was that this person was definitely inexperienced. Someone who knew what they were doing would not have been discovered so early into the game.

At least he knew there wouldn't be any more presents. The person had moved their torment to the dream world.

xxx

Xavier was in the shed when his phone rang. It was his dad, so he ignored it. His father ignored him, too. He figured he could return the favour.

Except the phone wouldn't stop ringing. After the second time, it went to voicemail. It pinged with a text.

Xavier begrudgingly checked it and frowned.

called me please it's urgent.

Huh. That did not sound or look like his father's usual way of texting.

He called back, and it was picked up at the first ring.

"Hey, Xavier," said his dad, "Listen, I need to talk to you about something urgent,"

"Uh-sure,"

His father quickly explained his stalker situation, leaving him shocked.

"So why did it suddenly become urgent? Has he hurt you?"

"Don't worry about that. I'm fine," said Vincent, "I told your principal about it a few weeks ago. You're safe there, but this person has taken to attacking from afar so just put on the amulets the principal gives you and be vigilant for anything weird in your dreams, okay?"

"Yeah," said Xaiver, "Okay. Are you sure you're okay, Dad?"

There was a pause. Vincent Thorpe never paused. It made Xavier nervous.

"I'll be alright, Kid," he said, "You take of yourself, okay?"

"Okay,"

"Bye,"

"Bye, Dad,"

Ending the call, Xavier stared at his phone for a few seconds and then started putting his things away.

He needed to talk to somebody.

xxx

Wednesday was sitting and eating with Bianca and Enid when Xavier came up to them, plopping down beside her.

"Hey, Xavier, what're you-oh wow, you do not look good!"

Enid's exclamation made Wednesday look up, and sure enough, the boy did look upset.

"What's wrong?" asked Bianca

"Apparently, my dad has a stalker,"

Both girls gave Wednesday a hard stare.

"He won't give me details, but I'm worried, you know. I mean, he can be a distant asshole, but he's still my dad and-"

The more Xavier talked, the harder the girls stared at her.

Wednesday sighed. She was definitely going to have to deal with them later.

After giving Xavier the right amount of platitudes and reassurances, they sent him off to see the principal. As soon as he was gone, Bianca and Enid rounded on her.

"Addams," said Biance, "What the hell have you done?"

Wednesday stayed silent.

"Roomie?" asked Enid, a bit of a warning in her tone.

Wednesday sighed and relented. "There might have been some traps and slashed tires,"

"And?" prompted Bianca

"Spiders and dead crows,"

Some more staring.

Wednesday huffed, "I've been sending him nightmares, alright?"

Both girls stared at her with wide eyes.

"I don't know whether to be disturbed or impressed," said Enid

"Both is probably the best option," said Bianca, "But Wednesday, it really wasn't supposed to worry, Xavier. This has gone too far if the notoriously distant Vincent Thorpe is looping his son in,"

"Or maybe it's going the right amount," said Wednesday

Bianca sighed, "Either way, you will have to tell Xavier eventually. Maybe do it before he panics too much.

"Give me two more days," said Wednesday, "Then we'll end this,"

xxx

The first time noticed the scuttling creature was when he was shaking hands with a grateful Ms. Waller. He had been right about the tree, and now he had some very grateful clients on his hand.

As he said his goodbyes, homemade pie in hand, he saw something move from the corner of his eye. It almost seemed like a daddy long legs. However, as he turned, it was gone.

Vincent shook off the uneasiness. He was in someone else's home. Spiders were pretty normal in many homes. He was just being paranoid because of the stalker.

As he drove back, he noticed something in the review mirror, something hanging, but when he looked again, there was nothing. Feeling even more uneasy,e he quickly turned the ignition and drove, not daring to look anywhere that wasn't the road.

A part of him knew he was being irrational, but there was nothing rational about phobias, especially when you had someone out to get you.

Once he got home, he put his coat and shoes away, looking at himself in the hall mirror. There seemed to be something in the reflection. A thread of-

There!

He turned around, but there was no dangling spider.

Vincent took a shuddering breath.

God, was he really going insane? Maybe the stalker actually wanted to give him psychic madness.

He went to his liquor cabinet and took out a bottle of his best stuff. He usually tried not to drink too much since it messed with visions, but god, he did not want to think straight at the moment.

So, for the first time since his teenage years, Vincent opened the bottle and started drinking without a glass.

This won't help, Vinnie.

He ignored the voice.

xxx

Vincent was sitting with his in the first, playing with butterflies. Xavier was laughing, happily pointing to the different colours.

Suddenly there was a deafening crack of thunder, followed by blinding lightning. Once Vincent could see again, his son was gone. He frantically looked around and found him standing behind him, wearing his Nevermore uniform. His complexion was plate, his hair limp, and his eyes seemed to be vacantly staring ahead. As Vincent watched in horror, a swarm of spiders started to climb him.

He wanted to go to his son, wanted to scream and cry, wanted to help him. But he was rooted to the spot words caught in his throat.

Vincent stood there and watched as the swarm of spiders swallowed his son whole.

xxx

This time Vicent couldn't have stopped the screams if he tried. And he didn't try.

"Devil in Hell," he muttered while sitting up. His torturer was getting creative.

Vincent had fallen asleep while drinking, so now he had a hangover to be content with. Bleary-eyed, he looked at the clock. Almost lights out at nevermore.

On impulse, he picked up the phone and sent a quick check-in text to Xavier.

His answer came in with a picture of dinner, meatloaf with a side that looked like -yup, mushed peas.

Miss. Addley must have been upset with the students. She was usually very good with feeding them things they actually liked.

Rubbing his face, he trudged to the bathroom. He had left his make-up on, so now his face felt all gritty. Taking it off would probably make him feel better. He could order a pizza after that. Be unhealthy for once.

Though with his current luck, the pizza guy would just try to murder him.

As he came to the mirror, he noticed a bump on his cheek. He poked at it. It seemed to poke back.

What. The. Fuck.

As he watched in the mirror, the pimple-like thing popped, and a small, thin leg popped out. He watched in fascination and horror as another leg popped out, parting his skin more.

A spider was coming out of his skin.

His heart was beating hard enough to run through his entire body, he was becoming covered in sweats, only short breaths making it through his lungs.

A spider was crawling out of his fucking skin. He could see the horrible image though it didn't feel-

He couldn't feel it.

Remember what you learned.

That was his great-grandmother's voice. Elizabeth had been his ancestral guide. He still heard her sometimes. Everything he had learned about psychic attacks came through his mind, and he hastily covered the area the spider was coming from. He couldn't feel anything there.

A week illusion. A beginner's illusion.

Which meant-

He hit the lights and instantly looked at the corners. He spotted the figure right beside the towel rack. It only remained there for a few seconds and was mostly obscure but enough for Vincent to discern a few things.

It seemed his tormentor was a short woman.

xxx

Vincent put together everything he knew about his tormentor together. The flickering lights, the intimate knowledge about his fears and his non-relationship with his son, great breaking and entering skills.

God, that almost sounded like a-

Oh shit.

Oh shit. Oh shit.

The timing of the psychic attacks coincided with Nevermore's out-of-class times. The person had not hurt his son. They were obviously powerful but young.

God Fucking Shit.

Vincent had a hell of a night in front of him.

xxx

Vincent woke to an itch along his skin. He sat up and looked at his arms to find them rippling and bubbling. Ths skin started to tear, and out came huge tarantula legs. Vincent started to scratch at his arms.

He knew it was a hallucination, but his rational mind refused to cooperate. All he could feel was horror. He scratched away until blood was on his nails, but the spiders kept coming out of his skin.

Remember. You prepared. Elizabeth again.

Right. Right. He had prepared. He knew who he was looking for.

He closed his eyes and ignored the faint itching.

If an actual tarantula were coming out of his skin, it would be much more than faint itching.

Vincent carefully gathered all his mental strength and reached out.

xxx

One minute, Wednesday had been enjoying watching Vincent break apart over the fake tarantula. The next, her hallucination was trapping her in place.

As Vincent began ignoring the attack, Wednesday would feel her power being drained. There was a huge surge of power, and then something pulled her. Being dragged forward, Wednesday could only sigh. She had been found out.

It seemed she wouldn't get her two days after all.

xxx

Vincent's surroundings rippled, and he found himself standing within a huge blue otherworldly space.

His personification of the dream world. In front of him stood his unwanted guest.

White and Black clothes, long braids and a dead-eyed stare. Exactly as she looked in Xavier's paintings.

Vincent would have been ashamed of being bested by one so young if he hadn't known the power that lay in her blood. As it was, he found himself impressed.

She spoke first.

"Greetings, Mr. Thorpe,"

Vincent couldn't help his smile. She was such a good mix of her father and mother.

"Greetings, Miss. Addams"

[lunar-clementine]

I'm so tornnnnn

like on one hand the maybe misinterpreted signals

and on the other the complete undeniable ignoring.

(Ya'll pleez be gentle with my writing, I'm not that amazing, also this is soothe myself mostly)

I hate this. stop it love it is unfair for u to ruin such a sweet soul that is so shiny. ur a terrible person. u know that. he is like the fucking sun and I'm definitely the hell on the darkside of the moon. the sun does not belong to u. it belongs to the world. u deserve the hell on earth. just like the family u come from. his family is just as radiant. do not dare covet the sun he does not belong to u

the sun does not belong to anyone.

the the ignoring as the gods trying to keep distance between u.

and the signals as ur daydreaming.

the sun is not yours he doesn't belong to anyone.

let go of the sun you'll steal all the radiant light from him

that is far to cruel of a thing to do

the sun is not yours he does not belong to anyone

The sun should never be near u

u should never ever again covet the sun

let go

the sun doesn't belong to anyone and he most certainly doesn't belong to u.

let him go love if u know what's best for him. let those thoughts go away. Love ur making a mistake by fighting this.

fuck I love his smile it's adorable even as baby

the point is those dimples are drawing me in and I should not do this fuckkkk

the sun isn't yours love

the sun doesn't belong to u love

the sun can't be help down by u love

stop this love

fuck no

I can't

I legit can't do this

I won't be able toooo

but u know after he saw that the name of my book review was " girl who drank the moon" which if u don't know I see myself in as the character,luna, and he was all " I'll be the guy who ate the sun"

shut. The. front. door. no. u did not say the name of her soul mate that I dreamt up

I thought my hear wa saying to swell out of pure admiration for something so small and insignificant. I was so dazed for a moment when he said that lmao and he said that so casually and I was starstruck for a good while.

wow like he said that. that thing in my brain that made me so happy. I was so elated u don't even knowwww

he really said be the moon for everyone I'll be ur sun 🤭🫠

God fuck my lifeeee he's just perfect in my eyes and can do no wrong so cut and adorable and wonderful and honestly how am I not throwing myself at him so strange

I feel like I found my soulmate thelusaaa

he ticks all the boxes

not like my dad

no smoking or drinking

no anger issues

a good listener

tall enough that me

and most of he loves children from what I've seen so far so he won't ever hurt his children at all mentally or physically

I'm young and stupid so what do I know

Right?

Right?

I swear it on god this boy is driving me insanee

please don't be inlove with somebody else

please just look my way forever

just don't give your heart to someone else

dear God

consider this my love letter and my song of sorrows

this fear is immense and I

am a mortal whose soul has been captured

in the net

we all like to call

love

this is torturous and blissful

The symphony of silence is forever

when ur not around me

why is it that

I seem to look at u like the stars

but u hate the nighttime?

if ur the sun in my life

the eight minutes apart leave me lifeless

but ur that bright

u don't see ur surroundings

or perhaps

even worse

u choose to ignore them

that seems like a stake to my heart

when u smile at the other one

I'm desperately hoping

praying

u don't love

Someone else?

[mrslittletall]

Well, here are my thoughts for Final Fantasy 14 Endwalker, so of course there will be spoilers for people who still want to play this game or are in the middle of it. First, I got told that the expansion was meant to be two but thanks to Covid got condensed into one and wow, you can FEEL that. I still don't think the expansion is bad, but it doesn't reach Heavensward or Shadowbringers and I think even the story of Stormblood is more coherent. Now, let's get into the different zones. I thought the expansion started a bit slow, with us going to Thavnair and the Labyrinthos. Thavnair at least had the goal with the talismans but Labyrinthos was pretty much "Hurr durr, the council is up to something but we won't find out what." At least we had the hilarious "Estinien is bad with money" scene and the thought of him having to take care of three very motionsick friends was fantastic. I also had a good laugh at Urianger just collapsing xD Okay, after we got the introduction out of the way, it was time for Garlemald. Wait what, already?! We had like one tower dungeon and we are already going against the big one? Yeah, that is where it is obvious they had to condense the story. The whole thing with the towers could have been its own expansion and end with a final boss against Zodiark and then they could have used another expansion for the Dynamis stuff. More on that later. Garlemald was... difficult. Mostly because of how close to home it hit. The garleans are pretty much fascists and well, I am German. It always stings to be reminded of the crimes of our past. However, I also figured that the garleans are kinda brainwashed and that the rift between Garlemald and Eorzea is just that high. It felt pretty powerful honestly. And then got ruined by Alphinaud and Alisaie being completely ooc! Like when the legatus asked us "Why don't accept garlean rule?" all my thoughts flashed to Stormblood, to Fordola and to Yotsuyu and what garlean rule means. Of course it can be argued that the twins just thought it was just pointless to discuss, but they looked like they legit thought Quintus had a point and I really really wanted them to at least say something. For Alisaie to go "Damn you, I have seen what garlean rule does" and for Alphinaud to stop her. Or for our WoL to have a little chance to say something and even if it was just "angry glare." And I also think the character of Jullus was underused. Yeah, you can feel in the Garlemald part that the story was condensed. We then go fight Anima as a dungeon boss instead of a trial. It was a damn good dungeon boss, but having freaking Anima as dungeon boss felt really bitter. And then the whole thing gets cosmic and we hit the moon. The moon had massive nostalgia, but it felt pretty stretched out to be honest. I figured out in five minutes that Sharlayan helps the Lopporit and well, there was not a big reveal or anything, it was played completely straightforward and I don't know... Oh forgot about Zodiark. Great trial, felt a bit anti-climactic. Nuff said. I liked the optional quests there though. The Lopporit are kinda wholesome and I loved how much they tried despite failing a lot. I also ate the blue carrot and got a reference to Douglas Adams which came back in the very last zone! Amazing! Then we had the second half of Thavnair. That was fire actually with the apocalypse and all! I also liked how the weather reflected it and how the theme was "Don't give into despair" but of course it was a violent cycle. I liked this part. Okay, so Elpis. First thing first, I don't consider the time travel to be a copout. It was clear it was difficult, there was no chance it would work and we wouldn't be able to save the source of the first final days.

And then... freaking Emet-Selch and Hythlodaeus in their original Ascian form! Fanservice? Yeah sure, but I don't mind it, Emet-Selch was fantastic here and I loved loved trolling him. Seriously, speak to him each time he just stands around, it is glorious ^^ I also liked to see the world of the Ascians and what and how they were. Meeting Hermes and Meteion... and the puzzle slowly being set together. Honestly, I think Elpis had the exact amount of time it needed to set up and let you figure out what the final days really are. And I had to do the dungeon with trusts and I don't regret it ^^ Loved that they discussed the second boss as if it was their work. However, that Venat solo duty?! Too difficult! I had to put it on very easy and I STILL struggled. Sure, I am not a pro at playing my class, but I at least can get enemies down in proper time and do my part in dealing DPS in trials and dungeons. The orb phase was just cruel and evil, they should nerve that. Even on very easy Venat got to like 67 % and people who bested it in normal said she is getting to 87 %. And that means they couldn't beat like 8 or 9 orbs. Yeah, that is a lot. So, we are done with Elpis, we know the truth and honestly, I don't think Meteion was pulled as the villain out of the ass. She had a proper build-up and it was more a concept. EW made this very clear. Hope vs. nihilism kinda. The second part of Labyrinthos was.... not good. That they changed the upbeat normal music with a song that felt like powering up and we had to listen to it on loop was annoying and it felt so stretched out... I agree with the people who hate the quest where you have to find eight scholars with fakes thrown in. Uuugh... I liked the dungeon there though. And I died a lot in the Hydealin trial.. sorry for failing you Venat. And then... Ultima Thule. I enjoyed this part, especially how the music was building up. However, after the second scion "sacrificed" themselves, I was figuring out it was a fake and they would be back. It still made me feel, so much that at the end I told the twins to not do it! Not you too! Because sure, I, the player, could see what was coming, but my character has no guarantee they come back... I liked the three civilizations on Ultima Thule and what happened to them. The Ea were especially interesting and apparently their truth is a truth for us as well? Eh, I don't think we should just sit and wait for the end and besides, I want to die one day. I want to live a good life and then go when it is my time until I can live another life, even though I won't remember this one. Then the trial. It was a fine one, but I was more touched by the cutscene after that. "Let's go home, Meteion." Just a child having to search for an answer that was too much for her... at least we could give her a flower. And that Zenos solo duty? It felt a bit like "Oh wait, Zenos was there, wasn't he?" At least the fight against him was amazing and not as frustrating and difficult as Venat's. I had fun dodging all his attacks and fight him to the death and even though at the end it was a simple fist fight, as a monk main I had to laugh. I am still good without weapons! Hm, now I forgot to talk about the Dynamis. I kinda liked the concept of "hopes and feelings" as energy. And that is what I think they could have used as a whole expansion. It could have started with the final days happening and then travelling to Elpis and it could have been... more.

But meh, I won't complain too much. I enjoyed the story still. The music in this? I actually prefer the zone music of Shadowbringers. Not that it was bad, but it didn't have the same impact as Raktika or Ahn Areng. The battle music however, THAT was fire and a lot better than Shadowbringers which was too samey. I really liked the dungeon mid-boss and final boss themes and the trial songs and the solo duty songs. Okay, I think that was it. Feel free to ask questions or give your own opinion. If I would have to rate the expansions and ARR, I would go like this... A Realm Reborn Stormblood Endwalker Heavensward Shadowbringers (pure perfection)

[justsomerandomfanfic]

Eyes Full Of Tears - Billy Hargrove X Female (Henderson) Reader

Title: Eyes Full Of Tears

Billy Hargrove X Female (Henderson) Reader

Additional Characters: Dustin (Mentioned), Reader's mom (Mentioned), and Billy's dad (Mentioned)

| Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 |

WC: 1,837

Warnings: Sibling fights, yelling, Billy being hard on himself, mentions of depression, slight angst, and crying Billy

Arriving home, you headed inside, Dustin already ready to leave. 

“Wow, you’re ready.” You were slightly surprised.

Most times, Dustin would take a good thirty minutes before he was even ready to leave. Today was different. Dustin nods before speed-walking out the door, already hopping in the front passenger seat. You sighed and got in the car as well. As they drove to Mike’s house, You tried to start up a conversation.

“Does mom know you stayed home from school?” You asked, slightly annoyed that you drove him to his school for him only to later ditch it. 

You didn't want to question how he got back home. His bike was where it was that morning. Something was happening. Something fishy.

Dustin looked at his sister with wide eyes before giving a small challenging glare.

“Does mom know you sneak a boy in your room?” He clapped back, freezing for a slight moment.

You tried to hide your shock that Dustin had found out. “I don’t know what you mean?” 

Dustin gave you a deadpanned look, You looked at him quickly before looking back at the road.

“I won’t tell if you won’t tell?” You stated, and Dustin agreed.

“Fine…” It was silent for a while before Dustin spoke up.

“Who is it?” It was silent again for a while as you thought.

You weighed your options. Lie or tell the truth. you knew how your brother felt about Billy. If you told him the truth, he’d look at you differently, and maybe say a few things. He would be disappointed in your. But, You reasoned, Dustin would be even more disappointed if you lied and he found out later the hard way. 

With a deep sigh, You spoke up, “Billy.” 

Dustin quickly looked over at his sister in complete shock. “What!? With Hargrove!? Are you serious!? Why!? Do you know what he’s like!? He’s a complete jerk!” 

You winced at the sharpness and tone of his voice, waiting until he was done to answer.

“Billy is just misunderstood, Dusty. I won’t tell you why because that’s his business, but you have to trust me on this one. Billy is different.” You tried to explain but Dustin was having none of it.

“That’s not an excuse! I thought you knew better! He’s a womanizer, he’s just going to use you and get rid of you once he gets what he wants.” 

You didn’t respond. 

You understood what Billy was like, but you knew what he was really like. Under the mask that Billy wore was a shy, mistreated, hurt, young man. You knew Dustin and his friends didn’t see that. you could bet that you were the only one. You didn’t let his words deter you, you never had any doubts.

Stopping at the front of Mike’s house, you ruffled Dustin’s hair. “Do you really need me tonight for your game?” You asked, and Dustin thought for a second.

“Well, no, but you could come to next week’s game. I doubt it’s going to be anything exciting today.” Dustin explained and you nodded.

“Well, I think… I’ll just head home. I’ll hang out with you guys next week.” Dustin nodded, feeling slightly bad for ruining his sister’s seemingly happy mood.

“Okay, see you later.” Dustin spoke, getting out of the car but pausing at his sister's words.

"Say hi to the kids for me?" You asked and Dustin nodded silently before running up to the house.

Waiting until he was inside, you began to drive off, back home. Once inside, you lazily toed off your shoes and checked your watch, your mom wouldn’t be home for another three hours. Mentally exhausted and emotional from your conversation with your brother, you just went into the kitchen and grabbed a pint of ice cream. Grabbing a spoon, you just waltzed upstairs and to your room, grabbing your remote and putting on whatever you had already on the TV.

Scooping a large clump of ice cream in your mouth, You cringed at the bitter cold, automatically regretting eating so much, causing a brain freeze. Setting the pint next to your, You held your head and shut your eyes, hoping the brain freeze’s pain would reside soon. As it slowly slipped away, You grabbed the ice cream once again, but before you could eat any more, your phone rang. Sighing, and rolling your eyes, you sat the ice cream down again and picked the phone off of the receiver.

“Hello?” You asked, resting the phone between your shoulder and neck, picking up your ice cream and taking a bite.

“Hey, Beautiful. You didn’t call me…” Billy spoke on the other side of the phone.

You sighed again and nodded to yourself, “I’m sorry, Billy, I got caught up in stuff.” You spoke, taking another bite.

Billy chuckled, and he continued, “What kind of stuff?” He asked and you paused, placing your half-eaten pint of ice cream down beside your again.

“Well, I was going to play that dragon game but it seemed Dustin didn’t need me. So I’m eating ice cream and watching reruns of ‘Murder, She Wrote’.”

“Can I come over? I mean, you did blow me off on our dinner date.” He asked, voice playful teasing.

You thought for a moment. your mom still wouldn’t be home for a while.

“Yeah sure, only for a while.” You agreed, a small smile on your face.

Billy nodded with a smile of his own, even though you couldn’t see that.

“Alright, Beautiful, I’ll see you in five minutes.” He spoke but you spoke up.

“Don’t you dare speed-” He hung up.

Sighing, You knew it took a good ten minutes to get to your house if the streets were good. You grabbed your melted ice cream and went downstairs, putting the rest in the freezer for later. Cleaning up your room a bit, you made sure it looked somewhat presentable. You then heard the familiar pebble on your window. Opening your curtain, Billy stood down below, hands in his jacket pockets, a smile on his face. 

Opening your window, you watched as Billy began to climb the side of the house, holding onto the side roof and pushing himself up. Reaching out, You helped him the rest of the way, once he was fully in, you shut your window.

You sat on your bed and Billy followed suit, taking off his shoes, turning to look at you with a cocky smile, but after seeing your face, it dropped a bit.

“What’s wrong?” He asked and you shrugged your shoulders, resting your clasped hands in your lap.

"You almost gave me a heart attack climbing up that…" You spoke, laughing awkwardly. 

Billy saw right through it.

"What's wrong?" He asked again.

You didn't hesitate this time.

“My brother found out about you.” You spoke up and Billy turned to look in front of him, nodding, lips pursed.

“I assume he didn’t take it well?” He asked and you nodded.

“What did he say?” You gave a small sad smile.

“He basically said that you were a bad influence." But then your eyebrows scrunched.

"I don't even know how he found out since he was at Mike's.” You spoke, more to yourself than to Billy.

Billy gave the same small smile, nodding, “I guess I sort of am…”

You turned to him and shook your head, “No, Billy. You’re not. They just don’t know the real you. And, I do. You’re not a bad influence at all.”

“I’ve done a lot of bad things, Y/N. That makes me a bad influence. You really shouldn’t care-” He began but you caught him off.

“No, we are not having this conversation again. Billy, no matter what, you are smart, determined, caring, and so much more than that. But, you are too hard on yourself. Don’t even get me started, I will go on a tangent on how amazing you are if I have to. But, I need you to know that this is not your fault. Nothing is your fault. It’s your stupid fatyour’s. You are not a bad person for the things you have done, that is you, retaliating against what your father has done and trying to get your strength back from when he takes it away.” 

Billy is silent, eyes wide, staring at you, letting you rant.

“You are strong, Billy. You are strong for surviving what you have gone through and what you are going through.” You finished, eyes fully determined on making sure Billy knew his full worth.

Billy continued to stare, and You right back, Billy really couldn’t believe his ears. He really thought sooner or later you would convert to hating him too, but he was wrong. No one had ever said anything like that to him before. Billy’s stomach felt warm and bubbly, and his heart was beating a million miles a second. He hadn’t felt like this for someone in a long time. 

Billy felt his eyes tearing up and he quickly looked away, his mind telling him to ‘man up’ saying that he should be ashamed for crying. But, those thoughts went away right away when You gently placed your hand on Billy’s cheek, turning him to look at your. Your eyes were tearing up, as you stared at the hurt man in front of you. He was in so much pain, constantly. 

“I will be here, no matter what. If you ever need me, day or night, I will be here. Like always. You will never be a burden or a weight on my shoulder.” You continued, voice soft with emotion.

“And… You can cry if you want to, if you need to. I’ll never judge you or anything like that. You deserve to cry. You don't have to hold it all in.” You spoke and that’s when he really broke down. 

After so many cruel years of being abused over and over again by his own father. Someone who is supposed to love and nurture him. The pain is emotional, physical, mental. All crashing down on top of him. He finally felt like he could let it go. You pulled him into a hug, Billy immediately wrapped his arms around your, digging his face into the side of your neck, tears wetting your sweatshirt. 

And he stayed like that for a good while, quietly sobbing into your sweatshirt as you gently raked your fingers through his hair. Getting a bit stiff, You slowly dipped back, gently falling on your bed, Billy resting on top of you. Laying still, legs tangled together, You did nothing but try and soothe him, trying your best to fix his broken soul. They laid like that for a good long while. Billy laid on top of you, head still tucked into your neck, his tears slowly drying up as he still held on tight. You hummed quietly as you continued to run your fingers through his hair, your other hand gently rubbing circles on his back.

___________________________________________

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[obeiii-mee]

Hello! Can I request an hc about a shady MC who's not phase by anything in Devildom with the brothers (and Diavolo?? he deserves love!!!)? Like, when Luci's like "i CaN KiLL yOu hUmAN", MC's reaction was like "Oh... congratulations then." i need more shady mc who may or may not be planning to ruin your life😂😂 Thanks and take care!!❤❤

The Brothers + Diavolo with an MC that is not phased by DevilDom

__________________________________

Pls I need more shady MC, they would not take any shit from the brothers. Put any Gen Z-er with these guys and you’ve got yourself a suicidal and reckless human exchange student.

They wouldn’t know what to do with one of those ahaksbakanhaka you’re right, Diavolo deserves all the love >:(((((((

You better take care too >:( thanks for sending me this big brain request. I’ve been preoccupied with other projects so I took a while to get to this ask. Hope you’re doing OK💙

____________________________________

Lucifer:

-He thought having a human exchange student was going to be bad enough as it is but this…..this was so much worse than he could have ever imagined

-The moment you arrived, he already knew you were going to be a problem child and a persistent one at that

-Literally the first thing you asked him was : “Why do you look like an off-brand Levi Ackerman?”

-And he was left there, astounded, confused and offended because he had no idea who you were talking about (cuz at that point you hadn’t met the third eldest) and the tone you had was, frankly, pissing him off

-You kept wondering off on your own????? Without looking like you gave a shit even though you almost walked into a butcher’s shop that specialises in human meat???? Tf MC?

-Also really irritated that you couldn’t be intimidated and that DevilDom was like a playground to you, for some reason? Like, MC get out of the fiery pits of eternally tormented souls- this is Hell, not the McDonald’s ball pit ffs

-Things did not improve for him lmao, by the end of the first week he had already ripped out a good chunk of his hair because of you

-“MC, you should know by now provoking demons like this for no good reason is only going to make life harder for you. Keep this up and you’ll get killed in no time because of your behaviour.”

-“Great, can we have a hip-hip and a hurray?”

-In the span of one day, he’s had to come to your rescue six times (approximately) because you’re too nonchalant about your surroundings around literal creatures of hell

-He doesn’t have enough coffee or will to live for this bs

-“Lucifer, I found this dead plant and brought it here because it reminded me of you.”

-“…..sigh. Why? Why does it remind you of me?”

-“Because it’s cold and unresponsive.”

-He made the consecutive decision to ignore you

-(low-key kept the plant tho)

-Honestly, you get on his nerves a lot and he has definitely contemplated killing you in the past but at the end of the day he really can’t bring himself to do it

-We both know he tried a few times lmfao

-“I will tear you limb from limb, human-“

-“Can I finish my tea first.”

-“You…wait, what?”

-“You’re crazy if you think I’m letting this tea get cold. Try to kill time before I’m done and I’ll smash this cup against your head.”

-If you try hard enough, you might even elicit a laugh out of him, especially if your shadiness is directed at any of his brother which results in him patting your head affectionately

-Nowadays he’s just concerned because you seemed to have made an alliance of sorts with Belphagour and Satan and that’s not a good sign

-For his sake, if not yours, at least try to survive the year without getting chomped on by a random demon please

-He’s too stubborn to let you die just because you’re unbothered by everything so cut him some slack and help out damn it

Mammon:

-“Oi Lucifer, how come I’m stuck babysittin’ this stupid human?”

-“And how come I’m stuck with this asshole for a tour guide, with his fake ass designer shoes and no brand sunglasses. That’s a lot of smack talk from someone with crow shit stains covering the back of his jacket. Also, did you stick your hair in a bucket of mayonnaise?”

-……..

-He was so offended lol

-Normally, humans like you cower in fear whenever demons are as much as mentioned because of the whole “I can eat you whole” thing

-And here you are; insulting the Avatar of Greed and one of the princes of Hell himself just because you didn’t like his attitude

-Don’t worry tho, he warms up to you in less than a fucking month simply because you still come to his rescue whenever his brothers start insulting him and wow, look at that, his heart is now combusting on the floor

-“Y’all have no right to criticise Mammon when he has the most self control out of all of you.”

-“Since when does Mammon have any self control? He can’t keep himself from nicking anything that looks shiny.”

-“Motherfucker, I don’t see him trying to choke me to death, respectfully pls shut the fuck up. I don’t want to say I have favourites but if I do, it’s definitely him.”

-While Mammon’s in the background, with hearts instead of pupils in his eyes like ❤️👄❤️

-He doesn’t even mind running around after you anymore (will still complain about it though because your ass is in constant danger and he’s had enough)

-Honestly, you keep starting shit with random demons, some of which are quite powerful mind you, and you don’t back down even when he’s there to step in

-Would low key love to watch you fight one of your classmates at RAD and organise a ticket selling booth for the event but Lucifer will hang him a new one if he does

-So for now, he sticks to baring his teeth at the aggravator in question and you’re there, giving the same demon the middle finger

-The way you sometimes match his energy gets him so hyped up lmao

-“Mammon, did you steal Levi’s money again?”

-“T’s none of her business human. Now go away, shoo!”

-“Bitch, don’t ‘shoo’ me, I ain’t a bird. Now tell me, did you?”

-“…..Why do you ask?”

-“Because a new flavour of instant noodles just got announced, called ‘Super Hell-Sauce Flavour’ and I thought you might be more interested in that than wasting the money on gambling.”

-“….ok but only if you come with me to buy some.”

-This…this is true love right here

Levi:

-Oh no, now there’s two of you

-Why do I feel like his energy would match MC’s almost immediately? Maybe it’s because he spends too much time in his room on the internet like the rest of us do

-“What do you want, you stupid normie?”

-“300…..”

-“….300 what?”

-“300 mangas collected, thousands of episodes of anime watched, over 60 character figurines, plushies, body pillows, merchandise and several posters only to be called a fucking normie by a demon weeb that’s only known me for 10 minutes.”

-Boom, instant friendship

-He becomes attached to you almost immediately and now that he knows how unphased you are by DevilDom, he is seriously worried

-Hell, you’re making him consider going outside his room just to make sure you’re alive and not dead in a ditch somewhere because you decided to get on someone’s nerves that particular day

-Even during the quiz thing, when he almost kills you, you’re just sitting on the floor and awkwardly watching him as he throws a sissy fit

-Levi feels sort of conflicted with you because one one hand you’re good company and he loves having you around, you’re his Henry after all

-But on the other hand, you put yourself in so much danger it makes him paranoid so often to the point where he wants to keep you locked in his room and wrapped in bubble wrap

-Nearly had a heart attack when you almost walked right into a pit of lava like MC???? This isn’t one of his video games???? You’re not gonna respawn if you die????

-Besides all that, he gets a bit jealous of you confidence and your ability to just do whatever without fearing death or consequence

-“MC, how do you do it?”

-“Do what?”

-“How do you go about your life without a care in the world?”

-“I guess I’ll tell you my secret Levi. I’m not like other humans that’s why, I’m just so unique I do things differently.”

-“You sound like a pick me-“

-As long as you’re OK and not injured because of your carelessness, he’s indifferent about your behaviour and will even applaud you for your bravery when it comes to this sort of thing

-“lmao the human exchange student just dumped Solomon’s cooking in the trash while looking him dead in the eye 💀💀💀”

Satan:

-Your attitude towards DevilDom and demons in general kept him entertained, if nothing else

-You rarely seemed to consider how much of a threat that place really is and usually you were just running around, completely ignoring Lucifer’s rules and doing your own thing

-Which, you know, he’s all about

-I can’t say there were no incidents between the two of you

-With his short temper and your tendency to say things without caring about the consequences, there were definitely moments when he might’ve snapped on you

-“MC for goodness sake, what happened to my room?”

-“What do you mean?”

-“It’s an absolute mess! I just told you to bring me my spells and curses book, not mow through everything!”

-“It’s not my fault this place is built like a fucking labyrinth. You should be grateful I went to get it for you at all, I almost tripped and died several times on my way back. Also, you should get a new ladder for your shelves. It did the broken.”

-“MC….”

-“Yes?”

-“You are so lucky I love you.”

-Other than the fact his anger takes over him when things like these happen, he not so subtly encourages you to keep going because seeing Lucifer scowl at your antics gets him wheezing his lungs out

-I like to think Satan would be very impressed, even in the beginning, at the amount of nonchalance you can radiate at times

-I mean, you sure as hell don’t see it often and he loves how unpredictable you are more often than not

-If anything, he should probably thank you-idk how, but his patience has increased significantly every since you got here and he appreciates having some more control of his emotions

-“I’m gonna go put oil in Lucifer’s shoes.”

-“Do you have a death wish?”

-“Satan, I am old enough to make my own decisions and I concluded that this action is necessary.”

-“Necessary for what?”

-“Raising everyone’s morale! All of you seemed to feel down lately so I thought this would be fun for everybody!”

-“Except Lucifer, right?”

-“Except Lucifer. He grounded me from my D.D.D like I’m a fucking teenager who needs to be supervised-pssshht, I’m the most responsible one here.”

-“Yes clearly.”

-“Goodbye dear Satan, I may die today. But it’s for the greater good! (Dramatic exit with sound effects)”

-“WAIT MC!”

-“(pops head back in) yes?”

-“May I offer you my assistance?”

-You’re basically taking turns pranking his brothers and it’s hilarious

-Satan is not too worried about your well being simply because he knows his siblings and him are always going to be nearby to save you if you pull something stupid again

-Even so, he checks up on you throughout the day; just to make sure

-“Where were you?”

-“Running from a bunch of demons. Who wanted to go munchy crunchy on me, I assume.”

-“……”

-“Either that or people here are a lot friendlier than originally expected.”

-You can be such a handful and it really tests him, especially when he’s angry enough to begin with

-But despite your amazing talent at either getting completely lost around Hell, purposely walking into a prohibited place just because you felt like it or riling up others with how blunt you are, he still cares about you deeply

-You may be a pain the ass, but you’re his pain in the ass <3

Asmo:

-He should’ve known something was up with this particular human when you stood there, completely calm and collected, while Beel salivated at the thought of eating you on your first day

-Asmo just brushed it off for a while but it kept happening???

-The first time Lucifer ever told you off, you really went and said “Or what? Are you going to eat me? If so, you can go ahead and start with-“

-He came to your rescue and covered your mouth before you got to finish and before Lucifer unleashed his wrath on to everyone in that house

-“OOPSIE! I think MC has been spending too much time with me. Sorry Lucifer, we gotta run now! We have a party to attend, don’t we MC darling?”

-“You mean the one hosted by the guy that tried to kill me because I shoved into him on the hallway at school and then proceeded to tell him to go fuck himself right back into whatever hell hole he was born in before you came and charmed our way out of it?”

-“Yes.”

-“Ah OK. “

-You’re tiring for sure but you’re not exactly unlikeable

-You have a certain charm hanging about you that Asmo loves

-“I almost died like…30 minutes ago.”

-“WAIT WHAT?? WHY?? WHAT HAPPENED-MC ARE YOU OK???”

-“Yeah, I almost drank some poison today because someone told me it was water. It smelt off though so I didn’t.”

-“….”

-“Anyway, I got you this bracelet on my way home.”

-He really does wish you would take things a bit more seriously

-This is your life on the line, you know? What would he do if you died?

-“MC, you’re not immortal, you can die so much more easily than I can, you know that right???”

-“I don’t care.”

-“Well I do! And you should too….”

-A lot of people don’t see past his vanity tbh, because he can be such a caring person towards the people he loves

-The amount of videos he has of you appearing to be completely calm while pure chaos is descending in the background is pretty impressive

-Every time he uses his charm on you to try and get you to commit his sin, it just doesn’t work???? For some reason???? And even if it’s just with simple, innocent affection for now, he is determined to tempt you into it

-“MC~gimme a hug!”

-“But that’s social interaction and I don’t support it- do you have a charger for my D.D.D by any chance?

-Or at least die trying to ig

-Asmo loves having you around but you’re giving him wrinkles and that’s not okay >:(

Beel:

-The moment he realised how carefree you actually were, he sort of started checking up with you quite frequently throughout the day

-It’s his way of protecting you but if he could, he would follow you around all the time

-Becomes your body guard because you may not care enough about your safety but he certainly does so get ready to be carried everywhere

-You will not get hurt nor will anyone mess with you if he has a say in it and let me tell you, he does

-Thing is, his brothers mostly know him for being slightly dense in some aspects of day to day life

-He’s not perceptive of things that don’t involve food or his loved ones

-And because you most definitely are a loved one of his, he does notice how careless you are really often

-And it scares, rather worries, him because DevilDom is an incredibly dangerous place-even with all the precautions they had taken when you came

-“MC get down, you could fall.”

-“But Beel, look-I’m finally taller than everyone else! Taller than you even! Hey, should I do a backflip?”

-He has no idea why you thought jumping from 60 meter high cliff into a small river of squashed demon blood was a good idea but he wasn’t going to risk anything just because you felt like showing off your diving skills

-Proceeds to carry you away, completely unfazed

-In this case, I feel like Beel is not someone who gets bothered by the horrible things happening around there either

-As long as he has food and his family is safe and happy then he’s also happy, as mentioned above

-But he knows he’s alright with DevilDom because he’s been living here for centuries now

-A bit curious as to why you’re so unbothered

-And even more curious as to why you weren’t terrified of him transforming in his demon form after he lost control when he found out you ate his pudding

-Or more like Mammon did and pushed the blame on you

-“YOU. ATE. MY. PUDDING!”

-“Beel I love you but if you did not just see Mammon shoving the damn container in my mouth two seconds prior to this, then you might need glasses.”

-He apologised to you later for it but even so, you didn’t seem to mind like at all and he didn’t really understand why

-Unless you end up explaining why exactly you feel so indifferent about your life being in potential danger, he won’t really pry

-But now he has even more reason to follow you around like a lost puppy

-Since it’s clear you don’t really care about protecting yourself

-So now it’s his job to do it

-MC protection squad? Mostly Beel and Mammon

-ahhh he cute

Belphie:

-Oh

-You piss him off so much

-He’s trying to have his moment, you know?

-Finally getting that glimmer of satisfaction after killing a human as a way to avenge his sister’s death

-Trying his hardest to make it as miserable as possible because he has so much rage in him, he needs you to suffer

-“Harder Daddy-“

-“Oh fuck off.”

-Nah but for real, what the fuck MC

-Why does he even bother, he feels like he should be sleeping instead of dealing with your bullshit

-Even afterwards, when your future self shows up and he tries to kill you again, you look more thoughtful than irritated???

-Lucifer and Beel are literally holding him back from doing another Chocky on you and you’re standing there, looking at him with your eyebrows raised

-“Hey Belphie, I have a quick question. I know you’re trying to kill me and everything but do you like the colour blue?”

-“HUH??!?!”

-“It’s a simple yes or no question Belphie. Do. You. Like. Blue?”

-“WHAT DOES IT MATTER???!!!”

-“BELPHAGOUR, AVATAR OF SLOTH-YES OR NO, JUST FUCKING ANSWER!”

-“YES! FUCK YOU!”

-“Ah ok thanks. I like blue too :)”

-????????????

-Pls he felt like sticking his foot down your throat

-As of late, he’s kind of glad he didn’t manage to scare you away that day and that he didn’t traumatise you or something

-At the time, he was mad because he didn’t understand why you weren’t scared but now he just wants to make it up to you

-“You didn’t deserve any of that. I’m sorry MC, I won’t blame you if you decide to stay away from me now.”

-“Stfu dipshit, what’s gotten you so depressed? Did you have another fight with Beel? I told you not to eat the last slice of cake.”

-“Rude ass, I was trying to apologise for my past mistakes-let me repent will you?”

-“Said no demon ever. Now let’s go hang out you emo bitch.”

-Y’all vibe together on a spiritual level once that shit gets sorted out

-But he’s kinda scared you might pull out a knife on him ngl

-Obviously, you’re still annoying as fuck with that indifferent attitude of yours but he can live with it

-He appreciates the fact that you’re not scared of him, even after what he’s done

Diavolo:

-Ah yes, the future King of DevilDom himself

-He’s very enthusiastic about the idea of you having fun this year…..and to keep you alive….

-He, of course, expected a range of reactions from you when he first summoned you here

-None of which were “Ok but could you not have given me a heads up? Before the whole teleportation thing? I face-planted your onto marvellously polished the floor and now I think I lost even more brain cells than before.”

-He felt so bad gagajajahahwgehhsb

-He apologised for bringing you out here without any warning like that and then proceeded to introduce you to everyone

-Diavolo is actually kind of relieved to see you’re handling everything pretty well

-He thought that maybe DevilDom was too much for a human to deal with

-Meeting Barbatos also went incredibly smooth

-“Barbatos? The one that cleans the floors right? Big fan of your work, I could eat off the floor of the main hall.”

-He’s so glad to see you getting along with everyone and not getting intimidated by the brothers

-It gets him excited thinking about how the exchange program is gonna work and all three realms will be united

-But he’s not stupid so don’t think he’ll allow you to stumble around, getting up to all sorts of mischief

-He always has someone watching you because he would hate to see you die, despite being pretty fond of your carefree attitude

-“MC, please be careful. Most demons here aren’t all that nice.”

-“Aye aye Captain.”

-He fears that many demons would take your indifference as a challenge and try to assert dominance or something by kidnapping you

-As far as creatures of hell go, they love installing fear in people

-So he always keeps an extra eye open for you

-And he’ll be there to help you if something goes wrong

-But other than that, he’s pretty chill as well and he finds you so hilarious, it’s been a while since he’s seen someone as eccentric and dramatic as Mammon and Asmo

-Idk what else to add here, Diavolo is very accepting and as long as you don’t get hurt, he’s glad you can get used to your new surroundings so easily

———————————-

Al~

[btssaysstudy]

Salvage - 1 || jjk/kth.

Summary: After your confession, it's safe to say that there was nothing left to salvage between you and Jungkook. However, things start to change when a new hurdler joins the team. Genre: college!au, track!jungkook, track!taehyung, track!reader, angst & fluff Pairing: jungkook x reader, taehyung x reader Warning(s) : unrequited love, alcohol (drinking) mentioned, swearing Chapter Word Count: 3.7k a/n: My first mini series! Let me know what you guys think and the ending depends on your feedback :) taglist: do let me know if you want to be added to the series taglist

series masterlist

“Wake me up when you’re done.”

“Alright, alright. I’m done.” Your body got up from your seat, but your gaze still glued on your laptop screen and hands on your keyboard. Your roommate groaned, marching her way to pull your hands away from the laptop.

“Yn, it’s a Friday night. Let’s go! Namjoon’s waiting for us downstairs.”

“Yea but,” You sighed, your eyes on your work, “I still have quite a lot of things to do. Maybe I’ll skip this party—“

“Like how you missed Hoseok’s birthday party? I’m sure he’s going to hunt you down later. You still have the weekends to complete your work and you’re already dressed up.”

You knew your roommate was right. You had agreed to go for this party since it was one of Namjoon’s close friends’ birthday. Though you weren’t close to the birthday boy, you were close to Namjoon and his girlfriend, who also happened to be your roommate - Miya.

“Okay, okay.” You quickly saved your work and turned your laptop off. “Let’s go.”

Miya squealed in excitement, linking her arm around yours as she pulled you towards the door. The two of you went down to meet Namjoon who had been patiently waiting for you to get down.

“Sorry for wait.” You gave an apologetic smile. “No worries! We’re still early. Good to miss the first few awkward minutes of the party.” He chuckled as he opened the car door to let you both in.

Miya truly hit jackpot with Namjoon. He was the whole package - athletic, smart and a gentleman. Miya was a great catch herself and you were thankful that she was your roommate.

Miya had been your roommate since freshmen year and ever since, you both always wanted to dorm together. Miya was very caring and gentle yet blunt at the same time. You both were awkward beings when you first met, and you were worried how dorm life would be with a stranger.

Thankfully, Miya, being the straightforward person, immediately went out with setting the ground rules together and suggested for a roommate date to get to know each other.

The rest was practically history.

Miya had been there for many of your significant memories in college - the good and the bad.

She was also there when you met Jungkook.

“Do you have any clubs in mind?”

“Actually, I do. I’m planning to sign up for track.”

Miya gasped and giggled in excitement, “No way, I want to join track too!”

“That’s cool! Shall we head over then?”

The two of you made your way to the track and field booth, sharing about what events you partake in. Miya was a hurdler while you weren’t. Nonetheless, it was pretty amazing to you two that you were both signing up for the track team.

“Hey freshies! Here to sign up?”

The two of you converse with the seniors to learn more about the try-outs and practice sessions.

“Psst,” Miya nudged you as you filled up the sign-up form, “On your left. Isn’t he cute?”

Your gaze turned to see a tall, buff boy, who seemed to be signing up for track as well. “He’s pretty cute.”

“I’m going to say hi. Wait for me.” Miya winked at you before approaching the boy - little did she know at that time that he was going to be her boyfriend.

“See you try-outs!” You smiled at the senior as you handed the form.

Your eyes wandered around the nearby booths as you waited for Miya to come back.

“I’ll just look around.” You mouthed at her when she turned to make eye contact with you.

“Hey! Interested to join Photography club?”

“Freshies! Come join the Badminton club!”

The atmosphere was completely chaotic with seniors shouting at the top of their lungs to promote their club. Slightly disoriented from the ruckus, you had bumped into a stranger.

“I’m so sorry—“

“So sorry about that—“

The two of you took a step back to meet each other’s eyes. “Sorry about that.” The black-haired boy gave a sheepish grin as he rubbed the nape of his neck. “I was kinda too excited to sign up for a club.”

“No worries, it’s my fault as well. I wasn’t looking.”

“All’s good. B-But… Any chance that you happen to know where the track and field club booth is at?”

Your eyes widened slightly in amusement, “Yea I do. I was just about to head back to meet my friend.”

“Oh! Could I follow you there?”

“Sure.”

Your eyes took a quick once-over, it wasn’t hard to notice that his built was athletic, donned in sweats and an oversize black shirt, this guy looked like the poster boy of college dudes.

“My name’s Jungkook. What’s yours?”

“Yn. Did you run track before college?”

“Yep, I do 4x100s.”

“Oh, same here!” You flashed a smile. “Wow, what a coincidence that I’d bump into you huh.” Jungkook chuckled and you did the same. “Must be a sign that we’ll both be teammates.”

“Not a bad sign at all.”

“Yn!” Miya waved her hand wildly amidst the crowd. “I was about to leave the booth to go find you! What booths did you— Oh hi, I’m Miya, you are?”

“Jungkook. Nice to meet you. You must be the friend yn was going back for.”

Miya gave you a subtle look which you chose to ignore that day.

“Jungkook,” Miya grinned, “It’s nice to meet you too!”

“Speaking of the party, yn, you know Jungkook will be there as well, right?”

“Yes, this is the tenth time you’ve told me that.”

“Sorry, just another reminder before we pull up to the party.”

Besides having a ton of workload to do, you also had another reason for having second thoughts.

That reason was Jungkook.

“Thanks for your concern. But it’s been a year, I’m long over it.”

“That’s great to hear, I’m proud of you yn.” Namjoon piped in as he parked the car. “And we,” He placed his hand on Miya’s, “Should trust our friend’s word.”

Miya glanced at you before sighing, “Alright. I do. Now, let’s go greet the birthday boy.”

The three of you left the car and made your way to the party venue. The birthday boy was clearly loaded as the venue was huge. You jaw dropped in awe, “Why is this party so extravagant?”

“Good thing our birthday gifts are more drinks.” Miya nudged you and you laughed, nodding your head.

You were all greeted with blaring music from the stereo and neon lights to add into the ambience. People had already begun drinking and some were busy eating dinner.

“Yn!! I missed you!” A very familiar voice erupted as you spotted a figure rushing towards you.

“Hoseok!” You grinned, extending your arms out for a hug.

“You didn’t come to my party!” He pouted as he pulled away. “But I visited the next day as a surprise!” You defended yourself.

“That’s true… Still feels like forever since I saw you.” Hoseok pulled you back in for a hug.

The four of you made your way to one of open rooms which had been turned into a buffet area. You had helped yourself to the wide array of food and found a table to eat with your friends.

“We have a new hurdler joining us. He’s our batch but he only joined the club this try-out round.” Namjoon filled you in since you were the only non-hurdler in your group.

“Oh, who is it?”

“Kim Taehyung.”

“Wait, Kim Taehyung? Isn’t he from table tennis?”

Namjoon shrugged his shoulders, “Guess he wanted to try something new. I was there during try-outs and he’s a really fast runner.”

—

Since it was a huge party and you weren’t close to the birthday boy, you didn’t need to spend the night entertaining the main character of the night.

To make full use of the amenities at the booked venue, the four of you started playing different rounds of games.

You were paired with Hoseok against Miya and Namjoon. The first round was charades and you lost to them. Hoseok found the game Just Dance and proposed it as the next round.

Jungkook had not been on your mind the entire night as you busied yourself playing games with your friends.

“What else can you do?!” Miya exclaimed, stepping in front to take over Hoseok’s spot.

“More like what else can you not do?! That was amazing!” You pulled Hoseok in for hug, “We’re gonna win this. Get ready to treat us for a meal!”

Namjoon chuckled, “We have to do another game after this. Hoseok basically created the game Just Dance. He followed the moves to easily.”

“Don’t whine, just dance!” Hoseok teased, pulling you back on the couch as you both watched Miya and Namjoon do their round.

“Didn’t want to ruin the mood but… He’s watching.” Hoseok leaned in to whisper in your ear. Your eyes slowly wandered around the venue to spot a familiar figure hanging around a crowd of people.

You both made eye contact and you decided to cast a smile at his direction. In return, you received a quick and small smile before he looked away, completely avoiding your direction.

“That went well.”

“Give him time.”

“Hobi,” you deadpanned, “I’m pretty sure one year is a lot of time.”

Hoseok just shrugged, “I know but… Okay, I have nothing to say to defend him.”

You chuckled, turning your attention back to Miya and Namjoon, “You don’t have to defend him.”

“He’s my close friend too.”

“I know, and I feel bad that you have to split yourself in half every time—“

“No, no,” Hoseok nudged you to get that thought off your mind, “I don’t feel that way. Besides, I met the two of you on separate occasions as well. Please don’t feel guilty about anything.”

You gave him a thankful smile, “Thanks Hobi.”

The Just Dance bet ended with your landslide victory thanks to Hoseok’s hidden dance skills.

Namjoon insisted for another game to even the playing field and Hoseok went out to the backyard to set up the beer pong table. Miya and Namjoon had gone to the kitchen to grab the cups and drinks and you had volunteered to grab more titbits to snack on.

Thanks to your luck, Jungkook had busied himself with filling his plate with snacks as well.

“Hey.”

Jungkook jumped upon heading your voice, quickly steadying the plate on his hand. “H-Hey.”

“How’s the party going?”

You attempted to start a conversation with him as you grabbed a plate yourself. Jungkook awkwardly cleared his throat, “It’s a huge party… H-How about— Are you enjoying it?”

“Yea, there’s tons of things to do. How about you?”

“Yea.” Jungkook fiddled with one of the serving scoops. You pressed your lips in a tight smile, recognising the awkward atmosphere engulfing the both of you.

It hurt you to know Jungkook was still feeling awkward around you. It always reminded you that you had made the wrong choice. That you had ruined everything between the two of you.

“Right, I guess I’ll head off first. See you at practice?”

“Yea… See you around.” Jungkook nodded his head, his gaze locked on the table filled with snacks as you left the area, feeling dejected from your encounter.

“What’s with the long face?” Hoseok asked as you approached your group. You looked up to meet his eyes and he immediately knew, sighing as he pulled you into a comforting hug.

“It’s not your fault.”

“Still feels like it is.”

-

“Is it just me or am I still hungover from the party?”

You laughed, “You had a whole Sunday to rest.”

Miya sighed as she started doing hip circles. “I know, I must be getting old.”

“You probably are. Anyway, where is Namjoon?”

Just as you had asked, you heard his voice calling you and Miya. The both of you turned to see Namjoon heading over your direction with someone unfamiliar next to him. Namjoon was goofily waving his hands to grab your attention while pointing to the male next to him.

As they got closer, you managed to recognise the person next him. It was Kim Taehyung. He was popular in college because he was very talented at table tennis. It shocked you when Namjoon said he had joined the track team as a hurdler.

“You two must be Miya and Yn. I’m Taehyung.” He stuck out his hand for a handshake.

With a light smile, you reached out to return the handshake. Taehyung had a welcoming aura around him. He had a friendly and approachable vibe. He was tall, athletic, and good looking.

“So, what made you join track?”

He shrugged his shoulders, “It’s our last year in college, wanted to try something different.”

“Hope you like it here.”

Taehyung glanced back at you, casting a boxy grin your way, “I think I will.”

The coach blew their whistle to grab everyone’s attention. Everyone made their way to the centre of the field to start physical training. Training started with light warm-ups before rounds around the track.

While running, Taehyung was happily chatting away with you to get to know you better. “That sucks, so you’re not a hurdler?”

“Nope, I do 4x100s.”

“So, I’ll only get to see you once a week.” Taehyung pouted and you chuckled, “You can see me on other days.”

Track had 3 sessions a week - one combined with everyone and two within your own events. The combined session was physical training for all, hence why you were running rounds with a hurdler by your side.

“I’ll take that up!” He winked at you before speeding up slightly, “Catch me if you can!”

From behind, Jungkook watched you and Taehyung converse with a scowl on his face.

Why were you even talking while jogging? Was Taehyung flirting with you?

He used to be the one disturbing you during these rounds.

Jungkook tried to shrug off the scene of you and Taehyung together, ignoring the bitter feeling growing in his chest.

-

“Don’t feel bad. You’re sick, I’ll bring up some food for you.” You grabbed your student ID and phone as you insisted that Miya stayed in bed. Casting you a weak smile, she thanked you as you left your dorm to head off to the dining hall.

You lucked out when you saw Jungkook standing at the end of the queue, scrolling through his phone. With a deep breathe in as you made your way to join the queue. “Hey.” You gave a cautious greeting towards his way. Jungkook’s heart jumped, his grip tightening on his phone as he looked up to see you smiling at him.

“Hey.”

Jungkook hated how awkward he felt with you. It never used to be that way. Then again, that was a year ago.

You also never understood why Jungkook was the one avoiding you when you were the one who got rejected.

“Today was fun.” Jungkook gave you a toothy grin, “Yea it was.”

“Definitely my new favourite restaurant. I’m so full!” He playfully patted his stomach and you chuckled, “Looks like I know where to go when you start being grumpy or stressed.”

“That’s easy, you don’t have to take me to that restaurant. I just have to spend time with you and I’m good to go.” He shrugged his shoulders. Your heart fluttered at how nonchalant his words were yet so genuine. You had been thinking about it the entire afternoon, contemplating if it was the right decision. But you knew you had to let it out before it was too late.

“You good?” Jungkook pulled you out from your thoughts. “Mm? Oh yea, I’m good.” Your feet lazily kicked a stone in front of you.

“Hey,” Jungkook stopped walking, gently placing his hand on your arm to turn you around to face him. “You can always tell me something.”

“I know, I’m… I’m just tired that’s all.”

Jungkook pursed his lips together, “How about we head over to my place to watch a movie?”

“Sure.”

You let Jungkook choose the movie for the night as your head was far away. Jungkook nudged you, shimmying his shoulders. That was always his signal when he offered his shoulder for you to rest on. You gave him a small smile as you leaned your head on his shoulder.

Despite loving Marvel, you found yourself not paying a single ounce of attention to the movie. Jungkook seemed to have noticed that as you weren’t bantering with his small comments to the movie.

You were brought back to reality when you noticed the movie was paused.

“What’s wrong?” You asked, sitting up to face Jungkook.

“I was about to ask that.”

“I’m… I’m tired. I think I’ll just head home for the night.”

Jungkook frowned and you had to look away to save yourself from crumbling into pieces.

“Are you sure you don’t want to talk about what’s on your mind?”

You sighed, this was it. You just had to let it out.

“Promise me you won’t hate me?”

“Hate you? Jungkook repeated, “I would never hate you.”

He placed his hand on your knee, encouraging you to continue. “I’ve liked you for a while.” You paused, allowing the words to sink in. You could feel his hand stiffen and you were sure he could hear the loud beating of your heart.

The silence was deafening.

Your confession repeating in both your heads.

As every second dragged on, you started to regret it even more. You had made a terrible mistake and there was no way you could take it back. Life had no re-dos.

“I’m guessing you don’t feel the same way, given the response.” You clicked your tongue together, gathering the courage to look up at him.

Jungkook was lost for words. He would have never expected to hear a confession from you that night. From his closest friend. From his best friend.

Your words left a funny feeling in him that night, but he could not tell whether it was a good or bad feeling.

“Well, don’t worry.” You forced a laugh, “I didn’t expect much anyway. I just wanted to let it out. But I’m guessing I just ruined our friendship.”

“N-No, uh… I just… I just need time to… to absorb all of this.”

You nodded your head, “I understand.” You took it as a cue to get up from the couch, Jungkook’s eyes following your figure. “I’ll see myself out. Sorry for ruining the night.”

“T-Text me when you made it home safely.” Jungkook called out as you headed for the door.

Terrible. Even after ruining your friendship, Jungkook was still looking out for you. You hated how that made you feel. You turned around to face him one more time, a smile plastered on your face.

“Will do. Goodnight.”

“Goodnight.”

It pained Jungkook to see you holding back your tears. If he could have another chance to replay that night. He would’ve stopped you from leaving, he would’ve told you that your friendship wasn’t ruined.

He would’ve done anything he could that night to stop you from leaving his life.

But in reality, he did none of those.

When you texted him that night that you were home, your message was left unread.

You took it as a message to give him time to process everything. A night turned into a day. A day turned into a week. A week turned into a month. A month turned into a year.

It was because of your confession, you both had become strangers once again.

“Yn!”

“Oh, hi Tae!”

Despite using his phone, Jungkook’s attention was on your conversation with Taehyung. You were already calling him ‘Tae’? Since when were you that close with him?

“Namjoon told me Miya’s sick. She alright?”

“Yep, just grabbing food for her so she can take her meds and rest.”

“Need my help?”

“Oh no, all’s good.”

Taehyung nudged you, “It’s alright, you have to get your own food too. I’ve already eaten, I can help carry her food up to your dorm, check up on her as well.”

“Sure, if you’re free, that is.”

“Free for you.” He teased and you laughed, looking away momentarily to see Jungkook who seemed to be invested in his phone.

“Oh, Jungkook! Didn’t recognise you at first. How’ve you been?”

Jungkook looked up to greet Taehyung, “H-Hey, I’ve been well.”

Ever since meeting Taehyung, he got along with your group easily. In fact, he got along with everyone effortlessly. He knew almost everyone in the track team only after 2 weeks. That meant only 2 combined sessions. Somehow along the way, it seemed that he had introduced himself to Jungkook as well.

Taehyung was amazing with people and that was admirable. The more you got to know Taehyung, the more you looked forward to hanging out with him.

“See you next practice!” Taehyung happily patted Jungkook’s shoulders goodbye as you two went off a different direction towards your dorm.

You barely register their conversation as your head was somewhere else, recalling the night you had confessed.

“Hey, are you okay?” Taehyung’s concerned voice made you look up to meet his eyes.

“I’m okay.”

Taehyung frowned, glancing behind to see Jungkook looking at the two of you walking away. Jungkook shook his head, quickly glancing away as Taehyung caught him looking.

“Something to do with Jungkook, perhaps?”

Taehyung was very observant and you knew you couldn’t fool him as well.

“Sort of… We just used to be close but... He’s been avoiding me and I’ve been trying to salvage whatever’s left. But it doesn’t seem to be working.”

Taehyung pursed his lips together, “It’s not fair if only one party is putting in the effort, you know.”

“I know, it’s just that… We used to be close.” You sighed as you stepped into the elevator with him, your gaze on your tray of food.

“Still, it’s not worth salvaging if you’re the only one putting in the effort. I’m sure you’ve done your best. Sometimes, you just can’t force things to happen.”

As the elevator opened to your level, you allowed his words to sink in.

“Miya! We come with food!” Taehyung grinned, bringing the tray to your sick roommate as she thanked the two of you for your help.

Your eyes trailed to Taehyung who was helping Miya grab her medicine and a glass of water.

Maybe Taehyung was right. Maybe it’s time to stop trying.

[lina-andel]

Part 2.

Wow, I didn't expect the first post to get that much attention - thank you all!

And the second part, as requested! Happy reading!

Your gaze slowly passed from one intruder to another. All of them, without exception, were what you know, but they no longer caused the same happiness or smile as when you saw them from the screen - now, looking at them, you see only the actions that they performed in relation to you.

You never thought that meeting your favorite characters and getting into this world would bring you so much pain. Ah, have the gods of this world become favorable to you after all that you have experienced? What about now? You can't just drive them away - it will be completely unfair to you, because they watched you suffer, and you have to let them go in peace? How foolish to even think that you do not want revenge.

The Archons sat in front of their people, just as they fell to their knees in front of you. After all, they did not come out of curiosity - as then, 500 years ago, they again wanted to destroy what people had built - and what you have now built. But, alas, they did not have time - and how could they, when on the way to the city they were met by the one whom even they worshiped?

Slowly you began to descend the steps - slowly, evenly, with a superiority worthy of the God of Gods. Your footsteps echoed across the Abyss, as if counting down the minutes to the judgment - and all nations awaited this judgment with trepidation. Will you forgive them? Will you make them suffer?

You approached the eldest Archon - Zhong Li flinched when you lifted his head with a neat movement, forcing him to look you in the eye. There was clearly guilt, regret and worship in bright, like a lapis, irises, but even that did not bother you - you remember how he ignored you, throwing you away like a street dog from which you are afraid to pick up an infection. The twins, who have not left you a single step since the day they met you, made Venti and Eii look at you with their rude grips. But you will deal with these later.

"Do you remember what you did, Morax?" - you asked graciously. Rex Lapis nodded abruptly - of course he remembers. "You know sorry won't be enough? Your apology won't leave the scars you left behind."

- "I - I understand, Your Grace." - the voice of the calmest god faltered. He was afraid to look you in the eyes, but he could not look away - for him you were beautiful as well as menacing. God of life and death, peace and war - you were the Creator. And he understood what kind of blasphemy he had committed. -"What I have done - no, we are all - unforgivable. We will accept any punishment you give us."

"Yes?" You chuckled softly, sharply throwing Zhong Li's head to the ground. There was a crackling sound, but a painful sigh did not come out of it. - "Then I really want to watch how you meet the creations of Kaenriah. Survive - then I will think about whether it is worth starting our "acquaintance" with a clean slate." - you clearly saw how the eyes of the guests, full of determination to earn your forgiveness, lit up with hope. It made you laugh - do they really think you won't ship all kinds of ruin creations?

You didn't want to get your hands dirty on them more than you already did, but you weren't sure if it was a worthy revenge. What you were convinced - they will feel at least half of the pain that you experienced.

And what about those who can handle it? Will they receive an award?

Well, you didn't say you would necessarily forgive them, did you?