#cain the belligerent

[fungus-no69]

Hi, I really love reading about your PC (Cain? The one that can fight Bailey)

Do you think you can tell us about his interactions/feelings with LI!

omg hiiii (fluttering my eyelashes kicking my legs twirling my hair) thank you so much for the ask!!! i love to talk about my pcs and ocs and stuff

Cain is a menace but he does have his favs!! He has male LIs :]

cw: Dol typical bullying, assault/fighting and attempted murder mentions in Whitney's, stalking and kidnapping in Kylar's (kidnapping in Eden's), heavily violent fantasies and death in Bailey's

Sydney!!!! Sydney was the first person he met at school who didn't try to fight him even when Cain was initially very destructive around the library- i.e. accidentally knocking over shelves, starting fights, returning books covered in mud and scratches- there were many times they bickered and such but Cain began to warm up to Sydney, trying harder to keep books clean and fighting anyone being a dick to Syd. They became very slow friends and often go to the beach together just to hang out. They do like each other but Cain wants to remain friends for the moment due to his living situation which is basically avoiding Bailey, sleeping in the wolf cave, being in and out of jail and he doesn't want his bad behaviour to rub off on Sydney or make him a target of bullying

Black Wolf Despite the rocky start, Black Wolf and Cain get along- they've reached a kind of mutual understanding and respect. Not really much to say here honestly, they'd probably play fetch together I guess.

Alex They're not close at all but again, they're respectful of each other. Alex's dogs like Cain and Alex trusts their judgement. Alex hasn't harassed Cain and for him? that's a win. Alex thinks it's funny when Cain tries to eat the birds that rest on the fence, he's still trying to figure out if Cain actually lives in a cave or not because he sure looks more and more like it by the day. Smells like it too. ...Cain has had to promise not to eat the livestock

Robin They were childhood friends. Cain would play with Robin and Robin would basically run damage control- however they've started to drift. Robin barely sees Cain at school anymore and he doesn't come home so yeah. Cain still considers Robin a friend but wishes he would stand up for himself more (and get an actual job). He can't always be there.

Whitney They HATE each other, it was a bad impression from the start but now, whenever they see each other they fucking FIGHT. It's getting to the point where it's not even funny anymore, they are actually attempting murder at times. One time Whitney gave Cain a chipped tooth and Cain broke his nose and strangled him as a response. They had to have no less than 5 students and 2 teachers to separate them. It's not a great relationship to say the least, but for some reason Whitney still antagonises Cain despite knowing the consequences.

Kylar This one's a doozy. Initially, Cain defended Kylar because he pitied him but as the stalking picked up?? Their relationship quickly went downhill. Cain got downright aggressive with him and Kylar didn't really like that. Cue hysterical Kylar kidnapping Cain and his escape. Yeah, he doesn't like that guy. Whenever Kylar approaches Cain nowadays it's either he gets ignored or punched. Cain doesn't forgive easily let alone for being kidnapped. Their relationship won't change any time soon, if at all. Bonus:

Wren They're blackjack buddies, Cain's not super good with words or tact but he knows how to play a fucking card game. Surprisingly doesn't cheat and has never lost a game. Thinks Wren is funny but also kind of a dick for stealing his clothes. May or may not have panicked and thrown him into the water at the docks.

Harper Listen, Cain's not the brightest bulb in the box- probably not even in the top 10- but he's pretty sure that's not what an actual doctor's certificate looks like (referring to the crayon drawn paper on the wall). Unimpressed.

Avery Thinks he's creepy but hasn't really had enough interactions with him to form a stronger opinion

Eden FUCKYOUFUCKYOUFUCKYOUFUCKYOUFUCKYOU Cain doesn't like him. He got captured once, escaped pretty quick but still holds nothing but hate for Eden. Even without being tied up, Eden's always stealing his fucking prey and he's pretty sure the other guy knows Bailey.

Bailey The orphanage owner himself. Cain wants to kill him and feed him to the dogs on the street- maybe drag his lifeless corpse to his pack so that they can have a big meal for once without that stupid hunter's interference. He wants to crush his windpipe and feel bones crack under his hands- really prolong it so Bailey understands the shit Cain's gone through to get here and how much this fucking town has destroyed him as a person. No, he doesn't care about the future- because Bailey is not a person to him, but instead a leash that strangles him at every turn and Cain is selfish. He is bitter and hopeless and he knows it. Something something kicked dog with rabies.

[gravitycavity]

Sunshine (Pomni x Ragatha) Chapter 1 - Put On a Happy Face

[Click here to read from the beginning on AO3!]

Cover art by @blukiar

“You’re supposed to $%#&ing smile, Pomni!” Zooble's hoarse scream reverberated throughout the big top. “Are you stupid?! We can’t finish the new intro if you aren’t @#$%ing smiling!”

“Leave. Me. Alone!” Pomni, denied the catharsis of slinging her sailor’s mouth, expressed her disdain with her middle fingers instead. She only ended up seething harder, however, when a pair of other-dimensional censor bars appeared to obscure the rude gestures.

“Oh! So that’s how you want to play it, Puffball?” Zooble narrowed her eyes, limping toward the jester with as much aggression as their awkwardly-constructed body would allow — which, for the record, wasn’t very much.

Ragatha had seen enough. “Relax!” She raised her voice, swooping vigilantly between the bickering belligerents. “Both of you!”

Gangle, moping off to the side, sniveled pitifully. In all the commotion, her comedy mask had been shattered. For the second time. This morning. “Guys…! Please, just stop fighting…”

Jax crossed his legs, reclining smartly against Kinger’s impenetrable pillow fort. “Can it, crybaby. This is the best entertainment we’ve had in years!” He flicked a piece of popcorn into the air and caught it in his mouth. Meanwhile, a vibrating Kinger poked his eyes out from between two pillows, saying nothing and everything at the same time.

Ragatha’s good-natured attempts to keep the peace were all for naught. She flinched out of the way of Zooble’s punch — but before the strike could connect, a floating boxing bell materialized out of nowhere, piercing the air with a shrill shriek.

“Now, now! There’s no need for that!” Caine’s wagging finger appeared beside the bell, followed shortly after by the rest of the entity. He lifted his tophat, and a cheesing Bubble gingerly drifted out.

“Naughty, naughty~” Bubble chomped his teeth.

Caine snapped his fingers, and an unseen force pushed Pomni and Zooble apart. “The Amazing Digital Circus — copyright 1996 C&A Incorporated, all rights reserved — is a magical, marvelous CD-Romp for all ages! Zany shenanigans and cartoon mischief I can abide, but outright violence? Strictly out of the question!”

With a grunt, Zooble spiked their arm against the floor. “What are we supposed to do, then!? We’re on take fifty-seven of your dumb@%$ theme song because poor little Pomni thinks she’s the main character of the universe!”

Pomni responded to that, but whatever she said, it was profane enough to be scrubbed out entirely.

“Yes, well…” Caine crossed his arms, steeped in careful thought. The last hour-and-a-half of unusable footage played back through his mismatched eyeballs in a matter of seconds. “It’s nothing we can’t fix in post.”

Zooble swiped their discarded arm off the ground and crammed it back into its empty socket. “Great. Then you can edit me in, too.” They stormed off, reciprocating Pomni’s earlier gesture. “Eat $@#%, sad sack.”

Jax sighed. “Aw, shucks. Right when things were getting good…”

“Uh…!” Caine skipped a beat. He swiveled toward the five circus members still gathered beneath the big top. “Well, then!” he elbowed his soap bubble companion, “Looks like we’ve got our work cut out for us, Bubble! As for the rest of you, consider yourselves off the hook for the rest of the day — my treat! Take some personal time, get some sleep, and try your darndest not to dwell on the soul-crushing scale of eternity!”

“I have no soul!” Bubble turned upside-down. “So I don’t mind it one bit!”

“You and me both, old pal!” Caine’s laugh sounded forced and unnatural.

There was a pause. Gangle glanced around, then meekly raised her ribbony hand. “But what about—”

“Go on, now! I won’t take no for an answer!” the ringmaster stabbed the air with his cane, “I want you all in tip-top condition for tomorrow’s wacky adventure!”

🎪 🎪 🎪

It wasn’t long before everyone had gone their separate ways. Jax had slinked off to the digital carnival to terrorize the NPCs, Gangle had left a trail of teardrops all the way to the digital lake, and Kinger, as per usual, had just disappeared without anyone really noticing.

At last, Pomni was alone again. She curled her tear-stained face inward and filled her chest with three shaky breaths. She couldn’t hold it in anymore. Hands tightened into trembling fists, she threw her head toward the sky and let loose a long, ear-shattering shriek.

Why was this happening to her? What did she ever do to deserve this!? She was a person — a human being, for God’s sake — not some stupid, one-dimensional children’s character. How dare anyone expect her to just grin and bear it? She didn’t owe anything to anyone — not even one second of feigned emotion. As far as she was concerned, the moment she forced that goofy smile onto her face would be the moment she surrendered, and she would never, ever, in a million years—

“I’m always here if you need to talk. You haven’t forgotten, have you?”

Pomni flinched, wrenching away from the sudden voice. After the emotional hell she’d gone through during her first day, unexpected noises didn’t exactly put her at ease — nor did anything else in this deranged digital purgatory, for that matter.

“Ah! Sorry!” Ragatha covered her mouth. “I didn’t spook you too bad, did I?”

“You did, actually! Wh-What’s wrong with you?” Pomni gathered herself quickly. She didn’t dare to even look in the direction of the person who had just watched her childish tantrum. The moment she found her footing again, she stormed off like her very life depended on it. “Don’t just sneak up on people like that!”

Silently relenting, Ragatha stepped aside to let Pomni pass. She watched the pouting jester jingle and jangle with every step, stomping with boundless confidence in the completely wrong direction.

“Uh…” Ragatha tilted her head. “Pomni? Do you remember the way to your room?”

“Ugh! What do you care?” Pomni doubled her pace. “Mind your own business!”

Ragatha smirked. “Alright, I guess I’ll just head back to my room, then. Which, for the record…” She pointed behind herself, “…is that way.”

Pomni stared vacantly as Ragatha sauntered off. The doll had read her like a book. Locking herself in her room for days on end meant she still had no clue how to get around the tent — if she wanted to get back to her regularly-scheduled self-pity anytime soon, she would have to swallow whatever was left of her pride.

Pomni grumbled under her breath, fast-walking to catch up. “Hey! W-Wait!”

🎪 🎪 🎪

There was no ambient noise to dampen the tension; the dormitory hall’s plush carpet absorbed the sound of Pomni and Ragatha’s footsteps. Ragatha led, hands tucked politely below her waist, while Pomni trailed behind.

The complete, unbroken silence wasn’t exactly the most comfortable thing in the world, but it was preferable to whatever inane smalltalk would have filled it. That’s how Pomni saw things, at least.

In the time it had taken to walk here, she had managed to cool off a bit — and the unwavering quiet gave her plenty of mental space to reflect on the last few minutes.

She wasn’t sorry. Pomni didn’t care if Zooble hated her — she could hate them right back. Breaking bread with Jax was pointless; that creep preferred to provoke. Gangle was friendly, but to interact with her was to walk on eggshells, and Pomni lacked the patience. And Kinger? Was Kinger.

Arms crossed, Pomni looked up from her big, dumb clown shoes. Her gaze settled on the doll in front of her. Pomni despised everything about this place — but now that she was going through her laundry list of grievances, she had to admit: she had nothing on the redhead.

…What was her name? Ragatha…? She was by far the most mature of the circus’s captives. She was kind. Predictable. An island of calm in a stormy sea.

Pomni’s harsh features softened. Ragatha was the only character who had shown her the slightest shred of compassion since she’d arrived here. The realization weighed down her stomach with more than a few pangs of guilt. Ragatha, of all people, certainly wasn’t a deserving outlet for her angst.

Oh, no — nice going, you idiot. Ragatha was the one thing about this place keeping you anywhere close to sanity, and you’ve already repelled her by acting like a petulant child. She probably hates you now. You know that, right? Actually, it’s not ‘probably’. It’s ‘definitely’. That’s why she isn’t talking. That’s why this is so awkward. That’s why —

“So…what’s under your cap?”

Pomni stumbled. Had the wall not been there to grab onto, she absolutely would have fallen flat on her face.

Stabilizing herself, Pomni gawked up at Ragatha as if the doll had just beamed down from another planet. What’s under her cap? Did she hear that right? It was such an odd, out-of-the-blue question — but at least it had yanked her out of her head.

“I’m sorry?”

Ragatha bent down to Pomni’s eye level. “Your cap.” She said gently, resisting the urge to prod one of the little bells dangling from either end. “It comes off, doesn’t it?”

Pomni blinked. She hadn’t really given it any thought. In fact, until Ragatha had brought it up, she had forgotten that her ridiculous new form came with a hat at all. Doing nothing but hiding under the covers and sobbing for days on end had that effect.

With much bigger problems weighing on her mind, Pomni didn’t really care to check — but something about Ragatha’s expectant gaze possessed her anyway. Very carefully, she hooked her fingers beneath the golden rim. She felt a small amount of resistance as she pushed up, almost as if the headpiece were attached to her body through some kind of magnetic force.

With a just a little effort, though, it popped right off.

“…Huh.” Pomni held the striped cap in her hands. “Look at that.”

“Oh, goodness!” Ragatha tried and failed to suppress a squeal. She paid no mind to her question’s answer, too distracted by the worst hat hair anyone had ever seen. It was certainly a look; a chaotic mess of tangles, knots, and flyaways did as it pleased atop the jester’s capless crown.

“Hey! What gives?!” Pomni ducked her cap back onto her head. A few extra clumps of hair stuck out from underneath. “Why are you laughing?”

“I’m so sorry! Your hair is just…” Ragatha giggled. “Well, it’s a bit messy at the moment. But I like it!”

Pomni leered. “…Liar.”

“I’m not making fun of you! Honest!” Ragatha crossed her hands over her heart. “I love your hair, Pomni. It’s…”

“It’s what?!”

“It’s so cute!”

Pomni’s eyes grew two sizes. That was…not the answer she expected to hear. She didn’t know what to say — just that her face felt a lot warmer than before.

“Obviously, you could use a comb…or three. But who cares about that?” Ragatha’s hand drifted through her own thick, yarn-like locks. “You really lucked out, you know. I’d trade your hair for mine in a heartbeat.”

Despite everything, the smallest of half-smiles lit Pomni’s face.

“I, um…” Pomni took a deep breath. And then two more. Her whole body slumped closer to the floor. Try as she might to keep her personal pity party alive, Ragatha’s radiant energy made her forget her troubles, if only for a moment.

“…Why are you being so nice? And to me, of all people?”

Ragatha just shrugged. “Do I have a reason not to be?”

Pomni gripped her other arm, gaze flicking down the corridor. Her smile faded in the silence.

“Well, um, anyway…” Ragatha glanced at the door behind her — Pomni’s awkwardness was infectious. “You have your room key, right?”

Pomni’s heart skipped at the thought of having lost it, but eased at the feeling of cold metal in her pocket. She nodded.

Gently, Ragatha took the cartoonish key from Pomni’s hand. With a turn and a click, the way to the jester’s room was open.

Ragatha held the door, smiling warmly. “You look like you could use some space. Go enjoy some quality alone time, okay, new stuff?”

“O-Okay.” Pomni didn’t hesitate to do just that — until she did. “Um…” She peeked behind a door half-open. After the longest pause, a simple, stammered “thanks” was all she could manage to get out.

Her door clicked shut. And audibly locked.

My Ko-fi - Tips are very much appreciated! :)

[Next Chapter]

[amidst-wonderland]

ELIZABETH LANCE-WAYNE

REAL NAME : elizabeth lance-wayne FACE-CLAIM : olivia cooke MAIN ALIAS : siren OTHER ALIASES : starling ⭑ batgirl ⭑ black canary ⭑ crow ⭑ molly malone KEY RELATIVES : bruce wayne (father) ⭑ dinah lance (mother) ⭑ damian wayne, (half-brother) ⭑ olive west-wayne (daughter) ⭑ ronan west-wayne (son) AFFILIATION : batman family ⭑ justice league ⭑ birds of prey ⭑ teen titans ⭑ suicide squad ⭑ flash family ⭑ team arrow ⭑ wayne enterprises BASE OF OPERATIONS : gotham city ⭑ keystone ⭑ star city ⭑ new york city

ORIGIN & LIVING STATUS

ALIGNMENT : hero LIVING STATUS : alive, formerly deceased PLACE OF BIRTH : gotham city UNIVERSE : prime earth IDENTITY : secret CITIZENSHIP : american MARITAL STATUS : separated, it's complicated. OCCUPATION : wedding planner ⭑ socialite (former) ORIGIN : hereditary metagene obtained from mother, black canary. took on protégé role of starling as a child. CAUSE OF DEATH(S) one | killed by the joker after being stabbed with an electric rod during an arkham aslyum surveillance mission with robin and kid flash in an attempt to blow the island sky-high. two | shot by royal flush gang's queen during 'task force x' operation three | impaled by zoom in an act of revenge against flash iii four | beaten to death by 'death metal' alternative, screech in attempt to protect her children

SKILLS & ABILITIES

expert detective master martial artist and hand-to-hand combatant ultra-sonic scream (canary cry) enhanced strength and speed expert strategist, tactician and field commander trained gymnast espionage utilises high-tech equipment and weapons, such as her element adaptive mono-wire proficient archer sound immunity

RELATIONSHIPS / ASSOCIATIONS

marriage | wally west long-term | roy harper fling | adian cobblepot ⭑ joseph wilson

heroes | bruce wayne ⭑ dinah lance ⭑ wally west ⭑ zatanna zatara ⭑ barbara gordon ⭑ dick grayson ⭑ roy harper ⭑ donna troy ⭑ jason todd ⭑ tim drake ⭑ stephanie brown ⭑ cassandra cain ⭑ renee montoya villains | harley quinn ⭑ magpie ⭑ cupid ⭑ rainbow raider ⭑ royal flush gang ⭑ screech ⭑ mad hatter ⭑ catwoman ⭑ hazard ⭑ poison ivy ⭑ killer frost ⭑ joker ⭑ punchline ⭑ court of owls

MISC.

elizabeth was the batgirl to jason's robin and is arguably the closest with him, post resurrection.

after being stripped of her cowl again by bruce, elizabeth winds up babysitting 'task force x' with long-time friend, roy harper and dawning a new short-term alias, crow. the two find comfort in each-other within the band of belligerent criminals as ex-titans, roy after his split with jade and elizabeth longing for a love she doesn't even know she's forgotten.

she’s viewed as an almost modern day ‘daisy buchanan’ type figure in gotham for better or worse

elizabeth's wayne!persona feeds into the catty high-school popular girl, a little ditzy but applying where it counts. she's no valedictorian but fronting the cheer squad and the debate team whilst earning herself prom queen is no small feat (think torrance shipman) but unfortunately for her date and half the school's male populous, she's head-over-heels for nobody but keystone's cocky redhead with a heart of gold. post-gotham academy, she becomes a hilton-type party girl which doesn't go down well with wally.

even after their separation (in name only, these two would literally die for each-other) wally is still persistent that she keeps her flash button-pin on her person at all times, just in case. even after a fight, yet another break or just a storm-out he'll always be there when she needs him and he knows she's stubborn enough to only press it when she really needs him.

liz was a pretty taken aback by wally's reappearance. learning of a life she once had, the children she'd forgotten and unlike everyone else that accepted wally back almost immediately, liz was a little slower, much to wally's impatience.

she covers for her mother as black canary during league outings whilst dinah is on maternity leave, even keeping with the mantle when teaming up with wally when he returns to the flash role.

dinah and bruce were only briefly together, bruce hadn't even begun his career as batman and dinah was working part-time as a florist and club singer.

liz and dick are the same age.

all three of her costumes incorporate led lining, more-so her time as batgirl with the cowl, her batgirl colour-coding was black and sheer white, whilst starling had an ombre rainbow lining - similar to the bird and siren taking on both aspects with the black and white costume and rainbow led lights.

KEY ARCS / MOMENTS / STORYLINE

MATCHES (UNDER THE RED HOOD PREQUEL)

central characters | elizabeth lance-wayne (molly malone) ⭑ jason todd ⭑ tim drake ⭑ cassandra cain ⭑ selina kyle ⭑ adian cobblepot ⭑ oswald cobblepot ⭑ edward nygma ⭑ carmine falcone ⭑ dick grayson ⭑ barbara gordon

whilst batman is off-world with the justice league, the rest of his team have been tasked to protect gotham so newly returned elizabeth gets a whiff of a developing human trafficking ring, she swiftly adopts the 'molly malone' persona in order to infiltrate their operations and put a stop to it. however, she's met with some resistance from the city's newest mob-boss, the red hood.

notable beats

one | this is elizabeth's first solo operation in gotham since the batgirl mantle was taken from her and since she married childhood sweetheart wally west, who is currently off-world with bruce. two | selina helping elizabeth get into the spoilt mafia brat image with hair as big as her tits, heels as fake as her lips and leopard print dress peaking above her ass. during this, cass watches on at the pseduo-mother / daughter moment, longing back to her own childhood. three | seducing oswald cobblepot's absolute meathead unit of a son, adian as malone's guard-dog boyfriend after 'spontaneously' meeting in gotham's 'my alibi' strip club with the promise of opening a brothel (refuge for victims), playing on his sycophantic eagerness to get impress / out-do his own father, mirroring elizabeth's own ambition. four | red hood interrupting her first meeting with the gotham rogues, removing their attention from her, to him. jason identifies liz immediately, being aware of the 'malone' schtick from bruce but decides to toy with her game-plan just to tick her off. five | jason overhears an argument between tim and liz ordering him and cass to back-off the op, he decides to stir the pot by ambushing the boy-wonder. six | elizabeth returns to her and wally's shared penthouse only to be confronted with the red hood confirming her identity as a wayne and poking at her marriage, "does west know you're hanging off penguin jr?" taunting her to press the alarm, knowing bruce and the scarlet-speeder would return seeing the mess she's made of the op, jason offers her a hand.

ROYAL ROULETTE (THE SUICIDE SQUAD) - breakdown to be added

below is just some fun i had after seeing the suicide squad, enjoy!

SNIPPET

“Joining you, Dubois will be two classified and undercover operatives with decades of field experience between them, though you may find their methods in comparison to your active teammates are rather passive.” Amanda Waller drags out as she walks the marksman through the bleak halls of the prison. “Both parties are, like you doing this with a certain level of willingness, but again like you, they have their own rather elusive baggage.”    Dubois continued to follow the woman into her office before being shown some very familiar inmates, one blond and the other ginger, who’d been a real pain in his-    “Arsenal. Speedy and Red Arrow all known aliases of former Green Arrow protégé, Roy Harper. I know you’re aware of Mr. Harper’s craft, but you may relax. He is your covert second-wave operative on this mission.”    “Does he know that?”    “He’s been warned, whether or not he wishes to push my buttons is entirely up to him.”    “Blondie here, is your problem.”    “That’s not Quinn, is it?”    “Far from, this is Siren. Meta-human.”    “Christ.”    “That’s a moot point a third of your team are meta-humans, but this one, used to be Batgirl.”    “Fuck off.”    “Watch that tongue.”    “I thought the Bats were good guys.”    “Yeah, well some of them have tendencies, including this one.”    “What’s she do?”    “Classified.”    “How’d you get her to agree?”    “Classified.”    “Does the Batman know?”    “He knows his daughter is doing covert work for me.”    “Ooh, lying to the cape-crusader is-“ Dubois furrowed his brows, “Did you say daughter?”    “That I did. Siren is a meta-human with enhanced strength, equipped with a Canary Cry that can shatter just about any form of glass within a two-mile radius. Her mother is Black Canary, her Step-father? Green Arrow and her husband is the fastest man alive,” Waller tensed, “Dubois, no matter what the circumstances may be, I do suggest that you and your team do not cross this woman, specifically Quinn.”    “What do the Gothamites have history?” he joked, although Waller did not reciprocate.    “You don’t spend five years as Batgirl without a run in with the Clown. Joker killed her brother, paralysed her teammate, and critically injured herself to the brink of death that she spent seven months in the ICU, all to enact a grand idea that involved blowing Arkham Island to bits.”    “What happened?”    “Two metal rods, and fifty-thousand volts. Folks said the scream could be heard from Metropolis.”    “How’s she not dead?”    “Rumour is Kid Flash was able to restart her heart.”    “So Quinn’s a sore-spot?”    “I don’t want them left alone, Siren won’t kill but Quinn would in retaliation, and I don’t want the job of explaining to Flash why his wife’s body was left in some South American jungle because of a psychotic jester who nearly killed her as a teenager.”    “The bomb threat?”    “As far as she's concerned, there isn't one.”    “Why?”    “Guess.” “What about Quinn?” “Quinn’s quick and unpredictable, Siren could be dead before I hit the button. They’ve known each other for a decade - know how to make each other tick therefore it is your job to make sure they don’t."    “You want me to babysit two grown fucking women? If she’s this much of a hassle then what use is she to us?”    “Siren has trained with nothing but the best, she is a skilled, heavy hitting fighter, acrobat, tech genius, can speak four languages fluently – one of which you will need – and can be an excellent diversion when the moment calls for it. Her skill set is vital to the completion of this mission.”    “And yet Quinn?”    “Cannon fodder. She’s got more balls than any other man on your team.”

[shepherds-of-haven]

Since the Shepards are a big, (sometimes) happy, found family, which roles would they be? All I know for sure is that Blade is the dad, Caine is the baby, and Tallys is the grandma.

I feel like this is something you all could tell me rather than the other way around, haha! I don't really think of the Shepherds as a traditional family with, like, parent vs children roles, so I'm probably not the person to ask. All I know is that Halek has big brother energy, Shery has "precious baby sister maknae" energy, and Tallys has mom friend energy. I guess the more accurate thing to say is that I consider them all to basically have a kind of sibling dynamic or just a friend group energy rather than Blade being the dad (I think he's not nurturing/kind enough and also everyone shits on him too much), etc.

Blade -> oldest son energy, "the responsible one" or stick in the mud but all of the impetuous younger siblings make his life hell

Halek -> older brother energy, comforting presence, makes you want to run after him bothering him

Tallys -> oldest sister energy, the den mother of the group, the one who makes sure everyone in the group is healthy and doing okay

Lavinet -> big sister energy, the one you go to for advice about boys, the cool older sister that you tend to idolize

Trouble -> second son/middle child energy

Briony -> second daughter/middle child energy

Chase -> extreme middle child energy (attention whore)

Ayla -> middle child energy

Red -> ? I guess middle child energy? The one that is just quietly doing his own thing amidst all the chaos lol but is also reliable like an older sibling can be?

Riel -> younger sibling energy. The belligerent, spoiled, brilliant, lauded younger sibling who's used to being showered with praise for his accomplishments, and thus doesn't have the appropriate amount of fear or respect towards his older siblings. The twelve-year-old who thinks he should be sitting at the adults table and not the kids' table with the rest of the wet-mouthed plebs

Shery -> baby. baby of the family. must protect. universally beloved. will always be viewed as the baby even when she's married with kids

Mimir -> weird cousin

Caine -> strong nephew energy. like "second generation, that's someone's (MC's) kid, not a direct sibling of the adults" or, just like. literal infant. goo goo ga ga

[willtheweaver]

Favorite character poll

Thanks for the tag @theink-stainedfolk

Rules: List all your main OCs and give a brief description of them. Then create a poll with their names and allow your followers to vote on who their favorite character is.

Here are the major characters of A Feather in the Forest:

Fen-

Fen has lived amongst the foxes of Fernatan all his life. The only thing is that he is a crow. All his life, he’s been told to keep his identity a secret, as the bad blood between the foxes and the birds means that he is at risk of being killed if anyone outside his family knew. Emotionally reserved, he does not reveal his feelings to many. Those he has befriended he trusts dearly (especially Playa) and will support them, no matter what.

For five years. He’s played the game, concealing his identity. But now approaching independence, and without anyone to guide him, he is wondering how much longer he can keep himself concealed.

Playa-

She is Fen’s closest friend. Granddaughter of the village chief, Playa finds her heritage bothersome, as the adults tend to show favoritism towards her. She believes in working towards her goals, even if they don’t align with the expectations of others. Though stubborn at times (a trait she inherited from Opal), she is always there for her friends, particularly Fen.

Sorrel-

A hunter for Fernstan, she was the one who found Fen in the ruins of an abandoned camp. Strong willed, and with a firm sense of right and wrong, she petitioned Opal to allow Fen to live. Having gained approval, Sorrel then raised as her own. Sadly, their time together proved too brief, and in between the prologue and the main story, she passed after contracting a mysterious illness.

Caine-

Formerly First Hunter for Fernstan village, he has to step down after losing his leg in an accident. Adopting Fen renewed some of the fire he once had. But the joy lasted only two years before Sorrel succumbed to sickness. His existence , if it could be called that, since then has been one deep black pit.

Opal-

The chief of Fernstan, Opal had seen and experienced much over her fifty year lifespan.Intelligent , wise, but also fiercely stubborn, her word is final. Knowing there is more to individuals than meets the eye, she is always open to those who do not fit in, and unlike many foxes, she actually has good relations with some of the birds( a fact that few know).

Leif-

A senior hunter with a no-nonsense attitude, Leif is in charge of leading youngsters out on their first hunt. He plays no favorites, and deeply cares about those under his charge, even if he doesn’t show it.

Lord Halley-

The ruler of Loftperch Lookout, he is considered to be the most belligerent of the Roost Lords. Any threat to him, perceived or real, is dealt with swiftly and ruthlessly. Both the foxes of the five villages and the other Roost Lords view him as a neighbor they would rather live without.

Tagging @kaylinalexanderbooks @mk-writes-stuff @frostedlemonwriter @roselinbooks @illarian-rambling

@somethingclevermahogony @fourwingedwriter @the-golden-comet @sleepy-night-child @bloodmoonloveletter

@words-after-midnight @theeccentricraven and open tag

[july-19th-club]

born under a bad sign is so good and so funny meg spends the entire episode marionetting sam around making him stab people and brazenly steal shit and like, be belligerent and harrass jo like ohhhh ahaha this'll get 'em! this one'll definitely be the last straw i cant wait to make them cain and abel it all over this whole stupid nation for exorcising me one single time and dean just straight up refuses to take the bait and doesn't even know there is bait to be taken he's just like. well my little brother would never. and there is another explanation. so jot that down and finally meg has to just shoot him

[dc-comics-enjoyer]

*Appears out of the darkness*

— The Harper family has been interested in Ras Al Ghul for a long time.

Back in the 1880s, Ras met a family of poor Irish immigrants with the Americanized surname Harper who helped him and who had an incredible talent in shooting.

Ras decided to wait a bit and only then harvest the harvest.

And so it happens, many many years later - a young family dies in a car accident, and their son remains an orphan whom the Race accepts with open arms. Roy Harper [is still the only one and not the eldest] growing up in the league of assassins and he's too loyal.

— When Roy is fifteen years old and is already considered the best archer in the world, he catches the eye of David Cain and Ras Al Ghul begins a new experimental program.

Roy is young and devoted, he agrees easily and simply - Ras is practically a god to him, he admires David and yet not so bad, right?

— The child, a clone, is conceived in a test tube and is being carried in an artificial uterus. Roy can't help but feel tender, and David likes the idea of raising a child with his own blood who can fight perfectly with his body and a quiver of arrows.

Roy hums softly in his mother's language, the Navajo language, and presses his palm against the cold glass, the fetus, which resembles a full-fledged child, moves as if reacting to touch, Roy does not feel it.

"I'm sorry. I love you" rotted in his mouth.

— Alala Cynthia, [belligerence, battle cry, Nobility, free-winged bird], born in warm June, 1983, and he is the only surviving clone child, even if he was born the wrong sex.

He has ten tiny fingers on plump arms and legs, soft fair skin that will eventually show freckles, a thick mop of red hair and the largest green eyes Roy has ever seen.

Roy holds his newborn son wet with artificial amniotic fluid, love burns brightly in his heart and he thinks: "My God, what have I done?"

P.S — Roy has a different birth name and it's female because David wanted a female child. And I will send more if you like it and oh you can ask the questions you are interested in!

*Disappears*

Oooh, thanks for sharing! Hope others can enjoy this as well. It's very fleshed out already. Looks like you could go for a full-on fic with this!!

[vitalphenomena]

@holyrots asked: a lot of questions! thanks! // from here — i’d love more of these!

what was the best thing in [juniper's] life?

lila :) her strong female friends, like josephine and katya :) but ultimately, she thinks lila is the best thing in her life. she adores the girl, would do anything to uplift her.

what is [rose] reluctant to tell people?

rose doesn't do reluctance or modesty well in general. she is not private about her faith, where she came from (which is, as far as she's concerned, the best place on earth, and the fact that it fell apart is a tragedy).

i think she's reluctant to discuss her relationship with her brother. sometimes, things do slip out of anger, but she is deeply ashamed of how she treated him when she was younger.

what would [cain] make a scene in public about?

gosh, this is hard. he's really not that guy. even when he gets drunk, he's more upsettingly and embarrassingly sloppy than belligerent.

i think if he saw an act of social or racial inequality — violence, even a particularly powerful microaggression — he would intervene and attempt to create justice.

how does the image [spirit] tries to project differ from the image they actually project?

aloof, beautiful, dangerous party girl turns into pathetic, desperate, wanting party girl.

[ao3feed-brucewayne]

Desperado

by eggmans_71st_account Look, Selina wasn’t all that good of a person, she knew that. She tried her best and usually her best was pretty shit; and she accepted that. She's doing what she can. What more can you want from a girl? She just wished he’d stop thinking there was anything more to her. Words: 3651, Chapters: 1/10, Language: English Fandoms: Batman - All Media Types, Batman (Comics), Catwoman (Comics) Rating: Not Rated Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Rape/Non-Con, Underage Categories: F/M, Multi Characters: Selina Kyle, Slam Bradley, Holly Robinson, Bruce Wayne, Damian Wayne, Tim Drake, Dick Grayson, Jason Todd, Cassandra Cain, Stephanie Brown, Alfred Pennyworth Relationships: Selina Kyle/Bruce Wayne, Slam Bradley/Selina Kyle, Selina Kyle & Holly Robinson, Julie Madison/Bruce Wayne, Selina Kyle & Alfred Pennyworth & Bruce Wayne, Cassandra Cain & Tim Drake & Dick Grayson & Duke Thomas & Jason Todd & Bruce Wayne & Damian Wayne, Background Karon/Holly Robinson Additional Tags: Established Relationship, Developing Relationship, Bisexual Selina Kyle, POV Selina Kyle, BAMF Selina Kyle, Selina Kyle & Bruce Wayne Friendship, Crime Fighting, Some Plot, Belligerent Sexual Tension, Bisexual Bruce Wayne, Protective Bruce Wayne, Protective Selina Kyle, Past Sexual Abuse, nothing explicit tho, The Author Regrets Nothing, Author Has Headache, Not Canon Compliant, Canon-Typical Violence, Friends With Benefits, not for long, Selina Kyle had Issues, Bruce Wayne had Issues, glad we've established that, Fighting as a Metaphor for Forplay, Gotham City is Terrible, Mystery, Selina Kyle-centric, Bruce Wayne Tries, Selina Kyle Tries, They Fail horribly, Didn't Know They Were Dating, Attempt at Humor, Mental Health Issues, Not Beta Read via https://ift.tt/HY0znjh

[rustedhearts]

severed lamb: part iv: white horse (pastor!steve x fem!reader)

summary: all your sinning plagues wyndgate with a summer storm. pastor steve tempts you with a drive home in the dark. you know it's wrong, but you just can't stay away.

uses she/her pronouns and female anatomy.

♰ severed lamb masterlist ♰ ♰ main masterlist ♰

tags: religious imagery/trauma, age gap (steve is 35, reader is 19), heavy petting, manipulation, abuse of power, coercion, a whole lot of god guilt.

recommended listening: if you know anything about anything, you'll listen to family tree by ethel cain.

♰ wyndgate, georgia, august 1981 ♰

The rain pattering down on the old tin roof of Wyndgate's Dairy Mart sounded like hail. The wheels of the cart squealed and hissed their way down the linoleum tiles of the bread aisle, metal jostling and clanking with every hurried step. You snatched a loaf of Wonderbread and tossed it in the back, rushing on before you could be stopped by somebody's mama asking where the cereal was.

Ever since you went to the church last week to see Pastor Steve, you felt like God set a pair of eyes on you. They followed you everywhere, scrutinizing your every move. Sometimes it was the gas station clerk handing you a pack of bubble gum. Sometimes it was your mama's friend Sal lounging on the sofa with a beer on his thigh. Other times, you were just lyin' in bed, feeling some phantom stare burn a hole into your head.

God was watching you. You could feel His judgement pouring down on you like that heavy rain. Drenching you in terrible, sickening guilt for all that sinnin'.

But when the lights went out and the world went dark, and no eyes could find you to set their judgement upon you, you awed. Warmth touched your lips where Steve's had been, buzzing and tingling like bee stings. Fingertips skating over the plump flesh, you felt the surface where Steve had set his tongue. How it wriggled and slithered, cleaning away remnants of sweet cherry blood.

Slipping the first knuckle past your lips, you pinched your eyes shut and imagined they were his. His hand heavy and fingers slender, skin hot and pulsing with blood, calluses firm and tough on your tongue. You wondered what sort of work a preacher got up to with hands like that. He taste came with a little tang of old sweat.

"Whoa!"

You skirted to a stop, jolting at the pull of the cart in your hands as it slammed into another. Eyes free of lustful fog, you gaped at your victim with warm cheeks and teary eyes. The woman, cradling a young child against her hip, glared at you beneath a set of blunt, blonde bangs.

"I-I'm so sorry, ma'am," you stammered, hand flying to your chest to fondle the gold cross.

She swerved the nose of her cart around yours, eyes sharp and narrow the whole way. "Best watch where you're goin', girl."

The woman whizzed past you with the child, disappearing down the aisle with the whoosh and squeak of rusty, damp cart wheels. You heard the child babbling something nonsensical an aisle over. Your heart hammered heavy in your throat, pulsing at the back of your neck. The Lord was watching you—and now, He was making a fool of you, too. More punishment for those filthy thoughts.

You adjusted, cleared your throat, and pushed the cart on. You had a list of things to get for Mama, and she wouldn't be pleased to know you were dilly-dallying.

Mama had been belligerent all week. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner consisted of cigarettes and wine. It was up to you to cook a meal, but trying to feed it to her felt like shoving applesauce at an infant. Mama's belligerence came with a temper that waxed and waned. You knew never which mother you were gonna get.

Today, she was quiet. She scribbled a grocery list, smacked a few bills on the table, and told you to 'get.' The sky only started to blacken and cloud when you were walking into town, toes aching and calves sore. If the trek to town wasn't bad enough, all the twirling you'd been doing only made it worse.

You weren't sure you could dance the sins away, but you did your best to try. To combat the lustful thoughts and memories of what you'd done at the church, you went to the barn and slipped on your new pointe shoes. But the feel of fresh, smooth silk on your skin, and the tough, gruesome squeeze of hard glue around your toes just reminded you of him. Those sensations were a gift from him.

On more than one occasion in the past week did you collapse to the sticky barn floor with heaving breaths, throbbing between your legs and writhing for air. Flesh slick with sweat, beading along the backs of your knees and crooks of your elbows, fingers sliding through the wetness to slip beneath your shorts. It was only when you brushed the soft, sensitive button beneath your underwear that you recoiled and gasped. The pulsing arousal shriveled away like petals wilting in the blazing sun, replaced with sharp-toothed disgust derived from the guilt only God and Georgia could provoke.

You swallowed thickly as you turned the corner toward the dairy aisle. The milk carton came with a black and white photograph of Bethanne Lee, a girl missing since January. She was only two years younger than you. You set the carton in the cart and turned her face away.

♰ ♰

A few miles in the direction of home, the sky shuddered with thunder. A streak of lightning slashed through the clouds in menacing white light, and then the rain came down again. You waited it out for fifteen minutes under the awning at the Dairy Mart, clutching the paper bags full of food with shaking fists. Now, in the shower, the paper thinned.

Shrieking, you did your best to shield them from the storm as you picked up the pace. Sandals slapping against wet gravel, squeaking over slick grass, you huffed and puffed and cursed your sinning for putting you in this predicament. This was more punishment from God, no doubt.

The crunch of tires rolling over the road, muffled by the noisy smack of raindrops on the ground, caused you to halt. Headlights beaconed through the hazy darkness. The world usually so sun-bleached and yellow, faded at the edges by time and rust, appeared grey and blue in its current plague. The bright car lights brought a sliver of white to it, blinding you until the vehicle screeched to a stop beside you.

The window cranked down, and dangling through the gap came Pastor Steve's leather-banded watch. Sleeves rolled to his elbow, cheeks flushed and swollen with heat, he tapped two fingers on the wet car door and passed you a smile.

"Need a ride?"

Temptation. The Lord's Prayer gathered on the tip of your tongue just at the sight of him. The burgundy of his sleek BMW deepened in the world's state of darkness. The swampy green and gold of his eyes seemed to adopt a muddy brown. And his skin, sun-kissed bronze by the Georgian sun, held a glowing shine.

Steve met his cheek to his shoulder, a coy grin toying with the corner of his lip. "Delilah. Come get in the car."

He cooed. He called to you the way you coax a stray to come close. Gentle, tempting, a smoothness that enticed. You couldn't blame your feet for stepping forward, arms hugged tight around the paper bags soaked thin with rainwater.

"Come on," Steve chuckled, patting the leather of he passenger seat beside him. "I ain't gon' bite ya."

Once you were next to him, Pastor Steve rolled up the windows. The patter of rain grew muffled, pounding on the roof of the car with sharp metallic pings. The heat in the car thickened immediately, and the murmuring whir coming from the vents led you to believe the air conditioning didn't work much. Your thighs suctioned to the seats, clamped close together, gathering pools of rainwater dripping from the grocery bags.

"Your mama send you to the store?"

You glanced at him, bobbing your head with a deep swallow. He switched hands on the wheel, and the whoosh of air came with a waft of his smell. Your stomach clenched at the presence of it, thighs tightening.

"Poor thing out in all this rain." Steve's mouth drooped into a frown, but his eyes were bright with an invisible grin.

Your shoes squeaked together on the car floor. The dry spots of the paper bags crinkled as you reached over them for your necklace. In the driver seat, Steve tore his eyes away from the road to watch you. Something about the way you fondled that cross—delicate, soothing ministrations—always made him twitch.

Before he could withhold himself, his hand darted across the center console toward your lap. His big palm swept over your thigh just beneath the hem of your dress, smearing droplets of rain into your skin. Your body gave a jerk, a sharp gasp tumbling from your lips. You caught sight of his knuckles over your lap just as his fingers slipped away.

"A lil' wet there," Steve remarked, lip quirked with amusement at the shortness of your breath.

"I-I—Pastor y-you can't—"

His hand returned, slithering over your leg until it disappeared beneath the skirt of your dress. You froze, watching with blurred vision as his palm traced the swell of your thigh. Your chest felt like it was caving in, lungs shriveling and leaving no space for air as the pads of his fingers brushed the elastic of your underwear.

Your body began to tremble: calves quaking against the seat, knees wobbling, stomach twisting and clenching. His index grazed the front of your underwear where slickness pooled.

"Here, too." His voice was quiet, airy with shallowed breath and wonderment.

But when you gazed over, his eyes were on the road.

The tip of his finger pressed firmly against your sensitive flesh cupped behind the thin fabric of your underwear, yanking a sharp gasp from your throat. You throbbed against his touch, hips shifting—you weren’t sure if they were aiming away from him or toward him.

Head turning toward the window, you caged your lip between your teeth to stifle the chance of more noises as the pastor’s touch roughened. Two fingers now, pushing into your pulsing core over cotton, sticky with the thrill. Steve took this moment to gaze over at you, delighting in your flushed skin and twisting body. He felt it settle into his own body—that aching need, that festering desire. Lust overwhelmed him. His pants strained around the crotch with his excitement.

“Does that feel good, Delilah,” Steve drawled, tone low and silky.

You inhaled deeply, trying to see past the fuzzy spots clouding your vision, trying to work your way through the tingles attacking your bones. Fingers curling into fists, you shifted back into a straight position in the passenger seat, muscles constricting tensely as pleasure swished around inside you. The grocery bags seemed to have clambered to the floor somewhere in the daze.

“W-we can’t—“

Steve disrupted the barrier: slipping a finger beneath the elastic band of your underwear, and bringing it to the smooth skin beneath. The warmth that waited for him made him huff a laugh, throaty and perverted.

He fixed you with a soft, endearing look, all round eyes and pouted mouth. “Can’t what? Can’t feel good? Doesn’t it feel good, sweetheart?”

Swallowing thickly, you nodded despite every bone in your body telling you to deny it. This was the devil overtaking you, making you give over to this sinful pleasure. Shame jolted in your body at the same wavelength desire did—they melded together until you could barely discern the difference anymore.

“How can somethin’ that feels so good be a sin?” Steve cooed, sweeping his finger through the pool of gooey cream collecting beneath your panties, brushing over the most sensitive part of your body.

Back curling off the seat, you mewled into the roof of the car and squeezed your eyes shut.

“Anybody ever touched you like this, Delilah?”

You shook your head fervently, banging against the seat with your thrashing. Your nails bit into your palms with a piercing nip. His voice, deep and lush like a sticky summer evening in the woods, only intensified the churning and whirling in your belly. You weren’t sure how much longer you could contain yourself. Heat swelled in your cheeks painfully, brought sweat beads to your limbs. You wanted to let go. But—

“N-no, never—never! M’ a good girl, Pastor,” you cried, bucking up into his hand as two fingers slid down toward your pulsating hole.

Steve swept his tongue over his teeth, licking away a grin as he placed his eyes back on the road. “Oh, honey. I know.”

Your breaths shortened to hoarse little gasps, wheezy and shallow. Pleasure wound its choking knot and you weren’t sure you could hold back from it much longer. Steve took note of the way your fists flexed and trembled, the way your face almost purpled with fight. He dipped the start of one finger into the tightness of your hole and watched your mouth gape with a silent cry you refused to let loose.

Always the good girl, always the angel. Couldn’t you sin just for him, the way he’s sinning for you?

“You’re right with The Lord, Delilah. I’m sure He’ll forgive you this once. Come on, sweetheart, it’s alright.”

Heaving, you shook your head again, giving a little hiccuped cry. “I-I can’t.”

Sighing, Steve tore his hand from between your legs and whipped the wheel to the right. The car jumbled and jostled over the shoulder of the road where the asphalt fell to grass. He parked beneath a lonesome tree standing tall in the field of grass and wildflowers. Once the engine cut, you realized how hard it was still raining. Beating down furiously on the windshield and metal roof, smacking agains the windows that fogged with the damp heat of your overworking bodies.

“C’mere, honey," he huffed.

Steve spun you in your seat, widening your legs with one push. Another gasp flew from your mouth as coolness met your core. Steve’s face remained steadily sure as he pushed your panties aside once more and returned his fingers to your aching, weeping cunt. A dull pain gathered in the nape of your neck as your head tipped back against the window, but all you could focus on were the width of the pastor’s fingers between your thighs, delivering a delicious quake. His thumb rolled and rubbed against your pearl, unleashing a sound never heard from you.

“Ask the Lord for forgiveness, Delilah. Ask the Lord for forgiveness and let go.”

As your face pinched with a wailing cry, Steve settled his eyes upon your sweat-slick body, writhing just for him. Planting one hand on the window above your head, the pastor fixed himself to hover above you, body heat ghosting your clammy skin like a breezy sheet. His breathing shallowed to mimic yours, overtaken by the rise and fall of your breasts, shuddering with frayed waves of pleasure still sparking inside you. The gold cross around your neck glimmered in the dim, grey light of the storm.

You gushed over his fingers, glossing his palm as he continued his gentle, massaging ministrations. Your cries fizzled to whimpers, deliriously searching for something to hold to find balance. When you lifted a shaky hand to his chest, Steve found pity on you and removed his hand. It swept over your thigh, down toward your knee, dragging strokes of sticky spend in its wake; until finally, it slid behind your knee to cup the pudgy flesh of your thigh.

Using his grip on you and the steady surface of the window, Steve dipped down until his mouth brushed your cheek. The skin there was hot, and soft like sheep skin, and he just couldn't contain the urge to encompass it with his mouth. A firm kiss, lips parted just enough to gather your taste on his tongue. It was the frenzy the stiff heat and sweet stench of your body delivered that had him baring his teeth and scraping them over your flesh.

You hissed, hands coming to feel the fabric of Steve's crisp button down soaked through with sweat. The cotton clung to your hands where you balled it into fists, squeezing in time with the dull, pin-pricking ache in your cheek from the pastor's incisors.

The moments of shuffling and readjusting came hazily, now flashes of colors and shapes in your memory when you thought back. Pulling your underwear back into place, cool where slickness gathered and soaked through. Smoothing your hair down, rubbing your fingers over the faint, sore scrapes on your cheek. Watching Pastor Steve put the car into drive, feeling it teeter back onto the road. Rain splashing with the force of the windshield wipers. The milk jug between your legs leaking condensation onto the floor.

Pastor Steve pulled into the end of your drive, where he parked in the soiled dirt and brought his hand to the back of your seat. You gathered the groceries back into your lap and gazed over at the pastor.

He smiled, flashing those sharp white teeth. "Say hi to your Mama for me, hmm?"

The walk up the rest of the drive was goopy and slick, and your shoes were caked in soupy mud by the time you reached the steps, hair dripping and dress soaked through. On the porch swing, lit cigarette resting in the hand on her knee, Mama watched the pastor's license plate zoom down the road. You stopped at the top step, petrified like stone. The sudden silence brought the rain back in a melodious spat.

"Y' get the eggs?" Her tone held the robotic grumble of Southern dissatisfaction.

Impassive, but frosted with shame.

"Y-yes, Mama."

Your mother raised the cigarette to her mouth, holding it at bay.

"Well alright now."

♰ ♰

[fungus-no69]

I know Cain is trying not to be in a relationship with Sydney till everything settles but how would he react to a corrupt!Sydney?

cw: a lot of anxiety and guilt, sexual trauma and responses, silly mentions of sex toys at the end

Not well!

Since Cain's so set on protecting Sydney from people who try to hurt them he'd probably immediately feel guilty for 'letting' Sydney fall victim to the other people of the town- even though he probably has very little; if any relation to the corruption. There's also his concern that Sydney may become 'like them' (other civilians) which he's very ashamed over and won't acknowledge.

He'd probably worry himself to a stomach ulcer because he's agonising over what happened so much, but at the end of the day- Corrupt Sydney is still Sydney. A bit more fucked up and manipulative sure but Sydney.

Not gonna lie- Cain would totally fall for Sydney's lies and shit even if he's meant to see through it for the first few times (even light hearted ones like the handcuff scene in sirrus' shop). He can't help it okay :[. He's not stupid but he's... kind of gullible when it comes to his (very few) friends and trusts Sydney more than anybody else in rapechestershire. I'm mentioning this because of Sydney's whole 'you made me like this' thing they seem to have. And yes, I know it's the pc's fault but shut your goddamn mouth I'm hijacking this bus.

He'd also become a bit more paranoid(??) around Sydney because hell if Sydney lies to him once then what's saying they won't do it again?? And there's also his very very present sexual trauma and repulsion so god forbid Sydney makes ANY kind of advances on him because he will freak out and quite possibly run away only to return days later. If that doesn't happen because he physically can't run away for whatever reason he might cry.

Regardless, it'd cause a massive rift in their relationship despite their best efforts due to Cain's own self-inflicted alienation and such. It could be fixed but it'd take a lot of time and negotiation. And communication. Which Cain happens to be terrible at.

It sucks but he'd have to be fucking 30 years out of dolville and with an ungodly amount of therapy sessions under his metaphorical belt before he can begin to stomach corrupt Sydney.

on a funnier note because I don't want to end this post sadly, it'd lead to interactions that basically go like:

Sydney: (holding anal beads and obviously teasing) hey Cain, what's this

Cain: ????? i don't ffucking. know???? that shit you put on christmas trees??????? (ball garlands)

[lesfeldickbiblestudy]

  Through the Bible with Les Feldick LESSON 2 * PART 2 * BOOK 63 ADAMIC COVENANT Various Pertinent Scripture References For those of you joining us on television, we run four of these programs in an afternoon. We appreciate so much your response, your prayers, and your financial help. How we appreciate testimonies of how the Lord has brought salvation to so many through our simple teaching of the Word. I always have to be reminded, the Word of God is powerful, quick, and divides asunder the very soul and spirit. So, we always give the Spirit all of the credit for what is being accomplished. All right, we started in our last program on a series of the Covenants that God has made with the human race or with Israel. In our last program, we got only as far as the first part of the second covenant. I guess I can review a little bit for the television audience. We have seven of these covenants coming up through Scripture. We’ve got the Edenic Covenant concerning Eden before the fall, the Adamic, which really sets the stage for human experience under the curse. Then we come to the Noahic Covenant as a response to the flood, and then in the center – I meant to point this out in the very first program. You’ll notice that there are three covenants on each side of what I call the lynchpin of all covenants, which is the Abrahamic.So, you’ve got these three I just mentioned before the call of Abraham, and then you have the Mosaic, the Palestinian and the Davidic after the call of Abraham. Then we have the New Covenant, which will kick in during the Kingdom Age, which will take place at the end of time, as we know it. So, this is what we’re going to do. We’re going to take these three (Edenic, Adamic, and Noahic), and I’m only going to touch on the Abrahamic Covenant. Then, we’re going to move on to the other three (Mosaic, Palestinian, and Davidic). Then I’m going to, hopefully some time down the road, come and deal more extensively with the Abrahamic and the New Covenants. So, in this program, we’re going to continue on into the second segment of the second covenant, the Adamic. That means we’ll come back where we left off in Genesis chapter 3, and we can now go down into verse 15. In the last lesson we dealt with how God is going to deal with Satan and his experiences, as they will unfold throughout the 6000 years of human experience. Now, verse 15: Genesis 3:15a "And I (God says) will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed;…" Now, that’s the crucial part of that verse. We’ll come back to the last part a little later. But this continual, belligerent attitude of Satan toward God begins with Adam and will not end until he is finally taken off the scene completely at the end of the Tribulation, only to be released a little while again at the end of the Millennial Kingdom. Here is what one famous pastor referred to years ago as the "scarlet thread of redemption" that runs all the way from Genesis 3:15 to the end of the human experience. We’re going to chase it down, because again, Satan knows that the only way God can remain God is to keep all of this intact. If Satan can do anything to destroy this "scarlet thread of redemption," then the whole thing falls apart. Now, it starts right off as soon as Adam and Eve have the two sons, Cain and Abel. Cain rises up and kills Abel. Well, in our day and time, it’s just another murder, but so far as Cain and Abel were concerned it was Satan’s attempt to immediately break the scarlet line of redemption, because the Redeemer was to come through Abel (certainly not Cain). Now, in order to pick up that "scarlet thread of redemption," I’m going to take the easy way out, and I’m going to jump all the way up to Matthew chapter 1. We’ll have to finish the genealogies of the scarlet thread in Luke chapter 3. But first, let’s look at the genealogies in chapter 1. Now, it’s been a long time since we’ve done this on the program, so I hope I’m not guilty of repeating something that doesn’t need repeating.

But, again, one of the intricacies of Scripture is that Matthew’s genealogy of Christ’s first advent only goes from Christ back to Abraham. That, of course, is the reason that the King is what Matthew presents, and the King was an unknown entity of Scripture until we get to Abraham. So, Matthew’s genealogy will only go from Abraham until we get to the coming of Christ in His first advent. Then we’ll have to pick up Luke chapter 3 to find the genealogy from Abraham back to Adam. Matthew 1:1a "The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, (The One that was born at Bethlehem who is referred to here as:) the son of David, (That, of course, kicks right back to the Davidic Covenant. That’s what the covenant was all about: that through the line of David would come Israel’s Redeemer and Messiah.) the son of Abraham." Now, here comes the genealogy. Matthew 1:2 "Abraham begat Isaac; and Isaac begat Jacob; and Jacob begat Judas and his brethren;" You come all the way down through this genealogy, generation after generation until you get to verse 16. This Jacob is not the same Jacob of Abraham and Isaac, but a Jacob of Christ’s time; Matthew 1:16 "And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ." All right, now if you skip over to Luke chapter 3, we can pick up the rest of that "scarlet line of redemption" that Satan constantly attempted to disrupt. But, God providentially prevented it. Now, in Luke 3 starting in verse 23, we start from the birth of Christ and go backwards. Now, Matthew started with Abraham and came forward. But here, Luke is going to do just the opposite, and again, we won’t read all of the names. I merely want to make the point that we have that constant genealogical line all the way from Adam up to Jesus and His birth in Bethlehem. Luke 3:23a "And Jesus himself began to be about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph,…" Of course, we know that Joseph was not His physical father, he was merely the legal father. Luke 3:23b-24a "…Joseph, which was the son of Heli, 24. Which was the son of Matthat,…" And so on down and we’re not going to read all these names, but you can do that in your spare time. Then, all of a sudden, you come down to verse 34 where the names get familiar. Luke 3:34-35 "Which was the son of Jacob, which was the son of Isaac, which was the son of Abraham, which was the son of Thara (Terah), (Now, we’re going beyond what Matthew had.) which was the son of Nachor, 35. Which was the son of Saruch, which was the son of Ragau, which was the son of Phalec,…" All the way down to verse 36 and 37. Luke 3:36b-38a "…which was the son of Noah, which was the son of Lamech, 37. Which was the son of Mathusala, which was the son of Enoch, which was the son of Jared, which was the son of Maleleel, who was the son of Cainan, 38. Which was the son of Enos, which was the son of Seth," Now, that name rings a bell. He’s the one who took Abel’s place. Luke 3:38b "…which was the son of Seth, which was the son of Adam, which was the son of God." By virtue of creation. All right, now if you just look at human history and one of the more graphic examples is the Book of Esther. In the Book of Esther, you remember there was this one wicked individual by the name of Haman in the government of King Artaxerxes. He got the grand idea that if he could just get the king to make a decree to destroy every Jew in the kingdom, he would rise to a place a preeminence, because he hated the Jews. Well, he almost made it work. But, you see, the queen was a Jewess, and she intervened on behalf of her people, and of course through God’s providence, Queen Esther was able to stop the decree. Haman went to the gallows instead of the Jew that he was trying to get rid of and so the "scarlet thread" line continued on. But always remember, from day one, from the very onset of Adam coming out of the Garden, Satan is going to do everything in his power to thwart the fulfillment of God’s prophetic program.

Of course, at the heart of it, once we get past Abraham, is the Nation of Israel. I’m always pointing that out, especially in my local classes. Don’t ever wonder why the Jews are so hated by mankind in general. It isn’t because they deserve the hatred, it’s because Satan knows that they are instrumental in fulfilling all the promises of God. If you take the Jew off the scene, then the whole Bible falls apart, because you cannot have end time prophecy without Israel in the land. So, even today, why is the Arab world so intent on driving every last Israeli into the Mediterranean Sea? Well, it isn’t just the Arab world; it’s Satan behind it. He is determined to get rid of the Nation of Israel, so he will be the winner and God will be the loser. But you see, fortunately God is still the all-powerful, and God has decreed that it will never happen. Again, look at the way things are shaking out in the Middle East. We know that the peace process, once again, is becoming front page news, but behind the scenes, remember, there’s still that satanic effort that no matter what the little Nation of Israel does he wants it to be their demise. He wants it to set the stage for their final destruction. Of course, I haven’t even mentioned Hitler and the Holocaust. That, again, was another satanic endeavor to get rid of the Jew, to cleanse the earth of every last one of them. Then, of course, Satan would be victorious. But fortunately, we have the promises of Scripture that God is always going to be superior. Now, drop back with me a minute to Jeremiah 31 because we know there are so many, especially prominent preachers and Bible teachers, who take the approach that God’s all through with Israel, and that even the Jews that claim to be Jews aren’t Jews at all. They’re impostors. Well, I beg to differ on the basis of the Word of God, and we’ve used these verses before, and we’ll probably use them again, especially when we get to the New Covenant. Jeremiah 31, and drop down to verse 35. This just guarantees that in spite of all Satan’s power, in spite of his fomenting the hatred of the Jew, God has mandated that it’s not going to happen. Israel is not going to disappear. Jeremiah 31:35a "Thus saith the LORD, which giveth the sun for a light by day, and the ordinances of the moon and the stars for a light by night,…" In other words, He’s in control of all of the universe. Every body of space is under His control. Like I’ve mentioned in previous programs, have you ever stopped to think, that with all those billions upon billions upon billions of stars and bodies in space, why they’re not crashing into each other? They are all in perfect harmony one with another. Why? Well, that’s no accident. The Creator God is in control. All right, now if He is in such control of the universe, then how much more can He control our little solar system, because it is just a little nothing compared to the whole. But here it is. Jeremiah 31:36 "If those ordinances (the sun and the moon and the stars) depart from before me, saith the LORD, (In other words, if the moon should fall out of its orbit. If the sun would suddenly burn out and quit sustaining the universe. If that should happen.) then the seed of Israel also shall cease from being a nation before me for ever." Then, in verse 37, He gives another analogy. Jeremiah 31:37 "Thus saith the LORD; If heaven above can be measured, and the foundations of the earth searched out beneath, I will also cast off all the seed of Israel for all that they have done, saith the LORD." But it’s not going to happen, because absolutely they have not been the most obedient people. They’ve been anything but. But, as we’re going to see coming up through the covenants in coming programs, God does not give up on the Nation of Israel. He’s still going to have that remnant left for the end-time events. So, we have this guarantee that the "scarlet thread of redemption" is going to be fulfilled, which, of course, led to His first advent. We also

have the guarantee that all of the end-time prophecies promised to the Nation of Israel will come to fulfillment in spite of everything. In fact, in light of the present day headlines, I’m going to take you back a minute; this thought just came to mind. Come back with me Matthew 24, because every one of us as believers, every one of us who love the Nation of Israel simply because they are God’s chosen people, we have to understand why things are taking place the way they are. All right, in Matthew 24 which, of course, is all Tribulation. We’re not there yet. We’re not in the Tribulation, although I think we’re getting close. I know we’re getting closer! I’ve said that before, we know we’re getting closer. But look in Matthew 24 verse 9. As you see the world’s hatred and the pressure from all the governments of the world upon Israel, to give in to the demands of the Palestinians and hating them if they don’t. This is what the Lord Himself said: Matthew 24:9 "Then (That is, when the Tribulation comes.) shall they (That is, all the other segments of the world.) deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be (What?) hated(Now this is Scripture! This is what we can stand on. That the Jewish people are going to be hated.) of all nations (Because they’re so despicable? No. Why?) for my name’s sake." Because He has decreed it, and we’re going to see that in the coming covenants. He has decreed that they are His covenant people. No matter how much they rebel, no matter how much the majority may be in disobedience, yet God’s mercy, as He says, will never depart from them. All right, now in the few moments we have left, let’s go back to Genesis chapter 3, where we have this running confrontation between Satan and the seed of the woman, which of course is a reference to Christ. Genesis 3:15b "…it (the seed of the woman) shall bruise thy head…" The head of Satan, which, of course, took place at the cross. When Christ finished the work of the cross, He signaled a total victorious power over Satan and all of his demonic powers. So, that’s where his head was crushed. But, because of the suffering that Christ entailed: Genesis 3:15c "... and thou shalt bruise his (the Messiah’s) heel." So, here is the whole big picture of redemption and the coming of the Redeemer and the running battle between God and Satan in verse 15. All right, now then, we’re going to move on to the third part of this Adamic Covenant, which is God’s dealing with the woman. You know, it’s amazing how many phone calls I get, and I had one again the other day which reminds me of this, that after all, it was Eve who ate first, and Eve precipitated the curse. No! No! Eve ate first, but she was not responsible. She was caught in a moment of weakness. She didn’t realize what she was doing and before she knew it, she had eaten. But…and here’s the vast difference, and this is what folks have to understand. The curse came about because of Adam’s disobedience, not Eve’s. But Eve is not left scot-free, and so we’ll look at her punishment in verse 16. Here is what’s going to happen to the female part of the race because of Eve’s failure to understand what she was doing. Genesis 3:16 "Unto the woman he (God) said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children;…" Now you know, I make people smile when I refer to the Kingdom where flesh and blood people, who have come in at the front end, are going to have children. They’re going to be living the whole thousand years. I read another article by a well-known theologian the other day and he affirmed my same thinking that they’re going to live the whole thousand-year period of time. Well, now ladies, you can smile if you want. But you see, if they have children without the curse of the pain of childbearing, having children is going to be the most delightful thing on earth! I think they’re going to have hundreds! I really do. I think women are going to have children throughout

that whole thousand year period of time, and every child will be a delight because there’s not even the pain of delivery or anything, because that was brought about by the curse, and that will be lifted. Genesis 3:16b "…and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee." Then wonder of wonders, the feminists should really smile at this. It’s because of the curse that the woman has been subjected to the headship of the man. That’s another thing that people can’t get through their heads. Why should women be subjected to the husband? Because Eve ate first. That much God is going to put on her because of her not knowing better and succumbing to the wiles of Satan. So, that’s all part of the curse as it fell on the female of the human race – the sorrow and the pain of childbearing, but also that the woman is to be subservient to the husband. All right, now let’s just look at a few of the Pauline verses with regard to that. This is exactly why Paul writes what he writes. It is because of what God covenanted here in Genesis chapter 3. The first one I want to refer to is in Ephesians chapter 5, and the next time someone raises the question in your Sunday School class or a Bible Study or something, "Why should women be subservient to their husbands?" This is the reason. Ephesians 5:21 "Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God." In other words, this is what makes for good relationships, whether it’s in the home or in the local church or in a work environment, it’s giving in one to another. Ephesians 5:22 "Wives, submit (You all know what that word means. It means to give in.) yourselves to your own husbands, as (This is what makes the difference.) unto the Lord." Now, when we come into the spiritual picture of all this, it makes beautiful sense. Next verse: Ephesians 5:23 "For the husband is the head of the wife, even as (Now, here’s the Biblical perspective…the husband is over the wife.) Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body." That is the church, which is His body. Now goodness sakes, does Christ ever make life miserable for members of the Body? No. He’s a benevolent head. Of course, the lesson is: this is what we, as men, are to be to our wives. We are to be benevolent instruments and never make them feel like a second-class citizen, which too many husbands do. The whole concept is that the husband is going to be the head of the wife because Eve, in a weak moment, ate of the fruit of the tree. All right, now I’ve only got a couple of minutes left. I’m amazed how fast they go. Come with me to I Timothy chapter 2 and here again Paul is going to deal with the subservience of the woman to the husband, drop down to verse 11. You have no idea how many phone calls I get on this one. I Timothy 2:11-12a "Let the woman learn in silence with all (What?) subjection. (Submission - now here’s the reason.) 12. But I suffer (permit) not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man," That’s the key statement. Now, I tell people all the time that women can teach, women can pray, women can do all kinds of things in the local church, but Scripturally, they should not be the senior pastor. I make no apology for that. On the other hand, I will say this, God has always been a God with a direct will, but also a permissive will, and there may be instances where He will permit a lady to maybe lead a church. Maybe a small, little church out in the boondocks where men will not go, or what ever the case may be. Maybe in the mission fields God will permit a woman to be the minister or the pastor in order to keep the church from going down completely. But God’s original purpose is that the man should be the one in authority. Now, verse 13, here’s the reason. Here’s the Biblical reason: I Timothy 2:13-15a "For Adam was first formed, (Adam was created first.) then Eve. (Now, here’s the second part of the reason.) 14. And Adam was not deceived, (So the curse fell because of Adam. He knew what he was doing.

) but the woman being deceived was in the transgression, (She was still guilty.) 15. Notwithstanding (Even though she was part and parcel of it.) she shall be saved in childbearing,.." Now, that doesn’t mean her own children, but she’ll be saved by ‘the’ childbearing, which is a reference to Christ. So, the woman will be saved by the finished work of the cross, just like the man. But the order of the sexes was established back at the beginning.

[itsronniebish]

"Well, Jesus, I didn't know that. I don't sit in on all her conversations," Ronnie said, still frowning, but her posture relaxed minutely. Her arms stayed crossed over her chest, but it was more insecure than belligerent. She'd gone into the situation, proverbial guns blazing, jumping into something that she had no fucking clue about. Just like always.

It was always a shock when she learned about magic being a thing outside of Lunar Cove. It shouldn't be; Cain had been holed up in some shithole in Brushwick for who knew how long when he'd turned her. "She never mentioned any of that," Ronnie murmured. Then again, maybe you didn't mention magic to your baby sister still in high school, who'd never really stopped mooching off of mom and dad until she died. "God, you must be all the rage in the city. Not having to catch a cab or call an Uber's a fucking blessing. Or take the fucking train."

She brushed a hand through her hair before toying with her bangs to fix them back. "Look, sorry for the fucking third degree. Clearly your heart or whatever was in the right place, but you know that a life or death scenario's, like, the shittiest time to drop information on someone, right? There's no way to react to that shit. It just makes what's already a stressful situation even more stressful." She gritted her teeth. "Our parents are idiots. They knew she wasn't crazy. They're just fucking stupid," she muttered. Ronnie had never thought Daphne was crazy. Weird, sure, but what older sister wasn't? Had their parents known that Daphne was a witch? They had to, right. one of them had to be one, too. That was apparently how these things worked.

Any pleasantries left in Jamie's expression drained from his face. He thought the woman before him was rude. Apparently, they let anyone come to live in Lunar Cove now. Including unhinged little brunettes with serious attitudes. After a moment of consideration, he thought they'd always had a few of those, but this one seemed worse somehow. Presumptuous and wrong. "I never lived in LA, so I don't know you or who your sister is but --" Oh. The witch bomb. This was Daphne's sister. His dark eyes flared wide. Of course.

Maybe he needed to care less about others. Every time he involved himself with someone who needed his help it got turned around on him. It was demoralizing against his attempts to act like a fucking grown up, to be someone of use to his hometown.

"Daphne and I have already spoken." It was to his impression she'd spoken to her sister, too, but who knew what she'd gone and said. "I told her, as I suppose I will tell you, I had no idea she didn't know she was a witch until right before the ball." A heavy sigh fell from Jamie's lips. As ill-mannered as he still thought the wide eyed woman was he understood her ferocity. For his own sisters he'd burn the world ten times over.

"We met about ten years ago, at a fashion show after party in New York. We talked magic, or so I thought. I teleported her home after, so she didn't have to catch a cab. I have no idea how she didn't know then, at least what I was.." His head shook, no energy to ponder useless thoughts. "So when I thought we were all about to die I realized I had to tell her. I wouldn't want to die, having lived my whole life, thinking I'm crazy like she did." No apology needed, at least from Jamie. He wasn't so sure Daphne didn't deserve an apology from her family, though.

[maaarine]

Different: Gender Through the Eyes of a Primatologist (Frans de Waal, 2022)

“Bonobos were too sexy, too peaceful, and too female-dominant to please everyone. 

They made some visibly upset, as once when I lectured to a German audience about the power of bonobo alpha females. 

Afterward an older male professor stood up and barked in an almost accusatory tone, “What’s wrong with those males?!” 

Since apes hold up a mirror to ourselves, we care how they make us look. Perhaps the biggest problem with bonobos was their nonviolence. 

We have no confirmed reports of one bonobo killing another, whereas we have an abundance of such cases for chimpanzees. 

You’d think everyone would be pleased to get a break from chimpanzee brutality and finally meet a close relative leaning toward love rather than hate. 

But then you wouldn’t have reckoned with the prevailing narrative in anthropology, according to which we are born warriors who conquered the earth by eliminating every ancestral type that stood in our way. 

We are children of Cain, not of Abel. (…)

For example, in his 2011 book The Better Angels of Our Nature, the Canadian-American psycholinguist Steven Pinker proposed that humanity needs civilization to keep its destructive instincts under control. 

Since his theory works only if our forebears were hyperaggressive characters, Pinker went for the chimpanzee as ancestral model and cheerfully swept bonobos under the rug, calling them “very strange primates.” 

In the same vein, the British-American anthropologist Richard Wrangham in his 2019 book The Goodness Paradox concluded that humans are better at living together than you’d expect, so we must have domesticated ourselves. 

He too uses an aggressive chimpanzee-like ancestor as his starting point, whereas bonobos are an evolutionary offshoot who “have gone their separate way.” 

The inconvenience of bonobos in our family tree is on full display in these books. 

Never mind that both Pinker’s and Wrangham’s evolutionary scenarios would be unnecessary if our species hailed from less belligerent stock. 

Had we descended from a bonobo-like ancestor, things would be much simpler. 

No special explanation would be required for our species’s moderate levels of violence. Instead of posing a problem, bonobos might be the solution.”

[pinbitch]

sam should have started calling dean’s mark of cain outbursts temper tantrums. treat him like a belligerent toddler. put him in time out until he feels less stabby

[coridotmp3]

years pass where tom's only clue that his pete was safe were the brief, sporadic letters he would receive from various ports around the world. pete traveled too far too often for tom to ever return his correspondence, and he often worried that would cause his love to forget about him. until a new letter came, and tom allowed pete's words to wash away his concerns and surround him with love and care.

pete never addressed him by name, but rather choosing to call him his "man with eyes made of ice and a heart of gold". his letters always ending with the promise of coming home soon. tom has never treasured something more than these letters, rereading them every chance he gets, counting down the days until he got a new one.

then, the letters stopped.

he didn't think too much of it, weeks normally go by before he hears from his love. months go by, and he started to worry. then, tom received word from a friend in the navy.

the boat pete had been sailing on was attacked by the dreaded Maverick. Maverick, as always, stole every valuable item aboard, and left no survivors.

he spent his days cursing Maverick's name, drenching his pillows with tears, walking around as a shell of his former self. his father watched his son go through the motions, never doing more than the bare minimum expected of him - so unlike the tom he knew.

hard times hit the farm with an overworked father, no farmhand, and a living ghost. he takes tom with him to the castle so he may beg the king to pardon his loans, just long enough to get them through the winter. he promises to start repaying them the coming year, after the harvest.

to everyone's surprise, the normally belligerent king cain agrees.

but only if tom agreed to be his husband in return.

and if i say icemav princess bride au