#canonize the night watch doing child sacrifices to the that one door

[befooremoonrisee]

look, i know that the news about an asoiaf movie adaptation are scary, but hear me out a harrenhal horror flick in the style of guillermo del toro's crimson peak . or if you wanna go all guillermo del toro's thematic interest in monster fucking the story of the night king and queen and add the haunted house element by basing it in the nightfort

[lotusthewriter]

What I've Done - Chapter 2

Fandom: Fullmetal Alchemist (2003)

Rating: T

Relationships: Alphonse (Wrath) & Edward

Characters: Alphonse Elric (Wrath), Edward Elric, Sloth, Dante, Envy; other characters to be added

Summary: "As soon as the homunculus decides to shove these feelings down his throat and take the alchemist to Dante for once and for all, his troubled opponent finally dares to say something that stops the world from going.

“... Al?”

It paralyzes Wrath."

A Homunculus Alphonse Elric AU.

Word count: TBA

AO3

First chapter

A/N: The trigger warnings apply to the entire AU, but in this chapter specifically, watch out for child abuse.

TRIGGER WARNINGS - death, repressed trauma, child abuse, physical and emotional abuse, emotional neglect, canon-typical violence, self-sacrifice, suicidal thoughts, blood and injury and loss of limbs. (More might be added)

P/roship DNI.

--

“... Yes, when I heard she died, I knew it would come to this. They are his sons… after all…”

The voice loses itself to the rain as the person – an older woman – notices a presence besides the disfigured, hungry creature between them. The water from the sky falls with so much force that you might even hear the thunder far away.

“Now, that is a surprise,” the woman comments, sounding more shocked by the boy than the fiend. “What is your name, dear?”

He only hugs himself tighter – his arms don’t feel the same skin –, like he’s going to be attacked for being asked that. He gazes at the creature which could not give a care about the world around it, then back at the older lady, who seems rather patient with him.

“Do you have one?” She merely asks, likely noting his speechlessness.

The boy sniffs, afraid of the rain, of the situation that brought him and the pained being to that dark basement. He feels cold.

“Oh dear, you’re trembling,” the woman approaches him, causing the other to flinch. “Don’t be scared, sweetheart. I just want to help you.”

Her voice is… very sweet. There’s something odd about it. Something… familiar?

She appears to take more of those red stones she gave the creature, and instead she gives it to him. The unnamed boy, as if he were hungry this whole time, eats the stones with the same ferocity.

When he’s done, she still offers a kind hand, even if the raindrops catch it. When he takes it, he… wraps his small arms around the woman, and finally cries. He hopes it’s not uncalled for, but she hums fondly and soothes his back with her free hand.

“There, there… you’re going to be alright,” she reassures him. “I will look after you two…”

There’s a small pause.

“... Wrath.”

--

“Wrath ? Really?”

“He has had it rough, Envy. As he grows, his anger will, too,” Dante explains.

“I doubt that.”

“Oh, you’ll see. Wrath will be the best of all of us.”

Envy glares at the boy, who clings to Dante in fear. Envy really doesn’t like Wrath.

“Tch,” the older homunculus storms off, Wrath flinching at the door being shut with force.

“Don’t worry about Envy. He’s just jealous I brought such a bright boy home,” she jokes. Wrath doesn’t feel much better. “Now, I think you should rest after such a horrible night.”

Even as Dante sets the bed for him, Wrath only stands still, staring at his own arms and legs. His whole body is pale, except for the right arm and left leg. They have scars that he doesn’t remember getting. Not that he remembers anything, but they don’t feel like they’re his.

“Wrath?” Dante calls him.

“I’m… I’m just confused,” he speaks up. “I’m not… human?”

“No, but you will be, once we get the Philosopher’s Stone.”

“But how? How was I born like this? Why are my limbs like this?”

“I don’t have all the answers, dear. You should be more concerned about yourself right now.”

Wrath doesn’t really argue, because he is tired, and he knows Dante has done more than enough to help him. The bed does look comfortable, so he climbs up and the latter tucks him in… yet another gesture that reminds him of a hazy past.

“Tomorrow will be a brighter day, I promise,” Dante whispers to him. “Good night, Wrath.”

She rubs his forehead, delicately touching his dark short bangs. Wrath can’t contain a small, relaxed smile. Eventually, Dante heads to the door, and when she’s about to leave, Wrath immediately remembers something.

“W-Wait, what about… her?” He wonders.

“She will be alright. She will be more presentable soon,” Dante winks, and finally shuts the door.

Wrath sighs, still conflicted about everything, but the weight of his exhaustion catches up with him, so he sinks in bed and closes his eyes.

Even while he sleeps, the sound of the rain outside might be trying to tell him something. Something he cannot understand. Yet something… important.

--

“Wrath? What are you doing over there?”

He gulps, “I-I didn’t want her to be alone.”

“She needs to rest, dear.”

“I know, but I know she’s scared and confused, so I just wanted to be here if he needs me.”

“Oh, Wrath, you’re very sweet. She’s very strong, though, you don’t need to worry about her.”

He listens to the breaths, which have become calmer as the homunculus begins to look more like the others. She’s not awake right now, at least.

“Yeah, but…” Wrath tries to argue.

“She will be okay. She needs more time alone. That way you will help her better.”

He knows Dante means well, but Wrath just… needs to be there for the other homunculus. He doesn’t know why, but that was the first thing he felt when he found her in that basement, begging for her life. Even if he was completely lost and scared, he still helped her leave.

“Let’s go back to bed,” Dante says, taking his hand before he protests. She tucks him in like usual and closes the door.

But just like most nights, Wrath’s chest grows tight and he can’t fall asleep.

So, he returns to that room.

Hearing the breathing…

Making sure it’s there.

Because if it isn’t…

--

This time, he hears gasps.

They’re not very loud, but they obviously alarm him.

Wrath is right next to the bed, finding the long-haired woman sweating, like she’s having a nightmare. Wrath has certainly had his fair share of nonsensical dreams, so he waits patiently for her to wake up instead of intervening.

Fortunately, she quiets down and… she opens her eyes, like she’s finally conscious again.

“You’re awake,” Wrath notes, slightly surprised yet mostly relieved. “Are you okay?”

That makes the woman turn her eyes – colored and shaped just like his – to him. They stare at one another for a couple of seconds…

Then hers widen.

“You…” She speaks in a low voice, so… intensely.

Wrath’s smile immediately disappears. “Huh?”

“You… you two …”

Two? “What? D-Did I do something wrong?”

She shuts her eyes forcefully like her head is aching. She’s looking distressed again.

“Leave,” she orders. The woman isn’t at all loud, but the quietude is even scarier.

“Please, I d-didn’t mean to–”

“I told you to leave!”

Wrath backs off in fear and regret of making everything worse. The other homunculus becomes even more disturbed, as she sits on the bed and avoids the boy entirely.

And to make it all the more horrible, Dante and the other homunculi enter the room, none of them impressed once they find out the guilty.

“Oh, it had to be momma’s boy,” Envy rolls his eyes.

“I’ve told you not to come here, and you keep disobeying me,” Dante scolds firmly. This time, not patiently.

“I’m sorry!” Wrath begs. “I just wanted to help!”

“I’ve had enough , Wrath. Go back to your room, now.” The elder woman walks up to the bed to assist the panicking homunculus.

The other homunculi join her without paying Wrath any mind, causing him to stumble towards the door.

“Wait! Please, let me help!”

“You heard her, kid,” Envy bites, “get out.”

“B-But–!”

“I said GET OUT, you TWERP!”

Envy kicks Wrath in the gut at full force, enough so the latter is out of the room and the door is loudly shut. He doesn’t hear anything coming from there, and he doesn’t think he wants to with so much pain.

Wrath can barely walk back to his bedroom, which is strange since homunculi are supposed to be more resistant than the average human being. Still, the moment he closes his door, with as much silence as possible, he breaks down in tears.

He already knows they don’t pay him much attention, let alone like him. But disappointing Dante and hurting that woman were truly unforgivable. He messed up so badly. How is he going to be the best of them all if he keeps disrespecting them?

Wrath, once again, doesn’t sleep.

This time, he doesn’t even lie in bed, only sits on the floor with his back to the door.

Dante doesn’t come to get him like she usually does.

So, when Wrath leaves all by himself, he is surprised to catch a very long purple dress in the corridor.

It’s the woman. She’s… better, apparently.

Until her cold eyes meet his again.

Then she walks past him like he doesn’t exist.

Wrath only sees his teardrops falling on the floor.

--

Knock.

“Wrath? Are you in there?”

The boy sniffs, hugging himself pathetically.

Despite getting no answer, Dante opens the door anyway, with her same look of concern and gentleness.

“I thought you were still on your mission?” She questions.

Wrath doesn’t outright tell her that he failed – which he should –, but with his traumatized mind, he takes a hot breath.

“... Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Tell you what?”

Wrath’s head boils, no longer hiding his teary face and his mess of a haircut, which seems to surprise Dante.

“The alchemist! He KNEW me! He knew MY FACE and- and he called me a NAME! And- And I KNOW him, too!” He raises his voice. “I’m suddenly having all these memories of us! WHY wouldn’t you tell me?!”

“I knew that telling you would take away your focus,” Dante says indifferently.

“But I COULDN’T bring him to you because YOU didn’t tell me who he was! You didn’t tell me who I was!”

“Wrath, I do not appreciate your tone.”

Immediately shivering inside, the boy swallows his lashing out, and then he feels defeated due to the battle.

“What am I supposed to do with him?” He questions.

“You’ll make him give your humanity back, because he owes you that. He owes that to all of you.”

Wrath doesn’t believe that answer to be any fulfilling, not as Ed dominates his every thought. Childhood memories, good times, and very bad ones, too. He and Ed were inseparable, they always looked after one another… He was never alone, even after their mother died.

He should be angry at Ed for giving birth to Wrath and to Sloth. He should hate Ed because he’s the reason why Sloth hates Wrath. But even then…

“... I trust you, Wrath. I know you will do the right thing,” Dante brings him back to the real world. “You just have to focus and not care about trivial things.”

Wrath only nods, eyes downcast. “Yes, ma’am.”

Dante hums, staying quiet for a few seconds before suggesting, “Would you like some tea? Only you and me?”

Once again, he nods.

“Perfect.”

She takes his hand and guides him downstairs.

(That’s all he ever does. Follow her. Follow Sloth and everyone else. Obey their commands and fight and never look back. And if he doesn’t, he’ll be punished harshly for it.)

(Maybe that’s why remembering a past where he wasn’t punished is affecting him so much.)

--

Despite everything, Wrath still can’t help worrying about Sloth.

He knows she’ll only reject him. He knows every time he clings to her, she’ll only walk away. Sloth is the same kind of cold Wrath felt when he was first found in the rain.

She’s the very opposite of Envy: the latter openly hits him and calls him names, angry that Dante seems to give Wrath more attention. Yet strangely enough, Dante doesn’t bat an eye at Envy’s attacks, or Sloth’s cruel neglect.

In fact, none of them… care. Lust, Gluttony, and Pride never step in for him. Arguably, Pride is busy being the Führer and he assigned Sloth to be his secretary, but Lust and Gluttony don’t bother.

Whether Wrath is left by himself at the mansion or not, he’s still lonely. He certainly hates it when they are home, because Envy loves making his life hell, and Sloth and the others pretend he doesn’t exist. The only useful thing Wrath does all day is train alchemy, by himself or with Dante. He’s pretty good at it, like he’s a natural. It must be due to his human limbs, of course, but he can’t help wondering if there might be something else behind it, too…

Eventually, he grows sick of it all. He’s tired of the rejection. He’s angry that Dante, who promised she would take care of him, never tries to protect him. Sometimes she’s right there when Envy hits him, yet she never speaks up.

Everything goes down the drain when Wrath finally uses his alchemy on someone. That being Envy.

It’s not calculated at all, though. It destroys the dinner room and it actually catches Envy by surprise as part of the ceiling falls on top of him before he can even dodge. Obviously, it’s not lethal to the first homunculus of the group, yet if looks could kill, Wrath’s pathetic life would certainly have ended with the way Envy glares at him. Yet Dante appears right away, already knowing the disaster is Wrath’s doing.

And of course… she doesn’t bother scolding Envy. Dante grabs Wrath’s arm – his human arm – so roughly that it burns.

“You’ve gone too far this time, Wrath,” the older woman berates, disappointed. She isn’t loud, not that she ever is.

“But Envy started it!”

“That is no excuse. You have to control your alchemy, remember? You can’t just use it for a dumb fight.”

“But he HITS me! He TERRORIZES me with every chance he gets!”

“I know you’re upset, Wrath, but you’ve got to calm down.”

“Why won’t you LISTEN to me?!” Wrath yells louder.

“I do listen, dear.”

“If you did, you would SHOW it!”

Even though Dante’s smile fades into something akin to intimidation, Wrath doesn’t stop.

“If you even CARED, you wouldn’t let Envy hit me!” He screams. “You would actually tell me why Sloth hates me! You would tell me why I have this power, these limbs, a-and where I came from! You just keep me trapped here day and night to do nothing but get beaten up or abandoned!” Angry tears spill from his purple eyes. “NONE OF YOU CARE ABOUT ME, AND YOU CARE EVEN LESS !”

Dante stares at him with a cold expression that is very unsettlingly similar to Sloth’s, but somehow more spiteful. Regardless, Wrath doesn’t take back anything he said, because he’s too frustrated to back down. He’s not afraid of Dante, either, since she’s not threatening.

That is, when the human woman heads to an old wardrobe Wrath never peeked in, since it’s locked, and he hears her opening it. From here, he can’t see exactly what Dante has taken, but he’ll soon find out. Once she turns around, she’s carrying a big object covered in a dusty white sheet.

Despite not seeing what it must be, Wrath feels… dread growing inside him.

“W-What’s… that?” He asks, voice much smaller than before.

Dante smiles, remaining unsettling.

She removes the white sheet.

Wrath faces the dark.

Smells the metal.

Feels it.

Hears it.

For some reason, that thing makes him unable to move or speak.

“This is where you came from,” Dante says simply. “It’s scary, isn’t it? You were born in this huge suit of armor. You were alone and miserable when I took you in. I’ve taken care of you since then, and yet you really think I don’t care?”

Wrath gulps, managing out, “I-I… m-meant that…”

“You know how much I have to do to look after everyone? I can’t always make time for you, dear.”

“I know, but–”

“If you knew, you would show it.” The same words he used, but sadder, hurt. “You have to understand, I’m doing this for your own good. Soon, you’ll thank me.”

Wrath would have spoken further, but he realizes the helmet is approaching him. His head.

“W-What are you-?!”

“Shhh… it will only be for a while, sweetheart.”

“N-No, wait!” Wrath steps back until he’s trapped by the wall, with no way to escape. That helmet is limiting his movements and his thinking. “Please, d-don’t do this!”

“You will be alright.”

“No, please! Please, I’ll be good!” Wrath heaves and cries. “I’m sorry! I’M SORRY!”

In so much pain, he yells the loudest he can, until… everything stops.

He stops.

Wrath’s limbs don’t work, so he sits on the floor uncomfortably. His mouth can barely move and his eyes won’t even blink. It’s like he’s a corpse. No, worse, a doll.

The helmet is too big on him, too dark, but he can see Dante smiling at him one last time before leaving the room, the door still open. If Wrath is not too consumed by the metal, he might as well hear other voices coming from outside.

“What happened to the problem child?” Lust teases, unimpressed.

Dante snorts. “He just needs some time to think after misbehaving. I made sure he won’t repeat it any sooner.”

As usual, nobody questions it, and Dante finally closes the door, leaving Wrath alone and unable to move. This is torture. This is worse than Envy hitting him or Sloth ignoring him. Instead, it’s Wrath being trapped in a prison of metal, by a mellow-speaking Dante.

It reminds him of when he woke up, inside a dark and empty shell. At the time, Wrath was so scared that he panicked and managed to get out, only to face the fallen helmet of a huge metal armor. That was the first thing Wrath saw, and he was horrified. He had to push these feelings aside to get Sloth out of that basement, but ever since then, these feelings have been haunting him in his dreams. But they were never as intense and clear as they are now.

Because now Wrath has proof of where he came from, and it hurts.

Thus, he must never know the truth.

--

Next chapter

[thestarrynightslover]

I'll Make It Okay for You - Part 2

Pairing: Harvey Specter x Reader

Word count: 2,765

Warnings: Discussion, yelling, some angst, mentions of drugs, drug abuse, drug withdrawal, rehab facility and insecurities/self-sabotage (very, very slightly, tho). 

Summary: You can read Part 1 here. What happens when (y/n) (y/l/n), Harvey’s secret crush and a junior partner at his firm, openly defies him in front of everyone? 

Disclaimer: I don’t own the show Suits, or its characters, also not associated with it in any way or know anyone involved with it.

A/N: I think that this turned out better than Part 1? As always, I’m not sure, though. Just to make it clear here, I’m still on season 4 of Suits, so didn’t wanna get too much into any canonic details, self-preservation, lol. Anyhow, I hope you like it, and, ofc, feedback is always appreciated.

(y/n) = (your name) (y/l/n) = (your last name) (y/n/n) = (your nickname)

You and Harvey stayed in the embrace for a while, as you sunk in all the comfort emanating from him. He'd even started stroking your hair. The whole situation felt so intimate, that, by the time the two of you finally pulled away from each other, it was almost as if there was this cloud of embarrassment hovering around you both.

"Err… I'm s- sorry, I shouldn't have, um-" You started saying nervously but he cut you off.

"No, it's okay. And, um, I'm really glad you told me what happened… It's definitely a lot to deal with. And I was a complete asshole this morning. So I'm sorry." For a moment both you and Harvey just smiled at each other, sitting there in a comfortable silence. Until he decided to break it: "So, um, did you get her a lawyer? I'm assuming you wouldn't wanna represent her yourself because it could be problematic…"

"No, uh, yeah. It would be problematic.” You corrected him. “But the most I could do was make the cops get her a public defender, cause I called my dad when I was on the way there and he just wouldn't have me paying for anything else. He is a retired cop, so the pension isn't too great, the pride though… And I’m already covering Lisa's treatment because it's her best shot, but this…"

"And he wants to teach her a lesson." He completed what you were trying to explain.

"Yes."

"And you don't agree with him?" Harvey asked, almost reading your mind.

"Well, it's complicated. Because when I see what Kat's doing with her life… I get just as frustrated as my parents, and I really do want what's best for Henry." The fact that your sister wasn't what's best for her son was only implied. "But she's my little sister, you know?" As he nodded in understanding, you went on: "I wanna help her, but, at least for now, I think I'm just gonna wait and see if mom and dad change their minds… Which I think they will do! I mean, my dad was a cop for years. He knows what those places do to people. As much as we all desperately want her to get her shit together, I don't think that prison is where she'll succeed in doing so." You finished, voice filled with concern.

"Well, I don't think I would be as lenient, and compassionate, as you are, but I do see your point." Harvey told with a sympathetic smile. "Besides, she is your sister. And, trust me, I know what it is like to go out of your way to keep a sibling outta trouble." He added with a tired sigh, making you wonder how much you really knew about the man sitting in front of you.

"Either way, now I don't see much that I can do for her at the moment. Gonna try and have her attorney keep me posted, of course, but…" 

"Yeah…"

"I just… I can't help but feel guilty about all of this, you know?" You said, after having stood up and turned your back on him, finally letting on what was bothering you the most to the other lawyer.

"No, not really, I don't." He stated simply while you just looked back at him with a shocked expression on your face. "I mean, there's not a single approach on this that makes me think you're to blame for anything." He explained himself, standing up as well this time.

"Harvey, I-"

"No, (y/n), let me stop you right there. What I see here is a family going through a rough situation with one of its members. Then three of the other members just try to do everything they can to get out of the initial situation, while another one just keeps making more problems for her family. And, right now? Today? You walked out on your bosses, risking a lot, to take care of your nephew. So, tell me again, how is it that any of these things happening to your sister are your fault when you’ve done nothing but help everyone in that goddamn family of yours, huh?" He asked you in a sarcastic tone.

“Well, it is very much my fault because I’m her big sister! I should have been there for her! Advising her, helping her, just, just being her friend…” You confessed your regrets to Harvey. “But, instead, I was too busy making my career.”

“And what the hell’s wrong with that? Look, I’m a big brother too. I get it. Ever since we were kids our parents imbued us with the role of ‘the responsible one’, always telling us to look after the youngest… But, hey! If you just threw all of your work up in the air and left running every time your sister had a run-in with a problem, you wouldn’t have made it this far! Not in this field anyway!” He practically spit the words in your face, going to battle with your self-sabotage, which was a very new side of you for him. “And you’re a freaking great lawyer! One of the best that firm’s ever seen. So don’t be sorry that you didn’t sacrifice all of that for being better than the amazing sister you probably already were!”

“You simply can’t know that.” You stated in a low voice, not really knowing how to respond to everything Harvey had just told you. He really thought all that about you?

“Yes, I can!” He yelled back, stepping closer towards you. “I can know that for a fact, because,” he started again, his face pretty close to yours this time, “because, I’m beginning to finally understand, even if just a little bit, who you really are. And because I always notice all the little things when it comes to you, which, in my experience, is how you actually get to know someone. You know, the details.” He told you in the sweetest tone, giving you a charming-Specter-like smile, he leaned closer, if that was even possible, God, was he gonna kiss you?

You had to pull away slightly, just enough for him to get the message. And, boy, how you regretted it! Sure, normally, you’d have a ton of bad things to say about him, but after that night… It wasn’t really that bad of an idea, the one of Harvey kissing you. No, nuh-uh! What were you thinking?! If much, you and Harvey were beginning a friendship there! And you couldn’t, or wouldn’t, let some ridiculous thoughts about how great he smelled rob you from that opportunity! Your inner struggle was interrupted by him saying:

“Hum, I- I should probably go, right? It’s, um, it’s getting pretty late…” He said nervously. You should be relieved right now. Because this assures that things between you and Harvey (your new friend?) aren’t gonna go too off the railroads anytime soon.

“Yeah, yeah. I’ll, uh, I’ll walk you to the door.” So why is it that you sounded almost disappointed when you said that? “You know what they say, you gotta walk people to the door if you ever want them to come back…” You joked a little, trying to lighten the mood.

“Yeah, right.” He shot back simply, with a small smile on his lips. “Bye, (y/n). Have a good night.”

“Thanks, you too.” You watched him turning around to leave when you remembered there was something else that Harvey deserved to hear from you. “Uh, Harvey!” You called out.

“Yeah?” He asked, turning back around to face you. And before you could even think it through one more time, you were already jumping in his arms, wrapping him in a tight hug.

“Thank you. For tonight. For everything.” You told him, as he slowly put his arms around your waist, hugging you back.

“It was no problem, (y/n), really. That’s what friends are for.” And, just like that, your day ⎼ turned into night ⎼ had gone from Earth to Hell, and, now, to Heaven.

                                                       ---

Around 7:30 in the next morning, as you gathered some of your work stuff, you heard someone knocking on the door. Who could it possibly be this time? You asked yourself while walking there to open it.

Once again you were surprised to be met by none other than Harvey Your-New-Friend Specter standing at your doorstep. With your supposedly locked-up little sister in tow. What the hell?

“Before you say anything,” he started, “this time I come bearing gifts!” He practically beamed at you, as Kat threw herself in your arms.

“Yeah- yeah, um, I can see that.” You stated, still very confused with the whole situation.

“Thank you so much for sending your friend to bail me out, sis!” Your sister squealed out. She looked so pale and thin; winter-like clothes on, even though it was only the beginning of the fall; and she was shaking. Effects of a rushed withdrawal, you guessed. “You’re the best! Now, where’s my little baby?” She asked you, as if everything that had happened was nothing.

“He’s, uh, he’s in a day-care facility. The best in the city, you have nothing to worry about.” You informed her, who seemed rather relieved to hear that news. “Can you, uh, can you please stay here for a minute while I talk to my, uh, my friend in the office, Kat?” You asked her with a calm smile on your lips.

“Yeah, of course. I’m not gonna break anything I promise!” She told you, sounding a lot like a wicked child.

“No, um, I know you won’t. If you want something to eat, please, help yourself.” You assured her, motioning to the kitchen.

“Oh, no! I’m not hungry! Mr.Specter took me to a diner before we came here.” She let you know, which just made you even more surprised, and confused.

“Oh, he did? Well, that was very nice of yours, Harvey. So, come with me?” You asked him in a sort of mockery tone while pointing to the room he’d just been in, the night before.

As soon as the two of you stepped into the office, Harvey started desperately: “(y/n), before you come at me for not running this by you first, just, please, hear me out for a second.” He pleaded with you, to which you just nodded your head. “So, last night. I heard what you said about your dad, and you don’t have to worry about paying me anything. I’m representing your sister as a friend of yours.”

“Wait a second. You mean you’re taking this pro-bono? Harvey, you do that and the whole firm is gonna know. And you promised.” You quickly accused him, even though you were very thankful for the way he just stepped up to solve one of your problems.

“I know! Let me finish, will you?” You nodded again while muttering an apology. “I’m not going to break your trust. And I’m not handling this pro-bono. The only people I’ll have to loop in are Jessica and Donna. And you know they won’t say anything.” He told you, but you were still a bit confused. “And, before you even ask, no, that doesn’t mean that either you or your family will be paying me anything. Also, I got your sister a spot in a top-of-line, very discrete, rehab facility, I have a friend over there, who said we can drop her off at any time. I just, um, figured that it’d be the best if she got professional help this time. Plus, on my talk with her, she agreed to sign papers that make you and your parents Henry’s temporary guardians. I really think that Kat wants to turn her life around this time, (y/n). She was very- Did I do something wrong? Because, err, you know me… I always find it easier to ask for forgiveness instead of permission, but, this time, I really did think that this would make you happy...” He trailed off with a confused look on his face while scratching the back of his neck

“Oh, I am happy.” You told him, still looking absolutely stunned.

“Then why, uh, why don’t you look happy?” He asked, sounding a bit hurt.

“It’s just that… I’m kind of surprised. How did you even think of all those things?”

“I, uh, it’s like I said yesterday, I notice things about you. And I really listened to what you told me last night. So I just started thinking about ways that I could solve this thing for you, ways that I could make you happy again throughout all of this storm.” He told you and it had to be the sweetest thing you’d heard from Harvey (hell, from anyone!) in your entire life. “But I understand that I overstepped, and I’m-” But since he just wouldn’t stop talking anymore, you had to cut him off in order to shut him up.

His eyes were in absolute shock for a moment, as he just stood reactionless in your grip. But then he got the message and pulled you closer, grabbing your waist tightly while your hands stood firmly wrapped around his neck. You were pretty sure that neither one of you was still breathing at that point, but you didn’t care. Because, God, his mouth tasted so good in yours, it was like they’d been made to kiss each other. The despair both of you were investing in the kiss was huge, but it was turning into a calmer kind of fire, as the air started becoming too necessary again. He pulled your mouths apart for a minute, you resting your forehead on his shoulder.

“You know…” He started, still catching his breath. “When I mentioned you coming at me, I hadn’t really envisioned this.” He joked, a victory smile on his lips.

“Ah, well, you know how upset it makes me when you simply won’t shut up.” You shot back with a shrug of your shoulders, smiling at him.

“Huh. Wish you would’ve shut me up like this every other time.” He mocked, earning a smack in the arm from you. “Ouch! Why’d do that?”

“Because you were being a dickhead, ruining our moment.” You gave him a fake irritated glance.

“Oh, c’mon! Tell me you didn’t think about it too!” He challenged, and you didn’t feel like giving him that kind of win at the moment, so you just pulled him back in for another kiss. One that may have lasted a little longer than it should have, considering that you two still needed to take Kat to rehab and, then, go to work so you could try and save your job. But, what could you do if he, and his body, and his mouth, and his eyes, and his everything were the only things that mattered?

As he rested his chin on top of your head ⎼ that was laid on his chest ⎼, you looked up, pulling away a little, him making sure you wouldn’t fall off the small couch. “Thank you, Harvey. For everything you did. For listening. For being here right now. For everything.”

“Don’t thank me, (y/n). You’ll never have to thank me for anything. I just want you to promise me one thing.” He stated seriously.

“What?” You asked, a bit hesitant.

“That, from now on, you’ll tell me all about it, every time you have a problem.” That was easy enough, you thought. But, you being you, simply had to ask.

“So that you can be here for me?” You questioned him with puppy eyes.

He just chuckled lightly. “Well, that too. But, mostly, so that I can make it ⎼ whatever it is ⎼ okay for you.” Your heart was on the edge of not being to take it any longer. What could have you possibly done to deserve that man?

“Okay, I promise.” You said, watching his expression begin to soften already. “But, only if you promise me the same. Because I wanna make it okay for you too.” While you thought Harvey was simply gonna say yes, he started laughing at you.

“Always the kick-ass corporate lawyer, I see.”

“Would you even have me any other way?” You joked back, more relaxed now.

“Yes, of course! I’d have you in any way you came to me. Which is why I promise too.” With that, you didn’t have any other choice but to kiss him again, because crying over the fact that Harvey Surprisingly-Romantic Specter was an absolute cinnamon roll was not an option.

Taglist: @just-a-girl-with-alot-of-issues​

[auty-ren]

Salvation

Prologue

Pairings: The Mandalorian x Reader. Din Djarin x Reader. Mand’alor!Mando x Reader.

Rating: Explicit

Word Count: 3.2k

Warnings: Canon-type violence. Mentions of death/injury. Canon divergency. Yearning. Panic and similar themes. The teensiest bit of steamy stuff.

A/N: We’re just getting started babes and holy shit I'm so excited for Mand'alor!Mando. We get to see the best of both worlds! Clan Leader Mando + Dark!Mando. Enjoy💗

Salvation Masterlist | My Masterlist

There was a vice that kept hold of your being, suspended between two planes of existence as you sat helpless to watch time pass at an agonizing pace. It filled you with dread, a heavy and pulling weight that settled in your stomach and had you glued to the floor; praying that the next thrum of violence that waged outside your door would be softer.

You hoped and pleaded every second you sat cowering in your home wouldn't be in vain, that something good would come of the war that had been building in weeks prior. The violence that crept over your village somewhat overnight, an uneasiness that settled between neighbors, and had people barricading their doors with fear.

You squeezed your palms tighter over your ears at the shrill sound of gunfire piercing through the walls of your home. The ground felt alive with footfalls and the impact fire, defeating sounds muffled between layers of durasteel were all you could hear, save for a few lost words that winded aimlessly through the air.

From your window you made out a figure that streamed across the sky; their form bulky and unnatural around the faint release of a jetpack that followed behind them.

Mandalorians had been passing through your village for as long as you could remember. Quiet and brooding warriors who often demanded very little and hardly left a trace that they had ever stepped foot in your town. You felt nothing but respect, considering that all your life you had seen the kindness that had been disguised behind layers of beskar and tall-tales of savage upbringings. As a child, you remember them speaking so softly to you, something that clashed with their demeanor and the heavy blasters that often rested on their hips.

There was never trouble, any thug that had made their way into your village was soon left scrambling at the sight of your guardians. No one ever dared to speak a harsh word in their presence, and your people were left with safe and warm homes that prospered when it felt the Galaxy was falling apart.

Mandalorians had protected you all of your life. But now you wanted more than anything for them to disappear, to fade away like the final wisps of smoke from dying embers. 

You just wanted the noise to stop.

Your eyes had dried beyond the point of tears, streaks of their remnants covered your face and left your skin feeling raw and tacky as your eyes squeezed shut. You heaved a dry sob as the walls of your home shook again, tremors vibrating at the ends of your fingertips as they scraped across the floor. Your joints ache from sitting so long, from trembling in the corner of your home as the only way to seek shelter.

There is a heavy thump that breaks through the noise, something solid that lands over your head. You can hear the unmistakable sound of footfalls as they walk across your ceiling, each step like a knife that twists deeper and deeper into an already gushing wound. Your grasp for anything you can reach, the leg of the table next to you, a book that had fallen from your desk, anything to ward off whatever was making its way to your front door. You felt pathetic, sure that whoever would burst into your home in the next seconds would find joy in the way your hands shook as you held them up in front of you, your only defense.

The weight that you had been holding in your shoulders came crashing down at the sound of a masked voice coming from your door. The shadow of their legs briefly visible through the gap in the door as lights flashed behind them, gunfire ringing through the small room as they barked a message about ‘Imps’ into their commlink.

‘Imperials’ they called themselves, led by the magistrate elect to ‘relieve our town from the clutches of oppressive rulers,’ or so they put it. Suddenly your town was full of strangers, of mercenaries with nasty tendencies that left you hesitant to leave your doorstep. Your home was turned into a hellhole in a matter of weeks, warm and kind faces were replaced with snarling teeth that spit evil in your direction every time you faced them. 

‘All in the name of progress.’

Destruction was the only thing that progressed in these short months, and Moff Gideon had no trouble thriving off every ounce of sacrifice he could squeeze from your town. Gideon had used any and all authority he had to wage war on the Mandalorians, the people you considered your protectors. You and nearly half of the village knew he was crazy for doing such a thing, for provoking the wrath of a people who had carved legends of war and battle into every corner of the Galaxy. All of this suffering because he was too greedy for something that was never his.

Your limbs were heavy by the time sunlight peered over the horizon, brief wisps of warmth dancing across your eyelids as you blinked awake from where you sat.

There was nothing but silence, heavy silence that was damning after a night of constant chaos. Early morning fog still lingered, your breath puffing in front of your face as you pulled yourself to stand. Your door was ripped open before you could even think, your only thought wanting to be able to witness whatever had been left in last night's wake.

The ground was firm and solid beneath your feet, your legs shaking as you stepped off the porch of your home and for the first time in forever everything was still. There was nothing but the faint shuffle of your feet across the ground, and the muffled conversations in the homes you passed by. It seemed you weren’t the only one who was curious; familar faces grew in number, their eyes wide and interested in the wreckage just as you were, everyone you met wondered what would become next. Some of them wept, holding whoever was closest as relief washed over them. Some of them celebrated, cheers echoing through streets as they basked in the absence of Imperials in their homes.

You stood, staring down an alley where the body of an Imperial laid unmoving in the dirt, their white armor smudged, cracking, and littering the wet ground. The reality of what had been happening only a few hours prior laid heavy on your chest, curling tight around your ribs until you felt there was no way to take a breath.

Your hands were shaking as you reached for your face, covering your lip as it trembled from swelling emotion and finally breaking away from the scene before you. You backtracked, fully intent on turning to run back the way you had come when you bumped into someone; their arm came up to grab yours, steadying you as their questions fell upon deaf ears. You stared at the woman before you, the brows knit in concern as she repeated her question.

“Are you alright?”

Everything was starting to bleed together, the sounds of people emerging from their homes suddenly became far too loud, and your awareness of where you stood punching you in the gut. You winced away from the woman, pulling your arm from her grip and ignoring how she called after you. Your lungs swelled with each heaving breath you took, the ground beneath you disappearing faster and faster as you tried to find your way home. Neighboring villagers found their ways into the streets, crowding alleyways and blocking your way home. You ran into a few of them, whispered apologies falling from your lips as you fought to hold yourself upright.

You needed to take a breath. You needed to slow down.

There was no distinction between the voice in your head and the concerned words of people you passed; friends, neighbors, all people you had known for most of your life.

They just want to help and part of you doesn't understand why you don't listen to them.

The ache that tears through your skull sends waves of nausea down your spine, your eyes blinking slowly at the dirt that sat just a few inches from your face. Your breath disturbed it, puffs of clay-colored soil swirling in front of you, and some of it landing on your cheeks.

You pushed yourself up onto your elbow, your entire side sore from how hard you had hit the ground. It was slow, your limbs feeling heavy and weighed even with adrenaline buzzing underneath your skin.

There was hardly any noise now, just a few whispers that danced between the crowds; the tail ends of sentences being lost as they shush themselves. You hear the scuffle of boots hitting the ground, their gate heavy and kicking up dirt in your peripheral. The dark-colored toe of someone's boot walks into your line of sight, you watch the leather come to a stop just a few inches from where your hand pressed into the mud. You followed the boot up the length of its owner’s body until you were met with the bulky visor of a beskar helmet, embers of the morning sun peeking out from behind the silver shine. 

He offers his hand out to you, the ends of his gloves a bright orange that was weathered at the tips. The leather was worn but soft to the touch as his hand wrapped around yours, pulling you to your feet with just a little bit more force than necessary. Your hand shot out to brace yourself against his chest, your weight falling against the solid expanse of his cuirass as you huffed out a curse. Your head was still spinning as you clung to him, trying to find balance on your own two feet as you looked at the stranger. His armor looked new, bright, and unsoiled save for the dirt that smudged from where you had touched it; your eyes are drawn to the obnoxious color offset by the dark linen of his clothes. You mutter an apology, moving to separate yourself from him but find yourself trapped under the arm he used to steady you.

From the corner of your eye, you can see the other Mandos who are waiting on him. Their armors a deep matching blue with white accents on the face of their masks, they stood at attention as if they were waiting on their next command. You looked back at the man in front of you, who you assumed was their leader, your hand still laying on his chest and your faces even closer than they had been before.

His hand hesitated just a breath away from your face, his fingers twitching before he pushed strands of your hair out of your eyes, the leather of his glove tickling the shell of your ear. The knuckles of his fingers traced down your jaw, his touch light and curious as he studied you. His thumb stopped at the apex of your cheek and he drags the pad of it across the same spot of skin a few times, brushing off the dirt that had stuck to your face.

You could hardly breathe under his attention, your lungs burning from how long you waited in between small intakes of breath. His hand was still warm against your face, his other fingers flexing on the hold he kept around your waist. Every second dragged on as you looked at him, studied what little you could see from the layers he wore around his being. Oddly enough, it felt that he was doing the same to you, his gaze felt like a burn as it trailed along with your features, your chest feeling tight and your cheeks hot from how overwhelmed he made you.

And then he was gone.

His hold on you released and he turned back in the direction he had been walking, followed by the Mandos who had stopped and waited for him. They parted the crowds that had formed in the streets, their presence enough to leave anyone in standing back, awestruck just as you had been. You watched their forms disappear from your sight until finally they turned a corner, and you never saw them again.

-

It feels impossible to sleep that night.

Though it had only been a few months, the soured pit in your stomach was telling that memories of Imperials wouldn't fade so easily. There wasn't enough water to wash away the stain that their greed had left behind. Everyone seemed happy, smiling freely and feasting in celebration as the day turned to dusk, and as dusk turned to night you sat, staring at the ceiling of your home and buzzing with something you couldn't quite pin down. You studied the crack that had split that ran from one corner of your home to the next, fresh and taunting you with how you had been cowering beneath this roof only a day ago; watching the stone give way as the very foundation of your house shook. Just outside you could hear voices again; quiet, content voices that felt unfamiliar, almost out of place amongst the chaos that had been living recently.

How could it be over so quickly?

It only took a day, not even that. Your village was wiped clean, the only evidence that there had even been Imperials, were scraps that had been piled together throughout the streets. Pieces of equipment, armor, a couple of uniforms that had been discarded were all that was left of them. And most of it was being discarded without a second thought. 

You had always heard stories of what Mandalorians could be capable of, but you had never believed them.

People liked to talk, to tell stories. It was easy to believe the tales of warrior races were just constructed, exaggerations of the true history of their people. But you were wrong. You hoped that you stayed wrong, that this wasn't temporary or even worse, a dream.

With every night that passed, it became easier, sleeping without worry you would wake up in hell all over again. It came over you slowly. Ease? Relief? Tranquility long enough for you to rest a few hours, then wake up to rebuild the life that had almost been taken from you. It finally felt safe. Safe to live, safe to breathe, safe to dream again.

But then all at once, it was swept out from under you and your heart plummeted when you answered the door to find two guards standing on your front steps.

“Can I help you?”

You noticed the way he ducked his head, his helmet cock-eyed when he looked at you to keep it from knocking with the frame of your doorway. He spoke very softly, almost gentle in the way he said your name; a stark contrast to the beaten, dull blue armor he wore and the heavy blaster strapped to his back. You looked over his shoulder at the female that followed him, her back was turned to you as she scanned the street in front of your home. She wasn’t as large as he was, but her armor was just as thick and a beautiful maroon color that glinted in the sun when she turned to face you.

They both waited for you to answer, turning to look at each other when you gave them a small nod, confirming that they had found who they were looking for.

“The Mand’alor has sent us for you.” The woman spoke, her tone clipped as she took a step closer. “Please. Come with us.”

Your fingernails dug into the softwood of the door frame, your skin burning from the way it dragged across the rough terrain until you released it, balling your fist at your side. You made no other attempt at moving, and neither did they. 

There would be no point in arguing, you would never be able to outrun two Mandalorians, but it felt very tempting at that moment.

“The….Mand’alor?”

You had heard the name before, a few of the Mandalorians in town had spoken it in passing and while you had never asked them who or what it meant, it didn’t take a genius to figure it out. 

They had asked for you by name, and they were too occupied to come and find you themselves. 

You tried to wrack your brain for anything you could’ve done to cause this, of what could have upset someone to this point.

But then again, if they were upset, they probably would’ve just had you killed.

You looked behind you at the mess that was strewn across your room, crates of your belongings dumped in the tiny space and making it much smaller than it seemed. There was no telling where you were going, or how long you’d be gone but maybe you could take a few things with you.

“Can I have a minute please?”

You moved to shut the door, just wanting a little privacy to get a bag ready, but you were stopped when the female guard’s arm shot out, holding the frame still just a few inches before it would’ve closed.

“You don't need to take anything.” She huffed and pushed the door back open, stepping through the threshold to stand directly in front of you. “Come with us.”

You couldn't think of anything to say, not that she wanted a response from you, you just stood there staring at the two Mandalorians who crowded your doorway. She practically snarled an order at you, becoming increasingly impatient with how unresponsive you were.

“Now.”

-

Sometime later

“I-... I don't understand.”

He had you pinned, backed into a wall that you wished would open up and swallow you whole. Your face burned with shame but you couldn't figure out from what. From him? From how close he stood to you? From how every word that dripped from his lips was sweet? Like thick, sugary honey that became far more addictive than any spice you ever heard of; and you were glutenous in wanting more of those delicious words that he seemed so confident saying.

Shamefully so.

“Don't worry about such things.”

His thumb ran delicately over the bottom of your lip, tracing down until he held your chin in between it and his forefinger. He tipped your face to look up at him, his knuckles brushing across your throat as his hand fell to your chest. His fingers splayed across your exposed skin, his gloves are warm and soft as they made their way back up and finally wrapped around your neck.

“You're here now.”

Your breath hitched as his fingers flexed, his grip almost ghosting, as if he was afraid you'd break under any pressure.

You wished you could see his face, the blank stare of his visor did not indicate what he was thinking; though you imagined he was enjoying this from the way he touched you. He was like molten that left your skin burning in its wake, your heart fluttering as he moved over every inch that was shown to him. He held your jaw in the palm of his hand, his helmet coming only a hairbreadth away from your face; your breath puffing clouds of condensation on the smooth surface.

“You're mine.”

-

A/n pt2: I’ll give a sticker to whoever can guess who the female guard Mando was lol

Taglists

Salvation

@all-hallows-evie @sultrygoblin @amanda-loriannn @assaultsofthought @discofern @forever-graphically-frozen @phoenixhalliwell @sweetdarlingrose @haley7242 @dancingwiththeplanets @slep-slop @geannad @equalstrashflavoredtrash @javihoney @farrvey @winchesterxxi @imalovernotahater @clydesducktape @thisgirlcanstrut @ollovaemisc @roadakamelot @forgottenswan @barbaralaplume @imasimpforanyoneisee26 @autumnleaves1991-blog @djarinslover @chickens-r-great @spicys-stuff @dazedcowboi @driftllocked @godiscoming-areyouready @fantasticcopeaglepasta @kesskirata @nuttybeardetective

Mando

@basilbumble @wxrmh0le @jango-fettish @gallowsjoker @groovinomicon @driftllocked @courageinthemidst @hayley-the-comet @victias @freyjasamael @gondowan​ @nicki-mac-me​ @mudhornchronicles​

Permanent

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[fusrodie]

ash & soot

Long before the Winters come into play, a monster stalks the Forbidden Forest that surrounds the Village. Karl Heisenberg is sent to investigate, and heads deeper into darkness to find his prey, a thorn on his side and someone just like him.

chapter 1 - grisly reunions

SFW, canon-typical violence, blood, mention of death. 2K words.

link to ao3 (or read down below)

Nothing ever happened in this boring old village. Every day he would wake up to the same dull sky, the biting cold on his skin, the smell of blood in the air. And the chanting, for fuck’s sake, the goddamn chanting. In the silence of night, you could hear them if you listened close enough. Even cooped up in his factory, trying to focus on bringing his latest creation to life, through the humming of engines and rattling of pistons, he could hear their voices pleading forgiveness and salvation.

It paints a perfect picture in his mind: a bunch of old farts holding hands in a circle, standing over a creepy-ass painted crest of an unborn baby, pouring their heart and soul into their prayer, accepting death and giving glory to their murderer. The prayer itself never made sense to him, not really, but he had to admit it was a damn good way of justifying their atrocities. Nobody batted an eyelash when someone was taken away, went poof overnight to never return. Something about the sacrifice having been made, fate had led them to the light at the end or some shit. It used to fascinate him back in the day, when he was just a child watching everything unfold hidden behind his mother’s skirt. But he was no longer a child, and after almost a century of bullshit, it was hard not to impale every single fucker who talked about devotion and destiny.

Not that anyone would care about it, of course - sister dearest routinely kidnapped girls from the village and no one seemed to notice the Castle was a death trap. Boxes and boxes of wine would make their way into the village and out into the world, the truth right there in the label, and no one seemed to put two and two together. Dimitrescu had offered him more than a few bottles as a courtesy, an attempt to bridge the gap between them - even he had limits, however, lines that he would not cross. The very thought of bringing a goblet of blood-infused wine to his lips made his stomach turn; he had never been one to experiment much with food. He drew the line on frozen pizza and energy drinks.

It’s a wonder the village still had people in it, really; between Alcina’s obsession with maidens, the poor sods taken to Moreau for Cadou experiments and the failed vessels Miranda would discard like common garbage, he figured at this point there were more lycans than people around. More for him to experiment on, he figured, though digging up corpses in the dead of night had done a number on his back. Haulers could only do so much, and more often than not he would have to get his hands dirty. Not having a proper bed, sleeping on a bare metal cot and decades of living on borrowed time had nothing to do with it, of course.

The Castle drawbridge lowered as he approached, hammer thrown over his shoulder, one last peaceful drag of his cigar before he was thrown into yet another boring council meeting. The vineyard greeted him with the bleak vibrancy of a cemetery, scarecrows drained of color, barely recognizable but eerily preserved in chunks of ice. A waste of perfectly good specimens, really.

The halls were quiet for a change, no tormented screams and blood-curling wails, no giggling sisters running around in the hallways. It all smelled of death and old people, expensive perfume and a good dose of arrogance.

He flashed a charming smile at one of the Castle’s servants, laughing when the girl turned a bright shade of red and scrambled away from him. Heisenberg could hear the bickering as he pushed the doors open, Angie’s joints clicking incessantly as the doll moved about. Moreau’s breathing sounded as loud and disgusting as ever, yellow teeth and the smell of a polluted riverbed with a hint of fish. There they were, his beloved little family, waiting patiently for him, staring at him like he had fucked every single one of their mothers.

“You are late, Heisenberg.” Alcina began, as she always did, eyebrow raised in contempt. “As always. Mother,” she turned to Miranda, gesturing towards him with her hoity-toity, stupid cigarette.

“You are obnoxious, Dimitrescu.” He replied without sparing her a glance. “As always.”

He could practically hear her seething as she finally placed her humongous backside on her chair, having given up on chastising him when Miranda paid both of them no mind. Mother sat at the end of the golden-trimmed table, looking awkward in her great black gown and modly crow wings. Dimitrescu’s finest china was laid perfectly for their little afternoon tea party, cup handles that were too big to fit his fingers, minuscule spoons that were fit for Angie’s creepy hands. The servant that had scurried away at the sight of him had come back with a tray of hot tea, biscuits and blood - the house’s specialty. Miranda began speaking as the girl poured her drink, some small chitchat about the state of the village, the influx of foreigners and progress on her grand resuscitation project.

“Thank you darling, but I brought my own.” He started as the girl circled around the table to serve him, pointing down towards his belt buckle to the whiskey flask he always carried around. She couldn’t help but look down, and then up at his sly smile, the blush returning to her cheeks in full force. Dimitrescu’s reaction was swift, a well placed slap with the back of her hand square on the girl’s cheek. He felt sorry for her for a moment, but it was good training - if she wanted to survive the Castle, she would have to learn that it was better to be blind and deaf, and that she had much more provocation coming her way than his harmless flirting.

Heisenberg tuned out of the conversation as he poured his whiskey, pinching the teaspoon between his index and middle fingers, swirling it slowly, scraping the sides of the porcelain. Alcina’s displeasure at his use of her china for such vile beverages made it all the better. He slurped it loudly to add insult to injury, savoring the drink for a second, sloshing it around his mouth before swallowing, a satisfied “ah” escaping him when the liquor burned down his throat. If Alcina didn’t already look like a corpse, he felt like she would have turned purple. When he unceremoniously shoved an entire biscuit in his mouth, crumbs falling all over the tablecloth, he thought she would vomit.

“The latest vessel, unfortunately, has been a failure.” Miranda announced with sadness in her voice, which prompted all of his other siblings to sigh collectively in sympathy. What a bunch of morons. “However, we have made some progress. It seems my theories were correct - younger subjects are far more receptive to the Cadou.” Kidnap babies, got it. There was no limit to how low Miranda would get to fuel her quest for a daughter that had been dead for longer than she was alive. “I regret to say there are no suitable infants at the moment,” she stopped to sip at her tea. “We can only hope the harvest fares better in the coming months.” Had she seen them as nothing but guinea pigs back then, too? No doubt in his mind she did. The only reason she kept them around is because she might not be able to kill all of the monsters she created - better to keep them close than risking losing it all.

“There is but one more matter I would like to discuss, Mother Miranda,” Dimitrescu began, a lilt in her voice, the telltale sign that whatever would come out of her mouth next would be positively foul. “My girls have brought me troubling news.” Troubling, he repeated to himself, but she had a smile on her face as she said it. Miranda gestured at her to continue, which she gladly did, excitement rising with every new word. “It would seem a monster prowls near our blessed haven. There is talk among the villagers of bodies being found drained of blood, organs harvested, but without a single cut left behind.” She stood up to pace the room, one of her favorite displays of grandiose that made her look like the world’s biggest buffoon. It suited her. “At first I believed this to be a mere rumor, a lycan attacking the livestock, a corpse refusing to rest. But then,” she clapped her hands, the doors to the room promptly opening to give way to Crazy, Dumb and Ugly, giggling in their flowing black dresses, dragging a corpse along like it was a treasure they had found in the forest. Angie tagged along with their excitement, pushing Moreau away to get a better look at the stinking body thrown onto the hardwood.

There was no mistaking the lycan, all teeth, claws and complexion of the finest of silver poisonings. It smelled just as bad dead than it did alive; bruises and injuries and gums that stuck out of its mouth. How, pray tell, was this thing still in one piece? Heisenberg rose to take a closer look, pushed its stringy hair away from its face to reveal glassy eyes poking weirdly out of their sockets. He tested its consistency with a slight kick, stabbed it with the butter spreader, shoved a gloved hand in the cut to pull it apart and open. It looked fresh enough, but nothing but a foul vapor oozed out of the body. Crystal dust lined its insides, shards poking out of muscles. He pushes his arm deeper, feels around the chest cavity to find nothing.

“No cuts, no holes,” he begins as he pokes and prods. “No bites, either. Heart’s missing. This your handiwork, Alcina?” Heisenberg quips, suspicion seeping through his stoic facade. For a moment, he swears he can see the lycan’s flesh pulse, the smallest contraction of a muscle. This whole situation got weirder by the second.

“The technique is truly admirable, is it not?” She offers with a gleeful smile, picks up her cigarette and places a hand on her hip. Here we go again. “I simply must have it. Besides, we must know if it poses any threat to us.” She was right, this time. After decades of experimentation, none of them had ever managed to keep an infected subject whole after death.

His shoulders slumped as she spoke, head bowing to hide his discontentment behind the brim of his hat. He knew what this meant: being sent on a stupid adventure in the ass-end of the woods, because he was the only one out of this freak show with the brain and brawn to venture out into the world in broad daylight, without dying to the cold or stopping every five seconds to infect and pet wild animals. Some of these missions he did enjoy, like being sent to nearby towns for special supplies - or special victims. He was never gone long, nor would he stray far, but those escapades never failed to serve as a reminder that he had a reason to keep going, that maybe one day he would be free and the world would be his to explore.

The four of them eyed Miranda quietly, waiting for the verdict that was certain to come. Moreau cut the silence by volunteering to investigate, the pathetic pitter-pat of his feet filling the room when Mother smiled at him.

“I would not risk you in such a way, my son,” she patted his head without a hint of affection. “Not when we are so close to answers. You must continue your research - Heisenberg will look into this… Whatever it is. You are dismissed.” Her tone was nonchalant, her confidence rock solid. This was merely an obstacle, not real danger. At least, that is what she wanted them all to see; if one looked close enough, they would notice the slight furrow in her brow through the slits of the golden mask.

“As you wish, mother.” He tipped his hat before taking his leave, chewing on his unlit cigar, feet pressing hard against the gravel underneath.

Heisenberg never thought he would come to regret having a proper spine and a functional pair of legs.

[imamotherfuckingstar-lord]

Sins of Devils, pt. 1

Jean Kirschtein/Kirstein x Reader, past Reiner x Reader

Warning: 18&older, eventual smut. Angst. Cursing. 

A/N: changed up the canon plot a little but still SEASON 4 SPOILERS.  Several parts.

Summary: Four years after Reiner and Bertholdt’s betrayal, Jean and you have managed to make a life together but a new mission promises answers from the past. Will you finally get answers from Reiner and will he meet the daughter he left behind?

The trees provided shade from the glaring sun; the smallest of breeze came upwind from the meadow and the beads of sweat on Jean’s forehead felt cool against his skin. The little blond girl in front of him ran in circles, giggling and calling for his attention as you slept beside him on the grass. Your head in his lap as his cheeks warmed from the delicate expression on your face; eyes closed, lips plumped, he felt his body relax as the sound of laughter filled his ears.

He never wanted the moment to end, it had been four years since Reiner disappeared and Bertholdt died but somedays it felt just like yesterday.  The hurt, confusion, anger, it consumed him like the others but when he had found out you were with child, none of it seemed to matter.

At least not until now.

“Dad, is Mom dead?”

Jean’s eyes widen, the innocent question made him smile. He glanced down to you and touched the side of your face. “She’s just sleeping, Amora.”

“Oh,” the little girl smiled in relief, “That’s good.”

He watched as she continued to play, the sound of her laughter echoed loud as he looked up into the sky. It was almost time to for his meeting with Levi and the others, he was a commanding officer now; which meant a lot more duties than before. There were perks to that – when the two of you married, the two of you were given permission to leave off base.

Your home was modest, but it was your own.

“How does she have so much energy?”

Jean glanced down at you, smiling. “She is your daughter.”

Agreeing, you sat up and let proceed to crawl over Jean’s leg to settle in between his thighs. He opened his arms and waited until you were settled down to cradle you into his chest. The warmth radiating from your body made him blush, but he just kissed the top of your head.

“Every day she acts more and more like her father,” he said factually and quietly.

You stared at Amora, noticing the intensity in her eyes as she chased a butterfly.  “Well, she’s with you almost every day, she’s bond to pick up some of your horrid mannerism.”

Jean laughed but it quickly faded as he held you closer. “No, I meant her real father, Reiner.”

“Oh, him,” you whispered, giving your daughter a second glance. Your husband wasn’t wrong; everyday you noticed Reiner in her eyes. The way she stared at you sometimes, it felt like Reiner was right in front of you. “Well, I guess that can’t be helped, but you know she loves you, Jean. To her, you are her whole world, mine too.”

Leaning your head back, you looked up at the man and smiled when you saw how red his cheeks had gotten. Laughing, you rolled your eyes and beckoned him for a kiss. “We’ve been married for three years now and you still blush like our wedding night.”

Jean fumbled over his words but in the end all he could do from keeping you from teasing him, was to press him lips firmly against yours – and it worked.

….

Captain Levi stood at the head of the wooden table; his eyes tired as per usual.

“We leave in two days, prepare yourselves, it’s going to be a tough fight.”

“Yes, sir,” everyone concurred, getting up from their seats to leave the room. Connie and Sasha were talking about lunch, asking if Jean and you were going to join but Levi called for your attention and you promised to catch up with the pair later.

“Yes, Captain?”

Levi nodded to Jean and he approached the table, asking if something was wrong.

“I understand the two of you have a family, I’m willingly to replace one of you on this mission.”

Surprised, you looked at Jean. “Did you ask for this?”

“I know better than that,” he replied.

“This is my doing,” Levi answered, taking a seat to drink his tea.

Jean cleared his throat and explained that everyone in the squad had families. “We all have sacrifices we must make; how would it look if one of us pulls out after all this time preparing?”

“I agree with, Jean,” you nodded. “We’ve trained so hard, this is important to us, to me.”

Levi sat quiet for a moment, taking a long sip from his cup before replacing it on its coaster. His eyes narrowed down, and he folded his arms against his chest – frankly, he looked bored but that was nothing new. “I know this mission is important to the both of you, there is no denying Y/N has a personal matter in this but you both have a daughter to think of. I’ve known you kids for too long; I would consider this lifeline. You’re free to discuss amongst yourselves, I’ll need an answer by tonight.”

With that, he stood up and left the room, leaving Jean and you alone. The room was quiet as the captain closed the door behind him, knowing a decision needed to be made. Although the thought of backing out of the mission you had trained so hard pained you, you were grateful that Captain Levi was kind enough to offer the choice.

“Well, that was nice of him,” Jean murmured, shaking his head in frustration. “We could always leave Amora with your mother as we prearranged. If things go as planned, we’d only be gone for a few weeks, like last time.”

“That was just an intel mission, this time we’re going all out.”

“Shit,” your husband groaned, and you laughed, reaching over for his hand. He took yours and rubbed his thumb against your skin, relaying that the decision was up to you. “I’ll support whatever you decide.”

Every inch of your heart wanted to go with him, with your comrades, but all you could think about was Amora. It also made you think of Jean and it made your heart sink; grabbing his hand tightly, your head hung low as you began to cry.

“Shit, Jean,” you whimpered, eyes glued to the table. “You better come home to us; you hear me?”

Your hand fell to the table as Jean’s chair screeched as he got up, walking around to you. He pulled you out of your seat and pulled you into a warm, tight embrace. His body against yours always made you feel safe, being around Jean always felt like home and you were terrified to lose him.

“Don’t worry, I’ll come back home, and I’ll bring Reiner back to answer for what he did.”

...

comment for tag <3

[greatqueenanna]

Talking about the differences between Frozen and Frozen on Broadway

The Broadway Musical version of Frozen was always, not only a source of more Frozen content, but also a source of more detail into the Frozen universe as a whole. While is delves into a more soft canon, as it’s meant to be a mature remake of sorts, it does offer some interesting insights into the world and gives more detail about the character’s motivations.

Here, after I *finally* had the chance to watch the show, I will be comparing the major differences in the plot. I will lightly retell the events of both stories, giving an idea of how each is structured. Towards the end, I’ll give my thoughts on what changes I liked and didn’t like. Let me know your own thoughts and opinions on the changes, and let me know if I missed something important.  

The Accident

Film: The film starts with Frozen Heart, where Ice Harvesters are foretelling the events in the film. Then, Elsa hits Anna in the ball room while she is trying to stop her from jumping off a snow hill. Agnarr is the one with knowledge on what to do, looking up the location of the Trolls. The family go to the Valley of the Hidden Rock, where Grand Pabbie erases Anna’s memories. He then warns her that her magic is beautiful but dangerous, and that fear will be her enemy. During this time, Kristoff is there watching the entire scene go down and gets adopted by Bulda.

Broadway: Frozen Heart is removed, and replaced with Let the Sun Shine On, giving us insight into the royal family. Then, we hear another song as Elsa and Anna are playing with each other, A Little Bit of You. Later, Elsa hits Anna in their bedroom when she accidentally gets in the way of one of Elsa’s magic blasts. Their parents come into their room, and it is Iduna who has knowledge about the Trolls, who are called the Hidden Folk in this version. She issues a call, similar to that of the siren in Frozen 2, to call the Hidden Folk to the bedroom through the window. Grand Pabbie erases Anna’s memories, but then Elsa asks him to erase her powers as well. He tells her that this isn’t possible, and that fear will be her enemy.

The Parent’s Deaths

Film: Agnarr and Iduna leave (for Ahtohallan) when Elsa is 18, and Anna is 15. It is implies that Elsa ruled Arendelle from this point, until Elsa officially became queen at 21. Anna sings the last verse of Do You Want to Build a Snowman in the perspective of a grieving sister, seeking Elsa’s companionship. Elsa is on the other side of the door, grieving as well with her powers out of control. 

Broadway: Agnarr and Iduna leave when Elsa and Anna are still around the same age as when the accident happens. Elsa doesn’t rule at all, since she’s a child, and is instead guided by a regent. Anna sings the last verse of Do You Want to Build a Snowman with different lyrics, implied to be the the day before the coronation. Elsa is again on the other side of the door, but her unleashed powers are for her anxiety for the coronation.

The Coronation

Film: We briefly see an adult Kristoff buying carrots for Sven, and then we are also introduced to the Duke of Weselton talking about exploiting Arendelle for riches. Then, Anna wakes up and dresses herself, running around the castle until she runs into Hans. Hans and Anna have a short interaction, fumbling around in a boat, before she returns to the castle. During this time, Elsa is trying to practice for the coronation, already dressed in her coronation outfit. We then go the the church scene where Elsa almost reveals her powers. A lot of her reactions and emotions are told by her facial expressions and subtle actions. We then go to the introduction of the party scene, where Elsa is seen happy and relieved.

Broadway: We immediately begin with Anna waking up, this time being helped to get dressed by servants, a change also reflected in a lyric change for For the First Time in Forever. The scene has Anna running through the castle as well, but she has more interactions with servants and other guests. Elsa is not dressed in her coronation outfit when we see her, instead in a blue dress. Anna runs into Hans again, but the scene includes a song called Prince Hans of the Southern Isles and has a bit more sexual tension related comedy. This is also where we first meet Kristoff, as Anna and Hans fall into his cart instead of the boat. Later, during the Church scene and extending into the beginning of the party scene, Elsa actually has an inner monologue song to express her emotions instead, called Dangerous to Dream.

Climb to the Mountain

Film: As soon as Elsa leaves, she arrives on the top of the North Mountain that same night and sings Let it Go. Anna follows her but gets lost, traveling around for around a day before reaching Wandering Oaken’s Trading Post. This is where she first meets Kristoff, and then buys her new traveling outfit before bribing Kristoff to take her up the mountain, where he briefly sings Reindeers are Better than People. Later on, after traveling and being attacked by wolves, they group meets Olaf, who sings In Summer. We later see an update of what is happening in Arendelle, with Hans arguing with the duke before seeing Anna;s horse and deciding to go after her.

Thus, the order of events are as follows -

Elsa runs, as Anna decides to go after her.

Elsa reaches the North Mountain and sings Let it Go.

Anna travels around, reaching Oaken’s.

Anna meets Kristoff.

Anna and Kristoff argue about love.

They meet Olaf.

We get an update on Hans in Arendelle.

Broadway: There are a few major changes in the order of all of these scenes. Elsa is shown leaving, but actually doesn’t reach the North Mountain until around the second night of traveling, singing Let it Go as a closer for Act 1. Anna meets Kristoff (in which they have a duet What do you Know About Love and is given her own ice harvester outfit) and Olaf (who sings In Summer) before reaching Wandering Oaken’s Trading Post in Act II, where we hear another song called Hygge. This is when Anna purchases her iconic traveling outfit. We then see the update in Arendelle, with Hans arguing with the duke, however the citizens of Arendelle intervene and start to sing Prince Hans of the Southern Isles Reprise. He then sees Anna’s horse and then decides to go after her.

Thus, the order of events are as follows -

Elsa runs, as Anna decides to go after her.

Anna meets Kristoff.

Anna and Kristoff argue about love in song form.

They meet Olaf.

We get an update on Hans in Arendelle.

Elsa reaches the North Mountain and sings Let it Go.

Act II begins with them reaching Oaken’s.

*Note* In the ‘traveling’ versions of the Broadway musical, Hygge is sung before Prince Hans of the Southern Isles Reprise, and is not used as an opener for Act II.

Confrontations and Trolls

Film: Anna and the gang reach the Ice palace, where Anna talks to Elsa and the two sing For the First Time in Forever Reprise. The conversation eventually leads to Anna being accidentally struck by ice magic, where Elsa then summons Marshmallow to kick them out. The gang realize Anna’s predicament, and go to the Trolls to figure out what to do. The song Fixer Upper is sang, and then Pabbie tells them about an the act of true love. Later, during the Siege, Hans fights Marshmallow and eventually reaches Elsa fighting with the duke’s guards, eventually causing the chandelier to fall on her. He returns her to Arendelle, where they talk to each other. Then, Kristoff reaches Arendelle and delivers Anna.

Broadway: Again, some scenes are miked around in this version. Anna and the gang reach the Ice palace, where Anna talks to Elsa and the two sing For the First Time in Forever Reprise. The conversation eventually leads to Anna being struck by ice magic, however Marshmallow is not in this version as Anna is dragged out by Kristoff. The gang realize Anna’s predicament, and go to the Hidden Folk to figure out what to do. The song Fixer Upper is sang, and then Pabbie tells them about an the act of true love. Then, Kristoff reaches Arendelle and delivers Anna. Here, Kristoff sings a solo Reprise of What do you Know About Love, called Kristoff Lullaby. Later, during the Siege, Elsa sings Monster, now wearing pants, as Hans and the guards try to find her. He eventually finds her, but convinces her to go back without throwing a chandelier on her. they return her to Arendelle, where they talk to each other.

*Note* In the ‘traveling’ versions of the Broadway musical, For the First Time in Forever Reprise is replaced by a new song called I Can’t Lose You. This song is similar to FTFTIFR, but goes into more details on Anna and Elsa’s feelings about each other, their desires for their relationship, and their fears of losing one another.

The Ending

Film: Anna tells Hans about her situation, in which he turns and betrays her. He then announces to the dignitaries that he is charging Elsa with treason, and sentences her to death. Olaf arrives and tries to help Anna get to Kristoff, eventually leading to her seeing Hans try to kill Elsa. Anna sacrifices herself, leading to the act of true love and the great thaw. Vuelie is played in the background while Elsa thaws everything. Olaf is then stopped from melting by Elsa, Then, possibly a few days later, Anna and the gang are seen happily enjoying their new lives. No more songs are sung during the ending.

Broadway: Anna tells Hans about her situation, in which he turns and betrays her. Anna sings a song called True Love where she reflects on her choices and thoughts. Olaf arrives and tries to help Anna get to Kristoff, where she hears Hans announce that he is charging Elsa with treason. This scenes follow similarly to how they play out in the film, but is performed with a song called Colder by the Minute. Then Anna sacrifices herself, leading the the act of true love. Then, Olaf sings When Everything Falls Apart, as he is melting before Elsa saves him. Elsa then thaws everything, which is done with performance of a finale song, a Reprise of Let it Go.

*Note* When Everything Falls Apart is placed differently depending on the show. Sometimes, it’s after Finale/Let it go, and others its not present at all. 

*Note #2* Hans and Anna actually kiss in the Broadway version before the betrayal scene. They kiss after Love is an Open Door, which is dragged out for comedic purposes.

My Thoughts

~ Changes I Liked ~

I liked how they incorporated Iduna more in the beginning. I feel it balances the parent’s roles a bit better. However, given that the creators did not have the ideas for Frozen 2 while writing Frozen, it makes sense that they did  not include anything about Iduna’s heritage yet. 

I loved the inclusions of Dangerous to Dream and Monster. One of the criticisms of Frozen was how Elsa did not have enough screen time, and these songs really add to her character and clear up some of her thoughts and positions on different elements; like how she feels about Anna and having a more active role in wanting to stop the winter.

I really enjoyed actually having songs after Fixer Upper. Frozen ending it’s soundtrack so abruptly was always jarring in the film, and I think having songs like True Love and Finale/Let it Go really helps make the story feel complete and could’ve benefited the original film.

The Kristoff centered songs, What do You Know About Love and Kristoff Lullaby were welcome additions. While I feel that the film reflects very well about Kristoff’s feelings for Anna and a song like Kristoff Lullaby wasn’t really necessary, a song like What do You Know About Love would’ve really benefited the film. It would have not only given Kristoff a more proper song, but also help better set up Kristoff and Anna’s relationship.

HYGGE HYGGE HYGGE HYGGE HYGGE - HYGGE HYGGE HYGGE HYGGE HYGGE -  HYGGALY HYGGALY HYGGALY HYGGALY HYGGALY - I’m obsessed with this song, it’s the most hilarious thing I’ve ever heard haha.

I liked seeing A Little Bit of You for young Anna and Elsa. I would’ve loved in the film if we saw more time with them together, but I understand that given all the elements they had to cover and the limited time, they couldn’t fit too much in the childhood days.

~ Changes I Didn’t Like ~

The age change of the girls when the parents died was strange to me and how they changed Do You Want to Build a Snowman was jarring. I feel it lessens to impact of the song.

I wasn’t a big fan of the song Prince Hans of the Southern Isles. I don’t think the song is very memorable and I would’ve wanted Hans to have a more interesting song to be honest.

When Everything Falls Apart is a really ugly song in my opinion. It’s honestly the only Frozen song that I just really don’t like. I’m glad in some versions this song vanishes haha.

I feel the sudden change from For the First Time in Forever Reprise to I Can’t Lose You is a bit unnecessary. Not that I Can’t Lose You is a bad song - it’s a gorgeous song - I just feel like that For the First Time in Forever is fine and continues the idea of mirroring the songs from Act I into Act II that we see.

Making Hans and Anna kiss after Love is an Open Door lessens the impact of the betrayal scene in my opinion. In fact, a lot of the sexual humor between them was unnecessary. I understand it - it’s to help make the comedy more mature and show that Anna’s attraction to Hans is more physical than romantic. But I feel it wasn’t executed all that well.

Changing the Trolls was also unnecessary. I can see how they wanted to make the Trolls more mature, but just make their designs less cartoonish, not completely change them into a different creature entirely.

I prefer Frozen Heart to Let the Sun Shine On. Both songs are great, and I know that Let the Sun Shine On is a better Broadway opener, but I like the more mysterious elements of Frozen Heart. 

[ajbwasntwriting]

Daughter!Reader x Negan, Reader x Daryl: Chapter 3. Shorts Fired

First | Previous | Next

This chapter originally contained Daryl...Then I remembered that conflicted with Canon and changed it, but he’ll appear soon. Additionally, I got a request to start a tag list so if you wish to be added to the tag list please dm me

Also in the event that the link’s don’t work I’ve started adding a hashtag to this series: AJ’s Negan’s Daughter AU

I’ll only post more chapters if previous chapters get a good reaction so if you enjoy this please heart it, reblog it, and/or reply to it. Interaction inspires. 

“This is what we found sir,” Simon said, his team depositing a bag, a bow, a quiver of arrows, and a knife with your name engraved on the side. Negan picked up the knife, eyeing at the dry blood on the blade.

“She put up a fight” he commented, a smirk on his face. “That’s my girl.” He looked back at Simon from his seat in the meeting room. “We’ll find her” Simon’s men looked at each other nervously. Simon found his mouth dry and had to clear his throat to keep talking.

“Sir...We found her...she”

“Then where the hell is she?” your father asked, interrupting Simon as you would interrupt him. The room went incredibly quiet.

“She turned, sir.” Simon spoke. Negan froze for a moment before falling back into his chair. “We...captured her... if you’d like to see.” Wordlessly Negan rose from his seat and rushed towards the exit, specifically to the van Simon had been out in.

The shutter raised and low and behold, there stood a walker. Her face had been devoured but she was wearing your clothes, right down to the military boots you never took off, despite how many nice clothes and shoes he’d find for you. ‘Just encase’ you said.

Looking at the walker growl and reach for him, Negan felt numb. He now realised he hadn’t dropped your knife. “Gimme a minute” he ordered, climbing into the van and closing the door behind him.

Now it was just Negan and the walker, he began to tear up. “I’m sorry y/n.” he whispered before reaching behind and destroying her brain. It fell and he cradled her in his arms as he wept. “I’m so sorry. I tried to keep you safe, princess.” he rocked back and forth gently, stroking it’s hair as he mumbled to himself “I’m so sorry”

The night of your escape you broke into a thrift store to get some new clothes, though it’d hardly count as breaking in as whoever owned it was probably dead. You found some old khakis, a tie-dye shirt, and a black sweatshirt that had seen better days. It wasn’t much but it was warm. If only they had socks. You pulled on a pair of trainers and ran, wanting as much distance between you and Sanctuary as possible before your old man got back.

From there it wasn’t easy. Food was gone, ammunition didn’t exist, and the closest thing you had to a bed was a car with the doors closed. Anyone else would crack under these circumstances, but not you. You had experienced stuff arguably worse than this. You were a trained soldier with experience on foreign battlefields, so a few undead going bump in the night wouldn’t stop you from sleeping. What did keep you awake was the memories.

“You shouldn’t take those with booze, ma” you interjected, your mother just gave you a filthy look from over the edge of her bourbon glass. “I am the mother, you are the child. Remember your place.” was the usual reply, and that was the reply you preferred. It meant she’d spend the night cursing you out, picking apart your flaws, and blaming you for your old man’s fooling around. The words were easier to deal with than dodging a flying glass.

You were 15 when your mother got diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and your world went from sunshine and rainbows to cleaning up after your mother passed out so she wouldn’t be embarrassed in the morning and letting your dad in at 4 in the morning so the neighbours didn’t see him. In the morning your mother would make you pancakes to say sorry, even though any movement would hurt her. Your father would slip you twenty bucks for ‘being a team sport’.

You had accepted that your mother just didn’t have the nerve to confront your father on all his cheating because she was worried she’d leave him, and your father was an idiot that was more bothered by the parents at the school he teaches at finding out that he screwed around then what he was doing to your family. You accepted it. You understood it. That didn’t mean you forgave them. It also didn’t mean you wouldn’t call them every chance, that you wouldn’t send a hundred letters to them every year, that you wouldn’t kiss their cheeks while declaring ‘I love you’ to all that heard.

Every morning you woke at what you believed to be 6 am. It had been hardwired into you from your service. You’d start walking in the same direction, trying to get as far from Sanctuary as possible, though your speed was slow and you often stopped at towns or houses to scavenge. Now and then you’d stumble into houses that had gardens or farms that had been overrun. Usually, there were more walkers than food but you had secured a rather sharp knife to replace the arrow you’d been using to bring down walkers quietly. You also carried your things in a child’s school bag, being the most together bag you could find at the thrift shop. The bright pink glitter didn’t go with your desire to stay low but sacrifices had to be made, such as hygiene.

Your form was weak from a strong lack of food, your feet were raw from the constant walking, you were constantly exhausted. Taking down walkers with the kitchen knife had become muscle memory. Hand on chest, knife in head, hand on chest, knife in head, and so on. You felt more dead than alive when a gunshot fired somewhere behind you. You swirled around to see a clearly a few steps right of you and a walker being downed. You put the math together and knelt into the foileage. “Sasha what are you doing?” you heard a lady call from far off. A moment later you noticed your sleeve feeling more and more damp. A quick glance confirmed blood, making you curse under your breath.

The gun shot attracted more of the biters out of the forest and into the clearing to see this Sasha character, but three were more interested in the smell of your blood. You cursed again, jumping back and taking steps away from the clearly. You reached for your gun on instinct before realising it would probably attract the people, and you didn’t want that. To make matters worse your shot arm was your stabbing arm. Flexing the arm caused the blood to start pouring so you took the kitchen knife in your other hand, the walkers approaching you. Having little time to react you kicked one back, sending it into a bush while another lunged at you. You narrowly sunk the knife into its skull, though the combination of it falling on you and your lack of good footing sent you backward, banging your head off a tree. Your head began ringing when the third reached for you over the lunger, giving you enough space to swing your arm and shove it through it’s temple.

You turned to get the two corpses off you, settling into a squat against the tree as the first offending walker got to its feet. You flipped the knife in your hand as it wandered towards you, using the tree to stand up quickly and stabbing up through its neck. The last one fell and you heard more shuffling through the woods. “I’m coming with you”. Crap it was those people. You ducked behind your support tree, the sudden exertion making your arm bleed. You clasped a hand over it as you bit your lip, watching from behind the tree. Three women walked by, two following another with a large rifle. ‘Are they from an outpost?’ you thought. You waited a while for them to pass with short breath, not wanting to risk them looking for you.

When you were sure you were in the clear you ran, making note not to run in the direction they came from or were heading. You ran and ran until you found a gas station. There were a couple of walkers in there but you needed something to dress your wound. You took a step back and shot through the glass at the first, getting the second with your knife when it stumbled through the shattered window.

Walking in you noticed it was a treasure trove. Most of the shelves still had their goods and the first aid pack was still there. Taking off your shirt you were relieved to find the bullet had only grazed you and the bleeding was slowing. Still, you cleaned and dressed the wound, popping a lollipop in your mouth for good measure.

You only got a few bottles of water and some stale chips in your bag when a car pulled up. You dove behind the counter without thinking, pulling the walker you shot over your body. Cracking glass signaling they had walked in.

“I thought this place was locked up” a man’s voice spoke out.

“It was” another man’s voice replied.  “Whoever broke in didn’t clear it. Come on”. You heard shuffling, then felt someone kick your leg.

“Anything behind there?” the woman called.

“Nah, just a couple of dead ones.” you tried to maintain your stillness when what you assumed was one of the men, stepped on the back of the walker, and pushed the air out of you. It took everything to maintain your quiet when he reached for your bag, cutting it off your shoulder. You stole a look to see a man with long messy hair, a button-up opened over a t-shirt, and a sheriff’s hat rustling through your stuff.

“This one had a first aid pack,” he called, pulling everything from your bag into his own. You made a mental note to kill this man the next time you saw him.

You lay as still and as silent as you could until you heard the car drive off again. You pushed the dead off you and dived for your bag, looking through it just to confirm what you already knew. He took everything. Your bullets, your food, everything. You threw the bag across the floor cursing. You sat on the ground, your head in your hands. You stared at nothing until an old map caught you. You slowly pulled it out of the hole it had been shoved in between the counter and the register and unraveled it, wanting something to look at other than your distinct lack of supplies. The map must’ve been used by the previous manager, because your current location was clearly marked and the DC city limits weren’t that far out. Your eyes lit up

‘The only place left with stuff would be the city. They had a refugee centre.’ you thought. You sat there a moment longer, soaking in your helplessness. Standing up from behind the counter you realised how badly they’d empty the place. The shelves didn’t even have the dust on them anymore. You took off your shirt, using it to pick up a piece of shattered glass, then walked over to one of the walkers to start carving it open. If you were to brave DC without weapons you’d need a disguise.

After soaking yourself in undead guts you repurposed the walker’s shirt to hold your make-shift blade. The walk into the city was short once you cut through the woods. As expected the road was lined with cars and walkers, non paying you any attention. You walked into an abandoned RV to check your wound, making sure no infection had seeped in. Once you opened the door some walkers lunged at you, making you step in quicker. Immediately your nose filled with a vile stench, causing you to vomit into the entryway. In your new position, bending over with your hands on the floor sitting in your vomit, you could see the cause of the smell from the corner of your eye.

You walked over slowly to the back of the rv in case they turned, but also to clarify the image as the bodies had been decaying for so long. The blood spatter confirmed a gunshot. It looked like a woman in a summer dress and two young children. Pinned to a board above the bed were some pictures. Smiling children, older people with drinks in hand, and a happy family on the beach; A mother, a father, and two children barely out of their toddler years. You looked up and down the alley, no sight of a fourth family member.

“Coward ran” you mumbled to yourself. The covers lay at the bottom of the bed. You grabbed them and pulled them over the family.

A little bit of scavenging brought you a new ruck-sack in a dirty green colour, two bottles of water, some painkillers, and a pair of socks. You celebrated silently before you put them on, already feeling the old trainers rub your feet raw. As you closed the presses something in the bathroom cubby began to move. Clawing at the door but not sure how to get out. If he couldn’t get out then only one thing came to mind.

“Guess you weren’t a coward.”

You opened the door, the walker falling out and quickly meeting your glass, it breaking off in his head. You picked him up and laid him down with the family, noticing he was wearing the same shirt as in the picture above the bed. You felt jealous of the family, but you pushed it down. Now wasn’t the time. As luck would have it the walker was keeping a hunting rifle with a low power scope in his cubicle, along with five bullets. You picked it up, looking it over. You hadn’t used one of these before the world went to shit but what time better than the end of the world to get a refresher lesson.

Getting into the city was relatively easy, finding your way through the crowd, down an alley, on top of a garbage can, and in through an old apartment window into a complex with only a couple of the dead following you. They groaned and reached into the higher window, but you were safe in someone else’s sitting room. You jumped up when another walker strutted in from another apartment room. All you had were two guns and firing either one of them would drag too much attention.

You looked around for anything to use but it was on you before you could act, pushing you back towards the window. Pinned to the breaking frame by the undead and more of them reaching for you from the back you pushed against it with all your strength, its jaw snapping at you. You took in a deep breath and pushed back with all you had, sending it to the ground running to the other side of the common space. It rose confidently from behind the couch looking around there was a tv to your left and a dead potted plant to your right.

It walked around and lunged at you just as you got the potted plant off the floor, swinging it around and knocking it to the ground. Before it could get up again you dropped the plant on its head, followed shortly by the tv for good measure. You leaned against the wall, causing it to crumble and collapse, sending you back into a child’s bedroom. You coughed as the dust fell on you, pulling yourself into a sitting position. Looking into the sitting room you now noticed it featured a kitchen area, complete with a full block of knives staring right back at you.

You gathered up the knives and went up a floor, wanting some distance between the dead and yourself. It seemed the complex had been cleared, but that made sense since it was the city. You found an apartment with a street view and made your camp, pulling an old mattress from the bedroom into the common room to keep watch. You opened a window to clear a little of the dust from the room. You’d sleep here tonight then move more in the city later. You found some books in the apartment. ‘Jane Eyre’, ‘Little Women’, ‘Get Slime in 40 days’. It painted the image of some sad spinster trying to better herself to get back at the world. ‘The Woman’s Guide to Single Life’ added a frame to that image.

“Come on!” you heard a man yell, followed by a gunshot. You fell to the ground instantly, crouched over, and crawled to the window. Peering out there was a sight to behold. It was the same hat-sporting man, no a boy, and an older man with a beard with a herd on their heels. They’d be at your window. You loaded a bullet in the chamber of your hunting rifle, using the scope you had it on the older man’s head in moments since he had a larger bag on his back. All you had to do was squeeze the trigger and he’d be down, dropping his stuff and maybe the other would be eaten and you could take your stuff too. All you had to do was squeeze that trigger.

“Dad!” The boy screamed out when a dead grabbed his bag, your scope moved in a moment and the walker was downed. They looked around wildly while running. You made a rash decision and stuck your head out the window and yelled to them as you reloaded the gun.

“Hey you two, round the corner there’s a busted window! Get to it!”. They seemed to understand and began sprinting. You took down one behind the man that had gotten too close, then another. You heard a thump downstairs just as you ran out of ammo.

You walked out of your apartment just as they came up the stairs, you pointed the gun at them in defense. “Stay right there”

The two stood with their hands up. They glanced at each other and then you. The older man began to speak. “Thank you for-”

“If you wanna thank me, give me back my shit” you cut him short.

“We didn’t take anything from you.” the boy in the hat replied.

“Three bottles of water, two packets of chips, and the first aid kit.” you retorted, noticing the shock in the man's eyes. You motioned the gun to the boy “You cut the bag off my arm back at the gas station. The pink glitter thing.”

The man swallowed hard “We can’t. That stuff. We have people that need it-”

“I could have fucking killed you. Is that not worth shit?” The silence that followed made it all worse.

“Listen, I’m Rick Grimes, This is my son, Carl” He motioned to the boy behind him “We come from a place. A safe place with walls. If you let us keep your stuff you can come back with us. We can give you a safe place to live.” The rest of his words turned into white noise after you heard his name.

“Alexandria?” You questioned, a sad smile coming to your face. “You’re not gathering stuff for your own people, are you?” you lowered your gun a little.

“You know these people?” the boy asked, getting angry. You nodded solemnly.

“Look, I’m not going back with you, but I’ll offer you a deal. Give me the first aid kit and I’ll give you this gun” you said, holding up the rifle to further your point.

“We need it,” Carl argued.

“So do I.” You rose your short sleeve to show the bandage. “Some asshole nearly shot out there.” Carl reached into the older man’s bag, Rick immediately telling him not to.

“She saved us,” he argued, pulling out the red plastic pack.

“One good turn deserves another,” he stood up and went to hand it to you before you raised the rifle again, shaking your head no. You motioned to the ground, where he put it down. You once again motioned to the ground and he kicked it over. You knelt down, placed down the rifle, and snatched up the kit before diving back into your room, slamming the door shut.

You rushed over to your bag, grabbing it and shoving the kit in. “This is empty!” you heard Rick yell as you dove out the window onto the fire escape and descending back to the streets.

Tag list

@softsebastian​

[ibijau]

A lot can happen in ten years

post canon, warning for major character death

The first year is spent in seclusion, partly because Lan Xichen cannot face the world, not after realising how much of his life has been built upon a lie. Aside from the handful of people present in that temple, on that night, nobody knows how much responsibility he bears in the events that have transpired. If anything, his choice to chase after Jin Guangyao appears to balance out his long complicity in the public’s eye.

The second year, that seclusion is partly lifted. Lan Xichen rarely leaves the Cloud Recesses. There are better people than him to cleanse monsters or supervise juniors on a Night Hunt. As for himself, he is still uncomfortable with the world. Even for conferences, he sends his uncle, his brother at worst. There are many faces he cannot bear to see yet. There is one face he doubts he’ll ever bear to see again.

The third year, there is a party to celebrate Lan Wangji’s adoption of a child, the daughter of cousins who died on a Night Hunt. She’s a sweet little toddler a little younger than one, and the source of Lan Xichen’s first true smiles in years. The party, however, nearly sends him in a panic, especially when he finds himself face to face with Nie Huaisang. But the other man only smiles at him and congratulates him on the addition to their family, before drifting away to chat with someone else.

The fourth year, Lan Sizhui gets married, the cause for another party. Nie Huaisang, once again, has to be invited. Lan Xichen dreads it less this time. Nie Huaisang spends a good part of the celebration joking with Wei Wuxian and Jiang Cheng, as if nothing had changed in the twenty years since they first met. Lan Xichen and Nie Huaisang exchange a few words, more than they did last time. It’s still easy to mindlessly chat with Nie Huaisang, though Lan Xichen cannot feel fully at peace until his guest has left.

The fifth year, Lan Xichen starts attending conferences in person again. He feels all eyes on him, some judging, other pitying. Most are merely curious as to what he will do now. And what Lan Xichen does is much the same as he’s ever done: listen to others, try to be impartial, consider things carefully before giving his opinion, supporting what he deems right. He refuses to let what happened change him.

The sixth year, Lan Qiren starts mentioning something he hasn’t in a long while: the idea that Lan Xichen should marry, and produce an heir. He used to have many reasons to refuse that obligation, none of them good. A little selfishness he allowed himself. But the main reason he avoided his duty no longer holds him the way it used to do, and so before too long, Lan Xichen gives in. He is married before the year is over, to a lively young woman from Baling Ouyang, sister to one of Lan Sizhui’s close friends. Nie Huaisang is here at the wedding, of course, and congratulates Lan Xichen with such warmth that it feels sincere. 

The seventh year, Lan Xichen’s wife gives him a son, a beautiful baby boy. Lan Xichen, who had given up on happiness, finds himself happy at last.

The eighth year, twin girls join their family. Nie Huaisang, at their hundredth day’s celebration, teases Lan Xichen and asks how many children he’s planning to have. Lan Xichen returns the question, to which Nie Huaisang only laughs and proclaims that sort of a life isn’t for him. Still, he dotes on the baby girls so much that Lan Xichen wonders how much longer his old friend will resist before getting a family of his own.

By the ninth year, Lan Xichen feels once more at peace. It is a feeling he had forgotten.

As the tenth year starts, Lan Xichen’s wife tells him that she is with child again. She leaves with Lan Xi and the twins, heading for Baling to tell her family the good news. Lan Xichen misses them all dearly, but enjoys the chance for a little quiet. It is important to him to live with his wife and children, to give the little ones the family he was denied, but it makes it difficult to find time to work on his cultivation. A sacrifice he gladly does.

Still, it is good to have silence for once. The day after his wife and children have left, Lan Xichen puts some incense to burn and decides to meditate. Before a full shichen has passed, a knock on the door disturbs him. He would ignore it, but it is getting quite late by then, and if anyone looks for him at such a time, it has to be important.

Or shocking more than important, in this case.

When he opens the door, Lan Xichen finds Nie Huaisang smiling at him.

“Er-ge, let’s have a chat,” he asks, pushing his way into the Hanshi, just as he used to do once. “It has been so long since I’ve been here.”

“A decade I think,” Lan Xichen mumbles, confused, while closing the door.

“Already! Ah, and what a decade it has been, right? You’ve made yourself busy, Er-ge, haven’t you?”

Lan Xichen nods, his heart beating harder than it should. Last time Nie Huaisang came to the Hanshi… it was before everything, before Wei Wuxian’s return. It was another life.

“Ten years is an awful long time,” Nie Huaisang says, sitting down, inviting Lan Xichen to do the same, as if he were the host. “But I’m patient, when I want something. And I want something, Er-ge. Can you guess what?”

“Huaisang, we can’t anymore,” Lan Xichen replies, his body tensing to the point of near pain. “I’m married now.”

This earns him an unkind smirk.

“Er-ge, you value yourself too much,” Nie Huaisang sneers. “If I wanted that, I’d have it long ago. I did consider it in fact. It would have been quite funny. But then I heard your uncle was getting in touch with a number of matchmakers. I thought this would be funnier still if you ten years could be so similar to his, before losing it all. A wife, a family, to hide you're a cut-sleeve who fell for the wrong man… Just like San-ge. "

"You're here to kill me," Lan Xichen realises. 

He tries to stand up, but his body is too tense for movement, as if he has been turned to rock, while his heart beats so fast it makes him nearly dizzy. 

"The incense," Nie Huaisang simply says, taking out a dagger from his sleeve. "I'm not stupid enough to challenge you."

Lan Xichen immediately recognises it, though he has only ever seen it once, when Qin Su stabbed herself with it, so many years ago.

"I have children," Lan Xichen begs.

"Which is more than my Da-ge ever got," Nie Huaisang lightly notes, moving to kneel behind Lan Xichen. It could pass for a lover's embrace. "He would have made a wonderful father, I think. He was like a father to me after all, better than the real one." 

With some effort, Nie Huaisang pries open Lan Xichen's right hand and forces him to hold the dagger. 

"Da-ge wouldn't want this," Lan Xichen hisses, the incense's effect making it hard to even talk now. 

"We'll never know what he'd want," Nie Huaisang snaps, guiding Lan Xichen’s stiff arm and hand to his throat. "But you had what you deserved. Ten years of thinking you got away with it, the same as A-Yao did. And then, at last, guilt caught up with you and you couldn't beat it anymore. Because you know San-ge couldn't have done it without you, and I know it too."

Nie Huaisang laughs lightly, sounding almost the same he had as a boy. 

"You'll leave a very touching letter to explain this," he whispers into Lan Xichen's ear. "I've always been good at that. So goodbye, Er-ge. And don't worry… I'll be here to help Wangji when you're gone, should he need it." 

Lan Xichen tries to fight, to shout, but the paralysing incense has taken hold too well. He is unable to resist when Nie Huaisang forces him to slit his own throat. 

Nie Huaisang watches him bleed to death quickly, letting go of Lan Xichen's body when it goes limp. As he stands again, he is careful not to step in blood, and puts a letter well in view, so it won't be missed by whoever finds the body. As a precaution, he gathers the ashes of that special incense he had a corrupt servant put in place, and burns some ordinary one so the scene is complete. 

It is a work of art. Nie Huaisang is almost sorry nobody will know this new masterpiece is his as well. 

But at last, Nie Mingjue is avenged, and Nie Huaisang is free.

[nikkzwrites]

(They Long to Be) Close to You | Dark Fix-It Fic Series Part 2 | Chapter 7

A/N: This fic is one that I started with my OC because honestly, I personally didn’t like how season 3 ended. So I am rewriting all of Dark with my OC Annalise Dahlheim. I hope you all like it. Some things will be expanded more on just for more depth to Dark that season 3 kinda skipped over so…. yeah. This is part two of the series! You can start the full series here!

CW: Canon Typical Triggers: Smoking, Sex, Language, Drugs, Drinking, Death, Violence.

Word Count: ~5.0k

[First Chapter] [Previous Chapter] [Next Chapter]

Jonas cried over Martha’s body promising that he would set everything right. He looked up hearing the explosion and then ran down into the basement to stay safe.

The older Jonas shot up in bed breathing hard from his nightmare. He must have fallen asleep in his clothes. He turned to look at the letter labeled Jonas on it. He opened it to read,

‘Dear Jonas, you promised to make everything right again. I want you to know that you will do that. You must never lose hope that there is a way out of this maze. A way to save me and you...But we will have to make sacrifices… do unimaginable things...to untie the knot at the end. Each fate in this knot is linked to the next. A thread, blood red, that connects all our actions. In light and in shadow. But the apocalypse must take place. You must let her die, so I can live. We have to let some things go before they find their way back to us. We are perfect for eachother. Never believe anything else.’

Martha cried over Jonas’ dead body clutching Annalise’s necklace in her bloodied hands. She stood and walked away from him still shaking from the shock she just received. Annalise walked out from the door and ran to Martha. She held the girl close in her arms and started to cry for her. Her fingers intertwined within Martha’s hair. Yet, Martha felt close to nothing. This is what she had always wanted, so why does it still feel wrong.

The short haired Martha looked up at the swirling God Particle in their world knowing what must be done now. Her two older selves watched it twist and turn just like their hearts. Their eyes crying from the knowledge each of them had. Mary smiled proudly at her work. She had spent years getting back to this point. Yet, her eyes still cried knowing just as soon as she was going to experience the greatest ecstasy, she was going to experience the pits of despair. Unknowing of her own fate that was just close to happening.

Silija took her rifle and shoved Martha into a cage. She locked the girl in, ignoring her cries of confusion. Adam watched on with a sigh.

The older Jonas took the letter and burned it after reading. He felt disgusted at what she was trying to imply, let Annalise die so that Martha could live as if he could possibly do that. As if he could let that happen. 

Annalise and Martha walked back to Martha’s home. It was the day of the apocalypse. As they got inside, Martha started to panic about how dirty and covered with his blood she was. 

Annalise took hold of her and said, “Hey, hey… shhhh… It’s okay.” She carefully walked the girl to the sink and washed her up. Her hands were gentle, yet dexterous at getting off the blood. After cleaning her hands and face, Annalise heard someone stirring upstairs so she quickly helped Martha undress and shoved the blooded clothes in the trash.

Magnus hurried downstairs after hearing the door open and close. “Martha,” he breathed relieved at his sister being back home safe. He looked between Annalise and Martha asking, “Where were you? Mom cried all night long.” Noticing that Martha wasn’t her normal self, he turned to Annalise and asked, “Is she okay?”

Annalise shook her head as Martha tried to wipe her tears away. She turned to look at her brother.

“Hey,” He spoke softly. He opened his arms to her which were gladly taken by Martha. He held his sister and asked, “What happened?”

Martha sobbed into Magnus for a second. She held him tighter than she had ever held her brother before. “Bartosz was right,” she whispered. She shook her head and said, “What he said in the woods… about the end of the world.” She started to panic. “The nuclear power plant… Today. Bartosz’s father is trying to cover up an accident. The containers… The world is going to end today.”

Magnus looked at her then to Annalise, who just shrugged and shook her head acting as if she didn’t know anything… 

While in truth, she did. Annalise knew exactly what Martha was talking about and it was her job to also get to Bartosz so that way they could all go fix this mess. At least, that’s what Eve told her and her older self told her. There was no reason not to trust them. 

Meanwhile in 1986, a younger Mary smiled with a young Noah. She turned to him and said, “We did it! We found the way back! We can get Bartosz and go back home.”

Magnus shook her head at her, “Have you gone crazy? When did you last sleep?” When she tried to yell at him, he shook his head and said, “I haven’t got time for your psycho crap. You can handle this, right Anna?”

Annalise nodded. She shook her head at Martha, “I’m sorry.”

Short haired Martha looked down at Annalise’s necklace and started to cry. She trembled as her fingers traced the tree of life pattern.

“They had to die,” The older Martha explained, “It’s all wrong.” They stood in the old Eris Lux meeting area. “I know what you’re feeling. But you’ll learn to let the feeling go. Everything will run its course. Just as fate determined our world and his.”

In the other world, Martha tried to escape her cage. When Adam appeared to her, she screamed, “why did you lock me up? You promised me there would be a way to change everything.” She started to cry, “So the apocalypse won’t happen. You lied to me, just like my older self lied to me!”

Adam looked down at the sphere in his hands. He spoke, “Sic Mundus. Old Tannhaus. He firmly believed he was creating a paradise where we’d all be free of destiny, and free of our pain. A world outside your world and my world. But I have finally realized what this paradise really is. Unending darkness, in which nothing exists. But for that...the apocalypse must happen. In my world...and in yours.” He turned and walked away from her.

“Jonas,” she roared, “Jonas! Let me out!”

There was only six hours before the apocalypse left and Aleksander was speaking to Obendorf about the containers. He had seen Annalise leave earlier that morning so he knew it would be safe to speak about it.

“Dad,” Bartosz said, walking into the room and surprising Aleksander, “Is everything okay?”

Aleksander nodded, but sadly said, “I know I said I’d stay home today...But something important came up. I’m sorry.”

Bartosz shrugged and grumbled to his dad, “It’s alright”

His father turned and said, “I have to tell you something. Someone is blackmailing me.”

Bartosz’s face turned into confusion, “What?”

Aleksander turned and showed his son, “With this. Something that happened a long time ago. Sometimes we make decisions in our lives that we can never undo.” He sighed and continued, “My name is not Aleksander. It is Boris. Boris Niewald. But it was an accident… You must believe me. I’m not a murderer.”

Bartosz shook his head and asked, “What about Mom? Did Mom know about this?”

“Your mother is the best thing that ever happened in my life,” said the man, “she saved me from all that and I never told her the truth.” He looked at his son, “Bartosz, I’m sorry.”

Bartosz threw the newspaper down and walked away from his father.

Across town, Charlotte walked to Ulrich’s house with the file to let him know what they found on the investigation for Mads resulting in Ulrich leaving quickly and Hannah realizing it was her the entire time.

Annalise sat with Matha. She tried to convince the girl to take a nap, but Martha felt too wired for that. 

The girl walked over to her mirror to look at herself. “I hate this,” she sneered at herself. She grabbed the scissors from her things and started to cut.

“Hey,” Annalise said. She walked over to the girl and stopped her, “Let me do that for you. You are going to mess it up.”

“I don’t care,” Martha mumbled, but conceded giving the scissors to Annalise anyway.

Annalise smiled and giggled, “Come on. Let’s cut off all the things weighing you down.”

Martha watched as everything happened through the mirror. She just wanted everything fixed and over with.

Katharina slept on Mikkel’s bed calmly. She awoke to Martha standing over her, “You scared me. Where were you? Did you cut your hair? What happened?” She looked over towards Annalise who stood awkwardly behind her daughter. She looked back to see Martha nearly in tears.

Martha spoke, “Do you believe in fate?”

“I don’t know,” Katharina admitted watching Annalise walk out to give them some space. She spoke again, “No. I believe that we take our lives into our own hands. That we decide which road we take.”

Eve stared at the older Bartosz with a sigh. She spoke to him motioning towards the hideout and to his child Jonah. Her heart sunk, but she knew this was what was needing to happen. Everything was so so close. She needed everything to continue just as it had before. She knew what this would cause though. She knew what this part would lead. She needed it to happen. This was one of the finally domino effects needed for her plan to see him again.

Katharina shook her head and said, “I’m sure I’m the last person you want to talk to, but...If you do...I’m here.” She took her daughter's hand and held it. The woman spoke again, “Your dad and I… A lot of things maybe different now, but that’s not necessarily bad.”

Martha started to cry. She shook her head and said, “No, I’m sure it’s not.” She held her mother closely. She let go after a moment and explained, “I promised I was going to do something.” Then she walked out.

In the other world, Claudia stared at a picture of the blond boy who had started this all. Her breathing was all that could be heard in the small bunker. She sighed and looked down to open one of the journals letting her know what she was supposed to do as well. It spelled out where the God Particle was and to follow the signals to it. She found herself going to the area in her yellow radiation suit. Inside, she saw only a bright white light. Her heart pounded as she reached out to it.

“Stop,” A man called to her. Claudia turned to see Jonas.

She sighed in relief and said, “Jonas…” She looked surprised. Her voice shook as she spoke again, “You’re alive.”

Back in Eve’s world, the short haired, scarred Martha wrote Jonas a letter. She knew all of it to be absolutely true. She hated to admit it to herself, but she was doing all of this for her own Annalise as well. Something for them to be together just as Mary and Eve were. To raise this child together. She sighed and spoke, “I murdered him. Why is he still alive?” 

Mary drew a diagram for the young Martha, “There is a switch point in the loop of time. The moment that causes things to run in one direction or the other. You bring him into your world, or you don’t. A line that starts at one point, then loops onto itself once more. Two possible ways on the outer edge of the line or on the inner edge of the line… yet it is the same line. Two overlapping realities happen in a single moment.” She spoke quieter, more in reflection, “In one, she goes with you… in another she’s kidnapped and trapped until she figures out the puzzle of this.” She shook her head and spoke louder again, “One, he dies...on the other road, he doesn’t.” She pointed and said, “Both realities continue from the point of the sphere’s activation, then collide on itself if it’s in the same reality. Both of your worlds continue from that point and repeat in an endless loop. One triggers the other one to happen. You two are locked in Quantum entanglement.”

Eve interrupted and spoke, “Adam has tried to sever it for 33 years. So that the thing growing inside of you will never be born.”

Mary spoke up again, “But it is impossible now. Your worlds… they can never be disconnected.”

The older Martha took the letter and folded it up to be put into the envelope as Ever spoke, “Every step Jonas takes is guided by us. He cannot escape his fate.”

In Jonas’ world, Claudia stared at the blond and asked, “What is this?”

Jonas spoke while looking at the glowing white orb flowing suspended in the air, “That is what was left over after the catastrophe.”

Claudia breathed heavily and asked, “The God Particle… and this here? What is this?” She pointed to the equipment not too far from them.

Jonas looked at her confused and explained, “I’ve seen where all this goes.” He pointed towards the equipment, “in the future. There is no way back now. The cave was destroyed. There’s nothing there anymore. The passage is completely gone. But this here… If I find out how it works, I’ll be able to go back. Then I can save them. Martha, Mikkel, and Annalise. I can save all of them.” He stared at her. She seemed off. She didn’t seem to support any of this. He spoke to her and asked, “How is it that you found me?” He waited for a moment then asked in a slightly different way, “How did you know I would be here?”

“The apparatus,” Claudia explained, “The matter it needs.”

“The apparatus,” Jonas yelled, “You still have it?! Where is it?”

Claudia reluctantly showed him to where she was keeping the machine. She knew if she didn’t he would only become more aggressive. She watched as he rushed towards it. As he toggled with some of the switches, she spoke, “It doesn’t work. Maybe this is how it had to happen first. For all the things to change for next time.” As he slowly turned towards her, she explained, “The substance in the device. You and I brought it into the passage again. The variables in the equation were changed. There’s a chance it might work next try.”

Jonas yelled, “I can’t wait 33 years to try!” He growled as he walked towards her, “I’m supposed to just hope this won’t happen again? Maybe next time I’m on the other side of the bunker door?!” He sneered, “She didn’t say anything… Your older self. She knew Annalise was going to die. That Martha was also going to die. How they would die.” Tears dripped down his dirty sweaty face, “Why should I trust you now?”

Claudia felt a pain in her chest hearing about Annalise. Yet she pressed on, “The material in the plant. I know what it is. I can assist you. I can help you save them. To save all of them.”

In Eve’s world, there was only three hours left before the apocalypse. Martha stormed to Bartosz’s house with Annalise behind her. She screamed, “BARTOSZ!”

He very quickly went to the glass door as if by instinct. He opened it for her and asked, “Martha?” He looked at her then saw Annalise not far behind her. He bit his lip hoping this wasn’t going to affect them then turned back towards Martha to listen to what she had to say.

“Can we come in,” the short haired girl asked him. She stared up at him pleadingly. It was the least he could do now right? After stealing the girl she loved, the least he could do was let her inside.

“Eh,” Bartosz shifted uneasily. He swallowed and nodded, “Yeah. Come on in.” He moved out of the way for the two girls to rush in.

Martha shakingly explained, “33 years ago there was an accident at the plant. Somehow the accident caused some strange matter to form… and your father helped cover everything up.” She started to breathe heavily. Her eyes flickered between Annalise and him, “And everything we heard in the caves. It’s all the same… The substance… It starts the end. Today. We have to talk to him.”

“Starts what end,” Bartosz spoke calmly.

Martha’s voice shook as she said, “The apocalypse.”

Ulrich stared at Mads body in disbelief. There was no way any of this was happening. He’s heart raced as he realized it had to be. He unlocked the jail cell and stared at Helge. He lifted him up and asked, “The Kid in the bunker. You said it was you who killed him. But you didn’t mean him. You meant Mads. The boy in the bunker looks just like Mads. How did you do it?”

Helge shook and said, “They...They both said that I must do it.”

Ulrich growled, “Who? Do what?”

Helge swallowed and explained, “To help send him to the future. To fill the gaps.”

Ulrich let go of him and took a step back in disbelief. He took the pennies out of his pocket and showed it to the man, “The pennies… What does this mean?”

Helge looked up and said, “I must stop him.”

“Stop who? Who will you stop?”

Helge swallowed and spoke softly, “You.”

Ulrich pulled back and looked down before looking out the door. He said, “You can go now.”

Helge hurried out to go on his own mission to stop the man.

“And this Jonas guy,” Bartosz asked, “He’s dead now? And you killed him there. Well it’s not you… It’s...another you?” He looked at her completely confused. This sounded a lot like how Annalise was trying to describe being in two places at once just the other night. He ran his fingers through his long hair thinking about everything.

Martha nodded and explained, “I was there. In the future. There’s nothing left.” She shook her head. “Nothing.” She sighed and stated, “It all has to do with your father. He can’t be allowed to open those containers.” Watching his thumbs rub together and him look down then back at Annalise, Martha knew he was deep in thought. “Bartosz,” she tried to reach out to his mind to pull him back to her. She pleaded with him, “Please.”

Bartosz reached for his phone and called his father. He didn’t get an answer due to his father looking at all of the sins of his past and what they lead to. Aleksander called Charlotte now knowing what he must do to make amends.

The Unknown looked up at the sphere. He turned it on and watched it descend. The youngest walked in first, then the oldest. The middle one took out the ball and held it in his hand.

In Adam’s world, Silja let Martha out of her cage and at gunpoint led her to where Adam wanted her to go. She explained that all she was here to do was to help fill the gaps for everyone so that everyone could reach salvation.

Adam stared at the swirling mass. He spoke to himself mostly but turned to see the ghost of Annalise standing there with him, “We have waited a long time for this moment.” He turned towards Magnus and Franziska and told them, “you know what to do.” He nodded to them to leave him alone with the ghost of the girl he loved.

Magnus and Franziska swallowed. They shifted and took hold of each other’s hands not sure if they were really ready for the other world yet and to see their long dead best friends.

In Eve’s world, Magnus and Franziska sat at the edge of the pond unknowing of the apocalypse about to hit them in just one hour.

Franziska turned to him and signed, “What do you think it means? The birds? The light? The boy in the bunker?”

Magnus shrugged a bit then signed back while mouthing, “Martha has lost it. She thinks the apocalypse will happen today.”

Franziska shook her head at him. She could tell without words that he was nervous. She smiled a bit to comfort him and slid her hand into his. She signed to him and mouthed, “If we die today, then at least we are together.”

Magnus smiled and signed back, “Together.” He leaned close to her so that they could kiss all his troubles away.

Bartosz and Annalise rode their bikes down to the powerplant. Martha sat behind Bartosz looking up at the boy. They tried to ride as quickly as possible to stop the canisters from being opened by Charlotte and Aleksander.

Helge waddled through the woods muttering to himself the sounds of the clock in his mind. He walked toward the cave knowing exactly what he was going to try to do.

Ulrich called Charlotte trying to get a hold of her to let him know of what was going on as he tried to follow the man.

Adam’s world Magnus and Franziska stood in the road and stared at the group on the bikes. Bartosz and Martha stopped smoothly while Annalise crashed Martha’s bike trying to avoid them.

Martha stood up and walked towards them, “Who are you?”

Magnus chuckled, “You can’t take a few guesses?”

Annalise groaned on the ground causing Bartosz to run towards her side, “Anna!” He looked over her and caressed her face, “It’s okay. You’re okay. Where does it hurt?”

Annalise reached her hand down towards her side. She groaned as he touched it, “Ow...Ow. Ow.” Tears welled up in her eyes.

Mary screamed as she walked into her family’s part of the hideout. There her older Bartosz, her husband, held their dead baby in his arms crying. He looked at her pleadingly, “Please, Annalise. Forgive me.”

Mary screamed at him, “What did you do?!”

“I had no other choice, Annalise please.”

Martha stared at the man and whispered, “Magnus?” She gasped as he stared at him, “You’re from the future.”

Magnus nodded, “But not from yours. They lied to you. Your older selves. They want the apocalypse to happen. They’re the ones responsible for it happening in the first place. But there is a way to change everything.”

Annalise struggled out, “Liar! You’re just working for Adam.”

Bartosz cooed at her, “Shhhhh. Anna… Please. You’re hurt. You are only going to keep hurting yourself. Shhhh.”

The older Bartosz looked sadly at his wife, “Please don’t look at me like that. She said I had to or else he’d die anyway.”

Mary rushed at him and started to hit him, “Liar! She would never do this to me.. MARTHA WOULD NEVER!” She stole her dead Jonah from him. She cried over his small body. 

Franziska looked from the couple on the side of the road then looked at Martha and said, “But you have to choose our world and trust in him. Jonas.”

Bartosz started to question them as well. Annalise could see it on his face as Martha asked, “Jonas? He’s alive?”

“In our world,” Franziska nodded, “And he knows what the origin is.”

Mary trembled as she realized, no. Eve could, and Eve would. She started to realize everything was just Eve’s fault. She had been using her just as she used Jonas, but to what end. Mary sneered at him and said, “Of course in the end you would choose her. I hope you rot in the hell you both made.” She walked away from him to go to Eve’s office.

Franziska continued, “But before that, you must save Jonas from the apocalypse in his world and bring him into your world.”

Bartosz stood up and growled, “All of you are crazy, you know that?!”

Magnus stepped towards the girl and said, “You can’t stop what’s happening now, but...if you come with us, you can prevent it. Another time.” He took out the orb and held it towards Martha.

Bartosz helped Annalise up and asked, “What is that?”

Martha stared into her other worldly brother’s eyes. She panted as she tried to figure out what to do. What was the best step. Who should she trust? What should she do?

Bartosz’s voice cut through the noise in Martha’s head, “Martha what’s going on here?”

Martha walked towards them and turned towards her two closest friends, “you have to come with us.”

“Come with you where,” Bartosz asked.

Franziska spoke up as Magnus got the orb ready, “They aren’t one of us. They work for the others. She will save them.” Franziska nodded towards Annalise. 

Martha looked between the two groups unsure of who to go with or who to trust. She looked at her friends and whispered, “I’m sorry.” She disappeared in a cloud of ashes and ember.

“It’s time,” Eve spoke to her group, “Adam has moved each of his tokens into position. It is time that we do the same.”

Mary burst into the room angry with her Bartosz trailing behind her, “You MONSTER! You LIED TO ME.” She growled and launched herself at Eve. 

Eve laughed as everyone else left the room to leave them alone. She shook her head, “I did no such thing. This was all just a test for you, don’t you see that?”

Mary screamed, “You killed my son!? After everything I had done for you! I made your damn machine for you! I traumatised myself for you. I worked years and years for you. Blindly trusting you. You separated me from Bartosz for years to motivate me to make the machine work! I helped convince someone I was an angel with the son you had my husband have after me so that we could have your dad’s brother killed! Who even does that?! Why me?!”

Eve sighed, again, she chose Jonas in the end just like every cycle. Annalise chose Bartosz. As her heart slowly broke, she spoke, “I am so sorry you see it that way, but I want to hear it from you. Say what you are truly feeling deep inside your heart. Tell me.”

The younger Eve took over speaking to the rest of the group, “This knot has given us all life and we are its keepers. In both worlds. He’ll never be able to untie this knot. In all these years, he’s never understood how everything is connected. How it all ends and begins. Not only in our world, but in his as well. We are destiny. We raise the walls of this labyrinth. Each of us shapes the paths and extend their hand. Bartosz, you must help save yourself and Annalise to save our lives. Claudia, you must guide yourself to be our eyes in the other world. Egon, you must create your past to preserve the family tree. Noah, you must bring love and friendship... To start everything anew. Every darkness is followed by light. With every death comes life.” The younger Eve opened the portal for them.

In Adam’s world, Martha pleaded with the scarred man, “You brought me into your world. You promised me we could change this. Why are you doing this?” She struggled against her chains crying. She sobbed and asked him, “Where are the others? Where did you send them?”

Adam’s raspy voice grated in the air, “They are all fulfilling their destinies. Magnus and Franziska. Charlotte and Elisabeth. Silja and Agnes. They’re sustaining the cycle’s life. So that you and I exist here, now.”

“What are you saying,” She shook her head in confusion.

Adam looked at the ghost of Annalise dancing around them and looked back at her, “This is the end we’ve reached. What’s growing inside you, the origin, must die. But it can’t be killed by normal means. It’s born of both worlds and so the energy of both worlds is necessary to destory it. The apocalypse in my world...and the apocalypse in your world. This here is the end. A machine that crosses not only time, but space as well. Which then focuses the energy of both apocalypses on one concentrated point. This spot. Your son only exists because the matter exists. Now, through it, he will die, and all of us with him. None of this will exist anymore. Both worlds will erase one another. Absolute annihilation.”

Martha shook her head. She looked at him with sorrow for him, “You’ve gone insane.”

Adam slowly walked towards her, “There is no hope. No salvation. No paradise.” He took Annalise’s necklace from her, “We were wrong. You and I. In your world, and in mine.” He walked away from her.

“Jonas,” She called out to him, “JONAS! Jonas, please don’t do it. Jonas.”

Adam closed the door to prevent him from still hearing her call his old name. A name he had not associated with himself in a long time. A name when he was still Annalise’s. As she cried, he sighed knowing what he had to do. He turned it on and watched her struggle.

The beginning is the end and the end is the beginning. Every connection in one world must also be closed in the other world. Everything is interconnected. In the light and in shadow.

Slowly, all of Eve’s foot soldiers reached where they were to go. Older Noah to Sylvie and Elizabeth, Helge and Egon back to the past, Claudia to her other self, and Older Bartosz to Annalise and his younger self. Ulrich going into the past to stop Mads from dying.  Older Jonas creating the machine while young Eve went to place the note. The Unknown going to help create the end. 

Mary screamed, “ADAM WAS RIGHT. There is no salvation! You are the monster and this should end. All of this should end. There is no paradise! There is only pain!”

Just as a gunshot rang out deep in the cavern walls, The Unknown all yelled out desperately, “MOM!”

[elsanna-shenanigans]

August Contest Submission #4: Crown of Thorns

Words: ca. 1,600 Setting: Canon Lemon: Lime CW: Mentioned kristanna and elsamaren, pregnancy, language

AN: For those that aren’t aware, crown of thorns is a species of flowering plant that is associated with Jesus. Unfortunately, the plant can’t survive below 50 °F/10 °C so its inclusion as the title is only metaphorical.

–

  Elsa woke, a heavy ache in her chest. She expected it, even felt it last night as declarations of love tumbled from her lips. Her heart was breaking, and she knew she only had herself to blame. She never should have let this happen, never should have given in to her desires. She was corrupted, plagued with vile thoughts, and twice cursed. Her powers may have been accepted by the people of Arendelle and Northuldra, but the feelings she had- that she had acted upon- would never be. As the ache grew into self hatred, she sat up and threw her legs over the side of the bed.

  “Morning,” came the soft voice behind her.

  Elsa’s breath hitched as a hand made its way languidly down her naked back. She closed her eyes, briefly allowing the sensation to overcome her senses until a yawn filled her ears.

  “Anna,” she said without looking at the other occupant in her bed, “We can’t do this anymore.” The pain of saying it aloud nearly crippled her. She wanted to fall back into her lover’s arms, to say she didn’t mean it. Instead she braced herself for the protests she knew would come.

  The bed shifted beneath her as her younger sister sat up. Elsa imagined the sight of Anna’s tangled hair, freckled shoulders, pert breasts, and the small swell of her belly. She opened her eyes and reminded herself of their reality. They could not be. Especially now that Anna was with child.

  “Elsa,” Anna’s voice broke through her thoughts as two arms began to snake around Elsa’s abdomen.

  Elsa immediately stood up and walked to a plush reading chair in the corner of the room. She looked up at her sister. Anna looked pained, but Elsa held strong. She knew she was doing the right thing, even if ending their relationship hurt.

    “Els-”

  “No, Anna,” She said firmly. “We cannot keep doing this. You have a husband. You’re expecting a child-”

  When Anna told Elsa she was pregnant, it came as a shock. She had known, in some distant, nebulous way, that Anna would have to produce an heir at some point. As Arendelle’s former sovereign, Elsa once held that burden, even though she had known she never would for fear of passing down her powers. When she stepped down to remain in Northuldra as the Fifth Spirit, that burden fell to Anna. And everything looked to be going well for a time. Anna and Kristoff were engaged, Elsa was happy in Northuldra, and she was even beginning a relationship with Honeymaren.

  Until a few months before Anna’s wedding. Elsa’s visits home increased during the months leading up to her sister’s nuptials to help with work and planning, and something changed between them. After a confession of loving Elsa more than anyone, including Kristoff, Anna realized that her love was both familial and romantic. And Elsa returned those feelings.

  The night of her wedding, Anna excused herself from the ball in order to drag Elsa out to the chapel, a maniacal grin plastered on her face. When they arrived, Elsa completely confused, Anna produced two bouquets of purple and yellow crocuses.

  “If I can’t properly marry you in daylight, then I’ll marry you in secret at night,” she’d said. The vows that followed promised everlasting love and devotion and were sealed with a kiss.

  Even as Anna was whisked away later to fulfill her marital duty, she promised Elsa that they would be together soon. And they had been. For nearly a year, they carried on their affair in secret. Until Anna’s pregnancy reminded them of her obligation to the kingdom.

  The thought of Anna being with Kristoff made her stomach turn. Elsa hated thinking about them together. No matter how many times Anna assured her that she felt nothing but friendly fondness for Kristoff, Elsa’s knowledge of their intimacy caused jealousy, regret, and pain. Elsa pushed those feelings aside now and turned her attention back to her sister as Anna shook her head.

  “I’m doing that for Arendelle, Elsa. I’m doing it for the kingdom; it’s not what I want.” Her younger sister’s eyes pleaded with Elsa to understand. “I want you.”

  Elsa breathed in deeply before exhaling. “Anna, are you telling me that you do not want your child?”

  “I-” Anna’s face contorted into a pained sadness. “I- I do want my child. But why can’t I have you too?” She moved to the chair and kneeled down in front of her older sister, taking Elsa’s cold hands into hers. “Why can’t I have both?”

  Elsa untangled their hands. “Because it isn’t right, Anna. What we’re doing isn’t right.”

  “Why? Why was it okay before but it isn’t now? Help me understand, Elsa, please.” Anna’s teal eyes shone with unshed tears.

  Elsa glanced down at Anna’s belly. “You belong with Kristoff. He’s the father of your child.”

  Anna shook her head again. “You know I want you. Kristoff is… he’ll be a fantastic father, but you know I don’t love him. My heart doesn’t belong to him. It’s yours.”

  Elsa stood and walked back towards the bed. “No, it doesn’t. It can’t. Anna, we can’t stay together.” Each word was like a dagger, especially after Anna’s profession, but she knew it would be for the best.

  “Why are you doing this, Elsa? Why are you taking our happiness away?” Tears rolled down Anna’s cheeks and she stood behind her sister. Elsa anticipated Anna reaching out and turned to stop it. The sight of her sister crying broke her further, but she remained steadfast.

  “Because it was never our happiness to share,” she said coldly as she willed an ice dress to form around her pale body. “We were never meant to be anything but sisters. You may not understand my reasoning, but I am doing this for you. For your family.”

  Anna grabbed a robe from the floor where it’d been discarded the previous night. “You’re my family, Elsa.”

  “No. Your family is here,” Elsa allowed herself to reach out and briefly touch Anna’s cotton covered abdomen before walking to the balcony doors, opening them. “And here.” She looked out upon Arendelle with a sad smile.

  Anna walked over and stood next to her. “You’re also my family, or are you going to deny our sisterly relation too,” she spat, her emotions turning to anger.

  Elsa turned to her. “I could never deny you, Anna.”

  “Then stay with me.” A brief hope filled Anna’s eyes.

  “I must deny that. It’s for your own good, Anna. One day you’ll understand.” Elsa kissed her sister’s forehead before walking back towards the bedroom door.

  “You’re a damn martyr, Elsa. You know that? You are choosing to be unhappy. You’re choosing wrong. What about our vows to each other?” Anna’s anger simmered. “You promised to love me.”

  “And I will always, Anna; but, love isn’t enough for us,” Elsa said from the door.

  “You’re a damn martyr,” Anna repeated.

  Elsa chortled. “Like Joan.”

  “No,” Anna shook her head. “Joan died for what she believed in. I take it back. You’re not a martyr; you’re a goddamn coward.”

  “That may be true,” Elsa frowned. “But my whole life has been about sacrifice, and this is simply another.”

  “Fuck that, Elsa,” Anna stomped to her. “You don’t have to sacrifice this. I can be yours and you can be mine.”

  Elsa sighed and closed her eyes. When she opened them, her face looked peaceful. “Be good, Anna. I promise to visit when the baby is born.”

  Anna shook her head again, more fervently than before. “No, I don’t accept this. You can’t leave me. You can’t.”

  Elsa smiled softly. “I love you, Anna.” She began to walk down the hall.

  “Fine!” Anna poked her head out, her face red with rage as she cried. “You coward! Coward! Don’t you dare come back. I hate you.”

  Elsa finally allowed her own tears to fall as she left the castle.

  In the months that followed, Elsa tried to move on. She found herself in Honeymaren’s lavvu often, though she always left unsatisfied. As fond as she was of Honeymaren, she wasn’t Anna. Honeymaren eventually realized this and allowed their relationship to fizzle, though they remained friends.

  After learning of her niece’s birth in a note from Kristoff that Gale delivered, and with encouragement from Honeymaren, Elsa got up the courage to visit her sister. She hoped that she would be forgiven.

  Outside of her sister’s bedroom, Elsa fidgeted. What awaited her? Was she doing the right thing? Anna’s words from their last meeting echoed in her mind. She no longer wanted to be a coward. She inspected the purple and yellow crocuses in her hand to make sure they were perfect. Then she lifted her empty hand and knocked.

  “Come in,” came her sister’s lilting voice.

  Elsa opened the door and stepped in. Her eyes met Anna’s, and there was a silent allowance to stay.

  Anna put her daughter down in her bassinet, and Elsa realized for the first time that they were not alone. “May I?” She gestured to her niece.

  Anna nodded.

  Elsa walked forward and peeked into the bassinet, and a smile spread across her face. “Anna, she’s beautiful,” she whispered, looking back up at her sister.

  “Thank you,” Anna smiled back. “I’m biased, but I think so too. Her name is Merit.”

  “Merit,” Elsa repeated. “I love it, Anna. She’s perfect.”

  Anna was silent as she watched Elsa watch her newborn.

  Elsa straightened. “Anna, I’m sorry. I never should have said what I said to you, and I never should have stopped visiting.”

  Anna’s face was unreadable for a moment, and Elsa wasn’t sure if she said the right thing. Just as she opened her mouth to say more, Anna spoke.

  “Are those for me?”

  “What?”

  “The flowers. Are they for me?” Anna prompted gently.

  Elsa nodded and held them out.

  Anna took them with a smile.

[lotusthekat]

Say Hello to Heaven

Fandom: Fullmetal Alchemist (2003)

Rating: T

Relationships: Alphonse & Edward

Characters: Alphonse Elric, Edward Elric; other characters are only mentioned

Summary: “Brother?”

He hears Rose call out his brother’s name too.

Yet all Alphonse sees is red.

And fading golden eyes that look at him. Ed spills out blood.

Then his brother falls back, bleeding endlessly.

Rose screams.

No.

No. No. No. Not him.

Not again. No.

*Takes place at the end of FMA 2003 and later post-Conqueror of Shamballa.

Word count: 1.155

AO3 / Fanfiction

A/N: FMA 2003 and CoS came into my house, stabbed my heart and kicked me in the gut :)

*Title was taken from Say Hello 2 Heaven by Temple of the Dog

TRIGGER WARNINGS - canonical character death, blood, self-sacrifice, suicidal thoughts and trauma.

PLEASE DO NOT SHIP THE ELRIC BROTHERS.

--

“Brother?”

He hears Rose call out his brother’s name too.

Yet all Alphonse sees is red.

And fading golden eyes that look at him. Ed spills out blood.

Then his brother falls back, bleeding endlessly.

Rose screams.

No.

No. No. No. Not him.

Not again. No.

“It can’t be! There’s no way brother can be dead!”

Envy laughs at his demise, at everyone’s disgrace.

“Brother can’t die! That’s not right!”

Ed is gone.

He’s…

“Brother! Brother !”

“This is real life,” Dante says. “Perhaps he just hadn’t paid enough. We always come off just a little short of the price.”

No.

It’s not fair!

Ed didn’t deserve it! Ed could never!

Al should have…!

He should’ve…

Much like the guilt and the grief, Al is eaten piece by piece by the famished bites from Gluttony. The red of the Philosopher Stone shines through his empty armor.

Al can’t be bothered by the Homunculi or by anything else.

Brother…

Edward…

It should’ve been me.

I should have died.

Then you wouldn’t…

…

No.

He won’t allow it.

Al claps his hands together, decomposing Gluttony’s mouth. His entire body shines red. His determination, his grief, his regret… his love.

He’s been used time and time again, so his brother comes to save him. And Ed suffered for it, for Al and his stupidity. Ed can’t possibly die for him.

Dante tries to stop him and say the same absurdities, but Al is done, he’s done making mistakes, being manipulated, he’s done.

Alphonse finally walks to Ed’s fallen body.

“What do you think you’re doing?”

Pools of blood dirty his metal feet, Ed’s empty eyes staring back at him.

Although it’s hard to see…

He’s not gone.

Not yet.

Al can change that.

He ignores Dante, and once Envy is ready to strike, Al claps his hands one last time.

“Watch out.”

Bright red surrounds the theater and blinding blue comes out from his hands against Edward’s chest.

“Brother…”

Brother

Brother!

--

The light is gone.

It’s all dark, save for a dim light from outside.

Alphonse is…

He’s not… a Philosopher Stone.

Nor is he made of metal, bound to his brother’s blood.

Al frantically touches his own face, his hair, his clothes, the covers that embrace him…

He’s home.

But…

It’s not Resembool.

Oh.

Right.

But what if—

Al has no time to finish the thought, for his legs move before it. Even so, millions of what ifs, the reds staining his head, his hands, the endless pools of red to suffocate his yells—

He almost knocks down the door beside his room, even a little hopeful by the warm light that illuminates inside…

“Whoa, what the heck!?”

Al halts.

Ed has dropped his book and prepared himself to fight.

“Al?” The older Elric softens. “What is it?”

He doesn’t respond.

Ed was just reading in his bed, wearing the same clothes as earlier. His hair though is down and messy; it’s been a quite common look for him, no longer braiding his blond locks. So many books are filling the bed, some have fallen on the floor – it reminds Al of when the two of them would steal their father’s books and study alchemy when Mom wasn’t looking.

His older brother still wears the automail, the most advanced one Winry has given him. The last remainder of Resembool they have.

But most importantly, he’s alive. He’s there. He’s not far away on the other side. He’s so near. So, so near him.

“Al, what’s wrong?” Ed jumps off his bed, though he hesitates as Al shakes.

He’s shaking so terribly, that if he were an armor, he’d probably make the loudest metal noise. It used to be the only way he could communicate he was in distress. Either that, or he’d be gone again.

Why is he distressed, though? Ed is fine. His brother is safe.

He’s not bleeding, he’s not gone. He isn’t…

“Al-?”

“Brother!”

Al runs, the fastest he can, and meets his brother just a few feet away. They almost fall back, but then Al remembers he’s not huge like before. He also remembers he can actually touch his brother now.

He holds onto Ed like a lifeline, when he couldn’t reach his hand while he disappeared. Al squeezes him the tightest – maybe the Gate won’t take him. Maybe Envy won’t kill him again. Maybe nothing is going to happen this time.

“Al. Al,” Ed calls him again, more serious, “what happened? Are you okay?”

Despite all the words racing in Al’s mind, the only response he has is… tears. Sobs. He cries like he was a child.

He is still a child, right?

“Whoa, hey, hey…” Ed hugs him back, even if confused. “Al…”

He’s warm.

He’s still warm and colorful and himself. His hands are gentle and his hair smells like his old shampoo…

Not dead. Not dead. He’s not dead.

“Brother… Brother, you’re- I’m—” Al can’t even speak right in midst of his weeping, his aching and grieving sobs.

“You’re okay, Al. You’re going to be okay.”

His hands turn into fists against his brother’s shirt.

“No, I won’t! I-I let you die !”

His brother stills.

“Y-You died because of me!” Al cries. “B-Because I was s-so dumb, so stupid… you were dead, and I didn’t do anything…”

“Al…”

“Y-You were bleeding… so much… it was all I could see,” Al somberly whispers, “and I was just lying there, I did nothing until it was too late…”

“Alphonse,” Ed’s voice raises even if slightly, and yet Al flinches. He almost lets go, almost runs away. But Ed doesn’t let him, as he stops him by his shoulders, forcing them to look at one another. They’re still so close, though.

“I-I’m sorry, Ed,” Al says hopelessly.

Ed shakes his head. “There’s nothing to apologize for.”

“I-I could have saved you…”

“You did. You saved me, Al.”

“But you ended up here…”

“That was on me. Because I couldn’t stand the thought of you gone.” Ed’s automail fingers reach his tears, gently wiping them. “I couldn’t be home without you.”

“Why ?”

Al doesn’t actually say it, but he can’t help but think he shouldn’t have come back still.

And yet…

“Because you’re my home, Al.”

The sentence shouldn’t have shocked him, Al reminds himself. But after everything he did wrong… all Ed wants is to be with him.

That’s enough to make him cry harder, like waterfalls are coming out of his eyes.

“Y-You’re my home too!” Al weeps, launching himself back to his brother’s arms.

“I promise you I’m not going anywhere.” Ed buries his face in Al’s shoulder. “We’ll be okay.”

Al hopes. God, he hopes so.

He makes a mess of tears in Ed’s clothes, but not that his brother really cares about that.

Later that night, Ed and Al fall asleep in each other’s arms, in midst of the many books.

They truly are home.

[ivarthebadbitch]

Strange things can happen

Chapter 4 summary: Ivar supplements his diet. Aldreda delivers an ultimatum.

Canon divergent, everybody lives, arranged marriage AU after 4x14. Read this chapter on Ao3.

Previous chapters: [1] [2] [3]

On Ao3: [1] [2] [3]

Pairings: Ivar x OC, Ivar vs. basically everyone

Warnings: None

Word count: 1739

Tagged: @youbloodymadgenius @heavenly1927 @nukyster-blog @bae-roman (let me know if you’d like to be tagged)

CHAPTER 4: Matthew 6:9-13

Ivar had a pair of unwelcome visitors the morning after his father had left. Aethelwulf, with a skinny and rather nervous-looking priest trailing behind him, had interrupted him in the middle of his chess game and sent Alfred out with a few words. Then he took a seat across from Ivar and folded his hands.

“I will speak plainly with you,” his father-in-law began. “I did not approve of this marriage. I do not like your father, and I do not like you. But the king has made his decision and you are lawfully married to my daughter, and I will abide by it. However, if you are to live among us, then you must conform to our way of living. It is no fault of yours that you were born a heathen, but now you have the opportunity to learn the true religion.”

Without waiting for an answer, he beckoned for the priest to come forward, and then stood up and gave Ivar a hostile smile. “This is Father Wilfred. He is to give you your first lesson today.”

After Aethelwulf was gone, the priest took his seat and handed Ivar a small book. Ivar frowned and flipped through the pages, skimming past indecipherable writing and small pictures of rather miserable-looking saints. He had learned everything he needed to know about the Christians and their false god from Floki and his mother, but he had never held such an object before. He was not particularly impressed.

“I brought you a prayer book,” Father Wilfred said in fairly good Norse. “I know it means little to you now, but in time you will learn and we may read it together. I thought to begin with the Lord’s Prayer from the Gospel of Matthew, chapter six—”

Without breaking eye contact with the priest, Ivar took one of the pages and slowly tore it from the book. Then he stuffed it in his mouth, chewed a few times, and swallowed. It tasted absolutely horrible, but the look on Father Wilfred’s face was worth it.

“...chapter...chapter six—uh, verse nine…” he trailed off. He stood up abruptly. “Maybe we should revisit the lesson later. You can keep the book.”

Once the priest was gone, Ivar tore out a few more pages and scattered them on the floor just because he felt like it. Aethelwulf could pick them up if he wanted. Then he turned back to the chessboard and began plotting out his next move for whenever Alfred returned. This time, he would win for sure.

                                                              ***

Aldreda had never held great hopes for a romantic marriage. Even as a child, she had understood her role as a princess of Wessex: she would marry a man of her grandfather’s choosing in order to secure an alliance, and then she would have his children—preferably male, and preferably many. Whether there was love between her and her husband was of no particular relevance. The most she had dared wish for in a husband was companionship and mutual respect, and that he would not be forty years her senior.

For the moment, the main point in Ivar’s favor was that he was not forty years her senior. In all other matters, he had been less than impressive, especially after a few nights of lying next to him in bed in total silence. Still, her grandfather had been right to say that it would take time for them to get to know each other. Perhaps she just needed to reserve her judgment for now and give him another chance.

Aldreda tried to hold that thought as she joined her family for dinner that evening. She smiled at Ivar as she took her seat beside him. He gave her a look of sheer misery in response, and her desire to be more gracious towards him immediately evaporated. He didn’t have to pretend to be wildly in love with her, but it was no excuse to act like this. Fine, she told him in her head. Sulk as much as you want.

He couldn’t have been that sad, though. She watched as his eyes followed a servant girl around the room. He motioned her over, holding out his cup, and as she poured him more wine he reached out with his free hand and groped her with a sly grin on his face. The girl turned bright red, pressed her lips together, and walked away quickly.

Aldreda glanced around the table to see if anyone had noticed. Her stepmother was talking to her grandfather, and Aethelred was in the middle of a conversation with their father. Only Alfred was staring at her and Ivar with wide eyes. She shook her head at him and then looked over at Ivar, who was happily drinking his wine. She had done her best to be tactful and courteous and accommodating. Now her patience was at an end.

So she waited until everyone was done eating and the plates had been cleared away. Her father took Aethelred and Alfred out to the yard to train before it got too dark, and her grandfather went to his bath and her stepmother to the library (and possibly later to the bath to join her grandfather, Aldreda supposed, but she wasn’t supposed to know anything about that). 

Once they were all gone, she got up and motioned for the guards to take Ivar and follow her back to their room. She waited until the door was fully shut and then she stood there and watched with her arms crossed as he made his way over to the bed, heaved himself onto it, and started undressing for the night. In the beginning, they both had been somewhat embarrassed to undress in front of each other, but after a couple days they mutually decided to simply pretend the other person didn’t exist. 

He finally realized she was watching him by the time he had unstrapped the leather braces he wore around his legs. “What?” he asked her sullenly in English. It was the most he had said to her in days.

“If you touch a servant girl again,” she said in Norse so he could be sure to understand her, “I will—” what was the word for annul, did the Northmen even have such a concept? “—finish the marriage.”

Even if her accent was poor, the meaning must have been clear enough, because Ivar looked startled. “I will say—” she began once more in Norse, and then switched to English. “I will tell everyone you were incapable of doing your duty as a husband, and you will be free of me and I of you.”

He stared at her with wide, panicked eyes. “No!” he snapped. “You can’t.”

“I can,” she said. She leaned back against the door. “You can tell them whatever you like, but I’m the granddaughter of the king, and they will believe my word over yours. It won’t even be a lie. In the beginning I thought perhaps you did not understand what was expected of you, or maybe even that you did not like women at all, but now I think that isn’t so. I think you won’t do it with me because you can’t.”

From across the room she could see his expression darkening, and she was suddenly glad for the space between them. “Shut your mouth,” he muttered at her in Norse, but it was clear that no denial would be forthcoming. Instead he fixed his gaze on the floor.

“I have a proposal for you,” she said, softening her tone slightly. “I will let the marriage continue and I will say nothing. In return, you will never tell me what to do or where I can go. In any disagreements with my father or grandfather, you will always side with me. You will never lay a hand on me without permission. And you will not bother any of the serving girls ever again. Do you agree?”

He gave her a fierce glare, but then his shoulders slumped and she could see he had no real will to fight her. “Yes,” he answered in English after a long moment. “I agree.”

After another moment, she finally crossed the room and took a seat on the bed beside him. “Does anyone else know?”

He glanced at her and then quickly looked away. His cheeks were red. “My brothers,” he replied. “I try—tried with a serving girl. But—”

“Your father didn’t know.”

He shook his head. “He left when I was a boy, and I hadn’t seen him in years,” he explained in his own language. He looked down, picking at a loose thread on his pants. 

“And you didn’t bother to tell him before marrying me.” She had given up trying to communicate in Norse with him by now, but in fairness, he wasn’t attempting English anymore either.

He glared at her once again. “They laugh at me already. If you were me, would you give them another reason?”

“I suppose not,” she had to admit. “But it does not give you the right to behave as you have behaved. You are like a child. Is this how you act at home?”

“You have no right to lecture me. I am your husband.”

Aldreda raised an eyebrow. “I seem to recall that we came to an agreement about that just a few minutes ago; have you already forgotten?”

He rolled his eyes at her but did not contest it, and after a moment, she sighed. “I will refrain from lecturing you,” she said. “But you will hold up your end of the bargain.”

He gave her a thoughtful look. “You have an easy way out of this,” he observed. “Why would you want to stay married to me?”

She shrugged. “A daughter must do as her father says until she marries, and then she must do as her husband says. I did not expect to marry you—no more than you expected to marry me—but I would rather come to an arrangement with you than take a chance on another husband who would be less accommodating. And besides, you might decide to become a Christian in time.”

Ivar actually laughed at that, and despite it all, she could not quite stop herself from smiling. “Or you may become a heathen, and together we will make sacrifices to Odin in your grandfather’s hall,” he said with a grin. “Who knows? Strange things can happen.”

[theoriginalcarnivorousmuffin]

This is a bit random but if characters from your fics lived in the Atla universe what element would they bend? Personally I think Lily would still have all her powers which would result in people thinking she's the avatar even though she's not, Obito would be a firebender, Minato an airbender and Lenin dearest would be a waterbender/bloodbender/maybe the avatar?. This is just the vibe I get tho-

Who needs bullet points when we can do a far too thought out AU that spans multiple fandoms/recursive works that will never happen? 

More to the point, elements in AtLA is a mix of personality (we see earth benders as often brash and stubborn, water benders as adaptive, etc.) but also simply genetics. So, while I get that’s kind of the point of this post, it’s a bit weird to me to assign an element solely on personality. 

So with that, let’s get started.

The Setting

Just to make things fun let’s make our AU take place sometime between Sozin’s first comet and Roku’s death and Aang awakening from that iceberg. The air benders have been wiped out, seemingly with no survivors, the South Pole has been invaded and the water benders from there captured and brought back to the Fire Nation, many of the colonies in the Earth Kingdom have been established, but the North Pole and great cities in the Earth Kingdom still stand.

The Avatar hasn’t been missing for one-hundred years yet, but he’s been missing for decades and people are coming around to the idea that maybe he’s really not going to show up. 

Wizard Lenin/Tom Riddle

In this AU we’ll give Tom Riddle a slightly more traditional shitty background. Since we can’t really have a Tom in the AtLA universe he’s going to have the AtLA generic equivalent name that canon even jokes about: Lee. Lee is the mixed heritage son of a Fire Nation lord and a water bender from the south pole who grows up in a Fire Nation orphanage. And yes, this does happen in the absolute worst way you can possibly imagine, one of the imprisoned water benders from the south pole is raped.

As for Tom (Lee, you get the idea) arriving at an orphanage instead of being imprisoned/taken in as a son, well I’ll leave that to imagination but we can imagine a relatively compassionate guard, a dash of luck, or perhaps someone being an idiot and thinking “oh just dump it in an orphanage, there’s no way it will turn into a water bender too”

So, Tom grows up in an orphanage and looks just a bit... different from everyone else and is clearly not purely from the fire nation. I’m imagining much darker skin (and POC Tom Riddle is the weirdest thing in the world to contemplate, but here we are) and the pale blue eyes.

Tom grows up, dreaming probably of entering the military and winning himself glory, prestige, honor, and clawing out of this impoverished life he was born into. He undoubtedly desperately hopes he’s a fire bender, as not only is it cool but they have the best chance of making it in the world, and probably stays up late for many nights fruitlessly attempting to shoot fire out of his hands.

Unfortunately for Tom, sometime when he’s probably around eight or so, turns out he’s actually a water bender. Naturally, Tom has a huge meltdown and existential crisis as this means something’s terribly terribly wrong. More, all his hopes are ruined, as while a non-bender can make it a bender who is not a fire bender is a foreigner and traitor to the state.

Tom runs away and being a precocious child is able to make it on his own and about the country probably pulling off Toph-like scams. Eventually he runs into a much younger Hama who has just escaped prison and not yet started on her scary old lady adventures of imprisoning random villagers in caves. Hama goes, “of course, yes my child, I knew your mother” and gives Tom the whole horrible rape tale along with “I will teach you everything I know including my scary blood bending”. So Tom learns scary blood bending, probably stays with Hama a few years, and then realizes Hama isn’t going anywhere.

Hama’s content kidnapping random people into caves. At this point, angry and suddenly very pro-water bender Tom wants to murder the Fire Lord and his entire goddamn family and put himself in charge. Go big or go home, am I right?

So Tom leaves, Hama probably saying, “Come back any time, my beautiful murder child” and probably goes exploring the world in search of how the hell he’s going to bring down the Fire Lord. He also probably murders his entire father’s family and steals all his money, but that’s a different story. I imagine he goes to the North Pole where he learns that, as much of a water bender as he is, that he’s the son of someone from the Fire Nation closes pretty much every door to him. He’ll always be an outsider and the North Pole is very frosty towards him.

According to Hama, the South Pole is in shambles, so Tom probably doesn’t even bother going. 

So Tom probably goes and bums around the Earth Kingdom, loitering in Ba Sing Se and Omashu, looking for that damned Spirit Library in the desert, etc. for a good number of years as he works to perfect his water bending and make himself an instrument of death.

And then he meets an alien and everything changes.

Lily

Tom probably manages to wander around the spirit world at one point in his late teens and probably almost gets eaten by something terrifying. While he learns much it’s not really anything useful and is more in the “too cosmic horror for Tom” variety. More than that though, something follows him back out.

When he comes to back in the real world there’s this thing sitting next to him that looks enough like a person but also like someone told a gifted artist what humans look like and they got it mostly right but also went a little nuts. It’s a girl, a few years younger than him, who has flaming red hair, absurdly green eyes, pale skin, and facial features he can’t recognize for the life of him (Lily still looking western in this to up the ante of ‘she’s an alien folks’).

Tom sacrifices his dinner to it and hopes it doesn’t eat him.

It explains that it’s a tourist from another dimension, beyond even the Spirit World, and that it’s come to see what the mortal world is all about. Tom is naturally very weirded out but at this point decides to roll with it.

Except it doesn’t leave and clearly expects Tom to play tour guide.

He does, reluctantly, because he doesn’t want to be eaten but he also sort of gets used to the thing. Then, one day, it starts bending multiple elements with utter ease and Tom is at first flabbergasted and horrified (only to remember that spirits can do what they want and aren’t like lowly mortals who can only bend one element) and then he gets the idea.

The Avatar, lazy bastard that he is (and Tom might be a little more than slightly bitter that he himself is not the Avatar), appears to be MIA and not coming back any time soon. The entire world it seems is waiting for the Avatar to come and save them. But, Tom says to himself, who needs the Avatar when you can just have an Avatar. An Avatar and, of course, her water bending master.

Thus, the scheme is set, Tom will teach this weird alien thing how to a) act like a goddamn human in public and b) water bending and together they will pretend she’s the Avatar and got lost in the spirit world a few decades ago (which accounts for the youthful age and the weird appearance) and use this to gain allies, topple the Fire Nation, and eventually give the throne to Tom.

Lily, who doesn’t know the difference between being a tourist and taking over a nation, goes along but is basically this story’s answer to Uncle Iroh always getting distracted by Pai Sho.

Haru/Dead Last

Given that they’re in the Earth Kingdom, and that Lee picks up water bending insultingly quickly which makes Tom fume in rage, they go to pick up an earth bending master/spread the word that the Avatar has returned from her multiple decades long vacation. 

Along the way they probably run into Haru, who is the world’s most useless excuse for an Earth Bender. As always, he’s so average looking you can barely remember what he looks like beyond “generic earth bender”. 

They probably watch him for two seconds, Lily asks if this is it, and Tom Riddle says, “what a joke”. 

Minato Namikaze

Given that all the air benders are dead we’re going to make Minato a very talented earth bender (it is also very weird to imagine a dark haired/dark eyed Minato, but I suppose we’re going to roll with it). This also, to me, does fit his personality a little better as while he is a leaf on the wind kind of guy he also does dig his heels in and get very stubborn now and then.

Minato’s young, younger than Tom (Lee), but he’s incredibly talented and clever. To keep his shinobi background mostly in tact I imagine that Minato is a swiftly rising member of the Dai Li, stationed in Ba Sing Se, but who occasionally goes on intelligence missions to the other feudal powers in the Earth Kingdom.

So I imagine Lily and Tom run into him unnervingly frequently, probably first meeting him off duty in Omashu where he does his “extremely polite and friendly local guide” routine to show the pair the city (never mind that Tom insists he’s been to Omashu plenty of times goddammit). Despite this, Lily and Minato become friends, Lily easily confessing she’s the Avatar (which Minato at first thinks is a joke, even if she looks strange, then goes ‘oh my god, it’s not a joke). 

Eventually Minato is stationed to spy on them under the guise of teaching Lily earth bending. So he joins the gang. Tom, who knows exactly what’s going on, is not amused while Lily is just happy to collect another friend who will actually play Pai Sho with her. 

Kushina Uzumaki

Kushina is a earth bender, hands down. I debated making her a water bender (because whirlpool) but that personality is just pure earth bender material. Besides, I can just picture her so easily coming from Kyoshi. 

So Kushina’s an earth bending Kyoshi warrior, who while ten times as powerful as Minato, also lacks any of his control or cleverness. Kushina has undoubtedly left Kyoshi, abandoning their neutrality, to join the war and kick some fire bender ass.

She does this but along the way frequently runs into the gang where she annoys the ever loving shit out of Minato (her new rival) and claims that Avatar Lily is her new idol.

Rabbit

Rabbit is a mysterious spirit from Lily’s past that she refuses to talk about except in the darkest of terms promising doom and destruction the likes of which the world has never seen.

No one knows how to react to this. Or what a plain old ‘rabbit’ even is.

Tobirama Senju

Because no story’s not complete without Tobirama, I imagine he’s a stuffy waterbender and scholar from the North Pole who Tom is miffed at as the man refused to teach him even more water bending. Tobirama naturally feels that the day he teaches a blatant spy is the day he goes and drowns himself. 

Later, when Tom has picked up the Avatar and Tom rubs it in his face, Tobirama probably reluctantly spends a day or so teaching them something/fighting off the hordes of Fire Nation soldiers on their tale (it’s not Avatar if the gang isn’t constantly chased by fire benders).

Obito Uchiha

Obito is the answer to a fire bending instructor. Obito’s a firebender and the youngest son of a wealthy Fire Nation lord. However, Obito’s the black sheep of the family that everyone hates, a late bloomer when it comes to his bending, and is seen as bringing dishonor on the family.

Itching to prove himself, Obito becomes a soldier and goes to the Earth Kingdom, and eventually decides the best way to earn recognition and restore his honor is to capture the newly resurrected Avatar. Congratulations, Obito, you’re this story’s Zuko. 

Obito, while not the most talented fire bender at first (though as he gets older he gets dangerously good at it) is extremely clever and becomes the largest threat to the gang. 

That said, Obito actually does grow to like Lily quite a bit and begins to realize honor doesn’t actually mean that much to him and he doesn’t even really like his family. He doesn’t even dislike the concept of the Avatar and thinks the world probably does need one right about now.

So after a whole bunch of chasing them around the globe, thinking about his family, and being forced to almost kill the Avatar now and then he eventually defects and volunteers himself as fire bending instructor.

This is met with suspicion on all sides but he and Lily are bros so he wins.

Avatar Roku

Needing to pick up air bending, Lily probably fakes it until she makes it for a while, but eventually runs into Avatar Roku’s wandering spirit taking vacation from an ice cube.

He’s alarmed, but Aang’s trapped in ice, so if someone’s going to substitute then great.

To everyone else it just looks like Lily’s constantly talking to herself, playing Pai Sho with herself, and miraculously picks up air bending out of absolutely nowhere.

Also anyone close to Lee probably figures out she’s not really human/the avatar at this point, but they’ll take what they can get.

And This All Results In

Lily learns all the elements, there’s probably some big battle, then Lily gives some ridiculous speech about world peace that has nothing to do with anything and while the Fire Nation is defeated, Tom is not in fact made Fire Lord and remains merely the Avatar’s humble water bending instructor.

Instead, if he’s alive at this point, the crown goes to Iroh and he’s given a council of angry Earth Kingdom people who tell him to behave or else. We can give Iroh niceish things sometimes. That, or, hilariously, Obito becomes hokage/Fire Lord being distantly in line for the throne and doesn’t even know how that happened or what his life even is right now.

The colonies are the same mess in canon so something like Republic City probably eventually comes about.

Still, there’s peace, and probably statues to the gang all over the Earth Kingdom and Water Tribes (while the Fire Nation grumbles and remembers the good old days when they controlled the world). 

And then Aang eventually wakes up extremely confused and confronts Avatar Lily noting, “Hey, I’m the actual Avatar” and Lily after a suspiciously blank pause explains, “I said an Avatar, never said I was the Avatar”

So, that’s that. If anyone wants other specific characters added into this mess feel free to comment. 

[emerywrites]

Child of Moonlight and Alchemy

Fandom: Tangled the Series

Summary: The Moonstone was holding Quirin hostage even after leaving the Dark Kingdom and the Brotherhood behind. It destroyed his life in every sense of the word and refused to let him go. He never expected it to give him something in return.

Rating: PG

Content Warning: canon character death, child neglect

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Haunted Quirin felt haunted. As more black rocks cropped up, their spikes taking homes and lives, it left him and the brotherhood at a loss as to how to stop it. Then there was their king, falling prey to the opal’s madness. Quirin was haunted by the shadow of sanity their king had lost, haunted by ghosts of those who were impaled in their sleep, those who were sealed in by the rock surrounding them, those that were done in by the grief of losing everything they’d known to these rocks that could not be reasoned with.

Adira took it upon herself to start looking into more mythic ways to combat them while Hector seemed to be falling into a madness all his own. Quirin preferred the more practical solution of moving their people toward the outskirts of their kingdom, away from the rocks. But what Quirin had not foreseen was being haunted by the ghost of his sister. She had tried to take the opal herself in an attempt at her own solution. It was an effort to save her husband and her son from its fate. He had tried to warn Edmund of the Queen’s plan but they were too late. Sometimes Quirin heard her voice in his dreams, calling to him. “Brother,” she said in a faraway voice as he tossed and turned one night. “Brother, go to the opal. Brother, it needs you.” Quirin awoke in a cold sweat. “Lorelei.” Quirin didn’t bother with his armor. The voice instilled in him a sense of urgency. It drove him to do nothing more than pull on a pair of trousers and grab his sword. He stumbled from his room and made his way to the Moonstone’s chamber. The guards at the doors were easily disarmed and knocked unconscious. “Brother,” he heard call from inside the chamber. Quirin burst through the doors. The opal had shed its protective shell of black rock and floated upwards. Then Lorelei was there. She stood behind the opal, looking down on it with adoration. “Isn’t it beautiful, brother?” “Yes.” He didn’t know why he’d agreed. It wasn’t beautiful to him. To him it was dangerous and horrid. He wished that the moon had never produced that opal. It brought nothing but destruction and decay. But then Lorelei looked at him with tears in her eyes. They spilled over and ran down her cheeks. On instinct, Quirin rushed forward. He crossed the bridge but stopped at the middle because Lorelei was suddenly there to meet him. He wiped away her tears with the side of his finger. They collected there and solidified into a smaller version of the moon opal. “What is this?” There was something sinister about its gleam. “You must keep it,” she told him. “There will come such a time that you will need it. Until then, hold it close to your heart.” Quirin blinked and she was gone. With trembling hands, he put the smaller opal in his pocket. The next day, Edmund ordered that the kingdom evacuate.

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Nature When Quirin came to Corona, he had decided he was done with the Brotherhood. He wanted no more part in something that had consumed his whole life and left with nothing but heartache. He wanted a new start. Helaine swept into his life like a whirlwind. It was effortless for her. All it took was a smile and he melted. She was a brilliant alchemist who helped her village in any way she could. Everyone came to her for help. Watching her work was like watching someone create art. She delved into her own world when she pulled on her goggles. She deftly measured, poured, examined, adjusted temperatures, all in fluid movements that were second nature to her. It was beautiful. She was beautiful. One day it was a salve for the Widow Cooper’s joint pain. Another day it was adjusting the components of the soil to make it more fertile. And the next day it was building a system to warn them if a pack of wolves was coming too close to the village. Helaine’s work was never done and she liked it that way. Then Queen Arianna became ill and the king sent out a search for the Sundrop to save her. Quirin pulled on his old Brotherhood armor and went to warn him not to use it. The black rocks would seek out the magic of the Sundrop and endanger Corona. But the stubborn king wouldn’t listen. Quirin went home and told Helaine everything about his past. Up until that point he had been as vague as he could be to keep the burden of what he knew from her. It finally boiled over and he told her whatever he knew of the Moonstone and Sundrop. Then he showed her the shard of Moonstone that the vision of his sister had given him. He had put it on a chain and wore it around his neck to keep it close to him at all times. Keep it close to your heart. “I fear what will come now that King Frederic is toying with forces he doesn’t understand,” he said as he undid the clasp and handed her the necklace to examine. Helaine held up the chain and took in the smaller Moonstone that was encased in its own miniature shell the same as the one in the Dark Kingdom. “This is fascinating,” she said, voice full of awe. “If I could just study the-” Quirin snatched it back, feeling that he had just made a terrible mistake. Of course, his wife, ever the curious scientist, would be enthralled by something so otherworldly. The hurt that flashed through her eyes, made him want to soften his reaction. “I’m sorry, Helaine. But its dangerous. It killed my sister and drove her husband to madness. It destroyed my home.” “If it’s caused so much harm, then why do you keep it?” She took his hand and held it securely in her own. The comfort Quirin got from the simple gesture was immeasurable. “I know that the vision I saw wasn’t really my sister, but whether it was good, evil, or something else, it gave this to me. She said that this would be important and I believe her. This stone is my responsibility now.” Quirin regretted ever telling Helaine about his piece of the stone. It was too late by the time he found out she too had visions from the Moonstone. It showed her how to use magic and alchemy to get something they’d both so desired. Helaine replaced his piece of the opal with a fake one she’d created and got to work. Using a sample of her hair, his hair, the Moonstone and a few other ingredients that took her a month and a couple of trips out of town to collect, she was able to do it. Quirin came home one day to find her holding a sleeping baby who looked so much like her but with a streak of blue hair standing out against the dark brown of the rest of it. “What have you done?” Quirin demanded. “We have the child we always wanted,” she insisted with a smile. He ripped off the fake Moonstone and held it up. “You lied to me.” He threw it to the ground and stepped on it. “How could you do this? How could you make that thing?” “This thing is our child!” she argued. “The opal showed me that I could use it to make something so wonderful. It was a gift.” “No! Helaine, don’t you see that it tricked you? Now we have an attachment to it. If there was ever a need to destroy it-” “Don’t, Quirin.” Her voice trembled with desperation that sent him internally reeling. “This is what it wanted.” Something broke between them that day. But as the baby grew, that broken piece was patched over. It was left weak but they managed to work around it. The child slowly worked his way into Quirin’s heart. He regretted the child’s origin but couldn’t help the fondness he began to feel. They lied to the village and told them that they found the child left nearby, on the outskirts of the forest. There were rumors and questions that slowly died out over the years. The boy fell just as deeply in love with science and alchemy as Helaine. Though Quirin was happy to see that he did have an appreciation for farming too. But as much joy as the boy brought them, Quirin felt like he was holding his breath, waiting for the payment that would come for such a crime against nature. He refused to even let his guard down enough to call the child his son. The Moonstone wasn’t a kind and benevolent creature. It wasn’t going to give them something so beautiful as a child without a sacrifice.

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Nurture Then Helaine fell ill. It was something no doctor could explain. She slowly deteriorated before their eyes, over the course of three months. Quirin and the boy sat by her side, comforting her as best as they could. After she was gone, Quirin couldn’t bear to look at the child. That was the cost. Helaine made them a child by using something as volatile as the Moonstone and it killed her. Watching her die only reminded Quirin that the moonstone had tricked Helaine into it to gain a form as sympathetic as a child. He wouldn’t fall for it. A week past that he ignored it. But the continuous, “Daddy, what’s wrong?” and “Daddy, did I do something bad?” and “Daddy, please talk to me!”, were close to breaking him. He couldn’t kill it, that much was clear to him. But if the Moonstone wanted him to keep it close, then maybe he needed to get it as far away from him as possible. He packed up a cart and the boy, then drove to the capital. Quirin walked him all over town, trying to figure out what to do. Everyone was kind enough, someone would care for him, wouldn’t they? Or maybe he needed to go further. The boy may be able to tell them how to get him back home. As Quirin pondered this, he didn’t even notice the boy wander off. Once he looked around for him, the boy was nowhere in sight. He should have felt relief but all that washed over him was dread and fear. Quirin got the attention of a man selling flowers from a cart. “Sir, my son wandered off. Have you seen him? He’s only five-years-old. He has brown hair with a blue streak in it.” He ran around asking everyone he saw if they’d seen his son. It wasn’t until he was asking the fifth person that he realized he’d been calling the boy his son. When someone was finally able to show him into a shop where an old lady had been keeping an eye on the boy, he was overwhelmed with relief. The boy was licking a lollipop seemingly unaffected by the ordeal. Tears stung Quirin’s eyes as he kneeled down to hug him. “I am so sorry, Varian.” Quirin pulled away when he realized Varian wasn’t hugging him back. Varian looked up at him with a confused expression that slowly shifted into a distraught one. “Why were you mad at me?” “I wasn’t mad.” Was that a lie? He didn’t know how to explain something like this to a child. “There is no excuse for how I treated you. I made a mistake.” Too many mistakes. “I hope that you can forgive me.” Varian nodded fervently and hugged him, dropping his lollipop in the process.

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Truth The black rocks encroached on Corona, leaving Quirin at a loss. Varian had been his child for a little over fourteen years and there was no way he was going to risk losing his son. The Moonstone perfectly entwined itself into his life and there was no going back. He had accepted the fact that he would do anything to protect Varian. So, he pretended that the rocks were not a problem. He avoided them and downplayed them until he couldn’t any longer. Then he went to lengths to move their whole village just to protect his son. But Varian didn’t understand. How could he? He didn’t know the horrible truth about what he was. He didn’t know that he was the same as the thing causing all of the destruction they were seeing. He could never know. Maybe it was in Varian’s nature to be drawn to the rocks. Maybe he couldn’t help but go against Quirin’s orders to stay away from them. Either way he experimented on them in defiance of Quirin’s words. As Varian ran to go get help Quirin knew he couldn’t let his son go on not knowing. With there being no solution in sight, Varian needed to know what he truly was. He silently begged Varian to return so he could tell him before being entombed in the amber growing up from the rock. When the table was pushed near him along with the paper and quill, he got to work. He quickly wrote down the explanation of only the necessary information. It was blunt and lacked any comfort or emotion. Quirin didn’t have the time to include reassurances and gentle words. Could he really leave Varian with nothing but the cold, harsh truth? At the very bottom, Quirin quickly jotted in. I’m proud of you, son. I always have been.

[end-of-pizza]

WEIRD ANIME NIGHT

guys, I’m going to level with you. I am running out of weird anime’s I have watched. I want to do these guys every week I really do....and I have a stack of VHS tapes and DVD’s downstairs to dig through that MIGHT have some more gold in them, but it would be SUPER COOL of you if you would DM me some ideas or suggestions to look into in the coming weeks and months now I said I am RUNNING OUT, that doesnt mean I’m empty. Tonight I am going to go on a tangent, and talk about one anime you dudes have LIKELY seen already MOBILE FIGHTER G GUNDAM

You might say to yourself, hey Brian, that show isn’t THAT weird, gundam is a big big robot show, and that is just another cookie cutter big big robo show

BUT YOU ARE WRONG

DEAD WRONG

Mobile fighter g gundam was only the 9th gundam series ever made, and the series it follows Victory gundam is considered one of the darkest in gundams canon, where kill them all Tomino really showed that he earned that name, it wasn’t gifted to him. I mean the shows about a 12 year old who, in its final act fights a giant, moon sized ring full of psychics that try to reduce humanity to animal like stupidity so that they can rule the earth, and also like…..all of his friends die. All of them, most of them children. Victory gundam is dark as shit

G Gundam though? Naw, this show is like two clicks away from being a gundam skin over top of a king of braves show. I mean let me break it down like this. G gundam is about a buncha people, hired by their countries to represent them in a martial arts tournament , with giant robots that used to be used for war, but that war destroyed earth real bad, so instead they still destroy earth real bad with giant robots, but instead of war, its just a boxing match and they make it clear that this ish is bad for the earth like EVERY city is fucked, and whoever wins the tournament, their government gets to be dictators of the world and space for 4 years.

  and its played for laughs

I also want to mention for people who are passingly familiar with Gundam through things like wing or seed etc, and know that gundam has different time lines, THIS is the first alternate timeline, this is the first non UC timeline in the whole of gundam. Imagine if the last few shows were, a war drama about a 14 year old being drafted and getting ptsd, then a sequal where a child psychic also gets drafted then his parents die, then the girl he loves tries to kill him and dies, then a sequal to that where again, a ton of main characters die, then a sequal movie where two of the main characters of the entire show both die, then a show about a boy making a new friend, who turns out to be a soldier, and introducing them to his next door neighbor who turns out to be a soldier, then while trying to help his new friend, his neighbor murders him, ON CHRISTMAS, then he has to just go back to normal life because he kept all of this a secret to everyone.

AFTER THAT ALL WE GET THIS

I mean it took a show that for 20 years had been a dead ass serious war drama, and turned it into well......MMA with robots and dudes (and a few ladies) in latex cat suits using magic to destroy famous land marks

THE WIKI SAYS Unlike previous series in the Gundam franchise which are set in the "Universal Century" timeline, Mobile Fighter G Gundam takes place in an alternate "Future Century" universe.[1][2] Within this timeline, much of mankind has abandoned a ruined Earth to live in space colonies. The countries on Earth have corresponding colonies just outside the planet's atmosphere. Rather than fight wars for political and social dominance, the colonies agree to hold a "Gundam Fight" tournament every four years. Each country sends to Earth a representative piloting a highly-advanced, humanoid mobile fighter called a Gundam. The Gundams compete with one another in one-on-one battles, under a strict set of rules, until only one fighter remains; the nation represented by the winner earns the right to rule all of space for that period.[2] Each Gundam is controlled directly by the user within the cockpit using the "Mobile Trace System", a gesture recognition and feedback mechanism whereby the Gundam mimics the pilot's own body motion, combat skills, and weapon-wielding capabilities.[1]G Gundam opens at the start of the 13th Gundam Fight in Future Century year 60 and follows Neo Japan's Domon Kasshu, fighter of his nation's Shining Gundam and bearer of the coveted "King of Hearts" martial arts crest.[1] Aside from winning the tournament, Domon's mission is to track down his fugitive, older brother Kyoji, who allegedly stole the experimental Dark Gundam from Neo Japan's government, leaving their mother dead and their father (Dr. Raizo Kasshu) to be arrested and placed in a cryogenic state.[3]

Under orders from Major Ullube Ishikawa, Domon and his childhood friend and mechanic Rain Mikamura travel from country to country, challenging each one's Gundam while searching for clues to the whereabouts of Kyoji and the Dark Gundam.[3] Domon's initial matches with Neo America's Chibodee Crocket, Neo France's George DeSand, Neo China's Sai Sai Ci, and Neo Russia's Argo Gulskii end in draws, gaining mutual respect among the fighters.[1][2] As they encounter Gundam pilots who had come in contact with the Dark Gundam, Domon and Rain learn of its unique cellular properties to regenerate, multiply, and evolve by infecting organic matter and causing violent behavior in living things.[3] The duo then journey to Neo Tokyo, a city decimated by the Dark Gundam's army of mobile weapons. Domon reunites with his esteemed martial arts instructor Master Asia, who is also the champion of the last Gundam Fight, the former King of Hearts, and one-time leader of an elite group of Gundam fighters called the Shuffle Alliance. After Domon and Rain help the city's survivors defend their last outpost in Shinjuku, Master Asia reveals himself as a servant of the Dark Gundam, having also gained control over Chibodee, George, Sai Sai Ci, and Argo using Dark Gundam (DG) cells.[2][3] The four remaining members of the Shuffle Alliance intervene and vow to destroy their previous leader for his crimes. Ultimately, the Alliance members offer their lives in purging the DG cells from Domon's four comrades and bestow each of them with a Shuffle Alliance crest as their successors. Kyoji and the enormous Dark Gundam eventually appear from beneath the ground of Shinjuku, but shortly thereafter vanish alongside Master Asia. As the Shuffle Alliance trains in the Guiana Highlands for the Gundam Fight finals, Master Asia and the Dark Gundam reappear.[3] With the help of his friends and a new ally in Neo Germany's masked warrior Schwarz Bruder, Domon defeats the Dark Gundam. When the Shining Gundam becomes incapacitated during the battle, Domon desperately manages to activate a newly acquired God Gundam(AKA Burning Gundam outside Japan), escape Master Asia, and make his way to the finals set in Neo Hong Kong.[2][4]

The Gundam Fight finals are presided over by Wong Yunfat, Neo Hong Kong's prime minister and the current ruler of the space colonies and Earth. Wong chooses to have the qualifying nations battle in one-on-one and tag team preliminary matches to reach a battle royale on Lantau Island, where the tournament is to end with the winner facing the defending champion Master Asia.[2][4] Having gained possession of the Dark Gundam, Wong secretly plots to revive and control it as his trump card to inevitably maintain his own power over space. Domon and his companions make their way to the battle royale while several truths concerning the Dark Gundam are unveiled. Rain's father, Dr. Mikamura, eventually explains that the Dark Gundam (originally called the Ultimate Gundam) was constructed by Dr. Kasshu to rejuvenate the dying Earth. Jealous of his genius colleague, Dr. Mikamura had Neo Japan's officials attempt to confiscate Kasshu's creation. To prevent the military from using his father's invention for its own agenda, Kyoji fled with and crash landed the Gundam on Earth, where its computer malfunctioned, triggering its malevolent activity. Ullube subsequently had Dr. Kasshu arrested, framed Kyoji as a criminal, and used Domon and Rain as pawns in recovering the Gundam.[4] In a separate confession, Master Asia discloses to Domon that, having been distressed by the utter destruction wrought by the Gundam Fights, he planned to use the Dark Gundam to wipe out humanity and allow Earth to heal naturally.[2] The battle on Lantau Island culminates with Domon fatally besting Master Asia in a final confrontation, while Kyoji and Schwarz sacrifice themselves so that Domon can attack the Dark Gundam's cockpit and disable it once again.[4] Though the schemes of both Wong and Master Asia are foiled, Ullube quietly claims the Dark Gundam and transports it to Neo Japan's space colony for his own purpose. Having been corrupted by DG cells with ambitions of supreme power, Ullube kidnaps Rain and places her into the Dark Gundam's core to act as its energy source. The hulking monstrosity then merges with the colony and begins absorbing Earth itself.[2] As the entire world's Gundams unite to assault the Dark Gundam from the outside, the Shuffle Alliance breaks inside the colony and destroys Ullube. Finally, Domon professes his love for Rain and releases her from the core. Invoking the power of the King of Hearts, the couple vanquishes the Dark Gundam once and for all

I just rewatched it like a month ago, its real good, def go watch it

if you are the kind of person who was maybe put off by OG gundams TONE or wing gundams edgy-ness, give g gundam a watch its honestly a good anime, its about as shonen as a shonen can legally get. Also its spiritual successor, the Build series is really good too, really liked Build Fighters Try A LOT, and I guess like.....it might be canon to this reality? its weird. Gundams weird when it comes to canonisity, its sort of all canon kinda.

∀ ∀ ∀ ∀ ∀ ∀ ∀ ∀ ∀ ∀ ∀ ∀ ∀ ∀ ∀ ∀ ∀ ∀ ∀ ∀ ∀ ∀ ∀ ∀ ∀ ∀ ∀ ∀ ∀ ∀ ∀

Also the model kits for this show, and you knew I was going to bring up Gunpla at some point, well they come in two qualities

 AWESOME and brand new

 or shit and 20 years old

So if you collect these things like I do…..get both kinds of their kits

They’re good.

 Have a good one

~Hoover